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johnsbleu · 5 months

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Hold My Hand: John Wick x Reader Chapter 164

warnings: none hmh masterlist

If there was a word to describe today it would be boring. Dull, mundane, uneventful, monotonous. Boring! The sky is full of fluffy gray clouds that keep hiding the sun, and what little sun does poke through doesn’t last long since the clouds swallow it back up almost instantly.

It’s just a boring day around the Wick household. John is downstairs working on some books for a client, Ronan was playing with some toys but now she’s zonked out on the floor next to Bleu while you’re lounging on the couch scrolling through all the stupid TikToks Tess has sent you this past week. Every now and then there’s a really boring day, which is fine since it’s nice to just relax, but today is beyond boring.

You get up from the couch and head downstairs to see if John is almost done working. It’s been about two hours since you’ve seen him, so it’s time to go bother him.

“Hey,” you lean against his back and press a kiss to his shoulder, “You almost done?”

“Not quite,” he says, setting his things down so he can turn to you, “Are you getting bored?”

You gape at him, “What do you mean ‘getting’? Wick, I’m beyond bored. Ronan is asleep, Tess is busy with Jimmy’s family. I have nothing to do!”

John chuckles as he pulls you between his legs, “What do you want to do?”

“I don’t know. I thought we could go to the museum or the aquarium.” you shrug as John nods, “Ro will be up in a little bit, so it would give us time to clean up and head out. It’s going to rain later too, so anything outside is obviously not going to work.”

“Right, right,” he nods, looking over at his workbench, “Well, I’m just about done with this book, so once I’m done, I’ll head up and take a shower. Does that sound good?”

You pout as you nod your head, “Yeah.”

“You miss me?”

“I do,” you whisper quietly, “You’ve been working on this book for so long.”

John nods, “Yeah, it’s a tough one. They wanted very specific things for it, but I think it’s turning out.”

You look down at the book and carefully turn it over to look at the gorgeous binding on it. The cover is adorned with gold vinyl cutouts of the characters along with the title. The client is going to be very pleased with it, and they should be since it’s taken John a long time to work on it and get it just right. John doesn’t give out anything he isn’t proud of.

“Looks gorgeous,” you smile at him, leaning in to kiss him, “I’ll be upstairs.”

“I’ll be up soon, I promise,” he says, spanking your ass as you walk away. “I love you, sweetheart.”

You smile at him over your shoulder, “I love you, pookie.”

“Maybe you should just stick to Wick.”

“Ha!” you laugh as you make your way upstairs, “Not likely.”

The idea of going to the museum was good until you remembered there was a huge exhibit there today and it was packed. John drove past and looked over at you, and you both silently agreed to head to the aquarium instead. It wasn’t too far from the museum anyway, and if you’re being honest, you’d rather go there.

John dropped you and Ronan off at the door and went to park the car, and you’re just waiting for him when some raindrops start to fall down. You step back and get under the awning, then you look out and try to find John. Ronan squeals loudly when she sees him jogging through the parking lot, and he makes it under the awning just as the rain pounds down.

You gather up your sweatshirt from the bottom of Ronan’s stroller and dab at John’s face, “You’re all wet.”

“I’m okay,” he laughs, gently taking your hands, “I’m okay, baby.”

“You’ll be cold in there,” you continue drying him off as he watches you with a small smile on his face, “What?”

John leans down and kisses you, “You’re such a mom.”

“Why? Because I don’t want you to be cold? I’m just taking care of you.”

“You’re such a nurturer. I love it. You’ve become even more nurturing since having her, and I like to see that side of you.” John smiles down at you, cupping your cheek, “My gorgeous wife.”

You playfully roll your eyes at him, “Stop.”

“Nope,” he hugs you tight and nuzzles into the crook of his neck, “I promised I’d love on you forever. I’m not stopping now.”

Leaning back, you smile at John until Ronan squeals loudly for you. You look down at her and smile, then you lean down and kiss her cheek as she laughs. She always wants to be in on the love whenever you and John are hugging.

“Oh, maybe we should grab some lunch,” John says when you walk through the doors. He gestures to the cafe and smiles, “Ro always loves the aquarium in there.”

Inside the cafe, you find a booth next to an aquarium and scoot into it before reaching for Ronan. You hold her up and smile as she looks at the fish swimming around, and John is quick to get his phone out and capture a picture of the two of you.

“I guess getting the yearly membership will be worth it.”

“I think so,” you smile as you look at Ronan’s big brown eyes wide in wonder, “Even if we didn’t have Ro, I think I’d come here a lot.”

John nods as he looks at the tank to his right, “When I was a kid, I wanted a bedroom that was underwater, like an underwater aquarium. I wanted sharks, sting rays, sea turtles. I wanted to be able to lay in bed and just watch them swim over me.”

“Jonathan Wick, I didn’t take you for such a little sea-life nerd.”

“Well,” he laughs, rubbing his hand against the back of his neck, “I gotta keep you on your toes.”

You grin at him, “And you certainly do.”

John places his hands on the back of your arms that are around his waist, “I have to finish this stuff today.”

You pout, “Okay.”

Since you all went to the aquarium yesterday, John absolutely has to finish his books today. You’re still a little bored today since Tess won’t be home for a few more hours and to make things even worse, it’s pouring down rain.

“You can join me?”

“I can’t,” you gesture over to Ronan, “We have plans.”

John chuckles, “Without me?”

“Yeah, girl’s day.” you smile proudly, “We’re doing our hair.”

“You mean you’re doing Ronan’s hair.”

You grin, “Yup! Her hair has gotten so much longer, so I wanna try some little pig tails on her.”

John looks down at Ronan and laughs, “Baby, you’re getting your hair all pretty?”

Ronan looks up at him and cheeses so hard that her cheeks must hurt. She holds up a toy and shows it to him, and he laughs and looks back at you.

“She’s thrilled.” you laugh, then you wrap your arms around his waist again, “But we’re not thrilled that you’re busy and can’t sit up here and tell us how pretty we are.”

John laughs, “I will come up here every 15 minutes to tell my girls how pretty they are.”

“Good!” you lean up to kiss John a few times, then you watch as he walks over to give Ronan a kiss. You smile when he gets up and walks past you, touching your hip as he moves to the basement door. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” he smiles, then he looks over at Ronan when she screams happily, “And I love you.”

Ronan walks over to you with a toy and reaches up, and you put her in your lap where she snuggles close to you and closes her eyes.

You inhale deeply and open your eyes, squinting them when the light from the lamp shines in your eyes. You feel the weight of something on your chest, and you look down to see Ronan’s little cheeks red and pressed against your chest, her hair stuck to her forehead with sweat. The two of you fell asleep and she runs so warm that she made you sweat too.

You sit up and cradle her in your arms before gently laying her back down on the couch. Since she’s a little warm, you grab the fan from the guest bedroom and plug it in to cool her off. She probably won’t be asleep for much longer but you want her to be cool. Smoothing down her brown hair, you smile and let out a small laugh when she scrunches her face up and stretches.

“I love you,” you whisper to her as you gently rub her back to coax her to sleep. You make sure that she’s okay, then you get up and head downstairs to see John.

“Ah, I was wondering when you were coming to see me. I assume…” he looks up and laughs, “Oh, yeah, you definitely fell asleep. Get over here.”

You lean against John’s chest and close your eyes, “I’m sleepy.”

“I see that.”

“We fell asleep,” you laugh, and he kisses your cheek, “She’s still asleep up there on the couch. Her protector is watching over her.”

John laughs, “Never leaves her side.”

You start to fall asleep leaning against John’s warm chest as his heart drums away, and he reaches down to lift you up into his lap. He holds you for a few short minutes until you finally sit up and look at him.

“Oh, you’re so sleepy,” he whispers, laughing softly, “Why are you so tired?”

You straighten up and cock up your brow, “Last night wasn’t exactly a lazy night after the aquarium.”

John starts to smirk, “I won’t apologize for that.”

“Never said I wanted you to,” you get off his lap and cup his face, “You did some fine work last night.”

“Thank you,” he smiles, his cheeks turning a little red, “You did some fantastic work.”

You grin proudly, “Oh, I know. You told me.”

“And you told me!” he laughs, pulling you back to him, “It just so happens that I’m free tonight too.”

“Oh my god!” you gasp playfully, “Me too!”

John kisses you as you both laugh, “What do you say? Our room? 9 PM?”

“It’s a date!” you wrap your arms around his neck and kiss him deeply, “I better get back upstairs. She’s going to be hungry soon.”

“I’ll be up for some lunch soon too. Just gotta finish one last thing.” he says, looking over at the books on his workbench.

You cup his face and bring his gaze back to you before kissing him, “Don’t take too long.”

“I won’t,” he whispers, then he smiles as you head upstairs.

Lunch is just about done and you’re getting Ronan situated in her high-chair when you hear the doorbell ring. For a short second, you think it might be Tess, but when has she ever rung the doorbell? Literally never. She usually just lets herself in--John told her that she was more than welcome to do so since she didn’t believe you when you told her.

“Okay, here,” you give Ronan a toy and smile at her, “I know you’re hungry, but I’ll be right back.”

“I’ll be up in a minute!” John yells from the basement, and you laugh to yourself.

You make sure you look presentable and your hair isn’t all messed up, then you open the door just as the doorbell is pressed again.

“Sorry,” you smile at the woman standing on the front step, “Hi.”

She looks taken aback for a moment before she smiles, “Is Mr. Wick here?”

“Yes,” you nod, still taking her in.

The woman’s dark hair is slicked back in a perfect ponytail but the ends have gotten wet from the rain. Despite having an umbrella, she has a black rain coat on with some thigh high leather boots. Her eyes haven’t moved from off of you since you opened the door.

“You said Mr. Wick is here?” she says, and you finally notice the accent and the tattoos on her hand wrapped around the umbrella handle.

She’s someone from his past. You knew that the moment you set your eyes on her. But if she’s here looking for John, she better have a damn good reason and she’s not getting in without going through you first.

“He is,” you say, closing the door a little more, “May I ask who you are?”

The woman smiles, “Just an old friend.”

“No, I want your name.”

“Sure, that seems fair,” she smiles, reaching out to shake your hand, “My name is Akira.”

You stare her down as you shake her hand. You won’t be intimidated by her, not that she’s even probably trying to intimidate you, but still.

“I’ll go get him,” you say as you start to close the door.

“What was your name?” she says, and you close your eyes before turning back to her, “I assume you’re his wife. Y/N?”

You hold her gaze, “You seem to already know my name.”

“It’s lovely to meet you,” she smiles, and you want to scream because she’s being so damn nice and on top of it, you fucking love her accent. “I’ll just wait here.”

You close the door and exhale loudly, reaching for the basement door when John opens it. You take a step back and look up at him as he smiles at you, but it quickly fades.

He cups your face and furrows his brow, “What happened?”

“Someone is here for you,” you say quietly, and he immediately looks up at the door, “Her name is Akira.”

John furrows his brow, “Akira?”

“She said she’s an old--”

“Friend, yeah.” he nods his head and leans down to kiss your cheek, “Stay here.”

John squeezes your shoulders and walks off to the door, taking one last look at you before he steps onto the porch. You inch closer to the door in hopes of hearing them talk, but you can’t over the rain and the thick glass. You reach for the handle when the door opens, so you step back and look at John.

“Go pack a bag.” he says urgently, taking your hand and pulling you into the kitchen, “Pack a bag for you and Ro. Call Tess, tell her to pack one for her and Finn. I’ll call Jimmy and tell him what’s going on.”

“John--”

He cuts you off as he gets Ronan from her high-chair, “Go to the lake house. Pack enough stuff for at least a week. I’ll meet you out there.”

“John!”

“You might want to call your parents too, I’m not sure yet. Maybe don’t since they don’t know everything. Fuck! Why didn’t I tell them everything?” he says as he walks into the living room with you trailing behind him, “Just go there and don’t talk to anyone. Just drive straight there. If Tess isn’t home yet, just tell her to meet you there.”

“Jonathan!” you yell from the bottom of the stairs, and he finally looks at you as you start to cry, “What is going on?”

He rushes back down and takes your hand, “I need you to listen to me: you need to get out of here.”

“Why? Because she’s here? Because she showed up? It’s not like it’s the first time she’s been to New York since we’ve been together.”

“But it’s the first time she’s showed up here. I know who follows her. And if she’s here, they’re not far behind. I wasn’t the only one people wanted dead.” he says, gripping your hand tight and pulling you upstairs with him. “You have to get out of here.”

John puts Ronan on the floor of your bedroom and begins moving around to pack a bag for you. He doesn’t even have to ask what you want to pack, and even in this moment of panic, he’s packing all of your favorite clothes. He sets the bag on the bed and leaves the room for a few moments before he comes back with clothes for Ronan.

“Text Tess, baby.” he says softly, and you nod your head and pull your phone out. You shoot a quick text to her and look up to see John zipping up your bag. “This is enough for you and Ro for a week, okay? I just need to grab Bleu’s things.”

“What about you?”

John wipes away the tear on your cheek, “I’ll call you tonight. I’ll let you know what’s going on.”

“Will you be okay?”

“I will,” he says, nodding his head, “I promise. I just want you two to get out of here.”

Your chin wobbles a little as you look at him, “Are they going to hurt you?”

“I…” he inhales deeply and shakes his head once, “No. But it doesn’t mean they won’t try. And I don’t want you here if that happens. So please, take this bag, get Ronan in the car, and leave.”

“Okay,” you cry quietly while John picks up Ronan, then you walk out to the garage where your car is parked.

Ronan is now crying because she’s so hungry but you’ll have to just give her a bottle or something to tide her over until you get to the lake house. John buckles her in the back and gets Bleu in, then he closes the door and turns to you, frowning when he sees the tears on your face.

“I know you’re scared.”

“I’m worried about you,” you look up at him and start to cry, “I don’t want to lose you.”

John shakes his head, “You’re not losing me. I’m going to call you tonight, okay? Keep your phone right by you.”

You sniffle as you nod, “Okay.”

John helps you into the car and smiles softly when you look at him, “Thank you for listening to me. I know this is scary. I never wanted this for you.”

“We’re still going to be together, right?”

“Yes,” John says, pain drenching his voice, “Yes, of course. I just need you to be safe.”

“You be safe,” you whisper as you lean over to hug him, “I love you.”

“I love you more.” he cups your face and tilts your head down to kiss your forehead, “Let me know when you get to the lake house and let me know when Tess gets there.”

You look down at your phone and show John the text: packing now. at home, pick me up.

“She’s at home.” you say, and he nods. “I’ll just get her now.”

John smooths your hair back and looks deep into your eyes, “Don’t stop for anything or anyone. If you have any problems, you can call me or Aurelio. Jimmy will most likely be out there shortly too. I’m going to call him. But you call me first. Always me first.”

“I will,” you kiss him hard on the lips, leaving them there for longer than necessary, then you lean back to look at him. “I’ll see you soon?”

“Yeah,” he says, but you know he’s lying. “I love you. I love you both.”

You smile softly when he reaches back to rub the top of Ronan’s head, then you hug him and kiss him again before he shuts your door and steps back. The garage door opens behind you, and you slowly back out of the driveway, watching as he walks over and stands next to Akira. She says something to him and smiles, but he doesn’t look away from your car. You give him a small wave and he nods his head a little before he turns and walks inside with Akira behind him.

To your surprise, the car ride was not quiet--Tess talked almost the whole way. There’s no doubt that John texted her and said to keep your mind off of things. You’ve been at the lake house for about two hours now, but you’re just laying on the couch. Tess told you to go lay down while she got the kids something to eat, and Jimmy showed up about an hour after you two arrived.

“Hey…” Jimmy sits on the coffee table and rubs your shoulder, “How are you holding up?”

You sit up and shrug, “Alright, I guess. Just confused.”

“John’s past is confusing…” he chuckles, then he takes the plate Tess is handing him, “We made you something to eat.”

“Thanks.” you take it, placing it in your lap, “Have you heard from him?”

Jimmy shakes his head, “Not since he first called me.”

“What did he say when he called you?”

“That someone was there and he wanted to make sure you and Ro-Ro were safe. He wanted me to come out here and make sure nothing happened.” he says, and you frown, “I know you want to ask, but he didn’t tell me when he’d be here.”

You nod your head and take a bite of the food Tess has made you--some rice and orange chicken. You look over at Ronan as she plays with Finn on the floor, and you sigh loudly.

“I’m nervous that he’s gonna--”

“He’s not going back, Y/N.” Jimmy shakes his head when you look at him, “He’s not, he just wants his family to be safe. He doesn’t want Ro near that stuff.”

You shrug, “I could have stayed. Tess could have taken Ronan up here.”

“Y/N, he wants you safe as well,” Jimmy says, reaching for your hand when you start to cry, “He’ll be okay. He can take care of himself. From the sounds of it, they’re just there to talk.”

“Then I could have stayed! I could be with him right now.”

Jimmy sighs, “Look, John is one of the good ones, Akira is as well. But sometimes bad ones follow the good ones. He doesn’t want you near there when something happens. Akira’s not out of that world, she’s still very much in it, which means at any moment, things could go wrong. John doesn’t want you there if that happens.”

“I don’t want him there if that happens!”

“But John can handle it. He knows what to do.” Tess says, and you look at her, “Look, this might sound mean but without you there, John can fully focus on what’s happening. If you and Ro are there, you’re the first thing he’s going to protect, even if that means he gets hurt. Without you two there, John doesn’t have anything else to protect except himself. He only has himself to worry about which means his mind wouldn’t be elsewhere.”

You nod as you look down at your plate, “Yeah.”

“He said as soon as he finds something out, he’ll call. I believe him. John always keeps his word.” Jimmy pats your leg and smiles softly, “Get some food in you. I’ll let you know if I hear anything at all. Okay?”

You smile softly when Jimmy pats your cheek, “Okay.”

“I’ll be here if you need anything. You can always come to me.”

“Thanks, Jimmy.” you smile at him again and watch as him and Tess walk onto the patio. You sigh deeply and reach for your phone, placing it in your lap and praying John calls soon.

Three days have passed and you’ve only gotten one text from John saying he’s fine and he’d call soon. That was the night you left. You haven’t heard from him since. Not only are you worried, you’re also pretty pissed at him for this. He said he’d call. Yeah, he could have gotten held up, but if he didn’t, then why hasn’t he bothered to call?

Ronan is starting to get very fussy since John is MIA. She knows he’s not around and she misses him. She’s not sleeping very well and she’s just crying at the drop of a hat. She misses her dad.

“Me too, kid.” you say to Ronan when she juts her bottom lip out and cries, “I miss him too.”

You lean forward and wipe the tears off her face before handing her a toy to distract her. She’s not in the mood, so she just cries harder and flops back on the floor.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, what’s goin’ on in here?” Jimmy says as he walks in, and he looks down at Ronan, “Oh, Ro-Ro, you mad at your momma?”

“She misses her dad.”

Jimmy glances at you before he reaches down and picks up Ronan, “Well, why don’t we go catch some frogs?”

You give Jimmy an appreciative smile and sit back on the couch, staring down at your phone as he takes her outside. Her cries slowly stop until you hear her giggling. Uncle Jimmy always makes her laugh. You turn a little so you can look out the window as he carries her down to the shore with Finn and Tess following behind, and you tear up.

That should be you and John right now. You two should be taking a nice evening walk down there before sitting on the patio and eating burgers. You two should be watching the sunset, then laying on the sundeck looking at the stars.

You exhale loudly and look down at your phone. Still no messages. You perk up when you hear the sound of John’s car coming down the dirt path, and you quickly get up and rush to the door. John steps out and smiles at you, letting out a big breath when he sees you’re okay.

Without thinking, you step down and run over the uneven rocky ground to get to John, and he lifts you up and hugs you tight in his arms. He starts to walk to the porch with you in his arms, and you inhale the smell of his cologne.

“Your feet are gonna hurt. You don’t have any shoes on.” he says into the crook of your neck, “Jimmy and I planned on fixing that soon.”

You stand firmly on the porch and lean back to look at him. Since you’re on the step and he’s not, you’re eye level with him. Your eyes immediately search his face for any bruising or cuts, but he looks exactly like he did when you left him three days ago, maybe only just a little tired.

“I’m okay,” he whispers, and you cup his face, “I’m okay, baby. Everything is fine.”

You lean back to look at him, then you drop your hands to your side, “You never called me.”

“I know,” he inhales deeply and nods, “I meant to, and I should have, but…they were everywhere. I didn’t want to risk it. I didn’t want to put you in danger.”

“But this whole time you were fine, but I sat here thinking the worst. I cried myself to sleep every single night,” you say, raising your voice, “I didn’t know if my husband was gone. I didn’t know if my daughter’s dad was gone. I didn’t know! I thought I lost you!”

John looks down and nods his head, “I fucked up, I know.”

“I’m so fucking mad at you,” you whisper quietly, and he looks up at you with sorrowful eyes.

“I wanted to call. I wanted to run after your car the moment you left, but I couldn’t. These people don’t care if--” he stops talking when you push past him and start to walk away, “No, no, don’t walk away. We’re talking! Don’t do this.”

You continue walking away from him and see both Jimmy and Tess turn to see John chasing behind you. He gently grabs your arm and stops you. If you tugged your arm from his grip, you know he’d let you go, but you don’t want to, so you turn to him and meet his gaze.

“I fucked up,” he says firmly, “But you need to listen to me.”

You pull your arm from his grip and cross them over your chest, “Fine.”

“So damn stubborn,” he says under his breath, then he looks at you, “These people do not care about women and children. They’ll kill anyone. They wouldn’t care that there’s a baby in the house when they decide to light the place up. You think I want that for you? You think for a second that I was going to risk it? I’d rather you be mad at me for not calling than you be upset because our daughter was hurt or that you were hurt. I can live with you being upset at me for not calling, but I can’t live without you. Do you understand now?”

You look out at the sun shining on the lake, then you look at him, “Yes, it’s not that I don’t understand, John. It’s that you said you’d call and you didn’t.”

“You’re still not getting it…” he says, letting out a small laugh of disbelief, “I can’t fucking lose you! I can’t live without you! I would be lost. I would be worse than I’ve ever been. I’d never come back from it. I did before, but this, if I lost this…” he gestures to the two of you, “I’d be more than a broken. I’d be beyond repair because I wouldn’t have you to help put me back together. So, yes, I lied and didn’t call you but it was for your own good. It was to keep you safe.”

Inhaling deeply, you look up at him and hold his gaze before you shrug, “Okay, so maybe I’m not fully wrapping my head around how serious this is.”

“You absolutely aren’t,” he says with a small chuckle as he steps closer to you, “It is very serious.”

“Plus the whole ‘put me back together’ thing was pretty cute.” you admit, and he smiles softly. You exhale sharply and look up at him, “So, is this always going to be our life? You sending me and Ro away?”

John shakes his head a little and shrugs, “I can’t stop people from showing up. They think I’m going to come back, which I’m not. I’m done. Completely done. But this isn’t the life I wanted for you. I want you to have the best life, so I guess the main question is are you going to leave?”

You look over your shoulder and furrow your brow before looking at John, “Who are you talking to? Because I know you’re not talking to me.”

“Peach,” he says with a sigh, reaching for your hands, “I’m serious. If you want out, then--”

“Shut up! Stop saying that!” you push him a little, “Don’t talk like that! I don’t ‘want out’. I want you! I want the life that we’ve created for three years now. I don’t want to run off because someone thinks that you have information on something. John, I have waited my entire life for this, for you. You just told me that you can’t live without me.”

John swallows hard, “I can’t! But I also can’t make you stay if you don’t want to.”

“Have I ever given you the implication that I want to leave?” you ask, and he shakes his head. “John, I wanted to stay with you! I wanted to stay home and be by your side through whatever that woman was there for! There hasn’t been a single moment in our relationship where I wanted to leave. You need to wrap your head around that. I know that you don’t want me to be hurt, but I have you and I trust you. I know you wouldn’t let anything happen to me.”

The two of you look at one another for a few silent moments as Ronan’s giggles carry in the wind, and you take a step closer to John.

“We promised to go through life together, no matter what it brought us.” you turn his hand over and rub your thumb over his wedding ring, “I have no plans on running off unless you’re coming with me.”

John smiles as he leans closer, “Wherever you go, I’m following.”

You wrap your arms around John’s neck and hug him tight, taking a look at Ronan before you close your eyes. You lean back to kiss him, then you take his hands.

“There is no me without you.”

John smiles, “That was cute.”

You start to laugh, “You said some cute shit just now, I won’t lie.”

“We okay?”

“Yeah,” you nod, holding his gaze, “We’re okay. Are you?”

He nods as he looks down at himself, “Yeah, I’m fine. Nothing more than a chat.”

“For three days?” you ask, incredulously.

“Two days. I just took the rest of today to make sure everyone was gone before I got on the road.” he says, then he starts to laugh, “Plus I had to drop off those books to that client. When I couldn’t sleep the last few nights, I finally finished them.”

Looking up at him, you start to laugh, “So you’re all mine now?”

“Always.”

John takes your hand and intertwines his fingers with yours, then the two of you walk back to the house. When Ronan spots him, she squeals loudly and kicks her legs to be let down from Jimmy’s arms. He sets her down and laughs when she runs over to John, who is already kneeling down with his arms open. She wraps her arms around him as best as she can, grinning so wide that it brings tears to your eyes.

“Did you miss me?” he asks, and she juts her bottom lip out and starts to cry, big tears streaking her red face.

“Such big emotions,” you laugh, rubbing her back, “She doesn’t know how to process those quite yet.”

Ronan rests her head on John’s shoulder as she cries, and he rubs her back to calm her down while he bounces on his knees. After a few minutes, she goes completely quiet--passed out on his shoulder. He smiles proudly at you.

“I’m going to go put her down.” he says, and you follow behind him.

As John gets Ronan in her bed, you lay down and wait for him to come back out of her room. You lean up a little when her bedroom door squeaks shut, and he crawls into bed with you as you struggle to keep your eyes open.

“Tired?” he asks quietly, and you nod. He smooths your hair back and begins to scratch your scalp as you finally close your eyes. “Go to sleep.”

“Barely slept these past few days.”

John’s lips brush against your forehead, “I know, baby. Just go to sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

“Will you hold me?” you ask, and John moves to get more comfortable as you lay against his chest, “Don’t leave.”

“I won’t. I’ll be right here.”

Rubbing your eyes, you roll to your back and stretch out, sighing contently. You look up at the ceiling and blink a few times, then you look to your left and see John holding Ronan as they look out the window together. You sit up and yawn into your hand, and John looks over his shoulder and smiles at you.

“Look who decided to wake up, Ro,” he says, and you laugh sleepily as you get up and walk over to them, “My sleepy peach.”

“I was tired.”

John laughs, “I was too. I fell asleep for a little bit too.”

Ronan kicks her legs wildly, so John sets her down and watches as she runs into her room. He looks at you and cups your face, bringing your lips to his for several sweet kisses.

“Are we going to head back home now?”

Inhaling deeply, John shrugs, “I mean, we’re here. We might as well hang out for a few days.”

“Jimmy has to work and I think Tess is busy with her studio, so they can’t stay.”

“So? We’ll have the place to ourselves for a few days.”

You let out a small laugh, “If you wanted to get me alone, all you had to do was ask.”

“I’ll remember that for next time,” he says softly as he leans down to kiss you, savoring the warmth and feeling of your lips on his, “It’ll just be us three. It’ll be nice. We won’t stay long. Maybe just a day or two.”

Holding John’s gaze, you squint a little, “Is she still in New York?”

“Most likely.”

“And you don’t want us to go home until she’s gone.”

“Correct.”

You smile as you reach up to cup his face, “You’re very sweet, Wick.”

“She wanted to meet you,” he says, and you jerk your head back a little, “Well, properly meet you.”

“And you said no?”

He shakes his head, “I said it’s not really up to me whether you two meet or not. If it were, well, if I knew she wasn’t followed, then I would have been okay with you being at the house.”

“So, it’s…a little bit up to you?” you say, and John starts to laugh.

“Yeah, I guess.” he shrugs one shoulder, “But if you want to properly meet her, then I’m okay with that.”

You nod your head, “Like a dinner or something?”

“She’s staying at the hotel, so…”

The gasp that leaves your mouth shocks John, so he starts to laugh.

“Look,” you walk over to Ronan’s room to check on her, still talking as you go, “I don’t want you to go back into that world--we’ve talked about it. Done and over with, but…god, I love that hotel. I love the vibe, the atmosphere, the dress code.”

“There’s no dress code,” John laughs from the doorway, and you turn around and give him a dirty look, “Okay, well, there kind of is.”

You start to smile as you look at him, “This is…kind of embarrassing, but I like that when I walk in, everyone knows who I am and who I’m with. Isn’t that so stupid?”

“Not at all,” he smiles from across the room, “I like that everyone know you’re there with me. I like them knowing we’re together and that you’re mine. I like knowing that they know they can’t have you.”

You smile as you lift up Ronan, “Would we go to the hotel?”

“She wants to meet Ronan.”

“And you want her to?”

John looks from you to Ronan, then he nods as he looks at you again, “Yeah, I’m proud of you and her.”

“And we’d take her to the hotel?”

Letting out a big sigh, John shrugs, “I don’t know. If we go there and Winston hears…”

“He’ll be mad that we brought her.”

“He’ll want to see her,” John laughs, “She’s like his 78th grandkid.”

You start to laugh, “Papa Winston.”

The two of you look at each other for a few minutes before John walks over to you, wrapping his arms around you and Ronan.

“We’d be safe?” you ask, and John nods. “She would be safe?”

“Rules, sweetheart,” he whispers, and you tilt your head, cocking up your brow, “No one else has broken them since…”

You start to laugh, “You little rule breaker.”

“Rules aren’t fun.”

“I’ve made rules before…”

John leans closer and kisses you, “Yeah, well, you’re my wife. I have to listen you.”

“True!” you point your finger at him as you walk past, then you turn around and look at him, “Are you sure?”

“I am positive. We can enter through the back, take the backstairs up to the restaurant. I can even call Charon and let him know that we’d be coming, and he’d make sure everything was safe.” he says, and you inhale as you head, “If you’re not okay with that, she can come to our place, or we can leave Ronan with Tess.”

You shrug, “We’ve just never brought her to the hotel before. Is it safe for her to be there?”

“I would burn the world down for her and you. I would go to hell and back without second thought,” he says as he holds your gaze, walking closer to you, “The rules are even tighter than before--”

“Because of you.”

“Yes,” he chuckles, then he puts his hands on your shoulders, “But I promise nothing will happen to you or her there. Would I bring you two there otherwise?”

You sigh loudly “Well, no, but…you know.”

“You’re a mom,” he smiles and leans down to kiss your cheek, “And I’m a dad, and I am so goddamn protective of you two.”

You start to laugh, “I know! You sent me away because some people showed up!”

John smiles proudly, “Yeah!”

“Okay,” you bounce Ronan on your hip and look at her, “We’ll go meet her. How do you know her?”

“Her father was a friend,” he says, and you nod, “A really good friend. A brother.”

You frown, “And he’s not…here anymore?”

John looks down and shakes his head. He looks at you with sad brown eyes, and you walk over to him, wrapping your left arm around him. Ronan reaches up to be held by him, so you pass her over to him.

“I’m sorry,” you whisper, and he nods. “He was important to you, so I understand why you want me to meet her. Did you know her before?”

“No. I knew he had a daughter later on after we went our separate ways, but I didn’t meet her until a few years ago,” he sits on the bed with Ronan in his lap, “She’s not the biggest fan of mine.”

You sit down next to him and read between the lines. Her dad is dead, she doesn’t like John, and he only met her a few years ago. Clearly this was during John’s excommunication.

“Was the last time you saw him when he…” you gesture a little, and John nods. “I’m so sorry, John. You’ve lost so many people.”

“But I gained a lot of really great ones,” he says softly, and you smile at him. He shakes his head, “Anyway, things are better now. Akira is doing her own thing, but while she’s here, she does want to meet you. She said you were…”

You squint your eyes, “I was what?”

“Very suspicious of her, and very protective of me.” he smiles, and you shrug bashfully. “She also said that her father would have wanted to meet Ronan and you.”

“Is that true?”

A smile tugs at John’s lip, “Yeah, he would have really wanted to meet you. He wanted me to have my peace. He wanted me to find a way out. He wanted me to find a purpose.”

“Ya know, it sounds like before me, you had a lot of people rooting for you.”

“No one has ever rooted for me as loudly as you do.”

You narrow your eyes, “Was that a dig at me?”

“No,” he laughs, kissing your head, “It was a compliment. My number one fan.”

“That’s me!”

Ronan’s chewing on her hands as she sits in John’s lap but she straightens her body out and whines. She’s kind of sick of this conversation now.

“Okay, okay,” John laughs, hoisting her up when he stands up from the bed, “We’ll get you some food.”

You get up and head to the stairs but John calls out to you, so you turn around.

“He would have really liked you.”

You smile softly, “Well, let’s hope his daughter will too.”

taglist:

@sakurachan-9 @beingnerdyissupercool @tnu-ree @ruby-octo @scream-queen-25

#john wick x reader #john wick x you #fic: hold my hand #john wick imagine #john wick x y/n #HIIIIII #as soon as i saw jw4 i was like yup i need to add her to hmh #i love her v much #and i love them and i love y'all #i hope you enjoyyyyy

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drawing-way-outside-the-lines · 11 months

Text

➖ Mature content, 18+ ➖ check the trigger tags each time ➖

Chapter 45 - A softness settled in it.

Episode 3.

Somewhere in Saint Greer

Dalton: He squealed loudly as suddenly a soaked Raven stood in front of him on the dark night street

Raven: He let out a tired chuckle I suppose I have looked better.

Dalton: Oh shit man! It's you!

Raven: …. yeah… it's…. me he sighed soft and defeated

Dalton: He quickly sensed the darker mood that seemed to spread around them, like a black fog, waiting to swallow them Hey… His voice was it's usual depth, but a softness settled in it

Raven: He slowly stepped forwards, leaning his forehead on Dalton's shoulder

Dalton: He instantly wrapped his arms around Raven, squeezing him gently, staying calm and quiet, while he wondered what someone as strong and powerful as Raven, could possibly have gone through, to seek someone as insignificant as himself for comfort?

Raven: He stood there for quite a while, listening to nothing but the soft winter breeze and Dalton's heartbeat, then suddenly without intention, his lips whispered 'I love you', in the split second that followed, he simply disappeared

Dalton: He looked around startled as Raven disappeared, and he could have sworn he heard the soft winter breeze whisper 'I love you'.

Raven: Fuck! He landed on his back next to Ronan on his bed

Ronan: He observed his brother with a soft chuckle what could possibly have fucked in those few minutes?

Raven: Me!

Ronan: He chuckled again

Raven: It's not funny! I royally fucked up! He sat up, looking at his older brother with a deep frown on his forehead I'm a complete idiot, and accidentally told Dalton I love him.

Ronan: And the problem is?

Raven: Do I have to remind you of-

Ronan: No. You don't. But Raven, you are also allowed to come first every now and again.

Raven: I know Roe… but at what cost?

Ronan: Mmh… knowing his brothers needs well enough, he instantly picked up on the hint and scooted closer in bed, fumbling lightly with Raven's wet shirt I called Belphegor, and Alroy will be dealt with later. For now he's out anyway. I also called Odette and let her know I wont be by tonight.

Raven: He bit his bottom lip and already felt the calming trance his brother always seemed to push him in when they were intimate Roe… he made me feel dirty about you and I… well any family members… I'm not sure-

Ronan: It's okay He leaned closer, planting a soft kiss on Raven's neck We're demons, we have been doing it since before the break of dawn. There's nothing wrong with it…. with you…

Raven: He surrendered in a relieved sigh, allowing himself to fall down on the bed again, dragging Ronan after him

Lina: She observed Ragnall as they after dinner, strolled down the softly lit dirt paths crossing the court yard So you don't have a wife, you don't have any kids… yet you seem like a catch…. why are you single?

Ragnall: He shrugged lightly I guess the right one just haven't come arrround? And you?

Lina: … the same she kicked a small stone I've never had a boyfriend… or sex she covered her mouth, surprised and startled that the words came out like that

Ragnall: It's alrrright he smiled warmly It's the wine speaking. And Irish wine always lie.

Lina: She couldn't help but chuckle and feel so secure with him, that she naturally linked her arm with his, without her even noticing

Ragnall: He on the other hand noticed, but he didn't mind. In fact, with each step they took, he grew fonder and fonder of her.

Lina: She sighed soft as they sat down on a bench by a bendy river, dragonflies hanging lightly in the air, she shivered softly

Ragnall: Are you cold?

Lina: a bit she smiled softly, smitten that he seemed to care. No he did care. In fact he seemed very genuine.

Ragnall: May I ask again, why arranged marriage? He asked in a soft, sorta hesitating voice

Lina: … I got lonely. I'm not really into dating, I find it all awkward, and then there's all these apps. I've tried. Within few minutes a guy told me he wanted to she lowered her voice anally fuck me.

Ragnall: He chuckled softly I'm sorry, for any inappropriate words or gestures yeh have ever received from men.

Lina: That's not up to you to apologize for, in fact, you have been the perfect gentleman. She paused, observing his warm face, an urge to suddenly kiss him …. in fact…. it makes me wonder yet again, why you weren't on the list? She got interrupted as suddenly and handful geese took off from the other side of the river I must get home, I'm sorry, it's getting late and I'm getting cold, I better go find Raven.

Ragnall: Raven took off hours ago.

Lina: …… she shook her head lightly great.

Ragnall: I can find someone teh help yeh home, or a spare bed… there's plenty spare rooms, I'm sure we can find one for yeh, if yeh want to stay?

Lina: No, I'd like to go home. She smiled soft and apologetic

Ragnall: He nodded confirming and stood up, reaching a hand to Lina

Lina: She gladly grabbed it, feeling a warmth spread inside her, he surely was the perfect gentleman

Ragnall: He lead her into the castle and up a bunch of stairs, till they finally reached Belphegor's office, where he firmly knocked the door It's best you wait out here, he doesn't like guests at this hour.

Lina: She nodded softly and let go of his arm

Ragnall: He smiled at her politely I'll be back in just a moment. He quickly opened the large wooden door and slipped inside, closing it behind him

Belphegor: He nodded firmly from his spot behind his desk across the room Ragnall. Come in.

Ragnall: He quickly walked up to the large mahogany table and spoke with confidence Why was I not deemed good enough to be amongst Lina's bachelors?

Belphegor: You are.

Ragnall: Then why weren't I picked?

Belphegor: …. you are.

Ragnall: …… He looked at Belphegor with a questioning frown I am?

Belphegor: Miss Aishlynn might think what she wants is an arranged marriage. She has grown scared of love without ever having experienced it. So instead of trying the natural way, she settles for a quick business model. Assuming this is what she wants, simply cause it's easier.

Ragnall: ……

Belphegor: You were not among the bachelors, which by the way I hand picked, well knowing she would never agree to a single one of them, simply for the fact that you have been very opposed to a new relationship. I knew you would be too stubborn to give Miss Aishlynn a try. So I arranged for Miss Aishlynn to be picked up at the stables-

Ragnall: Well knowing I'd be tending to Aurora

Belphegor: A confirming nod

Ragnall: You led us to meet almost organic…. no pressure… no business deal…

Belphegor: Just as Miss Aishlynn truly wants.

Ragnall: He couldn't help but chuckle surprised How did yeh know we would like each oth- no, I'm getting ahead of myself, who says Aishlynn-

Belphegor: Ragnall. You're usually more confident than that. You know very well a girl like Miss Aishlynn, doesn't stick to a male company unless she likes him.

Ragnall: He burst out a loud laughter of revelation You sneaky old-

Belphegor: Yes, well. I suggest you don't finish that sentence, I've had enough insults for one evening from my own son. Get miss Aishlynn home safely he nodded politely and waved a hand as to signal he wanted privacy

Ragnall: He nodded confirming and left the room, bumping into Lina in the hallway, grabbing her quick by her waist, trying to prevent her from falling I'm sorry! He quickly let go and took a few steps back

Lina: She felt a tiny blush creep over her cheeks

Ragnall: Slight change of plans, if you don't mind?

Lina: …

Ragnall: Lina, may I take you home?

Lina: She squinted her eyes suspiciously I thought you couldn't-

Ragnall: No, I said I would get someone else to do it, simply not to overstep any lines he smiled softly forgive me if it may have seemed as if I don't have the power, in fact I can teleport just as Raven.

Lina: ….. she hesitated for just a moment before she stepped forwards and leaned her head against Ragnall's chest, instantly feeling his warmth as he wrapped his strong arms around her Take me home.

Ragnall: We're here he spoke soft and warm, after a short moment. Truth to be told, it was almost 30 seconds since they had arrived at Lina's house, but he hadn't wanted to let go of her just yet

Lina: She sighed soft and longing, not fully prepared to let go of him just yet. She liked his scent, and how safe she had immediately felt in his strong arms. She took a deep breath and quickly stepped away, trying to act as normal as possible and somehow try to keep her blushing at a minimum I'm sorry about the state of this place she gestured at the kitchen they had landed in. There were moving boxes scattered on the floor, and the place looked like it needed a hand, or 10. It's been a lot, to move in on my own, and I haven't been able to finish yet. There's constantly something breaking down, the heating, plumbing, electricity she sighed soft that's what you get for buying an old abandoned house right? She chuckled awkwardly

Ragnall: He nodded softly I suppose so.

Lina: She didn't much feel like him leaving as she looked around the unfinished room, at least the living room was more liveable, and almost finished, apart from a few moving boxes in a corner and a broken fireplace. She shivered as she once again realised there were no heating in her house

Ragnall: Was nice meeting yeh, Lina, don't be a stranger he smiled warmly, admittedly he didn't want to leave her just yet, but he also didn't want to intrude.

Lina: Would you like a cup of tea? the question flew out of her mouth

Ragnall: ….

Lina: Or coffee? No you probably drink neither of those, but I don't have any beer or Whiskey, it's whiskey you guys drink, right? Maybe I have a bottle wine upstairs, I could have a look if you would lik-

Ragnall: I'd like a cup of tea, please he smiled warmly, happy that she had asked, smitten by her nervous blabbering

Lina: She nodded confirming with a small satisfied smile Make yourself at home.

#unicorntales #Raven McKinney #Brandubh McKinney #Dalton Red #Ronan McKinney #Lina #Aishlynn Selena Zoe Hartwig #Ragnall McKinney #Belphegor McKinney

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zephfair · 1 year

Text

Ronan/Adam fluff meet-cute

I’m still working on two other short fics from wonderful Anons who suggested cute, fluffy ideas. In the meantime, please have this silly little meet-cute AU.

Rated T only for language. It’s fluff and nonsense, comedy, and attempted romance. It’s a non-magic AU with the only TDT spoiler being Jordan.

“Okay, I’m here, you can get the heck out,” Ronan hollered as he slammed shut the door of the townhouse behind him.

“Ronan!” several voices cried, including the tired one that was undoubtedly Declan’s. Then two bundles of high energy hit his legs and knees and Ronan focused on his nephew and niece, letting them scream wildly while he dropped his bag and twirled them into the air.

He carried them through to the kitchen where Declan was looking more harried than usual. “You’re late,” he accused.

“Well, you know traffic can be a biii-- butt,” Ronan said.

“I have lists of everything I expect from you this week and—”

“Wait, what? You expect me to do things for you? I’m already housesitting for you, out of the goodness of my heart so—”

“Oh and what important farm business am I taking you away from? Gazing out over the empty fields where you keep claiming you’re going to get cattle?”

“I am,” Ronan muttered and resisted the always present urge to flip off Declan. Then he plopped Teddy on the counter so he could readjust Bee’s chokehold on his neck.

“Sure, Ronan,” Declan said, grabbing his daughter from him and nearly completing the choking. “And don’t leave Theo up there unattended; he’ll fall.”

“You’re not unattended, are you little man?” Ronan whispered to Teddy’s great laughing delight as Ronan picked him back up.

“As I was saying,” Declan continued, “we’ll be gone until Saturday evening. There are lists of reminders to take out the trash, bring in the cans, make sure the landscaping company cuts the lawn, and to keep an eye on the sprinklers because there’s something off with the timer.”

“Oh my god, you are the most boring person alive,” Ronan informed him.

“And Declan, please don’t forget to call the repair place again. They still haven’t sent anyone out to fix the washing machine,” said Jordan’s voice from the hallway.

Declan grimaced and took something from under a magnet on the refrigerator door. “Of course not, darling. I’ll find out why they haven’t been here.” He slapped the business card against Ronan’s chest and hissed, “I keep forgetting to call them. You call and get the washer fixed before we come home.”

“You mean, you actually forgot to mm-mm-mmph,” Ronan’s extra-loud voice was quickly muffled by Declan’s hand.

“Yes, I actually forgot. You try having two little ones under four and another on the way plus a full-time job,” Declan snapped then grimaced at the feeling of Ronan’s tongue, slimy on his palm. “Ugh, you never grow up.”

“Nope,” Ronan agreed happily, jiggling Teddy on his hip. “Now hurry up and get outta here so I can raid your fridge and drink all your beer.”

“It’s only a week, Ronan. Do I have to warn you against having any parties? Or incurring any noise complaints from the neighbors? Or trashing the house in any way?”

“Really? Do you think I can?”

Declan rolled his eyes and took his son away, much to his and Ronan’s disappointment. Then Jordan bustled in, reminding Declan to recheck the kids’ luggage, and he took them out to the hallway to put on shoes and get ready to leave for the airport.

“Hi, Ronan,” Jordan said with a little tired smile.

“Hey. Congratulations,” he said, thinking that if Declan had looked exhausted, Jordan looked like she hadn’t gotten to sleep in months. “Hope your vacation lets you relax. Enjoy it.”

“I don’t think there is any relaxing with those three,” she said. “I’ll just be happy if I get an hour a day to myself.”

“Make Declan take them so you can hit a spa or something. You deserve it.”

“You’re damn right I deserve it,” she said, making Ronan laugh. Then she lowered her voice, “I would really appreciate it if you could call the appliance repair and get the washer fixed. I know Declan hasn’t, but it would be lovely to have it done by the time we get home.”

“For you, consider it done,” Ronan promised and flourished the card Declan had given him.

And that was the last time he saw it for nearly a week. He spent the time in D.C. alone, sometimes hitting a national monument or driving through the suburbs out into the hills. He crashed in the townhouse and methodically drank his way through the cheap beer Declan had undoubtedly stocked just for him as well as the better stuff he found stashed in the back of the pantry. He followed the lists and eventually got the trash cans back off the curb before the neighbor could yell at him twice, and he only played movies and video games loud enough for himself, but not the neighbor, to hear.

Then Declan texted him late Friday afternoon that something had happened to their Saturday flight and they wouldn’t be back until Sunday. And he thanked Ronan for taking care of the house and getting the washing machine fixed.

“Shit,” Ronan said, peeling himself off the couch and going to look for the business card. It was under a bag of bagels on the kitchen counter, and he drummed his fingers nervously while he listened to the phone ring. Surely they were still open a little after 4 p.m. on a summer Friday afternoon?

Then victory. A breathless voice that sounded like it had been laughing at something answered. “Hello, Boyd’s Appliance Repair, this is Adam, how can I help you?”

“Shit, you answered.”

A pause. “Yes, sir. Can I help you?”

“Fuck, yes, I gotta get the washer fixed.”

“Okay, sir, I can get you scheduled. It looks like our first available technician can come out Thursday between 2 and 5 p.m.”

“No, no, no that won’t work. I need someone now,” Ronan said.

The voice paused again. “What exactly is the problem you’re having with the washer.”

Ronan gaped. “I don’t know. Aren’t you supposed to tell me what’s wrong with it?”

“Well, yes, but if you’ll tell me what the washer is doing, I might be able to give you an idea of what’s wrong.”

“So I’m doing half your job for you, diagnosing what’s wrong?”

The voice sounded like it was grinding its teeth. “No. Sir. I’m saying that if your problem is so urgent that it can’t wait until Thursday, maybe I can give you some advice over the phone. Sir.”

“Oh. Well, I don’t know what’s wrong with it—like I said that’s your job—it’s just broken. But I have to have it fixed today.”

“That’s impossible. Sir.”

“Nothing is impossible.”

“It is if it’s a Friday afternoon and the shop closed at 4,” the voice said smugly.

“Fuck.” Ronan rubbed at the back of his head. “What if I pay overtime? Double the overtime?”

“You really want me to make one of our guys work overtime fixing your washer, when you can’t even tell me how it’s acting.”

“Yes,” that was exactly what Ronan wanted.

The voice sighed, deep and heartfelt. “Look, even if you pay overtime, that’s still an awfully big demand. I can’t ask if someone wants to spend Friday night God only knows where fixing a … what model is it, anyway?”

“The fuck should I know? Can’t you tell?”

“Not without seeing the machine. Sir,” the voice gritted out.

“It’s a white one,” Ronan said.

“Why don’t you ask your wife or your mother or whoever actually uses the machine to tell me what’s going on.”

“My wife?” Ronan scoffed then blurted out without thinking, “I’m way too gay to have a wife.” Then he realized the guy wasn’t laughing like his friends would, so he said, “And besides, that’s extremely sexist to believe that I’m making a woman in my life do the laundry. I’m very offended. On behalf of the women you’re enslaving to do household chores.”

The voice let out another sigh. “You’re right,” it admitted reluctantly. “That was sexist, and I know better. Men are just as capable at breaking washing machines, probably more so.”

“And besides, it’s not even my washer.”

That made the voice pause again. “Did you break into a house and then break the washer?” it asked Ronan.

“No! God, no, it’s my sister-in-law’s washer. She and my brother and kids went on vacation this week, and my dickwad brother was supposed to call and have it fixed but…”

“But he’s a dickwad?”

“Exactly! And so they asked if I’d call and do it because they get home Sunday and she’ll probably be swamped in dirty laundry so yeah,” Ronan finished. “And she’s pregnant with my third niece or nephew so I don’t want her to have to worry about this.”

“I have a feeling that if she’s married into your family, she’s got bigger problems to worry about,” the voice said.

“Well, probably,” Ronan admitted then reminded, “because my brother’s a dickwad.”

The voice coughed something that sounded like “you too” before arranging itself back to professionalism. “Give me your name, address and number.”

“Seriously? You’ll get someone to come over now?” Ronan barely dared to hope.

“I’ll see what I can do. If someone’s willing to stay. For the overtime.”

“Got it. Great,” and Ronan rattled off his details before Adam said, “I’m not promising anything. But I’ll see what I can do. For your sister-in-law.”

“I really appreciate this,” Ronan said, heartfelt and honest.

He was still feeling relieved when the doorbell rang and he opened it to find the most attractive man he’d seen in a long, long time. His face was all high cheekbones, pursed lips, and dark blue eyes with eyelashes and hair that was fair against his tanned skin. He was slim but filled out the white T-shirt and work pants nicely. And when he held up a sheet of paper to consult, Ronan had to swallow hard at the sight of his hands—ideal in their male loveliness and exactly the kind of long, knobbly fingers Ronan liked to get in his mouth.

“You Lynch?” The man asked.

Ronan had to clear his throat before he could say, “Yeah, come on in.”

He stepped aside to let the vision of male beauty enter the foyer with him. Then the man paused and fished out some blue paper booties from his pocket, put down his toolbox, and leaned a hand against the wall to steady himself while he put the booties on over his work boots.

“You don’t have to do that,” Ronan said.

“Company policy,” the repair man said shortly, switching to his other foot.

“Well, they don’t give a shit about these,” Ronan kicked up his own heavy boot in the guy’s direction who only gave him an unimpressed look.

“That’s nice. I don’t want to damage anyone’s floors.” Standing up straight, he clutched the toolbox to his side. Ronan glanced down to see “Chuck” scratched in heavy lines into the metal. Funny, the guy really didn’t look like a “Chuck.” “Now, where’s this broken washer?”

Ronan led him down the hall, down the stairs, through the family room to the laundry area. He gave a flourish like a game show model, “There it is.”

Chuck only frowned at the machine and him. Finally, he said, “Okay, I’ll take it from here,” put his toolbox down and started checking the machine’s connections to the wall.

He glanced back at Ronan. “Have you tried turning it off and on?”

“That’s how you fix a computer, dumbass,” Ronan retorted.

Chuck glared at him and pointedly unplugged the machine. “These new washers are run by a computer module” dumbass was heavily implied but not said.

Ronan remained silent while Chuck plugged it back in, then moved to the control panel and frowned even more heavily while he pressed some buttons and turned the dial. Ronan cleared his throat, and Chuck looked slowly in his direction.

“I just wondered, is this going to take a while?”

“Why? Am I keeping you from a hot date?”

Ronan felt his face burn. “No, no date. I’m not dating… I mean. I just wondered.”

“If you need to go, I’ll be happy to come back—”

“No! It’s fine!”

“Or you can ask your boyfriend to come over here,” Chuck said while he opened the washer door and ran his hand around the seal.

“I don’t have a boyfriend,” now it was Ronan’s turn to frown heavily. “Did that Adam guy tell you I’m gay? Is that why he sent you?”

Chuck froze then very slowly and deliberately shut the door. “Why would you think that?” he asked.

“Well, I mean, I kind of outed myself to him and then you show up looking all...” Ronan was at a loss for words so just sort of gestured to Chuck.

Who was looking at him strangely, one eyebrow raised.

“I mean, I’m not ashamed because I like men, it’s just kind of a dick move by Adam to send someone who looks like...” Ronan said and again he waved, but more feebly than before.

Chuck’s other eyebrow shot up and red bloomed across his cheeks. “I don’t know how to feel about that,” he finally said. “I can’t tell if you’re trying to awkwardly compliment me or accuse my company of some kind of homophobia.”

“No, I’m not. I mean, the first one. Shit,” Ronan rubbed his hand across his face and took a deep breath. “I mean, you’re hot and I thought maybe Adam sent you out here because I told him I was gay. Or something.”

“I can assure you, I wasn’t sent here because you’re gay. And my company isn’t afraid of gays. At least one person there is bi.”

“How do you know—oh.” Ronan finally shut up when Chuck gave him a pointed look. “Okay. So this isn’t some kind of weird punishment or set-up by the jerk on the phone. Adam.”

“No. It’s definitely not,” Chuck said dryly. “I’m just the one stupid enough to take double the overtime I was promised to come out here and figure out what’s the deal with this washer.”

“Got it.” Ronan leaned more heavily against the door frame while Chuck went back to making the washer beep.

Then he glanced at Ronan. “If you’re going to just stand there and monitor me, give me a hand.”

Ronan straightened while Chuck pushed the front of the washer up. He helped lean it against the wall. “Hold it steady for a second,” Chuck said before he lay on the floor and reached underneath to pull an entire manual from some mystery portal.

“Holy shit, who knew that was under there,” Ronan said, letting the washer down into place.

“Who indeed.” Chuck flipped it open like a map and drew his finger down the page. “It’s full of codes we need for diagnostics,” he deigned to explain when Ronan crowded closer to read over his (very broad, very trim) shoulder.

Chuck suddenly shut the manual and stepped away from Ronan. “It’s going to take me a minute to work through some of this. Don’t let me keep you from what you were doing.”

Mostly what Ronan had been doing was lusting over Chuck’s body, but that was definitely a dismissal. Let it not be said that Ronan couldn’t read social cues. He stepped back too and said, “I’ll just go get a drink. You want anything?”

Chuck shook his head and went back to the control panel. Ronan slunk away and went to the kitchen. He grabbed a cold bottle of water and held it to his burning face. This clumsy interaction, this right here? This was why Ronan was single.

Then he grabbed a bottle for Chuck, just in case, and returned to the laundry room. Where Chuck was standing, thumbs flying over his phone.

“I leave you alone for five minutes, and you start playing Candy Crush?” Ronan meant it to be teasing but he winced when his voice came out gruff.

Chuck didn’t bother to look up. “From what the diagnostic told me, it doesn’t look good. I’m trying to find out…” his voice trailed off as his thumb (prominent knuckle working) paged up and he read.

“I do appreciate you coming tonight. Your co-worker Adam said he didn’t think anyone would come out, but I knew he didn’t know what he was talking about.” When Chuck didn’t respond, Ronan said, “In fact, it kinda seemed like he had a stick up his ass.”

“So he’s been told before,” Chuck said under his breath, a little grin twisting his lips. He looked up at Ronan then, his blue eyes flashing. “I have good news and bad news.” He didn’t give Ronan a choice as he went on, “Bad news is, the module is shot and it’s going to need a new one. They’re really expensive. But the good news is, there was actually a recall on this model so the module and labor will be covered by the manufacturer.”

“Wow, really? So this won’t cost anything?” When Chuck shook his head, Ronan said, “Can you still charge my brother without telling him it’s free?”

“No,” he said shortly, but he smiled a little. Then his phone rang. “Excuse me,” he said to Ronan and turned away.

Ronan started into the family room when he heard Chuck answer. “Hey, this is Adam, what’s up?” And Ronan stopped cold.

“Oh fuck no,” he whispered and blatantly eavesdropped from beside the door.

“Yeah, it’s actually covered under that recall earlier this year. I already ordered the module, and I can do all the paperwork when I get to the office Monday. Yep. Yeah. Naw, it’s fine, the guy didn’t murder me yet. Sure thing, Boyd, no trouble. See ya Monday.”

Then Chuck-Adam said, “You can come back now.”

Ronan stuck his head around the door frame. The repair guy was tapping his cell against his other hand. He didn’t say anything either.

“So,” Ronan tried. “You’re not Chuck.”

Adam glanced down at the toolbox and smirked. “I just grabbed his tools out of the truck by accident.”

“You’re Adam. The dude I talked to on the phone.”

Adam smirked harder.

“Ah, you don’t actually have a stick up your ass. And you’re not against gays. Sorry,” Ronan’s mumble was quiet but sincere.

Adam seemed to sense that. “I was serious about wanting double the overtime, but I also wanted to see exactly who was such a big disaster that they called a repairman without knowing what was wrong with the washer. Or knowing anything about a washer to begin with.”

“So the fact that I’m gay…”

“That was just a bonus,” Adam said then he pulled himself up a little bit. “That was my boss, who agrees with me. We’ll get the module in by Tuesday morning, so I’ll come over that afternoon and get this fixed right up. Wouldn’t want your sister-in-law to be drowning in dirty laundry.”

“No, that sounds great. Thanks.”

Ronan moved aside as Adam picked up the toolbox and started to walk away. Ronan figured he only had one shot so he might as well take it. He really couldn’t make things much worse.

“Are you sure you don’t want a drink? Coke? Water? Beer?”

Adam stopped at the top of the stairs, letting Ronan catch up. “I could use some water,” he said.

“Great. I’ll get it. Go right in or wait here,” Ronan babbled as he hurried to the kitchen, completely forgetting the water that he’d carried to the laundry room minutes before.

Then he figured it was easier to ask when Adam was in an entirely different room. “Hey, I was going to order pizza for dinner. Would you like some? It’s the least I can do, to thank you for coming out on a Friday night.”

“Well, I shouldn’t,” Adam’s voice came from the hall.

“Wow, what was that? This fridge is making some weird noises.”

“Lynch, if I come in there and there’s a size 12 boot print anywhere on that refrigerator…”

Ronan eyed the stainless steel door and thought seriously about it. Then he glanced over to see Adam leaning against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Wasn’t going to,” Ronan said and offered the water.

Adam tried to hide a little smile as he accepted. “You don’t have to break another appliance. Pizza would be fine.”

“Really?”

Adam rolled his eyes as he took a drink. “Don’t make me second guess it.”

So he stayed, even let Ronan pay for the pizza, breadsticks and wings since he had ruined Adam’s Friday night plans.

“Hot date?” Ronan asked, a little bitterly.

“Only with a paper that’s due next week. Summer classes,” he explained and took a huge bite of the supreme pizza.

They learned about each other’s lives, likes and dislikes. Ronan learned that Adam had a bitchy streak that was almost as deep as his own, and that Adam was sadly lacking in pop culture knowledge, particularly the entirety of the Fast and Furious universe.

So of course, he had to put the first movie in after dinner and wax lyrical about street racing while Adam mocked every single plot hole. When Ronan suggested the second and Adam got done ranting about “how many sequels are there? How many times can they do the exact same thing?” he settled onto the couch beside Ronan.

And then, he fell asleep. Ronan turned the volume down but let the movie play while he watched Adam. He wished that Adam had tipped over onto his shoulder instead of snuggling the opposite direction into the corner of the couch. He looked much less cynical in sleep, but he must have been as exhausted as Jordan, to just drop off during an explosive car chase in a stranger’s house.

Ronan let the movie go, while his mind whirled with daydreams and desires of the man beside him. When the credits began to roll, Ronan stretched and then coughed loudly. It only made Adam turn his head a little, but he didn’t wake. Finally, he stood up and turned on the lights, continuing on to the kitchen to loudly open and close some cupboards.

When he peeked back into the living room, Adam was sitting up groggily and blinking slowly. “Hey, sorry I woke you,” Ronan said.

“Nah, I’m sorry I fell asleep,” and Ronan heard Adam’s accent for the first time before he yawned hugely. “I’m tired all the time,” he confessed.

“It’s fine. I’m sorry I kept you out so late.”

“It’s all good. I had a nice time,” Adam said, standing and stretching slowly, making Ronan look away.

“I did too. I’d like to do this again. Sometime. If you want.”

Adam didn’t say anything for a minute then he walked up to Ronan. “Sure, I’d like that. Give me your phone.”

Ronan held his breath while Adam put his info in and handed it back. Then Adam put his beautiful hand on Ronan’s cheek and leaned in to brush his lips gently against Ronan’s. Ronan didn’t even have a chance to kiss back before Adam let go and pulled away.

“I’ll see you Tuesday, if you’re around. I better go now.”

“Yeah, okay,” Ronan followed him to the front door like a puppy. “What are you doing tomorrow? I mean, today, Saturday? Would you want to do something later?

Adam smiled up at him as he removed his booties. “Maybe. Text me.”

Ronan smiled back. “You know, I think the faucet was doing something weird earlier.”

“I’m not a plumber, Lynch. Don’t even think about sabotaging anything else in your brother’s house.”

“Fine,” Ronan huffed and was rewarded by another smile as Adam left.

Then he shut the door and leaned his forehead against it, feeling giddy and silly and more than halfway in love already. He’d have to tell Declan he still owed repairman-Adam a bonus and he’d hang around and help out with the kids for a couple days, at least until Tuesday. Surely Declan wouldn’t mind an extra set of hands. Even if they were more likely to be bound up in Adam’s after Tuesday.

Ronan could hardly wait.

#ronan lynch #adam parrish #the raven cycle #trc #my fic

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snorlaxlovesme · 1 year

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it’s hard to say what I feel about Greywaren because it was such a clusterfuck of things I didn’t expect and things I’d been waiting for. but i think that overall i’m happy with it. my sister has been asking me as i read The Dreamer Trilogy “so if i’ve only read TRC, would you recommend that I read TDT too or stop?” and that’s been what i’ve been grappling with the whole time. and i think that as a TRC reader and massive fan, i think this series worth following up with, if i was telling a casual fan.

as a fandom we all knew that the ending of TRC (while still fantastic in its own right and should not be discredited) was a bit of a clusterfuck, due to Maggie’s failing health and the fact that a five-book series needed to be whittled down to four, making Gansey’s death a lot shorter than it could have been. it means that TRK specifically has left a lot of What Ifs that got harder and harder to ignore. i really wanted to know what Maggie could write in more ideal circumstances, with more creative freedom and a body with fewer parasites in it. and i think that she did a great job delivering an ending that satisfied me, actually a lot better than a lot of her books do (i’ve often found her endings kind of weak)

BUT. and this is an incredibly big but (har har) a thing that has always ALWAYS grated me about The Dreamer Trilogy is that it was presented as a sister series instead of a sequel series. having a series that takes place directly after a mindblowing series like TRC and having to act like NONE of that development affects where the characters start in this series just fucking ate at me constantly. Maggie has to jump through so many writing hoops to make CDTH make sense since she can’t introduce an already established character and assume the reader has knowledge of them and it drove me nuts. it makes CDTH an incredibly annoying read for me to this day, despite all the good content in it, because every time a TRC specific scenario or cameo appears i always have to step back and wonder what non-TRC readers think is happening right here, and pick apart the way Maggie has to find a way to shoehorn previous plot points into a narrative that doesn’t really allow time for Mr. Gray flashback, doesn’t have the space to really get into the nitty gritty of Adam’s abuse or his use of magic, and such. things like that needing to be smooshed down into like a two-paragraph summarization of BOOKS worth of development was....annoying.

MI has a lot less TRC content which makes it more enjoyable, and by the time Greywaren comes around and the TRC easter eggs start popping in every other page I legit just have to assume that MAGGIE assumed she’d given TDT readers plenty of time to pick up TRC so if they don’t know what’s going on by now, that’s on them. Greywaren is an end to ALL of it, not just The Dreamer Trilogy, that’s super evident.

okay, now time to get into Greywaren specifics. the likes and dislikes.

i was very thrown by Ronan being asleep for most of the book. i think that bummed me out, for obvious reason, i like Ronan and like his interactions with people. also I just didn’t expect that to be the focal point of the book. but i thought the descriptions of the sweetmetal sea were really cool and i like just the viney, veiny, lightning strike descriptions of Ronan’s consciousness when he was in that nebulous dreaming space. so much of this books is really High Concept and i think that Maggie did a good job helping me envision something so surreal

i loved every page with Adam, unsurprisingly, even the ones where he told Declan he was just gonna LEAVE Ronan’s body and never visit it (absolutely insane thing to say, Adam, what the fuck). but the description of that scene, how Adam could barely even look at Ronan, were super telling. i thought the development of Adam’s character was fantastic despite having so little of him in the series. the scene where he works out all of his troubles, told in essay format? fucking divine writing. having his story mainly be about his love of Ronan, his proficiency with magic, and his desire to Be a Normal Successful Student With No Tragic Backstory were SO GOOD. i wish that the ending was a bit more concrete about where his life went in the epilogue, but knowing that he gets a good job and gets Ronan is enough. i’m still satisfied.

Hennessy and Jordan is muddier. i guess i wanted a more concrete answer as to why they were proficient in making sweetmetals, though im glad they eventually got good enough at it to help out the world and make it a career. i liked that we finally got the answer that Jordan is what Hennessy would be without the influence of Jay. her optimism and her drive were all things that were stripped away from Hennessy because of her childhood (AND because she’s a dreamer). i think that Jordan’s story was more MI than this, but i always enjoy reading Jordan’s perspective.

Hennessy learning that her artist’s ability made her made her supernaturally valuable was really nice, though. i liked that she finally found the same sort of power that Ronan had when dreaming, but in the waking world. that was very cool.

Hennessy’s relationship with Farooq-Lane was....interesting.

Listen. I’m going to be real here. I don’t really care for Carmen much. I care for Liliana even less. They’re integral pieces to this story, but I didn’t like them at all in CDTH, they grew on me a little in MI when they realized working for the Mods was wrong, and they fell a little bit flat for me in this series. I did not care with Liliana died, I literally THOUGHT that Carmen died and had to go read the epilogue again just now to see if she was in it (apparently she lived). Idk. i don’t want to say the relationship between Carmen and Hennessy was forced, but for me the spark wasn’t there. that might just be because Hennessy’s relationship with Ronan was much messier and more interesting than her and Carmen’s.

Carmen’s whole intrigue for me was centered around Nathan. I liked all the insight we got into her having a serial killer brother and the emotional complexity behind that. Thinking that he died at the very beginning of the series and all the horrible feelings associated with helping KILL your brother and the fact that your brother killed so many. The twist that Nathan was still alive was cool, the fact that he was the REAL apocalypse villain was neat, but I was still upset it wasn’t Bryde who was the real villian

OKAY NOW IT’S TIME TO GET TO THE MEAT AND POTATOES. LET’S TALK ABOUT THE LYNCHES.

I don’t even know where to start. Matthew? Let’s talk about Matthew bc he’s probably the easiest to begin with. Every scene with Matthew was amazing, even if there were only a couple since Declan STOLE HIS SWEETMETAL OFF OF HIM. I’d punch him too, oh my GOD. i’m so happy Matthew punched him. I’m so happy he fucked up his car. i was getting so irate that Declan time and time again kept infantilizing him and treating him like a pet more than a brother and just being really reductive to all of Matthew’s turmoil. so having Matthew snap was amazing. his scene with Bryde in the museum was SO funny. and having him finally return an wipe Declan’s tears away after Declan assumed he’d been dead the whole time was very satisfying. i desperately want art of that reunion

Ronan was. well. RONAN. all caps. like him being a manifest godling makes perfect sense, it tied together why Cabeswater favored him, why his dreaming was more powerful than anyone else’s in the whole series (besides Bryde, the Experienced Dreamer dreamt by said godling). i want to read the whole series again with this complete picture of Ronan. knowing that FEELINGS, all caps, were dreamed into him by Niall intentionally to make him more human, to make him deeply understand humanity, was such a fantastic detail. and knowing that there was a REASON behind the batshit rule of no one mentioning dreaming outright, of Niall never teaching Ronan how to dream. that’s some GOOOODD retconning right there

and sidenote, all the Niall/Mor flashbacks, being told in those expository chapters to give the reader more and more of a complete picture, and then later revealed as the threads of memory to be given to Declan at the end of the book? GENIUS way of formatting that. i loved that that exposition could be so neatly given over to Declan like that

and man. fuck. Declan.

Declan and Mor and NIALL.

on the one hand i’m actually MAD that Niall got a redemption arc, purely for the fact that for the past seven years that i’ve been in the fandom we’ve been ragging on him so hard to the point where it’s a meme. Worst Father of the Year with always always be Niall, so having Maggie so completely flip that was so GENIUS and so infuriating lol

but Godddd, finding out that Declan had always been Niall’s favorite hurt me in ways nothing else in TDT ever could. he took away his memory of Declan’s birth because it was the happiest moment of his life and he couldn’t bear to revisit it with Mor leaving like that. that he brought Declan with him on all of his travels BECAUSE HE WANTED TO BE CLOSE TO HIM aHH it’s so fucked up. i have not stopped thinking about the scene were Declan is sick and you can tell that Niall went through hell to make it back home to him just so he could drape Declan across him and hug him while he slept. it’s such a tender image it hurts my heart. especially to be followed up by all of the family having to abandon all tender Declan moments to rid the room of the dreamt claddaugh rings afterwards. just another instance of Declan’s pain having to be pushed aside in favor of dealing with dreams AUGH

all the times Declan thought “I hate you” meaning “I miss you”??? the searing memory that the Barns weren’t left to him, but the DC townhouse was because Niall knew that Declan wanted to go into politics and this would put him closer to the action?? I WEEP

reading the whole series recontextualized with this knowledge is going to break my brain

and the symbolism of Declan not being a part of the final showdown and having to put his trust in other people? to allow others to carry HIM? i weep more. god, Declan, god.

there’s so much i could say about just Declan alone. there’s so much i could say about the whole series but this is ridiculously long as it is. i didn’t even get to mention the John Wick-style MASSACRE Declan unleashed in the Fairy Market because of how fucking wrecked he was about Matthew and how desperate he was to wake Ronan. the essays one could write about Declan Lynch, man.

and i need an entire BLOG dedicated to all the callbacks and easter eggs in Greywaren that reference something from the other six books. i stg only half of the pages in Greywaren were original content an the rest was an amalgamation of quotes from the rest of the series. i felt so insane frantically flipping through like BLLB to find the quote of Ronan dreaming “a piece of Cabeswater, a dream” and having that mind-bending piece of a dream pop up in the Greywaren epilogue. shit like THAT made me feel like a mad scholar just tearing through the other books to find that specific references and parallels like that. Genius writing. so much fun.

i’m gonna cut it short here, though. i will probably have much more to say and will be saying it in smaller chunks as time goes on, i have no idea if any of these opinions are commonplace or Hot Takes, but i’m interested to see what the fandom thinks about Greywaren.

so yeah. Greywaren thoughts! the end.

#greywaren spoilers #kelly lb greywaren

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halodwolf · 1 year

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just finished electric sun so here’s my thoughts. i’m very emotional rn so this may not be very comprehensible but that’s okay.

first of all if you’re going to listen to this album in any order you MUST listen to it from start to finish. no shuffles no skipping around no nothing. it is a story. a full on journey. don’t skip the instrumental tracks. just let them play. it’s worth it i promise. just start to end go through it. turn your brain off and just listen. i usually listen to music while i’m doing something but it was so immersive i just sat down and listened other than to tell mars my thoughts.

a little background, vnv’s last album was noire which came out 5 years ago in 2018. i did like noire a lot but it didn’t stick out as one of their best albums by any means. it was much more pop-y than a lot of their others stuff and it didn’t really have the power a GOOD vnv nation album does. i liked a lot of the songs personal faves were immersed and all our sins but they weren’t raw enough. i needed more Depth. electric sun is exactly what i was looking for in which noire lacked. the two teaser songs before the rain and wait were the perfect singles they could’ve chosen, any others would’ve spoiled too much of the story. before the rain actually ended up being one of my favorite vnv nation songs period, i ADORE that song, and wait is the perfect growl-y sound i missed so bad. they were the best songs they could’ve chosen to introduce the audience to the album.

frankly the MESSAGE of this album is fuckin, insane. prophet is a direct take down of modern christianity. the game + wait are about capitalistic corruption. i mean this is what vnv nation has ALWAYS been about but there’s no more subtext about it anymore lmfao, it’s just text now. the story of loss, struggling to find your place in a society that corrupts, that is unfair, that fate has damned the average, but persevering, surviving, rising with your peers and fighting back despite it all, is so. it’s really really good and is something people needed to hear in the times we find ourselves in now. it’s very deeply moving. invictus made me weep like a baby and i really cannot remember the last time music has made me honest to god SOB the way that song did. the overarching message of survival in a world which that has damned you is very important to me. it’s something i needed and i think something many others did too. sunflare ends the album with the final words

that trails into under sky, a solemn and moving instrumental of reflection. like night sky reflected on water. it’s very.. god i have no words. i really am speechless. i know i’ve said so much already but i cannot even wrap my head around the way my chest felt so heavy at the end of this album. so sorrowful and moved. good god. actually completely breathless. this album carries a slow waltz in the background melody of most of the songs. it’s eerie, it’s cold, it’s so insidious when it needs to be, it carries so much meaning, it carries you through the album. this album is like a reflection pool. revealing hidden truths. the night and darkness. it’s insane. it’s everything i wanted it to be and more. it’s deeply magical. i’m obsessed and moved and changed. good god.

please. if you like darkwave/future pop/industrial branches of music please please listen to electric sun. i cannot recommend it enough. ronan harris is such a wonderful weaver of webs in music and this is his next best story. vnv nation is primarily a solo act, all of the music is composed and played and written by one man. his music is such an impressive display of mastery of sound and tone and message and i will never not recommend vnv nation endlessly. if you had to start somewhere god start here. i cannot say enough here. 10/10. quite possibly my new favorite album period.

#☀️#side note after under sky ended spotify shuffled perpetual as the next song and i nearly wept again #sheer incidental magic but good god

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cotton-candy-haze · 1 year

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Adeline “Addie” Ronan + The Battle of Hogwarts???

Prior to the Battle of Hogwarts, Addie's cousin suspiciously went missing and Addie has been searching for him to no avail. Her search eventually reveals that he's been kidnapped by his uncle, a powerful Death Eater. She returns to George's side when they set out for the Battle of Hogwarts, believing that her cousin might be there. This is what happens to her as the battle rages on.

An explosion rocked the castle, sending a shockwave of energy through the ancient stones. Debris rained down from the ceiling, dust and tiny bits of gravel littering the ground where Adeline stood. Wiping the grit from her face, she spared a glance over her shoulder in the hopes that she might see the source of the explosion. When nothing caught her eye, she glanced back at George who had just turned to meet her gaze. He extended a hand and gently cupped her face. She leaned into his touch. In this momentary lull of battle, he took a moment to wipe the dust from her skin with his thumb.

"We might not make it," Adeline whispered. She flicked her gaze downward and kicked at a loose chunk of debris that had settled by her shoe. Her words now directed at the ground, she added, "Elliot's still out there somewhere. What if I die and I never have a chance to find him?"

George grabbed her chin and tilted her head so that she was looking him in the eyes again. He leaned down to press a gentle kiss to her forehead and murmured against her skin, "We'll make it and you'll find your cousin and we'll all be okay because... Because we don't have any other choice but to survive."

Shouting further down the hall saved Adeline from having to come up with a reply, although it was clear from the expression on George's face that he understood her even without words. She started to pull away from George, but she still reached for his hand and interlaced their fingers. Extending her other arm, she aimed her wand in the direction that the shouts had come from. Whatever it was, they would face this. Together.

Thundering footsteps joined the shouting, the noise growing closer and closer to the entrance that she and George were guarding. She felt George tighten his grip on her hand and she gave it a gentle squeeze in return. It was a reassurance for him as much as it was for her. You're here, I'm here, no matter what happens.

A small group of what appeared to be four Death Eaters rounded the corner and, before they even had a moment to react, Adeline was hurling a stunning spell their way. The beam of red light blasted one of the Death Eaters directly in the chest, sending the man flying backwards. George followed her lead and cast a spell at the rag-tag group. She didn't hear the words he muttered, but watched as the spell hit a wall and sent a blast of debris into the remaining figures. One was struck by a large chuck of stone and collapsed into a heap on the ground. The rest remained relatively unscathed as smaller bits and pieces of rock bounced off of them.

The dust from the explosion clouded the air and obscured Adeline's view of the group, but she watched in horror as red light lit up the smoke around them. She shifted where she stood, ready to jump out of the way of the spell that was surely being sent their way, but then nothing came. She glanced at George and tried to catch his eye, but his jaw was set with determination as he took a half-step forward. His hand still gripping Adeline's, he nudged her behind him and blocked her with his body.

"Show yourselves!" George shouted, his wand aimed at the steadily-settling cloud of dust. A figure shifted in the dust and seemed to be growing closer to them by the second. "If you don't surrender, I will not hesitate to hex you."

"Wait! I'm not a Death Eater, I swear."

A familiar voice drifted out from the dust, getting louder as the figure finally stepped out of the cloud and revealed himself. It was Elliot. Blood trickled down the side of his face from a cut across his temple, his hands were trapped in shackles, and blood was caked around his fingernails, but he seemed otherwise unscathed. Held awkwardly in his shackled hands was a wand that didn't belong to him. He glanced at Adeline, a slightly hysterical laugh escaping him as he limped toward her.

"Elliot?" Adeline let go of George's hand and rushed forward, her arms extended as if to catch her cousin if he fell. When she reached him, she placed her hands on his shoulders and have him a once-over. "Are you alright? What happened to you?"

"A story for another time," Elliot replied with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. As Adeline removed his shackles with a simple spell, Elliot glanced over her head at George. The two boys exchanged a nod and then Elliot looked back at his cousin again. "Have either of you seen Luna? Do you know if she's still... if she's alright?"

"We haven't seen anyone else in a while mate," George said, his lips twisted into a frown. He glanced back as another explosion shook the castle and fidgeted nervously with his wand. Then, in an attempt to reassure the younger boy, he added, "But she's a tough girl, I'm sure she'll be alright."

"George is right. She's a fighter, that girl." Adeline shook her cousin's shoulder and shot him a watery smile before she pulled him into a hug. When she stepped back, she looked him over again. "Are you well enough to fight?"

Elliot nodded, his expression hardening as he took in the state of the castle around them. Lifting the stolen wand, he inclined his head, signaling for Adeline and George to lead the way. The two of them exchanged a glance and a silent conversation before nodding at Elliot. George was the first to step forward, only pausing to glance over his shoulder at the others and shoot them a crazed grin.

"Let's go stop some Death Eaters."

#all is subject to change because i'm indecisive lol #but something along these lines #adeline ronan: harry potter oc #elliot ronan: harry potter oc #ask the ocs #answered #Poppy 🌸

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writerleo86 · 2 years

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Armor Champions Super R - Season 3 - Episode 176 (Season Finale) (Do Not Copy)

Everyone had gathered at the front yard outside. Those led by Jede and Relena stood near the front door of the mansion while the others -- Gei Allazar, Nina Kannon, Eiri Allazar, Ronan, and Nemo Allazar -- were at the other side.

Gei who was the far left side had on a collared black shirt, dark-red jeans, and dark-brown shoes.

Nina who stood at the other side had on a buttoned pink blouse with long sleeves and tight white jeans that came down to her ankles. She also wore a pair of black sandals. And she wore a long brown bracelet around each wrist.

Jede wore a blue shirt with long black sleeves, tight gray jeans, and white shoes. And his long dark hair was worn out.

Relena had on black eyeliner and red lipstick. And her long blond hair was out as well. She wore a sleeveless pink shirt, a long white dress, and brown slippers.

Aaron had on a pale-violet shirt with short sleeves, tight brown jeans, and black boots.

And the small dogs -- Artemis and Diana -- were standing by the left foot of Jede.

"You think more form the cult will come for Nemo?" asked Aaron.

"That may be so," replied Nina. "Lord Sastro is not certain. But we are to perform what is possible to secure Young Lord Nemo."

"I will accompany them back to Planet Mars," Ronan informed them. "I shall stand before the Council including Lord Allazar. And I will do what I can to exonerate myself."

"It'll be okay," replied Eiri. "And Nemo will have both his parents."

"But you will come back and see us?" asked Relena.

Nina shook her head and answered "If it is safe, we may bring Lady Eiri and Lord Nemo to this planet for you to see them."

A saddened Nemo lowered his head as he told Kody "I wish I didn't have to go. I wanted to spend more time with you Mikey."

Kody shook his head and said "I wish for that to happen. But Nina is right. It truly is not safe for you here right now."

Eiri informed her young son "We will see Michael again. And his friends. I'm sure Sastro will find a way."

Kody placed his right hand on the left shoulder of his friend and said "I would like you to do something this task for me."

"What?" cried Nemo. "Anything!"

"Let Lord Allazar train you," Kody told him. "He can teach things to you that he did with me. With enough training, you may surpass even someone like me."

"Big Brother Kody,"

Gei walked a few steps forward and informed Kody "I'll train him. Nemo will get the hand of defending himself in no time. You can count on me."

Nemo turned to him and asked "You will?"

Gei placed his hands on his waist and answered "Of course. Living on Mars won't be easy. I'm going to teach you everything from A to Z."

And Gei told Eiri "Don't worry. I'll take great care of him."

A smiling Eiri shook her head and said "I know you will, Gei."

Armor Champions Super R -- Episode 176: United -- Clearing the Way

During the evening, the champion in golden armor -- Jede of the Cosmic Fire -- arrived at the front of a small cave as he carried the long katana that had the glowing red blade.

At the entrance of the cave was the emotionless Kali with her right hand forward. And the others -- Sapphire and Aiden -- stood behind her waiting for Jede.

Aiden who held the long katana with the glowing golden blade walked toward him as Jede greeted "Hello there."

"Hey there Jede!" called Aiden.

Jede soon discovered large clear diamonds standing around the entire cave.

Aiden informed him "We aren't taking chances this time. Kali is placing all types of seals around the cave. That's why she had Kal form his crystals."

"That sounds to be the best option," responded Jede.

Sapphire stepped to them and reported "Kali has formed six seals around the cave along with two inside. There will be no chance for anyone with a greater power to break through. Your Red Katana will be secured inside, Jede."

And a relieved Jede shook his head.

Then both Jede and Kali walked into the small cave.

As soon as he placed the blade of his sword into a large block of stone at the end of the cave, Jede stood with a calm smile.

"You aren't wrong to do this," Kali told him. "No one should have such a great power."

"I know," said Jede. "This will be for the best. No other being will be able to wield its great but frightening power."

And the pair walked out of the cave.

"Now," Aiden responded. "Kal and I should head back to our time. But first, we must take this sword back to the Jede in the other time. And we should create seals to protect that cave too."

"I have memorized every seal Kali has performed for this cave," reported Sapphire. "So I can easily perform them."

"I figured you did," commented Aiden. "You always had good memory."

Jede turned to her and asked "And what will you do?"

Kali shook her head and replied "I will do the same Sapphire does. I'll travel through the galaxies and do my best to keep everyone safe."

She gave a kind smile and added "Perhaps I will meet up with my Aiden again, and the present Sapphire."

Aiden gave a quick chuckle and commented "Knowing me in this time, I would be in a backwoods planet drinking instead of studying with Minerva."

"And I am certain my present self..." added Sapphire. "...still fights against those who possess shards of the wicked Black Crystal."

A large black void quickly opened at the front of the cave.

"Looks like our ride's here!" called Aiden. "Let's go!"

Jede quickly gave a hug to Sapphire as he said "I hope to see your present self some day. Take care of yourself Kal."

"You as well," Sapphire told him.

And a kind Sapphire hurried into the portal.

Then Jede gave a hug to Aiden as he cried "You take care of yourself!"

"I will," said Aiden.

But he leaned closer to Jede and told him "You and Relena are going to be fine. In fact, expect a surprise in a few years."

Aiden hurried toward the portal and called "And Jede! Keep an eye on Billy! Bad things are going to happen soon! Be prepared!"

And Aiden finally ran into the closing portal as Jede cried "Graceful Athena! What does he mean by a surprise regarding Relena and myself? And what about Billy?"

After that portal closed, Jede gave out a warm smile as Kali floated to the air.

"You stay safe!" Jede told her. "And always be attentive of your surroundings!"

And Kali flew off after shaking her head.

Jede continued to wave as he thought "I may always wonder what Aiden meant by that. What surprise will encounter both myself and Relena in our future? And what will happen to Billy?"

On a nearby planet, someone sat at a small table as they enjoyed a small glassed cup of clear liquid.

It was a younger Aiden of the Half Moon. He had clear blue eyes and fair skin. He had wavy blond hair with a long low pony-tail. And he had a golden ring on the bottom of each ear. He wore a white suit on his body with bright pink armor. He had a small golden pendant on the top of his chest. He also wore a pair of black gloves and black boots. And he had on a long green coat that was opened along with no sleeves.

After he took a sip from his cup, Aiden laid the back of his head down as he held the cup with his left hand. And he closed his eyes as he was relaxed.

A female's voice called out "Aiden, you idiot!"

The small dog in gray fur named Minerva hurried onto a chair by his left side.

And she yelled "Yet again I find you drinking instead of studying from the advanced medical book! What the hell?"

"Oh keep your fur on!" Aiden told her. "I just came on a break! I'll study later."

"Later or never?" cried Minerva. "You're the Legendary Medical Champion after all! You should be ready for anything!"

"Chill out Minnie!" Aiden replied. "The books will still be there! I'm trying to relax now!"

As he held it close to his lips, a large crack appeared on the glassed up.

Aiden quickly noticed it and said "Well that's not good."

"What?" cried Minerva. "Why do I sense this strange ki?"

Another person soon appeared behind him as Aiden sat his cup on the table.

"I'm not even that hammered yet," implied Aiden. "I can sense that ki as well. And it's so familiar."

The person greeted "Well hello, Aiden."

Aiden stared at him as the person sat at the other side of the table.

"It's you!" cried Minerva. "But how? Why now?"

This was a young man that looked similar to Aiden. He had a well-built body and fair skin. He had white hair that was the same style along with the long pony-tail. He also had a pair of pale-violet eyes with light-blue tint at the top. And he wore a pair of red earrings with one red diamond hanging down. He had on a white outfit with two types of long white robes. He also had a pair of short white boots. On his chest was a silver pendant with a black crystal and three upside-down half-moon symbols at the bottom. And he had the softest smile.

"Jer... Jerin Octavius!" called Aiden.

A guarded Minerva asked "Why have you come? And where have you been this entire time?"

The white-haired man placed his elbows on the table as his hands were together.

And he continued to smile until he said "It is nice to be seen by you as well, Minerva."

A blushing Aiden cried "Like she said, what the hell are you doing here?"

"We can finally talk face-to-face," The man implied. "And with no one important watching. That includes her, our fair lady Mystic."

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johnsbleu · 1 year

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Hold My Hand: John Wick x Reader Chapter 147

warnings: nsfw HMH masterlist

Standing at the sink, you wash up several bottles as Ronan babbles away in her bouncer. She’s very talkative lately, which just means she’s most likely going to be saying her first word soon. Right now she’s mostly just babbling a string of consonants and vowels, but every now and then she’ll babble ‘baba’ over and over, which always makes you laugh and poke fun at John. He doesn’t find it as amusing.

You look over at her as she waves her arms and kicks her legs, squealing loudly with delight. You smile as you dry off your hands and walk over to her, then you kneel down and tickle her chunky little belly as she giggles.

“You’re so happy today, bug.” you smile, then you pick her up and bounce her in your arms. “Where’s daddy, huh?”

About an hour after breakfast, John left to go do something, but he wouldn’t say what. You’re sure it’s nothing big, but he did say that he’d be home before lunch. It’s currently 1:30, and Ronan has just woken up from her afternoon nap. You thought John would be back by now.

You kiss Ronan’s cheek as you walk into the living room, and you look over when you hear John’s Mustang pulling into the driveway. You walk over to the window with Ronan and point out the window, and you smile when Ronan spots John.

“Is that daddy?” you smile as Ronan bounces and waves her arms in excitement of seeing her favorite guy. You put Ronan down on the floor and watch as she rocks back and forth, and you smile when you see John open the front door, “There’s your daddy!”

John smiles as he walks in, taking off his sunglasses to get a better look, “Hi, baby girl. Are you crawling?”

“She’s trying!” you laugh as you walk over to John and lean up to kiss him. “Hi, baby.”

“Mm, one more, beautiful.” John smiles as he leans down to kiss you again. “Wait, another one.”

John wraps his arms around you and holds you as he kisses you repeatedly, then he presses a kiss to your forehead before he leans back and looks at you. You smile when your eyes meet, then you look over when Ronan grunts and cries loudly since she can’t crawl over to John.

“Oh, I know, it’s just so frustrating!” you laugh as you walk over to pick her up, “You just want to see him, don’t you?”

Ronan kicks her legs and reaches out for John as you get closer to him, then she giggles and squeals as he takes her and kisses her cheek. She reaches up and puts her hands on his face, then she laughs when he playfully nibbles on her fingers. Ronan babbles and drools as she ‘talks’ to John, then she claps her hands together and giggles.

“She’s very happy today.”

You laugh as you walk over to sit on the couch, “When isn’t she? She’s a very happy baby, we’re lucky.”

John kisses Ronan’s cheek as he walks over to sit next to you, then he sets Ronan on his knee and bounces her as she laughs, “What have you been up to?”

“Not much. Amanda called and asked if I wanted to have a mom night with her and Tess this weekend.” you say as you look over at him, “Just grabbing some dinner in the city. If that’s…”

“Don’t even ask if it’s okay.” John looks over at you and shakes his head, “You don’t need to ask permission.”

You nod as you shrug, “I just didn’t know if you had plans.”

“Hanging out with my bug.” he says, bouncing Ronan on his knee, then he looks over at you, “And missing you.”

“John!” you sigh as he laughs.

John nudges your shoulder and laughs, “I’m teasing. Go out, have fun. I’ll be waiting for you to come back.”

“It’s not until Friday night.” you smile as you scoot closer.

“Fingers crossed that you don’t have a massive hangover.” John teases, and you playfully roll your eyes before you lean up to kiss him. He looks back at Ronan as she chews on her hands, then he bounces her again, “Ro, can you say dada?”

You smile as Ronan looks up at John with her big beautiful brown eyes, then she squeals and begins to babble. You get up from the couch to get a bib for her since she’s drooling quite a bit today, and you put it on her and sit back down next to John. Ronan babbles as John continues to try to get her to say dada, and you laugh as you watch the two of them.

“Ro, can you say momma?” you smile as you lean forward, and she looks over at you as she smiles, “Yeah, I’m your momma.”

“Momma,” John says as he points at you, “That’s momma.”

Ronan looks at John as he talks, then she kicks her legs and pants, getting herself all worked up. She continues to babble and say baba over and over until she finally says something to stop you and John from laughing. The two of you look at each other for a moment, then you start to laugh again.

“You heard that too, right?”

You laugh as you nod, “Yeah!”

“Da…da…” Ronan babbles as you laugh, and you look over to see tears in John’s eyes. “Dadadadada.”

“That’s right, baby, that’s your dada!” you smile as you point at John, “Where is dada?”

Ronan looks at you, then she reaches up for John as she continues to say dada. You wipe away the tear on your cheek as you laugh, and you lean over to kiss John’s cheek as he hugs Ronan. John laughs as he starts to cry, and you cry even harder seeing how happy he is to hear Ronan’s first word. You reach out to wipe the tear off his cheek, and he laughs when he looks over to see you cry.

“I wasn’t expecting her to say it yet!” he laughs, wrapping his arm around your shoulder to hug you, then he sniffles as you sit back up, “Oh, man, Ro, you got us crying!”

“Oh, shit! I need to write this down!” you get up and run upstairs to Ronan’s room, then you grab her baby book and make your way back to the living room. You smile when you see John still hugging Ronan tight, and he doesn’t even seem to mind that she’s drooling all down the sleeve of his shirt. You sit down next to them and open her baby book, “Okay, Miss Ronan, today’s date is…”

“April 12th.” John says, then he looks at his watch, “And it is 1:49.”

You smile as you write down the date and time, then you look up at Ronan and lean over to kiss her cheek, “Ro’s first word: Dada.”

“God, she’s getting so big.” John says, sitting her down between the two of you on the couch, “Look at her.”

You set the book on the coffee table, then you turn to face them on the couch, “She is, but we still have so long to go.”

John chuckles as he reaches over to touch your cheek, “She’ll say momma next.”

“She better otherwise I’m kicking her butt out!” you joke, then you hold tight to her hands so she can stand up, “She’s gonna start crawling soon too.”

“Talking and crawling,” John exhales dramatically as he sits back on the couch, “Gonna have our hands full.”

You laugh as you watch Ronan sitting in your lap, then you look at John and nod, “That we are. So, how was your day been? Where did you go?”

“Still not telling you.” he says, and you jokingly groan, “I was wondering, my sweet peach, if you’d want to go somewhere with me.”

You perk up and smile, “Where?”

“Well, I can’t tell you.” he laughs as he gets up from the couch, and Ronan reaches up for him as she says dada again. John looks down at her and smiles as he kneels down, “Me?”

Ronan reaches out for John and tugs at his beard, then she leans forward and bites his nose as he laughs. He holds her tight as he stands up, then he reaches for your hand and smiles when you stand up next to him.

“Get your purse and shoes.” he smiles, leaning down to kiss you, “I have a surprise for you.”

You smile as you look up at him, then you walk over to get your favorite ankle booties on, but you glance over when John makes a noise, “What?”

“We’ll be walking.” he says, looking down at your shoes, “Are you sure you want to wear those?”

Squinting your eyes a little, you grab the sandals next to the door and hold them up, “These good?”

“Yeah.” he nods, then he looks out the window, “Also it’s a little warm.”

You look up at him and laugh, “Why don’t you go pick out my outfit then?”

John bounces Ronan in his arms as he walks upstairs, and you follow behind them to your bedroom. You watch as John holds Ronan in one hand, then he opens the closet and sifts through your clothes. He pulls out a denim jean romper and holds it up as he looks over at you, a sweet smile spreading on his face.

“Uh,” you shrug as you walk over, “Sure. Anything else you want me to do?”

“Nope.” John smiles, looking at you, “You look beautiful today.”

You narrow your eyes a little as you look at him, “Can you tell me one thing?”

“Maybe.”

“Will I regret not wearing makeup by the end of the night?” you ask, and John looks at you, then he nods a little. “So that means I’ll be seeing people.”

John laughs, “Well, you already know that I think you’re the most beautiful woman, with or without makeup. I think you’re stunning always.”

Letting out a small laugh, you look over at him, “You’re sweet.”

You pull your shirt over your head and take off your pants, then you walk over to the mirror to make sure the romper looks okay on you. You turn a little to make sure it’s not too short on your butt, and you laugh when John reaches out to spank you.

“Okay, well, put Ro in something since you said it’s warm out. Just some leggings and a t-shirt is probably best.” you say as you back away, “I have to do my makeup now.”

John laughs, “Got it, boss lady.”

You laugh quietly as you walk into the bathroom to put on a little bit of makeup, and you start to get more curious about what John could be up to. He’s very spontaneous and he loves to surprise you with things, but you’re wondering what he could have been up to this morning.

Leaning forward, you put on a thin layer of lipstick, then you check yourself in the mirror and smile at yourself. You look really good! Your lashes actually cooperated with you today!

You head back out to the bedroom and grab out some different shoes that will match your outfit and be a little more comfortable to walk in, then you smile as you walk down the hallway to Ronan’s room. You peek around the corner to see John changing her diaper as he talks to her, then he leans down to kiss her.

“We’re gonna surprise momma.” John whispers, then he leans down to kiss her again. He stands her up in front of him as he fixes her leggings, then he grabs the peach colored dress and puts it on her before grabbing the headband with the big bow that she’ll definitely pull off after 5 minutes. “My beautiful little girl.”

You smile as John turns around, “God, I love watching you with her. You’re the best dad.”

“And you’re the best mom.” John smiles as he leans down to kiss you, “Ready?”

“Just need to pack Ro’s bag.” you say as you turn around to head downstairs. You smile when you hear Ronan still saying dada over and over, and you laugh as you look up at him, “How are you not crying?”

John laughs as he looks at Ronan, “I’m trying my hardest.”

“I’d be crying non-stop.” you laugh, packing up Ronan’s bag, then you put it on and reach out to take her from John, “You know she’s going to rip this bow off, right?”

“Yeah,” he chuckles, leaning down to kiss her cheek, “But until then she looks cute. Lemme get a picture of you two.”

You scoff quietly as John pulls his phone, then you hold Ronan and smile, “Ro, look at dada!”

John waves his hand to get Ronan’s attention, then he snaps several pictures of you and Ronan smiling at him. He walks over to stand behind you as he snaps another picture with the two of you, then he kisses your cheek and shows you the picture.

“She’s starting to look more like her momma.” John whispers, zooming in on Ronan’s face, “Look at that dimple in her cheek.”

You smile as you look at her, then you look over at John, “She still looks just like you.”

Ronan yanks on your hair as you laugh, then you look up at John as he carefully pulls your hair from her grip. Her sticky little grip. How did her hands even get sticky? Babies are just so damn sticky all the time.

“Uh, I don’t know what you have planned but you might wanna grab some snacks for her.” you say as John walks into the kitchen to grab a few things, then he gestures for you to turn around so he can put a few things in your backpack for Ronan.

“Ready?”

You let out a small laugh, “I guess, yeah.”

John smiles as he wraps his arm around your waist, “You’re gonna be so surprised.”

You managed to get John to at least tell you where he’s taking you: New York City. You still have no idea what the fuck is going on, but you feel a little better knowing where you’re going.

Ronan has been babbling the entire car ride, still saying her new favorite word over and over, and John smiles proudly every time she says it. He’s trying not to cry but you know it’s hard. How could you not cry hearing your baby say their first word, especially when that first word is dada? You’d definitely cry too, and you will when she says momma for the first time.

Since she’s still so young, she isn’t in a forward facing car seat, which means all that you can see from your angle is her kicking her chunky little legs and feet. She kicks her feet and squeals loudly, and you look over at John as he laughs.

“That scream,” you press your finger to your ear and laugh, “It’s piercing. About to break some glass.”

John chuckles as he pulls onto the side of the road, “Yeah, she’s definitely got a loud scream.”

You look over to see the park next to you, then you look over at John, “Central Park?”

“Yeah,” John nods, then he reaches for your hand, “Our second date was here. Thought it’d be fun to bring Bug here.”

Before you can even reply, John gets out of the car and opens the trunk to get out Ronan’s stroller, then he gets her out and places her in it. You pull your backpack on as you walk over to them, then you smile at John when he looks at you.

“It’s a nice day.”

You nod, “It is.”

“A nice day for a walk with my girls.” John smiles as he pushes Ronan’s stroller, then he lifts his arm a little for you to hold. He smiles when you wrap your arms around his bicep, then he leans down to kiss you, “You look so beautiful today.”

“You look so gorgeous, babe.” you smile at him, looking into his gorgeous brown eyes, “Your eyes today just seem so warm--warmer than usual.”

“Because I’m really happy today.” he whispers, then he laughs, “I’m happy every day though.”

A smile spreads across your face as you look up at him, then you stand on your tiptoes to kiss him several times. You lean your head against John’s shoulder as you walk through Central Park, and you smile when you see families under the trees having picnics.

“We should have brought Bleu.”

John nods, “I thought about it, but we have somewhere else we’re going after this.”

You look up at John as your furrow your brow, “So, this isn’t my surprise?”

“The park?” he laughs, “Of course not!”

“What? I think this is a great surprise!” you laugh as you look up at him, “I like spending time with my babies!”

John smiles as he looks down at Ronan, “No, this isn’t the surprise, but I actually have two.”

You furrow your brow as you look at John, then you exhale loudly, “Fine, don’t tell me anything, Wick.”

Continuing your walk through the park, you look around at all of the people, but you start to notice a few men scattered throughout the park wearing all black suits, looking around every few seconds. You wouldn’t think it was so weird, if they weren’t frozen in place like statues. You grip John’s arm a little tighter as you look around, counting at least 4 different men. You look up at John as his eyes scan his surroundings, then he looks down at you and smiles.

“What’s going on?”

John stops walking and turns to you, “There’s someone who has wanted to meet Ronan for awhile.”

You look over your shoulder to see two men standing near a bench, then you look back at John, “Okay?”

“No one is going to hurt you two.” John whispers, then he sighs, “He just…doesn’t go anywhere without bodyguards. You’re safe, you’re always safe with me, you know this.”

“I know,” you whisper, then you move a little closer to John, “I just…I’m a mom.”

John laughs, “I know you are.”

“I’m protective of our baby girl.”

“And I’m just as protective of you and her. Maybe even more so.” John says, rubbing his hand on your back, “Trust me, I’m right next to you. Nothing will happen. You two are off-limits, and everyone knows that.”

You nod your head as you look up at John, then you close your eyes when he leans down to kiss you. You hold tight to John’s arm as he walks towards the bench, and you inhale deeply when the men move to reveal Winston sitting on the bench. You don’t even recall when you saw him last. He sent you some beautiful flowers when Ronan was born, but you can’t remember when you last saw him.

“Jonathan…” Winston smiles, reaching out to shake his hand. He looks over at you and nods, then he smiles softly when he realizes how nervous you are. “I’ve been looking forward to seeing you again.”

You smile as you grip John’s arm, “Hi. I’m sorry that I’m so…nervous, it’s just that--”

“You have a child to protect.” he nods, then he looks at John, “Jonathan wouldn’t have set up this visit if he didn’t trust that you two would be safe.”

He’s right. There’s no one in the world who loves you more than John loves you. He’d never let anything happen to you, and you know it. He would never set this all up if you thought there was even the slightest chance that something would happen.

Nodding your head, you feel yourself relax a little when you realize how happy John is to show off your baby. He smiles as he looks down at you, then he gesture to Ronan.

“You can get her out.” you smile, then you sit down on the bench next to Winston, “She might be a little fussy. She’ll be needing a nap in the next hour or so.”

John holds Ronan in his arms and bounces her a little so she isn’t too cranky, then he turns her around so she can see you and Winston. You wave at her as she kicks her legs, then she begins to babble.

“She’s just said her first word.” John smiles proudly, “Just this afternoon. She said ‘dada’.”

Winston chuckles, “She’s beautiful.”

“Thank you.” John smiles, then he walks closer to the bench to see if Ronan will freak out by this unknown man. She kicks her legs and squeals loudly, then she leans over and reaches out for Winston. “Her name is Ronan.”

“Ronan,” Winston nods, then he looks up at John, “A strong name. Ronan Wick.”

You lean forward to wipe the drool off of her chin since you’re sure Winston doesn’t want it on his amazing (and probably incredibly expensive) suit, then you smile when she blows raspberries. John gets a bib out for her, then he puts it on and carefully rubs his hand over her head, fixing her brown hair.

“She’s teething,” you chuckle quietly, “Sorry for all the drool.”

“Oh, I don’t mind.” Winston says, looking over at you, “I have several grandchildren of my own.”

You perk up a little and look at Winston in curiosity. You had no idea that Winston even had children. Winston is quite the mystery, to be fair.

Ronan looks up at Winston and reaches for his face, and he playfully nibbles on her fingers like John always does. You look up at John as he kneels down in front of you, then he places his hand on your knee and squeezes it lightly to get your attention. He nods his head slightly and holds your gaze for a moment.

We’re okay. He doesn’t have to say it out loud, but you can practically read his thoughts at this point. You squeeze his back and give him a soft smile.

You look over at Ronan as she sits on Winston’s knee and babbles, “She looks so much like her dad, doesn’t she?”

Winston smiles, then he looks at you, “I think she looks like her mother.”

“She’s beautiful,” John says, and you laugh quietly.

“And Jonathan, he’s a good dad?”

You nod as you look at John, “The best. I truly mean that. He’s great with her, and they’re thick as thieves. Ronan is very lucky to have a dad like him. Everything came pretty naturally to him as well, and yeah, they just love each other so much. It’s very sweet to be able to see John as a dad.”

“And he’s still good to you?”

“Yeah, absolutely,” you nod, tearing up a little over the thought of how much John truly loves you, “He’s…truly an amazing man. I’m very lucky. Both us girls are very lucky.”

“Just as crazy about her as I was when I met her.” John laughs, and you pat his cheek as you nod. “Even crazier now that we have this one. Seeing her as a mom has been amazing. If anyone is lucky, it’s me.”

Winston looks down at Ronan as she plays with a button on his suit, “Thank you for allowing me to meet her.”

“Of course.” you smile as you look over at him.

John stands up and smiles when Ronan reaches up for him, then he takes her and holds her tight to his chest. He looks over at you and smiles, silently telling you that it’s time to leave. It was a quick little visit, but you’re sure John planned it that way as to not completely stress you out.

You reach over to shake Winston’s hand, then you get up and take Ronan from John when she reaches out for you. You hold her tight as she babbles, then she quickly starts to cry since she’s getting tired.

“Perfect timing.” you laugh, then you look up at John and nod towards the water fountain, “I’ll be over there.”

“Don’t stray too far.” he whispers, leaning down to kiss you.

You smile at John as you bounce Ronan in your arms, then you sit down on the edge of the water fountain and put Ronan in your lap. You lean forward to see her face as she watches the water, and she stops fussing and turns her attention to the water shooting out of the statue.

“You like that? Maybe we need to get a fountain for at home.” you laugh, then you pull off your backpack and reach in for a penny. “Let’s make a wish, bug.”

Holding the penny tight to your chest, you close your eyes and make a silent wish before you toss the penny into the water. Ronan claps her hands and looks up at you as she smiles, and you press a kiss to her cheek.

“Look, water.” you lean down and dip your hand into the fountain, then you sprinkle some water on Ronan’s little feet. She leans forward to touch her feet, then she giggles and looks up at you.

Looking over your shoulder, you see John still talking to Winston, but he glances over at you every few seconds. You chuckle to yourself a little, then you reach into your bag to get Ronan a snack to tide her over for a little bit.

“Hey,” John sits down next to you and smiles, then he looks at Ronan, “Are you playing in the water?”

“Honestly if I didn’t have such a tight grip on her, she’d be in there already.” you laugh as you pinch off a piece of banana for her, “Probably by next month, we can teach her to swim in the pool.”

John nods, “That’ll be fun.”

“My mom actually taught swim lessons at our local community center when she was pregnant with me,” you say as you look over at John, “Just a way to make some extra cash, you know. But anyway, she taught the classes, so she’d know how to teach Ronan.”

“We should definitely have her come over and teach her then.” John smiles, leaning over to kiss your cheek, “Winston said you looked beautiful and that you look good as a mom.”

You laugh, “Really?”

“Yeah, and he said Ronan was ‘darling’.” he chuckles, reaching over to feed Ronan a piece of banana. “He did feel bad that you seemed a little stressed out.”

“I just didn’t want anything to happen.”

John nods, then he shakes his head, “Nothing is going to happen to you two. You’re completely off-limits. Everyone knows this.”

“Oh, is there like some list of people who can’t be touched?” you laugh as you look at him, “An off-limits hit-list.”

“No,” John laughs, then he holds your gaze, “No one would dare hurt you two. Look at everything I did before, everything that I did for a ‘car’ and a ‘puppy’, it was more than that to me, but to everyone else it wasn’t. You really think someone would try to kill my wife and daughter after knowing what I did for a car…and a puppy?”

You bite your lip a little as you look up at him, then you shake your head, “I hate when you say that stuff.”

John laughs, “Why is that?”

“Because it’s hot,” you laugh as you hold his gaze, “And it makes me wanna take you into our bedroom, and you always say that stuff at the most inappropriate time.”

“How about tonight? How does that sound?” John whispers against your lips, and you nod your head. “It’s a date then.”

You look down at Ronan as she leans back against your chest with her eyes closed, and you laugh quietly when you see the banana stuck to her chin. John carefully takes the banana from you so you can get up and put Ronan into her stroller, then you pull your backpack back on.

“I still have one more surprise.” John says, and you look up at him, “But it’s not far from here. Just a short little walk.”

You’re pushing Ronan’s stroller as John places his hand on your back, and you look at him when he stops walking. You furrow your brow a little bit as he looks across the street at some shops, then you pull Ronan’s stroller with you as you walk backwards towards him.

You lean closer and whisper, “What’s going on?”

“Follow me.” John says, and you push Ronan’s stroller as you follow behind John to an empty shop. He cups his hands in front of his eyes and leans forward to look into the shop window, “Think it’s open?”

You shrug as you look at him, then you widen your eyes when he opens the door and walks in, “Jonathan! You can’t just walk into a shop!”

“It’s empty, it’s fine.” he laughs, reaching for your hand. He carefully pulls the front of Ronan’s stroller through the door, then he reaches for your hand, “Come on.”

Groaning quietly, you look around to make sure no one is watching, then you take John’s hand and walk into the empty shop. You look around at it and shrug, “What are we doing here?”

“Well,” John looks down to make sure that Ronan is okay, then he walks over to you, “This is your new shop.”

You jerk your head back and furrow your brow, “My new what?

John smiles, then he gestures to the shop, “This is our new shop. I bought it.”

“I…” you look up at John as you shake your head, then you look around at it again, “Why?”

“We’ve talked about expanding.” he says, shrugging as he walks over to you, “It’s a good investment too. Look how well our shop does. This shop will thrive here. It’s in a perfect spot. People can come here, grab a book, then head over to the park to read it. It’s near a coffee shop and a deli is around the corner, it’s perfect.”

You nod your head as you listen to John, then you look up at him, “But you’ll never be home now.”

“I will always be home. Just like I am now.” he smiles, rubbing his thumb over your cheek, “For the first month or so, I thought you and I could come out here more often and help out. Together. Always together. But on the rare days that I’m here by myself, you can bring Ro up here, and we can have lunch in the park.”

John smiles as he walks over to the window, then he reaches out for your hand to pull you over to him.

“We had our second date right there. We sat on that very bench.” John smiles as he points at a bench in the park, “I knew from the moment I met you that you were the one for me, but I truly knew I couldn’t live without you after that second date.”

You smile as you look up at John with tears in your eyes, “I just don’t want this to change us.”

“Nothing will change with us.” he whispers, pulling you into his arms, “I’m still going to be crazy about you. Think of how fun this is going to be, you and me in here painting the walls and fixing it up. There’s so much more space here, and I know you want to do some things at the shop back home, but with the limited space, we’re not able to.”

Reaching up, you touch John’s cheek, “You’re not gonna be stressed out over this?”

“Of course not.” he shakes his head, then he smiles, “If I felt like I was going to be stressed, I wouldn’t have bought it.”

You nod your head as you close your eyes and lean against John’s chest, then you wrap your arms around his waist and hug him tight. John rubs his hands over your back as he holds you, then he leans down to kiss the top of your head.

“So, what do you think?”

“I think it’ll be fun.” you nod as you tilt your head back to look at him, “Fixing it all up will be fun. Spending the day up here with you getting it ready will be a lot of fun, and we can even bring our bug with us sometimes.”

John nods his head, then he claps his hands, “This is going to be so fun, baby. I’ve been dying to tell you for weeks now.”

At the end of the day, you know that you and John have a strong marriage, and you know that this won’t put any stress on it. You and John have something special, and buying a new shop won’t change that.

“We have another bookshop.” you say as you look up at him, then you jump into his arms and wrap your legs around his waist, “We have another bookshop!”

“We do!” John laughs, kissing you over and over, then he sets you down, “I thought we could do the kid’s section over here, then on this side we can do non-fiction. Oh, and there’s a basement, I thought that would be nice for the office so it’s out of the way.”

You look over at John as he gets even more excited to tell you about everything that he has in mind, and you hold his hand and look up at him with heart eyes as he gets more and more excited.

John invited all of the employees out to the new shop so they could check it out, and he’s been so excited to show them around and tell them how he plans to fix everything up. It won’t be open for at least 2 more months since you’ll need to fix some parts of the flooring and paint the walls, plus you have to get the shelves stocked with books, but John is so damn excited.

You’re sitting on the counter as John tells them the plans that he has for the shop, and since it’s in Manhattan, John wants the shop to be a little more sophisticated. He still wants the cozy feel that the shop has back home, but he also wants this shop to thrive here with a different aesthetic.

John leans back against the counter next to you and sighs, “Me and the Mrs. have been talking, and we had a pretty hard conversation last night. I want you all to know that she cried.”

“I did.” you laugh as you look at him.

Grace gasps loudly as she puts her hand over her mouth, and you and John both start to laugh.

“It was a good conversation!” you laugh as you look at her, “So whatever you’re thinking, that’s not happening.”

John pats your thigh and smiles, “Definitely not happening.”

“Oh, thank god.” Grace exhales as she closes her eyes. “I didn’t think so, but you really phrased that weird.”

You let out a small laugh as you look over at John--people truly love the two of you together, and they’re all rooting for you.

“We love having you all at the shop in Mill Neck, but we’re willing to let any of you transfer out here if that’s what you’d want.” he says, then he looks at one of the newer employees that he hired while you were pregnant, “Naomi, I know it’s closer to home for you…”

Naomi nods, “It is.”

“This shop won’t be open for a few more months, three at the most, and we plan on being here every day for the first two weeks, but after that, we’ll come out every Wednesday when Ronan is with her grandparents.” John says, then he chuckles when he sees you’re tearing up. “Look at her, crying again.”

“I’m just so sad yet proud. We love all of you, and you’ve become part of our family. I’m so sad to some of you go, but I know it’s best since you’ll be closer to home.” you carefully wipe away the tear on your cheek, then you look over at a few employees as they smile. “This is good! This is a good thing though! This shop is going to thrive out here, and you are all going to do great.”

Grace raises her hand a little, “I don’t plan on leaving you!”

You smile as you hop off the counter and hug her, “Thank you.”

“I’m close to my mom. I’m not leaving.” she smiles, leaning back to look at you, and you smile. “Plus if I leave, I’ll never see my best girl! I need little Ronan in my life for my sanity.”

Grace has no idea, but you and John talked about promoting her to store manager last night. She’ll make more money than she’s making now, so she should be happy about that.

You look over your shoulder as John pops open a bottle of champagne, then he pours a little into several cups. He hands them out to the employees as you walk back over to him, then he smiles and hands a glass to you.

“This is going to be good for us.” he whispers softly to you, and you nod your head. He turns back to everyone and intertwines his fingers with yours before he lifts his glass, “To our extended family.”

You smile as you listen to the plastic cups clinking, and you look up at John as he leans down to kiss you. You set your glass aside, then you wrap your arms around his neck and kiss him over and over until you both laugh.

“To my beautiful wife,” he whispers as he holds up his glass, “Just toasting you in general.”

“Kiss-ass.” you smile as you lean up to kiss him, then you grab your glass and drink it.

You look over your shoulder as the shop door opens, and you smile when John locks it behind him and walks over to you. You turn around to face him, then you slide your hands up to his biceps and smile when he looks up at you. John looks over your shoulder to the basement stairs, then he cocks up his eyebrow a little.

“It’s only us.” he whispers, then he nods to the door, “The door is locked.”

Biting your lip a little, you nod your head and smile, then you hold tight to John’s hand as he leads you downstairs to the office. There’s already a desk here that was left by the previous owner, so that’s a bonus. John shuts the door behind him and locks it, then he cups your face and kisses you hard on the lips before he lifts you up and sets you on the desk.

“You look so sexy today.” he whispers in your ear, and you let out a small laugh, “I love these jeans on you.”

You close your eyes and tilt your head to the side as John kisses your neck, then you smile as you lean up to kiss John. You tilt your head to the side for a better angle while you kiss John, then you slide your tongue into his mouth and listen as he moans softly, both of you becoming more desperate for one another. His hands slowly slide down your back to your ass, and he pulls you closer before moving his hands back up to your waist.

“My handsome husband,” you whisper as you hold his gaze, then you pull your shirt off. You smile as John stares at your lacy bra, then he gently runs his finger over the lace and smiles when your nipple grows hard. You reach down and pull John’s shirt over his head, then you toss it to the floor, “You want me?”

John nods, “More than you can even imagine.”

Laying back on the desk, you close your eyes and smile when you feel John kissing your stomach, then you open your eyes to him looking at you in awe.

“God, you’re so sexy,” he whispers in your ear as he caresses your sides, then he begins to kiss down your chest between your breasts. He licks up your chest, then he kisses over to your breast, pulling your bra down a little to reveal your nipple.

You smile at him, then you close your eyes when he sucks on your nipple, “Oh, shit…”

John pulls the lace from over your other breast, then he flicks his tongue over it and sucks on it as you let out a small moan, “Does that feel good?”

“Mhm,” you shiver as John kisses down your stomach to your hipbone, then you tilt your head up and watch as he unbuttons your jeans. You help John pull them down, feeling the ache between your legs get stronger when he kisses your thighs, and you lay back on the desk and smile.

“Wish there was a chair in here.” John laughs as he kneels down in front of you, and you sit up and watch as he moves your underwear to the side, “I don’t mind though.”

Laying back on the desk, your eyes roll shut and you smile as John sucks and licks your thighs, and he lets out a small laugh every time you get a little too excited with the thought of him finally devouring you. You prop yourself up to watch John as he sucks on your thighs, and you bite your lip when he slowly rubs his finger over your clit.

Letting out a moan, you tilt your head back and pant as he pumps his finger in and rubs your clit slowly, and you grip the sides of the desk in your hands as you arch your back.

“Oh, shit,” you spread your legs open and look down at John as he smiles, “Please…”

“Are you ready?” he asks, and you nod your head as you pout. “Good because I’m dying for a taste.”

You let out a loud moan as soon as John’s warm tongue slides against your clit, and your body begins to shudder every time his nose bumps against your clit, “Oh, yeah, keep doing that.”

“You taste so fucking good,” John say between your legs, then he buries his face again, shaking his head from side to side as you moan.

You reach down and run your hands through John’s hair, then you intertwine your fingers with his and roll your hips as you begin to climax. You roll your hips against John’s face as you let out a loud moan, then you grip his hands tighter as your body overcomes with pleasure, shaking and shivering on the desk.

John kisses up along your body as he stands up, then he rolls you onto your stomach and pulls you until you’re bent over the desk, and you smile when you hear him undoing his belt. You pant against the desk as you close your eyes, and with one quick motion, he buries himself deep between your legs.

“Oh, fuck,” John lets out a small laugh, “Shit, you’re so wet.”

You whimper loudly for John as he thrusts his hips fast and hard, and you grip the side of the desk, squeezing your eyes shut. You only just had an orgasm, so you’re overly sensitive right now, but fuck, he feels so good, and there’s no way he won’t make you come again.

“Oh, shit, John!” you moan loudly as you lean up on your hands, then you tilt your head back and kiss him.

John’s right hand slides up your side to your breast as he grunts and breathes heavily, and you open your mouth to moan when you feel like you’re about to come again. The sound of John’s hips against your ass fills the small room, and you lean back against his chest as he wraps his arms around you and holds you tight, jerking his hips harder to bring on his orgasm.

“Fuck, you feel so good,” he whispers in your ear, then he sucks on your neck, “Oh, shit, you’re about to make me come.”

Gasping and moaning, you look back at John as he watches himself between your legs, then you smile when he looks up at you, “You love my pussy, don’t you?”

“Yes,” John nods, leaning back to watch himself sliding in and out of your pussy, “Best fucking view; watching my cock deep in your pussy.”

You lay back down on the desk as John leans back to watch himself fucking you, then he groans loudly and pushes himself deep inside of you, still thrusting his hips every few seconds as he fills you up. John buries his face in the crook of your neck and pants loudly against your skin, and you kiss him several times before you put your head down. You close your eyes and exhale as John slowly slides from between your legs, then you smile when you feel him kissing up your spine.

“Well, the bookshop is officially christened.”

John chuckles breathlessly, “Probably not the best word for it.”

“No, probably not.” you laugh as you prop yourself up, then you look over at John as he pulls his boxers and jeans back up. You close your eyes and smile when John leans down to kiss your cheek, then you laugh when he spanks you, grabbing a handful as he bites his lip.

“Wait here.” John whispers, and you look over at him as he pulls his shirt on and walks out of the office. He comes back in a few moments later with some tissue, then he smiles as he hands it to you. “Here.”

You smile as you take the tissue from him to clean up the mess between your legs, then you hand it to him so he can throw it away while you get dressed again. He stands outside the door and smiles when you reach out for his hand, then you head back upstairs with him.

As you get back upstairs, you smile and look around at the shop, envisioning what it’ll look like in a few weeks times. Probably lots of boxes of books that will need to be put on shelves. You’ll definitely recruit Jimmy and Tess to help you since Jimmy is currently working on the shelves John requested.

John wraps his arms around you from behind, then he kisses your cheek a few times before he takes your hand and spins you around to face him. The two of you stand in each other’s embraces for a moment, then you feel John kiss your forehead before he lets you go.

“Gonna be fun having another shop.” John smiles as he holds your hand, then he hands your purse to you. “Can’t wait for it to open.”

“I’m nervous.” you admit, then you look up at John. “I know you said nothing will change with us, but I’m just worried. We have a strong marriage, we really do, I’m just being silly.”

John unlocks the door and opens it for you, then he locks it once you’re standing on the sidewalk. He turns to you and smiles, then he reaches for both of your hands, preparing to give you a whole speech.

“I know what you’re going to say.” you laugh, then you imitate John’s deep voice, “I’m crazy about you. I’m always going to be crazy about you. That won’t change.”

“Oh, so you don’t need a pep talk then?” John nods, letting go of your hands as he backs away, “Okay.”

“Stop!” you laugh as you run over to him and wrap your arms around his waist. You sigh quietly as you look at him, shaking your head and closing your eyes, “Just…just give me a pep talk.”

John smooths your hair back and smiles, “It’s true: I am crazy about you. More than you could ever imagine, and that truly won’t change. Yes, it’ll be a little different for us to come out here when this shop opens, but once it’s up and running, I won’t be coming out here all the time. You and Ronan are everything to me, and that’s where I want to be: with my favorite girls. When I come out here, you’re coming with me.”

“I just don’t want us to grow apart, or…you start picking up shifts out here and then you come home at night and you’re exhausted and don’t want to spend time with me and Ro. Or you find that spending time out here is better than being with…me. I’m not saying you’re going to cheat on me or anything. But…”

John cocks up his brow, “You realize how ridiculous that sounds, don’t you?”

You laugh as you look up at John, “As soon as I said it.”

“Baby, I’m not going anywhere.” John gently rubs his nose against yours and smiles, “Never. You’re my best friend, and everything is so much better when you’re around.”

Tilting your head back, you smile as you look up at John, then you flinch when a raindrop lands on your cheek. You look out at the street as the rain starts to fall down, and you hold tight John’s hand as the two of you run to the car in hopes of dodging the rain.

“John!” you laugh as you put your hands above your head, then you stomp your foot a little, “I’m getting soaked! Hurry up!”

John laughs as he reaches into his pockets for the keys, then he looks over at you, “You have the keys!”

You look in your purse for your keys, then you toss them to John as you run to the car. He quickly runs over to open your door for you, then he helps you get in before he runs over to the driver’s side.

“You know you don’t have to open my door every time, especially when it’s pouring rain.” you laugh as you reach into the glove compartment for tissues, then you smile when you realize John is staring at you, “What?”

“Nothing,” he laughs as he shakes his head, then he shrugs, “I just never realized running through the rain could be so much fun.”

You smile as you lean over to kiss him, then you run your fingers through his damp hair and pull him closer. You rest your forehead against John’s as you exhale quietly, then you lean back and hold his gaze.

“We’re strong, baby.” John whispers against your cheek, and you nod your head and smile, “Nothing is going to break us, you know this.”

You nod, “I do. I just love you and I don’t want to lose you.”

“You’re never losing me, peach.” John smiles, then he points at his wedding ring, “Good luck trying to get rid of me! Just about as obsessed with you as a guy can be.”

Placing your hand on John’s cheek, you lean over to kiss him again, “I love you.”

“I love you too.” John smiles, kissing your cheek, “Now let’s go home and change into our pajamas and just enjoy some husband and wife time.”

You smile as you reach over for John’s hand, “Sounds like a really good plan!”

“I won’t lie…” John starts the car and looks over at you, “I might need some more time with you later.”

You laugh, “Didn’t get your fill on the desk?”

“I never do,” he says, reaching for your hand, “I never will.”

You lean over to kiss him softly, “Me neither.”

I think i’m going to make a little post soon about who wants to be tagged because i always like to update my taglist and make sure i’m tagging people who want to be, so if u do want to be tagged you can always let me know!

taglist: @sakurachan-9 | @beingnerdyissupercool | @ruby-octo | @aragornswife | @angie-20000

#john wick x reader #john wick x you #john wick x y/n #john wick imagine #fic: hold my hand #ro is so big i hate itttttt #i feel like she's my daughter and she's getting bigger and i dont like it i want her to be a lil bab forever #anyway merry christmas and happy holidaysssss!!! i hope you all have a really good time with friends and family and eat some good food!!!!#i love you all so much!!! 2023 is soon which means more john wick!!! WOOOOOHOOOO #ok love yall byeeeee

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exbeaut · 3 years

Text

I finally got over my fears and read Mister Impossible and now I’m wishing I DIDNT

#BECAUSE WHAT THE FUCK #NOW I HAVE TO WAIT TO FIND OUT IF RONAN IS EVEN OKAY #HE DIDNT WAKE UP #AND WHAT IS HE A VILLIAN NOW??? NO I DONT ACCEPT THAT #I DONT #I genuinely feel sick now #like I am so upset and heartbroken and just #I ???#what the fuck #mi spoilers #don’t even let me get started on the Adam-and-Ronan of it all #or should I say the lack of #I can’t begin to describe my feelings of distress

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theravenkin · 2 years

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Oooh, how about hcs for movie night with Blue and her Raven Boys from TRC please??

OMG IVE BEEN WANTING TO WRITE THIS HC FOREVER YOU HAVE NO IDEA

ok this turned out way longer than i planned, what's new

- Movie night is held every Saturday night at the Barns--so it's just the five of them

- Ronan loads up on popcorn, candy, and drinks, and drags every pillow and blanket he has into the living room for the occasion

-The first few times, Ronan insists he's too aloof to pick a movie, so blue scrolls through Declan's netflix account trying to find a movie that will appeal to everyone

-Blue suggests tick, tick...boom! and Henry doesn't object, but the rest do

-"we're not gonna suffer through a fucking musical Sargent" "okay lynch calm the entire fuck down I'm scrolling"

-Henry suggests the great british baking show, but the rest disagree on the grounds that it's movie night, not tv show night--sorry maybe another time

- Gansey and Adam get excited about don't look up, but Blue sees that Timothee Chalamet is in it, and she rejects it out of pure spite

-Henry whines about it

-"what do you have against lil timmy tim??" "everything" she won't explain what she has against him but the other boys dont disagree

-"yeah he's fucking ugly Cheng, what are you into that whole sick victorian child look?"

-"oh sorry Lynch, I thought you'd be into that, I thought you liked 'em a little scrawny"

-Ronan and Blue punch him at the same time that adam nudges the back of his head with his foot

-"hey, man, I've actually been eating three meals a day"

- gansey beams "we're really proud of you adam, thats so-"

- "yeah, Cheng, he's got abs now" (adam snorts) "wHAT LEMME SEE" "why do you wanna see his fucking abs cheng?" "ohhh, i see, it was a trap"

- blue moves on, suggests "bright star"--she doesnt even know what its about but it looks like a good period piece

-they watch the trailer and at the end Blue goes "wait he's straight??? oh that was fucking queerbaiting" and Ronan goes "there's no way john keats was attracted to women." gansey and adam sort of grunt in agreement

-henry gets excited and suggests big mouth. they tell him, again, that it's movie night not show night. he is sad again

-"oooh guys guys what about breaking bad???" "hENRY FOR THE LAST TIME"

-blue suggests red notice, which she doesn't love the idea of, but Ronan hasn't agreed to anything so far, so she's trying to appeal to him

-"ronan, cars? heists? ryan reynolds?" gansey and henry: "ryAN REYNOLDS"

-ronan makes a disgusted noise. blue sighs and moves on

- "OMIGOD GUYS VICTORIOUS!!" blue whacks henry with a shoe

- "sargent, stop fucking scrolling through the 'romantic movies' category" "lynch, if you don't tone down the piss and vinegar a few notches, we're watching bridgerton" *gasp* "in my family home??? absolutely fucking not"

-after a few more tries where everyone agrees except ronan--who seems to hate everything--blue sighs loudly and dramatically. "ronan, do you even wanna watch anything??" "uh duh" "well what do you wanna watch" "i don't care" "yOU OBVIOUSLY DO"

-before they can kill each other Adam snatches the remote out of her hands and exits out of netflix entirely. everyone protests until he switches over to disney plus

-"ugh, if we weren't using someone else's account, i'd be so against all of this" blue goes on a little rant about corporations and monopolies while ronan makes fun of her

-but then a movie starts. it's an old, old disney movie; there's whimsical orchestra music playing as the beginning credits fade in and out. Adam looks at Gansey and they share a wistful, knowing smile

-Blue looks over at Ronan and the aloofness is gone; he kinda looks sad, but also kinda looks like a little kid. his eyes are really big. he slowly gets up from where he sat beside blue on the floor and switches places with Gansey, who was sitting beside adam on the sofa. blue watches ronan, completely docile, curl up to adam; adam wraps his arms around ronan and kisses his buzzed head. by now henry has followed her eyes and he shares a look with her. but then Gansey worms his way between them, his arm around blue and offering them both some popcorn. they both look back at the couple again then settle against gansey's sides.

-the movie is alice in wonderland. Blue is pretty sure that on one of the shelves in the living room, there's a dvd of this movie; ronan must have watched it growing up. blue smiles; as she listens to the first song, "a world of my own", she thinks it fits too well.

-when the movie's over, ronan is so calm he almost seems asleep against adam's side. blue smiles sweetly at him.

-"so, fast and furious next time, then?"

-he kicks her and she laughs

-from then on, every movie night is a disney movie. ronan has a lot of them on dvd. sometimes blue catches him absentmindedly mouthing the words to the songs. sometimes her and henry join together in a karaoke version of the songs and get booed and pelted with popcorn

OMG ok im gonna have to make another one of these sometime, it was so fun. thank you so much for this ask!! :)

(also idk which book it's in but i remember at some point, ronan recalls how alice in wonderland and pygmalion were his mom's favorite movies, and they kinda became his comfort movies. also i have a hc that ronan watches like five disney movies on rotation for comfort)

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drawing-way-outside-the-lines · 2 years

Text

➖ Mature content, 18+ ➖ check the trigger tags each time ➖

Chapter 38 - Your eggs are the best.

Episode 1. *It was a late December evening, as Raven and Adrian walked into Adrian’s living room. They had been out for a cozy walk in the slow snowfall, but had now returned to relax by the fire.* Adrian: *He suddenly looked a bit out of place and confused* Raven: What's going on? *he chuckled lightly, observing his lover* Adrian: I think I dropped my keys. Raven: *He chuckled again and pointed at the front door* How did we get in then? Adrian: The door was unlocked.. it's rare I lock it *he grunted soft* I'll head back out and have a look for them... Raven: I could track them Adrian: No, it's okay... you're still not at your full capacity after everything that happened *he frowned soft* Just let me have a quick look, if I don't find them, I'll come back and we can track them tomorrow... I have my scent to go by... Raven: *He nodded confirming* I'll get the fire going then, and slip into something more.... naked *he smirked* Adrian: *He snorted soft* I'll definitely be back faster then! Raven: *He chuckled warmly and gave Adrian a quick kiss* Aye... don't let me wait too long.

*Back out in the snow, Adrian slowly made his way out his garden, being careful where he was stepping, making sure to scan the snow firmly with his eyes, the keys could be everywhere in the deep snow. As he excited his gate, he slowly made his way to the main road, surprised to see someone heading in his direction. There weren't many people living on this part of the island, and most that did live here, had long hair, yet this person did not? The person looked male, but not tall enough to be Ronan.*

Adrian: *He squinted his eyes to get a better look, was it an intruder or someone he knew? And then the scent caught him, instantly making him stop in his tracks as he felt a strong pleasureful rush in his stomach* Dalton...

Dalton: *Suddenly, no warning, fell hard on his ass*

Adrian: Jesus! *He slow ran the distance between them and stopped right in front of the fallen man, reaching a hand towards him*

Dalton: *He chuckled lightly and shook his head as he grabbed Adrian's hand* Thanks!

Adrian: *He quickly pulled Dalton up* Are you alright?

Dalton: Yeah *he chuckled again, lightly padding his ass* shit! Hurts a bit!

Adrian: *He frowned softly* It was quite a fall, yeah...

Dalton: Yeah I slipped on something *he quickly bend down, sticking his bare hand into the snow and grabbed something, dangling it in front of Adrian as he stood back up*

Adrian: *He frowned deeper and grabbed his keys* Those would be mine...

Dalton: I supposed, seeing you out here, alone... at night *he smiled softly*

Adrian: *Heart beating a little faster*

Dalton: *He chuckled lightly* we can't keep meeting like this...

Adrian: Like what?

Dalton: Me ending up on my ass in some sort of cold situation... like last time when you fixed my bike after- never mind, it's stupid, I'm stupid... I thought it would be a funny joke, but it's not even making full sense, I'm sorry *he shook his head lightly, an awkward chuckle escaping him*

Adrian: ........

Dalton: I'll just *he pointed in the direction he was heading to begin with* get out of your way...

Adrian: *He by instinct grabbed onto Dalton's arm as he moved to pass him* You aren't in my way....

Dalton: *He looked surprised, and slightly awkward as he stood by Adrian's side, face to face*

Adrian: *He noticed the small distance between them, his heart beating stronger, picking up speed, he took a quick glare towards the moon, then back at Dalton, speaking in a lower, deeper voice, as if he was sharing a secret between the two of them* Where were you headed?

Dalton: .... Lina

Adrian: *He frowned surprised and quickly let go of Dalton's arm, taking a step back, clearing his throat* Lina, huh? *He looked down the road in the direction of her house, frowning deeper* Right... *So now it was both Malou AND Lina?! He frowned the deepest possible as he noticed he was thinking in that direction... fuck!*

Dalton: Yeah, I uh...

Adrian: You don't have to explain yourself to me *he looked at Dalton, trying to play it cool, acting as if he couldn't care less as he stuck his hands in his pocked and kicked a stone*

Dalton: OW! *He chuckled surprised and rubbed his leg* What was that for?

Adrian: Shit, I'm sorry! Did I hit you? *he quickly stepped towards Dalton again, looking at him worried*

Dalton: *He groaned softly* Yeah, on my upper thigh!

Adrian: Shit! Does it hurt? Fuck *he quickly without thinking pressed both his hands against Dalton's thigh and started rubbing up and down* I didn't mean to hit you! I'm so sorry! Is it bad? I don't know why I did that I just felt kinda angry that you were heading towards Lina, when I saw it was you I actually assumed you were on your way to my place, I didn't know you visit other people out here, I mean not that you aren't allowed, of course you are, it's just that-

Dalton: *A soft groan escaped him, his eyes closing for a brief moment* Adrian

Adrian: Does it still hurt? If you want I can carry you to my house and we can put some ice on it, or I could carry you to Lina's place of course you don't have to come with me when you have a date it's just, fuck what am I even saying?! I just-

Dalton: *He groaned again, grabbing both of Adrian's hands firmly* Please.. stop *a soft sigh escaping him* First of all... that's the wrong leg... secondly... you're kinda a bit too far up at this point *he chuckled awkwardly* and, it's not a date... So I probably shouldn't show up with a boner...

Adrian: ............ *he looked deep into Dalton's eyes...............

Dalton: *He chuckled a bit nervous, feeling all sorts of mixed feelings right now.... the main one circling his head, being how badly he all of a sudden felt like pushing this man up against one of the tall pines behind him, and kiss him passionately, demandingly... almost violently*

Adrian: *He sighed a large amount of steamy air out, then quickly took several steps back, nervously scratching the back of his neck* I'm sorry... I'm sorry, that wasn't my intention, I'm sorry.

Dalton: *He chuckled awkwardly and took a deep breath* Yeah, no, I know... but I should probably cancel with Lina and return home instead

Adrian: Come inside! *he frowned deep as soon as he heard the words fly out his mouth, shaking his head slowly* I'm sorry, I don't know what's wrong with me tonight, I'm not usually like this

Dalton: *He chuckled softly*

Adrian: *He took a deep breath, trying to gather himself* What I mean is, if you come in, the long walk wouldn't have been for nothing. I've got a warm living room, lots of beer and alcohol, food... ice for the right thigh...

Dalton: *He frowned a bit suspicious, but let his eyes glide to the house behind Adrian*

Adrian: Oh! And Raven is there...

Dalton: *His face lit up* Yeah, cool! I'll just send Lina an sms on the way so she wont wait for me...

Adrian: *He grunted softly... so... Dalton was interested as soon as Raven was mentioned.... of course!*

Dalton: *He smiled friendly and quickly stepped by Adrian in the direction of Adrian's house*

Adrian: *a deep sigh escaped him as he watched Dalton walk towards his house, then slowly started following, his hands once again deeply planted in his pockets*

Dalton: I'm not going just because Raven is there...

Adrian: .......... *he couldn't help but smile*

Dalton: *He smiled somewhat secretive as Adrian reached up on the side of him* just so you know...

Adrian: *An awkward chuckle escaped him, then he gently kicked his gate open as they reached it few steps later* Thank you for finding my keys

Dalton: It wasn't me... it was rather my ass! *he chuckled amused* I think I got a bruise.

Adrian: ............ want me to awkwardly rub it for you?

Dalton: *Burst out a soft laughter* maybe later

Adrian: *He couldn't help but chuckle* Alright, let's get into the heat *he quickly grabbed the door knob, and opened the door, stepping into the house, just to see naked Raven laying on the floor in front of the fire place*

Dalton: *Slightly bumping into Adrian* Oh, sorry! *he chuckled amused* you kinda stopped in the middle of *he paused as he also by now spotted the naked Raven*

Raven: .... shit *he instantly grabbed a pillow, covering his junk* Dalton...

Dalton: Raven *he chuckled lightly and stepped to a side* don't mind me... though *he looked a bit questioning at Adrian* should I leave again? It seems you two were busy, I don't mean to intru-

Raven: No no *he quickly sat up and grabbed his clothes* The more the merrier!

Dalton: You're going to rub me off too? *he grinned at Adrian*

Adrian: *He frowned awkwardly and quickly kicked off his boots, then took off his jacket and threw it casually over a chair by the dining table* You're welcome to stay

Raven: Yes, you aren't interrupting at all, I'll just *he pointed at the ceiling, then instantly was gone*

Dalton: Will I ever get used to that? *he chuckled soft as he looked at Adrian*

Adrian: *He shrugged lightly* You want something to drink?

Dalton: Yeah *he nodded soft and kicked his boots off next to Adrian's* I'll just send that text to Lina and one to Malou as well

Adrian: *He nodded soft and sighed as he walked towards the fridge*

Raven: *He landed next to Adrian seconds later, fully dressed, just in time to grab a beer, as it slipped out of Adrian's hands* What's up with you today?

Adrian: *He squinted his eyes at Raven, and answered in a soft mumble only the two of them could hear* I don't know?! He slipped on my keys, I went to help him up, he told me he was going to Lina's, I felt....

Raven: Jealous?

Adrian: Yesss *he hissed lightly and took a sip of one of the beers* but that's not the worst! I accidentally kicked a stone on his thigh, panicked, grabbed his thigh and started rubbing it to try to I don't even fucking know... he ended up having to stop me cause apparently my hands had slipped upwards!

Raven: *A snort escaped him*

Adrian: Don't! *he squinted again* fucking don't!

Raven: *Another snort* I wont.

Adrian: *He grunted irritated, taking another sip of the beer* I need something stronger than this!

#Adrian Blackwood #Brandubh McKinney #Raven McKinney #Dalton Red #unicorntales

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robindrake93 · 3 years

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Kavinsky’s relationship with Ronan is so interesting when looked at from Kavinsky’s POV.

Kavinsky was skulking about Monmouth for Ronan before he knew that Ronan was a dreamer, which meant that he had some interest in Ronan as a person (which we know doesn’t happen because the dream pack and his family are...dreams). Kavinsky then finds out that Ronan is like him. They’re the same. They’re dreamers and Kavinsky has never met another one in the world. He went from being alone to being one of two. His whole world changed again.

Kavinsky spends like a year trying to tease the confession out of Ronan. Ronan is really only interested in finding the bottom of a bottle with Kavinsky (and racing and fighting with him). Kavinsky is the window in which Ronan’s bird tries to fly into repeatedly and violently. We can assume Kavinsky was met with failure because The Dream Thieves happens.

Kavinsky flirts and he insults in the same breath because he is the instrument that Ronan loves to hurt himself on (and he’s not a stupid boy who can’t read the fucking room - Gansey has a literal collar for Ronan; K isn’t pulling Gansey’s Dog from his ass). But Kavinsky isn’t the only one with sharp, cutting edges and Ronan (intentionally and otherwise) hurts Kavinsky too.

So time passes and Ronan is the same as he’s always been and Kavinsky gets impatient and desperate. He dreams Ronan’s leather bracelets, punctured with teeth marks like the ones in reality, the details noted carefully and lovingly.

“I know you” is what the gift says. “I know you’re a dreamer and I know you chew your bracelets when you’re unhappy and I’ve been paying attention because I care. Look.” Kavinsky leaves.

The next time they see each other, Ronan tosses him a pair of sunglasses. The ones that Kavinsky wears regularly. This is the acknowledgment, the “I know you too.” Except the tint is off, the lenses are slightly wrong (and oh I bet that haunts Kavinsky later, this tiny sign that Ronan isn’t as into Kavinsky as Kavinsky is him). But still. The fact that the sunglasses exist says that Ronan is accepting the gift, he’s returning it, and he’s trying. Which is more than Kavinsky got out of him before.

Things happen fast after that.

Because they’ve always shared dreams and been aware that they were sharing when Ronan dreams of Kavinsky, I’m assuming that the first one - the sex dream - featured a real Kavinsky (although I don’t think Ronan knew). Kavinsky falls asleep and into a dream where he’s fucking Ronan against the hood of a car. This isn’t Kavinsky’s dream, either. It’s Ronan’s. Ronan who controls his dreams. To Kavinsky, this has to seem like a sign that Ronan is very into him.

They’re both dreamers. Kavinsky lives surrounded by dream people and dream objects...why couldn’t they take a dream relationship to reality with them?

Ronan crashes Gansey’s car because of the night horror and Kavinsky shows up to save his life. Ronan’s life is valuable. Except Ronan isn’t grateful, he’s freaking out for no reason over the car. And there’s a moment where Kavinsky literally does not understand what the big deal is; Ronan can just dream a new one. It’s easy. He mentions that Ronan might have a head injury because he doesn’t know that Ronan doesn’t know Kavinsky is a dreamer.

But Kavinsky is going to take care of this and his stupid idiot boyfriend (what else would Ronan be? They courted, they fucked, dreams are reality). Kavinsky flirts on the drive over and Ronan sulks and Kavinsky says in words what he’s been saying in actions; I know what you are, you’re just like me.

Kavinsky is no ones dog. He doesn’t have a Gansey to distract him from his life. He lives with reminders of how bad life is and he’s an addict in a downward spiral. So the process of dreaming is something Kavinsky has had ample time and privacy to streamline.

Ronan doesn’t make cars because he’s keeping himself secret. By showing him the cars and that it’s even possible, Kavinsky says, “we don’t have to be a secret. You don’t have to limit and twist yourself into a tiny box. The world is literally ours.”

I’m not sure how they went from ‘let’s dream a new car’ to ‘let’s get drunk’ and can only assume that it was old habit to drink in each other’s presence but there’s a time skip where we next hear from them via Gansey. More specifically, via Kavinsky being at once jealous over Gansey (probably) being in a relationship with Ronan and where he both reassures Gansey and rips off the bandaid about the car. Kavinsky sends Gansey a dick pic with an Irish flag tied to his erection, a roundabout way of saying that Ronan’s already ridden his dick.

Kavinsky takes Ronan home after the field, they (or at least Ronan) drink alcohol and Kavinsky puts on a racing movie. Kavinsky texts Gansey his dick pick and the news about the car, and he’s not even next to Ronan. He’s giving Ronan space. I’d say the phone thing was invading Ronan’s privacy but Ronan doesn’t use his phone so...there’s nothing there to invade. When Ronan wakes up, Kavinsky tries to start a conversation. And it’s a pretty normal conversation; you handle your liquor well, oh hey you aren’t responding are you okay, wait you inherited dreaming from your dad?

Ronan leaves the room. He’s not very talkative. This probably isn’t going how Kavinsky imagined it would. Again, Kavinsky is an addict and his boyfriend is being more prickly than usual so he gets high. Kavinsky makes a joke instead of confessing to texting Gansey what was basically a “he wants me more than you” text. And Ronan responds with violence. Which Kavinsky points out and his only option is to lay his cards on the table. Kavinsky doesn’t want to play chase, he wants this thing between them to settle. So he spills that he saw Ronan dream the blood and he knew.

And all Ronan asks is how he did it. His hackles have finally soothed. Kavinsky almost literally jumps on the chance to teach Ronan and spend more time in his company; the company of someone like him in all the ways that matter.

There’s more beer to entice Ronan to stay, a little extra incentive to spend time with Kavinsky. Ronan’s first attempts aren’t interesting for someone who’s house is full of one trick magical dream items. Like I said above, Kavinsky has the dreaming process streamlined. He takes his pill, he gets what he wants from his dream and he dies for this. His heart stops for a few seconds. We don’t know if Kavinsky takes the pills to dream every time or if it’s just to make this fast and easy for Ronan’s training. If he does it’s because he’s suicidal, and if he doesn’t then it’s because he’s at the point that he’ll die for Ronan.

What does Kavinsky bring back? Something boring, like Ronan’s dream thing, but it’s complimentary. The cap to Ronan’s pen, the missing piece, that fits and matches perfectly. Which is what Kavinsky thinks they are to each other.

Kavinsky gets his jealous dig in about Gansey’s relationship with Ronan, which makes Ronan almost leave. This time, when Ronan tells Kavinsky to back off about Gansey, Kavinsky does. Because he wants Ronan to stay and he knows Ronan has a temper. Back to the safe stuff, to training, and this time when they dream together it’s intentional.

And when they get back? Ronan is still and he doesn’t react when Kavinsky touches him but he does open his hand when asked what he has. He laughs at Kavinsky’s joke, which doesn’t insult Gansey or insinuate that they’re in a relationship. Ronan laughs, a good sign, the best sign, and Kavinsky flirts. They open up a little, the first time that Ronan has shown any interest in Kavinsky’s home life, and then it’s back to dreaming together.

When Ronan dreams back a lit bomb, Kavinsky saves their lives by throwing it out the window before it explodes. They talk civilly and Kavinsky offers Ronan some cocaine; both to help him dream and because people who do cocaine just like to share with their friends and romantic partners (not diving deeper into this but trust me, it’s a thing).

They’re together so long that days have gone by. This is the first time that they aren’t fighting and antagonizing each other. It’s just dreams and each other. There’s still beer and cocaine because they’re addicts who are hurting, but they’re both comfortable with it. Ronan gifts Kavinsky with a twizzler, which Kavinsky takes because he loves Ronan.

Kavinsky thinks Ronan’s ready for the Camaro but gets angry when he realizes Ronan still doesn’t get how to dream. Ronan gets angry too, takes his failure out on Kavinsky because he just doesn’t get it. And Kavinsky points out how he’s been practicing.

So two things happen next. Ronan says he can’t go back without the car, to which Kavinsky replies to the effect of “then don’t.” He’s asking Ronan to stay with him. And Ronan replies that he’s going to try again, he’s going to dream with Kavinsky again, he’s staying. And that’s all that Kavinsky hears, he doesn’t realize that Ronan meant he was getting the car back so that he could leave.

A new pill comes out, one that keeps Ronan in his body but kicks his mind out. This is a pill that Kavinsky has tested before (once resulting in a girl overdosing) but now he’s got it perfected; this isn’t supposed to hurt Ronan. And Kavinsky re-enacts their first shared dream; Ronan against the hood, Kavinsky pressed up behind him, tracing the tattoo. They’ve already been here before.

But Ronan is gone, back to dreams, and when he comes to, he’s done it. He’s brought back the Camaro and it is perfect. Ronan’s success is Kavinsky’s success (which I’m sure he attributes to his magic dick and phenomenal teaching skills). They are perfect. This is a perfect moment for Kavinsky, a shining moment.

And Ronan crushes it immediately by telling him that actually he’s going back to Gansey; that he wasn’t going to stay. Kavinsky is so surprised that he stands in blank shock. Whatever defensive shields he has slam into place, a wall between himself and his boyfriend who refuses to stay. He can’t believe it.

Ronan mocks Kavinsky for thinking that they’d stay together and that this strengthened anything between them. But Kavinsky still tries to change Ronan’s mind by telling him he doesn’t need Gansey. And then Ronan breaks up with him. Ronan basically says that Kavinsky was nothing at all and he didn’t care about him.

Kavinsky is heartbroken. He says he’ll burn Ronan. He’s a jilted lover, spurned and ashamed and hurt. Ronan is leaving him. Kavinsky puts his finger gun to Ronan’s temple - one last touch - and says he’ll see Ronan later. The exact verbiage is “in the streets”, which might be a joke from Maggie about how they’re no longer seeing each other in the sheets.

But he doesn’t burn Ronan right away. He dreams him a car and lets Ronan know that he’s still jealous over Gansey.

The car gets no reaction and Kavinsky escalates in his attempts to Ronan’s attention. I don’t know how Kavinsky convinces himself that kidnapping Matthew was a good idea. But I want to know if it was before or after he realized that Matthew is a dream thing. When Kavinsky kidnaps Matthew? I bet he didn’t even have to resort to force. Just “hey kid, I’m Ronan’s friend, wanna get a milkshake?”

And he’d take Matthew to get a milkshake and sit in the booth opposite him and drill him with questions. And come to realize that Ronan dreamed him. Now that Kavinsky is actually looking at Matthew, he sees the signs of a dream thing; knows Ronan’s dreams intimately enough to recognize his handiwork. Kavinsky lives with dream things that are so real that no one can tell the difference. And Ronan did a really shitty job making Matthew. The kid has zero personality. He’s essentially a mirror: if K mentions he likes something then Matthew starts talking about it and he copies body language and speech patterns. He wasn’t just made to like people, he was made to be liked. (This was based off the snippet of CDH that was released and I don’t know if later installments negate any of this).

So if Kavinsky hands him a pill and says “swallow this” then Matthew does it and that’s how Kavinsky gets him into the trunk. He literally just asked. It’s that easy because Matthew was made by a child who had extremely base desires...who is very bad at realism.

Kavinsky sends Ronan texts from both his own phone and Matthew’s phone. This is what got Ronan’s attention; he calls. He’s never called Kavinsky before in his life, has never even texted him back before. So this is huge.

It’s important to note here than Kavinsky has replaced real life people with dreams and that he has to practice to get good at making something(one). People are replaceable. Dreams even more so. Matthew is barely a person, he’s a bad creation, and he’s replaceable. This is the key factor; Mathew can be redreamed. If something happens to this Matthew - like an explosion, say - then Ronan can always dream a new, better one. Kavinsky can help him. The point being that this is not actually a high stakes move for Kavinsky. This is breaking Ronan’s toy with the intent of gaining Ronan‘a attention and promising to buy him a new one (a better one, even).

When Ronan threatens Kavinsky on the phone, it’s nothing. Ronan has threatened violence before and it’s only fair for Ronan to make the same threats Kavinsky did. The important, takeaway is that Ronan is coming to see Kavinsky.

At the Fourth of July party, Kavinsky makes an entrance. He wants Ronan to see that he’s fine without him, better in fact.

But Ronan brought Gansey. And Kavinsky cannot resist a jab at Gansey, whom he feels stole his other half. He tells Gansey that he hopes Ronan can’t get it up for him. Ronan attacks him, demanding his dream brother back.

Kavinsky says he doesn’t know. This may or may not be a lie. Kavinsky brings up their relationship again, because that’s what this is about. He says, again, “I can’t believe you left me.” When this doesn’t get through to Ronan, Kavinsky asks Ronan to dream with him.

Ronan does.

Kavinsky is being attacked but Ronan came. He flirts, using a line he’s used before.

And it doesn’t work.

Kavinsky is being attacked by the forest and he tells Ronan that sometimes you have to take what you want; asking again if Ronan wants him, telling him that Ronan doesn’t need to ask before he takes Kavinsky. Again, he bears his heart to Ronan. He’s saying that Ronan is all he has because Ronan is so irreversibly tied to dreaming, dreaming is the only thing there is. Kavinsky says that if Ronan stays in the relationship, they’ll have each other.

Ronan tells him that it’s not enough, that Kavinsky is not enough. Here, Kavinsky begs that it’s not because of Gansey, that Gansey isn’t better than him. And then it comes out that Ronan would rather have a straight man than Kavinsky. A straight man who isn’t a dreamer.

Ronan says that there’s more to life and Kavinsky says that it isn’t true. Ronan says cars, sex, and drugs but he’s also talking about dreaming and that’s how Kavinsky takes it. Everything and a large portion of the people in Kavinsky’s life are dreams. He has no reason to think he won’t be continually replacing people and objects with dream copies. This is his whole life, it’s all he has, he’s made it from nothing. And this is when Kavinsky realizes that Ronan really doesn’t feel the same and isn’t going to return his feelings.

Kavinsky loses the will to live because he’d hinged everything on Ronan. Without Ronan, Kavinsky didn’t want to live. The last little thing he had in his life that was an equal, snuffed out Kavinsky’s flame. So Kavinsky summons a creature that’s essentially his heartbreak; not just this one but every heartbreak and all of his self loathing. This creature hates Kavinsky as much as it hates the rest of the world because it’s Kavinsky’s feelings manifested.

Kavinsky has escalated again. Now he’s threatening to kill himself. He looks Ronan in the eye and asks Ronan to stop him.

Ronan brings back an albino night horror. It fights with Kavinsky’s fire dragon and both boys just watch it. This is so interesting because Ronan’s only reaction is to tell Kavinsky to stop feeling. Stop having feelings for me. Kavinsky says that he can’t. Again, the dragon and the night horror are manifestations of Kavinsky and Ronan’s feelings; they’re metaphors come to life.

Ronan is still focused on his brother, though. Kavinsky even tells him that he’s missing the point of all this, which was to sort through their feelings (or fight through them like the dragon and horror were doing). Ronan finds Matthew, mildly drugged but fine and about to free himself anyway. And Kavinsky finally sees that Ronan really doesn’t care. So he stays in the path of their monstrous, overwhelming feelings made real and ignores Ronan’s pleas for him to get down because he knows Ronan will say whatever he needs to get Kavinsky to do what he wants.

And Kavinsky dies in flame, death via broken heart.

#rovinsky #ronan lynch #joseph kavinsky #the raven cycle #trc #the dream thieves #long post #I wrote this based on memory #and I haven’t read the dreamer trilogy #except the first little snippet of call down the hawk #so maybe something else has happened #to make something wrong #Idk or c

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