#also I KNOW the room isn't that small but I wanted it to be a vertical shape. love me some composition s

[finniestoncrane]

PREWAR COOPER STUFFS ❤️‍🔥 DESPERATELY needing some fluffy morning after/Sunday morning routine with his wifey 😩👏 him being VERY grabby and just an absolute horndog dkfnfnrk (he is down bad for reader)

Morning, Sunshine

Cooper Howard x Fem!Reader, word count: 1k hello post divorce cooper, please hit me up, i'll make you eggs (also post-divorce barb i know you're a baddie but that's just my type so i'll make you eggs too pls lemme make you eggs too...ANYWAY) but please this is so cute and i have made it gender neutral as you corrected so everyone enjoy being cooper's little chef and getting caressed by this hungover idiot 🤎 request info • prompt list • send me a request • kofi • masterlist minors DNI!! 🔞 cw:

Cooper stumbled into the kitchen, his feet shuffling on the floor as though they were made of lead, unable to lift them any higher. He groaned as the light from the windows assaulted him, and you smiled without turning to him, offering a brief, hushed 'good morning'. He returned the greeting with a groan. His entire body felt weighed down, the ache of sleeping in one position all night, lacked out in a drunken stupor after he had pawed at you and attempted to fuck the lingering stress out of his body.

And now he was in his own kitchen, messy from the small gathering of friends from the night before, stressed once more and hungover as shit to boot.

But there you were, by the stove, the source of the wonderful smell that had woken him up and had him drifting from the sancutary of his dark bedroom to face the world. Even when he was hungover, or sick, or just too damn tired to accept reality, he did it anyway. Who knew how many more mornings there were for him to see? That looming threat, the dark secret he had to keep to himself, one not even Barb knew was the real reason for their divorce. The source of his agonies, but also, the reason he felt so inspired to wake up each morning and spend as much of the time he had left with you as possible.

"I wasn't expecting you out of bed any time beforeat least midday, Coop."

"Then you shouldn't have started cooking something so god damn delicious."

His voice grew closer as he made his way, instinctually, towards you.

"I'm sorry, did it wake you up?"

"It did, but there's nothing to apologise for."

He was behind you now as you stood in front of the burners, a pan in your hand, your signature omelette cooking over the heat, your grip wobbling a little as Cooper looped his arms around your body. Everything he did stole your attention, pulling your focus with his charismatic personality, the way he commanded a room the moment he entered. And it didn't help that he had begun to kiss at your neck, letting his lips drag along your prickling skin as he moved down to your shoulder, nuzzling back into you as he sighed. The satisfied moan on the exhale had your stomach tensing, eliciting a soft moan of your own in reply.

"You want me to make you something to eat?"

"Please, darlin'. If that isn't a bother."

"Never is for you, Mr Howard. You get a coffee and take a seat, I'll be right with you."

Once he was seated with his mug, the morning newspaper to the side of the place setting at the kitchen island, you turned from the stove to plate up the omelette for him. It was the first you had properly looked at him that morning, and you could feel your breath hitching as you took him in. Even in this state, bedraggled, skin greasy with a sheen of sweat, hair unkempt and slicked back in messy waves, his breath, which you could smell over the countertop, still tainted with the cocktails he’d been making the night before. Even with all of that, he was still the most handsome man you had ever laid eyes on. And those same eyes couldn’t help but fall to his chest, his robe hanging open, exposing his torso down to his navel.

You wondered if he’d bothered to find any underwear to put on before covering himself with the short robe when he’d stumbled out of bed.

“Oh, sweetheart. You made this for yourself.”

“You eat first, I’ll make one for myself just now.”

Cooper flashed you a grin, one you remembered seeing so often in press photos, at promotional events.

“You really are a doll, know that?”

You returned his smile, turning back to the stove as he ate a few bites of the omelette with a satisfied groan. Cooper took a sip of coffee, watching you over the top of the mug. Every day could be the last. He didn’t want to believe it, but it always hung in the back of his mind. He’d lost Barb to Vaut-Tec, lost Janey, at least partly, to the divorce. He’d lost his sense of security to the war, his work to the paranoia that had burrowed inside of him. You were all he had now, and intended to cling to you with everything he had. Holding your hand tight at the party last night, clutching your body in the bed as he fucked you, passionate, desperate. His fingers entwined in yours as you slept, then holding you in his arms, your body smooth and warm.

Cooper stood up from his chair, unintentionally quiet to the point where you didn’t even notice he had moved until he was right behind you again, pressing himself against you so tight that you could feel the beginnings of his erection pushing into you. With a firm hand, he took your wrist, guiding you to set down the pan, switching the stove off and turning you in a choreographed spin so that you were facing him, your chests together, eyes trained on one another.

“You got enough ingredients for another, right?”

“Uh… yeah? Why?”

“I just think it might be ruined by the time I’m finished with you.”

His hands slipped down from your lower back, cupping both of your cheeks as he raised his eyebrows in a silent, questioning plea. Every moment with you was precious to him, every inch of your body worth placing a kiss to, worth tasting and savouring. Why not make the most of your time together by making sure you were as close to each other, as pleasured and satisfied, as possible?

So, when you blushed, biting your lip and giggling, he knew you agreed, and he took your hand and pulled you back to the comfort of the bedroom with you, hoping to relieve himself of a little more stress.

#fallout #fallout amazon #x reader #finnie writes #cooper howard #the ghoul #fallout fic #cooper howard x reader #the ghoul x reader #cooper howard fanfiction #cooper howard one shot #cooper howard smut #cooper howard imagine #fallout tv #fallout tv series #walton goggins #cooper howard x fem!reader

[littlewigglers]

Okay I’ve never asked on tumblr but I just found your page and I’m OBSESSED!!! I want to get/make a Vivarium/bioterrarium for millipedes and isopods and I can’t WAIT!! Please please if you have any advice at all, I’d love to hear it! Where to get supplies, the buggies themselves, how to handle them, what do you do if they get sick, how much space to they need for how many there are, etc? Your buggy babies are so cute!!

First off thank you! I love all my little guys as well <3

I ramble kinda a lot so I'll put this under a read more.

For advice I'm still very much a novice when it comes to keeping but I'll tell you what I can!

For tanks I got my glass ones second hand or ones made my the store I buy used to buy my millipedes from, you'd be surprised how cheap you can get a nice big one! For Acrylic THESE are the ones I've had the best luck with not warping BUT they sometimes have kinda blurry parts on the plastic, but still I'd say good for the price if you can't afford glass. I tape up some of the ventilation holes to keep more moisture in.

For soil that ISN'T bought from a specialist stores(Sometimes I can't afford it) I use Peat free compost, paired with leaves and rot wood I buy off ebay stores that sell bug/reptile products, I mix them together with some water and leave them in a tub for 1 week to soften up the leaves. Some people go out and get their own leaves and wood but I'm not really in an area to do that so I can't give advice on that. It's important to keep it moist BUT NOT WET!

Heat mat! You want one to put on the SIDE of the tank and not under it, just one would be enough. I have a timer plug for mine so they're on a few hours a day on and off all day. If you REALLY wanna spoil them then I've seen a few people use reptile headlamps.

For moss and plants I again just buy it off ebay in sheets and give it a cheap over to make sure there are no hitchhikers on it before I put it in the tank. It needs watered and looked after for a while for it to take to the tank. Carpet moss is mostly for looks while sphagnum moss is used to keep moisture in areas and should be water/sprayed often. I have a little fern plant in my tank rn they seem to leave alone. I know a lot of people use fake plants as well for decor!

You should make a point to put a little temp and humidity monitor in your set-ups as well. The special reptile ones can be expensive so I just but the little ones you put in rooms and have had no issues with them.

Don't forget to give them hides! Cork wood/bark or coconut shells are nice and cheap. You can also use man made items just make sure they can handle the moisture and aren't made of anything toxic to your new friends. Also give them little sticks and things to climb up on. Just make sure the lid is secured so they can't escape.

For food I just use kitchen scraps like carrot peel, cucumber, apples and melon, give them a cuttlefish bone and some dried tiny shrimps in small amounts once a week or so, but you can also use fish flacks instead. But remember! Leaf litter and rot wood is meant to be their main diet for most species.

For the millipedes I would recommend Ivory millipedes as a good starter one, they're lovely in colour and are often up top, hardy as well, and usually you can get them captive bred which I've had much higher survival rates with vs wild caught. For each species you'll have to look up their needs yourself though, there isn't a 100% catch all set up for all species. Woodlice/isopods I'd suggest dairy cows as they're lovely and also very easy to get a hold of. I will say species of Armadillidium(roly poly/pill bugs) are my fave and I'm very biased and want 500 of them.

For handling just be gentle! I wear gloves in a lot of my videos but that because I've incredibly sensitive skin and can't stand soil under my nails. The worse they can do to you is them staining your skin(not all species), or give you a little nibble. Make sure if you're handling to wash your hands off BUT be careful what hand soaps you use! Wash hands after as well some can be toxic to bugs from what I've heard.

For tank size hmm that's hard, usually you want soil as deep as their body but that can be hard, 10-15cm is what I aim for my BIG boys and 7-10cm for my others, deeper is better but sometimes you'll also just never see them again! You'll want a tank at least a few times longer than your pets body or at least big enough for them to filly stretch out in if you get really big millipedes like giants and a 120cm tank is just kinda unrealistic haha.

I do not have a lot of advice for if they get sick sadly, it's kinda of hard to tell honestly and usually when you can it's too late. I would just say don't beat yourself up too much if some pass away sometimes bugs just do that especially if you don't know their history.

Where to get them depends on where you're from and what you want. A ton of reptile/specialist stores will have wild caught which isn't great but they will have the largest range of species and usually also sell all the stuff you need to tank care of them. Ebay is where I've gotten most of my captive bred and I just message people if I've questions about their bugs there.

I think that's everything I can think of,

Again I'm a big novice when it comes to bugs, @onenicebugperday and @crevicedwelling likely know way more than me, though idk if they're open to questions but they likely already have a lot of info on their blogs.

#bug babbles #again! I'm a big novice still so please also do your own research online about this #just googling some things can help find some sites #more sites that sell them will info pages about the species you're buying as well

[s1m0nth3swag]

Don't mind me just giving short drabbles because I'm sitting in class and I'm bored :3

Leon is the love of my life and uhm domestic headcanons will forever be my favourite

live laugh love Leon Scott Kennedy <3

Leon grumbles as you practically push him onto the edge of the bathtub, looking up at you with his adorable blue eyes - for everything he's gone through, he still has that puppy look about him when he's with you. He pouts softly, sighing as you rummage through various cabinets and successfully find what you had been looking for - the Bleach and Toner he usually uses on his hair. Even though Leon is the one that has been complaining about the way his hair looks for the last week, he also absolutely despises getting it done. So instead, he normally would do it himself - which he was too lazy to do this time. Still, nothing but complains about how awful his hair looked grown out like this, how it was getting too long. You were a little fed up, to say the least. Now, you had enough and pushed him into the bathroom, determined to fix his hair issue.

[Helping Leon dye his hair - Some time after RE2, but also fits for RE4 | Leon most definetly dyes his hair blonde and then stops sometime after RE4 because he gets lazy (and a lil depressed) but as someone with dyed hair it's a pain each time imo]

He huffs and sighs and pouts the entire time, while you can't help but giggle a bit at the sight, especially with how ridiculous he looks once the Bleach is setting - you curse yourself for not having your phone nearby to take pictures. Leon would fight you over it anyway, and seriously, he was stronger than you - Government mandated Training and all. The now blonde haired only calms down once you finally rinse for the last time, hair still wet as he stares at you, swiftly shaking his head like a dog, sending droplets flying through the room. You scream slightly, laughing as you feel them hit your skin and clothes, trying to shield yourself. Leon chuckles softly, grabing your hips as he pulls you towards him, resting his head against your chest. A smile places itself on your lips, uncaring that your shirt was now properly soaked as you listen to his soft murmurs of thank yous.

[Vendetta Leon with a (much) younger partner - aka Leon and the internet | your honor what if I love older men]

You hold back a laugh as you hand Leon your phone, a funny meme on it that you had found while randomly scrolling social media for hours. He stares at it, his face scrunching in confusion as he looks up at you, holding your phone as if he didn't know what to do with it. You weren't fully surprised, it had already been a hassle to get him to upgrade his flip phone to a proper smartphone. You can't help but grin, and he sighs heavily. "Your humor will be the death of me one day, what is this, love?" He grumbles, brushing a strand of dark hair out of his eyes as you sit beside him, snuggling into his side as you start explaining the meme - in the end only earning a soft chuckle from the older guy, a simple show of endearment.

[Leon with the kitten he said he didn't want - RE4 Leon | He loves cats, you can't tell me otherwise]

He stares down at the small creature, watching as it desperately tries to climb up his leg, meowing in desperation. Leon didn't want a pet, at all. Especially not a cat that wouldn't be able to defend you or the home - he sighs as he thinks of all the puppies at the shelter that would've done a great job at that. He picks the small animal up, placing it in his lap, where it promptly flops down and starts purring. His heart isn't melting. Not one bit.

Only a few days later you practically have to pry the cat from Leon if you wanted to even have a second with it. It was crazy, at first Leon had said it would never get into the bedroom or bathroom, now it was allowed to snuggle up to him in bed and even follow him whereever he went. You thought that maybe, just maybe, he loved the cat a little more than he loved you. At least when you found him during his midday nap, and with the kitten on top his chest.

#leon x reader #leon kennedy x reader #leon resident evil #leon s kennedy #leon kennedy #leon kennedy fluff #resident evil x reader #leon kennedy re2 #leon kennedy re4 #leon kennedy resident evil

[ghostiiess]

“you’re my red string”

synopsis: because ni-ki called you ‘bro’, you decided to tease him back with a silent treatment.

warnings: petnames (babe and baby), mention of kisses on the cheek and on your hand, i think that's all? let me know if there's more!

type: fluff (ni-ki’s imagines will always be sfw!!)

wc: around 1k

member: ni-ki from enhypen x gender neutral reader (no pronouns used to describe y/n)

reblogs and likes are really appreciated! not too sure about the end, but lmk if you liked it :D

english's not my main tongue. sorry if i made any mistakes!

permanent taglist: @nsb-rkive @firebenderwolf @yawnzzznnn @ghostyycat7

It's been about three hours since your boyfriend jokingly called you “bro”. He knew you didn't really like the nickname, but he liked teasing you. For him, seeing your cute reaction and your smile was probably the highlights of his day. That's probably one of the many reasons why he deliberately teased you…

You weren't exactly the kind of person who would use the silent treatment to get what you wanted, but you were curious to see his reaction. After all, you also liked to see him smile.

- I'm home! he exclaimed.

You smiled a little, then waited. This was going to be fun.

Not hearing your voice, Ni-Ki repeated the sentence he had just spoken:

- Babe? Are you there?

Your boyfriend and you shared an apartment, and let's just say that the times he uttered the phrase "I'm home" were pretty rare... He always came home late because of his hard work, and he had a lot of practice. It wasn't part of your ritual not to greet him when you were both in the apartment. The rare moments you had together that weren't during the night when you were asleep, you usually played video games with him and listened to him talk about his upcoming concerts and projects with his music group.

Still not hearing you, you could hear a sigh from him. He knew you were there: your shoes were in the hall. You heard him walk from the front door to the living room, where he found you on your phone, no headphones, no videos playing in the background, your ears perfectly tuned to hear him greet you a few minutes earlier.

- Hi.

You didn't even look at him.

- Are you deaf? he laughed, running a hand through his dark hair. I was waiting for your hug...

Whenever he came home, you always put your arms around Ni-Ki's shoulders. You knew he didn't like that kind of attention from people he didn't know very well, but from you? He loved it. He loved the gentle attention you gave him, the loving names you called him, the cuddling time he spent with you... He loved it, but he would never dare to say it to your face.

- Are you okay? Do you sleep with your eyes open now?

You moved to let him know you weren't sleeping, to let him know what you were doing: a silent treatment.

- Oh, I see what you're doing, Y/N...

He gave you a faint smile.

- It's because I called you bro, isn't it?

You didn't answer, which confirmed that he was right.

- You know I said that just to tease you, right? I didn't mean it. And if it makes you feel any better, I'd say you're my best bro.

You obviously didn't answer.

- So you won't talk? All right, then I'll have to make you talk.

Without letting you react, Ni-Ki took your hand and gave it a simple kiss, hoping it would work.

- Do you want to talk now?

Seeing your resistance, your boyfriend approached you, then gave you a kiss on the cheek and a small smile:

- No reaction? That's strange, you always smile when I kiss your cheek...

Sighing, he rested on the back of the sofa.

- It's not easy to make you talk...

Then he had an idea.

- If I can't make you react physically, I'll make you react verbally.

You looked at him and immediately regretted it: he was way too cute.

- I'll tell you what I like about you, and I'll stop when you're tired of me.

He cleared his throat, then began:

- First of all, I love your eyes. I could get lost in them for years and never get tired of it.

Hoping you would answer, he sighed. He missed you, your words, your affection.

- Second, I love your hands. They're so soft…, he added, taking one of your hands and kissing the top of it.

He crossed his fingers with yours and gave you a small smile.

- I love your smile. You always light up the room with yours and every time you smile I think it couldn't be more beautiful, but I'm wrong every time.

You had to bite your lips to hide your smile. You knew you weren't subtle, but you couldn't control your desire to smile.

- Is that a smile I see? Does that mean I can live with a real person again and not a statue? he laughed.

Running a hand through his hair, he continued:

- Should I continue?

Still without an answer, Ni-Ki took the opportunity to continue.

- I like your personality. Actually, I don't think the word "like" is strong enough. I love your personality... You're probably one of the people who means the most to me. You always greet me with a smile on your face and you are always understanding about my schedule and my practices.

While playing with your fingers, he went on:

- You're always there for me, trying to make me smile and feel good, and I really appreciate that.

Your lips hurt. You couldn't stop smiling. You tried to hide it, but it was no use: Ni-Ki would always manage to make you smile.

He sighed:

- And I want you to know that even if you're giving me the silent treatment, I will always love you. Even if I don't show it sometimes, I appreciate you and you're one of the people I care about most.

Seeing your smile gradually spreading, he added:

- And if I may say so, I think you're my red string... I don't really believe in signs and myths or anything like that, but I think this is true. At least I think it is for us.

The Japanese myth of the red string: the one you were passionate about. Ni-Ki and you thought it was cute to know that everyone had a string around them that was attached to someone else.

You couldn't go on any longer. You smiled and put your hands in front of your face.

- I can't go on, you're too cute!

He chuckled slightly:

- You're just obsessed with me, admit it.

- Keep telling yourself that.

He smiled, then kissed you gently on the lip before letting you speak:

- Did you mean any of those things?

He rolled his eyes, then smiled.

- Of course, I did, you silly.

#ghostiiess #enhypen #enhypen imagine #enhypen x you #enhypen x y/n #enhypen x female reader #enhypen x reader #enha #enha x reader #enha x you #enha x yn #enha x female reader #enha x y/n #ni ki x reader #ni ki x female reader #ni ki enhypen #enhypen ni ki #ni ki enha #ni ki imagines #enhypen niki #enhypen imagines #enha imagines #enha imagine #ni ki fanfic #ni ki fluff #enhypen x yn #enhypen x gender neutral reader #enha fluff #enha fic #enha niki

[wonderfulwonderrful]

Season of Love (6/?)

+18 | Toto x reader fem!teamprincipal

Summary: One night on a pier in Monaco, while admiring the sea under the night skies, you told Toto, "I came to the conclusion that love is simply not meant for me." That was the answer to a question you have been asking yourself for the longest time. But what if he proved you wrong. Pairing: Toto Wolff x reader team principal. Genre: Romance, comedy, and some good drama. Author's note: We are so back! Thank you for your support and comments; read you soon!

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Dances with Wolff Arc Chapter 6: Collision at Turn 1

UK

Sam and Toto go to the Soft Serve Society in London the following day to have milkshakes. They share a sizeable Instagram-able shake, asking for two straws instead of one. 

The place is intimate and small, perfect for chatting. Its location in a trendy neighborhood gives Sam the ideal excuse to pull that Thom Browne boyish suit out of her suitcase.

As Sam is asking for two matcha cookies to complement their order, she notices Toto smiling like an idiot at his iPhone screen.

—Wow, that time you two spent apart did wonders for your relationship. I thought it was a "cease and desist" situation, as if there wouldn't be a turning point, but I haven't seen you like this in a long time.

—How? —Toto moves his gaze to Sam, a bit perplexed.

—Stupidly in love. So you two are genuinely back?

—Oh, that... well, we are trying this open relationship thing. Actually, I wanted to talk to you about it.

Sam gives him a judgy look, her eyebrows slightly frowning. —Let me guess. Susie suggested it; you said no, then she pressured you, and you followed along. There is no need to explain further; I get it.

Toto shrugs and barely nods his head.

—It's always what Susie wants, isn't it? You are so blind sometimes —she sounds now annoyed.

—I thought you, of all people, would get it. You see love differently than in the traditional way. Preferences aside, you are more free regarding feelings and partners.

—Yes, yet I'm not into playing with other people's feelings. 

—I'm not being played or playing with her feelings.

—To which one of the two hers are you referring?

A silence.

It's the first time Sam addresses the elephant in the room. 

—Listen, I don't want to overstep, and God knows I don't want to get in the middle; I love you both; yes, I said that, and stop smiling like that, but for fuck sake, you two need to communicate and talk! LIKE TALK! I know it's not my place, and I have tried to remain as neutral as possible, but I genuinely care about Y/N; there's more you need to know about each other because this thing is going to blow in your faces the worst way.

—What's on this? Is this really happening? You telling me how you are feeling? —Toto picks up the shake to smell it, making a funny face and trying to lighten the mood. He also avoids giving Sam an answer but pays attention to her every word.

—Oh, fuck off —Sam pushes him a bit roughly.

—Sugar sure is a drug! —Toto's holding a laugh.

-

—How did your day out with Toto go?

—How do you know we went out? Stalker!

In response, you give Sam an exaggerated insulted expression (hand over your chest and open wide mouth). —He texted me when you two were at the ice cream place! He even sent me these pictures! —you show her the conversation. —By the way, that outfit of yours is CUTE!

—Oh! It was you then —she says quickly and softly.

—Sorry? —you look at Sam as if another head grew from her neck.

—Oh, nothing. Toto didn't mention anything. He was just smiling like an idiot and giggling like a teenager, looking all in love at his phone screen.

—All what? Sam, what you said?! —you feel your heart in your throat.

—Did you follow my advice? —she cuts your shenanigans.

—I tried to follow it and address our "situation," but he rushed to get wine. He ran from the conversation, and I didn't feel like having it much, either. I knew how it was going to end.

—Well, keep pushing, trust me.

—Is there something I should worry about? —you suddenly stop and look straight at her.

—It's not my place to tell —Sam answers neutrally.

Then you two board your jet with directions home, your new home, Monaco. 

Now, thanks to Sam's words, an eerie sentiment fills your head. Is she trying to warn you something?

-

It's a quiet flight; well, if it wasn't for Samanta's snoring, not even an English Bulldog snores that loud. 

Which makes you laugh hard; you have forgotten how terrible Sam sleeps. 

It's been a while since you two slept nearby, which was the most common thing for all those years you lived at the Manor.

You have always been very much like sisters.

You take out your phone and start recording a video of Sam sound asleep with T-rex arms, open mouth, and loudly snoring, all weirdly placed on the comfy, big seat next to you.

-

Monaco

Why, every time you land in Monaco, your mind is in desperate need of a Toto detox?

-

As soon as you are in the car ride home, you hit the send button on the "Get a grip, loca🏎!" group chat.

After you share the video of Sam sleeping, a long list of replies and reactions appear in the group.

She threatens to murder you in your sleep.

-

Two nights after being back, when Charles enters the apartment wearing the world's most oversized outfit while trying to juggle four bottles of wine - one held under his chin - and a big fancy grocery bag while avoiding stepping on "Robbie" - your Roomba robot - you feel so at home; this couldn't be a more domestic scene for you two before you rush to help him.

Never mind, too late! Now, the kitchen floor looks like a crime scene. 

God, how much you missed him! Keeping your friendship while hiding it from the rest of the Scuderia has been difficult. 

Ferrari is a hermetic group that likes it that way; being extra friendly with the enemy could cost Charles' head, thanks to Binotto's paranoia.

—FUCK! FUCK AND FUCK! —he lets out, looking at the now red floor, followed by various French cursings coming out of that pouty mouth. 

—At least the other three survived —you hear Sam say, entering behind him and holding two more bottles and a cake.

—Several bottles of wine and lots of food. This is an intervention for me, isn't it? —you ask, looking at them suspiciously.

Both of them energetically nod.

—We need to talk about Bruno —Charles jokes; he obviously means Toto while grabbing the paper towel on the kitchen counter to try cleaning his mess, which is as useless as you expected.

—Damn —is all you let out.

At some point, Charles gives up and prefers leaving a fat tip and a Post-it for Rosita when she comes clean tomorrow morning.

-

—Hi, I have a quick question: How much do you weigh?

A text from Toto comes in the early hours of the day as you are about to hit the treadmill in your luxurious building's training center. You rushed down there, unable to sleep a second more.

After the intervention, you comprehend lots of things need to change.

—(Y/N's weight), why? —you reply. 

It's still dark outside.

Only you and three others are alone in the enormous gym section, which feels quiet and isolated, perfect for decompressing. 

Apparently, when Toto and you are apart, you are both early birds. It's always a snooze fest when you two are tangled in sheets. Probably, it's because he makes the world's most fabulous pillow or because he loves having you wrapped in his arms.

Judging by his text's unusual hours, he may be overthinking it too. Lately, you have felt driven to exercise earlier in the morning as well to avoid losing your sanity.

A couple of minutes later, a video of Toto adjusting the weight of his barbells to your weight before doing a couple of hip thrusts comes as a reply.

You watch the video a couple of times, okay, several times, before hitting the reply button. —I can help you do some repetitions if you want; I know a very effective routine! My trainer also advised me I needed more cardio —you tease him, feeling a tingle down there, hehe. 

Fuck! You are falling for it again, and you just swore to Sam and Charles that there would be no Toto during this break!

As Toto reads your text, a pleased smirk forms on his lips, and then he exhales and returns to exercise. 

He shouldn't be feeling this desperate for your attention. It has been only the first week without seeing you.

The way you have turned his life upside down is unimaginable.

-

—Your girl is in town! —Normani sends a selfie of herself in the group chat, throwing a pose on the Monaco pier, looking flawless and stylish in a two-piece Casablanca outfit (an orange thee with colorful stripes and shorty shorts and pulling the coolest glasses) while blowing a kiss. —Let's hang out tonight!😈😈

—OH, I KNOW JUST THE PLACE —Lando writes back.

—Italy.

Several "???" appear.

—I'm in Italy —Seb clarifies.

Now, it makes sense.

—Someone needs to help Seb with this, really —George says.

—Let's take him to one of those free classes at the Apple store, you know, with the senior citizens —Checo jokes. —I'm with Carola's parents and the kids in Guadalajara, so we are out of the fun this time.

—Tell Carola I love her —you request Checo.

—I will, thx.

—I don't wish for an apple, thank you —Seb replies.

—Dear God —Lewis texts.

—Jk! Jk! I'm not that inept, and I'm not yet a senior citizen, but soon, 2032 let's go! —Seb exits the conversation.

—Lando, send the location —Lewis texts. —That's great to know, Seb. I'm already saving for our turbo wheelchairs to challenge you in races at the retirement home.

—There, see you guys at 1 a.m.

—I want to live enough to witness that, Lewis —Mick enters the conversation.

—This club looks like a shithole! I don't wish for my organs to get stolen —Charles points out after looking for the place on Google Maps; it's only a run-down facade photo of the place in a not-that-neat street.

—Trust me, you are going to love it —Lando comments.

—Is it private? —Lewis asks. —Cause last time we went out in London, getting us out of there was a nightmare.

—That's precisely why I'm suggesting this place!

—Spain.

—I'm in Spain —Carlos texts, mocking Seb. —Have fun without me, guys, even though I don't think you can. Send pictures. I miss you, my friends.

—Te extraño, too🙇‍♀️ —you reply, Carlos, you have become fond of him.

—🥰🥰 —Carlos sends.

—I'm liking this sketchy, mysterious place already —Sam joins in.

—Sam, is Millie still in town? —you ask her, you met Millie for brunch two days ago.

—No, I already left 😭😭😭. Mick invited me to hike in Patagonia—a photo of them out in nature follows her text. 

—Okay, the ones who are going, please send a hands-up emoji; I'm booking the table —Lando texts.

-

You make your way through the winding streets of Monaco on Charles' bike at full speed; you are sure you flashed at least four people with that party mini dress you are wearing as you head to the mysterious nightclub. 

As soon as you park, you agree with Charles that it looks like a sketchy part of town, but the faint sound of pulsing music and the flickering lights emanating from a door down a narrow corridor between two buildings right in front of you quickly distract you and guides you in.

Soon, as you enter and go down the long stairs, you are immediately enveloped in a world of luxury "decadence." 

The atmosphere is electric, and the air is heavy with the scent of exotic perfumes. 

—It smells like good sex —is what Lando tells you as he greets you, looking at your two "trying to discover the scent" faces.

The walls are decorated with striking artwork, each more provocative and daring than the last.

For sure, this place is the stage for many wild escapades.

As almost everyone gets there, the group is drawn to the center of the club, near where the main stage, lit up with swirling lights and seductive, almost naked dancers. 

Your table in the VIP area "it has the best location in the place", again, according to Lando.

As you sit next to Nomani, who gave you the world's greatest greeting hug, you get mesmerized by the hypnotic rhythm of the music and the dancers' graceful motions. 

You get transfixed, unable to tear your eyes away from them. Gorgeous he/she/they are on the stage.

—Beer, gin, what are we drinking? —Normani asks you.

—Tequila —you answer too quickly for her and Sam's amusement.

—Tequila, it is! —she says loudly and makes a little dance, shaking the girls around. The more than happy waiter witnesses it before getting the bottle.

You pour everyone a shot to start the night. Lewis just arrived, and George is running late as usual.

—Can you smell it? —you ask everyone.

A couple of "What?" come along.

—The regret —you joke as you all take the shot.

The group then goes full party core, joining the pulsating dance floor and losing themselves in the music. 

Laughter and shouts fill the air as the exotic dancers approach you and the crowd to exchange some sensual moves.

Amidst the chaos and allure of the night, Toto arrives. Unexpectedly.

Charles and Sam instantly look at you, almost throwing you darts.

—I swear to God I didn't invite him!

George did.

-

As alcohol skyrockets Lando, he starts doing push-ups for you in the middle of the dance floor as a techno-dub mix of Olivia Newton John's and Dua Lipa's "Physical" starts playing while he looks straight at you.

—Is that supposed to impress me? —you raise an eyebrow, cross your arms, and lean on Lewis, who is also witnessing the action.

—Is it working?

—Never stop believing in your dreams —you laugh it off, and Toto playfully rolls his eyes at him, then winks at you.

"Oh, God, I'm weak! I'm not going to resist the temptation."

—The dancer with the jockstrap hasn't taken his eyes off you the entire night —Toto points out for Normani, gesturing to which one he refers.

Normani makes a "definitely wouldn't mind" expression. —Too bad I don't do one-night stands —she confesses.

—Like ever? —Lewis looks at her like she is from Mars.

—Hopeless romantic right here! —Normi answers. —I like to party, but I'm so old-fashioned. Thanks, Mom!

—What a classy lady, indeed! —George says.

—It's my Britishness britishing —she jokes. —I want a husband, a big house in the countryside, horses and babies, you know, the traditional.

—Like, literally, this is the worst place to discuss family! —Sam warns them with a "Don't kill the mood, guys" look.

—The worst! —you all burst out laughing.

—I'm not sure if she is messing with us or..? —Lando comes closer to saying to Charles.

—No, really! It's my biggest wish. I can't wait to be a mom! —Normani lets out. 

—But you are so young! —everyone looks so shocked at her. Quite the revelation!

—I KNOW, but I want four! So, I better hurry up.

—FOUR?!! —everyone kind of screams in response.

Normani looks at them with a big smile, happy with the chaos her confession is causing.

—I get you, girl. I do love one myself; I have wanted to be a mom for years now. I feel I'm close to adopting one, but I need to do something with my schedule first. It would be impossible with a baby!

Toto listens to your conversation, very quiet and still, looking as if something inside him broke.

-

—Hey, I want to talk to you privately. I have something important to tell you; it's been on my mind for a while —Toto approaches you to whisper in your ear.

—Oh, sure, yeah —you agree to. "Okay, breathe, the moment it's coming."

When you reach a quiet spot to talk without all the people buzzing around, the loud background noises, and the almost butt-naked performers, you two remain there in an awkward silence for a minute.

Toto looks like he wants to say something but doesn't, so you break the ice first, feeling your hands shaking a bit.

—So what do you want to tell me that's so important?

He looks straight at you and takes two steps to close the distance between you. —Ahem, so... so what are you planning for... for the off-season? —he takes you off guard.

"Okay, this is not what I was expecting."

—I... I don't know... yet.

—Maybe we could spend it together. I know a private island that would be perfect —Toto offers you, totally improvising.

—Oh, I see...

—I mean... if you want to.

—No, no, of course, I want to!

—Perfect, then —he says, his voice deep. Toto then takes your hand, and you're surprised by the warmth from his touch.

"Coward" "Selfish" is all Toto thinks for himself. "But I don't want to lose her. I need her just a bit more. I don't know how to quit her."

—What do you say if we continue this conversation somewhere even more private? —Toto invites you, his intense dark eyes piercing right through you. 

Before you have time to respond, he takes your hand and leads you toward the exit at the back of the place and into his car.

Soon, you arrive at his luxurious penthouse, abandoning almost all of your party clothes in the process. 

You glance around the dimly lit living room, admiring its opulence. The walls are decorated with fine art, and the scent of wealth lingers in every corner.

Toto, already bare-chested, removes the rest of his clothes, revealing himself. You can't help but stare at his toned abs, defined muscles, and delicious dick. 

He smirks, noticing your admiration, and pushes you closer to the sofa. It creaks softly under your weight as he sits you down, eyes locked onto each other.

—You're stunning —Toto says while tracing his fingers down your body as you remove your last piece of clothing.

Your pulse quickens at his touch, and you move in, pressing your lips hard against his.

Toto's tongue sneaks its way between your parted lips as he pulls your naked body close to his. You moan softly.

Slowly, he leans back onto the plush pillows, taking you with him. Your bodies intertwine in a passionate embrace, enjoying the heat from his broad chest into you as you run your hands all over him, feeling every inch of Toto pressing against your core.

He grabs you by the hips, grinding you against him forcefully, causing an excited whimper to escape your lips. You can't help but crave his every single inch.

Sliding yourself lower, you feel him harden beneath you. —Fuck, you're so hard —you whisper into his ear as you stroke his length up and down. 

Toto flips you onto your back, not letting you control the show yet, spreading your legs wide. He effortlessly glides both of his hands beneath your ass, lifting you up like you weigh nothing.

His left-hand squeezes your ass cheek possessively while his right supports your lower back. Then Toto lowers his mouth to your inner thigh, his tongue trailing a path of wetness up to your core, where he tastes you. 

You gasp, your breath hitching whenever his tongue flicks your clit.

Plunging his tongue deep inside you, he tastes the sweetness of your essence. Moving back up to your clit, he sucks hard, provoking you to tremble under the pleasure.

Your fingers entangle his thick hair, tugging and pushing as waves of delight roll over your body. 

Toto stares at your swollen clit and massages it gently, building an almost unbearable tension in the pit of your stomach before he slides first one finger, then two inside of you, feeling you tighten around them as he moves them in deliberate circles.

—What the fuck, you feel incredible —he mumbles against your folds. He increases his pace, sucking harder, flicking faster until you are shuddering against him, gasping for breath, about to break apart.

Your vision gets blurry as an involuntary moan escapes your lips.

—I'm so fucking close —you cry out, inarticulate with pleasure. Toto looks up and climbs back up your body, kissing and nipping at your soft flesh as he goes up until his thighs are between yours.

—You want me to make you come, don't you? —he whispers seductively, nibbling on your earlobe.

You nod, biting your lip. You need Toto to fill you, to end this unbearable craving he had built inside you.

—Please, Toto —you beg, thrusting your hips upward. A desperate whimper tears from your throat when your sexes don't meet.

Toto chuckles softly, smirking at your desperation. —Then fuck me —he murmurs, placing you on top of him, inviting you to ride him right there, inviting you to guide him inside of you. —Fuck me hard.

The feeling of him filling you up, inch by inch, sends waves of ecstasy through your body. —Oh, god, yes —you moan, encouraging him deeper.

Your bodies move together in perfect harmony as you ride waves of pleasure. Toto grunts and groans with each bounce, whispering obscenities in your ear as you cowgirl him with an arched back, panting heavily. Wetness pools between you as your sweat-slicked bodies slap together rhythmically.

Toto grabs your hands and pins them behind your back, changing the angle of his thrusts. He hits a spot deep within you that sends shivers down your spine, producing a guttural moan from your lips. 

He smirks at the sound and repeats the action, watching your reaction with fascination.

—Fuuck —you cry out, every muscle tensing as your fingers curl into fists. 

Toto continues to plow into you, each thrust harder and deeper than the last, making your tits bounce without control, making you a mess. 

You look down at him to see your bodies moving in a slick rhythm, leaving trails of sweat and lust on your skin. He looks wild, eyes burning with desire and mouth parted in a low growl as the scent of sex permeates the air around you.

You whimper as he releases one of your wrists, allowing you to wrap your hand around your breast. Your fingers tease your sensitive nipple, sending a fresh wave of sensation flooding through you.

Toto watches you touch yourself, entranced by the movement of your hand on your breast as his thrusts become erratic.

—Fuck, you're so goddamn beautiful —he mutters roughly, his hips slamming into yours hard. The sound of your bodies colliding resonates throughout the room, mixing with your erratic breathing. 

—You like that? —Toto asks, smirking at your eager expression. You feel yourself getting closer to the edge, ready to burst at any moment.

Toto's dark eyes pierce into you, watching every twitch of your face and every moan of breath.

His thrusts become more deliberate, each one pressing into your womb.

—Fuckkk —Toto groans loudly, struggling to contain himself. His muscles tense as he gives it to you very fast; sweat drips down his face, onto his chest, and you.

—Toto! —you moan very loud as you come all over his dick.

—I need you —he confesses to you as he is about to come. You bounce hard and desperately on his cock, till you hear him grunting loud; a mess of panting Toto fills you up.

-

Ferrari's big anniversary is coming up next weekend, and they are set to throw the biggest party ever, a very fancy gala that will take place in Rome, or so Charles discloses to you.

—I'm actually excited for this one! —then he turns to show you the jewelry bracelet he likes before trying it on while cheerfully chit-chatting.

—This one is more your style, I like it better —you agree with his pick, as you two are out shopping.

While the sales lady adjusts it to his wrist measurements, Charles continues telling you: —This party has been in the making for so long, and all the rumors we have been hearing about it from the planners keep getting better; it honestly sounds so good!

You attentively listen to him while trying on a set of butterfly diamond earrings. Yes, you need them.

He continues: —I really wish I could take you like my plus one! But I'm taking my mom; I promised her way before meeting you.

—Oh, sweetie, no worries! But do tell me more about it. Sounds fabulous.

—Well, it will be very VIP, with only big clients, a couple of A-lister celebrities, and influential motorsports people. There's a lot of gossip about what or who will be the entertainment.

—I guess I'm not part of the big names of motorsports yet because I haven't been invited, haha. Mattia doesn't like me, isn't it?

—He is not your biggest fan, but almost no one has been invited; as far as I know, it's just the Scuderia and people Mattia considers his "paddock friends." —Charles gestures with his hands. —And some special guests with a history with the brand, like Niki. He is going! I know because Sam is his plus one; she told me yesterday.

—Maybe I should buy Ferrari to party with you at that fabulous event —you laugh it off as you sign the check for the earrings.

—And to party with Niki —Charles adds, joking.

—I heard he goes hard! —you joke back. Nowadays, if Niki stays up after 10 p.m., he considers it a wild night, in his words.

-

As you are about to finish your grilled salmon at that gorgeous "Gaia" restaurant in Monte Carlo, your phone buzzes on top of the white mantelpiece, grabbing your attention.

—Didn't you lose something?

—Not that I know.

—How weird, cause I have this plus one ticket with your name on it.

—Haha. You got me!

—Feeling like going to a fancy party in Rome?

—A getaway trip to Italy? SIGN ME UP! —you happily reply, already thinking about what you will wear.

-

Rome

As the sun descended over the iconic Roman Colosseum, flashing cameras lit the red carpet at the ancient structure's entrance. 

Sleek Ferraris pull up, each more luxurious than the previous, dropping the celebrities and high-profile guests off to make their grand entrances, dressed in the most glamorous outfits and adorned in shining jewels. 

Amidst all that circus, you two stay on the sidelines, watching the spectacle unfold before quietly skipping the paparazzi and splitting apart to enter the temporarily built ballroom.

—Surprise! —you extend your arms to Leclerc; he is now fresh off the red carpet, the one you avoid to keep it as discreet as possible.

A prominent smile forms on the lips of the Monagesque. —We could have shared the flight here, you know! Instead of you flying here all by yourself —Charles rolls his eyes at you and then hugs you. —I really believed you when you said you didn't get invited. You got me!

"But I didn't fly by myself!" You want to correct him on that, but you don't.

Inside, the atmosphere is as opulent as outside. Red lights illuminate the ancient structure, and lavish decorations adorn every table set. Cirque du Soleil performers move gracefully through the crowds, dazzling costumes twirling and shimmering as they entertain the guests with their mesmerizing acts.

You take in all the sights and sounds of the extravagant gala surrounding you, where motorsport legends mingle with billionaires, entertainers, engineers, celebrities, and beautiful models. 

Laughter, loud music, and chatter fill the air, along with the clinking of champagne glasses.

-

After having a blast dancing around, chatting, and goofing an hour later, you go to look for Sam, knowing she must be somewhere around. 

But the place is enormous, the crowd is big, and no luck so far; she is nowhere to be seen.

You get tired of searching for her and go to the bathroom. By this point, you have had many drinks, "Damn, that waiting line is long!"

As you try to find something to entertain you while you wait, you start scanning the place with your eyes, observing every gorgeous detail, when the silhouette of a beautiful blond woman steals your attention. Four girls in front of you in the line, there is Susie.

She is as beautiful as you expected her to be in person but more petite; she looks fit and fierce but kind. You can't help but stare at her before wondering what she is doing here. Then a "Duh! Idiot! She is a big name in motorsports!" hits you.

-

As you return to your table from grabbing chocolate-covered strawberries a bit later, you run into Sam.

She stares at you with the widest eyes ever, completely surprised. —What? —she lets out, standing still.

—Surprise! —you reach to hug her. —I have been looking for you all damn night! —she barely hugs you, and your big smile starts to fade away. —Is all good? —you ask, concern while looking straight at her.

—I'm so sorry, Y/N. I genuinely am —she mumbles. Samanta's features are full of dismay.

—Sam, you are worrying me.

She gestures to you to turn around.

"Oh, there is that feeling you remember so well." 

That awful fucking feeling of getting your heart shattered. Like a bullet going through the flesh, a sting of pure pain as if your heart was glass and was getting crushed by a hammer, pure and profound pain as you watch Susie wrapped around Toto's neck with no inch of space in between them, standing by the Mercedes guest table, sharing soft kisses and pets. 

Yet you are so skilled at hiding your feelings that it requires an expert - like Sam - to figure you out.

With a neutral face, you faintly say: —I need a moment.

—Y/N... I will go with you...

—I need a moment, I... I need to get fresh air. I will be right back —you start walking in the opposite direction to them, and Sam follows your every step.

—Y/N. I'm here for you...

—I'll be back, Sam. I need a moment, please —you make her stop following you around. So she contains herself and watches you walk away, worried about you. 

Sam knows your mental health hangs from a fragile thread.

-

—I want a Tequila and tonic with three tequila shots in it, please —Samanta brusquely drops herself on her seat at the Mercedes guest table and asks the waiter for a heavy drink.

—That would be two, please. You have learned from the master herself. Where is she, tho? I spotted Y/N and was going to greet her, but I got distracted by a sexy lady asking for a selfie. Now I don't know where she went to —Lewis asks while looking around, trying to spot you among the crowds.

The music is loud, so conversing is challenging if you aren't near enough.

—She's outside chatting with Vettel —Charles inserts himself in the conversation between a pissed-off Sam and a clueless Lewis, arriving a bit rushed at the table and placing himself between their two chairs.

—Hi mate! —Lewis pats his arm, and half hugs him while still sitting. Charles rubs his shoulder in response.

—Hey, Sam. I made the changes you suggested to my speech. Do you approve? —Leclerc hands her a folded piece of paper; "She is out there crying" is written in big caps.

Sam and Charles exchange warry looks.

—It's perfect. I will help you practice it.

—Great idea, let's g...

A loud "ow" sound from the crowd interrupts them. A tray hits the floor loudly, followed by glasses breaking. It's all coming from far on their left. 

They all turn their heads toward the noise, as does almost everyone in the entire place.

—I'm so so sorry! Oh my god! I'm an idiot! Please forgive me! —a very distraught and nervous Vettel apologizes frantically to you. 

He accidentally crashed into the waiter holding a tray of wine glasses as he crossed paths with you, the ones that landed all over you, fucking up your dress, before smashing on the floor. 

Which made poetic sense since you felt wounded, and now you looked like it.

You could sense Toto's eyes burning into you. You weren't supposed to be there.

Lewis gets on his feet. —Jesus, poor Y/N —and he notices how Toto looks utterly shaken by seeing you here and looking whiter than a ghost, and at that moment, he gets it. Fuck.

—Seb, Seb, SEB! —you raise your voice as Vettel keeps apologizing and talking nonstop. —It's okay, sweetie. No worries; I will go change! It's all okay.

—I'm sorry. Please forgive me; let me escort you out. It's the least I can do.

—Okay. Fine —you finally agree, looking a bit done with Seb.

You two start walking to the exit, which is all the other way around for your fucking luck. As you depart, you can hear the people whispering and staring at you. 

A frozen Toto watches you walk past them, and you can't help it; for the briefest moment, you make eye contact with him before Vettel blocks the view.

—Sebastian Vettel, you are a good man —Sam whispers.

—What? —Charles reaches even closer to her.

—Y/N is not coming back. Seb was her exit out. 

—Was that on purpose?!!

—Yes. That's why you saw them talking out there, for sure.

—Are they that close? Since when? I had no fucking clue.

—Since Y/N set foot on the paddock —Sam replies, knowing the whole story. —She's an expert at hiding in plain sight.

—Should we check on her? —Lewis turns to them, still on his feet, looking tense.

—Y/N will be fine; she always is —Sam says aloud for the entire table to hear. She can feel Toto's eyes on her but doesn't care to look back at him.

-

Vettel takes you inside a black-tinted Suburban. As the chauffeur speeds away from the Colosseum, he holds your hand and never lets it go.

Seb asks you to stay at his place so he can care for you and keep you company, and you agree.

You two cuddle in the back seat while you cry in his arms all the ride to his place. 

It's a long one.

You don't know if it's because your heart is shattering into a million pieces, or because you feel vulnerable right now, or just cause Seb is such a kind and precious being that you pour all out. 

You let him know everything, every single fucking detail about your fling with Torger and how you feel right now. You had never been so forthcoming with anyone about this, not even Sam.

—I'm so sorry about how the night turned out; I invited you as my plus-one with the idea of having the best time. I wish I had known all of this before! Finding it out this way, gosh, that's harsh —Seb tells you, with a mixture of mortification and sadness.

—You aren't the one who should apologize! Hey, at least we had a good time on the flight here. Thanks to you, now I want to build hundreds of hotels for the bees.

He smiles brightly before adding: —Right now, you need to rest and feel, let it all out of your system, and tomorrow start new! I'm here for you.

—Thanking for acting out that exit; you deserve an Oscar.

—I have been mistaken for Brad Pitt before, you know —he jokes to try to make you smile, but it's in vain. —You are a good actress, too.

-

You crash on his couch. Barely making it inside, collapsing as soon as you cross the entrance door, feeling drained.

You have experienced the "heart broke syndrome" before and know how it goes, so you needed to lie down ASAP.

-

After God knows how many minutes since you blacked out on the sofa, you hear a noise above you. You slightly and a bit unwillingly open your eyes to see Seb covering you with a remarkably soft blanket that feels so delicious. He drops a puffy pillow on the rug beside you and lays himself down there next to the couch.

You move to face him as he gets comfy there on the floor. —What are you doing?

—Oh, shit, did I wake you up? I'm staying here if you don't mind —he looks at you with apprehension in those stunning eyes.

—You are the sweetest —you tell him as you slowly drift off, exhausted.

As you fall asleep again, you understand now why Lewis dared risk it all for Seb and start wondering what happened to those two.

-

You wake up disoriented and feeling anxious. 

It's still dark. 

Seb is profoundly asleep and relaxed in the blueish-tinted living room, with the moonlight sneaking through the large windows. 

You stay there, unable to sleep but with zero energy to move. You observe his breathing, which weirdly helps you soothe yourself when suddenly, your phone screen lights up, stealing your gaze.

You try to reach for it since Seb placed your purse and phone on the coffee table at arm's distance before going to look for an oversized T-shirt that could work you as pajamas. 

It's a simple text from Toto. "Can I please talk to you?"

As you navigate your phone, you notice many missed calls from Sam, Charles, and Lewis.

Well, now it's clear communication and sincerity weren't your thing. You weren't one of those couples. 

Were you even a couple?

"Maybe it's best this way," is all you reply to him before turning your phone off.

Tears start coming down again as your phone screen dims and fades to black again.

-

The following day, Seb offers you to stay for as long as you wish, and you will take his word for it.

You don't feel like returning to the city you share with Toto; it's way too risky for you to be in Monaco. 

You need time to compose yourself. A lot is about to happen soon, and you need to be at your best. You can't fail. To be continued... < Previous chapter | Masterlist | Next chapter >

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[2neaky]

I DON'T KNOW HOW TO GET TO YOU୨ৎ

— ೀ𝚂𝙾𝙲𝙸𝙰𝙻 𝙼𝙴𝙳𝙸𝙰 𝙵𝙸𝙲 | 𝙼𝚞𝚕𝚝𝚒 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝙵𝚒𝚌ੈ P2

| 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙉𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙢𝙞/𝙄𝙣𝙛𝙡𝙪𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙧 𝘽𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧! | -> Part 1 here

today wasn't an easy day. they lost a patient on the table.

his team tried their best, nanami has no doubts about that. but the patient had multiple complications even prior to the surgery. he knew it would be a huge risk, one the family was willing to take. he hoped the odds would be in their favor.

however, they were outweighed severely.

this isn't the first time a patient has passed. but it never gets easier. in his residency days, when a patient death occurred, after work, he found himself turning to an unlikely source for distraction—instagram.

he can remember yu teasing him about it when he found out. it didn't last long, much to nanami's relief.

at first, he solely used the account for watching art videos. they bought him entertainment and kept his mind off of the sadness for a little while. but as he continued using the app, over the years, nanami found himself becoming more interested in art altogether.

during his break at work, he would do quick, "sloppy" sketches. and at home, he'd redraw them to perfection. it wasn't until four years of him just being a lurking account that nanami made his first post: a detailed sketch of the garden at the hospital he served his residency at. yu was his first commentor:

he posted another drawing a week later. yu was always the first to comment. nanami never got many likes and hardly any comments (besides yu's). but he didn't mind. he wasn't posting for likes.

he just wanted to share his art with whoever would see it. besides, his account was faceless and he had no intention of ever showing his face. this was purely for his own enjoyment—an archive of his work.

but as that archive grew, so did the likes, the comments, and the followers. seven years as a faceless art account, nanami had organically amassed 1.2m followers. and all his followers have to go off of are his hands, which were starting to get him into trouble as of late.

in the spare room of his apartment is where he does his art. recently, he started doing time-lapsed shots of him making sketches or doing drawing challenges circulating the internet.

one of his reels went viral, the comment section filled with viewers thirsting over the veins in his arms, exposed by his rolled up sleeves. since that video, he can’t escape that kind of attention. and, honestly, it’s starting to get annoying.

but never mind that. this not-so-secret hobby of his is starting to feel like a second job. his large following comes with sponsorships. and those came in handy whenever he was inbetween jobs or as just money to put away for future savings.

but those sponsorships also came with deadlines and contracts. for the last year, with work and just the overall dissatisfaction with his art, nanami has been posting significantly less.

his followers have noticed, too, begging him to post more content. for all they know, he’s just some guy who only does art. he has yet to share any part of his personal life with them. but even outside of social media, he wasn’t drawing as much.

he just can’t bring himself to do it. even in this funk nanami’s feeling, he can’t even do a small sketch. even reading requires too much mental labor.

really, he just wants to turn his brain off. the statement rings as true now as it did all those years ago: technology is a distraction.

‘the perfect one,’ he thinks as he mindlessly scrolls through instagram.

double-tap and scroll.

double-tap and scroll.

double-tap and scroll.

it’s a good thing tomorrow is one of his off-days. but even with the threat of being on-call, he can’t fight the temptation to stay awake doom-scrolling.

he’s been lost track of time. hell, he wasn’t even liking any art posts at this point, having scrolled far outside of his typical niche.

just trouble waiting to happen..

and that’s how he stumbles upon her:

she snaps him out of his mindless scrolling by her sheer beauty. the little demon on his shoulder tells him to take a look at her account, just for a couple of minutes. it’s not too serious to let his eyes stray for only a moment.

this night, user @ Kento_ART’s following list grew one user bigger.

#black reader #black y/n #it girl #pink aesthetic #nanami x y/n #jujutsu kaisen nanami #nanami x you #jujutsu nanami #nanami x reader #nanami kento #jjk nanami #kento x you #jujutsu kento #kento x y/n #kento x reader #jjk kento #social media #influencer

[afictionaladventure16]

Hiii!! i love all your writings and saw that you wanted an idea for tim bradford angst.

if possible, can you do tim bradford x teen!daughter where she gets held hostage or in trouble and he become really overprotective and worried for her?

thanks so much!! 🩷🩷

Safe & Sound (Tim Bradford x Adopted!Daughter)

Pt. 2

The Rookie Masterlist

Warnings: Mentions of kidnapping, stabbing, mentions of self-harm, beating, and potential death.

Word Count: 11,027

A/N: Alright, this is the fic that I wrote because of the poll and this request. I hope you guys enjoy it! High key, proud of this one since it is the longest fic I have written! Tim Bradford requests are open! Also, if there are mistakes... um... no, there isn't... ignore it... lol and I know there wasn't much Lucy in this one, I realize that after I wrote everything... I promise to write more Lucy in the next ones.

Side note: Diego Luna is Diego Garcia

Gael Garcia Bernal is Gael Garcia...

Y/N's eyes darted between Angela and Y/N's dad for the past ten minutes as they argued over where the centerpieces should go and for some reason, Y/N felt like this was something she’d flipped about. Yet, here they were flipping out about the position of the centerpiece. 

“What do you think?” Angela finally asked y/n, her hands on her hips and a stern look on her face.

“Does it matter?” She asked. 

Y/N could see the switch flip in Angela’s eyes, Tim couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle before placing a soft hand on Angela’s shoulder, “Just put them how you want, Angela, we have more important things to worry about,” he had waved the white flag. 

Angela nodded, “you’re right,” she began, her eyes landing on y/n, “We still need you to shower, get dressed, and do your hair and makeup. All in under,” she looked at her watch, eyes widened as she realized the time. “Two hours!” She exclaimed. 

Y/N let out a sigh, “Alright, let’s go.” She followed Angela out of the banquet hall.

Suppose y/n had asked her ten-year-old, scared self that in a few years, she’d be surrounded by people who loved her like they shared the same blood, with no conditions attached. That she’d be getting ready for her quince and that she was happy. Her younger self would have called her crazy, mostly because, at the time, she didn’t see any hope. Yet, here she was, looking at herself in the mirror as she wore her quince dress, hair styled in a half-up and half-down with curls, and the makeup wasn’t over the top but complimented her face.

“What do you think?” Angela asked, grinning from ear to ear as she looked at her in the mirror. 

“I love it,” y/n smiled, tears beginning to form in her eyes. 

“Oh no,” Angela quickly grabbed a tissue and helped y/n wipe away the tears before it ruined her makeup, “What’s wrong? Is there something you don’t like?” 

y/n couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle, “No, it’s not that,” she glanced back at herself in the mirror. “I just never thought I’d be this lucky.” 

Angela smiled, she opened her mouth to say something but quickly turned at the sound of a knock at the door. “Can I come in?” Tim asked from the other side of the door. 

Angela rolled her eyes, “Come in.” Tim entered the room, “you’re supposed to be keeping an eye on everything,” Angela scowled. 

Tim held his hands up, “In my defense, Lucy said she had it handled and rushed me to come get dressed.”

Angela sighed, “Alright, well I guess I should get ready, you don’t mind if I use the bathroom to change?” 

Tim shook his head, “by all means, go ahead.” Angela walked out of the room. Y/n couldn’t help but continue to stare at herself in the mirror, “You look beautiful, sweetie.” 

“You think so?” 

Tim nods, “And I’m not just saying that because I’m your dad and I have to.” He walked over and planted a kiss on top of her head, “Our ride will be here an hour, so why don’t you help Angela get ready.” 

“On it,” y/n smiled and walked out of the room. 

Within the hour, everyone had gotten ready and it was time to head back to the banquet hall. It wasn’t long until y/n was back at the banquet hall, making an entrance to her guests clapping. It all felt surreal and she didn’t want it to end. 

She danced with her friends as planned, and then surprised her guests with a surprise dance. By the time it was all over, she was exhausted, but when she heard the music slowly die down she was quick to catch on to what was going on. 

“If I could have everyone’s attention,” Tim began, as he waited a few seconds for everyone to quiet down. “I would just like to thank you all for coming out tonight, it means a lot to us. I also have a small speech prepared, I’m not accustomed to how quince’s go, but I’ve been told that I need to make a speech.” Tim scanned the crowd, his eyes landing on y/n, he smiled, “As many as you know, Y/N is adopted, but that doesn’t mean I love her any less, if anything it means I love her more. I think I knew from the day I met her, that there was something special in her and that I wasn’t just supposed to save her that day…” Tim could recall that moment when he knew that somehow you were destined to be a part of his life and somehow you were brought into his life to save him from his pain. 

~~ Then ~~ 

Tim cursed under his breath when he told himself it was a quiet shift because only a second later he got a call about a possible double homicide with a little girl who had called 9-1-1. He knew that whatever this little girl saw, it would stay with her the rest of her life and this wasn’t the first time he had answered calls like these. Yet, something about this one felt different. 

He was the first one on the scene when he arrived at the house, he took out his gun and slowly approached the house, the front door was already open. Slowly, Tim made his way through the house, checking every room as he walked through. He stopped when he walked into the master bedroom, seeing the bodies of a woman and a man on the floor. He walked over and checked for a pulse. 

“Dispatch, this is Officer Bradford, we got two DBs on the scene,” Tim said into his walkie. Tim could hear the distant sounds of sirens approaching, backup had arrived. 

A sound of ruffling came from behind him, he quickly turned around to face a closet door. Tim raised his gun as he slowly approached the door, “this is LAPD, come out of the closet,” Tim stated, and he was met with silence. He opened the door slowly, his eyes widened when his eyes landed on a little girl. He lowered his gun and bent down, “Hey, it’s okay.” He tried his best to sound as soft as possible, but she inched backward until she hit the wall. He noticed her eyes darted behind him, his heart raced as he turned around but no one was there. His eyes landed back down at the bodies on the floor. He blocked her view with his body. 

“Do you want to play a game?” Tim asked, y/n looked up at him and gave him a small nod. 

“Alright, the rules are you have to close your eyes okay? Can you do that for me?” Tim asked. Y/n gave him a nod and closed her eyes. Tim got up, picking you up in the process. He was surprised at how light she was, given her age. He took her outside where other officers and paramedics began to arrive, one of the paramedics walked over to the two of them. 

“She doesn’t seem to be injured but I would like to get her checked out, just in case,” Tim began. 

The paramedic nodded as he reached out for her, but she quickly sunk more into Tim’s arms. The paramedic glanced at Tim, “looks like you got a puppy,” he commented, “mind carrying her to the rig?” 

Tim let out a small sigh before following the paramedic to the rig, he held her in his arms as he sat in the back of the rig while the paramedic did his thing. She clung to his side the whole time, and for some reason, Tim was okay with it. Yes, it happened from time to time and sometimes Tim wished he was never put in that situation but this time, he felt this was where he was needed. 

~~ NOW~~ 

“Little did I know that I was to gain a daughter that day and I am proud of the young lady she is becoming,” Tim glanced over to where y/n was, a prideful smile on his face, “Happy birthday, sweetie.”  There was more that Tim wanted to say, stuff that made him feel uncomfortable in front of a room full of friends and family. He wasn’t uncomfortable because he didn’t want to say it, it was more because he never showed that side of him to those who barely knew him. 

What he wanted to say would have to wait. 

The party quickly resumed with everyone back on the dance floor and having the time of their lives. It wasn’t long before the night slowly began to die down, people began to go home and soon enough it was only a few people left. Y/N could feel the drowsiness hitting her eyes as she sat at one of the tables, she was thankful that she chose to get a second dress for the end of the night. Y/N was done with your quince dress an hour after she put it on and somehow Angela knew y/n would need a second dress. 

“Tired?” Tim asked as he sat down on the chair next to y/n. She slowly nodded, laying her head on the table. 

“Why don’t the two of you go home, I have people coming by in the morning to clean up,” Angela commented as she walked over to the table. 

Tim nodded, gesturing for y/n to get up, “Thank you, again, Angela.” 

“Hey, you helped me plan my wedding, the least I can do is help you plan your daughter’s quince, especially since you have no experience in this criteria.” 

“Well, I appreciate it,” Tim hugged Angela, letting go to grab some of y/n’s things.  

Y/N got up from the table and hugged Angela, “Thank you, Angela. You made my quince the highlight of the school year.” Angela smiled and placed a small kiss on Y/n’s forehead.

“Make sure to mention me in your popularity speech,” she winks.  

“You’ll be the first one I thank,” y/n joked. She followed Tim out of the banquet hall. 

“How are you feeling?” Tim asked as the both of them got in the truck. 

“Sleep deprived.” 

Tim grunted, “What?” 

“Well, we have a birthday tradition we haven’t done this year.” She gave him a confused look, “Our hot chocolate at midnight,” he said in a surprised tone. 

She let out a small chuckle, it was a tradition she had unknowingly started on her first birthday with her dad, “I completely forgot about that.” 

“How could you forget? It’s a sacred tradition and we are about an hour late.”  

She playfully rolled her eyes, “It slipped my mind with all the quince craziness.” 

“You’re forgiven,” he smiled, starting the truck to head home. It wasn’t long before she was asleep, being tired and going on a car drive was not a good combo for her. It felt like seconds after she had closed her eyes, she was being woken up, only to realize that she had been asleep for twenty minutes. 

“Come on, let’s get you to bed,” Tim suggested as he grabbed some of her things from the back seat. 

She followed him inside the house, “I’m still down for that hot chocolate,” she commented. 

“You sure?” 

“It’s a tradition,” she smiled, “I’m just gonna take off all this makeup, give me five minutes.” 

Your dad watched as you walked into your room, you were too stubborn for your own good and somehow he felt like he was to blame for that. 

 Tim went into the kitchen to make the two of you hot chocolate, he was adding marshmallows when everything went dark. “Crap,” he muttered to himself. “Damn outages,” he jumped into action, rushing over to the drawer where he kept his emergency kit, including his flashlight. 

“Y/N, I’ll bring over some candles!” He yelled out. He waited for your response but he did not receive any, he was trying not to panic, maybe you were so busy taking off your makeup still that you didn’t get the chance to respond. But given the last time the power had gone off, he was expecting a response. Yes, it was the summer and there had been outages but it had mostly happened during the day. 

Kojo began to whine and ran over to your door, beginning to scratch at the door. Something was wrong, Tim didn’t hesitate to run over to your door, “Y/N?” He called out. He waited another few seconds for you to respond. When you didn’t it was like all the alarms inside Tim’s head went off, “Y/N?!” He yelled. Again, no response. 

He couldn’t wait any longer, he opened the door to find an empty dark room, he ran over to your bathroom and it was empty. He felt his heart drop, and he ran out into the hallway, “Y/N!?” he screamed. He went to every single room in the house, any place he thought you would hide, but why would you hide? To play a game of hide and seek? He didn’t know, he wished that was what was happening, He hoped. He stood in the middle of the living room, his breathing was erratic as he realized that you were gone. You were gone and it was while he was home, where he could protect you. Regardless of what happened, Tim felt responsible for everything. 

His hands shook as he dialed 9-1-1, when he heard the voice on the other line, he couldn’t say the words. Maybe because saying it would mean it was reality, it wasn’t some nightmare he could just wake up from. 

“Hello? 9-1-1, what’s your emergency?” The lady asked again. 

Tim felt tears forming in his eyes, “My-my daughter is missing,” he choked out a sob before giving the dispatch his address. 

“Sir, I need you to remain calm, can you tell me your daughter’s name and age?” 

He let out a shaky breath, “Y/N,” he felt another sob making its way up his throat, part of him wanted to throw up. He didn’t know why he felt like throwing up, but the feeling was making its way up. “She just turned fifteen,” He managed to say. 

“Do you know where she was taken from?” 

Yes, he did. She was taken while I was present, he thought. “Our home,” He held back his sob. 

“Can you describe what happened? What was she wearing?” 

He needed Lucy. He needed someone to take over for him, he couldn’t do this. All he wanted to do was to run out into the streets and find her himself, but he knew he wouldn’t hold back if he did. He would tear whoever took her limb by limb, he wouldn’t show any mercy. 

“Sir? Are there any open windows in her bedroom?” 

It was like everything he learned in the academy, everything he had done on the job flew out the window the second he realized she wasn’t in her room. 

He walked into the bedroom once more, “There is,” he said as he stared at the open window, “she doesn’t open her window, her screen ripped a while back.” 

“Can you describe what happened before you realized she was missing?” 

“I-I was making us hot chocolate and then the power went out.” 

The dispatcher kept Tim on the phone until officers arrived, it didn’t take long for word to get to Sergeant Grey and somehow he arrived seconds after the first officer. 

Sergeant Grey took matters into his own hands, calling up Angela and Lucy to the scene, one because Grey knew he needed the best detective on this case and the second because Tim needed the support right now. 

“I need you to walk me through this Tim,” Angela said softly as she sat beside Tim on the couch. 

He clasped his hands together, hoping it would stop the shaking, he was shaking so much. No matter what he tried it just wouldn’t stop. “I went into the kitchen to make us some hot chocolate and the power went out. I called out for Y/N and got no response, I gave it a second because I know sometimes it’s hard for her to respond when she’s taking off her makeup.” 

Angela couldn’t help but smile at how much Tim had become a girl-dad within the past few years. He knew everything about his daughter and the habits she had. If she were on her time of the month, he was quick to get her the things she needed without being a guy about it. There were even times when Y/N’s period got so bad, that he allowed her to stay home from school. In Angela’s eyes, he was the ultimate girl-dad and she knew how lucky Y/N was to have him as one. 

“I then walked over to her bedroom and called for her again and when she didn’t respond a second time I knew something was wrong. The third time I called out for her, I didn’t wait to go in the bedroom, that’s when I realized she-She was missing,” he choked out the last part, Lucy rubbed small circles on his back. She was trying her best to be his support system in his time of need. 

Angela remembered noticing most of the neighborhood was out of power when she drove up, it could have been a planned thing or just a coincidence, “didn’t you just upgrade your alarm system? Especially the cameras?” 

Tim instantly knew what Angela was trying to bring up, he quickly brought out his phone and pulled up the app. “Usually after an outage, the cameras remain on for ten minutes,” he commented, rewinding the footage to when they had arrived from the quince. 

“There!” Angela pointed out, “That car pulls up a few houses down the same time you guys pull in.” They kept their eyes on the car as they watched the footage. They saw as the power went out and they saw the bushes on the side of the houses moving and then the car driving off in a hurry. 

“It’s too dark to see anything,” Tim felt defeated. At this point, he knew that he wasn’t getting y/n back tonight, she wasn’t safe. 

“Send me that footage, I’ll have my guys work on it. We’re not stopping until she’s home and she’s safe. For now, you should stay at Lucy’s,” Angela stated. 

He shook his head, “We need to get out there, I need to be doing something to find her. Let me help.” 

Angela shook her head, getting up from the couch, “Trust me on this, Tim. I know you want to be there, you want to go out and find her but you can’t. You need to trust me, I will find y/n and when I do, I’ll hold those who took her accountable.” 

Tim opened his mouth to protest, “She’s right, Tim,” Lucy added. “The best we can do is be on the sidelines.” 

Tim felt angry at them for, in football terms, benching him, when he felt like he should be out there with Angela trying to find his daughter. “When you were taken, we all looked for you, including Wesley. So don’t bench me. Don’t tell me to just stay home and not do anything, not after she has been kidnapped right under my fucking nose.” 

Angela looked over at Lucy with a knowing look, “All alright, but you’ll be taking orders from me, what I say goes. I can’t afford to lose any of you if anything goes sideways.” 

“Okay,” Tim said. 

“I need you to promise me that when I tell you something you will listen,” Angela stated. Tim hesitated, he wanted to promise her, but also, he felt like there could be many situations where defying her orders could save you. But he needed to trust Angela. “Promise me, Bradford!” 

“I promise.” 

She let out a deep sigh, “Alright, let’s get to the station, we have a lot of work to do and my guys need to do a sweep of the house to see if they can find anything.” 

The team spent the rest of the night at the station, they were trying to make a connection to the previous break-in, hoping that they could find something that could trace them back to y/n’s whereabouts. But with everything that they searched through, they had no luck. 

Tim and Lucy sat in the conference room where they had a board up with potential suspects on the kidnapping, people who lived nearby and were on the offenders list. It was all dead ends. Angela had left to retrieve documents on Y/N’s adoption, mostly about who her biological parents were.

“Fuck!” Tim yelled as he threw papers across the conference room. 

Lucy looked at him with concern on her face, “Tim, we’ll-” 

“Don’t,” he snapped, “this is all my fault.” Tears formed in his eyes as he sat down on one of the chairs. A shaky sob escaped his lips, “I can’t lose her, Lucy. I can’t. I don’t know how to live in a world where she isn’t my daughter. I know we joke about having kids, but I only have one of her. Nothing will replace her and I never want to replace her.” 

Lucy sat beside him, “I know,” she softly said. 

“I can’t lose her. I don’t think I would be able to handle it.” 

This was a side of Tim that Lucy was beginning to see more and more now that they were in a relationship. It was a side of Tim that she wished more people knew about, but she understood why they didn’t. Yes, he had this mentality that if he showed this side of himself to just anyone then there would be no room for people to take him seriously. 

But here he was, showing this side of himself in the middle of the conference room, where the walls were made of glass, making them the attractions in a zoo. Anyone could see, but they were in their little bubble for the moment. What happened beyond those glass walls didn’t matter, who saw them, didn’t matter. What mattered was that she was there for him in his need. 

“You know when I first met you, I never would have imagined you had a kid, let alone had adopted her. But then I saw her and the way you were with her and I could just tell, she was your kid. If you hadn’t told me that you had adopted her, I would have never guessed it.” Lucy’s fingers brushed his chin, pulling his face to look at her, “I know you will search every inch of this city to find her, but remember that you have a team behind you that is searching with you. We will find her, Tim.” 

Tim felt tears falling from his eyes, “it’s all my fault, Lucy. I was supposed to keep her safe.”

She shook her head, “It’s not your fault, Tim. You did everything right you kept her as safe as you could.” 

Angela walked into the conference room with a beaming smile, “I found something.” 

Tim quickly got up from his seat, “what?” 

“I had to do some bribing, but I got y/n’s adoption records uncovered and her biological parents aren’t who they said they were.” 

“What?” Tim asked in disbelief. 

“Her father was one of the sons of one of the biggest drug lords in Mexico, apparently he came to the U.S. to start a fresh new life with his wife and newborn daughter,” Angela hands Tim a photo of y/n’s biological parents when she was just a newborn. For some reason, Tim felt speechless as he looked at the photo in front of him. He wondered what his daughter was like at that age, the thought of it, made his heart ache. He hated that he missed out on so much, it was something that given their situation was bound to happen, but he felt grateful that he was given the chance to be her father now. 

“She was a cute baby,” Angela commented as she watched how Tim was so focused on the photo in front of him, he probably didn’t even hear a word she had said a second ago. 

“She was,” Tim smiled before putting his focus back on Angela, “you were saying?” 

She couldn’t help but let out a dry chuckle, “As I was saying before you got into a trance, it looks like Gael and Luna, Y/n’s biological parents were killed by one of another drug lord's men. Hearing this news caused his father to have a heart attack and he almost literally died from a broken heart causing the younger brother of Gael, Deigo, to take over daddy's company.” 

“You didn’t know any of this?” Lucy asked. 

Tim shook his head, “All I was told was that it was a robbery gone wrong, obviously someone wanted to cover this up.” 

“And I have a lucky guess on who that was,” Angela said as she put up a picture of a man who looked similar to Diego, standing next to another man. “The man on the right is Diego Garcia, Gael’s brother and now rightful leader of one of Mexico’s biggest mafia, and the other guy Jesse Ortega, A.K.A. El Patron, One of Mexico’s biggest drug cartels.” 

“So, what are we thinking? That Jesse has y/n?” 

Angela shook her head, “I have more, the way y/n’s biological parents were murdered is similar to how y/n was almost kidnapped and then kidnapped. They also caused a power outage before entering the home, now the question is-”

“Why in the hell would they want y/n?” Tim interrupted. 

Angela shrugged, “leverage? All I know is that we need to find someone who has a connection with Diego and we need to find it fast. We know what these people are capable of.” She looked down, regretting her words as soon as she had said them, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.” 

“No, we have to face the reality,” Tim uttered, “there is a chance…” he stopped, he couldn’t believe that he was going even to say it, “a chance that she may come back.” 

“We’re not going to let that happen,” Lucy said. 

Tim gave Lucy a hopeful smile, she was optimistic even when those surrounding her weren’t. She was optimistic in an annoying way that if she had ever stopped, he would miss it. 

~~ 

It had been what felt like a week since y/n had seen the sun since she remembered what it felt like to feel the comfort of her bed. She had been tied up on a chair since she’d been kidnapped, only allowed to get up to go to the bathroom or to stretch for ten minutes. Her captors were human enough to allow her just that. The only way she knows what time it is is by the sound of birds chirping outside, she knows it is morning by the sound of the mourning dove and when it is night by the sound of the crickets and frogs. 

She knows she has to be near water because of the frogs and because of how some of the men complained about the mosquitos. This is how she spent her time, studying. 

She has studied her captor's moves and the daily routines they did to make the time go by. She’d be lying to herself if she said she wasn’t at all scared because every minute that passed by her fear worsened. One thing in particular was that they hadn’t given her much attention. They gave her a small bottle of water that she was supposed to make last for the day, and a small meal a day which always looked like leftovers of the meal they chose not to eat. 

Y/N jumped in her chair to the sound of a door slamming, she could hear footsteps escalating towards her, and her eyes widened as the door to the room she was in swung open. One of the guards that sat in the room was quick to react letting out a relieved sigh when he realized who it was. 

“Dude, why do you have to come in like that? You almost gave me a heart attack,” The guard commented as he took a seat once again. 

“We have to get out of here,” the guy that entered the room says. 

“What?” 

“Our location could be blown, it’s been a week since we’ve heard the word,” the guy makes his way towards y/n, tugging at her arm, a gesture for her to get up. 

Y/n groans in pain, her legs sore from being in a position for so long, “What about-” 

“He’ll know where to find us, plus, at this point, I feel like he’s just taking his sweet ass time to come and get his prize.” The man led her out of the room. 

“Wait!” The guard said as he reached for the blindfold in his back pocket, tying the piece of fabric around her eyes. “Alright, now let’s go.” 

Y/n felt herself being led down a dirt path, and then being pushed into the trunk of a car. Then it was silent for a moment before she heard the roar of the engine and they were moving. This was her moment, she slowly began to loosen the rope tied around her wrists, she had been slowly working on it when her captors weren’t in the room. She had almost had it this morning before she was interrupted. The relief came instantly, as she brought her arms in front of her to bring down the blindfold. To her surprise, the trunk felt like being in an abyss, she was surrounded by darkness. Her hands searched above her, she knew there had to be a latch of some sort to open this trunk. Unless her captors were smart enough to remove it. 

She was beginning to give up, feeling tears beginning to form in her eyes. “Please,” she begged to any god that existed and was listening. All she wanted to do was go home, she wanted to feel safe in her dad's arms; Wondering why he hadn’t found her yet, but she knew that he would. Any moment he will be here to rescue her. 

Maybe that’s why they had to move locations. 

Her hands continued to trace the fabric above her, she let out a small gasp as her fingers touched something that wasn’t fabric. She took in a deep breath and pulled on the piece of plastic and in an instant the trunk opened. Y/n jumped out of the trunk with no hesitation, she yelped as she hit the ground and rolled on the pavement. 

Y/N let out a pain-stricken yell as she slowly got up to her feet, she heard tires screeching to a halt. 

“Fuck,” she said, turning around to see the car she had just jumped out of coming to a complete stop. Y/n only had a few seconds to take in her surroundings, it was dark and there was nothing but trees from what her eyes could see. 

She heard the engine beginning to come closer, it was now or never, she ran towards the trees. The sound of a car door closing caused her to use all her energy to run faster, but she could feel it quickly draining. Maybe this is why they fed her so little, to keep her from having the energy to run. 

The lack of food and water was getting to her, but she knew she couldn’t give up, she needed to find safety. 

The crash came quickly, one minute she was alert and running and the next she was on the ground. She was quick to come to, she let out a sob as she attempted to get back up. 

“Not so fast,” One of the men says as he grabs her arm, “Nice try.” He picks her up from the ground, holding a tight grip on her arm. “I got her!” he yells out. 

Footsteps could be heard coming closer to where they were, “Fucking bitch,” the other guy, who happens to be the guard, says. He swings his arm back, his fist meeting Y/n’s mouth causing her to lose her balance. She lets out a small sob, “Let’s get back to the car, Hugo.” 

Finally, a name. Hugo helped y/n back to her feet, “You know he’s not gonna like that you did that,” he commented. “You know how he is about his things.” 

The guard shrugged, “it’ll just be a slap on the wrist.” 

~~ 

Time was slipping by like a thin thread that was hard to see and hard to get a hold of. Tim felt like he was frozen, watching as his friends and family came by the house day by day to check up on him. Lucy came every day to walk Kojo because if she didn’t know any better, she would have sworn he never left his spot on the couch. It had been weeks since their last breakthrough, the day after Y/N was kidnapped, and since then every lead they have had led them to a dead end. At some point, Tim was beginning to lose it, he felt anger residing within him. 

Anger towards himself and to y/n’s captors. He had anger. After all, he was confused and angry because he couldn’t crack the case. He felt like he should be able to find her within a second, but when he was left with nothing but crumbs that once served as hope, he slowly fell into his pit of despair. 

Angela didn’t give up, she knew there was something within the lines that she must have overlooked. She wasn’t going to let the guilt win her, not when it had won over Tim. She knew there had to be one still searching through the crumbs that were left of this disaster. 

“We’re going to find her, Tim,” Angela said, walking around the coffee table to come face-to-face with her best friend. “Do you hear me?” 

Tim continued to stare into the blank space that was the TV. his eyes never leaving his reflection. 

“Tim, you can’t give up. You need to be strong for y/n because when we find her she’s going to need you more than ever,” Angela began to say. “She’s going to need her dad to bring her back to life, we have no idea what kind of hell she is going through righ-” 

“How do we even know she’s still alive?” Tim finally spoke up, breaking his eye contact with his reflection to look at Angela. 

Angela could see the fear in his eyes, the hope and desperation that still lay within them but was withering out, “How could you think that?” 

Tim turned away, blinking his tears away, “You and I both know the chances of survival of someone being kidnapped, especially those who are gone for weeks.” 

“You can’t think that way, you need to think like a cop-” 

“I’m thinking like a father, Angela!” Tim yelled. “My daughter could probably be dead in some ditch and I have to prepare myself for that possibility. I have to prepare myself for the possibility that she-” Tim let out a cry, “she might not come home,” he sobbed. 

“And I don’t know how to live with it. I don’t want to live in a world where she isn’t in it,” Tim cried. “She brought me so much happiness when I couldn’t find any and now she’s gone and I couldn’t stop it,” Tim looked at Angela with glass eyes, “I was supposed to protect her, so what kind of father does that make me?” 

Angela pulled Tim in for a hug, “you can’t always protect them, Tim. We all know that you can’t blame yourself for something that was out of your control.” Angela released the hug, holding Tim’s head in her hands, “I need you to pull yourself together, not for me or Lucy, but for Y/N. She needs you.” 

Tim knew Angela was right, he had to pull himself together. He gave her a small nod, as he got up from his spot on the couch and walked to the hallway, “Where are you going?” 

“To shower, I doubt you want me finding my daughter when I stink like dirty laundry,” he shouted out. 

Angela rolled her eyes, grabbing her phone from her pocket. 

I somehow got him to shower

She had sent a text to Lucy, who decided to stay back at the station to give the paperwork a second look. Lucy had felt like all her attempts on trying to get Tim off the couch had failed, all she had received from him were grunts or blank stares. She never took it personally, but knowing it didn’t take Angela long, made her heartache. 

They’ve been best friends for a while, she thought to herself. She shook her mind off of it before looking back at the paperwork. 

Before she could continue what she was reading, she was interrupted by a knock at the door. She turned to see an unfamiliar face smiling back at her, “Hi, I’m looking for a Tim Bradford.” 

Lucy found it strange to see civilians inside the station at such a late hour, but maybe he wasn’t a civilian. “Um, h-he’s not here at the moment, but can I help you?” Something about this man looked familiar to her, she just couldn’t figure it out.

“I must speak to Mr. Bradford,” the man said as he glanced outside the door. Lucy quickly caught on to the men guarding the door. She glanced back down at the photos in front of her before turning back to look at the man at the door. 

“D-Diego,” Lucy mumbled as she got up from her seat. 

The man sighed, “I’m not here to hurt you, I’m here to help,” he held up his hands. “You can search me and my men, you might find a gun on them, but they know not to do anything stupid, especially inside a police station.” 

“How did you get in here?” 

“It’s fairly easy when you spend your whole life doing these kinds of things,” he smiles before pointing to a chair near Lucy. “May I sit?” 

Lucy nods, “Why are you here?” 

“Like I said I want to help, now how long before Mr. Bradford gets here?” Diego looks at his watch before glancing at Lucy. 

~~ 

“Lucy?” Tim yelled out as he walked into their apartment, he was worried sick after she stopped answering his calls when she had texted Angela to meet at her apartment. 

“Why the hell would she want us to meet here?” Angela asked as she closed the door behind them. 

“Oh good,” Lucy said as she came out from her bedroom, “I know you guys have a lot of quest-” 

“Why did you stop answering my calls?” Tim asked as he pulled Lucy in for a hug. 

“I’m sorry, I just got caught up on-” Lucy realizes mid-sentence that Tim has a tighter grip on her, “I-I’m sorry, Tim.” For a moment, she let it slip that maybe not answering her phone caused panic to surge through Tim’s body. She could only imagine what he could have been thinking on the drive over, the worry he must have felt. 

“ ‘s alright,” Tim says as he lets go of the embrace. 

“Now can I have an explanation as to why all of our documents are in your apartment and not at the station, and how the hell did you get this big ass board here in thirty minutes?” Angela asks. 

“I had some help,” Lucy began to say. 

“Lucy, I can not thank you enough fo-” Diego stops mid-sentence, a smile forming on his face, “Mr. Bradford, it is so nice to finally meet you.” 

“Diego Garcia,” Angela quickly drew out her gun. 

Diego held his hands up, “I come in peace and empty-handed, Detective Lopez.” Angela gave a knowing glance towards Tim, “Yes, you can even search me, even though Lucy here already has.” 

“Twice,” Lucy added. 

“But if it makes you feel better, I’ll allow a third pat down,” Diego smiles. 

Angela holsters her gun, “I’ll trust Lucy’s word,” she says, “now explain.” 

“Well, after you left, Diego showed up and at first he would not tell me anything unless Tim was there, but I managed to get him to tell me some of what he had to say and given the situation, I felt it would be better if we met here. Away from the station, so we could all talk privately,” Lucy explained, she waited for a few seconds for someone to say something. Angela stood there, staring at Lucy like she was trying to make sense of it all. “Well?” 

“I’m still trying to figure out if what you did was stupid or smart,” Angela then looks over at Diego, “and you’re awfully brave for coming into a station considering who you are.” 

Diego smirks, “I am a wise man and as a wise man I know that you only have information on what others have said about me. But I am willing to risk it all if it means that my y/n is safe.” 

Angela turned her head slightly at what Diego had just said, “Surprised you even care when you didn’t even take her in after her parents were brutally murdered.” 

Diego took a deep breath, “I thought it would be for the best that she stayed away from this lifestyle, it’s what my brother would have wanted.” Diego noticed the photos that fell out of one of the folders, he couldn’t help himself as he began to look at them. 

“Then explain why Jesse Ortega has my daughter,” Tim said, “Because for the last few weeks, nothing has been making sense to me.” 

Angela saw the way he looked at those photos like they were his prized possessions, it was then that realization hit her. Nothing was making sense because it wasn’t true. “He doesn’t have to,” Angela said, suddenly understanding. 

Diego looked at her, it was the look in Angela’s eyes that made it clear to him, that she knew the truth. Everything he had heard about how great of a detective Angela was, was finally coming to light. He gave her a nod to continue. 

“I so happened to stumble upon a photo the press took of you and a woman,” Angela took out her phone, sliding through some photos before she landed on the one she needed. She held up the phone, “A woman who looks similar to Y/N, if I didn’t know any better, I would have thought this was her mother, but from records, it shows that Isabella, Gael’s wife, is y/n’s mother. Not Camilla, your wife who so happened to pass away around the same time y/n was born.” She received a confused expression from Tim, “You see, The only reason why Jesse would want anything to do with y/n is because she isn’t Gael’s daughter but Diegos,” Angela explained. “But it doesn’t explain why Gael took her here to America to start a new life.” 

Diego sighed, “My wife, may God rest her soul, she passed when y/n was born and I already was worried about raising a child in such a lifestyle, but leaving was harder than it looked. My brother and his wife had wanted to leave for a while, so, I told them to take y/n and leave for the States. My father got word of this and told him he’d give him his blessing if he killed Jesse’s father,” Diego paused, recalling the day it happened like it was just yesterday. “The only person other than my father and brother who knew of y/n’s existence was my best friend, Jesse.” 

“Some best friend you were,” Angela commented, “Why kill his father?” 

“For the same reason, every other narco kills another. Territory. My father, although I loved him, he was greedy. He let the money get to his head and he wanted more. With territory came power, he wanted us to show him how we loved him. In a fucked up way, he only asked of this to have someone else do his dirty work for him,” Diego explained. “My brother was to kill Jesse’s father in exchange for ‘Freedom’ but look where that got him.” 

“Still doesn’t explain why Jesse wants revenge from you if Gael was the one that killed his father,” Lucy commented. 

“Because when it came down to it, my brother couldn’t kill him and I didn’t allow him to. We told my father what he wanted to hear and that’s that.” 

“You killed Jesse’s father,” Tim understood. “That’s why he came after y/n, to hurt you in the same way you hurt him.” 

Diego nodded, “I loved my daughter and I wanted a better life for her. You gave her that,” He said looking at Tim. “Which is why I am here to help you guys find her, what you do with me after that doesn’t matter. All I want is for her to be safe.” 

Tim understood what he meant, the feeling of just wanting his daughter to be safe regardless of what could happen to him. He would do the same in a heartbeat if it meant he could have y/n here safe and sound. 

“How can we trust you?” Angela asked. 

“You can’t, but then what other option do you guys have?” Diego asked. 

Tim sighed, “Do you have any leads on where they might be keeping her?” He ignored the looks he got from Angela and followed Diego over to the board that had all of their leads. 

“Do you trust him?” Angela asked Lucy, they both watched Diego and Tim talk off to the side. 

“If it means getting back y/n, then I do,” Lucy said. 

~~

It’s been over a month. Over a month and y/n had been starved, deprived of water and sleep. She felt like she was going insane as she was held up in a small room with only a mattress on the floor.  For over the past hour, she had listened to the muffled voices outside the door, every moment that passed she had hoped to hear some sort of salvation in this pit of hell. 

The door opened and the man, whom she knew by the name of Hugo, came in and hastily picked y/n up from her position on the mattress. Her heart quickened as she was led into the main room, which to her looked like an old office. 

Before she could muster up the strength to say anything, she heard a voice call out from the end of the room, “She’s the spitting image of her mother,” a man scoffed as he appeared from the shadows. 

Hugo places y/n on a chair, before tying her hands behind her, “W-what’s going on?” 

The man who had just spoken, grabbed y/n by the chin, inspecting the bruise on her eye, “Who did this?” 

“S-Sergio,” Hugo stuttered. “Ya sabes como se enoja,” (you know how he gets angry. 

The man took in a deep breath, “I’ll deal with him later.” his attention focused back on y/n, “I always knew you would grow up to look just like Camilla.” 

“Who’s Camilla?” Y/n asked. 

“Why you’re mother of-” The man smirks, “Of course,” he said in realization, “you still think Isabella and Gael are your actual parents. We have a lot to uncover then.” 

Y/n looked at him with a confused expression, was Gael and Isabella, not her parents? They had raised her, she remembered seeing photos of them with her as a baby, even as a newborn. It didn’t make any sense to her. 

“You must be wondering, ‘Jesse, what do you mean?’ well, let me explain it to you,” Jesse, the man from the shadows, began to explain, “Your real father is Diego, Gael’s brother, your mother died while giving birth to you and so your father, Diego sent you with his brother to the states. Before he did that, the cowards killed my father. I took revenge when I killed Gael, but upon coming up to recent news, I found out that it wasn’t Gael who killed my father, but Diego. So, here I am out seeking revenge for my father’s death again.” 

This all felt too much to unfold, the man who y/n mourned, the one she thought was her father was just her uncle. It didn’t make her feel any less of him, but it made everything… different. 

“What are you going to do with me?” y/n asked. 

“Have you ever been to a rage room y/n? I hear they’re pretty popular in Los Angeles?” Jesse asked as he walked over to a table that was off to the side, on the table y/n could see tools that ranged from hammers to even a drill. 

her eyes widened as the fear crept up within her when she saw Jesse grabbing the hammer. “I’ve always wanted to go to one, let out all the anger I felt since my father’s death. I have let that anger live within me for far too long and I think it’s time to let it out, don’t you think?” Jesse smirked as he glanced over at y/n. 

~~

 Over the past week, Diego, Tim, Lucy, and Angela had spent most of their time in Lucy’s apartment. Diego calls people one after the other trying to figure out where Jesse could be holding y/n. He felt it was somewhere in Mexico, given that Jesse rarely came to the States unless something went wrong with his shipment. For the most part, it was Diego’s men who searched every lead they had in Mexico, it wasn’t until today that they finally had a breakthrough. 

Diego came rushing into the apartment, “I got something!” he yelled, phone in his hand as he rushed over to Tim. Diego hesitated, “I-I don’t know if you should look, it was even hard for me to see this photo.” 

Tim prepared himself for what he would see, “Show me.” 

“Tim,” Angela warned with concern in her voice. 

He shook his head, “No, Angela, I need to see her.” 

Diego showed them the photo of y/n. In the photo, she was tied to a chair, she was bruised from head to toe, with blood covering most of her body. Tim held back a sob as he read the sign that was hung around her neck. 

‘Esto es para mi papa,’ it read. (This is for my father)

“The window in the back shows the ocean. I know that view from anywhere. It’s where me and Jesse met for the first time, where our friendship began and ended,” Diego explained. “I can get you on a plane there tonight.” 

“No, if this is where she is at, we have to do this the right way,” Angela began. “The LAPD-” 

“The LAPD doesn’t have jurisdiction in Mexico, if anything you would have to call the feds and you know the feds wouldn’t care about a little girl that is kidnapped unless there is a big bust for them.” 

Tim sighed, “he’s right.” 

“So we just join him to Mexico?” Angela asks. 

“We take matters into our own hands like we did to save you.” 

Angela thought about it for a moment, she knew what they were doing was risky, but it was a risk Tim was willing to take to get his daughter back. A risk they made to get Angela back when she was kidnapped not too long ago too. 

“Alright,” Angela said. 

It wasn’t long until they were on the plane to Mexico City where Diego said the old office was. Tim and Angela mentally prepared themselves for what was about to happen, one they didn’t know if they could trust the people they were with, and second, they didn’t know what kind of condition y/n would be in. 

Lucy wanted to join them but decided to stay back just in case. She was in constant communication with Tim just in case something were to happen. 

“We’re almost there,” Diego announces as he comes back from the cockpit area and takes a seat on one of the chairs. “My men are ready to meet us at the landing zone, we will head straight to the building when we land,” he began to explain. “I’ll have a paramedic waiting nearby to take care of any injuries on y/n.” 

“You can pull those kind of strings?” Tim asked. 

“With the right kind of money, yes,” Diego smirked. 

Angela scoffed, “I have a question for you,” Diego nodded for her to continue, “Why let Gael take y/n? Why not live a life outside of this business with your daughter?” 

Diego sighed, placing the glass of alcohol back down on the small table in front of him, “Because my brother and his wife could give her something I never could have.” 

“What’s that?” Tim asked. 

“Family.” 

“I disagree, I think you don’t need a mom and a dad to be a family. It’s ideal, but look at where she’s at now, no offense, Tim,” Angela said. 

Diego nodded in agreement, “Alright, you caught me.” He took a swig of his drink before placing the now-empty glass back down, “The first week was the hardest,” Diego admitted. “Then as she began to grow, I just couldn’t do it. She reminded me so much of Camilla… It hurt to even look at her. Gael and Isabella couldn’t have kids and the way they always loved her as her own, I just felt like they would have given her the love I couldn’t give her.” 

Tears began to form in his eyes, “and I was right. I was told Gael and Isabella died trying to protect y/n. They made sure she was hidden so she wouldn’t be” Diego choked on his words, “I don’t regret the decision I made, I just regret that I couldn’t save them.” 

“Patron, Hemos aterrizado, ” (Boss, we’ve landed) One of the flight attendants said to Diego, quickly walking back over to the flight attendant station in the front of the plane. 

“That’s our ten-minute mark,” Angela commented. 

Tim felt his heartbeat quicken, anxious to get out of this plane and find y/n. He felt every minute that went by was a minute too long, a minute too late. 

~~ 

Y/n cried out in pain as Jesse backed away, he shook his hand, wincing in pain. 

“Ah, don’t worry, little y/n. Soon enough you won’t be feeling any more pain,” Jesse winked as he walked back over to the table. For the past week since Jesse had made an appearance, it had been constant torture for y/n. The only break she had was when Jesse left to go eat or sleep, otherwise he found entertainment in torturing her with different techniques. 

“P-Please,” y/n begged. 

He jammed a knife into the table, he let out an annoyed groan before grabbing a piece of cloth that was nearby. Walking over to y/n, Jesse jammed the cloth into her mouth and then tied it on the back of her head. 

“That’s better,” he smiled, walking back over to the table. He grabs the knife again and walks over to y/n, “Cuando yo estaba mas joven,” Jesse began to say, “when I was about your age actually, the girls used to grab a knife and make these marks on their skin,” he traced the knife along Y/n’s wrists, “Ahh, just like these,” he says as he traces the white lines that were scattered along y/n’s wrists. Scars that told of a past of darkness that she once battled. 

“Let’s have some fun,” he winked, letting the knife sink into y/n’s skin along her abdomen, she screamed into the piece of cloth that was in her mouth. Jesse let go of the knife, leaving it in her abdomen, walking back over to the table, and grabbing a large bowl of water.

Jesse walked back over to Y/n, she frantically shook her head, knowing exactly what he was thinking. He smirks as he dunks her head in the bowl, leaving it there for a minute before letting her back up for air. 

Y/n tried her best to hold her breath, but with her mouth being gagged she found it more difficult than the last time. She hoped he was done for the night, that any moment he would walk out of that room. 

“Can’t forget about this,” Jesse comments as he takes the knife out of y/n’s abdomen causing a rush of blood to ooze out. 

The door abruptly opens, “We’ve got a problem,” Hugo says with urgency. 

“Can’t you handle it?” Jesse says through gritted teeth. 

Hugo shakes his head, “It’s Diego, he’s here and he has company.” 

Jesse groans in frustration, walking over to the table to drop off the bowl and knife. He sees a piece of rope, it is now or never, and he grabs it. 

~~ 

Tim followed one of Diego’s men through the building, searching room by room for y/n. He was surprised by the small amount of guards that were within the building so far, it could only mean that the main floor would have more. 

Jose, the man who was taking the lead, led them to the final and top floor. Tim could hear a couple of shots before he heard people grunting, “She’s in here!” Jose yells out. Tim looked back at Angela who nodded for him to go as she walked over to one of Diego’s men who had one of Jesse’s men on the ground. 

Tim quickly rushed into the room Jose had called out from, he scanned the room, seeing Jose with Jesse on the ground. Then his eyes darted to the small figure on the chair, “Y/N!” He calls out as he runs over to her, quickly untying her hands. Y/n slumps over in her seat, Tim is quick to lean her body against him, helping her onto the floor. 

“Hon, it’s me,” he says, not getting a response from y/n. “Come on, baby girl, you gotta wake up for me,” the tears began to form in his eyes, he felt for a pulse, it was weak but it was there. He looks over at Jesse, “What did you do?!” 

Jesse smirks, his eyes darting over to the door. Tim looks behind him to see Diego at the door, “Ojo por ojo.” (an eye for an eye) 

Diego felt the anger rise within him, he felt like he was on autopilot as he pulled the gun out from his back holster, pointing it at Jesse without hesitation, he pulled the trigger. 

“Now we’re even,” Diego mutters. He pulls his attention back over to Y/n and Tim, quickly noticing the pull of blood forming before them, “she’s bleeding,” he quickly takes off his coat, handing it to Tim. 

Tim presses the coat on the stab wound, “we need to get her to the paramedic,” Diego says. Tim picks Y/n up, following Diego down the flight of stairs and outside to the paramedics. Tim got into the ambulance with Y/n, he held her hand throughout the whole ride. 

He couldn’t help but notice the condition her body was in, the scars on her body, the bruises, and the mark that was red around her neck. If they had been a second late, she probably would’ve been gone. No, Tim couldn’t think that way. She’s safe now, she’s alive and she’s with him. 

~~ 

Tim stayed by y/n’s side every single day at the hospital. It had been a couple of days and she had yet to wake up, the doctors said it was due to her injuries, but Tim was worried it could be something worse. Eventually, they were given the okay to transfer back to the States. 

To Tim’s surprise, Diego never made an appearance at the hospital in Mexico City. He kept his promise, he helped them find y/n, and to Tim, that was all that mattered. 

Once they were back in the States, Tim couldn’t find the courage to leave y/ns bedside still. He continued to wait for her to wake up, the doctors told him to give her body time to recover but just wanted to hear her voice. He wanted her to know that he was sorry. 

“Wake up,” Tim whispered as he gently placed his hand on the side of y/n’s face, “You need to wake up, hon.” 

Tim felt his eyes getting the best of him, he let out a deep sigh as he laid back in his chair. Lettin sleep overcome him. 

It was only an hour after Tim had fallen asleep that y/n began to wake up, the lights from the room blinded her as she opened her eyes, an instant headache. y/n groaned, wincing from the brightness, “Dad?” she called out. 

Tim thought it was odd that the elephant in his dream was calling him dad, slowly he was driven out of his dreams and jumped up. He frantically looked around, “Dad?” he heard y/n say. 

“Oh my god, you’re awake!” Tim announced, getting up from his seat and running out to the hall, “she’s awake!” he announced to one of the nurses, and they both rushed back into the room together. 

The nurse quickly checked y/n’s vitals and her stitches, “We’ll have to do some more testing, but from what I can tell, you’ll be making a full recovery,” she announced with a smile. “I’ll be back to check on you in an hour, let me know if you need anything,” she smiles as she walks out of the room. 

Tim pulls you in for a hug, careful not to hurt her further, “you’re awake,” he breathed out. 

y/n let out a relieved breath, holding onto Tim as tight as she could. y/n felt tears brimming her eyes as a sob escaped her lips. Tim rubbed small circles on her back, “I-I thought I was never gonna see you again,” she sobs. 

Tim places a small kiss on the top of her forehead, “You’re safe now,” he says as he lies on the bed with y/n, never letting go of her hug. “That’s all that matters to me right now.” 

“How did you find me?” 

“We had some help,” Tim explains. 

“Was it from Diego?” Tim looked at her with a surprised expression, “Jesse told me everything, he knew Diego was on his trail.” 

“Diego mentioned that,” Tim sighed, “How do you feel?” 

“Like I’m probably gonna need therapy for the rest of my life,” she comments, letting out a small chuckle. 

Tim couldn’t help but chuckle, “I’ll get you the best therapist there is, I’ll even get you a thousand stuffed animals if that makes you feel better for a thousand minutes. Hell, I’ll even get you another dog, I don’t care, just as I know you are home and you are safe and sound.” 

Y/n couldn’t help but smile, but it soon falters, “Do we have to talk about what happened?” she asks. 

“Not if you don’t want to, I’ll understand if you want to talk to a therapist instead. What you went through was heavy and…. I’ll understand.” 

She nods, Tim watches as her mind wanders off, “I thought I was gonna die,” she begins to say, “and for a moment all I could think about was missing you. Missing our Sunday brunches with Kojo and even missing our softball practices.” She looks at Tim with tears in her eyes, “I was so scared.” 

“I should’ve been able to protect you,” Tim whispers. “I’m so sorry, y/n.” 

“It’s not your fault,” Y/n says, “I don’t blame you at all for any of it, you’ve always been there. You’ve protected me from the first moment I met you and you have never stopped.” 

Tim felt a surge of love and pride within him, he had helped raise a brave young woman whom he was proud to call his daughter. 

“I love you,” he says, pressing a gentle kiss on y/n’s forehead, his voice choking with emotion. “You are indeed the strongest person I know and I will always be here for you, no matter what.” 

Y/n leaned against his shoulder, and the two of them lay there in silence for a moment before turning the T.V. on. He knew that he was going to need to help her through the tough times ahead, juggling a normal life with school and friends while also dealing with this trauma. Tim knew the next few months were not going to be easy, but he was more than willing to be the rock y/n needed to get through this. It all seemed fine now, but he knew the emotional toll a traumatic event like this could be on a grown adult, but imagine a teenager. 

It was a lot to take in and it was going to be a lot of therapy. 

For now, all that mattered to Tim was that Y/N was found and she was now safe and sound. 

#tim bradford x reader #tim bradford x y/n #tim bradford x teen!reader #tim bradford x you #the rookie #tim bradford teen!reader #tim bradford x teen!reader angst #tim bradford angst #tim bradford x adopted!daughter #tim bradford x daughter!reader #tim bradford x reader angst #tim bradford x daughter!reader angst #tim bradford oneshot #lucy chen #tim bradford

[hedgehog-troops]

The Football Game:

pairing: jegulus. additional tags: sad james :(, soft regulus. for: @gardenofrunar

“Love?”

Regulus looks up from where he's snuggled into James' chest to look up at him.

“I– I have a football game tomorrow so, would– could you–” Regulus pulls away slightly to cup James' cheek, slowly moving his thumbs in a comforting gesture.

“shh.. love, take a deep breath, I'm here, take your time.” he whispers in a low soothing tone.

James closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before beginning to speak again, “would you please come to my game tomorrow, you don't even have to come for the whole game you– you can just come at the end.”

“Love–” Regulus tries but James just continues on.

“And– I'd really like for you to come but– but if you can't, that's okay too. You don't have to, you probably don't even want to and I'm just being stupid again, I'm sor–”

Regulus covers James' mouth with his hand to cut him rambling off.

“I will, I'd love to actually” he says before lifting his hand off of James' mouth.

“You will?” James asks with a slight tremble in his voice, eyes wide with disbelief. “you actually will? Please don't say you will and not come”

“I will, mon cheri, i will” Regulus reassures him while trying not to let his anger show on his face.

All he knows of James' previous partner is that they hadn't been particularly kind to him, and Regulus has wanted to kill people many times in his life, but what he wants to do with this person will make killing someone look like a fucking dessert.

“Yeah?” James asks, eyes wide and glossy.

"Yeah." Regulus replies.

"Oh. I love you so much" James whispers, tears forming in his eyes as he snuggles into Regulus' chest.

"Don't cry, love, don't cry" Regulus whispers.

James looks up at Regulus, “Happy tears, very happy tears”

Regulus runs the pads of his thumbs beneath James' eyes to wipe the tears.

"I love you so much, you'll never understand"

°~°~°~°

As James walks onto the pitch he can't help but allow his eyes to sweep over the stands, trying to find the grey eyes he has grown to know and love.

Regulus isn't there.

When he was no older than 12, his mom told him, "hope for everything, expect nothing" but over the past few years he's realized just how much pain even hoping can bring.

People tend to say that you learn from your mistakes, James does. He really honestly does.

It's just that Regulus had promised so earnestly

"I'd love to," he had said.

He shakes himself out of it.

His gaze moves over to Sirius cheering for him.

That's his support.

-

He throws himself fully into the game, not letting himself look at the stands.

It's not until he scores his first goal that he looks back at the stands with a grin, doing his dance with Sirius.

Or that's what he supposed he'd do, his gaze however, catches on someone beside Sirius, just a couple inches shorter.

There stands Regulus.

As he catches James' eyes he lets a small smile slip.

James' grin impossibly widens before actually doing his dance with Sirius.

He wants to cry.

Regulus came.

Regulus came.

-

They win the game.

Sirius runs down from the stands and onto the pitch(?), towards James who also runs to him in equal excitement.

As soon as they are near each other, James holds Sirius' face and presses a quick but sturdy kiss on his lips.

It's tradition after all.

It's a short kiss before they wrap their arms around each other and Sirius shoves James onto the ground.

-

Regulus refuses to touch him until he has had a shower and thoroughly washed his lips.

-

When James walks out of the shower, Regulus is sitting on the bench in the locker room, staring quite shamelessly at James' naked body.

James pretends not to notice the way Regulus nearly falls over himself trying to turn his head to look at James when he moves to his locker.

Once dressed, James walks over to Regulus and sits on the floor.

Sitting in places that are meant to be sat on never seemed fun to James.

He takes Regulus' hand and before he can protest, James pulls him towards himself, onto his lap.

"He–" Any protests Regulus has are silenced by James' lips on his.

It's a short kiss, far too short if you ask Regulus.

James pulls back and once again the urge to cry envelopes him, but this time he doesn't really fight it.

As soon as he notices tears in James' eyes he moves his hands from his hips to both of his cheeks to cradle James' face delicately.

"What's wrong, love?'' he asks, worry etched in every furrow between his eyebrows.

James shakes his head. "I can't believe you actually came, I'm still convinced that you're just a figment of my imagination"

"James. Love, listen to me" Regulus says sternly but not unkindly. "I came to this game, i will come to the next, and all the others until the day i die. I would, and will walk through a tornado just to be at your game."

James doesn't know when, but somewhere during that speech he began to cry.

"Eyeliner looks good on you"

Face still in Regulus' hands, he brings up one of his hands to cover Regulus' whilst the other remains at his waist. James presses his lips onto Regulus' and they lose themselves in the kiss.

That is until James uses the hand around Regulus' waist to start to tickle him.

At first, he just squirms around a bit –trying not to break the kiss– but soon, as the tickles get more intense Regulus begins to thrash around and laugh, though with quite a murderous look on his face.

Once Regulus' face is all red and he seems to be out of breath, James decides to display his every-growing mercy and let Regulus go.

They both are lying down, merely a foot between them. James holds Regulus' hand between his and threads their fingers together.

"I hate you with every subatomic part in my body" Regulus says, with a look which seemed so murderous though if you were as obsessed with Regulus' eyes as James was (which is highly unlikely) you'd see just the overwhelming amount of love and adoration in them.

"I'm going to marry you one day." James replies with a simple grin on his face as he brings their hands upwards and presses a kiss on the backside of Regulus'.

°~°~°

Why Regulus was late:

Regulus is on his last nerve.

He has been waiting outside the bathroom door for ages, and if he waits any longer he'll be late for James' game.

Using his lock opening skills from years of breaking Sirius out of closets to give him food, he shoves open the bathroom door.

"Oh for fuck's sake"

There, in front of him stands Evan with his dick inside Barty.

With speed he wasn't aware he possessed, he closes the door.

It seems that he'll need to go somewhere else to shower.

He closes the door and runs to the Gryffindor dorms to use James' shower.

#james potter #marauders #jegulus #marauders era #regulus black #marauders fandom #james fleamont potter #sirius black #james loves regulus #james x regulus #sad james potter :( #im gonna go run and hide now. #aidens one shots <3

[amloveabledeathmo]

ATLA Headcanons

Was just thinking about ATLA the other day and have come up with new headcanons. In a world where my health wasn't shit I would love to write about them but instead I will just share the bits.

This is all after the canon events. Most of the Gaang travel with Toph back to her house to make sure she isn't kidnapped or kept against her will. She shows up basically says you all are terrible people I'm here for my stuff and goodbye.

They all get together to talk to Azula and decide what to do about her. Basically Iroh, Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee all tell her they still care about her but don't know what to do to help her and Toph is sympathetic about ridiculous parental expectations. Azula is so happy and incredulous that they all care about her. She says she knows Aang took her dad's bending power and asks if he can do that for her.

Everyone is quite shocked by the request but she wants to not be a danger as she is trying to learn how to be whoever she is. Also she wants to know what she can do without her bending since that is all that she has ever been praised and loved for by her father. Aang warns that he doesn't know if he can give it back but she insists.

Sokka, Zuko, Suki, Mai, and Ty Lee all spend a lot of time together and there are many rumors about who is dating who. They announce a wedding and everyone assumes it's Zuko and Mai. When the wedding actually happens it turns out to be a triple wedding, Aang and Katara, Zuko and Sokka, and Suki, Mai, and Ty Lee. Azula and Toph get to stand up for everyone as witnesses and Iroh is the officiant.

Zuko and Sokka go to the air temple to discuss a new idea that Sokka had with Teo's dad. Azula tags along and Sokka introduces her to Teo. He teaches her to fly and the rest is history.

Azula asks if Aang could try to give her bending back, she thinks it would work great for creating updrafts while flying. He is successful at it and him and Zuko teach her how beautiful fire can be just like they learned.

Pretty soon Zuko and Sokka start collecting children. They end up with 10. Suki and Ty Lee both want to experience pregnancy and the throuple only want 2 kids anyway. No one asks who the dad's are. Katara and Aang have some kids too. Azula and Teo have a small wedding and at first Azula is afraid to have kids but she loves her nieces and nephews so much that she is happy when she ends up pregnant. It's triplets.

Sokka and Katara convince Hakoda that he should court Bato. That it would not mean he loved Kya any less.

Iroh, Hakoda, and Bato all get to be grandpa's to all the kids. Iroh is Grandpa, Hakoda is Gramps, and Bato is Papa. There are as many family gatherings as they can all manage.

Toph is the fun aunt who lives with them all for a few months at a time. She has a dedicated room at everyone's house since she is family. She is not interested in having a long term relationship or her own kids. She much prefers one night stands and spoiling her nieces and nephews and taking them on one on one trips. She also brings earth bending wrestling to the masses and is very famous as the Blind Bandit.

They also start finding a few air benders here and there who's ancestors had married into other nations before the fire nation wiped them out. Of course everyone would hide any air benders in their families until it's safe. Aang starts a school teaching air bending.

#ATLA #avatar the last airbender #headcanons #atla headcanons #atla zukka #zukka #kataang

[passionateseadruid]

Snake King’s Bride

Part two The Meeting

Say hello to my intersex Imp Styx. As I'm sure many of you know the evenly stripe horns are indicative of male Imps and the thin strips white are Female. And also my hellhound Pluto. Also Vagqie is 5'4 and when lucifer met her they were about the same height; but also keep in mind that he was wearing heals (that's canon, like it's in the episode). Finally, I can't believe that he has a nose

When you woke up you were still in the old wedding dress and heals. The veil had fallen from your head, you had slid it back on and flipped the veil back over your face. Whatever brought you here isn't going to get to have you so easily.

You wandered around to the halls of the place you fell into. They were red with gold columns lining every few feet. The walls were lined with apples and the columns were accentuated with what appeared to be snakes coiling around them. "Whoever designed this place needs to be fired."

On the other side of the palace, in the thrown room, Lucifer was panicking. 

"Okay! Everything's going to be fine!"

A little Imp wants in. They were taller than most Imps and had big horns that curled inward towards each other like a heart. Their hair was slip down the middle. White on the left to match the male Imp horn that was slightly bigger than the one on the right; which was female in origin with black hair that was almost tinted dark blue from some angles.

"Styx! Did you get everything set up?" Lucifer asked panic evident on his face.

"Yes sire!" They saluted him. They stood at about 4'11 and wore black leather pants, a short burgundy corset, and a white shirt with long sleeve frilly.

"Good! good."

"Sire. It might be a good idea to take off your ring as to not scare or confuse the young miss."

"Oh! Yeah, I guess." He slid off the ring that had matched Lilith's. The first time he'd taken it off in seven years. "Can I really do this Styx?" 

"Well it is up to you, but if you want you could let her go."

"But then I'd be alone again."

"I suppose so Sire."

Lucifer looked down at his ring again and materialized a black box to slip the circlet if gold into. "I can do this, somehow I know it."

You hadn't gotten very far in your expedition of the strange new place you'd found yourself in. You found a library though which was good. Always good to have a place to hide. Eventually a small fluffy creature resembling a bull dog. She had grey fur and wore a loose black dress that went down to her knees, with a red wine colored bodice. She was only 4 and a half feet tall.

"Good evening my lady." She curtsies and you awkwardly due the same. "Please my lady. Don't feel the need to bow at me. Please follow me to the thrown room."

"Thrown room?"

She sighed. "Yes. Where the king is." She looked back at you and saw you planted firmly in place. "Come on!" she motions for you to follow.

"What's going on? Where am I? Who are you? What was with the spooky fiery rift in space back in the store?"

"Are you serious right now? You sold yourself to the king of hell. Don't play dumb and pretend like you have no idea what's going on. And what's with the wedding dress? Do you actually think the king would choose some lowly human like you?"

"I'm sorry I seem to have misheard you. I thought you said the king of hell."

"I did."

"...hell? ...as in-"

"Lucifer yes." She cut you off.

"There has to be a mistake! I didn't sell my soul to him! I shouldn't be here!"

"You wouldn't be here if you didn't."

'Maybe I can convince him to let me go. He can take Regan or Kaitlyn, I don't care!'

"Head inside." The bulldog ordered.

"May I please have your name."

"Pluto."

"I hope you have a good day Pluto." 

You walked into the room. 

"Darling!" A short man ran up to you and pulled you into his embrace. You struggled as best you could but his grip was firm and unrelenting. "Sorry, to tight?" He lessens his grip and you shirk away.

"Please don't touch me. We don't know each other."

"Oh of course! My apologies. Lucifer Morningstar, your new husband~" 

"What? No... um I think there's been some mistake. I don't belong here."

"Of course you do! You're going to be my bride! That little bug wouldn't have dressed you up like this if you weren't the one intended to be my new wife!"

"But I didn't exactly want that to happen."

"Well you're here now so you might as well make the most of it!" He cheered coming closer to you.

"Wouldn't you rather have someone who wants to be with you? I'm sure there's plenty of goth girls or satanists who would kill to get this opportunity."

"Ugh. You know you humans are really ignorant. Him and I aren't the same. Neither are I and Beelzebub."

"Okay...?"

"That's not important right now." He came even closer and you back into the door. He grabbed the bottom of your veil and you snatched his wrist.

"Doll..." He sounded serious. "Show me your face."

"No thank you."

"Sorry Doll but that wasn't a request." He yanked out of your grip and took your veil off with him. "There! That wasn't so hard, was it?"

You backed up as close to the wall as you could and actually got a look at him. He was about 5'4 and had platinum blond hair. His eyes seemed to glow piss yellow while his pupils were blood red. He wore a white suit with a pink and white stripped vest underneath. His books were black as were his hands though you weren't sure if those were gloves or his actual hand color. 'but he's so pale.'

"Hm? Take a picture it'll last longer~" You rolled your eyes. "You know darling if you're so interested in my hands I can give you a demonstration of what they can do~" Your face heated at his words, and the face that he brought one of his hand up to his mouth in a V shape and licked his lips.

"Why me?"

"Because you put on my ring!"

"But I didn't know what I was doing! Why not choose someone who knows what they're agreeing to?"

"I want you Doll. You're beautiful and my heart is calling out to you. The moment I saw you for the first time in that store i knew I needed you. Come on! We have a Wedding to plan! I'm thinking next month."

"Next Month?!"

"I know it's far off but We'll need to give our guests time to prepare gifts and of course we'll need time to send out the invitations."

"Well I was thinking of more of an August wedding. But eleven months is basically a year and I'm sure it'll still be warm in hell in September so... maybe we should make it a year from now?" Your voice grew meeker as you spoke. "It would also give us a year to get to know each other."

"If I make it a year from now will you be willing to marry me?" He asked excitedly.

"Um maybe?"

"Good enough for me! Come on then! you're probably tired and you'll want to get out of this old thing."

He takes your hand and leads you through the palace.

"Mr. Morningstar?"

"Call me Lucifer! You'll be a Morningstar soon! I suppose I'll have to talk to heaven about turning you immortal. Charlie had begged me for siblings when she was younger, so I'm glad to finally be able to fulfil that."

"Lucifer, I think that we should stay in separate rooms."

"What? But why?" He whined.

"We just met." 'and your the devil.' "And I'm rather traditional." 'No I'm not but you don't need to know that.'

"Alright if that's what you wish Darling."

"And one more thing. Wouldn't it be so romantic if our first kiss was the one we shared on our wedding day?"

"Ooooohh! Like the ones in those romance novels that are so popular on earth!" She squeaked. 

"Yeah... like those."

"Well here we are! It's the best guest room in the place! I'll have Styx put on some new warm sheets on the bed and I'll get you some clothes. You probably want to go take a bath."

"Um I'm good I'll shower in the morning."

"Nonsense Doll. Unless this is a backhanded way to invite me to join you~"

"I'll go take a shower ON MY OWN!" You said running out of the bedroom.

"What am I going to do?

After your shower you cracked the door and looked down to find a pile of clothes and no Lucifer in sight. You changed into them and found the shirt tight on you and the thong given to you a bit too revealing for your taste. "What am I going to do? I can't walk out there and show everyone everything."

"Yeah, I'd prefer this all saved for my eyes only." Lucifer's voice called from behind you.

"Ah! What are you doing in here?"

"Just admiring the view." he slowly gazed up and down at you tracing the curves of your body.

"May I please have something that actually fits me?" You rolled your eyes and your arms came up to cover your chest.

"Fine..." He huffed annoyed. "But I think the size of my old shirt looks cute on you." He snapped his fingers and the shirt grew so long it basically became a night gown. 

"Is this really okay to do to your clothes?"

"It's an old shirt I don't wear anymore."

"This thong better not have belonged to your kid."

"No! no. nonononono! It was uh, my ex-wife's."

"Oh. That's a bit weird isn't it?"

"I'll take you out shopping for clothes tomorrow, but for tonight you can either use those or go commando. I know which option I'd rather see~"

"Goodnight Lucifer!" You pushed him out of the room.

"Goodnight Darling!"

'What am I going to do?' You thought.

#vivziepop #hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel fandom #hazbin hotel lucifer #hazbin lucifer #lucifer x reader #hazbin yandere lucifer #yandere #yandere lucifer x reader #yandere lucifer #hazbin hotel x reader #hazbin #lucifer morningstar #lucifer magne #lucifer morningstar x you #lucifer morningstar x reader #lucifer hazbin hotel #lucifer hazbin #lucifer magne x reader

[jbbarnesandnoble]

What could have been

Pairing: Modern!Steve Rogers x F!Reader

Summary: Steve attends the wedding of his first love, now he can only wonder what could have been.

Warnings: angst angst angst, regret, my best friend's wedding type pain, Steve doesn't get the girl in the end so the pairing is a lie... sorry

Word Count: 1,435

a/n: wow, the first thing I choose to write in years is angst, I came back and chose violence. But fr, I'm surprised anyone is still here (or you just forgot you followed me haha) anyway, I saw those pictures of Chris and knew I just had to write something. I've also wanted to get back into writing for the longest time but have been so busy. This is definitely not the best thing I've ever written, and I'm sorry for any typos or errors (I didn't proof read) but I did it and I am proud of myself for doing it! I hope you enjoy it and feel free to leave feedback!

(not my pic)

Fairy lights shimmer and glow over the banquet hall, candles glow at each table, couples young and old crowd on the dance floor all swaying and dancing to a cover of 'Can't Help Falling in Love'. Steve watches from the sidelines, a wistful look upon his handsome face. Though he wears a smile, it fails to match the hint of sorrow in the blue of his eyes.

"It's a wedding, Steve, not a funeral." Bucky jabs at his best friend as he sits in the empty seat next to the blond. Steve laughs, though forced, it was a laugh nonetheless. A moment of silence passes between the two men before either of them speak. Steve is the first to break the silence.

"I screwed up." Was all he could muster.

"You just realized?" Though masked as a jab, Bucky's question carried much truth to it. Steve had made a grave mistake and it took him far too long to realize. Now, he knows he will never be able to share his true feelings with her.

"Her wedding is a real crappy place to have this realization, isn't it?" His blue eyes look to the table across from him, he watches Y/n for a moment and for a split second, he imagines what could have been had he had the courage to tell her how he truly felt. Maybe he would have been the one to make her smile, the one to make her laugh, the one the hold her when she needs a shoulder to cry on. He sucks in a sharp and quite painful breath as he wonders if he could have been the one she walked down the isle to today.

"Bucky I-" Tears prick at his eyes, a lump forms in his throat. He no longer wishes to speak because he knows if he does he will break. Bucky places a supportive hand

A few songs have played and ended before he finds the composure to continue, "I wanted to support her, to show her I'm happy for her, because I am. But I..." his voice drowns in the now upbeat music, most of the guests are now on the dance floor jumping and dancing to the song currently playing, the bride and groom included.

Steve looks away, his eyes falling to his plate of untouched food. It looks and smells delicious, but he hardly has the stomach for it right now. His eyes fell onto the glass of wine next to his plate, he might not be hungry, but he could surely use a drink. He picks the glass up and downs it in one swig.

"It was selfish of me to come here when I'm in love with her." The words fall past his lips, his face changes from a look of grief to one of disappointment. He can't help but feel guilty for attending her wedding only to sulk in a corner for the entire night.

"You being here means the world to her, Steve." Bucky says, looking at him with all sincerity. "Just take a look," he points across the room and even in the dim lighting he sees her in all her beauty. Her hair is done in a low bun, a few pieces were left out as a face frame. Her makeup is simple, but even if it were done extravagantly, it would have been in vain, for her dress was the talk of the evening, it truly made the bride look like royalty. 

Even in the crowd of people, she manages to find Steve's eyes, a small flush creeps into his cheeks. A radiant smile spreads across her painted lips which makes Steve's heart skip a beat or two. He wishes she wouldn't smile at him like that, like he was the one she had married that day.

Lucky for Steve, he's smart enough to know that she looks at her now husband with a look that she reserves for him. Steve hopes the guy knows how lucky he is.

"Steve, Bucky!" Y/n yells over the music. The two men stand to greet her and offer their congratulations. "Thank you so much for being here. It means the world to me!" She adds with a joyous smile. Bucky gives Steve a knowing look.

"We wouldn't have missed it." Bucky says for the both of them. Steve attempts to listen as Bucky asks Y/n endless questions about the wedding and how she's feeling. Steve can't help but think that having to entertain so many guests all in an evening would be the most draining part of it all.

"I'm drained physically, but I feel so full." She beams at them, her eyes shimmering from the fairy lights or love Steve isn't sure. But he is sure of one thing, even if he isn't the reason for her joy, all he's ever wanted was to see her smile and that's exactly what he's getting.

"I'm glad." The words fall past Steve's lips before he can think. He smiles at her and for the first time this evening, it's genuine. She thanks them both once more before the DJ calls the newlyweds to get ready to make their exit. With that, she takes her leave. Steve and Bucky find themselves alone once more.

Outside of the venue the guests line either side of the exit, each waiting with anticipation to send off the new Mr. and Mrs. Each guest was given a sparkler to light for when the couple makes their exit.

Steve stands at a distance, watching from the back of the small parking lot, wishing not to be spotted. With a few more drinks in him he's even less sure that he'll maintain his composure. Especially after how he barely managed to keep it together inside. A breeze blows gently, sweeping disheveled blond hair into his face.

The cool autumn air pricks at his skin, but it does little to chill him. From the drinks or being naturally warm, he isn't sure, but he's happy either way since he left his jacket inside.

Blue eyes watch as everyone gets ready to send the bride and groom off, friends laugh and share stories about the couple's early days. The mother of the bride and mother of the groom wipe tears as they remember their children's first steps, now they're married.

He looks up to the night sky, the stars shine so bright it looks as if they are shimmering. The moon shines brightest of all as it reflects the sun, it illuminates the night. Casting light on that which is in darkness.

He rocks gently with the wind as he observes the galaxy. Loud cheering pulls him from thoughts of a different life, the bride and groom, Y/n and her husband, have made their exit. His right hand falls to his pant pocket and pulls out a sparkler and matches.

It takes him a second to light it, as though lighting it is what seals their marriage. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he lights it and waves it in tribute to the newly weds.

Waving a sparkler is a simple thing, mindless even. He waves it back and forth, watching his first love from a distance, watches as she beams at another man that is now her husband, he watches as she leans in to kiss him, as they get into his car and drive away.

Soon, the sparkler fizzes out and he's alone again in the dark. For how long he's unsure, for at some point his vision began to blur and he could no longer see clearly. Hot tears stream down his rosy cheeks, and drip onto his dress shirt.

It is now, after the dancing and celebration, after the food and drink, after the laughter and conversation that he can finally fall apart. His heart aches in his tight chest. It's that kind of pain that feels like your heart could give out at any moment. It's the kind of pain that sinks into your stomach and makes you sick. For the first time that night, he falls apart, in the middle of that parking lot.While he is happy for her, it is now he realized that he only ever focused on being happy for her. Not once did he stop to realize the importance of grieving what could have been. For the first time, Steve has allowed himself to grieve the loss of his first love. Not because she had died, but because he never took a chance. Now he is left wondering what could have been.

#steve rogers x reader #modern!steve rogers #steve rogers angst #steve rogers fanfiction #steve rogers fanfic #steve rogers x f!reader #marvel fanfic #marvel fanfiction #modern!au #rae writes

[tungle-squentacles]

huevember 22! ngl I don't like this one as much but I wanted to try something design ish. may redo some time in the future

#squent post #squent art #ok lis g en. I had this thing in mind with the cyan monochrome thing right. Citra was gonna be bluish and r was going to be saturated #but like. they're small as hell 😔 #hate the stupid fuckiggg romance novel shoulder grabbed thing bt I couldnt think of any more dynamic poses #it looks like a shitty minimalist movie poster #also I KNOW the room isn't that small but I wanted it to be a vertical shape. love me some composition s #could have done something closer + more intimate but then they'd be uh . making out sloppy style 0robably #i also forgot how the scene went and couldn't access the book. that's the main reason really #anyway. at least it saved me time on the colors lmao. wanted to do something big but i was tired today #fanart #aoas #arc of a scythe #second aoas art I've done. both for huevember and overall #scythe Anastasia #citra terranova #rowan damisch #scythe lucifer #huevember #huevember 2023 #huevember day 22 #huevember 22 #art

[spiritofjustice]

decided to wait till my dad went to sleep to make dinner bcs i cannot stand being around him rn and it's been 3 hours and now he's just sleeping downstairs. cool

#psy's no punctuation posts #it's hard to explain. he didn't do anything but like i don't want to be around him rn. you know what i mean. sometimes its just like that #just don't have the mental capacity to deal with him and i just want some peace when i make dinner #he retired last week and i'm happy for him but also the idea of him being around all fucking day every day is giving me hives #that is TOO much for me. he is too much. he's so high maintenance and loud and annoying and self-centered #i love him but he's best in small doses bcs he doesn't really talk to me like a person so i can only handle so much #he's encroaching on what i used to have as 'quiet' time when i came home from work. he'd be asleep #so he wouldn't make fun of what i watched or be loud and annoying and i could just chill #post-work should be quiet no dad time. not so anymore #and i can't ve like 'get out of the living room and go upstairs' bcs it's his house too and that isn't fair #but i just feel like i can't really be myself or do much while he's awake

[saxifactumterritum]

I can't really stop thinking about Jeeves putting on/taking off his drag in Bertie Wooster's room. sitting at his little fancy table with the mirror (I do know the word I've forgotten it).

#I had writ more but we don't need all that. just take it as read I have a lot a lot a lot of feelings about this #I love when they partake in 1920s queer culture in fics and I hope everyone continues and all that #for me i just think a lot about jeeves just doing his drag alone in his room for himself. just for love. just because he wants to. #I also think about a throw away line queer studies was making a lot of when i was studying it about one of the actors in Shakespeare's co #in the 17th century who was the hostess at parties. he was a man they were all men. he'd wear dresses and wigs and be the hostess. #one day I'll refind the source for that but it is not this day #just queer people being quietly queer doing queer little mundane things in small settings. #i dont know how big these parties were and there's a written record so obv... anyway. #Jeeves can be hostess. Bertie Wooster like 'oh yah my friend from the USA isn't she grand she's hostessing for me pouring the tea' #ok but also Jeeves being hostess for aunt Agatha and having an absolute ball talking disaprovingly about nephews who will not conform #hahahahah I just thought of that how fun.

[the-busy-ghost]

What an awful curse to be a person who theoretically loves maximalism but hates seeing stuff that has been stored outside cupboards, hates dusting, is terrified of somehow decorating The Wrong Way and being laughed at, is extremely clumsy, and has no real motivation to purchase nicknacks

#I know we often talk about the opposite problem (chaotic maximalists) but I'd say with the exception of books I'm a reluctant minimalist #Oh the life I could have if I weren't an absolute mess and therefore react badly to having more than four objects in a room to take care of #I just look at other people's pictures of cluttered cosy rooms and sigh #I love it in other people's homes and spaces but the minute I try to be decorative in my own I shrink back like a snail #I will sit comfortably in my very boring white empty walls and perish for lack of imagination and colour #But it's stressful if there are small things to get broken or need dusted all the time #And I like clear spaces #My brother keeps coming in like 'Oh your house isn't so bad you could just decorate a bit more' #I want to #But I also believe that will spell disaster and possibly some stubbed toes #I see cool little ornaments and pictures and stuff and think 'Oh yeah maybe some other time though' #And end up living in what I would in any other case describe as bland white wall grey carpet hell #I have become the Man #I feel so horrid and vanilla and BORING #What is the POINT of being an annoying opinionated aggressively passionate about niche things little horror #If that doesn't at least translate einto some interesting decor #Turns out I'm a big old suburban coward #It's so sterile in here #Earth & Stone

[insertdisc5]

🎮 HEY I WANNA MAKE A GAME! 🎮

Yeah I getcha. I was once like you. Pure and naive. Great news. I AM STILL PURE AND NAIVE, GAME DEV IS FUN! But where to start?

To start, here are a couple of entry level softwares you can use! source: I just made a game called In Stars and Time and people are asking me how to start making vidy gaems. Now, without further ado:

SOFTWARES AND ENGINES FOR PEOPLE WHO DON'T KNOW HOW TO CODE!!!

Ren'py (and also a link to it if you click here do it): THE visual novel software. Comic artists, look no further ✨Pros: It's free! It's simple! It has great documentation! It has a bunch of plugins and UI stuff and assets for you to buy! It can be used even if you have LITERALLY no programming experience! (You'll just need to read the doc a bunch) You can also port your game to a BUNCH of consoles! ✨Cons: None really <3 Some games to look at: Doki Doki Literature Club, Bad End Theater, Butterfly Soup

Twine: Great for text-based games! GREAT FOR WRITERS WHO DONT WANNA DRAW!!!!!!!!! (but you can draw if you want) ✨Pros: It's free! It's simple! It's versatile! It has great documentation! It can be used even if you have LITERALLY no programming experience! (You'll just need to read the doc a bunch) ✨Cons: You can add pictures, but it's a pain. Some games to look at: The Uncle Who Works For Nintendo, Queers In love At The End of The World, Escape Velocity

Bitsy: Little topdown games! ✨Pros: It's free! It's simple! It's (somewhat) intuitive! It has great documentation! It can be used even if you have LITERALLY no programming experience! You can make everything in it, from text to sprites to code! Those games sure are small! ✨Cons: Those games sure are small. This is to make THE simplest game. Barely any animation for your sprites, can barely fit a line of text in there. But honestly, the restrictions are refreshing! Some games to look at: honestly I haven't played that many bitsy games because i am a fake gamer. The picture above is from Under A Star Called Sun though and that looks so pretty

RPGMaker: To make RPGs! LIKE ME!!!!! NOTE: I recommend getting the latest version if you can, but all have their pros and cons. You can get a better idea by looking at this post. ✨Pros: Literally everything you need to make an RPG. Has a tutorial inside the software itself that will teach you the basics. Pretty simple to understand, even if you have no coding experience! Also I made a post helping you out with RPGMaker right here! ✨Cons: Some stuff can be hard to figure out. Also, the latest version is expensive. Get it on sale! Some games to look at: Yume Nikki, Hylics, In Stars and Time (hehe. I made it)

engine.lol: collage worlds! it is relatively new so I don't know much about it, but it seems fascinating. picture is from Garden! NOTE: There's a bunch of smaller engines to find out there. Just yesterday I found out there's an Idle Game Maker made by the Cookie Clicker creator. Isn't life wonderful?

✨more advice under the cut. this is Long ok✨

ENGINES I KNOW NOTHING ABOUT AND THEY SEEM HARD BUT ALSO GIVE IT A TRY I GUESS!!!! :

Unity and Unreal: I don't know anything about those! That looks hard to learn! But indie devs use them! It seems expensive! Follow your dreams though! Don't ask me how!

GameMaker: Wuh I just don't know anything about it either! I just know it's now free if your game is non-commercial (aka, you're not selling it), and Undertale was made on it! It seems good! You probably need some coding experience though!!!

Godot: Man I know even less about this one. Heard good things though!

BUNCHA RANDOM ADVICE!!!!

-Make something small first! Try making simple: a character is in a room, and exits the room. The character can look around, decide to take an item with them, can leave, and maybe the door is locked and you have to find the key. Figuring out how to code something like that, whether it is as a fully text-based game or as an RPGMaker map, should be a good start to figure out how your software of choice works!

-After that, if you have an idea, try first to make the simplest version of that idea. For my timeloop RPG, my simplest version was two rooms: first room you can walk in, second room with the King, where a cutscene automatically plays and the battle starts, you immediately die, and loop back to the first room, with the text from this point on reflecting this change. I think I also added a loop counter. This helped me figure out the most important thing: Can This Game Be Made? After that, the rest is just fun stuff. So if you want to make a dating sim, try and figure out how to add choices, and how to have affection points go up and down depending on your choices! If you want to make a platformer, figure out how to make your character move and jump and how to create a simple level! If you just want to make a kinetic visual novel with no choices, figure out how to add text, and how to add portraits! You'll be surprised at how powerful you'll feel after having figured even those simple things out.

-If you have a programming problem or just get confused, never underestimate the power of asking Google! You most likely won't be the only person asking this question, and you will learn some useful tips! If you are powerful enough, you can even… Ask people??? On forums??? Not me though.

-Yeah I know you probably want to make Your Big Idea RIGHT NOW but please. Make a smaller prototype first. You need to get that experience. Trust me.

-If you are not a womanthing of many skills like me, you might realize you need help. Maybe you need an artist, or a programmer. So! Game jams on itch.io are a great way to get to work and meet other game devs that have different strengths! Or ask around! Maybe your artist friend secretly always wanted to draw for a game. Ask! Collaborate! Have fun!!!

I hope that was useful! If it was. Maybe. You'd like to buy me a coffee. Or maybe you could check out my comics and games. Or just my new critically acclaimed game In Stars and Time. If you want. Ok bye

#reference #gamedev #indie dev #game dev #tutorial #video game #ACTUAL GAME DEVS DO NOT INTERACT!!!1!!!!! #this is for people who are afraid of coding. do not come at me and say 'actually godot is easy if you just--' I JUST WILL NOT. #long post