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ghoststyles · 11 months

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Fairway to Heaven - Part 1

Hi!! I’m so excited to post my first-ever Harry fic! I’ve been on 1D Tumblr since the very beginning, logged off for 5 years and now I’m back 💀 So I’ve had a lot of ideas over the years that have just lived in my head. GOLFRRY + MUSTACHRRY are my weaknesses, so this is my twist on a golf/bev cart girl + agegap fic 🤩

I’d love to hear your thoughts. I have most of the story written, so I should be able to have a consistent posting schedule. Not sure the total # of parts quite yet. I’m also happy to write additional blurbs if y’all like Harry and Briar as much as I do 🥹🐥🦊

Here is a mood board I put together. Feel free to picture Briar however you please. The mood board is just to set the vibez!

Without further ado...Enjoy!

Word count: 4.5K

Contains mature themes. Read at your own discretion. Agegaps, cursing.

Read Part 2 | Read Part 3 | Read Part 4

By the time she gets to her designated cart, she’s already fifteen minutes late; but her iced coffee is the perfect color, and her hair didn’t give her too much trouble this morning. She smiles to herself, a win is a win.

Briar Barlowe quickly dumps a bucket of ice in her cart’s side cooler as the bar back begins filling the bin with the usual suspects: Bud Light, Michelob Ultra, Fireball, Tito’s, Casamigos, Ginger ale, and, of course, grape juice. She makes sure to keep her lavender cups stocked and plenty of fun straws to make everything more fun. She even decorates her tip jars to say funny jokes.

Since starting at Wynnewood Country Club, Briar has gained a bit of notoriety among the players as the girl with a bright smile and a heavy pour. This job is exactly what she needs to fill the gap between graduating college and beginning her business degree in the fall. Good money, stress-free responsibilities, and time spent in the sunshine.

Her Uncle, Patrick Barlowe, is the golf pro at Wynnewood; a local legend who was just shy of making the PGA Tour himself. He spends his days teaching lessons, running the pro shop and serving on the Board of Directors for the club. If you’re in with Patrick, you’re in with everyone.

When he heard her worries of not finding a summer job after graduation, it was a no brainer to offer her a position as a beverage cart girl. They both gaze out over the course from a table under the gazebo on the top deck of club’s restaurant.

“That job sounds a little sexist, Uncle Patrick,” Briar sneers. All she can picture is driving around in a little dress and a visor like Malibu Barbie, answering the male members’ every beck and call.

The club is gorgeous; first built in 1914, and the architecture reflects it. It has two golf courses, 4 tennis courts, a pool, and deluxe spa. The member fees skyrocket each year, upping the amenities and overall snootiness of the members.

“The money is good and the members are pretty harmless. From the way you’ve swindled me into throwing teddy bear tea parties, I think you’ll do just fine on the sales aspect.”

“Fine. When do I start?”

Patrick leans back in his seat, “I’ll call Dominic in the morning.”

With that, they finish their drinks and appetizers just as the sun sets.

Walking out to her car, she sees a black Range Rover pull under the carport. The boys at the valet stand are already bickering over who gets to drive this one.

Based on the surrounding town, the level of pretentiousness at the club never surprises Briar. The yearly member fee for the club can cover 2 years’ worth of her business school tuition alone. She shakes her head and jumps into her hand-me down Jeep to head back to her apartment, paying no mind to the man entering the front door of the club.

Her shift this morning started out in the frigid cold, forcing her to change outfits later in the day as the sun came out. She’s sporting her black athletic skort and a racerback tank top. She opts to leave her hair down and sport her black and white Nike trailblazers to keep the look casual.

With a few weeks’ worth of shifts under her belt, she’s learned the ways of the club and fallen into a good rhythm. On any given weekend day, she has to head to the clubhouse to restock twice before 12PM. Today is not one of those days.

As temperature warms up, the course begins to fill up. In the last hour of her shift, she’s left with only a few beers and a few shots worth of Tito’s. Her tip jar is a little emptier than usual, but the pun on her sign got a few chuckles. She sets up shop on the 17th hole and snaps a few photos of the sunset.

“I shot one under today. One under a tree, one under a bush, and one under the water.”

Briar jumps at the voice behind her. Is that an Irish accent? She leans to peer over the side of her cart. She sees a man, older than her, donning a light blue polo with dark blue pants and a white hat, reading the joke on her jar.

“Clever, isn’t it?” She smiles kindly at him.

“Hilarious. It’s like ya been watching my game today,” he laughs. He moves closer to where she’s standing.

“Can I get you anything? I’ll be honest, I’m mostly wiped out.”

He peers down at the contents of the cooler. “I’ll take that last Mich Ultra. Do you have any Casamigos left? My mate is a little picky.”

“No Casamigos,” she says with a slight frown. “I’ll try to keep my drinking to a minimum next time and save you some.”

He lets out a loud laugh and squeezes his eyes shut. “Alright, just this then. He’ll have to deal with it.”

“I can offer you some Peanut M&M’s for your troubles,” she says, pulling out her iPad to ring in the order. “Do you have an account with the club, or do you want to pay cash?”

“The account is under Niall Horan,” he says, putting a $20 bill in the jar. “Thanks for the M&M’s, darlin’.”

“I’m Briar. It was nice meeting you, Niall. Thank you!” She beams. He smiles and starts heading back to the path toward the clubhouse.

After cleaning her cart and counting her money, Briar finishes the day drinking a mojito at the bar, while Cam, her new friend at the club, is working her bar shift.

“How was it out there today, babe?” Cam asks.

“Slow at first, but it definitely picked up. I couldn’t even head back for a restock. Luckily, the members I got at the very end weren’t picky.”

“Oh! Did you see Niall?” she asks as she puts glassware in the dishwasher.

“Yeah,” Briar furrows her brows. “How did you know?”

“I used to serve him on the front course all the time. Now that I’m too old and wretched to work out on the course, he’ll visit me in here sometimes. He mentioned playing the back course with a friend today.”

Briar is always assigned to the back course. There are only minor differences in difficulty, but she finds the back course to be a little more calm and serious. They’re also a little more generous with their tips. She’s not sure if her assignment has something to do with her uncle’s knowledge of the club’s inner workings.

“He is really nice, and generous. I didn’t get to meet the friend, though. Did you?”

“Yes, he was a little more reserved. But Niall is a riot, so he makes anyone look calm. I didn’t catch his name.”

Briar hums and stirs her mojito around as she stifles a yawn. “Well, I’ve been here since 7:30 this morning, so I am ready to goooo,” she drags out her last word. She waves bye to Cam and begins the trek to the employee parking lot.

As she’s walking, she gazes up to the upper deck of the restaurant where she can just barely make out Niall standing by the railing. He’s talking animatedly and waving his beer bottle around.

A bit off to the right, peering down at her, is a tall, striking man with dark features wearing a white button down and a sport coat. The top two buttons are undone just enough to see his collarbones.

The club has a strict dress code for the restaurant. Briar often does a double take when she sees members out of their golf clothes. She wonders if he’s even allowed to show that much skin.

Shrugging it off, she continues toward her car, but not without looking back at the man. He’s still looking at her, curiously, taking a sip of his drink and turning away not long after she looks up.

She can’t help but get this strange feeling, almost as if the hairs on the back of her neck are standing straight up.

As the summer starts to heat up, so do her shifts at the course. By the end of them, Briar’s hair is sticking out sideways and her make up is smeared down her face. She bought a miniature fan that clips right to the visor of her cart to keep her cool throughout the day.

It’s just past 8:30 in the morning on Tuesday when she hears a familiar voice on the 8th hole. She squints and sees Niall, along with the dark haired man from the other night. There are a few guys she doesn’t recognize standing with them.

She maneuvers her cart through the winding path, closer to where the men are.

“There’s the beer angel!” Niall shouts. She smiles and shakes her head. He comes jogging over. “I hope you’re fully stocked this morning.”

“Yep, I am! I even have a few breakfast sandwiches, if you’re interested.”

His eyes light up as she pulls out a bacon, egg and cheese on an everything bagel from the warming drawer. Chef Lambo, the executive chef of the club, made them especially for Briar’s customers.

“Yesss. I’ll take one of those, a Mich Ultra, two Transfusions, and — H! What do you want?” He yells, partially turning to face his friend in the distance.

She faintly hears, “Casamigos!”

“And a Casamigos on the rocks, with a lime,” he finishes. It takes her only a few minutes to make the cocktails.

“Do you want these on your account?” Briar asks Niall.

He takes a huge bite of the bagel and mumbles, “No, you can put it all on my mate’s. Last name is Styles.”

Styles, or, “H” as Niall called him. The mystery man’s Last name is Styles. And, he’s a member here.

“Got it. Well, good luck today.”

“Thanks, we’ll need it. We’re trying to close a work deal with the two guys we’re playing with. Hey, don’t be afraid to swing by us multiple times. We can use all the schmoozing we can get,” he smiles.

“I think I can do that. Let me know if you need help, I’m told I’m very persuasive,” she smiles as she takes the emergency brake off of her cart. He throws another $20 in her jar and then waves, nearly dropping all of the items in his hands.

Niall returns to his group, handing out their drinks. Briar continues to watch before pulling away. H steps out from behind Niall, slightly lifting his cup — his lavender cup — towards her, as a thank you. His facial expression is stoic, watching her carefully.

She smiles to herself and drives off. The rest of the shift goes by in a blur. She swings by Niall and H’s group a few times. Each time, Niall greets her to grab more drinks and snacks.

Is that on purpose? If the drinks are on H’s account, why isn’t he coming over? She’d like to get a closer look at him. She chews on the inside of her lip and continues on with her closing duties. She loves the morning shift; in early, out early.

After parking her cart in the garage, she can see her uncle in the pro shop, glasses on the tip of his nose, peering down at something. She lightly knocks on the door and pushes it open.

“Hey, Briar bear,” he says, looking up at her. “How was your day?”

Briar sighs at her childhood nickname, plopping down on the couch by the practice putting green. Members can test out clubs before purchasing them in the pro shop, making it an optimal spot to hang out and mess around with all of the clubs.

“It was good, I just have to get used to waking up this early again. And I already know you’re going to say, ‘welcome to the real world, kid’, so just stop there,” she says sassily.

Patrick chuckles and focuses back on with his paperwork. They’re quiet for a few moments.

“What’re working on, anyway?” she asks, craning her neck to see what he’s doing.

“Just some budget sheets, and making a list of members who haven’t had a lesson from their amazing in-house golf pro,” he says, punching numbers into his phone calculator.

“They get a free lesson from you?”

“Yes, when they join. But now, to keep up member retention, we’re going to offer sessions to members who have been here for 5 years or more,” he scratches his temple. “Most of ‘em don’t need it, but I feel they always leave with a new drill to practice and some sage advice from yours truly.”

“That’s cool,” she replies absently.

“Wanna help?” Patrick asks her. She nods silently and takes a seat beside him. She sees a list of last names, first initial and an “X” next to their name if they’ve taken a lesson.

She notices an X next to “Horan, N.” but not “Styles, H”. Interesting.

Briar continues to audit the two lists, until she hears her uncle clear his throat.

“Hey, are you going to hang here for a bit? I need to run back into the main clubhouse for a few minutes.”

Patrick runs the pro shop solo during the day, until a high school or college kid can come in in the afternoon.

“Yeah, I’ll hang here. What do I do if someone needs something?”

“Then you can entertain them with your dazzling personality until I get back,” he teases, sticking his tongue out. “Alright, I’ll be back.”

“‘kay,” she says, walking back to her original spot on the sofa, laying her head back on the edge.

Her eyes are shut, only for a minute, until a brilliant idea pops in her head. She rises off the sofa and saunters over to the computer her uncle was just working on.

The employee portal is logged in under Patrick’s account. Briar doesn’t know much about it, aside from using it to clock in and clock out. It’s still on the member screen, an area she’s 100% sure she doesn’t have access to.

She peruses the site until she finds a “Member Look-Up” tab. Briar’s intrusive thoughts win.

She slowly punches in S-T-Y-L-E-S and waits for the results to populate. 2 results found.

She clicks on the first profile. An account pulls up for a Paul Styles, and a photo of a white-haired man pops up.

Well, that’s certainly not him, Briar thinks to herself. She exits out and clicks on the next account. No profile photo opens, but the name is at the top. She bites her thumbnail in anticipation of what she’ll see.

Harry Styles. H. Niall’s mysterious friend. The tequila lover.

She starts to scroll down the page. The profile is more bare than the other man’s, but she can see the basic things about him. He’s 41, joined the club 8 years ago. He lives in another pretentious town only a few miles away.

Then, she sees a “Member Activity” tab. Out of curiosity, she clicks on it. Her eyes widen, seeing every transaction he’s ever made on his account. His “dues” each year. Holy shit.

His purchases seem pretty standard for members of Wynnewood. Mostly rounds of Casamigos on the rocks (shocking) and dinners ranging from $100-$400, with a few bills over $1,000.

He joined 8 years ago, but his transactions have only begun to pick up in the last month or so. Before, his visits were sporadic at best.

Briar can’t even fathom having that sort of money to throw away. She started working at age 14 and never stopped. The only reason she gets a taste of country club life is because of her uncle.

She closes out the portal, not wanting to risk Patrick walking in while she’s snooping around. She returns to her spot on the sofa and begins playing 1010! on her phone.

She exhales and tosses her phone to the side. As she sits up, Patrick reenters the pro shop.

“Thanks, Bri. Heading home soon?”

“Yeah, I gotta get back home for Gus,” she smiles, thinking about her dog. Her baby.

“Alright, I’ll catch you later. Say hello to my buddy for me. And give him a butt scratch — Tell him it’s from Uncle Patty.”

“Will do. See ya.”

When she’s showered and comfy at home, with Gus, her Bernese Mountain Dog, snuggled at her side, she finally feels relaxed.

She’s worked nearly every day since she started. But, those are the sacrifices of a summer job.

She turns on Selling Sunset on Netflix to drown out the silence of her apartment. Already bored of this season, she pulls out her phone.

One last round of stalking, then she’ll let it go. She opens Instagram and begins typing in Harry’s name in the search bar. Nothing. Hm.

She tries Niall, immediately getting a hit. She clicks on his account to find it public, full of funny and happy photos. He’s clearly from Ireland, but has lived in the United States for some time. She wonders if he went to school here, or if he just got a job here.

She scrolls down to a group photo — on the golf course, of course — of Niall, Harry, and a few other guys. They look a lot younger here. She can see the photo is from 7 years ago. Harry’s stoic face is a stark contrast to Niall’s infectious smile. She clicks on the photo to see if Harry’s profile is tagged. Nothing.

Defeated, she moves onto LinkedIn. She tries Harry’s name again. Within 10 seconds of the search engine results popping up on the screen, her eyes land on exactly what she’s looking for. He has a profile. Her heart starts beating a little faster.

Really, Briar? All this for a guy you’ve barely caught a glimpse of? She clicks on the profile and sees the most gorgeous man at the top. He looked good from afar, but this is totally different.

Sticking out to her is his chiseled jaw, pouty lips, and beautiful (green?) eyes. His hair is longer in this photo than what she’s seen him with the past 2 times at the club, but she figures this page is old.

She scrolls down to the employment history. He works for a hedge fund. No wonder he has that kind of cash laying around. He’s been at the same company for a number of years, and received his bachelor’s degree from Georgetown and his MBA from the University of Pennsylvania. Smart dude.

She notes his MBA graduation year is 2006. She laughs, knowing she was probably still playing on a playground that year.

She exits out of the page, proud of her findings. She decides to text Cam about Niall’s friend.

B: Hey! So I totally stalked Niall online. His friend’s name is Harry! 😆

C: So funny, how’d u do it? 😂

B: Instagram for Niall, and earlier, I used Wynnewood’s portal to look up Harry. I just went on his LinkedIn, too. Now, I know all about his work and schooling, lol.

C: Your account is private, right? 😳

C: It notifies people if you’ve looked at their profile unless you’re private…

B: What?! I didn’t know that…WTF do I do?

Briar’s stomach drops. He’s probably already gotten the notification by now. She’s mortified. She logs back on to LinkedIn and deactivates her account. Reddit says those are her best chances of counteracting the notification.

She decides to go to bed, but ends up tossing and turning until 3 AM, knowing her alarm is set for 6:30. She stares at the ceiling, pleading for Harry not to show up at the club tomorrow.

The morning comes around, and after mustering enough courage to get up and make herself presentable, she rolls into work, ready to jump on her cart and be lazy. The universe (or Uncle Patrick, probably!) has a different plan.

Since it’s a holiday weekend, Briar is working inside for a change. She feels a little out of her element. She’s worked in restaurants in the past, but it’s always a little stressful when you have know idea where anything is, or how to use the register.

Taking a moment to survey the large banquet room, she doesn’t see Niall or Harry. She begins to relax. Until, 30 minutes later, she sees both of them enter and begin talking to the hostess.

Please don’t go to my section, she thinks. She watches the girl gathers 4 menus and turns to lead the men further into the room. Briar’s worry grows more with each step the hostess takes toward her section. Fuck.

She seats them down at a 4 person table right in the middle of Briar’s section, assuming the two men from yesterday will be joining them.

She takes a few deep breaths before grabbing a water jug and two stemmed water glasses. She casually approaches the table, lightly placing the water glasses down and filling them.

Niall looks up briefly with a smile before exclaiming, “There she is! I requested you to be our server after I saw you at the coffee machine over there.”

Briar smiles before turning her attention to Harry, who hasn’t glanced up from his menu. She looks back at Niall.

“Awesome! This is going to be great,” she lies through her teeth.

While this exchange is happening, she can feel Cam’s eyes burning through the back of her head. Cam is the service bartender of the day, so she has time to people watch and laugh at Briar’s bad luck.

“Are we waiting for any more guests to join us?” Briar asks.

Niall clears his throat and says, “Yes, those two blokes from yesterday. Harry here is going to close the deal with them today.”

Harry glances up at her with a shy smile. She reciprocates, unsure if he’s aware of her cyberstalking from last night.

“Wow, well, I’ll make sure my service is extra good, then. Can I throw in some drinks while you wait?”

“I’ll have an Old Fashioned. Harry?” Niall turns to his friend.

“Casamigos on the rocks for me, please. With a lime. Thank you.”

“You got it,” she says with a tight-lipped smile. Of course that’s the very first thing he ever says to her. And he’s BRITISH?

Cam laughs as the ticket prints at the bar.

“Oh, shut up,” Briar grumbles.

The other men finally arrive, and the meal goes by at a snail’s pace. When the group is finally ready to order, Briar is already mentally checked out. Briar goes to take Harry’s order.

“What can I get for you?”

“I’ll have the chicken, please,” he says simply.

“And how would you like that cooked?” Briar asks, furiously scribbling on her note pad.

Harry’s face contorts to a perplexed look, almost as if he was about to laugh.

“Um…cooked…all the way through?” He stifles a chuckle.

Niall bursts out laughing, cluing Briar in. She realizes the others ordered porterhouse steaks, so, out of habit, she asked how they’d like them prepared.

Her eyes go wide, “Right, well, I’ll go put these in. Thanks!” She shuffles away at lightning speed.

Harry stares at her from across the room, smirking when they make eye contact. She wants to bury her head in the sand trap on the golf course.

When the meal is done, the men shake hands, and Niall and Harry look relieved. They ask for another round of drinks for the two of them and the check. Niall heads toward the restroom while Harry pays. She tries to bolt as soon as the check is dropped, but she hears Harry clear his throat.

She turns to face him.

“We’re about to go play a quick round of 9-holes to celebrate. Are you our beer angel today, or are you stuck in here?” Harry says, as he opens his wallet.

Briar feels her heart begin to race. She’s sure her face is beet red. The word angel rolls off his tongue so easily.

“Um, no, I’m um, stuck in here for the rest of the day. I’ll be back on Sunday, though,” she says quietly.

“Shame, I was starting to think you were bringing me all of my luck. I’ve been crushing these guys in our last few rounds,” he smiles, swirling the remnants of his drink around.

She bites the inside of her lip, unsure if she should still be holding eye contact. He hands her the checkbook, full of cash. She smiles, unable to speak.

“Oh, and Briar— I’m an open book. If you wanted to know more about me, you could’ve just asked,” he says with a sickeningly sweet smile.

That’s the moment Niall returns to the table, and presumably the only reason she doesn’t drop to the floor in fetal position.

“Thanks, Briar. Lunch was great. We’ll see you next time,” Niall says sweetly.

“Thanks!” she squeaks, scurrying to the back, where she nearly mows down Cam.

“Woah! What’re you doing?” Cam squeals.

“He KNOWS!” Briar wails.

“Who? Who knows — OH!” Cam shrieks. “What did he say to you?”

“He said, ‘Briar, I’m an open book. If you wanted to know more about me, you could’ve just asked.’”

Cam’s mouth drops open. “Did he say it with his sexy accent and sultry voice?”

“Shut up!”

“Fine. Well, what did he tip you?” she asks, reaching for the book in Briar’s hand.

She opens it, finding enough cash to cover the $450 tab, and an extra $300 as a tip.

“Damn! Who has that much cash at one time?” Cam laughs.

Briar flips to the back of the book, only to find a note on a small piece of paper:

I’m an Aquarius, in case you were wondering. : - )

She stares blankly at the note. When did he have time to do this? Was he going to slip this note to her regardless? A million thoughts run through her head, until she hears Cam.

“What a creepy-ass old person smiley face,” she says, shaking her head.

Briar thinks it’s the cutest thing in the world.

Finally, her shift ends and she can escape the club, just for a day. As she heads towards the women’s locker room, she’s rummaging through her bag, attempting to fish out her street clothes so she can change as quickly as possible.

As she stalks closer to the locker room, she collides head-first into a firm, wet object. She feels strong hands grasp her hips to steady her.

“What the fuck?” she says, moving the hair out of her eyes, only to be met with a strong tattooed torso, partially covered by towel tied loosely around the person’s waist.

Her next words die in her throat as she looks up.

Harry.

Harry, who just left the steam room.

He smirks down at her, gently letting go of her waist. Suddenly, she feels hot, as if she were just in there with him. Briar’s fight or flight kicked-in, causing her to spin on her heels and flee in the opposite direction.

He senses she’d run, so he gently grabs her wrist, locking her in place. She peers up at him like a deer in headlights. His other hand is firmly planted on his hip to hold up his towel, in fear of giving the whole club a show.

He tilts her chin up so she’s making direct eye contact. Her stomach drops, sending a wave of nausea through her body. She studies his face; long eye lashes, slight stubble and two dimples that form as he smirks down at her softly.

“I told you, I’m not shy.”

He releases her chin and saunters back to the mens’ locker room.

#ghoststyles #fairway to heaven #Harry styles smut #harry styles fanfic #harry styles fanfiction #golfrry #dom!harry #daddy!h

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darkeralmond · 10 months

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UR WISH IS MY COMMAND!!

New To Downtown

Trevor Zegras x Reader

synopsis: trevor and you finally go on your first bar hopping date

warnings: fluff, trevor being adorable

word count: 1.2k

a/n: MAKING A PT 2 WAS SO FUN!! this is such a cute au!

masterlist | request info

i. ii.

A week went by before you and Trevor settled on an official date to go out bar hopping. He had been so busy with games, but he was finally free.

After meeting Trevor, your perception of hockey changed. You watched a ton of his highlights and rewatched full games. Now you had a better idea of hockey which is something you could now talk to him about.

As you fixed yourself up in the mirror, you heard your phone buzz. You lunged for it and checked the notification. It was a text from Trevor.

Trevor

Hey! I’m outside

I’ll be down there in a sec

*liked by Trevor*

You stared at yourself again in the mirror, taking a couple deep breaths. You felt your heart race at a rapid speed as you grew a bit anxious.

You sprayed yourself with more perfume and threw on more lip gloss before heading out. You tucked your lip gloss and phone in your pockets. “I’m heading out!” you yelled out to your friend as you left the apartment.

You went down the elevator and walked through the lobby. You saw Trevor’s car parked on the sidewalk next to your building. You opened the passenger door and sat down. “Hi!” Your smile subconsciously grew wide.

“Hey!” He was grinning from ear to ear. He glanced down at your outfit and nodded his head. “You look pretty.”

Butterflies swarmed your stomach as you glanced off. “Thanks,” you answered, growing bashful in his presence. He snickered at your reaction before putting the car into drive.

“You wanna plug into the aux?” he asked, gesturing to the aux cord. You agreed and hooked up to the cord before pulling up your music.

You didn’t know what music he liked or didn’t like. You just knew you had the playlist that reminded you of the meet-cute moment between you two. “What do you want to listen to?”

“Whatever you want,” he said. The sound of his voice as it briefly rasped caused your breath to hitch while blood rushed to your cheeks, turning them rosy red. He glanced over at you then back at the busy road, a chuckle rose out of him.

You decided to pick that exact playlist that reminded you of the coffee shop. One Thing by One Direction instantly started playing through the speakers.

At first you felt a bit embarrassed that he wouldn’t like it, but you looked over at him and watched as his head bobbed to the beat.

He broke into a smile then glanced over at you. “What song is this? It sounds familiar.” That question alone shook you to your core.

You let out a loud, exaggerated gasp. “You don’t know One Direction?!”

This won a laugh out of him. “I don’t usually listen to boy bands!” he argued. You laughed at how defensive he was, causing him to roll his eyes. “Whatever.”

Eventually, you made it downtown where he parked on the side of the road and paid through the parking meter. Now you were able to get a good look at what he was wearing as he stepped out of the car.

He wore a backwards black cap with his hair flowing out of it, a beige button up shirt, and black cargo shorts. Basic, but cute!

He turned to you when he was done paying. “Alright, there’s this place right up the street. That’s a good place to start.” You nodded your head and walked with him side by side.

“Did you already eat?” he asked, looking down at you. You looked up and shook your head. Were you supposed to?

He laughed at the worried expression that swept across your features. “Okay, good. I heard this place has really good food.”

A relieved smile slipped on your face as giggles bubbled out of you. “Perfect.” Eventually, you made it up to the bar. It looked more like a brewery due to its large size. “Woah,” you muttered under your breath.

He chuckled again and looked down at you. “Welcome to a downtown Anaheim bar and grill,” he said.

He held the door open for you and as soon as you stepped in. You looked like a little kid who walked into a candy store.

There was a live cover band on the stage performing country songs. There were people all around dancing, drinking, and chatting. There were servers bringing out food to the people who chose to sit down at the bar and booth area. It was so lively.

A waitress walked up to you two and gave Trevor a polite grin. “Hi, welcome in! Booth for two?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Trevor answered. You felt a pang of jealousy in your heart.

She grabbed a couple menus before leading you two to your designated booth. She placed the menus down and clapped her hands together. “The usual?”

“Snake bite,” Trevor instantly responded. Seems like he was a regular here.

“And what would you like?” She looked over at you awaiting your response.

Your mind went blank as you tried to come up with a drink order. “Uh, do you guys have rum and coke?” She smiled and nodded her head. “Then I’ll have that.”

“Okay, I’ll be right out with those.” She went back to the bar area leaving you and Trevor alone again.

“Do you come here often? She instantly knew your order,” you laughed, trying to figure out why she knew his order.

He laughed, taking off his hat and running his fingers through his hair before putting it back on. “Yeah, the team always comes here after wins. You should’ve seen the place after the overtime win. The drinks kept coming.”

You laughed, resting your chin in the palm of your hand. Speaking of drinks coming, the waitress came back and placed the drinks down. “Is there anything you would like to start with?” she asked as she pulled out her pen and pad.

Trevor ordered a dozen boneless buffalo wings for the table and she headed off to the kitchen. The band finished the song, the whole bar clapping. “They’re really good,” Trevor said.

You nodded and looked back at the band as they got ready for their next song. Suddenly, you heard the instrumental to one of your favorite country songs, Play It Again by Luke Bryan.

You gasped, “I love this song!”

Trevor smiled, glancing over at the band then back at you. “You wanna dance?”

Your cheeks instantly flushed red, butterflies swarming in your stomach. A stupid grin slipped on your face while you nodded your head.

He got out of the booth and went over to your side of the table with his hand held out. You took it and he led you out to the dance floor where there were other couples dancing.

He twirled you around before placing his other hand on your wait. You giggled as you snaked your arm around his neck, looking directly in his eyes. The dance floor was really dimly lit. The very little light illuminating his face, making his distinct features even more beautiful.

Trevor’s lips curved into a smile. “I already love spending time with you, I would love to hang out again.”

You giggled, “Is this you asking me out on a second date?”

“Depends,” he chuckled. “Would you say yes to a supposed second date?”

You nodded your head. “Yes,” you answered.

His cheeks dusted a rosy red tiny as he nodded his head. “Then yes,” he said. “I am.”

#trevor zegras x reader #trevor zegras x y/n #trevor zegras #hockey player x reader #nhl

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roarriita · 1 year

Text

the chick from apartment 512 - ellie williams (2)

femreader!xelliewilliams!

part one, here

content warning: explicit language, mentions/use of drugs and cigarettes

// initial summary: although your new neighborhood was a bit shady and the apartment elevator made an eerie sound whenever it'd start up, it was all you could afford. move in day proved to be better than expected when you caught sight of your new neighbor. her auburn hair and green eyes seemed to be all the proof that you needed, to know that this new chapter of your life would be worth paying attention to and not just skimming over. //

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an unguarded mind, leads to untainted thoughts.

it's been a week since you moved in across the hall and ellie hasn't been able to get you off her mind. your hair, your skin, your eyes, the way you spoke. it all swarmed her mind like bees to an open jar of honey.

cocky doesn't look good on pretty girls. a small smirk played on her lips as she recalled the snarky comment. ellie enjoyed making you nervous, but she enjoyed the way you bit back, even more.

the girl rose from her couch and went to the kitchen. she made some peanut butter toast and poured herself a glass of chocolate milk. whenever she'd get these kinds of thoughts about a girl, she'd try using food as a way to distract herself. usually, it worked, but in other cases, it failed, it failed miserably, kind of like how it was failing right now.

ellie grabbed her phone and thought about calling the girl she was currently ‘seeing’. she looked at the caller id as she bounced the idea around. right as she was about to click the 'call' button, she heard a clash of keys drop on the floor, followed with a long groan. ellie, wanting to know if that was your or not, walked over to her front door and opened it.

there, the chick from 512 was met with the sight of you in your dirty scrubs and your hair in a sloppy bun. your keys sat right in front of your smudged tennis shoes as you began to bang your forehead on your door in frustration. worried, ellie walked up to you. right as you were about to go for your 4th head bang, ellie placed her hand against the spot that you were abusing yourself with.

you slightly jumped back at the sudden skin to skin contact. "shit."

this was a new sight for ellie. she's only ever seen you three times since you moved in. the first time was when you made your snarky comment, the second time was when you were coming home from grocery shopping and the third was when you were getting in jesse's car. all those times you looked dolled up and clean, which never helped the consuming thoughts she had about you.

"are you okay?" the auburn-haired girl asked. you wanted to lie and say you were fine but the events that occurred at work today completely drained you. without even trying to look like you weren't on the brick of death, you simply shook your head. "what happened?"

your shaky hands went to brush some hair out of your face as you tried finding the words. ellie realized just how bad she had it for you when she still found you tempting in your filthy state.

"just another hellish day at work is all." you sighed.

"guessing from your attire, i'd say you were a nurse?" ellie questioned.

"bingo." you confirmed. "i love my job, i love it more than i love most things in life but sometimes it can get so overwhelming."

"i could only imagine." ellie sympathized. "where do you work?”

"saint martin memorial hospital." you answered.

"ouch." ellie winced. "i've been there a couple of times and it's always pure chaos in the e.r."

"ugh, i know." you groaned. "and that's where i got assigned today. my coworkers and i call it satan's lair of torment."

ellie chuckled. "well, i'm sorry you had to go through that." she then bent down to pick up your keys. "if it makes you feel better, i work at a warehouse," she came back up. "so the closes i've ever been to saving someone's life was smacking the new guys hand out of the balers opening."

you laughed, imagining the scenerio. "why would he put his hand in it?"

"when we were throwing away the discarded cardboard boxes, he accidentally flung his phone inside too." ellie said.

your hand flew over your mouth. "oh no, what happened to his phone."

"it go smashed into a thousand little pieces." ellie chuckled.

you started laughing again as everything was 10 times funnier to you when you were tired. ellie couldn't help the way her smile grew at the sound of your laughter. "that fucking sucks."

"yeah, but it was fine. my um- my dad, he owns the warehouse, so i was able to get him to compensate the dude for the phone." ellie shared.

"oh, how nice of you." you said with a hint of exaggeration.

"i try." ellie said, matching your tone of voice.

you chuckled as you took your hair out from its messy bun. "but that's so cool that you work in a warehouse. it explains why you're so toned." you quickly messaged your scalp as a way to loosen up your hair.

"you're not too bad yourself." ellie smirked.

you scoffed as you dropped your arms to your side. "don't ruin the moment by doing that."

"doing what?" ellie asked.

"acting all cocky and flirty." you pointed out.

"what're you talking about?" ellie continued to act clueless. "this is just me, it's who i am." ellie crossed her arms. her flexed upper arms caused you to swallow the lump in your throat.

"no, the ellie i was just joking with was you." you then gestured to her. "this is you trying to do- do, i don't even know what."

ellie looked at your name tag and then back at your stern face. "(y/n) (y/l/n). i like that. it rolls off the tongue nicely." she then took out a cigar from her pocket and lit it.

you tried to not let the fact that she disregarded everything you said, get to you. "well, i'm going to bed." you said as you tried unlocking your door.

"aw, come on, i was just teasing, (y/n)." ellie chuckled as she slightly turned her head to the side to blow the smoke out of her lungs. "here, take a drag. it'll help you with your stress." she held out the cigarette.

you pushed her hand away, causing a tingle of excitement to rush in between the two of you. "i don't smoke. it's bad for your lungs."

"like at all?" ellie questioned. "not even marijuana?"

you shook your head but then stopped. "well hold on, mj is different." ellie lightly laughed at how your demeanor changed when it came to the hallucinating herb. "mj is actually helpful when it comes to the whole anxiety thing."

"i can't argue with you there." ellie shrugged. she then noticed the bandage on your left hand. "what happened there?" she pointed to it.

your eyes trailed over the palm of your hand and you rolled your eyes, remembering the incident. "a 40 something year old man came into the e.r. with a knife, announcing to the entire room that he was the antichrist and that the end was near." you said. "he then flung the knife at one of my patients and i instinctively put up my hand up to block it."

ellie sat the cigarette between her lips as she began to clap. "and she gets even hotter." you scratched the back of your head, trying not to blush. she thinks i'm hot?

"what happened to the guy after?" ellie asked.

she honestly couldn’t give a fuck less about the guy's wellness. the auburn-haired girl could just tell how much tired you were growing by the second out here and knew you'd be wanting to go to bed soon.

"security tackled him and held him down until the cops arrived." you held back a yawn, causing your eyes to get watery.

ah shit, ellie began to feel bad for keeping you out here just so that she could spend more time listening to you talk. "are you free tomorrow night?"

"yeah?" you answered in a questioning tone. "why?"

"well, i'm sure you have more crazy nursing stories to share and i want nothing more than to spend monday night listening to all of them." ellie answered in the most non-chalant attitude.

"hmm..." you thought about it. "as friends?"

"definitely, yeah." ellie assured.

"okay, fine." you smiled. "my house at 6?"

"make it 5." her eyes sparkled as she took another drag from her cigar.

"alright then, tomorrow at 5." you said as you opened your door. "don't be late, goodnight.”

"goodnight.” ellie replied as she began to back away, and with one more exchange of smiles, you two went back inside your respective apartments.

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part three, here

// author’s note: i use to pump out chapters like everyday, what happened? oh yeah, work and writers block, ugh!! i wasn’t even planning on making this a multiple part series but you guys liked it so much that i couldn’t help but make it in to one (and plus, i really like the synopsis of this fanfic.) if this chapter felt a bit iffy, bear with me! i just really needed to write and publish something for the sake of getting past writers block. i hope you guys are having a great day and if not i am sending my best wishes! //

#ellie williams fanfic #tlou #ellie williams #tlou2 #ellie williams au #elliexreader #ellie x fem!reamder #cocky ellie #ellie williams x reader

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bettyfrommars · 7 months

Text

Everlong

part 1: hello, I've waited here for you

Eddie Munson x Steve Harrington

18+Only, smut, older!eddie, older!steve, unprotected anal sex, first time experience, oral m/m, anal play, rimming, fingering, no Vecna, deep feelings, mention of porn and of an orgy, creampie, but it's also very fluffy, Eddie has had a crush on his best friend for a long time. wc: 5.9k

It's the mid-late 90's in Hawkins, Eddie and Steve are both in their 30's, and have recently moved back after several life upsets. Eddie has his own trailer across town, and that is where he offers to let Steve stay for a week, and old feelings resurface.

author's note: There will be 2 parts to this. I fully intended to work on something Halloween themed, but then the inspiration for this happened. Just goes to show how my mind doesn't like to be told what to do.

"If everything could ever be this real forever If anything could ever be this good again The only thing I'll ever ask of you You've got to promise not to stop when I say when..."

-- Everlong, Foo Fighters

Steve’s week-long stay with Eddie was half over, and Eddie felt that reality sink his heart as he opened the door to his trailer.

“Honey, I’m home,” he announced with a spring in his step.

He lived in a trailer park across town now, it was double wide, and felt like a luxury after all of those years he spent crowding in with Wayne. He missed the old man though and went over to Forest Hills every couple of days to visit.

He never thought he’d be back in Hawkins a decade after high school, but he’d dropped everything to move to Indianapolis for a girl he was seeing, and then got his heart shattered a year later.

Coming back to his hometown felt a bit like failure, but it also felt safe. He still had good friends there, and he didn’t want to be alone anymore. Working as a welder at the local fabrication shop was not his dream job, but it paid the bills, and he was comfortable. He even got to play a show with his old band every now and then.

He put the Chinese take out on the island between the kitchen and the living room and called Steve’s name again. But then he caught sight of the piece of paper on the coffee table:

“Went for a run. BRB.”

The note made Eddie grin and feel all goofy, like somehow that small courtesy was such a huge act of love. He hadn’t been treated very well by his partners over the years, and that revelation stung him in moments like that.

Steve had also done the dishes, and the living room was spotless and organized. The ashtray on the coffee table had been dumped out and cleaned, all of the Guitar World magazines stacked neatly. When he opened the fridge to grab a beer, he found that they were all lined up in a row. Eddie kept telling him he didn’t have to do any of that, but Steve said that if he didn’t stay busy, he’d go crazy, and Eddie respected it.

Steve Harrington and Eddie had remained best friends, even through the years and the distance and the failed relationships. It just so happened that Steve was at the tail end of a very messy divorce, and needed a place to crash now that he was back from Chicago. His ex-wife had managed to take him for every penny he had, so Eddie was quick to offer his place after he joked about having to sleep in his car (it wasn’t a joke).

Eddie played the message blinking on his machine to find that it was from Robin. She’d also moved back to Hawkins recently, but she worked 50 hours a week, had two roommates, and was dating a woman from another town, so they didn’t get to see each other as much as they’d like. The three of them had a bowling date set for that coming weekend, and it gave Eddie the warm fuzzies to think about them all being back together again.

Eddie was in the shower with his dick in his hand, stroking it, when Steve burst in. “Hey man,” the intruder grabbed something from the medicine cabinet, and then braced his hands on

the sink before splashing some water on his face. “God damn, I am out of shape. That was rough.” Steve coughed a few times and then wiped his face on the nearby towel.

He couldn’t see Eddie through the dark blue curtain, but had he heard him? There was a possibility that Eddie had been talking to himself, thinking about Steve, and grunting a little as he got himself hard.

“Food smells good,” Steve added as he walked back out into the hall, but left the door wide open. “I’m starving.”

Nah, he hadn’t heard anything.

“I got those weird noodles you like,” Eddie shouted over the sound of the shower. “And sweet and sour chicken.” Steve didn’t have to tell Eddie what he wanted from the restaurant down the street; Eddie always paid attention to those things.

“Hey, leave me some hot water,” Steve was in the doorway again. “Or should I just get in there with you? Save some resources?”

“Not unless you want to soap my balls, Harrington,” and then Eddie threw his fist against the curtain. “Get out, and shut the fucking door, you creep.”

—-------

After dinner and a beer on the porch, the boys retired to their respective positions on the couch while Eddie rolled a joint. The movie Ghostbusters was on TV, but it was interrupted by a string of commercials, and Steve tucked his foot under him on the opposite end of the couch while he watched Eddie lick the paper.

“Okay if I have a drag?” Steve asked, resting his cheek on his knuckles.

Eddie snapped a look at him and raised his eyebrows. “Oh, hell yes. You think you can handle it?” The metalhead sat back, rolling the piece between his fingers, and then he wet one end and grabbed his lighter.

“I can handle whatever you can handle, Munson.”

“I’m gonna hold you to that, Harrington,” Eddie smirked and took a stiff inhale before passing it to his friend.

Steve’s ex-wife had insisted on a very straight-edge lifestyle, and he hadn’t had a whiff of weed in almost 3 years, so he took a cautious pull.

And then he coughed, and banged his chest, and spittle flew from his wet lips.

“Damn, alright,” Eddie hummed. “I take it back, you are a badass.”

“Shit,” Steve could feel the drug seeping into his bloodstream and his senses. “Feels good. Feels kinda…tingly.”

“Ahh if only to have your tolerance again,” Eddie mused, taking another long drag. The show came back on, and the Ghostbusters were checking out the slime and stacks of books in the library.

They watched a few minutes of the movie while Eddie continued to smoke. He offered it to Steve again, but he passed.

“Hey, do you remember that one time we watched a porno together?” Steve just blurted it out from nowhere, completely unprompted.

Still, Eddie knew exactly which porn he was talking about, and the exact night that it happened.

“I think so,” Eddie tapped his ash out. “Maybe. Were we at my old place?”

“Yeah,” Steve nodded, keeping his eyes on the screen. “It was the summer you graduated, and Wayne was at work and you were like ‘hey Steve, wanna watch some vampire ass fucking?”

Eddie scoffed. “Shut up, that is not what I said.”

“Well,” Steve was clearly exaggerating, chuckling to himself. “That’s what they were doing.”

The movie was called, “Bloodsucking Orgy” and it was a bisexual vampire porn. But the actors were wearing fake, plastic teeth, and the cheap makeup dripped off of their faces as they fucked, but it was some of the hottest shit Eddie had ever seen at the time.

What Steve didn’t tell him was that he had to pull over to jerk off in his car that night, not only thinking about the raw breeding on film, but the way Eddie had palmed himself over his jeans, clearly aroused. That was the first night, all those years ago, when Steve had first questioned his sexuality.

“I had that vhs with me for a long time,” Eddie held in a tight breath and then released a large plume of smoke. “It was under my bed in a box for years, but I think my ex took it.”

“Trevor?” Steve asked, thinking of the last boyfriend that Eddie had introduced to him that he didn’t like. Come to think of it, he hadn’t approved of any guy or girl Eddie had dated in a long while; In Steve’s mind, no one was good enough for his best friend.

“Nah,” Eddie lowered his chin, shyly. “I only dated him for like, a week. It was barely a handjob. I’m talking about Jake, the one with the mohawk.”

“The guy who juggled bowling pins at the fair?” Steve rolled his eyes. “I swear, you know how to pick them, Munson.”

Eddie squinted across the couch at his friend as another commercial came on. Maybe the weed was a little stronger that night but, was Steve…jealous?

Steve stole a long glance at Eddie when he got up to use the bathroom, taking in the curve of his muscles under the thin white Hanes of his t-shirt and the arc of his resting cock under his sweats.

They watched a bit more of the movie, speaking the lines to the parts they knew by heart.

“I’m going to miss this when you go,” Eddie muttered.

Steve’s apartment would be ready by Monday, and Eddie was dreading the lonely nights when Steve wasn’t there on the couch with him.

“I’ll be just down the road, man,” Steve assured, taking a sip of his beer. “I thought you’d be glad to get me out of your hair, so you could get back to your bachelor pad life.”

Eddie figured Steve was just confused, so he decided to jog his memory. “I haven’t so much as gone on a date with anyone in almost a year. This is hardly a rockin’ bachelor pad.”

For some reason, this gave Steve a sense of relief.

Ghostbusters ended and Eddie told Steve to wait right where he was, as if he’d go anywhere, since the couch was also his bed.

When Eddie sauntered back from the dark hallway, he was carrying two black, clamshell vhs covers. They were blank on the outside, with no words on the spine, and Steve knew exactly what they were, even from far away.

“Let me guess,” he raised his eyebrow. “Bloodsucking Orgy Part 2?”

Eddie chuckled. “Close! No, but they are just as bad.”

Steve adjusted himself in a way that made Eddie look over his shoulder as he put the tape in the vcr. “You okay with this? I figured…for old time’s sake?”

“Sure, yeah, why not?” Steve ran his fingers through his hair a few times and adjusted the collar of his tee because suddenly he felt very hot.

To say that Eddie was testing Steve would be wrong. Eddie had no idea that the events in Bloodsucking Orgy had been a bit of a sexual awakening for his friend.

The actions in the movie would turn Eddie on, sure, but he could control himself for a few minutes if it meant being able to get a laugh at the way Steve’s face twisted up at the ridiculousness of it all.

The credits came on to let you know that this was a “Two Dicks, One Hole Production” and the boys clapped.

There was about 3 minutes of what you’d call “plot” where a bunch of zombies stormed inside this woman’s house while she was having a tupperware party, and then they were suddenly all compelled to have sex.

“Look out, Scorsese,” Steve bubbled a laugh into the palm of his hand.

Eddie clucked his tongue. “No one appreciates good cinema these days.”

One zombie had its head between a woman’s legs on the table while one of her friends squatted down on her face and rode her tongue.

Some of the husbands came by to rescue their wives, but then they ended up getting dicked down as well. It was all purely entertaining at first, but all of a sudden, Steve felt his cock twitch. He palmed himself over his boxers, and looked over to find that Eddie was doing the same thing.

Eddie glanced over and caught Steve staring at him while he touched himself and suddenly, he wasn’t at all interested in the movie anymore.

“Why does it--” Steve started, swallowing hard. "Why does it always look like it feels so good?"

“What?” Eddie rested his head on the back of the couch. “Being attacked by a flesh-eating zombie?”

“No,” Steve nibbled at his lip. “When they put it…in their ass…like that. The dudes I mean.”

Eddie couldn’t even hear the sound from the tv anymore, his ears were ringing. “Because it does feel good, sometimes, when the right cock is in your ass.”

Steve’s breath hitched at the tone of Eddie’s voice. “You like the feel of it, don’t you?”

Eddie couldn't help himself; he cupped his balls under the blanket. “Yeah, um, I do.”

“I’ve wondered about it,” Steve admitted in a whisper, sliding a hand down slowly to palm himself over his jeans. He was getting hard and needed the friction. “I've wondered what it would feel like. I think I might like it.”

“You do?” Eddie’s voice was low.

Was this really happening? Was Steve just shooting the shit? Or was he trying to throw clues down? If so, how should he handle it? He’d masturbated to this scenario so many times in his life but had no idea how he would make his move in real time.

Steve hadn't planned this. He'd had thoughts about Eddie before, sure, but he never imagined he'd do anything about it while he was staying at his place. How embarrassing would it be if his friend rejected him? He had to play it cool so he could make it out like he was kidding if that happened.

With a surge of adrenaline, Steve scooted closer, and his friend met him in the middle of the couch.

“I have no idea what I’m doing,” Steve’s eyes searched the other pair of chocolate orbs, and they were so close now, Eddie’s pulse was skyrocketing. “I don’t want this to make anything weird between us.”

“I’m fine with it if you are,” Eddie mumbled. There was a voice in his head screaming at him not to miss his chance. He pinched the front of Steve’s shirt. “We could experiment, if you want? What are best friends for?”

Eddie knew there was a platonic best friend line in the sand that was about to be crossed, and it could never be uncrossed, but the way Steve was looking at him with those puppy dog eyes made him not care one single goddamn bit.

He’d do anything for Steve. Even if it meant he was just another “experimental experience” for a straight guy.

Steve leaned in for a kiss, and as much as he wanted it, Eddie pulled his head back.

“Say it,” Eddie muttered.

Steve squeezed himself through his boxers and frowned, confused. “Say what?”

Eddie moved in close again, brushing Steve’s lips with his. “Tell me you want me to fuck you.”

Steve choked on the words at first, and then he told Eddie what he needed to hear.

Their mouths met in a frenzy of clumsy tongues and cries, and then they made their way to the bedroom, stripping clothes off as they went.

It wasn’t long before Eddie was naked next to Steve on the bed, pushing a lubed finger inside him one knuckle at a time. “Is that okay?” He kissed the corner of Steve’s mouth. His friend’s eyes were closed, but Eddie’s were wide open—he didn’t want to miss a thing.

“Yes—fuck,” Steve squirmed, but his hips were moving down, needing Eddie deeper. He gripped Eddie’s back with one hand, and the other came up to fist his own length where it throbbed.

Eddie moved his head down, his hair dragging along his companion's chest. “Let me,” he mumbled. Steve held it at the base so that the metalhead could take the swollen, leaking tip into his mouth. Now he was twirling his tongue around the head and fucking his finger inside of his best friend. He savored the taste of the salty tang, making lewd noises as he sucked and swallowed.

Eddie’s mouth was magic, and Steve was hiccupping erotic sighs. “Tell me again, why did we wait this long?” He chuckled, and Eddie smiled around the gift in his mouth, both of them caught in mutual disbelief and bliss.

“You feel that?” Eddie came up for air long enough to ask, pupils blown, rubbing deep onto Steve’s prostate with purpose.

“Yeah, I feel it,” Steve shuddered. He bent his knees up and placed his feet on the mattress so that he could arch his pelvis up to give better access. “I think...I think I need more,” he breathed.

Eddie chanced a look up at his friend: his head was back, throat exposed, and–oh shit— he loved seeing what he was doing to him. The way that he was the one giving Steve Harrington this much pleasure, to be the one to make him unravel.

The second finger went in, stretching him, and Steve’s muscle squeezed around Eddie’s digits so tight, it made his cock ache to take their place. The phalange in question was tucked against Steve’s hip, aching, and he rutted it there a few times, leaving a snail trail of juice on his partner’s skin.

“Move this leg,” Eddie advised, and Steve licked his lips, watching every move, hoping to god that he did not stop fucking him. He was switching positions now, getting in between Steve’s thighs.

Steve used the slick from Eddie’s saliva to work the tip of his cock a few times as his eyes roamed the wash of tattoos over his friend’s sinewy muscles, and the guitar pick necklace that swayed against his chest.

“Does this feel okay?” Eddie buried the second finger in and scissored them to stretch out Steve’s hole, feeling the resistance throb in his own balls.

Steve winced with a hiss, and Eddie’s hand stilled, but then Steve’s eyes snapped open. “It feels so fucking good, don’t stop.”

Eddie was quick to lower his head to take over the tending of Steve’s huge member, making his friend moan long and hard.

When he looked down at the top of Eddie’s head, and the way his arm moved in and out between his legs, listening to the soft, wet, sucking sounds, Steve started to have some real feelings. They were feelings he was afraid to think, let alone say out loud.

“I-I need you inside of me, Eddie,” Steve managed. “I need you to fuck me right now.”

Eddie rose up, staring into Steve’s eyes as he took his fingers out to put the head of his dripping cock against the slip of Steve’s hole, rubbing it up and down. “Are you sure?” Eddie mumbled. “I’m not going to last long.”

“Me neither,” Steve blinked a few times, liking the way Eddie bit his bottom lip and searched his face.

Eddie’s heart was about to explode in his chest. He imagined bits of his heart and cum sprayed everywhere when his strewn body parts were found the next morning.

After a few moments of working the tip through and moaning at the way his hole sucked him in, Eddie leaned forward and pressed into Steve, spreading him open, letting him give a silent scream into his mouth. Eddie braced his partner’s hips, trembling at the sensation as he clenched around him.

Once he sank all the way in, Eddie intertwined his fingers with Steve’s above his head and began to move.

“The way you’re gripping me—holy shit,” Eddie murmured against his mouth. “Does that feel okay?”

“It feels…so fucking good,” Steve hushed. “Don’t stop.”

Steve’s bent legs were up now, and Eddie was thrusting against him, deep and hard, unable to hold back the emotions that drove his movements. Steve’s body bent so that his stomach wrinkled as Eddie found a mouth-watering pace, his guitar pick swinging in the air.

Foreheads pressed together, Eddie said, “wrap your legs around me,” and that’s when it happened; that’s when Steve could feel the coil snap in his stomach as Eddie drove into him with purpose.

Eddie grabbed a handful of Steve’s hair and pulled tight, yanking his head to the side, making him whimper.

“Cum inside me, Eddie—” Steve cried.

Eddie gave a strangled gasp at his words, because he was close, but it didn’t take long to slide one hand between them to find Steve’s leaking tip to help him along.

“I’m gonna cum in your tight little asshole,” breathless, Eddie was pounding him now, and neither one of them cared if the wet slapping sounds could be heard next door.

It was all Eddie could do not to declare his love then; to tell Steve that it had always been him, and it would be him forever after. “I’m so in love with you,” he wanted to say, and the thought alone made his orgasm rise.

The way Eddie made him feel so full would have been enough, but then his friend’s strong, calloused hand was yanking at his cock and Steve began to convulse under him. “Oh fuck, baby, I’m gonna cum. Eddie, I’m cumming!”

First of all, did Steve just call him baby?

But then there was no time to consider it because there were warm ropes of his release shooting between them, and Steve’s muscle gripped Eddie’s length over and over, milking him.

The way Steve cried out made Eddie’s movements erratic as he emptied himself, scooting closer, and bending his friend more in half to get deeper, to keep pumping with each aching grunt.

“Shit, you feel amazing,” Eddie cursed as everything got slippery and he could feel his seed leaking out between them.

Once they both came down from their highs, Eddie pulled himself out of Steve and kissed his knee before shimmying off the bed.

“Damn,” Steve looked down at himself, at the spray of jizz that began to pool in his belly button and noticed the sensation of Eddie’s release dripping down his ass. “I’m a fucking mess.”

“Hold on, I got it,” Eddie returned from the bathroom with a washcloth, brushing hair out of his face, and Steve watched him climb onto the bed to nestle between his thighs again. His cock was still half-hard, bobbing in the air as if it were already preparing for another round.

Eddie had the wet rag ready, but then the cum glistening on Steve’s stomach gave him other ideas.

“Are you giving me all that sweet aftercare now?” Steve scoffed.

“Well, yeah,” Eddie wiggled his eyebrows before bending down to lap at Steve’s bellybutton with his tongue. “You’re my guest.”

The feeling of his friend’s tongue dragging along his sensitive flesh was about to make Steve erect again, and he writhed at the sensation, eventually scooting further away, up against the headboard. Eddie watched him go, not sure what he’d done wrong, and passed him the washcloth.

Steve was having a hard time looking at his best friend now. Maybe because it had been the best orgasm of his life? Maybe because the past hour had made him question everything he thought he knew about himself?

He didn’t know what to do with the towel when he was done, so he handed it to Eddie, and he tossed it to the ground with a flop.

Eddie was about to move up next to Steve to kiss him, or at least sit next to him, but instead Steve got up off the bed and bent down to put his boxers on.

“So, does this mean—” Steve stammered, keeping his back to Eddie. “Does this mean that I—that I’m a bottom?”

Eddie was about to chuckle as he stretched long on the mattress and put his head in his hand, but then he realized Steve was asking a serious question.

“Did you enjoy it?” Eddie asked, cautiously.

“Um, yeah,” Steve bent down to pick up his shirt. “Obviously I did.”

That response elicited a quiver of a smile from Eddie, putting parentheses on either side of his mouth.

Eddie exhaled a long breath and rolled onto his back to stare at the ceiling. “It means…whatever you want it to mean. I’m not one to really care for labels.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Steve nod, taking in the information. He went to sit at the edge of the bed, fully clothed now, and Eddie ran a hand down his chest, thinking of his next words.

“We could always try it…the other way,” he said it so nonchalantly, and it made Steve turn his head, curiosity piqued.

“The other way?”

“You know,” now it was Eddie averting his eyes. “You could fuck next time, if you want. If you want to try it, I mean. See if you like it.”

“Next time, huh?” Steve ran a hand up and down his face. “I don’t know, man, this is —kinda blowing my mind right now.”

“I get it,” Eddie could feel a familiar heartache rising in his throat. “We could just forget this ever happened, if you want.”

There was a heavy silence then, thick and weighty with the fear of the unknown.

“No, I don’t want that,” Steve whispered.

Eddie lifted his head up. “You don’t?” His voice cracked, and then he cleared his throat and sat up to brace his elbows behind him.

Steve stood and put his hands on his hips before turning to his friend again. He raked his fingers through his hair. “I want to keep doing this,” he muttered. “But I don’t know what that means.”

“Hey,” Eddie scooted himself down so that he was sitting close to where Steve was standing, legs off the bed, and looked up at him. “We’re the only ones allowed to define this…whatever is happening between us. No one else.”

And the next thing you knew, Steve surprised himself for the second time that night, by going over to stand in front of Eddie. He brushed a few strands of his outdated bangs off of his forehead and Eddie closed his eyes to bask in the attention.

But his eyes opened when he felt Steve lower his head and grab onto Eddie’s shoulders. His mouth was so close now, and their noses slotted together. “I think I need to kiss you again,” he hushed.

Eddie’s hands went to the hips of Steve’s shorts, making fists in the material; he could feel himself getting hard again already.

“You better fucking do it, then, Harrington,” Eddie mumbled.

Once their lips met, tongues were quick to follow, and then they were crashing into the kiss and Steve wrapped his arms around Eddie’s neck. He had so many questions, and so many concerns about what this would look like to the outside world, to his friends and estranged family. But, in that moment, nothing mattered more than getting as close to this person he loved as he possibly could.

He wanted to be inside of him.

Eddie dropped to his knees and took Steve’s boxers with him, making Steve curse once he was back inside Eddie’s warm mouth.

Eddie pulled back to spit on the head, connecting a string of saliva to his mouth when he looked up to stare into his companions' eyes.

“You know where I want to put that,” Steve told the man on his knees.

Eddie’s moan was full of yearning. “I want you to fill me up,” and then he licked down the shaft and spit again until it was soaked. Eddie sucked his finger and then snaked it back to push the tip into Steve’s clenching muscle while he gave kitten licks to the freshly juiced pre-cum.

Steve jumped. “Fuck, baby—you’ll make me cum like that,” he barked a laugh.

Eddie’s smile was huge—-holy shit, he was so in love—-but then he stood to full height and grabbed Steve by the throat to kiss him. “We’ve got all night.”

Steve found his partner's rock-hard length and began to roll back the foreskin with a firm grip. He had no idea what he was doing but decided to go with whatever felt right. “Bend over,” Steve told him, taking a fist full of his hair. “Get on the bed.”

Steve’s tone made Eddie clench, and his balls were preparing for duty again.

Steve stepped out of his boxers and took his shirt off, keeping his attention on Eddie’s ass, and the way it was on full display for him now.

“The lube is in the—” Eddie started, but Steve silenced him with a “shush”.

“You’re a big boy, Harrington,” Eddie continued. “I don’t want to get ripped open toni—-”

But then big hands were spreading his cheeks apart and an eager tongue was dancing around his asshole.

Eddie pushed his hips back and the tongue dove inside. “Does that feel good?” Steve asked in between licks.

“Fuck yes,” Eddie breathed.

With that new burst of encouragement, Steve slid his thumb in, making the metalhead throw his head back.

Steve considered the logistics of it all for a moment, and then: “Can you get on your side?”

He moved into position without question. Steve didn’t have the nerve to say it, but he wanted to see Eddie; he wanted to be able to look at his face when he came. When they were both ready, Eddie rubbed the lube on his friend’s generous length, and then Steve squirted a bit on that pink, puckered spot, and Eddie yelped at the cold sensation.

More low chuckles, more tender laughter.

Eddie watched over his shoulder at the way Steve was concentrating as he lined the tip up. His best friend was so fucking beautiful, and he hoped to god it wasn’t a dream. Steve straddled Eddie’s bottom leg, while his top bent to the side, twisting at his hip.

Steve stammered a few curse words when he sank in an inch, halting. “Oh shit, I had no idea how tight—holy fuck Munson.”

“Fuck, please don’t stop,” Eddie mumbled into the pillow.

Steve groaned long and hard with each thrust, pushing himself in, taking his time, and then pulling out a bit until his hips were almost flush with Eddie’s ass.

“You like it when I stretch you out, don’t you?”

Eddie’s jaw went slack, and he reached down to touch himself, rutting into the mattress.

Steve buried himself inside Eddie, spreading his cheeks apart to watch. “Tell me I’m the only one who fills you up like this.”

“You’re the only one,” Eddie was whimpering now, trembling with lust and love. “I need you to start moving right now, Harrington!”

Steve was snapping his hips then, pounding Eddie just the way he wanted. The sounds escaping both of them were egging each other on, and Steve held Eddie’s leg up to get a better angle.

“It’s never felt this good,” Steve blurted. “Look at me.”

Eddie turned his head to meet his partner’s hooded gaze, sweaty hair sticking to his cheek. What if he said, “I love you”? What then? Because it was right there on the tip of his tongue.

“I’m so close, Eddie,” Steve’s movements stuttered a bit. “I need to see you.”

It was only a few more seconds of that intense eye contact before Steve was losing every last bit of himself inside his friend, slapping their skin even harder together as warm wetness filled the space. Steve’s toes curled on the mattress, and he threw his head back, holding onto Eddie's leg so that he didn’t fall over.

Being inside Eddie, to share something like that with him, felt so right and so perfect, and he was suddenly overwhelmed with emotions.

He flipped his partner over so that he was on his back, neglected cock straining against his tattooed stomach, and Steve bent over to put it into his mouth.

“Steve—!” Eddie was already about to blow his load before those soft lips were on him, but now his balls were tightening up close to his body. “I’m so close, I’m gonna—oh fuck!”

Steve nodded, humming on his friend’s swollen length as the salty spill poured over his tongue and he drank it down with eager swallows. Eddie writhed, shaking as he came.

They showered together again after that, and Steve found out about Eddie’s insatiable appetite when they jerked each other off one more time before they found sleep. They were all a tangle of limbs and legs, hot breath against the skin of each other’s throats.

The next two days brought much of the same. They had dinner together when Eddie got home from work and held hands in front of the tv. Until hand holding turned to touching and it was time for Steve to experiment being inside Eddie from a different angle. They both lost count of the number of times they came inside of each other. Well, Steve lost count. For Eddie, each one was precious and something he cherished.

On the third day, while the Saturday morning cartoons were on, Eddie’s head was in Steve’s lap while he played with his hair and rubbed his scalp. Eddie’s eyes were rolling back in his head, and he suddenly understood why cats purr. It all felt so natural, hidden away there in Eddie’s cozy trailer with the curtains drawn, like the rest of the world didn’t even exist.

But then there came the sound of footsteps bounding up to the porch, and someone tried the door handle before offering a few quick knocks.

“Hey, what’s going on in there?” The woman’s voice exclaimed. “Open up, this is the police.”

Steve’s eyes bulged and he practically pushed Eddie to the ground, trying to cover himself with the blanket. He was wearing his boxer shorts, but it made him feel very exposed.

Eddie’s hair was a mess when he sat up, and he gave Steve a curious frown. “What’s wrong with you? It’s just Robin.”

“I know,” Steve took a breath. “It just startled me, that’s all.”

Eddie threw a pillow in Steve’s face and shouted, “coming!”

“No, no, wait!” Steve lurched up and grabbed his friend's arm, pulling him back down to the couch.

Eddie gave him a few confused shakes of his head. “Are you losing it man? You knew she had the day off and might come over.”

“It’s not that,” Steve was whispering. “I want to see her I just—did you tell her…does she know…about us?”

Eddie’s face sobered. “When would I have a chance to tell her? I’ve spent every free second with you.”

“Okay good,” Steve’s shoulders sank, showing that he was clearly relieved. “Let’s keep it between us, alright? I don’t want anyone to know.”

“Anyone…ever?” Eddie was searching his companion’s eyes, hoping to find that same glimmer from the past couple days there, but it was gone. He understood that coming out could be complicated and difficult, and he didn’t think Steve would be shouting it from the hills, but surely Robin could know? They were the three amigos, the best of friends. If anyone would embrace him for exactly who he was and who he wanted to have sex with, it would be her.

Maybe he just needed more time, and that was fine, Eddie had plenty of it.

Robin knocked again, more forceful this time. “What the hell? I’m growing mold out here.”

Eddie remained still, passing his tongue over his teeth, and thought about what Steve was asking of him.

“I’m going to put some clothes on,” Steve got to his feet and jogged out of sight, to the bedroom, leaving Eddie to sit there, feeling the weight of being a secret, yet again.

“Hey!” Steve hissed from the hallway where he struggled to pull his jeans on while Eddie walked to the door. “Could you light a candle or something? It smells like sex in here.”

Yeah, sure, he’d get right on that.

Anything for you, King Steve.

-----

Hi! Thank you for reading! Always love hearing from you. Look out for part 2 🧡

#Steddie #Steddie fic #Steddie smut #older!steddie #intimacy smut #bisexual!eddie munson #Steddie romance #steve x eddie #Stranger Things smut #Steve Harrington fic #Steddie fanfiction

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partyanimal167 · 2 months

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A Win-Win Situation PT 2- Rayleigh x F!Reader

Part One

Hello~ I've been chilling all day, and I wasn't sure what I was going to write on my days off, but I got a request for a continuation! So how could I saw no especially considering it's Rayleigh 😊

CW: modern au, black fem reader, age gap, suggestive, daddy kink, half-assed jealousy trope, brat taming, spanking, established relationship, MDNI

Things were certainly different now. Your car was always in perfect condition even though you rarely drove it. Your boyfriend was sweet and always considerate of you. Life was good, so you were a bit surprised to see the man react the way he did.

It took you over a week to realize that Rayleigh had been courting you. Sure, the way things turned out wasn't necessarily common, but maybe all those orgasms fogged up your mind since mechanics don't normally drive you home after leaving your car at the shop.

You were a bit confused when you arrived a few days later to a car that certainly had more work done than originally planned: tires rotated, new catalytic converter, washed and waxed, and an oil change. You were further confused when the price for the repair was certainly less than what you were quoted.

"Come on now sweetheart, you thought I wouldn't keep my word?" Rayleigh had winked.

You didn't know what to think, but the dots finally connected when the man showed up to your house with a fresh bouquet of flowers and asked to take you out on a date.

"Told ya, I'd fix that boyfriend problem."

And things just came so easily. You two got along great, and it was kind of nice learning about the older man and all his journeys. He always beamed at you when you talked about your day or your plans for when you were off next. Rayleigh always made sure to spoil you no matter what.

Even now, he was all smiles from a corner as he watched you play pool with Shanks, Scopper, and some of the other rascals he had known over time. It wasn't an upscale bar, but the neighborhood joint had seen their patronage for years. People came and went to enjoy a glass and have some fun.

Your shot is getting better, Rayleigh thought to himself. He hummed away in admiration until he saw a hot-shot your age approach you. The young man smiled and shook your hand before placing a peck on it. Rayleigh could tell you didn't think much of it since you went on talking with the man animatedly, and he showed you a couple of trick shots.

You decided to take a breather and joined Rayleigh at his table. "Having fun, sweetie?"

You nodded as you hugged onto the man's arm. "Yeah! I was just talking to this guy over there. It seems like we ended up going to the same school."

Rayleigh hummed. "Oh really? Did you know him?"

You shook your head. "Not really. We just-,"

"Here's a tequila sunrise from the gentleman at the bar." the drink was placed in front. You both looked up, and the man winked from afar and waved.

"Oh jeez," you chuckled nervously.

"Go ahead and enjoy it, princess. I don't mind."

"Really?"

"Mmhm."

The two of you sat and chatted away, but Rayleigh couldn't get over the slight glances in your direction--the ones you were totally oblivious to with your back turned. Rayleigh laughed at a joke you made and took a deep breath.

"Oi! We startin' another game! I'm feeling lucky," Shanks waved you over back to the pool tables.

You finished off your drink and looked up expectantly at your man. "Wanna come with?"

"In a minute," You went off across the bar, and Rayleigh couldn't help but watch the way your hips swayed with each step and the peek of skin just above your belt. Rayleigh polished off his beer.

"I'm shocked she'd be into an old geezer like you. You must be rich."

Rayleigh turned and looked up to see the cocky young man standing in front of him--peering down. "I don't like what you're implying, young man. You don't seem to have a problem spending some change on her." Never mind, that the drink had top shelf liquor. Rayleigh could get you that and more if you just said the word.

"Hey, there's nothing to be ashamed of. I hope I can be pulling baddies in my golden years, but I'll take her off your hands for now."

Rayleigh knew he had to keep his calm. He wasn't really concerned about you ditching him. You two had a good thing going. More so, with Shanks and the crews here, things could get messy quickly. Rayleigh didn't feel like being banned from this bar again.

"Just watch." So Rayleigh did uninterestedly as you played on with the boys and laughed and smiled. A competition of sorts started with you and Buggy against the young guy and his friend.

In between turns, you sipped another free drink and cracked jokes. Rayleigh was hot under his skin, but he felt his eye twitch when he saw the man "squeeze" by you and placed his hand on your hip for a brief moment. Rayleigh rolled his eyes. How corny.

So he stood up to join the group and caught you in a hug as you cheered. "We won, babe!"

The old man chuckled as some of his hair moved into his face and placed a kiss on your forehead. "Good job sweetie. I told you you'd get better."

You giggled before grabbing your things. Rayleigh watched as you realized something. You grabbed pen and scribbled on a napkin. "So cool to meet you again! Hopefully we'll run into each other soon." you handed it to the guy and kissed his cheek.

Rayleigh felt the last strike tick, and he caught Shank's glance while you said bye to everyone. Rayleigh knew he probably looked the same, but Shanks knew. He grinned with amusement and mouthed, 'Be nice to the girl.'

Rayleigh smiled as he helped you into your jacket. He smiled as he walked to his car and opened the door for you. He smiled as he drove and you both sat in comfortable silence.

You had no idea.

~~~

"Say it again."

"I'm sorry, daddy!"

"What are you sorry for, dear?"

"I'm sorry for being a slut!" you wailed as you the spankings finally ended.

"Mmm, I don't know what you mean. I'm a good girl." you pouted and chuckled.

Rayleigh smiled too sweetly as he flipped you onto your back and trapped you from above. Tears peeked out of your eyes, and you looked all soft and innocent. But the grin was telling a different story. "Tch, you should be nice sweetheart. You shouldn't go leading another man on just to anger daddy." he chided.

"Oh, you're lying now too?" Rayleigh shook his head as he kissed his teeth. "I've spoiled you too much. Seems I need to fuck the brat out of you. Give me my good girl back, slut." Rayleigh. grunted before bringing your lips together.

Rayleigh knew you weren't sorry now, but by the time he'd be done with you, you'd know not to try his patience again. But no matter, you had the fun of teasing the old man and the roughed up sex that came after.

Easy win-win

I was this close 🤌🏾 to making this a threesome with Shanks lol, but I couldn't get my brain to do it. So we'll hog ol' Rayleigh for ourselves.

@dannie-pooh28

#one piece #one piece fanfiction #silvers rayleigh #dark king rayleigh #one piece x reader #rayleigh x reader #modern au #mine #part two #one piece imagine #fem reader #black fem reader #one piece x fem reader #one piece x you #partyanimal167 #animatedglittergraphics-n-more

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ladykailitha · 11 months

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Royal Pain Part 3

Hello! I was going to post this yesterday but I thought I would be busier for WIP Wednesday which only two people participated in (sad author noises). And then I was waffling about putting up a meta about Steve’s parents (I ended up just saving it in my ‘bit of everything’ file). And then I realized it was super late and should put this up before I forget again.

This next part is for @weirdandabsurd42 who mentioned being excited to see Wayne and was thusly added (because I almost forgot to put him there, oops!), thereby creating one of my favorite lines I’ve ever written so...thanks!

Part 1 Part 2

***

Steve closed up his shop with a spring in his step and a grumpy Robin following behind.

“I can’t believe you are dragging me to a metal concert,” she groused as she locked the door behind her.

“You don’t have to come,” Steve said with a grin. “You can stay home on a Saturday, all by yourself with a pint of ice cream and the latest rom-com.”

Robin glared at him. “You know that I have to come with you so you don’t throw yourself at Eddie.”

Steve rolled his eyes as they walked to his car. “I’m not going to throw myself at him.”

Robin clutched her hands to her chest. “Oh that’s right I forgot! You already have!”

Steve glared at her. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“No?” she asked, sliding into the car. “So what do you call offering to do his back tattoo?”

Steve already in the car, hit his head on his steering wheel. “Fucccckkkk.” He hit it over and over. “Why did I do that? Why did he agree? What am I going to do?”

Robin rubbed his back. “I think this is good thing for you. If you do well on his wings then you can start doing large pieces again. And if not, then you know it’s not something you can do and you’ll never do another one ever again.”

Steve sighed and wrapped his arms around the steering wheel. “I just wanted him to like me.”

“As person, as friend or as a boyfriend?” Robin asked seriously.

“All of the above?” Steve said raising his head to look at her. “Apparently the first one has been met. I’d take the second one, but I would love the last one more than anything.”

“Well this weekend will be a great opportunity to test the waters and see how he feels. Because even if he wants to be friends now, there’s still a chance he might want something more in the future. Just don’t bank on it.”

Steve nodded. “Yeah.” He took a deep breath. “Yeah, okay.” He turned the key and pulled out of their parking lot.

“This would be a good time to get a couple of apprentices of your own,” she said after a few miles of silence. “You’re going to be spending a lot of hours on Eddie’s tattoo and you’re going to need someone to pick up the slack.”

Steve let out a shuddering sigh. “I know. I’ll start putting out feelers in the community and see what’s out there.”

Robin nodded. “We’ll put up filers at the local colleges and universities as well as putting it up on our website. I’ll talk to Will and see what he can come up with for both.”

“I know he’ll turn it down but offer him the usual rates for that sort of thing,” Steve agreed.

Robin laughed. “Fingers crossed he’ll accept this time.”

Eddie walked into his apartment and flopped face first into his couch. It had been such a whirlwind day. He wasn’t even sure he could function. That really was the downside to having a full time gig. Having all this free time.

Because yeah, Eddie and the rest of Corroded Coffin practiced nearly every day, and they were always coming up with new music, it just wasn’t the same as full time job. He didn’t have to do anything but show up and perform two nights a week. He could phone it in if he wanted.

Not that he would. Just...that he could. Which meant on days when his head was spiraling he could stew for days and never leave this couch.

He rolled over and pulled out his phone and dialed that familiar number.

“Munson residence!” came the gruff familiar voice.

“When are you going to at least get a caller ID, old man!” Eddie crowed.

“Shut it, boy,” Wayne growled. “I have one and it works just fine, the greeting is polite. Something I thought I raised you better in.”

Eddie giggled. “You love me.”

“Lord help me, but I do,” Wayne agreed. “You calling to talk or to listen?”

It was something that they had established long before Eddie left Hawkins to live on his own in the big city. Long before before Eddie took three years to graduate. Long before Al Munson abandoned his son on his baby brother’s door step for one last job. A job that would land him in prison. They had this code. Well, not really a code.

Just this thing between them. When Eddie had a rough day, he would call Wayne. But depending on the swirling of emotions going through his head, sometimes he just need to hear Wayne talk about his day. Gossip about his neighbors. Let the words flow over him until he felt at ease enough to go to sleep.

Other nights, though. The really bad ones. The ones where Eddie needed advice, he would talk. Sometimes Eddie would figure it out on his own, other times he would need Wayne to give him advice. This was one of those nights.

“Talk,” Eddie breathed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Wha’cha got, Ed?” Wayne asked gently.

And Eddie just let it all spill out. The tattoos, Steve, the band, feeling like they had stagnated.

“That’s a lot on your plate, boy,” Wayne said. “I can see why you wanted to share.”

Eddie let out a shuddering sigh. “I don’t know what to do about...well any of it to be honest.”

Wayne hummed. “When was the last time you went out and did something fun? Something for just yourself? And don’t say get a tattoo because that’s part of the tangled mess right now.”

Eddie blinked. When was the last time he had gone out for drinks, saw a movie, or even listened to music other than his own? “I’m not sure.”

“Well there you go,” Wayne said. “Creativity isn’t endless, boy. It’s a well and you’re going through a drought because you aren’t taking in any influences other then that feedback loop you’re on.”

“Oh.”

“It doesn’t have to be with your friends or even that boy you’ve got your eye on,” Wayne explained. “Just go out and have fun for yourself, ya hear?”

“Yeah,” Eddie said, already feeling lighter. “Thanks, Uncle Wayne.”

“Rest well, okay?” Wayne murmured.

“You too.”

Jeff shook his head and rolled his eyes as he watched Eddie play with his rings, his knee bouncing up and down.

“Chill!” Gareth growled. “For fuck’s sake. We are professionals, we’ve done this twice a week for years. What’s got your panties in a twist this time?”

Jeff wagged his eyebrows. “This time pretty boy Steve Harrington is going to be in the crowd. With a girl no less.”

“She’s gay,” Eddie bit out. “A literal flaming lesbian. I just have to pass the best friend test with her. And considering she wanted me to get his number, I’m pretty sure I don’t have to work that hard.”

“I noticed you didn’t deny that you’re nervous about Pretty Boy being in the audience tonight,” Brian teased.

Eddie threw up his hands in the air and leapt to his feet. “All right, yeah. I’m nervous. Even when I did have boyfriends that would show up, I knew they liked the music. But I have no idea if Steve is just being nice or if he’s actually interested in hearing us play.”

Jeff cocked his head. “Yeah, I can see how you might be worried he won’t like it. But if he doesn’t, isn’t better you know that now, before your feelings get in too deep?”

Eddie’s lip quivered. “Yes. I mean, of course. But it still makes me feel like crawling out of my skin, okay?”

“Okay,” Gareth said. “So do what you do best and throw yourself into the music. Let it wash over you. You are a consummate performer. So kick ass.”

Eddie nodded and the nod slowly turned into a head bang with him playing air guitar. By the time the knock came to let them know it was time, Eddie was ready to go out there and rock.

Steve hadn’t been to The Nightmare Holes before. It hadn’t even been on his radar at all. That was so weird, especially since it was almost literally doors down from Robin and his favorite club.

Well that was until they were dropped off in front of a large concrete building that didn’t look like a bar from the outside at any stretch of the imagination. In fact the only thing that stuck out at all was a neon sign with a large arrow pointing to a set of stairs leading down proclaiming this to be The Nightmare Holes.

When they got into the bar, Steve realized that they were going to stick out like a sore thumb. With Steve looking prep and Robin looking punk, they were going to be murdered before Eddie even got on stage.

They were saved by a goddess if you believed Robin later. This pretty woman in a tank top and tight leather pants with four inch heeled boots came up to them.

“Hey!” she greeted warmly. “You must be Stevie, right?”

Steve nodded. “I’m afraid you’re one up on me. You know me, but I don’t know you.”

She smiled much to Robin’s chagrin. “I’m Miranda, girlfriend of the rhythm guitarist, Jeff Lawrence. He was worried that Eddie might have forgotten to tell you that wearing your usual clothes might make you stand out.” She waved her hands at them. Both Robin and Steve blushed. “You aren’t too bad actually. I was think you would be much worse the way Jeff was going on.”

“He only saw us at work,” Robin explained once she picked her jaw up off the ground. “He might have assumed that we wear that on the regular.”

Miranda nodded. “You can do this one of two ways. Stay dressed as you are as big middle finger to conformity no matter who’s conforming to what or you come with me and I can tweak your looks enough that you don’t stand out as much.”

Steve looked down at his clothes and tilted his head. “I think I’m going to give conformity the middle finger, thanks. I’ve been bucking what people think a tattoo artist should look like for years. I’m not going to change that for one little concert.”

Miranda nodded appreciatively. “Good on you. How about you, princess? You gonna give conformity the middle finger, too?”

Robin looked down at her clothes and blushed. “I think most metalheads would say a punk is being a step too far.”

Miranda laughed. “You’re probably right. Let’s go see if I can metal you up a bit.”

The two ladies came back a few minutes later. Robin still had her chunky jewelry and smudged makeup. But her billowy plaid pants were replaced by tight black jeans and instead of her vest, she wore a black jacket. Her hair had been tamed to a more relaxed style.

Steve grinned at her. “Looking good, Robs!”

Robin blushed. “I made a new friend.”

Miranda laughed. “Thanks for that.” She looked around and then leaned forward conspiratorially. “Just a little secret between us new besties.”

Steve and Robin shared a glance, but both nodded.

“I don’t like metal music, either,” she whispered and winked. She turned around so she faced the stage. “But I’m here because my Jeffie does. So if you don’t like the music, because hey, you might not, don’t sweat it. They put on a good show and we’re here for them.” She jutted her chin up at the stage just as the house lights went down and the stage lights went up.

Standing the spotlight was Eddie. He wore a slashed up band shirt, tight jeans, and his leather jacket. A jacket Steve was about to learn wasn’t going to feature long. About twenty minutes into the show, the jacket was gone and Steve could see a peek of the new tattoo through the slits in the shirt.

He licked his lips slowly. Ooh...that was tantalizing. And then Eddie threw caution and his shirt to the wind and everyone saw Eddie’s new tattoo.

Robin turned to Steve wide-eyed. “Holy shit, it blends seamlessly into the rest of the tattoos, like it was there first.”

Miranda peered around Robin to look at Steve, too. “Yeah, man. You did a hell of a job. You should be proud of that.”

Steve was. No doubt. But he was prouder of the fact that Eddie wanted everyone to see it. It melted his heart and settled at the base of his spine, like he had drank a cup of hot chocolate all at once.

And that was when Steve realized he would do anything for Eddie. Even if that meant just being friends.

***

My new favorite line? * “Lord help me, but I do,” Wayne agreed. “You calling to talk or to listen?” * It’s just so...Wayne, you know?

Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 Part 21 Part 22 Part 23 Part 24 Part 25 Part 26 Part 27 Part 28 Epilogue

Tag List: @spectrum-spectre @estrellami-1 @zerokrox-blog @artiststarme @swimmingbirdrunningrock @gregre369 @pyrohonk @renaissan-vvitch @goodolefashionedloverboi @chaoticlovingdreamer @maya-custodios-dionach @messrs-weasley @val-from-lawrence @plyerice27 @thedragonsaunt @chaoticlovingdreamer @sapphirecobalt-1 @a-little-unsteddie @i-must-potato @danili666 @carlyv @rozzieroos @wonderland-girl143-blog @itsall-taken @justforthedead89 @emly03 @bookworm0690 @aizawa-emma @yikes-a-bee @redfreckledwolf @thesuninyaface @bookbinderbitch @littlewildflowerkitten @scheodingers-muppet @archermightbegay @hallucinatedjosten

#My writing #stranger things #steddie #tattoo artist steve #ladykailtiha writes

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milesdickpic · 3 months

Text

HIs Little GIrl | Bradley Bradshaw x Reader P.87

Click here to see the master list

Besties! I apologize for not posting a part 3 for my Grad week, so as compensation... I will put out 2 chapters this week to catch up! Besties we are almost at the end and I am so SAD! 😭 I love you all so much! 💕 Happy reading and enjoy! ❤️

A/n: Christmas in the Bradshaw household 🎅🏼🎄 (also if the links don't work and you would like to see the gifts here is the link to the board on Pinterest!)

Word Count: 6.1k

Warnings: cursing, crying, sexual jokes, but so much cuteness and love 🥰

Please don't take my work, I will find you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It had been a couple of more months of getting used to new schedules and adjusting to life. The first Christmas with the boys was new. It was also hard to buy gifts for them because they were constantly growing and becoming interested in something new every week.

———-

Christmas

You and Nat were at the store Christmas shopping for gifts while the men stayed at home with the kiddies.

“Do you think at least one of us should have stayed back with them to help?” Nat asked as you both sat down to take a break from shopping.

You thought about it for a second and then shook your head. “No they’ll be fine. Plus we just have a couple of more things to grab and then we can go home while they go out.” You took a deep breath in. “So lets enjoy it.”

You both laughed and nodded. By the time you were finished you and Nat were more than ready to leave the crowded malls and head home. On the way home you bot sang to Christmas music and danced in the car.

When you got home, Bradley was putting the boys down for a nap and Austin was putting a jacket on Leia.

“Where is she going?” You gave Leia a kiss on her cheek.

“I’m going to go get presents with daddy!” Leia smiled as she slipped her shoes on.

Bradley came over and placed a kiss on your cheek. “The boys are down for a nap, house is clean, and snacks are ready for you and Nix on the counter.”

You and Nat looked at each other in shock. “Okay… Thank you babe.” You kissed his cheek as he threw his jacket on and they all left.

Nat put the bags down and took her coat off. “Definitely not what I expected to come home to.” She laughed and unpacked the bags.

You looked around suspicious. “No. Seriously…” You went to give the boys kisses. They were knocked out.

Nat grabbed some tea for you both and a couple of snacks the guys left behind for you both. “Ready to wrap mama?”

“Yes! Let’s get this done before they wake up and the guys and Leia get home.”

———-

Bradley’s POV

After we all piled into my truck we were off to grab presents for everyone. Hangman and Austin headed in together to go to different stores to grab gifts. I picked up Leia and gave her a piggy back ride as we headed in to get our gift for you.

Leia pointed to the little store. “Daddy! There!”

I bounced a little bit. “Good eye, baby girl. Away we go!” I made plane swooshing noises and bee-lined for the store. She giggled and held onto me tighter. Right when we approached the store, I let her down.

She ran in and grabbed your first gift. “Daddy! They have it!” She held it above her head and ran over to me.

“Good job, my little co-pilot. Thank god you’re here. It would have taken daddy forever to find this.” I gave her a kiss on the cheek and picked her up as we made our way to the cash register.

“Where to next, sir?” Leia climbed around me and clung onto my back again as she held the bag.

“The sweater now?” I looked back at her. She nodded against me.

“Sweater is it! Go daddy!!” She pointed and we headed to the next store.

As we walked to the next store, I could hear Leia singing to the Christmas music that was playing around the mall.

-Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas by Frank Sinatra playing-

“Have yourself a merry little Christmas… Make the yuletide gay…from now on, our troubles will be miles away.”

I smiled and looked over my shoulder. “Don’t be shy, babe. Sing louder so daddy can hear and sing too.”

“Daddy!” She hid into the crook of my neck. She got shy.

“Your voice is beautiful, babe!” She shook her head into the back of my neck. I laughed. So I started singing too.

“Throughout the years, we all will be together… if the fates allow…”

I felt her head peak back out. “Hang a shining star upon the highest bough…”

I gave her a little nudge and together we sung loudly. “And have yourself a marry little christmas now.”

She rested her chin on my shoulder and leaned her head into the side of mine. We made it to the next store. It took us a while to find the sweater you’ve been wanting, but we eventually found it. Leia hopped back onto my back and we were off to the last store for your last gift.

Leia was humming Happy Xmas by John Lennon and Yoko Ono. She started to sing it softly.

“A very merry christmas. And a happy new year. Lets hope its a good one. Without any fear.”

And I chimed in. “So this is Christmas. And what have we done?”

She gave a little harmony. “Waaaarrr is overrrrr.” “Andddd if you want ittt.”

I chuckled as we continued to harmonize together, while navigating through the crowds. After we finished getting your gifts we made a pit stop to the truck to unload and we went back in to the madness to get everyone else’s gifts.

————-

The next morning, everyone had their gifts all under the star wars themed christmas tree. It was over flowing with gifts. This year it would just be us, plus Nix, Seresin, and Austin. All the adults were up early to get everything set up for the kids. Of course, it was going to be another low-key, cozy holiday in. Everyone had matching PJs to lounge in all day.

All the adults got everything ready for the kids, more or less Leia. Phoenix took a bite of the cookies that were left out. Hangman drank all the milk. Austin took a bite out of the side of a carrot. Then you and I made some boot prints in snow from the sliding door.

You sprinkled some flour on the floor and I put on my boots to walk through it. We wanted to give Leia a fun experience for Christmas. Once we all finished we stood around the counter drinking hot cocoa.

“We forgot one more thing to add to the cookies to make it look for real that Santa was here.” Phoenix walked up to Hangman and yanked one of his hairs out.

“OW Trace, what the hell?” Hangman grabbed his head and looked at her with an annoyed face. We all started to laugh.

“Have to have more proof that he was here. A piece of hair will do. Thanks for your cooperation, Bagman.” She placed the hair on the tray by the cookies.

Hangman was rubbing his head and winced, “You’re lucky that we are doing this for Leia and the boys. I’d do anything for them.” He walked up the stairs to go change into his PJs.

I shook my head and laughed at Phoenix. “Trace, you are definitely something else. but thanks for that.” I raised my hot cocoa to her and then took a sip of it. “Now with that done. I think we should all go get changed. Y/n and I are going to go and get the kids up.

We all headed upstairs and got ready to spend some time together and to watch the kids open presents.

———-

The first ones back down stairs were Phoenix and Austin. They sat on the couch and helped put Gunner into his Pjs.

“Merry Christmas!!!” Leia ran down the stairs with her arms up and yelling. She jumped onto the couch to hug Phoenix and Austin.

You and I were close behind with the boys in our arms. Baby Brad was still asleep, but Luke was wide awake and giggling in my arms. We were all in our matching elves' pajamas. You and I sat on the couches with the boys fixing their little elf hats.

“Seresin, hurry the hell up. You’re always first to leave, but last to come back!” I yelled up stairs for him to hurry and come down.

“I’m Coming!” We could all hear him shuffling up stairs.

I gave Luke to Phoenix and brought Leia around the house as we waited for Hangman to come down. “Look, sweetheart. Santa was here last night. He ate your cookies you left out and even drank all your milk!”

Leia looked at all the little bits of evidence with joy and shock. “Daddy! There is even a hair here!!” Leia picked up the hair that was left by the cookie.

I looked over at Phoenix and saw her and Austin fist bumping over the success of yanking Hangman’s hair out.

“Can we keep it, daddy?” She looked up at me holding the hair in between her fingers.

I laughed and nodded. “We sure can, sweetheart.”

Leia set the hair down carefully on the plate again and saw the trail of boot marks by the sliding door. “DADDY! He came in through the sliding door!” She ran over by the door and looked at the foot prints, “Look!” She was jumping excitedly as she was pointing to the boot marks in the ‘snow.’

I gasped and went to go examine the sight. “He left a mess!”

Leia started to laugh, “We can clean it up after! He was probably in a hurry!”

I knelt down and kissed her cheek, “I’m sure he was, baby.” I picked her up and brought her back over to the couch.

“Leia, did you see that the reindeer ate the carrot you left for them?” Austin pointed over to the carrot pile Leia left out the night before.

She ran over to the carrots and examined them. She held one over her head to show all of us. “OH MY GOSH! THEY DID! I HOPE IT WAS RUDOLPH!” She screamed in excitement and ran back and jumped into my lap. “Do we get to open presents now, daddy?” She smiled up at me.

I nodded as I wrapped my arms around her. “Yes, but we have to wait for your uncle Jake. He’s still changing into his elf Pjs… and TAKING FOREVER.” I looked up to the steps. “Come on man! Your niece wants to open her presents!”

Then with that we heard some steps coming down the stairs. We all turned to a sight.

“HOLY NIGHT.” I furrowed my brows.

Phoenix started to laugh as she saw hangman come down from the stairs. “I thought we were all wearing elf pajamas??”

I rolled my eyes. “We were, but I can see Seresin always has a change of plans.”

You turned away and started to laugh loudly. hangman came down in a Santa suit. But not any Santa suit. THE Santa suit. It had ripped sleeves and an exposed chest. He wore a Santa hat and a beard to finish the ensemble.

“Holy Sexy Santa.” Austin’s eyes went wide and he looked at Phoenix confused. She started to laugh hard at his comment.

“HO. HO. HO. Merry Christmas, Bradshaw family!” He came down waving and was holding a present.

“UNCCLE JAAAKEY!” Leia was pointing and laughing at hangman. She ran to him and gave him a hug. “Is that present for me, uncle Santa?”

“Oh no, my vapor girl. This is for your dad.” He looked at me as he smiled deviously through the beard. He came over to me as he held the suspicious box in front of him.

He leaned down to me and whispered, “It’s my cock in a box.”

Phoenix, you, and Austin started to laugh hard when they heard him. I pinched the bridge of my nose and shook my head.

“Uncle jakey, why did you get daddy a rooster in a box?”

Hangman blurted out laughing and patted Leia on the head. “Your daddy’s call sign is rooster. It’s only fitting.”

I rolled my eyes again and shut them as i shook my head. I buried my face into my hands and let out a sigh. I was trying so hard to hold back my laughter.

“IM JOKING BRADSHAW.” Hangman set the present down under the tree and took a seat across from me with Leia. “It’s for the boys. RELAX.”

I looked at him with wide eyes. “THATS EVEN WORSE.”

He threw his head back and then looked at me annoyed. “Let’s not start.” He started to laugh as i threw a pillow at him. “Alright, with that… Let’s open presents!”

———-

Your POV

Jake was the first one to grab his gifts and handed them out. He handed Austin and Phoenix theirs, then Bradley and Leia, and then gave you yours and gave you one for each of the boys.

“I hope y’all like everything I’ve got you. And if you don’t, I kept receipts.” He sat back down on the couch by Austin and put his arm up and over around him on the couch. “Well, everyone open ‘em up.” He smiled at all of you.

Nat opened hers and Jake had got her a basket full of goodies. “Oh my gosh, Bagman! I love it!” She pulled out everything one by one, excited with everything she was pulling out.

“Glad you like it Trace.” He patted Austin’s shoulder, "Now you big man.”

Austin opened his gift, “Jake! Aww man no this is too much. This looks expensive, man.”

Jake shook his head and patted his back. “I saw that flannel and immediately thought of you, dude.”

“Well, thank you. But it’s really so much.” He held it up and looked at the flannel jacket surprised.

“No problem, Bro.” He looked over at all of you. “Bradshaws, don’t keep me waitin.” He started to laugh as he waited for the 6 of you to open your gifts. He went over and sat by your legs to help you open the boys gift and Gunner’s.

Jake got you and Leia baskets full of stuff similar to Nat’s. You and Leia were excited as you looked through them.

“Wow, thanks, Jake!” You placed your hand on his shoulder and he patted your hand.

“Thank you Uncle Jakey!” Leia jumped into his arms as he laughed and kissed her head.

“For Gunner…” He pulled out three Star Wars toys and threw them at him. Gunner went crazy over them and started to play with them.

Bradley opened his gift, “Holy Shit, Seresin…” He held up a brown carhart jacket. “This is fucking sweet.” Bradley looked at it all around. “What the hell, dude!” He shoved Jake as they laughed. “Thank you, man. Holy shit.”

Jake laughed, “I saw that and immediately thought of you too.” Jake opened up the gift for the boys. “And now for the Bradshaw boys… the best for last!” He held up the two bibs. “DRINKING BUDDIES!”

Everyone started to laugh. Jake placed them on the boys and gave them both kisses. Bradley grabbed baby Brad and Jake grabbed Luke. They made them high-five and place them on the floor to sit in front of them. They were able to sit up on their own but just in case either of them fell back there was someone behind them to catch them.

Up next was Nat. She handed everyone her gifts. She gave the boys’ gift to Bradley to open this time.

Austin went first, she got him some new shirts. Some long-sleeved ribbed shirts and some short-sleeved collared ribbed shirts. “Aww, babe. I love these! Thank you!” He kissed her cheek and looked at his clothes amazed.

“I think you would looked so cute in those!” She grabbed one and held it against him. Everyone agreed. Especially the boys. Bradley and Jake kept whistling at him and he started to blush.

Jake opened up his gift next. “Ohhh heeeyyy!!!!! This is nooooiiiiiiiccceeee!” Jake held up his button-up shirt to show everyone. He held it against himself. “Am I as hot as Austin, yet?” He closed his eyes and smiled big while Austin and Bradley whistled at him.

Bradley pinched Jake’s chest, “Quit it, my wife is right there. She’s gonna get jealous.” They both started to laugh.

“Damn, thanks Trace! I love it!” Jake started to smell the shirt.

Nat and Bradley looked at him weird. “Why do you always have to smell everything new you get?” Nat raised a brow at him.

Jake shrugged. “Tradition? I don’t know?”

Up next was Bradley. He ripped apart the bag. Everyone looked at him with wide eyes as his gift flew up into the air and landed in front of him and little Brad.

“Well shit. I hope it’s not broken…” Phoenix started to laugh.

Bradley grabbed it and opened up the toiletry bag. “HOLY SHIT! NO WAY! PHE! THANK YOU!”

He showed everyone what was inside. It was a beard and mustache grooming kit. “I needed a new one! Thank you!”

Nat laughed and shot him her fist. They fist bumped. “Your stache is out of regs. You needed a new one!” Bradley started to laugh as he played with his mustache.

Leia started to open her huge box carefully. “I don’t want to break it, Aunt Nat..” Leia ripped the wrapping paper delicately.

Nat started to laugh, “Vapor girl, its okay yours won’t break. I promise.” She shot her a thumbs up.

“OKAY!” Leia started to rip the paper crazily as she was throwing it everywhere. She opened the big box and gasped. “OH MY GAAAAHHDD!” She yanked out the first bean bag. “I LOVE THESE!!!” She pulled out all the Star Wars-themed bean bags. “I WANNA PUT THEM EVERYWHERE! THANKS AUNT NAT!” Leia ran and jumped on Nat and covered her in kisses.

“Anything for my Vapor girl.” She pushed Leia’s hair out of her face and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Austin opened Gunner’s gift for him. It was a new doggy bed. He brought all his toys to it and laid in it with them.

You opened your gift from Nat. It was a new necklace. You pulled it from the box and looked at it. It had all of your initials on it. “Oh my gosh! I love this so much! Thank you, Nat!” You looked at each letter, “B,L,L,B,G and a heart!” You held it to your chest and started to tear up.

Nat started to tear up too, “I am so happy you love it!!”

Last were the boys. “The best for last!” Nat echoed Jake. Bradley started to open the boys gift. It was in a little basket. He opened the basket and inside were little outfits and goodies for the boys.

“AWH! These are the cutest things ever, Trace!” Bradley held up the box to show you.

“Oh my gosh! That is so sweet!!!” You cooed over the box.

Jake and Bradley made the boys blow kisses to their Aunt Nat and gave them little baby voices. “Thank you Aunt, Nix!”

She smiled and blew kisses back to them. “There is one more!”

Bradly grabbed the other box and helped little Brad open it, inside was a Star Wars mood light.

“DUDE! This is so cool! I want this in my room!” Bradley held it up to show everyone.

“Thank you so much, Trace. These are so nice!”

Austin was next to grab his gifts and hand them out. “I hope y’all like them. I kinda suck at gifts.” He started to chuckle as he sat back down on the couch.

Nat started with her gift. She opened it up and pulled it out. She started to laugh and held it against her chest. “Aus, you got me a carhart jacket too!?” She reached over and placed her hand behind his head and pulled him in for a kiss. “Thank you, I love it so much!”

Austin smiled. “Do you actually like it? I remember you told me a long time ago that you’ve always wanted one. And I saw your closet and you still didnt have one until now.” He smiled at her.

She cooed over his gesture and gave him another kiss. “I love it even more, Aus. Thank you.”

Jake shook his box. “Did I get one too? So I can join the crew?” He laughed and opened his box. “Oh wait a minute! This is even better!” He held up the toiletry bag and opened it. “OH MAN!” He started to laugh. “Thank you, man! I love this! And also really needed this!” He started to pull out hair products.

“You take great care of your hair and thought I could get you some more stuff. You looked like you were getting low in the bathroom.” Austin fist-bumped Jake.

“This man is fucking damn smart. He was snooping around our stuff and got us what we needed!” Jake started to laugh. “Thank you so much dude!”

Austin gave him a wink and a thumbs up. Next was Leia. “Leia Rey, why don’t you open yours next, sweetheart.” He pinched Leia’s cheek and smiled.

Leia started to open her gift. She squealed and pulled it out of the box. “ITS A ROOSTER!!!” She held the squishmallow above her head. “THANK YOU THANK YOU AUSTIE!” She gave him a kiss and gave her new toy a big hug.

He pushed Leia’s curls from her forehead and gave it a kiss. “You’re welcome, my sweet girl.”

Austin pulled out a collar from behind him. “I didn’t get to wrap it, but I got this for Gunner.” He got off the couch ad went over to Gunner in his bed and placed a new collar around his neck. “There ya go bud.” He gave his head a few scratches before returning to the couch.

You opened your next It was a pretty heavy box. “Gosh what is this, Austin?” You started to unwrap it.

“I thought your house could use one. Here in Hawaii and back home in San Diego.” He smiled as you opened your gift.

“Oh my goodness…” You froze. It was a record player. “Austin….”

Everyone was shocked. “HOLY SHIT THAAT IS NICE, BABE!”

Nat smiled and handed you another gift. “We both got this for you and Rooster.”

You started to open it. It was a custom vinyl with a picture of you and Bradley on it from your wedding. The vinyl was named “The Bradshaws.”

“It has music on there that you and Bradley love. From songs you would recommend to each other, songs you dance around to in the house or even out places, and your wedding song.”

You started to cry. “You guys… This is beautiful. Thank you so much!” You got up and went to hug the both of them. “I love this so much. Oh my gosh.” On your way back you gave Bradley a kiss.

“I’m glad you love it, Darlin. Natasha really helped me out with it. You should really thank her.” He started to laugh.

Bradley opened the gift for the Boys. “Look at these!” He started to laugh. They were matching onesies that said, “Bro’s for life.” Bradley gave one to Jake to hold against Luke. “Dude they are gonna wear these every day. These are too good. Along with the drinking buddies bibs!” Bradley smiled and held it against little Brad. “Thank you, Uncle Austin.” Bradley made Little Brad wave to him.

Austin put the tip of his fingers on his lips as he used his other hand to wave to the boys. “I love you, boys.”

Bradley was last. He opened his gift from Austin and his eyes went wide. “This man has good ass taste.” He held up his sweater, “This looks nice and cozy, man! Thank you!” He reached his hand out for Austin and they interlocked fingers as Bradley shook his hand to show his thanks.

“I think you would look handsome as hell in that, Bradley.” Austin started to laugh.

“Oh hell no. I’m right here, Austin.” Jake looked at Austin with furrowed brows.

Bradley held his hands up to them both. “There is enough daddy to go around. Relax.”

Everyone started to laugh and Nat made a disgusted face. “I’ll Pass.” Everyone started to laugh harder.

Up next were the gifts that Bradley, You, Leia, the boys, and Gunner got for everyone. Leia handed out the gifts.

“Uncle Jakey first!” She clapped her hands in excitement.

“We all get two gifts??” He said excitedly. He started to open the first one. He opened it up and pulled it out. He started to laugh loudly. “I’M A PART OF THE CREW! A CARHART!” He started to laugh. “This one is different, but at least I get to stand out from you nerds.” He put it down and gave all of you hugs and kisses. “Thank you! I love it!”

Bradley shook his head. “You’re welcome, Bagman. Now opened the other one.”

Jake started to open the second gift. He bursted into laughter even louder this time. “OH SHIT! NO WAY!” He held up another carhart, “NOW I AM REALLY PART OF THE CREW!” He held up a navy blue jacket that was in the same fit as Bradley’s and Nat’s. “God I love it! Thank you!” He couldn’t stop laughing.

“Aunt Nix now!!” Leia bounced up and down.

Nat started to open her first gift. She pulled out a flannel jacket. “Oh this is so cute!!” She was feeling its fabric, “Y/n definitely picked this out.”

Bradley and you started to laugh. “She most definitely did. She picked it up and was like ‘oh babe! This is totally something Nat would wear!’ And how could I not agree because it definitely is something you’d wear.”

Nat started to laugh. “I love it!”

Leia gave Nat her second present. “Now this one!” She watched excitedly as Nat started to unwrap the box.

“Hey! This one is really nice too!” She pulled out an oversized jean jacket. “This is so cozy and cute!”

Leia jumped up and clapped. “I picked that one for you Aunt Nat! Do you like it!?” She waited excitedly for Nat’s answer.

“Oh my Leia girl, I love it even more now. Thank you so much, pretty girl.” Nat pulled Leia to her and gave her a kiss on her cheek. “You sure know how to pick good clothes. You must get that from you momma.” She looked over at you and winked.

“I guess that’s my cue.” Austin laughed and opened his first girl. He pulled out a nice quarter-zip sweater. “You guys just really know my taste don’t ya? This looks comfy!” He felt the inside of the sweater. “Oh, this is so soft! Thank you guys!”

“Next one Austie!!” Leia pointed to his last gift.

He opened it and inside was a white sweater. “Oh man, I can layer these! This sweater is so nice! Thank you so much!”

Bradley started to laugh. “I like how we all got each other clothes that we cannot wear while living here because we will sweat so much.”

Everyone started laughing. “We will be ready for cold California when we all get back, but even then San Diego will start warming up again when we are all back.” Jake started to laugh.

“Okay now you all open your gifts!” Phoenix adjusted in her spot as she got ready to watch all of you exchange gifts and open them.

You started and handed all your gifts out to them. Leia and Bradley opened the gifts for the boys. You got little Bradley and Luke baby blankets. Luke’s was Darth Vader and Brad’s was Grogu.

“Here you go babies. From momma!” Leia handed each of her brother’s their blankets and they instantly started to play with them. “I think they like them momma!”

Leia was next. She opened her gift and pulled out a little box. “Momma, what is it?” She looked at it curiously.

“Open it, babe.” You smiled at her.

She opened the box and saw a little necklace with a teddy bear on it. “Oh my gosh! It is so cute, momma!” She held it up to show everyone. “Daddy, can you put it on me?” Bradley put it on her neck and you came down next to her.

“The cool thing about it Leia is that I have one that goes with it.” You showed her yours that you were wearing. “Yours can fit into mine. Watch.” You grabbed your teddy bear and she grabbed hers and her little teddy bear fit right into yours.

“Momma… I love that.”

You kissed her cheek. “Always linked, Forever loved.”

She smiled as she looked at both your necklaces together. “Thank you, momma. I love it so much!”

Gunner was passed out in his bed so Bradley opened his gift, “Oh babe you didn’t!” He started to laugh. “You got him a doggy car seat!” He started to bust out laughing. “Now our cars back home will have 4 car seats. Holy shit.”

Last was Bradley. He opened his gift and his eyes went wide. “OH MY GOD! YESSS!!!” He finished ripping the paper off of the big box. “A DOUBLE BABY CARRIER! I WANTED THIS SO BAD!” Everyone started to laugh. “You guys don’t understand. Once I found out we were having twins I would always send pictures to y/n when she was back home of these things. I wanted one so bad.” He yanked it out of the box and looked at it. “Now I can carry one on my back and one on my chest! SWEET!!!”

Bradley went over to you and kissed you over and over again. “Thank you so much, baby. It’s just what I wanted!”

Bradley and Jake started to play around with the carrier. “Oh wait before we try to put this thing together. The Kids and I have presents for momma.” He smiled over to you as him and Leia went to go and grab your gifts.

You were shocked. You weren’t expecting anything, nor did you really want anything. You already had everything you needed and wanted.

Leia handed you your first gift. They were a new pair of platform Converse. You did mention you wanted these and were shocked that they remembered. “Oh, I love them! Thank you guys!” Leia gave you your next one. You shook the box and heard rattling. Bradley looked at you with wide eyes.

“Holy shit. Be careful, honey.” He started to laugh.

You unwrapped and opened the box. Inside was a Stanley cup with Star Wars engravings. “HOLY CRAP!” You looked at it in amazement. “How the hell did you get this! It was so limited!”

Bradley shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, babe. Only the best for you.” He patted Leia’s head and winked at her. Bradley handed you your next gift.

“Oh my, there is more!” You looked at the next bag with wide eyes. You didn’t expect them to get you so many. This bag felt super light. You took out the tissue paper and inside was a teddy jacket. You screamed. “I wanted this so bad!!!” You thought back to the day you and Bradley were walking around after a date and popped into a store and saw this. You wanted to buy it right then and there but you didn’t. “Oh, thank you so much!”

Bradley handed you another box. “You guys! This is a lot! Oh my gosh!” You opened the next gift and it was a photo collage. They were polaroids Bradley had saved over time. Some were of you and him in college. At his graduation from boot camp. Pictures with you, Mav, and Penny when you first met. Pictures with him and his parents, you and your parents. From your wedding, from the dates you went on, when Leia was born, and when the boys were born. You, Bradley, and the whole squad back home. You started to tear up. “How did you even get all of these, Brad?” You looked up at him and then back down to the collage.

He handed little Brad to Austin and came over to you. He kissed your head as you leaned into him. “I had a lot of help, sweetheart.” You and he continued to look at it as you reminisced. “I have another gift. But this one is from all of us.”

Jake and Austin went to the garage to grab your last gift. The guys came in with a Star Wars-themed rocking chair. “OH MY GOSH!”

You got up still holding the collage and went to go and look at it. “This is so adorable! It’ll be perfect in the boys room!” You went around and gave everyone hugs and kisses. “I love you all so much. Thank you for all of it.” You gave Bradley extra kisses. “Thank you, babe.”

He smiled at you and gave you another kiss on your nose. “Anything for you.” He held you close and kissed your head again. “I do have one more gift for you babe.”

You looked up at him in shock. “Another gift, Bradley?” You looked at him sadly. “Brad noooo!” He laughed and pulled a little box from the inside of his waistline. “Merry Christmas, sweetheart.”

You opened the little box and inside was a ring. “Bradley… What the hell…” You gasped and couldn’t say another word. Bradley pulled it from the box and asked for your hand. “Bradley….” You started to cry.

He took his mom’s ring off and placed it into the box. He gave the box to Jake to hold. “Bradley no!” You were trying to reach for the box and he held your hand to him.

“You will always have my mother’s ring, sweetheart. It’s not going anywhere. I know she would have wanted me to give it to you. Mav always told me my mom left it behind for me so I could give it to the love of my life. And even though it’s such a beautiful gesture and has so much love and meaning behind it. It was a gift from my father to give to my mother to show his love for her. It will always be the symbol of love in my life for me. However, I wanted to get you one that was from me. One that I wanted to pick out specifically for you, to show you my love. A symbol of our love. Forever.” He placed the ring onto your finger and kissed it. “I love you, sweetheart, forever.”

You looked at the ring in amazement. It was definitely bigger and different from Carole’s ring. You grabbed Bradley’s face and kissed him over and over again. “You could have gotten me a ring pop and I would have taken it, Brad. This is so much!” You stated to weep. “I love you, always.”

Leia jumped around. “Momma and daddy are getting married agaiiiin!!!” You and Bradley started to laugh as she hopped around you both.

Everyone came to look at the ring. “Jesus that is one beautiful ring!” Nat grabbed your hand and looked at your new ring. “It’s mesmerizing! Look at it, Aus.” She showed your hand to him.

Austin picked up little Brad and came over. “My oh My. That is so nice. Carole’s ring is just as beautiful, but man this one has it’s own beauty to it.” He patted Bradley’s back with his free hand. “You picked a beautiful ring, Brad.”

Bradley smiled and put his arm over Austin’s shoulders. “Thanks, bud. Anything for my girl. I feel she deserves more than that but when I saw it, I thought it’s as beautiful as her.” Bradley smiled up at you as you blushed.

Jake came to look at your ring as he held Luke against his hip. “DAMN ROOSTER! That is a METEOR.” He showed your hand to Luke. “Look buddy. College tuition.”

Nat slapped Jake’s shoulder. “Bagman do you always have to ruin everything. Gosh!” She shook her head and grabbed Luke from his arms.

Jake started to laugh as he kissed your temple. “I am only kidding, y/n. It’s such a beautiful ring. Bradshaw sure knows how to pick them. So pretty, honey. You make the ring look even better!” He wrapped his arm over your shoulder and patted them.

Bradley started to laugh. “You are definitely something else, Seresin.” Bradley shook his head and snickered at him.

“Now. Real question. Where is my ring, Rooster boy?” Jake raised his brows at Bradley.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A super late Christmas chapter! But y'all wanted it to be part of the storyline! I hope you enjoyed it! The end of this story is near and I don't know how to feel 🥲 I'll see all you babes in the next chapter! 🫶🏼

Hangman's elves are in the comments 🎅🏼

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zerobaseone-zhanghao · 3 months

Text

the coffee shop encounter

This is Part 2. Part 1 will be linked below.

t/w: sugar mommy!reader & sugar baby!Bada, adult!reader & minor!Bada, accusations, little bit of angst

a/n: hi guys! I hope you enjoyed part 1, and if you haven’t read it yet then please read that before you read this but for the best understanding (linked above)!!

=====================================

You hadn’t heard from Bada or her parents in a few days, so you just assumed that they said no and Bada forgot about it, that was until one day you received a phone call from Bada.

“Hi unnie, can you come over to my house today? My address is ***” “sure! I can come, do you need me to bring anything?” “Umm.. I don’t think so” “okay I’ll see you later” “okay bye unnie!”. She sounds cheery, maybe her parents decided in favour of you.

You’re currently in your company building so you decide that it’s probably best to grab some documents before you go just in case Bada’s parents aren’t sure about you.

After grabbing everything that you may need, you get into your car and drive to the address that Bada told you on the phone. It’s a beautiful little house and you gather your belongings before walking up to the door, you quickly fix your clothes before ringing the doorbell, you looked professional as you always do for a day at the company.

Bada opens the door, flashing her gorgeous smile to you and welcoming you in, she points to a pair of slippers she has at the door for you so you slip your heels off and replace them with the comfy slippers before following Bada into the main room where both of her parents are sat.

“Hello Mr and Mrs..” “Lee” the man replies, “ah Mr and Mrs Lee and.. random person it’s nice to meet you, I’m Y/N L/N” “it’s nice to meet you Y/N, this is our lawyer” “so we want to know the basic arrangement first off” “I understand, I would like to support your daughter financially to help her to gain as much experience as possible to help her gain her dream job, all I want in return is to spend time with her” “and about global opportunities?” “I want her to have a look for opportunities that she’d like to do and I’ll pay for the trip and I will go with her, if she’s not comfortable I will get 2 hotel rooms but it’s completely up to Bada”.

“I’ll completely support Bada financially, I’ll pay for her trips, opportunities, dance classes and living expenses, she’ll also have disposable income from me”. “How often would you want to see her?” “At least 1 hour, once a week but it’s completely up to Bada, I am flexible so if there is a week where maybe she’s ill as long as she contacts me to let me know beforehand”.

“Do you have limitations?” “Obviously nothing sexual as she’s a minor and anything that Bada is uncomfortable with is a limit as far as I’m concerned. I would want this to be as comfortable for her as possible”.

“Hmm something seems fishy” “eomma” “you’re a 20 year old millionaire and you’re not a chaebol (nepo baby), how can we be sure you wouldn’t be dragging our daughter into some illegal activity?” “Eomma stop!!” Bada complains before running off to her room. “I understand your concern and I have documents with me which prove I am who I say I am and my profits are correct if you want to see them? I haven’t taken part in identity fraud, embezzlement or tax evasion”.

You hand the documents over to Bada’s parents as they have a look at them. They then hand the documents to their lawyer who confirms that the documents are correct. Bada’s mom holds your hands “Bada has been so excited about this opportunity, now that I’ve made sure that this is safe for her, who would I be if I took this away from her?” “That’s great, thank you!”.

“Could you go fetch Bada from her room?” Bada’s mom asks you “sure I’ll fetch her”. You walk towards Bada’s room, the door labelled with her name and a cute drawing of a wave to match. You knock on the door, “Bada, you okay?” The door is unlocked so you walk in to see Bada lying on her bed facing towards the wall so you can’t see her face.

“Bada” you lay a hand on her shoulder and she flips round to face you. She has obvious tear stains on her cheeks and red eyes. “Aw honey, it’s okay” you give her a hug, “I just can’t believe that my parents would accuse you of something like that”. “It’s okay baby, I completely understand your parents, you’re their little girl, they just want to protect you”.

She hugs you tightly, “I’m glad I’m not going to lose you”, “me? Or this opportunity?” “No you unnie, I noticed you as well in the cafe and I thought you were pretty and when you spoke to me I thought you were really nice and soft spoken”. “That’s so cute Bada, you’re so sweet” “do you think my parents would mind if I kissed you?” You chuckle, “I think so, I’m an adult and you’re a minor, I don’t think they’d be very impressed”. Bada leans closer, “well unnie, to be honest, I don’t care what they think” she turns her head and moves even closer, kissing your lips.

“Bada” “please be quiet unnie” she kisses your lips again. You can’t take it anymore and you pull her closer by her waist and kiss her passionately. Good thing her parents didn’t see.

#bada lee x reader #bada x reader #swf2 x reader

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wardenparker · 1 year

Text

Bright Lights & Broken Dreams - pt 3

Dieter Bravo x female reader Co-written with @absurdthirst

Rating: E for Explicit! 18+ Word Count: 17k Warnings: *Contains flashbacks*. Cursing, food/alcohol, vaginal sex, unprotected sex, shower sex, praise/worship, mention of underage drinking, soooo much fluff. Summary: The press junket for your film becomes a coming out party for your relationship, and awards season is another turning point worth waiting for. The future is every bit as bright as you had hoped it would be with Dieter there. Notes: I will never give up the chance to write about Dieter at the Oscars, so yes that is in this chapter. And no I am not sorry. Not one little bit.

Part 1 ~ Part 2 ~ Part 3

“Babe! The car is here!” For once, Dieter is the one who is on time and waiting downstairs, fiddling with his phone and reposting the trailer like the studio wanted him to.

"Junket tiiiiime." You swing down the stairs with a suitcase in one hand and your purse in the other, ready to spend an ungodly boring three days staring at the walls of one single hotel out in Newport Beach. The studio knows you only need one suite, but they had the presence of mind to book a three-bedroom villa for their two stars to share with their assistants. With you and Dee in one room and Sadie and Desiree share another, the third bedroom is superfluous. But at least it provides a sound buffer for everyone's vocal enthusiasm.

You've been careful. All of you. Nothing has been given away to the public over the last ten months, and your individual fan bases have no idea that you and Dieter are back together. Or that you were ever together in the first place. This has been going well and you have decided to keep it quiet for now, not wanting to spoil the happy little bubble you've both been living in. No one even knows that you moved into Dieter's Sherman Oaks mansion six weeks ago.

“God, you’re so late.” Dieter huffs at you, although his grin shows that he doesn’t mean it at all. “Why didn’t you have Sadie pack you?”

"I am not late. I'm exactly on time." Desiree may or may not have clued you in on her tendency to tell Dieter that he has to be ready for things a minimum of fifteen minutes earlier than is actually necessary, and you have to admit. It works brilliantly. "Sadie asked for some personal time before the junket to go home and meet her baby nephew. I figured that that trumped packing my suitcase for me. She'll meet us at the hotel, though."

His own bag is waiting by the door and it’s a junket that he’s not actually dreading. Feeling better because you are going to be there and because he’s got a ten month sobriety chip in his pocket with your help. He has been sober beyond drinking wine or champagne with you. Even weed has been off limits because he can’t regulate himself.

"Ready to go, Bambi?" He looks ready – bright eyed and smiling if slightly tired, but that's your fault. You kept him up last night. Not that you're apologizing.

"I need some coffee." Dieter admits. "Maybe we can stop by and grab some?" He asks, pleading with big pouty eyes.

"Drive thru, or are you pouting at me so that I'll go inside the coffee shop and see what cookies they have today?" The two of you head out the front door to the car sent by the studio with Desiree standing by.

"Cookies." Dieter groans. Since quitting drugs, his sweet tooth has gotten worse, but he begrudgingly sweats through the workouts with the personal trainer you had hired for both of you. Telling him that you wanted him healthy so you could keep him for a long time had done the trick so he didn't whine too much.

"I'm sorry, did someone say cookies?" Desiree, as magical as she is, is sometimes nearly psychic. She has a paper bag in her hand that she wiggles in Dieter's direction before reaching forward to grab his suitcase to load into the trunk of the Town Car. "There's only one each so you don't get in trouble with your trainer, but I did not hold back on your coffee orders," she promises. "They're in the cupholders in the backseat already."

"Des, I love you." The way you hug her is nearly reverent, and you absolutely mean it. As much as you sing Sadie's praises, Desiree might be the only assistant in the world to rival her. And together? They're unstoppable.

"God." He groans happily and nearly dives into the car so he can get to the coffee, a nonfat two pumps white chocolate latte with two extra shots of espresso. "I love her more!" He calls back, happy to have his coffee and the prospect of a quick make out session in the car before having to pretend to be just your co-star for the next few days around others.

"I made him get up early to work out before we left," you explain, sending his assistant a grin before tucking your own suitcase into the trunk and climbing into the backseat after him. You've been on a cinnamon latte kick lately and the shop by his house – your house – makes an amazing one with just a touch of brown sugar steamed into the milk that tastes like heaven. The two hour drive will be a lot less tedious with Dieter in a good mood, and you have to admit that you could use the little caffeine boost as well.

"This is just what I needed." Dieter groans, sipping the latte like it is the key to eternal life but he picks up your latte to hand to you as you climb in beside him. He doesn't mind waking up for sex, he's always up for it, but he also knows he has to be on his A game to make sure he doesn't say anything. Dieter's management team has been ecstatic about the change in behavior of their client and doesn't want to break your good girl image with his still tarnished reputation.

“Thanks, love.” In the back of the car with the divider up, it doesn’t matter what you say. The only person back here with you is Desiree and she knows everything. Well – mostly everything. There are some details even she doesn’t need. “And thank you, Des.” When she climbs in after you and shuts the door, the car takes off right away. This weekend is running on a very tight schedule and LA traffic can be brutal, so there’s no time to spare.

"I hate press junkets." Dieter grumbles as the car speeds towards the freeway. "It's the same damn questions over and over by different people." The monotony of it bores him, wanting to be challenged by the questions rather than just trying to come up with new ways of repackaging the same shit.

“I know.” She sat through a hundred of these things with him, always hustling around to make sure things go smoothly, but she knows this time will be better. “At least you have good company this time.”

"That's the only good thing about this." Dieter winks at you. "As well as the soundbites for when we win our Oscars."

“You’re feeling very confident about that.” Comfortable enough to lean against his side as the car glides along the highway, you have to smile at his positive attitude. “Maybe this won’t be three days of torture after all?” The thing you always look forward to most is the cocktail party on the first night, usually because you get to mingle a little and spend time with your costars. This time? As long as Dieter is there, you’re game.

"I know you are going to win." He's confident of that, having watched the rough cut in its entirety. It was raw, real. The type of story that the Academy loves. "Hopefully the rumors that swirled during filming aren't brought up."

Unfortunately, it seemed like every kind of rumor was attached to you at some point during filming. You hated Dieter, you hated the director, you were dating your other costar, or you were dating your assistant – that one was immensely funny to Sadie, who thinks of you as a sister. “If they are, we’ll take them in stride. It’s nothing I can’t handle.” Rumors are only rumors, after all.

"I know." He murmurs, reaching down and threading his fingers with yours gently. "I just don't want my shit to splatter onto you."

“Your shit is my shit, babe. They just don’t know that yet.” Not having decided when to reveal your relationship to the world, you just know that for now, the key is to respect each other as much as possible in front of the camera.

He chuckles and sends you a grin. "Doesn't Kevin Hart have a bit that is something like that?" He asks, remembering some kind of standup special he had watched when he was baked a few years ago. "But it was like 'your bullshit is my bullshit, motherfucker'. Or something like that."

“I think it was about best friends, but this definitely applies.” You lift your joined hands to press a kiss to his knuckles and grin. “Your bullshit is my bullshit, baby.”

"Anything you want to do after the first round of interviews?" He asks, wanting to take his mind off of the upcoming questions.

“You.” The beaming grin you aim at him is unapologetic. “I’d be more graphic, but Desiree doesn’t need to be any more traumatized by our sex life then she already is.”

His chuckle is dirty and he sneaks his hand down to your thigh to give it a rough squeeze. "After the party, right? I know you want to go to the party."

“I always like to go to the party.” He knows that about you – that you don’t always like a lot of social situations but that you love a good party.

"Then we are going to the party." Dieter decrees, like he had never not been going to go to that party with you. "We just have to survive the first round of interviews."

“I promise that I packed something skimpy.” You shoot him an evil grin but just sit demurely in your seat and sip your coffee like a perfect angel.

Groaning, he rolls his eyes and huffs. "That's just mean." He pouts and crosses his arms over his chest.

“It’s not mean when you get to be the one who peels it off me at the end of the night.” It’s too cute. You can’t help but giggle, and even Desiree snickers in amusement.

"What happened to your good girl image?" Dieter asks, lifting a brow. "You know the press is going to be at this party as well and I'm going to have a hard time keeping my hands off of you."

“There will be swirling rumors that you’re desperately in love with me.” You tease, knowing that the dress you packed was chosen specifically to make him drool.

"That's not a rumor." He reminds you with a grin. "I am hopelessly in love with you. Desperate and hopeless. Never wanting to be out of love again."

“Well then, for once the Hollywood press corps will actually be telling the truth.” It’s not as though that’s a common phenomenon, so it’s worth teasing about. “I love you too, baby.”

“You know that story about the squirrel was totally fake, right?” Dieter frowns, leaning in to kiss you.

"Of course I know the squirrel thing was fake." You promise him, leaning into the kiss and relishing the small moment of tenderness. "That would be utterly ridiculous."

“Good.” He’s relieved you don’t believe that and kisses you again before snapping his head towards Desiree. “Cookie?”

"Cookie!" She hands over the bag with a flourish, knowing that getting Dieter in a good mood before a junket is vital. "And while Cookie is happening, maybe you'll let me go over your schedule for the day?"

Dieter huffs. “But that ruins the taste of the cookie.” He grumbles, perking up slightly when he sees it's a peanut butter chocolate chunk. “Fine.” He whines when his assistant doesn’t respond but just stares at him like a disappointed mother. She’s really good at guilting him without saying a word. Especially now that he’s sober, which is complete bullshit in his opinion.

The lemon shortbread cookie with lavender sugar makes you hum in contentment when you see it, and you sit back to listen dutifully. Sadie had already emailed you your itinerary and it is mostly the same as Dieter’s, but you’re still going to listen. These women take extremely good damn care of both of you and the least you can be is respectful.

******

The lighting in the room is bright, making Dieter wince and slip his sunglasses on. He’s not as sensitive to the light as he once was but the damn rings are making him see halos. “Ready to get this show on the road.” He huffs, fiddling with the water bottle that was already halfway empty.

“Let’s get started.” Your nod of agreement has the production assistant by the door moving, and you adjust in your seat slightly. At least the chairs they have for you in this place are comfortable upholstered ones and not like when they try to artistically arrange actors into director’s chairs for the aesthetic of it all. You have a cup of herbal tea on a small table just out of sight of the cameras thanks to Sadie and you’re ready to dive in. But mostly because she’s withholding baby pictures until the lunch break after you deal with the first round of interviews. The first woman who walks into the room looks nervous but bright eyed, and her credentials lanyard is a website you don’t recognize. She’s obviously a fan of Dieter’s, unconsciously focusing most of her attention on him, but you don’t mind.

Dieter straightens in his chair and the urge to reach for your hand is overwhelming so he plays with the edge of the chair he is sitting in. “Why did I choose this role?” He repeats the question and chuckles. “Contract obligations.” He jokes. “No, I liked the script. It was compelling and I knew that it was going to be amazing.”

It’s barely a joke, but you smile politely and don’t fuss when the woman gets flustered and forgets to ask you the question or at least wait for your answer. You understand being flustered by Dieter, it happens a lot. He’s far more charming naturally than he knows. The second question is about travel, and this time you don’t hesitate. “London was heavenly, but the hotel where they put the cast up in the French countryside was stunning. It was really like staying in someone’s home, and they made the experience so welcoming for all of us.”

Dieter smiles and nods, not expanding any more on the topic since you had answered. You had both talked about that hotel extensively and his own opinion mirrors yours.

The rest of her questions are fairly mundane, and you wonder if she was given first in as a warm up. Not wanting to hit you and Dieter with anything too thought-provoking right off the bat since Dee isn’t exactly famous for being a morning person. The next two people in ask requisite questions about working on a period piece and what it was like to work with the singer who played the third lead. The next seemed enamored of the fact that you had a very well behaved trained dog on set and wanted to know all about acting with an animal.

On and on it went, round and round again until even your break for lunch was a blur. The food was good, at least. That’s not always true at these things. A dozen or more interviews into the first day of the junket, Sadie brings you a fresh mug of tea and promises that the end is in sight. Just two more hours of this and you can go and wash off the tedium of interviews and get ready for the party.

“I’m so ready to stop smiling.” Dieter complains under his breath, his own refreshed latte in his hands as he watches yet another reporter bring in their equipment to set up. “Can I get some booze in this?” He begs Desiree, tilting his head. “Just a shot? Hell, even Bailey’s. Just something.”

“What happened to not drinking until the party?” His assistant asks with a raised eyebrow, having every intention of enforcing the deal they made yesterday.

“I got bored.” Dieter huffs quietly. “It’s the SSDD theory.”

“You’re done in two hours, and then you get a whole cocktail party to drink at.” Desiree reminds him. “You just need to survive a little bit longer. I hear there’s even cocktails named after your characters.”

“There are?” Dieter perks up tremendously at that idea and grins. “Okay. I’ll wait. But can we please have some interesting questions?” That part might have been a little too loud because the next reporter glances up from where they are setting up their camera.

There’s a flash of recognition on the reporter’s face. The look of someone tired who probably agrees that most of the questions they were asking aren’t worthwhile. He finishes setting up and sits down, but doesn’t open the small notebook that had just been in his hand. “So.” He smiles like he understands how tired the two of you must be, or at least he’s trying to be sympathetic. “This wasn’t exactly a run of the mill production process for you.”

Dieter glances over at you, seeing if you want to take the lead but your brow is slightly furrowed, so he answers. “If you mean the fact that we shot the emotionally tumultuous scenes first, yeah, I guess you could say that.” He chuckles. “Nothing like getting the shit slapped out of you on the first day to bond with your co-star.” He jokes, flashing you a grin. “Professionally speaking.”

"You didn't get along too well at the beginning of production, if memory serves." He shifts in his seat like a snake slithering toward a nest full of eggs. "The video of the two of you having it out in a restaurant in London made the rounds on the internet for weeks."

“Oh that….” Dieter chuckles and shrugs. “It’s me.” He deflects, pointing to himself. “Everyone gets pissed at me at some point.” He offers, like it would be unusual for his co-star to not be upset with him. “Emotions were high from filming that day.”

"But from someone so poised," he gestures to you, obviously hoping that he's poking a sleeping bear and trying to shake it awake.

"Unfortunately, sometimes being human is caught on film," you answer diplomatically. "As Dee said. Tensions were high in the beginning of filming. We had a lot of very high stress and high emotion scenes right in the beginning of the process and that really had us on our toes."

“Yes.” The reporter, Steven Someone, Dieter had already forgotten who he was with or his last name, nods in agreement. “However, from the video, it seemed to be…rather personal.” He continues on. “Did it have something to do with the production the two of you starred in together on Broadway together twelve years ago?”

“Actually?” No one has ever brought that up. It seemed like it had almost been lost to history. Your show and your history together seemed invisible to modern fans, and you’re honestly thrown a little off kilter by anyone even bringing it to the forefront. “No. It didn’t have anything to do with that. It was a misunderstanding on my part and I’ve apologized.” You’ve worshiped and posed for him since then, helping his sketchbook of you grow exponentially. But that is entirely personal.

“So the rumors that the two of you have an old spat are unfounded?” He asks, looking between the two of you. “Because the film almost seems to be an extension of that. Deeply personal.”

“I wasn’t aware of any rumours.” It makes you shift uncomfortably in your seat, the way this particular interview is turning out, but maybe it would be good to smooth this over. If there are rumours about you disliking each other, it would be good to gloss over them and make sure they’re ended.

“There’s reports that the set nearly shut down the first day due to an altercation and the table read was uncomfortable because of the tension between the two of you.” He acknowledges, without really asking a question.

“The beginning of this process was definitely tense,” you acknowledge, glancing nervously at Dieter who seems shell shocked by the way this interview has gone. “If anyone else in the cast or crew was made uncomfortable, obviously that’s something that was unintentional.”

“Obviously, there’s no tension now.” Dieter chuckles. “We are all temperamental artists at times, it plays well on screen but it can be uncomfortable until you find that niche.”

“No. In fact, now you seem quite cozy.” This reporter is smiling like he has a secret and your stomach rolls anxiously. “In fact.” The second time, the phrase almost sounds accusing. “You’ve been spending a lot of time together lately, haven’t you?”

Dieter gives a small shrug, as if it doesn’t matter. “We’ve known each other for a long time.” He tells the reporter, annoyed at where this interview is going. “Of course we are going to spend time together.”

“So there’s no truth at all to the rumor that the very same moving truck that was seen in Echo Park near the home of America’s Sweetheart,” he practically points his own at you. “Was unloading just hours later in Sherman Oaks at Dieter’s mansion?”

Dieter’s eyes narrow and he shifts in his chair. “Aren’t we here to talk about a movie?” He looks behind him at the banner for the movie and nods. “Yeah, that movie?” He hooks his thumb behind him. “Our personal lives aren’t on the table.”

“You’ve called this film ‘deeply personal’.” He changes tactics but doesn’t back down. “Apparently the beginning of shooting wasn’t the only time things got tense on set. The love scenes were also extremely intimate.”

“As intimate as having a roomful of people watching simulated sex can be.” Dieter laughs. “Takes away the fun if you’re the only ones exposed. But it was an extremely professional set.” He looks at the camera and playfully gives it a ‘sorry’ look. “Nothing is real.”

The production assistant nearby gives the reporter the signal to wrap things up and you shift again, picking up your mug to wrap both hands around it like an herbal tea security blanket. The reporter looks unhappy that he has to stop but he looks at both of you seriously. “The movie is a very poignant film and if emotions were high, they translated to a fantastic performance.”

“Thank you.” Saved by the bell, you think with an inner sigh as you paint a smile on your face. “We had a sensational script and a wonderfully supportive cast of costars. And Sam’s vision as a director really brings things together.”

Once that reporter is cleared out, Dieter shakes his head. “Can we have a break?”

“We’re on a tight schedule.” Desiree frowns, knowing the publicity team won’t like it. “I can stall for a few minutes.”

“Just a couple of minutes.” Dieter nods as Desiree moves towards the door to prevent the next reporter from coming in. “How are you doing?” He asks immediately, his eyes wide. “Do you think someone actually saw the moving truck?”

“They must have.” You can’t squeeze his hand without giving yourselves away, so you keep both hands locked around your mug. “I mean I thought we were doing really well but obviously somebody saw something.” You had agreed together that you wouldn’t come out as a couple for at least a few more months. You had planned to allow yourselves to be photographed on a very well-behaved and well-earned vacation where your publicity teams could control the message and how the information disseminated to your fans. Apparently, you may need to speed up that plan.

“Shit, I’m sorry.” Dieter frowns, sure that this is somehow his fault. He was the one who insisted that Sherman Oaks was where the two of you needed to live. You didn’t own your house, so he had thought it made sense.

“You didn’t do anything wrong.” It’s a reflex of his, to apologize even when he isn’t at fault, and you shake your head. “We should just…we should decide. If we’re still going to keep this under wraps or if we’re going to open up about it sooner than we planned.” It would be okay, either way. You could still control the flow of information. Sadie and Desiree would get the ball rolling with your management and publicity teams now instead of in six more months. “I guess…we could always use the junket?”

He frowns, knowing that you wanted more time, and it feels like you two are being pushed into a corner. “We could.” He agrees. “I’ll do whatever you want to.”

“If we deny it up and down here and then come out at the premiere, they’ll snag us for lying.” You point out quietly. “So far we’ve never said we aren’t together, and we can keep it that way. Everything on the up-and-up. And the press will be at the cocktail party tonight.” Having to play a strategy on your own relationship is difficult, but both of you have experience in this area. “We should just…just make sure Des and Sadie have everything lined up before we do this. The whole point was to have our teams ready to go. No scandals for either of us.”

“You’re going to be the one taking a hit.” Dieter reminds you. “But I haven’t had a scandal that’s come up to bite us in the ass.” He’s been on his best behavior, to the annoyance of some of the tabloids.

“They’re going to dig for a scandalous past that doesn’t exist. It’s fine.” Part of the point is that your team will be able to speak to your rekindled romance and touch on the fact that you dated years ago during your time on Broadway. Each other’s one that got away. A very romantic spin on the reality of an abusive father controlling his son from afar.

“Dear ole dad is spinning in his grave.” Dieter chuckles. “He never wanted me to have a squeaky clean image, said it was a direct reflection of him.”

“He wanted a product to sell, not a son.” It makes you sad, honestly, and you sigh into your tea. “He never saw how amazing you are all on your own.”

“Doesn’t matter now.” He knows that, although it still hurts. It had been one of the reasons that he had never had children. Never wanted to risk fucking them up.

“I love you.” It doesn’t cure the hurts, but the whispered words make him smile and that’s what matters.

“I love you too.” Dieter wants to lean in to kiss you, but he knows Desiree can only keep them out for so long. He smiles at you and nods. “Let me know when you want to do this.” He tells you before he calls for his assistant.

“Everything okay?” Desiree and Sadie appear together an instant later with concern on their faces.

“How long do you think it would take you to be ready to go with the photo leaks and press statements?” You ask them, barely raising your voice above a murmur. “If one reporter knows things, then I’d bet anything that more do.”

“Oh shit.” Desiree’s eyes widen slightly and she looks back at the door. “We have everything ready. Just whenever you are ready to push.”

"Tonight?" In a perfect world you could just be yourselves. Just cuddle up on the sofa and be together. But your lives are more complicated than that. "Use the cocktail party as the staging ground?"

Dieter nods. “I don’t have to keep my hands off of you.” He hums happily. Any time he doesn’t have to worry about not being able to touch you, he’s in a better mood. Even the interviews where the two of you playfully touch while joking were better in his book.

"If you're ready, we'll get the ball rolling." Sadie promises, flashing a proud grin at Desiree. This publicity roll out is some of their best work. "By the time the cocktail party starts, you'll be free to snuggle as much as you like."

“Okay, let’s get this next round of interviews done.” Dieter grumbles, like he wasn’t the one that needed a break. “I want to shower before the party.”

******

It ends up taking slightly more than two hours before you and Dieter can get back to your suite to get ready, but at least you make it through things without any more nasty questions or grouchy attitudes. The second you shut the suite door behind you, you go straight into his arms to claim a hug. "Well that's done," you huff with a half-assed chuckle. "Tomorrow we get to do even more of them."

“So what you’re saying is that I need to be drunk tomorrow?” Dieter huffs, squeezing you gently and sighing softly as he burrows into your neck and inhales the scent of your perfume.

“Tomorrow we’re going to get all the questions about us.” Considering you have the two most trustworthy and effective people you know working for you, you know that whatever they’re leaking or releasing, Sadie and Desiree are doing it at this exact moment. “It should be a much more interesting day.”

“Are you ready?” He asks seriously, pulling back to caress your cheek. “Soooo many jokes about taming me. Or orgies, or whatever.”

“Well, you’ve never taken me to an orgy, so I’m afraid I won’t understand those jokes.” You remind him, putting on your best innocent face. “I’m ready, honey. Honestly. I’m sorry that our hand got forced, but I’m proud to love you and I’m glad we don’t have to hide anymore.”

“I wouldn’t want you at an orgy.” He frowns just thinking about it and slides his hands down your sides. “It’ll make red carpet walks better.”

“So much better.” His hands land on your hips and you gravitate toward him instinctively. “Are you sure you’re ready?” As much as you’ll get a few jokes or comments about taming him, he’s going to get the brunt of it. The intimate details of his life have been much more on display than yours.

“You know I don’t care what the media thinks about me.” He does but it’s not like he can undo the damage already done. All he can do is allow his image to be shaped into something else.

“I know that you say that.” With two fingers you brush a stray curl from his forehead. “But you also can’t get bent out of shape if they say things about me. It’s their job to stir shit. Or at least to try.”

“You don’t deserve it though.” He pouts, frowning at you. “I won’t.” He huffs when you just stare at him with that ‘I don’t believe you’ expression on your face.

“We’re going to have fun tonight, and we’re going to be us. The real us.” You wrap him up in both arms and hug him to your chest, grinning when he burrows into your neck again for comfort. “Everything is going to be okay.”

“I know it will be.” That he’s certain of. The alternative is for the two of you to not be together and he’s not doing that. Not again. “Do you want to shower together, or do you want to wait until we leave the party?”

"Oh no, we're definitely showering together." The wolfish grin you throw him comes with a wink, and you pull away to head into the bathroom knowing that he's right behind you. "I want to walk into that party having been freshly fucked, thank you very much."

“Fuck.” Dieter grins, rushing to pull his shirt over his head and mussing his hair up. “What are we waiting for? Get naked!”

The vague sound of a snort from the other room tells you that Sadie heard that, and you can't help but giggle as you toss your blouse onto the long counter and reach into the overlarge stall to turn on the shower.

“Jesus.” Dieter can’t help but stop in his tracks and admire the beauty of you in front of him. Since moving in together, you have modeled several times and yet he still can’t help but stare. “I love you.”

You pause in your tracks, turning around to face him with your bra off and your hands on the fly of your pants – and a dopey, lovestruck smile on your face. He really is just sweet sometimes, and it's a side of him that almost no one gets to see. You honestly couldn't be prouder or more flattered that he is so soft and loving with you. "I love you, too."

Dieter grins and pushes his pants down, he had purposefully not worn underwear because of having to sit all day, so his hard length bounces out as he kicks off the pants.

“I’m gonna buy you silk underwear one day, and you’re gonna love how soft it is so much that you’re going to want to wear it all the time.” Not that you mind that he goes commando. It’s one less layer to strip away in order to have him inside you. He loves his little luxuries, though, and you know it would make him smile.

“Why, so they can remind me of how good your hand feels?” He smirks at you as you step into the shower. This is intimate and playful, the two of you falling into an easy comfort with each other.

“I told you that moisturized skin makes all the difference.” He had teased you about being so religious in your nighttime routine of moisturizers and cleansers, but he never argued with the results.

He grins, shaking his head and wrapping his arms around you. “We have about twenty minutes.” He hums. “It’s going to have to be a quickie.”

“Then you should decide if you want my front or my back pressed against that wall,” you hum, slinging both arms around him so you can drag him down for a kiss.

“Back.” He groans against your mouth. “Easier to kiss you.”

He’s always been greedy with kisses, much to your delight, and now he backs you up against the cold marble just as eagerly as he slips his tongue into your mouth revels at the needy moan it earns him. It takes no effort to melt into him and you reach between your bodies to wrap your hand around his cock and stroke.

The way you touch him makes his knees weak, sagging and leaning into you as he plunders your mouth with his own. Eager to be inside you again. It must be a symphony of moans and whines to anyone outside your little bubble, but all you can ever focus on is Dieter. He’s all you’ve ever wanted and still all you need, and when he picks your leg up to sit on his waist you shift forward with ease, eager to have him inside you again.

“Baby, you’re so good to me.” Dieter kisses down your neck and across your shoulder. “Best drug, you, you’re it.”

"Love you so fucking much." The way he nips at your skin leaves you breathless every time and you whimper softly. "Need you, Dee. Please?"

“Yes baby.” There isn’t enough time to tease you, to draw this out. Too needy for the solace your body gives him, he lines up and sinks in faster than both of you can inhale.

"Fuuuuuuck." No matter how many times you take him it's always a stretch, like a personal challenge to your dripping cunt to see if it will ever not make your eyes roll back in your head or your chest heave to draw him as deep inside you as possible. Tonight it's a gorgeous feeling of being split open as he braces your back against the wall and drapes both of your legs over his forearms to leverage you in between the marble and his body, impaling you on his cock so quickly that it almost makes you dizzy.

“Shiiiiiiit.” Dieter hisses. “How are you so fucking tight?” He whines. “I fuck you all the time.” He loves it, cock twitching deep and he grinds his hips to try to reach a fraction of inch deeper. Feeling like he will drive through your back wall with the first thrust.

"Kegels," you tease, diving forward to kiss him when it's truly the most you can do in this position.

“Keep doing them.” He groans against your lips, too busy trying to devour you to really talk beyond that point. You love making him crazy and everything you do accomplishes that. Especially the way you moan into his mouth.

Each determined thrust drives you firmly into the cold wall, pushing a moan into his kiss and making both of you grip each other tighter. His feet firmly planted on the shower floor hold both of you steady as he rocks into you and you do everything you can to meet him at every swing of his hips. It's a precarious dance but a rewarding one, letting him hit all the deepest, most sensitive places in your greedy pussy.

“Fuck, fuck.” Dieter groans, eyes fluttering and he tries to make sure neither one of you end up on the fucking floor. “Tonight–” he gasps. “Tonight, ride me.” He begs, knowing he will be needy and submissive after a night schmoozing. He normally is.

“Want to—” You gasp, whimpering when he hits so deep inside you that you swear you’re going to go permanently cross eyed from the way it jolts through your body. “Worship tonight, baby?”

“Yes. Fuck yes.” The way you make him feel like a god is addictive. To you– it seems like he is the best among all men. Desperately soothing the ego that loves to be stroked and it's different. He knows you mean it. The love you have for him makes it even better, making him crave it just like he wants to worship you.

Coming back to the depths of your relationship with Dieter has been easy in some ways. The emotional and sexual attachments that you had fostered years ago sprang back to life as though they had never once been doubted. Trust was rebuilt over time, through tangible examples of making and keeping promises and both of you speaking up even when you were uncomfortable or afraid of toeing a line. Moving in together has been the culmination of hard work and deep love, and you have both been so proud of your hard work. Tonight is another big step but right now you let yourself revel in what comes so easily to you. Sex is like your safe haven. The place where only you and he exist. And even though you’re a half dozen thrusts away from cumming at the very most, thinking of the next time you’ll get to be in his arms is absolutely thrilling.

“Love you baby.” Dieter groans, feeling you getting ready to cum, picking up your cues like it was just yesterday that he was introducing you to how wonderful sex is. “Cum for me.”

"Love you." It might be barely bitten out on a groan but you mean every syllable. In less than a minute you're spasming around him, tight walls pulling him as deep into your body as you can manage and hands clinging to his shoulders while you whimper in his ear and come apart for him all in one breathtaking moment.

He groans, rocking up onto the balls of his feet and scrambling back to press his lips to yours. Needing to kiss you will he tumbles off the edge after you. Only managing to thrust two more times before he is grinding deep and shuddering as he fills you.

You stay pinned together like that for as long as it takes to get your breath back, exchanging small kisses full of indulgence before he finally lets your legs down and makes sure you're steady on your feet. "We should wash up," you murmur unconvincingly, needing at least two more quick kisses before you even think of reaching for the soap.

“I think this might be the first time I’ve ever been disappointed to have a party planned for a night.” Dieter huffs, amused at himself. Normally he would already be getting hammered to pregame, but if you were to decide to stay in this room, he would snuggle up to you and order room service.

"It will be fun." At least you don't have to pretend anymore, and that is its own kind of fun and freedom. "You can kiss me in public now. Remember that."

“But no making out, right?” There had been a meeting with your own PR about what kind of PDA would be permissible to continue to craft your more respectable image.

"Right." A face cloth and body wash make it into your hand with the intention of each of you washing yourselves, otherwise you would never leave the overlarge shower. "And touching is fine but no groping. It's like foreplay for PDA," you grin at him, handing over the soaped-up cloth.

“What about a butt squeeze?” Dieter pouts, still not completely happy with these rules. “Just one! It will be tasteful.”

“How about resting your hand there for no more than five seconds.” While your publicist had looked at you like you have six heads when you told her about Dieter, she had since come to think of it like a challenge. A professional test, of sorts. Could Dieter Bravo be made to look respectable? Only time would tell.

“Only if I get to flex my fingers for the last second.” He compromises, grinning as he starts rubbing the soapy rag over his body. He knows how much you like his butt squeezes. And his boob squeezes, and it’s not like he’s trying to negotiate that for public spaces.

“Deal.” There’s a silly grin on your face as you put your hand out for him to shake like it’s some kind of shady business bargain instead of a goofy moment between lovers.

“Guys!” Sadie’s voice is muffled from the other side of the wall but still clear. “Rivkah and Monique are here to get you ready! No time for round two!”

“There’s always time for round two!” Dieter yells back, even as he steps out from under the water and turns off the shower.

It only takes a little while for both of you to get ready, thanks to your teams, and the all-black ensemble that Desiree had packed for tonight has just a few accents of blue to subtly match your dress. You hadn’t planned to come out tonight, but the decision to leave subtle little clues in your outfits for the weekend was a very good one after all.

In the elevator, you squeeze his hand and lean your careful coiffed head on his shoulder. “Are you ready for this?”

“As long as you are.” Your fame being impacted is the only downside of this in his opinion. He knows his own reputation. It will be met with disbelief and then there will be bets made on how long it lasts and if you try to hit him with a car when you inevitably break up because he’s fucked up. He knows all this. He just hopes you can put up with it and remember that the past is behind him.

“I’ve made my decision.” You tell him honestly and reach for his hand to thread your fingers together as the elevator descends to the first floor. “And if Hollywood makes me pick between it and you?” Exhaling softly, your eyes flick up to his. “The answer is you.”

That makes Dieter have to bite his lip, emotional from your confession. “I’d pick me too.” He teases softly, squeezing your hand.

With time enough to roll your eyes at him playfully before the elevator doors open, you smirk and return the squeeze of his hand. “Careful. Or I won’t stroke anything besides your ego tonight.”

“You love stroking Mr. Wiggles.” Dieter mutters under his breath, just to make you laugh before he steps out and pulls you out behind him. He hasn’t named his penis and if he did, it wouldn’t be Mr. Wiggles.

Thanks to the well-timed comment you’re choking on smothered laughter as the doors open, and the very first picture taken by a photographer of you and Dieter as an official couple has you beaming at him with a broad and honest grin on your face and laughter in your eyes as he holds your hand. It’s a beautiful image. The two of you are dressed immaculately and happy, the perfect picture of romantic bliss. You doubt either of your teams could have planned a better image.

Just like he would have with any starlet he was escorting to an awards show, Dieter is attentive. However, this time, it’s more intimate. His smiles are real and his hold on your hand never wavers for a moment as some of the reporters start to immediately buzz with excitement.

The ‘carpet’ you have to walk is actually the main hallway through the hotel which has been blocked off and styled as a greeting area so that no one not in attendance would have any idea you weren’t at an elegant party. The party itself, however, is outside. The entire patio and garden area of the hotel has been turned into a cocktail area with room for schmoozing and music for dancing. It will be fun, you just have to get to it first. The very first reporter to get your attention asks the standard questions about what designers you’re wearing, and you excitedly name names and give details so that the independent women designers you worked with for this event would get their due attention.

“Don’t ask me!” Dieter shrugs and grins. “I only know that the clothes feel really good and she looks amazing.”

“He’s wearing Gucci.” You grin, having gotten that tidbit from Desiree earlier. “Head to toe.” When he looks at you with surprise, you just shrug. “You look amazing, too. I was curious.”

Grinning, he winks at you and then back at the reporter. “She’s going to have me styled in Gucci all the time now.” He jokes. “But we’ll see, right?”

“Do you have a hand in his style these days?” The reporter asks, confusion indicating that she hasn’t picked up on what you two are trying to give away for free.

Lips quirked into a knowing grin, you nearly wink at the reporter on your own this time. “Most girlfriends do, don’t they?”

Dieter almost laughs at how wide the poor woman’s eyes get, nearly choking on air as she immediately tries to talk again through her excitement. He doesn’t though. He just gives her a concerned look as he stands beside you.

“This film was an adventure.” You tell the reporter with a smile. This quote will be used over and over again, so you have made yourself memorize something nice from your publicist instead of trying to improvise. “We were lucky to be able to have that adventure together.”

The reporter who had started grilling you during the junket nearly spills a drink as he starts jumping up and down. “I knew it! I fucking knew it!”

"Oh?" The amusement on your face is notable when you turn to find the man nearly flailing in your direction. "Then you should have asked directly." Not that you wouldn't have been a deer in the proverbial headlights if he had, but you can pretend otherwise.

It’s almost worth the annoyance Dieter had suffered earlier to see the devastation on his face as the reporter realizes he lost the exclusive scoop. It was now going out, might already be posted.

The next reporter on the carpet is a man you're familiar with. He's worked for his magazine for a decade by now and routinely does these junkets, but didn't sit with you today – his interview must be scheduled for tomorrow. "Hi Tom," you smile cordially as you and Dieter step over in line and you shake his hand warmly.

He's a nice guy. Likes to talk about his kids whenever he gets the chance, so you make small talk about little Ashley and Kaiden for a minute before he flashes a big smile at you. "I have to know how it happened," he insists with a breathless laugh of disbelief that you have a feeling is going to be the resounding reaction tonight.

Dieter glances over at you and smiles. “We’ve known each other for a long time. We did a play together twelve years ago and had a relationship then.” He shrugs. “I was an ass, she unbelievably decided to give me another chance.” He’s been willing to take the blame for the past and frame you as this saving angel if it helps. “The chemistry was still there.”

“Twelve years ago?” Tom sounds shocked but also soft at that revelation. Like it’s some kind of magical gift — and maybe for you and Dieter, it is.

“Not everyone gets a second chance,” you hum, still smiling, but this time that smile is gentle and aimed at Dieter before turning back to the reporter you have known for several years. “We’re very lucky. Why don’t we tell you all about it when we sit down tomorrow?”

“Absolutely. But for now, the two of you look happy.” He knows he will be up late rewriting most of his questions.

“We are.” That much is undeniable, bringing warmth to your cheeks. “We really are.”

“I’m sure we will talk later but the movie was excellent, enjoy the party you deserve.” Tom nods to you and allows you to move along.

Each short moment with each reporter is some variant of this, as most people are too flabbergasted to say much of anything right now. Tomorrow you’ll be bombarded with questions but for tonight you’re going to bask in the glow of not having to hide what makes you happy.

“Well no one accused us of lying.” Dieter chuckles under his breath. That had been something he had really thought would happen. People would claim it was a publicity stunt for the movie.

“I’m sure someone will tomorrow,” you laugh nervously as he guides you out, into the mood lighting and manicured decor of the party. “I think most of them were too shell shocked to even think of that.”

“Of course they are.” The bar is set up and he guides you towards it. “You – Hollywood’s dream girl – dating me.” He snorts. “Hollywood’s disaster.”

“You’re like the tornado from The Wizard of Oz,” you tell him, with a confidence that makes him snort but also look at you with a curiosity that asks why. “You swept into my life and made everything Technicolor. Sometimes it’s hard or even scary, other times it’s joyful and exciting. But either way, I wouldn’t be who I am without you.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” He can’t help but lean in and press his lips to yours in a chaste kiss. Not as intimate as he would like, but enough that he shows you how touched he is.

“It was meant as one.” Even a small kiss is a big deal right now, and you can just feel the sheer number of cameras pointed at you right now, but you still smile at him and thank the bartender who sets one specialty cocktail each in front of you - the ones named for your characters.

“To your first Oscar.” Dieter grins as he picks up the drink and holds yours out to you as a toast. “I will be proud of you and cry from the audience when you win.”

“To your second Oscar.” Gently tapping the rim of your glass against his, you can’t help the warm and cuddly feeling that all of this gives you. Like this is how it was meant to be so many years ago. This was the future you were always intended to have. Right here with him. “I will be proud of you and crying from the audience when you win.”

“Nahhh.” Dieter shakes his head. “Your performance is the stronger one. It’s your movie really.”

“We’ll see.” He has never really known what he’s capable of on his own, and is even worse at accepting a sincere compliment, so you won’t press the point. But the fact is, Dieter Bravo would have been a huge movie star even if his father hadn’t been one before him. “Let’s just go enjoy the party.”

“Of course.” He winks and throws back the rest of his drink. The next one will be sipped because he has no intention of getting too drunk. “You know how much I love to party.”

******

You had learned very early on that Dieter never threw parties, but he was always invited to them. No matter which castmate or crew member or artist friend or old school pal was having people by, Dieter was always on the top of the guest list. He was a bragging point as much as a fun guest, giving people the chance to proudly spout that a movie star had been at a party they gave. And whether he cared about that or not, he almost always showed up – and he always brought you with him. You were his devoted arm candy and proud of it, whisked around every party like a beautiful bauble. His energy had always been electric, and wherever he focused his attention was the center of the universe. And no matter how long it took to make his rounds and shine his light on everyone he could, it always ended up back on you.

“Hey Bambi.” He had gotten dragged away from you, pulled into a story telling time about his time when he was filming a nude scene at fourteen and the ethics of it. Now back at your side, he drops his arm over your shoulder and plucks the almost lukewarm beer from your hand to take a sip. He was thirsty and the buzz that attention gives him was starting to wear off. “You enjoying yourself?”

“I was just thinking of getting a new drink.” His arms rests heavy and enticing around your body and you move into him automatically to get a hint of the cologne he wears. You have no clue what it is, but it smells exotic and heady. “Wanna come with me?”

“Course I do.” Dieter finishes off your beer and leans in with a vicious smirk on his lean face. “And later, I want to come in you.” He teases in your ear before nibbling on it, just to make you shiver.

"Babe." It makes you completely weak in the knees when he does things like that – says things like that – and you've never been more convinced that starting birth control was the right move. "Does that mean you want me to stay over tonight?" You ask with a wide-eyed pout that practically begs him to say yes. In the months since you started working and sleeping together, you've barely ever slept apart. But you try not to assume.

“How are we going to go to a hangover brunch tomorrow morning where we eat wayyyyyy too many sweet and salty things if you don’t stay?” He practically pouts at the idea. Sleeping better with you beside him, though he’s never told you that.

"Let it never be said that we don't take our two-show days very seriously." A solemn nod makes you giggle, knowing full well that doing two shows each day on the weekends is something that is equal parts exhausting and exhilarating. This is your craft, and you relish the opportunity to flex all of those muscles that you have been honing since you were just a young teen back in Washington. "I'm happy to stay, babe. I just didn't want to assume."

He huffs and rolls his eyes, wanting to ask you why you don’t assume, everyone else does. No one actually ever asks Dieter permission. They just assume he will want to be at a party or go out to the bar. You constantly not knowing if you aren’t spending the night has him thinking about asking you to just give up your apartment. But he’ll wait until your lease is coming up. No need for you to pay a penalty.

You don't tell him that you're terrified that he's going to get sick of you. That being too clingy or too emotional or too anything will be what makes him decide that the novelty of you has worn off. Telling him that would surely be the last nail in the coffin of a relationship that has come to mean so much to you, so you just smile instead and sidle up to the kitchen counter at this house party that has been transformed into a bar. "What are you in the mood for?"

Immediately distracted, Dieter strides up to the bar and reaches for the harder liquor. “Do you want me to make you a drink?” He asks. “It’s the very first drink I ever had.”

"Sure!" Of course you're always going to say yes to him. He's had such a wonderful breadth of experiences already and you hate how naive or sheltered you can feel sometimes by comparison.

“You will find that these are somewhat of an acquired taste.” Dieter hums as he adds scotch whiskey and vermouth into a shaker and walks over to the fridge to get some ice.

"Now I'm nervous." You lean on the counter while you watch him, biting your lip and not disguising the fact that you're watching his hips move as he walks. "What exactly are you making for me?"

“A Rob Roy.” He hums as he grabs some ice and turns around to wink at you. “A very classy cocktail.”

"Trying to class me up, Dee?" A little nervous that you won't like it, you put your nose up in the air and affect an air of absolute class and sophistication to mask your worry – and hopefully to make him laugh.

Dieter snorts and sticks his tongue out at you. “I’m just hoping you snort it up your nose choking on it like I did.” He scoffs playfully. “But– to be fair– I was eight.”

"Eight?" Sometimes when he mentions things from growing up they're cute stories or funny anecdotes. Sometimes they're downright disturbing instead. This qualifies as the latter.

“Yeah.” He shrugs as if it’s no big deal and slaps the top on the shaker to start shaking it. “One of dad’s parties.”

"Of course." The first time you ever went to a party with people drinking or smoking was probably halfway through college, but that just makes you feel ridiculous next to him. He calls you Bambi for looking innocent, but sometimes you wonder if he knows exactly how deep that side of your personality runs.

There isn’t a martini glass to strain the drinks into but the plastic cups get three dashes of bitters in the bottoms before he starts to evenly divide the liquor between the two. That was his father’s secret to a good Rob Roy. The bitters are only added at the end and never stirred in. He fishes out the ice with a spoon and hands you a cup. “To your new favorite drink.” He teases, sending you a small wink.

The first sip burns, almost sending you into a coughing fit that would assuredly be the least sexy you’ve ever been in front of him, but you manage to get yourself under control enough to take a second sip and that tastes delicious. Once you get past the initial shock of strong liquor, there’s something nuanced and addictive about the drink. You flash him a grin over the top of your plastic cup and count yourself lucky that you only coughed a little and your eyes only watered a little at the first sip. The last thing you want is for Dieter to think you can’t keep up. “Actually? It’s really good.”

Laughing, Dieter takes a sip of his own drink and grimaces slightly. “Glad you enjoy it.” He hums, wanting to tell you that you don’t have to like it, not if you don’t want to. “I got trashed off of them and threw up in the pool that night.”

“Sounds…fun?” Sometimes when he tells you things like this from his childhood you really just don’t know how to respond. Without being able to relate in any way, you usually just listen and tuck the information away for later recollection. He is a puzzle, and you’re slowly starting to put the pieces together.

“Yeah.” Dieter snorts and shakes his head. “Dad was disappointed. Said a man doesn’t quit until he’s thrown up for the second time.”

“You were eight!” That isn’t the definition of adulthood in any culture you’ve ever heard of, and you immediately move to put your arms around your boyfriend. “I’m sorry, honey. I try to be supportive, but that’s bullshit.”

He’s embarrassed for a moment. Wondering if you are right since he has zero clue what a normal upbringing looks like. “Doesn’t matter.” He shrugs it off and tosses you a charming grin as he slides closer to press his lips to yours. A distraction. “Just you matters right now.”

Though you can’t say you have a lot of experience with addiction, drugs, intoxicants, any of that - you do know what it is to crave. From the first time Dieter kissed you in your dressing room the day you met, you’ve craved him. Needed to have him near and felt like a piece of you was missing when he wasn’t. Maybe you know more about addiction than you think you do. You kiss him and kiss him in that kitchen, drinks forgotten until the only thing in your mind are the small sounds of pleasure coming from both of you and the way he makes you weak in the knees with seemingly no effort at all.

Dieter has you pressed against the counter, loving how easily you give over. There’s no rehearsing, it’s just natural. He’s more…dominant with you, although you do like to explore. You love pleasure and he loves giving it to you.

“God.” A voice from a few yards away rings out a groan followed by a disbelieving laugh. “Just don’t fuck in the kitchen, okay you two?”

“No promises.” Dieter jokes over his shoulder. “Not when Bambi is as beguiling as she is.”

When he breaks apart from you, you bury your burning face in his chest to hide your embarrassment and cling to his sides for that support you crave. He’s your shield against the world and the fact that someone as extraordinary as Dieter wants you is making you re-examine how you perceive yourself altogether. “Beguiling, huh?” You tilt your head back and beam at him.

“I said what I said.” He purses his lips at you playfully. “Besides, it could be considered performance art if we did fuck in the kitchen.” He’s joking, he knows you would never go for that, but it’s fun to see you squirm.

“It would only be performance art for you!” You giggle, trying to smother the giddy idea that he’s planted in your head. It’s so wildly outside of the realm of possibility, but a fun fantasy to hang on to. “If I do it, it’s indecent exposure.”

“Nahhhhhh.” Dieter takes advantage of your leaning back to laugh to lean forward and nibble on your neck.

“Deeeee…” His name is always drawn out when you whine it, and your fingers clutch the front of his shirt in fists to keep him close. You don’t want him to stop, you just want him to know what he’s doing is driving you crazy.

“I’ve got you.” Dieter chuckles and nips just a touch harder. He likes it when you are all whiny and needy for him. “What do you want baby?”

“You.” The answer is always the same. It’s always him, in some way, shape, or form. If you were back at his place already you’d be dropping to your knees in front of him. He’s barely left your neck to breathe and you giggle between gasps. “Swear to god you’re a vampire.”

“I vant to suck your bloooood.” He intones in a theatrical voice, as good as any Dracula of the old movies.

It earns him more giggles, and you reach up to thread your fingers through his hair as you find his eyes. “Vampires are sexy, ya know. It could work.”

“I’ll have to get a role as a vampire.” He grins and pretends to bare his teeth. “Just for you, Bambi.”

******

It's a touch-and-go night in some ways, as some people seem to be fascinated by the revelation of your relationship with Dieter and others seem almost agitated by it. The production team is delighted, knowing that all of the attention will only do good things for the movie. And your castmates seem relieved that they no longer have a secret to keep mum about. For you and Dieter? You've been sitting by the hotel pool chatting amiably with whomever stops by and nursing your drinks out over a long time so that you always have one in hand but never let your behavior get out of hand – which would lead to hands on each other.

One of the people you don't recognize – maybe a significant other you weren't formally introduced to or a bold reporter, you can't tell – is smiling brightly to Dieter. They're chatting away about a horror movie he was in a few years ago when you suddenly gasp dramatically and look up at Dieter with wide eyes. "You played a vampire in that," you blurt out, puzzle pieces clicking together in your head.

Tilting his head, Dieter shoots you a confused expression. “Yeah?” He asks, not quite sure what you are getting at. You had told him that you hadn’t watched many of his movies after he had left. He was surprised you knew that it was a vampire movie.

“Jessie’s house party.” It’s like an anvil dropped on you, or a house, and you can feel yourself just staring. Sure you hadn’t gone to see his movies in theaters, but you always eventually saw them in the dark secrecy of your own apartment. That one had just slipped your attention. “You said you were going to play a vampire for me one day.”

It clicks and he bites his lip. “Oh yeah.” He murmurs softly. “You haven’t seen it.” He motions towards the person he is talking to. “What’s the name of the vampire’s obsession?” He asks, not wanting to be the one to tell you.

“It’s…” The man looks between the two of you, confused. “It was some…bimbo name, wasn’t it?”

“Bambi.” Your mouth runs dry and you can practically feel your jaw unhinge at the same time that your eyes widen. “I—it…it was Bambi. Wasn’t it?”

“Bambi!” he explains, slapping his hands on his thigh. “That was it! Never understood why they named the lead ‘Bambi’.” He huffs, shaking his head. Dieter shrugs.

“I’m the one who chose it.” He says, remembering how he had insisted, even threatening to drop from the movie if ‘Deandra’ wasn’t changed to ‘Bambi’. The executive producer had accused him of trying to change it to some misogynist soft porn but he had been adamant and eventually got his way.

Your gentle hold on Dieter’s hand tightens immediately. You won’t start gushing in front of this stranger, but the silent signal to Dee is obvious. “I, um…I think it works well. Ya know…it codes the character as innocent. Naive, even.”

“It makes sense considering she was the one to destroy the vampire.” He reconsiders it, maybe even a little embarrassed that he might have insulted Dieter. “In that case, I like it.”

He wanders away before it can get awkward, making the excuse that he needs a fresh drink, but you just tug Dieter into your arms the second he’s gone. “Bambi, huh?” You murmur, holding him as tight as you can.

“Yeah.” Dieter shrugs slightly, embarrassed. “Got called a pig for that.”

“It’s a slightly unusual nickname.” If you weren’t wearing a delicate piece of artwork in the form of a full face of makeup, you would be burying your face in his chest immediately as you hug him. “I’ve always liked it, though.”

“I know you do.” Dieter hems and haws a little bit before he decides to ask. “You really didn’t know the name of the lead female character?”

“I didn’t.” You shake your head, shrugging guiltily. “It normally takes a while for me to muster up the courage to watch your movies…I always get nostalgic and it was a lot of emotions before. But I always do see them eventually. I know I said I didn’t…I just didn’t want you to know then that I…I missed you enough to watch them anyway.”

He can acknowledge that he was enough of a dick to deserve that. “I get it.” He promises quietly. “Maybe we’ll sit down and watch it together. I normally don’t watch my own shit, but I’ll make an exception for you.”

“Seriously?” He makes a rule of it. You know that. It was one of the wisdoms handed down from his father. “That would be pretty big for you, baby.”

“I’d do it for you.” He’s planning on actually watching the movie at the premier this time. For you. For your acting.

“I love you, too.” It’s nothing short of a miracle for Dieter to break his biggest rules and you know it.

******

“Don’t worry babe, you’re going to win.” Dieter hums, the buzz of the night not one brought on by chemical influence but by pure joy at the thought. As predicted, you had been nominated, for a second year in a row. This time Dieter is also nominated as well as the film itself. The red carpet had been trodden down together and the two of you had played your near year as a couple up slightly. Still shocking people that Dieter had lasted this long and that the two of you seem to glow happily.

“We don’t know that. We can’t know that.” After all, a Golden Globe win is no guarantee of an Oscar. You’d gotten one of those last year and not the Academy Award. Still, you clutch his hand as you sit down together in the front row and smile through the nerves.

“Please.” He scoffs and smirks. “They wouldn’t have put you in the front row so you can get on stage quickly in that dress if you aren’t winning.”

“Or they only put me in the front row because they wanted you here for your award.” You counter, not admitting that he has a point. The spectacular red and gold satin Carolina Herrera ball gown you have on is one of a kind and made specifically for you – and rather worth showing off.

“Nahhhhh.” He knows you are going to win. “They want me as far back as possible to keep my speech time short.”

“We’ll see.” You really have been trying not to jinx yourself, and you squeeze his hand tightly. “What do you want to bet?”

“If you win, you have to tell everyone up on stage you love me.” He teases, picking up your joined hands and kissing the back of yours.

“I would do that anyway.” His hand gets a kiss in turn. “Try again.”

He huffs, rolling his eyes and you and then leans in with a grin on his face. “You have to let me fuck you during the after party.”

“Scandalous.” But your tone makes it clear that you’re more amused than aghast, and you smirk right back at him while you enjoy the sparkle of mischief in his eyes. “Deal. Although this dress is going to be a challenge.”

“I rise to challenges.” He’s already though about how he would fuck you in this dress. “Or at least let me duck under it.”

“Whatever you want.” You promise him, knowing that he’s much better at self control these days when it comes to not doing anything reckless in public. This is…call it a treat. This is a treat for him. “But if you win?” Pretending to think, you tap your chin and grin. “We’re taking a little vacation. My treat. Anywhere you want to go.”

“That’s dangerous.” He laughs. “What if we both win?” It’s a possibility for sure this time.

“Then we do both?” It wouldn’t kill the two of you to take a break. In the year since the film you made together wrapped, you’ve both filmed at least one other project and done plenty of other professional work. You stay extremely busy.

“We could. Might be good to be seen ‘frolicking’ on a beach somewhere?” He hums in amusement. “Or we could do something really unusual. Normal, even.”

“What would we do that’s normal?” You emphasize the word, pretending to be disgusted by it.

“Why don’t we do a cruise?” His eyes light up. “Be completely cheesy and pretend we aren’t Hollywood stars and book a normal cruise. Pretend like we don’t know what’s going on.”

“Like a normal couple.” It’s quite sweet, actually, and you lean over to kiss him. “Alright. You’re on. We’ll go on a cruise and be totally normal for once.”

“But can we have a balcony room?” Dieter asks, pouting slightly. “I don’t like the interior rooms. Too confining.”

“I promise.” The grin you shoot him is beaming. “Whatever you want.”

“Ladies and gentlemen….” The announcer comes over the speakers and Dieter can’t help but bite his lip happily. “Showtime.” He leans over and kisses your cheek for luck.

It’s a long night, but awards nights always are. Waiting through all the other categories for your own is a special kind of torture, until the presenter for Best Actress finally steps out on stage.

“It’s going to be you.” Dieter repeats, completely sure of it. Of course the two of you have played up for the cameras but the night has been fun. “I know it.”

“Nervous.” One mumbled word comes through, and you squeeze his hands tightly in your own. You haven’t let his go for hours and you’re not about to now. You’re terrified, honestly, but mostly because you don’t want to disappoint him. He’s so sure and you’re so scared that you’ll fall short again.

“Don’t be.” Dieter turns and stares into your eyes. “No matter what, no matter whose name is called, I’m proud of you. I’m so fucking proud of you, Bambi.”

“You’ve got me.” He’s always told you he does, and always meant it, and the calm that knowing it brings to you runs so deep that you almost don’t even hear your own name being called. “I—what??”

“They just called your name.” Dieter beams and rockets you up out of your chair to hug you. He can’t get up on the stage with you, but his kiss can linger on your lips.

“They—” The camera that swings around you gets the perfect shot of the congratulatory kiss, but you don’t even register what’s happening aside from Dee being the one to tell you that you’ve won. He takes two steps forward with you to make sure you’re steady on your feet before sitting back down in his seat, but you swear you’re just flying. Making it on stage is a whirlwind, and you swallow thickly when the statue is placed in your hands before you turn to face the podium. There’s a time indicator just inside your line of sight but you look down, right at Dieter in the front row.

“Thank you.” You clear your throat, dabbing tears away and letting the smile on your face grow even larger. “Thank you to the Academy for this prestigious recognition and award, first and foremost. Thank you to my unbelievably talented cast mates, our phenomenal crew, our brilliant production team, and a grateful thanks to my family at home who still don’t quite understand why I do what I do, but love me with all their might anyway.” The audience laughs softly but your eyes never leave Dieter. “This is an honour that I’ve dreamt of for my entire life, and it is a validation of decades of hard work. I’m grateful.”

The speech you had written is still tucked into the pocket of your dress, left for a memory. You have something else you want to say in this moment, as your heart hammers and your pulse quickens to double time. “And thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to you, Dee.” The cameras that pan to Dieter now are intentional – not catching a fleeting expression but ready for whatever comes next. “Thank you for challenging me as often as you support me. For being the push I need to face my fears and the arms that welcome me home when things don’t quite go as planned. Thank you for the professional and personal growth that I know never would have happened without you. I love you, I will always love you, and I hope we have a thousand more adventures ahead of us.”

"I love you too! Finish your speech!" Dieter calls out towards the stage, his own face reflecting pride and love as he grins at the way the entire theater bursts into laughter and applause.

You can’t help but laugh, the beaming smile on your face coming with a shake off your head. “The end of my speech?” The little timer in the edge of your line of sight is almost at the end, and you swallow, looking back down at him with renewed courage. Didn’t you just say you wanted adventure? “It’s just one sentence, and it’s a question for you.” The whole room seems to take a breath at once, and you can see your co-stars turning to stare at him in the front few rows. “Dieter Bravo, will you marry me?”

His jaw drops in shock and it seems like the entire venue, maybe even the world are holding their breath as they wait for his answer. He can't believe that you just asked him to marry you, but your grin hides the slightly panicked worry in your eyes. As if he would say no. He stands up and huffs: "Took you long enough to ask!" He answers playfully. "Of course I'm going to marry you, Bambi!"

Disbelieving applause and hollers pulse through the crowd as you move to the edge of the stage to meet him for a kiss before being ushered backstage. You’ll see him again in just minutes, but for right now your heart is beating out of your chest. You actually just did that. And he actually said yes!

Dieter accepts the congratulations of nearly everyone seated around the pair of you, your little proposal almost overshadowing the most important part. Now he's going to ask you if you were serious.

You make it back to your seat after the next award, right as the commercial break hits. The statue that will bear your name has been handed off to be engraved and without it in your hands you can practically drive back into Dieter’s arms in the seats.

“Tell me that wasn’t just to be on every Hollywood and Academy Awards reel for the rest of time?” He begs, immediately pressing his lips to yours as soon as the words are out of his mouth.

“They just got the benefit of me finally getting the balls to ask.” One—two—three quick kisses shared between you leave the two of you grinning breathlessly. “I mean it, baby. You and me. Forever.”

“I want a marvelously tacky ring.” Dieter warns you with a waggle of his brows. “Maybe a different kind of ring of engagement.”

“I knew you were going to want something alternative.” Giggling into another chaste kiss, you slip your hand into his and squeeze it tightly. “You wanna go shopping tomorrow? Engagement rings of all varieties?”

“You think they have diamond cock rings?” He asks quietly as they announce the category for Best Actor in a drama.

“Already looked into it,” you promise in a whisper. Thank god for incognito mode on your browser, you’d thought it would be a silly birthday gift.

“Yessss.” He ignores the playback of the movie as he leans in to kiss you.

It’s the second time tonight that one of you hears the announcement before the other, and you pull back from Dieter with an excited squeak. “Baby, baby—” You grip his arms tightly. “You did it! It’s you!”

Dieter blinks a few moments and then he realizes what you are saying, pulling you up with him to kiss you again before he makes his way to the stage this time. He’s congratulated and hands are shaken, his only thoughts that nothing is going to top this. Not professionally, anyway.

“Tonight I thought that my co-star, my lover and my fiancée was going to win.” He starts out, shaking his head and looking down at the statue and then back at you in the audience. “I didn’t even have a speech prepared, I was so sure I wasn’t going to win. So yeah, I want to thank everyone on the movie, thank my fiancée for her performance and….”

Dieter bites his lip and looks out over the sea of people in the audience. He sees Dustin Mulray and Lauren Van Chance sitting together and acting lovey again for the fifteenth time and Carol Cobb is a presenter, not an actual member of the academy, but she is glaring at him from her seat. She still blames him for her bad press around Cliff Beasts 6. “I’m done.” Dieter decides. “Tonight, I am retiring from film. This will be my last one of these, so thank you.” He holds the golden statue up in the air and pumps it in gratitude before bowing slightly.

The ripple of a shocked gasp cuts through the crowd, but you feel a very different reaction for yourself – almost laughing in your seat as you clap for him. The people around you start to applaud slowly, and sure enough that ripple takes over the crowd instead until the entirety of the theater is clapping as Dieter is ushered off stage. Between the two of you, you’ve certainly made a splash tonight…

Backstage, it’s a rush to get Dieter back to his seat but everyone asks if he’s serious. He is. And now that he’s said it out loud, he’s almost….relieved. The idea has been talked about more but nothing definite had been done, now he’s taken that first step. Although he wonders what you think about that.

There’s a commercial break when he gets back to his seat, mercifully, and you grab his hands immediately. You’re with him, he must know that, but you search his face. “You couldn’t just say thanks and walk off stage?” You ask, stifling laughter at how shocked everyone is. “Do you…are you serious?”

“I am.” Dieter nods, giving you an almost relieved grin. “It’s not– nothing will beat this. Not in my current life. Winning with you– it’s the way I want to go out.”

“Well…” Lifting one of his hands to your mouth, you press a kiss to his palm and offer him a supportive smile. “Whatever you want to do, Dee. Full retirement, new career, house husband, whatever. Or if you want to start scouting theater locations, we can do that, too. As long as you’re happy.” He’s taking control of his life, which is something he’s never been able to do, and for that you have to be proud of him.

“I do want to do the theater.” Dieter admits quietly. “I don’t expect you to retire or give up your career. I just–” he sighs softly. “I hate film. Honestly. I always have.”

“I only care that you’re happy,” you promise him. “Whatever it is that's going to do that, we’ll do it together.” The grin you flash at him is a little guilty. “I might pop away once in a while to make a movie or I might not. We’ll have to see.”

“You should.” Dieter urges, bending down to kiss your hands, one then the other. “I love you. I don’t want this to just be about me. I’ve been selfish enough for my entire life plus twelve more.”

“I love you, too.” The two of you get to share one more quick kiss before the cameras whir to life again and the broadcast is back from commercial. Only Best Picture remains, but it doesn’t matter if you win. You have the best prize in the world sitting in the seat right next to you.

Watching you up on stage again, this time for Best Picture, Dieter claps and whistles from the audience, aware that you deserve this. His Bambi has become a certifiable star. One that he hopes never dims.

******

Jet lag is one of the worst feelings in the entire world, bar none. It sticks to you and dogs your brain and makes you ache, and half the time it even stops your thoughts from making sense. Right now you feel like a jumbled puzzle as Sadie presses a travel mug of fresh tea into your hands then bundles you into a car at the airport to head for home. Four months was a hell of a long time to be gone, and it feels like even more, but at least you didn’t miss any important holidays or birthdays this time. In fact – you’re ahead of the curve. It’s opening night of a new show tonight and there is nothing more exciting or enticing than getting to surprise your husband on the occasion.

Dieter rushes around, his headset half off as he shouts towards the stagehands. “To the left!” He orders. The thrill of opening night is only measured equally by the stress, but it’s honestly something he has come to love. The students have worked their asses off and they deserve tonight to go off without too many hitches. There are always issues in live performance, it’s to be expected and anticipated as much as possible. It’s his job to make sure that they are equipped with the knowledge and training to work through it and deliver a sound performance to the audience.

Desiree checks her watch discreetly, expecting to see a text from her wife when she gets you back in the car from the house. Just because Dieter had left Hollywood behind didn’t mean that she was going to leave his side — and now her job as a theater administrator means she’s his right hand in a whole other way. When the text eventually comes through, she grins and moves through the space to tap Dieter on the shoulder. “Keep going.” She murmurs conspiratorially. “I’m going to make sure the kids aren’t getting into any of the concessions candy.”

“You know they are.” Dieter chuckles, rolling his eyes at the antics that his children can get into. “They are mine after all.”

“Only two of them.” She flashes him a grin. She and Sadie had opted to adopt, and it means that those three kids have become a sort of whirlwind trio as the years tick by. “I’ll be right back,” she assures him before hustling out of the theater.

With Desiree off to wrangle the kids, Dieter turns back towards the chaos that is backstage before opening night. Putting out a handful of fires and drying a few anxious tears, most people who knew Dieter during his adult acting career in Hollywood wouldn’t recognize him. No longer the flighty, unpredictable actor, he had built this school with your help as one that would produce solid performers regardless of their background.

You don’t really get to sneak in this property – everyone who works or goes to class here knows you – but Sadie drops you off at the stage door of the main building with a grin and zips off to the main entrance to park the car and pop in on Desiree. You’ve showered, changed, and wrapped up Dieter’s opening night gift to be tucked into your purse. He’s done immense work here and you’re so incredibly proud of the man he’s become through all of his own hard work. If once in a while you show it with a gift, that seems completely reasonable, right?

He doesn’t have a chance to check his phone, too busy to even pull it out of his pocket so he doesn’t even know if you’ve texted him. The kids are cleaned up – two KitKats and a box of milk duds have been sacrificed to their sweet tooth – and they are eagerly heading off to sit in a box that is reserved for family and friends. A stagehand is sitting with them so they don’t run off, but he knows as soon as the lights go down, his kids will be glued to their seats.

Carefully slipping in through the side door of the theater, you tuck yourself into the crowd to watch the show. Eurydice is a brilliant piece of stage work in the right hands, and Dee’s deft directing combined with the raw talents of some of these kids is truly breathtaking. If you privately enjoy it a little more because it’s by the same playwright who wrote the show you did on Broadway together? That’s just a little extra nugget.

He knows that the kids are taken care of, so Dieter focuses completely on the play, every act, every scene perfectly coordinated and timed. He holds his breath when one of the boys stumbles, but he quickly recovers and delivers his line with the same tenacity that had come through in rehearsals.

It’s gorgeous, really, and when the audience gets to its feet during the curtain call you stand with them right away. Whistles and cheers come from every corner as the cast takes their bows. In the front row in the corner, you can see Dieter in this customary seat, waving his thanks in between giving his own applause to the cast. It takes a few long minutes before people start to file out of their seats and out to the lobby for the opening night party, but you have somewhere to be. Up some hidden steps and around the corner, you pop your head into the little box seat where Desiree and Sadie are sitting with the kids, ready to surprise them and bring them down so the three of you can congratulate their dad together.

Your youngest is the first one to see you. The movement in the corner of her eye caught her attention. "Mom!" She squeals, jumping up and rushing over to throw herself into your arms.

“Hey baby girl.” At ten years old, she still likes big hugs and doesn’t mind you being a little mushy, but even her much-too-cool older brother pops out of his seat when he hears your voice. “Surprise, guys!” You laugh, bathing in the bliss of having both of your kids hug the life out of you. “Did you like Dad’s show?”

“It’s okay.” He shrugs his shoulders and gestures towards the stage. “Act two, scene one, they missed the queue and flipped the lines.”

You snort softly, leaning over to press a kiss to your son’s head. “You know you’re the toughest critic in this place, so only finding one thing to point out is pretty good.”

“Still–” at twelve, Diego Bravo was just as arrogant as his father in some aspects, having grown up in this theater and knowing the plays better than some producers. Whenever he wasn’t in school, he was here – when he couldn’t convince you to let him come with you on your film locations.

“Still, we should go say hi to Dad, yeah?” You squeeze them both tight again and grin when Mia clings to your side. She’s still young enough that she’s not going to let you go, and you’re going to cherish that for as long as it lasts.

“Dad doesn’t know you’re here?” Diego’s eyes widen and he grins. “He might cry, you know.”

“I came to surprise you two goofs first.” The tip of your finger bops both of their noses. “C’mon, let’s go down to the party.” Opening night and closing night parties are a beautiful example of when this theater really feels like family – they’re never a big deal but they’re always so much damn fun. Just some bottles of bubbly and some snacks for the cast, crew, and their loved ones with music pouring through the speakers in the theater lobby, but everyone always dances and it’s always a great way to celebrate hard work.

For a man who was very seriously into drugs, he keeps the theater drug free. Maybe it’s because there’s nowhere to hide things that he’s not already thought of or the policy of one strike and you’re blacklisted strikes fear into most of the student’s hearts, there are rarely incidents. He explains it every time a new class is on boarded. He was exposed to drugs at a very young age by the man who was supposed to protect him. While they are in his school, they are under his protection. There will be plenty of that shit available in the real world, but oftentimes, it makes you unusable as an actor. The only real reason he got away with the shit he did was because of his legacy in Hollywood.

He’s in the middle of having this conversation with a party guest who brought their vape when you come downstairs with the kids, so you steer them to the bar to get some ginger ale rather than disturb your husband. You’ve heard him give this speech plenty and it sounds to be nearly over, so you can happily wait. Sadie and Desiree have brought their daughter down as well, and she and your kids might as well be on another planet as far as paying attention to things anyway. Ginger ale for them and bubbly for the three adults, you grab a fourth glass to bring over to Dee as you can hear him finishing talking to the random party guest.

Dieter feels a hand on his arm just as he nods to the guest. “It turned out good, didn’t it, Des?” He thinks Desiree is touching him and when he turns, his eyes blow wide and his jaw drops. “You!” Speechless at the sight of his wife and all time favorite human besides his kids, in front of him. “You’re supposed to be in Jakarta!”

“Surprise!” You and the kids shout all at once, and you hold out a glass to him while they collapse into a giggling fit. “I raced through the last few days of filming to get home early. Congratulations, baby. The show was beautiful.”

“Oh my god, I–” Dieter rushes forward and wraps his arms around you. “You must be exhausted. Have you slept at all? You liked it? They did a great job. Best show yet, but don’t tell the last class I said that.”

“I won’t say a word,” you promise him, hugging him tight against you and breathing in the familiar, calming scent of his cologne. “I slept on the plane. Didn’t want to be too out of it so that I could change and come straight here after landing in Seattle.”

“I can’t believe you came.” He had talked to you yesterday but he knows that there are times where your filming schedule will interfere with the theater productions.

“I missed you.” It’s sweet to see that Diego was right – that there are soft tears forming behind Dieter’s eyes. The son is so much like the father in some ways that it makes sense when he can guess at those reactions. Thankfully, Dieter had made sure that your son and daughter grew up in a much more supportive and caring environment than he ever had.

“I missed you too, I always miss you.” He presses his lips to yours, not even minding the quiet groans that come from the kids. They can be embarrassed all they want. He’s not seen you in nearly two months.

“I’m proud of you.” When you finally part, you’re beaming at him with that same warmth that you’ve always had. The smile of a woman completely besotted with her partner. “And I’m so glad I’m home.”

“You will have to sleep when we get home.” He frowns slightly, knowing you must be exhausted. “We won’t stay long.”

“We can stay as long as you want.” No one who knew the Hollywood version of Dieter would believe it if they saw him now. Attentive and caretaking, he’s come into his own as a teacher and a father. Like he was always meant for this life all along. “You deserve to celebrate with your cast.”

“I’d rather let the younger kids celebrate their hard work while I celebrate in a bubble bath with my wife.” Dieter suggests, sliding around you and hunching around your back. “What do you think?”

“Mmm, that is awfully tempting, Mr. Bravo.” It sounds like heaven, actually. Especially after twenty-three hours of travel. “That sounds very, very tempting.”

“It should tempt you.” Dieter chuckles. “I have a bottle of that wine you love in the wine fridge. Found it last weekend.”

“So hot bath, naked husband, and my favorite rosé?” When you turn your head to kiss his lips again, he’s right there smirking at you and waggling his eyebrows. It works – it always works – and you giggle into the kiss. “Consider me seduced.”

“Yessss.” Dieter hisses under his breaths and then nuzzles his nose against your neck. “Go to bed kids, daddy’s getting laid tonight.” He doesn’t speak loud enough for anyone but you to hear.

“Oh yeah.” It earns him an amused giggle and another kiss before you turn around in his arms to face him. “It’s been months,” you murmur back. “You’re absolutely getting laid.”

“Video chatting just isn’t the same.” He hums. The sex drive has ultimately slowed down, he is nearing 49 this year, but he still wants you. Always wants you.

"Thought I might stay home for a while." The last year or so has been busy. You took a mini-series that had you filming overseas and then this last movie was a lot of stunts and action, which was fun but a lot more exhausting than it used to be. More and more you find that you just want to be home with your family. "Diego's gonna be a teenager this summer. I feel like that's just trouble waiting to happen." He is, after all, a whole lot like his father. Mischief runs in the Bravo blood.

“He’s asked if he can submit an application.” Dieter tells you quietly. “He wants to attend the theater.”

"How do you feel about that?" The policy of not letting anyone under teen age take classes at the academy had kept Diego at bay for the last few years, but you knew it was only a matter of time. The kid is ecstatic in the theater and has a real eye for it. But considering everything Dieter went through as a kid, it has to be his call. He has to be okay with letting Diego become an actor if that's what he wants to do.

“I don’t think it’s right to keep the kid from what he loves.” Dieter acknowledges. “But he has to keep his grades up.”

"Agreed." It's a very big step for Dieter to be okay with this, and your thumbs smooth gently over his arms. "And he has to audition just like everyone else."

“I’ve decided I’m not going to be the one to look over his audition.” Dieter murmurs quietly. “He’s going to be pissed when he finds that out.”

"I think it's a good idea." And actually? You're glad that you don't have to be the one to suggest it. "No favoritism that way. But you could help him prep a little. I bet he would love that."

"I'll suggest that." He smiles at you, grateful that you have the answer for what he needs to do.

"Do you want to give him the application for his birthday?" He seems a lot more relaxed after just a few minutes of talking about it, but it really is down to how much he loves his kids. Against all odds, Dieter Bravo turned out to be a great dad, and you hope his selflessness and his unconditional support is making Baxter roll over in his grave.

"I think he would like that." Dieter grins, and nods. He pulls you closer and inhales your scent, something so soothing to him.

"You're a good dad, Dee." Holding him tight against you, you press a kiss to his cheek and sigh happily. Being home a few days early was well worth all the extra work that you did to get here. "And your family loves you."

"That's all I could ever ask for, Bambi." He admits quietly, sighing as he relaxes for the first time since you left. His family and his theater are all that he needs. He still gets calls, directors begging him to work with them, to star in their movies. To come back to Hollywood. He turns them all down. He had said he was done. He had told his father years ago that he wanted to be on the stage, and he had meant it, he was just behind the scenes now and it was the most fulfilling work he's ever done. Besides winning you back. Without you, none of this was possible. You are his greatest muse.

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

My Masterlist!

#Pedro Pascal #Pedro Pascal character fanfiction #Pedro Pascal fanfic #Dieter Bravo #Dieter Bravo x reader #Dieter Bravo x you #Dieter Bravo x female reader #Dieter Bravo x f!reader #The Bubble #Lost love #one that got away #movie star reader

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writeforfandoms · 1 year

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Fall Into Me 2

Find my CoD masterlist and series masterlist

This fic does switch perspectives every chapter, just as an FYI. This chapter is unique in that we get a glimpse into all the guys, but after this it’ll be one character per chapter.

Warnings: Swearing, fluff. The OC here is Jewish and that does become a focal point later on. If that bothers you, turn around now.

Word count: 2.6k

Over the next week, Rose saw at least one of them every day. At least. She finally met Rodolfo, the last member of their team.

But as much as she tried to learn about them, asking them easy questions and enjoying their company, they were learning about her, too. Not that Rose gave them much - she had a quick quip or a deflection for most personal questions.

Soap was the one to catch her off guard.

“So, you got some lucky bloke waitin’ for you?” he asked late on Friday, leaning against the counter watching her make something extra caffeinated and extra sugary for him.

“What?” Rose blinked at him, honestly startled. “Me? No.” Her smile was a little wistful as she looked back down at the espresso brewing. “But I’m ready for a weekend, take a bit of time off.”

“I hear you.” Soap watched her carefully as she made a leaf in his foam.

“Here you go. I’ll probably close up after you, see if Carmen and I can get out of here a little early.”

He nodded, taking the cup. “Thanks, bonnie. Have a good weekend, aye?”

“You too.” Her smile was a little shy, as it was whenever he complimented her.

Soap took the stairs up to their floor, too impatient to wait for the elevator at the end of the day. Nobody had left yet, at least not when he went down for one last cup of coffee.

“Dunno how you drink that,” Ghost grunted, eyeing his cup as if it held something much worse than caffeine and sugar.

“It’s not bad,” Soap said with a shrug, taking an obnoxious sip.

“You’re just saying that because it’s her.” Gaz grinned when Soap nearly spit out the coffee at the unexpected tease.

“Oi–”

“Knock it off,” Price grumbled from his office. “I thought you were leaving early to go check out some new place?” The captain didn’t look up from his computer.

Gaz huffed at having his fun cut short but rallied again. “Rudy, you coming?”

“Sí,” he agreed, exchanging a look with Alejandro.

“Ghost?” Soap turned expectant eyes on his friend.

Ghost waved him off. “Got other things to do,” he grumbled.

Soap left it at that, just looking at Gaz and Rudy.

Gaz led the way back down the stairs, tossing his car keys between his hands. As they passed the coffee shop, all three men slowed, just enough to watch Rose counting out the till. She was swinging her hips, just a little, and Soap thought she must be humming along to whatever music was playing. Her curls were held back with a clip today, some falling over her shoulder as long, elegant fingers counted out cash.

And then they were outside, and Soap forced his mind from her and on to the night ahead.

–

Monday morning seemed busier than usual at the coffee shop. Gaz waited patiently in line, but Rose barely had time for more than an extra smile and an apology for the wait. Honestly, Gaz wasn’t sure how she did it all - watching her was making him tired. And he’d been on long ops before.

He took his morning tea upstairs, nodding his greeting to Price, and settled at his desk for the moment. The rest of the team trickled in, some carrying drinks like he did.

Gaz waited until nearly ten before he took his laptop down to the coffee shop, steps near-silent. Rose was leaning against the counter, frowning down at something, at least until he opened the door and she looked up.

“Hi Gaz.” Her smile was warm and welcoming, tugging something in his chest. “Refill for you?”

“If it’s no trouble.” He smiled at her, walking up to the register.

“For you? Never.” She turned away to start on his tea, and he watched the sway of her hips. “I asked Soap last week and he got all squirrely about it, but… what is it you do?” She glanced over her shoulder at him.

Gaz chuckled. “He’s just having fun at your expense,” he soothed. “Private security.”

“That’s a new one.” Rose turned to smile at him, amused. “I’ve seen lawyers, insurance agents, accountants, a couple bookies. But never private security.”

“Probably sounds more exciting than it is.”

“I’m sure you manage to have fun, regardless.”

Gaz smiled a little. “Seems you’ve got our number.”

“Not quite.” Something flashed in her eyes, a sort of awareness. “But I’ll get there, just you wait.” She winked, easing the atmosphere, and he huffed out a laugh.

“Mind if I sit here for a while?”

“Please, feel free.” She motioned to the tables. “That’s what they’re for.”

Gaz settled at a table where he could keep her in sight while he worked. His tea was perfect, as always. Really, he’d meant to tease Soap with that comment about it being her that made things special, but… maybe he hadn’t been so far off the mark.

And then she started humming along with the music playing from the speaker behind the bar. Her voice wasn’t technically the best Gaz had ever heard, but she could follow the music just fine.

(He’d absolutely deny watching her sway behind the counter, though.)

It was a peaceful way to spend the rest of his morning, and Gaz didn’t move until after the lunch rush had gone, keeping an eye on her and watching her unflagging cheer.

–

Rudy made his way down to the coffee shop on Tuesday afternoon. He and Ale had to go offsite to inspect a few things, so he had volunteered to get them coffee to go. Honestly, he was glad to have the chance to talk to Rose on his own. Just to get a better idea of what kind of person she was.

“Hi,” she greeted as soon as he walked in. “Rodolfo, right? What can I get for you today?”

He glanced around the coffee shop as he rattled off Ale’s order, and ended up copying it. Made things easier for him. The coffee shop was cute - four tables in the front offered a place to sit, with warm lighting keeping the whole shop cozy. Behind the bar was neat and tidy, although he knew it wasn’t always. The cookie display was filled and also clean. It was easy for him to see the love that went into a place like this.

“Penny for your thoughts?” She paused in front of him, gaze open though a hint of worry pinched the corners of her eyes.

“It’s very nice in here.” It was the first thing that came to mind, really. But apparently that was good enough, because her smile bloomed warm and bright for him.

“Thanks! Took me a while to get this place just the way I wanted it.”

“You did this yourself?” He didn’t try to hide the fact that he was impressed.

“Most of it, yeah.” She scratched the side of her nose, blushing a little. “Whoever operated it before me didn’t keep it up. It was pretty gross when I got it, but that worked in my favor. I got a big discount.”

Rudy chuckled quietly. “Still, you have done a lot with it. You should be proud.”

“I am.” The almost wistful tilt to her mouth said more, but he didn’t pry. It wasn’t his place. “Are you making any major changes to your office?”

Rudy shrugged. “I have not heard,” he admitted easily. “That would be up to the Captain. Ah, Price.”

Interest sparked in her eyes, and for a moment Rudy thought he would have to tell the team-approved misdirection. But she surprised him by simply nodding. “If I remember right, you’ve got lots of natural light up there. Could probably have a few plants.”

“Maybe.” Rudy blinked at her, surprised.

“Well, here are your coffees. If you drink Alejandro’s, I won’t tell if you don’t.” She winked at him.

Rudy laughed, holding up one coffee in a salute. “Gracias, bonita.” He chuckled at her little splutter behind him and walked out.

Well. She was certainly cute, and he was beginning to understand why some of the others got quite distracted around her.

–

Alejandro hadn’t intended to stay late on Wednesday, but, well… Needs must. And since needs must, he also needed a little pick-me-up.

So he jogged downstairs to get a coffee.

He caught Rose just as she was coming to the door, and he felt a twinge of regret. Especially since a glance at the nearest clock showed it was just after 6.

“Do you need a drink?” she asked, holding the door open for him.

“I apologize, I hadn’t realized the time.” He held up his hands, close to backing off. “I will go elsewhere.”

“Nonsense.” She motioned him in with a kind smile. “I’m not closed quite yet. What would you like?”

“Just a coffee.” A little reluctantly, he followed her up to the counter, watching as she lifted a portion of it to get to the machinery on the other side.

“Hazelnut? Vanilla? Raspberry?” She glanced back at him as she filled a cup most of the way, leaving room for cream.

“Just this is plenty.” He pulled out his wallet as she set the coffee in front of him.

“Don’t worry about it.” She waved off his money, still smiling. “I was just going to throw out the rest of the drip coffee by now anyway. You’re doing me a favor.”

Ale shook his head, though he was smiling. “You are too kind,” he murmured instead. “You are going home after this?”

“Just have to count out the till and lock up.” Rose didn’t rush him, though, instead working on putting things away while she chatted.

“You be safe, hm?” He almost winced after he said it. Almost.

But Rose didn’t take offense. If anything, she softened. “I always am,” she promised him. “I hope whatever you’re staying late for goes well.”

“If I survive, I’ll tell you tomorrow.” He smiled at her laugh, enjoying the sound of it even as he left. He stopped at the elevator and turned to look back through the glass doors, watching as she locked the doors. She caught his eye and waved before the elevator doors closed between them.

–

Ghost didn’t mind staying late. Not like he had a plethora of other places to be, after all. (And if occasionally that meant getting to shove Price out of his office to get some damn sleep, well, nobody was around to accuse him of it.)

It was nearly 1930 by the time he left the office, locking up behind him. The quiet of the building told him he was likely the last one out. Again, fine by him.

He paused on the ground floor, glancing around. The lights in the coffee shop were still on. Odd. She was never open this late.

For a moment he stood outside the glass door, looking in, debating with himself. He could continue home - it wasn’t his business, nor his problem.

Then he heard swearing from inside, tired and aggravated. Ghost huffed. Well. If nothing else, he’d throw Johnny at her tomorrow.

The door was open when he tried it, and he scowled a little. Risky. Anyone could walk in. (The irony of that statement was not lost to him.)

“We’re closed!” Rose called from the back.

“Left your door unlocked,” Ghost grunted, making his way up to the counter.

Rose was quick to appear from the back, hair back in a ponytail tonight. She blinked at him, startled, before she shook her head. “Knew I forgot something,” she muttered. “Thanks for letting me know, I’ll make sure to lock it.” But her smile was off, wan and tired.

“You should go home.” He crossed his arms over his chest, watching her.

Rose puffed up for a moment… and then deflated with a sigh. “You’re probably right,” she muttered, rubbing a hand over her eyes. “I’ll go soon.”

“It’s late.” He didn’t budge.

“It’s fine.” She was entirely too dismissive of her own safety.

Ghost narrowed his eyes at her. She tipped her chin, undaunted and defiant. His chuckle surprised the both of them. She had guts, that was for sure.

“I’ll wait for you.”

Her eyes narrowed at him, and he could practically see her examining and discarding arguments. “You won’t be budged, will you?”

“Nope.”

“Fine. Fine!” She threw her hands up in a mostly exaggerated show of annoyance. “Let me get my things.” Turning away, she muttered, “Those numbers will still be there tomorrow.”

Ah. Something in the books wasn’t adding up. Not his problem, but. Intel was always good to have. True to his word, Ghost stood there and waited as she gathered up her coat and purse from the back, turning off lights as she went.

“You didn’t have to wait for me.” Rose ushered him out ahead of her, and Ghost was amused enough to allow it. She was close to a foot shorter than him - there was no way she was moving him if he didn’t want to be moved.

“I know.” He kept his voice bland, standing by the door as she crouched to lock it.

“You’re not walking me home.” Her gaze was just a little wary. Good. She did have some sense, despite her friendliness.

“Wasn’t plannin’ on it.”

She huffed again but smiled. “I’m all set here. Have a good night.”

Ghost nodded, walking her to the door of the building and watching which direction she turned. He had to go the opposite way. But he hadn’t gone more than a few steps when she yelled back to him.

“Coffee is on me tomorrow!”

“I don’t drink coffee!” he yelled back, caught between amusement and annoyance.

Rose just laughed and ran across the street.

–

Price had finally heard enough of Soap’s mumbling about “Friday cookies” to go downstairs, if only to get the Scotsman to shut up for a while. Even though Soap had already eaten two.

Price just wanted some damn peace and quiet in his office.

The lunch rush had already been and gone when he walked in, but Rose was alone behind the counter. She looked tired, hair tied back messily with a few errant curls falling in her face. But she stood up straight with a smile as soon as she spotted him.

“Hi John! What can I get for you today?”

“Some of those cookies.” Price eyed the display case. They did look good. And they smelled good, which was a problem. “Six of each.”

“Coming right up.” She moved a little more carefully than normal, transferring the cookies into a box. “Anything else for you?”

Price was quiet for a moment, watching her. “You alright, love?” The endearment slipped out without his permission, but he couldn’t regret it when she blushed.

“Yeah, fine, just… rearranging some plans.” She glanced away from him, unable to hold eye contact. Lying. But this wasn’t an op, she was just the pretty coffee shop owner. So he didn’t push.

“Well, hope it works out for you.” He handed her more money than needed, as always. “The door is open, if you need anything.”

She blinked at him, openly startled by the offer. But before he could retract it or feel self-conscious, she smiled, warm and a little bashful and a lot hopeful. “Thank you, John.”

John took his box of cookies, only one thought on his mind as he headed back upstairs:

How had he not noticed she was so beautiful?

#cod fanfic #fall into me

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eddiemunsons80sbaby · 8 months

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Everybody Hurts

Chapter 5

Pairing: EddieMunsonxReader

Summary: You needed to escape, escape from your life, your messy divorce, and all the pitying looks. Looks you couldn't ignore when everyone in town had known you and Cam, had known your shame and failure. So, you took the first job you could get, teaching third grade in a town called Hawkins. Little did you know, you were walking right into another messy situation, a messy situation with big brown eyes and long dark waves. But he's resistant, at times unbearable and you start getting curious about the town's past, his past, especially when things don't start adding up.

18+ Only for eventual smut

Next chapter: 09/27

Word Count: 5.8K

Masterlist

1 2 3 4

You had not had time for a full shower with the two girls waiting on you so you’d simply freshened up a bit. You washed your hands and face, reapplied your deodorant, added some blush and mascara, brushed out your hair, and changed clothes. Your favorite gray cardigan covered your arms over an olive green ribbed tank. Bending forward, you cuffed up the bottom of your jeans and then pulled on your Converse before bouncing back down the steps and onto the porch where Robin and Nancy sat waiting, just like they said they would.

“Damn, that was fast,” Robin commented, looking you over. “You clean up nice Prom Queen.”

“Ugh, not you too,” you grumbled, grabbing your purse and keys from the hook by the door, locking the door behind you and following the two girls to Nancy’s car. “You know, I am not a fan of that nickname. I have not been a Prom Queen in almost thirteen years and believe it or not, that is not some great accomplishment in my life. I only got it because I was dating the most popular guy in school.”

“Sorry, it’s just so weird for me,” Robin explained, sliding into the passenger seat as you hopped into the back. “A girl like me hanging out with a former Prom Queen goes against the most basic laws of nature. I was different and one of the most awkward people ever. We never would have been friends in high school.”

“That’s not true,” you argued as Nancy turned the corner and pulled up in front of her house. She hadn’t been kidding. They were right around the corner. You would be able to walk home and not have to bother anyone for a ride. You really needed to look into a car this week so you wouldn’t need to bum rides off your new friends as you shopped for supplies to get your house together. “I wasn’t a mean girl and it’s all just stupid titles anyway. What does any of that matter in the scheme of things? Being Prom Queen never did me any good in life. Look at me. Thirty, divorced, starting over in a whole new town in a whole new job. All that high school bullshit and status doesn’t actually mean anything in the long run.”

“Maybe not now,” Robin sang, stepping out and closing the car door behind her with a dramatic flourish, “but it mattered a hell of a lot then. I was a band geek. Steve Harrington was definitely not my friend in high school. We didn’t become friends until after he graduated. There was no way we would have been friends then. Hell, he didn’t even know who I was. When we got taken by…Scoops Ahoy. I mean, when they hired us for a job, I asked him about a class we had together and he could not remember me even being in that class.”

“But you’re friends with Nancy and, come on,” you huffed, gesturing to her, Robin’s little slip not lost on you. Taken by? Who referred to getting hired as being taken by a place of employment? “You can’t tell me you weren’t one of the popular crowd.”

“Me?” Nancy snorted, shaking her head. “Not even close. I was kind of a nerd myself. I was on the school paper and the debate team. I was very studious. I didn’t really party. That’s why it was so shocking when the King of Hawkins High actually wanted to date me. And Robin and I didn’t become friends until she started working with Steve. She was two years behind him in school and a year behind me. I didn’t even know who she was, honestly.”

Robin shrugged, “It’s true. Oh, I knew who she was, though. Everyone knew who Nancy Wheeler was once Steve Harrington pulled her into his little crowd of the rich and the popular. She became famous by association.”

“Shut up,” Nancy huffed, rolling her eyes as she pushed open the front door.

“Steve’s rich?” you asked, not caring but not having gotten that vibe off him at all. And who became a cop in a small town if they had money already? You’d never had the impression that cops made much more money than teachers, and you knew what you made and it wasn’t exactly impressive.

“Why Prom Queen? You looking for a sugar daddy? I’d offer but fixing cars ain’t paying much. I couldn’t keep you in the lap of luxury you’re obviously so used to.”

Your annoyance was instant and intense at the sound of that voice and the words that it uttered. You’d been having such a nice Sunday and now you were forced to be in his presence. Why hadn’t you figured he would be here? Nancy had said Jonathan’s friends were coming over and of course it included him. You stood there, rigid, trying to shake off the unwanted anger and frustration at him merely having the nerve to exist, to breathe the same air as you, sitting on that loveseat, smugly smiling, his eyes focused on you and dancing with amusement as he lifted a beer bottle to his lips.

“Oh, really? That’s too bad. With that glowing personality and unrivaled charisma, I was so hoping for an offer from you,” you sneered sarcastically. “Honestly, I’d rather throw myself off a damn cliff. Shattering every bone in my body sounds far more pleasant.”

“Damn,” Jonathan muttered with a chuckle, “breaking her bones over going out with you? That’s harsh. I mean, ouch. What the hell did you do to her when you drove her home last night?”

“Not a goddamn thing. Whatever. Like I’d even be interested in Little Miss Perfect over there. She wishes,” Eddie snorted, rolling his eyes and sinking back into the cushions, one arm casually draped over the arm of the couch, silver rings catching the lamplight. “Would someone like to tell me why she’s even here?”

Your eyes slipped closed for a moment, a soft inhale pulled through your nose in an attempt to calm down. It wouldn’t do you any good with your new friends if you punched him in the face. He might be a jerk but he was their friend and you were pretty certain clocking him, whether he deserved it or not, would get you a lifetime ban from the others. Your fist clenched and unclenched at your side, attempting to relieve the tense energy that arose at his acting like you were an unwanted intruder once again.

“Because last I checked this is my house and I invited her,” Nancy shot back at him, hands on her hips. “If you don’t like who I invite over, you are welcome to leave. You know where the door is.”

“So that’s how it is?” Eddie challenged, pressing his lips together with a slow nod. “You’d throw me out, the guy you’ve been friends with for years, the guy you’ve bled with, the guy who almost d…” He stopped himself, glaring over at you as if you’d been the reason he’d said something he obviously wished he hadn’t. “You’d do that to keep some girl you just met last night here?”

Bled with? Almost died? Your ears perked up. This group kept dropping little snippets, pieces of info that would slip through the cracks, particularly when one of them was emotional. Did this all have to do with the mall fire or was this about the supposed raccoons again? You’d been wondering if the raccoons had come into contact with those toxic chemicals that Nancy’s friend had. Could that be why they attacked him?

You vibrated with the need for answers but you sure as hell weren’t going to ask Eddie for them. And you definitely weren't asking anybody else with him sitting right there. He’d probably just call you nosy, tell you it was none of your business because you didn’t even belong here. And really, he’d be right, wouldn’t he? It wasn’t any of your business what had happened years ago before you’d even met any of them but you could not seem to quell her curiosity.

“Nobody is throwing anybody anyway,” Nancy sighed, looking so like a mom in that moment that you had to bite back a laugh. “Stop being dramatic. I didn’t tell you to leave. I said if you did not like the current company, then you are welcome to leave if you wanted to. No one is keeping you here. I am more than happy to have everyone stay but if you’re staying, then you’re going to be nice and stop being such a dick to my friend.”

Steve, who had been fairly silent through this whole exchange, rose up from his spot on the floor, “Besides, you two are actually arguing over nothing because, to answer your question, I’m not even rich. My parents are the ones who are rich.”

“Oh, I really wasn’t trying to say anything about your money situation,” you clarified quickly, embarrassed. Did they all think that? That you would suddenly be interested in him if he had money? Because nothing could be further from the truth. “I really don’t…I mean it doesn’t…” You stammered, your cheeks heating up.

“Uh-oh Harrington, you’ve made our Prom Queen blush,” Eddie guffawed. “You might have a shot but I wouldn’t bother. I highly doubt you’ll meet her standards anymore. You’re not the big man on campus you used to be even with your gun and badge. Once she realizes how little money you actually make, she’ll be looking for someone better. Hey, is your dad still fucking anything in a skirt?”

“Jesus Christ, Eddie. Seriously? Why do you have to be such a dick?” huffed Steve, his hand rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

“I’m doing nothing but stating the obvious, man,” Eddie stated. “It’s common knowledge about your dad. I didn’t say anything we all don’t already know. And I mean, look at her. She ain’t looking at either of us. That would be climbing down into the gutter and Ms. Priss over there is far too good to roll in the muck with us blue collars. Maybe at one time you would have struck her fancy Stevie, but you’re a small town cop with an itty bitty paycheck now. Prom Queen needs more than that to be happy. Trust me. I guarantee you her ex made big money and now that she’s lost access to his bank account she needs a new man to take care of her and buy her all those pretty things she’s so used to having. She’s just like all those college girls that walked into Scoops Ahoy, took one look at you in your little sailor outfit, and decided you weren’t good enough.”

“You know what, fuck you!” you yelled, having enough. He wanted to push your buttons and see if he could make you blow. Fine. Mission successful. “You’re such a miserable bastard. You hate me and you don’t even know me. You just assumed the worst about me from the moment you saw me for whatever reason and I am done putting up with your shit.” You glanced over at Nancy. “Thank you for the invite and thank you so much for all your help today but I…I’m just going to go home. I’ll talk to you…whenever.”

“No. Come on. You don’t have to leave because of him,” Nancy insisted. “We can head out back and leave these guys.”

“No, it’s fine, really. I have work tomorrow and I should just go home. I have lesson plans that I still need to finish and I should try to get some sleep anyway. I didn’t sleep well last night and there’s nothing worse than trying to keep a bunch of eight year olds in line when you’re cranky and tired,” you muttered. “I’ll call you sometime later this week, okay?”

“Roller skating Thursday!” Robin yelled out as you stormed out the door, giving her no acknowledgement besides a single wave.

You had no intention of going roller skating or calling Nancy. You’d been overjoyed to find a group of people that you might be able to call friends, a group of people you could spend time with. But you couldn’t deal with him. And being friends with them meant you would have to. The easiest thing to do would be to just walk away from all of them. There was no way you could get along with that asshole and he was never going to let up.

It made no sense. How could someone who didn’t even know you hate you so much? What made him think that you were so awful? Was it your hair? Your clothes? No, you didn’t dress like some metalhead but neither did any of his friends. Could that really be his problem? Maybe it was just you. Did you have some kind of off-putting energy you weren't even aware of? You didn’t even know why you cared that much and the fact that you cared that much only made you even more infuriated, your skin humming with anger.

And what was with all his assumptions about you? What about you screamed that you were some stuck up bitch who would marry a guy for how much cash he had in his pocket? Yeah, Cam had come from a well-off family and he’d made good money as a real estate agent but that had not been why you’d married him. You’d married him because you thought you loved him, you’d thought he loved you, you’d thought you were going to live happily ever after.

“Hey, Prom Queen!” came a voice from behind you and you groaned, picking up your pace, desperate to get away from him. “Hey! Son of a bitch! Wait up woman!”

Boots thudded loudly along the sidewalk as he began to jog behind you. You considered breaking into a run but realized that would only make you look insane, giving him even more ammunition to lob at you. He wasn’t the bogeyman. You weren't scared of him. You were just sick and tired of his shitty attitude and all his snide comments. You continued walking, listening with dread as the boots drew ever closer, just wanting to make it to your house where you could close the door on him, keeping him and all his vitriol out.

“Jesus Christ,” Eddie gasped as he slowed up next to you. “Didn’t you hear me?”

“Yeah, I did. I just have zero interest in listening to you,” you snapped, continuing to walk in the direction of your house, hoping he would get the point and turn around and leave you the hell alone.

Why had he even bothered to follow you? He clearly hadn’t wanted you there and you’d given him what he wanted. Now he could hang out with his friends in peace, not having to worry about the new face that he couldn’t stand the sight of.

“Look, I’ll stop saying shit, okay? I’ll shut up completely if you want me to. I won’t even talk to you at all. Just come back to the house with me. Jonathan just ordered the pizza. The girls are breaking out a bottle of wine. They really want you there.”

And there it was. The girls wanted you there. The girls had probably gone off on him for being such a dick. That was why he was chasing you down the sidewalk like a dog with its tail between its legs. He hadn’t wanted to come after you. He wasn’t really sorry for anything that he’d said. They’d forced him to.

“Oh yeah? Did they tell you off for being a jerk? Is that why you’re suddenly chasing me down the street? Because they told you to fix it?” you demanded, disappointment curdling within you at knowing this, knowing he hadn’t been the one to want to stop you.

“Yeah, there may have been some yelling after you walked out,” Eddie chuckled stiffly, his hand coming to the nape of his neck, rubbing. “Everyone’s a little pissed off at me. I believe the words asshole and dick may have been thrown around by a couple people but they’ll get over it. They always do. None of them can actually stay mad at me. So, what do you say? Just come back and hang with us.”

“No,” you stated simply, your hands gripping your cardigan and pulling it tighter, attempting to protect yourself from more than just the chill of the night air.

His hand came around your bicep, gentle but firm, pulling you to a stop and Eddie stepped in front of you. Your eyes looked down at his hand and then up at his face, glaring at him for having the nerve to touch you. He released you, hands held in front of him as if he were assuring you he wasn’t dangerous, that he wouldn’t hurt you. You wanted to laugh but it really wasn’t all that funny. Yeah, you definitely worried about Eddie causing you pain but it wasn’t the physical kind.

Those plush lips curved up in the corners, a soft smile gracing his face that felt like a punch to your diaphragm, all of your air supply gone in an instant. You couldn’t make sense of the emotions washing over you. It was like the world had turned completely upside-down and you were thrown into a whirlwind of feeling, both drawn to him and anxious to distance yourself from him. You felt like you were going to be torn in half, the two warring parts of yourself, one resistant, one wanting him. None of it made any sense.

“Look…” He paused, teeth clenched, the muscle in his jaw twitching, letting you know that what he was about to say was a real struggle for him. “I’ve been a jerk to you and you’re right. I don’t even know you. It was a real dick move. I just…” One large hand ran over his face as he groaned. “I don’t have an excuse, okay? But you didn’t deserve it and I will stop. Will you please just come back to the house?”

You folded your arms, braced your feet in an attempt to keep yourself steady before you absolutely plunged into the pools that were his brown eyes, so soft and sincere at the moment, as warm as that cup of coffee you’d been gazing into this morning. You didn’t know what this was and you didn’t know if he was being as sincere as his face was making him out to be. He could simply be really good at acting.

But you also still had that tingly little inkling again that something more was going on here, something deep, something dark, that united them all somehow. Something traumatic that you could catch in the shadows that crossed over their eyes, the way their brows furrowed, the way they chewed on their lips or pressed them into a hard line. Something was haunting these people, something bad from the past, and while you knew it was none of your business, you couldn’t help but be curious. Who wouldn’t be? What could be so big that it could involve so many people and affect them so deeply for so long? You had a burning desire to find out. It was your own mystery novel coming to life. It was too tempting to ignore.

“Fine. I will come back to the house,” you finally said, adding, “but I still don’t like you.”

Eddie laughed, the sound causing you to jump because it was a genuine laugh, a deep laugh that rumbled up from his belly. It was a laugh of amusement rather than smugness. It was warm and pleasant and you hated how much you enjoyed it, how much you wished to make him do it over and over again because it may have been the most pleasant sound that your ears had ever heard.

“No worries there, Prom Queen. I still don’t like you either but I will let up, okay?”

You realized in that moment how much you wanted this, wanted this group of friends, wanted to belong in this town. You needed it, your fresh start. So as much as you didn’t believe Eddie in the slightest, knowing he wouldn’t be able to keep his mouth shut for long. As much as you knew there was something about you he didn’t like, that he was only being barely nice right now because his friends forced him to, you followed him back to Nancy and Jonathan’s house, the two of you walking in silence, thankful it was a short walk, too short to get awkward.

“She’s back!” Steve cheered as you walked in, throwing his arms up in the air before striding over to you, his arm coming around your shoulders. “Eddie said he’d bring you back but I was expecting him to come back alone with a black eye or something.”

“Don’t think the thought didn’t cross my mind,” you muttered, annoyed to find how pleased you were when your comment caused that laugh to rise up from Eddie again, a delicious rumbling sound that caressed your skin, flooded your belly with warmth. You caught his eyes, your insides going all mushy at the way they crinkled in the corners, a real smile on his face, changing his entire demeanor, allowing you to see the guy that Millie had described this morning.

“Pizza should be here any minute,” Jonathan told you as he walked out of the kitchen with paper plates and napkins, Nancy following him with cups and a two liter of Coke.

As if on cue, the front door swung open so hard that it banged into the wall. “The pies have arrived brochachos!” came a loud voice a few moments later, Argyle standing with three pizza boxes balanced on one hand, the other on his hip, giving him the appearance of a superhero.

“You deliver your own pizzas?” you asked, amused.

“Nah, not usually. Only for very special customers, you know?” He winked and dropped the boxes onto the dining room table. Placing them out, he lifted up the lid of each box, proudly displaying his work. “And this one is just for you, new girl. Have you ever experienced the pleasure of some juicy pineapple on your pie?”

“I have not but I have had multiple people already tell me how delicious it is,” you replied. “Millie at the bakery told me you insisted she try it and she really liked it.”

“Oh! Mills! I love that sweet old lady. Green peppers, mushrooms, and sausage every week for her and Roy. The amount of cookies I’ve eaten from that place. Nothing beats a sweet treat from Mills when you’re riding that high and the munchies hit, you know?”

You giggled, “I’ll have to keep that in mind.”

As everyone began to sit down, you took a seat in between Robin and Nancy. Eddie dropped down across from you. He immediately reached out for a piece of pizza, not even bothering with a plate, and you found yourself absolutely entranced by his hands, his fingers, the nails cut down short, those big, gaudy rings. You couldn’t tear your eyes away as he lifted the slice to his mouth, those full lips wrapped around the end, biting with his teeth, a string of cheese hanging from the side of his lip that you just wanted to use her tongue to...

“Sam?”

You jumped, turning to find Nancy looking at you, a knowing and highly amused smile on her lips as she glanced from Eddie and then back to you. You felt that heat flush your cheeks once again, realizing you had been busted checking him out. Shit. You seriously needed to get this crush in check. What in the hell was wrong with you? He was just a guy, a guy who’d been nothing but harsh and rude to you. Why couldn’t you stop looking at him, fantasizing about him?

“Sorry. Daydreaming, I guess. I told you, I didn’t get a whole lot of sleep last night,” you replied, trying to play it off, knowing your attempt was awful and probably not at all believable. “What did you say?”

Nancy laughed lightly, those burgundy painted lips pursing with amusement, “You mentioned that you went to the Hawkins Library yesterday to get some books. I asked what books you got? What do you enjoy reading?”

“Oh, well I got a new Stephen King and ‘Along Came a Spider.’”

“Into the creeptastic, huh?” Eddie mused, taking a long drink of his Coke as he leaned back in his chair, spreading his legs wide. “Wouldn’t have seen that coming. I would have taken you for more of a romance novel kind of girl.” He paused at the look you gave him, setting down his cup and holding up a hand. “Not a dig. Just an observation.”

“An observation based on how I look?” you challenged, your eyes narrowing at him. You knew he wouldn’t be able to help himself. “Because a girl who was a good student, a Prom Queen, and dated a jock couldn’t possibly be into horror or thriller? Haven’t you learned by now not to judge a book by its cover because I am guessing that’s happened to you a lot with the whole metalhead, stoner theme you have going on.”

“What’s wrong with being a stoner?” Argyle whispered to Jonathan who just shrugged in response.

“Damn, she’s got you pegged, Munson,” Steve snorted. “Eddie was pretty much the freak weirdo all through high school because of how he looked. People were terrified of the scary guy who wore a battle vest and long hair. People still give him a pretty wide berth after he was…well, even though high school is over.”

“Thanks Harrington for that happy reminder,” Eddie hissed, teeth clenched tightly, muscle in his jaw ticking. You watched as he closed his eyes, rolled his neck. When they opened again, he looked much calmer. “Alright, that’s fair, I guess. Maybe I shouldn’t assume things just because of how you look. So, what else do you like to read then?”

“I read a bit of everything, actually,” you answered, pleasantly surprised at his sudden turn around. It was definitely a step in the right direction that he was asking questions about you, trying to get to know you, instead of assuming he already did. “I do enjoy a good romance novel on occasion but I’m kind of picky about them. I don’t like anything too corny or cheesy. I am much more into horror, thriller, and fantasy.”

“Fantasy, huh?” asked Eddie, one eyebrow lifting with interest. “What’s your favorite fantasy book?”

“Well, as a kid I loved the Narnia books. I also really love the Game of Thrones series. The Princess Bride is one of my favorites books and movies of all time. But I think my absolute favorite would have to be The Lord of the Rings series. I keep copies of them on my bookshelf because I go back and reread them all the time and escape back to Middle Earth when I need a break from reality. Which has been quite a lot lately. I actually just finished a re-read last month.”

Eddie’s head snapped back so hard, you were surprised to find it was still attached to his neck. He looked shocked but you didn’t know why. The Lord of the Rings was a very popular book series, clearly, given its popularity years after it had originally been written. It had been published multiple times since it first came out in the fifties. His eyes showed a spark of unexpected joy, his usual moody demeanor morphing into something that resembled him feeling excited. He opened his mouth to say something but Steve beat him to it.

“Oh, the Princess Bride!” he exclaimed. “I love that movie!” He brandished a plastic fork in his hand like a sword. “I am Inigo Montoya…you killed my father…prepare to die…”

You laughed at his very sweet but absolutely horrible impression of Mandy Patinkin. You had to give him points for trying. Eddie’s fist clenched on top of the table, his eyes completely focused on his plate now, jaw tense once again. You waited for him to share whatever he was going to say before Steve interrupted him but he remained silent. His eyes dulled, that lively expression that had been there just a moment before fading away, as if he were shutting down, turning off all the switches, closing the door to any opportunity for further conversation.

“Mawwage,” Robin called out loudly, spreading her arms wide to her congregation, “mawwage is what bwings us togeva today.”

“Have fun storming the castle!” Argyle exclaimed loudly.

You all rolled into a fit of giggles as you called out some of your favorite lines from the movie, everyone except Eddie. He rose from his seat, gathering everyone’s empty plates and made his way into the kitchen. Your eyes tracked him, fighting back the desire to follow him, to find out what had changed to make him surly again so quickly. But no, you were the last one who should be going to see what was wrong with him. He’d probably just snap something nasty your way anyway and you’d had more than enough of his hostility for one day.

“We should watch it!” Nancy yelled with a clap, jumping up from her chair. “We have the DVD.” She glanced over at you. “What do you say? I know it’s a school night but you’re right around the corner. It wouldn’t be too late.”

You shrugged, finding it hard to deny her, especially when you were so glad to be a part of this group, “Sure.”

You were going to regret this when you got home and had two hours of lesson planning still to do. This was what you got for putting it off until the last minute. But it just felt so damn good to be surrounded by people who wanted you around, to be anywhere but sitting in your silent home alone, that you decided a late night would be a small price to pay.

You all made your way into the living room while Jonathan grabbed the DVD and put it in. You noticed, and then cursed yourself for noticing, that Eddie was still gone. What was taking him so long and what in the hell had switched off his good mood so quickly? With him it felt like going from a warm day on the beach, the sun heating your skin to suddenly being in a frigid, desolate hellscape of ice and snow that made your very bones shake. How could someone shift so fast?

You took a spot on the couch and Steve sat down next to you, in the middle, Robin on his other side. Nancy and Jonathan curled up together on the loveseat as Argyle dropped down onto the floor.

“I love this movie. I haven’t watched it in years,” Steve grinned at you, his arm coming to rest on the couch behind you. Not touching, just hovering but close enough that you could feel the heat radiating off his body.

Damn. You really hoped Steve was not attempting to pursue something. That was not a conversation you wanted to have. It wouldn’t do much for a budding friendship if you shot down one of them. But as sweet and adorable as Steve was, you just weren't ready. To be fair, you weren't ready to date anyone. You were just getting out of a failed marriage, recovering from heartbreak and the worst betrayal of your life. You weren't interested in any guy right now.

Just as the previews started playing, Eddie reappeared as if calling you out for the blatant lies you were telling yourself, reminding you that one guy was quite interesting. His eyes scanned the room, a flicker of anger flashing over his face as he looked right at you. Jesus. What in the hell had you possibly done now? You hadn’t even been near him. How had you offended him again?

“Hey, I’m gonna head out,” he announced to the room.

“What?” protested Steve. “Come on, man. Stay. We’re watching The Princess Bride.”

“My Dude!” Argyle exclaimed. “No. Come on. Watch the movie with us.”

“I’m good. I got an early morning and I need to get some sleep,” he told them and then his eyes bored into hers, dark, vexed. “Enjoy your movie.”

Eddie grabbed his jacket off the back of the dining room chair, a cigarette already in his lips as he went out the front door, leaving you to wonder what had happened in that short exchange about books to make him pissed at you again. Sighing softly, you sunk down into the couch, telling yourself that you were going to enjoy the movie and not let him ruin your night.

“Why does he hate me so much?” you asked softly, despising the dejected tone you could hear in your own voice.

“He hates everything these days,” Jonathan assured her. “Don’t let it get to you. He’ll come around. He’s just moody.”

“How do you all stand it?” you demanded, needing to understand how this group of people was friends with someone so miserable. “How do you hang out with him when he’s so grouchy all the time?”

“He’s not grouchy all the time,” Steve defended.

Argyle grinned, “Trust me, my dude is not grouchy at all when I get him the good stuff.”

Nancy’s eyes rolled in annoyance, “Yeah, because that’s what he needs. More shit to numb all his emotions. Just use drugs instead of actually dealing with your trauma. That’s healthy.”

“What trauma?” you pushed, hoping someone would finally tell you what in the hell was going on here.

“It’s not really our place to share,” Robin said gently, shrugging. “I’m sorry but he’s our friend too and I don’t want to break his trust. Too many people in his life have already done that to him. I know he can be really unpleasant but he does have his reasons. He doesn’t know you yet and so he’s struggling. He hasn’t exactly been given a lot of reasons to trust people in the past, especially people he doesn’t know but he’ll come around.”

“He really will,” Nancy assured you and then lifted one shoulder. “And even if he doesn’t, the rest of us want you around.”

“Thanks,” you mumbled.

Steve’s arm came around you, his hand squeezing your shoulder comfortingly, “Yeah. Don’t worry about him. We’re all very happy you’re here.”

You sighed, knowing this should be enough. It should be enough that this amazing group of people wanted you around but it really wasn’t. It bothered you more than you cared to admit that Eddie seemed to have a deep hatred for you.

Chapter 6

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