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xuhuihuis · 8 months

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Maroon | Xu Minghao

➥warnings: dom!minghao, sub!reader, fingering, making out, pussy eating, intense orgasms

The rain hit off of the windows ferociously hitting against the pavement soaking anyone that would walk outside. Running into the apartment as quickly as you could avoid getting wet, leaving Minghao to defend himself trying his best to avoid the heavy downpour holding his jacket over freshly bleached hair. Splashing puddles on the way up the path to the front door digging to the bottom of your bag reaching for the keys scrambling to open the door.

Rain already drenching you both until your hair was sticking to your face and makeup running down your cheeks. The calm summer evening turned for the worst, a leisurely stroll hand in hand with Minghao ended in the both of you running back to the car for shelter. Driving home in a peaceful silence watching the rain bounce off the windows whilst Minghao rests his hand on your thigh still keeping his eyes on the road.

Driving down unfamiliar roads trying to find the way back to the new house only relying on the directions from the maps app on your phone to tell you the way home. Now here you are back at your home running into the house to hide from the rain and not get drenched as it will be impossible to find new clothes in the maze of boxes covering the whole of the house.

It may not look like it now but the house was beautiful with the floor to ceiling windows in every room and high ceilings. This was more than was imaginable. Everything seemed like a fairytale the last couple of days moving into your forever home with your prince…

Minghao appeared from the kitchen holding two glasses and a bottle of rosé ready for both of you to enjoy. Watching him as he comes closer to you taking in his lean figure in the moonlight leaking through the windows. Discarding the shirt before as it was soaked through, silently thanking the rain for this. As he got closer walking closer to you it led your mind wild thinking of all the things you wanted him to do to you.

Draping his arm across your shoulders as he sat on the floor next to you pulling you closer to his side feeling the warmth radiate from his body, curling up closer to his frame. The faint scent of magnolia filled your senses as the sound of rain drops filled the empty living room.

‘Are you okay, my darling?’

Asking with genuine concern at the sound of discomfort he got from you as he moved to place his wine glass onto the box next to him. Mostly everything was moved into the house. Needing to find a place for all of the belongings hiding in the boxes was putting you off doing it completely. That’s the last thing you want to be doing on a Saturday night when it could be spent with your lover, Minghao getting lost in one another.

Being together for four years didn’t mean that the ‘honeymoon’ stage of the relationship never ended with him. Always coming home from work to a bunch of flowers or your favourite treat from the bakery which he took you to on your first date. Minghao always had the best ideas for date nights, he never seemed to run out of them.

Having dates at your favourite restaurant one week to being at the new pottery place painting the next. Taking mental notes anytime something was mentioned that you have been wanting to do Minghao will be the first one to take you to do it. He would move the sun and the stars just to see the smile on your face as he comes home holding a fresh bunch of flowers just for you.

Trying your hardest to pull yourself closer to the man than you could ever be just to feel his warmth, listening to his heartbeat as a way to calm down. Brushing his thumb over the apple of your cheek looking into your eyes with pure love for you.

Hours had now passed catching up on anything you had missed over the week telling the smallest details about the week that wouldn’t matter to the average person but it made you feel closer to Minghao in a way. Listening to you ranting about work letting the hands on your waist run up and down your sides causing the words to stumble catching you off guard. It may look innocent but you can tell he was aching for more just by the look in his eyes clouded with lust. Moving from slouching back to fully sitting up against the back of the couch motioning for you to straddle his lap.

Resting your hands on the back of Minghao’s neck playing with the blonde hair deeply gazing into his eyes. His hands now moving down to your ass holding you down feeling every inch of his hard cock smirking at the reaction you gave him. The peaceful atmosphere in the house was now broken with the greed and passion of your moans.

‘You are so beautiful my darling’

Fuck. Minghao knows how to get you under his spell. Holding you by your chin making sure you never break eye contact otherwise he would leave you high and dry leaving you on the floor aching for him. Before you could think of anything else his plump lips were on yours knocking your breathless holding onto him tighter than before. Tasting the sweet bitterness of the wine off his lips.

It was hard to keep quiet as Minghao’s hands cupped your breasts teasing your nipples from under the dress watching as you arch at the stimulation. Not even moved in a week and the whole street already knows Minghao’s name…

‘Please be gentle…’

He would never hurt you as you are his queen. He doesn't ever want to see you in any pain, always doing his best to make sure you feel so good. MInghao stopped what he was doing to help you up to your feet before swapping places with you making sure there were enough pillows for you to lay on leaving a kiss on your temple. Gently lifting the dress off before you lay down letting out a sigh as Minghao moved to the space inbetween your legs kissing down your body taking his time admiring every curve of your body uttering praises to you. Stopping when he got to the top of your panties waiting for permission from you to continue on.

Every touch from him was gentle, treating you like the finest porcelain. Carefully dragging the lace panties down your legs and onto the floor next to you. Slowly kissing your inner thighs falling in love with the way whines fall out of your mouth. Minghao’s strong hands kept your legs held open as he licked from your entrance to your clit moaning at the taste of you.

Letting your hands reach down and lace into his hair continuing to play with your clit as you squirm under him at the overwhelming feeling. Minghao couldn’t help but moan against your dripping cunt not caring how messy he will end up getting later on. Soon the room was filled with your moans and the sound of slurping. Your frame under Minghao shaking begging to come or even a break. Nothing has stopped him from continuing to eat you out, not even his own orgasm. Poor man came at you pulling on his hair too tight and your moans bouncing off the walls as you were riding his face.

Now two of his long delicate fingers were knuckle deep inside of you as he thumbs your over sensitive clit forcing you to keep eye contact with him. Looking at him thought half lidded eyes to see how his chin was covered in your juices. He knew you weren’t going to last any longer than you have all it too was three words…

‘Cum for me…’

Everything went white for seconds as your body rode out the high but Minghao held onto you through it all. Opening your eyes seeing him smiling up at you running his thumbs over your hips waiting on you coming back to reality before he left to go clean up. Moving from in between your legs to sitting beside you pulling you onto his lap holding you close kissing your temple as you sit in silence.

‘Ill always be here for you….’

#hard hours #k pop smut #kpop hard hours #kpop smut #seventeen smut #seventeen hard thoughts #seventeen hard hours #svt smut #svt hard thoughts #svt hard hours #minghao smut #xu minghao smut #xu minghao x reader

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georgiapeach30513 · 4 months

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A Little At A Time, Part 13

Summary: back to Georgia

Pairings: Andy Barber X Reader

Rating: Fluff

Warnings: Magnolia Mae Barber, 18+ ONLY

Word Count: 6.3K

Series Masterlist

*dividers created by @firefly-graphics

You struggle to sleep anymore. Things are reaching an uncomfortable space of pregnancy. But she is healthy. You gulp, as your fingers weave in Andy’s on your belly. He was always touching your belly. He is going to be the best dad, and you already see it everyday.

He didn’t just come home and greet you, but also made sure you squat down to kiss Maggie. Letting his hands move over the of your belly, telling you how beautiful you are swollen with him. The that came out of his sinful mouth are both ridiculously sexy and the sweetest thing. He followed you around sometimes with his hand on your belly because he needed to hold his daughter so much.

Maggie. You haven't met your angel yet, and you are so in love. You didn’t know how you could love someone you’d never met, but here you are, feeling her roll around in your belly, while her daddy and your husband snuggle up so close to your back. This is the heaven you have always dreamed about. All in one king sized bed.

Even the way he sniffs the back of your neck, as he nuzzles in closer is blissful. His soft little snores behind you, relax you a bit more, despite not being able to sleep. She is perfect. Perfectly yours and Andy’s. You couldn’t wait, and also fear the day that she’s no longer growing under your heart.

The worry you already feel about having a part of you wander around in the world is something that you are working on. Andy is great at trying to calm you down. Makes you look into his beautiful blue eyes as he asks you to count with him. Assuring you that you never have to leave Maggie if you don’t want to. That he would take care of both of you, and he would sleep better knowing you feel more comfortable.

You don’t know what you did to deserve Andy, but you aren’t going to complain. You wanted to hold him as close to you and your daughter as possible. Keep him there forever. Your childhood fears had been wiped away the moment the doctor said that while Maggie needed to cook a bit longer, she would survive if she came early. You were finally going to be a mother, and you would never leave her.

Maggie gives the center of your belly a hard push, making sure that her daddy knows she was in there. Andy’s snores turn more into heavy breathing as his hand pulses under yours. She was always the one to wake him up. It’s like he had a sixth sense that his daughter was moving and being needy. She is hungry, and you’re ready to grab the açai bowl that she had been craving.

Currently, you enjoy hearing your husband in various states of awakeness. He didn’t need an alarm, but he didn’t wake up quickly. It was a weird drawn out process. And since he could feel your daughter, mornings were that much sweeter.

What you didn’t know is Andy prolonged these moments. He wants to engrain every bit of these memories deep inside of him, so no matter what, he couldn’t forget. It is apparent to him that you don’t realize that you hum made up lullabies as the two of you hold Maggie. God, he could listen to your soft whispers to your daughter for hours.

Even with your rumbling tummy, you still thought of him, refusing to do anything that might wake him up. You are the most selfless person he’s ever met, and he wants to protect you and give you everything. Every part of him. And still even that doesn’t feel like it’s enough. You had a man in your life that didn’t understand your worth. What a perfect and amazing human that he had. And he treated you like shit. But because of that, you’re laying in bed with him, his wife, and growing his daughter.

It is almost too much for him to even think about. Those little feet that are pushing up on your belly were your daughter. You two fell in love fast, but it is true love. And Maggie is the product of the most beautiful part of his life. He doesn’t regret the quick marriage, but getting to see you all swollen with him and all dressed in white is something he couldn’t wait for.

After breakfast the two of you were on the road. The car is already loaded up, and he hoped you got some sleep. He tried talking you out of driving down to Georgia, but you insisted. It was going to take a couple of days to drive, but it was a new adventure, you promised. The one where you two, and almost three drive back to those Magnolia trees, and your Papaw ceremoniously gives you away.

When you make a sound of discomfort, Andy knows that he can’t keep prolonging this sweet moment when you and Maggie are hungry, and ready for the small breakfast. You had to eat in increments now. If you ate too much, you swore to him that Maggie had no room to move around.

“Daddy,” the sound of your sweet voice has him fluttering his eyes on your neck. His lashes brush over your supple skin, and you give his hand a hard squeeze as he peppers kisses on your skin. “Your Maggie Mae is starving right now.”

“You can’t blame just the baby. I think my sweet girl is pretty hungry, too.”

“Mmm, I was letting you sleep a little bit longer. You’ve got a long drive.”

“As long as I have you and our girl, I don’t care how long it is. Come on, Peach Bottom, let’s get you and our girl fed, and then daddy will wash you in the shower,” you whine, turning back to look at him. “Honey, just because I want to see you naked doesn’t mean I’m expecting sex. You know being inside of you is just one perk of being your husband, but it’s not the reason I love you.”

“I want to have sex with you though, my body just doesn’t. I have no drive or energy. But I do like watching you,” you tuck your bottom lip into your mouth, and bite down a bit. Andy had become a different beast since you’ve been pregnant. His eyes scanned over your body like you are a work of art. You wish you had the drive or energy to have him, but your desire was to have his sweetness.

“And, you’re getting no sleep. Maggie, do you think you could not press on mommy’s belly so much, and let her sleep?” Mommy. A name your thought would never be uttered in regards to you. And Andy makes sure to call you that every day. Every day he reminds you that he is making you into a mommy, and you’re making him into a daddy.

You groan, trying to sit up before Andy gets up first, and helps. “I’m fine.”

“I know you are, Peaches. You just want me to help you. I get it. Come on, let’s get our coffee and bowls. No more caffeine after this morning, are you sure this is when you want to drink it?” You giggle, pulling yourself out of the bed. He was a stickler with caffeine, but morning is when you always wanted to drink your coffee. It was the best start to your day. Along with watching Andy smirk over his mug.

“Andy, I love you,” your lip trembles as you look at your sexy husband pulling on a shirt.

“And I love you. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, and you’re giving me all that I have ever wanted in this life. A home, a family, and now a baby.”

“And our dog,” you’d settle for a family of 3.5.

“Yes, the one we’re not getting until Maggie can name it herself,” he responds before kissing your lips softly. Leaning forward, he presses his forehead against yours, looking into your eyes. “And she can have whatever kind of dog she wants. But of course, you said no cats.”

“I have this thing against them.”

”And one of these days, you’re going to tell me what it is you have against them, okay?” You whisper out okay before taking his hand in yours, and pulling the two of you into the kitchen. Rolling your eyes when he makes you sit down, and he pulls out the stuff to make your bowl. He keeps his eyes on you while he starts the coffee. Pampering you when normally it’s reversed, saying that you were doing all the work in the pregnancy, and he was going to do all the work in the house. You can’t even believe he’s yours.

“Hey, girlie,” Andy smiles. Your hand had dropped out of his own, so now he holds your belly. “Shh,” he coos at your tummy, keeping his eyes on the road. “You keep mommy up too much. We gotta let her sleep when we can, okay?” He gives your belly a few pulses, and smiles at the countryside.

It wasn’t too much further of a drive, and if you are still asleep, he’s going to drive past your grandparents’ driveway. You look peaceful, leaning back in your new mom car. It had more room and is perfect for the drive down. Not to mention, he you look so sexy in it. He kept imagining what you’ll look like with Maggie in her car seat in the back.

“You know, you and me, we are the luckiest people in the world, Maggie. We get to have your mommy in our lives everyday. I wouldn’t have asked her to stay at home with you, but I’m glad she wants to. You’re going to get to see mommy all day, and when daddy comes home — Maggie Mae, I can’t wait for you to run towards the door screaming for me. You better be a daddy’s girl. Mommy’s best friend, but my girl, do you understand?”

He gives a smile over to your sleeping form; Maggie is reacting to his voice. She isn’t kicking, but she stretches out a bit. He couldn’t wait to meet her, but also loves being able to watch you change for his family.

“I never thought I would ever remarry, Mags. Wanted to. But I couldn’t imagine anyone more perfect than her. I’m going to spoil you two. And maybe, we’ll give you a brother or sister. But we may just think our family is complete with you. And you have woken your mommy up.”

You don’t open your eyes, just giggle, placing your hand on top of his, and the two of you rub over Maggie’s temporary home. “Andy, I think she’s getting a perfect daddy, too.”

”I hope I am. It’s what you both deserve. You see that, honey,” you lift up your seat to see that old dirt driveway come into view. Further away was the entrance to the magnolia field, and Papaw had got everything cleared up nicely. You love your life in Newton with Andy, but there is something magical about coming back here.

”Maggie, one of these days, you’re going to run through these fields, while me and your daddy have a picnic. Waiting on you to just grab a quick bite, and go. Oh, daddy, look!” You point towards the house, smiling when you see Mamaw and Papaw out on the porch. Him with his Swisher Sweets, and a new coat of paint on the house. “Mamaw finally got her wish. I love our life, but it’s refreshing to come back here, right?”

“Yes, honey. It’s nice to get out of the suburbs and come to the country,” he takes a peek past the house, happy you hadn’t seen the clearing. Your eyes are only on your grandparents. Putting the car in park, your Mamaw squeals when you get out. Running towards her, and she screams again.

“Oh, Tip, look at our baby! Oh, this is Magnolia Mae. Oh, baby, you are positively glowing. I am so happy for you, Mrs. Barber,” she gives the biggest smile over to Andy, whispering thank you as she starts dragging you towards the house.

“Mamaw, Andy can’t get all the luggage out.”

“Honey, you go on. I’ll get it, even if I have to make two trips,” he pauses to watch you walk up the stairs, giving your papaw a big hug before you and Ruby walk into the house, leaving Tip to look at Andy. “It looks nice over there.”

“Yep. Just where do you think you’re going to sleep?” He takes a long drag from his cigarette, and Andy smiles, gesturing his chin towards your room.

”I figured I’d sleep in the same bed as my wife.”

“Good man. I got a building crew set up to pay you two a visit. They won’t start until she knows about it. She needs to get a say in that.”

“I wouldn’t think of taking her say out of our house here, sir. I plan on having a picnic in the clearing after the wedding. I want her to be just as involved as I want you and Reba.”

Tip takes another drag of his cigarette before putting it out in the ashtray, “Mmm,” he responds before walking down the stairs, reaching in to grab a suitcase out of the back, “You’re a good man, Andy. I’m proud to call you my son…grandson-in-law. What my baby wants, she gets.”

“That’s usually my philosophy on my wife. She’s never done me wrong, and doesn’t ask for much. Giving her what little I do is the least I can do,” Andy would give you the world if you asked for it. But you rarely asked for anything. Although, you were buying a lot of things for Maggie, she had to be dressed.

“Just so you know, Ruby has planned for a baby shower down here. And maybe that guest room has been turned into a nursery for Maggie.”

Andy laughs, hauling the last of the luggage out of the car. Tip could be such a hard man to read. He seemed to want to act like a hard ass, but in reality he was the softest, especially when it came to you. Andy never got the feeling that he was trying to intimidate him, just that he wanted what was best for you.

Ruby might be the one that was loud and full of laughter and love, but Tip was who held the family together. Stepped up to be a father figure to you when your dad passed away, and even made sure you had as normal of a childhood as possible. Made your life full of fantasy. You wanted to know what peacocks would like on the farm, so he bought them. He would sit on the porch and tell you stories about the old gods of the mountains. Andy wanted to hear those himself. Tip was your rock, and the reason you desired to have a strong, but soft man.

Taking a deep inhale he looks over the property; despite what you thought you had missed, your grandparents made sure you had everything. He had built you and your cousins the cutest little playhouse, and you never did without toys. But what you had the most of was love, so much love and imagination. And while the three of you wouldn’t be living here, you would have a place to call your own. Andy wanted to make sure that the three of you spent so much time here, starting with the building of your own home.

Your mom sits in the corner of your Mamaw’s bedroom, watching as her mother gushes over you. Giving the zipper of your dress quite the tug to get it up, and wouldn’t dare think of blaming ‘that sweet baby’. It’s bittersweet having her mom get you ready for your wedding, but it’s a role she deserved. You never once called out your mom not being present in your life, and maybe you should have.

You keep looking back at her through the mirror, but when it’s your Mamaw, you beam up at her. Giggle when Poppy and Anna Kate say anything. Poppy’s eyes usually look down at your belly, and softly touches it. Both intrigued and scared of you being pregnant. Smiling up at you all the same, and knowing just how happy you are.

“How did this happen so fast?” Your mom says, and you don’t bother to look at her full on. It happened, and the legal part was already completed anyways.

”I fell in love, mama. I think it was love at first sight. Andy is everything I could ever have dreamed of, and then even more. He’s going to be so good for me and Maggie,” you take a deep breath as you look down at your belly trying to calm yourself.

”You gave everything up. Your education. What about…?” your grandmother clears her throat, and you finally turn to look at your mom. A soft smile on your face, and you rub over the swell of your tummy. “You just were with Cole for so long, and this never happened.”

”It wouldn’t have. I never slept with Cole. I was a virgin when I met Andy. Did you know that Cole cheated on me our whole relationship?” Your smile gets larger and you laugh when your mom attempts to interrupt, “Accused me of cheating. He pushed and pressured, and gaslit me throughout our relationship. I bet you didn’t know about that. Maybe you should look at the dent in my wall that Papaw kept there. He liked punching walls, especially if it was beside my head. I’m not sorry that Andy and I went fast. He’s perfect for me and Maggie.”

”But he’s not here.”

”And neither were you,” Mamaw’s mouth sets into a straight line, and she places her hand on the small of your back. Pressing a hand over your belly, before staring at you a bit dumbfounded. “Don’t act like you miss me now. You never did when I was a child. We’ll be back and visit. But I won’t hunt you out to see Maggie. We’ll come here, and if you want to see your granddaughter, you’ll come here, too. Don’t make me hate you. I spent too many years hating you, and I finally forgive you. Andy helped me with that.”

”He could leave you,” you shake your head no, smiling softly. “You don’t even know him.”

”You can’t say that when you don’t even know me,” grabbing your Mamaw’s hand, you turn to look at her with a smile. “I trust this woman more than I trust you. She adores Andy, and never cared for Cole. If you can be around me and Andy and not think we’re in love, maybe it’s because you don’t believe in it. I do. And I’ll be okay. We’ll be okay,” you say with the most severity you can muster. You and Maggie would be okay. “She has a good daddy. And I don’t want to talk about this anymore. I’m already married. I’m Mrs. Barber right now. This is for us to celebrate our marriage and if you can’t…”

Looking over to Mamaw, you also turn to look at Poppy and Anna Kate, inhaling deeply as you close your eyes slowly. Speaking silently to your daughter before looking at your mom. “If you can’t respect my choice of husband, I don’t — I don’t want you here. I want,” deep breath. One. Two. Three. “I want only people that love us.”

”Peaches, you okay, sis?” Poppy asks, and you press your hand up against Maggie harder, nodding your head. She can sense something off in your face. It isn’t just irritation of your mom picking the worst possible time to talk about this. But something else. Maggie would be born early. “Okay, then,” she whispers before waiting for you and Mamaw to walk out the room. You need something to drink before walking down the field to Andy. Maggie is also hungry.

“Auntie,” Poppy walks closer to your mom, squaring up with her. “I know you love her, so let her have this. I saw this relationship from the beginning. It was fast, but that man broke down all her walls that you and Cole put up. Yes, you. So if you can’t be happy for them, then leave. She’s having his child. She’s already married, and I have never seen my cousin happier, and I have spent time with her, and them. Can you say the same? Honestly. Be happy. That man adores your daughter, and granddaughter.”

”They don’t even know each other,” tears well up in her eyes as she looks up at the ceiling. She missed all the time with you, and knows now she’ll never get it back. “That’s my only child.”

”Now think about how Mamaw and Papaw feel,” she looks back at Poppy, her chest heaving in pure sadness. There are few memories she has with you, and most your memories are with her own parents. “Either you be here to support their marriage, or leave. Just like you always do. I don’t have to be nice to you, Peach Blossom does that enough on her own.”

Anna Kate nods her head at her aunt, stopping at the door as she looks over her shoulder, “He takes care of her because she takes care of him. She’s not a little girl. She’s about to be a mom. You’ve already missed out on raising her, do you want to miss out on getting a relationship with Maggie?” No one ever says another word to her. Letting her walk around her parents’ room as she contemplates the decision to let them raise you. She was just never meant to be a mom. And didn’t even want children.

And yet here you were, completely perfect to everyone. She doesn’t want to get too close or get too attached. It would never last. As much as she knows it’ll hurt you, it’s better this way. She lays down a letter on her mom’s vanity, and hopes everyone is right. “It’s better this way,” she sighs, walking out on you for the last time.

“You okay, PB&J,” Papw looks at you with worry, but your eyes look through the blooming magnolia trees, and all you see is one thing; the most beautiful man you have ever seen. “I could tell you that we could run away, but you’re already married.”

“She left,” you look up at him, and he leans to kiss you on your forehead, “And I’m not sad. She doesn’t like him.”

“I do,” you giggle as you look up at your Papaw. He was the best dad that you could have asked for. “He’s a good man to put up with your stinky ass.”

”My ass is not sticky,” you lean through the trees trying to get a better view of Andy. “Papaw, I love him so much, but I do really like to look at him, too.”

”I can tell. You two are obsessed with each other’s asses. What is up with that? Is that normal?” You shrug your hip into him before pressing your hand on your stomach, trying to hide the wince you’re making. “Your Mamaw mentioned something.”

”I don’t want to hear what Mamaw is mentioning right now. I drove for hours to get here, so I could walk down this meadow to my husband, and our daughter is going to be right with us. I did this for you and Mamaw, too.”

”I know, Peaches,” he says softly, kissing the top of your head. “I’m just trying to prepare you. Where is your Mamaw? Ruby!” You shush him quiet as people turn back to look at the two of you, hidden mostly by Magnolia blooms. Of all people to make you late, Mamaw was worth it.

“There you are,” he shakes his head as Mamaw kisses both your cheeks. “What took you so long?” With a shrug of her shoulders, but no words, she sniffles, grabbing up your other arm.

“We don’t have much time. Let’s do this,” she could sometimes talk in riddles, but she meant well. Papaw takes the first steps out into the meadow, and you watch as Andy’s face instantly changes. His brows furrow, and he bites at his lip. Trying not to cry before his smile gets so large. Mouthing I love you as they guide you down to him.

There he is, your husband, and this feels like getting married all over again. There isn’t going to be anybody officiating over the ceremony. It is just you and Andy saying your vows. You already did the legal stuff, now it was just your feelings. But now you’re speechless. He’s so handsome, and he’s yours and Maggie’s. She stills in your belly, obviously understanding how important this moment is with her daddy.

The moment where everything melts away in the world. You don’t regret an early marriage, or even being fully full of Andy. Getting to have your daughter during this time is precious. You can’t even feel Mamaw and Papaw walking you to him. It’s just him, and you, and Maggie. The world is blurry except for the three of you. Nothing about your relationship with Andy you regret. He is worth every second you had to wait for you.

“Hey, honey,” he smiles, wiping at his eyes, and you give him a scrunched nose smile, reaching up to wipe away his tears, “You have a few, too.”

”I know. I don’t care.”

Taking a deep breath, both of you press over your belly. Using Maggie to calm both of your nerves. “You okay?” You are fine. You want him, want this to be over, and for him to properly hold the both of you. You give him a pained and sweet smile, and nod your head, “I feel you’re not being honest, Peaches?” Not entirely. But there is limited time now.

“Daddy,” you whisper for only him to hear, “I’m fine, let's just…I just need you to hold us.”

You know exactly what to say to make him feral. The need to protect you and Maggie is so strong and ingrained in Andy that he just wants to make sure the two of you are okay. Holding your hand, while the other holds onto your belly, he gives a quick glance to your grandparents. Pausing as he looks out in the distance.

Of course that little creep wouldn’t want to miss this. If he was a glutton for punishment, Andy and you could show him exactly how happy you are, and have everything that both of you wanted. And the best part? The two of you are so happy, and even more excited to bring Maggie into the family. His hand scoops down on your belly, and Andy has a great desire to kiss you so hard. Everything that he is going to say, he’s told you. You deserve to hear those things often.

“I know,” you give him a whisper. You didn’t even need to hear his words. But you don’t recall seeing Andy ever this tongue tied. “You want me to start?”

“No,” he sighs. He just wants to hold you. You look stunning. Your dress blowing in the breeze, eyes shining with the happiest of tears, and only one person that mattered to him. He whispers your name, and has to use the hand on Maggie to wipe away his tears, “No one ever gets this kind of reaction out of me, quite like you do. And I know that the little blossom growing in your belly will bring on tears as well, but it’ll be different. I waited a long time for you, Peaches. And I couldn’t wait anymore. I’ve wanted this life with someone, and it was always you. I knew when you were confused looking at ice cream that you were meant to be my wife.”

You laugh, looking down at the ring on his finger as you recall that first night that you met Andy. He was attractive, and you wanted to see him again, but you never thought to ask about that night. “I stopped at the end of the aisle watching you. It must have been minutes, but it felt like an eternity. I’d never seen someone more beautiful, or someone who was thinking about ice cream as hard as you were. It was such a careful decision, and you needed it to be perfect. I didn’t see a broken woman, but one that knew what she wanted, she just hadn’t found it. And then you looked at me. And I realized immediately, that you had found what you were looking for and it wasn’t ice cream, huh?”

“The Andy special was such a good ice cream though,” but the man in front of you is what you had been looking for.

“I thought about you every day after that. Wondered when the next time I ran into you was going to be. Looked around the grocery store everyday. Yes, I was desperate to see you again, and I’m not ashamed to admit that now. My grown ass wandered around that stupid grocery store everyday before I went home, just so I could see you again. And then there you were. Wine. You continued to tell me too much for a stranger, but still I fell harder. I needed you. And one night I had an urge to look for you at Poppy’s bar. And I saw you in a different light. It was the first time I had seen you a bit more defeated. Why?”

This isn’t like any vows you had ever heard, nor did you think that talking about that time was appropriate for where you are, but you’re curious. “I didn’t want to be there. I wanted to be on the couch watching Supernatural, and pretending you were Dean,” Andy’s eyes close as he laughs so loud that it echoes off the mountains.

“You had me hooked from that first meeting with ice cream. That first time you looked up at me, I felt this instant need to wrap you up in my arms to protect you. I’ve never believed in love at first sight, but I have no other way to explain it, Peach Bottom. You instantly completed me. It was like I had been walking around with a part of me missing, and now I’ve found you, and we’ve made such a beautiful life. And our daughter is quiet, but needing so much attention right now. Maggie Mae, it isn’t your time, darling. She takes after you. Trying to steal daddy’s attention. Peaches, I have no words, just I love you. You have given me everything I have ever wanted. Wrapped up in this beautiful amazing peach blossom.”

“You’re a butthead,” you sniffle, having to remove your hand from Maggie, and wipe away your tears. “A big butthead. You know how sensitive I am, and I didn’t know all of that, and I love it. I love everything about us. About our life. All of our life, you are what I’ve always dreamed about. When I talked about my perfect husband, it was always you. Right down to the shape of your nose, and the bit of green in your eyes. That first time I saw you, I craved you.”

“You can’t say that in front of your family, Peaches,” they knew anyways. You are pregnant. They’re well aware how much you crave Andy. They could see it in your eyes every time you watch him for doing the most mundane things.

Reaching down to his hand on your belly, you can’t help but giggle. He is everything you’ve ever wanted. And your family would just have to deal with how much you loved him, and also how you love him. “This is our life, Ands. I don’t want to spend one day without you. I had saved so much of my life and experiences because they were meant to be memories with you. And now memories with – with our…our,” you take a deep breath, looking down at the two of your hands that lay on top of Maggie. “Our…Andy, I love you, we’re married, and I’m not okay, and I can’t lie anymore.”

“Honey, what’s going on?” panic, strikes Andy’s face, and he looks to your Mamaw, “Baby?”

“I think she’s coming,” you pout up at Andy, giving his hand a bit of a squeeze. You were about to become parents. Maggie is at a safe weight, she is almost here, and you have no panic. The man that is always your steady rock is the one not okay.

“I knew it! Ruby! Poppy!” You smile at him. A bit of a wincing smile through the pain. “Baby, why are you so calm?”

“We’re about to be able to hold her. Just promise me you’ll breathe. We won’t make it to the hospital,” if there is one thing that always freaked Andy out, it was yours and the females in your family’s ability to ‘predict’ things to come. “Daddy, I’m okay. I want to remember every second,” you did, even the pain that is racing through you. “Mamaw, can you deliver a baby?”

“No, Peach Blossom. We’re going to get you to the hospital. Everyone here, thanks for joining us, but things are having to wrap up unexpectedly. Oh,” she say, pressing a hand up against your belly. Trying to give you a soft smile through her tears, “Andy, get her to the house. Poppy, you and Anna Kate get everything cleared. And,” her eyes scan the group of people retreating, and yet one is walking closer. “Not the time.”

“I know the basics of delivering a baby. I…”

“Absolutely not,” Andy growls, his protective body covers you, but his hand never strays from yours. His anger radiates through his blood as he squares up against Cole. “We don’t have time for this. Please, leave.”

“I’ve already had Lee send an ambulance here, but you’re too far away. Peaches,” Andy gives a growl again. His brows furrow deeply at Cole, and all you want is to have Maggie out of you. Your head presses up against Andy’s back as a slow and pained grunt exits your mouth. “If you don’t want a baby to be born in this field, get her to the house, and let me help.”

“Why are you even here?” Andy wraps an arm around your waist, and motions for your Papaw to come and help get you the short distance to the house. Using them as support you have to cling to your stomach as you growl out again.

“I just…I needed to see her one last time. I was never going…each time I talk it stresses her out.”

“You stress her out, you asshole.”

“Stop talking about me like I’m not here!” Your voice raises with a raspy timbre. “Get me to the house. Andy, he knows the basics of delivering a baby, we don’t have a choice. Cole, stop talking, I hate the sound of your voice. And Maggie!” You scream, looking up at Andy, using his face to calm you down, “Your daughter is impatient! Tell her to stay in there!”

“I’ll take her being my daughter during the bad, just know that when she gets sassy, she’s your daughter,” his smile. Even with the tears in his eyes, it warms you all the way to Maggie’s bubble. Such a daddy’s girl. She already wants her daddy to hold her, so she didn’t wait until after the ceremony. “Okay, squeeze me, if you can’t make it up these stairs.”

Cole leans back on his heels, staring as Andy’s lips press hard against your forehead, and you cry holding the most beautiful little baby he’s ever seen. You were a rock during the delivery, and now your emotions pour out. He doesn’t know when it happened, but eventually he accepted you were never meant to be his. And the way that the three of you are in a safe space, acting like no one in the living room with you, and not one person is disturbing you. It is a testament to how everyone knew that you had found your person in that stupid lawyer.

Mamaw cries, hugging her husband, while Anna Kate and Poppy cry watching a couple turn into a family. Poppy’s pinky reaches over towards Andy’s colleague, Mike’s hand, and he turns to look at her confused. Your wedding dress is ruined, and you didn’t care. All you cared about is the baby you thought you would never have, and the man that was whispering what a good job you did. Maggie’s cries fill the room with so much hope and love for the future.

Cole presses his hand on his knee as he nods his head to Andy. He looks at your grandparents, motioning towards the door, “I think the ambulance is here. Does she and the baby have hospital bags?”

“They do. I’ll go check her room,” Poppy fully grabs Mike’s hand as she heads towards your room, “Help me. Papaw, they didn’t bring her car seat.”

”Shh, Pops, your Mamaw and I got the same one that they do. Not that she’ll be down here a ton, but when she is, Andy wanted us to make sure we had something for the car. Just go get their things. Go on,” he nods to her again, looking back at your little family. Nothing going on in the room registers to you. Nothing but your husband and daughter. Nothing else matters.

She is here. She is yours. He is yours. And you're finally a mom. A mom to the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen. Everything about her is perfect. The last twenty minutes of pain are gone because you have her in your arms.

“Daddy, we did it. We have our girl.”

“I know, darling. We have our beautiful Magnolia Mae Barber. But you did it, baby. I was just here.”

Masterlist

Taglist: @tis-thedamn-season @marveloustaylortot @pono-pura-vida @sstan-hoe @peaches1958 @seitmaii @smile1318 @andydrysdalerogers @kittycatcait219 @sarahdonald87 @patzammit @elrw24 @redbloodedgurl @cjand10 @calwitch @sebsgirl71479 @midnightramyeoncravings @atoosa22 @mrsevans90 @xcinnamonmalfoyx @bbylim @kmc1989

#a little at a time #andy barber #andy barber x reader #andy barber x fem!reader #andy barber x female reader #andy barber x y/n #andy barber x you #andy barber fanfic #andy barber fanfiction #andy barber fics #andy barber fic #chris evans #chris evans character

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judgementdaysunshine · 5 months

Text

I know you're true to me

For @dominikspunk

Pairing: Dominik Mysterio x Fem reader

Description: Your anxiety is draining you but Dom is by your side no matter what

"Look at me" you turn to look at Dom as you sway curled up in a ball under the covers gasping for air as your anxiety took over leaving you afraid and almost numb had dom not come home and found you under the covers. He asks if he could touch you which you were hesitant about at first until you begged to be held leading to now with your bare back against his chest feeling his heartbeat through the skin to skin contact "Tell me what you see five things" you slowly name each thing in your eyesight as his hand gently rubs the top of your thigh "Now four things you hear" you name off things again as you feel the pounding in your ears begin to go quieter and feeling able to get and have more air in your body "Three things you feel" you immediately hold and squeeze his hand along with leaning back into him and fixing the blanket that he laid on your laps after pulling you in his arms from under the covers "Two things you smell sweetie" you slowly inhale the scent of the magnolia candle in the air that you had lit and blew out after showering along with his cologne that was always comforting to you whenever you were having a bad day. The small side to side swaying calmed you a bit more as you took a deep breath "You're doing good now one thing left what do you taste?" the gentle caresses along your body made you feel safer than you had the whole day as you tasted small traces of lemon from a small pastry you ate on the way home from work and visiting your mom needing one of her hugs, "I'm proud of you Bebita" you melt to putty with your head in the crook of his neck with his hand running along your back "It's okay to feel drained like this and to be lost but I'm here to help you when you feel alone" the domestic moment is filled with love, safety, and non sexual intimacy of holding each other skin to skin listening to each other's heartbeats "I know you're true to me and I can never thank you enough for loving me, I love you" the tender kiss shared after seals the words said to each other before laying down under the covers feeling your eyes droop as he caresses his fingers along your face "I love you Mariposa and I'm here for you to always remind you that you are not alone" you hold his hand before falling asleep with his warmth, arms, and heartbeat wrapping you up like a blanket safely in his arms.

#wwe x reader #dominik mysterio #dominik mysterio x reader #wwe

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nastudragneel · 1 year

Text

Dragon Slayer Wedding

Established relationship of nine years. Right after the seven year skip.

Romantic+fluff+marriage+little angst

Natsu x Reader

SFW

'Dreams of your friends. Your lover Natsu who you and him imprinted on eachother. Your house, a nice bat-' you dreamt but were awoken by sun rays and shaking.

"(N)!!!" You hear Natsus rattled voice and open your eyes being blinded by the light then adjusting, you saw him.

"Natsu .. your alive?" you say awe struck as he grabs your hand pulls you up and hugs you close while crying.

"It looked like you were dead" he whispered in your ear.

"I'm right here dear I've missed you so much even though it feels like time never stopped" you whisper in his ear. You just rub his back until he has no more tears to cry. Breaking apart but holding hands he says

"Come on dear let's go find everyone else!" He smiles wide. You let go of one hand and use gravity fist to fly upward to see were people may be with him.

After finding Everyone And heading back to Magnolia. After the fight with Twilight Orge

At the Fairy Tail guild

You and Natsu were holding hands when Lisanna walked in. She scanned the area and stopped on Natsu and you then kept walking up to the bar when everyone noticed and croweded around Lisanna asking questions loudly. You squeezed Natsus hand and he squeezed back. Remembering that he told you Lisanna and him had a crush on eachother, and hatching and raising Happy when they were very young.

'She WILL be put in her place' you think to yourself.

"Calm down love why are you upset (n)" Natsu whispers to you. You turn to him lean over and whisper

"Shes the one from your past right? How is she here? If you have any regrets about imprinting on me tell me now and I'll go away"

"Yes she is the one. And she was stuck in the Exceed world. Apparently she never died. Come on dear you know I dont regret a thing, it was meant to be. I was meant to be with you." He held your hand and put it over his heart.

"I mean it, you wont feel my imprint feel anything for her any feelings died with her" He says and let's your hand go. Feeling eyes on you, you slightly move your head and used your preifrial only to see Lisanna looking at you.

"Shes looking right at us" you whisper to Natsu. He whips his head around quickly locking eyes with Lisanna. With your peripheral you saw Lisanna switch her gaze to the crowd. Then you felt through Natsu, grief through the both of your link through imprintation.

You moved your hand from over his heart

"I'm going home. Why dont you two cetch up?" You say to Natsu as you huff and stand to walk away. Suddenly you felt a strong grip on your wrist making you look back at Natsu.

"Let me go."

"No I know what your feeling and it's okay to feel that way." Natsu says making you sit back down. You chug your beer and ask Mirajane for four more. After they arrive you chug one after another until there gone.

"Heya Natsu,(n) whatsup?" Happy flies into the guild. Once Natsu was distracted you snuck out used gravity wings and then ran deep into the woods you just keep walking until you fall to your knees crying hard. Suddenly a loud thud happened you open your teary eyes to see

'An egg? Its huge' looking all around the egg.

'Whew it's perfectly in tact maybe I can hatch it, better take it home before it gets cold. You cant use gravity fist because you need both arms to hold the egg. You make your way back to town following Natsus imprint as navigation. Once back in town you went home and lit the fire place, placing the egg in front of it.

"Shit their coming and he can feel everything I'm feeling!"You yell then hide behind the egg with all the lights off. You hear the door open and steps over to the kitchen then living room and click. The lights came on.

"(N)-" Natsu stopped mid sentence staring at you hiding behind the egg eyes popped over the egg.

"I tried to get away as soon as I could when I found out you left I know how much pain that caused you. Also whered you get this exceed egg?" Natsu asked.

"I found it in the forest it almost hit me in the head." You say lip quivering. You stand and look at Natsu Happy and the egg.

"Let's hatch it and raise it to be happy and healthy" Natsu breaks the silence. You just nod and hug the egg.

"I'm gonna be a mom..."

"You were all ready a mom to Happy, so we will become one big family" Natsu says.

"Ai sir! I feel like your my mom (n)" Happy says.

"What about Lisanna? Did you talk with her?" You ask curiously.

"Yes after the crowd died down we talked... I told her about you and how much I love you and want to get married to you. She understood what I was saying how I havent felt for her in a very long time." Natsu stated then crossed the room to you, held your hands, looked you in the eyes and kissed you soft at first then passionately. When we broke for air, he noticed your tears. Tears of happiness as he could feel it. Wrapping both arm around you Natsu embraces you in his warmth. You wrap your arms around him under though. And let the tears flow until they stop. Releasing eachother Natsu asks

"Do you feel better now? No ones gonna steal me away silly. Remember we imprinted and completed the ritual over two years ago."

"Well then there was that seven year gap that we both missed out on. But I trust you more than anyone I've ever trusted before" You say and he nods and sighs.

"Everything will be okay (n) let's raise this Exceed as our own and eventually get married okay?" Natsu says.

"Okay honey. Are you-"

*gurgle gurgle*

"Hungry" you say as Natsu puts one hand to his head and laughs.

"You bet I am!" He yells happily.

"Okay please light the stove. Let's all move into the kitchen." You state as everyone follows. After the feast Natsu cleans and puts the plates away for you as your in the living room filling the egg to make sure its warm enough. You put an ear to it and it wiggles. You run to Natsu and yell

"It just wiggled! Its amazing!" He just laughs and smiles.

"That means it's close to hatching. Were lucky we dont have to wait that long. When we leave the house theres a chance that, the fireplace could cetch something on fire."

Feeling your heart jump he continued.

"I think it's best if we stay home until he or she hatches" Natsu says which makes you feel better.

"Yay!"

"I'm seriously deprived of cuddles over here please Natsu cuddles..." you wiggle your butt.

"Okay okay let's go" he states defeated but happily. You take your top and bottoms off to expose your panties which makes him blush deep red everytime. You pat the bed next to you. He undresses but leaves his boxers on and joins you in bed.

"Hey so that's what I came out of?" Happy asks and Natsu says

"Yup little buddy you came outta one of those but your flames at the bottom were dark blue this one is red."

"Awesome I cant wait to have a sister or brother. Wait so that means I'm the big sibling?" Happy asks curiously.

"Yea you'll be a big bro to it" you say as Natsu wraps both his arms around you and you do the same.

"If you wake up early please put more wood on the fire Happy" you say sweetly.

"Ai sir!" As Happy curls up on a big pillow near the fire. Eventually you all fall asleep.

A couple days later

You awake to crackling and realize the egg is hatching. Rolling over Natsu you smack him with pillows until he opens his eyes. You rush to turn on the light.

"Wake up you two, its hatching!" You yelled as they popped up really quick. All three of you gathered in a row to see the magic happen. As the final crack happened pop goes a kitty into the air it was pure white and a boy. It fluttered down to you as you slowly extended your hands to hold the little ball of fluff. Hold him close to your chest.

"I am mama" You state to the curious fluff. Then gently pass him to Natsu.

"Hes so cute, I remember when you were this small Happy." Natsu says to Happy.

"I am papa little cutie"

"What should we name him? I was thinking Snow since hes pure white what do you think dear?" You say happily.

"Snow... yea seems like a great fit for him!" Natsu says and passes Snow to Happy.

"Wow I have a little brother now" Happy says in awh. The sun rays start to shine through your window.

"Well guess it's time to head out" Natau said as he gets up and goes to the kitchen. You stand and follow him as the two cats were playing together. Natsu lighting the stove, you prepared breakfast. After finishing you place the food on the table with some fish.

"Breakfast is ready!" You call out as happy flies in holding Snow onto the booster seat. Happy gives Snow small pieces of fish while you and Natsu devour the rest.

At The Guild

You all walk into the guild with people asking where we were like we just dissapeared. Answering with Snow which caught everyones attention even Lisannas. After Snow got pooped out we decided that Happy take him home and watch over him maybe start teaching him letters and words. While we went on a quest for rent money.

Half A Year Later

"Hurry get in the room he cant see you in your dress before the wedding!" Lucy yells as we managed to get in the powder room.

"I'm not going to have anyone on my side..." you say about to tear up.

"Oh no! No crying you will ruin your makeup!" Lucy yells again.

"Thanks for being my maid of honor Lucy I'm just so happy like I cant believe its actually real." You say as she retorts.

"I know it's a happy day for you both but stressful for me who planned your wedding. You go up and hug her.

"Thank you so very much Lucy" you state.

"Ya no problem but we have to hurry it's bad luck to make them wait." Lucy says. The piano and band start playing.

"That's your cue let's go"Lucy says frantically.

"Okay lets go." You say as you hook arms with Lucy and walk out only to see everyone in the guild whose in Magnolia and some other guessing friends of Natsus.

'So there are people on my side after all what a relief' you think to yourself.

'That's right all for you dear' Natsus voice popped into your head.

'Wait are we telepathically connected now?' You question.

'I just heard you and replied honey now dont be afraid your surrounded by family' Natsus voice vanished and your left staring at him only him in a suit. Gaining strength Lucy walks you down the isle then stands next to you in her maid of honor spot along with Erza and Juvia at your side. On Natsus side his best man is the the old master then Grey and Gajeel. Natsu reached his hand out to you and you accepted stepping up the step in your spot. The music stops and the ceremony begins.

"Do you Natsu Dragneel take (N/L) to be your lawful wedded wife?" The preacher asks. You suddenly feel a swell of happiness which is coming from Natsu.

"Why yes I do!" He yells as people whistle.

"And do you (N/L) take Natsu Dragneel to be your lawful wedded husband?" The preacher asks.

You feel so happy in this moment your happiness meter is above the mark and your sure Natsu feels it too.

"Heck yes I do!" You yell as people whistle again and murmurs that their the perfect couple.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may now kiss the bride" the preacher says as you turn to Natsu and lean in for the kiss. You feel in your imprint Natsu leaning forward and you both feel soft lips of your partner then depart. You can save the naughty for later. Everyone erupts into cheers. Snow, Happy, and Carla fly around cheering. Onto the cake cutting everyones watching. We hold eachothers hand then cut the cake for two, hook arms then bite into the cake. Applause breaks out as people line up for cake. After that it time for the bouquet you turn away then throw it back and turn around. To your surprise Lisanna caught it. You go up to her.

"Congratulations im sure you'll find a lucky man for your lucky heart have a good time at this party please." You say nicely.

"Why thank you and congratulations on your marriage" she says but you notice a small tear in her eye. You both hug as custom in the land for bouquet throwing then break apart. After that the band played and people mingled. A line formed next to Natsu and you as people one by one they congratulated us. After that was the first dance which Natsu kept stepping on your toes so you used gravity magic on your shoes that would repel him from stepping on you. He learned real quick then.

'I've got it dear!' He says loudly, clearly excited and you just giggle making some people confused but they get over it. After our dance was over other people took the dance floor. You walk up to the old master and say

"Old Master Me and Natsu can telepathically talk to eachother now I wonder why that is?"

"Well child in those seven years we were submerged in time, well dragon slayers work differently. If you've imprinted it ages like a fine wine so that's probably the cause. We all were in there for seven years so you both gained an ability." Old master says.

"Ahh it makes sense-"

"Come dance with me (n)" Natsu says as you say goodbye to gramps. On the dance floor you made gravity shoes again. After all that fun its finally time for the white almonds. A tiny horse was waiting with a small open carriage as you both held hands and walked through the people on either side throwing almonds. Once at the the carriage you both turn around and yell.

"Thank you!" Then get into the carriage on the way home with Happy and Snow sitting on your laps. Through town there was whistling yelling and flowers being tossed onto the carriage as you the one driving since Natsu was motion sick from the ride. You were slightly motion sick but stuck with it. Once home you get off the carriage and hold the reigns.

"Natsu were stopped now ." You say as he recovers and hurry to get out. "Thank you!" He yells as hes now standing with snow in his arms. You let go of the reigns and poof goes the carriage. Once inside

"Hey little buddy mind coming back tomorrow with Snow? Me and (n) have some things to do." Natsu asks as Happy goes

"Ai sir! See you tomorrow" he holds Snow then flies out the window.

'What do you mean we have things to do?' You ask through telepathically.

'What do couples do after a wedding? The honeymoon!' He replies as you nod. You both have always had a good sex life but now its official your married. "I love you Natsu Dragneel"

"And I love you (n) Dragneel hehe"

#natsu x reader #natsu dragneel #fairytail #fairytailnatsu

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callsign-magnolia · 1 year

Text

I Hope You Dance // Ch. 28

MATURE CONTENT (18+)

A/N: This is cross posted to my Wattpad, so if this seems familiar that is why!

TW: Mental abuse, emotional abuse, slight physical abuse, death and loss.

Description: When Caila meets Rooster, sparks fly. But, she's already married, to a man who she thought loved her, and won't let her go. Rooster will fight for her, he just has to convince Caila to fight for herself.

Word Count: 6.4k

Chapter 27 | Masterlist

I stared at the envelope, dazed as I grabbed my duffel to sit outside and wait for Rooster. "Magnolia? You okay?" I turned to find Bob walking over his own duffel on his shoulder. "Uhm, maybe." I said as my throat closed up. "No, I uh-I got orders." I said as I held up the envelope. "What? You just got back!" Bob was usually calm and collected, I've never seen him yell out like he just did. "When do you leave?" I bit my lip, fiddling with the envelope. "October thirtieth." His jaw dropped at my answer. "That's a little less than two weeks away!" I nodded, it was currently the eighteenth which means I had twelve days before I left. "I'll be gone eight weeks. Which means I get to come home the week of Christmas." I huffed, sitting on the sidewalk. "Better than three months or longer." I nodded. "Um, are you not going home? Wait, where's your jeep?" I looked over at him, sliding my sunglasses down my nose.

"Rooster has it. Dahlia had a vet appointment I forgot about so while I was talking to Cyclone he offered to take her for me." It was quiet for a moment before he stepped closer, holding his hand out for me to take. "Come on." I looked up at him, brows furrowed in confusion. "I'll take you to the vet." I shook my head. "I don't want you going out of your way for me." He chuckled, grabbing my hand and hauling me up anyway. "It's not out of the way for my friends, now come on." I smiled at him, wrapping my arm around his waist. "You're the best friend a girl could ask for, Bobby. You know that?" He chuckled, putting our bags in the truck as I got in. "No one's ever said it. But I do appreciate it, Magnolia." He said as he cranked his truck. It had to be an early two thousands, nothing new like Jake's. "Any time, Bobby. Any time."

My ride with Bob made me feel a little better, we sang along to pop songs on the radio, talking about my deployment. "I hate that I have to leave. I won't even be here when the house gets finished." He nodded, turning the radio down. "It will be when you come home though." I nodded, he was right, at least I wasn't coming home to a half done house. "I also hate to leave Bradley. I mean, things just got better and now..." I trailed off, tears gathering in my eyes. "He understands. That's the great thing about being with someone who knows your job, they understand." I rolled my head over, looking at Bob as he drove. "Can you just be wrong so I can feel bad for myself for just a minute?"

A small grin grew on his face. "No." I huffed, looking back out the window as he continued to drive. Once we were at the vet he grabbed my bag as I got out. "You're awesome, Bobby." I said, taking my bag from him. "I can be." I hugged him before saying goodbye and heading inside. "Hi, my boyfriend brought in my dog for me. Dahlia." The tech nodded, looking at her screen. "They are in the large exam room, all the way down the hall." I nodded, knowing exactly which room it was and made my way to the door. I knocked quietly before opening the door. Rooster was sitting on the bench against the wall, scrolling on his phone. He turned and saw me, his phone immediately going in my pocket. "Hey, Mags. How'd you get here?" He asked as he stood, taking my bag. "Bob caught me outside, offered to drive me." I said, placing a kiss on his cheek.

"That's great. Look, I gotta tell you-" Movement caught my eye and I turned, seeing Dahlia laid out in the floor, a small chihuahua curled up with her. "Um, mind telling me why my dog has another dog curled up with her?" He sighed, rubbing his face. "That's what I was going to tell you. When I was checking her in this woman came in with her. She basically threw her at the girl at the front desk saying she had her third litter of puppies." I sighed, looking at the little dog fast asleep against Dahlia. "She wanted to have her put down because she couldn't have anymore puppies." My anger grew at his words, realizing this dog most likely came from a puppy mill or something of the like. "She left and the girl up front decided not to euthanize her, but she still needed an exam so I offered to pay for it. We realized pretty quickly this is the same dog that would curl up with her while she was boarded." I looked at them, Dahlia was peacefully asleep as was the other dog.

"I was going to ask if we could bring her home." I looked at him, wide eyed. "Roo, I really don't think that's a good idea. We're renovating so that means we have to pack and she probably has some health issues as well as temperament issues." He sighed, leaning back. "Mags, honey." He said as he grabbed my hand. "We could give her a great home, one she deserves." I sighed, looking over at the small cream colored dog. "It's not that I don't want to Bradley. But she needs someone who has the time to work with her. She's probably not house broken, and she likely has a fear of being in a crate." He pouted slightly, his brown eyes widening. "We have the time and we don't have to crate train her-" "Oh yes we would. A crate is something a dog should associate as a safe space, a space where they can retreat to when they want a quiet space. She has probably spent her life in a cage with other dogs all around her yapping and barking. She needs a quiet home where she is an only dog."

Suddenly the door opened and the vet walked in. "Ah, Miss Motley! Glad you could join us." I shook her hand. "So am I, Dr. Mabe." She smiled at Dahlia who was now standing and licking her hand. "So Dahlia's blood work came back clean but I noticed a little weakness in her back legs. If it's okay with you I would like to run some x-rays, get a good look at what's going on?" I nodded. "Absolutely. Gotta make sure my girl ages well." I said, petting her head. "Good, Joe here will take her back and then I will look at this little one." She said, motioning to the small Chihuahua cowering behind Dahlia. The tech took Dahlia out and Dr. Mabe reached for the small dog who turned and tried to run before she gently picked her up, setting her on the table. We watched as Dr. Mabe did the exam, listening to her heart and lungs as the little chihuahuas tongue hung just outside of her mouth.

"Well everything sounds good." She said as she started looking at her teeth. "Can you tell how old she is?" I asked and she hummed. "Hard to tell. Her teeth have never been cleaned but I would estimate between ten and thirteen." She said as she continued poking around her mouth. "I'd say closer to thirteen." I nodded. "What's the lifespan of a Chihuahua again?" I asked as Dr. Mabe put her on the scale. "It is usually between twelve and twenty years." I looked over to Bradley with a raised brow. "And what are the common health problems with Chihuahuas?" I asked. I was trying to make Bradley see that getting a dog was a big commitment and Dahlia made it look easy. But an older dog with health problems takes up a lot of time and sometimes money.

"Spinal injuries are common. So is patellar luxation, tracheal collapse, dental disease, hypoglycemia, heart disease and a number of others. But despite what people say, chihuahuas can be very loving and loyal dogs and it seems she's already taken a liking to Dahlia." It was Bradley's turn to raise a brow at me. "Can we have a minute?" I asked and she nodded. "I'm going to take her back for some blood work." Dr. Mabe said, picking up the dog and walking out. "I was looking through common problems in chihuahuas when you walked in, I knew what I was getting in to." I giggled lightly, standing to lean against the table. "Why are you so against this? We talked about getting another dog-" "A one minute conversation out of the blue before court does not equal a conversation. Besides, we don't have time for her Bradley and that's not fair to her."

"What's going on? I never thought you'd be so against this." I sighed as he stood in front of me. I debated on how to tell him and it was going to be at home but now seems like the best time, to keep him from making a rash decision. I pushed past him, grabbing the envelope from the top of my duffel. "I got orders." I said, handing him the envelope. "Wh-what?" I pursed my lips. "Bahrain, eight weeks." He sighed, reading over the paper. "I just-we just got to start our lives together and now you have to go?" I nodded. "But I'll be home the week of Christmas, so it's not all bad." I said walking over and wrapping my arms around his waist. He sighed, shaking his head. "This is why I think getting another dog now is not a good idea." He pursed his lips, nodding. "I get it." My answer seemed to upset him even more. "But, maybe we can foster her for a few weeks. Just until she finds a new home." I said. I couldn't stand to see that sad look on his face, let alone know I'm the entire reason for it.

"You don't have to do that for me, honey." I shrugged, wrapping my arms tighter around him. "No, but who knows. She may worm herself into the family." He smiled down at me, leaning closer to kiss me. "Okay. But you're all mine until you leave." I smiled at him. "Of course." The door opened and Dr. Mabe came in with both dogs. "Okay. So this little one here seems to have some hypertension so I am sending her blood out for further testing. Usually these have underlying health problems but it could just be stress." We nodded as the little dog shook on the table. "Now, I have a few concerns for Dahlia." My hand immediately shot out, gripping Rooster's in a vice like grip. She brought up her x-rays, pointing to a few white spots around her hips. "So she does have hip dysplasia setting in, just like I thought."

"I'm sorry, what is hip dysplasia?" Rooster asked. "It's loosening of the hip joints. The cartilage and bone wear down over time, setting up for things like arthritis, which she is developing." I pursed my lips, nodding. "I knew she probably would." Dr. Mabe sighed. "She's six, that's over half of her life expectancy. Have you considered some preventative measures?" I nodded. "I started her on joint supplements about a year ago, I put it in her food and she still runs around like she's a puppy." Dr. Mabe nodded. "Good, then I'd say she's doing well then. Keep it up and I think she'll continue to live comfortably." I nodded. "Now, about this one-" "She's coming home with us. We've agreed to foster her for now." Rooster cut her off.

"Okay then, I will put you in touch with a local rescue and they can get everything set for you. You may want to consider having her caught up on shots and getting her teeth cleaned." I nodded. "If you have time, can we go ahead and do the shots?" She nodded. Bradley held her as the tech gave her the shots, seeing as she was not happy about it and he was the only one she'd tolerate. Once we were done we went up to the front desk to pay and schedule next appointments. We loaded into the jeep Dahlia and my bag in the back, Rooster holding the chihuahua in his hands as he got in the drivers seat. I looked at him in confusion as he set the chihuahua in my lap. "Oh, no. She rides in the back with Dahlia." I said lifting her and setting her next to Dahlia in the back. "Oh come on, Mags. If Dahlia rolls over she'll squash her like a bug." I shook my head at his words. "Dahlia hardly moves in the car and the backseat is the safest place for her if we crash."

The ride home was quiet, the two dogs curled up together in the back. We stayed quiet as we walked into the house, Rooster setting my bag upstairs with his as I let the dogs out bag. I watched them both closely, seeing how they would act around each other in Dahlia's domain. After awhile I went upstairs to change clothes, then I brought them in and pulled out Dahlia's crate, setting it up. "Hey, Mags." I turned to look at Rooster as I clicked the large wire crate into place. He motioned towards the couch and I looked, seeing the little chihuahua had crawled under it, shaking in fear. "Do you still have that toy the tech gave us at the vet?" He nodded, grabbing it off the counter and tossing it to me.

I laid on my stomach, holding the toy out to her. "Hi, baby." I said lowly, trying to coax her out. I laid in the floor, patiently waiting with the toy in hand. "You think she'll come out tonight?" I looked up at Bradley from my spot on the floor, sighing. "Maybe not. She'll have to for dinner and she'll sleep in the crate tonight." He nodded as I stood, his arms going around me. "She's gonna need a name. I can't keep calling her the Chihuahua." He laughed, kissing my head. "We'll think of one." I nodded. The rest of the night was spent in our usual routine, not wanting to deviate from it. I finished setting up the crate and packing it with blankets and a few toys. We made dinner together, eating it in the dining room as we discussed my deployment. "I really think you should join my parents this year if you aren't going to join Mav. You shouldn't be alone, Roo." He huffed, dejectedly.

"I know, I just haven't had a proper Thanksgiving since mom passed. Especially with aunt Tilly spending most of her time in Europe." I furrowed my brows in confusion. "Aunt Tilly? How come I never heard about her?" He gave me a befuddled look. "I've told you about aunt Tilly." I shook my head, taking a bite of my chicken. "No, you haven't." He nodded. "Yes I did!" I shook my head again, almost laughing. "Swear on my life, you have never mentioned an aunt Tilly or anyone else." We sat in silence for a minute before he sighed, rubbing his hand down his face. "Oh my god. I mentioned her when you were passed out in the floor, that day I called 911 for you." I nodded. "So I guess we're both right then, you did mention her just when I was dead to the world." He nodded. "So tell me about her?" He slowly stopped eating, which was odd as the man usually shovels his food in his mouth.

"Mom and I moved back near her and my grandparents after dad died. But after both my grandparents passed aunt Tilly moved to Europe, she keeps the house in Virginia but she lives in Paris now." I nodded, a little impressed. "She must work a good job to live in Paris." He scoffed. "More like two rich, dead husbands." I choked on my food, staring at him with wide eyes. He just continued to eat like what he just said was normal. "What the hell?" He nodded. "One died of cancer, the other a car accident." I continued to stare at him, the question resting on my tongue. "I know what you're thinking and no, I don't think she killed them." He stopped, furrowing his brows slightly. "At least the first one, now the second one, maybe. She wasn't all too find of him near the end."

I just stared at him before he turned to me and chuckled. "I'm kidding." I sighed, leaning back in my seat. "Jesus, Roo." He chuckled. "She does have a habit of holding grudges with people who don't agree with her." His voice sounded dejected. "Sounds like you've been on the receiving end of one of those grudges. He nodded, somewhat. If I hadn't been staring at the side of his face I never would've caught it. "She... didn't really agree with how I handled mom's illness." I knew this conversation was taking a hard turn, so I set my fork down and scooted my chair closer to his, taking his free hand in mine. "Do you want to tell me? You don't have to if you don't want to." He set his own fork down, leaning back in the chair.

"Mom had pancreatic cancer when I was twelve. Mav was a big help at that time, helping to take care of her and me. We caught it early, they did surgery and removed her entire pancreas and she did six months of chemo before she went into remission. She was cancer free for so many years but when they took her pancreas it made her diabetic and she had to take enzymes to digest her food, but she was alive and happy to be alive." I gave him a soft smile, reaching up and wiping the tears from his eyes. "But she eventually developed Kidney Disease when I was sixteen. It was already at stage four when we caught it." I felt awful, not just for him but for her. Carole Bradshaw had been through so much in her life and she still did everything she could for Bradley. "She battled it for a while, Mav lived nearby for the time being to help out. But there came a point that she was in the hospital, and I had left school to go see her. She gave me this bright smile and told me she just wanted to go home. She didn't want to fight anymore and I had to respect that, so Mav helped me get her discharged and we got her home."

He leaned his head onto my shoulder as he kept talking. I ran my fingers over his hand in a comforting way, hoping it would make this even the slightest bit easier. "She passed after two days at home and aunt Tilly was so mad. Saying things like 'She should've fought harder.' or 'She should've stayed in the hospital.' It really put us at odds and we haven't had a real conversation since. She checks in every few months and let's me keep some stuff at her house but that's about it." I don't think I'd ever want to meet this woman. "I was seventeen and she shut me out, the only real family I had left and she shut me out because I did what my mom wanted." I pulled him closer, rubbing my hand up and down his arm. "I'm so sorry, Roo." We sat like that for a few minutes as tears rolled across his flushed cheeks, my lips staying attached to his temple.

He eventually sat up and took a deep breath before shaking his head quickly, like he was trying to get something out of his hair. "But she comes back every November so I thought I would go out there and get the rest of my stuff. It's not a lot, just some more of my parents stuff." I smiled at him as he tucked back into his food. I knew while he may be acting like everything is fine and well, he was still upset. "I wish I could be here to help you." He chuckled. "I uh, also considered getting a ring." My fork stopped midair, staring at him as he held my gaze. "Is that something you'd be okay with?" I took the bite off my fork, giving him a small smile. "Just don't do it on my birthday or major holidays? I wanna be surprised." He smiled at me, his hand landing on my thigh. "Seriously?" I nodded. "I told you, you're the only person I would say yes to."

"I love you." He said as he leaned over to kiss my cheek. "I love you too." After that we finished dinner and it was time to feed the dogs. I grabbed a bowl and filled it with food, setting Dahlia's down first before setting the other bowl down on the other side of the island. She could see the bowl from under the couch and I jostled it, the sound of the food catching her attention. "Think she'll come out?" I nodded. "Don't pay her much attention." We went about wiping down the kitchen, cleaning it up when I heard small crunches coming from the small bowl. I looked over, a smile on my face as she slowly ate. I smirked, leaning against the stove as I facetimed my mom.

"Hi sweetie! How've you been?" I hummed, smiling at her through the phone. "Good, I started back at work yesterday and got back in the air today." Her face lit up at my words, excitement filling her eyes. "I'm so happy for you!" Suddenly Rooster leaned in next to me, smiling widely. "Hi, Regina!" She cheered, seeing him on screen. "Bradley! How are you?" His gaze shifted to me, a smirk on his face. "Good." I chuckled. "He convinced me to bring home a guest." Mom's eyebrows raised until I turned the camera around, zooming in on the little dog who kept her eyes on me. "Oh. my. god! You guys got a dog?!" She squealed making Rooster and I laugh.

"Tell me you are bringing her to Thanksgiving! Jameson is hosting this year so you don't have to drive as far." She said, an expectant smile on her lips. "About that," I said and her face fell. "I got orders. I leave for deployment on the thirtieth and I won't be back till the week of Christmas." I could hear her sniffles through the phone, making me tear up. "Well, we get you for Christmas at least. We'll miss you though." I smiled at her through the phone. "I know, mama." Her gaze shifted to Rooster beside me. "Will you be joining us, Bradley?" He pursed his lips, as if he doesn't know what to say. "I'm not sure yet, Regina. Our plans got flipped around." He said, tossing his arm around my shoulders. She nodded, lacing her fingers under her chin. "I understand, but the invitation is always open should you decide to join us." He smiled at her before turning and placing a kiss to my head.

"Well, I think we're gonna chill out for awhile mom. I'll talk to you soon?" She nodded, a few tears building in her eyes. "Okay, love you guys." We smiled and gave her a small wave. "We love you too." I ended the call as Bradley pulled my head down on his chest. I stayed there for a minute before the tears started, the sobs following closely behind. "I know, honey." He said just letting me soak his shirt with my tears. "I don't want to go." I muttered and he sighed, pressing a kiss to my hair. "I know. But you'll be back by Christmas and I'll be waiting for you here. Well, next door." I chuckled at his correction. "I won't even be here when they finish the renovation." He sighed as I picked myself up, looking at him. He pushed some hair away from my face as he cradled my cheeks.

"But it'll be done when you come home, and I'll be here, ready to give you the grand tour." I laughed at his words. "Oh really?" He nodded. "Starting with our bedroom." A giggle escaped me as his hands grabbed my waist, pulling me close. "I like the sound of our bedroom." He smiled, leaning in till his lips were brushing against mine. "Yeah?" I nodded, brushing our noses together. "Yeah." He kissed my lips gently a few times before we pulled away. As he did a yawn escaped me. "Let's get you to bed, pretty girl." He said picking me up and making me laugh. He carried me upstairs, gently tossing me on the bed. The plush comforter practically swallowed me, making the bed seem comfy enough for my eyes to already start drooping. "I'll be back pretty girl." He said before kissing my forehead.

I laid there for a minute, my eyes drifting shut before I realized I probably need to get up and brush my teeth. So I did, I brushed my teeth, took out my contacts, washed my face and everything before crawling back into the bed. I slid my glasses on, grabbing the book I'm currently reading and cracking it open. I read for a few minutes before Rooster came back in. "Okay, she's in the crate. She was hesitant but she went in a laid down, Dahlia is in her bed next to the crate." He said as he walked into the bathroom. "Maybe if Dahlia stays down there, she'll feel more secure." He hummed in response, grabbing his tooth brush from the jar on the counter. I watched as he brushed his teeth and washed his face before he turned to me, leaning on the door frame. "What?" He smiled, walking over before crawling on the bed. He crawled over me till he was face to face with me. "You're adorable with your glasses on."

"You saying I should wear them more often?" He chuckled, kissing me quickly. "I wouldn't mind." He said as he rolled over to his side of the bed, closest to the door. "You think she'll be okay down there?" I asked him, referring to the small dog in the crate. "She isn't making much noise right now." He said, at that time we heard her nails clicking around on the plastic lining of the crate. "Maybe she needs another blanket." I said getting up when Bradley grabbed my wrist. "She has three, honey. She'll be okay." I sighed, slipping back in bed, turning off the light as I did. I faced the closet, Rooster's arms wrapping around me and pulling me close. I felt his lips on the back of my neck making me sigh in content. "You think we'll be okay through my deployment?"

"After everything else we've been through? It'll be a cake walk." I furrowed my brows, rolling over to face him. "What makes you say that?" He just grinned at me, pulling me closer as my hands found his tags, fiddling with them. "Cause I know you're coming home to me this time." I smiled at him, kissing his chin. "Yeah, I am." I said, resting my head on his chest. "You worried about it?" I looked down, his tags in my hand. "A little." His hand ran up and down my spine, bringing me some comfort. "You can always email me, and we can use every opportunity to talk and facetime." I nodded, squeezing myself to him. "We'll be okay, pretty girl. I promise." Those were the last words I heard before finally drifting off.

The next morning was rough. We didn't want to get out of the bed but finally dragged ourselves up with forty-five minutes to spare. I had made my way into the bathroom after Bradley got out, not ready to be up that early. I was finishing spraying my hair with hairspray when he made his way downstairs. "Mags!" He sounded concerned so I rushed downstairs, gasping at the sight before me. "What in god's name happened down here?!" There was bits of blanket and toy stuffing everywhere and one little chihuahua sitting in the middle of it all. "Oh hell no, I don't do destructive dogs." I said looking to Bradley. "Honey, she just-" "Shredded three blankets and two of Dahlia's toys. If she's going to stay here, it's obvious we're going to have to put in more work with her." He sighed in defeat, knowing I wasn't backing down.

"What do we do in the mean time?" I huffed, going into the kitchen to grab the broom. "You mind letting them out while I clean this up?" He nodded, grabbing the small dog and motioning Dahlia to follow. I swept up the mess, frustrated that this was how we were starting our morning. The mess trailed from the crate to a few feet away, almost as if she tossed it around. I finished cleaning as Rooster brought the dogs in and fed them. I went upstairs to finish getting ready and grab our bags as he put the pup back in the crate. "I didn't put anything in there with her." I nodded, "Good, I don't want to clean up a mess when I get home." He took our bags from me just as she started squealing in the crate. "Oh my god!" I yelled, covering my ears. We looked back at her as she pawed at the sides of the crate, her yapping seemingly growing louder and louder.

"Should we let her out?" Rooster asked me and I shook my head. "We'll figure something else out for tonight but if we don't leave, we're going to be late!" I said as I pulled him out the door, locking it behind us. You could still hear her from outside the house, all the way in the Bronco. "Someone is going to think we're torturing that dog." I said as he crawled into the drivers seat. "I don't care so long as they don't break in." He said backing out of the driveway just as the contractors came down the road to start their own work this morning. "Nathan text me yesterday. They got all the tile laid in the bathrooms as well as the glass up around the shower, and they got the carpet laid in both bedrooms." I smiled at him, a genuine one. "Moving faster than I thought." He nodded, grabbing my hand on the center seat. "Maybe it'll get done before you leave."

"That's eleven days. Pretty short amount of time, don't you think?" He sighed, realizing I was right. "I guess you're right." The rest of the ride was quiet. Rooster was watching the clock closely, trying to make sure we got there in time. As we pulled into a parking spot I jumped out before he even cut the engine off. "Hey!" He called and I turned to him. "We have three minutes to be in the morning briefing!" I called back, rushing inside and to the women's locker room, stuffing my bag in a locker and rushing up to the ready room. Rooster rounded a corner in front of me, swinging the door open allowing me to rush in ahead of him. We made it to some seats in the second row just as Maverick walked in.

"Good morning, aviators." He said as he stood before us. "Good morning." We echoed. "Now before we discuss our successes and failures from yesterdays hops, I would like to give some news." Everyone looked around confused, even me. "I'm sad to say that we will be saying goodbye for a short time to two of our aviators." Rooster gripped my hand in his, giving me a small smile. "Lieutenant Motley and Lieutenant Seresin." I raised my brows in surprise. I was unaware anyone else was joining me, while I was glad Jake was I was also a little disappointed Bradley couldn't join me.

"They will be joining the VFA-87 Golden Warriors." I noticed Rooster perk up next to me, immediately taking interest in what Mav was saying. "They'll be gone for eight weeks, leaving on the thirtieth of this month and returning the week of Christmas, which of course we probably won't see them till after the new year. Booing erupted around us, making me giggle. "Now, on to our briefing. Coyote," He said pointing at the man who sat next to Hangman. "Here's where you went wrong." Coyote threw his hands out as Maverick turned towards the screen, making us laugh.

It was four o'clock and Rooster and I were finally able to leave. We showered on base before changing and crawling into the car, pretty tired from the hard day of training. "Nathan text me." He said as we drove off base. I raised my brow at him, turning my head to face him as I leaned back on the seat. "And?" He chuckled, "The crew was apparently very concerned about the screeching coming from your house." I groaned, rubbing my face. "We have to do something before I leave. I called the rescue today and I have to take pictures of her when I get home to send, that way they can post her picture and hopefully she finds a good family." I said looking back out the window.

When he didn't reply I turned back to him to see he had his bottom lip pulled between his teeth. "You okay, Roo?" His shoulders slumped telling me something was bothering him. "I kind of want to keep her." I sighed, leaning my head back. "Look, I can't tell you no because you're a grown man. But let's make sure she adjusts first before we decide to keep her. It's not fair to her if it's not a good environment." He nodded, taking my hand and kissing my knuckles. "Deal." About that time we pulled in the driveway and as he cut the engine off I could hear the screeching. "Has she been doing that all day?" I asked him and he nodded. "Nathan said it hasn't stopped." I huffed, getting out as Rooster grumbled about me getting my own door.

I reached in for my bag when he stopped me. "No, I got it." He said firmly, making me hold my hands up in surrender. "Yes, sir." I said and giggled as he glared at me from behind his sunglasses. I unlocked the door, opening it and immediately covering my ears as she sharp barking intensified. "Okay. OKAY!" I yelled, opening the crate and immediately she stopped, scattering out of the crate and over to Dahlia who was asleep. "How the hell are you sleeping?" I muttered as Rooster walked in. "Oh thank god, silence." He said, a look of relief on his face. He looked at the dog who was sitting, leaning against Dahlia's chest, shaking. "Is she cold?" Rooster asked as he set down our bags. I shook my head, crouching down to the little dog and holding out my hand which she turned her nose up to. "Just scared I think."

Suddenly a knock on the door caught our attention. "Hi guys, got a minute?" I looked to Rooster who nodded. "Yeah, what's up?" He asked as I stood. "Just wanted to see if you guys wanted to come see the progress we've made so far?" Rooster nodded enthusiastically before turning to me. "You go ahead. I'll stay here with the dogs." I said walking over to him. "You sure?" I nodded, kissing his cheek. "I'll be here when you get back." He smiled before kissing me and following Nathan out the door. "Lock this." He said before pulling the door closed behind him. I huffed, deciding not to do that seeing as he'll be back in a few minutes.

In that time I managed to get some pictures of the dog, sending them to the girl running the rescue. I scrolled through TikTok for a moment before opening twitter. I deactivated it before the trial, but now I had the app open, staring at the reactivate button. "Oh what the hell. It's been long enough." I said as I tapped the little button, turning to the stove to start the spaghetti for dinner. Within seconds my phone pinged repeatedly, telling me many people just realized I was back on social media. I ignored it until the pinging slowed down, only then did I pick it up.

I scrolled through the notifications, new follows and tags, even a few messages. Some good and some nasty, it's to be expected. But one caught my eye, it looked like a bot account with a black picture for the profile picture. Normally I would scroll past these but the message was what caught my eye. 'I hope to finally meet you one day, Mrs. Wilder.' Something about the message sent an eerie feeling through my bones, especially the use of 'Wilder'. "You are going to love the house babe!" Rooster called as he walked in, startling me to the point I dropped my phone on the counter. "Does it look good?" I asked and he nodded excitedly. "Exactly how we pictured it!" He said, coming over and wrapping his arms around my waist.

"I'm excited to see it, but part of me wants to wait till I come home to see it for the first time." He smiled, leaning down and kissing me. "You'll love it! I know you will!" He said, his lips finding my neck as my arms went around his shoulders. "Mm, I can't wait to live with you in our own house Mr. Bradshaw." He smirked against my neck, nipping at it lightly. "Maybe after that you'll become Mrs. Bradshaw." I was giddy at the thought, excitement shooting through my body. "Come on, we have twenty minutes till dinner's ready." I laughed as he picked me up, my legs around his waist. He carried me to the living room, dropping me onto the couch before crawling up my body. "You don't know how to do a quickie, Bradley." He chuckled, yanking my shirt over my head. "Oh yeah, watch me."

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Taglist: @mak-32 @rosiahills22 @dhwanishah09

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A/N: Please give me name suggestions for the new pup!

#rooster #rooster top gun #rooster fanfic #bradley rooster bradshaw #bradley bradshaw #top gun maverick #pete maverick mitchell #phoenix #natasha trace #jake hangman seresin #hangman #jake seresin #robert bob floyd #bob floyd #i hope you dance

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aurellya · 2 years

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Hidden Cracks

❀ Tartali | Oneshot | Angst (with a happy ending)

Summary: Where Zhongli desperately tries to hide the way the cracks painted upon his skin worsen with each passing day — threatening their promise of ‘forever’.

Of course, Childe notices.

[Originally posted here]

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Act I — Erosion

Zhongli comes home and sees Childe lying fast asleep on the couch… when he approaches, Childe jerks awake — and Zhongli watches as sleep (and fear) fades from those tired blue eyes that slowly recognise him.

Ignoring the dagger that disappears into droplets of water that soak his shirt, he continues to hold Childe till the other’s breaths steady.

“Xiansheng, you’re back late,” Childe laughs against the fabric of his shirt, eyes closed.

Running his hand through Childe’s hair and removing the mask from its place to set down on the table, Zhongli sighs, “My apologies.”

“… Zhongli, you’ll tell me if something’s wrong, right?” The hand grasping his wrist suddenly tightens.

“… I will.” Zhongli smiles, ignoring the way it feels as if his skin is on fire, clenched fist hidden behind Childe’s back as he refuses to acknowledge the faint golden glow of the cracks covered by his gloves’ leather.

It’s not the most comfortable position, awkwardly tangled in each other’s warm embrace on the couch. But it’s alright, having each other is more than enough.

That night, Zhongli enters Childe’s dreams — chasing away abyssal shadows and fear that wears his own crumbling face.

When the sun rises, they will awaken once more. And Zhongli can only hope that the hidden cracks beneath his gloves will never have to be revealed. Will never spread further.

Act II — Nightmare | Promise

Minutes, hours, days, Childe doesn’t know how long he’s been circling around in the darkness… there is a heaviness to the air, a sick pull to the odd mud that oozed from cracks in the earth. But that is not the worst of it.

In front of him is Zhongli, cracks along his skin as the ebony mask of Rex Lapis lay crumbling in his hands.

[Not again. Please no.]

But before the scene can progress once more, yet another cycle in the blurred loop of time in what he is sure is a nightmare yet can’t escape—

There is a flash of light, brighter than any star. And a comforting warmth envelopes him in its embrace.

It is by reflex that he wills water to bend to his will… though its form shatters immediately as he breathes in the competing scent of earthy sandalwood and bright magnolia.

He feels the man remove the mask atop his head [when had he forgotten that?] and set it aside somewhere, the power of the delusion out of his reach.

They remain like that, comforting touches reassuring of each other’s presence.

“… Zhongli, you’ll tell me if something’s wrong, right?” He asks, grasping at the other’s wrist and feeling the unusually fast pulse so uncharacteristic of someone usually so calm and composed.

“… I will.”

Childe wants to believe him. Truly, he does. But the faint power of geo so turbulent beneath his touch is more than enough of a tell.

There is something wrong, yet why wouldn’t Zhongli tell?

He thinks back to nights spent together, decorative silken robes covering the god’s skin. How the gloves always stayed on. How the glow of the lines upon his god’s skin only grew brighter with each passing day.

There is something wrong, and Childe— no. Ajax, needs to know.

[Fool. You cannot save me. A god’s erosion is inevitable.] The final words of Zhongli’s twisted form in his dream of the abyss echo in his mind… but one detail stood out.

The man had smiled. Smiled as he crumbled to dust for the Nth time in Ajax’s arms.

A challenge then. One he would gladly take up.

Childe laughs as the sun rises, casting its light upon their intertwined bodies.

Beside him, Zhongli continues to sleep soundly, long lashes casting shadows upon his cheeks. Silently, he wipes lines of red from the other’s eyes.

It only takes a few more minutes till eyes of molten gold blink open, a gloved hand coming to caress his cheek oh so gently, “Good morning, sleepyhead.”

“Good morning.” His god replies, placing a kiss to his lips, and it only sets his resolve in stone.

Tartaglia had come to challenge a god, blades prepared for a thrilling battle.

Childe had befriended a god — oh so graciously been given his heart as a gift to form a bond like no other, even.

And Ajax… Ajax would save him. He had to. It is his promise.

For the one who gave him the warmth of a family in the morning, spent afternoons having ‘business’ meals, and peaceful sleep each night — the man whose heart he’d been given and the lover he’d offered his own to… Ajax would do anything to fulfil that promise.

Act III — Departure

It isn’t hard to notice the way Childe watches him — always hovering nearby as if he would disappear at any moment, clutching him just that slightest bit tighter with each passing day. Still, neither bring it up.

And then it happens.

A miscalculation on his part. One he’d realised too late, darkness filling his vision as the fear in Childe’s expression morphed into a different kind — one of dread.

To the side, the shadow of himself formed by the nightmare smiled sadly before disappearing in a burst of gold.

“Zhongli—“ There is a strange feeling in his chest, one that Zhongli reaches for with frightening speed and gasping breaths. A spreading emptiness.

Warm fingers grasp at his, loosening his grip and rubbing calming circles in his palm. “Shh…focus on me. Good, there we go.”

Childe places a kiss to their joined hands, and Zhongli sighs as he notes the sparks that dance across his skin at the contact unhindered by the gloves he usually wore.

“Better?”

Instead of replying, Zhongli simply allows himself to melt into the embrace.

“I can handle it.” He’d said when had Childe first caught him, silk robe tossed off to the side and leaving the glowing markings exposed.

A betrayal, a promise broken — yet was it truly such if he had already resigned himself to the outcome, said it was ‘fine’?

It had taken days of gentle urging, of reassurance that he knew his limits and would be able to handle it.

Yet here he is, lying in Childe’s arms against the ancient power both fading and threatening to destroy his mortal form.

“Everything turns to dust…” Zhongli mutters after a while, gaze lowered. “Such is the natural order of this world. Change is inevitable. There is no ‘forever’, Ajax.”

The cracks are more prominent now, unstable geo energy spilling forth in pulsing waves.

“I know.” Childe admits, pressing their foreheads together. “I know, Zhongli… but still—“

“I will not stop, even if you ask.” It is a stubborn resolution, but one he will stick to for as long as he can.

What use is power if you cannot even use it to help those you care about?

“I know. But at least let me help?” The suggestion has Zhongli frowning, pulling away to watch Childe in confusion.

In his many years, Zhongli had seen countless gods fall to erosion. Yet a part of him wants to hope that something could be done… a foolish hope, really.

He’d been softened by time — by love.

Love for Liyue which he’d served for his whole life. Love for its people who’d proved their strength and independence. Love for the one who’d both stolen his heart, both godly and human

A love that kept that foolish hope of his alive.

“And what is it that you can do?”

A sad smile is his only reply that night, attention diverted much too easily caring touches and an offer of warm tea to ease the night’s chill.

Yet his true answer comes the next day in the form of a cold bed and a single letter on the table.

***

Dear Zhongli,

I’m sorry… but this is the only way I can think of for now. Live well, and please don’t worry about me.

I will return when I have an answer to your question. Or maybe, just maybe, we may meet again at the right time.

Always Yours,

Ajax

***

In a land frozen in time, a warrior kneels before his archon.

“Tartaglia, you have returned… why so?”

“Give ‘it’ to me.”

Silence sets over the icy hall, “… you are aware of the possible consequences?”

“I am… but if ‘it’ can help him then I’m willing to take whatever risk.”

The goddess of love smiles and golden light envelopes the room in its warmth. Pillars of earth rise from the ground — streams of hydro flowing across them.

In the middle of it all is a single chess piece, held in the warrior’s hands.

Act IV — Where Land Meets The Sea

The Tsaritsa does not answer Zhongli’s letters, each returned with seal unbroken and paper pristine as if untouched by anyone at all.

However, when he finally receives a response it is not the one he’d been expecting—

The trip to Snezhnaya is unpleasant to say the least.

Determination is what keeps him pushing through the cold of a land frozen over by their archon’s heart that had long since shut itself off from the love it had once been known for.

[Come, Morax. Meet with your fool of a lover before it’s too late for you both]

The words alone had been enough to have him leave his post overlooking Liyue, golden shield maintained by his adepti who’d urged against hesitance with the promise that they could handle themselves.

“The people of Liyue can defend ourselves, had we not proven it already? Go.” That they had, all those years ago during the final Rite of Descension.

The age of gods and monsters had passed. Perhaps this final battle was another test of both his and his people’s resolve on that.

The moment his feet touch ground once more, the earth responding to the reach of his core all the same, Zhongli feels it — the thrumming of power, foreign yet familiar.

The presence of another archon, yet not quite.

[Ajax… is that you?]

It is all too easy to find the source of the power, overflowing hydro energy oh so out of place in a nation of ice and snow.

“What have you done…” He whispers to no one in particular, clutching the crumpled letter in his hands as he stares at the whirlwind of chaos

“Zhongli— Why are you here, I—“ The letter falls to the ground as Zhongli pulls the other into a tight hug, watching as marks of shimmering blue faded from the other’s skin.

Power withdrawn even as the core it comes from only wishes to draw him closer.

Zhongli feels rather than sees the way erosion at him, the mask of ‘fine’ that he’d refused to let go of finally put down upon a reunion he’d been waiting for.

“I had to see you. Even one last time.” He laughs hoping the smile upon his cracking lips is convincing enough.

For a moment, all is silent… until walls of water rise high above them, untouched by Snezhnaya’s cold.

Ajax’s hand takes his, reaching for the gnosis that is torn between its master — previous and current.

[Morax you traitor]

[You dare leave us?]

[Archon of Geo, how far you’ve fallen…]

The voices echo — only to be silenced as clear blue waters wash the shadows away, whale song echoing in the air.

The energy flows into him almost naturally, soothing and calming turbulent geo with gentle waves like earth weathered by the movements of the sea — jagged cracks smoothened best they can and sealed with lines of blue.

“Good… it’s helping...” Childe comments, hands brushing over Zhongli’s skin where the angry lines faded with each second. And Zhongli cannot deny its truth.

Sighing helplessly at his lover, Zhongli frowned. “It is temporary, you know that.”

“Yeah, I do… but I could say the same for what you did for me.” Yet another truth.

“Ajax, I—“ Zhongli tries to explain once more. To say the words he’d not managed to say before Ajax’s sudden departure from his side.

Only to be silenced by warm lips pressing against his own.

“You fool.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Why?”

“I love you.”

A god who’d give himself for a mortal, and the mortal who’d sought power thought to be unreachable to do the same — Ah what a pair they make indeed.

A strange thing, love is.

nother time will come where they would have to face the cracks sealed by divine power that had been borrowed and wielded by the hands of one it did not belong to.

But perhaps by then, the answer they’d been seeking would be found.

“Let’s go home, Zhongli.” His Ajax smiles, eyes a brightest blue speckled with hints of gold — the influence of a god’s core which clearly did not belong to him but had thankfully accepted its master anyways.

“Mm, let’s.”

#childe #zhongli #tartali #タル鍾 #公钟 #fanfic #angst #Zhongli's erosion #I swear the ending is happy hahaha

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isabellafoster13 · 1 year

Text

This was requested on AO3 by Pup.

Here's my interpretation of Bixlow's past and the origin of his babies.

I hope you enjoy!

Spirits and Babies (Bixlow x Lucy)

It was a quiet, still day in Magnolia. The spring sun shinned down onto the town, bathing it in warm sun rays. The people of Magnolia spent their time either inside to enjoy the quietness, or outside, walking through town or eating ice cream. The notoriously loud and destructive guild that the townspeople loved dearly, Fairy Tail, was strangely quiet. The mages were relaxing, their quiet and serene day surely going to be interrupted soon.

Lucy sighed in contentment. She had decided that this calm day was better to spend at her apartment with her boyfriend. She was laying across her couch, her head resting on his lap. In her hands was Peppe, and the four other wooden totems that Bixlow affectionately called his "babies" were floating around the couple.

A comfortable silence wrapped the two mages up like a warm blanket. It was a thing to be marveled, perhaps. Lucy wasn't really on the loud side, being more than happy to sit at the guild and read while sipping on a strawberry milkshake, the rowdiness of her guildmates being tuned out by her brain. It wasn't her silence that was being drawn to attention. Instead, it was Bixlow's. The seith mage wasn't one of the most quiet mages, enjoying to bother his guildmates by making jokes and playing pranks. To anybody who didn't know him very well, it would be quite an awe-inspiring sight of the seith mage enjoying the silence that had settled upon him and his girlfriend.

Lucy gave a small chuckle to herself at the thought. She felt strangely honored to be one of very few people who got to see him like this.

"Whatcha laughing about, Cosplayer?" Bixlow glanced down at her behind his vizor, a teasing smirk on his face. His babies echoed the word 'Cosplayer.'

Lucy only pulled Peppe to her chest and answered, "I just think that it's funny how quiet and calm you can be. You're normal very obnoxious."

Bixlow chuckled at that and Lucy's face gained a smirk that mirrored her boyfriend's. She looked back at the Peppe and the other babies that have come to float over her. She lifted one hand to brush against the wooden totems, an unheard chuckle rising in her chest as they rubbed themselves against her hand like affectionate cats.

Before she got to know Bixlow's babies, she had thought of them as nothing more than objects that simply did as Bixlow commanded, however, now that she was dating Bixlow, she found that the babies were sentient and had their own personalities. It surprised her, how much they were like her celestial spirits.

Lucy found it to be very amazing, how their types of magic weren't as different as she had first believed. "Could you tell me about your connection to your babies?"

She heard Bixlow snicker, "you already know about my bond with them. Don't tell me you're losing your memory."

Lucy gently hit him on the shoulder before she returned her hand to hover above her body, watching with a fond smile as the babies rubbed themselves against it. They echoed the last couple of words that their wizard had spoken. Her other hand rested on top of Peppe, her thumb rubbing circles against his wooden body as though he were an actual baby.

Bixlow chuckled before he finally complied, "well, I've had y babies for most of my life. People like to think that they are mindless tools for battle, but that's not true. Sure, they do whatever I tell them to, but they are still capable of doing things on their own and having their own opinions on things. They're my babies and I love 'em a lot."

Lucy mused, "sounds a lot like my relationship with my spirits. It makes me mad when they're called tools or shields because that isn't true! They have their own free will and their own personalities. They are my family and I love them greatly."

"Even though that mermaid spirit of yours doesn't like you?" Bixlow laughed.

Lucy rolled her eyes. "She doesn't hate me. She's perfectly capable of showing affection, she just doesn't do it when other people are around. She really isn't that bad."

"Yeah, I know." There was a bit of a pause before Bixlow reached over to rest his hand on her stomach. "I don't think we've talked about why we learned our magic. Why did you choose Celestial Spirit Magic?"

Lucy gave a small sigh. She watched the wooden totems above her for a few moments before she answered, "my Mom was a celestial wizard."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I don't remember much about her, though. She died of illness when I was really young. My life after her death wasn't very fun, but I had the maids who were kind to me. I also had Aquarius and Cancer, who were my Mom's spirits. Capricorn was too, but an assortment of reasons caused me to not get his key until after Tenrou."

Bixlow rubbed his hand up and down Lucy's clothed stomach. It was something that Lucy strangely liked. It was a comforting gesture that he was sure to do whenever he felt it was needed. The seith mage gave a short hum before he spoke, his voice uncharacteristically soft, "my babies are my family too...literally."

Lucy sat up, the babies floating into the air, strangely quiet to match the atmosphere. She looked over at her boyfriend with her brow furrowed, seeing that he was staring across the room at the wall. She didn't need to see his full face to know that his eyes were glazed over. She wanted him to go on, wanted to hear him explain what he meant, but she didn't prompt him to do so. She didn't want to pressure him into talking about something that he wasn't quite ready to discuss.

There was a short stretch of silence before Bixlow continued, his voice not changing from its softness, "it was an accident, I swear. I was a child. I had just learned Seith Magic, but wasn't very good at controlling my Eye Magic that went with it. That was when I started wearing something to cover my eyes. At some point, something happened that caused me to lose the sunglasses that I was wearing. Before I knew it, my family were just souls. The spell can't be reversed, so I used some wooden totems that we had laying around to house their souls. Long story short, I ended up joining Fairy Tail and became a member of the Thunder Legion."

By the time he finished, his voice had taken on a saddened tone. Lucy felt tears threaten to fall as she held her hands over her chest, a dull, sympathetic ache forming there. She could never have imagined such a thing happening to her usually boisterous boyfriend. Looking back on her first day at Fairy Tail, though, she supposed that she shouldn't be surprised. The words that Mira had spoken several years ago rang in her head. Everyone in Fairy Tail bares the scars of a bad past. The S-Class mage had said something to that effect.

Not knowing how to comfort her boyfriend, she scooted closer and pulled him into her arms, gently urging him to rest his head on her shoulder. Silence descended upon the couple once more as Bixlow's babies, his family, settled around them, as if they were aiming to give them both a hug.

The silence was strangely comforting as Lucy and Bixlow snuggled closer. Bixlow had expected to feel terrible when he confessed to this accident, but instead, he felt a bit better. It was as though he had been relieved of a huge weight that had rested upon him. Perhaps it was because of Lucy's presence, but he didn't mind. It jsut felt good to finally tell someone about the origin of his ever-present babies.

#fairy tail #lucy heartfilia #bixlow #bickslow #bickslow’s babies #angst #fluff #hurt/comfort #established relationship #domestic fluff #fanon backstory

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s-brant · 3 years

Text

Baby Names

(gif: @mishellejones) (SERIES MASTERLIST)

Summary: Y/N gets frustrated while putting the crib for her and JJ’s baby together and finds herself missing her dead brother more than ever.

Word Count: 2.2k

Warnings: Fluff and minor angst.

A/N: Asks and ye shall receive, here’s a little blurb about what happens after Tokens! You don’t really have to read the other parts to enjoy this fic if you don’t want to, but I do recommend it for some backstory. This was slightly inspired by this fic by @cognacdelights, so go give her stuff a read! Let me know if you liked this. Have fun!

Y/N Routledge thought she got over her brother's death long ago.

Though you never truly "get over" losing a loved one, though there will always be a small part of you, however small, that aches for their presence again, she thought she moved past the tragedy to the best of her ability...until last week.

To say that the pregnancy was a surprise would be the understatement of the century. She and JJ were both on the same page about children when their relationship began, and that page was that neither of them wanted them yet. Sure, the idea of it in the future stirred their hearts with fond emotion, but considering that they had yet to graduate high school and barely scraped by on their own, they weren't jumping headfirst into that aspect of adulthood.

They were meticulous about safe sex. They couldn't afford another mouth to feed, she wasn't sure she could handle the emotional trauma of having an abortion, and, underneath it all, he had some reservations about being a father. It wasn't that he didn't envision a future with kids in their relationship, he did, but the topic of fatherhood always took him down a dark path within his mind.

So, she went on birth control once they started dating and they went along with no scares for the next six years as they graduated and started figuring out what the next step for their lives was going to be.

Y/N could get lost thinking about it, honestly, but she tries not to get too swept up in the minor mistake that led to this.

"You, my friend, need to stop moving around in there," she whispers down at her protruding belly with a hand cradling the heavy weight of it, "I'm trying to get your crib set up without JJ yelling at me for not asking for help, and if you don't stop kicking me, I'm not gonna get anything done."

She's sprawled out on the floor in the living room of the Chateau with her legs stretched comfortably in each direction while she hunches over to read the directions of the Ikea furniture. The sugarcoated description makes her want to hunt down the company CEO for sport, because for how "simple and easy!" the construction of it claims to be, she is at her wits end.

The last thing she needed after having her grief over John B's death reignited by their decision to name their kid after him last week was to stress herself out over something as stupid as this, but she won't quit. With how much JJ has been coddling her the further into the pregnancy she gets, she wanted to prove that she could do something for herself.

Whenever she brings in the groceries from the car and goes to lift the bag of dog kibble out of the trunk, he rushes up behind her back and scoops it out of the trunk before she dares to touch it. It always ends with her hollering after him that it's under twenty pounds, the upwards limit of the weight she's allowed to carry according to her doctor, but he refuses to hear any of it.

Inside of her, she feels a sharp sensation of something hitting her right in the ribs in response to her comment, and she groans in frustration. It's as if he did it because he knows she wants it to stop, the feisty little fucker.

"You're definitely your daddy's son, aren't you? It's already enough having one of him, the last thing I need is a JJ clone."

Their three-year-old Rottweiler rescue huffs a sigh from where he lays, frog-legging it, on the floor next to the unboxed crib pieces she can't put together to save her life. His drooping jowls produce a puddle of slobber on the her favorite carpet that is past the point of saving from his constant wear and tear. After a year of having him, she decided to stop trying to prevent him from ruining it. There’s no point.

She smiles at him as she leans forward to read through the directions for the billionth time, saying, "I actually think he'll be a lot like his uncle, but that's just me. If he isn't, I'll feel a little stupid over the name situation."

John Booker Routledge-Maybank.

Hell of a name if you ask her yourself, but for every internal struggle it reopened inside of her, she couldn't help but love it as soon as JJ casually proposed the idea on his way out of the door for work one morning.

Going on without John B has been a learning experience in every aspect. Any time she wanted to turn to him for advice or tell him something about the recent events in her life, she had to walk out back to their dying magnolia tree and sit under the shade to talk to the wind. Then, once the tree finally died and they were forced to cut it down, she took to sitting on its stump and doing it there.

It got easier as time went on, but she can't keep herself from wondering what it'd be like if he didn't die ever since she saw the results on the pregnancy test six months ago. Whenever she does something like going to her OBGYN appointments or, case in point, setting up the crib, she pictures him there.

She can see him here now, petting Bowie's shiny coat until he falls asleep with his head propped onto John B's outstretched legs. He'd be twenty-three years old by now with his life barely starting to blossom to its full potential, yet here they are. Correction, here she is, and he's off somewhere at the bottom of the ocean, already decomposed to the extent that not even his bones can be salvaged anymore.

Her chest sinks in another sigh, and she flips through page after page of the instructions with increasing aggression.

"This crib is so fucking—"

"What are you doing?"

The sound of her yelping in surprise at JJ's voice coming from the door is enough to make him laugh to himself, though his amusement is buried partway by what he's walking in on. He specifically asked her to wait for him to put the crib together, knowing damn well it wouldn't be the easy task she thought it was, but he should've known she'd do it anyway.

She looks over her shoulder with a mixture of guilt and frustration painting her features as she throws her hands up in the air and gestures vaguely to the unassembled crib. Her eyes are shining with the rapid onset of hormone-induced tears.

"I can't put this crib together 'cause the instructions aren't right, all the pieces are labeled wrong, your son won't stop kicking me, and I miss my brother so much right now," she spews the words with no pauses to breathe until the very end, when she stops short to suck down a breath as soon as she gets the last part out.

It leaves JJ standing at the entrance to the house with this stunned expression.

There's no amusement to be found anymore. Once she turned and flashed those wide, teary eyes that never fail to spark an ache in his heart at him, his tired smile vanished and his feet started moving before he could say anything to her.

The floorboards creak beneath his half-laced boots on his way across the room to her. It prompts Bowie to pop his head up from around the side of the coffee table to catch a peek of whoever it is that's approaching his emotionally distraught owner. Upon seeing JJ's familiar face, the dog relaxes back into his lounging position atop the carpet and tracks JJ’s movements until he's seated next to her.

"This is about John B?" he asks.

Her cheeks are flushed in embarrassment at her sudden outburst, and she can't bear to meet his gaze right now. Despite him being her closest friend and husband, she feels as small and vulnerable as she did six years ago when she first learned of her brother's death from Shoupe. Time might as well be shaped in the form of a never-ending circle for them, directing them back to their seventeen-year-old state of mind every time things turn sour.

Y/N finally lifts her hanging head to look over at him after another few seconds and thinks she might crumble at the look on his face. He hates watching her cry.

"I guess," she says through a sniffle, "It's about the crib too, but I've been thinking about it a lot more since we picked the name. Our baby’s gonna grow up never knowing who his uncle was..."

With that, JJ takes it as his cue to pull her closer.

He scoots up behind her and lets his chin rest on the curve bridging her neck and shoulder together as he twines his arms around her body. It's a closeness that's as natural as breathing for him, so natural that he can hardly remember the years before it became normal for them to take part in little moments of intimacy like this. The warmth of their bodies cohabitates in the blurred line distinguishing where she ends and he begins, and he feels her relax, sagging in his embrace in appreciation of his miraculous ability to make her feel better no matter how worked up she is.

One of his hands rests on the swell of her bump in an absentminded effort to calm him too. Even though he isn't consciously thinking of it, he knows that her distress must upset the baby too. The contact steadies her, keeps her grounded to the moment rather than allowing her to slip away into the current of her negative thoughts, and she clings to every word he has to say.

He says, "You and I both know that isn’t true. He's gonna grow up seeing all the pictures you have of John B and ask about him all the time. And we'll tell him all the stories"—there's a pause of contemplation as he recalls a few particularly non-PG memories of his best friend—"Well, maybe not all of them, but you know what I mean."

This draws a soft bout of laughter from deep within her chest that he feels with how her body shakes ever so slightly with it. It seems so wrong to laugh with tears in her eyes but she can't help it. Her emotions have been scattered in every direction since the pregnancy began, and it has only gotten worse the further along she gets.

"If you ever tell him about the kief incident, I'm never giving you a bl—"

His free hand smushes over her mouth before she can say the rest.

"Don't even think about finishing that sentence.”

It's said so frantically, it makes her erupt in laughter hard enough to tickle her abdomen muscles with the aching sensation of it. The vibration of it under his palm makes him drop his hand a second later with the need to hear the beautiful sound. After seeing her cry, it's a welcome shift in mood, even if it's at his expense.

Her head is thrown back on his shoulder, mouth parted into a smile with the gleeful giggling filling the room. His stomach churns with butterflies at the sight of her. Even after all these years, he has the same reaction to her laughter every time. It makes him smile to himself and watch her in quiet reverence. It makes him ache with the same inklings of longing he felt for the first time when he was much younger.

Her laughter begins to die down by the time she can draw enough breath in to murmur a soft, "Sorry, angel," to him and reach down to hold the hand he rests on her belly as consolation for her joke.

They remain this way for another few minutes, tangled up in each other's arms on the floor of the living room with Bowie snoring a few feet away, before he manages to convince her to let him be the one to set up the crib instead. It takes a good five minutes of playful back and forth before she concedes under the condition that he'll let her paint the nursery by herself when the time comes, and that's all it takes for her to abandon the task in favor of finding something to snack on in the fridge.

In her defense, the crib is actually quite difficult to put together.

JJ doesn't consider himself an expert handyman by any means, at least not with anything outside of his area of expertise as an electrician, but he likes to think he knows enough to put together a "no assembly required" Ikea crib without wanting to bang his face against the wall.

In the end, it gets finished by the two of them in the middle of the night over a box of cold leftover pizza from the previous day. It takes them two hours of struggling before they get it fully assembled and placed where they want it in the room that'll soon belong to their son.

He pretends not to notice her sneaking back in to tie John B's old bandana around the wooden railing before they go to bed.

Tag List: @gabiatthedisco, @fangirlvoice, @black-syren, @apparrio, @particularcth, @planetdemon, @idk-ijustworkhere, @krisphann, @astrydis, @k-k0129, @zarahsloves, and @stilesflannels.

#jj maybank #jj maybank x reader #jj maybank smut #outer banks #obx #fanfiction #obx s2 #okay but ive been doing some thinking and i can formally declare that i think their song is call it what you want (by taylor swift)#it fits tbh

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manonblaqkbeak · 3 years

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Midnight Cravings

so, i actually wrote most of this in july but never finished it and decided to fix it up for todays prompt bc i was feeling a lil lazy lol. and i think its one of my faves, especially the ending.

2.2k words

cw: none

enjoy!! :)

It was just past two in the morning and Aelin was wide awake. Not due to a mountain of paperwork, or a nightmare or one of her kids needing her. Aelin was wide awake because she was absolutely starving.

The type of starving it felt like she'd never eaten a day in her life. Like her stomach was going to eat itself.

Her stomach growled again, louder than before, and beside her, his voice muffled, Rowan asked, “Is that your stomach or the wind outside?”

“Shut up,” Aelin mumbled, as her stomach continued its song. Gods, why was she so hungry? She practically devoured the fruits in the fruit bowl just before bed, she had a healthy serving of dinner, and a large slice of chocolate torte for dessert.

But here she was, close to eating her damned pillow to sate her starvation.

Aelin glanced over towards her mate, his back to her, and she shuffled closer, resting her chin on his shoulder.

“Rowan,” she started to say, but Rowan cut her off.

“I'm not going to the kitchens.”

She pouted, although he couldn't see her. “Please?” she knew that if she used her manners, then he would do just about anything.

But it didn't work. Not just yet. “There's some fruit in the bowl.”

“I ate them all.” He sighed heavily, knowing that he was losing this conversation. “Please? I am your mate, your wife, the mother of your children.”

Rowan snorted. “Really? I was starting to suspect that the three silver-haired children were Lorcan's.”

Her hunger nearly disappeared at the thought of that. “Don't be gross.” Reaching over, Aelin kissed the tip of his ear, smiling as he shuddered in pleasure as she nibbled on it. “Please?”

Rowan sighed heavily, knowing that he lost, and Aelin barely hid her smile. “I'll go,” he said. “But only if you join me.”

Her smile did disappear at that. “But the bed is so warm.”

“Exactly. If I have to leave it, so do you.”

“Fine,” she mumbled reluctantly, but quickly perked up, realising that she would be getting food. Rowan was a much better cook than her. Aelin used to have basic cooking skills, but with being Queen and then becoming a mother, she never cooked anymore and really had no need to; not with multiple cooks under the palace roof. She did try a few years ago as a treat for her family, but everything turned into a crisp and wasn't even suitable for the dogs in the kennels.

Scrambling out of bed, the Queen and King of Terrasen tied on their robes and put on their slippers. Aelin loved the sight of Rowan looking so domestic, it was ridiculous how much she loved it.

Since Isolde was only six months old and far too young to be left behind, Rowan put her in the wooden carrier to take with them into the kitchens, their movements silent as the grave as they transferred their youngest from her crib and into the crafty carrier—Isolde was the only one of their children that slept soundlessly through the night at such a young age, and loathed to be woken up. As Rowan did that, Aelin checked in on Alder in his room, their son a little over three years old, but he slept like a log and Aelin knew that he wouldn't wake up at any point when they were gone.

As they left their chambers, Aelin nearly ruined all their good work and almost woke up their other children when she bit out a curse at the sudden leg cramp that shot up her right calf. Rowan glanced at her, asking if she was okay, and after a moment she was, although she was left a little dazed at the suddenness of it all.

Aelin's legs had been cramping randomly of late, but she didn't notice anything of concern. If it continued, she would go to Magnolia and see if anything could be done about it. The last thing Aelin needed was to fall ill, she had far too many things to do with winter arriving in a few weeks. She did know that if anything was wrong with her, that she could rely on Rowan completely.

Aelin's stomach growled for the umpteenth time, the sound lasting for a good minute before it settled. Isolde fidgeted in her sleep, but did not wake.

“I think your stomach was just trying to talk to me.”

“It was,” Aelin agreed. “It said that we need to hurry the hell up or it's going to disintegrate.”

“We better do as it says then. It'd be cruel to subject Terrasen to a hungry Queen. No one should suffer as I do when you're starving.”

“You make me sound horrible.”

“You are,” he said, humour dancing in his dark eyes. “And not just when you're hungry.”

Aelin mumbled under her breath. Rowan decided to pretend not to hear her, even as he fought a smile.

After what felt like an eternity, they reached the kitchens, Rowan placing Isolde onto the counter closest to them. Aelin rushed towards the bowls of fruit, grabbing an apple and a pear, eating the fruits simultaneously. She missed the small, private smile Rowan gave her as he went to the pantry, asking her what she was in the mood for, one eye on their child. But still, she slept and Rowan for a moment, wished that all of their children had been like that, but knew that there was no point in complaining when they all slept quietly now.

“Something filling,” was all Aelin could think of to say. But after a moment decided on an omelette, filled with bacon, mushrooms, onion, red bell-peppers and carrot. As she and Rowan prepped the ingredients—with Rowan wanting his own omelette—Aelin contemplated in silence, her brows furrowed as she chopped up the carrots.

“What are you thinking about, Fireheart?” Rowan asked when he noticed his wife's expression.

“Just trying to remember the last time I was this hungry. I've been like this for at least a week and a half.”

“I've noticed. You haven't had this big of an appetite for a good number of years.”

She didn't comment on that, lost in her own world. “And my legs have been cramping lately too. I haven't injured myself. Have I been sleeping in strange positions?”

“No, you're sleeping just fine.”

Her frown deepened. “Maybe I'm just stressed for the winter preparations.”

“Possibly, I know that you worry a lot for the people during winter.” They both did, as the winters in Terrasen were brutal. Each year there was always a small number of people that passed due to the cold for a number of reasons. When those lists made their way in Aelin's hands, it always hit her hard, her guilt a palpable thing, even after Rowan would tell her that it was in no way her fault.

But that wasn't the reasons for her consuming hunger and leg cramps—Rowan had noticed the change in her scent weeks ago and when he noticed, he thought that Aelin would too. But she was completely oblivious and he didn't want to spoil the surprise, although it was getting harder each day not to say something.

However, he couldn't help but count back the weeks to the day of conception. He was fairly certain that it was when Aelin had been reading a particularly steamy novel on the window seat in their sitting room and jumped on him like they had never had sex before when he had come to ask if she was joining him in bed.

It would fit in with list of unusual places they have conceived their children. Elentiya had been in the library (either in the archives or in Aelin and Rowan's private nook, neither were sure), Norrin against an oak tree (which they discovered after they have calmed down that the Little Folk had watched the entire encounter, with Aelin becoming stuck between wanting to laugh or hide under a rock), Alder against one of the many palace chimneys, and Isolde in a linen closet.

Maybe one day they would conceive a child in their bed like most people did.

They got to cooking, with Rowan standing behind Aelin and guiding her with the wooden spoon and plating their midnight meal before it burned into a crisp. Isolde babbled in her sleep as the sounds of cooking reached her, but still slept. It wouldn't be long, however, until she woke up to be fed. Aelin placed their youngest by her feet as they sat down at the small dining table in the far corner of the kitchen where the workers took their breaks.

The smile on Aelin's face as she bit into the fluffy omelette was certainly worth being woken up in the middle of the night.

However, her fork stilled in mid-air when she was halfway done when realisation dawned on her.

Finally.

“I'm pregnant,” was all she said, her Ashryver eyes growing wide. Rowan didn't bother to hide his smile. This was why he didn't say anything. It was always worth it when she revealed those beautiful words to him. “Rowan, I'm pregnant. The last time I was this hungry was when I was pregnant with Alder and the leg cramps are from Norrin's pregnancy. And all the fruit I can't stop eating is just like when I was pregnant with Isolde. How haven't I noticed anything?”

“You've been busy,” Rowan said, reaching over to take her hands in his and kissed her fingers.

“You knew, didn't you?” Aelin asked, her eyes narrowed just slightly.

“I may have noticed.”

“You should have told me.”

“I like it better when you come to the realisation yourself,” he said simply.

Aelin shot out of her seat and sat on his lap, a pretty smile gracing her face as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, her fingers playing the the hair at the nape of his neck. Rowan wound his arms around her waist and kissed her on the cheeks, the tips of her nose, the corner of her lips and then her mouth.

Aelin hummed contentedly and kissed him back. When they broke apart, she rested her forehead against his.

“We're insane.”

Rowan laughed deeply at the sudden statement. “What makes you say that?”

“We're having a fifth baby. Lorcan and Elide only have three and I always thought that they'd have at least a dozen, but they don't and we're about to have five. That's insane. We're insane.”

“We are, but I like that about us,” he said, kissing her again. Her face was open and soft, her eyes dancing with happiness, but he still found himself asking, “Are you okay with it?”

“Of course I am, buzzard. More than words can say.” Aelin kissed him to emphasise that fact, his hand reaching down onto her belly and was content to stay like that forever. She couldn’t believe how lucky she was. She always thought that she’d just have one child, maybe two, but to have five was something she never dreamed of.

Isolde finally decided to wake up and scream her displeasure at being hungry. Aelin was off him in an instant, cooing at their daughter as Aelin sat back in her seat and fed not just herself, but Isolde at the same time. His mate was spectacular at multitasking like that.

They couldn't wait to meet their fifth child.

X X X X X X

Rowan was surprised that his children hadn't kicked down the doors to the bedchamber with how excited they were. Even little Isolde was a ball of energy and she was by far their most quiet child. Rowan lead them to their mother, reminding them that they had to be quiet and gentle, because mama had just gone through a long process of bringing in their new sibling into the world.

They entered the bedchamber and Aelin greeted them with a tired but loving smile telling them to come meet their new sister, the kids went onto the bed, surrounding Aelin and the baby, happiness and wonderment in their eyes as they took in the little bundle of joy, her silver hair stark against her lightly tanned skin. She had opened her eyes briefly during her first feeding and Aelin had groaned playfully when she spotted that they were pine-green, muttering how of course I labour for a whole day to give birth to another you. But he knew that she didn't care if she was born with green hair and yellow eyes, Aelin loved her immensely.

“What's her name, mama?” Elentiya asked softly, carefully trailing a finger down her sisters cheek.

“Elowynn-Yrene.” Rowan would never forget the pure joy in Yrene's eyes when Aelin asked if the healer would give them her blessing to grace their child with her name, as a thank you for all the years of coming down and helping Aelin, for eradicating Erawan, and for being a great friend to both of them. It had taken them a few minutes to convince their friend, citing that the honour was far too much, but Yrene eventually said "yes".

“That's pretty,” Alder supplied, a wide smile on his face. Aelin kissed his temple and thanked him for his kind words.

Aelin moved her eyes from Alder to Rowan, smiling as her mate stood there, taking them in.

His family, their family. Never did he think he would be so blessed to have this.

His and Aelin's children; the most beautiful thing Rowan had ever seen.

Rowan went and joined his family on the bed, the smile on his face one of Aelin's favourites.

#rowaelin #rowaelinmonth #my work

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nalu4emily · 3 years

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Time To Heal

Summary: 'It was a marathon, not a sprint and with each day he spent with her, pretending to act like his normal self, the more he hoped she'd begin to loosen—only time would tell.' What can Natsu do to heal her aching heart? Especially when she's reluctant to tell him what happened.

NALU friendship/ hurt/ comfort.

Please be aware of the trigger warning. Do not read unless 18+. Contains sensitive content.

She was crying again; that much was certain. The sound of sniffles and wet droplets cascading down her cheeks, splattering across the desk she so often sat at, echoed deep into his ears. Her whimpers pulled at him the most. She tried so hard to keep them locked away, to defy her true feelings, but they managed to seep through every time.

It hurt him, to know that she was suffering so painfully, so inconsolably, and there was simply nothing he could do to stop it. He'd waited for her; to speak; to tell him what'd really happened that night, and relieve herself of the burden that weighed so heavily on her shoulders.

It haunted her every waking moment; he knew that. Even at night, she'd rouse so suddenly, coated in sweat, shivering, and desperate for his warm touch. It seemed to be the only thing that could soothe her frantic heart, especially when the tears started. Her behaviour wasn't all that different during the day either and Natsu had nearly given up hope that she'd ever tell him, making the guilt he felt for not being there all the more consuming.

The state he'd found her in the next morning, bloodied, clothes torn and completely broken, tormented his thoughts daily, and the way he'd reacted to it, even more so. Through the despair and anger at finding her so badly hurt, he'd raged through the streets of Magnolia, hunting down the bastard he could smell all over her apartment.

It wasn't hard to dissect what'd happened to her, the slayer just wasn't sure how far it'd gone. He'd learnt quickly not to ask questions though or risk losing her trust entirely. It was a marathon, not a sprint and with each day he spent with her, pretending to act like his normal self, the more he hoped she'd begin to loosen—only time would tell.

Having procrastinated long enough, the young mage jumped up to her window, and let himself in like always. Plastering the biggest smile he could muster onto his face, he greeted the girl hunched over her desk, right where he knew she'd be and tried to remain positive in such a ghastly situation.

"O-Oh, uh… Hi, Natsu! I didn't see you there." Her eyes locked onto his for barely a moment before turning away, wiping her cheeks to rid them of their wetness with her used, snot-laden tissue. She turned around to face him, her gaze never quite meeting his as a small, weak smile graced her lips, "Where's Happy?"

"Probably eating a fish somewhere… Or at the guild giving it to Carla, you know what he's like." He shrugged, his expression remained light and cheery, while his narrowed pupils latched onto her every movement, much like a predator stalking its prey, "I thought I'd come over and see if ya felt up to going on a mission soon. I snagged some pretty good ones for you to take a look at, if you're interested?"

"Sure… that sounds like fun. W-Why don't I make us some lunch? Then we can pick out a good one together." Lucy hopped up from her chair all too eagerly, desperate to remove herself from his watchful gaze.

She was avoiding him; but that was hardly new. He knew the reason why—the unshed tears in her eyes evidence of that, not that he cared what she looked like. She did it for a matter of pride, wanting him to see only the Lucy he knew so well, and not the damaged one she’d become. He, as much as anyone, wanted to see that smile light up her face once more, the brilliant one that shined as bright as the stars she wielded; what he wouldn’t give to see that again…

Gathering the request papers in his hand, he followed her into the kitchen and leaned himself up against the doorway, smiling as he watched her get to work, “Hey Luce, this one looks kinda good. I think we should definitely consider it.” But she didn’t answer, nor even look at him. If it weren’t for their close proximity, he would have assumed she hadn’t heard him. “Lucy, did you hear me?”

She remained silent, instead her body began to tremble, her face wet with tears once again and her hands drawn to cover them on instinct.

“Luce, I didn’t hear you.” He cautiously walked over to her shaking form, carefully reaching out to place his hand on her shoulder, while the other drew her body in and held her tight, “Lucy...”

"I...I-I can't do this any more…" The blonde spoke quietly, removing her hands from her face and placing them onto his chest.

"What do you mean?" He asked, his voice gentle as if speaking to a spooked animal.

"This." She gestured to the two of them, "Pretend, Natsu. I-I'm tired of pretending like everything's fine, when it's so obviously not." She felt his hand clasp at her cheek, wiping the tear droplets away with his thumb. His familiar warmth soothed her aching heart as she leaned into it, finding comfort there that only he could provide. "I-I'm sorry. You must be so sick of seeing me cry all the time!"

The tears flowed freely now, pulling at his heart strings as well as his own unshed tears, but he would never so selfishly let them show. He cradled her closely, wanting nothing more than for her to feel safe in that moment, like he would protect her from everything, should she so wish. It was the first time Lucy had addressed the very unfortunate situation they found themselves in, and he wasn’t about to ruin it all now by letting his own emotions take over.

She tucked herself into the crook of his neck and breathed in his familiar scent, calming her nerves as she relaxed into him. This is the way they'd always worked, one picking the other up in their time of need and carrying both of their weights should they need to, and Natsu was approaching this no differently.

Once she'd calmed down enough, he picked her up and carried her to her bed, perching them both down on it so that they could get comfortable. She was ready to finally tell him, he could see it in her eyes, and as apprehensive as he was about hearing it, all he needed to do was listen.

"I think you need to tell someone, Lucy. Whether that's me, or someone else, it's not good to keep it all bottled up." He explained, as she pulled away slightly, but not enough to fully let go of him.

"I-I know… It's just hard to relive something you spend every waking moment trying to forget." She sniffled once more, wiping her nose this time on her sleeve. "Can we at least lay back first?" Her voice was so timid and insecure, nothing like the Lucy he knew.

"Sure thing!" He laid himself back against the pillows, kicking his sandals off and placed one arm behind his head while the other was outstretched for her to lean upon. "Come lay here, Luce."

Doing what he said, she cuddled up to his side, laying her hand and cheek against his shoulder and felt his arm encircle her waist, "I… don't really know where to begin… It all seems such a blur, yet I remember every single bit of it."

He kept quiet, caressing his thumb against her hip as a way of encouraging her instead.

She began slowly, starting from where she'd left the guild hall that night, "It was kinda strange I guess… not having you there to walk me home like normal, it never feels right without you around…" She chuckled half-heartedly, before clearing her throat. "I remember walking along the canal when this bad feeling came over me… But, I just put it down to being alone in the dark and kept going.”

She shifted closer to him, subtly indicating that what she was about to say, made her uncomfortable at the very least.

"When I reached the apartment building, I noticed the window was slightly open, even though I knew I’d shut it. I must’ve just thought that you’d come home early from your mission, or something." She fidgeted again, this time her legs began to tangle with his, giving away her anxiety and fear. “It was only once I walked into the room, did my blood run cold. It was dark and empty, and you were no where to be seen. It felt… wrong.”

"You mean they were already in the house?" Natsu asked, feeling himself tense as he looked across the small room, imagining her words play out before him.

"Mm, and by the time I'd reached for my keys, it was too late." She shivered once again, the memories making it hard to concentrate. "H-He came out from behind, shoving me against the wall and pinning my arms above my head." A fresh set of tears began to cascade down her delicate cheeks, her breathing heavier than before and her fingers gripping at his jacket tightly. "I…I remember struggling a lot, trying to kick him away, but it was no use, he was just too strong. I felt so overpowered and small and weak, and all he did was laugh."

Natsu clenched his jaw, realising now that this was about to get a whole lot darker and he could barely keep himself from raging all over again, but he kept himself controlled this time, for Lucy's sake—that was the last thing she needed.

"That's when it started…" She gulped down a large breath, steadying herself as she divulged further, "His hands; his mouth; his… teeth. I-I can still feel them… on me, crawling across my skin."

Natsu's eyes widened, turning to the blonde who refused to look him, and gasped, "He touched you!? Where?" He asked, a little too forcefully in his own shock.

Unable to say with words, she nodded and used her finger to point at the areas on Natsu's body, starting from the top, "Here," she pointed to his mouth and chin. "Then here," she then grazed over his ear and jaw line, and the next one his neck. Her finger ventured down to Natsu's chest and stomach, where she pointed once more, "And then… there," she managed to wrangle out, pointing down towards his upper thigh.

"You mean… that bastard touched you down-"

"He didn't quite get that far. When I stopped struggling, I think he must've lost concentration, because I managed to pull one of my hands free and grab at his crotch."

She felt Natsu tense at that, having anyone grab hold and squeeze them tight was not a pleasant thought, "I hope you squeezed until your hand hurt, Lucy."

"Well, that was the plan… but he slapped me across the face before I could get any real grip and I landed face down on the floor." Jolting upwards, she ran a shaky hand through her hair, removing the blonde tresses away from her clammy forehead. "Sor- Sorry Natsu, the next bit, is where he… It's the bit, I-I struggle with most…"

Feeling alarmed by her reaction, he sat up too. Fearing the worst, he could only hope she wasn't about to tell him what he'd suspected all along, "It's alright, take your time." He reached his hand out to her, thankful she'd taken it and not pushed him away, "What did he do, Lucy?"

Trying to calm the overwhelming anxiety building within her, she swallowed down the longest breath of air, filling her lungs with much needed oxygen, "I remember smacking my head on the floor… A-And then, I felt his weight on top of me…"

Natsu's breath caught in his throat, snapping his head to the part on the floor Lucy had pointed to and could only imagine how frightened she must have been, "Then what, Luce?" He noticed her hesitancy, wishing he didn't have to ask.

"I-I remember his hand on the back of my head, holding me down, while his other hand lifted up my skirt. He was laughing at me, even as he slid down my underwear." She huddled herself back into a ball by the window, wiping continuously at her red and irritated eyes, "It was then that I realised that my struggle was in vain, that no matter what I did, he was going to… then he…" The tears turned to wails as she tried to continue, "And I've… I've never felt more disgusted! I felt helpless and so pathetic, so desperate for someone to come and save me that I stupidly called out your name, even though I knew you wouldn't hear me… That hope was still there."

Natsu had barely moved, so ashamed of himself for not being there in her time of need that he didn't know what to do with this new information. He felt angry beyond words that some bastard out there was walking free after doing such a horrific thing to his Lucy. But among the anger, there were other feelings; guilt; sadness; frustration; regret; all of them fighting for dominance in his tumultuous mind.

"Lucy…" Was all he could manage, unable to find the right words to tell her how truly sorry he was for not coming to her aid, sickened by the fact that while he wasn’t there, she’d suffered so greatly.

"I was so scared, Natsu!" She started, turning to look at his own sombre expression, "But I knew that if anyone were to come, it'd be you." Lucy's lips lifted in the corners, her smile full of sadness and sorrow, "When he finished, I couldn’t move, and all I remember feeling was coldness of the hard floor, wishing you'd come through that window and warm me up again…"

But that's not what happened, and he felt like the worst best friend in the world because of it. She'd needed a loving hand to lead her away from the pain, to comfort her and protect her from the monster that lurked in the dark, but he’d arrived too late.

He felt his heart sink and his stomach drop, his guilt and regret taking precedence, "I… I, I'm so sorry, Lucy… I never meant to… I didn't think-"

"Like I said, I don't blame you for not being there… It wouldn’t be fair of me to do that. How were you to know?” As much as it hurt her, she knew that had he been there, it would’ve been a totally different story, “I just… I need…”

She couldn’t say it with words, but he knew exactly what she was trying to tell him. She needed him, and that’s exactly what he was going to give her. Without saying a word, he reached forward and pulled the desperate girl back into his chest, enveloping her in that warmth she yearned for more than anything else, and held her as if his life depended on it. He wasn't letting go, not ever, and with every minute that passed with her in his arms, was another second towards healing her shattered heart.

“I’m always gonna be here, Lucy. I promise you.” He whispered into her hair, kissing the top of her head as if she was the most precious thing in the world. “You mean too much to me.”

She snuggled closer, wanting to be as near to him as she could and tightened her grip, “Thank you, Natsu.” With his warmth seeping deep into her cold body, warming her very soul, she relaxed against him, and felt her eyes slowly close, “Thank you...”

I know this was a sad one for nalu day, but I wanted to convey more the bond between them rather than the actual incident. I hope you liked it anyway! :)

#nalu #fairy tail nalu #nalu fanfiction #nalu fanfic #fairy tail #fairy tail natsu #fairy tail lucy #fairy tail fanfiction

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cosmiclatte28 · 3 years

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White day Cliché (Jeno x you)

a/n : I rushed this! Sorry if your white day is coming to and end or maybe you just start the day. Anyways this one is for Jeno lovers I know out there @yutahoes @neopalette

Warning : Florist reader au! Winwin is your asistant and of course this is a great lesson for you to know that there are other flowers than red roses to represent love :D

enjoy!!

14 of March, another unofficial special day for the cheesy couple. Not for you, the lonely girl of the batch! Come on, can’t people just keep this special day to themselves? Not that you hate them for having a partner, it’s just annoying for your single soul (okay admit it, you’re jealous) You glare at the author of this story, as if she herself has a special someone to give her the treats she deserves. “Shut up Cosmic, you’re nothing different than me.”

Anyways, what makes you sick and happy about this day is just that your flower shop is selling like crazy! You’re sick for arranging red roses every minute and happy because well the profit for today is big!

“Another red roses,” your assistant Winwin calls out from the cashier. You glance from the working table to see another pile of receipts waiting to be done on the table.

“All red roses?” you sigh and Winwin just gives you a small nod “We’re lucky we prepared a lot of them today.”

You roll your eyes “Didn’t they know there are many more flowers other than roses?” you shudder but continue arranging the flowers.

“I don’t know, what will you want to receive as a girl in white day?” Winwin asks as he leaves the counter when he sees no new customer is here. He takes his gloves and starts helping you.

You smirk “Hmm interesting, let me see.” You say as you grab your scissors and cut the thorns.

There’s seven bouquet to finish and you’re glad you get a hand.

“Let’s see red roses are ideal for love, it represents love and passion, beauty and respect.” You finish one bouquet like Winwin.

“But there are other flowers like, pink hydrangeas! They’re cute and they represent romance too, even better a true feeling.” Your hands already wrap a second bouquet. “Sincere emotions.”

Winwin leaves you for a while with three bouquets done, he called the names and the pretty flowers are on their ways to meet happy receivers!

Winwin returns luckily without a new paper, you’ve been making more than ten today! And you’re getting bored.

“I’ll say some hint of forget me not will be nice.” You pick the knife to cut the thorns out of the stem and prepare the wrapping paper for the bouquet.

“Oh yes, that symbolizes true love! It’s sweet, but not many people know that.” Winwin smiles when he is also thinking of flowers that represent love.

You nod “See, I have something else in mind.”

The other bouquet are smaller, so you finish them faster and Winwin is back with more orders.

“How many men are planning to rob the red roses here?!” you squeal when you see another orders of red roses.

“Do you want me to lie and say we don’t have anymore red roses?” Winwin rolls his eyes but his hands are already making more bouquet like you did.

“One more red roses orders and I am done.” You hufth but continue to work, because money comes first.

“Okay, besides we don’t have much more left. Let’s sell all of it and stop.” He pats your back and you grin “No, we sell the other flowers at half price!”

The man beside you pops his eyes “What? Why?”

You wrap up another piece “Because WInwin, this is only lunch. People will flood this place before dinner if they’re coming for a special dinner. And I have a good plan to sell these other pretty flowers.”

Winwin just nods and leaves you again to distribute the flowers. After five more arrangements, your red roses are finished, and you begin to make new arrangements.

“We’ll sell this at a lower price, but I’ll write the explanation of each flowers. Come help me.” You pull Winwin to the working space and tell him your plan. He grins and nods happily “Those are great ideas.”

So, in the next one hour both of you begin to arrange different flowers with colorful calm tones and divergent beauties. All different like how every couple has different representation of love.

“This one has Hyacinth as the main flower this is for the couple who adores sincerity and constancy.” You help Winwin put on the sign on each flowers.

“Next, this one has Magnolia, for those who has all enduring love.” You explain when a new customer is walking in to look for a flower to present at dinner.

You’re glad because the idea is fresh and people are loving it, they even ask you if you have flowers for their special lovers. You’re energized to make new arrangements for customized couples and their faces are also brighter as they feel confident meeting their lover and explaining the meaning of each different flowers.

“Wow! That’s a lot of flowers today!” Winwin says when he starts to count the money and you’re still sitting on your working table trying to fix the last flower.

“I am going to go buy us coffee,” Winwin takes some money from the cashier and you let him go “Take me some cookies too!”

Winwin smiles and excitedly leaves, oh damn you know why he’s excited. He’s seeing on the hot barista there and is he bringing a flower? Oh Winwin! Even Winwin has someone to take care of today.

You sigh when you realize you’re single and sad. You busy yourself with cleaning the leaves and thorns before you hear a ring from the door.

“Welcome-“ you pause when you see the man in front of you. “Oh, you!”

The man with a gentle eye smile walks to your side “Long time no see (y/n)! Nice flower shop.” He looks around and you stay quiet. “How did you find me?” you ask, confused about seeing the man here.

“The Instagram is noisy with people saying their white day became more meaningful and special after ordering a flower from you.” He leans into the table between you and him.

“And? What did you want to do here, Jeno?” his name tastes bitter leaving your tongue. The same name you’ve never mentioned for a month. The same man you are trying to forget. “I know that today is White day and I need your help.” He smiles

You are not going to fall for this smile again. He has humiliated you and you’re supposed to not allow him be here again in your life, but here he is.

“What help? I sold all my flowers.” You lie

Jeno chuckles “I saw some flowers there.” He points to the display fridge and you shake your head “Not for you.”

He grins “Look, about Valentine I am so sorry. I was so surprised.”

You feel tears forming in your eyes “Stop, I don’t care about you and that day.”

“I do care. I feel like a jerk, I am so sorry. I never expected you to send me flowers that day. I was so surprised I did not know what to say or how to act and I accidentally let you down with a silly thing.”

“You told me to go home. You broke my heart and dignity.” You clench your fist. Come on, don’t cry about this in front of him.

He reaches out for your hand “I picked up your flowers you dropped when I said to go home. It was a coold winter morning (y/n), I couldn’t think straight and I am so worried you’ll fall sick.”

You can no longer hold back the tears, and Jeno takes his chance to pull out his handkerchief and wipes your tears with it.

“I put your love in a vase, every day I smile and got energized from them. I tried my best to not let them wilt, but they wilt…. And I know it’s time for me to man up and see you.”

Your heart aches, but you’re glad you can still meet him and that he actually did not mean to dump you back then in Valentine’s day when you send him some “love”

“Your forget me not, reminds me of you and your true love.” Jeno slowly touches your hand and when you did not pull away, he holds it softly.

“Your gerbera daisy energizes me and cheers me up!”

You chuckle but tears are still running from your eyes. So Jeno did understand your message from the flowers?

“And I will not forget the Lavender roses, for love at first sight.” He pulls you into a hug when you begin crying again.

“Sorry I wasn’t the fastest guy to notice your love, I only noticed it when you’re missing from my life. So for today, I want to place an order.” He pulls you away and you look at him in confusion.

“I’ll take blue hydrangea for your deep understanding and my apology, then give me some pink hydrangeas to show you my true feelings and romance to you, then pop in some bellflower for my gratitude.”

Jeno catches how your eyes are twinkling wet but you go to work and prepare those flowers.

“Most importantly, don’t forget the forget me not, all arranged in a pretty bouquet with your favourite wrapping paper, the baby blue wrapping and add a note saying “Lee Jeno is waiting for you, (y/n). XOXO Jeno.”” He winks and leaves the counter and you blush there with your tear stained cheek. Oh Jeno and his flirtiness.

You quickly make his arrangement and did exactly what he said, even writing the notes down. Once you’re done you take your apron off and walk to him with the beautiful arrangement full of meaning in your hands.

“Here,” you hand it to him. He reaches out for his wallet but you stop him “May I know who this flower is for?”

Jeno clears his throat and stands up to face you “For the wonderful girl in my life, happy white day! Read the message and the meaning of the flowers.” He winks and you giggle

“Are you planning to ask me for a dinner?” you ask after receiving back the bouquet.

Jeno nods “If you can close this shop earlier.”

You quickly run to fetch your coat and bag when you see Winwin coming from the door. “Winwin will close the shop for me, what about you pay this flower and your apology by asking me for a dinner?” you step up your confidence and Jeno bends to whisper in your ear “I could even offer you more princess.”

You feel chill run down your spine “Dinner it is! Let’s go.” You pull him out of the shop, leaving Winwin with big question mark.

Jeno has his brightest smile on his face, “I am the luckiest guy today. Forgive me for the past… I want a new beginning, will you let me have another chance?”

You smirk “Only if you show me you’ve changed.”

He pockets his hands into his jacket “Challenge accepted!”

“Jeno!” you stop and he turns his heels to face you, you rise and press a quick kiss on his cheek “I forgive you for what you did last Valentine.”

He blushes “Thank you, but I want to make better memories with you, my soon to be lover.”

You feel a garden of flower blooming in your heart, White day is not bad at all!

fin

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afoolandathief · 2 years

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Word find tag (a two-parter)

Combining a tag from @thegreatobsesso to find wake, wonder, wish and want and @diphthongsfordays to find cute, careful, keep and call.

Tagging, if you'd like, @drippingmoon, @faelanvance, @ashen-crest and @artbyeloquent to find remember, battery, produce and fraud.

Excerpts are from both Those Horrid, Horrid Things and Something Wicked. TWs for food, anxiety attacks/meltdowns, violence, death, blood, alcohol, language, fire, knives, corpses and gore:

Wake (Those Horrid, Horrid Things):

Skadi gestured to a pile of blankets on the couch.

“First he threatened to tear me apart if I did anything to his family,” she said. “Then he ate an entire pizza on his own and fell asleep.”

Loki pulled back the blankets. Fenrir was on his back, snoring and occasionally shifting a limb as he slept. She reached down to scratch behind his ear, watching a small smile grow on his face until he snuffled and snapped awake.

Wonder (Something Wicked):

Breathe. She wove between arms and shoulders and torsos. Avoid brushing against those girls. This wasn’t like the casinos Jade knew, with its clusters of patrons who had sealed their fates. Breathe.

She made it to the side of an armchair when something between a gasp and a sob forced its way out of her.

There were probably people staring at her. She sank onto the floor next to the chair, wondering if she could pull herself into the gap between its back and the wall. Tried to tell herself to calm down. Breathe. But it sounded like her mom’s voice and the pang of anxiety was spiraling out of her like a supernova.

Wish (Those Horrid, Horrid Things):

Fenrir used to wake up to the rising sun, wishing he could extend his tongue to the sky and swallow it whole so he might sleep a little longer.

Want (Something Wicked):

“They found him sealed within a salt circle, with 23 iron nails jammed in him,” she said.

She cast her eyes down as she closed the tub of pork blood used exclusively for Caz’s drinks.

“Would your witch know anything about that?”

The liquor burned uncomfortably in Caz’s gut. Shit. There were only a select few who knew how to kill Fae like that.

“She’s not my witch,” he said, resting a fist over his mouth to stop any of his hard-earned alcohol from coming back up. “And if you want to know so bad, just ask her yourself.”

Cute (Those Horrid, Horrid Things):

Loki was tying a ribbon around Hel’s hair into a large bow. It had been charmed to cut off her access to magic, with the added benefit of absolutely pissing her off.

“Pink is the color of just-hatched baby birds,” she said. “It’s the color of fresh-cut strawberries and magnolias in spring. I hate it!”

“It’s supposed to be a punishment, Hela,” Loki said. “Besides, you look so stinkin’ cute in it!”

Careful (Something Wicked):

“Jesus Christ, Jade, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Caz had one hand holding Derek against the car, the other dragging what appeared to be a bundle of laundry. Firelight shone off a loosened tie and vest coated in a fresh layer of blood. Bits of hair were falling from where they had been carefully slicked back, trembling over his eyes as he spoke.

“I’m not paying good money to have you go after my potential meal yourself — and then get offed in the process.”

Keep (Those Horrid, Horrid Things):

“Pack anything you want to keep with you,” they said. “We’re leaving this place.”

There was a squeal of couch springs as each of the children sat up.

“Wait, we’re leaving here for, like, forever?” Jormungandr asked, his pale brows furrowing for a moment. “Does that mean we can get McDonald’s on our way out?”

Call (Something Wicked):

Jade ignored him and continued inspecting the corpse, using the curve of her knife to lift the dress from cold skin. No other rune, and only a few weak strands of magic trailing off the body. She cupped the girl’s chin in her hand and held her face close to her own.

“Hey assholes,” she said. “Fucking give me a phone call next time you want to send a message.”

Then she took her knife and plunged it into the left eye socket, hooking it under the eyeball and uprooting the pale globe before repeating it with the right eye.

#writeblr #tag game #word find tag #something wicked #those horrid horrid things

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gruviafan-forever · 3 years

Text

A/N: Hello everyone, Happy Gruvia Week to you. I didn't expect that I would be writing contents for this year's event too. But I'm really happy to be writing stories about my favourite anime couples.

Hopefully, everyone likes it. This year the prompts were very similar to previous years. It had me in fix how to write content without making it a repetitive fashion.

Finally got an idea and tried to merge all those 7 prompts into a storyline. Hopefully, it convinces you all.

Thank you for reading and spending your time here.

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

Main Pairing: GRUVIA

Summary:- Celebrity Gray x General Public Juvia, Modern AU

Words:- 2K

Currently, Fairy Tail Agency has arranged for a press meet to officially declare the facts of the new movie in which two of their most famous actors are going to be a part.

Gray Fullbuster, 25 years, tv artist turned actor and Lucy Heartfilia, 24 years, model turned actress, has signed up for this movie which is under the production of Straussl Inc.

As the reporters who out various questions regarding the details of this upcoming venture and some related to their personal life.

"So, Mr Fullbuster, tell us about how you feel knowing that you have been nominated for 3 categories of awards this year?"

One of the reporters asked and was ready to note Gray's response.

"I'm sure that I will receive the awards for best actor and handsome face. Also, my last movie 'Icy Days' has been nominated for the best movie of the year. But not sure about the 'Gem of the decade' award."

Gray confidently answered and smiled which made the female reporters squeal.

Lucy interrupted, "Not to ruin Gray's fantasy but my movie 'Starry Night At Stella' was a blockbuster hit. Myself and my co-actor Natsu Dragneel were praised by critics for our performance. So, Gray, don't forget that even we are on the race too." Lucy smiled which made everyone chuckle after hearing her opinions.

"Sure Lucy... All the best to you and Natsu" Gray told and looked at his manager, Erza Scarlet, who also happens to be Natsu's manager, to know when this press meet is going to end.

"Another 10 minutes" Erza gestured by hand signals.

Suddenly, one of the reporters from Magnolia Times shot down a question that took Gray off guard.

"Recently, there was a photo of Mr Fullbuster with a child in his arms. Who does that child happen to be? And is it true that you are having an illicit affair with someone, Mr Fullbuster?" That reporter smirked.

Gray remained indifferent and calmly answered him while his team members and staff panicked.

"Everyone in Fiore knows that it was a piece of fake news. In today's era of modern technology, it is easy to photoshop one's picture with anything and anyone, Mr Invel.

Even my agency owner, Mr Makarov Dreyer and my manager, Ms Scarlet have clarified about it. So, don't go digging the old hoax rumours."

Gray stood up and thanked everyone for their time and presence before dashing off to the exit where Lucy followed him back.

It was Erza and the production team who bid a farewell to the reporters before joining the actors in their cabin.

Once Erza reached Gray's cabin, she saw him tossing his coat and tie around the room while Lucy stood silently.

"Gray, I think you should disclose your relationship before it gets exposed in a bad way," Erza said calmly and patted his back.

"That's what I was thinking, Erza. I can't continue to hide this big news about my life for a long time from my fans. I will reveal this during the awards function." Gray looked determined and hoped that his fans would take it on a positive note.

"They will surely accept your relationship status just like how they received mine and Natsu's." Lucy encouraged him and patted his arms which seemed to make him calm down.

"Gray, tomorrow you have your day off then, on Wednesday, we will be going to Phoenix Mall for a fan meet up event where other actors of our agency will join us." Erza informed him and handed the invitation.

From the invitation, it was clear that this mall was quite near to his apartment complex. Moreover, it was arranged by Mr Makarov himself so there was no way of turning it down.

"Fine, I will get ready for this. Just send the car near the children's park no need to come in front of the complex." He informed Erza and thanked them both for their words of motive before he left them.

After half an hour, Gray reached the children's park and put on his disguise, cooling glass, mask and a cap to conceal his identity while he was dressed up in a simple t-shirt and jeans.

"Max, tomorrow's your day off. Pick me up here at 9 am on Wednesday. Bye."

"Yes, Mr Fullbuster. Bye, and Good night" The driver left him while Gray made his way towards his home.

The apartment complex in which he lived was one of the expensive housing in Magnolia. The higher the floor level, the higher is the cost and the higher is the security.

Till the 11th floor, the general public who did high order jobs lived while the next 10 floors were occupied by celebrities of various fields.

One of the perks of this housing agency was that their identity remains secret, not even their neighbours know about them until and unless the involved party discloses it.

Once Gray reached the 17th floor, which had two apartments where one was still vacant.

As he hit the doorbell of his apartment, Gray could hear voices coming from inside which brought a smile on his face.

The door opened and his eyes met the gorgeous lady who welcomed him with a beautiful smile that captivated him.

"Welcome home, Gray-sama"

"I'm home, Juvia," Gray said and got inside.

Soon, he removed the disguise and leaned forward to kiss her lips which she reciprocated back.

Once they broke off the kiss, Juvia hugged him and whispered, "I missed you, Gray-sama."

"Even, I missed you, Juvia. It's been a week since I last saw you and…." Before he could finish, both of them felt someone hugging their legs.

And it was none their 3-year-old daughter, Yuki Fullbuster, who resembled her mother but had father's hair and eye colour and his sharp nose.

"Papa"

Seeing his daughter's smile was enough for him to get distracted from his wife, then, have his undivided attention on his little munchkin.

Gray raised Yuki in his arms and kissed her cheeks and forehead who did the same to her papa.

"Yuki missed you, papa."

"Even, papa missed you, darling. Were you a good girl during papa's absence?" Gray asked her as they moved towards the living room.

Gray let her down who ran up to a table and tried to fetch her drawing notebook.

Juvia made her husband sit down and inquired him about his work as he looked tired and kinda depressed.

Gray convinced her everything was fine and told her about the press meet excluding the details of the rumours.

It had been 4 years since Gray started his acting career starting as an ad shoot model to tv artists then to movie star.

Gray, Natsu and Erza were childhood friends who did their schooling from the same institution till college.

It was during the 3rd year, Gray and Natsu got scouted to act as models for a tv commercial which they accepted readily as of then they needed some kind of part-time jobs to meet their ends.

Even, Erza thought that it was a good opportunity for them to succeed as the agency, Fairy Tail, was well known throughout Fiore and persuaded them to take up the offer.

Once, their commercials began to reach people mainly because of their handsome features and physique especially Gray got popular among the female fans.

It was during this time that Gray and Natsu had to move out of the college dorm so that they could work freely without time restrictions.

That's when Gray meets Juvia for the first time in his life. She was his neighbour whom he thought lived her boyfriend but it turned out to be her best friend, Gajeel Redfox, vocalist of Phantom Bands, an upcoming band.

Gray rarely started any kind of conversation with anyone. It was with the help of Natsu that they befriended Juvia and to date, Gray was thankful to his friend.

Until the moment he met Juvia, Gray was never keen on love or relationships.

But to him, Juvia was way different from the girls he had met in his college. She was modest and shy but a kind person with a large helping tendency.

Gray knew her personality and beauty had beguiled his attention and wanting to know more about her made him fall for her head over heels.

Of course, they would exchange greetings whenever they met while leaving the house together. Slowly they deepened their connection and exchanged numbers.

Due to her friendly nature, Juvia would invite Gray and Natsu over to her place for small weekend parties which she would arrange for Gajeel to relieve his stress.

At first, he was reluctant to invade a party meant for Gajeel but the latter happily welcomed them.

That way, they got acquainted exchanged their work details and stress with each other.

It was after a few months of that weekend party that Gray had offered Juvia a dinner date which she accepted after a week of thinking.

By this time, Gray gained quite a lot of recognition. The reason he called her out on a dinner date was to reveal that he has signed up as the main lead for a tv drama which was produced by a well-known production house.

Juvia was elated and congratulated and wished him luck. It was during that time Gray confessed his love for her and waited for her answer.

To his surprise, Juvia readily accepted him. He still remembers her words from that time,

"Gray-sama, even I feel the same for you. I was afraid to convey my feelings to you as each day our world was getting apart. I was determined to tell you today after dinner.

But to my surprise, I never expected even you would feel the same. I love you, Gray-sama."

After hearing her say those golden words, Gray got hold of her hand and kissed it lightly and asked Juvia to be his girlfriend which she agreed.

Once they reached their respective place, Gray kissed her lips and shared a hug before calling off that night.

The next day, both of them informed their friends about their relationship. Erza and Natsu were supportive.

But Gajeel was reluctant he wanted to tell Juvia how difficult it would be for her to date a celebrity.

She has to remain under the shadows. Moreover, if words go out then obsessive fans might harm her and she would be constantly under paparazzi's scrutiny if Gray's facing bad times.

But Juvia was ready to face any difficulties and wanted to support her boyfriend in his career.

Once the family had their dinner together, Gray tugged his daughter in her bed before planting a kiss on her forehead and wished her good night.

Juvia was washing the dishes when Gray snaked his arms around her waist and kissed her neck which made Juvia squeak.

Gray turned off the tap and turned his wife so that she could face him.

"Juvia, tomorrow's my day off. Even the night is still young. Moreover, I missed my wife…" He leaned forward and kissed her lips which made her moan against his lips.

"Gray-sama…."

"Juvia…." Both of their eyes were clouded with lust and decided to continue their passionate night inside their bedroom.

After an hour, both was them were under the blankets, Gray had his arm around his wife and hummed in her ears as she talked about her day with Yuki.

Juvia could sense her husband's hold around her waist getting tight. He did only when he felt insecure or paranoid.

Juvia turned around to face him who kept looking at her. She cupped his face with both of her hands which startled him.

"Gray-sama, what's on your mind? Spill it out. Don't go huddling up those stressful thoughts within you. Share it with your wife. I will help you lessen those burdens." Juvia conveyed her thoughts and smiled at him.

"This is what I'm beguiled about you, Juvia. You can easily find out my conflicting thoughts just by sensing my actions. I'm really lucky to have you as my soulmate, dear." Gray said earnestly and kissed her forehead which made Juvia feel special.

Then slowly Gray disclosed his fears about how the world will perceive his relationship and worried that this shouldn't cause any harm to either Juvia and Yuki especially.

After hearing his fears, Juvia cradled her husband and patted his back just like how she does it for her daughter whenever she has nightmares.

Gray seemed to relax from this action. Juvia assured him that nothing terrible is going to happen and just hope everything turns out well.

Suddenly Gray raised his head and questioned her, "What if things repeat? And this time to our Yuki."

Juvia's eyes grew wide, but she can't show her fear, at least, not in front of her husband for now, who himself was feeling paranoid.

"I'm sure nothing will happen. Let's have faith in ourselves and your fans, Gray-sama.

I'm just worried that your fan number might get reduced once you reveal your married status." Juvia voiced her concern.

This time it was Gray's turn to convince her, "Nah! Just like you said let's hope for the best. I love you and Yuki. Remember that, okay"

Gray smiled and kissed her lips, "Juvia, you are still warm. Wanna continue from where we left?" He teased her.

It seemed her Gray-sama was back to normal for now.

A/N: Sorry for posting it bit late. Hope I will be able to update for the rest of the event.

#gruvia #gruvia week #gruvia family #gruvia week 2021

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ignitedbynatsu · 3 years

Text

Violence Is Not The Answer... Or Is It?

A/N: I really let myself go with this one 🤭 @whatismatildethinkingabout I hope you like it! I’m sorry if you don’t want it as a prequel to your previous request I just had this idea and wanted to write it out 😅 thank you for requesting and the support! Don’t hesitate to stop by again! ❤️

Warnings: bullying, swearing, violence

Genre: angst with some comfort

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There was a new confidence brewing inside of Noah. The kids from Fairy Tail being the main reason for it. The way they showed that they were willing to learn sign language for him, someone they had never talked to before, melted his heart. It showed him that it was okay to be different. That he shouldn't be ashamed of his hearing loss. In fact, he slowly but surely started to accept it.

To prove that he was getting more independent, he wanted to show his parents that he was capable of going to town with just his friends. To say that Laxus and you were hesitant about this idea at first was an understatement, but when you saw the determination in his eyes, you couldn't refuse. He'll have to learn sooner or later, eventually.

"Be back by sunset!" Lucy called after her daughter who was basically jumping at the entrance of the guild, ready to go.

You chuckled softly at their antics before turning to your son. "Be careful, okay? You do not need to feel ashamed if it gets scary or overwhelming and you wanna come back. Stay close to Nalu, okay?" You moved your hands accordingly to represent every word you spoke.

'I promise, I love you mommy' he promised before giving you a big hug.

Anxiousness filled your whole body as you watched your boy leave the guild with his new friends.

"They'll be fine, the kids will look out for him" Levy reassured you as she noticed your lingering stare.

"Nalu promised me she'll keep an extra eye on him. She feels responsible, saying it's her duty because she's the oldest" Lucy offered you a kind smile.

"Thank you. I'm so proud of him, and yet I'm terrified. After all, it's only been a couple of weeks since he opened up to the others" You confessed as you broke your gaze away from the big wooden doors to look at your friends.

"That's normal. I felt the same when the twins first went out" Juvia also joined the small group of mothers. "You just gotta trust him and the others. I'm sure everything will be fine"

However, after not even an hour in Magnolia, Noah had already lost the group in the sea of people. Sunday's were the busiest days for the town due to the market.

Looking for his small body in the crowd was near too impossible and calling out to him was also not an option, however, the Fairy Tail children did not intend to give up on their new friend. Partially because they were scared to face their parent's wrath, but mostly because they couldn't fathom how scared he must be.

Noah's eyes darted around him in a desperate attempt to catch even a glimpse of the others, but it was hopeless. They were nowhere in sight.

While scanning his surroundings, the smaller mage wasn't really paying attention to where he was going, resulting in him bumping into someone.

"Watch where you're going, loser" the older boy snapped at Noah who didn't understand a word he was saying. "What? You're not even going to apologize?"

The child moved his hands to spell out that he was sorry and couldn't understand him, but this only made the elder boy laugh "guys, take a look at this, we got ourselves a deaf kid"

His friends soon surrounded Noah, making him cower in fear at so many unknown faces and no way to communicate. "Let's go for a walk, shall we?"

A hand firmly pushed Noah forward, signalling him to follow what he presumed was their 'leader' to a more abandoned street.

Fear washed over him as he took in his unknown surroundings. What were they gonna do to him? That question was quickly answered as soon as he got pushed down to the ground.

"I heard some money rattling" a girl from the group piped up as they stood a bit more to the side, shielding the event that was happening before them from prying eyes.

Sure enough, Laxus and you had given him some money to buy something he'd fancied at the market, but that got quickly snatched away the moment the remark left the girls mouth.

In a desperate attempt to take back the money, he let electricity crackle around his fingers ready to shoot it at the boy in front of him, but it was futile. The boy noticed the spark and stepped on his hand in an attempt to make him stop, this earned him a cry from Noah. From that moment, he decided it was best to not agitate them further and to just obey them to the best of his abilities.

The elder boy removed his foot from Noah's hand and crouched in front of him, tilting his head slightly to the side as he observed the scared child in front of him "you really are pathetic aren't ya? No hearing, not being able to stand up for yourself, and apparently your magic isn't even that good. People like you don't belong here. You're a hindrance. A weight that drags people down. No wonder why mommy and daddy left you to wander the streets alone"

Even though Noah couldn't hear a thing, the way the leaders' friends laughed when he was done talking, was enough proof that he had said something to mock him.

"Oi! What the fuck do you think you're doing" Nalu voice ringed through the nearly empty street.

"Shit, it's the Fairy Tail kids" one of the members mumbled as they took notice of the said children.

Their leader glanced at Noah one last time before motioning his group to follow him "let's just go"

Tobi and Mei were quickly by Noah's side, examining his wounds, while Nalu's eyes trailed the retrieving group, her orbs were swimming with hatred. How could anyone do such a thing? Let alone to such an innocent kid like Noah.

The shaken up child finally let out the sobs he was holding in for so long, clinging on to Mei in the process who was softly stroking his hair. Her eyes shot to the others in an attempt to ask for help. "Let's go somewhere else"

Tobi carefully helped Noah up as they followed Nalu to a more secluded place in the park, giving them the privacy they needed. "Noah, what happened?" Mei carefully matched her hand movements with what she was saying as they all waited patiently for his response.

After his explanation, he made the other children promise to not tell their parents what happened. He didn't want to feel like he was an even bigger burden than he already was. Even though he was still very young, he knew his parents had to go out of their way so many times just so they could satisfy his needs. He felt selfish and stupid. Why wasn't he just normal? All the confidence that he had built up over the past weeks had crumbled down in just this one moment.

Once Noah had calmed down, they decided it was best if they headed back to the guild. Defeated and unsure what to do with the situation, they each went their separate ways when they set foot in Fairy Tail.

At first, the parents didn't think anything strange from it, but when Noah broke all contact with the others and went back to his insecure and timid self, they knew something was up.

You had tried talking to him, trying to break down his walls that were seemingly higher than before, but he always shut you down, burying his head deeper in your side in an attempt to avoid confrontation. In a final attempt to understand what was going on, you voiced your concerns with the other mothers, who in their turn questioned their kids.

It was only when the youngest, Kai, Levy and Gajeel's kid, broke down, that they realised that this wasn't just an ordinary fight or dispute.

"Nalu, enough with this so-called 'everything is fine act'. You tell us what's going on right now. I won't ask again" she knew that when her father got involved and serious, the situation was way graver than what she had originally anticipated.

"Noah got separated from us at one point when we were walking around the market. We did everything we could to find him, but when we did, we saw that he was getting bullied by some older kids" she confessed with her eyes cast to the ground, she was ashamed that she couldn't fulfil her promise to look out for Noah. Nalu didn't care that she broke her promise to Noah. She didn't like that he was distancing himself from them again. If getting the adults involved meant getting their friend back, so was willing to take the risk.

Noah was placed on your hip, hands clutching your shirt as if his life depended on it. He knew they were talking about him, about what had happened. He couldn't be mad at Nalu for breaking their promise 'cause he knew the truth had to come out sooner or later. He just wished it would've been later.

"I'm going to murder that punk" Laxus seethed as he thought about how scared Noah must've felt at that moment. How could anyone do such a thing and think it's okay?

"That's not an option, and you know it. I'm just as upset as you are, but violence is not the answer." You stated calmly as you rocked your body softly along with Noah's.

"How can you say such a thing when they hurt our son!? How can you be so calm about this?" Laxus fumed, unable to understand how you weren't as livid as him. Truth be told, you were nowhere near calm, in fact, you were just as livid as him, but you had to keep your cool. If you'd let your emotions take the upper hand, you'd just upset Noah more, and that was the last thing you wanted to do.

"Stop it. Both of you." Lucy hissed "Fighting amongst yourselves isn't going to help this situation, nor is it going to help Noah"

"You're right" you agreed "We're going home. I don't need you to upset him even more. Come back when you've cooled down" With that, you left the guild with Noah still on your hip, your arms wrapped around him a little tighter than normal.

"Unbelievable" Laxus sighed in frustration at your attitude.

"Look, I know where you're coming from, but (Y/N) is right, violence isn't the answer" Gajeel stated, earning a sharp glare from the blonde before continuing "but, no harm is done when we go pay them a visit and I don't know... Maybe threaten them a bit, am I right?"

The sinister glint that sparked in the iron dragon slayer was enough to get Laxus to agree along with the other fathers. Those kids had chosen the wrong child to mess with.

You can only imagine the shock Noah and you experienced when those bullies stopped by the guild the next day to apologize for what they had done. They even had learned how to say sorry in sign language.

"Laxus" you narrowed your eyes at your husband "what did you do"

"I didn't use violence if that's what you're asking" he smirked as he slung an arm around your shoulder "you didn't say anything about threatening, though"

You were about to scold him, telling him how even though you did absolutely not condone those bullies their actions, especially since it was against your child, they were still just kids, but you quickly shut up when Nalu stepped in and swung her right arm forward, her right fist colliding with the nose of the group's leader.

Nalu, Tobi and Kai stood in front of them while Mei stood next to Noah, explaining everything that was being said with her hands "They may only be able to threaten you 'cause they're adults and you're still just children, but that doesn't count for us" Nalu's eyes held the same rage when she first laid eyes on them when they stood over Noah's defenceless body.

"If you ever dare to lay a hand on our friend again, we won't hesitate to break more than just your nose, are we clear?" Tobi finished their threat.

"Yes," his eyes were wide, like a deer that got caught in headlights. His friends all cowered behind him.

"Now scram!" Kai yelled at which they hurriedly made their way out of the guild.

As on cue, all the kids their names were called out by their mothers, each and every one of them earning a scolding, while their fathers were stood on the side, stifling their laughter and a look of pride plastered upon their face.

Noah looked at his friends with newfound wonder. They stood up for him. They thought that he was deserving enough to get in trouble for. They called him their friend.

As tears were forming in the brim of his eyes, he ran forward to his friends, not caring if they were in the middle of getting scolded and tackled them all in a hug.

A sob passed Noah's lips, letting out all the stress and emotions that he had cropped up since the incident. This resulted in an even tighter group hug from the others.

Noah was the first to break apart 'thank you all for what you did to me' his hand moved ever so smoothly as he told them how grateful he was even though words, or even hand gestures, couldn't describe how he truly felt.

"That's what friends are for" another hug followed as soon as Mei's hands stopped moving.

"I guess violence was the option" Laxus mumbled in your ear as he hugged you from behind, resting his chin on your shoulder in the progress.

"Don't ruin the moment" you flicked his head softly, earning a chuckle from him.

Fairy Tail had proven once again that they weren't just a guild filled with friends, no, they were a family. A family you do not want to mess with.

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cloud-9ine · 3 years

Text

Roses are pretty cliché, don't you think? (pt 1)

⤷ pairing - bakugo katsuki x (fem) reader

⤷ fandom - bnha

⤷ warnings - swearing, very slight angst

⤷ summary - bakugo was already out of his element when he went to buy flowers; so he didn’t take kindly to you criticising his preference for roses

⤷ word count - 2.2k+

⤷ notes - i have never written bakugo before and GOD is this hard. i imagine older him would be a lot calmer and a lot less quick to blowing something up but he still feels ooc. tell me what you think!

⤷ pt 1, pt 2

The card Bakugo held was slightly crumpled within his clenched fist. The pretty pastels evidently not enough to calm his fired nerves. It was Mina’s idea, he reasoned, she was the one that knew what girls liked. If anything went wrong, then it was her fault.

Although, if it was up to him, he probably would never apologise.

Bakugo knew he was an asshole. He knew he fucked up. He also knew he would sooner die than admit it. It was a fatal flaw that he never fully grew out of, much to the chagrin of both himself and his friends. The self-loathing was hard to ignore in the dark veil of the night, nor the quiet light of the morning, when the tension lay as thick as the pillows that separated them.

“Pfft, you look like you’re about to shit yourself.”

He huffed at the words from the man next to him, the snicker that left his lips only serving to spike his emotions further.

“Shut it, sparky.” Denki only regarded his insult with a small laugh, shaking his head lightly.

“Come on, you don’t have to look so scared. (Y/N)’s super nice, not to mention cute as a button too!” he grinned, clapping a couple times out of excitement. Bakugo sighed, cramming the business card in his front pocket without care.

“I don’t think Kyoka would be too happy to hear that.” Denki sniggered, waving a hand around dismissively.

“If I didn’t know my wife any better, I would say the same, but you and me both know that she’d agree with me.” The impish grin on his lips was enough to make Bakugo roll his eyes.

“Where is this place?” Denki didn’t fail to notice the way he changed the subject, but for concern of his own safety, he didn’t draw attention to it.

“It’s literally right there,” vermillion eyes landed on the building in front of him, a quaint shop tucked in between two office buildings. The outside was a remarkable shade of lavender, with a small chalk-board sign outside painted with bluebells woven between opening times.

“Oh.” A light tinkle of a bell rang out from the door as Denki pushed inside the shop, a quirk that wasn’t commonly seen with more modern establishments. Immediately upon entering the threshold into the store, Bakugo was pummelled with the overwhelmingly cloying scent of pollen.

Resisting the urge to cough out of a begrudging politeness, he looked around. It was a small place, with bouquets of all different colours and types jumping from the tables in a dazzling a bounty of delight. In the centre of the back wall protruded the front desk, attached to the left of which was a small glass case filled with sweet-looking pastries and cakes. There was a small table in front of it, lined with a chequered table cloth, and two beautifully crafted wooden chairs tucked underneath the table with care.

“Long time no see, Denki,” Bakugo’s attention snapped to the presence behind the counter, where you leaned on your elbows with an easy smile on your face. Muted pink blouse tucked into a high-waist black skirt partnered with a cute little bow wrapped underneath your collar of a similar colour and you were already beginning to remind Bakugo of someone he knew quite well. It looked like a uniform, but it was informal enough to appear flattering.

“(Y/N)! How have you been?” Denki cried, sauntering over to the counter with his arms thrown wide in the expectance of a hug. You laughed, accepting the gesture with little hesitation.

“You here to pick up your little birthday gift for Kyoka?” you questioned once pulling away, eyes darting over to Bakugo and narrowing for a second before quickly returning to the other costumer. He nodded exuberantly, bright beam on his face.

“Of course! I’m excited to see what you thought up,” you grinned with a small nod of acknowledgement.

“Great, I’ll be right back.” With that, you shuffled to a door behind the counter, swiftly stealing away to the small room at the back of the store.

“She has more flowers in there?” Bakugo muttered, brows furrowing. Denki hummed, leaning on the counter whilst idly tapping his cheek.

“Yep. Flowers everywhere here.” He only nodded, eyes returning back to his surroundings. In less than a minute you had returned, clasped in your hands a beautiful bouquet with the stalks wrapped in brown paper. All Bakugo could see was a mess of purple and white with an air of coordination that tied it together, but it was enough to make Denki squeal.

“Oh, that’s stunning! What flowers are they?” you smiled, placing down the bouquet on the counter in front of him.

“Well, Kyoka’s a simple lady, so I used purple irises as the centre piece-”

“That’s her favourite flower!” you snickered, rolling your eyes at the blonde’s words..

“Well, duh? Are you really surprised that I remembered?” you shook your head before continuing, “It’s hard to find colours that go well with purple without it looking too unconventional, so I complimented them with baby breaths and white jasmines, and magnolias in the middle to bring out a contrast in the yellow.” Denki was already pulling out his wallet before you had even finished.

“This is perfect, thank you so much! She’s gonna love them!” your smile turned smug.

“Of course she is, there’s no way I could disappoint a costumer,” Bakugo didn’t fail to notice the teasing coo in your voice, a proud glow on your face that he recognised was often replicated on his own expression, “will that be all?” Denki shook his head, handing you an indiscernible amount of money which you accepted before pushing half back. It seemed not even years on Denki was able to do simple math.

“Not all! I want some cake and my friend Katsuki here needs his own flowers!” Bakugo lurched forward from the rough shove from Denki, sending him a venomous glare with a small growl. Your eyes were amused as they landed on him, a smirk pulling on your lips.

“Hey, nice to meet you, Mr. Bakugo.” Bakugo wasn’t surprised you knew of him (being an incredibly successful pro hero and all) but the lilt to your voice as you drawled his name didn’t sit right, as if you were goading him in to ridicule.

“Likewise.” You delicately pushed aside Denki’s bouquet to fully face Bakugo, the former having already been distracted by the sweet treats in the case.

“What can I do for you?” He straightened his back, shoulders tensing. He didn’t exactly know what he needed, having only bought flowers once or twice before for his mum. It was an underlying itch of feeling out of place that brought his next words forth, an urge to leave as soon as he could.

“Roses, I guess. Red.” You snickered, and Bakugo’s eyes narrowed, “What?” You shrugged, crossing your arms over your chest.

“Roses are pretty cliché, don’t you think?”

What.

Bakugo could feel the snarl that worked it’s way onto his face, a familiar tick of irritation welling up in his chest, only exacerbated by the mocking expression painted on your face.

“She’s right.” Denki called from his position crouched on the floor, gaze not even on him as he eagerly eyed a strawberry shortcake.

“Didn’t need your input, dumbass!” He snapped, face heating at the bemused look on your face. It wasn’t often he felt embarrassed, and it was even less common that Denki would have a part to play in it.

“I’m just saying it’s better just to let her have free reign, that’s what I do.” Bakugo considered the words of his friend for a moment, before letting out a begrudging sigh, eyebrow twitching as he turned back to you.

“Fine.” You tilted your head, leaning forward, similar to how his friend had stood earlier.

“So, why are you buying flowers?” Bakugo grunted, rubbing the back of his neck and averting his gaze.

“An apology gift. For my girlfriend.” You whistled, the noise pounding at the front of his skull.

“Damn, okay, how long have you guys been together?” Denki pulled out a chair, allowing Bakugo to sit down in front of the table as you pulled out a small notebook.

“Since just after high school,” he muttered, resting his chin on his palm as he fiddled with the end of the table cloth, “it was great at the start but now we seem to be arguing more and more.”

He shut his mouth. He wasn’t quite sure why he started to talk- it wasn’t like him to indulge a stranger in his life story. He bristled, resolve hardening.

“Why does it matter, anyway?” you hummed, looking around thoughtfully.

“Just trust the process. Describe this girl.”

“She would love this place.” Bakugo responded earnestly, a hollow laugh pushing past his lips as you nodded. It didn’t seem like much, but you got to work.

“Denki, pass me that bundle of tulips, please,” Denki nodded, obediently standing and pulling the tulips from one of the stands at the side of the room and pushing it towards you. You nodded your thanks, gaze returning back to Bakugo, who was watching you with a gaze eerily akin to suspicion.

“Look, this is gonna be a lot more awkward if you keep staring at me,” you grinned as he tutted, looking away.

“I want that strawberry shortcake,” Denki exclaimed once you had settled again. Bakugo resisted the urge to roll his eyes while you just smiled.

“Sure, let me get that for you,” you crouched down behind the glass case, “anything for you, Bakugo?”

“No.” he responded, eyes narrowing at the cheeky smirk Denki shot at him. You pulled out the cake, rested delicately on a china plate with raspberry patterns coiled around the edge.

“Let me give you a drink, at least,” you offered, moving to the back room without giving him a moment to respond, and quickly reappearing with a teacup and saucer, “I had some lavender tea brewing. It soothes anxiety,” you passed the tea alongside the cake to Denki, who brought it back to their table with a grateful nod.

Bakugo sighed as Denki placed the saucer down in front of him, a look of disdain on his face.

“Sugar’s on the table,” you called, snickering as you saw the small look of surprise on his face as he tasted the drink. Returning back to your work station, you fiddled with the tulips, taking some out and placing them in a glass vase. You moved out from behind the counter, flitting around the room and mulling over each flower.

Bakugo watched you with subtle interest, eyes narrowing when you shook your head or made a small noise of disdain. It was a fitting distraction from the loud mouthed Denki across from him, who was relentlessly chatting in between bites.

Seemingly having settled on several flowers, you moved back over to the tulips, weaving them together with pink and white bows in a way that Bakugo couldn’t begin to understand.

The explosive blonde tended to pride himself on his achievements- his ability to become skilled in anything and everything carrying him through his life. But apparently flower arranging was where he fell short, and the annoyance of this fact making his nerves tick.

It wasn’t clear how much time had passed until you were done, hands never relenting even for a second as you worked, but it was evident that your project was finished when you took a step back to admire the bouquet. Your eyes flashed to him for a second, scouring his face for approval.

Again, Bakugo didn’t really understand the big deal about flowers, but the passion in which you conducted yourself when producing them was something that he could respect. He stood, moving to get a closer look at what you had made.

“What’s in it?” you grinned, seemingly pleased at his fairly lackadaisical reaction.

“Well, I used pink tulips as the base, and then I complimented them with white carnations and freesia. I didn’t want to add a contrast because if this is an apology, I wanted it to be fairly low-key, but still pretty. Do you like it?” He nodded, listening to the way you huffed in pride.

“Cool! Since it’s your first time, and because I like you, it’s free of charge, but just this once,” you gave him a pointed look, as if you were expecting to see him again.

“Thank you, I’m sure she’ll love them.” You nodded in acknowledgement, wrapping both bouquets in a protective layer before handing them out. Denki appeared beside you, accepting the flowers with a large grin.

“I’ll see you later, (Y/N)! You’re coming, right?”

“Yep, I’ll see you then,” you turned to Bakugo, eyes flashing with something he couldn’t discern, “I’ll see you later, too.” He huffed out something similar to an agreement, still unsure of his standing within your views.

“Sure. Thanks again for the flowers.” Another grin.

“You’re welcome. Hope she likes them.”

“Me too.”

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