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littlejuicebox · 1 month

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This is probably wack AF, but ... Dadstarion takes the fam on an island vacation and Gale becomes fascinated by his new crab friend. Now everything needs to be measured in crabs, e.g. "Yes, Gale, I'd reckon you're about five and a half crabs tall." Also, the amount of sunscreen necessary for this family is jaw-dropping.

Pale by comparison.

Haha I love these scenarios you guys give me! The Ancunin hijinks continues! I did a fair bit of crab research for this piece. :P

Tags/Warnings: fluff, dadstarion, parenting, children, very mild angst with comfort, lmk if you see anything else

Word count: 2.4K

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Astarion still hates the beach, which puts him, unfortunately, in the minority of the Ancunin household. His wife and children cannot seem to get enough of drying salt water and coarse sand stuck between their toes.

But carting three children to the beach and back in a single day is exhausting, and the father learned his lesson last summer when Gale and the twins all burnt to a crisp after they ran out of sunscreen on their day trip. Tav went on and on about sunspots and melanoma after that, worried that their children would wind up with an incurable condition in 500 years. After that, the parents were sure to bring more than enough sunscreen, but the already overloaded carriage broke down on the following day trip, and Astarion decided he’d had enough.

So this year, he and Tav decided to take Wyll and his wife, Euphemia, up on their offer and borrow the Ravengard beach house for a week. The quaint cottage is built on a small island dotted along the Sword Coast. It is sparsely populated, mostly by native humans year round, but hosts various nobles and elites from Faerunian cities during the summer months. The latter includes the Ancunins — at least for the week.

“Evander, you cannot go to the beach naked. Run and put your swim trunks on now; I don’t care that you don’t want to!” Tav scolds the older twin as she coats the younger one in sunscreen.

Finnick is squirming under her touch as he laughs and tries to remove his bottoms to match his brother.

“Finn, absolutely not,” Tav warns before shooting a pleading look at her husband. “A little help here?”

Astarion closes the basket, which he’d been examining to ensure that, yes, they still had more than enough sunscreen and then scoops the naked twin up with an annoyed sigh. The father heads down the hallway to their bedroom, giggling brunette three-year-old in hand, on his way to retrieve the abandoned swim trunks. As he’s walking, Astarion rapts a quick knock on his eldest’s door and calls, “Almost ready in there?”

“Yes!” Gale shouts moments before he rips open the bedroom door to join his family in the main living area. A bucket and shovel are in one hand and a waxed, wooden surfboard is tucked under his other arm as he patiently waits for his parents and siblings.

“Where is your hat, my little love?” Tav asks her eldest, prompting the boy to run down the hallway and grab his sun cap before returning back to his mother with a smile and a showy wave of the head cover.

Astarion joins the family a few moments later, Evander now properly clothed, and exchanges one twin for the other so that Tav can begin coating the previously naked twin in sunscreen. The father glances down to inspect his eldest and catches sight of some creature trying to crawl its way out of the bucket. The older silver-haired elf’s nose instantly wrinkles in disgust.

“Gale, did you bring a crab into the house overnight?” Astarion questions as he unceremoniously plops Finnick into a chair and then turns and begins to slather sunscreen on his eldest child.

“Yes,” Gale answers, always the picture of honesty. The seven year old’s voice is muffled and his eyes are slammed shut as his father rubs a thick layer of white lotion onto his cheeks, nose and forehead before paying special attention to the child’s pointed ears, causing him to squirm at the sensation, “Mama said I could.”

Astarion shoots a disapproving look at his wife and she responds with a half-hearted shrug.

“But remember what I said, Gale? Only for one night. Now we have to return the crab to the ocean,” Tav interjects as she releases Evan and starts to gather all the other beach day necessities into the family’s basket.

“Why can’t I take Shelly back home?” The eldest Ancunin boy asks, his voice tipping up into a whine as he scrunches his nose up at his mother.

“The crab needs to stay here, Gale,” Astarion responds, “It— Shelly will be happier here on the island rather than in your room back in Rivington, don’t you think?”

Gale groans as he peers down at the crab; the sea creature is still trying to crawl its way out of the bucket but finds itself unable to get a proper grip. The boy props his small surfboard against the wall and carefully pulls the animal into his hand as he sighs, “I guess...”

Finnick jumps from the chair without warning and darts forward to grab the crab. Before Gale can stop his brother, the youngest Ancunin boy is met with a sharp pinch to his finger and shrieks out a startled, “Aah– aaah! Ouch!”

The younger twin begins crying as Astarion swiftly moves to pry the crab from his son’s hand and drop it back into the bucket. Gods, why does his eldest insist on caring for creepy crawly creatures?

Gale rolls his eyes in annoyance at his brother, the spitting image of his father as he says, “I told you not to touch her, Finn.”

Evan moves to hug his crying twin, but Finnick pushes his brother out of the way, causing the elder twin to bump into Astarion’s leg as the injured one runs toward his mother, still crying.

“Kill it, mommy!” Finnick cries, clinging to Tav as she inspects the damage on his hand and whispers a quick healing spell.

“We aren’t going to kill Shell— the crab,” Astarion sighs, his eyes rolling at the ridiculousness of this conversation, “And what have I told you about keeping your hands to yourself, little fox? See what happens when you don’t?”

Finnick pouts, his head buried in the skirt of Tav’s dress as he pointedly ignores his father. Astarion scoffs and then hoists Evander into his arms, giving all three children a final inspection. Hats, swim trunks, swim shoes, sun lotion – check, check, check, check.

“Everyone ready?” The father asks as he grabs the basket from the table.

“Yes,” Evander and Gale respond in unison. Gale snatches his surfboard back under his shoulder.

Finnick says nothing as Tav sweeps him up into her arms; he simply buries his face in his mom’s neck and continues to pout as the woman gently lectures him about respecting animals.

“Off we go then,” Astarion says as he opens the front door and gestures his arm in a wide arc, as if he is shooing everyone out of the house. Apple, the family dog, is waiting outside and takes off as soon as Gale sprints toward the water with a cheer.

The father chuckles when the twins are placed down in the sand and immediately run after their older brother. As he readies to pitch the tent, he watches Tav set up a blanket and call after the boys, reminding them to be mindful of how deep they go into the water without their parents.

Astarion hates the beach, but he loves his family.

While the children eat a late lunch in the tent, Astarion works on embroidery. The twins are starting pre-school next term, and Gale will begin second grade. Every year, Astarion adds something new to his eldest’s backpack; this year, he’s starting the same tradition with the younger Ancunins.

The twins both requested dragons for their first piece of embroidery. Evander wanted an orange one; Finnick wanted a green one. Those pieces had been finished earlier that summer and the four-year-olds used their bags for the very first time to bring their own clothes on vacation. Astarion thought Gale would choose another bird — pre-school had been a chicken, kindergarten had been a peacock, and first grade had been an owl — but instead, the boy spent quite a while deciding what he would request this year. And finally, this week, he chose a crab. A small crustacean is almost finished on the side pocket of the eldest Ancunin’s knapsack.

Gale has yet to release Shelly back into the ocean. He’s the last to finish his lunch, and his siblings are already back playing in the waves while his mother watches carefully. Just after he finishes returning his plate to the picnic basket, the boy sneaks up behind his focused father and places the animal in Astarion’s hair with a giggle.

The older elf stiffens as two pinchers snap around his curls, anchoring the small creature to his head.

Astarion looks out to his wife, but Tav is busy with the twins, where they are playing pirates along the shoreline, costume eye patches and hats included. The spindly legs running along his scalp make a shiver run down Astarion’s spine. Cazador used to do something similar to him with rats when he was in the kennels.

“Gale— take it off, now,” Astarion hisses, the tips of his fingers starting to tremble as he sucks a deep breath in.

From his father’s tone alone, the eldest Ancunin can tell he made a mistake and quickly removes the crab from Astarion’s head. He goes to place the creature back in the bucket and frowns up at his father, already on the verge of tears, “Sorry, Papa… it was— I was playing a joke– I didn’t– s-sorry.”

The wind picks up for a moment, swirling around the tent as the most sensitive Ancunin boy blinks away guilty tears. Thankfully, a blast of wind never comes; the child takes a deep breath in and then exhales, like his parents had taught him. Gale had done better about controlling his powers since entering primary school, but the dampener around his neck still helped.

Astarion abandons his project, running a hand through his own hair to dispel the sickening ghostly feeling of tiny legs scrambling along his scalp. He offers a reassuring smile to his eldest, “It’s okay, little prince. Just… don’t put things on my head when I don’t know you’re going to, okay? Ask permission first.”

The silver-haired boy nods and then looks down at his tiny companion, stroking the top of her shelled body with a single finger, “Dad… do you think I’m weird because I really like animals… and I can talk to them?”

Astarion furrows his brow as he watches his son, “No, Gale, I don’t. Why would you ask such a thing?”

“Well, some of the kids at school don’t believe me and they say I’m weird and that I’m lying. But I’m not lying. I could hear Shelly, when she was buried in sand and stuck upside down on the beach… that’s how I found her.”

The father nods as he considers what to say next. Most children with abilities like his son’s join Druid circles early on, or are born into a Druid circle themselves. While there are people like Gale in cities — Jaheira, for example — it is rare.

Astarion joins his son in the sand and extends his fingers out toward the small crustacean. It willingly climbs into the older elf’s hand, and despite his distaste for the animal, the retired rogue forces himself to hold the sea creature.

“Gale, you are talented; the other children do not believe you because they do not yet understand…” Astarion starts, watching as the crab in his hand rubs its pincers together. “You are able to see the beauty in things others don’t… even in the creatures others may consider monstrous. You are like your mother, in that way. You are exceptionally empathetic and kind… but you are not weird, little prince. Not at all.”

Astarion slowly lifts his hand, and his son watches as the father gently places the crab upon his own head once again.

Gale giggles before he says, “I think she likes you, Papa.”

“Does she now?” Astarion asks with a half-faked chuckle as he works to ignore the gooseflesh trailing down his spine.

The boy nods and laughs again before he stands and retrieves the crab from his father’s head.

“I guess I should go put Shelly in the water now,” Gale murmurs, the slightest tinge of sadness in his voice and the smallest pout on his lips as he peers down at the tiny animal.

“I think that would be best, little prince,” Astarion responds, ruffling his son’s curls as he sits back in his beach chair.

The child nods solemnly and then holds the crustacean carefully in both hands as he makes his way to the shoreline. He spends several minutes seated in the rippling water, speaking to the crab, before he finally places her down upon the sand. The creature waves her pincers up and down, as if she’s bidding goodbye to the little boy, and then sidesteps into the ocean and disappears.

Astarion is anticipating sadness when the child returns to his father but instead, he’s wearing a grin, “Papa… did you know mermaids are real?”

The older elf has resumed his embroidery, but pauses for a moment to assess his child curiously. “The crab— Shelly told you that?”

Gale nods and then launches into the story his crustacean companion told him before her release. Astarion listens with a mixture of fascination and confusion, and when the three other Ancunins return to the tent, Gale is sure to tell them mermaids are real, too. Evander and Finnick are both thrilled by this news, because if mermaids are real, then that means leviathans are, too. The twins think maybe one day they will slay a sea monster together.

Several weeks after the island trip, Gale is still obsessed with crabs and Merfolk. The Wizard of Waterdeep, after a short weekend trip to visit the Ancunins, sends his namesake a book on Crustaceology. Gale learns that Shelly was a juvenile Dungeness crab, and that at her full grown size, she will be roughly 30-40 centimeters long. He begins measuring everything in “Shellys,” and even ropes his younger brothers into the behavior.

Gale decides he is about four Shellys tall, while his younger brothers are between two and a half to three Shellys tall. Evander is half a crab claw taller than Finnick. The younger twin is not happy about this announcement and starts standing on his tiptoes whenever he’s near his almost identical (save the minute height difference) brother. For the rest of the summer, everything the boys touch is measured in crabs, to the dismay of their parents and the confusion of the servants and townspeople.

And so, perhaps, the Ancunin boys are a bit weird, after all. But their parents wouldn’t have them any other way.

#astarion fanfic #astarion x tav #baulders gate astarion #astarion fic #astarion x reader #astarion x you #astarion x f!reader #astarion x female reader #astarion reader insert #dadstarion #dadstarion fic #Papastarion

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beekeeperspicnic · 2 days

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Visiting Fulworth

Today @jeremys-come-to-bed-eyes and I went on something that I might have been classified as a "research trip" for The Beekeepers Picnic, if it had happened a few years ago! As it is, there's no hiding that it was just a geeky fan trip.

I didn't invent the idea of Holmes retiring to keep bees in a village called Fulworth - it gets alluded to a few times in the stories, and there is one story set there, 'The Lion's Mane'.

We know Holmes' retirement home is either a 'cottage' or a 'villa', it's a few miles out of Eastbourne, and it's clearly somewhere where it's possible to walk to the sea for a swim. Sherlockian tradition is that the real-life place fitting this description is the village of East Dean.

So, that's where we went - walking from Eastbourne.

This area is famous for it's white chalk cliffs, which are eroding away very quickly. Here is a path to nowhere!

These cliffs are known as the Seven Sisters. They all have names but the only two I remember are Short Bottom and Rough Bottom.

The beach there is all pebbles - I knew that when creating my game, but I felt like a pebble beach just wouldn't look right all in pixels, so I made it sandy instead.

East Dean is absolutely gorgeous, basically everything I could have hoped for.

Here is the village green - flying a Ukrainian flag in solidarity!

And here is Mr Holmes' official cottage. As far as we could tell its now an office of the local estate rather than someone's house, so we didn't feel too weird taking lots of pictures! The Lions Mane implies his cottage is a little way out of the village, but I'll forgive them for putting it in the centre instead.

(I think that the dates are obviously the dates he lived there as recorded by his biographer - our last information on Holmes is from 1917. I think they made the right call not to try to invent a date for his death.)

A lot of the cottages in the area have this really distinctive mixture of pebbles and brick which I think must be a hallmark of the local area, but I was pleased to see a few whitewashed buildings like the ones I put in the game:

Thank you for reading, please enjoy this adorable foal.

#the beekeeper's picnic #sherlock holmes #sussex retirement #sussex cottage

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nebulablakemurphy · 1 year

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Moves & Countermoves (Part 15)

Summary: No one ever wins the games, even fourteen years later, Y/N is still playing. Warning: depictions of labor/childbirth and violence/death.

“Y/N,” Effie all but accosts the woman emerging from the hallway.

“What’s wrong?” Y/N frowns, bewildered by Effie’s urgency.

She is in tears, “it’s Cinna.”

“What happened to Cinna?”

“He’s…he’s dead.”

Again the floor is falling out from beneath her, sinking, never ending. “How?”

“I don’t know, dear.” Effie breathes, it’s all being kept hush.

“I have to-” Haymitch left before Y/N, allowing her to rest. Her eyes are still swollen from the tears, no amount of sleep or makeup will hide it. “Haymitch is waiting for me.” Does he know?

“Of course,” Effie nods, excusing herself.

Y/N moves for the elevator, jamming the call button repeatedly with her finger. It dings upon arrival, moving at a snail’s pace to the ground floor.

The outdoor viewing area is open today. As if nice weather is reason enough for a picnic, while tributes slaughter each other on screen.

Chaff is still alive; hiding, waiting it out.

The current threat is monkey mutts, blood rain and the giant tidal wave; that sends Peeta and Katniss’ alliance to meet up with Johanna, Wiress and Beetee on the beach.

“Johanna?” Finnick spots her first, covered in blood from head to toe. “Johanna.”

“Finnick!”

“Looks like we have more allies,” Peeta remarks.

Y/N finds her husband, near the far wall of the indoor viewing area. He’s easier to spot in a crowd after all these years, the width of his shoulders, the color of his hair.

“Just couldn’t stay away, huh?” He is tired, worn down and unfortunately, the only news she has to share does nothing to help.

“Cinna’s dead.” Y/N whispers, plopping down in the seat beside him.

“Blight hit the forcefield, died on impact. Female morphling sacrificed herself to save Peeta.” Haymitch adds to the death toll.

“Do you think he lied? Plutarch.” That’s what gamemakers do. They lie to get in your head.

“His plan is to get Katniss out. I don’t think he lied about that.” If they keep this alliance going long enough-

“What about Peeta?” What about everyone else?

Can’t protect anyone in an arena. “He’ll be with Katniss.”

“Tick tock,” Wiress says, for what must be the hundredth time. Grabbing Johanna by the forearms to spin her.

“What’s wrong with her?” Katniss asks.

“She’s in shock, dehydration isn’t helping.” Beetee tells Katniss.

“I’ll get her some water.” Gloss takes the spile into the tree line. His back is torn up pretty good from the mutts.

“Tick tock.”

Katniss leads Wiress out into the water. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

Johanna follows, while Beetee stays closer to shore, winding something on a spool.

“What’s Beetee got there?” Katniss wonders.

“Some kind of coil.” Johanna picks pieces of debris from her axe.

“Did he get it from the cornucopia?”

“Took a knife in the back to get it.”

“Tick tock.” Wiress gasps.

“I can’t,” Johanna holds up a hand in defeat. “Have fun with nuts.”

“Tick tock,” Katniss repeats, though it makes little sense to her. Allowing the water to wash away any blood clinging to Wiress’ hair.

Y/N looks to Haymitch, “tick tock?”

He lifts a shoulder, hell if I know.

Lightening strikes the large tree, at the far end of the arena, twelve times. Almost like- “a clock.” Y/N mutters under her breath, “chimes on a clock.”

“Twelve sections.” Haymitch realizes, “everything stays in its own…the forcefields in between.”

“Oh,” Wiress bobs up from the water. “Tick tock.”

“Tick tock,” Katniss says again, “it’s a clock. Wiress, you’re a genius.”

————————————————————————

With this new knowledge, the alliance heads back to the cornucopia.

“It all starts with the lightening. Then the blood rain, fog and monkeys, that’s the first four hours. At ten, that big wave hits from over there.” Katniss pauses to watch Peeta sketch a crude outline of the arena, with his sword.

“The tail points at twelve,” Peeta adds.

“That’s where the lighting strikes, at noon and midnight.”

“Strikes where?” Beetee asks.

“That big tree.”

Beetee cocks his head to the side, “good.”

“Hickory dickory dock, the mouse ran up the clock,” Wiress is singing softly to herself, beside the water.

Gloss takes a seat beside her to keep watch, smiling kindly. He doesn’t know this song.

“What about the other hours, did you guys see anything?” Cashmere asks Johanna and Beetee, hoping to fill in the other six wedges.

“Nothing but blood.”

“Doesn’t matter,” Peeta moves to stand, “as long as we steer clear of whatever sector’s active, we’ll be safe.”

“Yeah,” Finnick chimes in, “relatively speaking.”

Wiress gasps in surprise, drawing their attention.

Brutus is there with his sword buried in Gloss’ sternum. He had shielded Wiress with his own body. Gloss tumbles into the water. Cannon.

Leaving Wiress dead by Enobaria’s hand. Cannon.

Katniss draws her bow, the other victors now on defense.

Cashmere is lost in a fit of rage, knocking Brutus from the rocks.

The archer lands an arrow in Enobaria’s left arm, the career diving back into the water.

Haymitch scrubs a hand over his face. No time to digest the news as the entire cornucopia begins to spin. What the hell are you doing, Plutarch?

Johanna keeps hold of Katniss for as long as she can, but she is eventually lost to the whirling water.

She’ll drown. Y/N gnaws at the inside of her cheek. She’ll drown while I’m sitting here and all I can do is watch.

The spinning stops, the same way it started; suddenly and without cause. Eventually Katniss is able to kick to the surface, the viewing room cheers.

“Let’s just get what we need and get off the bloody island.” Johanna scowls, patting at Katniss’ back while she hacks up water from her lungs.

————————————————————————

“Besides Brutus and Enobaria, who’s left?” Katniss asks, sifting sand between her fingers.

They are back on the beach now.

“Maybe Chaff,” Peeta offers, “just those three.”

“They know they’re outnumbered, I doubt they’ll attack again.” Finnick reasons, “we’re safe here, on the beach.”

Cashmere hasn’t said a word…not since Gloss.

“So what, we hunt them down?”

“Katniss!” Prim’s howl ends the conversation prematurely. “Katniss, help me!”

“Prim!” Katniss takes off; without back up, or logical thought. Prim is in danger and she needs to save her.

“Katniss, wait.” Peeta chases after her, his leg becoming more irritated with every step. Still he presses on, ignoring it as best he can.

The bird carrying Prim’s scream is shot dead. Jabberjays.

Finnick is the fastest, joining Katniss in the clearing. “Katniss, are you ok?”

“Finnick! Ahhhh!” Annie’s voice draws him deeper into the forest.

“Annie! Annie, where are you?”

Peeta pounds his fist uselessly against the forcefield. They can’t hear him, he can’t hear them.

Katniss and Finnick run back towards the beach, only to realize that they are trapped. Birds wailing all around them. Katniss sees Peeta before she collides with the forcefield.

“It’s ok, it’s ok. They’re just mutts, they’re not real.” Peeta yells, hoping Katniss can make out the words.

She screams, covering her ears, crumpling to the ground. Peeta follows; touching his forehead to the forcefield. They wait for the hour to pass.

Y/N’s lower back is taut, spasming and releasing, stealing the air from her lungs.

Haymitch notices the uncomfortable shifting beside him. “You ok?”

Y/N nods, not trusting her own voice.

Haymitch begins thumbing circles along her spine.

————————————————————————

Word comes from Plutarch, the extraction is happening tonight. A hovercraft commandeered by district thirteen will arrive shortly and they will go. Collecting the remaining victors, under the guise of death.

Beetee’s plan is a good one, it will cause enough of a distraction. Using his wire to conduct electricity from the lighting strike at midnight.

“How do we know the wire’s not gonna burn up?” Johanna demands, leaning heavily against a tree branch.

“Because I invented it,” Beetee looks up at her. “I assure you, it won’t burn up.”

Cashmere stares out at the water. The hovercraft never came to collect Gloss’ body. Did the cornucopia tear it up? Or do they just not care enough to recover it?

Finnick returns to the sea, waiting out the sunset.

Katniss and Peeta find solace in each other, the way they always have.

“I think we need to go.”

“This plan’s gonna work,” Peeta disagrees.

“I think so too,” Katniss whispers. “Once the careers are dead, we all know what happens next. I don’t wanna be the one that shoots first.”

“What if they don’t either? What if all of us refuse to shoot first?”

The gamemakers will send mutts, or perhaps gun them down if they’re feeling impatient. “We might still end up dead.”

“Maybe not,” Peeta lifts a shoulder, “I mean it worked for us last time.”

“They’re not gonna make that mistake again. We both know there’s only one person walking out of here and it’s gonna be one of us.”

“The careers are still out there. I say we stick with these guys till midnight, and if we hear a cannon, we go.”

Katniss nods in agreement.

“Katniss, I don’t know what kind of deals you made with Haymitch, but he made me promises too.”

“Way to throw me under the bus, kid.” Haymitch raises his glass to Peeta before chugging it down.

Y/N just shakes her head. For a man who claims he doesn’t love those kids, he sure does make a lot of deals. With them, for them, doing his damnedest to keep them alive.

When the star crossed lovers kiss, there is no denying it’s real. Katniss loves Peeta, Peeta loves her. Finally she understands, what Y/N had been trying to tell her, that day on the train. Peeta is that person; her best friend, her partner, the one who waits.

“Alright, lovebirds.” Johanna calls them back.

What’s left of the alliance heads to the lighting tree.

————————————————————————-

“You two girls go together now.” Beetee hands Katniss and Johanna the wire. “Unspool it carefully, make sure the entire wire is in the water. Then head to the tree at the two o’clock sector, we’ll meet you there.”

“I’m gonna go with them as a guard.” Peeta insists.

“No,” Beetee’s head snaps toward him. “You’re staying here to protect me…and the tree.”

“No, I need to go with her.” Peeta is not backing down.

“They’re trying to separate them.” Madge realizes, pulling the throw pillow into her lap. The children and her mother are asleep, leaving only her and her father on the couch.

Y/N’s family set up camp in Victor’s Village, providing Everest and Arista some normalcy. In their own house, in their own beds. They are often found in their parent’s room, clinging to pieces they left behind.

“I’m sure there’s a reason.” The mayor shoots his daughter a reassuring smile.

They rarely watch the games together, not since she was a child. Under different circumstances Madge might think their time spent together was nice.

Katniss leaves with Johanna. Staring back at Peeta until the darkness swallows his silhouette.

A few feet later Katniss feels a bit of resistance from the line, tugging lightly. Must be stuck on a rock. “It’s caught on something.”

Brutus cuts the wire, sending the loose end flying back toward Katniss.

Johanna turns on her then, slicing a gash in Katniss’ arm and smearing the blood across her neck. “Stay down.” She tosses her axe at the careers and darts off into the woods.

Katniss pushes herself upright once their footsteps are out of earshot. “Peeta.”

“Johanna,” Finnick comes to check on his friend, after the commotion.

Katniss remains silent, allowing him to pass her by. Gathering her bow, she heads back to the tree.

Cashmere is missing and Peeta is gone. Leaving only Beetee; unconscious and twitching after an ill fated tryst with the conductor.

His spear harbors the evidence, wire still wrapped around it’s blade.

A cannon sounds, symbolizing Chaff’s death.

“Peeta!” Katniss screams.

Finnick sprints back toward the sound, “Katniss, where are you?”

She draws her bow, aimed at Finnick as he returns.

“Remember who the real enemy is.”

Just like Haymitch said…

The artificial storm cloud looms above them, and Katniss knows what must be done. There is only one shot at this, one way it ends.

“Katniss, get away from that tree,” Finnick warns.

She does not heed it, preparing for her final act. Twisting the wire around her arrow, a single shot toward the bolt of lightning. Her body is sent flying when it collides.

The screen goes black, Madge’s mouth agape. Nothing like this has ever happened. What will happen? What will Snow do?

She doesn’t have long to agonize over the prospect before the old communication system hums to life. Static cracking through the speaker. A jumble of nonsense and then a voice, her voice. Madge would know it anywhere.

“Into the woods-”

“Y/N,” Mayor Undersee nearly trips in his haste to reach the receiver. “Sweetheart, are you there?”

“District twelve…” the line crackles, “into the woods.” Then she is gone.

They aren’t able to revive the signal.

“We have to move.” Madge understands.

“She wasn’t making any sense.” Her father argues. “It might be safer if we stay-”

“Y/N is stuck in the Capitol, that may be the last message she ever sends and she sent it here. To you, to me. So we have a chance.”

He squares his jaw, struggling to accept this news. Not because he thinks his daughter is wrong…because he knows that she is right.

“I’m gonna warn the Everdeens and then I’m taking Everest and Arista into the woods where it’s safe. Pounding on doors and screaming, all the way, for our people to follow.”

“Get the kids ready to move, I’ll get your mother.”

“Thank you.” Madge says, chest heaving as she turns on her heels. Waking the children, taking nothing but the clothes on their backs.

Her parents are waiting at the door, with Gale and Katniss’ family.

“How long do we have?” Gale asks, Primrose and Miss Everdeen tucked away behind him.

“Hovercrafts could be here in an hour, maybe two.” The mayor informs him.

“Something tells me they’re in a hurry.”

————————————————————————

“I need you to take a big breath for me.” Haymitch is kneeling in front of his wife. Cupping her face in his hands, the line is down, they can no longer communicate with district twelve.

“I can’t.” Y/N claws at his hands, unable to deny that she’s having contractions, no more than two minutes apart. “Haymitch…” what if they didn’t get the message.

“Everest and Arista are gonna be waiting for us. Madge too.” Haymitch knows it. There is no other outcome. “Thirteen is sending hovercrafts for evacuation as soon as possible.”

“Did we get Peeta?”

“We have Katniss, Beetee, Finnick and Cashmere, for now. The pilot is swinging back around for Peeta and Johanna.” They only have a few minutes before the Capitol fleet arrives. “We’re gonna get them, ok?”

Y/N nods, breathing out through her nose.

“I need you to focus on this.” He runs a hand over her belly, tense with another contraction. “Healthy baby, healthy you.”

————————————————————————

Katniss startles awake, an oxygen mask tied to her face. She’s in the hovercraft. They’re taking us to the Capitol. Beetee is beside her, still unconscious. They must be holding Peeta elsewhere.

The last thing she remembers is the arrow firing, broken pieces of the arena falling around her and the claw.

“Ahhhhhhh!” A piercing scream echoes through the hovercraft.

All the more terrifying because Katniss knows it, she heard it among the jabberjays. Y/N. They are torturing her. Katniss can’t say how, but it must be something awful. Tearing the flesh from her body…

Removing the mask, she scans the area for something, anything she can use, a syringe. All she needs is a clear shot at one of her veins, save Y/N from whatever they’re planning to do next. Then she would move on to Peeta, spare him this hell.

Katniss hides the weapon behind her back, tapping the glowing access panel to open the door.

Y/N is there, sweat clings the material of her dress to her body; mouth open in an agonized howl.

Haymitch is seated behind her, keeping her upright, holding her hands. Cashmere is perched between her legs.

Finnick spots Katniss first, from his place beside Plutarch, at the holographic display table. “Katniss.”

“Katniss?” Y/N repeats, eyes searching for her.

The syringe clatters to the ground, Katniss charging toward her and crouching at her side.

“Honey, are you ok?” Y/N shakes one hand free from Haymitch’s grasp, reaching for her.

Katniss, takes it, pressing her cheek against the back of her mentor’s hand. No. “I thought…”

Y/N bears down as another contraction ripples through her abdomen.

“That was good.” Cashmere nods, patting Y/N’s knee.

“What is that?” Y/N’s given birth twice before, this is different.

“Just keep doing what you’re doing.” Cashmere encourages as tiny feet appear, “everything is ok.” It’s not ideal, but if they keep the baby moving-

“Where’s Peeta?” Katniss turns to Haymitch.

His eyes are glossy, hesitant to reply, “he’s in the Capitol. They got him and Johanna. We couldn’t get to him in time. But we’re gonna talk to President Coin when we get to district thirteen and figure out the best way to get him back.”

You’re a liar. Katniss wants to scream it, to slap him, hard, for breaking his promise. But it will have to wait. You promised to save him over me.

Exhausted and frustrated, Y/N reaches a hand down to make sense of what’s happening. “Breech?”

“Yeah,” Cashmere breathes.

Finnick is just beyond the blonde’s shoulder, a pained expression on his face. Or perhaps nauseated, watching over Y/N without actively watching.

“Once we deliver the shoulders, it should be easy.” Katniss has seen this before, her mother delivered a handful of breech babies, as a healer. The women of district twelve would call on her when the babies got stuck.

Y/N pushes again, crying out as she does.

Haymitch rests his cheek against the crown of her head. “I’m sorry.” He apologizes to the sound of her sobs. “I’m so sorry.”

Y/N continues, the same way Haymitch has known her to face any difficulty, with fierce determination. The infant is placed on her chest, kicking and crying. Healthy; same as her brother and sister before her.

Part 16

Series Taglist: @praline357 @flowercrowns-goodvibes @justheretoparty420 @avocadotoastwithegg @treehouse-mouse @emo-markie @spilled-mi1k @magical-spit @greaser9902 @jessicamellarky @yourebuckingkiddingme @smuha2004 @sendhelplease @ninimackbrews @wittiestrain184 @r1dd1kulus @erenluvr69 @helpimhyperfixating @jackierose902109 @jellybear455 @dreammgc @dadbodfanatic-x @ftdtcmlovr @inky-sun @ms-brek-ker @undercover55655

#haymitch abernathy x y/n #haymitch abernathy fanfic #thg haymitch #haymitch abernathy x reader #haymitch abernathy #haymitch abernathy x you #haymitch x y/n #haymitch fanfic #haymitch abernathy x yn #haymitch x reader #katniss everdeen #peeta mellark

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sourlemonsprout · 3 months

Text

gn!reader x Alphonse

Word Count: 1,078 (This piece briefly references the "Summer Eve w/ Your Pastel Punk Boyfriend" vid from like 4yrs ago.)

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

"Music?" Al cocked his head slightly.

"Yeah! Remember when we got ice cream the other week? At the beach, you said if I was interested we could hang out sometime. Your suggestion of lying around and listening to music actually sounded really nice. That is if you're cool with that?" you said, your eyes scanning around the store, lightly bitting at the corner of your bottom lip.

oh-

"Uh yeah, yeah! That would be cool. I close up shop in a little over an hour. Is that alright?" He asked, a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"Sure thing! I'll come back then!" You said, waving as you headed out the door.

fuck they're cute

The shop had been a wasteland the rest of the day, so Alphonse eventually decided to close the shop a little early. The second the doors were locked and lights were out, he scrambled to clean his apartment. The clothes on the bedroom floor got kicked into the closet. The dishes beside the kitchen sink were cleaned in record time. Just before he heard a knocking at the shop's doors, he was able to tidy up the living room area. Taking a deep breath, Al ran his hand through his hair and glanced around the apartment one last time before answering the door.

"Hey there, come on in," he motioned inside.

"Again, feel free to grab anything you'd like from the shop," he said, locking the door once again behind him.

"Thanks, my day was kinda shitty, so I appreciate this," you admit. As you pass the rows of shelves stocked with delicious sweet treats, you snatch a KitKat from a basket as you walk beside Al to the back door.

"Oh, sorry to hear that. Did you wanna talk about it…?" He offered.

"Nah, it's not that serious. I just wanna chill and forget about it," you say, chomping directly into the top of the KitKat bar, which makes Al chuckle and admittedly cringe a little. You pause for a moment once you've reached the vaguely familiar living quarters you visited once before. Absentmindedly, you chew at your lip, taking in the apartment properly this time. Alphonse briefly looked around the room before his eyes landed on you. He can't help but feel a flush of heat rise to his cheeks as he watches you bite your lip innocently. As nonchalantly as possible, Al ducked behind you and made his way over to the kitchen. Now out of sight, a deep breath to regain his composure.

"Make yourself comfortable! I'm gonna grab some water. You want anything to drink?" he called out.

"I'm alright, thanks!" you call back, oblivious to Al's fluster. You wander over to the living room and sit in front of the couch on the carpet with one leg up and the other crossed underneath. You watch Al enter the room carrying a deck of cards, a baby blue speaker, and a glass of water. Upon reaching you, he places the water down on a little coffee table and hands you the speaker to which you're making little grabby hands.

"I thought it'd be fun to have something to do while we listen to music." Al gestured to the cards in his hand. As you eagerly queue up a list of songs, Alphonse begins to shuffle the deck of cards.

"So what games do we know how to play?" he asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Crazy Eights, Slap Jack, Rummy, Black Jack, uhh… Go Fish?" he reeled off.

"Ooo, it's been a minute since I've played any card game," you pondered your options for a moment.

"Let's start out with Crazy Eights, I definitely know that one!" you decide. Alphonse deals out seven cards each, his head nodding in beat with the song pouring out of the speaker.

The first few turns passed slowly as you both sorted your cards and got into the rhythm of the game. Alphonse found it silly how much strategy you were trying to implement in a game he believed to be mostly chance. After several rounds of skill, luck, and shit-talking, you were both tied.

"We need a tiebreaker," you declare, reaching for the deck of unorganized cards.

Al sarcastically said, "Obviously, the town would be devastated if we didn't determine which of us is the Crazy Eight's champion," rolling his eyes with a grin. Thus began an intense game (mainly for you) for the crown and title of official Crazy Eights champion.

Rolling the bottom of your lip under your teeth, you surveyed your cards intently, plotting your next move as if money were on the line. Alphonse smiled softly as he watched you concentrate. His heart flutters at the way you nibble at your lips, causing them to swell and redden. Your expression delates with defeat and your eyebrows furrow as you realize you have to pick up cards from the draw pile. A warm bubbly feeling swells in Al's chest, and suddenly, he wanted nothing more than to lean across the table and kiss yo-

"AH HA!" You shout triumphantly, making Al jump slightly at the sudden outburst as you proudly display an eight or spades.

"I call clubs babyyyy," you declare smugly, knowing damn well Al didn't have a single club card in his hand. Alphonse chuckled as you slid the entire draw deck towards his side of the table.

"You're something else, you know that?" he shook his head, drawing his seventh card.

As the night wore on, you and Alphonse continued to play card games and listen to music, occasionally pausing to chat about life and share stories. Any tension or fluster Al once felt had melted into a comfortable ease, it felt lovely to open up to someone like this again. As the clock struck midnight, you both decided it was time to call it quits.

"Thanks for tonight, Alphonse. I had a lot of fun," you said, standing up from the floor to stretch.

"I did too. We should do this again sometime," he replied, walking you to the door.

"Goodnight," he whispered, his eyes meeting yours.

"Goodnight," you replied, feeling a warmth spread through your body.

As you walked home under the beautiful night sky, you couldn't wipe the smile from your face. Maybe there was something there between you and Alphonse, something worth exploring. Only time would tell, but for now, you were content basking in the glow of a wonderful evening.

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

The End!

Thanks again @sleeplessdreamer14 for the req/idea! <3

I'm not exactly sure why this is the story route I went down, but I must really want to play a card game or something considering this is the second piece I've written where card games are involved lol.

#yuurivoice #yuurivoice stuff #yuurivoice alphonse #alphonse yuurivoice #yuurivoice fanfic #writting #fanfic #fluff #yv fanfic #yuurivoice listener #first request!#yuurivoice fandom #lip biting #sourlemonsprout

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catiuskaa · 5 months

Note

hi katsy poo... thought long and hard about this and came up w absolutely nothing. i had to dig far into my messy notes app to find ideas and these are from all the way back in summer for context ☠️☠️

have you ever been to the beach/pool and seen a cute lifeguard yk? i was thinking maybe skz as lifeguards - this is derived from a lifeguard chan idea my friend and i were talking about <3 (i just thought - jisung giving you a smooch after saving you but playing it off as mouth-to-mouth resuscitation cause he's too shy to admit he's crushing)

excited to see where your mind takes this! cannot wait <33

BABY THAT’S ACTUALLY GENIUS!?

I can actually see it like -excited sounds-

It got me thinking! So I’m turning this into a mix of small blurbs and I'm not apologizing

I'm trying, but they're hot! —lifeguard!skz

To have a baseline, I don't think Meowracha would fit. Like. i just couldn't picture Minho or Felix in this?? (sorry if you were expecting those two!)

But, because of that, they're the besties who —after a thorough session of negotiating, and a large, strained okaaaaaaaaayy from Minho—, agree to go with you to your usual fitness center, which recently opened a swimming pool facility! (and they've hired a certain group of lifeguards... oh wow...)

(got carried out: 2k words)

"This place smells like plastic. And I can't even swim."

You rolled your eyes as Felix snickered, the three of you checking into the new building.

"Minho, there are other things aside from the pool. That's why I even invited you in the first place, like I mentioned the last seven times you started whining about the exact same thing." You let out an exaggerated huff as you smirked, shaking your head sideways.

You separated from your small group as you entered the changing rooms, and quickly put on your dark-coloured swimsuit, your towel resting on your shoulders when you got in the brand new area.

And let me tell you, it was big.

Impressed by the depth of the building, you couldn't see a couple of small-looking kids running around the swimming pool playing tag in loud, childish giggles.

"Careful!" A voice warned, but it startled you, and you jumped in your place, slipping on the wet floor.

Not one of your fanciest of moments, no.

Or so you thought, until your back didn't quite meet the floor, but instead softly crashed against a lean, warm surface.

Knowing Felix would immediately ask you if you were alright and Minho would threaten to let go in less than a second, you looked up at your saviour, and you were welcomed by a handsome rounded face, eyes small because of his heartwarming smile.

Forcing your stumbling legs up, you froze in front of him and stuttered. "T-thank you. Or... I'm sorry. Wasn't paying attention," you managed to let out, followed by a pink dust colouring your cheeks.

fuck, shit, fuck. why did he have to be hot too?!

"Totally fine!" He brushed off nonchalantly, his smile shining enthusiastically, so contagious you couldn't help but grin back.

He called over the member of staff who had warned you, his voice loud to the point were you had to restrain yourself from jumping in your place again when he screamed his name, not wanting to trip another time, and as he smiled at you and walked off to look for the problematic kids or their parents, you could read Changbin on the back of his red and white shirt, the short sleeves letting you see an extensive trail of inked lines that got lost underneath his top and swimming shorts.

what a piece of cake.

Almost in an instant, a slightly younger lifeguard approached you, not quite panting, but really close to doing so. You got flustered, not knowing exactly how to react, and just stared at him while he rested his hands on his waist, looking like he had run several marathons in less than an hour.

"I'm so sorry...! I should've stopped the kids... or warned you sooner..." He sighed, looking quite tired despite it barely being his first week.

"Don't sweat, I'm okay." You shrugged sheepishly. "Rough day?" You smiled, hoping to get one back from him.

He scoffed, amused. You celebrated silently. "More like a rough job... Uh! I mean, no! I love my job...!" You grinned, raising your eyebrows, shocked yet still unable to hold back a sheepish snicker. "Ah, shi... I mean... goddamnit, please don't tell Chan..." he muttered, defeated.

"Oh, wait, Chan?" You blinked, recognizing the nickname. "Wasn't he a trainer in the gym?"

Catching his breath, now looking less stressed, he nodded, hands still on his noticeably really slim waist, unlike the other lifeguard, who was shredded.

"He and Hyunjin were swapped around because they had more experience than other candidates for the jobs. They're both great, don't get me wrong. But Hyunjin should really stop flirting with the group of girls from the synchronized swimming class..." he huffed, then blushed. "Oh." His eyes widened, and he stared at the floor almost mortified.

"Right, eh..." You smiled, amused at his slip-ups, biting your lip softly.

Jisung blushed even more at your giggles, trying and failing to hold it back because he couldn't help but ogle at your defined and fit body from all the exercise you did, being a member of the centre for quite some time. You were a stunning stranger whose giggles were cute. Too much for his caffeine-filled, sleep-deprived self.

"Jisung. Soon-to-be-fired, lifeguard Han Jisung." He presented himself with tired eyes, the last part more for himself than for you, then covered his mouth when he realized he had said it too loud. "I shouldn't have said that...!"

You couldn't help but cackle, unable to hold back your laugh as his blush got to an even deeper shade of pink.

"I'm just... going to... eh... Jeongin is... probably looking for me..."

"Jisung-ah, fighting!" You teased, and he couldn't help but blush even more, smiling as he rushed back to his assigned area of the swimming pool building.

You realized Minho and Felix had been eavesdropping when Minho passed an arm over your shoulders and ruffled your hair, making it messy.

"Yeah, welcome back, cheater," he tsked, smirking.

You struggled to get away from his deathly grip, and Felix rolled his eyes, just laughing at you two.

"Oi, isn't that Chan?" the freckled asked, signalling somewhere else.

"I care more about that hottie who ran away a second ago." Minho scoffed, focused on his own priorities, sounding offended by the fact that he hadn't been able to talk to Jisung.

Felix waved at Chan, and happily waddled his way to him, the two already close friends.

While Minho hurried off to the sauna, Felix and you tried out the main swimming pool, at first actually swimming, but ending up just chatting playfully, Chan joining in from time to time, and then he stayed close during his break.

You got out of the pool and sat on the edge when suddenly you felt someone tickle your sides and push you, making you fall into the water.

Swimming to the surface with ease, you moved your wet hair from your eyes, hiding half down of your face under the water, looking at Chan, who was chuckling.

“Really funny, Mr. Bang.” You mumbled, faking boredom.

“It was Felix’s idea, but I gotta admit that was funny.” He kept on laughing, and that alone was cute, but because he was on a break, to avoid being called over to work, he had taken his shirt off, not feeling cold in the acclimatized environment.

And the image just looked ten times better.

“Reeeally funny.” You were nodding, as if in deep thought. “Help me out?” You smiled innocently, raising one hand towards him.

He grabbed it, but before he could pull you up, you pulled down, his body falling over yours and staying tightly against you for a second, then you smiled under the water and started laughing as soon as you both got back to the surface.

He was blushing, but also smiling cheekily.

“Fair. I deserved that.”

After a while of swimming, laughing and splashing each other, you got out of the pool leaving Felix and Chan on their own, but felt a soft sting in the back of your thigh. Probably from when you were sitting and Chan pushed you to the water, the slight bumps on the stone might've scratched your skin.

You started looking for your towel, but frowned when it wasn’t where you had left it. From the corner of your eye you saw Minho, and he smiled slyly from afar, your towel resting on his shoulders.

what a bitch.

You ran after him but were quickly stopped by yet another lifeguard.

Really, really lucky you.

You were only able to read Seungmin on the back of his shirt before he turned around and frowned, and you struggled to slow down, ending up bumping onto him.

"I'm sorry, uh, I uh..." you stammered, struggling to find an excuse.

He sighed, and deadpanned at you, in his eyes a hint of mockery that didn't reach his face, and it made you even more flustered. He pointed to a sign on the wall, who said in a big, bold font, "do not run near the pool."

"You probably can swim, but can you read, dollface?"

d-dollface?

“Y-yeah, of course I can. I forgot.” You pouted.

He smirked slightly. “You forgot how to read?”

You frowned softly at the tease, and he brushed it off with one hand.

“Where were you going that was so important for you to be running?” He questioned, the sly smirk lingering on his lips, the mockery still there.

“I wanted to go to the infirmary but my friend took my towel.” You defended yourself, but a blush crept from underneath, making your cheeks pink.

The moment you said infirmary, Seungmin’s entire body language changed. The mockery wasn’t gone, but covered by a layer of innocent worry. Cute.

“To the infirmary? Why? Did something happened?” He asked softly, and it surprised you how fast his attitude had changed.

“I just scratched myself. It’s probably nothing…”

He shook his head and smiled, almost tender. “Nonsense. Can I have a look at it?”

You blushed slightly and turned so he could look at the small scratch in the back of your thigh. The area was red, and there was small even more red lines in it, but nothing too wild.

Seungmin cleared his throat. Stay focused.

“You should still put something on it. I’ll do it. Come with me.”

Crossing from where you were with Seungmin you passed by the kids’ swimming pool, and waved at Han, and who you thought was who he had mentioned, Jeongin, struggling to take care of the kids as they all ran around, fighting with the swimming noodles as they used those like swords, and you couldn’t help but smile at the mess.

Seungmin took a small radio device from his waistband, like a black walkie-talkie. “Send Changbin to area 3. Jeongin, office, 6pm.”

The youngest-looking of all the lifeguards in the building approached you two when Seungmin told you to wait while he looked for the first-aid kit.

“Hi, as you might’ve heard, my name is Jeongin. Did you get hurt?” He said, so softly you almost cooed at him because he was so cute.

“Um, I scratched the back on my thigh, yeah.” You smiled a bit, and he smiled back reassuringly.

“I hope it doesn’t sting a lot.” He added kindly, picking up his stuff from a locker. “I would stay and help you, but I assure you that if you’re in Seungmin’s care you have nothing to worry about.” He nodded, almost to himself. “He teases everyone a lot but he’s a nice guy. I… have to go now, my shift has ended. But it was nice to meet you!”

You bid him goodbye, and Seungmin came back in no time, carrying a small bag of medical supplies and a towel. He left it on the side, and opened the bag next to you, taking a small glass bottle of spray from it.

“Could you stand and turn around, please?” He asked formally.

You couldn’t help but blush when he sprayed the medicine, the slight sting making you gasp softly, but it was more because of the position you two were in, and because he held a cotton pad underneath the scratch, brushing your thigh with his hand.

Being outside of the water for so long now, you started feeling cold, shivering softly.

“Darling, can you pass me the towel?”

You blushed almost furiosly at the nickname and did as told, and he opened it and hung it on your shoulders, as you quickly took it and tightened it around you.

“Sorry, I didn’t give it to you before.” He smiled, throwing the cotton away and going back to put the first-aid kit in its place.

It was almost 7pm when the three of you got out of the changing rooms.

“That was really fun!” Felix smiled brightly.

“It was decent. Still couldn’t talk to that cutie back there. We should come back other time.” Minho stated, sounding like an order.

You blushed, thinking about what had happened in so little time.

“Yeah. We should come back soon.”

(teehee, i enjoyed this a lot! Hope you like it too! Thanks a lot, ren! <;333)

~Kats, who now would love to go to that swimming pool!

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laracrofted · 8 months

Text

baby, i'm high octane (v)

synopsis: on fourth of july, nora and jake dance around each other.

pairings: jake seresin x nora rogers (oc)

warnings: 18+, minors dni, swearing, alcohol consumption, existential dread, pining and yearning, kissing, no smut here but come back for the next chapter (wc: 7K)

note: i'm sorry for being so slow. i rewrote this chapter like eight times, i'm not even kidding. i also apologize in advance for where i ended this chapter, but the good news is we'll have seven chapters instead of six 😌

previous chapter | series post | next chapter

tagging // @theharddeck @frenchyjuju @bioodforbiood @cursedtobe @roosterbruiser @t-nd-rfoot @bethbunnyy @filmflux @djs8891 @mayhemmanaged @sometimesanalice @eli2447 @bradshawsbitch @hangmanbrainrot @startrekfangirl2233 @kandierteveilchen @lostinwonderland314 @hangmanscoming @dempy @mlibbydp @stvrlighttsworld @bellaireland1981 @clancycucumber230 @kmc1989 @averagereader35

June slips away over the weekend, a quiet and unassuming end.

As June fades into July, Sunday becomes Monday becomes Tuesday and so on until soon enough, Fourth of July has arrived and more importantly, so has a long weekend.

God bless America.

On the morning of the Fourth, Nora sleeps in for once.

She wakes up a few minutes before 11:00 AM and refreshed – or at the very least, a little less tired than usual – and reaches for her phone, which is once again, buried under her pillows.

A slew of unread notifications are waiting for her when Nora rolls over and looks at the screen.

Two missed calls. Eleven unread messages. One unread email Nora has definitely been meaning to read for a week now. Definitely.

She ignores the email – because really, what's one more day? – and scrolls through the rest of the notifications.

Natasha, 9:40 AM: Are you awake?

Natasha, 9:41 AM: I'm going with no because I knocked and didn't get an answer.

Natasha, 10:00 AM: We're heading out to North Coronado Beach in 10-ish. Payback is bringing his girlfriend. Come join us when you're awake if you'd like!

Bradley, 10:05 AM: Do you have any sunscreen I could borrow?

Bradley, 10:06 AM: Phoenix really wants you to come to the beach btw.

Her smile grows as Nora scrolls down and discovers a message each from the rest of the Naval aviators and even one from an unsaved number with a Louisiana area code that she has to assume is Javy.

"Oh my god," Nora laughs. A loud and delighted sound in the soft quiet of the morning. Natasha’s persistence is both amusing and very touching.

She sends Natasha a quick I'm awake, just need to get dressed as proof of life and stares at Jake's message for a solid 30 seconds, gnawing on the edge of her bottom lip.

She swears under her breath and clicks on the message.

Jake, 10:30 AM: So are you really sleeping or are you just afraid to face me in beach volleyball?

Nora, 10:58 AM: Sorry, who is this?

He responds less than a minute later.

Jake, 10:59 AM: Ha ha

Jake, 10:59 AM: Come to the beach.

Jake, 11:00 AM: Javy and I need another person.

Nora, 11:01 AM: Have you looked on Tinder?

Jake, 11:02 AM: For volleyball, smart ass. We're playing 3 on 3.

Jake, 11:02 AM: Everyone wants you to come.

Jake, 11:02 AM: I want you to come.

She's never been so grateful to be alone than right now. No one else should have to witness the stupidly wide smile pulling at her lips right now, uninvited. She reads the message again, feeling kind of giddy, which is actually kind of ridiculous.

Like objectively ridiculous.

She is kind of ridiculous. This is getting out of hand.

Like on Sunday morning for instance.

She had woken up in the aftermath of Bradley’s party and that damn dream and remembered the night before in such excruciatingly vivid and cinematic detail – high resolution and state-of-the-art surround sound, like the goddamn IMAX of sex dreams – that she had to deep clean the entire apartment as a distraction.

A several hour get up close and personal with the checkered blue in the bathroom, wondering whether it's ever been cleaned, and later, in a sudden panic, open all of the windows in case you've accidentally poisoned yourself with bleach fumes deep clean.

Her one goal? Don't think about Jake.

So Nora wiped down the counters and didn’t think about Jake and vacuumed the living room, between and under the couch cushions included, and didn’t think about Jake and scrubbed the shower and didn’t think about Jake so hard that Nora needed an actual shower afterward. A cold one.

"Get a grip," Nora says out loud now.

She looks out of the window and sees nothing but a clear and cloudless blue. A perfect beach day.

She'll go, of course.

She'll go because Nora loves the beach – and always has – and because Natasha was kind enough to invite her and because Nora wants to meet Reuben's girlfriend and hang out with all of them.

No other reason.

She wonders, not for the first time, not even for the first time this week, when she became so well versed in lying to herself.

She blows out a prolonged breath and responds to Natasha.

Nora, 11:05 AM: I'll be there in 30.

"Not playing, Rogers?"

Noon is bright and beautiful and clear as Nora lowers her sunglasses ever so slightly and glances up from her book at Bradley. Blinding sunlight pierces her blue eyes almost immediately, and she has to hold up a shielding hand to be able to see him.

Hand still raised, Nora shakes her head in answer.

She had definitely overpacked for the beach. She always does, wanting to be prepared.

A well-worn paperback from her nightstand. Sunscreen. A reusable water bottle. An assortment of snacks. A portable phone charger. Chapstick. A claw clip. More snacks. An old film camera, in case Nora feels inspired.

(She loves the way California looks on film. All faded blues and greens.)

After seeing Reuben serve, Nora had never been more grateful for her own overpacking. Natasha and Reuben alternated subbing in for Nora on Jake and Javy's side, and Nora found a good patch of sand on the sidelines where she can watch from a minimum safe distance.

Nora loves a good bit of healthy competition, like all Leos do, but she's nowhere near competitive enough to play with them. She's much happier here.

"I decided I don't need a concussion," Nora says simply.

"We would've gone easy on you," Bradley protests immediately. His grin is just mischievous enough that Nora doesn't believe him.

"Now I'm convinced," Nora drawls dryly.

Bradley laughs, bending over and reaching into the cooler that Reuben's girlfriend, Gracie – a pretty nurse with a deceptively powerful spike – brought. It's filled with lemonade and water and soda and at the very bottom, beer.

His hand sloshes around in the ice until Bradley pulls a couple of beers from the depths. He offers one to Nora wordlessly.

She is still drinking a can of cold brew from La Colombe so Nora waves him off. He drops the second beer back into the cooler with a faint splash and closes the lid.

"Scooch over," Bradley asks and nudges her leg with the side of his sandy foot.

A cool breeze blows in from the ocean as Nora moves over, and Bradley smells like a summery mixture of coconut sunscreen and sweat, dropping down next to her.

He had to dive for a pass in the last game, and his calves are sandy as Bradley kicks out his legs and buries his toes in the sand.

Ice cold condensation rolls down the side of Bradley's fresh can of beer and drips down his arm onto Nora's legs. She sets her book aside with a frown, not wanting him to drip water on the pages, which are already a little wrinkled from her dropping it in a pool once.

She crosses her legs. Wipes the water from her skin.

Her damp palm smears across his bare shoulder as Nora wipes the water on him. Just to be annoying. She's surprised – and kind of alarmed – by how warm Bradley's skin is, scorching.

His shoulders are already a concerning shade of pink, and Nora asks, "Did you even put on the sunscreen I brought you?"

His chin dips in a nod, and Nora can see smudges of sunscreen residue around his reddening ears. "I burn easily."

He cracks open the beer with a crisp pop and fizz sound, like a sound effect from a Bud Light commercial. A wave of foam rapidly rises, and Bradley slurps it down with a muttered curse, only barely avoiding spilling it all over his lap.

"You should put on more," Nora says. She looks at his back and grimaces. "You're like giving off heat right now."

Another sip, and Bradley lets out an exaggerated ah! sound. "Are you offering to put it on for me? If you wanted to rub my shoulders so badly, you could've asked."

"It's a spray," Nora deadpans.

He visibly holds back a grin, mustache twitching, and Nora rolls her eyes.

Bradley pulls his sunglasses down with a crooked pinky and absentmindedly watches the current game over the edges of the golden rims. Drinks his beer. Reuben, Mickey, and Gracie are facing off against Jake, Javy, and Natasha right now while Bob is refereeing.

She pulls her book back into her lap and leans her chin on her open palm, reading, interpreting his silence as the end of the conversation.

Silly her, right?

She only manages to get through another paragraph and a half when Nora is interrupted again.

"So..." Bradley cuts in casually. "What's up? I feel like I haven't seen you all week."

Her brow scrunches as Nora frowns slightly. "You've seen me."

A drop of sweat rolls down his neck as Bradley shakes his head. "Barely."

"We had lunch yesterday," Nora reminds him. Did Bradley fall on his knees or on his head during that last dive?

"You're usually around more, like in the Ready Room, but I hung out in there a few times between drills, and you were always gone."

"I was in the hangar," Nora explains, deliberately oblivious. She knows Bradley is asking after the why – not the where.

"Why?" Bradley asks, directly so Nora can't dodge him again. She makes a face.

Why, indeed.

Frankly, because Bradley happened to be paired with Jake on a lot of the same drills and so, happened to be on the ground at the same time as him.

Nora isn't avoiding Jake. Per se.

Avoiding him would be unprofessional and also, kind of impossible and not really fair to him. He hasn't done anything. It's her. She has just been a little more... scarce than usual.

Bradley is more collateral damage than anything else.

He looks over before Nora has a chance to compose her face. "Why do you look like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like..." Bradley searches for the right phrase. He seeks wisdom in another sip of beer. "...you're my bunkmate on the carrier about to ask if I can find another place to crash for the night so I can get laid.”

She stares at him blankly. "I'm confused. Are you getting laid? Or am I?"

"Don't change the subject, Rogers."

"Me?" Nora exclaims. "You're the one with the confusing analogy."

"Just..." He waves his beer around. "Tell me."

Sighing, Nora sneaks a subtle – or rather, hopefully subtle – glance at Jake.

Shirtless, Jake is gleaming in the golden glow of the sun, glistening with an attractive sheen of sweat, all muscles and sun-kissed skin, rolling and flexing and all of those delicious words. He is wearing a backwards baseball cap, damp strands of golden hair swept across his forehead and underneath, making him look ruffled and boyish and so goddamn handsome.

And Jake's arms. His massive arms.

One of those arms wipes across his glistening forehead as Jake spikes the ball and sends Reuben and Mickey diving into the sand on the other side of the net. His cocky grin is blinding.

And even from here, Nora feels her pulse quicken. She feels like a dropped can of soda, one hard shake from bursting open.

She needs to get a grip and soon.

"You don't want to know," Nora promises.

"Tell me," Bradley nudges. "How bad can it really be?"

Well. She did warn him.

"I had a sex dream about Jake."

He chokes. A stream of beer dribbles down his chin and splashes across his bare chest, running down his abdomen in rivulets. Nora holds back a laugh, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Why would you tell me that?" Bradley looks pained, asking the question like, What did I ever do to you? Like, Why do you hate me so much?

"You asked," Nora replies calmly.

Mopping the beer from his chest with a balled-up shirt, Bradley looks pained. He coughs into his elbow. "I did not ask about – "

"Besides," Nora continues, ignoring him. "I needed to tell someone, and I couldn't scar Natasha like this so early in our friendship. I need advice."

"What... exactly is the problem?" Bradley asks, slow and reluctant, with a comical lack of enthusiasm; like she's forced the question out of him at gunpoint.

"Well, I guess I like him." Nora draws her knees in and brushing sand from her skin, warm from the sun, rests her arms on them. "Which is probably a bad idea, I know."

"Probably," Bradley echoes. He bobs his head from side to side, weighing his words, considering. "But really, what's a good idea?"

Surprise makes Nora look at him, sharp and sudden. "What does that mean?"

His shoulder drops into a shrug. "I guess, I mean Hangman is a good enough guy. You could do worse."

Brows raised, Nora asks, "Really? When exactly did you guys kiss and make up?"

Bradley wiggles his eyebrows suggestively. "Is that what gets you hot these days?"

He laughs when Nora digs her elbow into his side. She snorts despite herself. "You're such an ass. But really, aren't you going to try to talk me out of it? I expected you to be against the idea."

His laughter cools into something more thoughtful, more contemplative as Bradley asks, "Did you know my mom took six months to agree to go out with my dad?”

She shakes her head.

A kind of sad smile pulls at his mouth. A ghost of a smile. "Yeah. She wanted him to prove himself or something. She wanted someone who'd be serious about her. He obviously did, or I wouldn't be here."

A pause, and Nora patiently waits for him to continue.

"My birthday always brings up a lot of memories. I'm 36 now. Another year older than my dad ever got to be, which never gets any less weird. I never asked, but if she’d known how it would end, I bet she would’ve done some things differently. I know she would’ve done anything for six more months with him.”

Bradley says, "You like him. He likes you. And you've got what? Four more weeks here?"

A cool dread pools in the bottom of her stomach at the reminder, and Nora nods with a wan smile. Her opposite fist clenches and unclenches where Bradley can't see.

"Exactly. You're not gonna be here forever. Why not see what happens?"

Her knees drop open as Nora crosses her legs. She brushes sand from her ankles, runs her thumb over the delicate bone there, a soothing back and forth motion, meditative. Contemplating.

"He'd just be so..."

Ahead, as Javy prepares to serve, abdomen rippling as the Naval aviator raises his arm high, Jake cups his large hands around his mouth and heckles Reuben and Mickey. They give him the bird in unison, and even Gracie narrows her eyes.

Jake grins widely. So damn pleased with himself.

She drops her gaze before Jake can catch her watching him.

"So smug," Nora finishes. "He'd be so goddamn smug."

Bradley laughs. "Can't argue with you there."

He winds an arm around her shoulders, sympathetic and sweaty, and Nora leans her head on his shoulder. Her own shoulders are warm from sunshine. Her cheeks are pink.

She's probably overdue for a dip in the ocean.

"Do you know where you're going after this? At the end of this project, I mean?" Bradley asks quietly, and when Nora doesn't respond right away, looks at her sidelong. His brown eyes are warm in the afternoon sun, honeyed with flecks of amber. "Or should I not ask?"

Her answering sigh is almost lost amongst the sounds of the ocean waves, gently crashing against the shore, almost but not quite. "Please don't ask."

He acknowledges her words with a hum. "Gotcha."

Soon, Bradley finishes his beer and rejoins Natasha and Bob for the next game, huddling up, and Nora can feel Jake's eyes on her like she can feel the sun on her shoulders, like a burst of warmth.

She gives up any hope of reading her book and lays down. Closes her eyes. Basks in the warmth of the afternoon; in the sounds of gulls overhead and shouts of laughter; in the rush of salt air over her skin, on her tongue.

Everything else washes away, caught in the rising tide and carried out to sea. At least, for now.

A few hours later, after Nora has gone home and rinsed the sweat and sand from her skin and dressed again, she catches a ride with Natasha and Bob to the Hard Deck to meet the rest of the Naval aviators.

Penny is hosting something of a private Fourth of July barbecue – but with more alcohol and aside from a party-sized bag of Lay's chips Nora saw on the bar, no barbecue – in the early evening before San Diego's annual firework show, which kicks off around dusk.

The Hard Deck bar is a sea of khaki uniforms and crisp denim and shades of red, white, and blue, and Penny clearly decorated for the occasion.

A paper banner of red, white, and blue stars hangs across the large windows in the back, rustling like autumn leaves in the slight breeze from the side door. And cross-legged on a barstool by the windows, a cute but highly impractical pair of pale blue suede cowboy boots on her dangling legs, Nora leans an elbow on her knee, watching Jake and Natasha's nine ball game.

Dressed in a linen button-down, which pulls deliciously over his back muscles, Jake knocks a hard-to-reach ball into a pocket with a devil-may-care smirk. Natasha visibly winces.

"Think I want a rematch, Bagman," Natasha announces with a resigned swig of beer.

"Oh, Bagman again, is it?" Jake lets out a low and mocking whistle. "Haven't heard that one in a while. You must really be pissed, huh, Phoenix?"

Brows raised, Jake flawlessly executes a series of complicated shots while holding her dark gaze, which grows progressively steelier with every click and clack.

"Nora," Natasha says in a scary calm voice. "You can probably reach him best over there. Would you mind strangling Bagman for me?"

"Happily," Nora quips.

Jake makes a whole show of clutching his chest and pretending to be deeply offended, which lasts for all of 20 seconds. "No one likes a sore loser, Trace."

And Bob – who until now has been quietly observing from a barstool on Natasha's end – carefully sweeps cracked peanut shells and popcorn residue from his lap and chimes in with some much-needed optimism.

"You can still win. You still have..."

He launches a long-winded and strategic breakdown of all the different strategies and angles Natasha has left in her arsenal, counting them off. As if Natasha is competing in some Las Vegas championship, not playing a few amicable – well, maybe semi-amicable – rounds in a dive bar.

And while Nora is a very casual enjoyer of pool and doesn't understand half of what Bob is saying, she does understand that Jake is beating Natasha. Badly. Obnoxiously so.

An argument will definitely break out if Jake wipes the floor with Natasha. Nora can feel it in the air, like a crackle of electricity, an indigo downdraft before a summer storm.

So as Jake grows closer, setting up for the coupe de grâce, Nora catches the crisp sleeve of his linen button-down, fabric pulling tight across his muscular bicep.

He pauses. Turns.

Forehead wrinkling, Jake looks down at Nora, expectant.

He smells... so damn good. Focus.

"Don't be an asshole," Nora says coolly.

"You'll have to be more specific, I'm afraid."

She gives him a withering look, and god, Jake definitely wants to laugh. She can see it in his eyes, bright and gleaming and green and so close.

"About the game," Nora clarifies dryly. "Don't be an asshole about the game."

His gaze drops down to where Nora is still holding his sleeve. She releases it as if burned.

Amusement creases the corners of his eyes, and Jake drawls, "No promises, sweetheart," and pulls away.

Even so, Jake's next move – one that could've easily been a game ender – is a little less precise, a little less powerful than his previous one. It’s not enough to sink the nine ball.

And Natasha lives to see another turn.

A Tears for Fears song comes on as Natasha openly celebrates, drawing her fist down, victorious. Bob and Mickey cheer and clap from the sidelines. Her own personal cheerleaders.

Nora's lips curl upwards.

Three Naval aviators are notably absent from the group at the back of the Hard Deck right now. Reuben is with Gracie, who wanted to get a good spot for the fireworks on Harbor Island, and Bradley had gone straight from the beach to Captain Mitchell's and is now late.

(Bradley sent her a message peppered with various emojis and general incoherence but ending in L8, which was easy enough to understand.)

Javy is around here... somewhere. He vanished into the crowd like 20 minutes ago for a refill and some snacks and never came back. He's probably catching up with some of the Naval officers who had waved at him as Javy came in.

She knows Javy would've clapped for Jake, had Javy been here.

So Nora claps for him, a light clap, catching Jake's attention with the motion, not the sound. She's rewarded with a broad grin as Jake leans on the cue.

He retrieves his half-full glass from the counter underneath the windows and tips the amber liquid in her direction. A gunslinger in an old Western, tipping his cowboy hat at the nearest woman in the saloon.

She raises her own glass in return, and Jake grins, wide and slow and sensual and damn. He looks her up and down, gaze lingering on her cowboy boots, not saying a damn word, not needing to say a damn word.

A warm feeling rises in her chest like Nora's overindulged in champagne. Goddamn.

Jake still wins in the end, but not by as much as he could've.

As Natasha racks the pool balls, resetting the table for the next game, Nora drains the rest of her Old Fashioned, which was mostly ice now anyway, and carries her empty glass over to the bar.

Penny is busy performing her duties as hostess – meeting and greeting and mingling. She'd made her way over and said hello soon after Nora arrived – so a bartender Nora doesn't recognize is behind the bar right now.

She sets her glass down and pulls out her phone for a distraction while Nora is waiting. She opens Instagram and after scrolling, sees Natasha posted a couple of pictures from Moonlight Rollers on Sunday morning.

In one of the photos, Nora is leaning on Natasha's shoulder, lids lowered and sparkly, grin wide and drunken. Another is a group picture where Bradley has a big arm around both Natasha and Nora's shoulders, standing on either side of him, trying not to fall on his ass again.

A smile lights up her face as Nora likes the post and shares it on her Instagram story. Adding a disco ball and some confetti in the corner.

It's been a while since Nora's posted on Instagram. How long has it been? Since France, maybe?

She clicks on her profile and –

"Hi. You're Nora, right?"

He's definitely around her age. Cute enough with sand-colored hair that curls around his ears and dimples. Blue eyes. He looks like a classic California surfer.

He looks vaguely familiar, but Nora can't remember his name.

"Depends," Nora says coyly. She slides her phone into her back pocket and crosses her arms. "Should I be worried?"

He's confident enough to laugh. A slightly apologetic sound.

"Not at all. I probably should've led with..." He sticks out a hand, smiling. "I'm Aidan. I'm an AM on the Naval base – an Aviation Structural Mechanic. I've seen you around."

Ah. She can place him now.

Aidan had supervised one of the camera installations last week. She'd exchanged all of five words with him. He looks different, not dressed in coveralls.

He's not the only one. She probably looks different too.

She's braided her pale hair down her back, and a vintage Born in the USA Word Tour shirt slopes over her shoulders, cropped and loose, barely grazing the denim waistband of her light wash cut-offs – which are a smidge shorter than she remembered.

"Have you?" Nora asks. "I must be pretty memorable."

Aidan flushes, and Nora bites back a smirk.

"You're, uh... We don't have a lot of civilian contractors on the base right now. It'd be kind of hard not to remember you, I think."

Her mouth opens in a smile. "I think I’ll take that as a compliment.”

"You should," Aidan promises in a rush of breath. His blue eyes zero in on her empty glass. "What're you drinking? Maybe I could – "

"Making friends, Hollywood?"

Of course. Nora kind of wants to laugh.

She actually does laugh when 'Born to Run' by Bruce Springsteen comes on over the speakers, covering her mouth, and Jake bites back a smile, eyes sparkling, looking so damn pleased with himself.

Nora looks at him over her shoulder from under her dark lashes, blue eyes crinkling. "Wrong album, Texas."

He only grins.

Heart racing, Nora looks away. "You know Jake, right, Aidan?"

Nodding, Aidan grunts, "Hangman" with a neutral expression so practiced Nora knows all of the AMs must hate Jake. How many F-18 repairs have probably needed to be done in the months the Daggers have been stationed here?

"Howdy."

Jesus Christ. Nora rolls her eyes.

Jake regards the AM with a glued-on insufferable asshole smile until Aidan inhales – one of those sharp well, I better go inhales – and sure enough: "Well, I should get going."

"Oh, so soon?"

Nora kicks Jake in the ankle. His grin only widens.

Aidan looks between them with an unreadable expression and says, "Maybe I'll see you around, Nora. Happy Fourth," with a forced smile and leaves.

After, Nora bites down on the inside of her cheek to hold back a laugh.

"You're so irritating," Nora says.

"Am I?" Jake counters. "Why're you smiling then?"

She doesn't answer.

Grinning, Jake spots the bartender and flags him down with a quick and efficient, "I'll get another beer and another Old Fashioned for the lady here. Thanks, man."

"Presumptuous. And what if I wanted something else?"

His brows rise. "Did you?"

No but...

She could have.

“We’ll never know now,” Nora replies, stubborn, chin raised.

Jake reaches over and gives the end of her braid a gentle and light-hearted tug. So playful and casual. She gapes at him, and Jake grins down at her, shaking with suppressed laughter, eyes alight.

Her stomach does a somersault and then some. A full Olympic routine.

"Excuse me? Are you 12?"

But Nora is laughing.

Jake slides into the empty space beside her. Close enough for Nora to feel the warmth of him.

"What were you and AM Aidan chatting about over here? You know Phoenix made him cry once?" Jake asks. He sounds unbearably amused.

"Literally nothing. He was definitely about to ask me out though," Nora replies.

"Poor guy," Jake croons. His smirk is smug as all hell. "You'd eat him alive. Guy like that wouldn't even know what to do with you."

His words are drenched in implication, like Jake would know.

And against her will, Nora flushes.

He notices, of course, because Jake notices everything.

Luckily, the Hard Deck bartender chooses that exact moment to come back with their drinks. He sets them down. A beer for Jake. An Old Fashioned for Nora.

"Tab?"

"Seresin."

Nora opens her mouth, and Jake pulls on her braid again. She smacks his hand away.

"Don't be so stubborn, Hollywood. Let me buy you a drink."

She eyes him. "And what's the catch?"

A dimple carves into his cheek. "Maybe I'm just a nice guy."

"You are not a nice guy," and Nora doesn't mean for it to come out like it does, like it's a good thing, like she likes that about him.

His gaze is burning, and Jake is closer than ever before – shoe nudging between her boots, knee brushing against the inside of her exposed thigh – and Nora feels like a struck match held over a puddle of gasoline, like one wrong move, one right one will set her ablaze.

"Oh yeah?" Jake murmurs. “What am I then?”

Her bottom lip catches between her teeth, and Jake follows the movement, gaze darkening. His fingers spasm around the neck of the beer bottle, and Nora remembers another moment, a moment in this very bar when Jake's fingers brushed the side of her neck, warm and calloused and deliberate.

A call vibrates her phone in her back pocket.

Her caught breath escapes in a rush. She doesn't even look at the ID before Nora answers.

"This is Nora Rogers."

Jake eases back, lids low, and Nora swallows against her suddenly dry mouth. Plugs her ear to better hear the person on the other end.

It's so loud in here, but Nora manages to make out a few words.

"Nora, it's Jenna."

A breath punches from her chest, and Nora freezes.

In her peripheral, Jake frowns around his beer.

"I know, I know," Jenna is saying, oblivious, even as Nora feels like a hand has clawed between her ribs and slowly squeezed. "Who calls out of the blue anymore, right? But I saw your Instagram story, and I was like, I should give Nora a call while I have a minute... Are you there? It's kind of loud. Can you hear me? Nora?"

"Oh, um..."

Nora looks up at Jake, eyes wide. He doesn't hesitate, good in a crisis like any good Naval aviator would be. He sets his drink down and pulls the phone from her unresisting fingers.

"Nora's a little busy right now. She'll have to call you back later. You have a good Fourth, ma'am."

And Jake ends the call before Nora can even breathe.

She stares at him, unblinking.

"Nora?"

Not sweetheart, not Hollywood. Nora.

She snaps out of her daze and manages, "I need some air."

And Nora lets Jake pull her though the crowd and out of the side door, into the cooling summer air.

Evening sun cools on the blue horizon of the ocean as Nora is sitting in the bed of Jake's Chevy, legs dangling and swinging restlessly over the edge, hard metal pressing into her skin.

She doesn't mind. It's kind of grounding, actually.

She breathes in the salt air. Breathes deep and out.

"What's going on?"

Ah, damn.

"Ah..." Nora blinks her eyes open and discretely wipes at the moisture under her lids. "I'm fine. Just needed a minute."

She wonders if Jake can hear the strain in her voice, the strange reediness. She can hear it. Can see right through her own words. She wonders if Jake can do the same, can see right through her like Nora is made of the sea glass that dots the shore.

Metal creaks as Jake hoists himself up and squeezes in next to Nora. He is so damn broad, pressed against her entire side. His bare arm is warm against hers.

He gets comfortable, stretching out his legs.

Leans a hand behind her back.

His arm brushes against her side again.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Jake asks, voice a gentle rumble.

She blows out an uneven breath. "About what?"

"You looked a little upset inside, is all."

"I'm not upset," Nora says. A reflex. A lie.

"Come on..." Jake coaxes with a small smile. "You're a bad liar, sweetheart. What's going on? Tell Uncle Jake."

She's surprised enough to laugh, a choked and breathless sound. "Uncle Jake? What is that, like a sex thing?"

"You're so..." He chuckles, low and warm. "No, Nora. It's not a sex thing. Ma called me earlier. Apparently, my niece caught War of the Worlds on cable the other night, even though I know Sarah would never let her watch a PG-13 movie. She's seven."

"So now," Jake continues. "She's scared of fireworks. She's convinced some Independence Day aliens are gonna burst right out of ‘em.”

Nora cracks a small smile. "And did Uncle Jake talk some sense into her?"

"Damn straight," Jake affirms with an oh-so-serious nod. "Told her I would've seen any aliens from my plane and shot ‘em right out of the sky.”

He kind of rolls his eyes, like Can you believe what I put up with?, but Nora can hear the unbridled affection in his voice. He loves it. He loves being this person who can calm a scared little girl down and make it all better.

And Nora's delicate heart cracks wide open.

His shoulder bumps against hers, gentle. "Got any aliens I can shoot out of the sky for you, sweetheart?”

She sighs. "I'm not upset, exactly. I'm... frustrated with myself."

His brows furrow in question, and rather than explain, Nora offers her phone and lets him read the incoming messages for himself. It’s easier.

Jenna, 6:58 PM: Hi! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to catch you in the middle of something.

Jenna, 7:01 PM: Are you still considering that project I talked to you about in May? Take a beat, I don’t need an answer right this second, but I do need an answer kind of soon.

Jenna, 7:01 PM: I’m resending the pitch now. Check your email!

Jenna, 7:02 PM: (And maybe write me back for once)

Another message comes in as Jake is reading.

Jenna, 7:05 PM: Also, WHO was that guy on the phone? He has a sexy voice.

Nora snatches her phone back and locks the screen, holding her arms close.

A smirk wavers on his face, flickering on and off like an old light bulb, but Jake doesn't make a comment. His mouth settles in a line as he studies Nora.

“What’s wrong with the project? Why don’t you want it?”

She blinks at him, surprised, and Jake shrugs.

“You would’ve given her an answer before now otherwise, right?”

And damn if Jake doesn’t hit the nail right on the head.

“You’re right. I don't want it," Nora says. An admission. "But I know I should. So... I'm aggravated with myself."

"Why?"

She pulls her legs up and crosses them, fiddling with a loose thread in the denim. She explains in a hush, "Because now, I only have a month left here, and I'm in the same place I was before I came here. I don't have another project lined up at the end of this one, and I haven't even been looking, really."

He is looking at her with soft attention. A breath.

Nora continues, "I really used to love what I do, but I don't know, I've been so drained and uninspired and god, just so fucking exhausted for the past year and a half." She smooths her hands over her cheeks, still flushed from the humid bar. "I thought if I had a change of pace, maybe I could recharge and feel creative again so..."

"You came here," Jake finishes, understanding.

"So I came here," Nora repeats in a soft voice.

She came here, and now, Nora is stuck. Again.

"Documentaries have been a part of my whole... identity for so long that I don't know if I could do something else. I feel like I'd lose a part of myself if I ever stopped. And I've been this person for so long that I don't know if I could do something else. I don't know if I'd even know how."

A car pulls into the beachside lot and parks a few rows over and idles there, and over the sound of the engine and the crash of the ocean waves, Nora can make out the chorus of ‘Fade Into You’ by Mazzy Star. Her mom’s favorite song.

It feels like a sign.

And Nora says, “I guess I don’t want to look back a decade from now and be in the same place I am right now.”

“Which is?”

“Wondering if I’ve made the wrong choice.” Nora watches the horizon. A sigh escapes from her lips. “Wondering if I’m too late to make the right one.”

“Look at me,” Jake says, soft and gentle but firm. "Hey."

Nora leans her chin on her shoulder and meets his gaze, and Jake is looking at her with such intense green, open-faced and sincere.

"You could march into Cyclone's office on Monday morning and quit right then and there and – "

"Actually, Admiral Simpson's not my – ”

"You could..." Jake raises his voice to drown out her interruption until Nora presses her lips together. "...quit and never make another documentary ever again and still be an incredible person. I mean, hell, Hollywood, you're beautiful and clever as hell and at times, kind of mean."

A smirk brims on her lips, and Jake grins, a flash of white.

“You could be anything.”

She stares at him. “How could you possibly know that? You’ve only known me for like a month.”

“I know enough.”

He sounds so sure, so certain.

And Nora likes him. She likes him so much her chest aches. She holds a hand over her collarbone, rubbing at the sore spot over her heart, pulse racing underneath her palm.

"Thank you, Jake," Nora says softly.

His eyes are soft. "Of course, anytime."

A beat passes, and Nora could so easily let the moment fade.

She could go back inside and spend the rest of the weekend pushing him from her mind and wanting him.

Jake is so handsome in the golden glow. He's looking at her like...

No one's ever looked at her like Jake is looking at her right now.

She swallows hard and says, "You were right before."

His mouth quirks. "I usually am, but about what?"

A few strands of short hair come loose from her braid and fall in her face as Nora shakes her head.

“I do kind of like you,” Nora admits. “I kind of like you a lot.”

His lips part in a smile. “You like me.”

She bites down on the inside of her cheek. Hard. “Go ahead. Get it over with."

“And what exactly am I getting over with?"

“You really aren't going to be smug about this? You were right. Get it over with."

Nora waits. Drums her fingers on the surface of her thigh while Jake is quiet, suspiciously so.

“What? Nothing?"

"Oh, I'm sure I'll find a way to be smug later," Jake promises with a slow smirk. Later oozes with suggestion. Sparks dance across her skin where Jake's arm is pressed against hers.

“You like me,” Jake repeats again, voice soft.

Her chin dips in a nod.

“And what are we gonna do about that, sweetheart?”

It’s all Nora can do not to squirm under his gaze.

She replies, “Nothing. Just wanted you to know,” in a voice so paper thin, so breathless that even Nora doesn’t believe herself.

You’re a bad liar, sweetheart, echoes in her head.

And like he knows, a smirk kicks up the edge of Jake's mouth.

In a movie, this would be a moment, the moment.

A director would ask the camera to get in close and closer still, documenting every microcosm of their expressions, every glimpse of emotion in their eyes, and in the background, a delicate instrumental would build and build, a gradual swell, like an ocean wave.

Grow louder and stronger until in a dark theater, surrounded by strangers and popcorn grease, or at home on the couch, whoever is watching catches themselves holding their breath, until the world drops out from under them, until…

He leans in close, locked and loaded with a clever countermove.

“Bull…”

And unable to let him have the last word, even in this, especially in this, Nora closes the distance between them and kisses him.

And kisses him and kisses him, hand dipping in the open space where his linen shirt gapes from his collarbone and running her fingers over the golden skin, warm from the sun, over that damn chain.

Hooking it around her index finger, Nora gives it an experimental pull, the smallest and slightest of tugs, and Jake reacts like Nora has reached inside his chest and pressed an on switch.

A warm palm slides up the slender length of her neck, settling on her nape, and anchors her against him. He breathes her name against her mouth, like a prayer, like a confession.

Nora Nora Nora.

Pulls her in and in and in until Nora is all but on top of him, impossibly close.

She wants nothing more than to crawl over him and –

A car alarm wails from behind them.

She pulls back, breathing hard, and like a magnet, Jake follows.

He rests his forehead against her bare shoulder, catching his breath, pressing a kiss to the new freckles from the afternoon and another.

“Um…” Nora starts.

He kisses the side of her neck once, and Nora cuts herself off with a rush of breath, gripping his biceps for balance.

“We’re…” Nora tries again. “We should…”

He pauses. Pulls back so Nora can see his face.

His pupils are blown wide.

“Do you want to get out of here?” Nora asks, both a question and a plea. Please want to get out of here.

“Yes,” Jake breathes and kisses her again, his answer a groan against her mouth. "God, yes, Nora."

He doesn't even get his credit card from the bartender.

Less than a minute later, Jake is cutting across Coronado in his Chevy like an F-18, cutting across cooling blue skies.

Between stop signs, Jake reaches across the bench seat and laces their fingers together, pressing a firm kiss to her knuckles.

Her other hand drifts out of the open window, and for a brief moment, as the wind catches her fingers just right, Nora closes her eyes and feels like she's flying.

end note: likes are appreciated, but comments and reblogs are amazing. i'd love to hear from you! and all my love to @sometimesanalice for letting me ramble to you for months about this fic and @roosterbruiser for beta reading!

read the next chapter!

#fic: baby i'm high octane #jake seresin x oc #hangman x oc #jake seresin fic #jake seresin x nora rogers #hangman fic #top gun: maverick fic #top gun fic #laracrofted writes

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terrifyingly-bi · 1 year

Text

Fool for You (Billy Hargrove x Fem!Reader) (Part 1)

Summary: You've never been one to be pushed around. When you work at Hawkin's Public Pool during summer break you're paired up with Billy for your shifts, and Billy just met his match.

Warnings/tags: flirty reader, confident reader, billy starts out as rough and tough but I've got a thing for softies so... we'll get there

Wordcount: ~2,2k

A/N: You wanted some Billy x Fem!Reader and I once again got carried away. Idk how many parts this will be... I'm sitting on about four or five... uh... :)

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

『••✎••』

“And this is where you’ll be spending most of your time,” Adam said, gesturing to the small booth. “We’ve got at least two lifeguards out by the pools at all times, if one of them needs to step away, you will take over for them until they return. Otherwise, this is your hub.”

You nodded as you took a look around the tiny room. It reminded you of a ticket booth but pool-themed. On the only wall available hung a calendar with pictures of the beach, as well as a schedule for the lifeguards. There were seven in total, including you.

“Cool,” you said. “And do I need to keep my eyes out for anything in particular or…”

Adam shrugged. “Not really. You’ll be standing by most of the time. If any visitors have any questions or need equipment, directions, or help you’ll be in charge of taking care of them.” He pointed to the notepad on the tiny desk. “Any pool equipment or swimming aids you lend out must be recorded, so that we can keep track of them when they’re lent out and returned.”

“Write up the things I hand out and what I get back, got it,” you said. “Anything else?”

“First Aid Kit is in the box under the desk and there’s a phone in the office with a phonebook right next to it. Other than that, you should be all set.”

You doubted that, but you weren’t about to start fussing on your first day. “So do I just… go change or what?”

Adam turned and pointed over to the changing rooms. “You can just use the women’s to change. Head back here once you’re done and I’ll introduce you to your shift mate.”

With a nod, you began making your way around the pool to go and change. The brilliantly red swimsuit you’d been given to wear bore the Hawkins Pool logo, and you wondered if you’d look as good in it as some of the lifeguards you’d seen so far.

The changing room was mostly empty with the exception of a handful of girls gossiping and queuing for the mirror and a mother trying to wrestle her kid into a swimsuit. It smelled like chlorine, soap and sun lotion, and by the time you had squeezed into your new suit and made to leave you were alone.

You hesitated briefly when you passed the mirror. The Hawkins Pool suit fitted decently. It could have been a little bigger in the bottom area but you were confident enough that you would endure it. From the right angle, it even looked good.

When you returned to the booth, Adam had called another lifeguard over.

“You’re back, good,” Adam said. “This is Billy, and you already know me. Billy, this is Y/N.”

‘Billy’ was tall, muscular, and looked like a Californian dream. He stood with his arms crossed over his broad chest and looked you up and down, wearing a pair of dark aviators and a somewhat disdainful look on his face. “Yes, we’re happy to have you here,” he mumbled. “But unless there’s anything you specifically need me for, I’ve got things to do.”

You shook your head. “You do what you need to do,” you said. “You’re a lifeguard after all.”

The sneer on his face turned neutral and he gave you a quick nod before he turned and headed back to the tower, climbing up and taking a seat.

“He takes his job very seriously,” Adam said, leaning closer to you. “Don’t let him push you around. He is not your boss.”

“Oh, don’t worry,” you said. “I’m not going to let him.”

It didn’t take you long to learn that whenever Billy was at the pool, things were running like a well-oiled machine. It was mind-boggling to see how kids you knew from school turned into law-abiding visitors the moment Billy told them off, and it was difficult to miss the way people were particularly wary when they walked in his vicinity.

If you had to pick something to complain about it would be the number of girls coming up to you only to try and get a peek at the schedule on the wall behind you. Billy was popular with the ladies, and it was hardly a secret. Even the mothers put on a show for him whenever he looked their way.

You didn’t see the point. Obviously, he was handsome and you caught yourself looking longer than a few seconds a handful of times, but he was rude and never said hello when he passed you by. It wasn’t like you were going to waste your time on someone that couldn’t bother to say hi.

At least, that’s what you thought until a particularly unrelenting heatwave passed through Hawkins. The pool was filled to the brim with people trying to cool off and you spent a considerable amount of time handing out water bottles and helping out a few people that had burned themselves in the sun.

But while you spent most of the day in the shade of the tiny booth, you couldn’t help but notice that Billy sat dutifully perched in the lifeguard tower, glaring out over the pool and the visitors - on the lookout for trouble.

With a sigh, you grabbed one of the water bottles you kept in the cooler crammed under the desk, and headed over. “Hey, Hargrove,” you called when you approached.

He looked over at you just in time to catch the bottle when you tossed it to him. “What’s up?” He asked.

“You haven’t had anything to drink all day,” you said. “I would prefer it if you didn’t fall off that tower when something happens.”

Billy looked at you for a moment before he looked back to the pool. “Thanks,” he said, unscrewing the cap and taking a drink of water. You could tell by the way he went through half the bottle in a few greedy sips that he must have been thirsty.

“You gonna take a break any time soon?” You asked. “Maybe get out of the sun?”

“To slack off? Is that what you’re trying to get me to do?” he asked without looking at you.

You rolled your eyes. “No, I’m trying to make sure you don’t get a heatstroke so you can keep doing your job.”

Again, Billy turned and looked at you. For a moment, he seemed to be contemplating your words. “Five minutes,” he said. “I need to take a leak anyway.” He tossed the bottle back to you as he began climbing down from the tower. “You figure you can hold the reins until I get back?”

“Don’t worry about me, Billy,” you said and handed him his drink. “I can hold them just fine.” You turned and climbed up into the tower, seating yourself in the surprisingly comfortable seat. When you looked down, Billy was still looking at you. “Take a picture. It’ll last longer.”

“I just might,” he said, a lazy smirk playing on his lips before he turned and walked away.

"Got ourselves a cut."

You looked up from the notepad as Billy appeared in the doorway, holding a girl in his arms. Looking between them, it was almost comical how indifferent Billy looked while the girl was making heart eyes at him. But upon closer inspection, she did have a pretty nasty cut on her foot.

"Damn, let me get the kit," you said and got up. "She can take my chair."

Billy put the girl down on the chair with minimal effort. "What did you say you cut yourself on?" he asked.

"I'm not sure. I stepped on something sharp over by the fence, I was just grabbing my bag," she said. She blinked at him, her lashes fluttering as he inspected her injury.

"Over by the fence?" Billy asked. He either didn’t notice or care for her ogling. Instead, he looked over at you. "Hey, Y/N. Can you treat this while I go and have a look?" he asked.

You could tell that anyone but Billy treating the girl's cut would ruin her day. The way she deflated made you feel bad for her. "Uh… why don't you help her out and I go and take a look? I need to double-check on the back gates anyway," you offered. It was technically true, only that you usually did that at the end of your shift. "I need to go and get another pack of gauze from the office as well, but we should have enough for now."

Billy looked skeptical as you handed the First Aid kit to him. "You sure?"

"Yeah. Put those pretty hands to use and I'll be right back," you said and winked as you slipped out of the booth, leaving him with the eager visitor.

It was almost the weekend and you figured you could give that girl something to swoon about. It was a surefire way to keep the girl - and all of her friends - coming back.

The area by the fence was mostly covered with dry grass. Some people preferred to leave their things there or spread a towel out where they could enjoy the sunshine. You started by the concrete and followed the fence around the perimeter, and just like the girl had said, you found the culprit of the cut; a piece of aluminum from a soda can. After looking around you found the rest of the cam and discarded it in the nearest trash can.

You took your time as you went back, stopping to help a kid that struggled with a pair of goggles, and walking a full lap around the pool before you went about your other tasks.

By the time you returned to the booth - after having made a quick trip to the office for supplies - Billy had sent the girl on her way and returned to his spot atop the tower. You gave a slight wave as he looked your way, making sure he knew that you were back where you were supposed to be.

He nodded at you from where he sat before he returned to his lifeguarding duties.

The rest of the day was dull and uneventful. At the end of your shift, you counted the swimming aids, checked the lost and found, and walked around the pool to make sure everything was in order before you went to change.

You were usually one of the last people out of there - with the exception of the pool manager and sometimes Adam - but when you exited the changing room that night, you spotted Billy on his way out to the parking lot. He looked your way when you adjusted your bag on your shoulder.

"Heading home?" he asked.

"That's what I usually do after work," you said.

"Need a ride?"

That was an offer you hadn't expected. While you got along well enough, you would hardly call the two of you friends. But you appreciated the fact that he'd offered and that he made an effort to be nice.

"Sure," you replied with an easy smile. "What's the occasion?"

Billy snorted when he walked you to his car. "I can't be nice just for the hell of it?" He unlocked the car and gestured for you to get in.

You chuckled and got into the passenger's seat. "We both know you're not nice. Either you think you owe me a favor, or you're trying to impress me."

"Maybe so," Billy said as he slid into the driver's seat, closing the door with a huff.

You caught a glimpse of his bulging bicep when he pulled the door closed. It was a pleasant sight and you had since long given up on trying not to ogle. "So which is it?" you asked.

The car roared to life when he turned the key in the ignition. Stepping on the gas, he revved the engine, it purred pleasantly. He took his aviators off and put them in the pocket of his shirt before he turned and smiled at you. "Guess."

"Smooth," you said. There was no denying that part of you was very impressed.

Billy gave a light chuckle as he shifted gear and pulled out onto the street. "Where did you live, again?" he asked.

"I don't think I ever told you," you pointed out.

"Bit hard to drive you home if I don't know where you live, don't you think?" He glanced over at you but you stubbornly looked ahead, wanting to keep him guessing. "You gonna tell me? Or should I just take you home to mine?"

As tempting as that sounded, you were eager to go home and shower. "Coming on a little strong, aren't you, Hargrove?"

"Suit yourself. I don't offer that to all the girls I meet," he said and clicked his tongue.

"You'd better not," you said and looked over at him.

He laughed at that. An actual full laugh that had his shoulders bouncing and his eyes squinting. "You're something, Y/L/N."

Grinning, you turned to look through the windshield. "Just get me home," you said with a smirk.

『••✎••』

Taglist: @manyfandomsfanvergent

#billy hargrove #billy hargrove x female reader #billy hargrove x fem!reader #billy hargrove x reader #billy hargrove imagine #stranger things #fanfic #fanfiction #my writing #dingus writings

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lucentclan · 7 months

Text

well! i wasnt expecting this-

I wrote a little snippit for this that I'll put it under the cut, I'm so upset over them you have no idea

despite the war between Lucentclan and Fernclan being over, Newtstar decides that he, Pepperflare, and Violethope will go patrol the borders one last time before the sun goes down. They don't realize the scent of rain or the clouds forming in the distance, as they're crossing the beach, rain begins falling heavily and weighing down their pelts.

"Newtstar!" Pepperflare calls over the now howling wind, anxiety pricking in her paws as the rain brings back unwanted memories of Sablepaw being washed away in a flood four moons ago. "We should really go back to camp! I don't have a good feeling about this."

Newtstars ears flick in acknowledgement, "we need to be sure that Fernclan isn't up to anything. I won't lose anymore cats to those fox-hearts!" He argues back, claws digging into the sand as he thinks of their previous medicine cat, Rippleclaw.

"No sane cat will be out in this weather!" Pepperflare insists, "Especially Fernclan cats! They hate water!"

"I agree with Pepp-" Violethope begins, her meow quickly cut off by a deafening crash and flash of lightning. In the distance, the sound of trees cracking and breaking echo down the mountains.

All three clancats freeze, heads snapping to the horizon where they see a massive wave of water quickly making its way down the hill, rocks, trees, and other natural debris coming along with it. The clancats barely have time to process what was happening before the water reaches them and sweeps them off their paws and into the unforgiving ocean. Their lungs fill with freezing saltwater as they cry out for starclan to save them to no avail.

Newtstar is the first to open his eyes, the yellow a sharp contrast to the darkness around him. Stars now shine in his pelt, and reflect in his eyes as he takes in the vaguely familiar area. He had been here when he lost his first life protecting his clan from a dog the same moon Rippleclaw had been found dead on Fernclans border. It had been nice to see the tom again to be assured that he wouldn't be alone, their starclan guide, and Newtstars own kin, Shardfoam being there to keep him company.

He sits and sighs, watching the water drip from is glimmering pelt and dissappear into the stars beneath his paws. He couldn't help but feel as if he had let his clan down.

Pepperflare and Violethope join him soon, appearing with splashes of salt water and gasping breaths that didn't take any oxygen. The she-cats meet eyes for a moment, confused as they look towards their leader.

They realize the stars at the same time, dismay filling them. Quietly, they step forward to sit beside their leader in quiet mourning.

"I'm sorry it had to be this way," A familiar voice says, a cream tabby tom stepping into sight. Sympathy reflecting in his grey eyes as he looks at the warriors. Beside the medicine cat is a younger spotted gray apprentice, Sablepaw, who is looking at them with the same sympathetic look.

"Rippleclaw! Sablepaw!" Newstar cries, standing. "Whats going on? We can't actually be dead, right? What about my other seven lives?" The words tumble out of his mouth before he can stop them, needing answers. Beside him, Pepperflare tries to speak but just hacks up a mouthful of water. Violethope remains quiet.

Rippleclaw sighs, "Unfortunately there was no way for starclan to bring your body back, it was washed too far out to sea for it to be possible." He steps to the side, the area behind him now streching out into a vast area, stars littering ground. This was starclans hunting grounds. The medicine cat dips his head, tears in his eyes as his friends try to process their deaths, "Welcome to starclan, my friends. Here you can watch over and guide Lucentclan."

Down below the sky, Quailcall sits outside the medicine den, blue eyes watching the entrance of the camp. It's been far too long since the patrol had left, and the elder was starting to get a bad feeling. He looks up at the dark clouds as it stormed and shakes out his pelt before standing and turning to enter the den.

Sparkfire lays in a nest against the far wall, curled up tightly as she sleeps through the infection in her wounds. The she-cat twitches and whimpers in her sleep, shifting slightly. The tom silently makes his way to sit beside the nest, watching the slow rise and fall of Sparkfires back, half expecting it to stop at any moment.

Quailcall looks towards the entrance of the den once more, dread filling his belly. "Starclan help us." He says quietly before curling up close to the deputy and shuts his eyes in an attempt to sleep until the patrol returns.

sorry for the short fic but i wanted to write for this moon soo bad and got carried away.

What will Sparkfire and Quailcall do now?

#clangen #lucentclan #newtstar #pepperflare #sparkfire #sablepaw #rippleclaw #violethope #feel free to send asks or ask me to write more for a specific cat

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renadosia · 9 months

Text

Cafe Beside The Sea - Chapter 1

— pairing: (Seokjin x reader)

— genre: Selkie AU, strangers to lovers, fluff, romance.

— summary; You return a coat to the strange customer that he accidentally left behind. Seokjin receives a marriage proposal from the pretty waitress that took his order. Both are oblivious.

— content warnings: none

— word count: 7.4k

Masterlist / Next chapter

The summer of your eleventh birthday was the first time you saw them. And the summer of your eleventh birthday, you wept into the sea.

Drip, drip, drip, went your tears into the ocean as it pushes weakly against your ankles. Drip, drip.

You kick at the water, sniffling into your wrist as you wipe at your eyes. Drip, drip.

(Seven tears to summon a selkie, they say, go and cry into the ocean. Shapeshifters, both human and seal- they shed their coats.)

There was a lot that happened that summer- for starters, your parents packed up theirs and your entire life and moved to a small seaside town, and among other things, you would enroll into the local school and quickly be swept up into a friend group of rambunctious boys, you would discover your love for the ocean and become intimately familiar with it over the coming months, (namely thanks to your new beachside home), and find that actually- you really loved living in this small town.

But something has to give first, and before it did, in those first few weeks during and after- it felt like hell. And your little eleven-year-old self was sure that your life was ending.

Well that might be an exaggeration- but point is; you didn’t take it very well.

It only took you about two or three days before you had gone off down the beach, crying. Your parents had repeatedly been telling you to go explore while they finished unpacking, and bitterly, you had done so. Trudging through sand in the opposite direction of town, mostly out of spite. It was windy and the sand bit at your skin, feeding woes as you went.

Back then when you had yet to spend hours upon hours walking trails through the grass over the banks and pulling sea glass treasures from the sand, wading through rock pools to reach the edge where the spray of saltwater would spring up and spit against your legs from the waves, you knew nothing about the area. And so a cave carved into an alcove only sparked the calling of curiosity and adventure as you had easily stepped down the dip of sand and into the cove.

There was only one thing even half as interesting along the beach that late afternoon, and it was a large pod of seals dotting the beach.

What little you knew of them was from your parents brief mentions of their encounters while working as marine biologists (the reason you had moved to the coast in the first place), and while intrigued, you gave them a wide berth out of caution.

Your tears hadn’t quite dried by this point, not fully anyway, and although a few heads with big dark eyes perked up at you moving past them, none of the seals gave you heed as you went right past them and into the cave.

One thing you didn’t notice that day, was a particular seal that watched you go and tumble straight into the alcove. It gave a yip at you, but you didn’t even glance back.

Another thing you didn’t know was that your parents were already looking for you. Having checked weather reports an hour or so after you had left. But you had been out along the beach for hours at this point, and you had gone pretty far out- not to mention, it was getting late.

There was something you did notice though, and had foolishly ignored, which was the tide pushing into the mouth of the cave. All but a thin sheen of water. Your feet get wet, but you don’t give it any thought.

The sun was setting over the blue waves as you savored the sunlight, you hadn’t long until it would get fully dark, and with the clouds swirling in the sky, you would need to head back soon. Even though you wanted to stay out if only just to make your parents worry for you. Maybe then, you had thought, they’ll regret moving to this damn place.

Pushing up and down rocky ledges, you went in. The cave was dark and damp, and you pulled out your phone for the flash as you looked around wide eyed and amazed, at the end of the cavern you could see light and you pushed onwards. Eventually, the tunnel opened into a wide open space, holed up straight upwards so that you could see the sky. You wondered if it was some sinkhole from the ledge above that overhung, and mentally made plans for the next day to go and check it out from above, where you could already see the tree's canopies peeking over the edges. You’d never get to though, because it had started to rain. Little droplets of water tapped against your phone’s screen, and you huffed, wiping it over on your shirt. No reception. But even despite the rain, you weren’t yet worried. You had brought a jacket. The next hour was mostly just photographing and plucking little colorful shells from the sandy earth. In the time it took you, the rain picked up. Now pelting down and bringing a harsh chill to your bone.

A good point to head home, you had thought. But it simply wasn’t that easy. As you climbed your way back through the cave, you noticed the water runoff that ran trails through the rocks. You thought it must’ve come from the open sinkhole space from behind you until you made it to an deadend.

What had been the entrance of the cave was now blocked with a flood of still pushing and pulling water, flooded from the outside in. A complete dead-end, and you felt your heart drop.

After this, there truthfully wasn’t too much you remembered aside from the panic and the seal.

You had panicked, you had tried to get out, you had failed to get out, and had eventually found yourself curled into a ball on the cold hard ground sobbing your eyes out.

Not the most dignified reaction, but you were eleven, so there wasn’t any other reaction that you really could’ve given. And so for the second instance, your eleven-year-old self felt once more like your world was crashing down on itself. (Only you had a bit more of a valid reason for it this time around.)

You were alone in that damp dark space, crying and crying and crying, and then there was a splash, and you had startled, and then suddenly you weren’t alone. The water’s surface broke and the first thing you noticed was a sleek furry body. A seal had popped up and out of the water and the next moment was still. It watched you with deep black eyes, and you had probably cried more, (that day, there was a lot of crying), and only then it started to shuffle over towards you.

The seal nosed at your arm, but you shuffled back a bit warily, your face wrecked with sobs and wet with tears and rain. It yipped at you, and then at that same quick moment, turned back towards the water, yipped again, and dived away. Under the blocked entrance of the cave and back into the ocean. And you were alone again. The whole interaction only took a moment, but it was one moment enough for it to bring simultaneously comfort and despair, and ever since then you had always had a bit of a soft spot for seals- all since childhood, through it, and into adulthood.

But still you cried, and cried, and cried a bit more, until the search and rescue teams found you. You were hauled up with climbing rope through the open sinkhole, and then in your parents arms you had cried more.

Later, you would come to be slightly embarrassed by the whole ordeal. Especially when school had started up and peers and teachers would bring it up. Even on the rare occasion complete strangers had recognised you, usually elderly sharing their relief of your safety while you stood next to your parents, cringing.

Later, you had asked your parents how they had found you.

And they had said that after they had gone into town and search parties of people had been sent out, a young boy had shown up. He knew where you were, and had taken them to the cave. Just older than you were, with long limbs and broad shoulders, and a wet mop of hair on top of his head. He had slipped away after the rescue team jumped into action, and no one knew who he was, nor did he ever come forward after that. He was dressed oddly, apparently. With sandals and shorts and a plain shirt. Odd because his hair was wet as if he had just gone swimming, but his clothes were completely dry. He said he was on the beach when he saw you, and no one had questioned it out of gratitude to be able to find you. The main thing that stood out to them as odd though, was the grey furry coat he wore. Too fancy and blatantly out of place to bring with you to the beach.

But as all things do, time moved on and you forgot much about the incident and earlier years from when you had first moved to the coastal town. The only real memory remaining that you were dumb to go into a cave when the tide was rising and it was storming. It was then a bit of a funny story for you to tell, and that was all it became. But you had always remembered the seal that had comforted you, and similarly, the story of the boy who had saved you.

You might have never met him, but if you got to, you had decided that you wanted to thank him for what he did that day. (Although you knew full well that the likelihood was against you.) But you knew you wouldn’t be able to find the boy with the strange coat, and so you decided that you would leave it up to fate.

Time ticked by as if stuck in honey, slowly and slowly and slower.

Today wasn’t a particularly busy workday, but in the same breath, it wasn’t particularly slow either. Because of this, it felt as if there wasn’t quite enough work to do aside from waiting for more customers to come in, gaps of time in between filled with slow cleaning and patience. It was only the start of summer, so this pacing was bound to change with an influx of imminent tourists wanting to visit beaches and see the oceanside offered by coastal towns and cities, but all the same, you were just waiting for your shift to end in hopes to head home.

Home- or a quick detour to wherever your friends would decide to hangout today, ever changing locations between the seven of you in the indecisive way you all could be. (A few in particular, say Jungkook, Hoseok and Taehyung- but that’s not to name names. They just get a bit cooped up in the same spot.)

Scrubbing the kitchen counter for what must’ve been the fifth time in the past hour, you sighed. The last thing you wanted to do was slack off with the owner sitting just a few feet away at one of the booths tapping away at her phone. Yongsun was a lovely woman, and you might be one of the co-managers, but you still rather not chance it with a job that kept you stable for years. This little job paid well, and alongside the allowance your parents would send you from wherever on the planet they were at the moment you were decent. Not to mention, you enjoyed the environment, Yongsun was one of the nicest women you had ever met, warm and friendly, and you didn't want to get in her bad books.

When you hear the chime of the doorbell and the sound of the front door opening, you don't really bother to hide your relief at something to actually do. It’s followed by chatter and laughter as a group of customers enter together, and as the only one working on shift at the moment, you swiftly move to be in front of the register and display-cabinet of baked goods and food. Yongsun stands to greet the group cheerily, and among the group of strangers, each with a coat slung over their shoulders a-piece, you’re surprised to see two of your friends with them. The only thing they're missing is the coats themselves.

Taehyung notices you first, sending a wave to you as he sits down in the booth and Jimin peaks over his head with a similar grin, laughing at your off guard expression. And you roll your eyes back at them.

You knew they were friendly with Yongsun, and the pair of them are very social- Jimin and Taehyung always seem to know some of the people who pass through town, especially in the summertime. While it's a bit odd to see them hanging out with strangers- you're much more used to passing hellos and warm conversations, you suppose it makes sense, they have to meet all those people somehow. Jimin has always had an extroverted streak in him, even if he never leaves town. And Taehyung is his opposite, an introverted type at first, but out of town in the off-seasons.

There’s a particular stranger that Yongsun greets that catches your eye, with a bashful expression and remarkably attractive face as Yongsun greets him with a big hug and even pinches his cheeks as if he was a child. She was clearly familiar with him, and you don’t even need to imagine the ‘ are you sure you’re eating enough, hun? that you’re sure she’s giving him, much like she does to you and every other person she likes. He looks similarly glad to see her, and you wonder distantly if he’s a son of one of her out of town friends, given you have no clue who he is. Or who any of the other strangers are sitting with them, aside from Jimin and Taehyung, of course. (It’s a small town and countryside in general. So everyone knows everybody here for the most part.)

Yongsun happily wavers you over from the counter, so you aren't left to guess when to approach them. “This is the sweet (Y/n). One of my loveliest workers here.” She smiles as you walk over, already with her menu out and listing the items the table wants. She hums, pausing and looking over towards the man from before. “Seokjinnie, what was it you wanted again?”

“Ah, I’ll just get a muffin or something please, ahjumma.”

“Alright, chocolate chip muffin for that one, please (Y/n).”

“Of course,” you chime agreeably, finishing jotting down the order. When you look up, you accidentally meet the gaze of the ‘seokjinnie’ man that Yongsun was talking to. You’re not sure what it is, but there’s something familiar about him, whether you've seen him before you’re not sure, but his fine features and beautiful black eyes draw your gaze to him and you make yourself pull away. “Is that all for today?”

“Yes, thank you.” The man replies, his voice is polite and melodious, and it’s honestly one of the nicest sounds you’ve heard in a while. ( If that doesn’t seem too creepy, you think to yourself.) You nod with a smile and head back behind the counter, picking out the pre-made items to serve to the table before heading into the kitchen to start on anything that needs to be cooked or baked. It doesn’t take you all that long, preparing the burgers and smoothies and anything else that needs it for the group.

When you gather them all onto trays, you see out of the corner of your eye Jimin and Taehyung talking to the same man from before, and you can tell from the looks on their faces and personal experience that they were teasing the poor man, but when you walk out, their heads all snap up and Jimin and Taehyung break into laughter while the other just ducks and shakes his head. He seems a bit flustered but tells them off, you just can’t make out the words.

“Here you are.” You say chipperly as you set down the trays and they pick off their orders. Then you turn and head back to the kitchen while Jimin nudges the ‘Seokjinnie’ guy with a teasing smirk. You easily tidy up the dishes and mess you made while the group finishes up, and by the time you finish, they’re all already gathering up their things and getting ready to leave. Picking up their expensive looking fur coats and purses and bags. Save for Yongsun, Jimin and Taehyung, each of the strangers each have one of the fanciful coats. All near matching, all flat fur, all gray. Was this some sort of club? You really hope your two idiot friends and boss didn’t get mixed up with some gang. Were there even gangs out here? By the beach? At some random seaside town? You have no idea, but the fur coat gang doesn't seem too threatening, you giggle mentally.

They all migrate over to the front door, and you pick up the cutlery left behind at the table. Your shift is almost over before some other employees take over for the afternoon, and you don’t think it’s too bad to end off with some dishes. You drop them off in the sink, taking a last peek out of the kitchen at the sound of the door’s chime and catching the customers filter out. The ‘Seokjinnie’ guy is the last one left, the others having left or already walking away from the front of the store, and just as he slips through the store, you watch as his fur coat slips from being slung over his bag and lands right in the doorway, glass door catching on it as he walks off taking no notice.

You blink, and then thoughtlessly follow after and pluck the coat up from between the door, not quite impulsive but more on instinct of manners. On any normal day you would be annoyed, but there’s been something a bit off all day- a feeling as though you’re waiting for something important to happen wedged deep in your chest- but it’s not a feeling that you realize until after.

After when the sun rises in streaked rays and it seeps through the curtains, you press into the warmth of blankets and share soft whispers of words, lazing in bed and reminiscing on the moment with arms wrapped around you.

The door clicks shut behind you as you train your gaze after where he turned, searching for the soft head of hair and broad shoulders amongst the streets. Your eyes catch him easily, a standout amongst others and you take off after him in a jog. It’s your lucky day, dude. You think, You’re not gonna lose your probably expensive fur coat just yet.

“Wait!” You call out, running after him as you tuck the soft fur of his coat safely into your arms. He doesn’t turn around, neither does he even realize that you’re addressing him. “Your coat!”

Finally, you catch up to him. In a slight flurry of panic you reach out and grasp his arm, tugging him around- it’s a little harsher than you intend, but it gets the job done. He spins around to face you with a confused expression.

Normally you’re not the type to ever touch a stranger, mostly out of respect for personal space, (both your own and the other person), so you’re quick to yank your hand back and step away. “Oh my gosh, I am so sorry for grabbing you like that!” You say, giving an apologetic look and shuffling his coat on your arm to be held out to him. “Sorry again, I didn’t mean to scare you. It’s just that you dropped your coat.”

His eyes flicker between you and the fur coat, and his expression drops. Stunned as he wordlessly reaches his hand out and brushes it over the furry article. He looks half shocked-half mortified and you panic a little, looking over the coat yourself almost praying it isn’t damaged. You really doubt you have the money to reimburse a whole other coat for the guy if it was, and the fact that he seems close with your boss only makes it even worse. The logical side of your brain reasons that you weren’t the one who dropped it- so it’s not really your fault- but god knows that you’ve had your fair share of haughty customers over the years, so you’d rather not take your chances.

“I am so so sorry, it slipped off your bag when you left and I picked it up for you once I saw.” You ramble, dusting it off as gently as you can manage before pressing it into the man’s hands. “Is this alright? You’re not upset?”

“I- um.” His face flushes red, all the way to the tips of his ears. Cute, really you would swoon if the situation was any different. “I think. This is fine, I think.”

“Oh thank goodness, It’s not damaged or anything, but I was worried you’d run off before I could even give it back!” You chuckle softly and maybe slightly awkwardly. Finding the stare that he’s giving you a little confusing as your gaze flits up to meet his. “You walk very fast.” You say lightly, trying to dispel any tension.

“I do- did.” He says a little dumbly, face still red as he clears his throat and straightens up. “I just wasn’t expecting this.” You raise your brows at his words, unsure what they mean.

“Well, no worries.” You smile as nicely as you can, and it seems to work, him reciprocating it as he nods. “At least you can go home with your coat safe!”

There’s a moment where neither of you say anything, him looking at you intently as he seems to swallow down any previous shyness that lingered. He speaks thoughtfully, as if contemplating; “Yes, much better this than losing it. Or someone else keeping it to themselves.” He smiles, and despite his very very odd words (in your opinion), you're not that creeped out- only the awkwardness that licks at the back of your neck any indication of discomfort. “I’ve been waiting for something like this for a while, and you actually seem quite sweet.” You shift on your feet, not knowing what else to do except smile and nod your head awkwardly. He watches you, observant to your every word and reaction, but his expression is tender and you don’t know where that came from. Your mind recalls with relief that you had left the cafe completely unattended .

“Right.” You say, pulling on your best poker face. “Well, my shift isn’t quite over yet, so I’d best be getting back.” He seems to pull out of a daze at your words, and you try to ignore that it makes you feel a bit bad for him. “Um, good luck! Have a good afternoon!” As you turn and speed walk back towards the cafe, you can feel his gaze on your back. You don’t look around at him, but once you push open the glass doors of the store you can’t help but almost want to peek back out to look for him. Maybe it’s curiosity, maybe you thought he was hot (you did), maybe you’re a bit paranoid- but whichever one it is you stubbornly shove it down and trudge back into the kitchen, sighing deeply as your brain runs over the interaction and the man’s strange words. Well, that was odd . You think, and you really have no idea where the weird words and such came from, but at the very least, you’ve got something funny to tell your friends later on .

But Goddamnit, Jimin and Taehyung were absolutely going to laugh at you.

The first thing you did once your shift ended and a coworker took over for you, was grab your bag and check your phone. It lit up with a text message from Hoseok, his contact followed by random emojis he had put in years ago when he first took your phone to give you his number.

‘Meetup at the studio after work? The others are coming :D’

A huff of amusement left you as you unlocked your phone and typed a message back.

‘Definitely, wouldn’t miss it, Hobi. Also I've got a funny story to tell you guys lol.’

‘Ookk, but just hurry though 'cause Jungkook keeps complaining that he’s hungry and you know how that goes.’

You roll your eyes, typing; ‘That boy is always hungry. But yeah, be there in ten.’

You giggle a little at the string of strange emojis Hoseok sends in response before tucking your phone into your back pocket as you speed walk down the streets. You couldn’t have been more eager to get out of there after working most of the day. It isn’t long until you get down to the studio, and you step and round down the hall past the receptionist, (a friendly girl who had been working there for a few months) as you head right towards the studio room you know Hoseok usually works at. Through the glass doors you can see all the boys sitting around- and Jungkook, who was leaning against the wall next to the door, pulls it open for you before you even manage to grab the handle.

“(Y/n)! How was work? Hobi says you’ve got another one of those funny customer stories to tell us again.” He grins at you, and clicks the door shut behind you before you respond. There’s some takeout containers and burgers sitting around, Jungkook's got one in his hand, and you would take a guess he convinced somebody to make an ‘emergency call’ for him.

Jimin chimes up from one of the benches. “Yeah, and why didn’t you tell us before when we were there?”

“She was working, jimin.” Yoongi says reasonably, shrugging lightly. And my boss was there , you go to say, but jimin beats you to it.

“Yeah, but I would’ve stayed behind if I knew there was drama.” He defends jokingly, turning a teasing smile over towards you. “Yongsun wouldn’t have minded, you know. She knows we’re friends. I mean, after all the times me and Tae have camped out waiting for your shifts to finish in booths, and the fact she asks us how you’re doing everytime we speak, I'd say you're even her favorite employee.”

“It happened after you guys left.” You explain, sitting down next to Hoseok who wavers you over as you set your bag down. “And it’s not drama but I still don’t want to get any grief over this. Tae, Jimin, I’m talking to you two.”

“Huh?” Taehyung echoes, his head flicking up from his phone that was scrolling on distractedly. He gives you a befuddled expression when you look at him pointedly. “What’d I do?”

“One of the people you were with.” You say, sighing dramatically. “Some poor guy dropped his jacket and so I had to run it to him. It was pretty awkward.”

Namjoon shakes his head at you sympathetically, laughing a little bit. “That’s not that bad.” He says, but you huff protest. And no one notices, but Jimin and Taehyung both stiffen up. Their heads snapping over towards you and sitting up alert.

“What?” Taehyung says, unable to help the sharp tone that he uses. Yoongi and Namjoon both raise a brow, aware of the change of mood, and Jungkook glances over at them. Hobi doesn’t notice it.

“Aw man, I was hoping for something like that one time that kid tripped on someone’s foot and spilled a smoothie all over you.” Hoseok complains with a mischievous smile as he lays across the floor, “that was pretty funny. You had a huuge pink stain over your new fancy shirt all day.”

“That was miserable.” You grimace.

“It was funny as shit.”

“ lHold on - you gave who back his jacket ?” Taehyung speaks up again, cutting off Hoseok and your banter with an edge of urgency to his voice that makes you pause. You look over at him frowning, and he looks a mix of disturbed and worried that only makes you confused. You gave his coat back , so why would he need to be worried? It wasn’t like it was damaged or anything.

“The guy you were teasing. I gave him back his furry coat when he dropped it.”

Taehyung’s jaw drops and Jimin shoots a glare at him, kicking him in the leg. He clears his throat, “Did you give it to him or like, point it out and tell him he dropped it?” He seems less concerned then taehyung does, but still so- from his more good natured smile compared to Taehyung's tense demeanor, it relaxes you slightly, but you can still see the uncertainty behind his eyes that makes your stomach churn uneasily. You flicker your gaze between the two incredulously. The others all watch.

“I gave it to him. It slipped from his bag and he didn’t notice. I had to stop him in the street to give it back.” You say, furrowing your brows. Jimin and Taehyung share a look.

Namjoon breaks in, apparently having enough of the random tension in the conversation. “Okay, why are you two being so cryptic?” he waves his hands gently, looking between you and the other two. “What else was she supposed to do? Let the dude lose his coat?”

“Well- no?” Taehyung splutters slightly, choking on his words. “just- was it Seokjin?”

“Seokjin?” You echo, confused.

Yoongi passes an eye over the three of you calmly. “Jimin, not all of us are extroverts and know all the random people who pass through town.” He says, the small joke eases some of the rising confusion from the group. He sends a small grin at him, and Jungkook makes an affronted noise at his words.

“We know taehyung! And you!”

“That’s different.” Yoongi rebutts immediately.

“Yeah, they both grew up here.” Namjoon adds, leaning back and glad to jump on an opportunity to change the subject.

“Yoongi goes to the city for work for like a week every month! I don’t see how that’s so different!” Jungkook says, shaking his head with a determined expression. “And Taehyung sticks around for summer, sure, but he only visits otherwise.”

Hoseok gives a hearty laugh, and Jungkook grins at him. “Yoongi literally lives here.” He snorts, and Yoongi nods his head along.

“Yep. So don’t know what you’re on about, kid.”

“Sure you don’t, old man.” Jungkook says with accusation, pointing a finger towards Yoongi, who just rolls his eyes with a smug look.

“Whatever you say, kiddo.”

Jungkook scrunches up his face, cringing. “Ugh, I’ve always hated that word-“ He’s cut off the crack of a phone clattering to the floor and everyone glances over again, Taehyung giving a little mutter of shit as he hastily stuffs it into his bag.

“Tae? You good?” Hoseok asks. But Taehyung just shuffles awkwardly under the scrutiny of everyone, his gaze flickers from Hoseok, to Jimin, and then to you. You’re a little worried you upset him, but you have no idea how.

“Uhh, something came up so- i’ve gotta go.” Taehyung’s words sound a little forced and his demeanor is stiff, and after all of you having known each other for years at this point, some longer then others, you all raise a brow. It’s pretty obvious he’s making an excuse to go. Which is odd. “Sorry guys.” He says for good measure.

Taehyung would normally be the last to go, always eager to spend as much time with his close friends whenever possible. He didn’t live full time in town, mainly staying for the summer and then occasionally a little bit after, but never too long. There were occasional visits, but other than that, you all didn’t get to see him much. So his behavior is particularly striking as weird.

Guilt stirs in your chest, an uncomfortable pressure. Was it the coat thing? You sure hope not. You wonder distantly why it would, but struggle to come up with a realistic answer. You wouldn’t have thought that something so minuscule like that would upset him, or really anyone for that matter. The idea of giving a coat back to someone after they dropped it doesn’t strike you as anything negative, heck, you’d be glad if someone chased your own coat out to you if you had dropped it. Was there something earlier that happened that you missed? Did you say anything else that could’ve been rude? You didn’t think you did, but now you weren’t so sure. Really you were expecting to be teased about it somewhat- but something about Jimin and Taehyung’s reaction has you thinking that there’s more to it then they’re saying out loud, and the thought that you might have upset one of them makes you frown.

“No worries, Tae. It’s fine.” Jungkook is the first to break the few second silence that came over the group, smiling supportively at Taehyung.

Hoseok chimes in, “Yeah, don’t stress.”

Namjoon speaks up next, “We all get busy. So no worries if you gotta leave on short notice.” he says sagely, “Happens to all of us.”

Taehyung stands there for a moment, like he didn’t quite expect everyone to jump in and dispel the unease lingering in the air. “Yeah, sorry.” He finally says, once more looking over to you in a quick glance. It just makes you feel worse. “um, see you guys.”

There’s a small chorus of byes as Taehyung takes his bag and leaves, waving as he slips out the door. All the boys and you watch silently as he goes, slight degrees of concern or confusion on your faces. It only takes a second before everyone breaks back into conversation, but whatever they’re talking about, you don’t listen, attention fixed on the door where Taehyung had left through as a mixture of confusion and guilt churns in your stomach. Weird, this is all quite weird . But you have a distinct feeling that you might’ve done something to set Taehyung off- you’ve never really seen him run off like that.

There’s a tap on your shoulder and you turn to Jimin who’s leaned forward towards you and smiles with sympathy.

“Sorry for the fuss, don’t worry too much- you haven’t done anything wrong, so try to ignore us, okay?” He says reassuringly, his voice low enough to not gather the others attention. You guess that he probably doesn’t want to embarrass you. “I’ll talk to you more about it later, and I’ll explain some things.” Jimin promises, and there’s an odd tinge of determination to his tone.

You don’t really know what to think of it.

“Okay.” You say, it’s a little dejected and Jimin almost winces at the look on your face. Taehyung will feel bad later, for running off and leaving you to stew. But you guys have been friends for years, so Jimin isn’t particularly worried this will drive a wedge between you two or something.

If anything, he’s hopeful that this will mean new beginnings, once the tide clears up. Not between you and Taehyung, nor you and him, but something new entirely.

He has a feeling it could work out, and he’s always had a bit of a sense for those things.

“Seriously, you haven’t done anything. I’m sorry for interrogating you, neither of us are mad at you- we just gotta make some calls and sort things out.” You snort a little at his phrasing, feeling a bit better about the whole thing.

“Okay then, I trust you.” You concede, “but geez, the way you say it makes it sound like you’re in some mafia group or something. Top secret business.”

Jimin grins, leaning back as lightly as he winks. “Yep, gotta make sure that it’s not classified information.”

Though, it’s not far from the truth.

He gives you a small pat on the shoulder and grabs his things, “I’m going to go too guys, so don’t have too much fun without me.” Jimin announces, stretching quickly as he steps around those who are sat on the floor. “I’ll see you later.” He throws a smile over his shoulder towards you, and you smile back. Then the next moment he’s gone, and you wonder if you really don’t need to worry about him and Taehyung, or if his words are just that, words.

Hoseok nudges his shoulder against yours, reeling you back in. “You good?”

You nod your head, but it feels disingenuous. “Yeah, I’m good.”

Namjoon eyes you, ever observant as he is. “Don’t worry about Taehyung, I don’t think he’s mad or anything.” He says heartedly, and you hum in response. It’s an undecided action, but you bite your lip and pull your bag into your lap.

You’re a bit tired from the long shift at work, and you don’t feel quite as chatty as you did before, so you decide that maybe it’s time for you to call it a day and head home.

With quick goodbyes and more than one watchful glance in your direction, you slip through the door and out onto the streets.

With the day reaching late afternoon, after your exceedingly long shift at the café, a strange customer service interaction with the coat guy, and two of your best friends near freaking out when you recount it to them, you finally head home in hopes to finally catch a break.

Your brain runs loops in your head, juggling between convincing you that you’re the only one making all these things seem weird, and then convincing you that no, all the shit that’s happened today is quite in fact weird, and you’re justified in your opinion of it. Admittedly, you even ponder on whether you could’ve possibly broken some unspoken rule that you’ve never heard off- although you write that off pretty quickly.

Sure, you weren’t born here, but if something was that important, you realistically would have learnt it by now. It wasn’t like your upbringing was that different to anybody else after you moved here. You went to the same old school that every other kid in town did, chasing circles around each other in the schoolyard and pulling fistfuls of grass from the ground when not, reaching over and scribbling smiley faces onto worksheets and crowding around in clusters whenever anything even remotely interesting had happened. You all spent summers visiting the big orchard above town, helping out the old woman who lives up there with her granddaughter by plucking fruits from the trees and berries from the bushes, each of you bringing a big bag full of spoils home, smiling excitedly as you would ramble to your parents about your day and whichever kid inevitably decided to try some kind of stunt to impress all the others (which usually ended up with some bruises and an icepack, the worst you had seen was when some boy broke a pinkie.) You all spent afternoons kicking up sand on the beach and splashing in the waves, only in the colder months did you recede away from it, playing in the town’s streets instead of grainy sand.

Even as you got older, you never gravitated away from the friendships you formed back then. You’re still friends with plenty of the girls you used to go to school with, and you’re naturally still close with most of the boys too. Hoseok, Namjoon, Yoongi, Jungkook, and of course Jimin and Taehyung.

Unfortunately, you have plenty of time to think on the way, considering that your house lays just a touch out of town.

It's only about an eight minute walk down the road to get there, so you never bother driving. Not to mention, there are plenty of people who live further out so you’re not going to complain either. Your home, which you have affectionately called it so for almost fifteen years now, is a modest place that sits by the beach. Three bedrooms, one bathroom, living-room, laundry room and kitchen. Technically, one of the bedrooms is a converted home office turned storage room in your lack of necessity for it. Since both your parents moved out shortly after your twentieth birthday for their job, it left you with an office you honestly didn’t really need. Then again, considering that both your parents had only moved to this town because of their job, it makes sense that they’d move away because of it too. Being marine biologists isn’t very stationary- you learned that pretty young when they would have to travel for a week or two almost every month.

It’s lucky you love the beach. Otherwise you might’ve gone a bit insane after a few years.

It’s easy for you to admire the waves push and pull along the sand, the crashing of it and the constant trull. You particularly love the summers, as it is now- because that’s when the seals show up.

Seals are your favorite marine mammals, and probably just your favorite animal overall. It always brings a smile to your face when you come across photos online of their thick whiskers and big black eyes. Even better when you get to see the pods of seals littering the beaches or peeking up from the waters, which much to your delight, you happen to see today.

There’s not that many this time, but there’s about ten or so lazing on the beach, taking in the afternoon sun. There are a few more between the waves, and you’d assume more further out in the ocean. It’s a happy distraction, and your lips tug into an involuntary smile as trudge down the path past them. There’s one particular seal however, that grabs your attention among all of them. It’s the farthest up the beach and the closest to you, (which is a little odd- they usually stay pretty close to their pods) but it’s staring right at you and you stare right back. Your house is literally only a minute ahead, you can see it just in front of you and while that should probably be the most interesting thing that you pay attention to, you find you have no interest in it.

Maybe it’s a seal you’ve seen before, but you doubt that it would capture your attention so much. There’s just something about the deep black eyes and the dried sleek coat that strikes you as familiar and pulls at the seams of your brain. The mammal stares at you with wide eyes and it looks almost puppyish, which makes you smile wide with a huffed laugh. If possible, the animal seems surprised at your reaction and pulls its head back a bit. You can’t help but giggle a bit, awww chorusing in your mind as you refocus your attention on the path that veers away from the beach and up to your front yard.

You jostle your bag on your arm as you produce a key from it and throw a glance over your shoulder back down to the beach. You can see sat on top of the backshore dune the seal from before watching you just as you push open your front door. It’s completely on a whim that you do it, but you randomly decide to give a parting wave to the seal. You weren’t expecting any reaction, but it turns tail and waddle-runs it’s way back toward the ocean. Oh, I scared it off. You’re not sure why, but it leaves you with a slight sense of disappointment as you drop your bag to the ground and pad off towards your bedroom.

With sluggish movements, you barely shrug off your day clothes and take a shower, before pulling on pajamas. You slide under your bedsheets with hopes to drown under the pull of sleep. Today’s strangeness will be gone tomorrow is the only distant thought you let linger as you drift off, comforting and convincing, leaving you fully intent on waking up tomorrow and forgetting most of todays events and letting normalcy take over. Once you wake up the next day, it seems to be near true. You go through the motions of your average morning routine, brain blurry and slow with sleep and yesterday pushed to the back of your brain for the most part. It’s mind numbing enough and really, you’re glad for it.

Then you push open your front door, and you’re greeted with the sight of little ocean gifts settled at your feet on your front porch.

And you think that maybe the strangeness that you experienced yesterday was only the start.

Masterlist / Next chapter

#bangtan x reader #seokjin x reader #selkie seokjin #bts jin #jin x reader #bts x reader #bts fanfic #seokjin fanfic #kim seokjin #selkie!seokjin #bts fluff #kim seokjin fanfic #kim seokjin x reader #cafe beside the sea #bts seokjin

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cindernovadoesart · 5 months

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The Last Straw

Captain Yukina was fine, everything was fine… well not really, rumors were spreading around about them, and it was spread around that they are indeed a Pirate Captain. Rumors spread like wildfire, some talking about their glass eye, which is true that they had one, some weren’t so kind, like some people suspecting they are a heartbreaker due to going around and being a “heartthrob”, or suspecting that they harmed merfolk, which isn’t true. Yukina was fine with the rumors, they’ve noticed that the Octavinelle dorm members and leaders have been more distant, that made their heart sting with bitterness. Though having sat through the history class of how one of the great seven’s deaths was caused and the many pirates who hunted merfolk in the past. They understood how uncomfortable they were. What wasn’t fine was how their friends started to slip away, to start believing the people that are spreading rumors, the lies and the hurtful words people say to Yukina, in their face and behind their back as if they didn’t hear it. It didn’t really mattered when Crowley just shoved task after task onto them, they were used to brutal tasks before. What really hurt was when Malleus believed it after believing in Yukina the whole time. That’s what drove them to leave, the only ones that stuck by the Captain, was their Ramshackle crew. The Ghosts and Grim all left with Yukina, leaving the dorm unhoused for days.

Crowley was the one who noticed their absence, furious he brought the house wardens to their dorm and knocked furiously to only be greeted with silence. When Crowley tries the door he found it to be unlocked. This made an uneasy feeling wash over the group as they shouted and called for Yukina, Grim, hell even the ghosts. But ended with complete nothingness. They began to search the whole dorm to find that Yukina has packed everything they had in a rush. Everyone began to panic, Crowley especially when he mentioned something about finding the way to their world. Everybody that was close to Yukina was called and excused from classes for the next few weeks to go search for them. The thing about this everyone was under the impression of bias that since they were a captain they could’ve gone and went to the beach or near the ocean. But they still drew a blank, it was then when Adeuce remembered the dwarfs mine and called everyone to follow them. During the days the three stayed in the cottage Yukina told their woes to all the creatures that visited, from other ghosts, to woodland creatures, to Faeries, they explained their side of the story, Yukina had cleaned and fixed the cottage themselves, they took time and care to everything they were surrounded by, they mined gems and used them to make jewelry and gifts to all those who lived in the area, they were happy. Until the group found them in walking around carrying a basket of foraged goods, taking just enough for them and grim to live off of while saving the rest for nature. They froze in place as they stare at their so called “friends”. Grim growled at the sight as he stands on the defensive side of Yukina.

“Why are you all here?” Yukina asks

“we were told to find you, headmasters orders” Riddle scowls

“Oh? And tell me, why should I return to that Hellhole Riddle?” Yukina replies venom dripping from their words.

“Because we can finally get rid of you, Headmaster found that way back to your world.” Ace sneers as he glares

“Really now?” Yukina questions as they set the basket down in front of their cottage “Now I am really hurt Ace, I thought we were friends.”

The group didn’t even notice the surroundings slowly becoming crowded with the creatures that listened to the Captains woes, all angered at the boys.

“Why would I be friends with a monster?” Ace asks

Yukina goes silent as their face is now unreadable, the group feels the atmosphere change as they finally noticed the many creatures surrounding them “a monster huh?” Yukina says as the group notices tears of black drip down Yukina’s face.

“after all I’ve done for you all and this.” Yukina barks a laugh “THIS. Is how I’m repaid?”

The whole group is silent, as they watch Yukina’s harsh icy glare faces them. “You all believed such foolish lies that have been spread around due to a bias and grudge against pirates, I have shown you all nothing but kindness. I WAS THE ONE THAT BROUGHT MOST OF YOU BACK TO YOUR SENSES AFTER YOU OVERBLOTED, AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME?!?” Yukina screams out in agony as ink consumes them. Everyone was shocked, confused, and terrified of what was happening as they all ready their pens. The creatures that surrounded them all walked over to the side of their Captain. A low husky chuckle escapes Yukina’s mouth as their form changes and shifts into a siren-like pirate overblot. A terrifying form to those who witness it, as it shows that Yukina themselves is part Merfolk themselves. And everyone wasn’t expecting it at all.

As their eyes gaze over the group they stare into the eyes of the fellow merfolk, Yukina knew that they started it all, because of course they would.

“Are you happy with the outcome friends?” Yukina questions as many trembled in fear.

“Because that was the Last Straw.”

#twst #twisted wonderland #twst wonderland #twst au #twst yuu #twst yuu au #twisted wonderland yuu #twst wonderland au #twisted wonderland au #twst wonderland yuu #twisted wonderland pirate captain yuu #pirate captain!yuu #overblot yuu #overblot yukina saya #yukina saya #villain pirate yuu

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multifandomfanfic · 2 years

Note

Hello!

Could you write something that the reader, who is not a pilot and works with Penny, likes Jake very much, but is afraid to talk to him because she has not heard pleasant things about him? After they somehow meet (my preference is after the beach scene because why not hehe) they start spending more time together and so on. A bit fluffy and smutty if you can.

Thank you!!

Pay Your Tab

Pairing: Jake Seresin x fem! Reader

Warnings: kissing, groping, smut references, language, angst, hickeys

Summary: Despite harboring crush on Hangman for a while, you’ve never acted on it due to other peoples’ opinion on him.. until now.

Word Count: 4.3k

“Hey, you!”

I leaned over the bar, wiping away the various mysterious stains that somehow found their way onto the wood. Customers would frequently attempt to place drink orders without approaching the bar. Ignoring them becomes habitual.

“Hey, sweetheart! Over here!”

I sighed and turned to face the source of the voice. A group of pilots were standing and playing billiards as usual. The main one was waving his hand in the air, facing me. I immediately recognized him. Jake Seresin is well-known among female bar patrons for his good looks as well as his cocky demeanor. As we accidentally locked eyes, my cheeks flushed pink.

“Can we get six beers?” Jake glanced over to a man sitting in the corner, “Seven, actually.”

I cupped my hand over my ears, pretending I couldn't hear what he was saying. The ruse failed miserably.

“Seven beers!” he shouted even louder.

I reluctantly gave him a thumbs up and turned around to pour the beer, breaking Penny's rules. I placed them on the bar in front of me, one by one, until all seven were full. Seresin appeared in front of the bar, as if he had heard the last pint being poured, and surprised me as I turned around.

“Thanks, sweets,” he said, trying to grab all seven beers at a time. To my surprise, he managed to pick up five before I even offered him a tray. I smiled as I piled the last two beers on the tray before he walked away.

“Wait a minute.. don’t forget to pay your tab!”

Seresin turned around and grinned cheekily, “Don’t worry, someone will get it!”

As I live and breathe, the infamous Hangman.

I can't believe this was our first conversation. I would've asked him out on a date long ago if his shady reputation hadn't walked through the door before him.

My eyes kept looking over to him every few seconds to ensure he was real, standing in my bar, and had just spoken to me moments before. I would've assumed he had feelings for me if he wasn't such a total flirt.

With a shake of my head, I expressed my dissatisfaction.

If only he had a pleasant reputation like Rooster or Pheonix. Then, if we held hands and walked into the Hard Deck with our chests and heads held high, no one would do a double take.

“Y/N!”

Penny's call jolted me out of my Hangman stupor. Penny, who was holding a large wooden box in her hand, drew my attention to the side. Most likely, she disappeared to grab something from the back rooms.

“Some old guy just spilled a beer all over the bar. Mind cleaning it before it gets sticky?”

I did mind because all I wanted to do was become lost in my thoughts and go home early.

“Sure. I’ll get right to it.”

San Diego rarely got hot enough to increase the temperature of the freezing water. As a result, few people visited the beaches of southern California unless they wanted to surf or sail.

Today, however, was an exception. The day was hot, which meant that everyone in the San Diego area could enjoy a relaxing day at the beach.

“Hello Y/N. How are you today?”

Penny was sitting quietly at a picnic table overlooking the beach when she asked the question. She held a book in her hands that she had been reading for what seemed like an eternity.

“I'm wonderful. Enjoying this perfect day!”

I extended my hands out, taking in the beautiful sunshine. It was one of the most pleasant days since summer began. Penny gave me a friendly smile, pleased that I was enjoying my day off.

“Why don’t you sit down and join me?”

Penny asked, motioning for me to take a seat on the other side of the table.

“I wouldn’t want to disturb your reading.”

With an overly dramatic flare, Penny carefully closed the book and stuffed it back into her purse.

“I’ve already read that book anyway. I’d much rather have a lovely conversation with you.”

I sat down on the hard, wooden picnic table and began chatting with Penny instantly. Despite the fact that she was my boss, our conversations were always light and friendly. No wonder Maverick loved her so much.

We continued to talk and talk and talk, becoming so enveloped in the conversation that we became oblivious to what was going on around us.

Until…

“Oh my God! It’s Maverick!”

“What are you talking about?” I furrowed my brow as Penny pointed to the shoreline. My gaze followed her finger. It wasn’t just Maverick. It was Maverick’s entire group: Rooster, Phoenix, Bob, Payback, Fanboy, and…

Hangman.

When my eyes landed on him, my eyes stopped scanning the large crowd. It didn't matter who else was taking part in the lighthearted beach football game. To me, Hangman stood out like a sore thumb, and I couldn't stop my eyes from grazing over his toned body.

“Ohhhh. Does someone have a thing for a certain Navy pilot?” Penny asked teasingly.

I rolled my eyes, my eyes staying fixed on Hangman.

“Don’t judge me, Penny. You’re into Navy guys as well.”

“I’m not judging, I’m only asking.”

Phoenix snatched the ball and launched into a sprint across the beach, kicking sand up behind her feet.

“Which one is it? If you don’t mind me asking.”

I rested my chin on my hand, allowing my arm to support the full weight of my head. Penny tried to follow my gaze to see which man I was looking at, but failed.

“Do you wanna take a wild guess?” I asked.

“Sure. Um…”

Her eyes swept across the muscular men scurrying back and forth across the beach, making sure to consider all possibilities before making a guess.

“Fanboy?”

“Nope. Guess again.”

“Coyote?”

“Nope.”

Penny scoffed, “Tell me then! I’m dying to know!”

Should I let her know? I suppose I could. She wouldn’t tell Hangman, or anyone besides Maverick for that matter. I trusted her. To be honest, it wouldn't make a difference if Hangman knew. He hardly knew who I was and would probably dismiss me as another distant admirer that he occasionally saw at the bar.

“Hangman.”

I mumbled.

“What?”

A few stray strands of hair blew into my face, temporarily blocking my vision as I swiveled around to face her.

“Hangman.”

The look on her face was priceless. Her eyebrows shot up, her forehead creasing as she lowered her jaw. Was it truly insane to fall in love with a hot navy pilot who also happened to have an ego problem?

“Please don’t look at me like I’m insane, Penny.”

Penny shook her head, jolting herself awake from her shocked daze.

“No! That’s not it at all! I just wasn't expecting him to be the object of your attraction.”

Now that my secret was out in the open, the sight of the wonderfully toned men having a good time was no longer so appealing. I sighed and began to stand up.

“I’m gonna go clean up the bar.”

“You don’t have to do that on your day off, Y/N.”

“I want to. If you need anything, let me know. I’ll be inside,” I said, looking back at her as I began to walk towards the bar, her expression now neutral.

With a nod of her head, I was off, walking across the sandy beach to the back entrance of the Hard Deck.

I clenched my teeth as I scrubbed the wooden bar vigorously, attempting to remove every single small stain. My arm grew sore quickly, but I didn’t care. The only other option was being alone at home with my thoughts, so I continued to scrub until I couldn’t feel my fingers.

I watched the rag move back and forth, leaving a gleaming trail of water in its wake, as I stared down at my fast-moving hand. My brain was locked into my movements, my other senses shutting off as I trapped myself into a deep trance of constant movement.

The cloth moved back and forth, back and forth.

“If you scrub any harder, you’ll take the glaze right off the wood.”

My head jerked up so fast that I almost got whiplash as a deep male voice cleared the fog from my mind.

Hangman, shirtless and with the pant legs of his jeans rolled up to his knees, was leaning against the Hard Deck's back entrance frame, a sly smirk playing on his lips.

“We’re not open for another two hours,” I said rashly, a flush creeping up my cheekbones. Wow. I was a romantic genius.

“Can you make an exception?”

God, he was so cocky. I hope he wasn’t like this to his superiors. I wanted to say no and stick to the rules. But there was Hangman, the man I had admired in secret for months, right in front of me, asking to spend time with me alone.

“Well, no shirt, no shoes, no service.”

That line was fairly slick. I was getting better at this.

I lowered my gaze to his chest, trying not to appear creepy as I pointed out his nakedness with my eyes before bringing my attention back to his face.

Hangman grinned and flashed his pearly white teeth.

“Sure.”

His arm disappeared around his body as he reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out a plain white t-shirt. He threw it on. Part of me wished he'd kept his shirt off, but asking him to strip after just demanding he redressed would give him the wrong impression.

Him and his ego swaggered over to the bar, instantly filling the room and heightening the tension of the atmosphere. Although, maybe, the tension was just in my head, because my heart was already beating out of my chest after one sly glance from Hangman.

“What do you want?”

Hangman shifted his hips on the bar stool, the cushion underneath him creaking as he tried to find a comfortable position.

“Give me whatever.”

I knelt down and grabbed a random bottle of beer from the mini fridge, popping the cap off with the bottle opener on the bar's side. The cold bottle left a trail of water in its wake as I slid it across the bar to Hangman.

“There you go.”

I stepped on the bottle cap that was rattling against the bar's floor to silence the annoying noise.

“Don’t I have to open a tab?”

I extended my hand to him, exposing my open palm. Hangman reached into his back pocket and pulled out a thin wallet. He flipped through the contents, removing a red credit card from the leather wallet and placing it in my open palm. As our hands gently touched, he smirked, and I prayed he wouldn't notice the blush creeping onto my cheeks.

I kept his card behind the bar while I opened a tab for him. I walked around to the other side, turning away from him and continuing my thorough cleaning process.

“You aren’t gonna keep me company?”

He yelled, feigning sadness in his tone in the hopes of making me feel sorry for him.

I scoffed, “If you wanted company, you would’ve brought friends.”

I tried to be as snarky as possible in my response. I wanted him to leave the bar so I could finally relax and fantasize about him instead of having to actually communicate with him.

“Playing hard to get, aren’t we?” he said coolly.

My movements came to a sudden halt.

Is it possible that I misunderstood him?

Was he implying that he was attempting to "get" me?

“Oh, did I hit a nerve?” He spoke with a honeyed tone that dripped from his lips.

“No. I just…” I stuttered, struggling to get the words out of my throat.

“You didn’t think I’d be interested in you?”

What?

Was I that easy to read?

As the blood flew right to my face, my cheeks turned bright red, my cheekbones burning with heat. I knew that my silence would amuse him more than if I simply acknowledged that he was correct.

“Yes. I didn’t think you’d be interested in me.”

I resumed my scrubbing motions, wiping the bar aggressively despite the wood already being shiny and spotless.

“Well, I am.”

“You’re interested in me?”

“Yes. I. Am.”

I realized I was bent over a little further than I had intended when I turned my head over my right shoulder and locked eyes with Hangman.

I gulped, rising to my full height, turning, and leaning over the opposite side of the bar, keeping my gaze fixed on Hangman. As Jake raised his eyebrows in subtle surprise at my confidence, I reached my torso over the bar, propped up on my elbows, and tried to appear as intimidating as possible.

"Alright, Hangman.”

I spoke angrily through my teeth.

“I’ll bite. Tell me why you’re so infatuated with me all of a sudden.”

Hangman pushed his beer to the side and leaned forward over the bar, his breath fanning across my face as he brought our noses only inches apart. He gained confidence as he watched me squirm in my skin under his intense gaze. My chest tightened as the crushing atmosphere of the room pressed down on my fragile body, his grin widening with each shaky gulp or inhale.

“Cause I saw you staring at me the other day.”

My jaw was clenched so tightly that my teeth felt as if they were splitting under the force of my bite.

He moved forward another inch, his nose nearly brushing against the tip of mine as his stare became increasingly intense.

“And ever since then I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind.”

His voice had changed from seductive to completely erotic, a pinching sensation beginning to form in my lower abdomen.

“Nothing to say?” he teased.

My lower jaw trembled in excitement and anticipation as I ran my tongue along my bottom lip.

“Um… no. I don’t have anything to say.”

Hangman laughed heartily, his shoulders bouncing as he did so. He leaned back in his chair, his posture assuming a normal position. The space between our two faces provided some relief from the mounting tension around us. The true tension, however, was building inside the pit of my stomach.

“Then I’ll do the talking.”

Hangman said with his lips pursed into a thin smile and his brows raised halfway up his forehead, dark wrinkles forming above his eyebrows.

“My car is the white one in the front of the parking lot. It should be unlocked. I want you to sit in the passenger's seat and wait for me.”

I furrowed my brow.

“Wait for you?”

Hangman wrapped his large hand around the neck of his beer bottle and thrust it into the air, assuming a toast position.

“I gotta finish my beer first,” with a low smacking sound, he slammed the bottle onto the bar.

Hangman continued proudly with a sly wink, “Leave me in peace for a bit, I’ll rejoin you soon.”

God, cocky bastard.

I gradually grew to my full height, having to tilt my neck to stare down at Hangman. Despite the new perspective, he was in complete command of the situation. The difference in height has no effect on his self-assurance.

I didn't want to give Hangman everything he desired. I wanted to be tough, to stand my ground, and to truly give him a run for his money. But I had a terrible, huge crush on this man, and this was one of my most frequent fantasies.

Being ordered around by a slick, attractive navy pilot who I’ve been admiring for a few months now?

Yes please.

“Okay Hangman, you win.”

I turned away from him and made my way to the front door. As I walked out of the bar, I could feel Hangman's slick eyes following me with every subtle movement of my body. But I didn't dare to look back at him because I was already giving him so much pleasure by doing exactly what he said. I wasn't going to give him any more satisfaction by showing him how severely he got under my skin.

However, I wouldn't be surprised if he was already aware.

The front windshield of a white Mustang was facing away from the front entrance of the parking lot.

A mustang, wow, very Hangman.

The windows were tinted, and anyone staring into the car would see absolutely nothing. The door was unlocked, and I clambered into the passenger's seat of the car.

Now, I wait.

The car was heating up in the surprisingly hot San Diego sun, and a thin layer of moisture was forming on my upper lip and brow.

Let’s hope Penny doesn’t come to check on me.

Penny.

Oh God.

Did she tell him?

Did she inform Hangman that I was in love with him?

That is the only plausible explanation. Penny informed Hanfman, who decided to confront me about it. Act on it, rather.

It makes sense, perfect sense.

I mean, when I told her my secret I expected her not to tell anyone.

But, I couldn’t even be mad at her because the spilling of my secret put me in a sensual situation with a super hot navy pilot.

“Fuck Hangman, where are you?”

He was messing with me. There was no way the last half of his beer was taking him this long to finish. I saw him drink on a busy night of partying, he can down multiple beers in the blink of an eye.

I shifted my hips, my thighs sticking to the leather seats.

The Hard Deck parking lot was deserted, with only Hangman's white Mustang parked on the asphalt. Part of me wishes there were people bustling around the car while Hangman and I did whatever he wanted behind tinted windows.

I wiped my upper lip, but the droplets of sweat returned after a few seconds.

“Oh come on, this is ridiculous.”

Alright, that was it. I’d have enough of Hangman’s cockiness.

I wasn't about to sit in this hot car all day waiting for him to show up whenever he damn well pleased.

Hangman tapped the window with his finger joint. Sure enough, he was standing outside the car, staring in.

I rolled my eyes as he flung open the door and slid into the driver's seat.

“Miss me honey?”

I didn't respond. Instead, I was looking out the window at the beach. On the opposite side of the Hard Deck, the pilots were playing football. My gaze was drawn to a section of the sand filled with large families and adorable couples.

“Oh come on, I couldn’t just give you what you wanted when you wanted it. That wouldn’t be fun.”

“Yet you expect me to give you what you want when you want it?”

I spin my head around, meeting Hangman's mischievous gaze.

“I didn’t make you sit in my car and wait for me. If you would’ve told me no I would’ve left you alone.”

Hangman leaned over the center console.

“You’re giving me what I want honey. I don’t expect anything.”

The hot air hung around us, and sweat drops began to form on Hangman's face.

“Well.”

I said.

“Well?”

He asked, his brows raising.

I leaned in closer to Hangman, bringing our faces closer together once more.

“Are you gonna kiss me or are you just gonna stare?”

“Stare.”

He said, his voice devoid of any emotion.

What?

What kind of mind games was this man playing?

Hangman maintained intense eye contact with me as he drew his keys from his back pocket and began tapping the keys until the clicking noise of the doors locking surrounded me in every direction.

“Now we can kiss.”

Hangman tossed his keys to the floor of his car and pressed his lips to mine in a moment of passion. The force of his kiss caused me to recoil, knocking the breath straight from my lungs as my eyes fluttered closed.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling his face impossibly closer to me. God, just moments ago we were teasing each other in his car. Only seconds later, our teeth were clashing and chests heaving as Hangman thrusted his sweet tongue past my lips.

Jake’s calloused palms rubbed against my clothed hips, gripping the flesh and yanking me towards him every time my pelvis shifted backwards.

I felt myself being thrown into the air as Hangman effortlessly pulled me from my seat and onto his lap, putting his well-defined muscles to good use.

His large hands shifted from my hips to my thighs, kneading the soft flesh as he pulled me even farther forward until our chests were pressed flush together.

“You’re a good kisser.”

I wheezed before reconnecting our lips. Hangman smirked against my mouth, his ego inflated by the slightly juvenile compliment.

I always assumed that even if I were placed in this situation, I wouldn't be able to get past Hangman's cocky demeanor and massive ego. But his confidence somehow made him even more appealing.

It would be different if Hangman wasn't charismatic and thought he was hot shit for no reason whatsoever.

But God, he could kiss like it was nobody’s business. His plush lips meshed with mine as his hands moved expertly on my body, adding to the many wonderful sensations that arose as I kissed him.

Goosebumps broke out along my skin, Hangman’s dull nails digging into the thick flesh of my thighs.

If he could kiss like this… I shudder to think at what he could do with his-

“God, I want to be inside you so badly.”

The honeyed tone was back. Hangman yanked his lips away from mine, severing the connection I was longing for. He'd given me a taste of his passion, and I wasn't sure if I'd ever be able to get enough of it.

His warm mouth pressed to the side of my throat, and I involuntarily threw my head back to expose more of my neck for him, my lower abdomen fluttering with desire.

“What’s stopping you?”

I asked, gasping for air as he nibbled on my collarbone's sensitive skin. Jake flattened his tongue against the bruise, leaving a patch of saliva on my collarbone as I moaned involuntarily.

“Oh honey, I wanna take my time with you.”

He mumbled against my skin, his hands finding their way to my clothed breasts.

I grit my teeth and sighed deeply as his hands desperately kneaded my breasts, pinching my nipples through two layers of clothes.

It wasn’t enough.

It wasn’t nearly enough for me.

“Besides…

He whispered sensually, his hot breath sending chills down my spine.

“You’re too much fun to tease.”

Oh come on, cut me a break Hangman.

I drew my arms from around Hangman's neck, allowing my head to fall forward while trailing my hands down his chest. Hangman continued to bite and suck at the sensitive skin on the small patch of my exposed chest.

I thought about unbuckling his thick leather belt and reaching into his boxers to palm his cock through his boxers. I wanted to pleasure him, show him I could make him feel good.

But Hangman made it clear now wasn’t the time to take off each other’s clothes. So I opted for dipping my hands under the hem of his shirt and pressing my open palms against his lower abdomen.

The shaggy hair on his belly brushed against my fingers, the desire to clench my thighs together rushed through my body as I began to explore more of his body.

“God you’re beautiful… I can wait to fuck you in my car. I can’t wait to fill you up.”

He blew hot air onto the hickeys he'd created on my chest, the sensitive patches of skin lighting on fire under his breath.

“You’re gonna look so pretty bouncing on my cock.”

I moaned, this time louder and much more audible.

“My God your moans are gorgeous.”

His hands quickened their pace against my sensitive breasts.

“Hangman.”

I moaned, knitting my brows together as my nipples hardened under his touch.

“HANGMAN!”

That certainly wasn’t my voice.

I retracted my hands from his lower abdomen and sat back on his muscular thick thighs, whirling my head around to find the source of the noise.

“Fucking Bob.”

Hangman grunted in disapproval as he watched Bob frantically search the parking lot for his fellow pilot.

“It doesn’t look like he sees us. We can just wait him out.”

Just as I finished speaking, Bob's gaze was drawn to Hangman's car, and he began sprinting towards it.

“Fuck. Get off my lap.”

I scrambled off Hangman's lap and into the passenger seat, making an audible rattle as I moved. Fuck.

Bob heard the racket and now he knew someone was in the car.

“Hangman! Are you in there?”

Bob inquired, squinting against the light reflected off Hangman's tinted windows and aggressively tapping on the window.

Hangman rolled his eyes and pressed the button to roll down the window all the way.

“Hey! Penny has your credit card and it says you opened a tab? She thought you left without it! Good thing you’re still-“

His gaze fell on me as I sat uncomfortably in Hangman's passenger seat, hickeys all over my chest. I gave Bob a meek wave as I awkwardly smiled.

“Hello.”

He said, smiling and waving back at me as his cheeks began to turn bright red.

“Alright Bob, why don’t you tell Penny I’ll be right in.”

“Oh no please! Take your time.”

Bob blurted out, clearly embarrassed that he had interrupted our time together.

Bob practically sprinted towards the Hard Deck's front door, not looking back at us as he hurriedly exited the situation.

“I assume Penny spilled the beans?”

Hangman knitted his brows together in perplexity, turning his head to face me.

“What do you mean?”

Oh. She hadn’t told him.

“Oh!”

I exclaimed.

“Never mind.”

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captmickey · 5 months

Text

I'm going to post my Escape from Monkey Islan rewrite overview. And since I'm pretty much bailing (for now) the fic. Here's what was written so far.

Who knows, maybe one day I'll come back to it.

---

From the personal log of Guybrush Threepwood,

Sometimes, when it’s quiet, I can still hear the monkeys.

It’s hard to believe that it’s only been a few years since I first washed up on the beaches of Melee Island, armed with nothing more than a goofy name and an overpowering urge to become a swashbuckling pirate.

Who could have suspected that such a humble pursuit would lead me to cross swords with the evil Ghost Pirate LeChuck, the slimiest slug ever to plunder the seven seas? And who could have guessed that my battles with LeChuck would introduce me to the love of my life, Melee Island’s Governor Elaine Marley? Or that my efforts to win Elaine’s hand would repeatedly drag me to the mystery-drenched shores of Monkey Island? Or that I would finally end the scourge of LeChuck, burying him beneath a mountain of ice?

Not me, that’s for sure.

Back then, the only thing duller than my sword was my wit. Now look at me, I’m married to the most beautiful governmental official in the Caribbean, the entire Tri-Island area shudders at the sound of my name, and now my Plunder Bunny and I are returning to Melee Island, after the most incredible honeymoon in the history of--

“Guybrush, look out!”

The pen sharply skewed off the page, creating a thin black line across the sentence as Guybrush shifted himself away from the incoming projectile, hearing the whooshing of the hatchet fly over his head. He turned his head and spat out his pen to the side before looking over to his newly wed wife fending off a pirate with two weapons at once. “I could… really use your help right about now!” Elaine called out.

“Oh, I'd love to, but uh... little tied up…” Guybrush rattled slightly his restraints for emphasis.

Her eyes glanced over his way every few seconds before she pushed off the offender away, catching her breath. “Heh, you can't tell me that Guybrush Threepwood, Mighty Pirate doesn't have a trick up his sleeve. Speaking of which, any progress on the escape plan?”

“Ah… I’m working on it.” Guybrush admitted, pushing himself up the pole he was chained to. “Oh, on your left.”

“Thank you!” She quickly swung a fist at the enemy, watching them fling back against the others like a couple of bowling pins. “Alright, I'll fend them off a bit longer then. But do hurry, please?” She gave a smile before quickly gripping her weapons with renewed vigor to fight off the next round.

Guybrush watched in admiration as she went to fight two at once, a feat that he still could not comprehend how she was able to do with ease and began looking around at his surroundings. Okay, he thought, what is there to see. Well for one, there was a massive ship that was throwing pirates their way endlessly (and in fact dwarfed their own ship by comparison), there was a cannon with a cannonball lodged inside (at least, he hoped there was), and a brazier with some lit coal that was within range. As for himself, he was restrained rather firmly against one of the masts, his only movements around said mast was limited to just being able to move around and kicking his feet.

‘Cool, so either I could spin myself fast enough around the mast to free myself from my restraint or I could trip any poor unfortunate pirate coming my way… kick if I’m lucky.’ Guybrush thought. He looked at the cannon aiming perfectly at the enemy ship, wishing he could just light the darn thing. But as it stood, there wasn’t much he could do.

Light. Wait!

A thought clicked in his mind, he didn’t have to be the one to light the cannon necessarily, it just needed to be lit. He side eyed the burning brazier and grinned. Guybrush began shimming himself to face the brazier, giving it a bit of a kick once it was within range. He knew it could have gone one of two ways; either it would fall towards or away from him, but as luck would have it, it was the former. Quietly cheering to himself, he kicked a coal his way, balancing it slightly on his foot before feeling the heat begin to burn through his boot.

“Ow ow ow ow…!” Guybrush quietly cried out as he kept kicking the coal back and forth between one foot and the other, shimming himself to face the cannon. “Please work…!” He kicked the coal far from him towards the unlit wick, holding his breath as he saw it take light and slowly burn down. It would be truly terrible if the cannon didn’t go off. But to his relief, with a loud and ear-ringing boom, the cannon shot straight through the opposing ship, most likely igniting the gunpowder as it erupted into fire before sinking into the ocean. He watched the enemy rush to the side, watching in horror as their means of transport vanish under the sea. The sounds of the safety being pulled back from various guns clicked quickly as Elaine and the crew all took aim.

While the crew gathered the remaining enemies as prisoners, Elaine walked over to Guybrush, sighing relief and smiling his way.

“Oh, my little snugglecakes.” She cooed as she brushed back some of his hair and wrapped her arms around him, resting her head on his shoulder. Guybrush, in turn, rested his head on the top of her’s, sighing with content that the ordeal was over. It was only the slight ache in his wrists from his shackles that brought him back out of his honeymoon bliss to his current reality.

“Um, hey Elaine? Could you untie me?”

“Oh! Right, of course.”

The sun had long since set as the ship made its way to port later that evening. The crewmate shouted from the crow’s night of the land approaching and the rest of the crew below helped the Threepwoods move their luggage from the hold to the deck (it wasn’t really luggage, Guybrush thought as he helped piled the packages on top of one another, they were more wedding gifts and other knick knacks they bought during their honeymoon).

"And the way you just took them down with not one but TWO weapons! Elaine, that was incredible!" Guybrush gushed, regaling the tale the two starred in.

"Yes, well, it would have meant nothing if you didn't cleverly think of that way to shoot down their ship." Elaine complinented, handing Guybrush a hat box. "Oh, make sure this goes on top, it's fragile."

"Right, of course." Guybrush nodded, taking the box and placing it with the rest of the collection. "By the way, are you excited to be back in Melee?"

"Of course." She said, handing him a heavier box. "It is my home." Elaine chuckled and shook her head. "My apologies, our home."

Guybrush paused for a moment, letting those words sink in: our home. A smile graced his face. "Yeah… yeah it is, isn't it? Our home." He placed the heavy box in the pile, hearing a sudden crunch beneath the weight of the gift and winced.

"What was that?" Elaine perked up, looked over and saw the sheepish blond. She sighed. "You put the hat box underneath by accident, didn't you?"

He nodded slowly. "Sorry."

She shook her head. "It's fine."

Elaine climbed out of the hole, patting her hands of any dust and walked over to Guybrush who slipped an arm around her waist.

#monkey island #mickey writes #the ship that literally sails itself

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underthetree845 · 8 months

Note

i have no idea if you've ever heard of paddle boarding, but i think Armin would absolutely love that activity!!!

Oh my gosh hi! I didn’t expect to get this, but it’s such a sweet idea! Hello Milo! (That’s the name on your blog that I think you use? Or is that just there? Are you called Rui)?

Yes I have heard of paddle boarding, I’ve actually seen people doing it right next to me before because I’ve gone kayaking a few times! (I live in a place with a lot of natural springs).

I know you didn’t technically ask for this, but I try to take the opportunity to write headcannons/drabbles here and there whenever I can to keep in the habit of writing. I am slowly making progress with chapter seven though!

I hope you enjoy my thoughts ^^

Paddle Boarding With Armin

Armin/gn! Reader (Headcannons)

Cws: Modern au, established relationship, fluff, swimming

Wc: 949

Armin is always one for the beach, inhaling in the salty breeze, splashing around with you in the waves, buying ice cream, collecting shells, sharing all his ocean facts, bundling you up in towels for the drive home.

BUT- if he had to pick a second, more accesible favorite water activity, it would defiantly be paddle boarding.

He does his research on which areas to visit, he usually prefers to go to a freshwater spring river/lake since the cool water keeps away things like alligators and crocodiles.

“They’re cold blooded and need to use their environment to regulate their body temperature, so they avoid colder waters, isn’t that cool??”

“Yes, Love.”

He was a swimmer in high school, so there isn’t anything to worry about if one of you falls off.

He was already pretty toned from swim team, but since the two of you started paddle boarding, his arms have gotten stronger. The constant paddling proved to be a good exercise for the both of you.

That said, all it takes is a hop into the water for a few minutes to cool off and refresh yourself.

The two of you took turns helping each other learn to balance in a lake nearby when you first started.

One of you would stand in the water near the dock and hold the edge of the paddle board, the other would try to step on and balance for as long as they could as the person in the water slowly moved the board along.

Obviously it took a few times for you both to not just fall in the water immediately, but that’s okay because whenever you fell off Armin would give you a peck on the lips for a little extra motivation and vice versa.

His skin gets so pretty and sun kissed after you’ve been out on the water for a day. He gets the cutest splaying of summer freckles across his nose and looks a little pinker than usual under the sun.

If you don’t always feel like paddling on your own that’s totally okay, you can just sit on the paddle board by Armin’s feet and he’ll gladly paddle you both along.

He’s the best at packing snacks and sandwiches for you both in case you get hungry, he knows all your favorites and 100% bought a waterproof bag to keep it all in.

One of Armin’s favorite parts of paddle boarding is when you get to stop at a spring and actually dive underwater.

He brings a pair of goggles for himself so he can go under and look around, and one for you in case you want to join him.

Even if you don’t want to swim or you find the water too chilly, that’s fine, but he will encourage you to at least wear the goggles and put your face to the surface of the water to see underneath.

The water is breathtakingly clear. White sand, dark rocks, scattered underwater plants, and blue reflections everywhere you look.

Armin definitely has a special spot on his shelf where he keeps the shells he collects from the bottom of the spring.

Tries his best to take underwater pictures with one of those plastic underwater phone cases.

Most of them come out blurry, but don’t mention it, he loves them so much and will only use the photo quality as an excuse to drag any one of your friends there to see it in person.

If you do like to swim with him, he’s definitely fantasized about kissing you underwater, but is far too shy to tell you.

Part of him is sincerely curious what it would feel like, other part of him just really wants to create that memory.

One time when you two were swimming together in a little offshoot lagoon-like area of the river, he found and opening and decided to take it.

Armin can hold his breath for a pretty long time. Whether it was a natural ability or one he developed from being on the swim team is unimportant.

Armin can hold his breath longer than you, so when you started to go up for air while searching for shells on the bottom, he still had a decent amount of oxygen left.

He tugged on your wrist to pull you back down, you looked at him with a confused sense of urgency.

Armin swam up to face you, if you weren’t underwater he would’ve taken a deep breath.

Your eyes widened when he kissed you, he took your moment of shock to seal his lips with yours and breathe some of his air into your mouth.

The moment was ethereal, even if it did end up with both of you violently coming up from the surface of the water, coughing and struggling for breath.

When you finally registered what was happening, it caused you to to gasp, which obviously didn’t work, so you ended up inhaling water and Armin panicked a little, losing his air as well.

You made your way to the shallow sandy area where you tied your paddle board.

“Armin?” you breathed heavily, a bemused smile creeping into your expression, “Why did you do that?”

“Because… I… wanted to?” he replied sheepishly, a shade of red tinting his cheeks.

“Sorry, should I not have done that?” he asked, stepping forward and gently taking your hands in his.

“It’s fine, just warn me next time,” you smiled sweetly, leaning in to give him a peck on the lips, causing both of you to giggle.

The two of you wouldn’t indulge in more underwater anytime kisses soon, but at least it’s something Armin can cross off his bucket list.

Have a wonderful day/night/morning/evening! 💙

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mintelepathy · 2 years

Text

“I really want to kiss you again”

idol best friend jungkook x oc

best friend who clearly have feelings for each other

genre: fluff

word count. 1.4k

summary: Jungkook took you to Hawaii for your birthday and you hoped to enjoy some sunny time at the beach but mother nature had other plans. The good thing is that nothing can go wrong if you are with jungkook

mlist

“What a shame” you whispered while looking at the rain falling outside through the window.

Going on vacation with your best friend was something you’d been discussing about with him for a few months already, but you had no idea until a week ago that the trip was going to actually happen.

Jungkook showed up at your apartment seven days ago with flight tickets in hand, a smile on his face, and a suitcase at his side, “I know your birthday is in three days days but happy birthday, I couldn't wait any longer"

And here you were, a week later, in Hawaii. If you told someone you were in Hawaii they would probably expect you to be enjoying the beach and drinking from a coconut, but no, that wasn’t the case.

You arrived yesterday night and you woke up this morning with the sound of heavy rain hitting the living room window. Why were you sleeping in the living room? that’s a good question and there is a good answer for that.

The place Jungkook rented had only one bedroom, in consequence, just one bed for the both of you, everything fine up to that point, you’ve been friends for longer than you can remember and have shared a bed more times than you remember too.

The problem was that the heat from the hot weather was intolerable, and the only room with an air conditioner was the living area, so you just took the mattress out of the bedroom and placed them between the couches, problem solved.

A detail that made the living room ten times better than the boring bedroom was the insane view you had of the sky, the place had huge glass windows giving you a clear view of the starry night, truly breathtaking.

But now the only thing in the sky was the clouds covering the island in grey.

“it won’t stop soon, will it?” you asked him as you heard him coming towards your side.

“it will… tomorrow maybe?” you turned your head to show him your face and faked a cry, making him smile softly at you, “let’s go eat darling”

God, you loved when he called you darling, it all started once you were watching a tv show together and you mentioned how much you loved the way that word sounded in a British accent, so naturally, he started calling you that, giving you his best imitation of the British accent just to mess up with you.

“Should we eat on the porch?” you proposed the idea since the house had a little roofed front porch with two chairs and a small table.

“We definitely should” he made emphasis on the word definitely letting you know he thought that he loved the idea.

So there you were, having pizza on the front porch and admiring mother nature.

“Do you smell that?” he asked not worrying about the big chunk of pizza he had inside his mouth. If it was any other person you would have said that it was disgusting he was talking with his mouth full of food, but he was Jungkook, and he looked adorable doing anything.

“I don’t want to smell your fart Jungkook” you said jokingly.

“You’ll never have that privilege” he played along.

Going in a serious mode, you took a deep breath and noticed right away what he wanted you to scent.

“Do you think wet earth’s diffuser is a thing?” you asked him with your eyes closed as you kept enjoying that scent that only appears when it rains.

“Probably, we have to get one if it exists and if it doesn’t we should make it a thing, we could become rich” he said as if he wasn’t already, that’s something you loved about him. He had money, a lot of money to be precise, being a member of one of the most famous groups in the world was explanation enough, but still, he never bragged about his privileges. He could have all the money in the world and still be the same person you met way before he became famous, such a humble and down to earth man.

You finished eating but you had no intention to go inside yet.

The beach was right in front of you, literally. Far enough to not get hit by the waves, but close enough that it almost felt like that part of the beach was reserved just for the two of you.

You really hoped for the sun to make an appearance soon.

Jungkook noticed the way you looked at the ocean and he knew how much you wanted to go and dive in it. So why not go and do it? it might be raining but the air still felt warm.

“What the hell are you doing?” he just went and threw you on his shoulder, lifting you so easily.

He started to make his way to the shore as the rain hitting your bodies started to soak all of your clothes.

It was when he took off his shoes that you realized what was about to happen.

“Put me down! Jungkook, please don’t!” you screamed as you laughed hysterically.

He wasn’t planning to let you go now.

You were barefoot so the only thing to worry about were your clothes, but if he put you down he would give you a chance to escape and he wasn’t taking that risk.

The more he thought about taking both of you into the water the more excited he got.

He didn’t think twice and started running while carrying you to the big body of water.

“Oh shit!” you shouted just before Jungkook dived both of you deep down into the water.

You came back to the surface to take a big breath and look for Jungkook but he was nowhere to be found.

“Jungkook?” you called after him and were about to shout out his name once again when you felt something touching your leg. “AH!” you screamed without thinking it as you saw Jungkook coming from down the water.

“What a beautiful day to take a swim right?” he said as he splashed some water on your face.

“I think I just drank half of the ocean, you dick” you copied his actions starting a water fight.

You did your best but he hit the surface in a way that made you swallow half of the ocean again.

“Stop! you win, you win” you put your hands up in signal of surrender.

You coughed a little and rubbed your eyes to see him well.

You just stared at each other for a few seconds, not saying anything.

He laughed first and you followed.

“You and your impulsive thoughts” you just moved your head to the sides in disbelief.

“Admit your having the best time right now” he ordered as he came closer to where you were standing.

“It comes close, I would admit it if the water wasn’t too freaking cold” you didn’t care about the cold water actually, you just didn’t want to give him the pleasure to tell him he was right.

“I can fix that, come here” he said as he wrapped his arms around you.

You tilted your head to meet his eyes since he was taller than you.

How could he still look great with all of his hair wet and all of his clothes pressing on his body? Now is when the tingles in your tummy appear.

He couldn’t stop staring at you and you couldn’t stop staring at him, he loved the way your body felt against him and you loved how his body felt against you, he wanted to kiss you and you wanted to kiss him.

And as if you communicated by some sort of telepathy he placed a hand on your jaw as you slipped your fingers in his hair just to pull him closer, making the access to his lips easier.

His lips pressed against yours felt so soft, so good, both of you taking your time, enjoying every second of the best kiss you’ve ever received with the only person you’ve ever truly wanted.

You didn’t want to stop but at some point you both broke the contact in need of air.

“I really want to kiss you again” he whispered just inches away from your lips.

“Then what are you waiting for?” you asked him with the biggest smile on your face.

You didn’t know how could the second kiss be better than the first but it was, he treated you so gently even though he was dying to take you inside and make not-so-decent things to you.

After all rainy days were really the best.

♡

a like or reblog is always well appreciated<3

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jellybeansmud · 28 days

Text

so i got angry trying to catch an octopus. and now its 4:30 am and i finished a little something about how horrible it must be to be the farmer when your player is crazy stupid and trying to achieve everything immediately like they're a fucking speedrunner or something (<- thats me. i am like that)

putting it under readmore. unedited since im only getting two hours of sleep today even without editing

Solo Stress | Farmer & Elliott

| they/them for the farmer | 1693 words

It is a beautiful morning in the Pelican Town, and the local farmer is yelling at the sea like it just insulted their mother. It is barely seven.

You get used to it always being a bit noisy, living right by the sea, but swearing that was so loud it almost sounded like it was right inside of his cabin overpowered the usual sound of waves and seagulls quite a bit. Enough so that Elliott shot straight up from his bed before even properly waking up, running outside with his heart sinking to his stomach, fully expecting to find someone injured there, or to see fire, or a flood, or something of sorts. He rubbed his eyes, adjusting to bright rays of sun shining right into his face, and looked around the beach.

The area was peaceful enough. Definitely no natural disasters happening. All Elliott could find that was out of the ordinary were a kicked over bucket, a few sardines flopping helplessly on the sand next to it, and the town's newest resident, who stood by the edge of the water, screaming and gesturing around at such speed that the fishing rod in one of their hands hit the water from time to time, sending splashes half their height up in the air. After a minute of consideration, he called out to them before walking closer.

Olli whipped around faster than Elliott has ever seen a person turn in his life, fishing rod drawing a half-circle deep in the sand. Their, honestly, quite terrifying scowl dropped when they saw him, to his relief. The second that they looked at him like that was enough for him to reconsider whether it was a good idea to ask them what happened. He did so anyways.

"Fucking octop- octip- octopi, is what happened!" they hissed, throwing their hand up. Purple metal of their fishing rod shined brightly, catching a ray of sun, before it fell to the ground a good distance away from the shore. The farmer seemed to not even notice they threw it, caught up in their anger. "Motherfuckers get my fucking bait, almost break my arm thrashing on the hook worse than the god damned Legend, and then they rip my line like it's nothing! I've hooked two dozen of them just this summer, and you know how many I pulled out in the end? Fucking none!" The bucket almost joined the rod in the sand, but ended up falling several meters closer to the treeline. Elliott didn't know people could kick something this hard before. "Fucking none! They are just some fucking fish! What the hell am I supposed to do to catch at least one alredy?!"

He was, frankly, stumped here. This must've been the first time anyone in the town has seen Olli this angry, and it was over some bad luck with fishing. Elliott wished someone else was dealing with this right now. Unfortunately, Willy just left for a fishing trip on his newly repaired boat. Oh well.

"I... suppose, uh, out of everyone in town, Willy would be the only one who could give you any advice on that... Would you like to have some tea, perhaps? I would invite you to saloon, if it weren't this early in the morning," he tried. If he couldn't offer any advice, then distracting Olli probably was his best chance to prevent them from doing sonething stupid. Like smashing their fishing rod in half. Or fighting an octopus with a sword. He wouldn't be surprised if they tried that.

The farmer dragged a palm across their face to calm down, taking a deep breath, and just nodded in response. Their shoulders sagged as they followed Elliott to his cabin.

The Moonlight Farm was one of the best ones you could find in the country. Even if it couldn't compete in output with huge corporate farms, it definitely won all awards when it came to the quality of produce. It was almost unbelievable that the smell of starfruit that filled the room came from the dried cubes in the tea Elliott served to his guest and not a fresh fruit, so sweet and intense it was. The writer often wondered how Olli managed to achieve so much in two short years since their arrival to the abandoned, barren farm. Right now wasn't the best time to ask, though.

Olli was cutting a pomegranate with a pocket knife when he turned from his kitchen cabinets to the little table with a pair of cups in his hands. He grabbed a bowl for the seeds after setting down the cups.

"Brought this for you," the farmer said, smiling shallowly without looking away from the fruit when they heard the clink of the bowl placed in front of them.

"You are such a kind friend." Elliott sat on the other side of the table and smiled back. "You were planning to visit me?"

"Just wanted to bring a gift. There are a few more, too."

They pulled a bundle of cloth with several pomegranates inside from their bag that sat on the floor by their stool and placed it on the table. Each fruit looked pristine and absolutely perfect, like no fruit Elliott has ever seen anywhere but Pelican Town. He thanked Olli again, and they offered him the same faint smile.

"You seem really upset still. Are you trying to catch an octopus for something important, or is there something else bothering you?"

They didn't reply for a minute, popping the seeds out of the pomegranate in their hands into the bowl. They looked somewhere past it, however, eyes lost and unblinking.

"Uh... Just... Slept bad tonight and overreacted because of that, I guess... It's fine, don't worry, it's alright, it's- It's alright."

It really did not seem alright. Olli just pretended to focus on cleaning the fruit.

Elliott studied them while they seemed to not even notice his eyes on them. He didn't get a chance to look at them up close often, really. They were always around, and chatted with him (and everyone else in town) every day, but most of the time, they were in one place only for a few minutes before running off. The longest they stayed somewhere besides the farm was when they went fishing. Or to the mines, from what he's heard from Robin, who sometimes saw then enter them early in the morning and leave past sunset.

"Are you getting enough rest, usually?" he asked, realizing now that he has never seen them without these dark circles under their eyes.

"Yea, it was just... Um... Baahrbara had a lamb late into the night, I had to stay with her, you know, to see if they're alright. Just a..." Olli took a deep breath, poorly trying to hide either a sigh or a yawn. "Just one of those things."

It seemed like that one time he saw them arrive to the tide pools well past midnight when he got carried away writing was, perhaps, not just an one-time thing.

"And you were here today since?.."

Their face fell. Weak smile they held gave place to a sad, tired expression, and they slumped into themselves.

"...You know, don't you?" they asked quietly, not looking at him.

Elliott reached across the table to place his hand on their shoulder.

"You do a lot of hard work every day. You know you should take better care of yourself, right? Nobody would want to see you hurt yourself by accident because you were tired."

Olli stayed silent, bringing their legs up to hug them. Their long hair obscured their eyes, but Elliott was almost certain he saw tears behind their bangs.

"It's okay, Olli. You've helped the town so much, and you're still doing a lot of great things for us all. Do something for yourself, too, okay? You don't have to wear yourself out this much."

"People need the farm, y'know?" Their voice was definitely watery now. First time anyone in the town has seen them cry, too, probably. Elliott got up to hug them around the shourders. "I- We don't have the JojaMart anymore, I have to work harder so I can give enough to town, I can't just not do this! And there are public plans that need finances, so I need to sell enough to cover that, too, and- and- Yoba, I j- I just can't, Elliott, I have to work this hard! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

He didn't say anything, patting their back while they cried into their knees. It only lasted for a brief minute, and then they forced their tears to stop, curling up tighter and hiding their face more.

Elliott fixed their hair, trying to look them into the eyes, and Olli glanced up for a moment. He smiled warmly at them.

"I'm sure Marnie wouldn't mind helping you with animals, right? And Shane need something to do, since he doesn't have a job right now. I can ask Leah to help with the plants, and most people would be happy to help with the harvests, if they have free time. This can even be a new little festival, don't you think?"

"They already have enough to do without this, it's my farm, I-"

"Clearly you can't do all that you want to do alone, Olli. It wouldn't hurt to ask. Think about it for a while, at least, okay?"

"...Okay. Okay. I- Thank you. I'm... I'm gonna ask Shane. That's... I think he will like my chickens. Okay."

"And take at least today off, please."

They looked up at him, eyes wet and pained, and he cut them off before they could say a word.

"For me?"

"...If it's for you."

"Thank you. I'll help you bring your things to the farm. Go to bed when we get there, you can always talk to people later."

Olli slipped off the stool right into hugging him.

Elliott collected their discarded bucket and fishing rod as they both headed out to the other side of the town. He hoped they will follow his advice. He really wanted to see them happy.

#mud babbles #stardew valley #sdw #stw elliott #i am mentally unwell and love torturing myself. i shouldve just written it after work #but nooo. i needed to do this nowwww. well enjoy sleeping only 2 hours before work you idiot.

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