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sweater-daddiesdumbdork · 3 years

Text

Remember?

Summary- 1.9k Frank Adler x You. Frank wakes you up at the ungodly hour of 3:30 am and will not even tell you why. Written for @stargazingfangirl18 5k challenge

Warnings- like... barely there mention hint of smut? But just barely? I cant even count it as a warning to be honest.

A/N- so yes this is written for a soft!dark challenge, but dark writing just isn't happening. I went with just soft and with the prompt of lazy make out session.I really wanted to make sure I was giving something to Siri’s challenge because she works so hard on providing us wonderful fics to enjoy, is incredibly supportive and honestly she deserves it. Much love always babes and thank you for all you do.

A/N 2- Can be read as a one shot. It is in the same verse as Oppressive. Also trying out a new site to make moodboards. I kinda like it? what do you all think? And I know the Fort Myers pier is made from concrete, not wood, but I wanted wood. So I went with wood. I always appreciate your thoughts on a fic. Alright, Much Love, Happy Reading! 🌊

“Baby wake up.” You heard a husky whisper in your ear as well as a rough scrape against your shoulder from Franks cheek as he pressed in close to your back, the soft hairs of his chest pressed into your sleepy warm skin and you muttered a no into your pillow as you hid your face into the cotton covers.

He must be out of his ever loving mind to think you were going to wake up at… a quick peek at the old 80’s looking radio clock Frank loved sitting on his night stand. The red numbers were unfocused at first, but blurry sharpened to three thirty am. Yes, your man was crazy to think you were up for anything at all, and the way he was pressed into your ass cheeks, you suspected he woke up early for sex.

That was going to be a hell no. “Frank go back to sleep. I will fuck you later.” You promised as you shifted back into your warm safe hollow. He chuckled gruffly and his hands slid on your hips to twist you to fast him, causing you to sigh and blink up at him. In the dark of the room, his eyes were a dull blue shining down at you amused. You though were no in that same mood as you blinked up at him, pushing a hand against his chest. “Come on Frank, I'm not in the mood. I was sleeping so good.”

“You would think I would wake you up just for sex.” Frank scoffed.

“It wouldn't be the first time.”

“Probably won't be the last either, but that's not what this is about. Come on Sweetheart, get up. I have a surprise.” He tapped your ass and pulled away as you were groaning, knowing sleep simply wasn't going to happen.

“Adler, I swear to all that is holy, this better be good.” You grumbled as you sat up and tried to wake up. Frank came back out with some clothing for you, a pair of capris, tee shirt and undergarments. You looked at the casual clothing and arched your brows. “Where are you dragging me?”

“Its a surprise, trust me, those are appropriate.” He started as he dressed in some old faded blue jeans and grey tee. Wherever he was taking you wasn't going to require dressing up too much, so you just pulled your hair back into a tie, and didn't bother with makeup. He kept glancing at his watch, and by three fifty he had you out the door and to his pickup truck. He tossed a bag in the back and when you went to question it, he shook his head firmly in a no while ushering you into the passenger side. “Part of it, just trust me.”

“I trust you to have something up your sleeve Adler, considering you know I love my sleep in on Saturday Morning.” You grumbled under your breath. Typically you and Frank slept late Saturdays. Mary would go to Roberta’s Friday night for her weekly sleepover that both woman and child insisted on, you and Frank would go to the local bar for a night of cold drinks, games of pool and the occasional dancing when you could get Frank drunk enough to go on the small dance floor. Simple, but you always had a good time. Saturday was recovery day.

So why was he dragging you out of bed on recovery day?

“So a hint?” You decide to pester a bit, sliding closer on the bench seat till you were against his side, his arm circling around your shoulder to tuck you in closer and press a kiss to your temple. You could feel his lips upturned to a smirk against the side of your head.

“You want a hint… It has to be done early in the morning.”

You rolled your eyes at him with a huff, dropping your hand to dance your fingers against a jean clad thigh, making his eyes dart down to your hand. “I want better then that.”

“You are not gonna get it Baby, but you can try your best.”

He really was being serious this time, because he caught your hand from wandering up to far and brought it to his mouth, pressing a gentle kiss to your knuckles.

“Alright Adler, keep your secrets then.” You let your head rest on his shoulder and eyes close. Frank was stubborn, always had been. You knew when you just had to let it go. You drifted in and out as he sped along the interstate. Soon he was turning off, but you weren't quick enough to catch what the exit was, so still had no idea.

“Are we there?”

“Close, you don't know where we are?” He asked with a slight laugh in his voice. You shrug a bit as you two are driving down the main drag of the area, passing all night gas stations, fast food chain restaurants, outlet stores and parking lots.

“No clue, every place in Florida has this Frank.”

He hummed a bit, slowing to an intersection and flicking on his blinker. “True, but you will soon see.” He winked as he made the turn, pulling away from the city-like area and moving towards the beach strip. Where million dollar homes, hotels, and beach side tourist traps laid quiet in the barely morning hours. It was starting to lighten though, you could see the black blue of the night sky make way for lighter purples and pinks.

So you remained patient, waiting for wherever Frank was taking you. The terrain started to get sandier, the crack of the window took on a breezy salty scent and you could taste the hint of surf and sand in the air. Your lips turned upwards, just that scent alone reminded you of a couple years ago, and it all clicked right where you were.

Your first overnight away from home with Frank was to Fort Myers, a small rundown motel on the beach. The room was iffy, the Ac barely worked, neither of you dared to use the pool. At the time it was all you two could afford. And it was all perfect.

Because that morning, before sunrise, you two escaped to the beach, arm in arm and sat in the dunes to watch the sunrise over the crashing ocean, and all was perfect in the world with each other.

Frank glanced over to see the knowing look on your face, and his own softened in a smile, his hand coming to grasp the inside of your thigh gently, squeezing. “Now you know?” He pulled into an almost deserted parking lot. At the other end were a group of people, unstrapping their boards to get ready to go into the surf.

“Of course Frankie.” You said with a touch of sentiment in your tone as you leaned over to peck his lips and nip at him playfully. “How can I forget?” You pull away suddenly and jump out of the car, yanking off your shoes to ditch in the truck. Frank followed, doing the same with his own boots.

You had already taken off into the sand, making your way towards the surf to dig your feet into the wet sand happily. Now it was getting lighter, those dark purples and pinks made way for the reds and oranges as the barest hint of the sun kissed the horizon.

Frank came up behind, having managed to yank his jeans up partially around his calves and pressed you two to walk out a bit further into the surf, the salt water spritzing you both in a fine cooling mist, clinging to your skin, in your hair, on your clothes. It all brought back the sensations of that first trip together. You fall back into his chest while he dips his head to mouth kisses into your neck, enjoying the quiet of the moment with you in a more physical way for a moment. Making you tilt your head to the side while the sun finally broke.

From the nearby pier, heavy pelicans lined the side to swoop down, skimming over the water in lines, giving the two of you a show all for yourselves, among the surf the small sandpipers chased after the tiny ghost crabs trying to escape back into the surf, all of it made you smile. This felt like home to you, right here with Frank.

“It feels like forever since we have visited.” You finally say as you turn to face Frank, the two of you stepping out of the surf, and hand in hand making your way along the beach's edge towards the pier, the sandpipers running away as fast as they could, a few taking to wing to fly several yards ahead of you to start there search in the surf retreating back from the edge once more.

“Been a couple years at least. I was looking at the calendar and realized an anniversary of ours was coming up.” He mentioned while you two stepped under the pier. A small private world for you two at the moment as far above you people made their way towards the end stretching out over the water, ready to drip lines for fishing in the surf. Here though, underneath it all, was just for you and Frank.

Nothing but water crashing to the shore, wood above your heads and the morning bringing back fond memories. Memories of shared kisses against one of the ageless logs helping to hold the deck yards above them steady, the way your legs wrapped around his hips as he pinned you in place and loved you so freely out in the open where they could be caught. How afterwards Frank said those words that he never uttered to anyone else in the way he said it to you.

Fuck I think I love you.

You thought then you loved him to. Now you knew you did. Your fingers looped in his belt loops and you walked backwards, till your back pressed once more against that sand and salt aged wood, looking up at him in the now very present dawn.

“You know Frank, I think I love you.”

“You know what Y/N, I think I love you too.” He winked, sliding in closer till he was pressed against you, his hands cupping the side of your face and tilting up to meet him, his tongue sliding past soft lips to the sweet heat of your mouth and tangling his tongue with yours. It elicited a soft moan from the back of your throat.

Warming salty air really agreed with Frank, mixing the tastes on your tongue, you curled your arms around his body, clutching at his back as you now clung to him, thoroughly enjoying the way this kiss made you feel.

The sensations of love and passion curling in your belly and your heart thud against your breast bone, absorbing into Frank as he pressed into your body, trying to daze you from rational thoughts, away from the everyday thoughts.

Frank had a talent at making you appreciate the here and now.

And right here, with sand covering your feet, your shirt and pants clinging to you from the ocean spray and your man completely pressing every ounce of his affection into you, you could do nothing but appreciate being in the moment.

“Scratch that, I don't think, I know I love you Frank Adler.” You managed to break out of his kiss for half a second.

“I know you do.” He assured you as he grasped the back of your thighs and lifted you enough to fold your legs around his waist. “I plan on showing you just how I feel.” He promised, the glint in his ocean blue eyes turning mischievously playful under that pier.

#siris5ksoftdarkchallenge #amber writes #sweater writes #frank adler x reader #frank adler x you #gifted au #frank adler fan fic #chris evans characters #remember?#i have a soft spot for this man #cant change wont change #i love just soft sweet moments for him #and making out under a pier is one of those moments #so lets all just give him love #shall we?#thanks for coming to my soft moment

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fortisfiliae · 4 years

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Promised Part 10 - Tom Riddle x reader

Summary: In this story, Tom didn’t grow up as an orphan, but with his grandfather and uncle. Reader’s sister got very sick and the Gaunts offer their help. But not without asking for something in return.

Disclaimer: Please be aware that I don’t condone any of this in real life. (GIF is not mine)

Warnings: Arranged marriage

Word count: 3k

Part 10 - Mors Grano

The days after Avery’s poor attempt of gathering information went by quite eventfully. Not only had Avery and Lestrange almost gotten expelled by Dippet for what they had done, but had received the worst detention you had ever heard of.

Every day, up until the N.E.W.T.s would start, they had to help Mr Carpe, Hogwarts’ caretaker, to clean every last bit of the castle. Without magic of course. And when they weren’t scrubbing floors, cleaning windows, or polishing trophies, they were copying the school rules on parchment, by hand. The amount of paper they had to fill looked like it wouldn’t even fit into an entire classroom, had it not been rolled up.

Even if they still wanted to, their new schedule didn’t even give them enough time to trail, or even think about you. They barely had enough time to finish their homework before tumbling into their beds.

You would have felt sorry for them, but Tom’s snarky grin, which he wore every time you saw the two in the hallways, reminded you that you didn’t have to.

Thank Merlin you hadn’t told Avery much when he had disguised himself as Tom. You had just confirmed that the engagement had been arranged but thankfully hadn’t said anything about your sister. There had been worse rumours going round about Tom and you.

Camille almost didn’t believe you when you told her what they had done. After a lot of head shaking and “no, they didn’t”s she just stared at you with her mouth open and proceeded to laugh for a full minute or two when you told her about their punishment.

It was a lucky coincidence that she had found an interest in Ben, as she didn’t mind now that you were spending a lot more time with Tom. She was preoccupied as well by the looks of it.

After the accidental sleepover, you had stayed in Tom’s dorm overnight more often. Not on accident though. It had become a routine to you, to have another quick chat with Camille after classes, arrange some dates for when you wanted to study together and then make your way to the Slytherin common room, where Tom’s dorm was.

Tom was sitting at his desk when you entered the room, apparently deep in thought and studying the Potions book he had gifted you.

“Alright?” you said when you closed the door.

He nodded as you went up to him.

“Found anything interesting for the Moly?” you asked. “It still looks quite healthy to me.”

“Not really,” he answered and turned towards you. “Nothing specific.”

“Oh, I just got an owl from my parents. ” You crammed the letter out of your bag and handed it to him. “They’ve fixated the date. For the wedding.”

Tom read the letter quietly, his eyebrows twitching slightly once or twice.

“June 30th,” he said.

“That’s only one day after we graduate,” you stated and tried to lighten the mood by joking. “Seems like they can’t wait for the big day.”

He nodded as he gazed into the flames inside the fireplace, a tiny grin pulling on the edge of his mouth before he looked up at you. “Can you?”

To prevent the chuckle that built up inside of you from bursting out, you took Tom’s hand, lightly pulled on it and gestured towards the couch, where you wanted to sit. He closed the Potions book, but kept one finger inside it and took it with him when you led him over.

“Well, I don’t know,” you said as you let yourself fall onto the cushion. “It still doesn’t feel real, does it?”

“True,” he simply agreed.

“I can’t wait to try on the dress, though. That’ll be exciting,” you went on and noticed him smiling. “And then there’s the most important part, of course.”

He gave you a look as if to say he didn’t know what you meant.

“Elsie,” you explained. “Your uncle will lift her curse completely then. Or so I hope at least.”

Morfin had to, didn’t he? It was part of the pact after all. Tom and you would get married so that they would free your sister. As much as you wanted to believe that the Gaunts were trustworthy, there had been a nasty sting in your stomach ever since the engagement. Would they really give up, even when they had won? They wouldn’t be able to control you anymore afterwards, or Tom, or anyone but themselves. Marvolo’s filthy grin appeared in your head. Would he ever give it a rest?

“He will free her, won’t he?” you asked.

Tom looked into your eyes for a moment, then cleared his throat. “Well, it’s what they agreed on.”

“But?” you asked.

“But,” he went on, “You’ve seen how they are.”

An invisible weight seemed to pull on your limbs and the sting in your stomach got more intense.

“They’ll never let go,” you breathed. “But how-”

Tom shook his head and exhaled slowly. “I have to show you something.”

He gave you the Potions book and opened it at the page where he had put his finger before. “I thought you’d come across it on your own, but as I noticed you wouldn’t… Just see for yourself.”

You stared at him for a moment, wondering what Morfin’s book had to do with anything, before looking down at it. Tom pointed at a recipe, written in scrawled handwriting:

Mors Grano or The Dust Of Slow Death The dust is used to be scattered over an item and will cling to the first person that touches it. Vanishes the second the victim comes in contact, which makes it very hard to be detected and cured. Victims will suffer from a distinctively harsh cough, as well as pain and flu-like symptoms, which will worsen each day, until they become fatal. Average time until death is around three weeks after the first encounter with Mors Grano. In most cases, the victim will lose their life before the appropriate antidote can be given.

You didn’t bother reading the list of ingredients, as your hands were shaking far too much to even detect another word. You had heard of Mors Grano before. Professor Dippet had brought it up in History of Magic when you had learned about the Passing of Men in 1760. Hundreds of witches had poisoned their abusive husbands with it when the dust had been invented. It had taken years to figure out what had caused such an increased amount of deaths, which happened to involve male wizards only. The potion and most of its ingredients got banned afterwards and you had never heard of another case since.

Until now. It suddenly all made sense. The Gaunts had sent the letter and had coated it with Mors Grano. They had known how to cure Elsie all along and had patiently waited, days and weeks, had let your sister suffer until Father had contacted them. No wonder the owl had given the letter to her, even though it had been addressed to Father. They had specifically chosen her. A ten year old, innocent, little girl.

You weren’t sure if you had to throw up, or just needed to punch something really hard, but your stomach did twists and turns that you had never felt before. A thin layer of sweat had formed on your forehead and your hands were still shaking.

“They…” you whispered. “And you knew?”

Tom swallowed thickly. “I didn’t at first. But then I came across it when Morfin prepared the poison.”

“And you never told me?” you asked, your voice loud and on the verge of breaking, while you attempted to get up from the couch.

“Let me explain,” Tom said and grabbed your hand. “Sit down.”

“What is there to explain?” you asked, trying to pull away from his grip. “You’ve known for months. Even before your first visit. Before Elsie got sick. And you never tried to prevent it, nor did you tell me.”

Tom’s grip around your hand got tighter the more you tried to get him off you. “I said let me explain. I let you explain yourself when I saw you with Avery, didn’t I? Imagine I just ran away then. Now sit down.”

Finally, Tom’s grip loosened, allowing you to tear your hand away from him. Not knowing what to think or say, you sat down but couldn’t bring yourself to even look in his direction.

“Yes, I knew,” he began with a sigh. “And I didn’t care until I found out what they wanted to use the potion for. But I couldn’t tell you. Or anyone. I still can’t. I’m unable to talk about it. They were a step ahead. Understand?”

The Gaunts were a step ahead. They always wanted to be. Just like on Christmas Day, when they wanted you and Tom to do-

“An unbreakable vow?” you asked with wide eyes. “You had to vow not to tell anyone.”

He nodded. “I vowed not to tell. But I didn’t vow not to show.”

He turned one page inside the book and handed it to you again.

Mors Grano - antidote

Ingredients:

The skin of a snake

2 fresh Foxgloves

3 blossoms of a Moly

4 drops of Moondew

5 tears of a Banshee

“The antidote,” you mumbled. “Full with an ingredient list and instructions. Morfin brewed it already then? They gave it to Elsie, otherwise, she wouldn’t have gotten better.”

“He didn’t complete it,” Tom answered, apparently trying not to say something that would interfere with the vow.

“He left out something? They gave her an unfinished antidote?”

Tom nodded.

“The tears?” you guessed, solely because it was the most powerful and rare item on the list.

“I’m not sure. They never let me into his chamber after the engagement.”

“Can we… Can we steal it from him? And add the last ingredient?”

“Marvolo has the flask on him at all times. He’s suspicious, even of Morfin.”

Bloody hell. Marvolo’s paranoia was a real pain. You scanned the antidote again, thinking of all the ways you could get your hands on that potion.

“But I could brew it myself. Most of the ingredients are easy to find. Foxgloves are for sale in Diagon Alley, I’ve seen them countless times. The Moly, we have it here,” you listed and looked at it standing on the desk, finally realising why Tom had tried to keep it alive so badly. “Snakeskin from Nagini. We just wait for her to shed. Moondew and the Banshee tears will be tricky, however.”

Tom nodded at every new thing you had said. “You figured it out.”

Your stomach had stopped squirming at the glimmer of hope you had for saving Elsie. You carefully read the recipe for the antidote again, understanding how long it would take and how hard it would be to get the potion right. If everything went well, it would be finished mid to late June at the earliest. Besides, Slughorn had never taught you such advanced techniques.

Now that you were thinking of your Professor, it began to dawn on you. “Do you think Slughorn has Moondew and Banshee tears in his chamber?”

“Possibly,” Tom answered. “But do you really want to steal from him after what Avery and Lestrange did? I’m sure he’s got it all locked up in his office now.”

“Well, I have to try. Where else would I get those things from? And I better try soon. The antidote will take months to make as it is and the earlier I start, the better.”

Tom took the book, got up from the couch and put it into the drawer of his desk, closing it shut slowly.

“What are you doing?” you asked.

“We’re going to Slughorn then, aren’t we? Come on.”

You followed him out hastily, trying to sort out your thoughts. Frankly, you had not expected to get the ingredients this quickly.

“Wait, how are we going to do it?” you asked, struggling to keep pace. “We can’t just sneak in and grab the things we need. He might be in there.”

“Even better then,” Tom said, not deigning to look at the other students strolling along the hallways. “I talk, you get the stuff.”

As Slughorn’s office was located on the sixth floor, it took some time to get there. Your mind was still racing around the facts you had just been given and you needed to talk about it.

“I can’t believe they made you vow,” you muttered. “Marvolo and Morfin are…”

“Bastards,” he finished your sentence when you stepped from one of the moving staircases to another. “I’m aware.”

“Well, yes they are.”

You were the only people on the staircase, floating higher up towards your destination. Tom looked over his shoulder to double-check if anyone could hear him.

“You know what,” he said pensively. “I actually expected people to ask me what I, or my family, had done to make the engagement happen. Seeing as it was them who got the ball rolling. But everyone suspected you. They all thought your parents bribed us.”

You thought about what to answer for a moment. A sour smile had formed on your face. One that, for all you knew, every woman had worn at least once in her life.

“A woman's intentions will always be questioned a hundred times harsher than those of a man, Tom. What else is new?”

He pressed his lips together, nodded and kept quiet until you reached the sixth floor.

“Wait,” you said and got a hold of his hand when you had entered the corridor of Slughorn’s office. “I wanted to thank you. For helping me. The book, the Moly and now this. You know you don’t have to.”

He squeezed your fingers lightly in response.

“Trust me, no one hates Marvolo and Morfin more than I do. If I can make their lives a bit harder, I’ll gladly do it. And besides, I want to see your sister become Quidditch captain one day. That will really piss them off.”

There wasn’t a lot of time to take in Tom’s words, as you had arrived. There it was. The door to Slughorn’s room.

“Get behind me,” Tom ordered. “Make sure he doesn’t see you.”

You did as he said, pressed your back against the stone wall and watched from a small distance how Tom knocked on the door and Slughorn opened it.

“Oh, Tom,” the Professor said. “Good afternoon. What brings you here?”

“Good afternoon Professor. I hope I’m not disturbing you. I have some questions about Avery and Lestrange. I’m trying to sort out some things for Professor Dippet. Would you mind letting me in?”

Slughorn opened the door fully and stepped back. “Of course, boy, of course. Come in.”

Tom had left the door open for you to slip in behind them, which you instantly did. He lured Slughorn to the far end of his office, walking backwards and keeping an eye on you. Slughorn’s potion stock was right next to the entrance, where you knelt down between the shelves, in case he would turn around unexpectedly.

The small drawers weren’t tagged, but you noticed that their contents were sorted alphabetically. As you silently roamed through them, you could hear Tom and Slughorn speak.

“So, Professor,” Tom said. “Do you know if Avery and Lestrange have taken anything else? Apart from the Polyjuice Potion?”

The Professor hummed. “Not that I’m aware of, no. Why?”

Every single one of the drawers was filled to the brim with ingredients, some vials even had completed potions in it, but you still hadn’t seen the things you were looking for. It was a delicate act to go through everything so quickly, while being quiet at the same time and making sure not to miss anything.

“Well, there were some items found. Residues of Moondew and Banshee tears,” Tom explained.

“Banshee tears?” Slughorn asked.

“Yes. We can’t be sure if it was them, but I thought if you missed those things from your supply, the two might have something to do with it.”

“No, everything else is there, I counted it myself,” Slughorn assured. “What baffles me are the Banshee tears.”

Tom was an excellent liar, even though Slughorn would have probably bought anything his favourite student said. The bottom drawer at the penultimate row was stuck. You pulled the handle tightly but it only opened up an inch and gave a screech while it did, making you freeze from fear.

“Did you hear something?” Slughorn asked, his voice echoing your way.

“No, I didn’t,” Tom answered and coughed. “Why are you surprised about the Banshee tears, sir?”

“Well, those tears are rare,” the teacher answered, his head directed towards Tom again. “Very rare and also not very legal, boy. I’ve never seen them anywhere in my whole life. They couldn’t have been from me.”

No Banshee tears from Slughorn then. You pulled out your wand and cast a nonverbal spell to loosen up the stuck drawer. Should have done that right away, you thought to yourself. Eventually, it opened smoothly and your eyes went over all the flasks and their name tags. Mollowsweed, mandrake, maw, mistletoe berry... Moondew. Thank Merlin! There were over ten vials of it in the drawer, so you hastily took out one and put it into your pocket.

You peeked over the counter, locked eyes with Tom, and pointed towards the door to let him know you would leave.

“I see,” Tom went on, his eyes back on Slughorn. “We’ll have to look into that. Anyway, if you do notice some Moondew missing, against all expectations, I’m going to have another talk with Dippet about Avery and Lestrange.”

“I’ll let you know, boy. Thank you.”

“Enjoy your evening, sir.”

I’m pretty proud of this plot twist, not gonna lie. Please consider leaving a comment and tell me what you think so far :) They motivate me so much to keep writing! Let me know if you want to be tagged, or untagged. Thank you for reading!

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joheun-saram · 3 years

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January Rain (jjk)

word count- 1.5k

pairing- ceo!Jungkook x secretary!Reader

rating- PG

genre- angst, fluff

warnings- none! :)

an- for the cute 🍒anon! I hope you like it!

You looked at the email your boss’s mother had sent you and felt a shiver run down your spine. You knew what you had with Jungkook was too good to last. It was a cliche really, the secretary sleeping with the CEO, but every time he looked at you, it was like you forgot your own name. The way his big doe eyes traced your features right before he devoured you, or the way he called you in his office for some paperwork, when really he just wanted to kiss you silly.

I'm not sure if Jungkook mentioned this to you yet, but can you please check when he is available for his date with Jisoo. Any time from Wed to Fri would work.

As you reread the email asking you to set a time for a date with his fiancee, you knew starting something with the handsome man across from you was a mistake. You would never be able to call him yours, never be able to hold his hand in public, and the thought made your eyes sting. Looking through his calendar, you did your job, quietly resolving to no longer fall for his charms. There was a reason he made the number of deals that he did, he was great at getting his way, but that would no longer be the case with you.

It was when you added the event in his calendar that he called your name. He was settled behind a large desk, the dark oak a contrast to the light cedar of the cabin. He had rented the chalet for the weekend, wanting a getaway to work on the new expansion proposal for the board. It was an added bonus that the large cottage came with a room with a king-sized bed and a hot tub on the back patio. Initially, you were looking forward to spending the weekend tangled up in the sheets with your boss, but the sound of your name on his lips just irritated you now.

He called you twice before you graced him with a glance in his direction.

"Why did you send me this?" He asked, eyes narrowed in your direction and jaw set. He seemed annoyed. Good.

"Your mother emailed me. I'm just doing my job," you replied with a huff, rolling your eyes at his demeanor as he sighed.

"Come here, baby." Jungkook spoke softly as he rolled his chair away from his desk, tapping his lap in an invitation. An invitation you would've jumped at a mere twenty minutes ago, but now it just caused frustration and hurt to bloom in your chest.

"I'm sorry. I think that would be unprofessional, sir." You remained straight-faced, averting your eyes towards your laptop as you continued to work through his emails and schedule for the week. He scoffed, turning to his true-tried method of humour to lighten the mood.

“Come on. I dare you.” He smirked, moving around his desk to lean against it, arms open, expecting you to grumble but make your way to him as usual. But you avoided looking at him, your full attention on your work, as you tried to pretend he wasn’t even in the room. In the attempt to shield your feelings, you missed the look of hurt that clouded his features as he lost his earlier confidence and fidgeted with the many documents strewn across his desk.

"Baby, look at me. Please?" Jungkook pleaded, the pout on his face evident through his voice. You couldn't look at him even if you tried, you knew the effect he had on you. It was the same adorable pout that had made you give him your heart the first time he aimed it at you. It was your kryptonite. The way he would be extremely polite and professional to all your colleagues but turn into a puppy whenever the two of you were alone. It was something that made you want him more, deluded you into thinking that he was only this open in front of you. But clearly, his change in character wasn't as special as you thought.

Ignoring his request, you swiftly stood from your seat on the couch, walking firmly to the main door into the cold rain outside. The freezing raindrops pelted your skin, making goosebumps rise in their wake as your teeth chattered. Although you had forgotten your coat in your haste to remove yourself from the situation, you didn't regret it one bit. You welcomed the chill, letting it cool you to the bone as you walked away from the fancy chalet. You didn't care that you would inevitably have to go inside in a few minutes and that you would also probably get a headache from the way the almost frozen droplets pelted your head.

Before you could walk too long though, you felt a pair of strong arms encircle you, the warmth of a firm chest molding to your back like a comfortable blanket.

"You're going to get sick," Jungkook murmured in your ear, his grip tight around your waist, as you tried not to give into him yet again.

"Stop worrying about me. You have Jisoo." You tried to push him off you, but his strength outmatched you by miles as he clung to your back, the two of you drenched and shivering.

"I don't want Jisoo. I want you." He whispered, his voice barely audible over the sound of the rain. His words sent the butterflies in your belly a flutter, but your brain refused to let them win. You shoved him off you, turning around to stare at him.

His hair was in his eyes, the black curls obstructing his eyes, as he shook his head to see you clearer. He was drenched, his white shirt almost invisible, highlighting the contours of his body. He moved closer, rubbing his hands on your arms in an attempt to warm you up, but despite the way he looked at you softly, you shrugged him off once again.

"So what? You're gonna break off your engagement and run away with me?" you questioned, arms folded as your gaze hardened.

"Absolutely." There was no hint of hesitation in his eyes, and his determination broke down your defenses. Before you knew it you were staring at the ground, willing the tears to go away. You were never more thankful to have the rain soaking you through.

"Don't do this to me. I can't take this anymore," you spoke quietly, unsure if he could even hear you.

"Do what? I told you I don't want her. I want you." Jungkook held your arms, bending a little to make the eye contact you were so adamant in avoiding.

"But your mom -" Jungkook scoffed, cutting you off. His hands cupped your face as he tried to pour as much of his feelings through his gaze as he could, his warm chocolate eyes entrancing you like they always did.

"Do you think I care? I did my part, took over the company like a good little boy. I'm not going to let her control me anymore." His gaze hardened as he spoke and it reminded you of your resolve. Even though he was determined right now, you knew Jungkook. Knew that he would always pick his mom over anyone else, knew that he would never want to disappoint her. And above all, you knew that she would never accept you.

"Jungkook, I think it's best if we end this." And although your words spoke differently, you moved closer to him, your hands over his arms as you held on like he would let go.

"No. How can it be best if I can't be with the woman I love?" His forehead met yours as he confessed and your heart felt like it could explode. In the year you had been part of this fling, he had never told you he loved you. Jungkook wasn’t one for words, he would instead buy you extravagant gifts and take you travelling. You had always hoped he felt what you did but you never thought you’d hear those words escape his lips.

"Love?" you asked in a daze, your resolve falling like crumbs to the wayside. Jungkook smiled at your confusion as if it was the most endearing thing in the world. His nose scrunched a little as it grazed yours and he giggled.

"I love you."

You couldn’t stop yourself from crashing your lips to his. How could you, when the man you had been in love with for years finally spoke like he had in your dreams. His kiss warmed you up, making you forget about the rain still pelting from above and the chill in your bones. His arms encircled your waist once again, pulling you close, chest to chest, as yours found home around his neck. Kissing him was so easy, it was like your body was finally at peace in his arms.

"Tell me you love me too. Please?" He pleaded when you finally broke for air and the uncertainty in his voice made you want to do anything in your power to assure him.

"I love you. I love you. I love you." You kissed him with every confession, your heart finally being allowed to pour through your actions.

You didn’t remember how long the two of you stood kissing in the cold January rain, but it was worth the stuffy noses and headaches that plagued you both for a week afterward.

Like this? Check out my other works.

#thebtswritersclub #bangtanhq #btsnoonanet #thetruthuntoldnet #jungkook fluff #jungkook x reader #jungkook x yn #jungkook angst #jk fluff #jk angst #jk x reader #bts imagines #bts drabbles

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thatsthetriick · 3 years

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How would Jjba characters survive a Slasher with their s/o?

Disclaimer: Mentions of death, blood, murder, attempted murder, getting wounded and hurt, moreover other violent actions or any violence, and also soft swearing hehe. Context: You're either in a random mansion/part of Morioh where you and other victims and the joestars and other characters attempt to survive the massacre in your area/house/room. How would they react?

Jotaro Kujo ✦ He would most likely be the one to check the area, for example if the lights went off or a noise is heard in a separate room/area he would be the one to check it and would tell everyone to stick in a group. ✦ Younger Jotaro would probably tell you to fuck off but Jotaro part 4 wouldn’t mind you tagging along but he does shield you and you just mostly follow him around while the two of you look for clues. ✦ When there’s danger nearby he’ll yell for you to not do anything and get back and retreat and to not attack at all and let him do the work ( like what he did with koichi while they had their first encounter with kira). ✦ Jotaro would be pissed off once the attacker gets away, he’ll try to chase them but he’ll be cautious and be careful everytime he enters a room/street/area since there is a possibility of traps and he would remind you to do the same. ✦ He would protect you when the attacker is targeting you only and attack the attacker immediately and afterwards would probably force you to stay in the group after that encounter. ✦ He wouldn’t doubt anyone but he will still on guard and observe everyone with how they act. ✦ When you get wounded by the killer he’ll quickly tell you to move back and retreat as he handles it, he rarely gets hurt or wounded by the killer. Josuke Higashikata ✦ He would most likely be in a group with Rohan, Koichi, Okuyasu, Yukako, Yuya, Mikitaka and you. ✦ There’s also a slight possibility that he’ll split up with the group and end up with Okuyasu only as everyone finds clues and tries to survive. If there’s any hint of a attacker he would immediately follow him without knowing the consequences. ✦ The more victims that get brutally murdered the more he’ll get angrier moreover determined to find the killer more, he slowly gets serious and more protective with his friend and the stricter he gets with his commands. ✦ When he sees you get attacked or witness you almost get murdered he would be angry and quickly use his stand to chase the killer off, his heart breaks at the thought of you becoming one of the murderer’s victims ✦ He would never doubt his close friends but stand users that he encountered before that attacked him would probably be a suspect in his list and would be careful around them and wouldn’t make it obvious he’s on to them. ✦ If you’re wounded by the attack he’ll quickly patch you up and though he sucks at comforting you he still tries. He also gets a few attacks from the killer himself. Koichi Hirose ✦ “O-oh, you wanna join us?” he would say as he scratches the back of his neck ✦ He doesn’t mind you joining him, he would most likely be with Yukako though but it’s better to stick together and be with someone in times like this, he would tag along with Jotaro or Josuke if he spots them in the house/area, and would talk about the killers and clues and hints they’ve got so far. ✦He’s too kind to doubt anyone in his friend group is the killer, even old enemies they’ve encountered before he would never consider them as a suspect which could be a weakness to him. ✦ Unlike Josuke he’s pretty much scared of this killer but he is also determined to put an end to this mess and would never get his fear get over him but that doesn’t mean that he’s scared from time to time especially when he’s alone with you or by himself which is rare. ✦ If he sees you almost get attacked by the killer he would let out his stand immediately, and though he is scared he will try to track down the killer, though he is quite clumsy and when he’s chasing the killer he forgets the possbility of traps around the area. ✦ It will be very RARE for Koichi to get hurt especially when Yukako would be with him 24/7, she’ll probably defend him and protect him so that he wouldn’t get hurt, if he’s alone with you he’ll probably take a few hits but you’ll also eventually protect him. Okuyasu Nijimura ✦ Okuyasu probably lighten the mood a lot for you, whenever he does something stupid you find it funny and he wouldn’t take it personally as well. He’d probably joke to Josuke about you and compliment you to Josuke and you would overhear these convos, usually Josuke would just tell him to make a move already. ✦ He would probably notice if you’re way behind, he always likes looking back at the group and he would be the one to see if you’re way behind due to you seeing a clue or seeing something else and he would usually be the one to get your attention, with an “Oi” or something. That way the group rarely splits up accidentally. ✦ He’d help Josuke find clues and he would most likely be the ones to find them and Josuke to be the one to put the pieces together. ✦ If he sees you being attacked he won’t hesitate and wouldn’t even call Josuke and would quickly attack, though he wouldn’t follow the killer and would just prioritize you, and though you all lost track of the killer it was fine to him since you are safe. ✦ He will most likely take a lot of hits and wounds from trying to attack the killer especially when he does things solo. Yukako Yamagishi ✦ You would see her following Koichi or besides Koichi, and both of them would find clues together, and she doesn’t mind you tagging along and would protect you as much as she does to protect Koichi, to her you were honestly just a chill person not a competition just a good friend to both of them. ✦ She is quiet but whenever she senses something wrong she would bring up to the both of you or would attack the threat that she senses. ✦ Aya Tsuji would probably hang around with you and Koichi and Yukako, this is probably because she only knows Yukako and no one else in the whole group. Yukako would be annoyed at her presence and would speak passive agressive to Aya so that she may get the hint to back off and to stop following them, but Aya doesn’t obviously take this personally. ✦ If she sees you get hurt or get attacked by the killer she’ll immediately attack from afar and would follow him along with Koichi and she’d suggest to the both of you to inform the rest of the group of what happened. ✦ She’ll most likely get a lot of hits by trying to protact Koichi and you, but in the end she’ll just get healed up and get fixed up after the attempted attacks. Rohan Kishibe ✦ If this man sees you or Koichi he’ll immediately stick around, but mostly he’ll go with Koichi. He’ll start conversations with Koichi and start stating on how this whole event will be great for a new chapter of his manga or a different separate brand new manga. ✦ He is very straightforward with everything and if he sees something he’ll for sure remember it and the details of it, he’ll probably also randomly start sketching about details or the clues themselves for future references. ✦ If he sees something he’ll quickly follow it but he’ll most likely fall into a trap and get hurt, same whenever he sees you get attacked, he’ll try to chase of the killer and will probably fall into a trap but he’ll always find a way to get out of it. ✦ He is a bit mean to you during the whole time since he’s a tsundere, moreover he’ll be attacked the most and be the one who gets hurt the most since he can be eaisly lured into a trap because of curiosity. Yoshikage Kira ✦ Let’s face it, he is the slasher killer of this movie, and he would obviously act like an innocent bystander, and a good one at that, he’s really good at playing innocent and covering his tracks. ✦ But if he gets hurt? or someone htis him he’ll start panicking because he’ll try to find a way to cover up the wound and the evidence, he’ll also start getting worried when people are on to him, he stresses out and acts more nervous but still maintains his image as a innocent office worker who got caught up in this situation. ✦ He would most likely target you because you either know something or he likes your hands, and he’ll attempt to get rid of you if you know too much or manage to get into information that immediately points out to him, thus why his attempted attacks on you. ✦ He plays smart so he’ll find ways to lure everyone in traps especially with his bomb object traps, he’ll mostly use that a lot and mostly on important evidence. He won’t get hurt that much since he plays smart. ✦ He will eventually reveal himself if he gets cornered by everyone else.

Would you survive a slasher? Thanks for reading! Feel free to request! :3

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xthelastknownsurvivorx · 3 years

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The Love Languages of Firstprince

aka my TedTalk

for RWRB Romance Week - Day 2: Love Languages hosted by @rwrb-fests

The tl;dr, not necessarily in order

Alex: Physical touch, quality time, and words of affirmation

Henry: physical touch, quality time, acts of service, words of affirmation

On firstprince, physical touch, and quality time

(more on individual comments later)

Their relationship (beyond friendship) started with a lot of time spent together for physical touch. While this might be partially due to an avoidance of commitment so it “didn't have to mean anything”, I still think this is worth noting. Also, they are obviously very compatible physically.

Alex and Henry put effort into planning their time together, partially due to necessity given their positions and for geographical logistics, but they also spend time together outside of the physical aspect. This time doesn't seem mostly driven by the need for them to put up appearances for friendship.

Their texts and emails also seem to be evidence of enjoying quality time. Although these aren't face-to-face, it involves a dedication of time and thought about the other, which is a good portion of what quality time is about. Nora says that Alex uses Henry's number to “long distance flirt with him all day, every day” and “in a noticeably worse mood if [Alex] goes a day without talking to [Henry]”.

Their emails are lengthier and are quite poetic. The bits from old love letters indicate a lot of effort since they have to find the perfect quotes from historical figures. Alex makes a list of things he loves about Henry, while Henry waxes poetry about Alex.

Alex

Physical Touch

Personally, I see Alex as mostly having physical touch as a love language with his romantic partner, with some exceptions. One being June as his sister. The other is Nora, though she's somewhat of an in between since the two of them dated briefly but she's mostly a best friend to Alex.

At New Year's, Alex and Nora dance together, putting hands on hips and grinding in a joking, platonic sort of way. Alex is also very comfortable guiding Henry's hips with his hands, when at this point he thinks of Henry as simply a friend.

Of course, there's also the kiss with Nora at midnight, which, while partially for the benefit of other people's intrigue, would likely not happen if Alex wasn't comfortable with/enjoyed physical touch.

Alex also describes being pleased with Henry's physical presence next to him at New Year's

Furthermore, at the lake house, Alex comes to the revelation of why he seems to love the physical intimacy with Henry, that love is what “makes the filthy things so good”

There's also plenty of fluffy goodness from the lake house with casual touches, quick pecks, sweet embraces, and the like

I'm also reminded of how Alex notes that with his limbs tangled with Henry's, “nowhere left untouched [i]t's the best Alex has slept in years”

Lastly, Alex seems to be a very attentive partner during sex. After his first attempt at a blowjob, his inner thoughts are about his previous experiences eating girls out because he's surprised that Henry kisses him so eagerly afterward. There are plenty of men who would not be willing to return the favor of oral sex for their female partner, yet it seems that Alex is/was very, very willing, which makes me think that he is the type to show he cares by making sure sex is good for both him and his partner.

This is actually further supported by something Alex observes the first time he and Henry go beyond just blowjobs : “Somehow it still amazes him that all of this seems to be as unbelievably, singularly good for Henry as it is for him.” Alex's reaction includes a pleased and proud smile about it.

Of course, in regards to the two points above, it should be the norm to ensure one's partner is equally satisfied, but this doesn't always play out. In my opinion, Alex seems to go above and beyond in this respect.

Words of Affirmation

I will begin this with a caveat that both Henry and Alex tend to like feeling affirmed in some capacity but they have a tendency to avoid verbalizing things for the fear of making it too real. Again, I'm not sure if this would have been different had they begun dating in a more typical way, but it's worth noting.

The biggest thing that stands out to me that points to words of affirmation being one of Alex's love languages is the quote: “He just… Well, he gets told he's great a lot. He just doesn't often get told he's good enough.”

Overall, although Alex presents himself as being confident and self-assured most of the time, he often is plagued with doubts and fears about not measuring up, so he sometimes needs affirmations that he is, in fact, good enough.

Alex also tends to counter Henry's self doubts by telling him that he's brave, strong, good as he is, etc that Alex has noticed earlier on.

One big thing is the list that Alex sends Henry: An Incomplete List: Things I Love About HRH Prince Henry of Wales

Almost forgot this one, but when Alex is stressing and having a hard time, he mentions thinking of the things Henry emailed him

Henry

Physical touch

Although Henry often seems to feel trapped by the decorum he must adhere to, the times of physical intimacy when he's with Alex seem to let Henry be just another 20-something guy. He's more confident and sure in these moments, which while likely related to trauma related to his sexuality from his family, seems important and relevant

Henry also seems to be very attentive to his partner's needs. For example, after karaoke, he says to Alex, “All that earlier and you haven't gotten off yet tonight, have you? … Well that just shall not do.” So, like Alex, Henry seems to show his care through making sure his partner is satisfied.

Quality Time

I personally imagine Henry and Bea spend a lot of time in the music room together, playing their instruments

Henry seems very hurt by the way that his mom withdrew after his father's death. I'd argue this is due to Henry having quality time as a love language because while they do spend time together and “[s]he still listens, and she tries, and she wants us to be happy. But I don't know if she has it in her anymore to be a part of someone else's happiness.”

Acts of Service

This ties in with quality time, but Henry tends to be the one between him and Alex to plan interesting and more elaborate dates. For example, the time in Paris when Henry leaves directions to a Parisian cheese shop, especially since Alex had asked his advice about wine and cheeses.

I’m not sure how supported this is by the book, but I also just get the sense that Henry is very much the type who would do things for his significant other to lighten the burden(s) on their shoulders

Lastly, Henry is very invested in philanthropy. Obviously philanthropy is common for royals and rich people, but Henry seems to really put his heart into it. He and Pez have been doing work for a long time, and Henry's even using his inheritance to fund the projects.

Words of Affirmation

I think that words of affirmation are important to Henry, but not the most important of his love languages. Hearing Alex believes in him helps, and he offers similar support for Alex, but this doesn't seem to be the primary method of showing love for Henry.

However, Henry does express himself through writing a lot. I'm not sure if this counts under words of affirmation, although some of it does, but this is the big point under this category

And that concludes my long-winded rant on the topic that I definitely didn't do instead of being productive haha what are you talking about

Thanks for reading~

#rwrbromanceweek #rwrb #red white and royal blue #henry fox mountchristen windsor #alex claremont diaz #rwrb headcanon

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mca-attack21 · 4 years

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The Sacrifice

Hi guys, this was an interesting concept that I thought I would try out. I haven’t quite decided if I want to leave it as a stand-alone or add a second part. Anyways, grab your bow-ties and enjoy!

You had gone on so many incredible adventures with The Doctor. As a side-effect, you had often been placed in dangerous situations, but you were never truly scared because you always knew that the Doctor would come for you. You knew that at the end of the day, everything was going to be okay because that was who he was, the man who saved the universe. You loved him with all of your heart and you chose willingly to put your faith in him.

But this time was different. This time you were absolutely terrified.

The Doctor and you had traveled to a planet to waste some time as Amy and Rory were ‘honeymooning’ in Amsterduke. You would never pass up a chance for one on one time with the Doctor and were excited to see what the day would bring.

And everything was going great, at least until the two of you were captured. When you woke up, you were being held in some type of pod. You couldn’t move to even begin to try to get out. You saw that across the room the Doctor was strapped down to some sort of table, the aliens were hovering over his seemingly unconscious body.

“Why are you doing this?” you yelled gaining their attention.

“We have been waiting for centuries to find someone with time vortex energy to use as a stabilizer. He refused us, so we are going to take away his option to disagree with us by making him autonomous,” one of the creatures said bluntly.

“What does that mean?” you asked already afraid of the answer.

“We will end his independent brain function, and put his body in a permanent state of homeostasis. But don’t worry, he won’t feel it.”

“You’re going to kill him!” you yelled.

“We have no other choice. But don’t worry, as he stabilizes the ruptures in time, his existence will be rewritten, you will not remember him,” the creature tried to reason.

Your mind rushed as you realized what it had just said and with complete confidence you said, “Use me.”

“What?” the creature, who you later learned was the leader, asked.

“I am covered with vortex energy, and am entirely willing, let me take his place,” you pleaded.

“Stop, what you are doing,” he order those that were working on the Doctor. He then turned back towards you. “You would be erased from time like you never existed.”

“I know, please, just let me take his place.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Because he is the most important man, the last of his kind, the savior of the universe. Killing him would devastate the world, but me? It wouldn’t even leave a mark.”

“Do you love him?” he asked.

“More than anything in this world,” you answered sincerely.

“Okay, we will test you, if you are compatible we will make the trade and let him go free, you have my word.”

With that, you were escorted to another room where a female came in and ran tests.

“You are very brave,” she said.

“Thank you,” you mumbled.

“Don’t worry, we can make it to where you will never feel it.”

“What if you don’t? What if I want to stay cognizant? To be able to remember everything?”

“You would be in agonizing pain, why would you want that?”

“Because then I wouldn’t lose him.”

“It would ultimately be up to you, though I wouldn’t recommend it.”

The tests came back and it was confirmed that you were compatible. The leader came back in and said that it was the most honorable thing to make a sacrifice for love. He asked if there was anything that you wanted to do before they put you in the capsule. You asked him for the chance to say goodbye to the Doctor and the ability to make a phone call to assure he’d be taken care of afterward. He agreed.

As you were led back to the room, you tried to prepare yourself. You knew that you could never tell him what you were about to do. He would try to talk you out of it, but the leader had been clear that it was you or the Doctor. If you tried to escape, he would kill you both and after what you witnessed earlier, you knew that he could. You took comfort in the fact that the Doctor wouldn’t remember any of this. You knew that if he did he would blame himself and it would absolutely tear him apart. But it was okay because he never would.

You put a brave face on and pushed the door open. The doctor was now sitting up, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. He still looked awful, but managed to shoot you a weak smile as you entered.

“I don’t know how you did it, but you saved me, they are letting us go,” the Doctor said.

“Well, I figured it was my turn. You’re always saving me,” you replied taking a seat beside him. ‘But not this time’ you thought.

“I just need about an hour to recover and then we can go back to the TARDIS and forget any of this ever existed.”

Those words hurt you and you hadn’t really realized that you’d started crying until the Doctor reached up to wipe your tears.

“Y/n? What’s the matter?”

“It’s nothing, I’m just glad that you’re okay. I was scared for a minute there,” you answered.

‘Even if that means that I will never see you again’

“Come on Y/n, I’ll always be okay as long as I’ve got you,” he promised.

This sentence brought more tears, which caused him to pull you into his arms with a painful inhale. You had to remind yourself that this was the only way. It was either you or him. And he would be fine, he wouldn’t remember you, he’d still have the Ponds and River. He would still be the Doctor, alive to fight another day.

Without really thinking, you whispered, “I love you.”

“I love you too, Y/n,” he whispered into your hair.

The two of you stayed like that until there was a knock on the door signaling that your time was up. You felt like it wasn’t enough time, but you knew deep down that no amount of time could have ever felt like it was enough.

“That’s my cue, I have to go check on something. Just stay here and rest up,” you faked a reassuring smile.

“Oh, okay,” the Doctor said with confusion in his voice. He could tell that something was off, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on what it was.

You gave him a tight squeeze and in a moment of weakness you kissed him. You hadn’t even really meant to do it, but something inside of you took over. The Doctor was slightly caught off guard, but happy nonetheless. Another knock was heard at the door and you pulled away, leaving the Doctor with a slight pout.

You walked towards the door, knowing better than to turn around and look at him again. He mistakenly took this for embarrassment over the kiss.

“Was I that bad?” he joked, longing for you to smile over your shoulder and laugh.

But as you refused to look at him, he realized that it was something else. You hesitated for a moment as you reached the door and said, “Goodbye Doctor, thanks for the adventures,” and without missing a beat exited the room.

“Wait? What do you mean goodbye? Y/n?” he asked trying to push himself to his feet ignoring the aching in his muscles and the fire in his lungs. He watched as the door shut behind you and tried to force it open. His hearts sank as he realized that his feeling that something was wrong was being confirmed. He forced himself over to his suit jacket to get his sonic, knowing deep down that he was running out of time. But it wasn’t there, someone must’ve taken it.

He was starting to panic, he was trapped in here while you were out there. He wasn’t there to protect you. He was also incredibly frustrated as he now knew that you were hiding something from him, him. That could only mean that you were about to do something incredibly stupid, something that you didn’t think he’d be able to fix, something you didn’t want him to see. A tear rolled down his cheek, that wasn’t your decision to make. He forced himself back over to the door, and tried to open it. The exertion eventually came to much and he sunk down with his back against the wall. He felt so helpless, this was all his fault. And for the first time in a very long time, the Doctor cried. But even as the tears fell, he started to forget why he was crying.

By the time the door opened, he was surprised to see who entered. For it was the woman who perplexed him endlessly. The one he was pretty sure that he was going to marry someday.

“Hello Sweetie,” River said with a smile, though he saw the sadness in her eyes, but, he knew better than to ask. Spoilers.

“River? What happened? Where am I? Where are the Ponds?”

“Amy and Rory are on a honeymoon adventure in Amsterduke. You decided to come here and waste some time, but bit off a little more than you could chew. Your captors almost killed you, but it’s okay, everything has been handled. Should we go find the TARDIS?” she asked pitching him his sonic.

“Of course,” he said, though he had this strange feeling that something was missing.

River grabbed his coat, which he gratefully accepted. Something was missing, where was his bow-tie? Oh well, he had plenty more in the TARDIS. Though he couldn’t help but feel a bit out of sorts. The two of them made their way back to the TARDIS and the Doctor made himself some tea to help his body rebalance itself. When he returned to the console room, he was surprised at River’s unusually quiet demeanor.

“So, aren’t you going to ask where we are this time? Pull out our diaries, do the whole nine yards?” the Doctor asked, trying to lighten the mood.

“Oh, of course,” she said smile brightening her face. River knew how to put on an act for him. She was practically the only person alive who knew what had actually happened that day. But she could never tell him, time didn’t work like that. If there was any chance of getting you back, the Doctor would have to remember you for himself.

#doctor who #11th Doctor #eleventh doctor x reader #eleven #eleventh doctor #eleventh doctor imagine #eleventh doctor imagines #eleventh doctor x you #doctor who imagine #doctor who imagines #doctor who x reader #doctor who x you #dw #dw fandom #DW fanfic

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psychedellic-phase · 4 years

Text

Fifteen (part 10)

A/N: Part of this chapter is inspired by the song 2 Years by Thomston. Thank you to the lovely anon that told me this song reminded them of this fic! I highly recommend listening to it!

word count: 3.9k

tw: mentions of childbirth, slight season 9 spoilers, otherwise fluffy

masterlist: “A few months later we were in Boston, on that strangulation case. It’s a pretty hard case to forget, I mean, you delivered a baby. A real human baby, that you brought earthside with your own two hands. You delivered him, and she named him after you. Baby Spencer.

Morgan and I dragged the unsub out into the street, hearing that poor woman scream and cry as you brought her baby into the world, but you did great, and he was beautiful. Just like his namesake. When I walked back inside I saw you give her the baby, and my heart just about melted into a puddle on the floor. You and kids, it just does something to me. It feels like my heart comes out of my body and into your hands like putty. It's an odd feeling, like you’re physically poking around in my chest. In a weird way I’ll miss it.

Then I saw JJ give you a side hug, and put her arm on your chest. She even leaned into your neck, with a soft, sweet little nuzzle. You probably didn’t notice it, but I did. I always noticed. A million little ways to say ‘I love you’ without actually saying ‘I love you’. Right?

Yet again, I said nothing. I had no logical reason to be worried. She was married. You told me daily how much you loved me, how special I was, how beautiful, how amazing, how lucky you were. It’s a shame you didn’t feel like that at the end. But I made it okay. I told myself I was just overthinking it all, like usual. I buried it all down. Again, and again, and again.

That night we went to that bar Rossi loves and everyone was happy, talking about how you delivered a baby.

Alex asked you, “How on earth did you know what to do?”

You explained how you memorized all the delivery manuals when JJ was pregnant, just in case. I often wonder if you’d do half the things you do for her, if it were for someone else. Or are some things just for JJ?

I just smiled and laughed, still pushing the feelings away. It was a night to celebrate and I was determined to not be a party pooper. Instead, I went the other way. I was the life of that party. We all got on stage and sang ‘Piano man’ karaoke, and if anyone was making love to a tonic and gin that night, it was me. Many, many, tonic and gins. I stumbled into an Uber with you and ended up at home. You helped me into bed. You wiped off my makeup and undressed me, putting one of your large shirts on me, leaving a bottle of water, two advils, and a note that said “i love you, love” for me to see when I woke up. Stuff like that makes me wonder if you’d only ever do some things for me. It sounds selfish, but I hope wiping my makeup off and putting my moisturizer on for me is something reserved for us. I know there are many things I have reserved just for you, Spence. No one will ever be that kind to me again, and that’s a fact.”

Are some things just for JJ? Really? He was irritated for a passing moment, why were you mad about him caring about his best friend? Before he had even met you?

But then that anger was soon replaced with confusion. Why’d you never mention it? In all the fights you had, you never once mentioned JJ. You never once threw the feelings that were so clear to everyone in his face. Why? Why not?

Every word made him feel like he didn’t really know you, but also made him wonder if you even knew him? Because if you did you would’ve known he did nothing for JJ, but everything for you.

“I immediately fell asleep.

I woke up at some point, maybe around four am, and you weren’t in the bed next to me. I remember patting the sheets, looking for you as I usually did at night. To sleep, I needed to feel you pressed up against me. I didn’t. I panicked. I looked at the note, and for half a second I thought you left. It did look a little like a goodbye note, Spence. I yelled your name a few times, and when I didn’t get a response I really started to worry. I got out of bed and stumbled around; my head was still fuzzy. I walked around the house calling your name. You still didn’t answer. I finally found you on the balcony.

It was warm for April, and you were sitting on a chair in your pajamas, staring at the stars.

“Talking to the moon again?” I said, and you turned to look at me.

The moon was a waxing crescent (thank you for that) so I couldn’t see you well. If it had been full, maybe I would’ve seen your sad eyes.

“Hey, what’re you doing up?” You whispered.

I sat in the other chair, “I woke up and you weren’t there, so I came to find you. You scared me half to death, Reid.”

I was looking at you but you wouldn’t look at me. I needed you to look at me.

“Go back to sleep.”

“Only if you come with me.”

I was trying to be funny, but the pit in my stomach was insane. I really felt like I was staring the end in the face. That was the first time I ever saw you like that, completely shut out from me. You were always forthcoming with me, no matter what was going on. Your voice was rough, like you were getting a cold. You cleared your throat.

“I think I want to stay out here a while longer.”

“Okay, then I’ll stay with you.”

“Y/N...” You were warning me, I should’ve listened.

I stood up to walk back inside and I patted your shoulder. I disappeared to get a tub of ice cream and two spoons. We both knew your stomach would hurt afterwards, but we didn’t care. The comfort that binging on ice cream when you’re sad brings is well worth a tummy ache. And even in my half drunk brain fog, I could tell you needed it.”

Spencer chuckled, remembering how you always kept two tubs in the freezer “just in case.” Whenever one of you was having one of those days, the other would grab a tub, and you’d sit in silence and eat. That was back when each other’s company was enough. He still kept one tub in his freezer, hoping in some weird way that you’d be back and the two of you could sit and eat in silence, and somehow that would make it all okay.

“We sat in silence staring at the sky and taking turns grabbing spoonfuls of cookie dough ice cream. It was comfortable, domestic, calm.

“So, are you going to tell me what’s bothering you?”

You shook your head, “Nothing’s bothering me.”

“You only talk to the moon when you’re upset, Spence.”

You sighed, knowing I was right. The ice cream was for bad days, but the moon was for when you needed to think. And think alone. You said staring up at the moon helped you feel grounded; it reminded you how important we are. It always reminded me of how small I am, how I am literally a speck of dust on a planet that’s a slightly bigger speck of dust that’s hurling through time and space. It reminds me of how small we all are in the grand scheme of the universe. Then you’d tell me: “Everything that makes up us is from those stars. We’re literally made of stardust.” Then I’d feel important too, because you made me important. I mattered because I was in this place at this time with you. You’d tell me about the big bang and the million miracles that led to us being here, alive in this moment. You’d say it reminded you how lucky you were that you got to exist in this world with me. I don’t know if I believe in God, Spence, but if there is one I thank him for letting me exist at the same time as you, even if it was only for a finite time.”

He had to remind himself to breathe. How could words suffocate? How could ink take his breath away? Spencer wished it was nighttime, so he could talk to the moon again, so he could feel important again, so he could feel lucky.

“You didn’t answer.

“Was it the case?”

You just nodded slightly, as if to say ‘sort of’.

“This is literally as good as it can go. We got the guy and you brought someone’s baby into the world. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a happier ending.”

“No.”

That’s all you said, and I let the silence fester. We both just kept eating the ice cream. After about fifteen minutes you said, “The world looks different from here.”

“From the balcony? Yeah I guess, the city looks small, tiny ant people.”

You chuckled, “No, like from where I am right now in my life. I just see the world different than I did yesterday.”

“And I’m sure we’ll look at it differently again tomorrow.” I was trying to help, but it was 4:30 in the morning and I was still slightly buzzed. No amount of ice cream or an existential crisis was going to get rid of that.

“I held a human being in my hands as it took its first breaths today, Y/N. I was the first thing he ever saw. I literally held his life in my hands.”

“I know. Maybe you should take up obstetrics.” Another failed attempt at a joke.

“It just made me think.”

“About what?”

“I just, I always thought I wanted kids,” you said it doubtfully and with a shrug. You looked at me in my eyes finally, and wow did it hurt.

“But now I’m not so sure.”

I’m pretty sure my jaw almost dropped. How did delivering a baby make you no longer want a village of kids on Christmas morning? I thought it’d have the opposite effect. I thought it’d ignite your baby fever, like it ignited mine. My heart sank, “Why?”

“I-I don’t know.”

I tried, again, to lighten the mood, “Is it because of the actual birth part? Because I promise I can handle it. No epidurals for me.”

You half smiled, “No, no it’s not that.”“Well then what is it?” I had this dreadful feeling that you were going to tell me that it was me. That I was the reason. That you wanted kids, but you didn’t want them with me.

“How am I supposed to pass on these genes?”

“Your super smart, tall, handsome, magnificent genius genes? C’mon Spence,” I scoffed.

“I meant schizophrenia.”

The air went cold between us.

“You don’t have it though.”

“Having a grandparent with the disease increases your chances of developing it by 5%.”

“Yeah, and I have bad eyesight and terrible allergies and had braces as a kid, which our kids will inherit.”

“You don’t understand what I mean.”

I rolled my eyes, “No, Love, I don’t. But I do know that you can’t be scared of what ifs.”

You ran your hands through your hair, and just groaned. You sighed, but I kept rambling. I blame my loose lips on Rossi. He kept buying, and I kept drinking.

“And there’s so many what ifs. What if they do get schizophrenia? But what if they don’t and you didn’t have kids because you were scared?”

“It’s not just that it’s—”

“It’s what Spencer?”

“I-I didn’t have a dad! I don’t know how to be one.”

We sat in silence. I didn’t know what to say.

“I just don’t think it’s for me anymore.”

I felt tears sting my eyes. If we weren’t on the same page, this conversation was going to end horribly. “

But if you don’t want them then—“ I stopped and shakily wiped my face.

“Then what?” You sounded scared.

I stopped myself from saying something that I’d regret. I wanted to say ‘then I can’t do this.’ Thank god I didn’t.

“I just, I always thought my kids would be your kids too. I don’t think I want to be a parent if you aren’t there with me.”

Your eyes were shining from the tears and the sliver of moon when they met mine, “Really?”“

Yeah, I’ve told you this a million times, love. You will be the best father because you know what it’s like to not have one. You become better than the people before you.”

You dropped the spoon into the almost empty tub, “I know, I know. I just got in my head about it all.”

“Stop thinking about years ahead, Spence. All you have to think about is right now. I know it feels like we’re running out of time, but don’t rush life.”

You smiled watery and I went to sit on your lap. You rubbed your hand against the small of my back and we watched the sun start to rise. We were done talking to the moon. I dragged you inside, the new day’s sun was coming in through the windows.

“Do you really think you’re running out of time?” You asked me, holding me close.

I nodded, “Yeah. I always feel like I am. I thought I’d have two kids and a golden retriever by thirty-one, but I have none of that and I’m getting close to thirty-two. Twenty-four hours just feels shorter and shorter everyday.”

“That’s because each day is a smaller and smaller fraction of our memories. Time feels quicker and quicker every day.”

There you were. There was my love. My you.

I squeezed you, “I know. It’s just scary. I feel like I’m behind.”

“I feel like that a lot too. You know I thought I’d cure schizophrenia by twenty-five?”

I smiled, “Even you can’t do everything, love.”

“Do you want to catch up?”

“How so?”

“We could get a golden retriever.”

I laughed, “Sure, and next you’ll be saying ‘let’s have a baby.’”

You shrugged and swooped me in front of you, “Why not? Me, you, a baby, sounds pretty good.”

You said it as a joke, but it didn’t feel like one. “

You mean that?” I looked up at you and could see that longing in your eyes. You could see it in mine too. Always so pensive, Spencer Reid.

“I didn’t mean like right now, but we can soon. We have to get married first.”

I rolled my eyes, “Who says we need to get married first? JJ and Will didn’t get married until Henry was four. They’re perfect.”

“Henry wasn’t planned.”

“And?”

“And, I’d like to marry you before knocking you up,” you said it like a joke again, peppering me in kisses.

“We don’t need a stupid piece of paper from the government, Love.”

“So you don’t want to marry me?” There was amusement in your voice.

“Oh, I want to marry you. I want to marry you so hard, Spencer Reid.”

We laughed, “I want to marry you so hard too.”

You kissed my forehead, and then my lips before moving away from me.

“So, we both know we want to marry each other and we just agreed to have a baby, like soon?” I clarified.

“Yes. We did. So, what’s stopping us from doing it right now?” You started milling around in the book case, looking for something. “

Don’t you dare get down on one knee right now, Spencer Reid. I told you already, I am not getting engaged without my nails done.”

You smiled, “I wasn’t! I wasn’t! I was just going to put on some music.” You held up a CD, and I smiled. You came back and pulled me close, and we started to sway back and forth. I always wanted to dance in the kitchen with the love of my life. That morning I did.

After the song ended, we went up to bed finally. I remember laying down and kissing you, going to the place we usually went. Afterwards, you held me against your chest again, “Did you mean it?”

I nodded, “Every word.”

You sighed happily, “So did I.”

I looked up at you, grinning, “So does that mean puppy Reid and baby Reid are coming soon?”

You rolled your eyes, “Puppy Reid, I can handle. But baby Reid is after Mrs. Reid. Call me old fashioned, but that’s how I want to do this.”

I toyed with your hair, “I can handle that.”

While I was packing, I found the CD you were rummaging for. I put it on and danced around the kitchen again. It wasn’t the same. ‘Your Song’ by Elton John is a love song, and love songs just hurt when you’re alone. I swayed in the sunlight, imagining you were swaying with me, talking about having a baby and getting married. I miss that feeling. I miss talking to the moon. I miss ice cream. I miss dancing in the kitchen to Elton John. I miss baggy tee shirts. I miss little notes. I miss the way “How wonderful life is when you’re in the world” felt when I was in your arms. I miss late night kissing. I miss the way you feel with me. I miss us. I miss you, but I miss that you.

You’re probably wondering what your souvenir from that night is. I thought about giving you the CD, I thought about giving you some ice cream and a spoon, I even thought about giving you the moon, but I decided on the note. “I love you, love.”

The note was badly wrinkled and his pencil chicken scratch was faded with time. He smiled, remembering the hundreds of notes he probably left you. They always ended in “I love you” with a little doodled heart. He remembered dancing in the sunlight and looking at engagement rings and rescue dogs. He missed you, and not just the version of you from that memory. He missed the version of you from the end. He hated that you didn’t miss that him too.

“I thought going through all of this would bring me some closure, and now that we’re halfway through I realize that was a mistake. Instead of stitching me up, this opened wounds I thought I had long since healed. This brought it all back. I hope this doesn’t do that for you. I hope it’s the period on the end of this run on sentence. I hope this is closure for you. We both need that.”

He took the letter and the note and walked to his bed, flopping on it and staring at the ceiling fan. It was soothing, in a weird way. He fell into a trance.

His phone ringing tried to snap him out of it. He didn’t reach for it and waited until the vibrations died. They came again, and he forced himself to look at it.

JJ.

Great, first Derek, now JJ. He knew they were just being good friends, but it was getting tiring. He wanted to just be alone, and he especially didn’t want to hear from JJ. His relationship with her was a point of contention with you and he didn’t even know. Between what he had just read and the photo from her wedding, all the old feelings he had for her were brought back to the surface and made him feel gross. He now realized the way your face would turn sour whenever he would pick JJ up in a spin and your off remarks when he’d mention going out with her. In hindsight, you were being jealous but somewhat reasonable. Before he met you, he wondered if he was just waiting for an alternate universe where he could be with JJ. One where there was no Will and no bad Redskins date, where he could look at her without it hurting. Now he knew he’d only be waiting for an alternate universe where he could be with you.

The phone buzzed again and he finally decided to grab it and answer.

“Hello?”His voice was groggy and hoarse from not being used.

“Spence? Hey, it’s me, I just wanted to see if you were okay?”

He didn’t answer, eyes still trained on the fan.

She cleared her throat, “I just talked to Derek and...”

“What’d he say?”

“He told me about the letters, little dramatic huh?”

He could hear her roll her eyes. JJ was the sweetest person alive, but when it came to Spencer the claws could come out.

“Yeah, I’m up to number ten,” he kept his voice steady and almost bored, not wanting to reveal anything to her.

“Out of how many?”

“Fifteen.”

Spencer stood up and walked to the window by the chess table.

“How are you doing?”

“Did you know every seven to ten years our cells regenerate completely?” Spencer spoke into the phone, staring out the window. It was mid afternoon by now and the snow had stopped. The cars on the road had ruined the innocent white snow, leaving dark gray slush in their wake.

“Every cell?” JJ said back, the phone making her voice crackly and hard to hear.

“Yeah, skin cells live two to three weeks,” He swallowed thickly, “So the skin she has right now is skin I’ve never touched. Those cells don’t know who I am. My lips are already on the second cycle. They’ve never kissed her. Eventually I’ll have a body that doesn’t recognize hers and she’ll have a body that recognizes someone who isn’t me.”

JJ didn’t speak, just sighed, “You know that isn’t true.”

“It is, Jennifer,” He ran his hands through his hair, “I’m going to be stuck here and she’s going to move on and it’s killing me.” His voice cracked at the end.

“Then don’t think of it as being stuck, think of it as a turning point. You get to choose a direction now. You’re at a crossroads, Spence, you can choose to move on.”

She sounded earnest and he knew she was right, but he couldn’t help the feeling. It’s like he was in quicksand and no one could pull him out.

“Thanks,” he mumbled.

JJ sighed, “Do you want to talk about the letters?”

“No,” he said harsher than he intended, “I just want to finish this and then figure out what I’m supposed to do.”

“Well, if you need any help, you know where to find me.”

He nodded as if she could see him and whispered, “Bye.”

He hung up before she could respond. He threw the phone on the window sill and walked to the bathroom, splashing cold water over his face. He stared at his own reflection in the mirror. It looked foreign. The whites of his eyes were bloodshot, his skin looked pale, and his hair looked like he had just rolled out of bed, which he kind of had. He felt like his whole body was bruised. He toyed with his hair to get it to a tolerable place and sat back down on his bed, grabbing the tenth letter.

part 11!

taglist! (just let me know if you’d like to be added!)

@l0ve-0f-my-life @aperrywilliams @helloniallslovelies @random-ravings @ajwantsapancake @andiebeaword @boiled-onionrings @frnks-stuff @icantevenanymore1 @mellifluouswildbluebells @rottenearly @sammypotato67 @blushingwueen @peaxhyjaes @justanotherfangurlz @juniorgman187 @mbowles23-blog @blameitonthenight21 @goldentournesol

#spencer reid #spencer x you #spencer reid fic #spencer reid smut #spencer #reid #reid x you #reid fic #cm #cm fic #criminal minds #criminal minds fic #mgg #fanfiction #matthew gray gubler

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ambiguoslyambitious · 3 years

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Chapter Three: (Overdue) Introductions PT. I

Author: ambiguoslyambitious (me!)

Rating: Mature

Word Count: 3,839

Summary: Today's the day that Bela will finally make her debut in Pelican Town and meet some of the townspeople. Will she be able to salvage her reputation or has her fresh start already began to expire?

“Wait, so you’re telling me that the townspeople have been trying to welcome me all week?” Bela lowered her eyes in shame, her face reddening once again. Yoba, they must think I’m some stuck up city bitch.

“Unfortunately, yes,” Victor answered reassuringly. “However, none of us knew that you were...hearing impaired.” Victor rubbed the back of his neck, a sheepish look sweeping across his face. Something Mayor Lewis failed to mention. Thanks a lot.

“Oh, Yoba,” Bela shook her head. “The whole town must think that I’m so rude.” So much for a fresh start. Maybe I should just become a hermit. No socialization. Just me and Mother Nature.

“Don’t worry! I’m sure we can clear this all up.” Suddenly, Victor’s dark eyes brightened. “Would you like to accompany me into town? I know that my mother wanted to invite you over to our residence for dinner. I-if you aren’t too busy, that is.” He quickly looked away, cheeks flooded with pink.

“Oh, uh,” Bela also averted her gaze briefly. “T-that would be lovely.” Shit, meeting the mom already.

Victor shot her a sheepish grin. “Splendid! Hopefully, we’ll be able to run into a few of the townspeople and try to salvage your reputation.”

The pair proceeded to exit the farmhouse.

“I must say, Bela,” Victor said, sweeping his gaze across the farm. “You’ve done a magnificent job so far.”

“Thank you,” Bela responded shyly. "I admit, I hadn't realized how much this old farm had gone into ruin." She stared out sadly out towards the other islands she hadn't reached yet, remembering when the farm was bustling with activity. And I still have so much work left to do.

Sensing her sadness, Victor tried to lighten the mood. "You used to visit this farm, right?"

"Yeah," Bela gave a sad smile. "When I was a kid, I used to spend the entire summer here, helping Grandfather tend to the chickens and cows, and watering the crops each morning."

"Sounds like you two were close."

"Not really," Bela admitted. "Summertime was the only time I got to see Grandfather. He and my father weren't very close. The last summer I spent here was ten years ago. Before he got sick and..." Her eyes welled up with tears.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Victor apologized, looking over at her worried. "I don't mean to remind you of such sorrowful things."

"It's fine," Bela offered a half-smile. She brought her gaze up to the bright afternoon sky, taking in the sweet scent of grass and the warm spring breeze. "Not all of my memories of him are sad. I know that there were really great times that are just easy to forget now that he's gone."

This time, Victor was the one to offer a half-smile. "I suppose it is easier to remember the bad times. Remembering the good times forces you to remember how much you miss the ones you've lost."

“HELLO, VICTOR!” called out a frantic, yet cheerful voice. “OH MY YOBA, IS THAT THE NEW FARMER? HI!” A bubbly young woman, adorn in bubblegum pink rushed over to meet them on the dirt path across from the defunct bus stop heading towards town.

“Tabitha, this is Bela.” Victor smiled, knowing that Tabitha was one of the friendliest people in town to meet. She had a habit of making even the grumpiest people smile. Thank Yoba, we've run into Tabitha. She can quickly turn around this somber conversation.

“Hi, Bela! It’s so nice to meet you!” Tabitha giggled, bouncing on the balls of her feet. “My twin brother Theo and I moved here a year ago and run The Stray Café across from the bus stop. Hopefully, you’ll be able to meet him soon, though he isn’t much of a socializer.”

“Hi, Tabitha.” Bela smiled unconsciously, the young woman’s happy energy was infectious.

“Those are cool headphones!” Tabitha said, taking notice of the devices in Bela’s ears. “Listening to any good music?”

Victor quickly glanced over at Bela before responding. “Um, Tabitha. Those aren’t headph-”

“These are actually hearing aids.” Bela interrupted.

Suddenly, Tabitha’s face fell. “I’m so sorry! I hope that I didn’t offend you!” The poor woman looked close to tears. Yoba, how can I be so stupid and insensitive?! Theo always tells me to never assume. I'm sure she hates me now.

“It’s ok!” Bela quickly reassured the young lady. “It’s an honest mistake.”

Tabitha visibly relaxed at Bela's words, letting out a sigh of relief. "Good, I'm glad that I didn't ruin our chances of becoming best friends."

"Hold on," Victor laughed. "Who says that I'm not already Bela's best friend?"

Tabitha rolled her eyes playfully. "I guess then we will all just have to be besties."

Bela let out a laugh, with the pair soon joining in. Maybe meeting the townspeople will go more smoothly than I thought. At least I 've managed to make friends with these two.

"So, besties," Tabitha glanced between Victor and Bela. "Where are you guys headed?"

"I was just bringing Bela into town to meet everyone." Victor responded. "My mother invited her over for dinner and I figured that I would take her to the saloon afterwards."

"That's a good idea. Why don't you guys come with me to Pierre's first?"

"Sure," Victor nodded. Then he looked over at Bela sheepishly. "That is, if it's ok with you."

Bela smiled at them. "Yeah, that's fine. You guys know the town better than me."

_____________________________________________________________

The trio continued their way into town, heading east towards Pierre’s General Store. As they entered the store, Pierre looked up from the catalogue he was reading at the register.

“It’s farmer Bela!” Pierre greets excitedly. “Welcome to Pierre’s! If you’re looking to buy seeds, my shop is the place to go.” Finally, a new customer.

Bela offered a small smile. “Thank you, I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.” Bela’s eyes swung around the small shop, taking note of the tall shelves filled with different kinds of seeds. Small containers held fresh produce with labels containing the names of all the local farms.

“I’ll also purchase whatever produce you make on your farm for a good price.” Pierre’s grin became slightly more forced as he continued making his sales pitch. Hopefully, this city kid will be able to produce crops worth selling. Can't be any worse than anything Andy brings.

“Hopefully, I’ll have something worthy to sell soon.” Bela awkwardly joked. “ Yoba, this guy is intense.

To the right of the counter, a door suddenly slammed open. Pierre rolled his eyes as a purple-headed figure stepped out looking annoyed.

“Really, Abigail?” Pierre glared at her.

Abigail shot back a similarly annoyed look. “What? You know the door gets stuck. It’s not a big deal.”

She dramatically rolled her eyes, walking towards the exit. She shot a quick glance at Victor and nodded, coming to a stop once she laid eyes on the new farmer, eyes narrowing in suspicion.

“Who are you?”

Victor smiled, seemingly unperturbed by the young woman’s rudeness. “Abigail, this is Bela, the new farmer.”

“Hi,” Bela waved awkwardly. Well, she definitely doesn’t like me.

“Oh, I heard someone was moving into that old farm,” Abigail said, looking Bela up and down without meeting her eyes. “A shame, I liked exploring around there.” Without another word, Abigail walked out of the store.

“Ms. Rivers?” called out a small, quiet voice from the right. Bela could barely hear the man even with her hearing aids turned on. She turned to look over and was surprised to see a tall man, with thick glasses and an even thicker moustache. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Harvey Hickey, the local doctor.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Hickey.”

“Please, call me Dr. Harvey.” He offered an awkward smile. “I work, well and live, in the clinic next door with Paul, the town’s optometrist.” Suddenly his ears burned red. “A-as roommates of course!”

Bela just smiled politely. And they were roommates.

“Uh,” Harvey rubbed the back of his head nervously. “Well, um, please, uh, make sure to, uh, schedule your annual check up at, uh, some point. It was, uh, nice to meet you.” He awkwardly made his way up the register, a simple protein bar in hand.

"Well, I've got to pick up some things for the café," Tabitha said with a smile. "I'll see you guys around!"

"You're not coming to the saloon?" Bela furrowed her eyebrows.

"Oh, uh," Tabitha started stammering nervously. "T-that's not, uh, really my scene." I hope Bela doesn't think I'm lame.

"That's fine," Bela replied reassuringly. "Since we're neighbors, I'm sure we'll be seeing each other often. I'll try and visit the café soon."

"Oh, you should! I can't wait to introduce you to my brother!" Tabitha's eyes lit up once again. “Bye. Bela! Bye, Victor!” Tabitha waved goodbye, as she proceeded to gather supplies for the café.

"Well," Victor said, a hint of nervousness creeping into his usually calm voice. "Now it's time to meet my mother."

_____________________________________________________________

Bela and Victor exited the store, making their way east to the Jenkins’ Residence, which happened to be located directly next to Pierre's General Store.

“I told you this would be a short walk.” Victor smiled as they approached the giant, two-story manor which was painted a beautiful shade of robin’s egg blue. Bela’s eyes widened at the vastness of the manor, whose front entrance was guarded by a set of beautiful bronze gates.

Victor pushed the gate open and gestured for Bela to head inside. She followed the ornate crystal path until she reached a set of giant oak doors.

“Allow me.” Victor again held open the door for Bela, who stood in the entryway desperately trying to take in all the grandeur. Directly across from her was a beautiful wooden staircase, hinting that more beauty was yet to be seen. To her left was the living room, adorned in rich red and gold curtains and rugs. To her right, a kitchen with a large mahogany table sat with matching chairs.

“Wow, it’s so beautiful in here.” Bela’s eyes glowed with wonder.

“Why, thank you.” called out a sultry, yet sophisticated voice. An elegantly dressed woman appeared to cascade down the stairs effortlessly. “You must be Ms. Bela Rivers.” The woman extended a hand in greeting, which Bela immediately took.

“Yes, it is nice to meet you, Mrs. Jenkins.” Bela smiled nervously. I can’t believe this is Victor’s mother.

“Please, call me Olivia.” She gave a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. Is this really the same girl who ignored Caroline and Jodi? She seems polite enough.

“Well, Olivia,” Bela said awkwardly. “Thank you for inviting me over. I appreciate your hospitality.”

“Don’t worry, Bela.” Victor chimed in. “My mother loves any opportunity to entertain guests.”

”Well, I wouldn’t want this manor to go to waste!” Olivia gives a dry laugh. “Let’s head over to the kitchen.” She quickly turned on her heels and elegantly strutted away. Victor offered a small smile to Bela before following his mother.

As the pair took their seats, Olivia brought a large platter with a covering on top of it.

“What fine dish have you prepared this time, Mother?”

“Well, since, I heard that our guest used to live in Zuzu City,” Olivia smiled coyly as she lifted the top. “ I decided to prepare pan-seared butterfish over a plate of assorted vegetables from the garden.”

Both Bela and Victor stared at the platter in absolute wonder. The butterfish was a brilliant shade of gold, contrasting the rich greens of the cabbage and lettuce underneath.

“This looks amazing!” Bela exclaimed, remembering the holidays when her mother would prepare this. Her heart tinged with sadness, as her eyes began burning with unshed tears. I need to think about something else.

“Is something troubling you dear?” Olivia asked inquisitively, eyes narrowing as she glanced over the newcomer. She noticed a faint glint emitting from Bela’s ear, eyes widening in realization. She's deaf! That's why no one's been able to get in contact with her. Can't wait to clear that up with the ladies.

“Oh, i-it’s nothing.” Bela offered a flicker of a smile before lowering her gaze.

Olivia shot her son a look, to which Victor responded by shrugging.

“Perhaps,” Victor looked between his mother and Bela. “I should pour us each a glass of wine.”

Olivia nodded, stealing another glance at Bela. “Why don’t you grab some pomegranate wine from the cellar? I’m sure the tartness will compliment the sweetness of the butterfish wonderfully.” The young woman also nodded in agreement. Oh, Victor, please don't leave me alone with your mom. There's just something scary about her.

Victor glanced over at Bela once more. “Of course. I’ll be just a moment.” He gracefully walked away from the table, disappearing down the stairs of the cellar.

“So, Bela,” Olivia clasped her hands together. “What brings you to Pelican Town?”

“Well,” Bela nervously met the older woman’s gaze. “I decided that I wanted a fresh start.” Bela purposely kept her answer vague. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to talk about her parents just yet.

“A fresh start?” Olivia’s gaze hardened. There must be something this girl is running from. Why else would she need a fresh start so young?

“Yes,” Bela responded, meeting her gaze. “I found that life in Zuzu City just wasn’t for me anymore.”

Olivia’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. “But, what about your career? If I’m not mistaken, I heard that you had a very promising job at Joja in their corporate office.”

“I did.” Bela responded. “However, I’ve found the work to be...unfulfilling.”

Olivia’s eyes widened and she leaned back in surprise, a hand raised up against her chest. “Unfulfilling? By Yoba, I spent thirty years working my way to become an accounting manager and accumulating all of this.” She gestured with her hand carelessly.

“Mother,” Victor chided, walking up the stairs from the cellar with a dark red bottle. “Not everyone wants to be a corporate monkey.”

“Didn’t this corporate monkey earn enough to give you a full-ride to one of the finest universities in the entirety of the Ferngill Republic?” Olivia shot back, her tone icy.

“Yes, Mother,” Victor’s tone softened considerably, as he began pouring the wine, “But, money shouldn’t be the only thing you work for.” Why can't she understand that money isn't everything?

“Oh, really?” Olivia retorted, condescendingly taking a sip. “But was it not money that afforded you this life of privilege?”

The room suddenly went silent. Well, this has gotten awkward, Bela thought to herself, her fork lazily moving some of the greens in front of her.

Victor's jaw clenched, struggling to maintain his composure. Why can't my mother just realize that I'm not trying to be ungrateful. I just want to be happy.

"I recently lost my parents," Bela said quietly, interrupting the momentary silence. "A-and I didn't know what to do with myself. One day, I just found this envelope from my grandfather that said that one day I'd be in need of change and that I had this farm for when I needed it."

Victor gently placed a hand on her shoulder, as she fought to keep tears from streaming down her face. "I'm sorry for your loss, Bela."

"I'm sorry." Olivia said, glassy-eyed as well. She quickly grabbed a napkin, dabbing her eyes delicately. "Part of the reason why Victor and I moved to Pelican Town was due to my husband's...passing." Yoba, I should've been more sympathetic instead of interrogating this poor girl. I should've recognized that she was also going through loss.

Victor exchanged a somber look with his mother before looking back over at Bela. He reached over and grabbed his glass, raising it up in a toast. "To new beginnings."

Bela and Olivia followed in suit, each taking a long gulp of wine to help assuage some of the emotional pain caused by their respective grief.

_____________________________________________________________

"Well, that could have gone more smoothly," Victor shook his head as he and Bela left the manor for the saloon.

"It certainly was an interesting dinner," Bela responded gently. The rest of the dinner had been eaten in an awkward silence. "Your mom is a really good cook." And an even better interrogator. Maybe she volunteered part-time at the Zuzu City PD?

"Yeah, well she's usually an even better host." His eyes looked apologetic as they met Bela's. "I'm really sorry for the way dinner turned out. My mother can be...a lot."

Bela gave him a smile, playfully pushing his arm, "Don't even worry about it. I'm already making memories in this town."

Victor pushed open the thick oak door of The Stardrop Saloon, a barrage of sounds and smells overwhelming the new farmer. Bela was hit with the warm, bitter scent of beer as a jaunty folk tune played in the background, accompanied by the sounds of glasses clinking and laughter.

“Why if it isn’t the new farmer, Ms. Bela Rivers,” a kind voice greeted. “Welcome to The Stardrop Saloon! What can I get for ya?”

“Hello, Gus,” Victor smiled, taking a seat at the bar and gesturing for Bela to join him. “Why don’t we just take two glasses of wine to start?” The mustached man glanced over at Bela.

“Uh, yes,” Bela smiled. “Thank you.”

Victor leaned closer and whispered in her ear, his breath warm and gentle, “I hope you don’t mind me ordering for you. I figured you’d want to still be coherent while meeting some more of the townspeople.” He let out a small chuckle as he pulled away.

“What,” Bela teased, as her cheeks turned pink. “You think I can’t handle more than a couple glasses of wine?”

Before he could respond, a perky blue-haired woman arrived back with the two glasses of wine in hand. “Here you go!” She gently placed them before the pair. As Victor reached for his wallet, Emily gently shook her head, “This one’s on the house.”

She turned to face Bela, her blue eyes glowing with kindness. “Hello, Bela, I’m Emily!” Ooh, she has a nice aura. I'm sure we'll be good friends.

Bela smiled. “Nice to meet you.”

“Well, if it isn’t the new farmer,” came a sultry voice from the right of the bar. A beautiful woman slid onto the barstool next to Bela, while Emily placed a glass of wine in front of her.

“Yeah, I’m Bela,” Bela responded, still taking in the woman’s striking appearance. Her face was like a porcelain doll’s, smooth and pale with only a single mole marking her otherwise unblemished skin. Something about her seems familiar, but I can’t put my finger on it.

The woman extended her hand, a mischievous glint in her dark eyes. “Pleasure to meet you. I’m Shiko.”

Bela’s eyes widened in partial recognition. “Shiko? Shiko Takahashi?”

Shiko smiled back dryly. “Ah, so you have heard of me. Makes sense since I heard you’re from the city.”

“What's a model doing here?” Bela’s jaw dropped.

“ Former model,” Shiko flipped her dark locks over her shoulder carelessly. “I decided to retire and live the simple life.” She smiled at Bela, a hint of sadness in her eyes. “Kind of like you, huh?”

Bela returned the smile. “Something like that.”

Victor raised his glass, taking a careful sip before looking over at Bela. “Well, it’s always a pleasure seeing you, Shiko. If you don’t mind, I’d like to introduce Bela to some of my friends.”

The pair got up from their stools, heading over to what appeared to be a game room. Two old school arcade games greeted them at the entrance, where the angsty, purple haired teen was violently shaking the joysticks and shooting out creative combos of curse words.

“Obviously, you’ve already met Abigail.”

The girl shot a dirty look at Bela. “Victor, you done showing the new girl around? I need your help. I can’t get past this damn level.”

Victor rolled his eyes. “I was just bringing BELA over to meet everyone.” Why does Abigail ALWAYS have to be so fucking rude?

Bela gave an awkward smile as Abigail turned her attention back to the game in front of her. What is this girl’s problem with me?

“Bela?” Suddenly, a messy-haired blonde was standing right in front of her, his eyes gleaming with recognition. “Yo, Sebby, it's really her!” His arms quickly enveloped Bela into a tight hug, lifting her off the ground. It took everything in her to not spill any wine as the young man gently rocked her.

When he finally put her down, Bela was overcome with memories of her young self playing at the beach with a pair of blonde and black-haired boys. “Sam?”

His green eyes glowed with happiness. “Wow, I can’t believe it’s been, what, like ten years?” He looked over to the pool table where the raven-haired fellow was still poised with a billiards stick. “Fuck the game, Seb, come over here, it’s our Bela!”

Sebastian flinched when Sam said “our Bela”. Abigail’s head whipped over, shooting a venomous glare at Bela. “What do you mean, ‘our Bela’? I thought she just got here.”

Sam shook his head. “Don’t you remember? Bela used to visit every summer when we were kids.” Suddenly, Sam burst out into laughter.

Abigail’s eyes narrowed defensively, “What’s so funny?”

“Of course you don’t remember,” Sam managed to choke out. “You were too busy being besties with Haley.”

Even Sebastian let out a small laugh as Abigail’s pale face turned beet red. “Whatever, that was a long time ago.”

“Well,” Victor smiled, breaking the awkward tension that was beginning to form. “I hadn’t realized that you already knew each other.”

“Oh, yeah,” Sam smirked mischievously. “Bela and Seb knew each other REALLY well.”

Both Bela and Sebastian flushed red, ears burning hot. Abigail looked over in curiosity, annoyance written all over her face. What the fuck does that mean?

Victor raised an eyebrow quizzically, glancing between the two. “Really?”

“Sam,” Sebastian rolled his eyes, the red refusing to leave his face. “Why do you have to be such an ass?” I bet she doesn't even remember.

Bela looked over at Victor sheepishly. “It was just a middle school fling. We were kids.” I doubt Seb even remembers.

Victor burst out into laughter, while Bela and Sebastian bore similar mortified expressions. Sam joined Victor in laughter, with Abigail continuing to shoot death glares at Bela.

"So," Bela said in an attempt to break the awkwardness. "How've you been, Seb?" Yoba, I don't know what to say to him.

Sebastian avoided Bela's gaze, preferring to maintain eye contact with the wooden floors. "Oh, you know, nothing's new." Dammit Sam! Why'd you have to bring THAT up?

"Seems like there's been quite a few changes since I've been here."

"Yeah," Sebastian nodded, stealing a glance at her. "But, most things are still the same." Like how much I've missed you.

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mari-onberry · 3 years

Text

Face the Music

My gift for @clockworkgalaxies for the @mlsecretsanta exchange!

read on ao3

Adrien didn't mind the feeling of being alone. There was nothing to complicate his life when he was by himself, and he much preferred listening to the voice in his head over the lectures from his dad. Still, his friends were adamant about including him, and spending time with them was what made the loneliness bearable.

So, when Marinette invited him to one of Luka's first gigs at a local café, he looked forward to a reason to get out of the house for a couple of hours. Adrien had heard Luka play before, but this time was much more serious-- he would be playing in front of a fairly large audience, even if they were there to drink coffee. They met beforehand, and although Luka seemed nervous (which was something Adrien rarely saw), Marinette calmed his nerves with a kiss.

Luka noticed Adrien looked nervous as well. “You okay, Adrien?” He asked. “You’re not the one playing, you know.”

It was a joke, and it was a solid attempt at lightening the mood, but it just made Adrien imagine himself on stage with Luka. “I’m okay.” He smiled, and his friends’ smiles back did help a bit. Luka left to get ready after that, and the other two went the other way to sit among the patrons.

“Thanks for inviting me, Marinette.”

She glanced behind her, looking to where Luka had just left to. “Actually, it was Luka’s idea. He said it would help if he had two people he knew cheering him on.”

Adrien was flattered, but he couldn’t help but ask himself ‘why me?’

He sat with Marinette at the front, and Luka couldn't keep his eyes off of her, even as he focused on his playing and singing. Adrien was too busy looking at the floor to see Luka’s stare drift, but he looked up when he felt eyes on him. Luka was seemingly staring right at Adrien, and he didn't look any less in love than when he was looking at his girlfriend. Adrien quickly let his eyes wander anywhere else, but his heartbeat picked up just in time for the music to do the same.

When Luka had a chance, he blew a kiss in their direction. It wasn’t clear if it was directed towards Adrien or Marinette, or both, but Marinette pretended to catch the imaginary kiss, and looked to Adrien as if expecting him to do the same. She laughed it off when he didn't, but shortly after, Adrien feigned illness and left halfway through the set, too confused to stay after and talk things through.

Luckily, Luka wasn't in their class, so he didn't see him the next day. Still, he saw Marinette every day, and she was a reminder that his confusion wasn’t going away. One day, when they were the only two left at study hall, he asked her a question. They were rarely alone these days, so it was his only opportunity. "What do you see in Luka?" He meant it genuinely, but it came off rather passive aggressive, like he was jealous. Really, he was simply comparing notes, but he wasn't good at articulating something so new to him.

Marinette’s initial reaction was to defend Luka, but she could tell Adrien was being well-meaning with the question. So, then she thought seriously about it. "He puts everyone before himself." She knew that was also a weakness of his, but it was truly what she loved about him. "And I love being able to tell what he's feeling when he sings. He's sort of an open book that way." She turned a page in her textbook, although she wasn't paying attention to her homework anymore. "Why? What do you see in him?" She teased, turning the question around on him.

Adrien misunderstood. "Well, like you said, I love his art." Adrien absentmindedly wrote down the next problem from his textbook. "And he treats me just like anybody else." Maybe to someone else, that would be a low standard. But for Adrien, even when it came to Marinette, people tended to treat him like he was perfect. He knew that much wasn't true.

Marinette was staring at him when he looked up, and he realized she had been joking.

"I mean, I think he's good for you, that's all." Adrien was awfully bad at lying, and that wasn’t even a complete lie.

Marinette shook her head, breaking her stare. "No, it's fine, I was just a bit surprised--"

"I'm done with homework, I think I'm going to go home," Adrien said, bailing on her again. He couldn't deal with the pressure, even though his heart hurt from treating her like that. "I'll be back tomorrow." He left her alone to sit with her thoughts, and the one at the front of her mind was the possibility that Adrien Agreste, who she had a crush on since middle school, had feelings for her boyfriend.

━━━━━━━━

He did come back to study hall the next day, but so did three other students. They didn't get time alone together for another week, when Marinette pulled him aside after class, blocking the door on his way out. "Can I talk to you?" She whispered, knowing there could very well be someone listening in while they were in the hallway. "Alone. Can you come over to my house after school? Maybe tell your dad that we have a project, or a test to study for?" In fact, they did have a few things that it wouldn't hurt to study for. She was far too distracted to think about school now, though.

He looked between her and the door. "I have to get to fencing practice."

She frowned. "Afterwards, then? I can wait. I like watching you fence, anyway."

He tried to think of a single reason to turn her down, but the only thing he had was his nerves. "Okay. But you only have a few minutes, my dad gets angry when I take too long getting home."

She nodded. "Of course."

━━━━━━━━

Marinette's heart fluttered when she watched him fence. It was always exciting to her, even when it was just low-stakes practice. She thought back to when she was younger, before she met Luka, when she would watch Adrien as many times a week as she could, hoping he would notice her enough to think of her as something other than a friend. She remembered how she used to feel worry every time he stuttered in his steps, and pride whenever he got a point. She remembered, because she was feeling the same now. Maybe she wasn't completely over him. She was so mesmerized watching him that when he looked over, she smiled wide, in a way he hadn’t seen for years. In that same instance, Adrien was thrown off balance, and the fencer opposite him knocked him down.

"I'm sorry," they said, but Marinette didn't know them. The only other fencer Marinette knew was Kagami, and that didn't seem like something Kagami would do. The fencer helped Adrien up.

"It's okay," he said, knowing it wasn't entirely their fault. "But I think I'll sit out for the rest of practice, is that okay?" They nodded, and Adrien went to sit by Marinette, not without first taking off his gear.

Marinette stared when he got close enough. "Adrien, you look more hurt than you're letting on."

He frowned, confused. "I don't feel hurt." He traced her line of sight to a spot on his forehead, and brought his hand back only to find blood. "Oh." He scrambled to get something to clean up the blood.

She walked with him. "Adrien, I'll help you clean you up. I have a first aid kit in my car."

He followed her out, but he kept a close watch on the clock. If his dad came to pick him up and found that he wasn't at practice, but instead in Marinette's car, it wouldn't end well.

Marinette got out her first aid kid, and took out the bandages, ointment, and cleaning supplies she needed. "Sorry, this might sting," she warned before pressing an alcohol pad to the wound. He winced, but the pain soon subsided. "You know, if you're worried about your dad, you could text him to say you got a ride home early because of your fall." When he didn't seem too keen on that idea, she added, "Even if he got mad about it, that alone wouldn't be bad enough for him to disown you, right?"

Adrien winced again as she put on antibiotic ointment. "You'd be surprised."

She paused her work on his wound to look him in the eye. "Maybe I could talk to him. Tell him we have to study?"

He bit his lip, just the discussion of disobeying making him nervous. "I'll try texting. If I word it right, he might not get too mad. Maybe just a few more hours of piano practice to appease him," he joked, but he really had tried that before. He typed out a message, but his finger hovered over the button.

"You ready for the band-aid?" She asked, slowly peeling the adhesive off the bandage.

He quickly pressed the 'send' button, and then looked back up so she could apply the bandage. Then, Marinette asked him, "Do you have feelings for Luka?" and Adrien was so shocked that he almost ignored it, thinking he was imagining it.

Once the band-aid was on and he could talk without messing with her first aid, he said, "Do I have to answer?"

"Is that a yes?" She leaned over to him, looking over the rest of his face to check for any more bruises or cuts. "I'm not mad if it is. Actually, the opposite. Love is a good thing."

Adrien thought that was a very charitable characterization of the situation. "Yeah, you're right. But it's... confusing. I don't know if it's love, but when I heard him play, it reminded me of two years ago when I was in love with--" as he remembered who he was talking to, he quickly amended his statement, "It reminded me of my feelings for someone else."

"Well, your love for two different people could feel... well, different." She rubbed a spot above his cheek that looked like it had gotten hurt by the floor as well. "Does it hurt here, too?"

He shook his head. "I'm not still bleeding, am I?"

"No." She turned to his hands, which had gotten a bit skinned from Adrien catching himself on the mat. She thought it would be best to clean that as well, but bandages wouldn’t work in this situation. "And if you have any sort of feelings for someone, even if it's not romantic love, you should tell them." She looked up at him again. "You really should." From her perspective, there was no way this could go wrong. Luka was a kind person, and he'd never judge Adrien, even if he didn't reciprocate. And reciprocation wasn't exactly a long shot, either-- Marinette did notice how Luka looked at Adrien during that concert, too.

Adrien swallowed a lump in his throat. "You sure?" Then, when he saw her head rock back and forth in a nod, even though her attention was on his hands, he added, "Could you be there when I do?"

She used another alcohol pad on his right palm first, hoping it wouldn't sting as much this time. "Of course, Adrien. And if you're comfortable with it, I can set up a time for you to meet." She moved on to the other hand.

"How about now?"

She looked up in surprise, searching his face to see if he was serious. "What did your dad say?"

Adrien hadn't checked his phone. He picked it up with the hand Marinette wasn't working on and read a new text. Adrien, we had piano practice planned for this evening. I will pick you up from practice like usual, or there will be consequences. "He said it was fine."

Marinette drove them to Luka's. She was fairly sure he would be there-- he didn't have anything in particular planned that day. Still, her heart skipped a beat when it took him a moment to answer the door. "Marinette, did you lose your key--" he started, then noticed Adrien by her side. "Oh. Come in." He looked like he wanted to ask a few questions, but he opened the door wider so they could enter. Once they were both in, he asked, "What brings you here?" He kept glancing at the bandage on his forehead.

Adrien panicked. Why had he suggested doing this today, without any preparation, or some sort of script, and why had he gone against his father's wishes--

"Adrien?"

Luka's voice made him melt. He looked to Marinette before answering, "I wanted to hear you play." Marinette's face seemed to convey a mix of disappointment and pity.

Luka seemed to know that there was something more important than that going on, but he agreed. "Alright. Follow me, then." They went into his bedroom, where his guitar was sitting in its stand, and as soon as Luka picked it up, he played with the strings. His fingers naturally knew their way around the instrument. Adrien gulped as Luka invited them both to sit with him on the bed. "Want to hear anything in particular?"

Adrien shook his head. "I just want to hear something."

Luka went along with it, improvising as best he could. Adrien loved feeling the vibrations up close, and when Luka started humming along, it was even more beautiful of a sound. Marinette picked her feet off the ground and put them onto the bed, leaning against Luka's right side. Adrien did the same, mirroring her movements on Luka's left. Luka's hums turned to words after a couple minutes, lyrics from either songs he knew by heart or words he wrote himself. But soon, it became obvious he was using his singing to talk to them. "Adrien seems far too nervous for this to be a normal visit." He looked over to Adrien, and sure enough, Adrien was sweating. "You okay, man?"

Adrien sat up, suddenly aware of every inch of his skin that was in contact with Luka. "You’re right, I did come here for something else. It's just taking a bit to work up the courage to say it."

Now in his speaking voice, even as he kept idly strumming the guitar, he said, "You're in love." It was a guess from Adrien's face alone. "In love with Marinette?"

Adrien shook his head. "No, it's not that, you don't have to worry," he said, but as the words came out of his mouth, they felt like lies. "Well, I care for Marinette, of course, but that's not what I'm here for." He hoped that cleared things up enough, but even he wasn't confident about the details of his feelings. "Luka, I really like you."

Luka's eye's widened; he hadn't been expecting that. His fingers froze on the guitar strings, and he stopped playing. "Oh, well, I--" He whipped his head around to look at Marinette, and they had a silent conversation. "You know I'm dating Marinette, right?" Then, his face revealed that he immediately regretted saying that. "I mean, of course you do. And you can't control your feelings like that, anyway," he practically said to himself, trying to talk himself into what he truly wanted to say. "I guess I'm just trying to ask: 'what are you trying to accomplish by telling me?'" He winced at that a bit too; it still came out a bit more aggressive than he wanted it to.

"No, I get what you mean." Adrien tried to make him feel a bit better about his words. He looked to Marinette, still, because she was the one who suggested he do this in the first place.

She got the hint and spoke up. "I... kinda told him to." She smiled innocently at both of them, trying to think of how to explain her thoughts to them. "I just think that he shouldn't have to hide what he's feeling. It doesn't matter what he's trying to accomplish, it's just best. For transparencies' sake."

Luka nodded. "Then, for transparencies' sake, what if I do reciprocate? What do you think of that?"

Marinette looked from Luka to Adrien and back, not realizing who the question was directed at. "Me?" She wasn't aware they wanted her input in this subject, but she supposed that made sense. "I'm fine with it," she started, then tried to get more information out of him. "Are you saying you do reciprocate?" She wondered how this became a conversation between the two of them when Adrien was the one confessing.

Luka hummed in thought, and set down his guitar, not without his fingers strumming the strings once again. "It's hard to say," he stood up and looked at both of them.

Then, there was that look again, that they both recognized from that concert all those days ago. What did it mean? They both wondered.

Luka took a step closer to Marinette, and took her hand. "Marinette, I love you. And you've known this for years." Marinette nodded at him, curious as to where this was going. "But," he said, and Marinette's heart skipped a beat, "This changes everything. If you say you're really okay with it, then..."

He took a step to the right, so he was now in front of Adrien. "I wasn't really sure about my feelings for you, but now that you've spoken up about this, I think I have a way to test it. If you're okay with it, too, Adrien." He leaned forward, their faces getting closer and closer.

Adrien blinked. "I'm sorry, I'm not sure what you mean."

"I want to kiss you," Luka clarified, and Adrien felt as if his heart was on fire. He had never kissed anyone, and now the opportunity was practically falling into his lap. Still, it was hard to say yes with how shaky he was getting.

"Okay," he managed to get out, his pitch getting higher from nerves.

So Luka did kiss him, putting his hand gently on Adrien's cheek before pressing their lips together. Adrien was too nervous to really enjoy it, though, since along with this being his first kiss, Luka was using this to test his feelings. His eyes were still closed when Luka stood up. He didn't want to know Luka's reaction. When he finally did open his eyes, though, Luka was smiling wide. He turned to his girlfriend. "Marinette," he said, which worried Adrien. "Are you really okay with this? Because that was definitely something." He flopped face-up on the bed, hiding his face with his arms.

Marinette leaned over him so she could watch his face as she talked to him. "I'm more than okay with it. I love you, and I love how full of love you are." She was smiling just as widely, and she sat back up to look at Adrien. They stared at each other for a second, now realizing what this changed about their own relationship.

It hadn't really sunk in for Adrien. He didn't really believe this was really happening. Luka had just kissed him, and they were both fine with it. If he had sat there and stayed with them for a few minutes more, he might've had enough time to be fine with this. But his phone buzzed, and his blood went cold, and he stood up abruptly. "I have to go home. I'm sorry." He bolted, walking briskly out of the room. Adrien stopped in the hall, using all his might to try and will himself back inside the room. His phone buzzed again, and he tried to figure out what his father was saying without having to look. He kept walking. He would have to walk home, but he was fine with that.

Adrien finally checked his phone. Five messages from Father. Adrien almost cried. He knew Gabriel was already angry enough for getting a ride from Marinette. If his father ever knew what happened next, he might be disowned. He ignored the texts he got from Marinette and Luka, and wished he could be home already. When he listened to his dad and followed the rules like he usually did, he didn't feel like his heart was in his throat. He convinced himself that was the better option.

Gabriel did yell at him for being late, and for disobeying. Adrien was grounded for a week, and he took this as an opportunity to avoid Marinette. He knew she kept stopping by to bring his work, and Nathalie would bring it into his room every day, but Adrien used every ounce of his willpower to not watch Marinette walk to and from his house. After day three, his father’s anger was only getting worse every day he stayed home sick, so Adrien went to school.

━━━━━━━━

The next time he talked to Marinette was a few days later. She approached him after class, and cornered him so he couldn't run. "Adrien, can we please talk?" He followed her into an empty classroom. "Look, we are so sorry about the other day. Everything happened so fast, and I completely forgot about your dad, I shouldn't have convinced you to--"

"It's okay, Marinette. I just need some time alone, I think. And I have to get to class."

She nodded, trying her best to keep her cool. "Okay. Okay. Just, you know you can talk to me, right? And, if you want to forget what happened, we can do that. We can go back to how things were before. I liked how things were before."

He could tell she had tears in her eyes, even though he did, too. "Yeah. I'll think about it." He left her alone in the classroom, and he didn't see her again all day.

━━━━━━━━

They did go back to being just friends after that, and things went back to the way they were, or as close as they could be. Adrien still remembered it, and longed for it, and wished he could go back to that day and stay. Almost a year later, the next of Luka's concerts he went to was a much bigger venue. In fact, there would be thousands of people there, and he was opening for a pretty well known band. And he asked Adrien to be there with him.

At first, Adrien wasn't planning on going. It would be a lot of familiar feelings being brought up that he wouldn't want to think about. Sure, he was used to hanging out with them again, but mainly with other friends around, so this would be closer to reliving that day than Adrien thought he could handle. Still, he had the day off, and he didn't want to be rude by turning the offer down. And maybe a part of him did want to go and see what would happen.

The night of the concert, he met with Marinette beforehand and she drove him to the venue. They barely talked, and when they did it was about other people. They both knew very well what the other was thinking. Adrien wished he could make himself speak up.

He remembered watching Luka practice before gigs before, but this time was different. He didn't think he had ever seen Luka this nervous before, but as he played a couple notes, his fingers shook. Adrien was a little worried that he wouldn't be able to play.

"Luka, are you okay?" Marinette asked, holding his fingers still between her own. "Do you need something? Aspirin, a drink of water, anything?" Usually, Marinette wouldn’t wait on him like this, but it calmed her nerves to feel somewhat in charge of the situation.

He shook his head. "I could use a kiss."

Adrien's face heated up until he realized Luka was talking about Marinette. Marinette kissed him, shortly and sweetly, and Adrien got the feeling that he couldn't imagine them ever breaking up. He also felt completely invisible, and wanted to keep it that way. Or maybe...

He thought back to that day in Luka's room, and imagined what would have happened if he had stayed. It wasn't the first time he thought about it, but it usually made him too upset to follow through completely. He usually used those thoughts as a way to further his regret, like he deserved it. But now, as he watched the couple love each other, he realized this was exactly where he would have ended up. He would have traveled with them, gone to concerts with them, and listened to Luka play. The only difference would be how he acted. If he had stayed, and they were still together, maybe he would be the one to calm Luka down with a kiss. So, he walked over, pretending that he lived in this imaginary timeline where he didn't make the biggest mistake of his life, and put his hands on Luka’s shoulders, ready to kiss him square on the lips.

This was short-lived, though, because the contact made Adrien realize he was not just imagining this, and was in fact, doing it. He immediately took a few steps back, and everything told him to run. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

Luka stared at him. "Didn't mean to?" He tilted his head, confused. "So you're saying it was an accident?" Adrien saw that Luka's hands were no longer shaking.

Adrien had no good answer for him. "I thought I was somewhere else." He backed away, his body retreating without him.

"Maybe you can stay somewhere else for a little longer?" Marinette asked, approaching him. "And once Luka gets on stage, we can forget it ever happened."

Adrien knew she meant that. So, he asked her something in return. "Can I kiss you, then, Marinette?"

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to hear you say that." She kissed him, and could feel his smile against her lips. "I still love you, Adrien. Always have," she whispered to him, resting her forehead against his. She hoped she would never have to miss this closeness.

Luka seemed a bit jealous, and got a bit closer to them, putting a hand on both of their arms. "I have to go on soon. Wish me luck?" They did wish him luck, both of them fairly sure they knew what he meant. They each kissed him on the cheek, and Adrien took this opportunity to quickly relive that moment a year ago, and kissed him again, melting into the kiss. Even though it lasted only a moment, Adrien tried to make it last a lifetime. A part of him knew this wasn't forever.

"Good luck, Luka," Adrien finally said, knowing they had limited time.

"Not that you need it," Marinette added, teasing, and they both watched him walk on stage. Adrien felt lucky just to be backstage watching him. "You ready, Adrien? I always think it's a lot better from the sidelines." She put her arm around him, and they leaned against each other, similar feelings of love in both of their hearts.

"I'm more than ready."

They watched him perform, and Marinette was right-- it was very fun to watch him from this perspective. Adrien had only ever been in the audience, and now he was one step closer to the stage. He wasn't sure if he would ever feel ready to take that next step, but judging by how much fun Luka seemed to be having, maybe he would have to try it out.

In between songs, Luka started to talk to the audience, introduce his band members and himself, and banter a bit. Marinette enjoyed this part usually, but she had to say a few things to Adrien first. She valued honesty above most things, and if she kept this a secret any longer, it was starting to feel like a lie. "Adrien. I have something to tell you, while we still have some time to ourselves."

Adrien perked his head up, listening attentively. "Okay."

She sighed. "Luka didn't want to tell you this. He wanted one day of things being normal between us. But, I have to tell you: Luka's going on tour. We can't stay in Paris any longer, especially for the next few months. And even after that, we're unsure if we'll ever come back and live here." She hung her head, ashamed that she had kept that from him.

Adrien wasn't hurt at first. He was mostly just stunned. After everything that had just happened, they were going to leave him? He knew that thought was irrational-- of course, they had planned it long before today, but he still felt a bit betrayed. "Really?" He asked, as if bargaining with her.

She closed her eyes to hide her oncoming tears. "I'm sorry, Adrien. Today was supposed to be a goodbye, and then..." She wasn't trying to blame him, but neither of them had suspected him to do anything like that. It was a nice surprise, but it was a bit late. "You could come with us?" She asked, all of a sudden realizing how perfect that would be. It could be a chance for him to get away from his dad, and he wouldn't have to spend any time away from them. "It's just a suggestion, though."

"I'm not sure." He frowned, and as Luka stopped talking, they knew he was preparing for the next song. Unless they were to leave his side, they wouldn't be able to hear each other over the music soon. "I'll think about it." The music started once again, and Adrien let the hum of Luka's guitar fill his ears as he imagined the next few months travelling with them. He couldn't get the thought of how much he regretted last time he turned them down, and he thought he had his answer. Then, he felt his phone buzz with a text.

His father.

Adrien, where are you? Gabriel was the one person Adrien could always tell if he was angry or not, even over text. It wasn't a surprise that he was-- he hadn't exactly explained where he was going that night, and they had to prepare for a show tomorrow. He hesitated answering, but he knew that would only make him more angry.

"I'm sorry, I have to take this," Adrien said over the music, and although Marinette couldn't hear, she understood. He dialed his father's number, and ran outside so he hopefully wouldn't hear the music. He tried not to make any sound himself, not even exhaling in anticipation of his father chewing him out.

"Adrien." Gabriel was stern and concise. "You have a show in the morning. If you don't come home now so we can get ready, you are going to humiliate both of us."

Adrien couldn't care less about humiliation. A sudden wave of confidence washed over him. "You know what, dad? What if I don't want to work under you anymore? I could make a living by myself."

Gabriel audibly laughed at his son. "I could ruin your reputation if you quit, Adrien. You do not want to do that."

Adrien couldn't care less about reputation, either. "I just got asked to tour the world with friends. I don't need you, I don't need this job, and I don't need a good reputation. I don't need to see you ever again, and I hope I don't."

Gabriel paused, regaining composure. "You sound like a petulant child."

Adrien ignored him. "You've never cared about my wellbeing. All you've cared about is the money you make off me. Well, I'm done." Adrien was already storming back towards the stage. "I bet you never even wanted me. You just took care of me to make Mom happy."

Gabriel was quiet for a moment. "Adrien, you know I have connections. You really think your friends will be able to go on that tour if you run away with them?”

His tears felt like they were burning him as they ran down his face. He stopped in his tracks, frozen in place. If he went back inside, he knew they would talk him into running away nonetheless, but he couldn’t do that to them. They needed this tour. Any other decision was just selfish, he told himself. “I’m heading home.”

"Good." Gabriel responded, sounding content. "I know you'll never disobey me like that again, right, Adrien?"

Adrien felt like throwing up, but he headed to his car without a goodbye to the people he loved much more than his dad. "Right."

Marinette and Luka left a few hours later, not having witnessed Adrien leave, but knowing exactly why he had. A part of Luka wanted to chase after him, find him at his house, throw rocks at his window, and sing him a love ballad. Marinette held out hope that things would turn out like a movie, and Adrien would come running after them at the last minute in the airport and buy a ticket for their flight. They both knew these were impossible dreams.

━━━━━━━━

Four years later, Adrien's modelling career had only grown. The same could be said for Luka and his band, but this also meant the two of them grew apart. Both stayed in touch with Marinette, but Adrien only did so through infrequent phone calls and texts.

So, he looked forward to their 5 year reunion. He hadn't seen his friends in years. He talked to them, sure, and Nino would play games with him every week, but it wasn't the same.

Chloe organized the reunion. 5 years ago, that probably would've turned out to be a disaster, and maybe ended in the cancellation of the entire gathering. Now, though, it was rather elegant-- Chloe had talent when it came to party planning.

When Adrien got the call, he stayed on the phone with her for half an hour. He missed the sound of her voice. Really, all they did was catch up, and Adrien stalled until Chloe said she had to grab lunch. The only pertinent information he got out of it was the time, location, and date of the event. That, and Luka would be playing there. The mention of Luka made Adrien's heart pound a bit faster; he hadn't seen him in years, and they hadn’t really left on the best of terms.

His dad gave him the best outfits to wear, making sure that he would represent the company well. Seeing his father's clothes on him all the time was also supposed to remind him to be on his best behavior. He rolled his eyes and headed in, watching all the classmates he recognized walk in after him.

The gym had been transformed into a wide open space for them to talk, though there was still food catered by Chloe on the side. Speaking of Chloe, Adrien found her first, wanting to catch up with someone, and feeling most comfortable talking to her.

"Adrien!" She exclaimed when she saw him, and brought him in for a hug. "How have you been? You're still living in the area, right?" She asked, her chipper attitude dissimilar from how he remembered her from high school.

"Yes, I am. And I've been good." He smiled, though his voice might've given away his lack of enthusiasm.

She didn't catch on, luckily. "You look good. Listen, I'm going to be busy tonight, and you should catch up with everyone. I'll talk to you later?" She asked, and although she phrased it politely, the sentiment was somewhat reminiscent of her younger persona. He pretended he didn't notice, though, and agreed he should socialize with someone else.

He needed to find Nino. He was having trouble, though, since the room had begun filling up even more with people, and it was hard to navigate through the sea of bodies. He made his way into the middle of the room without finding anyone to talk to, and considered giving up and going home. He had made an appearance, at least. That might be enough.

Then, he bumped into someone he definitely recognized, even though her hair was shorter than he remembered, and she had aged gracefully into her twenties.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She said as she turned around to look him in the eye. It only took her a second to realize she hadn't just bumped into a stranger. "Adrien?" He had a hard time reading exactly what her tone of voice meant.

"Marinette." His voice didn't have any trouble giving away his feelings. He absolutely missed her, and didn't care about hiding that fact. They hugged, lingering in the feeling for a few beats too long, until they heard a single chord play on the makeshift stage across the room.

"Oh, Luka's starting," Marinette pointed out, even though it was obvious. She had a hard time quelling her nervousness, despite this being just a high school reunion. Luka had played at venues 100 times this large. There was just something a bit more nerve-wracking about playing in front of people you knew in high school, even for Marinette, who wasn't even the one playing.

Adrien's eyes shot up to the stage, where he saw Luka wielding his guitar as if it was a part of him. He couldn’t help but stare; Luka’s hair had grown to his shoulders (it was now longer than Marinette’s), and it was no longer dyed, now his natural jet black color. They had both changed a lot in four years. He hadn't gone to any of his gigs, or listened to any of his albums, even though he used to love his music. Even back then, it made him tear up to hear the way Luka poured his heart into his music. Now, Adrien wasn't sure how it would affect him, but he knew that watching Luka in his element like that was already making him short of breath. Luka was amazing, and Adrien couldn't imagine a single person in that room who didn't think the same thing.

As the band tuned, Adrien found himself actually getting nervous to hear Luka play; his palms started to sweat, and his legs started to shake. He looked at Marinette, looking for guidance, but simply saw how utterly in love she looked. Her admiration, her anticipation, and nervousness all culminated in a look of pure love as she watched him fiddle with his guitar strings. He was jealous, yes, but he also couldn't get mad at her for it; he felt entirely the same way.

So, Adrien wormed his way through the crowd to get into a hallway before the band could start.

The hallways of the school at night had a certain atmosphere that Adrien enjoyed-- this was only amplified by the sound of the band starting to play muffled by the walls. Adrien preferred that to the inevitably loud sound that he would've heard if he had stayed. He could tell the song was good from where he sat, still, but there was at least now a degree of separation. Plus, he wasn't close enough to Marinette to feel her every movement, which made everything a little less confusing. He closed his eyes and let the muffled music wash over him.

Then, he heard the gym doors open and close, and then footsteps approach. Opening one eye allowed him to see that it was Marinette. "Hey, what'd you leave for? You're missing the best part."

Adrien smiled and opened his eyes to greet her, even though she was the very person he was avoiding. "I like it out here better. There's too many people in there."

She nodded. "Yeah, I understand."

"So, you're not going to watch your boyfriend perform?" Adrien asked, sounded genuinely a bit concerned.

"I've heard it all many times. This isn't exactly his most important concert or anything." She chuckled, and absentmindedly offered her hand for him to hold. It was cold in the hallway, and she was used to seeing him as a friend. It never used to be this weird holding friends' hands. But then he took it, and she shivered. "So I can be here for you. I'm sure Luka would be more than okay with that. He'd do the same."

She had always been good at cheering him up. He smiled. "Thank you, then."

"I know this must be tough, seeing everyone again. It's pretty overwhelming for me, too." She stared at the lockers across from them, thinking about all the kids currently in school who put their books there every day. She wondered how different things were for them. "I haven't seen anyone but Alya and Nino in years." She paused, looking at their clasped hands in her lap before continuing. "I haven't seen you in years."

Even if Marinette hadn’t told him she was in love with him before, he would now just from the way she looked at him in that moment. He knew now, but at the beginning of high school, he was blind to it. He wished he had known-- things would be easier now. If he had known before she even met Luka, maybe... He stopped that thought from occurring. No. He couldn't dwell on the past like that. There was no way to change it now, and Luka didn't deserve that, anyway. "Yeah. I've missed you." He looked her in the eye, which made him suddenly realize how close they were. "I've missed all of you," he added.

Marinette let them sit in silence and listen to the echoing of Luka's music through the halls. "You sure you don't want to listen? Luka's improved a lot in four years."

Adrien had a hard time believing that. Four years ago, Luka's music was already good enough that Adrien counted him among the top musicians he had ever heard, but maybe he was just biased. "I like how it sounds from here."

She nodded. "Yeah, it does sound kind of nice. Maybe I should try listening this way more often." She was joking, but he did have a point. There was something about it that reminded her of the way she would listen to Luka's lone guitar during a talent show his senior year. That same night, he asked her to prom. "But you're okay, right? No one said anything rude tonight or something, did they?" She couldn't imagine who, unless Chloe had invited Lila for some reason.

"No. It's been nice to see everyone, of course, but it just reminds me that it won't ever be like that again."

"Be like what?" Marinette wasn't exactly the most nostalgic about high school. But seeing her friends everyday was pretty great. Now, she had Luka to see every day, so it wasn't lonely. "Oh," she said before he could answer, realizing what he had meant. "I'm sorry."

He breathed out a cynical laugh. "It's okay. This is what I've chosen, and it's really okay." He chose it, but it wasn’t like his other choice was viable. That didn't mean he didn't regret making that choice, though.

Marinette felt like crying. She had been living her life for years now trying not to think about how Adrien might feel. She assumed he'd be fine without her. Adrien was always fine without her in school. "Adrien, I didn't mean to abandon you. I hope you didn't feel like I did, just for moving away."

He shook his head. "Of course not, Marinette. You've never hurt me."

She knew that was a lie, but he probably believed it. "You could always quit your job, and move across the country to be closer to us." Her voice sounded hopeful, but she knew he wouldn't take it seriously.

He laughed. "That would be the dream."

She stood her ground. "No, really. I mean it. Quit your job and leave your dad behind. We can help you until you get another job, it shouldn't be that hard since you're pretty renowned, but even if it is, Luka has more than enough money to support all of us--"

"This is sounding more and more like you want me to move in with you."

She ripped her hand away from his to make the point that she was, in fact, NOT insinuating that. Actually, it didn't sound half bad, but she just meant that he could live near them, and they could help pay for his living expenses, and help him find a job, and-- Okay, maybe she was trying to get him to move in with them. "I'm just saying, you don't have to settle. Even if you have to sleep on our couch, it might be better than working for your dad the rest of your life. If you really are that miserable."

"So you'd let me sleep on your couch?" Adrien asked, his puppy-dog eyes in full effect. She wasn't sure if he was kidding, or pleading, but she would've said 'yes' either way.

The air felt silent, even though they could still hear Luka’s music. “Actually, there’s a reason I left that night. I didn't want to tell you, but I think it’s been long enough,’ Adrien started, not looking her in the eyes.

She sat, brows furrowed, listening attentively.

“My dad threatened to sabotage Luka’s career if I went with you on tour.”

Marinette felt as if her heart stopped. “Adrien, we had no idea.” She thought it over for a moment. That didn't seem that out of the ordinary for Gabriel, all things considered. “But you don’t have to be afraid of that anymore, Luka is famous enough now, not even your dad could hurt him.” She wasn’t at all sure of that, but she wanted to take that chance.

“You have a point.” Adrien didn't know what else to say, and he ran through all the possible outcomes he could think of. Not one of them seemed worth making the same mistake for the third time.

Then, they heard the band stop, and Luka talked indistinctly through the microphone.

"Maybe I should get back in there?" She stood up. Even though she was fairly sure Luka would be fine with her bailing, she still wanted to encourage him after the fact. "Come with me?" She reached her hand out to help him up.

He looked up at her, confused, and his finger twitched, his body deciding to grab her hand before his mind could. "I think I'll stay out here for a few more minutes."

She nodded and left him, but both of them wished there was a third option.

Marinette made her way through the crowd to the stairs that led up to the stage, ready to greet Luka as he finished. He told her he wasn’t quite done with their set, though, and asked where Adrien was. She was hesitant to tell him at first, but she led him into the hall where she had met Adrien before. If he was stepping off stage and making the audience wait like this, it must be for a good reason.

Unfortunately, Adrien was gone when they made it into the hall.

"Luka, have you talked to Adrien at all tonight?" He nodded 'no', and she had guessed as much.

"I was going to ask him to play with me,” he said, holding each of her arms, making her plant her feet firmly on the ground, and looking into her eyes. She really needed to stop pacing, or she would wear a line in the ground.

She nodded, her frown turning to a sideways grin. "That's a good idea. Just keep in mind, I may have suggested he live with us for a while." She escaped his grip and walked back towards the door.

He just laughed. Of course she would do something like that-- they were both dangerously altruistic. Actually, all three of them were. He followed her close behind as they walked to the other side of the hallway. They made their way outside, only to see none other than Adrien, sitting by himself once again. It seemed as if he had wanted to leave, but gave up halfway through. His eyes were a bit red, as if he had been crying and trying to hide that fact.

It was a cold, windy night, and it had only gotten colder as the sun got lower in the sky. Adrien could hear the soft, muffled sounds of Luka's music filling the gym a few rooms away, and he could faint footsteps in the hall. He wasn't sure if it was the music or the cold that made every inch of his skin fill with goosebumps. His body twitched, telling him to go inside, but even being this close to Luka's singing made Adrien miss him. He wished the wind was instead Luka's breath on his skin.

"Adrien," Luka said, as softly as he could. "Are you okay?"

Adrien's head shot up, startled, and he looked at Luka, then Marinette, and back. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"Well, we're already worrying, so it's too late for that." It was Luka that held out his hand for Adrien this time. "Let me help you up, and then we can talk."

Adrien gave in and took Luka's hand. It didn't last long, but the contact sent shocks of electricity through his fingertips and he noticed how Luka's hands were rough and calloused from his guitar. "Thank you." He looked to Marinette. "Both of you. But you really don't have to do this. I think I'll just go home." He was now standing up.

Luka was more than a little hurt, but he understood. "It's okay if you want to leave. I just want you to be happy, Adrien. And I think you could be happier at a new home. Even if that means you have to live with us for a while." Luka hadn't felt this love in a while. It was like his heart felt complete for the first time in years. "We were the first to hurt you, so you have every right to decline."

Adrien turned away from both of them, and his tears made his laugh sound sadder than intended. "How am I going to explain this to my dad?" He still wasn't used to the fact that if he moved out, he wouldn't have to explain anything. He hung his head, but he was still smiling, and he reached behind him for either of them to take his hand. "Alright." He turned around as he said it, and quickly pulled his hand away. "This isn't a promise. It's temporary. Okay? I'll stay on the couch." He laughed a bit.

They nodded, and both reached to grab Adrien's hand, pulling him into a group hug. "Like Luka said, we just want you to be happy." Marinette said into his ear.

“I think I have a good idea for how to help with that,” Luka added. “Do you want to play a song with me?”

He looked a bit surprised. “I thought you were through playing for the night.”

Luka shrugged. “They’re actually still waiting. We can make them wait a bit longer, if you need, or--”

Adrien nodded into their shoulders, and they felt it, along with his tears. "There's no way you've blamed yourselves all this time. It was definitely my fault back then." It's always my fault, isn't it, he thought, thinking back to the worst days of his life.

Luka looked at him, taken aback. "Agree to disagree, then?" He pressed a kiss to Adrien's left cheek, and smiled as he watched Marinette do the same to his right.

Adrien knew, as their hands warmed up his from the cold, that they could be his home. They could even be a better one than he had ever had. He couldn't wait. “Let’s go back inside. I think I’m ready now.”

#mlb #lukadrienette #mari writes #mlss 2k20

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whenihaveyouromione · 3 years

Text

When I Have You - Chapter 19

Read on Fanfiction.net or ao3 if you’d prefer!

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Chapter 19

A few days later came the new year, which was something — Ron felt — every single person in the wizarding world was looking forward to. The year 1998 had been horrid, but with the strike of the clock signalling the start of a new one, many people felt as if they were inhaling a breath of much needed fresh air.

The loss of loved ones, the tragedy of what had happened, was still raw for many, but with every passing day, things became more normal again, and the new year helped with that.

Since Christmas, Ron had found his relationship with Hermione easier than it had ever been. Looking back, he felt that maybe the argument they had, had turned out to be a good thing. Not because he liked fighting with her — he’d never really liked that — but because it had made them appreciate each other just a little bit more.

Hermione had been trying her best not to obsess over her school work as much, or at least, not when Ron was around. During his second visit to Hogsmeade on Valentine’s Day, Ginny had mentioned that they were up to their necks in work, but Hermione had not complained once. In fact, they had spent a really nice day together.

Ron had also tried to be more appreciative of her work ethic and more tolerant of her just needing to get things done before she could relax. Which wasn’t too hard, considering most of their days were spent apart still.

Auror training had taken on a whole new intensity after the holidays, and Ron, Harry and Neville were being pushed to their utmost limits each day. By the time five o’clock came around, they were absolutely wrecked and would fall asleep before seven on most evenings.

Ron had no regrets, though. Despite the hard, long days, he felt he was becoming a better wizard for it.

In the beginning months, he’d spent almost every weekend at the joke shop, assisting George in getting it up and running again. Every time he showed up, George’s mood seemed to lighten just a little bit more, and in March, when he had finally opened up for business, Ron hadn’t seen him happier than when he was greeting all of his customers.

He now had three other staff manning the front, leaving him with plenty of time to continue producing products. He’d enlisted the help of Lee Jordan, though Lee was only doing it on a basis of friendship. He had his own job with the Daily Prophet. It wasn’t the perfect situation, but it was something, and Ron felt pleased to see a smile on his brother’s face again.

The months ticked by in a whirl, and before they knew it, the end of April had snuck up on them (with no sign of Bill and Fleur’s baby, much to Molly’s annoyance), and they were just days away from the start of May.

Ron had not had much time to think about what this meant until a week prior. Kingsley, who despite being Minister now, popped in on Auror training at least three times a week, had announced that there’d be a memorial service at the school on the second. Anyone — current student or ex student — was invited, and he’d cornered Harry on a Friday afternoon — a week before the service.

“Would you be willing to give a short speech on the day?” Kingsley had asked. “Doesn’t have to be anything spectacular. Just… something. They’ll appreciate hearing from you, I think.”

Harry, at first, had not agreed. No one wanted to be reminded of what had happened, of the high number of deaths, not to mention the immense burden of guilt Harry still felt over everything that had happened. A service was going to be hard enough, let alone being forced to relive it through words. But after some more gentle persuasion from the Minister for Magic, Harry seemed to think he had no choice.

“You’re braver than I am, mate,” Ron had said when they left the Ministry that evening, Harry looking rather glum. “Not sure I could do it.”

“Yeah,” Harry had said, “not sure I can either. What do I even say?”

A week later and Harry was still asking that same question.

“It’s just a lot to think about,” Harry sighed on the evening before the service. He sat with Ron in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place, trying to find the words he needed. “I mean, I thought I was alright — training has definitely kept me preoccupied — but now that I actually have to think about it… it’s a lot to take in.”

“Yeah,” Ron said thoughtfully, his mind flashing to Fred, and Remus, and Tonks. “It’s going to be tough. I can’t believe it’s been a year already.”

“It’s been a wave of emotions, that’s for sure,” Harry agreed. “This past year…”

“But it’s had it’s good moments,” Ron added. “I try to think about them, mostly.”

“Yeah, it has.” Harry stared down at the blank parchment in front of him. “I suppose I could start with that. Some good things that have happened despite everything else? I mean, a year without Voldemort — for real — is something people have wanted for a long time, and we’ve finally achieved that.”

“Yeah, but there’s still Death Eaters and other Dark wizards roaming about, isn’t there?” Ron said. “That’s why they still want Aurors.”

“With no one to lead them,” Harry said. He paused. “I could always begin with how great it is to see Hogwarts returned to its full strength. To see people back there, like it once was…” He scribbled a few words on the parchment, gave a loud grunt of frustration, and tossed the quill aside.

“You could always just make it up as you go?” Ron suggested. “I mean, that’s probably what I’d do.”

“Do you want to speak then?” Harry asked, sounding irritated. “If you think you can do it —”

“Merlin, no!” Ron exclaimed. “I’m no good with speaking in front of people. Not in a situation like that. I’ll get all tongue-tied, stumble on my words...”

Harry groaned, smacking his forehead against the table. “Could use some Felix Felicis right now. Just a few drops…”

“Where could you get some from?” Ron asked, thinking that might not be a bad idea. If they both took some, they could probably come up with a ten page speech within the hour.

“Dunno,” Harry said. “Do they sell it at the apothecary in Diagon Alley?”

“I doubt it,” Ron said. “I mean, if they just sold it to anyone… but, you’re not really anyone, are you?”

Harry looked up, smiling. “Ha! I suppose I could go in and ask and they might give me some… but no. I’ll think of something. I’m sure. If Hermione were here…”

“It’d be like the good old days,” Ron said, grinning. “Us leaving something to the last minute, then her being unable to resist the urge to help us… if only she were here…”

“Well, we’ll see her tomorrow,” Harry said, rolling up the parchment. “I think maybe we’ll have dinner and I’ll have another crack at it afterwards. What do you fancy tonight?”

“Mum’s cooking, maybe?” Ron said.

“Have you asked?”

“No, but you know what she’s like,” Ron said, shrugging. “She always overcooks. Come on, or she’ll kick us out.”

“I thought the idea of us living on our own was learning how to fend for ourselves?” Harry said, getting to his feet with Ron.

“Yeah, well, we do most nights,” Ron said.

“Yeah, by buying something,” Harry teased.

“With our own money!”

Harry laughed. “That’s fair. Alright, let’s go.”

But when they got to the Burrow, they found it unusually quiet. It was around the time Ron’s parents usually had dinner, but there was no one in the kitchen, nor, did it seem, anyone was in the house at all.

“Huh,” Ron said, moving to the stairs. “Seems to be no one here. Hello?”

There was a shuffle as one of the bedroom doors opened. A moment later, Arthur appeared at the bottom of the stairs.

“Oh, hello, you two!” he said brightly. “Come for dinner? Well, unfortunately, you’re out of luck.”

“Where’s Mum?” Ron asked, following his dad back into the kitchen.

“At Bill and Fleur’s,” Arthur said.

“Oh, right. Why?”

“Fleur’s having her baby,” Arthur said, grinning. “Bill came by not even an hour ago to tell us. We don’t think it’ll be for a while, though, so I’m not sure when your mother will return.”

“Oh, wow,” Harry said. “I was wondering when that would happen.”

“Yes,” Arthur said, still smiling. “The wait has been rather agonising, but it seems the little one has chosen a very busy time to make her arrival…” He stared thoughtfully at the pots and pans in the sink. “I hear you’re speaking tomorrow, Harry? At the service?”

“Er, yeah,” Harry said, going pink. “I said I would, at least. Finding the right words to say is becoming far more difficult than I thought.”

“I’m sure they’ll come to you, Harry,” Arthur said, patting him on the shoulder. “I couldn’t think of anyone more deserving to speak at such an important and memorable event. A year…”

There was silence. Then Arthur shook his head, and added, “Wouldn’t it be a miracle if this baby made her arrival tomorrow… one year after Fred… well, one year after everything, really?”

“I suppose we’d have something to celebrate then, wouldn’t we?” Ron said, though he wasn’t sure he’d appreciate one of his children being born on such a day. The feelings he’d feel would be extremely conflicting — unsure on whether to feel happy or sad, whether he should be celebrating or grieving. “I hope the baby’s born before midnight, actually,” he added.

Arthur smiled. “Yes, it is rather confusing,” he said. “Anyway, boys, seeing as your purpose for coming hasn’t been successful, is there anything I can send you back with? Ingredients? I could whip something up, perhaps…”

Ron looked to Harry, who seemed lost in thought. His face was screwed up in concentration, as if he couldn’t quite get an idea through his head.

“You alright, mate?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah, I’ve just had an idea about what I might say,” he said. He looked to Arthur. “Thanks, Mr Weasley. We’ll probably head back, though. Get this speech done…”

Ron, feeling mildly disappointed, nodded. His stomach gave a loud rumble, causing his dad and Harry to laugh.

“On second thoughts,” Harry said, “maybe just a quick bite to eat. Then we’ll get started.”

…

The mood at Hogwarts castle on the second of May was not all that different to what it had been like at the funerals almost a year ago. There was a sullen mood around the grounds, people dressed in their finest robes for the occasion, huddled in small groups and whispering amongst themselves.

The service would take place on the Quidditch pitch at eleven o’clock, and despite being half an hour early, the stadium was already half full. It was mostly filled with faces Ron didn’t even recognise, but scattered throughout was the odd familiar one. Slightly to his left was Luna, Cho Chang and some other Ravenclaws he vaguely recalled from his Hogwarts days.

To his right, and up a few tiers, was Lee Jordan, Angelina, Katie, and Alicia. He gave them a small wave, to which they returned without smiles.

But the faces that cheered Ron the most — despite Hermione’s, whom he was sitting beside — were those of Seamus and Dean. It had been a whole year with hardly even laying eyes on them, and it had never occurred to Ron just how much he missed them.

Both of them had taken a year off doing anything — a much needed break after fighting a war, as Seamus had put it. But now, as the first year drew to an end, both had plans to begin their new careers.

“I’m going to get into Healing, I think,” Seamus said.

“Healing?” Ron asked, unable to hide his surprise. “Didn’t take you much for a Healer, mate.”

At this, Seamus looked rather embarrassed. “Well… I didn’t think so either, but over the past year, I’ve really worked with Lavender and her recovery from the werewolf attack. It’s sparked an interest, seeing what Healers can do to help her…”

“How is she doing?” Hermione asked softly. “I’ve heard she’s —”

“She’s alright,” Seamus said with a shrug. “Refused to come to this. Didn’t want to be seen in public, but she’s alright. Speaks in sign language now. I’ve become quite good at it, actually. Understanding it, I mean.”

“Sign language?” Hermione said. “So it’s true? I wasn’t sure if they were just rumours or not…”

“Yeah, she had her throat ripped apart by Greyback,” Seamus said plainly, and Ron felt rather sick at the imagery. He remembered the last time he’d seen Lavender, Greyback over her, her looking close to death. He’d been surprised to hear she’d survived at all, if he was being honest.

“Pretty bad… can’t speak…” Seamus shrugged again, as if it was no issue. “Doesn’t change anything about her, though. She’s been really good about it all, though I think the thought of facing so many of her old friends… she only lets me and Parvati see her.”

“Why you?” Ron asked, unable to help himself. “Are you and her —”

“Dean,” Hermione said quickly, “What about you?”

Dean jumped, apparently startled to hear his name. “Oh. I, um, am starting Auror training.”

“What?” Ron asked. “You serious?”

Dean nodded. “Yeah. The Minister, he’s still kept the requirements relaxed for this year, so I thought why not? I qualify on the grounds of having fought in the war — even though I spent some of it on the run — and I applied and was accepted.”

“That’s great!” Ron said. “You’ll just be a year behind training from me and Harry and Neville. We’ll all be working together in no time.”

Dean grinned. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Will be great seeing you all every day. Any tips for training?”

“Yeah, be prepared not to sleep much,” Ron said. “Oh, and you passed your Apparition test, right?”

Dean nodded.

“Then you’re all good, mate,” Ron said. “Will see you around. Let me know if you need anything.”

“Thanks,” Dean said. “I’ll probably need a lot of advice as it progresses.”

They were interrupted by Kingsley as he announced they’d be beginning the service in a few moments. Once seated and out of earshot of the pair, Ron whispered to Hermione, “Is Seamus —”

“Yes,” Hermione said. She looked at him, appearing slightly irritated. “Does that bother you, does it?”

“No,” Ron said. “I’m just surprised, that’s all. They don’t seem the type… poor bloke.”

Hermione raised an eyebrow, but said nothing more. In fact, she looked rather annoyed that he was asking at all. It wasn’t until a moment later did he realise that maybe she thought he was jealous of the fact that Seamus was dating Lavender, but he had no time to rectify that misunderstanding as Kingsley had just asked for silence.

What had been a semi-pleasant atmosphere prior to the service, immediately turned into a very sullen one. Everyone sat in their seats with their heads bowed, listening to the voices of those who had been asked to speak, along with Harry.

There were students, Ministry workers, Kingsley himself, their words amplifying through the quiet stadium, the only other sound being the quiet sobs from the people around.

Knowing what Hermione was like, Ron cast occasional looks towards her to see if she was okay. She did well, keeping it together until Kingsley stepped up onto the podium on the pitch. He only got a few words in before tears started to fall from her eyes.

Ron reached out his hand, palm up, and she gratefully accepted, locking their fingers together. Her head rested against his shoulder and he patted her comfortingly while she silently sobbed against him.

When Kingsley finished, everyone was left in complete silence. Eyes downcast, staring blankly at hands, buried in the shoulders of loved ones — as Hermione was — but that didn’t stop them all from looking up when the final speaker stepped up.

Despite it being a year, despite Harry having made several appearances at Hogwarts since then, there was still an air of awe amongst the people as they stared in fascination at him. Even Hermione lifted her head, wiping her eyes.

Ron gripped her hand tightly, and she squeezed back. He felt nervous for Harry, knowing how difficult it had been to come up with something to say. They had been up until two o’clock finalising it, and Ron just hoped Harry could get through it.

Harry looked around at everyone, appearing terrified. All eyes were on him, expectantly waiting for him to say something. Ron saw him swallow as he brought his wand to his throat. He gave a loud sigh.

“I am here merely to repeat what everyone else has said,” he began. “To remember. On this day, one year ago, many innocent lives were lost. Many families destroyed, my own included.”

Ron knew it was the wrong moment, but he couldn’t help but smile. My own included. Harry considered Ron’s family his family.

“This isn’t what we wrote last night,” Ron whispered to Hermione.

She shook her head, telling him to be quiet.

“But we remember every single one of them for the bravery they displayed, and how valiantly they all fought,” Harry continued. “And no matter how many years pass, how many times we gather here to remember the fallen, their memories will forever live within us. So, I present to you —” he flicked his wand to a large covered object. The cover fell away, and many gasps filled the stadium, Ron included.

Harry had just revealed the memorial that had been announced shortly after the war, but it was better than Ron could have ever imagined.

A large, stone structure reflected not only the names of every single person who had died, but smiling, flashing pictures of them as well. Even from where he sat, Ron could see Fred’s picture. He turned to Hermione, lost for words. She smiled weakly at him.

“It was my idea,” she whispered. “If you tap your wand on each picture, it will reveal information on each of them. Ginny, Luna and I have been doing it all year, sending off owls to families, researching… I wanted it to be a surprise for you… for your family…”

Ron gazed at her, unable to speak. She turned red.

“It was… well, it was what I was working on last Christmas… why I wanted to stay...” She turned to look back at the memorial. “I thought it would be better than a book, more interesting, more engaging for students to learn from. They could just walk up to it, tap on it, and then read and learn…”

“You. Are. Incredible,” Ron said, realising only now that a loud murmur had overcome the silence that had been there a moment ago. Kingsley had started demonstrating how the memorial worked to many awed gasps.

Hermione flushed. “It was just —”

“Amazing,” Ron said. “Amazing. You…”

“Fred’s memory will always be there now. He’ll live on. Here, and at the Ministry. Everyone will know what he did… as well as Harry’s parents, Remus, Tonks, Sirius… anyone who ever fought.”

“I love you,” was all Ron could manage to say, and she smiled, looking rather embarrassed.

“Come on,” Hermione said, tugging his hand. “Kingsley promised us a first look close up, before anyone else.”

Ron followed her past a stunned audience, and onto the pitch. Ginny was already there, tears in her eyes, along with a handful of other people.

Seeing his sister, and knowing what she must have been feeling, he let go of Hermione’s hand and pulled Ginny into a tight hug. She hugged him back, shaking against him.

“You should have said something,” he said, pulling away from her after a moment.

“It was going to be a surprise,” Ginny replied softly, wiping away her tears. “But because Mum and Dad and Bill couldn’t make it, Charlie and Percy had to work, George… well, George couldn’t come…” She turned her head to the monument just as Harry came over to them. “It’s so much better than I imagined it. So much magic went into it, too. All Hermione, of course. She’ll get an Outstanding in her NEWT in Charms.”

“You and Luna and McGonagall and Flitwick all helped equally,” Hermione said.

Ron looked to Harry, who was gazing up at the structure in awe. His eyes were fixed firmly on the pictures of his parents.

“You kept this a secret,” Ron said.

Harry shook his head, his eyes still on his parents. “I had no idea until just before the service,” Harry said. “Kingsley told me…”

“Go on,” Ginny whispered, nudging Harry forward. “You go first.”

"Me?" Harry asked, looking uncertain.

"No one more deserving," Ron said.

Looking bewildered, and a little apprehensive, Harry stepped forward to the monument, where the smiling faces of all those who'd died flashed at them. Drawing his wand, Harry tapped it against his mother's name and immediately everyone else disappeared to reveal a whole section on just Lily.

Harry gasped, stepping back. His eyes scanned the paragraphs written about her life, her involvement in the first war, her death… more pictures appeared, revealing her life at school, her life with James and Harry, in the Order…

"Ginny," Harry said, turning to her. "Thank you."

It was Ginny's turn to blush — a very rare occurrence. But Ron couldn't blame her; Harry was staring at her with such deep intensity that even Ron had to look away.

"It was all Hermione, really…" she mumbled.

"Stop being modest!" Hermione said, sounding frustrated.

Harry tapped his wand again, the monument going back to all the names. He tapped his father and the same thing happened.

More people were beginning to file down onto the pitch in curious whispers, desperate to have a closer look at this new kind of magic.

"How did this idea come to you anyway?" Ron asked Hermione as they watched Harry now flick through Sirius and Tonks and Remus’ information.

"Well, Muggle technology, really," Hermione said. "In computer games, and things like that, you have selection screens… options… it's a bit like that."

"Oh… cool," Ron said.

Once done, Harry stepped aside and turned to Ron and Ginny. “Go on,” he said to them. “Your turn.”

Ron looked to his sister and saw the same apprehension on her face that he felt. What would they see once they tapped on Fred?

“Come on,” Ginny said in a hushed tone. “Come and see it. For our family.”

Ron nodded, swallowing a hard lump in his throat. They stepped forward together, and it was Ginny who drew her wand and tapped Fred’s name on the monument. Like it had done with all the others, information about Fred immediately popped up, flashing pictures of him as a child, as a teen, and then of him as a young adult. There was a lot of information about him, probably helped by Ginny who could share a lot more than most.

They stood reading it together, Harry and Hermione a little way behind them. Then, once finished, Ginny sniffed.

“Oh, I wish Mum and Dad were here to see this.”

“They’ll see it,” Ron said, throwing an arm across her shoulder. “One day. If not this one, the Ministry one, right?”

Ginny nodded, wiping away a few stray tears.

“Come on,” Ron said, turning around and stepping away as other eager people moved in around them, keen to get a closer look. “Let’s go back up to the castle. I think I’ve had enough for today.”

Ron and Ginny, along with Harry and Hermione, began to slowly walk back up. Others were also trickling up, with others walking towards Hogsmeade so as to Apparate. It had only been a little over an hour since the service had started, but it had been emotionally and mentally draining, being forced to relive such an awful event. Ron felt as if he could sleep a whole day away after it.

“Do you think they’ll do it every year?” Hermione asked once they reached the Entrance Hall.

“They should,” Ron said. “Always need to remember that kind of thing, don’t we?”

The others nodded.

“It’ll hopefully get easier as the years go on,” Harry said. “Easier to handle.”

“This day will always be remembered,” Hermione said.

“Ah, Ginny, Ron…”

Everyone turned to find McGonagall hurrying into the hall behind some students. Despite what had just taken place, she had a smile on her face. “I have just had word from your father.”

Ginny gasped. “Did Fleur —?”

“Congratulations,” McGonagall said. “You have a niece. Victoire Weasley, so I am told. Born at eleven-thirteen this morning.”

“Victoire…” Ginny said, saying the name a few times. She smiled. “I like it.”

“Yeah…” Ron said, turning to Hermione who beamed up at him.

“Congratulations,” she said, taking a step closer to him and kissing his cheek. “You’re now Uncle Ron.”

“Er… thanks.” The name sounded weird to Ron, like it didn’t quite fit him. Though, he supposed he’d get used to it. With six other siblings, he supposed this baby — Victoire — wouldn’t be the last.

“Come on,” Ginny said after a moment. “Let’s get something to eat. Maybe Mum and Dad might come and join us soon. Give us some details about baby Victoire.” She wandered off towards the Great Hall, Harry following her.

“You okay?” Hermione asked, looking up at Ron.

“Yeah,” Ron said. “Yeah, I’m okay.” He smiled at her, then kissed her. “Just a lot to take, isn’t it? And now with the baby — Victoire — being born today…”

“You’ll have a reason to remember, to grieve, and now to celebrate,” Hermione said softly. She smiled. “Come on, let’s find a place to sit before everyone else comes in. Just in case your parents do show up.”

Ron nodded, and as the crowd entering the castle thickened, they made their way towards the Great Hall, joining Harry and Ginny at the end of one of the long tables and helping themselves to the feast that had been prepared for everyone attending the service.

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alias-b · 4 years

Text

sins of my youth. 012

Billy Hargrove x OC! Evie Fenny~ Also posted to my AO3

Summary: It was common knowledge that Billy Hargrove hated Hawkins. Hated Cherry Lane. Even loathed the strange girl next door. Evie Fenny wasn’t too fond of the chaotic Cali transfer either. An awful high school tradition sparks a chain of events that changes everything, ultimately bringing two frayed souls together.

A/N: Hey all! Billy and Evie continue their strange mating ritual. TW: Mentions of past abuse and student/teacher relationship. Heavy petting. SMUT. Phone sex. ;)

TAG LIST OPEN. Chat with me if you have the time xoxo

Chapter 12: Cupid and Psyche

Evie groaned the next time she woke.

Pain blared like the morning sun streaming on her face. Flames licking supple cheeks.

Billy gone in the bed upon turning over.

His scent apparent all over her damn sheets. Seeped into the pillows. Aramis. Hairspray. Paco Rabanne Pour Homme. Evie wondered if Billy liked to leave parts of himself where he goes. An impression similar to hands in wet concrete.

Sometimes a warm body pressed up against you was the only thing reminding you that you were here.

She curled around his pillow to inhale. Felt butterflies flutter her stomach. Landing on delicate organs to decorate them in jewel toned wings. Iridescent glows that washed harsh reds away.

Evie wondered what it would be like to crystallize. Utterly.

Feet touched the floor to leave such fantasies aside. Those butterflies decayed upon seeing her face in the mirror. Hissing, fingertips gingerly touched the skin on fire. Upset welts around her puffy eye. Lungs gave a shudder before Evie was scrambling to replace the emptiness.

Needy fingers went for her drawer and pulled out a box labeled “FB + EF.” Pushed all the way in back hidden under sheer and lacy panties. Hands clicked around the little pieces of jewelry she wasn’t able to wear in the open until she lifted a brooch to the light. A sparkling ladybug.

Fredrick got for her during the first month of that magical summer. They went to some dirty adult party three cities away where people in their twenties and thirties were doing cocaine out in the open. Evie shared a tab of acid with Fredrick that unlocked her entire psyche. Draped herself into him to watch colors spin along the TV. Felt his hand palm her breast before they found a room.

“Do you think I’m fat?” Evie asked between kisses, coming down from her trip and sweltering with heat. Trembling too hard.

“What?” He actually laughed into her mouth, came out and pulled her body flush. “You’re not fat, love, you’re so beautiful.”

At the time, Evie wasn’t sure how that answer made her feel worse.

But, the lady bug pin was now scuttling into her stomach. She nearly broke the drawer with her clenched fists pushing it down.

Exhale.

Oh, how she moaned like a wanting slut that night. Rode Fredrick hard and turned over afterward for him. Started to cry when he tried to take her home afterwards because she didn’t want to go.

Didn't want the dreaming to end. She wanted to stay wrapped up in him forever.

It was their first fight. He screamed she was being a child and manipulating him. They both shouted about telling her mother the truth.

Evie really started to sob that she hated him and he just held her wrists and kissed her deeply. Softened suddenly as she fell into his arms. Told her she was too pretty to be so upset. That she had a hold on him. That he was starting to fall deeply and madly in love with her.

And that made her feel like a god.

They ended up back at his place. Evie got home the next day to Mona hiding her pack of smokes behind a picture of Dolly Parton. Not asking where her daughter had been all night. Just said to get ready for her next talent show.

Hungover, Evie still won the prize money that went into some new clothes, her future fund, and fresh paint for the salon. Talent scouts cooed to keep growing.

“Evie!” A knock startled her daydreams. The drawer smacked shut. Heather poked her face in and frowned. “Oh, honey...you need some more ice on that. We made pancakes.”

“We?”

“Steve and I. Billy went home to shower, he had to give Max a ride somewhere. Come on, eat some breakfast.”

Evie changed, rubbing her throat on the way out. Steve blinked at her and tried not to wince.

“I know it’s not pretty.” Evie pressed her lips.

“You saw me after Hargrove kicked my ass.” Steve reached over the little island counter to give her chin this encouraging tap. Darling smile curling. Heather put a big plate down so Evie slid onto a stool.

“Thanks, sorry I passed out last night.”

“Ice cream will be a good pick me up later.” Heather kissed Evie’s good side. “Want us to stick around today?”

“Ah, we can hang out tonight. I gotta clean up and I wanted to go talk to Billy about something.” Evie took a bite and sighed. Steve and Heather exchanged looks. “Nothing happened. Perverts.”

A beat before laughter erupted. It felt so needed this hour

** ** **

Evie tried to use makeup to cover the easier welts. Felt useless with her eye socket the size and color of Jupiter. A huff before she flicked a brush aside and stood. She left Blue on the couch before venturing out. Frost and slush marked the unforgiving winter outside. Evie had waited until Neil’s car left and crossed over. Knocked.

Susan poked her head out.

“Oh, Evie, I... Dear, what happened?” Susan’s wedding ring caught the light as she touched her lips with worry. Red hair piled up upon her head and a sea foam sweater dress.

“I slipped on the ice.” Lashes batted. “Sorry, I caught you in the middle of something.”

“No, I was unpacking the last few boxes in our garage. Shifting some furniture. Think we’re finally moved in. I was just going to change and catch the bus, our shelves are bare.” Susan held the door back.

“I was here to see Billy, is he…?” Evie trailed off when she heard it. The blasting music from the farthest bedroom. Shut tight.

“Yes, in his room. Evie, he’s… He’s in a mood and might not come out.”

“A mood?” Evie studied the woman. Thin hands clasping so hard that they paled.

“Maybe a friendly face will be good.” Susan decided, not convinced but too polite to turn Evie away now. “Go on ahead.”

It appeared Max was out with friends. Susan disappeared into the kitchen after gesturing so Evie crossed down the hallway. Knocked and wasn’t heard. Pounded harder.

“I’m busy, Susan!” Came the bark.

“Not Susan.” Evie shot right back. There was a curse before some scrambling and the door yanked open. Billy in a white tank tucked into some jeans with grey socks. Lax. Chain shifting as he breathed. “You look real busy.”

Eyes screwed up at her. Seemingly irritated.

“What are you doing here?”

“You left, I just...wanted to hang out. Talk, I mean.” Her feet shuffled before she matched his taller posture. Chin lifting.

“Getting clingy on me.”

“As if you have any business talking about that.” She joked, arms crossing.

“I spent the night in your bed. We shot the shit, I’m not your boyfriend.” His clipped tone etched some surprise over Evie’s face.

“Okay, asshole, when and where did I ask if you wanted to be my damn boyfriend? You going to ease up a little bit? I don’t need that.” Evie flared and he sucked in his cheeks before pulling her into his room and shutting the door. “The fuck is your problem all the sudden?”

Billy had gone to turn the music down a bit, head craning to see her pressed into his door. One of his hands was idly rubbing his ribs. Some of their anger died. A tense expression crossed his face.

Evie realized she’d never really seen the inside of his room. Smelled like Billy. Smoke, hairspray, and cologne. Random plates and beer cans with smashed cigarette buds. A little vanity made of crates. Near empty shelves. Weights laying round. Laundry mostly in a basket propped up in the corner. Curtains that were really clipped up sheets. Something somber about it all. Like nothing was his. Like he had to make the space livable. Bearable.

“I don’t plan for guests.” He plucked up a pack of cigarettes.

“Bullshit, I see girls climbing in and out of your window.” Evie lightened the tension. Billy hitched as if he might chuckle. Felt guilty instead.

“Well, help yourself to a seat.” Billy kicked back into a beaten brown couch so Evie nudged her shoes aside and joined him on the other end. “Well?” He lit himself a smoke and scratched his chin, eyes on the window.

“About last night, that stuff I said...”

“Weren’t drunk so you can’t take it back.” The white hot cherry pointed to her.

“I’m just saying," Evie gestured at air, "it was a lot.”

“Me beating the fuck out of our second period teacher was a lot.” Billy got his cigarette snatched before he plucked it back. “Think of your pretty voice, yeah?”

Evie pouted, made this rumbling sound at him before she sat back.

It clicked in Billy’s head.

“You’re looking to drown your sorrows. Finally something I can really help with.” Billy reached over the couch and came up with a bottle of amber liquid. There was an unmistakable sound of the front door closing, signalling Susan had left.

“Heather and Steve wouldn’t approve.” Evie took the bottle anyways. Gulped.

“Easy, jesus.” Billy drank after. One quick swig. Watched her bring her legs up to cross them. Leggings and a thick, violet sweater with wool socks. Curls spilling. “Small drinks, don’t be an idiot.”

“Strong words from you.” She sipped that time. Savored the woody burn as it went down.

“Don’t I know it?” He puffed. Evie offered him the bottle and sighed, relaxing before she spoke.

“Did Fredrick cry when you hit him?”

“Like a bitch.” Billy exhaled smoke. “Drove past his place after I dropped Max off at her friend’s. Cleared the fuck out.”

“Oh.” It still ached. This person who touched her life was suddenly gone. Maybe never to return. Like her father. It should have been a fucking comfort and instead everything ugly swimming under Evie’s skin pushed to the surface.

“Did you like it?” A whisper.

“I always do.” He spoke, drank about it. Evie thought back to leveling Tannen’s face. Silently agreed. Wondered when he would break his chains to get revenge.

“Do you think I’m fat?” Her tone droned next.

“Why are you asking me stupid questions, Evie?” Billy’s cigarette was hanging lazily from his lips. Bold, crystalline eyes appeared bored at her as an arm came up on the couch. She blinked at him.

Evie liked that reply. She was fat. She was pretty, too. She hoped. They can coexist. Billy could just be crass about it. Obscene.

She enjoyed that about him, too. Even if she wouldn't admit it.

“Do you think about fucking me when you masturbate?” She said in the same controlled tone.

Billy choked, almost inhaling his lit stick, and spit it on the floor. Still coughing, his head snapped with bulging eyes. Stepping on the cigarette to kick it under the beaten sofa.

Pride swelled.

“What the fuck, Evie?” He set the liquor aside. Evie was on her feet lightning quick so he got up also. Just as quick. “Hey, why’d you come here?”

She had the door open when his palm smacked it shut. Evie spun there, pressed between him and the wood. Billy breathing into her space. One arm still outstretched. Too intent.

Evie thought for a moment, she heard his pulse begin to race.

Her heavy eyes flashed at him. Waiting there for something to crack.

And then trembling fingers dipped and clicked the lock on the doorknob without breaking eye contact.

This shrewd look crossed his eyes. Filled his whole expression with neon light.

God damn, he was just too beautiful. Stunning like ethereal Cupid about to revive Psyche with true love's kiss after their trials. Wings unfurling all delicate and feathery. They both crystallized.

“I should go.” Evie said without trying. Not moving an inch. Billy dropped his arms and stepped back to see her. Flicking his eyes before he let his light burn. Leaned forward and bit the inside of his cheek. A rasp.

“Take your fucking clothes off.”

Evie threw herself at him.

Knocked Billy back into the bed while their lips collided. The boy caught fire. He pushed her to turn them over. Already shoving between her legs. So hard, he figured he might blow his load right there. Evie’s lips on his neck made it worse. Made him moan until his leg shook like a dog’s would.

Yeah, it had been awhile.

“Fuck.” Billy pulled up, left Evie pawing for him. Fingers under her sweater to yank.

“Wait.” Evie gasped out so he stopped. All her fervor hid under the bed. Unable to meet those eyes.

“What?” Billy sat back on his knees. “Scared I won’t like what I see?”

“It’s too bright in here.” She turned to let the sheets fall over the blinds. Went for the other.

“Leave some light. Wanna see you.” Billy batted his lashes as he said that. Made her melt. Quickly, he pulled his own shirt off. Flashed the reason for all this anger earlier. Splotchy bruises along his ribs where Neil’s knuckles pushed in for whatever reason he picked that morning.

Evie paused to see them. Saw Billy’s rock hard chest sink in. Reached out and got her wrist snatched. Gentle as can be.

“Don’t worry about it.” His eyes averted.

“Don’t worry about mine.” Evie asked so Billy cupped her face and pushed her back into the sheets. She paused only to sit up and remove her top. Covered in fracturing rosy marks across fleshy curves. Before she had a chance to get insecure, Billy cut in.

“Leggings, too.” He winked, snapping the fabric. She scowled instead.

“You first.” Evie undid the loop of his belt, teeth tugging at her bottom lip as she did. Billy felt himself shudder. Stood up so she followed.

They stared at each other. Didn’t touch and undressed there in the too soft lights down to their underwear.

Billy’s eyes followed the swell of her breasts. Everything about Evie was plush. Dark curls hung over her shoulders. Really looked like a twisting goddess from a painting. She had her hands in front of her stomach and dropped them when he crossed. Inching her back into the wall.

A hand cupped her jaw before their lips opened. Arms went around his shoulders. Unafraid that he was looking at her in daylight.

Alive. Both of them felt alive.

Billy pressed further, let their bodies melt together. Tested how she felt against him. Flesh on flesh.

Several sensations erupted the moment his mouth was on her neck. Clouds bursting with rain. Fireworks splashing the night sky. Petals unfurled within Evie’s stomach. Gemstones grew out to crystallize. She wondered how pretty she’d be if Billy took a chisel to her flesh. Cracked the shell open. She ran her hands over his arms and felt the soft hairs there. Pulled him even in closer.

Fingers slid one bra strap down. Evie coaxed him further with digits woven into golden curls. Maybe Billy had a point about her being molten because she was about to spill hot between his fingers.

He came up. Moaned into her mouth. Palms gripping at flesh. Like he had to feel all of her at once. Evie bit her lip, neck craning back so he could inch lower again.

Billy Hargrove is about to fuck me, she could have giggled, and I’m going to fuck him hard and thoughtlessly.

She hitched a gasp just as his fingertips inched into cotton panties. Got ready to pull him back into bed.

Billy’s head lifted. The earring dangled almost violently when a door slammed. Evie’s dreams were sent scattering before they frozen together. Marble.

Water pouring over red hot iron to elicit the tempering sizzle.

“Fuck.” Billy recognized the sound. “Fuck. My dad.” He kept saying, pushing Evie’s clothing at her. “You need to go. Out the window.”

“What?” Evie barely had time to get dressed while he helped her. Both of them bursting at the seams. Billy yanked his jeans up and got the window open. Guided Evie over it as she was still forcing her sweater on.

“Billy!” Came a bark at the front of the house. Stomping followed. Evie plopped into the snowy grass with a groan as Billy dropped her shoes into her lap. Evie scrambled back up around the back of her house. Slammed the door and fell back against it like she had to hide too.

Lungs sputtered.

“What the fuck?” Her cheeks were an obscene cherry shade. She felt Billy all over her. Ached all between her thighs even in wet clothing. Huffed because she was unfucked and her sweater was inside out. “Shit.” Evie scrambled to her bedroom. Blue scuttled out to a food dish as Evie jerked the curtain open. Couldn’t see anything in Billy’s room.

Her phone rang.

“Yes?” A cry into the receiver.

“Cute that you worried for me.” Cool and even. Almost macho.

She puffed, sinking.

“Shut up.”

“Guess my dad’s beer run wasn’t as long as I thought.” Billy blew air out his lips. “Was hoping he’d be working today. They cut his hours down this week for some reason. Made him real fucking happy.”

“Come over here.”

“No, I’m locked in for playing my music too loud and for being disrespectful this morning. Gotta wait till later, he’ll get drunk enough and forget.” Billy reclined on his bed. Something horrible there because he was used to this. Music was playing softer behind him. Mingling with Neil in the living room watching some show play on. “You’re...intense.” His blase attitude and joke almost set Evie at ease. She fell into bed, eyes rolling.

“Uh. So, are you." A beat. "...Were you surprised?”

“Yeah, actually. I had you figured for a shy, little birdie.”

“Everyone thinks that about me. I sing and dance. I like sex and stage lights. I get mad. I’m not shy. Maybe at times about my...but, I get over it. Women can be as intense as men in the sack, you know?” Evie sounded insulted.

“Don’t worry, I’m a quick learner.” He’d mused. “Learning new things about you every day.”

Evie couldn’t explain why that made her blush. Hard. The silky timbre of his voice lulling her into genuine security.

“Learned that I can make out your accent more when you’re sleepy, on the phone, and in lust.”

“In lust? Shut up.” She mocked. “Don’t have an accent. You probably can’t even tell the uptown and downtown accents apart in N'awlins.” Ah shit. Billy found that hilarious as Evie cringed.

“That so, N'awlins?” Billy countered. “Just say the word, bayou, for me.”

“...That’s a hard pass. Are all Cali boys this insufferable?” She rolled over to swing her legs up.

“We are, actually. But, I am the prettiest.” His smile dazzled with no one to admire it. Evie saw it in her mind and wanted to just toss him over town.

“I’ll give you that for admitting it.” A breath followed. Evie toyed with one of her curls. Tugged. “I had you all shaky there.” His tongue clicked.

“No idea what you mean.” That cheekiness she enjoyed dripped from his rich tone. “Bummed, I was this close to seeing your tits.”

“They’ll be the same later. I think. I don’t know, I always thought they were shaped funny.” Brown eyes turned to the ceiling as she rolled back. one arm behind her head.

“Later, she says. Huh. And I’ll be the judge of that. I’m a professional and I’m not picky. Any shape is good, I’m in this for the taste.”

“Sleaze.” Evie pouted and a chuckle sounded. Billy sighed. "How'd you get my number, by the way?"

"Begged it from Heather on my way out. I can be smooth." He said. “You really want me over tonight? Steve and Heather won’t approve, am I right?”

She let out an aggravated sigh and Billy smiled again to himself. Imagined that scrunchy pout she liked to make. Fingers tapping his bare stomach.

“I mean, we can…hang out. Nothing wrong with that.”

“Like you came over just now to hang out, chica?”

“I didn’t come over just for that.”

“Sure. As if you also didn’t wet your blue panties for me.”

“You’re so gross.” Evie rubbed her legs together. Remembered his hands worshiping her flesh. Her flesh that she was conditioned to hate. Adjusted the phone and licked her lips. “Don’t make me regret this.”

“I’m just saying we can easily pick up where we left off, Evie.” The name rolled sinfully from his tongue. She swallowed. Flashes of Billy across her brain. His peachy tanned skin. His gold curls. His lips kissing her.

“Remind me where that was? Landed pretty hard there when you pushed me out the window.”

“Shit, yeah. About that-”

“I get it.” Evie didn’t need to make him explain. “I didn’t land on my head. Still raw from…” Where Fredrick tossed her into the wall. They both went silent. Just listened to each other breathe. Evie gave this dreamy sigh. “I like...your arm hair and I like the way you smell.”

He laughed.

"You're a funny girl, Evie."

"It's just...that intensity you have, I don't know. You are pretty." She rubbed her face. "I don't know what I'm saying."

“Your perfume goes right to my dick. You know that, too.” His joke lightened them both again. Evie rolled her eyes. “Explains why you practically crawl into my skin at night.” Billy remembered suddenly that he’d spent two nights with Evie and hadn’t screwed her. That was a rarity.

“You snore a little. Couple of grunts. Sorta adorable.”

“Don’t even get my started on how dead silent you get.” Billy’s eyes trailed over his room. He could still smell her honey amber scent lingering. Hummed into the pillow. Obsession by Calvin Klein. Odd scent for a teen, but matching him in intensity and she wore it so subtly. All they could do was battle and weave together. Obsession and Aramis. This strange dance he was thrilled to continue.

“Never answered my question.”

“Already forgot it. Was it where we left off or what I’d do to you next?” Lips curled as her breath hitched. “Let’s see. I had you against the wall. Moaning so pretty. Lipstick smeared.”

Evie almost didn’t speak up when he paused before...

“And?”

“And I was gonna keep kissing down your tits. Get the rest of your clothes off. Tongue my way over your sweet nipples. Stomach too, I like to cover all the ground I can. See how shy you really are.” He licked his lips and Evie’s eyes got heavy.

“Not so shy when I tell you to keep going.”

“No, I guess not. Not until I push your sensitive thighs open, I bet you’d quake and purr. Blush like you clearly are now.”

Evie realized she’d been holding her breath. Didn’t even fight him. Clutching her sweater as he spoke so casually.

“It’s a real fucking tragedy. Me, waiting longer before I find out how you taste. That’s all I’m saying.” Billy’s breath was labored on the other end. “Still with me here, Angel?”

“Is...this your private line?”

Another snicker.

“Obviously. Why?” Billy had his jeans open. Bit his lip while he pooled arousal around his tip. Watched it trickle down into his stomach. Again. No reply. “Answer was yes, by the way… What you asked early if I thought about you. I do a lot. Fucking you. Eating you out. I knew you were a hair puller, we have that in common.”

“Not sure I trust you to last and get the job done with how worked up you get. All the trembling, it was kinda cute.”

“You clearly haven’t ridden my tongue.”

Fuck him.

“You have to actually stop talking to do that, Billy.” Evie laughed in the open and Billy smiled brighter, eyes crinkling. He walked into that one. Idly, she ran her fingers up her thigh. “Between you and I, I never let guys eat me out.”

Billy stopped to sit up.

“No shit?”

“It always made me nervous so I stopped them when they tried. All the mouth action comes from me.” Evie had sat up on the other end too. “I’m pretty good actually.”

“You’d let me fuck that beautiful mouth after I taste you?” He’d cooed. “Betcha that lipstick won’t look half bad on my skin since you never did start buying waterproof.”

“I guess it’s only fair.” Evie dropped her tone. “Still think you can’t handle it.”

“There’s the ego I was hoping for.” He shook his head. “But, I have to say, sweetheart, you’re missing out. That’s the real crime, not letting yourself get tongue fucked once in a while. Do you not know how to treat yourself?”

Evie mashed her face into the nearest pillow.

“I can’t stand you. I shouldn’t have said anything.” She muffled and Billy only laughed again, laying down. Imagined how cherry her lips and cheeks must have looked. Thought about tracing his thumb over her wet mouth. Smeared in slick red.

“Don’t get shy on me now. We established you weren’t.”

“It’s weird.”

“Not weird. You just let a guy kiss down and nature takes over.”

“It’s not that simple with me.”

“Sure, it is. Let me walk you through it. Take your leggings and panties off.” He licked his lips. “C’mon, we got time to kill now.” There was some shuffling.

“It’s not a big deal,” Evie undressed anyways, “it’s just...I think about the angle and guys looking up and seeing my stomach and I get freaked out.”

“Sweetheart, my mouth will be buried in your pussy, I ain’t worried about your flesh. I’m more worried about my technique. These things you get so worked up about. Guys really don’t give a shit, the good ones anyways.” His vulgarity sent these fizzles all down her nerves. Actually made her feel better. “You just...tip your head back and enjoy it. Although, I don’t mind a little praise and eye contact. Make me feel like a good boy for once.”

“And I can’t like...play with myself to help?”

“You can, but just relax and let me take over. You can trust me to make you feel good, Evie. Might be nice to give up some control.”

He had no idea that he’d hit a nail on the head.

“So, kisses. Thighs open.” Evie settled into the pillows, free hand twisted into fabric with a cool breeze on her thighs. Breasts rising. “Would you use your fingers too?”

“If you ask me sweetly.” Billy saw beads of precum all over his abdomen. Throbbed and tried not to grunt. “I’d like to. I’d like to lick my way inside you. Hold your legs open and kiss your clit until you’re begging for more. Love the view of you. Spread open and wet for me. Like how you feel.”

“You’ve never been with a girl my size.” Evie broke into his daydreams.

“You don’t know that.” He paused. It was true.

“Yes, I do, Billy.” Evie didn’t know why the thought was stark and gnawing. “I’m bigger than you. Wider. Maybe even heavier.”

“Bet, I can lift you just fine.” He rubbed his face, eyes searching. “I liked it. Touching you. I wasn’t shy about it, was I? Fucking soft. I’m not used to that against me. You’re warm and when I squeezed you against me, I wanted to throw you on my bed so fucking bad. Can't explain it.”

She went silent so he found a joke.

“If it makes you so nervous, I promise to let you suck me off after.”

“A dashing gentleman if I ever saw one.” She broke out of the nerves.

“Just think about it, Evie. You ever just take the time to appreciate how wet you made someone? Up close. It's a thrill.” Billy hitched as he palmed himself. Evie swallowed a lump.

“Are you…?”

“Am I, what?” Billy’s labored breathing made it obvious, but he wanted her to say it.

“Did I make you wet?”

“Jeans are ruined for the day.” He offered, husky under the music. “Should have risked hiding you in the closet.”

“We would have so been caught.”

“His problem.” Billy gruffed, changed the subject to work himself up. “Two clasps away from those tits. I won’t forget that.”

“Maybe I’ll play with them since you’re not here to.” She moved a hand under her sweater and Billy outright groaned.

“What do you taste like?”

“I recall you predicting heaven.” Sarcasm etched out. “It's possible you’ll find out if I’m in the mood again. I could be just now realizing this was a lapse in judgement.”

“Ah huh.” Billy gave himself a few strokes. Evie listened to him sigh too soft and husky in her ear. Pictured him atop her. Rock hard and moaning. Gorgeous like Apollo. Sun streaming upon his back. Illuminating curls.

She slid her fingers down. Hitched a sigh because she was soaked and aching.

“Would you kiss me after I sucked you off?” Evie played with herself. Let him hear the moan.

“With tongue. You could spit directly into my mouth for all I care. In fact, I might like that.” Billy hummed, tone changing to give an order. “Slip your fingers in if you haven’t already. I know what you’re doing, Evangeline.”

“You were doing it first.” Evie’s head pressed back into the pillows. She spread her legs and drew circles into herself, pressed two fingers in and moaned.

“Who’s fucking you right now, Angel?”

“Oh, you.” She was forward about that. Heart thumping. “Want your mouth and hands.”

“Told you.” His head tilted back. Tried to stay immersed in the lingering scent of her. “Play with your clit again. That’ll do until I get my tongue on you.”

Evie cursed that time. Accent lacing her tone. It made him smile brighter.

“If I had it my way, you won’t play with yourself at all. Know that? You want to get off, you just come to me and let me take care of you.”

“What a chore.” Evie sped and started to rock into her own touch.

“I’m always up to the task.”

Billy worked himself on the other end to every little mewl and sigh. Dirty talk went out the window as she gasped. Started to build herself up. Pictured Billy slicked and surrendered against cotton sheets. Stunning and batting his lashes while he opened his mouth and pumped his fist.

“Get yourself there, Angel, don’t wait for me.” He heard her curse louder and almost drop the phone back. With Billy’s little murmurs of dirty encouragement, she rubbed perfect circles. Imagined his fingers and tongue. His sly eyes and those fucking lashes. Muscles bulging hot under her grasp. Evie cried out, succumbed there and hitched to shake and shudder. Billy closed his eyes while she got off. Couldn’t wait to be the one who got her there.

“Fuck, Evie. You’re killing me.” One fists jerked up and down. Unable to get close because he was distracted with her. “I can’t...fucking shit. I was almost there a moment ago when you were here and now, ah…fucking hell.”

“Sounds like you need help.” Evie stretched like a cat against her pillows. Still trembling.

“Or another hand.” He sighed. “Or a mouth. Think about how you’d leave that red lipstick all over my dick.”

“I got an idea. If you give me shit, I’ll end you.” Evie pushed her blissful body up. “Come up to the window.”

“What…” Billy shoved a sheet aside to see her. Out of breath and curls sticking all over. Blushed and fucked. Gorgeous. “What are you doing?” He was still slowly jerking himself to keep the momentum. Evie looked around the grass and shrubbery. Rolled her eyes before lifting up her shirt and moving the bra down.

Billy’s mouth dropped along with his phone so she giggled as he disappeared to grab it.

“Fuck!” Billy caught himself and returned.

“Are they everything you pictured?” She bit her lip and winked. He was dead intent on her tits. Mouth open. Working himself harder.

“Push them against the window.”

Her hard, dark rosy nipples pressed there and Billy moaned. Wished he had them in his hands. Wished he would fuck her mouth and shoot his load on them.

“Yes, Evie, fuck.” He submitted. Almost sounded like a zombie. Under her spell. Typical boy. Working himself until… “Gonna cum.” Strings of release hit the wall as Billy dropped the phone again to finish. Evie still heard his muffled moans on the end and brought herself back down, giggling at the same time Billy fell into his pillows.

“Did I lose you, Billy?”

“No, but if you could pick my balls up off the floor, that’d be great.” He puffed and felt around for a tee to clean up with. “Okay. I’m gonna say this. We’re going to fuck. Hear me? I am going to fuck you. Can’t today. But, it's happening.”

“So certain. What, are you spent already?”

“Not gonna plan that far, we hang out as you say...and see what happens.” He caught his breath. “Can’t do it here and your two guards are going to be on you this week.”

“You thought awhile about this.” Evie licked her lips, still fixing her bra in place. “Maybe my common sense comes back.”

“Maybe you admit you’re warming up to me again. Sizzling fuse.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Evie rose out of bed and paused to sigh. Tone shifting. "Billy?"

"Hm?"

“What if he comes back?”

“He’s scared. He won’t. I stopped him.”

“I feel like I’m going to be constantly looking over my shoulder. You know?” Evie didn't want to touch the floor again.

“Then, I guess I know where to stand for your attention.” His quip had Evie biting her lip. Roses bloomed up her thighs and cheeks. “I also left my number under your lamp, by the way. Use it.”

Evie blinked and lifted it to see a torn slip with his handwriting. Slippery bastard.

“Yeah, I got it.” She bit back a smile. “I’ll...ah, see you later, Billy.”

“Yes, you will.” He paused. “One more question. More of a courtesy.”

“What?”

“Preferred method of birth control? Have a couple rubbers. I’m clean, by the way. But, are you an in or out type of girl?”

“Also clean. And I’m an avid user of the pill, smartass. Use that information however you like.” She hung up, leaving Billy to laugh on the other end. He brought the phone away, still so stupid happy. Dreaming himself away.

Psyche went through so many trials for Cupid. Billy wondered about the after. About Eros picking up some trials of his own to keep a girl that tangled him so ardently. About how it felt worth it down to the beating core. All’s fair...

Evangeline Fenny might really be the end of him.

~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for tuning in!! That was actually my first full phone sex scene, it's so fun to write these two and their weird dance. I just love them more by the chp. xx Stay and chat with me if you can! As is open :)

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itzagothamcitysiren · 4 years

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Welcome to the Family

Quick thanks to everyone whose liked this story so far! I just realized I have over 100 followers, which yes isn’t the highest number compared to others BUT coming onto this site from other’s that are pretty dead that number’s perfect for me and makes me really happy! So thank you all!

You’re Taking Up a Fraction of My Mind pt.6

Halley knew something was wrong only moments after the three men made it home after a long night of patrol. The Joker had escaped last night and she’d never seen any of the men of the house like this before. But even with Gotham’s most wanted lose again, she knew that that wasn’t the only thing causing the tension consuming the room. She sat on the couch, her nervous habit on full display but unnoticed as Dick and Jason were dead silent, face’s emotionless as they glared holes into the TV that played some movie none of the three were really even paying attention too.

They were in the manor alone as somehow, by some miracle, Alfred managed to get Bruce away from the Batcave. Bruce was reluctant, determination setting in, but Alfred demanded that he stop playing dress up for an afternoon and take care of the responsibilities he’d been pushing off. The annual Wayne Enterprises Charity Gala was fast approaching and Alfred scolded the man as he drank his morning coffee, reminding him who he was besides Batman.

“You’re not just Batman, you’re also Bruce Wayne,” Alfred reprimanded, refusing to let him follow more dead leads on the Joker.

Alfred ordered the teenagers and Dick to spend the day together, stating how they should have some normal sibling bonding. He ignored Jason’s protests, saying how they weren’t actually siblings. Alfred quickly quieted him with one look, as Bruce also chimed in, saying that it would be good for them. He just wanted them to suffer like he was, Jason puffed his chest out and thought as the two older men left for the day.

Halley looked away from the TV, only moving her head as to not draw attention to herself. She looked at Jason, sitting slumped back in a chair, wearing a blank expression but Halley could tell he was in a sour mood. She had asked him this morning what happened last night, mentioning his texts but he just shrugged her off and said it was nothing. She frowned, feeling as if he was shutting her out again when she thought they were finally over that. She wanted to push him put remembered how she felt when Dick had pushed her to talk yesterday and she didn’t want to make him feel cornered like that. He wasn’t like her when she’d just shut down and clamp up, he’d lash out and they would surely fight again and she didn’t want that.

She moved her eyes to look at Dick, who sat on the opposing couch. He wasn’t looking at the TV anymore, instead down at his phone. One hand was typing almost furiously as the other arm was resting behind his head, propping his head up. His eyes focused on the screen, his face furrowing. Halley chewed on the tip of her thumb, feeling a pit of anxiety, wondering who he was talking too. She didn’t know why it bugged her but with how both boys were acting, she knew he was most likely complaining to either Kori or Wally about it.

Jason had been fine, perfect even, until Dick showed up and she knew something happened between the pair; she wanted to know what but had no clue how to approach either boy about it. Clearing her throat, getting both of them to look at her quickly before darting their eyes back to their previous positions, she let her presence be known. She shifted in her spot, lifting her legs up to fold up to her chest, leaning her head down to rest on her knees.

She looked back at Jason, seeing him looking back at her from the corner of his eyes. She gave him a soft smile which caused him to loosen up and give her a smile back. He tensed back up when Dick let out a strangled cough, shooting him a glare. Halley caught it and jerked her to face him making Dick jump in place. She narrowed her eyes at him before reaching to the coffee table and grabbing the remote. The former assassin pressed down on the power button, slamming the remote back onto the coffee table and letting her feet rest back on the floor. The sudden silence made the tension of the room even more unbearable but now more so for the boys than the girl who sat now fuming in the middle of them.

“What the hell is your problem?” She exclaimed, looking between the two of them. “And don’t say nothing, because I know that’s bullshit!”

“There’s nothing-,” Dick started, slipping his phone into his pant pockets.

“I just said that’s bullshit,” Halley glared, not letting him finish his lie. She stood up, flaring her arms out in frustration before turning to leave the room. “You two are a couple of babies.”

She left the two alone, marching her way up to her room. She didn’t care about ‘Mandatory Sibling Bonding Time’ if this was how they were going to act. She wasn’t surprised at Jason acting this way, disappointed, but not surprised. But Dick, she’d never seen him act like such a, well, like Jason had said, a dick, before. At this point she didn’t even care about what happened between them. She just wanted to them to suck it up and get over themselves.

She knew Jason had jealousy and self-confidence issues and figured it had something to do with the former Robin being back but what the hell was Dick’s excuse? She thought back to their conversation yesterday and how he’d acted when he found out that she and Jason were getting close. Did he also have jealousy issues she hadn’t known about? Scoffing and rolling her eyes at the thought, she finally knew what Kori meant when she said Earth Boys were stupid. Speaking of which-

“Hey, wait!”

Halley didn’t stop her ascent up the stairs as she heard Dick’s voice calling out to her, he was only a few steps away behind her. She kept walking, mumbling about how she didn’t want to talk to either of them at the moment. Dick wouldn’t back down like he ended up doing last night, reaching out for grab her forearm to stop her.

“I said wait,” He said as she was forced to stop. He didn’t falter when he saw her face glaring up at him, jerking her arm out of his grasp. “I’m sorry,”

“For what?” She crossed her arms against her chest. When Dick took too long to think of a response she responded for him, shaking her head in annoyance, turning around to finish the walk back to her room.

“Seriously, stop.” Dick began again, reaching for her arm again. It was her now that was being childish, not him, he told himself. “It was just- just a long night.” He decided with. “How about we get out for a bit? We haven’t had an ‘us’ day in a while, we can go to Caroline’s and the Gala’s coming up, you still need something to wear. We can go get that taken cared of afterwards.”

Halley waited for him to unhand her, thinking about his offer as he looked at her expectantly. She crossed her arms again, popping her hip out as she made him wait anxiously for her answer. She blinked at him a few times, really letting her hesitation eat him up. Once she felt like he was punished enough, for now, anyways, she opened her mouth,

“It is ‘Mandatory Sibling Bonding Time’.” She said without a specific tone to her voice. She felt herself smirking when Dick’s face lightened. Oh, how she would crush that look and smear it off his face, she thought sinisterly. “Jason comes with us or no deal. You’ll also have to get over whatever this is,” she said waving her hands in a circle at his person.

Dick bit his lip, not sure he liked either of his ultimatums but he knew he had no other options. He couldn’t physically drag her out, she’d kick his ass. Not only her, but if Bruce and Alfred found out he took Halley out and left Jason, oh the reprimanding he’d get, more so from the butler than his adoptive father, but still. Unenthusiastically, he found himself nodding his head, making the deal with no other choice.

His mood hadn’t changed, the group deciding on skipping Caroline’s and going straight to the Gotham Mall, figuring food court food would work just fine. He was glad when Jason suggested it, being that they’d be able to avoid the awkward silence that would find them if they went to an actual restaurant and had to wait to be sat and wait for the food. At least the food court was loud, already not a great place for conversation and it was a whole lot quicker.

They took to the food court first, Dick settling with some pizza, while Halley and Jason decided to split a takeout container of Chinese food, both saying how they weren’t too hungry and the portions where enough for two. Dick sat next to Halley, Jason sitting across from her, both picking at the foam container in the middle of them.

Dick felt his nerves rise as he heard Halley let out a sort giggle. He eyed her with wide eyes, he never heard her giggle before. His eyes narrowed when he saw the pair goofing around, Jason using his fork to steal whatever piece of chicken she tried picking up and stuffing it in his mouth. He felt the table move as she kicked Jason’s shin playfully. He wanted to comment but just took another of his pizza, willing himself to keep his mouth shut.

Once they finished, Dick led the way, trying to remember the stores Kori suggested he try for Halley, having texted her for help when they left the manor. He was clueless with these types of things and knew Halley was too; this was probably going to be more of a disaster than it already felt but he’d try to keep his head on straight for Halley. Though, he found it more and more difficult too as they found themselves in some high scale dress shop, and Jason began shoving clothing at Halley to try on.

“She is not wearing that.” Dick stated firmly, pulling the dress from the stack of clothes in Halley’s grasp. He put it back on the rack, giving Jason a warning look.

“What’s wrong with it?” Jason tested, reaching for the hanger, putting it back on the stack.

“Oh gee, I don’t know? The fact that it doesn’t have a back to it?” Dick said as if it was obvious, again taking the hanger once again and placing it back, this time putting his hands on Halley’s shoulders and making her move on.

“It’s her first gala, she needs to look as flashy as all the Karen’s and Tiffany’s there.” Jason laughed, pulling another dress out. It was a less revealing dress, but apparently still too revealing as Dick shot him another warning look.

“She’s fifteen. She doesn’t need to impress anyone.” Dick grumbled, pulling a dress of his own choice out. It was a navy blue, lacey dress with long sleeves and turtleneck neckline. He placed it on top of the pile where the dress Jason had chosen once sat.

“She’s also right here to make her own choices.” Halley finally spoke up, already feeling overwhelmed by the clothes in her hands.

She thought shopping with Kori was a lot, but this, this was awful. She looked at the dresses in her hands, trying not to drop any as she scanned her eyes over them. None of these caught her eye; they were all just dresses that Dick and Jason threw at her. She pushed the dresses to Dick, making him hold them instead of her. She then began to pick out the ones she knew she would absolutely not be trying on and shoved them to Jason’s chest.

She was already freaking out about her first Gala, trying to not think about it since Alfred told her about it one morning during the car ride to school. If she was going to this thing she was going to try to be at least a little comfortable in her skin. She had worn dresses before but only maybe a handful of times while being undercover for a job, like the time her and her father had been hired to take down some emissary from Markovia. But this was different; this was her first time out officially as part of the Bruce Wayne’s family.

“Do you need any help over here?” A woman approached them, eyeing as they had been roughly handling the merchandise.

At first glance her and her co-workers were annoyed, seeing the teens and young adult carelessly handling the clothes but as she approached, she noted Dick and Jason, seeing them in the papers and knowing them as Bruce Wayne’s kids. She also heard about the new member of the family, and realized this must be her. Changing the look on her face, she let out a wide smile; she knew they had money to spend.

“Yeah, she needs a dress.” Jason said bluntly, jabbing a finger at Halley, somewhat annoyed that most of his choices had been the ones in the pile of clothes she tossed at him.

“Oh, what’s the occasion?” The worker clasped her hands together.

“Erm, a gala?” Halley said, thrown off by the woman’s sudden perkiness, remembering getting this same treatment during her first few weeks at Gotham Academy.

“That’s exciting! I can help you find the perfect dress!” the woman exclaimed, beginning to lead Halley off to the back. She pointed to an area that had a bunch of plushy white chairs, looking to Dick and Jason before down to Halley, placing a manicured hand on her shoulder. “Your brother’s can wait over there while I show you our more appropriate selection of dresses for that kind of event!”

Halley sent her ‘brothers’ a pleading and desperate look of help as the woman led her away. Dick and Jason chuckled after her, stopping when they realized that they were now left alone together. Begrudgingly, they walked to where the woman had pointed out. They slumped down into their own chairs, distracting themselves with their phones, trying everything in their power to not have to make conversation, occasionally looking up to see the worker hurriedly bring dresses and shoes into the fitting rooms behind them.

“She’s probably freaking out.” Jason chuckled, cursing as he spoke out loud.

“Yea, there’s no way she’d going to wear those.” Dick nodded, amused as the woman held a pair of shimmery pink heals.

The pair gave each other a soft glare when they realized they talked to each other. They went right back into their chosen silence. Jason going back to his phone and scrolling through different articles on his phone, uninterestedly. Dick sighed, leaning back into the seat and letting his eyes people watch after looking at the time on his watch.

Inside the dressing room, Halley felt herself begin to panic. This woman was worse than Dick and Jason, she thought with wide eyes. She stared at herself in the mirror after being in the dressing room for at least thirty minutes now. The dress she wore was gorgeous but she hated it on her. Her arms where still a little scarred and she felt naked as her they were on display. She zoomed in on them, deciding to start unzipping herself out of the dress. The scars weren’t all that noticeable, she could easily cover them up with make-up if she wanted but she just felt like they stuck out like a sore thumb.

“I’m sorry, I don’t really like it-,” she lied; she actually really liked that dress.

“Oh,” The woman trying to help her said, trying to hide her irritation but Halley could tell she was growing sick of her. She’d turned down every dress she offered. Certain ones were in fact ugly but there were exactly a handful that she actually really liked. The woman frowned, trying to figure out what the girl was exactly looking for now, seeing the pile of clothes she’d have to put away later, “What don’t you like about the dress?”

Halley thought about it for a second, unsure what to say because there wasn’t really anything she hadn’t disliked. She liked the red, it made her paler skin look less pasty and more porcelain, almost like she was really a daughter of a billionaire. It hugged her forming figure well, not too tight but not baggy like how most of her wardrobe fit her. She could get over the arm thing or she hoped. It was a little to long for her taste, knowing she’d be tripping over the floor length gown all night if she wore it, especially with the heels she’d most likely be stuck wearing.

“It’s too long.” She stated, staring at it before letting it fall off her and onto the floor.

“Okay, I can work with that. I’ll be right back, I think I have it!” The worker said, stating that she’d be right back.

Dick frowned as he saw the woman rushing out of the dressing room once again, with a new look of determination. Jason had since abandoned him, saying how he was going to go to the bathroom. That was about fifteen minutes ago and he had a feeling Jason wasn’t coming back anytime soon, not that it matter to Dick. He’d be sitting in silence regardless. He tapped his fingers on the arms on the chair as the woman walked past him again with a new dress in hand and some other accessories and stuff in hand.

A few minutes later he heard a hushed voice calling his name. He looked up, turning his head towards the doorway to the fitting rooms. He raised an eyebrow as he saw Halley peeking her head out, noting the red lipstick that suddenly appeared on her lips. He looked at her in confusion, being thrown off by just that simple change in appearance. She looked frazzled, but somewhat excited? He realized he was frozen in place when she looked frustrated, waving him to come to her. With a new face of concern at her look of urgency he rose from his spot. She disappeared into the room before he could get to her, finding himself moving a little faster.

He turned the corner, feeling as if his jaw would hit the ground when he saw the girl standing in front of him and a large mirror. The woman who had been close to giving up helping the girl stood next to her. She was straightening out the bottom of the skirt of the dress, the hem ending just in the middle of her calf, standing once she was satisfied with her work. Halley stood facing the mirror, looking at her reflection with a look on her face that Dick never seen her wear before.

Halley actually felt pretty for once; it felt weird. It felt so cliché but she didn’t know who the girl in the mirror was. Besides the neckline and length, the woman had come back with a dress similar to the one she had one previously. But there was something different about this one. For some reason this one gave her some level of confidence she never had but at the same time she felt so self-conscious about herself. It was so not her but it felt good looking at the girl in the mirror.

She was staring at her bare arms and legs, instead at the skirt of the dress and the dark red heels that matched. The woman gave her a necklace but at the last minute decided it was too flashy, instead bringing red lipstick from the sales floor and applying it to the girl’s lips. She’d never worn lipstick before and she had no idea why she was liking it.

She saw Dick standing a few feet behind her and blushed, turning around to look at him shyly. She wrapped her arms around herself suddenly feeling stupid for the way she was dressed.

“Is this too much? Will it be okay?” She began fretting, silently thanking the woman who helped her as she left the room to give them a moment. “I mean it’s not terrible. The other ones were too much, but what do I know? Does this look terrible?” She stammered out, turning to face the mirror again, beginning to pick at the dress, eyes wide in an almost panic.

Dick made his way over to her, gently taking her hands away from their tugging and let them stay in his. He saw her swallow, nervously looking at him. He made sure his face was calm, knowing she was freaking out on the inside. He took a good look at her again, finding himself smiling and feel a pang of pride as his eyes scanned her.

“I think you look beautiful in it.” He said earnestly, somewhat pulling away to get a better look. “I think you should get it, you’ll be the best dressed there.” He confirmed with himself, nodding.

“You think so?” She said softly, looking down at her feet in embarrassment.

“Absolutely.” Dick nodded, letting go of her hands. He saw her give him a look a disbelief. He chuckled, turning back into in normal playful self, hating to see her be so hard on herself. “Honestly Halley, I love it.”

“Okay,” Halley felt herself believing his words, looking to the side to get another peek in the mirror. She knew it was stupid to worry and gush this much over a dress, but she couldn’t stop herself from doing just that. She nodded with a grin, stepping away from him and the mirror and moved towards the fitting room. As she began to peel the dress off, she couldn’t help but feel some sort of excitement for the gala that was coming up.

After she changed back to her regular clothes, she met Dick outside of the fitting rooms where they went up to the counter to pay for the dress along with her shoes and make-up that the woman gathered for her. She eyed the extra items, insisting that she didn’t need them upon hearing the price but Dick shushed her, pulling out Bruce’s credit card and waving his playfully in her face.

They excited the shop, seeing Jason leaning against the doorway, with his hands in his pockets. He looked bored as anything, looking at them in relief. “About damn time, Jesus Christ that took like an hour- wait, are you wearing lipstick?”

“Yes,” Halley’s hand flew up to cover her mouth, as Jason noticed her red stained lips. She felt her cheeks heat up again as he snickered at her.

“You are you and what have you done to Halley?” He teased, ignoring Dick as he told him to stop. “I’m just messing, she knows that.” He laughed, rolling his eyes at Dick as they started walked towards the mall exit.

Jason shot her another glance when she lowered her hand. He let his eyes look over her face, finding it as a good look on her. She looked kinda hot, he thought but immediately stopped himself. No, he rushed, she wasn’t. She was adorable, yeah, adorable; that word felt a little bit better to him. He definitely, one-hundred percent, did not think she was hot.

#Jason Todd #jason todd fanfiction #jason todd x oc #jason todd x reader #jason todd imagine #jason todd as robin #dick grayson #dick grayson x oc #dick grayson x reader #dick grayson x sister!reader #Dick Grayson x batsis #Batsis #batfam x batsis #batboys x batsis #bruce wayne x reader #batman fanfiction #deathstroke daughter #dc comics fanfic

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fullmetalscullyy · 4 years

Text

a conspiracy theory - chapter 16

co-written by @snowdog49 and @jeanhaavoc

summary: Detective Roy takes on a challenging task… To find Olivier Armstrong’s sword. However, he has a beautiful woman to distract him along the way. Will he, Jean, and Ed be able to find the sword in time, or will they succumb to the conspiracy?

warning: graphic depictions of violence

tags: conspiracy, pining, unresolved sexual tension, private detective au, royai, havolina, mystery, violence, modern au, coffee shops

rated: m | words: 3359

read on ao3

Roy woke to the sound of pots and pans being shuffled. The smell of coffee was strong, and he heard a toaster go off. He wasn’t home. None of that was vaguely familiar to any sounds at home, let alone in the morning. He opened his eyes, feeling one leg bent at ninety degrees with a foot on the ground, while the other remained on the couch. He nodded to himself, letting his arms rise in a stretch and a yawn. He was at Riza’s. Turning he noticed she was already cooking breakfast, still in the sweats she was in when he went to sleep. Her hair was down and wet from a shower. It shined just perfectly in the fluorescent light of the kitchen. He didn’t move, he just took in the sight of her scrambling something in the pan and then turning to the toast. It had to be wondered if she was like this every morning, rising with the sun, which she kindly had pulled the curtains shut for him, and smiled like it too. She looked happy, even content in her task.

“What time do you work,” he asked with a groggy voice.

“In two hours,” she answered without looking up.

“How long have you been up?”

She slid the eggs onto a plate and looked up at him. “Hayate and I already went for a walk, and I took a shower.” She leaned on the counter, watching him as he sat up with a groan. “So about an hour.”

“You could've woke me,” he grumbled.

“You need your sleep.”

Roy looked on his wrist at his watch. He had to meet Hughes at 8 am. He had an hour to get there. “I don’t have too much time to dilly dally,” he admitted, reaching for his shoulder holster. “But you have to let me repay you somehow.”

She walked around the kitchen and handed him a plate. “Then eat breakfast.”

“You’re being too nice to me,” he called to her as she walked away. Although eggs, some fruit, and toast looked way too good to pass up. When was the last time he had a home-cooked breakfast? He needed to make a point of making more food for himself. After the first bite, he had to sit back down. They were the best eggs he’d ever eaten, he swore it on his mother’s grave. The toast was perfect, and he didn’t even think that was possible. When she said she liked to cook, there was no lie in it. She was amazing at it. He took every bite slowly, chewing it, relishing in every tastebud’s celebration of flavor. And he would have asked for seconds too.

“This is… good,” he commented. He had to hide his groan as flavor burst over his tongue.

“Did you ever doubt my skills?” she asked dryly. “I told you I was into cooking.”

“Um, I never will again?” he smiled sweetly looking up at her.

Riza laughed and sat down next to him on the couch. She curled her legs underneath her body, leaning on the arm of the chair. She picked at her food innocently, but being this close to her, in her apartment after sleeping over, Roy was sure that she was just as uncomfortable about the environment as he was. It wasn’t like they had anything to be embarrassed about. Still, the awkwardness didn’t dissipate as quickly he would've liked.

Roy coughed. “I just wanted to apologize for showing up so late last night.”

She glanced over at him expectantly. Her eyebrows twitched downwards in slight confusion.

“I know it’s not the most ideal situation to land yourself in, having me showing up half asleep at your door,” he laughed nervously. He resisted the urge to scratch the back of his neck.

“Roy, you’re fine. I did say it was okay for you to come over, didn’t I,” she reminded him. “If I didn’t want you to come, I would have said no.” She glanced down at her plate with a small smile. “I enjoy your company, so it’s no issue at all.”

Roy coughed nervously, covering his mouth with his fist. “I uh… Can I use your restroom? Then I better get going.”

Riza nodded and pointed down the hall. "It’s the first door on your right,” she instructed.

He put his plate down and jumped up. He was so in love with her. He was. He was infatuated with her. And here he was, waking up with her serving him breakfast. He could hardly stand himself. Standing in the restroom he bit his fist with his hand. Why did he have to go? Why couldn’t he just stay and they could make sweet looks at each other? Life was unfair to him once again. Work called, and it wasn’t just work, it was 'Roy Saving the World' day. He washed his hands and stared at himself in the mirror. He had no idea what Riza saw in him, but she made him feel more alive than he had in years.

He emerged from the bathroom and cleared his throat. “I’m going to go now,” he announced softly, reaching for his holster. “I’ve got to meet Maes at the senate’s house and we’re going to do a sweep of the place.”

Riza nodded, putting her plate down.

God, how he wanted to stay. He’d do anything to stay. He reached over and grabbed his gun, checking it to ensure that it was still loaded, and put it in its beloved spot. Then he grabbed his jacket and put it on. “I can’t thank you enough. I will make this up to you.” He looked at the door then back into her brown eyes. “You… You’re amazing. I think you’re really wonderful, and every time I get a chance to tell you, something happens. I’m going to show you one day.” He scratched his cheek nervously.

Riza walked up to him, pulling on his jacket as if she was fixing it. “How about you just make it back alive?" Her hand patted his chest above his heart.

Roy couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m sure I’m going to be okay.” He wasn’t thinking about anything else but the way her hand felt on his sternum, and the way she looked up at him. Their bodies pressed against each other -

She said again softer. “Just come back and we can go to an uninterrupted dinner.”

“God,” he laughed. “Wouldn’t that be a thing!”

Riza smiled and Roy smiled back. It wasn’t anything he could help, she brought it out of him so easily. The world with her was full of smiles. With her by his side, he was the happiest he’d been in a long time.

As he turned to take a step towards the door, her hands grasped his jacket tighter and pulled at him. Roy turned his head to ask her what was wrong when her lips met his. At first, Roy stood there with his eyes wide and in shock, but when he felt her pull him closer, and his bottom lip slip along hers, he pressed back. His eyes closed and his arms wrapped protectively around her, sealing them together. There was no guess to how long the kiss actually was. God knew, but Roy did not.

When Riza did pull back, Roy was frozen with his head forward and his body aching for more. He just stared at her, his dark eyes begging for her to come back. She smelled like the lavender of her shampoo, and her lips tasted like the blueberries that were for breakfast. She leaned up once more to kiss him shortly, a peck of love, and whispered, “just come back.”

Roy remained frozen, blinking at her. His brain was stuck in place, like a record. He couldn’t make himself function. His lips and hands were still wanting. His head swayed forwards slightly, eager for more, and his hands clutched at her waist tightly. He never wanted to let her go.

“I promise,” he managed to force out. His voice was hoarse. Every emotion inside his chest was threatening to burst forth. Love washed over him as he looked into her caramel eyes, feeling relief follow soon afterward. He lifted a hand to cup her cheek, his thumb stroked over her cheekbone. Riza shivered but never broke eye contact with him. The pressure from her fingers increased against his sides. “I’ll come back to you, Riza.”

Her head dipped and she wrapped her arms around him tightly in a hug. Her head found his shoulder as Roy moved his hands to wrap around her back. Life was, once more, unfair as it tried to tear him away from this moment; but it did give him something to look forward to once it was all over. He would hold onto this moment with Riza, focus on it and hold it dear to his heart, forever. Whatever happened today, he would focus on getting back to her.

“Be safe,” she whispered into his shoulder.

“I thought you said I had nothing to worry about?” he chuckled lightly.

She pulled back, and Roy saw concern in her eyes. “Still, the sentiment remains the same.”

“Okay, I will. Just for you,” he quipped, trying to lighten the mood a little.

Before he could pull away, Riza grasped the lapels of his jacket, pulling him back to face her. “For both of us,” she replied firmly.

Roy turned before his body forced him to stay and grabbed the door handle. He opened it and took a step out, stopping for a moment, before continuing. It was now or never. Just a few hours until Edward could get the documents to the feds, just until help could arrive. He could do it.

* * *

The lawn at the government buildings was still wet with dew as he marched through it. Maes stood at the top of a few stairs, watching him as he looked over the area. The man was just as diligent as Roy, just as observant. The big difference was who he was working for and the pension after 30 years. Roy was going to miss that pension but if he kept finding things for the Armstrong family, he might not need one.

“All is quiet on the western front,” Maes said as Roy arrived next to him. “You don’t look like such shit. You must have finally gotten some sleep.”

Roy nodded, putting his hands in his pockets. “Yeah, I did.” He tried his best not to blush at the thought of waking up to Riza making breakfast.

Maes nodded and turned to lead the two of them up the stairs. "The building just opened. We can run through it and check for explosives. Marcoh should be here any minute. I heard they are starting just after 9.”

“That gives us just over an hour!”

“Then step it up, Mustang!” Maes grinned. “Don't tell me you’re getting old!”

Roy frowned. He grumbled something before opening the doors to the senate. “Old my ass,” he mumbled.

Row after row they walked. Roy ran his fingers under the desks while Maes checked under the chairs. Meticulously they searched every spot around Marcoh’s area. There was nothing. There wasn’t even dust. It made Roy even more nervous. A bomb would have been nice. Then the whole day would be called off… but the chaos would give Kimblee a chance… Roy grumbled. Nothing was going to make today okay.

“What are you moaning about?” Maes laughed quietly from across the room.

“I’m not moaning,” Roy defended.

“You’re grumbling like an old man.”

Roy grit his teeth. First Ed with the grey hair comment, then Maes getting on about his age.

“I’m not grumbling,” Roy snapped back.

“If you say so,” Maes replied, his voice taking on a sing-song lilt.

“I just…” Roy straightened, huffing in frustration. “I can’t seem to find anything.”

“That’s a good thing,” Maes countered. “You know that, right?”

“Yeah, of course it is, but…” He sighed, checking over the last desk. “A bomb would've been easy.”

“Do you really want to find a bomb in here?” Maes asked.

“It would've made calling everything off easier. It would've made the protection detail much easier too.”

“Always looking for the easy way out,” Maes joked with a smirk.

Roy scowled at him.

“Relax, it'll be fine. This isn’t our first rodeo, and won’t be the last,” Maes replied, waving his hand carelessly in the air. “There’s not going to be a shootout in a public building.”

“Jean was shot in an open area,” Roy countered. “We don’t know what the thought process is here.”

“No, but if these people really want to remain discreet, they won’t start something like that,” Maes reiterated. He’d finished checking the chair and was now lounging against a desk, his hip popped to lean against it.

The door opened across the room and Roy, being on edge, turned sharply. Senator Marcoh stepped through, looking rather surprised at the two men’s presence. He froze in place, keeping a tight grip on files underneath his arm.

“Gentleman,” he greeted with uncertainty. His grip on the door increased.

“Senator Marcoh,” Maes greeted immediately. “I apologize for the sudden appearance,” he stated. Maes reached into his pocket for his badge and Roy straightened, approaching him as well. “My name is Detective Maes Hughes with the Federal Police Department. This is my colleague, Detective Roy Mustang.”

Both men flashed their badges at a rather bewildered Marcoh. “Oh, hello. Can… Can I help you at all?”

“We’re here to assist you today,” Roy intervened.

“Assist me how?” Marcoh questioned.

“Do you have an office where we could possibly discuss things?”

Marcoh shook his head. “I’m afraid not. Not here.”

“This room will be alright then for now, won’t it Detective?” Maes questioned Roy directly.

“Of course.”

Marcoh walked forwards, placing his paperwork on the desk with his name plate attached to it. He shifted through them all, getting them into some kind of order as quickly as he could. “I apologize, this will only take a second. I’m happy to assist you, gentlemen, but I hope you can understand that I have a long day of meetings ahead of me and I need to be organized.”

“Of course, Sir,” Roy reassured him. “Take all the time you need.” He watched the doors, readying for the next person to come through. It was a tight area though, and it made Roy incredibly nervous. If Kimblee did come through the doors, there’d be nowhere to go. Maes must have felt the same way because when Marcoh stood Maes pointed him out the hall.

“If you please,” he motioned.

“What's this about,” Marcoh asked, concerned, not expecting to be removed from the room.

“There’s been a security concern,” Maes answered in a hushed voice.

“What?” Marcoh stopped in his steps. “About me?” He seemed doubtful.

Roy nodded. “Yes, we believe someone is targeting you, Sir.”

“What for?” he asked, incredulous.

“About this proposition for the west, concerning the land Bradley is interested in.”

Marcoh frowned. “I’m not happy with it, I admit, but… What comes to pass, comes to pass. I will continue to fight for bettering our country regardless.”

“That’s what we’re worried about, Sir.”

“Right,” Marcoh demanded, stopping in his tracks. Maes and Roy turned to face him. Frustration bloomed in Roy’s chest. They needed to move and get him somewhere safe, and he was halting that progress. “Tell me what’s going on. Right now.”

“Sir, we’re trying to, but it’s not safe here -”

Marcoh frowned suddenly. His mouth parted, but he didn’t say a word. Instead, he continued to stare past them, even craning his neck to look over their shoulders. Then, his face fell.

Roy turned first, before Maes, and saw Kimblee. He was walking towards them, smiling. The predatory expression on his face reminded Roy of a shark, slowly moving its way towards its prey. Without thinking, Roy reached for his holster but didn’t even get close.

Kimblee’s hand gripped his shoulder tightly, painfully so, and there were two muffled pops. Roy felt himself being sucker punched in the side in quick succession. Two gunshots.

He gasped, eyes flying open as his knees buckled. His legs jerked out to the side from the force of the hits and on instinct, Roy reached out as he fell, but Kimblee’s arm fell through his hand. He collapsed onto the floor as pain blossomed through his torso. His body hit the ground hard, his head bouncing off the tile. A groan left him, rounded off with another gasp of pain. His breathing was erratic as panic consumed every fibre of his being. To his own ears, Roy’s breaths sounded awful, choked and loud.

He couldn’t see. He couldn’t think. There was another gunshot, much louder this time, and there was shouting, there was screaming, but it all faded out into white noise as pain enveloped Roy completely. He’d been shot, twice, in the side. Kimblee walked right up to him and shot him at point blank range.

Roy gasped as his body convulsed. His shoulders were trying to round in on themselves to protect his body as he lay on the cold floor, but any movement made more pain explode all over his abdomen. He could feel the warmth of his blood around him, which he thought was odd at first, till he saw the red. He rolled on the floor, groaning weakly as he begged the world to give him a reprieve from this pain. He still felt like he couldn’t breathe. Roy was choking on everything, tasting the iron from his blood on his tongue.

“Roy!” The shout broke through everything as his mind shut down, unable to focus on much else as his body reacted to having two bullets forced into it.

Roy’s eyes were unfocussed as his head rolled uncontrollably to try and see who was calling to him. Maes’ face appeared over his, his expression full of worry. He felt Mae's roll him on his back, weight being pressed on his side. He turned his head to shout something to someone, but Roy lost track of his friend’s features. His face melted back into the grey of his vision.

He was losing it. His limbs were relaxing and his body was slowing in its shaking. His legs slid out on the floor and had stopped twitching so much. His arms were becoming heavy by his sides as the grey colour at the edges of his vision was replaced with black. All Roy could see in his mind’s eye was Riza’s face.

He’d broken his promise to her. He’d failed her. The pain had numbed his body, but he still felt that failure settle heavily inside his chest. His heart hurt and he whimpered. He wanted to see her again… Wanted to lose himself in those whiskey eyes that he adored so much. He wanted to kiss her and love her like she deserved… Roy had realised in her bathroom that morning that he loved her. He should've told her. Should have said something. Now, he was going to die, after such an incredible morning he’d had with her? Life truly was cruel.

“Hold on, Roy,” a disembodied voice called to him. There was a hard pressure on his side. He felt his body move as the force increased, but his mind felt detached from it all. He no longer felt pain, just a numbing sensation all over his body.

Roy wanted to hold on. He’d meant it when he told Riza he would, just for her, but it was becoming too hard. His lids were begging to close, pleading for him to give in. If he closed his eyes, he was sure he’d see Riza more clearly… ‘one last hurrah’ echoed inside his mind. How naïve he’d been back then. He didn’t want one last hurrah. He wanted to get up and go to her, just like he’d vowed he would.

But instead, everything just went dark.

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