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#the thing about music is that it contains many more layers than your ears are naturallt going to pick out because theyre used to filtering
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Hello person I never talked to in my life I saw your tags and. Please infodump about the songs for headphones rather than speakers thing if you feel like it bc I really want to know
HI!! it has been a ridiculous amount of time since you sent this, so I am very sorry. however, disclaimer that I have no expertise in music, but I do have a basic knowledge of music theory and lots of exposure (which I'm sure sounds silly, but simply means that I have a trained ear, if not mind).
I have noticed that with music produced before common availability of more sophisticated in-ear listening devices such as IPods or smart phones paired with earbuds or headphones lacks a lot of subtle, atmospheric sounds that mark more contemporary music produced within the last 10-15 years. These atmospheric sounds are things as directly understood as a result of a more isolated listening experience such as bird chirping or rustling leaves or as subtle and musical in nature as a soft chanting refrain or droning tone. Both of these, while different in purpose and nature, serve to fill out the sound of the music where background noise would, allowing artists to fully control the sound experience in a way previously unavailable.
this change can also be considered with the more widespread availability and usage of digital music making; when you have access to a sound effect, you don't have to count on it being there or figure out how to make the instruments you do have make those noises. there have been arguments made for decades (literally since the invention of the synthesizer) as to where or not this counts as part of the artistry as a new facet of the medium to be experimented with and added or diminishes the ultimate purpose and goal of music production. when new phases of technology are created and shared, there is always a boom of exploration coincident with a boom of... laziness, for lack of a better word. those who aim to use this new technology as a crutch rather than a tool. then, as the tide turns on this new technology and all the magic is gone, there's a turn back towards acoustic sound, now with elements of the previous era infused. think heavier guitar of grunge and punk versus 50's rock and how that infusion occurred AFTER synth wave in the 1980's, where those sounds overlap and converge (and, for a more interesting dive into music's role in culture, what that shift signifies).
there's also the issue of volume and dynamics. listening to heavier music with earbuds tends to be kind of unpleasant because that's not how it's designed to be played! the point is that it is loud and disruptive to OTHERS so it is necessarily sort of difficult to enjoy beamed into your ears with the magic of technology. on the opposite end of the spectrum, bedroom pop gets a bad reputation for sucking, especially to play on aux because that's not how THAT genre is meant to be played. it's quiet and has lots of subtle elements that are really easily lost in background noise that genres like death metal are engineered to cover, meaning that elements which serve to unite and fill out more key elements of the song get lost and leave it feeling hollow. there's a philosophy difference there.
which brings me to hyperpop as a perfect example of this change (its an excellent example of a lot things happening in music, even if it's a bit passe now. to editorialize more than I already am, I think it's gonna be one of those things we point to 10 years down the line and see as a huge shift but that remains to be seen). hyperpop uses this technology to blend older approaches to music with more contemporary approaches to sound production, which creates something that feels simultaneously nostalgic and completely alien; it translates really REALLY poorly to speakers because it's that adaption of heavyfastloud to a more isolated listening environment and can't be taken out.
SO TO SUMMARIZE I have no real point I just think it's really neat to look at shifts in cultural understandings and uses of technology through music and I really like thinking about and discussing it! apologies if my tags made it sound like anything other than that. if you have any questions or opinions to add feel free!! I'd love to discuss this more :3
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shadowshape · 1 month
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it is time.
***
so: here’s what we are doing.
i have been saying for some time now that i need to share my work. the desire has reached its peak tonight. sexy!
i am a slow mover by nature. my first tooth didn’t creep up until my second year. this fact was repeated often by my parents. with “we had to mush her birthday cake because she had no teeth!” i didn’t know truly how funny this fact is until i worked in the infant classroom at a childcare center. they all have fucking teeth before one.
silly story turns kernel of truth, a clear example of a Molly’s Core Characteristics. my body makes rhythms entirely its own. we (me and my body, us funny inseparable forces) are moving slowly into new life, with rhythms odd and forced, and maybe at other times with clarity, or layering over the same time as all of those with ease. our favorite music, lately, has been people using instruments that are items not normally used as instruments. you know, cans milk jugs bottles glasses. purely sporadic, tiny dinks in the atmosphere that just somehow are close enough in space for you to hear, and that are incredibly pleasing to the ear, chords reaching the deep recesses of your brain and triggering systems to awaken the tips of your physical form.
i have known for a while that i needed space and a container. something was calling to me from the next room over, and i couldn’t fully grasp what was being said. it was clearly important, like when a young child babbles at you with the most intense eye contact, and you know something very sincere was just communicated but you really have no actual idea what it was. its mumbling began to take shape as the idea of publishing, of more public viewing, of simply wanting to be perceived. then it got words and said, “start a blog” lol.
but what tends to happen as this mysterious being calls to me, beckons me nearer, is this: i stop myself from a lot of good writing and i think this is because i am worried about sounding “right.” i worry that i am overly wordy, or unclear, and actually what is worse than both of those is uncertain. clarity doesn’t arrive through prescription but rather, an ability to get to the essence of the thing. maybe it takes me a lot some days, little other days. it is what it is.
it is what it is it is what it is it is what it is. sexy!
i learned, recently, through allowing myself the pleasure of writing poetry in the exact way my brain wants to sputter out its little thoughts: commas go where they need to go, and if you follow the strict rules of punctuation and grammar, you might be able to reach many, but you also may keep yourself from connecting with another great many. and, ultimately, from yourself! and who do i want to connect with? myself. and people who do not understand my natural mode of speech? no — try people who say, “i never thought of it that way…”. sure, it would be fun to reach the people who don’t get me too. nothing quite like being understood. but at this point, i am far more concerned with people ready to explore than folks who are pushing me to fit into their containers of what is truth, for them.
fear used to have so much presence in my writing. not only in content, it also was a clear running stream behind each symbol on the page (or computer screen or what have you). each decision was tactful and full of emotion in a way that was not fun. like finding yourself shoeless on a muddy hiking trail in the desert, where you think you could just be stepping in mud but there are so many cactuses around, you could also be stepping on so many different sharp pointy things. you’re looking down at your toes in the mud and asking, am i sounding right? will you understand me if i tell this in the wrong order? will i be able to make money and a career out of this garbage, my little kingdom of junk and ruin?
funny, a past Molly would have typed the words “garbage, my little kingdom of junk and ruin” and felt shame, maybe pity for my own shamefulness. i now write those words with pride. this is my mind palace, you are my guest, and if i have trash everywhere, well, you don’t have to like it! sexy!!!
i think where i would want to sum this all up, and i very much want to do so, as i keep toiling my way through re-reads making sure i accomplished my goal of “finding the essence,” is that here i am! and here you find yourself. let’s party :-)
***
when you’re reading this, this is who you are and who i am. your hand is holding my soft little head. be cool about it!
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dolphintonki · 2 years
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Mp3 audio recorder
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#MP3 AUDIO RECORDER SOFTWARE#
#MP3 AUDIO RECORDER DOWNLOAD#
#MP3 AUDIO RECORDER FREE#
#MP3 AUDIO RECORDER WINDOWS#
#MP3 AUDIO RECORDER WINDOWS#
Moreover, iTop Screen Recorder supports all the windows operating systems after 7, and you don’t have to worry about incompatibility problems. With a simple user interface, people don't need much computer experience to handle iTop Screen Recorder on their computers. There are many versatile MP3 recorders available for Microsoft Windows as well, and iTop Screen Recorder is one of them. You don’t have to worry about privacy problems and you are the only person who can access your recordings. Therefore, the security is 100% guaranteed. Moreover, Voice Coach does not upload and store any data to their servers. It supports all browsers and allows users to capture important audio by sparing no effort. The website provides an online voice tool called voice recorder, which could be used to record audio in MP3 format. Voice Coach is a website originally designed for speech training and voice recording.
#MP3 AUDIO RECORDER DOWNLOAD#
The recorded audio could be assessed through a link, which you could share directly on social media, or download on a local device as an MP3 file. Though there is a five-minute audio recording limit, it is still sufficient for most class tasks.
#MP3 AUDIO RECORDER FREE#
SpeakPipe voice recorder is another free online voice recorder that supports recording MP3 from the browser by using your computer microphone. In addition, Rev Voice Recorder provides the human transcription service to transcribe your online speech recording to text, with a high accuracy standard of up to 99%. It is completely free and could be used right in your browser. Rev Voice Recorder is the most popular online audio recording and transcription tool that enables people to record MP3 in just one simple step. In this part, we will introduce three MP3 recorders online and elaborate on the features of each tool. Online voice recorders are convenient, and it allows people to make an audio recording quickly without additional downloads and installations.
This index will be generated automatically when displayed on the front end.
This article focuses on some powerful MP3 recorders that help you record any audio into MP3 format. To record audio into MP3, an MP3 recorder is needed. If you want to integrate music clips, create a podcast, or record phone conversations, business meetings, or court hearings, you would probably prefer to digitize these audios in MP3 format as well. Even though, it could still retain a high audio quality that is comparable to a CD. To reduce the size, an MP3 file is usually compressed by stripping out many sounds that our ears can’t hear. Other than that, automatic transcription will save you plenty of labor time and a voice recorder mobile app will give you the freedom to record on-the-go.Created by the Moving Pictures Experts Group (MPEG), MP3 is a digital music format that contains the encoded data of MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III. While MP3 audio is better when it comes to storage space, WAV files are crisper and better for fine-tune editing. Don’t forget to check out recording files’ formats. The ability to download separate participant tracks is also helpful in giving you more editing control. You’ll want tools for automatic noise suppression, echo cancellation, and easy audio clip creation.
#MP3 AUDIO RECORDER SOFTWARE#
The better your recording quality, the less editing but for quick fixes look for software that already comes with some easy editing tools. Find online software with local recording that can record your voice in high resolution without worrying about internet issues getting in the way. With the right audio recorder, you don’t need to compromise resolution because you’re recording online. The most important thing to consider when looking for an online voice recorder is quality.
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anotheranimestan · 4 years
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Steamy Nights
Shouta Aizawa steaminess + suggestive language
Please note that y/n is obviously of age in this one
wc: 2.4k
Tell me why I got 🦋 when writing this loll. This man is fineee
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Stretched out on Aizawa’s couch, you were waiting for him to get home after another long day of teaching. A little while ago he’d given you a key to his place, which was a big surprise since he values his privacy so much. Since you hadn’t been able to see him for a few days, you figured tonight would be the perfect time to use it. Work was really taxing on him lately and you knew he was stressed. Probably over stressed. To make the most of the night, you decided to set the atmosphere.
The apartment already had Shouta’s personality all over it. Lots of dark furniture and wood. Absolutely no harsh lighting, just a few dim lamps. His walls were scattered with some paintings he’d bought on your art show dates together. Old books and blankets everywhere. His sweet cat usually curled up in her corner.
He had a drawer full of scented candles. Your favorite was the cinnamon one but he claims it’s too sweet for him. Although you highly doubted he’d even notice the difference, he just holds random stubborn opinions sometimes without any good reason behind it. Just wanting things to complain about. Most people found his pessimistic grumpy attitude unattractive but...he’s just moody. An exterior shell. Inside was was soft and sweet.
You’d just finished lighting a few of the cinnamon candles and putting on some of his favorite music in the background when you heard the door click open.
He’s always so light on his feet. Sometimes if you weren’t paying close attention he’d come in and scare the life out of you on accident.
You rounded the corner, excited to see him.
“Hey Eraserhead.”
You always called him by is pro name when he’s in his hero costume. People usually assumed it was out of respect or privacy but he knew the real reason. You were teasing him. You disliked his hero name and his hero outfit. Recalling the day Present Mic convinced him to use it, you’d pestered him relentlessly to put more effort into it. Insisting he’d regret it one day. He said he didn’t care...but now look at him.
“Please y/n, when are you going to stop calling me that?” He said rubbing his eyes. He was low energy as usual.
“After you change it.”
“I can’t change it.”
“Exactly.” You whispered smugly.
He sighed. No matter how many times you had this conversation you would always win. Rightfully but he wouldn’t admit it.
You drifted over to greet him properly. Brushing the hair out of his eyes and placing a sweet lingering kiss on his cheek.
And as for his boring, baggy costume...you understood it’s purpose. He wore it to stand out less, aiding in his fight style. But it was still a pain since you couldn’t properly hug him in it. The capture weapon was always in your face and you could hardly feel his body through the layers.
His modest attire duped most people. Making his tastefully well built body underneath a best kept secret. Which you supposed was an upside. Only you (and Present Mic for some reason) had ever really gotten to see him shirtless.
“I’m going to change.” He said kissing your forehead. He knew exactly what you were thinking.
He reemerged from his room a few minutes later. Wearing a droopy black shirt and sweatpants that were loose around his hips. You could see the dipped lines of his V. Just north was his lightly defined six pack. And just south was unfortunately concealed under black briefs and his untied waistband...
He caught you staring.
Feeling red and exposed you quickly redirected your attention to something else. “So are you hungry babe? I could make something?”
He declined.
“Okay...what about grading assignments. Do you want help to make it go faster?”
Declined again. Apparently he worked straight through lunch to finish that already.
You were beginning to feel useless. You’re supposed to be making him de-stress but it’s like he was so self-sufficient there was no room for you.
You sat next to him on the couch, his arm wrapped around you. You brushed some hair behind his ear. His long dark hair was always messy from his constant naps. Plus, you constantly running your fingers in it doesn’t help that situation. He was quiet. Massaging his temples. You could see the tension on his face. It made your heart twinge with pain. Just then you noticed his ear fully. He had at least six piercings on this one but he wasn’t wearing any of his earrings. Usually he’d put them on when he wasn’t at work but he didn’t tonight. And you knew exactly why.
“Babe. I have an idea.”
“And what’s that?” He played along.
He would take them out when he secretly wanted one of your amazing head massages. You always focus on his ears and temples just like he liked so he’d left out his earrings hoping you’d get the hint. This man could never just ask for something in his life. Luckily you could read him like a book.
“Come on.” You purred. Pulling him with both hands off the couch. He complied wearily.
Aizawa didn’t spend much of the money he made from pro hero work on lavish things. The only times he splurged was to buy you nice gifts. However, you did convince him to purchase one nice thing for himself. You knew he wanted it anyways but was just too stubborn to actually buy it.
A jacuzzi tub. He loves hot baths after a day of dealing with his “problem children” students. It was the only thing that could get his muscles to relax. And the moisture from the steam felt nice on his eyes.
Making sure to bring a candle and the speaker with, you lured him into the bathroom.
“Want to take a bath with me?” You asked sweetly.
“I wouldn’t mind that.” A tiny smile spread on his lips. You were too irresistible to deny.
“Okay you run it and I’ll go get the wine.” You sang excitedly. “But don’t make it so hot. You almost burnt my skin off last time.”
“It felt normal to me.” He said casually.
“Yea because you’re a psychopath.” You quipped before springing to the kitchen.
You guys had two types of favorite wine. One was for your long deep discussions about art and literature. Or when asks for your advice on dealing with his students because he knows he’d just lose his temper and expel them without your ideas. And the other, the pricier and far more potent one, was saved for special moments. Just like these. You poured your glass full, of course, but you filled his to the tippy top. Not only did he need it, but Lord knows tipsy Aizawa was sexy.
When you returned, he was crouched over testing the water temperature. His face gently lit from the soft glow of the candle in the dark room.
“I made sure to cool it off. No psychopaths here.” He teased trying to sound bored. But his voice was noticeably happier than when he’d arrived.
You instructed him to take a few sips of wine, desperate to get that show rolling.
“I know what you’re doing.” He said with an amused little smile. He swapped the cups in your hands so you now claimed the full one.
“Good. So then you should know exactly how to play along.” You said as you switched the glasses back with a wink.
He sighed in defeat. But that rare smile was still adorning his cheeks. He took a few y/n-approved size drinks.
His hair was falling into his eyes again. You set your glass down on the tub edge and pulled him into you. He wrapped his arms around your waist while you pushed his hair back and secured it in a clip.
“I didn’t know you were coming tonight.” He said softly.
“I know. Now that I have a key I wanted to come bother you a bit.”
His eyebrow raised at the word bother.
You panicked slightly. Hoping he wasn’t actually bothered that you’d come uninvited.
“That does sound like you.” He said as he kissed your nose. “I hope you do it more often.”
Your heart spasmed.
“Really? You do?” Your insecurities ears’ perked up.
“Why wouldn’t I want that?” He said in his deep sleepy voice.
A happy little smile broke its way through. You could only shrug in response.
You slipped your hands under his shirt and pulled it up slowly. Dragging your knuckles along the dips and bumps of his abs as you went. Gently you pulled it over his head. He helped by raising his arms which just made the rest of his muscles flex. Your heart started beating a little faster. No matter how many times you saw him he always made you flustered.
Your eyes were glued on him. His tattoos were now completely visible. Another best kept secret. They trailed around his shoulder, back and half his chest. You placed some honeyed kisses on his collar bones as you pulled down his sweatpants and briefs to leave him fully undressed. He was mouthwatering type sexy. The candlelight was highlighting all his high points in the best possible way. The music was perfectly complimenting your emotions and the sleepy eyes staring at you so lovingly were severely compromising your thought process. There were a lot of things you wanted to do with him suddenly but you focused your eyes on the goal here. A relaxing, hot bath.
Bath bath bath.
Reluctantly containing yourself you pried his hands off your waist and nudged him towards the water.
“Okay okay, go on.”
“You’re coming too right?” He said as he grazed your bottom lip with his thumb.
You nodded, butterflies erupting in your tummy.
He laid down in the water and took some more large swigs of wine. His glass was half empty before you’d even taken your first sip. He watched you undress with intent in his eyes, soaking in every curve and dip of you as well. He reached an arm out to you once you’d fully unclothed. He wanted his hands on you immediately.
But you had a goal here. Bath. Massage. Focus.
You slipped in behind him so that he laid between your legs. His broad shoulders nearly covered your whole body when he leaned back against you.
The tub was huge. Easily fit you both and could probably add another person.
“And now for my favorite part.” You announced as you switched the tub on its low setting. The rumbling under the water sending tiny vibrating waves around the whole tub.
Definitely worth spending his money.
Your hands rubbed every inch of him you could reach. His abs, the thick muscular sides of his waist, his biceps. You alternated between hugging his neck whispering cute things in his ear and massaging him.
Of course he was practically falling asleep as you spent time on his ears and temples. His head was heavy against your chest. It was so cute. You loved when he fell asleep on you.
But you knew he was keeping himself awake. He was rubbing your legs and the backs of your thighs. Squeezing and kneading them gently. Placing kisses on your arms and hands whenever he got the chance.
After about 20 minutes and one refresh of hot water, both your glasses were empty. He’d drank most of it since he’d downed the last few sips of yours too.
Wanting to see his handsome face again you shifted and positioned yourself to sit on his lap, thighs wrapped snuggly around his waist. After making sure you were fully comfortable, he leaned back against the tub and closed his eyes. He pulled you close and trailed circles with his fingertips up and down your back under the warm water. He loved the weight of you on him. You both exhaled a deep stress relieving breath.
The steam was working its magic, the rumbling of the jets felt so good massaging your legs. And his heart beat, you could feel it through his chest. It was slow and steady. Making you drowsy off him.
He noticed you were lost in thought, stroking his hair and tracing your fingers along the lines of his tattoo. He took advantage of this time to soak in all your features, watching you under drooping lashes. The flush of your cheeks, the delicate arrangement of your beauty marks. The far off expression on your face, he knew it well. He loved observing you when you were like this. You were beautiful.
“Relaxed yet?” You purred. Starting to tease him with soft kisses.
“Almost there.” He replied before catching you to deepen the kiss. Your soft skin and body heat was melting him away. He wanted more. Using both hands he pressed your back into it.
He savored your lips for a long while, becoming more and more passionate as the seconds ticked by and the wine hit his bloodstream.
You felt him shifting underneath you. Squirming slightly from the pressure that was building up. More butterflies. His hands clamped down around your hips.
“Okay your plan worked.” He smiled into your kiss. Eyes still closed.
“I haven’t the slightest idea what you’re referring to.”
He tapped his finger against the empty wine glasses.
You started sucking on the sensitive spot under his ear. You knew tipsy Shouta always got turned on by that.
His arms both constricted tightly around your waist. His hips were pressing up into you now with impatience.
“Let’s go to my room.” He concluded. You giggled, causing your lips to vibrate against his sweet spot. You heard the soft moan from deep in his throat.
He stood up keeping you wrapped tightly around him, carrying you with ease.
He half-heartedly patted you both down with a towel, his hand not losing contact with your ass for a second.
Before he could whisk you out of the bathroom you grabbed the speaker and candle again.
The scent wafted into the air around you.
“Mm that smells good.” He said distracted for only a moment before his lips gravitated to your body again.
“Oh really. So you do like it.” You said with the smuggest tone. “You’ll never guess what scent it is Shouta.”
He didn’t reply. Too distracted with kissing your shoulders.
“Cinnamon.” You said with as much sass and emphasis as you could muster.
He paused. Caught. How did you always get him like this?
He pulled back rolling his eyes with a smile. Nose to nose now, you pressed him further with a smirk.
He cocked an eyebrow at you. Looking directly in your eyes he said, “Mhm. Keep this same energy when I take you in there.”
And just like that he’d knocked down your resolve and your whole body started fluttering.
He carried you into his bed and you two “relaxed” for the rest of the night.
~~
😳 the way I want to be y/n.
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neon-junkie · 3 years
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It Takes Two To Tango
Summary: Stuck in a failing marriage where both you and your husband are having affairs, you enjoy another night with the man that you literally bumped into at the Saloon.
Pairing: Javier Escuella x f!Reader
Word Count: 2227
Rating: NSFW
Tags: Cheating/Affairs, Degrading, Humiliation, Praise, Squirting, Cum eating, Creampies, Face slapping, Knife kink, Choking, Smut without a plot.          
Notes: I had RDR1 Javier in mind for this seeing as he's low honour, and the dialogue/actions in this are very low honour Javier based, buuuuut you're welcome to picture any Javier you want <3
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To put things politely, you hate your husband. When you two first met, he was sweet, kind, wonderful, everything you'd expect in a partner; the first few years of your marriage were flawless, but something within him changed, and he began spiralling off the rails, crashing into the man that he is today.
A divorce is hard to come by, especially in this time. However, you two seem to have somewhat of an unspoken agreement that you're no longer together. Well, you still share a house, still sleep in the same bed, still ask how each other's day went; but you know exactly where he goes to every night, leaving you all alone in your comfortable home, and sometimes, the nights can get so cold without anybody to hold.
The new man that keeps you warm every night bumped into you at a bar, quite literally, and apologized profusely, then offered to buy you a replacement drink. You happily accepted, taking an instant fancy to his mysterious yet welcoming aura, and spent the rest of the night blatantly flirting. You eventually asked him to help clean the liquor he'd spilt off you, and he did so by licking a stripe from your collar bone, along your neck, settling just below your ear. "It always tastes so much better when you know you shouldn't be doing it, eh?" he huskily whispered, and you agreed by grabbing his hand and pulling him across town, straight into your bed.
Javier knew who you were when he bumped into you, he knew you were a married woman, and he mentioned that he'd seen your husband spending his time with other women, so it's only fair you do the same, right? At first, you felt guilty, until that one night where your husband came home with obvious hickeys on his neck, and you got your own back by asking Javier to mark you ten times worse.
And yet again, Javier's now climbing up the same path to your balcony, swinging his leg over the railing, and finding his way into your bed once he watches your husband leave. You're practically starving every single day, desperate for a way out of this marriage, but even more desperate to spend time with your lover. It's crystal clear how much he enjoys playing this sinful game with you, and often reassures you during pillow talk that he's seen your husband do far worse. It's only a matter of time before the tower falls.
"Javier," you mutter, wrists tied to the bed posts, legs spread, and said man lapping away between them.
"Mhmm?" he hums, his mouth far too occupied as he continues wrapping his lips around your cunt.
"T-too much, come on," you beg.
"Not yet," he quickly blurts out, and returns to lapping at your clit, sliding two fingers into you and curling them perfectly. Thank the lord that you live on the outskirts of town with no attached neighbours; you can be as loud as you want, moaning to your hearts content as Javier mutters sweet praise against your lips. "Good girl," he mutters against your cunt, his fingers continuing to work you open.
"C-come on," you beg yet again, only this time you hear Javier chuckle against you.
"Alright," he sighs. Javier removes his fingers, and licks his lips as his head raises, meeting yours. "Always so impatient, aren't you?" he laughs, but he's also the one lining his cock up to your entrance, cutting your reply short as he slides in. "I don't blame you for being impatient, you know," Javier begins to mutter, jumping straight in to a quick pace. "You must be so deprived, all thanks to that shitty husband of yours. But I'm here now, I'm here to make sure you tire yourself out every night. If your husbands not going to use this pussy, then I might as well use it," Javier shrugs.
It's never slow and steady with Javier, always quick and heated, in a rush just in case your husband does come early, even on the nights where he doesn't come home at all. Your head is rolling back against the pillow, eyes falling shut, but Javier draws your attention back to him with a slap across your cheek. "Look at me when I'm fucking you," he orders, making your eyes go wide. "That's better."
Javier moves his hand to your throat, squeezing lightly between your jawline, enough to be pleasurable, but not enough to make your mind go hazy. "Open up," he orders, and your mouth falls open instantly, tongue sticking out. "That's a good girl," Javier praises, before dipping his head down and spitting directly into your mouth. "Swallow."
He's grinning as you swallow his spit, licking your lips afterward; your cheeks then begin turning red as Javier returns to choking you, a dark glisten in his eyes as he continues to pound you, thrusting into you like his life depends on it. "I fuck you good, don't I?" he asks.
"Uh-huh," you manage to sigh, nodding your head at the same time.
"Then why do you keep closing your eyes, hm? I want you to look at me whilst I'm fucking you," Javier barks, and lands another slap across your cheek. Instead of wrapping his hand around your neck, he places his fingertips on either side of your cheeks, squishing them slightly together and ordering you to order your mouth once more. You watch as he spits into your mouth again, but much slower this time, letting his spit drool off his tongue, slowly into your mouth, before dipping his head down and sealing the deal with a hungry kiss.
"Good girl," he praises again, his lips still pressed against yours. Javier's thrusts come to a halt, his cock sheathed deep inside you, and he props himself upright with a somewhat serious look on his face. "Are you going to let me do it tonight?" he questions, and you know exactly what he's on about.
"Yeah," you nod. You go to reach out, but you're quickly reminded about your wrists being tied to the bed posts, as if you've somehow forgotten.
"I guess you could say this is a punishment, huh?" Javier asks as he shifts his weight over to the edge of the bed, reaching down to pick up his gun belt, his cock still inside you. "I mean, naughty girls like you deserve to be roughed up," he continues, unsheathing his knife and twiddling it between his fingers. "Of course, I'm not going to hurt you, but I suggest you be a good girl and stay still," he smirks.
Javier's knife disappears from your sight, only for the cool metal to be pressed against your throat. The blade is barely touching your skin, hovering over you. However, it's close enough to send a chill down your spine, one that you attempt to contain in fear of the blade making contact with your throat. Javier picks up his pace again, starting with slow thrusts, ensuring the knife is at an angle where it's not going to hurt you. For a man who you met at the Saloon, you trust him, not just with keeping your affair a secret, but with hot and heavy situations like this.
"I'd say hold still, but I've already made sure you'll hold still," he laughs, gesturing with his blade to your bound wrists.
Within time, the roll to Javier's hips becomes quicker, his eyes flicking from yours to the knife at your throat. You know by now not to close your eyes, no matter how many times he hits those perfect spots inside you, your body urging to let your eyes fall shut as your head rolls back.
Javier moves the blade across your skin, trailing up your neck and jawline, and presses the flat part to your cheek. He urges you to tilt your head, and keeps the blade there as his lips meet your neck, marking you loud proud, clear enough for your husband to notice, not that he hasn't before.
"How many do you think I can leave before he says something?" Javier comments, chuckling between kisses.
"Javier, not whilst we're fucking," you sigh. The last person you want to think about right now is your husband, and Javier replies with a laugh, moving his head back up, his eyes meeting yours.
"Alright, alright," he replies. "Say, could you hold this for me? I need both my hands free if I'm going to fill you up."
Before you can verbally accept, Javier's already pressing his knife against your mouth; he's kind enough to slip the handle into your mouth, rather than the blade. Instead, the blade tickles your cheek, pointing to your side, whilst your lips are wrapped around the handle.
"That's very kind of you," Javier laughs. He wraps his hands around your thighs, pulling them up to his waist, and puts all his focus into chasing his orgasm, using you like some kind of cheap street whore, not that you mind.
This time, Javier is the one to close his eyes, his breaths becoming quick and short as he slams down into you. You're a whimpering mess, most of your moans muffled by his knife, but he soaks up every noise you make like sweet music to his ears.
"Shit-" Javier grunts, his cock coming to a halt inside you as he fills you up; you can feel his cock twitching, complimented by the heavy moans Javier's letting out. There's a thin layer of sweat forming on his forehead, which he accidentally presses to your shoulder as he rests against it, catching his breath as he comes down from his high. "Your turn," Javier softly mutters.
He slips out of you, and shuffles to rest beside you, propping himself up on his elbow. Javier's other hand goes straight to work, not wanting to leave you empty for too long; he slips two fingers inside you, accidentally pushing out some of his load, the white mess oozing out of your cunt. Javier's fingers curl, and he begins moving his wrist, hitting that spot inside you at a vibrating speed.
You let out a cry, muffled by the handle still locked between your lips. Javier smirks at your reaction, but he doesn't let up, keeping his pace fast, eager to see how quickly he can make you cum. As always, your body begins to shake, uncontrollably squirming in Javier's grasp. He's letting out sweet words of praise, "good girl," and "that's it, soak the bed for me."
"Javier, I-"
"What?" he questions, his fingers not losing their pace.
"We'll make a mess!"
"Not we, you. You'll make a mess," Javier chuckles. "And what's wrong with a little mess, huh? just make your husband sleep on the damp side."
For some unknown reason, Javier's comment catches you off guard; maybe it's the way he whispered it directly into your ear, or the thought of letting your husband suffer whilst you sleep peacefully, but either way, your orgasm hits like a train.
"That's it," Javier cheers, watching in awe as you squirt. He doesn't let up, his fingers still hitting that spot inside you, his palm brushing against your clit with every flick of his wrist.
Javier's milking you, and it's rapidly becoming too much, only you're still bound to the bed, unable to push him off, and the knife handle in your mouth is keeping you from calling out your protests. He's smart, Javier knows exactly what he's doing, or what he's done.
But eventually, you run dry, your body still shaking from an intense and drawn out orgasm. "That's my good girl," Javier praises, placing a kiss to your temple as he pulls his fingers from you. Javier sits up on his knees, using his dry hand to remove the knife and places it on your bedside table. "Here. Open. Clean me up," Javier orders.
Javier presents his fingers, and like the well trained slut that you are, you open your mouth, allowing him to slip his fingers inside. The taste is exactly what you'd expect, a mixture of squirt and cum, but you let your eyes shut as you clean his fingers, licking them dry, enjoying the soft moans and sighs he lets out as he watches in lustful amazement.
You're just about finished when you hear the front door slam. Javier and you share a look of pure horror, his fingers still between your lips, both of your eyes wide and visibly nervous. Javier quickly pulls his fingers from your mouth, rushing to grab his knife and cut you free from your binds, with caution.
As soon as you're free, there's a mad rush, both of you hurrying to pull your clothes on, followed by dumping all of your bedding into the laundry basket. There's almost no time for a kiss goodbye, but you manage to fit one in, sharing the taste of your regular encounter before Javier scurries out onto your balcony and hops the railing, disappearing into the night.
Thankfully, your husband doesn't trail upstairs straight away, giving you enough time to organize your laundry properly and put some fresh bedding on. And by the time he does, you're already sound asleep, worn out from yet another illicit encounter.
Isn't it about time you start looking into your divorce?
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h2bakugou · 3 years
Note
Yes yes yes yesyesyesyesyes ok!! So then can I request present mic? Doing anything??? No I’m kidding I do actually have a prompt. I was thinking abt mic’s radio show and specifically, if he had an s/o who wrote music. Bc u know he would help them produce it and then play it nonstop on air aaaaaa
a/n: yes!! present mic love!! i love him so much i swear! <3 he has my heart dkdkmn this is such a cute request please- i apologize for the late posting!!
summary: you're an ambitious, gleeful, songbird at heart, and though you're quirkless, you've captivated the heart of the music-loving, radio show hosting, loud, sweetheart, present mic!
key: (y/n) - your name / (f/n) - first name / (l/n) - last name / (e/c) - eye color / (h/c) - hair color / (y/q) - your quirk
warnings: swearing, fluff
word count: 1.3k
;cut for length;
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You started as an intern. A beaming smile on your lips most days, always happy to be in the studio with Mic when he was teaching you the ins and outs of radio hosting.
You'd majored in music business, the end goal in mind of writing and releasing your own music, though most of your plans had fallen through, the only opportunity to get you back on your feet after college being this deal you couldn't pass up.
Co-hosting with Present Mic on his own radio show.
The offer had actually been given to you by one of your superiors at the studio you worked at, having seen your optimism when it came to writing music and your love of music in general.
They wished you good luck and would always welcome you back if things didn't go so well. But you kept your head up high and marched into that studio ready to take on the world alongside the loud blonde.
And down the line, three years later, you were surprised to say the least.
"Your coffee as usual." Hizashi sets down the patriotic blue U.A. thermos sent out to the teachers at the beginning of the year. Since you'd practically moved in 'unofficially' with Mic, unofficially because you weren't technically allowed to stay due to the fact you didn't work for the school, rather employed by Mic himself in his private studio, but you were the tiny exception since you did technically work in the school.
"Thanks! Hey, I was wondering if you could check this new thing I've been working on and give me some criticism, it's just a rough draft, the lyrics just kind of came to me after a shot or two at Vlad's birthday party the other night." You giggled as you tossed him the flash drive containing your latest project, the sensitive information contained on the tiny disc landing in the palm of your boyfriend's hands.
"Another song? You're blessing my ears so early in the morning. I'm dreaming! Pinch me!" He teases. Mic's been the biggest supporter of your music since he overheard the pipes you had.
You'd had that kind of night the second week of your internship, battling the oncoming hangover after drinking with your cool new pro-hero teacher friends, your thoughts turning to lyrics as you worked in the studio, the only light being the small lamp on the side Mic kept when he worked late too.
He'd forgotten his room keys in the studio again, something you realized he did often and as he stopped by to pick them back up, that's when he heard you. You sounded so angelic, almost as if you were some sort of angel.
At first, he thought maybe it was just a recording or some sort of dare he say, Melodyne filter while you were messing around in the mic at night.
But you weren't. Your authentic voice shell-shocked him, and he sort of listened to you the entire night until you nearly pissed your pants turning around and seeing him.
“Yeah, it’s nothing special really-” You’re back to reality as Mic quickly has his headphones over his ears, a large grin on his lips as he listens, his fingers tapping away to the beat already.
You work on other tasks, filtering through requests and putting them in the queue while Mic listens to your song, his heart pounding. You were so talented and he’d wish you’d give yourself a bit more credit. You have what it takes to make it big, and he’d support you every step of the way.
“You know with this and the other tracks you have, you’d have enough to push out an EP. All you need is a bit of marketing and producing, and I’d be more than willing to help!” Mic smiles, wheeling over to you, pressing an encouraging peck to your cheek.
“It sounds great, but who would wanna listen to what I write?” You giggle, toggling an advertisement as you glance over at the blonde.
“How about this, You let me help you, I’ll spread the trial around here at work and if it gets good reviews, we publish.” Hizashi is nothing short of persuasive, and for the rest of the week he has you in his studio, adding layer after layer, fine-tuning and weeding out bits of the collection of songs you’d written until you have an EP.
Long nights fueled by coffee, water, and tea, and takeout eventually land you with the very first copy of your own EP. 
In your hands, it’s palpable. It’s real. It doesn’t have any cover art, or a title, let alone who sang it, but Mic hands you a sharpie and you feel this fire coursing through your veins.
You feel more than accomplished.
You scribble some title down that you’d work on later and messily sign your name for Mic to make copies and then throughout the next week, you’ve got dozens of messages flooding your inbox telling you to drop it on some streaming platforms.
And the following night Mic is consoling your tears as you hit your first 100 streams. 
“I’m so proud of you.” He coos, kissing your cheeks, wiping your tears away with his kisses, patting you on the head.
“You’re so cheesy.” You tease him.
“Says you! You named an entire song after me.” Mic huffs, crossing his arms over his chest.
“What if ‘my beloved’ was about Marty?” You giggle. Marty, the sparkly, beautiful, elegant, beta-fish you’d adopted as the studio mascot swam around in his tank, decked out with super cool aquatic music themed stuff.
“You wouldn’t dare!” Mic laughs, his long blonde hair sweeping over his shoulders. 
“Your hair always looks so nice down.” You snuggle into him, your fingers twisting around the ends. Hizashi shakes his head and stares down at you.
“And you’re as radiant as ever, my love.” Hizashi pulls you into him, snuggling his head into your neck, placing a gentle kiss to your skin as he holds you near to him.
“Do you sing, ‘Zashi?” You ask quietly.
“No comment.” Mic giggles, his laughs tickling your skin.
“Would you work on a song with me?” You ask sweetly.
“I would love to.”
Callers chime in every so often for requests, since Mic loves to annoy the listeners by playing your EP track by track almost daily. You have to knock some sense into him telling him that there’s a quota to fill and while you love how he supports you, you’ve got them stuck in your head too.
And when you play them every so often, your heart warms when someone requests one of yours to play. Even more so, when your songs rise to much more notable fame, you’re working on your own album, with the lovely producing of Mic, and it even features a lovely duet between the two of you.
In fact, something you’d found out with having so many connections to pros, was the amount of hidden talent.
You’d requested a song with Kyoka Jiro, the beautiful voice you’d heard at the school festival had belonged to her and you’d been wanting to work with her since she also shared a love for music, and though she was young, she seemed rather happy to sing, even if she might’ve been shy about it first.
An unlikely duo might’ve come from a dare, Hawks. While he was rather against the idea at first, his voice was smooth and mellow, and it clashed with yours perfectly for some sort of sappy anti-romantic love song. Whatever the case, it made charts. 
But Mic continued to be your biggest supporter, no matter how or if you got big. You’d always find your way back into his arms, messing around with him on the radio show, and dodging paparazzi whenever you two left campus.
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masterlist
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wiypt-writes · 3 years
Text
Murder, He Wrote
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Part 6.
Summary: Ransom and you attend a wake for his great-nanna Wanetta, with the rest of his family. The knives are out, and they’re sharp…
Warnings: Bad language words. MATURE (NSFW 18+) NON-CON situation, kidnap, violence. DO NOT READ IF ANY OF THOSE TRIGGER… READER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!!
Pairing: DARK! Ransom Drysdale x Reader
A/N:  So here it is, the penultimate chapter to this series! One more to go post this, plus an epilogue. I can’t believe it’s almost over…
Word Count: 9.5k (oops)
READ THE WARNINGS!!!! This is a DARK Series… don’t @ us if you can’t follow simple instructions and end up with butt-hurt. And if you’re under 18…get off my blog.
Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and by writing it does NOT mean I agree with or condone the acts contained within. This fiction is classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar reader and any other OCs that may or may not be mentioned. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.
Murder, He Wrote Masterlist // Main Masterlist.
Part 5
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 You'd managed to get through Christmas fairly well. The days leading up, Ransom had been a little suspiciously sneaky but you didn't give it a second thought, really. Things between you and your captor were more than amicable, they were pleasant. But, despite the cohabitation and this new found demeanour in him, Ransom wasn't above reminding you that you were still under his eye. And under his eye you were indeed, all day long. He watched you as you read, as you cooked, as you wrote in your journal. Oddly, not once showing interest in your musings but working away on his own. 
Christmas morning, the two of you had spent a few lazy hours in bed, Ransom waking you with kisses over your bare skin, stripped down and tired from the evening before where he worked you over until you couldn't move, crying out his name near midnight, his breathless, tired voice telling you 'Merry Christmas' before he slept. After an easy egg and toast breakfast, the two of you were sitting around the lounge, the fire burning, the tree lit, soft music played in the background, watching a fresh layer of snow falling outside. You were reading Dickens' holiday classic, aloud while Ransom sat next to you, idling running a long index finger over your neck in slow and soft, up and down strokes, listening to you. Suddenly he'd stopped and removed the book from your hands. 
"I have something for you," he said, a slight eagerness to his tone. He slipped away for a brief moment, pulling a box, intricately wrapped, clearly not by himself, from under the tree. You'd never noticed it there, not once and you wondered when he'd put it there or if he'd hidden it in the very spot this whole time. 
The red leather box sat heavy in your hand as you read the gold inscription on the top. With an unsteady breath, you lifted the hinged lid and hitched your breath at what sat inside. A white gold necklace, with two interlocking rings in a signature Cartier design glistened back at you. The screw motifs which were set in ideal oval shaped rings studded with diamonds that twinkled in the light sat snuggly inside against black velvet.
You were stunned. The gesture far too expensive and in your mind inappropriate. But you also thought it was absolutely gorgeous, and you wondered how he'd come up with such an expensive idea. You'd not mentioned anything of the sort in your time together, in fact, you hadn't had jewellery on bar your ball studs in your ears now.
You looked up from the delicate piece and your eyes met expectant ones. "It's beautiful," you spoke softly. "Thank you."
"Let me put it on you," he sat next you whilst taking the box from your hands. He gently pulled it away from the box and unclasped it, settling it around your neck as you moved your hair out of the way, thin tendrils framing your face. Your robe slipped off your shoulder and you felt his soft lips against your skin, down your neck and along your shoulder. "Let me see you," he spoke softly.
You turned in his direction and you saw the way he admired the way the piece sat across your chest, the silk robe you were wearing over your barely-there nightgown gaping open. As his eyes blatantly roved down between the valley of your breasts your own flicked across his casual, lazy-Christmas morning form, his broad chest and shoulders clad in a white thermal, sweats hung low on his hips.
"Perfect," he whispered, leaning towards you.
You were not a bought woman, no; you were his victim, his roommate, his co-habitant, his lover, his partner, his... Oh for Christ's sake you could go on with the labels that did or didn't make sense, were mutual or not, had or didn't carry the weight of a proper explanation. Right now, you were going through the motions and emotions.
"I like it, a lot, thank you again," you replied as his lips grew closer to yours. "I've never had such an expensive gift before."
His lips ghosted over yours, "There's plenty more where that came from, Sweetheart."
The implication of his words had hit you like a freight train as you realised just how many more ‘occasions’ he was planning on the pair of you spending together. New Year, Easter, Spring Break, your birthday, his birthday, summer, Memorial Day. It sparked so many conflicting opinions within you that you were glad of the distraction when he moved, his fingers delicate as he undid the ties of your robe and led you down on the rug before his lips had traced a path down your body and soon he’d had you crying his name, sheer bliss coursing through your veins.
Later that day, you'd made dinner for him, a reminder of how Christmas used to be when Wanetta and his Grandmother shared the festivities. After the quiet meal, he had expected you to join him for a shower, no doubt as pay back for him going down on you earlier. When you'd respectfully declined stating you needed to wash the dishes, he sneered and sulked off. You'd made sure that when he was gone long enough, you were able to get things set up for your gift. Now was the time to show Ransom how gifts of meaning and purpose were to be given and hopefully received. Not that it was going to make a blind bit of difference to your situation, not in the grand scheme of things anyway. You'd finished cleaning and putting everything away and headed into the lounge where you stoked the fire and then made your way back into the kitchen for your supplies. The hot cocoa burning hot, the slices of bread, tongs and a small serving of butter, complete with freshly blended cinnamon sugar. You knew he would come find you when you were not waiting in the bedroom for him. If Ransom Drysdale was anything, it was a creature of expectation and habit. You'd heard him coming down the stairs, that one spot with a creak carrying his footfall. You straightened up your things, setting up the tongs and tray of treats nicely before covering them with a cloth napkin, standing between the coffee table and the fireplace, and waited on baited breath for the tirade you thought was coming. He had turned the corner, his face stern with evident hard lines, his bare chest on display, hair still wet from the shower. You could smell him as he entered the doorway, that scent that you'd soon come to realize made you heady and needy. You waved him over, a hunt of excitement to your tone, "come on, come sit." “I don’t want to sit, Sweetheart, I want you like I had you before dinner. Crying my name with you under me.” He stood just inside the doorway, with his arms folded across his chest, sweats hung low on his hips. He wore no shirt just to entice you, but you weren't giving in so easily.  "I'll say your name as many times as you want, but first, I need to give you my gift." You chose then to look at him with big eyes, sincere yet seductive. 
It was a stare off between the two of you, he not budging and you popping your hip out to one side as you folded your arms over your chest. He had his fun, now you wanted to enjoy something and gift giving brought you joy. 
Like a child told to apologize for hitting another, he hung his head and sulked over. You could tell it pained him to obey your request. But you again saw through his facade. You knew this meant far more to him than anything he'd ever received.
But he'd never tell you that. Not that you thought anyway. “Oh stop being so you, Ransom, for just five minutes.” You snorted exasperatedly at his petulant nature. “It’s Christmas.” With a roll of his eyes that would make any toddler jealous, he took to his knees sitting on his heels. With a smirk, you joined him, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek, "Merry Christmas, Ransom." You pulled the napkin off the tray revealing the contents of your gift. His eyes moved over the tray, first seeing the mugs of cocoa, topped with whipped cream that was beginning to melt into the warm liquid. The tongs, the bread, the small pinch bowls of cinnamon sugar and the soft butter. With his mind occupied, you managed to grab a throw and wrap it around the two of you. He blinked, and you could see that he was fighting the smirk that was threatening to cross his handsome face. “Toast?” He finally asked and you nodded, smiling. "I couldn't go get you something, not that it mattered, so this was the next best thing." A flicker of something darkened his face, and for a moment you thought you saw regret flash in his eyes, just like the day he had marked your face but as soon as it had appeared it was gone. "Just enjoy it, even if you can't say anything about it, just...." you shrugged, "remember." That night, after the toast with cinnamon butter and cocoa from scratch were shared, he had his way with you, delightfully slow, once more by the fire, you again crying out his name and he yours, over and over again. By the time he finished, you were both boneless and breathless, his body covering yours until he rolled over and the two of you slept by the fire, wrapped up in each other's arms, the heavy throw around your naked bodies.
Christmas had been nice. Maybe, somewhat enjoyable, you'd admitted to yourself. Of course, the wrench of not seeing your family had weighed like a stone in your gut, compounded by the fact that thanks to the lie you’d been forced to tell Blanc, they thought this was your choice. That you were staying away from them because you wanted to, when nothing could be further from the truth. You missed your mom and dad goofing around over presents, still trying to tell your now well grown-up sister and you Santa had been. You ached for the usual family politics that manifested when your uncles and aunts descended for dinner. You longed for your sister to be complaining about how fat she was going to get…
"We have to go," Ransom’s deep baritone caught you completely off guard, making you jump as you stood staring out of the large French windows over the garden from the master suite.
“Oh, okay,” you nodded, taking a deep breath to centre yourself, your heart racing at the speed of light from your fright. You took a glance at yourself in the mirror above the fireplace and found yourself wishing you’d done a better job at covering up the ugly scab and green bruising on your face.
You followed Ransom in his tan coat, pin striped slacks and a black cashmere sweater as he strode from the room. You felt nervous, anxious, scared. This was the first time you were leaving the house in two months. He led you to the garage where you started walking to the SUV he'd taken you in but he stopped you short, calling out to you, "not this time, Sweetheart." He stood at the passenger door to his vintage BMW. You swallowed and walked towards the door he was holding open for you. Wordlessly, you sank into the passenger seat and reached for your belt. Pulling it across your lap, you adjusted the pencil skirt and blouse you'd tucked into so as not to wrinkle it, your soft black peacoat bluky in your seat. The car roared to life, throbbing beneath you, the hum of the engine might, in other circumstances, have excited you. But now, the only thing filling you was dread. The first time you’re out of your "castle", and it's to go to a wake, for Wanetta Thrombey.
Go figure. ***** The silence in the car was stifling. Every so often Ransom stole a glance at Y/N to find her simply staring out of the window, at one stage reaching up to wipe her eye. He didn’t say anything, but he wasn’t an idiot. Over Christmas he’d caught her numerous time completely zoned out, as if she was somewhere else, just like she had been moments before they had left. And whilst she’d done her best to keep her tears and attitude at bay, she’d been clipped with him a number of times which he’d simply let slide and instead of reminding her about her attitude, he’d pressed her to tell him what was wrong. She’d quietly admitted that she missed her family, something Ransom simply couldn’t understand, so in the spirit of their recent candid openness, he’d asked her bluntly why she needed them so much when he gave her everything she could possibly ever want. At that she had snorted, and taken great pains to explain to him that just because he failed to understand something didn’t make it any less valid of a feeling to someone else and then she’d deftly changed the subject, and he’d allowed the conversation to steer elsewhere.
And now, the first time she’d been anywhere but the inside of his house and strictly the garden for months, they were headed to spend time with his shit-head family. The irony was staggering when you considered it. He eased his beloved beemer onto the main road and pushed his foot down on the gas, weaving himself in and out of the light traffic obnoxiously fast. But he wasn’t known for his patience, he had somewhere to be and in his mind; the faster he got there the faster he could leave, keen to spend as little time with his family as possible. About halfway into the journey, Ransom felt that familiar cold feeling in his stomach as he pulled off the freeway and on to one of the smaller roads. He could drive this journey with his eyes closed but it was the first time he’d been back to the mansion since... well, since IT had all gone down. The more he thought about it, the more agitated he could feel himself getting, his hands gripping the steering wheel of the car with a force that made his knuckles white. He was jolted however, with the feeling of a hand on his arm and his head turned slightly to see Y/N looking at him. She didn’t say anything, and no sooner had he registered her touch she moved her hand dropping it back into her lap, eyes focussed downwards as his turned back to the road. He swallowed, that familiar and uncomfortable feeling of remorse once more washing over him. Despite everything he had done to her, she was still voluntarily lending him comfort. 
Ten minutes later, he swung up the tree-lined driveway, his heart pounding in his chest. His jaw set hard as the mansion came into view, and low and behold his mother, standing on the front steps, a cigarette between her fingers as she exasperatedly texted on her phone. A meek voice came from the seat beside him, "its going to be okay." But he couldn't decipher if she were talking to him or herself. He cut the engine, his hands still on the wheel as he sighed and hung his head, before he turned to her. “I don’t need to warn you about trying anything do I?” He asked, ignoring her effort to placate him. "No," she replied quietly. “Good.” He reached out and gently gripped her chin between his thumb and finger, pressing as soft kiss to her lips, the action as much for him as it was for the benefit of his mother who was watching the pair of them. “Come on, let’s get this over with.”  He gracefully unfolded himself from the driver’s side, shutting the door behind him and strode to the front of his car, waiting for Y/N to catch up. Her face was set, an expression he’d seen countless times before when she’d been fearful and acting under duress. He watched as she took a deep breath and drew back her shoulders whilst he reached for her hand. Obediently, she took it and together they strode towards the large wooden door, his mother watching them as they approached "You're late," Linda scoffed.
He paid her no mind and pulled Y/N along his side. “I’m sure Nanna won’t mind too much, you know, on account of her being dead.” He retorted sardonically.
You stood by his side, your eyes watching Linda and she turned her attention to you, her eyes narrowing a little, a strange expression on her features, almost as if she was sussing you out. But, as her eyes flicked to your injured cheek before they darted to Ransom who still had a possessive grip around your hand you realised with horror it wasn’t you she was suspicious of. It was the bruise on your face, more so how it had gotten there.
You cleared your throat. “Funny thing,” you gestured to it and her eyes snapped to yours, “too much Scotch and I tripped. Face first into the corner of my vanity."
Okay, so it wasn’t a complete lie…but you still felt sick to your stomach at how quickly you’d jumped to his defence.
“Sure.” Linda arched an eyebrow.
“What exactly are you getting at, Mother?” Ransom looked at her, his jaw set and Linda rolled her eyes, taking a drag of her cigarette.
“Nothing really, I just find it extremely odd that you get an interview with this girl to clear your name and she ends up in your bed, only after she’s done a complete hatchet job on all of us first.” She dropped her cigarette end to the floor before she looked at him shrewdly.
“For which she published an apology.” Ransom’s voice was flat and carried an undertone of annoyance to which Linda paid no attention.
“Because you’re really the type to forgive and forget so easily.” She scoffed as Ransom gave a dramatic sigh as his mother continued, her head now turning to you. “You know, I could hardly believe it when Blanc told us you were with him, and then I saw you with my own eyes and now here you are again…“
“What do you mean, when Blanc told you?” Ransom frowned as his hand contracted almost painfully around yours, a warning no doubt to remain silent. His mother had hit the nail on the head, proving that she knew her son a lot better than you, and no doubt he, had bothered to give her credit for.
“Her disappearance was all over the news, more so because they’d linked it to that god-awful cretin of an actor, Lucas Lee.” She turned back to look at him. “But, no sooner had they done that he was cleared thanks to a cast-iron alibi and low and behold, a few weeks later Blanc turns up.” Linda raised her brows, her gaze fixed on Ransom. “I told him where to find you-“
“Gee, thanks.” Ransom drawled and she glared at him, before he rolled his eyes and gestured with his hand for her to continue.
“And obviously he did as he came back a day or so later, saying that to his surprise you-“ her eyes flicked to yours then and you swallowed “-were seemingly there, of your own accord.”
“I erm,” you fumbled on your words and felt Ransom let go of your hand, his palm warm as it now rested between your shoulder blades. Taking a deep breath, you steeled yourself for another lie, one that this time you’d spun before and you shrugged, licking your lips. “I'll tell you the same thing I told him. I came to realize that despite my scathing feature, Ransom intrigued me. I wanted to get to know him more. One thing led to another and I figured if we kept our relationship quiet for a while, I'd save myself the spit on my face from my family and people like you.”
“People like me?” Linda arched a brow, her lips quirking up at one side. “
“I didn’t mean…” You shook your head, quickly taking a deep breath. “Sorry, that was rude.”
“A tad, but I’ve had worse.” Linda’s eyes twinkled with something that looked like amusement as she reached into her pocket for her packet of cigarettes. “But, what I don’t understand is, why let your family believe you were missing, dead even?”
“I, well, I was under a lot of pressure at work, and everything just got too much and needed to escape, from everything. Ransom told me to stay with him for a while to get some head space and I didn’t mean to cause anyone any hurt or upset and-“
You stopped dead as you felt Ransom curl his hand round the back of your neck, giving a squeeze in warning. You were rambling.
“You don’t have to explain yourself, Sweetheart,” his voice was softly spoken as he pressed a kiss to your temple. “it’s none of her business.”
Linda looked at you for a moment, before she turned to her son and shrugged, popping another cigarette into her mouth. “I’ve long since given up trying to understand anything you did.”
“Well, like the judge said,” Ransom moved, his hand now on the base of your spine as he turned and guided you to the large door of the house, “not of sound mind.”
In the spacious drawing room, the rest of the family was gathered around. There were no others at the wake, Wanetta having outlived everyone she knew.  You knew Ransom would offer no introductions, but that wasn’t an issue, you knew everyone anyway from your extensive research into this fucked up family. The fire burned in the background, and Ransom’s father, Richard, lounged in an arm-chair, a young woman who you presumed to be the au-pair Ransom talked about with disdain, perched on his lap. Walt was perched in another arm-chair, his wife Donna stood behind him, clutching a half drunk glass of wine, their son Jacob absent from the room. Marta and Meg were perched on the couch with Joni flitting about, a crunch from a carrot stick heard from across the room. You walked in and immediately felt the daggers in your skin as all eyes turned towards you. The knives were out and you swallowed, adjusting your sleeve, feeling Ransom's presence behind you.
“Here…” you felt Ransom’s hands gently pulling on the shoulders of your coat and he slipped it from your body, gently pressing another kiss to your cheek. You turned to look at him, offering him a small smile before he moved to hang the coat up on the stand at the far side of the room.
“Y/N, right?” Marta was the first one to speak as she stood up, and you nodded, not bothering to ask how she knew your name. It was a given she’d have read the article, and it was also a given thanks to the conversation moment’s ago with Linda, that the rest of the family had also been briefed on the fact you were ‘with’ Ransom. What clearly hadn’t’ been anticipated from the not-so-covert surprised glances that were being shared, was that he would have brought you today. “Can I get you a drink?” She continued and you smiled.
“Please, erm, a wine would be great.”
“Red or white?”
“She prefers white.” Ransom spoke and Marta’s eyes darted to his. You instantly felt his entire body language stiffen and you turned to him, the distaste evident on his face, his entire aura radiating utter disdain and bitterness.
Marta simply took a deep breath, her expression flat, but her eyes fierce as they remained in a silent stand-off.
“Can’t she speak for herself?” Meg scoffed and Ransom pulled his eyes away from Marta, turning his glare to his cousin.
“Is explaining what a lady prefers to drink considered sexist as well now or…”
“He’s right,” You jumped in quickly, smiling at Marta. “White is great, thanks.”
Marta nodded.
“Hugh?” She looked at Ransom and you blinked at the use of that name and then realised, of course, she’d once upon a time been the help. That said, you knew she was saying it simply because she wanted to, not that her status required it and there was an amused look on Ransom’s face as he turned to her.
“Beer.”
You rolled your eyes to yourself at his lack of manners, but from the expression on Marta’s face she’d been expecting it, and to be honest, you weren’t sure why you hadn’t been. Her lips curled into a sarcastic grin as she turned and headed out.
“You should try it, Donna. It’s got camomile and lavender in. I swear by it.” Your ears then picking up on a conversation between Walt, Donna and Joni and you turned your head towards them, Ransom’s arm curled round your waist, hand resting heavy on your hip. Joni bit down on the carrot stick she was holding with a flourish of her hands. “It’s my favourite thing FLAM have done.”
"You know, I'm surprised you didn't go under given you're no longer receiving Dad's money.” Walt interjected and Joni rolled her eyes.
“Shows how much attention you pay, Walt. When I released that new line of bath-bombs and candles, sales, like literally, went through the roof.”
“Bath-bombs?” Walt frowned.
“Yeah, they’re like little cakes if you will of dried soap and fragranced that you drop into a-“
“I know what they are.” Walt rolled his eyes as Marta appeared, handing you your drink which you took with a thanks. “I was commenting on the fact you said you’d launched a new line.”
“Oh, yeah.” Joni munched her carrot stick some more. “I got the idea from Gwyneth Paltrow when she released that candle scented like her vagina.” At that you choked on your drink and hastily avoided looking at anyone in the room as various groans and loud protests from the males hit your ears.
At that point Linda walked back into the room and sat down in a chair not far from where you were sat and she smoothed down her trousers before she peered up at Ransom.
“How’s the book coming along?” She asked, peering from over the top of her wine glass as she sipped from it.
“Fine.” Ransoms shrugged. “Few little blocks here and there but I’ll work through them. Granddad always told me sometimes it pays to take a step back and pause, ideas often come when you’re not expecting them.”
Linda smiled, and you were pleased to see that, for once, it appeared genuine, as if she was actually looking at her son with something more than ambivalence. And then, the moment was ruined as Meg burst out laughing.
“You’re writing a book? What’s it called? ‘Ransom’s Guide To Being An Asshole’?” She snorted and Ransom took a deep breath.
“Eat shit.”
“Original.” Meg replied drily rolling her eyes, “you know, I'm jealous of all the people that haven't met you.” She stated as her eyes turned to you. “Seriously, what the fuck do you see in him? Why on earth anyone would ever want to be in the same room with him, let alone share his bed is completely beyond me.”
“Tell me, Meg, when was the last time you got laid?” Ransom turned to her, a smirk on his face. “And your dildo doesn’t count.” “Fuck you, you fucking prick.” Meg seethed before she turned to look at you, her face angry. “You know, it must be serious if he’s bringing you here; he normally just keeps his fuck buddies on speed dial.”
“And throws the money on the mattress.” Walt mumbled.
At that, Ransom tensed and he turned his face towards his Uncle, his nostrils flaring. But before he had time to answer back, Richard let out a derisive snort and Ransom instead turned his head to his father.
“You’d know all about that, wouldn’t you?” Ransom shot back, “Tell me, how much do you pay the barely legal whore sat on your lap?” 
“You little shit.” Richard spat as the poor woman in question shifted uncomfortably, her mouth falling open as the insult Ransom had shot at her registered.
You stood stock still, a warm and uncomfortable feeling washing over you as the family continued to bicker. You could feel a headache coming; this was becoming too much for you to cope with. 
“Oh for God’s sake.” Linda groaned, almost lazily from her spot on the chair. “Is it too much to ask that one of our family deaths goes by without starting another feud?”
"Oh that's rich, coming from you!” Richard, turned to her. Linda met her ex-husband’s glare with a completely blank expression on her face, before she scoffed.
“Why are you wearing those ridiculous glasses?” She demanded, referring to the spectacles that adorned Richard’s face, the style being something you would attribute to Harry Potter.
“So I can see.”
“You never needed glasses in the entire thirty-four years we were married.” She scoffed.
“I did.” Richard shrugged, a snarky grin curling at one side of his mouth and you instantly recognised that expression as being one Ransom sported a lot. “Just preferred it when I couldn’t see your face.”
Linda’s mouth dropped open and you felt yourself bristle as you took a breath.
“Are you actually gonna let your dad say that to your mom?” You glanced up at Ransom. His head turned slowly towards you and the expression of anger on his face at being called out made your blood run cold. You recoiled a little and your eyes immediately darted to the floor.
“Sorry.” You whispered.
"This is fun," Jacob snickered as he, from out of nowhere, waltzed into the room and took a seat in the corner of the bay window, never once looking up from his phone. “Ransom once more manages to spark an argument.”
“Y/N meet Jacob, the poster child for the pro-choice movement.” Ransom gestured to the teenager in front of you who merely rolled his eyes as both Walt and Donna began to yell and hurl insults back at Ransom.
“Says the guy whose birth certificate is an apology letter from the condom factory.” The teen mumbled back.
“Ooh, good one, which one of your alt-right, KKK loving buddies did you learn that from?” Ransom quipped, and in a quick change of decorum, the room erupted with slander and jabs being shouted and tossed about, most of the commotion being pointed at Ransom.
It was a cacophony of noise and sound, which infiltrated your head, making your brain buzz and crackle like the wick of a dynamite stick and it was too much. After months of quiet with no one to listen or talk to bar Ransom, it was overwhelming and you felt sick.
“If you’ll excuse me, I need some air.” You mumbled, seizing the chance, as he was distracted.
You made your way into the hallway where you stood, your back leaning against the dark wooden panelling, taking huge gasps of air. Your chest hurt, your head was spinning and your legs burned but those deep breaths didn’t help. Your hand slapped against your chest, hoping to ebb the sting. Soon, lightheaded, and with a slight spin to the space around you, you felt a cool hand on your shoulder through your blouse. Your head turned and you saw a sweet pair of eyes looking at you with worry.
“Let’s get you some real air, come on,” it was Marta, coming to your aide.
She took you outside, to a covered patio, with wicker furniture and heating lamps. The rush of cold air hit your flushed skin and a different sting erupted through your lungs as the bite of winter’s breath filled you.
“Here.” The young woman handed you a tartan blanket, which you took with a grateful look, still not quite able to form any words. She helped you sit down on one of the chairs and made sure the blanket was snug around your shoulders as she took a seat opposite you.
“They’re a little overwhelming, but you get used to it,” she rubbed a small hand up and down your back.
You just looked at her, your eyes watering as you came down from your panic. You had no desire to get used to it, to any of it, but as per anything in this fucked up situation, you were no doubt going to have to, like it or not. 
The breaths you took became longer, deeper, the peak of panic now steadying out leaving you feeling shaky and exposed.
“I’m sorry, that was…”
“You don’t have to apologise. With what’s happening inside, this is normal.” Marta softly smiled with a chuckle. “I’d be worried if they weren’t screaming at each other.”
“Can I ask you something?” You looked at her, speaking softly.
“Of course.” She replied, just as hushed.
“Why did you do it? Have everyone over? You don’t owe them anything.”
The former nurse rubbed her palms on her pants, “well, it’s what Wanetta wanted. She sorta came with the house and it was her last wish, for the family to come together. I think she thought after everything that happened something might have changed?” Marta shook her head at the audacity of the sound of it. “She didn’t say much more, but Allan had given me her will and that’s all it read. Things would remain the same but she wanted them here after she was cremated, for a final goodbye.”
“I admire her optimism.” You stated flatly and Marta laughed before she gave a heavy sigh, a sad smile on her face.
“Well, she loved them, not that any of them cared, not in years. The only one I ever noticed take mind of her out of want and not duty was Ransom.” She kept her eyes on yours as she spoke, genuine care coming from the sound of her. “But that was before…when he…with Harlan.”
You glanced away, not totally surprised but still a little shocked so to speak that someone else had noticed there was a little shred of humanity buried underneath all his asshole bravado. You leaned forward on your thighs, elbows resting there as your hands wrung together, a nervous habit you’d recently developed.
“Can I ask YOU something?” Marta wondered. You nodded, your stomach knotting, hoping I wasn’t what you suddenly thought it could be. “You’ve spent time with Ransom. I read your article and your apology. Do you believe all of this? The not of sound mind?” Her eyes were sorrowful but held a glare of contempt at the circumstance.
“Uh…” you started but the opening of the patio door caught both of your attentions and the man in question stepped outside, your coat in his hands.
“I was worried,” he stated, opening your coat for you as you automatically stood to receive the gesture. You had no doubt his worry was genuine, but whether it was for you or what you may or may not have revealed was another question.
“I needed some air,” you admitted, “Marta came to my rescue.”
“One man alone can be pretty dumb sometimes, but for real bona fide stupidity there ain't nothing can beat teamwork.” Ransom quipped in reference to the chaos of the family being together, chaos he narcissistically enjoyed partaking in.
You looked up at those daring blue eyes, “Mark Twain.”
He quirked a brow in agreement before his eyes flicked to Marta and then back to you. “Was I interrupting something, Sweetheart?”
There it was, that warning tone in his voice. You were on thin ice. You stuffed your hands into your peacoat pocket and shook your head.
“No.” You cleared your throat as you held his gaze. “Like I said, I just needed some air.”
As he stood there, his eyes searching hers he took a deep breath as she gazed back up at him, fear simmering within those deep globes. Ransom reached out, pulling her to him, dropping a kiss to the top of her head. “As long as that’s all it was.”
Recognising his comment for what it was, half concern and half warning, she nodded against his chest. Without so much as another glance at Marta, he turned, his arm looped possessively over her shoulders as he led her back inside. He walked slowly down the hallway, stooping slightly to speak into her ear. “From now on, you don’t leave my sight, you got that?”
“Yeah, okay.” She whispered and nodded.
“Good girl,” he smiled, tipping her face up with on finger under her chin, planting a soft kiss on her lips.
*****
The next hour or so passed reasonably uneventfully. Ransom was careful to keep as much distance between him, Y/N and the rest of the assholes in the room as possible. When the buffet was served, he watched as she picked at the plate of food she had selected, not eating a terrible amount. She’d gone in on herself again, and he found himself a little disappointed if truth be told.
“We’ll leave soon.” He turned to her and she looked at him, “you’ve behaved today, I’m impressed.”
At that she rolled her eyes. “Is going back to that fucking house supposed to be a reward or something?”
At that Ransom felt a surge of anger and he glared at her, the nerve in his jaw twitching. “Don’t push me, sweetheart.” His voice was low, and a growl but to his surprise, instead of recoiling at his outward hostility and warning she simply sat up straight, her shoulders squaring and met him with a filthy look of her own.
“Fuck you.” She spat.
“Oh we already played that game.” His lip curled back in a snarl. “Several times.”
“Trouble in paradise?” Walt leaned forward a little to pick up something off one of the plates on the table by Ransom and he took a breath, his eyes still trained on Y/N before he turned to his uncle.
“Are you not dead yet?”
“Do you have to talk to everyone like that?” Joni sighed. “God, Ransom.”
“Well I thought the guys who bust his leg might have caught up with him by now, no such luck.” Ransom shrugged.
“Listen here you little shit,” Walt leaned over the table, but no sooner had he done that he suddenly began coughing on whatever food he had in his mouth.
“I’m listening.” Ransom quipped as Walt continued to splutter, Donna hastily hitting him on the back.
Jacob, who wasn’t even looking at the table, too engrossed in his phone, then spoke. “What did you eat, Dad? Wasn’t anything he gave you was it? I mean he did kill Grandpa so I wouldn’t put it past him to poison you either.”
A deadly silence spread across the room as Ransom took a deep breath, his eyes fixed on his cousin, his hand clenching into fists. Besides him, Y/N let out a shaky breath and her head turned to look at him but he didn’t meet her eyes. Instead he leaned back in his chair and when he spoke next, his voice was icy.
“Not of sound mind.”
“Yeah, we heard. Loaf of bullshit if you ask me, but then again an expensive lawyer can get you off most things these days.” Walt snarled.
“Enough!” Linda yelled, her hand smacking on the table. “Jesus fucking Christ.”
Besides him, Y/N had begun to tremble, and Ransom glanced at her to see she was taking deep breaths, her chest heaving, face stony as she stared at the wall opposite, where a picture of his Nanna Wanetta was hung.
“Oh shut up Linda!” Walt turned to her. “Everyone here knows he’s guilty as sin, even you! Why the fuck he’s even here is beyond me. And as for you...” He turned to Y/N and she gave a start, her eyes flicking to him. “You might as well quit while you’re ahead as there ain’t no gold to be digging for. She got it all.” He pointed his fork at Marta and then that was it. Y/N let out a hell of frustration, standing up that quickly her chair tumbled to the ground behind her, the plate clattering to the floor by her feet.
“You think I’m with him for his money?” He glared at Walt, the entire room silent as all eyes focussed on her. “Jesus Christ, you have no idea. I’m with him because I have-“
At that Ransom’s hand shot out and curled round her wrist, his grip tight in warning and she jerked away from him, glaring down at him with a fire in her eyes he hadn’t seen in a long time.
“The whole lot of you are fucked in the head.” She tapped her temple with her forefinger. “I’ve never seen anything like this in my entire life. You’re nothing but a bunch of self-entitled, narcissistic assholes. After everything you've been through, you can’t even find it in your cold dead hearts to come together honour a member of your family that died without reducing the entire event to some kind of sick, twisted game of one-upmanship. Each and every one of you are all about yourselves, and what you can do to out accomplish the other. As far as I’m concerned each one of you can fuck off and die. You disgust me." 
She took a deep breath, running her hands over her face before she turned on her heel and stormed from the room.
Ransom blinked, watched her leave, a slam of the door behind her. He stood there for a brief moment, processing what had just happened. He looked back to his family with a smug shrug and at that he headed quickly after Y/N, his mother's obnoxious and loudly over dramatic gasp bouncing off his back as he too slammed the front door.
****
It was your turn to stand there and act like a petulant child as you leaned against the hood of the Beemer, cares and all fucks be damned. You were tired, you were angry and God damn down right fed up with this entire family and their bullshit. You didn't even make eye contact with him as Ransom as he approached the car. You simply moved to your door, slipped in as he did and waited for him to start the car. You felt his eyes in him, heard him open his mouth to say something but rather he just took in a breath and started the engine. You sat there, your arms crossed over your chest, knees at an angle, pointed towards your door, away from him.
A rumble of a chuckle escaped his chest, "Oh Sweetheart, that was really something."
"Just drive," you spat out, turning your head to him in annoyance. Now he didn't find you amusing, this new air of confidence about you. He cleared his throat and looked at you with a stern gaze.
"Careful, Y/N," he warned, pulling around the drive to the long road before the main. You didn't care. You raised your brows as if you were silently emphasizing your demand, it was not a request, even in the slightest.
The bare trees and snow covered ground began flying by your window, clearly Ransom laying the pedal to the floor as you shook your head.
"What the hell was even the point of going today? It was blatantly obvious that they didn’t want you there, and you didn’t want to be there. If you wanted to mourn Wanetta, we could have done it from the confines of the prison you like to keep me in. Or was this just another shitty way for you to torture me? Huh? Was that amusing to you, Hugh, making me spend an afternoon with your fucked up family, whom you hate, when you’re keeping me from mine? God, you really are a twisted son of a bitch.”
Your tirade set his skin on fire, you could see the tinge of red flushing his skin as he white knuckled the wheel, his hand on the gear shift squeezing the hell out of it as you spoke. Then very quickly you felt your body lurch forward as he slammed on the breaks. "What the fuck did you just say?"
“What, are you deaf?” You blazed. “I asked why we were there? I mean I thought we were going to pay respects to your Great-Nanna, because stupid me actually believed that you felt something, you know, some kind of sorrow that she was gone, and I actually felt sorry for you at first when we got in there, and they were unloading all their vile little opinions and digging in at you and-“
"Now you listen to me you little bitch," he spat, cutting you off. "I didn’t ask for, nor do I need your pity. I don’t care what my family say to me, or think about me. And I certainly don’t care what they think or say about you”
“Oh my god, you are…” You shook your head, looking out of the window, taking a deep breath. “This isn’t pity, Ransom.”
“No, because that’s what it sounds like.” He seethed, his hands curling round the steering wheel.
“Of course it does.” You scoffed. “Because that’s probably all you’ve ever felt towards anyone else isn’t it? Pity, because they’re never going to be as good as you, or have the things you have. Well you might be rich in money terms but fuck, in everything else you’re a pauper. Have you ever truly empathised with someone? Like have even once fully understood what someone else feels? Their sorrow, their happiness, their joy?”
“What the fuck are you getting at?”
You sighed, considering your options. You knew what you wanted to tell him-that the fact he wasn’t loved as a child left him incapable of the simple emotions normal people met, but he was calling you out. And now, it was play it soft or rip it off like a band-aid…
And despite the feeling of foreboding washing over you, you chose the latter. You were tired of playing his mind games, tired of this whole situation. And whatever fucked up punishment he was going to inflict on you, well, it couldn’t be worse than anything he’d already done, you’d take it.
“You don't know how to be happy, or how to love Ransom, because you've never seen it. You've never experienced it. You just breeze through life thinking you can take what you want when you want, and it doesn't work like that.”
 “You’re starting to really piss me off. If I wanted a therapy session, I’d pay for one.” He snarled, “Shut the fuck up.”
“See, this is what I mean!” You sighed, pinching the bridge of your nose. “You just asked me to elaborate, so I did, and know because I’m saying something that you don’t like or don’t wanna hear, you’re resorting to being an asshole.  Every time I think I’m getting through to you, I…” You fell silent, swallowing as he glared at you, nostrils flaring and you took a deep sigh, knowing that this was pointless. “You know what, forget it. I shouldn’t-“
“No, you clearly got something to say, so go on. Say it.”
“What, so you can punish me when we get back for pissing you off some more?”
At that his face faltered and he took a deep breath, hanging his head. When he raised it again to look at you, his face was softer and he looked out of the windscreen, licking his lips. “I’m not…gonna punish you, okay.”
“How do I know?” You whispered, shaking your head. “How can I trust that you’re not just gonna lock me back in that damned basement and come down when you want to fuck me and-“ “Because I’m not!” His voice rose. “I don’t want you down there anymore. So I’ll ask again, you think you know so much about how to love,” he framed the word with his fingers, "then tell me what you think it means.”
“Fine, you wanna know…I’ll tell you. It's going on dates, it’s fun, its surprising, it’s feeling like you can’t breathe if the person you are in love with leaves you. It’s not about owning them or breaking them or how much you buy a person or throwing money at them, it’s showing them you know how they are, that you understand what they appreciate and what they need and what they want, a lot of times without being told.” You took a deep breath, watching his face, his expression never faltering. “Love is something that can't always be explained. It's that feeling of family, of having your person. Someone your heart and soul changes for, grows with. Love is a mother's hug or kiss goodnight, a father's ball landing in your mitt with a joyful laugh and smile. Love isn't forced or taken. It's given and received. It's...."
"Fresh hot cocoa on a rainy day when you have nothing left in a world that hates you,” he spoke softly, and when you realized what he'd said it stopped your thoughts cold. Did that mean what you thought it meant? That he loved you?
You were lost for words, but before you could protest and tell him he was wrong, he sighed and looked at you.
“You asked me before why I brought you today. That’s why. Because they hate me. And you make me feel fucking safe around those pieces of shit.” Your breath caught in your throat whilst your mind raced for how to respond. The tension and suspense filled the air about the two of you. You stared at him, his eyes soft, expectant, darting over your features with a bouncing worry. The reaction time between his words and your next move was merely a minute but you had quickly found a way to capitalize on this moment. You threw your belt off and kicked your heels off in the process, moving over the gear shift and the centre console into his lap, the center seam of your skirt tearing as you straddled him. "Wha...." his words were cut off by your lips on his, your palms over his softly shaven face, fingertips sliding into the hair behind his ears. Immediately, your tongue slipped deep inside his mouth, lolling around with his. His hands found your waist and gave you a squeeze. You came to your knees as best you could in the small space and continued to kiss him while trying to inch your skirt higher. He'd guessed what you were trying to do and you felt his hands move from your waist to the tops of your thighs, fingers trailing down quickly to the hem of your skirt, lifting it to above the curve of your ass where it bunched. He didn’t ask or question your sudden burst of confidence or seeming desire, just as you’d banked on, instead he was quite happy to go with it, as usual always ready to fuck you any which way he could. Your hands trailed over the soft material of his sweater and down to the end of it, where it met the top of his slacks. You lifted the clothing slightly to ghost over his skin causing him to flinch before your finger tips found the button and zip of his flies. That maddeningly smug smirk spread across his face and your lips crashed back to his, a furious clash of teeth and tongue, your hands still fumbling with his pants. He was half hard before you even got him free, no doubt from the heated exchange the two of you had to get to here. As you palmed his girth in your hand, your brain switched from playing him to wanton need, a basic primal instinct of desperation to release the toxic stress your body held. His big hand and thick fingers trailed over your hip, your ass, down your thigh and finally cupped your heat and a deep ferrral growl emitted from his chest as he'd realized you'd worn nothing under that skirt. He dipped two fingers inside you straight away and you cried out, "fuck" as your body bent back away from him, keening at the feeling. “Fuck, baby, you’ve had nothing on under here all day?” His fingers curled inside of you and you groaned, your head rolling back as your hips pushed forward, thrusting against his hand. You couldn't use your words, you looked down at him with your pupils blown and your bottom lip between your teeth. You gave him a squeeze instead and he quickly lurched you into the steering wheel with his chest, his fingers falling away and both hands tearing your blouse open, buttons flying that will never be found. His nose tucked between the valley of your breasts and he inhaled between your fleshy mounds, his tongue dipping against the underside of your thin bra. His hands each palming an ass cheek and squeezing so hard, it delightfully stung. With what little space the two of you had to move, Ransom pulled you down into his lap, the need to feel you wrapped around him dangerously feral. It took no time for that single motion to get his head then every inch of his shaft deep inside you. "Fuck, you feel so fucking good," he ground out. He didn't care the mess she would make or the way he'd cum so hard he'd leak out of her, no, he wanted to fuck her senseless and that's exactly what he'd do. His heels cemented themselves into the footwell of the car as his hips jutted upward, her body curling in on him. “Harder, please Ransom.” Her voice croaked as she begged him and with a growl that was animalistic his hips picked up their pace as he rutted up into her quickly and harshly.  His mouth devoured the tops of her breasts, nipping at her nipples through the material of the lace that covered them while her fingers scratched at the back of his neck, tugging at his hair. In contrast to the cold winter conditions outside, the air inside his beloved car was now hot, fast steaming up the windows, drops of condensation trickling down towards the door sill a perfect mirror image of the sweat that was now sliding down the hollow of her throat and beading on his brow. He could feel her walls begin to squeeze him tighter and tighter with each thrust. His hands curled round her hips, pulling her down onto him as he leaned back, raising his ass off the seat slightly, spearing up into her as deep as he could. "Ransom," you started to shake senselessly, you were crashing fast and hard and there was no slowing down. "Fuck, baby, just like that," you'd heard him say over the blood that rushed to your ears, deafening you, as you came, gripping him like a vice. Your body gave way as your hands sought purchase to ground yourself from entirely collapsing, finding the lapel of his camel coat, white knuckling it with one hand while the other slapped against the damp window which felt like melting ice against your heated palm. A noise burst from your mouth, a half scream, half choked wail, a sound you weren’t sure you’d ever made before and you opened your eyes to see Ransom’s icy blue’s locked onto yours, his bottom lip clamped between his teeth. His voracious pace continued until the end when he came with a primal growl,  his hips raising off the seat far enough to jolt your head against the roof of the car. You felt him fill you, the warmth of his seed settling deep inside, and then some. The air was heavy with the sound of panting as the pair of you came down from the intensity of the moment, The both of you desperately trying to breathe despite the humidity. Your hands curled over Ransom's shoulders as he sagged back in the seat, his hands smoothing up the outside of your thighs. You swallowed hard as his eyes focused on yours. You leaned forward and kissed him slowly, softly, his mouth and body languidly responding. Pulling back slightly, you kept your forehead pressed to his, and took a deep breath before you went straight in for the kill, the reason you’d instigated this entire fuck, to capitalise once more on a seeming chink in his armour. "You said you feel safe with me." He stilled underneath you, his hands gentle as they now rest on your hips and his eyes locked onto yours, widening as he realised his admission. "Do you want me to feel safe with you? To trust you?" You continued, not giving him a moment to deny it. He nodded slowly in reply. "Prove it," you stated. "How?" His voice was croaky as he cleared his throat, a slight frown furrowed his brow. "I want to see my family again." He looked at you, and you kept your eyes locked on his, a challenge to him to make good on his word, gambling on him actually wanting you to trust him as he had taken great pains to demonstrate through various means over the past few weeks. This was it, the moment where you would find out exactly what he truly wanted- someone to love and trust him, or someone to fear and obey him. He let out a slow breath through his nose and his eyes flicked over your shoulder before they returned to yours and he gave you an almost imperceptible nod.  But a nod nonetheless. “Okay.”
**** Part 7
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ohmyasmodeus · 4 years
Text
𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘶𝘮 𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴 ❖
✧・゚: *✧・゚:*    *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
♡ 𝘭𝘶𝘤𝘪𝘧𝘦𝘳 ; 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘢𝘳𝘵
✧   Sure, Lucifer is looking forward to appreciating art and the history behind each piece, but he finds himself much more excited to spend more time alone with you. History can be preserved, but every moment spent with you is simply irreplaceable; he ends up surprisingly spending more time gazing at you than admiring the artwork.
✧   You make him feel young again. In between displays, he sneaks kisses, mischievously pulling you away from the crowds just to hold you in his arms for a stolen moment. Lucifer adores the way you fall into his arms with soft laughter, and it makes him cradle your face between his gloved hands while he whispers about the way everyone looks at you like you’re a work of art.
“But do you?” You ask softly.
“I always do, ______.” Silhouetted by the gallery lights, he pulls you into a tender kiss full of emotion; a moment that no doubt belongs among the displays of beauty and immortality that surround you.
✧   Lucifer is the kind of person to actually read the little plaques beside the pieces that go into detail about the artist and the intentions behind their art. It takes a while for him to take it all in, but you don’t mind— it’s very cute to see him have to bend down and squint to read them.
✧   Your day hardly ends there. Even as he takes you home, he very much enjoys discussing your opinions on the works included in the gallery and the artists behind them. It’s Lucifer’s way of getting closer, trying to decipher how your mind works, how you view art pieces that are open to multiple interpretations. It’s his favourite part. He loves you and your brilliant mind.
♡ 𝘮𝘢𝘮𝘮𝘰𝘯 ; 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 / 𝘢𝘳𝘵
✧   Your demon is the definition of a kinaesthetic learner. Mammon fits right in with the kids that run around the place, tugging on your hand as he begs you to come play these games with him! He never wants to do anything without you and you end up being basically dragged around the museum. But it’s okay because he’s cute!
✧   While surrounded by so many people, it’s even easier for him to get flustered about affection. His cheeks flush red whenever he thinks too hard about holding your hand, whether it’s to bring you somewhere, or just to hold your hand for the sake of it. The back of his fingers brush against yours, making you smile.
“Hm? What do you want to show me?” you ask as you take his hand to intertwine your fingers with his.
Mammon fidgets with his free hand before shoving it into his jacket pocket, looking away with a brilliant blush. His voice is quiet as he mumbles, “N-nothing, I just… wanted to hold your hand. Or whatever.”
✧   He’s much smarter than people like to give him credit for at times, and surprises you with bits of information he picks up that you couldn’t understand. At the same time, it’s hard to stop him from gushing about how cool it was to see that chunk of sodium explode when dropped in water and how he wants to watch that over and over again.
✧   Mammon runs wild in the gift shop, especially at those little archaeology or mining kits that let you dig through hunks of sand that claim to contain a piece of gold. Of course, there are a million things the both of you want to buy for yourselves, but so little money to do so with. He settles for something small in the end, because he wants to be able to buy something small for his brothers too.
♡ 𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 ; 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦
✧   From the beginning, Leviathan is absolutely fascinated. The calming atmosphere of the museum and being completely surrounded by his element makes Levi relax, even if he’d normally panic and try to hide from the people that walk along the exhibitions with you. But even then, you make sure to hold his hand just to reassure him a little more.
✧   Just like he rants about pretty much anything he has an interest in, Levi rants about the equipment on display and compares weapons or ships from different eras to each other, as if he’s talking about mere video game stats. It’s actually kind of hot to see him act like the Grand Admiral of hell’s navy is supposed to.
✧   Treat him like a Grand Admiral, actually. His brain totally short circuits when you lean into him and put a hand on his chest and gasp about how knowledgeable and strong he is.
“Oh captain, my captain!” you sing as you pepper his face in kisses, making him squirm in your arms. His face is beet red as he attempts to cover it with his hands.
“People are- they’re going to see us!” Levi whines.
You laugh and kiss him properly, arms wrapped around him tight. “That’s the point, baby! I like it when people know I’m yours.”
✧   He actually gets a little sad when he sees the bones of massive whales or the various preserved remains of sea life on display. They all feel like a part of him. At times, he feels like sea animals understand him much better than people do, and he has to give your hand a squeeze as the two of you through the section. At least he brightens up when you tell him that most of these specimens die a natural death or were cared for during their life.
♡ 𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘯 ; 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺
✧   His choice of museum goes without explanation. Humans are frail creatures that are essentially doomed to make the same mistakes again and again, despite a new era or millennia, but Satan still finds their history remarkable. He’s fascinated with seeing the butterfly effect ripple through time, sparking wars and conflicts. It makes him wonder about the universe’s decisions— especially the ones that brought you to him.
✧   Satan has always been more fond of reading the ancient texts on display or translating archaic inscriptions on bronze age charms, but when he’s with you, he finds himself more drawn to the elegant gowns and elaborately crafted jewellery on display. You always find his emerald eyes lingering on you, imagining what you would look like in something so grand. Your beauty stuns him in every way, especially with the way you smile at him while framed by the display’s lights.
✧   “I thought you wanted to learn,” you mumble with a quiet laugh into the kiss that Satan pulls you into. The two of you are wrapped in each other’s arms in the back of a crowded amphitheatre, making an attempt to watch a historical film.
In the darkness, Satan’s blush goes unseen, but you feel it in the heat of his face as you kiss him back eagerly. “I’ve learned enough about humans, ______. I want to focus on my favourite one now.”
You close your eyes, and so does he. History couldn’t matter less, not when it feels like the two of you are the only beings to exist, the only people that matter.
✧   Despite wanting to learn, Satan finds himself getting dragged into shenanigans with you as you voice historical figures with the goofiest accents and clown around with some of the interactive props. He laughs along and snaps a million pictures of you to keep, and he supposes that humans aren’t the only ones that make recurring mistakes. After all, he lets you loosen him up and lets you force your way into his heart time and time again, but he still can’t force himself to complain about it.
♡ 𝘢𝘴𝘮𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘶𝘴 ; 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘰𝘯
✧   Beauty in its different forms has always mesmerised Asmodeus. Museums have never been his thing, but with a fashion museum, you might just be able to change his mind. He goes between gushing about the textures and layering of different pieces to gushing about you and how amazing you look today!
✧   Asmo is always on top of the latest trends, but there’s something that always brings him back to the ostentatious allure of baroque and rococo dresses. He loves reading about the rise of these styles, but he would rather pull you along into a waltz as the quiet ambient music plays around you, the both of you giggling and referring to each other as ‘lord’ and ‘lady’.
✧   Or ‘your majesty’ and ‘my consort’...
✧   You, as always, expect him to pull you away somewhere quiet to make out and be general public nuisances, but Asmodeus surprises you this time. He’s far too busy taking pictures of you together and of just you alone, his amber gaze so soft as he contemplates your beauty. He ends up leaning in serenely as the two of you find yourselves alone together in a gallery.
“You’re gorgeous,” Asmo mumbles with a smile, delicately tucking a lock of your hair behind your ear. “There’s just something so magnetic about you, I can’t look away…”
“I don’t have to say it back because you know you’re handsome and your ego is big enough... but there’s nothing that can compare to how lovely your soul is.” You chuckle softly, resting a hand affectionately on the side of his face. Asmo rests his forehead against yours, wrapping his arms around the back of his neck with a delighted giggle, delighted in knowing that you see him beyond his superficialities and flaws.
✧   He buys you a set of jewellery from the gift shop, and not one of the cheap ones either. He splurges on one of the most expensive professionally made vintage sets because he really wants to daydream about you dancing with him in those rococo dresses, the most gorgeous royal couple in the world…
♡ 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘻𝘦𝘣𝘶𝘣 ; 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘵
✧   Delighted by the more colourful and almost bizarre applications of mixed-media art (think Yayoi Kusama), Beelzebub enjoys contemporary art the most. He’s easily fascinated with the elaborately abstract displays, and quietly wraps his arm around your waist as the two of you gawk at stunning larger-than-life works that probably get him a little hungry.
✧   He’s a respectful visitor and likes to stay silent so he doesn’t disturb the quiet atmosphere for everyone else appreciating the art. It ends up in him having to lean down and murmur softly in your ear when he has something to tell you, his warm arms pulling you into an embrace that you never want to leave.
✧   Workshops! Please bring Beel to the workshops because they’re his favourite part of museums. No matter how hungry he gets while putting in so much effort, he’ll sit still and work hard to make you something you can treasure.
“Do you like it?” he asks with a smile as he presents you with a little figurine version of one of the sculptures featured in the exhibition, hand painted by him. It’s easy to notice how the colours he picked out match your features. “It’s yours.”
“I love it, Beel! Oh, it’s wearing my coat and everything!” you gasp. The elated smile he gives you is absolutely priceless, and you can’t help but tiptoe to kiss him in thanks for his hard work.
Beel lets out a soft laugh and nuzzles his cheek into yours. “I really liked the art, but it felt like something was missing… Maybe the exhibition would’ve been a lot more beautiful if you were an art piece on display too.”
✧   Bringing him to a museum like that just might inspire him to create art by himself. After creating something for you, he feels hooked on it! You find him doodling a lot more on his homework and giving you the most endearing drawings of things you like, or his own hilarious renditions of what Lucifer looks like when he’s about to burst a blood vessel. Beel definitely has a hidden talent for caricatures.
♡ 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘩𝘦𝘨𝘰𝘳 ; 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘩𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺
✧   Humans? Belphegor has had enough of them for a lifetime and can’t be bothered with learning more about them, but natural history is something that captivates him. There’s a kind of innocent wonder in his eye as you lead him around the exhibitions, marvelling at the displayed remains of the massive creatures that came before, wondering how they evolved into the tiny little animals of today. (But it’s probably also morbid curiosity with the way he looks at preserved carcasses and skeletons.)
✧   But you’re an exception to him. He's tired of humans but never of you, even if he jokes about it at times. Even if he knows about most of the things on display, Belphie is still asking you to tell him about them because he just loves hearing your voice. Coupled with the soothing silence of the museum, it almost puts him to sleep.
✧   “Don’t fall asleep! You paid to watch this!” you whisper when Belphie rests his head on your shoulder. You want to pay attention to the dinosaurs beating the shit out of each other in the surprisingly well-rendered 3D documentary, but you can’t help but gaze at your boyfriend instead, and the way he looks in those dumb 3D glasses.
“I won’t,” he mumbles, rolling his eyes. “You’re warm.”
“You’re a little leech, you know that?” Despite your snarky tone, you lift up the partition between the theatre’s seats to let Belphie snuggle into you. Just like a leech, he’s immediately all over you with his arms wrapped tight around your waist, chuckling as he buries his face in your neck.
✧   You wouldn’t expect it, but he’s also the kind to go wild in the gift shop, albeit in more subtle ways— like staring really hard at something or carrying something only to put it down for you to get the hint. He ends up getting the both of you a big plushy to cuddle and name on the way home.
✧・゚: *✧・゚:*    *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
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pascalpanic · 3 years
Text
Caffeine Rush: Chapter Four / Irish Coffee
Pairing: Javier Peña x f!Reader
W/C: 3k
Warnings: alcohol, language, sexual harassment, physical fighting, Javi is a legend for this chapter/next lmao, reader wears makeup and heels but clothing is otherwise not described
A/N: HI I’m gonna forgo summaries for this series from now on, if anyone has an issue with that pls lmk and we can go back to it, I’m just sick of using like the same summary lmao! Hope you guys like it, idk when chapter 5 will come but somewhat soon!
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Irish coffee: a cocktail consisting of hot coffee, Irish whiskey, and sugar, stirred, and topped with cream. The coffee is drunk through the cream.
Four nights after you first kissed Javier, and now many kisses later, Javier insists he take you to the one place he knows in D.C.: a nice bar in the downtown area. You’d spent the days visiting museums and monuments, giving him a tour of the Georgetown campus too. He’d hum along to the radio in your shitty car while you drove place to place. He surprised you with how much modern music he knew.
If the past four days have been getting to know Javier, privately becoming acquainted with each other’s minds and lips, tonight is some kind of grand exposition. Your brief whirlwind of a romance has been contained to your coffee shop and small restaurants off the beaten path. Javier is a well-connected man; he’s sure to know people downtown. From what he’s explained to you, he’s somewhat of a powerhouse in the DEA. Everyone downtown knows a version of the man, who goes by Agent Peña, but all you know is your Javi, your Javi who kisses you goodnight after buying you cupcakes, who drinks your peppermint mochas like it’s the nectar of the gods.
So, it’s safe to say you’re nervous. If he’s bringing you somewhere where he will know people, which he offhandedly told you, you’re going to be the living legend’s date for the night. As you stare into the mirror, your brow furrows in concentration, drawing a line across your eyelid with a pencil of kohl, your phone rings on the vanity in front of you. It makes you jump and the eye pencil drag upwards across your eyelid- most definitely not where you intended it to go. “Fuck!” you shout in annoyance and toss the pencil down. When you pick up, your voice shows your frustration. “Hello?” You ask sharply.
“Hey, abejita,” a smooth voice answers: who else but Javier. 
“Hi, Javi,” you sigh as you press the button, moving the call to the speakerphone. “You made me fuck up my eyeliner.”
“Sorry. Just calling to talk.”
His words make you smile and your ears feel warm as they rush with blood. You aren’t picking him up for another hour. “What, you couldn’t wait that long to talk?” You ask him, biting down on your painted lips with a smile. 
“No. I’m bored and I miss you.” It’s true, he thinks to himself. He hasn’t seen you all day. After spending the last three days in nearly 24-hour contact, he misses the sound of your laughter and the way your soft lips feel pressed against his stubbled cheek. 
“Well, I suppose it’s been…” you trail off as you calculate, “about 20 hours since I’ve seen you. I”m practically going through withdrawals,” you laugh, and it makes Javier’s chest warm to hear that beautiful sound, even through the tinny receiver of the hotel’s phone. “You know, if you have a cute nickname for me, I need to have something equally cute for you.”
“There’s a difference, abejita,” Javier teases, opening the hotel window to smoke out of. “You’re cute. I’m not.”
“Yes you are.”
“I am many things, little bee, but I am not cute,” Javier chuckles as he sticks the cigarette between his lips and lights it up.
“Well, I think you are,” you refute in a stubborn tone. “You bought me cupcakes on our first date. That’s cute. You come to my work and bring me treats and kiss me in front of my coworkers. That’s cute too.”
Javier shakes his head. Sure, the things could be classified as cute, he supposes, but they’re not the normal Javier. Sexy, rude, intelligent, any of those words could describe him. He’s a playboy, a heartbreaker, and all in all is, by principle, a lone wolf. Well, he was. He’s been chasing Escobar for years and years… and now he’s dead. Maybe he can allow himself to start anew, and this new beginning has to have you in it.
He takes a slow drag from the cigarette, getting lost in his own thoughts and forgetting to answer. The silence makes you suspicious. “Javi? Did I lose you?”
The words snap him back to reality. “No, I’m here. I’m sorry, I… zoned out there.”
“Good,” you smile as you wipe off the messy eyeliner and apply a new, perfectly winged layer of the dark makeup. “I suppose I’ll just have to see what comes. Nicknames have to be earned, not given. Did you ever have any nicknames when you were little?” You ask as you brush a sparkling powder over your eyes.
Javier thinks for a second, almost to the point where you have to ask again if he’s there. That seems to be Javier’s biggest flaw so far. “No, not really. Sometimes the other kids would call me Peñita. Didn’t like that one,” he chuckles, and you can hear air rush past the microphone as he exhales the smoke into the ever-darkening D.C. sky. “My mom had all kinds of names for me, but they were the things you’d call a little kid.”
You nod, then realize he can’t see you and you need to speak. “That’s cute. Tell me about your parents,” you ask him as you continue to brush various makeup products across your face.
Javier shakes his head. “That’s more of an over-drinks topic, I think.”
“When have you ever held back information from me?” You scoff lightly, as if you’ve known him a thousand years. It hits you as you say it, the whirlwind this entire thing has been. You’ve known Javier for five days, and he’s already everything to you. And he’s going back to Colombia in 3 weeks. It makes your heart sink in your chest, and anxiety creeps in, the realization that he might not be falling as quickly as you are. Maybe it’s time to pull back a little, you tell yourself. He won’t be here long.
“Ha,” he says dryly and takes another drag from his cigarette. “Well, I’m ready when you are, if you want to come get me a little earlier.”
His emotionless tone makes you panic. You wonder if you just went somewhere you shouldn’t have by asking about his parents, if you’ve just crossed some line you didn’t know existed. You desperately want to ask him, to reassure yourself and get rid of the worry slowly collecting in your gut, but you don’t. You can’t. You shouldn’t. “I’m still getting ready,” you tell him, and it’s truthful. “I’ll be there at 7, like we said. Is that alright?” you ask. 
Javier blows a breath of smoke into the night, the cloud of smoke mingling with the heat puff of his breath. “Sounds good to me. I’ll leave you alone to get ready,” he tells you with a small smile.
“Alright. I’ll see you then. You’re wearing something nice, right?” You clarify one last time. 
“Whatever you wear will be beautiful on you. Don’t worry about it.” Javier, ever the king of flattery, looks down and appraises his own outfit. “But yes, I’m wearing something nice.”
You smile at the reassurance, looking down at the swirling colors of your makeup palette. “Well, thank you. I’ll see you in a bit.” -
You have to say you’re surprised at the level of refinement of the hotel. You’d expected the DEA would’ve put Javier at some shitty little hotel, but it’s surprisingly nice. You remember a few days ago, the sheer terror masked behind a stoic face, but you chuckle as you consider that this famed agent had very few context clue skills. This hotel is nice, a couple of stars at least. Why would they put him here if they were firing him?
Javier stubs out his cigarette in an ashtray when he sees your car approaching, straightening his sport coat. You hold back a grin as he walks over, but the fighting ends when you see him smile as he opens the door and slides in. 
“Hi,” you beam at him, and he leans across the center console, stealing a kiss.
“Hey.” He sneaks one more kiss, one that lasts a little longer and dares to use a bit of tongue. He only breaks away when you do with a laugh. 
“My foot is on the brake right now; be careful but kiss me one more time,” you ask of him with a grin, and he happily complies, cupping your face and kissing you. When he breaks away, your eyes open slowly and you can’t hold in your happiness. “Alright, now we’re going. You’ll have to guide me,” you tell him, and he nods. 
“Sure. You’re just going to go out of here and onto that street to the right,” he says and points the way for you.
Your car follows the path, nodding along to Javier’s instructions. “Jesus, that’s a fancy place. How much does that hotel cost a night?” You marvel as you stare at the gorgeous building in your rearview mirror.  
Javier shrugs. “I’m about to find out. They’re only paying for a few nights for me, then I’m on my own. I’m guessing it isn’t cheap,” he chuckles as he looks over his shoulder. “Or I might switch hotels. Don’t know yet.”
Frowning, you take a turn he’d earlier instructed you to follow. The hotel fades from sight, the dark blue of the December night filling your rearview instead. “Well, I know of a place you could stay for way cheaper.”
“Oh yeah?” He asks, adjusting in his seat to face toward you more. “What is that, pretty thing?” He asks, a hand resting on your thigh. 
“Stop,” you giggle and rest one hand atop of his. His fingers are much larger than yours, a fact that makes you shudder as his fingertips find bare skin there. “Pretty thing? That’s weak,” you tease, and Javier just rolls his eyes. “I was going to say you could stay with me, but now I’m not sure,” you say teasingly, eyes locked on the road and most certainly off of Javier. 
His brow furrows. “Well, I can pay you then.”
You shake your head. “Javi. We’re dating… aren’t we?” You ask, the hesitancy creeping into your voice. Now that you say it aloud, you’re not entirely sure that you are. “I mean, I don’t know, I just kind of thought,” you stumble over your speech, word-vomiting out whatever you can to backtrack. 
The man next to you tilts his head, but he nods. “I… I haven’t dated anyone in a long time,” he admits, his fingers starting to slowly grip your thigh rather than rest atop it. “Is this what dating is like to you?”
You nod too, knowing he’s watching you, staring down at the steering wheel. “I… yeah?”
A small smile cracks on his face, making the mustache there twitch softly. “Then I guess I’d say we’re dating. But that doesn’t matter, I don’t want to live in your place rent-free for three weeks.”
“It’s an extended vacation,” you chuckle and bring your hand back to the steering wheel to have two hands for a turn. “Don’t worry about it. I’d like having you around. We’ve already been together nonstop for a couple of days. What’s a little more?” You ask as you look over at him, seeing his eyes soften and his forehead relax from its tightened state. “And besides, any hotel is going to be painfully expensive right now. D.C. during the holidays makes the hotel rates skyrocket.”
He nods as you speak, processing the idea. “Well, do you have a guest room? I don’t want to invade your space, I can sleep on the couch if you don’t, or I can stay in a hotel.”
“Javier,” you chuckle, putting your own hand on his thigh to reassure him. “We’re not moving in together permanently. You’ll stay with me until you need to go back to Colombia, and that’s that.” Your mind has been made up. He can’t argue it, and he knows it from the firmness in your grip on his leg, in the way your body goes rigid as if the words are some formal deal that requires a handshake.
“How do you know I’m not some serial killer who does exactly this to lure you to your death?” Javier asks dryly as he looks over at you, lifting a hand to trace the side of your face slowly.
“Because you’re Javier Peña. Your name was in the newspaper next to Steve’s. You work for the DEA.”
“Some of the guys I work with could definitely be serial killers, that doesn’t discount anything,” Javier grumbles, which makes you laugh and makes him even grumpier. 
“The fact that you said that to me in the first place is my proof, Javi,” you chuckle and pat his thigh softly. “I’m an excellent judge of character. I just graduated from 7 straight years of studying psychology. Remember that?” Javier’s quiet and you know you’ve won. “Then tonight we’ll get your stuff after dinner and get you settled in my place. How does that sound?”
He’s quiet again, studying your face and the way your cheeks move with your lips, the way your brows rise and fall when he’s being ridiculous. He’s just as trained as you are, with 10+ years on you to prove his competence. You like him. You might even love him already, he thinks to himself. Your pretty lips purse at his silence and he finally cracks. “That sounds great, abejita.” Javier leans across the console to kiss your cheek, which makes you shiver softly, like any touch from the man does. “Thank you.”
“Thank me by buying me some drinks, huh?” You tease, turning back to focus on the road. 
-
The bar was nice. Really nice, you learned as you walked in. It projected the essence of Javier to you; naturally, you loved it from the moment you looked around. The room had a low ceiling and wood paneling around the walls, a floor that your short heels clacked upon as you walked to the only open stools- well, only one stool, you realized as you walked. Javier walked behind you, a hand on the small of your back, admiring your legs in the outfit you wore. 
When you finally found the available spot, where you’re now sipping a drink, you’d found that there was only one stool. 
“Do you want to go sit in the restaurant?” You asked Javier as you nodded with your head to the side of the establishment with tables and booths.
He shook his head and pulled out the stool. “You sit. I’ll stand.”
“Javi-”
“Just sit, abejita. I’ve been sitting all day. I can handle a little standing,” he chuckles and kisses your head, gesturing to the stool. When you sit, he smiles down at you and wraps his arms around you loosely from behind. You lean back against his strong chest.
Over the past few days, you and Javier have made infrequent contact, a hug in greeting or in goodbye and plenty of shared kisses. This, however, speaks directly to your touch-starved soul, the way his body practically encompasses you. He orders himself a whiskey and the drink you’d ordered on the first night you met him for you, then continues to stand there.
You crane your head around to look at him, smiling. “I love this place already,” you say, admiring the way you can hear over the hum of the other patrons and the quiet music playing. You’re much more accustomed to places your friends would drag you, where it was more for the cheap drinks than the atmosphere. 
The crow’s feet by his eyes are more pronounced as he smiles at you, but he looks even younger as his lips curve up softly. “I’m glad you like it.”
“Shit, is that Peña?” A loud voice calls from somewhere else in the building, and Javier turns, his face falling flat then smiling as he sees the voice behind it. 
“Be right back,” he murmurs and presses a kiss into the top of your head. 
It’s someone he recognizes, that’s for sure, as the man and Javier wrap their arms around each other and firmly pat the other’s back. “No shit! When did you get back to D.C., man?” The other guy asks. “Escobar just died and they’re already sending you back?”
The bartender delivers your drink, and you turn your back to Javier, thanking them and sipping at your liquor. Over your shoulder, you can hear the man and Javier talk shop, about Colombia and their days as DEA trainees, about Escobar’s recent death and Javi’s recent promotion. You glance over your shoulder at him, smiling as he easily talks with the group. You’ve not had the privilege of seeing Javier with his friends- or what seem to be his friends- yet, and he seems fairly social but humble. You appreciate that.
The talking goes on for a while, and you sip at your drink and look around the bar, appreciating the wood that makes a nice noise as your fingernails tap against it rhythmically. 
When your drink is about half-drained, the bartender sets another in front of you. It’s different from what you were drinking, a fluorescent neon color surely made by a mix of ridiculously fruity liqueurs. You look at the bartender with confusion and they nod to a man at the end of the bar. He’s not looking at you, which makes it all the easier to stare at the drink in confusion and disgust rather than drink it. His tie is absolutely egregious, boldly patterned in bright colors. There’s not an ounce of taste about this man.
The drink goes untouched, sitting in front of you as you study it. There seems to be layers, maybe, or maybe the mixed alcohols just congealed awkwardly. You sip your drink and then Javier’s whiskey, refusing to drink whatever fucking concotion sits in front of you.
Five or ten more minutes pass of Javier talking with his friends. You don’t mind- you know the feeling of catching up with people you haven’t seen in a long time. In that time, the drink remains untouched, and you ask the bartender for a refill of your go-to drink.
Not long after the second one arrives, you feel a hand on the curve of your back. You turn, hoping it’s Javier, and instead find it to be the man at the end of the bar who ordered you the drink: Tie Guy. Panic sets in immediately and you arch your back to dodge the hand, which only follows your spine. “Hey. Thought you’d like this drink. You tried it yet?” The man asks, voice clearly showing that he knows you haven’t. 
“No,” you say with a swallow, turning away from him. “Not exactly my style.”
“I thought it was such a pretty drink for such a pretty thing.”
Pretty thing. When Javier called you that earlier, even though the name wasn’t one you liked, it was at least endearing. To hear it again, dripping with sleaze and ill intentions, you shiver and push it further away. “I’m sorry, sir, it’s not my type of drink. My boyfriend will be right back, and-” you try, hating the defense you try to pull.
“He drinks whiskey,” Tie Guy says and gestures to Javier’s ¾ full glass. “No fun. Boring. Too manly, pretentious. Real men can drink something fun like these and not need to worry about someone thinking they don’t have a set of balls,” he says and his fingers trace the rim of the martini glass the concoction sits in. Now you’re definitely not drinking it, now that he’s touched it. 
“Please, I’m not interested,” you try, turning around to face the man that towers over your seated body. “I’d appreciate it if-”
“Hey,” a familiar voice- thank fuck, it’s Javier- calls from behind you. “Excuse me,” he says and pushes Tie Guy out of the way, his arm wrapping around you. It’s a relief, a grip meant entirely for comfort and not for the coercion the man across from you had tried. You melt into it instantly. “She said to back the fuck off, or could you not fucking tell?” He hisses at the man. Javier pulls away from you, stepping towards the man who instinctively steps back.
“Whiskey drinker,” the man snorts and rolls his eyes. “So manly, so over the top. Gotta let everyone know that you’re the alpha, the dominant male, huh?” He asks, getting in Javier’s face. He’s taller than your Javier, but lankier. The fact that Javier could take him crosses your mind, though you hope desperately that it doesn’t come to that.
“What I drink doesn’t fucking matter,” Javier says and shoves his chest. “What matters is that you’re fucking harassing my girlfriend. Back the fuck off,” he says and turns from the man, back to you, his hand on your upper arm. “You okay?” he asks quietly, and you respond with a nod and a forced, close-lipped smile.
“Yep, go ahead, go back to your little prude,” the man laughs drunkenly, his voice full of vitriol. “Oh, no, I bet she loves to act all shy, but then she’s a kinky little thing in bed, isn’t she?” He asks, taunting Javier. “Ties your ass up and whips you, with that sass. I wonder if she-”
The sentence isn’t finished. Javier’s fist flies through the air and connects with the man’s face, followed by a loud, ringing thud as the taller body hits the floor.
-
caffeine rush taglist:
@remmysbounty @mishasminion360 @blo0dangel @binarydanvvers  @sleep-tight1 @apascalrascal @randomness501 @spideysimpossiblegirl @notabotiswear @pedro-pastel @sanchosammy @lv7867 @greeneyedblondie44 @hunnambabe @astoryisaloveaffair @emesispo @pedritobalmando @magikfanatic @yooforia @oceanablue @sara-alonso @pedrosmustache @feelingmadclever @hnt-escape @radiowallet @obsessivelysearching @sugarontherims @a-court-of-feysand-and-elorcan @linnie0119 @1800-fight-me @autumnleaves1991-blog @toilet-keeper @evelynseventyr @metalarmsandmanbuns @shannababyy @sambucky21 @princess76179 @starless-eyes-remain @theorganasolo @jagi-yaaa @mrsparknuts @tacticalsparkles
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minachuuu · 3 years
Text
Voices I Can’t Run Away From
❣Voices I Can’t Run Away From❣
First one for 2021! This request was so interesting to write guys. I really hope you enjoy it❤
❤ AU: DreamCatcher (Fem!) 8th Member
❤ Genre: Angst
❤ Word Count: 5.3k
❤ Song Suggestions: BOCA by DreamCatcher and Leave Out All the Rest by Linkin Park
❤ TW: Harassment, bullying, suicide especulation.
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Day 1
Please make them shut up. Please.
I’m already way too far away, why do I still hear them? They only yell at me to get out of the band, there’s one too many people in there. The walls around me paint themselves in all the words that are written about me all over the internet, talentless, a nuisance, not enough. I already know that. But I was trying, I swear I was trying. 
Now nobody will have to see my face again, I promise. But please make them shut up.
There was something wrong, a new comeback meant being able to see Insomnias, play in variety shows, performing on stage, all those things you really loved. But not this time, this time it was only you, staring at your broken reflection in the car window, wondering how the hell would the makeup artist was going to cover your swollen red eyes. Your dehydrated throat itched, and you had a water bottle within reach but you couldn’t see the point. 
It didn’t matter how much you tried, how much you put yourself in practices until late at night. The truth was you were put late into the group, maybe it was that you were too young, but no amount of practice would be enough to put yourself on the level of professionalism and skill of your group mates. And there were people especially eager to remind you of that every day. 
Across the chats on VLives, on fancams, even posts on Weverse to the point where you just ignored the app completely. As quick as the new comeback video was up, comments were already written, ‘Dreamcatcher is only 7, not 8’, ‘Y/n is not on the level of the rest, I don’t even know how they could dare put a rookie in an already established group.’ You knew that, you questioned that yourself since the very first moment they announced you as the 8th member.
The car came to a stop that made you exit your thoughts, coming to the realization that you were already parked outside of the Music Bank’s building. You put on your hoodie, placing your mask over your nose and picking up Siyeon’s bucket hat, thankful that she had left it in the back seat on her last ride. You tried covering as much as you could with your hair and clothes, so hopefully no one could see what a disaster you were. 
“Y/n, it’s kind of hot outside,” JiU caught you trying to cover your entire self when she turned around to check on everybody. “Are you sure you-”
“I’m okay Unnie.” You cut her off, zipping the hoodie up as you placed the hood on top of your hat.
The rest of the girls in the van looked at each other concerned. They knew about the comments and even if you told them everyday that you were okay, they weren’t oblivious to how much you showed you weren’t.
One by one exited the car, being received by excited fansites taking their pictures. You halted at the sight of so many people between the entrance to the building and the van, your hands quivering as you felt your insides trembling. A warm hand touched your shoulder from behind, making you startled. You turned around to be received with Handong’s sweet smile and comforting eyes.
“Let’s go together,” She offered her hand as she exited the van before you. “Let’s be quick, the sun is hitting terribly today!”
Taking a deep sigh, you jumped out of the van with the help of your older member, feeling glad for all the layers on your outfit that prevented anyone from getting a clear sight of you. Your eyes refused to get away from the floor, while the members took their formation around you, blocking the view from you even further. Only then you dared looking up, catching a glimpse of the only fansite that you knew. She smiled at you gently, her eyes furrowing in concern. You offered her back a shy salute before lowering your sight again, keeping it on the floor as you kept walking.
Your ears were packed with cheers and screams of the people surrounding the entrance, making you a little uneasy. You wished you had put your airpods on, but at least this time wasn’t as bad as the last music show were-
“Dreamcatcher is seven!” You heard a scream coming out of the crowds. You had talked too soon. The shout was repeated from another side of the crowd, and then another time. Your eyes started stinging, your sight crystallizing while you felt Handong’s hand tighten her grip around yours. Yubin took your other hand in hers as everyone sped up their footsteps.
The managers around the group started herding the people away from the entrance, and in a few seconds, you found yourself inside, as the glass doors shut closed with your entire team following now inside the building. The shouts were muted in the distance, behind the doors. But not in your head. Those same people were going to watch you perform anyway, what was the point in hiding them.
Your team started heading towards the green room corresponding to your group, there was nothing else to do but follow them, but you were stopped when a hand took your wrist. You snapped free of the hand in defense, to then realize SuA was standing there, shocked. 
“Y/n…” Only a whisper was able to come out of her mouth, with the other girls closing in on you. Your mind was already overwhelming you so much, and your member trying to gloss it all over was not helping either. You turned around, evading their gaze and catching up with the team. 
You slouched over the couch, turning on your phone and playing some music once you found your airpods. One by one, the members entered the greenroom and you could feel their stare on you, but you tried drowning all sound from the outside. You used every ounce of energy left in your body from your badly spent nights on trying to contain the tears in your eyes, and you didn’t exactly pinpoint when, but as you leaned down on the couch, your consciousness floated away and you fell asleep.
Just like rewinding a tape, your mind took care of replaying the screams in your nightmares, getting louder and closer each second. The shouts closing in, forcing you between four walls made of glass that kept narrowing around you. You wanted to scream for help, but no sound came out of your mouth. The breath of the screams was so close you could feel it in the back of your neck, rattling your hair. A chill went down your spine as you hugged your knees close to your face to fit in the claustrophobic space. The strong sound of glass shattering welcomed silence, as you lifted your crying eyes. Your members all stood in a line in front of you. But there was something off about them. First it was Gahyeon, she opened her mouth but her voice didn’t sound like… her. You crawled towards them, trying to listen better.
“I was the maknae before you,” The bizarre Gahyeon screamed at you. “I am so much more deserving of that title!”
“Gahyeon Unnie-” You whispered, bringing your hands up to your mouth in shock.
“Your voice ain’t even that good,” Bizarre Yoohyeon screeched next. “How dare you think you could be at our level!”
One by one started launching these things at you, repeating them over, and over and over. That’s when you recognized them. All the comments you swore you had forgotten that you read on the comments sections. Or were they? What if this was the way your members really felt about you? What if...
“Oh, Y/n...” Bizarre JiU kneeled before you, an eerie smirk appearing on her face as her hand reached for your chin. “Everything Dreamcatcher could have been…”
“IF IT WASN’T FOR YOU!” All the girls shouted in unison, launching your body backwards.
You snapped up from the couch, your breathing heavy as if a thousand pounds pressed against your chest, your eyes were flooding with tears as your hands tried reaching for something or someone, anyone around. But you were alone. The greenroom was empty and silent except for you and your heavy panting. 
With your foggied mind, you grabbed another jacket that was left in the room, your phone and your bag. You sprinted towards the door and to the hallways, your group’s comeback song was playing in the distance, the heavy bass resonating across the walls. You halted your steps, wondering if you could turn back and join them in the rehearsal. 
If they wanted you with them, they could have woken you up. They’re already rehearsing for when you’re not around. They don’t need you!
A voice you didn’t recognize crammed your brain. You hold up your head, trying to get it out, but it kept repeating the last part over and over again. Your feet tried outrunning the voice, racing across the hallways as tear after tear caressed your cheeks after bursting free from your eyes. 
The sun rays hurt your swollen eyes when you busted the emergency exit from the back alley open. You covered them with your hat as your feet kept trying to outrun the voices in your head. To no avail, just like your dream, they were just getting closer and closer and closer. 
You ran as far as your feet and legs allowed you, crashing against the pavement from exhaustion. Your eyes scanned your surroundings, but recognized absolutely nothing. The area seemed calm, not a car or person passing around in the eternal time that it felt you were down in the ground. You caught a glimpse of an ally beside you, leading to a public restroom, where the sun didn’t hit you directly. That’s how you found yourself here, alone, snuggled in the cold corner of a deserted alley. 
You were lost, and… for once, you were not sure if you wanted to be found.
Day 2
I was finally able to sleep, my body was way too tired, and my back hurts from the stiff and cold ground I fell asleep in. I also have finally stopped crying, but my eyes and my throat are so swollen and dry. My phone has been dead for hours already. It’s definitely easier than declining every call and resisting the urge to check social media.
All those voices are still there, but at least they’re not shouting anymore.
- - - - - - - - - -
Day 3
It has been so quiet, nothing but the creeks of the rusty doors and the occasional car passing by. I’m starting to miss their voices. Laughing with Yoohyeon and Gahyeon Unnies, Bora and Siyeon Unnies always exist so loudly. I miss quietly hanging around Yubin and Handong, even being nagged by Minji Unnie. Now I cry at the thought of them, I love them but that’s why it’s best for me not to keep ruining their lives. They’re better without me...
“It doesn’t even ring anymore,” Siyeon angrily tossed her phone at the wall, desperate. “It just sends you straight to voicemail.”
“No no no,” JiU barged in, her eyes full of worry as she walked from one side to the other in the Inkigayo green room. “We can’t give up, there must be something else we can do.”
“We have done everything possible in our hands to help...” Gahyeon caressed a plushie in her hands, one you had gifted her on her birthday a year before. “But I really wish we could do more.”
“How did we allow this to come so far?” JiU threw her body weight into the couch, her eyes crystallizing as she rested her head in her hands. “Why did it have to come to this? If only I had-”
“Unnie, don’t blame yourself.” Yoohyeon sat besides JiU, surrounding her with her arms. 
"Why did I let this happen? I knew she wasn't okay and we couldn't reach her." JiU kept pushing the blame on to herself, the tears flowing more freely through her cheeks. "I was supposed to take care of her and I… Failed."
"We all failed." Handong muttered from the corner, hugging her knees. "She was our little maknae, and we didn't realize how much of this was hurting her."
"I don't understand…" Yoohyeon was next, caressing her leader's back as she spoke. "She can rap, sing, dance. She's an ace of her generation. She practiced day and night, everywhere…" 
"She must be cold, alone…" SuA broke in, cleaning away a tear from her chin. “She even left her favorite blanket at home, I folded it for her just in case-"
SuA couldn't continue talking as the knot in her throat tightened with each word. 
Three days ago after finishing their rehearsal on Music Bank, the girls went back to the greenroom, hoping to catch a glimpse of you still sound asleep cuddled up in blankets they gently put on top of you, just like they had left you, deciding you knew the moves and camera drills enough to be able to sit down this rehearsal. As your roommates, SuA and Yoohyeon knew you spent restless nights, silently sobbing on top of your bunk bed, so they allowed you to rest what you needed to rest before the presentation. 
But when they opened the door, you weren’t anywhere to be seen. Keeping calm they searched in the bathroom, the change rooms and even in the closets, remembering your habit of hiding to scare them later. But you weren’t there. The managers went out of the room to search for you all around the building. But you weren’t there. Everyone tried calling your phone but to no answer, your bag and jackets were nowhere to be seen. Time was running out, with the managers frantically trying to search for you everywhere, the girls buried their hands in the makeup chair as they spent every second trying to reason your whereabouts. With only five minutes before going into stage and still no sign of you, the company had to tell the public that you would be sitting out the promotions for health reasons, only to not panic the fans.
They had to continue their activities without you, and by night when still nobody knew anything of you, the company filed a missing report, and a search for you began. The girls had to endure every presentation with a straight face, but each one kept wearing their hearts, your absence clearer day by day. 
“We must try and remain positive.” Siyeon tried breaking the ice, cleaning more tears from SuA’s cheeks. “We’ll find Y/n, and then Dreamcatcher we’ll be complete again.”
“But what if she doesn’t want to come back?” Yubin, who since your disappearance had remained silent except for their forced schedules, finally dared speaking, making everyone snap their faces to her.
“Yubin…” Siyeon muttered. 
“It’s just that,” She continued talking, with all the girls glued to her words. “Even we were hesitant at the idea of adding an eighth member. If she didn’t feel completely welcome somewhere, why would she stay where people keep hurting her?”
“But Insomnias love her!” Gahyeon remarked.
“But the ones that don’t are always louder,” Yubin continued. “And we did nothing to stop them, almost as if our silence agreed with them.”
“What are you saying-”
“I’m saying we didn’t do enough in time,” She stood up from her chair, enraged. “And pretending in front of everyone that it didn’t have any consequences it’s even worse. Y/n didn’t catch a mild cold, Y/n’s gone.”
Her last words bounced on the walls like an echo that consumed their minds little by little. They knew Dami was right. 
An strenuous fear invaded their bodies at once, one that repeated over and over that it was too late to get to you. That they could have prevented this by calling out those people bringing you down, it's not like they hadn't done it before. 
What use did it have to have songs all about stopping the hate and standing up for each other when they were the first ones that failed their own promise. 
The silence was broken when a manager opened the door, with his head down, wary of intruding the girl’s space. The girls jumped from their place, startled, hesitant. 
“Any news?” JiU stroke away a tear falling from her eye.
“Not yet, I’m so sorry.” The manager shook his head apologetic. JiU buried her hands on her face, dwelling on the heaviest silence surrounding the girls. The manager took a big sigh before continuing the message he was sent to deliver. “They’re waiting for you at the stage for rehearsal ladies, I can tell them you’ll be on your way in a moment-”
“We’re on our way…” SuA, after finishing an entire box of tissues was the first to stand up, fixing her clothes and rubbing her eyes.
Perplexed, the rest of the girls followed close. The halls silent as they traveled through them only allowed them to keep thinking about you. You who aside SuA would already be racing each other to the stage. Or maybe gossiping in the back with Gahyeon and Yoohyeon. Riding on the back of Siyeon or talking with Yubin about the latest book you read. Maybe asking JiU and Handong for advice on something about life. But your cheery, youthful voice was nowhere to be found and all the girls walked separately, their eyes fixated on the floor. 
The girls arrived at the stage, with the crew waiting for them to take their places. As usual, they introduced the group to the people working with them.
“Dream of me! Hello, we are Dreamcatcher!” They chorused together, aligned by age. Each one of them introduced themselves, one after the other. Gahyeon was last, but everyone remained silent, leaving the space for your name, a certain hope they could at least faintly hear you calling it. But there was only silence that cut like a knife through them. 
“Thank you for your hard work!” JiU swallowed heavily as each one of them took their places to start the choreography. There was a cold space between Siyeon and Yoohyeon left for you, and they could not stop looking at it, worried they might miss the moment you arrived to fill it.
The director called for the song to start, all the camera crew ready to go through the drill. The first beats started, the girls swiftly moving with the bass, hitting each count. But their eyes could focus correctly, always glancing to where you would be standing, a faint desire to catch your silhouette moving aside them, all of this just being a bad dream.
The girls each sang their part accordingly. But it was too much for SuA to handle when she was assigned to sing your parts. The dancing machine tripped on her own feet, falling on the floor in tears. All the girls ran to her aid, Gahyeon surrounding her with her arms as she couldn’t contain her tears either.
The director called for the music to stop, as managers rushed to surround them, some of them tearing up at the sight of the hopeless girls in front of them.
“This was her song!” SuA sobbed. “She wrote this song with a smile on her face and they took that away from her!”
The words coming out of the older girl made everyone without fault start shedding tears. They couldn’t continue like this, not without you.
Day 4
The days are getting even colder, and I’ve finally dared to look at the mirror. I even had forgotten that I still had makeup on, it’s all smudged on my pale, thin face. I managed to get most of it off, but my bare face didn’t look any better. There’s still swelling in my eyes, dark deep circles around them. My lips border the color purple and I can’t stop shivering. It doesn’t help that now I’m missing my member’s hugs…
- - - - - - - - - -
Day 5
With my bare face and my body in such a bad condition I don’t think anybody could recognize me out. There’s still some money on my wallet, maybe I’ll go buy some food at the corner store later. I should also start looking for another place to sleep, and someday, maybe someday I’ll have the guts to go back to the girls and explain everything. For now, even though I’m thankful for everything that I spent with them, I’ll root for them from afar. 
A few of the first rays of sun from the day traveled through the only high window in the room landing in your face, a warm morning kiss from the universe. You moaned as you stretched your sore limbs across the cold floor, lingering on the dryness of your mouth, before painfully reincorporating up. Your swollen eyes adjusted to the dim light of the room, carefully scanning their surroundings. Bird chirps with a light breeze ruffling the trees outside joined your heartbeat as the only things you could listen to. Settling with a sigh, you rested your back on the wall behind you, staying there for a few seconds that seemed a good amount of minutes for you.
A growl trembled through your body, emerging from your stomach. You reached for your bag, searching to see if there was anything left to satisfy your appetite, only able to get out a bunch of empty wrappers.
“Great, half a protein bar.” You unwrapped the piece of food, aggressively munching on it. You turned around to get your water bottle, unfortunately discovering it was empty too. “Ah, crap.”
You got your wallet out of your bag, carefully exploring it. You had enough money left to buy some stuff from the corner store, with some extra left. Carefully, you stood up, gathering all the strength from your aching body. Approaching the mirror, you opened the faucet and splashed your face with a bit of cold water. For once, you recognized your reflection, faintly smiling at it.
You grabbed your things, putting all your jackets on, your mask over your nose. You stared at Siyeon’s bucket hat, while a flood of bittersweet memories invaded your mind. You put it on, a soft feeling of protection emanating from it. After hanging your bag from your shoulder and checking your dead phone was there you faced the door, and opened it with a sigh, ready to explore your whereabouts. 
You walked the length of the alley to the street, warily scanning your surroundings. Traveling through the little street that seemed like an alley in itself, with only a one way path for one car to fit, not more than ten of them passed around in the day, you knew that because you counted them on your 4th day. A fairly quiet oasis in the frantic city that was Seoul, you were surprised you haven’t crossed paths with another human in that window of time. 
Recalling your time here, there were some voices that you sometimes listened to in the distance through the window in the room you hid. A couple of women of what you assumed were around 50 or 60, always gossiping about the latest stuff their families were up to; a group of children always shouting and playing ball on their way back home from school and a man that whistled always the same songs as he walked past the allie. 
You got to the corner, a little more city activity visible down the road. Across the street, a little convenience store sat open, the only visible person there was the owner, reading the newspaper with a Tv turned on in the news channel behind him. After checking the street for cars, you crossed, opening the door to the store. The owner lowered the newspaper to catch a glimpse of you, glancing from head to toe. Startled at your first human interaction since your escape, you politely bowed after taking a basket and then continued your way through the aisles of the store in silence.
Carefully listening to the news in the back to know what the world had been into while you isolated yourself, you put in the basket some packs of ramen and chips, before moving towards the beverage aisle. You picked up a large bottle, enough to last about three days if you rationed it fair enough. You traveled through the sweets aisle looking for something to treat yourself when your ears picked something from the TV that made a shiver travel through your spine.
“On entertainment news, DreamCatcher has decided to sit out promotions of their new comeback at least until there are news of the whereabouts of their youngest member.” The news anchor seriously remarked, you discreetly leaned closer to where the TV was, eager to listen more. “The police have been looking for her nonstop for five days now, and morale is low but the group isn’t giving up yet.”
You couldn’t contain a gasp escaping your mouth at the mention of your members, listening even more mindfully to the TV.
“The video uploaded to Dreamcatcher’s channel calling for everyone’s help in the search of information for Y/n location has been going viral all around Korea,” You turned to face the TV, an image of your members tired, with their eyes swollen. “It has also been used as another unfortunate example of what unwarranted harmful comments can do to people. With thousands of their fans and other artists standing up against harassment in her name.”
The TV drew you closer as a magnet towards itself, as the program continued.
“We can appreciate in the video that the members themselves cannot contain their tears, with members SuA and Gahyeon not talking at all while trying to swallow tears. As a strong leader JiU carries the video, calling for all hands on deck in this search.” The anchor reviewed their notes, releasing a clearly upset sigh. “We can only urge you to help in the search, and wish for the best possible outcome of this situation. We are all hoping for the best for this talented young lady.”
The program continued towards other news, leaving you there breathless. People out there, not only your members or fans, but a whole nation was out there looking for you. You swallowed the tears and bravely approached the counter.
“Excuse me sir,” You lowered your voice as much as you could, trying to make yourself unrecognizable. The man closed his newspaper aggressively, laying it on the counter, his eyes piercing through your conscience. “I- I couldn’t help myself, listening to the TV right now, do you know what happened to Dreamcatcher’s maknae?”
“Young lady,” The man’s voice sounded surprisingly tender, relief traveling in your body when he didn’t realize your true identity. “Where have you been lately? It’s been all over the news.”
“I-” You gulped, looking for an excuse. “I was studying hard for exams Sir.”
“Fair enough. Good luck on those.” He stood up from his chair and approached the counter, a faint smell of tobacco accompanying him. “Dreamcatcher’s maknae has been missing for about five days now. It’s believed she escaped because of the hate she got, the company even took legal actions against the people making the most damage.”
“Huh-” 
“Police have been searching every corner they can, boats already deployed on the Han river in case she… You know. But it’s been so long that faith has been wearing off, everyone is praying for a miracle, for her to be found alive,” He lowered his sight, fidgeting his hands on the counter. Your breath halted at his last words, your heart sinking in your chest as your tears were almost uncontainable. “Such a shame, my grandkid loves the group and she has been crying non-stop since the news broke out. I could see she had great potential.”
“She- she did?” You dared raising your eyes, surprised at the owner’s words. 
“She really did.” 
A tense silence took over your body, with a thousand ideas floating around in your brain. But there was one that took over all the others quickly enough. You only put the bag of chips and the bottle on the counter, getting your wallet out of your bag.
“I’m just going to need these two sir,” You mumbled as the owner scanned each item, bringing you the total amount to pay. “And a favor.”
“What would that favor be, young lady?” He answered as he counted the cash you handed to him, attentively handing you your items.
“Can you please call me a taxi?”
- - - - - - - - - -
The girls sat in silence on their dorm, their eyes filled with dark circles around following their sleepless nights worrying for you, the TV was full of news programs in the morning and they decided to ignore them since they only drilled them with your absence and the reminder that even the most professional teams searching for you could not locate you was pretty discouraging. 
“What if we never find her?” JiU was the first to burst into tears again, the biggest toll falling on her shoulders as she spent day and night on the sofa facing their dorm’s front door. Tears were common already as they couldn’t help but having their minds be filled with ideas they didn’t even want to explore.
Silence filled the air, making everyone turn their heads towards Yoohyeon and Siyeon, they had repeatedly answered everything negative the girls cried with encouragement. But on the dawn of the fifth day, they didn’t feel like raising the group morale when not even them felt so certain about the future either.
“I- don’t know.” Were the only words coming out of Siyeon’s mouth as a mumble, making all the other girls start tearing up again.
Swallowed sobs reigned the air until a soft hum stood out. Yubin’s gentle singing filled the air, the other girls recognizing the song immediately. Your song. One by one the other girls joined her, harmoniously swelling their surroundings with a much needed drop of hope for their soul. As the song continued, each one of them cuddled towards each other, seeking the warmth and comfort of their arms. A silent promise to deliver this and so much more to you if you ever came back. 
The song was arriving to their end, as silent once again reigned the room when a sigh from the leader broke through. JiU caressed the backs of the girls surrounding her,
“We’ll wait for her the time that we need too-” 
A knock in the door startled all the girls, making them jump to their feet. Conflicting emotions swirling around them. It could be a manager, asking them about activities details, a police officer coming to deliver bad news or maybe…
Handong was the first brave soul to open the door, bracing for whatever good or bad news was standing behind it. 
You stood there, rigid and nervous, your fists clenching your arms for dear life as the light of the room illuminated your silhouette. She recognized your figure immediately, with only the shock of the moment preventing her from moving either.
“Y/n?...” She whispered as a first reflex.
“I’m sorry.” You answered back, trembling. “I’m so sorry-”
You felt your hand being pulled into the room, with the weight of her body slamming against yours, followed by the screams and cries of the rest of the girls approaching.
“You don’t have to be sorry.” JiU cried as the group hug got tighter around you. 
“Welcome back home” SuA continued, her tears dampening your shoulder.
Every evil thought banished away from your mind when the familiar smell and warmth of your members surrounded you. A thousand attacks and insults could be headed your way, but it didn’t matter in the moment, a safety blanket protecting you in the form of the best people you had ever met in your life, it didn’t cross your mind to ever let them go, and they would never let you feel alone ever again. The promise beating hard in each of your hearts.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
(Hey guys! It’s Ash here.)
I hope you are doing good, as you have read all the way down, this one was filled with some heavy emotions. I just wanted to tell you all that, you are never alone and there will always be light at the end of the tunnel. If you struggle with intrusive negative thoughts, HERE you can find a masterpost with a lot of resourses for help. I’m also here if you ever want to chat. Stay safe, with love. Ash❤
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rodeoxqueen · 3 years
Text
SMELLS LIKE QUARAN-NEROKIRI SPIRIT 
Nero/Kyrie
“In quarantine, Nero and Kyrie spend time together.” 
Rodeo’s Two Pieces: 
First time writing for Nero/Kyrie. Tread lightly with my take of their dynamic. 
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(I)- Dalgona Coffee and Cookies. 
Despite how everything was shut down and the grocery was found vacant of basic necessities, Nero was grateful to at least be with someone he loved the most. 
“Look, we probably need some time off from kickin’ demon ass anyways,” Nico explained, smoking a cigarette during the video chat. 
“Yeah, not like demons care about being six feet away. People don’t even do that.” Nero looked at himself in the little square in the corner of his phone. Clad in a grey hoodie, he hadn’t even bothered putting on anything over his boxers. No one had come to visit since the mandate to stay inside, what was the point? 
Nico was in her garage again, from what he could see in the camera view. Cigarettes and old cups of coffee littered her desk, warbled country music playing off-view. 
“Who knows, maybe I’ll make something to fix that. I was thinking a mask-gun, rapid-fire reloading.” 
“Artisan of Arms, huh?” Nero laughed, getting up from his bed. 
“You fuckin’ bet. Now I gotta go. Got some things to weld.” 
“See ya, Nico. Stay safe, alright?” 
“Yeah, yeah.” He gave a peace sign before pressing “end video call.” 
The video chat ended and Nero tucked his phone into his pocket. Even banter just wasn’t the same virtually. 
“Who was that? Nico?” Nero made it down the hallway to see Kyrie, bustling about getting things from the cupboards. 
“Yeah, still building stuff as usual.” 
Kyrie had been in their apartment’s kitchen, deciding to try her hand at some recipes she saw online. A bag of flour, too many bowls, and more chocolate than Nero remembered buying, all laid out on the table. 
Just when he wanted something to eat, he’d have to wait or his girlfriend would practically make enough to feed an army and be surprised when he didn’t want anymore. 
He opted for a cup of water instead. 
Nero admired her hair, how it looked when it wasn’t in a ponytail, how it sat perfectly on her shoulders. Seeing how she started to measure some ingredients, he took the hair tie on his wrist, careful fingers bringing it into a low ponytail. 
“Oh, thank you.” She commented, opening her booklet of recipes she had handwritten. Neat, slanted cursive in a smattering of blue, red, and black read out recipes for cookies, cakes, and bread. 
“You look busy, planning to make all of those?” Nero rested his chin on her shoulder, shrouding her with warmth. 
“Well, I don’t know how long we’re going to be stuck at home, might as well try some recipes out. Maybe we can deliver some to the orphanage.” 
“That is if I don’t eat all your prototypes first.” She laughed, birdsong to Nero’s ears. 
“As long as you help me I don’t mind if you do.” Kyrie handed him a measuring cup. Nero sighed, taking it. He always lost count of how many cups of flour he was supposed to put in the bowl. 
A jar of porous dough caught his eye as he sifted some baking soda in his white mixture. He took it from Kyrie’s side of the island. 
“Whoa, what is this? A science experiment?” Kyrie chuckled, watching Nero scrutinize the date on the white tape to the top of the mason jar. 
“No, it’s a sourdough starter! It’s basically wild yeast. We can make bread with it since people bought out all the dry yeast in the grocery store.” 
Nero shook it with curiosity and then opened the silver lid, making an “eh” face at the smell. 
“It’s yeast alright.” 
Kyrie continued whipping up the sugar and butter mixture, Nero helping himself to a handful of chocolate chips. 
“Have you talked to your uncle and father? They must be staying at the shop in Redgrave.” 
Nero shrugged. 
“Most likely, I haven’t talked to them yet. Dante probably didn’t pay the phone bill and Vergil doesn’t know how to use the phone anyways.” 
“Let’s just hope they’re getting along during this time.” 
Nero thought back to all the “family outings” he had since his uncle and father returned from hell, mostly just jobs becoming contests of strength that turned to friendly family fights. Endless banter and elbowing. 
Honestly, compared to that, standing next to his girlfriend while they shaped cookies for the oven was heaven. 
Once the chocolate chip cookie dough was done baking, Kyrie insisted they make some whipped coffee while they cooled.  
“I thought you didn’t like coffee, Kyrie.” She stooped down to find something in the lower cabinets. A robotic hand that was colored dark blue and black, his old Devil Bringer, appeared with a tiny whisk duct-taped to it. 
“Yeah, but that TikTok made it look so good.” Nero handed her the glass container of instant coffee. 
Turning on the Devil Bringer, the tiny whisk spun to life, rapidly mixing sugar, coffee, and water together. With her back turned, Nero popped a thing of cookie dough in his mouth. 
“Honestly, Nico should have patented these Devil Bringers, make a bunch of money, and maybe she’d stop trying to rip me off all those times.” 
“Support local businesses, Nero.” 
He looked over her shoulder, surprised at how an abysmal brown mixture had become fluffy and thrice its previous volume. 
Two cups of milk poured, the practically instantly whipped coffee laid on top like a decadent Mount Everest next to a still-warm plate of cookies. 
“Cheers!” Kyrie clinked glasses with him, stirring her mug vigorously with a spoon. He copied her, taking a sip of surprisingly light and sweet coffee. 
When he lowered his cup, Nero both revealed to the world a mustache of whipped coffee. 
Kyrie snorted into her cup, covering her mouth as she bit back a laugh. Embarrassed, Nero went to wipe it off when Kyrie pecked him on the lips. She drew back to reveal an imprint of the ‘stache on her own upper lip. 
“We match now.” Kyrie giggled, helping herself to another gooey cookie. 
Half a plate of cookies and two mugs properly drained of its contents, Kyrie and Nero loaded up the dishwasher to do the work. 
“This is coffee, why am I tired?” Kyrie yawned. 
The couch was this god-awful IKEA purchase that took hours for Nero to just figure out what the instructions meant. But right now, it perfectly supported both of them while they slept away their food coma. 
(II)- Curl Up And Dye. 
After the second time the mandate got lengthened, Nero could sense that Kyrie was starting to wane in her ever-positive attitude. The news had nothing good to say, and the number of shows they had binged left them indifferent to watching anything more. 
They did a lot of singing during quarantine, Kyrie always being the musical one. Evanescence was one of their favorites to sing together, Nero’s guitar skills and Kyrie’s ability to hit those high notes left many memorable nights of laughter. 
After a while, Kyrie began to just sit on the couch a lot and have Nero pay her company. 
“What’s wrong?” Kyrie sighed heavily, curling into Nero’s hoodie as he opted to stay shirtless. 
“I don’t know Nero, it just feels like everything is the same. We go through the same things every day and I just feel...trapped.” 
Nero kissed the nape of her neck, humming in agreement. 
“Look, I’m usually the one going to you for stuff like this but...it will get better. It’s been a really hard time for all of us, and we’re just watching everything go downhill. It’s not a good situation but, you got me. Always. And there’s still a lot of things we can change up if that helps.” He stroked her hair and rubbed her back, feeling her take a deep breath. 
“You’re right Nero. That really did help. Thank you for listening.” 
“Of course.” 
While he scrolled on his own phone, he didn’t heed all the things Kyrie was watching. She touched her own long hair, seeing the way other people recorded their own home-salon trims. 
“Things to change, huh?” She mumbled. 
So here they were now. 
“It looks so bad!” Kyrie exclaimed, her face in her hands, hair on the bathroom sink. Nero shook his head. 
“No it’s not, Kyrie! You look fine, just let me fix it!” In the mirror, Nero cringed at the way her hair was ridiculously over-layered. 
“Um, what did you try to do-” 
“Curtain bangs! Oh Nero, I shouldn’t have tried to change up my hair!” Kyrie was thoroughly upset, seeing how her bout of bravery lead to her bangs being mauled by her own hands. 
Nero hugged her, noting that she had been wearing his shirt while she trimmed her hair. 
Okay that shirt’s gonna itch for a while until all the hair comes out. 
“It’s okay, let me see if I can fix it.” Kyrie blushed in the mirror, groaning at how bad her hair was cut. 
“There’s no way you could make it worse than what I did.” 
Nero gingerly took the scissors Kyrie put in the sink, a little bit too small for his hands but good enough. Although he was no stylist, he could tell where Kyrie had either cut too much off or unevenly. 
Eventually, they did manage to cut it in a way that hid the previous mistakes. Kyrie took another deep breath. 
“I shouldn’t have been so impulsive.” She murmured, arms crossed. 
Nero chuckled at her rare emotional outburst. He was glad to have been able to be there for her. She always hid how she felt, helping others her way of expressing herself. Now with no one around but him, he totally understood that she felt helpless. 
No one liked being helpless. 
He kissed her cheek and a lightbulb went off in his head. 
“You wanna dye my hair?” Kyrie turned around in surprise. 
“What?” 
“I mean, who knows how long this shutdown is gonna be, it’ll be fun,” Kyrie noted how Nero had forgone shaving, his peach fuzz becoming something more. 
Honest blue eyes peered at her, wondering what she would think. Her surprise softened to a sort of relief in their solidarity. 
“What color, Nero?” 
“Neon green-” 
“Nico’s going to make fun of you.” Kyrie giggled. Nero shrugged nonchalantly. 
“I don’t mind it.” 
(III)- Can’t Get Out Of It, Get Into It. 
“Nero, you look so fucking ridiculous.” 
“Shut up, Dante.” 
His uncle finally managed to figure out how to work the virtual chat on his fossil of a computer, and Nero was already prepared to end the call. 
His father sat slightly off-camera, not in the mood to entertain Dante’s antics to ridicule his son. Although, he did look oddly radioactive with his washed-out green hair and strong quarter-past five o’clock shadow.  
“Quarantine did not do you a favor, good lord,” Dante commented, kicking his feet up on his desk. Nero flipped him off. 
“Good to know you’re still living in shambles, not surprised neither of you cleaned up after yourselves.” The number of bottles on the floor was a travesty and the couch littered with poetry books Vergil had slowly begun to hoard. 
Nico entered the zoom call, smoking another cigarette Nero was lucky to not have to smell. 
“Nice broccoli head.” 
Nero flipped her off as well. Kyrie came into view, smiling at her boyfriend’s family and their shared friends. Nero decided to get a drink, clicking a few buttons before letting Kyrie have the seat. 
As they discussed how the business would continue with Devil May Cry, Kyrie sat next to Nero. 
It was mainly business, until it got to a certain line that Dante said. 
“I don’t know, it just feels like things are just going to keep staying like this. Hate to break it to you Nero, but it’s going to be tough for a while.” 
Kyrie finally heard enough, scooching Nero aside so she could talk. 
“Kyrie, wait-” 
“We’re going to get past this. As long as humanity still keeps coming together for the sake of benefiting each other, and we keep working to make sure to keep safe, we will get past this. We just have to keep hoping, and sure, hoping isn’t always going to make you feel better. I would know. But in a time where we do feel helpless, we should connect with other people in a different way. That’s why we succeed, we keep moving, we keep adapting! And hope, hope keeps that going.” 
Kyrie took a long breath. Looking at the dumbfounded group, she waited for a response. 
“Um, Kyrie. You were muted.” Nero finally said. Kyrie realized her blunder and how Nero’s hand was attempting to unmute them. 
“Oh.” Kyrie flushed, looking embarrassed. 
“I have no idea what you just said, but that’s okay.” 
“I’m sorry, that was so awkward.” 
“Don’t worry yourself, Kyrie. I bet it was real sweet whatever you had to say,” Nico assured. 
The zoom call was full of laughter since, a business call turned to a time to discuss how each person was doing. 
Dante and Vergil had spent days and nights sparring, Vergil learning more about humanity from Dante, and “making their own pizzas.” 
Nico had continued welding and making weapons for her own curiosity rather than based off of commission-based instructions. The van finally had the vinyl player fixed and she apparently gave herself a stick-and-poke. 
“So what did you two love birds do?” Nico asked, lighting another cancer stick. 
Nero and Kyrie looked at each other, smiling at their shared memories of this strange period in human history. 
“Where do we even start?”  Kyrie said, thinking of all the days and nights that seemed to breeze by and also slowly progress. 
Nero ruffled his longer messy green hair, Kyrie tucking her curtain bangs behind her ear. As they were two peas in the pod, Nero had decided to get another set of gray sweats for Kyrie, matching finally. 
Kyrie bit into a cookie, offering Nero some. 
“Smells like quarantine spirit, huh?” Dante finger-gunned.
Nero chuckled. 
“Hell yeah.” 
88 notes · View notes
multifandhoem · 4 years
Text
Halloween
This is part of the Haikyuu Headquarters server collab! The full masterlist of the collab is here! The prompt is fantasy, so there will be a lot of interesting stories, make sure to check them out :)
Also, this is about a ritual, but beware that this is purely fiction and I in no mean want to offend someone by describing existing rituals in a completely wrong way, I do not know much about this!
Genre: smut, a bit of fluff if you squint 
Warnings: witch!AU, plant fucking, anal, double penetration, triple penetration, witchy pentagram fucking
Word count: 2012
*-*-*-*-*
There was a full moon on Halloween.
You were buzzing with excitement, trying to set up as many potions as possible, who could cure in the moonlight in the night with the most spiritual energy.
Your boyfriend was probably already annoyed with your antics, when you disrupted his work in the greenhouse once again, for some new plants.
“Baby, do you have some Ivy for me?” You tried to sound as nice as possible, rubbing your cheek on his shoulder as you threw your arms around him.
“You should try being organized so you don’t come in here every five minutes.” He sounded rough, but you could see the smile dancing around the corners of his mouth, moving to press a kiss in the same place.
“You’re awfully touchy, hm?” He pinched your sides, moving to an empty pot on his side, to drop a small seed in it.
Seconds later a rank of poison ivy broke through the earth, swirling around until it had a decent size, before flopping down lifelessly. Your lips formed an excited o. It was always mesmerizing to watch Hajime make use of his magic.
“Is that enough?” You nodded, plucking your needed leaves from the plant and then facing him again. “What more do you have to do?” Your anticipation for nightfall nearly went to the roof, as you took your boyfriend in, a hunk of a man, his biceps bulging out from his t-shirt as he crossed his arms in front of his chest.
“Gotta get a couple of seeds ready and move some pots in a better place for the light. They thrive on spiritual energy!” With a chuckle, he softly caressed the leaves of the mint next to him. The plants weren’t the only ones enjoying spiritual energy.
Halloween was the one night of the year where you could finally recharge and fill your body with new energy. In contrary to Hajime you couldn’t challenge your energy into something like growing plants, but you could send small spurts of energy from your body, which were the final touch to your potions.
And with this Halloween night having a full moon, the ritual would be amazing. Yours and Hajime’s powers would be at their peak. You already knew that you would not get a brink of sleep tonight.
“I’m nearly finished, I will go prepare after this potion!” He grinned at your excitement, pulling your hip into his, pressing his lips to yours.
You could feel that you weren’t the only one anticipating the night, as his teeth roughly sunk into your lips, eliciting a gasp. “I will wait for you.” With that promise, he sent you out of the greenhouse and you giddily went back into the small house you had, climbing up the stairs to the attic, where you were brewing your potions.
*-*-*-*-*
With your bundles of dried herbs ready and only clad in a simple linen dress, you waited for Hajime at the front door. It was nearly time, the sun was only barely visible anymore.
“Do you have everything ready?” You nodded wildly at his question when he appeared beside you, your toes twitching to finally go to the big moonlit clearing where you had done your ritual for the past four years after moving into the small house in the middle of the woods.
Hajime was already shirtless, and it took a lot of your willpower to not touch him unnecessarily on your way there. The energy in the air was really doing things for you. You had to start the ritual soon before you weren’t able to contain yourself anymore.
When you finally arrived at the clearing the sun had already disappeared, only leaving a small glimmer in the air but you could already see the moon in the sky. Your whole body was quivering, the heat in your body slowly becoming too much.
Hajime busied himself with etching a pentagram into the soft wooden ground with his hand before holding out a packet of matches for you to take. You tried to compose yourself again, putting your bundles of herbs that represented the five elements on the respecting points of the star, lightening them up and waving them around until a soft fog laid in the air.
“Take your dress off.”
You wordlessly followed Hajime’s command and slowly stepped into the pentagram, the energy becoming overwhelming. It was a completely different feeling from before when you were still standing outside. You fell to your knees in the center, the flames around you sparking up a bit.
It was completely dark now, only the flames of the herbs at the peaks of the pentagram lighting up the clearing, together with the moonlight shining down on you. Hajime reached into the pocket of his trouser and you knew it was going to start, your thighs clenching in excitement, as he placed small seeds all around you in the pentagram.
Soft music filled your head as you kept your eyes fixated on him. His muscles were tense, he wasn’t immune to the energy either. It was like slow motion, when he finally raised his arms over his head, ranks erupting from the ground, swirling in motion with his hands.
Hajime lowered his hands in front of his chest, a grin on his face, as he could finally feel the energy surging through him.
And then he started. The ranks hoisted you up from the ground, swirling around your ankles, wrists, and waist, making your body fully emerge in the moonlight.
A moan escaped you as you finally felt more of the energy entering you. But it still wasn’t enough. But Hajime wasn’t finished with you yet, the ranks pulling your legs apart, some circling around your breasts, some starting to caress the wetness between your legs, some curling around your neck.
Your head became numb, the only sound that was echoing in your ears the squelching, as the first rank pushed itself inside you without much prepping. You had been anticipating this for the last few weeks. But there was more coming. You knew so. You hoped so.
Your tongue rolled out of your mouth when the rank began to move, pushing in and out of you at first at a slow pace, then faster and faster.
You could feel through the ranks how Hajime enjoyed himself, only barely containing himself. But he had to wait until the moon reached its highest point. You both knew that. A thicker rank pushed itself in your mouth, triggering your gag reflex, making spit dribble down your chin and neck.  
Thin ranks were twirling your nipples, one then moving to circle your clit. Moans were falling out of your mouth the best they could around the rank that was still thrusting into you at a fast pace when you felt another rank prod at your back entrance.
That was new. In the last years, Hajime had only used two of your holes, him using all of them, made you twitch in excitement, liquid dribbling down from your cunt to aid at the matter.
As if from far away, Hajime’s chuckle reached your ears, as a second rank pushed itself into your pussy. You were twitching around in the secure hold of the ranks, desperate to chase your release. It should have been easy, with the way the plants were filling you in all the right places, but there was still something missing.
Or rather, someone.
But Hajime was far from done with you, a rank now slowly pushing itself into your asshole, twisting along the way. You whimpered at the immense fullness, especially when all of the ranks began to move in synch, pushing in and out of your holes accompanied by loud squelching noises.
You were sure you looked like a mess by now. There was a mixture of spit and tears all over your face, while your juices were flowing out of your cunt, coating the ranks and your thighs with a clear layer of your secret.
You felt the energy around you quiver. Hajime’s groan resounded in your head clearer than before, now that he was in the pentagram with you. Every cell in your body was reaching out towards him, desperate to fell his skin on yours, to finally complete the ritual and bring the release you needed.
You tried opening your eyes but commanding something in your body was proven harder than you thought. The fog in your brain was hindering you from doing anything other than completely concentrating on the waves of pleasure that were surging through you.
You felt Hajime’s hand on your waist first.
A feeling so strong it nearly hurt erupted at that place and you felt the fog lift a bit, finally allowing you to open your eyes and drink in the sight of your boyfriend in all of his nude glory. There was a sheen of sweat all over him and he was panting, desperate to complete the ritual.
You tried whimpering through the rank in your mouth, begging and pleading for him to hurry up, but all that came out were broken up bits and pieces of words, accompanied by your sobs. The permanent penetration was really taking its toll on you when you weren’t able to come.
Hajime curled his other hand around his fully erect dick, trying to contain himself only a bit longer. It was nearly time.
And then, when the moon was finally on its highest point, the ranks penetrating your cunt disappeared and Hajime sheathed himself inside you with one fluid motion.
Your eyes rolled to the back of your head, the flames surging up, as you finally felt your release washing over you in big waves, making your body quiver all over. But it wasn’t over yet. Hajime started fucking into you with no remorse, prolonging your orgasm while chasing his own. You could feel the ranks holding you shake, a sign of him losing his control.
You didn’t think it was possible, but Hajime and the rank in your ass quickened their pace, making you cry out in overstimulation as the rank in your mouth finally fell down, allowing your moans to fall freely.
Babbling Hajime’s name over and over again you could feel your second release approaching. His upper body fell over, chest touching yours. His breath was hot on your neck, but his pace didn’t decline. It felt like fire was burning all over your body, as your mind drank in the energy the moon graced you with this night.
Hajime bit down on your neck so hard he was drawing blood when he came, the pain eliciting you to come as well. Unable to process anything going on around you, your body felt as if it was dunked in a white light, which was cool and hot at the same time.
The blood in your veins felt hot surging through you as if you were burning from the inside out. And then there was Hajime. You could still feel him heavy on you, arms securely around you, your only tie to reality.
*-*-*-*-*
When you came back to your senses you were lying on the floor in the middle of the pentagram, the ranks had disappeared. The herbs had burned down only leaving their distinct smell and some smoke in the air. Hajime was breathing heavily on top of you, a mixture of soil, sweat, and other bodily fluids coating your bodies. “I love you.” You pressed breathless kisses onto each other’s lips, basking in the new energy surging through you.
He chuckled, pulling you on top of him, your bodies basking in the moonlight.
“Did you like it?” You nodded wildly, a free grin on your face. “It was great, Haji. I love you.” Driven from the energy the moon was gifting you, you were soon grinding on him again, coating his dick in your mixed releases in the process.
And so your lust frenzy continued until the sun rose again and your bodies were filled with new energy.
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stxrrywildflower · 3 years
Text
can’t help falling in love (five)
pairing - george weasley x reader
summary - you invite george to be your date to your sisters wedding
warnings - mentions of family/home issues
word count - 2.3k
series masterlist
*:・゚✧*:・゚✧
george did everything in his power to take your mind off of the events at the wedding. his words still stuck in your mind, touching you far too deeply for you to forget.
you strolled around downtown london for a few hours before the reception, stopping in different shops along the way. george found a couple things he picked up for future pranks that you couldn’t find easily in the wizard world.
but you couldn’t avoid the inevitable event, you had to make an appearance at some point; your parents and other general family were already asking to catch up during the reception.
george pulled you aside before you could enter the building, the two of you finding yourself in one of the many side gardens.
“are you sure you’re okay with this? we don’t have to go,” george inquired.
you smiled softly at his concern. “i should be fine, george. it’s just dinner and then some partying. nothing i can’t handle.”
george nodded, clearly satisfied with your answer. “say the word and we’ll leave, okay?”
you squeezed his hands. “of course.”
upon entering, you were immediately ushered to your table by one of the waiters. george pulled your chair out for you, a comment about him being a gentleman rolling off of your tongue easily.
you were seated at the table with a few of your cousins who you, thankfully, got along well with. george was already starting up a conversation with one of them about their mutual love for jokes and making people laugh
as dinner was being served after your sister and jasper had entered, you felt yourself slowly easing into the environment. george played a key role in this, him taking time to glance over at you during his conversations to check on you and make sure you were okay. it was a simple enough gesture, but to you it meant the world.
you and george lingered towards the back as the tradition reception activities went on after dinner; speeches, cutting the cake, first dance. you much rather preferred to be out of ear range of most people, listening to the jokes george was making in your ear about everyone.
once the first dance was over, other people slowly started making their way to the main dance floor to join the wedding party.
you lingered back, not quite looking to jump at the opportunity to join them. that was, of course, until a certain song started playing.
george took note of your sudden behavioral change, looking down on you with a raised eyebrow.
“what song is this?”
you couldn’t help the smile that formed on your face from it. “it’s called can’t help falling in love. it’s by a muggle artist, elvis presley actually. it’s one of my favorites.”
“well then let’s go,” george jumped up, extending his hands out towards you.
you quirked an eyebrow at his actions, only slightly confused at his actions. george sighed, pulling you up to your feet and towards him.
“it would be rude of me to deny the prettiest girl here a dance to her favorite song,” he leaned down to whisper in your ear.
a blush spread across your cheeks as you bit your lip to hide your wide smile from the compliment. “alright,” you agreed. “let’s dance.”
george led you to the main dance floor, guiding you forward before turning you around to face him. his hand made his way to your hip, resting comfortably as the other went out to interlock with yours to the side. “this okay?” he asked to which you nodded. “perfect actually.”
you rested your head against george’s shoulder, humming along to the words of the song.
the rest of the room was soon forgotten; the moment feeling as though it was only you and george. no one else mattered, just you two wrapped up with each other as you slow danced.
tears pricked at the corner of your eyes. you weren’t sad, far from it if anything, but just the way george was treating you made you emotional.
george took note of this, his fingers moving to hook under your chin, effectively tilting your head up to look at him.
“what’s wrong, darling?”
“nothing,” you answered. “i’m just really happy right now, especially since i’m with you.”
the last part, possibly a stroke of confidence on your end, hit george like a bolt of lightning. every feeling, every emotion he felt about you weighed in; your laughs, your jokes, your personality, everything.
he held you a little closer to him, resting his head against yours as you swayed.
“so why do you like this song so much?”
“i don’t know,” you answered quietly. “i guess it became my definition of love. you haven’t heard it ever before besides now but it’s from the point of view of a guy who sings about a girl he’s meant to be with and can’t help falling in love with.”
george hummed, “it’s sweet.”
“i always get goosebumps from it,” you stated. “something about the melody always gets me.”
his fingertips ghosted across your skin, feeling the little tiny goosebumps as he ran them across. “you weren’t lying,” he spoke.
you shook your head, tilting it up a moment later to look at him. “one-hundred percent telling the truth.”
george leaned down to press his forehead against yours, noses just barely touching. your eyes fluttered shut, focusing on the contact between you two. you could feel his breath hot on your skin, just millimeters away from your lips.
you wanted to lean in, to stop dancing around the constant flirting and barely platonic touches and finally seal the deal. but you knew you couldn’t, it wouldn’t be okay to do without george agreeing; in no way did you want to overstep your boundaries.
george had to have felt something too, his face flushing a deep red as you turned your cheek, pressing it back into his shoulder.
the final chords of the song were playing out, signaling the end of the group of slow songs. you frowned, only slightly sad that your time slow dancing with george would be ending soon. sure more could be played later in the night, but who knew how much longer you would be in attendance.
“do you want to get out of here? maybe go talk?” george ducked down to whisper in your ear.
you nodded against george’s shoulder, “that sounds nice.”
you bid a quick goodbye to a few guests, primarily your sister and parents; passing on a simple ‘congratulations’ at the new chapter in her life. there was no signs that the party would be ending soon, but the conversation with george took importance over all of that.
george grabbed his jacket off of the chair, slinging it over his shoulder before meeting back up with you to guide you out.
the venue was right on the serpentine lake, overlooking the water and various reflections of the city and trees.
you walked along the water for a bit, george holding your hand as you strolled. neither of you could deny the moment you had whole dancing, it was clear both of you had felt at least something. you just didn’t know what to say.
“do you want to stop here? i think we’re a good distance away,” george offered.
you hummed, already moving to take a seat down on the soft grass. true to his words, the spot was a fair amount from the venue. the lights still illuminated sections of the water in the distance, but no music or small talk could be heard.
“so are we going to talk about it? or are we just going to tip-toe around it like we’ve been doing all weekend.”
george took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself for his next word choice. he drew his knees up to his chest before speaking.
“i love you y/n.”
you froze, not quite sure if you had heard the words george spoke correctly.
“and you don’t have to say it back, merlin i don’t even know if you feel the same way but i just can’t keep it in anymore.”
for once, you were out of words. love was such a foreign feeling to you. hearing it from your best friend was even more alien.
“you love me?” you spoke after a moment.
george nodded, hand moving up to swipe away a few stray tears that had fallen. “have for a long time. i just haven’t ever said anything. i always thought it was something that would go away, that i could eventually get over it.”
his voice had fallen off at the end, pressing his cheek to his knees as he turned away from you. despite the amount of times you had reassured him, george hated crying in front of you.
you reached out to place your hand on top of his, immediately retracing when he flinched away. not once in the time of you knowing him had george ever jerked away from a small gesture like that.
“george, you could have talked to me. you know that.”
george choked out a half sob-half laugh at your response. “and say what y/n? tell you i’m in love with you, just like that? fuck, i don’t even know how you would have reacted. on no level would it be fair to you to ruin our friendship over some feelings i can’t contain anymore.”
the wave of silence washed over you once again like the tide; george’s words being pushed out as your feelings were finally pulled in.
george was your best friend, no doubt about it. you’d spent your most defining years together, playing games and pulling pranks as well as celebrating anything and everything from holidays to good grades.
but he was different than his twin; you found his compassion more endearing, his care more comforting. his love language versus his twins hit deeper.
every single moment with george was special in its own way, never dull in the slightest. you were so dumbfounded on how you hadn’t seen anything in his emotions before.
you loved george.
“i would have said it back,” you mumbled.
george’s head slowly rised to meet your eyes, concern still laced in his facial structure. he didn’t want to get his hopes up, multiple layers to your words still being unveiled.
“that i love you, i mean,” you clarified. “i guess this trip has made me truly realize it.”
everything you said you meant, there was no a doubt in your mind about it. if you were being honest, it was the one thing you were the most sure of in your life.
“i’m scared georgie,” you quickly admitted. “terrified actually. i’ve never felt like this before.”
george shifted closer to you, though he didn’t make the initiative to hold your hand or wrap a comforting arm around you. he didn’t want to push his boundaries, especially after you had both admitted your mutual feelings for each other.
“and that’s perfectly understandable, love. it’s new to me too. we can learn together.”
you turned to george, tears in your eyes mirroring the ones in his own. with just one blink, the flow had started. george reached out to thumb your tears away. “god we’re so dumb, why did we wait so long?” you questioned.
george laughed, shaking his head slightly at your words. “well i mean, we’re dumb kids in love. i don’t think either of us expected this to happen tonight.”
with that, you broke out laughing too; a grin passing over your face. everything felt near perfect in that moment, like you were finally content with your inner emotions.
“can i kiss you?”
you nodded, “yeah.”
george leaned forward first, hand moving up to hold your cheek before pressing his lips to yours. warmth spread throughout you immediately, the feeling unknown to you, though not a bad thing by any means.
it was only slightly awkward at first, it taking you both a bit to adjust to the other person. your heart was pounding in your chest, only finding the ability to concentrate how soft, how good george’s lips felt on your own.
you reluctantly pulled away first, finding yourself out of breath and needing air. george kept his eyes trained on you, wanting to make sure the entire sequence wasn’t a dream. it felt too good to be true, something that would have happened in a different lifetime. but here he was, lips puffed out and slightly red.
george pulled you close to him, wrapping his arms around you in a tight hug. it was just you and him at this moment, the party in the distance being far from your minds. all that mattered to you was him, and the same for george.
after a delicate kiss to your bare shoulder, george slowly moved his hands down to your waist, guiding you slowly to press your back against the grass.
“is this okay?” george asked as he cupped your face gently.
you brought your hand up to cover his, running your thumb back and forth over the back of his hand, humming gently to confirm your comfort.
with that, george leaned down to kiss you again, body partially covering yours as you leaned up to reach more of him.
it was pure bliss - finally being able to kiss the boy you had been, without even realizing it, pinning over since first year. your feelings had been burried down over many years of friendship, you being too scared to admit that you were even in love with him.
sure a relationship, especially with george, was still something you were extremely new and nervous with, but george made you the best version of yourself, made you feel safe; george felt like home.
“i love you so so much,” george mumbled against your lips. “you have no idea how happy you make me.”
a giggle escaped your mouth, heart feeling full at his words.
“i love you too.”
⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢
tagging - @goldenxreid @wilburxpancakes @sunlightgalaxy @criminaly-supernatural @blakes-dictionxry @mrs-dr-reid @weasleytwinsfav @theguppienamedbae @fadesbrina @lilypad-55449
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spooderboyandtincan · 4 years
Text
Hibernation
“Mr. Parker!”
Peter’s eyes flew open, blinking rapidly. “Whassup?”
The teacher glared down at him, her hawk-like features sharpening. “Perhaps I can direct your attention elsewhere,  Mr. Parker, since your desk seems to be so fascinating.” She slipped a blank sheet of paper on his desk. “Pop quiz, everyone!”
Peter hummed drearily as the room filled with groans, glares heating the back of his head. He shivered miserably and picked up his pencil, wishing he had worn a sweatshirt instead of a thin t-shirt with a science pun on it. 
He closed his eyes and tried to imagine curling up in his bed, warm and cozy. Nice and warm, lots of blankets, hot chocolate, sleep….
Mmmm, sleep. 
“Peter!” Ned hissed, poking his side. “Pete!”
“Hmmm?” 
“Dude, you okay?”
“Yeah,” he mumbled, glancing vaguely at his friend’s face. “Yeah, of course.”
Ned squinted. “Yeah, right. You need the nurse.”
“No, I don’t.” Peter scribbled a circle on the paper. “I’m one-hundred percent fiiiiiiiiine.”
“Dude, everything you just said convinced me you’re not fine,” Ned said. “Peter, really. Did you sleep at all last night?”
Peter thought back. Actually, he’d slept incredibly well, falling asleep before his head hit the pillow. “I did. Really good, actually.”
“Did anything happen during your… internship?” his best friend whispered confidentially.
The boy shrugged. “Haven’t gone out for a few days. So, no.”
Ned frowned at Peter, who rubbed his eyes vigorously, his hands shaking slightly as he fiddled with his pencil. 
What was going on with his friend?
~~~~~
Happy glanced up to look for the kid, scanning the crowd. He spotted Peter, and his friend, Ted, or Fred, or whatever. 
The kids stopped at the car, Ned squinting worriedly at Peter, saying something Happy couldn’t hear. The back door opened and Peter slid in, waving quietly to his best friend. Ned smiled and shut the door. 
With a heavy sigh, he slumped against the seat and closed his eyes. Sleep. 
“Kid?” Happy said, looking in the rearview mirror. “You okay?” 
“Mmhmmm.”
“You don’t look so good.”
“‘M just tired.” 
Happy raised his eyebrows. “Sure, kid.” 
He drove to the penthouse as fast he could.
~~~~~
Peter staggered to the elevator, ignoring Happy’s offers to help. “No, really, I’m just tired. I’m tired, that’s all.” 
“Okay, kid, I got it. Now go to sleep, or I’ll call Tony and May.”
He barely made it to his room without collapsing, falling onto his bed and kicking off his shoes, snuggling under the blankets and curling into a ball. 
Within seconds he was deeply asleep.
~~~~~
Tony fiddled with a button on the cuff of his fancy gray suit as Pepper spoke. It felt like the meeting had gone on for days, but in reality it had only been a few hours. Though those few hours hadn’t been exactly short. He was surrounded by old geezers who probably didn’t have their own teeth.
Plus, it was Friday, which meant Peter was already in the penthouse.
He pulled out his phone quietly and did a quick check on Peter’s vitals. His heartbeat was slow, his temperature cool, and was deeply asleep. Tony nodded, satisfied his kid was okay.
“-and that concludes this meeting, ladies and gentlemen,” Pepper finished, neatly stacking the papers in her hands. “Thank you for your attention.”
“Glad that’s over with,” Tony muttered as they dispersed, getting up from his seat and pulling off his jacket. “Thought I was about to die from old age.”
Pepper rolled her eyes. “More likely to die of cold, Tony. It’s freezing in here.”
~~~~~
The inventor walked through the penthouse, rubbing his eyes. First he checked the couch for Peter (empty) then continued to Peter’s own room.
He knocked gently on his door before pushing it open and moving to sit on Peter’s mattress, pressing a kiss to Peter’s forehead and smoothing back his soft curls. 
Tony frowned suddenly and felt his kid’s forehead. “Jesus, you’re cold, baby. FRI? What’s his temp?”
“Peter’s temperature is at 79 ℉,” she answered. 
“What?!” Tony bolted to his feet. “Read his vitals.”
“Heart rate sixty beats per minute, blood pressure 70/80 mm Hg.”
Without thinking, Tony scooped a limp Peter into his arms and sprinted to the medbay.
~~~~~
“He’s hibernating?!”
Helen nodded. “It’s his spider side. It was cold enough today to send him into hibernation.”
Tony paled even more as he took this information in. “How do we fix him?!”
“Tony, calm down, take a breath. He’s gonna be okay.”
He took a shaky breath, massaging Peter’s smaller hand between his. “How do we wake him up?”
She smiled. “As far as I can tell, it’s best to warm him up slowly. That includes warm blankets, and lots of cuddles.”
~~~~~
Tony wrapped his arms around Peter, rubbing his back, the boy’s head resting on his chest. He kissed Peter’s temple and smoothed back his curls before starting to order Happy and Rhodey around.
“Get his Iron Man blanket, it’s his favorite, he needs it,” he ordered. “Get his nightlight too, he can’t sleep without it, and his teddy bear. Oh, his Spider-Man hat, get that. And find a weighted blanket, he has one in his room, it’s dark blue.”
Tony ignored the eye roll Rhodey gave him, and kissed Peter’s forehead gently. 
“You’re gonna be okay, tesoro, I got you, Dad’s got you. You’re gonna be okay.”
God, he wished Peter could wake up right then.
~~~~~
Tony sat up in Peter’s hospital bed, reading aloud from some sort of science-y book about spiders he thought his kid might enjoy.
“‘Spiders have blue blood. In humans, oxygen is bound to hemoglobin, a molecule that contains iron and gives blood its red color. In spiders, oxygen is bound to hemocyanin, a molecule that contains copper rather than iron,’” he read. “How about that, kiddo? Pretty cool.”
Peter stayed silent. Tony tucked the many blankets more firmly around him, picking up his hand and running a thumb across his knuckles. 
“‘During the 16th and 17th centuries, it was believed that a bite from a species of wolf spider would be deadly if the victim did not dance to a specific type of frenzied music. It inspired a dance called the tarantella.’” Tony snorted. “Now that I would like to see.”
Without one of Peter’s witty comments and high-pitched giggles, it was a lot less funny. 
He sighed at the boy’s pale, lax face. “I miss you baby.” He dropped his forehead to Peter’s. “I miss you so much.”
~~~~~
Peter gradually became aware of two things; the soft snoring in his ear and a loose hand in his curls. 
He was warm and cozy in a pair of strong arms.
Peter hummed quietly and buried his face in Tony’s chest. 
He let himself slip back to the comfortable darkness. 
He was safe with Tony.
~~~~~
“You know what I mean!” May insisted as Tony stared at her blankly. “The teddy bears with lavender and rice in them, you put them in the microwave and they get nice and warm. Please don’t tell me you’ve never heard of those.”
“So what, you eat them?” 
“No!” she scoffed, “They’re all warm and fuzzy. I got one for Pete when he was little, but it had a hole and we had to throw it out. Maybe it’ll help?”
The inventor smiled.
The inventor smiled. “Maybe.” He reached for his Starkpad on the bedside table. “Would he like an Iron Man one or Spider-Man one? Nevermind, I’ll just get both. FRI, speed order.”
Barely fifteen minutes later Happy entered the room, holding a box. “Package.”
May blinked and stood to take it. “That was fast. These are super cute, Tony. I’ll go warm them up.”
“How’s he doing?” 
Tony sighed, combing his fingers through Peter’s curls. “His temp is a lot warmer. He’s getting better.” He smiled and kissed Peter’s forehead. “Aren’t you, bubba?”
“Good.” Though people thought he didn’t care about Peter, Happy privately thought of himself like his uncle. “That’s good.”
May walked in a second later. “Nice and toasty.” She slipped the hot bag underneath the blankets, under Peter’s socked feet, and placed the other one by his side.  “There we go.”
There was a whining sound from Peter as his fingers twitched. Tony rushed to move the bag closer to his skin. “There you go, baby, you’re okay. You’re okay.”
May laughed when Peter’s fingers closed around the warmth. “Aaw.”
~~~~~
May helped Tony tuck Peter in, which was hard to do when lying in the same bed. 
She kissed Peter’s forehead, gazing fondly at him. “Goodnight, honey. Larb ya.” May smiled. “Night, Tony.” She walked to the couch, lying down and grabbing a blanket.
“Night.” He shifted and circled his arms around his kid. “Goodnight, Petey. I love you so much.” He kissed his cheek. 
~~~~~
Tony woke up to whimpering. His eyes snapped open.
Peter was awake. 
“Peter?” he gasped, bolting up in bed. “Oh, no, shh, don’t cry, shh. What’s wrong, buddy?” He cupped the boy’s face anxiously. “Are you feeling okay? Are you hurting- does anything hurt?” He pressed the call button frantically. “What’s wrong?”
“‘M cold,” he whined, reaching for Tony. Tony gathered him in his arms, rubbing his back to give him some sense of warmth. 
“Oh baby, I got you, shh. You’re okay, we’re gonna get you warmed up. You’re okay, shh.” 
He looked worriedly at the layers of heated blankets and hot packs. “It’s okay baby.”
“Peter? Tony?” May mumbled from the couch, slowly sitting up. “What’s wrong?”
“May- May, Peter’s awake! He’s cold, we-we need to heat these up.” He grabbed the Iron Man neck warmer. “Here.”
May jumped to her feet and took it. “I’ll be right back.”
Cho rushed in a second later. “What’s wrong?”
“He woke up, he’s cold. Should he be cold? Is something wrong?” he asked worriedly. 
“No, I think it’s just the shock. He came out of hibernation early, maybe his body isn’t quite ready.” 
“Hey Peter,” she said to the boy. “This is gonna warm you up, but it’s going to make you sleepy, okay?”
She took a syringe and pushed a clear liquid into his IV. “There.”
“Hmm,” Peter mumbled, which was the equivalent of “thanks.”
“Do you feel better, tesoro?” Tony whispered, still looking worried as ever.
Peter paused, his eyes hazily focusing on Tony’s face. “Hun’ry.”
“You’re hungry?” he cooed. “Oh baby, of course, don’t worry.” Glancing towards Helen and May, he said “Someone needs to make some soup.” 
May volunteered, and about ten minutes later she hurried in with a steaming bowl of chicken noodle soup. 
“Okay, bubba,” Tony murmured. “We got you some soup, okay? Can you open your mouth, sweetheart?”
Peter’s mouth opened. Tony blew carefully on the spoon before scooping it into Peter’s mouth. Peter swallowed it, then glanced beggingly at the bowl.  
The inventor quickly gave Peter another spoonful. “Is it too hot, baby?”
He shook his head slightly. 
After nearly half the bowl was gone, Peter’s eyes began to droop.
 “‘M tired.”
Tony immediately set the bowl on the table and gently helped his kid lie down. “There you go, sweetheart. There you go.” He kissed Peter’s forehead.
 Peter snuffled quietly, curling his arms around the neck warmer and grabbing Tony’s arm like a koala. Tony lay back down and pulled the covers up to Peter’s chest.
“Do you feel better?” May asked, combing back his curls. Peter hummed an affirmative, eyes closed.
The inventor wrapped his free arm around Peter, burying his face in his soft curls and kissing them gently. He smiled in relief, drinking up the sight of his now sleeping kid. 
“Goodnight, honey,” May whispered. She kissed his temple, then stood and flopped wearily on the couch. “Try to get some sleep, Tony, okay?”
Tony shrugged. “I’ll try.”
It didn’t matter to him. Peter mattered.
He was surprised that when his head hit the pillow, his eyelids began to feel heavy. The rush of relief and love for his kid, his baby, had taken a toll on him.
“I love you,” he whispered. “I love you, bambino. More than you’ll ever know.”
Peter was okay.
~~~~~
/DO NOT TAG OR REBLOG AS ST*RKER/
~~~~~
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pindaleng · 3 years
Link
Merry Pitchmas @anotherbechloeshipper !!
Had so much fun writing this one, hope you enjoy it :)
Title: In From the Snow
Pairing: Bechloe
Chapters: 1/1
Wordcount: 2943
Summary: Beca didn’t anticipate making many friends her freshman year, much less become best friends with one Chloe Beale. When a snow storm ruins both their plans to travel home, they get to spend some quality time together. Beca thinks this might be her best chance to tell the other girl how she feels.
Read on AO3 or below.
Beca stared gloomily at the large flakes falling outside her dorm window.
There was no way her old Camry would be able drive more than ten miles an hour in these conditions. The forecast said “heavy snow”, but she didn’t realize it’d be this bad.
She totally would have left a few days earlier if she didn’t have a final scheduled for the absolute last day of the semester. It’s not like she was super excited about heading back home either, but she knew her dad and step mom would give her shit for it.
She sighed. Might as well text them now to rip off that band-aid.
Shortly after she sent the message, she heard a knock on her opened door.
“Hey, you’re still here!”
In the doorway stood Chloe Beale, undoubtedly the coolest person on their dorm floor. Beca (to her surprise) got along with most of the people on her floor, but something about Chloe specifically drew her in.
Admittedly, she found the other girl annoying at first, as she seemed like the high school girls that were fake nice just to talk about you behind your back. She soon learned, though, that Chloe was the real deal.
But not of course before giving her a hard time for a couple of months. Frustratingly, but thankfully, Chloe was incredibly persistent. Beca hadn’t really expected to make so many friends, intending to keep her head down and make her way through, but everyone grew on her. Especially Chloe.
“Yeah, unfortunately still here.” Beca replied. “Wanted to drive out today but doesn’t look like that’s gonna happen.”
Chloe invited herself in and hopped onto Beca’s bed. She hummed in understanding. “I just got back from the store and driving was for sure a struggle. Definitely would not recommend.”
“Great. You’re staying here too, then?”
“Yep! Which means you get to spend time with little ol’ me.” She propped her head on her hands. “Any plans for the day?”
There wasn’t really a Plan B since she didn’t expect her driving-back-home Plan A to not work out. “Not really, probably just gonna work on some mixes.”
“Can I join?”
“Yes, please make it a little less sad that I’m stuck here on Christmas Eve.”
“Sweet, I’ll be back.” Chloe slid off the bed and make her way out the room. “Don’t have too much fun without me!”
Beca just rolled her eyes and started setting up her laptop.
Chloe came back moments later with her sketchbook and colored pencils, and settled on Beca’s roommate’s bed. Both of them were friends with Stacie, so they knew she wouldn’t mind her bed being used.
They passed time peacefully like this for a couple of hours, each doing their separate thing.
Beca was so engrossed in her music that she doesn’t notice Chloe call out her name until the other girl waved at her to get her attention.
She slipped off her headphones. “What’s up?”
“I was thinking about getting some food soon. You in?”
The hunger hit her stomach now that food was mentioned. “Yeah, I could eat. Where at?” Though the dorms stayed open, dining halls were closed. There were plenty of places nearby though, and many of whom delivered. They went back and forth suggesting restaurants until Chloe looked like she had an epiphany. “We should go to that new ramen place!”
Beca’s immediate reaction was to pout, as they didn’t deliver. Chloe laughed.
“Oh come on, it’s a five minute walk, max. You big baby.” Chloe playfully poked her cheek. “Plus it’s super pretty outside.”
“And it’s super warm inside.”
Chloe rolled her eyes. “I’m going with or without you.”
The ultimatum was effective. Beca grumbled but put her coat on anyways. The reluctance was really just all show, as she would probably walk naked into a freezing lake for the other girl.
Snow was steadily falling outside, blanketing all the surfaces in a thick layer of white. Campus was quiet, as most of the students had already left for the holidays. It was both eerie and calming. The absence of drunk frat guys yelling, though, was definitely a plus.
“Okay I admit, it is pretty outside.” But you’re prettier. The automatic thought was so cheesy she almost threw up a bit in her mouth. Since when did she think such gross things? She could practically see Stacie smirking annoyingly at her.
Chloe grinned in victory, and Beca’s heart swooped.
Her brain definitely wasn’t lying though: Chloe was undoubtedly beautiful. The snowflakes in Chloe’s hair contrasted perfectly with the red color, making her look like some sort of magazine model. It felt kind of unfair that she could exist like that and not know what she was doing to poor Beca’s soul.
When the waitress asked if they needed one or two checks, Chloe replied “just one” before Beca could get a word in.
As the waitress walked away, Beca sent a questioning look to the redhead.
Chloe shrugged, “It’s easier for them to just run a single card.” Beca offered to pay her back, but she insisted it to be a holiday present. If Beca didn’t know better, she would have swore it was a date.
They were on their way back to the dorms when Beca felt something hit the back of her head.
She whipped around. “Hey!”
Chloe was already packing another snowball, clearly out for blood. She quickly launched that one too, which Beca barely managed to sidestep. She bent down to create her own snow projectile.
Chloe began to run away to get out of range, so Beca went to chase her. Unfortunately, Beca slipped on the snow and fell. Chloe was immediately at her side. “Oh my god, are you okay?”
The snow cushioned her fall pretty well, but Beca didn’t want to give that away just yet. She faked a grimace. “I think I broke my leg.”
“Oh shit.” Chloe furrowed her eyebrows in worry. “I’m so sorry I-“
Beca felt too bad that she immediately stopped her. “I’m joking, I’m actually fine.”
It took a moment to register, and then Chloe slapped her on the arm. “You scared me!”
Beca rubbed the spot where she was hit. “Ok now I actually have to go to the hospital.”
Chloe just slapped her arm again, before offering a hand to pull her up. Beca took it but didn’t get up. Chloe looked confused as Beca smirked, and then pulled the other girl down into the snow with her. She fell on her face in the fresh snow with a satisfying poof.
“Oh my god, you asshole.” Chloe laughed after pulling her face up, and shoved at the other girl, who was still laying in the snow.
“Chlo you have a beard.” Beca was practically wheezing at the sight of Chloe having snow stuck all over her face. “Still hot though.”
Chloe modeled it, striking poses and getting up to walk down an imaginary runway, while Beca yelled after her, hyping her up.
They messed around in the snow for a while longer, then took the long way back. Beca considered complaining about the cold and wet seeping in, but Chloe just looked so happy. Plus, it really was nice outside. Walking with Chloe in the peace of campus was a moment Beca wanted to keep tucked in her pocket forever.
After getting back, they went to take showers (separately) to warm themselves up, deciding to reconvene later in Chloe’s room. Beca sat on her bed with her hair in a towel, scrolling through her phone. She opened a message from Stacie, who was definitely one of her best friends in college so far. She flew out a couple of days ago and told Beca not to “get too freaky” while she was gone. Beca practically shoved her out the door.
Stacie [6:31 pm]: You make it home?
Beca [7:13 pm]: No, stuck here. Stupid snow.
A reply immediately came in.
Stacie [7:13 pm]: Ugh that sucks, are you by yourself then?
Beca hesitated on what exactly to say, knowing Stacie would immediately make fun of her for the truth.
Beca [7:15 pm]: Not exactly…..Chloe is also still here
Stacie [7:16 pm]: !!!!!!!!!!
Stacie [7:16 pm]: BECA
Stacie [7:16 pm]: THIS IS YOUR CHANCE
Beca [7:17 pm]: Dude she doesn’t like me
Stacie [7:18 pm]: Do NOT bother coming back to campus if you don’t shoot your shot right now
Stacie [7:19 pm]: Joking but also not
Stacie [7:19 pm]: She hangs out w you all the time. She actually listens to your music recs. Plz do something.
Stacie [7:20 pm]: Ok talk later family is calling for dinner, good luck!!!!!
Beca [7:21 pm]: ??? I’m going to ignore that you basically implied not listening to any of the music I’ve suggested
She fell back onto her bed. She wanted to make a move, and she did feel like there could be something between them. However, each time Chloe was nice to someone else, she got psyched out believing that Chloe was always just being platonically nice to her. No flirting involved.
With each passing day, though, it became harder to deny she wanted her. And how badly she did. She caught herself staring a bit too long, and hung endlessly on the small touches Chloe would always do. A brush of the finger here, and a hair tucked behind an ear there. Beca thought some days she might explode.
She texted Chloe to ask if she was ready yet.
Chloe [7:25 pm]: Sorry got distracted!! Hopping in the shower now.
With the extra time, Beca decided to finish the mix she was working on earlier that day. There was something off about it that she couldn’t quite figure out, but coming back to it now, she figured out what it was missing. She listened to it a few times to make sure she was really happy with it before mastering it.
A text came in from Chloe, letting her know she could come over whenever.
Beca quickly added the song to a USB which already contained many music files, then placed the drive into a small pink, cardboard box she got from Stacie. The box originally held a necklace, which made it the perfect size for her gift.
She stashed it in her sweater pocket then made her way to Chloe’s room in the other wing of the floor.
It was still relatively early in the night, so Chloe suggested a movie. Beca wasn’t one for movies usually, but it wasn’t like she had any better ideas.
They cuddled together on the small dorm bed in Chloe’s den of pillows, with the laptop in front of them. The movie was actually pretty good, despite all the bad decisions the main character kept making, and the fact that Beca missed half the plot due to glancing at Chloe instead, and being nervous about how close they were.
“Thoughts?” Chloe turned down the volume as the credits began to roll.
“I think she should have gone with the second guy.”
“Really? I thought he was kind of iffy.”
They proceeded have a lively discussion about the movie, with Beca continuing to argue mostly to mess with Chloe, who seemed quite adamant about the main character’s end choice of romantic partner. It ended with Chloe tickling her until Beca finally admitted her defeat.
“Okay, close your eyes.”
Beca looked at Chloe warily, still catching her breath from the tickling attack. “Um, why?”
“Just do it.”
She sighed but did as she was told.
“No peeking!”
Her index finger drew a cross above her heart, signaling her promise to not look.
“Okay, you can open them now.”
In front of her was a piece of paper carefully rolled into a tube and bound with a red bow. Beca picked it up, gingerly untying the ribbon, unraveling her gift. Her jaw dropped.
“Chloe…”
In her hands was a pencil sketch of her with headphones on, smiling and almost on the verge of laughing. Honestly, she never thought about what she looked like while she was happy. The image of herself in her mind was always some version of broody. Is this how Chloe saw her? Beca wasn’t one to usually cry, but she might have teared up a bit.
“This is…incredible.”
Chloe looked kind of nervous. The same way that Beca was protective of showing others her music, Chloe was hesitant to show much of her art. “You like it?”
“Dude I love it. Seriously.” That reassurance seemed to put Chloe at ease. “Okay, your turn to close your eyes.”
Chloe did it without hesitation, and also held out her hands. Beca shook her head a bit in amusement and placed the small box into her palm.
“Okay, open.”
She opened her eyes and lifted the lid of the box to find a black USB drive, with a piece of tape on the side simply labeled “For Chloe”.
Her smile widened as she realized what her present was. “Do I get to finally listen to your music?”
“Maybe.”
“It means a lot, Beca. Thank you.”
“Um yeah, no problem. Don’t tell me if you end up thinking it’s bad.” She joked.
“Oh please, you’re going to have to block me with how many good things I’ll say.”
“Don’t tempt me, I might delete your contact right now.”
Chloe laughed. “Oh please, like you could last a day without me. Also, I actually have another present for you.” She scotched a bit closer to Beca.
“Oh,” Beca furrowed her eyebrows. “Well, I don’t have anything el-“
She was swiftly cut off as Chloe kissed her, soft and sweet. So polite and unassuming it almost felt platonic.
But god did it give Beca butterflies.
Chloe pulled away so quickly that Beca wasn’t sure it even happened. Like maybe she just daydreamed too hard and manifested a hallucination.
She must have had a deer in the headlights look because Chloe suddenly got super shy. “Was that okay?” She whispered, face still close.
Beca finally came to her senses. “Yeah, totally. More than okay. Amazing really.” She must look like a blushing mess.
The corner of Chloe’s mouth quirked up in amusement and relief. “Yeah?”
“Still could be better, though.” Good work Beca, make a joke to regain some semblance of having her shit together.
“Oh?” She watched Chloe lick her lips, a mesmerizing motion. The shyness was all but gone, replaced by something much more confident, and destined to ruin Beca’s life. And she knew she’d welcome it with open arms.
Beca woke up in the morning to the light touch of fingers trailing along her jaw. She smiled, remembering where she was, and more importantly, who was besides her. She probably had the best night of sleep in her life. “Can’t keep your hands off of me, Beale?” She asked, keeping her eyes closed.
“Are you going to try and stop me?” Chloe whispered. Her raspy morning voice was really so damn attractive.
She opened one eye, smiling. “I wouldn’t dare.”
“Good.” Chloe leaned in for a long kiss, the hand on her face pulling Beca closer. Her breath hitched. She didn’t think she could ever get used to this. Kissing Chloe Beale. Touching her.
She pulled away all too soon, just as Beca began to want her even more. Beca was quickly learning how much of a tease Chloe was.
“i’m going to get ready, and then maybe we can go get breakfast somewhere?”
“Or…we can stay in bed all day.”
Chloe giggled, and Beca almost professed her love. “Becs, both of us gotta head home.”
“Do we though?”
Chloe just smiled as she slipped out of bed and grabbed her toothbrush and face towel. Before she was completely out the door, she gave her butt a little shake, as if she could tell Beca was staring at her clad in a large t-shirt and sleep shorts. Beca was sure Chloe was smirking as she did it.
As soon as she was out of sight, Beca grabbed her phone from the desk. A text from her dad and a couple from Stacie. She opened the messages from the latter.
Stacie [11:13 pm]: How’d it go?
Stacie [11:30 pm]: I’m assuming the silence is a good thing and ur just too busy making out with Chloe to reply ;)
Beca typed out a quick message.
Beca [9:30 am]: So…..
Stacie [9:30 am]: THIS BETTER BE GOOD NEWS
Beca [9:31 am]: How do you keep replying so quickly??
Stacie [9:31 am]: How about you stop avoiding
Beca thought of the million different things she could say, but opted for simplicity.
Beca [9:32 am]: :)
Stacie [9:33 am]: Is that good
Stacie [9:33 am]: Beca is that good
Stacie [9:34 am]: ?????
She set her phone down, feeling giddy. It might have been a bit cruel to leave Stacie hanging, but she’d get over it. She’d get the full story eventually, but right now, Beca wanted to keep as much of this thing with Chloe to herself as possible. Definitely not like a shameful secret, though.
Something about telling someone about it, however vaguely, made last night and this morning seem actually real.  She had this feeling deep in her chest that this was the start of something incredible, which made her both excited and a bit scared. Ok a lot scared. Terrified even.
It sucked that they’d have be apart right as they were starting something. Winter break couldn’t be over soon enough.
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silkylious · 4 years
Text
I Am in Love. Fuck. (Bakugo Katsuki x Fem!Reader)
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Pairing: Dancer!Bakugo Katsuki x Dancer!Reader Warnings: swearing and just some tooth-rotting fluff!  Prompt(s): #35 “Oh shit... I am in love. Fuck.” + Dancer AU
A/N: Thank you so much @1-800-callmekatsuki​ for the request, this was super cute and fun to write. I hope you enjoy this! yall i know nothing about dancing so for any dancers out there please bear with me lmao
Squeaks of sneakers against the waxed floor echoed throughout the studio, overshadowed by the rhythm blasting from the speakers. Heavy puffs of air mingled with the surrounding noise to create a ruggedly enchanting symphony. Crimson irises peered at you as your hand delicately held him by the neck, moving up to caress his sharp jaw all while you kept up the movements of your feet and the saying of your hips. Katsuki's hands perched stop your waist guiding your motions, grip tightening as the song playing in the background built up to a final crescendo, preparing to support you for the finale of your dance number. As the last notes of the musical piece sounded through the closed space, you struck a final pose, surrendering your body to Katsuki's grasp. You stayed in that position for a second too long, your figure hanging with the help of his strength in an exaggerated dip, his pointy, upturned nose brushing against yours and his muscular arms holding you securely, saving you from an inevitable fall. Your lidded eyes bore into his soul, daring him to go further. He wouldn't give in to your teasing gaze so easily, though. With a painfully audible gulp, he pulled you upright, detaching his body from yours. 
A sharp whistle crashed the tension between you two, followed by overly enthusiastic clapping. 
“That was awesome, guys! You're totally gonna win the competition with this,” Kirishima hollered from the other side of the room, his keen stare watching with amusement as you and his best friend stiffly walked to your respective lockers. He found it infinitely humorous how you could have such palpable chemistry on the dance floor, then act like awkward middle schoolers once the music halted. 
Your skin glistened with a light sheen of sweat; the choreography was exhausting, despite how effortless you and your dance partner made it seem. It surprised you when Katsuki approached you with this particular sequence, he wasn't one for sensuous moves (much less a pas de deux for that matter), and quite frankly you doubted he had it in him to be so intimate and flexible. But as usual, he surprised you with his adaptability, Katsuki really was a natural at many things. What was completely out of left field, however, was his intensity. It was just a duet, you knew that, but fuck did his eyes send you hurtling to other worldly stories with just his glare, the sensuality of his touches immersing you in a fictional forbidden love. The way his lips ghosted over your shoulder as you rocked with your back to his sculpted pectorals. He was doing it on purpose. And you'd be damned if you didn't play his game too, returning his lingering touches with just as much vigour, passion. The plastic bottle in your hand protested under the unnecessary pressure of your clutch, your bottom lip catching behind a row of teeth. Shit, he was getting to you–
“Oi, you're gonna spill water everywhere, dumbass,” Katsuki's gruff voice snapped you from your reverie, making the baby hairs on your neck stand at attention. He chugged his own water in one gulp before successfully throwing the plastic container into the recycling bin from a far. By the time you turned around, he had gotten alarmingly closer. “Overall, you’re not as shitty as last time. Your footing is still fucking abysmal, though. You call that a pirouette? My grandma could do better and she has arthritis.”
Of course he wouldn't let you celebrate, you were convinced he was physically incapable of giving non-backhanded compliments. You shook your head with a light chuckle, his creativity really shined through in his insults. They never really bothered you, you were aware that hidden beneath the layers of unwarranted cussing and borderline rude comments, lied genuine, constructive criticism. Grabbing a change of clothes, you slammed the locker before heading to the public bathroom for a quick rinse, barely sparing him a glance on the way there. 
“Duly noted.”
Vermillion eyes observed the way your hips swayed gently as you walked, completely unaware of similarly colored eyes watching him with gleaming mirth. “You’re so whipped for her, dude.”
Previously relaxed features pulled taut in an agitated grimace. “No, the fuck I’m not.”
“Mhmm, sure. Keep telling yourself that, man.” Kirishima escaped the premises before he could experience his best friend’s wrath, a jubilant bounce in his step as he thought about his two friends. He was the common denominator between you two. That’s how you met, at one of Kirishima’s frat parties, and even though Bakugo wouldn’t ever say it out loud, an instant connection sparked between you two. The mutual love for dancing brought you together.
Thoughts of you fogged Katsuki’s mind for the rest of the day, practice that day had been exceptionally sensual, both of you getting progressively more daring. He fruitlessly tried to go about his day without having intrusive thoughts blocking his focus, but to no avail. He found himself aimlessly staring out the window, hyper-realistic sensations buzzing along his skin, it was almost like you were still there, still touching him. He sat there on his couch, trying (and failing), to elude any thought of you. He huffed at his inability to get you out of his head, he had one last resort to aid with his problem.
That damn porcupine wouldn’t stop reappearing in your mind, it was so surreal, the way he looked at you as you forfeited your body to him, his minty pants of air, his natural musk. All of it was too much to handle. Uncertainty stopped you from pursuing the man that had unknowingly snatched your heart, each session with him felt like a shot of fireball running down your throat. So sweet and addictive, yet the repercussions left you impaired. He was a drug to you, making you chase the gratifying high of his touches, but once the endorphins dissipated you were left to battle with the symptoms of withdrawal. Your plans of having a relaxing evening were thrown out the window, you needed anything but alone time to overthink, and you had the perfect getaway from visions plaguing you. Unbeknownst to both of you, you shared the exact same idea.
Drowned in the music provided by his ear buds, Katsuki failed to hear the sounds of someone else in the studio as he rounded the corner. The sight before him momentarily made his heart halt, only to beat twice as fast as his eyes raked over your twirling figure. Dim light peaked through the blinds, casting an elegant, pastel halo over your features. You looked so in your element here, so at peace. Your expression gentle, eyes soft and lips pulled into a preciously small smile, despite the strain pulling at your limbs, begging you to rest. Your body alone made the muscles in his heart clench and unclench rapidly, made his otherwise focused and composed mind a reeling, fiery mess. But what affected him the most, provoked an itching desire in him to be as close to you as humanly possible (a desire that he had refused to acknowledge) was the simple fact that you were doing pirouettes. He’d figured that your comeback to him earlier that day had been pure sarcasm. Seeing you take his advice, practicing all on your own, having the courage to fall and learn, failing and bouncing right back up again over and over until sweat dripped from your temples, all to make both him and yourself proud with the fruits of your labor, that’s what set him off. 
“Oh shit... I am in love. Fuck.” 
The date of the competition came faster than either of you could comprehend. The days preceding it were filled with hard work, sweat and augmenting tension. With his feelings for you finally recognized and accepted, Bakugo couldn’t help the pink tone frequenting his face whenever you went over the dance together, which he defensively dismissed as a byproduct of heat each time Kirishima brought it up, a knowing look in his eye. That last dip always made his stomach churn. When he was that close to your face, he had to restrain every atom in his body from doing something impulsive, but oh did his lips plead to mold with your own, did his fingers beg to tangle with yours. He’d never experienced anything like this, it was almost like all his body parts had a mind of their own, whenever he was by your side he consciously had to shun his whole being from twitching as it wished desperately to entwine with you in every way possible.
“This is it.” You said, more to yourself than to him, reminding yourself that this was the time to reap all the exertion and time you’d sowed. Your mind was slowly trickling into anxious territory, but a calloused hand interlacing with your own stopped you from straying too far. You gaped at the sudden act of reassurance, a familiar giddy feeling bubbling in your veins. He grinned at you. You grinned back.
“This is it.” He repeated, words coming out strong, resolute. His cadence conveying all the encouragement he didn't know how to voice, his hand anchoring you in what was here and now. 
“And last but not least, please welcome our last competitors, Bakugo Katsuki and (last name) (name)!”
That was the cue for the both of you to emerge from backstage. As you took your starting positions, you inhaled and exhaled uniformly, Bakugo sending you a look of slight concern which you returned with a smirk, telepathically telling him let’s win this thing. 
The music kicked in and you lost yourselves between the melodies. It was like Pavlov’s conditioning almost; as soon as your ears heard the starting notes, your bodies moved on their own, muscle memory taking the front seat and grabbing hold of the steering wheel. And yet it was anything but a blur. You saw everything in blinding clarity, minutes seemed to slow for your perception. The way he moved was etched into your brain in overwhelming detail. The dance was as amorous as can be. Your gaze remained attached to his throughout the whole number, only leaving when you twirled or turned around. This time around, you didn’t dance as mere partners, no you danced as lovers. There was no teasing involved, only unbridled adoration. Applause fell on deaf ears, anything that wasn’t him was mute and colorless to you, and vice versa. You danced like nobody was observing, like you were a married couple swaying around your kitchen.  
The final notes brought you two back to reality, and through the unease in his gorgeous, crimson irises, you knew he had a decision to make. Your palm skimmed across the expanse of his neck, trailing the unblemished column before moving up to his jaw. With practiced ease, your feet skidded along the stage while your hips moved in tantalizing waves, his sweaty hands gripping at your waist tightly, a clear indication of his ongoing, internal debate. You gave him a last glare, one that ultimately made him settle on a choice he vowed to never regret, then your body slackened in his hold, his arms dipping you backwards in a closing pose, concluding the exhilarating choreography. 
But he still had one more thing to do.
As his nose pushed up against yours, he made a final push, lowering his lids in preparation. His slightly chapped lips puckered against your soft ones, prompting your eyes to grow wide. Obnoxious cheering erupted, but neither of you could hear it. Shutting your eyes, you moved your lips in a sensuous rhythm against his own, not too dissimilar to the number you’d just performed, basking in the sensation that you’d daydreamed about during endless sleepless nights.
For once, Katsuki couldn’t give less of a shit about achieving an indisputable first place in a competition, because no matter the outcome of this dance, whether he swooped all the medals or not, he considered this to be the biggest win in his book.
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