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saffron-nova21 · 3 years

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X. Meeting the Team Pt. 2

The Next Chapter Masterlist

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Warnings: Strong language, a depiction of a panic attack and the reader's panic, mentions of Oikawa having a knee injury and panic attacks, reader yells at Kuroo.

A/N: By the way, please don't hate me for giving Kuroo a Camaro, I know literally nothing about cars, I'll call myself out so you don't have to.

Stepping out of Kuroo's sleek black 2013 Camaro, your eyes look at the large gym, the sound of volleyballs hitting hardwood floors bringing back memories for you. Glancing out of the corner of your eyes, towards your taller friend, you remembered the last time you'd walked into an unfamiliar gym. You'd met people who you'd made life-long friends with and he'd helped you get out of an awful situation.

Kuroo, Kenma, Lev, and... Well, really, the majority of the Nekoma High and Fukurōdani Academy volleyball clubs... They'd helped you realize when you needed to put your foot down and start looking out for yourself, rather than worrying about stepping on people's toes. While yes, you had lost two of the most important people in your life, by doing so, you also met quite a few people who truly were looking out for you and your happiness.

Did you hate Atsumu and Suna for the way they treated you? No. They both did a lot of damage, through their words and actions. But, at the end of the day, you'd all been so much younger and you weren't going to waste the rest of your life, hating people who weren't even in the picture, anymore. Or so, you thought.

You didn't ever intend or want to see them again, after the emotional turmoil they'd put you through. Little did Kuroo know just how badly you would respond to seeing them again.

"Are you going to stand there and keep reminiscing over when you met me, or are you going to walk inside and make some new friends?" The teasing smirk on Kuroo's lips only reminded you of the fact that even though he was pretty much a mother to you and Kenma, he was a teasing asshole. He knew how to press all of the right buttons and it would never fail to piss you off.

Walking forward, Kuroo walks forward and grasps the handle of the door, opening it for you. You don't hesitate to begin walking into the gym, flipping Kuroo off on your way. "You talk to me like a preschooler, y'know. And you wonder why Kenma calls you mom behind your back."

Stepping into the gym, you were in awe of your surroundings. Sure, this was an Olympic-level gym, but it looked far too pretty and clean to be a place for as grueling a training regimen as you could assume these athletes were put through.

What you were most pleased to find was that it didn't reek of sweat and floor mats. Instead, it had an almost fresh smell to it. It was partitioned up into three different rooms, as far as you could tell. The largest room was the one you were standing in currently, a weight room; different machinery is scattered neatly around the room and you notice that several ceiling-to-floor mirrors are lining the walls for the boys to observe their form while they work. Across from the door you'd just entered through was a wall of glass, which you could only hope was reinforced, and on the other side was a true volleyball gym, where you could see a few people working on their spikes, even if you couldn't quite make out who they were yet. The last room was closed off and much smaller than the other two, so you assumed it to be where the showers and changing room were located.

"Your highness!" You hear a familiar voice, turning to see Iwaizumi approaching you with a snarky grin, a small white towel hanging from around his neck. He wore a sleeveless grey shirt, only bringing more attention to his defined biceps. Sweats drip down his temple and you find yourself a bit embarrassed when you notice his lip still shows signs of the damage you'd done, the day prior. "So kind of you to finally join us."

Despite the lack of a real smile on his face, one of your own tugged at your lips, knowing that he was only teasing you. "You know, Iwa, you could always just admit that you missed me." Sending a wink his way, you notice that a few of the men are stopping what they're doing to look towards you, their attention captured by how loud Iwaizumi had previously been.

"Baby owl!" You can only brace yourself as you hear the former captain shout to you, knowing he was one for hugs. You didn't quite expect to be scooped up off of your feet. Laughter escapes you as Bokuto spins you around, practically bouncing up and down in joy that you were here. "You missed my spikes, earlier! They were so good, they were so good! They even would have made Akaashi proud!"

As Bokuto places you back down on the ground, some of the other boys are starting to approach, a few looking concerned by the way you gripped Bokuto's shoulder to steady yourself. And though you weren't paying attention to who it was, the three who'd been in the area of the gym and net had entered the weight area and gone for their towels and water bottles.

After you manage to shake yourself out of your dizzied state, you look at Bokuto with a smile. "Yeah, Bo? Well, you'll have to show me some more, later, yeah?"

Feeling a hand on your shoulder, you spot Iwaizumi staring at you, brows pinching together in slight concern for your wellbeing. He places a bottle of water in your hands, before looking a the excited, silver-haired volleyball player, "Let's be careful, Bokuto. It's only their first day."

"They're looking a little dizzy, Bokuto. You might want to refrain from doing that in the future." The deep voice catches you off-guard, eyes flicking towards the very, very tall, scary man, now standing beside Bokuto.

He wasn't just tall, but he had quite a lot of muscle to his frame, giving him the build of a fucking giant. With wide eyes, you look him over. Despite his size, upon closer examination, he seemed a lot gentler than you might've previously mistaken him for. Kind eyes like that didn't belong to someone who would snap you in two... Right? Your eyes move away from his face, trailing down his body. From strong-looking biceps to defined thighs, the man seemed like a machine, more than anything. He couldn't actually be real, right?

"The fuck are you guys feeding him? Holy shit, hi there, B-F-G." You nod towards him, "Is your hair green or brown, because I'm looking at it and I'm gonna be honest, it's confusing me about as much as that Karasuno kid's did. Holy shit, I think I'm haunted by those memories." A mock shudder runs down your spine.

While Bokuto and Kuroo are used to your trailing off-topic, Ushijima looks confused, the poor thing. "What is a... B-F-G?"

"Big friendly giant. It's what they used to call this tall-ass first year who went to volleyball club with us, as well. You should feel special, Ushiwaka."

"Oh my fuck, Yaku, is that you? You got taller! That's criminal. You were my short king!" A pout graces your lips, while you step forward to give your old friend a large hug.

While Yaku hasn't found himself looking an insane amount taller, he did gain a bit of height since his time in high school. He stood in front of you, a hand resting on the back of his neck and his shoulders drawn back. He'd always had this feel-good, confident aura about him and it was something you'd always deeply respected about him. It was good to see that hadn't gone away.

After a brief hug, Yaku opens his mouth to speak, only for Kuroo to beat him to it. "I thought that was Kenma?"

Sighing, you roll your eyes. "I had to put Kenma in a different bracket, or else he would very easily surpass all of you in everything. I mean come on now, this is Kenma we're talking about," you muse with a self-satisfied smirk, making Kuroo raise an eyebrow.

Though, unbeknownst to you were the thoughts going through Kuroo's head. If only you knew why Kenma did all of the things that he did for you.

"I'm so excited to be working with you guys," a grin makes its way onto your lips as you clasp your hands together in front of you in excitement.

The smile that spread over your lips was contagious, even making Ushijima crack a small smile of his own. Out of anyone Kuroo had known, even with your aggression and the talking you'd do when you got excited, you were one of those people who people couldn't help but find themselves drawn to. And none of the men in the gym were able to quite explain why they found you as endearing as they did. Maybe it was the fact that you most certainly had no filter, whatsoever.

Bokuto places his hands on your shoulders, looking at the others on his team, "They're such a good player, guys! They could have gone pro if they wanted to! They have the best jump-float I've ever seen!" His loud bragging unknowingly catches the attention of the three final members of this group, who'd been caught up in conversation and getting a drink of water.

Yaku juts his chin out a bit and if you hadn't known him as well, you'd have thought the look he gave you was downright scrutinizing. But, being the person you were, and him being the person he was, you knew that he only took Bokuto's words as a challenge. "Oh yeah? Then that should be good practice for our receivers and I."

"If you needed service aces to practice on, you could have just asked, Mori! I wouldn't have minded helping you out, outside of my work hours." You smile as you look towards the libero, "I've been needing to get out of the apartment, for a while. Even Kenma can only handle so much of my dumbass."

Ushijima's curiosity gets the best of him and he cocks his head to the side, wondering what profession you'd chosen, rather than a career in volleyball. And so, yet again, Yaku is beaten to the chase, Ushijima speaking before the smaller man can get his mouth open. "What do you work as?"

"Youtuber some days, but twitch streamer, more often than not." Shrugging your shoulders, you continue to smile, "My roommate got me into it, actually, and from there, it became a profession for the both of us. Though he's got a dozen other jobs as well, it's pretty amazing."

A hand comes to ruffle your hair and after quickly identifying it as Kuroo's you lean into the display of affection. "We're talking about you, not Kenma."

"Speaking of," Bokuto speaks, even though it has nothing to do with the topic at hand, and his hands come up to guide your shoulders in the direction of the gym, "You need to set for me!"

Iwaizumi raises his eyebrows, looking impressed, "You can set, as well?"

Nodding excitedly, you dive into an explanation, stopping before Bokuto can steal you away, "Yeah, I play a lot of different positions, actually. My ex-boyfriend was a middle blocker, my childhood friends were a setter and a spiker, and my older brother was an outside hitter - plus, he was amazing at defense, so he helped me a lot with perfecting my service aces when I played in high school. So you can say I was always a well-rounded player."

"Not to mention that you and that ex-boyfriend of yours were almost unbeatable, together. Almost." A warily familiar voice came from behind you, making you look back and grin from ear to ear.

The germaphobe had hardly changed, since high school. He was as tall as ever with a good build to him - only befitting for a volleyball player. As well kept as ever, he stood in front of you, reminding you of the number of times you'd ended up facing him across a net, years before. Though, unlike back then, now you were able to look towards one another for a friendship rather than a healthy rivalry.

"Why if it isn't Sakusa Kiyoomi. It's been forever!" With a questioning glance thrown your way by none other than Bokuto, you explain. "When I was at Inarizaki, we played against Itachiyama all of the time. Kiyoomi and I traded numbers after we bonded over our hatred of large crowds."

Sakusa lets a small uncharacteristic smile slip onto his lips as he glances towards Bokuto, "We haven't really kept in contact, but they'll be a welcome challenge, on the court, again."

"Is that a certain germaphobe of ours... Smiling? Omi! I didn't know you could do that! I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks!"

That voice. Why was he here? Your body goes stiff underneath Bokuto's touch, making the large male draw back to check on you, eyebrows pulled together in concern, until he spots what, or rather who you're staring at.

Because there the two are, standing in all of their glory. Suna Rintarō and Miya Atsumu. They didn't look all that different from the last time you'd seen them. Even though, it'd been what? Nine years?

By the way you go rigid, Suna's eyes drop to the floor, almost guiltily. It had been nine years and you still hated them. Though, he supposed they both deserved it. When you'd told them that you were leaving Inarizaki, they made your life even worse than what it had been. They gave you absolutely every reason to leave, rather than try to convince you to stay.

Before anyone can say anything, you catapult yourself into the air in an attempt to flee the building, much resembling a cat. You just, bolted in the first route you saw working and that was apparently through the air. Kuroo had to jerk you into his chest before you could face-plant to get you to calm down for a second. Sakusa narrowed his eyes as he looked between Suna and Atsumu - had they really been so awful to you?

"I quit. I'm not gonna do it." Your words sounded childish, you knew that but you didn't care, shaking your head as you pull yourself away from Kuroo, having half a mind to leave and not talk to any of the men here ever again. Well, more two of them, than anything else. Though, as you pull away, it dawns on you: was this why he had been so dead-set on you coming to 'help the team out?' With this question in mind, you turn around to face Kuroo. "Did you know they were going to be here?" When he doesn't respond, you feel your breath catch in your throat. The air you were breathing felt heavy inside your chest. He couldn't do that to you - he wouldn't. You flex your hands a bit - everything wasn't actually crumbling. Just remember what Kenma said... Breath...

You can't find the words or guts to continue until he reaches for you, anger quickly rising. What made him think he had any right to comfort you when he'd put you in this situation? "Do you not remember any of what happened in high school? Do you not remember how he," pointing a dramatic finger at Suna, "manipulated me? How bad he hurt me, more than once?"

"Do you not remember what he let happen?" After pointing towards the faux-blonde briefly, you drop your hand back to your side, "Oh no, I forget, you weren't there to see the damage they did, right? Because you went off to University and forgot all about Kenma and me, until we got out of high school, as well, right? Right?" You were hardly able to speak, trying to catch your breath in between words. Your voice was growing faint and strained, due to your lack of oxygen in your lungs.

You knew that everyone's stare was on you, only worsening your panicking. Your hands come to your shirt, wringing the ends of it as you try to ground yourself. But you couldn't stop. You just kept talking, needing Kuroo to understand why you were angry, why you were upset. He needed to understand what you were feeling and what he had done.

"You left me, with strangers, in a big city, after promising me it would all be okay. I wasn't welcomed back with my grandmother and brother, after the falling out. But did you even bother to check up, once, after you left? Did you even care, after promising me it was going to be okay? Come on, give me an answer, huh?" You weren't quite sure what brought up all of these old feelings. Maybe it was having to see the two that caused you all of that distress. "Fuck you, Tetsurō."

Kuroo couldn't deny the fact that he was surprised by the way you lashed out at him. He was wondering where all of this anger had been, years ago. Why hadn't you or Kenma ever said anything to him about this? He was fumbling, no words would escape him, no matter his efforts to get something out.

An uneasy silence hangs in the air for a few long moments, everyone looking between you and the former Nekoma captain. Truthfully, you'd never really dealt with everything that had happened, emotionally. You just kind of shoved it down and distracted yourself with being at a new school and video games.

"Bokuto, take Miya, Ushijima, and Suna and go and practice on the court, for a while." A firm voice saves Kuroo from having to respond, making everyone look towards the athletic trainer. "Yaku, I think you should escort Kuroo out. I'll take Y/N home, today." Iwaizumi walks over to you, looking at Sakusa, "Go get me a cool, damp towel, okay?"

You aren't quite sure if Kuroo leaves willingly, or if Yaku has to force him out, but you don't really care, at the moment. Iwaizumi places an arm around your shoulders and brings you over to a bench to sit on, uncapping a water bottle for you. He crouches down in front of you and hands it to you. "Hey, look at me. It's going to be okay, can you focus on breathing for me, right now?"

You weren't crying, were you? Why was it so hot in here? Why couldn't you just calm down? Everyone was looking at you, weren't they? Had you acted irrationally? They were going to hate you for being so dramatic, weren't they? So much for a good first impression with the boys...

"Did you hear me?" Iwaizumi's voice cuts through your thoughts, making your eyes shift to his. Without a word, you move your eyes back down to the water bottle in his hands, "Breath, Y/N."

Easier said than done. "Al -," you swallow shakily and nod, "Alright."

You move your eyes away from him - bad idea Y/N. When you spot the men glancing over at you while they distractedly get to work, you don't quite register that they wanted to check on you, because they were worried about you, mistaking it, instead, for judgment. You opt for closing your eyes, tapping your fingers together rhythmically to help you calm yourself down.

Looking you over, Iwaizumi is reminded of all the late practices that he would find Oikawa collapsing from exhaustion or due to his knee injuries. Though, Oikawa only got this bad when he held the weight of not making it to nationals on his shoulders. Was this a panic attack that you were having, like Oikawa use to have? Or was it something else? He noticed you reach out to him, after a moment of his thinking, and he offers you a hand, silently nodding when you flash him a grateful, weak, but grateful, smile.

Slowly, your breathing mellowed out and the tears pricking your eyes slipped down your cheeks, your head hanging as you attempt to withdraw your hand from Iwaizumi. Though, your eyes move back up when he gently grips your hand, holding it in his, still. It isn't long after that when you feel nimble fingers grip your chin, tilting it up so that Sakusa can gently pat your cheeks and face with the cool cloth. You knew he didn't like touching people much and you were tempted to tell them that they didn't have to do this for you. But their touch was so gentle and their presence so calming that you couldn't bring yourself to open your mouth.

Instead of saying anything, you relax against Iwaizumi and Sakusa's touch. Normally it was Kenma who'd be doing this for you, just as you'd do it for him, but Kenma wasn't here, right now. And you were left to depend on yourself and these very kind, very gentle men.

It doesn't take Yaku long to make his way over, sitting on the bench behind you and gently rubbing circles against your back. "You okay there?" He asks you after a few moments of silence.

Letting out a breath, you open your eyes and nod. You pull your hand away from Iwaizumi and pull your head from Sakusa, turning from them, "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine."

Though, you aren't expecting Sakusa to grasp your chin once again and tilt your head in their direction again, "You aren't and we all know it, so cut the act."

Yaku sends a glare towards the taller man, "Sakusa!"

"What?" He snaps back. "I'm right, aren't I? They're not okay and they have every right to express it."

Iwaizumi sighs and looks at you, ignoring the other two, "Drink some water, okay? Look, after today, you don't have to return, I think we'll all understand if you don't want to... But, and you can ignore what I'm about to say if you want, I think that you need closure. Even if that comes from just having to tolerate occupying the same building as them."

Glancing over his shoulders, you find Suna and Atsumu both glancing in your direction. They looked so guilty... Why did you care? You frown and give him a shrug, "Whatever..."

Looking at you, Yaku nods slowly, "We'll try and keep you away from them, alright?"

After a nod of confirmation from Sakusa, you sigh and take a sip of the water bottle Iwaizumi had offered you. "Okay. Fine, yeah, I'll... I'll keep helping out." You confirm. "But, I'm going to bring Kenma for the next few days, just to make sure... This doesn't happen again." Gesturing to where the three sat, doting over you, you lower your eyes again.

"Whatever is going to make you feel most comfortable," Iwaizumi tells you, bringing a hand to affectionately ruffling your hair, watching the way you immediately lean into the affection.

"Let's get to work, what do you say, Y/N?" Sakusa hums, tone surprisingly gentle with you.

You finally stand up, capping your water bottle. "Yeah... Yeah. What can I do for you boys?"

Kenma and you both have a history of having panic attacks and you both are very good at calming one another down, due to your years of experience.

The boys might have just met you, but they all quickly developed this sense of 'I need to protect them' after what happened in front of them.

Atsumu let someone blackmail you, while you were both in high school and Suna continuously used you for his own amusement after he lost his memories and before he got them back. And they both said hurtful things when you announced you'd be leaving.

I am so sorry for how late this was, honestly. I just couldn't get it written how I wanted it. And even still, I don't really like the end result. But no matter, here it is, now, I hope you guys enjoy it. I hope you guys are having a great day, as well! Remember, sweetheart, I'm proud of you. You deserve to eat, get a good amount of sleep, and drink some water, I am so proud of you. Have a great day, alright! I'll have another chapter out tomorrow 🤍 I love you guys.

General Taglist:

@kookie-doughs @halesandy @ermahgerd-larry-and-ziam @its-the-aerieljeane @onlyonew @kac-chowsballs @saltylettuce @thathoneybee3 @daninaninani @akkeyomi @vintagexparker

The Next Chapter Taglist:

@anime-meme-sanctuary @nachotrash @haijkk @maadaaaa @prettyinblack231 @sakusasimpbot @kellesvt @bebetiny @ash-levi @calumsfringe @z3ld4 @erinoikawa @bandaged-despair @chaseyui @atria-avior @just-that-bi-girl @one-simp-more @hxked @universalmay @himboos

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netheritenugget · 3 years

Note

this is very very late but i've just been so swamped with work on top of having terrible memory that i kept forgetting to ask you about the soup recipe

if you're free and only then, i'd love to hear it

the weather's getting colder and soup sounds wonderful

soup sounds great actually

(great work on ranboo's ambience track btw knocked it out of the park with that one)

Aww, ty! I worked really hard on it and I'm glad you liked it!

My memory is also terrible so I also kept forgetting about the soup. But here it is!

It was a tossup between the jambalaya recipe, and the turkey gumbo (we don't live the south but we ended up with these recipes from... Something to do with my preschool when I was little? Idk). And I couldn't decide which one. So here's both anyway.

Jambalaya

"Preparation and cooking time about 1 1/2 hours, this will feed at least four people, and is even better reheated the next day, just add a little water when reheating.

2 Tablesp. Butter or Margarine

2 Tablesp Fresh Garlic, chopped 1 Green Bell Pepper, chopped

1/2 Yellow Onion, chopped

4 sticks of celery, chopped

1 Large can 28 oz. chopped, peeled Tomatos

112 oz can of Tomato Sauce

1 cup water to start

1 pound of either Hillshire Farms Hot Links or Hot Sausage links cut into bite size pieces

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts Cut into bite sized pieces

1 1/2 Cups cooked white rice

White Pepper, Black Pepper, Red Pepper and Salt

*1 pound Jumbo Shrimp or Prawns, cleaned and deveined (Optional see below)

Melt butter in LARGE pot or cast iron Dutch oven, add garlic, bell pepper, onion and celery. Cook for a few minutes, then add tomatos, tomato sauce, water, hot links, salt and peppers to taste. Stir, cover and let simmer. Lately I leave out the red pepper, and add only the white and black. Add chicken when mixture begins to boil, cook for 15 minutes then add rice. Stir and let cook a few minutes more, add more spices to taste if needed. It should be slightly salty, and SPICY!! Add water depending on how Soupy or Stew-like you want it. I like mine more soupy, since it thickens up a great deal as it cools

*Optional Shrimp or Prawns*

You may add Shrimp or Prawns or substitute it for one of the meats above BUT be warned. Seafood does not need to be cooked for very long before it becomes tough. The above meats are fine to let simmer for a while, but if you are adding shellfish, do so after cooking the ice in the jambalya for a while, and then only cook it a few minutes longer after adding the shrimp or pravns, I would say no more than 5 minutes."

The jambalaya recipe is a very tasty soup, and pretty easy to make. We have it all the time. The leftovers are indeed delicious. Also, try scooping it and eating it with corn chips like a chillie, it's pretty good, especially when it's too hot to eat spoonfuls of!

The only things I have to note for this recipe as far as making it is concerned, is that you should take into account the amount of spice in the sausage, it can make it hotter than expected, so taste test it frequently. You can substitute white rice for brown, and add things like diced broccoli slaw veggies (obviously without the mayo) if you want to make it healthier. And we usually do not make ours with shrimp, it is very easy to accidentally make it rubbery, and I find it isn't as good in leftovers.

Turkey Gumbo Soup

"Ingredients:

1. Broth from boiled turkey carcass with leftover meat pulled off and reserved for adding later or bouillon cubes with water/canned broth if more liquid is needed.

2. 1 lb. Italian sausage (mild) in bulk, browned well and drained of fat. Remove sausage filling from casings prior to cooking, sauté like ground beef.

3. 1 chopped onion

4. 1 chopped green bell pepper (or 2-3 celery stalks)

5. 3 cloves garlic

6. 2 bag of frozen cut up okra

7. ½ tsp pepper

8. ½ tsp. Salt (to taste)

9. bay leaf (optional)

10. 1 tbsp A-1 steak sauce

11. 2 or 3 14 oz cans of tomatoes (I used stewed tomatoes, but Italian style works as well.

12. Italian seasoning (1 tsp was recommended but a little goes a long way with me, especially if you use Italian style tomatoes)

Saute onions, garlic, celery in large pot. Add broth, cooked and drained sausage and rest of ingredients. Simmer for at least an hour. This works great in a crock pot as well."

The turkey gumbo is delicious but sadly it's best to make it if you have leftovers of a holiday turkey, and it's not even October yet. 🥲 So that's partly why I also included the jambalaya recipe. But hey, saving recipes for later is always a good idea!

If someone already threw away the turkey bones before you could stop them and tell them why you need them, that's alright, store bought turkey broth really is an ok substitute.

That's the soup! Enjoy!

#food #long post

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shoichee · 3 years

Note

hi ! <3 I Absolutely luv your scenarios!:) Can I request for the pregnant s/o scenario with Midorima & Murasakibara ? :o Thank you :D

HELLO <333 wahhh tysm for reading, and i hope you’re still around lurking here to see this, my anon <33 also, i did write these in headcanon formats but please PLEASE let me know if you wanted scenarios and i’ll whip up scenarios :>

Pregnant S/O with Midorima, Murasakibara

Note: I am also writing this hc under the premise that the S/O has been dating with them for quite some time and is practically settled with them

Part 1 here

Midorima Shintarou

How He Found Out

i would believe for him to always, always use protection whenever he ends up having sex with you, and make sure you’re on birth control to prevent such an occurence

for a pregnancy to even happen, these conditions need to happen: 1.) he needs to be 100% sure that the two of you will be together for a very, VERY long time enough to not freak out about contraceptives or at least toy with the idea of not use any in the back of his mind and 2.) you somehow riled him up so much that he let it slide once/twice and go condom-free (whether you were on birth control or not that’s up to you, but he’d assume you were)

well, it turns out that during one of those rare moments of unprotected sex, you got pregnant, and now here you are with a positive stick in your hand squinting at it and scratching your head that you were either incredibly lucky or unlucky to get pregnant out of those few times you two went raw

how were you gonna tell him? well, he was a traditional man, so you simply set up a small, cute surprise for him when he gets back home

y’know, balloons in the living room and a little wrapped gift on the cleared table… it would send the message across… you think

hours passed and you were on the sofa twiddling your thumbs like a preschooler on timeout LOL and you didn’t want to go anywhere in case Midorima comes home early

your instincts were right because an hour later, he comes home utterly exhausted, immediately thinking about being roundabout in asking to snuggle with you

but then he freezes when his shoe stepped and POPPED one of the balloons you scattered around prior, and it scared him SHITLESS

he almost dropped his lucky claypot. almost.

“(y/n), what is going on?!”

he thinks it’s one of your antics and pranks as usual, and he immediately sighs exasperatedly at the thought of cleaning the mess up

“Seriously, I can never leave you alone in this house, nanodayo…” and as he shuffles through the floor, trying to avoid the rest of the clutter you caused, he notices you sitting primly on the couch (and giving him a poorly-concealed smile)

“Shintaro! I didn’t know you’d come home so soon~”

“Well, everyone was being annoying as usual, and most of the work has been done for today. I might as well come home to spend the rest of the day with you… obviously.”

you were so obvious, your eyes flitting back to the gift on the table and back to him, and Midorima doesn’t know whether to roll his eyes or laugh

“I’m assuming this is all for me,” he sighed, trying to hide his smile. “I don’t recall any special occasion for today, though.”

oh, your face just grew the biggest shit-eating grin at his words

“Is that so?~” you feigned with a sing-song voice

at your insistence on him opening the present right now, he swiftly pulls the ribbon apart and opens the box to see your positive test

MIDORIMA.EXE has stopped working

“W-W-W-What is that?!”

“A pregnancy test.”

“Whose?!”

“... Mine?”

“Wait, how?! With who??”

“Uh…” You stared at him incredulously. “You?”

MIDORIMA.EXE is failing to reboot

you were pointing at yourself and Midorima to further try to get the POINT ACROSS to this poor man who’s trying to process this OFBEJDIWHRIE

but you stopped your hand motions when you see the purest smile slowly growing on Midorima’s normally stoic face

YOU.EXE has stopped working

he brings you into a tight embrace and for a while you two hug in silence, enjoying each other’s company

“So uh, I’m pregnant,” you said, your words slightly muffled by his shirt

“Yes, I am quite well aware now,” he replied dryly, but his eyes are quite affectionate

“I hope you realize that this is a huge responsibility, (y/n).”

“Hey! I know that it’s a big deal! Come on, who do you take me for?”

“... Right.”

During Pregnancy

the first thing he does was take you to the doctor’s just to find out when you were going to deliver

“What? Why?” you asked him

“I must know our child’s horoscope sign as soon as possible,” he said seriously. “We have to make sure they’re born with no misfortunes attached to them.”

“Are you fucking serious?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

MIDORIMA PLEASE-

okay, but he’d also ask the doctor diligently on what you should be doing and what he should be doing to ensure a successful delivery

Midorima is deadass budget-version doctor at home

it’s that one meme where you go:

“Hey mom can we have a doctor?”

Mom: “We already have a doctor at home.”

Doctor at home: Midorima Shintarou

JOKES aside, he really is knowledgeable on this entire ordeal, which is a blessing and a curse

you could always come to him to rely on him when you’re unsure of something or for him to deal with your moodiness

but at the same time, you can’t get away with snacking on abhorrent things because he’d SNATCH them off your hands and scold you for being irresponsible LOLOL

you could NEVER sneak off unhealthy food because he’s ALWAYS somehow there to catch you or he eventually finds out later and still give you an earful

you still try to do it again anyways

then there’s that side of Midorima where he’d stuff the entire house with bundles of lucky items because he insists on buying two lucky items for you and the kid every day during your pregnancy… all so you can “maximize” your chances of having a successful delivery

you’re sobBING, it’s so CUTE BUT SO DUMB

did I mention that he’s already started on building the nursery and decorating it in ALL sorts of lucky charms and adorable plushies under the guise of “being safe and making the room lucky”

he rarely lets you step out of the house, but if you have to, he’ll always make the time for you so he can accompany you and just glower at anyone who looks at you the wrong way

surprisingly, he’s a lot more lenient on the PDA during your pregnancy: LOTS of hand-holding, chaste kisses on your head/forehead and maybe cheeks, and he does often hug you from the side to protect you

if you bring it up to him though, he’ll deny it to the VERY end and insists that he only does it so you don’t get moody and snap at random strangers passing by, and then it’ll be a hassle to deal with them

yeah right, Midorima

Murasakibara Atsushi

How He Found Out

when you first found out, you decided to hide it from him until you can figure out how to go about your pregnancy

1.) he didn’t seem like the type who can handle kids, let alone even like them

2.) you’re worried about how he’d react considering that he has a “devil-may-care” attitude and has quite a languid view on most things, even to this day

you underestimated Murasakibara though because when you first initially excused yourself to the restroom the first few times, he assumed that you were having too many sweets and barred you from consuming them until you got better

but you didn’t… in fact, you looked even sicker as the days progressed

that was when Murasakibara got suspicious and started paying attention to you and your behavior

when he gets serious, he’s incredibly sharp and intuitive

even still, he doesn’t know if he should confront you or wait until you tell him, because you’ve always been the “big pants” in the relationship, for lack of better terms

so he waits and observes, but he still acts just as normally as any other day, and you, on the other hand, thought you were able to successfully hide this from him

still, when you keep up this sneaky behavior around him, he slowly doubts himself about if he did anything wrong, if he forgot anything important, or if you’re doubting this relationship ???

but he’s not going to admit it to you, so he’s going to casually call Himuro and voice his concerns in such a roundabout way

Himuro immediately understands what he’s trying to ask and simply tells him to talk it out with you

ofc, Murasakibara just huffs and complains about it being so troublesome, but Himuro, smiles, knowing him better that he was going to do it despite his verbal complaints

when asking you if he did anything “wrong” and such, you immediately shake your head and deny it all to ease his worries, and you tell him that it wasn’t anything like what he imagined

at your words, Murasakibara was relieved but at the same time, if these weren’t the problems, why were you acting so strange?

like when you kept oversleeping, kept rushing to the bathroom early mornings, or when you even turned down his offer of going to the grocery store, bakery, and the confectionery store together multiple times simply because you said that you didn’t have the energy

he finally confronted after a few weeks of dodging on your end, draping his entire body over you from behind and placing his chin on top of your head

“Chibi-chin…” he mumbled. “You’ve been acting really weird for the past few weeks. Talk to me.”

you only sighed as you turn around and embrace Murasakibara, and then separated from him to put distance between the two of you as you make eye contact with him

you resigned yourself to tell him the truth because he was going to find it sooner or later, considering that you’ve developed a small bump… so far, you’ve passed off your stomach size as a “food baby” and “gaining weight, I guess,” but you knew you couldn’t use that excuse forever

but before you can utter out a single word, dizziness hits you like a truck, making you completely lose balance before you legit fainted on the spot

poor Murasakibara expresses one of his rare moments of absolute distress as he lunged forward to catch you before you fell to the floor

he’s dialing Himuro because he has no idea what to do and he’s absolutely PANICKING and thinking of the worst-case scenarios of what happened to you

Murasakibara was READY TO CALL THE AMBULANCE AND EVERYTHING but Himuro managed to calm him down enough to reason that it’s better to bring you by car

after all, Himuro had an inkling of an idea of what happened to you, but like a little shit, he’s not gonna tell Murasakibara because seeing him so openly expressive like that was a guilty pleasure for him

POOR MURASAKIBARA

he’s constantly holding you in the car like his life is on the line, and Himuro is just driving and looking straight ahead mentally cackling and wondering how he’s gonna escape his wrath if Murasakibara ever finds out that he knew but didn’t tell him

imagine a distraught giant busting through the doors carrying an unconscious you with a model-like guy trailing behind and pushing the giant to the side to try to coherently talk to the disoriented receptionists

what a life

the doctor merely just says that you fainted and it wasn’t serious, and Murasakibara doesn’t believe them ONE BIT

but he notices Himuro walking over to the doctor’s ear and whispering something, before they had an “ah-ha!” moment, and then right on cue, they had you moved to a different room for testing

poor giant is so agitated, constantly shaking his leg on the floor while he’s sitting in the waiting room, jeez HIMURO PLEASE GIVE HIM A BREAK

“Congratulations! She’s pregnant!”

“Huh.”

“Aren’t you her special someone?”

“Indeed, Atsushi is!” Himuro answers for him with a wink

Murasakibara needs to p r o c e s s this

after a while, you groggily stroll out the room like nothing happened, but still you had a frown on your face because you didn’t want Murasakibara to find out about your pregnancy this way

the car ride home was so AWKWARDLY SILENT

when you both get home, he gets SO PETTY AND CHILDISH AND HUFFS AWAY AND REFUSES TO TALK TO YOU

you try to coax him with kisses, hugs, and tickles, but he’s not budging one bit

even snacks didn’t move him… even though he did eye them for a bit before he turned away

“Atsushiiii,” you whined. “Talk to meeee, I’m sorry.” and there you go pouting and trying to squish his cheeks to get him to give up

he looks at you with an uncharacteristically serious look when he asks, “Why didn’t you tell me, Chibi-chin?”

and here you are, reluctantly explaining your reasons, and Murasakibara is just frowning because he’s thinking about how he needs to get his shit together so you don’t ever think that you can’t rely on him again

lots of wholesome cuddling to make it all up to him

“So… Chibi-chin.”

“Yeah?”

“I’m… gonna be a dad?”

“Yeah.”

and he gives you the brightest smile he’s had since the game against the Jabberwocks, except it was much more intimate and sweeter

During Pregnancy

does Murasakibara have any idea on how to deal with pregnancy? no, but to be fair, most people aren’t prepared anyways

he keeps forgetting that he can’t just give you sweets and snacks willy-nilly anymore because that’d be horrible for the you and the child

but he’s always giving them to you out of habit LOL, but of course, usually you turn his snacks down and remind him that you can’t eat them anymore

except when you have ungodly cravings and just accept his offerings without a complaint

and then Murasakibara feels like something feels off before he realizes you’re tearing off the packaging and ready to shove the entire biscuit into your mouth—

from that point on, he’s a lot more diligent in keeping the processed foods away from you

whenever Himuro stops by to help you out, Murasakibara REFUSES to forget what he did before and he glares daggers at him with every chance he gets, and both you and Himuro ignore him and are having your own conversations about the child AND MURASAKIBARA JUST SULKS IN THE CORNER ALL ANGRY—

he’s so petty and he’s so pouty, and honestly he is the one that becomes clingy during your pregnancy

whenever you shop for baby essentials to prepare, he’s always tailing after you like a lost puppy and trying to learn and understand the baby basics(????), while also doubling as your bodyguard

I mean, who would want to mess with you while there’s a purple titan RIGHT there?

still, you get a huge kick when you see people’s shocked expressions at seeing this gigantic man in the baby sections/aisles following around

you noticed, especially during your later trimesters, that he’s even gentler in how he handles and touches you, and it’s super cute that he’s so conscious about his size and strength around you

your heart is LITERALLY melting

you don’t think he even realizes that himself

but still, Murasakibara has to literally grit his teeth to stop himself from glaring/snapping back at you when your mood swings get really bad

how much do you want to bet that Murasakibara makes you buy extra baby food just to try it?

he’d probably even make you taste test it with him

he says it’s so the baby can eat the best brands out there and doesn’t have to eat the shitty food, but you think that he’s just eating it for fun and you tell him not to spoil the baby so early like that

he leaves the decorations and actual planning up to you though, even though he’ll be right behind you as you do it… he just finds it tiring and too complex sometimes

if you send him on grocery errands and things like that, he’d actually get up and do it without a complaint

if it was all for you and his child’s sake, he’ll do anything… after all, it’s the least he can do to be a dependable father

#knb #knb fic #knb fics #knb headcanons #kuroko no basket #midorima x reader #midorima shintarou #midorima shintaro #midorima shintarou x reader #murasakibara atsushi #murasakibara #murasakibara x reader #murasakibara atsushi x reader #pregnancy headcanon #knb scenarios #anon

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autumnleaves1991-blog · 3 years

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Day 24: Something Was Off- Agent Whiskey

Day 24: Something Was Off - Agent Whiskey

Pairing: Agent Whiskey x Reader (Apple)

This prompt was requested by @littlevodika. Thank you so much for the request and I hope you enjoy this continuation of the Whiskey/Apple relationship.

Taglist: @oldstuffnewstuff @josepedropascal

This is part three, you can read the other two parts below.

Part 1 (Day 1 Heartbeat) Part 2 (Day 8 Dot, Dot, Dot)

November Writing Challenge Masterlist

Day 23: Whispers - Will ‘Ironhead’ Miller

“You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are grey. You’ll never know dear how much I love you. So please don’t take my sunshine away…” Jack ‘Whiskey’ Daniels serenades the small bundle in his arms.

All swaddled in a pink blanket, Magnolia Daniels eyes droop and a small smile graces her sweet little face as she watches her daddy sway to the music. The sounds of his deep velvety voice and his warm chest lull her into sleep.

Jack places a kiss on her forehead before laying her in the bassinet beside your side of the bed. He crawls back into bed and wraps his long arms around you tucking you back into his chest, and sighing. “Thank you,” he whispers, “that little girl and you are my entire world,” he kisses your head gently before drifting back off to sleep.

Maggie makes her presence known several hours later when she wakes with the sunshine and begins to fuss. You lift her from the bassinet and pull down your sleep shirt, putting her to your breast to suckle. You close your eyes to get a few more moments of sleep when you feel eyes on you.

You slowly open to see Jack watching you both with rapt attention. This has always been his favorite part of you becoming parents, he loves to watch his daughter eat. “That is a sight I will never tire of sugar,” he croons at you.

After you switch and she finishes he eagerly scoops her up and burps her against his shoulder. Dipping down to kiss you sweetly, “you sleep mama, I will make breakfast for us, and then we can get going.”

You smile and nod watching the former playboy of Statesman babble nonsense to his infant daughter. So much had changed since you found out you were pregnant. Jack had resigned from fieldwork, only working on training new recruits. You had cut back on your hours in the weapons design lab. Both of you in favor of spending more time with your precious girl.

In the six months since she had been born you both hadn’t left her side but tonight for the first time that was going to change. Uncle Tequila was going to give you both a much needed night out while he watched his goddaughter.

Tequila had been your best friend since preschool and had even recommended you for the job at Statesman. He was the most supportive friend you could have asked for and loved little Magnolia almost as much as you and Jack. He doted on her endlessly and never failed to show up with some toy or trinket for her from his travels. When Jack had asked him about watching her you were pleasantly surprised and Tequila was ecstatic.

It took a few days to even prepare for going out with pumping extra milk, but the idea of a few hours alone with Jack was too good to pass up. You drifted back to sleep dreaming of a romantic night out with your boyfriend.

When you later roused from sleep it was to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and bacon. You shower and get dressed quickly before walking into the living room and sweeping your daughter into your arms. She giggles and holds your cheeks before pulling tightly on your hair. You look up and see Jack with a big smile on his face as he watches his two favorite girls.

The rest of the day passes uneventfully as you handle the daily chores, nap time, diaper changes, tummy time, and feedings. Jack is always there to help with everything, and before long Uncle Tequila is at the door holding a small wooden maraca.

“I was in Spain last week and had to get something for my Maggie Moo,” he coos at the little girl whose eyes brighten at her favorite Uncle.

You kiss him on the cheek, “thank you Tequila for watching her.”

“Anything for my sweet goddaughter. You’re prettier than a Magnolia in May,” he tickles her gently.

You run to your room and change into a white sundress with bright yellow sunflowers on it, brown cowgirl boots, and your jean jacket. Coming back out to see Jack dressed in his cowboy boots, dark jeans, maroon button-up, black leather jacket, and trusty black stetson. You take a moment to appreciate the fine broad specimen you had acquired. Damn, he is too sexy, words don’t do him justice.

“Sweet Jesus sugar, you are the most beautiful woman to grace this earth,” he pulls you close and plants a kiss on your lips. Giggling as he turns toward his daughter, “isn’t your mama beautiful?” he questions kissing her cheeks before giving her to you. You kiss her and hug her close before giving her over to her Uncle.

“Now you remember, the extra milk is already bottled and in the fridge, and all the important numbers are on the fridge, and we can be reached if you need anything just call ou-”

“Apple! Go out with Whiskey, I got this.” Tequila pushes you both out the front door locking it behind you.

“Did we just get kicked out of our own apartment?” you point back towards the door and then at a laughing Jack.

“It would seem so sugar. Come on,” he grabs your hand, “I have something special planned for tonight.”

“You’ve been very hush-hush about this night out...what are you planning Jack?” you question.

Jack only smiles before helping you into the Bronco. You pass through the city lights of downtown Kentucky. The penthouse where you lived was close to Statesman but not exactly where you had imagined raising your children.

You drive for another thirty minutes before you turn off the highway into a less populated area. Something was off, this didn’t seem like a normal night out with dinner or a movie, you were out in the middle of nowhere.

You pull into the driveway of a ranch-style house, the nearest neighbor half a mile down the road. You slowly get out the bronco, “Where...where are we, Jack?”

He says nothing only leads you to the door and unlocks it pulling you inside. The house is gorgeous, a mix of farmhouse and craftsman style features. Large vaulted ceilings with wooden beams and cherry hardwood floors. He flicks on a light and in the middle of the floor is a blanket, pillows, and a picnic basket.

He leads you over to the set-up and pulls you down to sit against him as he pours you each a glass of Apple Whiskey a personal favorite of yours. “Jack...this is incredible...but, what is all this?” you gesture to the space around you.

“Well as of three o’clock yesterday this is our house sugar,” he holds your hand lightly.

“You...you bought us a house?” your eyes brim with unshed tears.

He nods, before standing to pace the room. “I...I know how much you hate living in the city and Magnolia needs space to run and grow in the great outdoors. The whole property is five acres, with plenty of space for us. There’s even a small apple orchard outback. I...I wanted to make a gesture to tell you how much I love you, and how much I want to be with you.”

“Oh Jack,” you rise to your feet and pull him down to kiss you. Wrapping your arms around his neck, your forehead resting against his. “I love you so damn much Jack Daniels.”

“This is one more thing...I bought for the house, I feel like every house deserves a good door mat. Why don’t you go look at the one I picked out.”

You laugh, “I don’t know how the mat can compete with this house but I am eager to see what you picked out,” you walk over to the door and look down.

Daniels Family Est. 2021

The air is knocked out of your lungs and you spin to find Jack behind you on one knee. “Oh my god…” you whisper.

“Agent Apple, weapons guru of Statesman, mother of my beautiful Magnolia, and the love of my life. I will love and protect you forever with everything that I have darlin’. I want to live in this house with you, have more babies with you, laugh, make love, and grow old with you.” Tears swim in his eyes as he pulls out a small ring box and pops the lid revealing a silver ring with a princess cut emerald surrounded by a circle of diamonds.

“Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?” he asks.

“YES!” you shout dropping to your knees and kissing him, “yes, Jack a thousand times, yes!”

He slides the ring onto your finger, and you admire it. The moment is interrupted by the shrill sound of the cell phone. Jack pulls his out and answers on Facetime.

“Did you ask yet?! Did she say yes?!” Tequila begs holding up a giggling Magnolia up to the screen.

You laugh, “YES! I did say yes!”

“Yahoo! Did ya hear that Maggie Moo your mama and daddy are gonna get married!” she squeals and claps.

You look up at Jack and smile, this was your family and you couldn’t wait to make him your husband.

#kingsman golden circle #November writing challenge #jack whiskey daniels #Agent Whiskey #Agent Whiskey x reader #agent tequila #Day 24

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beecherdrysdale · 3 years

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Project Partners - Brendan Brisson

Hey guys, so here’s a fic I started like a month ago and then kind of forgot about. Please send feedback bc I’m trying to improve my writing skills! Also, covid doesn’t exist in this.

warnings: language, underage drinking, that’s all i think?

///

“Y/L/N and Brisson.” You groan as you hear your professor name your partner for the term-long project. Of course you know who Brendan Brisson is. You had grown up as a huge hockey fan, so of course you had been watching the draft when he got drafted by the Golden Knights, and of course you had seen him playing for Team USA at World Juniors. From what you could tell of him, he seemed like the kind of guy who would make you do all the work and use hockey as an excuse as to why he couldn’t help. That’s too bad for him though, because he’s not the only varsity athlete, and swimming takes up just as much time, if not more, than hockey. Your professor continues to drone on about the project requirements as you contemplate why you even decided to take this course in the first place.

Finally, class ends, and you see Brendan walking toward you. “Hey, you’re Y/N, right? I’m Brendan,” he introduces himself.

“Yeah, I’m Y/N. Guess I’m stuck with you for the rest of the semester, huh.”

“Yeah, so I just wanted to let you know I have hock-” he started.

“Save it, Brisson,” you cut him off, “you’re not the only athlete here, OK?”

“Wow, someone really woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.”

“Sorry,” you sigh, “I’m just really tired of having to do all the work in group projects. I did it enough in high school, and I’m just so done with everyone’s excuses y’know?”

“Well, what I was trying to say is that I have hockey a lot so we should coordinate our schedules to work around it.” He pauses a second, then adds, “And whatever sport you play.”

“Swimming,” you supply.

“What?” He looks confused.

“Swimming is the sport I do,” you clarify. “Anyways, does the library at 8 on Tuesdays and Thursdays work for you? Besides when you have games or I have meets obviously.”

“Yeah that works.”

“Ok, see you tomorrow then,” you reply, turning to leave.

“Wait!” he stops you. “Can I get your number or snap or something in case I need to talk to you?”

“Yeah, sure,” you reply, quickly typing them into his phone.

“Thanks! See you tomorrow at 8,” he says before jogging to catch up to his friends.

///

The next day when you get to the library, the first thing you hear is, “You’re late. Where were you?”

“Sorry we got out of practice late and then I had to shower cuz chlorine and then I couldn’t find my hat and I didn’t want to go outside without it cuz my hair would freeze...” you begin to ramble.

“Hey, calm down, I was joking. You’re literally only like 2 minutes late.”

“Ok but I lowkey still feel bad.”

“Seriously, it’s fine,” he says, “Come on, let’s choose our topic.”

“Ok,” you respond, “so I don’t know if you have any ideas but I was thinking maybe we could do the effect of hockey on the Cold War? Cuz like you play hockey and I watch it all the time. Plus, I did a research paper on it in high school, so we could pull info from that and it shouldn’t be too hard.”

“Yeah, that sounds good,” he says, seeming distracted. “Hey, why didn’t you tell me you’re a big hockey fan?”

“Ummm, cuz you never asked? You’ve literally only spoken like 3 words to me before yesterday so I don’t know why I would tell you.”

“Ok, I guess that’s true,” he responds. He then proceeds to quiz you about hockey, seemingly trying to make sure you’re an actual fan and not just trying to use hockey to get to him like some other girls he knows. You seem to pass his test, because it’s not long before the two of you are messing around, making fun of each other’s taste in hockey teams. Two hours later, the two of you have gotten to know each other a lot better, but you haven’t even started your project.

“Shit,” you say, checking the time on your phone, “I gotta go. I still have to help my friend with her math and I have morning practice tomorrow.

“Ok, I’ll see you tomorrow in class,” he says. “And Y/N?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t be late.”

“Omg shut up. You’re not funny,” you say playfully, as he laughs his ass off.

“You know I am,” he shoots back.

“Sure, Brisson, whatever you say. I’ll see you tomorrow,” you say as you leave.

///

After a few more library sessions, the animosity between you and Brendan which, you admit, was your fault had completely dissipated. The two of you quickly learn you actually have a lot in common, like your love of sports and your music taste, and despite his fratboy vibes you quickly grow to trust him. That’s why you don’t hesitate to say yes when he asks if you can meet at the hockey house to work on your project instead of in the library.

When you arrive at the house, you are greeted by the sound of the entire hockey team arguing over whose turn it is to make dinner. “I have to work on my project though,” you can faintly hear Brendan.

“It’s OK Brisson, sounds like you have more important things to do. We’re somehow ahead of schedule anyway,” you say, entering the kitchen.

“Seriously Y/L/N?” he groans. “You were supposed to be on my side.”

“Sorry,” you say, shrugging.

Your apology is interrupted by Cam, “Hey Brisson, who’s this? Wanna introduce us to your new girlfriend?”

“Funny,” you say. “We’re just friends. We got assigned to work on this project together. Isn’t he wheeling like 3-4 girls a weekend anyways?”

“Hey,” Brendan protests. “You make it sound like a bad thing. I only do what they want.”

“Beside the point Brisson,” Johnny jumps in. “Just introduce us to your new friend.

“Fine,” he groans. “Guys, this is Y/N. Y/N, these are the guys. Now,” he says, grabbing your arm and dragging you toward the stairs, trying to make his escape, “let’s go work on our project.”

“Not so fast, Brisson,” Nolan cuts in. “You’re making dinner. Y/N said it’s fine.”

Brendan sighs in response.

“C’mon,” you say. “I’ll help you. I promise it’s not that hard.”

Brendan begrudgingly follows you back to the kitchen as the rest of the guys scatter. You begin to pull the ingredients to make tacos, which thankfully they have, out of the fridge. “Here,” you say, tossing Brendan a tomato. “Can you dice this?”

The two of you work in silence for a few minutes before you decide to turn some music on. As you turn to reach for your phone, you glance over to see Brendan’s pile of tomatoes. “Seriously, Brisson?” you ask, staring at the haphazard pile in dismay. “Have you ever cut a tomato before? I had better cutting skills than that in preschool.” You hear a few guys snicker from the other room at that. After showing him how to cut it properly and turning on your Spotify, you continue to work, chirping Brendan occasionally. Once you and Brendan finish making dinner, you call the rest of the guys back into the kitchen to come eat.

As the guys eat, they drill you with questions, trying to find out as much as they can about Brendan’s “project partner.” You answer all their questions, and by the end of dinner you fit in seamlessly with the boys, even joining in their good-natured chirping of one another. Eventually, you have to leave, but the boys are quick to let you know you’re always welcome back whether it’s for your food or your company, you don’t know before you go.

///

As soon as you leave, all eyes are on Brendan. “So Briss, you wanna tell us about your new girlfriend?” Nolan asks.

“She said it herself, we’re just friends. We’re working on a project together,” Brendan is quick to reply.

“Sure...” Cam counters. “Friends don’t look at friends like that Brisson.”

“Like what?” Brendan asks.

“Like she hung the stars in the sky or some shit like that,” Johnny responds. “Look Briss, just go for it. It’s not like she’s gonna say no, she literally looks at you the same way.”

“But she would say no,” Brendan protests. “She’s the one who said we’re just friends first so obviously she doesn’t like me like that. Why should I go for someone who’s gonna reject me when I an go to a party and pick up whatever girl I want, like she said?”

“Because you can’t get whatever girl you want, Brisson. She’s the one you want. We can all see it,” Johnny replies.

“Ok you know what, fuck off. Leave me alone. The two of us are just friends,” Brendan reaches his breaking point. At that, the guys let it drop, Brendan’s outburst giving them all the proof they need.

///

Meanwhile, you are back in your dorm chastising yourself. Why did you have to say you and Brendan are just friends? You know any chance you had of him liking you back is now gone, because he thinks you only think of him as a friend. You debate what to do, even going so far as to pick up your phone and tap on his contact, before changing your mind and getting ready for bed. Guys like him don’t go for girls like you anyway or so you think. You’re sure he wants one of those perfect girlfriends who are always put together and dress cute, not some athlete who always walks around in sweats, and the last thing you want to do is fuck up your friendship by confessing. You ignore the feeling of jealousy that rises in your chest when you think of Brendan with another girl and force yourself to go to sleep.

///

It’s not even two days before you get a snap from Nolan asking if you want to go to a party with all of the guys. You agree immediately because you don’t have morning practice tomorrow and your plans with friends got cancelled and you’ve secretly been looking for an excuse to see Brendan outside of working on your project.

That night, you try to dress extra cute, even going so far as to ask your roommate to help you choose your outfit as she seems to have no problems picking up guys. You finally settle on an outfit and hurry out the door, wanting to make sure you get to the party on time so you can meet the guys outside and not have to walk in alone. As you walk out the door, you hear your roommate call, “Have fun! Be safe! Use a condom!” You flip her off as the door closes.

When you get to the party, you see the guys outside waiting for you. “Hey Y/N,” you hear a couple guys say.

“Heyyy,” you reply, as you guys start heading toward the house. Brendan lags behind the group, eyes trailing down your body. As much as he loved the fact that you wore what you wanted read: sweats and didn’t try to be a Barbie doll, he had to admit seeing you like this was hot. He hurries to reach the rest of the group, deciding you were standing just a little too close to Cam for his liking. He may not be able to be with you, but he sure as hell wasn’t gonna watch you date one of his teammates. He catches up and wraps an arm around your shoulders.

“Hey Brisson,” you greet. “What’s up? You learned how to cut a tomato yet?”

“Haha, very funny Y/L/N,” he responds.

“Oh come on, you know it was,” you protest.

As soon as you guys enter the house Johnny says, “I’m going to get a drink. Anyone want one?”

“Yeah, can you get me a Natty?” you’re quick to respond. “But please make sure it’s closed.”

A couple other guys request drinks, and Johnny goes to get them while the rest of you head further inside. You stay with the guys pretty much the whole night, not wanting to get separated because you know what happens to girls who are at parties alone.

At some point in the night you guys end up near the beer pong table, and when it’s Brendan’s turn he makes you be his partner not that you’re complaining and drags you over to the table. The two of you quickly get on a winning streak and you end up winning the tournament you got pulled into. At this point you’re pretty drunk, so you don’t hesitate to go along with it when Brendan hugs you, the two of you stumbling a little bit. Both of you are reluctant to let go, reveling in the feeling of each other, as each of you thinks the other doesn’t like you back so you’ll never get to experience the feeling again.

You and the guys stay at the party a little longer before they realize how drunk you are because you had had more beers than any of them and decide its time to leave. All the guys come with you back to your dorm in order to make sure you get back safe, a gesture both you and your roommate thank them for before they leave.

///

It’s a couple weeks later and you’re hanging out with the guys, as has become usual for you, when Johnny ask, “Hey Y/L/N, how come you never come to any of our games? I thought Brisson said you’re a big hockey fan.”

“Yeah, I am,” you reply, “I just usually have swim when you guys have games. Plus you guys never invite me so...”

“Well we kinda assumed you already knew you were invited,” Nolan says. “You’re always welcome at our games, and if you tell us you’re coming we can probably get you good seats.”

“OK, well we actually don’t have swim practice on Friday for some reason, so I can probably come,” you say. “I’ll try to drag my roommate to come with too.”

The boys groan, “Really, Y/N? You want us to get two tickets? Do you know how much work that is?” before quickly revealing that they’re joking and telling you that of course they’ll get you two tickets.

///

True to the boys’ word, when Johnny sits next to you in your class together on Friday, he hands you an envelope with two tickets. “What are you wearing to the game tonight?” he asks with a plan up his sleeve.

“I don’t know,” you respond. “Probably my Michigan swimming hoodie.”

“You wear that everywhere though,” he protests.

“Yeah, so?” you fire back. “It’s a Michigan hoodie. School spirit.”

“Or you could wear this,” he says pulling something out of his backpack. He unfolds it to reveal that it’s one of Brendan’s hockey hoodies.

“Doesn’t he need that for the game tonight?” you ask.

“No, he has two,” Johnny replies. “Now stop trying to get out of wearing it. You have to wear something hockey related to support us.”

“Ugh fine,” you give in, knowing Johnny will be persistent.

///

That evening, you arrive at the arena with your roommate, begrudgingly wearing the hoodie with “Brisson” boldly stamped across your back. You are not enjoying yourself, because knowing what it feels like to wear Brendan’s sweatshirt and smell his cologne makes you all the more aware that this will never be your reality. Nevertheless, you force a smile on your face as you and your roommate sit down to watch warmups. You can feel the energy in the arena even now, before the game begins, as UMich is playing rival school Ohio State.

Once warmups are over you and your roommate go to use the bathroom and get snacks. The line for the bathroom is so long you don’t think you’ll make it back to your seats before the game starts, but thankfully you get to them just a second before puck drop. The game gets off to a rough start, with Ohio State scoring twice early, but by the end of the first the guys have picked up their pace, and you hope that they’ll be able to tie it up in the second.

After intermission, the boys come out guns blazing. Brendan scores just 30 seconds in to the period off an offensive zone face-off win. As he cellies, he makes eye contact with you up in the stands. “He is so into you!” your roommate squeals when she notices.

“No he’s not, shut up,” you reply, turning your focus back to the game. The guys stay on the forecheck pretty much the whole period, and it finally pays off when Johnny scores with 5 minutes left to play in the second. When the period ends and the guys head back to the locker room, the game is tied 2-2.

The third period begins with an Ohio State faceoff win, and they quickly get off a shot attempt. Thankfully, the shot goes wide and play continues. The teams go back and forth all period getting good scoring chances, but neither team is able to capitalize. It looks like the game is going to go to overtime, but then Brendan scores again with just 43 seconds remaining. Once again, he makes eye contact with you and smiles as he cellies, and once again your roommate freaks out and says that he definitely likes you. You make her shut up and start to grab your stuff as the final seconds wind down.

“Woah, slow down. Where are we going?” she asks.

“The guys told me to meet them outside the locker rooms,” you say, beginning to lead the way.

///

When you get to the hallway outside the locker room, you lean up against the wall and start scrolling through Insta as you wait for the guys to come out. Eventually the guys slowly begin trickling out of the locker room and heading over to their various girlfriends gathered in the hallway as all the single guys congregate around you, but you ignore them so you don’t get dragged into one of their arguments.

Finally, you see Brendan come out of the locker room so you put your phone away and push your body away from the wall. He starts to make a beeline toward you and does a double take when he realizes you’re wearing one of his sweatshirts. The guys had been bugging him for weeks to ask you out and he had been thinking of maybe doing it tonight, but seeing you in his sweatshirt has finally given him the confidence to make a move. As he reaches you, you say, “Hey Briss.”

“Hey,” he replies, and then his lips are on yours, and you don’t know where this is coming from but you’ve been wanting it for a while now so of course you kiss back, and it just feels so right you don’t ever want to stop. When you finally break apart, all the guys are cheering and whistling and you hear a couple guys mutter “finally”.

As the guys quiet down, you ask Brendan, “What was that for?”

“Shit, sorry, I shouldn’t have done it,” he panics, thinking you were mad, even though you kissed back so you obviously weren’t.

“No, I liked it,” comes your reply. “It just kinda came out of nowhere.”

“Oh,” he calms down. “Well I’ve been wanting to ask you out for a while now, but I was kinda nervous so I kept putting it off. But then you looked really hot in my hoodie, so I just went for it.”

“Yes,” you say.

“Yes, what?” he asks, looking confused.

“You said you wanted to ask me out. I said yes,” you explain.

“Ok, so do you want to go get Chipotle or something tomorrow then?” he asks.

“Yeah, of course,” you reply. “But for now let’s go out and celebrate with the other guys.” He wraps his arm around your shoulders as the two of you walk with the team, and you are finally content.

#brendan brisson #umich #brendan brisson fic #brendan brisson imagine #brendan brisson x reader

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shigarakis-fifth-hand · 4 years

Text

The “Better Half”; A Poly KiriBaku x Reader Fanfic

As Izuku Midoryia’s twin sister, you face many issues. But as life throws you one after another, somehow there are two people who are always there for you.

Enjoy the series | one two three four five

It was September 13th, and you came into the world. Into the arms of your mother, she was able to look at you lovingly before handing you to your father. Big, bright green eyes and dark green hair with pale skin and few freckles. You were healthy if not on the skinny side, and surprisingly, not crying your eyes out like most children do. It would be something to be concerned about if you were not looking at your father’s face curiously, and then at the room around you. To your eyes which had seen nothing but darkness, the bright room looked like heaven.

Five minutes and two seconds after, your brother came to the world after you, crying and screaming louder than most children, but at least it was more normal than you. Your mother held him for a minute, before you both were taken by the nurses to be checked for health. Your brother, with dark green hair with lighter highlights and dark green eyes with more freckles than you, was smaller although he had been the one getting the most food. He wiggled around and cried, being the loudest one around.

You, on the other hand, was surprisingly calm except when a needle had been stuck into you to check for your health, causing you to cry for a minute before getting distracted by the nice nurse caring for you. You were washed, and put into the softest blanket-outfit thing with mittens, which you hated, and taken back to your parents with the nurses’ disappointment. Your brother’s caretaker was more than happy to give him back though. Your mother held your brother, loving looking at him with happiness in her eyes as he looked at his sleeping face.

“Look how sweet, he’s snoring.” Your dear mother, Inko Midoryia, looked up at her husband, Hizashi, who held you. “She’s looking around. She’s so calm, it’s almost worrying.” He smiled at you, who was now running your entire hand along one of his fingers, surprised by the rough texture. “They look different.” Inko smiled, now looking at you with lust in her eyes. “She’s prettier. Hands down. And better behaved.” He explained as Inko smiled back at her son, sighing. “They’re going to be equal, and be best friends.” She smiled happily.

“She’s going to protect him, and he’s going to do the same for her. If they’re not, then we’ve failed as parents.” Inko explained, thinking about how her own sister hadn't talked to her in years. “Yes, but I can tell she’s going to be the leader.” Hizashi explained to his wife, who shot him an annoyed side-eye that went un-noticed. “That’s okay though. As long as they’re both happy.” Inko smiled back at her son, hoping that she wouldn't have to worry about them. Little did she know...

Four years later from that day, you and your brother went to the theme park for your birthday with your two parents. Your brother, named Izuku by your dear mother, was holding onto your arm as you both entered the park. “Ichiko! Look!” He pointed up to the tall rollercoaster overlooking the rest of the park, using your name. You had been named Ichiko by your father, which meant “Alpha” or “First child”. It was known to everyone who observed his actions that your father not only favored you, but loved that you were the stronger, taller, and “best” compared to your brother.

“We should ride it! Come on Dad, let’s go!” You began to run before your father grabbed onto your arm and pulled you back forcefully, making him receive several glances from the parents around him for treating a young child with such force and strength. Yet, in his words “you could handle it”, and thanks to his forceful parenting, you had built up the strength to get used to it. “Not yet, we’re waiting on someone.” Just as he finished his sentence, he was met with yelling from nearby. “Is that Inko Midoryia?!”

You all turned to see a spiky-haired blonde woman running towards you. “Inko babe! It’s been so long!! You haven’t changed a bit!!” She hugged your mother, before turning to your father. “Aye! ‘Zashi bro! How’s it going?! God, you two are such highschool sweetheart goals!” She yelled loudly and full of energy, before turning to the two of you. “Are these who I think they are?! Oh my gosh, you guys are adorable! God I wish I would have had a daughter, you’re such a dollface! And you, such a lady’s man! Goodness me!”

‘Mitsuki, it’s so good to see you. Where’s little Katsuki and-” Inko was interrupted by yelling from a small child walking up to you. “Mommmm. Where’s my water bottle, I can’t find it!” You turned to see a smaller, male version of Mitsuki with the same hairstyle and a black skull t-shirt with shorts. “Katsuki, be quiet. At least say hi to Inko and her children. We brought you to have a play date. It’s their birthday.” Mitsuki explained, before turning back to continue her conversation with the adults.

“Hi! I’m Ichiko!” You waved at the boy, who looked quite shocked. “It’s your birthday?” Katsuki asked as you nodded, before pulling out a plastic water bottle from your tiny backpack. “It’s unopened. You look hot.” You grinned, tossing it to him as he caught it. He inspected the closed lid before opening it slowly and taking a long sip suspiciously. “I didn’t put anything in it silly. Now do you want to go on that flipping ship or the roller-coaster? I think the two of us meet the height requirement!” You asked as his eyes lit up. A girl who liked rollercoasters??!!

No way, he had to reveal you for the fake extra you really were. “Rollercoaster. I heard it does two 180s, and it’s really fast. I heard someone fell off and broke their leg.” He tried to make you nervous, but only was even more confused when you began smiling. “Well if it’s really fun and it was only the leg, we’ll be fine! Plus two 180s is better than one, so that’s great!!” Bakugo watched as you turned to Izuku who was behind you. “This is my brother Izuku.” You gestured to him, who waved shyly, receiving a confused glance from Katsuki.

So the girl was the outgoing one and the boy was the shy, short one? Strange, but also weirdly cool. Katsuki didn’t have any girl friends, and barely any friends to begin with, so many you could be cool. “Alright kiddies, let’s go.” Katsuki’s dad came up behind you three, smiling as you and the blond got excited, Izuku not so much. Without warning, you grabbed Katsuki’s hand and pulled him towards the nearest ride, a fast rollercoaster that allowed smaller children to ride, not the safest decision, but one that you were more than overjoyed with.

You and Katsuki must of gone on that rollercoaster over five times, loving each one more than the last. After the first one, Izuku choose to stay with the parents who watched the kids and talked about their recent lives. The habit of Izuku staying behind seemed to continue, when the ride was only 2 people per row, or you two wanted to ride something that was two scary. You and Katsuki shared a cotton candy, and Bakugo got you a balloon who he had “ borrowed” from another kid just for you.

You and Katsuki spent hours talking, laughing, and becoming friends. Mitsuki was beyond shocked, seeing her son socialize like never before with a child his age. Katsuki told you about the preschool his mom had looked at, and how his older cousin had gotten his quirk and he was beyond jealous. “I don’t know what mine is, but it’ll be awesome! I know it!” He told you as you nodded, content with just listening to his rant. Just as you two turned the corner to walk down the sidewalk towards the carousel, the kid who Bakugo had “borrowed” the balloon from ran towards him.

“You little brat! You’re going to pay for this!” He freaked out, grabbing a football from his friend’s hand and throwing it at Bakugo. “Hey!” You yelled, reaching out your hand in front of Bakugo. As if time was slowing down, you watched as the football separate into particles, almost like droplets of melted football, and stand mid-air before your face. You pushed your hand back, and as it moved, the droplets joined back together and fell to the dirt below your feet. “Dude, let’s go! These kids are crazy!”

You turned around to see Katsuki, his parents, your parents, and your dear twin brother all staring at you, stars in their eyes. “Mama! Daddy! Did you see what I did?!” You cheered, jumping up and down as your father picked you up happily. “That’s my girl! On your fourth birthday too! Your mom and I didn’t even get ours until we were at least five!” He hugged you proudly, before setting you down as Izuku gave you a high five. “Wow! You can move things with your mind, and separate them into liquids! That’s like mom and dad’s quirk together!” Izu cheered happily as you turned to Bakugo.

“Your... your quirk is SO COOL!” He exclaimed, running to you, grabbing your hands, and jumping excitingly. “God, imagine what you could do with that! You could kick a soccer ball and make it go forever! Or you could even make all the rain come off of you if you don’t have an umbrella!” He continued smiling, before engulfing you in a tight hug. Mitsuki almost cried, shaking a teary-eyed look with Inko, happy her son was socializing. She had become worried about his mental state, being such an angry human being from the beginning. She was worried he wouldn’t be able to function with other kids, and would be an outcast. But no...

“What are we waiting for?! Let’s go! I saw a water gun thing to win a stuffed pokemon! I want the Pikachu!” He yelled out, laughing playfully as he grabbed your hand and pulled you into the crowd and towards the fun. As Izuku trailed behind with the adults, he smiled at how happy you were. You and Bakugo were such good friends, he couldn’t help but be happy that you had another friend to keep you company and make you happy, exactly what you deserved. Little did Izuku know that when he had let you and Bakugo go ahead, he bought himself a life of being the third wheel on your friendship with Katsuki.

It was September 13th, a year later, and birthday decorations laid around the apartment of Inko Midoryia. “Happy birthday Ichiko and Izuku, happy birthday to you.” The children around you sang, crowded around a table. You sat next to your twin brother, smiling before you both turned and blew out the five candles on the cake in front of you. “Good job guys!” Your mom, Inko Midoryia, ran up to you, cutting a piece for each of you, giving one to you first. You looked around at the table, seeing fifteen children from your preschool who you were friends with.

Mitsuki Bakugo and her husband were taking the presents that you and Izuku had unwrapped to your room, and your own mother was making lively conversation with the rest of the parents at the party. Looking around, you were upset to find your father gone, braking his promise that he would come this time. On and off, your father’s visits seemed to grow farther from one another as time passed. After you had gotten your quirk, your parents had quickly begun arguing, eventually causing your father to storm out.

Throughout the divorce and your fifth birthday, your mom had moved to a smaller apartment while saving for a house, began getting interested in medication, forcing you and your twin brother to take certain pills and supplements to prevent any depression or abandonment issues from your father leaving, had gotten you, Izuku, and Katsuki together almost daily for play dates, and had put an offer on a townhouse near the Bakugo household.

“Finally you’re five years old! Now you can go on the slide at the playground by yourself! Lucky!” You turned to a spiky-haired blond boy next to you, smiling ear-to-ear as he talked/ yelled at you. “I know, but it’s okay. I won’t go on until you can too.” You smiled as he laughed, high-fiving you. “That’s awesome! But it’s okay, only two more months and then we both can go on it!” He grinned again, even wider than before as you nodded. “All three of us.” You smiled, grabbing the shirt of your twin brother who was listening in on the conversation.

“Aww, look at you cuties!! Say birthday!!” Bakugo’s mother, a blonde lady with the exact hairstyle as her toddler son, jumped out from nowhere and held up her phone. “Mommmm.” Bakugo complained as the three kids turned to his mother, smiling as her phone flashed, partially blinding them. “Now let’s get out of here, these kids are getting on my nerves. Someone already asked me if they could touch my hair!” Bakugo complained, grabbing your hand and pulling you out as Izuku followed you guys to the doorway.

“Izu! Ichi! Don’t you want to say goodbye to your guests?” Inko asked as you nodded, grinning as you ran back inside to the table quickly. “Aren’t you going to go?” Katsuki asked Izuku as he shook his head slowly, turning to watch you hug the kids goodbye. “I’m not friends with any of them really. I don’t even know half of them, they’re just Ichi’s friends.” Izuku explained sitting next to Katsuki on the step outside the doorway. “She’s always been the one to make a lot of friends. It’s okay though, I only need her... and you of course.” Izuku smiled at the blond.

Katsuki rolled his eyes, going un-noticed by the green-haired one as the two turned to see their friend and sister walk up behind them. “Bye Maria! I’ll see you tomorrow!” She turned to the boys who stood up quickly at her arrival, smiling at her from behind. “Come on boys, let’s go. The forest is waiting to explore, and the first one we have a year older must be awesome!” Bakugo grabbed the jar that he had brought next to him for bugs, and smiled, walking after her. “Heck ya! My mom uses candles, but we should totally use those lighting bulb bugs.”

You rolled your eyes, giggling as you entered the elevator with the two boys and clicking the elevator button. Bakugo was taller than you by 2.5 inches, and you were taller than Izuku by 4. Yet you and Bakugo had the agreement that when you took the elevator down, you pressed the button, and he would do the same when you all went back up. “Don’t you mean lightning bugs Kacchan?” You asked as he blushed at his own mistake, you and Izuku giggling. “It’s okay, lightbulb bugs sounds cooler, and it’s more accurate.” You hugged Bakugo, grabbing onto his arm.

“They don’t even look like lightning.” You told him, making him feel only a bit better as the door opened to the first floor and you all walked out. Again, there was an unspoken rule that Izuku would walk behind you two, although you personally never had noticed, Bakugo and Izuku had made it clear with each other. Bakugo liked being by your side when you would grip his arm, and Izuku liked being in the back “to protect you” when really there was no room on the sidewalk for a third.

When you guys got to the forest behind Bakugo’s neighborhood, next to the apartment building that you lived in, you immediately jumped into the nearby tree and began to climb up. Bakugo laughed, knowing how much you loved tree-climbing to no-end. You swung your legs over the branch and hung upside down, fluffing the hair of the two boys who passed beneath you towards the river. “Ichi! Ichi! It’s a bug! Get it Kacchan!” Izuku yelled, receiving a glare from the blond boy as he looked at your brother annoyed.

“Why don’t you get it! I’m busy trying to find the spider my mom put out the other day. She put it under a cup and walked outside and I haven’t found seen him since! She’s a killer!” He yelled, returning to rummaging around the forest bushes with his bare hands. “Hey, be careful. Turns out all snakes aren’t nice like your snake. Look.” You lifted your pant leg and showed two bite marks to the blond as his eyes widened, looking at you, and then back at the bite. “Woah! You survived a whole snake?!” He asked as you nodded, feeling like a champion.

“Yep, here.” You handed him a stick you had taken off the tree before going to your brother, holding your own empty jar to collect the bug Izuku found. Bakugo watched you though, completely shocked at your strength. You were a girl, yet you were here collecting bugs and fighting snakes?! You were incredible!!! He turned. “So Ichiko, have you been training? I still haven’t gotten mine, but I’ve been working on it!” Bakugo flexed his muscles through his black t-shirt, a silver skull on it this time.

“Actually I have. I helped my mom clean the entire house, and I was able to put away all of the groceries in a few seconds. My mom says it’s very helpful, and she’s proud of me.” You grinned as he stared at you, his eyes shining at your talent. “Lemme see Ichi! Lemme see!” He cried out, jumping up and down happily. You smiled, realizing how he hadn’t changed since you met him. “Okay. Izuku, stand still!” You yelled at your brother as he turned to you, shaking in fear as you extended your hand out.

Before he could respond, the dirt beneath him began to turn into small, liquid pieces and rose in the air, carrying him with it. “Woah! You can lift humans?! That’s amazing!” Katsuki exclaimed as you set your brother down, turning to the blonde boy. “You’re amazing Ichiko! You’re incredible, better than anyone I’ve ever met our age! You’re going to become the best pro hero in the world!” He exclaimed, staring at you as if you were God yourself. “That’s right Katsuki, but you’re going to do it with me!”

You put your hand on Bakugo’s shoulders as he looked at you, very confused as you both ignored your watching twin from the sidelines. “You’re going to be just as good as me, and we’ll become the Dream Team forever!” You smiled as he couldn’t help but feel emotional at you not only accepting him but promising him a future of hope. It was no secret that Bakugo had confidence issues, from where you would never understand, but you saying that made his day. His week. His entire life was altered that moment, where you recognized him as an equal.

Little did you know that you had begun the start of Bakugo’s confidence spree, bullying beginning, and his craving for the constant attention and compliments, not to mention the start to him seeing everyone else as extras. Because... you were perfect in every way, and you had said that he was an equal, so he had to be perfect! Everyone else was an extra, meaningless and weak compared to you both, the Dream Team. Watching from afar, Izuku couldn’t help but feel conflicted, feeling left out and desperate for attention more than ever.

As the years passed, Bakugo and your relationship began to evolve from friends to the best of friends, and to the point where you two were never seen apart from each other. With Izuku in the background, always the one to walk behind when the sidewalk could only fit two people, or the one to sit on the side and just watch as the other two continued a conversation.

Your father visited you every other weekend, only paying attention to you these days. You and Katsuki played video games all weekend, trained your quirks after school daily, loved rock-climbing on Saturday nights, and even went on “dates” that were never confirmed dates. You’ll never forget the day that everything changed though, when you and Bakugo were playing hide and seek in his house while your mom and Izuku, your small seven-year-old self being able to fit under the table in the hallway.

As you hid though, you remained undetected as the phone rang, Mitsuki walking and picking it up. From the other side, you could hear your mother’s voice, and the sound of her crying filling your ears. “Whaaaat? Oh Inko, I’m so sorry! I don’t know what to say!” Mitsuki exclaimed as you leaned closer, desperate to hear. “He’s quirkless Suki! I don’t know what to do! I can’t fix this with medicine or a doctors visit! His dream was becoming a hero, and proving himself to Ichiko and Katsuki... but now.” You listened to your mother, currently sobbing as she ranted.

“Oh god, he’s going to get bullied so much Mitsuki! I just... I don’t know what to do! His father isn’t picking up any of my calls, but... he texted me. He says he wants to release any rights to Izuku. Just Izuku! His own father is abandoning him because he’s quirkless, but still wanting a relationship with his daughter?! He’s such a douche, the poor boy has been through enough! You should have seen the look on his face when the doctor told him he would never have a quirk.” You sighed, trying not to make a noise as Mitsuki and your mother continued.

You waited, getting lost in your own thoughts before Mitsuki hung up, sighing sadly before walking back to the living room to talk to her husband who waited by the door, having heard some of the conversation. Finally, you were able to walk back to Bakugo’s room to see him checking under the bed for the 100th time. “There you are!! I’ve been looking all over!” he complained, jumping up and walking over to you. “Hey, what’s wrong with you? You look sad.” He asked as you looked at him, a single tear sliding down your face.

“Katsuki!” You began sobbing, jumping into his arms and clinging to his chest. Unaware of what to do, he patted your back awkwardly, trying to figure out why you were crying. His mom got emotional sometimes and did this, but that was usually fixed by chocolate and that adult grape juice his mom loved. “It’s Izuku. My mom called your mom. She was crying. She said... she said...” You looked up at the blond, still crying. “He’s quirkless! Izuku is quirkless! Oh god, I can’t believe it!” You cried, seeing his eyes open wide as a shocked response.

“He is? But, you have one! Izuku can’t be... He was going to become a hero with us. We were going to be the Dream Team.” Bakugo thought out loud as you nodded, letting him wipe a tear from your cheek gently. “You know what? It’s okay...” You perked up, returning to a smiling state. “Izuku has always been quirkless, we’re just finding out. He’s still my brother, and we’re going to protect him from anyone who wants to make fun of him! Right?! The Dream Duo can do anything!” You smiled as Bakugo watched you, feeling warm inside.

Thanks to Izuku being quirkless, he was able to be even closer to you. He was now going to not just be your partner, but your other half. Izuku might have been your twin at birth, but as soon as Bakugo had met you, he knew he was meant to be the one who you would spend the rest of your life with. Now, with Izuku out of the way, Izuku didn’t have to come to when you guys went to train on the beach, and he didn’t have to come to when you guys fantasized about heroes! Now that he thought about it, Izuku didn’t have to come anywhere with you guys!

And that idea stayed with Bakugo throughout the rest of the years following. Throughout middle and high school, Katsuki began slowly slipping away from any friendship with Izuku. It all started at the beginning of middle school when Katsuki brought the name “Deku” out of nowhere. You said it was an insult, but Bakugo just said that it was an inside joke, turning Izuku’s quirklessness into something funny and not so sad. Izuku said he had no issue with it, and you said you didn’t either if he just didn’t say it around you.

Near the end of middle school, Katsuki began only hanging out with you. Izuku told you that he just didn’t want to come whenever you would invite him, but little did you know what Bakugo had made sure to give him hints that he didn’t want Izuku around. Whether it was an annoyed glance whenever Izuku would talk to him, or purposely tripping him whenever you weren’t around. Izuku just knew it was best if he just stayed behind, and let Bakugo get his way with having alone time with you.

At the beginning of high school, Katsuki gained “followers” who constantly worshipped him, did whatever he wanted, and would do anything for him. This included putting maple syrup in Izuku’s lockers, spamming any social media with hateful messages, and even taking his backpack and lighting it on fire in the parking lot. To you, this was all just unfortunate events due to everyone around the school being hateful. You never would have guessed that your best friend and life-time crush would have been the one torturing your dear twin brother.

Unlike your dear best friend with the spiky hair, you gained many friends during high school. Being the most powerful girl in school, and half of the iconic duo that the entire school worshipped, you constantly had people drooling over you literally and figuratively. You gladly took in as many friends as possible, and had built yourself quite a group of friends. You were friends with the mean girls, who always invited you to sleepovers, the athletes who wanted you at every single game to cheer for them and who you did volleyball with, and even the nerds who did your homework just because you were so nice and defended them.

But now it was the last year of high school for you, and a single month before the end of school no less. You sat in your leadership class, your final period before you could go to volleyball practice and enjoy the donuts they gave out every Thursday. “Now, as I’m sure you all know, the ones currently applying for UA are Ichiko…” The class erupted into claps and hollers in your direction, cheerful faces staring at you from every way. “Bakugo...” The teacher continued as Bakugo smiled widely, happy about the same applause towards him. You couldn’t help but blush as Bakugo winked at you, ignoring the high-fives his way.

“And Izuku...” The entire class grew silent as they looked at the empty desk in front of you. On purpose obviously, Izuku had left to go to the bathroom to avoid any side-eyes. “Oh gosh, he won’t stand a chance...” You heard a random voice murmur, along with many giggled and snickers as you turned to the teacher. “Go on Mr. Kiyoko, we don’t have all day.” You commanded as he nodded, following your orders. “He’ll get crushed by a robot the first chance he gets, am I right?” Bakugo asked you with a cocky tone, smirking as he looked your direction.

“I know... it’s so concerning. I’ll have to protect him at the entrance exam since he won’t have a chance on the physical aspect, but it’ll be so hard to compete against the other students if I’m protecting a helpless human being as well . Plus, even if he gets all of the academic side, so will some of the other students with quirks. I need to convince him not to go, I just have to.” You thought out loud, receiving a smirk from Bakugo and his followers that you didn’t notice. At the same time, Bakugo hated the way that Izuku affected you, and if Deku dared to ruin your high chances of going to your dream school, he would pay big-time.

“Anyways, I hope you all think about your future and complete the essay I gave you about your career choices past high school. I can only hope that you do have a plan after all, or else you wouldn’t bother with high school. Class dismissed.” The teacher lectured as the sound of chairs and desks moving filled the room. “H-hey, Ichiko?” You turned to see Bakugo, looking surprisingly nervous with his blush and the fact that he was avoiding eye contact with you. “Yea?” You smiled, confused by his sudden change in attitude.

“Before practice... could you walk with me for a minute?” He asked as your eyes widened, pretending to be shocked. “And risk missing the donuts at practice?! Of course...” You smirked as he sighed in relief, grabbing his backpack and pulling it onto one of his shoulders. “Lead the way ‘Suki.” You smiled sweetly, making his heart melt at his nickname as he passed you and walked out into the hallway. You followed, grabbing onto his arm, a habit you always did with him.

Down one of the side hallways and into the main one, you saw how all of the classrooms had been cleared of people, leaving you alone. Bakugo stopped, causing you to stop abruptly. “Ichiko, I- I need to say something, and I need you to let me finish please.” You nodded at him, slightly nervous at what he could possibly be saying. You had been confessed to multiple times by both girls and guys, told that they had undying love for you and that you needed to “let them finish”.

Was Bakugo about to do the same, and fufill your dreams at the same time? You knew that you had strong feelings for him, constantly being unable to peel your eyes away from him while at the gym, and always clinging onto him whenever you would walk. You would blush when your friends would tease, and giggle nervously whenever Bakugo’s “friends” called you his girlfriend. It was no secret that almost the entire school shipped you itself, and that you two would be a perfect match.

You were sweet, and he was salty. You were gorgeous, and he was handsome. You were the most heroic, and he was a villain but with morals. “I... I don’t know how to say this actually. I wrote this entire speech in my room at 2 am a few months ago, and I’ve been practicing for weeks...” He looked up at you, meeting eye contact with your gorgeous dark green eyes that he could get lost in if he wanted to, which he did most times. “God, please go easy on me. This isn’t-” Bakugo was interrupted by you cupping his face and kissing him suddenly.

As an instinct, he used his hand on your back to push you into him, and his other hand to hold the back of your head and intensify the kiss. He couldn’t describe how much he had wanted this, and you felt the same. Like a wave washing over you and releasing all the daydreams and urges, you felt at ease for once in months. “I feel the same way Katsuki.” You told him, using his full name because it felt right. “God, what are you doing to me?” Katsuki asked, feeling as if he was melting at your touch.

In an instant, he was single-handily able to push you into a classroom and lock the door behind him, pushing you up against the wall as he kissed you. “God, I’ve wanted to do this for so long.�� He whispered, moving his lips to your neck and beginning to kiss it tenderly and hard. He couldn't count how many times he had stared at your neck and wanted to decorate it, to show that you were his. And now you were, finally after all this time. “M-me too.” You confessed, letting your hands roan his back freely.

You slipped off your shirt happily, him staring at you the entire time. “Oh god... ‘Chiko. I’m in love with you.” He confessed as you stood there, standing at him with open eyes. “I mean it... I promise, I wouldn't just say it to get what I want or make you like me more. I love you, and I have for awhile.” He leaned in to kiss you slowly and passionately. “I love you too Katsuki. I’ve always loved you, and I’ll never stop.” You smiled, grabbing your arms around his torso as you continued the slow and hot kiss.

In the rush and heat of the moment, mixed with the lust and sexual tension that filled the air, you began to strip yourself of your shirt as he stared at you, your pastel blue lacy bra and the tan lines from when you could go to the beach every afternoon when you weren’t playing video games. You really were Katsuki’s dream girl, and you had always been. Katsuki pressed himself against your bare skin before stripping off his own shirt, throwing it to the side without a care in the world. He was going to make you feel so good...

“Ichiko?! Where are you?!” You stared at Bakugo worryingly, recognizing Izuku’s voice immediately. You jumped from Bakugo's torso to your shirt, throwing it on and fixing the wrinkles. You grabbed the hair tie on the floor next to you and threw it into a messy bun. “Is my lip gloss okay?” You whispered, facing him as he looked at you up and down. Moving his thumb along the line of your lip to fix it, he smiled sadly before meeting your eyes. “Perfect as always.”

You smiled, a blush returning to your face as you recalled the actions that had just taken place. You moved and kissed his lips, holding him closely. “We can resume this tomorrow, and for the rest of our lives.” You smiled, kissing his nose and pecking his lips again before racing out. “Yea?! Izuku? I’m here!” You called out before seeing your twin come out of another classroom. “Oh good. You weren’t in the gym when I went to look and the team is passing out donuts.”

You smiled, nodded, and fixed the tie on your uniform before walking to the gym with him, looking back from time to time. The feeling of Bakugo’s hands remained on your body, sending sensational chills and an addictive feeling that was better than any drugs. You were in love with Katsuki Bakugo, and he felt the same! On the other side of the school, Katsuki was walking home angrily, before stopping by the gym. He watched you walk in, nearly tackled by your friends.

He also saw Izuku, friend-less and lonely, walking in after you with a sad smile. “Deku...” Bakugo murmured angrily, upset that even after years of trying to stop him, Izuku couldn't get the hint. Bakugo knew that he would not be able to be with the love of his life until Deku learned his place, and stayed far away from you. It was quite simple actually, and if Deku had a brain, surely he would realize that you were better off. You were athletic, brilliant, popular, out-going, and powerful beyond anyone could ever imagine.

Deku was weak as humanly possible, a nerd without the brains, disliked and avoided by close to everyone in the school, shy and nervous, and of course, quirkless. No, useless. There were quirkless people who did something productive with their lives, but here Izuku was wasting away, begging for a quirk that was suitable for a hero to magically drop out of the sky and turn him into the next All Might. It was laughable honestly, that Izuku was trying to be a hero when he could have done something good with his pathetic life instead of dreaming.

It was about time that Bakugo stopped Deku from ruining his life, and began forcing the poor boy to see the truth of his life, and to learn his place in the back of the line. He didn’t deserve his sister’s love like Bakugo did, and he had to make sure that he got it. Deku would ruin everything if he could, and he had to be stopped. As Bakugo watched Deku sit on the bleachers and scroll through his phone, Bakugo smirked, an idea popping into his head as he pulled out his phone.

That night, Bakugo texted you for hours upon hours, sweet nothings and simple conversation like usual. Above everything else, you loved the fact that over years of friendly flirting and sexual tension, nothing changed once your love for each other was out there in the open. You still talked about heroes, how annoying your classmates were, and how excited you were about the UA exams coming up. You both planned to have you spend the night with Bakugo the night before, and that morning you would go on a 3 mile run and chug protein shakes.

The night before, he even promised to allow you to give him a face mask, but only if you would go night swimming with him. You happily agreed, and began fantasizing about your futures together. You both wanted a luxury condo with a salt water pool and a home gym, and a single cat and dog. You would travel a lot, and have a Summer home in Hawaii, the single place both of you guys just dreamed about. Little did you know that in the room over, your brother was feeling the opposite of happiness.

When you sat at the dinner table, you were on your phone texting Bakugo and couldn’t see him playing with his food. When you were brushing your teeth next to him, you were on a call with Bakugo and didn’t see his red, puffy eyes. And when you said goodnight, you were laughing about a joke Bakugo had said and didn’t realize he didn’t say it back, which was beyond abnormal. It wasn’t until morning, when you arrived at the table for breakfast and found Izuku gone, was when you realized that something was up. He had even forgotten his lunch??

You rode your skateboard to school like normal, meeting up with Bakugo for the first class of the day, which you didn’t have with Izuku. You and Bakugo sat down next to each other, playing footsies under the table as you did your math. He then walked you to your social studies when he went to the science classroom next to it. You guys switched classes after, him going to social studies and you going to science, doing the signature high-five you guys had created from childhood while swapping.

Finally it was fourth period, the first class of the day that you had with Izuku and Bakugo. It was Hero Studies, your favorite class. But first, you had to give Izuku his lunch. You walked down the hallway, seeing the green-haired boy from afar. “Izu! You forgot this at home!” You called out, still skipping happily wth the memories from yesterday fresh in your mind. This time, you finally noticed Izuku’s weird behavior when he didn’t turn around. “Thank you Ichiko, you can leave.” You looked over to see he was staring at his phone intensely.

When you saw the single tear drip from his cheek to the phone screen, you snatched it out of his hand and held it up, staring back at your brother who was now facing you. A single black eye, a light scrape on his right cheek, and bright red, puffy eyes looked back at you. “Oh my god, what the hell happened?” You asked as he closed his eyes, trying not to cry. You hugged him while bringing the phone screen in front of you, looking at his recents. It was Bakugo’s number which you knew by heart, followed by all of his “friends”.

Kill yourself. You fucking ruin everything.

Worthless Deku. Die you fucker.

Waste of space. Take a dive off the roof.

You’re pathetic. Your own dad hates you.

Freak. Nobody likes you.

Your sister hates you. You deserve to die.

Don’t come to school tomorrow. Meet us behind the school early.

You looked up at your brother, unable to believe your own eyes. “I-I was going to tell you, but you just seemed so happy with him. I didn’t... I didn’t want to ruin anything else!” Izuku began sobbing into your chest as you held him close. “Bakugo sent you these?” You asked your brother, unable to believe it even though it was right in front of your eyes. How could you have not seen it sooner? Bakugo wasn’t a jerk to Izuku because it was funny or friendly, but because Izuku was quirkless, he was terrible to him.

You couldn't help but feel tricked, practically lied to that that point. The same boy who would tell you that he loved you, and had always loved you, would beat up your dear brother and tell him to kill himself. You couldn't help but feel tears overwhelming up as you ran down the hall and to the Hero Studies class, seeing Bakugo. “Hey cutie, what’s u-” As he went to do the handshake, you punched him right in the face, sending him to the floor as a crowd surrounded you. “What was that for?!” Bakugo yelled as you grabbed his water bottle.

“You!” You kicked him in his stomach, seeing the students surround you in a circle. “You kiss me and tell me you love me, but then you beat up my brother and tell him to kill himself!” You threw Bakugo’s backpack at him, hitting him in the face. “You’re pathetic! You go threw all the trouble of calling me your best friend and then you do shit like this! You’re pathetic and heart-breaking and I hate you! I hate you so much Katsuki!” You screamed, tears pooling down your face as he stared back at you, unable to believe your words.

“I hate you so much! And I’m never speaking to you again!” You screamed before running out of the classroom, and out of the school towards downtown.

302 notes · View notes

recurring-polynya · 3 years

Note

Oh boy!!! Polynya I have a sudden ferocious hankering for Byakuya and Aizen being viciously passive aggressive to each other. Most of the time you write B he is in the company of his family or his loved ones. So clearly the ultimate way to bring out the knives is an AU in which all the captains are in the same Homeowner's Association. I have no preference for ships; I crave only drama, the pettier the better.

Alopex. Alopex. Why. Why u do this 2 me. You’re my favorite, tho, I cannot refuse you. I hope this is petty enough. I almost made this whole thing an epistolary fanfic that took place over NextDoor, the worst “social media”, but I think it worked better with everyone in person.

Read on ao3 or ff.net

🏠 🏠 🏠

“Gosh darnit, the only K-cups left are apple cider and pumpkin spice!”

“Oh, that can’t be right, I know I filled up the carousel just before the meeting! Retsu! Retsu, honey, we’re out of K-cups, and I bought a whole carton at Costco and I just don’t understand--”

Kuchiki Byakuya glanced up from the presentation materials he was reviewing for the six hundredth time. For starters, Byakuya wasn’t really sure anyone should be letting Hitsugaya Toushirou have coffee in the first place. It was 8p.m., and the child couldn’t be more than twelve. Byakuya had never been very clear on a) why the Seireitei Estates Homeowners’ Association let the child attend the meetings in lieu of his father (or possibly step-father?), a doctor who worked late hours, and b) why a young child would want to attend a Homeowners’ Association meeting anyway, but he had more sense than most of the other board members, so Byakuya didn’t ask questions.

Byakuya also wasn’t sure why they had to have “refreshment breaks.” Breaks were for quitters, in Byakuya’s opinion. Granted, the meeting was being held at Unohana’s house this month, which meant that the baked goods were impeccable, but Unohana’s high-strung wife tended to radiate so much nervous energy that Byakuya worried the woman was going to spontaneously combust.

“Oh, sunflower, I’m sure they just got pushed behind the croquembouche,” Unohana purred reassuringly. “I’ll help you look-- oh, excuse me, Mr. Ichimaru.”

As Unohana pushed past that weaselly shyster Ichimaru Gin, she swung her hips, knocking into him. Approximately thirty K-cups tumbled out of the pockets of Gin’s couture tracksuit.

“Oh, there they are!” Unohana sang innocently.

“How did those get in there?” Gin gasped, as though he were genuinely puzzled.

Byakuya shuddered. Ichimaru worked for the second biggest law firm in town, after, of course, Kuchiki and Sons. Byakuya dreaded the day he might find himself across a negotiation table from the man. Not that harbored any doubts about annihilating that idiot in a contest of the law, he just didn’t like being in the same room with him.

“Here you go, dear,” Unohana said, popping a K-cup into the machine and patting little Toushirou on the head. Toushirou was too busy glaring at Gin to notice.

“That looks like some presentation you’re givin' after the break, eh, Kuchiki?” Ichimaru drawled, selecting a bearclaw from the pastry tray. “Or didja bring home the paperwork from the Tsunayashiro merger?”

Byakuya sniffed and shuffled his papers back into their portfolio. “I approach all areas of my life with the same diligence as I do my professional work.”

“What a coinky-dink! I do, too-- I don’t work hard at anything.”

Byakuya had no interest in frittering away his preparation time to small talk with a moron. “I am going to set up,” he said coolly.

“Good luck!” Ichimaru trilled, giving a saucy little finger wave.

Byakuya returned to Unohana’s sitting room, where he had left his easel and poster board near the hideous faux fireplace with its tacky LED candles.

Aizen was sitting at the cardtable he’d set up at the front of the room, fiddling with his chintzy little gavel. “You look very prepared,” he said, in a tone of voice that was almost as insipid as the oatmeal-marl turtleneck sweater he wore. “Do try not to run too long, though. I’m only the substitute president, you know! I want to run a tight ship, ha ha!”

Byakuya narrowed his eyes. He was still slightly salty that President Yamamoto had felt the need to take a last minute trip on a “Single Seniors Cruise.” Something something about a flash sale and when you’re old you have to take advantage of the time you have left, etcetera, etcetera, but if there were anyone that Byakuya could count on take his side in the matter, it was that antediluvian rule-enforcer. For that matter, Byakuya wasn’t actually sure whether Yamamoto even cared about clipped hedges and shoveled sidewalks or if he just liked yelling at people and slapping them with fines.

Aizen was also a bit of a stickler for the finer points of home maintenance, but the man had no substance to him, with his floppy hair and his chunky knitwear and his horn-rimmed glasses.

“All right, everyone!” Aizen called in his stupid simpering voice. Byakuya had no idea what the man actually did, but Byakuya figured he was a preschool teacher or an art therapist or something equally touchy-feely. “Please take your seats! The next item on our agenda is a presentation on, uh, ‘A Secret But Important Topic, from our neighbor over at number six, let’s give a big hand for...Byakuya!”

“Hold the applause,” Byakuya said sternly, holding up a hand. “I come to you today to call for-- nay, demand the expulsion of one Zaraki Kenpachi from the Board of this Homeowners Association, and possibly also the entire neighborhood, if that’s possible.”

“We can’t kick people out of the neighborhood,” Aizen stage-whispered to him.

“Is he actually a member of the HOA Board?” Kyouraku asked, scratching his shaggy mane. “I’ve never seen him at one of these meetings.”

Byakuya turned to Tousen, the Board treasurer, who had taken his seat at the front table with Aizen and Ichimaru. “Mr. Tousen, did you happen to look into the dues records, as I requested?”

“I did, yes,” Tousen replied. “It turns out that Mr. Zaraki is excused from paying dues. There was a post-it note in President Yamamoto’s handwriting that said,” Tousen made finger quotes, “‘Zaraki fixed my car, excused from dues.’”

Byakuya scowled. “That doesn’t seem… sufficient… it is of no matter.” He grabbed the bed sheet covering his posterboard, and dramatically swept it away. It would have been more dramatic if the bedsheet weren’t covered in Chappy rabbits, but there was no way he was bringing one of his own 800-thread counts into a house that contained cats.

“I have been closely watching Mr. Zaraki’s residence for the last few months, as his rear yard backs to mine, and I believe he may be operating a fight club in his garden on weekends. They do move into the garage if the weather is unpleasant.”

A hush fell over the room, except for Isane and Ukitake Juushirou, who were discussing the merits of blind-baking pie crusts.

“Er, sorry, did I miss something?” Juushirou asked apologetically, after realizing he was the only person talking.

“Kenpachi seems to be running some sort of fight club,” his scruffy husband supplied, looking deeply confused, as usual.

“Goodness!” Juushirou exclaimed. “Are you sure?”

Byakuya cleared his throat. “Allow me to present the evidence I have gathered.” He picked up two large binders, and handed one to Soi Fon in the front row, and the other to Aizen, who immediately passed his, unopened, to Ichimaru. “There are about two dozen disreputable personages who are frequently found loitering about the premises. The first page of the binder indexes each of them by a descriptive nickname, including times I have seen them. Photographic evidence follows.”

“They seem to be washing cars in most of these photos,” Soi Fon pointed out, flipping a page back and forth. Or are they fixing the cars? I can’t tell.”

Komamura craned his head over, curiously. “Wow, is that a ‘73 Stingray? Nice.”

“Yes, they also like to get together to maintain and detail their vehicles,” Byakuya snapped. “Usually at ungodly hours of the morning. I am almost positive that many of those cars do not employ catalytic converters. In any case, it is easier to take pictures of them during the day.”

“Looks like they like to spray each other with hoses, too,” Gin noted, waggling his eyebrows. “Why are there so many pictures of this one guy with the red hair and tattoos? He sure doesn’t like to wear a shirt, does he?” Aizen appeared to be leaning to the side, trying to look at the book out of the corner of his eye.

“My dutiful sister did the photographic surveillance! She is very thorough, and I appreciated the help!” All these questions were knocking Byakuya off his game. He smacked his pointer against the poster. “May I direct your attention to Figure A, a bar chart of traffic on his street vs. hours of the day.”

“Tell us more about the fight club,” Soi Fon interrupted, shoving her binder over to Komamura. “Are there weapons involved, blunted or otherwise? How many people usually show up? Is it held regularly, or do you suspect there’s, say, an email list or something?”

“I think it’s some sort of mixed martial arts,” Byakuya said, rubbing his forehead. “There are often up to a dozen of them, but sometimes it’s as few as three or four.”

“You know, I’m looking through the bylaws,” Aizen said, turning pages in the bylaw binder without actually looking at them, “and I’m not exactly clear on whether fight clubs are actually… you know, forbidden.”

“They’re illegal,” Byakuya bit off.

“Per-haaaps,” Aizen drew out. “But what really constitutes… a ‘fight club,’ am I right? I mean, Dr. Unohana teaches kickboxing classes in her basement studio, is that a fight club?”

“No,” Byakuya replied.

“Exactly, and we wouldn’t want her to be painted with the same brush for just trying to teach other women the arts of self-defense, now would we?”

“It’s not for self-defense,” Unohana clarified.

“Or what about having a bunch of friends over and hitting each other with foam swords while you pretend to be werewolves?” Ichimaru broke in cheerfully. “That’s just our rights as citizens, to pretend to be werewolves in our basements with our friends.”

“It’s a tabletop RPG,” Komamura growled. “I am not a LARPer. There are no weapons. Also, you really do not need to bring it up every single board meeting. It is a perfectly normal adult hobby that I do to spend quality time with my friends.”

“Speaking of which,” Gin turned his binder of pictures around, “isn’t this guy in your group? With the sunglasses?”

“Hmm?” Komamura flipped a few pages. “Oh, huh, yeah, that’s Iba.”

“Surely a good friend of yours wouldn’t have anything to do with an illegal fight club, eh, Mr. Komamura?” Aizen suggested.

Komamura made a non-commital grumble. “I mean, I could ask him if it’s a fight club, if you want me to.”

“I have yet to hear any evidence that supports the existence of this so-called ‘fight club,” Tousen broke in.

“That’s because I keep getting interrupted, I have an audio recording and also some several emergency room admission records--”

“Mr. Zaraki is an upstanding citizen of our town and a devoted father,” Tousen continued. “Are you suggesting that Mr. Zaraki is not a responsible parent?”

“Well, now that you mention it…” Byakuya mused.

“Juushirou, you and Shunsui babysit for little Yachiru all the time, don’t you?” Aizen asked sweetly. “Have you ever seen any evidence that she isn’t the sweetest little girl in the entire world?”

Toushirou raised his hand. “Excuse me? She is a menace, actually?”

“Oh, no, Yachiru is always a ray of sunshine!” Juushirou beamed. “Very active child.”

“Eats a lot,” Kyouraku added.

The edges of Byakuya’s vision were beginning to bleed into red. “We are not talking about the Zaraki child--who, by the way, buried an entire ham in my prize tulip bed--”

“It sounds like you have a grudge against the entire family, Kuchiki,” Aizen replied mildly. “These board meetings are not a venue for airing your petty grievances.”

“You are not even listening! If you would just turn to page--”

“I think you’ve wasted enough of everyone’s time.” Aizen turned his doe eyes to the audience. “Is there anyone here who wants to invest any more energy listening to Byakuya’s vitriol?”

Byakuya looked out over his audience, looking for an ally. Komamura shifted in his seat uncomfortably. The Kyouraku-Ukitakes refused to make eye contact. Unohana was reading a magazine about decorative wreaths. Toushirou raised his hand again with a helpful smile, but no one actually ever cared what he thought.

“Soi Fon, you’re an actual police officer!” he begged.

“It’s just a fight club,” Soi Fon shrugged.

Byakuya was desperate. “Dr. Kurotsuchi?”

Kurotsuchi looked up from his phone. “Eh?”

“Have you been paying attention to any of this?”

“Of course not, I only come for the snacks.”

Byakuya gritted his teeth. “Zaraki is running a fight club and these fools wish us to turn our heads and look the other way.”

“Well, it’s not a very good fight club,” Kurotsuchi agreed. “I’ve been. They don’t allow poisoned weapons and the beverage selection is quotidian at best.”

“You see! You see, right there, Kurotsuchi has even attended! That’s proof that a) it exists and b) it defames the character of the neighborhood!”

“I’m declaring this issue closed,” Aizen replied breezily. “And Kuchiki, I really think you should try to get along better with Kenpachi. You are neighbors, after all.” He brightened. “Oh, I know! We’ve got the community yard sale coming up in June. Why don’t you go ask him if he wants to join the planning committee?”

“Byakuya… will...ask....Zaraki...to chair…the yard sale planning committee,” Gin read aloud as he wrote it into the minutes.

“I agreed to no such thing!” Byakuya howled.

“Onto the next topic!” Aizen chirped. “Trash pickup happens every Friday at 7am and a few of our neighbors have been leaving their bins out as late as noon.”

Later, after the meeting, as Byakuya was packing up his binders and his posterboard, Aizen walked up to him, munching on a rhubarb scone. “Really nice presentation, Byakuya. Good fonts, well cited, you obviously put a ton of work into it. Also, that Zaraki is a blight on the neighborhood. Ideally, he would be thrown in prison.”

Byakuya stared at Vice-Presiden Aizen, mouth agape. “Then why did you and your cronies ruin my presentation and shut me down at every turn?”

Aizen’s eyes narrowed. His mouth curved into a cold smile. Light glinted off his glasses. “You dared to usurp my rightful place as the winner of the Spring Spirit Most Beautiful Yard competition.”

Byakuya blinked at him blankly. “You cared about that? A man’s lawn is his pride. I keep my yard beautiful as a matter of principle, not for some silly competition.”

“You pay for a lawn service. You shouldn’t have even been eligible.”

Byakuya didn’t even recall entering, he’d just received a letter that he’d won, and a festive yard sign appeared next to his front walk, which he had immediately removed and thrown in the garbage. “The prize was a gift certificate to a miserable chain restaurant. I would give it to you, except that I already gave it to my sister to go out with her hooligan friends. They are perpetually short on funds. I could get you another one, I suppose. The amount was paltry enough, although I was given to understand that the place offers ‘unlimited breadsticks’.”

“It’s too late for that,” Aizen declared. “You have made a powerful enemy. You will feel my revenge in a thousand cuts.”

Byakuya wondered how much of a hassle it would be to just move. He’d heard there were some nice houses over in Karakura Acres.

~end

Shinigami’s Cup: GOLDEN!

“Do you think it would help if I infiltrated the fight club?”

“I appreciate your zeal, Sister, but, no, I do not think it would help.”

“Because I think I might have an in. I feel like I would be really good at going undercover. I could wear a body mic.”

“Rukia, you know I have the utmost faith in you, but are not even five feet tall. I do not, in any way, see how you could realistically ingratiate yourself to an organization populated by large, lumpy men whose raison d’etre is to clobber each other in the face.”

“I have cat-like reflexes! I am really good at dodging and weaving!”

“Rukia.”

“And I’ve been watching a lot of YouTube videos about muscle cars. Go on, ask me something about Dodge Chargers!”

“Rukia.”

“I even ripped the sleeves of an old t-shirt, I look super tough in it. Please, Byakuya, please can I?”

“All right, fine. But do not drink any alcoholic beverages that have ‘light’ or ‘ice’ in the title. It is against our pride as Kuchiki.”

“Thank you Brother, you’re the best!!”

#my writing #wacky au requests #is this...the first time i have written aizen?#wait i wrote some aizen in a flashback scene of a little in love #i do not write very much aizen #it was...kinda fun #the man is petty as hell and i am here for it

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okaybutlikeimagine · 4 years

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really weird hc but i think steve never cries, like it’s not that he doesn’t want to he just can’t??? he’s filled with emotions and he knows he technically should be crying but he just can’t. But billy on the other hand, if you asked him he’d deny it but he cries all. the. time. when he’s angry. when he’s sad. when he’s stressed. when he’s happy and laughing. he just can’t control it.

This is such an interesting headcanon and I DEFINITELY agree!!!! I think it makes perfect sense!!

Bc the way I think about it, Steve’s life has been a lot more performative than Billy’s has, if that makes any sense? Like, I think of Steve’s parents and I think of the kind of terrible people who had a kid just to 1. Pass down the name and 2. Say they have the “perfect family”. Like, they toted Steve out for parties just like Daisy does in Great Gatsby and then they’d hand him off to the sitter or the nanny or the maid or whatever. They didn’t actually want to raise a kid and understand that kid as a person, they wanted a trophy to say: “See this? This proves our relationship is strong and our marriage was worth it.”

And then, in the background, before Steve would be dragged off to whatever private function he was being forced and dressed to attend, his mom would grab him harshly and tightly around his little shoulders and kneel down to look him right in the eye and say: “You behave yourself, understand? There are going to be very important clients there and if you bother us while we’re working, you’re going to be grounded for a whole week. No, two. No toys, TV, nothing. You hear me?” And just imagine a little Steve, about age 5, blinking owlishly at his mom and nodding his head bc of course he can hear her, she’s right in his face, but the only thing he knows about “clients” is that they make his parents yell at each other and that they’re the reason his parents never read him bedtime stories or tuck him in at night

And I really don’t know a whole lot about like… the lives of the rich and famous, but I just can’t help but imagine Steve’s parents going to parties with the other “elite” in the area. And I use the term “elite” loosely bc i mean… let’s face it…. They still live in Hawkins. They’re definitely rich but it’s not like they’re rubbing elbows with high society over here. They’re the kind of rich, snobby, stuck up people who think they’re better than the people they share a community with. It’s the reason they’re not home very often: they hate being reminded about the fact that they haven’t moved out of Hawkins.

So they go to lots of rich, stuck up parties. And they hold Steve up like a trophy to their friends about how they have a kid already and “where’s yours, Patricia? Oh, don’t have one yet? Are things alright with you and Greg? Oh, just wondering, because if you don’t have a kid yet, well…. Maybe something’s wrong at home…”

and so Steve, with fresh threats swimming in his mind, stands there and smiles and takes all the cheek pinches and head pats even though he’s only a child and is about to fall asleep on his feet because they’ve been walking around meeting people for hours and the other kids won’t play with him because they think he’s “boring” or “stupid” or “poor” (which doesn’t make sense to him bc he’s the richest kid in his preschool as far as he’s aware. He figures the preschools must be different here.) so he puts on a mask even for the other kids. He pretends he doesn’t like playing in the mud or collecting bugs or making jokes about boogers. He puts aside acting like a kid to act like these kids just so he can play with them. Sometimes it works.

And so I think he learned not to cry at a very young age. Honestly, i dunno if you’ve heard about it, but I’m channeling The Who’s Tommy over here. Like, the whole “kid is threatened not to speak about this thing, that he didn’t see this thing, and that he didn’t hear this thing and thus goes deaf, blind, and mute”. And obviously a little less dramatic than that, but Steve’s always been told not to cry. When he would cry he’d get punished. It’s like a weird Pavlovian effect. Ever since he was a kid he was asked to put on a show for everyone, told not to pout or whine or cry, and now he just…. Can’t. He almost fears it. He hears his parents threats, even now at the age of 18, and smiles and laughs rather than cries. And sometimes he cries… that night that Nancy called him bullshit and told him she didn’t love him he went home and ripped a blanket she had (apparently lovelessly) gifted him and broke his lamp and accidentally sliced his foot on the glass of the lightbulb…. and cried and… and it felt like failure. It was only a couple of tears, hot and angry and rolling slowly down his face and he let his throat catch fire as he held everything else back. He was angry with himself at that point, more than anything. He looked himself in the mirror and heard his father’s words of “A Harrington never cries. Are you a true Harrington?” and sucked it all back in and did whatever he could to take his mind off of it, even though everything he did always ended with him fuming about the words over and over again and caused him to end up punching pillows and angrily drinking all the beer out of the fridge.

But Billy’s different.

Billy is a volcano. A volcano of every single emotion you can think of. He experiences them all violently and viciously and they take over his system until his body physically can’t hold back from crying. We SEE him cry multiple times in the show!!! And i like to think it’s bc rather than be toted around, he’s been locked in. where Steve’s parents drag Steve around to different social functions, Neil locks Billy up so he- and no one else -has to look at him. Steve is forced to be around others and put on a mask and Billy is forced to be alone, with just himself and his thoughts. He doesn’t need to mask himself when he’s alone.

And that’s not to say that Billy doesn’t also put on a show for others- because he most definitely does. I think a lot of what he does is performative bc he feels he needs to and his thought process for it lines up with Steve’s for himself: he’s just not good enough. He wasn’t good enough for his mom to stay, he wasn’t good enough for his dad to love in his mother’s absence, he wasn’t and isn’t good enough for anything. So he puts on a show of this big tough guy and he manipulates people and he calls it entertainment.

And this isn’t to say that he didn’t get yelled at for crying, either! Bc he definitely did. He’s gotten hit a few times for tears in his eyes but it was always followed with being locked in his room and being told that he was “embarrassing to watch”... and in the four walls of his room he cried more. Bc growing up, the one thing he found relief in was being sent to his room or even having his room in the first place: it gave him a space to be alone and let his emotions out. And he never tried to, his body always just did it for him. Bc crying is often a very visceral thing, and also a very natural and very human thing. It releases chemicals in your body to help soothe you and lord KNOWS Billy needs to soothe himself bc once his mom left, no one did it for him. His body realizes the emotions that aren’t being sorted and his mind knows when it’s safe (when he’s alone, when Neil’s turned and walking away, when no one can hear) and it cries. I just imagine Billy on constant vibrate, brimming with emotions and filled to the edge with too many things with everything with all of it and he just cries because there’s so few outlets for him. His body has grown accustomed to taking care of itself in that way. And so when he’s had too much (and the threshold on some days if very small), he rushes to his room and slams the door and as soon as it’s latched he’s near drowning in tears bc he needs release.

And let me tell you- it freaks the fuck out of Steve.

Because like you said, Steve just doesn’t cry. And the first time Billy and Steve have sex, Billy cries as he orgasms and Steve freaks. out. He thinks he did something wrong and he’s fretting over Billy and his heart is racing and he’s fighting with himself about if he should hold Billy’s face or step about 5 feet away from him because holy shit what happened??

And Billy feels like an idiot but there’s no stopping his body because he’s so overwhelmed by feeling so good and it’s been a long time coming for him and Steve and after all of that anger and animosity between each other, it was just too much and he cries. And he punches Steve while he’s crying, trying his best to growl but hiccuping around the words instead as he says: “Don’t look at me like that.”

“I’m so sorry Billy, holy shit! What do I do?!”

“Go get me a tissue, you dumbass!”

And he’s sniffling and blows his nose loud and Steve is in awe that Billy is still such a hardass even with tears running down his eyes.

And this happens a LOT. Every time Billy and Steve have sex, Billy tears up after he orgasms. It’s not always full on waterworks like the first time, but his eyes always water as he lays there with Steve, body lit up and hot like a fucking campfire, and he lays there and breathes and a tear rolls down his cheek and Steve has gotten so used to it that he leans over Billy and kisses the tear right at his cheekbone and whispers how beautiful he is. (and that usually makes Billy tear up even more, to which he shoves Steve with whatever strength he has left and tells him to shut his mouth)

The first time they tell each other “I love you” it’s the same thing. Billy whispers “I love you, too” and there go his tears. His chest heaves and he cries into Steve’s collarbone, gripping Steve’s shirt and Steve just kind of chuckles a bit and rubs Billy’s back and maybe cracks a joke about how he’s “such a sap” and Billy tilts his head so he can bite at Steve’s shoulder and make the boy yelp.

And the first time Billy catches Steve about to cry, he sees that the boy is about to run away. Bc he’s taken notice to the fact that Steve doesn’t cry and he hasn’t brought it up more than twice bc Steve is obviously anxious when he talks about it but Billy gets worried for him bc Steve always acts like he’s okay and Billy knows that’s not good. So when he catches Steve’s eyes watering and then Steve turning to lock himself away somewhere, he grabs the boy in the most forceful hug he can manage so that he can’t squirm away and hide himself and he says: “Don’t run away from me. Are you gonna cry?”

“Billy-”

“Then do it. You’re not a robot.”

“Billy stop I-”

“You’re human, you fucking dumbass.”

“Don’t call me-”

“It’s okay.”

And that makes Steve’s chest heave. He sucks so much air in he squeaks and his chest pushes against Billy’s own and Billy grabs tighter and nuzzles his head into Steve’s neck and whispers.

“You’re safe, Pretty Boy.”

And he stands there and he lets Steve cry. Lets himself be whatever physical and mental support Steve needs as he finally, finally let’s his body take over and just cries.

#ask #anonymous #billy hargrove #steve harrington #angst #hurt #comfort #harringrove #sorry this is a little off/weird #I'M feeling a little off/weird #i've been in a really bad headspace recently #but i really wanted to write something and i wrote this really quickly and.... yeah #♥#sorry this took a billion years to answer #i swear i'm gonna get to all my asks guys #eventually #there are a lot of things going on and they're giving me nervous breakdowns

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itisannak · 4 years

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Single Dad!Calum x Preschool Teacher!Y/N (Calum Hood Fic, Part 2)

Summary: (Y/N) and Calum are about to create a big, happy family. That is if people from the past allow it (Smut / Unprotected Sex / Pregnancy Sex) (T.W: Pregnancy Complication / Hospital Stay) Part 2 to admittedly one of my best fics. I have been working on it since August 2019 (published April 2020), so I hold it in my heart very dearly. I hope you love it as much as you loved the first one. It is 21k words long, but definitely worth the read. (Request) (Part 1: Single Dad!Calum x Preschool Teacher! (Y/N))

"You don't know the gender yet, do you?" Calum asks me, placing his hand on my lower stomach. There is no visible bump yet, nothing that gives away I am expecting, but surely my jeans feel a lot snugger. "Too early for that." I reply, placing my hand on top of his. "When?" He asks, his tone sounding a lot impatient. "Haven't you been through that before? With Joy? Because I honestly hoped for some guidance from you." I ask him, turning my head to look at him as I let a playful chuckle.

Calum looks at me somberly, shaking his head in denial. "We were too young... Nina didn't want me with her on the appointments, I didn't push on it, because, well, I was not ready to become a father. And neither was Nina to become a mother. So we both pretended that Joy wasn't about to come. But of course, Joy was coming and there wasn't anything we could do about it. We found out about the pregnancy when it was too late for an abortion, the doctor said it would be dangerous for Nina and we didn't want to risk it. We agreed that once Joy was born, we would give her up for adoption. We both had dreams, we both wanted to focus on our careers. Nina was supposed to be on a big TV show when we found out we were expecting. She lost her part, they didn't want a pregnancy plot for her character this early on, and she wouldn't be able to hide it for long. She blamed me for that, I blamed her. So, we shut each other out." He explains; he doesn't look at me as he speaks, certainly a bit embarrassed. I take his hand in mine, intertwining our fingers and bringing his hand to my lips, planting a soft peck on his knuckles. "What happened then?" I ask him, curious about what changed their plan.

"She gave birth alone. I was in practice all day when she went into labor, my phone was on silent. So, I found out a lot later, went to the hospital hours after. When I got there, Nina had already discharged herself, signed some AMA forms so the doctors had no other choice but to let her go. She left a note to one of the nurses. 'Didn't want her anyway. Do whatever you want.' word by word, just like that. The hospital had called Child Protective Services already. When I got to the nursery, Joy was with a lady, talking to the nurses about putting her in the system. I told them I am the father, that I was at work, and I didn't know her mother would be doing that. The lady smiled at me, patted my shoulder, and asked me if I wanted to hold her. I nodded and they handed me a swaddled bundle, barely bigger than a toy baby doll. And I looked down on her... Do you believe in love at first sight?" He asks me and I nod; of course, I do, he made me believe. "I didn't... Until that moment. Cause when I looked at her, my heart stopped. It was like she became the center of my universe, instantly. I called Luke that night, told him to go to Target and pick onesies, diapers, bottles. We hadn't bought anything for her. He picked them up and came over to the hospital, not saying anything, not asking anything. He stayed with Joy, watching over her as I called my mom. I told her 'Hey mom, you are a grandma now'. She asked me when the baby was due. I told her she was already here. I told her everything. She yelled at me over the phone. Then she took a plane here. Mali came over the day after my mom. We took Joy home after 4 days. I just had a basket for her, so she slept there until we got a decent crib. I just sat on the couch, looking at the door, waiting for Nina to walk in. I would have accepted her back as if nothing happened. She didn't. I didn't see her again before the court, and that was just for a spare moment..."

"Court?" I ask softly. "Custody battle. The case was easy. You see, child abandonment is not really applauded. And then came the hard part. I had to tell the world I have a daughter, whom I was raising by myself, without dragging her mother through the mud." "They didn't know?" I ask surprised, trying to wrap my head around the fact that they could keep it a secret. "No one but our closest friends knew. It was way easier back then to hide from people in public. My parents didn't forgive me for the next 3 months. My mom only talked to Mali while helping me." He sounds hurt; I can tell he hasn't gotten over it. "How did she forgive you?" I ask him and he sighs, dragging his breath. "I broke down crying in front of her. I was sleep-deprived and alone. She wasn't talking to me. So I broke down. I told her everything, about the adoption plans, about the note... She hugged me and I slept the full night, for the first time in 3 months." "Must have been hard." "Those were the hardest 3 months of my life. After that, Joy and I got used to each other, and she became the core of my existence, my whole world. So, I didn't mind staying awake or cleaning vomit and poop all day. Of course, I had tons of help. Everyone chipped in as much as humanly possible." Calum explains.

I feel my eyes getting heavy; I get so sleepy, so easily lately. "Baby, do you mind if we go to sleep? Peanut is making me sleepy." I ask and he nods, smiling softly. "Want me to leave?" He asks, pecking on my forehead. "Don't you dare! I said WE go to sleep. Don't let me sleep another night alone." I pout and he hums. "Let's go then. I am tired of all the exposition too." He fakes a yawn as I get up.

"You are hogging the covers..." Calum whispers sleepily. It is 4 in the morning and I am trying to find a comfy position; I am not even big, but I am used to sleeping on my stomach, and now I am too scared to do that. I turn to look at Calum, admiring his body, naked and sprawled on the bed. "Or maybe, I like you better naked and uncovered. That's why I am pulling at the covers." I reply, crawling back on my pillow. "Oh, really?" He sounds intrigued, making me scoff. "You look so much better naked." I reply and he chuckles. "You look so much better naked as well. Especially underneath me." He comments, smirking slightly. "That is exactly what I was thinking." I reply as he moves to hover above me.

He grips on my jaw before he leans in for a kiss, making my legs wrap around his waist almost instinctively, earning a chuckle of pleasure from him as he brings his hand to hold onto my thighs. "I'll just pull those panties to the side..." He mumbles, lowering his hand from my jaw to the hem of my underwear. "And then?" I ask, feeling already hot and heavy with need; I love these pregnancy hormones. "Then I will thrust inside you and press my body on yours. And make you feel so good. That's a promise. So please, let me pull those panties to the side." He sounds needy as well, his voice almost breaking at the end. "What the fuck are you waiting for?" I ask, smirking at him playfully.

He slips his finger inside the hem of my panties, pulling them to the side messily as he tries to free his cock. I scoot lower, spreading my legs more to give him better access. He goes in slowly, closing his eyes as I wrap around him. It's been so long since the last time. So, so long. This feels strangely new, almost like our first time. "Are you ok?" He asks me, stopping for a second. I nod my head, biting my bottom lip and closing my eyes. "You feel so good inside me. You have no idea how much I craved this, how long I have lusted over this." I moan, digging my nails into his forearm. "Trust me, baby, I do." He whispers, leaning in to kiss me. He changes the rhythm, picking up on force but still going slow. He goes as deep as it goes, pressing against my spot as I roll my hips a little, enhancing the tightness I feel on my stomach. I moan against his lips, bringing one hand behind his head to deepen the kiss.

We move together, the bucking of my hips meeting his thrusts. I gasp, lowering my lips to his chin. "God, I need all of you." He whispers, his breath fanning against my skin. I moan, feeling his veins throbbing on my walls. The feeling doesn't fade away as we move, making my head blurry and clouded. "You are my favorite high. Nothing else feels this good..." He mumbles, moving fast and forcefully, giving me all I want without me even asking. "Good... Cause I want you to be totally hooked on me..." I moan, feeling his breath bring chills to my skin. "You are so fucking beautiful... So fucking beautiful..." He moans deeply, the sound coming from deep in his throat. I place my hand on his chest, right over his heart, feeling it beat fast. "Your hand is a bit cold. Are you cold, princess?" He asks me, stopping for a moment and looking at me worriedly. "I am fine. Keep going!" I beg, scratching my nails over his skin. He leans down to kiss me, taking my bottom lip between his teeth and pulling it back a little. I whimper at the sensation, closing my eyes as he starts thrusting in again. "You like that, baby? You like it when I do that?" He asks, sighing a little as he finds a comfortable angle. My whole body jolts back as I take him, completely losing control of my reactions. "I am so close..." I whimper, closing my eyes shut and focusing only on how good this is. "Hi so close, I am Calum." He replies; I know this is supposed to be horrible and throw me off the mood, but his voice sounds so sexy as he struggles to catch his breath and let out the words. "You are a fucking jackass..." I groan. "Yeah yeah, I know you fucking love me, sweetheart." He replies confidently, thrusting inside me quickly yet powerfully. "You are lucky I do..." I gasp for air, grasping onto his arms. "You are pulsing around me. Wanna cum, princess?" He asks me, smirking cockily. "Yeah, act like you haven't been throbbing inside me since the first second... Wanna cum, papi?" I ask him, mirroring his smirk.

He leans down, taking my face in his palms before he kisses me. I reach between our bodies, bringing a hand to play with my clit, stroking my fingertip over the bundle softly. I feel my body jolting every time my finger syncs his thrusts, sending my mind further down the rabbit hole. "Your face is so pretty when you get close... Holy fuck..." He moans; I adore it when I hear him moan, or make these euphoric sounds he makes. I cum after a couple of powerful thrusts, arching off the mattress and holding onto his shoulders. "That's it, baby... Squeeze around me..." He sounds husky, letting me know he is close too. "Don't stop talking. I love your voice..." I almost beg him. "Oh, you do? I had no clue, angel." He teases me, stroking his hand down my arm, gripping tightly around my wrist, before he lowers it to replace my fingers with his and stroke my clit, prolonging my orgasm.

With my other hand, I tug at his hair, pulling on his locks softly. He opens his mouth ajar, looking at me a little shocked, but soon shutting his eyes and humming, pleased by the way my fingers interlock into his messy hair. "Pull harder, baby." He begs, voice clouded with lust. I follow his request, pulling at his hair as he fucks me for a little longer, thrusting sloppily until he hits his high and cums inside me, screaming and cursing as he reaches his peak. He collapses on his back next to me on the bed, gasping and smiling. "Yeap, I wanna do this for the rest of my life..." He comments, sighing happily. "Good, I want you to do me for the rest of my life..." I chuckle, turning so I can lay my head on his chest. He scoffs a little but reaches down to take my hand in his and bring it to his lips.

(Calum's POV) I hold (Y/N)'s hand as I unlock the door of my house, feeling her grip on my hand tense up as the moment she will see Joy again approaches. "You'll be alright. We will be alright." I remind her, letting her walk in. Giggles are heard from the living room, signifying that Joy is in there. (Y/N) walks ahead slowly, but confidently and I follow right behind her, hoping for a good reaction from Joy. "(Y/N)..." I hear her gasp, followed by paddling on the floor. "Hi, bunny. I've missed you so much..." (Y/N) says, kneeling to hug her. "I've missed you too. Is your sister ok?" Joy asks, looking at (Y/N) with her big eyes. "She is so much better. And she is so, so sorry that she took me away from you. But I promise I am not leaving again." (Y/N) almost tears up as Joy reaches to stroke her cheek. "It is ok. I am glad she is healthy."Joy replies softly. "Joy, baby. You are too precious." (Y/N) coos, hugging her close. She tries to pick her up but I place a hand on her shoulder to stop her. "Yeah, I probably shouldn't." She comes back to her senses, kneeling back down. Joy looks at us with knitted eyebrows, finding it weird. "My back hurts a bit. I was sleeping on my sister's couch..." (Y/N) covers it up quickly, making Luke, who has been watching us from the couch, chuckle.

(Y/N) chuckles as well, getting up to greet him. Luke hugs her, sighing softly. "I am so sorry." He mumbles, stroking her back softly. "It is in the past. We are all good now." (Y/N) responds with her soft, calming voice. "Enough pity party... We should all go out for lunch..." I suggest, picking Joy up and pressing a kiss on her cheek. "I have to go back home, I am sorry." Luke replies and I nod. "It's alright. Maybe dinner tonight. With everyone." (Y/N) suggests and Luke hums. "See you tonight then." He smiles, moving towards me to leave a kiss on Joy's head. "See you tonight, uncle Lu..." Joy waves him off, grinning at him.

"What should we do now, Joy?" (Y/N) asks and Joy presses a finger on her chin, pretending to be thinking hard. "I wanna see (Y/N). I missed her." Joy pouts at me, reaching for (Y/N). I let her down and she runs to (Y/N), who scrunches down to hug her. "What should we do?" She asks her, stroking her hair off her face. "We go play with the toys daddy brought me from tour." Joy cheers, making (Y/N) giggle. "Actually, Joy... Before you go, there is something we need to talk about." I state, taking a seat on the couch and patting the cushion softly.

(Y/N) stares at me a little worriedly. Joy sits next to me, waiting for (Y/N) to do the same before turning to look at me, giving me her full attention. "You know that (Y/N) and I are a couple, right?" I ask, already feeling jittery about the conversation. "Yes." Joy is looking at me weirdly, almost mimicking the look on (Y/N)'s face. "Well, there is a point when you are a couple with someone that you think about living with them. And before I left for tour, I talked with (Y/N) about living together. And she wants to... And I want her to come live with us. So, what I want to ask you is, would you be ok if (Y/N) moves in with us? So she starts living with us?" I ask Joy, whose face lights up as I explain it to her. "Yes... That would be awesome. When are you moving here with us?" Joy asks (Y/N) who is on the verge of tearing up. "I have brought some stuff here and I can move in this week if it is what you want." (Y/N) suggests as Joy hugs her. "Yes... And we will have sleepovers like when daddy was gone, right?" She asks and (Y/N) scoffs happily. "All the time. We will kick daddy out of the bedroom and have it all for ourselves." (Y/N) cheers, making Joy giggle. "Hey, I can be part of the sleepovers as well..." I protest playfully. "Sorry, daddy. Girls only." Joy giggles as I gasp. "Duke, attack them." I shout, leaning towards them and tickling Joy who laughs maniacally. Duke runs on the couch, barking as he tries to jump on top.

I climb up the stairs to Joy's room to announce that the food is ready. Opening the door, I find them sitting on the floor, dolls sprawled in front of them while Joy sets up the dream house. (Y/N) is dressing the dolls up, talking with Joy about the scenario they are going to put the dolls in. They are both glowing with happiness, giggling as they chat. I lean against the door frame, gawking at them. This is everything I've wanted my life to lead to, everything I've wished I could give Joy. "Girls, food is ready." I announce, making Joy fuss over it. "We've just started playing." Joy protests, but stands up. "We will continue after eating. Go wash up." (Y/N) assures her, before Joy rushes out of the room.

I walk to (Y/N), helping her get up from the floor as she struggles a little. "How are my babies?" I ask, placing a hand on her belly. "Shush... Joy might hear." (Y/N) scolds me but I scoff it off. "She won't. Tell me how is the baby..." I peck on her forehead, hugging her to my chest. "We are both fine. You don't have to worry." "I do need to. Do you need anything? Maybe you should take a nap." I suggest and she chuckles. "I am fine, Cal. Are you going to be like that for the next 27 weeks?" She asks me with a chuckle. "Yep... I need to make sure all my loves are ok." I reply, tilting her chin up to kiss her. "You are going to be the best baby daddy..." She mumbles against my lips, wrapping her arms around my neck. "I promise you that..." I reply, bringing my lips to her nose.

(Y/N's POV) "You are nervous..." I state the obvious, watching Calum as he drives to my parents' house. "Shouldn't I? 'Hello, sir. Nice to meet you. I have been dating your daughter for almost 2 years and this is the first time I am meeting you. Oh, I also got your daughter pregnant, surprise...'" He sounds panicked, scoffing sarcastically. "My parents are nice people. They are going to adore you." I reply. Truth be told, I really don't know how they are going to react to meeting Calum, let alone when we are going to tell them about the pregnancy. "What if they don't? What if they hate me?" He asks me, pulling over and turning to look at me. "They are not going to hate you, bub. But if they do, there is not much they can do to change the fact I am utterly and head over heels in love with you. And that I am having a family with you. They will have to suck it up and deal with it." I reply, stroking my thumb over the knuckles of his right hand. "You are in love with me..." He teases me playfully, softening a little. I roll my eyes as I rest my back against the seat, shaking my head from side to side. "Hood, take a look at me... I have a baby inside me, your baby. Our baby... And I have been with you for nearly 2 years, and I still look at you like you are God's gift to humanity. There is not a doubt I am in love with you, more than anyone will ever be in love with someone else." I reply, intertwining our hands together. "Damn it... I guess you are right." He side-smirks, getting back on the road. "Do you think Luke will be alright watching Joy the whole weekend?" I ask, relaxing back on my seat as he starts driving again. "He is going to be fine. Sierra is with him, they make a pretty good team." He assures me, focusing on the road. "They do, huh?" I chuckle, placing a hand on my stomach, which is now sticking out just a little bit.

I ring on the doorbell, holding Calum's hand tightly. He looks composed, almost ready for what is to come. I hope this goes well, I hope they see him the way I do. "Hi, come on in. Welcome." My mom greets us, smiling brightly at Calum. "Hi. It is such a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for having me over to your house..." Calum tries to woo my mom, who is scanning him from head to toe. "The pleasure is all ours. Finally, we will get to meet our daughter's boyfriend, after so long. Let's get straight to the table, your father is waiting for us..." She guides us in, while I take Calum's hand in mine. "Are you ok?" I ask him and he nods, discretely placing a hand on the low of my stomach. "Are you?" He asks me and I nod, leaning my head on his shoulder for a split moment. "There they are..." My dad says sarcastically, standing up from his chair to greet us. "It is an honor to finally meet you, sir." Calum reaches to shake my dad's hand, making my father nod approvingly. "Well, it was about time, don't you think? If we delayed this a little more, I would have started believing that you are imaginable." He jokes, sitting back on his chair. Calum gulps thickly but nods his head as he pulls my chair out for me. "I agree, sir. And I apologize it took so long. Work obligations, you see." Calum mumbles as he takes a seat next to me. "Work obligations... What do you do for a living?" My father asks while my mom begins serving the food. "I am a musician. I play bass and do vocals for my band. I also write music and lyrics... All of that... We have been touring for the past few weeks..." Calum explains, smiling at my mom who is serving him some veggies. "Musician... I see... Well, I guess it is nice to follow your passion. What did you study?" My father asks him, already looking at us weirdly. I look at him with wide eyes, feeling that poor Calum is under interrogation. "I didn't go to college, sir. My band had a major take off when I was 16, so I had to drop out and follow that path. Luckily, it worked very well for us." Calum replies confidently. My dad cocks an eyebrow, the room filling with silence. "His band is one of the top ones in the world right now. They have become a household name." I chime in, rubbing my thumb over his hand in solidarity. "Well, let's drink to that, then..." My father raises his glass, prompting us to do the same. We cling them together, and while everyone sips their wine, I pretend to take a small gulp, not wanting to ruin the surprise yet.

"How often do you go on tour?" My mom asks while we begin eating. "Depends on the releases of music. Usually, we have a big tour after the release of an album. Then we do some promotional tours and interviews for new singles. There is not a stable pattern, but mostly, we tour more than 3 months a year." He explains with a smile. "That must be tiring..." My mom sighs sympathetically. "It is not as bad as it sounds..." Calum chuckles happily. "How did you two meet, again?" My father asks me, cutting a piece of steak. "I was his daughter's teacher..." I mumble hesitantly. "You have a daughter!" My dad chokes on his food lightly, making me close my eyes and brace myself for what is to come. "Yes, Joy... She is 6 and she is the light of my life. She adores (Y/N), which has been a breath of fresh air." Calum replies, tensing a little. "So, you were married? (Y/N), did you get between a family?" My mom panics, looking at me with terror. "I was not married, no. I am a single parent. Your daughter didn't come between no one..." Calum chimes in quickly, trying to defend me. "Jesus... You are dating a single father of an ex-student of yours, who travels the world for a living and lives his rock star life while you stay behind, taking care of his child, whose mother God only knows how and where she is. And that, if she is still alive. God, I thought you were smarter than falling for good looks and money..." My mom snaps, making everyone gasp. "Mom..." I protest, glaring at her. "Did you just accuse me of murdering my ex-girlfriend?" Calum asks confused. If anything, it is comical that my mother has just bluntly accused him of murder. "You are ruining your potential! Did you break up with Matt for him?" She asks, the word him coming out with disgust. "No, mom. Matt and I broke up months before getting together with Calum. And you know, I would break up with Matt a million times in order to get what I have with Calum..." I reply, patience running flimsy thin. "You were always such a fool. You think he is in love with you, but in a couple of months, he is going to get bored of you and find someone his range, and you will be left alone, with your memories and your bruised feelings, thinking you have lived the greatest love story there is, but you will be wrong." My mom obviously becomes overly dramatic, making my blood boil in my veins. "Cal, let's go. Obviously, they don't care about actually getting to know you and finding out what a great man you are, nor how happy you make me, so we are leaving." I say calmly, standing up from my seat. Calum takes my hand in his, trying to stop me. "(Y/N), baby, it is ok..." He mumbles but I shake my head no. "No, we are leaving. I am not going to stay here and be disrespected by my parents and listen to them degrade the person I love... I just hope they get their heads together before their grandchild is born." I let the cat out of the bag before Calum stands up to follow me. "For what it's worth, I really love her. And I will never get bored of her, And I do hope you are part of our child's life..." He states before we move to the door to get out of here.

"I am so sorry. I never thought they would react like that..." I mumble as we get in the car. "It is alright, baby. I was hoping they would like me, but I guess they need more time. Are you ok? You seemed more upset than I would like you to be." He asks, getting in the car and helping me buckle up. "I am fine, really. They will get around to accepting you, especially now that there is a child involved. They will look you up, for sure... They will see what an amazing dad you are, how much you love Joy, how much you love me. They will get to see you for the amazing person you are and they will regret doubting you, I promise that." I try to assure him, hoping that my words will give him some ease. "I know they will, baby." He smiles turning the engine on.

"Would you look at that... Look who finally looks pregnant... Hi there, baby bump." Calum announces as he enters the shower cabin. I rub the loofah over my belly that now pokes out enough so everyone knows that something is up. "Hey, daddy... Came just in time." I cheer, turning around to place a kiss on his neck. "In time for what, princess?" He asks me, an eyebrow cocked up and a stupid smirk playing on his lips. "In time for my doctor's appointment. Quick, shower, and we are off." I remind him, "We have plenty of time until then..." He mumbles, wrapping his arms around my waist. "No, we don't..." I giggle and he groans. "Quick shower and we are off..." He mumbles with a sigh. "I told my boss today... She said that I have to inform the students and parents myself." I sigh as I rinse myself off. "Or, you can tell them nothing... At least not until we tell Joy and I find a way to deal with it getting public." He suggests; he sounds too worried, anxious about telling the world "I wasn't going to tell anything until we tell Joy... But we have to do it soon. I am getting bigger and bigger by the day... You said it yourself, I look pregnant. Joy is smarter than me and you, combined... She is already asking me if I am ok every time she hears me throw up and seeing me exhausted all the time." I state and he nods. "I was thinking we could tell her on Christmas morning. Get her something that says 'world's greatest big sister'... It would be cheesy and cute." He suggests, stroking my arm with his thumb. "I don't think we have until Christmas... I am already showing..." I reply and he nods. "Tonight then... We will order from her favorite place and tell her she is having a baby brother or baby sister..." He sounds anxious about it, even worried a little. My stomach drops at his uneasiness, mind flying to the worst-case scenario, panicking over the possibility of hurting Joy's feelings. "Tonight, then." I nod, pecking on his cheek.

"I checked your labs, (Y/N)... They are spotless. Good job. Seems like they are taking great care of you." My doctor comments, closing the file with my labs. "I am being treated like literal royalty." I wink at Calum who squeezes my hand. This is his first time ever at the OBGNY, so he looks at us nervously. "How is your morning sickness?" She asks me. "It's better than before. I only get sick when I smell something I don't like nowadays." I state and she nods. "That's good... You'll get nauseous less and less as you progress. Now, wanna go take a look at your baby?" She asks, looking at Calum who nods excitedly. "We are finding out the gender today, right?" He asks, making the doctor giggle softly. "Well, if the kiddo is sitting right, we will..." She replies, guiding us into the exam room.

I lay on the bed, raising my blouse, and lowering my pants slightly, prepping myself for the ultrasound. "Oh, you have quite the bump..." She coos softly, getting the bottle of gel. "The bump is normal, right?" Calum asks, taking a seat on the chair by the bed. "Well, every bump is different. (Y/N) has a healthy weight for how far she is, so we will have to see the baby's measurements and tell for sure... But she has an average bump, I would say..." The doctor replies, squirting the gel on my belly. "Now, let's take a look at peanut..." She focuses on the screen. "We have a very healthy heartbeat. And we are moving perfectly... You will feel kicks soon, maybe in the next couple of weeks..." She announces and I nod. "Any signs of deficiencies? Osteogenesis Imperfecta? Down Syndrome?" I ask, perking my head up to look at the screen. "(Y/N), this is not a Grey's Anatomy episode... You are healthy, and your baby is healthy... We have no reason to worry, everything seems normal." She assures me, taking the baby's measurements. "Your baby is as big as an avocado. And if I turn the wand a little..." She mumbles, moving the instrument and looking at the screen, enhancing the picture. "You said you want to know the gender, right?" She asks us, making us nod in unison. "Well, it looks like a baby girl is growing in there..." She replies cheerfully. I squeal, looking at the blob-like image on the screen. "Looks like I am doomed to be surrounded by gorgeous women my whole life..." Calum sighs happily. I turn to look at him, finding him smiling down at me. "Congratulations you two..." She smiles at us as Calum leans down to peck on my nose.

"I am ready to tell her." Calum states as we drive back home, a little black t-shirt that reads 'Best Big Sister Ever!' resting in a gift bag on my lap. "Good..." I chuckle, stroking my bump softly. Calum quickly brings a hand to my stomach, rubbing his thumb over it. "I can't believe we are having a girl..." He sighs, shaking his head. "You wanted a boy, didn't you?" I ask. "A boy would be nice, yeah... But holy fuck, a girl is the best thing ever..." He sounds excited, a smile stretching all over his face. "How do you think Joy will react?" I ask him, biting my lip. "Honestly, she always asked for a sibling and she is jealous of her friends who have ones, so, I think she will take it pretty well. Plus, she is obsessed with you, so..." "I guess she will take it pretty well."

"Joy, food is ready..." Calum shouts as we finish setting the table. The gift bag rests underneath the chair Calum will be sitting, so he can give it to Joy during dinner. She runs to the table, Duke skipping behind her. "Spaghetti and meatballs." Calum replies, pointing to the platter. "Yum..." She screams, picking her fork. "And cheesecake for dessert..." I sing and her face lights up. "Yes..." She cheers excitedly while twirling her fork in the spaghetti.

We eat silently, enjoying the food for a little while until Calum clears his throat and reaches for the bag. "Joy, we got you a little gift..." He announces, earning her attention. "A gift? What is it?" She asks excitedly. "You'll see... Open it." He hands her the bag, which Joy tears apart instantly. "It's a t-shirt. Can you read what it says?" He asks, taking my trembling hand in his. Joy nods, unfolding the t-shirt and scanning it with her eyes. "Best Big Sister Ever...?" She asks unsure, looking at us confused. "Joy, (Y/N) is pregnant. We are having a baby. In a few months, you'll have a baby sister." Calum explains, with a smile spreading on his lips while leaning to stroke her cheek. But Joy dodges him, frowning as she throws the t-shirt on the chair next to her and hops off. "Joy." Calum looks at her with wide eyes, sighing at her reaction as my heart drops to my stomach. "I am not hungry." She shouts as she stomps away. "Joy Luna Hood... Come back here so we can talk." Calum says calmly. "Don't want to..." She replies, going up the stairs and leaving us staring at each other in fear. Calum rubs his temples, blinking a couple of times before he takes a breath and gets up from the table. "I'll talk to her." He states heading towards the stairs.

I sit on my spot for a few seconds before I decide to follow him to her room, but let him go in alone, staying outside as I don't want to bring anyone in a hard position. "Joy..." Calum knocks on her door before entering but receives no response. "Joy, baby... I thought you wanted a baby sister..." Calum says softly. I hear Joy sniffle, signaling she was crying. "I do..." She mumbles. "Why did you react like that then, baby?" He asks her; I hear the bed shuffle indicating he is taking a seat on it. There is silence in the room until Calum breaks it by sighing. "Why are you crying, princess?" He asks softly. "Will (Y/N) leave us like my mom left?" She asks hesitantly; my heart breaks into a million pieces as she brings the words out of her little head and into reality. I can barely draw a breath, a knot resting on the back of my throat as I fight to keep tears from spilling from my eyes. "Joy, who told you that?" Calum asks shocked. "I heard you say it." She replies, sniffling her nose. I press my hand on my mouth, trying to drown my sobbing. "My love, I can promise you that (Y/N) won't leave us. I promise that. She loves us so much... She loves you more than anything...." Calum replies.

"But the baby will come and she will love the baby, not me." She protests. "No, baby. She will always love you." "But... She won't. Because she will be the baby's mom and not mine, so she won't love me anymore." Joy's voice breaks and I can hear her sob. I freeze, feeling sorry for all the thoughts that are eating away her little mind. "I promise she will continue loving you with all her heart, baby." Calum assures her. I feel tears rolling down my face and I try to sob silently, avoiding making Joy aware that I was eavesdropping.

Calum comes out of the room looking like a total wreck. "How much of it did you hear?" He asks me as we walk downstairs. "All of it... I hate this woman, I hate that she made Joy doubt me loving her. I hate that what she did is eating Joy's mind away, filling her with so much distrust. I hate her..." I cry out, making Calum pull me in for a hug and press my head on his chest... "Shush, baby... I know, I know... But she has zero power over us now. And Joy just needs time and she will see that nothing will change." Calum mumbles, pecking on the top of my head. "I know I am not her mom. And I will never be the one who brought her in this world... But I love her as mine, Calum." "I know, love. She will get around it too..." He assures me.

Calum cleans up the table, rejecting any of my offers to help. He has me seated on the couch, multiple cushions supporting my back as Duke lays on top of my lap, head propped against my stomach. I think he knows there is a resident there. "(Y/N)?" I hear Joy's little voice from the stairway. "Yes, darling?" I ask, averting my gaze to her. There is pin-dropping silence into the house, to the point where not even a breath is heard, only Joy's feet shuffling on the floor. She climbs on the couch, approaching me a little hesitantly; her hair falls messily, reminding me of her father's whenever he keeps his hair untamed for a while, and she looks sleepy, rubbing her eyes softly as she rests on the couch. Calum is standing at the end of the kitchen, looking at the whole exchange. "You have a baby in your belly now?" She asks me and I nod, running my fingers through her hair. "And it is my sister?" She asks me again and I hum, smiling at her softly. "Yes... And she is as big as an avocado right now..." I reply and she buzzes in interest. "Can I touch your belly?" She asks shyly. "Of course." I reply happily, sitting a little better and moving Duke from my lap, so she can place her hand on my stomach. She does it very softly, feeling my stomach slowly. "When will she get out of your belly?" She asks me, leaning closer to me. "In 22 weeks... That's in almost 6 months." I reply and she gasps. "That long?" She asks me. "Yeah... But she will start moving and getting bigger soon... And she will be able to hear us through my belly, so you can talk to her if you want..." I state and she nods vigorously. "Listen, Joy... I know you are worried that I will stop loving you when the baby comes. But I promise I will always love you. I know I am not your mother. I know that... But I wish I was, with all my heart. I wish I had brought into this world such an amazing child... I love you with all my heart and I would do anything for you, and that will never change, no matter what." I find the courage to say to the child, who nods and sniffles, bringing her pinkie up in the air. "You promise that?" She asks and I chuckle at her innocence. "I pinky promise that..." I peck on her forehead, hugging her tightly.

"You are going to be such an amazing mother..." Calum whispers in my ear as we cuddle on the bed, one of his hands carefully draped over my stomach. "Why, thank you very much... You are an amazing dad already..." I reach down to touch his hand that strokes my bump. "Well, thank you very much... Honestly, though, you handled Joy better than I ever would..." He places a kiss on the back of my neck. "No, you handled it the best way possible... She just needed to hear that from me too." "What did she tell you when you tucked her in?" He asks me softly. "She asked me if the baby is going to call me mom. And I told her 'yeah'. And she asked me if she can call me mom as well." I reply and he gasps. "(Y/N), I am so sorry. I know it was probably awkward for you..." He is quick to apologize, even though there is nothing he needs to do that for. "Cal... I told her that it would be an honor. But we would have to ask you first..." I turn my head to look at him. "I don't mind if you don't either." He states, pursing his lips. "I already told you... I would be honored." I reply and he coos. "I really fucking love you so fucking much..." He sighs happily, turning my head enough to kiss my lips.

"What time is daddy coming home?" Joy asks as she enters the kitchen, holding her bunny by the hand. I chuckle and leave the wooden spatula against the pot, kneeling to her height. "He said he is going to be a bit late, hun." I reach closer to stroke her cheek. She pouts slightly but nods her head defeated. "Why the long face, baby?" I ask her, mirroring her pout. "I am hungry. And I know we have to wait for daddy to come back before we eat." She replies. I hum, picking her up and setting her on the counter. "Well, the baby is hungry too. So, I think we should have a snack." I state, walking to the fridge to find something to snack on. "How do you know when the baby is hungry?" She asks me as I grab some carrots from the fridge. "She is always, hungry. She never stops asking for food." I joke, giggling softly at the end of the sentence. I wash the veggies and peel them off, cutting them into little sticks, handing one to Joy and keeping one for me.

"Are you excited about Christmas this year?" Joy asks me, catching me off-guard. "I am, I really am. I am excited about spending them with you and daddy. And Dukey, of course. I am very excited that I will get to see you at your Christmas recital, and your Christmas play. And I am excited about all the yummy food." I bop her nose as she crunches on her carrot. "Are you excited about Christmas, Joy?" I ask her and she nods. "I am. But I really wish the baby would be with us for Christmas." She replies and I hum. "Well, she will be with us next Christmas. For now, she is just listening to us through my belly and kicking excitedly." I reply, handing her another carrot. "She is kicking?" She asks surprised. "Yeap, but very softly. I have to be very concentrated to feel it. I promise though, when she kicks, when she starts kicking really strong, you will be the first to feel it." I chuckle, going back to cooking. "How does she fit in your belly?" She asks me. "She is not very big yet... And she is all curled up inside my stomach, so she fits better." I explain and she hums. "Do you need help?" She asks me, taking the last stick of carrot ad snapping it in half, offering me one of the two halves. "No, baby. I am fine." I smile at her. "Daddy told me that you will get tired as the baby grows and you will need my help." She states, biting on the carrot. "Well, daddy was not wrong. But for now, I am ok, baby." I smile at her, turning off the stove. "I can set the table and you can go sit, mommy." She whispers that last word under her breath. I smile at her, leaning to peck on her forehead and help her get off the counter. "Or, we can both go cuddle on the couch and wait for daddy to be back. And when he gets home, we can eat on the island, so no one will have to set the table..." I suggest and she nods. "Can Dukey come as well?" She asks me and I hum. "Of course. Let's go." I take her hand in mine.

"Wait. I want to bring you a blanket for the belly. So the baby won't be cold." She pulls away from me, running to her room. I smile at how kind she is, making my way to the couch. "There... Now the baby will be all warm..." Joy claps her hands, covering my belly with the fuzziest pink blanket I have ever seen. "Should we watch a movie?" I ask, stroking her hair as she leans on me. "Yes... Moana?" She asks and I hum in approval. "Let me go put it on." I try to get up but she places her hand on top of mine, stopping me from moving. "I can do this." She offers, quickly hopping off the couch to grab the remote from the coffee table. I give Duke a pet behind his ears, relaxing a little; I only now realize how tired I am. Taking care of a class of toddlers with an ever-growing bump seems to be the most tiring thing ever. "Can I put my head on your lap?" Joy asks me after putting the movie on. "Of course. If you are lucky enough, you'll hear the baby move..." I state as she lays on the couch, placing her head on my lap as Moana starts playing.

"What are my pretty girls doing?" Calum asks as he walks into the living room, finding Joy and I singing along with Moana, half asleep, both of us exhausted. "Daddy!" Joy cheers, raising her head to look at Calum, who looks just as drained. "Hey, princess. How are you?" He asks, leaning down to kiss her squishy cheek. "Starving..." She announces with a groan, making me chuckle at how overly dramatic she can be. "Go wash up while I say hi to the baby..." He encourages her, patting her back. Joy jumps off, running to the bathroom as Calum walks to the front of the couch, kneeling and bringing his lips to my bump.

"Hi, baby..." He whispers, pressing a kiss on my belly as I bring my hand to stroke his hair. "A kiss for baby..." He whispers, crawling up to me. "And a kiss for mama..." He whispers, before planting a kiss on my lips. "Hi, daddy... How was your day?" I ask, giggling as he cups my face in his hands. "Good, even better now that I am with my favorite girls." He kisses my lips once more. "How was your day?" He asks me, stroking his hand over my belly. "Exhausting... But, Joy called me mommy for the first time today and I swear, my heart melted..." I smile at him, causing him to smile just as brightly. "And I missed it? Fuck..." He sighs, pouting. "I am pretty sure she will do it again... She is such an angel, Calum... She brought me a blanket for my belly because she didn't want the baby to get cold. I swear, I wanted to start crying... And she wanted to make the table, so I could rest after cooking." I sigh happily, making him chuckle. "She amazes me all the time... She had this great preschool teacher, she taught her a lot of manners..." He teases me, biting his lip. "Oh, I think her DILF daddy taught her great manners before the teacher did..." I nudge him, leaning in to kiss his nose. "Why is washing up taking her so long?" He asks, looking towards the bathroom. "Go check on her and I'll serve the food. We are eating on the island today." I say, getting up from the couch.

"You know, I had this thought today and I would like to talk it out with you." I suggest as I enter the bedroom, ready to let the day behind me. "Sure..." Calum replies, lifting the duvet for me to get under as he locks his phone and puts it on the nightstand. "You remember that Joy called me mommy today, right?" I ask and he nods as I climb on the bed, fixing the covers and shimming my way to Calum's embrace. "Well, I don't want to overstep my boundaries, but since you and I are having a baby and you pretty much asked me to marry you, I was thinking that maybe... I could adopt Joy..." I suggest, biting my bottom lip as I wait for his reaction. He is silent for a moment, so I tilt my head to face him, finding him staring at me with his mouth agape. "I know I am not her mother... And I am not trying to replace Nina... But I love Joy as mine and I want her to feel like it." I try to explain, rumbling as I rush to give him an insight into my thinking. "Thank God you are not her mother. I... I don't know what to say..." He is really hard to read right now. "It was just a thought, I didn't want to put you in a rough position..." I panic but he chuckles, pressing his lips to my forehead. "I will call my lawyer tomorrow morning and schedule a meeting. She will tell us all we need to know about the process. You are a literal angel, and I am the luckiest guy in the whole entire world... And our kids are so lucky you are their mom." He peppers my face with kisses, making me giggle as he leans down, pressing his lips to my belly, just below my navel. "I know, I know... But I am just as lucky that I have you..." I smile, stroking his hair as he cradles my bump.

"You know you didn't have to dress this formal for the meeting, right?" Calum asks me as we walk into the waiting room of the lawyer's office. "I didn't know these things had a dress code..." I cock my eyebrow at him, while he takes my hand and brings it to his lips, keeping my hand in his palm after. We sit like that, listening to the clock ticking in the empty space, prepping for what we will hear once we walk in. "Mr. Hood, Mrs. (Y/L/N), please, go in..." The secretary smiles at us, gesturing us to get inside.

Calum lets me walk in first, holding the door open. I clutch at my purse and gulp the lump in my throat, feeling worried for no reason. "Calum, I really didn't expect you here any time soon." The lady stands up to shake my hand and then Calum's before we take a seat. She seems familiar with him, which is a good sign; at least she is aware of the case. "It's for a good reason this time..." He chuckles, resting back on the chair. "Judging from what you told me on the phone, I agree. But tell me a little more." She instructs us, grabbing a notepad. "My partner and I are having a baby. And we thought, well, she thought, that since my daughter's mom is not in the picture, maybe (Y/N) could adopt her." Calum begins. "Adopt her?" The lawyer asks, turning to me. "I have seen that quite a few times, children being adopted by their step-parents. And I would like to adopt Joy officially since her mother is not present in her life." I explain and she nods. "Well, since the noncustodial parent is absent, the case is less complicated. Are you two married?" She asks us, making us look at each other. "No, but we are planning to..." Calum replies. "I am going to be straightforward and tell you that you should get married as soon as possible. It will simplify the case for the court even more. When you get married, you will bring me your marriage license and we will file the petition. After that, we get a court date, and before the date arrives, you will both get interviewed and your environment and background will be checked. It is best if you prepare Joy for that. Since the biological mother does not have custody and has no parental rights, she will not be called to testify and consent to the adoption. I am really confident that we are going to have an easy case. But, we will need to be well prepared for it." She explains, making Calum and I sigh; I am not really sure if it is a sigh of relief or frustration.

The drive back home is pretty quiet, Calum focusing on the road while I stare outside the window, biting the inside of my cheek in agitation. "Well, at least she said it is a simple case..." Calum mumbles, causing me to sigh as I draw my attention to him. "Yeah, that's a good thing. But you don't seem as happy as you should about the news." I sigh and he hums. "I don't know... That thing about rushing the wedding... It doesn't sit well with me... I don't like that we will have to do it fast just for the court... I want you to have the wedding you have dreamed of." He admits and I purse my lips, thinking about it. "Let's just do it in the mayor's hall. I don't want a big, expensive wedding. And I never was the one to dream of wearing a wedding dress. I just want it to be me and you and our vows to each other, nothing else matters." I shrug, turning to look at Calum. "You are joking, right?" He asks, furrowing his eyebrows together. "I am not. We will just have a few friends as our witnesses, Joy will be my flower girl, I will wear a simple dress and then we can have a big party with friends. I don't care about anything else... I just care about marrying you." I speak with honesty, all of it coming from deep in my heart. "I will still have to officially propose to you... I want Joy to be a part of it. And we will still have to obtain the license and organize the party..." Calum smiles, sounding a little too cheerful already. "Don't worry, I am not going to ruin your Christmas proposal... We can get married after Christmas, before the New Year... We have, like 2 weeks ahead of us..." I state and he nods his head. "Let's do it... Let's fucking do it..." He cheers, bringing a smile to my lips. "You know we will have to talk to Joy about the adoption plan, right?" I ask Calum, who nods still smiling as he drives. "I know. And I know that she is going to be extremely happy over the news, so there is nothing we should worry about. Really, we should limit our worrying time to the absolute minimum." He reaches to stroke his thumb over my tummy. "I kinda like this easy breezy version of you." I place my hand over his, feeling the warmth radiating from his skin. "For the first time in a few years, everything is exactly where it is supposed to be. Everything is exactly as it is supposed to be. And I have decided to let it flow over me, enjoy all of it while it lasts." He explains, licking his lips. I hum, sitting a bit upright. "What about I call Luke, ask him to keep Joy for the night and you and I have a little bit of mommy and daddy fun? I have a couple of non-alcoholic sparkling cider bottles and I can't wait to share them with the prettiest pregnant lady I know..." He suggests, taking my hand and bringing it to his lips. "Are you asking me on a date, Mr. Hood?" I ask, playing it dumb. "Is it that obvious?" He teases, chuckling as he lets my hand down on my lap.

"Can you raise your t-shirt a bit?" Calum asks as he brings the platter of cheese on the couch. "Are you asking me to strip? Jeez, at least buy me a drink first..." I fake-scold him, rolling my eyes at him. "No, smart-ass... I am asking you to raise your top so your baby bump is out and I can send a pic to my mom. She has been asking for one ever since I told her she would be having a second grandchild soon." He explains, picking up his phone. I hum, leaving my glass of cider on the coffee table. I raise my t-shirt, laying back and placing a hand on my bump, giving him a clear shot of my protruding stomach. "The picture would look so much better if there was a ring on your finger..." He mumbles, snapping the picture. "I have plenty of rings in my jewelry box. Go fetch me one." I tease him, turning my head to look at him as he smirks and rolls his eyes. "I think you know what I am talking about... Stop playing it dumb." He whispers, scooting closer to me. I shrug my shoulders, reaching up to stroke his face as he hovers above me. "I have no clue..." I cheer, pursing my lips as my eyes crinkle from smiling at the love of my life. "Oh, you don't?" He asks, licking his lips as his hand cups my face, holding it up before he places a kiss on my lips. His knee rests between my legs, supporting his body up as his lips mold with mine. He touches me oh so softly, tracing his fingers from my jaw to my neck, raising goosebumps on my skin. "You look so pretty, my love..." Calum mumbles, kissing a trail from my lips to the spot below my ear. "Turn the lights off, leave only the Christmas lights..." I moan, closing my eyes as I picture Calum holding me down, thrusting inside me as the lights that decorate our house blink slowly. "What do you have in mind?" He asks, cocking an eyebrow at me, supporting his weight on his palms. "When was the last time you had sex on this couch?" I ask, biting my lip. He smiles down at me, sighing happily as he shakes his head. "I am so fucking lucky that I will get to marry you..." He mumbles, planting a kiss on my lips before he gets up to kill the lights.

(Calum's POV) "Did you have fun with uncle Lu and auntie Si, baby?" I ask Joy as I hug her to my chest, looking at Luke who is chuckling at us. "I had so much fun, daddy. Auntie Sierra painted my nails." She cheers, showing me her sparkly manicure. "So pretty. But we will have to get it off before you go to school on Monday, you know that, right?" I ask her, bopping her nose as she nods. "I know. Mom will help me." She replies and I smile at her, the word 'mom' making my heart warm up. "Ok, then. Say bye-bye to uncle Luke and aunt Sierra..." I prompt her, letting her turn around to wave off my friends. "Bye uncle Lu, bye auntie Sierra. See you soon..." She cheers, blowing them a kiss.

I strap her on her booster seat, making sure she is comfortable before I get on my seat. "How is mommy?" She asks; the word now comes out with a little hesitance, almost like she is testing the waters. "She was still sleeping when I left. The baby makes her feel a little tired." I reply, turning the engine on. "Oh, we will have to be quiet." She suggests and I hum. "I was thinking that you and I should go for a milkshake and give mommy some time to wake up." I suggest and she cheers. "Yes. Caramel milkshake, caramel milkshake, caramel miiiilkshakeee." She sings rhythmically, clapping her hands along. "Ok then. I guess we are going for a milkshake." I smile, pulling out of Luke's driveway.

"I wanna show you something, but you have to promise you will keep it a secret... From everyone." I whisper as I lean closer to my daughter, who slurps on her milkshake. She looks at me with her eyebrows furrowed, leaving the glass on the table. "Even (Y/N)?" She asks me and I nod. "Especially (Y/N)." I reply and she looks at me, even deeper in confusion. "What is it?" She asks, scooting closer. I take the ring box out of the pocket of my jacket, opening it carefully under the table. "Do you know what this is?" I ask her and she nods. "A ring." She states. "That's right. Do you know what that means?" I ask her and she shrugs her shoulders. "It means I want to give it to (Y/N) and ask her to marry me. If it is ok with you, of course..." I reply as Joy brings her fingers to graze them over the sparkly ring. "Oh." She gasps, turning to look at me, with her eyes big and sparkly. "And I want it to be a surprise. So please, don't say anything." I remind her, closing the box and placing it back in the pocket of my jacket. "I won't, daddy. I promise." She raises her pinky in the air, making me chuckle as I link it with mine. "And I need your help, baby. I want you to give the ring to (Y/N) on Christmas morning. Can you do that for me?" I ask her and she nods excitedly. "Do you think she will say yes, daddy?" She asks me, whispering as she looks around, making sure no one heard. "I have a hunch she will, baby. But remember, we can't say anything to no one until Christmas morning. This is our little secret." I remind her, pressing my finger to my lips, causing her to giggle and mimic me. "I will wrap the ring really pretty and you will give it to her when we open gifts on Christmas morning, ok baby?" I bop her nose and she nods, reaching to pick up her milkshake. "Will she like the ring?" Joy asks me, holding the glass carefully. "I hope so, bunny. It is pretty, isn't it?" I ask her, scratching the back of my head. I know that (Y/N) is not a big wearer of jewelry, but I do hope she loves the ring; she didn't say anything when I showed it to her, so I hope she thinks it's decent, at least. "It is pretty, dad. I want one too." She pouts at me as I lean in to kiss her forehead. "I'll get you a diamond ring, baby. When you turn 18, ok?" I promise her and she nods happily, bringing her straw to her mouth.

"Hey, mama? Did you miss someone?" I cheer as we enter the house, finding (Y/N) resting on the couch. Joy runs to her, climbing on the couch to leave a kiss on her cheek. "I missed this baby bunny so much. Did you have fun with uncle Luke and aunt Sierra?" She asks her, squeezing her in her arms. "So much fun. Look." Joy cheers, showing off her sparkly nail polish. "They are so pretty... What else did you do?" She asks, stroking Joy's hair softly. "We built a fort and Petunia slept in my room and we watched a movie with a girl named Lilo." "And an alien named Stitch... Oh, I love this movie. I am so glad you had fun. But I've missed you so much... And your sister did too. She has been kicking a storm..." (Y/N) states, stroking her hand over her belly. "Really? Can I put my ear on your belly again?" Joy asks and (Y/N) nods, causing Joy to lay her head on her lap and press her ear on her bulging stomach. "Daddy, come listen!" Joy gestures me to get to her. I walk on the couch, laying on the other side, and pressing my ear on (Y/N)'s stomach. The baby kicks and moves, the feeling of it reminding me of a spring bouncing. Her hand rests on top of my head, stroking through my hair. As I turn my gaze, I find that she does the same to Joy, while smiling at us.

"She knows about the ring. And she is in... A bit too excited about it." I whisper as (Y/N) nestles to my chest. The house is quiet, only the TV giving off a low sound, while the little tea lights provide just the right luminance. "That's a relief..." "I was so nervous when I told her... But she loved the ring and she loved the idea of me marrying you, so..." "So, I guess I will have to go look for a dress. Not that it's going to be easy, with your daughter making my stomach look huge..." "Now she is my daughter?" "Come on, Hood. You are not the one getting your spline punched all day long, give me a break and let me have it." "You will look great in anything. You are the sexiest mama I have ever seen... And seriously, pregnancy suits you. If I could, I would have you with your belly full, every day for the rest of our lives." I reply, bringing a hand underneath her chin to lift it so I can kiss her. "Yeah, yeah... You are only saying that because you feel guilty that the baby is kicking my organs." She chuckles and I shake my head at her. "You are gorgeous, angel. You are glowing from the inside... And I can feel myself falling more and more for you, every second I spend with you." "I hate to ask... But it has been eating my brain away..." "You can ask me anything, baby." "You and Nina... How... What were you guys like as a couple?" She asks, avoiding to look at me. "I... I guess we were kinda like all else, having our ups and downs... We were passionate about what we were doing, trying to support each other through every step. She was very calm and sweet, I guess Joy took that from her. We were never very public about anything, we wanted to be taken seriously at our jobs, but she was affectionate and loving. But when she got pregnant... She changed. She became distant, agitated... We barely talked about anything else other than the adoption plan in the entirety of the 6 months we were aware of the pregnancy. Everything changed and I was hoping we would go back to normal after the whole thing would be done." "But you never got the chance... Is there a possibility... that you are still in love... with her?" She asks, her eyes fixating on my face, trying to read it. "Not even the slightest. I told you, she left us, she abandoned me with a child, never showed up again. In the beginning, I was thinking of her... But all went away when I realized it would be just me and Joy, for the rest of my life. I am not in love with her, I don't hate her... I don't feel anything when it comes to her." I reply and she nods, leaning in to kiss my cheek. "Did you ever think of marrying her? I mean, before Joy and all that..." She asks me, and I huff. "No. I wasn't thinking about marriage back then. You are the first ever to bring those thoughts to me. I didn't want any of that, not until I met you." I reply and she purrs happily.

"Now, if you are done with the questions, we have a wedding to plan. And we have a lot of things to decide on..." "Just find a caterer, a florist, someone to play music and we are set. And of course, we need to see what we are going to wear. But I really don't want anything complex... I need just us and our friends." She replies and I nod. "What about our families?" I ask her and she sighs, shrugging her shoulders. "Your family is more than welcome. I don't want mine at the wedding. Just my sister and my nephews. I haven't talked to the rest since the dinner incident. And they are not welcome if they don't approve." "Are you sure about that, darling? They are your family." I rub my thumb over the back of her hand. "I am sure. You, Joy, and our little baby are my family. And Duke, of course." She replies and I lean in to press a kiss on the tip of her nose.

(Y/N's POV) "Mommy, daddy, wake up... Santa brought the presents..." Joy screams as she barges into the room, jumping up and down the bed. I look at her, smiling at how excited she is. "Sweetheart, go get washed up and mommy and I will be with you in a few minutes..." Calum mumbles, making Joy nod as she jumps off. "Hurry." She shouts as she runs out of the room, skipping happily.

"Merry Christmas, my love... And Merry Christmas to you, my baby peanut..." He whispers, leaning down to press a kiss on my belly. "Merry Christmas, daddy. We love you so much..." I reply, stroking his hair. "I gotta give my baby mama a proper kiss..." He states, bringing his lips against mine for a moment, making me giggle. "I love you so much... You and our babies... I love you so much..." He whispers, placing his hand low on my stomach. "Come on... We have to go downstairs... Joy has to ask me to marry you on your behalf..." I cup his face in my hand, stretching up to give him a peck on the lips. "I think that's the reason she is so excited about 'Santa's gifts'." He replies, whispering before he gets off the bed.

Joy seems agitated as she unwraps her gifts, her legs bouncing as she throws the packages on the side. She is only looking for the ring, I can tell. "Oh, this one is for mommy." She exclaims, her voice coming off more excited than she intended. She moves next to me, handing me the wrapped box. "Oh, a gift for me? From Santa? I wonder what it is..." I gasp as look at it. "Open it..." She almost commands, unable to keep herself from squealing happily. I tear the paper apart, revealing the velvet box. "Oh, must be those earrings I had my eye on..." I mumble before I open the lid. I really gasp the moment my eyes land on it; I didn't remember the ring being so beautiful. "What is that?" I ask, staring mesmerized by how the ring sparkles. "Daddy has a question for you..." She stares at her father, prompting him to speak up. "Well... I love you so much, that I really, really want to marry you. So, I guess my question to you is, do you want to marry me?" Calum says, confidence dripping from his voice as he already knows the answer. I smile at him, shaking my head as I feel my eyes tear up. It feels so real right now, all of it suddenly coming to life from just being a thought. "Yes... Yes, I wanna marry you." I reply, feeling a couple of tears slip; stupid pregnancy hormones.

Calum stands up to hug me, squeezing me as Joy dances happily, cheering as Calum peppers my face with kisses. "Wanna slide that ring on?" I ask him and he nods, picking the ring out of the box before he slips it on my fingers. "Is it good? Not tight on your fingers, right?" He asks me and I shake my head no. "It is beautiful." I reply, leaning in to kiss him softly. "Were you in all of this, little lady?" I ask Joy, who giggles and nods. I kneel in front of her, hugging her closely. "This was the best surprise ever." I state, pressing a kiss on her forehead. "Now, you and I will have to find some pretty dresses to wear on the big day..." I take her hands in mine, making her nod her head and grin. "Ok. Can I go play with my toys now? I wanna see what Santa got me..." She asks and I nod, letting her hands go. "Go have fun, baby. Daddy and I will go make some lunch while you play." I reply, watching her run happily to her pile of toys.

"You were really great at pretending you had no clue about this..." Calum whispers as we walk to the kitchen. "I wasn't pretending. I was really surprised." I reply and he chuckles. "Seriously?" "Yeah... I had forgotten how good the ring looks, and I was shocked at how excited Joy was about this." I reply, opening the fridge to see what I can whip up for lunch. "You know, my heart almost pumped out of my chest while I was waiting for you to say yes." He admits and I coo, turning to look at him. His cheeks are rosy with embarrassment. "You had doubts I would say yes? Wanna take a look at this huge bump?" I chuckle and he hums. "Is the bump the only reason you are marrying me?" He asks, cocking an eyebrow. "Well, you are sweet and kind, and smart, and funny, and loving, and caring, and handsome to the point I drool over you every time I look at you. And, last but not least, you are so good at giving me orgasms, I am practically addicted... And I really can't imagine myself spending the rest of my life with anyone else. So..." I reply, cupping his face in my hands and squeezing his cheeks. "After dinner at Luke's tonight, I'll put Joy to bed, and when I get back to our room, I'll lock the door. Maybe you can wear some of that nice lingerie you own." He whispers in my ear, making me chuckle. "I can't fit in them. My boobs are huge now." I reply and he moans. "Be naked then." He kisses my neck, his breath fanning against my skin.

"Do you mind if I ask Kaitlin to be my maid of honor?" I ask Calum as he dresses up for Luke's dinner. "Not at all. I will ask Michael to be my best man since Luke is Joy's godfather and Ashton will be our ordain." He states and I nod. "Speaking of godfather... We have to pick one for the peanut..." I suggest and he hums. "Isn't it a bit early? We still have time for that..." "Yeah, but it is a tough decision to make." I remind him and he chuckles. "We will figure it out..." He replies, fixing the buttons on the sleeves of his shirt. "How do I look?" He asks, walking to me. I fix the creases on his chest, letting my hands rest there for a moment. "Completely edible, nearly irresistible." I sigh, biting my bottom lip. "Maybe I should call Luke and tell him we are not going..." He whispers and I chuckle. "I would like to see you try to tell Joy we're not going to Luke's house... She is obsessed with that man. Plus, I said nearly irresistible, not completely." I giggle, turning around to go see if Joy is ready.

"Joy literally fell asleep on top of Petunia. The poor doggo doesn't even dare move." I state as I take my seat at the table. "It's going to be a fuss picking her up..." Calum mumbles at me, making me smirk at him. "I can't pick her up. The belly is on the way..." I reply, pointing at the bump and making everyone laugh. "Well then... I guess I will have to." Calum replies, bringing my hand to his lips. "Calum was telling us about the wedding. Do you need any help, darling?" Sierra asks me, taking a swig from her wine. "Not really. It is going to be very simple and casual. Just us. But I will still need bridesmaids and a maid of honor... And I know this is not the best way to ask, but it would be an honor if you girls agreed on being my bridesmaids." "Uh, I was hoping for the flower girl gig..." Kaitlin sighs dramatically, shaking her head. "Well, that was promised to Joy, so you will have to settle for the maid of honor gig..." I reply and she nods. "I would be honored..." She replies, standing up and walking to me, hugging me close to her. Crystal and Sierra join in, making it a group hug. "So, we have a week for the wedding?" Ashton asks as we part, walking to me with open arms. "You'd better get ordained, mister..." I sniffle as I feel my eyes brimming, pouting a little. "I would, even if you didn't ask me to." He replies, pecking on my forehead. "You sure want to have the wedding in your backyard? I mean, I know you are rushing for the adoption court, but still... Don't you want something fancier?" Michael asks, looking at me and Calum. "This is fancy." I remark, smiling at Calum who shakes his head playfully. "I had to convince her for the backyard wedding. She wanted to do it in the mayor hall." Calum states, making me shrug my shoulders as I grin.

(Calum's POV) "Are you ready for tomorrow, princess?" I ask Joy as I tuck her in, and kiss her forehead. "I am. Mommy said I will get dressed with her before the wedding." "Try not to be prettier than mama, ok? She has to be the star of the evening." I tease her, and she giggles. "Ok, daddy." She smiles and I nod. "I will see you in the morning, baby. Get lots and lots of rest." I whisper, bopping her nose.

I exit the room, sighing as I enjoy the little bit of silence in the house. This time tomorrow, the house will be filled with music and celebrations. I can't wait until I marry her; I know that this is all typicality and that we don't need a paper to officiate our love, but this paper is what will make it easier for us to make our family official.

(Y/N) has been asleep for a while now, the pregnancy and all the wedding preparations finally catching up to her and making her tired. But my heart races and I become giddy with excitement as I wait for time to pass by and bring me to the moment (Y/N) will become my wife. My stomach twists a little as I dig in my pocket for my phone, but I know that I have to fight through the nasty feeling, and give one last fight. For her, because she deserves it.

I huff as I hover over the contact; I hate that I had to go through (Y/N)'s phone for that, but I had no other way. I press the phone against my ear as it rings, tapping my fingers against my thigh as I wait.

"Hello?" The line goes live and I release the breath I was holding. "Hi, this is Calum, (Y/N)'s boyfriend." There is an awkward silence until the man speaks. "How did you get my number?" He asks and I sigh. "It doesn't matter. I want you to listen to me for a moment." I almost plead, hoping that he is not going to hang up on me.

"Is my daughter ok?" He asks and I chuckle. "She is more than ok. I am going to talk to you, father to father. I know you don't necessarily approve of our relationship, but we are getting married tomorrow. I know that I would hate it if my daughter got married and I wasn't there. Whether you show up or not, she is still going to walk down that aisle, she is still going to look gorgeous, she is still going to marry me. Would you be ok missing that?" I can only hear her father's breath through the phone, for nearly a minute. "Listen, you don't have to make up your mind right now. I am going to hang up and I will send you the location and time with a message. I really hope to see you there. But if not, I want you to know that your daughter will be forever safe and happy with me." I state, and without wasting one more second, I hang up, feeling peaceful over the fact that I did my part. As I press send on the text, I can only hope her parents will do their part.

(Y/N's POV) "Don't over-do it with the curls..." I boss around poor Kaitlin, who just chuckles and shakes her head. "I know what I am doing, mama, trust me." She replies, smiling at me through the mirror. I still can't believe that in just a few moments I will be slipping into my pretty dress to go and get married to the man of my dreams. My hand flies to my bump, stroking over it without me realizing it. I can't stop feeling the bump lately; maybe because now it really looks like I am pregnant, maybe because I have finally started feeling the baby kick and move. "You ok?" Katelyn asks me and I nod, rubbing my thumb over my stomach in soft circles. "Yep. I am just trying not to get too emotional." "Please don't. Crystal will literally kill us if we mess with your makeup." She jokes and I giggle, nodding in agreement. "I will be very careful, I promise." I assure her as she runs her fingers through my curls.

I hear the door squeaking open, making me turn my head toward it. "You have some visitors." My sister announces, half-hiding behind the door. "Can't they wait downstairs with the rest? I have to get ready..." I reply and she shakes her head. "I don't think they can." She states and I sigh in surrender. "Sure, then... Let them in." I turn around as Kaitlin takes a step back to let me stand up and greet the guests.

In walk my parents. My mom takes the steps hesitantly, followed by my dad, who looks at his shoes instead of me. "If you are here to talk me out of this, I have to ask you to leave." I state, deciding to not let them ruin my day. "We are here... We are here because Calum was right. I would hate myself if my little girl got married and I was not there." My father speaks, making me gasp. "Calum invited you?" I ask, in confusion about what is going on. "He called last night. I couldn't sleep after that, thinking of you on your happiest day and us absent from it." He replies, walking closer to me. "We are here to join you, darling, not stop you. And we are very sorry about what happened the last time we met. We are so very sorry, my love." My mom chimes in, smiling softly at me. "I don't know what to say." I utter and they both nod. "We promise to not cause any trouble. We will sit in the back and leave right after if that's what you want. Just... Let us see you marry the man you love, that's all we ask." My father sounds apologetic, looking at me with honesty in his eyes. "I want you to stay for the whole thing. I wanted you here since we started planning, I wished you could magically appear. And you are here. So, please, stay. I don't want to get married without my family." I sniffle, looking up to avoid ruining my makeup with tears. "We will, my love." My mom replies, leaning in to kiss my forehead. "Now, I have to finish getting ready. Dad, will you walk me down the aisle?" I ask, pulling them in for a hug. "It would be an honor, darling." He mumbles happily, rubbing my back.

"You look... Absolutely gorgeous." My father whispers as he links his arm with mine. "You think so? The bump makes it all look weird..." I mumble but he shakes his head. "You look gorgeous, really. The most beautiful bride I have seen. Don't tell your mother and sister." He chuckles, making me giggle. "It will be our secret, dad. Thank you for doing this." I lean my head on his shoulder as we walk toward the little flower arch Calum is under. "Thank you for letting me do this." He replies, sounding sincere.

Calum smiles at us as we approach him, making my heart flutter happily. "I know you know already, but this man really loves you." My dad says, stopping for a moment to plant a chaste kiss on my forehead. "I know he does, dad. And I do too." I reply and he hums. "Well then... You two will make a wonderful family." He assures me, walking the last few steps. "Thank you." I mouth as Calum takes my hand to bring me closer to him under the arch. "You are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid my eyes on." He says happily, letting out a sigh at the end. "I know, right?" I tease him, making him shake his head at me.

Calum has been holding me close to his body throughout the party. His hands make their way to my bump, feeling our daughter as she moves inside me. Joy has been dancing around all night; even my parents danced with her. But for the last hour she has been laying on 2 chairs, put together for her to sleep on, and I would be lying if I said I am not jealous of her. "You are tired?" Calum whispers in my ear, pressing a kiss right under it. "Just a bit... Baby makes me sleepy." I giggle, resting my hand on my stomach. I love feeling our baby move, I love that she makes her presence known at almost all times, even if it means she is punching my organs. "I can kick them out, you know." He states, placing his hand on top of mine. "It's alright. If I get too tired, I can always get two chairs and join Joy..." I laugh and he hums. "Can't believe you are my wife..." He sighs happily, pressing a kiss on my temple. "You better believe it. Because I don't plan to ever change that. You married me for life, Hood." I state, turning around to look at him. He bites his lip, smiling to the point his cheeks are popping off. "You promise?" He asks me, cupping my face in his hands. "I promise." I bring his hand closer to my lips, pecking on the side of it.

Calum places a pancake on Joy's plate, cutting it into little pieces for her, while I help her with her glass of milk. She is almost sleeping, tired still from yesterday's intensity. "Are you ok Joy?" I ask her, stroking her hair as I watch her eyes get heavy. "I need sleep..." She sighs, making Calum and I chuckle at the same time. "You will feel a lot better after breakfast..." Calum picks a piece with the fork and brings it to Joy's lips. "Isn't baby tired? We should all take a nap." She states while chewing on her food, poking at my stomach softly. "Look at Ms. Smartypants over there, already using her baby sister." Calum cackles, knitting his eyebrows together as he makes his signature funny face. "We will take a nap later, don't worry. Mommy is tired as well." I assure her, leaning down to peck on her forehead. "Joy, mom and I would like to tell you something." Calum looks at me with a question mark glazing his eyes. I nod my head, sitting up a little better before I open my mouth. "Joy, now that dad and I got married, I would like to... I would like to become your mom." I look at the little girl, whose mouth is covered in chocolate syrup. "But you are my mommy already." She seems confused, and I really can't blame her; how can I explain that we need a signature to verify what we already feel with our whole soul? "I am. But, we need to make it official. Which means that everyone will know I am your mommy. That you will my baby forever and no one will ever say you aren't. And I want to ask you, would you like to become my daughter, officially? Would you like for me to be your mother, legally?" I ask her, my voice breaking as I feel too emotional.

Joy looks at me, bringing her hand on top of mine as I feel ready to burst into tears. "You are my mom." She states, making my bottom lip quiver and causing me to sniffle as I feel tears streaming down my eyes. "Ok... Let's give mommy a moment." Calum stands up to press his lips to my forehead. "Mom and dad will have to go to the court for this. You might need to come with us, some people might ask you a few questions about (Y/N) and how you feel. I want you to know that there is nothing to be scared of. We will be there and we are all going to be alright. And then mommy will be your mom forever." Calum explains, leveling down to her height. "Is mommy alright?" She asks, pointing at me; I must look like a mess, sobbing at how precious this moment has been this far. "She is just a little sensitive. Your sister is making her feel a little emotional." Calum explains, rubbing his thumb over my thigh in empathy. "Oh... It's ok, mama. Don't cry." Joy stands up from her seat, looking at her father who lifts her and lets her on my lap to hug me.

"I got served today." Sue smiles at me, showing me the paper. "Yeah, the lawyer told us they would start sending the papers." I reply, sitting on my chair and taking a breath; I am getting so heavy and it is getting tiring standing up, let alone having to manage a group of toddlers. "This is it, huh? You are becoming a family officially..." She states as she takes a seat on top of the little desk. "I still can't believe it. Joy is going to be my daughter... Fuck, I am going to cry again." I look up at the ceiling as I try to stop myself from breaking down again. "I told you he likes you before you even knew it. Remember the time he brought you flowers and you said it was because you helped him find Joy's backpack and all that crap?" She asks, with a smirk playing on her lips and her hand resting against my bump. "I just didn't think it would ever be possible. You know, I liked him since day one. The moment I saw his hands, I was hooked..." I sigh, bringing to my brain the visual of how good his hand looks. "Well, thank God Matt broke up with you when he did. I am leaving. Want me to drop you home?" She asks and I shake my head. "Calum is picking me up. He doesn't let me take a step by myself nowadays." I reply and she shakes her head, stroking my arm as she hops off. "I will see you tomorrow then." She says sweetly before walking out.

I check my phone to see if Calum has sent me any messages while I wait, hoping he will be here soon; I am craving the cheesiest mozzarella sticks dipped in marinara sauce. "I thought you would actually have the decency to get away from my family. But no..." A voice startles me, making me avert my gaze from my phone. Nina stands at the door of the room, looking at me with hatred. My breath hitches in the back of my throat and my hand instinctively goes to my protruding stomach, to protect it; she is not here for good. "And I thought you wouldn't actually dare show up after your filthy lies. Your plan didn't work in your favor, huh? Really, what were you trying to achieve with your lame fiction?" I ask her, standing up from my chair. Her eyes get wider as she takes a look at my belly, mouth staying agape. "You are knocked up?" She points at my stomach, walking towards me. It takes everything in me to stay where I am, show her that I am not scared, even though every cell inside me trembles at the hatred I see in her eyes. "What are you doing here?" I ask her, with the most paced voice I can muster. "The court sent me this... You want to take my daughter? You think you can take my child from me?" She nearly hisses at me, throwing the paper at me. "The... the lawyer said they wouldn't serve you... You gave up all parental rights, you don't have her custody, not even partially." My stomach hurts as I look at her becoming red with anger. "I am not going to let a random slut become my daughter's mother. And I am not going to let you take my man away. Calum still loves me. You think if you weren't carrying that bastard, he would still be with you? I am going to get what is mine, and you are going to be left with what you fucking deserve... Nothing." She spits out, getting scaringly closer. I cover my belly with my hands, mentally praying she will not hurt me.

"(Y/N)?" Someone calls from the door. I look over Nina's shoulder, finding Ashton waiting at the door. He looks distraught, confused as to what is going on. Nina turns around, making Ashton gasp. "You dare show up here? You dare show your fucking face after everything you have done?" Ashton growls at her, dashing to where we are. "Ash, please..." I mumble but he seems infuriated. "Step the fuck away from her, before I throw you out of here. You have no place in anyone's life." Ashton pulls her away, stepping between me and her. "You can't tell me what to do." She bites back, but Ashton seems to keep his composure. "You are lucky Calum wasn't here, because you get to walk away now. If he had been, if he had heard what I had heard, oh, you would have been buried 2ft wide and 6ft deep. So, get the hell out of here, and if you dare to show your face ever again, I will remember all the pain you have caused to my favorite people, and I will bury you with my own two hands." He threatens; Nina stays silent, only her breath being heard before she turns around to leave.

I gasp for air, Ashton turning to me immediately. He helps me sit on the chair, crouching down to my height to make me look at him. "Hey, hey... Everything is alright... You are safe, no one is going to hurt you." Ashton tries his hardest to calm me down, but the little pain growing in my abdomen makes me more panicked. "It hurts..." I cry out, shutting my eyes and trying to regulate my breathing. "Where? (Y/N), where does it hurt?" He asks me, bringing his hand on top of mine. "Something is wrong, something is wrong..." I cry out, clutching my belly. "Sweetheart, sweetheart look at me... You are going to be ok, and your baby is going to be ok. Everyone is going to be fine. I will take you to a hospital, ok darling?" He tries to assure me, but he sounds just as panicked as me. He helps me stand up from the chair, letting me support my weight on him as he grabs my purse and phone. "Can you walk? Do you need me to carry you?" He asks me but leaves no time for me to respond before he picks me up.

(Calum's POV) My phone rings as I finish strapping Joy to her car seat, so I reach in my pocket for it. "It's probably mommy." I say to the kid who looks at me sleepily. I take a look at my screen, finding that Ashton is calling me. "Hey, I just picked Joy up. Did you ask (Y/N) where she wants to go for lunch?" I ask him, opening the driver's door. "I need you to stay calm. And if you are driving, pull over." Ashton says, making me knit my eyebrows together. "What happened?" I ask, sitting on my seat and closing the door. "I had to take (Y/N) to the hospital. And you should come over too." He says, trying to keep his voice calm. "What? Why? Is she ok? Please, tell me she is fine... Please..." I feel my breath getting caught in my lungs. "I don't know, Cal. Come over. We are in Good Samaritan." He replies and I hang up, trying not to get my brain to the worst.

I quickly dial Luke's number, hoping he will be available to keep Joy; I don't want her in the hospital, not now that I don't know what is happening with my wife and baby. He picks up after a few rings. "Can you keep Joy for a while? It is an emergency?" I ask him before he could say a word. "What do you mean an emergency?" He asks, yawning a little. "I don't know much. It has to do with (Y/N)." I state, sniffling as I try not to fall apart. "I'll be waiting in my driveway." He responds, stuttering the words. "Thanks. See you in a bit."

The drive to the hospital could easily be the hardest ride of my life. I know I have to keep my shit together, but this ignorance is killing me. Ashton waits for me at the entrance of the E.R, looking as pale as ever. The constant pinch in my gut is making me dizzy; I don't know what to expect. I feel my body becoming cold, my knees suddenly bucking as they struggle to support my body. "Where is she?" I ask Ashton, who motions me to follow him. "They are examining her." He replies, guiding us to the elevators. "What happened?" My thumb goes to my ring finger, grazing over the silver band. "I went to pick her up as we planned... And I found Nina in there." "Nina? What the fuck was she doing there?" I ask him, feeling my blood become boiling. "I have no clue. I only heard her say she was going to get everything that's hers. I kicked her out and then (Y/N) told me she was in pain." He explains. "Did she hurt her? Did she fucking touch her?" I growl, digging my nails in my palms. "I don't think so... I mean... I didn't see her doing anything." He replies, looking at me for my reaction. I bite the inside of my cheek, feeling my stomach drop. "I am going to find her and I am going to kill her. I am going to kill her, I swear." I say through gritted teeth, making Ashton move in front of me and grab me by my shoulders. "Mate, if you hurt her, she is going to get you arrested. Your wife will have to give birth alone, you won't get to be with your daughters, and the career you have will be forever stained by it." He reasons me. "If anything happens to (Y/N), I won't..." I begin but I burst into sobs, making Ashton pull me into a hug. "Calum, your wife is the most stubborn person I know. I mean, look at her, putting up with your ass... She is going to be fine. And your baby, well, she has the strongest mama, and she is going to be fine as well. Please, don't think about that. (Y/N) will be fine." He assures me, patting my back. "Now, we are going up to the OBGYN floor and we are going to wait for the results. And then you are going in to see your wife and you will be calm, so she can be calm. Ok?" He looks at me, shaking me a little. "She is going to be fine." I state and he nods. "Both of them." He adds, pushing the elevator button.

"Mr. Hood?" Someone asks me, making me bring my head up from my lap. A woman with a medical coat stands before me, smiling condescendingly as I stand up. "Are they ok? Is my wife alright? Is the baby ok?" I ask and she draws in a breath. "The baby is perfectly healthy, there is no reason to be worried right now. Your wife, however, was in shock when she was brought in. Her blood pressure was very high. We were able to lower it, but we are worried about her developing preeclampsia." She explains. Ashton pats my back as I feel my breath hitch to the back of my throat. "Preeclampsia?" I ask and she nods. "High blood pressure can lead to organ failure and we want to avoid that. So, we will keep her in, for observation and treatment. And hopefully, her blood pressure will drop to normal soon." The doctor explains and I gulp the lump in my throat. "If it doesn't drop?" Ashton asks, beating me to it. "We will have to deliver the baby. But this is something we are trying to avoid." She replies. "Can I see her?" I ask; I must be looking at her in the most pleading way. "Of course. But try not to upset her." She states, motioning me to follow her.

I see her laying on the hospital bed, the monitor hooked on her arm. I have to take a moment to get my mind in order before I step into her room, because I know I will break down crying in front of her. "Are you going to stand there or get in?" She asks me softly, patting the free spot on her bed. I walk in, feeling at a loss of words. "The doctor filled me in. She said our baby is fine and that you'll be fine too." I try to assure her, but she shakes her head at me. "They talked to me too. I know the baby is fine... But... I am not, Cal..." She sniffles, squeezing my hand. "No, no, baby... You will be fine, we are all going to make sure of that. They said they already have lowered your blood pressure... We are on the right track." I press my lips on her forehead, trying to use my most calming voice. "If it comes to choosing..." "No, shut up... It won't come to choosing... We will never let it get to that. You and our baby will be fine. And when we get out of here, we are going to choose all the baby furniture and everything we need for our little peanut. And Joy is going to help me decorate the baby's room because that kid has an eye for that. And then we will have to find a name for her before she is here, so we have plenty of stuff to think about instead of thinking about it ever coming to a choice." I assure her, placing my hand on her bump. "It was so scary... She had a paper from the court, she said she wasn't gonna let me take what's hers... She looked at me with so much hatred..." I can hear her breathing become a little struggled, so I just hug her closer, pressing my lips on her forehead as I try to soothe her. "It's all over... All over, baby. She won't hurt you... We will get a restraining order and security and..." She shakes her head and leans her head on my shoulder. "Why did she have a paper from the court? I thought the lawyer said she wouldn't get served..." She asks as I run my thumb over her shoulder. "I don't know, angel... Let me take care of everything, ok? You rest and make sure our baby is alright, and I will go get everything fixed. How does that sound?" I ask her, pecking on her temple, while at the same time I try to calm down myself. "I love you." She whispers, placing her hand on top of mine on her bump. "I love you, angel. Try to rest now, I will be back in just a bit." I sigh, getting up from the bed.

Ashton waits outside the room for me, hugging me without saying a word. "You look like shit right now. You need coffee and food." He pats my back as he pulls away. I shake my head at him, pulling my phone out of my pocket. "I need to call the lawyer, and ask why the hell Nina got served to a court she never should have gotten served to. And I need to tell her to file for a restraining order because today Nina scared my wife to the point of endangering her life. So, before I get food or coffee or really anything, I should fix everything... I should fix it for my wife, for my daughters, for myself. Because Nina showed up twice, she knows where my wife works, she knows we are having a baby. Nina showed up, twice... And I can't breathe at the thought of Nina showing up and me not being there to protect (Y/N), or Joy, or the baby... So, please, let me fix this and stop worrying about me, for just a moment." I plead, feeling my chest becoming tight. "Ok, ok... Can I help? Any way I can!" He asks me and I nod. "Call Luke and tell him that I am staying with (Y/N) at the hospital and if he can't keep Joy, I can call a babysitter..." I explain. "I will call. And if he can't keep her, I will. I will also go to the cafeteria and buy us some coffee and water and food, and you can eat while you talk with the lawyer." He assures me, patting my back softly. "Thank you." "You are welcome. Now, let's go sit and make the calls we need to make." He nods his head towards the sitting area.

"It was all a mistake." I announce as I walk into (Y/N)'s room. "What was a mistake?" She asks me, looking at me in confusion. "Nina getting served. The person in charge of our papers didn't see the custody ruling. Nina won't be at the court. And she won't be allowed to get anywhere near you. I filed for a temporary restraining order, and we will pursue a permanent one as soon as we can. And I will make sure you are always with security when I am not with you." I explain, smiling at her. "She knows where I work... What if she doesn't stop? What if she comes again?" She asks me; I can see the terror in her eyes. "Well, you will get your maternity leave early, due to medical reasons. And, frankly... You can always quit..." "And what will you have me do? Be a housewife and a mother? I will go insane, Calum." "Now, did I say that, my love? You can quit, and I can help you set up something of your own." "You know I can't ask you for something like that." "You are not asking for it. I am offering. It is an investment, something that will be ours. Think about it... We have time to decide what we will do. But now, you get your maternity leave and stay home with our daughter while we wait for our other daughter to arrive. Ok?" I ask and she nods, smiling at me. "What did you tell Joy?" She asks me, running her thumb over my wedding ring. "I didn't tell her anything. Haven't spoken to her yet." I shrug my shoulders, looking at our hands. "You should tell her the truth. Not the scary part, of course. But tell her that mommy is at the hospital and the doctors are taking care of her and her baby sister." She explains, bringing my hand to her stomach. The baby moves inside her, little lumps moving across her stretched skin. "It still feels weird..." I chuckle, feeling her move under my hand. "I know. It feels like an alien is trying to rip through my body." She replies, sounding calm, finally. "Don't call our baby alien." I scoff. "Why? She looks like one right now. Have you seen the ultrasounds? She looks like ET more than she looks like you or me." She jokes, but her voice sounds so loving. "Prettiest alien ever." I say in my baby voice, stroking my hand over her bump.

I knew Joy wouldn't be able to stay home the moment she would hear about (Y/N) being in the hospital, so I promised to bring her in and see for herself that her mommy is alright and I haven't been lying to her. The little girl has been tugging at my sleeve from the moment we got in the hospital; her other hand is occupied, holding some flowers and one of her stuffed bunnies. "Bunny, no need to be anxious. Mommy is alright, you'll see her in a few minutes." I try to calm her, but her eyes look at me with worry. "Why is mommy in the hospital? Only sick people go to the hospital." She asks me, and I chuckle. "Well, not only sick people. The doctors wanted to make sure your baby sister is healthy, so mommy is staying here for a while. In a few days, she will be back home." I assure her, lowering to her height. "You promise?" She asks and I hum. "I promise, love. Now, put on your big girl smile, and let's go to mama." I suggest and she nods.

We walk into the room, finding (Y/N) sitting upright on her bed, glowing and beaming with happiness as the little girl runs to her. "Mommy." She screams happily, throwing the flowers and the stuffie on top of the bed. "Bunny... You are here." (Y/N) says excitedly. I move closer to them, lifting Joy on (Y/N)'s bed so she can hug her. "You are ok?" Joy asks her as (Y/N) hugs and kisses her forehead. "I am. We are just making sure the baby is healthy inside my tummy." (Y/N) replies, twirling one of Joy's curls. "Is she?" She asks; her voice is full of worry, which quite honestly is the purest thing I have witnessed. "She is very healthy, and soon I will get back home and we will be together all day long. We will draw, and read, and watch movies, and play all day. And daddy said he needs your help with the baby's room because you are so good at choosing stuff and I get tired very easily, so I am not such a great help." (Y/N) explains to our daughter who looks at her adoringly. "Ok, mama. Daddy bought you these, he said you love tulips. And I brought you Carrot because I don't want you to be alone. She will keep you and the baby company." Joy reaches for the stuff, handing the stuffie to (Y/N), who keeps it close to her chest. "Thank you, sweetheart. I am sure Carrot will be amazing." (Y/N) coos, pressing a kiss on Joy's forehead. "Hey there. I see you have a lot of visitors." The doctor walks into the room, smiling at Joy who studies her. "I have the best company ever. Joy, this is my doctor, Dr. Willow. She makes sure the baby and I are very healthy." (Y/N) explains as Joy extends her hand to shake the doctor's. "Yes, and I am here to take a look at the baby." The doctor says as I take Joy off the bed. "Oh, can I see her too? Please..." She begs, making me look at (Y/N). "If the doctor says you can stay..." (Y/N) responds, turning to the doctor. "I don't see why not." The doctor states, bringing the ultrasound machine a little closer to (Y/N)'s bed.

(Y/N) raises her gown, making sure to bring the covers closer so she is not exposed to the whole world. The doctor squirts some gel onto (Y/N)'s belly before she moves the wand over it. The heartbeat echos through the little machine, steady and loud as it should be. "This is your sister's heart that you hear. And on the screen, we can see her move inside your mommy's belly. She looks very healthy and active. Do you want a picture of her?" The doctor asks Joy, who nods excitedly. "Ok then, let's prepare you one. By the time you are back from the amazing cafeteria with your dad, the picture will be ready." The doctor subtly lets me know we have to go, so I nod and pick Joy up. "Let's go see if they have some ice cream in here. We will be back before you know it." I assure her, walking out of the room.

(Y/N's POV) "I thought this was your first pregnancy..." The doctor states after Calum and Joy leave the room. "It is. Joy... Well, I didn't birth her, but she is my daughter. My husband and I are going to court in a few days so I can legally become her mother. But she is my daughter already." I respond, making the doctor nod. "Biology doesn't matter. Love matters. And I see enough of it in your family." She responds, printing the ultrasound picture for Joy. "Is everything alright? Why did you ask them to leave?" I ask as I clean my stomach. "Everything is fine. As I said, she is very healthy and active. And I like how low your B.P has been for the past 24 hours. We'll keep you on for one more day, just to make sure. But I think there is no reason to be worried." She replies, turning off the ultrasound. "I don't have preeclampsia?" I ask, making her smile. "From what I see this far, no. But you will need to keep track of your blood pressure and make sure you don't get stressed. Take small walks to help with circulation, but not getting tired or too worked up. And before you ask, sex is still allowed..." She states and I chuckle. "Ok... So I am getting out tomorrow, right?" I ask and she hums. "In 24 hours, yes. You will still get monitored throughout the day, just for precaution, but I am pretty sure you will get out of here." She replies, leaving the ultrasound picture on the little bedside table. "I will see you again in a few hours." She smiles at me before placing the ultrasound machine back in place and leaves.

As the doctor promised, I am out of the hospital the day after, with Calum and Joy picking me up with excitement written all over their faces. Joy has been holding the picture from the ultrasound in her hands nearly all day since I handed it to her, which I am absolutely positive is the cutest thing ever. "Ok, mommy goes to sit on the couch and I will go order us some food. Joy, want to go join mama?" Calum asks the little girl, who nods. "Actually, I want to go out in the backyard. It is such a lovely day and I want to soak up some sun." I state and Calum hums, leaning in to press a kiss on my lips. "I'll order the food and join you in a bit." He replies before Joy takes my hand and guides us into the backyard.

We lounge on one of the sun chairs, letting the sun hit us, Joy leaning her head on my stomach as the baby moves. "Will the baby sleep in my room when she comes?" She asks me, making me stroke her hair. "In the beginning, she will sleep in our room, so I can feed her and change her diaper at night. But after that, she will have her own room." I explain and she sighs in disappointment. "Why? She can stay in my room." She offers and I chuckle. "Well, you have a big girl room and the baby needs a baby's room. But we can talk about it when the baby gets older... I promise that." I reply, smiling at the girl who grins at me. "Daddy said we will go to this place where they will ask me questions in a few days." "Yes. Are you anxious?" I ask her and she shakes her head. "No. I want to go there. After that you'll be my mom forever, right?" She asks and I nod. "I am already your mom forever, my love. I will just be your mom on paper too." I explain, stroking her curls. "Ok, mama." She whispers, running her hand over my belly.

I wear the only formal clothes that fit me right now, with my most comfortable fancy shoes, hoping I look prestigious enough so that the court will decide in my favor. It has been hours since the session began, and I feel more than sleepy and bothered than I want to admit. And I bet anything that Joy is even worse than me. But none of us dare say anything, none of us complain. Because according to our lawyer, things have been going very well this far. So, we spend the court break just waiting for the decision, in nearly complete silence. "Are you ok, my love?" Calum asks me as I lean my head on his shoulder. Joy has been sitting with Luke and Sierra since the social worker has already taken her interview early on. "I am tired. And I want this to be over already. What's taking them so long?" I groan and he hums softly. "It will be over soon. And we will go home, with our daughter and friends to celebrate." He assures me. I feel my bump, trying to soothe myself from unnecessary anxiety. "Joy is about to fall asleep..." He points out and I chuckle. "She barely slept last night. She was excited..." I reply, bringing my hand to tangle with his. "Weren't we all?" "How come you are not anxious?" I ask and he chuckles. "Someone has to be the rock..." He shrugs his shoulders. The judges walk in, taking their seats as we stand up to hear their ruling. "After thoroughly examining the testifies of the witnesses, and all the information collected by the respected services, we hereby approve the adoption of Joy Luna Hood from (Y/F/N), thereby granting the custody to (Y/F/N) and Calum Thomas Hood. Congratulations." The judge announces, making the whole room cheer. Joy runs to us, cheering as Calum picks her up and we have a little family hug. "I am your mommy now... Officially your mommy." I nearly cry; I have been dreaming of this moment since we went to the lawyer the first time. "We are a family now. Officially." Calum adds, kissing Joy's forehead, then mine.

"Not to startle you or anything, but your room is ready and soon you will get an eviction notice from in there... So, it might be time for you to pop out. Your sister is so excited to meet you, you are so gonna love her." Calum says in his baby voice, poking at my stomach. "Baby, I really don't want to blow your cloud away, but I am the one who is going to have to push a human out of a very small hole, and I am not so pumped about that... So, please don't try to rush her out yet. She is warm and safe in there..." I stroke Calum's hair, yawning a little as I feel drowsy already; it has barely been 3 hours since I woke up. "Yeah, I know. But I am excited she is getting here any day now. I still remember the day you came to our house with that folder in hand. It feels like yesterday." "I would kinda like to forget that I announced my pregnancy that way and that we were practically broken up at that point." I groan and he huffs. "Officially, we never broke up. And you promised the announcement of the next pregnancy is going to be a whole lot better. You better stay true to your promise." "Oh, we are already talking about the next one? This one is not even here yet. She still doesn't have a name." I protest but he scoffs playfully. "Yeah, we need a name. But I kinda like the idea of this one and the next one being so close, age-wise." "Calum, baby, I adore you and I adore our children, present and potential, but after this one, you are really not touching me for a while." I state and he gasps. "You really think you will be able to resist those lips, this charm, this body?" He asks me, cocking an eyebrow at me. "I can always try." I giggle, stroking my stomach.

"Cal... Cal baby, can you wake up?" I shake my husband, who stirs a little and grimaces. "Baby, please. My water just broke..." I nudge him, trying to get him to wake up. I feel myself becoming more anxious than I ever imagined I would be when this moment would come. "Calum Thomas Hood... Our daughter is coming. Get off the bed." I practically shout at him, startling him awake. "What?" He asks me, panting as he sits up. "My water broke... We need to go to the hospital." I moan as a contraction rips through me. "Fuck..." He exclaims, jumping off the bed. "That's what I am saying..." I reply, taking a deep breath to calm down. "We need to get going. Did you call your doctor?" He asks me, walking to the closet to get dressed. "I will call on the way. You still have the bag in the trunk, right?" I ask and he nods, turning to look at me. He stops for a moment, walking closer and pressing a kiss on my forehead. "She is coming." He says excitedly before he bends down to press a kiss on my bump. "I know... We should wake Joy up..." I reply as he stands up and goes back to getting dressed. "Let her. I will call Mikey and Crystal. They'll come over to take care of Joy. We have already talked about it." He replies, going to the nightstand to pick up his phone. "She will be sad when she finds out we went without her." I state but Calum hums. "She will see her baby sister and forget everything." He replies, chuckling softly. "She still doesn't have a name..." I sigh, earning a hum from him. "Well, we will have to come up with one, very soon." He replies, pressing a kiss on my forehead.

"You'll be inside the delivery room with me, right?" I ask Calum as I calm down from the contraction. They have become more frequent, more powerful, which only means I am getting closer to holding our baby in my arms. "Of course, if you want me to be." He replies, pressing a towel on my forehead to mop up my sweat. "You know, when I found out I was pregnant, I pictured myself all alone... Going to doctor appointments, having all the milestones by myself. But I pictured going in labor with you. You were there, holding my hand and telling me that you love me... Every time I pictured myself in that room, you were there... It's pretty much the reason I came to your house that night and told you about the baby." I state, taking his hand in mine. "I am here. And you'll never have to do anything alone. I can promise you that." He replies, pressing a kiss on my knuckles. "I am scared..." I admit, but he brings his forehead to rest on mine, nuzzling his nose against mine. "You will do amazingly. You are already amazing to our Joy, and you are the bravest person I know. You are a freaking superhero and I am in complete awe of you at all times." He states, kissing the tip of my nose.

Chiara Stella Hood joined the world on the 18th of June, at 6:25 in the morning. From the moment I saw her, I knew that there won't be a moment in my life that I won't love her with my whole heart. Calum hasn't left a moment, keeping a close eye on our daughter as she does pretty much anything. From letting out her first cry to suckling on my breast, his eyes haven't left her for a second. And I really can't blame him. "Michael says they are bringing Joy over in 20 minutes." Calum yawns, sitting closer to us on my bed. He brings his fingers to graze Chiara's little blanket as she blinks softly at us, while I put my gown back on. "You hear that, little lady... You are going to meet your big sister and your godparents..." I coo at the baby, as her father picks her up to hold her. "Joy is going to be so excited..." He says as I lean my head on his shoulder. "She has your eyes... Both of our children have your eyes." I state, running my thumb over the baby's chubby cheek. "I know... She is gorgeous, baby. I can't stop looking at her. Thank you." He turns to look at me, pressing a kiss on my lips. "For what?" I giggle softly. "For her... For carrying her, for telling me, for keeping her safe and healthy... Thank you." He replies, bopping her little nose. "We have the cutest little family. You are going to be such an amazing girl dad." I yawn a little; I am so tired from the delivery, but I can't wait for Joy to be here so she can meet the baby, so I just push through. "You need sleep." Calum comments; his voice has become raspy and groggy, coated with sleepiness. "You too. After Joy leaves, I am going to nap a bit. And you should get home, rest a lot because you will be on diaper duty for sooo long." I tease him and he chuckles. "I am not leaving you. I'll sleep on the chair a bit." He replies. "You should head home and spend some time with Joy... I don't want her feeling ignored now that Chiara is here." I state and he hums. "You are an angel, you know that?" He asks me and I nod. "I am aware, yes." I chuckle.

Joy runs into the room, gasping as she sees me holding the swaddled baby. "Mommy." She cheers, stopping at the edge of the bed as Michael and Crystal walk in after her. "Hey, bunny." I smile at her while Calum moves to help her get up on the bed. "This is your baby sister, Chiara Stella Hood. It means bright star in Latin." Calum states, stroking Joy's hair. "So now we have a Luna and a Stella. A moon, and a star." I explain, showing the baby to Joy. She looks at her in awe, love dripping from her eyes. "She is so pretty." She comments, staring at the baby girl. "Wanna hold her?" I ask her, making her gasp and look at me. "Can I?" She looks at me and then Calum. "Of course. Daddy will help you, ok?" I hand the baby, who complains a little but only for a moment, to Calum, who in turn shows Joy how to hold her sister. "She is so little." Crystal coos, leaning closer to take a look at the baby. "Just 6lbs and 19 inches. She is a tiny star." Calum jokes. "Joy, can we let uncle Michael and aunt Crystal hold Chiara for a little?" Calum asks, but Joy protests. "She is my sister..." She grumbles, making me smile. "I know, baby. But she is also their goddaughter... Like you are uncle Luke's." Calum explains, making Joy hand him the baby reluctantly. "Are you for real?" Michael asks, picking the baby up. "If you want to, yes." I reply and they nod, while I reach to hug Joy. "It would be an honor." Crystal adds, getting closer to Michael so she can look at the baby too. "I got something for the baby." Joy says, pointing at the paper bag that rests on the edge of the bed. Calum hands it to her, sitting near us as well. "Daddy says that I had this blankey since I was a baby. And I want Chiara to have it too." She says, handing me a little lilac blanket. I coo, my heart melting over it. "This is so sweet of you, bunny. Chiara is going to love it." I press a kiss on her forehead. "Auntie Crystal washed it so it smells nice." Joy states, turning to look at her sister. "It is lovely, bunny. I love you and your sister is going to love this so much." I hug her, making her hug me back. "When are you coming home with the baby, mommy?" She asks me, still not letting me go. "In a few days, baby. We need to make sure the baby and I are both healthy. But when we are back home, we are going to spend all day long, me, you and the little baby, napping and reading fairy tales." I say, pressing a kiss on her forehead. "Can daddy join you girls too?" Calum asks, pinching Joy's cheek before Crystal hands me Chiara, who has fallen asleep again. "Only if he promises to bring us food." I joke, smiling at my husband.

Our little, perfect family. And it all began because Calum was late picking up Joy from my class.

My Masterlist / Single Dad!Calum x Preschool Teacher! (Y/N)

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