#based off a dream I had 5 months ago

[king-crawler]

Introducing the Turbo meal at mcdonalts

No drink no side burger Only with no cheese no lettuce no tomato no pickle but extra mayo with 1 minute & 0 seconds of screen time. The Product allows you to directly absorb famous racer Turbo Time’s vile energies! If you start crying we’re going to have to ask you to leave. You already KNOW what he says’ “Burger tastic!”

#Burger tastic! #I’m upset that I actually ate it #I fill sich to my stomack #I wasn’t given a choice. #based off a dream I had 5 months ago #turbo #wreck it ralph #turbotastic #Turbo Burger #gif #it hirts #food #burger #meat #not safe for LIFE… #🐛virus offerings

[sonicslushie]

Slipped My Mind ~ P.P.

Summary: You’re the person who designs Spiderman’s suits, but you never actually met the man- or boy- behind the mask. 

A/N: terrible summary & first fic, originally this was going to be based on the conan gray song “yours” but it took an odd turn in there so it's not lmao. But if you wanna read that let me know i’m dying to write more for petey boy. This is also like a little fluff thing that i threw together in a few hours so it’s not the best (my b) 

a playlist for u to listen to as u read<3

Pairing: Peter Parker x Stark Intern!Reader 

TW: kinda a clueless reader, mentions of blood and open wounds, 

Wordcount: 3.6k

Ice cream was all you wanted. It was your lunch break from Stark Industries, the place you interned at because of your impressive resume, and partly because your dad just so happened to be the owner of Tony Stark’s favorite burger place. You had been a pretty smart kid, finished highschool early and graduated MIT with a degree in engineering and all you wanted was to build supersuits. That was the dream, wasn’t it? Helping the world’s mightiest heroes by being the one who created their high tech suits and accessories, actually making a difference for those who saved billions of lives? Yeah, no. 

You started out three years ago as Ms. Potts' personal assistant at the ripe age of 16. You spent 2.5 years of that assisting just doing the basic intern stuff; grabbing coffee and burgers, attending meetings to take notes, scheduling and yatta yatta, the occasional fake laugh at a dad joke that Mr. Stark made. It wasn’t until you joined Ms. Potts in Mr. Stark’s lab to give him his burger, and you corrected his formulas on some project and you thought it was OVER. He looked surprised that you even spoke to him, oh fuck, you messed up. Or so you had thought. He actually told you that you were right?? Then, I swear to god, he asked what you would do to improve the project he was working on. (It was a super suit for the newest hero, Spiderman.) He liked your idea to add what you called the “training wheels” protocol. Mr. Stark decided to give you a chance and he had you help him create the rest of the suit, and now 6 months later, you were in charge of all things Spiderman. 

But that’s not the point of the story right now, right now, you wanted ice cream. 

And you had just bought two big scoops in a freshly made waffle cone. Honestly the best use of 5 bucks, or so you thought. Just as you were about to take the first lick, a red and blue streak sprinted past- no into you. It was like a movie, all you saw was your delicious creamy dessert flying up in the air in slow motion, then- SLAT! Both you and the ice cream were on the ground, a familiar looking super suit standing above you, stammering about how he was “so sorry” and “chasing a bad guy” in a very peppy voice. 

“You’re Spiderman, why weren’t you swinging from building to building?” You asked, furious you were now going to have to buy another one. You just wanted one thing, could you not just have it without dealing with this bozo? 

“Forgot to put in new web fluid. I’m sorry about your ice cream but I’ve really gotta- I don’t see him anymore. Shoot.” He says, shaking his head. “You know what, let me make this up to you. I’ll buy you another one.” 

Well that seemed fair and it slightly cooled off your now bad mood. You agree and wait in line with the dude who you create super suits for. The funny thing is, this was actually the first time you ever met the one and only Spiderman- or Spiderling as Mr. Stark calls him. You don’t even know who the person is under the mask, but at this point you really didn’t care about it, you just wanted your ice cream. 

After waiting in line for what felt like forever and making meaningless small talk with the masked hero, you make it to the front of the line. 

“Two scoops of strawberry, please. Waffle cone.” You smile at the worker, then turn to Spiderboy. You say at the same time as the employee, “5 bucks.” 

The Spiderdude pats his sides as if feeling for a wallet, then looks at you with that expressionless mask- god you had to work on that- and says, “I don't have my wallet.” 

You could almost smack him in the back of the head, but you just take your wallet out and give the worker a 5 dollar bill. Taking the new ice cream, you turn to the hero, “Well now you owe me two, Spidey.” 

“I-I’ll make it up to you, do you have Venmo?” He asks, panic rising in his voice. He sounded young, maybe around your age. If you were honest, he piqued your interest. So instead of rolling your eyes and walking away, you pulled your phone out. 

“Here,” you say, ready to just get back to the lab. He takes a picture of it and gives you a thumbs up. 

“I’ll have to make a new venmo so you can’t figure out my identity, but I gotta run.” He says, and literally runs off. You stand there, looking at the hero you basically manage but just met, then your ice cream. What a day, huh? You shrug it off and begin to eat your ice cream as you head back to the office. 

The ice cream had been off your mind ever since you finished the yummy dessert, and went back to designing your own web fluid. Sure the dude had his own way of making it (you weren’t really sure if it had been coming out of him or not until today, you never really had the chance to ask anyone), but you knew you could do it better. Everyone at Stark Industries called you ‘Junior’ for a reason, and it wasn’t just because of your crazy intelligence. It might have also been the slight egotistical self assurance and the stubbornness you possessed. 

As you worked you listened to music and snacked on the various foods you hid in the lab unbeknownst to Mr. Stark. Here and there you would test the web fluid with some of the new web shooter prototypes you had made, at this point you could swing around New York from how often you used these things. You often thought of it and giggled at the thought; ridiculous, these silly little dreams you possessed. 

You had been giggling about it to yourself when the one and only Mr. Stark walked in- with a kid who was talking so fast and in such a familiar peppy tone that you couldn’t help but look up. 

“-and then I looked up dodo birds and did you know they’re basically just big pigeons?” He finished, looking up at Mr. Stark with big brown doe eyes that sparkled in the light. Sparkle in the light? Oh come on, y/n. You caught yourself ogling at the new kid, still trying to figure out where you heard that voice before. Little miss genius might be able to create the highest tech super suits in the world, but boy oh boy did you have a hard time connecting dots. 

“Right, big pigeons. Anyway, Peter, this is y/n y/l/n. Junior, this is Peter Parker.” Mr. Stark says, looking at you as if you could take the excitable kid off of his hands. 

Now, Mr. Stark is a lot of things, and busy is one of them. This just so happens to affect his memory, and in this case, he completely forgot that he never introduced Spiderling- Peter Parker- to his favorite intern. It slipped his mind, I mean when you’re a billionaire CEO and a superhero, the little things tend to slip the mind. It’s not like he meant to never introduce you two, he really did mean to. But every time Peter’s been at the tower, Junior was always gone either for the weekend or for her lunch break. Plus, Mr. Stark had things to do. Like right now; get out of this boring conversation and get burgers from his favorite burger place with Happy. 

“Oh it’s nice to meet you, Peter.” You say, not knowing that you met Peter earlier that day as Spiderman. But Peter knew, and he also forgot that he had to venmo you for that ice cream from earlier. Caught off guard, his eyes just go wide and he awkwardly smiles and waves at you like an idiot. 

“Um okay. Anyway, Mr. Stark, I was about to head out, but I got the new web fluid made and finished up the new prototypes for web shooters. I also started up blueprints for a new suit. I forgot to mention I saw Spiderboy today and I gotta say, that suit does nothing for his ass.” You say, going back to the blueprints in front of you, making sure everything is perfect for tomorrow morning. Mr. Stark takes a peek over your shoulder, nodding in approval, then says, “Well I’ve got to hit the road, I’ve got… an important meeting to attend. Yeah. See ya tomorrow, Junior, same to you Pete.” 

You and Peter tell Mr. Stark bye in various fashions, being left in an awkward silence, neither of you really knowing how to proceed from there. Mr. Stark never told you that you would be meeting with Spiderdude to discuss your progress on the new ideas you had come up with but if he didn't show up before 5 you weren't staying, you'd didn't get paid enough. Peter wasn’t told he would be seeing the girl he literally ran into and owe her ice cream money. Seems like it just slipped Mr. Stark’s mind again. 

“So um, whatcha doing here Peter?” You say, begin to clean up your workstation to go home. Peter was just standing awkwardly behind you, trying to figure out what to say. He was also unaware that you didn’t know that he was Spiderman, he had figured Mr. Stark would have told you if you were the one working on his suits all this time. 

“Oh I was um- just leaving actually. Looks like you’re ready to go home, so I- Yeah I’m just gonna go.” He says quickly, turning on his heel to leave. At this point you were just ready to go home, so you shrug it off and say, “Nice meeting you, Peter. See ya.” 

He doesn’t say anything as he leaves. If he was being honest, he’s never been good at talking to pretty girls. Not to mention super awesome pretty intern girls who have been providing him his super awesome super suit. Probably too many “supers” but he didn’t care, he could barely even function in the same room as you. Not to mention he made a fool of himself earlier, but honestly you didn’t even seem to remember, which threw him off even more. And when you said “nice to meet you” it confused him, you two had met earlier that day. God, he had to get some fresh air. 

Peter made it outside and was cooling down from that super awkward and weird encounter, when he saw you pulling out of the car park in your car, singing along loudly to some Miley Cyrus song. He turns away, trying not to make it obvious that he was avoiding you. But you turned your head as you were looking for oncoming traffic, and you saw him. 

You don’t know why you did it, but you rolled your window down and yelled above the loud ass music, “Hey Peter! You waiting on a ride?” 

He was too caught off guard to lie, and to be fair he didn’t even like lying, so he shook his head and before he knew it, he was getting in your car. 

“Where are you heading?” You asked, turning the music down. He tries not to be as awkward as before as he says, “Queens, but it’s a far drive you really don’t have to-” 

“Oh I live there too! Don’t even worry about it,” you say, happy you could do something for the odd kid. He was a bit awkward, but in a cute sort of way. It almost made your stomach get butterflies at the thought of you of all people making him nervous. 

“Oh okay, thanks so much. I really appreciate it,” he says, then after a beat of intense silence with Miley wailing in the background, he decides to try and make conversation. “So how long have you been working for Mr. Stark?” 

“Since I was 16, so like 3 years. Most of it was being Ms. Potts’ assistant though,” you say, tapping your fingers to the beat. 

“Woah, wait so did you like graduate early?” He asks, now immensely intrigued. You give him the rundown of the past 6 years of your life, to which he’s very impressed and totally not thinking about how pretty you look in the dying sunlight. Totally would never do that. 

“But yeah, that’s me. What about you, how did you get involved with Mr. Stark?” You ask, glancing over at him slightly. You must say for a dork, he had some very nice features. 

“Very long story that includes him hitting on my aunt. Ugh,” he shivers at the memory, “And a trip to Germany.” 

That rings some bells in your head, but to be fair Mr. Stark is in Germany a lot so you don’t really question it. Like I said, you don’t connect dots very well unless it’s in the form of equations. 

You guys talk all the way to Peter’s apartment, you even give him your phone number if he ever needs a ride to the office. As Peter walks off, you both can’t help but wonder how weird the day has been. But as you drive off and turn up the radio, you put it out of your mind. Time to go home and relax. 

Only when you got home, you didn’t relax. Almost as soon as you step into your apartment, your phone lets out a little “cha-ching” noise, notifying you that someone just venmoed you. You completely forgot about Spidey owing you for your ice cream until you saw the little notification: Spidey paid you $10 with an ice cream emoji underneath. You smirk, then go back to fully entering your apartment. Only to hear your phone go off a few seconds later, another venmo notification, this time a comment left under the money he just paid you. 

I feel really bad about earlier. I figured I’d pay for both. 

You raise an eyebrow at your phone, smiling a little to yourself. He seems sweet. Sweeter than most guys you’ve run into in the middle of New York. And trust me, it’s happened more often than you’d like to admit. 

You type back. 

I really appreciate that Spiderdude. Love the profile pic;)

His profile picture was that one Spiderman meme with the three Spidermans pointing at each other. It made you giggle, at least he had a sense of humor. Most superheroes (*cough* Steve Rogers *cough*) didn’t. A few seconds later he sends another message. 

Next time I’ll get you three scoops:)

You smiled and decided that was a pretty good deal, three free ice creams? Sounds like a scam but you weren’t going to question it. You just put your phone down and decided it was time to have a nice warm bath and rock out to Taylor Swift. 

It was a while before you heard from both Peter or Spiderman, and you were still clueless to the fact that they were the same person. After a few weeks of that whole situation being off your mind, you were going into work on a late night call from Mr. Stark said that something urgent came up with the Spiderling and he wasn’t in town to take care of it. So, you jumped out of bed and rushed out still in your pajamas to the Stark Tower. 

You sped all the way there, the stars oddly bright for the city. You made note to go to the rooftop of your apartment whenever you were able to make it back. You always had a thing for the stars, having not grown up in New York. The city was beautiful, but you could truly say that you hated the nights there. No stars glittering overhead, cars and people being loud at all hours of the night. The only good thing you could say about the night in New York was all the food places that were open 24/7. (You tend to have a craving for Thai food at odd hours of the night.) 

Upon arriving at the Stark Tower, you ask F.R.I.D.A.Y what’s going on, and she directs you to your lab. You make your way up there, wondering what in the world this kid could be needing that’s so urgent. If it’s something stupid, dear god, help him. You would molly whop him into the next dimension. 

The lab doors upon a very beat up Spiderboy, who’s laid across your desk. Laying in a pile of blood. Okay, good enough reason, you supposed, immediately dropping all idea’s of punching the poor kid in the head. 

You rush up to him, taking in his half dead state of being. A giant would- no a hole would be a better way of putting it. Just a big hole in his side, with a lot of blood seeping out of it. You poke him, making sure he’s still breathing. He groans in response, it’s enough to get you moving. You had planned on this a long time ago, you created a device to regrow skin just for this occasion. You found it and within seconds, his wound began healing, though it might take a while for him to create enough blood to be able to even be able to sit up again. At that thought, you ordered F.R.I.D.A.Y. to get the building’s onsite medical team to get the kid. 

Once you were finished fixing his gaping hole, you poked him again, praying he was still alive. There was so much blood everywhere, but you tried to keep your Thai food down as you begged for him to wake up. 

“Come on kid, you can’t die on me. Mr. Stark would kill us both,” you say, starting to shake him now. You could see his chest moving up and down slightly, but he wasn’t waking up. You pleaded in your head for the med team to get there quickly, you didn’t know why you were so upset by this. Sure, it would be sad if the kid died, but you didn’t know him like that. You didn’t know him well enough to be crying over his dying body, begging him to just open his eyes or say something. Not that you could see them through the mask-

The mask. 

Your trembling hand goes to take it off, but the medical team rushes in just as you begin peeling it off, only exposing his neck. 

You step back as the med team begins working on him, you let them know that you healed him, but he needed blood. That was all you could say before they moved him onto the gurney and began taking him away, you called after, “Just wake up, Spidey, please!” 

That was the first thing that Peter remembers hearing, your voice. Lights were flashing overhead as he heard people saying things above him, though he couldn’t comprehend any of it. God, he was so dizzy. And why wasn’t his side hurting anymore? He started grabbing for his side, but the people around him stopped him from doing so. What was going on?

“You were bleeding out,” one of them says from above him, he’s starting to hear them more clearly now. Maybe his superhealing had finally set in. “No, Ms. y/l/n just saved your life. Now calm down, you’re going to be okay.” 

Peter didn’t realize he was just speaking his thoughts as they came to him, he also didn’t realize that you had decided to follow the medical team just to make sure he ended up okay. It’s not that you didn’t trust them, you just wanted to be sure. So much for looking at the stars, huh? 

Peter kept babbling as the medical team got him to their facility a few floors down, starting to connect tubes to give him more blood. One of them goes to take his mask off to check for any head wounds, but he stops them. He’s conscious enough to know that he knows none of these people, and none of these people need to know that he’s Peter Parker. 

“You’re Peter Parker?” You say, total confusion in your voice. Damn it, did he say that out loud? “Yes, you did, you idiot.” 

You get as close as you can without getting in the way of the people trying to help him. Once they were all done and he was getting the blood that he needed, you asked them to leave so you could talk to Peter. How did you not realize? He has a very distinctive voice, and obviously that’s why Mr. Stark brought him into your lab a few weeks ago. Seriously, not your best moment. 

“So you’re the infamous Spiderman?” You say, sitting on the edge of his cot. He peels his mask off and takes a breath of fresh air. 

“Wait,” it hits him that you didn’t know, what is going on? “You didn’t know?” 

“Nope,” you laugh, “I’m not really sure how I didn’t, especially after Mr. Stark brought you in there. I’m also not sure how he never mentioned that you were there person I’ve been making all this superhero stuff for. Must have slipped his mind.” Understatement of the century. 

“I thought you knew, that’s why I never really mentioned it. Also,” he smiles a little to himself, “I promised to get you ice cream next time I saw you. How about it?” 

You raise your eyebrow at him, “You’re in a cot getting blood poured into you.” 

“When I’m better?” 

“Sounds like a date.”

#peter parker #peter parker x reader #peter parker x you #peter parker fluff #peter parker imagine #mcu peter parker #peter parker fanfiction #spiderman x you #spiderman x reader #spiderman fanfiction #spiderman fanfic

[romanoffsbish]

Clandestine Meetings

Natasha Romanoff x Fem!R

Prompts / Request

 “Go and lock the door for me.  I don’t want anyone to walk in while I’m balls deep.”

 “Go get one of your toys.  Let’s make this even better.”

“Is that gonna fit?”  “I’ll make it fit.”

Warnings: Jealousy, Emotionally Stunted Natasha

Smut: Natasha has a penis, Daddy(N), Detka/Whore(R), Nipple Clamps, Vibrating Egg, Oral(R), Unprotected Sex/Breeding, Choking, Edging/Teasing, Orgasm Denial.

18+ | Minors DNI

"I want love Nat, you just want a quick fuck."

The words you whispered to her over a month ago have been bouncing around her mind the entire time, plaguing her very soul. It got to the point where while away on her mission she couldn't even focus on the objective anymore.

Who were you to just come to a conclusion like that without so much as a conversation?

——

Not a, "Nat, we need to talk," or a "I'm not sure we want the same things Nat, correct me if I'm wrong here," and she would've corrected you. Because you were so far off base, all Natasha wanted was to love you, she just didn't know how to do that outside of worshipping you in deeply passionate moments that usually ended just as fast as they began, and left you alone.

Now here you lay on the compounds couch in your sleep shorts, a sight the redhead would love to see every morning in her own room. Waking up beside you would be a dream new experience, potentially challenging, but she knows that she'd grow to love the situation.

Natasha already loved you—desperately so.

The only obstacle here had been her inability to make her loving intentions clear to you. She'd always been a bit more on the vulgar side, and you seemed into it for awhile, but one random night you shoved her away and that was just it.

As soon as she figured herself out, she was going to make things right with you. But there was apparently a new obstacle, because right now your head was settled into another's lap.  Carol was listening to you ramble on while mindlessly stroking your cheek. Natasha envied the blonde's ability to offer such an intimate moment without any real effort.

When she saw how much the woman enjoyed your presence she felt her heart shattering into tiny, jagged pieces. With her jaw clenched she rushed out of the kitchen and went straight to her room where she allowed a stray tear to fall. Then she reached for her phone, and sent you a text message: Meet me in my room in 5 !

Carol smiled down at you knowingly when she heard the ding of your phone, "I told you to go after her Y/N, she didn't seem very pleased."

"Yeah, and I don't give a fuck," you huffed, arms crossing over your chest, and the blonde cackled wildly at the sign of faux indifference before she returned to a more serious state.

"Y/N, ever since she's been gone all you've done is mope around this place, but oh look, the day she's back you suddenly appear before me with a sunny disposition and expect me not to see right through it? Answer her text and maybe even go get laid, you're insufferable."

"Carol," you groaned, hands flying to your face to hide the mortification in your eyes at the brutal call out, "She doesn't want me," you pouted, "at least not in the way I want her to."

"Did she say that?" Carol asks while lazily drawing circles on your shoulder to calm you.

"She didn't have to say it out loud..."

"Oh Y/N," she tilted your head so you would be facing her, she caressed your cheek then spoke, "Natasha isn't exactly known for expressing her feelings in ways that make sense, so how about you put your big girl pants on, and force her to say the words she couldn't manage to before."

You huffed while glaring up at her, knowing she was right, but in the same breath you snatched your phone up, and read the message while rolling your eyes, a bitter chuckle leaving you as you saw the song that happened to have been softly playing at the time of arrival.

After a moment of soul searching you took off to her bedroom in a frenzied ball of nerves. Entering her space felt both comfortingly familiar, and extremely uneasy. Seeing her sat on the bed in sweats with her legs manspread, leaning back on her exposed muscular arms as she wore a cami without a bra you felt your body tingle with need, and your mouth go dry.

With a sly smirk, and a crook of her finger you made your way further into the room, but she left you to be blanketed in an awkward silence. It was clear she didn't actually expect you to be here, and now that you were she was weighing out her options, but just like usual, she was not able to articulate the right words like: I missed you, I love you, or please, don't leave again...

"Go and lock the door for me. I don't want anyone to walk in while I'm balls deep," the redhead commanded dryly, and though the thought of her inside you alone nearly brought you to your knees, you rolled your eyes instead and went to hurriedly walk away again.

Natasha ran after you, catching you by the wrist to prevent you from leaving, "Y/N, stop doing this okay," she pinched the bridge of her nose, and softly sighed, "I don't know how to do all of this, vulnerability isn't my strong suit, okay? Just let me show you instead..."

You furrowed your brows, and she sighed exasperatedly, "Give me a chance, please."

Saying no to her would be in vain, because it was all you wanted to finally be beneath her, so you nodded without really much hesitation.

Natasha leaned in to kiss you, the first time in your whole arrangement that she'd done it with any semblance of care present. Normally it's all teeth clashing, and tongues sloppily gliding over the other while she brought you to bliss.

Up until now Natasha has only ever offered you quick moments, with only her hands or mouth diligently bringing you over that glorious edge. Never had she actually shown you tenderness, but more importantly, she had yet to fuck you with the bulge poking you through her pants.

Natasha wasn't ready to give you all of her, it was actually something she'd never done with another person that she loved before. She's screwed girls before, usually as a means to an end, with their faces smushed into a mattress, but she couldn't bring herself to do it with you. No matter how desperate she was for release after hearing and seeing you come undone for her, or how prettily you'd beg to help her out each time, she just couldn't cross that line.

But now, she knew it was all she could do to make sure you understand, that you feel her in every sense possible, and feel her love for you.

"Na-Natasha," breathlessly you stuttered out her name as your hips reflexively canted into hers, "I need you daddy, please, fill me up."

Natasha groaned, pulling away from your lips she smirked devilishly, you could see the flicker of mischief in her gaze as she leaned down to suck a mark onto your smooth skin, "Go get one of your toys. Let's make this even better."

The knob twisted in her hands this time, she watched in amusement as you scurried across the hall to your room in your mussed up state.

"Look at how desperate you already are detka," she slammed you back into the door as soon as you crossed the threshold, the door slammed close with the impact and you moaned weakly.

Surveying the items in your hands she softly chuckled, "Oh, you're in for it now Y/N, gonna give you all of me so you can finally understand what my true intentions with you are."

This time when she kissed you it was with a bit of urgency, her hands contrastingly gripped your hips softly, and without ever breaking the kiss she walked your body over to the mattress. Natasha lowered you down gently, and as she rose back up she collected the nipple clamps and the vibrating bullet from your hands.

"May I?" Natasha gestured to your body, and you smiled gratefully, no matter how quickly she usually took you, she'd always been keen on hearing consent. "Please, do it already."

The sleep clothes were quickly discarded, and her lips latched onto your risen buds instantly. Her tongue rolled around your nipple slowly, causing your breath to shallow as you were overrun with pleasurable anticipation. After a moment she released your nipple with a pop, giving you only seconds to adjust to the chill on your wetted skin before she attached a clamp.

Natasha caught your hand before it could mindlessly tug the clamp off, "It's okay detka," she shushed you softly, tenderly smiling down at you as she slid her fingers between yours, "You're okay," she gently brushed her lips over your knuckles before laying your interlocked hands on top of the mattress. A whimper left you as you were overrun with a overdue sense of comfort from her, then you were moaning when her lips returned to your heated skin.

"I'm going to ruin you Y/N," she growled around your other nipple before she bit into the hypersensitive skin, "No one will ever touch you again after I leave a mark on what's mine."

"Say it," she growled as she hovered over you, but before you could even try she was clamping your sore bud, effectively making you wince.

"Oh shit," you gasped when she gave the chain a harsh tugging to ensure it was properly attached, the accompanying pain was dizzying.

"I asked you to say something," she leered over you, hand now wrapped around your throat in a way that not only intimidated you but left you absolutely dripping onto her expensive sheets.

Natasha watched your brainless eyes searching for a response, it took you a minute, but you were finally about to open your mouth, but all that came out was a lewd moan as she pressed the vibrating egg into your slicked up cunt.

"Come on now detka, you know I don't like to be made to wait," she tightened her hand around your throat, something that only ever adds to your pleasure, and she knew that, it was honestly her favorite, slowly draining the life from you as she brought your body to euphoria, only to spare you in the last second.

She was a bit of a sadist. You didn't mind...

Something about that control was exhilarating, seeing your eyes grow hazier with every second as you harshly choked never failed to make her cock twitch. Maybe it was the underlying way in which you trusted her to never go too far, it had her overwhelmed with unwavering joy.

After allowing you a moment of pure bliss she deemed it enough, so she tore it away from you, ripping the vibe out of you and watching in amusement as your eyes filled with tears, and your lip was now caught between your teeth, "Daddy no, please, I-I was so close."

Your whimpering always affected her greatly, she gets off to the memory of you begging all the time, so it's no surprise to her that her cock was painfully straining against her boxers.

"Whores that forgot how to speak don't get to cum!" Natasha spat, the underlying tone full of pain telling you she meant more than in this moment, your constant distancing hurt her.

"Natty," you tried to apologize, but she only grew angrier, her hand harshly gripped your face, and she hovered over you with a furious gaze, you hated to admit it but it sent a pang of arousal down to your already dripping cunt, "That's not my fucking name slut, try again."

"Daddy," you whimpered, and she softened momentarily as she leaned in to kiss your lips, "Better, but I no longer want to hear you, so lets shut that pretty brain of yours off," she pecked your lips once more before her lips trailed down your body in quick succession.

The sound of buzzing as she now faced your cunt left you with widened eyes, this new dynamic was throwing you off honestly. So used to a quick release this newfound joy of hers spurring from teasing you was alarming. You began to wonder if the loveless sex was better, but deep down you knew it wasn't, especially when she edged you so deliciously.

Natasha held the vibe just out of reach of your clit, a test of sorts that she wanted you to fail. "Daddy's gonna get a taste now detka," she murmured against the lush skin of your thighs as she moved to further mark her territory.

After minutes of torture, where she barely swiveled the egg over your bundle of nerves you finally caved and canted your hips up. Natasha bit harshly into your thigh, blaming you for moving as she moved to hover over your face, "There's a time and a place for your pleasure, and this isn't it, now stay still Y/N!"

"Sorry daddy," you sniffled wetly, drawing her back out of her lust driven haze, and the sight of you so broken was honestly picturesque, it brought a lopsided smirk to her plump lips.

Natasha usually moved only to please you, but in this moment, she wanted you desperate. So needy, hopelessly dependent upon her touch, this way you'll never look for anyone else again. Looking into your eyes now she saw that was already your truth, you were so lost in the pleasure that she was hardly giving, "It's okay detka, you know daddy will take care of you."

Natasha kissed you until you were breathless, then when you were reduced to a heaving mess she returned to your thighs, she placed a few soft kisses there before finally diving into you.

With the vibrator pressed firmly into your clit, and her tongue deep inside you it was all you could do to make a mess of her face, a scream of pleasure echoed off her walls, and Natasha pulled back with an accomplished smile. The sight of her as your slick was dripping down her chin made your body shiver, that unraveled coil started to retighten, and your hazy eyes slammed shut as you tried to calm down.

Natasha teasingly rutted her hips into yours, you could feel her straining against her boxers when she stilled, and you couldn't help but to squirm when she made no move to fuck you.

Natasha chuckled as she felt your desperation, she softly continued to push her sizable bulge down against your slit, the irritating fabric separating your sexes actually brought you a slice of pleasure when it grazed over your clit. It would never be enough though, your hips began to jerk up to meet hers, desperation fueling you, and Natasha could feel it wholly.

She truly loved teasing you, feeling the way your aromatic slick soaked through her boxers, it only became too much for her once you were whining pitifully in her ear, making her twitch without reprieve, so without much warning she jumped up, leaving you to cry at the loss of friction, but the protests died on your tongue when you saw her dick spring free, it was huge.

"Is that gonna fit?" you visibly gulped, wide eyes watching as the tip of her cock hit her abdomen as she slowly sauntered over to you with an obnoxiously hot smirk overtaking her face as she hovered over you, "I'll make it fit."

Her lips pressed to yours, instinctually yours parted, Natasha's tongue slid into your mouth as her tip pushed passed your entrance, and you latched onto her tongue as you moaned. A shiver ran down the redheads spine when your walls simultaneously squeezed her thick shaft making it near impossible for her to fill you up.

The way that your warmth enveloped her cock made her fearful that she'd bust without even thrusting as she bottomed out, "Fuck, you feel so good Y/N, you're taking me so well detka."

Her hand sought yours out for grounding, and when you felt her interlock her fingers with yours again your eyes fluttered open to see her deepened green pair staring back into yours. The eye contact was intense, and arousing, but incredibly hard to keep when you felt her begin to thrust slowly, and relatively deeply into you.

"Keep em open," Natasha panted, your eyes slowly fluttered back open, fighting against the insurmountable pleasure, "Wanna see you."

It was a struggle, but you somehow managed to keep your eyes partially open for the ferocious women pounding into you with strong hips. The brutal pace she set was building you up quick, you never knew how much you needed her until now, she felt too good, the way she stretched you out left you gasping, and with every thrust her bulbous tip drove you wild.

With her hand in yours, and eyes locked you were overwhelmed by a love you were truly convinced didn't exist. The one that pulsed inside you the closer she got to her release, the love she needed verbally reciprocated to finish, "Say it detka," Natasha whispered breathlessly just as she twitched inside of you, "Please..."

"I'm yours Nat," you dopily confirmed with an amused tone, the moment was however short lived as a scream was torn from your throat, your eyes rolled to the back of your head as she let go inside of you, hot spurts of white filled your womb to the brim, and your body trembled without reprieve. "I-I need you Y/N, please don't leave me again, I'll do better..."

"Nat," you managed to squeak out her name in between your pants, "If you don't run, I won't."

"I'll never run again detka," she pressed her lips to your cheek, then trailed them down until she was resting in the crook of your neck, "I promise, we'll learn how to love together."

"Oh, I know how to love," you teased with a deliberate clenching of your walls, "Shit Y/N."

You flipped your positions before she could even recover, harshly grinding down against her as you did, did the trick when you could feel the way her cock hardened once more.

"It's my turn to show you," you winked, and the redhead smirked, a long drawn out sigh leaving her lips as you began to grind down into her.

———

3,075 Words

❤️ Kaitlyn 😏

#natasha romanoff #natasha romanoff imagine #natasha romanoff smut #natasha romanoff angst #natasha romanoff fluff #natasha romanoff fanfic #natasha romanoff pov #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff x you #natasha romanoff x female reader #natasha romanoff x y/n #natasha x reader #natasha x y/n #natasha x you #natasha x fem!reader #gxg #black widow #black widow smut

[mrsquill]

Two Chances

Pairing: Joel Miller x Fem!Reader (Outbreak-Free AU)

Summary: You love your job at your local dog shelter, but weekends are precious to you. Enter Joel Miller and his daughter, looking to add to their family.

Notes: Well, here’s this. My first x reader fic! Based on a gorgeous little something @fuckyeahdindjarin inspired me to write a little while ago ❤️ I’ve tried to be as inclusive as possible here, but please let me know if I’ve missed the mark at any point. This, as usual, is short but hopefully y’all enjoy. Thanks to all those in this beautiful community who have inspired & helped me along the way.

Warnings: Fluff, reader has smutty thoughts about Joel cuz she’s only human (18+ minors DNI), no specific age of reader (but she is an adult), slight angst, discussion of parent death and awful fathers. Joel could potentially be a bit OOC here but *shrugs* I think that’s everything!

You couldn’t wait to finish your shift. Not that you didn’t love your job, but it was hot as balls out today, and all you were dreaming of was an ice cold beer and the pool in your neighbour’s backyard, nothing but silence in your surroundings. It’d been an exhausting and physically demanding day at the shelter - 25 dogs needing to be fed, watered, exercised and cared for round the clock. It would do that to anyone, let alone you, who’d taken this on as a part-time job and just kinda got stuck.

Your braid was falling out, sticking to the sweat pooling on your neck as you swept the concrete outside the kennels; straps of your white cotton camisole slipping down your sore upper arms.

Ten minutes, you assured yourself, silently puffing stray strands of hair away from your forehead and glancing at the clock. The raucous din of the dogs chattering to one another bounced off the walls around you. Ten minutes ‘til your weekend was finally yours.

Still, you could think of worse places to spend your Saturday, watching as the two newest arrivals - brother Boxer puppies, Thor and Loki - chased one another’s tails round their pen. The residents here shattered your heart and made it feel so full at all once; some having the most horrendous skin-and-bone start to their lives on the streets, others lasting only a couple of months with a family after being purchased as a barely thought-out Christmas gift. Gaining their trust could be hard, but it was worth it every damn time; nothing was more rewarding than those wet puppy kisses after hours of gentle coaxing.

“I’m heading out, hon,” Mo calls out to you with a wave from the makeshift office at the end of the kennels. “See you Monday!”, you reply with genuine enthusiasm, as you watch your boss head off in the direction of her house. You loved Mo; she had a way with all animals that you were sure would guarantee her entry to the pearly gates one day.

She curated a home for the dogs here that you were more than happy to assist with. Being just the two of you, things could get a little intense, but you were fond of each other, and had no qualms about alternating who would close up on the weekend.

A couple more minutes go by as you absent-mindedly check off the few remaining tasks on your list, head more full of the decision of which Ben & Jerry’s flavour to pick up at the gas station on the way home. It’s then you hear the crunch of the gravel outside as a car pulls up; silently cursing as you note the time. 5:01pm.

Sighing, hating the notion of turning anyone away, you dust down the front of your cutoffs the best you can and chewing your lip uncertainly. You guess you can spare some time; if these people are serious about adoption, it’s a win-win situation for everyone involved. The traffic through the shelter was steady, but you could always be doing better. It’s sad to see a dog go - of course it was - but seeing them head off with their new family was all the reward you needed in the world.

A pair of footsteps and muted chatter come round the corner from the parking lot, and suddenly you’re doing everything you can not to openly stare at the man approaching you on the concrete, a girl of around five or six that you can only imagine to be his young daughter swinging off his hand.

It’s not that he’s especially tall or anything. But man, is he broad. Strong shoulders under his denim shirt, biceps nudging lovingly against his sleeves. Not the kind of muscle from the gym, though; no, this guy clearly spends his days outside doing something physical, judging by the dust on his boots and the worn material of his jeans at the kneecaps. The idea of him, sweaty and shirtless and perhaps a hammer in hand, has you feeling like you need to grip the walkway rail a little harder. Pathetic, you reprimand yourself internally. You don’t think you’ve been this bowled over by a gorgeous man since your grandmother sat you down to watch Indiana Jones as a kid.

You sneak a look at the smattering of hair at the base of his thick neck; his rugged jawline, beard creeping over just so. He runs a hand through his curls, and he catches you staring. Fuck. He looks back down at his daughter; and you’re all at sea after looking into his eyes. Darkest brown, drinking you in. You draw yourself up to your fullest height and grip the broom a little harder as they reach you. It wouldn’t do to be caught - again - staring at him like some lovestruck teenager.

“We’re too late, ain’t we?” he chuckles, narrowing his eyes in anticipation of your response. “Not at all!” you smile, perhaps a little too brightly, and you can tell he doesn’t believe you by the quirk of his brow. “This one was none too happy with me makin’ her wait till the weekend to come here, so thank you for seein’ us,” he murmurs, gesturing to the girl beside him as she grins at you shyly, one front tooth missing.

You introduce yourself to them both, trying to ignore the flutter in your stomach as his large hand envelops yours easily. “‘m Joel, and this here is my daughter, Sarah,” he nods affectionately towards the young girl; her eyes already shining with excitement as she catches sight of the two Boxer puppies gambolling around behind you. “Would you like to meet them?” you ask Sarah, and she nods so enthusiastically you worry her head may fall off.

“We have an enclosed meadow out back,” you point your thumb behind you, “and we can take these little guys over there, if you’d like?” you offer, and Joel grins. “Only if it ain’t too much trouble, sweetheart,” he murmurs with that Southern drawl, and suddenly you feel all your earlier desire to head home evaporate like a creek in the summertime. You assure him it’s fine; and with both puppies soon under your arms with practiced ease, you head over to the meadow, Joel and Sarah in tow.

You find you hit it off with him instantly; first asking the important questions such as their living situation, if they’ve owned a dog before, or if they have any other pets at home. “Quite the questionnaire, darlin’,” he chuckles lowly, arms folded over his chest as you both watch Sarah giggling, legs crossed in the sunshine as the puppies climb all over her. He, in turn, takes it upon himself to ask you how long you’ve worked here, what it is you enjoy about it the most. Realising you’re here for the long haul - and not being one bit mad about it - you gesture Joel to sit at a bench with you; averting your eyes when his thighs stretch over the wood opposite you. Get it together.

“Sarah certainly seems to be a dog lover,” you smile to distract yourself, and Joel hums his agreement. “Would you be prepared to take on a puppy?”, you ask. “I’m sure you’re aware, but they do require extensive training - potty, obedience and socialisation.” Joel raises his eyebrows then, biting back a smile. “Ya think I’m gonna be able to walk away from here without one?” he says, indicating the scene before you both. “Just more questions I have to ask,” you tease lightly. Joel shrugs in defeat; rolling his shoulders, your eyes drawn to the sliver of chest hair peeking at you next to the buttons on his shirt. Stop, you remind yourself for the third time.

“It’s Sarah’s birthday soon, and I wanted to make this one special for her,” he confesses, and you hate to say it, but it needs to be done. “Joel.. Can I be frank?” you start, and those eyebrows are raised again. “I thought ya already told me your name, back there,” he points back towards the shelter, trying not to grin. “Funny,” you admit, before pressing on. “We have a lot of families coming through here; wanting to make a birthday or a Christmas special. I’m not doubting your commitment, but I’ve seen too many dogs dumped back at the shelter with little to no explanation after the excitement wears off,” you say, watching Loki snooze on Sarah’s knee whilst Thor tries to pull at the laces on her sneakers.

“Can you see where I’m coming from?” you ask tentatively; hoping not to come off as a total asshole to this man for more reasons than one. Joel exhales heavily, a calloused hand coming up to scrub over his face. He follows your gaze towards his daughter; and it’s then that you notice the true adoration in his eyes - he looks tired; exhausted, even - but the love there. Jeez. It’s really something. It makes you think of the opposite you saw in your own father: a dark road you’d rather not go down.

He begins to tell you it’s the first birthday since Sarah’s mom died after a short illness. They were divorced, but had joint custody, Joel mostly taking over on weekends. He’s trying to nail the whole solo parenting thing - trying, but feeling like he’s failing. He admits regretting not asking his late ex-wife so many things; how to care for their daughter’s hair full time, how to manage to get her to school and then to soccer practice without being late, how to essentially keep her alive, happy, safe. It’s then that you stop him; a gentle hand on his forearm. “I’d say you’re already doing better than you think,” you offer, not shy of your smile this time.

“I don’t know why I’m tellin’ you all of this,” he admits, “ya must just have that kinda face.” And you tell him it’s true; your grandmother always said you were an old soul, with a face people just wanted to open up to with no preamble, no filter. Maybe that’s why you and Mo get along so much, you ponder for a moment. “My mom died, too,” you say quietly, Thor having wandered over to the two of you, sniffing round Joel’s boots before slumping belly-up in the shade. “My dad - he, uh, he wasn’t so great. And not in the way you think you’re not great. He truly was the definition of an asshole,” you try not to shiver, despite the cloudless blue sky above you.

“‘m sorry that happened to ya,” Joel mutters, eyes on his knuckles as they flex instinctively. “It’s okay,” you shrug, “was a long time ago. I had my grandma, we did just fine. If you want my take.. There’s so many lousy parents in this world, and it’s better to have been loved fully, despite the loss that can and will come, than never at all,” you surmise; nodding your head toward his daughter, flat on her back in the grass with Loki on her chest, her eyes closed in a picture of perfect peace. The sight makes you smile.

When you turn to face Joel, you find him looking at you intently, shielding his eyes from the sun with his hand. It’s covered in scars; some faded with time, others fresher, just scabbing over. “I’m gonna ask ya for two chances,” he says, full bottom lip between his teeth. Your head cocks to one side, interest suitably piqued. “Is that so?” you ask, a fluttering in your chest that you can’t quite seem to stall. He nods, and you roll your eyes, biting back a laugh. “One,” he begins, “you give us a shot at this adoption. That girl needs someone else around who ain’t her daddy, and I promise ya I’d do right by that dog,” he points over to Sarah and Loki; his daughter whispering conspiratorially in the puppy’s ear. “I do think we have a winner there,” you admit, hands up in defeat.

“Two,” Joel continues, “could I ask ya on a date, darlin’? Assumin’ you’re not spoken for?” he asks, quieter than before. Almost.. shyly. It seems strange; like a skin he wants to shed, only used to being the most commanding person in the room. “Ya know, to keep an eye on our progress ‘n everythin’,” he adds quickly, before you can open your mouth. You feel your belly squirming at the idea of seeing this man again; your gaze drawn once more to his hands as they brace against the bench, wondering how they’d feel if he cupped your face between them right before he kissed you, then splayed against your ribcage, thumbs just brushing the underside of your breasts..

“Sweetheart?” Joel’s voice jolts you from your reverie, “ya can say no to me, but ‘m afraid you’ll have to be the one tellin’ her,” he whispers, Sarah ambling over to join you both, puppy asleep in her arms. “Do I need to give him back now?” she asks politely, her daddy’s brown eyes blinking at you earnestly. “No, I believe he’s yours to keep, after we do some paperwork,” you grin, “but I might stop by soon to see how he’s getting on. Would that be okay?” you ask, and her face opens up like a butterfly, elation sewn into her features. “Yeah, that would be okay,” she muses shyly as she falls into Joel’s side. He wraps an arm around her, and presses a kiss to her hair. He winks at you, then; and you have a feeling both chances will end up coming good.

#ahhhhhh omg #anyway #joel miller #joel miller fluff #joel miller fic #joel miller fanfiction #joel miller x reader #pedro pascal fanfiction #sarah miller fanfic #sarah miller fanfiction #tlou fanfic #the last of us fanfiction

[somanyratsinthewalls]

Burning Hearts Chapter 5

Pairing: Law x Straw Hat Zoan Type (named) OC 

Summary: You were teleported across the globe in an instant, away from your crew. Your body was badly broken and beaten, thrust into the harsh landscape of a Northern island. You are discovered by the Heart Pirates and brought back to health. Startled upon waking up in a foreign place with an unfamiliar crew, you are shocked with the news that you’ll be spending two years there. Trafalgar Law, the captain of the Heart Pirates has made a promise to train you, but will it become something more than a mentor relationship?

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 - Chapter 6

Burning Hearts Chapter 5: Reclaiming Energy

— — 

It had nearly been a month since Law had begun training Daisy. Six days a week they would meet in the clearing to spar. He pushed her further each time, but she was still holding back her strength by refusing to use her devil fruit powers. Her powers only revealed themselves when she lost control of her body and mind. 

That was how he lost his eyebrows a few weeks ago. After Law brought up her previous captor, she had blacked out with emotion and didn’t remember the moment where fire sprayed from her lips and singed his face. Daisy passed out immediately afterwards and had to be carried back to the base. Law never brought it up. 

“Hmm…” Law is alone in his office and perusing the large bookcase that housed thousands of medical journals and historical texts. 

“Aha.” Law grabs a particular dusty, tattered tome from the bottom shelf of the bookcase and carries it back to his desk. He gingerly sets the delicate book down on his desk and flops down in his chair. He rolls the desk chair inwards and wipes the layer of dust off the cover of the book with the sleeve of his yellow hoodie. He opens the book. 

The cracking sound of the spine ricochets off the cold steel walls of Law’s office and he peruses the yellowed pages. It was a book on Devil Fruits, but ones that were only theorized to exist. This book was far different from his other texts on Devil Fruits. This one was much older and much less precise. The book was full of crude, handmade drawings and scribbles from its author. None of these fruits were confirmed to have ever existed, but Law was determined to find out what kind of Zoan type could breathe fire and fly. 

Law sifted through the brittle pages trying to find an answer, but soon felt the lack of sleep catching up with him. How long had it been since he had laid in his bed and indulged in a full nights sleep? Days? Weeks?

“Ugh…” Law leans back in his chair and rubs his eyes. He flops his arms down on the sides of his chair and lets his eyes rest for just a moment…

*Knock knock* 

Law is jostled out of his relaxed state by a knock on the door. 

“Come in.” Law calls out as he pushes his hair off his forehead and straightens himself in his chair. 

“Hi.” Daisy smiles as she enters Law’s office. 

“Hi back.” Law responds. “Is there something you need?”

“Well…” Daisy slinked quickly from her place in the doorframe to the side of Law’s desk. “That depends… is there something you’d like to give me?” 

“What?” Law knits his brows, confused. 

Daisy runs her hand along Law’s desk before taking a step towards him. 

“I think you know what I’m talking about…” The tone in Daisy’s voice was unlike anything he had ever heard before. 

*woosh*

Suddenly, in a flutter of wings, Daisy had landed herself directly onto Law’s lap, straddling him. She smiles softly and brings a hand up to caress the side of his face. 

“Don’t you want to touch me, Law?” Daisy purrs down at him from his lap, dark black wings framing her feminine figure. 

“M-miss Rito this is highly unprofessional… I-I-“ Law stutters out from underneath the demon. "I-I could never..." Law trips over his words, flustered by the beautiful woman on his lap...

“But Law…?”

“Law?” 

“Captain? Law?” 

Law was snapped awake. He dozed off. He had been dreaming. Bepo was shaking him awake with a large paw. 

“What, what do you want?” Law snaps once he has fully regained consciousness. 

“Captain… you received a letter… it’s from the Marines…” Bepo holds out an envelope, so small-looking in his clawed paw. 

“The Marines? How did they find us?” Law asks as he grabs the letter and begins tearing it open. 

Law peruses the letter. 

There was a long moment of silence as he processed the message. 

“Pack my bag. I have to go.” Law finally remarks. 

“O-on your own, Captain? Surely you’ll want me to accompany you?” Bepo asks. 

“No. I don’t want any of you involved in this. I have to do it alone.” Law states as he begins packing up his things around his office. “Ready the Tang. I’ll be gone for awhile.” 

— — 

You had been called to the conference room by the teams captain along with the entire Heart Pirate crew. You sat, bored, in a chair against the wall while waiting for Law. The captain finally enters and the rest of the crew straightens their postures and looks on attentively. You continue to slouch as you observe the dirt in your fingernails and pick it out with your teeth. 

“I have to leave on business. It will be at least a few weeks. I will answer no questions as it is a sensitive matter.” Law states as he stands in the front of the room. You roll your eyes. *he’s so dramatic* 

“Well! See ya! Have fun!” You rise from your chair and move towards the door of the conference room. 

“Daisy you will continue your training in my absence. I expect to see an improvement in your skills when I return. That is an order.” Law raises his voice at you.

“Whatever.” You pull at the side of your mouth and stick your tongue out. Law scours at your silly expression. You turn and push your way out of the conference room. You swiftly bring yourself down the halls of the base. 

“Finally a moments peace…” You grumble to yourself as you enter your stateroom. You swiftly pull your grungy sweatshirt over your head and throw it on the floor.  Flopping back on your bed in your shorts and sport bra, you take in a deep breath. Having that shit-head death doctor gone for awhile would give you time to do your own thing… reclaim your identity. You knew you had to keep training, but tomorrow you were going to focus on yourself. 

— — — 

“That should be enough…” You mutter to yourself as you fill your backpack with sample jars and vials. After being on this island for a month, you learn that it is fact not a winter island, but one with all four seasons. The signs of spring were blossoming all around the compound. The snow was melting and intrepid little green buds popped up from the dirt. 

Law was gone and you had plans to fly the coop… literally and figuratively. 

You leave your room and head towards the front door of the base. “Woooaaahh. Where’s the fire, Daisy?” 

You were stopped in your tracks by Penguin. 

“Heading out for a bit. See you at dinner.” You respond and push past him. 

“Not like, out of the compound, right? Captain said to not leave…” 

“Are you going to stop me? I mean, try. Be my guest. I’m going to go where I want.” You reply as you grip one of your blades with your right hand. 

“I-I- I mean no, I mean yes…” Penguin stuttered and slowly backed up a few steps. “J-just be back for dinner? Please?” 

“Got it. Back by supper.” You nod and head out the door before waiting for a response. You head out into the fresh air and relish in its humidity and warmth. Spring was here, your favorite season. The smell of damp soil and salt spray filled your nostrils. You breathed deeply and sighed happily. 

You spread your wings and stretched them tentatively. 

“Alright, let’s see what we’ve got.” You smile and spring up into the sky. 

— — —

After spending the whole day exploring the island and collecting plants and ingredients, you returned to the Heart Pirates base. Humming happily to yourself, you pruned off the dead leaves from the bouquet of spring flowers you collected. 

You knock at Ikkaku’s door. 

“Yeah?” You heard from the other side of the steel door. 

“Hey hey, happy tulip season!” You grin as you present the bouquet. 

“Woah! You found these here?! They’re gorgeous!” Ikkaku takes the flowers and inhales their scent. 

“Yeah, other side of the island. They’re coming up a bit early, but it was nice to see. I got some bulbs that I’ll plant in the yard… but I saw the buds coming up and thought you’d like them!” You coo while you preen the tulip bouquet in Ikkaku’s hands. 

“Thank you for these, it’s nice to have a feminine touch around here.” Ikkaku smiles warmly at you before moving to place the flowers a glass of water on her desk. 

“You’re welcome. It’s time we brighten the place up a bit.” You chuckle and turn to leave the room. “Hey I wanted to ask you something…”

“Yeah?” Ikkaku looks up from her flowers to meet your gaze. 

“That record player in the hall closet, can I use it?”

Ikkaku furrows her brow. 

“It’s Law’s. He said it belonged to an old friend, but he hasn’t ever used it. I’m sure it would be good for the thing to get a bit of play. Since the captain will be gone for awhile, I’d say now is the time to give it some use.” 

You smirk.

“Perfect.” 

— — — 

You place a record on top of the machine and fumble around with the dials. 

“Come on…” You mumble as you fiddle with the needle of the record player. You use your other hand to move the poor old snail that was used to amplify the music of the record player. 

After a few moments of adjustments, the music began to flow loudly out of the snail’s shell. 

You smile. 

“Much better.” 

You do a little spin to the music before you grab your sample jars and dump them out into a bin on the floor. Red flower petals filled the bin as you added other ingredients to the concoction. You hummed along to the music as you continued your ministrations. 

After adding some liquids to the bin, you stirred it and made sure the color was to your liking. You assured that the pot was filled with the correct shade of red before heading to your closet and retrieving the untouched Heart Pirate uniforms that Law had given you. 

You unfolded the jumpsuits before plunging them into the homemade dye. 

You hum and sway your hips to the music coming from the record player. 

“I’ll show you a fucking uniform…” 

— — — 

After hours of soaking in the bin, you clip your new bright red jumpsuits to the clothesline in the yard. You couldn’t help but smile looking at the defaced uniforms. You head back inside the base and go towards the kitchen. 

You open the double doors to the galley and head to the pantry. 

“Flour and water… they have to at least have that…” You mumble to yourself. 

You find what you were looking for and combine the two to begin to form a rough, shaggy dough on the kitchen island. After kneading the dough into a loaf, you leave it to rest on the counter. 

With the bread rising and your new jumpsuits drying, you take yourself to your room to take a nap. Now that Law was gone, you could finally relax. 

— — 

Hours later, you place the bread in the oven and head out to grab your dyed jumpsuits. You see the gorgeous red color of the coveralls and feel satisfied… but the new issue was the large Heart Pirate logo on the back. 

You grab the sewing kit from your backpack and get to work. 

— — 

“Dinner’s on!” You call out from your place at the stove. You had been using your freshly baked bread to create piles of grilled cheese sandwiches. 

Quickly, the Heart Pirates poured into the kitchen and were met with loud music and a large plate of hot sandwiches. 

“Grab one before they get soggy. I’m making more now.” You huff out with a fat joint between your lips. 

The crew was hesitant accepting a meal from a stranger, but eventually they all grabbed a plate and sat down at the galley table. You continued flipping sandwiches on the stove.

“Now girl, what the hell are you wearing?” Ikkaku asks, eyeing you up and down. 

“You don’t like it? I made it myself. Think it suits me better.” You peek over your shoulder and gesture at the large logo on the back of the jumpsuit. The cream colored outfit was now bright red. You had sewn fabric and thread over the logo to add a makeshift straw hat over the Heart Pirate Jolly Roger. Ikkaku gives you a warning glare. 

“What… what is this…” Bepo asks… hands shaking over his plate. 

“Its a grilled cheese, Bepo… You’ve never had one?” You look up and stare at the polar bear. 

“It’s… it’s so wonderful….” Tears begin to form at the corner of the bear’s eyes. 

You laugh. 

“Bread is good. Don’t listen to your idiot captain. You’re missing out on so many beautiful sandwiches. Eat the grilled cheese. It’s good for you.” You chuckle and plate more sandwiches upon the kitchen island. 

The Heart Pirates greedily gobble them up as soon as you set them down. 

“You better not keep this up, or they aren’t going to want to let you go.” Ikkaku laughs without a mouthful of grilled cheese as she nudges your shoulder. The large man you had come to know as Jean Bart asked you to prepare more grilled cheeses. You obliged happily. 

You smile back at Ikkaku silently. You’d never stay here. There wasn’t anything that would make you want to stay. You missed home. 

— — — 

After a few days of Law’s absence, you begin to bring the outdoors indoors to make yourself more at home. 

With each passing day, more and more potted plants and vines began appearing around the Heart Pirate’s base. 

“Hey hey hey what are you doing in here?!” Shachi asks as you enter the room he shares with Penguin. 

“Bringing you a houseplant. It smells like desperation and an armpit in here, I think you two could use some extra oxygen.” You remark as you drop off a large snake plant in the corner of their room. “At least try to water it… it’s almost impossible to kill but I don’t put anything past you two.” You turn to leave the stateroom. 

“Hey wait!” Shachi calls after you. 

You swivel to face the man in the orca whale hat. 

“Yes?” You respond. 

“I hear you were growing something… else…” 

You roll your eyes. 

“Did you want to smoke, Shachi? I won’t tell your captain.” You cock your head from the doorframe. 

“Do I ever!” Shachi jumps up like an excited child and follows you out of his room. 

— —

xx

Authors Note: SORRY FOR THE TEASE IDK UGH. D Girl hasn't figured it out yet. She still hates Law OOPS. Law comes home during the next chapter, will he be understand or rigid when it comes to Daisy?

Send me DM's with more ideas. Love yall :)

#one piece #one piece anime #one piece fanfiction #one piece fanart #one piece live action #one piece netflix #one piece smut #one piece fandom #law x reader #zoro x reader #trafalgar law #trafalgar op #trafalgar d water law #trafalgar d law #trafalgar d law x reader #trafalgar one piece #trafalgardwaterlaw #trafalfar #law one piece

[moonsgemini]

seeking arrangements - i

summary: Lola's sister is getting married and the best man happens to be her cheating ex. In a desperate attempt to impress her family and show her ex she’s moved on with a hot date Lola turns to the advice of coworker pointing her towards the direction of a male escort. Rafe Cameron was the perfect man to take to any event for just $8,000. Her family won’t suspect a thing and when the wedding’s over they’ll never see each other again. Right?

warnings: escort!rafe x oc, mentions of a cheating ex, escort talk ??, fluff I think

wc: 4.1k

an: I love the movie the wedding date so I wanted to write a series based off of the idea, I hope you all enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it (:

series masterlist

Lola opened the door to her apartment shedding her rain coat and hanging it on her coat rack. The last of the May rain was really getting the best of her this year. She loved living in the city because it was walkable but she didn’t love it when it rained because she got soaked on her commute home. Her cat, Sailor, jumped down from the window sill of the living room and came to greet her rubbing her head against her legs purring lightly.

“Hi sweet girl, did you have a good day today?” Lola asked the black fluffy cat as she bent down and picked her up. Cradling her like a baby and kissing her face. Lola got lucky with a cuddly easy going cat. She felt like Sailor was her closest and most trusted friend.

She set Sailor down and walked over to her room with a content sigh. After changing into some comfy clothes and washing her makeup off she laid on her big grey couch. Her plans for the rest of the evening were to lay on her couch and get Chinese takeout, catch up on emails and watch her favorite show. Her favorite activities. After putting on friends as a little background noise she pulled her laptop out of her bag to check her emails. That’s when her memory of her morning at the office came back to her, her face flushed as she looked at the drafted email in front of her.

Rafe,

Hi my name is Lola and I’m in need of a date to a wedding. It’d be more than a date actually, I need a fake boyfriend in about two weeks for 5 days. It’ll be June 12th-17th in the Hamptons. My sister is getting married in the hamptons and my family is kind of nuts and obsessed with me getting a boyfriend. My ex boyfriend is also the best man in the wedding, and if it was like a regular break up it’d be fine but he cheated on me for over a year of our relationship so I want to show that I’ve moved on. I may seem desperate but I kind of am. Did I mention that I heard of you through a work friend whose cousin has a friend who hired you for some event. So if you’re interested please email me back and if you’re not then please forget I ever emailed you.

xx Lola

“oh God,” she muttered as she read it over. Did she sound desperate? maybe.

Eight months ago Lola’s sister Penny had called her squealing with excitement. She barely let Lola say hello before she was spilling the news about how her boyfriend, now fiancée, Harry had proposed to her. How he did it in the most romantic way while they were on vacation in Italy. It was hard for Lola to feel excited for her sister but she still put on an amazing act like always. All her life Penny had outshined and beat Lola in everything. She was the younger shining star that their mother put on a pedestal, little sister never did anything wrong. Penny won first place in science fairs, always got the boy, never had to try hard to get her dream job. It all seemed to come easy to her.

Three years ago Lola moved after graduating from college because she got an amazing job at a publishing office. She even got cute apartment and she felt like she was finally coming into her own. Penny came to the city when her and Harry were just friends to see him, of course seeing her sister wasn't her main priority. But she figured she’d kill two birds with one stone and invited Lola to dinner with them, where then Harry invited his best friend Thomas. They immediately hit it off and soon after he was her everything. She thought she’d be the first to get married, until two years into the relationship she found out the scum bag had been cheating on her for a year of the relationship. Lola was surprising him at work with lunch when this girl from his office crawled out from under his desk.

Ever since Penny had given her the news of the engagement she had face-timed or called Lola almost every week for the first few months whether it was about what flowers should be the center pieces or how many tiers should the cake be. Along with breaking the news that Thomas was going to be the best man, Penny just mentioned it in passing like it was no big deal. As if her sister's cheating ex wasn't going to be an important part of the wedding.

It was mentally exhausting but Lola couldn’t complain. It was her sister she had to help her and be there, she had to be a good big sister. Every time during those calls Penny would find a way to weasel in the question, “so do you have a date yet?” Lola hated that question. It was like Penny knew her sister couldn’t find a date. Every time Lola would say the same thing, “Not yet Pen.” Then she’d say, “I think Thomas is still bringing that girl from soho.” Almost as if she was trying to chip away at Lola’s finally mended heart. The last time Penny called about and asked that god forsaken question Lola blurted out a lie. “Actually yeah I-I’ve been seeing a guy for a few months but uh I didn’t want to invite him until I was sure about him.”

The lie came out almost too easy and she immediately regretted it. Where was she going to find a date. Especially someone who would want to spend 5 days with her crazy family. She had rested her head on her desk with a loud thud after she hung up the phone, catching the attention of Fiona.

“You good over there?” She asked peaking over at her coworker.

Lola lifted her head facing her, “I’m royally screwed.” She explained the situation to Fiona about the imaginary date she was taking.

“Who the hell am I going to find in a week,” Lola groaned tugging at her hair.

Fiona hummed in thought, “Okay you’re probably going to say no, but I may have a solution.”

Fiona explained how her cousin’s friend hired a male escort to go with her to a work party. The woman had been tired of going to work parties alone for the last few years and took matters into her own hands. The cousin’s friend had found him after he did a small anonymous segment in a magazine about male escorts. She knew the magazine’s editor and found the guy. Lola thought Fiona was crazy if she thought she would do that and immediately shut the idea down. But after some contemplation she timidly asked how she could get in contact with the guy, which led to the typing up of the email. She didn’t send it because she wasn’t sure if this would be a smart idea.

Lola read the drafted email over and over again, hovering the mouse over send. What could go wrong? A lot actually. Her whole family could find out and she’d be the laughing stock of the century. After that thought she definitely wasn’t going to send it. Maybe she could just go alone and tell her sister that her and mystery man broke up. As she was about to delete it Sailor jumped onto her lap and her fingers slipped and pressed down on send.

“Sailor! Fuck,” she gasped as she sat up, the cat getting off of her and standing on the ledge of the couch.

I guess there’s no turning back now, she thought to herself. She was honestly hoping he wouldn’t reply, but for some reason the rejection would make her feel worse.

-

Saturday’s were Lola’s favorite because she would go to her favorite deli and get a bagel, then head over to the farmers market. She had spent the whole night before refreshing her email with a glass of wine in hand waiting for Rafe’s reply

She was headed back home her shoulders carrying reusable bags filled with produce. Her favorite part of the day was over, but she couldn’t help but be anxious to get home and check her email. She hadn’t let herself check before she left the apartment or while she was at the market. It was 2pm now he has to have replied by now.

She made her way into her apartment unloaded the bags onto her kitchen counters before almost running to the living room where her laptop sat on the couch. Lola took a deep breath before opening her email, closing her eyes as her new messages loaded.

“Sailor this is your fault if he rejects me,” she muttered as the cat stared at her from the window sill. She looked back at her screen and the email with the subject title Hamptons Wedding staring at her. He had replied, her heart rate instantly picking up. She didn’t even know if this guy was good looking now that she thought about it. What if he ended up being some murderer? Before her racing mind took over she opened the email.

Lola,

It sounds like you’re in a sticky situation, so I’d like to help you out. Hopefully we can discuss all the details and the prices in person to get to know each other better. If you’re free this afternoon we can meet at Lucy’s in Manhattan at 6pm. Let me know if that works for you.

- Rafe

“Holy shit,” she gasped. Lola looked at the corner of her laptop at the time, 2:48pm.

Rafe,

That sounds great, I’ll see you then!

xx Lola

She quickly scrambled to her bathroom after sending her reply. It was her hair wash day and with about two and a half hours left to get ready she needed to start now.

As she was getting ready her mind was racing. What if he was ugly? But he did this for a living so she was sure that he had to be good looking. Hopefully not too out of her league or else how would her family believe her. How would Thomas believe her. What if Rafe thought she wasn’t pretty. Lola felt like she was getting ready for a blind date with the way she meticulously did her hair and winged her eyeliner. She had to keep reminding herself that this was just a business transaction, she didn’t need to impress him. Well maybe she did because he could totally reject her and turn down the idea.

When she was finally ready it was 5:21pm. She stared at herself in the mirror hoping her black dress and knitted cropped button up and boots looked good. She gave herself a small smile in the mirror and grabbed her bag. Kissing Sailor goodbye she headed out the door. The bar wasn’t too far from her apartment just a short 15 minute walk. She wore her headphones and listened to Taylor Swift trying to keep her mind elsewhere. Lola arrived to the bar and found a booth towards the back, she sat on the side facing the door so she could watch for her mystery man.

“Can you I get you anything to drink?” The waitress asked.

“Oh uh can I get a cosmo please,” Lola smiled politely. The waitress nodded and headed over to the bar.

Lola fidgeted with the rings on her fingers, eyes glued to the door. The door opened and a man walked through, probably just slightly taller than her with dark hair. Maybe this was him she thought as she sat up straighter, but he walked over to the other side of the bar greeting some other men who were already sat there. Her posture deflated a bit, maybe she was somehow being stood up. The waitress brought over her cosmo and she thanked her quietly. Taking a couple gulps to ease her nerves, almost finishing the whole drink.

The door to the bar opened once again and a tall man walked in. He was extremely handsome, chiseled features and dirty blonde hair. He was wearing a green button up and black jeans a silver chain around his neck. He stood at the front looking around until his eyes met Lola’s. He grinned and walked over to her. She couldn’t believe that this was Rafe, she felt like he was definitely out of her league.

“Hi, are you Lola?” Rafe asked even though he knew it was her. Her nervous demeanor and doe eyes definitely gave her away. His clients tended to have a certain anxious look to them, but she seemed different. She was also a lot younger than his usual clients, she seemed like she was his age but he was used to taking women in their 30s out. Rafe immediately thought she was pretty and he wondered how she couldn't find a real date to take.

“Hi yeah that’s uh me,” She smiled as she shook his outstretched hand. He sat down across from her and she really got a good look at him. He wasn’t just handsome he was hot. His eyes were blue and he had a bit of scruff as well as a bit of a mustache. His hair was parted down the middle his dirty blonde hair framing his face.

“So let’s talk business?” He asked breaking her out of her trance.

“Oh yeah, so I’ve never done anything like this ever. I just I really don’t want to go alone to this thing.”

He nodded, “Yeah that’s understandable, especially since you said your ex is the best man.” Rafe had been to a few weddings as a hired date but never one where his date was in the wedding party.

She raised her eyebrows and sighed, “Yeah just the icing on top of the cake. We were together for two years and I found him cheating on me with his coworker. I think he felt so guilty that he told me how he had been cheating on me for a year of our relationship because he felt like the spark had gone,” she laughed bitterly, “But the douche bag felt like faking it for a year with me would hurt less than a break up. I shouldn’t have dumped all of that on you.” She laughed cheek’s getting hot as she realized she’d told her tragic love story to some stranger.

“It’s fine, kind of what I’m here for. I’m sorry he treated you like that. No one deserves that. I'm also here to make sure he sees what he missed out on,” He smiled sincerely.

The waitress walked over, “Hi can I get you anything to drink?”

“Oh yeah can I just get a tequila soda,” he looked over at Lola’s empty glass, “and another one of whatever she’s having.”

“I’ll be right back with that,” she smiled.

“Before I give you a price or anything like that I just want to know a breakdown of the whole thing. I know you said five days in the Hamptons,” Rafe said folding his arms over the table. Lola couldn’t help but stare at his arms, it had been a while since she had been on a date so she couldn’t help but stare at the greek god in front of her.

Lola nodded, “Right, it’s five days and we’d be staying at my parents Hampton’s house. My dad’s a doctor and my mom is an interior designer, my mom is a bit of a nut,” she chuckled, “But uh there will be a cocktail party, rehearsal dinner, bachelorette and bachelor party, a couple of family barbecues, there’s this tradition where we all play baseball. Just a lot of events leading up to the actual wedding.”

Rafe was really fascinated by Lola, he could tell she was an anxious person. He could also tell she didn’t know exactly how beautiful she was and he had a feeling that may have something to do with her family.

“Sounds like pretty standard wedding stuff, I usually am just the date to the actual wedding but it all sounds fun,” he shrugged.

She shook her head, “You won’t be saying that after you have to hear my sister whine about every little thing and my mom hits on you after her sixth glass of wine.”

“I can handle drunk moms, I promise. For the five days it’d be $8,000. If you wanted to do any intimate stuff then that costs extra,” He couldn’t help the small smirk that formed on his lips. He knew that she was going to refuse the intimate stuff because she didn’t seem like the type but he kind of liked seeing her squirm.

“Oh no I’m good, I just don’t I won’t,” she stuttered with a flushed face, “I won’t need the extra.” Lola was a pretty good saver so the money wasn’t a problem for her, and as much as she hated to say it she was a bit of a trust fund kid.

He chuckled, “Okay, so you pay the day that we leave. We can get our story together now so that if any questions come up like how we met we can answer them.”

“Alright, so uh what’s our story?”

Rafe pursed his lips thinking for a second, “Uh we met here. You came in after work for a drink, I came up to you flirted and the rest is history. Our first date was at Romano’s and we’ve been together for six months?”

Lola nodded her head taking a sip of her new cosmo the waitress had just brought over, “What if they ask me about you? Like who you are what your job is?"

“I’m a real estate developer my company is Cameron Development. I have two sisters and I’m from North Carolina,” He took a sip of his drink. He didn’t know what he was giving her real details about his life but he felt like he could trust her. She had a warm aura to her that was pulling him in.

“How old you are? College? Favorite foods? Are you allergic to anything?” She asked nervously trying to get as much information as possible.

“Sweetheart they’re not gonna ask that much I promise,” he chuckled, “but I'm 25, I didn’t go to college my dad passed on the company to me. My favorite food is any pasta, I’m not allergic to anything. I also need to know some things about you, to make it fair.”

She sighed, “Right. Well I’m really boring. I'm 24 I grew up in New Jersey, I went to Syracuse and majored in english. I work at a publishing company and I have a cat named Sailor. I hate mushrooms and I’m allergic to bees.”

“Tell me more about your family,” He leaned back in his seat and she swore everything he did was just too attractive.

“So my sister, Penny, she’s the one getting married. She’s my younger and only sister. She’s always kinda been the golden child, her fiancée Harry is a nice guy despite who his friends are. My mom is nuts she prefers wine over water. My dad is the only one in my family who really sees me, he’s a great guy,” She smiled lightly, “Uh my cousin Tabitha is crazy but like the good kind, she’s always a good time I love her. Everyone else like my aunts and uncles are all kind of kooky.”

Rafe smirked, “Kooky eh? I think I can handle that. All seems like standard wedding guests.”

Lola started fidgeting with her rings, “I-I really can’t thank you enough for this. I’ve never done anything like this before. I just really hope we can convince people.”

“Lola you don’t have anything to worry about okay? I promise we’ll be convincing, I’m a professional remember. It’s my job to make you feel good about yourself and talk you up to your family,” He gave her a crooked smile, “Now I just need to hear more about this dick ex boyfriend.”

She pushed away the warm feeling in her stomach that rose when he said he was going to make her feel good, “Oh god. So uh he works in finance and he thinks he’s some big hot shot. When we broke up he immediately got with the girl he had been cheating on me with, I think he's actually taking her. He’s self obsessed and arrogant but I was too blind in love to see it. Someone had finally paid attention to me and I ate it up.”

“So definitely a grade A douche bag, we’ll make him jealous Lola.” Rafe reassured.

She nodded giving him a tight lipped smile. There had been a question itching at her to ask him, “so how did you start doing this?”

He laughed, “I’ve been waiting for you to ask, everyone always does. I uh kind of needed money and this girl from my hometown paid me two hundred bucks to take her to a Christmas party because she didn’t want to go alone. It sort of spiraled from there, but this isn’t my only job.”

“What else do you do?” She tilted her head curiously. He really didn’t need her to be doing cute things like that.

“That’s top secret, I don’t want to give out too much of myself for business reasons,” That was sort of a white lie because Rafe had in-fact told her what else he did but she didn’t need to know that Cameron Development was real.

“That’s understandable.”

After talking a bit more to get all their ducks in a row they left the bar, Rafe paying for their drinks despite Lola’s refusal. She was beginning to feel confident that they’d be able to pull this off. It was almost 10pm now as they walked side by side.

“How far do you live?” He asked looking over at her.

“It’s a fifteen minute walk,” She said looking up at him. Now that they were walking side by side she could really see their height difference. He was so much taller and broader than her, she felt light headed just thinking about it. Thomas had only been slightly taller than her.

“Let me walk you, it’s late.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive sweetheart, I can’t let you walk home alone.” He smiled.

The walk was filled with small talk about Lola’s job and her cat. Rafe barely spoke about himself but she knew it was to keep himself as anonymous as possible. They reached her apartment a lot quicker than she’d liked. Not that she would actually admit that.

“This is me.”

“Alright well you have my number so text me any other details I need to know, I’ll be here to pick you up in about a week. I know you have some doubts and anxiousness about this whole situation so if you need some reassurance don’t be afraid to reach out to me, but I promise this will all be fine.” He smiled hoping to ease her nerves.

“Thank you Rafe, really. You have no idea how much this means to me.” She smiled.

“Just doing my job sweetheart.”

“I’ll see you in a weeks then, goodnight Rafe.” She said before walking up to her apartment with butterflies in her stomach at the pet name he had used.

“Night Lola,” He waved before walking off in the direction of his apartment.

Lola wasn’t really regretting accidentally sending that email anymore. She only slightly regretted it because she didn’t expect him to be so handsome and charming, she would easily get sucked in to something that wasn’t going to be real. But she’d do anything to not face her family and ex alone.

As Rafe walked home he couldn’t help but think about Lola. His clients were usually older women these days, he also didn’t take on as many as he used to. Lately taking random women out to Christmas parties, fourth of July barbecues, and weddings didn’t feel as good as it did when he was 20. When he got Lola’s email he felt himself drawn to her, she seemed sweet and truly hurting about something. She didn’t sound desperate in the way other women did, she sounded hopeful. Rafe knew he would be royally screwed if he didn’t get his head in the game.

#rafe cameron x reader #rafe cameron imagine #rafe cameron series #rafe cameron #rafe cameron au #rafe cameron smut #rafe fanfiction #rafe fic #rafe cameron outer banks #rafe cameron fanfiction #rafe cameron x oc

[wardenparker]

Down the Rabbit Hole - ch 12

Jack ‘Whiskey’ Daniels x female reader Co-written with @absurdthirst​

When Jack accidentally shoots a civilian on a mission he takes on not only the guilt of the man’s death, but inherits his soulmate as well. To you, it’s a dream job with more perks than you can imagine - but for Jack it’s a nightmarish complication. Even more so when he starts to develop feelings.    

Rating: Mature! 18+   Word Count: 17.1k   Warnings: *Blanket warnings - mentions of deceased spouse, a lot of food and alcohol consumption, family recipes, age gap, cursing.* Anxiety, accidental hurt, panic attack (symptoms based on my own personal experiences), intrusive/racing thoughts, physical symptoms of anxiety, hurt/comfort. *Author chooses not to disclose all warnings so as not to spoil a plot point! It has been spoiled in the tags if you would rather know ahead of time!* Summary: An impromptu trip with the girls leads to a lightbulb moment that you wish had never come.  Notes: And you guys thought everything was smooth sailing after the proposal? Oh no...we can’t have that...

Ch 1 ~ Ch 2 ~ Ch 3 ~ Ch 4 ~ Ch 5 ~ Ch 6 ~ Ch 7 ~ Ch 8 ~ Ch 9 ~ Ch 10 ~ Ch 11 ~ Ch 12 ~ Ch 13 ~ Ch 14 ~ Ch 15 ~ Epilogue

It was something of a joke the first time it got brought up. One night long after dinner service was over when you and Jack had Sophia and Tex over for drinks. You had sat out on the back porch refilling your glasses and chatting about weddings when Tex randomly asked a question.

“Ain’t there a tv show for that? For buyin’ wedding dresses?”

“You mean Say Yes to the Dress?” You had asked, laughing and leaning into Jack’s side. It had been almost the only thing you watched with your sister for months when she was engaged. “Yeah. Why, do you want to watch it?”

“Naw.” He has shaken his head pensively. “Y’all should be on it.” You had laughed. All four of you. Delighted by the silly idea of you and Sophia being on TV together. It had seemed like an idea that came and went like summer breeze. Two whole weeks ago and while you’d fantasized a little, you hadn’t brought it up again. It hasn’t been brought up at all before today.

******

When Sophia blows into a building, people know it. Her tendency to throw the doors open and yell seemingly fits right in with the Statesman group far better than she ever had with Kingsman. So when she bursts through the double door leading to your kitchen, no one on your staff even bats an eye. “Pack your bags, we are getting on the plane!” She squeals, nearly giddy with excitement.

The sound of banging doors hasn't bothered you in your entire life, considering you grew up with noisy siblings, so you are perfectly leaned over a soufflé plate to put the finishing touches on its presentation when Sophia appears in a tornado of activity. "Oh yeah?" You ask, raising an eyebrow that is meant for her but very carefully placing a quenelle of homemade ice cream on the plate to hand off to one of your waitstaff. "Where exactly are we going in the middle of my dinner service?"

“Kleinfield.” She’s smug as she smirks at you and reaches out to pluck a shaving of chocolate off the line to pop into her mouth. “They have a cancelation two days from now and you and I are taking it!”

The spoon you had in your hand promptly clatters to the counter as you stare at her, jaw nearly unhinging from your face in shock. “You’re kidding, right?”

“Would I joke about that?” She gives you a horrified look. “I have Tex’s credit card and need to burn a hole in it!”

“But he—I thought—it was just a joke?” A passing comment from your friend while drinking under the stars. Nothing more. But the look on her face is fully aghast and you shut your mouth for long enough to realize that she’s talking about your day off. “Two days?” You ask, knowing that no, she would never joke about this. As boisterous and excitable and unconventional as Sophia is, she would probably be perfect for Kleinfeld.

“You don’t want to do it?” She asks, knowing that some people talk about doing things and never get the nerve when presented with the opportunity. “It’s okay if you don’t.”

"No, I just...I'm honestly shocked they had an appointment available." The disappointment in Sophia's face is obvious, and you grab a dish towel to wipe your hands on before throwing your arms around her. "Maybe we'll get to be in a background shot of an episode if we linger by a camera long enough."

“Either way, we are going to drink champagne and try on wedding dresses!” The hug rejuvenates her and she’s immediately crushing you in a return embrace. “I want an emerald green Zuhair Murad. Unless I find something I love more.”

"Oh god, you even know what designer you want." If Sophia has faults, preparedness is not one of them. She's always fully informed and ready to go at a moment's notice. "I suppose I should actually look at some designs before we go, shouldn't I?"

“No.” Sophia decides, grinning at you. “Choose whatever dress speaks to you.” She holds up a credit card, sleek and shiny. “I’ve got Whiskey’s card and there’s not a limit.”

"You already went and got his card?" That has you doubled over laughing, so taken aback by her approach and yet you have no idea why. This is who Sophia is. And it's why you love her. The woman is unapologetic about her enthusiasm. "You know I have to work tomorrow, right? And the appointment isn't for two days." Regardless though, it earns her another hug. It might be good to go back to New York for a happy reason...try to form new memories there that have nothing to do with what happened last time...

She pouts at you, clearly wanting to go to New York with her friend now. “Fine but we are spending the entire next three days.” She warns you with a pointed finger. “I need to see the sights.”

"I have a restaurant to run, you know." You just shake your head at her with both hands on her shoulders, barely smothering another laugh and sighing happily. "I'll make it work. Pick out the places you want to see the most and I'll see if my brother is going to be around or if we can crash an event at his art gallery. How does that sound?"

“Perfect! Oh! I asked Diana about coming but she’s insisting she will stay behind and make sure that the restaurant runs smoothly while you are gone.”

"You thought of everything, didn't you?" She always does. It's not as if it's a surprise. "Alright." One more hug and you pull back, shooting her a knowing grin. "Are you staying for supper or should I pack up a to-go order for you to take home to your man?"

“Ohhhhhh dinner.” She moans. “Not having the hour long ‘what do you want for dinner?’ conversation.” She laughs. “Please. Whatever you want to pack up, I’ll buy.”

"The chicken pot pie soup is even better today than usual." And it's one that they haven't tried yet, so you immediately go to pour two to-go containers. "And the biscuits are fresh." You add two of the apple hand pies and a small container of whiskey caramel for good measure, wanting to make sure that they're well fed tonight. "I'll put it on Tex's tab."

“That sounds amazing.” She groans, rolling her eyes. “But everything you make is amazing. I’m just never cooking again.”

"Glad to be of service." The compliment is like a giant fuzzy blanket you can wrap yourself up in, and you hand her the full bag of food with your restaurant's logo on the side. "Now go home and make a list of everything you want to see while we're in New York."

“Don’t tell me that.” Sophia grins and leans in to steal another hug. “Or I’ll plan it like a mission.”

"I can think of worse things." Throwing her a grin, you shoo her toward the door with a laugh. "I'm gonna come by your office before my shift tomorrow and I want to hear at least three ideas, otherwise I'm dragging you to every museum I can possibly think of. Deal?"

“Deal.” Sophia turns back towards you with a grin. “This is going to be great. We are going to have so much fun and the added bonus is that we will drive the boys crazy wondering what we are getting into together.”

"You're the only person in the world who can give Tex a run for his money in the troublemaker department." With one last squeezing hug, you really do have to get back to work. "Go on, Soph. I'll see you tomorrow."

“Bye!” She shouts as she blows out of the restaurant just as eagerly as she came in. You’ve given her more food she hasn’t tried and she’ll be damned if she’s going to let it get cold.

******

Going home to Jack that night is basically falling into a lump on the couch beside him as soon as you walk in the door, but at least you're the happy kind of exhausted. "Good day at work?" You ask, sighing a little as you tuck into his side and steal a sip from his glass on the coffee table.

Jack rolls his eyes slightly. “Alright, but Champ has decided that I need to be tested, make sure I’m up for going back to the field after months away.”

"What kind of test?" It's a fair thing for his boss to insist on, but you can hear the annoyance in Jack's voice.

“Every-damn-thing.” Jack grunts, shaking his head. “Man seems to think I’m getting old. Got me trainin’ with the recruits.”

“I’m sorry I kept you out so long.” You know it’s at least partially because of the trouble you had with each other in the beginning, and you turn your chin to look up at him on the couch. “He’s just doing his job, baby. A boss had to be a boss, even to his best friend.”

“It’s just aggravating.” Jack admits. “The younger group doesn’t mind. But they are in awe.”

“Bask in their admiration then, my love.” That makes you grin, knowing that Jack loves to show off when the opportunity arises. “Have someone other than your fiancée coo over how impressive you are.”

He grumbles under his breath, but it seems to do the trick. Tomorrow’s training not seeming quite so bleak as it has been looking. “Sophia find you?”

“She came by during dinner service.” He seems mollified, and you pick up his hand to kiss his palm before grinning guiltily. “I thought we might talk a little about wedding stuff before she and I leave tomorrow night?”

“What do you want to talk about, sugar?” He had gladly handed over his card to Sophia and told her to make sure you bought whatever you wanted.

"Well...we haven't really planned anything yet." Other than convincing your mother that no, you really can't fit into her wedding dress without major alterations and knowing that he had mentioned a family veil in a conversation ages ago, you've just been too busy with the restaurant to bask in the glow of being engaged. "We haven't even talked about where to have it yet."

“Honestly?” Jack chuckles. “I had anticipated you wantin’ to have the wedding here.”

"Here as in the house, or here as in the Statesman campus?" Either one is fine with you, but you want Jack to be excited for the wedding, too. Just because this will be his second doesn't mean it should be less meaningful.

“I meant here at Statesman.” He corrects. “Or up with your family.” He offers. “It doesn’t matter to me, if I’m honest. As long as you are there and we are happy.” He winks and leans in to press his lips to yours.

"Here at Statesman, then." It's come to mean a hell of a lot to you as a place to live and work anyway, there's no reason not to celebrate it. And your lips twist into a grin that you can't deny at the thought of having the wedding back in New Hampshire. "We threw my sister's wedding at my parents' house. It was so much fucking work, I think they'd be glad to just show up to this one instead of throwing the whole thing."

Jack nods in agreement. “That’ll be a good thing. The whole crew will want to be there.” He warns you with a grin. “It’ll be a big party.”

"A big party, huh? Sounds like fun." It's just teasing, you know it will be. Everyone at Statesman loves Jack, and your extended family will make plenty of fuss. "Do you..." You bite your lip and sit up to actually look him in the eye. "Do you want to do it before or after we go to Montana? I don't mind either way, but I know it's going to be an emotional trip and I don't want you to feel awkward about anything."

“Sugar…” Jack reaches for your hand and he picks it up to kiss the back of it. “I want you to plan this wedding for whenever you want. If we were to do it my way, it would be at the courthouse next week.”

"I mean...we could do that, but you're the one who's gonna tell Sophia that the trip to Kleinfeld is off." You have to bite your lip again, but this time it's to keep from bursting out laughing at the stricken look of worry on his face. Jack clearly does not want to be the one to deliver that news. "I don't mind how long we're engaged, love. I just want us to both be happy. So...since you're being so terribly practical...how about I talk to Diana about what would be the best time once I find my dream dress and find out how long it will take to get? Since I hear those things can take ages to come in."

“That will work for me.” Jack murmurs indulgently. “So you’re plannin’ the weddin’ and I’m plannin’ the honeymoon?” He asks with a teasing grin. He knows you will want his input and he won’t be the type of man to let you take on everything yourself.

“If that’s what you want.” Leaning in to kiss him has you grinning. “I imagine you’ll be choosing someplace where I wear as little as possible?”

“It’s like you know me.” Jack jokes, actually thinking about making one of your dream trips possible on your honeymoon. While time in bed is a must, he also knows you want to see the world.

“I’m happy as long as you’re there.” You promise him. “Just let me know when you pick so I can pack accordingly.”

“Would you prefer Paris or Thailand?” He asks with a smirk. “Was thinking we could do a week in Bangkok and then set ourselves up on an island resort. Or we could do the classics.”

Eyeing him like you think he might be teasing you, you decide to just roll with it and see what he says. "Depends on when the wedding is. If it's winter? Thailand, no contest. But summer? That's Paris."

“Then I guess we better figure out if you want a winter or summer weddin’ then, don’t we?” He chuckles. “Somethin’ to be said for both times of year here.”

"Guess I better talk to Diana, then. And figure out a dress." Leaning in, you steal a small kiss and relax against him again. "You...you had mentioned a veil...a while ago. And I wondered if it might be something that I could...take to New York with me? Or at least see it beforehand? I would hate to pick out a dress that it doesn't look good with when you said it was important to you."

Jack squeezes your hand and gets up with a grunt. “Come on, sugar. The veil is in the safe. Let’s see how it looks on you.”

You set the security system and Jack shuts off the lights on your way upstairs, ready to settle in for the night. The safe is in your bedroom anyway, so there won't be any reason to go back downstairs. "I assume you'd prefer I pick something white?" There's teasing on the tip of your tongue as you climb the stairs together. "I mean...who knows what I could find while Sophia is looking for her green dress."

“Sugar, I want you to pick out whatever catches your eye and makes you feel like a Princess.” He murmurs as he leads you towards the bedroom. “As long as you don’t mind there being a cowboy hat on me and all my groomsmen, we’re good.” He teases.

"I'd be disappointed if you went without." The feeling of his large hand around yours is soothing and grounding so you turn down the hall at the top of the stairs. It's automatic now, having slept in that bed with him so many times even before you were officially moved in. "Have you decided who you're going to ask?"

“Tex is gonna be my best man– if you’re good with it.” He turns and watches you carefully, wanting to make sure that you don’t hide your feelings towards it. “I was kind of hopin’ you might consider Champ officiating?”

"What if we did...couples? Kind of?" The thought is worth chewing over, and you sit down on the bed while he opens the safe. "Champ to officiate and I'll ask Diana to be our planner? Tex and Sophia as best man and maid of honor. Astrid and my brother for your other groomsmen and Gabi and my sister for my other bridesmaids?" It's like a perfect split of your friends, and you had always said that you wanted your siblings to be in your wedding party if you ever found your soulmate. After all – you were in theirs. "Does that sound okay?"

“Anyone else you want to invite?” He asks, punching in the code for the safe and swings it open. He knows exactly where the veil is, packed away in a box for protection and safekeeping. He pulls it out and turns back around to face you. “Friends from before?”

"Maybe a few. But I brought a couple of them in for the restaurant, to be honest. My best friend from culinary school is my front-of-house manager, and my closest friend from the pastry circuit back home is my pastry sous. So...aside from my extended family, most people really are already here." It's something that actually makes you more comfortable than you had realized, and bringing in your friends to help you run your dream restaurant only made it all the better.

Jack nods. “Whoever you want. We can make sure that everyone comes, even if we have to set up huge reception tents outside.”

"Is that it?" The box in his hands is cradled with care, and you know it can't be anything else. There isn't much in the safe besides weaponry and a few valuables, and that box is the only thing you haven't seen yet.

“If you don’t like it, you don’t have to wear it.” Jack offers before he hands you the box. Despite what he had said about this being a family tradition, he wasn’t going to insist on it if you hated it.

"Unless it's a literal tablecloth, I can't imagine disliking it." And even if it were, you would still wear it if it was important to him. He looks nervous as you lift the lid, but the second you reveal the lace to the light you gasp in awe. It's simple and stunning - classic in the way the scalloped lace at the edges is full of beautifully woven flowers that ease into the body of the veil to give way to simplicity. When you lift it out you can see that it has an attached clip, encrusted with beautiful, crystal-clear rhinestones. "Jack..." You look up at him on the verge of another gasp. "It's gorgeous."

“You like it?” He asks, shuffling slightly and wondering if you are just saying that. He had family pictures going back generations with this veil and if you decided you didn’t want it, he would be disappointed but understand.

"I love it." You're practically in tears over it, and immediately stand up from the bed to go in front of the mirror and get an idea of what it would look like in your hair. The gold and rhinestone clip and floral lace are giving you ideas that you never would have imagined for yourself. "I'm going to pick something simple for a dress." Whether you're telling yourself or him is up for debate. "So this can be the center piece." Without having any family at all to invite, it's the perfect way to still have them with him at the wedding.

“It looks gorgeous on you, sugar.” Jack swallows, not wanting to compare you to his late wife, but you both look like angels wearing the family veil. It’s been a long time since he’s even looked at it. “Probably needs to be cleaned. But I’ve kept it as safe as I could.”

"I'll ask Diana. Something tells me that she will know a place that can handle something this delicate." It's silly, but you really don't want to take it off so quickly. But he's right, it's an heirloom and an antique, and should be handled with care. "I'm honoured that you want me to wear it, honey. It's beautiful, and a beautiful memory to have."

“I will admit.” He reaches out and touches the lace. “I was hopin’ you’d want to wear it.”

"I absolutely do." Leaning over a little, you leave a kiss brushed on his cheek and rub his arm gently. "I'm going to take some pictures of it, if that's okay with you? I don't want to risk something happening to it on the trip. It's more delicate that I had imagined."

“No, you take it with you.” Jack insists. “It’s a lot tougher than it appears. It’s been through more than most family heirlooms.”

“I’ll pack it up in something safe and padded,” you promise, already trying to think of your laptop case will fit the bill. Either way, you carefully take the clip out of your hair and wrap your arms around him as soon as the veil is back in its box. “I’m glad we have something of your family’s for the wedding.” You wish you could do more than that - find some way to have them there - but some things are beyond even your determined reach.

“She woulda liked you.” Jack admits in a quiet voice. “Woulda boxed my damn ears for how I treated you, but if there was some way for you two to be in the same time, she woulda joked about the two of you runnin’ me ragged.”

"If there was some way for us to be in the same time, I know she and I would have been friends." Though you don't really know how you know it, all of the things you've ever learned about Abigail Daniels all add up to the kind of person you would have loved to be friends with. "She'd give me shit about the whole thing with Tex, and she'd love Sophia to death just like I do. And..." You sit down on the bed with him again and pick Jack's hand up in both of yours. "And I hope that sometimes I remind you of her. Even a little bit. And that sometimes you're just like that cook from Boston."

“That might be what scared me the fucking most.” Jack whispers quietly. “You do remind me of her. That same spirit. Caring nature.” He lifts your joined hands and puts your arms around his shoulders. “But I love you. For you.”

"I love you, too, Jack Daniels." It always makes you smile, the way the sentence rolls off your tongue so naturally and makes him blush, pushing that lone dimple up into the meat of his cheek. "But I hope you know that giving Sophia your credit card means she is gonna make sure I come home with the most expensive wedding dress New York City has to offer."

“It’s why I gave it to her.” He pouts at you playfully. “You either wouldn’t have accepted it or resolved to spend as little as possible on it.” He grumbles, unsure of why you disbelieve the fact that he can afford to spoil you. “She’s under orders to have them remove the price tags from the gowns before you try them on.”

"Tex is convinced they're going to put us on camera." Later in the night he had texted you to thank you for dinner and excitedly gushed about how he was dead certain that if two ravishing ladies such as yourself walked up into that salon with fancy fiancés and unlimited budgets, they would be fools not to put you on the show. "I don't think it works like that, but I didn't want to dash his dreams."

“Hardheaded fool.” Jack shakes his head and sighs. “Sophia can’t be on the show.” He explains softly. “At least not featured. She’s an active agent.”

"She's the most special thing to him in the world and he likes to dream about it. It's sweet." His exasperation is endearing - brotherly, really - and you grin. "He's sappy and in looooove."

“Yeah. He is a sap.” Never one to turn down a chance to insult Tex good-naturedly, he chuckles. “He’s gonna cry when he gets the bill for her dress.”

"She's going to look spectacular." You know that without hesitation. Even if she weren't a statuesque beauty to begin with, her assuredness and vivacity would make her a knock-out no matter what. "It'll be the most unconventional wedding dress you've ever seen."

“The boy said she was wantin’ a green weddin’ dress.” He hums, looking at you curiously. “Are you thinkin’ something along the same lines or traditional?”

"I think the wildest I'll get is a flower pattern or something in the fabric. No colors or anything over the top for me." Somehow you have a feeling that Jack wouldn't say a word if you wanted to be untraditional, but he's hoping for white in his heart. And honestly? You never imagined anything but white on your own anyway. Maybe ivory - but that is hardly a stretch of the imagination. "My mom and my sister had these very elaborate dresses with lace and rhinestones and bows and stuff and I just...I don't know. I think I want to do something simple. And definitely something white."

“Simple is good.” Jack slides his hands around your waist and pulls you closer. “Simple lets the gorgeous bride shine. Instead of just looking at the dress, they will be lookin’ at you, sugar. Envious and wonderin’ how the fuck I got so lucky.”

Your immediate impulse is to protest that you’re the lucky one in this situation, but you know you’ll just end up going back and forth flattering each other. “We’re both lucky,” you insist, leaning forward to press your lips to his.

He can concede that, smirking slightly against your lips. Tilting his head and sliding his tongue into your mouth to deepen the kiss and groans when you immediately respond. The way Jack kisses you will never cease to thrill you. Reverent and wanting but always playful. It makes you smile into the kiss and ring your arms around his neck to pull him in closer. “I’m gonna miss you while I'm in the city.”

He frowns slightly and pulls you closer. “I’m going to miss you too, sugar.” He admits. He’s worried. Worried that you might not react to being in the city where you were tortured, but he’s not going to bring it up. If you aren’t thinking about it, he doesn’t want to put it in your mind. “But you will have a lot of fun with Sophia. You two are gettin’ along good.”

“She’s great.” You tilt your chin back to kiss the tip of his nose and smile, trying to wipe the frown off of his face. “And I know I’ll be safe with her.” It’s not as if you hadn’t thought about where you’re going. But you can’t exactly shun the city where your own brother lives for the rest of your life.

“You will be.” Jack looks down into your eyes seriously. “Please wear the bracelet and your earrings?” He begs softly.

“Cross my heart.” You nod earnestly, pressing another kiss to his lips. “And if I never go to Brooklyn again it’ll be too soon.”

He hums, tightening his grip on you slightly. “I would offer to come but I think there’s some rule about seeing the dress.”

"There's a very big rule about it, and I want you to be surprised." Although you can't deny that you always feel safer with him around, you know that Sophia will be able to take care of anything that comes up. If anything does at all, which it shouldn't now that Jack had taken care of the Rollins boys. "Unless...maybe Astrid could come with us? If she wanted to, and Gabi was okay with it? Then I'd have two of the baddest ass women I know looking out for me and you might feel a little calmer?"

“You take whoever you need to, sugar.” It’s sweet that you want to calm him down but he will always feel a little anxious when you aren’t in his sight. He’s already come to terms with that fact.

"It'll all be fine." You assure him, solidly reminding yourself of it as well. "We'll both be a little unsettled but I'll be fine with Sophia. And I'll wear my bracelet and my earrings so you can watch my little tracker dot circle around the dress shop a bunch of times and grin about it."

“I think you’ll find your dress in under an hour.” Jack predicts.

"You want to be more specific?" The idea of a little bet is intriguing to you and you pull apart from him to start undressing for bed. "Make a wager, maybe?"

“You know what you like and what you don’t.” Jack explains. “Even if you don’t have any particular style in mind before you go in, I wager an extra week on our honeymoon that you find your dress within an hour.”

"So if you're right, we add an extra week to the honeymoon." Tossing your socks in the laundry basket, the t-shirt you were wearing joins it next. "If it takes longer than that, which I think it will because I have no clue what I'm looking for other than 'not what my mother or sister wore', then..." You think through it, trying to think if there's anything you've wanted that he has ever said no to. Which of course, there isn't, so you go for something silly instead. "Then you and I are going to take an extremely silly engagement trip somewhere. Disney levels of silly."

Jack chuckles, knowing that it would seem extremely silly, but it would be worth it. “You’re on, sugar.” He hums happily, watching as you strip down and he starts to unbuckle his belt. “It’ll be great having you on the honeymoon for an extra week, but—” He points at you playfully and wags his finger. “You can only call to check in on your restaurant once a day.”

"Twice." You immediately pop up, turning to throw him a pout in protest. After all, pouting topless has never steered you wrong before - even if you're a little too anxious tonight to be thinking about sex. For the last several days, actually. "Once at the beginning of business and once toward the end of the night."

“One call, one text.” Jack haggles with you, smirking slightly although his eyes are squarely centering on your tits at the moment. Not sure if he’s smirking at the conversation or at the sight of your beautiful breasts.

"One call and one text. I can deal with that." You'll conspire with your sous chef later to communicate far more than that, but that's for later. "See something you like, cowboy?" It does make you smile, even though you're currently digging into the dresser to pull out an oversized t-shirt to sleep in.

“You can’t expect to pull out your tits and not have me stare at them.” He huffs dramatically, although he’s noting that you are already putting clothes back on, the universal signal for ‘not tonight’. To be fair, there has been a lot of sex and he doesn’t care if you want to have a rest. Instead of stripping down completely, he leaves his boxers on as he pulls back the covers.

"You're always allowed to stare at them, babe. Just like I'm always allowed to stare at your ass." Grateful that he doesn't seem to be fiercely ready for sex tonight, you crawl into bed beside him and snuggle up tight.

Curling his arms around you and pulling you into his chest, Jack presses his lips to your forehead. You seem perfectly content to let tonight be a snuggly affair and he’s perfectly okay when that, sighing softly at your warmth against his chest. The beating of your heart that he can just barely hear. “It’s a good thing you like it, cause it’s barely there. Better narrow your eyes to see it.”

“I’m gonna have to get a very powerful glasses prescription from Astrid,” you joke, giggling when you look up at him in bed and he frowns dramatically in response.

Jack reaches between you and pinches your nipple. “Brat.”

“Ow.” You’re laughing until you’re not, confused as to why the normally playful gesture hurts tonight. Jack must have accidentally pinched harder than usual. “Now I’m a pouty brat.”

“Shit, sugar.” He goes to rub your breasts to apologize but you twist away. Instead he strokes your back. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.” He promises, feeling guilty for being too rough. He must have pinched harder than normal.

“S’ok.” You shrug, but also shrug out of his touch, slipping down beside him with a soft smile. “Kisses make things better, ya know.”

“I’ll give you as many kisses as you want.” He keeps his hands away from your chest, settling them on your sides as you lean in so he can kiss you.

“Sounds perfect to me.” Determined not to let your nerves about going to New York seep in, you just hope you get a good night’s sleep tonight. You’ve been restless lately – who knows why.

“Let’s get some sleep, sugar.” Jack suggests, unwinding one arm from around you so he can turn off the light. “You’ve got some big weddin’ decisions to be makin’.”

******

When you actually depart for New York it's early in the morning two days later, and you and Sophia have Gabi along with you for the trip. The idea of inviting Astrid was well-meaning for Jack's comfort, but since both of you had actually planned on asking Gabi to be your bridesmaid individually you had decided to make this trip a sort of event. The three of you sit over breakfast on the Statesman jet, talking over what Sophia wants to see and all the little things that you think you might look for in a dress or for your weddings. It's a calm flight, all things considered, but you still find yourself picking at your breakfast and wishing your upset stomach would subside.

“Are you good?” Gabi reaches out and touches your elbow. “I know the food isn’t as good as yours, but it’s not worth shredding the bagel.” She teases with a grin.

"I felt kind of off yesterday, too." You admit, looking between your friends with a sheepish expression. "I think I'm nervous."

“It’s okay to be nervous.” She promises. “I kept choking on my own spit the day Astrid and I got married. Broke out in hives.”

"Oh god..." As comforting as it is to know that even the happiest couples you know had plenty of wedding nerves, that just makes you groan in the moment. "Don't tell me that. Tell me everything's going to work out and the stuff that goes wrong will be little and unimportant and we'll laugh about it later."

“Everything turned out amazing.” She assures you with a smile that can only be from a person still completely besotted with their soulmate. “One of the best days of my life. And it will be yours as well.”

"Gabi's official role as bridesmaid for both of us is to be the calm one." Sophia jokes, sitting back at the table in the belly of the jet with her hands wrapped around her iced coffee. "Which reminds me," she grins, eyes flashing mischief at you before focusing on Gabi. "Hen parties. What did you and Ginger do?"

Gabi snorts and shakes her head. “Uhhhh….” Her grin is devilish and she shrugs. “We went to a male strip club.” She admits with a cackle.

"Seriously?" You almost do a spit take of your herbal tea, which would not help your stomach in the least.

“What?” She gives a shrug of her shoulders as if it was nothing surprising. “Just because we are desperately in love doesn’t mean we don’t like to look at dick.” She huffs playfully, dropping her voice on ‘dick’.

"So you like to look but don't want to touch men?" Human sexuality is such a fucking spectrum that you typically don't ask questions, but now you're curious. Plus, it's probably the first time you've ever seen Gabi blush. Ever.

“Ummm….” She shrugs again and gestures uselessly with her hands. “All of our kids were, uh, conceived naturally. So sometimes we do like to touch.”

"So..." This is breakthrough information that has you sitting up in your chair, practically giggling in delight. "Jack just...assumed you're a lesbian and no one ever corrected him? Because he definitely thinks you're a lesbian."

“To be fair, we are in a committed relationship and don’t really talk about anybody before finding each other.” Gabi defends lightly. “And we were very discreet with the fathers of our kids.” She giggles. “Plus, if Jack knew, he might have volunteered to get one of us pregnant and while I would have gone for it….Astrid would have worried it would affect their work relationship.”

"He absolutely would have volunteered." And rather than making you feel awkward in any way, you can absolutely laugh about it. "Well it seems I learned something about my friends today!”

Gabi shrugs and smirks. “So don’t feel bad about wanting a male dancer for my sake!” She jokes. “I’ll be upfront since it’s been a while.”

“Oh!” Shrinking back in your seat a little, you shake your head and laugh nervously. “I wasn’t planning on having a bachelorette party. No dancers or strippers or whatever for me.”

“What?” Gabi immediately shakes her head. “You are having a bachelorette party. Even if it’s just a spa thing with the girls.”

“No one’s saying we’re dragging you to Vegas for a Magic Mike show and endless rounds of cocktails by the pool.” Sophia waggles her eyebrows. “Although that does sound grand.”

“That’s what we’ll do for you, then.” That kind of party is much more styled to Sophia’s outgoing personality, and you’re definitely more up to planning something like that than being the focus of it. “Mine will be the low key version of things.”

Gabi nods. “Noted. Sophia wants naked men, you want pedicures.” She teases. “But you will stuff some dollar bills in a g-string if given the opportunity?”

“I promise to stuff at least two bills into two separate g-strings.” You snort, shaking your head at the very silly bargain.

“At least.” Gabi agrees with a grin. “Who knows, maybe Astrid and I will have the motivation to start looking for another donor for baby number three.”

“Your third baby donor and my brother’s second husband,” you half-joke, knowing full well it’s only half. If your brother knew you were going to a strip club he’d be there in a heartbeat. Sophia cackles at that, gleefully enjoying the image it brings to mind, and you snort a laugh that brings the whole table into a fit of giggles.

“So.” Gabi leans in and grins. “A little birdy told me that you and Jack have a little wager.” She hums. “I am to act as timekeeper.”

“Oh god.” Despite your embarrassed laughter, you do sit up and reach for your tea. “If I find a dress in under an hour, he’s adding an extra week to our honeymoon. If it takes over an hour, I get to be treated to a silly little engagement trip. He’s convinced I’m going to find one in no time.”

“So you win either way.” Sophia looks impressed, sore that she hadn’t come up with something like that with Tex. “Bravo.”

You shrug, knowing the compromise is really just a win for both of you, and it’s really just about when to have an extra week of vacation. “I know it’s going to take me forever, so you two will have to help me come up with someplace extraordinarily silly for him to take me.”

“Knotts Berry Farm.” Sophia immediately pipes up. “Or Disney World. And make him wear the ears!”

“If I bring that man to Disney World, I’m dressing him up like Woody and absolutely no one can stop me.” It would certainly qualify as silly, and your beloved cowboy soulmate would undoubtedly have you dressed up in something equally silly the next day as revenge. “And I would take so many videos.”

“You would have to!” Gabi laughs at the mental image and shakes her head. “There’s a snake in my boot!” Sophia cries out in an exaggerated imitation of Jack’s voice.

“Excuse me, ladies.” The flight attendant that welcomed you all on board and set out your breakfast comes over with a smile, having clearly recognized the impression Sophia was doing. “We’ll be landing shortly. If you wouldn’t mind buckling in, I’ll just clear this away. You’ll be on the ground in twenty minutes or less.”

Sophia looks giddy as the plane starts to descend, looking out the windows although the clouds still cover up the view. “Thank you for coming.” She says suddenly. “I am excited for this.”

“You made this happen.” Reaching over to hold her hand tightly, the way she grips yours back eagerly is full of excitement and anticipation. “We’re glad to be here for the ride. And I am also very excited about this appointment.”

“I am just here for the free champagne.” Gabi teases, honored that both women would include her in such a big event. Even better, she gets a mini vacation that is sure to rejuvenate her.

******

The ride from the airport to Kleinfeld is animated, with all three of you mashed into the backseat of the Statesman SUV that came to pick you up at the private airstrip. Apparently, having three agency soulmates fly into the city for a few days landed you some privileges, especially since Sophia is an active agent - and the best perk might actually be having a driver at your disposal.

“So Sophia already has an idea of what she wants. What are you thinking?” Gabi asks. “I know you have Jack’s family’s veil with you.”

“Yes, I do. And it’s non negotiable. If the dress doesn’t compliment the veil, it’s not the one.” The tote bag you’re carrying today holds any number of things, but your laptop case containing that veil is the most precious by far. “I just want something simple. As vague as that is.”

“Simple can always be wonderful.” The only married woman in the group insists. “Especially when on such a gorgeous woman.”

“Flatterer.” A sly grin in Gabi’s direction makes both of you laugh, and you reach for the front door of the bridal salon with a sharp intake of nervous breath. “Okay, ladies. Here we go!”

“Reservation is under my name.” Sophia turns towards you two before a woman in a tailored pantsuit walks up to the group. “Hello.” She watches as the woman seems surprised by the accent and smiles. “We have a reservation. Andrews.”

"Of course. Welcome!" The perfectly coiffed platinum blonde smiles broadly and waves you all over to the desk. "My name is Ellie, and I'm actually your consultant today so this was perfect timing to run into each other." She laughs, but instead of being put-on or polite, she sounds genuinely amused as she glances down at the computer behind the counter and back up again. "Now this is a double appointment, right? You, Sophia...and...?"

"And me." You put out your hand out to her and find yourself smiling in mirror to the woman – Ellie is one of the consultants frequently featured on the show but you would be hard pressed to actually say anything. She probably gets enough of that every single day from other brides.

“I already know what I am looking for.” Sophia announces, motioning towards you. “She is the one who isn’t quite sure what she is looking for. Although she has brought a family heirloom veil from the groom’s family that she wants to use.”

"Oh wow." Ellie looks suitably impressed and waves the three of you toward the belly of the salon. "Well let's go and get you ladies set up, and we can talk a little about what we're looking for and what our budgets look like." She moves through the space with ease and the three of you follow easily until you're shown to a soft, blue loveseat in one corner of the salon. "Since we have two brides trying things on I have a seat here for our third friend, and two pedestals for trying things on. But for now," she grins and pulls up an extra chair. "Let's have a little chat. Fiancés, weddings, budgets, all that good stuff."

“Budget is no concern.” Sophia hoots, pulling out Jack’s card. “Her fiancé is the CEO of Statesman distillery.”

"And hers," you side eye Sophia with nothing but love. "Is Head of Security." Tequila's return Stateside and good work at Kingsman had come with a step up in his civilian job title, much to his delight. It corresponded directly with his accolades as a senior agent. "They're best friends, and close with our friend Gabi's wife. Who is also a department head at Statesman. We're a big work family. But, um...yeah. Our fiancés are footing the bill, and they said no budget."

"My goodness." It's pretty clear Ellie wants to swear but she's too professional and she nods along with what you're saying. "So let's talk weddings, then? And fiancés? Sophia, you said you already know what you're looking for so why don't you tell me a little about everything?"

“I am not traditional.” She flashes a sardonic smile. “Trying to throw off my Britishness.” She jokes, you and Gabi laughing. “My fiancé is a huge cowboy and his engagement ring for me is a good indicator of our whimsy. I have decided I would like an emerald green wedding dress and my bridesmaids will wear white tea length gowns. Emerald green accents.”

"Okay!" Ellie nods, obviously a little thrown off by that idea but ultimately undeterred. "We don't have a lot in the salon in green, but what I can do is pull dresses that I know the designers are willing to do in colours and show you a fabric sample of what that colour would look like. How does that sound to you?" If it isn't satisfying to this bride Ellie will have to pull out her Hail Mary very early in this appointment.

“I was hoping for a Zuhair Murad gown?” Sophia suggests. “If that’s possible?”

"It's definitely possible." The excitable blonde nods her head and looks around the group of the three of you conspiratorially. "He's actually here today. We have a trunk show of his gowns going on this week and he's in store to meet with brides and consult on some things. I definitely think it would be worth bringing him into this appointment so that you can get that emerald color you want. His coloured gowns are stunning."

“Are you serious?” Sophia looks positively star struck and she can’t nod quick enough. For her, the designer is the entire reason she had wanted to come here.

"In that case." Ellie's eyes flash and she turns to you with a grin. "Let's talk about you, my dear. What are you looking for? What kind of wedding are we thinking of having?"

"Our situations are very similar in most ways, but in some ways we're the total opposite of each other." You explain, laughing a little when Sophia shrugs unapologetically. "We're both marrying Statesman execs, both having our wedding on the Statesman campus. I think we're both going for a sort of elegant Southern vibe. But where Soph is vibrant and extroverted and more of a party girl, I'm definitely looking for something simple and classic. My worry, though, is that everything simple is going to end up being a little boring."

“Your friend said the veil was going to be a part of your look. May I see it?” She asks, eager to see what kind of style the veil is designed in.

"The veil is an heirloom." Carefully digging into your tote, you unzip the case you have it in and lift out the antique lace to show the consultant. "This is the only thing that is non-negotiable. I could walk out of here with the most expensive and elaborate dress you sell even though I came in wanting simple and chic, but it has to work with this veil. Every bride in my soulmate's family for the last hundred and twelve years has worn it."

“It’s beautiful.” Ellie’s eyes widen and she reaches out to examine the lace. “This is hand sewn.” It is much better quality than most veils brought in that were from the 70s or 80s and the bride's mother wanted them to wear. This piece is timeless. “Simple, you say? This would look magnificent against a satin bridal gown.”

“I’m open to trying anything.” It would be silly to point out that you’re not used to wearing gowns so anything she suggests to try would be new for you. You can’t imagine most women wear an excess of gowns in their lifetime. Some, of course. But not most.

"Do you have any preference for cut?" She asks, eyeing your figure. "I have a selection of gowns that would be gorgeously simple and not clash with the veil but rather work with it to give you a wonderful bridal look."

“I just want to be able to dance,” you tell her with a grin. “He’s an amazing dancer.”

Nodding, she gently lets go of the veil and smiles at the three of you. "I will get you set up with some champagne and then start pulling dresses for you to see." She promises as she stands up. "I feel like you both will find exactly what you want."

It's a few minutes before your consultant returns with a tray of drinks and shows you that your dressing rooms are the ones right beside where you're sitting. She disappears again with an excited grin, headed into the belly of the salon to the stockroom to pull some dresses. It seems like the three of you have barely had a few sips, though, when a tall man with dark features and an easy smile sidles up to your area. "Miss Andrews?" He asks in a thick Middle-Eastern accent, looking to see which one of you answers. "Ellie told me you were interested in one of my colored gowns for your wedding dress."

Sophia’s eyes widen and she is immediately standing, rushing to shake the hand of one of her favorite designers. “Yes.” She gushes happily. “I am in love with your designs.”

“The very highest compliment I could ever receive.” Murad smiles warmly and shakes Sophia’s hand with both of his. “There are a few gowns here that could be dyed. I will help Ellie pull those for you and we will see what you think of them. But,” he flashes her a grin. “If we do not turn up anything here, then we will come up with a design all your own, together.”

“The only thing that I care about is that the dress matches the color of my ring.” Sophia can’t help but grin back at the handsome man.

"A beautiful piece," he praises, letting the emerald catch the light and dance. "Your fiancé has excellent taste."

"Thank you." Sophia beams and twists the ring on her hand. "We were joking that I should have a dress to match and I absolutely fell in love with the idea."

"It is not a joke, it is genius." The designer flashes a grin at Sophia and then at you and Gabi on the plush little loveseat. "Let me see what is here that can be dyed, and I will come back with Ellie to see what you think."

Sophia giggles nervously and nods, turning back towards you and Gabi when he walks away. "Oh my fucking god! I cannot believe I just met him!!!!" She squeals, nearly apoplectic with glee.

"I think that was more than a meet, honey," you wrap a giddy Sophia up in a hug and let her giggle fit ride itself out naturally. "He just offered to custom design your wedding dress if you don't like anything on site."

"Oh god, he did, didn't he?" She's completely awestruck and nearly spills her champagne as she plops down on the cushioned chaise lounger. "I missed that. I just– oh my god, do you think he would find it strange if I invited him to the wedding?"

"I don't know if he would be able to come, but I think it would be a very nice gesture." She's completely overcome with the encounter and you can't help but laugh softly. "How about if I meet my dress's designer too, we'll both invite them. And then we can be weird together?" It's such a silly suggestion, but kind of a sweet one. Like a big thank you for a day that is already so wonderful.

"Maybe he can design something simple for you." She bites her lip and looks around in complete starstruck awe. "I cannot believe I am here. We are here. We are going to be getting married!"

“She’s gonna take off to outer space.” Gabi laughs, carefully extracting Sophia’s glass from her hand while you hug her.

“Can’t say I blame her.” There’s activity all around you, consultants toting dresses and other brides giddily browsing the pieces hanging in the sales floor, and you look around with a sigh. “It’s like bridal Disneyland.”

Gabi snorts and can't deny that. "It is bridal Disney, isn't it?" She hums, amused by the idea. "We need to see about adding a bridal boutique to the Statesman label." She chuckles. "Have it be an all in one wedding venue."

“If we had a bridal label we’d be unstoppable.” The very idea of it makes you grin, as if you don’t have enough on your plate already with the restaurant just opening and the event planning taking off at the same time. “Champ would either throw resources at us or realize he’s created a monster.”

"You don't think that man is aware that he has created a monster?" Gabi asks you, raising a brow even as she grins at you. "He's fully aware."

“Jack’s the one who keeps encouraging me to dream,” you shrug like it means nothing, but it’s honestly one of the more sincere and romantic things he could possibly do. “Champ’s just the facilitator.”

"Maybe one day." Gabi offers, leaning over to tap her glass to yours. "Lord knows our Statesman family is going to be growing."

“Still thinking about baby number three?” She had seemed to glow with the idea after joking about it on the plane, and you could definitely see Gabi and Astrid deciding to give Ricky and Carmen a little brother or sister.

“I kind of am.” She admits with a dreamy smile. “I know Astrid would let me carry the next one, so I just– I want to talk to her about it and see what she thinks.”

"You guys are the cutest parents. I'm sure she'd be excited for it." Aside from your sister and brother-in-law, Gabi and Astrid are the parents of young children that you've spent the most time around and that both makes you ache and anxious all at once. It would be wonderful to have kids, but you have no idea how you would be as a mother or how Jack would respond to the idea of being a father again.

“Are you okay?” Gabi’s soft smile turns concerned as she scooches closer to you. “You suddenly look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

It hit you like a ton of bricks - the horror tinging your realization with fear. When was your last period? "I'm okay." Unfortunately it's a flat out lie, but you just smile and set your champagne glass back on the tray when Ellie reappears with her hands full of gowns. Gabi doesn't need to know. No one needs to know. No one needs to know that you can't remember the date of your period. Getting an IUD had never made them stop completely, only made them dramatically lighter. But it's...it's been months. Shit.

She doesn’t question you any more, but she side eyes you. Wondering if you are feeling nervous about the dress or if it’s something to do with children. “You know, I think Jack will be a wonderful father.” She murmurs reassuringly right as Ellie starts to talk.

"I have a few of our simpler gowns here in a variety of silhouettes so that you can get a better feeling for what style you might like, and we can go from there," she tells you with a happy smile before looking to Sophia. "And you, my lucky friend, Zuhair just pulled a few things from the stockroom. He's right behind me."

She is practically bouncing in her seat, excited, although she turns towards you expectantly. “Are you ready to find your dream dress and have an extra week of honeymoon?” She teases, having fully sided with Jack.

"We'll see." Forcing yourself to paint on a smile, you push out of your seat and follow Ellie into the small dressing room. Everything on the hangers is delicate and focuses on your body instead of obscuring details, and now all you can think of is how you might be pregnant and trying to do the goddamn math on your cycle.

"Do you have one you want to start with?" The bubbly consultant asks, but the best you can do is chew your lip in concern. "How about something classic?" She suggests when you look more worried than excited. "A simple satin ballgown for that princess feeling?"

"Sure." You nod, reminding yourself how, and start to slip out of your jacket. Focus. You need to focus.

Whisking you off towards the changing area, Ellie starts listing off the attributes of the gown in question, making up for your decided lack of questions. Something has changed but it’s not her place to ask.

The first dress you come out in is...large. It's a poofy princess dress if ever there was one, and with the terror that you're now feeling your mind has wandered to thinking about what any of these gowns would look like on a pregnant woman. "Let's see what they think," you suggest, instead of admitting that you don't like it very much. It's too big and you know that a baby bump would only make it worse.

The moment you step outside the little changing area, both women can tell you don’t like it. They each shake their heads. “It’s too…poofy.” Gabi offers politely and Sophia snorts. “You look like a cream puff.”

“Thanks, guys.” The way you roll your eyes at both of them is a half-assed attempt at humor, and you shake your head. “So ballgown is out? No Princess Sugar?” Humor is good, you tell yourself weakly. Humor will help.

“I think something sleek, more fitted, Princess Peach.” Sophia smirks at you with a wink.

“Now, I know who Princess Peach is,” Ellie laughs, helping you down from the pedestal in the gown that has been dubbed too much “But who is Princess Sugar?”

“Sugar is the nickname that Jack – her fiancé – coined for her.” Gabi explains, throwing you a smirk. “Very southern.”

“I own a restaurant.” Is the explanation you give, stumbling over your words like a nervous weirdo. “I was a pastry chef when we met…I make cakes…it’s a whole thing.”

“It’s sappy and adorable.” Sophia flutters her eyelashes dramatically as you disappear, but jumps off the couch immediately a second later as Murad reappears with three enormous dresses for her to try.

“Here are the ones that I think will be best, if you don’t like them, I can sketch a design.” He offers.

Sophia is giddy as she lets herself be swept into the second dressing room while you go to change into your second dress. Gabi can hear her cooing with glee behind the thin wall, but she didn’t miss the way you hadn’t had any light in your eyes at all when you came out in your first dress. Something happened, she just doesn’t know what or how.

“The dress can be dyed if it is not quite what you are imagining and I have taken the liberty of pulling all emerald green fabrics I have.” Murad calls through the curtain as Ellie helps Sophia into the first dress.

“Sounds like you’re in heaven over there,” you call out through the wall between dressing rooms, enjoying the gleeful sound of Sophia’s giggling next door. The second dress that has been pulled for you is a trumpet gown that you would probably have loved if you weren’t feeling a roiling stomach and the weight of the world on your shoulders. Sophia emerges from the dressing room with a strapless gown with all the most beautiful embellishments and a sweetheart neckline to die for, looking like an angel come down to earth. You remind yourself to smile again, not wanting to spoil your friend’s unbridled excitement.

“What do we think?” Sophia asks, biting her lip as she looks in the mirror at her reflection and dying a little inside as she sees herself.

“You look like a dream, honey!” Gabi squeals, sitting up on the sofa with her glass clutched in both hands. “Tex would lose his mind to see you in that dress.”

“Okay, so I love this, but….” She tilts her head and glances at Murad in the mirror. “There was one that was off the shoulder sleeves, right?”

"Are you thinking of the sleeves from that gown on this one?" He tilts his head at her like an artist considering their muse and grins mischievously. "Let me..." The thought trails off as he ducks out of sight, going to grab a veil from the nearest display and manipulating the long length of fabric in his hands. Each end is somehow magically transformed into a small, loose sleeve that hangs off her shoulder like an elegantly fallen strap. It falls just around the middle of her arm and makes the whole thing look positively refined. "Like this, you mean?"

"Yes." She nods, biting her lip as she stares at herself in the mirror. "That is what I am looking for. The way that it sits has always seemed so refined and luxurious to me."

You stand and watch, taking in the way Sophia’s face lights up and tears well up behind her eyes as she talks with the designer and customizes her gown. He shows her the shades of green he could dye the fabric and they coo over the design together, and you really feel like you might be sick as the room spins around you in anxiety instead of happiness. There have been times you’ve been sick lately - days you haven’t eaten because you’ve been sick to your stomach, extra headaches, back aches, cramping. There was the incident two nights ago with your breasts being overly sensitive… How long has it been? Two months? Three?

Gabi just happens to glance over at you to see the absolutely crushed look on your face. Setting her champagne glass down, she quickly stands and crosses the floor to where you are seemingly doing an astrophysics problem in your head and touches your arm lightly. "Honey, what is wrong? What happened?"

“Nothing.” The answer comes far too quickly and far too sharply, and even Ellie looks concerned on your other side, but you can’t just — oh god, you were drinking…you’ve been drinking alcohol this whole time…and so much caffeine… “I’m not feeling great,” you murmur finally, knowing that it’s half-assed but not daring to spoil Sophia’s moment.

"I have some Tylenol in my purse." Gabi offers helpfully. "Do you have a headache?"

“It’s — m-more of a stomach ache.” It’s an aching feeling everywhere of complete dread and fear, but you make yourself smile for Gabi as though it can be brushed off. “It’s okay. I think I’ll just…lay off the liquor until it subsides.” Or for the next six or seven months…

Highly skeptical, Gabi discreetly glances around the boutique to make sure that you haven't seen someone who has spooked you. You look scared, not like you have a stomachache. "Alright, but if you need me to call Astrid, I can. She can run a diagnostic of you in the Statesman truck."

“If it keeps up.” You nod like you would ever agree to that, even though the idea of being hooked up to anything medical on a Statesman vehicle makes your skin crawl with memories from a month ago. And that’s when it hits you - like a freight train coming right at a cartoon character. If something has gone wrong and you are pregnant? It can’t be Jack’s…

"Oooookay." Gabi grabs you as your knees threaten to buckle and she waves Sophia off. "Let's get you out of this dress and into the bathroom, okay?" Astrid has been concerned that memories from a month ago would resurface and cause issues and from the way you look like you are going to puke, that has to be it. "Okay, come on sweetheart. We can manage everything." She promises. "I have a Valium in my purse just in case something like this happened."

“Is that safe?” You ask in earnest, letting Gabi bring you back into the dressing room like you’re on the end of a set of leading strings.

"It's fine." She assures you quietly. "Astrid gave it to me just in case you had problems."

“I’m okay.” Getting out of the confining dress and back into your own clothes will help, so you don’t hesitate when Gabi shuts the door behind you. Your head is spinning too much which makes the room turn on its axis and the feeling of panic in your chest is making everything more urgent and terrifying.

Maybe that Valium isn’t such a bad idea after all — Astrid sent it because you were attacked here, why did you think this would be a good idea? Everything inside and around you is moving so fast that you don’t even realize you’ve dropped to your knees. Quick, sharp breaths are going to have you hyperventilating in no time but you can’t stop them, and the way your skin is crawling makes you want to scratch your skin clean off. You drag your fingernails up your forearms with purpose, and if you didn’t have short nails from decades of culinary work you might actually succeed in tearing yourself apart.

“Let me–” as a mother, Gabi always carries a bottle of water or a juice box in her purse. Grabbing the oversized bag had been a stroke of luck as she starts to rifle through it until she comes up with a small bottle of water. “Here, drink this.” She kneels down beside you and twists the plastic cap off to hold it up to your lips. “It’s okay.”

It’s a small mercy but still a notable one, mostly because you have to stop scratching yourself to hold the bottle. Gabi gently takes your other hand in both of hers, holding onto it to keep you from spiraling even harder as the tears start to fall and you swear you’re going to choke on the water you just swallowed.

“Come on. It’ll be okay. I promise. No one is going to hurt you.” She murmurs softly. “Our driver is an agent. Sophia is here. Say the word and we’ll have Jack here.”

"No!" The panic that you feel has nothing to do with what happened a month ago and everything to do with the position you would be putting Jack in if what you fear is true. "No–no, I mean...that's not necessary. I'm just..." You feel like an absolute nutcase, but you don't know how to tell her that without sounding silly. "I'm just not feeling well."

“Okay.” The best thing she can do for you is to calm you down. Agreeing with you makes you relax so she doesn’t hit the button in her bracelet yet. “Okay, we’ll just take a few deep breaths, sound good?”

"I'm sorry," you curl in on yourself, not having made it out of the sample wedding dress before the panic started, and wish you could make yourself disappear so you wouldn't feel so damn embarrassed.

“Nothing to be sorry for.” Gabi tells you firmly, cupping your face in her hands. “Nothing at all. Do you understand?”

"I don't want to ruin this for Soph." Or ruin life for Sophia. For your friend. The last time you had your period was the week before your cousin's wedding...Isn't there some kind of old wives' tale about being extra fertile after your period? Or is that before? Shit shit shit.

“You won’t, she wants to be here for you too. She and Tex are so happy for you and Jack.” She insists.

"I'm okay," you insist again, despite it obviously being not true. The best you can do right now is force yourself to refocus. Force yourself to function. Pray that Sophia is so wrapped up in picking out her wedding dress that she never notices that anything was wrong with you in the first place.

“Here.” The small pill is offered to you. “Take this. It will help you relax. Short term.”

"I–um– thanks." Still a little shaky, you manage to take the offered medicine and have another sip of water without too much fuss, and breathe deeply as you stare at your knees. Could it be real? Are you really...pregnant?

It’s long minutes before you start to calm down. Your breathing returns to normal and Gabi takes the now empty water bottle and shoves it back into her purse. “You need another drink? I have a juice box.”

"Would you..." You turn to look at Gabi for the first time since this whole thing started, seeing the concern drawn on her face and the determination that you recognize from seeing her take care of her kids. "Would you just tell Sophia I'm okay if she asks? If she didn't notice then I don't want to worry her."

“I– you don’t think Sophia noticed?” She asks, shocked you would think that.

"Why?" It makes your head spin again in a way that jolts your stomach. "How long have we been in here?"

“Not long, but she’s an agent.” She reminds you gently. “And your mood went from happy to nearly frantic in an instant.”

"All the more reason to let her know that I'm okay, then." It's a miracle that you can think straight, if you're honest, but at least your skin has stopped crawling and you didn't do anything to damage the sample dress still clinging to your body. "I'm sure she has her dress sorted out by now. I'll just..." You blow out a breath that you hope sounds encouraging instead of wavering with fresh tears, which is how you feel. "Change out of this one and try the next. Since this one now has...questionable memories."

"It's not your style anyway." Gabi jokes, sending you a small smile as she stands and holds her hands out to you to help you to stand. After you get back to the hotel tonight, she will discreetly call Astrid and let her know that another therapy session would be good for you.

"Thanks, Gabi." You squeeze her hands before letting them go and refocusing yourself on the dresses that are hanging from the bar on the other side of the small dressing room. Thank god you elected not to wear make up today, or you'd probably look like a raccoon right now.

"This one seems more your style." Gabi offers, although you could never tell when the dress is on the hanger. "Do you want me to help you into it?" She asks quietly, willing to step out if you want.

"If I haven't frightened off our consultant, I'm sure she can help." It's less scary to have to face a near stranger with what's going on in your mind. Ellie doesn't know anything about what's happening in your life. She can't read you like a book the way your friends can. And she'll more than likely buy the story that you just aren't feeling well without pressing for more details.

"Okay." Gabi frowns but she is moving toward the door. "I will send her in."

Sophia is sitting on the loveseat in her regular clothes when Gabi comes back out, fidgeting with her sleeves and frowning heavily. "Is she okay?" She asks quietly once their consultant has gone back into the changing room. "She had an episode, didn't she?"

"Yeah." Gabi knew that Sophia would have noticed you. But she's happy that the other agent didn't push her way into the dressing room knowing it would have embarrassed you even more. "I gave her a Valium. Maybe we need to make it an early day?" She suggests softly. "Or maybe she'll be better once she's let the medicine kick in."

“She wants to keep going?” Sophia can’t tell if she’s surprised or not, knowing you to be both stubborn and usually fairly in tune with yourself. “No crazy partying tonight. Maybe a room service and a movie? And a museum tomorrow. She loves museums.” The laundry list of things she wanted to see can wait. Her best friend’s well being is far more important than anything else.

"That sounds like the perfect, low key evening that we need." She nods and bites her lip. "What about you, hun?" She reaches out and touches Sophia's arm. "Did you find something that you like or are you needing to have something designed?"

“We made a few tweaks, but the first dress was nearly perfect.” She keeps her voice respectfully low, but clasps Gabi’s hands eagerly. “It’s going to be beautiful, and one of a kind. I just hope our girl in there isn’t so overwhelmed that she doesn’t get to enjoy this appointment. Or this trip.”

"She's a trooper." Gabi smiles, excited for Sophia. "I know she will find the perfect dress." She prays that whatever is going on with you doesn't spoil the experience for you.

A few minutes later you emerge again with red eyes looking tired but forcing yourself to smile - knowing that today is about more than you. You’re just going to have to make sure you read the return and cancellation policy on this dress very carefully in case the worst happens.

"Oh." The dress is stunningly simple and yet it is completely breathtaking. The way it drapes over your form brings the soft folds of the dress and shimmering of the satin. "It's perfect."

“Yeah?” If you’re honest, you barely noticed anything about the dress you put on. It’s comfortable, sure, and simple. But past that? You couldn’t tell what the silhouette was or anything about the details if you tried. Still, you like that they like it. “Gabi picked it.”

"Yeah, love." Sophia stands and walks over towards you with a soft smile and reaches for the package with Jack's family veil in it. "Let's see if it's as perfect with this as I imagine it will be."

It’s nerve racking to see the veil come out now. You’re scared and trying not to show it, like in the back of your mind you know something is wrong and that it might affect Sophia’s relationship as much as your own. Who the fuck knows what will happen if you turn out to be pregnant with Tex’s baby. It will turn your whole world upside down. And hers. And Jack’s. And Tex’s.

Sophia freezes, trying not to immediately demand to know what is wrong. She knows you will deny anything is wrong. Instead, she moves slowly as she takes the veil out and drapes it over your head.

It is beautiful. You can’t deny that even if you have trouble looking yourself in the eye in the mirror. The low cowl neck of the dress makes room for a necklace and the even lower back keeps the focus on the veil, and on any other day you would be gasping right along with Gabi and tearing up for a good reason instead of a stressful one. “It’s…” your hand drifts to the edges of the veil and you try to banish the question mark of what this dress would look like on a pregnant woman. “It’s beautiful.”

Sophia knows that something is wrong. She can tell, but she's cheerful, trying to be your support. "It is beautiful. I know, I know that you shouldn't be pressured and it's all about what you want, but this is the one." She gushes, fluttering the veil around you. "Jack will lose his mind when he sees you in this dress."

“It’s exactly what I said I wanted.” You won’t deny that, even if you’re barely looking at your reflection. Your eyes just keep going back to your engagement rings over and over again. Thinking of Jack and hoping that you haven’t completely ruined your lives with recklessness.

"Do you– do you not like it?" Sophia asks softly. "Because if you don't, Ellie can pull more dresses. We will find something that you love."

“No, I do.” Thinking as quickly on your feet as you can, you force a smile and touch the edges of the veil again. If this is the only time you’re going to get to wear it, you want to at least appreciate its beauty again. “It will need a good necklace. And you two have to tell me if the back is too low.”

Turning you around, Sophia whistles. "That is a sexy back, love. No, you should show it off and this is the perfect dress to do so." She hums and Gabi jumps up to chime in. "Oh it's just lovely. Perfect. What do you think?" She asks you seriously.

“I think it’s right.” If you were thinking with a clear head right now, you would be in happy tears. It really is exactly what you said you wanted in a dress and you do look great in it, but your mind is just too cloudy at the moment to recognize that. “And I think even Louisville is too cold for this dress to be at a winter wedding.”

"Spring or summer?" Gabi asks, not willing to mention that she has clocked you choosing the dress at fifty-two minutes, thirty-five seconds.

“Spring, I guess.” When you finally look up to find your friends smiling at you, you try not to pull in on yourself self-consciously. “Soph and Tex already called dibs on this summer.”

"A spring wedding." Gabi grins conspiratorially. "That will make Jack happy as a pig in sunshine."

“Engaged for a whole year?” Sophia grins, suspicious but trying to cheer you up from whatever is bothering you. Because you are bothered. “You’ll have plenty of time to plan and dream, mate.”

“I think so.” When you nod it’s slow, but definite. “I think this is it.” They like it. Right now that’s the best thing you have to base a decision on, because there’s no way in hell that you can be objective or make the choice with a clear head.

“Great!” Both women cheer, trying to interject as much enthusiasm into the event as possible. They don’t want Ellie to think anything strange, although Sophia knows she has seen plenty of drama.

"Did we remember to keep the time?" You have no intention of letting Jack know what kind of chaos happened here this morning. None whatsoever. So you turn your mind to things that seem normal. Like the bet.

“Under an hour.” Gabi admits with a shrug. “Although if you have your heart set on that engagement trip…” She breaks off teasingly. “I can be bought for the price of a Manhattan in Manhattan.”

"No...he won, fair and square." It would have taken even less time if you hadn't freaked out, and you're not about to lie to him about things that don't matter. There are too many things that do matter at stake.

“I bet if you give him that Soul Snatcher Three Thousand when you get back and ask him for the engagement trip, the man will dance towards Disney wearing the ears.” Sophia waggles her brows suggestively and barks out a laugh a second later.

“We’re going to Montana in fall,” you tell them both quietly and reach to take the veil out of your hair. You’re going to hang on to every bit of normalcy and every promise as hard as you can right now. “That’s sort of going to be the trip, I think. Though…it won’t be silly. It’ll be good for him.”

“Oh….” Sophia had been told the story, the real story in its entirety and she knows that it will be emotional for both of you. “If you need to talk to someone, I’m here for you.”

“It will be good.” Maybe if you tell yourself that enough times, it will be true. You can hope, at least. “His hometown does a big Labour Day festival every year, so we’re going to go for that.”

“That will be fun.” Gabi smiles. “Something fun to look forward to.”

“I’m going to get out of this so I can buy it,” you announce, hoping you sound excited. “Then we can go celebrate?”

“That sounds good.” Ellie ushers you towards the changing room and Sophia turns towards Gabi. “What are you thinking?”

“She won’t look us in the eyes,” Gabi murmurs sadly. “If I wasn’t convinced that that is the most perfect dress for her, I’d be insisting she wait to buy and we all go do something to distract ourselves.”

“She didn’t get a text, no one called.” Sophia looks around the room of mostly women and frowns. “Do you think something reminded her of the kidnapping?”

“I don’t know what else it would be.” Gabi admits with a sigh. “I gave her the Valium, and I’m going to let Astrid know what happened. But other than that? I’m not sure what to do.”

“All we can do is support her.” Sophia frowns, making a note to text Jack if you still are off kilter by dinner time.

“We’ll get her through it.” It’s as much of a promise to Sophia as it is to you without you even being there.

“Yes we will. And if we need to head back tonight, I will have the plane ready.” Sophia won’t put your mental health at risk. She won’t.

******

Your dress purchased and arrangements made for you to be contacted when it comes in so you can be fitted, Sophia and Murad exchange information to work on her custom made dress, then the three of you pile out onto New York’s streets. “Where to now?” Gabi asks, looping her arm through yours. “Anywhere you want to go.” She tells you.

"Sophia made a list." It's less deflecting than it is just angling to not have to think about much of anything - and that includes decision making. But Sophia isn't having it, and she shakes her head as the three of you pile into the waiting Statesman car. "Anywhere you want to go," she insists, keeping hold of your hand in the backseat. They're a stubborn pair when they agree on something, and you look between them with a sigh. "We could go to a museum?" It's your go to. Museums and food tourism. And right now you can't stomach the idea of food.

“Why don’t we do one of the smaller museums?” Sophia offers. “Near the hotel in case we want to go back and rest?” The unspoken part of it suggests that you might want to go back, to not participate and it gives you an out if you need it.

"I know you guys don't want to be dragged around the Frick Collection or some other intense little art museum." It's sweet that they're trying to be kind after what happened in the dress shop, but you really don't want this trip to be about you and you know at least half of Sophia's list. "Why don't we do Madame Toussad's? Selfies with wax people sounds like a silly as hell way to spend the afternoon."

“Yes!” It sounds like just the type of activity to get you out of your head so both women nod eagerly. “Let’s do that and we can decide what to eat afterwards.” Sophia decides.

“Times Square has tons of places. It will be great.” Gabi agrees, wanting things to go smoothly from here on out.

Each woman flanks you, wanting you to feel protected and surrounded by someone familiar. Each one believing that you are reliving the trauma of the last month. “Maybe we will find some inspiration for your menu.” Sophia encourages.

“We should take Soph someplace absurd and touristy. Super American.” You suggest, sitting back between both women as the car makes its way around Central Park. “Like Red Lobster or Margaritaville levels of absurd.” Silly will help, you decide, sitting on your hands so that they don’t move self consciously to your unchanged stomach. Silly is good.

“Ohhhhh we can get wasted in Margaritaville, right?” She grins. “Like that song?”

You’ll definitely be laying off the booze for the rest of the trip for necessary reasons, but you swallow it and add a smile as you nod. “Absolutely, Soph.”

“Great!” There’s practically nothing a little booze and girl time can’t fix, so she is immediately leaning forward to lower the glass to tell the driver to take you all to the Wax Museum.

******

Madame Toussad’s Wax Museum is plenty busy, full of families and groups of friends out for the same silly distraction that the three of you are. The staged dummies and their scenery providing just enough distraction to have you breathing normally and even laughing a little with your friends.

“This place is wonderful.” Sophia gushes. “Creepy, but wonderful.” She looks around at all the wax figurines. “We should do waxes of the agents.” She laughs.

“Tex would hide his all around the house to scare you.” Gabi snorts, thinking of how much fun the agent has been known to have, acting like an oversized child in some of his time off.

“God he would.” Sophia laughs, shaking her head. “Until I decapitated it and then he would pout.”

“You can’t cut off that beautiful face.” Gabi laughs, posing next to the model of actor Channing Tatum just like he’s Tex. They’re about the same size, so it works. “He’d be such a sad boy.”

“Tex’s ears are a little bigger but I swear they are brothers.” She huffs, stepping closer to examine the figurine of the man who looks just like her fiancé. “All that ridin’ I’ve been doing. Gotta hold onto somethin’.” She drawls, imitating a southern accent.

“Save a horse, ride a cowboy,” Gabi giggles, swinging her hips in an impromptu dance move that makes all three of you laugh. It is, after all, the unofficial Statesman motto.

“Speaking of…” Sophia smirks. “There’s been a lack of complaints around your house early in the mornings the last few days. Have you just decided to wear Jack out at night or did you turn the safe room into your sex room?” She waggles her brows outrageously.

“The restaurant starting up has changed our schedule a little.” You excuse, suddenly hyper focused on a speck of dirt on your hand. “And I’ve been a lot more tired.”

“I’m sure you are.” Sophia nods, reaching out and patting your hand. “Let me know if there’s something I can do. I did work my grandpa’s pub back across the pond.”

“Thanks.” Everyone here knows you’ll never ask. Not only do you have a great staff but you’re stubborn as hell. Still, it’s nice that she offered. “I just want everything to be perfect.”

“Everything is perfect. Have you not read the reviews?” Countless food critics for the area have already been out to try the newest addition to Statesman and each one of them have come away giving rave reviews.

“Then being tired is worth it.” You decide, flashing them both that smile that feels a little more authentic with that encouragement.

“Ohhhh look! There’s Nic Cage!” Gabi squeals, darting over to the next display. “This is– is it a wax figure or does he come and pose everyday?” She giggles, poking the figure’s waxy face.

“It’s his Dorian Gray statue instead of a portrait,” Sophia laughs, dragging you with her to the next display. “If you move the clothes you’d see horrible disfiguration.”

You jump from exhibit to exhibit, Gabi and Sophia making sure that there isn’t a lull in the conversation or jokes being tossed out. Wanting to make sure you don’t have time to think about being upset. By the time you’re through the Creepy But Fun (as you all agreed upon) museum full of uncanny wax people, you’ve calmed down a little. But only in so much as the panic has turned into a slowly simmering dread in your belly.

“Where to now?” Sophia asks, grinning at your obviously more cheered spirits and links her arm with yours. “I’m famished.”

"Do you still want to go to Margaritaville for dinner?" The thought of alcohol makes you queasy but you can just have a virgin one and soldier on. The point is for Sophia to have fun.

“Unless you have some little hidden gem that we have to try?” Sophia asks with a grin. “Have you been holding out on us?”

"There's always..." You bite your lip and shrug a little, deciding that it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to have a little fun. There's been a plan slowly forming in the back of your head all afternoon and it will take care of everything. Or at least...it's the best idea you have for not ruining the lives of everyone you love. "There's two places. In Chelsea...both are great but one of them is inside the theater for this crazy play, so you kind of have to do both to get the whole experience."

“Tell me more.” Sophia cocks her head curiously, intrigued by the sound of it.

“The play has a restaurant and a bar in it and instead of sitting down to watch you get up and run around and follow the actors everywhere. And the audience all wears masks, and you can’t talk, and then after you find your friends in the bar and talk about what you saw.” It’s something you’ve done with your siblings a few times and always loved it. No two experiences are ever the same, but it’s exhausting. “If you want a quieter night, we can go to the Argentinian restaurant across the street. The wine list is killer and if we name drop my brother they might make us something special.”

“The play thing sounds fun.” Sophia admits with a grin. “It’s not something I have done before. How about you?” She turns to ask Gabi.

"I don't think I've been to a play outside of Louisville since Astrid was stationed here." It had been very early in her time with Statesman, but back then they had loved to go to Broadway. "I'm in for a weird play where you run around."

“Then it’s decided.” Sophia would sing karaoke in a shoebox if it meant you would be happy, so the smile on your face as you agree means the world to her.

"Let's see if we can actually get three tickets." You pull out your phone as you walk through Times Square between them, headed to your hotel just a block away. "We can have the driver take us, which is a miracle because walking there sucks." The times you had gone with your siblings, you had done the combination of subway travel and walking which was less than fun. Sophia has one arm through yours to make sure you stay on the sidewalk while your face is in your phone and you make a small noise of surprise when there are actually tickets available for tonight. "Looks like we're doing it. I recommend lightweight clothes and your comfiest shoes. We're going to be running all night."

“We have time to go back to the hotel?” Sophia asks. “Or are we running into Target and buying what we need?”

“We have plenty of time.” The hotel is just around the corner and the three of you pop straight into the elevator easily. “It’s not really traditional, but it is based in Shakespeare. But it’s dancing. A lot of dancing.”

“I always like dancing.” Sophia’s eyes widen suddenly. “Ooooooh!” She squeals, “can we go to the Coyote Ugly bar?”

“Tomorrow night,” you promise, laughing when she looks as excited about that as she did about shopping for her wedding dress.

“Always wanted to go there since seeing that movie.” She confesses with a grin.

“We can make that happen.” Gabi chuckles on your other side. She opens the door to your suite with her key and ushers you all inside. “But if you get up and start dancing on the furniture, I’m taking video.”

“Oh absolutely.” She had already anticipated that. “And send it to Tex, hm? Make him regret telling me that I wouldn’t have fun.”

“That boy honestly thought there was any kind of scenario you wouldn’t make fun?” The dismissive sound Gabi makes as she digs into her suitcase for suitable clothing for the night is accompanied by a sigh. “He really is a clown.”

“A rodeo clown.” Sophia had giggled over the few photos Tex had shown her. It had been something fun to tease him about when he was wearing dapper suits that he didn’t find comfortable at all.

"From rodeo clown to super spy." You shake your head as you dig through your suitcase for comfortable clothes to wear tonight. Everything that you had packed was reasonably stylish, but at least you had thought to tuck your good sneakers in the bottom of your case so that you could keep up with all the adventuring Sophia wanted to do.

“So I’m going to wear leggings and a cute t-shirt.” Sophia offers, tossing out her clothes haphazardly. “That sound okay?”

"That works. I've got a pair of jeans and..." The shirt in your hand when you lift it out of your suitcase makes you swallow back an emotional reaction. "Jack packed me his Creedence Clearwater Revival t-shirt..." It's such a small gesture but it has you breathing shakily as you inhale the scent of his cologne from the stretched and worn cotton. "I–I'm going to sleep in that, I think," you murmur almost to yourself, replacing it in the suitcase and pulling out the Louisville Slugger t-shirt that you had bought at the factory tour. If Sophia noticed the expression of almost heartbreak, she doesn’t mention it. Wondering if you are just in your feelings because of where you and Jack were when you were last in New York.

“I’ll call the restaurant to see if they have a reservation left. If not, we’ll go to the place across the street.” You can’t possibly excuse yourself fast enough, heading into the suite’s bedroom to change clothes quickly and make the call. There’s someone else that you definitely need to talk to - but that will be face-to-face.

“She seems better.” Gabi immediately moves towards Sophia and frowns at the closed door. “Don’t you think?”

“Looked like she saw a ghost when she found Jack’s shirt, though. Didn’t she?” Sophia chews on her lower lip. “Hopefully this play thing will take her mind off whatever it is that’s got her so fuckin’ upset.” She wishes you would just talk to them, but there are glimpses of you feeling better that have her hopeful.

“That Southern accent is coming along nicely.” Gabi teases playfully. Sophia had said she was going to work on making her English accent less noticeable much to Tex’s disappointment.

“I put in for a transfer,” she admits with a sly grin. “Champ just has to have the board sign off on it.”

“Really!” Gabi squeals happily, knowing that Tex will be happy about that. “Becoming a certified Statesman agent?”

“I don’t want to take the chance that they’ll transfer me after we’re married.” She reasons, knowing that anything is possible when their jobs and lives can be so unpredictable. “At the end of the day, I always want to be able to come home to him.”

“I can understand that.” Gabi offers quietly. “Your jobs are very unpredictable. You spend time where you can.”

“I don’t want to miss anything.” It’s less of a concern for you and Gabi because of your lifestyles, but for Sophia and Tex? It’s a very real concern.

“You won’t.” Gabi reaches for a quick hug. “Champ is very good about balancing work and home. He won’t let you two stay apart for long, even on a mission.”

"We have Diana to thank for that." If not for his soulmate and his son, Champ would be just as much of a workaholic as most American men of his age. Thankfully, having loved ones to come home to had softened his opinion of home life completely and Diana had taught him balance.

“I just hope that we are all happy as larks.” Sophia hums, the soft smile on her face reserved for when she is thinking about her fiancé.

"We will be." Gabi has made sure she is, and she knows that Sophia and Tex already are. It seems though, unfortunately, that there are still bumps in your road. If not with Jack, then just personal ones.

"Dinner reservations are in thirty-five minutes," you announce when you come out of the bathroom in your casual clothes to dig out your sneakers. "I pulled up the menu on my phone so we can look at it in the car."

“If you enjoy it; we know we are going to eat well.” Sophia shrugs off the idea of looking at the menu. Your tastes are exquisite and you wouldn’t bring them somewhere you didn’t enjoy.

"And drink well." The sneakers you packed are favourites, lovingly broken in and tatty with affection, but strong enough to stand their ground against a few days running around the city. You pull them on and stick a double knot in the laces for good measure. "Everything at this place is good, but the cocktails are on a whole other level."

“Ohhh then we are having some drinks!” Sophia declares, although she won’t drink too much. Maybe one or two cocktails. She wants to be mostly sober in case you have another issue. She doesn’t want you to feel like you have to deal with it alone.

"Everybody finished getting changed so we can get across the city!" Gabi urges, moving around the room with purpose now that she sees you starting to perk up again and Sophia getting excited.

"I'll be ready to go in a second," you promise, moving your essentials from the large purse you had been carrying today to the zipped pockets of your worn jeans. No purse at this place is better - and in no time the three of you are back on the elevator, headed down to the street to have the driver take you to the theatre house.

Your stomach is still in knots as the driver brings you through the crowded streets of the city, and you look out the window while Sophia and Gabi gush about something that you weren't paying attention to in the first place. The idea that you could be pregnant has consumed you almost entirely since it entered your mind this morning and while it's eating at you, at least you have a plan now. One that you can't say you're particularly proud of - but you would rather bare a private shame than destroy the lives of the people you've come to love so much.

Back in Kentucky, Jack frowns at his phone. Since going into the consultation, it’s been nothing but radio silence. He knows you are safe, he can clearly see the ping of your location along with Gabi’s, Sophia’s, and the driver’s. It was a friend of Rye’s that owed him a favor. He sighs softly, wishing you had at least teased him with how much he was going to love your dress, but he’s more worried. You’ve been….off. And you being in New York has him on edge. Shaking off his regrets, he opens your messages and types out one to you: Hey sugar, I know you and the girls are partying it up, but I wanted to check in with you. I hope you are having fun. The restaurant is in good hands but this house surely is a lot more lonely without you curled up with me on the couch. I love you.

The vibration of your phone is unexpected, stirring you out of your thoughts and pulling your lips into a conflicted half-frown when you see Jack's name pop up on your screen. Being afraid of hurting him had made you entirely shut down from even texting him. Hell, if it had occurred to you at home in Louisville, you probably would have shut off from your friends instead. But they're here with you in the car and Jack is at home, so he had gotten the blunt end of your fear instead. You swallow a sigh as you open the text, nearly in tears as you read it through twice before replying: We're taking lots of pictures, so I can show you some when we get home. We're heading to the theater so my phone will be off for a few hours. I love you.

Love.

You love that man more than anything in the world. And that's why you're heading straight to see Astrid in her lab the second you're back on Statesman ground.

______ Master Tags: @pixiedurango @chattychell @winter-fox-queen @lady-himbo @artsymaddie @princess76179 @paintballkid711 @missminkylove @pedrosbrat @ew-erin @sarahjkl82-blog @sharkbait77 @justanotherblonde23 @lv7867 @recklesswit @mylittlesenaar @f0rever15elf @gallowsjoker @steeevienicks @athalien @sherala007 @skvatnavle @thatpinkshirt @jaime1110 @girlimjusttryingtoreadfanfics @goodgriefitsawildworld @greeneyedblondie44 @katheriner1999 @littlemousedroid @harriedandharassed @churchill356 @ajathegreats-blog @hardc0rehaylz @beardsanddetectives @kirsteng42 @ladykatakuri @adancedivasmom @madiebear @tanzthompson @emilianamason @bigsdinger @xocalliexo @pedr0swh0r3 @avaleineandafryingpan @charlyrmv @avidreader73 @iceclaw101 @loveslide​ @elegantduckturtle  ​

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My Masterlist!

#Pedro Pascal #Pedro Pascal character fanfic #Pedro Pascal fanfiction #Jack Daniels #Jack Whiskey Daniels #Jack Daniels x reader #Jack Daniels x you #Jack Daniels x female reader #Agent Whiskey #Kingsman Golden Circle #soulmate au #Agent Tequila #Agent Tequila x OC #Agent Tequila x female OC #fear of pregnancy #missed period

[arlana-likes-to-write]

Second Chance - Chapter 5

Masterlist

Warning: mention of car accident, past surgery, cancer treatment, chemotherapy side effects, survivor guilt, bone marrow procedure, talk about death.

Relationships: Yelena x reader, Morgan x reader (platonic), Tony, Pepper, x reader (platonic), Wanda x reader (platonic)

Note: a lot of this chapter is based on my own personal experience with the disease. As I've learned chemotherapy effects everyone very differently. The type of chemo the reader is on is based on her type of cancer but the treatment plan may not be 100% accurate.

Word count: 4k

Morgan was pressed into your side as she scrolled through the many streaming services that were offered at the tower to pick a movie. After dinner, Morgan dragged you to her floor and sat you down to watch a movie. She claimed it was unfair that you didn’t play with her so you had to watch a movie together. It was cute and a movie night sounded perfect after the long day you had. There was something about the blonde Black Widow that kept her on your mind. It was a little nerve-racking. Ever since your diagnosis, you’ve sworn off relationships. It leads to more heartbreak in the end. “Wanna watch Moana?”

“We can watch whatever you want, buttercup,” she giggled and pressed play. It was a movie you’ve seen a lot. Hell, your lifelong dream was to live on a sailboat which you did until you got sick.

“Mind if we join?” Pepper asked as the opening song was over. Her daughter hushed her, not taking her eyes off the screen. You smiled, ruffled her head, and nodded at the CEO, who sat next to you on the couch. Tony slid next to Morgan, grabbing her legs and putting them on his lap.

Moaa was probably in your top 5 favorite animated movies but it was getting harder and harder to keep your eyes open to follow the plot. “Hey,” Pepper whispered. “Do you want to go to bed?” You shook your head, not wanting to get up or move Morgan off of you. But your eyelids became heavy and soon your head fell onto Pepper’s shoulder. You were too weak to fight sleep as it called your name.

*    

The weight of your head falling onto Pepper’s shoulder startled her and she tried to keep her body from jumping so she wouldn’t wake you. You didn’t. “Do you want me to move her?” Tony asked. Pepper shook her head.

“No, she’s perfectly fine.” She meant it. When was the last time you allowed yourself to lean on the shoulder of another? Jessica Easton died in 2018, a few months before the Blip. That was 6 years ago. The case remained open. It was another layer to have you bare alone. So you could rest your head on her shoulder as long as you wanted, she didn’t mind.

*   

“I have a meeting with possible investors,” Pepper said, looking at her tablet.

“I’m waiting for a video call from Bruce,” Tony poured coffee into the mug. You rolled your eyes as you filled up your water bottle from the fridge and poured an electrolyte mix into it. It was important to stay hydrated during your chemo sessions. The couple have been going back and forth for 20 minutes on who would be going with you to your appointment. However, it appeared that being Iron Man and the CEO of one of the biggest companies meant busy schedules.

“You know,” you said slowly and put the water bottle on the side of your backpack. Inside, was everything you needed to survive a long day at the cancer center; art supplies, a book, medication, lotion, and snacks lots and lots of snacks. “I can go by myself. I’ve done it before.”

“No,” they said in unison. You sighed, slumping down in the empty chair. Your appointment was at 0900 so you wanted to leave by 0830 to get there a few minutes early. They add to check your results from the blood you gave yesterday. Before every chemotherapy appointment, they needed to make sure your levels were good. 0830 was in 30 minutes and at this rate, you were going to be late.

“Everything okay?” Wanda asked, leaning onto the counter next to you. You sighed.

“Tony and Pepper don’t want me to go to my appointment alone but they are both too busy,” you explained the short-hand version of what was going on this morning. “So I’m just waiting.” She smiled.

“I can take you,” you looked at her in disbelief. She giggled. “I don’t have anything going on.”

“You're amazing,” you turned your attention back to the couple. “Excuse me?” They looked at you. “Wanda said she’ll take me. She’s a very capable adult and you let her watch Morgan,” you sighed when they remained silent. “Oh for goodness sake, I’m getting a needle stapped into my port,” you flipped open your jacket to reveal your tank top. It was March in New York City, it was a little crazy to be wearing a tank top but it made getting to your port easier. Everything went through your port, chemo and they could draw blood. It was easier than them having to run an IV every time. “It’s not like I’m having brain surgery.” You could see Tony thinking it through.

“Fine but you call me as soon as you're done and if there are any issues.” Amazing. Beautiful. You were half tempted to kiss Wanda for saving you.

“I will,” you grabbed Wanda’s hand and your blanket with the other. “See ya later. Bye!” You dragged the poor witch to the elevator, not daring to wait because they could change their minds. “Sorry,” you said told Wanda when the elevator doors closed safely behind you. “I did not want them to change their mind,” she laughed as the elevator moved to the subfloor of the tower. You adjusted the backpack traps and leaned against the metal walls.

“Are you nervous?” Wanda asked. You sighed, looking up at the ceiling.

“It’s not nerves,” you said. “The anticipation really like I’ve done this before but a knot still forms in my stomach, does that make sense?” You asked, looking at her.

“It does. I get the same feeling when I use my powers,” her fingertips began to glow red. “I know the feeling and what I’m supposed to do but my stomach still twists and turns.” Carefully, you reached out to touch her fingers that glowed. It was like a static shock; one moment you were standing in the elevator with Wanda and the next you felt as if you were in the car accident again. The screeching of tires. The piercing sound of metal against metal. And the screams of you and your mom. “Y/n,” you heard your name. “Hey, can you hear me?” You blinked, shaking your head slightly. You were standing in the corner of the elevator, gripping the handle. The doors were open and Wanda was standing in front of you. “Are you with me?” You nodded, licking your lips.

“Yeah,” you said, releasing the hold you had on the handle. There were indents on your palm from the metal. “I’m okay,” Wanda wasn’t convinced, the color was drained from her face making her green eyes pop. “It wasn’t your fault,” you assured her. “I shouldn’t have touched your magic without asking.” She sighed, running her fingers through her hair.

“Let’s get you in the car,” you nodded, allowing her to wrap her arm around your shoulders and lead you to the car. She opened the passenger door and you sat down.

“I feel like I got run over by an elephant,” you said. Wanda smiled and knelt in front of you. “I don’t remember the car accident,” you told her, playing with the threads on the blanket on your lap. “I just woke up in the hospital and I couldn’t answer any of the questions the police asked me.” You whipped away a tear that fell. “Could you help me remember?” You whispered. Wanda nodded, placing a hand on top of yours.

“I can,” your head snapped up to look at you. “But not when you are fighting this.” This was the cancer that was running rampant through your body. “It will be painful and I don’t think your mind or body is strong enough to handle it.” She was right. On your best days, you were lucky to not get tired before noon. “We should get going. Don’t want to be late.”

“Right,” you whispered, swinging your legs into the car and putting your backpack by your feet. Wanda closed the door and rounded the front to the driver's side. By the time she was in the car, you were buckled in. You were grateful that Tony, Pepper, and Wanda were adamant about going with you to your appointments but there was a nagging voice in the back of your head calling out to your mom. Why was she taken from you? Was it some type of punishment or test? Why was it her and not you?”

“Hey,” Wanda’s voice pulled you out of your spiraling thoughts. “Stay with me, okay?” She offered her free hand over the center console. “Stay right here.”

“I’m here,” you promised, lacing your fingers with hers. She wanted you to stay in the present and not slip into the past. You squeezed her hand and held onto it the entire ride, a little afraid to let go.

*  

“Does that hurt?” Wanda asked as the nurse, injected the needle into your port. You were all settled in your little cubicle; a pillow behind your head and a blanket draped over you. Your water bottle, sketchbook, and book were arranged on the small side table how you liked it. Each one had a small TV, and a fridge and there was a kitchen for everyone to use. You never watched TV, content with listening to music and sketching. But now you had someone with you which was weird. You shook your head and thanked the nurse as she left.

“Nope, I put numbing lotion on it before we left,” you answered. “Now I wait.” Wanda looked around.

“And you did this by yourself?” You smiled, nodding at the witch.

“It’s not that bad,” she titled her heat at you, a clear indication she didn’t believe you.”Okay sometimes it gets lonely but the nurses are fun to talk to and I get some drawing done. Besides the double dosage days are the worst since they take forever.” You were given cytarabine and daunorubicin with a flush in between due to the chemotherapy possibility of damaging your kidneys.

“Can I get you anything? Or do anything for you?” You looked at your setup.

“Actually, can you go get me some tea from the common area? We passed the kitchen on our way in.” The witch nodded and journeyed into the kitchen. With a sigh, you picked up your phone and began to scroll through the social media. You liked scrolling through instead of posting yourself. Even though everyone said you needed to make an Instagram, it seemed like a lot of work but you tried to post every once in a while to keep your friends in DC posted. “Shit,” you mumbled when you stopped on a picture that was posted on Captain Mills’ social media page. You forgot your promise to Rebecca. Damn, chemo brain. You pulled up your text message and hit Henry’s contact.

‘Hey Captain, I need a favor. Call me when you free.’ 

*      

“That was a lot of fun,” you said to Wanda as you entered the tower’s lobby. “Thank you for coming with me.” She smile with the blanket you used in her arms. She admitted to helping you carry something. It was nice just talking with Wanda and learning about her through her stories and not the media. The media wasn’t kind to anyone, you’ve seen it grab your mom’s name through the mud. Especially with her case against the Liberation Front, an underground crime syndicate that ran up and down the East Coast. She was able to put one of their leaders Enzo Martinez in prison for life. The local media outlets and officials were not happy with her.

“I’m glad I could go. If you need me to go again let me know.”

“I will,” you hit the button for the elevator, and while you were waiting, you looked towards Rebecca’s desk. She was done helping someone and sat down at her desk. “Hold the elevator for me,” you called over your shoulder and jobbed over to Rebecca. She jumped slightly at your sudden appearance. “Hi.”

“Oh hi. Y/n, right?” You nodded. “I see your talk with Tony went well.”

“It did and all thanks to you,” you fished out a business card from your sweatpants and handed her the card. “A certain captain is expecting a phone call from you,” her hands shook as she took it. Her eyes darted from the piece of paper to you. “And if Tony gives you a hard time about the time off. Let me know, okay? Bye.” You ran back to Wanda.

“Thank you,” she called after you. You waved and stepped into the elevator.

“I’m starving,” you said once the metal doors opened the metal doors to the common floor. Skipping past the couch, you through your backpack on it and made your way to the kitchen. There was stuff in your kitchen but you were too lazy to cook and you were hungry now. You opened the fridge, humming to the song that was playing on the radio.

“Hello, Miss. Easton,” you glanced over your shoulder to see Vision, reading a book on the couch. “How was your chemotherapy appointment?”

“Oh hi Vis, I didn’t see you,” Wanda lay your blanket on the back of the couch. The android took the witch’s hand and kissed the back of her hand. Awe, they were cute. “I had food on the brain,” you turned to look back at the fridge. “But it was good. Wanda made it better.” You pulled out someone’s leftover pizza, you didn’t see a name on it and would deal with the consequences later. You ate the pizza over the sink, not wanting to dirty a plate.

“I thought chemo was supposed to make her lose her appetite,” you nodded.

“It does,” you said, covering your mouth while you chewed on pizza. “But they gave me steroids today to trick my body. I’ll be like this for like 24 hours.”

“What can we do to assist you?” Vision asked. That was such an odd question. What could they do to help you?

“Right now nothing,” you shrugged. “I’ll probably be eating all day.”

“Well I can make chicken paprikash,” Wanda said. “I think we have all the ingredients for it.” Your jaw dropped and a piece of pizza was about to fall out of your mouth.

“You know how to make chicken paprikash,” You said in disbelief.

“I would hope so,” she closed your mouth. “I am Sokovian.” That..made sense. “Sit and I’ll make it.” You did what you were told but not without grabbing a small bag of pretzels.

“There is a restaurant in DC that made chicken paprikash not as good as the one I had in Sokovia,” the witch froze and slowly turned to look at you. She blinked once, twice.

“You’ve been to Sokovia,” you nodded. “Before Ultron happened?” You nodded again.

“In 2014, I was 16 and my mom wanted to help with the war efforts,” you slowly ate the pretzel. “It was a beautiful country.” Your mom was hesitant to bring you with her to a war-torn country due to several attacks orchestrated by the US Air Force to try to stop the country’s political turmoil. This resulted in massive infrastructure and property damage, along with heavy civilian casualties. Besides all that, you found some of the kindest and most beautiful souls in Sokovia. She nodded, her green eyes swelling with tears. You couldn’t imagine losing the place you called home in such a horrific way. Vision joined Wanda’s side, offering a gentle hand on her back.

“Yes,” her accent was much thicker. “Yes, it was. Now,” she smiled. “Let’s get cooking.”

*        

“I’m a little impressed,” Natasha mumbled as she stood next to Yelena and Bucky. “Is that her third plate?” The blonde nodded as you finally took a break from inhaling Wanda’s cooking to take a sip of water.

“Stark is going to need to take out a loan if this is how she’s going to be every week,” Yelena rolled her eyes, slapping the soldier on his cheek.

“Please Stark could end world hunger if he wanted to,” the blonde said. The man in question walked over to you. It was a shock that the man was trying to be a father to you. Yelena was curious if he was going to help you or send you away. It was hit or miss with the billionaire. Yelena left her sister and boyfriend and walked over to the empty seat next to you. “Are you saving any for us?” She asked you. You giggled, whipping your mouth with a napkin.

“Yes, Blondie,” you smiled. “Wanda made a double patch.” Yelena chuckled.

“So, you’ll be eating all of our food for the next 24 hours,” Tony teased. You playfully rolled your eyes, the smile on your face growing.

“I think you can afford it.”

“I said the same thing!” Yelena laughed.

“Your old man has more money than everyone in this tower times two,” you spun around in your chair to see Rhodey and Maria. They must have just gotten back from DC.

“I’m surprised Stark doesn’t have more of you surfacing.” Maria joked. Yelena had that very same thought.

“How about we stop talking about me like I’m not here?” Tony asked.

“Eh, where is the fun in that?” You said, glancing over your shoulder. Tony sighed and filled a travel mug with coffee.

“Don’t tell her something you’ll regret,” the billionaire threatened his friend. Rhodey held up his hands in surrender as Tony headed toward the direction of Pepper’s office. Rhodey rolled his eyes.

“James Rhodes,” he introduced himself, extending his hand for you to shake. “Everyone calls me Rhodey.” You smiled and shook his hand.

“Maria Hill,” the brunette said. “Nice to put a face to the name.” You shook her hand as well.

“The old man likes talking about me I see,” you smiled. Yelena thanked her sister with a smile as Natasha handed her a plate. The rest of the team filled in to get their food and sat around the dining room table. You sat next to Yelena, only bringing a glass of water to the table.

“Not every day a stranger pops up and says you're his kid,” Natasha sat down in the empty chair next to Yelena. “Cut him some slack.”

“Hey, no hate,” you smirked, taking a sip of your water. “I am pretty amazing.” Your comment got a few chuckles from around the table. The Black Widow was sure she heard, ‘She really is a Stark.’ But Yelena scuffed and rolled her eyes. “You got something to say, Blondie?”

“Blondie?” Maria questioned. “What the hell kind of nickname is that -” Before the agent could reveal her name, Morgan rounded the corner and excitedly yelled out your name. It was the only warning you got before the 4-year-old jumped on your lap.

“Mommy and Daddy said you had to go to the doctor today,” Wanda appeared with a small plate with chicken nuggets and mac and cheese. Yelena was a little jealous of her mac and cheese but you waved the witch off when she was about to take Morgan to her seat. “Do they give you a lollipop? My doctor always gives me a lollipop.”

“I did and I didn’t get a lollipop,” the young girl gasped at your confession. Yelena began to eat her dinner but she couldn’t help but watch you interact with your half-sister. “The doctors had to make sure I stay nice and healthy so I can keep playing with you.” You tickled her sides which caused her to squeal and giggle. The sound brought a smile to Yelena’s face but it tugged at her heart and made her stomach drop. Of course, you were good with kids, what couldn’t you do?

“Are you healthy? Daddy said you were sick,” her simple question caused the table to get quiet. Yelena saw you cringe at your choice of words that led to this question.

“You know my mom used to say you can get stronger and stronger every day but you have to eat chicken nuggets and mac and cheese,” you snatched some of the food off her plate. “You wouldn’t mind if I..” you trailed off as you slowly brought the food to your mouth. Morgan gasped and took it out of your hand.

“My chicken nugget,” she said.

“Well eat your dinner before I get hungry again,” you smiled.

“I would listen to her,” Yelena teased. “She’s got a big appetite. I’m surprised she hasn’t eaten all of our food.” You stuck your tongue at her. Morgan got comfortable on your lap and began to eat her food, not realizing you failed to answer her question. Your eyes locked on with Yelena’s and the blonde tried to silently ask if you were okay. You offered her a small smile and focused back on the conversation that was taking place at the table. Yelena wondered how much Tony told his youngest. Did she know that her newest friend was a little more than ‘sick’?

*    

Was it a mistake to leave one of his best friends with the girl who he just learned was his daughter? Probably but he needed to talk to Pepper before he lost his nerve. Quietly, he opened the door to her office and saw that was wasn’t on the phone. “For you,” he said, handing her the coffee he made; no sugar, a dash of oak milk, and either caramel or French vanilla syrup. She took the coffee and eyes him cautiously.

“What did you do?” Pepper asked. Tony gasped, sitting in the chair in front of her desk.

“Why do you think I did anything wrong?” He asked, crossing his right leg over his left. “Why can’t I, as your husband, bring you, my beautiful hardworking wife, coffee?” The CEO stared at him, slowly taking a stop of coffee.

“Caramel,” she said. “My favorite. So, what’s wrong?” Tony sighed, picking up a spar pencil on Pepper’s desk. He twirled the writing device around his fingers.

“I ran the few tests we have and there is one match.”

“Who is it?” She asked. Oh boy. It was now or never.

“Morgan,” he glanced at his wife. To his surprise, her face remained stoic.

“Have you told Y/n yet?” Tony wasn’t expecting that question or this reaction. He had half the mind to wear his Iron Man suit for protection.

“No, you're the only person I’ve told,” he leaned forward. “How are you not freaking out about this? I’m freaking out.” Pepper sighed, closing her laptop. She rested her elbows on top of her desk and folded her hands.

“I figured it was a possibility, especially with what Vision said.” Right. The android said there was a 1% chance for a parent to be matched and 50% for siblings. Of course, Morgan was more likely to be a match.

“What do we do?” Tony asked and stood up. “If we don’t let Morgan help her-” his voice trailed off.

“Then she’ll die,” she finished his sentence. “But are we going to subject our daughter to an intense procedure? I read about it, it can be incredibly painful.” Tony read about it too. It is why he prayed to whatever deity that would listen that he would be a match. Subjecting his youngest to that wasn’t ideal. But you were fighting cancer. “And you did say her medical team does have a plan B.”

“But it’s not a guarantee it will work,” he said, leaning the palms of his hands against her wooden desk. “So, what do we do?” He asked again.

“We talk with Y/n,” she answered, placing her hands on top of his. “Ultimately it’s her choice.” Your choice. Your choice and your life hung in the balance.

_

Taglist: @likemick, @averagetmblrusser, @@wandaromamoff69

#second chace #tony stark x reader #tony stark x daughter #tony stark x daughter!reader #pepper potts x reader #pepper potts x daughter!reader #pepper potts x tony stark #morgan stark x sister!reader #wanda maximoff x reader #yelena belova x reader #yelena belova x you #yelena belova x y/n

[alltoolewis]

Core Memories- Mason Mount 🤍

As a Disney girl, I had this wild idea to do a series based on inside out where I do 5 different core memories that are based on the 5 emotions- Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear & Disgust. Hope you all enjoy them & please let me know who you would like one for next 🤍

Also ‘joy’ might be one of my favourites that I have written in awhile! It’s literally my dream!!!

Summary- The 5 emotions of your and Mason's relationship... (disclaimer these don’t run in order of events..)

SADNESS

“Honey I’m home..” Mason sang through your shared house, expecting you to run in his open arms like you normally did. But as his arms were left empty and not a sound could be heard he knew something was wrong.

“(Y/n)” he called, dropping his stuff instantly as he entered the living room to find you. His heart stopped as you weren’t were you normally were, your mug wasn’t on the coffee table and your laptop was closed shut something that was barely seen in all your years of dating “baby? Where are you?”

Running up the stairs, his heart shattered as he entered your bedroom finding you curled up on the bed, eyes red and puffy as silent sobs escaped your mouth “omg darling what’s happened?” Making his way to the other side of the bed, he wrapped his arms around your waist pulling you into a comforting spoon. A muffled response came from your lips as he drew patterns down your arms in hopes to calm your overwhelmed body down “what was that baby?”

“They let me go…” you whispered, voice cracking as you turned around his arms. Your wet eyes being met with his concerned ones as you broke down completely “they actually did it… they let me go..”

Mason pulled you closer to his chest, as your tears soaked his training top. It was speculated for months now that your dream job you had bagged just under a year ago was having a shuffle round & the newer employers would be the most vulnerable. For the last 2 months you had worked your arse off to keep the position, doing every extra shift you could, working over time every night.. even sacrificing your nights off with Mason to do it. But your efforts weren’t good enough…

“Shhh.. shhhh it’s okay…” Mason hushed you, rubbing your back up and down as your cries and heavy breathing could only be heard “your going to be okay baby…”

“I worked so hard mase…” you mumbled into his chest “I put everything into that job and they sacked me… I failed them… I failed you… I’m so stupid!”

“Hey, stop that… you didn’t fail anyone especially me!” he whispered, his own tears threatening to escape as he watched you fall apart for the first time in front of him “you are the most talented, hardworking, driven woman I have ever met! You deserve the world baby girl! A job that will appreciate you for who you are & respect you for everything you do for them! That shit place didn’t deserve you… I love you so much okay, so fucking much… your going to be okay”

Feeling a tear drop on your temple, you looked up to find a crying Mason causing your heart to break even more “why are you crying?” You mumbled, not trusting your voice to speak loudly as the tears continued to fall down your boyfriends cheek “I just hate seeing you this way sweetheart… putting your self down because they didn’t treat you right. It’s not fair… you don’t deserve this”

Wrapping your leg round his waist, you moved to straddle him, allowing your head to fall in the crook of his neck as he continued to massage your back “I don’t know what I’m going to do Mason… I need to work, I can’t be 22 and unemployed my family will be so disappointed in me once they find out..”

Moving your chin to look at him, he placed his lips to yours, your tears mixing together as you kissed the sadness in your bodies away “listen to me…” he mumbled, pulling away from you as he kept his head to yours “you are not an embarrassment okay? You’ll never be one! & I don’t worry about a job.. we’ll find you one that’ll treat you fair, but until then your going to rest and let your body relax, your overworked darling… but there is a positive in this your not thinking of…”

“Is there?” You mumbled

“Yes..” he smiled, pecking your nose “until you find one we get to spend more time together… no overtime or extra shifts, just me and you!”

For the first time that night, your lips pulled up into a grin “I love you so much Mason… I don’t know what I’d ever do without you…”

“You’ll never find out baby..” he whispered “because unlike your shit job I’m not going anywhere… I’m never letting you go..” What started out as one of the worst days of your life, turned into one of the most learning…

The day you figured out your worth and value all in the arms of the love of your life… a learning you’d never forget!

FEAR

"How longs left?..." You muttered nervously to Jaz, not having the nerve to look at the huge screen in front of you displaying the time as your eyes remained fixated on your team in front of you. "About 5 minutes" She replied, throwing her arm around your shoulder. Your eyes kept flicking between the field of different colors of blue and the bench where your boyfriend sat anxiously bouncing his knee. The ball continued to be passed around the pitch for what felt like the longest 5 minutes of your life, most of which was spent with your hands covering your face or your head nuzzled in Lewis's neck. Your head was spinning so much you didn't even realize the full-time whistle had been blown until you saw the crowd of royal blue erupts and your feet being swept off the ground as his brother bounced up and down with you. Screams of 'he's done it' and 'Let's fucking go!' filled the section but your mouth remained closed... letting the moment sink in that your boyfriend, your best friend, the love of your life has just achieved something that you had both dreamed of since you were little kids. Having plenty of pillow talks of over the last couple of years about your dreams and aspirations... and now one of his has come true & you couldn't of been prouder!

"Are you coming down?" Debbie smiled, her own eyes teary as she gathered her stuff ready to head down to see her little boy, but you shook your head "I think I'll stay up here.." You mumbled, anxiety bubbling you as you thought about standing in the middle of the pitch in front of thousands of fans and cameras. Even after years of dating Mase, you still hadn't gotten used to it all, something about being under the spotlight always freaked you out, some people still thought he was single due to the lack of your appearance in public. Mason never pushed you to be so tho, and although he wished you would join him for seasonal celebrations or to show you off in public he knew you weren't comfortable. "You sure?" Lewis sighed, wrapping his arm around you "I think he would love to have you down there with him & besides nothing going to happen love, we will all be there for you."

Taking one last look down to the pitch, finding Mason dancing and messing around with Chilly and Reece. But with the insecurity still being there you shook your head "I'm sure" You smiled "I'll stay in the VIP box until it cools down a little, then I might come down... can you let Mase know that I am proud of him tho? & give him a kiss from me!"

"Of course, we can! but maybe not the kiss!" Lewis chuckled, as Debbie hit his chest "We will see you in a bit sweetheart!" Debbie beamed, waving you goodbye as you both went in different directions, them heading down while you went to hide in the booths.

The second he saw his family he knew something was missing "Where's (y/n)?" Mason asked as he finished hugging his mum, still looking over her shoulder in hopes to find you stood there. "Oh, she's up there..." Lewis sighed, pointing over to the VIP booth, leaning down to whisper into his brother's ear "She was feeling a bit anxious mate, so she said she's going to wait for it all to cool down & then she might pop down" Mason's heart sunk at his brother's words, not liking the idea of you being all alone there when your feeling uncomfortable "She is okay tho right?" Mason asked voice full of worry. "Bro she is fine, I promise I wouldn't of left her if she wasn't" He felt a little better after hearing that but still he didn't feel right.

"She wanted you to know that she is so proud of you!" His mother smiled, as his heart burst. "She also wanted us to give you a kiss but I ain't doing that" Lewis joked, causing Mason to throw his head back laughing.

The next 15 minutes were spent taking pictures and chatting to the other family members, and although he tried to keep preoccupied and not be distracted by you not being there, he couldn't handle it any longer. "Mase!" Lewis called as he spotted him walking away "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to be with my girl!" Mason smiled, looking up to the almost empty box, only having you in it but it was about to gain one more person as he sprinted down the tunnel.

While that was going on, you watched the celebrations with nothing but tears in your eyes. A mixture of pride and disappointment. Although you were ecstatic for the team, a part of you couldn't help but feel angry and disappointed, for letting your anxiety and insecurity yet again ruin it for not only you but Mason. Watching all the other players being congratulated by their partners, kissing and hugging as the confetti falls down on them, broke your heart. Despite Mase telling you many times that it didn't matter & that your celebrations in private means much more to him, you knew he was lying! He wanted that moment just as much as you did... but you just wasn't ready for it.

Sighing you turned away from the pitch view window, not being able to handle it any longer. Sitting down at the table perched in the middle of the room, you sighed allowing the tears to fall freely down your face. You were so caught up in your own pity party, that you didn't realize your boyfriend leaning against the wall as he watched you with a broken heart.

"I hope those are happy tears..." He chuckled half-heartedly making your head shoot up in shock "Cause if not I always suspected that you are a city fan!"

Giggling you shook your head, meeting him halfway as you threw yourself in his arms "What are you doing up here Mase?" You sighed, looking up to him as he wiped away your falling tears "It didn't feel right celebrating down there without my favorite girl" He smiled "So if she isn't ready to come down there to me... I'll go up to her!"

Your heart melted at his kind gesture as you gave him a sympathetic smile, all of a sudden feeling guilty for making him miss out on celebrating with his team "I'm so sorry Mase.." You sighed, leaning further into his touch as you placed your head on his chest "I've ruined it for you again... you should be down there with your team & your family, the people who have helped you on this journey every step of the way. Not your over-anxious girlfriend who can't even make it down on a field without breaking down-"

Cutting your words short', Mason places his lips to yours taking any remaining stress and anxiety from your body as he felt you relax against his touch. His hands held you close as he broke away slightly, whispering between the small gap of your lips "If I remember correctly sweetheart... you were the one who has been with me every step of the way..." You hated to admit it but he was correct, throughout the whole season you were by his side. Celebrating every win, consoling him after every loss. There wasn't a single match that you didn't watch or support him in

"But-"

"No 'buts' baby..." Mason chuckled as he took off the medal around his neck, instead letting it fall around yours. Picking up the metal, he placed it on his lips "We have done this, together..." Meeting him in the middle with tears in your eyes, you place your lips on the other side "Together..."

Smiling at your words, Mason grabbed two champagne flutes off the table, filling them both up before handing you one "To Chelsea, To our Love, To each other... I love you (y/n) more than any celebration... cheers to us!"

"I love you too Mase... more than anything in the world, cheers"

Wrapping his arms around your waist, You and mason continued to watch the rest of the celebrations continue from the comfort of the private box. It was that moment where it really sunk in what he had achieved, and he didn't want to celebrate it any other way! The next 30 minutes were spent the same, small chit-chat about what had just happened, quick kisses, and confessions of love as the champagne made its way through your bloodstream. and although it started badly for you & things seemed uncertain... at the end of the night things became pretty memorable...

a core memory for sure!

DISGUST

“Please tell me you didn’t just put tomato sauce on that egg” you mumbled, covering your eyes in despair and utter disgust. Mason looked at you with a confused look, placing the bottle down slowly “no…” he replied, voice not sounding that convincing at all!

Peeking through the cracks of your fingers, you groaned as you noticed the red splodge of sauce on his plate “Mase! That’s gross, how can you even eat that…”

“Have you ever tried it?” He smirked, holding some of the dipped egg in near distance of you. “No I haven’t…” you groaned, taking one look at the fork in front as you gagged “& I ain’t going to so please get that away from me!”

“Your so dramatic..” Mason laughed, placing it in his mouth instead as you rolled your eyes “see delicious, your missing out baby..” he hummed, before continuing to shovel the vile food in his mouth.

“I’m not missing out on anything darling” you replied, gathering your plate of barely untouched food. Furrowing his eyebrows, Mason gave you a puzzling look “Where are you going?”

“Away from you & that disgusting concoction on your plate..” you smiled, patting him on the shoulder before going into the kitchen, getting comfy on one of the barstools set up on the counter.

Mason couldn’t help but laugh at how overdramatic you were being. Complementing to go with you or not, he decided that it was best to leave you be, just in case his food did gross you out to much. Once he was finished, he skipped to the kitchen with his empty plate still finding you perched up on the barstool with your phone in your hand.

Tiptoeing behind you, he placed his arms around your waist causing you to flinch a little as he whispered in your ear “did you miss me darling?”

Spinning around on the seat, you gave him a glare “I missed you… not your dinner tho!” Chuckling he wrapped his arms tighter around you, leaning down to give you a warming kiss one that you both craved ever since you had began your journey together…

But it didn’t last as long as it normally did as another gag fell from your lips.

“What’s wrong now!?!” Mason laughed as you pulled away from his touch, running to the sink to rinse your mouth “I can taste it!” You mumbled gargling as much water as your mouth could hold.

Mason watched you in amusement “your crazy..” he laughed shaking his head as you spat the water out, lifting your hand up to flip him off.

Although the experience was different for the two of you, you knew that neither of you would forget this moment for a long time… maybe forever!

ANGER

7pm… it was now 7pm & there was still no sign of Mason coming through the door. Sighing for the tenth time that hour, you reached for your phone hoping there was some sign that he had remembered the important dinner you had both planned for months. But as you were met with a empty notification tab you knew that he’d forgotten.

You wanted to remain hopeful, that he was planning some big grand gesture to celebrate your 3 years of love so. So you stayed put on landing stairs, the royal blue dress you had specifically picked for this occasion hugging your body & your mascara hanging on your eyelashes like a thread as tears began to threaten your eyes.

Your phone finally vibrated against your knee 40 minutes later, but your heart didn’t skip like it normally did when you saw his name, instead it deflated as you answered it instantly hearing the background noise of the busy club he clearly went to instead.

“Hi baby..” He spoke through the loud crowd, smile adamant in his voice.

“What do you want Mason?” You snapped, getting up from the stairs not even bothering to stop the tears anymore. He knew something was wrong as you spoke his full name. You never called him Mason unless there was something wrong!

Shuffling through the crowd he made his way outside “hey…hey. What’s happened darling?” He cluelessly replied not having any clue for sharpness.

“What happened!” You hissed, making your way up the stairs to get out of your outfit “Mason are you fucking serious right now!”

“(Y/N)… I don’t know what your talking abou-“

“YOU FUCKING FORGOT MASON!” You yelled, not even caring any more as your emotions sprung out of you. Silence filled the other side of the phone as Mason tried his best to figure out what exactly he had missed.

“See you don’t even know…” you snapped, ready to hang up the phone before he spoke up finally putting all the pieces together “(y/n), I’m so sorry I didn’t mean to okay… I’ve been busy with work and the start of the season & I know it’s not a excuse-“

“No mase it’s not!” You scoffed.

“Please just listen to me baby..” he pleaded wanting you to hear it out “I will come back now okay and we’ll spend the rest of the night together… I’ll make it up to you I promise”

“3 years mase..” you sighed, not having the energy to shout anymore “it was our 3 year anniversary… I’ve been waiting for you on our landing for 4 hours while you’ve been out parting with your ‘lads’ for the tenth time this week…” masons heart burst as he heard you pause, a muffled sob echoing through the speaker as you cried “I wanted tonight to be our night… to celebrate us & everything we’ve been through. But you had to chose them once again didn’t you… like you always do”

Your dig punched him right in the heart as he began to feel frustrated “I haven’t chose them over you!” He groaned “I’ve never chose them over you so stop being so needy!”

“Your unbelievable!” You cried, body freezing as his words sunk under your skin leaving a permanent mark “if you don’t chose them where are you now eh? Where are you now on one of the most important dates in our relationship?!?”

“(Y/n)…”

“Don’t (y/n) me Mason!” You growled causing goosbumps to rise on his skin at the unfamiliar tone “if I’m so needy and demanding how about you just call it quits! End it now so you can have all the freedom you want!”

“Please stop it … I love you! I didn’t mean it that way-“

“Don’t bother coming home!” You interrupted, voice shaking “I’m going to bed…”

“Please wait..” Mason pleaded, wanting to make it up with you but it was too late!

“Happy anniversary mase…” you sighed “have a nice night out with the lads… the sofa will be ready for you when you get home!” & with that you hung up, throwing your phone to the side as you broke down on the bedroom floor… this wasn’t the way you’d expected tonight to go.

You didn’t know how it was going to go after this, if you’d kiss and make up or leave it rotting for days until it couldn’t be fixed… but either way it was safe to say that neither of you would be forgetting it any time soon!

JOY

“Are you going to eat all that?” You giggled as Mason piled his plate up with all the croissants and pain au chocolat’s he could fit on his plate. “It’s not everyday we’re in Paris baby…” he laughed, giving you a playful stare “and anyway TT told me to enjoy myself and to eat as many pastries as I want so I’m making the most of it!”

Giggling, you shook your head, grabbing one of the many croissants on his plate giving it a nibble “well if the boss said, who am I to stop you!”

Glancing out the window your heart stopped slightly at the surroundings around you. You still couldn’t believe that you were in Paris, sat in front of the love of your life eating pastries and sipping red wine in the most famous city of love. When Mason told you that you were spending your 5 year anniversary here you didn’t believe him… one because of it being so last minute and two because it was in the middle of the season & Tom might not of given him the time off… but lucky for you the big boss hisself was more than happy to allow Mason to go a way for a couple of days, making him promise however that’ll hell put 100% effort into all games and trainings for the rest of the season!

“So what should we do tonight?” You smiled, sipping your red wine as Mason flashed you one of his signature smirks “leave that with me baby girl… I’ve got something up my sleeve for you tonight…” your eyes grew wide, as your mind instantly went to the dirtier side of his comment causing him to kick you gently under the table “you naughty girl! I meant I’m taking you out to dinner… why are you always thinking of sex am I piece of meat to you..” he playfully teased, causing you to giggle “of course not! But after last night how am I not supposed to think of the most vulgar… you were rough!”

Getting up from the table, Mason removed your plates, giving you a cheeky kiss before taking them to the other side of the room. “Don’t act like you didn’t enjoy it” he smirked “I think the whole floor now knows my name!”

“Oh shush..” you chuckled, walking over to him to wrap your arms around his waist “what should I wear tonight anyway… you can’t just throw a surprise date at me and not tell me what to wear..”

Pulling away from your hug, Mason made his way over to his case pulling out a Givenchy gift bag and Louboutin heels making your eyes go wide. Just as you were about to comment Mason cut you off with a smile “before you start commenting on the price… I wanted to spoil you okay? Make you feel as special as you make me…”

Handing you the bag first, your hands trembled as you pulled out the most gorgeous royal blue split dress you had ever seen instantly making your eyes tear up “oh my god mase…”

“Wait till you see the shoes…” he smirked handing you the small ruffle bag containing a stunning pair of glittery red bottom heels.

“These must of cost you so much mase, I don’t deserve-“ putting his finger across your lips to shut you up, Mason whispered “you deserve the world… & I want to be the one to give it you…”

“Mase..” you sighed, feeling the tears fill up your eyes, causing Mason to chuckle instantly wiping away the fallen tear “don’t cry baby, your going to set me off and the day has barely started… now go put on the stunning dress, our reservations is in 2 hours”

Not waiting another minute to try it on you slipped off to the bathroom, feeling like a Disney princess as you slipped the perfect gown on. Once all your makeup was set and your hair was placed in a tidy high top pony tail you left the side room to find a suited and booted Mason looking as handsome as ever.

His eyes went wide as he took in your frame… you always looked beautiful to him, there wasn’t a day that you didn’t. But right now, you looked like perfection… there’s was nothing on this planet, or even the universe that could compare to you in this moment…

“Wow..” he sighed, allowing a tear to fall down his cheek “you look-… wow!”

Giggling, you pulled him closer to you “don’t cry baby… the nights barely started yet” you teased repeating the words he spoke to you earlier. Giving his lips a gentle peck, you smiled “but thank you handsome… you look unreal too!”

Taking your hand in his, he kissed it softly “thank you my darling… how about we get going yeah? So i can show the whole of Paris how stunning my girlfriend is…”

“Let’s go…”

———-

The rest of the evening was spent with nothing but tipsy kisses and glasses of wine, as you and mase celebrated your love in the only way that was fitting for you both! After the meal and Delicious desert, Mason insisted on you both taking a walk to the Eiffel Tower & who were you to miss out on the opportunity to see the landmark on the most special day of your life!

“Wow…” you breathed out as you took in the scene in front of you “it’s beautiful…”

“I know..” Mason sighed. As you turned to look at him you discovered he wasn’t looking at the glistening tower in front of you… he was looking at you.

“I love you so much…” he mumbled as he wrapped his around you from behind “more than anything in the world!”

“I love you too mase…” you whispered not wanting to ruin the moment “thank you for the best night of my life”

“It’s not over yet baby..” he smiled, kissing your neck as he grabbed your head “let’s head back to the hotel, it’s getting a bit cold for you to stand out here..”

Nodding your head, you squeezed his hand indicating him that you were good to go back. But as you began walking home, you noticed his behaviour shift, his hands were shaking like crazy and his mind looked like it was constantly on the run. But Every time you tried to figure out what was going on, he would politely dismiss you stating he was just cold.

Once you got back to the room, Mason pulled out the card key swiping it in the lock before taking a step back causing you to raise your brow in confusion “ladies first…” he smirked, causing you to giggle as you pulled open the door finding it filled with complete darkness.

“Mase..” you questioned, as he flipped on the light, closing the door behind you both as you took in the sight in front of you…

Rose petals covered the floor and bed, as balloons lifted in the ceiling each attached to a photograph of you both through the years… your hands trembled as they traced each one, eyes tearing up at the memories around you. “Mason..” you whispered, turning back round to face where he was still stood at near the door “how did you do th-“

Your body froze as you released he was no longer stood, instead kneeled on one knee! “Oh my god Mason..” you breathed, covering your mouth as tears leaked from both of your eyes..

“My (y/n)..” Mason started, a tear running down his cheek “I can’t imagine my life without you, I don’t want to even think of it. You are my light, my world, my soulmate… you make me the happiest man in the world by supporting me and showing me nothing but love & I want nothing more to have that for the rest of my life… so (y:n), my darling will you do me the honour in marrying me?”

Without thinking you lept in his arms, causing you both to topple over with tears and giggles surrounding you! “Yes..” you whispered, kissing his lips repeatedly “I’ll marry you…”

What began as the most memorable morning ended with it being the most memorable day! With a little help from the hotel staff, Tom & of course the love of your life!!!

#mason mount x reader #chelsea blurb #chelsea #mason mount blurbs #mason mount imagines #mason mount one shot #Mason mount #Mason mount blurb #Mason mount imagine

[notidkseraphine]

Mj..

Summary: When peter finally asks you out on a date, you're over the moon, heading to a new coffee shop, you're having a great time until Peter slips up.

Peter Parker x fem!reader

Warnings: BADLY written angst.

based off a convo we had in character.ai 🥳 Its kind of set up like reader is looking back at the day, its in past tense mostly

The morning filled you with excitement. It was a huge day! A date with Peter! You had to get ready to impress, so I put on a brand-new outfit, some fresh lipgloss, and my favorite perfume. My mind was racing with all the possibilities for the day ahead. What would happen? Who knows! But I'm already excited for everything! I'd been crushing on Peter for years, and we were finally getting together, I wouldnt go as far as love, yet. But I had felt very strongly for him.

She had never made a move at first as Peter had been with MJ, but they had broken up about 5 months ago, you had been on a few dates already, you felt bad as they were very serious, but Peter assured you he didnt love her anymore. and when Peter first came up to me, asking if I wanted to grab some coffee sometime together, ALONE! I had been over the moon, drifting home that day as if I was stuck in a dream. That was 2 months ago, I was on my way to our 4th ever date.

I break out of my day dream and checked the phone "Shit.." I quickly put some shoes on, The agreed upon time inching closer, and ran out the door. Speeding down the streets of New York, apologising to everyone I was in the way of, I made it. Spotting Peter inside, You waved.

Rushing in, I apologised quickly. "I'm so sorry, I lost track of time" I sit down, sending Peter an apologetic face, He says nothing at first, gazing at you, seemingly in awe. "You look.." He clears his throat. "You look great." He trails off. I grin "Thank you Pete, You look amazing! Is that shirt new?" The conversation flows, Talking about new comics, Star wars, lego sets, The new Jedi Survivor..

We were having a great date. We were laughing, sharing stories, and getting to know each other better. The atmosphere was warm and friendly, with no signs of tension or conflict. Everything was going perfectly so far, and we were enjoying every moment together. I had moved my chair closer to his, resting my hand on his hand sometime as we were talking.

Peter laughs at a joke I make. "I love you MJ" I pause, Peter immediately realises his mistake, his face falling and immediately stuttering, trying to come up with an explanation.

"Mj?" I ask, frowning, He still loves her? "You still love her?" Peter just opens and closes his mouth, not being able to come up with anything. I came to the realisation.

"Am I.. just a rebound?" I ask, feeling upset, standing up and getting ready to leave. Peter grabbed onto my hand. "No.. no. Please dont.." He pleads. "Am I?" I ask again.

Peter dipped his head and muttered "Yes. At fir-" I cut him off. "I probably wouldve been okay with it, helping you get over her, but not if you string me along! And leave me in the dark about it!" I bring my hand out of his, He whimpered slightly, upset and dejected, seeing my eyes glaring into his.

I shaked my head, trying to rid the tears trying to escape my eyes. "Don't call me. I can't trust you." I spat. And left the shop, leaving Peter there, his head hanging low, a few tears of his own escaping.

#peter parker #peter parker x reader #peter parker x fem #mcu peter parker #angst #this sucks ass #i threw this together in 10 mins #dont expect much #doing this to escape my writers block #so i can continue one i've been working on #love ya #tom holland x reader #tom holland #spiderman #spiderman x reader #spiderman x y/n #x reader #poorly written angst

[yoonieper]

Daydream | KNJ

One man’s daydreaming is another man’s day.

✿ Pairing: Namjoon x Reader

✿ Genre: smut, angst, a tiny bit of fluff, pretty much pwp 

✿ Rated: M for More 

✿ Warnings: A little spice over the phone, handjob, oral (f. receiving), little bit of spanking, this is a tad bit emotional

✿ Word Count: 5.6k 

✿ Summary: It’s late and he has work to do, but for some reason he can only think about you. He misses you so much and after so long, maybe it’s time to pay you a visit?

✿ Author’s Note: Fun fact, this is based off a dream I had a while ago. The part that mattered only lasted for like a second and the rest of the dream was nonsense but ayy I got a fic out of it~ This was supposed to be posted a year ago, I’m so behind omg 🤡… In reconciliation, I will let y’all know that there mayyyy be a part 2, but not in the way you expect so keep an eye out :3

No reposting, modifying. Translating is not allowed unless given explicit permission. Thank you so much :D

Namjoon stared at the screen like he had been all day, his frustration had caused a pounding headache that only seemed to get worse as the day went on. Cubase remained untouched, nothing, absolutely nothing had come out of this work day. He’d been at this for hours, hoping and waiting for inspiration to strike. With approaching deadlines, the pressure was eating away at him to try and get everything done. 

For weeks he’s been working hard on songs for the upcoming album the group was going to be putting out in a few months. Today was the day he was supposed to start taking it easy and let his own creativity flow to its heart’s content and focus on working on the playlist that consisted of new songs for his new upcoming solo album. He had been looking forward to this day for a while, but it’s just been crickets. He hadn’t done anything productive today. 

The cause… well, it’s sad, but he had a feeling of what it might be. 

Namjoon tried to tell himself he was just burnt out from working so hard. It’s true, he had been overworking himself for the past few days, it could have easily sucked out all the inspiration he had beforehand. He knew that wasn’t it though. All day, now that he wasn’t so sucked into work, his mind was focused on something he tried to pretend hadn’t been eating away at him for the last month. 

You. 

It’s been so long since he’d seen you last. Busy schedules got in the way, and he’s embarrassed and honestly a little ashamed in the fact that he couldn’t make time to text you. He missed you so much, but he shouldn’t. It’s what put the distance between you two in the first place. Things were getting complicated and they never were supposed to. 

But he just missed you so much. 

Namjoon grabbed his phone off his desk and scrolled through his messages till he found your name. His heart skipped a beat. 

Joonie [12:42 AM]: Hey 

Y/N [12:44 AM]: ???

Y/N [12:45 AM]: So you’re finally texting me again 😏

Joonie [12:45 AM]: :( Don’t be like that 

Y/N [12:46 AM]: Hehe I’m just playing, I figured you’d be busy 

Joonie [12:46 AM]: Yeah I’m sorry, works been a lot 

Y/N [12:46 AM]: I figured 

Joonie [12:47 AM]: So… how’s your day been?

Y/N [12:47 AM]: Joon I thought we were past small talk 😩

Joonie [12:47 AM]: It’s a bit awkward, just feels like forever since we’ve talked last

Y/N [12:48 AM]: It’s been like a month hasn’t it? 

Namjoon stared at the screen in disbelief. Has it really been that long? A quick scroll up told him it was in fact true. 

Joonie [12:49 AM]: I’m sorry ㅠㅠㅠ

Y/N [12:49 AM]: It’s alright, I just miss you :(

The words shouldn’t make his heart jump. This goes against everything you both have established, then again, you’ve been crossing the boundaries for a while. 

Joonie [12:50 AM]: I miss you too

Y/N [12:50]: :D

Namjoon suddenly had the urge to scream. You were adorable. 

Joonie [12:51 AM]: :)

Y/N [12:52 AM]: Soooo Kim Namjoon, what’s the occasion this time?

Y/N [12:53 AM]: We both know you never text me unless you want something ;) 

Joonie [12:54 AM]: …

Joonie [12:55 AM]: Can I call you? 

Y/N [12:55 AM]: I’m waiting 👀

Namjoon stared hard as his thumb hovered over the call button. He knew the door he was opening up, and wondered if this was the right choice. Maybe he needed more time? 

His body acted on its own and without thinking about it anymore, he clicked the button. 

It rang for a second before you picked it up, he couldn’t help but smile when your cheery tone greeted him with a hello. 

“I need you.” The words escaped his lips before he had much time to think it over. 

“Someone’s eager,” you joked. 

“Sorry, I just… I’ve been stressed lately with work. Nothing went as planned today, I was supposed to get a lot done, but I’m feeling burnt out. I need you. I just.. need you.” He ranted, almost pleading. The last words carried a lot of sentiment that was unknown to you both. 

Joon could practically feel your smile through the phone. 

“And what exactly do you want me to do? It’s been awhile Joon, talk to me~” 

He quickly looked behind him, making sure his door was closed and locked. When he was assured it was, he scooted his chair up so he was leaning against his desk, lowering the chances of anyone hearing him, even if the other measures failed. 

“Make me feel good like you always do. Please baby, you always make everything better and I miss you so much…” He whispered into the phone. 

“Mmmm it really has been awhile~” 

“So long... I’ve been thinking about you a lot these days.” 

“Me too. Everytime I’m alone, it’s late at night and I can’t stop thinking about you and how good you make me feel Joon and I—“ 

“Fuck wait, stop!” Namjoon hurried. “I—I’m not even on the road yet, I’m still in my studio and you know how long it takes for me to get there.” His breathing was heavy as he gripped hard on the arm of his desk chair. 

“Well hurry then Joon before I start without you~” Namjoon threw his head back at your words. 

“Baby… wait, tell me what you’re wearing.” They say curiosity kills the cat. 

He heard you chuckle slightly. “That hoodie you always keep leaving over here.” Fuck.

“And?” He rushed. 

“Did I say and…” And boy did curiosity kill him. Namjoon just sighed, already feeling the blood beginning to rush to a certain place. He looked down at his lap, getting the urge to pull his pants down as he listened to your voice. 

“Y/n I want you so bad…” 

“How do you want me when you get here?”

“Don’t do anything, just wait for me. Can't wait to make you feel so good baby, missed your body so much.” 

“And I can’t wait to make you feel good. I’ll make sure you forget the stress of your job. Get ready Kim Namjoon.” The possibilities had his mind racing and he gripped the phone hard as he bucked into nothing. 

“I’m going, I'm going— I can’t do this anymore. I'm sorry.” He was already getting up and heading for his coat. 

“I’ll text you when I’m downstairs, please don’t start without me.” His affirmation was needed as he remembered that one time he walked into your apartment, to see you having a blast with that hitachi wand you kept in your bottom drawer. 

You giggled before you said your goodbyes. 

It was in record time that he made it to the garage, with his driver pulling up in just a few minutes. The drive to your place was about 30 minutes from the Bighit building, as traffic always seemed to be bad when he came. 

One thing he loved about coming over was the fact that the drive always gave him some time to think, and he had much on his mind. 

Namjoon has dug himself in a hole he’s not sure he can come back from. Your relationship was never meant to be as complicated as it quickly became. 

Namjoon met you a few years ago. At the time you worked as a waitress and after a successful concert, as they always do, the boys and some staff members went out to eat at the restaurant you worked at. You had been their waitress and even though the night was a blur (too much to drink), he had practically spent the whole night ogling you. He remembers distinctly the way he felt every time you came over to their table and how his eyes would follow you even after you left. 

But it was not this meeting that started the whole arrangement that’s been going on for years. No, it was the next time you met. 

Bighit had been holding a company party and the same restaurant they went to that day catered the event. You were still a waitress at the time, so you were one of the staff members that worked that night. This time, and with a little (emphasis on the little) less alcohol in his system, he managed to talk to you that night. He pulled you aside when your shift was getting close to ending and you guys basically spent the whole event talking and getting to know each other. Well… that would be a little bit of a lie. 

The event had been close to being over and well, after a few more rounds, somehow you both ended up in one of the practice rooms practically eating each other’s faces. Things got pretty intense, Joon being this close to taking you right there in that practice room, but the sound of people beginning to leave scared you both, and that’s how he ended up in your apartment, and how this whole thing started. 

It was supposed to just be sex. Joon made it clear from the beginning how work was just way too busy for him to consider a relationship, and you seemed fine with keeping the whole thing pretty casual. You even established rules and boundaries you both should not cross over. 

Well flash forward a few years and practically everything you said not to do has been done. The boundaries were in this unspoken gray zone that you both never just seemed to talk about. 

That’s where the problem starts. 

The last time Namjoon went over to your place, certain words that he knew would change the dynamic of your relationship forever just seemed to be on the tip of his tongue all night. Luckily he never said anything, but it made him realize how close you two have gotten. Really, if it wasn’t for the periods you sometimes wouldn’t speak to each other, you would really look like a couple in a normal relationship. He’s never taken you out on a date, but the amount of times Joon would come over to just hang out, or how he stopped caring about falling asleep at your place, it was not surprising that feelings eventually arose. 

It was just meant to be sex. He was quick to accept the fact that you two became friends, just with a few benefits, but the fact that he knew deep in his heart that he wanted to be more than that, well…

If things were different, if he wasn’t RM from BTS, he wouldn’t have any doubts asking you out, or being more. But the title and responsibilities are tied to his name in real life. He’s busy, and the worry of being an awful boyfriend because of his job, just seemed too much of a possibility for him to even think about putting you through that. It wouldn’t be fair. 

In all honesty he had been avoiding you at first before he legitimately got too busy, a problem he knew he had to fix still raged in his mind. 

He needed to end this. He’s gotten way too attached to you and for your sake and his, it would be better if he just ended it here. It was the right thing to do, but that’s what kept him from confronting the issue. He honestly couldn’t imagine not having you in his life anymore. It’s selfish and he knows, but he needs you. 

Namjoon’s just been wondering how he’s going to break it to you or himself. 

This whole thing that’s happening tonight was unfair and he knows it. He shouldn’t be speaking to you until he’s found the right words to say to end the beautiful relationship he’s built with you. It’s hard, and in a time of immense stress and dismay, he always goes to you for comfort. 

Maybe by the next time you speak he can finally say the words he needs to. But not tonight. Tonight he just wanted to see you. 

The ride seemingly sped by but at the same time felt like it took all too long. It still surprised him when his driver stopped in front of your apartment building. 

Namjoon gave a friendly smile to the driver. He was really the only one to know where he would sneak off to at nights occasionally. Even the guys who he calls his brothers don’t know about your little affair. A silent promise was made each time he would get out of the car to go to your place. He would never tell a soul what happened tonight. 

Your apartment building was familiar, it felt like a second home. The familiar rock in front of your building held a special memory as he remembered tripping over it the first time he was here. In a haste to get inside and feel you, in his tipsy state he nearly face planted onto the cement floor when his eyes had been fixated on you, not realizing he was walking straight into the rock. 

A neighbor who lived on the first floor, their familiar door near the elevator would always be playing loud music whenever he would visit, tunes he could easily recognize belonged to his group. 

Even the elevator was enough to get his heart to ache as he remembered the time you came in together and you joked about the ominous background music as you rode up together and how you got stuck inside for a good 20 minutes. He didn’t see it at the time, but today it seemed all too fitting considering how wrong it was for him to come here today. 

He hurried inside, the adrenaline coursing through his veins as he rode the elevator and made it to your front door. 

Finally. 

A brisk knock was all it took before you were pulling open the door, revealing exactly how you described. You were wearing that dark blue hoodie he keeps forgetting to take home, your hair was down, and your legs were bare, getting Namjoon more excited than he’d like to admit. 

You were so beautiful, so effortlessly beautiful. 

“You’re finally here!” You exclaimed and pulled him into a hug, basking in his familiar sweet scent. He hugged you back happily, resting his head on top of yours. He hugged you tighter. 

Your embrace felt like home. 

“Missed you so much.” He whispered. 

The sentiment was nice, but he quickly remembered the fact he was supposed to be pulling away from all of this. It hurt so much. All he wanted to do was give you all the kisses in the world and tell you the words he held back from saying last time. 

Namjoon let his hands travel down under your (his) hoodie to distract his aching heart, grabbing a handful of your ass. He groaned realizing what you told him earlier was true. You weren’t wearing anything underneath.  

“You weren’t lying…” he chuckled weakly, gently massaging your ass. 

“Why would I lie?” You moaned, wrapping your arms around his neck. 

“I dunno, you wanna make me a mess so rush over here, because you know you make me so hard so quickly.” His words were filthy, but he was desperate. 

He saw your eyes widened at the sudden change in mood, but the shock was soon replaced with a sly smile as one of your hands traveled down his body. Your fingers, down his neck, collarbone, abs, all the way till they were hovering over the waistline of his sweats. 

Namjoon felt his breath hick.

“Do I now?” You continued further till you were gripping his hardening length. You smiled seeing the way his face scrunched. 

Oh boy were you gonna kick it up a notch. You just missed him so much and the way he was speaking earlier about how work had been, you wanted to make him feel better in any way you could. 

You pulled your hand out to spit in it, before you were back in his pants, slowly jerking him off. You immediately felt his grip on your ass tightened. 

“Wait—Y/n what are you—“ he couldn’t even finish before he had his hands on your hips and was burrowing himself in your neck, trying to suppress the moans. 

You gently kissed his cheek, trying to soothe him. “I guess you were right~” you whispered softly into his ear, feeling his length quickly growing in your grasp. 

You worked your hand the best you could considering the angle and the fact he was still wearing pants. “Does it feel nice?” You asked, smiling at the way how he was pretty much just fucking your hand. His hips steadily worked at pushing himself into your hand, eager at the slight bit of friction, you really weren’t doing much anymore. 

He cursed under his breath at your words. 

It was like a flash before suddenly he had pulled your hand away and pushed you back onto your dining table. You stared at him as he began walking closer, the hunger in his eyes had you squeezing your legs together. 

He got between your legs, his eyes trailing up your thighs as his hands came up to pull you closer to him. 

You were surprised but smirked, trying your best to ignore the way your heart was beating like crazy. 

“Huh, can’t even make it to the room Joonie?” You teased. 

He just chuckled. “Guess I can’t…” 

“You gonna take me right here on the table then?” You bit your lip, not even trying to hide how hot that sounded. 

“You would like that, wouldn’t you?” You didn’t miss the dark tone of his voice. You just smiled at him. 

He just stared at your face and you couldn’t help but start to get shy at the way he was looking at you. Unable to handle his gaze you turned away, but his hand pushed you right back to meet his eyes. 

You felt your cheeks start getting warm. 

“I missed you…” His voice was soft, pleading almost for you to know. He wanted you to know, wanted you to know how much he missed you. This whole situation was fucked, he shouldn’t have to feel like this. 

Namjoon pulled up your hoodie so it came up over your thighs. You stared wide eyed as he dropped to his knees and spread your legs apart, lifting them over his shoulders. He started planting kisses up along your thighs, making your whole body come alive. 

“Wait— thought I was supposed to make you feel good?” Your breathing was getting labored as he got closer to where you really wanted him. 

“You are… seeing you fall apart on my tongue will make me feel great…” He smirked and you just playfully rolled your eyes.

“I mean— I won’t stop you if that’s the case— ohhhh…” You sighed as he kissed you right on your pussy. You didn’t miss the way he smiled seeing your reaction. 

Just like you can have him a mess in a few seconds, he could do the same to you.

You gripped the table harder as his light kisses turned to his tongue circling your bud.

“Fuuuu— baby please…” You cried, and he knew what you wanted. 

“Does this feel good?” His voice was low and teasing, happy to see you already a mess for him. 

“So good, but I want more…” When you beg like that for him, no matter how much he sometimes likes to draw it out he couldn’t deny you. Not when you’ve got him this hard, begging for him to please you. 

Namjoon moved his arm so he could use his fingers to start rubbing up along through your slit. He marveled at how wet you had gotten so quickly, and it made him all too eager to finally feel you around his cock. 

You whined again, slightly annoyed by the fact he was still teasing you, but before you could say anything his fingers were buried deep between your walls, already getting to work. He curled his finger to hit that sweet spot that he knew turned you into a mess.

“So good— so good!” Your hand flew from the table to tangle in his hair as a moan fell from your lips. He threw you in for a loop as he used the deadly combination of his tongue and fingers to bring you more pleasure than any of your toys were able to. 

You missed this, you missed him. 

“Fuck, just like that…” You moaned out and that fueled him to push further. Namjoon always knew how to have you screaming within minutes and this time wasn’t an exception. 

Namjoon marveled in the little curses, your breathy moans. Knowing he could make you feel so good to make those pretty sounds for him. 

He was to miss hearing you like this. 

It all came back to him, how this was going to end soon, how it had to end soon. There was nothing he could do about it. 

What if this was going to be the last time?

A particularly loud moan from you was enough to bring him back slightly and get back in the moment. You were right here with him, at least he could savor the moment while it was still here.

He took his frustration out on you, making sure every movement of his was purposeful, that this was going to be something you would remember. He wanted to make sure you would remember him. 

“Joonie– oh my g–” And just by the sound of your voice he could tell you were getting close. 

He paid close attention to your clit, drawing hurried figure eights around the bud with his tongue. With how long it had been since you saw each other it was enough to finally push you over the edge, and Namjoon watched your face intently as you came all over his tongue. 

Namjoon paid close attention to the way your face scrunched up at the pleasure, the way your thighs tightened around his head, and the way you whined his name like you were his, like he was the only one who could please you like this. Every detail about you made his cock ache and he wanted nothing more than to take you like you wanted.

As he watched you come down from the pleasure, the little smile that appeared on your face warmed his heart and also made it hurt even more than before he walked in the door. Those same words that scared him last time were on the tip of his tongue once again. 

In a haste to make the pain go away he rose to feet and kissed you hard, hardly giving you any time to breathe. He had to make this go away, there wasn’t anything he could do. 

You giggled at his hastiness. “Does eating me out really get you going that much?” You asked in between kisses. Namjoon didn’t even answer before he was hoisting you up, making you squeal, and speedily making his way to your bedroom.

He was quick to set you on the bed. You looked up at him excitedly nervous for where this was going. 

Namjoon tugged off his shirt a little less than gracefully, and cursed quietly to himself as he tried to get his pants untied. You ogled him happily, with all the working out he had been doing lately it certainly paid off. He looked absolutely amazing.

But what caught your attention the most was the look on his face, and the more you noticed the more your smile started to drop. After knowing Namjoon so long you knew that the way he was clenching his jaw meant he had something on his mind and it was bothering him.  

“Joon, you ok?” You asked hesitantly. At that moment he had finally won the battle with his sweats and started tugging them down his legs.

“I’m fine. Take off the hoodie, want your ass up for me.” He said as he went over to the nightstand to grab a condom out the top drawer. 

You were still concerned but you did as he said, slipping the baggy hoodie off your form and laid so your ass was in the air. You had every intention of asking about it, but you had a feeling now wasn’t the best time. Maybe this might take his mind off of what was bothering him? 

If only you knew the whole reason for his frustration had to do with you. 

As much as he wanted to just forget about it and be in the moment with you, he wanted so many more opportunities to be like this with you. The fact that this should really be the last time he gets to be with you, but how much he knew he didn’t want that, it just made this whole experience harder than it should be.  

It really would be so easy to tell you how he felt, how much he wanted more out of the relationship you’ve built over the years but that would just make things complicated. It would be even harder to say goodbye. 

Namjoon quickly opened up the package and slipped on the condom and got on the bed to position himself behind you. 

He was scared to look at you, what if those words he wanted to say would come out if he looked into your eyes?

Namjoon let his hand come down on your ass cheek, a smacking sound reverberating through the room, and a moan instinctively falling from your lips. 

He guided his length so it was right nestling you right where you wanted him. You whined and tried to push your hips back but he stopped you. 

“You’re so pretty like this…” He sighed, the view honestly immaculate. He started to rub himself between your soaking folds making you want to scream.

“Joon oh my gosh– what has gotten into you?” You cried into the pillow. He normally wasn’t one to tease. Anytime you both would normally meet was under hurried circumstances. Busy schedules, life, anytime you were together just felt like waiting for some sort of timer to go off. It might be a call from a manager, a call from a boss, a notification reminding Joon he had a schedule to get to. There were very few moments you both would get to just relax and be with each other. 

The reminder made Namjoon even more upset. There really wasn’t going to be any way he could make this work with you?

“Say it…” His voice was static, trying to sound as emotionless about the situation as he possibly could. 

“Joon?!” You cried again. 

“What do you want?” He asked again.

“Fuck me please…” 

Namjoon could hardly contain himself at your words, he hastily pushed himself in. A moan slipped from his lips at the familiar tightness around his cock. You were so amazing.

He sat there for a second just allowing you to get adjusted, but when you started moving your hips he knew you were ready for him. He was slow, but made sure he was deep with his thrusts so you knew how much he truly cared for you. 

You felt so good around him, warm, tight, like home.  

Each stroke just made him more angry, he set a punishing pace enjoying the way you little whines distracted him. Everything about you enchanted him.

He slapped your ass again, enjoying the way it jiggled. 

He had to make this quick, the longer he was here the harder it would be to go. This had to be the last time, he couldn’t do this anymore, this had to be the last time.  

“Fuck– Joon– yes!” You moaned.

The last time. It had to be.

“Shit…” He groaned feeling the way your walls tightened around him. You were getting close too.

With his orgasm approaching sooner and sooner the more he couldn’t just ignore the way his heart longed for more. 

In a haste he stopped and pulled out. 

You turned around confused but before you could really question it you were on your back and staring right into his eyes as he pushed himself back inside. 

The position was intimate and the last thing he should be doing, but he wanted to see you. See the way you look at him, see the way he makes you feel. Would you even want more out of this relationship if he asked you?

To make things worse you wrapped your arms around his neck and your legs around his waist to pull him closer. As that feeling grew stronger he couldn’t but lean in and kiss you. It was passionate, a passion he desperately wishes you were aware about. He could have burst into tears right in that moment. 

Seeing you like this underneath him, he couldn’t deny it. He wanted more, he wanted to call you his. Why, why, why did the job he loved have to get in the way?!

He broke away from you lips and buried his head in your neck, sensing he wasn’t going to last much longer.

Namjoon started kissing your neck right where he knew got to you the most, savorying the way you groaned in his ear. Everything about you felt like muscle memory. How was he going to give this up?

“I’m going to miss you.” He softly said, not expecting you to hear.

Your whimpers were enough to finally push him over the edge, his hips sped up before a soft moan fell from his lips as he stilled inside you and filled up the condom. 

He hardly gave himself time to breathe before he was snaking his hand in between your bodies and making quick work on your clit. You instantly moaned and it didn’t take very long for this to push you over the edge once again. 

As you both started to calm down, Namjoon hesitantly pulled out of you and went to throw away the condom, when he came back he was a bit shocked to see you staring at him. It automatically prompted him to realize he had a decision to make.

Was he saying here with you tonight?

His mind knew that was a horrible idea, but that didn’t stop him from putting his boxers back on and climbing in bed next to you. At least he could spend one more night with you.  

That was one of the rules you had set up oh so many years ago, yet the amount of times he’s stayed over were too many to count at this point. 

Even as he got snuggled underneath the sheets you were still staring at him strangely. 

“What’s up?” He finally asked. 

“What’s up with you? You seem a little tense and what did you mean when you said you’ll miss me?” You questioned a bit worried by how off your evening together seemed. 

Namjoon froze realizing you noticed. In a second he weighed his options– does he finally confess what’s been bothering him all night, finally tell you that it would probably be best to end things now, or wait a little while longer to enjoy one more night with you. 

One look at you, post sex bliss making you even prettier.

He quickly picked the latter. 

“Work’s just been tough. We have a schedule soon where we’re heading to LA in a few weeks– being with you like this made me realize how much I’m going to miss you.” He smiled, pulling you into his arms. 

He saw the little smile on your face at his words, melting his heart. 

It was true, he was going to be leaving soon and he really was going to miss you.

“Don’t worry, I’ll always be here when you get back.” You said as you snuggled in closer to him.

“I know but still… I’ll miss you.” Namjoon couldn’t hide the emotion in his voice. You were able to pick up on it and looked up at him.

“You’re sure that’s all that’s bothering you?”

He tried to smile and nodded. “I’m fine, don’t worry about me.” 

This time you didn’t push any further and picked up your remote that was sitting on the nightstand. “Did you wanna pick up on the show we left off on?”

Namjoon nodded and watched as you opened up netflix and started up the fifth episode of My Name. You were easily sucked into it, but he couldn’t focus. 

In an effort to try and distract himself he got up and told you he was going to shower. He hopped that might help, but one glance in your bathroom made everything worse. 

He was everywhere. 

Namjoon over the years had steadily started buying more stuff for whenever he would stay at your place. Right there on the cup that sat on the sink was his toothbrush sitting right next to yours.

Even when he made it inside the shower, right next to all your shampoos and body washes were all of his, the same ones he had back in the dorm.

The whole time in the shower he was telling himself one thing; this had gone way too far. It wasn’t anyone’s fault, feelings were complicated and of course after spending so much time with each other feelings other than physical attraction would develop. 

It already hurt now thinking about saying goodbye, what about a year from now? This can’t keep going on. 

It’s what he tried to tell himself but once he came out the bathroom and saw you lying on the bed asleep, he knew it wasn’t going to be that easy.��

He slipped himself underneath the covers and cuddled up next to you, his heart nearly tearing into two when you almost instinctively snuggled further into him. 

It was things like this that was going to make this hard. How was he going to be able to say goodbye when he loved you so much?

#bts #bts smut #namjoon x reader #kim namjoon #namjoon #namjoon smut #namjoon fanfiction #rm fanfic #bts fanfic #bts rm #bts imagines #bts scenarios #bangtan boys #bangtan sonyeondan #bts fan fiction #bts fluff #bts angst #namjoon angst #bangtansorciere #bangtanbathhouse #bts one shot #rm #namjoon one shot

[boxturret]

Making of Kanohi Mask Simulator 2023

Main post with download links Here

Around 5 days ago as of the time writing this, while riding the bus I had an idle idea of making a simple little game, using the Kanohi Mask pack packaging reproduction I made a few months ago, that can be found here and here (includes printable image if you want to make your own!)

I thought a lot about it and determined that it would probably be within my skillset to create, so I started work in earnest around Wednesday.

Step one was to make a rough outline of everything I wanted the game to do at a base level, later on it also conveniently served as a check list. Keeping the scope in mind really helped organise everything and made the project go super smoothly!

You can see there I originally wanted the in real life rarer masks to be rarer, but once while testing I literally spent 20 minutes straight trying to get the Vahi, and that just had a 1 in 40 chance of appearing, so since I just wanted this to be a light little fun game people could play for a few minutes (and also since I didn't want to have to learn how to save which masks you got) I left it as is.

The main features were the model viewer camera controls and the mask randomisation, so I worked to get that all functional with basic shapes first before even thinking about graphics. It went pretty smoothly, and I had a functional prototype in a day or two.

Now I could think about presentation.

I decided to go with a store shelf motif for the game, somewhat inspired by the Bionicle fan concept of "the Dream", so I had to construct a simple shelving unit.

It was quite fun to make. I also made price tags for every set, even using the proper barcodes since I already had them. Then I made all this detail work irrelevant by making most of the background completely out of focus. Here's the main background in focus for reference:

The very last thing I did was a texture for the infected mask. I based it off one of the ones I own. I'm quite happy with it, I wanted to capture the paint brush strokes.

It was nice to be able to go from an idea to a finished product in a few days! I'm really pleased with the end result, and the feedback has been so gratifying :)

The issue is now I'm just thinking about how to do a similar thing with the Toa canisters...

#Bionicle #3D #Unity #Game #Kanohi #Mask #Box

[slytherhys]

I've Just Seen a Face

Rowaelin Month, Day 1: Song Fic

based on the song I've Just Seen a Face by The Beatles (a cute song about love at first sight)

A/N - I wrote this some time ago so I'm not even sure it's any good (I'm kinda scared to rr it). Hope you like it!

I've just seen a face I can't forget the time or place Where we just met She's just the girl for me And I want all the world to see we've met

Had it been another day I might have looked the other way And I'd have never been aware But as it is I'll dream of her tonight

Every day before going to work (always right on time, might he add) Rowan likes to enjoy a medium cup of hazelnut latte sold specifically by the café just two blocks down from his apartment. The owner, Aurelia Banks, a kind old lady that never spells his name correctly (yesterday he was a Ruben), makes the best lattes in the entire city of Orynth and her pastries are enough to make a grown man cry. Sure, she regularly comments on his tattoos and dyed hair, but it’s a small price he’s willing to pay to get access to her baked goods and sweet coffee. His friend Lorcan likes to tease him relentlessly about his coffee addiction, but truth be told, Rowan can’t start his day without it. And he never had to. At least not until a random day in September when, for the first time in his 6 years living here, Aurelia closed for “an undetermined amount of time.” No explanation whatsoever. No return date. Nothing. 

Rowan can’t exactly say Aurelia is the only café available in Orynth, but something about his morning routine being disturbed doesn’t sit right with him. Especially not when he knows he now has to walk an extra 10 minutes to stop by the only café that could possibly be open at 6:30 in the morning on a Friday. Rowan can admit their coffee is pretty good, but something about the owner makes him unexplainably angry. A man that calls his own café “Chaol’s Beans” should never be trusted. 

The café itself is pretty pleasant – a mix of earth tones with vibrant patterns that seem to compliment the smell of coffee. That and the soft music playing create a cosy atmosphere Rowan could see himself enjoying – if only not for all things Chaol. The place is empty except for a girl studying in a booth by the corner and a couple trading bites of their food and speaking softly with each other. Not weird considering the time, except for the fact no one appears to be working either. Not that it bothers Rowan – it’s not like he’s not already 5 minutes late or anything. 

Sighing loudly, Rowan leans against the dark counter, trying to see if he can find someone to serve him some coffee, but he only hears voices coming from behind the service doors. Loud ones, too. Something about sweets and a bad temper. He doesn’t get the chance to listen much else before the door aggressively swings back and a young woman steps out, fumbling with her moss green apron and walking furiously - as if imagining whoever is behind those doors pressed under the soles of her shoes. 

Rowan feels his breath catch as he takes her in – her lithe form and her assertive walk, messy hair flying behind her with every step she takes as she mutters something under her breath. She’s too distracted to even notice him, but Rowan is fine with just watching her. Right as she is about to take her apron off, her head snaps in Rowan’s direction, her hands falling to her sides as she stops dead in her tracks. Her cheeks gain a pink tint, and she straightens. She stares at him for a few seconds, no words being exchanged between them. It’s like the entire universe shifts and they’re the only two people in the world to stand still in time. Rowan smiles softly at her, unable to talk for whatever reason, and that makes her snap out of her trance. She looks back to the door she just left from and clears her throat, stepping forward and sending him a soft smile. Her turquoise eyes can’t seem to decide if they should focus on the door behind her back or on Rowan.

She fixes her hair as she looks back once more, her apron swinging with her body’s movement. Never has something with the name Chaol’s Beans on it seem more appealing. Her gaze finds Rowan once again and she shakily grabs a pen and a paper cup. “Hi.” She smiles, the pink in her cheeks darkening. Rowan likes that. He likes that a lot. “Welcome to Chaol’s Beans, what can I get you?” 

His heart catches in his throat and suddenly there are no words in the English language that could make him seem like the capable human being he sometimes is. The woman chuckles nervously, one eyebrow rising, and Rowan feels his cheeks warm. Hellas, it’s like he’s 17 all over again.

He’s aware a question was asked – and if only he hadn’t forgotten every single word in the English language, he would be more than pleased to answer her. To talk with her. To hear her sweet melodic voice, a bit of raspiness coming through, probably thanks to the screaming match going on a few seconds earlier. 

Rowan Whitethorn has never been one of believing in fate. He never considered himself to be religious, nor is he superstitious. The closest he’s ever been to believing in an ulterior force was that one time he spilled beer on the counter and the amber puddle ended up looking exactly like his friend Lorcan - he still has that picture saved on his phone.

He wouldn’t go as far as to call himself a skeptic – he does like to believe that there is some order to the universe. But he’s never believed in things like destiny.

At least, he didn’t until now.

He tries to shake himself from his stupor, looking quickly up to the menu board and then back to the woman again, not really having the time to read it. He knows he didn’t read shit and by the amused look on her face, she knows it too. Her lips quirk up.

“I trust you as long as you bring me something with hazelnut.”

The woman looks up at him with smiling eyes. “Hazelnut?”

She’s not small in any sense of the word, but at 6’4 Rowan makes most people look up. Only Lorcan manages to escape that fate, much to Rowan’s chagrin.

He looks up to the menu board once again, suddenly feeling embarrassed. Do they not serve hazelnut flavoured drinks here? He’s not sure he minds, the stunning creature in front of him could serve him a glass of tap water and he’d be over the moon. “Hazelnut latte? Hazelnut Cappuccino?”

“Oh. Right!” She chuckles nervously, turning around to look up at the menu board. “Hazelnut latte, of course.” She writes down something on the paper cup that seems way too long to be a coffee order. Rowan watches her with avid interest. “A-and your name?” She stutters a bit and it’s all Rowan can do not to smile in victory. Something like male pride warming his chest at the thought of making her flustered.

 “Rowan.” He leans against the counter, probably looking cockier than intended. The woman follows the movement, amusement playing in her eyes. “Rowan Whitethorn.”

“Well, Rowan Whitethorn,” Rowan has to fight the shiver that threatens to run through his body at the way his name sounds coming from her lips. “I’m going to make you the best hazelnut latte you’ve ever had in your entire life.” She announces with a mischievous smile, turning around before Rowan even has the chance to pay.

He follows her with his eyes, watching as she stumbles around behind the counter preparing his drink. She curses under her breath a few times, occasionally looking up at Rowan with a flush in her cheeks. Rowan recons he’ll remember that look for the rest of his life.

She looks like she’s not entirely sure what she’s doing and Rowan wonders if it’s her first week at the job. She reads every label of every dispenser and spills milk all over the counter, hiding an embarrassed look behind a curtain of golden hair. She appears to to do some latte art, but when she finally clears her throat and gives him his cup, all Rowan sees is lines of white with no apparent meaning. The words For the Hazelnut addict are scribbled on the cup alongside a…bird? He looks up at her with a questioning look. She blushes under his gaze and clasps her hands behind her back.

“It’s supposed to be a bird.” She explains quickly. “Because of your tattoo…” She points to her neck. “Well, you know.” He does know. That tattoo is a favourite of Miss Aurelia. There isn’t a day where he doesn’t hear about the fall of proper culture and how people now enjoy “painting” pigeons on their own skin. It’s actually a white-tailed hawk, something he’s tried to explain several times to no avail.

“And the latte art?” He asks, examining it further. It’s still just white lines that make absolutely no sense, but he wills his face to remain neutral. She chuckles nervously, muttering something under her breath. When she looks up her eyes find his and everything inside him goes still.

“It’s supposed to be flames.” She shrugs. “Or a fire, I guess.”

Rowan smirks as he looks down at his cup. He doesn’t have the heart to tell her it looks nothing like a flame, mainly when her choice of drawing resonates with him. Everything about this woman is fire: warmth, strength, boldness. “Fireheart.” He says softly.

Her eyes snap up to his, a confused look on her face. “Sorry?” Her voice is meek.

He clears his throat. “Your name.” He tries instead, nodding to her apron. “There’s no name tag.”

She looks down at her clothes, about to open her mouth just as the back door opens once again, this time with half the strength used by his fireheart. The colour drains from her face and she refuses to look back, her eyes comically wide as she stares at Rowan and Rowan alone.

“Aelin?” A deep voice calls out. Aelin. Something inside his body settles at that name.

“Fuck.” She mutters, and Rowan looks at her with a confused look on his face. Aelin sends him an apologetic look in return. “I thought you’d left already.” Rowan looks at the man speaking, a tall man with chestnut hair and dark eyes looks confusedly at Aelin. He looks at Rowan and sends him a greeting smile. “I’ll be right with you.” He says, pressing his hand on Aelin’s shoulder. He’s about to speak to her again when his eyes zero on the cup in Rowan’s hand. “Excuse me sir, who served you that?”

Rowan furrows his brows, looking between the newcomer and Aelin. Did he hallucinate her? No, that wouldn’t make sense, right? The dude has his hand on her shoulder. He called her Aelin. Right?

“Hm-”

“I did.” Aelin mutters and the man goes still.

“Why the fu-“ The man stops and closes his eyes as he takes too many deep breaths in not enough seconds. “Are you insane?” His voice drops to a whisper – Rowan is not sure why since he’s right there and he can listen to everything. “Are you trying to get Chaol’s Beans shut down?”

Would that make this man Chaol? He’s not sure he’s ready for that interaction.

“It’s not like you wouldn’t deserve it.” Aelin crosses her arms as she whisper-shouts back. She looks back at Rowan, as if fearing he’d left already. It’s not like he could leave her behind without a goodbye. Not now. Probably not ever.

“I told you I didn’t eat your sour patch kids, I don’t know what else you want to me say. And even if I did, could you please try and not poison my clients?”

He's Chaol, then.

“I’m not poisoning Rowan!” She yells, louder than intended by the way she flinches.

“Wait,” He interrupts, trying to catch up. Chaol looks up at Rowan with an apologetic smile on his face and Aelin looks like she wants to hide under the counter. He’s not sure what’s happening, but it’s positively hilarious. “You don’t work here?” He asks Aelin. She smiles sheepishly, shaking her head no. He nods, frowning as he tries to wrap his head around the weirdest morning he’s had in years as he takes a sip from his coffee. It’s all he can do not to spit it out and beg for mercy as the bitter taste overwhelms his taste buds. He's not sure how anyone could make such a bitter drink with so much sweetness at their disposal, but he swallows anyway and smiles at Aelin who starts to laugh, unable to stop.

“Sir, let me make you a new drink.” Chaol sends Aelin a murderous look, but she doesn’t even notice as she tries to catch her breath. “On the house.”

Rowan refrains from telling him he didn't pay for this one either.

“That’s not necessary.” He says, taking another sip. If he stops breathing for a few seconds, it doesn’t even taste that bad. “It’s actually quite good.” He shrugs, willing his face to remain neutral.

Aelin looks up at him with a beaming smile. “You really don’t have to drink it.”

Rowan shrugs sheepishly, “I want to.” And smiles at her. Chaol mutters something under his breath and storms off – but not before screaming at Aelin to get out of his café. Aelin bites her lip as she takes off her apron and makes her way around the counter, a questioning look on her face. Rowan smirks as he walks past her, opening the door for her to leave and follows right behind.

They start walking in comfortable silence, both glancing at each other like they’re on their first date in middle school. It ought to feel ridiculous, but he can’t bring himself to care. About anything, really.

Rowan is fine – he’s fine with being late for the first time in his life; he’s fine with drinking what’s probably the worst thing he’s ever tasted in his life; and he’s fine with becoming a regular customer at Chaol’s Beans. There’s no reason not to be fine when Aelin walks next to him with a gorgeous smile on her rosy lips.

“I’m sorry.” She chuckles nervously, breaking the silence. “I don’t know why I did that, it’s not like I ever even worked as a Barista. But…” She sighs, looking at him and back to the sidewalk again. “Something-”

“I know.” Rowan interrupts her, his hand finding the small of her back as they walk side by side. He feels her tense for a second before she relaxes into him – nothing has ever felt more right in his entire life.

“You really don’t have to drink that. It probably tastes like crap. I’m pretty sure I added some cleaning product at some point. I was a little distracted.”

By the taste of it, Rowan wouldn’t be surprised. But he shrugs. “It’s the best thing I’ve ever tasted.”

“Really?” She smirks. “I think we need to work on that, Rowan Whitethorn.”

And how could he say not to that? Especially when she steps a bit closer and her sweet smoky scent reaches his nose. When she laughs as he finally gives in and grimaces at a gulp of latte that definitely has some salt in it.

Rowan isn’t sure where they’re heading as they slowly walk down the sidewalk. His job has been long forgotten and he isn’t sure where Aelin is supposed to go next. But somethings just happen before people realize why they’re happening and there’s really no questioning their silent agreement that they must keep walking side by side until they find a way to do something else. There’s a lot to find out, a lot to learn, but Rowan isn’t in a hurry. From the looks of it, neither is Aelin. It’s almost like they have all the time in the world.

And maybe they do.

Fallin', yes, I am fallin' And she keeps callin' Me back again

#rowaelin month #rowaelin month 2022 #rowaelin au #rowaelin fic #rowaelin fanfiction #rowan x aelin #rowan whitethorn #aelin galythinius #throne of glass #tog fic #aelin fic #throne of glass fic #rowaelin #throne of glass fanfiction #tog #coffeeshop au

[wearytaco]

Visited by Papa Legba?

So I want to preface this with I am a white (trans) man, I do not practice any sect of voodoo and am aware of the sensitivity around voodoo with people of other cultures, etc. While I grew up Christian I am not any longer and never was associated with Catholicism, I have no particular spirituality but follow closer to New Age than any specific type. And I am confused. I also want to clarify when I say "see" and "hear" in the following text, I mean in my minds-eye, not with my physical eyes/ears.

So a few years back I was visited by a spirit I later googled to be Papa Legba based on colors and vague attributes like cane and hat and such. I don't recall if I was high, meditating, dreaming, or just in a trance state. It was literally years ago. When I learned it was Papa Legba, I got really confused and decided to file it away as a one off and didn't touch it again because I have heard that there is a lot of cultural sensitivity around other cultures engaging in voodoo (idk if that's wholeheartedly true, but I didn't see a need for me to be involved for something that seemed like a one time shenanigan).

Skip ahead to a few months ago and I moved to Botswana, Africa. I recall I was attempting to look into the original religion of the area before colonization and learned about Orishas and Yoruba. I never actually got around to reading the books I downloaded, which I will be rectifying soon.

Recently I saw a video (yeah just a TikTok) about Eshu. The video strangely caught my attention and I ended up actually watching like the whole 3 minutes lol. It was mentioned Eshu was connected with the Orishas/Yoruba. Which reminded me I still have yet to read those books.

Two days ago I had a (sober) trance like experience, which I haven't had in quite a while. First there was this spirit that came. She was speaking with me, she had long dreaded like hair with beads and shells, she was wearing a white dress which almost resembled a dress slip, and she didn't seem good nor evil just neutral maybe leaning chaotic but not a proper chaotic neutral vibe. She also told me she was Haitian, which I found really strange being in Botswana. I don't recall everything we spoke of, but she mentioned she is living in the house with me, calling it "our house". While I don't see her having any ill intentions to me, I do very much get the vibe that if there was something happening to me she would end that threat. I haven't felt her here before, but I also haven't exactly been paying attention to the spirit world lately due to other distractions that have recently left my life.

While speaking with her behind me I heard the name "Eshu" being repeated over and over and over again, getting louder, but never like aggressive. Just something I couldn't keep ignoring.

I turned to look behind me towards my room and when I turned back she was gone. Cliche, in my opinion...

So I went towards my room and then felt the strange urge to use some of my spit to write "Eshu" on the wall of my room. After I had a spirit I hadn't seen in years appeared in the doorway of my room. But when he was trying to speak to me it sounded like he was being drowned out by static. It was like when you are almost on the right radio station so you can hear the song, but you can't hear the lyrics only the static. I tried asking his name because I couldn't remember it as it had been years. At first I heard "Papa" and then after another 5 or so minutes I heard "Legba" (but I legitimately thought I made Legba up and didn't believe that is what I was hearing.) It was so hard to communicate with him and all I recalled was his connection to voodoo.

Strangely, when he disappeared behind me yet again, but not in a doorway, instead near my window, I felt a spirit that called themselves Eshu. I suddenly got really sleepy. Things were clearer, but I was basically told to go to sleep by the spirit and he would give me a message in my dreams. (I remember when I first woke up going, "oh. That was the message" but then I went back to sleep and I have absolutely no idea what I was dreaming of). Before I fell asleep I looked up "Papa Legba" and realized that was his name, and then.... I saw another name in Africa, I believe it said in Nigeria and other countries, he is called Eshu. I am both floored, and really confused. Especially since it felt like two different spirits?

And then last night I felt incredibly nauseous and that was hardly able to stand up right (I am on a medicine for a few weeks now and that unfortunately is a side effect). I got the same urge to write Eshu on the wall in spit, and again at the doorway Papa Legba appeared. But this time clear and not speaking through static. However, I was mostly bent over or on my knees for s lot of the conversation due to the horrid wave of nausea I was experiencing. He offered me a deal of sorts. He asked what I wanted more or less, like we kind of just had a conversation about things I have been wanting (such as confidence, spiritual connection, sexual liberation, things I just wish I could improve upon myself). And then he asked for spit and I was about to give it to him without any thought but then I realized that may be the "handshake" so to say. So I stopped and asked why. He basically confirmed it was an offering. I asked what he wants in return if he's offering to help me with these things. He didn't really have an answer. But he did say he wants me to tell someone something. And I told him I would likely forget what he asked of me (which I have forgotten what he told me to say as predicted lmfao). And a few hours go by and ... Well I know making deals is always risky business but let's just leave it at yeah I ended up making the deal and gave him spit (I just don't understand the spit thing?? I read he likes tobacco, alcohol, and candy??) but it never truly felt like a trick. I know from briefly reading he can be considered a trickster in some circles, and I'm absolutely sure he has his own agenda. But it never felt like he wants any harm to me. In fact it truly felt like the opposite. Maybe I'm just absolutely naive. Very possible. But... I can't explain it. Anyways, after he left the woman appeared again but this time she was behind the static. I know she was saying something but I couldn't hear her not really see her in my minds-eye, but physically I felt I was closer to actually seeing her for a first. I tried for a while but then I apologized and had to walk away from her and go to bed where I felt the sleepy urge and "there will be a message" feeling again. I am truly at a loss from this experience, and since I do not engage in voodoo nor know anyone who does I can't even come close to understanding this situation. And I don't want to enter a spirituality/religion that is culturally defined where I may not be welcomed, either. Honestly I don't have much interest in voodoo other than general curiousity but I have that for most religions and spiritualities. I really would like some guidance. Please?

#reddit #wearytaco #voodoo #hoodoo #papa legba #orisha #orishas #eshu #spiritual #spirituality #transgender #haitian #witch #witchcraft #witchy #papa #legba #spirit #trance #meditation #new orleans #Botswana #africa #nigeria #south #Caribbean #religion #religious #magic #question

[thatoneitaliangirl]

The Hat Man

(Just as an FYI, I change from past tense to present tense a couple of times. This isn’t a serious written work or anything, just a recollection of a dream so I don’t really care if it’s written that well, but I figured I’d give you a warning anyway cause I know stuff like that bothers me when reading lol.)

Long time no see! Sorry to my all of 2 followers that actually interact lol. But for serious, I am sorry for being gone for so long and not finishing things and leaving requests hanging. Its a bad habit of mine- I also got a boyfriend. We’ve been together for over a year now, and when we got together I kinda gave up fanfiction all together. I didn’t want to per say, it’s almost like I didn’t need it anymore. My Love took away my loneliness!~ But I still miss fanfiction lol. It just doesn’t feel the same anymore. 

I’ve recently started on Anti-depressants and ADHD medication and I’m starting to get back into the things that I used to love. I’ve been wanting to write again for some time, but just wasn’t sure what to and if I’m even capable of coming up with a unique thought right now lol. So, instead of coming up with something unique, I figured I’d tell you guys about the weird ass dream I had a while back. I’ve been thinking about it constantly and just had to tell the internet because spooks. 

I’m not exactly sure when I had the dream. It was a hot minute ago, like maybe 2 months or so? Before I go full into it, I would just like to state that, at the time, I had never heard of the Hat Man before. Which, now that I know, I’m surprised I hadn’t cause its right up my ally lol. But I hadn’t which makes this so much worse. 

My dream starts with me as a kid, maybe around 5 or 6. I’m wearing a long sleeve dress and I’m playing with other kids outside in the woods. It was Fall, the leaves where brown and falling off the trees and there was a nice breeze. I grew up in Florida in an area where there were no large forest like areas. The only thing I could think of this coming from would be an area by the neighborhood gazebo that had a bunch of trees we used to climb, but no matter where you were in it, you could see houses, it wasn’t very large. Anyway, I was playing with other kids my age and somehow I got separated from them, but I wasn’t scared or lost, I was just alone. I come across this large tree that looks a bit different than the others in that it looks older and maybe darker. At the base of the tree is a small wooden box, about the size of a jewelry or music box. It was made of a light colored wood and had very minimal carvings on the side. I remember opening it and then time rushing forward in the dream of stuff happening around the house and me blaming the Hat Man and nobody believing me. They would think I was lying to get out of trouble but eventually it got so bad that they sent me to a mental hospital. The Hat Man in my dream looked very similar to the descriptions of him on the internet. He was very tall and was wearing like a ‘50′s style suite and hat with a long coat and he had a red tie and no face. 

Time skips again but to the present. I’m my current age, 21, and I’m sitting in my room at the mental hospital talking to my therapist. She’s not anyone I recognize in real life, but she was really pretty I remember. She had long brown hair and was maybe in her early 30′s and spoke in a very kind and happy voice. She was discussing with me about how well I had been doing the past year and that the papers for my release had been signed, I just had to wait till morning. She was saying how she was so proud of me and how she was gonna miss me but she knew it was for the better. 

I’m not sure how any of you feel about the paranormal or spiritual stuff, but my family and I believe in it. I have this one family member who is very in tune with that kind of stuff and for some reason, she was in my dream. This is probably one of the reasons this dream freaked me out so much, because I literally never dream about her. I honestly can’t even remember ever dreaming about her, and so I felt like there was a reason she was there. What’s weird though is that I never actually saw her in any form, I just knew that it was her. In the dream, she was in the same hospital as me, just down the hall in another room. 

Later that night, I head to her room to tell her the good news, but I find her dead and run back to my room. I know that it was the Hat Man, and I begin freaking out that he was coming for me next. It was like he didn’t know where I was, but now that he did, he wanted to give me a warning. 

In the morning, the therapist comes in to get me but sees me sitting on my bed, rocking back and forth. I didn’t sleep the whole night and I just kept mumbling to myself that the Hat Man was coming for me. She was confused because I had been perfectly fine the night before and hadn’t had an episode like this in a year. Suddenly, there was commotion out in the hall, and she runs to the door and sees a bunch of nurses and doctors running into my family members room. She grabs the first nurse she sees and asks them what’s going on, and she just shakes her head. The doctors begin to pull my family member out of her room on a stretcher, but we can’t see her cause she wrapped in a pink blanket and only her arm is sticking out. An older nurse sees me standing nervously and shaking behind my therapist in my bedroom entryway and glares at me. She suspects me because I knew who was killed and later on they see me on the security cameras walk down the hall to her room, enter, and immediately run back to my room. Because of this, I’m put under lockdown. I’m not allowed to leave the room and they have someone watching me constantly. The therapist is in complete disbelief and is conflicted. On one hand, she’s known me for years and knows I would never do that, but on the other hand, she saw I was having an episode and there was a lot of evidence suggesting I was the murderer. 

For some reason, I’m not sure why, she decides to look into the Hat Man. Why she didn’t do this any other time while she was treating me is beyond me, but dream logic. 

She goes to this really large and old library and spends hours looking through books and records and news articles that talk about the Hat Man. Late at night, she’s sitting in the library alone. Just a single lamp on the table and the moon shining through large windows behind her are the only light sources. She sees something in an article or a book that shocks her enough to believe that this entity could actually exist and she calls me to ask me what I know. I tell her that he can only come for you at night and if your alone in complete darkness. Just as I’m telling her this, you see him walk past the window behind her and she runs out of the library. She spends the rest of the night in bars, diners, and other 24 hour spaces until dawn breaks and she rushes back to the hospital to see me. 

Somehow we figure out that my family member may have known something and was trying to protect me from the Hat Man, so she “breaks” me out of my room and we head down the hall to the murder scene to look for clues. We find a teddy bear that had a button to record but it’s missing the batteries. We quickly find some, put them in, and a message from my family member starts to play. All it says is for me to tell my aunt about the Hat Man and then I woke up. 

As you can see, this dream freaked me the fuck out. Not only because of how insanely detailed it was, but because of the family member dying, the message, and just the over all fact that I always felt creeped out at our old house and so this just confirmed in my head for that time that spooky stuff was happening. In reality it was all in my head OR SO I THOUGHT  but back to that later. Now that I’m typing this out, I realize that I had this dream at our old house so definitely not 2 months ago lol. We moved like 4 or 5 months ago- my sense of time is so freaking bad-

Anyway, I told all my family about the dream and they all agreed it was really creepy but that was kind of the end of it until I told my boyfriends friend. We were having a little game night and I don’t remember how the topic came up, but I ended up telling her about my dream and she was like, “Ah yes, the Hat Man. He comes to get you for not taking your ADHD medication.” And I was like WHAT???? She was shook I didn’t know about the Hat Man, and I was shook BECAUSE HE WAS FUCKING REAL????? Or, not real, but that the concept was an actual thing and I didn’t just make it up in a weirdly vivid nightmare. 

She explained a bit about him to me and I looked him up on the internet. What’s funny is that, while I have ADHD and have been diagnosed with it since the 2nd grade, I’ve never taken medication for it before until literally 2 days ago. So I just kinda thought that was funny. I’m sure somewhere in the past I stumbled upon a meme or a joke about the Hat Man and my subconscious just kinda filled him in there but I still have no recollection of ever hearing about him before. And while I’ve thought about this dream on and off for the past few months, I only really started thinking about it again because my family recently told me that there was something in our old house, more that what I had originally knew. Like I said, I always got a weird feeling in that house, kinda like I wasn’t alone even if I was the only one in the house. My cousin had told me there was a spirit of a little boy but that he was harmless. Still, I felt off about it but I just kinda chalked it up to me being creeped out over everything, even if he was harmless- not sure if I ever mentioned it on here before, but one day I was in my room, home alone, and I got out of bed cause I had to use the bathroom and I was watching a tik tok and as I looked up from my phone to grab my door handle, the knob was turning on its own and I decided that, maybe, I didn’t actually have to use the bathroom and went back to bed. My aunt told me it could have been one of the cats, but I didn't really believe that. And now, the other day, I’m told that there was something bad in the house that the family member that died in my dream found and it freaked her out. And guess what fellas???? The reason they never told me about it was because IT WAS IN MY FUCKING BEDROOM so moral of the story is, trust your gut, dreams can’t hurt you, and the Hat Man is real. 

#thehatman #Hatman #baddream #nightmare #paranormal #ghost #spirit #entity #haunted #hauntedhouse

[juicycoutureheaux]

Both Sides Now

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 chapter 5

Chris Redfield x Fem!reader

A/N: This is my first ever published work, it's also a Resident Evil x AHS: Coven crossover. So if it seems a little cliche, it is lol. Lemme know what you think! I also cross-posted to AO3!

Summary: Reader has been on Captain Redfield’s team for a while now and seems to have a close bond with the captain. During a recon mission gone awry, the two get split up from the rest of the team and the captain is faced with a difficult decision.   Takes place Pre-Resident evil 6.

Chapter 1 : Resurgence

“Everyone listen up!” Captain Redfield’s warm baritone thundered through the aircraft. Y/N was completely in her own world until her (Y/C) eyes met the captain’s much darker ones.

“I see a lot of new faces today. If you’re here, you were the best in your training class, congratulations.” The new recruits all looked around excitedly. You looked to your direct left to catch your Lieutenant; Piers, roll his eyes.

Piers had been Captain’s right hand man since you arrived 6 months ago. You had graduated at the top of your class with a specialty in the medical field. You had a choice to work stateside; but the need for field medics was very dire. You were then scouted by Redfield himself during an intense training session.

You liked being under Redfield’s command; he was a fair leader that took care of his teammates.

Chris started up again; “I want to remind everyone that you may be the best of the best, but we are nothing without each other.” You looked over at Lieutenant Nivans and thought you were going to burst out in laughter. Piers looked like his head was going to explode; unlike Captain Redfield, Piers was a hardass. You couldn’t blame him though; God only knows what life was like before he joined the BSAA. There were rumors that he had come from a long line of soldiers.  Y/N Shuddered at the thought.

She had come from a loving family; unfortunately for her, her mother had passed away just after she turned 13. People speculated she’d lose her mind a lot faster than she did. You see, (Y/N) started to have visions. It started innocently enough, she started having very realistic dreams of her mother. Once her mother stopped visiting her, the other apparitions started to show themselves to her,  not just in dreams either. She would start to see horrific visions: burn victims, dead soldiers, and other loved ones that hadn’t passed on yet. They started to hound her at every moment, they were desperate to move on.

She began to grow weary and when she finally lost it at school one day, a strange red headed woman arrived at her home. This was “the beginning of her life”, the woman always liked to remind her. That same day she was shipped off to Miss Robichaux’s Academy.

To the public, Miss Robichaux’s was an illustrious boarding school, to (YN) it was somewhere she finally felt a community of girls just like her. She missed her family back home, but she never felt accepted by anyone except her mother. Her talents were nurtured and eventually (YN) decided she was old enough to leave the coven, much to Myrtle and Cordelia’s protests. She felt the need to use her gift beyond the walls of the Academy. Due to Robichaux’s “Human” reputation, she was accepted no problem into the BSAA training academy.

YN snapped back to earth again when Piers started to talk to the group. “Due to the unfamiliarity of our teammates, today’s mission is going to be a simple recon.” You laughed internally; simple, you thought. The reason we had so many new recruits was because a “simple” mission had turned into an absolute shitshow.

It happened to be you, Redfield, Nivans and a couple of other “seasoned” agents. At the time, you were still wet behind the ears with little field experience. A simple information session on a foreign base turned into a full-on terrorist attack. You were lucky to even be alive; while trying to save an injured comrade from the medical tent, a licker had decided to zero in on you two. While fighting off the creature to your best ability, it happened to swipe into your abdomen leaving you maimed and helpless. At the last minute, as if guided by some divine power, Captain Redfield came to your rescue.

Ever since that specific incident, the BSAA decided it would have at least one trained squad per outbreak, regardless of size, and not the traditional one or two person teams they were used to in the past.

Incidentally since then, YN had been absolutely enamored with the captain. She had never been crazy about the other gender, and especially not her fellow coworkers. However, something was different, she could feel it. The way he genuinely cared about others and his passion for the cause; it also didn’t help he was physically attractive as well.

You held on to your weapon tightly thinking about the incident, to only feel a large hand on your shoulder. “You alright YLN? You’ve been kind of quiet since we got here.” Chris looked at you intensely. There was concern and something else. You thought you were just imagining things.

“I can’t stop thinking about last time.” You answered honestly. It was true, the incident had haunted your dreams. Chris shifted his stance a little bit to relax his large body.

“You’ve got nothing to worry about kid.” He tells me, then continues with a smile. “You’ve got killer instincts; you’ll know to do the right thing. Don’t beat yourself up too much.”  You couldn’t help but blush.

“Thanks cap,” you said nonchalantly, trying to hide the fact that you lived for this man’s praise. Chris gave a friendly wink and addressed the team again.

“We received some intel from locals about suspicious activity coming from the locals, other teams have discovered abandoned BOW distribution sites. All the training should have prepared you for this moment and I have faith you will all be able to handle your own.”

The team was silent, a drastic contrast to the excited chatter that was going on earlier. The brevity of the situation must have reached the other recruits and you couldn’t blame them. This wasn’t your first mission, but you were always aware of the risks presented. You decided to break the silence.

“This is a new situation to all of you, I was just as nervous on my first day in the field. You all are in great hands and Cap is the best of the best. We’re a team that goes in together and comes out together.” You used your southern charms and it seemed to be successful. The recruits that appeared to be faint just moments before, had the color returning to their faces.

Piers and Chris started going over the plans and goals of today’s mission. “There seems to be split levels of this distribution site still intact.” Piers said to the captain. Chris furrowed his eyebrows; usually sites like this had some levels destroyed due to self-destruct protocols. Was there a possibility that it was still inhabited with B.O.W.S & their creators?   He couldn’t put his team in danger, especially not Y/N & Piers, they had already been through enough.

Chris looked over at Y/N talking to the others. He loved how you were  always great at putting others at ease. His eyes wandered to your torso as he thought about how your scar was healing up, his eyes traveled up the delicate curves of her body. He stopped himself from thinking about what Y/N looked like underneath her uniform.  He scolded himself internally. “Not now.” 

“How long have you been on this team YN ?” one of the recruits asked. You think his name was Marco? Honestly you were just getting used to having actual teammates than having their names memorized already.

“About six months!” You chirped “Captain Redfield and Lieutenant Nivans scouted me during one of the BSAA training sessions. I guess it’s because field medicine is my specialty and I’m not terrible at combat.” You laughed nervously; it was always difficult for you to socialize with the other soldiers. You never felt like you were good enough to be in the position you were.

One of the other soldiers decided to chime in with “Are you sure it’s not because the captain needed something pretty to look at?” The group exploded in laughter at your expense. You should be used to the “boys club” by now, but neither Chris or Piers ever made comments like that. You felt your cheeks flush and the sting of the laughter.

“THAT’S ENOUGH” Chris roared. The teams’ color left their faces again. “I meant it when I said EVERYONE deserves their spot on this team.”

He glared at all of them “Be careful what you say to YLN, she’s the one to stitch you back together when you get injured. I wouldn’t blame her if she were to accidentally not numb the area.” Chris then turned to you. “Don’t let these rookies give you hell L/N.” 

With that he started detailing the mission. You were to break off in groups; Chris led one team and Piers led the other. 

You happened to be on Chris’s team, much to your chagrin. All you could think about was your teammate’s comment from earlier; was that all you were good for? Did Chris feel like he had to put you on the team because of the lack of medical personnel? You snapped out of your thoughts when you saw a dark presence looming over your captain.

“What the hell?” you thought to yourself. You’ve never seen anything like this before. Captain Redfield started to slow down and you could tell whatever it was, was slowing him down.

“Captain you alright?” you said as you hurried to his side. Chris let out a sigh.”Nothing ever gets past you L/N.I think dealing with all these rookies is causing me to slow down.” He said light heartedly.  “Hope you’re not getting too old, Redfield!” Marco yelled playfully. The rest of the team including the Captain started to laugh, except you. 

“Not in your dreams Rose!” The Captain quipped back immediately. “Let’s focus on the task at hand so I can kick your ass later.” 

You were more concerned now, whatever this was, affected your captain in real time. You wish you had remembered some of the lessons Cordelia had given you on your gift. You never liked talking about dark entities, and now one was latched on to someone you admired dearly. It’s not like you could tell him though, he’d probably chalk your visions up to some PTSD and you would be discharged and shipped back to Robichaux. If you were going to help Chris, you had to take this thing on yourself.

#Chris Redfield x reader #resident evil fanfiction #ahs coven #chris redfield #cordelia goode #myrtle snow #reader is clairvoyant #this is shitty and i know #piers nivans #marco rose #friends to enemies to lovers #ehehehe