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#not me and jasmine thinking this person was talking about their friend in that one comment only to find all That. god
lixzey · 13 days
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sincerely, yours.
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luke castellan x fem athena!reader
summary: in which Luke receives love letters from a secret admirer.
1.4k words
warnings, i guess?: pre tlt!!! reader has a huge ass crush on luke, reader is weird around luke (like any normal person around their crush), love letters, secret admirer, reader is kinda stalker-ish (maybe all athena kids are lol), reader is friends with silena and clarisse, camp golden boy luke!!! reader has GRAY EYES like every other child of Athena, as this is a key note in the story but i'll leave the hair color out for you guys 🫶🏻
ONE
“Handsome, you're a mansion with a view.”
“Hey, Luke?” Chris Rodriguez calls out to his older brother, brows knitted in confusion, as he walks towards the head of cabin eleven, who was helping their brothers—Travis and Connor—fix their armor for Capture the Flag in just a few more minutes. 
“Yeah?” Luke hums, his eyes not leaving the younger Stoll’s as he finishes the strap of Connor’s armor. “What is it?”
“Someone left this on your bed,” Chris answered, pulling out a tea-colored envelope from his pocket and giving it to the older boy. “It has your name on it.”
Luke pats Connor on the shoulder. “Trav, go and get shields and swords from the armory with Connor.” The eldest Stoll nodded, while the youngest opened his mouth to talk, but Luke got ahead of him. “No, Connor, you can’t have a flaming arrow. Now get over there!” He chuckles, playfully shoving the brothers away with a grin.
As soon as the two leave—Connor huffing about the flaming arrow—Luke turns to face Chris. “Who’s it from?” He asks, eyeing the envelope in Chris’ hand.
Chris shrugged. “I don’t know; it wasn't signed. It just had your name.”
“Huh,” Luke grabs the envelope from Chris’ hold, his eyes searching for any information. Instead, a pink heart wax stamp greeted him.
“You got another admirer?” Chris smirks, playfully nudging Luke. “Oh, to be you, huh? Girls here and there.”
Luke glares at Chris. “Shut up,”
“But that’s a first. A love letter. You think it’s from one of the Aphrodite kids?” Chris grinned, wiggling his eyebrows. “Explains the pink heart.”
“You talk too much, don’t you?” Luke groaned, shaking his head. “Go follow the Stolls; make sure they don’t burn the armory down. I’ll follow.”
Chris rolls his eyes, chuckling slightly. “Alright, alright, I’ll leave you with your love letter.”
“Go,” Luke huffs, shoving his brother out the door.
“Geez, lover boy, stop pushing me!” Chris laughed as Luke pushed him again. “Okay, okay, I’ll go!” He chuckles, raising his hands up in surrender. “See you at the creek!”
Luke rolls his eyes, shaking his head as Chris runs off. He then turns his attention to the envelope in his hand, with his name written in perfect cursive in bright pink. If Luke wasn’t quick to jump to conclusions, he’d assume that an Aphrodite kid probably sent the letter. The pink ink was a dead give-away. But there was a small voice in the back of Luke’s mind saying otherwise.
The Hermes counselor sighs before making his way to his bed. Maybe there he could find anything else related to the mysterious admirer. Luke plopped down onto his bed, torn between ripping the envelope open or gently opening it in fear of tearing anything else that was inside.
With a shake of his head, Luke slowly opened the tea-stain envelope, the smell of old books and jasmine invading his nostrils as he gently pulled the paper out.
Dear Luke, 
I love you. 
Oh gods, where do I even begin to explain that?
Okay, so I have liked—no, loved—you since I was thirteen and you were fourteen. I know a lot of girls like you, even boys. I’m not even half of those who do. I’m just, well, me. A girl who you’d never give a second glance at. 
This is utterly stupid, honestly. Taking the risk to write this letter to you when you and I literally live in camp all year round. But, I guess, who cares? I mean, I’m already here writing this, so why back out now?
I remember the first time I saw you. Handsome, you’re a fucking mansion with a view. You were out in the arena, training with Marco Leon. It was the day after you and Annabeth arrived at camp. You were so good, deserving the title of ‘the best swordsman’ camp has seen in three hundred years. Your dark curls looked like a halo as you sparred with him, a mischievous look in your eyes as they shined like ambers underneath the golden rays of sunlight. From that day on, I knew I was in trouble. Everything about you captivates me—a secret no one knows. 
Every time you’re around, my heart beats too fucking fast, like a pegasus galloping in the wind. You make the butterflies in my stomach flutter like crazy, you make my palms get sweaty, and my words fail me, leaving me a stuttering mess when you’re near and you aren’t even talking to me. See what you do to me? I’ve never thought I would fall head over heels for someone so completely and so effortlessly.
You make the angels in heaven dance and sing hymns. Each time I look at you, wedding bells ring inside my head. You make me want more and more of you. I just can't think straight when you're in my head; even writing your name makes my cheeks turn red. You make me smile in so many ways, to the point that it isn’t even funny anymore. You are my favorite everything. I’ve been telling my friends that since I was fifteen. 
I get jealous when I see someone who gets close to you and flirts with you. I just can’t explain how annoyed—angry—I get when they try to get your attention when I have no right to be. There’s just something about you. I can’t pinpoint it, but it’s the same damn thing that made my heart surrender.
Do you think if I wished on every dandelion in the world, you’d be mine? It would be a dream come true, of course. But in reality? You would never notice me. Like I said before, I’m just a girl you’d never take a second glance at. I’d forever be in the shadow of everyone else, hidden far away in the darkness.
You take my breath away, Luke Castellan. I don’t know how, but, fuck, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
sincerely,
yours
Luke stared at the letter for a few seconds, still trying to understand the words he had just read. He knew that girls liked him, but he never had someone send him a love letter, let alone a detailed one.
“Who are you?” Luke muttered, his eyes going back and forth through the letter, wondering who the girl was who’d written the letter. Something about her words made him want to find her, but the letter wasn’t signed. No name, no cabin, no anything. How was he going to find out who wrote the letter? 
“Luke, capture’s in five minutes!” Annabeth’s voice snapped Luke out of his thoughts. He quickly folded the letter, placing it back in the envelope, before shoving it under his mattress. He isn’t taking any chances, especially with the Stoll brothers, whom reminded Luke of him and Chris just a few years back.
Luke immediately ran out of cabin eleven, meeting Annabeth down at the steps.
“You still aren’t geared up,” Annabeth observed, brow raised. “I can’t afford another loss, Luke,” she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Got held up inside, you know, the Stolls.” Luke shrugged, hoping she wouldn't see through his lie. Technically, it wasn’t a lie. He did get held up with his younger brothers, well, except for that tiny exemption under his mattress.
Annabeth sighed. “Just go and get ready. The conch will sound in a few, and I still have to find Y/n and Malcolm.”
“Yes, ma’am!” Luke chuckled, saluting to his not-so-little sister. “We will win; don’t worry.”
Annabeth rolled her eyes. “You said that last year.”
“Gotta be positive, Annie Bunny,” Luke grinned, nudging the younger girl slightly.
“Stop calling me that,” Annabeth huffed, turning her heel to walk away.
“What? You loved bunnies!” Luke teased as she walked away.
“I was seven!” Annabeth groaned, walking faster, making Luke laugh.
“See you at the creek in four minutes!” Luke called after the daughter of Athena before turning to walk to the armory when someone collided face first into his chest.
“Woah, careful there,” Luke chuckled, catching that someone in his arms. A girl with the same gray eyes as Annabeth, a little more on the silver side, though still as intense.
“Uh, hi?”
“You okay, pretty girl?” Luke asks, smiling at her, his strong arms still wrapped around her waist for support.
“Uh, think so? Yes? I guess?” she rambled, her eyes not meeting his. 
Luke chuckles, helping the girl get back on her feet. “Careful next time, alright?”
“Uh, okay, bye!”
Luke laughed as the girl quickly scrambled away, her long hair bouncing behind her. “See you on the battlefield later, Y/n!”
tags: @lilmaymayy @mischiefmoons
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blackopals-world · 1 year
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I have a silly request that you may or may not enjoy.
Fem!Yuu who came from a long line of chefs and can make just about anything. From quiche to raspberry tarts to katsu sandwiches. She of course decides to share her skills in the form of making each of her friends a different bento catering to their tastes.
When asked why, she simply states that she cares about them and wants to see them well fed. Cue the marriage proposals.
~Okay, I can do that. Not for ever character of course because I have no time. Just allow me my personal flavor.~
"The way to a man's heart"
(part 2 here) (part 3) (part 4)
Characters featured:Azul, Jamil, Ace, Deuce, Malleus, Vil, Idia, and versus staff
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"Remeber sweetheart, the way to a man's heart is though his stomach. That's how I got your Baba. It's is also a measurement of love, a good dish is made with 3 cups of love and 4 tablespoons of care and 1 liter of dedication."
Yuu had those words etched in her mind since childhood. Every dish she made was filled with the TLC her family required for the perfect dish.
But being the youngest I such a line meant that she had never had many people outside of the family try her foods.
Mama, Baba, Ye ye, and Lola didn't lie; but they didn't want to hurt her feelings.
So Yuu couldn't help but tremble when she handed the two lunch boxes to Ace and Deuce. It was just before lunch time when she presented them before quickly running off.
She ran to the quad and hid behind an apple tree.
Her plan was to let them eat the lunches and later go to retrieve the boxes to get a review. They wouldn't feel pressured to say anything nice and Yuu would know how she did.
And if they like her cooking then they could be super close and eat lunch like this everyday!
But if they hate it then they might not. They might get mad and never talk to her again.
"Are you trying to poison me? What kind of girl doesn't know how to cook something so basic" Ace would say tossing away her lunch.
"It's not too bad, if it's your first time. I just don't think your cut out to be a chef." Deuce would say turning green.
Yuu managed to make herself depressed from her own imagination as she hid. Her wild imagination tended to get the better of her.
"Hey, Yuu! If you wanted to eat here just say so." Ace said standing behind her with lunch box still in hand.
"It's not a bad spot either. We should eat here more often. It's quieter." Said Deuce next to him.
Yuu internally screamed as they sat to eat. She focused on their every facial expression as they ate.
Ace had Monte Cristo sandwich with a summer fruit salad. He seemed to really like the dip for the sandwich.
Deuce had a simple fried egg sandwich with bacon, and cheese. There was a bit of blueberry jam on the side for the bread.
While the boys ate Yuu didn't notice that they eyed each others food and quickly ate theirs to see if they steal form the other. They guarded their lunch like dogs.
Yuu saw this and her eyes lit up believing they really loved her food. Eagerly she waited for them to finish so she could ask.
"Do you like it?!" Yuu asked
The boys after staring each other down heaped praise on her and asked her to make lunch again.
It became a regular thing as they were already spoiled by Yuu and she loved her first taste testers.
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With Yuu reassured of her skills came another challenge. He insatiable need to share her food.
"Good food makes for good company and friends." Ye ye always said.
Food is meant to be shared and it was good for the soul. Many souls in this school needed to be fed. Maybe they'd calm down a little.
So she started supplying her friends with homemade food.
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Yuu waited patiently for Jamil after basketball practice with a hefty lunch box. It was buttered chicken curry with jasmine rice. It had a side of vegetable sauté. And of course an after practice energy drink.
She had patted herself on the back for this one. She wanted to impress Jamil.
As she walked along the side of the court she offered Jamil the drink. He took it great fully before eyeing the lunch box suspiciously.
"I made you something to eat. I though you might want something to eat you didn't make yourself for once." Yuu said suddenly self conscious.
Floyd must have heard because he rudly began interrupting.
"Oh, sea snake is are so lucky! I want a shrimpy wife to cook for me too!" He whined loudly.
The "Ooo"'s that came from the other basketball club members made Jamil's ears turn red.
"Shut up Floyd!" Yuu yelled at him with her face burning.
"I'm sorry Yuu. You know how guys are. Thank you for doing this for me." Jamil said quietly trying to hid his face.
"It's no problem Jamil. I really wanted you to try this." Yuu said softly.
Just as she said this Jamil looked over his shoulder to the the boys laughing before leaning down and kissing Yuu's forehead.
"I wanted to thank you properly." Jamil said smiling before leaving to sit down to eat with Yuu.
She was an amazing cook and it felt good to be cooked for. It reminded him of when he didn't need to care for Kalim.
"I wish I could eat this everday." Jamil said absent-minded.
Yuu's eays widened before laughing. He didn't mean it. Right?
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There were times Yuu casually dropped off dishes.
Korean barbecue for Epel
Ratatouille for Rook
Fresh baked pie for Silver
None of this escaped Vil's notice who wondered why Yuu never came around to give him anything. I wasn't as if he didn't eat.
Though if memory serves he has turned his nose up at certain foods around her. She probably didn't want to be told her food wasn't good enough.
To Vil it didn't matter, if she was a chef she should know her customers tastes. Never mind that he wasn't a customer nor was she being paid to cook, his feeling were hurt.
But as luck would have it Yuu didn't forget him.
"Vil-sama! Here!" Yuu practically bubbled with energy was she leaned over Pomefiore's kitchen counter.
Epel was currently face deep in a slice of apple-apricot pie. and ice cream.
Vil hoped that she wasn't expecting him to eat that as he wouldn't have that much gusto. He didn't have the heart to lecture Epel on manners with Yuu around but he had no problem after she was gone so he better injoy it while he can.
"Try some." Yuu held out a cup of green liquid.
Yuu held out a cup of green tea with a palte of fresh sushi.
"Traditional green tea doesn't go well with heavy or greasy foods so I made some simple salmon sushi to help clean your palette." Yuu said smiling.
Vil took a sip and smiled at her.
"It's good. I wish I could drink this every morning." Vil said eating a piece of sushi.
Yuu turned pink as she quickly excused herself.
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Azul was the greediest of her friends. He loved trying new foods but especially fried chicken.
Azul eagerly awaited when Yuu entered the lounge with food in hand. They would eat in his office as Azul would try to trick Yuu into working hin the kitchen.
Even though he was trying to convince her to work for him the job offer was as a personal chef because he didn't want to share. Another reason she didn't agree.
"I just want to eat with you everyday." He said slyly over his Frutti di Mare. "Don't you want to eat with me too?"
Yuu bit the inside of her cheek as she turned red.
"Azul that's not funny. Don't say that unless you mean it." Yuu said stiffly.
"But I do mean it. Cross my heart." Azul said more earnestly but Yuu quickly said goodbye and fled. Azul was left confused.
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The next day Yuu spent lunch hiding in the teacher's lounge. She was allowed to as Crewel's pseudo daughter and bringing lunch.
Crewel dug into his beef stroganoff as he listened to Yuu's concerns.
"I don't know what to do! Pa, I can't face them again!" Yuu panicked her hands waving frantically.
"Slow down my pup. What happened." Crewel said unfazed by Yuu's familiar. She's expressive he'll give her that.
"Jamil, Vil and Azul asked to marry me!" Yuu shouted before slapping a hand over her mouth. Blabber mouth.
(telling someone you want to eat their cooking or drink their tea everyday could be considered a proposal. I just happens that in Yuu's family that how they propose marriage traditionally.)
There was a sharp spitting sound from across the room as Sam burst out laughing making seafood gumbo splattered.
"Congratulations, sugar! I always knew you were a charmer. It's no wonder all the boys want you!" Sam laughed.
"It's highly inappropriate. You're all to young to even think of such things." Trein said stiffly as he put down his spoon and stopped eat his potage parmentier.
Divus stared blanky before asking again. Crowley would raise hell over this if he didn't do it first. His puppy can't get married. Not yet.
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Yuu found herself at ease after it was explained that people don't propose that way here.
Feeling better she waited late for her nightly walk with Malleus. She made a late night snack of soft madelines and a thermos of cinnamon hot chocolate.
Malleus was more then happy to accept her gift. They sat in glen snacking before Malleus spoke up.
"I heard you are getting engaged." He said drinking hot chocolate
"No I'm not." Yuu sighed because of course he heard.
"I see, so they were all unacceptable. Please consider me an option then. I would happily marry you and eat with you everyday!" Malleus said taking Yuu's hand and getting on one knee.
Yuu almost fainted in shock.
'Papa you lied!'
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(Bonus)
"Idia please come out! I brought you some Gyros." Yuu called out from behind the door.
Yuu had been working hard to lure Idia outside and was making progress. Soon enough Idia will be eating in the cafeteria before he knows it.
It was like getting a feral cat socialized as Idia cautiously opened the door. He knew to be wary of Yuu's offerings but like the call of a harpy he does as she wants. Everyday she lures him further away from his safe space.
"I made some tortoise candies last night." Yuu said holding the golden lollipop.
Idia would have to steel himself for this one.
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stabortega · 5 months
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NO SURPRISES — CHAPTER 03
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Summary: Jenna's need to find out who you really are is prevailing, so is her arousal.
Pairings: Jenna Ortega x G!P!Fem!Reader
Warnings: NSFW. Implied fem reader, she/her pronouns used. Smut. Mentions of sex and kinks. Sexting, masturbation, voyeurism. Top!Reader x Bottom!Jenna. MDNI.
Author's note: Sorry to keep you guys waiting. I hope it was worth it, huh? Let me know what you think!
MASTERLIST!
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(Y/N)xz: hey
(Y/N)xz: i'm so glad you decided to take up my offer
jenna2709: really?
(Y/N)xz: yeah
(Y/N)xz: i honestly thought you wouldn't say yes
jenna2709: i had to.
jenna2709: getting a private livestream from you isn't something you can get everyday.
(Y/N)xz: i can see you're very excited for that
jenna2709: i am.
jenna2709: what about you?
(Y/N)xz: counting the days
(Y/N)xz: wanted to see your face for quite sometime now
jenna2709: you've at least imagined what i look like by now, right?
(Y/N)xz: a little
(Y/N)xz: also the fact that i can only think about my coworker's face when i think of you it's a little bit strange
jenna2709: oh, why is that?
(Y/N)xz: it's because you guys have the same name
(Y/N)xz: which is weird because i see her everyday and we never even really talked
(Y/N)xz: maybe it's because she is the only jenna i know
(Y/N)xz: was*
(Y/N)xz: now i know you :)
jenna2709: i hope she's pretty enough for you.
jenna2709: i want you to imagine me as some pretty girl.
(Y/N)xz: she's gorgeous
(Y/N)xz: bet you're more, though
jenna2709: guess you'll find out soon enough.
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"Okay, now you're being straight up mean." Jasmine said while eating a piece of her spring salad, while looking at her friend. "You said you're showing her your face and now you're suddenly giving up?"
"I'm not giving up, Jasmine. It's just, I don't know why I agreed." Jenna sighed, while trying to distract herself reading a couple of lines from her script. "And now she's gonna know who I am and she's gonna be so embarrassed. Fuck, it's gonna be so freaking awkward. I'm working with her every single day."
"How are you so sure they are the same person? Just because of a scar? Millions of people have scars." Jasmine said, which made Jenna wonder for a while: What if she was, in fact, losing her goddamn mind and they weren't the same person?
"No, I just remembered. They have the same voice, as well. I'm 99% sure." The younger actress would never admit it, but she was so afraid of that 1%. "And also, she has a few tattoos. If only I could at least see if she has those tattoos. But she's always wearing long sleeves, fuck. I'm definitely not gonna do that video call and that's final."
"You're being a chicken and you know it. What's the worse that can happen? If anything, you'll end up sucking her dick right on that nasty green couch in the break room." Jasmine felt a slap right on her left arm. "Hey! It's not like you're not gonna enjoy it! You seem like one of those kinky ass chicks who no one thinks that are actually kinky."
"Oh please, you should've seen her kink list from her profile." Jenna immediately regretted saying that. Mental note: Think about everything you're gonna say to Jasmine.
"Wait, what?!"
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"Breeding, breath play, knife play- Oh fuck, she's crazy. Run. Run for your life! Run for the hills!" They laughed, while Jenna tried her best to hide her embarrassment. "Holy shit, she's that kinky. How the fuck do they have that?"
"When you sign up, you have to fill out your kink list. I thought you also had an account, dingus."
"I do, dingus, but the kink list is not mandatory." Jasmine stopped for awhile, until she thought for one second. "God, you filled yours?!"
"Give me my phone now." Jenna said, trying to look angry while Jasmine got up from the chair and started to run away with the latina's phone in her hand, trying to search the list on Jenna's profile.
"I have the power in my hands!" Jasmine and Jenna didn't knew how, but they ran until the parking lot, looking like two little sisters having an argument over a toy. "Girl, you're into that?" The black girl said, while laughing, which made Jenna angrier.
Before the younger one could even respond to that, she felt a body crash against hers, making her almost fall over to the floor, but thankfully her body was held in time to prevent that from happening. "Hey, are you alright?"
Fuck, it was you.
"Yeah, I'm sorry... Jasmine- She had- " Jenna tried to speak but ended up mumbling all of the words. The way your strong arms held her, your woody perfume which she swore it was the best scent she has ever smelled in her life, your face looking at her as if you were the only thing that mattered in the world.
"Don't worry about that, just try to be careful next time, okay?" You almost were talking down to her, as if she was a little kid, which was something that would immediately make Jenna hate you. Since she started working as a child, having people treat her as one made her blood boil. But no, not this time. "I was actually looking for you."
"Really?" Jenna said, after recomposing herself, her worries about her phone were long gone. Jasmine could see her nude pics, for all she cared. All she could think about was the fact that you were looking for her.
"Yeah, I kinda needed to adjust some of the camera's settings before we start shooting." Oh, okay. At least she thought about me first, she considered. "You know, saturation, contrast and stuff. Need to do with the whole cast, actually." She knew what it was, she had to do that at least, a hundred times over the course of her career. But god, you looked so cute while explaining it.
"Yeah, yeah, we can do that. I just need to get my phone and I'll be there." Jenna said, trying to seem as casual as possible, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear for god knows whatever reason.
"Alright, I'll be at stage 5. And try to not run like that again, okay? You could really get hurt." You smiled sympathetically to her, it wasn't visible to you but Jenna's heart was fluttering as if she was a teenage girl who just spoke to the most popular boy at school.
"Yeah, sure... I'll be careful, totally." She smiled back, before watching you leave, her legs almost giving up on her before hearing Jasmine's voice behind her, driving her out of her thoughts.
"Oh, (Y/N), I'll be careful, I swear! I'll promise I will never ever fall again, unless you're here to hold me in your arms, oh god!" Jenna rolled her eyes, jokingly, while snatching her phone away from Jasmine's hands. "I mean it, either she's the most oblivious person on the planet or you just straight up told her you want her P in your V with your body language."
"It wasn't that obvious, Jasmine. You're being too much."
"Girl, the tension was almost palpable. Please hope that she's stupid enough to let this pass. What were you guys talking about, anyways?"
"She wants to adjust some of the camera's colour settings and needs me to be there. And also the entire cast, as well. But she asked me first, that must be something right?"
"Literally nothing, Jenna." The latina rolled her eyes, ignoring her friend. "But still, you can use that opportunity to figure out if she's really the chick from the website. Try to find out if she has those tattoos you saw on the livestream."
"Thankfully you had a good idea, for once."
"And if she's really her, you can suck on her balls without feeling guilty."
"You're not helping." Jenna sighed, running her hands through her hair. "I'm gonna kill myself tonight."
"For a girl with a pussy like yours, that would be a waste."
"You'd seen my pictures?!" Jenna looked at her friend furiously, wide-eyed.
"Oh my god I was joking, do you really have pussy pics?!"
"I hate you!" She almost screamed before leaving a laughing Jasmine behind. Jenna was nervous, of course. You guys started filming this week, and throughout the entire period you guys were there, she tried her best to avoid you due to the fact that she was, actually, a chicken. You guys didn't even spoke much, that only one occasion a couple of moments ago being the first real conversation you guys had. Just, being around you made her nervous. And it wasn't even because of the streams she's been watching. It's just, you're you. Your body language, your voice, the way you act around set, you seem so freaking professional and Jenna was a sucker for that. The way you dressed, the way you took care of everyone who worked with you. She has been with her eye on you every day ever since she met you, and she's been watching you very closely. Everything about you drove Jenna insane, and surprisingly, she liked that.
After a couple of minutes walking through set, with her hands sweating and lots of heavy breathing, she finally made it into stage 5. You were there with a couple of people from production; some of them working on their own stuff, and a couple of guys talking about you while you held one of the cameras that would be used through filming. You were laughing a bit, something that made Jenna's heart flutter. Damn it.
"Yeah, and he was the kind of guy who wouldn't - Oh, hey Jenna! Talk to you guys later, okay?" You politely dismissed the guys you were talking to as soon as you saw Jenna enter your field of vision. Fuck, why did you have to be so well mannered? "Are you ready to look at me for a couple of hours?"
"I'm- I-" Jenna stuttered, making you laugh a little bit. She was being kinda cute, you thought.
"Relax, I'm joking. It'll be only a couple of minutes. I promise you don't have to get stuck with me for more than that." But I would definitely like to, Jenna thought to herself. "Can you stand on that mark for me, please?" Oh, she would do anything for you if you asked her like that again. So she stood on that mark, five feet away from you, while you put the camera on the tripod, already connected to the monitors and software responsible for editing. Jenna looked straight at the lenses, but thankfully she got to look at you while you set things up, and oh god you were a sight for sore eyes.
"Okay, can you look at the little red dot for me, please?" She almost hated you for being so polite, and obviously did what you asked. You would never admit that in front of anyone, but Jenna was truly one of the most beautiful women you'd ever seen. Looking at her through the lenses was definitely the best part of this job.
"So, you've been working with this for a while?" Jenna said, wanting to start some small talk in order to find out more about you (and your tattoos, obviously).
"Um, not really. I finished college a couple of months ago, this is my first real job as a videographer. Dave was nice enough to put me under his wing and be my mentor, actually." You said while pressing some buttons on the camera and typing on the keyboard under the monitors. "I've worked in movie sets while in college, but mostly I just held microphones and cleaned camera lenses."
"For someone who already graduated, you seem really young. How old are you?" Jenna couldn't remember if your profile said you were twenty-three or twenty-four.
"Oh, thanks. You don't look so bad yourself, either." Jenna really hoped you were flirting with her (deep down, she kinda knew you weren't). "I'm twenty-four, actually."
"Really? You look really young." Jenna smiled slightly, secretly looking at you while you were pressing more buttons which she wouldn't even bother knowing what they did. "I get that a lot, too. I'm only twenty-one, but people think I'm seventeen most of the times."
"That must be annoying, huh?" You looked at her face through the lenses again, the adjusted lighting making her look more beautiful that she already was, if that's possible.
"Oh, you have no idea. I'm almost getting a tattoo on my forehead that says 'No longer a minor'." You both laughed for a moment. "Do you have any?"
"Tattoos? Yeah, just a couple." Fuck, she was close. She just needed to see one of them.
"Do they hurt a lot? I wanted to get one but I'm kinda scared." She wasn't.
"Yeah, a little. Nothing you can't handle." You stopped doing what you were doing to come a bit closer, which made the latina hold her breath for a second. "This one was the worst, definitely."
You lift up the hem of your shirt just a little, but enough for Jenna to see your slightly muscular v-line. Oh fuck, she felt like passing out. Until you showed her your tattoo, it was a roman number that Jenna couldn't even bother to figure out what it meant, but one thing was for sure: it was the same tattoo she had seen on the streams.
"That's cute..." She tried her best not to sound suspicious. You smiled and started to get back behind the camera.
"That one hurt like a bitch, I swear." You laughed a bit, before pressing the final buttons on the camera. "I think we're done! Can I take a video of you to see if the settings worked out?" Jenna only could nod, the thought of having you abdomen close to her mouth and not being able to lick it was the most traumatic experience of her life. "Okay, can you smile for me?"
And like the whipped bitch she was, she happily did. You shot the video for a couple of seconds and saved it, looking at it for a bit before gazing at the girl again. "Okay, that's pretty much it. Thank you for coming here, yeah?"
"Sure, no problem." She was almost shaking, she hated the fact you were such a sweetheart while at work, and at the website you acted like the lesbian version of Magic Mike. So, she left. Regretting the fact she didn't even made her move because being around you was intimidating enough to keep her from breathing properly, but at least she did what she was there to do: she knew, for sure, that you were the person she thought you were. And now, she had another issue to deal with.
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Thankfully, you guys scheduled the video chat for tomorrow. Jenna knew that today she wasn't ready to reveal her face to the person who's been occupying her thoughts for the past few days. So, she did what she's been religiously doing for the past week. Locked her hotel room door, put her headphones on and relaxed while watching your stream. Only god knows how much she missed watching you stroke your cock while moaning softly and talking the filthiest shit ever. Jenna turned on her laptop and went on the website, which by now was marked as her favorite, and as usual, you were already there.
This time around, Jenna just wanted to enjoy watching you. No games or teasing, she genuinely wanted to look at you while you pleased yourself in front of her.
"Hey guys, how are y'all doing? Hope y'all are doing great." Even now, you were the most polite person ever. Fuck, she hated that. And you. She hated you. Definitely despised you.
You interacted with the chat for a couple of minutes, before really starting to put on your show. Obviously you knew "jenna2709" was watching, and now, even though you would never admit it, you liked putting your show to her, and only her. So now, you were dedicated to deliver the best show you could ever do. "I'm gonna try something different today, if you guys don't mind. But I'm sure you guys are gonna love it as much as I am."
Your hardened cock was already starting to pulse in your pants, so you were quick enough to unbutton your jeans and let your member spring free. Jenna's mouth watered at the sight of your throbbing cock, making her wish she could lick all of your pre-cum off of your tip.
For all these days Jenna's been watching you, she has never touched herself while you were streaming. Mainly because she was scared that once she did, she wouldn't be able to look at your face again out of embarrassment. But it seemed that every stream that she's watched, it got harder and harder to maintain her posture.
Jenna looked at you while you slowly stroked your dick, which started to made her anxious. She knew you had to tease in order to keep your viewers watching (which is why Jenna was the one emptying her bank account to you so you could cum faster). That same odd feeling on the pit of her stomach started to become more and more present, and she hated the fact the she couldn't just cave in and thrust two fingers inside of her aching cunt. You drove her out of her thoughts when you grabbed something from behind your camera, which made Jenna curious to what it was, exactly. And then she realized it was a tiny silicone ass toy, with an small opening right at the vagina. Oh, fuck.
"Do you guys ever think about someone while jacking off or is it just me?" You asked your viewers while putting a litte bit of lube on the toy. You would never admit this on camera, but you obviously were talking about Jenna. Not Jenna, your coworker, of course. But there was something about Jenna, your viewer, that made you intrigued: you didn't even knew what she look like, but all of the conversations you had in this past week made you wonder who was she, and what she was doing watch you religiously every night? What was it about you that made her so committed? The was she spoke to you in your chat, the way she tipped you just so you could cum for her, and her only. It's safe to say that, even without knowing what her face looked like (and trying your best not to think about Jenna, your coworker, because they shared the same name, of course), you started to think about her in those extremely intimate moments.
"So you got someone on your mind now, huh?" One of the viewers asked in the chat, which made Jenna anxious for the answer. If you were thinking about someone else, she would definitely want to know who it was.
"Yes and no. Maybe if I knew how she looked like, exactly, then she would 100% be occupying my head." You laughed a bit. Thank god your viewers couldn't see your face, because it was flushed red from embarrassment. You shrugged it off and started to tease the tip of your cock right onto the toy's pussy, wanting to get your viewers more excited. Which, of course, worked every single time.
Wow! "jenna2709" donated $300 with the message: you know i hate it when you tease.
"I know you do, baby. That's why it's so fun." You laughed again, holding your cock by the base while still rubbing your tip onto the toy. Little did Jenna knew, but deep down, you were teasing just to get her attention.
jenna2709: what's the fun of being an annoying tease, huh?
"Being able to frustrate you." Jenna sighed. Oh, you were a demon. How could someone that was so polite and well mannered at work, behaved like this when the night came? "Come on, we both know that you enjoy this."
jenna2709: more than i care to admit.
"Alright, I'll stop being mean, okay? Let me give you what you've been waiting for, baby." You slowly penetrated your dick into the toy, which immediately made you drag out a raspy and low moan. The tightness of the toy was beginning to drive you insane, and for a brief second you wished you had Jenna's pussy around your cock, instead of a fake silicone one.
"Fuck." Jenna whispered to herself, feeling her underwear getting ruined for the fifth time this week. She felt her clit throb and pulse, it was incredible that you didn't even had to do anything huge to get Jenna turned on, just by breathing you aroused the shit out of her. "No. Pull yourself together."
jenna2709: i would kill someone to be in this toy's place.
"And I would kill someone to have you right here, right now." You started to slowly thrust your member inside of the tight, yet slightly slippery toy, your moaning now becoming louder and louder. Thankfully the hotel doors weren't thin enough, so you could be considerably loud without worrying about other people in the floor. Unbeknownst to you, "jenna2709" was just down the hallway watching you, in the verge of tears trying her best not to succumb to her primal desires and touch herself. "Fuck, this feels so good..."
jenna2709: you're making it impossible for me to not touch myself.
"Why don't you, baby? Maybe we get to cum together this time around, huh?" That seemed like an irresistible offer that Jenna really, really wanted to accept and decline, at the same time. For some reason, you figured that she was depriving herself of something good and a part of you wanted to just leave it that way, maybe she had her own reasons to just stand still while watching your streams. But another part of you really wanted to have some fun with this. So, like the devil you and Jenna knew you were, you licked your thumb and started to make circular motions over the toy's clit, while thrusting your cock steadily inside of it. "Don't you wish I was doing that to you?"
"Oh my fucking god." Jenna couldn't hold it in anymore. She tried, god, she really tried. But it was too much, even for her. Without thinking about the day after, she pulled down her pants alongside with her underwear and finally decided to give her pussy some attention. She was dripping wet, not ironically wetting her sheets in the process, but she wasn't even paying attention to those details. The only thing she cared enough to do was to thrust one finger inside her throbbing, aching cunt. Which, of course, she did. And the immediate feeling of relief took over her entire body the minute she felt her finger inside of her. Jenna felt dirty, as she was the pastor's daughter in a small town who just met an outlaw that tricked her into all those things. But damn, it felt good to be dirty and tricked. She started to thrust slowly, giving the fact she didn't masturbated often and she was just getting used to the feeling of her own finger inside her tight pussy. But, for some reason and for the first time, it wasn't enough. She needed more, and she wanted more. Fuck, she just wanted you.
"God, this is so fucking tight..." You moaned, more to yourself than to your stream, which drove Jenna out of her thoughts. She looked at you, fucking that toy while sweat was dripping off your body, and your low moaning was captured through your microphone. You were the hottest person she has ever met in her entire life.
jenna2709: you were right, maybe this time around we do get to cum together.
Jenna typed, without feeling anxious or nervous like the previous times. She couldn't give a rat's ass anymore. She already touched herself, she gave you money for every little thing you did on stream, so why even bother? It felt good. Fuck, it felt so good and she didn't even knew why she deprived herself from that for so long. So, without thinking about it, she added a second finger inside of her, hoping it would fulfill her needs just as you would.
"Maybe next time, I get to cum in you." You were bold for saying that. But in your head, after your guys' private stream, you were both gonna fall madly in love and have a relationship that seemed right out of a movie screen. The last thing you would think about is the fact that the girl you've been thinking about for fhe past few days is, in fact, one of the actresses of a movie you're helping to produce. And one of the world's most famous and extraordinary actresses, actually. "And we both know how much you would enjoy that."
At that point, Jenna was the only one there, for all you cared. I mean, you had almost 2k people who watched you every single day, but sometimes it felt like you and her were the only ones existing in the world. I mean, your chat didn't seemed to mind, most of them were just voyeurs who got off by watching random people online, so what's the harm?
Unbeknownst to Jenna, you were already close to your orgasm. The tightness of the toy and all of the dirty talking you both have been sharing, it was getting pretty hard to hold it in any longer. So, without further notice, you decided to violently thrust your throbbing member inside of that silicone pussy, wanting to get to your high as quickly as possible. You slapped the toy's ass a couple of times, but you knew that if that was a real person (Jenna, you wanted it to be Jenna), you would be saying the most filthy things on her ear while slapping her ass until it became bruised. It killed you not being able to do that. And it killed Jenna too.
jenna2709: fuck, you look so beautiful like this.
And she wasn't any different either. Her hand was soaked by now and the two fingers weren't even close to being enough for her, but for now, they would have to do. With her spare hand, Jenna cupped one of her breasts in order to get closer and closer to her high, while her hand just aggressively thrusted inside of her tight hole. "F-Fuck, I'm almost..."
And you were almost there too, but this time, you wanted to make sure to give Jenna the best experience she could ever get. "Tell me, where do want me to cum?" You asked the whole chat, but in a way, you only wanted to hear Jenna's answer. The chat filled itself with loads of messages, some people wanting for you to come inside, other wanting for you to cum on your stomach.
jenna2709: inside of my pussy, please.
"Your wish is my command." And so you did, you came right into that toy's cunt with a loud and dragged moan, closing your eyes and thinking about how it would feel if you actually came inside of Jenna. You felt your hips spasm into the toy, while you rode out your high and tried your best not to moan any louder than you already did. Little did you know that, down the hallway, Jenna was also having her orgasm just by looking at you. She closed her eyes and thursted the hardest she could until she finally came, with a soft whimper of your name, feeling her juices oozing out of her cunt. She felt one or two tears stream down her face from that overwhelming feeling, riding out her high while looking at you, wishing you were there beside her. You pulled your cock out of that toy, your thick cum dripping down to the floor which made Jenna's mouth water again. She would commit crimes just to be able to lick your cum out of that toy.
And now, Jenna felt embarrassed again. Tomorrow at work, she would have to look at your face and act normally all over again, trying to hide the fact that you were the reason she had a mind blowing orgasm and cried while moaning your name. And also, she would have to think of a way to dodge your private stream, or face her fears and reveal her identity, risking to ruin your work environment for all of the next months that you guys would work together. Either way, she didn't wanted to do any of those two things.
Wow! "jenna2709" donated $1000 with the message: consider this as a thank you.
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bingwriterxo · 10 months
Text
more than friends?
pairing: jenna ortega x reader
summary: in which jenna makes a startling realization after an argument
warnings: none
word count: 1220+
college au!
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"What the hell was that?" Jenna seethed as she pulled you into a random bedroom in the upstairs of the house party the two of you were at. 
"What was what?" you asked as you sat down on the edge of the bed while the brunette slammed the door shut. She began to pace around in front of you, brushing a hand through her hair to let you know that she was aggravated. 
"That--that show you were putting on down there!" She stilled and turned to you, and you could see the fire raging behind her eyes. It almost scared you a little. 
You shook your head. "I don't know what you're talking about, Jenna."
The brunette took a step closer to you, leaning down so that her breath painted over your lips as she spoke. "That blonde bitch you kissed downstairs," she whispered before clenching her jaw shut.
Realization surged through you like a tidal wave, and you opened your mouth in an 'o' shape before furrowing your eyebrows. "That's what you're upset about?" you asked. 
"Obviously!" 
A strange sort of anger started to bubble in your stomach, and you pushed her lightly on the shoulder to get her out of your face, suddenly overwhelmed by her presence. "You have no right to be upset about that, Jenna," you said quickly. "First of all, even though I don't need to explain myself to you, I didn't even kiss her; we were just flirting. Secondly, what the hell would it have mattered if we had kissed?"
"What would it have mattered!?" she asked incredulously. "I was standing two-fucking-feet away from you! You think I want to see that shit?" 
You pushed yourself off the bed, rising to your feet. "And so what? You and I are just friends with benefits, Jenna, which is what you wanted." She seemed to shrink in on herself slightly at the sound of your words. You scoffed. "Yeah, remember that? When I told you about my feelings and you shut me down immediately? Well, this is what you get with friends with benefits, okay? You don't get loyalty, or exclusivity; you get me, sometimes in your bed at night, sometimes flirting with or kissing or fucking whoever the hell I want to flirt with or kiss or fuck! That's it. That's what you wanted." 
Jenna stared at you, silent, with a pained look across her face, and, for just a moment, you wanted to take everything you said back. You wanted to apologize, to say I'm sorry, it won't happen again, but you didn't. Instead, you took a step forward, bumped your shoulder against hers, and slipped out of the room without looking back, leaving Jenna alone.
* * *
"What's wrong with you?" Jasmin asked as she stepped into her and Jenna's dorm room. "You haven't left this room in, like, three days, and I'm starting to worry a little bit."
Jenna pulled the blankets away from her head and glared at her roommate. "Oh, now you're starting to get worried?"
The other woman shrugged. "Well, you know, we all have our bad days, but this seems like more than that." She threw her backpack on the ground and then hopped onto the brunette's bed, staring at her with soft eyes. "So, what's up?"
Jenna sighed. "I fucked up, Jas," she confessed, and her roommate quickly urged her to continue. "Y/N and I went to this party the other night, and I saw her flirting with this random person, and I just..."--she shrugged--"I got jealous, I guess."
"So, what's the problem?"
"I brought Y/N upstairs so we could talk, except I was kind of angry and rude, and then she got mad and said I had no right to be upset since we're just...you know, fucking around, basically, and I'm the one who chose for our relationship to be like that. Now she hasn't spoken to me since."
Jasmin hummed, took a moment to think, and then said, "Yeah, you fucked up."
Jenna rolled her eyes. "Yeah, thanks. I know that already."
"It's not too late to fix it, though, you know. I mean, you clearly like Y/N in a more than friends kind of way, or else you wouldn't have gotten jealous, and we all already know that she has feelings for you, so just go tell her and then you two will be all happy and stuff," Jasmin suggested. 
Jenna shook her head. "I don't like her like that."
Her roommate glared at her. "Yes, Jenna, you do. I mean, come on, it's obvious even without the situation at hand--you're always talking about her, you constantly want to be with her, you blush at even the slightest mention of her! You. Like. Y/N." 
The brunette paled as a chill ran through her, understanding spreading through her body and warming her soul. "Oh my god," she whispered. "I like Y/N."
* * *
"I'm coming, I'm coming!" you called out to whoever was pounding away on your apartment's front door. When you opened the door, you had expected to see one of your roommates' friends, and you felt your stomach drop when your eyes settled on Jenna. "Oh," you said, "hey."
She offered you a shy smile and asked, "Could I come in?"
You swallowed heavily, weighing your options, before opening the door slightly wider and inviting her inside. She stood in the entryway awkwardly as you locked the door back up, and then she followed you as you led her to the couch in the living room. You sat down first, and she sat beside you, though she was sure to leave a few feet of space between the two of you. 
"So, what is it?" you asked, your voice laced with a somewhat harsh edge.
Jenna inhaled deeply before spilling everything at once. "I wanted to apologize, for the other night, because you were right: it really wasn't my place to get upset since, yeah, we were only friends with benefits. No strings attached. So, I'm sorry. You were well within your rights to do whatever you wanted with whoever you wanted, and I shouldn't have gotten mad."
She exhaled sharply and continued. "But, I did get mad because...well, I was jealous, and I didn't know how to deal with it. I've never really been jealous before; I've never had someone to be jealous over. And now I have you, and...I can't really stand the thought of you being with anyone else because I only want you to be with me, because I like you."
You sat there, eyes wide and unblinking, a million thoughts running through your jumbled mind at once. Jenna watched you carefully, trying to gauge your reaction, but you weren't letting any emotions show on your face. 
After a few moments of sitting in uncomfortable silence, Jenna asked, "Are you going to say something?"
"Um," you started with before clearing your throat, "okay. So, you like me?"
Jenna nodded. "Yes. I do."
"And...what, the fight on Friday was just you--"
"Not knowing how to deal with my emotions," she finished. "And being an idiot." She grimaced. "I hope you can forgive me, for both the fight and for...hurting you, with the whole friends with benefits situation."
You nodded slowly. "Okay." You furrowed your eyebrows and tilted your head. "So, you want...more than friends with benefits? You want to be...together?"
"If that's--If you're okay with that," she said. 
You blinked once, then twice, and then you broke out into a smile. "Yeah. I think I'd like that."
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angelrari · 4 months
Text
gossip girl · pt. ix
based on the tv series gossip girl
max verstappen / charles leclerc x socialité!reader
fc: elsa hosk (y/n) · taylor hill (léa) · barbara palvin (jolie) · jasmine tookes (lily)
a/n: hi!! thank you once again for the feedback, i really appreciate it!!!! here's a new part for you! it took me such a long time to figure out what i wanted to write in this part. it's definitely the one i've rewritten the most times so far, i just wasn't satisfied of how it was turning out, but it's finally here. i hope you enojoy it!!!! 🤍
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gossip girl here, your one and only source into the scandalous lives of monaco's elite.
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lilyfleury posted a story
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caption: brunch time ☀️
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the mediterranean weather was a blessing. the sun shone so brightly it felt like it was a spring day although it already was mid october. lily and jolie, who were sitting in front of you, were talking about baby nora while you stared out the window. you could not focus on your sister and your friend's conversation. max's name echoed on your mind for the hundredth time today as you imagined what could've happened the day before in charles' apartment.
"y/n". lily called. "you seem distracted".
"thinking about max again?". jolie teased you.
"no, well- yeah". you confessed and jolie squealed, but lily, who always had been good at reading you, seemed intrigued by your answer.
"what's wrong?".
"nothing. it's just- yesterday charles and i were about to kiss when you arrived". you explained and jolie soundly gasped. "and i feel terrible about it. things with max were- are going great. he's such a nice guy and he makes me feel comfortable and safe".
"but?".
"but charles- fuck- he's messing with my head". you replied. "and i know i should ignore these old feelings, but god i can't if he's acting the way he is".
"look". lily said. "i understand the way you feel about charles. you two dated for years, had a beautiful and healthy relationship and broke up because you both had very different plans for the years ahead. now you're back in monaco and it just makes perfect sense for you two to go and try to be back together. but y/n- i hate saying this, but he was dating léa two seconds ago".
"yeah, can't defend him from that, can i?". you chuckled.
"no. i just- you know i love charles to bits, but god he doesn't know how to be alone. don't get me wrong, i do think he cares about you a lot and he feels affection for you, but i don't think you can take him seriously right now. plus, from what you have told us, max seems like a lovely guy".
"he is". jolie added.
"i think you should give him a chance". lily added. "charles has already had his".
· · · · ·
three weeks, that's how long you would have to wait to see max again. firstly, he would be travelling to austin, then mexico and, lastly, brasil. three gps in three weeks was insane and, although you wished you had the time to travel around the world to watch your friends race, you would have to stay in monaco.
the sun was setting when you passed by max's apartment. for the past days, you could not stop thinking about him. somehow you felt guilty. what if charles ignored the doorbell? would you have kissed him? would you have pushed him away? your mind was a mess.
for the past few days, max had been texting you. you had been busier than ever and he knew that, so when you rejected a restaurant date a couple of days ago he knew it was nothing personal. but you felt bad. so today, after having a long day at work, you decided to call him to ask him if he was home and he gladly invited you to come over to his place.
"hey". he said as he opened the door. "come in".
after hearing the sound of the door closing, you felt max's arms hug tightly your body as he kissed softly your neck. subconsciously you smiled widely feeling the warmth of his body against yours.
"i'm sorry i came over unannounced".
"it's okay". he said. "i'm glad you did".
his apartment was cozy, white furniture stood out against the wooden floor. it was tidy, more than you had imagined. quickly you spotted two beautiful cats lying on the couch, who were starring at you with their guard up.
"have you had dinner yet?". he asked and you gently shook your head. "i was about to cook something-".
"i'll help you".
max helped you take off your coat and placed it on the couch before softly stroking the two heads of the cats as he asked them to behave. the felines meowed loudly in response and it almost seemed like they had understood what their owner had told them.
max was a decent cook, not as skilled as you were, but definitely better than your ex (at least he was helpful in the kitchen). he carefully cut the tomatoes, following your instructions precisely.
"i have been invited to las vegas gp". you said and his blue eyes looked into yours. "and, well, abu dhabi too".
"oh, that's nice". he said. "are you going?".
"well, my father has been trying to convince me for days, he thinks it will be great to impress the shareholders, but i wanted to ask you first if you were okay with it".
"y/n". he said as he carefully dried his hands with a dish towel. "you don't even need to ask me that".
"i know, but it's your work, so i wanted to make sure first. i don't want to overstep".
"i'd love to have you around". he replied as he grabbed your waist with both of his hands to pull you closer. "you'll make that vegas shitshow way more interesting".
"maybe you should ditch the gp so we can go party all night".
"i'll crash the car in turn one and wish checo the best". max said and you softly chuckled.
"and the team debrief?".
"i'll find a way to skip it". max replied. "i'll make up any excuse to leave earlier".
"good". you said as you rested your arms on his shoulders. "that sounds great".
"it's a plan, then".
max slowly leaned in and instinctively you closed your eyes waiting for his lips to touch yours. he was always careful with you, kissing you softly as he tried to ignore his primal urges, but the way you pulled him closer as you deepened the kiss was driving him insane. feeling how your body pressed against his was making him easily lose control.
"why don't you stay here tonight?".
"i will".
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yourusername
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liked by maxverstappen1, joliedebelle and 123.242 others
yourusername sunset in monaco
view all 2.346 comments
joliedebelle call me right now or i'm telling mom
username IS THAT MAX'S CAT???????????
username I'M SCREAMING
username @/charles_leclerc wake up!! fight!! do something!!!
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taglist: @cha-hot @carlandonorri-s @raizelchrysanderoctavius @drunkinthemiddleoftheday @crlsummer @f1mockingjay @ssararuffoni @au-ghosttype @jointhehunt67 @amalialeclerc @lazybot @kimmchijjajang @roseseraj @ponkaniee @champagneproblems17 @starshapedb0x @aundercover @lqvesoph @coffeewhore18 @coolio2195 @crazysaladchopshop @mirrorball-6 @nataliambc
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talesofesther · 1 year
Text
sweet calamity | ch 6
Wednesday Addams x Reader
Series Summary: It was something people described as the sweetest pain, the feeling of when the soul that’s destined to find yours is closer to you. Wednesday saw it as a curse, promised herself she would hate whoever was chosen for her; but it’s easier said than done.
A/N: Enid loves playing matchmaker, even if she's not the best at it. Things are progressing interestingly. <3
Masterlist | Read ch 5 here
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Wednesday is considering ripping her own heart out.
There's a Poinsettia in a pot in front of you. The incompetent botany teacher asked you to make it bloom, just so she could show everyone where the toxins come from and how they can be used.
You're two tables to the front, sitting beside Xavier while Wednesday has a staring contest with the back of your head.
She wants to rip out her heart and have a very serious talk with it, because it appears to be noticing your absence and making it her problem too. How tragic.
You wanted space and Wednesday gave it to you, she just wasn't anticipating that it would affect her this much.
"I can't decide if you have a crush on her or if you're planning her murder." Enid mused from beside the Addams girl, her chin propped up in her hand.
"The latter." Wednesday deadpanned.
Enid hummed, her eyes slowly moving from you to Wednesday, "you know I'd appreciate it if you didn't murder my friends though."
Wednesday kept quiet, in her hands she was picking apart a poor jasmine flower, its petals being discarded on top of her open notebook.
You'd be mad if you saw her do it.
Wednesday's eyebrows scrunched together in a frown. Why is she thinking about that?
"I haven't seen you two speaking these last couple of days," Enid tried to sound nonchalant, "did something happen?"
For a moment, Wednesday considered saying something, her old therapist did tell her it was healthy to talk about her emotions.
Yet she settled for; "nothing happened."
Enid rolled her eyes, she could see right through Wednesday's little lie because it wasn't the first nor the second time that she has caught her friend making heart eyes at you.
In fencing class, Wednesday keeps her eyes on you like a hawk stalking its prey.
If you're walking around the cafeteria with Andrew, Wednesday is crushing her soda can as if it personally offended her.
Whenever you're out working in the gardens, Wednesday is making up excuses to go check the bees outside.
Enid has never seen her best friend this taken with someone, and part of her thinks not even Wednesday has fully realized it yet. So, being the good friend she is, Enid has made up a plan to help her out.
"Wednesday," the werewolf said her friend's name in a singsong voice, scooting closer so she could lay her head on Wednesday's shoulder.
The raven-haired girl huffed, "Enid, your death wish is showing."
The empty threat was ignored with a grin, "me and the girls are going shopping for the Rave'n tomorrow, and since you're my bestie, I would really like you to tag along."
"While I appreciate your attempt at torture," Wednesday side-eyed her friend, "I'd rather dump my eyeballs in acid than spend an afternoon picking dresses for a frivolous party."
Enid picked at her colorful nails mindlessly. "Our resident flower girl is coming with us too," she said quietly, but her wolfish smirk was unmistakable.
Wednesday tensed, crushing in her hands the last bits of the jasmine flower she was still holding. Damn you, damn you, damn you.
"Fine," she said through gritted teeth, "if you insist this much."
———
You're sitting on one of the benches just outside Nevermore, waiting for Enid so you can all leave for town together.
The sun's warmth isn't doing much nowadays, there's a permanent coldness to the air. You tightened your scarf around your neck, partly wishing you'd put on gloves as well before leaving.
Chatter reached your ears and you turned your head to see Enid coming to you, there was a bounce on her step and a contagious smile on her lips; Divina and Yoko walk beside her, holding hands.
"I hope you're ready for the best girl's trip ever," the werewolf exclaimed as she stopped in front of you, clasping her hands together.
"So much that I couldn't even sleep last night," you smiled back.
"Perfect," Enid's cheeks were pink from the cold, they shaped her smile adorably as she took hold of Yoko's arm, "we should hurry, the trolley is leaving, like, really soon."
Enid hurried towards the station, tugging Yoko with her and consequently Divina; their absence revealed Wednesday's presence.
You flinched when your eyes met her dark ones, your breathing getting momentarily stuck. You had not been expecting her to tag along at all.
"Uh hi," you stumbled out.
"Hello," she raised her chin in a way you're familiar with, her hands gripping the edge of her hoodie.
"I didn't know you were coming," you said awkwardly, not knowing what else you could possibly say.
You thought you saw Wednesday's posture deflate a little. She slowly blinked once, her gaze roaming over your features; "Enid has been begging me incessantly, she'd be devastated if I didn't come today."
You shifted your stance and glanced away from her, pursing your lips with a nod, "I see."
A beat passed, you could hear the wind, feel the cold of it on your bare hands. You really wished you had gloves on.
"You're not happy I'm here." Wednesday breathed. It was a statement, not a question.
You looked up at her, really looked, for the first time in forever, it feels. The black beanie she wore pushed her bangs down, she has to move the hair aside otherwise it'll cover her eyes; it was longer than it was the day you first met her. Her nose and the tip of her ears have a soft, barely there shade of pink to them, because of the cold or something else, you don't know. The outlines of her eyes and lips aren't as sharp as they used to be. It's different. She's different.
"Why do you say that?" You asked gently, because maybe gentle is what she needs right now.
"You wanted space. It's clear you don't enjoy my company anymore," Wednesday gulped, "and I'm breaking our agreement."
You shook your head softly, "it's not like I hate you, Wednesday."
Wednesday's lips parted, and she felt like a fawn in the middle of the road, paralyzed by the blinding lights of a speeding truck.
Your words cut deep. They shouldn't. But they do.
You raised an eyebrow at her, there's a smile playing on your lips but it doesn't hold much happiness; "I actually wanted space for the exact opposite reason."
Stop it. Wednesday wanted to say, words tangled in a lump in her throat. Please, stop making me feel-
"Guys, come on," Enid's voice captured both of your attentions, "we're gonna miss our ride."
It was the stuff of nightmares. No, worse. Not even in her worst nightmares, did Wednesday witness this.
She was drowning in a sea of satin. There was silk and velvet there too; overflowing pastel pink, baby blue, and luxurious white.
The store had endless rows of dresses to nauseate the Addams girl. The dark color of her attire stood out like a sore thumb in the middle of the fancy room.
Enid hurried in front of her, clutching close to her chest the dress she had chosen, "what about this one?"
"Disgraceful, just like the other six," Wednesday grunted.
"It's perfect, Enid," you were quick to interject, "you should definitely try it on."
The werewolf glared at Wednesday and gave you a thankful smile, before skipping over to the dressing room.
Wednesday crossed her arms over her chest, leaning back against the cream-colored wall to her right so she could lock eyes on you. "Aren't you gonna dive into this meaningless shopping as well?" She inquired.
You could see Yoko and Divina on the other side of the store, the vampire holding two dresses for her girl as she followed her around. It made you smile. You turned to look at Wednesday, biting on the inside of your cheek; "aren't you?"
"I'm not going," Wednesday said as if it was obvious, "even if I was, I already have an outfit. One is enough."
You're not sure why you felt a little disappointed by knowing she wouldn't be there. But you nodded anyway, turning your back to Wednesday so you could browse through the rack of dresses behind you. "No," you said to answer her previous question, "I actually already have my outfit for the party too."
There was a beat of silence, you could feel Wednesday's stare boring into your back.
"Who's taking you?" She asked then even though she knows the answer, telling herself she was just making conversation.
"Andrew," was your answer, taking a single glance behind to her.
The name makes Wednesday clench her jaw, "he's dull."
"He's nice to me," you said then, raising your eyebrows at her tone.
"He'll get you ashamed at some point, you can do better," she shrugged.
"He's my friend, Wednesday." You told her with a little more bite to your tone.
"You should tell him that." Wednesday's voice would always be harder than yours.
You chuckled, mumbling an okay.
Wednesday rolled her eyes. She doesn't care who you go with anyway. "Why are you here if you're not buying anything?"
"Same reason as you."
Wednesday tensed, getting ahead of herself and giving her own meaning to your words. She took a breath and held it in her lungs.
"Enid was very insistent I joined her," you explained further without looking at her, brushing your fingertips over the floral pattern of a dress. This one was indeed dreadful.
Wednesday released the air that was trapped.
You shrugged and turned back around, carefully closing the distance between you and her. The back of your head rests against the wall, your shoulder short of brushing Wednesday's.
"Honestly, I just wanted an excuse to get out a little."
Wednesday hummed, her fingers subconsciously tapping the mark on her wrist. "Maybe we should just leave then, let them lose their time trying out these obnoxious clothes while we do something actually entertaining," She suggested, a smile threatening to show on her lips.
You look at her with a grin of your own, eyes glinting with adoration at the suggestion, at her. "That would be thrilling wouldn't it?" You indulge her fantasy.
"They wouldn't know what happened, or where to possibly start searching," Wednesday met your gaze with her own, hyper-aware of how close you were; she could feel your warmth, count the specks of color in your eyes.
"Maybe even assume the worst," you said in a breath, eyes lazy as they focused on the burgundy lines of Wednesday's lips and then back on the mischief swimming in her gaze.
To Wednesday, every minute with you was torture. Sweet, blissful torture as you dangled something in front of her. Something she saw as unattainable. She saw herself captured in a haze, unaware that she was shifting closer, closer.
"You said I can do better," you hushed, so quiet you doubt she'd listen if she wasn't this close but you were afraid to break the spell of the moment. Your lips hovered before you kept going, "who's better?"
Wednesday felt the shape of your words with each breath you took, raising goosebumps on the back of her neck.
No one is good enough. Wednesday decided.
No one, except-
"I loved it!" Came Enid's sudden animated voice, successfully breaking the bubble you had created around each other.
It was like a slap to the face when Wednesday realized the position she found herself in. She had been totally taken by you, forgetting any and all types of rational thinking.
She blinked several times, running her tongue over her bottom lip because her mouth was suddenly dry.
What just happened?
When you awkwardly cleared your throat and kept your gaze on your sneakers, Wednesday knew it had been the same for you.
"Oh," Enid looked between both of you back and forth, "did I just interrupt something?"
You groaned, feeling heat creeping up on your neck and to your cheeks.
"Nothing to interrupt," Wednesday snapped, pushing herself away from the wall and briskly walking to the kid's section of the store.
You figured she just wanted to get away. You can't blame her.
Enid was exasperated. She slung her chosen dress over her shoulder, placing both hands on her waist, "okay, I am done with you two. What is going on?"
You pouted, sliding yourself down against the wall until your butt hit the cold floor. "It's really complicated, Enid."
"Yeah, no shit," the werewolf started, "I can see that, but-" she cut herself off when realization hit her. You saw it in the way she lit up like a Christmas tree, mouth hung open with the beginnings of a smile. You cursed under your breath.
"Wait," Enid breathed, having trouble containing her excitement, "ARE YOU THE-"
"Enid!"
She crouched down to your level after the halfhearted glare you gave her. "You are, aren't you? You're Wednesday's soulmate." She squealed, her hands clutching at her dress.
You leaned your head back against the wall, closing your eyes and that was answer enough for her.
"I knew it, I knew there was something going on between you."
"Enid, no," you reached forward and took one of her hands in your own, "there's nothing going on between us and please, keep it down."
Enid shook her head as if you were speaking a foreign language, "but this is the best thing, I mean, you've found each other, you found your-"
"You know as best as I do who we're talking about here." You insisted, your chest tightening with each word, "it's a delicate situation so please, keep it down. Don't tell it to anyone else, okay?"
That seemed to bring Enid back from her high, she sighed, holding your hand between both of her own, "no, you don't get it. She likes you."
You closed your eyes, "Enid…"
"I've never seen Wednesday act like this with anyone else before, okay?" She pressed, "and I've known her longer than you," she teased, raising a brow at you.
You want to believe her, you really do. But you don't allow yourself to. Her hands are warm against your cold ones, the blonde of her hair is getting a little blurred in your sight.
"Then I hope you're right," you smiled.
She squeezed your hands and got up, pulling you with her, "come on, get up, you look like a lost child."
After locating Wednesday and saving her from a chatty five-year-old, Enid wanted everyone to stop at the Weathervane for some coffee.
It was a nice, cloudy day outside so the prospect of a hot beverage was welcomed; you felt all warm and fuzzy on the insides, both from your drink and from sitting in a booth surrounded by friends who enjoyed your company.
Of course, Enid made sure that you and Wednesday sat side by side, your shoulder brushing hers each time you raised the mug to your lips.
Wednesday kept quiet most of the time, her eyes focused on the window beside her, watching as the people walked by on Jericho's streets; sometimes, she'd lean her weight just a tad more against you, personal space being a forgotten concept.
Maybe it was because there was little room on the booth, or maybe Enid's idea of Wednesday actually liking you wasn't too farfetched.
⋆* ☾ ⋆*・゚:⋆*・゚
Read ch 7 here
Thank you for reading this little story. Feedback and reblogs are literally what keep me motivated to continue posting here, so I'd appreciate it if you could take some time to reblog and comment if you want. <3
Wednesday’s taglist: @milkiane @bookfrog242 @heelaechan @imagine-reblog @simp4wanda26 @sakurarukas @bluetreecloud20 @the-night-owl-blr @imlike-so-gaydude @user284747 @dreifhraniquo29 @emeraldevan @simp4nat @boobabietch @impossibleliv1031 @deadpool-in-a-snood @rainbow-love4ever @maria-403 @pompompuri @halleest @wandaromanova @marveloussimp @rainbow-hedgehog @left-and-right-up-and-down @get-the-fuck-outta-here @awolfcsworld @elduster @alexkolax @georgi-salva @imdumbhi @youralphawolf72 @reginassweetheart @justyourwritter69 @yangsroboarmm @8e-h-e8 @irish-piece-of-trash @femalehomosexual666 @thenextdawn @trishatheotaku
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lovebittenbyevans · 2 months
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The Wrong Sister | 3
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Summary: You and your sister Jasmine never were close at all. You finally met the man your sister is married to Andy Barber. The more you see him the more Andy starts to see you in a new light and he wonder if he made the right decision being with Jasmine all this time.
Pairing: Andy Barber x Female Reader
Warnings: one cursed word
Author note: I appreciate the people who read and comment on this series. :-) Enjoy reading!
One | Two
Three
You were on the phone, waiting for Andy to come see you at the beautiful spot you had seen on the internet. The voice on the phone was once again your mom's. “Honey, you know your sister.”
You slumped back against the driver's seat and rolled your eyes. “Are you making excuses for her again? She loves playing with you and dad.”
“No–I’m just saying she has no right to hide any man from you. She should be proud that you and him finally met and stop telling lies about you.”
You let out a fake laugh. “Ha! It’s too late for that.” While your mom was still talking, there was a knock, which nearly took you by surprise. Your eyes met Andy's through the window. “Mom, I got to go. Andy’s here.”
“Tell him I said hello.” She says.
After hanging up, you exited your car and shut the door. “Y/N, hey.” He slipped his hands into his crimson coat pocket.
“Hi.” You approached the place and used a key to unlock the door. “I was able to get the key for this place and show you while a few people are working here today.”
Andy nods. “Great.” He enters inside right behind you.
Even though you knew your sister enjoyed having a large group of people about her, you began guiding Andy around and telling him just how big the area is. You also point out the location of the bathrooms and bar to him.
“I figured she would want a big place like this even if some people can’t come and back out at the last minute.” You tell him.
Andy found the place to be gorgeous, but not quite beautiful enough. “It kind of screams Jasmine but not entirely.” You lean slightly against the wall and nod. “I mean it’s not over the top like she wants.”
“Yeah.” He chuckles. “I can already hear her yelling at me how it’s not the right fit.” Sometimes Andy feels like he would be deaf by how many times she yelled at him.
You chuckles as well. “That sounds like her. Always yelling about anything.” You give him more tours of the area.
“So, you're quiet and don’t take no bullshit, sister?” Walking beside you, Andy asks.
You kept walking. “Um, yeah. There was a point in my life where I got tired of the way Jasmine treated me so I left when I was seventeen after graduating from high school.”
He furrowed his brow. “How did she treat you?” He was curious about the relationship you have with your sister.
You paused as you walked and cleared your throat. “Uh.” You stepped out into the yard after opening the door to see large trees and lovely flowers. “She would say mean things about me to her friends so they would like her instead of me and she was embarrassed of me for no reason.”
Andy wanted to give you a hug but he realized he doesn't know you that well yet. He never thought his wife would do that to you. He saw his wife as this sweet and ambitious woman.
“I–” You interrupted him without giving him a glance. “Let me show you the next place.” You walk to the front of the building and go straight to your car.
Driving in your car, you sigh thinking your heart was being opened again. The wound you had trouble over the years closing in your heart was being back open again. You know Andy wanted to get to know you for the most part and the relationship you have with your sister.
After parking in front of the second location, you switch off your car and exit the car. The place looks way better in person than in the pictures you’ve seen on the internet.
You went straight inside, Andy trailing closely after, and a guy at the door held the door for you. You showed him the much bigger space available for his and your sister's anniversary celebration. It was so luxurious and rich that you were impressed.
“This is definitely, Jasmine.” Glancing around, he said.
You give a nod. “Yeah, I agree.” While the man who works here informed you about the large yard available for anyone looking to simply take a break from the party and be free, you let him to take a time to look about the area.
“They have a yard if you want to check it out.” You were looking at him.
His gaze met yours. “Sure.” You let the man lead the way to the yard. “How long have you been a wedding planner?” Andy questions you.
“For about two years and a half.” You step out the door seeing a bunch of beautiful flowers everywhere and a fountain. You thank the man as he went back to work.
Andy and you went into the wide yard. “And you still haven’t told me what you do for a living?” As you took a seat on the black bench, you could hear the sound of the fountain's water.
Andy smiles and moves over to give you both space on the bench. “You already told me I’m rich and wealthy.”
You roll your eyes and gesture him away. “Come on.”
He let out a laugh. “Fine, I am a part time lawyer and my dad is a billionaire.” You continue to listen to him talk. “And yes, my whole family comes from money but I am not them where I spend all of it in one shot.”
“Oh? You got daddy money?” You joke, making you both laugh.
He sucks his teeth and shakes his head. “I am so sorry I believe your sister about your–” You wave him off. “It’s fine. She is still not used to her and I living two different lives.”
“You and Jasmine were never close, not even once?” Andy knew he shouldn’t be asking you personal questions but he couldn’t help himself. He wanted to get to know his sister in law finally.
You shook your head no. “No, she was always the popular one, the spoiled brat and I was the quiet one and the one who stayed to herself a lot.” He didn’t say anything, he just let you talk some more. “She had tons of boyfriends but I never met them. Not even our parents know who she is dating half the time. My parents spoiled her a lot though.”
He leaned back slightly and crossed his leg. “And what about you?”
You shrug. “I’ve had boyfriends here and there but some used me to get with my sister.” Your eyes began to fill up with tears, but you quickly blinked them away so he wouldn't see them on your cheeks.
Andy just sat there looking at you. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing right now. He starts to wonder what Jasmine said about you is all a lie or is she actually being honest for once.
“Y/N–I–” He started to talk again. “I didn’t know.” Raising up from the bench, you slipped your hands into your pants pocket. “So, you want this place for you two?” You changed the subject.
Andy got up from the bench. “Yeah, I am pretty sure she will love it.”
You smiled. “Good, when are you two having the anniversary party?” You walked along him, directly towards your car.
“I have no idea. Hopefully she sends out the invitation this week.” He says.
You made your way to your car and unlocked the door with the key. “Well, have fun.” He grabbed your arm and forced you to face him just as you were ready to get into your car. “Wait, you are not coming?”
You released a sigh. “Probably, probably not because I’ll be away helping someone else's wedding day.” Since you never felt welcome, you really didn't want to be in someone's presence.
Your eyes follow Andy's hand as it touches your arm, then he clears his throat. “Um, ok.” He let go of your arm.
“Just let me know how things turn out. I’ll have workers helping you if I’m not there.” You got inside your car. “And have a good time. You two deserve it.”
He gave you a polite smile. “Ok.” He shut the door of your car before you even tried to start it. With a sense of relief, you waved him off as you started driving down the street.
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mikeysw1fey · 6 months
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more than a friend?
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request linked here
pairing: mikey madison x female reader
warnings: none really
a/n: i don’t like this one too much but it’s alr cause i’m coming out of writers block (yay)
I don’t get jealous. Jealousy is for people who are insecure about themselves… right?
“Mikey I swear. Punch me again and I’ll push you out of this car.” I threaten, a wide smile on my face as I lean as far as I can away from the black haired girl.
“I can’t help it if we keep driving past yellow cars.” Mikey shrugs, her smile matching my own. I simply scoff and roll my eyes. “I’m gonna have bruises on my arm for weeks. People are gonna start to think your abusing me.” I fake pout earning my own eye roll from the driver of the car.
“You’ll live.” Mikey chuckles before pulling up to the restaurant car park. I mock her playfully before exiting the car and following her towards the front door.
As we enter a chorus of whisper yells call our names. Mason, Jenna, Melissa and Jasmin all sit around a table. Mason waves us over and points to two seats beside one another.
“Thought you might wanna sit next to each other.” Jasmin wiggles her eyebrows suggestively causing my cheeks to flush red as I sit in between Jenna and Mikey. Jenna’s elbow nudges my waist as she too chuckles silently. I don’t dare to glance at Mikey in fear I could give away my feelings. That would not go down well.
Picking up the menu I pretend to be interested in the food until my cheeks return to their normal colour. “What you gonna order?” Mikey turns to me with a smile as the rest of the group chatter amongst themselves.
I let out a hum as I debate between the carbonara or the ravioli (pasta is my weakness). “Probably the carbonara.” I shrug causing Mikey to chuckle. “So I guessed right.” She smiles before Jasmin calls her name to get her attention.
Minutes fly by as the six of us talk and laugh. That is until the waiter approaches our table with a broad smile. “Hi what can I get for you guys today?” He grins, eyes drifting to Mikey who smiles politely. “What can I get you pretty lady?” He bats his eyelashes at the woman beside me causing an uncomfortable feeling to bubble in my stomach. Mikey chuckles softly, her brown eyes gazing up at the waiter. “I’ll take the Caesar salad with a side of fries please, can’t be too healthy.” She jokes.
I almost jump at the boisterous laugh the waiter lets out at Mikeys joke, my eyes connecting with Jenna’s, to confirm I wasn’t the only one who sees this horrendous interaction. “I can do that.” The waiter replies before hesitantly turning towards me, his broad smile now more of a forced grin. “I’ll have the carbonara.” I send him a fake smile before turning away, an awkward silence encompassing the table before Jenna voices her order.
Once everyone’s orders are written the waiter walks off but not before sending Mikey a flirty wink. My insides twist around themselves as my hands grip the table so hard as to prevent myself from strangling the man on sight.
“God that man was into you.” Melissa laughs from beside Mikey, her fingers poking the black haired woman’s side. “Tell me about it. He wouldn’t stop staring at you even when I was trying to tell him I can’t have chicken or bacon on my caeser salad.” Jenna groans.
I resist the urge to get up and go home. Petty yes but I hate watching the one person I adore being flirted with AND flirting back with some random.
“I think I’m going to go to the bathroom.” I feign a smile as I push out my chair and stand up desperate to get out of this conversation. “You want me to come with you?” Mikey’s quick to ask already half way out her chair. I shake my head almost too quickly. “No stay here, you’ll wanna be here for when the waiter comes back.” I reply maybe a little too harshly as Mikeys mouth opens and closes like a goldfish.
Both Mason and Jasmin send me a look but I ignore them instead walking away to the restroom as fast as I could go.
Resting my hands against the porcelain sink, I gaze at myself in the mirror. Although I look normal, I could feel the green eyed monster clawing at my stomach. Thinking about the waiters lingering gaze and his suggestive looks made me want to throw up in general, but thinking about them aimed at Mikey. That shatters my heart into a million pieces.
Blinking back tears, I run an irritated hand through my hair trying to think of an excuse for when I return to the table.
The restroom door opens and I inhale on instinct, brushing my tears away to make it appear as if I’m just washing up.
“Y/N?” Mikeys voice is shy, timid almost as she makes her way towards me. “Oh.” I breathe half grateful shes here and not at the table with that stupid waiter and half embarrassed she’s here while I cry over her.
“Are you ok?” The simple question is like a trigger sending tears cascading out my eyes. “Fuck, I am actually fine I don’t know why I’m crying.” I let out a chuckle but it falls flat as Mikey reaches for my hand.
“Don’t lie to me. We don’t do that to each other. Your my best friend, if somethings up I wanna help you.” She whispers tucking my hair behind my ear with her free hand.
Best friend
The word hurts to hear causing my eyes to squeeze closed as if that would protect the breaking of my heart. “I’m sorry for what I said before. About the waiter and stuff.” I sigh opening my eyes to look at Mikey who shrugs. “It’s ok, I don’t even want him anyway. I kinda have a crush on someone else.” She gazes at the floor. The words cause my breath to hitch in my chest.
So there is someone else.
“Oh. Yeah.” I manage to let out broken words. Tugging my hand away from Mikeys I let out a breath and wipe my cheeks. “I’m gonna head back.” I can’t look at her as I begin walking towards the door leaving Mikey behind me.
“Wait. Please.” Her voice is pleading almost begging me to not walk out the bathroom. Pausing, I turn on my heel and raise an eyebrow. “If I didn’t know any better it would sound like you were jealous.” She breathes slowly making her way in front of me once again.
My breath hitches for a different reason this time as she stops merely inches in front of my face. “And what if I am?” I reply waiting for the inevitable disgust and rejection to appear in Mikeys face.
“Then I would do this.” Mikeys lips connect with mine. Her hand reaching up for my face as I lean into the rhythm of our kiss.
The green eyed monster disappears leaving euphoria in its place.
I pull away only to better understand the situation, my hands still remaining slotted on Mikeys hips with no intention of letting go.
“So this means I’m the someone you have a crush on?” I frown as Mikeys shoulders shake with laughter. “Yes you idiot.” I don’t waste a second after she confirms my suspicions, my lips chasing hers once again.
Sighing into the kiss I can’t help but feel overjoyed, like I could conquer the world so long as my world remains in my arms.
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kissofthemis · 2 months
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hii! can I request the nxx boys with a reader who used to be in an abusive relationship (now an ex) and an example situation when one of the boys raises a hand the reader thinks their going to git them so they flinch or when the boys cook the reader a table full of food the reader starts to sob because they're not used to eating in big amounts (ik I have that problem) all separate pls c:
srry if it's a bit too much u don't have to accept the request!
Hi friend! Sorry for the wait! This type of request is not a problem for me, but I will put it under a "read more" to be safe!
TW abuse mention; implied abuse; PTSD
❤️ Artem ❤️
Your first instinct upon seeing all the delicious dishes that Artem placed on the table was for your mouth to start watering.
Your second instinct was to consciously shut down that response before Artem could notice, and you managed to cut it off before even a drop of saliva could escape your lips.
You'd trained yourself how to do that in your last relationship, a long time ago.
When Artem finally sat down to join you, you didn't make eye contact with him. You just dipped your head politely and began to eat from the plate he had placed in front of you. If you avoided looking at the other dishes he'd placed on the table, from colorful grilled vegetables to aromatic jasmine rice, then you wouldn't crave them as much.
Artem needed more food than you anyway. He was larger, smarter, busier. He needed the energy, and you should be grateful he whipped up a plate for you at all.
That was what you had learned a long time ago. To be grateful for what you had and not to beg for what you didn't deserve.
Perhaps you ate too quickly, however, because your plate was empty within minutes. You sat quietly, waiting to see if Artem would stir up conversation. (He wasn't a highly talkative person, so you were equally content with sipping from your water glass in silence.)
Finally he spoke, and nothing could have prepared you for the concerned murmur of, "If you're still hungry, you can take more. Everything here is for us to share."
"... Huh?"
Now you couldn't help yourself from gawking at him, wide-eyed and perplexed. "N-no, I'm fine. You already made me a plate!"
Artem pensively prodded at a pepper. "Only to start you off," he explained. "I wasn't sure what your favorite foods are, or what you would enjoy most, so I gave you a little bit of everything and decided to put the rest here in their original dishes so you could decide on your own what you wanted to eat." His brow knitted in consternation as he added, the worry in his tone subtle but unmistakable, "Did you think that was all I would let you eat?"
The worry on his face dramatically increased in mere seconds. He nearly jumped out of his seat as he leaned over with a napkin to dab at your eyes. "You're crying. Are you crying?"
Clearly he hadn't expected this reaction from you, and honestly, you hadn't expected to react this way either. The only person more confused than him right now was you. All of this? For you to eat as you please? Any dish, any amount?
"I... You... You're so kind, Artem," was all you could manage to mumble out between your tears.
"I'm nothing special," he insisted, his deep ocean gaze gentle but firm. "I care about you. A lot. So please... eat up and take care of yourself, alright?"
~♡~♡~♡~♡~
💛 Luke 💛
"Luke, we're going to be late!"
Running on the same wavelength as the brunet sometimes did more harm than good. You had both arrived way too early for the escape room that you planned to do today with some friends, so you had camped out underneath a shady tree and watched ducks floating by on the lake.
Who knew counting ducks could make you fall asleep just like sheep?
"It's like a 5 minute walk! The building is right there!" Luke protested, but even his amused grin couldn't hide the hint of concern in his voice. "That's nothing for me!"
"Okay, then you will be on time, but I don't follow the Luke Pearce cardio regimen!" you whined. "And if you leave me in the dust, I'll never forgive you!"
You knew he wouldn't run off without you, so your "threat" was mostly in jest, but the fear that flickered across his eyes almost made you feel guilty.
Almost, but not guilty enough to stop you from sprinting ahead.
"Wait, wait!" Luke cried out suddenly as you began to dart off without him.
His words stopped you in your tracks, and you spun around as fast as you could to turn back towards him.
The heat coursing through your adrenaline-pumped veins immediately froze as a large hand came flying towards your face.
No. No! I messed up! I'm sorry!
With a shriek, you dropped to the ground, arms raised defensively above your head.
I took it too far. I wasn't funny. He's mad. He's mad he's mad he's mad and I deserve this. I deserve this.
Cowering on the ground with your eyes squeezed tightly shut, you braced yourself for impact. Maybe it'd be a smack, maybe a slap, maybe a punch. You weren't sure, but you knew it was coming.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
... why wasn't it coming?
Hesitantly you opened one eye, expecting to see rage ablaze in Luke's passionate coral eyes.
But instead you saw pure fear on his face, as his skin had gone white as a sheet and his hands pulled in close to his chest, shaking.
"Did I... scare you?" he asked carefully, his voice hoarse.
Why was he afraid? Wasn't he mad? Wasn't he...
Maybe your gut reaction was... wrong?
"I'm sorry," you whispered, and you slowly lowered your arms.
Luke looked as though he wanted to step forward, but he held himself back so as to avoid startling you. "You had a leaf in your hair," was all he said. "I wanted to get it out."
"I'm sorry," you repeated. You felt like a broken record, but as shaken as you still were, what else could you say?
Luke lowered himself onto one knee and tentatively reached a hand towards you, like he were coaxing a small animal. He seemed relieved as you inched a little closer to him.
When you finally got close enough for him to remove the leaf, he instead pulled you into his arms.
"Who do I need to kill, [Y/N]?"
"Luke, no."
~♡~♡~♡~♡~
💜 Marius 💜
You tried to keep your eyes off the clock, but the more time that passed, the more difficult that became.
While you had no doubt that Marius von Hagen, of all people, could easily get another reservation at a high-end restaurant, you knew he had been looking forward to taking you to this particular spot for weeks now. But luck had not been on his side this week, as Pax was swamped from left to right with deals to close and disputes to settle. Marius had been sleeping even less than usual; he wouldn't admit it to you, but even if he covered the bags under his eyes with makeup and chugged coffees, you could see the fatigue in the way his eyes had lost a lot of sparkle.
You loved the mischievous gleams and artistic sparks in his eyes, and if this date was only going to cause him more stress...
"Hey, Mar--"
"You will see me at 2:00 tomorrow, or you will find another buyer! Capice?"
Everything else in the room melted away all at once. The clock. Vincent's apologetic face. The Pax sign behind the desk. The huge windows revealing the sunset. All of it, all of it faded into oblivion as soon as that deep, loud, angry voice hit your ears.
Like a thunderstorm had let loose a ferocious flash of lightning and deafening clap of thunder just above your head, all your senses kicked into high gear to focus on one thing:
Stay alive. Stay alive. Get low, get quiet, stay alive.
You weren't sure when Marius hung up the phone. You weren't sure when Marius walked over to you. You weren't even sure where you were.
Perhaps it was for the best that you couldn't see what Marius saw right now: the person he loved most in the world, crouching behind a couch with hands clapped over their ears, eyes squeezed tightly shut, and murmuring quietly and rapidly in an effort to stay grounded.
Marius von Hagen had money, power, and influence beyond what most people could dream, but even he couldn't stop a trauma response in its tracks.
You flinched as you felt a large weight drop on top of your head, but slowly you unclenched your jaw as you realized it was a large but gentle hand, stroking your hair rhythmically.
You dared to open your eyes, slowly fluttering your eyelids open until Marius' concerned, exhausted face came into clear view.
"I'm sorry I yelled," he murmured.
You shook your head, and as you pulled your hands away from your ears, you tried to reach out and pat him on the shoulder. But your hands were still shaking, and you cursed yourself silently as you realized you wouldn't be able to comfort him like this. "You've been under a lot of stress."
Marius let out a low, self-deprecating chuckle. "That's no excuse. I can't fulfill my very important role if I lose my cool like that."
"The President of Pax isn't allowed to get upset?"
Marius snorted. "Not that role. Nobody cares about me as president, anyway. I mean as your lover."
Before you could even fully process his words and tell him how touching and sincere they were, Marius gently flicked your forehead.
"Besides, I'll be less stressed now that I called off the deal with that old curmudgeon. Ready for dinner, babe?"
~♡~♡~♡~♡~
💚 Vyn 💚
Stealth. Stealth. You were the embodiment of stealth.
Phase 1 had been easy. Since you were staying in Vyn's guest room tonight as he had to get up early (or at least attempt to) tomorrow, he hadn't noticed you tip-toeing out at midnight. That room was around the corner from his own bedroom, after all, and his closed door meant he couldn't see you sneak over to the stairs.
Phase 2 had been a little more challenging: the stairs themselves. In order to avoid any creaking that could give you away, you had decided to crawl along the side and test each step to figure out where the sturdiest part was. (You had also made a mental note to inform Vyn that the third step from the bottom definitely needed to be repaired, because it squeaked like a rusty hinge.)
Phase 3 was almost complete and going off without a hitch. You had just turned the corner into his kitchen, and now the refrigerator door was in plain sight. The hardwood was a bit of a pain compared to sneaking around on carpet, but your socks should be sufficiently muffled on the kitchen tile. You inhaled deeply and gave your stomach a reassuring pat.
'Soon. Soon we will be appeased.'
Gingerly you stepped across the tile, gently you opened the door, and with a victorious smile, you inspected the glowing contents of Vyn's refrigerator.
Jackpot!
As you debated whether to grab yogurt, cheese, or some celery to scoop up peanut butter, a low voice sounded behind you.
"If you want a midnight snack, might I recommend something low sugar so that you can fall asleep shortly after?"
You nearly screeched as you slammed the door shut and whirled around with your back pressed against its cold metal surface. Suppressing a whimper, you raised your arms defensively in front of your abdomen and face as you looked up to an amused pair of glimmering golden eyes.
"I... I'll go back to bed. I'm sorry. I didn't..."
Excuses swarmed your head like a mess of bees, but you doubted any of them would spare you from your inevitable fate.
They had never saved you in the past, after all.
"Please don't be mad...."
You regretted the words as soon as they came out of your mouth. That would just make Vyn angrier! You couldn't bear to look at him, so you turned your head away and held your breath as you waited for his response.
"Why would I be mad?"
Surprised by these words and how genuine they sounded, you dared to take a peek at Vyn. He didn't even look sleepy as he gazed at you with knitted brow and a fretful frown on his pale face. "If anything, I'm... disappointed." He sighed softly and extended a hand to you. "Let me help you up, darling."
You weren't sure your quivering legs would support you even with Vyn's help, so you kept one hand on the refrigerator door as Vyn helped you to your feet. "Disappointed?" you echoed, unable to quash your curiosity.
"Of course. I am, after all, an excellent pastry chef, if I do say so myself." His gaze softened as he guided you slowly to one of the seats behind the kitchen counter. "The thought that you'd rather snack on cheese instead of a fresh tiramisu, matcha tart, or mille-feuille... well, that is quite the blow to my self-esteem."
Was he... trying to lighten the mood? You couldn't be sure if he was serious or joking. "I... shouldn't be hungry. You gave me plenty to eat."
Vyn didn't seem bothered by that. "No 'should' or 'shouldn't' applies here. You are hungry, and I simply cannot allow that." He chuckled and opened the refrigerator, tutting softly as he reviewed its contents. "I'll have to regretfully inform you I am low on eggs, but perhaps next time I can make you a crème brulée."
As relief flooded over you, you allowed yourself to smile. "... I don't think I trust you with a torch at this hour, anyway."
Vyn drummed his fingers against the counter. "Harsh, but understandable." He sighed. "Now then, please select a dessert, unless you want me to psychoanalyze everything that happened just now instead."
"Strawberry shortcake, please!"
130 notes · View notes
earthtoharlow · 21 days
Text
Faux Love
Chapter 2
masterlist
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“Should I wear this cream colored sweater with these pants or this pink one?” Jack asked, lifting up both sweaters in front of him. Jean let out a small giggle at her text and replied without looking at him. “The cream one, like I told you ten minutes ago!”
“Who are you texting?” He asked, tossing the pink sweater on the bed next to her before pulling the cream one over his head.
“No one”
“Yes, you are! Who is he? I wanna meet him.” Jack said, looking at her through the mirror as he tried to tame his curly hair.
“Absolutely not! You chase away every guy I introduce you to!” Jean said with a pout, she couldn’t remember the last time he actually liked one of the guys she was dating.
“I don’t chase away all of them, just none of them were good enough for you.”
Jean rolled her eyes and texted something witty back, trying to play hard to get. She threw her phone and stared up at the high ceilings of Jack’s apartment. She looked over and saw him still struggling with his hair. “Jack come over here and sit down, so I can help you.” Jean said before sitting up.
Jack sat on the edge of the bed as Jean got up to grab a comb. As she runs her fingers through his curly hair, she asks, “So, tell me about this lucky girl you’re going on a date with tonight. What’s she like?”
“She has dark hair.” He says with an eyebrow raise
“Oh, shocker!” She said sarcastically before hitting him lightly on the top of his head with the comb. “Ow!” Jack said in laughter.
“Where’d you meet her?”
“I met her during my music video shoot yesterday! She’s an extra, so you know she’s ridiculously hot.” He joked.
“You’re an idiot, but here you go I’m done.”
Jack looked up at the mirror, inspecting his hair. It looked perfect. “Thanks, Scout.”
As they made their way downstairs to the kitchen, Jean perched herself up on the bar stool and took a look around the dining area. Nothing looked ready.
“Um, are you sure you have a date tonight? Where’s the candles, wine and soft music? She should be here soon, right…you’ve lost your touch!”
“No no, this is part of the plan.” He says and then continues. “Once I let her in I apologize for running late. She’ll see how extravagant things are but not think that I was waiting around all day for her to show up! I’ll finish everything in front of her while we talk, I’ll pour her some wine, kiss her on the cheek dangerously close to her mouth and then the night begins!”
Jean couldn’t help but laugh at how ridiculous her best friend sounded. She picked up her phone when she heard it vibrating, signaling she had a new text.
“Oh c’mon, who is this guy!”
She laughed again. “Relax, I promise he’s just some guy. No big deal. Now, I should probably go before your date gets here.” Jean hopped down from the stool, and grabbed her purse.
Jack pulled her keys from his pants pocket as he always holds on to them because she tends to lose things.
“Thanks, bestie.” She said as she took her keys from him. “Have a good time tonight.”
“I will!” He said with a wink, and pulled Jean into a hug. “What are you going to do, it is Saturday after all.”
“There’s some UFC PPV coming on tonight, gonna go watch at Urban and Brielle’s house.”
“Oh.” Jack muttered. “Well, have fun.”
“Jack…just come with me. Cancel this silly date and come have fun with us! Brielle and I are going to make party snacks while Jasmine pretends to help!”
Jack shook his head with a pout. “Nah, I have plans.”
“Ugh, you suck! But okay, call me tomorrow.”
“Night, Scout!” He yelled behind Jean as she walked down the stairs. “Night, Jackman!” She yelled over her shoulder.
Jack and Jean had been friends for a few years now, it started when Jack flirted with her at a coffee shop and the rest was history. Except they decided they were better off as friends, as they were freakishly the same person. Jean knew that he would never be anything more than her best friend.
Over the years, Jean had become close friends with his younger brother Clay and his other best friend Urban. Since she’s known them, they had both been in long term relationships. Clay just got engaged to his high school sweetheart, Jasmine and Urban has been happily married to Brielle for two years now.
With everyone being so close, they constantly hung out together. Jean has been rumored to be “Jack Harlow’s hot girlfriend!” for years now. What was funny about that was that Jack hasn’t been in a serious relationship for a long time. He was enjoying the rest of his twenties and being a hot bachelor. Which wasn’t exactly a crime.
***
When Jean arrived at Urban’s home, she knocked on the door politely, waited a few seconds and proceeded to open the front door.
“You’ve gotta stop doing that.” Urban said as he walked towards her holding his arms out for a hug.
“Y’all should just make me a key at this point.” Jean replied with a shrug and walked into the hug. “Hi, Urb, Jack says hi by the way.”
All Urban could do was sigh. “He’s not coming?”
“Nope, sorry to disappoint you. But you’re just going to be dealing with me tonight.” Jean said with a smile.
Urban laughed. “Brielle and I just wanted everyone here but it’s okay. She's waiting for you in the kitchen, by the way.”
Jean nodded and skipped towards the kitchen. “Oh it smells good in here!” She sniffed the air and stood next to Brielle trying to see what she cooked. “Hey, B!”
“Hey! Is Jack with Urban?” She asked, trying to peek from the kitchen. “Actually, Jack’s not coming.” Urban answered as he walked in the room.
Brielle immediately put her mixing bowl down, visibly upset. “What? We were—“
“I know, but we should still tell—“
“Telling everyone without him here? It won’t feel the same. He’s basically your brother. We were going to ask him to be…” Brielle trailed off, not finishing her sentence.
Jean raised an eyebrow and looked towards Urban to see if he was going to finish her sentence like he usually did.
“Can you two just spit it out!” Jean exclaimed.
“Spit what out?” Clay asked as he walked into the kitchen holding Jasmine’s hand and a bottle of wine in the other hand.
Jean immediately walked to the cupboard to grab some glasses and placed one in front of everyone. When she got to Brielle, she began to shake her head. “No thanks, I’m not drinking tonight.”
“What?! I bought this just for you, it’s your favorite!” Jasmine said with a whine.
“I’m sorry!” But Brielle didn’t look sorry at all as she glanced over at Urban with a huge smile. “Doctor said I can’t drink for about 8 to 9 months!”
“You’re pregnant!” Jean squealed, lunging towards her. Brielle laughed as Jasmine joined in the hug. “Oh my gosh! This is amazing! Jasmine, we gotta start planning a shower immediately!”
“Already on it, I think I have a venue in mind!” Jasmine said, pulling out her phone to begin planning.
Urban walked over and wrapped his arms around Brielle’s waist, nudging his nose against her cheek. “We wanted to tell you all at once.” Urban admitted. “I’ll hit up, Jack tomorrow I guess.”
Jean noticed the sadness in his voice as Clay crossed in front of her to give Brielle a hug and congratulate her.
“Congratulations, daddy!” Jean said with a giggle. “You know, Jack would’ve loved to have been here!”
“And yet, he’s with some girl who he won't even talk to anymore by this time next week.”
Urban had a point. As Jack’s 30th birthday loomed closer, he caught himself in a whirlwind of dates with different women, not wanting to be alone. He wasn’t ready to settle down, like his brother and Urban were. Jack wanted to enjoy life while he could.
As Urban and Clay retreated to the living room to watch the fight pre show, Jasmine and Brielle cornered Jean. “So, Jean…” Jean sighed knowing what was about to happen. “When are you and Jack going to get together?”
“I was just talking to Jack before I got here and we decided the week after NEVER would be a good day!”
“Oh c’mon Jean! It’s like a match made in heaven!
“Think about it. You two already have such a strong bond. You understand each other so well…” Jasmine tried to stress.
“Look, I love Jack. He’s my best friend. Completely platonic.”
“That’s exactly it! Sometimes the best relationships start from friendships!” Brielle exclaimed
“Ok, you and Urban have been watching too many romcoms.” Jean said giggling, before continuing. “We wouldn’t work out, we tried, remember?”
“That hardly even counts, and the sooner the two of you figure that out the happier everyone will be! Especially those two.” Jasmine said, nodding towards the living room.
“Especially Urban. He’s really disappointed he’s not here tonight.”
“Clay too.” Jasmine added
Jean sighed, hating when they did this. “Ugh, I’m the best friend! Why don’t you go find some girl to hook him up with and maybe they’ll hit it off!”
“Hello?! That’s what we are doing!” Brielle exclaimed
“Just sleep with him already so he can realize he’s in love with you! I mean, you already think about him naked.”
“WHAT?! No! You guys are insane! We’re ending this conversation!”
“Fine but we’ll gang up on you with the guys during every commercial break!”
And they stayed true to their word. The four of them have been trying to get Jack and Jean together since the day they met her. It’s not that she wasn’t attracted to him because, c’mon the dude is hot.
Jean was very attracted to Jack but their personalities were too similar. They thought too much alike and Jean knew too much about him to ever have real genuine feelings about him.
***
As Jean walked into her apartment after leaving Urban’s house, she was met with an unexpected crash in her kitchen. She immediately grabbed her phone, ready to call Jack just in case she needed backup. Her heart was pounding as she crept closer to the kitchen, she grabbed the nearest weapon she could find—an umbrella.
Jean braced herself to confront the intruder, but as she rounded the corner, her grip on the umbrella loosened, and her eyes widened in disbelief. There, standing in her kitchen, was none other than Jack himself, stirring a pot on the stove.
“Jack?!” Jean exclaimed, relief flooding through her as she lowered the umbrella.
Jack turned around, startled by her sudden appearance, and his expression morphed from surprise to amusement. “Hey, Scout. You scared me for a second!”
“What the HELL!”
“What’s with the umbrella?” Jack asked, confused.
“I thought you were a burglar or something! You scared me half to death,” Jean replied, still trying to catch her breath.
She walked closer to him and saw he was making a double decker grilled cheese sandwich. His kitchen was ten times bigger than her own, she would never understand why he insisted on using her kitchen when he was hungry.
“How was your date?” Pulling two glasses from her cupboard and grabbing the milk from the fridge.
“She left, had to be up early in the morning for work. Thank god, she was boring. So I decided to come here. You want half?” Jack asked not waiting for an answer and slicing the sandwich in half.
All Jean could do was shake her head at him as he turned the stove off and followed her to the bedroom with the sandwiches while she held the glasses of milk.
Jean quickly changed into her pajamas and wiped the makeup off her face. She climbed into the bed with Jack, she thanked him as he held the cover up so she could slide in and handed her a slice.
“I hope you don’t mind but I used your shampoo.”
She took a bite of her sandwich before responding. “I had a feeling your curls looked better than usual. Also a quick question, are you capable of using any of the things in your own house?”
“Hell nah, now how many times did you get the talk?” Jack asked before grabbing the remote and turning on cartoons.
“Just a couple.” she said with a shrug. “It definitely would’ve been more if you were there. We missed you tonight, the guys were sad you weren’t there. Brielle is pregnant!”
“Seriously?! I’m gonna be an uncle?” The biggest smile formed on Jack’s face as he always loved kids. “That’s amazing! I’m really about to be an uncle.” He frowned a bit. “I saw Urban yesterday and he didn’t say anything.”
“They just wanted to tell us all together, but you know Brielle, she couldn’t hold it in! They’re so excited!”
“I’m excited too, wow” Jack said with a smile. “A whole baby!”
Jean smiled at him and offered him the last bite of her sandwich. Jack of course bit it off her fingertips and finished both glasses of milk.
Jack stayed for a couple more hours just making sure Jean fell asleep before pressing a soft kiss to her forehead before leaving to go home.
For some reason, Jean was disappointed when she woke up and he was gone.
***
AN: thank you for reading!!
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percervall · 2 months
Text
Mamma mia, here I go again {pt8}
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Summary: A summer of poor decisions leads you to having to face the consequences of your actions —and the men involved. Pairing: Kevin Magnussen x fem!reader, Lewis Hamilton x fem!reader, Mark Webber x fem!reader Warnings: angst, descriptions of a crash, mentions of religious trauma Word count: 1246 Taglist: @ashy-kit @averagef1fansblog @barcelonaloverf1life @bradfordbantams @dannyramirezwife-simpaccount@doofenshmirtzevil-inc @exotic-iris13 @goldsainz @iloveneteyam @jaypreshpresh @laura-naruto-fan1998 @monzamash @norrisleclercf1 @opheliaas-stuff @roseseraj @szobosz @topguncultleader@vellicora @ystrolllll 
Part 8 of the Mamma Mia series
After Japan, you operate on auto-pilot, the days all blurring into one. At work, your colleagues leave you be, however, your best friend sees right through you, especially after you cancel on her for a third day in a row. So Jasmine does what any best friend would do: she lets herself into your apartment with the key you had given her, only to find you curled up on the couch, staring into space as the sun sets, drowning you in twilight. She forces you to get changed out of your work clothes while she puts the kettle on.
“Talk to me. This is not like you,” Jasmine says, putting a mug in front of you.
“I don’t even know where to start..” you mumble.
“Start with what’s got you so heartbroken that you’ve become a recluse,” Jasmine offers. You shrug, feeling another wave of tears threatening to spill.
“I broke my own heart. I should never have agreed to their plan,” you say. You tell her all about the last couple of weeks, about the dates they had been taking you on. About how you tried so very hard to not fall in love.
“But I did. I fell harder than I think I ever have.”
“How does that lead to you breaking your own heart? Shouldn’t you be over the moon and disgustingly in love with your man?” Jasmine asks you.
“How can I be happy when I love all three of them?” you throw out, a sob wrecking through your body as you bury your face in your hands, “I am such a greedy whore for wanting all of them,” you whisper.
“No. Stop that right now,” Jasmine says, moving her chair next to yours and pulling you against her chest.
“Sometimes I really curse your parents for the religious trauma they subjected you to. Babe, we’ve talked about this. There is nothing wrong with being a slut or a whore, as you put it, as long as it is your choice to be called that term. Nothing wrong with a little consensual degradation in the bedroom. But loving more than one person does not make you a whore. It makes you polyamorous,” Jasmine responds, rubbing a hand down your back. 
“P-poly-what now?” you ask as you look up at her.
“Polyamorous. Oh babe, for someone with a double master’s degree, you really are clueless sometimes. It means someone who’s in a relationship with more than one person at a time. It just means you love differently than the heteronormative norm.”  
You’re quiet for a moment, letting your friend’s words sink in. She’s hit the nail on the head with her comment about your parents. You went no contact years ago, but your religious upbringing sometimes still haunts you even now that you’re an adult and no longer believe in the church as an institution. A tiny spark of hope flickers alive in your heart at the knowledge that there is a world in which you don’t have to choose between them, before it gets squashed by the realisation that you might have burnt that bridge before you even got to cross it. 
“What if it’s too late?’ you voice your biggest worry out loud, “What if they don’t want me anymore?” 
“Unfortunately there is only one way to find out. You gotta talk to them.”
Jasmine made it seem so easy, but finding the time to do so is proving difficult during the next race weekend. Due to the sprint race, the weekend is even busier than normal. By the time Sunday comes around you are convinced it won’t happen. Kevin seems to be avoiding you —and you can’t blame him for that—, Lewis is busy preparing for two races, and Mark is filming for Channel4. You throw yourself into your work, trying your hardest not to think about how your chest constricts every time you catch a glimpse of any of them on the screens in the garage. It’s not until Sunday’s race has well and truly started that you can’t use work as an excuse anymore. The latest bits of sim data have already been analysed so you really have no reason to stay in your office. You hide away in the back of the garage, out of sight for most of the cameras but you have a clear view on the screen with the F1 world feed. Your chest feels tight with anxiety for this race; the heat has been brutal for everyone involved and the tyre management put in place by Pirelli doesn’t fill you with confidence either. 
The first 30 or so laps go by relatively smoothly, but just as you allow yourself to exhale for the first time in what feels like an hour, things go horribly, horribly wrong. Logically you know the whole thing won’t have lasted for much longer than several minutes, but it feels like everything slows down as you watch one of the RedBulls collide into Lewis’ car while trying to overtake in the straight between corners 15 and 16, sending the latter spinning into the barrier on the right before getting bounced to the other side of the track like a ping pong ball before it comes to standstill against the wall. The RedBull tries to correct its own course but can’t help losing control again and sends the Haas that was behind them into the gravel where something seems to snap from the back of the car, causing the driver to lose complete control and slamming sideways into the barriers. Miraculously, the RedBull remains on the track, although it’s obvious the car has some major front wing damage, and makes it into the pitlane without much of a fuss. You keep watching the screen breathlessly, hoping for any signs of movement while you vaguely hear Lewis’ engineer ask Lewis if he’s okay. Instead of confirmation, it remains quiet. Your chest feels too tight to catch your breath as panic claws its way up your throat when you realise that the Haas currently in the barriers is Kevin. Ripping your headset off, you make your way outside and into the pitlane. Air, you need air. Leaning against the wall, you inhale deeply, trying to use the breathing techniques from yoga to calm down. They’re gone, your brain very unhelpfully supplies and you cover your mouth with a hand to stifle the scream that’s threatening to come out. You hear someone talking to you but the words don’t register as his body blocks you from view. Looking up, you see Mark’s concerned face looking back at you and the realisation that Lewis and Kev got hurt hits you all over again. A sob wrecks through you as your knees buckle.
“I’ve got you,” Mark murmurs, pulling your body against his. “They’re gone and I-.. I will never get to tell them-.. Mark-..” you sob into his chest. Mark rubs a hand down your back, letting you cry into his shirt as he tries to sooth you. You thought the heartache you felt after Suzuka was bad, but nothing could have prepared you for this. You can’t breathe, can’t think; the only thought going through your head is how this baby will never get to see their dads, how you lost the loves of your life and that you will never even get the chance to tell them that, how it’s all your fault. And that thought rips you apart all over again.
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For maximum emotional damage, may I suggest playing Gracie Abrams' Cedar on loop while reading this? Because that song broke me
@curiousthyme this chapter would not be what it is without you, so thank you
Please let me know what you think. Your comments, tags and likes mean the world to me 💜
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wen-kexing-apologist · 4 months
Text
Reflections in Last Twilight
Alright, I was not really planning on writing analysis on for Last Twilight, at least not this early in the game. But my dearly beloved @dribs-and-drabbles has called to me like Beetlejuice to analyze the use of reflections in this show. Which means i have been summoned, which means, it is time to bust out the meta. 
Now, having just looked back through both Episode 1 and Episode 2, there have not been that many instances of reflections in Last Twilight so far, though the ones we have had already are definitely memorable. So let’s get in to it. 
Episode 1
Intro Sequence
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I’m not going to talk about the reflections off the fish tank here because the actual scene they are tied to comes in Episode 2 and I think there will be a whole lot more to say then. But I do want to acknowledge that we will be getting reflections at the beginning of every episode, and that Aof is already establishing the important symbolism of fish and jasmine. 
The first actual reflection we get in Last Twilight comes in the form of Mhok in the side mirror of  his sister Rung’s car.
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Rung's car has been sitting in Pae's garage for a year at this point. It would be gathering dust if Pae hadn't spent time over the course of that year meticulously maintaining her vehicle. In fact, that is the very first thing we see happen in this workshop. Pae taking car of Rung's car in her and Mhok's sted. Taking care of this car was not his job, we can assume that he did not anticipate the time commitment that would come with maintaining possession of Rung's car while Mhok was in jail, but he has set himself up to task and gone, in my opinion, above and beyond what was expected of him by continuing to maintain her car.
Pae is surprised when Mhok hands him the spare key and says Pae can sell the car. Mhok at this point is in the anger stage of grief. He blames Rung for her death, and wants to absolve himself of the grief and guilt by maintaining the idea that Rung was to blame and to try to rid himself of any and all reminders of his sister. Mhok, as we know, is incredibly alone. His mother died when they were young, his sister has died, he is no longer associated with his friends/coworkers from his old shop after they all got arrested, and he hides as much as he can from Pae. Mhok has Phorjai and Phorjai only as any sort of support system, and she's his ex-girlfriend, so I don't think we need to go too in depth to acknowledge the complications there.
Mhok wants to forget his grief, his pain, and I appreciate greatly that Pae won't let him do that. That Pae knows Mhok enough to understand that the second that Pae sells that car, Mhok is going to regret letting it go. So he extends another six months grace period to let Mhok actually think it over. Mhok looks over the car, at the bandaid that Rung put on the little scratch she got her first day owning the car, in the glove compartment where all the handouts for her failed budiness are. And Pae allows Mhok a minute alone, in the dark of his sister's car.
At which point we get the reflection. Now, personally I think Jimmy has some work to do as an actor, which means it feels harder for me to accurately read Mhok's face/emotional state. But, for me, here, Mhok looks *tired*, but most importantly, he is trapped in the frame of the side mirror, he is stuck in the dark, and he is alone. In just one small frame, Aof is showing us the aspects of Mhok's character that will help him recognize himself in Day, and tell us why Mhok needs the relationship he has (or will have) to Day.
This is the only actual reflection we see in Episode 1. 
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But I do want to comment on the end of the episode, like everyone else has, about part of the *The Little Prince* reading that Mhok does at the end. Namely the line "what is essential is invisible to the eye". 
I don't think, in a show with going blind as a part of its central theme that we really *need* to look deeper in to the significance/meaning of this line. But because I have been asked to talk about reflections, I want to go a little overboard on the line reading here. Because, day to day we can't see ourselves, right? We wouldn't know exactly what we look like if we couldn't look in to a mirror. Mirrors, reflections, are often a subject of insecurity, providing us the opportunity to pick at every flaw. In mirrors, dancers can watch and correct themselves, their body positions, tweak their choreography based on what they see that they normally would not be able to. Actors can practice facial expressions in the mirror, figure out how they have to hold themselves to make their emotions believable. In horror movies, mirrors show us what lurks in the background, in spy movies it shows us what exists around the corner. And in our deepest moments of guilt or shame, facing ourselves in the mirror becomes a challenge.
I don't want to get too ahead of myself on predictions about this show and what Aof is planning on doing with it, but personally I think the use of mirrors/reflections is a perfect way to show what is essential and invisible to the eye. Mhok is not looking at himself in the mirror here, and if we were standing in the room with him, we would not be able to see his face at all. But the side mirror of Rung's car allows us to see what Mhok is thinking and feeling. But he isn't looking in the mirror himself. He isn't and hasn't started facing or confronting his own grief, isolation, or pain. I don't know that Mhok is as of yet capable of seeing what he needs to change in his own life, because he hasn't reflected on his own life.
Episode 2
The first "reflection" we get in Episode 2 is not really a reflection, at least in the traditional sense, but I do still want to talk about it. I am of course talking about the selfie with Aon. 
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Mostly because I wanted to acknowledge that to me, a photo is a kind of reflection in that you can both look back at yourself and also reflect on the memory of the time. To be honest, I don’t know exactly how I feel about Aon taking this picture of Mhok, because he takes it for the Society for the Blind. But how are they using it? Is this evidence that Mhok is here and doing what he said he will, or is this going to be used in marketing of some sort? Either way, it is capturing a moment in time that Mhok could one day look back on to reminisce about the beginning of his relationship with Day. 
And here Mhok is with someone else, a second person to accompany him where before he just had himself. But this is fake, this is quick, this is right after Mhok has just been shut out of all proceedings between Aon and Day. Mhok doesn’t know what’s happening before he is being told to smile for the camera. And if anyone were to see this photo, they would see a very happy Aon and a decently confused Mhok, but they would have no idea how limited a connection to Aon, Mhok would have had at this point. 
The next reflection is a bit difficult to see, but it comes during the conversation Day has with Mhok about the eye drops, where he explains he can see more clearly right after he uses them. In this scene, Day is talking to Mhok while keeping his gaze affixed to the lone goldfish in his increasingly grimier tank. 
Mhok and Day have a brief conversation about whether or not the fish is lonely since it is the only one in the tank, and Day brushes it off by saying that goldfish have short memory and that it couldn’t possibly be lonely. 
But, whenever we see Day on screen here, we see his reflection in the glass of the tank. And there are a few great moments during this conversation where the goldfish sits directly in front of Day’s reflection. To me it feels like a memory, a ghost, or a projection, and we know by the end of Episode 2, (if we haven’t picked up on it already from the title sequence or how heavily goldfish imagery has features in the promotional material for this show) that the goldfish is a stand in for Day himself. 
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So I love the fact that we get this wisp of an image of Day’s face in the tank, like he’s trapped inside of it. Because we know that in a way he is. And the other thing I love about this, or rather about the fact that this goldfish is meant to symbolize Day himself, is that watching this goldfish is what brings Day the most joy at the moment. 
I love that because it shows me that there is hope and joy still left in Day, if he can just take the time to look at himself a little differently.
OKAY it’s time for the Big Boys. 
Our first instance of an actual reflection off a mirror in Episode 2 happens when Mhok is trying to check in with Day after Day runs away from Night’s friends. Mhok has said that he understands Day, and Day Does Not Like That™.
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Day’s response to Mhok’s monologue is to say that Mhok has no idea what it is like to look in the mirror and not see your old self. And of course, we see Day’s reflection in his full body mirror. Now, again, Aof is being pretty heavy handed with his metaphors here. But that doesn’t mean I don’t absolutely love the double meaning of these words. Day is going blind so he literally can’t see himself in the mirror anymore. 
But also, Day is deep in his grief for the things he has lost. His freedom, his career, his confidence that I think he has morphed in to a completely different person. One who is bitter, and self-conscious, and more comfortable hiding away where he can wallow in misery over his condition and not have to confront the new world he is living in. Day is running from connection, I mean not a minute before this scene Day legitimately ran away from Night’s friends rather than have to explain his blindness. 
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The scene continues, and Day shuts himself off even further from the world around him, by putting in his headphones. Now he can drown out Mhok’s attempts to comfort him, but in the long run what is that going to do? As @shortpplfedup said to me earlier “the set dressers did not come to play” when it came to designing Day’s room. When the curtains aren’t drawn there is so much natural light in Day’s room. His walls are bright and colorful, there are photos and awards all over the place. Day’s room has so much personality in it, so much life within it. But the mirror shows nothing. It shows Day alone, surrounded by blank walls in grayscale.
The costume designer made an excellent choice of shirt for this scene, by the way. Because the yellow blends in enough with the wall in Day’s room, that (especially) when coupled with the camera’s focus in this scene. The real Day almost fades in to the background, and your eye is naturally drawn to this spot of yellow in the mirror. 
The mirror highlights his isolation while at the same time showing the audience how much Day can and does stand out. 
AND it parallels the reflection of Mhok in Episode 1 so well, not just in the emotions that we see from Mhok and Day, but in the sense that Mhok’s reflection is in Rung’s car because he is currently trapping himself in the darker, meaner thoughts about his sister, rather than processing his grief. While Day’s reflection is in his room because he is currently trapping himself in the darker, meaner thoughts about himself, rather than giving himself enough compassion to start moving forward.
When Day does not respond to Mhok’s conversation, Mhok is triggered at the thought of his sister’s death and he breaks down the door to make sure Day is okay, and gets fired for it. Mhok does not argue, he does not put up a fight, he does not try to explain, he just honors Day’s request and gets the fuck out. And I love the way that Mhok is already starting to change Day’s outlook. Because we see how mopey Day is after Mhok leaves, and how much hope there is in him when Night tells him there is someone at the door who wants to see him and he so obviously thinks it’s Mhok. 
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Mhok gives him the gift of the fish slippers, and Day goes to visit Mhok at the market, only to find out that Mhok has spent time reflecting on what Day told him about not understanding him, and making a fool out of himself in the eyes of the other market patrons by blindfolding himself. 
Mhok is doing what no one else has really done and is making a concerted effort to truly understand where Day is coming from, the fears that he is carrying, and the challenges he faces as a blind man. 
But of course, we know by now that while there are definitely things Mhok is had not or might never understand about the physical realities of Day’s life, he can understand loneliness, and he can understand rage, pain, and anger. There are parts of himself that have grown within him over the past year that recognizes parts of Day that have grown within him over the past year. 
And we have already been seeing the impact of Mhok on Day’s life, in the fact that Day has smiled more, Day has left his room, Day has eaten at the table, and agreed to watch a movie. And that singular day where Day did not wallow in his own misery, but left his room, went out in the sun, etc stuck with him because he is in the living room watching a movie the day Phorjai comes to visit. 
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Culminating in the second real reflection of Episode 2, where Mhok, via the side mirror, sees Day smiling on the back of his scooter. And what I love about this moment is that the focus is entirely on Day. I don’t want Last Twilight to strip Day’s healing processes from him and give them to Mhok. I think it is totally fine for Mhok to contribute to Day’s increasing happiness, but ultimately I want Day to have enough autonomy in this narrative that these decisions that lead to him enjoying his life again are primarily comprised of Day’s own choices. And I think that we can get something visually from that by the fact that we don’t see a lot of Mhok in this reflection, only one small portion of his chin. 
Day made the choice to have Phorjai take him to see Mhok, Day made the choice to rehire Mhok, and Day is the one having a moment on the back of this scooter just reveling in the feeling of the wind on his face. I love that this reflection shows just enough of Mhok to show that Day is not alone, while still putting all of the attention in the reflection on to Day and the joy he is feeling. 
The idea that Day is no longer alone is reinforced after Mhok makes a pit stop to purchase a companion for the goldfish in Day’s room. And again we get in to some of my favorite instances of reflection in Last Twilight, where we place the boys’ reflections in the fish tank. 
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And this is where the images from the intro sequence come from. Day looking at Day Noi and Big Mhok interacting with each other in the tank. Here we still have Day alone in the reflection, with the goldfish tying him to this symbolism. But Day’s reflection is so much clearer now that the tank has been cleaned. Now Day’s reflection in the water tank is far more obvious, and hey, since it’s me, I’ll overanalyze this moment to say that as Day has gotten to know Mhok a bit and has started venturing outside of his room more, that Day is getting a clearer vision of himself as a person. Regardless, we as the audience can see Day’s reflection in the tank all the more clearly and that reflection is vibrant and bright, because Day is becoming more vibrant and bright. 
“No More Loneliness Little Day” Mhok says and we get MY FAVORITE SHOT OF THE SHOW THUS FAR
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The split screen. It’s not even a reflection, but I am talking about it here, because I think the absence of reflection is just as important as its presence, and I love that we have this moment where half of Day’s face is crystal clear and the other half is completely obscured. There is no trace of it. Considering how much Aof has been turning the camera on Day’s vision, we aren’t that far off of what Day sees in this shot. I like that this image has Day straddling these two worlds. 
And we get the final reflection of Episode 2, Mhok’s face in the fish tank. 
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Again, I don’t even know that this is really intentional or it is just the way the reflection happened to have occurred, but I love the fact that not all of Mhok’s face is present within the fish tank. I like that Mhok is slowly encroaching on Day’s space, that Mhok is slowly starting to appear in the parts of Day’s life that Day actually cares about. Mhok is lonely and Day is lonely, and they have finally found someone they might be able to connect to. Big Mhok is there for Day Noi and Mhok is there for Day. 
I love that while the fish themselves are able to cross those barriers and that we get to see the fish swimming up and next to each other, that we have yet to see Mhok and Day’s reflections fully together. Even here, Mhok’s reflection in the fish tank is alone, just like Day’s reflection in the fish tank was alone. But they are in the same place, they are in the same room, they are in the same tank, they are in the same stage of their grief (anger) and there is no way in hell we don’t get one or more reflections in the mirror or in the fish tank by the end of this show where Mhok and Day are both fully present.
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caseylicious · 1 year
Note
Hello again! Hope that you’re having a great day! If it’s alright with you, can I request another rise!donnie x gn!reader where Donnie is such a simp for reader?
Like Leo would tease him about it but he would deny it because of his “bad boy” image. But then reader enters the lair and Donnie is just 💜w💜.
Thank you!!!
Simp.
Summary: Donnie being a simp (more of swooning) for the reader.
Character: Donnie.
Reader: GENDER NEUTRAL
Relationship: CRUSH
Warnings: Leo and Donnie having this whole on sibling moment, but that doesn't affect the silly teasing that'll happen-
Words: 3312
Tags: @ath3nasc4f3 , @anxietyishere
A/N: My dear, there is no problem with requesting another time! Your requests place a smile on my face. I'm in love yet so hesitant with this one- because I don't want it to be to remind anybody of 2012!Donnie being whole on OBSESSED for April. With some serious thought, This is Part 2 of the Mad Scientist!Reader piece. (Read for context)
The story may be a bit wack... but im trying so hard to juice my brain for plot. (currently in writer's block.) As well of trying to follow the basic idea of your request, but overall I like this piece a lot! A few things first! I see Leo and Donnie as TWIN BROTHERS. There's just a lot that heavily implies it in my opinion! and I just imagined that one scene from Aladdin with him just swooning for Jasmine. You get me? Yeah.
I love your ideas. Come around again < 3
As always! Please, Enjoy 💐
[ If you have any constructive criticism or corrections for any of my English do let me know! :) ]
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - 💐
Waving the brothers goodbye from your introduction, you began climbing up the manhole with April. To your surprise, you've gotten along quite well with each one of them. Even with your "normal switch" off. You've noticed in your time with them that each one of them were different in their own way. Leo was cheery while funny person. Raph was a strong sharp, yet loveable and empathetic. Mikey was one of the loudest people you've met. And Donnie... Before you could continue with your analysis of the whole day you had. April spoke, "Well.. whatcha think man?" You thought for a second on what to say. "I need more context to that question O'Neil." She chuckled, "Of the whole meet and greet! You seemed to get along with most of them."
"Hmm.. I'd say it was a success." April's groan echoed through the sewer hole. "That means I liked them all; your friends." You assumed April grinned and was pleased, because you heard a pitter patter on the bar below you. That would've been the end of the conversation before April opened her mouth once more. "How about Donnie?" You suddenly stopped moving forwards. Which made April bump onto your calf. "What about Donatello?" She snickered. "Pfft- Opinion on Don? There's no way you'd forget him man."
A second of silence passed before you finally answered, "Well.. he's okay." An audible gasp could be heard. "What do you mean okay?! You talked about so much with him!" You looked away from the bar in front of you as she kept ranting. You enjoyed the turtle's presence, you truly did. He seemed to understand everything you were talking about. And it was one rare moment in your life where you kept up a conversation which you found interesting. However you somehow "knew" that he'd leave you like everybody else.
The foreign memory which you've tried to suppress began to play. How you ate all by yourself, which led to you staying in the abandoned science lab for most of your lunch. How you've practiced normal conversation in the mirror. Researching popular trends which you've tried copying to the point of creating an image of somebody you just weren't. It just all didn't click with you. For some reason, you just couldn't fit in with the crowd of your school. And it became the reason for the bad reputation you had.
Personally, you wouldn't blame him for leaving. Eventually he'd see how you were.. "weird." But... good always lifts from the bad. Would it be really a bad thing for him to notice you being "weird?' Hypothetically, if you tried hard enough to "fit in," you wouldn't have had a great time with the turtle. Ideas which you've suppressed wouldn't have been unleashed. And you would still be complaining about society being awful and needing a fix. A grin made itself onto you for a moment before you felt your head hit a flat surface. Adjusting your focus, you have found the manhole cover on top of you. You began to lift the object, moving it to the side. Hearing the metal fall, you then climbed onto the ground. Reaching a hand inside for April who was still ranting on how you and Donnie got along so well. "You understand though- Right, Y/N?" You blinked for a couple seconds before patting her back. "Yes. I agree completely. Let's put a pin on this discussion and come back to it. How about it?" She agreed walking down the street with you. Before the both of you separated due to her route being in a different location. Watching as April ran off, you sighed in relief.
You made your way back home, unable to stop thinking about that encounter you had. That special conversation which made you open up. Where you felt normal. But that's silly, right? Out of every logical and fictional existing thing in this universe, a turtle seemed to comprehend anything of what you said. Who was this "Donatello?"
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - 💐
💜 Donnie
Brzzt. Brzzrt. Brzzrt-
A hard slam landed on the device. It was around 6 in the morning and two tired eyes opened. The tired figure slowly sat up, stretching from side to side. A robotic yet humanoid voice spoke, "It's too early to wake up dad.." A chuckle could be heard. "Shelldon, you understand we have work to do. Acquire yourself some coffee and I'll get some bolts ready for you." As odd as that sounds, the purple drone swirled in a circle before exiting the room. It has been about exactly 4 months and 27 days since your introduction.
In those 4 months you both had been interacting with one another nonstop. Mainly on electronic email and/or text. It contained random ideas and topics which you both enjoyed immensely. He couldn't help but feel a genuine boost of optimism seeing your username and email. Especially on random facetime calls the two of you had. How you showed off your school AP textbooks to Donnie, and how Donnie showed off his battle shells explaining each function. And the best part? You listened and seemed to be genuinely interested in his work. It was strange, but he liked it. a lot.
Before he chose to finally get up, he waited for the hot coffee. Which arrived in the matter of seconds. Taking a sip, he let out a sigh of relief. "Ahh.. That's good." He whispered. The soft-shelled turtle walked over to his desk. Inspecting the blueprints in front of him, his eyes noticed a doodle in the corner of the sheet. Donnie groaned, while a smirk quickly formed. It was probably his younger brother Mikey. He was always one to enjoy doodling on his brother's stuff with or without permission. "Did Mikey touch my work?- I swear... alright, let's see what on earth he drew this time-" What Donnie saw made him shut up. Which was rare for somebody who seemed to love explaining everything he knew and believed in. But what did the young turtle see? No, it wasn't anything inappropriate. And no, it wasn't anything hateful. It was something quite far from any of those things...
It was your name traced over in the blue paper. With what seemed to be hearts surrounding it- and was that a cloud? Whatever the doodle was, he was speechless. Silence filled the room before suddenly he felt a cold hand on his shoulder. "Yo D what are you do-" Donnie quickly grabbed his screwdriver. "EAT LASERS INTRUDER!!-" His brother quickly raised his hands above his face, "Hey-! Chill- it's me Leo!" The purple turtle stared at his twin brother for a couple seconds. Before his face became red, flicking his forehead. Leo quickly whined in pain holding his forehead with one hand. "Scoff! Learn to knock next time brother. What are you even doing up this early?" Leo chuckled poking Donnie's plastron with his finger. "I should be asking you that... but you're always up early. So I won't ask!-" Donnie quickly wore his bandana, glaring a little at Leo. "That doesn't answer my question Nardo'."
"Woahh! Chill, chill. I just got up to the sound of Shelldon making coffee... anddd.. because we're-" For a few seconds, Donnie really hoped Leo had a different reason. "Please, don't say it."
"Because we're twin brothers Donnie~" His drawn-on brows furrowed together. "That isn't a proper reason." A grin formed on his brother's face, "Oh, but it is now! Anyways back to me." He paused. "What's that you're working on?" Donnie should've rejected Leo, he knew clearly it was a trap for some sort of teasing. However could he resist to explain one of his creations? No, he could not. "Well- if you insist. I'm working on a suitcase which can hide weaponry such as my staff. So next time we ever choose to go out in disguise, I won't be held back for a couple minutes for silly reasons such as "illegal weaponry" and-" Leo quickly snatched the blueprint out of his hand, "Hey!-" He browsed the paper for a couple seconds before aggressively pointing at the corner of the paper. "And thinking about Y/N! There's no way!!-"
His eyes widened- "Leo, could you at least lower down your voice!" Donnie watched as his brother giggled for a few minutes on the sight. He tried remembering when or why he chose to write your name multiple times on his own piece of work. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't. There was no collection of him daydreaming about you. As the laughter died down, his brother spoke. "So- what is this? You got a crush on them or something? Lord-"His cheeks flared up, blinking aggressively down to the floor. "Man! This is almost as bad as you and Atomic Lass! Ha! You and Y/N??" Expecting a snarky comeback, he was responded with only silence. Donnie glanced down. Looking away from Leo with shame, genuinely unsure on what to say or do.
Leo frowned, gently placing his hand on his shoulder letting him sit. "Uhm.. You don't gotta talk about it if you don't want to. I know how you are with stuff like this. My bad." He didn't respond, tension filled the room. "Errm..Want me to leave?" Donnie opened his mouth, but closed it. Trying to find the words. Leo waited for him to figure out what he wanted to say. "..N- no. It's fine, don't leave... I'm sorry just.." He took a quick sip of his coffee. "I don't really know if I do. Is i-.. is it okay to feel like this? I've never felt like this and-" He paused, not knowing what to say. "Well, yeah. It's okay to feel like this man! I'll listen if you really want to talk about them." Donnie blinked a couple times, staring at Leo in disbelief. He hasn't had a "heart-to-heart" moment like this with him in a long time. For obvious reasons. He slowly grinned with a nod.
"Well... Y/N- where do I begin. Oh okay.." Leo pulled out a stool, sitting on top of it. Donnie closed his eyes imagining one of the special calls he had with you. "Well, their hair. It's this color that just looks so nice in the dark and light. They have these eyes that just shine like gems found in the deepest caves of the world- and wow their voice. Their voice is a whole conducted symphony Leo..." His brother nodded his head, listening in. Surprisingly not making a comment. "Uh huh- and? What else? That can't be it." He placed his hands on his cheeks, trying to remember one of his favorite voice calls. "We like so many things- Our interests just match! It's as if the constellations aligned perfectly in one part of the world. They just know so much that I know- which is just so mesmerizing..." A short but long 'hmmm.' came out of Leo.
Donnie watched as his brother placed his own hand on his chin. "Well? What is it Nardo?' Leo empathized with his twin brother, mainly on how he spoke about you. He spoke as if you were a holy deity, a treasure, maybe even a blessing! He just seemed to understand how Donnie felt. Even if he wasn't a touchy feely sort of person. "You really like Y/N that much, huh?" Donnie nodded, covering the lower half of his face with his hand. "Well honestly, expect me to tease ya." Before Donnie could scold him, Leo spoke again. "But go for it. Nobody is stopping you from being with them. And I'll be cheering from afar."
Donnie hummed, glancing back at Leo. "..That's actually some smart advice Nardo... Thank you, brother." Leo smirked. "Getting soft on me Don?"
"Don't ruin it."
"Yeah, yeah- You're welcome! Chill!"
----------------
Bzzrt. Bzzrt. Bzzrt-
Your hand quickly grabbed the wire clippers, cutting the wire which was attached to the device. Opening one eye, you glanced to what you have cut. The purple wire. Your eye twitched realizing which wire your hand instinctively chose to cut, which frankly saved your life. again. "Ughh.. What genius am I, if I keep cutting that wire?"
Quickly, you got out of bed, slipping your slippers on. Making your way to your closet, the calendar on the wall of your room was marked. In bold red letters, "HANG OUT. 11:00 AM." That's right! You and your newly made friends made plans to hang out together. Excited as you were. You specifically were excited to share your ideas with one particular person of the group. Donnie.
Mentally you had to slap yourself. It was irritating how he always seemed to be on your mind. Just because he chose to listen to your thoughts? Please. It was almost humiliating how just of one person, you'd be this distracted. You suspected it was because how isolated you were. How you were the 'outsider.' Maybe because he seemed to know about titanium and uranium. Or maybe because he genuinely wanted to become your friend. Your hand reaching for a pen, making a repetitive clicking sound. "Pascal Triangle, prepare yourself to be solved."
You were a fan of mathematics. It being one of your favorite subjects in school. April knowing this information, usually asked you for answers. In which you've always responded, "Giving you the answers isn't going to help your education O'Neil!" "Urgh-! I hate it when you're right Y/N." The thought made you grin, until you looked back down to your paper. None of the pentagons had answers in them. "Wh- what? I thought I was answering these..." Needing reassurance, you flipped through all of the pages in your packet. Expectedly you answered them all. To the questions which required the most simplest distributive property, to having to identify graphs. You didn't seem to second-guess yourself, so you were confident in your work of elimination.
Just.. why now didn't you know what to write? You weren't one to be seriously invested in your grades. Surprising? Yes, however you more focused on whether you knew how to perform the work. Were grades going to help you in the long-run of your "world-domination?" No. They would not, but the Pascal Triangle really shouldn't be this confusing. You didn't want to admit it, but you needed another pair of eyes on this question. Well let's do the simple process of elimination with the friends, or more specifically acquaintances you've made.
April? No offense to the poor girl, but could you really get answers out of somebody who asks you for them? Pass.
Mikey doesn't even know what on earth the Pascal Triangle is. Poor him.
Raph and Leo would give you a detailed look of confusion. Calling over...
Donnie.
Out of everyone on the list, Donnie was the most logical choice. It was obvious he would understand what on earth this was. A groan escaped from your lips. "Can't believe I have to ask him for help on this problem. C'mon Y/N.. you're a mathematical genius! Why can't I solve a simple pattern?" You didn't even notice it, but you woke up at ten o'clock. Due to this one question and overthink, you've wasted another thirty minutes. Leaving you now with... "Oh- SHOOT!" As you launched yourself out of your rollie-chair to change...
Running down the alleyways of New York, you were advised by April to remember the specific manhole which led you down to their quarters. What did the manhole look like again-? You inspected each manhole you passed.
Too Large. Too Small. That isn't the right color. That's a whole pizza dropped on the ground.
Eventually you found the manhole, attempting to lift the metal plate as discreetly as you could. Placing it back as you made your way down. You learned from the last time you visited that it was quite dark. So you turned on the flashlight on your phone, stepping through the puddles, your name echoed throughout the sewer halls.
Finally, what felt like walking in the same direction for so long, you made it to the lair. Nothing seemed to change from your last visit, the graffiti was the same, there doesn't seem to be any new furniture, and.. Splinter seemed to be watching the same commercial like yesterday. Mikey was the first to notice your arrival and waved to you like a kid who just ate a batch of Halloween candy. It was adorable, platonically of course. He ran up to you, a visible grin on his face, "Y/N! You made it!!" You smirked, moving a hair strand behind your ear. "Well of course I made it. I couldn't miss out on a hang-out with you and your brothers."
While Mikey kept speaking with you, you could feel a gaze upon yourself. It wasn't necessarily bad, but it was.. sort of strange. You were the outcast, the 'weirdo' of the school. Who on earth would be staring at you?
.
.
.
Donnie, obviously. He was leaning against a wall, standing near the edge of the skate ramp. A small smile growing as he observed your very movement. You just were able to speak in a way that could make his heart flutter. Donnie suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder, jumping in surprise. Realizing who it was, his sharpie-brows furrowed together. "L- leo! Do not creep up on me like that." Leo cackled, noticing that you've arrived. "Checking out Y/N? Gotta say Don, not your sort of thing to do." It was quite obvious for Donnie that his twin brother, wasn't going to ever let this go. An unnerving feeling, he didn't like it. "Aren't you going to talk with 'em? Y'know, make your move?" Donnie frowned unapprovingly, "I wouldn't use that saying, but yes. I was going to talk to them..." His twin brother only stared at him, waiting for the second half of the sentence. Soon realizing, that was it.
"Well! If you are then get down there." Leo moved behind Donnie. He became suspicious immediately, "Nardo- what do you plan on do- ING-!!" He was suddenly pushed down the skate ramp, now rolling towards you like a wrecking ball. Immediately jumping into action, his battle shells' metal claws grabbed hold of the floor. Throwing him back into the air, to land on his two feet. As he was about to glare and scold Leo, you spoke. "Oh my God! Donnie that was- so impressive! Was that apart of your shell?"
To the sight of his shell acting like a sixth sense, your curiosity blasted off from there. Did Leo know you'd react like this? ... Maybe. Donnie wasn't the only brother with smart ideas. They're twins after all. Donnie only blushed, as you began to circle him. In a respectful distance, "What coding did you use for them to do that! Oh my- look at this! Are these compartments for items?" After a few seconds of silence, Donnie coughed, collecting himself. "I- indeed! Well, specifically, more of an Object-Orientated type of programming." The two of you didn't even notice as Mikey left, letting you both infodump. "Really? That sounds like absolute hell! You have to teach me how to code something like that... Oh right! I need some help for this math assignment. Know about the Pascal Triangle?"
Donnie chuckled, "Do I know the Pascal Triangle? Y/N, who do you think you're asking? They're the training wheels to the most amateur of equations." Suddenly he watched as your eyes lighted up. A grin filled with relief and joy. Something that felt so amazing to experience in person, "I completely agree! Mind if we go into your lab? It'd be better to discuss there." He nodded his head as you ran off. A lovesick grin visible on his face. Wow you were... just perfect.
"Ha! Lover Boy-!!" "NARDO."
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stevenose · 8 months
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this must be the place
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steve x reader
contains: gender unspecified reader; mainly fluff, some kissin’!; friends to lovers; idiots in love; self doubt/body image issues; two dumbasses realizing they’re obsessed with each other; sfw!
authors note: this is a gift to @unbetaedimagines for donating to my kofi! if you donate i am happy to write you a drabble for our angel baby steve as a thank you - link in bio :) thank you for all of your support, jasmine!
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“I’m so over it.”
“Over what?”
Steve’s throwing Nerd Clusters up into the air and catching them in his mouth, laying down on the cushions of your couch. You lay on the loveseat beside him, curled in on yourself, a movie playing on the television.
“Being like this.”
He misses his Nerd Cluster and turns to face you, propped up on his elbow. “Being like what?”
“Just me.”
Steve figures this is sparked by the movie. A romance, one he absolutely should not have brought from work. Not when he’s laying adjacent to you and yearning to touch you, feel you, hold you. Physically five feet apart, metaphorically a universe away. He throws a cluster at you now, frowning when you don’t even glare at him.
“Hey,” he says, sliding off the couch and crawling to sit in front of you. “What do you think’s wrong with you, huh?”
You close your eyes. Something as gorgeous as Steve shouldn’t be so close to you. His chocolate irises melting into yours. So soft and sweet. “Where do I start?”
He pouts. “There’s nothing wrong with you. What makes you think that?”
“Nothing in particular. I just - ugh. You don’t need to know. I’m being dramatic because it’s fun.”
“I want to know.” He rubs a circle onto your wrist. “What’s the problem?”
You sigh. “I just haven’t even been able to look at myself in the mirror lately. I have - I have to shower with the lights off because even a glimpse at my reflection… it makes me sick. And then -“ and you laugh a little, trying to lighten the mood. “I’ve got someone as pretty as you sitting in my living room, choosing to spend time with me, and I guess I just don’t get it. How I’m lucky in that regard and no where else.”
Steve doesn’t answer quickly, which worries you. You peek an eye open and he looks hurt. You panic, sitting up. “No, Steve, you aren’t doing anything wrong, I just -“
“How could you think that?”
“Think what?”
“That you’re not beautiful?”
You squint at him now, a little suspicious. “What do you want me to say?”
“I don’t know,” he sighs. “I don’t get it either. I don’t understand how not-pretty you feel. You’re the prettiest person anywhere we go. People stop to stare at you-“
You scoff. “You can comfort me without lying to me.”
“What are you talking about? It’s true - just because you don’t notice it doesn’t mean I don’t.”
You scoff again. “Why would you notice?”
His lips pull into a line. You stare at each other. You don’t understand what he’s trying to say.
“Because I don’t like them looking at you.”
“Well I don’t, either -“
“No! No, not like - just, give me a second, okay?”
You furrow your brows and shake tour head. “Steve, what the -“
His lips are on yours. You hardly process it before you pull back, shoving at his chest, making him topple over onto his ass. “Okay, asshole,” you grit. “Not fucking funny.”
“What?!” he asks, pulling himself back up. “I’m not trying to be funny, I’m - I’m trying to show you because I’m ass-backwards at words-“
“Show me what?”
“That I like you! That you’re beautiful! That - that hanging out with you is one of the only times I feel comfortable, ever. That hearing you laugh is what I chase every day of my life. That -“
“Huh?” you interrupt, shocked. “You’ve never shown any interest.”
He laughs humorlessly. “Again. Just because you don’t notice doesn’t mean it isn’t happening. You’ve been so caught up in how you feel that you haven’t been able to understand no one else feels the same about you. I don’t feel the same.”
You stare at him, trying to comprehend. “Steve, people like you don’t like me.”
He gets up on his knees, getting close to you again, cautiously like you might bite. “Wanna bet?”
When his lips are on yours again, you let yourself feel it. You try to swallow all of the doubt, the urge to run, and just feel his lips. He’s moving slow and gentle and tender. A warm palm cradling your cheek. You lean into it, letting yourself be overtaken by it, the warmth and comfort. If he didn’t like you - if this was a bad joke - he wouldn’t be kissing you like this. Or looking at you like how he was. Or wasting his time. And Steve isn’t a liar. The realization of it catches you all at once and you gasp a little bit, letting Steve slip his tongue between your lips for just a moment. It’s dizzying, you want to chase it -
You’re suddenly falling off of the couch, crashing into his lap. He grunts as he falls back, catching you, both of you caught off guard.
“Are you okay?” he asks, voice laced with worry.
You start laughing, because he’s so sweet, even though you’ve totally embarrassed yourself and he’s still holding you like you’re a precious gemstone. He follows you, giggling, eyes all scrunched up and handsome smile showing teeth.
“Do you mean it?” you breathe.
“Of course I mean it,” he promises softly. He leans forward again, eyes flicking down to your lips. “I can keep showin’ you, if you want.”
With his mouth back on yours, you feel at home.
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madrone33 · 2 months
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So, I've been re-reading the Deltora Quest books for the first time in years because my obsession with them has recently been revived (just finished Valley of the Lost), and man, I don't think I realised before just how, like, absolutely devoted Lief is to getting rid of the Shadow Lord and freeing Deltora. It's especially apparent in the first few books.
The Belt is basically all that matters to him. Not even finding the Heir is more important, honestly the heir is very much secondary to the Belt. They're just the person who will put on and activate the Belt's magic; they are a means to an end. His own life is secondary to the Belt - which isn't to say he's not afraid of dying, he really really is, but when shit gets real and it looks like this is the end, his thoughts almost always go to the Belt. Just like the heir, Lief thinks of himself as a means to an end. (Which is ironic, seeing as how he is the heir.) Lief will make the Belt, and the heir will wear the Belt, but it's the Belt itself that matters most to him. Because it's the Belt that will save them.
'Do not worry about me,' Lief whispered, trying to keep his voice steady and calm. 'Nothing matters but that we seize the gem. If I die in the attempt, it will not be your fault. You must take the Belt from my body and go on alone, as you have wished.'
I must prepare myself for death, Lief thought. But he could only think of the Belt around his waist. If he was killed here, the Belt would lie forgotten with his bones. The gems would never be restored to it. The heir to the throne of Deltora would never be found. The land would remain under the Shadow forever.
'No!' Lief cried. 'Wait!' At this moment of terror, his one thought was for the Belt of Deltora and the topaz fixed to it. If he did nothing to prevent it, this golden eyed giant would surely find the Belt after he was dead, take it from his body- and perhaps give it to Thaegan. Then Deltora would be lost to the Shadow Lord forever. I must throw the Belt over the cliff, he thought desperately. I must make sure that Barda and Jasmine see me do it. Then they will have some chance of finding it again. If only I can delay him until I can do it...
[Literally just died] Lief felt himself pulled to his feet and slung over Barda's shoulder. His head was spinning. He wanted to cry out, 'What of the crown? The opal?' But then he was that the crown was in Barda's hand.
Lief's fingers felt for the clasp of the Belt he wore under his shirt. If necessary, he would unloose it and let it fall into the mud at the bottom of the stream. It would be better for it to lie there than for it to fall into the hands of the Shadow Lord again.
And maybe it didn't really hit me when I first read them 'cause I was approximately A Child, but it's really sinking in now just how bad things have been in Deltora for the last 16 years. When they talk about slavery and fighting arenas and brandings and starvation and executions in the streets. For some reason all these human atrocities are hitting home a lot more than before. It used to be the monsters that seemed the scariest, but now I can see that yes, the monsters are horrifying and traumatising and terrifying, but Lief and Barda and Jasmine continuously choose to keep going, they willingly put themselves through hell, because the Shadow Lord is worse.
Anyway, all this to say, Deltora really couldn't ask for a more selfless and loyal King that Lief. This kid is willing to die so many times over if it means his people are safe.
(The only thing he tends to go off mission for are his friends and family, but even then, I'm thinking of that part in Isle of the Dead where Laughing Jack holds Jasmine hostage and demand the Belt in return. And Lief refuses. Because his people must come first. And he knows Jasmine would never want him to betray their land for her. Like??? So many feels.)
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daisynik7 · 7 months
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A Stitch Ahead
Pairing: Mitsuya x Original Female Character
Rating: Mature
Word Count: ~4.4k
cw: explicit language, switching POVs (2nd and 3rd person)
Summary: Mitsuya is asked to create jackets for the newly appointed captains, to which he reluctantly agrees. When the deadline arrives and he still hasn’t finished, he enlists your aid to help him complete his task. The same day, the two of you make dinner together for his sisters, leaving Mitsuya with a lasting impression.
Author's Note: I hope you enjoy this chapter! Thanks so much for all those who have read this so far, I truly appreciate all the support on this little series! It may take me a while to put out chapters since I am simultaneously working on requests for my event, so I appreciate your patience with this! Likes, reblogs, and/or comments are always appreciated! Would love to hear what you think so far! 
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The next three weeks go smoothly for Mitsuya. He’s continuing to do well in his classes, and he manages to keep up with his sewing projects. Fridays, he meets with Shimizu after school until dinnertime, then he drops her off to his house to watch his sisters for the night while he hangs out with his friends. He can’t remember the last time he had spare time like this, even if it is only for a few hours a night. Since the beginning of this arrangement, he’s been able to catch up with Draken, Takemitchy, Hakkai and his little sister, Yuhuza. With everyone busy with their own priorities, it’s nice to reconnect. Mikey remains to be seen. 
A month after Hanma and Kisaki are appointed captains, Mitsuya is tasked to make new jackets for them. He holds the phone to his ear, glaring at his shoes with Draken’s voice ringing in his ears. “Just do it, Mitsuya. Mikey’s orders.” 
“But for those two assholes?” he questions, kicking a pebble on the ground. He stands outside one of the courtyards at school, on his lunch break. Naturally, he’s reluctant to concede to this request, considering how pissed off he still is by the two traitors. The memory is fresh in his mind, fighting Taiju, head of The Black Dragons and Hakkai’s older brother, in the chapel on Christmas Day. Mitsuya probably wouldn’t have been whacked in the skull by a metal pipe if Kisaki and Hanma didn’t betray the plan that Takemitchy devised. And while he’s dealt with his dose of treason, like with Peh-Yan attacking Draken in retaliation for Pah-Chin’s arrest, he managed to forgive, forget, and move on. Though something about those two rub him the wrong way. 
That being said, Mitsuya trusts Mikey. He’s never been one to question their leader’s decisions, always complying to whatever he suggests. So, he agrees, especially when Draken reiterates, “Mikey’s orders. I’m not going to repeat myself. Make the damn jackets.”
“Fine,” he relents. Maybe he’ll hide a few loose threads in there to be spiteful. 
“By the way, we won’t be able to host dinner Friday. Emma and I are going to her grandpa’s, so I’ll meet you at the shrine.”
“Okay, sounds good. Maybe I’ll see if Takemitchy wants to hang out.”
“Probably not. Him and Hina are going out for a date night or whatever. I overheard Emma talking to her the other day.”
He sighs, leaning his head against the wall of the building. “I guess I can eat with my sisters then.”
“Doesn’t your classmate watch them on Fridays? Maybe she can cook for you.” There’s a boisterous drilling sound in the background on Draken’s end, and Mitsuya is reminded that he’s talking to him during work hours at the car shop.  
A little louder, he replies, “Yeah, maybe.”
“You never told me, but is she hot?” Draken asks, his cocky smirk audible through all the noise. 
“Don’t you have a pregnant girlfriend at home?”
“It’s not for me, asshole. It’s for you. When’s the last time you hooked up? And sneaking Jasmine into your house doesn’t count.”
“I thought we agreed to never mention that again,” He blushes over the memory that occurred a year ago. He was set up on a date with one of Emma’s friends, and it was going fine up until his mom called him to come home and watch his sisters because of a last-minute scheduling change. Not wanting to waste the opportunity to get some much-needed action, he brought her home with him, making Luna and Mana swear not to snitch. Either way, it didn’t lead to much since the mood was killed; turns out, Jasmine isn’t a fan of children, so even his very adorable sisters turned her off completely. 
“Sorry, it slipped,” Draken laughs. “My point is it sounds like this girl has been helping you out recently. Maybe she can help you with something else if you catch my drift.”
He shakes his head at this ridiculous conversation, unsure why he’s entertaining it to begin with. “I don’t think of her in that way. She’s really sweet, sure. But we’re just classmates.”
“Is she ugly?”
“No! She’s not ugly at all. She’s actually kind of cute,” he trails off, picturing Shimizu’s warm smile and kind eyes, gazing at him carefully, always in awe of his sewing abilities during their lessons inside the home economics room. It makes him feel special, like what he’s saying means something, even if it is just instructions on how to stitch a new patch or mend a tear. 
“Have you made a move yet?”
“I’m not going to make a move on her.”
“Why not?”
Mitsuya is getting annoyed by his friend’s persistence. “It’s not like that. I’m teaching her to sew, and she’s helping me watch the girls. That’s it. Anyways, I gotta go.” He has a few more minutes until his next class, but he’d rather not prolong this discussion any further. 
“I’ll ask Emma if she has any more friends to set you up with. Not Jasmine of course – ” He hangs up before hearing the rest of Draken’s sentence.  
Friday arrives, and with homework piling on, Mitsuya realizes that he’s behind on schedule. Tonight is another Toman meeting; afterwards, the captains will get together at a local diner to discuss more important matters. There, Mikey will present Hanma and Kisaki their new jackets. That is, if Mitsuya can finish them. Immediately after class, he rushes to the home economics room, resuming where he left off on Hanma’s. He hasn’t touched Kisaki’s yet. It’s not difficult for him; the problem is, he needs more time, or maybe an extra set of hands. 
“Hey, Mitsuya.” Shimizu’s voice is soft behind him. He turns to face her, realizing this is the blessing he needs today. 
“Shimizu!” he greets, more enthusiastic than usual. 
She giggles, clearly surprised by the energetic reaction. “Are you okay?”
There’s an odd pang in his chest hearing her laugh. He ignores it, swiveling in his seat to display the jacket to her. “I’m actually in a pinch right now, and I think you can help me out. If you’re willing.” She sits beside him, studying the clothing, waiting for him to elaborate. 
“I’m trying to finish the rest of these by tonight, but I don’t have time unless I get your help. There’s another jacket in my bag,” he points to his backpack resting on top of one of the desks. “I haven’t touched it at all. I was hoping maybe you can finish the one I started while I work on the other.” They’ve had lessons each week for the past month, so he’s confident that she knows the basics enough to complete his work. It also helps that these are for people he doesn’t like, so if it’s a sloppy, he won’t mind. 
She hesitates, staring at the garment in his hands. “Are you sure I can do this?”
He smiles, passing it to her. “Absolutely. It’ll be good practice. It doesn’t have to be perfect.”
She takes it, eyeing it nervously, nodding to herself for reassurance. “Okay, where should I start?”
~~~
At first glance, it seems more advanced than your current skill level. After all, you’ve only had four lessons with Mitsuya without doing anything on your own. With his low, gentle voice guiding you through it, you find yourself weaving through the fabric easily, with only a few sloppy stitches here and there. 
“Oh, shoot,” you mutter, leaning towards him to show him your blunder. “I left a big gap there.”
He waves it off. “Barely noticeable. Besides, we don’t like the guy this jacket is going to, so it’s okay.”
You raise a brow at him, curious. “We?”
“Well, me and a few of my friends. This guy is a total asshole.”
You brush your fingers along the embroidered characters stitched on the back of the jacket, mouthing the name it spells out. Tokyo Manji Gang. Without thinking, you blurt out, “Is it scary?”
“Is what scary?” he asks, not looking up from his work. 
Deciding it’s too late to back down, you add, “Being in a gang.”
He pauses this time, still focused on the fabric, contemplating his answer. After a beat, he says, “Sometimes. I don’t like fighting unless I have to.”
“When do you have to?” You’re not sure how much you’re crossing the line, but your curiosity gets the best of you.
“When I have to protect someone I care about.” He glances at you with a small smile on his face. “I’m actually a pacifist.”
You grin at him, nudging his knee with yours. “A pacifist in a gang. How ironic.”
“Hey, we don’t fight all the time! We mostly ride our bikes and have fun.” He keeps himself near you, bare skin of your knee poking out from your skirt brushing against his pant leg. It’s not uncomfortable; in fact, you relish the delicate touch. “We’re not as scary as everyone thinks we are.”
“I’m beginning to realize that.” Heat rushes into your cheeks, suddenly aware of the intimacy in this moment. You draw your leg back, pretending to focus on the jacket again. “Anyways, hopefully your friend won’t notice this.”
“He won’t. Like I said, it’s barely noticeable. And besides, he’s not my friend.”
You don’t mention it any further, too shy to pry him for more details, chalking it up to gang matters that you shouldn’t involve yourself with. After an hour more of idle chitchat and stitching, your jacket is complete, while Mitsuya’s is more than halfway finished. When it’s time for them to head home for dinner and babysitting duties, he stuffs both garments into his bag, grabbing his helmet from the cupboard. “Ready? I can finish the rest at home before my meeting.”
You nod, cradling the helmet he gave you weeks ago. There’s a sticker you placed on it the other day, one of a cartoon hamburger with a winky face. Turning it to show him, you say, “I hope you don’t mind.”
He smiles, leaning in closer to inspect it. “Not at all. I’m glad you’re customizing it. It’s yours now, anyways.” His eyes twinkle at you, genuinely meaning the kind words he’s saying. It’s enough to put a flutter in your belly.
You’ve gotten used to riding with him now. Adrenaline courses through your veins whenever he’s cruising through the streets, but you’re more relaxed with your arms around him, holding him snug for stability. Despite his intimidating status as a gang member, he’s done nothing to put you in danger. In fact, Mitsuya makes you feel safe, and you admire him for that. 
Admiration. That’s all it is. Right? 
You’re happily greeted by Mana and Luna at the door, who watch you slip out of your shoes, immediately grabbing you once you’re done to lead you into their bedroom. “Let’s play dress up!”
“Hey girls, let her breathe. We just got here.”
“We want to model the new costumes you made for us!” Mana whines, stomping her feet. 
Realization hits you. “Oh! Those are the ones you were showing me the other week, right?”
He rubs the nape of his neck, embarrassed. “Yeah, I finally finished them.”
“Let’s go!” Luna exclaims, dragging you further down the hallway. 
Mitsuya follows behind, laughing. “Guess you’re their plaything now.”
“I guess so.” They pull you into their room, Luna shutting the door ajar, enough to peek at her brother through the crack.
“I’m going to finish my work if you need me,” he mentions through the small opening. “Please don’t let them torture you for too long.”
“Hey! This is fun! Now shoo!” the older of the two sisters demands, waving him off. “Girls only!” You can hear him chuckle as he walks away into the living room. 
They try on their new outfits, courtesy of their big brother, twirling in their dresses, skirts poofy and sparkly with glittery fabric. Mitsuya did an amazing job with these; he had mentioned before that this is for an upcoming princess-themed party his sisters are planning to attend. They complete their ensemble with plastic tiaras sitting pretty on their heads. You play with them for a while, acting like a wicked witch bent on stealing their precious crowns for whatever reason. Eventually, he returns, pushing the door slightly open to ask, “Are you ladies hungry?”
His sisters jump up, arms flailing in the air. “Yes!” they exclaim, pulling you up from the bed, leading you out of their room and back into the kitchen. 
“Did you finish the jacket?” 
“Yup!” he answers, giving you a thumbs up.
“And you’re not eating with your friends tonight?” You try not to sound excited.
“Nah, they’re busy, so I’ve got some time.”
You smile to yourself, secretly elated to have this opportunity to spend more time with him. You’ve been curious about where he sneaks off to before his big Friday night meetings. He’s mentioned names like Draken and Takemitchy, and you have no context on who these people are. His sisters seem to be familiar with his friends, but you’re embarrassed to ask them about it, not wanting to come off nosy. You want to learn more about his life, about him. 
“Can we please have fancy ramen tonight?” Mana peers up at you with puppy-dog eyes, making it impossible to refuse. 
“Don’t feel pressured to do this,” Mitsuya tells you, shooting a glare at his sister. “Mana, it’s rude to make demands like that.”
“I said please!” she whines. 
You open the pantry to retrieve the proper ingredients. “I really don’t mind. It’s easy and nothing special.”
He stands next to you, grinning. “It is, though. My sisters won’t stop raving about it.”
“You should teach Taka how to make it!” Luna suggests, retrieving paper and crayons so they can draw while you cook. 
“Yeah, I’ve been wanting to learn. Show me your ways, Master,” he teases, bowing to you. 
Chuckling, you pass him the can of Spam. “I guess the roles are reversed this time.”
“There’s a lot we can both learn from each other, don’t you agree?” He cracks it open, tapping it out onto a cutting board. “So, how should I cut this?”
He dices the meat into bite-sized pieces, per your instructions, then pours it onto a pan to crisp the edges. Meanwhile, you slice the green onions and place the eggs in a pot of boiling water, explaining exactly how you get them to be perfectly soft-boiled. It’s nothing extraordinary, like you told him earlier, but he watches you carefully, nodding along as if he’s retaining every single detail in his head. That’s what you admire about him. He treats something so simple, so ordinary, as if it’s special.  
When your timer sets off, you place the eggs into an ice bath, letting them chill for a few minutes before peeling them. Mitsuya remains beside you, hovering over the pot with the noodles and broth simmering. “Already smells amazing, can’t wait to eat this. I’ve been craving ramen for a while now.”
You decide to pose the question that’s been on your mind, hoping it comes off nonchalant. “What do you usually eat on Friday nights?” 
“Draken’s been cooking recently, so it’s whatever his girlfriend is in the mood for that day. Last week it was chicken katsu.” he answers, stirring the soup. He turns the dial, shutting off the burner. “I think it’s done.”
You arrange all your cooked and prepped ingredients on the countertop, passing him a bowl. “Is Draken also part of your gang?”
He pours broth into it, carefully handing it to you. “Yeah, but we go way back before Toman. We’ve been friends since we were kids. We even have matching tattoos.”
“Tattoos?” 
“Yeah. Want to see?” He runs his fingers through the hair on the right side of his head, showing off the ink etched on his scalp. “It’s hard to see with my hair in the way, but it’s a dragon tattoo. Draken caught me spray painting this on a wall when we were kids. He offered his beef bento in exchange for it. A month later, we saw each other again and we both happened to get the same tattoo without either of us knowing. We’ve been the Twin Dragons ever since.” 
You garnish the assembled ramen with green onions and a sprinkle of sesame seeds. “That’s amazing. I can’t believe you designed that, too. There’s nothing you can’t do.”
“It’s a dragon. Nothing special, really.” He scratches the back of his neck, blushing. 
You set the food down in front of Luna, who thanks you happily, waiting for it to cool down. “It is, though,” you say, repeating his comment from earlier. “And the story behind it is special too. Draken seems like a good friend.”
“He is. He’s a great guy.” He starts on the second, adding, “And he’s going to be dad soon. His girlfriend is pregnant.”
“Wow! That’s exciting, congratulations to them.”
He chuckles, on the third now as you finish the second and present it to Mana, who claps. “Yeah. I still can’t believe it. They’re going to have a little baby in this crazy world.” He trails off, a sudden shift in his demeanor, almost like he’s sad. 
“Aren’t you happy for them?”
“Of course I am. I just…I don’t know. Draken’s had a rough life, ever since he was a kid. A couple years ago, he went into cardiac arrest after being stabbed almost to death. He finally has a chance at a normal life, and I don’t want to see him lose that. Part of me believes leaving Toman is his best bet to prevent that from happening.”
You empty whatever is left into both bowls for you and Mitsuya. With all the dishes in the sink and the two sisters already slurping on their noodles, you slide him his serving. “Would you ever leave?”
He doesn’t answer right away, contemplating your question. “I don’t think I have a good enough reason to.”
You’re tempted to keep this conversation going, but you start feeling guilty for prying so much into his life. A life that you’ll never understand, no matter how hard you try. So instead, you ask, “Ready to eat?”
He nods, smiling at his ramen. “Definitely.”
You join the two girls around the table, rubbing your palms together, excited to dive in. Luna and Mana are already halfway through their food, lips glossy with the broth they’ve been slurping. Mitsuya takes a big bite, eyes lighting up once it hits his tongue. “Wow!”
“It’s good, right Taka?”
“Open your egg! Open your egg!” Mana demands, excited to see it. 
He grins at his sisters, holding it out to show them the perfectly runny yolk dripping from the spoon into the soup, resulting in a round of applause. He faces you, expression warm and bright. “We make a good team, don’t we?”
Your chest swells with pride, and an odd sensation you’re unfamiliar with. All you can do is nod, smiling back at him, focusing on your meal to ignore the heat creeping into your cheeks and the flutters twisting in your belly. 
~~~
The four bowls on the table are licked completely clean, not a trace of meat or garnish left. Mitsuya checks his phone for the first time in what seems like a while, too busy enjoying the moment with his sisters and Shimizu, sharing childhood stories about the shenanigans they all got up to as siblings. When he sees that it’s almost nine, he curses, causing Luna and Mana to scold him, “Taka! No swearing!”
“I need to go. I’m going to be late.” He looks at Shimizu, guilty that he’s leaving her to clean the mess they made in the kitchen. “I’m so sorry. Leave it and I’ll get to it later tonight. I promise.”
“It’s fine,” she reassures him. “It’s just a few dishes. Don’t worry about it.”
“Thank you, Shimizu. Seriously. This was really great.” Before he dawdles even longer, he puts on his Toman uniform, grabbing his backpack with the two jackets they finished earlier. He sprints out the door, hopping onto his bike to speed his way to the Shrine.
Draken sits on the steps, greeting him with a smirk. “You’re late. Lucky for you, so is Mikey.”
“Sorry. I got caught up with something,” Mitsuya explains, wiping sweat off his forehead.
The two of them head up the stairs, chatting idly with the others until Mikey finally shows up, beginning the meeting. There’s plenty of topics that are discussed, including Kisaki’s and Hanma’s efforts to infiltrate the rival Leviathan gang. However, Mitsuya is only half paying attention; his mind keeps going back to the dinner he had with his sisters and Shimizu. 
He doesn’t remember the last time he hung out with someone that wasn’t his family or a member of Toman. In fact, he doesn’t have any friends outside of that. For the first time, Mitsuya felt like himself. Not big brother Taka or Second Division Captain of the Tokyo Manji Gang. He was Takashi Mitsuya, eighteen-year-old student who sews, occasionally cooks, enjoys eating, and happens to be in a gang. 
Admitting his fear about Draken was a huge weight off his shoulders. He’s thankful to his new friend for giving him the outlet to confess what he could never to anyone else. Would anyone else understand him? Is he the only one who has these hints of doubts about the future? Mitsuya has never considered a future outside of Toman. He figured he’d grow old wearing the jacket or die protecting it, whichever comes first. Could he have a life outside of the gang? Sure, he’s dreamt of it before. Pursuing a career as a designer. Watching his sisters grow up into independent, strong women. His mom marrying a nice man who would give her the life she deserves. And maybe, just maybe, he could follow in Draken’s footsteps and create a little family of his own with someone he loves. 
It's a possible future for his sisters and mother. There’s nothing stopping them from that. But for him? Could he ever leave the gang behind? Does he want to do that? Toman is also his family. How could he turn his back on his brothers?
He snaps out of his reverie when the meeting is over and Draken pats him on the shoulder. “Man, what’s with you today? Your head is in the clouds.”
Mitsuya punches his arm lightly. “Just tired, I guess.”
“Oh right, Hanma’s and Kisaki’s jackets. I’m assuming you finished?”
“I did, thanks to Shimizu,” he replies, smiling. 
“Ah, so she has a name,” he teases, nudging him as they walk down towards their bikes. “And now she’s helping you sew. What else can she do for you?”
“I told you, it’s not like that. She’s a good person, so don’t talk about her like that.” He shrugs his friend off, oddly defensive.
Draken cackles. “Oh shit, my bad. I didn’t mean to offend your woman.”
Before he can give him a harder punch, Hanma sneaks up on them, voice as sleazy as it usually is. “What’s this? Little Taka has a woman?”
Mitsuya does his best to ignore him, actually upset now that this asshole is butting into their private conversation. If only Draken didn’t have such a big mouth.
“C’mon, don’t be shy. Tell us all about her,” he says, a creepy smirk on his lips. 
Draken interferes, stepping between them. “I was teasing him. It’s nothing.” 
Hanma shrugs, hands in his pockets. “Fine. Keep your little secrets. I guess I’ll just have to find out who Shimizu is myself.” He laughs, walking away as Mitsuya and Draken slow their pace, staring at him, concerned.
~~~
It’s almost midnight when you’re awoken by the sound of keys jingling at the front door. You fell asleep on the couch after putting the girls to bed about an hour ago, watching a familiar show on the lowest volume with all the lights off. You rouse awake, sitting up to meet Mitsuya’s gaze as he stands by the couch, waving at you. “Hey. Ready to go home?” Minutes later, still not fully awake, you’re riding behind him on his motorbike, clinging to his waist. He remains quiet; he must be tired from his meeting. 
He pulls up to your driveway, stopping the ignition so you can hop off. “Thank you for the ride,” you say, pulling the helmet off your head. “And thank you for helping me cook. That was fun.”
He nods, eyes averted towards the ground. “Yeah, it was.”
With nothing else to comment, you turn on your heel to head inside. Before you can, you feel him grip your wrist gently, his touch radiating up your arms and throughout your entire body. 
“Shimizu.” His voice is soft; you like the way your name sounds coming from his mouth, maybe a little too much. 
“Yes?”
He opens his mouth, then closes it again, struggling for the right words. Eventually, he utters, “Have a good night.” 
He lets go, starting the engine, leaving you to stand in the driveway, alone and confused.  
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