Vice;Grip || chapter 2 || chs
(banner by @itaeewon)
Vice;Grip (masterpost)
NSFW - minors DNI
Genre: angst smut fluff, fuckbuddies!au
Summary: Make it not hurt, you could have asked him. Or, at least, make it hurt in a way I choose.
A/N: infinite thank you's to @sailoryooons and @eoieopda for beta-ing!!
//
Warnings: Frequent depictions of depression, depressive episodes, panic attacks, and substance abuse (alcohol, weed, and pills referenced). PLEASE know that these characters’ relationships with drugs and alcohol are not healthy and should not be emulated. If these topics are triggering to you, please consider sitting this one out.
Section Specific Warnings: depiction of a depressive episode, recreational drinking and bar scenes, allusion to oral (f. receiving), kissing, rough sex/man-handling, explicit penetrative sex, dirty talk, aftercare, didn't venture fully into writing dom!vernon but i have been informed i wrote something that might be in the realm of a dom drop, language obviously, reader is called a gendered slur by a stranger, law-breaking :), actual fluff for a second, allusions to drug use, car sex
wc: 6900
Playlist: you can call me in the middle of the night / you can leave before i wake up in the morning / and it could feel so wrong / but i'll still hold on
1 yr, 5 months ago
The onset of spring brought a lack of color. Grey clouds hung full and heavy, low over the city skyline. Grey crept into the corners of your apartment, darkening rooms during daytime so that you needed to keep lamps on even in midafternoon. Grey crept over your body, into your limbs. Days stretched and nights inched; you only got out of bed because you had to feed the damn cat.
That's part of why you'd gotten the cat in the first place, after a particularly long episode a few years ago, when Chan had presented you with a list of things he thought you should do to combat the blues, as he'd put it.
He meant well. But he always came at your depression like a problem solver, like just doing the right things could make it go away.
And sure, his suggestions were things that would help - get outside, call someone, don't isolate, shower even if you aren't leaving the house, drink some damn water - they weren't a cure. They were better reminders for when you were okay - good at keeping you okay for longer stretches. But when it was already too late, when the grey came, they all sounded fucking pointless.
Anyway. The cat had been a good idea.
is it bad??
Chan did his best. He was a good best friend. He just didn't understand it.
The answer to his question, you thought, as you flipped your phone over so you wouldn't see the notification if he followed up, was yes. Yes, this time was particularly bad. But you didn't have the energy to type those three words.
Terrible friend, your brain accused, and it was right.
You managed to drag yourself to work, to at least show up so you could continue to pay for your apartment and your damn cat, but not much else. You existed on cans of diet coke and microwave meals. You doom-scrolled until sunrise, then slept an hour or two at most before getting dressed for work. You left texts unanswered, the mail piled up. So did the dishes.
Chan came by, once, did your dishes for you. It made you feel worse - useless and pitiable. You'd rather he just go away, but you held it in; you knew that would only hurt his feelings.
You learned from your mistakes, one thing that could be said in your favor.
“Have you called your doctor?” he wanted to know.
What was the point? There wasn't a stop hating your life pill.
“What if you tried painting?” he asked.
“What if you just let me be?” you countered, finally tripping over the line from embarrassed apathy to defensiveness.
That pout again. “It might help,” he said. “Don't most famous artists do their best shit when they're down?”
“Get out,” you deadpanned. He dropped it, knowing this was a bigger issue, a bigger argument, than this current episode, a complex situation that went beyond the boundaries of your brain chemistry.
He put the last of your now-clean plates away. “Let's go somewhere,” he suggested.
“Chan,” you groaned. “I’m tired. I can't go gallivanting -”
“You're not tired, you're depressed,” he argued. “And going outside will help you.”
“I might have to kill you,” you said seriously, and he rolled his eyes.
In the end, he let you win. He'd been around long enough to know that eventually you'd venture outside again, hit the bars with him again, text first again, laugh at his stupid memes again. It was just a waiting game.
Still, when he left, you sat on the edge of your couch with your chin in your hands. On the living room rug, the cat rolled and showed you its belly.
“Not you, too,” you groused.
The cat did a few alligator rolls and then scampered into your bedroom and under the bed, as if chased.
You sighed. You made your way to the spare room, which had been shut - to keep the cat out. To keep your ghosts in.
Your easel was still set up in the corner. You were kind of surprised it wasn't covered in cobwebs. You'd been sketching just on paper last time you'd worked, trying to make decisions that way so you wouldn't waste a canvas, and it still sat there.
You inched closer, ran your hands over your brushes. Took a step back, eyed the paper and your sketches.
It was bad. Thank god you hadn't put it to canvas.
You pulled the paper down, crumpled it in your hands. You chased the cat out with a gentle nudge of your foot, and closed the door again, keeping both cats and ghosts on their respective sides of the door.
There was no rhyme or reason to your brain, no map or calendar to follow for the starts or stops. But eventually, the clouds broke. The grey gave way to baby buds of green, yellows pushed through soil, determined to meet the sun.
You texted Chan - drinks??
He responded - about time!!!
You texted Vernon - hello, its me
When he didn't answer, you tried again - sorry for the radio silence.
Still nothing.
You checked his socials, saw that he'd been doing his thing - a smattering of selfies, some group shots with the guys he played music with sometimes, a few nature shots: the moon, once, and what looked like the river at night.
The silence stretched. You gave up, considered it over. Grieved a little, because it had been good.
You went out on a night that teased summer even though it was months away, sank into the familiar blur of too many shots - not enough to be a problem, but maybe enough to make problems.
Under the club's ever-moving lights, you took a selfie, your drink and cleavage both showcased in the shot.
Send it to Vernon, the urge to make trouble suggested, and you listened without hesitation.
And - finally - an answer.
come here after??
You smiled a tiny, victorious smile and knocked back the rest of your drink.
omw.
Later, he gave you a rare and devastating pout as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, smoothed fingers down the still-shaking inside of your thigh.
“What'd you make me wait so long for?” he complained, those sharp eyes sparkling with mirth. When you shrugged, still a little mindless from your high, he gave the same spot on your thigh a playful slap. “Don't do it again.”
1 yr, 4 months ago
busy tonight?
not busy but.
???
not in the best mood.
bet i could fix that.
yeah. idk.
why don't you let me try?
“What's wrong?” you cooed, teasing, when Vernon let you into the apartment.
He didn't smile, didn't play along, and it sobered you quickly.
“Don't want to talk about it,” he muttered, crowding into your space. “Wasn't that big of a deal anyway.”
Just want the fix you promised, he thought.
You moaned like liquid gold when his first kiss was a bite. Encouraged, Vernon gripped you by the shoulders, pushing you back against the wall hard enough that he heard your breath escape in a single huff. He hesitated, eyes searching your face; a question.
You lifted your chin, eyes shining with something hard. When he kissed you again, you threaded your fingers through his hair and pulled, hard enough to make him hiss; an answer.
His pace was frenzied from the start, your legs around his waist and the wall holding you up. His hand curled around your throat, not squeezing, but sliding up to grip at your jaw instead, keeping you from tilting your head back, closing your eyes, losing yourself in how he felt slamming his hips flush against yours with dizzying smacks.
When you whined that you were close, he pulled you away from the wall and lowered you both to the ground, the wooden floor of his entryway cold and hard beneath your spine. It didn’t matter, didn’t do anything to stop the vortex tightening below your stomach. You slapped a hand over your face as it distorted in pleasure, Vernon kneeling between the legs you still had gripping his waist, one of his hands braced on the floor next to your head, holding his body over you.
“That’s right,” he breathed, gritted teeth flashing over you, forehead wrinkling as his own release closed in on the chase. “Just fucking take it when I fuck you into the floor.”
Then he was pulling out, breaths hissing through his teeth as he straightened up, one hand pumping himself furiously until strings of white decorated your stomach, cooling immediately in the apartment’s chilly air.
His breathing was ragged as he sagged back onto his heels, and you pushed yourself up onto your elbows, watching him warily.
Then he stood and slipped into the hallway bathroom, the light clicking on and illuminating the unlit entryway where you’d just fucked. You heard the sink run, then shut back off, and Vernon returned. He knelt gingerly - you could see his knees were red from kneeling on the wooden floor - and cleaned your stomach first, then gently between your legs.
You sat the rest of the way up then, watching him carefully as he sat back on his heels again, avoiding your gaze. Something about the moment felt like a thing alive, unfurling between you like a casablanca lily under the refracted light of the moon.
You spoke at the same time.
“Vernon?”
“You okay?”
You swallowed, rubbed absently at your elbow where you’d smacked it on the floor during the position change.
“I’m fine,” you said tentatively. “Are you?”
He sighed, rubbing his hands over his face, and then peering through his fingers at you for a second before dropping them again. “Thought I hurt you.”
You shook your head. “I’m okay. I would have said something.”
He nodded, relief starting to bring feeling back to his hands again. He stood and reached a hand down for you. When you took it, he closed his fingers around yours and pulled you to your feet.
“I know we don’t usually do this,” you said, rubbing at the parts of you that had been on the floor - the backs of your legs, your ass, “but could I take a super fast shower before I go?”
“Yeah,” he said, so quickly that the word almost trips on itself. “Of course.”
He led you into the bathroom, rummaged in the disorganized linen closet for a clean towel, pressed it into your hands.
“If you need one, too,” you said easily, as he reached around you to turn the water on so it could heat up, “I don’t mind if you join me.”
He paused. “You sure?”
You shrugged, then leaned over to put your hand under the spray, testing to see if it was still cold. “It’s your shower.”
Under the stream of warm water, you turned to face him, front to front, looking up at him with clear eyes. Something in your expression was so open, Vernon couldn’t help but feel both the desire to step into the space you seemed to be offering him as well as the desire to get far, far away from it.
He’d been so angry before you’d texted, furious enough that he’d bruised his knuckles punching the doorframe; now, as the chemicals in his body settled down, he felt those knuckles throbbing. He was disgusted that he’d lost his temper, guilty that he’d taken any of that anger out on you, who had nothing to do with it.
He was scared of the desire he felt to be closer to you, just for tonight. Scared that fucking you hadn’t been enough to soothe whatever it was that roiled inside him, like it usually was. Scared that he felt like he needed more than sex to heal this particular burn.
“I’m sorry,” he said, and part of him thought he was apologizing in advance, like he knew already he’d run scared at some point. “For being so...”
He didn’t know what word fit best.
“I told you,” you said, pressing a little closer, “I would have said if I had a problem.”
“Okay,” he said, frowning a little. “If you’re sure.”
Then he reached over and brushed a thumb along your cheekbone, chasing away a rivulet of shower-water. You closed your eyes for a second, and he swore he could feel you lean into the touch, just slightly.
He didn’t know how to explain how he felt. Kind of like he’d done a hot-coal-walk; the exhaustion that came with an adrenaline crash, the vulnerability that came after facing down something big, that need - the burn inside him needing cool water before it could quiet down.
With the shower off, the silence in the bathroom was loud.
“Do you…” Vernon started, then stopped. His heart hammered, the adrenaline returning. He covered the moment by toweling his hair roughly and pulling his hands through the strands so they’d lay right. “Do you want to stay for a little bit? I was gonna order delivery, maybe watch something before I finish my assignment.”
He’d expected you to think about it, to turn it over in your mind the way you turn his things over in your careful hands, the way you turn him ass over head with just a smirk. Instead, you nodded right away.
“Yeah,” you said, like it was no big deal. Like you did this all the time. Maybe you did, just not with him. “I was starving, actually. I could stay for an hour or two.”
On his couch, the leftovers of the food scattered on his coffee table, you reached for his hand, ran a thumb imperceptibly along his purpled knuckles. You didn’t ask what happened, just brought them to your lips and pressed the lightest kiss before putting them down again and reaching for your noodles, as if it hadn’t happened at all.
That was when Vernon saw the potential of it, an entire picture, framed and labeled: you could hurt him so badly if he let you, if he let it get that far. For whatever it was that burned inside him, you were the cool water… but you could absolutely be gasoline, instead.
1 yr, 3 months ago
If you closed your eyes, you could pretend the light that passed over your closed lids in a repetitive pattern was the sweep of a lighthouse beam. You could pretend that the rumbling bass of the music was the roar of the ocean. You could pretend that you weren’t here, in a shitty bar, but at the seaside. You could pretend that you weren’t alone. You could pretend that you weren’t you.
You drained your drink and caught the bartender’s eye, gesturing for another, sliding the sweating glass away from you once you knew a new one was coming.
“What are you drinking?”
The voice came from your right, and you lifted tired, disinterested eyes to find the source of it.
“G and T,” you answered, because it was one fewer syllable than saying gin and tonic and maybe that one syllable would do the dirty work for you and tell this guy that you didn’t want to talk to him.
“Nice,” he said, like you’d said something interesting, and you fought the urge to roll your eyes. You didn’t return the question, just slid your phone screen on and opened your messages.
wyd
drinks at my hyungs place. wbu
damn. guess i have to settle for one of these very mid prospects at the willow
damn thats a sad story. if only you had a better option
if only my better option werent busy at his hyung’s
no one said i had to stay here. ur at the willow?
yep
The guy to your right tried again. “The DJ tonight kind of sucks, huh?”
You looked back at your phone.
don’t leave
You smiled into your drink, a thrill dancing through your bloodstream. The lights and music didn’t seem as garish as they had ten minutes ago.
“My boyfriend’s on his way to pick me up,” you said flatly to the guy who kept trying to talk to you, “so you might want to find someone else to complain about the DJ to.”
The word tasted like lemonade on your tongue - acidic and sour, sweet and refreshing, taste buds blooming and shriveling in tandem. Even the knowledge that it was a flat-out lie didn’t stop your heart from beating faster.
You expected the guy to get up and leave, maybe throw you a dirty look on his way. Instead, he seemed to call your bluff, narrowing his eyes like he was trying to read you.
“I don’t think I’d let my girlfriend go out alone looking like this,” he said evenly, and you let out a derisive laugh.
“The fact that you just said the words let my girlfriend probably has a lot to do with why you’re here alone,” you countered, a flash of victory slicing up your spine when you saw his face flush.
Before he could retort, you hopped down from your barstool, pushing your way into the crowded dance floor. You didn’t even want to dance, you just wanted to get away. If Vernon wanted to find you, he could come find you. He’d told you not to leave, he hadn’t said make it easy for me.
He found you anyway; he made it look easy. He stepped around a group of guys talking in a circle and into your space, like he was following a path, like he knew there’d be room for him.
You were happy to see him. You were happy he came. You were happy to breathe him in, to feel the warmth of his body and smell his cologne and hear your name tumble from his mouth like a statement. You were too drunk to tuck these truths away into pockets and folds where they would be harder to find.
You stepped to him and wrapped your arms around his neck. If he was surprised, his body hid it well. His hands came to rest on your lower back, pressing you closer to him as you leaned up to find his mouth.
You kissed him slowly, at odds with the frantic bassline vibrating under your feet. You let him tip your head back, changing the angle, sweeping your mouth with his tongue until you both tasted lemonade.
“Happy to see me?” he asked, a hint of a smirk on his face, one eyebrow arched in question and one half of his mouth twitching into a smile.
You didn’t have it in you to lie, so instead you said, “Your place?”
He led you outside.
As luck would have it, the idiot from the bar stood beside the front door, a cigarette between two fingers. His expression darkened when he recognized you, then further when he saw your fingers linked with Vernon’s as you stepped into the quiet night.
“Your girlfriend’s a fucking bitch,” the guy bit out, dropping the cigarette butt and stepping on it.
Vernon’s eyebrows shot up.
Evenly, he said, “She’s not -”
She’s not my girlfriend. You felt your stomach swoop, and you felt yourself flinch.
“- a bitch. She’s just smarter than you.”
Vernon tugged on your hand, leading you across the street to his parked, waiting car.
You tried to bite back a smile, and he looked sideways at you, his own lips twitching.
“What?” he demanded.
“What?” you parroted.
He scowled at you, but his lips were just smiling. “What?” he asked again.
You laughed. “Let’s go,” you said. “The bitch wants to kiss you more.”
You expected his smile to sharpen. Instead, something in it seems to soften, changing from teasing to actual affection.
“Alright,” he said, turning to start the engine. “Can’t really say no to that, can I?”
“You could,” you mused, as he pulled away from the curb and the bar slid into nothingness behind you, “but I just don’t think you should.”
1 yr, 2 months ago
wyd
melting
srsly
no, seriously. i am laying on my living room floor like a starfish trying not to turn into liquid
come to hyungs
its too hot to move
i have an idea, come meet me at hyungs
You frowned at your phone. Of course your aircon died during the only heatwave you could remember in your entire adult life. Your whole body felt sticky; you were pretty sure you were stuck to your floor.
It was too hot to move.
what’s the idea??
you’ll see. i’ll order u a car. can you bring a couple towels?
“Vernon, no,” you laughed, your voice echoing.
He shushed you through laughter, both of you leaning on each other as you stood at the edge of the yard, the grass tickling the bottoms of your bare feet. Upstairs, at his friend’s place, you’d thrown back a few shots for courage before following Vernon out here, and you were feeling them, your head swimming like your body might soon be.
“It’s a circuit, see?” he tried to explain, pointing through the night, as if you could see through all the fences and over all the hedges. “Five yards, five pools, and then we end up right back here and we get in the car and go. Just follow me, don’t stop for anything.”
“Someone’s gonna call the cops,” you complained. “And these neighborhoods all have cameras.”
“That’s why we keep moving,” he said, his grin so excited and so un-Vernon that you almost couldn’t bear to say no to him. “No one’s gonna call the cops if we’re already gone - it’s not worth it. You ready?”
You hesitated. “You’re good to drive us out of here?” you checked.
He held up his hands as if to show innocence. “Only had a beer,” he promised. “But I’ve got something fun in the car for after, if you want.”
You felt your grin turn wolfish. “Okay. I’m right behind you.”
“Try and be quiet,” he warned, then took off running across the yard, cannonballing into the pool with a splash.
You tore off after him, leaping into the water and suppressing a shriek when the cold water hit you. You felt instantly sober, jittery with adrenaline, alive with laughter. You spluttered your way to the surface and pushed water away from your eyes, trying to find him through the shadows.
He was already climbing out the other side, water running down his back, the muscle shifting in the half-light as he hoisted himself back onto the pool’s deck. You hurried across the pool, climbing up beside him, giggling wildly.
“Shhh,” he warned, but he was giggling too as he led you carefully over the fence to the next yard.
As soon as you crept close enough to the pool to jump, a motion-activated light came on, flooding the yard white and causing you to cover your eyes.
“Quick!” Vernon told you, grabbing your arm and pulling you in with him as he jumped.
You let out a stream of bubbles and water rushed into your mouth. You felt your feet hit the bottom and you pushed off hard, surfacing quickly.
Again, you followed him across the pool, both of you laughing and whispering, “Hurry! Quick!” as you climbed out and headed around the house to the front yard.
“Okay, this is the hard part,” he told you, both of you shivering as the night air caught up to you. “We have to cross the street, hop the fence, and then the pool is around back.”
“I’m ready,” you promised, with a particularly hard shiver.
You sprinted across the street, both leaving wet footprints on the pavement. His hand felt warm in yours when he helped you over the fence, warm on your body when he held your waist as you climbed down.
“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” you muttered, but giggles still spilled out of you.
“More fun than melting, right?” he asked, and you thought that you’d seen him smile more tonight than in whole months of coming together at night.
You thought you might move mountains to see him smile like this again, gums showing, open and honest, happy.
Then you were underwater again, swimming hard to keep up, following Vernon through the night as he pushed his way through some hedges and held them apart for you.
You made it to the last house before someone caught you, slamming the back door open and shouting, “Hey!”
“Go, go, go!” Vernon cried, laughing with such abandon that it sounded like goose honks, pulling on your hand as you both stumbled, dripping, towards the car.
You’d set towels on the seats before starting, so you tumbled into the car and he peeled away, both of you laughing wildly as you left the neighborhood behind.
It was miles before you calmed down, gasping in breaths and trying to hold them before exploding into laughter again.
“I’d better not end up on the news,” you scolded. “I’m in my underwear.
He gave you a searing sideways look. “I noticed.”
You felt yourself warm again, despite being in soaking wet clothes.
“Where next?” you asked. “Home?”
He let out a breath that was almost a sigh. “I don’t really want to go home,” he admitted. Then, “I was having fun with you.”
You considered this. “Not to be a cliche, but… I know a place.”
The quarry was quiet, surrounded by only trees; without posted lights, everything seemed to be just varying shades of black - the black of the water just darker than the black of the stone ledges just darker than the walls of trees just darker than the sky sprinkled with stars above you.
“We have to be careful,” you warned him seriously. “If you slip and get hurt, it could be bad.”
He turned the flashlight on his phone on and set it next to the metal rungs that jutted out of the stone, a makeshift ladder for the swimmers who came here during the day, when swimming was allowed.
“It’s going to be way colder than the pools,” you added.
“You’re not selling this very well,” he pointed out.
“Don’t be a chicken,” you teased.
He eyed the water. “I’m having second thoughts.”
You nudged him in the ribs, which caused him to squirm away, hands batting at yours, a noise emitting from him that made you laugh out loud.
“Are you ticklish?” you demanded. “How did I not know?”
“Come on, are we jumping or what?” he asked, laughing, still trying to keep your sneaky hands away from his ribs.
“Yeah, that’s probably the only way to actually get in,” you admitted, still laughing a little. Your abs felt a little sore from how much you’d laughed tonight.
You stood on the edge of the stone, toes curling over the ledge, Vernon’s hand tight in yours. You stood on the edge, the ink-like water beneath you rippling slightly, marring the reflection of the constellations high above you. You stood on the edge of something, knowing full well you were afraid to swim.
He counted you down, and together, you jumped.
The water was freezing - it hurt, it stung, and you shrieked and laughed as you surfaced. A foot from you, Vernon was shouting.
“The towels!” you told him, already swimming towards the little dot of light that marked the ladder.
Shaking and shivering, you reached your towel, wrapping it around yourself. Behind you, Vernon jogged up, making noises like a disgruntled horse as he found his own towel.
“Oh my god,” he groused, grabbing for you. “I’m freezing, come here.”
He opened his arms, the towel behind him like a wingspan, and you stepped into the space, letting him wrap his arms and his towel around you. You stood shivering together, trying to let your body heat chase the cold away.
You wrapped your own arms around his middle, pressing yourself closer as your legs shook, shivers rolling up your spine in waves as your body fought the chill.
“C’mere,” he murmured above you, holding you a little more tightly, his own teeth chattering.
It was the first time, you realized as you turned your head to rest your cheek on his chest, that you’d held each other. It was the first time you’d been between his arms when you weren’t fucking, the first time he’d tightened his grip around you for a reason other than gratification.
You didn’t want it - didn’t want to know that it felt nice in his embrace, didn’t want to know that it fit right and felt safe. You didn’t want to know that you liked it, didn’t want to have to fight against the humiliation of wanting more.
As soon as the full-body tremors died away in the warm, sticky night, you stepped away, eager to put distance between you again.
Later, he looked over at you from the driver’s seat of the car, red-eyed, his smile stretching slow and thick like putty. When you straddled his lap, his hands searching out the bare skin of your back, you rocked against him and pressed open-mouthed kisses to the column of his pretty throat until you were pulling groans from him with each pass of your hips.
Forget, you thought, as you pulled your underwear to the side for him. Forget every single thing but this.
When you slipped an arm behind his neck and pressed your foreheads together as you lifted and dropped, you weren’t sure whose memory you were hoping to erase with this most recent pleasure-chase: yours, or his.
1 yr, 1 month ago
There was no map or calendar to this thing your brain did. It was summer, the sun shone, and yet the days bled together again, sunsets swirling down the shower drain.
The last time you’d gone radio silent, the last time your world had gone grey without warning, Vernon had answered in kind. His own silence had shouted for him until you’d tempted him back.
This time, he didn’t resort to silence in retaliation to yours. Instead, he kept trying, relentless. If you’d had more presence of mind, you might have wondered why.
wyd
[ ]
yo. whats the deal
[ ]
i will have you know that this is very insulting
[ ]
don’t get mad but im coming over
“What the fuck, Vernon.”
“I said don’t get mad.”
“It doesn’t work like that. What are you doing here?”
He leveled you with a look. “You gonna let me in?”
“Literally, no.”
You hadn’t showered in days; your apartment was probably grosser than you were. The cat milled around your ankles, trying to weasel its way outside, and you hopped from foot to foot trying to nudge it back inside.
“Why not?” he asked.
You huffed, annoyed. But the annoyance was the first thing you’d felt all day, and something inside you clung to it, desperate for more of anything but the crawling nothing that’s kept you company for days.
“Because,” you grumbled. Because there’s nothing for you here. Because I have nothing I can give you. “I’m… just not in the mood.”
He stepped back from the door so you could see more of him. “I’m not asking you to be.”
“Then why are you here?” The words fell between you, heavy. If you hadn’t been so low, if you hadn’t gone all day without eating, if you hadn’t been on your thirtieth hour without sleeping, you would have known better. You would have realized that you were asking, if you aren’t here for sex, then what are you here for?
You wouldn’t have asked a question that you didn’t want the answer to.
He met your eyes. He seemed to teeter on the edge of telling you the truth, giving you the real answer. Then, he muttered, “Got bored.”
You knew it wasn’t the whole truth, and he knew you knew it, and yet neither of you were willing to look at it directly.
“I fail to see how that’s my problem,” you mumbled, avoiding his gaze.
He watched you for what felt like a long time, face serious, eyes glittering and attentive. Then, instead of answering, he repeated, “Are you gonna let me in?”
You frowned at him, but there was a little more pout to it than anger. “I’m all gross,” you said, instead of answering.
Something in him softened - it was visible on his face, in his shoulders, like he knew this was your way of saying yes. “So let’s shower,” he suggested quietly.
You felt trepidation, like part of you expected him to stay soft, to try to take care of you. To your relief, Vernon acted like everything was normal, scrunching his face at you when the water was too cold as he stepped in, washing his own body in silence and letting you do your thing.
He didn’t try to hold you, didn’t ask you when you’d eaten last, didn’t try to talk about it - didn’t try to fix it. He was just… there, and this - along with your first shower in days - was somehow revitalizing in itself.
You pulled on clean sweats, which was better than the day-four sweats he’d found you in. “The apartment’s kind of… sorry,” you mumbled, looking around the living room, feeling a bit of that familiar shame crawl up your neck as you noticed the evidence that you hadn’t been picking up, or running a vacuum.
Vernon flopped backwards on your sofa, unphased, one arm bent behind his head. “We’ve been doing this for almost a year,” he pointed out. “I know how it usually is.”
It isn’t usually like this. And neither are you.
You wondered when it happened - your ability to finish his half-thoughts, your ability to know what he meant when he only said a fraction of it.
You stood awkwardly beside the couch where he was lounging, and he looked up at you with a tiny, amused smile.
“What do you wanna do?”
What you really wanted to do was cocoon yourself in blankets again and put on repeats of a show you’d already seen. But now you had to look functional. You might be mad at him for showing up like this, now that you thought about it.
“I dunno,” you said, which was close to the truth.
“You wanna eat?”
“Honestly?” you asked, pursing your lips a little. “No.”
“Okay,” he said easily, and it struck you again how different this was than how Chan treated you when you were low. Chan would have already had the food delivered, and would be chasing you around the table with loaded chopsticks, demanding you take a bite.
“Can we just… watch something?” you asked, unsure.
Vernon wordlessly reached for your remote and held it up to you, nonplussed.
You wondered if it was an act, how easy this was, how unbothered he was, how he seemed to just understand what wouldn’t help.
You knew it wasn’t; you’d been around long enough to know that Vernon’s demons weren’t all that different from yours.
You settled somewhere between his body and the back of the couch, one leg bent over his legs, one of your arms over his stomach and his arm curled around your shoulders.
“This is weird,” you muttered into his chest, and his laugh rumbled under you.
“Why?” he asked, his smile big, like he thought you were particularly funny. “Not used to being big spoon?”
Not used to cuddling - with you.
“Yeah,” you said, because that was easier.
On your TV, a show ran through several episodes, the changing scenes splashing you and Vernon with changing colors, casting his face blue and then white and then black and then red and then blue again. Sometimes he’d watch, sometimes he’d scroll on his phone. You mostly felt his heart beating under your hand and let your mind whir.
At some point he started mindlessly (or not mindlessly, who could know) stroking your back, gentle touches brushing up and down, slow, slow, the way he always was. At some point you shivered, goosebumps rising along your arms, and snuggled closer to him. At some point he shifted you from slightly beside him to on top of him, a second hand slipping under your loose tshirt and joining the first in tracing stripes up and down your upper back.
You shifted against him, something coming to life with a shudder like the furnace in your parent’s basement on cold autumn nights. Heat worked its way slowly from your core to your stomach, down your legs.
He kept his eyes on the tv, innocent, but you could hear his heartbeat. It couldn’t lie and pretend.
You shifted again, squirming until you’d worked his t-shirt up just enough that you could touch skin, too. You trailed your own fingers over the inch of exposed stomach you’d found, and delighted in the way you could feel him start to harden beneath you.
Then, you delighted in your delight. It was the first good thing you’d been able to feel in almost a week.
You said his name, and he finally looked down at you, eyes nearly black in the unlit room.
“What is it?” he asked, and his voice was suddenly so low it sent shivers tumbling down each vertebrae and tripping over to your limbs. “Want me to make you feel good?”
No, you wanted to say as you answered his question by pulling the hem of his t-shirt higher, encouraging him to lift up so you could pull it off. No, just want you to make me feel.
1 year ago
Everywhere Vernon looked, all he saw was circles. Circle of red in his bowl when he inhaled. Circle of condensation on the table when he lifted his beer. Circle of light reflecting from his phone case, laying in the setting sunlight, to the ceiling. Above him, the ceiling fan circled lazily, nowhere to be.
And you - you and him. That was a circle, too. A cycle, at least, which was close enough in his opinion. Text, hook up, skitter back to your respective places, wait out the next weekend. It was as rhythmic and routine as waves breaking and then getting pulled back out only to come shatter on sand again. It was out of his control, up to forces far greater than he was.
Vernon’s friends had texted to hang out and he’d declined. He told them he was seeing his parents, but really, he just wanted to be alone. He wanted to watch the ceiling fan circle, he wanted to let his brain go staticky quiet, he wanted to burrow deep into things that made him feel less.
But he still, somehow, wanted to see you. He wanted to be alone, and being with you didn’t feel like not getting that.
It was a little scary, he thought, that you were the exception. That he could be with you without feeling the uncomfortable pressure of being with others, of having to be on, of having to fake cheerfulness and keep up with chatter that only exhausted him.
Vernon wasn’t a kid. He knew what it meant.
whats up
honestly not a lot. want me to come over?
Yeah, he did. He did, even if you weren’t going to hook up. He did, even if you were just going to lay on opposite sides of the couch and scroll on your phones. He did, and he hoped he’d end up with his arms around you, and he hoped he’d make you laugh at least once, and he hoped you’d stay and just be there with him after.
When you came over, he asked you how you felt about it - about him, about you and him. He asked by laying you on your back in his bed, by brushing fingertips along your face. He asked you by sliding your leggings away gently, pressing his mouth to each inch of your inseam as it became exposed to his dimly lit room. He asked you by kissing you through the lace you wore for him, then kissing the same spot once that lace was on his floor.
He asked you when he crawled up your body until his tip teased at your entrance and you whined, shifting to try to take him. And - when he took it slow this time, teeth scraping at your neck and then tongue hurrying to soothe the sting, his arms bracketing your body like he was sheltering you from an incoming storm.
(Maybe, he considered, he was.)
(Maybe, he considered, he was worthless in the face of this storm’s wrath.)
(Maybe, he considered, he was the fucking storm in the first place.)
And you heard his question loud and clear. You pulled on your leggings as soon as you were cleaned up, popping your hood up over your head as you searched for your phone. You kept your eyes on your screen as you waited for a car to come, murmured, “Later,” on your way out the door.
Vernon’s apartment rang with quiet. He was alone, he’d gotten what he’d wanted.
He’d also, it seemed, gotten his answer.
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thank you so much for reading!!! i'm always happy to hear what you think!
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Animal Shelter - Seth Jarvis
a/n: ahhh i think this turned out so cute! 🥰 i'm more of a cat person but there are a couple breeds of dogs that i have a love for, and greyhounds are one so i put my own personal touch to it :)
summary: you and seth plan to adopt a dog, but things take an unexpected turn while at the shelter
word count: ~2k
“You wanna get a dog?” Seth asks you late one night, as you lay in each other’s arms in the soft candlelight. The power had been out for a couple hours due to a bad storm, with no idea of when it would come back on. But thanks to a few flameless candles, you were safely able to light the room.
“What?” You wonder, looking down at him in confusion, the question seemingly out of nowhere.
“I feel like it’s a pretty straight forward question. Do you want to adopt a dog?” He repeats, his hands playing with the ends of your hair. You stare at him in disbelief.
“What kind of dog?” You ask, sitting up to stare down at him, your hand running along the chain of his necklace that laid on his bare chest. He shrugs against the pillow and moves his hand to rest on your back, caressing it up and down your shirt covering your skin.
“Dunno. I figured we could go to the shelter and find a good fit,” he nonchalantly says. “I think it would be a great addition, you know. We’ve been together for a while, we finally have this house with a backyard so they can run around and play. Just a thought.”
After talking about it for the rest of the night, since there was nothing to do with the power out, you make plans to head to the animal shelter close by in the morning to go and ask about adopting and meet a few dogs.
In the morning, you and Seth head to the local animal shelter and are immediately approached by a volunteer when stepping inside.
“Hi! I’m Rhonda, how can we help you today?” She welcomes you in, standing up from her spot near the entrance to the area where the cages are.
“We’re looking into adopting a dog, just not sure which one,” Seth chuckles, looking over her shoulder at the noisy room.
“Wonderful! If you want to come with me, I can show you around or you can roam yourself, whatever you would prefer. Are you looking for an older dog or more of a puppy age?”
You and Seth share a look and shrug.
“Not too old of a dog, but older puppy a puppy,” he answers. She nods and walks through the automatic doors, pausing after she steps in and making sure you two are with her.
“So a lot of the middle aged dogs are on the outer aisles, but there are some spread about.”
“I think we’ll just take a quick walk through and see,” you say.
“Okay! Everyone adopting gets to meet with two dogs per day, so if you don’t find that special pet today, you are more than welcome to come back another day.”
“Alright, thanks so much.”
Seth takes your hand in his and begins walking around, pausing every few steps to take a look at the dog in the pen.
“Oh look at this lovely lady,” Seth coos, leaning down to let a pitbull sniff his hand. Her tail wags like crazy, but she was a little older than you two had the ability to care for.
So, you keep on looking, and after a bit, you have a couple dogs in mind that you’d like to see their personalities outside of their pens.
Meeting with the first dog, a Norwich terrier named Birdie, she was far more shy than either of you noticed. She cowered away when Seth tried to pet her, and he sighs, looking up at you.
“She came from a house with five other dogs small dogs that were not properly trained. She doesn’t do well sometimes, but she just needs some time and patience,” Rhonda explains.
You and Seth share another look as she describes the dog’s situation, and your heart aches for her; she looks so friendly, but extremely timid.
“We have found that she finds comfort in larger dogs, so if you have another pet at home, she’ll be just right.”
“Oh no, this is going to be our first pet,” you say, looking at the sweet brown terrier, who finally warmed up to Seth a little bit.
After spending a few more minutes with her, Rhonda leaves and brings in the next dog, a chocolate brown greyhound, just under two years old.
“Maple is a rescue from greyhound racing, she came off the track a little over a year ago. She’s been here for a little while. Her foster home didn’t work out and she was surrendered to us.”
“How long has she been here?” Seth asks.
“Almost eight months.” You groan as you hear this, Maple coming right up to you and licking your hand that you stick out to pet her with. You laugh softly, her tail beating from side to side excitedly as Seth calls her over, showing her a rope to play with.
The two of them immediately start playing, and you could tell this was the right decision. However, after Rhonda takes her back and gets the paperwork ready to fill out, Seth looks at you.
“We should adopt both,” he says, a serious yet sad look on his face. “Birdie would do so well with Maple, I think. And that way, she won’t be in here alone anymore and we can give her a chance at having a happy life.”
“Two dogs? Will they even allow us to adopt two at the same time?” You wonder in disbelief that Seth was bringing this up. You rub your face, but think back to the little dog that was first in here.
You could tell she was happy that someone was around, but her nerves were too much and it was overwhelming for her for a moment; she just needed patience and love, something you saw once the energy in the room settled a bit and you sat on the ground with her.
“We should do it,” you say, nodding a little. Seth smiles widely and wraps you in a tight hug.
“She did say Birdie would be good with bigger dogs. And with Maple being so much larger and full of energy but still calm and sweet, I think they’d fit well together.”
“We can ask her when she comes back.”
So, when Rhonda comes back with a set of adoption papers and everything, you ask her for her honest opinion on things. After some deliberation and conversation between the three of you, a second set of adoption papers is ready to be signed, for Birdie.
Rhonda leaves you alone with Maple while she brings back the smaller dog, Seth looking at you with a huge smile on your face.
“You think this is a good idea?” He teases, scooting over closer to you as he sets the paperwork aside, petting Maple as she comes up to you.
“Maybe not financially responsible, but we’re giving two wonderful pets a happy home, so it’s definitely a positive choice,” you chuckle, resting your head against his shoulder.
Maple rests her head on your lap, staring up at you, her tail still wagging a little. You rub her head and your heart soars. This was a new chapter in yours and Seth’s life, and it felt so right and perfect.
Not long after, Rhonda returns with Birdie, Maple turns around and sniffs the smaller dog. To your surprise, Birdie stays put, allowing Maple to examine her and check her out. Birdie’s little tail starts to wag a bit, causing you and Seth to look at each other, ecstatic and eager.
When all the right forms were filled out, Rhonda gave you a few personal tips that she thought would be important, just a couple things she’s learned from personal experience. Both of you listened and kept those tips in mind, and finally, you were ready to be on your way.
Seth helps both Maple and Birdie into the back seat, carefully putting a harness around them and buckling them in, a product that you just bought at the shelter, and it was definitely going to come in handy.
“So, you want to head to the store with them, or do you want me to drop them off at home with you and I’ll go buy food and beds and toys and everything?” Seth wonders as he hops in the driver’s seat.
“I think it would be fun for them to pick some toys out themselves,” you say, turning around to look at them. Both were panting lightly, due to heightened anxiety from being in a car for the first time.
After half an hour at the pet store, you are headed back home and ready to finally settle in with your two new pets. Seth unbuckles them the second he parks in the driveway, not wanting them to be in distress any longer.
He helps Maple up the porch steps while you carry Birdie in your arms, leaving Seth grab all the items from the store that were left in the car.
“Come here, let’s see the backyard,” you coo to the two dogs, leading them over to the patio and opening the door up. They rush outside, Birdie far more timid than Maple, who runs out and circles the large backyard like she does it all the time. You laugh as she sprints freely, and Seth comes up behind you, his arms going around your waist.
“They seem to be enjoying it here so far,” he whispers in your ear.
“I think so,” you smile, turning around in his arms. “I love you.”
“I love you too, baby.”
You watch them continue to explore the backyard before Birdie decides she’s had enough and heads back inside. You give her time to scope out the new space on her own, while Maple, enjoying the nice weather, lays down in the grass, panting like crazy as she tries to catch her breath, a joyful gleam in her eyes.
“Should we change their names?” You wonder, looking up at your boyfriend.
“I like Birdie, so we should keep that one. For Maple…” he pauses to think for a moment, staring over at her in thought. “Maybe we can think on it for a few days.”
Later that night, during dinner, Seth had fed both Maple and Birdie, and you were in the kitchen making your dinner, which consisted of breakfast foods, when Maple comes strolling in to get a drink of water from the metal bowl near your feet.
The toaster pops up the bread and Maple’s head pops up in curiosity, and suddenly, she starts to howl. The sound startles you a little, but it’s not a noise of fear, her tail is wagging back and forth, her head tilted as she gazes up at you. So, you test it again. You click the trigger down, then pop it back up, and she does it again.
Seth walks in with a confused expression, thinking something was wrong.
“What was that?” He asks, stepping over to where you are, looking down at the greyhound. You giggle and reach to pet her brown fur.
“I think I just found her new name,” you say, the idea clicking instantly in your head. Seth’s eyebrows raise in wonder. You show him the discovery you made and he laughs with you, crouching down to give her a hug.
“Toast,” he says. “My toasty girl. It’s perfect because she also looks like slightly burnt toast,” he comments, running his hands along her fur, kissing her head playfully. You continue making your food as Seth and, now Toast, head to the couch to curl up for the night.
Birdie was at your feet as you cook and eat your dinner, already attached to you, and that’s when you feel like everything worked out. Seth and Toast bonded almost immediately, and Birdie was drawn to you; neither you or Seth were left out, and the dogs didn’t have to feel “in the middle.”
Everything was falling into place, and after dinner, you joined the two of them, Birdie curling up at your feet on the blanket, as you all relaxed together, Step Brothers playing on the tv, and Seth’s arms around you, holding you close.
taglist: @petite-potato4
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So, I've heard some voices here and there lamenting how little Gabe content - especially new Gabe content - there was and you know what? I completely agree, so I thought why not, I can try to add my little droplet into this tiny sea of Gabe appreciation we have here on tumblr.
Summary: Elena visits Gabe in his house for the first time and learns something new about his past.
Word count: 1937
AN: just some friendly fluff really, headcanon heavy, from Elena's POV but Gabe centric
"Oh, watch out, the first step is-" Gabe turned around just in time to catch Elena when she started to fall backwards. "-loose."
"Thanks for the warning." Elena shot him a glare when she regained her balance. In response Gabe only sent her an unapologetic grin and pulled her up on the next step.
"Everyone's so used to it by now that we keep forgetting to fix it with my dad," he explained as they finally reached the first floor.
The stairs led to a narrow corridor, with the same room placement as the bakery beneath it. Two doors on the right, one on the left and a wide opening to the living room at the end. In a few brisk steps Gabe opened the door on the left and invited Elena in with a courteous gesture.
"Welcome to my humble abode, your highness."
Her highness graced him with a nod and slipped by him, into the small room. Elena gave it a quick one over. It was indeed small - in fact, there probably wasn't much more space than what each guard got at the barracks - and the decor wasn't much fancier either. Cream colored walls, a thin bed by the window, a wardrobe opposite of it, one wall taken up by a bookshelf and a small cabinet by another made up basically all the furnishing of the room.
"Humble is a good word." She nodded solemnly, earning herself an eye roll from her friend. They both chuckled.
"Hey, it's your room that's out of the norm, you know?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Elena retorted, thinking about how three or even four such rooms would fit into hers. She walked over to the cabinet and picked up some trinket. "But it's nice to finally see where you grew up."
Gabe couldn't stop a fond smile sneaking onto his lips when he noticed the badge she was examining.
"Yeah and I didn't really get to change much here in the past five years. For example this thing I got back when-"
"Gabriel!" He was interrupted by his mother's voice from the bakery.
"I'll tell you in a moment," he sighed. "Make yourself at home!" He added from the doors and quickly ran downstairs to his parents.
Elena took another look around the room. It wasn't entirely empty, she had to admit that, and the poster of Antonio Agama on the inner side of the door confirmed that Gabe didn't change the decor much since he moved out.
She moved to the bookshelf and moved her hand across the titles - though there weren't that many of them to count. The lower shelves were taken up by some boxes and bags and what could've been a neatly packaged tent. Then finally a whole shelf dedicated to the whole collection of Antonio Agama's books. Elena chuckled to herself when she read some of the more dramatic titles and noticed even one that wasn't in Avaloran. On the next shelf, between other various travel books and biographies, was only one book by señor Agama, titled simply 'The Gecko's Tale'. Driven by a hunch she took it out and couldn't help but laugh when she read the blurb on the back. Although that explained how the whole kingdom found out that she's a bit adventurous too.
Finally her gaze got to the plant on top of the mantle. Hidden so deep in the room, it extended its ivy like stalks towards the sun, climbing a string helpfully hung between the bookshelf and the window.
Down on the windowsill two other plants looked out on the little cobbled square behind the house. Elena leaned in to smell the orchid and noticed something half hidden behind the pot. Slowly, so as not to accidentally damage the plant, she reached for trinket and retrieved it into the light. It turned out to be a wooden doll, painted to resemble a familiar navy and maroon uniform...
"Is this you?" She turned to Gabe as soon as he entered the room and showed him the figurine with a wide smile.
Gabe stopped for a moment. Furrowed his brows as he tried to see what Elena was even holding, and then furrowed his brows even more when he recognised it.
"Of course not," he grumbled, closing the small distance between them. "It's just an old thing anyway."
"It does look a bit like you though." She jumped away from him at the last moment.
Gabe gasped. Elen giggled and moved her hand away when he tried to reach her.
"Why would I even have a figurine of myself?"
For a moment they circled each other, like two lions judging if it's worthy to fight the opponent for a steak, except the steak was now wooden and 15 centimetres high. They both hunched subconsciously and made their steps in the fencing manner.
"I don't know, why does Esteban have a whole wall of his own portraits?" A sly grin slid on her face. "But I see you've decided to match his collection."
"Oh now you've done it." Gabe shook his head to hide his smile and in the split of a second was right by her. Feigning to go right for the prize, he swiped her legs out from under her.
Elena waved her hands in the air giving Gabe just the opportunity he was waiting for. He swiftly yanked the figurine from her hands, giving her the last push to fall backwards completely. He turned his head with a victorious grin, just in time to see her legs rising at the height of his knees. And suddenly the ground was much closer than before.
He folded his arms to his chest, protecting the figurine with his body and rolled on the floor. Though he didn't have to roll far, of which he was promptly reminded by his head crushing into the cupboard.
He groaned loudly and let his body fall limply to the floor.
His pained complaint was answered by Elena's laughter from the bed.
"I'm getting too old for this," he mumbled and Elena's laughter only got louder.
Finally he sat up and lifted the figurine to his face. He carefully examined it for any cracks or splinters, checked if the joints in the limbs didn't fall out and most importantly if the head was still on firm. Finally when he made sure the trinket didn't get damaged, he let out a relieved sigh.
"You're lucky it's still whole," he grumbled, rising to his feet.
"Hey, I was being careful." Elena now sat up too and sent him a playful smirk. "All the way until you decided to trip me like that."
Gabe rolled his eyes again and huffed in pretended annoyance.
"So if it's not a limited edition General Nuñez action figure," Elena continued. "What is it?"
Gabe sat down next to her and thought of an answer for a moment. He changed the position of the little soldier's arms and reached for a pin to put into his hand as a sword.
"It's really just an old toy," he said finally. "But you know, it has sentimental value."
He finally passed Elena the figurine, so she could take a look at it herself. It wasn't as old as she thought at first. The paint was faded, but still held onto the uneven surface of the wood and as she moved her fingers across it, she realized that it must've been all whittled by hand, by someone who put great care in it, but wasn't a professional.
Still the amount of details was impressive, especially in the construction of the thing. She moved the tiny soldier into the proper fencing position and to her delight found out that it fits flawlessly, the wire on the joints creaked quietly, as if it had been waiting for an opportunity to shine for ages.
She glanced between the figurine and Gabe on her left for comparison. The uniform, despite the familiar colours, was a tad different, it resembles more what she remembered from her childhood, than the uniform Gabe was wearing at the moment.
"I got it from my first fencing teacher," he continued.
"The same one who threw coconuts at you driving training?" Elena raised a brow, earning herself a chuckle.
"Yeah, the same one." A sad smile reached the corners of his eyes as old memories resurfaced in his memory. "He was a tough man and always talked about how big an annoyance I am, but -" he gestured to the figurine and shrugged.
"Well, that explains why it looks like you," Elena bumped him with her shoulder. "I'm sure he could've already seen that you'll be a great guard."
"Oh, I don't think he even wanted me to be a guard," Gabe laughed again. "But you know, the situation was a bit different." He pondered something for a moment before continuing. "And to be fair, I didn't even realize that it was supposed to be a guard at the time, I was pretty sure he just came up with the design by himself. I only really connected the dots a few years ago, when I found this old thing again."
Elena nodded silently and put a comforting hand on his arm. She could see that this topic wasn't easy for him.
"Though maybe what you said was the point." He straightened suddenly and his gaze went back to the figurine. "Maybe he wasn't completely against me joining the guard, just... joining the right one."
His smile became wider and it was like his whole face lit up. Elena raised the little soldier's arms to make it cheer. They both laughed at how expressive this piece of wood was.
"So where is your coach now?" Elena asked, caressing the wooden toy one more time.
He only sighed at first and for a moment his gaze became clouded again, before he shook his head to cast the memories away.
"I wish I knew," he sent her a sad smile. "One day he just... disappeared. A few trinkets and one letter is all the proof I have that he wasn't just my hallucination."
Elena's lips twitched in a matching sad smile, but before she could say anything, they both heard a voice from downstairs, calling the unmistakable word 'dinner!'
Gabe clapped his hands on his knees and sprung up to his feet.
"Ah, just in time", he extended his hand to Elena. "I think eating is a much more fun topic than discussing the weird things I did in my childhood."
Elena examined his face for a moment more, but gave up on asking all the questions that pushed to the tip of her tongue. She sent him a smile instead and accepted his hand.
"Oh, you mean you did more weird things?" She made the little figurine gasp.
"I feel like I shouldn't have started this topic," Gabe laughed.
"Oh no, you won't escape now." She poked him in the chest and put the little soldier in his hand. "I gotta know all the crazy stories."
"Okay, okay, I'll tell you something," Gabe raised his hands in defeat. "But you can't mention it to my parents, please, they'll never stop until they tell you my whole life story."
Elena made a theatrical gesture of tapping her lips in thought as she backed out of the room.
"I'll consider it," she sent him a wide grin and in a second turned and ran towards the stairs.
"Hey- wait!" Gabe called out, running right after her to save what was left of his reputation.
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