#he’d probably say something let hey dad and then feel embarrassed

[existential-crisis24]

I like the idea of Zeff hanging Sanjis wanted poster (original drawn and current photo) up and people mistaking him for Zeffs son. And him never correcting people, especially after all the Vinsmoke business gets out I like the idea of Zeff actively claiming Sanji as his son.

#one piece #one piece spoilers #red leg zeff #zeff #sanji #black leg sanji #Sanji wouldn’t know about it until he went back #and he wouldn’t even be like phased #he’d probably say something let hey dad and then feel embarrassed #and everyone around wouldn’t bat an eye cause they all knew #like Zeff and the other chefs proudly proclaim him as their kin

[screampied]

‘ THINK I NEED SOMEONE OLDER ! ’

ᡴꪫ‎ synopsis. university sucks major ass. on the bright side, you’re on break—you decide to go pay your father a visit. this 'visit' ends up to you being introduced to his best friend, toji. who’s he? maybe your panties know the answer.

wc. 7.4k

warnings. fem! reader, dad's best friend! toji, age gap (reader is over twenty), praise, cunnilingús, squìrting, implied multiple órgasms, unprotected, degradation, size difference, impact play, poor dad is kinda clueless, almost caught, overstimulation.

dbf! masterlist

“who’s he?”

a simple question — yet the moment the words ran out your mouth, it felt as if all eyes were on you. in reality, it was though. the tall man who was quite a few staggering inches taller than your own father had such a gaze. he had hands buried into the depths of his pockets, shifting his weight as he stood still before burning a stare right into you. an intense stare, you could almost make out somewhat of an intriguing smirk. that sly smile with an everlasting scar running down the right side of his mouth.

“hey honey,” your father waves out with a brief gesture. he throws an arm around the buff man before giving him a rough pat on the back. “this is toji. met him ‘bout a year ago at one of those boat races. heh, news flash—he lost.”

“woah. no need to embarrass me, man,” toji murmurs in a raspy tone and by all means was his voice deep. laced in pure baritone, far deeper than your fathers. by a mile, to be specific. his voice has a jagged huskiness to it, insanely attractive. as he spoke, his eyes flickered towards you and he’d occasionally look away with that same chaffing sneer. “but anyway,” toji averts his eyes back towards you. his cologne was loud, you could smell it from miles away from you. he pauses for a few good seconds before uttering. “it’s nice to meet ya, sweetheart.”

you gulped, suddenly feeling small. you couldn’t pinpoint what it was about him — his demeanor, the way he carried himself, anything was. but it was something that had you a bit drawn in so to speak. “i um..”

“she’s not that much of a speaker,” your father chuckles, giving you a soft rub near your back. “poor brain’s probably all fried from those midterms. right honey?”

“you don’t say.” toji raises a brow, glancing away for a moment and a smile tugged right against his his dimples—and for a moment, he was suddenly intrigued by his best friend’s daughter.

that was the initial first reaction between the two of you. you ended up staying at your father’s house for the remaining duration of your visit.

nothing too much sparked between the two of you, of course there’d be subtle moments. real subtle moments—stupid things, like having him help you grab something from one of the top shelves.

of course he’d help, he was taller than you by many many inches. effortlessly towering over you. it’s the way he’d press up against you. it was quite hard to shut those thoughts of yours up. those lewd salacious thoughts that were forever kept into the very back of your brain, silently fantasizing about your father’s best friend.

apparently, he stayed for quite around the same time you did since he and your father would typically hang, do all sorts of men activities you never really cared about—golfing, shooting ranges, watching the most recent football games. that was the most annoying part, how they’d both obnoxiously yell at the screen whenever their favorite team was pathetically losing.

your room was directly upstairs, you heard everything. it was as if the walls were merely thin. in a way, they were. the constant repetitious hollering from the two men were so irksome. eyes merely rolled to the back of your head whilst you were trying to scroll on your phone in peace.

you never did understand why a dumb game of balls would drive men so crazy. nevertheless, you let off a tiny sigh before plopping right down in your bed. immensely, you stared off into space.

you had no idea why, but the minute your eyes linger into the white nearly peeled off drywall near the ceiling, you thought about him. toji.

stupid, maybe…

it’s been a few days and you hardly knew the guy. encounters between him were subtle and brief. he’d nod his head at you, barely acknowledging your existence and going straight back to some meaningless conversation with your father.

there was one day however, one day that had you hot all over. it was when you walked in on toji, he was using the spare shower that no one really uses, it’s reserved mostly for guests—perfect for him in this case.

you remember it like it was yesterday. since you were wide awake during this time for whatever reason, your dad sent you to go replace some towels from downstairs since he was doing laundry so you mindlessly make your way downstairs. the door was visibly cracked. sure, you probably should have knocked but who takes showers around three am?

apparently, this guy.

toji was literally just getting out the shower when you walked in. steam fogged throughout the entire space.

it was hot, stuffy and dampened with mist clinging against the rectangular mirrors. smothered with fog, you practically end up bumping right into something hard.

to be specific, that something was toji’s broad chest. maybe you were a bit delusional but you could have sworn, the moment you made contact with his bulky pecs, it moved upon impact.

“excuse you, sweetheart,” toji would scoff teasingly, his low voice was a bit more rougher since it was late at night. you were definitely speechless, barely able to process a single word from your mouth. thankfully a towel was wrapped around his slim torso—yet you started to wish maybe he didn’t have it protecting his lower half.

your eyes stuck to his chest the entire time, talk about embarrassing. immediately, your pretty dilated pupils ran down his chest, down his v-line, his perfectly structured build . . and then, his happy trail. he was well trimmed of the sort, practically. toji’s version of well trimmed was a bit hairy. regardless, it was still an attractive feature.

the more your eyes rove, the more you glance at his nearly perfectly sculptured structure. his chest was painted with a plethora of battle scars, now you were the one intrigued. you wanted to know more.

“you’re a little rude, huh,” and you abruptly snap from your thoughts. it was so brusque…

returning back to reality, out of that lewd trance you were so desperately trapped in—you blink twice, not even realizing how he was right up close to you. toji stares down at you before sneering. “it’s like three am. shouldn’t you be in bed?”

you shift your feet a bit, maintaining a little distance before trying to reply in the best nonchalant way possible. “uh no,” and then you utter awkwardly. “shouldn’t you be in bed? who randomly wakes up to take showers this late?”

“guys my age,” he jibes. “ya wouldn’t get it.”

you deadpan, fully aware it was a joke but you held everything in you to not have your eyes roll all the way back. “whatever,” and then you nearly forget what you were about to do. he watches you, you open near the lower cabinet and replace the clean towels. it grew profoundly quiet, a pin could drop. the moment you turned around, toji scoffs to himself. “did you need anything? something else?”

“ah. thank you, i’m fine, princess,” toji huffs with a sly grin. he reaches near the small wooden table to grab what seemed to be a half-used lotion bottle. however, you didn’t expect for him to completely change the topic, flipping your own words around with a blunt, “do you need something?”

“huh?”

“you heard me, girl.”

the banter…

he was definitely cocky, playful, literally any other synonym would fit.

you hated how he’d get you speechless everytime. you loathed how he was such an effect on you. with a brief gnaw on your bottom lip you narrow your eyes, mumbling out a, “stupid question.”

“i agree,” toji smirks. “but eh. y’er a smart girl. ‘m sure you can come up with a good comeback soon.”

he was so annoying, entirely so.

it’d be simple interactions like that between the two of you. much to your surprise though, nothing really else happened. toji would tease you a bit then pretend nothing happened, throw you a compliment or two and call it a day.

toji would often visit daily or twice a day, mainly to hang with your father. you could care less about what they did, but you were bored out of your mind from being in the house all day. you could go out, but it’s not like you had anyone to go with. everyone was either busy or … busy. besides, most of your friends were on exotic vacations or out of the country—you sighed, rubbing a hand against your stomach as you stared in the ceiling wall.

but then, the most lasciviously filthy thought made its way into your thoughts. you thickly swallowed before reaching a hand down between your legs. the air grew abnormally dry, shame…

to be completely honest, you couldn’t even remember the last time you touched yourself. this couldn’t have ever been a more perfect time. you were sure your father and his cocky best friend was out at top golf, probably.

intaking a single breath, you lean back against your pillow—slowly, you started to focus on your breathing.

parting your legs, you lightly pull down your shorts before tugging your panties to the side. you wince for a little, realizing how you were already a bit soaked. a little dampened spot right towards the front part of your underwear. you knew it had to be from pondering about toji.

speaking of, you remember that time where he helped—well, ‘attempted’ to cook dinner that one time. all you could focus on was his hands. such rough thick hands, you wondered what’d it feel like to have those same hands gingerly wrap around your throat. such thick fingers shove down your throat while he calls you such degrading names—just anything.

the more you were deep in thought, the more drenched you started to become. you went slow, being patient with yourself. you imagined it was toji’s fingers instead of yours. such big fingers thrusting in and out of you.

steadily, you start to insert a single finger in. a middle finger, it felt good, you suppressed a single moan and by this point, your imagination was running wild. you allowed your body to relax for a few moments before you slipped another finger inside. seconds later, you started to gentle move around inside your clit. your pace was sweet and precise—you let out a soft moan that rang throughout your thin walls. “toji—f-fuckkk.”

your voice was shaky, imagining toji being here right now made you throb ten times more. just propped all up behind you, thrashing his fingers against your swollen folds made you more aroused than you ever thought. your thrusts against your own entrance was small, a steady pace but irregular enough to make your knees start to buckle.

throwing your head back a little, you started to whine as each second dragged. your breath became insignificantly heavy, hitched and all. you made sure to stimulate in all the right areas, adapting to a perfect rhythm, then that’s when you’re rudely interrupted. talk about a cliche.

“hey. is it anymore detergen—”

toji pauses mid sentence, literally trying to process the scenery in front of him. he stands still and his initial reaction was slow. the first thing he does is chortle lowly. “well, shit. is this a bad time?”

you’ve never felt anymore embarrassed in your life, a sudden wave of heat rushed over your body before you quickly shielded yourself with your blanket. “oh my god,” you’d squeak out, and toji averts his eyes elsewhere for a few seconds. “i thought you all left already.”

toji hums. he takes a moment, and it’s as if he’s thinking of what to say. he was amused, seeing your flustered state and he looks back at you. “we were but it got canceled last minute since a storm’s approaching,” and you let off a soft gulp, hearing his footsteps creak against your wooden floor as he got closer. “thank god it was me who came in here ‘n not your father, right princess? now that’d be embarrassing.”

“stop calling me that,” you grumble, and you don’t even realize how soft and weak your voice was. you slowly pull your fingers out before intaking another sharp breath. he glanced at you before simpering. “haven’t you heard of knocking?”

“girl,” toji utters in a low rasp. “the door was wide open. i can’t knock on air,” and you mentally eye rolled — he was so insufferable. incredibly so, toji’s eyes roam across your old room that was a bit scattered with some boxes from when you moved out four years ago. it was a bit unkempt, your father usually used your room sometimes just to store things from the attic. toji buried his hands into his pockets before chuckling. “i heard you, ya know. moaning my name all loud like that.”

you blinked thrice, sitting up before compressing your eyebrows together. “what?”

“whaaat?” he jeers, mocking you. toji inches closer towards you until he was right beside your bedside. you gaze up at him and he had a blunt sticking out from the corner of his lips. he looked so appetizing, even while dressed down. ripped jeans and a sweatshirt. you could tell he was fit, of course he was—you saw him shirtless. he was well likely in his early thirties, dressing so laid back and casual. “between you and me, sweetheart, you can do better. ‘s cute ‘n all but that’s not how ya finger yourself. been a while, yeah?”

this guy, he was so bold. casually speaking his dirty mind, not afraid to say anything.

you don’t know why, but those last few words made you throb. you loathed how right he was, it was as if he could read you like a book. between studies and actually living a university student’s life, you barely ever get time to yourself. time to please yourself.

“whatever,” you utter. “yeah... it’s been a while.”

“poor thing,” he clicks his tongue before taking a seat on your bed. it jitters from his weight for a bit before he peers a gaze at you. “hm,” he puffs out, dragging a hand against his jeans. “i’d be happy to help though. those useless fingers of yours can only please you so much, right? heh.”

this indescribable effect he had on you, it heavily irked your nerves. “…please,” and you don’t even register what quickly came out of your mouth.

you were so pent up by this point, being interrupted. you wanted to finish, you desperately wanted to finish. your soft breaths hitched, and toji’s intimate stare lingered on you for a bit. his loud cologne started to waft across the entire room, so intoxicating. “just make me finish, please.”

“there’s those manners,” he coos in a husky tone, and he gets up closer. he was purely teasing you, you just wanted to feel his touch . . . feel something at least. he pulls the fat cover that went over you, yet at a more tantalizingly slow pace. he was a mere tease, you nearly let off a whine once you felt the tips of his warm fingers skim past your thighs. “messy girl,” he mumbles, and then he pauses to glance at you. “are you sure? jus’ wanna-”

“toji,” you mutter, and you liked hearing you roll his name so sweetly off your tongue. seeing you grow purely frustrated was utter amusement to him. the way your eyebrows would curl and furrow, irises flaring and your jaw slightly tensing. you had such readable body language by default too. “please. i want you. just touch me.”

he simpers. “pretty please.”

“……”

again, he was so infuriating. you felt yourself starting to pant, not knowing how much longer you could take as he started to softly trail a thumb against your skin. his touch was so warm, it was intense and ignited something within you.

“touch me—pretty please, toji.” you mutter out, sprawling your legs out just a bit. it was so hot, the temperature surrounding the atmosphere of the room was so humid. he glances at you before smiling.

“that’s a good girl.”

his words warmed your heart in such a lewd provocative way, you just wanted his touch.

desperately yearning for it, toji leans up close, bringing a big hand to part your legs apart and he was so slow. he takes the blunt that was propped up between his teeth, setting it aside near your nightstand. you prepare to inhale deeply, not expecting him to then bring a tender kiss towards your inner thighs. he started to create a trail—a trail that gingerly went up and up and up.

“so sensitive,” he’d purr, watching your own body melt from just the softness of his lips against your skin. you wanted him to hurry, you replayed this exact scenario over and over at least a dozen times. now that it was reality, you just knew that your body wanted him. “oh. don’t give me that look,” and he smirks, watching the pout grow against your lips. “gonna stare at me all day or are ya gonna tell me how you’d like for me to start?”

“i need you to—eat me out,” you huff out in short singular breaths. you were throbbing rapidly, each moment he stalled to speak, the more aroused you grew. his warm breath just fanning against your folds had you nearly going weak.

he snickers. “need?” he repeats, and you moan once he swiftly drags a finger down your soaked cunt. it was drenched, but it could be a bit more. toji hums to himself cockily. “you don’t need shit, girl. fix your sentence ‘n talk proper..”

“i—” you gripe, starting to grow more and more frustrated. your vexed facial expression amused him. he raises his darkened brows, awaiting for your answer and the cute pout that continued to stretch across your lips was so cute. “i— i want you to eat me out, pretty please.”

“much better,” he says in a low gruff. the moment he finally hovers his mouth over your sopping clit, toji gently strokes a thumb up and down. opening you up slowly, he creates a single slow lick to make you whimper. “i’ll make ya cum quicker than you ever could, princess.”

and you knew he probably wouldn’t lie about a simple fact like that. toji’s touch, it was sloppy.

without a doubt, he was a messy eater.

just one taste of you and he was hooked—a new addiction for him and it wasn’t gambling.

you tasted sweet, candied even. he was in so deep, occasionally the tip of his nose would prod against your entrance. you slumped back against the bed, your legs twitching in pleasure. not before long, your lips started to part and you started to gnaw on your hardened knuckles. you didn’t wanna be too loud—you just remembered your father was right downstairs.

he didn’t have the best hearing in the world, but knowing you, you could be a bit overzealous with your moans.

the noises his tongue made, sliding his tongue between your folds, sucking and nibbling. he even broke away his lips just to spit a nice wad onto your pussy. you watched the entire time, mesmerized. he was so nasty—nasty and you only wanted more. toji continued to drag a thumb against your slit, lapping up your slick arousal that was already starting to drip down his chin. it ran further down, a bit of his trimmed facial hair now soaked with your sweetness.

“how’s it feel, princess,” he’d mutter out, briefly departing his lips away. as he does—you stare as a pretty cobweb of his own spit tugs against your own entrance. glistening and all, it was so sheeny. he was right between your precious thighs, and you couldn’t help but give his ruffled dark hair a light pull. “tell me how i make you feel. talk to me nice, girl.”

“good,” you whimper, nearly choking on your own saliva. your words were so trembly, you could hardly recognize yourself. it’s been a while since you’ve been eaten out, let alone being intimate. as you continued to let off irregular breathing patterns, you swallow. “f-feels good.”

“just good?” he’d tease, bringing a long suck towards your clit. you let off a whine once he playfully nibbles near that particular spot with his teeth. his tongue scrapes against your folds time and time again. it’s indescribable—toji’s head shook back and forth as he was nose deep into your pussy. for a moment, he sounds offended.

toji gives your cunt a sweet little kiss, and he feels it start to hastily pulse from doing so.

he knew you were getting close, all from a simple cue from his tongue. speaking of toji’s tongue . . it was lengthy.

so long, it reached areas that had your eyes mindlessly rolling back.

cute little cacophonies of, “oh my g-godddd,” repeated ghosts past your lips as you started to practically drag his face against you. the texture of his tongue—so moist and slick, already wet from obvious reasons, but grew even more dampened from your sheer arousal. it was a taste his tastebuds grew to crave more of. “gonna c-cum toji. f-fuckkk.”

“you’re gonna wait for me, little girl,” he grouses, and your irises fleetingly dilate. he gifts the entrance of your cunt with another string of spit, then he rubs a few circles against it. mean vigorous circles that made your legs pathetically twitch. “you make a mess when i tell you too.”

he was so mean.

such sternness in his tone, yet it turned you on. that slight secretive rasp that hid underneath his voice. toji breaks his lips away for a moment, glaring at you before focusing near the crevices of your thighs. he teasingly slides his tongue upward, away from your most sensitive area just to watch you squirm.

“toji,” you’d whimper, feeling his tongue just roam everywhere from below. he was so skilled, you’ve never had a man be so sloppy. at least in a way that toji was. he greedily sucks near your thighs, gently sinking his canines into the plush of your thighs before going back towards your pussy. “i can’t—can’t hold..”

you were barely able to finish your sentence, and that’s when you came — it was so sudden and abrupt. gushing all out of you and your nerves had your mind spiraling. a constant crazed loop.

it felt like a wave, a tsunami crashing down and it felt so good.

your orgasm that shortly followed was so loud, you didn’t even bother trying to cover your mouth. toji chuckles, cupping his mouth around the very top part of your achey slit before lapping his tongue against your hood. your hips temporarily quavered due to his tongue, and you still maintained a rough grip on his head.

“easy on the fuckin’ hair,” he’d grunt after feeling you roughly yank on his strands bringing a kiss towards your slick entrance. you swallowed, your legs feeling practically mush before he brings a terse spank towards your clit. “cute ‘n all, but i didn’t say you could finish yet.”

“s-sorry,” you’d breathe out, still feeling the after effects of your intense high. it was so good, your eyes were all hooded and droopy. toji saw a bit of drool seeping from the corners of your mouth and hums silently.

he sighs, leaning up before getting on top of you. he hovers himself and you stare up at him. he rests both arms over you, groping near the rickety headrest before leaning up close to your face.

“are you sorry, sweetheart?” and he gets up a bit closer, green viridescent eyes glance right into you—you smelled the mint and brief tang of alcohol residing on his tongue. using another hand to grab your chin, he softly pulls your bottom lip down before derisively grinning. “aw. nothing to say? no back talk this time?”

“i… want a kiss,” you pant, feeling his warm body just inches away from colliding against yours. just a single inch and he’d be grinding on you. “kiss me.”

“oh i dunno. sounds like a demand, babygirl,” he’d sneer, and your eyes leer near his scar. it was damp a little from him just being between your thighs a moment ago. perhaps it was a bit filthy, but you wanted to taste it. taste him. “ask me the right way.”

you pout, staring right into his eyes. “i wan— can i get a kiss, pretty please. i just want a kiss.”

“course ya can,” he utters, and that’s right when he squeezes your chin. your lips were plump and glossy. toji stares at you back for a long while, studying your cute expressions before he leans right in. the kiss was passionate, it felt so wrong but felt so right. you moaned the second his lips crashed onto yours. he finds it cute, feeling your arms rub and feel around his slim waist. you were pulling him closer — a sign that you wanted more of him. toji teasingly grinds his hefty body against you, and you whimper in his mouth once you feel his thick bulge prod against your panties that were halfway on you. “mhm.” he’d groan.

while his tongue skims against yours, you part your lips a bit for him and the incoming savory taste you’d get a treat out of.

you made sure to savor it, so sweet with a bit of spice.

running your tongue against his, breaking away to lick near his chin, softly making sure to lick near his stubble—you cleaned your own mess off of him. without him asking you either, toji grunts as he watched you through his peripherals. he’d never expect his best friend to have such a nasty girl for a daughter.

“y’er fuckin’ filthy,” he mumbles, breaking away and watching both strands of spit leave and depart. your lips curv into a cute needy scowl before he heard your father suddenly call out from downstairs.

“honey? i said, was that a scream…? is everything okay?”

your eyes widen, not even knowing your father was speaking—yelling actually. toji snickers, and now he’s the one suddenly quiet. prick.

“o-oh um,” you clear your throat, sitting up and that’s when toji starts to create soft chaste kisses near the inside of your neck. you nearly moaned before turning your head to speak. “i’m—i’m fine. i thought i saw a cockroach.”

“cockroach? do you need me to come up and—”

“no!” you’d quickly reply before clearing your throat once more. you let off a sigh, feeling toji start to suck near your collarbone. “i mean, no dad. i’m okay. thanks anyways.”

“okay honey, if you say so.”

toji chortles. “fuck. you’re bad at lying. just tell y’er old man you were getting eaten out by me.”

you glare at him, immensely bringing your brows into a furrow. “no, i’m not gonna say that. are you crazy?”

“maybe.”

you eye rolled, yet part of you felt like he wasn’t exactly lying. after all, he could probably be insane—perhaps he was.

you didn’t know, and to be frank, you didn’t really care. all you really cared about was getting pleasured—riding out orgasm after orgasm with him, and that’s exactly what you ended up doing for hours on end.

toji would find himself leaned back against your pillow, studying your hips carefully before grinning.

the moment you lightly shove him back, he clicks his tongue. “oh?” he says, and you already sprung his dick out. he was very much hard, presenting you with an upward slight curve. you licked your lips, hovering over him before giving him a few strokes. a groan slips past his lips and your thumb brushes against the various veins that ran just below his foreskin. “y’er gonna ride me? can a sweet girl like you even handle it?”

“shut up,” you’d fuss, and he just smirks at you. you wanted to wipe that smug expression from his face. he knew just how to irritate your nerves. toji watches you throw your leg over him, a simple hook around. you’re straddling him now and he brings two rough hands to attach near your hips. you lean in to kiss him again and he returns it, slowly tilting his head back and your arms wrap around him. he feels you reach down, grabbing ahold of his shaft before softly sliding the head of his dick near your slick entrance. “s-shit. you’re big.”

“i try not to disappoint,” he slyly says, sliding a thumb near your hips. his voice was so low, so pompous and arrogant. you give him a glare but he only hums out of pure amusement. “barely the tip in ‘n y’er struggling. need my help, sweetheart?”

you ignored him and he smirks, allowing you to do your thing—you bring one hand towards his chest, gently feeling near his perfectly chiseled abs. he was so toned, tracing against his tense muscles and he watches your every move. it was as if time was stood still, he chuckles at how eager you were. you weren’t like him, you weren’t patient and thorough. you were a bit more rushed and sloppy—cute, it was very much cute to him though.

a moan goes past your lips once the wet tip of his slowly starts to sink inside. it had a few droplets of pre-cum leaking down, and you slowly rocked your hips in place to get comfortable. his eyes go lower to focus more on your body, the grip he had on your waist was so rough and sensual. because toji was so thick — it took you a good six minutes, six precise minutes to reach all the way down to the base. your lips opened a bit, and you let off a soft shrilling whimper once you did a cute attempt at jerking forward.

“take it slow,” he purrs in such a rasp, you leisurely started to lurch back and forth once he was buried all the way down to the hilt. you inhale deeply and he was so hefty. balls deep, swollen balls that was hidden and engulfed beneath your inner walls. “atta girl.” he praises, watching you try to maintain a decent rhythm.

ringing went throughout your ears, you felt all hot.

toji playfully brings a hand to feel near your tummy. you were wearing some old university hoodie. it was comfortable, but much to his surprise, you didn’t have a bra underneath. he hums to himself, and you let off a moan once his hand trails ever further. further and further until his thumb brushes against your perky nipples.

“t— toji,” you’d moan, and another hand of his was tightly clinging onto the left part of your waist. you were riding him smoothly. yet since he was so big, you started to feel your thighs building up with drowsiness. your efforts were cute to him, so desperately eager to get off.

his black lashes flicker, and the way he’s all leaned back and manspread was so attractive—you felt your back start to naturally arch and it didn’t take long for toji to reach that particular spot. once you felt his tip prod against there—way past inside the orifices of your cunt, you let off a sweetened whimper. “found it,” he whispers, bringing you close towards his chest. you lean into his touch, intaking his cologne into your nose before your hand starts to wander all over his body. he liked how handsy you were, slipping a hand right underneath his shirt to feel a part of his abs. you made sure to trace directly on each line, each tender flexing muscle. all the way down onto his sharp v-line. further down, you started to feel his happy trail. your favorite.

he grunts, feeling the softness of your hands meander freely. “that’s it, sweetheart,” he gruffs in a sharp breath. an imaginary lump getting caught in his throat — he was holding both of your hips upright and by this point you were slamming right onto his thick cock. “touch me more. feel all over me baby.”

“can i—” you started, leaning in to kiss near the crook of his neck. your voice was soft, a bit trembly before your hands went up this time. feeling near his pecs before a breath gets caught in his throat. “can i feel here, toji?”

“f-fuckin’ girl,” he groans, a chill running down his spine the second he feels you gently rubbing a thumb against his nipples this time. toji was surprisingly far more sensitive despite his rough front he was putting up, it was a bit cute. after all, he did say feel all over you. toji was panting now, while you rode him continuously, he swiped a few beads of sweat from his forehead. “whatever.”

you giggle, watching him now be the one with a pouty expression this time. you plant a kiss near where his slanted scar went down his lip before he spanks your ass. “just ‘cause ‘m sensitive there doesn’t mean ‘m gonna get all whiney for you, girl,” he utters in a raspy tone. the sharp sting from the spank felt good.

you felt yourself twitch between your thighs whilst your hips moved in harmony. you do a little back bend with your hips, constantly jerking against him and he grunts with how slow yet sloppy your movements were. “keep goin’ slow like that. ‘m gonna—cum.”

his voice consistently got deeper, and the tips of his fingers gently pierced into your skin—you were vocal yourself though. moan after moan, a constant repeat. you found yourself whining out his name as if it was a lewd mantra. over and over again, to toji though, it was purely music to his ears.

he feels you start to slow down a bit though, exactly at the minute he tells you he was approaching his incoming release. toji clenched his jaw, gifting the fat of your ass with another mean spank. “f-fuck. keep fuckin’ me. make me fuckin’ cum.”

you plant kisses near his neck this time, near the very inside and you swiftly quicken your pace a little. he was stuffing you full of thick inches, full of such girth that had your tongue salivating right in your mouth. you could only imagine what it’d feel like to have his seed pouring into you. you couldn’t lie to yourself, ever since you saw toji shirtless. his bulge sticking out through his towel, you only imagined he’d be so full of cum to give. you tilt your hips backwards, and he lets off a husky groan.

that particular spot reached so deep, you felt it too. his cockhead pokes and taps repeatedly against your sweet spot and you sob out a needy, “f-fuck, ‘s right there,” you tilt forward and he’s just about reaching his peak. the longer you took, the more spanks you received.

toji was a patient man, but only for so long.

the bed frame creaked constantly, it was the only tune that played in the background. he slithers a hand down between your thighs and spanks your cunt a few times. you whimpered, already a bit sensitive but felt something else approaching. “toji— toji.”

toji groans, the build up nearly taking his breath away. with your rhythmic thrusts against him, his eyes merely roll and he has to take a minute to catch his breath. you wrap a hand around his throat—tenderly of course—then place your lips onto his once he finally finishes inside of you.

he didn’t expect for you to choke him, but he liked it.

he liked how forward you were, your thumb lightly grazed against his adam’s apple, and a deep grunt gets trapped in his throat. your cunt was practically overflowed with such dumps of his cum—you’ve never felt more filled. toji shook a little, a hand gripping your ass as you kissed him.

slowly, he started to feel himself get addicted.

he already was addicted from having a simple taste of you earlier, but he was getting infatuated. you had him whipped, and he knew this probably wouldn’t be a one time thing.

albeit, the last thing you expect is to pull away from the kiss once you feel a sudden pressure brewing up within you.

momentarily, you whine—feeling a sudden familiar wetness coat his base. nerves all throughout your body had you locked in a trance, and you pause your hips before toji tsks.

“little girl,” he mumbles with a sly smile. “did you just squirt on me?”

it was so unexpected, you pant heavily—heave after heave leaving your lips before you moan out a sweet, “y-yes.”

“don’t be shy about it. i like when it’s messy,” he sneers, his eyes tantalizingly trailing down your body once more before he lifts you up just a bit from his shaft. he observes the lewd mess, how much cum trickled past your thighs and he hums. “wanna do that again? i bet i can do it in five minutes, baby.”

to say you were being treated like a rag doll was an understatement.

toji was ruthless with you, ruthless with you in your own house. well, ex-house. you didn’t live here anymore but you used to.

he coaxed orgasm after orgasm out of you like it was nothing. making you imitate and try positions you’ve never even heard of—you were getting stretched, easily said. it’s been hours by this point, you weren’t even in your room anymore. you were in the bathroom with him.

toji had you propped up against the door, you’re taking him from behind and you’re roughly biting down on your lip.

entirely so, it was still risky.

your father was right outside near the living room doing who knows what. probably watching some sports program—yet of course, he started to grow curious of where his best pal went. initially, toji said he had to use the restroom.

like four hours ago . .

he was so mean too, spanking your ass numerous times. your ass was perked upright for him, and you’re leaning against the door. you whimpered, feeling him grip on your panties that he refused to pull off of you.

oh, he likes seeing it dangle and thwack against your skin. the pretty fabric just cutely rubbing against your thighs. his weight just barely hovers against you and he’s smacking right into you.

your cunt swallowed his hefty inches each and every time—by this point, you weren’t sure if you could even give him one more.

you lost count of how many mind blowing orgasms that you were just completely intoxicated from his dick and his dick alone.

toji’s rough bare hands grab onto both parts of your ass, spreading it before deepening his strokes just a bit. you moaned, feeling every inch store inside of your sweet cunt. he knew just where to hit you. you breathe through your mouth and your nose at the same time, heavy cute pants that started to fog up the door’s material.

“fuck, fuck me f-fuckkk,” you’d drag out, and your back naturally arches just from a teasing touch of his finger racing down your back.

your ass was held up high and your cheek was softly nudging against the cold door. another build up was approaching and you were just so in awe—you were literally thinking, where has he been all your life? “close, ‘m getting closer.”

“bet you are. drippin’ all on me ‘n it’s fuckin’ nasty,” he replies—yet you freeze once you hear footsteps approach the door. it was your father, right when you were about to cum—you feel toji’s hand wrap around your mouth. your eyes roll backwards, and then he speaks through the other end of the door.

“toji? hehe, did ya fall in there man? you’re missing the game. we’re down by four points.”

toji chuckles, hearing a tiny muffled squeak go past your lips. he was balls deep, giving you such thick vigorous inches. that’s when he leans right up close to you—a hand still propped to have your mouth shut before whispering in a raspy tone. “you gotta be quiet, sweetheart. you want y’er old man to hear you make a sloppy mess on me?”

you shake your head, making an attempt to try and suck on his fingers and be smiles. “messy baby.”

your mouth was now stuffed with nothing but his thick fingers. you moaned, coating each digit with your glistening saliva as he pounded right into you. the grip your cunt had on him made him groan. eyes roll into the depths of your cranium so far back that your vision was pure black. squelch after squelch, it was so erotic. the build up of your incoming release yet again.

it was so slow and tense, you felt your thighs ache and tremble the more you were arched all over for him. the most sluttiest arch he’s seen in a while.

“huh—oh, nah man i’m good,” toji replies with a simper. you were trying so hard to be quiet, if your father heard anything, that’d be a wrap for you.

dying out of pure embarrassment certainly wasn’t on your bucket list for sure. the way toji responded was so casual, almost as if he wasn’t just happily drilling into his best friend’s cunt in his own home. “four points? shit. defense can’t do anything right.”

“telllll me about it! i could play better with my eyes closed, damn.”

you found it so irksome how they were casually having a dumb conversation whilst you were just about to gush right onto toji’s shaft—you felt him dip his hips into you deeper though, and you let off a sweet whine.

toji leans into your ear and whispers. “you’re doing a good job, sweetheart,” and then he chuckles. removing his hand, you nearly let off the most loudest orgasm imaginable but you kept it together by biting your tongue. it was a cute squeal, and as your legs part you made such a mess.

again…

it was probably the umpteenth time.

while you ride out your release, he’s slowing down his strokes and stares at the excess cum filling up your entrance. toji licks his lips, dragging a thumb to plug it all back in once he pulls out. he didn’t like putting things to waste. you whimper, feeling so taken aback from how stuffed full you were.

it was an awkward silence, you felt a sharp scare in your stomach once you thought your father heard everything — but thankfully so, he plopped right back down on the couch. toji lets you take a moment to calm down, and then he brings a wet kiss towards your lips. you were so sensitive, trembling within his hold—you didn’t want him to leave just now.

“atta girl,” he purrs, that same sly smile pressing against his lips as he brings a thumb towards your lip. his gaze was so hypnotizing. such pools of green eyes looked like it had a story to tell, and perhaps you wanted to know just who toji fushiguro really was.

maybe that story is ready for another day though.

thankfully you didn’t get caught.

or did you—you had to leave out the bathroom first, then toji after about a lengthy minute time difference so it wouldn’t be remotely suspicious. once the both of you were out, after about an hour of you all crammed up and watching the boring never ending basketball game, your dad ends up going to the bathroom.

while he was occupied, you leaned against toji and he wraps an arm around you. he could tell you wanted more—but his gaze was stern, telling you with his eyes to basically be a good girl and be patient.

a few seconds pass before you father bellows out a pitched, “erm. toji? is this shampoo—? what’s this white stuff over the sink? doesn’t look like shampoo.”

the both of you share the same frozen expression, impish smiles fading before you nudge toji to speak after long seconds passes.

“huh? oh, that’s uh mayonnaise. i forgot to clean up after myself.”

“aren’t you allergic to mayonnaise?”

you mentally facepalm, watching toji break into a sheepish sweat before he gruffs out a low, “i guess not that brand of mayonnaise.”

“right. riiiight,” your father mutters, and you heard sudden shifting. it was abrupt, and you felt something fall — probably a brush from the familiar after sound, you then hear your dad add a follow up question. “wait a minute,” and he glances down near the floor. “are these panties?”

#★vegasbaby. #toji x reader #toji smut #toji fushiguro smut #toji fushiguro x reader #toji x you #jjk smut #jjk x reader #jjk x you #jujutsu kaisen smut #jujutsu kaisen x reader #jujutsu kaisen x you #jujustsu kaisen x reader #anime smut #female reader #cw sex mention #jjk x reader smut

[kichikichiko]

Hey

Can i please hsc dating for Po (kung-fu panda)

What do you like about him?

AAAAA MY FIRST KUNG FU PANDA REQUEST!! I'd be delighted to do this anon Po is my 2nd favourite character after Tai Lung :>>>>>>

Synopsis: headcanons of dating Po the dragon warrior!

Pairing: Po x kung fu gn! Reader (Animal type is up to you)

Cw: headcanon, fluff, probably not proofread, Po is a sweetheart what else to say???

──────•❥❥❥•──────

“What do you like about him?” someone asks you.

Po is the Dragon warrior of the valley of Peace, of course everyone loves him, but no one loves him more than you do.

When you and Po make it official, he basically would talk about it NON STOP.

Out on a mission? He tells the furious 5 that he misses you already, even though he just left the valley a minute ago.

AND can see your figure in the distance, watching him wave farewell by the bridge

Out to another part of China and staying at an inn? He’d tell the innkeeper about having a partner and would tell them all the amazing things about you

Maybe even the embarrassing ones too, but not on purpose!

He just pays close attention to you, loves you and every part of you

He fights enemies? Po had always been one to talk during battle. So to no one’s surprise, as he’s kicking butts he’d tell the enemy that he has a partner that he so adores, and who he misses so much

It gets pretty annoying for the enemies to the point they just have the urge to beat him up even more. Not they can but oh well.

One of Po’s favourite moments is when he sees your face when he comes back from a mission

Your smile and the way you’d run up to him to give him a big hug.

You're smaller than him, but even they he could feel how tight you wrap your (wings/paws/arms) around him.

Just by your hug alone he can tell how much you missed him as well

“Po you're back! How was the mission? Were you hurt?” you’d ask while checking his whole body for any cuts, injuries and bruises.

If you catch him come back home with an injury no matter how small, you’d yell and panic while dragging him back to the village to attend to him

Even if he tell you over and over it’s fine and that it doesn't hurt as much, you refuse to let him walk around with an injury

He loves that you care so much about him.

Po loves to bring back souvenirs for you as well when he goes out on a mission.

Be it keychains, posters, food or anything.

If he sees something cool that he knows you’d like he’d get it.

You appreciate all of the gifts he gives you and keep it on a shelf in your home that you have dedicated to the stuff Po gives you.

Whenever he visits your place, he’d take a glance at that shelf and smile to himself.

Happy that you appreciate his gifts enough to dedicate a whole shelf for it.

Po makes some of the best noodles in the village

He is the son of Mr. Ping, the goose who owns the best noodle shop in town

Whenever you both decide to have a chill date, you’d both go up your favourite hill and enjoy some of Po’s noodles

“Po seriously you can do EVERYTHING! Kick butts, save the world and make noodles!” you praised him, while gulping down his noodles

“Nahhh my dad makes the best noodles, but I am very good at kicking butts and saving the world" he chuckles, acting all so humble.

You don’t argue though

because even if he thinks he doesn’t make the best noodles, he is right about being good at his job as the dragon warrior.

Po also appreciates that you don’t date him just because he is the dragon warrior.

You don’t treat him like a trophy, make his job the main focus of everything.

You see Po for Po, and you are with him BECAUSE he is him, not the dragon warrior.

If Po starts doubting who he is as a person, you gently remind him and lead him back to the right path and show him who he truly is.

“Never lose sight of who you are, Po.”

When the valley is in danger, his very first instinct is to find you and protect you. He knows that the safety of everyone else in the valley is in good hands… paws and wings.

He’d (try) run to where you live and when he finds you he will be very relieved.

If you are unharmed this is how he’d react:

“(Name) I’m so glad you're safe” and just like you, he’d check your body for any injuries. “I’ll get you out of here okay? Just stay with my dad and I’ll find you once this is all over.”

“Okay, please be careful Po,” you nodded in agreement, holding his paws with a worried expression.

“I promise.” He would do anything to keep his promise. Po couldn't bear to break it

If you are harmed this is how he’d react:

When Po finds you harmed, be it with any of your body parts stuck under rubble or getting an injury that causes you to be in pain…

He’d panic and the anger sets in

He’d save you first, carry you bridal style and run away from the scene leaving the enemy (if there is any) with the furious 5 “You're going to be just fine (name)! I promise you so don’t leave me now!”

It’s clear in his face that he is very, very worried for you and your wellbeing

Po would put the blame on himself if he ever lost you.

Will think it's all his fault that he wasn't by your side to protect you

You being attentive as always even when in pain, realise this and gently smiled at him with all the strength you have left

“Po, I’m going to be just fine, okay? Don’t worry. I won’t leave you”

With your whispered reassurance, he becomes less tense and nods. Believing your words.

There was just no way you’d leave him here all alone. You will be with him through every step of the way, and him with you.

When everything is done and he defeats the enemy, he’ll find you ( and his dad) immediately.

Overall, Po would be a wonderful boyfriend. He may not be smart, but he does make you feel loved, safe, happy and content.

And that is truly, all that matters.

“Everything” you respond with a smile.

──────•❥❥❥•──────

Request

Masterlist

#kung fu panda #kung fu pandaxreader #kfp #kfp po #po x reader #fanfic #kichifanficsfw #kfp tai lung #tai lung #kung fu panda headcanons #po the panda #mr ping #kung fu panda x reader

[bibittybopittybadbxtch]

I’ll Be Home For Christmas

Summary: Holidays can be rough

Warnings: Angst ish

Word Count: 722

A/N: hi! this is the first thing i’ve ever written. my best friend asked for an imagine and this is what started it all. there will be punctuation errors. it’s not really proof read i wrote it on my phone. hope y’all enjoy! thanks for reading. p.s. I do NOT consent to have my work posted, translated or published to any third party site or app.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

You’re standing by the window watching the snow fall outside. There’s a fire crackling in the fire place and soft christmas musicq playing. everything is in place to get you in the christmas spirit. presents under the tree, the house is full of decorations, but something’s missing. Or rather someone. Chan had called you earlier in the week, JYP had booked them a performance for New Year’s. He told you that him and the kids would be practicing until christmas eve in preparation. He encouraged you to head home to ohio without him, assuring you that he’d be there the day after christmas. As you’re standing by the window Hannah approaches, two mugs in her hand. “Hey honey, I know you wish he was here. We all do. I can’t fly him here myself, but I have some hot chocolate. That always makes things a little better” She smiles at you sympathetically as she hands you one of the mugs. You take a moment to appreciate your sister in law. She and Chan have the same eyes. You take a sip of the hot chocolate letting it warm you from the inside,out. “Thanks Hannah, as much as i wish he were here, I get it. I knew who I was marrying, and I know he probably wishes he were here more than i do.” Hannah breaks into a full blown grin, “You know he does, my brother would watch the world burn to see you crack a smile. That’s how much he loves you.” She doesn’t know just how much you need those words in that moment. As you feel your eyes fill with tears you see her start to panic. You chuckle through your tears, “Sorry i’m a mess, give me a second to get myself together then i’ll come join everyone downstairs.” She turns to leave but stops in her tracks, “We ordered some food it should be here by the time you come downstairs” she spares you one last glance before closing the door behind her. Left alone, you take a deep grounding breath. You hear the doorbell ring and take that as your que to head downstairs and wash up before lunch. As you descend the stairs you see Bangchan’s dad paying the pizza man, he wishes the man a merry christmas and closes the door. He turns around and sees you on the stairs. There’s a twinkle in his eye, much like the one Chan gets when’s he’s hiding something. “Hey Cierra, you can head into the guest bathroom to wash up before lunch” He smiles warmly at you. Once you reach the bottom floor Berry approaches you and runs around your feet. You bend down and give the sweet girl some affection before heading to the bathroom. as you approach the door it opens. You bump into the person leaving the bathroom. “Oh my god! I’m so sorry” you exclaim with your eyes cast down in embarrassment. The person chuckles and you’d know that tone anywhere. Your head shoots up, eyes glossy as you look at your husband. “Chan?” you say breathily in disbelief jumping into his arms. “Hi gorgeous, you didn’t really think I’d miss christmas with my baby did you?” he says as he catches you. He gently sets you on your feet cradling your face in his hands, and gives you a kiss. He wipes a stray tear from your eyes. “I thought you had rehearsals” You say, staring at him astonished. “Well, me and the boys told JYP there was no way we would practice through Christmas Eve and risk not being home in time for Christmas.” He takes your hand and kisses your palm. “I didn’t say anything, because I wanted to surprise you.” He keeps your hand and begins leading you both towards the table, all thoughts of washing up forgotten. As you both walk into the dining room his mother calls out to you both, “Hold it you two, i think you’re forgetting something” She points to the space above your heads. You look up and see a piece of mistletoe. You catch Chan’s eye and he smirks at you. Leaning in he gives you a long kiss on the mouth, he pulls back grinning at you ear to ear. “I’ll always come home to you, Merry Christmas baby”

#christopher bang #bang chan #skz imagines #skz x reader #skz #skz fluff #stray kids #skz stay

[terrainofheartfelt]

Dair + 9

Dair + 9…in public.

I wrote this as a sequel to this flash fiction I wrote for the last time I did a tumblr prompts meme. what can I say, I was inspired. and I could have written a wayyyyyy better breakup arc than the show. there I said it.

it got long (typical) so continue reading the whole bit under the cut <3

The party is already in full swing by the time Dan and his group get there. The subway would have been faster, but someone insisted that the lowest she would stoop to get to Bushwick was a cab. 

“Why did we agree to this again?” Dan asks out of the side of his mouth. 

“Not like she gave us much of a choice,” Vanessa mutters back. “Maybe we can get her to do something really low brow, like drink PBR or sing karaoke.”

Dan snorts, watching as the third member of their reluctant trio stomps into the crowd, clad in the tunic and pleather leggings Vanessa loaned her. 

A lot has happened since Dorota and Vanya’s wedding: Serena skipped town and came back with her dad, Eric hasn’t spoken to Serena since she came back with her dad (or their dad, but only in the biological sense). Vanessa got into Tisch, Dan didn’t. They evaluated their relationship at the three-month mark and decided that it just wasn’t working.

And, strangest of all, in the wake of her breakup—and Dan decking her ex across the face in public—Blair has seemingly attached herself to Dan and Vanessa and NYU as a whole, like she’s using the whole of Greenwich Village as a shield against the reach of Chuck Bass. 

“Hey, by the way,” Vanessa adds under her breath, “Willa is probably gonna make a move on you tonight.”

Dan blinks slowly, unsure how to answer. Breaking up was the right choice, he knows that. He spent most of his time as Vanessa’s boyfriend missing his best friend, Vanessa. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t feel weird about how she’s been pushing him into the path of other girls ever since. Like he’s a loose end she needs to square away before she starts at Tisch. 

“I’ll try to stick to a minimum six feet distance then.”

“Better make it ten,” Vanessa advises as they approach the bar, “she seemed pretty determined.”

Dan inwardly cringes, then orders two shots of tequila. Tequila and Vanessa have been somewhat of a dangerous combination for him these past six months, but if he’s going to endure the awkward ordeal this party is turning out to be, he cannot be sober for it. 

Vanessa’s pulled into a conversation with other Tisch people soon after, and Dan lets her go and tries not to feel too bitter about it. 

He’d really wanted it, but honestly, he can’t really explain why. He guesses that if he had to, then he’d have to admit it was because if he could break into the prestige of the Tisch name, it would make losing out on Yale sting a little less. Which is just fucking embarrassing—that was a year ago. What is it with Dan’s inability to move on anyway?

“Humphrey,” Waldorf greets him with a cursory nod, “holding the wall up all by yourself?”

He tips his beer bottle towards her. “Tough job, but someone’s gotta do it.”

She gives him a withering look. Fair, not his best material. 

“This has been a bust so far,” Waldorf declares, unprompted, slumping against the wall next to him. “The so-called art here is terrible, and there isn’t a single guy in this room I would even think about kissing.”

At a loss for how to reply, Dan just asks, “What?”

Waldorf heaves out a sigh. “To get around Chuck’s fatwa? That was the whole point of this exercise, Humphrey!”

He shakes his head, like Waldorf’s obstinance is something that’s possible to shake off. “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”

“Whatever,” she huffs, crossing her arms over her chest. “The point is, no matter what I do, or where I go, he’s just –” she gestures wildly, “there.”

Dan follows the direction of her wave, and nearly spits out his drink when he sees Chuck Bass lurking in the corner. There could only be one reason for Chuck to come to Bushwick, and it’s certainly not to see Willa Weinstein’s performance art on corporate coffee chains.

“That’s…” he trails off, searching for an apt descriptor, “fucked up.”

Waldorf snorts at his eloquence, hands tightening around her elbows. “Yeah. It just – makes it impossible to move on. Him being around all the time.”

Dan looks at her carefully, holding herself in that defeated-yet-determined way she had been at Dorota and Vanya’s game night, and feels that same impulse to reach out, to try and make it better somehow, even though he hasn’t a fucking clue where to start. 

“It’s hard having an ex that’s always around,” he offers, eyes finding Vanessa in the crowd, laughing with the theatrical writing majors they met at the cabaret. “It’s not even that you want them back, you just…could do without your history popping out around any corner.” 

Blair looks at him curiously, her hard protective gaze softening into something more contemplative. Dan gets a sudden flash of deja vu, to a different year, a different heartbreak, a different warehouse wall. 

“For what it’s worth, Blair, I’m sorry.”

Her eyes cast down at the floor, at her boots that are disproportionately expensive to the rest of her outfit. She hasn’t said any more about why she and Chuck broke up, but Dan’s seen enough to know that it must have been really bad. 

“And – you know –” he stammers, “if there’s anything I can do –”

Blair’s eyes shoot back up, questioning. “Kiss me.”

“What?”

“Yes. Yes that would do it,” she continues, as if that explains anything. “Come on, Humphrey, hop to.”

“I…”

“Don’t worry, I’m not expecting you to write a sonnet or whatever it is you do. This is just a favor.”

He arches an eyebrow. “A favor would imply that we’re friends. Are we?”

She blinks at him, nonplussed. “Does it matter?”

He shrugs. He doesn’t really care about the answer, it’s just that it’s easier to debate Blair on semantics. It’s a dynamic that makes sense to him. 

“Fine,” Blair huffs, “if it helps you sleep at night, then yes.” She pushes away from the wall, turning to face him. “So?”

Dan blinks. “Like – now?”

“That would be the idea, yes.”

“Okay,” Dan lets out a breath, and turns to face her, eyes dropping to her lips. She is pretty—it’s not like he’s never noticed—and there’s something about seeing her outside her typical Edith Head dress code that heightens it, or shines a light on her from a different angle. Or maybe he’s just drunk. 

He’s apparently stalled too long, because Blair mutters. “Oh, for crying out loud, Humphrey,” and yanks him in by the collar. 

A shock runs through him, then another, then another. First from: oh, she’s kissing him now, then from: oh, he’s kissing Blair Waldorf, then finally: this is actually a really good kiss. 

He opens his mouth on instinct, her lips moving with his. She tastes like cheap booze and expensive lip gloss, like every contradiction and complexity that makes his life interesting, that’s ever made him want to pick up a pen or sit at a keyboard. 

They break away to breathe at the same time, inhaling in tandem. It’s hard to tell in this lighting, but Dan’s sure Blair’s face is ruddier than when he was last looking at her. 

“Thank you,” she says bluntly, stunned.

“You’re welcome,” Dan automatically replies, blinking dumbly as Blair turns tail and disappears into the party. 

He’s going to need another drink. 

#gossip girl #dair #dan x blair #blair x dan #*prompts #and I did it! it's done! #took me 3 months but ya kno. life. #I'll work on crossposting these to ao3 after choir tonight :) #strideofpride #ty S love youuuuuuu #if nobody got me i know tumblr user strideofpride got me #no proofreading i die like woman

[littleguyconnor]

Hey what if HeavyMedic adopted Scout. I wrote about that

“3, 2… 1.” 

The camera flashed, whirring quietly while it spat the film out. The photographer took it from the dispenser and shook it a little, showing the family that had now crowded around them the just-starting results of the photo. They couldn’t see it clearly yet, but this didn’t dim their excitement. 

“The photo will be clear in an hour,” they said, handing it over. 

“Gut, danke schön!” 

“Heavy also thanks you.” 

The photographer gave a formal bow and packed their equipment, bidding their slightly strange customers farewell. It didn’t much matter to them, though, because they paid good money.

Once alone the new family yelled and cheered ecstatically, crushing themselves into a massive and deliriously overjoyed bear hug with Scout in the middle of it. They couldn’t see each other through the laughter, or tears, but they clung to each other. This little family, this bond formed from chance and the unyielding determination to make it, was finally official. The paperwork had been signed, approved, and a photo was taken to permanently seal this moment in history. 

Scout was their son.

Heavy had a sudden surge of overwhelming affection, hoisting up both his husband and son and spinning them around, an act done out of unbridled love. It only stopped short when Scout choked out that he was crushing him to death, but it was taken in good humor. Medic fixed Scout’s clothes, and then let him run off to tell the others about his adoption. He was better than all of them now; he had two freakin’ dads! That was more than he’d had in his entire life and probably more than they had in theirs. And he had a mom. He was truly the superior man. All he was missing now was a girlfriend, but, y’know, that could wait. 

The other two mercs talked quietly amongst themselves, discussing their decision and the excitement and nervousness about being parents. Medic reassured Heavy that there would be no need to buy bottles because Scout was already an adult, which was a hard sentence to say without laughing. Heavy had been so anxious he’d simply forgotten, and mildly stewed in embarrassment for a moment. All was quickly forgotten when his husband kissed him, something sweet and simple, and he mellowed out again. He leaned down to return the favor when they were both interrupted. 

“I see you’ve adopted my son.” 

They turned, mild surprise turning into annoyance and disinterest. A tense beat of silence passed as Spy paused to light a cigarette. 

“You’ve known about it,” Medic said stiffly, and the Frenchman held up his hands. 

“Of course. I’m not looking to start a fight. I only wish to ask of you one thing,” he said. The other mercenaries stared him down, expressions and stances hostile. Spy was very aware of this, and submitted to it. 

“Please …Be better men than I was. Take care of him.” 

Gravel crunched under Heavy’s feet as he took a few steps forward, Medic trailing behind him with a hand on his shoulder. 

“You were not “man”. You abandoned our son like coward, and you are telling us to be men?” 

“Yes. We are offering him something you were never capable of giving. Even now, you can’t get past your pride enough to tell him you were an idiot. It’s quite insulting.” 

Spy did not say anything for a long while. Emotions he had worked so hard to bottle up were resurfacing like shattered glass in his stomach. Shame. Anger. 

Regret.

“Es tut mir leid, Ludwig.”

“Don’t. This discussion is over. I feel it fair to say to leave our family alone. We are coworkers at most and this matter does not concern you. If you have as much wit as you say you do, you will understand this.” 

Heavy only had one other thing to say. Spy did not deserve his wasted breath.

“Do not apologize to Doctor. Apologize to Scout.” 

And with that, there was nothing more any of them had to say. 

Spy had lost his wife, his son, Medic, and Heavy. They were never “friends”, not really, but it felt like something irreversible had been chipped off, sunk to the bottom like a chunk of ice in the ocean. Something already fragile. Something already hard to hold on to, easy to slip up, to ruin. And he had done all of it. There was nothing left of his and Scout’s relationship to repair. One had never been fostered in the first place. It was all just unthinking selfishness, the need to preserve his dignity over letting his son heal. He thought about it. About what it must feel like. To know you had a dad, but not if he ever loved you. If he was there at all. 

Scout would never know.

#team fortress two #tf2 #tf2 fanfiction #tf2 scout #tf2 heavy #tf2 medic #tf2 spy #Found family #but also a lot of despair sorry #my writing

[daemour]

Pairing: Hongjoong x gn!Reader (with maybe a hint of romance?)

Genre: Fluff, comedy, photographer au

Word Count: 982

Warnings: None

Summary: Hongjoong invites you to his studio, but some complications occur

a part two to Manhattan! technically be read on its own, but more context is provided if u read the first part

more tipsy drabbles after quite long enough hehe

-

“Hi, I’m, uh, here to see Mr Kim Hongjoong?” You’re out of your depth in this fancy building but when Hongjong invited you to come out and see his studio in real life, you couldn’t say no to the offer.

The secretary looks you up and down, judgment clear on his face. “And you are?”

“Ah, I’m (Y/N) (L/N),” you say, spelling it out. “He said he’d put down an appointment for me?”

The man types away, chewing his gum so loudly you can’t help but wince a little.”Mmh, I don’t see you here. Next time, come up with a more believable lie.”

Your face falls but you try not to let it bother you. Hongjoong must’ve been busy and forgot. You can’t blame him. “Ah, sorry to bother you,” you apologise and the receptionist’s eyes soften.

“If you’d like, I can try and get a hold of his office and see if he has some free time?” he offers but you shake your head.

“That’s okay, I’ll just figure out another time. Thank you so much, though.” You smile and turn around to be on your way, battling the embarrassment threatening to swallow you whole.

As soon as you get past the big glass doors, you can feel your stomach twisting. That was embarrassing. The receptionist probably thought you were a creep. Not that it wasn’t weird. Even the way you met Hongjoong was strange. Who even becomes friends with a random photographer at three in the morning who just so happens to be world-famous? You, apparently.

With a sigh, you hail a taxi and prepare yourself for yet another boring day. It was your one chance to see the inside of an actual photography studio and it just slipped away between your fingers. Now you have to deal with your roommate’s prying questions.

As you’re unlocking your apartment door, however, your phone dings. It’s a text from Hongjoong.

You’re so engrossed you don’t notice your roommate unlocking and opening the door for you. “Ayo, what are you on? Don’t just stand t here, fool?” Mingi pulls you in, tsking. “One of these days you’re gonna get kidnapped and all I’ll say is ‘I told you so’.”

You look up from your phone, rolling your eyes. “Okay, dad,” you snark, receiving a light smack on your shoulder, and you return to your phone.

Frowning, you open the attachment and stare at it in disbelief. “He spelt my name wrong!” you yell and Mingi jumps. “That fool!”

Mingi frowns, peeking over your shoulder. “Is that why you’re home already?”

You nod vigorously, indignant and amused at the same time. “I literally cant believe it! How does one even do that? I texted my name to him!”

Mingi, unbothered as he always is, laughs loud and hard. “Honestly, power to him for not even thinking about double-checking. A mood and a half confirmed.”

Apparently, you took too long to respond and a call from Hongjoong flashes on the screen. “Hey!” you answer the phone while simultaneously pushing Mingi away with the other hand. “What’s up?” Your roommate makes a face at your tone of voice and you give him the finger.

“Hey, you disappeared on me? I did write in a time for you.” You still haven’t gotten used to how fast he talks and it takes you a moment to respond.

“Ah, dude, you spelled my name wrong,” you laugh. “The receptionist thought I was trying to sneak in or something.”

Hongjoong squawks. “What do you mean?”

“Yeah, dude, you spelled it some weird way, with far too many vowels.”

Hongjoong sighs, and you can hear him shuffle some papers around. “I’m so sorry about that, (Y/N). Do you still want to come around?”

“What? I don’t wanna take another taxi. They’re so expensive. We can just do it another day if you want.”

“No! I’ll drive you. I feel bad,” Hongjoong insists, and you can hear him running through the halls of his building. “What’s a coffee shop near you? We can meet there.”

You sigh, giving in. “Thanks, Hongjoong. I’ll see you in a few.” After a pause, you hang up the phone and immediately Mingi swoops in with a shit-eating grin on his face.

“You have a date,” he sings and you blatantly ignore him. “Make sure to get that cake!”

With another eye roll, you shut the door on your roommate and head back down the stairs. The coffee shop isn’t far, quite literally across the street, so you take the time to pop in and get yourself a tea. You check your phone to pass the time, but it’s surprisingly not as long as you expected as a familiar face slides into the seat across from you.

“How’s your drink?” You can’t help but smile at the sight of him with his ashy grey hair and patterned scarf. “I’m sorry you got stuck at the receptionist.”

You laugh, waving it off. “It’s okay. He was doing his job. Would you like a drink or do you want to just head out?”

Hongjoong hums. “I’ll get a drink. I’d like to spend more time with you anyway, and we can get into the studio whenever.” You squint at him, unsure if he’s flirting, and all he does is just wink and get in line at the counter. You can just imagine Mingi taking the piss out of you when you get back home later tonight.

As you stare at Hongjoong’s back, your smile widens. It’s not good to long for what may not come but the idea of it does appeal to you. Maybe things will work out the way you want, but focusing on the possibilities isn’t conducive. And as Hongjoong approaches you, a coffee cup in hand and a wide smile on his face, you know there’s no time like the present.

#pirateeznet #k-vanity #wkcnet #ateez #ateez fanfiction #ateez fanfic #ateez x reader #ateez fluff #ateez au #ateez hongjoong #hongjoong fanfiction #hongjoong fanfic #hongjoong x reader #hongjoong fluff #hongjoong au

[missmouse25]

Good old classic like meeting his parents and brother and nanny?? Maybe showing you around the house and his childhood room, With max f🥺

Hello Anon! ❤️ i will admit that i got very caught up in the 'meeting the family part' , sorry about that. hope you like it regardless! ✨

Part of the Family - Max Fewtrell

gender neutral first person pov // 1245 words (thats a nice number) // no warnings. brothers being brothers, nervous reader, good old fluff

---

“Babe, relax, there’s nothing to worry about.”

We drove through the suburb, and every time we passed a house, I wondered if the next one was the one that we’d stop at.

“That’s easy for you to say, they’re your family.”

I felt a hand quickly pat my thigh; I looked away from the window and to Max. He was dressed in his casual clothes but still wore his branded sunglasses – probably because they were the ones that he’d been able to find quickly.

“All you have to do is be yourself,” Max said as the car slowed down. “That’s the reason I fell in love with you.”

The car finally came to a stand-still.

“Are you ready?” Max smiled at me and my heart started to beat faster.

“As ready as I’ll ever be.”

 Luckily for me, it was Theo who opened the door and not one of Max’s parents.

“Hey! Good to see you again!” He said, giving me a hug before stepping out of the doorway and inviting us inside.

There were noises and voices from further in the house and it hit me that I was really here. I was really about to meet Max’s family.

“Mum’s in the kitchen, and Dad and Sam are somewhere else,” Theo said as he led us.

I felt Max slip his hand into mine as we followed to the kitchen, which made me feel better.

“Theo, is that them?” Mrs Fewtrell’s voice resonated as we stepped into the room.

“Turn around and see for yourself.”

“Hey, don’t talk to Mum like that,” Max chastised his younger brother.

Mrs Fewtrell came to the doorway where we stood. She had the same kind eyes that Max had and the smile on her face was bright. You could tell she loved her family very much.

Max gave her a huge hug. He’d been telling me just earlier that there was nothing like his mum’s hugs – a place that always was inviting, even when he’d done something horrible.

Finally, it was my turn.

“Hello, Mrs Fewtrell, it’s lovely to meet you.”

“Oh please, love,” Mrs Fewtrell hugged me next and I instantly understood what Max meant. “Call me Louise. No need for such formalities with us.”

“Mum, we brought some biscuits. Can I just put them on the counter?”

Louise looked between us.

“Now why did you two do that?”

“My mother taught me that you shouldn’t show up to someone’s house empty handed,” I said, hoping that I hadn’t offended them. “So, I baked condensed milk cookies, they’re probably my favourites.”

“They really are very good, Mum,” Max said, now swatting Theo’s hand away from the container.

“They sound delicious!” Louise said with a smile. “We can have them with some tea after our meal.”

Quietly, I let out a sigh of relief. Maybe this wasn’t going to be as bad as I had thought it would be.

 

Meeting the rest of the family was a breeze. Sam, the eldest son was so similar to Max, it made me laugh, and the three brothers were easily amused among themselves. Mr Fewtrell gave me a warm welcome and promised to show me all the embarrassing video’s he had of Max in his younger days. When the Sam and Theo started teasing Max, their dad then threatened to show theirs as well, which promptly shut them all up.

“Come, now, time to eat! We can talk more at the table,” Louise ushered everyone into the dining room, stopping next to me to whisper. “You’d think for how much they love eating that they’d be eager to get to the food.”

I laughed at the truth in her words, thinking of how often Max would come home famished but wouldn’t eat until after he’d showered and asked about my day.

Together we sat at the table, Max next to me with a hand on my leg for comfort, and ate the delicious meal that Louise had prepared for us.

“So, has Max been giving you any trouble?” Sam asked from where he sat opposite me.

The cheeky grin was not lost on either myself nor Max, who threw a singular pea at his brother.

“Boys!” Paul’s voice was not loud but it was firm, and both of them apologised immediately.

“No, no trouble at all,” I said, still amused by the family antics. “Although he did almost forget my birthday.”

All eyes turned to Max who instantly jumped in to defend himself.

“I did not almost forget! The stuff I had planned originally fell through and I had to scramble to get something else!”

“Sure, Max, sure,” Theo teased before ducking as Max held up another pea.

Louise shook her head but was smiling slightly still.

“What have I always said about having backup plans?”

The Fewtrell family murmured their agreement to Louise’s words. I gave Max an apologetic look to which he quickly leant over and kissed my cheek, earning a cacophony of noise from around the table.

 

“Let me take those,” I said, quickly standing up and lifting the plates off the table.

Paul and Louise shared a look before I followed Louise into the kitchen and put the dishes on the counter

“Thank you, that was such a lovely meal.”

“No need to thank me,” she said. “I’m always happy to feed my family. Speaking of, are your family close by?”

“Sadly not,” I answered, feeling the slight pull in my chest like I always did when thinking about how far I was from them. “It’s just me here. Well, Max is here too I guess.”

“Well.” Louise moved to take my hands in her own. “If you ever need anything, you let us know. I’ll tell Max to give you my number, call me whenever you need me.”

My heart felt full to the brim by her words. My voice caught in my throat as I barely managed a ‘thank you’.

 

While everyone was waiting for the kettle to boil, Max snuck me upstairs and through the first door on the left.

“Tada, my childhood bedroom. Please don’t judge me.”

The bed was covered with Ferrari themed covers, and amongst the pillows I spotted one well loved teddy bear. There were models of cars and planes on the shelves and trophies from his first karting events. On the notice board above the desk, an old school announcement was pinned into the chalk, next to a photo of a very young Max and Lando.

I looked at everything, taking in all the details. All the things that had made Max the person he was today. Gently, I took this teddy bear off the bed.

“And this little guy?”

Max’s ears and cheeks flushed pink.

“Hmmm, you’ve found Senna-Bear.”

“Senna-Bear? Like…”

Max nodded before I could finish and I giggled.

“He’s very cute.”

I felt Max’s arms sneak around my body and his head on my shoulder.

“He was a good friend to have. A piece of home when we travelled.”

We stood like that for a little while, lost in our own thoughts until a voice called out loudly from downstairs.

“Oi, love birds!” Theo yelled. “Kettle’s boiled!”

~

“So,” Max said after we had waved goodbye and climbed into his car. “As bad as you thought it’d be?”

I shook my head.

“No, it was great. Your family is amazing. I’d love to be a part of it someday.”

Max smiled widely.

“I’d love that too.”

#honestly #this ended up being much longer than i thought it would be #i think it's the sibling dynamics #i love just having siblings be siblings #hope you liked it Anon ❤️ #max fewtrell fanfic #max fewtrell x reader #Mouse Writes #ThatKindaVibe

[emmies-agere]

hi. okay nervous to request this. maybe caregiver damon maitsu headcannons , with a young (but not baby) boy regressor,,, 🤕

hi anon! thank you so much for requesting this (don’t be afraid to send any requests in, i’m always happy to do them!) omg i love project eden’s garden so much <3 everytime i receive a request for it i literally get so excited,, i hope that i wrote for damon well and that you like it! take care and have a wonderful day :D

caregiver damon maitsu headcanons!

•as a caregiver, damon would do his best to always look out for you! i think that initially, he would have to do some research on age regression. after that— he would be willing to take care of you! he just wants to make sure he understands and looks after you properly <3

•he might be a little hesitant the first few times he looked after you, but he’ll quickly get the hang of it! he doesn’t want to make you feel embarrassed and he wants you to be able to trust him.

•if you’re curious about something, he will never turn down questions! if you ask him why the sky is blue or if water is wet or not, he’ll first ask you what you think. he’ll carefully listen to what you have to say before providing an explanation!! (though he tries to put it into terms that make sense)

•he doesn’t use many pet names, but i think he would definitely call you kiddo and dear!!

•always makes sure you’re close to him if you ever regressed in public. rest assured that there’s no chance of you getting lost in a store, or wandering off to another street. he makes sure you’re holding his hand in a crowded area and never lets you wander out of his sight for too long.

•damon tries to loosen up a little around you! your regression should help you have fun and feel safe, and if that means having a tea party with your stuffed animals or coloring on the floor with you... he will absolutely do that! (don’t tell his classmates, though!)

•pretty firm about bedtimes and routines. he makes sure everything is laid out clearly for you, like how you need to brush your teeth before bed and what time you do need to sleep. he likes the order of it, but he won’t be upset if you need some reminders here and there! the only reason he really has these rules is so you can take care of yourself.

•damon would love reading you books! he’ll read you some chapter books from his childhood, or if you were feeling particularly young, some colorful picture books!

•when it comes to physical affection, he kind of treats you like a dad sending his kid off for school haha!! puts a hand on your shoulder and pats your back if you were proud of something. he’ll hold your hand sometimes too, but he doesn’t do much else. (if you initiated anything though, he’d return it without hesitation!)

•damon has a soft spot for you. he probably won’t admit it, but he’ll buy you the plushie you’re eyeing at the store. he’ll notice when you’re down and try to cheer you up. if you’re struggling to reach something, he’ll always grab it for you.

•speaking of which— if you were ever sad when regressed, or you just had a bad day, damon would take extra care to be gentle with you. definitely murmurs something along the lines of, “hey, hey, what’s the matter, kiddo?”.

•he would sit beside you and ask you if you wanted to talk about it, and if you didn’t, he’d just stay by your side. sometimes, that’s enough, and he wants you to know he’s there.

•if you did want to talk about it, he’d try to find solutions to what was bothering you, even if all he can do is suggest things you two can do that might make you feel better.

•damon is honestly a very sweet caregiver— he’s doing his best for you and he always wants you to know that he loves you so very much <3

#age regression #age regressor #agere #agere blog #sfw agere #sfw #fandom agere #safe agere #sfw interaction only #age dreaming #sfw age regression #damon maitsu #project eden’s garden age regression #project eden’s garden agere #project eden’s garden #p:eg #danganronpa imagines #danganronpa writing #danganronpa headcanons #caregiver headcanons

[fiixerupper]

Christmas at the Player’s House

Alluded to(?) spoilers for ScarVi below! Basically the result of me imagining the friend group when invited to spend Christmas at the player’s home with their mother. Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, and Happy Holidays to those who don’t!

Fluff, general headcanons, player is referred to with they/them pronouns though they’re not mentioned too much.

I mean given all we know about his upbringing with his parents I doubt he’s ever had much of a nice Christmas

But this year is different! He has friends he cares about! And they care about him!

But…how the hell do you know what to gift those people?

He’s not the smartest, and he’s not really the arts and crafts type. Shoot, he really should’ve been writing stuff down all those times he’d hear his friends talking about something they wanted that year!

Well, if there’s one thing Arven is good at, it’s cooking. So a special dish and dessert should do the trick! …Hopefully.

He definitely drops way too obvious signs the entire month. Asking what the player and the others usually look forward to for their holiday meals and whatnot.

Definitely comes over and greets the player’s mother with an awkward smile before revealing what he made for everyone.

He anxiously watches for everyone’s reactions when they first take a bite.

And oh! The relief when everyone says they love it and that he did a great job on it!

Don’t fill up too much, he also made marranitos for dessert! (They really do look like Lechonks…)

This is the time of year where she really shines

I can see her planning out all year what she’ll gift all of her friends

Plus all the extra gifts she spontaneously buys because “Ooh! They’ll LOVE this!” Every. Single. Time.

It’s a good thing she’s from a rich family because the amount of gifts she’ll come over with is staggering

Gift giving is probably her love language, that or quality time. Lucky for her the holiday season let’s her indulge in both!

She probably also decorates like crazy

Like, you know how some people put those blow-up decorations on their yards and cover every inch of their home with lights?

Yeah that’s definitely right up her alley. Don’t even get me started on the tree!

Would love to walk through Mesagoza with her friends at night and see all the Christmas lights throughout the town

Spending the holiday with her friends, seeing those lights together, that’s the greatest gift she receives that year in her eyes

Given how she spoke about her dad being really annoying and embarrassing, I can imagine she jumped at the opportunity to be somewhere else for the holidays.

And the player’s mom is pretty normal! And she’s not suffocating her child with embarrassing nicknames and stuff!

She probably brought over some anime she really loves for everyone to watch on the player’s TV in their room.

The player’s mom comes upstairs with hot chocolate, and I can see her putting a big pile of whipped cream on top of hers.

I can also just picture her excitedly talking over the anime she put on at times to explain how Huge this current scene is, and at other times she’s completely silent as her eyes are glued to the screen.

And then it’s time for everyone to exchange their gifts with each other. They all moved to the living room since everyone had dropped off what they brought downstairs by the tree.

Seeing the player receive and gift presents with their mother…Well, it admittedly made Penny feel a bit bad for ditching her dad.

So after the gift exchange she’d excuse herself to make a call outside.

It took her a second to build up the nerve to hit the button on her screen, but eventually she’d wait just a few seconds as it rang before it would be answered.

“…Hey, Dad? It’s Pen-pen. I uh…just wanted to say Merry Christmas.”

#pokemon #pokémon #pokemon scarlet and violet #pokemon scarlet #pokemon violet #pokemon scarvi #pokemon scvi spoilers #nemona #arven #penny #pokemon nemona #pokemon arven #pokemon penny #pokemon headcanons #headcanons #pokemon hcs #fiixerupper

[prosperdemeter2]

Teaser Tuesday - psychic!Eddie au

“Soph said she’s going to join once we actually get on location, so about mid-week, but I’ll be up by you in a few days.”

“You’re visiting?” Christopher asked with a little bounce in his seat.

Adriana’s tiny voice laughed and it echoed around them in a circle. “I am!” She exclaimed just as brightly. For someone who had been up all night long, Adriana certainly didn’t sound like she even needed another minute of sleep. Meanwhile, Eddie wanted to curl up in a little ball in the middle of his bed and sleep until the entire week was over. His dream from the night before didn’t exactly leave him feeling rested enough to be heading into his twenty-four hour shift. “We’re filming at an old jail and then we got a few house calls we’re going to investigate.” 

“Super cool.” Christopher said in the same way he always spoke about Adriana and Sophia’s little YouTube series. Not that Eddie didn’t also think it was, sort of, cool. His sisters had found their niche community and made something for themselves out of it. They had something close to five million followers, enough to quit their day jobs and turn it into a full time career - something that only Adriana had done during the pandemic. “Can I come?” 

“Well…” Adriana trailed off. 

“No.” Eddie said before she could even try to get him to say yes. 

“Maybe during the summer.” Adriana tacked on unhelpfully. 

Christopher frowned in Eddie’s direction, crossed his arms, and sunk down into the passenger seat with a scowl. 

He had been doing that a lot more lately. “Anyway…” Adriana muttered. 

“Where are you staying?” Eddie asked with a drum of his fingers and a glance at the clock. Christopher would probably get to school with ten minutes to spare, Eddie was going to be late for his shift. “Chris, can you do me a favor?” 

Christopher didn’t answer, too busy scowling at the traffic like it was at fault for Eddie not letting him go with Adriana and Sophia to investigate an old abandoned jail and not safety regulations. Those things had such flimsy floors and ventilations systems. “What?” He mumbled. 

“Can you text Buck? Let him know I’m running late.” 

“Fine.” He’d be over his frustration by the time Eddie picked him up from school - at least he hoped he would. 

“Thank you.” 

Christopher hummed, wiggling his starter phone out of his pocket, unlocking the screen with his thumbprint and finding the text thread he had going with Buck with ease (it was third on his list, right above Eddie’s contact and under two of his school friends. They had strict rules for the phone, Eddie had Christopher’s password and he had to approve the apps he downloaded, but he was trying not to hover too much. Chris deserved his privacy and independence and Eddie really didn’t want to be one of those overprotective parents that didn’t let their kids do anything). “We got an AirBnB,” Adriana answered smoothly. “I’ll send you the address when we get off the phone. Running late?” 

“When aren’t we?” Christopher sassed with a roll of his eyes. “Dad was too busy getting ready.” 

“Hey,” Eddie shot him a look and a shake of his head. Christopher’s cheeks flushed and he sunk down further in his seat with an embarrassed little frown. “Two people, one bathroom.” Eddie shrugged like Adriana could see him. “It makes things difficult.” 

“God, Sophia made me late for an interview the other day because she decided to hog the bathroom,” Adriana said with a laugh. “I get it.” 

His sisters shared a house with Walt, Adriana’s husband and their channel’s technology guy, and Melody, Sophia’s sixteen year old daughter, half of the year, twenty minutes away from their parents. “Buck said he’s texting you the pastry and coffee orders.” Chris read off his phone with a little half smile. 

A smart move, even if Eddie hated having to get the team coffee (Hen liked to make her orders as complicated as possible and Bobby had a very specific way he liked his breakfast sandwiches made that always made Eddie flush whenever he had to read it out to a poor, minimum wage working barista). If Eddie was late, Bobby was going to be forced to make note of it. If Eddie was late but arrived with breakfast, Bobby could say that he wasn’t late, only that he had been on a team fuel run. “Am I finally going to get to meet this Buck?” Adriana asked curiously, a tease in her voice that Eddie wanted no part of. 

“You’ve met him.” Eddie countered. 

“Does it count when the guy is flying high on painkillers?” 

“Dad’s asking him out!” It was his own fault, really, for taking the phone call in the car and not telling Adriana he’d call her back. Christopher beamed at him like he hadn’t just blurted that out happily to get back at him for not letting him go ghost hunting with his aunts. 

“Oh?” Adriana’s voice tilted ridiculously high. 

They hadn’t… actually been able to have that conversation yet. Eddie’s neck flushed. “No,” He corrected hastily. “I’m asking him to have dinner with us this week. I’m not asking him out.”

“Yet.” Christopher countered. 

Yet, Eddie noted to himself. 

“Yet?” Adriana echoed. 

“Chris,” Eddie slid the car into park and sighed. “Go to school.” 

Christopher cackled. “Bye, dad! Bye, Tia!” 

“Have a good day at school!” Adriana called out obligingly. 

“Love you.” 

Christopher would, one day, be too old to think it was cool to answer him back. He wasn’t there yet, no matter how annoyed at Eddie he got. “Love you too.” Maybe it was because of Shannon, or maybe it was because of the tsunami and the shooting and almost losing each other before Eddie could even really see him grow up. Either way, he cradled Christopher’s words like he always did, just as close to his chest as they always were and watched him disappear into the school, shoulder to shoulder with a friend at the doors. “So,” Adriana began. “Since when are you into guys?”

Since always. And, really, Buck was a special case. What with his… everything. It wasn’t fair, really, to have those eyes and those legs and that heart. Eddie was hopeless. “Rana -.” A boy, not much older than Christopher, stepped off the curb with a casual glance over his shoulder and a laugh on his lips. Eddie swore and slammed on his brakes, the boy’s hip mere inches away. 

The car behind him in the drop off line honked. 

“Eddie?” Adriana asked worriedly. “Are you okay?” 

Slowly, the boy turned to look at him. 

His face was a mangled mess of cuts and bruises, his right eye was gone completely, his clothing was hanging on in tatters and… 

Eddie blinked and he was gone, in his place nothing but the newly painted crosswalk. 

Eddie breathed out a harsh breath and eased his foot off the brakes, the truck rolling forward. “I’m good.” He answered automatically and swallowed past the misery in his throat. He glanced in his rearview mirror and the boy was on the side of the road, head cocked and hand raised to his shoulder as he… waved. 

That particular little boy hadn’t given Eddie a fright in months. 

Eddie waved back and eased his car forward. 

“Seen any ghosts lately?” Adriana asked with a laugh. “If you’re ever missing it, you’re more than welcome to investigate with me and Sophie.” 

How could he miss it? He lived with it every day. “No,” Eddie said with a shake of his head. “No ghosts lately.” The boy faded into a wisp of smoke. 

Eddie pulled out of the parking lot.

#teaser tuesday #psychic!au #Psychic!Eddie #i have no title for this yet Jskskskz #its fine 😭😅

[toyotacorrola]

"Radio Static" chapter 4 is out!

Chapter Summary: "Elesa was worried. So far, though, Emmet hadn't fought her very hard on letting her help.

Unfortunately, actually helping wasn't as easy as it seemed."

Chapter Word Count: 2,870

Links: ff.net | neocities

Also can be found under the cut:

Elesa took a breath, deep enough to hurt in the icy December air, then slowly released it. She could do this, it would be fine.

She rapped her knuckles on the door, feeling the slight sting of the finished wood hitting her hand. Usually she wouldn’t bother to hit it so hard, but sometimes Emmet wouldn’t hear it if it wasn’t loud enough. She stood there in silence for a few seconds. Right as she was beginning to think she’d have to knock again, the door swung open.

Emmet looked… rough. He always did, lately. Tonight, though, it seemed that he was actually more put together than usual. She should be happy to see just that slight improvement, but she wondered if it was really that he was starting to get as better as he could, or if it was just for her sake.

Instead of saying anything or letting her thoughts show, she smiled at him and held up the grocery bag in her other hand.

“Hey, Emmie. I brought the good stuff,” she said, a laugh in her voice that she didn’t really feel.

She had been embarrassed of her late night call to Emmet, before. It had been a drunken lapse of judgment, and she had felt so ashamed, thinking she’d bothered him when everything was already so hard on him.

Instead, he had assured her he hadn’t minded, and agreed to let her hang out at his and Ingo’s- at his place. She had been pleasantly surprised, not expecting him to relent so easily. Maybe even he was starved for proper human interaction at this point. 

Until then, the only real contact she’d had with him had been her daily check-ins, which were always stiff (even by his standards) and never lasted long. Lately, she’d been busier and busier, so the times she actually got to see him in the flesh lessened, and it was killing her. She was so worried for him with how awful he looked and sounded, increasingly so every time. And without Ingo to keep him in check… well, she just didn’t know.

(Or maybe she did, and she just didn’t want to think about it.)

Not to mention all of those awful rumors about him… she hoped they hadn’t gotten to him yet. She almost hoped they never would, but she knew better.

He smiled back, small and tired, but genuine. It made her own feel that much more real. He stepped back to let her in.

She glanced about the apartment, hoping she was being subtle. He probably already knew what this doubled as, though.

The place was actually neater than it was the last time she’d been there. Everything was in its place, nothing was broken or strewn across the floor. There was even a distinct lack of hair on the furniture. He must have tidied before she’d gotten there.

It may have been for appearance’s sake, to not worry her, but the fact that he’d had the energy and forethought to do so at all gave her hope. Maybe it was naive, maybe she was grasping at straws, but she just needed any sort of sign she could get that her friend would be alright.

They sat down together on the couch, and she rambled pointlessly about her choice of movies for the night. She wasn’t really paying attention to what she was saying, not really thinking about it before letting it out. Mostly, she just wanted to fill the room with something, to have his eyes on her, just to know he would react. He seemed interested enough, so she supposed she wasn’t doing too badly.

“My dad loves this movie, but I’ve never actually seen it. He says it’s just horrible, but he’s seen it so many times, and he just kept noticing all these little details that he thinks there’s some sort of secret genius in it. Something about how that’s the problem with trying to make art out of movies - I don’t really know, he’s told me about it so many times, I’ve stopped really paying attention. The others are just a bunch of chick flicks, the only ones my mom actually likes - she hates all those overly sentimental ones. Those were always more Dad’s thing,” she rambled.

Emmet chuckled, but didn’t say anything. She figured that was about as good as she could hope for. She leaned forward and popped the disc in, listening to the old DVD player whir loudly. 

They sat quietly together for a while, sometimes laughing at a particularly bad line. She could tell, though, that he was distracted, and she didn’t blame him; so was she. What was odd, though, was that he seemed to be specifically facing away from her most of the time - almost like he didn’t want her to see his face. When the credits started rolling, she stretched and stood to take the disc out. Emmet glanced at the clock. She worried for a moment that she was overstaying her welcome.

“It’s getting a bit late. I can make something, if you’d like to stay for dinner,” he offered, instead.

She couldn’t fight the smile that came upon her face. She wasn’t ready to leave him alone, yet, and she always did love his cooking.

“That sounds wonderful. I’ll help,” she added. She never did like just sitting around while someone else did something for her. 

Emmet seemed like he wanted to insist otherwise, but he must have known that would be a losing battle, as he instead led her to the kitchen and asked what she’d like. 

“Spaghetti sounds nice,” she said, mostly because it was generally pretty easy. Even if she was helping, she didn’t want to ask too much of him. 

As she opened the pantry to get the uncooked pasta, she noticed how sparse the items in it were. Maybe she would start to go with him for grocery trips.

They didn’t really talk, but it was nice, just standing by his side as they worked. She stared at the water, waiting for it to boil. Emmet had been horribly distant as of late, and it had worried her sick. She just wanted to be near him, to see him, to know that he was okay.

It was hard to rid herself of the idea that, if she didn’t watch him very, very carefully, he might just disappear on her, too. For that reason, she’d been pushing more than she usually would, lately. Normally, she’d give him space, despite her worry, and let him come to her if he wanted her help.

Now, though, it was really more about reassuring herself that he was still there than anything. Or, as close to there as she could call… this. 

The sound of the water bubbling brought her back to reality. None of that mattered right then. She was here, now, with him - she could see him, he wasn’t going anywhere so long as that was true. For now, that would have to be enough.

She dumped the noodles in, remembering the time she had broken them in half and the boys had chastised her heavily. It brought a smile to her face, before she was sobered again. Everything just felt so different without Ingo, she thought as she poked her spoon into the pot to ensure everything in it was submerged.

She was sure Emmet was feeling his absence then, too. Maybe that was why he had been avoiding her - they didn’t spend much time one-on-one together. It wasn’t that it was awkward, or that he didn’t want to see her, but rather that it was just another reminder of what was missing.

She supposed she’d just have to rectify that by making it into the norm, at least until he returned.

“Hey, Emmet,” she started, and he hummed to show he was listening. “Do you think maybe we could do this again next week? It’s been nice,” she said.

“Sure, that sounds fine,” he said, deadpan as ever, but still sounding disinterested in a way she’d trained herself out of hearing in his voice. 

She tried not to feel hurt by his dismissiveness. It was hard on him, on all of them; she knew that. She’d never seen him in a worse state than he had been in lately. She wondered, then, if his cooperativeness that night had really been willingness to finally let her in, or if he just didn’t want to have to push back against her anymore. 

In fact, this whole night, it was like he was barely even there. She saw the look in his eyes, then. Her relief from earlier had completely vanished, and she was now very, very scared. Scared for him, of all the things going on in his head that she couldn’t see. 

She took a good, long, look at him, the way he’d not quite been letting her the whole night. He had definitely noticed her staring, but he wouldn’t be the one to speak first. 

He seemed just… out of it, his eyes completely devoid of anything at all, with huge bags under them that he didn’t even try to hide. His hair was the only part of him that really seemed like it’d been properly washed recently, and not that thoroughly. 

She wondered how long it had gone unwashed before she’d told him she was coming over. 

She realized, then, the shame and embarrassment that he’d had all night. She hadn’t thought much about the way he’d tried to avoid letting her look at him for too long, lest she notice the minor acne making a resurgence on his skin. She’d seen how barren his fridge and cabinets were, and she could see the way he seemed just that smallest bit slimmer. 

It hadn’t been very long since Ingo had gone missing, all things considered, although it had felt like an eternity. She worried, then, how much worse everything would get if things went on this way and no one stepped in.

She wished he would realize that she wouldn’t judge him for any of it. She wouldn’t think any less of him for maybe forgetting some hygiene in the wake of everything they were all going through. However, no matter how carefully she tried to breach the subject, it wouldn’t come across that way. With how hard he’d tried to get her not to notice, it’d likely feel like judgment to him no matter what she actually said. 

She just wanted to have a real, serious conversation without hurting him - to express her concern without feeling like she was overstepping. She’d have never thought just a few months ago that she’d have to walk on eggshells around one of her best friends the way she was, now. 

Her thoughts were interrupted by a yelp and a curse from where Emmet was pouring the noodles out into a strainer. She turned to see him cradling his hand. He seemed alright, but she noticed he was shaking.

“Emmet…? Are you okay…?” she asked.

She walked over to see his face better, and…

He was crying.

She wasn’t sure what to do. He sank to the floor, as though his knees could no longer hold him up, and so she went with him.

“Emmet, please, just talk to me,” she begged. She was scared, so scared. She understood that he was scared, too. She understood that his hurt likely ran much deeper and differently than her own. She just needed to be able to help him, to do anything at all. 

“You wouldn’t understand,” he moaned.

She knew that. Dragons, she knew. But couldn’t she try?

“...Emmet, I know... I know I don't get it. I've never had anything like you and Ingo, in any sense of it. But could you just try to explain it to me? Talking it out might help, and... and I want to help, however I can. Even if it's just listening, even if I can't really understand," she replied. 

“...It’s going to sound crazy,” he said, but he sounded ready to give in.

“Try me,” she answered, steady as could be. He chuckled a bit, his eyes alight with just a little bit of the warmth she used to see in them every day. 

“Okay,” he sighed. “Okay. Just… give me a minute. Find my words.”

She nodded, and waited. She always would. She understood. She was wondering, though, just what he could possibly be talking about. She’d assumed all of this had to do with Ingo. The thought gave her pause.

…Did he know something…?

She looked back at him, and the atmosphere had changed again. She tried not to think too harshly of him - but just what was he hiding from her? 

Across from her, Emmet took a breath, and began speaking.

"I am Emmet. For my whole life, I have known one thing for sure. The world would never be silent. For as long as I can remember, my hearing has not been a guarantee. But I would still hear something. Ingo… he would still be there, in my mind. He would speak to me, still, and he would be my ears. Now he is… Gone. There is nothing there. Radio silence."

To say she was confused would be an understatement.

“Emmet, what are you talking about?” she asked, maybe a tad less patient than she’d wanted to come across.

“Elesa, I am going to say something and it is going to sound like a lie. But I need you to believe me anyway,” he said.

She was conflicted. He had been acting so strange today, but never in all of her time knowing him had she known Emmet to be a liar. Even as unusual as his behavior had been, she couldn’t believe he would lie to her when it came to Ingo.

“Okay,” was all she said. 

Please, don’t start lying to me now.

“Ingo and I, we share a… connection, of sorts,” he began. “What I see through my own eyes, he could easily see as though it were through his own. What he thinks, I would hear as clearly as though they were my own thoughts. Always, always, he has been there, even when we were apart. And now, I…” he trailed off.

“...Don’t hear him at all,” she finished, dazed. It was quite a thing to ask her to believe. She had half a mind to think he’d gone insane. She couldn’t blame him, if he had.

But really, stranger things had happened in her life. 

She believed him, wholeheartedly. She really wished she didn’t, though.

“So, if you can't… If he’s not…” she tried to say, but she couldn’t find it in herself to voice her fears.

“What else could it mean?” he asked, sadly. “One second, he was there, and the next, he just… wasn’t. No warning, nothing.”

She’d heard he’d acted strange on the day Ingo had disappeared. Apparently, he’d said some odd things just before people started searching for him - had suddenly asked about him, despite being in the middle of working, and already having not seen him in hours by that point.

She’d thought it was just one of those times you get a bad feeling, and it turns out to be right. A coincidence, or a one-time thing. She’d heard of it before.

She knew she was being too quiet, that he was probably waiting for an actual response from her. But what could she say? How could she reassure him? 

Still… maybe it was foolish, but one thing about her was that she was determined to hope. Emmet had once said that she and his brother were alike, in that way. She didn’t think she could ever live up to Ingo’s own spirit, but by the Dragons, would she try. 

“Do you wonder if, maybe… well, would it be too absurd to think that, just maybe… something… took him?” she asked.

His brow furrowed harshly. “What?” he asked.

“Think about it,” she said. “There’s no body, no blood - nothing at all to really indicate that he was ever there in the first place, except for his belongings. If he’s dead, then where’s his body? Where did it go? Why wouldn’t whoever… why would they leave his belt?” It was too painful to refer to her friend’s supposed murder, even if she was telling herself that wasn’t what happened.

Emmet was still silent, so she continued.

“Wouldn't you have felt some kind of pain from him, even if he died instantly? And how-”

“Stop,” he interrupted. “Please, just… just stop. Don’t. Don’t give me hope.”

“Emmet…” she started.

“No, no. There’s just no way. Who could have possibly taken him so quickly that I didn’t feel anything? What could they have done to manage that?” he asked. Pleaded, really.

“Maybe it’s not who,” she started, carefully. “But what.”

She let the implications linger, let him think about it on his own. She could see the hesitation in his face, but also that he was thinking about it. Deeply.

He looked up at her, that old fire back in his eyes. 

“I think… I have a lot to think about,” he said. 

#ending on this one feels kind of abrupt and the whole thing seems a little slow for my taste but hopefully it's good #much prouder of next week's chap #txt #fic #radio static au #submas #subway master emmet #gym leader elesa #pkmn #fanfiction

[strawbrygashez]

hai.. for the otp asks 20,24, and 25 please 😊🍻🤗

YAY THANK U FOR ASKING!!!!

20. Most Cuddly?

I think it’s almost pretty even but I’m gonna say…Tyler is actually a bit more cuddly than the narrator. People might not agree with me BUT I think they are actually both touch starved. The narrator is just touch starved bc he’s always been lonely but Tyler is touch starved because he didnt let people cuddle him after hookups & he didn’t wanna cuddle them either. Like sure people are touching him more than the narrator has ever been but Tyler craves to touch someone he actually cares about & someone who genuinely cares about him too.

So he spoons the narrator almost every night, pulls him towards him on the couch, rests his arm or head on him, and etc. he’d probably even hold him from behind while they are waiting in line for something.

24. What do their texts look like?

Omg….so, I think the narrators texts always come off a bit more formal while tyler is over here using every old school emoji he can (assuming this is back like with flip phones). He shortens his words like “see you soon” would be “c u soon” and shit like that. While narrator is over here sending professional looking things to his boyfriend. “Okay tyler. I will be looking forward to seeing you this evening.” (Tyler loves how dorky he sounds)

If it’s modern phones then Tyler still uses lots of emojis “HEY BABE💖🔥🔥🔥 HURRY UP! 🆙🆙🆙 ITS SOAP 🧼 MAKING TIME 😈💯🥶🔥💯” and the narrator responds with “👍”

25. Parenting style?

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ASKING THIS ONE! I think about this a lot.. specifically like how Tyler would parent.

I think Tyler would be so terrified at first that he will end up treating their kid like how his father treated him. He doesn’t want someone to go thru what he did but after some deep conversations with the narrator, I think he would feel a bit better about it bc the narrator would remind him that it’s good that he acknowledges that he wants to be a good father and wouldn’t wanna be anything like his own & that some people don’t even think about that. He’d still be scared out of his mind but once they actually adopt the kid or whatever or however that happens..he honestly forgets how scared he is because his heart is too full of love for them 🙄🙄🙄

Anyways, his parenting style would be a mix of like protective, slightly strict, but also relaxed. I don’t know the actual terms for it 💀 but like he raises their kid on the values he preaches to everyone else. He wants them to have a good head on their shoulders, explore the world, don’t take shit from anyone, don’t listen to ‘the man’, live the way you wanna live, and etc but he also makes sure they know how to defend themselves & he will NOT let them out of his sight until they are a older teenager. He probably started teaching them self defense when they were like 9 or something 💀

I added the hes relaxed about parenting part because as long as he can see why his kid did something ‘bad’ (like at school or whatever) and agrees with what they did, he’ll just shrug it off. Also he loves being the embarrassing but cool dad & loves to mess with them.

Narrator would probably be the kind of dad who is very..mom coded 💀 he does all the things like packing lunches, cooks, takes them to appointments, helps them get ready for the day, keeps track of all the things involving them coming up, and ect.

#asks #god I love that last question so much 😭 I wanna write more about my thoughts on that kinda stuff eventually

[phantasticworks]

One of the Few Things - Chapter 2

hello! back again! this took way longer than i thought it would (thanks writer's block) but here it is! I'm working on a couple of other things atm as well so updates for this will continue to be pretty slow but I hope you guys are enjoying this one so far!!

read on ao3

Words: 4.3k

Summary: Dan finally has cause to meet Willow's dad.

Warnings: none

The next couple of weeks are hectic. Every new school year comes with that awkward settling stage for the first couple of weeks, but this time it feels even more nerve-wracking now that Dan’s own son is experiencing this side of things for the first time. Last year was different, reception was practically just daycare in Dan’s eyes. But this year? This year, his son walks in the big kid halls every day and Dan is quite honestly terrified for him.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to walk you to class? Just once? I could meet your new friends!” Dan is practically begging at this point, and if he had any pride left he’d probably feel embarrassed about that. Luckily, he didn’t.

Jack groans, covering his face with his little hands. They were already almost to the school, less than ten minutes away, and Dan had been exhausting the conversation pretty much the whole car ride. “Daddy,” Jack starts, taking a deep breath before continuing. “I love you very much but you’re really bothering me very much today, also.”

Dan tries not to laugh, but an amused noise escapes anyway. “Sorry, bub. I just want to be there to support you if you need me,” he explains gently. And while some part of him is just pressing the issue because it’s funny to see Jack riled up, the bigger part of him feels this ache in his chest at how quickly his baby boy is growing up.

“I know, Daddy. But I’m five now, I need to be a big kid, like Willow.”

Dan has to actively try not to cry when he hears that. “Okay, buddy,” he says, his voice cracking. He clears his throat, and avoids looking into the rear view mirror, terrified that his son will catch him crying. “I’m proud of you for wanting to be so independent,” he tells him.

“Thanks, Daddy,” Jack says, though Dan suspects he doesn’t even know what “independent” means.

They arrive at the school, which is a welcome distraction from Dan’s spiraling thoughts about the steady march of time and how horrible it feels to watch his son’s childhood slipping away. “Here we are,” he announces, pointlessly, as Jack is already unbuckling his seatbelt. He’s in such a hurry these days, but luckily, Dan had put childlock on the doors years ago, so he didn’t have to worry about any little accidents happening.

“Are you gonna let me have a hug when we get inside?” Dan asks, helping Jack out of the car. Lately, he’s been picky about when he’ll let Dan hug him in front of his peers and when he won’t, and Dan hasn’t been able to work out the difference yet.

“Guess so,” Jack says with a shrug. He reaches up for Dan’s hand as they walk, and Dan squeezes it, pleased when Jack squeezes back, the way he used to when he was tiny.

“You don’t have to,” Dan tells him quietly. “It’s always your choice, of course.”

Jack smiles up at him, patting his hand. “I know, Daddy.”

Dan smiles right back at him, holding the door open so they can go inside and find Willow. She’s not hard to spot, since she’s taken to waiting close to the front door every morning for Jack to get there.

“Hey!” Willow says with a wave, smiling brightly at both of them. “Good morning, Mr. Howell.”

“Morning, Willow,” Dan says, returning her smile. He lets go of Jack’s hand, allowing him to move freely, but he’s very pleased when Jack turns to him, holding his arms out for a hug. Leaning down, Dan wraps him up in a warm embrace, kissing the top of his curly head. “Love you, Jack. Have fun at school today, learn something new.”

Jack pats Dan’s back, and it’s such an oddly adult gesture that Dan almost laughs. “Love you, too, Daddy. I’ll see you later.”

It’s a quick hug, and as soon as Jack says this, he’s pulling away, reaching for Willow’s hand with a smile. Dan can’t help but grin fondly at them, waving as they start off down the hall. “Bye, you two! Willow, I’ll see you later in class, yeah?”

Willow turns to nod at him, waving one last time. “Yep, see you then!” she calls as they disappear around the corner.

Dan sighs heavily. Who knew letting your kids grow up and find their independence would be this draining? He thought the hard part was supposed to be when they needed you for everything.

He didn’t realize it would get harder when they didn’t need you for anything.

~~~

Dan’s grading some papers during his planning period late in the afternoon when he notices it. He hadn’t really been paying attention to the names at the top of the papers as he went through them, but the tone of this particular journal slows him down, makes his eyes flicker to the top of the paper to see who could’ve written something so beautifully morbid.

Willow Lester.

He shouldn’t even be surprised at this rate, honestly. Call it whatever; fate, divine intervention, coincidence - anyway, it seems that Willow is meant to be a standout figure in his life right now.

He rereads the line that had struck him once again, considering it carefully.

“But the sun will shine wherever it wants, even in the reaper’s garden.”

The journal assignment had been to write about a time that they were uplifted by something or someone, and Willow’s was somehow more real and depressing than any of peers’ had managed to be. He doesn’t know whether to be concerned or just impressed, but as his eyes flicker back over the journal, taking in the almost poetic way Willow describes visiting a cemetery, he decides that concern is probably the proper response.

He writes himself a quick reminder to set up a meeting with Willow’s parents, or at least a phone call, before setting her paper off to the side and continuing his grading.

~~~

Naturally, Dan forgets about the journal and the necessary phone call home until a couple days later when he has Willow in his class again. He curses himself for forgetting about it, especially when he had left himself a note, but there’s not much he can do about it for now. He forces himself to get through his class just like normal, going through the motions he does every other day. But that note, and Willow’s journal, weigh heavily on his mind throughout the entirety of his class.

By the end, he’s nearly shaking. Several years into teaching and he honestly would’ve thought he’d be over that kind of anxiety by now, but maybe it’ll never really go away. Besides, he hates making tough parent contacts at the best of times, and although it’s not like he expects this one to be that terrible, his personal rule is to always talk to the student first and tell them he’s going to talk to their parents. And in this case, that scares him.

Not that Willow is scary or anything. She’s probably the least-threatening child in any of his classes, but he dreads the idea that confronting this with her will destroy the rapport and relationship they’re building, and he can’t afford that this early in the school year. He just has to take a leap of faith and hope for the best.

“Willow, could you hang back for a second, please?” Dan asks once he’s dismissed his other students, who are already chattering loudly as they filter out of the room.

Willow has a nervous look on her face as she trudges up to his desk, stopping at the corner and looking at him curiously. “Yes, sir?”

Dan gestures to some of the desks. “I don’t have a class next period, so we can sit and chat for a second,” he says, grabbing her journal off his desk as he goes to join her.

She slides into a desk quietly, watching him warily as he does the same. He struggles to fit his long legs under one of the desks and she nearly smiles, but seems to catch herself before she can. “Am I in trouble?” she asks, fidgeting with her hands nervously.

“No, of course not,” Dan assures her. “I just wanted to talk to you about the journal you turned in a few days ago.”

Willow looks confused at first, then a slow understanding dawns on her face. “You read those?” she asks, almost on a whisper.

Dan nods. “I do. And firstly, I wanted to say how impressed I am by your writing. You have an incredible vocabulary and your writing flows beautifully. Really, really great job on this,” he says.

Willow smiles. “Thank you,” she says, looking relieved. “Is that all? Can I-“

Dan holds a hand out when she starts to leave. “Not yet,” he says apologetically. “While your writing style and word choice is fantastic, I did want to chat about the content for a minute, if you don’t mind.”

Like a flip has been switched, Willow deflates, staring down at the desk with a dejected look. “Okay,” she says softly.

Dan’s heart is breaking already. “Your journal was a bit darker than your peers’ journals were, but I’m more concerned about the truth behind it. Is this something we need to talk about with the counselor? I don’t want to be too nosy, and you don’t have to answer any of these questions, but I want to help you if I can.”

Willow is quiet for so long that Dan think she won’t say anything at all. And when she does, his heart sinks. “It’s not. It’s just a made-up story. I didn’t know what else to write about, so I made something up,” she says.

Dan would believe her if she’d make eye contact with him.

“Are you sure?” Dan asks gently. “If this is something you’d like to talk about, I’m always ready to listen,” he says.

Willow shakes her head. “No, thank you.” She shifts then, reaching for her bag. “Can I go now?”

Dan sighs, but nods. “Yes. Let me write you a note.”

He scribbles her a note to inform her next teacher where she has been, but right before she steps out into the hall, Dan calls her name.

“Yes?” Willow says, turning around expectantly.

Dan gives her an apologetic look. “I know you said this is something you don’t need to talk about, but I believe it’s something your parents should be aware of. I’ll be contacting them shortly to set up a meeting, and I just wanted you to know beforehand,” he says, trying to be as gentle as possible.

All the color has rushed out of Willow’s face, but she nods. “I understand,” she says, her voice stale and monotone. “Bye, Mr. Howell, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

The door closes loud and heavy behind her, and Dan hopes once more that he hasn’t ruined the rapport they’ve built so far this year.

~~~

The phone is on the third ring when someone finally answers.

“Hullo?” A deep voice greets him.

“Er, hi,” Dan fumbles. He glances at the phone number on his computer, the only number listed for the parents of Willow Lester. He’d been expecting her mum, honestly, since it was only just after school hours, and he knew her dad was a teacher as well, and now he’s a bit discombobulated.

“Hi,” the deep voice parrots in amusement when Dan doesn’t immediately respond.

“Oh, um- I’m so sorry, I-” he pauses, taking a deep breath. “My apologies, I suppose I should have cleared my head a bit before making this call,” he says, cursing himself silently at how stupid he sounds. Even Jack looks up from the corner of the classroom, giving Dan a sympathetic look.

“It’s quite alright,” the man replies. “To what do I owe the pleasure of this phone call, Mister…”

Dan wants to punch himself in the neck. God, he’s stupid.

“Howell. Daniel Howell, from the primary school,” Dan replies quickly.

“Oh. Mr. Howell as in…”

“I’m Willow’s English teacher this year, sir,” Dan supplies, in case Mr. Lester had been thinking of another Mr. Howell.

“I see. I have a student with the same surname, I don’t suppose you happen to have a son called Jack, do you?” Mr. Lester almost sounds amused, now, as if Dan’s fumbling is funny.

Dan hesitates, considering that was not the nature of their call at all, but he responds easily enough. “Yes, I do, actually. I suppose I should have introduced myself sooner, but this time of the year is so busy, you know.”

“I understand,” Mr. Lester replies. “Pleased to meet you, Mr. Howell,” he says kindly. “But if you aren’t calling to introduce yourself as a parent of one of my students…”

Dan sympathizes with the man’s wariness. It’s never pleasant to get a call from a parent, but even less comfortable is possibly an unforeseen call from your child’s teacher. He decides to just rip the bandage off. “Well, I was actually calling to introduce myself as the teacher of your child, and to see if we could set up an in-person chat about your daughter’s work.”

The other end of the line is dead silent for long enough that Dan pulls the phone back to make sure the call hadn’t dropped. Before he can panic too much, the other man speaks again. “Of course. Would tomorrow afternoon, right after school, be alright?”

“Er- sure, that should be fine,” Dan agrees. “Um, your daughter usually walks my son back to my classroom at the end of the day, so maybe she could show you the way?”

“Sure,” Mr. Lester replies. “Well, I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon, Mr. Howell.”

“Right. I look forward to it,” Dan replies. They exchange goodbyes before hanging up, and then Dan slumps forward, thumping his head against his desk.

“Good job, Daddy,” Jack says from across the room.

“Thanks,” Dan mumbles against the papers crumpled under his face.

He hears little footsteps, and then feels Jack pushing at his chair, making room to crawl to sit on Dan’s lap. “Was that Willow’s daddy?” he asks, observant as ever.

Dan sighs, sitting back and staring at his son’s curious little face. He can’t lie to those little brown eyes, he never can. “Yes,” he says. “It was Mr. Lester.”

“Why were you talking to him?” Jack asks, tugging on a string on his sleeve and avoiding eye contact. “Am I in trouble?”

Dan laughs quietly at that. “No, bubba, you’re not. I just need to talk to Mr. Lester about Willow, is all.”

“Oh,” Jack says. “So… is Willow in trouble?” he asks, which of course shouldn’t surprise Dan.

“No, she’s not,” Dan says, ruffling Jack’s mop of curly hair. “Enough nosiness, mister. Are you about ready to go home?”

Jack nods, climbing off Dan’s lap with a little reluctance. “Can we go to Sainsbury’s on the way home and get some snacks?”

Dan sighs as he packs up the papers on his desk, but nods, helpless to such a simple request. “Sure, bub.”

~~~

The next day passes slowly, but somehow all of it blurs together as Dan frets over the meeting with Mr. Lester scheduled for that afternoon. Willow doesn’t have his class for another week, so he can only wonder about how it will go, worrying about whether or not Willow has told her father about her writing, or if perhaps he’s just worried and confused about the reason behind this meeting.

Dan selfishly hopes it’s the ladder, that way he isn’t the odd one out for being slightly worried and paranoid.

At the end of the day, Dan is setting his classroom back to normal like he does every afternoon when he hears voices in the hallway, one of which distinctly sounds like his son. He smiles absently, but finishes erasing some notes from the whiteboard, writing tomorrow’s date in the corner, along with the objectives for tomorrow’s lesson. He’s still writing when he hears his son call out, “Daddy!”

Dan turns around with a smile, placing the marker back in the tray and holding his arms out for the hug that Jack willingly throws himself into. “Hi, bubba. Missed you today,” Dan says, kissing his head. “Did you have a good day?”

Jack nods and wriggles out of Dan’s grip, turning and grabbing Willow’s arm from where she’s stood hesitantly at the door, a tall man behind her. “I had so much fun today,” Jack says, rambling as he drags Willow to the back corner where he plays every day when Dan has to work late after school. “We colored and learned a new song and I got to trade my cheese for a cookie at lunch!”

“That’s great, Little Bear!” Dan says, turning to the man he assumes is Willow’s father and mouthing an apology. “I want you to tell me all the details later, okay? Daddy’s gotta talk to Mr. Lester for just a few minutes, so you guys just hang out and play in here, alright?”

“M’kay,” Jack agrees carelessly, already moving on to interrogating Willow about her least favorite Pokemon.

Dan takes a breath, almost exhausted already just from listening to Jack talk so much. He turns to Mr. Lester, gesturing to the hallway subtly. The other man nods, stepping just outside the door. Dan follows after grabbing a paper off his desk, pulling his classroom door gently closed behind him.

Mr. Lester looks at him expectantly.

“Hi,” Dan says dumbly, holding his hand out for a polite handshake.

“Hi,” Mr. Lester parrots with a smile, accepting Dan’s hand and giving it a firm squeeze. “I assume you’re the Mr. Howell I’ve been hearing so much about?”

Dan flushes with that comment, but nods. They’re still holding hands. “All good things, I hope.”

Mr. Lester grins. “Of course,” he says. He glances down at their hands, and Dan startles, tugging his hand away in the most socially-awkward way that he’s probably capable of.

“So,” Dan starts, clearing his throat. “Mr. Lester, I noticed-”

“Phil,” Mr. Lester interrupts.

Dan blinks at him. “Pardon?” he says dumbly.

Mr. Lester smiles, like Dan being an idiot is funny, endearing even. “You can call me Phil. I don’t really feel old enough to be a Mr. Lester, honestly.”

Dan nods slowly. He turns the name over in his mind a couple times, cataloging the odd curve of his nose and his prominent Adam’s apple, ultimately coming to the conclusion that Phil fits him quite well. “Right,” Dan says awkwardly. “Well, Mr. Le- Phil-” he corrects when the man quirks a brow. “I just wanted to address some of Willow's work, as I’m a little concerned about her.”

Mr. Lester nods, but his eyebrows are furrowed like he’s confused. “Okay… Do you mind if I…” He holds a hand out for the paper, and Dan nods, handing it over easily.

“Firstly, I have to commend your daughter. She has a real, genuine talent for writing. And if it weren’t for the subject matter, I probably would have just sent an email praising her talent, but…” Dan’s rambling comes to a slow halt as he notices Mr. Lester’s reaction to the journal, his body stiffening like he’s going into some sort of fight or flight mode. Dan wishes, briefly, that he could do something to help him relax, as the tense body language looks so out of place on him.

Dan watches quietly while Mr. Lester finishes reading it, and to Dan’s surprise, there’s actually a look of comprehension and understanding on his face when he’s finished. He folds it carefully, glancing up at Dan with a much more reserved look on his face than he’d worn just a few moments prior.

“Do you mind if I keep this?” He asks, surprising Dan even more.

“Uh, sure. Sir, I don’t mean to intrude, but… Is this type of content typical of Willow? It’s rather dark for someone of her age, and-”

Mr. Lester cuts him off. “It is,” he sounds exhausted, suddenly, like this isn’t even the first time it’s happened. He tries to smile, but it’s not very convincing. “We… She has a few things she’s working through, but it’s a process. I apologize if this upset you, Mr. Howell, but I promise everything is alright at home.”

Dan feels a little like he has whiplash then. Worrying about her mental wellbeing was as far as he’d gotten; he hadn’t even considered the state of her homelife, although he probably should have. “Er- right,” Dan says dumbly. “I just- I wasn’t sure how regular this behavior was for her and I like to make a parent content when I notice something I deem out of the ordinary, even though this was probably fairly-” Dan realizes he’s rambling again when Mr. Lester gives him a little smile.

“It’s quite alright, Mr. Howell. I appreciate the gesture, truly. And I will speak to Willow about this and ensure that the rest of her work is school-appropriate from here on out.” It sounds like a rehearsed speech, somehow.

“Sure…” Dan says slowly. “But… When you do, if you don’t mind me saying this… Please be sure to emphasize how talented she is. I mean,” Dan laughs, still a little in awe of the writing this child had produced. “This is probably better work than I could manage on a good day, and I would hate for this to be the thing that stifles that for her.”

Mr. Lester gives him a curious look then. Up until now, he’d only given Dan these vague smiles, like he thought he was stupid but endearing, but now he’s got a skeptical glint in his eye. Dan squirms under the assessing gaze, forcing himself to stand still, meeting Mr. Lester’s eye with what he hopes is an air of confidence.

“Right,” Mr. Lester says finally. Dan breathes out an inaudible sigh of relief, one he’s not so sure goes unnoticed. “Well, I appreciate this chat, Mr. Howell. It was lovely to meet you. Jack is such a wonderful kid to have in class, just so you know.”

Dan feels relief flood him, proud that he’d successfully navigated the hardest part of this conversation and now they can move on. He rolls his eyes when he processes Mr. Lester’s words. “Yeah, I’m sure he’s a delight. Honestly surprised he hasn’t been sent to the headmaster’s office yet, really.”

Mr. Lester laughs, reaching a pale hand up to cover his mouth as he does it. Dan swats away the pesky thought he has, telling him that it’s a cute gesture. “Well, he’s wonderful in my class. Very curious, asks a lot of questions, but… We learn a lot when he’s in the room, for sure,” Mr. Lester says with a bright smile.

Dan warms at that, and he gives himself a second to feel smug. That’s his child, his curious little goblin. He made that! “Well, you’re lucky you don’t have to play 1,000 Ways to Drive Your Dad Insane every day after school. It’s his favorite game these days,” Dan says, sighing over-dramatically.

“Maybe we ought to trade sometime,” Mr. Lester jokes with a wink. Or what probably would have been a wink if he didn’t wink both eyes at the same time. Or maybe it was a blink and Dan’s just desperate.

“Absolutely,” Dan agrees absently.

Mr. Lester smiles, and right before he speaks again, they hear a voice from behind them.

“Dad? Can we go now?” Willow asks. She smiles sheepishly when Dan turns to look at her. “Sorry,” she says. “I’m just hungry.”

Like some kind of curse, Jack pops up next, looking absolutely deranged. “Yeah! Daddy, I’m hungry too!”

Dan rolls his eyes, turning to share a knowing look with the only other adult who understands his struggles here. “Well, I guess that’s the cue,” he jokes, scooping his son up when he starts to tug at Dan’s shirt.

Mr. Lester smiles but nods. “C’mon, Will,” he says, gesturing for his daughter. “Bye, Jack! See you next week!” He waves at Jack, who then throws his entire body into a big wave of his own.

“Bye, Mr. Lester! Bye, Willow. Don’t forget about the Pokemon snacks tomorrow!” Jack says.

Willow grins, giving him a thumbs-up. “Sure thing, buddy. Bye, Mr. Howell!” She waves too, then starts off down the hall without even looking to see if her father is following her.

Mr. Lester rolls his eyes, shaking his head when he makes eye contact with Dan. “Thank you for this,” he says, holding up the journal entry page. “It was lovely to meet you, Mr. Howell,” he says kindly before turning around to leave.

Dan sees his chance slipping away, and in true socially-awkward meerkat fashion, he chooses to rescue it in the worst way possible.

“Dan,” he calls out, probably far louder than is strictly necessary.

Mr. Lester turns to give him a strange look. “Sorry?”

Jack giggles. Dan clears his throat. “Er. Dan. That’s my name. You can… You can call me Dan.”

Mr. Lester- Phil- smiles. “Alright. Bye, Dan.”

“Bye,” Dan says quietly, watching him leave.

He gets maybe three seconds of peace. Then, as sweetly as possible, his tiny child leans in close, making unnerving eye contact with Dan before saying, in his best approximation of Dan’s voice, “Dan. You can call me Dan.”

Dan groans, dropping his son to stand on his own in a flush of embarrassment. “Zip it, brat. I don’t wanna hear it.”

They close up and leave his classroom to the sounds of Jack’s uproarious laughter, a sound Dan wouldn’t change for the world. Even if it is at his expense.

#phan #phanfiction #phanfic #parent! au #parent!phan #teacher!au #english teacher!dan #art teacher!phil #willow lester #jack howell #dan and phil #coworkers to lovers

[moonflower1605]

Chapter - 6

(Percy's POV)

The next few days were torture, just like Tantalus wanted.

First there was Tyson moving to the Poseidon cabin, giggling to himself every fifteen seconds & saying, “Percy is my brother?” like he’d just won the lottery.

“Aw, Tyson,” I’d say. “It’s not that simple.”

But there was no explaining it to him. He was in heaven. And me...as much as I liked the big guy, I couldn’t help feeling embarrassed. Ashamed. There, I said it.

My father, the all-powerful Poseidon, had gotten moony-eyed for some nature spirit, & Tyson had been the result. I mean, I’d read the myths about Cyclopes. I even remember that they were often Poseidon’s children. But I’d never really processed that this made them my...family. Until I had Tyson living with me in the next bunk.

And then there were the comments from the other campers. Suddenly, I wasn’t Percy Jackson, the cool guy who’d retrieved Zeus’s lightning bolt last summer. Now I was Percy Jackson, the poor schmuck with the ugly monster for a brother.

“He’s not my real brother!” I protested when Tyson wasn’t around. “He’s more like a half-brother on the monster side of the family. Like...a half-brother twice removed, or something.” Nobody bought it.

I admit-I was angry at my dad. I felt like being his son was now a joke. Nora tried to make me feel better. She suggested we team up along with Annabeth for the chariot race to take our minds off our problems. Don’t get me wrong-we hated Tantalus & we were worried sick about camp-but we didn’t know what to do about it. Until we could come up with some brilliant plan to save Thalia’s tree, we figured we might as well go along with the races.

One morning Nora, Annabeth & I were sitting by the canoe lake sketching chariot designs when some jokers from Aphrodite’s cabin walked by & asked me if I needed to borrow some eyeliner for my eye... “Oh sorry, eyes.”

Nora shot back at them, "Hey, why don't you go & take care of your hairdos or something! Oh, my bad you guys use wigs instead right?"

They glared at her in return but didn't dare to say anything back to her.

Annabeth grumbled, “Just ignore them, Percy. It isn’t your fault you have a monster for a brother.”

“He’s not my brother!” I snapped. “And he’s not a monster, either!”

Annabeth raised her eyebrows. “Hey, don’t get mad at me! Technically, he's a monster.”

“Well Nora gave him permission to enter the camp.” I shot back.

"Hey! Don't drag me into this!" Nora said.

“Shut up Nora! Because it was the only way to save your life! I mean...I’m sorry, Percy, I didn’t expect Poseidon to claim him. Cyclopes are the most deceitful, treacherous-“ Annabeth said.

“He is not! What have you got against Cyclopes, anyway?

"Why are you telling me to shut up?!" Nora asked. She clearly felt hurt.

Annabeth’s ears turned pink. I got the feeling there was something she wasn’t telling me-something bad.

“Just forget it,” she said. “Now, the axle for this chariot-“

“You’re treating him like he’s this horrible thing,” I said. “He saved my life.”

"Guys, stop it!" Nora said clearly frustrated.

Annabeth threw down her pencil & stood.

“You know what Nora? Since you care so much about them & not me, then maybe you should design a chariot with them.”

“Maybe I should.” Nora snapped.

“Fine!” Annabeth shouted & stormed off.

After Annabeth left Nora said in a quiet hurt tone.

"You know, Perce? This was the first time she's ever yelled at me..." A tear slipped down her cheek. I wiped it off quickly & said.

"I'm sorry, Nora...its my fault...I was the one who started it &..."

She cut off my apology by wrapping her arms around my neck in a hug. We stayed like that for a few minutes then Nora said.

"We should probably give her some time to cool off...for now.." she sighs then smiles a bit & says "let's focus on the chariot, okay?"

The next couple of days, I tried to keep my mind off my problems.

Nora gave me my first riding lesson on a pegasus. She was technically the perfect person to do that since her dad was the lord of the sky & all. She explained that there was only one immortal winged horse named Pegasus, who still wandered free somewhere in the skies, but over the eons he’d sired a lot of children, none quite so fast or heroic, but all named after the first & greatest.

Being the son of the sea god, I never liked going into the air. My dad had a rivalry with Zeus, so I tried to stay out of the lord of the sky’s domain as much as possible. But riding a winged horse felt different. It didn’t make me as nervous as being in an airplane. Maybe that's because my dad had created horses out of sea foam, so the pegasi were sort of..neutral territory. I could understand their thoughts. I wasn’t surprised when my pegasus went galloping over the treetops or chased a flock of seagulls into a cloud.

Tyson seemed fascinated by Nora. Every time she was near him he would try to touch her hair or would look at her eyes which were like beautiful sapphires. He kept telling her that she was pretty which made her giggle & me slightly envious that I didn't have the same confidence level as Tyson did...

When he saw us ride the pegasus he wanted to ride the “chicken ponies,” too, but the pegasi got skittish when he approached. I told them telepathically that Tyson wouldn’t hurt them, but they didn’t believe me. That made Tyson cry.

The only other person at camp other than Nora who had no problem with Tyson was Beckendorf from the Hephaestus cabin. The blacksmith god had always worked with Cyclopes in his forges, so Beckendorf took Tyson down to the armory to teach him metal working. He said he’d have Tyson crafting magic items like a master in no time.

After lunch, I worked out in the arena with Nora & Apollo’s cabin. Swordplay had always been my strength. People said I was better at it than any camper in the last hundred years, except maybe Luke. People always compared me to Luke. And now that he was gone they'd compare me to Nora, honestly I didn't mind when they did..

I thrashed the Apollo guys easily. But Nora gave me a tough fight. I should’ve been testing myself against the Ares & Athena cabins, since they had the best sword fighters, but I didn’t get along with Clarisse & her siblings, & after the argument with Annabeth, I just didn’t want to see her.

Nora took me to archery class, even though I was terrible, & it wasn’t the same without Chiron teaching. She was one of the best archers at camp (even better than the Apollo kids were..) & they'd just end up staring at her in awe while she shot bullseyes.

In arts & crafts, I started a marble bust of Poseidon, but it began looking like Sylvester Stallone, so I ditched it. I scaled the climbing wall in full lava & earthquake mode. And in the evening, I did border patrol. Even though Tantalus had insisted we forget trying to protect the camp, some of the campers had quietly kept it up, working out a schedule during our free times.

I sat at the top of Half-Blood Hill & watched the dryads come & go, singing to the dying pine tree. Satyrs brought their reed pipes & played nature magic songs, & for a while the pine needles seemed to get full. The flowers on the hill smelled a little sweeter & the grass looked greener. But soon as the music stopped, the sickness crept back into the air.

The whole hill seemed to be infected, dying from the poison that had sunk into the tree’s roots. The longer I sat there, the angrier I got. Luke had done this. I remembered his sly smile, the dragon-claw scar across his face. He’d pretended to be my friend, & the whole time he’d been Kronos’s number-one servant.

I opened the palm of my hand. The scar Luke had given me last summer was fading, but I could still see it-a white asterisk-shaped wound where his pit scorpion had stung me.

I thought about what Luke told me before he’d tried to kill me: Good-bye, Percy. There is a new Golden Age coming. You won’t be part of it.

A voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Hey...why are you here all by yourself?"

My heart beat sped up at the sight of Nora. She had showered. Her hair was still damp & she smelled like lavender. She was wearing a pair of jeans & a camp halfblood t-shirt.

"Percy?"

I realised that I'd been staring at her & looked away with a blush on my face..I always wondered how she managed to look so pretty in even the most simple clothes..

"Yeah...hey. Sorry, I just..uh...zoned out..."

"It's okay..." she said with a smile. "Did you happen to see Grover? In your dreams.." I was a little taken aback but I said.

"I did...he was in this-"

"Bridal boutique shop.." She finished.

"Exactly...he was being chased.."

"He's in trouble, Perce...I feel like it's got something to do with the fact that...that Thalia's tree was poisoned."

I knew Nora was right...she always had been..

"We've got to save him..but how?" I asked. We just looked at each & had a silent agreement.

Ooh, a big fight between Nora n Annabeth...do you think they'll make up..?😯

Stick around to find out!😁

Link to the prev chapter is here.

Comment, like & share.

Take care my lovely readers.❤

Alice signing off.

XOXO.

#percy jackson #x reader #percy jackson x reader

[atlfics]

A Family Disease- All Time Low Fanfiction

Alex is supposed to have Jack over for a sleepover, but an issue with his dad gets in the way. High School AU. Word Count: 3541

TW: alcoholism 

More notes at the end. 

Jack: Hey Alex, I’m leaving my house now, I’ll see you in 15!

As Alex read this message, he felt his stomach start to churn some. While taking a deep breath to calm down some, Alex thought of a reply to send.

Alex: Sounds good, we’re going to hangout in my room tonight, if that’s cool.

Alex slid his phone into his pocket and started pacing around his room some. Normally, having Jack over was something that Alex looked forward to, but not this time.

Alex’s dad was an alcoholic who had been sober for three years, up until two days ago. When Alex had come home from school that day, his mother was sitting on the couch in the living room, watching a show and trying not to cry. She had Alex sit with her, and told him that his father had relapsed; he was drinking in the basement and was already very inebriated.

This crushed Alex, he’d been so proud of his dad when he’d gotten sober and tried to be as supportive as possible. Over the last three years, they’d mended their relationship quite a bit, and were able to start acting like a real father and son.

After learning this news, Alex went up to his room and did what he’d done for many, many years; he shut his door and kept to himself. Unfortunately, this didn’t keep his dad out, just like it hadn’t in the past, and his dad eventually let himself in to curse and yell over a plate being left on the table. This had happened the previous afternoon, too, and Alex hated it, it felt like all the wounds that he’d been working so hard to heal had been not only been forced back open, but that salt had been poured into them, too.  

Jack was Alex’s best friend, he knew that Alex’s dad was an alcoholic, and he knew that he had about three years of sobriety, but he didn’t know about this recent relapse; Alex hadn’t told him yet. It wasn’t that Alex was trying to keep it a secret, but talking about it was hard and embarrassing, and Alex really didn’t want to have to discuss it unless it was absolutely necessary.

He was pretty sure that tonight would be the night that Jack found out, and he was so nervous for that conversation. How would it get brought up? Would Alex’s dad do or say something that would make Jack ask questions? Would Jack be judgmental towards Alex or his father about this? Alex knew that Jack was a good friend, but addiction could make even the best friend in the world feel apprehensive.

Eventually, the doorbell rang, pulling Alex from his anxiety spiral. He was nervous to go downstairs to answer the door, but the last time he’d checked, his father was in the basement, guzzling drink after drink, and Alex hoped that his father would stay there long enough for him to get Jack and whisk him upstairs into his bedroom.

Feeling his heart start to beat at lightning speed, Alex shakily walked out of his room, then downstairs and over to the front door. When he opened it, he saw Jack standing on the doorstep, an excited smile on his face.

“Hey Alex, what’s-“

“Hey, Jack, let’s go upstairs!” Alex exclaimed, practically pulling Jack inside and bolting back over to the steps.

“Can I get a snack first?” Jack asked, nervously laughing.

“No, we don’t have anything. Besides, we should wait for dinner, it’ll make our appetites be better!” Alex continued, frustrated by how stupid he probably sounded.

“Oh okay, sure, I guess that makes sense,”

Without saying anything else, Jack followed Alex upstairs, then into his bedroom. Alex quickly shut the door as Jack took a seat on the bed, kicking his shoes off.

“Finally, in my room at last!” Alex exclaimed, sitting down at his desk.

“Right. Hey, are you okay, Alex? You seem a bit, um, on edge,” Jack asked, concern and confusion in his voice.

“Am I okay? Of course I am, I’m great! I’m hanging out with my best friend, what could be better?”

“Oh okay, well, if there’s something bothering you, you know that you can talk to me about it, right?”

Hearing this frustrated Alex; not because he didn’t like Jack’s offer, but because he felt like he couldn’t accept it, he was too embarrassed by what was going on.

“Yes, I do, thanks, Jack. Hey, why don’t we play a game? I’m thinking either Madden or 2K,” Alex suggested, changing the subject.

“Sure, how’s about 2K?”

“Okay, I’ll set it up!”

Alex walked over to the TV in front of his bed and set up the console. After syncing up the controllers, he handed one to Jack, then brought his desk chair over by his bed, and sat back down in it.

“Did you give me the shitty controller?” Jack asked, laughing some.

“Shit, did I? I didn’t mean to, here, we can switch if you want,” Alex offered, shoving his controller in Jack’s face; he was being a bit over the top but didn’t even realize, to hopped up on his anxiety.

“Oh, thanks, man. Are you sure you don’t want the good one? I mean, it’s your gaming system,”

“No, you can have it! You’re my guest, you should get the better one,”

Finally giving in, Jack swapped controllers with Alex as the menu screen of the game finally popped up.

“I guess I’m player one now!” Jack exclaimed, adjusting the settings the way he liked before starting a game on Quick Play.

“I should’ve known you were going to change the settings,” Alex said, laughing some as he picked out his team.

“The settings I like are a lot better anyway, you know,”

“That’s debatable, dude,”

“Nah, I’m definitely right. Hey, let’s start the game!” Jack exclaimed, pressing the buttons to move them along to the start of their game.

“Let’s do it, even with your shitty settings, I’m still going to kick your ass!” Alex replied, as the game started and his player grabbed the ball.

“We’ll see about that!”

For the next few minutes, the two of them played their game, going back and forth and scoring points. Alex was enjoying himself so much that he’d almost forgotten about everything with his dad, and the intense anxiety he’d been having about Jack being under the same roof as his extremely intoxicated father. He hadn’t been able to just let loose and have fun like this in a while, so this made him really happy.

Unfortunately, this happiness was very short-lived; in the middle of the second quarter of their game, Alex started to hear stomping coming from downstairs, and he knew exactly who it was coming from. There was no way that Jack couldn’t hear it, too, he was sitting right next to Alex, but Alex hoped that somehow Jack’s hearing had suddenly gotten really shitty and caused him to not hear what Alex did. Alex knew that Jack probably heard it and wasn’t saying anything to be polite, but he could still hope. After a couple minutes, the stomping stopped, and as Alex was going to breathe out a sigh of relief, his worst nightmare was hopefully over.

“Alex, get down here right now!” Alex’s father yelled, slurring his words together and causing Alex’s anxiety to spike yet again.

“Is that your dad?” Jack asked, pausing their game and looking over to Alex.

“Um, yeah, it is,” Alex replied, desperately trying to maintain his composure, and not let his anxiety or embarrassment show.

“You should probably get down there, it sounds kind of important,”

“Yeah, I um I’m-“

“Alex Gaskarth, get your fucking ass down here right now!” Alex’s dad screamed, making Alex start to tremble in his seat as his eyes started to pool up some.

“Alex, is he, well, are you-“

“It’s all good, I’ll be back,”

Before Jack could say anything else, Alex bolted up from his chair and set his controller down before rushing over to his door and walking out of it. He quietly pulled it shut, not wanting his dad to hear and think he was slamming it, then made his way downstairs.

Alex felt like he was floating, the anxiety and embarrassment made this feel like an out of body experience; he felt numb while also noticing every single bodily sensation he was having, from his sweaty palms to his heart thumping in his chest. The worst part about this, he wasn’t even sure what his dad was yelling about, he’d kept to himself all day and had hardly been downstairs, hoping that by isolating, his dad wouldn’t be able to find an issue to freak out over, at least until his time hanging out with Jack was over.

Meanwhile, Jack was still in Alex’s room, feeling both extremely confused and concerned for his friend. In the few years that Jack had known Alex and his family, his father had never yelled at Alex like that. Jack didn’t want to assume the worst or rely on stereotypes, but he was afraid that Alex’s dad might’ve relapsed with his drinking. Sure, it was possible that he was just in a bad mood, but it seemed like too much of a stretch.

Alex’s dad continued to yell loudly enough for Jack to tell that he was yelling, but not quite loud enough for him to make out the words being said by either of them. He felt so helpless, Jack wanted more than anything to go downstairs, tell Alex’s dad off, then grab Alex and take him back up to his room, but he knew he couldn’t do that, nor would he ever actually do something like that.

After a few more minutes of the back and forth screaming, it suddenly stopped, and Jack heard someone run up the stairs, which he assumed was Alex. He quickly shifted around some, wanting to make it look like he’d not been trying to listen in, but was instead keeping to himself and scrolling through his phone.

Right as he got into what he thought would be a convincing position, the door to the room slowly opened, and Alex walked inside. He quietly shut the door, causing Jack to look up at him. They looked into each other’s eyes for a split second before Alex leaned up against the door and slid down, eventually sitting on the ground and putting his head into his hands as he cried. He tried his hardest to take deep breaths and calm himself down, desperately wanting to regain his composure, but he couldn’t.

After a couple seconds, he felt someone sit down next to him and wrap their arms around his body. If this had been anyone aside from Jack, Alex would’ve shoved them away and insisted that he was fine and that this was no big deal, but he knew that Jack wouldn’t fall for that, and if he was being honest, the comfort felt good.

Eventually, Alex’s crying got quieter and less frequent, and he slowly turned his head to look over at Jack, who had a concerned look on his face.

“Well, that cry was shorter than I expected it to be,” Alex joked, forcing a laugh as he wiped away his tears.

“Alex, I don’t want to pry or get in you or your family’s business, but, um, did your dad, um,” Jack replied, unable to get the rest of his sentence out, afraid of overstepping.  

“Yeah, Jack, yeah, he relapsed. He’s drinking again and has been for the past two days now. Well, three if you count today,”

Alex’s voice sounded broken, and he wasn’t sure if it was due to the yelling he’d done, or the embarrassment he was feeling.

“Wow, dude, I’m so sorry to hear that,”

“I guess it is what it is, right? I mean, I can’t keep him sober or tell him what to do. Not just because he’s my dad and I’m the kid in our relationship, but because you just can’t do that with an alcoholic or addict. That’s what sucks so much about that disease, you can scream until your voice gives out, offering advice, solutions, or whatever, but it doesn’t matter, unless that’s what that person wants to hear,”

As soon as the words left Alex’s mouth, he started crying again, and Jack hugged him tighter. Alex set his head on Jack’s shoulder this time, and Jack put a hand to Alex’s head and began stroking his hair as he cried. This didn’t last as long as Alex’s first cry had, he figured he’d already gotten the majority of it all out; this was just the leftovers.

“Alex, I’m so sorry that this happened. It seemed like everything was going so well, with your dad and his sobriety,” Jack said, moving his hand down some to rub Alex’s back as he took some deep breaths.

“Yeah, I thought so, too. I don’t even know why he relapsed. I mean, it was probably work stress or something, but I don’t know for sure. He had three years, Jack, three whole years just down the drain, seemingly without a care at all,” Alex continued, sounding more angry than sad this time.

“Have you talked to your mom about it at all?”

“Eh, some but not a lot. Like, the day he relapsed, she sat me down and briefly told me what was going on, but that’s been it. It’s really hard for both of us to talk about, with each other and in general,”

“Makes sense, man. Now, this is obviously your decision and I’d never want to force you to speak about something that makes you uncomfortable, but why didn’t you tell me until now?” Jack continued, trying his hardest to sound empathetic, rather than nosy.

“Well, kind of for the reason I just said. It’s so hard to talk about for a lot of reasons. It’s embarrassing as hell, and speaking about it means that I have to acknowledge it. Personally, avoidance is one of my favorite ways to deal with it, and it has been for years. When I told you about it way back when we first met, it was easier to talk about, because it was a thing of the past, at least, it was then. Like, I could talk about how much better it was and how it was bad so long ago, I had some separation from it. Now that it’s happening again, now that it’s a current issue again, talking about it feels almost impossible, especially initiating the conversation around it,” Alex explained, doing a much better job of keeping his composure than he thought he would.

“I understand, man. Like I said, I don’t want you to feel forced to talk to me about this, I was just curious as to why you hadn’t, y’know?”

“I get that, and I did want to tell you the day he relapsed, but like I’d mentioned, bringing it up is so hard. I know his drinking doesn’t have anything to do with me, but he’s still my dad, he’s my family. When I was a kid, I was so scared of getting judged for having a dad who didn’t always behave like a dad. I didn’t think that would carry over now into my teen-hood, for lack of a better word, but it did. Now, I understand what makes him different, the booze, but having a dad that lashes out at you and yells and says hurtful things, it’s hard. It’s really hard, and telling others about it just opens up my biggest insecurity to others and their judgements,”

“Yeah, it seems tough to have to be vulnerable about something that’s so sensitive for you, but so stigmatized by others,”

“It really, really is. Oh, also, I’m sorry you had to, like, hear him yell and shit. I guess I could’ve said we should’ve had our sleepover at your place, but I didn’t want to explain why, and-“

“Hey, don’t feel bad, I understand why you just wanted to hope for the best. I’m sorry he yelled at you, are you okay? Like, really, I don’t know what it was over, but it sounded loud and scary, are you okay?” Jack asked, rubbing Alex’s back with his hand.

“Um, well, not really, but it’s okay, I’ll be okay. He hasn’t, um, yelled like that since before he’d been sober, it’s just kind of hard to hear, even with all of those years of practice,” Alex replied, laughing some.

“Well, is there anything I can do to help? I mean, I can’t make him sober or apologize, but if there’s anything I can do to help you feel better, I’d be more than happy to do it,”

“What you said is true, you can’t, like, make him be less of a dick than he’s being. Maybe we can head over to your place, and have our sleepover there? It’s just, I don’t know if he’d do anything else, and I don’t want you to have to deal with it, and I could honestly use a night away from it,”

“Sure, of course, we can do that. Do you want to pack a bag, then we can head on out? I can help if you want,”

Jack stood up, then extended his hand and pulled Alex off the floor, getting a small smile from Alex in thanks.

“That would be good, can you pack up the gaming system? I mean, your’s is still broken, right?” Alex asked, already starting to throw some clothing into his backpack.

“Yeah, I still don’t know how I managed to spill soda on it. I’ll get that packed up, which games should I bring?” Jack continued, starting to unplug all the wires connecting the console to the TV and wall.

“Well, definitely 2K, and whatever else looks interesting to you, we can bring as much or as little as you want,”

With that, Alex quickly finished packing up his clothes and toiletries, and Jack carefully packed up the console, controllers, and a few games of Alex’s he really liked.

“Okay, I think everything’s all here, do you have everything else you’ll need?” Jack asked, giving the console bag one last look through.

“Yeah, I’m ready now, too. I haven’t heard my dad in the kitchen, so I think he’s probably back in the basement now, so I say we make a run for it and get outside to your car,” Alex replied, starting to feel nervous again.

“Sure, I’m ready if you are,”

“Cool, let’s do this, but quickly and quietly,”

With that, Alex slid his phone into his pocket and grabbed his bag, before carefully opening his door. He led Jack downstairs and out through the front door, luckily not attracting his father’s attention, and they went over to Jack’s car. After putting the bags into the back, they took their seats up front.

“Well, I guess we did it,” Jack stated, starting the car and putting his seatbelt on.

“Yeah, we did. Jack, I know I already said this, but I’m sorry. Like, that you had to walk into that situation with no warning, and then had to console me, I’m just really sorry,” Alex said, feeling his cheeks get red again as Jack pulled onto the street.

“Alex, you really don’t need to apologize, this isn’t your fault. I’m just glad that we got out of there, and that you’ll get a safe night away from this. That reminds me, you can stay over as many nights as you want, okay? Like, if shit gets intense, you’re always welcome to stay at my place,” Jack offered, putting a comforting hand on Alex’s leg.

“Thanks, Jack, you’re a good friend. Dealing with his relapse is going to be hard, but I’m glad that I’ve got you to lean on through it,” Alex said, making Jack briefly look away from the road as they shared a smile.

“That you do, Alex, that you do. Hey, it’s a nice day, do you want to take drive around before we get to my place? We can listen to whatever you want as loudly as you want,” Jack offered, sliding his phone out of his pocket and handing it to Alex so he could DJ.

“Sure, that sounds nice, Jack,” Alex replied, going to Jack’s Spotify and playing his favorite Blink album.

Alex turned the stereo up almost as loud as it would go, hoping he wouldn’t blow Jack’s speakers, and Jack started driving them in the direction of the river, their favorite drive to take together. Alex silently looked out the window as Jack drove, admiring the bright blue sky and blooming plants.

Running off to Jack’s wasn’t going to fix this problem, Alex knew that, but that was okay. For the years of his father’s active addiction, Alex wanted a friend he could turn to and confide in, and he’d never had that, but he knew that this time would be different. Things might be hard, but he knew that he could count on Jack to be there whenever he needed him.  

A/N: Hey guys! I wrote this a couple months ago and meant to post it, but I'd forgotten about it! Elements of this fic were inspired by my life, and I think that's why I like it so much, those kinds of fics are my favorite to write. I have a few more fics that I've pre-written that I plan on posting soon, and I have a lot more that I want to write! As always, feel free to send in requests if you have them! -Liv

#Alex Gaskarth #Jack Barakat #Rian Dawson #Zack Merrick #ATL #all time low