#i am probably going to have us put on a replacement bandage over the bruising because it's honestly yeah a little distressing to see | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hangovercurse · 3 years

Text

Crash Into Me

You’d been MGK’s assistant for years, but you never thought you had a chance at anything more with him until one stoplight changes everything.

Request: “ok im so sorry if this is 2 specific but ive had this idea for ages abt pining!colson x an insecure/clueless!reader who has been his assistant forever. she gets into a car accident and calls him hours later to tell him that a temp will be taking her place for a few weeks (bc of injuries) and he's like ?? why?? she explains nonchalantly, then kells kinda freaks out and shows up at the hospital all worried”

Colson Baker X Reader

Warnings: Cursing, car accident (descriptive)

A/N: This was cute 😊

Word Count: 3185

“Alright Kells, I’m out for the night. I’ll email those tracks to the board when I get home and I’ll let you know if I get any updates for tomorrow’s press.” You told the blond man who was sitting on the couch as you put your laptop into your bag. You tried not to yawn as you heaved it over your shoulder, “anything else?”

You glanced at the kitchen clock that read 2 am and let out a small sigh. You were used to late nights given your job as assistant to a rockstar, but most nights you were able to leave before 8 pm. Tonight you and Colson had gotten really invested in the tracks you were editing and lost track of time.

“Y/N,” he turned to look at you with puppy dog eyes. He wanted something that you really weren’t gonna want to give him. “Could you come over early tomorrow to help me pick out what to wear for the Vanity Fair interview?”

You chuckled, “you know they have their own wardrobe department?”

He sighed, “yeah but you know me so much better than all those stylists. I trust your opinion more.”

You rolled your eyes as he tilted his head, begging you. “Fine, but I’m buying us coffee with your credit card.”

He broke out into a smile, “thank you, love you!” He called as you walked towards his front door.

“Whatever, I’ll see you tomorrow.” You told him, taking your car keys into your hands, and stepping out into the LA night. There was a soft breeze that shook the trees slightly, making you smile. It felt nice outside for the first time in a while.

Because of this, you decided to drive home with your windows rolled down, letting the wind flow through your hair. The roads were pretty barren by LA standards, so traffic was pretty much non-existent. You were sitting at a red light, your fingers tapping against your steering wheel as one of Colson’s songs played through your speakers softly.

You reached to turn up the volume as the light turned green. You pressed the gas, your car moving forward into the intersection. Suddenly you heard a loud squeal of brakes, looking over to your passenger window to the sight of two headlights barreling towards you. You tried to speed up to get out of the way, but it was too late.

The truck rammed straight into the side of your small car, pushing your vehicle over into the car next to you. You put your left arm up to shield you from any flying debris, but it was futile. The infrastructure of your car fell apart at the force, the dashboard collapsing onto your right leg. Luckily, your left leg managed to avoid the destruction.

You could barely feel the force of the whiplash due to the pain in your abdomen at the deployment of the airbag. Glass from the car next to you fell into your car through your open window, cutting into your skin.

And then all of a sudden, everything stopped. The truck that had hit you had stopped moving, allowing you to fully assess the damage. Your car was totaled for sure, and your leg was definitely crushed. You cried out in pain, breathing heavy and trying to see straight. You could hear the sound of sirens in the distance, giving you some sense of relief.

When the paramedics got to the scene, you were the last passenger to be taken out of the crash due to your car being in the center. A firefighter had to break the glass of your windshield, which was already cracked, in order to pull you out. When you told him your leg was stuck under the dashboard, he sent a team of men to lift it from your foot and another to pull you out of the wreckage.

They were all amazed you were still conscious but got very worried when you told them you couldn’t feel the pain in your leg. You rode in an ambulance to the hospital, the EMTs helping pick the glass from your skin and assessing your injuries. You made jokes with them to calm yourself down, something that you did with Colson and Rook whenever they got into accidents while you were out with them.

You thought about giving them Colson’s name when they asked about your emergency contact but decided against it. You didn’t want to worry him until absolutely necessary. You figured you’d see what the doctor had to say and if you wouldn’t be able to come back to work, then you would tell him.

Unfortunately, that’s exactly what the doctor said. In fact, you wouldn’t be able to leave the hospital for at least a week due to your shattered leg, bruised abdomen, and concussion.

The leg would require at least 2 if not more surgeries to repair and you would be on close watch for development of a more serious brain injury. After that you most likely wouldn’t be able to be back on your feet for another 8 to 12 weeks, which was kind of a requirement for your job.

It was almost 5am, so you weren’t necessarily thinking straight when you called Colson from your cracked phone. He answered, his voice conveying how tired he was. “Y/N? Everything okay?”

“Hey Kells, I’m not gonna be able to come in early tomorrow, or at all. I’m gonna start looking for a temporary replacement tomorrow if I’m feeling up to it. Oh! And I couldn’t send those tracks to the board, sorry.” You told him, only half registering the words you were saying.

The confusion was evident in his voice, “what? Why do you need to find a replacement?”

You realized you had forgotten to tell him what happened. “Oh, yeah! It’s kind of funny.” You started, chuckling but then realizing that laughing made your stomach hurt even more. “And by funny, I mean not funny at all. I got into a car accident. Some dude ran into my car in an intersection and now I’m in the hospital.”

“Which hospital?” Colson asked, suddenly much more awake.

“Hollywood Presbyterian.” You told him, “why?”

He sounded like he was rushing around, which he was. “I’m coming to see you.”

You furrowed your eyebrows in confusion, “why? I’m fine, you don’t need to do that. You have a big interview tomorrow, you should sleep.”

Colson sighed, “fuck the interview, I’ll be there in a few.”

“Colson you don’t-“ You started, but he hung up before you could tell him not to come.

Why was he rushing to see you in the hospital? Sure, you were friends, but he had much more important things to worry about right now. And besides, you were more casual work friends. He wouldn’t even know you existed if you didn’t work for him. Sure, you had a huge crush on him, but he was your boss, you were just someone he asked to do things he didn’t want to do.

20 minutes later Colson ran into the hospital room, stopping when he saw you in the bed. Your face was red from chemical burn and a few cuts of glass. Your right leg was propped up with basic bandaging around it. His heart broke at the thought of how much pain you had probably been in.

“How are you feeling?” He asked softly, moving to sit in the chair on your left side.

You shrugged, “I’ve been better.”

“Why didn’t you call me sooner?” He asked, eyes full of pity.

“I didn’t want to bother you unless it was serious. Figured I’d find out if I would have to miss work before telling you.” You said, squeezing your eyes shut as a headache washed over you.

Colson’s mouth gaped open, “you didn’t want to bother me? You got in a car crash and you weren’t gonna call me unless you would have to miss work?”

You shrugged again, “yeah. If my laptop wasn’t completely crushed in the accident I would’ve just found and sent a temp in tomorrow, but obviously that’s impossible.”

“Y/N you’re kidding me, right?” He asked, exasperated. You furrowed your eyebrows in response, causing a sigh to fall from his lips. “Y/N I don’t give a shit about a temp; I want to make sure you’re okay.”

“Oh, I’m fine. A little shaken and these headaches are killer, but they gave me a lot of pain medication so, I’m fine.” You smiled at him, your thoughts racing as you tried to figure out why he cared so much about how you were feeling.

He nodded, hand reaching out and landing on top of yours gently. “So, do they have to do surgery? What all did the doctors say?” He asked, worry in his eyes.

You nodded, “yeah, at least 2 surgeries. One around 11 am and then depending on how that one goes they’ll schedule the next. And they have to watch me to make sure my concussion doesn’t get worse.”

He pulled out his phone, typing away. “What are you doing?” You asked, suddenly feeling very tired.

“I just emailed the PR liaison for Vanity Fair and told them I wouldn’t be able to make it to the interview.” He responded.

“Why did you do that?” You asked through a yawn.

He looked at you like the answer was the most obvious thing in the world, “because I have to be with you right now.”

You were very confused as to why he thought he had to be here. “Colson, I’ll be fine. You should go to the interview. You don’t have to stay here.”

“I do have to be here. I want to be here.” He said, sternly.

“Why?” You asked, trying to keep your eyes open.

“Because I wanna make sure you’re okay.”

“I’ll just call you after the surgery, it’s no big deal.” You responded lazily.

He shook his head, “I want to stay here with you, Y/N. Okay? I care about you.”

You were too tired to process what he was saying at this point, so you just let out a hum. “I need to make sure you’re okay. I need to see you being okay. When you called me, I swear I was gonna have a heart attack if I didn’t see you.” He continued.

You were barely awake at this point, letting out a simple, “I’m okay” before slipping into unconsciousness.

Suddenly you were back in your car, “Bloody Valentine” playing from your speakers. The sky was dark green, almost like a painting. In front of you, the red light turned green. Like clockwork, you pressed the gas, moving into the intersection. Suddenly, the lights disappeared, and you heard the familiar chilling sound of breaks squealing. You looked over and saw those headlights coming towards you, getting closer and closer, brighter, and brighter.

You screamed at the sight, the familiar paralyzing fear coursing through your body again. “Y/N!” Your name played through the radio. That’s not in the song, you thought. “Y/N!” Colson’s voice rang out again before the truck made contact with your car.

You woke up in a cold sweat to Colson standing over you, hands shaking your shoulders lightly. “Y/N.” He said, relieved when your eyes began to open.

Your entire body was shaking like a poodle and your arms subconsciously reached for Colson, hanging onto his shirt for dear life. “It was just a dream.” He whispered as your eyes darted around the room. “You’re okay.” He reassured you.

“I’m sorry.” You muttered, hands leaving the fabric and moving to cover up your face. “I’m sorry.”

Colson sat on the bed next to you, legs hanging off the side as he stroked your face gently. “It’s okay, baby.” He turned to the nurse who opened the door, a worried expression on her face. He shook his head at her, “sorry, she just had a nightmare. She’s okay.” The nurse nodded but stayed in the room anyways, checking your vitals.

“I’m sorry.” You mumbled again, the words seeming to be the only thing you could say.

Colson shook his head, “stop saying that, it’s okay.” You pouted at him, trying to scoot over so he would lay down next to you, but it was way too painful. “What are you doin?” He asked, a smile on his face.

You sighed, “wanted you to sit next to me but I can’t move because of this stupid leg.” You motioned to the leg in question.

Colson chuckled, “I can sit next to you in the chair.”

“That didn’t work last time.” You whined.

He looked at you with an expression that was both amused and confused. You were definitely still high on pain medication. “What didn’t work.”

“It didn’t stop the nightmare.” You frowned, hand reaching for his. He chuckled, standing up fully and looking at the nurse.

She flashed him an amused smile, “If you want, we can try to move her. I don’t know how much we can do without hurting her ribs, though.”

Colson nodded with a gracious smile, “hear that? We can’t move you because of your ribs.”

You glared at him, “I may be very high right now, but I’m not that high.” You said, making him giggle. “She said you could try.”

Colson let out an exasperated sigh, one arm going under your back and the other under your left leg. “Is this what it’s like taking care of me all the time?” He asked and you nodded your head firmly.

“Yep. Except I am much smaller than you, so you have less work to do with me.” You smiled as he lifted you off the bed, which quickly turned into a grimace. “Ow!” You yelped and Colson quickly set you down, slightly closer to the right side of the bed.

“Fuck, sorry princess. Are you okay?” He asked, voice soft.

You nodded, sucking in your bottom lip to block the whimpers of pain that threatened to escape your mouth. “You probably don’t remember, but one time you were so crossed that you called me to pick you up from a party. But you couldn’t make it out of the car, so I had to carry you into your house. And then you demanded to sleep in your own room, so you made me drag you up the stairs instead of passing out on the couch like normal.”

Colson let out a breathy chuckle, glad you weren’t hurt too much. He carefully sat onto the cot next to you, pulling up his right leg to sit on the bed. His arm wrapped around your shoulders and pulled you into him slightly. You shifted so that you were comfortable, left hand finding his own left hand and holding it. He brought his left leg up onto the bed so he was fully laying with you.

Your head rest on his chest, a soft smile on your face as his thumb rubbed circles on your hand. The nurse left, satisfied that you wouldn’t hurt yourself further. Colson pressed a small kiss to the top of your head, causing your eyebrows to furrow.

“What time is it?” You asked him, to which he responded by pulling out his phone and showing you the lock screen. 8:47am. You nodded, a frown on your face, “did you get any sleep?” You asked him softly.

“I’m fine, I was asleep for a few hours before you called me.”

You sighed, feeling guilty. “You should go home and get some sleep.”

You felt him shake his head from behind you, “I’m staying right here.”

Despite wanting to force him to go home, you couldn’t help the happiness you felt at his stubbornness to stay with you. “You know you don’t need to be here. I won’t be offended if you leave.”

He chuckled, “stop trying to get me to leave. I’m here. On my own accord, okay? I’m gonna take care of you.”

You paused, thinking about the word floating around your head. “Why?” you whispered.

Colson’s face scrunched in confusion, “what do you mean “why”? Because you’re my friend and I care about you.”

“I mean, yeah. But I’m not like a “drop everything” kind of friend, I’m just your assistant.” You muttered.

Colson made an “are-you-serious?” face and let out a snort. “Seriously? You are so much more than you give yourself credit for. You mean the world to me, of course I’d drop everything for you.”

You couldn’t think of a response, his words making your heart race. “oh.” Was the best you could come up with.

“Y/N, seriously, you think way too low of yourself. You’re amazing.” He said, nose burying into your hair.

You shrugged, “you only say that because I take care of you when you’re drunk and help you do all the things you don’t want to do.”

Colson’s expression softened, a frown forming on his face. “I’m saying that because I think the world of you. You’re the kindest, funniest, coolest person I know. I meant it, when you told me you were in the hospital, my heart almost stopped. I felt sick to my stomach just thinking about you being hurt.” He paused, taking a deep breath before continuing, “I wish you could see how much you mean to me.” He mumbled.

You were quiet for a little while, processing what he had said. “You’re only saying that because I’m in the hospital.” You muttered, a frown on your face. You were trying to keep your hopes low, knowing once you were out of here, he would regret saying any of this.

“Y/N, are you being serious right now? I’m saying this because I’ve been fucking in love with you for the past year and a half.” He said and you could feel your breath catch in your throat. “I can’t believe you don’t see it.”

You bit your lip, turning to look up to him. “I just- I didn’t want- you wouldn’t.” You stumbled over your words, taking a deep breath, and starting again. “I didn’t want to read too much into it or get my hopes up. I figured you’d never be into someone like me so I just told myself you were being nice. I thought you only treated me well because I worked for you.” You mumbled.

He frowned, holding you tighter to him, “I am so, so into you. You are the only woman in my life who has ever stuck by me through my worst shit. Like even when I was a total jackass you stayed with me. How could I not fall in love with you?”

You bit your lip, tears threatening to spill at his sweet sentiment. You’d never had anyone say something that kind about you. You’d always assumed people only kept you around because you did stuff for them, but here was the man you were in love with telling you that he cared about you for you.

“I love you too.” You whispered, leaning your head further into his chest.

#mgk #mgk imagine #mgk angst #mgk fluff #machine gun kelly #colson baker imagine #machine gun kelly imagine #Colson baker #colson x reader #colson baker fluff #colson baker angst #colson imagine

376 notes · View notes

unloved-cadillac · 3 years

Note

Hi i have a request i was wondering if you could do a oneshot of levi x reader where the reader was in a relationship with reiner before finding out he was the armored titan and after they find out the reader is so heartbroken and distraught that they start to isolate, harm themselves and not eat as much but levi would always try and help them feel better by talking with them and being with them & slowly they both start to fall for each other and he helps them get better

C/n: ah my two men. Love it. Thanks for requesting and I hope that you enjoy🤍

——————————————————————————

Time Heals. (Reiner x Reader; Levi x Reader)

Love didn’t exist in the Survey Corps. At least that’s what you thought. There was no time for those type of things when your lover could be snatched away by the hands of a Titan at any time. But then you met Reiner Braun. The boy who showed you how to love and how to live life. He was so charming and so handsome, it didn’t take long for you to fall in love.

You felt like you belonged together. After the titans would disappear, you wanted to marry Reiner and to build a family with him. Everybody loved the two of you together, except his two closest friends for some reason.

But it didn’t bother you. As much as you wanted to befriend Annie and Bertholdt, they always ignored you. So you respected their decision and left them alone.

When Annie revealed herself as the Female titan, everyone was shocked. Rightfully so. Reiner faked sadness and you held him in your arms as you tried to calm him down. You thought it was a big betrayal to him and all you wanted to do was be there for him.

~~~~

“You’re just tired. That’s it, right?” You heard Eren speak to Reiner and Bertholdt as everyone began their journey back home. You stood with Armin and Mikasa when you saw Reiner unravel his bandage and the steam emitted from him. “What the..?” You mumble and as you began to walk to him, Mikasa sliced Bertholdt’s throat and got Reiner.

Everything happened so fast. Literally in a flash, Reiner and Bertholdt turned into the monsters that broke down the walls. Reiner quickly looked at your shocked face and teary eyes before the Armored Titan took over him.

Reiner grabbed Eren and jumped off the wall and all you could do was scream. Reiner..was the Armored titan? After all these years..everything you’ve been through...he was a traitor. A liar. He lied about everything. Did he perhaps lie about his love for you too? Hange held you as you balled your eyes out for him. The man you loved. How did everything change in a span of a few seconds?

Apparently everything.

~~~~

After Reiner left, you were broken. So many lives were lost, including your commander’s and due to that you had to get interviewed by the Military Police, Hange and your Captain. It was all the same questions and you gave the same answers. It was clear to everyone that you just couldn’t handle this pressure and this betrayal. Especially to Levi.

By the time you were interviewed by him, he saw how sick and distraught you looked. Your eyes developed eye bags that were black, your cheeks went in and you just...didn’t look good.

Levi kept it short and then dismissed you. For the next week, no one heard from you.

~~~~

Everyone was uneasy with the state you were in. No one had seen you come out of your room or train. Not even your closest friend, Jean, could see you.

When Jean returned to the table of the Levi squad, they all picked their heads up hoping he got through to you. He shook his head and sat down, defeated.

“Tch.” Levi scoffs and wakes up to go to your room. He gave all of your friends the chance and respected your privacy but now it was his turn. Levi felt really uneasy not seeing your smiling face around base and not hearing your voice that made everyone’s day a bit better.

He stood in front of your door and knocked. No answer. He knocked again and no reply. So using the keys he had, he unlocked your door and looked inside to see you on the floor.

He ran to you and leaned down to your face. You were breathing but by the looks of it, not merely enough. Your arms had slits and bruises and Levi acted fast. He lifted you into his arms and ran to the medical center where he was met by Hange.

Hange looked so confused but then looked at Levi who said: “just help them.”

~~~~

You woke up to bright lights and a white room where you were certain that this isn’t your room. You looked at your hands to see them wrapped in bandages and an IV connected to you.

“Good. You’re awake.”

You look to your left to see your captain sitting on a chair, cross-legged and furious. “C-Captain Levi. Why am I here?” You ask, your voice scratching your throat as you got used to using it again. “Because I found you passed out on the floor with cuts and bruises all over your body. Care to explain?”

You look down, trying to avoid his piercing gaze when you began to cry. “I’m easy.” You say softly and Levi leans closer. “What do you mean?” You look up at him and something in Levi pinched his heart. He did not like seeing you like this.

“I’m easy to abandon. Easy to forget and easy to leave. Reiner was my everything but to him, I was nothing. Did he even mean it? When he said he loved me? He left me without even trying to explain. I would’ve listened, Captain. Hear what he had to say because I loved him and that’s what you do for the people you love.” You put your face into your hands and cried. Levi exhaled and sat closer to you.

Gently, he took your hand and held it. “You’re not easy, Y/n. Reiner was a shit and traitor to everyone. He...,” he pauses for a moment, “he doesn’t deserve your love anymore.” You look at your Captain who, a few months ago, only shot orders to you but here he was, assuring you and comforting you.

You hold his hand a bit tighter and he looks at you. You give him a small smile as he blinks at you. “So, Y/n,” he lets go of your hand and clears his throat, “you’re under my care from now on. I’m going to make sure get back on your feet and eat properly.” He gets up and begins to walk to the door.

“Captain?” You call and he turns and looks at you.

“Thank you.”

Levi nods and walks out of the room and smiles to himself. He will help you. No matter what.”

~~~~

Throughout the weeks, Levi helped you to eat and to attend to your wounds. His normally rough hands were gentle and soft as he held your arms to wrap your bandages. He would sit next to you while you two ate to make sure you did. He wouldn’t leave you until you are everything.

When you would wake from your nightmares, Levi was the first one you would call. It started off with him just staying in your room until you fell asleep, but then that changed to him sitting next to you on the bed, then it was him settling next to you and you clinging to his shirt as his arms wrapped around you.

Levi had asked you what had interest you so you could get your mind of everything and you told him that you liked to read. So in the library, you showed Levi the books you enjoyed reading and he watched you blabber on about the stories. Your hair got in your face and without thinking, he brushed it away from your face and you froze.

“O-Oh. Sorry. I should’ve asked.” Levi whispers and you shake your head. “No, it’s okay. Thank you.” You say and you both look down, embarrassed. You flicker your gaze over to Levi who was still looking down at the book as if it suddenly became so interesting.

“Captain?” He looks at you, annoyed.

“Y/n..”

You chuckle at him.

“Sorry. Levi, may I ask you something?” You ask and he nods, facing you. You gulp slightly and face him properly. You played with your hands and tried To find your words but it only made you look super anxious. Levi reached over and held your trembling hands, making you look back at him.

“What is it?” He asks, voice soft and gentle. You see his eyes look at your lips and your eyes.

“May I kiss you?”

His lips part in shock but then it’s replaced but a small smile. “Do what you want.” You chuckle and lean in, laying a kiss on his lips. You thought Levi would pull away, but he pulled on your hands which made you stay on him. For a first kiss, this one wins.

You pulled away from him and smiled brightly. Probably the brightest Levi ever saw. You leaped into his arms and he held you close. “I love you Levi. Thank you for everything.” You whisper and he ruffles your hair. “I love you too, Y/n.”

Although you and Levi got together, the thought of Reiner still invaded your mind. Finally, after hearing what Eren was going to do through his letters, it was finally time to move on.

~~~~

“Levi?”

“Hmm?”

“We’re gonna see him soon.”

Levi turns to face you on your shared bed and you laid on your back, staring at the ceiling. “Hey.” He calls and places his arm around your waist and you turned towards him. “It’s okay. I’m here. He’s not going to hurt you ever again.” He promises and kisses your forehead. You snuggle under his neck and hold him close.

You ended up going undercover with Jean and you saw Reiner with a few kids and other soldiers. He did not look good. At all. Sometimes, you stood right in front of him and when he saw you, you turned and walked away, swapping places with a common villager. You made him think he was insane.

But the next day, you stood watching Reiner fight Eren and when he caught sight of you, his movements faltered. You changed. You weren’t the person he fell in love with anymore. You weren’t the person who screamed and cried as he transformed in front of you anymore. You weren’t the personwho would hold him as he faked his depression anymore.

You weren’t his anymore.

He saw the ring on your finger and he widened his eyes. “Y/n?” He says and you shake your head. Eren continues attacking him and soon everyone was aboard the plane.

“Didn’t you want to talk to him, Y/n?” Jean asks as you wraps an arm around your shoulders. “No. Nothing he can say will ever make me forgive him. But through time, I healed from his betrayal. Besides,” you turn and look at Levi who was swearing Zeke.

“I’m happy now.”

——————————————————————————

🖤🤍Thanks for reading🤍🖤

-Caddy.

194 notes · View notes

writteninkat · 3 years

Text

vii - stargazing idiots

word count - 2,854

warnings - reader goes through what is caused by past trauma, mentions of death, mentions of murder

"Angels like you can't fly down hell with me. I'm everything they said I would be."

index

Right after All Might showed up, your body gave up on you and Tsuyu and Izuku had to help keep you up. Your eyelids felt heavier than ever and your head felt like it was going to burst. Your breathing is ragged and the last thing you see is Aizawa's bloodied body before darkness swallows you hole.

It's cold. So very cold.

You open your eyes only to be greeted by a never ending darkness. You feel like you're floating in water.

"Y/n." You hear his all too familiar voice. It's deep, if you could feel it it would feel like rubbing against sandpaper, it's also very cold and a sound that's void of any emotion.

"You did this to me." All of a sudden, Aizawa is standing in front of you, face bloodied and brusied, arms broken and turned to numerous directions. "Why are you so weak?!" He yells as tears begin streaming down your face.

You curl your body, placing your hand on your ears to try and block out your teacher's voice, but it's as if they're everywhere. They're around and inside you.

"I died because of you!" Aizawa yells, gis voice echoing inside your head. "The nomu didn't kill me, you did! You are a murderer! It's because you're so weak that I died!"

You scream, your body feeling immense pressure as hot tears stream down your face. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" You yell.

"You killed me. You can never be a hero. You are a murderer, you hear me! I murderer!" You open your eyes, your body shaking as you watch his hand about to grab you.

"I'm not a murderer!" You yell, your eyes opening to the sight of a white ceiling. "Y/n! Calm down! It's just a nightmare!" You hear his gruff voice beside you, it always managed to calm you down. As you turn your head to face him, Katsuki can't help but feel his heart break at the sight of your cheeks wet with tears and eyes red and puffy.

"Suki..." You sob, your body immediately being pulled into a warm hug as Katsuki whispers shushes into your ear. His hand strokes your hair as his arms tigten around you. "It's okay, just let it all out. Cry to me. I'm right here."

Your loud sobs and yelling fill the rooms, even alerting some of the nurses but Katsuki motions for them to leave you two alone.

Your heart feels like it's being crushed and it feel difficult to breathe. Despite this, you don't want Katsuki to let you go. You don't want his familiar warmth to leave your side, not now when you're feeling especially vulnerable.

When your sobs quiet down, Katsuki slowly pulls away, looking into your eyes. "Hey, hey, it's okay. I'm here." He shushes, wiping away your tears as his eyes analyze yours.

"You're okay. What made you cry out like that?" He asks, thumb caressing your cheek softly. You place a hand on his wrist, melting into his touch as you closed your eyes, letting your tears fall.

"Aizawa sensei... He... I killed-"

"We heard Y/n was yelling. What's wrong?!" Midnight barges in, making you immediately turn to her. Behind her she has Present Mic and someone else who's wrapped up in bandages.

Your eyes widen, "Aizawa... sensei..." You mutter, the bandaged-up person tilting his head to the side. "Yes? Are you okay, Y/n?"

Tears fill your eyes again, but this time, there's no longer weight on your shoulders or heart and it feels much easier to breathe. You start sobbing once again, Katsuki looking lost and confused as to what he's supposed to do.

"You're not dead!" You sob, "I thought I killed you- hic- because I was too weak!" You cry out, using your knuckles to wipe away your tears only for them to be replaced by new ones.

"I thought I became a murderer-hic-because I was too weak to protect you, and you died because of me!" You don't even notice Aizawa walking up to you. Despite his bandaged state and the casts he has on both arms, he pulls you into a slightly awkward hug. You wrap your arms around his torso, careful not to hurt him with it.

"Why are you carrying such a burden? Why do you have such thoughts, little girl?" Aizawa asks, his tone hurt. "I have these injuries because I chose to protect you, my students. If I ever get hurt, never, and I mean never blame yourself for it."

You bury your face onto his chest, tears rolling at his words. "Heroes go through stuff like these every time. We sacrifice ourselves to protect the weak and also to keep the peace. In your journey to becoming a hero, you will encounter many situations like these, some are even more worse. But just remember my words-" he pushes you softly, looking down at your swollen eyes. "-have courage, have faith on yourself and the people around you. Trust in them to prevail through just like how you will. Remember that we are all strong because we are heroes but that doesn't mean we have to carry all the burden by ourselves. Be good to yourself and let go if you need to. You're only sixteen, it's okay to act like a child sometimes."

You never thought you'd hear those words from your homeroom teacher who always seemed so indifferent, but at the end of the day, he truly does care about his students from the bottom of his heart.

"Good evening, visiting hours ended five minutes ago. Only miss L/n's guardian if allowed to stay with her." A nurse knocks on your open door, catching everyone's attention.

"I'll be her guardian-" Katsuki cuts off Midnight's words, "Not so fast. I'm her guardian."

"None of you are my guardians." You sigh, "It's been a tiring day and I just want you all to rest. Especially you guys, Aizawa sensei and Katsuki." You move to lay on your bed, but Katsuki raises you a questioning brow.

"What do you mean long day? You've been out for two days." Your eyes widen at his words. You turn to look at the teachers and they all giving knowing nods. "Wait- so does that mean-" You point at Katsuki who rolls his eyes, "Yes, dumbass. I've been watching over you this whole time." At the realization of his words, Katsuki turns away to hide his blush and yet again, fails to notice the red tips of his ears.

"Anyway, the doctors say that you'll be discharged tomorrow morning so you can-" You cut of Aizawa, "Finally go back to school!" You sigh, stretching your arms out and then letting out a sigh.

"I was going to say stay home and rest but if that's what you want then I won't stop you. Bakugou." Katsuki turns around, his face and ears no longer flushed and is back to it's natural scowling state. "I'm not sure how or why your parents allowed you to stay here at the hospital but I'm glad at least someone is taking care of her. There are many qualified pros scouting this area especially at night so you two can rest easy."

With one last nod, the teachers all walk away, bidding the two of you good night. The door closes and you reach over to take your phone from the bedside table, unlocking it. Your eyes widen at the sight of forty-seven missed calls from your mom and just as many number of unread text messages.

"Your mom was called by the school about your situation and assured her that you were alright, but I guess that didn't stop her from blowing up your phone." Katsuki says, eyes on the apple he's peeling.

"Sorry about that, I bet you didn't get enough sleep with all the calling." Your eyebrows knit together in cringe as you force out a smile to which Katsuki shakes his head at. "Your mom is probably the one who didn't get any sleep at all. You should call her and ensure to her that you're alright." He points the knife at your phone before returning back to peeling the apple.

You call your mother in facetime and it rings twice before she answers. "Y/n oh my god! Are you alright, baby?! No, don't answer that. I'm on my way there right now-"

"Mom, what do you mean on your way- here in Japan?" Your eyes scan her background, heart falling to your stkmach as you recognize the airport.

"Hold on! Stop, stop! Mom! You have work back there in the states, you can't come to Japan."

"But you're hurt-"

"Mom," You sigh, "Look, I'm sorry for worrying you. But I swear, I'm fine. Just a few bruises and scrapes but what's a hero without scars, am I right?"

Your mom looks like she stopped walking as she sends you a wordied expression to which you smile reassuringly at her. "I'm fine, mom. Don't worry about me. I'll be able to take care of myself."

"But who's taking care of you in the hospital? I'm going there right now and-"

"Mom, even if you did come here now, I'll be discharged by the time you get here. Plus-" you look at Katsuki who's busy slicing the apples into little slices, designing them to look like bunnies. "-Someone's already taking care of me here. I'll be fine."

Your mother sighs, defeated as you watch her turn around. "Just- stay safe okay? I don't have anyone else."

"I know, mom. I love you so much."

"I love you more, my baby girl."

The two of you pucker your lips for a kiss before ending the call. You lean your back onto your now inclined bed, looking down at the bunny slice Katsuki is offering you. He still has that glare in his eyes, but if you look into them even more, they're much more softer. You take the slice from his fingers, letting out a soft thank you before taking a bite.

"When you blamed yourself a while ago." He starts, making you flinch at the topic. "Don't do that again."

"Suki-"

He slams the knife onto the table, "Please. It's not your fault. Even the strongest people have weaknesses. Don't put all the weight on yourself, please."

Your eyes widen at how vulnerable his voice sounds right now. You reach over, placing a hand on his soft hair. You smile softly, "Alright. I'm sorry I did that. I promise to rely on you more."

Katsuki looks up at you, eyes glassy and face flushing. "I never said you needed to rely on m-"

"I wanna look at the stars." You cut him off quickly, hopping off your bed to saunter towards the window. You push the glass window open, leaning in and taking a deep breath of the cold night air, smiling. You look up at the stars, wishing you had access to the rooftop since the view would be better up there.

"You know, we are at the twenty fifth floor of the hospital." Katsuki says, folding the fluffy blanket that you didn't even realize you were using. You don't think it's yours given that you've never seen it before. Was it Katsuki's?

"What are you saying?" You ask, letting him put on a sweater on you. Again, this piece of warm clothing wasn't yours as well. But by the sweet caramel scent it gave off, you come to a conclusion that this belonged to the angry blond gremlin who is currently standing on the window why the hell is he standing on the window?!

"Bakugou! Are you crazy?! Get off the window now!" You yell, pulling at his pants. "Oh stop being a square." He pushes the warm blanket on you, pulling you with him off the window and out of the hospital room. Before you let out a scream, he uses his quirk to push you two upwards, his hand gripping your sides tightly as your feet land on the cemented rooftop of the hospital.

At the notice of you no longer in the doorstep of death, you resort to hitting Katsuki's arm, letting your mouth run as you lecture him about how dangerous that act was. He responds to your reprimanding with a loud, milky, genuine laugh. Your hand comes to a hault as well as your mouth and you just stand there, awestruck at how handsome Katsuki actually looks when he's smiling.

You place a closed hand on your chest, feeling as your heart thumps against it vigorously. Ah, there it was again. The butterflies in your stomach that made your body feel lighter than it usually felt and your drying throat as well as your sweating palms.

"Come on, I find stargazing relaxing." He says, the usual angry tone of his voice gone, catching you off guard. He wraps his hand around your wrist softly, pulling you towards the center of the rooftop. He places the soft blanket on the ground, folding it once so it isn't too thin before laying down, patting the empty space for you. You mirror his actions, laying down beside him as you gazed up at the stars.

"You ever wonder what the alternative universe us are like?" You ask, eyes staring up at the twinkling stars as Katsuki raises a brow, turning his head towards you. "You believe in that bullshit?" He chuckles, making you gasp. "Don't call it bullshit! What else are the stars for??"

Katsuki presses his lips together to stop his laughter, "I don't know~ What are they for?" He asks you, tone sarcastic and pushing you off the edge. "To tell us about the future, and to show us how many other worlds are there other than ours!"

Katsuki can no longer hold in his laughter, clutching his stomach as he laughs his heart out. You narrow your eyes at him, pouting and crossing your arms against your chest. "Let me guess, let me guess." Katsuki wipes a tear away, "You also believe in the red string of fate?"

"How could you not believe it when-" You stop yourself from continuing your words. How could you not believe it when it caused the two of us to meet?

"When what? Come on, tell me! I promise not to laugh." You turn away, sitting up. Katsuki is still laughing as he follows you, taking your hand in his. "What else do I not know about you?" He asks, curling his four fingers with yours as he stands his thumb up, preparing for a thumb wrestle. You follow his actions and the two of you start the game. "I can't swim." You start.

"I had a pet goldfish but it died after a week." Katsuki chuckles.

"I only ever had two friends growing up- they were my mother's bodyguards. Eliot and Andrew."

"I like to cook."

"I still have my stuffed toys from when I was young."

"I tried to learn how to drive but after almost running over a cat, I swore never to drive again."

"I was pretty popular in middle school."

You chuckle, "I was bullied in middle school."

Katsuki stops moving his thumb, allowing you to pin his down. Your face brightens up as you smile, "I win!" You look up at him, smile almost immediately falling at the sight of his grin expression.

His head drops, covering up his eyes. "Hey, what happened? Did I say something wrong? Come on Suki, talk to me."

"I'm- Do you hate bullies?" He asks, his head still hanging.

"Well, hate is a strong word..." You look up at the stars, as if they were going to give you the right word you were looking for. "But I dislike them. What's the point of putting down someone especially when they've done nothing wrong to you? I don't use the word hate because I don't want to use it incorrectly, but to me bullies are sometimes just misunderstood or something. They have that superiority complex and I like to think that they have it because of their past that we don't know about or the thoughts they have in their heads."

You feel him padding his thumb over your hand. "Hey, you okay?" You ask, cupping his jaw to make him look uo at you. The look in his eyes, takes you aback- he looks so sad and regretful which only stirrs up more questions in your head.

"You're so good. You're such a good person, Y/n." His words cause you to furrow your brows in confusion. What was going on inside his head?

He drops his head to your shoulder, "You're an angel, Y/n. People are so lucky to have you in their lives."

You don't even think twice before the words leave uour mouth. "Even you?"

It takes him a few moments to respond and you begin to think that you made a mistake asking him that, but you feel him nod on your shoulder. "Especially me."

#bakugou fanfiction #bakugou katuski x reader #bakugou x y/n #mha bakugou #bakugou bios #bakugou katsuki #bakugou x you #bakugou imagine #bakugou fluff #mha fluff #bnha bakugou #bnha fluff #my hero fluff #my hero fanfic #boku no hero fluff

31 notes · View notes

theloversthedreamersandme82 · 3 years

Text

I didn’t think you cared. Chapter Two

Chapter Two of a prompt from @yesmadamepresident of ‘Exes meeting again after not speaking for years’ for Matthew and Alice.

Chapter One here

Chapter Two

As Alice hobbled into the station corridor, she collapsed gratefully into a chair. Exhaling heavily she leant back as Jean placed a tentative hand on her shoulder.

Matthew raised his eyebrows, “I’ll go find Lucien.” He turned and as he began to walk away a joyful shout came from the other end of the passage.

“Alice!” Lucien cried as he moved towards her with a big smile and his arms open wide. His face changed as he saw the uncomfortable way she sat, and the awkward way she gingerly held her foot.

“What’s going on? What happened?” Lucien looked from Alice, to Jean and then to Matthew.

“I’m fine Lucien.”

“She’s not fine. She got run over by a cyclist.”

“I did not get 'run over.’” Alice shot Matthew a look, “He knocked me down, I sprained my ankle. It was my own bloody fault. I stepped back into his path.”

“He didn’t stop to see if you were alright though, did he? And he shouldn’t have been going that fast, especially not on the footpath.” Matthew responded angrily.

They glared at each other as Jean and Lucien shared an uncomfortable look.

Matthew looked at Lucien, “Check her over will you? Make sure she hasn’t broken anything? Use the interview room, Then I’ll come and take her statement.” He nodded at Alice and turned and walked away.

“Statement? What for?” Alice protested as her rib gave a pinch. She sucked a breath in and blinked with pain. “Lucien I’m not pressing charges against some kid on a bike when it was my own stupid fault!”

Lucien held up a hand. “First things first, let’s get you to the interview room and have a look at you. You can tell me where it hurts.” He helped Alice up and looked to Jean. “Why don’t you go and have a word with Matthew?” he muttered as he kissed her cheek.

Jean nodded, and after watching Alice hobble away with Lucien’s help, headed after Matthew.

~~~~~~~~~

She found him in the kitchen staring at an unboiling kettle.

“It usually works better if you turn it on,” she quipped as she flicked the switch then turned to face him. Crossing her arms she leant back against the counter. “Is this your way of showing her you still care?”

Matthew looked at her and feigned aloof apathy. “I don’t care, not about her, not like that. These young kids shouldn’t be riding on the footpath.”

Jean softened and put her hand on his arm, “You do care,” she murmured gently, “You care too much. That is your problem. You know you said and did some stupid things last time you saw each other, and now you’re scared to revisit it.”

Matthew glared at her defiantly.

“Thing is Matthew,” she continued, “Alice is just as scared. She misses you.”

“She tell you that did she?”

“No, but I know Alice. I know when she’s not saying something. Matthew, just give her another chance. She knows she wasn’t entirely blameless in the break up. You both were acting like stubborn idiots. Just like now.” Jean raised her eyes pointedly.

Matthew sat heavily into the wooden chair at the table. “Jean, I…”

“Matthew I’m sick of tiptoeing around the subject with both of you. It’s been three years. Either make up, or move on. And as neither of you have dated anyone since, I’m inclined to suggest the former.” Jeans voice was stern but gentle.

Matthew raised his head to look at Jean, “Alice hasn’t been seeing anyone in Melbourne?”

“No, and you’d know this if you’d bothered writing to her.”

“She never wrote to me!” Matthew crossed his arms.

“Matthew, communication is a two way street! One of you has to bite the bullet and apologise. Neither of you are to blame, sometimes in relationships arguments just happen, despite how much you love each other. Things happen, tempers flare, and the sooner you work out a way to move on from that, the better.”

There was a silence in the kitchen and the kettle started boiling.

“What if she won’t have me back?” Matthew asked tentatively as he traced a pattern on the table with his finger.

“Then at least you’ll know,” Jean said kindly. She crossed to the kettle and turned it off. “Look, take her a cup of tea. Be gentle with her. These kinds of injuries, they’ve probably brought up some nasty memories.”

Matthew’s heart sank. Of course. He was annoyed with himself for not realising it sooner. He wished he’d not been so gruff with her. “Jean I was so cross with her,” he admitted quietly.

“Just take her a cuppa, and talk.”

~~~~~~~~~

“So Alice, can you pop up on the table here for me?”

Alice rolled her eyes but did as she was asked, with a bit of assistance from Lucien.

He knelt in front of her. “I’m just going to carefully take this shoe off, alright?”

“This is so silly Lucien, I am a doctor!”

“I know you are, and a far more competent one than I am, I must admit. But I won’t rest until I know you’re all right, neither will Jean, neither will Matthew.”

At the mention of Matthew’s name Alice let out a slight 'Hmphf!'

Lucien heard it but said nothing.

Alice shut her eyes against the pain as Lucien inched the shoe off her foot and probed it gently.

“You know it’s so good to see you Alice, even under the circumstances. We’ve missed you.” Manipulating her stockinged foot Lucien took note of when Alice inhaled sharply from the pain.

“Hmmm, I’ll have to bandage that in a moment.” Lucien looked at her “Where else does it hurt?”

Alice chewed on her lip.

“Please Alice. I just want to help.”

Alice sighed. “I think I’ve bruised a rib. And I banged the back of my head when I hit the ground,” she replied reluctantly.

“I’m sorry Alice, I hate to ask but do you mind if I untuck your blouse?”

Alice waved a resigned hand in his direction. “Do what you must.”

Lucien gently pulled her blouse from her skirt. Lifting it he let out a whistle as he saw her red skin. His fingers lightly feeling her ribs. He paused. “Alice…” He looked at her face, “Just how much pain are you in?”

Alice shrugged a shoulder, “It hurts to breathe, but it’s not too bad… I’ve had worse,” she uttered softly.

“I think… Alice, I think you’ve cracked at least one rib, if not two.” Lucien didn’t like to think about the casual way she’d said ‘I’ve had worse’ if two cracked ribs was nothing, “I’d like to have that x-rayed.”

“Noted, Moving on,” Alice dismissed him with narrowed eyes.

Lucien sighed quietly, “You know it’s true what they say. Doctors make the worst patients.” He moved to the back of her head and began to feel around, “Just ask Jean what I’m like when I’m ill.”

Alice managed a small smile but winced as Lucien’s fingers came into contact with the bump on her head.

Lucien came to stand in front of her and held a finger up. “Watch my finger please?” He moved it slowly from side to side. “Any dizziness? Nausea? Light-headedness? Trouble focusing?”

“None. Look Lucien, I’ll agree to an ankle bandage, but I’m not going for an x-ray and I do not have a concussion.” Alice decreed defiantly. “If Superintendent Lawson hadn’t come butting in, I wouldn’t even be here."

Lucien raised an eyebrow at her, “Not the way you wanted to see him again, I guess.”

“I was hoping to never see him again,” Alice muttered. “I only came back to see Jean. And you,” she added.

“Alice give him a break,” Lucien urged gently as he put his hand on her shoulder, “He still cares about you. Much more than he lets on. Why do you think he insisted on bringing you back here? He could have just called for an ambulance and sent you right to hospital. True sometimes you can bring out the worst in each other, but when you were together…” Lucien paused and scratched the back of his head, “well I’ve never seen either of you as happy as you were then.”

Alice pursed her lips and said nothing.

“Please Alice, just think about it. I’m going to find a bandage. Do you think you can remove that stocking while I’m gone?” he nodded at her shoeless foot.

“Of course I can,” Alice bristled indignantly.

“Right then. Back in a tick.”

The door closed and Lucien was gone. Alice let out the breath she’d been holding and a tear escaped her eye. The pain of a cracked rib was all too familiar and brought back too many memories. She swiped the tear from her face and set about unclipping her stocking from her garter belt. But bending was proving incredibly difficult. After a brief struggle she sat back up, exasperated and exhausted. Sighing heavily she bent to try again. A piercing pain shot up her side but she gritted her teeth, determined.

The door opened and Matthew entered with a cup of tea in his hand. Seeing her perched on the table, bending at an awkward angle he frowned, “What are you trying to do?”

Alice’s face flushed as she sat up, “Remove my stocking. Lucien’s gone to find a bandage."

Matthew chuckled. “Good luck. He used our last lot a few weeks ago patching up some idiot involved in a punch up, don’t think they’ve been replaced yet.” He looked at her, “I brought you a cup of tea.” He offered it to her tentatively.

Alice hesitated, then taking it from him blew on it gingerly.

“I, uh, put some cold water in it, the way you like it. That is, if you still take your tea like that?”

Alice blinked. “I do. Thank you.”

“To be honest I wasn’t sure if you’d take the tea or throw it in my face.”

“The thought did cross my mind.”

The silence in the room echoed like an empty tomb.

“It’s… good to see you again,” Matthew began.

Alice shot him a harsh look.

“No, really. I’ve…uh… missed you”

Alice stared at him. “You didn’t come after me” she accused quietly.

“I didn’t know you wanted me to”

“I didn’t think you cared.”

“Of course I care sweetheart” The word slipped out of Matthews mouth automatically and he snapped it shut as Alice glared at him.

“Alice why are we like this?”

Alice’s face softened and stared at the floor and said nothing.

Matthew rubbed a frustrated hand through his hair. “We’re no good for each other, and yet, the time I spent with you was the happiest time of my life. What happened to us?”

“Oh Matthew.” Alice looked at him with sad eyes. “We were tired, overworked and stressed. We both handled it badly.”

“And then you left.”

“And then I left,” Alice repeated numbly. “Forgive me? It was a rash and emotional decision.”

“Do you regret it?”

“Every day since,” she whispered.

Matthew itched to draw her into his arms and hold her tight, but he settled by taking her hands in his own.

“I’m sorry I didn’t write. I’m sorry I didn’t come after you. I didn’t realise how much I should have fought for you until it was too late.”

“Matthew. It’s never too late.” Alice looked into his cool blue eyes and cupped his cheek gently. “Do you think we might… start over?”

Matthew nuzzled his cheek into her hand. “But how? I want to, Of course I do, But I don’t understand how we can make it work this time if we couldn’t before. How do we even begin?”

“You can start by helping me take my stocking off” she nodded to where the top of her stocking had bunched above her knee.

Matthew looked at her knee and nodded. Swallowing heavily he knelt in front of her, and taking her foot carefully in one hand, used the other hand to gently roll down her stocking. As her leg was revealed to him, he cupped his hand around her calf and pressed his lips to the inside of her ankle. Lowering her leg he kissed her shin, then her knee. Standing up he looked at her.

Alice had closed her eyes, savouring the sensation of his lips against the bare skin on her leg. It had been three years since anyone had touched her with such intimacy and she shivered slightly as she bit her lip to keep from crying. She opened her eyes and saw Matthew’s intense eyes on hers. “Matthew. I’ve missed you. So much.”

Instantly his mouth was on hers. His hand cradling her head. “Alice” he murmured against the skin at her neck, the way he knew she liked, “Please. Come home?”

Alice wrapped her arms around his neck, ignoring the pain in her side. "Matthew, I am home."

Also on AO3 and ff.net

#yesmadamepresident #thanks #kermit writes #my writing #exes meeting again #tdbm #the doctor blake mysteries #tumblr prompt #i didn't think you cared #malice #matthew lawson #alice harvey #matthew x alice #jean beazley #lucien blake

25 notes · View notes

one-boring-person · 3 years

Note

Alrighty! I know I’m late but to make up I’m going to send a B U N C H of requests! You don’t have to do all of em but I think they’re going to be fun!

Ok first off how bout a Dutch x Reader where they got separated in the jungle and meet up in the chopper, but Dutch was sure she died and it’s a nice little reunion!

I cannot wait to write all of these! I'm so excited!😅 I think I may have gone a bit overboard with this first one, but the idea has been going round my head ever since I read the request, so I hope you like it!

We're Alive!

Alan "Dutch" Schaefer x reader (Platonic)

Warnings: death, spoilers, injury, blood, gun use

Masterlist

"(Y/N)! GO!" Dutch bellows at me as he scrambles to get up again, his arm bleeding profusely from his newly acquired wound, the major's voice laced with pain and urgency.

"No!" I snap back, taking up my gun and firing off into the trees, aiming for the origin of the blast from before, going in a wild arc as the automatic pelts the surroundings with a volley of bullets.

"(Y/n), get to the chopper, now!" He tries again, climbing to his feet, his own gun clenched in hand as he backs himself with me, the two of us staring out at the area.

"N-" I go to respond, only to be cut off by another flash of energy coming between us, the heat of it burning away the skin and fabric covering my leg, a surprised cry of agony escaping me as I instinctively buckle under the intensity.

Dutch is quick to grab me, forcing me to duck down slightly as we take off into the underbrush, the veteran pulling me along with speed. Vines and branches whip past my face, welts appearing on my grimy skin as I do my best to hobble after the broad-shouldered man ahead of me, his physical size easily parting the jungle for him. Behind us, I can hear the pounding footsteps and eerie clicking of whatever the hell is chasing us, my pulse pounding in my ears as my panic fuels my adrenaline, allowing me to ignore the searing pain in my leg. Each breath is harsh and fast, my legs pumping quickly to cover as much ground as possible.

All of a sudden, Dutch's foot goes out from under him, his massive body falling into the sharp slope to the side of us. A shout of panic tears itself from his throat as he tumbles out of sight, leaving me alone on our original trail, our ruthless pursuer hot on my heels.

"DUTCH!" I scream after him, briefly considering going after him, unsure of how well I'll fare without him.

A low growl behind me makes the decision for me, my instincts kicking in as I ignore my heart and push on, limping on into the dense jungle, eyes widening as I realise exactly how close the killer is. My heart jumps in my chest as I suddenly feel the quick brush of air as it swipes at me, blades just catching the back of my neck before I've gotten out of the way, my legs carrying me faster as fear takes over. Completely oblivious to any pain now, I thunder through the undergrowth, slapping wildly at vines, leaping over fallen branches and logs, heartbeat racing faster and faster with each step. There's a taste of iron on my tongue, blood from a bitten lip dripping down my face now, coating my chin in a thin layer of the stuff.

And then my feet are no longer touching the ground.

Crying out in surprise, I throw my hands out in front of me to catch myself, my palms smacking harshly into hard rock as I smash into the boulder below me. Pain explodes in my chest as it collides with the solid surface, winding me even as my knees crack loudly as they bounce off of it.

For a moment, I lie still, trying to regain my breath, before I roll onto my back, staring up at the slight cliff I fell off, expecting to be met with the sight of three red dots on my chest. Surprisingly, I see nothing, the forest around me mostly silent, except for the rushing of water, which I quickly deduce is from the river nearby. Groaning, I let myself relax, closing my eyes as I finally register the full extent of the pain coursing through my body, my newly bruised torso not helping at all with the stinging from my leg, blood now pouring down the limb in great streams, staining my skin crimson.

Steeling myself, I push myself upright and take in my surroundings, glad to find myself at the river where there are many boulders I can use as cover, the ground much easier to move over here, meaning I can make a quick getaway if I need to. Somewhat relieved, I force myself to get up and go to the river, knowing I need to clean my wounds or they'll get infected, not that it makes much difference: I'll probably be dead by the end of the day.

I shake these thoughts from my head, focusing on getting to the river as I limp over the uneven surface, coming to kneel beside it with a wince. Swiftly, I peel back my frayed trouser leg and manoeuvre myself so that the appendage lies in the water, the cool sensation bringing tears to my eyes from the harsh sting. It is somewhat soothing, but mostly painful, the blood washing away quickly, only to be replaced by more as the open wound continues to bleed, the inflicted area being large, not deep thankfully. Biting my lip, I run a hand over it, cleaning it slightly before finally pulling it out, swiftly tearing off my sleeve and wrapping it around my leg as a makeshift bandage.

Having done so, I hobble back to one of the boulders, sitting at its base as I think over my options.

My first instinct is to find Dutch, wherever he may be, but the cynical part of my brain tells me there's no real point. If the killer stopped chasing me, it's because it thought Dutch was the better prey, and if the fall didn't kill him, he'll be too beaten up from it to really be able to do anything against the creature hunting him. Then again, Dutch is a tough one to subdue, let alone kill, so he may well be alive and kicking, but I have no way of telling whether this is the case.

Hopelessness floods me as I think through this, my head dropping to my chest, completely unsure of what the best course of action is. Naturally, I'd go find the pick-up point, but again, I have no idea where I am, and so would struggle greatly to find the allocated place, meaning I'm totally stranded here, alone with a killer stalking around. Lifting my head, I check over my body to see which weapons I still have, glad to find my knife still attached to my hip, though I curse colourfully when I realize I dropped my gun in my haste to escape the predator at my heels, leaving me defenceless, unless it comes into close-quarters, which I would rather it didn't. Chewing my lip, I toy with my knife a bit, before deciding to try and locate the pick-up point, think over the possibility of retracing my steps. I would've left a trail through the jungle from my panic, so it shouldn't be too hard to follow it back to where Poncho was killed.

At the reminder of this, my heart twists painfully, my chest tightening from the realisation that all of my closest friends, possibly bar one, are dead at the hands of this otherworldly killer, all because of some mission Dillon managed to get us mixed up in. When Dutch had first told us about it, I'd been sceptical, not quite believing that our team was needed for it, rather than another military branch, but I'd gone along with it in the end after a particularly snide comment from Dillon himself, finding myself with the need to prove him wrong. A bitter chuckle escapes my lips at the thought, reflecting on where his antics eventually got us, and him, though I scold myself for being unfair; it's not his fault there's a predator trying to kill us.

Climbing to my feet, I push aside the idle thoughts, ignoring the pang in my heart at my own callousness, limping stiffly back to the small cliff I fell off, glancing up at it to determine how I should get back up. Deeming it appropriate, I slide the knife back into its sheath and find myself a hand hold on the hard rock, beginning the tough climb up. Agony shoots through my battered body, but I simply grit my teeth and push past it, forcing my body to haul itself higher and higher, fingers scrabbling at the tough stone, leaving them raw and grazed, the skin chafing away with each movement. My muscles scream at me in protest, grimaces contorting my face with each pull, relief flooding me as I reach the top of the cliff. Dragging myself up onto it, I hastily scramble to my feet and observe my surroundings, wary of what might be hiding in the trees, my body tense and ready for action.

By now, darkness has fallen on the jungle, a bright moon shining down onto me from above, lighting up the trees before me slightly, casting them in a ghostly light. The dreary appearance puts me on edge, knowing that the new shadows provide all sorts of effective cover for any predator, especially the cruel one hunting me down. Breathing deeply, I start off into the dense shrubbery.

The going is slow, my leg now hurting me badly as I drag my body through the jungle, doing my best to head in what I think is a familiar direction. My eyes have long since adjusted to the darkness, allowing me to see in minimal clarity where I'm going, making the navigation somewhat faster than it could be, though I'm still painfully aware of how disadvantaged I am in this current state. Every sound and noise around me makes me freeze in place, terror stiffening my joints every few seconds, my hand reaching for my knife with each rustle of the leaves. Mentally, I know that if the creature was anywhere nearby, it would've killed me by now, but the weapon at my hip gives me some reassurance in any case.

Something heavy drops from the canopy to land in front of me, branches snapping under the weight, the sudden sound drawing a gasp of fear from me. Stopping still, I stare at the misshapen form on the floor, already dreading going closer, though my curiosity gets the better of me. Unfortunately, I regret this decision as soon as I look over what I now know to be a body.

Before I can stop it, a cry of horror tears itself from my throat, the outburst horribly loud to me as I fight the urge to hurl, quickly looking away from the mangled body at my feet.

And then I hear it.

Clicking.

Whirling on my heels, I draw my knife and look around me, adrenaline pumping through me, my hand shaking uncontrollably as my wide eyes take in the surroundings.

The clicking continues, seemingly all around me.

Terrified, I jerk my head around, unsure of where it might be, breathing ragged now as I struggle to focus.

Suddenly, the knife goes flying from my grip, my wrist snapping painfully as it is twisted back against my arm, a surprised scream of pain leaving my parted lips as I can only watch the limb become disfigured, the invisible blow dealt to it having a lot more force than I expected. Taking a step back, I feel my heart pound in my chest, still unable to see where my attacker is, as well as who it might be.

Agony explodes around my jaw as a camouflaged fist connects with it, blood filling my mouth from the strength of the punch, knocking me to the floor. Catching myself, I scramble in the dirt for my knife, ignoring the tears that have sprung to my eyes, spitting out mouthful of blood with each breath, my face aching badly. I don't get a chance to recover properly, before I've been thrown into a nearby tree, an invisible hand clamped tightly around my neck, holding me a good foot or two off the ground. Gasping, I grasp at whatever is holding me, feeling dark spots take over my vision, but not before I catch sight of what exactly is holding me captive.

Eyes widening, I bat at the metal mask, hoping to knock it off guard before it can choke me to death, but I can feel my throat beginning to constrict, air struggling to flow through it as it used to. My pulse races, body now aware of its dying state, my arms weakly slapping at the huge creature holding me, darkness flooding my vision. Dizzy and light-headed, I feel my conscience starting to leave me, allowing me to fall into the blackness I so desperately want to give in to.

Vaguely, I register the predator's head snap round, clearly distracted by something, before I finally succumb to the darkness.

A low beating sound draws me from the fog in my brain, my conscience coming back to me slowly. Blinking, I push myself upright, yelping in pain as my body aches and throbs, my neck feeling completely useless as the bruising agony there kicks in. Everything rushes back to me, confusion flooding my mind as I recall the predator choking me to death, explaining the pain in my neck, though it does not explain why I'm still alive.

Frowning, I glance upwards, realising that the beating sound I can hear is the steady whir of helicopter rotors, my heart soaring as I recognise that I may still have a chance of getting out of here alive. Ignoring the agony in my body, I throw myself to my feet and start limping as quickly as possible in the direction of the familiar sound, elated at the thought of getting out of here, though I feel my heart twist at the thought of it only being me. Hope gives me some speed, allowing me to charge relatively quickly through the undergrowth, all thoughts of the predator forgotten as the sound gets louder, the aircrafts now visible in the sky from where I am, though only in the distance.

A deafening explosion somewhere to my left jerks me from my feet, a shockwave from the blast easily throwing me to the ground. Covering my head with my hands, I instinctively keep myself small, knowing full well how to stay somewhat safe in the midst of an explosion, though I can feel my hope slowly draining away. What if the blast took out the chopper?

Minutes pass before I climb to my feet again, taking note of the thick smoke now shrouding the jungle, making it harder to see where I'm going. I decide to go towards the sound, knowing that the explosion will have drawn the pilot's attention, meaning it'll be much easier to see me if they fly over to explore it. As I thought, the beating of the rotors gets steadily louder as I delve deeper, glad to find that it is much more cacophonous here.

Bursting out from behind a tree, I feel my spirit soar as I see the smoke in this area being whipped up and away from the clearing, allowing me to see in a large radius around the lowering aircraft. With it, however, I notice that the rotors have revealed something else.

Immediately, my heart skips a beat.

Clumsily, I stumble forwards, tears coming to my eyes as I recognise the figure standing a little way away, the muscular man turning to me in surprise.

"(Y/n)?!" He exclaims, shock and relief lacing his accented voice as he sees me.

"Dutch!" I call back, running towards him even as he runs towards me, his arms outstretched towards me, the filthy major bloodied and beaten, but still alive.

Upon reaching each other, Dutch wraps me into a tight embrace, crushing me into his muscular body even as I bury myself into him, clutching at his waist, leaping into his arms. Picking me up, he presses his face into my hair, muttering things to me, voice breaking in emotion, his grip tight around me, knees buckling out from underneath him as it overwhelms him. Tears fall freely from my eyes, my face pressing into his bare chest, ignoring the blood and mud, relishing the feeling of his body against mine, my hands pulling him closer to me as he falls to the floor, my form still wrapped around his. One of his hands comes up to press me head into the crook of his neck, allowing me to inhale his familiar scent, the smell comforting me and reassuring me as I sob in joy. Reluctantly, he pulls his head back so he can look down at me, his grey eyes meeting mine, their surfaces wet with tears.

"I-i thought...I thought you died…" He stammers out, voice breaking with emotion, his cheeks stained with his tears, my heart throbbing for him as the usually stoic man holds me close to him.

"I'm here, Dutch, I'm here." I reassure him, before continuing, "I thought it got you, too…"

I have to fight through the choking emotion, but I manage to get it out, laughing in giddy relief as he pulls me back into him, crushing me into him, his arms locking me in place.

Dutch keeps his arms around me even as we climb into the chopper, the veteran pulling me so that I lie against his chest in my seat, his hand resting on my back as if to keep himself grounded. I stare up at him, unwilling to look out at the jungle even as he stares at it, face blank as the grief and exhaustion finally catches up to him. Anna sits across from us, the guerrilla girl thankfully still alive, glad to see us in a similar state.

"You have no idea how glad I am that you're still alive...I don't know what I would've done if…" Dutch murmurs to me, the man rambling a little as the emotions assault him, his grip tightening with every word.

"We're alive, Dutch, and I'm so, so happy we are." I respond, nuzzling into his chest, uncaring of the fact it is covered in a layer of mud.

Exhausted, the two of us drift off, sleep finally catching up to us as the trauma of the past few days sets in, our consciences unable to keep going after so long of simply running on survival instinct.

#predator imagine #predator 1987 #predator #Dutch Schaefer #Dutch Schaefer x reader #Dutch Schaefer imagine #arnold schwarzenegger

57 notes · View notes

mcheang · 4 years

Text

Class president Aurore to the rescue

Aurore liked Marinette. They agreed on so many things at student council, and have a fondness for umbrellas.

They even shared a crush on Adrien, although Aurore’s was more muted.

That was why Aurore was shocked to hear from her classmates that Marinette was expelled.

Asking one of them for an explanation, they told her that Marinette was expelled on grounds of cheating, assault, and theft.

Aurore immediately knew the first was a lie.

Marinette had a really great study plan and had even helped Aurore balance her revision time with her weather girl air time. The girl had a talent for multitasking.

Anyway, Aurore had seen for herself how hard Marinette had studied for the test.

When the classmate pointed out Lila sitting perfectly healthy on a bench, Aurore’s eyes narrowed and she scoffed. “For someone who was pushed down a flight of stairs, she looks fine. Not a scrape or bandage anywhere.”

The classmate paused and took a better look at Lila. Aurore was right!

Aurore continued, “And please! Anyone could have planted the necklace in Marinette’s locker and framed her. I believe that was established when Chloe ruined her present for Ms Bustier’s birthday.”

Aurore glared at the oblivious liar. Something was up. And Aurore was going to get to the bottom of this.

Aurore waited till after school to confront the principal.

Principal: what is all this about?

Aurore: with all due respect sir, I am here on behalf of Marinette. I don’t think you’ve given her a fair trial.

Principal: nonsense! The evidence was all there. The answer sheet was in her backpack. Lila was found at the bottom of the stairs. And the necklace was in her locker.

Aurore: her locker doesn’t have a lock! Marinette could have been framed!

Principal: do you have any proof?

Aurore: do you have your proof that Marinette wasn’t framed? That Lila wasn’t lying? Because for someone who fell down the stairs, she doesn’t even have a scratch on her hands or a bruised face.

The principal paused. Oh...

Aurore shook her head in disappointment. “I would have thought that the Owl was a great detective, like Knightowl. But now...”

The principal bristled, “Of course i am a great detective! Erm...ahem....but I could always use a sidekick. What would you recommend I do?”

Aurore: look at the security footage, duh.

Principal: ...oh, yes. Right. I forgot..I mean I didn’t forget! It is just that Albert has been upgrading it...

Aurore: can you check the security feeds now?

Principal: I’m checking now....we’ll just see the time of Lila’s fall and you’ll see that I’m...oh dear.

Aurore: what?

Principal Damocles turned the computer screen to face her. It showed Lila walking down the stairs. “It appears this case truly is not over.”

Aurore: obviously. And since Lila is lying about her injury, might I suggest you call her Mother to check if her other disabilities are real.

Principal: excellent plan, sidekick whose name I haven’t come up with yet!

He picks up his phone.

Aurore: this is going to be a long day. And while we are at it, don’t forget to see who stole the answer sheet and when the necklace was put in the locker.

To cut a long story short, Lila’s first photoshoot was cut short when her mother demanded her presence at the school.

At Dupont high school, Lila found her Mother furious, Marinette triumphant, Aurore smug, and the principal grim.

Mrs Rossi: would you like to explain to me what happened today?

Lila: mom, whatever Marinette told you, she’s a liar and a bully.

Aurore snorts. “Right; then why do the security feeds show you framing Marinette?”

Lila paled. Uh oh. Ugh, she hated solid evidence.

Mrs Rossi: and what is this I hear about you having tinnitus? You never had such a thing!

Principal: did you know that forging a signature for your so-called doctor’s notes and excuse for missing class is a very serious offence, Lila Rossi? One punishable by expulsion.

Mrs Rossi: I can’t even blame them. I have never been more disgraced in my life.

Lila: mom, I can explain! I only tried to get rid of Marinette because she has been bullying me! I was desperate! That’s why I left school. She threatened me to leave.

Principal: do you have any proof?

Aurore: that is a truly lame excuse. Everyone knows Marinette isn’t a bully. And we now know you are a liar. Who do you think is the more trustworthy?

Lila: I...I...

Mrs Rossi: that is enough, Lila! Just shut up! You have implicated me at work with your over-the-top tales. You have committed serious offenses. And frankly, I am now curious about how you got that modelling offer. I’ll have to talk to that Nathalie person later. But the point is, your facade of a life here in Paris is over! I clearly can’t trust you when you don’t even tell me you have been an akuma! So I’m sending you to live with your Father in Russia.

Lila gasped. “But mom! You know Lauren (the Stepmother) always tries to get him to send me to mitilary school! (Think cadet Kelly) and it’s too cold for me!”

Mrs Rossi: too bad! And frankly, I think Lauren’s right! You could use some military discipline.”

Where was an akuma when you needed one?

Principal Damocles made a public apology to Marinette at the school assembly next morning.

Aurore was thanked with a whole hamper of baked goodies.

Nathalie explained to Mrs Rossi that Lila had confirmed Gabriel’s suspicions that Nino was a bad influence. He thought to reward her for informing him of when such mischief was afoot. Like say an unsanctioned house party or when a rude video message was sent.

Marinette found a new Best Friend. Don’t worry, Alya isn’t replaced.

Adrien apologises to Marinette for his dumb advice. But he did truly try to bargain with Lila to get her to get Marinette back.

Meanwhile, Aurore gets to do a tv news special on the scarlet moth reappearance. While she never says Lila was working with Hawkmoth, the viewers suspect something is afoot.

After all, it was probably Volpina who caused that illusion on heroes day.

Lila’s trip to Russia will have to wait since she is currently detained by the police.

If found guilty, forget military school. She will be sentenced to juvie!

#miraculous ladybug fanfic #miraculous ladybug fic #ml fanfic #ml fanfiction #ml fic #miraculous ladybug fanfiction #lila gets exposed #lila karma #lila is exposed #lila bashing #ml salt fic #lila salt #damocles salt #ladybug episode fic #episode ladybug fic

656 notes · View notes

floral-and-fine · 4 years

Text

Mo Chuisle

Murphy MacManus x female reader

Connor MacManus x female reader

*Mo Chuisle- Irish Gaelic for My Pulse

Summary: The reader cares for the MacManus twins after they return to their apartment injured

A/n: Just thought this was a cute idea. Had a lot of fun writing this fic! Hope to write more soon! Thank you @ewokiee for all the help!

Y/n bit her nail, watching the seconds slowly tick by as she waited for the MacManus brothers to return home.

Sitting on the small table in front of her were bottles of rubbing alcohol, gauze, bandages, painkillers, needle, and thread, and in the freezer were several ice packs ready to go.

Y/n never knew what kind of shape they’d be in once they were done working. So she was always prepared for the worst. She didn’t have any professional training by any means, but she had picked up some basics when she learned what the twins did.

Since then, she had sort of taken it upon herself to watch over them, at least in her own small way, doing things like taking care of their injuries, bringing them home-cooked meals, and even covering for them by being their alibi on several occasions.

Getting up, y/n started to pace, there wasn’t anything around to distract her. The brothers’ apartment was sparse, to say the least, not many belongings or furniture, just the bare minimum.

Absentmindedly, her fingers began to play with the cross hanging from her necklace, sliding it back and forth against the thin chain. She rubbed her index finger and thumb along the center, feeling the grooves and edges of the engraving.

The necklace had been a gift from the boys as a thank you after the first time she cared for them.

She laughed lightly to herself, they had been so excited to give it to her, showing up at her door first thing in the morning.

“Mornin’ love,” Connor greeted, he was full of energy, practically bouncing with excitement. While y/n was still rubbing the sleep from eyes and wondering why the hell they were here so damn early.

“We got you a little something,” Murphy explained, smiling proudly as he pulled a necklace out from his jacket pocket.

She blinked in surprise looking at the sparkling gold chain that Murphy was dangling in front of her. He dropped it in her cupped hand. She took a moment to look at it, noticing the small engraving.

Her brows furrowed, not recognizing the phrase. ‘mo chuisle’

“C’mon now,” Connor urged. “Try it on.”

Y/n struggled with the clasp, her fingers having trouble manipulating the tiny parts.

“Here, allow me,” Murphy offered.

She turned around so her back was facing him, Murphy fingers tickled her neck as he took the two ends and securely clasped the necklace.

“Looks good on ya,” Connor said approvingly as she turned and faced him.

“Thank you,” y/n replied, getting teary-eyed. “I really appreciate it, but you guys didn’t have to get me anything.”

“It was nothin’,” Murphy shrugged, tucking his hands into his pockets. “You saved our asses the other night.”

“We’re just buttering you up, hoping you’ll stick around,” Connor winked.

Since then y/n’s worn it every day. It was her connection to them, keeping them close to her heart and on her mind.

Her eyes snapped to the door when she heard footsteps approaching. Rushing to it, y/n threw the door open and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw both Connor and Murphy standing there in one piece.

Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around them but pulled back immediately when they both hissed in pain.

“Sorry,” she stammered, clutching her hands to her chest.

Getting a better look at them, y/n noticed that Murphy had a black eye that was already swelling and Connor’s lip was busted and bloody. Quickly, she ushered them inside, Murphy used Connor for support as he limped into the apartment.

Y/n instructed them both to take their seats on the couch, and grabbed an ice pack from the freezer and wrapped it in a soft hand towel.

“Here,” she muttered, gently holding the ice pack against Murphy’s face.

“Thanks, love,” Murphy smiled, his fingers grazing over the back of your hand, as he held the ice pack in place.

Snagging one of the pillows off the closest bed, y/n placed it on the edge of the coffee table. Kneeling down, she undid the laces of his boot and took it off.

“Put your foot up,” she ordered him, before wandering over to the other side of the couch.

“Yes, ma’am.”

Sitting on the table, y/n leaned forward and gently started to wipe the dry blood from Connor’s chin and bottom lip. His eyes studied her face, admiring her as she worked. She was always careful, each touch was delicate and gentle, working slowly to avoid causing them more pain.

“This is going to sting,” y/n warned, wetting a clean washcloth with rubbing alcohol. He winced as she started to apply it to his cut. Leaning in, she gently blew air against the cut to help with the pain.

“That’s better,” she murmured, now that his face wasn’t all bloodied anymore.

Connor hummed closing his eyes, “you’re too good to us, lass.”

She shook her head, “I’m happy to do it, now let me see your hand.”

He chuckled, putting his hand in both of hers. Her thumb caressed his rough and bloody knuckles before she started to clean them off.

Gently, she wrapped a bandage around Connor’s hand and replaced the cap on the rubbing alcohol, before getting up and going to the fridge.

“So what exactly happened tonight?” She questioned, pulling out a couple of beers, removed the bottle caps.

The brothers gave each other a sideways glance.

“Why don’t you start it off,” Murphy smiled, patting Connor’s chest.

Y/n handed them each a beer and gave Connor her full attention as she sat between them on the couch.

“Well…” he began, licking his lips and sighing. “It all started with us busting the door open to the warehouse. The poor fucks didn’t know what to do.”

“Yeah, Connor and I withdrew our guns, and started shooting up the place,” Murphy added, while he imitated how with both arms out as he pretended to fire imaginary guns.

“We thought we had taken care of them all,” Connor nodded, taking a sip of his beer. “until this beast of a man came hurling at us out of nowhere,” he explained. “He must’ve been at least 7 foot, a real gigantic bastard.”

“Tackled me down,” Murphy butted in. “Gave me this shiner.” He pointed to his bruised up eye.

“So that’s when I leapt onto the bastard’s back and just started wailing on him,” Connor continued. “But he wouldn’t let up. Got me good with his elbow, too.” He gestured to his lip.

“Then, I reached out grabbing a brick, and I just bashed the fucker’s head in,” Murphy emphasized the point by reenacting how.

“Yeah and as we were trying to push the dead bastard off of him, this tiny man with crazy eyes sprung out from behind the crates,” Connor lifted up his shirt a bit, revealing the massive bruise on his side. “Whacked me a good one with a wood pallet.”

Y/n winced looking at the red blotch that was already turning purple.

“And while Connor was moaning on the floor,” Murphy recalled, nudging y/n. “I wrestled that little shit down-”

“Oh come off it,” Connor interrupted. “He tripped you and you fell on top of him… Wrestled my ass… pfft.”

“I’m just glad you're both alright,” she said, patting both of their knees. “Now let’s get you, boys, to bed.”

“You’re staying the night, right?” Murphy asked as he started limping over to his bed.

“Of course I am,” she said smiling. “My work isn’t nearly done.”

Murphy smiled back, pleased that she was going to be sticking around. “We owe you one, love, drinks on us tomorrow at doc’s.” He suddenly lost his footing as the room started to spin, catching himself on the edge of the bed.

“Murphy,” y/n rushed over to his side, and Connor right behind her.

“Shit,” he muttered, rubbing his head. “My head is fucking killing me.”

Connor and y/n helped Murphy into his bed. Y/n sat next to him, gently stroking his hair back.

“I think he might have a concussion,” she explained.

“What?” Connor’s face fell. “Really?”

Y/n looked at him and nodded.

“Fuck,” he sighed, kneeling beside Murphy’s bed. “Sorry about that.”

Murphy snorted, “will you two get ahold of yourselves! I’m not dying!” He sat up a little. “Hell, you’re making a bigger deal of this than the time I was shot!”

“Hey, we both got shot that day,” Connor argued.

Y/n laughed, “I recall being just as worried then as I am right now! I worry about the two of you every day.”

They both looked up at her with puppy dog eyes, “Sorry, we don’t mean to make you worry.”

“It’s alright,” she kissed Murphy on the forehead, then Connor. “At least I get to help.” Getting up, she wandered over to the table and started cleaning up.

Once she was out of earshot, Murphy leaned in closer to Connor. “I’ll be getting you back for this,” he whispered, looking Connor right in the eye.

Connor rolled his eyes, “please, you’re loving all this attention.”

…

Earlier that night…

Once the dust had settled, both Connor and Murphy simultaneously started to check themselves for injuries.

The scene around them looked as though a tornado made of bullets had swept through. Several Bodies were lying dead on the floor in puddles of their own blood. Guns were scattered on the ground along with empty bullet shells.

“You alright?” Connor asked, patting his chest and arms checking for any wounds.

“Yeah, I think so,” Murphy replied, extending arms out and examining himself carefully. There wasn’t a single scratch anywhere. “You?”

“I’m… good,” Connor said clearly surprised but pleased.

Both of them were wondering the same thing, how the hell did they survive that mess? They both turned around and looked behind them, the wall was littered with bullet holes, probably about a hundred of them.

Connor started to laugh, causing Murphy to laugh as well. “How the fuck did we survive that?” He breathed gesturing to the wall.

“Hell if I know,” Murphy sighed, crouching down and resting his elbows on his knees. “They must’ve unloaded every single round they had between them.”

“Even by chance one of us should’ve been hit,” Connor reasoned. Usually, by the end of the night, they’d both be a little scuffed up at least.

Murphy shrugged, “Guess we oughta be leaving.”

Connor narrowed his eyes as something dawned on him, and grabbed his brother’s arm. “Hit me.”

“What?” Murphy asked, backing away.

“Hit me,” Connor repeated.

Murphy furrowed his brow, “What for?”

Connor smirked. “Would be a shame if y/n ended up leaving early for the night,” he explained. “Should at least make her feel like she’s needed.”

Neither brother would ever admit it out loud, but they were rather fond of y/n’s doting, like how she’d fuss over every little cut, and catered to them, not letting either brother lift a finger while she was around. Sometimes, she would even go as far as spending the night and even the next day with them, if necessary. Those were the best days, getting to have her all to themselves for the whole day.

Murphy chuckled, “Ah, I see now, so we’re doing this for her sake?”

“Exactly,” Connor winked, clapping his brother’s shoulder.

“We do owe it to her,” Murphy nodded. “Wouldn’t want her feeling like she’s wasted her time.”

Connor took a step back and braced himself. Without hesitation, Murphy’s fist connected to his jaw successfully busting his lip. Connor stumbled back, and shook his head, spitting out a bit of blood.

“Alright,” Connor smiled, wiping his chin with his sleeve. “Your turn.”

#the boondock saints #boondock saints #connor macmanus #murphy macmanus #the boondock saints fanfic #connor macmanus x reader #murphy macmanus x reader #connor macmanus fanfic #murphy macmanus fanfic #reader insert #Female reader #norman reedus fanfiction

152 notes · View notes

groundcontrol21 · 3 years

Text

Landfall (Black Sails, M, 1/2)

Y’all had to have known this was coming 😈 I am utterly appalled at the lack of Black Sails recognition. So, to remedy that, have some Sick!Flint. If you have not watched Black Sails, watch it. I purposefully avoided spoiling anything major in this fic because it is truly the best show I have ever had the pleasure to watch and I do not want to spoil that for anyone. If you want queer characters, ships, pirates, badass women, ships (did I mention those already?) and show writing that feels like the best of literature, watch this show. That said, if you have seen it, this takes place before the show starts, when Captain Flint is building his image as the fearsome pirate he is when we meet him.

This was actually incredibly hard to write, both because I felt such an intense pressure to do these wonderful characters justice and because Flint is just an impermeable wall. Like this man could just take a cannonball to the face and not bat an eye. So I tried my best to stay in character and still let him suffer a bit :) Onwards! Hopefully a bit more sneezing in the next part.

They had made landfall in Nassau in the evening, just as the sun was beginning to set. The storm clouds that had then been rolling into the harbor quickly from the interior of the island were now unleashing a torrential downpour upon Captain Flint as he urged his horse faster inland through the mud. It had taken them long into the night, well after the rain had begun to unload all the cargo they had taken, and as such he was as soaked as though pulled from the ocean. Though being so wet would doubtless not do well for the headcold he was brewing, neither would spending the night at the Guthrie’s tavern do well for his headache.

When he arrived at Miranda’s home, he tied up his horse in the stable and limped into the house, his leg aching from the ride or the fight for the ship or the weather or God knows what else. The wind blew the door shut with a loud crash behind him. Flint stood for a moment, water dripping from him like a personal rainstorm, breathing heavily and not altogether successfully keeping himself from coughing. In the hearth, a dying fire cast its dim light on the room. He hung his coat, more wet rag now than anything, beside the door, when he heard a shuffling from the bedroom.

Miranda emerged in her nightgown, her hair mussed slightly from its updo in sleep. She smiled at him but Flint, upon seeing her hands empty, did not return it.

“Where’s the pistol I gave you?” he growled. “To protect yourself.”

Turning her back to him, Miranda went to stoke the fire up higher. “I left it behind, seeing as though I know there is only one man mad enough to ride out and barge in my door at this hour and in this weather. Thank you, by the way. For the puddle.”

Miranda pulled a stool out in front of the hearth and Flint sank into it, the wood creaking as his weight melted into it. “Homecoming gift,” he gritted out.

“There’s blood in it.”

“Eh?”

“In the puddle. Mixed with the water.”

“My leg, probably. Haven’t really had the chance to look at it yet.” He spared a glance at his thigh; the light was low, coming only from the fire, but he thought he could make out a glisten of red somewhere along the sodden black fabric of his trousers, as well as a tear. He coughed to clear his throat. “There’s a book. In my cloak. Probably soaked through, but it’s there. Erasmus.”

“Good that you had the time and the sense to raid a bookshelf.” Flint picked up on the unspoken and not tend to your leg and he did not care for the accusation of it, but he did not rise to the bait, simply too exhausted to do so. His head and limbs ached, and now that the promise of a hearth and true dryness was so near he could scarcely stand the wet scratch of his clothes against his skin.

Miranda disappeared to the kitchen, no doubt to boil water and prepare a salve to clean his wound. They had fallen into this rhythm, such that Flint himself could recognize which cloths and jars she pulled down based only on the direction of her footsteps and the squeaking of the cabinets. The farthest to the left of the stove was the highest pitched and it was there she kept her lavender soap which, for reasons unclear, she used only on him. He heard her open it. It would be wasted on him tonight, not that it ever wasn’t, for he was too full of cold to consider smelling it.

He gave three shuddering sneezes, the wetness of his hair snaking around his temples chilling him further. Briefly he considered going to his coat to retrieve his handkerchief, soaked as it no doubt was, but when he looked up he saw Miranda re-enter, holding a platter full of bowls and bandages to treat him, and he knew he would get a row for getting up again to bleed more on her floor.

“Dutch merchant ship with a hold full of spices and tobacco,” he told her as she set the tray down with a soft clang on the coffee table beside where he sat. She lit a candle “Enough to keep the men satisfied for a while.”

“How long is that?”

“Two months at least. Enough for us to ride out the worst of the winter storms on la--Careful!” Flint jerked back as Miranda pulled at the tear in his trouser leg, ripping it open to expose the gash on his thigh.

“Hush, they’ll have to be sewn up again, anyway.”

“At this rate, they’ll have to be replaced!”

Miranda sighed as she took in the extent of the injury, fresh blood gleaming deeply in the candlelight, then gave an airy chuckle. There was a sadness nestled deeply within it, almost imperceptible, that hurt Flint far more than the wound did. “I suppose I should have pegged you as a man who cared more for his clothing than for himself.”

Flint talked around that sadness, as they always did. “Says the woman who is more worried about bloodstains on her floor than what put them there. I think I could come in without a leg and you’d be particular about what I bled on.”

Miranda smiled, almost to herself, as she wet a cloth in the bowl of soapy water and wrung it out, before placing it on Flint’s leg. “If you had a home to clean and take care of, you’d be particular as well.”

They fell silent after that, the only sounds being the crackle of the fire and the melodic repetition of Miranda dunking the cloth in the bowl, the droplets pittering as she wrung it out, the soft squish as she pressed cloth gently to his wound. It was not unlike the cadence of a ship, the rushing waves and heaving creaks, and Flint lost himself in it, the sting of the soap as she scrubbed the only thing keeping him from drifting to sleep.

His sniffling grew more insistent as the fragrance of the soap loosened his congestion. He sneezed again, twice, jerking away from Miranda as she was wrapping a bandage around his thigh.

“You’ve picked up a cold, too, on your voyage,” she observed, not pausing her pressure on the wound as she continued to wrap it.

“It’s nothing.”

“Well, yes, compared to the gash on your leg a great number of things are nothing.” Her hands paused in tying the bandage, holding the pressure there as she looked up at him, the question unsaid burning like an ember behind her eyes. In London, she would have asked—she had asked when he had come around with a split lip from a bar fight or a bruise from his training—but since they had come to Nassau there were a great many questions she had stopped asking.

Flint met her eyes for the briefest of moments. She would not ask how he had come by this latest set of injuries, but she knew enough to fill the gaps, perhaps even enough to construct a story close to the truth. She was a smart, smart woman and Flint did not deserve her.

Her voice softened as she dropped her gaze, wiping away with a clean cloth the blood that had already seeped around the edges of the bandage. “Please, try to take care of yourself a bit, James.”

Flint made a sound in his throat, an attempt at a grunt or a scoff perhaps, but it caught and turned to a rough cough. Miranda said nothing, but set to gathering the bloody cloths and filthy bowls back on the tray. The sight of the blood, the dirt of his world infiltrating and infecting hers, made his chest burn in a way that had nothing to do with his illness.

Miranda hesitated and cupped his cheek briefly before picking up the tray, bidding him look at her. The firelight flicked across her eyes. “Allow me to do what I can. I know there are…” She broke their gaze for a moment and swallowed. “Limits to what I can do, what I can understand, but please. Let me be here for you.”

Flint smoothed a stray piece of her hair back behind her ear and studied her a moment, beholding with a sinking stomach the lines on her face, lines that had been from ceaseless smiles back in London turned lines sour with stress here in Nassau. He owed this to her, owed her the world after what he had put her through.

“I only mean you needn’t trouble yourself over this,” he said. “Over me, over a headcold, over a cut on my leg. It’s nothing that I haven’t experienced before and I’ve borne it--”

“The men aren’t here to see you,” Miranda said abruptly, and damn her for always knowing his mind even when Flint scarcely knew it himself. She carried on, her voice softening. “Any weakness you think you might display, they are not here to see it. There’s no need to be Captain Flint in this house.”

With that she turned back for the kitchen, calling over her shoulder that she would bring Flint a towel to dry himself while she made up the spare bed. Flint coughed again, knowing that if he had had the energy to follow his instinct he would have yelled at her for some senseless reason, perhaps for the sin of cutting through to the core of the very armor of ferocity he was trying to build for himself. Shame burned in his belly, and he took a small measure of comfort in the throb of his injury and the fire in his throat, as a twisted form of penance or punishment. He had become an angry man since leaving London. He had always been subject to passion, to being overcome, to loss of control. The accursed Admiral Hennessey had even observed as much. But the raw permanence of his anger, burrowing deep within him and taking up hold like a parasite, was something altogether new and different. In quiet moments such as this, he loathed himself for it.

Miranda returned to him with a towel and a handkerchief before departing to the bedroom. Flint made judicious use of both the items, his sneezing assaulting him with a vengeance as he became dry, as if to punish him for having gotten so wet in the first place. He had been ill all manner of times and in all manner of places: belowdecks in the Navy, at port, on land, even once prior on the Walrus. And this present headcold of his, while decidedly uncomfortable and a nuisance as all headcolds are, certainly ranked among the least of these times. Were he alone or at sea, he would have treated it as he treated all minor ailments: by simply going about his business as usual, perhaps indulging in a bit of rum to take the edge off the soreness in his throat. But, it was undeniably relaxing, freeing even, to know that he would sleep in a bed tonight and not have to wake to maps and ropes and captaincy in the morning. Flint felt his shoulders fall at the realization, felt the muscles in his jaw unclench, until the strain of sailing and fighting to take the Dutch caravel was as much in the background as the soft sputtering of the fire in the hearth.

His eyes slipped shut, and perhaps he had even fallen asleep briefly sitting up, when Miranda shook his shoulder gently. She nodded at him and he nodded back, feeling stupid and disoriented with fatigue. Doubtless sensing this, she led him by the arm to the spare bedroom that may as well become his as much as his own cabin at sea.

“I’ve left you an old nightshirt, in the drawers.”

Flint was overcome by a fit of sneezing and coughed a bit when he had finished, prompting Miranda to pat the pillow and add, “And handkerchiefs, tucked underneath.”

She turned to leave but he caught her by the wrist and brought her fingers to his lips. They were warm, and even through his congestion he could smell the lavender soap upon them. “Thank you,” he rasped. For everything. If ever there were a time for her to read his mind, it was now.

Miranda leaned forward and placed a ghost-light kiss on his cheek. “Try not to get too much blood on my sheets. It is absolutely beastly to get out.”

She left him, then, with a smile, and Flint gave one of his own to the empty room before collapsing on the bed and falling asleep almost instantly, uncaring of damp clothes or soaked bandages or words he should have said but lacked the courage to voice.

#black sails #fanfic #sick flint #flint and miranda #fetishblog #sick #snez #whump #my writing

17 notes · View notes

lov3nerdstuff · 3 years

Text

Voluptas Noctis Aeternae {Part 7.11}

*Severus Snape x OC*

Summary: It is the year 1983 when the ordinary life of Robin Mitchell takes a drastic turn: she is accepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Despite the struggles of being a muggle-born in Slytherin, she soon discovers her passion for Potions, and even manages the impossible: gaining the favor of Severus Snape. Throughout the years, Robin finds that the not quite so ordinary Potions Professor goes from being a brooding stranger to being more than she had ever deemed possible. An ally, a mentor, a friend... and eventually, the person she loves the most. Through adventure, prophecies and the little struggles of daily life in a castle full of mysteries, Robin chooses a path for herself, an unlikely friendship blossoms into something more, and two people abandoned by the world can finally find a home.

General warnings: professor x student, blood, violence, trauma, neglectful families, bullying, cursing

Words: 4.2k

Read Part 1.1 here! All Parts can be found on the Masterlist!

______________________________

While Robin's wound really did only feel like a pulled muscle at this point, she still had had to agree that their last excursion which had been planned for this Saturday should better be canceled for the sake of her recovery. Thus they spent the remainder of the day mainly by reading, working on editing the handbook, and drinking too much coffee for their own good. However it was only when evening rolled around that they finally decided to take a look at the damage beneath the bandages that were still wrapped around Robin's middle, only to find that the only reminders of the previous evening were an admittedly horrendous bruise, and a pink scar that ran along the arch of her lowest rib at the length of about a finger. Oh well… it wasn't pretty, but considering the circumstances, Robin still found herself glad that it wasn't worse, and Snape simply didn't comment on it at all. Indeed, he seemed to be rather relieved when she dropped the hem of her t-shirt back down (and thereby covered the bruised skin of her stomach), which was a reaction Robin simply refused to think about in either direction.

After that the evening trickled by comfortably like most of their evenings did by now, calm and easy and filled with conversations about everything and nothing, and before long they made dinner like they usually brewed their potions; late at night, together, and each knowing their perfect place in the process wordlessly. Robin appreciated every single second of the evening, like she had loved every second of the day. But that made it all the more painful to think that this wouldn't last, not even beyond morning. Most likely was that it would never happen again, none of this, and that thought was what twisted her heart and put a lump into her throat as she was sitting on the sofa in front of the lit up fireplace once more, a good while after their meal.

It was a surprisingly cold and stormy night for late August, even for England, and while the rain was whipping against the windows now, and the wind howling through the small cracks and gaps in the walls, Robin couldn't bring herself to enjoy it. She had wrapped herself into the blankets again, trying to focus on the book in her hands while Snape in the armchair nearby was doing the same. But no matter how much she tried to keep the gloomy thoughts at bay, the feeling of painful loss just wouldn't leave her alone, and the fact that she couldn't possibly miss something she had never had in the first place irritated her enough to draw every focus away from the book and into her own head. Why was she feeling so sad all of a sudden? The day had been lovely, the evening too… and yet here she was, trying not to cry over absolutely nothing. It wasn't just the realization that the day had been too good to be true, that it would never last, that it had only been an exception… none of that would suffice to upset her like this. They'd had times like this before, in a different way, and they would have them again. She wasn't concerned about that, not really… but then what was it that troubled her mind?

"Stop it." Snape's voice disrupted her downward spiral of thoughts, and Robin tried to open her eyes only to find that they were open already, and staring into empty space. Probably had been for a while at this point.

"Stop what?" She asked in mild irritation and looked over to him instead, not without taking notice that he had placed his book down and was returning her gaze. Probably had been for a while at this point, too.

"Getting lost in your own head. Letting your thoughts drag you to dark places you have no need to dwell in."

"How do you know that that's what I was doing?"

"Was it not?"

"Yes, but how do you know?"

He sighed softly, then sat up straighter. "You haven't turned a page in half an hour, which is the time you usually would need for a quarter of an entire book of this kind. Then, while you obviously have been thinking, you did not make an attempt to share your thoughts with me, which is what you usually do with anything that isn't negative. In return, this means that whatever you have been thinking about is unpleasant for you. But if it was a problem of any kind, one that required solving or was at least possible to solve, you again would most likely tell me about it at this point, which you did not. This leaves as the only possibility that you were overthinking something of no immediate relevance, or at least were dwelling on something that made you sad. Which I would like you not to do, nor to be."

Robin's lips curled into a small smile before she could help it, and a little of the gloom melted away as it was replaced by warmth and adoration. "I didn't know you understood me better than I do."

"I merely pay attention to the details. Would be quite impossible to keep up with you otherwise."

"Am I really that complicated?" She couldn't help chuckling at least a little, deeming it more a compliment than anything, and seeing as finally enough tension had left her body, she let herself sink further into the cushions.

"No. Complex perhaps, and challenging. But complicated would be the wrong word for it."

"I'd really rather be complex than complicated; one speaks of intelligence and character, the other of drama and effort. Then again, I surely cause you enough trouble to be called complicated indeed."

"Life is complicated either way. The true art in it is finding what makes the trouble worth it."

Robin didn't even have to think to know that she had found exactly this for herself a long time ago. Primarily, the very person in front of her. Really, she had no doubt that she would go through absolutely anything for him, with him, no matter what. Then –on a secondary level, or a different kind of level rather– she had found her passion for her research. Either way, she wondered what made life worth it for Snape. His job perhaps, his work as well… she could very well imagine that it was potions indeed. But she could also imagine other things, and she would fare better if she didn't imagine anything at all. Time for a subtle change of topic.

"You really have learned to be more positive, you know that?" She smirked at him with a quirked eyebrow, hoping that it would suffice to act over her own emotions beneath the fragile surface of her facade.

"Say that again and there will be consequences." He drawled in a feigned scowl, and Robin had to grin even more.

"Like what? I'm already sleeping on the couch with a healing stab wound. There's little you can do." She teased on even though she knew very well that there actually was quite a lot he could do, giving him a sassy shrug nonetheless, which actually threatened to make him break his facade. Robin saw the humor in his eyes, so obviously that it almost screamed at her, until it suddenly was replaced entirely by neutrality. Half a second later he rose to his feet in one swift move, killed the fire at the same time, and was already halfway across the small room before Robin even knew that was going on.

But once her mind snapped into place, she jumped into action instinctively and lunged forward in such an uncontrolled quick impulse, to catch his arm before he was out of reach, that she couldn't catch herself anymore and tumbled over, off the sofa and onto the hard floor. An action that would've hurt even without a healing wound. But she had gotten a hold of his sleeve at least, even if it was of fairly little use now that she was in a heap on the floor once more, drawing in a sharp breath against the rush of pain.

"Bloody hell…" She groaned after the initial stinging had dimmed down, and found that when she opened her eyes, she was met with a deep and concerned frown.

"What, pray tell, were you trying to do?!" He asked a bit too harshly, but Robin figured that it was because he probably was as surprised as she was herself.

"Stopping you from leaving." She defended her own action rather weakly, feeling way too insecure as she let him help her back onto the sofa where he sat down next to her. "I… I don't know what it is that I did, but I swear I didn't mean to upset you."

"You did nothing wrong, and you certainly did not upset me. You worried me with that stunt right there, but that was entirely my own fault as it seems." He said, and if his facial expressions had ever been obvious, it was now. Regret, anger and concern, all put on display for Robin to see without a doubt. "I failed to come up with a decent reply to your tease, so I thought I might simply prove that there is one thing I could do to get a reaction from you after all, but I had no intention of actually leaving nor did I think it would end like this. I'm sorry for crossing the line."

Fear dropped from Robin's heart as suddenly as it had been placed on it, and perhaps that was why she gave in to this most desperate urge without resistance. In an instant, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders tightly, kneeling on the sofa next to him as she buried her face in his neck and she hugged him as close to herself as she possibly could. Insufferable idiot… going too far while teasing was her speciality, not his! He never did… until now, it seems. It didn't matter, Robin still clung onto him with no intention to let go, and after a second of initial surprise, of freezing like he did so often, he placed his arms around her in return.

"Don't do that to me… Don't leave me like everyone else did." She breathed after a while, and as she spoke her lips barely brushed against the delicate spot of skin above the collar of his shirt. "You're… I… I can't have you leaving me as well."

"I would never." He replied so quietly, so seriously that a shiver ran down Robin's spine. "I am not going anywhere unless you want me to."

"You will still have to leave tomorrow, no matter what I want."

"If you want me to stay, I will."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

Again, it took Robin a few seconds to process the overwhelming amount of emotions ebbing through her in return, to convince herself that he was only saying this because of what had happened yesterday. He only wanted to make sure she would be alright. And she would be, but only without the guilt of getting in the way of how things were supposed to be on her conscience.

"You have no idea how much that means to me… but it would be incredibly selfish of me to ask that of you when there's no good reason to stay, but many reasons to go. I will be just fine on my own, I have been for years. It's just one bloody week, and it's an important one." She finally said, in more or less certainty of her words. "You have to go."

"I know you will be fine." He returned calmly, yet in the same seriousness as ever. "You always are."

"Unless I get stabbed, or cursed, or tortured, or eaten alive by a bear, or-..."

"You are making it really difficult for me to go."

"Sorry." She breathed, but a smile tugged on her lips no less. It didn't matter why he didn't want to leave her… the fact alone was enough for now. More than enough, actually.

When he eventually started drawing tiny patterns on her back again, Robin finally realized that she was leaning against him with her entire weight by now, her head resting on his shoulder just like yesterday, and she knew that if she didn't put an end to that now, it would also end exactly like yesterday.

"I should probably let go of you now." She sighed under her breath, more to herself than to Snape, but as much as she knew she should indeed, her body would not obey her rational mind.

"And why is that?" He asked in return, and his hands stilled on her back while his hold on her however didn't loosen up in the slightest.

"I'm falling asleep." Robin breathed sadly. "And if you don't want a repetition of yesterday, I have to let go now."

For another moment neither of them moved at all, leaving Robin to wonder if she had even spoken up in the first place or merely dreamed her words, but when she finally forced herself to lift her head and then started pulling away, his arms around her tightened in an instant to keep her in place right where she was. An immediate shiver ran through her body when he leaned back into the sofa without a word and simply pulled her with him, their embrace never once faltering, while the movement left them in a far more comfortable position than before. Robin didn't mind in the least that it had her resting against him more than sitting like he still was at this point, and indeed, if there was such a thing as a highest place of comfort, she was sure to have reached it now.

Perhaps it was only a dream. Perhaps she had fallen asleep long before, and none of this was real. But when she focused on his chest rising and falling beneath her, on the scent that was so uniquely him, on his hands splayed out across her back… she knew that no dream could be positively overwhelming like this. Beyond anything she had imagined would ever be a part of her reality. Perhaps it would become one of those things they didn't talk about, that simply were without ever being addressed. Like their coffee habit used to be in the beginning… or the perpetual fact that they had been each other's not-date to the ball for years now. It likely would become one of those things, one of those wordless events neither dared to speak of… but Robin didn't mind at all. For once, she wouldn't question why he was allowing this to happen, wouldn't overthink what it did or didn't mean. She had given him the fair chance to escape the situation, and he had pulled her closer in return. It was easy as that, and allowing herself to simply enjoy it in return was even easier for once. Without the war within herself but with his arms wrapped around her securely, she was asleep within seconds.

… … …

Sunday came far too quickly and before long, Snape had to leave, which meant that Robin had all afternoon to explore the house she would have all to herself for a week now. Admittedly, she did understand now what he'd meant when he had said it was a telltale of neglect, but then again she absolutely didn't mind in the least, and actually found the aesthetic of it quite charming. The only thing she had to agree on was that the neighborhood was a literal nowhere. That much she discovered when she took a walk to get some fresh air on Sunday night, and she found that while the area was very much rundown and tainted by poverty, it otherwise didn't differ all too much from her parents' fancy Oxford suburb. Both were practically void of people, overcrowded with buildings and narrow streets and pathways, and most of all they both were so desperately void of nature that Robin was almost happy about the weeds growing through the cracks in the pavement. And still, she was beyond happy to have a roof over her head for the time being, and even happier that the space was filled with more books than she could read.

The week went by surprisingly fast, Robin spent the first few days reading and allowing the remainder of her injury to heal, and only on Friday she went to London to do the mandatory school shopping with the precisely calculated galleons that she had put aside nine weeks ago specifically for this reason. Honestly, she had been surprised when she had found the yearly letter from school on the doorstep on Monday morning, but when she'd thought about it, she wasn't at all surprised that Dumbledore would know where she was currently staying. He had been aware of her friendship with Snape in the first place, so why wouldn't he know that she was staying at Spinner's End at the moment? That man had eyes and ears everywhere; or perhaps Snape had simply told him about it, who knew. Then on Friday evening her very last overall money had gone into dinner, the only meal of the day, and she was actually quite happy with the fact that she would only have to spend Saturday and half of Sunday without anything to eat. That still was better than what she had calculated a few weeks ago.

When Sunday morning finally lit up the sky with a beautiful sunrise, Robin made sure to leave the house as spotless as possible, going through every single room four times, and still she arrived half an hour too early at the platform. Gods, she didn't even know what she was more desperate for at this point… a meal, the castle and highlands, or seeing Snape. Probably a good combination of all three. This year, for the first time, she found Cas and Jorien in advance to getting on the train, and when they left London fifteen minutes later, Robin found herself sitting in a compartment not only with her two roommates, but also with Simon and his two friends. Honestly, Robin had all the understanding in the world for Cas and Simon; after not seeing each other all summer, they surely deserved to sit together now at least. It was only the two other boys who irritated her quite a bit, for they kept shooting her odd glances for wearing sunglasses inside and even for only bringing one backpack as her entire luggage, and Robin found herself wondering if they were just particularly judgy or if her antics really were that odd and everyone else she usually surrounded herself with had simply gotten used to it by now. Either way, she tried to politely ignore them and their stares.

"So, how did traveling and finding plants and stuff go?" Cas finally asked after half an hour of being too busy with Simon to even look at anyone else. Robin thought that half an hour was a new record; Cas was getting better at remembering she had friends too!

"Oh, the usual…" Robin replied with a sigh and a small smirk, as she leaned back in her seat. "Walked over water, went sightseeing in Greece, almost got eaten alive by a bear, got stabbed, went-..."

"Wait, what?!"

"Yeah, there was this bear-like creature in a cave in Sweden, but we could make an escape at last after-..."

"That's probably an interesting story, but I meant the part about getting stabbed!" Jorien gave her a look, and Robin sighed again while everyone else in the compartment grew suspiciously quiet. Why on earth could she never keep her mouth shut?!

"Well, it's no big deal." She finally started addressing the topic when even the two Ravenclaw boys were staring at her with deep frowns. "I kind of broke in somewhere and then someone stabbed me in the stomach. Or… the ribs, rather. Between both."

"YOU broke in somewhere?!" One of Simon's friends blurted out before anyone else could give a more subtle reaction.

"You seem surprised." Was all Robin returned with a perfect neutral expression that had both Cas and Jorien snorting within seconds. Yeah, Robin had missed the girls after all.

"Well, uh…" The boy fought for a decent reply, but it was his friend who finally answered. "The Robin Mitchell we heard about just didn't seem like someone who wouldn't break into places."

"Perhaps you shouldn't believe everything you hear, then." She replied calmly, with a condescending edge to her tone she just couldn't help. They were a year below her, sure, but also a head taller each.

"Rumor has it you're a total overachiever in your year, or… in any, really."

"And just because I get good grades I automatically have to be boring and more by-the-rules than the headmaster himself? Is that what you mean?" Robin quirked an eyebrow at them, and the giggles coming from her roommates almost made her want to break her facade and smile as well.

"No, of course not, it's just… your reputation, and…" The poor guys looked miserable under Robin's scrutiny, scared almost to speak up, and she found that she wanted to know why.

"What other rumors are there about me, then?" She asked with a pointed expression, staring at the two Ravenclaws so intently that they looked desperately uncomfortable.

"Well, people say that… that you can read minds, and that you can curse people without even a single word. They say that you're so good that even the professors are afraid of you! Some even say that you're insane, or straight out evil… and many say that you have no emotions." The first boy replied reluctantly, and when Robin's gaze didn't falter, he added, "But we never believed any of that! Seriously, we just… thought that you really must be an overachiever if you made it to honour roll in two subjects a year earlier than everyone else! Honestly, the entire school seems to believe that you're someone not to be messed with… But we only ever believed the things we had physical proof of!"

"Really?"

"Yes! Absolutely!" They both nodded. "We would never blindly believe any reputation someone has among the students…"

"Good. Honestly, I couldn't care less about my reputation, and it's everyone's right to think about me whatever they please. But it's not my responsibility to meet their expectations." She stated with a smile now indeed, and she was met with three smirks in return and two almost relieved faces. "I do get good grades, but I'm neither a bore nor an insane genius."

"It's so funny how people always seem to think you're either just a scary psycho or a walking library." Jorien chuckled and leaned back in her seat as well while she turned to the two Ravenclaws. "Guys, Robin is one of the nicest people I've ever met, and definitely the most caring one. She literally saved my life, which almost got her killed in return! And on the other side, if there's anyone who literally never follows any rules other than her own, it's Robin. Do you guys even know that she's been excepted from most of the school rules for literal years?!"

"Really?" Simon asked now, frowning first at Jorien, then at Cas by his side, and finally at Robin. "A-about the rules, I mean! Not the… the nice part. I know you're very nice, Robin. To the people you like, at least."

"Thank you for that very accurate assessment, Simon." Robin couldn't help smirking and shook her head to herself in amusement. "I feel honoured."

"I told you she's always gone until who knows when at night! Roaming the castle and working in rooms none of us even knows about! And I told you how she's given us detention before, or how almost all of the professors actually respect her! How she knows more about potions than Professor Snape! I told you, Simon!" Cas defended herself then, and Robin tried not to snort yet again. It all was true, in a way… Well, almost all. She didn't know more than Snape, she merely knew different things than he did. Perhaps she would have to explain that to them at some point.

"I know you did, Cas, but I thought you were exaggerating!" Simon replied, and while Cas pouted, Robin and Jorien just chuckled.

"I never exaggerate!" Cas finally tried, and now literally everyone in the compartment couldn't hold their laughter anymore. Even Cas had to see that it was pretty funny after a moment, and when she started laughing too, any of the weirdness between the two groups finally faded for good. Who knew, if Cas and Simon really stayed together for now, perhaps Robin would have to get used to spending time with his friends as well. But for Cas, she certainly could do that.

______________________________

Tags:

@ayamenimthiriel @chibi-lioness @t-sunnyside @alex4555 @purpledragonturtles @istrugglewithphilosophy @meghan-maria @hidden-behind-the-fourth-wall @darkestacademiaaa

General Tags:

@wegingerangelica @dreary-skies-stuff @wiczer @lotus-eyedindiangoddess @theweirdlunatic @caretheunicorn @kthemarsian @lady-of-lies @strawberrysandcream @noplacelikehome77 @theoneanna @mishaandthebrits @i-am-a-mes @nonsensicalobsessions @exygon @hiddles-lobotomy @rjohnson1280 @annwhojumps @spookycatqueen @salempoe @headoverhiddleston @fanfiction-and-stress @createdfromblue @thecreatiivecorner @themusingsofmany @kinghiddlestonanddixon @scorpionchild81 @crystal-28 @adefectivedetective @lokis-girl-in-mischief @booklover2929 @iamverity @lovesmesomehiddles @akk4rin @whitewolfandthefox @stuckupstucky @kassablanca13 @delightfulheartdream @hayalee8 @bluewneptune @lemonmochitea

57 notes · View notes

kyber-kisses · 4 years

Text

I, Alone (Part 7)

Dean Winchester x Reader

Wanna start from the beginning? Here is the Masterlist!

Warnings: descriptions of injury, more yearning, cursing

Summary: Reunions aren't always what you expect, especially when you need to be miles away from the person in front of you.

A/n: Ahhh I finally got this chapter done! its longer than the other ones but I hope you guys enjoy it! (gif created by undercoverrockstarjensen) Feedback is greatly appreciated!

The first thing you noticed when you slowly began to stir back into reality was that you were no longer cold. The icy feeling that had crept into your bones while tucked away in the cellar was fading, being replaced with a foreign feeling of warmth.

The second thing you noticed was that you were no longer on the dirt floor of your ghostly prison. The feeling of being cradled in someone’s arms was an easy enough feeling to identify, but who’s arms you had no idea. Still too weak to pick your head up off their shoulder you instead listened to the creak of the old steps as your savior presumably carried you out of the root cellar. You could tell you had made it outside when the air had become significantly warmer, the sounds of crickets filling the silence you had known for what felt like weeks.

A groan fell past your lips when your savior adjusted you in their arms. You still felt like you had gone several rounds with a block of cement, and your bones felt like lead.

“Please don’t move. I tried healing what I could but you’re still injured.”

At the sound of the voice you felt your muscles instantly seize up. It had worked. You didn’t think too much of it when you originally did it but it had worked.

“Cas. Cas, put me down. Please.” Suddenly you were struggling against his hold even if your body still ached. Was this real? Had one of your closest friends just heard your cry for help and saved you? Cas was gentle as he knelt down to place you in the grass, your back coming to rest against the trunk of a tree.

You would be lying if you said your heart didn’t break a little bit when you finally looked up at him, because the angel looked down at you like you were a stranger.

“How do you know who I am? You prayed for me, but I don't know you.”

“I-“ you swallowed, trying to ignore the lump in your throat. “I didn’t think it would work. I didn’t mean to either.”

Cas tilted his head, the moonlight helping you to see the confusion on his face. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand. You didn’t mean to pray for my help?”

“No! My brain just kinda went into auto pilot when I was attacked. I used to do that sometimes way back then.” You explained, trying to push yourself up from the ground as you did. “I’m sorry for bothering you, but thank you for saving me-“ brushing the dirt off of yourself you moved in attempt to get past Cas. If you stayed around any longer you were gonna break down and that would definitely have him confused. “I should go.”

“Wait-“ he reached out, gently grabbing your shoulder in attempt to not frighten you too much. “What do you mean back then?”

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

“I—“ you stumbled on your words as panic quickly swept through you. It probably didn’t help that you were still exhausted and dehydrated because you quickly became lightheaded and before you could even attempt to try and fight it, your eyes rolled back into your head and you fell forewords, passing out in the angels arms.

*. *. *. *. *. *.

“Dammit Cas, pick up your damn phone.” Dean grumbled, bringing the phone down from his ear as he continued pacing the floor of the library.

“You really need to calm down. Dudes probably busy.”

Tossing the phone haphazardly onto the table Dean rolled his shoulders. “He took off three days ago, Sam. Said he would be in contact and he hasn’t.”

“You said he was doing heaven stuff, right?”

“That’s what he told me!” Throwing his arms into the air the older Winchester let out a huff. “But the guys kinda took off in a hurry. . . Which is all matter of annoying seeing as he said he was gonna help me figure all of this out.”

For the past several hours Dean had been itching with excitement to tell his friend what else he had figured out but the angel had been radio silent and it was starting to worry him.

He was finally getting somewhere. After weeks of tearing himself apart he was starting to piece together this messy puzzle he had had on his hands. There was someone missing from his life, someone he knew he loved dearly and they needed finding. They needed to be brought home, back to where they belonged. He had so many questions still unanswered.

If only it were that easy. He thought. If only they could just walk through that door and make everything a little easier.

Not even a full minute later the massive metal door to the bunker banged open, sending both brothers spinning in unison to look up. There was a flash of beige as whoever entered walked down the stairs and Dean let out a sigh of relief, walking towards the war room.

“Cas! Where the hell did you g—“

Sam was the first to voice the thoughts running through Deans head as his steps faltered. “Who the fuck is that?”

Sure enough, held tightly in Cas’s arms was a woman covered in dirt and blood, her y/h/c hair plastered across the side of her face. Her eyes closed, locking her in an unconscious state.

“I’m not sure.”

“You’re not sure?” Dean echoed, suddenly following the angel down the corridor towards one of the empty rooms. “What the hell happened to her?”

“I’m not sure about that either.” Cas sighed, laying the woman down on the mattress of one of the vacant bedrooms.

“Oh well that’s just great. Sam, Cas is bringing strange girls home now.” Crossing his arms, Dean leaned against the door frame. “Can you at least tell us where you found her? Or why you brought her here?”

“Southern Spain I think- it took my a couple days to accurately locate her.” The brothers watched as Cas laid a palm over her forehead, a warm light emitting from his hands. “I’ve healed most of her injuries but she’s still weak.”

“Okay, wait a second, let’s back track here.” Dean stepped forward holding up a hand. “Locate her? Why?”

“She prayed for me. That’s why I left when I did.” The angel explained, stepping back from the bed.

“Oh, well that would have nice to know, buddy. Why the hell was she praying to you?”

“She was attacked. She needed help.”

At this point it was Sam who stepped into the room now, eyebrows slightly drawn together. “Wait Cas, you said it took you a few days to locate her? No offense but should that be kind of an instant thing?”

“It should be, yes.” He nodded, eyes going back to the unconscious person before the three of them. “But she-“

“She what?” Dean was growing impatient, this whole situation was wack.

“She has enochian carved into her ribs. . . Just like you and Sam. She also called me Cas.”

That got both of them to shut up, their eyes moving to the now occupied bed. Dean stepped forward, head tilting ever so slightly as he took her in.

Who are you?

“I’ll tell you what, we’ll keep an eye on her and when she wakes up then we can ask her what happened.” Dean nodded before slowly turning on his heel and walking out of the room. He had research to get back to, and a person to find.

*. *. *. *. *. *.

When you woke up again it happened slowly and on your own terms. You weren’t jostled awake by someone carrying you or a soreness deep in your bones. It felt like waking from a normal nap, nothing else.

Rolling over you pressed your face further into the pillow, wanting nothing more than to go back to sleep. Dream. Thats all that had been. The poltergeist. The cellar. Cas.

Just a dream. You were still in your bed in that small inn on the edge of that town in Spain that you didn’t care to remember the name of. You could get up and go down to the cafe for breakfast and forget all about that messed up dream—

“Sam, where the hell did you put that extra box of bandages?!”

It was like running into a wall a full force as true reality slammed into you and your eyes snapped open.The familiar voice being like an icy shock to your system. Not a dream. Not a dream.

No. Nonononononono-

Bolting up straight on the bed, your eyes moved back and forth across the room you were in as you took quick and rapid breaths.No. No. No. No.

There was no doubt about it. You were in the bunker. . . And in your room? Sure the pictures and belongings weren't there since you had taken them with you, but all the furniture was still in it’s proper place. Fortunately the room was unoccupied except for yourself, the voice having come from somewhere else in the bunker.

Dean.

Swallowing thickly you tried to ignore the dryness in your throat as you silently slid of the bed. For so long you imagined what it would be like to come back home, to walk these halls again. You never expected it to happen though. . .yet here you were, standing in your room and listening to the distant voices of the brothers and Cas talking.

So why were you filled with panic from head to toe? That was an easy answer: you had to get out of here as quick as possible before something happened. What if them seeing you broke the contract? What if being close to them terminated it and the demon put them six feet under again? You didn’t want to stick around to find out. You needed to keep them alive. You needed to keep them safe.

Luckily you knew the bunker like the back of your hand. All you had to do was navigate it properly without them seeing you and it was easy as cake.

You crossed the floor silently and with ease, only pausing to look at your reflection in the small mirror above the sink. It was clear to see that you hadn’t washed your hair in awhile and your cheeks were hollower, a couple of bruises peppering your skin here and there. How long has you been in that cellar? Two days? Maybe three? The only thing that was different was you were wearing a clean shirt, one that was at least two sizes too big. Deans probably. You silently thanked yourself for wearing a sports bra underneath it as you turned for the door.

The hallway was quiet when you stepped out into it, your bare feet not making a single sound on the cold linoleum tiles as you quickly dashed down the hallway, pausing every once and awhile to listen for footsteps or voices.

Six doorways to pass and three turns before you could even reach the war room and the door to the outside. Easy peasy. You were quicker and lighter on your feet than you used to be, a skill you had picked up over the past two years that made hunting so much easier.

“I found your damn bandages! They were in the medical kit like they should be!” Sam's voice echoed from up ahead. You sucked in a breath as you quickly stopped outside the doorway to the kitchen, pressing your back agasint the wall before peaking around the corner. Sam's back was fortunately facing the door allowing you to slip by with ease, the bunkers steps now in sight.

Unfortunately you weren’t quick enough to notice the second figure until he had you in a stiff headlock, holding you firmly to his chest.

“Yeah, where do you think you’re going?”

Dean.

Everything in you wanted to spin around and pull him into a hug, tell him you missed him. . . But you knew you would be met with a foreign gaze and that was too much to handle. You had to get away, the more distance between you and him, the better. You muttered an apology under your breath as you quickly stepped back, placing your foot behind Deans, turning and pulling him off balance as you moved out of his grip, the hunter slightly stunned as you threw him to the ground.

“What the-“

You got maybe two steps before he wrapped a hand around your ankle and forcefully tugging you to the floor before clambering back to his feet.

“Really, sweetheart-“ he huffed, slightly out of breath. “trying to run?“

You stopped his speech quickly as you twisted and swept your leg under him, his body hitting the floor again before you moved swiftly, locking his head between your knees.

“Just let me leave. I don’t like hurting you.”

“Ain’t gonna happen. We got questions.” He wheezed.

“Please, I’m begging you. Just let me leave.” Panting, you squeezed a little tighter. If you had to knock him out to leave, so be it.

There were a few seconds of just Dean continuing to struggling in your hold and then he was wheezing out a stiff “fine” and you let go, popping to your feet. He rolled over onto his side once free, coughing violently as he breathed air back into his lungs.

“I’m really sorry.” Giving him one last look you headed for the stairs. Leaving home again. How poetic.

“I am too.” There was scuffle of some sort behind you and before you could react you felt something cold click around your wrist, making you twist on the spot to see Dean clicking the other cuff onto his own arm.

“Let. Me. Go.” You tugged on the chain.

“Like I said before; No.”

You tugged on the cuff again. Hard. “Please, let me go! I just want to leave!” Your fear slowly beginning to rise as you saw the situation you were in. You had to get out of here. If anything happened to him and Sam again you were entirely to blame. Demon deals were strict and you had already been here too long.

“Tell me who you are and maybe I’ll uncuff you.”

You swung at him, but he ducked, swung his own arm around you and just like before you found yourself in another headlock. Struggling against his grip your eyes focused on the door.

Out. You needed to get out.

“Keep on struggling. You’re still weak from whatever the hell happened to you. You’re gonna burn out soon enough.” He sighed, already beginning to feel you give out.

“Please-“ you breathed, feeling the first wave of tears gather in your eyes as Dean slowly sunk to the floor, still holding you firmly in his grasp. Your head fell back against his shoulder, to tired to actually fight. “I need to go. I can’t be here.” You cried. The mixture of being in Deans arms and needing to leave them was turning you into a mess of sobs as you continued to weaken, bare feet sliding on the floor as you tried to keep fighting. “I can’t be here. I won’t let you get hurt again because of me.”

You felt his hold on you loosen at those words, the hunter sucking in a deep breath as he let you go. “What?”

Unfortunately Dean never got an answer because you passed out once more, slumping into his body, too weak to keep fighting against him.

So maybe he didn't have to keep looking for his missing person after all. She was right there in his arms.

SPN Taglist:

@familybusinesswritingbro@a–1–1–3 @awesome-badass-cafeteria-sauce @music-is-all-i-need @agusdoti @callmekda @jordangdelacruz @orphiceseum @andthatsmyworld @marvelfangirllll @fandomnerdespressourself @gladiosamicitias @castielsangelsx @lxstgxrl-ck @tis-i-the-wayward-idgit @amendoise @phoenixuprisingsstuff @ericalynne007 @kaitlaitlaitl @totallyluciferr @supernaturalenchanted @dolanfivsosxox@supernatural-ocs @emptycanvasposts @akshi8278 @defenderrosetyler @heyyy-hey-babyyy @idksupernatural @vicmc624 @all-will-be-well-love@busy-bee-angel-misska @starsandmidnightblue @lilulo-12fanfiction @beanie-beebo @xoxoaudreymarie @greenarrowhead @mrsjenniferwinchester @mysticalfuncollectorus @brebolin @biahblue @noahandthegiraffe

#dean winchester #dean winchester x reader #dean winchester series #dean winchester angst #spn x reader #SPN #bi-danvers writing

89 notes · View notes

clonewarsreturns · 4 years

Text

The Incident

The medbay was silent except for the lone Medic who dragged his feet to the storage unit just outside the brightly lit room. Hops’ eyes were sunken from the hectic hours but he pushed on. His shivering hands retrieved the fresh rolls of bacta tape but were alarmed by the medbay door opening. He quickly alerted himself to face whatever ale’d the sudden patron but softened as he realized who it was.

“You’re still awake? Why am I not surprised.” his commanding officer Scanner leaned against the wall with a smile. Hops tried to think of a witty retort but the sight of his blood smeared armor silenced him. He knew it wasn’t Scanner’s blood, but that of his general.

>><<

Force.. The barrage of lasers pummeled the sealed doorway as the troops prepared to assist the reckless Jedi. Hops held his breath as he tended to a light burn. He knew general Natali was more than capable on her own. She was a Jedi after all. They can’t get hurt like us. This was a belief he chose when he gave into the mythics of the Jedi order. But that all crumbled down in a single moment. A blood curdling scream filled the hall causing everyone to freeze. Hops stared ahead as the blast doors gave way and Commander Scanner sprinted into the hall ahead with troops behind him. So many voices filled his comm’s causing his heart to race. The medic hurried into the funnel shaped hall of Kamino and was stunned at the sight. Scanner was crouched over General Natali’s limp body trying desperately to look for signs of life.

Falling into protocol, Hops knelt down and got a better view of the situation. Her left leg had been severed but the slice from the saber was not enough to completely catarize the artery. Her grin was cracked with a burning bruise already embracing her complexion. He hurried an anesthetic and jabbed the device into her neck causing her limp body to shiver. Before he could continue, Scanner shouted in his ear.

“What do you need?!” Hops blanked are the question. He needed many things but it wasn’t likely they would be found here. His eyes traced his general’s frail figure and stammered the first thing he thought of.

“S-She needs to be moved to a sterile environment.” Before he could finish his sentence, Scanner already had pushed into his place and hoisted the Jedi into his arms. “Careful!!” He shouted in alarm but the commander cradled the general close.

“Lead the way!”

Acknowledging, Hops hurried back down the hall they were in and tried to retrace the steps of his youth. Medical training on Kamino was hardly a hands on affair but he still remembered a room or two that could suffice. He turned a corner and found one of his men being pinned by a couple droids.

On instinct, Hops spun on his heels to retrieve a pistol from Scanner’s holster and took aim. The two droids crumbled immediately with the shot. He recognized the trooper’s incomplete paint job and called him over.

“Sprinter! We need you!”

“Sir!” The shiny replies hurrying over. Hops approached the nearby door and punched in a code to gain access.

“In here-Quick!” Scanner carried the dying general inside followed by Sprinter and Hops. “On the table!” Hops commanded before hurrying to the medical droid that laid dormant in its charging station.

Scanner carefully placed the Jedi that was like a sister to him on the table.

“Is..is that..” Sprinter’s voice quivered as he watched the commander remove his helmet.

“Guard the door, Sprinter. Make sure the clankers don’t get in.” The shiny nodded obediently and returned to the doorway with rifle in hand. Scanner turned to check on Hops and the droid but was startled by a sharp gasp coming from the young general.

“Kriff- Hops she’s waking up!” A short whimper came from the Jedi as she started to come to. Scanner grabbed her shaking hand before she could reach for the open wound.

“Almost-GOT IT!”

“Hello. My name is 142-“

“No one kriffing cares droid! Here is your patient! Help me stabilize her!” Hops pushed the droid to the bed who began work on her leg. He hurried a proper anesthetic into a device to inject it. He couldn’t afford her falling into a further state of shock.

“I..j-J..ce..” Scanner mustered a smile for he knew Taya’s eyes deceived her.

“Jace is assisting Captain Rex and Commander Cody. I’m all you got, sis.” He held her hand in both of his to help distract her. “You’re gonna be alright.”

“Actually the patient has a twenty-two percent possibility of survival��

“No one asked you!” Hops snapped before readying the injection. “General?” Her haze filled eyes searched for her medic. “I’m going to give you an injection that will put you to sleep. Myself and the medical droid will do everything we can.” she tried to protest but the moment the injection shot into her neck she lost tension in her grip and fell limp once more.

Scanner reluctantly placed her hand by her side before looking to the medic.

“Great bedside manner, vod.”

>><<

“Hey.” Hops blinked at the commander who had a look of concern. “You doing alright?”

The medic wanted to say no. I’m not alright. My general’s life as a Jedi is completely dependent on the half ass’d job I did in the moment. Her blood is a sight I’ll never lose. Everytime I’m met with silence I hear her screeching pain.

But he remained silent. Thumbing the bacta tape in his arms, the medic sighed with a small nod. Though he could feel the Commander’s unrelenting gaze.

“No..you’re not.” Scanner gestured to a seat for the medic who reluctantly complied. “Look. I was there hops. I saw what you did. You did everything you could. Hell I heard the doctors on the transport were utterly shocked that a clone did such a job on the field! In the heat of battle no less!” Hops knew in his heart how hard he could be on himself. But this felt like the one time where he truly doubted himself. Scanner sighed before continuing. “Listen. If you weren’t there… I would’ve lost a sister today. My Matyu would’ve lost a daughter. And Jace.. well you know… it would’ve been a horrible loss for all of us. But you-Hops-you saved us all from that heart ache!” Hops felt the commander’s hand on his shoulder causing him to finally release his gaze from the tiled floor and meet that of the elder brother before him. “You understand that?” The medic bit his lip in an effort to hold back the budging tears. He nodded in response causing the commander to crack a smile. “Good.”

Scanner shook his hand through Hops silver hair before standing. “Now you need to get some sleep.”

“No no-really- I can't.”

“Yes you can. You’re not the only medic on this ship.” Scanner pushed the younger clone towards the doorway of the medical bay as he protested.

“No-I need to replace Jace’s Bacta tape!” Scanner paused his efforts for a moment, his eyebrows furrowing.

“Jace’s what? What the hell does he need it for?” Hops spun around in disbelief.

“You didn’t hear? He’s kriffing psychotic, that’s what he is! It’s a miracle his neck isn’t in pieces!” Scanner’s jaw dropped at this new information.

“What-what did he do?” He stammered. The words Jace and psychotic had never been in the same sentence before, even back when they were batch mates. Hops rubbed his eyes as he shook his head.

“All I know is that Grievous grabbed him and he’s lucky to be alive.” Those words made Scanner’s blood run cold. He had no idea that he came so close to losing both Taya and Jace. Hops’ yawn caused Scanner to shake out of it. He knew he had to get to the bottom of this from the source.

“Vod, you need rest. I’ll take care of Jace’s tape.” He reached for the bandages that were lightly held in Hops’ arms.

“No I can do it-“ Hops waived as he spoke causing Scanner to smile again.

“Nope! You are officially off duty.” Before Hops could protest, Scanner snatched the bandages and held out his free arm to keep the medic at bay. Hops tried to glare at the Vod but gave in when Scanner messed with his hair again.

“Stop that.” He chuckled pushing his hand away.

“Can’t help it. It’s shiny. Now you go ahead to the barracks and get some shut eye.” Scanner once again found himself pushing the medic out of the room, this time with less resistance but much more instructions.

“Be sure and remove the top half of your armor so he doesn’t see the blood. Do not let him speak even if he tries his hardest. Make sure the droid is fully charged before restocking its tape. And most importantly do not tell him anything about General Natali’s condition.” This last comment made Scanner’s eyes narrow.

“Why? She’s alive, shouldn’t he have a right to know?”

“We don’t know what he knows. But Scanner..” Hops bit his lip before continuing. “In my experience… false hope hurts a lot more than a difficult truth.. we don’t know the state of General Natali’s condition. To tell him she is perfectly fine..only for her to succumb to her injuries…to be honest I’m not sure he could take it.” Scanner wanted to argue with his younger brother but he could see where he was coming from. Besides even bringing her up in the first place would cause him to talk so it was best they avoided the subject all together.

“I’ll take care of him, Vod.”

>><<

Removing the last bits of bloodied armor, Scanner juggled the rolls of bacta tape in his arms as he approached Jace’s medical room. Tapping the door with his foot, the door slid open causing the lights to spring to life.

“There’s my cooky lil Vod!” Scanner mustered a smile as he was met with the sight. His brother laid on the bed completely still as the contraptions beside him pumped medicine into the tubes stuck to his throat. His eyes were Inflamed along with the dark bruising traveling up his neck to his chin. Scanner could see the pain that came with every breath he took. It pained him to see Jace like this.

“You’re probably asleep so that’ll make this easier on both of us.” Scanner patted the end of the bed as he approached the medical droid that watched his every move. “Here you are little buddy.” He handed the droid the bacta rolls and was met with a chirp of acknowledgement.

“Bacta-tape———restored——-recommencing procedure.” The droid whirled past Scanner and hovered by Jace to begin its work.

“That was easy.” He thought to himself as he readied to leave the droid to it’s work.

“Vod..” the smallest whisper sent a chill up Scanner’s spine as it had the faintest resemblance to that of his brother’s. He turned around quickly and hurried to Jace’s side.

“Hey hey- Don’t talk. Doctor’s orders!” He placed a comforting hand on Jace’s shoulder but was startled to notice the slight wince he gave. “Heard you got a little psychotic today? Couldn’t believe it at first. I mean- straight-laced-Jace doing something ridiculous? Without Taya being involved? Now that’s a first for yo-“ he was cut off the moment he saw a tear escape his brother’s closed eyes. “D-Droid what did you do! He’s seriously hurt- you need to be carefu-“

“She’s..gone..” once again the crumbled voice escaped his quivering lips. Scanner stared at his brother as he tried to understand how he knew about what happened. He wondered if their transmissions caught each other, had he heard from a shiny what happened, could he have possibly seen-

That’s when it hit him. Scanner couldn’t recall Taya’s lightsaber at the scene. It was all very chaotic so there was a chance he could’ve missed it. Though he knew one of the many nasty traits of General grievous was to steal the lightsaber of the slain.

“Jace...I’m..” Jace weakly raised a finger toward his storage unit that sat at the foot of the bed. He gritted his teeth as he tried to muster the word

“H-ol..ster..” Scanner stares completely dumbfounded at the injured clone. There was no way he could’ve possibly gotten it. But he was quickly proven wrong for doubting him the second he opened the locker. Beneath the crumpled Kama and armor laid a holster that had a rather shiny object tucked into it. Scanner couldn’t help but laugh at the sight in utter disbelief.

“You..are..insane!!” He laughed as he removed the hilt from the holster and lightly held it in his hands. Though a simple design, it was undeniably Taya’s. He recognized the markings anywhere.

“Jace- how I’m the kriffing universe did you get thi-“ Scanner looked back up to his dear friend and found him limp once more. Panic shot through the general as he dropped the saber and sprinted to his side.

“Do not be alarmed———-the patient is at rest——-it is imperative that they do not speak in order for a full recovery of their vocal chords——-“ a sigh of relief escaped the commander as he knelt down once more by his friends side. His cheeks were stained with tears.

“Yeah it’s a shame. He always did have a lovely singing voice.”

Scanner waited in the room for an hour before deciding he too needed to heed his own advice. The commander studied the hilt in his hand carefully.

“If anyone has the right to return this to the jedi, it's the psychopath who did so.” he placed the hilt back into the holster before closing the unit shut.

>><<

Jace sat in the docking bay in silence. The light weighted hilt resting in his hands. He stared at the hilt that had always adorned his general’s hip, feeling the dull ache in his chest grow. He couldn’t bring himself to speculate. All he knew was that this saber was not with its owner, and as the Jedi always said, the saber represents their life.

Those words echoed in his mind nearly bringing him to tears but the approaching footsteps caused him to swallow the sob. Jace stood to attention as General Kenobi and his commander stopped in front of him.

“Captain, I see you’re healing well.” General kenobi offered a small smile as he looked at the bacta brace lightly wrapped around Jace’s throat. Part of Jace was glad that Matyu had gone ahead to coruscant, he didn’t think he could face him. Though he wished that he could return the saber to him as a sign of respect. He simply nodded, Hops had told him not to speak too much due to the injury. “Commander Scanner said you had urgent news?” The captain nodded once more, glancing down at the saber in his grip. His heart pounded as he realized he would have to part with it. To let go of the last thing of his General. Of Taya.

“Yessir..” he choked on his voice causing a bit of a sting in his throat. He was lucky to use the injury to mask the true source of his breaking heart. “On Kamino, when I was assisting commander Cody, I went to get ammunition. That was when I ran into Grievous..” his grip on the saber tightened as he recalled the memory. The blind rage he felt had made the memory nothing more than a blur. “I...I saw this.” Raising the saber to the seasoned Jedi, he could see the surprise in his eyes.

“Well, that is quite impressive. To get that close to grievous and live..what possessed you to do so?” Jace tried to not lash out in anger. Grievous murdered her. The one person that kept my world from collapsing. Why would I? How could I not! I would’ve died at peace knowing that I did something.

He gathered his thoughts to himself and decided a better answer.

“Well.. the Jedi say their lightsaber represents their life...and sir,” he had to choose his next words wisely. Jace mustered the strength to look the General in the eye before speaking. “I couldn't let that monster have her’s.” Handing the hilt to obi wan, Jace averted his gaze to hide the pain it gave him. The last remnant of his love was completely out of his hands. Jace could feel Cody’s eyes on him, trying to decipher his behavior. He was thankful that obi wan was too busy studying the hilt of the saber to notice.

“Yes, that is true. A Jedi’s saber is an extension of one’s soul. I thank you on behalf of the council and General Natali for all you did.” Jace swallowed hard before mustering a smile. Obi Wan returned the gesture as he continued. “She will be eager to hear the tale herself once I return this to her.”

Jace starred at the General before him. His heart jumped at the words as he replayed them in his mind.

“R-Return..as in..” Jace sputtered trying not to get his hopes too high. But force! “She’s..alive?” His voice cracked as he was met with utter bewilderment across the Jedis face.

“Oh Jace, no one told you? Yes. She is alive” Jace felt his legs give beneath him but he managed to steady himself. This humored the Jedi as he continued “just barely, but she is quite strong willed. She will be out of the war for a time in order to recover from her injuries. Knowing her, though, I’m sure she’ll adjust to the prosthetics in record time.” All of this new information flew over Jace’s head. He couldn’t believe it. It was as if she had been brought back from the dead! He didn’t know when he’d get to see her again but the fact that there was a chance caused his broken heart to weave itself back together.

He nodded along to the Jedi’s words and gave a quick salute before the officers took their leave. Jace couldn't wipe the smile off of his face as he returned to his quarters. Just knowing that Taya was alive meant more to him than anything in the galaxy

#star wars the clone wars #cwAcrossthestars #star wars oc #tcw #clone troopers #fanfiction #taya natali #captain jace #commander scanner #Hops #Sprinter #The incident

43 notes · View notes

abarbaricyalp · 4 years

Text

The Babe With The Power

@pynchpromptweek

Pynch // Prompt: Future/Kid Fic // Rated: G

No archive warnings, but Adam bruises his face in the second half and the injury is discussed

AO3 Link

“We have to talk,” Ronan said, leaning on the door way to the living room.

Adam looked up at him, leaving his hands to the mercy of RG IV in front of him. The baby wasn’t actually called RG IV. Actually, the baby wasn’t a Richard at all. She was a Noa Percy and had stalled the great debate about whether Blue would allow Gansey to name their son RG IV. But they’d all spent so long calling Blue’s baby bump RG IV that the nickname stuck when they weren’t actually talking to the baby. (Names were important for cognitive growth, they were told, so don’t fuck her up with your joke)

RG IV gnawed at Adam’s knuckle and Ronan scowled at her. “You shouldn’t be baby sitting so much.”

Adam frowned and pulled the baby into his lap. “What do you mean? You volunteered us for the summer!”

“Yeah, but you’re supposed to be working on your dissertation and you have that grant proposal in a month. You should be focusing on that.”

“What? Do you want more time with her?” Adam asked. “I’m balancing everything just fine. I’m ahead of schedule on my dissertation and the proposal is being edited right now. If you want me to back off to give you time, just say, Ronan.”

“I don’t want more time with her. I already have to entertain her when you’re writing.”

Adam stood suddenly, a fast flash of anger. “You told them we’d take care of her. Get over yourself, Lynch,” he snapped, cuddling her closer to his chest.

Ronan’s jaw worked and Adam could see it all the way across the room. “She’s gonna forget what her dad looks like ‘cause she stares at you so much.”

Adam’s eyes widened and his arms tightened around her. “Did Gansey tell you to do this? Is he mad at me?”

Ronan made a face. “What? No. Gansey would probably be honored if she started to call you Daddy. He’d be like, ‘That’s fair, I get that.’”

Adam rolled his eyes and relaxed a little bit. “Then what the hell is your problem?”

“Watch your mouth, she’s literally right there.” Ronan shifted from foot to foot, chewing on his lower lip in irritation and anxiety. “It’s distracting. And she takes up so much room. I mean, there are baby toys down our couch and you're always sleeping with her on your chest and that's just a safety concern to begin with. Her bottles are all over the drain tray and I almost put formula in the coffee this morning.”

Adam steeled his jaw and shoulders, glaring so hard Ronan felt it cut him to the quick. “If you want me to take a step back, I will. But I think you’re just throwing a fit. Here.” He crossed over to Ronan and held RG IV out. “You tell Gansey that you don’t want her around.”

Ronan took the baby, immediately cuddling her in the crook of his arm and letting her hold his other arm hostage to chew on his bracelets. “You gave her a bath the other day in the sink and you were baby talking her and I walked into a door.”

“I remember,” Adam said with a nod.

“And I don't even know which is worse--when you're talking her nonsense or when you're sitting there, asking her serious questions about whatever paper you're writing and nodding along seriously when she coos back at you.”

“I knew it!” Adam crowed. “You have baby fever! You’re not upset, you’re overwhelmed!”

Ronan glared at him. “I do not! I am not! It’s just that my boyfriend is always hugging on her and kissing her and you’re so good at it, I want to scream.”

“She’s our niece. I’m not gonna send her home just ‘cause you never learned how to process emotions.”

“You’re pursuing a doctorates! You should be living a distractionless life!”

“Oh, ‘cause you’re so distractionless.”

Ronan scowled at him for a second longer before sitting heavily on the couch. “I didn’t want kids. I wanted a family, wanted my family back. Kids felt like I was trying to replace them and I didn’t want to. And, y’know, bein’ gay and all. And I never thought I’d actually get to fall in love.”

Adam sat down next to him. For a moment, he just smoothed his thumb over the baby’s weirdly soft forehead. “I always thought I shouldn’t have kids,” he said eventually. “That I might end up too much like my dad. I figured he musta been in love at one point, he must’ve been halfway decent and it was just me who ruined everything for him, so I should avoid kids too.”

“Clearly you’d be a great father,” Ronan muttered.

“Yeah, I get that now. But I’ve grown a lot since then too. Who knows what might’ve been true if things in my life hadn’t happened the way that they did.”

“Adam, you’re a good man. You’re nothing like your father. You never would’ve been.”

Adam shrugged. “Yeah, but that wouldn’t have been enough to convince me to have kids, probably. But now I have you and I see myself in such a different light, I’m a different person. And you’re right, Ro. I am good at this. I love it so much.” Like she was trying to prove his point, RG IV let go of Ronan’s bracelets to grab Adam’s hand and chew on his thumb again.

“It’s a big change. And I’m having to come to terms with a lot of things about myself that I didn’t know, or didn’t want to know,” Ronan said. They sat in silence for a few moments, watching the baby who was keen on watching them too. She had a big, gaping grin for them each time she caught their eye. “I’m sorry I snapped at you,” Ronan eventually said.

“It’s alright,” Adam murmured, leaning into his side. “I know you didn’t mean it. And we don’t have to make any kind of plans, Ro. I mean, this is literally the first time we’re talking about it. It’s not like we should be at an adoption agency tomorrow morning.”

“I could dream us a kid,” Ronan said immediately, like he was anticipating Adam’s response. “A little kid with your hair and my eyes and your freckles and--”

Adam pressed his hand over Ronan’s mouth. The baby watched intently. “You can’t dream them. I can’t lose you both in one moment.”

Ronan sagged under Adam’s hand and his eyes lowered before he nodded. “I won’t. I promise,” he murmured. He met Adam halfway in a kiss and the baby giggled between them.

Two days later, Ronan ran through the door, breathless and terrified. “Adam? Where are you? Are you okay?” he asked, rounding into the living room with a panicked look on his face. He saw RG IV first, asleep in some mini-bed on the couch, perfectly safe and happy. Then his eyes found Adam, and his face, and the already mottled bruise down half of it. “Oh my God,” he breathed, crashing to his knees in front of Adam.

“Please don’t wake her up. She was so freaked out, I thought she’d never go to sleep,” Adam groaned, leaning back in the couch and replacing an icepack on his face.

“What happened, Parrish?” Ronan asked, voice still tight with worry.

“I was chasing her around the house and I ran into the french doors on the other side of the kitchen. One was open and one was shut, but I was looking down at her and I didn’t see it.”

“Adam, you look like you got hit by a baseball bat. Move your hand, let me see.”

Adam sighed and sat up, obediently pulling the ice away. Ronan hissed in sympathy as his cold fingers probed at the bruise. “Did you clean these cuts?” he asked, tracing two fingers down either side of the gash that ran from the top of Adam’s forehead to his eyebrow and then picked up again at his cheekbone, a perfect visualization of the edge of the door.

“No, I didn’t have time. It was all I could do to get some paper towel on it to stop the bleeding,” he explained.

Ronan flicked his opposite temple. “I’ll go get the alcohol and some bandages,” he said. “How’s your head feel?”

“Hurts like hell,” Adam admitted.

“We should take you to an emergency clinic. You might have a concussion.”

“I don’t have a concussion. Besides, I’ve lived without getting them diagnosed before.”

“Doesn’t matter. You have to go get checked out.”

“We can’t take a baby to a med clinic in the middle of flu season.”

“Then she can go to her grandmother’s place.”

“You really got used to leaving kids with them, huh? Having withdrawals, Lynch?” Adam teased softly.

Ronan shoved Adam’s shoulder just as softly and got up to go to the medical cabinet. When he got back, Adam was rocking the mini-bed, hand pressed over the baby’s chest as she clung onto his index and pinky fingers.

“When I ran into the door, I knew I’d hurt myself pretty bad,” he said as Ronan sat himself next to him. “I was in pain, I couldn’t think, my vision had gone a little black, I was bleeding immediately. And she’d gone running off still and all I could think about was how badly she could’ve been hurt if she’d hit the door instead of me. I mean, she was running full speed. And she’s fast. It’s part of why I wasn’t paying attention. I didn’t want her to run away from me and be able to hide.

“But I could only see her running into the door and how small and fragile she is. She noticed I wasn’t chasing her and she came toddling back and she crawled into my lap and I just...hugged her so tight. I was so scared.”

“Nothing happened to her, Adam,” Ronan said, setting aside the alcohol wipes and grabbing neosporin. “She’s totally fine. Look at that little face.”

Adam sighed and rubbed his hand against her chest and tummy. “She was so sweet about it. She pointed up at my face and pouted out her little lip. She really freaked out when I carried her in here and kept wincing and stuff.”

“Adam. Adam. Look at me. Look.” Ronan turned Adam’s face to his. “She’s okay. And you’re gonna be okay. This wasn’t a tragedy.”

“It could’ve been, Ro.”

“But it wasn’t. Hey, look. You did good, alright? You took care of her, got her down for a nap even.”

“It was already nap time. That’s why I was trying to wear her out.”

Ronan snorted out a laugh, which made Adam smile, a little begrudgingly. He finished bandaging Adam’s face and leaned over to kiss the corner of his mouth. “You did good.”

“There’s still so much we don’t know, Ro.”

Ronan shrugged. “Sure. We’re twenty five and haven’t dealt with a baby until her. We’ve got a learning curve. But, hey, at least we get to practice with the best baby ever.”

Adam smiled over at the baby and nodded. “She’s pretty cool.”

“Gonna be cooler for knowing us.”

Adam rolled his eyes and leaned over to kiss Ronan again. “Well, not so much for knowing you.”

“Now I’m definitely gonna drag your ass to a med clinic.”

“I might let you. To set a good example for her.”

Ronan hummed and kissed him again. “One day you’re gonna do something for me and I’m gonna keel over.”

“Yeah, I’ve never done anything for you,” Adam agreed sarcastically. “You have a hard life.”

“It’s getting better.”

Adam stole another kiss. “The best is yet to come.”

“You’re a damn sap, Parrish,” Ronan murmured against his mouth.

#pynch #adam parrish #ronan lynch #pynchpromptweek #kid fic #writing #otp: in more than his lips

19 notes · View notes

getcooler · 5 years

Text

Perks of Being (a) Clumsy (Idiot)

Han Jisung (Skz) x Reader

Words: 8k

Genre: fluff with a hint of comedy

SOULMATE!AU where your soulmate’s bruises manifest on your body as well as theirs. Your soulmate just happens to be the clumsiest (and dumbest) person you’ve ever had to take care of as a nurse.

A/N: that feeling when you finally finish a fic you’ve been working on for months

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

Your knees felt like jelly as you stepped into the large building that housed the entirety of JYP Entertainment. The building seemed to stare you down but you couldn’t help the excitement bubbling inside of you. Despite your nerves, you were looking forward to your new job.

Finally, all the time spent studying human anatomy and desperately trying to memorize Latin words you hadn’t even known existed, you had graduated Med school and it was your first official day of work. No more professors, no more homework, no more volunteering, no more internships. – you were finally a full-pledged nurse.

When you finally gathered all your courage, you walked into the building. Unsure whether there were any special entrances for staff, you used the main door and were greeted by a cheerful receptionist. “Hello! How may I be of help?”

A grin appeared on your face and you replied, “Hi! Yes, actually. I’m the new nurse.”

The woman turned to her computer, typed a bit and then turned back to you to smile and state, “(Y/l/n)?” Seeing you nod, her smile brightened and she clicked something on her computer. Just moments later a printer roared to life and spit out a freshly ink-covered page that the receptionist handed to you alongside with a pen. She instructed, “Please fill in this paper and if the information corresponds to that of our systems, I will give you your key card and show you to the nurse’s office.”

You blinked in surprise, not having expected paperwork this early into your new job, but began filling in the blanks nevertheless. As you attempted to fill in the basic information, the door opened and someone rushed in noisily.

“Hello, Mrs Kim!” a cheerful voice spoke through gasps of air. “You look lovely this morning!”

“Mr Han,” the woman’s earlier smile was replaced with a disappointed scowl, “You’re late again. The other members already started practice.”

The young man, who now stood next to you and had the surname Han, chuckled nervously before raising his arm to scratch the back of his neck.

“There was an accident on the way here.”

Mrs Kim snorted and pointed to the gates, “Go on in but fair warning: Bang Chan seemed rather pissed off today.”

“Delightful,” the boy groaned quietly before hissing apologetically. “Can you let me in?”

“Don’t you have your key card?”

“It kind of fell into the sewer when I was running here,” Mr Han spoke quietly, ashamed to have to admit this. You couldn’t help the little amused smile that appeared on your lips.

The receptionist sighed before handing him her own card, “Alright. Just this once. But right after practice, you come here and fill in the application for a new key card.”

“Deal!” The boy exclaimed as he took the key card, swiped it across the sensors of the gate and ran into the building. He ran to the elevators that conveniently opened just as he reached them.

“Have you finished filling in the application?” the receptionist turned to you, her smile returning.

You nodded and handed back both the paper and the pen. The woman checked the page before handing you a plastic card with your name and photo on it. She warned, “Please do not lose it. Replacing a key card can cost you at least twenty coffees’ worth of money.”

A chuckled surpassed your lips as you took the key card, thanked her and walked over to the gate. You swiped the key card and walked inside, waiting for your official workday to begin.

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

“And this is where we keep the gauze and the bandages,” the old nurse told you with a tired smile. It was no secret it was her last week of work before retiring. You were here to replace her and look after the oh-so-clumsy idols boys she had been talking about for the past hour.

If anything, she seemed relieved to be finally replaced. She looked exhausted from working. When you asked about it, she chuckled and said, “This job isn’t as eventful as you might expect. Sure, we get a lot of patients, but most of them are the same people over and over again. Emergencies rarely happen and even when they do, the company’s first reaction is to call an ambulance.”

“Then what exactly am I supposed to do with all the free time?” you only half-joked.

The nurse chuckled once again, “We have a small book fund where we each put about 1% of our paycheck every month and then at the end of the year we buy as many books as we can with that money. I also placed a weekly order of crosswords so the receptionist brings in new ones every Wednesday, for free.”

“So, books and crosswords.” You liked that thought but as you were about to ask a question, you felt a dull ache in your elbow. It wasn’t unusual, sure, but it was still uncomfortable. Like a phantom pain that just didn’t want to go away.

Your facial expression must have given you away because the old nurse looked at you with concern and asked, “Is everything alright?”

You nodded before explaining, “Yeah, just sometimes I get these aches and bruises because apparently, my soulmate is a clumsy idiot.”

“Ah,” the nurse chuckled. “The injury link? It’s the worst of them all, I have to say.”

“Did you have the same link?”

“No,” she shook her head thoughtfully, “but my sister did. She was constantly covered in bruises. Turned out her soulmate was a professional boxer.”

As she was about to tell you more about her sister, the door suddenly squeaked open and in walked the same young man you had seen at the reception in the morning. He wore a sheepish smile as he spoke, “Hello, Mrs Choi.”

“What happened this time, Jisung?” she all but groaned when she noticed the guy holding his arm. “Did you sprain your arm again? I thought I told you to take it easy after your last injury.”

“It’s a bit worse, actually,” Jisung replied with a slight chuckle and took his hand off his elbow to reveal a nail sticking out of the skin. Hadn’t you had so many years of medical training, you probably would’ve thrown up at the disgusting sight.

Mrs Choi sighed and motioned for him to sit down on a bed, “Tell me you at least didn’t try to pull it out.”

Jisung let out a rather guilty sounding squeak and earned a smack on the head from the nurse. You just watched from the side. You were so focused on watching the medical procedure of removing the nail that you didn’t even realize you were holding your elbow.

“Who’s your friend?” Jisung whispered to nurse Choi who was focused on checking the wound after having removed the nail as carefully as she could.

“The new nurse,” nurse Choi replied.

Jisung let out a dreamy sigh. He mumbled, “Pretty.” Then the realization hit him. Suddenly he gasped, “You’re leaving, Mrs Choi?”

“Of course,” she rolled her eyes. “Have you seen me? I want to retire before I die.”

“And this new nurse will replace you?”

“Why do you keep asking questions that you know the answers to?” the nurse raised an eyebrow before looking back up at him. “Your arm will feel a bit numb for a while but it should heal soon enough.”

Giving you a quick once-over, Jisung bit his lip and turned back to nurse Choi to ask, “Will I need to come back for a check-up? To, you know, make sure the wound’s not infected or something?”

His eagerness made you curious.

Mrs Choi snorted at that, “You’ll probably be back here before the end of the week anyway. You and your clumsy body always seem to get in trouble.”

“I’ll take that as a yes, then,” Jisung grinned cheekily before thanking her and rushing over to the door. He hesitated before opening the door and then turned back to face you, just so he could wave at you. He smiled as he stepped out, hand instinctively resting against his injured elbow.

“Is he a regular patient?” you asked when he left.

The old nurse replied through a heavy sigh, “The clumsiest boy I’ve ever met. You’ll be seeing him a lot more than anyone else in this company.”

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

Whoever thought a person could survive the whole day off of a tiny portion of soup and two pieces of bread was in for a whooping. You decided that as you ate your lunch in the building’s cafe.

Unlike most of the staff, you as a nurse were provided free meals by the company on the condition that you had to eat whatever the cafe had wanted you to eat. This time, it was slightly over-salted tomato soup and bread.

You spilt some of the soup as someone set down their food on your table and dragged out the chair. When you looked up, you met eyes with a young freckled man. His hair was bleached blond and he was dressed in the bluest hoodie you had ever set your eyes on.

“Hi,” he spoke in a voice so deep that you couldn’t help but wonder if you were perhaps hallucinating. There was no way this young, small guy was the owner of such a deep, somewhat demonic sounding voice.

Your thoughts were proven wrong when he spoke once again, “I’m sorry. Did I… What’s the word?” He wet his lips and stared at the ceiling for a moment before letting out a short hum and trying again, “Did I startle you?”

“No, it’s okay,” you answered out of respect. There was no way you’d ever tell a stranger that he had indeed scared you a bit. After collecting yourself for a bit, you continued, “I was just a bit surprised to see someone sitting across from me, is all.”

He hummed in understanding, analysing your words quietly. You realized that he wasn’t local. There was no way he could be. Not with those looks and that adorable accent.

“Are you new here?” he asked suddenly after taking a bite out of what appeared to be a blueberry muffin. You nodded and he hummed once again, “You’re the nurse, right? Nurse (Y/l/n)?”

“How’d you know?”

You realized that your manner of speech was a bit too fast for the poor guy when he blinked with a confused smile and only responded when you repeated yourself slower.

“I’m in the same group as Han Jisung,” he smiled and took a sip of his bubble tea. “Name’s Felix. I’m from Australia.”

Foreigner, just as you had suspected. You mentally high-fived yourself for getting it right.

“Speaking of Jisung,” he spoke. “He isn’t giving you too much trouble, right?”

“Just a bit.”

Felix chuckled, “You’ve got to forgive him. He’s a bit… A bit...”

He seemed to search for the right word (oh, the joy of being bilingual) and you took the chance to finish for him, “Clumsy? Chaotic?”

The Australian burst into laughter while nodding vigorously, “Both of those. Yes.”

“I’ve only been working here three days and I’ve already seen him at the infirmary twice,” you told him before forcing yourself to eat a spoonful of soup. Felix, seeing your distaste for the soup, offered you a look of pity before gently pushing his small plate towards you. There was only a muffin on it, but it looked like it would feed you better than your current meal.

You sent him a questioning look but he only shrugged, “The tomato soup here is kind of terrible and I know nurses get prepaid meals. You shouldn’t have to suffer through it. Just take the muffin instead.”

“What about you then?”

He waved it off like it was no big deal before speaking, “I’ve got this bubble tea and a two-hour break coming up in about four hours. I’ll survive. My job isn’t as important as yours.”

“You’re seriously giving me your muffin?” you confirmed with a raised eyebrow but he only smiled and nodded. You decided to ask again, “Are you sure? This is your last chance to get the muffin back.”

“It’s yours now,” he grinned cheekily before getting up and walking away while waving at you.

As you picked up the muffin and began unwrapping it, you couldn’t help but smile in happiness – you had finally made a new friend at the company.

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

It was your second week of work. Mrs Choi had retired the previous Friday and now it was your third day working without constant supervision. It was sort of freeing and nice. You had located the box of books bought by the other nurses and had also made friends with most of the regular staff of the building.

You didn’t get a lot of patients. In those past three days, you had treated only 10 people. One of those people was Han Jisung, an idol and your most regular patient who had had no problem connecting with you. The two of you were friends by his third visit.

“You know, I think you’d be here a lot less often if you just avoided taking the stairs,” you mumbled as you handed him an ice pack for the second time that week.

Jisung offered you a glare before declaring, “The elevator scares me. It’s all shaky.”

“Everyone else seems to have no problems using it,” you retorted, sitting in your chair and watching him as he pressed the ice to his knee. He hissed at the coldness.

“Everyone else also seems to have no trouble with gravity,” he cursed as he attempted to relax in his seat. “Yet, here I am. For the fifth time this week.”

You snorted, “Maybe I should write a letter of recommendation to your leader.”

“What for?”

“To wrap you in bubble wrap until the end of the promotional period,” you dead-panned. “I’m running out of ice packs over here, buddy.”

“And I’m running out of clear, undamaged skin,” he snapped back before bursting into giggles. “We sound like my parents.”

To say you were taken aback would be a serious underestimation. You almost screamed, “What?”

“They always bicker like this too,” he smiled in thought. “‘I told you to get that that tire checked’. And ‘I wouldn’t have to if you just learned to drive like a human being’.”

“Do they fight a lot?”

“No,” he shrugged, “Just bicker. And then they laugh and then dad takes mom out to dinner.”

You chuckled at that, “You’d like to have a similar relationship with someone?”

“Absolutely,” he didn’t even hesitate. He hissed in pain as he shifted the ice pack and continued speaking, “I think I need someone to put me back in my place when I’m overworking or just straight up being stupid.”

“Isn’t that what mothers are for?” you joked before he threw his hat in your direction with a loud giggle.

He defended himself, “Stop it. I’m injured. You can’t be mean to me.”

“Yes,” you joked, “that bruise on your knee could kill you, you know.”

He paled, “Seriously?”

You couldn’t help but snort at that, “Of course not. If bruises had such capabilities, you would’ve died a long long time ago.”

Jisung scoffed and pretended to throw the ice pack at you before resting it back on his knee.

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

It was a lovely, quiet night in the city, and of course, you were working the night shift instead of being able to enjoy the beautiful scenery outside. You never could.

You hadn’t done much since you got to the JYP infirmary at 7 pm. Sure, you had scanned over a couple of pages of “Pride and Prejudice” and maybe entered a social media contest (they were offering free massages as a prize – you couldn’t not enter the contest), but you were certain neither of those activities could warranty such a headache.

Quietly groaning, you placed your hands on your temples and repeated mumbled mantras in hopes of encouraging the haunting pain to leave you alone. So far, no luck.

This migraine was taking the best of you, hurting your brain in places you never knew existed. You hadn’t experienced anything like this in a while. Maybe back in high school, during the final exams, but never during quiet nights like these. You wondered if maybe these night shifts were just working against you and forcing your brain into overdrive.

You reached into your bag in hopes of pulling out some emergency prescription painkillers for your headache. It had been months since your last serious migraine and usually, a nap and some water did wonders, but you were working and so you had to resort back to strong medication. You weren’t even sure if you had any pills until your fingers recognized a familiar container.

You sighed in relief and pulled the container out.

The door squeaked open for the first time that night just as you took a sip of water. Swallowing slowly, you looked up to find Jisung walking into the room, hands wrapped around his head and his eyes hazy.

Feeling your gaze on him, he spoke, “I was working on some music when I got this dumb headache. It’s not too bad, but it’s kind of annoying and seems to get worse by the minute.”

“Want some painkillers?” you offered quietly, trying your best to not seem like you’re in too much pain as Jisung nodded. You reached into the cupboard behind you and took out a small packet of painkillers before handing it to him, “One or two pills should be enough. Do you need water too?”

Jisung mumbled incoherently as he took two pills, swallowed them without water and then grimaced. Amusement crept up in you as he mumbled a curse word at the bitter taste the pills had left in his mouth. Without thinking you teased, “You know, there’s a reason why most people prefer to take pills with water.”

He glared at you before plopping down onto the bed, “Don’t nag me when I have a headache.”

“Is there anything else or are you just going to stay here for the rest of the night?” you raised an eyebrow after a few minutes when he remained sitting.

After a moment of brief eye contact and intense thought, Jisung replied, “Can I just sleep here tonight? The dorms are kind of noisy today. Hyunjin and Seungmin have some friends over for a sleepover.”

“It’s 2 am,” you stated. “Why would they still be awake?”

“Because we have a day off tomorrow,” Jisung shrugged and lied down onto the bed, sighing in despair when he realized there was no pillow or blankets. As if reading his mind, you got up and handed him a pillow and a soft blanket from a box underneath the bed. He took them gratefully before mumbling, “You should get some sleep too. You seem tired.”

“I’m fine,” you smiled weakly and made your way back to your desk. You had to stay awake until the end of your shift. You could sleep afterwards.

To your relief, your headache slowly began to fade away, bit by bit. You sighed in satisfaction when you realized that the painkillers had done their job.

You spent the rest of the night sitting in silence and stealing glances at the young idol cuddled into the soft blankets you had provided. He seemed so peaceful, so graceful compared to his usual being. He seemed almost… Cute.

As he shifted in his sleep, you caught sight of a scar. A tiny scar on his upper bicep. A scar that looked exactly like the one you had in the same place. You weren’t sure why, but your heart skipped a beat.

How did he have the same scar?

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

You didn’t get any answers to your questions until two days later when you were finally working a daytime shift after having taken several night ones. Your brain was deeply engrossed in analyzing dumb theories about a book you were reading and you didn’t notice the door open until it was too late.

Seeing you flinch in surprise, Felix Lee chuckled from across the desk and offered a cheeky grin. In his low voice, he spoke, “Hi, (Y/n)!”

You nodded, not trusting your voice after that scare.

He sucked in a breath before speaking again, “I kind of, uh, need your help.”

“With what?” you asked warily.

Felix reached out his hand, “I hurt my finger.”

“Pointer finger?” you asked out of habit. People often hurt that finger specifically. In the few weeks of working, you had treated at least 4 different idols who had somehow hurt their pointer fingers.

“No,” Felix shook his head and slightly raised his smallest finger, “My pinky.”

“You hurt your pinky?” you wondered in surprise. “How?”

He flushed red. Trying his best to hide his embarrassment and not slip up in Korean, he spoke, “I dabbed and then I smacked my hand against the fire escape door.”

“It’s 2019, Felix,” you snorted. “No one dabs anymore.”

“Okay, listen here!” he cheered up as you began inspecting his finger. “It was a one-time thing, okay?”

“Was it though?” you faked a thoughtful expression.

Felix laughed at that, “No. You’re right.”

“Obviously,” you winked at him before walking over to the cupboard where the medical supplies were held.

“You might have broken your finger,” you told him as he groaned in embarrassment.

Under his breath, he mumbled in English, “Well, that’s gonna be fun to explain.”

You continued, as though you hadn’t heard him at all, “I suggest you go to the ER as soon as you can. And I also suggest you don’t tell your leader the real reason for your broken bones.”

“Bones? Multiple??” he squeaked in shock before letting out a wailing sound. “It’s the gods punishing me for engaging in unholy sports.”

“For what?” you raised an eyebrow before bursting into laughter. “You’re really something else.”

“Absolutely,” he giggled before changing the topic. “Speaking of something else.” After a brief pause, he asked, “How are you and Jisung?”

You should’ve seen the signs. You should’ve seen the way he began wiggling in his chair, continuously raising his eyebrows, the cheerful teasing smile on his face. It was too late now.

“Ooh, you like him!” he could read you like a book. “Please tell me you’re going to ask him out!”

“Ask him out?” you stuttered. “Why would I?”

“Cuz you’re soulmates!” he squealed in English, sounding like an overly excited high school girl.

“SOULMATES?” you gasped. Shock overtook you as you tried to comprehend the situation. “We’re not soulmates.”

Felix stilled in his seat, eyes narrowed in thought. He then groaned, “Oh come on. Sure you are! You share all the same bruises and scars!”

“How would you know?” you challenged.

“I’ve seen him naked, (Y/n),” he dead-panned before quickly adding, “And I also might have once caught a sneak peek of you changing in here after a shift.”

Your mouth fell ajar and within seconds Felix Lee got the hint and was fleeing the infirmary in fear, yelling incomprehensible apologies over his shoulder.

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

A week after Felix’s declaration regarding you and Jisung being soulmates, you were still wondering if he could be right. Seven days and never once did that thought leave your mind. So it was no surprise when your thoughts wandered back to the topic on your walk home from a blind date.

Maybe that’s why you were struggling with finding a significant other – because they weren’t your clumsy soulmate. Because they weren’t Jisung.

You refused to believe it. There was no way he was your soulmate. Not with how clumsy and odd he was. You two had nothing in common. Someone else had to be your soulmate. That’s how you had convinced yourself to get out of your apartment and on the blind date with some random guy your friends had set you up with.

The guy had been genuinely nice but he just wasn’t what you wanted. He was too perfect, too calm, too… graceful.

“(Y/n)?” a familiar voice called your name from across the street. Your feet came to a stop and you watched as Jisung and Changbin crossed the road and rushed over to you, the latter rather following Jisung than actually trying to get closer to you.

To be fair, you barely knew Changbin. He had only been to the infirmary once – with a sore throat, begging for you to put him on vocal rest so he wouldn’t have to strain his already damaged voice. He had seemed nice enough that one time that you weren’t uncomfortable in his presence.

“What are you doing out so late?” Jisung asked in surprise, eyes wide in wonder. “Isn’t it dangerous to be alone at this hour?”

“I’m just walking home from a date,” you shrugged with a small smile, swaying from one foot to the other to ease your boredom. “I don’t live too far from here.”

Changbin scoffed quietly, “What kind of a person won’t walk their date home after a date?”

“The kind of a person that just didn’t click well with their date,” you responded to him with a chuckle. “It’s fine though.”

“The date didn’t go too well, then?” Jisung understood and offered you a sympathetic smile. “Don’t let it bring you down. You’ll meet that someone special someday, I’m sure.”

Maybe you already had.

Silence took over the three of you as you continued swaying from side to side, now more so to ease the discomfort. Jisung bit his lip before declaring, “I’ll walk you home.”

“What?”

“Are you sure?” Changbin asked him with a raised eyebrow. “It’s a long way back to the dorms though.”

“I’ll just take a taxi back,” Jisung shrugged. “Go on. I’ll be home before midnight.”

That seemed to be all the comfort and confirmation that Changbin needed because he hummed in understanding, waved at you and turned on his heel to continue his way back to the dorms.

“Come on,” Jisung said after a moment. “Let’s go get you home. You shouldn’t walk home alone.”

You walked beside him but teased, “You’re letting Changbin walk home on his own though?”

“Changbin’s different,” he laughed. “I mean, have you seen his arms? He could render someone unconscious just by flashing his biceps. Believe me, he’ll be fine.”

“But I’m a different case? How so?”

“You’re just not… particularly intimidating,” he laughed, quickly crouching to dodge a smack from you. When he realized you were no longer threatening him with physical violence, he smiled and wrapped an arm around your shoulders, “Besides, unlike Changbin, you’re kind of cute. It would be a shame if someone kidnapped you.”

You couldn’t stop your heart from attempting to beat out of your chest at his words. Maybe you could accept him being your soulmate after all.

“Do you want to get some ice cream on the way back? I’m really craving some,” he suddenly asked, eyes wide in excitement and anticipation.

“Ice cream this late at night?” you resisted the urge to laugh and allowed him to grab your wrist gently as he led you down the streets of Seoul.

Jisung wasn’t bothered by your question and replied, “Late night ice cream is the best kind of ice cream.”

You were a bit startled as the two of you came to a rather sudden stop. When you looked up from your feet, you found yourself in front of a tiny ice cream café.

“La Vie en Glace.” Jisung’s pronunciation of the café's name might have been a tad bit off, but who were you to judge. He looked like an excited puppy as he turned back to you and grinned, “Well? Are you ready to test my late-night ice cream theory?”

“Theory?” you chuckled before shrugging and letting him lead you in.

The café was illuminated by soft white lights and colourful fairy lights all over the walls. Light blue couches lined up against the walls and you could see small cacti in customized flower pots in the window.

It was like a scene from an aesthetic photo shoot.

“How did you even find this place?” you asked him some minutes later as Jisung placed a bowl of your favourite ice cream on the table before you.

He shrugged in response, “I’m a late-night wanderer, I guess. Sometimes I can’t sleep and end up walking around the city. I’ve found some pretty great places.”

“I used to wander around, too,” you smiled. “Back before I spent all nights studying or tending to clumsy idiots.”

“Hey!” he sounded offended but amused at the same time. “For your information, I am not an idiot! I am actually pretty smart.”

You squinted your eyes at him, “Are you just telling me that to seem cooler or are you telling the truth?”

“Both.” The tips of his ears flushed red, and it was cute. So cute you could’ve kissed him then and there.

And you almost did so just 30 minutes later as he stopped in front of your apartment building and offered you a wide smile.

He spoke, “It was good ice cream, was it not?”

“It was delicious,” you agreed. “How did you know I needed that tonight?”

“I always go for ice cream when I’ve had a bad date,” Jisung mumbled, suddenly finding his shoes more interesting than the conversation. “Figured it would work for you too.”

With his eyes downcast and his ears red in embarrassment, not to mention the adorable pout on his lips, he looked way too cute to be real. You leaned forward to kiss him (though you weren’t quite sure why). As your brain finally came back online, you angled your head at the last second and kissed his cheek.

It seemed that was enough to get his attention. He looked up from his feet with wide eyes and his lips parted in surprise. As he was about to stutter out something, you smiled and waved goodbye.

Gosh, you hoped the three days off ahead of you would help you forget about it.

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

They didn’t.

“Okay,” you blinked. “That has got to be the biggest and worst bruise you’ve come here with.”

One moment you were writing a report on the well-being of JYP artists and the next Han Jisung stumbled in with a pained groan and his hand holding his chest. Without much thought, he had slipped off his hoodie and shirt and here he was, sitting in front of you completely shirtless and begging you to do something about the fast-forming large bruise on his left peck.

You were praying he wouldn’t notice your cheeks heating up and your heartbeat completely missing its rhythm as you inspected the injury.

“What happened?” you were surprised at how steady your voice sounded.

Jisung groaned and declared, “Felix accidentally kicked me mid-choreography.”

“You guys have got to calm down with the martial arts,” you grumbled under your breath while doing your best to steady your hands so you could actually inspect the wound.

You visibly paled as you realized that inspecting the bruise would require you to put your hand on his chest. With no fabric between the two of you. Gosh, you hoped it wasn’t a broken rib so you could quickly get it over and done with.

To your dismay, Jisung had noticed your hesitation and asked, “Are you okay, (Y/n)?”

“Yes,” you stuttered after a quick pause. “Yes, I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” he seemed genuinely concerned as he sat up straighter, taking your wrist in his hands. “You seem awfully pale. Maybe you should go home and rest.”

“My shift ends in an hour. I’ll be fine,” you managed to get out as you quickly slipped into your nurse headspace and began pressing against the bruise. “Does it hurt?”

Jisung hissed in pain and you had your answer.

“How about now?”

Another hiss. You cursed under your breath as you realized that you couldn’t be of much help.

“You should go to the ER with this.”

“What do we have a nurse for if I have to go to the ER anyway?” he teased, eyes half-lidded from the pain.

You rolled your eyes and gently smacked his arm, “To tell you to go to the ER when necessary.”

“Is it that bad?”

“A 2nd-degree Taekwondo black belt kicked you in the chest,” you dead-panned. “I’m surprised your lung didn’t collapse.”

Jisung threw his head back in disappointment before straightening back up. “How do you know Felix is a black belt?”

“He told me?” you didn’t see the problem as you attempted to help him put his shirt back on before his bare torso could do any more harm to your already irregular heartbeat.

“Why would Felix tell you that?” he seemed puzzled, almost upset. He thought the two of you had shared a moment that night on your walk home. He didn’t want to be wrong about that but he had to be sure so he asked, “Are you two together?”

You snorted in surprise and shook your head, “No. Why would we be?”

The tips of Jisung’s ears burned red as he mumbled, “You’re always together and you know this about him and he seems to know a lot about you too.”

“Are you jealous?” you teased him when you finally managed to redress him.

Jisung hid his face in his hands and mumbled, “No.”

“Really?” you continued teasing. “Because it sounds like you could be a bit jealous of Felix and me.”

“I’m not jealous,” he scoffed but the usual sparkle in his eyes was no longer there. All of a sudden he seemed angry. “Why would I be jealous??? I’m going now.”

“Be sure to tell me what the doctors say,” you called after him as he exited the infirmary and slammed the door.

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

You wondered if you had crossed the line during your last conversation with Jisung. Maybe he wasn’t jealous, but rather concerned. Maybe you had ruined the one good friendship you had over something as dumb as your need to tease someone.

These thoughts troubled you for three days straight, not letting you sleep or even eat in peace. The latter because Jisung always seemed to be having lunch when you went to the cafeteria. You had skipped every single lunch since your fight for that reason alone.

You knew it was dumb. Even Felix knew it was dumb. He made a point of telling you that once again as he walked into the infirmary with a plastic container filled to the brim with delicious (possibly unhealthy) snacks.

“You really should talk to Jisung,” he told you as the two of you munched on cinnamon rolls at your desk. You sighed in response but didn’t say anything, allowing him to continue speaking, “The both of you are miserable as hell. This isn’t normal.”

“So what are you suggesting we do? Kiss and make up?” You offered him a half-hearted glare.

Felix snorted before a thoughtful look came over his eyes. Seconds later he nodded, “Yes. Exactly. Kiss and make up.”

“I’m not kissing Han Jisung, Felix,” you told him firmly and at that moment he decided to drop it.

He changed the topic and began telling you about an upcoming tour. You were excited for him, sure, but suddenly you realized that if you were to apologize to Jisung, you had to do it before the tour began.

“Why am I even attempting to have a conversation with you if you don’t even listen to me?” Felix suddenly teased you with a raised eyebrow and a smirk on his face. You glared at him to which he responded, “Okay, listen, you don’t get to glare at me! You were the one ignoring me!”

“I wasn’t ignoring-”

Your argument was cut short by the infirmary door squeaking open. In front of the door stood Han Jisung, one hand deep in the pocket of his blue hoodie and the other buried in his freshly dyed hair. As handsome as he looked, you couldn’t help but note that he had looked much better the last time you saw him.

“Oh, look who finally took my advice,” Felix grumbled before glaring at Jisung. “Couldn’t you do this after we finished lunch?”

Jisung remained silent and thus you ushered Felix out of the room. The Australian didn’t seem too happy about it but he gave you an encouraging nod nevertheless. He also made sure to steal one last croissant from the plastic container before walking out altogether.

You and your possible soulmate were left alone in the infirmary, accompanied by nothing but awkward silence.

“Can we talk?” Jisung finally spoke and stepped closer to the desk, head still cast low. Noticing you nod, he gathered his courage and spoke, “I’m sorry for snapping at you. I was just a bit oversensitive, I guess.”

“Oversensitive?” You leaned forward in your seat, curiosity shining in your eyes.

Jisung nodded and took a seat across from you, “I guess I was a bit jealous. I mean, Felix and you seem to get along very well and you’d be a cute couple. I guess I just...”

“Snapped?”

“Yeah,” he sighed. A tiny bitter smile appeared on his face as he spoke, “I hope you’re not too mad at me.”

He let out a deep sigh, stood up and walked out with a quiet ‘goodbye’ before you could even process the information, much less respond.

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

You let out a loud groan, grabbing your head and willing the dull ache to perish. So far painkillers had been of no help and napping was not an option during the night shift. Your best guess was this headache had been inflicted by Jisung.

“What’s up?” you asked the moment the door squeaked. As you dull headache had suggested (not that you believed in soulmates, but Felix had pretty much convinced you), Jisung entered the infirmary, head low on his shoulders and fingers rubbing his temple. He had been getting stress headaches every couple of days for the past couple of weeks and it was causing your head to ache dully as well. Screw comeback season.

Weakly he spoke, “Can I stay the night here again?”

“The dorms are too loud again?” you asked in surprise. He hadn’t come in with a headache since last week and you had assumed it had something to do with the new noise-free curfew JYP had enforced in the building.

Jisung nodded gently before plopping down on the chair opposite of you and resting his head on the desk, big brown eyes begging you for mercy and his bottom lip jutted out in a pout. He mumbled, “Seungmin is nagging Jeongin and Felix, and Chan is high on caffeine.”

“Caffeine?” you raised an eyebrow as you filled in Jisung’s health card. “I thought he didn’t drink coffee.”

“He doesn’t,” the rapper opposite of you chuckled and ruffled his hair a bit. “Minho made him try his new espresso recipe. Chan couldn’t say no to Minho’s guilt-tripping.”

You sighed in defeat, “Does the new recipe include double the dose of caffeine?”

“Triple.”

A curse flew past your lips. Deciding to leave scolding Minho for later, you chose to focus on the matter at hand and turned back to Jisung with a kind smile, “What’s got your head hurting this time?”

“I haven’t slept particularly well the past couple of nights,” he mumbled regretfully. “At first I had a deadline for a new song and then… Well, then Seungmin, Minho and Chan happened.”

“Have you taken something for the pain yet?”

“No,” he sighed. “Changbin took the last of the pain medication last night. No one’s been to the pharmacy in weeks.”

Your whole essence of being wanted to smack some sense into the group of idols. They were far too irresponsible to be left in charge of your dear soulmate. You decided you would do so as soon as your shared headache disappeared.

“Okay, I’ll give you some pain killers, some water and some peppermint tea. Then you should be able to get some sleep,” you told him gently while getting up.

Jisung let out a quiet hum of approval before closing his eyes and relishing in the silence the infirmary offered.

Once again, you watched him the entire night. A part of you kept reminding yourself that it was borderline creepy, but another part of you was screaming for your soulmate to realize he had found you. Sadly though, you realized that Jisung was far too preoccupied with his work to figure out the connection just yet.

And so you just admired him from afar.

You took in every quiet whimper of his, every sigh, every mumbled sentence. He wasn’t a very peaceful sleeper, you noted as you walked over to fix his blanket for him for the tenth time that night.

“Sleep well, my soulmate,” you whispered before pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead. On instinct, Jisung relaxed and hummed in approval, his subconscious recognizing his soulmate’s touch almost effortlessly. Relief flooded into you as you realized his headache had ceased.

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

You had no idea what you had been expecting when a frantic knock sounded on the infirmary door that morning, but it definitely hadn’t been eight members of Stray Kids carrying the ninth.

“What happened?” you asked, sleep still heavy in your eyes and your second morning coffee waiting to be drunk.

A frantic sounding Chan immediately launched into an explanation, “It’s Hyunjin. He fainted in practice. We don’t know how to help him.”

“We figured that since you’re, you know,” Minho added with a sassy raise of his eyebrows, “A nurse, you might be more knowledgeable than us.”

“Alright,” you sighed and got to work. This wasn’t the first time someone had brought in a freshly fainted idol so you were relatively sure in your steps. Seeing how concerned the group was, you sighed and told them, “Back away a bit, boys. He needs his air.”

“Right, right,” Chan said breathlessly, eyes never leaving Hyunjin as he motioned for his members to step back.

You noted that at least two members looked like they were on the verge of crying. Their concern encouraged you to get to work quickly. Within minutes you were cooling the dancer down and trying to figure out what had happened.

As you were working, you realized that the A/C had stopped working and it was unbearably hot in the infirmary. Another sigh left your lips as took off your lab coat to reveal a light t-shirt. You called out, “Could someone please open a window and keep the door open? There’s no air.”

Jisung, snapping out of his shock the fastest, was quick to run to the window and practically threw it open. When he turned around, he gasped in surprise. Without your coat on, he could see all your bruises and scars. To his shock, they matched his perfectly.

Unable to believe it at first, he rolled up the sleeve of his hoodie to compare. Low and behold; 100%, a perfect match.

His heart just about stopped beating as the realization hit him. He had finally found his soulmate. The one he had been searching for all this time. His one and only true love.

A moment later Hyunjin’s eyes fluttered open, wincing at the bright light that shone right above him. The band (all except Jisung who was far too busy wracking his brain for possible clues he must have missed in the past months of knowing you) cheered in relief as he groaned out a curse.

“YOU’RE MY SOULMATE!” Jisung declared loudly, eyes wide as he processed the information. As he stared at his soulmate, a loud slap echoed in the infirmary. All eyes turned to Felix, whose forehead was red from facepalming so hard, a pained tear shining in his eye.

“Can we do this later, Jisung?” you asked without paying him much attention. “I’m sort of working here.”

Jisung was scandalized, “Later?? I JUST FOUND MY SOULMATE! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO CALM DOWN NOW???”

“Soulmate?” Hyunjin mumbled faintly before pressing a hand to his forehead. He turned to Seungmin who was sitting by his side, “How long was I out for?”

You reached into the pocket of your jeans and handed Jisung some cash, “Go and get some peppermint tea or something, I don’t know. Just calm down while I examine Hyunjin.”

“But-but,” Jisung stuttered as Changbin led him out of the infirmary with a low chuckle.

♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥►♦◄♥ ►♦◄ ♥►♦◄♥

As if on autopilot, your feet led you to Jisung the moment you walked out of the infirmary at the end of the day. He was sitting on a bench in front of the company building, a coffee cup in his hands and his eyes hazy with thought. A smile forced itself onto your lips, your brain had no more control.

He had finally realized it was you.

As his mind wandered, so did his gaze. When it finally stopped on you, your heart skipped a beat and a grin appeared on his face. A smile similar to that of a young boy upon hearing his first love confess to him.

A relieved chuckle left his lip. “You came.”

“Why wouldn’t I have?”

He shrugged, shifting in his seat to make room for you by his side. “You were taking such a long time. I was beginning to lose hope. That may be...” He took in a deep breath. “That maybe you didn’t think I was enough or you were disappointed in me.”

“I could never be disappointed in you,” you told him wholeheartedly, resting your head against his shoulder without thinking. You felt safe. Like you had found your home amid a big crazy overcrowded city.

Jisung hummed in approval, resting his head against yours without much thought either. It came naturally to the two of you and you couldn’t help but wonder if it was so for all soulmates. He shoved the coffee cup your way and asked with a chuckle, “Coffee?”

“What kind?”

“Peppermint latte,” he said without missing a beat, his eyes shining as he gazed at you with newfound admiration. Or maybe it wasn’t newfound. Maybe the adoration had always been there but you just hadn’t noticed it before.

You chuckled, “You're offering me cold coffee? How romantic.”

“Hey!” he gasped. “It’s your fault. The coffee would still be hot, had you arrived on time. I spent two hours sitting here, waiting for you to come out.”

“You waited for two hours?” You straightened up.

“Of course,” he chuckled weakly. “And I would have waited for two more and then two more and more and more until you finally came.”

You were taken aback, flustered by his words. No one else you knew would ever wait this long for you. Most people wouldn’t even wait an hour. But he, Han Jisung, your soulmate, was willing to wait for you no matter how long it took.

When you snapped out of the daze, his eyes were gazing into yours. You hadn’t realized how close the two of you were physically. Just an inch, maybe less, and your lips would find a home against his. Just an inch or less and you could seal the secret deal that meant you’d be each others' forever. Just an inch or maybe less.

His lips met yours without hesitation, pressing down and making you feel how much Jisung had wanted to do this since he first met you.

It was magical, full of passion and love. He tasted of peppermint latte and strawberry lip balm. A part of you wondered what yours tasted like, but the other part couldn’t have cared less.

He was finally kissing you. You were finally soulmates.

When you ran out of breath, you pulled back with a quiet gasp. Your eyes shone up at him as he giggled like a little kid, a light blush adorning his face.

“So, I guess there are perks to being clumsy,” Jisung joked before pressing another sweet kiss to your lips.

Yeah. You supposed there were perks.

#han jisung #han scenarios #han jisung fluff #stray kids scenarios #stray kids fluff #han jisung scenarios #admin vy #happy birthday to my number 1 bias wrecker #he's so grown up already (T.T)#this fic didn't come out like I wanted it to at first #but I wanted to upload something for my squirrel child's bday so...#enjoy and send feedback whenever! <3

357 notes · View notes

motleymoose · 4 years

Text

Homecoming Pt. 3: Bits & Pieces Ch. 1

Chapter 1 Ashes in a Vacuum

Fandom: The Mandalorian, Star Wars Characters: The Mandalorain (Din Djarin), Gender Neutral Reader, The Child Words: 2.5k+ Warnings: Injury, Angst, A whole lotta attitude

Summary:

I AM ALL SORTS OF ANGRY AT THAT FRAGGING BUCKETHEAD!!! He's leaving me with more questions than I have the ability to ask, and I don't like it one bit.

But dang, that little greenie is cute!

Notes:

Heya! Thank y'all for reading!!! I'm not sure how many chapters this part is gonna have, so??? We're coming up on the halfway point of the story. Maybe my editing skills will improve by then (ha).

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Homecoming Masterlist

The way everything hurt, I was sure I was dying.

Squinting at the dim, fuzzy gray light of my bunk, I ran an internal diagnostics check. With every little wiggle and flex of an appendage, I gradually realized that I was not, in fact, dying, but I wasn’t in prime fighting shape either. Slowly, gingerly, I scrubbed sleep from my burning eyes with the heels of my palms, my vision spotty and fuzzy in places. It felt good to let them linger, pressing heavily into the closed eyelids and relieving the pressure built up behind my eyeballs. As killer headaches went, the one I was experiencing in that moment wasn’t the worst I’d ever had, but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt like doshing kung.

Now that I was sorta awake, I took physical stock of my body. My eyes still wouldn’t clear, the large flecks of gray shadow swimming lazily in my periphery, so I used touch to see what was going on. Letting my hands do the work, I started with my head, running my fingers lightly down my neck to my shoulders and chest. Something felt off about the shape of my body as I continued to scan downwards to my hips. Foggy memories swirled inside my head, screaming and pain and choking smoke. A jumbled mess of noise and smells overpowered everything else, and the bits and pieces of the fight and flight from Bosph scattered nervously into the darker recesses of my brain.

Frustrated, I sat up, ignoring the sharp tug at the pit of my elbow and the violent, painful thumping rattling my brain. “Fragging buckethead,” I hissed through clenched teeth. He had got me in this mess. Sure, it was my fault for getting a bounty put on me, but if only he’d listened to me in the first place, we coulda avoided Bosph entirely. The anger, bitter and sparkling and pulsing red, numbed the headache and the bruises slightly. And as the ire rose, so too did the functionality of my brain.

I could focus now on what my hands had been trying to tell me: all of my possessions, from my boots to my jumpsuit and everything in between or tucked into pockets, was gone. A worn coarseweave tunic hung from my curved shoulders, the sleeves neatly rolled up around my biceps, and a newer looking pair of long johns, the baggy legs bunched around my knees, had replaced my utilitarian and well-loved apparel.

Oh Mother of Kwath! Had the Mandalorian undressed me?! I mean, I was an adult. He was an adult. And apparently I had been injured enough to warrant such an invasion of privacy. Still, I couldn’t fight the blush burning brightly across my chest and face.

So doshing uncomfortable.

Nope, nope, nope. Didn’t want to think about it anymore.

Pushing down all of the humiliation and trauma and apprehension until the feelings were little more than an annoying itch under my skin, I allowed the rage to take over a little more. It was easier to be angry than to feel anything else, the outrage a warming presence in my chilly body. It also gave me the little boost of courage for what I had to do next.

Screwing my eyes shut, incredibly unprepared for the worst possible outcome, I touched the place under my collarbone where my silver skull pendant rested, a solid, reassuring weight...

Nothing.

Instead of skin-warmed metal, I was met with warm, padded resistance. Peering into the neck of the tunic, I found a thick, dull-colored wrap encasing my midsection from under my armpits to my hip bones. It smelled of the sea on a warm summer’s day, and I wrinkled my nose automatically. Bacta. Whatever injury I had sustained must’ve been bad enough to call for the precious, oftentimes expensive goo. The wrap wasn’t so tight as to constrict breathing or some movements, but it wasn’t exactly comfortable either.

The physical uncomfortableness brought me back to the question of why the bounty hunter was keeping me alive, but just like all the other feelings, I ignored it. I needed to find my clothes, my necklace. Get dressed. Leave this beautiful ship and her tyrant pilot behind and become a krill farmer out on the Outer Rim.

Well, probably not a farmer. A droid mech, perhaps.

The soft skin on the inside of my elbow twinged again, pulling me out of my daydreams as I reached for the blanket covering the lower half of my body. A thin, clear tube snaked from a needle inserted into a vein to a nearly-empty pouch hanging from a hook in the bunk wall. Fumbling, my fingernails worked their way underneath the sticky medical tape, peeling up an edge wide enough to pinch. I ripped the tape from my arm, gritting as it pulled hair and skin with it. Once the tape was gone, I slid the needle out of my arm with a hiss, tossing it aside to leak between the cot and the bunk wall. Whatever cocktail of drugs the bounty hunter had mixed into the IV, he’d probably added a good dose of sedative to keep me down for the count. That would’ve explained the fogginess.

And it made me so mad.

I let the full-blown, all-consuming fury in, jerking the coarseweave blanket off of me and freeing my legs. Exhaling forcefully, I tested my injured knee, poking at the matching bacta bandage. The original searing-white agony I had experienced on Bosph was muted now, less of a screaming torment and more of a dull throbbing. Healed enough to put weight on. Hopefully

Groaning and cursing at stiff muscles and bucketheaded hunters respectively, I wriggled on the bed until my bare feet skimmed the floor. The cold steel of the hull platform sent shivers through my flesh, feeding the annoyance and anger and frustration. I inhaled, steadying myself for the shooting pain sure to follow standing on both legs. Pleasantly astonished as I was that it didn’t hurt too horribly, I wasn’t prepared for the lightheadedness. The blood rushed from my face, my vision blackening around the edges.

“Oh frag,” I managed to croak before slumping to the floor in an unconscious heap. --------------- I awoke, some time later, inside my bunk. The coarseweave blanket was tucked firmly beneath my chin, the IV reinserted into my arm, and my red-hot rage completely dissipated. An imposing, blurry figure stood at the foot of the bunk, and I took my time adjusting myself from lying flat to reclining, eyes tightly shut to avoid the spinning shadows. Once I was comfortable, I cracked an eyelid. The Mandalorian’s blurred steely stare greeted me, a clear bag of liquid over one arm and a sling supporting the other.

“You’re awake,” he stated matter of factly.

“D-Didn’t want to give you the satisfaction of travelling in silence,” I replied dryly, voice husky with disuse. “By the way, where’s my jumpsuit?” I opened my eyes all the way, blinking rapidly to dispel the fog coating them. It didn’t work.

The bounty hunter harrumphed softly. “Incinerated. You had a fractured knee, two broken ribs and a blaster wound to the stomach. Plus severe retinal damage and dehydration. You’re lucky you even made it off-planet.” He angled his visor away from me to tap out something on his vembrace.

“Wait, what?”

He tilted his visor towards me and put it simply. “You almost died.”

I feebly waved the non-IVed hand in front of my face. “No, not that. Did you say you incinerated all of my stuff?!”

Ignoring me, per his style, he continued to tap on his vembrace’s control panel.

Devastated, depressed and not a little bit murderous, I glowered squintily at him. I was reeling inwardly, but on the outside I was colder than carbonite.

As he ignored me, I studied him as closely as my recovering vision would allow. I could tell there was something different in his appearance, but it took a moment for me to recognize what it was . A softer quality to his edges that I couldn’t quite understand, his body looking less defined, less bulky than normal. I blinked several times to refocus, and was rewarded with infinitesimally better vision.

“Where’s your armor, shabuir?” I sniped. I may have been more than a little miffed that all of my worldly possessions were now ash and lumps of twisted metal, and biting at a Mandalorian was a temporarily soothing balm to my aching heart.

The hunter reached over me and unhooked the empty bacta IV bag from a rod above my head, replacing it with the one he’d brought. Adjusting the solution valve, he tapped the drip chamber twice before turning his attention back to me. “There’s a spare jumpsuit in the ‘fresher. Keep the bacta wrap on for another hour, at least.” As an afterthought, he added, “We’ll be on Nevarro in a few days.” A frown tainted his voice. “Stay out of my way ‘til then.” Spinning on his heel, he marched to the ladder and disappeared onto the upper deck.

………

It took about twelve hours for me to feel well enough to rid myself of the IV and bacta wraps and get out of the bunk without having the ship buck underneath me like a wild bluurg. I took that time to cry myself to sleep, wake up and cry some more. The loss of my tools and kit was a huge blow to my self-worth, but the loss of the pendant, well. It was the only piece I had left of a life full of fear and hunger and love; it connected me to home. If I didn’t have that, where did I belong?

It took another three hours for me to get up the nerve to get cleaned and dressed. I prowled around the cargo hold, poking and prodding at the carbonite storage, the control panels and the refresher. There hadn’t been much of a chance on my earlier voyages to explore, so with the Mandalorian occupied guiding the ship through hyperspace, I felt emboldened to figure out more about him. Not that there was much to glean from my investigation; the hold contained only the basics of survival for deep space travel, and weapons. Lots of weapons.

Oh, and several beings in what looked to be forced-stasis, frozen in carbonite.

Shivering in sympathy for my hold companions, I turned and shuffled back to the bunk. What I really had hoped to find was the incinerator - most ships kept them below near the back for easy dispatch of trash - but I hadn’t found hide nor hair of one below deck. It could’ve been located above. Not exactly the safest or most pleasant location, yet with all the fire power and carbonite in the hold, it kinda made sense. No need to put three dangerous elements all in one place, if you had the room.

A little voice at the back of my head reminded me of something else: that fragging Mando had all but ordered me to stay put. If he thought for one second that I was going to listen to him, he had another thing coming. I held no ill-will against Mandalorians in general, but this one was getting on my bad side. First arresting me and then almost getting me killed and then destroying the only thing I had left of home reminded me that I only had myself to rely on, that everyone else was out to either disappoint me or kill me.

I’d be doshed if I was going to let that buckethead dictate what I could and couldn’t do, especially since he was the one who took me off that Maker-forsaken moon in the first place.

Especially since he handed me over to Mihcas without an apology.

And took my pendant and tools to boot.

Ascending the ladder turned out to be a formidable feat in my weakened condition, but I prevailed. It took more effort than it should have, and I collapsed onto the cool steel platform once I made it all the way up.

“What are you doing?” The modulated baritone came from my right. Swiveling my head, I watched as the bounty hunter stomped out of the captain’s quarters, a bundle of clothes clutched to his chest and fingers unsurprisingly reaching for his blaster. Whatever was in the bundle must have been precious, for he shifted it away from me to his injured arm. It obviously still hurt; he held the bundle in the crook of his elbow, awkwardly bent and trembling with effort.

Good.

Rage flared in my chest, licking its way up like flames and leaving a red mask pounding behind my eyes. Pushing the anger away, I clambered up to my feet. I was going to get answers, and I’d be fragged if I was going to show emotion in front of him.

“Where’s the incinerator?” I spat savagely. So much for not showing any emotion.

Obviously taken aback by my vehemence and bluntness, he cocked his helmet and pulled his hand from his blaster, resting it casually on his belt buckle. “Why?”

Simple enough question, simple enough answer. But I didn’t feel like answering him. Opening my mouth to respond, a cooing sound interrupted me. It sounded like it was coming from the bundle still shielded in his injured arm.

Snapping my jaw shut with a painfully audible click, I raised my eyebrows pointedly at him. “Trafficking something illegal there, chakaar?” Anxiety clenched my stomach in its viselike grip, and I had to force the bile from rising in my throat. I was still weak from Bosph, but if he was buying and selling living beings to make a living, he was no better than my ex-boss. No better than me. Which meant I was going to have to hurt him or die trying.

A sharp hiss of an inhale through the vocoder told me I’d hit on something. Something he didn’t want me knowing. A whispery stream of very impolite Mando’a floated in the space between us. The air was thick with tension, and both of us were patiently waiting for the other to make the next move.

The coo came again, slightly muffled, followed by a bubbly giggle, startling us out of our stare-down. The bundle wriggled, and the Mandalorian shifted his attention from me to it as the thing became too much to handle with one injured arm. Grunting either out of pain or frustration, the bounty hunter stepped backwards until he was in the doorway of the bunk. Squeaking and chittering indignantly, the lump in the clothes broke free with a victorious huff.

And it was the cutest fragging thing I’d ever laid my eyes on.

_____________________

Notes:

chakaar - corpse robber, thief, petty criminal - general term of abuse shabuir - extreme insult - *jerk*, but much stronger

8 notes · View notes

ramblings-of-a-foolish-mortal · 4 years

Text

Constellations in your soul - C2

///Preface: this chapter has dissociation and some self deprecation in it. After releasing the first chapter I realized that some warnings might be in order so that people who are sensitive to the topic don’t suffer because of it. I hope you enjoy it and as always, comments and suggestions are welcome. :)///

Sirius sat on a toilet lid in the abandoned bathroom, holding up his arm up in an uncomfortable position while holding his shirt in his lap. Remus had spent a solid 10 minutes inspecting him to see what injuries there were before he’d even started to put Sirius back together. Remus held a grimace on his face and briefly brought his sleeved hand to his nose, like trying to wipe away a scent or a smell.

“Jeez, blood has a strong smell…” his grimace faded as he rolled up his sleeves, kneeling back to get a better look at what he was doing.

“So, remind me why we never use magic to do this?” Sirius leaned back a bit before Remus gently reminded him he needed to sit up straight for this. Haha, straight.

“Because healing spells are complicated, and while I may be smart I’m not about to rearrange your ribcage for something I could easily do with my hands.” Remus frowned as he spoke, mumbling things under his breath as he took note of them. His face scrunched up a little bit when he was concentrating, and his eyes remained focused on his target. His intense glare was one you didn’t usually want to be on the receiving end of, and it was pointed right at Sirius’ chest. Right now, he appeared to be trying to glare Sirius’ injuries out of existence. “What happened to make her this mad? I thought she doesn’t usually beat you like this unless she thought you did something?” Remus’ voice cracked when he said ‘beat’ like it caused him pain just to think about it.

Aww, you really think he cares about you Sirius. He just feels obligated to help you, you’re a burden in his life and thorn in his side.

I know…

“Uh- It wasn’t really anything bad,” Sirius shifted to prop his arm up on the water tank of the toilet, “She got upset at Regulus because he burnt the bacon, but I distracted him. At least, that’s what I told her, so she got mad at me. It’s not really that-!” Sirius growled quietly when Remus pressed on his side, pain flaring up his side and in his lungs. Shit that hurt…

“Sorry,” Remus muttered as he stood, walking over to an empty stall at the end of the row and coming back with a briefcase full of muggle first aid supplies. They’d hid it in here last year when Sirius had first explained what his family was like. Remus was very astute and had noticed Sirius consistently sleeping on his stomach and changing in the bathroom rather than the dorm, like the other boys (among other things like pained expressions and groaning in his sleep, which Sirius had no memory of doing.) Remus pulled out bruise cream and started spreading it across Sirius’ back and chest.

Sirius felt his face flush, looking up at the ceiling. “Take me on a date first, Remus.” A small, possibly awkward laugh left him, immediately replaced with a grimace as his ribs shifted slightly. Great… now he thinks I’m weird. I mean, he probably already did. I’m so fucking awkward why am I like this?

It’s because you’re worthless. Awkward? Closer to repulsive. He’s seen you beaten and bruised and broken so many times. Do you honestly think he still sees you the same way as before? Sirius’ grimace faded as he stared at the ceiling.

He cares, I know he cares. If he didn’t, he would’ve run away a long time ago.

PLEASE. You, James, and Peter are the only people who would accept him for being a werewolf. He’s got it SO much worse than you, and yet you make him take care of you. Bend to your whim.

Just shut up…

“Sirius, are you alright? “ Remus looked up at him from his crouching position at his side. Sirius looked down at him, leaning forward slightly.

“Yeah?” Remus held his eyes for a moment, studying Sirius for a moment, then offered him back his shirt.

“I finished. Your shirt might stick a little bit, but once your skin absorbs it you should be good. We’ll want to change the bandages on the cuts in a couple days.” Remus smiled slightly, offering Sirius a hand. Sirius took it, pulling himself up.

“Wait, there were cuts?” Sirius frowned slightly. “I didn’t think… I didn’t think I felt any cuts… “ Remus gently touched Sirius’ back, right between his shoulder blades.

“Yeah, there were some right here, and a couple on your upper shoulder. Make sure not to move your arms too much. At least as best as you can.”

“Yes, Nurse.” Sirius sent a smirk at Remus before trying to pull his shirt on, face immediately contorting into a pained expression when his arms went over his head. Remus laughed quietly.

“Aww, do you need help getting your shirt on?” Sirius glared at him, pulling his shirt down, huffing quietly. “I’ve been reading a First Aid book published by a muggle health organization. It’s incredibly informative. I really enjoyed reading it too.” Remus let himself smile while closing, clipping, and rehiding the bag of First Aid supplies.

“You’re such a nerd, Remus. I mean, why would you read when you can climb trees or flirt.” Sirius waited until Remus was next to him to start walking back to the dorms with him.

“Because I find books much more enjoyable than people. They’re quiet, usually, and don’t require me to move very much. Pair that with the inevitable social interaction required when surrounded by other people, I tend to avoid people when I can.” Remus glanced over at Sirius as he spoke. Sirius had to tilt his head up slightly to look at Remus’ face, noticing how his hair reflected the torchlight. Well hot damn, I’m just too gay for this shit.

Sirius laughed at himself quietly, and they walked the rest of the way to the dorm in comfortable silence. Once Sirius climbed into bed, he carefully laid on his back and stared at the ceiling, thoughts racing through his mind as everything from How can I frustrate Professor McGonigal tomorrow to Should I leave James and Remus and Peter so they can finally have some peace?

His thoughts continued to wander as he fell asleep, pulling the blankets up another inch or two before drifting off.

While Sirius lay sleeping, Remus lay awake in his bed, trying to distract himself from the repetitive image of Sirius’ bruised and welted chest. Under different circumstances, Remus would’ve been incredibly embarrassed and flustered touching Sirius like that, but the bruises, cuts, welts, and scars had him in a significantly darker mood. Why would they hurt Sirius like that… actually, nevermind, they’re bastards with no souls. The better question is: Why does Sirius put himself in harm's way like that. He knows he’ll get it worse than Regulus, but yet he still chooses to take the blame for things, even small things. This is the worst I’ve seen him injured since second year…

Remus frowned at the memory of Sirius laying in his bed, asleep and severely injured. That day he’d traveled via firepit to Remus’ house after having almost been beaten to death by his own mother.

He could remember clearly the moment when he ran downstairs to see what had caused such a loud thump in his living room and panicked at the sight of Sirius covered in blood and bruises. It had taken quite a bit of both muggle remedies and magic to heal Sirius. They were lucky Remus’ mother knew First Aid and his father had become acquainted with healing spells through his work. He’d sat by Sirius for days, making sure he was okay, keeping him safe, getting him water and food and anything else he needed. Remus had been glaring at the wall with such fervor he’d given himself a headache. He groaned quietly, turning to his other side. He could hear Sirius breathing and chose to focus on that. The steadiness of his breath was calming, though Remus heard him occasionally heard Sirius’ breath hitch in his chest when he inhaled too deeply, heaven forbid he have a good night’s rest. I will have to invest more time in First Aid. It’s quite useful…

Remus closed his eyes, willing himself to sleep, after a long time of his mind disobeying him, he started to ease into foggy rest.

A few weeks had passed since the first day of the term without much transpiring in the way of excitement. James was still preparing for his first big stunt of the year, and Sirius had been busy helping him. They hadn’t gone to bed until late the previous night due to planning what had to be their biggest, awesomest project yet, a map that would be able to track the students and teacher. One only they would be able to use.

Because of the late-night, and subsequent awful sleep, Sirius woke up at the unholy hour of 05:00 AM. He didn’t normally rise this early, but after waking up in a cold sweat from a nightmare he wasn’t too eager to go back to sleep either. Slowly, he sat up and blinked slowly. His mind and body felt like they were dry and stiff, not wanting to move exactly when he needed them to, and he felt phantom pains from the dream stacked on his physical injuries. While fighting his lethargy, he got out of bed while grimacing as his rib cage shifted, then rummaged through his suitcase, yet to be unpacked, and then padded towards the bathrooms. His hair was likely a mess, but that would be fixed with a shower. And if it was still knotted, well, Remus was the only person he really let mess with his hair. James pulled too hard and hurt him, and Peter was so clumsy that the one time Sirius had let him touch his hair, it’d ended up so mangled it took Remus 3 hours to untangle. Sirius opened the doors to the bathroom, beginning to wash himself off. The water slowly woke him up enough to function, though there was still this lingering fog similar to silt covering his mind. A thought hit him in the middle of washing his hair, Today is gonna be shit… He frowned, frustratedly glaring at the wall. No, today is going to be FINE. I’m going to go to class like every morning. I’ll joke around with James, flirt with some people, and it will be good.

He stayed in the shower for another several minutes, simply because he felt like he didn’t have the energy to leave. When he finally gathered himself, he wasted more time while drying off. By the time he’d finally made it back to the boy's dorm room to put his dirty nightclothes in a basket by his bed, the other boys were up. One look at Remus told Sirius he hadn’t slept well either. They exchanged a mutual look of ‘You too, huh?’, before Remus broke eye contact to pull his sweater over his shirt. Remus had a tendency to only be semi-functional in the morning and preferred not to speak until after breakfast.

Sirius walked over to his nightstand to grab his brush, reaching out and halting when his hand closed around nothing. It’s not here… He glanced around the room and saw Remus holding it up in one hand while smiling slightly. Ah, there it is. Sirius sat cross-legged on the floor in front of Remus while James threw himself on Remus’ bed. Remus brushed out Sirius’ hair, occasionally using his fingers to untangle knots the brush wouldn’t pull through easily.

“You guys look absolutely awful. I keep forgetting you’re grouchy in the mornings.” James turned to lay on his back, watching Remus’ expression pass through 3 or 4 emotions before settling on mild dissatisfaction. Most people probably wouldn’t have noticed but, well, James had been his friend for 4 years and picked up on some things. Sirius knocked on the top of James’ head, grabbing his attention.

“Well, you see, James, when two people-” Sirius had a grin on his face before Remus cut him off.

“Late night, little sleep, you’re a baby,” Remus spoke in a quiet mumble, probably still half asleep.

“Yeah, you’re one to talk James. If you don’t get your beauty sleep you’re grumpy all day! At least Remus turns functional after 3 gallons of coffee.” Sirius grinned as he spoke, though it was partially to cover up concern. He knew Remus hadn’t gotten to sleep until the small hours of the morning. I wish I could add more hours to the night, or knock him out. He might actually get some decent sleep if we drugged him… Remus poked the hairbrush over Sirius’ shoulder, catching Sirius’ eye and pulling him out of his train of thought.

“Here.” It came out barely audible as Sirius moved out of the way so that Remus could pull on his shoes. “Breakfast… Coffee… Tired… “ Remus shoved his hands in his pockets and started to trudge down the stairs. Sirius watched him leave, eyes trailing from his back to his muted and messy blond hair. He’s frickin’ adorable when he’s tired… Sirius smiled slightly, then glanced to his side where James had been only a few moments before, though now there was only an empty spot on the bed. Did he already go down to breakfast? Or did he go to flirt with Evans? Sirius stood up, walking into the common room just in time to see Lily telling off James for being a bother this early in the morning.

Sirius felt himself smile when he saw James trying to look sincere while staring at Lily with doe eyes. For some reason, James seemed to think it was hot when she was angry, though Sirius didn’t really understand it. He turned, continuing towards the Great Hall for breakfast, climbing out of the porthole and meandering down the hallway towards their normal spot for breakfast. Remus had all but claimed the spot as solely theirs. Even though he was so tired and usually the last one awake, he was also the first person to breakfast every day. Well, almost every day. Sirius glanced at the portraits on the wall, letting his thoughts drift. He knew Peter probably wouldn’t be there until the last 10 minutes, considering he wouldn’t be waking up for another 30 minutes at least. Sirius felt the smile melt from his face while looking at the portraits on the wall, a kind of quiet resignation worming its way into his brain. These wizards have all done great things. Only half of them have gone to Hogwarts but all of them have made some kind of great achievement… I’ll never make it on this wall… or into someone else’s wall, I won’t be on my own wall in my room by the time I’m old enough to move away… His body stiffened for a moment. I won’t be on my own wall… Since when did he want to be on his own bloody family tree? Since when did he want to be part of his own piece-of-shit family in his whole life? He turned, walking the rest of the way to the Great Hall. Of course, you want to be on your own wall, with the rest of your family. You’re just like them. Manipulative, hurtful, abusive. You’re so full of yourself you’re constantly playing the victim because nothing is ever your fault. How many other kids in this hall do you think have parents like yours? Probably all of them. They don’t have the kind of money your family does, they don’t have your kind of house, your parents' jobs, your siblings, the noble life. You’ve got it so much better than them and yet you think you have it bad? What kind of pathetic kid are you?

Sirius’ nails bit into his palms as he shoved his hands into his pockets. He knew the voice was right, but what could he do about it now? He’d already told Remus 2 years ago. His skin crawled at his own deceptions. I made Remus worry about me. I whined to him about my problems even though he has worse problems than any of us. Especially me. His thoughts turned and tumbled through his mind until they seemed to fade out. Like turning translucent. He watched the doors to the Great Hall pass overhead while his head grew lighter and his emotions turned into a little ball of chalk in his chest, compressed and hard and out of the way. He sat down at the table, sending a smile to Remus out of habit. Remus will worry… He didn’t talk most of breakfast, though he wasn’t incoherent. He frowned slightly when breakfast was over. I thought… I just sat down to eat. My food is gone… I guess I ate… Sirius stood up, watching his plate disappear before walking to his first class of the day, his satchel slung over his shoulder. I hope I can pay attention…

Almost an hour later he was finally able to start paying attention to his class, jotting down messy notes while flipping to a page in his Potions book. Sometimes he'd get spacey like he had earlier today, which was a pain because he had trouble focusing when he did that, and then he'd have to catch up on notes… which inevitably meant extra work. A mental groan pushed into his thoughts, along with yet another round of awful thoughts. Why won’t you just shut up for a while, huh? It’s not like I’m a COMPLETE failure. I have decent grades, at least. It’s hard to focus with all the noise in my head. He quietly growled at his papers, frustrated at his own lack of attention. Maybe I’ll just live under a bridge and join a troll. Or I’ll live as a stray dog. At least then I won’t take up unnecessary space. At least- His thoughts were interrupted by Remus touching his arm. Little bits of electricity raced around where Remus touched the fabric of Sirius’ shirt as he shifted his gaze from the parchment to Remus’ perfect face.

“Are you okay?” Remus spoke quietly, mostly mouthing the words. His touch on Sirius’ arm lightened like he was about to pull away. Sirius nodded, then shot him a winning grin.

“Ooh, Remus. It’s so nice to know you worry about me, but I’m fine.” Sirius purposefully made it sound flirty, letting his eyes close a little while pushing a small smirk. Remus arched an eyebrow at Sirius in what seemed to be suspicion or maybe just irritation. Sirius watched Remus for only a moment but felt his smirk turn into a smile, turning back to his work. “Really, I’m okay. Thank you for asking, though.” As he turned back to his work, his mind felt clearer, though he felt strangely cold once Remus retracted his hand, returning to his work. As Sirius continued taking notes and working, he felt more at peace with Remus there. He knew that Remus cared, and he knew Remus would be there if he ever needed him.

The thoughts didn’t entirely go away for the day but it got easier to ignore them, or at least make them quieter. Most of the day passed tediously slow, except the few times he got spacey again, as opposed to the first class that had passed almost in the blink of an eye. Sirius couldn’t even remember concretely if he’d actually gone to those classes, though he was sure he had because he had a nonsense compilation of notes from all the classes combined into an incomprehensible document. It wasn’t until after dinner that he realized how tired he was. He’d spent all day either on the run between classes that were on opposite ends of the castle or trying to be coherent in class while spacing out. As he started walking back to Gryffindor Tower, James smacked the back of his head as he ran past Sirius. Snapped out of his stupor, Sirius glared at him while smiling.

“You DIDN’T.” Sirius felt his smile grow wider before Remus stepped up next to him and took his bag. After a brief smile of thanks to Remus, Sirius took off after James, chasing him down the hall and dodging around people.

“Get him back for me, Sirius!” Peter called out to Sirius, cupping his hands so Sirius would hear him. Remus smiled slightly, glancing over at Peter for a moment.

“They are pretty ridiculous.” Remus shifted Sirius’ bag higher on his shoulder as he spoke. Peter let Remus have the moment before hesitantly opening his mouth to speak.

“Hey, Remus?” Peter glanced up, raising his head quite a bit to see Remus’ face, which was almost an entire head taller. “How far away until the next visit to the shack?” Remus’ face lost the smile. Their group had started referring to full-moons as ‘visits to the shack’ in an effort to normalize their conversations about it without letting everyone in a general vicinity know about Remus’ condition. Remus let out a quiet sigh, seeming to sag slightly.

“It’s two weeks away. Supposed to be on Wednesday. Though I don’t know if that’s 100% accurate.” Remus glanced out the window momentarily to look out the window onto the Hogwarts grounds. He saw the Whomping Willow in the corner of the visible grounds through the window. Remus could only stand to look at it for a moment before returning his gaze to the floor inside the castle. Peter nodded beside him, then turned down the hall towards the Gryffindor Tower.

“I have some chocolate from the house-elves. If you want some? I’d be happy to share, it’s honestly too much for me.” Remus smiled as Peter spoke. He was very sweet, and could usually see when someone needed something and acted on it frequently. That in its own right was very brave. Remus knew more people than he chose to count that rarely acted when they saw someone in any kind of pain.

“That would be wonderful, Peter. Thank you.”

By the time Remus and Peter made it up to the tower, James was sitting on the common room couch talking to some younger students about the quickest routes between different classes, and Sirius was nowhere to be found in the common room. He’s likely laying in bed, he seemed very tired earlier today… though he also seemed upset. I wonder what’s bothering him? Peter pulled a bar of chocolate out of his bag, handing it to Remus, smiling.

“Let me know if you want any more, I think I’ve got two more bars.” Peter sat down on the couch a moment later.

“Thank you, Peter. I think I’ll go to bed, though. Today has been rather tiring.” Remus gave a short wave to Peter and James, returning Peter’s smile. He unwrapped part of the chocolate bar and began to eat it as he walked up the stairs to the boy’s dormitory, trying to think of what could be bothering Sirius. Maybe someone said something about his parents? Or someone may have said something unkind about Peter or me? In all honesty, it could have been anything, I shouldn’t be worrying too much. Remus’ thoughts stopped when he saw Sirius draped over his bed. He hadn’t even bothered to get under the covers, hair a mess all over his pillow, sprawled on the bed with one hand under the pillow. God, he’s gorgeous… Remus broke from his stupor, holding the chocolate bar in his mouth, then set his bags by his bed before walking over to Sirius, pulling back his covers and spreading them over the sleeping boy. Remus sat down on the edge of his own bed and watched Sirius for a moment, wondering what had exhausted him so thoroughly. It only took him a few bites to finish the chocolate bar. He pulled out a book as he took the last bite and felt a little disappointed that it had disappeared so quickly.

He shifted back on his bed until his back was propped up against the wall, opening the book he’d been reading to the bookmark. It was a muggle book he’d borrowed from his mother, and he enjoyed the story very much. It was about a simple, calm hobbit that got pulled into an adventure he wasn’t entirely ready for, Remus related to the character a little with all of the insanity James and Sirius pulled him into. The character was relatively soft-spoken, though not to be spoken over, and very protective. Remus smiled as he curled up, enjoying a quiet evening of reading The Hobbit and listening to the sound of rain.

///Thank you for reading. I don’t know how quickly I’ll be able to get these done, But i will try my best to post every other week, they may come more often, long chapters might take a little longer. :) Have a wonderful week and take care.///

#Constellations-in-your-soul #sirius black #remus lupin #remus x sirius #sirius x remus #wolfstar #marauders #harry potter #angsty #it will have fluff eventually I promise just not right now #slowburn

6 notes · View notes