#fellas he is no longer being modest with it

[totallysharkycomplete]

Waiting For You Part Six (Ford Pines x Reader) Home In Your Arms

She awoke before the dawn as usual. Under the blankets was warm. Although the boat was cold Ford’s body, which was firmly pressed against hers, provided plenty of heat. The gentle swaying of the boat would have made it easy to fall back asleep, but since the weather was supposed to be clear today, she decided to get up and watch the sunrise.

Gently slipping out of the covers, and out of Ford’s grasp, she quickly dresses into more layers before quietly stalking up on the deck. She could still hear the heavy breaths and snores coming from the cabin below. The deck was even colder than the cabin, and there was a layer of frost on the upper windows. She quickly made a cup of coffee then downed it, then leaned against the front railing, and waited for the sunrise as the clouds on the horizon turned pink.

She was lost in thought, so when someone wrapped their arms around her waist she jumped. The person behind her chuckled and she let out a sigh.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” Ford’s lips are right next to her ears, his stubble is scratchy on her skin.

She lets out a hum, then turns around in his arms to face him. “You could still be sleeping.”

He begins to plant gentle kisses to her cheek. “Couldn’t without you.”

She giggles and places a hand on his cheek, her thumb runs over his stubble.

“Why are you up so early?” He almost whines against her skin, still leaving soft kisses on the small amount of skin exposed on her cheeks and upper neck.

She let out a content sigh. “Weather is supposed to be clear. I wanted to watch the sunrise. Would you like to join me?”

He moves his head up and presses his forehead to hers. “I’d love to.”

She leans forward the inch she needs to so she can plant a kiss on Ford’s lips. It’s soft, but conveys so many feelings. Love, affection, the sense of being home.

Ford tries to lean forward for another kiss but she quickly turns around. He lets out an exasperated sigh.

“Sorry, but the sun rises this way.” She teases.

Ford’s hand is on the back of her neck, moving the hair away from it so he can press more kisses to her skin.

“You’re in a very touchy mood this morning.” She comments, leaning her back against his chest.

“Do you want me to stop?” He murmurs, lips still on her skin.

“No,” she quickly tells him. “Just an observation.”

He leaves a few more kisses on her skin before her hand wraps around his. “Ford, look.”

The sun had just peaked above the horizon, brilliant oranges and yellow began to fill the sky, casting warm rays of light on the small sleepy fishing village they had docked near. Soon the warm rays fell onto her face. “Isn't it beautiful?”

“Not more so than you.” Ford tightens his grip around her waist and rests his chin against the top of her head.

She’s glad Ford can’t see the blush on her face. Even after thirty plus years had passed, he could still make her blush. She was about to say something modest back to Ford until she heard a burp and scratching noises.

“Ugh, get a room.” Stanley had obviously joined them on deck.

“We have a room.” She rolls her eyes. “I think you forget we share sometimes. Your memory is slipping old man.” She teases without moving from Ford’s grip.

“Yeah, yeah.” He waves her comment away before heading inside the upper cabin to the coffee she had prepared.

There's a moment of peace, you might almost call it pure bliss. To spend the sunrise wrapped in your lover's arms, their warm breath leaving them in clouds of hot air, the boat gently rocking them as the morning tide rolled in.

“Everytime I wrap my arms around you, it feels like coming home all over again, to where I belong.” Ford whispers.

She turns to face him again and cups his face with both her hands, and kisses the tip of his nose. “When did you become so romantic?”

Ford leans into her touch. “I mean it.” He pauses for a second. “I don’t think I ever told you, but when I first came back and saw you, my first thought was that I had died and gone to heaven. Being with you again is everything I’ve ever wanted and more.”

“If you had died and gone to heaven then that would have meant Stan was in your heaven too.” She laughs.

“He’s still her now.” He grabs her hand to hold it still so he can tilt his head and kiss her thumb.

She laughs even louder this time, then wraps her arms around his neck to draw him into another kiss. “I love being in your arms. I love being your home, because you’re mine too.”

The boat rocks them gently as the morning sun warms their bodies. Their hearts are full of love for one another. “Let’s stay like this forever, and just let the world drift away.”

Ford is about the respond before Stan interrupts.

“Hey love birds! We gonna explore some anomalies today or what?” Stan barks from behind them.

Ford's eyebrows furrow and he goes to turn his head to snap at Stanley, but her hands catch his chin and turn his face back to her. She kisses him passionately three times and he’s breathless. She untangles herself from Ford and heads towards Stan.

“What’s on the agenda for today co-captain Stanley?” She smiles.

Ford is left standing there speechless and in a daze.

“Are you coming, co-captain Ford?”

Ford looks over at her. She squinting her eyes as the morning sun washes over her features, her cheeks pink from the cold. He has never been more in love with her.

“Coming, associate co-captain.”

---------- By the time the sun was high in the sky he three of them had docked the boat and climbed halfway up the mountain. The town folks had told them about strange flying creatures that lived near the top of the mountain.

The sun beat down on them, and they soon found themselves needing to take off some of the many layers of winter clothes they had dressed in for the day. About an hour into the hike Stan speaks up.

“Hey poindexter, how bout a break?” He huffs as he wipes sweat from his brow.

“We’re very close to where the creatures were reported being seen.” Ford is warm, sweat gleams on his brow, but his attitude is chipper and he’s not as nearly out of breath.

“Even the kid needs a break.” Stan motions towards her.

She rolls her eyes at Stan still calling her a kid. She’s also out of breath, almost as bad as Stan. The high altitude is getting to her, but she wouldn’t voice it.

Ford places a hand on her shoulder. “What do you think? Would you like to take a short rest.”

She smiles and nods. “Let’s take a short rest. We wouldn’t want Stan passing out on us.”

Stan grunts but doesn’t say anything. Glad to finally have a break from hiking. The three of them sit on the ground and drink their water. Ford is sitting as close as he can to her. She shivers as a cold breeze blows past them, feeling a little cold now that they have stopped moving. Ford wraps an arm around her shoulder, she looks up at him and smiles a wordless thank you.

After a few minutes they stand up and begin to get moving again. She groans as she stretches, and once they start moving again she is behind both the boys on the path.

“You alight? You’re normally faster than me.” Stan turns his head to talk to her while they move up the narrow mountain path.

“I’m fine, my legs are just a bit sore.” She tells him.

They continue their hike until they break through the tree line. They can see the horizon on the sea, and far below them is the small fishing village where they left the Stan O’ War II docked.

She’s stunned by the beautiful view and almost doesn’t realise Stan and Ford haven’t stopped walking like she had. She scurries to catch up to them, until she sees a bush near her shake. Looking over she sees a small head of a rat pop out.

“Aww.” She says softly to not scare the rodent away. “Hey little fella.” She coos.

The rat scurried back into the bush at the sound of her voice, much to her disappointment. She turns to catch up to the boys, After a few steps she hears a strange sound. Somewhere between a squeak and a squawk. Turning around she sees the rat has raised itself out of the bush with a pair of wings. This must be the creature they had been looking for!

“Fascinating!” She says to herself and pulls out her sketchbook and begins to jot down a quick doodle on the animal. The sun catches on her silvery pen and flashes a light up at the rat-like creature. It squawks loudly then dives towards her.

Further up the path Ford is mumbling to himself and Stan is tuning him out. Both of them freeze when they hear a shriek. They both stop dead in their tracks and whip around to see she is no longer behind either of them. The brothers share a second of a glance before booking it back down the trail.

It doesn’t take them long to get back to her. When she comes into sight they can see she's using one arm to shield her face, the other is holding her notebook and waving it aimlessly behind her, trying to hit the creature that’s attacking her hair.

Stan is the first to her, he pulls her to his chest with one arm and throws a left hook at the creature, sending it crashing into a tree. There's a moment of silence before Ford is pulling her into his arms. Stan makes his way over towards the tree.

“What happened? I thought you were right behind us?” Ford’s hands are on her face, tilting her head around and looking for any sign of injury. Her hands rest on his chest.

“Ford, I’m okay, promise. You were both further up the path when I noticed the creature. I thought if I called to you I’d scare it off. So I tried to get a quick sketch, and I must have scared it because it started attacking my hair.” She can’t help as a laugh escapes her.

“You could have been hurt.” Ford’s voice is soft as he scoulds her.

“But I wasn’t.” She teases.

“Please promise me you won’t go off on your own again? I don’t know what I’d do if you got hurt.” Ford told her seriously.

She stops smiling when she realises Ford is actually upset, not with her, but by the fact she could have been hurt. She takes his hands, which were still on her face, and holds them in hers. She leans up and gives him a soft, reassuring kiss.

“I promise.” She whispers.

“Check this out!” Stan shouts and holds the unconscious ratbird in between them by its feet.

She shrieks with surprise and jumps away from Ford. “Stanley that’s disgusting!”

“What!? I thought you like rodents!” He laughs, shaking the bird closer towards her as she takes another step back.

“I wouldn’t pick up a wild rat or bird with my hands, or let it that close to my face! Who knows where that thing has been!” She scolds him. “If it wakes up and bites you I’m not helping you.”

In the commotion Ford slipped on some protective gloves from his pack. “Hold it still please Stanley.” Stan complies and Ford gently stretches its wings open and begins to list off observations about it that she quickly sketches down. “It’s wingspan is too small to carry it far. That’s probably why it is native only to this island.” He lists other things off like teeth size and tail length.

Stan gently set the animal down. “Think that’s enough for today right?”

The other two agree and they begin their trek back down the mountain. She is in front of them now to set the pace, and so the boys can’t lose sight of her. When the path begins to get wider, Ford falls back a bit to walk besides Stan.

“Thank you for earlier.” Ford tells his brother.

Stan looks at him confused. “Didn’t do nothing.”

“You were able to get to her first and protect her from the rat bird.” Ford reminds him.

Stan waves it off. “Don’t mention it.” Stan wouldn’t admit to Ford how scared he was to see her get attacked like that, he’d rather not think about it.

When they make it back to the ship the sun is already touching the horizon. It was Ford’s night to cook and the other two went to rest in their beds. When the food was ready Ford headed below deck to find them both asleep. He wasn’t surprised Stan had nodded off. Almost anytime he wasn’t actively moving or engaged in an activity he would fall asleep. But his believed fiance would normally be reading a book or be annotating her notes.

He gently brushes some hair out of her face and she stirs. She smiles up at him and grabs his hand and brings it down to her lips to kiss his palm. His heart flutters at her sweet act.

“I fell asleep.” She murmurs, voice heavy with sleep.

“I noticed.” He leans down to kiss her. “Are you feeling alright?”

“I feel perfect now that you’re here.” She giggles and he frowns. She frowns too, but only to mock him. “I feel fine Stanford. I guess today was just too exciting is all.”

“Well, why don’t we have dinner then we can go right back to bed?” He suggested.

“You’re perfect. I love you” She smiles up at him, eyes half lidded.

“I love you too.”

They stare into each other's eye, and neither of them notice the loud snoring has stopped. There’s a loud groan announcing Stan has awoken.

“If you love him so much why don’t you marry him?” Stan teases, she rolls her eyes.

The next morning Ford is the first to wake up. His love is tucked close to his side, buried under the blankets. He turns on his side to draw her impossibly closer. She makes a noise at the movement but doesn't awaken.

The bed feels a little warmer than normal. Maybe the day will be warmer than the forecast had predicted Ford thinks. Ford lays there for a while, enjoying the silence and warmth for a while until she begins to stir.

He feels her stretch under his grasp and she looks up at him eyes still droopy from sleep.

“Good morning my dear. Would you like to join me for some coffee?” Ford murmurs into her hair.

She shakes her head no. “It’s too cold.” She tries to burrow closer to Ford to get any extra warmth.

“I’ll go turn the heater on upstairs, join me when you’re ready.” Ford moves the hair away from her forehead and kisses her there then freezes. He moves the back of his hand to her forehead, then his cheek to confirm his thought. “You’re burning up!”

“No, it’s cold.” She denies.

“You must have a fever. Do you feel alright? When did you start feeling sick?” Ford doesn’t bother keeping his voice down and clearly wakes up his brother.

Stan rolls his eyes at the commotion and makes his way to the upper deck.

Ford quickly stands. “I’m going to get dressed then go find a doctor in town. With a town this small there must be one to make house calls.”

“Ford, please, there’s no need for that.” She sniffs, still laying in the bed, pulling the covers closer around her.

“There really isn’t.” Stan grumbled, coming back down the stairs, a cup of water in one hand. The other was full of an assortment of pills. “Take these.” He gruffly shoved both the water and pills at her. She obeyed, sat up, and quickly tooked the unknown pills Stan had handed her. “Go back to sleep.” She layed down and closed her eyes, rolling over to face the wall away from the brothers.

“What did you give her?” Ford whispered, concerned.

Stan places a finger over his lips and motions towards the upper deck. They sit inside the cabin where Stan had turned on the space heater.

“She of course came prepared and packed herself cold medicine.” Stan slides the first aid box across the table so Ford can examine the medicine boxes of everything he had given her. “Almost every winter she gets a cold or two. Her legs start to hurt and she gets really tired. Should have seen it coming’ yesterday but was a little distracted by the birds. She must have noticed, but she never says anything. Thinks she can power through a fever.” Stan pauses a moment to laugh. “There was one time I caught her working on the portal shivering and sweating’ bucket. Practically had to drag her back to bed. The older we’ve gotten through, the less stubborn she’s gotten at admitting she’s actually sick.”

It finally dawns on Ford just how much Stanley had taken care of her while he was gone. Sure, she had told Ford directly that he had, but he thought she was just putting in a good word for her friend. Ford knows it to be true now. He remembers once in college she went to class with a fever just to be sent back to her dorm. If Stan hadn’t been here to make her rest when she was sick, she would have worked herself until she passed out or worse.

The cabin is silent for a moment.

“Thank you, Stan.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“No, Stanley, listen.” Ford looks at his brother and there are visible tears in his eyes. “She had told me before that you had taken care of her in my absence. I hadn’t thought much about it, since she's always been so strong and independent. I know she's also stubborn. If you hadn’t been there to make her rest… Thank you Stanley, truly, for taking care of her while I was gone.” Ford places his hand on his brother’s shoulder and gives it a firm squeeze. Stan returns the action, not commenting on the noticeable tears.

“She’d probably be happy to have you back downstairs to keep her warm.” Stan says, looking away from his brother. He doesn't want to see him cry, or he knows he will cry as well.

“I think you’re right.” Ford stands and goes to join her back in bed.

---------- Ford wasn’t exactly excited to go to the carnival on the boardwalk, but her and Stan conveyed it would be fun.

“It’ll be like the one back home! Remember when we tried to join the circus with our pet possum?” Stan laughed a deep belly laugh as they made their way past the ticket booth.

“You never told me you had a pet possum.” She's walking next to Ford, his hand is held tight in hers.

“But he told you about trying to join the circus?” Stan inquires.

“I’d argue he was more your pet than mine.” Ford argues.

They make their way around the attractions, eat some fair food, and play a few games. She has two stuffed animals they boys had won for her in her hands, and is filled with joy.

“You there, miss, would you like to know your future?” A voice calls to her, and she turns to see a fortune teller beckoning her towards their tent. The fortune teller's eyes are glassy and they don’t hold her gaze, they hold a long cane indicating they are blind. She feels an arm tighten around her shoulder.

“Fortune tellers aren’t to be trusted.” Ford tells her.

“It’s just for fun,” she comments. “There’s no way they could actually know my future.”

“I’ve traveled to different dimensions. I think almost anything is possible at this point.” Ford reminds her.

“I say we do it. I’d like to know when I get filthy rich.” Stan begins walking into the tent.

She tried to follow in after him but the fortune teller held up their hand. “Only one person inside the tent at a time please.”

So Ford and her wait outside the tent. It’s only a few minutes later when Stan exits with a huff. “You’re right, total scam, they don't know anything.”

The fortune teller exits the tent again and points over to her and Ford. “The six fingered one next.” Then enters the tent.

A chill runs up her spine. The teller was clearly blind, but to call Ford out like that. She shares a surprised look with Ford, who surprisingly goes into the tent after them.

Stan is clearly still mad about whatever he had been told, so she takes his hand. “I’m sure whatever they said it wasn’t true. Like you said, probably just a scam.”

Stan looks down at her warm smile and sighs. “You’re right kid. Just a scam. I should know.” They both share a laugh.

Ford exits the tent looking lost in thought.

“You’re next girly.” The teller holds open the flap for the tent and she makes her way in. The room looks bigger on the inside and there are two chairs on either side of a table with a fake looking crystal ball.

She sits and watches the fortune teller places their hands on the ball and thinks for a second before speaking. The ball lights up and smoke swirls around in it. “I would ask what you’d like to know about your future, but I already know what knowledge you seek. It weighs heavy on your heart. Knowing the truth might be even more of a burden. Would you still like to know?”

She thinks for a second. If the fortune teller was being honest and knew what she wanted to know, what she always thinks about, then she wants to know. “Will Ford and Stan die before me? I don’t think I could lose Ford again, and well, Stan is my best friend.”

The teller nods their head and hums. “As I suspected. Losing the ones you love is a heavy buren. Unfortunately you must bear the burden again, fortunately you only must bear it once.”

“Who?” Her voice quivers.

“As I said, losing someone you love is difficult, as you know. He cannot see his brother lost again. He will go first. You will be needed to comfort the six fingered one. This universe isn’t always fair, but it seems it will go easy on you, and you will not have to lose him again.” They remove their hand from the ball and the lights and smoke fade. “Now you know, you must live with this knowledge the rest of your life.”

She looks down at her hands and nods, then stands to exit the tent. She finds her boys standing exactly where she left them. Still looking lost in thought and a little angry. She pulls Ford into a hug and draws him from his thoughts.

“What did they tell you?” Ford asks, returning the hug.

She rests her chin on his chest to look up at him with a small smile. “That I’ll get to spend the rest of my life with you, and that’s all I want.”

“They really tell you that?” Stan grunts, clearly not happy with what he was told.

“No,” she confesses. “But they didn’t have to say that for me to know it, and-” She turns to look back at the tent and sees it's gone. She turns quickly to confirm what she sees if real. Then turns back to the twins, whose jaws are dropped.

The three share a look then agree to head back to the ship for the night.

Stan tosses and turns that night. He can’t seem to sleep. What the fortune teller had told his replays in the back of his mind and he’s still pissed about it. He throws off the sheets and puts on his coats and boots and heads to the upper deck. To his surprise, he wasn’t alone.

“Why are you up so late kid?” Stan slumps down onto the bench by her.

“I imagine for the same reason you can’t sleep.” She leans her head against her friend with her sigh.

There's a moment of silence between them. The only sound is the waves gently crashing on the nearby shore and the soft groan of the boat as it moves gently with the sea.

“What did they tell you?” They ask in unison. They both breath out a laugh.

“You first.” She says.

He thinks for a moment. “They told me I’m going to die before you and Ford. Ford, I get, he’s healthy and in shape.” She elbows him. “Not implying you ain’t! It’s just, I didn’t want to die before you is all. I’ve caused you enough suffering.”

She places her hand on his shoulder. “Stanley, don’t think like that. You haven’t caused me any suffering. You’re my best friend.”

He runs his hands down his face. “It’s my fault Ford got lost in the portal for thirty years, it’s my fault you didn’t get to start a family with him like you had planned to. It’s my fault you didn’t get to get married yet. It’s my fault that-”

“Stanley!” She shouts sternly at him and he turns to face her, surprised by the authority in her voice. She takes his hand in hers. “Stan you can’t think like that. You know I’ve forgiven you a long time ago with what happened with Ford. The rest of it… It doesn’t matter, because if it weren’t for you I wouldn’t have him back. If it weren’t for you I wouldn’t have met the most amazing great niece and nephew ever. If it weren’t for you I wouldn’t be sailing the seas right now with the two people I care the most about in the world, discovering amazing anomalies like I’ve always wanted to.”

Stan’s face is turned from hers but he gives her hand that’s holding his a tight squeeze. There's another moment of silence. “What did they tell you?” His voice croaks, she wouldn’t mention how he reached his free hand up to wipe his tears.

“They told me about the same.” She confesses. “That you’ll die before me, but I’ll be here for Ford.”

Stan Turns back to look at her. “Do you…” Stan doesn’t really want to finish the thought. He doesn’t want to think about their mortality.

“I’ll go before Ford. They said it was the universe going easy on me.” She smiles up at Stan, but the smile doesn't reach her eyes.

He pulls her into a tight hug. “Should we tell Ford?” She sniffs as tears sting her eyes.

“No. He wouldn’t want to know.”

----------- “Do you hear that?” Stan asks.

Ford and her are both sitting at the table noses in a book in the upper cabin of the ship. She and Ford listen, share a glance with each other, then look back at Stan.

“No,” they chime in unison.

Stan is driving the boat towards their next destination where there had been reports of strange ocean tides. He smacks his ear with the hearing aid.

“I must be picking up radio waves again.” He grumbles.

An hour later the two bookworms are asleep as Stan still mans the wheel, this time he hears the sound again. His head feels hazy and his body feels warm. He turns the boat towards the sound and begins to follow it.

Ford and her are jostled awake as the ship hits a large wave. They’re both lifted for a second from their seats before landing back down with a thump.

“Stanley what the hell is happening?” Ford is the first to notice the situation. The weather around them is awful. Rain pounds onto the ship, the boat jumps as it passes over enormous waves, going faster than she's ever seen it go. Lighting and thunder crash outside. Stan should have seen the storm coming.

Speaking of Stan. He’s standing at the wheel of the ship, eyes glued forwards, he doesn’t even notice Ford yelling at him. Ford pushes Stan out of the way and he falls to the floor. Suddenly Stan sits up and looks around.

“Where the hell are we?” He asks, hand held to his head.

“We should be asking you that, seeing as you were the one driving the last two hours!” She barks before reaching under the chairs for their life vests. She tosses the boys theirs and secures her own, they quickly buckle theirs as well.

“I don’t, I don’t know what happened.” Stan looks lost for a second. “I can’t remember.”

Her heart hurts for her friend. She knows that must be scary for him but now isn’t the time for comfort. Ford begins to bark orders, she helps Stan to his feet.

They begin securing lines and sails, making sure all objects are secured down so they won’t cause the three of them harm.

Suddenly she hears a noise and freezes. Her head feels hazy and her body feels warm. It seems as if her body is moving on it’s own as she begins to walk towards the door and exits the cabin. A strong hand grabs her arm.

“What are you doing?” Ford screams over the rain. Stan had taken the wheel again.

Her eyes are glazed over and she tries to continue walking towards the railing. Ford begins to drag her back inside but she resits. She freezes and he stops trying to pull her. She turns and points.

“There.”

Ford turns to see what she’s pointing at, and it’s the largest wave he’s seen in his whole life. He quickly wraps his body around her and tries to make it back into the cabin before the wave hits, but he’s not quick enough. The water envelops their bodies and they are thrown against the railing. The ship pops back up over the waves again and Ford looks into her eyes.

She's over the railing, dangling off the ship, her only tether is Ford’s hand.

“Don’t let go! I’ve got you!” He shouts desperately holding onto her and the ship.

Her body is like a rag doll as it’s slammed into the ship with the waves. She looks back up at Ford, eyes still glazed, and lets go of his hand, falling into the inky water below.

The second her body pops back up from water her head clears. Her life jacket inflated when she hit the water. The last thing she remembers was she was on the ship with the boys. A wave overtook her and she pushed back under the water. When she comes back up she realises she hears Ford screaming.

It’s dark and all Ford can see is the automatic light on her life vest getting further and further from them. He’s screaming for her, and for Stan to move the boat in her direction.

She tries to scream for him but is pushed under water again. When her head resurfaces she struggles for a breath before the same thing happens again. Coming back up this time she sees the ship be covered by a wave, then herself. This time when she comes back up she sees the light of the ship are gone. She feels something grab her foot, and is dragged under the water.

Ford feels warmth all around him. His eyes fluttered open and he squints as rays of sun blind his eyes. Waves softly lap and his boots and he quickly sit up as the events that just unfolded flood his mind. He looks around quickly hoping to see his love, or his brother.

Stan isn’t far from him and Ford hops to his feet to run from him. He falls to his knees and sees he’s breathing, Ford begins to shake his brother. “Stanley! Are you alright?”

Stan’s hand comes up to swat his brother away. “Five more minutes.” He mumbles.

Ford doesn't hesitate to slap him across the cheek.

Stan is quick to sit up. “What the hell was that for?”

“Do you not remember what just happened?” Ford barks.

Stan’s eyes grow wide in horror. “She went overboard… Didn’t she?”

Ford slumps forward and his hands cover his face. “I had her, she was in my hands and she… She let go.”

“She let go?” Stan echos in confusion.

“She had the same look in her eyes that you did when we found you steering the ship into the storm.” Ford breathing is quick and ragged, the panic of what’s happened starts to over take him. “I… Oh god, I-,”

“Shut your yap,” Stan commands. “You hear that?”

At first all Ford can hear is the gentle crashing of the waves onto the shore, then he hears it. The distant call of a voice. A very familiar feminine voice.

Ford’s eyes frantically scan the beach both ways looking for the source when he sees her. She must have spotted him at the same time because she begins to sprint towards him. Ford is quick to his feet and meets her halfway. Ford pulls her into a crushingly tight hug as tears fill both of their eyes.

“I thought I had lost you.” He cries into her hair. “I don’t know what I would do if I had.”

“I’m okay. I’m okay.” She sobs. “We’re safe now.” She whimpers against his chest.”

They stay there in each other’s embrace, until Stan slowly walks over to them.

“Glad you’re alright kid.” Stan smiles.

She grabs Stan and pulls him into the hug. He grumbles something but hugs both of them. After a moment they pull back. Ford’s hands are still clutching the back of her wet, sandy shirt. Ford and her look at each other and share a breathy laugh, and begin to wipe the tears away from their eyes.

“Now that we’ve had that lovely reunion, where are we and where’s the ship?” Stan frowns.

“Destroyed, I'd imagine.” Ford clears his throat.

“Actually…” She takes Ford’s hand and begins to lead them down the beach the way she had come. “When I had gone overboard, my mind cleared when I hit the water. I saw the ship get taken over by a wave and thought the worst. Something grabbed my foot and dragged me under, but…”

They round the corner on the beach and see Stan O’ War II, unharmed, anchored off shore. Ford and Stan both notice some splashing around the ship that wasn’t like normal waves. The brothers share a look.

“How is it not damaged?” Ford is in awe of the vessel's perfect condition.

“Turns out, we’ve had a guardian angel this whole trip we didn’t know about.” She smiles.

“Who?” Stan asks.

“Mable.” She laughs as theirs another splash in the water, this time closer to the shore.

The brothers both see the end of a tail then a few seconds later, a head pops up.

“Ford, you might remember what Mable had written in the journal about meeting her friend, Mermando. Turns out she still writes to him and told him about our trip and asked him and his people to look out for us.” She waves over at the head that had popped up signaling to him it was safe.

“It’s the least I can do to repay my friend. If it wasn’t for her then I might still be trapped in Gravity Falls.” Mermando smiles. He had swum over to them as far as he could without leaving the water.

“A real mermaid, huh?” Stan grunts.

“Fascinating.” Ford muses.

“He and a few others were able to pull us to safety after we were lured into the storm.” She tells them.

“Lured?” Ford repeats.

“Yes, unfortunately two of you had been affected by a siren’s song. They’re like merpeople, only they crave violence.” Mermando shakes his head.

“We really can’t thank you enough.” She sighs, giving Ford’s hand a squeeze. “And please, don’t mention this to Mable. I wouldn't want her to worry.”

“She will hear nothing of it. You have my word. Farwell Pines!” And with that, Mermando splashes under the water and is gone.

“Darn it, I should have asked him some questions while I had him here.” Ford brings a hand to his mouth in thought.

She playfully shoves him. “I say we should be happy that we’re alive.”

“You know what I say?” Stan asks and begins stripping his clothes. “I say we have a beach day! Been forever since we were in a warmer climate like this!” He splashes into the water in just his underwear, leaving the other two behind.

“What do you say, my love?” Ford pulls her to his chest.

She wraps her arms around his neck. “Having a nice calm day after almost drowning to death? I think we deserve it.” She plants a soft kiss to his lips before pulling away and begins striping down to her underwear. “Race you to the water.”

Ford doesn’t have to be asked twice before he follows suit removing his clothes.

After hours of relaxing on the beach and playing in the water like children, the sun had begun to set. Stan had made his way back to the boat leaving only her and Ford on the beach.

Ford is laying on his back, her head rests against his shoulder. His arms are tightly wrapped around her. Her fingers absentmindedly trace the knit pattern on his sweater.

“I can’t believe out of anywhere I could be in the world right now, I’m here with you.” She whispers.

He hums and she can feel his chest vibrate under her cheek. She turns her head to look at him. His eyes are closed but there's a smile on his face.

“Are you asleep?” She giggles.

He hummed a sound to tell her no.

She breathes out a laugh and sits up. “Let’s head back before the sun sets all the way.”

He opens his eyes half lidded and smiles at her. She takes his hand and helps him sit up. His hands move to her face to draw her in for a kiss. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

---------- “Alright, there. I think that will work.” She places the tablet down on the table she and her boys are sat at.

“Are you sure you set it up right?” Ford asks.

She rolls her eyes. “I helped build an interdimensional portal. I think I can figure it out.”

“I just wanted to make sure. You remember what happened when you tried to set up our vhs to record Saturday Night Dead.” Ford reminds her.

“That was one time! It’s not my fault the vhs caught fire!” She huffs.

“Can you two stop arguing like an old married for a couple?” Stan groans.

Ford and her share a look and smile. Their attention is pulled away from each other when the tablet begins to make noise.

“Oh, it’s ringing!” She leans forward and presses the green answer button. “Hello? Kids, can you hear us?”

She's greeted with the sound of laughter. “You’re too close to the camera. Move back a little.” She moves back and the screen reveals Dipper and Mable.

“I told you I set it up just fine!” She pats Ford’s chest.

“Kids! It’s good to see you!” Stan greets.

“You guys look so cute in all your boat gear!” Mable squeals.

“Yeah you guys look really cool!” Dipper confirms.

“How has school been going!” Ford asks.

“Great! I got accepted into some senior level classes for next semester.” Dipper cheers.

Mable pushes dipper aside to hog the camera. “And I got a boyfriend!”

Dipper shoves Mabel back to get back in frame. “Yeah, and he’s actually not awful and kinda normal?”

“Congratulations to you both.” She smiles and leans her head against Ford’s shoulder.

They continue to talk and catch up for almost an hour.

“So we can come back to Gravity Falls next summer for sure?” Dipper inquires.

“Absolutely! I've been in contact with Fiddleford and he said we are more than welcome to stay with him in the old Northwest manor.” Ford confirms.

“Soos also said you’re welcome to sleep over at the shack whenever you want.” Stan chimes in.

“I can’t wait to see you two again! You’re really the best great niece and nephew ever.” She comments.

“You’re the best graunt ever!” Dipper and Mabel speak in unison, then begin to giggle and shove each other.

“See you two in a few months!” With that they end the call.

“A month and four weeks, four days, and six hours.” Ford says precisely.

“But who's counting?” She teases.

“And only a month, fours weeks, two days, and four hours until you become my wife.” Ford pulls her close, Stan rolls his eyes and leaves the upper cabin.

“Now that I am counting down to.” She plants a kiss to his cheek. “Mrs.Pines, I love how that sounds.”

“Well then, Mrs. Pines?” He kisses her forehead, then her cheek, then her lips. “Will you do the honor of being mine?”

“I already agreed to marry you, that’s why we’re getting married.” She laughs.

“I know, but I love hearing you say it. I still can’t believe you agreed to marry me.” He jokes. “Will you say it? Say you’ll be mine? Forever and always?”

Her finger came up to trace his jawline and lead his lips to hers. “Forever and always.”

#waiting for you part six #stanford pines x reader #gravity falls reader insert #ford pines x reader #please check my ao3 for all tags and warnings #a kudos and comments would be appreciated too

[blackmissfrizzle]

Amor Prohibido

Characters: EZ Reyes x black!reader

Summary/Request: Like maybe the Mayans are selling guns to another motorcycle club/gang and the Prez is her dad or someone related to her. They meet at a party and get to know each other or something... but her relative tells Bishop to shut that shit down. EZ’s like “Emily who?”, they date (in secret) anyway, but the guys he’s close to in the M.C. tell him to stay away from her. Idk if you’ve heard of Selena Quintanilla but her song Amor prohibido is a vibe... (cliché, i know). maybe w/ angst or smut🤷🏾‍♀️ and the reader is feisty as hell lol @morena-barbie

Warnings: Smut

A/N: I finally got @morena-barbie request done! And I finally got to write for EZ ❤️ Anyways requests are open! Enjoy, don’t be afraid to comment or reblogging

EZ stared at you from afar while Angel rambled on about Adelita. He hated that he wasn’t holding you at the moment.

“Stop staring, Boy Scout.” Coco nudged him.

“I’m not.”

“Then why are you drooling?” Gilly pointed out, making Angel and Coco laugh.

After the laughs subsided, Angel hooked his arm around his brother’s neck. “I get it, bro. She’s fine. But her dad is more dangerous than Galindo and we’re doing business with him. It’s a bad idea.”

“I know, Angel.” EZ said to appease his brother, but it was too late. You and him were a couple for a little over four months.

The two of you met back at Stanford. Both people of color at a PWI and the two of you instantly clicked when you sat next to each other in English lit.

Even back then you had a crush on EZ, but he was still with Emily at the time. So, you kept your feelings hidden and remained friends, but even that didn’t last long. EZ got arrested for killing that cop and eventually he stopped writing you back.

You two reconnected when you so happen to bump into him while your dad was doing business with the Mayans and the Galindo cartel. What a difference eight years did. EZ was no longer a boy, but a grown ass man and now part of a biker gang.

Your eyes would flit over to EZ every so often, you wanted to be next to him. Currently, you were standing beside Nathan, your dad’s head of security and a constant pain in your ass. Both him and your dad thought you would be the perfect couple, but you weren’t interested because he wasn’t EZ.

“Excuse me, I’m gonna check on the other guests,” you excused yourself from Nathan, Miguel, and his wife.

EZ saw you coming over and the corners of his lips tugged into a smile. “Fellas,” you nodded to the whole group. “How’s everything?”

“Good. The margaritas strong as shit, though.” Coco tipped his cup and finished the drink.

“It’s not stopping you!” You joked, pointing to his empty cup.

“How are you, Y/N?” EZ asked, wanting your attention back on him.

“Good, just a little sore. I did some extra cardio last night.” You licked your lips, remembering your workout.

—

Y’all were on round 3. Round 1 was the pool where you gave EZ some sloppy top and then he eagerly returned the favor. Round 2 was on the kitchen counter where EZ slid inside of you while licking vanilla ice cream from your nipples. Round 3 was on the couch where you both attempted to watch a movie until you backing your ass on EZ ended with you taking a pounding from behind.

“Baby, please.” You were begging, reaching behind you to hold onto his arm. You needed the release. EZ was edging you for teasing him while he was watching the movie.

“No, I told you to quit it and you didn’t listen. I really wanted to watch that movie.”

You looked over your shoulder and gave him a shit-eating grin. “But I’m so much more entertaining,” You clenched around EZ making him falter a bit.

“Naughty girl,” EZ chuckled, his lips ghosting over your back. He proceeded to the fuck you silly. Words were not a thing. He had every intention of driving you wild, making any other man you ever been with a distance memory.

“Cum on my cock, baby.” The flood gates opened; you came all over EZ. He fucked you through it until he filled up the condom.

EZ turned you over onto your back and kissed down the column of your neck. “Can we finish the movie now?” His voice muffled by your neck.

Laughing you turned to the side, so the two of you could cuddle and finish the movie with no distractions, hopefully.

—

“Sounds brutal. Maybe you should go a little easier on yourself.” EZ commented, enjoying he was the cause of your soreness.

“Yeah, my trainer is a real hardass.” Your little téte-à-téte was turning you on and you were about to make up some excuse to need EZ’s help, but Emily showed up.

It was bullshit. She didn’t need anything from you. Ever since you showed up Emily could feel EZ pull away. His attention was never focused on her anymore, but always on you. She could never stand you. Whenever she would call EZ while he was at Stanford it was always Y/N this, Y/N that, Y/N, Y/N, Y/N.

Then at this celebration, the men could not keep their eyes off you, including her husband. Then it wasn’t just your beauty that enticed them, it was your brains as well. Usually, surrounded by powerful men, Emily was used to being the smartest woman in the room. Now she was second best.

You allowed Emily to pull you away, but you weren’t listening to the conversation at all. Your eyes kept drifting to EZ and the rest of the Mayans. They weren’t stuck up at all like the Galindos and Nathan.

Emily soon noticed you weren’t present with them and decided to fuck with you. “Y/N, are you dating anyone? I’m sure any man is lucky to have you.”

This bitch. If it didn’t start a war, you would wrap your hands around her tiny ass throat. For the life of you, you couldn’t understand why this married woman felt entitled to be jealous over EZ. Well, she choose the wrong bitch to fuck with today.

“As a matter of fact, I am.” Your smile grew bigger as you thought about the bomb you were about to drop.

“Who’s the lucky guy?” Emily believed you would lie and consequently hurt EZ’s feelings and he’ll come running back to her.

Your father so happened to be walking by and heard the conversation. You never told him or your mom anything about dating anybody. He stopped to hear your answer.

“Him.” Spinning around you pointed at EZ laughing at something stupid Angel said.

EZ felt like there were a thousand stares on him and when he turned around, he saw you smiling, pointing at him. “Oh shit.”

“What the hell did you do, Ezekiel?” Angel questioned, feeling uncomfortable about the stares he was also getting by just being in close proximity to his little brother.

“Remember when you told me to leave Y/N alone?”

“Yeah, dumbass. I just told you.”

“It was too little, too late. We’ve been dating for four months.”

“What the fuck is wrong with you? Do you get a hard-on for women you shouldn’t be with?”

Seeing Emily’s face was worth it. You didn’t want to out your relationship with EZ until later, but Emily gave you no other choice.

Leaving behind your parents, the Galindos, and Nathan you walked up to EZ, put your hands on either side of his face and pulled him down for a kiss. His hesitancy produced a giggle from you. He was trying his hardest to be modest, when all he really wanted to was throw you against a wall.

Before the kiss could get too scandalous, you pulled away from EZ and wiped some of your lip gloss from his lips. “Everyone listen up, me and Ezekiel are a couple. Nothing or no one,” you stared directly at your dad and then Emily, “will stop us. If you got a problem with that, then you can kindly fuck off. We’ll make sure it will not affect any business. We good? Miguel? Bishop? Daddy?” You asked each man, refraining from saying Emily’s name.

“I’m good, if they’re good. Specifically, your dad.” Bishop held his hands in surrender. He thought it was good that the prospect wasn’t focused on Emily anymore and he had to thank you for that.

Miguel nodded his head in agreeance. Anything to keep Ezekiel Reyes from his wife was good to him.

Your dad knew he shouldn’t have tried to control your love life. Every time he tried to push something on you, you rebelled. He could tell Nathan was pissed to lose you to some low life, but when he saw how you and EZ looked at each other, he knew he couldn’t deny you. “Take care of her, Prospect.”

EZ shook your dad’s hand, “I will, sir.”

You squealed and jumped in his arms. Now no one could take you away from your man.

Tags: @morena-barbie @briannab1234 @thickemadame @angrythingstarlight

#black!reader #ez reyes x reader #ez reyes x black!reader #mayans mc fanfiction #mayans mc fandom #mayans mc #frizzlefic #frizzlesfic #frizzlewrites

[soartfullydone]

No. 4 - TRUST FALL “Do you trust me?” | taken hostage | pushed You/Bastion requested by @zacksfairest

Thank you for giving me an excuse to write more Bastion things. I don’t know if this is good, but here I go, fellas!

*

“After all this time, don’t you trust me, darling?”

Melody should have smiled at Bastion Winalils and answered, “No.” Instead, she’d asked questions, allowing her damned curiosity to take her by the hand and pull her into one of the Jet’s schemes.

This one, she thought, is the one I’ll have to kill him for.

Large, rough hands gripped her arms on both sides. Her bare feet skidded uselessly across the uneven floors as she was half-carried, half-dragged to who-knows-where. A burlap bag covered her head, and they had taken so many turns to get here. At last, she heard a door open. One of the men removed the bag, and the other pushed her forcefully into the room before she could get her bearings. She tripped and fell onto her side.

Melody’s arms and legs weren’t bound, so she scrambled to her feet, wanting to curse at them so filthily their own mothers would shrivel up and die to avoid the words. A pitiful sniffling sound beat her to it. She wasn’t alone in the room.

Other women were crammed into the space with her, each of them youthful, some more than others. Most of them had pure white hair of varying lengths. Plats. Melody spotted a few Silvers and Golds, even a Jet, though the latter’s skin was darker than what was typical of her caste. No Coppers. And, of course, Melody was the only one here who could pass as a Bronze except, unlike the rest of the women here, she was no Ald.

Half the women watched her just as warily as she watched them. The rest were either staring unseeingly at the floor, sobbing into their hands, or trying to not exist.

The oldest profession, Melody grimly reflected. So far, it looks the same here as it does in Sharteshane.

Before any of them could console each other, forge alliances, or put her own survival first, a side door opened, and an olive-skinned man with black hair and blue eyes entered. His clothes were modest, pressed, and shiny in a way only expensive fabrics were. His mouth was shaped in a permanent frown, and he looked both disinterested and unimpressed with the collection of women—some of whom were barely dressed or were completely nude—in the room.

“Quit your sniveling,” he spoke in a reedy tenor. “Save it for the customers. Some of them like to feel useful. Or cruel.” He snapped his fingers. “Aye, we don’t have all day. Line up.”

The women did as they were told. With the room being small for ten women plus the Jet and his two thugs, two lines were formed. Melody’s body was shaking, but she clenched her jaw and fell in line with the others in the back. She would endure inspection with the rest of them.

The Jet wasn’t the one who was actively performing the inspections. Instead, he directed one of his thugs—also Jets—to manhandle the women for him with lazy commands or the careless wave of a paper fan. He’d be considered hopelessly effeminate in Sharteshane and would pay for it in her streets. Here, he was what Melody viewed as the Foreman, the man in charge, the word of god.

He was also the target.

“If the back tooth’s rotted, it hardly matters,” Foreman was saying, not even looking at the Plat woman he was disparaging. “She won’t be doing much smiling, I expect.”

The worst part of the inspection was the purity test. Melody hadn’t anticipated it, and it happened to the first woman before Melody realized what she was watching. Before she could look away. The Plat gasped as the thug reached under her dress, then flinched hard with a broken, pained whimper as he drove his fingers inside her.

Melody didn’t have to see it happen to know that’s what the Plat endured. Every whorehouse conducted their affairs differently, but there were commonalities. A quality of standards one had to follow if one wanted to stay competitive. And here was Alderode, competing with Sharteshane and competing well. Just because the Alds hid all the dirty business in back rooms didn’t make them any less filthy.

The Plat woman “passed.” In Melody’s mind, it meant she’d failed. It meant her virginity would be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Numbly, she could hear Foreman making those very arrangements as another thug led the woman from the room. 

I did not sign up for this, Bastion!

Tough, she could almost hear him saying. They have to endure it. Why shouldn’t you?

She fought the urge to run as woman after woman was inspected and taken from the room, some for the bidding, others to start whoring immediately. Belatedly, it dawned on her that she would be the last.

Melody preoccupied herself with thinking how she could fight back. The walls of the room had plenty of Solidity, which, if taken, would likely result in the khert backfiring on her and killing her. If she wanted to Core Leech anything, it would be simpler to remove the Density from the Alds’ arm bones or something, but she didn’t want to resort to that. She had some pride as a wright, and besides, she didn’t know if she could manage all three men at once. Maybe… Maybe she could take the Edge aspect from Foreman’s belt knife and… Bah! It’d be easier to steal the damn thing. She’d get more uses out of it, too.  

Pymary wasn’t the answer to everything.

The folded tip of Foreman’s fan swatted her under her chin. Her notable blue eyes found his bored ones, though a degree of intrigue slightly warmed them. 

“Thought you were bringing me another semon girl,” Foreman remarked to his thugs. “This one’s missing quite a lot of shit on her.”  

“We like variety where I’m from,” Melody replied in accented Tainish. “Though we have our share of seamen, to be sure.” 

Foreman snatched back the fan, snapping it open with a flick of his wrist. “My, my, a Sharte! You’re an awfully long way from home.” His tone lifted slightly on the end: a question.

“Got a tip,” said a thug. “Found her near one of our storehouses.” 

“And you thought to bring her here?” Foreman sighed. He waved his fan across his face so vigorously that Melody could feel the burst of cool air on her face along with the roasted meat he’d eaten for lunch. Abruptly, he stopped, coming to a decision. “Put her with the exotics then. It’s not like she’ll last any longer than the others.”

Before Foreman was even finished speaking, a thug forced open Melody’s mouth with a bruising grip on her jaw. Other hands roamed her body, and her pulse spiked. She felt murderous, and she tried to fight the feeling down, but then one of the men started hiking up her dress—

“Ach, no need for that!” Foreman snapped, turning back halfway from his withdrawal of the room. “The last thing we need is to advertise we’re putting an illegal’s cunny on the market. Besides, you know Sharteshane. Her own father’s likely had her first. Now, let’s go.”

The moment the thugs reluctantly took their hands off her, Melody lunged forward. 

“Please!” she cried as she fell against Foreman, her hands lost in the front of his robes until she found his inner lapels to cling to. Almost kneeling, she peered up at him, tears running unhindered down her cheeks. She barely recognized herself as she fell into more desperate supplications. “Please, don’t do this! I’m not supposed to be here. Let me g—”

Foreman backhanded her. The force of the blow ripped her hands free from him, and she dropped to her knees, catching herself on her palms. Quickly, she balled her hands into fists, clenching one around the small cylinder she now held in her right hand.

“Whores!” Foreman declared, slapping his closed fan against his palm. “They’re the same everywhere.” He sneered and for once spoke directly to her. “You won’t say one word to the customers. You’ll be silent and demure, like a proper Aldish woman. If I hear even a hint of speculation from anyone that you’re from Sharteshane, I’ll cut out your tongue and hand you over to the authorities. Understand, lass?”

Melody didn’t respond. She wasn’t expected to. She was only to obey.

Foreman had already moved on. “Get her in someone’s bed now before she bruises. When it shows, we can charge him extra for it.”

Without another word, the thugs grabbed her by the arms and hauled her away.

*

Maybe it was the same throughout Alderode, or maybe it was this brothel in particular, but there were no pimps forcing their whores to roam the streets, finding customers and servicing them where they could. Instead, they were positioned in various rooms, often grouped by caste or—in Melody’s case—exotics when they possessed traits that were rarer or “off” within their respective caste. There was a Gold who had fair, blond hair but golden eyes rather than the typical green. Another, that earlier Jet she’d spotted with the warm, brown skin. As for Melody, she didn’t have the brown eyes and light-brown skin a Bronze was expected to have. She fit right in.

All the customers, however, were Jet men, and they roamed from room to room, glasses of wine in hand, searching for the choicest ware to take to bed in a room upstairs. 

Every time she felt someone’s eyes on her, lingering too long, her skin crawled. She fought to control her breathing as she tried to figure a way out, but she was unarmed, and there were so many people. Even being a wright didn’t give her much of an advantage. Unlike Sharteshane, Alderode was full of them. Being a woman with experience in spellery wouldn’t surprise them for long; in fact, it may inspire many of them to kill her faster, lest any of the other women decide to get ideas.

It was Foreman who wound up approaching her. The cylinder burned in her hand, but he didn’t demand it back. Merely said, “Come with me,” from behind his fan. She couldn’t get a read on him at all.

She followed him upstairs, her stomach dropping as he took her to a room. The door swung open, and she saw that it wasn’t the grandest in the place by any means, but the furnishings looked cleaned and dusted.

However, the bed was disturbed, as it was also occupied. A Plat woman was there, her dress falling off her arms as her mouth was ravished by a Jet man with chin-length black hair. He was bare-chested with his black pants unfastened. Foreman clicked his tongue, and Bastion Winalils opened his dark eyes. They fell on Melody standing in the doorway, and she could swear his smile was aimed at her even though the Plat was keeping his mouth well-occupied.

“This will be going on your tab, I trust you know,” Foreman pronounced and pushed Melody forward. “Here’s the one you requested. The Plat can stay if you prefer.”

“Ah!” Bastion replied once he came up for air. “If I only had the coin. You can go, darling,” he directed to the Plat woman fondly.

“You know where to find me,” she flirted back.

Melody, disgusted, shifted aside when the Plat woman left the room. Bastion half-followed her out, his languid gait taking him as far as the new prostitute he was paying for, Melody herself. Shadows still clung beneath his eyes, which inspected her with polite interest. Her dress was scandalously short—for Alderode, at least—showing off her legs. Even though they were acting like they were strangers, heat entered his eyes, and Melody reminded herself that this, too, was an act for their audience of one. She ignored the urge to pull down the dress’s hem.

“And does she meet with your approval, my lord?” asked Foreman. “You don’t usually favor semon women.”   

“You won’t mind, then, if I double-check.”

It was all the warning Melody had. Bastion took her face in both his hands and brought her mouth to his.

She went completely rigid, the edges of the cylinder biting into her right hand as she clenched both fists. But their audience was still here. Bastion’s lips moved against hers, and she opened her mouth, starting to kiss him back. That simple movement seemed to change everything. Bastion moaned, and his kiss turned rough, consuming. Dimly, Melody heard Foreman mutter something and close the door, leaving them alone, but it didn’t seem to matter. 

Bastion’s tongue stroked hers, and she was caught up in the taste of him. The sweet smoke from his pipe. The bitter drink he consumed. The notes were there but faint, saturated by something sharp like mint. 

Or maybe like blood. In a rush, Melody came back to herself and bit him.

“Ach!” Bastion drew back, a hand covering his mouth. “How easily I forget. My favorite Sharte is an Epheby, waiting to strike.”

“You’re a bastard!” This time, she did strike. Her knuckles clocked him under his chin, him moving to avoid taking a full punch to the face like she planned. He seized her wrist in a vise-like grip and brought two fingers to the side of her neck. It was enough to make her stop in her tracks.

“Calm down,” Bastion warned. The faint red light of spellery glowing from his fingers reached his eyes, granting them a deadly coldness. “Or I’ll sever your artery and leave here without you.”

“If you were going to do that, doctor, you would have done it. Don’t act like you’re here just for me.”

“That’s exactly why I bothered coming to this shithole, you ungrateful wretch.”    

Melody huffed a breath of disbelief and tore herself away from him. Suddenly fatigued, she scrubbed her face and shoved past him toward the bed.

“I warned you this would be dangerous. You were all assurances, as I recall.” He was quiet while Melody stripped the bed of its sheets. “What hap—”

“Like you care. Here.” She threw the cylinder at him, which he managed to snatch out of the air. “This is what you really wanted, right? So take it, and leave me alone.” 

Melody occupied herself with her newest project while Bastion examined the cylinder. Alderode was freezing outside. She would need coverings when she escaped. She began measuring the sheets with her hands, tearing them as she went. 

Bastion came near her, sitting on the bed to watch her work. “I’ll owe you a hell of a favor for this. I’ve been after his seal for years.”

It was like a peace offering or the closest she might ever hear to an apology coming from him. Melody almost asked why he wanted some brothel-keeper’s seal, but she was done with being curious today. “You could have gotten it yourself. It wasn’t hard. It didn’t demand”—she gestured down at herself—”this.”

“Believe me, I’ve tried, but that man won’t let anyone get too close to him. He possesses a touch aversion, you see.”

“I noticed.” Her face still stung from where Foreman had hit her. She felt Bastion’s gaze find that very spot before sliding away. Melody tore at the sheet just to destroy something.

The silence between them grew awkward. After all, they were in a room inside a whorehouse, the sounds of fucking drifting to them through the walls. It would’ve been funny if Melody didn’t feel so fragile. If she couldn’t still feel and taste Bastion whenever she licked her lips, finding she wasn’t as turned off from it as she thought she would be. Not even after he threatened her.

“Won’t it be suspicious, you being here when he finds it missing?” she started, mentally kicking herself for being the first to speak, but her thoughts were becoming too dangerous with which to keep company. 

“Not to worry.” He tossed the seal up in the air and caught it. “Shithole comment aside, this is only my fourth favorite brothel.”

She didn’t laugh. “Right, and you usually just bring your favorites home with you.” Melody glared side-long at him. “I should’ve timed it better. Made you squirm by having to explain to all the vibrant prostitutes that you can’t get it up without a six-titted bird’s permission.”

“Aye, well, you almost had your wish.” Bastion shot a vexed scowl southward. “The Lady is being particularly stingy tonight.”

“Why did you even come, then?”

“Like I said, I could hardly leave it all up to you, darling. I’m painfully aware you have no idea how to whore.”

It always came back to this with the two of them. No matter how much Melody got on Bastion’s nerves or how much he made her want to wring his neck, they always ended back at somewhere level. Easily teasing or mouthing off at the other. Tonight, it was particularly unsettling, and she didn’t know where to place the blame.

Off balance, Melody blurted out, “So are those real pants or a glamour?”

He smiled a beguiling smile. “Would you like to find out?”

“Why bother,” she taunted, “if you can’t do anything about it?”

“Aye, but that’s the perplexing thing.” Bastion stood and leaned over her with predatory keenness. “I felt something when I kissed you. A stirring. It’s happened before, when I’ve looked at you,” he admitted easily, as if it meant and cost him nothing. “But tittybird seems to have no objections if it’s you stoking my desire tonight, and you liked it, didn’t you, my lips on yours.” He placed the tip of his finger on the sheet stretched between her hands. “Don’t I tempt you, even a little? Don’t you want to know what it feels like to be wanted?”  

“I want…” began Melody, her gaze caught on his smiling mouth so close to hers. 

When she processed his final words, it felt like being buried under six feet of Aldish snow. Tonight, she had felt what it was like for men to want her. For them to put her hands on her without her being able to do anything about it. For them to assess her like she was no better than a Plod used for cheap labor or a saddlehound to keep as a favored pet. She’d had enough.

Firmly, she said, “I want to leave. I want to—” She almost said, go home, but Sharteshane was miles and miles away, and the thought of it didn’t stir up much warmth. In truth, she didn’t have a home.

The smile slid from Bastion’s face. He withdrew, giving her blessed space. Shadows wreathed around him until, suddenly, he appeared to be wearing a red, fur-lined winter cloak. 

“Let’s go then,” he said briskly. “We’ll walk a few streets, you playing the part of a proper escort. After that, you’re on your own getting back to the safehouse. I have somewhere to be.”

She expected as much, so why was part of her so disappointed? “Right,” she agreed, lifting the torn sheet so she could wrap it around her. Bastion stopped her with a hand over hers.

“I’ve a better idea,” he offered. “Let’s steal you a cloak and some boots on the way out.”

“And some pants?” she said hopefully.

“Madam Sharte,” Bastion replied, waving a hand to the brothel at large. “Take your pick.”

#whumptober2021 #unsounded #bastion winalils #otp: a little death #sorry i'm not sorry for self-shipping nonsense #tonight i decided i was done with worrying about doing pymary correctly; it's whatever i want it to be now FOR FUN #that opinion will likely change come morning but oh well~ we're having fun #not much is even here anyway lol #[jerry seinfeld voice] is this anything?

[bella-spil]

2 Romeos and 1 Juliet- Part 2

Part 2 of the 2 Romeos and 1 Juliet series.

Fem. reader

Warnings: idrk, maybe some cursing😉

Word Count: 1.3k 

A/N:  This one is a little shorter since it builds everything else up.  The other parts are going to be longer.  Credit to @kmuir1 who came up with the story idea.  Enjoy!

Taglist: @kmuir1​ @sea040561​ @angrythingstarlight​ @wednesday-add-em​

After days after summer started, you were chilling in the pool with Sam, Wanda, Steve, Nat and Thor.  You were playing a game of very competitive pool volleyball.  Everyone else was in the Compound, either because they didn't want to come outside since it was so hot or because they wanted to relax in the AC.  You were on a team with Wanda and Nat going against the boys.  You were winning surprisingly and the boys team was pissed when you guys scored the winning point on them.  Sam cursed his way out of the pool, saying that you guys cheated and added points to your score.  Steve was polite and congratulated you guys on your victory, just like the gentlemen he always is.  Thor just said he was going easy on you and next time he wouldn't be so nice.  Nat and Wanda headed inside to cool off.  Before you knew it, you were the only one left in the pool and got out to sunbathe.

After about thirty minutes, you heard footsteps, but the footsteps were not as close as you thought they were.  Because of your advanced hearing, the footsteps sounded louder then they were and the people coming to meet you outside were just outside of the door of the Compound.

You waited for another five minutes before the footsteps were actually near you.  You pretended you didn't notice the people, making it seem as if you didn't hear them.  You thought the people out now were just going to hang out in the pool, but they were actually there for you.

"Ahem," a voice cleared his throat, clearly to get your attention.

You sat up, giving your body a nice shape in your neon green bikini, and took off your orange, aviator sunglasses.  When you took off your sunglasses, the last two people you expected to be out were outside.  Bucky and Loki were standing side by side, not really wanting to be around each other.

Bucky and Loki weren't really friends, mostly acquaintances.  They were able to make small talk, but they couldn't have a full conversation.  They were not big fans of each other, or some reason and you never knew why.  So for them to be standing next to each other was very weird for you.

Bucky was wearing grey shorts.  And that's it.  Besides for a pair of sunglasses and a pair of flip flops.  He had his long hair tied back into a messy man bun.  He was extremely ripped and you tried very hard not to stare.  But it was very hard since Bucky was very attractive.

Loki, however was dressed.  He was very modest, a pair of black shorts and a black tank top.  He also had on a pair of black shades and black flip flops.  His hair, however wasn't tied back like Bucky’s.  He told you once time while you were out that he never liked how his hair looked when it was up, so he always left it down, no matter the weather.  You had no clue how he wasnt hot. 

You learned from Rose that the color black absorbs more sunlight than colors like white.  She taught you this so you would know what color to make your fur, since sometimes you made it black in the summer.  And you wondered why Rose got annoyed at you whenever she saw you panting in the ground, dying of heat.  

"Fellas, what are you doing out here?" you asked, confusion written all over your face.

"We actually have a bet, and you are in it," Loki answered.

"Oh, and what might that be?" you asked, interested.

"Well, we want to see which of us could make you fall in love with." Bucky answered, a little embarrassed.  The look on your face was full of shock.  You didn't know if they were kidding or being serious.  You also didn't want to laugh at them for saying something so random.

"Excuse me, what?" you said.

"I knew this was stupid, Reindeer games," Bucky sighed.

"Wait, Y/N, let me explain," Loki assured.

"Please do," you said, scared of what might be coming next.

"Me and Manchurian Candidate have wanted to date you for a while, but the both of us didn't want to do one thing: ruin our friendships with you.  So, me and James want to compete for your love like that show we saw." Loki explained.  

"So you are going to compete for me like the Bachelorette?" you asked, smirking.

"That's the name of the show," Bucky remembered.  

"Yes, we do," Loki answered.

"Ok, but how are you going to do that? I don't have feelings for either of you right now." you said.

"That's the thing, doll," Bucky said, using his pet name for you.  He has used it for a while and you got used to it as time went by.  "We have to make you fall in love with us."

"And how are you going to do that?  What are the rules for you?" you asked, wanting to know where this would go.

"The rules are that we can't make you fall in love with us using our powers or use our powers in any way to make you dislike the other competitor." Bucky explained.  "That rule is mostly for Loki."

Loki rolled his eyes and continued explaining.  "We can take you out on two dates each.  We can't have sex with you on either date.  At the end of the dates, you pick who you want to be with.  You also have to pick one of us, you can't say no to both of us."

"Ok… um, so when would this begin?" you asked.

"If you say yes, Full Tilt Diva would be taking you out on a date sometime this week.  I would get to take you out next week.  Then I get to take you out again the following week.  Lastly, Rock of Ages will go out with you on the last week."

"Will you shut it with the nicknames?" Loki groaned.  Bucky smirked at you and you couldn't help but smile back.  You thought it over for a minute and came to a conclusion.

"Ok fine," you agreed.  "I'll do it, but i'm not guaranteeing anything ok?"  Bucky pumped his fist in celebration while Loki's grin turned into a full out smile.

"Wonderful," Loki smiled.  "I shall see you tonight."

"Wait, where are we going?" you asked before Loki headed to the compound with the Winter Soldier.

"You shall see," Loki answered slyly.  "Its a surprise."

"Well, I have to know so I can dress appropriately." you smirked, and Bucky snickered.

"Just know that we have to leave here by 2:00 pm so-" Loki started.

"THAT’S IN AN HOUR, LOKI!!!" you shrieked.  "WHAT SHOULD I WEAR?"

"Wear shorts and a t-shirt," Loki answered quickly, not wanting to get you even more angry.  You sprinted back to the Compound, shoving Loki and Bucky out of the way.  As you ran off, you transformed into your wolf form, since it was a lot faster than traveling on foot.  Loki chuckled to himself, knowing you would have a fun time with him later tonight.

"Where in the Hell are you taking her?" Bucky asked, curiously.

"That's for me to know and you to find out," Loki smirked.  "But if you'd really like to know, I'm taking her to a Billie Eilish concert."

Loki walked off with a little skip in his step, leaving Bucky standing there alone to comprehend what the God of Mischief just said.  Bucky felt like he had to step it up if he wanted you to fall for him.  He knew that Billie was your favorite artist, and he enjoyed her music too, but he knew Loki wouldn't have as much fun since he wasn't as big of a fan.  Bucky wanted to take you somewhere that you both would enjoy, and suddenly, he had the perfect place in mind.  He knew he had to work is magic on you like he did with the women in the forties.  He wasn't going to lose to a God, especially the God of Mischief.  

"Oh, I'm gonna get her, you son of a bitch," Bucky said.  "You just wait and see."  

#loki #bucky barnes #bucky barnes x reader #loki and bucky #love triangle #love #loki fanfic #bucky #fanfic #fandom #tumblr #fanfiction

[zen3to5]

J/H 4-15: Tornado Prom

Thank you to Fan Forum's SpacemanDoug for help with tracking down the music used in this episode.

FF.Net AO3

---

SHOW TITLE   EXT. FORMAN DRIVEWAY - DAY   It’s January – not that you would know it from the weather. No snow on the ground, the leaves on the bushes look alive, and JACKIE, FEZ, DONNA, ERIC, and HYDE, gathered around the Vista Cruiser, don’t even have jackets on.   KELSO comes running through the garage to join them, dressed in athletic wear – including short shorts.   KELSO: Hey, guys. It is literally a million degrees out. I’m wearing shorts in January! Have you ever seen prettier legs on a fella?   He holds one out to show it off.   KELSO (cont’d): It’s too bad they’ll be covered up when I’m struttin’ my stuff as the Snow King at the Snow Prom tomorrow. Me, Snow King. Doesn’t it kick ass? That campaign writing my name all over the place really paid off.   ERIC: Kelso, you peed in the snow.   KELSO: In cursive! It was awesome.   JACKIE: I can’t believe you were chosen as Snow King and I wasn’t chosen to be Snow Queen.   ERIC: Oh, you mean, the funniest thing ever?   The others chuckle as Jackie sneers.   JACKIE: Guys, this is serious. I used to be a rich, popular girl. But now that my dad’s cut me off, I’m not rich, and apparently, I’m also not popular. I’m nothing! (to Donna) Donna, how do you live like this?   DONNA: Well, maybe you should spend less time worrying about being popular and more time being a good person.   JACKIE: Donna, everyone knows that the way to tell if you’re a good person is when everyone likes you. And you know everyone likes you when you win titles like Snow Queen.   She turns her nose up and walks away, Kelso in tow. The remaining gang move in closer together.   DONNA: Hey, you know what? We should all go to Snow Prom together, in one car. All of us hanging out, laughing, driving – woo-hoo! Good times.   ERIC: You need a ride, don’t you?   DONNA: I so do. Pick me up at the radio station.   She walks off, and the guys shrug.   HYDE: All right. We’ll all go together.   ERIC: Whoa, whoa. Hyde, you’re going to a school dance? You’re gonna stink bomb the teacher’s lounge, aren’t you? I want in!   HYDE: No, man, kid stuff. See, during the dance, I’m going to throw a party in Coach Ferguson’s office. I’m bringing my best stuff.   FEZ: A party with your best stuff? Are you saying what I think you’re saying?   HYDE: You know it.   FEZ: Oh, boy, you have a pinata?   He gets giddy. Eric and Hyde shake their heads.   CUT TO:   INT. SCHOOL - EVENING   The next night – Snow Prom. At the end of a lightly-decorated hallway, some kids catch a breather from the dance. Fez and BIG RHONDA chat with one group, while Jackie and Kelso – with crown, fur-trimmed flowing robe, and scepter – chat up another. Hyde and Eric stand apart near the center of the hall.   ERIC: It’s weird. I feel like I’m forgetting something. I’ve got my watch, my wallet, my who-am-I-kidding condom...   HYDE: Yeah, sounds like you got everything, except for a tall redhead.   ERIC: Yeah. What man doesn’t love a tall red – oh, my God, Donna! I forgot Donna!   He leaves behind a snickering Hyde as he races for the exit.

MAIN CREDITS   BUMPER   INT. SCHOOL - EVENING   Moments later. “Take a Chance on Me” by ABBA blares through the halls. Kelso is now on parade, strutting up and down the halls, showing off his regalia. Jackie and Hyde watch from a few feet back, Jackie incensed and Hyde bored.   A hand claps onto Hyde’s shoulder. He turns around to see COACH FERGUSON, dance chaperone, with a terrible suit and an ugly frown.   FERGUSON: Mr. Hyde? In school after hours? What, are you trying to establish an alibi?   Hyde straightens himself up and grins.   HYDE: Coach Ferguson. Shouldn’t you be on the football field, teaching boys to play with balls?   Coach Ferguson puts a warning finger in Hyde’s face.   FERGUSON: Don’t push my buttons, wiseacre.   He waves his clipboard in Hyde’s face before slinking off. He narrowly avoids a collision with Kelso, who is attempting spin tricks with his scepter, to partial success.   JACKIE: (to Hyde) How could I not make Snow Queen when Michael made Snow King? There had to be a mistake. It was fixed. Steven, what should I do?   HYDE: Who cares? Jackie, popularity contests like that are pointless. I mean, look at Kelso. All being Snow King means is that he’s running around in a stupid hat and robe.   JACKIE: Exactly! I mean, am I not pretty enough? Am I not cool enough? What did I need to do?   HYDE: (pretends to think) All right, I got something. While Coach Ferguson’s walking the floor, you can help me fumigate his office.   Jackie crosses her arms and tries to look upset, but soon shrugs and follows behind Hyde as he slips down the hall.   Kelso marches in place for the benefit of a modest crowd, pumping his scepter up and down. A TEACHER, another chaperone, enters from the gym and crosses to Kelso.   TEACHER: I have a serious announcement. A tornado warning has just been issued. I’m told it’s code red. I don’t know the codes, but that sounds serious. (to Kelso) Michael, as Snow King, I need you to help spread the word. Get everybody into the gym.   He hurries off. Kelso grins, punches the air; he’s excited for the responsibility. He stands up tall and sweeps his arms across the room for attention.   KELSO: All right, everyone! Everyone, follow me!   He marches confidently to the nearest door, throws it open... and reveals a sports closet full of different sorts of balls that all come tumbling out.   KELSO (cont’d): Remain calm, people! These are just sports balls! Everyone grab a ball!   He passes his scepter to the nearest kid and starts gathering balls.   CUT TO:   EXT. ROAD – NIGHT   The faint light of evening, a blanket of clouds over the sky. Eric is behind the wheel of the Vista Cruiser. He pops an eight-track tape in and begins to head-bang to “Ridin’ the Storm Out” by REO Speedwagon.   ERIC: All right.   He keeps on jamming, not noticing at all the TORNADO that touches down behind him and moves across the road.   Even over the music, Eric does hear the howling of the wind, but by the time he flips the tape off and looks behind him, the tornado has passed. Shrugging, he turns the tape back on and keeps rocking out, just in time for the tornado to move behind his car again.   BUMPER   INT. FORMAN BASEMENT - EVENING   For once, the adults have the basement to themselves. RED sits in Hyde’s usual chair, BOB and JOANNE share the couch, and KITTY hurries down the stairs with a snack tray full of sandwiches.   KITTY: Now, I’m just so worried about Eric. A tornado in January?   RED: Yeah, life’s full of surprises. Like these two, showing up ‘cause they don’t have a basement.   He glares at Bob and Joanne, even as they take sandwiches from Kitty’s tray and Kitty joins them on the couch.   RED (cont’d): Surprise.   JOANNE: Gee, Red, you seem grouchy. Surprise.   KITTY: Red, if Eric gets caught in a tornado, he’ll get blown to Canada. He’s very light.   RED: Kitty, the gym is the town’s bomb shelter. He’ll be fine. I just hope he’s not crying. Everybody knows he’s my kid.   KITTY: Okay, you’re right. Eric’s fine. Let’s just talk about something else. (laughs)   Everyone considers an appropriate topic.   BOB: Ooh! You know, Joanne taught me a lot about lady orgasms. They’ve been around longer than I thought.   Red glares at Bob, and Joanne and Kitty share a look.   KITTY: (beat) Okay, so talking’s bad. I know, charades!   Bob and Joanne seem agreeable, but Red stands and heads for the stairs.   RED: No, thanks.   JOANNE: What are you, chicken?   RED: (beat) Did you just call me chicken?   Joanne just gives him a challenging look.   RED (cont’d): That’s it. Move the couch, Kitty. She’s going down.   He rubs his hands together as the others hop off the couch.   CUT TO:   INT. FERGUSON’S OFFICE – NIGHT   Evening’s given way to night by now; if not for the light of the hall coming in through the glass, the office would be black. Appropriately for a coach’s office, sports equipment takes up more space than papers or books.   The door silently opens. Hyde and Jackie make their way inside. Hyde passes a bobby pin back to Jackie, who replaces it in her hair. She shuts the door behind them; Hyde immediately goes to the desk, sits down, and props his feet up.   HYDE: Oh, yeah.   Jackie pulls up a chair beside him. Hyde takes out his lighter and flicks it on.   The door swings open again. Coach Ferguson hits the lights as he enters.   FERGUSON: Busted, hophead.   Jackie jumps to her feet and moves behind Hyde’s chair; Hyde remains where he is, only acknowledging the coach’s arrival by shutting his lighter.   BUMPER   INT. STAIRWELL – NIGHT   Make-out stairwell – the designated spot for the couples of the Snow Prom to fool around. The lights are even off. From top to bottom, the staircase is full, with Fez and Rhonda smooching near the base of the stairs.   The door opens. Kelso enters and hits the lights.   KELSO: People of the make-out stairwell, this is your Snow King speaking.   FEZ: Boo! Hit the lights, fool!   No one else speaks up, or even looks up from their making out.   KELSO: No, there’s a tornado. Everyone, go to the gym. The Snow King has spoken!   Still no urgency; people start throwing things at Kelso, who steps back into the hall.   KELSO (cont’d): All right, that’s gross. Who threw the retainer?   He doesn’t wait for an answer but exits. No one else even moves from their position on the stairs. Rhonda, at least, seems worried. She pulls Fez into an embrace.   RHONDA: Oh, my God, Fez! A tornado? This changes everything! This could be our last night here on Earth!   FEZ: Oh, no. I’m going to die a virgin.   Rhonda pulls back from their hug, holds him at arms’ length.   RHONDA: Not if I have anything to say about it.   FEZ: You can talk all you want, but there’s a tornado coming!   RHONDA: Fez, I mean, let’s do it.   FEZ: (beat) It? (Rhonda nods) “It” it? (She nods again) All right!   He jumps to his feet, makes it halfway under the staircase, then doubles back to grab Rhonda’s hand.   FEZ (cont’d): I’m going to need you.   He grabs his jacket in the other hand, and they hurry off.   CUT TO:   INT. RADIO STATION – NIGHT   An almost-empty control room. Donna, dressed for the dance, sits at the desk. She jumps to her feet as Eric enters.   DONNA: Eric, you’re here!   ERIC: Donna, look, I’m sorry I’m late, and I really did want to pick you up before the dance, so it’s no big deal, really.   DONNA: No big deal? It’s a huge deal. I was in the back, filing records, and suddenly everyone was gone, and I was stuck here alone. And you risked the tornado for me.   She gives him a big hug.   ERIC: (beat) Tornado? What tornado... could stop me from helping you? (beat) So, tell me, um, is the tornado, like, um... (voice breaking) Like, out there?   DONNA: Yeah. They say it’s a biggie.   ERIC: (voice breaking) Oh. �� DONNA: Eric, are you okay?   ERIC: (Beat) Sure. Uh, it’s just that now that I know you’re okay... I can finally start worrying about me.   He starts to fidget with his suit.   ERIC (cont’d): And, see, the thing about me is...   The lights cut out. The control room goes black.   ERIC (cont’d): (whimpering) I don’t wanna die!   FADE TO BLACK   COMMERCIAL   BUMPER   INT. RADIO STATION - NIGHT   It’s no longer completely black; a few candles have been found. They’re set out on the table as Donna and Eric sit across from one another.   ERIC: So, what to do? Let’s see... there’s you, there’s me, candlelight... You know, back in the old days, we would have -   DONNA: We’re not doing that.   ERIC: Uh-huh, yeah, yeah. So quick to dismiss the thing you once ached for.   DONNA: You mean cheese sticks?   ERIC: If you want to call it that, sure.   CUT TO:   INT. FORMAN BASEMENT – NIGHT   Charades under way. Hyde’s chair has been pushed back to make space. Red’s moved to the lawn chair. Bob and Joanne are still on the couch, Joanne now with pen and pencil handy and Bob with a timer. Kitty is up, shaking her hips around wildly.   RED: (guessing) Er, uh... gyrating. Uh, twisting. Uh... hips! You make me feel like hips!   Kitty is too incredulous to go on. Not that it matters:   BOB: Hah! Time! (indicates Joanne) We win.   KITTY: (to Red) I was dancing! “You Make Me Feel Like Hips?”   RED: (beat) It could have been a song.   JOANNE: Is it hard to lose, Red? ‘Cause you make it look so easy.   Red just gives her a dirty look.   BUMPER   INT. FERGUSON’S OFFICE – NIGHT   Everyone is on their feet. Hyde and Jackie stand on one side of the desk while Coach Ferguson leans over the other.   FERGUSON:  You two are in big trouble.   HYDE: This calls for a suspension. I need a vacation.   JACKIE: No, I cannot get suspended. Losing Snow Queen was bad enough, but if I get suspended, I won’t even get a “most likely to” caption in the yearbook!   FERGUSON: Zip it, missy. You’re lucky I don’t paddle you.   Jackie takes a step back, and Hyde moves between her and the coach.   HYDE: Hey. If we’re talking that kind of punishment, I’m happy to help dish it out.   He chuckles, Ferguson scowls, and Jackie slaps Hyde in the arm.   Kelso enters, still in full regalia.   KELSO: A tornado’s coming. It’s code red.   All of Coach Ferguson’s bluster vanishes. He clutches at his tie, seems to shrink down.   FERGUSON: A tornado? Deadly spirals of wind really freak me out.   HYDE: All right, Coach Girlie. Calm down.   FERGUSON: I can’t die yet! There’s so much I haven’t experienced!   HYDE: (grinning) I bet I know one thing you haven’t experienced.   CUT TO:   THE CIRCLE. Coach Ferguson has become much more chill about the situation. “Feels like the First Time” by Foreigner plays on his record player.   FERGUSON: Tornadoes get a bad rap, man. It’s not like The Wizard of Oz. I mean, where are the midgets? I bet I could bench, like, ten midgets.   Pan to Hyde, rifling through a box.   HYDE: (to Ferguson) Hey, look at all the stuff you confiscated. (holds up switchblade) Mine. (holds up air horn) Mine. (holds up sexy calendar) Ooh-la-la, mine now.   Pan to Jackie, who’s taken a squirt gun from the box.   JACKIE: Why am I not Snow Queen? For the last two weeks, I was nice to everybody. Well, maybe not the A.V. Club, but I mean, come on!   Pan to Kelso.   KELSO: Jackie, you can’t just be nice for two weeks. You have to be nice all the time. Or very handsome. Oh, my banana nose! (takes from the box, puts it on) Oh, I thought this was gone forever. Ha, it’s still funny!   Pan to Ferguson.   FERGUSON: (chuckles) Hey, Hyde, when this is all over, you think we’ll still be friends?   Pan to Hyde.   HYDE: Well, my head says no, but my heart says no. So, no. (to Jackie & Kelso) I wonder what Donna and Forman are doing right now?   CUT TO:   INT. RADIO STATION – NIGHT   ANOTHER CIRCLE. “Still the One” by Orleans fills the station. Donna’s got the giggles.   DONNA: This is the best tornado ever.   Pan to Eric.   ERIC: I know! And who better to be stuck here with than America’s most beloved rock band - ladies and gentlemen, Aerosmith!   Pan to a cardboard cutout of Steven Tyler. Eric reaches over to shake it.   ERIC (v.o.): (doing Tyler) Hey, as rock legends, we’ve had some pretty good times. But it doesn’t get any better than this. Hello, Wisconsin!   Pan to a cardboard cutout of Joe Perry.   ERIC (v.o.): Yeah, I dig this joint too. Hello, Wisconsin.   Pan to Donna.   DONNA: (to Eric) That was your Aerosmith? You’re bad at that. Steven Tyler is way cooler, and Joe Perry is so dreamy. God, you’re bad at that!   Pan to Eric.   ERIC: What? That was dead-on! Right, guys?   Pan to Tyler’s cutout, which now boasts a working mouth.   TYLER (Eric’s v.o.): I bought it.   Pan to Perry’s cutout, also with a mouth.   PERRY (Eric’s v.o.): You, uh, really think I’m dreamy?   It winks.   Pan to a dumbfounded Donna.   DONNA: Whoa. The station manager’s stuff is way better than ours.   Pan to Eric.   ERIC: Hey, I wonder what Hyde and the gang are doing right now?   CUT TO:   INT. FERGUSON’S OFFICE – NIGHT   The Circle is still going strong. Jackie is using her squirt gun to squirt water into her mouth.   JACKIE: You know, I wish tornadoes did work like The Wizard of Oz. I could ride this one out to see the Wizard, and maybe then I’d understand what’s going on.   She looks up, and we fade to:   EXT. YELLOW BRICK ROAD – DAY   FANTASY SEQUENCE. The Yellow Brick Road in the Land of Oz, just different enough from the movie to dodge a lawsuit. Jackie, as Dorothy, walks down the road and through the field of poppies, with a stuffed unicorn tucked under her arm as TOTO.   Kelso, as the Scarecrow, staggers out from the fields.   KELSO: Jackie, why’d you make me the Scarecrow? He needs a brain.   JACKIE: No, no. I made you the Scarecrow... because you love chasing birds.   KELSO: (beat) I do love chasing birds.   JACKIE: Okay!   They link arms and continue down the road, until they’re stopped by Hyde as the Tin Man.   HYDE: Is this some kind of joke? ‘Cause I’m not laughing. (looks Kelso over) Kelso’s the Scarecrow? (laughs)   Jackie links arms with him, and the three of them continue down the road until they’re stopped by Fez as the Cowardly Lion.   FEZ: Look, guys! I’m a bear.   JACKIE: Fez, you’re the Cowardly Lion.   FEZ: But I want to be a bear.   KELSO: At least you got a brain.   HYDE: This sucks.   JACKIE: Oh, will everyone just shut up? You can be whatever you want when it’s your trip.   FEZ: (under his breath) I want to be a bear.   He joins the link, and they continue up the road until they’re stopped by Donna as the Wicked Witch of the West.   DONNA: Jackie, what the hell?   Eric, as a flying monkey, hops out of the fields and laughs at Donna.   ERIC: She totally made you a witch. That’s so awesome!   DONNA: She made you a flying monkey.   ERIC: What?   He stands up straight, looks himself over.   ERIC (cont’d): Oh, crap.   DONNA: (points at Jackie) Let’s kick her ass!   ERIC: Yeah!   The Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion all break the link and turn on Jackie. Screaming, she runs down the road, the others in pursuit.   CUT TO:   INT. THRONE ROOM – DAY   Jackie has reached the Wizard’s lair in the Emerald City, alone. The giant, floating green head of Red as the Wizard is before her, while Kitty, as Glinda the Good, stands next to her.   RED: (to Jackie) Is this because I’m bald? That hurts.   KITTY: Oh, relax, Red, it isn’t just because you’re bald. It’s also because you’re grouchy. (laughs, turns to Jackie) And thank you, dear, I’m flattered.   She indicates her dress. Jackie looks up at Red.   JACKIE: Mr. Wizard, I’m confused. I lost Snow Queen, and I don’t understand why.   RED: Who cares?   The gang, still in their Oz personas, enter.   HYDE: (to Jackie) Told ya.   RED: (to Jackie) You have a roof over your head, an American flag flying over your yard, and your crook father has the greasiest palms in the whole damn town. You need some dumb high school title like I need a kick in the ass.   Kitty glances nervously at Red, then puts a hand on Jackie’s shoulder.   KITTY: And you also have friends who love you no matter what, and that’s so much more important than winning a silly popularity contest. And besides, honey, it’s not like you don’t have another shot at it. You’re only a sophomore! (laughs)   JACKIE: You’re right, Miss Glinda! I will have another shot! And now I have a whole year to campaign!   RED: (to the gang) She didn’t take in a word I said.   DONNA: Yeah, that happens a lot.   Those words echo as Jackie gives Kitty a hug, and we cut to:   INT. FERGUSON’S OFFICE – NIGHT   Back to reality. Jackie’s head bobs, her mouth in a contented grin.   Pan to Kelso, still in banana nose, staring at Jackie.   Pan to Coach Ferguson, jaw slack, staring at Jackie.   Pan to Hyde, snickering and nodding approvingly at Jackie.   HYDE: Congratulations, Jackie. You may not have won Snow Queen, but with that vivid and mildly insulting hallucination, you just took the title “Queen Mary Jane.”   He offers his hand, and Jackie’s reaches over to give him a high-five.   BUMPER   INT. STAIRWELL – NIGHT   Another stairwell. Fez and Rhonda, still looking for a spot to do it, come onto the mid-landing.   FEZ: Ah, our own private stairwell. (to Rhonda) This is exactly how I pictured losing my virginity. Except it was on a bed of flowers and there were two of you.   He begins unbuttoning his shirt, and Rhonda slips off her corsage. They don’t get too far, however, before the teacher comes down the stairs behind them.   TEACHER: Tornado passed through, is heading to Illinois. Kiss my ass, Chicago!   He heads right back up the stairs.   Fez keeps undressing, pulling his shirt off once it’s fully opened, but Rhonda staggers down the stairs.   RHONDA: Oh, my God! We’re safe. Sex just doesn’t seem important anymore!   Fez hurries after her.   FEZ: I... I disagree. And – and here’s why -   RHONDA: Let’s go celebrate with everyone!   She snorts, heads down the stairs, and exits the stairwell. Fez throws his head to the sky.   FEZ: Oh, you can make a tornado, but you can’t let me do it? Oh, you are not a just God!   CUT TO:   INT. FERGUSON’S OFFICE - NIGHT   Post-Circle. Hyde has his feet up on the desk, Coach Ferguson is still lit, Kelso packs the contraband box back up, and Jackie is asleep.   The teacher opens the door, sticks his head in.   TEACHER: Tornado’s passed us over. All clear.   Ferguson rises, follows him out.   Kelso stands, hands the box to Hyde, who takes a permanent marker from it.   HYDE: Well, I lived my dream. Let’s go.   KELSO: Wait. We can’t just leave Jackie here like that.   HYDE: You’re right.   He bends over and draws a unibrow onto her forehead.   HYDE (cont’d): Okay, we’re good.   He and Kelso grin and head out.   CUT TO:   INT. FORMAN BASEMENT - NIGHT   The game’s changed. Red is back in Hyde’s chair, and the others share the couch, as Monopoly is laid out on the coffee table. Red shakes the dice in his hand.   RED: Okay. No six. No six. And... (rolls) Six!   Joanne and Bob both start to laugh. Joanne even moves the Forman’s piece for them.   BOB: (to Red) Park Place. Pay up.   He doesn’t even wait for Red, just snatches the money from their stack.   KITTY: (to Red) I told you we shouldn’t spend all our money on Marvin Gardens.   RED: Oh, and Baltic Avenue was such a help.   KITTY: I bought that with my beauty contest winnings!   JOANNE: Poor Red, losing again. While we have this large housing development that I like to call Joanne Land. Where’s Red Land?   She mimes searching for Red Land as Bob chuckles.   RED:  I’ll tell you where it is. It’s right up your -   KITTY: Wait, wait, wait.   She shushes everyone and gestures to the TV. Bob turns the volume up.   REPORTER (v.o.): This just in. The National Weather Service has canceled the tornado warning. And updating our top story, a local teen is in critical condition...   Bob and Joanne both breathe sighs of relief. Red and Kitty look to one another. Red quickly folds up the board game, and he and Kitty both stand.   KITTY: Oh, game over. Call it a tie.   BOB: A tie? We had all the money.   RED: So? We had the get-out-of-jail-free card. And you can’t put a price on freedom.   He heads up the stairs.   KITTY: (to Bob & Joanne) Night-night.   She follows after Red as Bob and Joanne shake their heads.   BUMPER   INT. RADIO STATION - NIGHT   The power is back on. Donna moves through the control room, extinguishing candles, while Eric sits on the table.   DONNA: This was fun. We haven’t just hung out in, like, forever. Plus, you’re, like, my hero. Most guys would not risk a tornado for an ex-girlfriend.   ERIC: Yeah.   He and Donna both chuckle.   Eric stands, crosses over to Donna. He pulls her in close and kisses her. After a moment’s hesitation, she returns the kiss.   They break apart.   DONNA: Wow.   ERIC: Yeah, well, I just wanted to kiss you... before you found out that I went to the dance, forgot you, and I didn’t know about the tornado. Okay, this was swell.   He walks away toward the door. Donna follows, jaw hanging.   DONNA: Wait, wait, wait. So, you forgot me?   ERIC: (beat) Okay, you’re mad.   DONNA: (beat) Actually, no. I mean, if we were still dating, I’d be super pissed. But we’re not, so it’s kind of funny.   ERIC: You know what? Let me buy you a burger.   Donna gathers her purse.   DONNA: I can’t believe you totally snaked a kiss under false pretenses.   ERIC: Yeah, I’m a little proud of that, yeah.   He gathers his coat, and off they go.   FADE TO BLACK   CREDITS   INT. SCHOOL - NIGHT   The dance is back underway. Hyde, Kelso, Jackie, Fez, and Rhonda all stand together in a circle, chatting. TWO GIRLS come up behind Jackie and tap her on the shoulder.   GIRL 1: Hey, Jackie, we heard you were part of the party that crashed Coach F’s office? Nice.   Jackie turns around, smiles at them. Their eyes flick up to her marker unibrow, and they walk away laughing.   Jackie turns back to the group.   JACKIE: People have been doing that all night. I think I’m a shoo-in for next year!   Beaming, she heads into the bathroom.   Hyde takes a step apart from the group to look them over.   HYDE: We all ready?   Kelso’s barely choking down a laugh.   KELSO: Yeah.   Jackie’s scream pierces through the bathroom door. The gang take off down the hallway, Kelso leading the way with his scepter held high.   END.

#z's fics #that 70s show #zenmasters #jackie x hyde #zen3to5 #fan fiction #fan art

[boogiewrites]

A Girl Walks Into A Bar 12

Characters: Declan Harp x Bella Fiore (OFC)

Summary: Modern Declan harp AU.  With the close of the music festival, will the fondness they're built for each other continue on in the real world?

Warnings/Tags: Language. BED SHARING. Cuddling. Mutual Pining! Growing FEELINGS. Sexual Content: Masturbation. Mike forcing Declan to make a move. Flirting. 

Click on my screen name then go to Mobile Masterlist in my bio for my other works and chapters. Please leave a like, reblog or comment if you enjoyed this! It makes me want to write more of what you want if you let me know!

The last day at the festival went by without much fuss. The same drinks and junk food, the same burp contests and looking out while the other peed in places they weren’t supposed to. It had the same closeness they both were hoping wouldn’t go away after they went home. They held hands, he carried her on his shoulders, both shoving and picking and teasing all day, sober and not. She even got him to dance a little with her and Joey, who applauded his weak attempts at twerking even though Bella told him it would take some work.

The stage schedules are out of whack, the changes going up on twitter and being adjusted, the word of mouth different from all the other things they’d heard and it became frustrating in the muggy and muddy fields. Finally, it's announced the skipped headliner goes on before tonight's, which meant for a long evening. And boy was it.

At a little after two in the morning, Bella feels energized, a second or was it third or fourth, as they went back to the van. “You wanna stay the night again and fight the crowds in the morning or you wanna head out now? I can drive for a bit if you need to sleep.” she offers with bright eyes that he was finding it difficult to say no to.

“You sure? You’re not gonna get on the road and I’m gonna have to slap you to keep you awake?” he retorts with a deep swing of his voice and a chiding face.

“You wouldn’t.” she chuckles, taking her hair down out of it’s braided up-do to something more relaxed.

“Well I wouldn’t WANT to, put it that way.” he laughs.

“We’ll load up at a gas station, coffee and sugar and we’ll be set. Some good music will keep up awake. Just four hours and we get to crash HARD.” she enthuses with bent posture to draw out the word and prove her point as to how good it would feel to do exactly that.

“Fine. Energy drinks and sour worms all around.” he proclaims with a whip of his hand in the air.

“That’s my boy!” she says cheerfully, patting his sides and bouncing into the van.

The ride is long, and the sun is coming up as they cross over the state line, dawn, a new light starting to creep across everything as they pull up to Bella’s house. Declan drives the last part and for the sake of solidarity, Bella stays awake and sings raspily to songs and eats candy, feeding him the occasion piece when he’d open his mouth like a fish and grunt. She didn’t even hate that she found it entirely adorable, and when his lips touched her fingertips, sleep was the last thing from her mind.

“So you want me to bring your stuff by later or…” he asks, rubbing a hand through his hair as he parks the van.

“Nah. Just bring it in with yours.” she answers, reaching for the door handle.

“Huh?” he asks with a quick twist of his head.

“Bring what you’d need in the house with you.” she states as if it’s obvious.

“Why?” he asks, mind fogged a bit from lack of sleep.

“You can stay with me and leave whenever we crawl out of bed tomorrow.” her delivery is entirely casual and his eyes narrow at her. “I don’t want you driving alone, you can even wash your clothes if you want. But you said you had extra so…” she shrugs. ”We can take a good long shower too.” she speaks slowly with a dopey grin, looking forward to it the most.

“Together?” he blurts out, his nose wrinkling only slightly in an attempt to keep his delivery from coming out loud and sudden like a donkey haw.

Her cheeks flush, her jaw going tight. “I didn’t uh, mean that.” she huffs nervously.

“I’m just teasing.” he gives her a friendly smile. Great cover Declan.

“Oh.” she nods and laughs nervously again.

“I can just head home, I don’t wanna bother you any more than I have. It’d be better than the couch anyway.” he shrugs, trying to remain polite.

“If you’re over at my house you’re not sleeping on the couch anymore ya dingus.” she smiles, opening the door. “We’ll share the bed, it’s big, don’t worry.” she says with a playful bounce, getting out the van. “I’m not taking no for an answer Declan.” she gives him a playful scolding look and shuts the door behind her.

They’re greeted by a very vocal Robbie who is airing his grievances to being left without Bella.

“Lil man is pissed at you Bells.” Declan snorts.

“He has the right to be. C’mere my big baby boy.” she coos and drops all her things in the middle of the hall and picks him up to cuddle and kiss him. Declan never thought he’d see the day she’d be so soft with something. Maybe staying with her was a good idea. It could be the sleep deprivation telling him that, but he really didn’t care as he watched her move lightly around her space. She looked relaxed, happy and at ease, not something he was used to. He had wondered if her newly seen bouncy and enthusiastic nature existed outside of the festival, and apparently it had all along, he’d just had to find it.

With Robbie on her shoulders, enthusiastically talking back and she told him about the trip in little snippets, Declan grinned to himself, that heavy feeling creeping over him at the cool air of her home, the light music in the background, the soft couch underneath him as she walked back and forth and did laundry, getting everything ready for them to sleep.

“Bring your stuff in and get cozy while I shower.” she motions for him to follow her into the bedroom for longer than a few minutes, he was looking forward to getting to look at everything. “Robbie might get upset if I leave him with you, so I’ll have the door cracked, he’ll prob come and go but don’t worry about him too much.

“You seem like an independent little fella, I don’t think you’ll be much trouble.”

He mrow’s as she plops him into Declan's lap and he investigates him closely. As Bella turns to shut the door to, she sees them with their noses together and almost ‘aw’s’ at the sight. They say if your cat approves of someone, they’re a good bet. And she was starting to believe it. With Declan's big welcome hands, Robbie doesn’t budge from his lap as they chatter on about the trip, Declan’s muffled baby voice being heard from beyond the heavenly dull sound of the water hitting her skin. With her fingers digging into her scalp, the welcome smell of her shampoo wafting around her, steam filling up the glass and tile box, her body starts to relax, her mind starts to realize it’s home and everything begins to decompress, she lets out a groan, taking a deep breath and letting the water run over her. A simple drag of her hands over her breasts is enough to spark the thought in her mind. The previous thoughts of Declan’s big hands, even if they were being imaging just petting Robbie, she easily imagined it was another cat of hers those tattooed and seemingly nimble fingers was petting. She realized this might be the longest she’s gone without masturbating since...since she started? She bites her lips and considering waiting another night, but hearing his warm laugh come through the small crack in the door is enough to make her body react and she gives in.

A simple fantasy while her fingers work between her legs and she leans against the tile of the wall. Him coming in, catching her and not being able to resist. Getting to yank his clothes off and feel him wet and hard under her hands, lips hard against her skin and no reason to hold back the deep moans from his delectable throat. She wanted him, she beckoned him in to catch her as she rose closer to a fast finish, biting her lip to muffle the sounds, hand fast on her breast, fingers tweaking away at reddened peaks and fingers slick between her thick folds her eyes roll back and she finishes imagining him holding her up and fucking her against the shower wall. The vision slowly fades as her heart rate slows, and she feels like she’s a ton lighter. She hadn’t realized how badly she’d repressing that need. She was suddenly very proud of herself for not giving in on the trip.

As she exits, freshly shaven and scrubbed she facepalms as she realizes she didn’t bring her clothes in. Not being used to having someone around led her to forget that she couldn’t air dry on her way to the dresser. This was going to be painful no matter how she rolled it. Say nothing, walk out confident like she meant to do it, or be apologetic and scurry about saying, oh I forgot my clothes, sorry-sorry. It’s not like he’d be upset, he probably wouldn’t even care, so she goes for the first option.

With just a towel and now damp hair with the amount of time it took for her to make herself leave the bathroom in the state she was in, she makes her debut with her modest coverings. It wasn’t racy by any means, but seeing someone wet in a towel led to thoughts no matter the situation.

With a strong posture and a face set soft and friendly, she walks out with bare feet onto the hardwood floor. It doesn’t even take a second for his eyes to move up to meet her emerging form.

“Towels are in closet.” She smiles as he rises, not speaking. She thinks making eye contact might make it worse, or should she act like nothings weird.

He looks at her and feels a lump grow in his throat. He’s seen her in less on the trip why was this coming off so...erotic. Maybe it was because with one swoop he could move in and she’d be naked against him.

“I think I left you some hot water.” She jokes, a forward nod of her head. A clear sign to stop staring and get moving he thinks, clearing his throat and lowering his gaze.

“I’ll uh, be fine.” He says with a raspberry of his lips and goes to touch the door and misses. It cued a small soft chuckle from her that makes a lump grow somewhere else besides his throat.

“Still got it.” She mutters to herself and grins proudly as she shoots finger guns at her reflection before starting the process of choosing what to wear.

Inside the bathroom Declan was quick to turn on the water, leaning against the sinks counter and looking at the ground and exhaling noisily. What was it about being back home that made her seem more attractive to him? Was it that he promised he wouldn’t sleep with her on the trip and technically the trip was over? Was the comfort that settled into his muscles while she showered that made him more vulnerable? He didn’t know but he knew he had to get rid of this half hard intrusion between his legs. He tries to calm down first, hands in his hair, scrub the filth away he muses. But everything smelled like her, his hands on him reminded him that he wanted her to touch him, hands gliding over lean muscle he worked hard for. Knowing she’d been naked right where he was just moments ago, the air still warm, the loofa still sudsy. He looks down at his twitching cock and sighs. He’d done worse things in this bathroom before so might as well add jerking off to the list.

It didn’t take him long either, picturing her with droplets running down her pierced tits, getting soapy hands on her pert and weighted tits and that ass that had haunted him the entire night before. Those little panties, just under the hem of his hoodie. HIS hoodie over her, like she was his, like he had marked his territory and claimed that strong and curvy body underneath. A solid stomach with a touch of softness before the swell of soft lips and thick thighs. His mind pictures her rolling over in her sleep, in putting his hands under her shirt, down that black thong he’d seen and feeling her pant against him. His hand quickly became hers around his now throbbing cock, the leaking going unnoticed as the water ran down his chest to his stomach that had just a small amount of winter weight left on it. A thick fuzz from his chest to his thighs, dark and dense around an uncut cock that was close to giving in as it ached and reddened. His large hands didn’t swallow himself up in one go, his size able to compare to the rest of him. As soon as he imagines her moaning his name, feeling her hot and tight and wet around his fingers as she whimpers that she’s coming, his body takes the cue. Heavy balls pumping out a backed up release of wet dreams from his good behavior the past week. He could feel it deep in his stomach, clenching his jaw as it came out, shooting against the wall and to the floor in thick spurts. With the proof of how withdrawn he’d been now washing down the drain, he shakes his head and rubs his face hard, letting out a noise of frustration to clear his head. He still had to go back to bed with her and his cock twitches at the thought.

“Fuckin...down boy.” He angrily whispers and pushes it down, shaking his legs as he gets out of the shower. “Behave.” He grunts out.

Bella decided on a simple tank dress. Not too long or short, not trying too hard. Unlike her nipples which were practically screaming look at me in the thin material against the chilly air of the room. She sits under her covers, eating one of the burritos she’d heated up for them that he was so fond of.

He emerges shirtless. Although she deserves that. She gulps and pats the bed next to her, his thin sheets hanging from a torso that made her pelvic floor wanna snap her in two. A thick and untamed happy trail disappeared under loose pants, rounding over a perfect swell of belly that lead her eyes to two heavy and strong pecs that flex as he rubbed his hair with a towel, giving her time to ogle.

She shakes her head and tries to put on her good girl face as he raises his to meet hers. A tiny bit of cleavage and a covered lower half with her blankets makes it not impossible for him to act like he had a brain.

She pats the bed next to her. “Beer and burrito on the nightstand.” She announces proudly.

“God, you’re a saint.” He moans, his stomach rumbling.

“Nah. Just a fellow eater.” She smiles as she chews a mouthful of food.

A quick bite and a wash down of their favorite drinks makes for two exhausted and happy babies. “I don’t know the last time I was so tired.” She says snuggling down as he does the same between clean and soft sheets.

“Yeah tell me about it.” He yawns and stretches, leaving his legs splayed and arms up above his head and bent, looking like a meal laid out before her.

“Just cause we’re not forced to now, doesn’t me we can’t-?” She begins, eyes looking uncertain as they look over to him.

He simply reaches over and rolls to his side, grabbing her hip and pulling her to him. Her face is more than pleased, wanting to know it was okay to keep this up now. It was a hopeful start she thought. Also miraculous she still wanted to be close to him after being this long. She would’ve murdered Charlotte by now. But all she wanted was more of Declan. It was new...and it was nice. Only mildly terrifying but...still nice.

“Good.” She mumbles out between pooched lips as she snuggled into his chest.

“You set an alarm?” He asks.

“Nope. I say we sleep to whenever the fuck we want.” Her hand moves to wrap around his body, a rather bold move, not keeping her hands tucked against her own. It doesn’t go unnoticed by him, smiling as the warmth from her seemingly small hands against his skin.

“You’ve got the best ideas.” He mutters with a smile into her hair.

She nods in response and he feels it. His hands feeling bold to return with a new gesture of their own, reaching around her and waiting against her lower back, above the swell of her butt that wiggled as she got closer to him. “Night Declan.” A little voice much softer and breathier than before escapes her.

He grunts, kissing her hair and putting his arm underneath her. “Night babe.” He gives her, casual enough for him, but not her name like he had before.

She feels the warmth of domesticity flood her body. A catch in her chest she tries to hide. Was this what it was like to be with someone? This little slice of heaven she got to taste before buying into the whole deal? It’d been so long since she’d...had she ever slept with a man like this? With someone she liked, cared about, that dare she think felt the same about her. Her hand moves nervously, but she’s feeling warm and soft in his arms, the light blocking curtains and the lamps off, leave them in a suspended night that makes their emotions want to come out and play. Her fingers trace up and down his spine, a lazy back and forth that it only takes a minute for him to know isn’t accidental.

He grunts and resituates.

“Is that-?”

“S’good.” He mumbles out as she sees his lashes fan over his cheeks and the lovely trio of freckles on his cheek. His shapely lips blub out and she smiles, chin to his chest to look up at him. She smiles and sighs. “Keep goin’.” He follows up and she does so gladly. He returns the affection with a gentle rub of his thumb to her bare skin between her shoulder blades. Both fall asleep fast, and there wasn’t much to dream about seeing as that line that had been haunting them about crossing had finally been pushed. They didn’t really want to be anywhere else besides exactly where they were.

————

Bella was proud at how little she stalled Declan in leaving the next morning. It was hard not to pull him into a kiss to keep his warmth next to her all day. She woke in his arms and that’s where she’d wanted to stay. After he'd gotten up, all his noises throaty and rumbling from a deep sleep, his hair wild and curled naturally and looking like some magnificent lion hybrid she didn’t sense the feeling of wanting to be close to him fading. It looked like it was here to stay. But herein lay the problem. Bella wasn’t known for being the best at articulating her feelings. In fact, she was usually shit at it. Especially when they were romantic. After a young love gone terribly wrong it was hard to trust again, and when she thought herself able to move on, there was no one to be had that really lit anything within her. She’d been floating, loving her life alone and content with fulfilling her own wants and desires until the day she walked into that bar. She lay with huge sleep-tousled hair, leaving a lovely impression of sex hair on Declan as he emerged from the bathroom to find her barely sitting up and still rubbing her eyes. She was even cute in the morning. Oh man he had it bad didn’t he?

She made him breakfast, or a late lunch really at this time of day. She fueled him up, gave him his clean laundry and sent him on his way. With a chaste but affectionate hug and kiss to the head from him, he left looking well rested and happy. What more could she really want? A lot apparently her inner monologue was telling her. She noticed how quiet it was, how she had no one to tell the dumb things that popped into her head before she forgot them. No one and no reason to hold hands with and be close to. She finds herself looking at her phone in her hand as she plops onto the couch with a heavy sigh.

“Mrow?” Robbie asks, his little feet pressing into her stomach.

“I’m fine. Thanks for asking.” She grumbles and starches his chin.

He chirps and his tail swishes.

“I’m just...I feel off now. Like I forgot how to be alone.”

“Mmrrrlll.” He retorts and pushes into her mouth with his funny little mushed face.

“Sorry, I meant with another human.” She chuckles and scratches his favorite spot just above his tail. “Is it too soon to text him?” She asks, biting her lip. “Fucks sake.” She rolls her eyes. “Is it too soon?” She mocks herself in a high pitched voice. “Who the fuck am I? I don’t worry about dumb shit like that.” She groans. But with the work she’d put in before leaving, she didn’t have much else to do at home now. “Fuck it Robs.” She announces, throwing her hands up. “I’m gonna text him.” She says and puts her thumbs to the screen.

“Feels really weird without you bein connected to my hip now, I’ll be honest.” She types and considers it. Harmless and honest. Send.

Declan is back at work, his bags thrown back into his apartment as he’s faced with a VERY curious Mike who keeps judging him with his elbow.

“Soooo…” He keeps asking like he’ll get a new answer.

“What do you want dude? Nothing happened.” Declan claims again.

“And you’re a terrible liar.”

“Psh. That’s not true.”

“Well, maybe not but ya can’t hide things from me boyo.” He says with a wag of his finger.

“I’m not hiding. I’m not even wearing sleeves where do I have to hide?” He laughs and raises his arms.

“Behind that humor for starters eh?”

“Oh fuck you.” Declan groans and Mike laughs.

“Somethings different,” Mike claims again. “Besides you smellin' like a pretty lady.”

“I showered at her place.”

“Uh huh.” He says accusingly.

“Because we were gross from camping out for a week! Jesus.” He rolls his eyes.

“It’s in the eyes Declan.”

“It’s in the eyes, something different.” Declan mocks in a bad Irish accent. “Sound like my mom when I came home from Joe's party when we were kids.”

“Well if I recall you did pop your cherry at that party.” Mike laughs. “Mother’s...they know.”

“Oh yeah, I lost my virginity at the festival. Is that it?” He side eyes and smirks.

“Can’t lose it more than once big guy. Maybe she lost hers though eh?” He chuckles.

“Yeah... I don’t think she’s a virgin.” He snorts softly.

“There we are! Why do you think that? How would ya know? She tells every other guy but you to go fuck themselves.” Mike elaborates with a cheerful grin.

“She’s just...not.” Declan mumbles.

“Because she’s sexy, Mike. Ugh dude, I saw her and I just, I just knew man.” Mike mocks him and gets a punch to the arm.

“Shut up.” is Declan’s only come back.

“Mmmm interesting.” Mike nods.

“I saw her dance and...saw her not sober. She wasn’t shy like she... didn’t know what she was doin’.” He says quietly out of the side of his mouth.

“Well that’s...somethin’. That’s good, yeah?” He offers. “So not even a kiss then?”

“Nope.” He says, withholding the almost kiss Mother Nature herself cut short.

Then a buzz on his phone. He and Mike both look at it and Mike gives him a huge grin. “$5 It’s her.” Mike holds out his hand.

“But what if I want it to be? Why would I take that bet?”

“And he finally admits it!”

“I never denied it!” He says loudly reaching for his phone and posting up against the back of the bar.

“And the verdict?”

“You would’ve gotten 5 bucks.” He says with a smile that wasn’t meant for Mike.

“Oh look at him. That boyish smile. He’s got it bad, he does.” Mike continues wiping down the bar as Declan flips him off only for a second before responding.

“I was thinking the same thing babe.” He grins to himself. Mike notices but just thinks it’s rather adorable now. Declan was never good at hiding his emotions.

“Is this what Siamese twins feel like after they're separated?” Bella sends in response and he feels a flutter in his stomach. She could be sweet, you just had to know how to translate.

“I don’t think we were quite that close lol.”

“Speak for yourself. How do you explain this massive scar on my hip?” he snorts at her response.

“Oh yeah, I stole your kidneys. Should’ve mentioned that.”

“I knew it. Using me for my organs. How'd I let this happen again?”

“Again?!” He laughs out loud and Mike rolls his eyes.

———-

The next day while Bella’s back at work she’s shuffling around her office. She felt like a change, rearranging her shelves contents, putting together a new chair she’d ordered from IKEA, she had her music on and her door open as she mulled around.

This went unnoticed by no one in the office. Bella didn’t leave her door open and she didn’t listen to music without headphones. She came in and even said hello to the girls that morning. They were all dying to know what happened while she was away, but knew better than to ask. So it was left to the one that could, CeeCee.

“So…” She begins, hip presses against the doorframe of Bella’s office. “Trip go well?”

“Yeah it was good. Great line up this year.” Bella nods.

“Am I supposed to ignore the fact that you’re listening to Sam Cooke?” She smirks.

“What? He’s only a timeless genius.” She stops and leans on her desk.

“There are usually implications involved when this sort of music is listened to.” she insinuates with narrowed eyes, taking a noisy sip of her coffee.

“There is nothing different now than it was when I left.” is the cryptic answer she gives.

“Mmm.” She nods, tucking her strawberry blonde hair behind her ear. “Who’d you end up taking anyway?”

Bella doesn’t miss a beat. “You don’t know them.”

“Try me.” CeeCee challenges with a nod.

“I’d rather not.” Bella shoots a more playful warning glance her way. Then he phones buzzes again at her black patent desk.

“Seems you forgot some stuff in the van. I can give it to you when you come by the bar but it’s a little...it’s panties. lol”

“I’ve got to take this,” Bella says with busy thumbs that makes her friend roll her eyes and stroll away. “Why are you stealing my panties Declan? Seems beneath you.”

“Thank you for thinking it is. lol But they we’re in one of my laundry bags by accident.”

“Good to know... I can pick them up after work. No big. Just don’t wave them around or put them up the flagpole or something.” She kids, a smirk on her lips.

“Whoops.”

She puffs at his reply. “Rude.”

“I thought you liked Salute Your Shorts?”

“I did, good pull, but that’s a bit too literally for my taste.”

“You were singing the theme when you were drunk because we walked by a pair of boxers on a pole. How could I forget?”

“I’m glad I can then. lol I can’t stay tonight, have lots of mixing to do this week and I need quiet and no distractions. But I can pop in. That work?”

“That works.” He signs off with a nod. He wanted her to stay, get a feel of what she was thinking but he admired how she worked and that wouldn’t stop now. Besides, he knew Mike would be analyzing her every move.

——

He supposes he just hadn’t known what to expect when she walked through the doors. After seeing her in such wild outfits over the festival maybe he expected her to be the same now. But she bounced in, a t-shirt dress with a v neck that he could tell was soft before he even touched it. Hugging her body just right, her feet adorning black vans with the green camo print of the dress looked entirely charming to him.

Mikes eyes were glued to them both as he pretended to be busy.

“Hey babe.” Declan practically sighs out, meeting her at the edge of the bar and wrapping his big arms around her tightly.

“Hey.” A soft matched sigh of affection to match his escapes her. She inhales him, missing the way he smelled, missing having him around, the masculine touch he added to a space or conversation just by being there. Their eyes shut for a moment of indulgence. Hands on backs gently rubbing back and forth before slowly parting, palms flat against each other’s bodies as they pulled apart hesitantly.

“I’ve got your stuff, c’mon back.” He says with a nod. She gives him a quick one back and can almost hear the assumptions of the men in the bar looking her up and down. They’d be half right, but she hadn’t left anything with him for the reasons they were thinking. “I hid them in one of my shirts so they weren’t just...layin' around.” He offers it to her with a soft huff of a laugh.

“Thanks. I appreciate it.” She finds her words short, hands passing over the others intently with a slow drag as the skin to skin was already missed by them both. She could’ve just put the underwear in her bag, it’s why she’d brought it in. But the chance to take one of his shirts home with her? She’d never pass up the chance. “Be a little brow-raising to just leave with a fistful of panties huh?” She grins.

“A little.” He smiles as her almost bashful behavior as she tucks her hair behind her ear and holds the shirt to her chest. “You sure you can’t stay?” He offers, rubbing the back of his neck as he looks down at her with a plea in his eyes.

It was hard to turn down those deep hazel puppy dog eyes. But she had to. “Yeah, unfortunately. Trust me,” she offers with a hand to his arm. “I want to I just have work to catch up on.”

“Nah it’s cool, I get it.” He nods. “I’ll walk ya back out then.” He holds the swinging door open and with a hand on her back, he walks her out to her truck.

“Thanks again. I know I haven’t been saying much but...busy...like I said. And not in that ignoring you but being polite way.” She insists with a smile.

“I do admire your honesty.” He chuckles as her almost goofy smile as she really tries to show him she isn’t being sparse for any reason other than work. “I’ll let ya go then. Thanks for coming by, even if it was just for a little bit.” His face looks so soft and open and she finds herself jealous. Why couldn’t she be like that? She felt like a locked and shut box beneath his gaze.

“Yeah, it was good to see you.” She managed and it’s enough for now for him. He leans in for another hug. This one without prying eyes that he’s aware of and kisses her cheek in a spur of the moment decision. It turns rosy under his touch and he wants to do it again. Then again and onto her lips. With a blush, she tucks her hair behind her ear and bows her head down. “I’ll text you later.” She offers with big green eyes that catch the yellowing lights of the bar sign.

“You know where I’ll be.” He replies with a disarmingly charming smile, hands in his pockets as he walks backward and leaves her to her feelings.

“Aw look at ya now.” Mike coos as soon as the door shuts behind Declan. “Two kids in love. I do love love.” He sighs.

“Jumping the gun on that one.” Declan says with a nod and a sigh.

“What no date yet?” Mike asks surprised.

“Very funny.” Declan mocks.

“Did she say no?”

“I didn’t ask her to marry me Mike what the hell.”

“No! I meant a date. Like goin' out.” He responds fast. “But good to know where your heads at.” he shoots him a wink.

“I didn’t ask.”

“Why the fuck not?” he says with exasperated outstretched hands. “Did ya see how the lass looked at ya? All that blushin' and tuckin' her hair back? I’ve not seen her that bashful since I’ve met her. And smilin’? Ya kiddin’ me? She likes ya boyo just...go! You fuckin idiot go ask!” He shoves his shoulder.

“R-really? She’s probably-“ he gets cut off.

“You go fuckin' see ya little boy! Go ask her out on a date like a man.” He says hitting his chest and being insistent.

Declan turns and looks to the door, taking a breath and his long legs carrying him quickly. Luckily for him, Bella’s was processing that kiss to the cheek and was moving slow. Wondering if she had time to stay for a drink before going home. So when she sees him reappear and tap on his window her hearts in her throat.

“Hey.” He simply states with a nod of his head.

“Hey?” She asks back with a small smile.

“You wanna...go do something this weekend?” He asks with an entirely unsure face that she found to ease her nerves. He was just as bad as she was at this. She found it comforting.

“You aren’t sick of me yet?” She asks, the time being teasing but it was an entirely honest question.

“Not at all.” The certainty was back in his eyes, his head shaking a bit to drive the point home.

She nods before speaking. “Okay. Yeah.” She swallows, just act cool Bella.

“Yeah?” He tilts his head like a puppy and smiles with a wrinkled nose.

“Yes.” She nods and smiles. “Do you know what you wanna do?” She offers up, trying to hide the slump in her posture from forcing out her words.

His eyes blink, mouth parted for a moment before he realizes he, in fact, does not. “Uh. No.” He admits with a laugh that draws one from her too. “Just wanted to spend time with you.” He adds and she can’t believe his ability to recover and come back even smoother than he was before.

Another tuck of hair, another sheepish smile that looks away before it makes eye contact again. She nods. “That’s good enough for me.” Her voice is soft and the vulnerability in it makes his head spin.

“I’ll think of something.” He nods and promises. “Something kick ass.” He beams.

“I know you will.” She smiles softly at him over lashes that are trying not to flutter.

He reaches into the truck and she puts her hand in his instinctively. The touch they’d both been wanting. “Drive safe. Lemme know you got home okay alright?” He offers with a warm tone that makes her skin sweat. His thumb rubs the back of her hand before a little squeeze is shared and he pulls away.

“I will.” She agrees and gathers herself. “Night Declan.” She replies with a more sly smile, seeing his shoulders slump slightly at the use of his name.

“Night Bells.” He sighs out, smiling with a closed mouth and shoving his hands into his pockets once again.

He watches her drive away. He’s just asked her out. And she knew what he meant. And she still said yes. This was actually happening. With no moves too aggressive this could still turn out to be just as innocent as he was prepared to act like it could be. He still had to be gentle and patient with her. Her cool exterior now broken as she stuttered at his affection. But it made him feel powerful, a rush to affect someone as tough and hard as her. Maybe all that idle wishing she might also see him as more than a friend had accomplished something. Now he just had to figure out something for them to do.

Please leave a like, reblog or comment if you enjoyed this! It makes me want to write more of what you want if you let me know!

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[imamotherfuckingstar-lord]

Student Loans, Part 7

Modern Sugar!Daddy AU

Leonard McCoy x Reader

A/N: This part is a tad bit longer then what the other parts will be. Commission for the amazing @captain-princess-smash ! 

Warning: light smut.

Summary: You are a single gal, trying to pay your way through medical school. Working a side job at Kirk’s, a local pub, as a bartender and most nights, fight referee. Your boss, Jim, is an all around good guy and always gives you extra shifts when you need it. During one of your shifts, Jim’s long time friend, Leonard McCoy aka Hot Doctor, pops in and Jim introduces you to him. Instantly, the two of you hit it off and after spending the rest of the night chit chatting, Leonard gives you a proposal. A very sweet proposal: He wants to be your Sugar Daddy, he wants you to be his companion on demand. In exchange, he would pay your way through medical school, along with anything else you might need.

You, of course, told him he was crazy, that there was no way you’d be someone’s Sugar Baby!

Right? Right?

Except, you did need help paying for school and the doctor was awfully attractive and smart and kind..

Maybe…it wouldn’t be such a bad idea..

MASTERLIST

A smile twitched from your lips as spotted Leonard near the bar’s main entrance, leather jacket on and a nice pair of jeans. Jim whistled from the end of the bar and nodded towards his friend’s direction. You shrugged nonchalantly, trying to pretend you weren’t excited to see the doctor, and offered a patron a refill.

“So, is it always this pack on a Tuesday night?”

You glanced over to the newbie, Ryan. It had been a few weeks since he started and he had slowly gotten the hang of things. Jim had made you promise to be nice, which you always were, but Ryan was a cool guy and incredibly attractive. You teased Jim about starting a whole Magic Mike bar, pointing out that it would bring in the ladies. Of course, he laughed and said you were crazy.

“Yeah, it’s pretty rowdy on Tuesdays,” you said, motioning for him to help the two men that had come up to the bar. You watched as he called out to the men until a familiar voice grabbed your attention.

“Mind serving an off-duty doctor a round of beer, sweetheart?”

Looking away from Ryan, you saw Leonard leaning against the bar, a warm smile on his handsome face. You smirked and told him of course, getting his beer right away. When you placed it in front of him, you asked if he was willingly to wait a few minutes. You were going to go on break in ten minutes. He said that’d be fine and that he spotted a seat on the end of the bar.

“I’ll be waiting for you,” he nodded, grabbing his drink.

Watching with delight, you tilted your head to get a better glimpse at the way Leonard’s jeans hugged his bottom just right.

“Perv.”

Your eyes snapped away from Leonard’s ass to Ryan, who laughed when you reached over and smacked him on the arm.

“It’s not like that,” you insisted, grabbing the bar rag off the counter. “He’s my...”

Your voice trailed off as you thought of what to call Bones – Boyfriend? Boss? Sugar daddy?

“I’m kidding,” Ryan chuckled, giving you a nudge with his elbow. “Isn’t that one of the perks of being a bartender? All the attractive people we get to encounter?”

“Amen to that,” you laughed.

….

Leonard sat at the end of the bar, checking his email to prevent himself from staring at the way you were laughing with that new bartender. He wasn’t usually the jealous type, but seeing you side by side next to this young man, had him squirming in his seat. He snuck another look and saw you smiling wide as the man said something to you as he filled a pitcher.

“The jealous look doesn’t help your frown lines,” Jim said, smacking the bar lightly to make his presences known.

“Shut up,” Leonard ordered, lifting his beer to his mouth. “What’s his deal anyway?”

Jim shrugged. “He’s a good kid, just moved here. Why? You wanna be his sugar daddy too?”

“I hope you get an ulcer, Jim.”

The bar owner laughed and told Leonard there was nothing to worry about, that you were enamored with him.

“She is?”

Jim sighed, realizing what he had let slip out; there was no use backpedaling now. “She’s a good person, works hard. I think the two of you are a good match. I just…”

Leonard placed his beer down and observed the concern expression on Jim’s face. “What?”

“Well, just don’t hurt her, Bones,” Jim advised, glancing again in your direction. He saw that you were making your way over and turned back to Leonard. “Things didn’t end well with the last girl, and you have to work with her. So, tread lightly friend.”

Giving it a deep thought, Leonard nodded. “I know, I know.”

“Look at you two handsome fellas,” you cooed, stepping up to Jim. Throwing an arm around his shoulder, you told him Ryan was manning the other side of the bar. “He’s a keeper, sorta reminds me of you, Jimmy.”

“First off, I’m your boss, so don’t call me that. Secondly,” he said, squirming away from your grip. “Why don’t you call it a night? I got Ryan and I’m used to it always just being us two, so we’ll be fine.”

Giving Jim a curious stare, you asked if he was sure. He smiled. “Of course, not like you need the cash now with Money Bags sitting right there.”

Leonard started to protest, but Jim and you busted into a laughing fit. You shook your head and attempted to wipe the tears from your eyes, turning your attention over to Leonard.

“Listen, Money Bags, let me get my stuff and we can get something to eat.”

“Sounds good,” Leonard chimed, holding back his own laugh.

…..

Leonard followed you in his car, the two of driving over to a small burger joint and taking it to go when you suggested your place. He was just as stunned as you at the suggestion, but you thought it was time to show Leonard a little more of your life. So, after getting the order, he followed you to the modest apartment building nestled between two houses on a quiet street near the bar. After parking, you walked over to Leonard’s car and watched as he got out, shakes in hand. You held up the bag of burgers and fries with a smile.

“Welcome to my humble dwelling,” you declared, motioning for him to follow. He chuckled as the two of you made your way into the complex, up a flight of stairs to the second floor. You looked over your shoulder as Leonard took the last step to the landing and asked if he was okay.

“I’m not that old,” he argued with a smile as you pointed out a door.

“Number 3,” you said, taking out the keys from your jacket. You quickly unlocked the door and flung it open. “Money Bags, you first.”

“Great, another annoying nickname,” he teased, walking in as you held back a grin.

You took a deep breath and closed the door behind you, thankful that you had done a deep clean the other day during a study break. So, your one-bedroom apartment, with its small kitchen and even smaller bathroom was looking decent. Leonard walked into the kitchen, since it was the first room nearest to the door and placed the shakes on the counter. He turned to you and beamed.

“This place is nice.”

You laughed and walked past him to set the food down. “Your place is nice; this place is a working dump.”

“Oh, come off it. It’s nice, better than the place Jim and I shared back in college.”

“Whatever you say. Let’s eat in the living room.”

Twenty minutes later, the two of you were sitting side by side on your green couch, the television on; the Office playing low in the background. The two of you talked about his day at the hospital, what your plans were for the weekend, and if that included a movie date.

“I can see what I can do,” you mused, sipping the last of your shake. “I have a renters meeting in the morning on Saturday, but I should be free in the afternoon.”

“Renters meeting?”

“Mhmm. I’m the building manager,” you explained, shifting your body to face Leonard. “I cut a deal with the owner, half off on rent and I’ll be the one everyone complains too.”

“Jesus, darlin’,” Leonard chuckled, reaching a hand over to your shoulder. He gave it a gentle massage. “You got medical school, the bar, and an entire building full of people to deal with? How do you manage?”

Relaxing under his touch, you leaned further into the couch, lifting your feet onto the coffee table. Closing your eyes, you sighed. “I have a lot of sugar daddies.”

Leonard’s eyes widen and he reached over to grab a hold of you, pulling you closer to him as you laughed. His fingers playfully dug into your sides and you squealed, trying to get away until you looked up at him and realized how close his face was to yours. The two of you fell silent and your heart raced as the tickling stopped, his eyes falling to your lips. You sighed softly and held up a hand to his face, pleased when he tilted his head to give it a kiss. Chest heaving, you brushed a strand of hair away from Leonard’s face and realized you never wanted anyone more in your life.

Without thinking much of the whole sex off the table thing and what it could mean if the two of you took it to that level or how it would make you feel, you surveyed the expression in Leonard’s eyes before closing yours just as his lips touched yours. The soft kissing lasted about 4.5 seconds, the time it took for you to climb onto Leonard’s lap; his hands on your waist, clutching at the hem of your jacket. Your mouth found his neck as he slowly peeled off your jacket, tossing it aside as you made a trail of kisses up to the back of his ear. He groaned and you could feel him getting hard against your thigh. Unable to help stop the quiet moan that left your throat when Leonard’s hand crawled up the front of your blouse, you started to grind against him. Internally rolling your eyes at the dry humping, you couldn’t help smiling as his free hand found your face.

“Darlin’.”

He whispered it twice to steal your attention from kissing behind his ear. You pulled away, feeling dizzy with anticipation.

“What is it, Money Bags?”

Leonard snorted then and sighed, removing his hand from under your shirt so he could hold your face. His eyes, light and dark at the same time, settled onto yours. “Are you sure about this? I need to know you want this before this goes any further.”

Taking a deep breath, feeling his cock pressing against the fabric of his skin, and the wave of anxiousness in the pit of your stomach, you nodded. You weren’t sure what would happen in the morning, how you would feel and whether it would change everything. All you knew was in that exact moment, there was nothing more that you wanted.

“I’m sure, Leonard,” you answered with conviction, grabbing both of his hands to move them down to your waist. “Should we go to the bedroom?”

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[cherubthefish]

Something Fishy

It was early last October when I brought Cherub home with me. I’d been searching the ins and outs of Norwich pet shops for weeks but, by what felt like cursed luck, I could not find the fish I wanted. Each day, as I dragged myself to yet another fish shop, something would get in the way: the shop was closed or their fishes were diseased or they only sold tropical varieties. And then finally -  a goldfish, in a bag, in my hand. But then my card would be declined and I'd be back to square one, again. I survived on frozen peas and instant coffee for that week - frozen peas, instant coffee, and no fish.

A lack of research and a straight up ignorance to the ownership of these little swim-fins meant my tank stood empty for too long. Joy, our building’s cleaner (who surpassed her job role in being a second mum to us all), wasn't sure what to do about it. There's a no pet rule in our halls but given the lack of fish in this contained body of water, there was nothing she could really say. So I bought a fluorescent toy pelican to mock us both. Poking out of the sandy pebbles, he did well in the place of a real, live pet.

At worst, these foolish days were time spent bonding with Freya, it sums up the weird and wonderful nature of our friendship; one that blossomed in an aquarium, sparking conversation with the freaks and geeks of our world about the most beautiful, intricate, saltwater creatures; not having the heart to tell them that we were actually after the Boring Barry’s of the underwater kingdom - the goldfish - and not the cool black ones either, the most basic, golden goldfish.

It was getting a bit ridiculous. The longer I had to wait, the more fixated I became. Watering my potted plants was no longer a novelty and the ever-growing pile of clothes on my floor correlated with my regression to teenhood. As I began cooking for the first time in my life, I realised the Cress I’d so proudly grown, was of little use to any meal, ever. Sure, there was the Egg & Cress Roll but it didn’t enthuse me the way food normally would. Most of my flatmates were vegan, too, which meant avoiding an animal-disarming diet was as much to my benefit, as to theirs. I saved my sheepskin coat for weekends away, snacked on sausages in secret and generally became a master in fraud.

Hannah, the only other meat eater in the flat, felt somewhat differently. She’d leave kilos of chicken to defrost on the kitchen counter and stored boxes of old eggs on her desk for drunken misadventures. Once she’d necked a vodka soda or two, she’d throw them at the bedroom doors of our Samaritan friends. It was a well-kept secret that I would sometimes partake in her mockery of good will.

At the end of the first term, when deadlines were pressing, I made a habit of sticking slices of Honey Roasted Ham to the walls of our flat. The only one ever up before noon, I could easily blame Hannah for my methods of procrastination. She’d hardly stand her ground, never able to distinguish this from that in her alcohol-induced hibernations. We clearly weren’t the grown-ups we thought we were. And If I wanted to carry on bumming about in this flat, not attending my lectures, I needed to take on some responsibility.

In my first week of being Cherub’s proud owner, I invited many friends over to witness the legend, brought all the way from London by Megabus. Outlived his pet-shop prediction by a four-hour diversion and a one hour lecture, hidden from sight from nonexistent course friends in a lousy manner. A few odd looks from the left and right but overall dismissed to be the usual, unusual fanatics of campus life. The whole process was slightly unnecessary given the lecture was on a reading I hadn’t done so in the logic of first-year living, had consequently not needed to attend.

Using the time productively, I posted a picture on Instagram, captioned: Meet Cherub. A photo I’d taken earlier that day. No wit necessary, an unfortunate birthmark resembling a Hitler mustache on his upper fish-lip was enough to win the likes of followers, all around. Bets were placed by friends in the comment section, on how long he’ll live. Two days. My brother wrote. One. Hannah bartered. All too aware that he might be dead in the bag as I typed, I warned them that jealousy was not an attractive trait and that if they didn’t watch out he might, in fact, outlive them.

Over the Christmas holidays, we found a spot for Cherub on the kitchen counter of my parent’s house. Nestled into the corner, he was a modest exhibit to the many guests that came and went over those winter months, a reason for our dog to jump up in jealousy, each time they raised their voices in exaggerated exclamation over that fun-sized thing and its fun-sized fins. On boxing day, when our entire extended family had gathered in our North London terrace. I stumbled into a back and forth exchange with my three autistic cousins. They questioned, with childlike reasoning, why, of all things, I would get myself a fish. Seeing me struggle to rationalize the decision, Dad jumped in to help. It’s nice to care for someone, he said. I’ve got her mum but Ally, she doesn’t have that yet!

Dad began to repeat this time and again to anyone who would listen; to his friends, to my friends, to everyone. He’d gage the audience, tweaking his wording accordingly. Just before the New Year, over pizza with some family friends, the subject of romantics came up. They had been teasing their youngest member, Ben, about a girl he’d been seeing. What about you, Ally? They asked, and Dad did not miss his queue. Tell them about Cherub! He cackled. She doesn’t have a fella, so she got a fish. Mouth full of dough balls, my ramekin of garlic butter, licked clean -  I denied nothing. Perhaps he was right.

Two years later, after accompanying me through the various car, bus and train journeys to and from Norwich, in my complete indecision whether to continue my studies or drop out, Cherub and I finally settled into our new London life. In months of being overworked and slightly undernourished (sixteen-hour shifts with nothing but a croissant in my stomach), he too lost weight. When I quit the job and spent days munching and crunching on all things sweet, he would get bigger, fatter, thicker. His tank water would fog up in correlation with the dirt that gathered on the floor of my new flat. In a way I’d never intended, he became a mirror up to my life. If I wasn’t caring for myself, I certainly wasn’t caring for him. So each time algae would build up too much, clogging up his oxygen supply, each time I’d slept too little, drank too much and felt clogged inside - I’d clean his tank and by doing so clear my mind.

[illusionoftransience]

“Excuse me, sir, my village was raided, please, let me stay, even if it’s just for the night-!”

Countless men were asked the same question before, whether it was a trick was unbeknownst to them so most declined. Of course, no one with any good intention would accept such a maiden.

Despite being clad in robes her cleavage was clearly visible, one could barely make out her eyes, only strands of pink hair showed beneath her hood and a torn green dress beyond her tattered robe. Women just sneered at this apparent prostitute, seeking nothing but a place to stay, modest men evaded her as much as possible out of fear of burglary- Of course, it was all just a big old scam.

“Aren’t you a cute li’l missy, come over, have a bath and get a good dinner, don’t you worry, we’ll take good care of you.“ Now if that wasn’t the shadiest of hoodlums, he reeked of booze and sweat, the cloaked woman couldn’t help but smile devilishly as she fell into his arms. “I’m so thankful... blessings to you good sir for this chance...!“

The man led his female companion through several narrow alleyways, they conversed about her village, the way to his house, the situation the land was in. “Have you heard?”, the rough voice started, “lately there’s been many kidnappings, hard to tell whether survivors of raids ain’t died during those after all I guess. Lucky you’ve bumped into me, huh?“ “And I couldn’t be more thankful for that, after all, relying on others is all-” The gentle voice stopped when a loud clank filled the air.

“...good going, now give her some of the drugs so we can sack her in savely-“ “Right boss, we’ll get everything ready...“ Really. REALLY? That’s the oldest trick in the book, he didn’t even hit that hard, what’s his spaghetti arms made of? Could at least been whole-grain and not some cheap brand. Regardless, the girl fell down, her emerald eyes closed as a needle was pushed into her arm. Shortly thereafter, everything went black as she was transported off in a sack.

These men, they didn’t talk about much of interest, they kept talking about how great this girl’s body was and how much fun they’d have with her. Thankfully, these topics had not to be endured for long, after exchanging a password that gang entered a house, went down some stairs... locked the door behind them and emptied the bag with the woman on a large table.

They almost drooled on her it seems, trying to undress her with these dirty gazes and soon their hands. Disgusting low-lifes without any decency or respect of other life, it was people like them that she despised the most, not even worth the air they inhalte through their lust-filled visage.

The second they had lost all restraints on themselfes, the female grabbed the closest two hands and twisted their wrists. Visibly more exposed, though uncaring as ever, she gazed at her suitors with a gaze as cold as her emerald eyes allowed, piercing right through the shocked glances and pain-filled screaming within this room.

“Kidnapping, using third-rate drugs on innocent gals, raping 'em... heard ye’re employing those as hookers too. Ye’re in for a jolly night, ain’t cha? Well, I can help you there fellas! ♥” Still in shock, the more muscular crooks chose to pummel the frail woman as they could, regardless, they were merely slapped to the ground. Witnessing this, the rest of them attempted to flee, albeit to no avail as their friends who had already touched this girl’s bare bosom clung to them with crazed bloodshot eyes. “Smooth, ‘pparently they ain’t want no one to hear what’s going on here, that’s one heck of a soundproof shack.“ Soon enough, all of them were entranced and left to their fate, the last thing they saw were no longer smaragdine, but crimson eyes of a demon.

...

“You know, you didn’t have to eat all of them!“ The first reponse to the new male’s complaint was that woman’s burp. “Ya know how it goes sonny. Ye should just stop with these vegan vices, ye’re a cat after all... ouuuch, my stomach hurts-“ “Meow“, the most monotone and obvious answer one could get. “See? All these corrupted souls are just ruining your diet as well. You should eat something sweet and pure now and then or you’ll start shitting bricks.“ “Mirus! Ya know I’m not stooping one bit as low as these skinny cunts, thinkin’ they’re better for eating all the good outta this gods forsaken plate of a world. HMPF!“ The cat-eared man didn’t even shrug as he continued to amble behind his mistress, overseeing the mess she had made of this place. “Ey, hurry up, there sure’re other gals ‘round here, we gotta check on  them before something worse happens!“ “Yea, Missus Krysta...“, he’s just never getting his spirits up, is he-

#glimpse of a succubus' everyday life #or probably more like once a week or month #trigger warnings for happenings or mentions of kidnapping prostitution needles drug abuse #do those work like this I have no clue #naglfar drabbles

[ramajmedia]

10 Ways Quentin Tarantino’s Movies Are All Connected

 Shared universes are all the rage in cinema right now, with every studio trying to emulate the box office-breaking success of Marvel Studio's Marvel Cinematic Universe. High-profile efforts include everything from Warner Bros.' own superhero-oriented effort, the DC Extended Universe, to failed attempts like Universal Picture’s monster movie-themed Dark Universe. But there’s one shared universe that has been ticking along just fine in the background far longer than any of these: the films of Quentin Tarantino.

It may come as something of a surprise to casual viewers, but almost every entry in Tarantino’s filmography is connected, from 1992’s Reservoir Dogs right on through to this year’s Once Upon A Time In Hollywood. Sure, this interwoven tapestry may not rival the MCU in scope — although not even Marvel can lay claim to a similar “universe within a universe” conceit — but it’s pretty dang awesome all the same. To help bring you up to speed, here’s a round-up of our 10 favorite Tarantino movie connections.

RELATED: 10 Films That Directly Influenced Quentin Tarantino

10 Vincent And Vic Vega

Here’s a connection most cinephiles will already be aware of: Reservoir Dogs’ sadistic diamond thief Vic Vega and Pulp Fiction’s ambivalent hitman Vincent Vega are related. Tarantino himself confirmed as much years ago, when he expressed interested in making a “Vega Brothers” spin-off, titled Double V Vega.

Since both Vic and Vince don’t survive their respective movies, fans have long speculated that Double V Vega will be a prequel, but it’s starting to look like that speculation has been in vain. After all, a film centered around the Vega boys has yet to materialize, and — given the ages of stars Michael Madsen and John Travolta — it seems unlikely one ever will.

9 Fictional Products

Several fictional brands appear prominently in Tarantino’s films. For instance, if you see a character smoking in a scene, chances are they’re puffing on a Red Apple cigarette. The distinctive Red Apple packaging crops up in several of the acclaimed auteur’s outings, including Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill and Django Unchained. Red Apple cigarettes even serve as the basis for Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’s post-credits scene.

Another recurring made-up brand in Tarantino’s shared universe is Big Kahuna Burger. First alluded to in Reservoir Dogs — Mr. Blonde’s milkshake sports the fast food chain’s distinguishing red diagonal stripes — Big Kahuna Burger products play a pivotal role in Pulp Fiction’s iconic “Ezekiel 25:17” scene. A Big Kahuna Burger bag also pops up in From Dusk Till Dawn, while a billboard promoting the chain can be seen in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood.

8 “Crazy” Craig Koons And Captain Koons

Captain Koons — played to idiosyncratic perfection by Christopher Walken — only appears in a single scene in Pulp Fiction, but it also happens to be one of the movie’s most memorable moments. In it, the United States Air Force veteran recounts in painstaking detail the particulars of his captivity in a Vietnamese POW camp to young Butch Coolidge.

His questionable approach to interacting with children notwithstanding, it’s clear that Captain Coons is an upstanding member of the community. This is more than can be said for at least one of his ancestors, The Hateful Eight’s “Crazy” Craig Koons — a Wild West outlaw and member of the Smitty Bacall Gang.

RELATED: 10 Funniest Quotes From Quentin Tarantino Movies

7 Name Dropping Antonio Margheriti

One of the funniest moments in Inglourious Basterds sees several members of the film’s titular Nazi-hunting crew impersonating Italian filmmakers in less-than-convincing fashion. In true Tarantino style, Donny “The Bear Jew” Donowitz assumes the identity of real-life director Antonio Margheriti, who produced a slew of Spaghetti Western, horror, spy and sci-fi pictures during his 52-year career.

So it’s only fitting when Once Upon A Time In Hollywood protagonist Rick Dalton spends six months shooting movies in Italy that Margheriti is credited with helming one of them. Not only is this a fun call-back to Basterds, but it totally fits, considering the Italian director’s actual body of work.

6 The Scagnetti Brothers

Quentin Tarantino is famously selective when it comes to keeping count of the features that comprise his filmography. Indeed, despite the actual number of movies he’s had a direct hand in making, which amount to 14, the figure offered by the director is a more modest nine.

At least part of this discrepancy can be attributed to Tarantino disowning Natural Born Killers, which was heavily rewritten by its director Oliver Stone, writer David Veloz and producer Richard Rutowski.

Yet despite being the black sheep of Tarantino’s shared universe, Natural Born Killers remains inexorably part of it. How? Via Detective Jack Scagnetti, who Tarantino originally intended to be the brother of Seymour Scagnetti, Mr. Blonde’s unseen parole officer in Reservoir Dogs.

5 The Movies Within Tarantino’s Movies

Full disclosure: This entry isn’t based on anything seen onscreen in any of Tarantino’s films. Instead, it’s based off comments the filmmaker once made in an interview, where he designates some of his flicks as being part of a so-called “movie universe”.

What does this mean? Basically, Tarantino’s fictional world has a Russian doll-like structure: There’s a layer of movies nested within another layer, with the outer layer being more “real” than the inner. In practical terms, this means that Tarantino’s more outlandish efforts like Kill Bill represent the movies that characters in more realistic outings like Once Upon A Time In Hollywood go to see!

RELATED: Quentin Tarantino’s Best Villains, Ranked

4 Stuntman Mike And Stuntman Randy

Death Proof  — Tarantino’s half of the experimental double feature Grindhouse — introduces audiences to Mike McKay, a murderous stuntman portrayed by Kurt Russell. Fast forward more than a decade, and Once Upon A Time In Hollywood sees Russell cameo as another stunt performer named Randy. Is it possible that these two guys are related? We think it’s highly likely.

Sure, the main thing connecting them is their matching profession and Russell’s involvement, but that’s more than enough to make them relatives in Tarantino’s shared universe. For our money, Stuntman Randy is the father of Stuntman Mike and his brother, Bob — as ol’ Randy’s a bit too long in the tooth to be anyone else.

3 Archie And “English” Pete Hicox

In case it hasn’t became readily apparent by now, Tarantino’s shared universe is overrun with biologically-related characters. For further proof (as if more was needed), look no further than Inglourious Basterds’ Archie Hicox and his great-great-grandfather, The Hateful Eight’s “English” Pete Hicox.

It’s interesting to note that British marine Archie stands out as one of the few unequivocally heroic figures in Tarantino’s canon, whereas “English” Pete is as unsavory a character as any dreamed up by the director. Yet despite being separated by their vastly different moral codes, the pair do have at least one thing in common: both men ultimately come off second best once the bullets start flying.

2 Mr. White And Alabama

In Reservoir Dogs, we learn that smooth operator Mr. White has an associate named Alabama, who he describes as “a good little thief.” At the time, viewers dismissed this as a throwaway line, but it turned out Tarantino had bigger plans for Alabama, as she subsequently serves as the female lead in True Romance (penned by Tarantino but helmed by Tony Scott).

That’s not the only link between True Romance and Tarantino’s wider continuity. Inglourious Basterds’ Staff Sergeant Donny Donowitz is the father of True Romance’s seedy film producer Lee Donowitz, a decidedly less intimidating fella than his old man.

1 Doctor Shultz’s Wife

When the Bride is buried alive in Kill Bill: Volume 2, the grave she’s dumped in bears the headstone of Paula Schultz, who passed away in 1898. Right now, you’re probably thinking “so what?” — unless you’ve recently watched Django Unchained. If you have, Paula’s surname will sound very familiar, as it’s the same as that of Django’s friend and mentor, bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz.

So, are these two related? Well, the general fan theory is that Paula was King’s wife — although Tarantino has never officially confirmed this (to our knowledge, at least). Even so, King’s demise in Django — set in 1858, 40 years before Paula’s death — matches Kill Bill’s description of Paula’s gravesite as “lonely”, further bolstering the strength of this theory.

NEXT: All Of Quentin Tarantino’s Opening Scenes, Ranked

source https://screenrant.com/quentin-tarantino-movies-same-shared-universe/

#screenrant

[distancewillfixthis-deactiv-blog]

Coffee Shop Family Dinner: Part I.

distancewillfixthis

“Alrigh’… you guys ready?”

“Are /you?/” Stepping outside of Galway’s black Audi and closing the door behind him, Ewan gave his older brother a challenging look from over the hood of the car; brows quirked, lips curled in a smile; only to find Galway not half as amused, brows pulled together in something that looked like restrained concern.

“Alreet, alreet – divvin’ get up a height.” He clapped the man’s shoulder as he stepped past him, “mum and I ganen be canny.”

“Speak fer yoursell.” Fiona, having stepped out of the back seat beside her oldest son, stopped to gently rest her hand on Galway’s large bicep before tilting her head back as to catch his gaze. With herself punching in at 5’3 and her youngest at 5’8 – suffice it to say the height must’ve come from Galway’s father’s side of the family. “It ganen be alreet, duck. There’s nothing abou’ you fer his paren’s no’ tae like.”

“I know, I know…” he didn’t, really – but what else could his mother have to say to him? “Jus’---“

“You want ‘em tae like you. ‘Course you dee. But you’ve go’a stop worryen, alreet? It won’t dee you any good.”

“Righ’, bu’, mum…”

“Aye, aye – speek /English./” Rolling her eyes, she finally let her arm drop back to her side before following Ewan across the driveway – Galway soon to follow. “You knew, if anythen, /I/ should be a-one offended by /your/ accent.”

Having stopped at the foot of the few steps leading to the front door, Ewan crossed his arms over his chest and waited for his brother to lead the way. “If anythen, our English is more propah than theirs.”

Stepping past, Galway sighed; pausing as to give his brother one final look of warning. Perhaps, if things were being misunderstood, it was better to address Ewan speaking his own language. “Divvin’ be a workyticke’.”

With that, he smoothed over the nonexistent creases in the front of his sweater; all too used to tending to his suit; before stepping up to the front door and giving it a few soft knocks. /Please remember you promised you’d answer the door for us. Please, please, please./

ikepostle

Isaac had been expecting a text. The longer he went without one, the more nervous he became -- which was strange. The Redman's were very open to this meeting, even his mother, Jackie, who was less than thrilled her son had turned out to be gay... even she could see the importance of such a gathering, and had clucked all day making the house and meal perfect.

 /But why isn't he texting?/

 Leaning against the kitchen counter, Ike was in the process of evaluating his own text message, gauging how worried it sounded, when he heard a soft knock on the door under the gold rock'n'roll playing for the living room. Jackie turned from the stove where she stirred gravy, and Ike beamed a smile her way.

 "I'll get it." She hummed a little sound that Ike found he couldn't read the meaning behind, before he hustled from the kitchen and down the hallway to the front door. He hovered there for a second, resisting the urge to catch a look of himself in the mirror by the stairwell. /Relax/. He grabbed the handle and pulled the door open. Three gingers of varying ages and likeness stood before him, wearing similar expressions... exempting his boyfriend, who looked endearingly nervous.

 "Hey, guys..." He stepped forward to touch Galway's arm. "Hope no one's nervous."

 distancewillfixthis

A thin, tightly-pressed smile that meant nothing but nerves. “No’ too much.”

 “Who could be nervous with such a handsome gadgie welcomen them at the door, ey? Come here and give us a kiss.” Stepping forward, Fiona touched her hand to Isaac’s arm before pushing up on the tips of her toes as to place a small peck on his cheek; patting him ever so slightly when she lowered herself back down to stand on her feet. “Divvin’ you look smashen?” Turning her head, she looked to Galway over her shoulder. “Divvin’ he?”

 “Aye mum.” A small, nervous laughter and a coy glance Isaac’s way, as though meant to apologize for the attention his mother hadn’t stopped lavishing on Isaac from the moment she set foot in the country. “Quite ‘andsome.”

 ikepostle

Isaac smiled warmly, his hand transferring from Galway's arm to Fiona's, holding her steady as he leaned a little to offer his cheek in a little kiss. The custom was strange, but endearing, and he found he had taken a shine to the woman as soon as they had met.

 "Thank you, the pair of you." A soft squeeze to Fiona's arm before he searched for Ewan's gaze. "And you, think I look alright?" His modest smile stretching to a grin.

 distancewillfixthis

“Eh.” Ewan shrugged, waving his hand between them in a gesture meant to indicate so-so. “Personally, I wouldn’t dare leaven me yem withou’ me face on, if I were you.” Then, with a grin equally wide, he offered his open hand to Isaac. “Alreet, man?”

 ikepostle

Isaac was careful not to let it should that he didn't /entirely/ understand just what passed between them. But he was adept enough to read the tone of voice, and gratefully stuck out his hand to give Ewan's a shake. "Mhm. Doing alright. Better now." A little pump of their hands before he stepped back towards Galway and the slightly ajar door. In the living room, he could his father grunt as he stood up, and then the telltale creaks in the old floor as he made his way over. "Showtime.." Ike said softly, casting an encouraging smile in Galway's direaction just before Gordon Redman appeared at the door.

 "Jumpin' Jesus," Gordon said at once, his grey hair hidden under a ballcap, but his smile beaming below the brim. "You gonna keep them out in the weather, Ike? Come on in, then. Don't mind the boy's manners..." His eyes dragged up Galway and the smile remained perfectly even; an older echo of Ike's smile. "You must be the important fella, put her there, Galway." His hand out to grip his.

 distancewillfixthis

Jesus, that was strange – seeing a vague, partial version of Isaac in this man’s face -- stranger, even that a wave of relief should wash over him similar to the same sense of calm Ike induced for him. Then, suppose the answer as to why that was was an easy one – Mr. Redman was being kind, nonjudgemental – and the antsy feeling in his gut mellowed some at the kind words.

 “Mistah Redman, sir.” With a wide smile, however crooked and awkward, not unlike the smile that kept appearing on his face in his and Ike’s first date, he took the offered hand with a strong grip and shook it firmly. “Pleasure’s all mine.”

 ikepostle

"I doubt that," Gordon said companionably. "And Gord suits me better." A sturdy shake, despite the way Galway's hands engulfed the other. Another moment before Gordon looked around the group, his gaze settling on that of a short woman who held much of the beauty and /Englishness/ Gordon had been expecting. "And you must be..."

 "Fiona." Ike offered.

 "Right, thanks. Fiona." He reached to shake her hand as well. "You folk enjoying your trip?"

 distancewillfixthis

“Aye, very much so, Gord.” Shameless, lips curled in her own cheeky little smirk, the small ginger woman accepted the offered hand with a shake much gentler than that of her firstborn. “It’s absolutely lovely up here, your yem -- excuse me, your /home/ included.” A pause, only a few seconds long, as she turned her head to glance at Ewan before returning her full attention to the man before her. “Me youngest -- Ewan.”

 “Very kind’a you to have us, sir.” Hurriedly, perhaps a tad too much so, the young man extended his hand for a shake.

 ikepostle

"Wait 'til you see inside, reserve your judgement." He wasn't unaware how tacky his home could be. Due, mostly in part, to his wife and the way she collected knickknacks from thrift shops and church benefits. Little porcelain statues and too many mirrors and clocks decorated most of the walls and shelves. The smell of lavender and wild flowers often times strong enough to force Gord out on the back patio for his morning coffee. But it was home... a warning was still necessary.

 He turned to give the younger lad a good shake. "Glad of you to make time for us. Most families around here don't meet until the marriage." He tipped a friendly wink at Galway while he released Ewan's hand. "It's a treat, to be sure."

 distancewillfixthis

“O’-- uh --“ Already stuttering, Galway fiddled about with a paper bag he’d carried from the car – before retrieving a bottle of liquor and crumpling the bag in his free hand. “From us --well, from mum -- all the way from Sco’land. Best whiskey there is.”

 “Hope it isn’t too presumptuous.” Fiona added with a small modest smile of her won. “Just tha’ we’re from the northeast and, well… you knew wha' they say abou' us Limeys. We drink like we divvin’ want tae live.”

  ikepostle

"Oh, wow..." Gordon took the bottle and read over the label while Fiona spoke. He offered her a vaguely quizzical look, though his smile didn't diminish in the slightest for it. Ike was peeking over his shoulder to have a look.

 "Looks tasty. We should spread some shots around before Leah gets home."

 "Good idea, son. Thanks for this. Let's get you rabble inside now, come on. Jackie'll be chompin' at he bit to meet you."

 distancewillfixthis

With an equally quizzical look and honest smile, Fiona dipped her head in agreement before stepping closer to Gordon and gesturing her head towards the general living room area. “Lead the way then, Gord.”

 The tips of his fingers brushing only barely against the back of Ike’s wrist, Galway shot him a short look before grabbing at the hem of his sleeve and keeping him from following the rest as Gordon showed them away from the door. Voice but a hush, he breathed, “C’mere a moment…”

 ikepostle

Gordon led them inside, and Ike could hear them walking towards the kitchen while his dad explained the meal they had prepared for them later. His voice trailed off as he stepped closer to his boyfriend, bright blue eyes looking curiously up into his face.

 "What's up, babe?"

 distancewillfixthis

“Nothin’…” with a /but/ clearly soon to come, he smiled, faint and soft, before taking Isaac’s hand in his; voice still low and quiet, meant for the other’s ears alone. “‘cept me mum stole that kiss at the door…”

 ikepostle

"Oh, okay... " His hand tightened over Galway's, squeezing at him affectionately. "You're welcome to steal your own..." He leaned up, pressing a kiss to his bearded chin...

 distancewillfixthis

Dipping his head, free hand rising to caress Ike’s strong jaw, he kissed softly at his upper lip; pulling back only momentarily before pressing another kiss against his lips; and a third… and a fourth… “Missed you, you know?”

 ikepostle

His smile softening as the kisses kept coming, lips needfully pursing to take as much of that affection as possible. "Missed you, too. Weird not sleeping in our place." Because even if Galway is gone for the night, his smell is still there, all their stuff is still there... "You look really nice, too. My Mom's gonna wonder how I got so lucky."

 distancewillfixthis

Clicking his tongue in a dismissive manner at the compliment, he remained close still, mouth hovering not too far from Ike’s, fingers intertwining in his. “Stop it. I’m already swea’in’ bullets…” But a smile was stretched across his lips nevertheless, soft and smitten, and he plucked yet another modest kiss from Isaac’s lips. “Think your folks are doin’ alrigh’ with those two? I’ve told them to cool it with the accent, bu’… migh’ need a transla’or still.”

ikepostle

He laughed softly, leaning up for another kiss, which he stole. "Oh, they'll be fine...funny they should meet my mom before you do..." And then another kiss before he sort of leaned away to look at his boyfriend seriously. "You have nothing to worry about, okay? My mom... she's hard to read. Just stay just as you are, okay? She'll warm up... Especially with that booze..."

 distancewillfixthis

He couldn’t help but make his small huffy noises at that -- though he knew, however vaguely, about the complex relationship there – the fact that Isaac should still try and encourage and reassure him was exactly what he needed at that moment, more than the meaning of the words themselves – the mere notion that he was there for him, had his back. Blindly, he reached and took the man’s other hand in his as well. “Don’t worry abou’ it. I’m sort of trained to ‘andle stressful situations.”

 ikepostle

Ike laughed, and gave both of his hands a little squeeze. This was different, they both knew that. But he wouldn't say as much. He just leaned up for a final kiss before leading him back into the house. "Well, let's meet the ol' hen and get it over with... oh, don't tell her I called her that..."

 distancewillfixthis

“Me lips are sealed.” Hand wrapped tightly around Isaac’s, he followed; the faint, muffled voices of his mother and Gordon and a new, third voice coming from the kitchen. The smile remained on his face still; partially because Isaac was holding his hand still; partially because he had been instructed to remain just the way he is, and intended to do just that.

 ikepostle

Holding Galway's hand, Ike led them to the kitchen. His father sat at the round table tucked into the corner next to Fiona, then Ewan on her other side. His mother stood by the stove inspecting the bottle Galway's family at brought over. She blinked up the the men as they entered. Her grey eyes scanned over Isaac's boyfriend without expression. Ike felt his stomach twist a little. But then just smiled a little.

 "Hi, boys."

 "Hey, Mom."

 "Well, introduce us." Voice neutral, no malice to detect anywhere. She set the bottle on the counter-top.

 "This is Galway, Mom. Galway, this is Mom. Jackie."

 distancewillfixthis

“Missus Redman, ma’am.” Smile still very much fixed on his lips, very much bright and natural, he extended a large palm her way. In truth, he felt as though he were being examined; not unlike the several taxing tests and exams he had to take to get into the agency. Still, he had coursed through those; he could course through this with a smile on his face. “Thank you for ‘avin’ us all ‘ere. Been wai’in’ for this day a long while.”

 ikepostle

She reached her hand to shake his. A delicate shake, but not dainty. "Is that so?" She turned away only to retrieve a stack of shot glasses on the highest shelf.

 "Lemme get those, dear---"

 "Sit down, it's alright." She snatched them and set them on the counter. She addressed Galway over her shoulder. "You know, you're the first gentleman Isaac has ever brought home. I'm not sure if that says something about him, or you."

 "Or us." Gord added. Jackie gave him a loving, patient look.

 distancewillfixthis

“I can only ‘ope it’s the la’er, ma’am.” Though the smile was still present, he could feel his face begin to grow warm – which only went to make him more nervous which, in turn, only worsened the burning sensation that spread all the way down his neck and across his chest. The first man Isaac had ever brought home, to his religious mother… he felt the small box in the pocket of his trousers press into his hip and swallowed. Please let this night go well. /Please./

 “Isaac is the first gen’leman Galway’s ever introduced to us.” Fiona pitched in with a modest smile on her lips. “Mebbies it says somewhat about the both of ‘em.”

 ikepostle

Perhaps too old to be entirely polite, Gordon chuckled at that word and repeated it in a warm, humourous tone, "mebbies. I've taken I liking to that straight away." Jackie at once rolled her eyes in a dramatic way, her contribution to the joke before during back to the bottle of liquor.

 "Ike, dear, open this for me, would you? I was in the garden all day and my knuckles are spent."

 "Sure, Mom." He cast a smile to Galway before making his way to the counter with his mother.

 Jackie went on. "Isaac said you work for the government?"

 distancewillfixthis

The entirety of the redheads present in the room smiled at Gordon’s taking to their clearly strange ways, as Galway has been sure to make evident. Fiona gave a soft chuckle before leaning back in her seat. Galway had certainly been more a handful than his younger brother – more a workyticket – but on occasions – for example, every time he stated his profession – it seemed to be all worth it. She had done well with her boys, all things considered, hasn’t she.

 “Yes, ma’am.” Though his hands gathered in the small of his back immediately in the military at-ease position, he attempted to shift his weight to just one leg as not to appear so stiff. “Field agen’ for the CIA.”

ikepostle

"Sounds like dangerous work." She said absently, though with a touch of respect. By comparison, her children had not reached such levels. The one beside her spent more time volunteering his money than spending it. And the other, well, she was barely capable of taking care of herself. Jackie felt a touch of shame, but wouldn't let her eyes drop from the massive man standing in her kitchen. "I'm sure it keeps you busy."

 "Not too busy," Ike interjected. "He does good work. So I don't mind if he stays out late some nights." Gordon laughed politely and Jackie's mouth formed a small smile. "These are ready." The shots lined up primly. "Here you go, Fiona. Ewan." He stepped close passing a small glass to each.

 distancewillfixthis

“Much apprecia’ed, pet.” Said Fiona with a slight dip of her head; a faint ‘cheers, ma’e’ from Ewan; Galway watching Isaac lovingly but silently all the while. He had been so forgiving of his work, of the long hours and secrecy and, well… other things he currently did not want to think about -- he had to resist the urge to take Isaac’s hand in his yet again but, rather, opted to help serve everyone with their drinks.

 “Wha’ shall we toas’ to, then?”

 ikepostle

"Red-heads." Ike said at once, grinning. He moved to stand closer to Galway, touching his spare hand to the small of his back just barely.

 "Seconded." Gord said around a sniff. "Sure smells toxic. My years tell me that's a good thing. What was it you said about this stuff, Fiona? Northern delight?"

 distancewillfixthis

“I divvin’ knew abou’ deligh’…” She joked, smiling brightly at the flattering toast. “To redheads, then. And to fam’lies.”

 “I’ll cheer to tha’.” Albeit something of a wild card – Galway’s mother always seemed to know the right thing to say and, for a moment, he let the full gravity of this gathering sink down in the deep of his chest. Raising his own glass, he leaned only slightly into Isaac’s hand; watching him momentarily from the corner of his eye and smiling softly.

 ikepostle

It felt corny, the whole thing. Felt sentimental and cheesy and wonderful. Nothing from this family felt forced, and the meshing would be inevitable. Ike could see that now, as he took the shot in one healthy gulp. It burned like a bitch and he, admittedly, gave a little cough. His father made a chuckling sound a signaled for another, which Jackie moved to attend to.

 "Hey, Mom... when did Leah say she'd be home?"

 "She didn't."

 "Huh?"

 "She didn't say. 'However long it takes', were her words. You know how those things go." She handed her husband another shot and looked at Fiona and Ewan in turn. "My daughter's a drug addict. She's at one of those 12 step---"

 "Jackie---" His shot halted hovering between his mouth and the table. "Leah's just got a bed of issues. She's on the mend. Staying here until she's back on her feet."

 distancewillfixthis

There fell silence in the room, all eyes given to the three adults seated and standing by each other; Ewan utterly dumbstruck; Galway slowly swallowing the shot that has been stuck in his throat and reaching his own hand to creep behind Isaac’s back and rest finally on the curve of his waist. So that was the reason why she were staying with their folks… fuck. What did one even say to something like that?

 “We divvin’ judge.” Fiona replied simply, meeting Gordon’s gaze, then Jackie’s, with shameless confidence and honesty. “Everyone has their struggles. God knoos this fam’ly isn’t perfect.” Momentarily, she glanced at both her boys; the one by her side and the one standing beside his spouse; before leaning back in her seat and turning back to the Redman parents. “She’s here now, and she’s tryen, and tha’s wha’ truly counts. Righ’?”

 ikepostle

"We'll see." Jackie said at once. Leah had tried before, and had fallen on her ass just as many times. And at her age, you start to wonder whether she wanted to get better at all, or if it was simply easier to become a slave to this touch-and-go lifestyle. The ups and downs were as addictive as the drugs, or so Jackie believed.

 "She's a good kid, we weren't taking digs at her." Gordon resumed, casting a look at Jackie. "And you know it isn't 12 Step. Those bible humpers insist she can't ever have fun again. That's not the way to master an issue. Just makes her a walkin' timebomb."

 "An alternative program," Ike said, leaning into Galway a little. "Nothing spiritual. Think it's just sitting around telling stories and stuff. I don't know. She doesn't talk about it too much."

 distancewillfixthis

“We’ll all be ‘appy to meet ‘er, regardless.” Giving a small squeeze to Ike’s middle, Galway cast a cautious look around the room. Pausing, even if only secondly; he had to consider his words heavily. This was the worst possible time there could ever be to bring /that/ particular subject up… and yet, he felt as though there was something he had to put to words. “I mean… no’ to sound presumptuous, bu’… I mean, I love your son, Mis’er Redman, Missus. I’m… pre’y sure tha’s it for me. I don’t plan on goin’ nowhere. So… S’ppose wha’ I’m tryin’a say is, Leah’s me own fam’ly, too, now.”

 ikepostle

Another silence met the room. This one had Jackie glancing briefly to her husband, who was looking proudly at the man his son was leaning again. Ike had turned and twisted his neck to look at Galway properly.

 "That's really good of you to say, Galway." At his name, Ike's voice broke a bit, and he hurriedly swallowed, before any emotion could overwhelm him. But his eyes did prickle, far at the back, and he leaned up quickly to press a kiss to the corner of his mouth.

 "Very kind," Jackie said. Her smile was soft, but more warm than it had been all evening. "We appreciate that sort of kindness here. Very Catholic of you."

 distancewillfixthis

He smiled a thin smile, and though it was not dishonest; it was definitely tinged with something more other than happiness and humor. Anxiety, perhaps, at the sudden burst of honesty and emotion; perhaps simply because he had expected this bringing together of families to go… well, more smoothly. Suppose some things were out of his control; suppose this is as smooth as it got, considering the circumstances.

 “Well, mum raised us on good Christian values, ma’am.” The fact that he’d bailed on said Christianity before he were even ten was perhaps a story for a different time; and even then, it remained true nevertheless. Rubbing the curve of Ike’s waist in retort to the small kiss, his smile grew slightly broader. “An’ I’ll be ‘onored to become a part o’ this fam’ly, if you’ll ‘ave me.”

 ikepostle

Jackie cast a new look in Fiona's direction. Something not laden with jealousy or scrutiny, but something softer, something a little more proud. A Christian family, then. That would do alright.

 /We'll have you/, Ike thought.

 Gordon sat at the table still, spinning his shot glass idly. "You make the kid happy, then you're welcome to stay as long as you like." He grinned and looked at his wife. "Isn't that right, Jack? Think we could repeal that rule about girls in Ike's room? Or, gentlemen, rather?"

 "Gordon!" But there was that warmth again, as she turned from the group and attended to the food cooking in and on top of the stove.

 distancewillfixthis

Fiona met Jackie’s gaze; not so much with a sense of familiarity – but perhaps, with the slight sort of warmth that came with a shared secret. She too had tried raising her children the wholesome Christian way – and though she did not exactly think she had /failed/ in that – suffice it to say her sons, the oldest in particular, had made their own way. If anything, she felt proud of Galway in this moment – proud of the man that reckless scrawny boy had become.

 At Godron’s words, however, Galway’s smile stretched into a full-blown grin, and he made a quiet huffing sound and looked shortly Isaac’s way. His family would have him -- or Gordon would, in any case, and Jackie did not protest -- which was just as well. “Thank you, sir… Gord. I apprecia’e tha’.” Now that some of the tension had been lifted – surprisingly, by yet another of his overtly-open confessions (well, it /was/ how he’d gotten Ike, wasn’t it?) – things felt a little lighter. “Would you be needin’ any ‘elp with anythin’, ma’am?”

ikepostle

“I'm almost done. Would you boys would bring those dishes to the living room and set up..." Gordon pushed up from his spot at the table and Jackie at once turned to him. "Not you, old man..."

"Mind yourself, woman. I'm just checkin' the whiskey." He gave her side a little squeeze as he went to inspect the bottle again.

Ike untangled from Galway and grabbed some plated from the counter and gestured with his chin to the utensils.

"Grab those, would you, babe?"

distancewillfixthis

“I wouldn’t mind another shot mesell, Gord, if you’d be so kind.” Fiona’s voice fading somewhat behind them as Galway grabbed the silverware and followed Isaac to the living room. Gaze turned downwards as he arranged them carefully along each plate Ike placed on the table, his lips curled in a soft, faint smile.

“You know all I said in there was jus’ to win your fam’ly over, righ’? I mean, no’ tha’ I actually love you or anythin’.”

ikepostle

Ike laughed lowly and spared a glance over his shoulder to his boyfriend. He had appreciated how well he had handled Ike’s mother. And while he could have said nothing at all, it had meant a lot to Ike how open Galway had been.

“Deceit and manipulation? Now /that’s/ very Catholic of you.”

distancewillfixthis

“Mind, mum’s Anglican.” As in, not quite Catholic. As in, only mum. He’d expressed his disdain and disheartenment with the church from a pretty young age; and though Ewan still accompanied their mother on Sundays once every few weeks, he was pretty certain his younger brother did that mostly for Fiona’s sake than anything else. “Bu’ I figured, why ruin the moment, ey?”

ikepostle

“It’s all the same to us outsiders, isn’t it.” He spoke absently, shaken for a moment, before redirecting his attention fully on Galway. “You did really good out there. That was the first test. And I think you thawed her a bit.”

distancewillfixthis

“Babe.” Placing the last of the utensils in its appropriate place, he moved away from the table and turned to face Isaac properly, both hands reaching to rest on his hips and draw him closer. He met his gaze, not heavy-headedly, but seriously. “I meant it, though, yea’? I mean this. I love you. No ma'er ‘ow or 'o your fa'mly is or 'ow they take to me…”

ikepostle

Ike’s arms went out, wrapping around Galway’s shoulders, and never once did his eyes ever pull from his. He was happy to look at him, even if the back of his eyes were pricking a little. “I love you, too. And.. I know. I know this is a heavy night but… but it doesn’t really matter either. I love you. You’re everything.” He leaned in to peck his chin. “It’s bonus if everything goes well.”

distancewillfixthis

“Exactly.” Lips curling in a soft smile, he dipped his head as to catch Ike’s lips in his own for but a brief moment. /I love you. You’re everything./ He wanted this night to be special, memorable – wanted both their loved ones to witness this special moment he’s planned for months – and yet… he found it took incredibly amounts of self-restraint not to get down on one knee right then and there.

“For wha’ it’s worth, love – you ain’t go'a talk to me abou’ these things, bu’, if you want… you know you can, yea’?”

ikepostle

He was touched. It seemed, from the very start, it was easy to feel so moved with Galway. He knew his way in, and he knew how to stay there. He tightened his hold around Galway’s head and leaned a little closer.

“I know. I just… I don’t know what to say most of the time.”

distancewillfixthis

“That’s alrigh’.” Hands snaking their way around Ike’s middle to the small of his back, he made one little step into him; dipping his head once more as to press a soft kiss to the space above Isaac’s upper lip. “Even if you don’t say nothin'… you’re no’ alone. Alrigh’?”

ikepostle

“I know.” He said again, this time speaking through a smile as he leaned up to kiss properly at his boyfriend. he tasted like that whiskey, and, without surprise, Ike thought it tasted much better off of his lips. “Let’s get back before they wonder if I’ve kidnapped you up to my room… there really was a no girls allowed rule you know…”

distancewillfixthis

“Good thing I’m no girl, then.” Smile so wide it seemed almost painful, he stole one last, hurried kiss before finally allowing his hands to slowly drop from around Ike’s middle and back to his own sides. “I’d still like to see it… where you grew up 'n all.”

ikepostle

“Sure you’ll get a chance. After dinner or something I can take you up there. Mom got sort of creepy with it and preserved most of our… stuff…” he trailed off when he heard the front door open, gaze drifting from Galway and looking towards the entrance to the room. The front hallway intersected there and he saw a shadow on the wall. He smiled brightened.

“Leah?”

“Hm? Ike?”

“Come on,” Ike said to Galway, grabbing him by the hand and taking him towards the front door. “Big sissy is back…” The two men rounded the corner and Leah stood looking at them. She looked thin, almost gaunt, and the sight, despite how Ike had become accustomed, always startled him a little. He revealed none of that on his face. Her dyed black hair was tied back in a messy bun, unkempt curls hanging down her neck and by her ears; a smudge of makeup over each eye casting them dark, darker than her hoodie, which was a faded black. She had blue jeans on and ancient looking sneakers.

But she smiled when she saw them, and Ike smiled right back.

“Ikie…” Her voice was scratchy, like she had smoked too much and drank too little that day. And when she leaned in to hug her little brother, he got a full whiff of the cigarette scent. “Look at you, not even bothered to dress up?”

“And leave /you/ sticking out like a sore thumb?”

distancewillfixthis

In truth, she looked nothing like he’d imagined. She was gruffer than Isaac who, despite the tattoos and bleached hair and band shirts, had a soft quality to his features; his eyes and lips, mostly, promised a soft kindness… this he knew all before ever even having asked him out that morning at the café. He probably just imagined Ike shorter, with longer hair and a pair of breasts – and though realizing how foolish that had been, the difference was still striking.

It did nothing, however, to take the smile off his face or the red from his cheeks; and he waited, patiently and silently, for Isaac to introduce him; not wanting to butt in or ruin the moment which obviously meant something to the both of them.

ikepostle

“Don’t get smart,” she intoned, though there was no steel in her tone. They squeezed again and stepped back, taking the moment to look each other over. It was startling how happy her little brother looked; insane that he was even capable of such a thing. He was just like their dad – how easy it was to see as they grew up.

“This is Galway,” Ike blurted out, lacking all his usual tact. “My boyfriend.”

“No shit,” she said, though she turned her smile, somewhat dimmer, to the man next to her brother.

He was gorgeous. Tall, as she liked them. His colouring was fair, his freckles soft and worked to temper a dangerous face. But how gentle he seemed, standing politely and decently in his sweater, which did nothing to hide the hard forms of his muscles just below. He looked so damn healthy. So put together and real and far beyond anyone either her or Isaac were suited for. What the fuck?

“Hey, I’m Leah.” /No shit/. Unconsciously, she pulled the sleeves of her hoodie down, hiding the track marks along her forearms. “How tall are you?”

distancewillfixthis

“Six foot seven. Nice to meet you, too.” Sporting a crooked little smirk of his own; it took a bit of thinking to resolve that he, eventually, would not be extending his hand to her. The gesture felt too official and awkward, while a hug felt much too personal. “Ike’s been really lookin’ forward to you ge'in’ 'ere.”

ikepostle

She was relieved when he didn’t offer to shake. Hadn’t Ike said he was an F.B.I agent? Probably could read body language or something. Had to figure she didn’t want to touch him… maybe that’s why he liked Ike. There was no hiding his desires either.

“Has he?” A shadow of a playful look at Ike while she bent down to slip out of her sneakers. “You guys eaten yet?” She looked at Galway. Ike remained quiet.

distancewillfixthis

“O’ – no, we were jus’ se'in’ up the table.” Turning from her only shortly, he glanced towards the kitchen for no particular reason, “Rest o’ the fam'ly’s in there… your mum seems to be workin’ pre'y 'ard on dinner.”

ikepostle

“Trying to impress you, I’ll bet.” She stood up again and pushed her shoes aside. She seemed so remarkably small. Strange that she should, given her height, but Ike could help but think she wanted it to be that way. So small she disappeared. His heart ached a little.

She went on. “I got off the bus about six blocks down 'cause I wanted to skip this shit…” She stopped when she saw Ike’s face fall. “Not /this shit/… just the dinner. Mom watches me too much. She thinks I’m bullimic or something.”

“She doesn’t.” She’s just worried, he wanted to say.

“She thinks /something/.”

Ike shrugged and looked up at Galway, then back to Leah. “We could come grab you for dessert. Say you’re having a tub.”

“Do I need a tub?” She smiled.

“No.” It looked like there was more to say but it was strange. Different somehow, than it always had been. And not due to Galway, but due to all that stuff she was going through but never shared.

“'kay, thanks, Ikie.” She looked at Galway, was again taken back by his size. “Good to meet you. I’ll talk with you guys in a bit.”

distancewillfixthis

Suppose he couldn’t blame her. Suppose he wouldn’t quite be up to being intently observed by his mother and having dinner with a bunch of strangers that had little to do with him were he in her condition – yet he couldn’t help but feel something pinch at his heart nevertheless. Perhaps he’d gotten it all wrong. Perhaps tonight wasn’t the right night… perhaps he ought to propose privately.

Modest smile still present he dipped his head in a small, single nod. “See you la'er.”

Turning back to Ike, he kept the smile still and his thoughts to himself. “We should probably 'ead back.”

ikepostle

“Yeah,…” He watched her go and felt a little disheartened. He couldn’t blame her, but he supposed it would always be strange, seeing just a shadow of the former person. The thought brought him some shame. It ws harder for her. Scarier, too. But he just wanted her there so badly. He sighed and looked up at Galway. “Did she look okay? Like… I can’t tell anymore. I can’t take myself out of it.”

distancewillfixthis

“She looked like wha’ I would imagine a junkie looks like.” Voice kept soft and quiet, he saw no point in softening the truth; if anything, he figured Isaac would appreciate a bit of honesty. Reaching up to touch at the man’s arm, hips lips twisted in something apologetic. “Babe…”

ikepostle

He hated that word. But it was true. Maybe he had just been hoping his eyes were too critical. When he turned to look at Galway again, he was smiling faintly, and already leaning up to kiss at the underside of his chin. “It’s alright. It’s good seeing her, not matter what…”

distancewillfixthis

“I’m glad.” And truthfully, he was – because this night wasn’t about him. Or rather, it was, he supposed – but, in his mind, the whole thing was about making Isaac happy. They were good, alright – they were pretty fucking amazing, to be perfectly honest. But the guilt that had built up inside him for all the shit he’d put the man though had yet to release its tight clench of his heart – no matter how many times Ike had told him he’d forgiven him. It wasn’t about forgiveness, not at all. It was about… well, redemption, in lack of a better word. About truly making up for it… about promising he would never do it again.

Smile finding some of its way back to his lips, he squeezed and rubbed at Isaac’s arm before placing yet another kiss to the top of his head. “She’s no’ wha’ I imagined at all.”

ikepostle

Something inherently soothing about this man. He took his large, calloused palm and smoothed it carefully over the fold and creases in Ike's life until things seemed... better. He kissed at his chest. "No? What'd you think?" And then a laugh. "She's sort of /both/ my parents, isn't she."

  distancewillfixthis

“’onestly? I’m not sure.” There was something of a relief in being just the two of them again – a reassurance that had made the purpose of this night clear in his mind again. Who gave a fuck whether this dinner went well? Well -- him, obviously, Galway gave a fuck, and he was pretty certain Ike did, too -- and yet, at the same time, he found he could give no fucks at all. It was about the two of them and nothing more. Smiling, he allowed a hand to selfishly disappear in the man’s bleached-blond hair and his lips to press to his hairline. “Doesn’t ma’er, anyway.”

ikepostle

A purring noise to accompany the petting, his smile lazy and and somehow relieved. "No, I guess it doesn't. Hope she has the courage to come down later..." But he was distracted from that already, finding comfort in this man's warmth. "Have I told you how wonderful you---"

  "Was that your sister?" Jackie's voice close-by. Ike turned to look towards the kitchen and his mother stood there. He disengaged from Galway, took his hand, and led him back down that way.

  "Yeah, I think she's gonna shower."

  "I should check on her..." "

  Mom, it's alright. Just give her a few minutes." He squeezed Galway's hand. Behind his mother, he could hear his dad talking with Ewan.

  "You're still in school, I'd wager?"

  distancewillfixthis

"Just gradua'ed, si… Gord. Law and economics." Evidently as unused to a first-name basis as Galway, Ewan smiled, as happy as anyone to be an active part of the conversation. "Taken a year tae dee me internship, then gannen go back for me masters."

  "Showoff." Hand still wrapped tightly around Isaac's, Galway could not say he were all too happy for the change of topic.

  "Oi, so you're allowed tae be a workyticket?"

  "/Boys/ - behave." Though it is not without a smile that Fiona catches Galway's gaze with her own, she sighs and clicks her tongue and turns her attention back to the Redman parents. "You'd think they'd grew up at some point…"

ikepostle

"They've earned their playfulness," Jackie said softly. She was impressed with Fiona's boys, and perhaps a little to distracted with her own daughter to carefully examine her own words. "Both so busy..." She left the room, carrying the roast to the dining room table.

 Gordon picked up the slack. "So, a lawyer, then?" He laughed. "I don't know shit -- pardon me -- don't know /much/ about law school. Our rabble hardly graduated high school, and I only dabbled in trades long enough to get an apprenticeship. Never went the book-learning route."

  distancewillfixthis

“Well -- Galway only went ‘cause it was a requiremen’ tae ge’ in the CIA…” Not that it made his brother’s studies any lesser, however true.

 “Yea’. Pre’y much made meself scarce the momen’ I could.”

 “--- and I love hearen mesell talk, so I figured, why no’ make some money off it.” Not without a small, soft laughter, Ewan shrugged; the trade was not particularly interesting (well, it was, had become interesting – but it was not as though he’d /dreamed/ of being a lawyer) so much as it was safe. “Bu’ if you ever need any labor or corpora’e law advise, give us a call.”

ikepostle

"Shame. Got nothing corporate, but Jackie's been looking for a divorce lawyer for thirty-eight years now." Gordon replied lightly, loud enough so his wife, who just entered the kitchen again, could hear clearly. "Isn't that right, my dear?"

    "Would you make yourself usefull and mash those potatoes, Gord?" Jackie quipped back -- but her tension had dissolved. Gordon always managed to relax her.

  "Yes, my dear. Ike show the O'Doyle's to the table. Grab that whiskey on the way, would you.."

  "Sure, Dad. Hope you guy's are starved. Mom's made three different types of potatoes..." He stepped away from Galway and touched softly at Fiona's shoulder as she stood. "We have wine, Fiona, if you'd prefer...?"

    distancewillfixthis

"Famished. Everythen smells delightful, Jackie." Spoken at the other woman over her shoulder, Fiona then turned to look up at Isaac with a soft smile. Though her boys might have looked better /on paper,/ that was where the differences ended; she could not have been happier with Galway's choice in spouse, could not have been happier with this young man and the way he treated both herself and her son. "I'm sure I'll be alreet with wha'ever your mother's haven."

ikepostle

Ike smiled down to her warmly, his hand still touching her shoulder, though not urging her at all. Strange to say he felt part of the family the moment he had met the O'Doyle's... but he had. The pair of them had been so welcoming, so kind... almost grateful. Though Ike couldn't imagine why.

 "I'll grab some wine glasses, then." In the dining room, which in truth was just a small extension of the living room with a large oval table, Ike gestured around with a small wave of his hand. "Sit wherever. We never stay in the same place, so there's no rules."

  distancewillfixthis

“The way I like it.” Said Fiona as she followed him to the dining room, allowing her youngest to pick a seat at random before she took the chair next to his. The answer to Isaac’s questions, albeit unknown to her, were simple: he made Galway happy and, well, wasn’t a twat. Those were the only two qualities that should have ever mattered in her sons’ choice of spouses. “Hew long has it been since you moved ou’, Isaac?”

 ikepostle

Isaac stopped himself in the open door frame and popped a hip against it while he thought that over. He had moved out before he graduated high school, and had consequently flunked out. A few years later he took the courses he needed to, but that had been in another state. Suppose that was a different question entirely.

 "Over a decade and a half." He shrugged, still leaning. "Have dinner with the folks when I can, though." As he spoke, a brown fluffy cat pressed up against his ankle. He nudged the thing to make it go away and it crossed to Galway's leg to nuzzle him. "Galway, Ewan, what you guys drinking? Beer's fine?"

 distancewillfixthis

“Wey aye, man.”

 “Fine by me.” Muttering as he folded his knees under him, Galway bent down as to give the cat the attention it sought. Stroking its fur with both large hands, he looked out to the room; his (future fiancé) boyfriend, then his mother, who was speaking again.

 “It’s very… homely. I’m sure Galway told you how the boys grew up…” the tone of her voice was not quite shameful – though perhaps a bit hesitant. “It’s impor’ant to have a yem -- home -- that feels like one.”

 “’e does, mum. With me.” Smiling, Galway watched Ike from the corner of his eye.

ikepostle

With only the reluctance of a man filled with unstoppable fondness towards another man's sweetness, Ike pulled his eyes away from Galway and looked to his boyfriend's mother. His mouth opened to speak but Galway beat him to it.

 Ike found himself smiling. "You know, once I find somewhere nice. I'll get us out of that flat of his. Too modern, I say. Doesn't matter how many plants I put in there. Looks like a catalogue for niche German apartment decor." He paused. "I'd like a house someday, if we could afford it. A yard... maybe some dogs. Maybe some benches outside Dad could build before arthritis gets the better of him."

 "--- I heard that!" Muffled from the kitchen.

 Ike shrugged again, his gaze thoughtful. "A home, you know, like you said."

 distancewillfixthis

Was Ike about to propose to /him?/ It sure sounded like it, with the way he discussed their future together as though it were obvious – in some suburbia home with a couple of dogs and a garden. It’ll be a fun story to tell friends and family, certainly; though, for now, Galway kept the ring to himself, pressing into his hip through his trousers (tight around him as his knees were still bent, playing with the cat); and gazed lovingly upon his boyfriend, a faint, soft smile curling the corners of his lips.

 “That sounds absolu’ely lovely, pet.” Said Fiona, smile warmer and wider, as she looked up at Ike and reached to place her hand on his forearm and give it a short rub. “In your defense, the fla’ does seem much homier since you moved in.”

ikepostle

"Yeah?" A faint blush touched his cheeks -- at both his gentle confession, and the way it was received. An impulse with it, one he denied, but he could have hugged Fiona there, given her a thank you that wouldn't come close to the gratitude he felt towards her oldest son. "It's a work in progress."

 A soft nudge to Ike's back had him moving barely. His mother shuffled to the table and placed a roast in the very centre. A few pieces had been cut ready to serve. Behind her, Gordon appeared with his mashed potatoes. They both disappeared again and Ike followed. He brought out the scalloped potatoes with his dad brought a salad. Jackie brought wine glasses and wine.

 "Everyone sit," Ike instructed before he ducked out once more. He came back clad with four beers, and handed them out to the men respectively.

 distancewillfixthis

Galway already standing and mouth already hanging open with the unspoken question whether anyone needed any help, he did as he were instructed and took the vacant seat beside his mother’s other side; expecting, of course, that Ike would seat beside him. “Everythin’ looks wonderful, Missus Redman.” Accepting the beer with a dip of his head, he placed it beside his plate, untouched.

 “Aye, smells great, Jackie.” Fiona agreed, gaze following the Redmans as they stepped in and out of the dining room. “You shouldn’t have gan through all this trouble.”

 ikepostle

From upstairs, a gush of water signaled the shower starting.

 "It's no trouble," Jackie insisted. She poured her own glass before passing the wine bottle to her husband, who then worked to fill Fiona's glass. Ike had sat down beside Galway, and under the table gave his thigh a squeeze. He looked at him.

 "Don't be modest, babe. Seriously. Eats lots. There's dessert, too..."

 distancewillfixthis

“My, I certainly hope we can work through all this.”

 “Sure Galway’ll manage.” Said Ewan with a crooked smirk; though it seemed as though Galway was paying little attention. Legs spread some so that his own thigh may touch Ike’s, he placed his hand atop his knee and squeezed it as he gave his boyfriend a smile; doing nothing to remove his hand or loosen his grip as he turned back to the table.

 “Still. Thank you for ‘avin’ us all, ma’am.”

 ikepostle

Jackie waved away the thanks with a shake of her hand. Gordon was still standing, serving first his wife, then himself with roast. Ike had only eyes for the man next to him. It was surreal, to be there with their families, together, and so undeniably in love.

 A moment more, of touching, of looking, before Ike retreated enough to grab his beer and pull the scalloped potatoes towards himself.

  "You know, Galway and I have been discussing the prospect of going to school. Me, at least. There are some courses I could take around work... something to lead up to... I don't know. Nursing. Or counseling." Jackie glanced their way. "Just been easier to save up since I moved in..."

 distancewillfixthis

“That sounds like somethen tha’ would be right up your alley.” Fiona commented while Galway, gaze averted as he helped himself to the scalloped potatoes after Ike, said nothing, but smiled on, his knee still touching his boyfriend’s underneath the table. She had refused both her sons’ money when they offered any (though both had managed giving her some regardless of her wishes, either way); but had no trouble with the thought Galway might be the only one paying the rent. Children are not meant to support their parents at such a young age. Spouses, however, were a different story altogether.

 “An’ there won’t be anyone to disturb ‘is studies, with me ‘ours.” Galway joked, serving his mother next.

 ikepostle

Jackie frowned down into her food, but Gordon hooted a little laugh. Upstairs, the shower turned off. "I'd like a picture of the boy studying. I won't believe it until. then. God knows Jackie and I couldn't make him open a textbook up when he was in school, isn't that right, Jack?"

 "Mhm."

 Ike grinned, nudged his boyfriend under the table. "Who do you think is gonna be helping me /with/ all that studying? You make a good tutor, don't you, Red?"

 distancewillfixthis

“Don’t know if /tu’or’s/ the righ’ word… I’m good at givin’ orders an’ makin’ sure people do as they’re told.” Smile ever wider, radiant, he held his plate out for Isaac to take. “Ge’ us some of tha’ roast, will you, duck?”

 “Galway barely made it through high school himsell.” A short glance towards her son, who was still gazing adoringly at his spouse. “Only reason he did was because it was required tae get into the army. Divvin’ suppose it ma’ers much when you divvin’ get much ou’ o’ it.”

ikepostle

Ike was snickering as he loaded up both of their plates with some roast. After he had returned their plates, he passed the potatoes down along the table.

 Gordon perked up a little. "The army?" He thought of his collection of relics in the basement. He spoke to Galway. "Tell us more about that, son. I'd like to hear it."

 distancewillfixthis

“Well…” Galway didn’t tend to boast – that much his family (as in his mother, brother and hopefully soon-to-be fiancé) would all too easily attest to. However, in the same breath, he couldn’t help but admit to himself there /was/ something satisfying in saying, with a smile however apologetic; “I’m afraid most o’ it’s still classified, bu’... spen’ six years in the Bri’ish Special Air Services. Three years trainin’ as a comba’ sniper, then two tours in Afghanistan.”

ikepostle

A slow appreciative whistle from Gordon; and a modest little chuckle from Ike. With his plate full, Ike got to eating, watching his father and boyfriend talk.

 "You don't need me to tell you that's fucking impressive, Galway."

 "Gordon!" Jackie gasped.

 "Sorry, dear. /Damn/ impressive." Gord took a long pull of his beer, still speaking across the table to Galway. "I'm sure you're full of stories, even the ones you can tell." A hearty, wholesome laugh. "And I'd like to hear 'em. Isaac's grandfather, my Pop, was a military man, as well..." He trailed off, as though his mind had wandered down an old familiar path he had not been to for years. He gave his head a little shake. "The transition to C.I.A certainly makes sense, in this light."

  distancewillfixthis

Galway’s shoulders rolled in his quiet, huffy way of laughing, and he had a sip of his own beer. If only Mrs. Redman knew that the more combat you were, the fouler your language became… but not about to tarnish his record for this evening, he looked away only momentarily as he cut himself a piece of the roast. “May I ask where he fough’, Gord?”

 ikepostle

"Vietnam, wasn't it, Dad?"

 "Don't feign interest now, Isaac." With his plate full, Gordon got to cutting up his roast. "But you're right. Proves you were listening. At least a little, when you were younger." A point of his fork at Galway. "Remind me later to show you something away from this crowd. We talk on it more and Jackie'll toss us in the backyard."

 distancewillfixthis

“Understood.” Galway smiled, glancing momentarily at Ike, who was anything but inattentive when listening to stories of his past. The gaze soon returned to the Redman parents, though; settling on Jackie rather than on Gordon. “Bu’ all I’ve done all evenin’ is talk abou’ meself. I’d like to ‘ear a story abou’ Ike, Missus Redman.”

  ikepostle

"Hm." Both Gordon and Jackie uttering the same sound while lapsing into thought. It took a moment, but then Jackie smiled, however dimly. "He was never very good with reading. The doctors said it was his attention span, but we all believed he was just bored with it. Would rather sit with Gord in the backyard or garage."

  A snicker from Gordon that was so like Ike's.

  "They make it sound like I was in my teens. I was like seven." Ike interjected.

  distancewillfixthis

"Can't say I cared much for readin' meself at tha' age." Galway smiled, finally trying the roast as he glanced at his boyfriend from the corner of his eye. "Things like tha' change all the time. All depends on 'ow much you care. The roast is lovely, ma'am."

  ikepostle

A cursory perk of her smile before she tasted her wine.

  Isaac picked up the conversation again. "I did get into reading. We'll thank Mom's Sunday School for that. I would read passages to the group, stuttered my way through, too." This made Gord smile and shake his head.

  "Though he never strove to be very compassionate, despite those readings,..." Jackie said quietly.

  "That's not true." Another voice, female, from the doorway. Leah had showered, but her hair was still knotted high on her head. She wore an old band tee-shirt and a faded grey skirt that went down to just above her knees. "When Mrs. Hopkins had to go into hospice, Ike went there every day after school 'til she passed. Just so she wouldn't be lonely. I think Ike was maybe twelve." "

  Gord frowned. "I don't remember that."

  Leah shrugged the one shoulder not leaning against the door. "I don't think he told anyone but me."

  distancewillfixthis

Though Galway's head turned to look at Isaac's older sister, he said nothing; though he did not manage successfully, entirely stifling the small smile that curled he corners of his lips at the sound of that. True, he himself might have been more accomplished on paper – but it seemed, occasionally, as though his boyfriend wasn't entirely appreciated for all that he was. Though he did not know whether the case was the same for Leah – he couldn't help but feel a tad victorious at the story.

  "You must be Leah." Fiona noted, small smile on her painted lips despite the girl's somewhat grim appearance.

  "O' --- aye. Leah – this is me mum, Fiona; an' me brovah, Ewan."

  ikepostle

Leah nodded her head and lowered her eyes -- some internal animal instinct that had her somewhat ashamed of herself when everyone looked so... together. There wasn't an extra spot at the table for her, and she thought that was something of a blessing.

  She looked at Fiona after a moment. "Hi, good to meet you..." Her eyes dragged to the man next to her.

  She was startled. So different than Galway. And he looked so young! They could tell her that he was sixteen and she would believe it in an instant. "Ewan. E-wahn. Am I saying that right?" Her hand was up, casually, pulling at the hair elastic that held her bun in place.

  distancewillfixthis      

"Yew-an." He corrected with a lopsided smile on his lips, before shaking his head as though to dismiss the error. "That's alreet. Mum's fault fer haven an affini'y fer strange names."

  She looked nothing like Isaac save, perhaps, for their sense of style – older than he had expected (rich coming from him, a man ten years his brother's junior) – darker – not as well adjusted.

  "I'll second tha'." Galway smiled, giving his mother a glance and a crooked smirk before turning to look at Leah again.

  "Will you be joinen us, lass?"

  ikepostle

She tugged gently and her hair cascaded down to just beyond her shoulders. Under her breath she muttered his name correctly, thought promptly distracted to Galway.

  And /he/ was startling too. Somehow even bigger now that he was sitting. Was that even possible...

  "I came for dessert. Don't have much of an appetite." She looked at Ewan briefly, then to his mother. "Only for sweet things, it seems. I'll leave you guys alone."

    distancewillfixthis

"Please -- stay." It was Fiona still speaking, though all three sets of eyes were still given to the woman; two pairs of blue and one a strange honey color. "It won't be a real fam'ly gatheren withou' the /whole/ fam'ly here, will it?"

  Both boys nodded in agreement with their mother – Galway despite knowing how deeply rooted was the desire not to be there. He believed, despite his slight disappointment, in what he had told Mrs. Redman earlier; that Leah was now a part of his family too, that she were about to become an /official/ part of it all too soon – and selfishly, he wanted her present, if only to make Isaac happy. "We'll make some room."

  ikepostle

"It's really okay." She noted the distinct lack of coercing on her own family, and wondered at the cause. Could it be so surprising that this woman had already taken the role of leader among this small crew? It wouldn't surprise Leah.

  Or perhaps she was just sweet.

  "I'm gonna have a smoke, I just wanted to drop in and say hi. I'll see you guys at dessert." She waved, feeling embarrassed, and disappeared down the hallway.

    distancewillfixthis

"Alreet, dear. See you then."

  Though a short silence had fallen among the Morgan-O'Doyles, Galway was soon to speak again – determined to make the best of this evening yet. Even if not for the ring in his pocket, this dinner was a symbolic-enough coming together of families to make the matter of personal importance to him – not only so he could make Isaac happy. They had always been just the three of them – himself, his brother and mother (and her father, on occasion, though the relationship there was as 'well' as the one Galway had had with his own stepfather) – desperately, almost childishly, he /wanted/ to belong to something bigger.

  "You really did tha', babe? Wha' she said?"

  Wha' she said?"

  ikepostle

Ike was grateful, not only for Fiona making an effort, but his Galway, who promptly guided them back to something more overtly pleasant. He shrugged a shoulder, spoke softly around a small bite of food.

  "I guess, yeah. Felt bad for her. I used to mow her lawn. Or shovel the drive. She was a nice ol' hen."

  distancewillfixthis

"I'm sure it mean' a lo' to 'er." Soft, modest smile on his lips, he squeezed and patted Isaac's knee under the table. At that age to be so selfless was something beyond his understanding. "Didn't know you were doin' tha' sort o' thing from such a young age."

  ikepostle

A moment was afforded to the two men as everyone else around them began to eat.

  "It doesn't really seem like a big deal." And even as he spoke, he thought it sounded like some fake modesty. "I just hate the idea of someone being lonely. I mean, if I could help it."

  distancewillfixthis

There was something strangely touching about that statement – Galway couldn't quite put his finger on it, about the reason why he felt so moved – but he did, nevertheless. It were moments such as this that he felt so profoundly in love with the man, he couldn't possibly put it to words – and so just watched him for a long moment, in silence, before eventually turning his gaze back to his own meal lest he made him uncomfortable.

  "At tha' age I was more preoccupied with makin' the occasional penny than anythin' else." Different circumstances, he'd admit – and nevertheless worth mentioning.

  ikepostle

"Guess I was fortunate in that respect. I told you Mom had a job at the church, and Dad did a lot back then. Sort of a jack of all trades. Plus, Leah was... shit. I don't know. Early twenties? She helped out a bunch. I had it made, you could say." He nudged a knee under the table, playfully, affectionately, touching his boyfriend.

  Gord spoke up. "What was your first job, Galway?"

  distancewillfixthis

He smiled softly and outstretched his free hand, the one not using the fork, to rest along the backrest of Ike's chair. Poor table manners, perhaps, surely to have granted him a glare from his mother when he were younger – but he didn't care.

  At Gordon's question, however, he turned to look at the man; soft smile yet to leave his lips. "Did deliveries for a butcher in our neighbor'ood for four years, I think, before I star'ed workin' as a butcher meself in 'is shop. Stayed on for another four."

  "Things were a li'le rough financially for most o' Galway's childhood…" Fiona explained, though minutely interrupted by a soft /mum…/ muttered by her oldest son. With a reassuring look his way, she went on. "Been worken nonstop since he were eight. Tried very much to help me where he could."

ikepostle

Again, Gordon’s brief appreciative whistle sound.

Ike looked at Fiona. “Is that a good enough excuse to get him to take me on vacation somewhere? I’d hate if my man never got any rest…” The phrase, my man, startled him. Not so much that he shouldn’t refer to Galway as such, but that he would do so in front of his parents – but why? Galway had his arm around Ike’s chair, and he had kissed him earlier, plain as day. Perhaps he shouldn’t expect so much of himself; perhaps the transition shouldn’t be so easy.

A look at Galway, “what do you say… somewhere warm?”

distancewillfixthis

“I’ve go’ a feelin’ we’ll be goin’ away someplace soon.”

A tad too telling, perhaps – though he found it hard to resist. Where would they go on their honeymoon? Somewhere romantic, like France or Italy – or perhaps someplace more exotic, like Turkey? He smiled, doing nothing as to remove his arm from around Ike’s chair, and resisted the urge to kiss him right then and there, in front of everyone. Instead, he watched the man a moment longer before turning his gaze back to Gordon.

“You fish, Gord?”

ikepostle

“Haven’t for a long time. And never anything too wild.” Like Isaac, he spoke around a mouthful of food. “Back in Seattle, my pals and I would head over to Kress Lake and waste a few evenings out on the boats. Never took to river hooking though. Nor the ocean. But lakes were good picking.”

He chased his food with a gulp of beer. “You like it?”

distancewillfixthis

“Well, I ‘aven’t in the longest time, either.” More of a job than a hobby, it wasn’t anything he did for leisure anymore. But what better family activity was there? “Used to be we’d go fishin’ an’ bring it 'ome to mum at the end of the day to cook. Maybe we could all do the same sometime. Go campin’ or soemthin’.”

ikepostle

Gordon’s expression warmed as he nodded and chuckled a little. Suffice to say, he hadn’t expected to get along as well as he was with Galway, despite how much Ike had believed so. “I very much like the sounds of that. Sure it wouldn’t be too difficult to find a place in state…” 

The back door opened again and Leah appeared in the doorway. She looked a little meek, maybe even apologetic. “Maybe I will have a bite, after all. Mom, I’m gonna pull a chair beside you.” And across from Galway and his brother. “Keep talking, though, don’t let me interrupt.”

distancewillfixthis

"/You/ evah fish, Leah?" Despite the inflection in his tone, there was no mockery there; only mild curiosity and an attempt to include her in the conversation.

 "We were just sayen how we should all gan do tha' sometime." Ewan chirped in, having sat mostly silent thus far; watching the rest of the family as it engaged in conversation, though not participating.

#verse: coffee shop #coffee shop: lewan #getting too heavy for tumblr #so im posting it

[pixiescribbles]

Chapter 4 : The Trip.

For the last few days, Natsu and I have been preparing and getting ready for our trip to Crocus. From what we've gathered is that William and Bella are a fire wizard and celestial wizard respectively. And they are really clingy. Like, reaaaaly clingy. Worse than Edo Bisca and Alzack. We let them out of the handcuffs and like magnets they stuck to each other. Turns out that they're actually okay human beings, I had some okay conversations with Bella. It seems like we got more in common than at first glance. Natsu and William however, are total opposites. William is kinda reserved at first, but relaxes a little after a few minutes. When Natsu is more, well, Natsu. This is going to be difficult for him.

"Look, I'm not happy about the situation we're in now, but if you and that pink haired boy are going, you guys might wanna know that this 'meeting' isn't just a one day meeting. It's planned in multiple days, different activities, parties and festivals. They planned it that way so they can eliminate the guilds they don't want to work with. We'd rather go ourselves of course but I understand your situation." Bella tells me suddenly. It had never occurred to me that these people are only doing this to survive.

"Why did you join a dark guild anyways? I mean, from what I've gathered, you're decent human beings. Except for cheating Yukino and stealing her keys".

"Yeah, about that. The guild master was there too. William and I always had doubts about joining Screaming Shadow, and we wanted to prove ourselves to the master. I got a little carried away with those keys after that." Bella admitted, her head hanging low with shame.

"Then why not reconsider your actions, apologize and join an official guild? It's never too late." Juvia interjected. She came over with a soft, understanding smile.

"Juvia and Gajeel-kun were part of Phanthom Lord, even attacked Fairy Tail. But this is our home now, we love the people of Fairy Tail. It's never too late." Juvia explains to the woman. They started talking and I stepped away from the conversation. It was almost time for me and Natsu to leave. All we had to do was gather some colored contacts so we have the same eye color, and dye his hair to hazel brown. If that was even possible.

Three packs of hair dye, a visit from my 10 spirits and 4 hours later, Natsu and I are now officially William and Bella Thorns, on our way to Crocus in black capes.

"Natsu?" There's something on my mind and I really just have to know how he feels about this mission. He turns to me curiously looking at me from under his hood.

"Aren't you bothered at all that the Master didn't ask Lisanna to accompany you on this mission? I mean, it's a pretty big deal to be impersonating a married couple. Especially since, you know.. You and Lisanna.." I'm stumbling over my words, and can't really find the right words to say or ask.

"Lucy, I get where you're coming from, but what Lisanna and I had was in the past. I 'grew' out of those feelings a long time ago. Yeah I liked her then, but I wasn't really in love with her. I didn't feel the same things she felt then, or feels now. I still don't feel that. Plus, there's someone else I kinda like." Natsu confessed. So he's not in love with Lisanna? That comes as a shock. That does give me reason to pry. I smile teasingly at him.

"So, who is it that you like, huh Natsu?" I close the distance between us as to see if his face would give something away, but his face didn't change.

"Oh, you know. This girl, I know her. Quite well." He says sheepishly. I just stare at him in confusion for a second and start laughing. It's so cute to see Natsu this self-conscious, It's a rare sight to see from the always confident Natsu.

"I'm only joking, you don't have to tell me. Well, I hope it works out for you Natsu, she'd be quite the lucky girl." At this Natsu gives me a smile, but it doesn't really reach his eyes like it usually does. It looks like there's some sadness hidden behind his eyes. It makes me feel different kind of emotions seeing that. My heart aches for something, but I can't place what for.

When we finally reach the train station, Natsu starts protesting about how he can't ride the train.

"Hehe, that's why I have a little surprise for you." I say with a smug smile on my face and right on cue, Wendy shows up.

"Wendy here, is going to cast a Troia spell on you, so it doesn't take forever for you to recover when we get there." I look at Natsu, remembering all the times we traveled it took him hours to recover.

"Woah, 'Bella', RUDE!" Natsu joked as he got in place for Wendy to work her magic. I can't help but giggle at the sight of his happy demeanor.

"Good luck on your mission, guys!" Wendy yelled and waved as the train departed from the station. We sink back in our seats when she's out of sight, and I sigh. There's no turning back now, is there.

"Lucy? Don't you find it weird that you're on this mission with me, and not with Gray? Since you're dating and all?" Natsu suddenly asks me. Somehow I knew this question was going to come, but I didn't have to think at all for an answer.

"Gray and I only went on a few dates Natsu. We're hardly dating, really. But, no I don't think it's weird, or at least. It doesn't feel weird to me. We've been on so many jobs together before and even though I can rely on the rest of the team, you're really the only one I feel confident enough around to actually finish a job with if it were only me and someone else." And I mean it all. Natsu looks as if he's thinking about something really hard. He then turns to me and smiles at me.

"I feel the same way Luce, only I'm absolutely confident I could finish this mission on my own too!"

"Natsu, you're supposed to be William who is reserved and modest and doesn't boast about his abilities!" Happy lectured him, and reminded him of how William was. All the way up to Crocus. A four hour train ride. I'm pretty sure I can dream William's mannerisms, magic and other traits.

"Happy! Please, you can stop now. We're almost in Crocus and we and we can't risk being caught already." I tell him exasperated. I'm just glad I got to shut Happy up about William.

As we left the train station and entered the capital, we were almost immediately approached by two shady figures. They fall in step with us, and we turn a corner where there aren't any people around. There we stop and they start talking.

"Mr. and Mrs. Thorns?"

"That would be us". Natsu replied, grabbing hold of my hand protectively.

"Noted. And this little fella?" The man asked, looking at Happy, who was standing on all fours.

"Our cat, he has separation anxiety if it's for a longer time period than one day." I lied.

"Okay, weird. Go to the pub, ask for your room. You will receive further instructions later."

"What are we supposed to do in our room in the meantime?" Oh Natsu, this is such a stupid question. We're supposed to be married! The man looked quizzically at Natsu and then gave me a look over, smirking. Natsu followed his gaze and set a threatening step forward while placing me behind him.

"Well, if I were married to her, I'd be able to come up with a thing or two to do, but I'm not. So good luck finding something to occupy yourself with." They left, without saying another word.

"You're so dense! We just recently got married, remember?" I quietly scolded Natsu, what a fool!

"How would I know! I've never been married."

"What do you think he implied we could do?"

"I don't kno-." Natsu cut himself off when he finally realized what the man implied, and turned bright red with embarrassment.

"Is that what you want to do?!" Natsu squealed in panic.

"No! You dummy! That's what they think we're going to do, because we're married!" I emphasize married, because he clearly doesn't seem to notice the position we're in.

"Ah, ofcourse! Okay, let's get to our room then." Natsu exclaims as he grabs my hand and holds it tenderly. His callused hands feel rough in mine, but it fits there perfectly. Hand in hand we make our way over to the bar, to go and wait in our room.

#fairy tail #fanfic #fanfics #ft #fairy tail fanfiction #NaLu #natsu x lucy #natsu dragneel #lucy heartfilia #PixieScribbles #nalu fanfic #lucy x natsu #nalu fanfiction #nalu #married with a dragon slayer!