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biteofcherry · 2 years

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but mafia!steve PLS 🫠🔥🫠🔥😌

Nesting

mafia!Steve Rogers x female reader

warnings: soft!dark Steve Rogers; mafia!Steve Rogers; possessive behavior; forced relationship; unplanned pregnancy;

~ * ~

With a smile on your face, you tucked the envelope inside your handbag. A precious picture you were so scared to see at first, but now it filled you with warmth and love.

Well, your morning sickness definitely didn’t fill you with any positive feelings, but the doctor said they should lessen in a few weeks, once you start your second trimester. It was all still so new, so fragile to consider its development. But you already hoped for the best.

You tossed into the bin the paper towels with which you wiped the ultrasound gel off your belly and put your jacket on. The nurse waiting outside smiled at you, gave you a stack of leaflets and a list of necessary appointments.

She directed you to the main reception, so you could book the next needed one.

Just as you were writing down in your calendar the date of the next ultrasound, the lady behind the desk remembered something and said to you:

“Oh, I almost forgot! Your husband is waiting for you outside.”

You stared at her, confused. She had to mistake you for someone else, clearly.

“Husband? I don’t-”

“Yes.” She beamed. “Handsome fellow, but it seems he’s just as scared of clinics as the rest of men.” She laughed.

“You sure he’s here for me?” You asked hesitantly, an idea of who might it be already forming in your head. Terrifying you.

“I’m sure. He gave all the information on you.” The woman’s face flashed solemn, her tone professional as she assured you of the thorough check. “I admit, even my own mom sometimes forgets what year I was born in.”

“Thank you.” You forced out a smile, but your heart was hammering in fear.

You have no idea how he found you. Even less how he got so much detailed information about you. But then again, you shouldn’t be surprised now that you knew who he was.

Steven Grant Rogers.

The ruthless head of the New York mafia who was more lethal than a viper already sinking its teeth in your ankle.

And who, to you, was just a very hot man you hooked up with a month and half ago.

You met Steve in a fancy club your friends booked a booth at - apparently it was a club so exclusive getting a booth in it was nearly impossible. Now you understood why.

You’re not sure why you caught his attention when there were so many beautiful women in the place that night. But three flutes of Prosecco in and you were bolder than usual. You agreed to accompany him in his VIP booth while your friends went crazy on the dancefloor.

He disarmed you with his focus on you, his eyes never straying to any other woman. A charming gentleman who made you melt with the few moments of movie-like fairytale feeling.

And when he whispered into your ear how he wants to eat you out until you pass out from pleasure, you almost spread your legs for him right there in the club.

Steve took you to his place - an elegant penthouse, in a building you later learned belonged to him. A one night stand turned into whole weekend of him fucking you senseless and spoiling you with fancy food delivered to his apartment.

He also made you do the most depraved things; no one else has ever made you come just from fingering your ass and talking dirty to you.

Like he promised each time he was buried in your cunt, Steve filled you to the brim.

You leaked his cum even as you got home late on a Sunday afternoon - Steve’s driver dropping you off in front of your modest flat.

The result of his filling woke you up a few weeks later, making you vomit your guts out each morning. With your period being unusually late there was only one explanation.

At first, after you confirmed the pregnancy with your doctor, you planned on telling Steve. One night or not, he had a right to know. But you didn’t have his number, nor did you remember the exact address where he lived. So you googled him.

And the articles made your head spin.

You thought it’s a misunderstanding. Just a coincidence, but then one of your friends complained to you about her boyfriend - a cop - being angry that you went to a mob-owned club.

Further prodding revealed that The Shield club belonged to Steven Rogers himself.

You could no longer fool yourself with coincidences and similar names. In an instant you made a decision to never put your foot anywhere near the club and to hide from everyone who exactly was your baby’s co-creator.

So as you kept it to yourself, building a lie (not so far from the truth) about it being a result of a reckless one night stand, you started to forget about the real father. Sometimes you even calmed yourself by repeating he wouldn’t want to have anything to do with it anyway.

But there couldn’t be anyone else claiming to come for you by posing as your husband. And Steve had the influence to learn all the details about you, if he wished.

You cast a glance at the main entrance. He was waiting for you there. To do who knows what to you.

If he didn’t want the baby being born and you refused to get rid of it… a man like him would simply get rid of you to erase the problem.

Perhaps you didn’t stand a chance against the power of someone like Steve Rogers, but you could try saving yourself and postponing the inevitable. For a little while, at least.

Pivoting on your heel, you went in the opposite direction. You didn’t know if there’s a back exit and you feared asking anyone, but the restroom you used earlier had a window facing the park and it was only on the high ground floor, so the risk was minimal.

You smiled at a woman who was washing her hands when you entered and pretended to lock yourself in the stall. When you heard the door closing after her, you left the stall and opened the window.

You dropped your bag first, then sat on the windowsill and swung your legs over it. Carefully, you lowered yourself down, hands clutching onto the edge. You took a deep breath and let go, landing softly on your feet without much trouble.

“Shouldn’t be doing that in your state, sweetheart.”

A smooth voice startled you.

A familiar voice.

You could still recall the praises he moaned in your ear when you trembled beneath him.

You turned around sharply, heart jumping to your throat as you faced him.

Steve stood a few steps away from you, his back resting against the side of the sleek, black car parked on the sidewalk. Dark aviators shaded his blue eyes, but you knew he was watching you like a hawk, ready to react if you fled.

You frowned, surprised to see him here, considering the receptionist told you your husband was waiting at the front.

You looked in the direction where he was supposed to be. Steve’s chuckle drew your attention back to him.

“Fawns like you are predictable.” He said with a smirk.

“Now, come on,” he called your name as he moved to the side, opening the car door, “get inside.”

You didn’t even stir. You simply couldn’t, frozen in place out of fear and shock. A thought of running passed through your mind, but you were never a fast runner and you predicted Steve would be more pissed if he had to chase you.

That he would catch you was undeniable. With his long legs and stamina that drove you into almost passing out a few times.

Steve sighed when you didn’t follow his order.

Unhurriedly, he walked over to where you trembled, plastered against the coarse, concrete siding of the building. He crouched down to pick your bag then slowly straightened.

Fuck, you didn’t remember him being this tall and broad.

Steve slid his aviators down to the tip of his nose, his icy blue eyes piercing through you. He traced the shell of your ear with a single digit, then trailed it along your jaw. He pinched your chin between his thumb and forefinger before saying firmly:

“Get in the fucking car, sweetheart.”

This time you obeyed. He gave you no other choice as he guided you with his hand pressed against the small of your back.

You slid onto the backseat, curling in the corner against the opposite door. Steve got in right behind you. The moment he closed the door on his side the locks clicked in, trapping you inside with him.

The partition between you and the driver was pulled up, though you assumed Steve’s men were loyal to him enough not to react to a woman screaming for help.

“How do you find this clinic?” Steve simply asked, dropping your handbag on the seat on his other side. Even if you wanted to, you wouldn’t be able to reach it without having to pass him.

“What?” You stared up at him, confused.

“I’ve heard it’s good, but I can get you into a top-shelf place.” While you were tense and strung up, Steve sat next to you completely relaxed. He took his sunglasses of, spread his legs wider.

You wrapped your arms protectively around your midsection, tears stung beneath your eyelids as you considered the potential meaning of his words.

“I’m keeping the baby!” you blurted out. Right that instant you knew you were ready to fight till your last breath to save your child.

Steve cocked his head to the side as he looked at you, a twisted warmth filling his eyes and making his smile even more charming.

“As you should.” He praised you.

He reached for you, wrapping an arm around your back and pulling you to his side. With his other hand he swatted your arms away from your belly and spread his fingers over the curve that would soon start swelling.

“You’ll give me more, too.” Steve hummed, his eyes glued to where his hand laid.

You were speechless. Initial fear of being forced to lose the baby turned into a completely new terror.

Steve’s words didn’t cut your life short, but they built a long, gilded-cage waiting for you.

“It’s about time I started nesting.” Steve chuckled, his hand moving to cup your chin and tilt your head back. “I don’t mind doing it with a sweet, little bird like you.”

He pressed his lips against yours gently, almost sweetly, as if he was a tender lover doting on his beloved. Then his tongue teased the seam of your mouth. When you didn’t open right away he bit your bottom lip, making you gasp and forcing his tongue inside.

You told yourself it was fear and adrenaline, but your nipples hardened and your pulse quickened.

“First things first-” Steve pulled away.

He took one of your hands and brought it to his lips, peppering kisses on each of your knuckles.

“We have to get you an engagement ring and order wedding bands as well.”

“Steve, I don’t understand-” your heart pounded so fast it rushed blood to your head and made you dizzy.

He intertwined your fingers and brought your clasped hands to his chest, just as he slipped his other hand to grip the back of your neck firmly.

“You’re mine.” He announced without remorse. “You became mine the moment I took you home. Now you’re going to be mine in every other way.”

#steve rogers x female reader #steve rogers x reader #steve rogers x you #mafia!steve rogers #soft!dark Steve Rogers #mafia au #mob!steve rogers #my writing #nesting

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discordantwritings · 5 months

Text

Always Return to You (Shanks x Reader NSFW)

Warnings: Some guys being creepy, gn afab! reader, love confessions, slight exhibitionism (the tavern is closed but yknow), PiV sex, creampie, not beta read

WC: 2.8k

Summary: You and Shanks have been flirting for a while now and you can’t help but wonder if it’s just entertainment for him- or if he has the same feelings that you do.

Note: I mean there’s a reason he’s bagged Buggy and Mihawk. This man has skills. This man has swagger. I hope I captured a sliver of his BDE.

When the Red Haired Pirates rolled into town you always knew you were in for some long nights serving at the local bar. You didn’t mind though, they always tipped well, were significantly nicer than your average pirate, and then, of course, there was the captain.

You never know what to make of Shanks. Logically you know he’s got a huge bounty and a reputation for being one of the strongest pirates in all the seas. But when he rolls into the bar with a lopsided grin and the laugh of a man who doesn’t have a worry you can’t see a terrifying pirate.

His crew and him hang around your bar for a week every few months while they restock in a large port nearby and you can’t help but look forward to when his ship cruises in. You’ve built quite the friendship up with Shanks over the years, finding him easy to get along with and easier to talk to. The two of you have shared stories until the morning hours and despite everything he’s experienced he still cares and pays attention to yours as much as you do his.

And, if you are able to admit just to yourself, you love the flirting. Shanks flirts with everyone, and you’re no exception to his wandering gaze and cheeky words. Even though his affections are not only for you you can’t help but feel special when his eyes travel down your figure. You give it as good as he gives too and Shanks always loves it, but neither of you have ever crossed that line.

He’s a pirate captain. You’re just some server. It’s never going to happen.

But that doesn’t stop the pang of jealousy you feel every time you see him leave the bar with someone else tucked under his arm. You would never do or say anything but deep down you wonder how it feels to have that strong hand on the small of your back or that bright red hair in your fingers while his head was-

“Did ya miss me?” You almost drop a drink when you hear Shank’s voice right next to you.

Looking up you see him leaning on the bar next to you, that stupid lopsided smile on his face. You have to fight down embarrassment that he just caught you in the middle of thoughts about him. Having been brought back to reality you finally notice the rest of his crew taking seats in the tavern, rowdy in a way that makes you feel like you’re having fun as well.

“Do you think I wait around for you to come back?” You don’t look at him, just continue loading drinks onto your tray for the other large party of pirates here.

“Of course not.” He slides a bit closer and helps you balance the final drinks. “Just thinkin’ about how I missed lookin’ at you.”

You shoot him an annoyed look, but there’s no malice behind it. “Yeah, yeah. You say that to everyone.”

“But I mean it with you.” He fires back.

“Keep dreaming.” You say as you walk away to deliver the drinks.

“Always of you baby!” He shouts with a laugh, finally moving back to his crew.

You roll your eyes but can’t help the large grin that comes over your face. Shanks has a way of making the atmosphere lighter and honestly, you needed it tonight.

The Red Haired Pirates weren’t the only group in here tonight- some low level scumbags occupied half of the tavern and you cringed when you turned to deliver their drinks and got greeted with drunken catcalls. But you took a deep breath and pushed all your emotions down as you handed everyone their drinks. At least with Shank’s crew here you know someone will tip well tonight.

Throughout the night you hover around the Red Haired Pirates, seeking the kind reprieve from the more obnoxious guests of the night. Everyone is kind to you and you catch up on the adventures they had while they were away. You don’t pay special attention to Shanks, but you can feel his gaze on you whenever you’re around. The way he looks at you versus the way everyone else does- it’s hard to place what’s different logically but it just is. You feel safe with Shanks, no matter what you know that if you ever seriously said no he would back off, which is not something you’d trust most men to do.

As the night wears on everyone gets drunker and sloppier and the guests start getting worse and worse. It’s becoming exhausting to ignore the hoots and hollers mixed with nasty whispers when you bring the next round of drinks. The Red Haired Pirates have been slowly leaving as the night wore on and not having that buffer was starting to take its toll. Luckily, Shanks was still there.

Despite the amount of drink you know he’s had he’s surprisingly composed as he sits back in the wooden booth. His gaze has something stirring underneath it and you follow his sight line over to the other crew of pirates. Sliding him another drink you decide to question him.

“They a rival crew or something?” You can’t imagine that sloppy group could compare to Shank’s crew, but you weren’t sure what else it could be.

“No.” He doesn’t stop staring. “But if those dirty assholes don’t stop eye-fucking you they are going to regret it.”

Oh.

His words stop your thoughts in your tracks and you can feel your brain having to hard reboot. Your body has no issues though and you can feel arousal pool down in your belly.

“You don’t-“ You stumble over your words as your brain finally catches up. “It’s not a big deal.”

Shanks finally turns his gaze to you and seeing him serious is a strange feeling. “It should be. You want me to deal with them?”

You glance back over at them and then down to your watch. “It’s almost closing anyways. They aren’t worth your time.”

“But you are.” When he says things like that normally he’s usually smiling with a light tilt to his voice but this time he’s deep and sincere. Your heart goes head over heels in your chest.

“I have to- um-“ You point back to the bar where a few patrons are waiting to pay their tabs.

“I’ll stay with you while you close, alright?” His words calm you, no longer having to worry about if any of your more unsavory guests are going to try and hang around after hours. You nod and smile at him before walking back to the bar to finish up your night.

You’re not sure if Shank’s egregious glaring was the reason the final hours of the night went so smooth but you’re certainly not complaining. The rowdy patrons slowly filter out as you start to clean up and Shanks is surprisingly helpful, putting up chairs while you mop the floor. However, thoughts have been gnawing at the back of your head.

Finally having everything cleaned up and ready for tomorrow you and Shanks head for the door but you stop halfway and have to speak up. “Shanks, can I ask you something?”

He stops and turns on his heels, slight concern on his face. “Of course.”

“Do you-“ Embarassment works its way up your neck and you avoid Shank’s gaze. “I just have to know if-“

Shanks is patient with you, not speaking as he walks closer to you.

“Do you actually like me.” You finally manage to spit out. “Because we have this thing and it’s fun but sometimes I wonder if this is how you act with everyone or-“

Your words trail off and there’s silence. After a few moments you work up the courage and look up at Shanks. His bright red hair falls over his face as he seems lost in thought. You don’t notice his arm moving until his hand interlinks in yours.

“I don’t think like is really the word I’d use.” He brings your hand up and presses a kiss to your knuckles. “Love might be more appropriate.”

“You can’t just say things like that.” There’s no hiding your embarrassment now, a blush probably covering every inch of your body.

“Why not?” He uses his hold to pull you in closer, your chest grazing his. “It’s true.”

“And you’re not just going to sail away and leave me here?” You squeeze his hand, searching in his eyes if he’s telling the truth.

“I always come back for you, don’t I? I certainly don’t keep coming back here for the food.” His eyes are shining and he has that signature grin back in his face.

“You’d keep coming back to me?” Your other arm comes up and drapes around his shoulder.

“Nothing could stop me.” There’s a sincerity and strength to his words that has you melting.

His face is so close to your now that he’s taking over your senses. You can smell the beer you’ve been serving him but the strong scent of the sea will probably always linger on him. You move closer, his lips painfully close to yours.

“Are you sure-“ You don’t even finish your question before Shanks has closed the small distance between you.

You’ve imagined what it would like to kiss him countless times but actually kissing him blows all of your fantasies out of the water. Slow but confident movements have you melting into him. His hand releases yours and snakes around to the small of your back, pulling your body flush with his. He doesn’t let up until you’re breathless, pulling away with a gasp.

Shanks rests his forehead against yours patiently giving you time to breathe again. Turning your gaze up you lock eyes with Shanks again and you see a flash of hunger in his gaze before he’s kissing you again. Your knees go weak and you feel the low rumble of Shank’s chuckle as he starts to lead you backwards until you feel the back of your knees connect with a table. Breaking away again you hop up to sit on the table, hands coming up to grab Shanks by the collar of his shirt to pull him in again. His legs go between yours, forcing your thighs apart as he leans over you.

“So.” His mouth comes down to your neck, words spoken in between opened mouthed kisses to the skin there. “You want me to bring you back to my ship now or bring you back to my ship after I’ve fucked you on this table.”

The moan that leaves you is involuntary and you hook your legs around his waist, hoping that answers his question for him. It doesn’t.

“Oh c’mon I want to hear you say it.” He comes back up to look you in the eyes. You try to turn away in embarrassment but his hand comes up and softly redirects your chin back to him.

“I want you to fuck me on this table.” You whisper, catching the way his pupils dilate at your words.

“That’s it sweetheart.” He returns to attacking your neck as your arms come up around his neck.

Using your grip you drag you hips up to his and grind down, moaning when you feel his clothed erection through the layers of fabric. Unable to help himself he ruts his hips into yours, biting down into your neck.

“Eager, aren’t we?” His hand is at the waistband of your pants, slipping under and down to your center. Fingers quickly find your folds and he chuckles when he feels how soaked you are.

“Been thinking about you all night.” You confess, lifting up into his touch.

“Fuck, me too.” He kisses you with a renewed heat and you gasp into his mouth when you feel his fingers push into you.

Taking advantage of that his tongue enters your mouth and you let yourself be swept up in the sensations. Two calloused fingers scissor inside you and you grip Shank’s bright red hair at the base of his neck.

It isn’t long until Shanks is pulling his fingers out and you whine at the loss. You’re about to complain until you see him bring his fingers up to his mouth and lick your slick off.

“Shit you taste good sweetheart.” You moan at his words and the heels of your shoes dig into his back. “Should I get a better taste now or later?”

Damn him and his choices. “Later- I need you inside me.”

You both break away for a few moments to fumble with your pants and you kick yours off fast, the wood cold against your bare ass. When Shanks’ pants come down you can’t help but stare. He’s big and while you are slightly afraid he’s not going to fit you would be lying if you weren’t up for the challenge.

Shanks seems equally captivated by you, his hand pushing your thighs apart so he can get a better look. “I could feel you were soaked but damn, all this for me baby?”

“Just for you.” Those words seemed to be exactly what Shanks wanted to hear because he wastes no more time.

Gripping himself he drags the tip of his cock through your slick, mixing it with the precum leaking out of him. He slaps his tip onto your clit and your hands shoot out to his shoulders to stead yourself.

“Stop being such a tease.” You huff.

“Oh c’mon you know you love it.” But he relinquishes to you, lining himself up with your entrance.

Even just the push of his tip into you stretches you and you take deep breaths as he slowly sinks further into you. The stretch rides the line between pain and pleasure and you claw at Shanks’ back.

“You’re doing so good for me baby. Taking me so well.” He whispers in you ear, soothing you as you adjust to his size.

It takes you a bit for the pain to completely fade into pleasure as he sits in you as far as he can go. When you’re finally ready for him to move again you nod, and Shanks begins to move. His pace is slow and you feel every inch of him drag in and out of you.

“Fuck baby you’re so tight.” His head is pressed against your shoulder as he uses all of his self control to go slow with you.

“I just think-“ You cut yourself off with a moan as he bottoms out again. “That you’re just fucking big.”

Shanks laughs. “Two things can be true.”

You can’t stop the smile that comes over your face. His sense of humor was infectious like that. Your laughs turn into a moan as he picks up the pace, and you can’t help but feel like you’re being split in half. Your fingers dig into his shoulders as he pulls you in for more deep kisses.

The slow build of your orgasm comes creeping up on you, your walls clenching around Shanks. You know he feels it because he stops kissing you to let out a deep groan as his thrusts stutter. It doesn’t take him long to recover though and when he trusts into you again it’s faster and deeper than before. His hand comes down between the two of you and his skilled fingers work your clit while he whispers in your ear.

“Need you to cum on my cock baby. Want you to remember this every time you work. Can you do that? Cum all over this table for me baby?” His filthy words and fast movements send you spiraling and it’s not long before you’re cuming with a scream.

Shanks isn’t too far behind you. “Where-“

You don’t need him to finish his sentence and you use the remaining strength in your legs to lock his hips to yours. He cums deep inside you with a shudder and you’ve never felt so full.

The two of you sit there intertwined as you both come down from your orgasms, heavy breaths the only noise in the room. When he finally pulls out you can feel his cum begin to leak out of you and you have to admit you love the feeling.

“I’ll be right back.” Shanks kisses your forehead as he walks away for a moment but comes back with a damp rag to clean you and the table up.

“So.” You link your arms around his neck. “I think you might have to carry me back to your ship.”

That lopsided grin is back on his face. “Baby if it were up to me I’d carry you everywhere.”

“So romantic.”

“Anything for the person I love.” He grabs your hand again, kissing your knuckles.

You know life will be hard with a partner who’s a notorious pirate, but you know your heart is his and you wouldn’t want it any other way.

#one piece x reader #one piece x you #shanks x reader #red haired shanks x reader #x reader #discordantwritings

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redriotinggg · 5 months

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CW for food, eating habits, and eating disorder (?)

// // //

thinking about usopp having a really weird relationship with food when he returns to the crew after boin.

he digs into the meals sanji prepares with the same enthusiasm he always has, but the chef notices the sniper is much more careful in how much he consumes. quietly, sanji watches for weeks as usopp eats just enough to fill himself. before sabaody, usopp would gorge himself on food, drink, and dessert until he physically couldn’t eat any more. he’d fight luffy tooth and nail for every bite. now, sanji sees usopp eat no more than one and half servings of a meal before pushing his remnants luffy’s way. he watches as usopp, who used to be as much as a meat enthusiast as luffy, piles his plate with more vegetables than protein or carbs. usopp, who sanji knew to love cake and ice cream, now limits himself to one slice or a single, small bowl.

so sanji adapts. he experiments with the quantity of food he gives the sniper until he gets it just right. he doesn’t say anything about it to him—eating and food habits are personal, after all. as long as he’s eating, it’s fine.

usopp tells him what changed of his own accord, one night when he’s on watch and sanji comes to deliver a midnight snack.

“i’m sorry for not eating as much of your food, lately,” usopp says, sipping on the tea sanji had brought.

“i overindulged on boin,” he explains. “the whole island was made up of some of the most delicious food i’d ever had. it was a trap, of course. so the island could lure fattened prey into its belly. but i fell for it at the beginning. just gorged myself on anything i could get my hands on. the stuff that grew on boin was addictive. i never went hungry. but…

“i lost myself to the island in a lot of ways. the worst was when i lost myself to the food. every time, i knew i should stop but i just couldn’t. it’s like my mind and body weren’t my own. it was terrible.

“i got big. i didn’t hate my body or anything, i just hated that it felt as if i didn’t have control of it anymore. that i didn’t have control of myself. it’s a terrifying thought at any time, but being alone and knowing that luffy and the rest of you were waiting for me, and waiting for me to come back stronger while i could barely get a handle on my own eating habits scared me more than anything. how could i be useful to the crew when i couldn’t control my own appetite? it was so, so hard. i had to be more disciplined than i ever have been.

“and now i’m back here and your food scares me ‘cause it’s better than anything i had on boin or anywhere else. i’m scared that one day i’ll lose control again, so i’ve been super careful. i’m sorry if i’ve hurt your feelings or anything. it just… hasn’t been easy.”

the two sit in silence for a while as they both reflect on usopp’s words. eventually, sanji speaks up, his visible eye meeting both of usopp’s. he rests his hand atop usopp’s, curling his fingers around the digits.

“thank you for telling me. as humans, our relationship with food can get really weird, at times. sometimes for a long time or even forever. but i’m glad that you’re eating despite what happened. and i promise that everything will be okay. you won’t lose control of yourself again. and if you do, i’m here to help. all of us are. but from now on, when you eat you don’t need to think, okay? just let me feed you and enjoy. i’ll take care of the rest.”

usopp looks at sanji, eyes wide with numerous emotions flickering across his face. he’d almost forgotten this in his two years away. how it feels to be cared for by someone who wants the best for you. to be seen so fully by someone who will do anything to keep you happy and safe. tension falls from his shoulders. the burden he has been carrying upon them has been relieved.

“okay,” usopp says with a tremble in his voice. he sniffles and blinks back tears. he leans his head on sanji’s shoulder and returns the grip on his hand. “thank you.”

sanji’s reply is silent as he rests his head atop usopp’s. anytime.

#sanuso #usosan #usopp #sanji #almost made myself cry with this one oh man #i think about usopp on boin so much and this is something i had to explore even a little #they are such good friends and bfs i love them so much #red’s writing #one piece

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everythingne · 2 months

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Out Of The Woods, 6 (ls2)

Logan and Dhanishka finally have the necessary breakthrough, Olivia delivers some bad news that Dhanishka already has a backup plan for. Logan just has a really good time at the end.

warnings/notes: panic attack in the beginning, mentions of alcohol, i don’t really think much else? ok i KNOW viscaal is an actual dude but like. i forgot. so just imagine he has a brother or smthn idk. bit shorter but hey. this is for logan bc fuck williams man

(series masterlist) (ch 7)

“Isa!”

I, despite my best efforts, cannot get a solid breath in. Someone's hands are on my face, trying to rouse me from whatever's got my eyes squeezed shut. I gasp again and they're brushing tears off of my cheeks. When I hold my breath, choking on an inhale, the voice is panicked, telling me to breathe. Then blowing a gust of air on my face.

Somehow the air is what snaps my eyes open.

"Christ, Isa." Logan's saying, holding a phone to his ear as he presses my hair down with one hand, "hey, hey, it's okay..."

"Lo-Logan?" I rasp and he nods, a tiny, worried smile crossing his face as he turns to the phone and speaks in a hushed tone.

"I've got her, thanks Anya. I'll text you when I get her in bed."

When he puts his phone down, he hands me a water bottle but holds the bottom of it as I take small slow sips and try not to burst into tears yet again. He doesn't say anything, not even when I lower my hand from where it's been resting over his thudding heart.

"You called my sister?" I ask and he pauses, before nodding.

"Yeah. I figured Anya would know how to help you out of a panic attack." He says and I nearly choke on my water.

"I had a panic attack?" I ask and he stills, before he is everything around me. His hands are gentle, tucking me against his chest, one hand carding through my hair as the other holds me tight.

“Oh, Isa—“ He murmurs into my hair. I whisper out confusion, I had a panic attack? I never have panic attacks? Is that why I blacked out? When did he get here?

“Oh, Isa, I’m so sorry they’ve turned you into me.” Logan presses his hands to either side of my face, lifting me back so I can look at him. I remember how a week ago I was afraid of loving him, how I was terrified I'd lose him, and yet here he was as stubborn and comforting as always. As he had been in China. As he had been in Miami. As he now was in Imola.

"I can't do this Logan." I hiccup, letting him bring me into his arms once more, kisses trailing my forehead as he keeps me locked in tight, "I can't take another day of this comparing bullshit! They hate me, all of them in Ferrari. I don't even know if I still have Charles, and they keep pushing and pushing and I just wanna be good!"

"You are good. You are so good." He murmurs, "You're doing better than I did my first season. I had panic attacks almost every race, I still have them sometimes."

When I look at him in disbelief he sighs, "the difference between us is that you have Ferrari and I have Williams. Alex and I are actually cared for within Williams. They care about our health, our wellbeing. Ferrari always has and always will put you below Charles because he's the predestined or whatever. It's stupid. It's what drove Carlos out according to Oscar, who heard it from Lando so who knows--but my point still stands."

I sniffle, nodding, wiping at my face and huffing when I realize I had cried. Logan convinces me to swap seats with him, and he drives us back to the hotel. He follows the same procedures as he had with my migraine and we settle in to watch Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara-- one of my favorite Bollywood movies I'd forced him to watch with me before. Surprisingly, he remembers a lot of it and then embarrassedly admits,

"We watched it on your birthday every year, I kept up the tradition. Even though Dalton thought it was stupid I did that."

I can't help but kiss him then, fully of my own decision and his hands comes to my waist as he pulls me down to slot against him. I throw my right leg over when he bites my lip, groaning in the back of my throat. The Señorita scene is playing from his laptop, Hrithik Roshan is dancing his heart out, Logan's lips are soft against mine.

He pulls back.

"What are we doing?" He whispers, pausing Netflix by closing his laptop and leaving us in the soft ambient glow of Imola from the half curtained windows.

"What do you mean?" I say, because I know theres more weight behind his words. He just laughs when I press a kiss to his forehead, his arm secure around my waist like he never wants to let me go. I don't want him to.

"Do you love me?" Its so vulnerable it makes me stop and he brings his hand to my throat, but just to dance his finger tips along the side of my jaw until he takes my chin in his hand and pull me a bit closer.

"Because I've always loved you in the way soulmates love each other, but I think you love me like I'm just a casual fuck."

"If you always loved me like that why'd you break up with me?" I ask and Logan sighs, letting go of my chin to place his hand on one of my thighs, the right one I had thrown over his torso when the kisses got a bit more than playful.

Logan takes a long moment to answer, like he's picking each word with the upmost care, but he just says, "I was scared."

"Scared?"

"Of you. Of racing. Of everything." He sighs and I go to slide off his lap when his fingers dig in, keeping me rooted in my seat. Just like earlier, when he was calming me in the car, just like when he had eased my migraine. He needed me.

I card my hands through his hair, being them to his shoulders and smooth the tenseness I can feel. He closes his eyes, leaning his head back as he just lets everything finally break and he hands my his heart once more.

This time, I cradle it to my chest, trying to heal it while his heart tries to smooth out the sharp edges of mine.

"I had been doing so well. I had everything in my finger tips, just within reach and then... fucking Trident rips it out from underneath my feet. I didn't know what to do, and as far as I was concerned, you were just as guilty as everyone else. I... I needed control."

I had been right when I guessed that?

"And control was breaking up with me because it was a decision you could make without having to consult anyone else?" I say and he nods.

"I regretted it every day after. There were so many times my mom had to stop Dalton from calling you or Anya." A light smile crosses his lips and I giggle, taking the hint of his slight pursed lips to press a gentle kiss to them.

"Anya was so mad at you when we broke up, she told me she was gonna go to BWT and cut your brakes." I murmur against his lips and he starts to laugh, his hands slide up to rest along my ribs as he smiles against my lips and innocent pecks.

"I wouldn't have been mad if she had. I beat myself up over it for weeks." Logan shrugged, "but uhm... I talked with Viscaal last week. He was at the race for some sponsorship thing and he stopped to congratulate me on my placement. I asked him of you were involved and he and I talked about the crash for a long time."

"And?"

"And he convinced me you weren't."

The conversation hadn't been easy. Viscaal was sort of up in arms about the idea of even discussing it with Logan, but once let in on the PR nightmare the two were going through... he relented. But he wasn't easy on Logan, he hadn't been the whole time they stood in the blistering sun over the track.

"She literally was inconsolable, how do you think she had anything to do with it?" James Viscaal had said to Logan, eyes narrowing underneath his Formula E cap, "You seriously think Dubey had anything to do with it? She'd rather hurt herself than hurt you."

"I just... I can't shake the feeling--"

"Well you better figure out how, Sargeant, or you're gonna lose a perfectly good girl."

Logan sighs as he replays the conversation two or three times, then gnaws the inside of his lip before saying, "Sorry for saying that shit to you, about not trusting you... it was childish."

"I said stupid shit too, I'm sorry." I say and he presses a more firm kiss to my lips.

"Consider that an apology accepted." He says and I smile,

"Guess I'll have to keep apologizing--" I'm cut off when he sits up abruptly, pulling me to his chest just to lay me on my back under him as he cages me beneath him.

My phone vibrates. A few missed calls from Charles. I ignore him in favor of kissing my boyfriend.

I'll tell him I was sleeping.

Monaco is the race for publicity. Everyone knew Monaco, and if they didn't, they just didn't know it was called Monaco. I'm snuck into Williams the day before practice, when it's mostly just vendors setting up and some meetings happening in each paddock. I'm led by Logan to a back office, where I meet with two women, and JAmes Vowles.

Who... is sitting in on the PR meeting for some reason?

The woman who leads Logan's PR is named Astrid Marina, and while I fight to figure out while that name is familiar, Logan idly pokes at my leg. I look over to read what he's showing me and groan internally.

'Ferrari and Williams in talks over suing Sky News reporter Anthony Davis for blackmailing and harassment.'

"Too much is happening this season, I don't even wanna bother." I complain and Logan nods, coaxing me to rest against him as I yawn. It's been a long week of harrowing, exhausting training with Charles. Ferrari gives me no reprieve and as I work to show them I am a capable driver, they still beat me down. Still say Charles is better. It's grown to be annoying for both me and the Monegasque, and something we bond over now in the late hours between a bottle of wine.

"How has your season been with Ferrari so far, Dhanishka?" James asks and I give him a cordial answer that has him raising an eyebrow in question as he says, "Logan's told me otherwise."

I whack Logan's arm, making the Floridian laugh as he raises his hands in defense of his actions. Something in James' eyes tells me it’s alright to say, so I do.

"It's been a terrible time if I'm honest," I sigh, "Charles is praised, I'm ignored and blamed for every mistake, they barely talk to me on radios so I kinda have to figure it all out myself, I'm hardly given real strategy and kinda just make it up myself as I go."

"And with all of that you still place in the top ten every race, and have podiumed twice. That's an incredible feat, Miss Dubey, you should be very proud of yourself."

Somehow, James saying that to me makes it all click that, yeah, it was an incredible feat.

"Alright, Jasmine is here so lets get started." Astrid settles in her seat in front of us and Logan and I sit back up from our lazing positions as Jasmine--my PR manager of several years, takes her own seat next to Astrid. James leans back in his seat as well, taking on a more observing role to this. I wonder if its because he's worried about this, or if Olivia and Lando have told him to keep an eye on it. Not that they knew who Logan's manager was, as far as I was aware.

Jasmine shuffles her papers a bit before asking, "How are you both feeling? You're almost tied for points this season."

"Feeling pretty optimistic." Logan smiles softly in greeting to her, "The car has been preforming well and I've been doing better than where I started last year."

"I'd be a lot better is my damn car worked half the time." I mutter in complaint, making Logan laugh softly as he squeezes my knee.

"I'm glad you both are feeling better." Astrid smiles, "but lets not take up too much time here for small talk, you both have busy days tomorrow."

Yay. Qualifying.

"Dhanishka, social media is your forte here. Keep posting, keep promoting the relationship. You've been doing a fine job with that. Public appearances have been fine, though I've noticed a bit of tension? Is there anything we want to confirm or ask about..?"

"How long is this going on for?" Logan asks and I feel a weird pain settle in my chest. Why did he care?

"Uhm... well..." Jasmine hums, "I'd say you guys can decide when to call it off. Astrid wanted to make sure that, unlike with Lando and Olivia previously, you both have complete control of this situation."

"Oh, Dhanishka, work on befriending some of the WAGs. I know you and Olivia are decently close, but befriending the Lily's or even Carmen would be a good look." Astrid says and I nod, opening my phone to follow them on Instagram. I was already close with Lily Zneimer, she just needed to come to a race other than Australia.

"Logan, we need you to start posting Dhanishka as well." Astrid says and Jasmine nods softly, looking like she's a bit uncomfortable by how strict Astrid is being.

"Yeah, got it." Logan nods. Theres a few more formalities, some publicity things they want us to do and a joint 'couples trivia' gave they want us to play with a bunch of the drivers before the next race on the calendar.

We're dismissed with the promise of posting each other more on social media.

"Lets go to dinner tonight." He says, taking my hand in his and kissing the back of it. I smile and bump his shoulder with mine.

"Alright." I smile, its easy to be in love with Logan and he threads out fingers together and presses a soft kiss to the back of my hand.

Before I can leave though, James speaks, "Jasmine, Dhanishka, can we speak privately? I have Dhanishka's manager Lucille inside my office already.

And I nod, and follow James into his office after a quick goodbye kiss from Logan with his playful grin to match.

dhanishkadubey made a new post!

liked by alexalbon, lilymhe, lilyzneimer, and 459k others...

dhanishkadubey: the muse and her artist 💙🩵

tagged: logansargeant

lilymhe: blue suits u sooo much wow

logansargeant: sei incredibilmente bella (i think.)

⤷ charlesleclerc: you think right?? wtf??

user1: MY PARENTS. PARENNNTTSSSS.

logansargeant: you in blue... woof or whatever. xx

anyadubey: blue has ALWAYS been ur color.

user2: dhanishka in blue?? williams dhanishka?? please james vowles.

williamsracing: wow. logan better know how to fight.

⤷ logansargeant: which intern is this i have WORDS.

⤷ williamsracing: LOL CATCH ME FIRST FLORIDA MAN !!!

landonorris: LOGAN TOOK THESE???

⤷ dhanishkadubey: hes an artist ✨

user3: oh to be someones muse...

I'm walking through the apartment building Lando had sent me the address for ages ago. Logan's hand is firmly tucked in mine as he idly talks about the desserts we'd brought for the little dinner we're all having tonight. Olivia had invited over quite a few people, her family (consisting of Oscar and Lily, Ophelia and her wife Rosalind, and Oaklynn), Lando's siblings, (sisters Cisca and Flo, brother Oliver with his wife Savannah and their daughters Mila and Athena), Max, Kelly, and Penelope, Alex and Lily, Charles, and me and Logan. It was some sort of dinner party, and due to Logan's training running a bit long we were late.

Which, wasn't surprising.

Olivia said they'd be out on the balcony, so we let ourselves into the spacious apartment. Logan helping me with my shoes while I joke about balancing the three plates, but Charles cursing in Italian sharply makes us both freeze.

"Relax." Olivia scolds, almost like a mother, "she's gonna be fine, I've been in talks with multiple teams and--"

"They're just dropping her?! For Lewis? She's been beating him every damn race save for Australia!" Charles all but roars and I can hear the balcony door slam. Logan tenses, his jaw setting firmly and he tries to coax me back outside but I'm stubborn, I won't move until I know whats wrong. But I have a gut feeling I already know.

"Charles, calm down," Olivia tries again and then there's an overlap of a few voices I can't fight through.

"It's nothing set in stone! Relax!" Max's voice chimes above everyone else's and the room quiets as a soft sigh escapes Logan's mouth. He draws his arm across my back and hushes me softly, pressing a kiss to my hairline.

"Checo's moving to Formula E. I'm taking his spot next season, or I'll go to RB if they choose to move Daniel instead." Alex says softly, "which means Red Bull is set for next season regardless. Mercedes is taking Carlos to race with George, so they're set as well."

"McLaren's got me and Lando, so they're set. Neither Haas or Aston Martin are gonna change." Oscar sighs, "safe bet that Alpine and Sauber will stay the same too."

Max asks, "Is Logan staying with Williams?"

"Can we stop talking about this, they'll be here soon. Dhanishka doesn't even know yet." Olivia complains, "I don't know why you're all so surprised when Ferrari's been treating her like shit! They could care less if she's dead or alive on that track as long as Charles comes out on top. Plus, the FIA is going to investigate them for malpractice."

"Oh, actually?" Lando hums and I hear Charles confirm, and I bury my head against Logan's chest where I can hear his heart pounding. I'm trying to fight back the sense of dread forming in my gut.

"I know Logan's been trying to get her to talk with James." Alex says softly, "As far as I'm aware, Williams is resigning him with the second seat open."

Logan's grip tightens when he realizes I've figured it out and I push past him to enter the main room of the Piastri-Norris apartment. The warm Monaco air feels unwelcome as it floats in from the open balcony door where I can see the kids are being preoccupied from the inside argument. But inside, all the drivers plus Olivia stare at me like I'm not supposed to be there. And then theres movement and--

"Dhaniska!" Olivia's voice chimes and the Aussie to wrap me up tight in her arms, "Oh, honey."

"They're dropping me?" I hate the way my voice sounds so broken and despite what I want, Olivia nods.

"Last week I got both Daniel's and Alex's data from last season to sift through to help the Red Bull team figure out which driver we want next season." She starts to explain, running her fingers through my hair, "I knew some big changes were happening when we also got files for Lewis and Fernando. But.. Lewis just announced he was racing with Ferrari next season, while Charles was here. No one knew except Lewis and Vasseur. I-I can try and get you with some other teams but--"

"Olivia, I love you truly, but that's not your job." I say softly, squeezing her forearms, "A-and besides, I... I might've made a contingency plan."

The whole room pauses.

"Huh?" Logan says, tightening his grip on my wrist and I laugh. It's so stupid, how he thought his and Alex's little plan to have me replace the latter Thai driver would've gone overlooked by James. Who bit down at the chance to have me.

James pulled me and Jasmine into his office, my manager Lucie already inside. When I give a confused look, both women are motioning for me to sit in the middle of three chairs. Lucie on my left, Jasmine on my right. When I do, James takes a seat at his desk and hands me a file in the beautiful William's blue. The logo stamped on front, with words written under that make my heart pause.

'DUBEY CONTRACT DRAFT 1 - 2025'

"Dhanishka." Lucie starts, placing a reassuring hand on my knee as she sets down an identical folder, "Ferrari isn't going to renew your contract next year. I've known since Miami. Lewis is coming to race for them instead, which I thought I'd be more surprised about, but it is close to his retirement I suppose."

"He did always say he'd retire in a Ferrari." James nods, and the conversation continues, still led by Lucie.

"So, I've been in talks with almost every team--thanks to Olivia, who has an almost... deus ex machina power within F1. She got me write up contracts from Mercedes, Alpine, RB, and Stake... but they've all backed out."

James, taking this as his cue, sits forward, "Williams is going to need a driver next year. Alex is moving to one of the Red Bull teams. We'll be resigning Logan."

"Me?" I ask, "you seriously want me? The girl who almost destroyed one of your drivers PR?"

"PR is repairable," James waves a hand, "Your skill on the track is something I can relate to a young Alonso or even someone like Senna or Vettel. It's talent like yours, Charles' and Max's we wont get again soon. To podium on your first race, to stay consistently in the top ten with no support? That's unheard of."

"Williams is offering a three year contract." Lucie says and I finally thumb open the folder and stare down at it. The weight of it all becomes real when I see it all printed out.

James stands to leave as he says, "I'll leave you to speak in private."

So I can’t hide my smile as I announce, "You are looking at the second seat for Williams in 2025!"

I don’t think in my time of knowing Logan had he ever hugged me as tight as this. I can’t help but laugh as his chest presses to my back, his lips finding my cheek and undoubtedly smudging my makeup. I can’t find it in me to care.

Alex decides to make a show of giving me his seat (which includes him physically handing me a chair) and when I turn to hug Olivia and Lando in celebration, Olivia whispers to me, “I knew you guys would figure it out.”

Charles just about squeezes the life out of me with his hug, thanking me for driving with him, and I thank him for teaching me. I know later on we’ll have a more in depth conversation but for now he allows me to celebrate with Logan’s arm tucked firmly around my waist.

Kelly ends up pouring us all shots to celebrate, and when I smidge my lipstick drinking various glasses of champagne and other drinks, Logan fishes my compact and my lipstick out of my purse.

It feels full circle to have him hold the mirror while I fix myself up.

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liked by dhaniskadubey, oscarpiastri, alexalbon, and 345k others...

logansargeant: heres to second chances 💙

dhanishkadubey: AAAA MERI JAANNN <333

- logansargeant: MERI JAAN????

- dhanishkadubey: YEAH U FUCKING COLONIZER. MERI JAAN.

sebvettel: looking good rookies 👍🏻

user1: dhanishka in blue pls be a sign. pls.

dhanishkadubey: i am going to kiss u on the mouth

user2: the girlfriend effect on logans insta shut upp

oscarpiastri: loganishka since day 1

- dhanishkadubey: LOGANISHKA. IS THAT OUR SHIP NAME SHUT UP!!!

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liked by anyadubey, charlesleclerc, danielricciardo, and 783k others…

f1: Admist the starting investigation into malpractice within Ferrari's team following @ dhanishkadubey ‘s treatment over the past few months, Dubey released a statement about leaving the team.

“Ferrari was a dream, but the reality of Ferrari is that we are not compatible. I will continue to give my best performance for the team, wish them the best of luck next season, and send my love to the tifosi. Thank you for welcoming me.” - Dubey via Twitter this morning.

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@chasing-liberosis @justsomejess @struggling-with-delia @daemyratwst

#f1 fanfic #f1 smau #formula one fanfiction #logan sargeant social media au #logan sargeant smau #logan sargeant fanfiction #ls2 fanfiction #ls2 fanfic

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redfoxwritesstuff · 11 days

Text

Sunflower, Book 1, Chapter 22

Tom Hiddleston x OFC Series rated: M Chapter warnings: Mentions of sexual assault, allusions to attempted sexual assault, mentions of physical assault and Las Vegas' mafia past. Our flashback includes more discussion of condoms (wrap it before you tap it kids!) and some light shaft handling. Drunk sexual contact, please remember kids consent is murky at best when you're this intoxicated!

AN: Oh, and as a side note- fuck you to the rude anon in my inbox. That's all the attention I'm giving you *right now*. Posted early because fuck it, I've got my shit together this week! (I don't but I got *this* together at least)

Masterlist Kofi AO3

~~~~~<3

Tom hadn’t been able to stop thinking about the kiss they shared. They hadn’t done anything else, just a series of searingly hot kisses that left him desperate for more but terrified to even suggest it followed by painful awkwardness that twisted at his guts.

Mia had slept most of Thursday before she had to get to work, exhaustion paired with a melatonin pill ensured she had a quick fall to dreamland. He had felt like a fool hovering nearby, fluttering in and out of the room for no reason other than to make sure she was still there. It was illogical, she couldn’t leave without walking through the living space where he was spending the time with Sally. It wasn’t like she was going to disappear into thin air.

Never in his life was he so unsure how to say ‘good bye’ to someone when the time came though. His arms felt awkward as he wrapped her in them at the door, desperate to know if he had woken her during any of his trips into the room but terrified to ask. He wanted to kiss her goodbye as she lingered in his arms, looking up at him with a sweet smile but he didn’t.

Coward. Yep, he was being a coward. He just needed a little more time to pull himself back together.

Tom had texted Mia throughout the night, checking that most of his plans for Sally’s birthday were alright. He made a few calls and found a bakery that was able to make a small birthday cake in time. It cost extra to have it delivered in a cooler to keep it from melting in the desert heat but he didn’t care. The rest of his plans fell into place, one confirmation after the other, most approved in concept at least by Mia.

Ashley had to work and wouldn’t be able to make tomorrow’s birthday party but stopped by earlier to drop off a few wrapped gifts. She had made it very clear that she still was unsure about Tom’s presence in their lives but this time went a little better.

Sally eager to show off her new bear which helped. Ashley took her time as Tom made the child’s lunch to listen to everything she had been doing with her New Friend Tommy. They had played games together. Tom had been crowned as a certified Master of Pretend.

Tom couldn’t fault Ashley’s weariness even after Sally’s tales. She had every reason to question him, though she did swing from hot to cold from what Mia had said. On one hand, she would scream for Mia to ‘get it’ and on the other hand, she was ready to stab Tom’s eyes out in a heartbeat if he crossed a line in her eyes.

He could understand it though, he’d do the same for his sisters.

~~~~~<3

Mia pulled into her parking spot at half past three in the morning. In the residential areas, the city fell into a peaceful sleep at night just as any other. Stepping out of the car, the day’s heat radiated up off the pavement, balanced by the ever so slight cool breeze the air carried. It had cooled significantly during the night but in just a few hours the sun would raise again and the sun will bring renewed heat.

She expected to come home to a dark, silent apartment and that was alright. At least she didn’t have to pick up Sally form the sitter’s house and try to get her back to bed. At least there would be the comfort of another body in her bed. Maybe she would even indulge in cuddling up to his sleeping form for a moment before settling a respectable distance from him to go to sleep.

She had gifts wrapped and in the back of her car ready for Sally, purchased on her lunch break. The Las Vegas strip was known for a lot of things but the one thing she always thankful for was the variety of shops. It made for a convenient place to work with good food along with endless options of shops everywhere.

She hated working these extreme late night shifts though. The tips were rarely worth it but everyone did their time on them. It was almost always the broke guests and the addicts that were on the casino floor after one in the morning. At least she didn’t need the tips to afford groceries anymore.

Mia opened the door to a dimly lit apartment. Tom was sitting at the counter with a book in his hand. He looked up at her and smiled softly at her wide eyes.

“You didn’t have to wait up,” Mia kept her voice low as she swallowed back the lump in her throat.

“I wanted to,” Tom set his book face down and Mia cringed for it’s spine as he got up. “How was work?”

“Shitty,” Mia answered as she pulled off her heels. She wanted to take a shower and go to bed.

“Did something happen or was it normal shitty?” Tom wrapped her up in his arms before he had a chance to second guess it.

She was too tired to fight him, to try to deny him in order to protect her heart. All she wanted in the world was to take shelter in the arms of a man who cared for her, to be cared for. It had been so long since she could find safety in an embrace.

Her eyes burned and at first she thought it was just exhaustion. Then she realized it was tears, threatening to spill over. Wrapping her arms around him, she clung to him, fingers bunching the fabric of his shirt as they dug into his back. Shaking breaths shuttered through her as she tried to will herself not to cry.

“What’s wrong, Darling?”

Pulling away, she wiped her hands down her face. Make up probably smeared but she didn’t care. She was too tired to care. All she wanted to do was wipe away the evidence of how close she had come to tears.

“It’s nothing.”

“It’s clearly something,” Tom insisted, holding her hand in his as she stepped away from him. Worry was etched onto his face. “You can talk to me about it.”

“Just some drunk guy,” She tried to wave it off. It didn’t matter. Occupational hazard. It was just another drunk guy in Las Vegas. “Got a little handsy. Security kicked him out, probably kicked his ass. They don’t like it when people mess with us.”

“Nothing more?” Tom asked carefully. He didn’t want to invalidate her feelings but something in his heart told him it was worse than she was letting on. “Does that happen often?”

“More often than I’d like but not so often.” Mia swayed on her feet a little. “I want to take a quick shower than I need to sleep.”

“Have you eaten?” Tom asked as he led her toward the bedroom. Their bedroom.

“It’s fine. I just want to sleep.”

~~~~~<3

The fan whirled above her. Still the steam was thick as she mechanically washed herself, washing away the feeling of hands that didn’t belong. Makeup, perfume and smoke went down the drain along with her tears.

Hot water ran over her as she replayed the last hour of her night again and again.

~~~~~<3 ~~~~~<3

Mia’s feet hurt and she was ready to be done with the night. The floor was mostly dead, full of duds who would not be tipping and more often than not would take a break to get their own drink from the bar than have her fetch it and have to avoid eye contact when they failed to tip.

Still, she did her job.

The man she approached reeked of cigarette smoke. That was her least favorite part about the job, if she was honest. She, like many of the girls, would shower at the end of her shift before going home to avoid taking the stink into their personal cars whenever they could.

“Can I get you a drink?” She asked sweetly. Usually she’d lean into the question but she didn’t want to be any closer to him than she had to be. Something was off about him.

“I’d like a drink of you.” The man’s words were slurred, though he had no glasses around him. Likely he was high on some other substance. That wasn’t an uncommon or unique line.

Mia laughed politely and kept her smile fixed on her face. “That’s not on the menu.”

She walked away, not waiting to see if he was interested in some actual drink. The last thing she wanted was some man pawing at her or giving her his best complements. His complements would never match the complement of having Tom’s eyes on her.

Thankfully, the shift was about done. Mia’s heels made soft thumps as she made her way down the hallway toward the employee lounge. She would shower, toss her dress in the steam cleaner while she did and be done with the night.

“What about what’s on the secret menu?” The slurred words made her blood run cold.

“We don’t have a secret menu.” Turning around, she glued the smile to her face.

He was closer than she had expected. Looking down the hallway, she hoped for someone, anyone who could help her. There was none.

“Don’t be like that, Baby.” The man grabbed her wrist and pushed her against the wall. “This is Vegas. Everything’s on the menu in Vegas.”

“Let go of me,” She screamed as he grabbed her breast.

Thrashing and kicking, she tried to get away. Instead of putting distance between them, it just made the man angrier and drew him closer. His hand clamped down over her mouth, muffling her cries.

It all happened so quickly, spanning just a few short seconds in reality before security was on him. He was ripped off of her harshly. Without his pressure against her body, she fell in a heap to the floor.

Security had certain limitations as to what amount of force they could use during any given situation. Every single one of those limitations went out the window when one of ‘their girls’ was messed with.

It was moments like this that anyone working on the strip could see beyond the shiny lights and legitimate face to what had once been a mafia institution. While the mafia had lost their grips on the glittering city a long time ago, some things were ingrained in the very existence of the city.

One of those things was the simple rule- if you touched one of their girls outside of their job description and without their consent you would, without hesitation, get your ass beat.

This man learned that you could never truly take the Mafia out of Las Vegas.

~~~~~<3~~~~~<3

Knocking on the bathroom door brought her out of her head. “Mia?”

“I’m okay.” Answering like that wouldn’t do anything but raise suspicion but the words were out before she could stop them.

“I hope I didn’t overstep but I’ve brought you some clothes to sleep in.” Tom hesitated for a moment. “I can set them just inside, on the counter with my eyes closed or if you’d rather, I can set them outside the door for you.”

“The counter is fine.” Mia was too tired to care if he closed his eyes or not.

The door opened slowly and she watched Tom’s long arm reach in, gripping a oversized tee shirt and a pair of soft pants from the clean laundry pile she hadn’t gotten around to putting away yet.

“I’ve got a can of soup heating on the stove, in case you change your mind about eating.” Tom was quite for a moment before speaking up again. “I think maybe it’s a bit worse than someone grabbing your arse. You don’t have to tell me but I want yo- need you to know that you didn’t deserve it. It wasn’t right, whatever happened.”

The door clicked shut again and she was alone. “Stop doing that.” She whispered in the steamy room. “Stop making it hard not to love you.”

That was a thought she needed to spend more time with. Right now she couldn’t bring herself to dwell on it though.

Shutting off the water, she quickly dried and dressed. She couldn’t think about falling in love with Tom.. It was enough that he was there right now when she needed him.

~~~~~<3

She had insisted that she wasn’t hungry but when the steaming bowl of canned soup was placed in front of her, she couldn’t deny it. Both her and Tom’s bowls were shallow, the meal being more meant as a single serving than to be shared but that was okay.

Mia needed to eat, she couldn’t argue that but she had no desire to. Robotically, she ate the soup one bite at a time. Tom kept his hand resting high on her back, ready to catch her if she fell over but being careful to not cross any boundaries she may have put up.

Tom took the bowls and rinsed them once they were empty. Standing from her stool, she wobbled on her feet. The mental and emotional exhaustion had stolen from her all the preparation they had put in the night before.

He was quick to her side, clearly worried that she would just fall over where she stood. “Let me carry you?”

“I can walk.” She was so goddamn tired.

“Yes, you can. But let me carry you.” She leaned against him rather than argue. Tom swept her up in his arms rather than argue with her anymore about it.

His heart hurt for her. It had happened quickly but he cared deeply for her already. Knowing she had gone through something that left her hurt to her core shook him. She was a strong, vibrant flower who could withstand anything. Yet tonight, she came home wilted.

He wanted to tell her to quit her job right that night but Tom knew she wouldn’t agree to it. And if he was honest, he also knew that he wasn’t prepared to support two households single handedly. He had made a nice sum with Thor but his current contract for The Avengers was still in the final stages of negotiations.

He had worked a lot during this year and was expecting that to continue through the following year but the idea of counting on money he hadn’t had in his pocket just yet made him nervous.

He could do it, he could make it work. It would be tight and he’d be looking at ways to earn a little extra to ensure he wouldn’t step into debt to cover an unexpected expense or trip. Now wasn’t the right time to make the suggestion again though, he knew that.

In this moment his wife didn’t need him to try and change her life, she needed her husband to offer her strength and support.

~~~~~<3~~~~~<3~~~~~<3~~~~~<3~~~~~<3~~~~~<3

Tom groped in his nightstand for a condom. Focus was hard to come by as she caressed his member, hand soft and warm. He knew he had a condom in the nightstand somewhere, he had them just in case, though he hadn’t planned on needing them.

“Found it.” He was reckless as he ripped it open.

She took it from him and rolled the thin plastic sleeve down his shaft slowly. They needed to hurry, he wasn’t in a position to take his time. Stamina was never something he had really need to worry about before but with how drunk he was, he knew his ability to perform could die at any moment.

Tom rolled over onto her swiftly, kissing her as if she had the secrets of the world hidden in her mouth. Reaching down between them, he ran his fingers up and down her slit.

She was soaking wet and ready for him. That was good, he didn’t have much reason to wait than.

“My darling Sunflower, are you ready for me?”

~~~~~<3

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burningupp · 1 year

Text

Fated Friends | lmh

skz masterlist

pairing: lee minho x f!reader

warnings: female reader (i'm sorry, i promise to branch out one day), reader has a kid, heavily based off of gilmore girls bc it's my comfort show, slight health scare, not proofread lol

summary: minho isn't a very outwardly emotional guy, and honestly, he's come to be comfortable that way. weird how the kind of person he's sure to be the bane of his existence ends up breaking that habit, huh?

a/n: this is going to be at least two parts... yeah. i'm sorry. anyway i hope you enjoy this, whatever it is. also, sorry for any eventual grammar mistakes; i am not a native english speaker, so be gentle with me pls 🙏 also, i have had this as a wip for a while so using this as an excuse to complete the november clownracha prompt! @wooyussy @sunnytaes

The diner was busy. Minho hadn’t been running it for that long, just two years and some change, but it had still become somewhat of a staple in their little town. There were regulars who came in almost every day for at least one meal, and even though he might not show it outwardly, he really enjoyed making them food they seemed to appreciate.

There was a routine to it all, and it made him feel safe. The first six months he’d had absolutely no idea what he was doing, and it had been terrifying. Once he got past the insecurity, he’d felt good. He had managed to do what his father had done before him and run a successful business. Granted, his father had been running a hardware store before he died, not a diner, but it was close enough in his mind.

Once a year had passed, he started to feel bored instead of good. He loved his diner, and he loved running it, but he felt like there was no excitement in his life (unless you counted burning himself on oil from the deep fryer, of course - that had definitely led him to an eventful few weeks without the use of his left hand). Since he was running his own business, there was practically no rest for him. He had taken a total of two days off since starting the diner, but only because he actually did have to go to the hospital (courtesy of the fryer-incident) and the dentist.

The days that the diner was busy were good. There was no time to think about how he missed fishing and camping, how he hadn’t flirted with a woman since all this started, and much less been on a date with one. There had been a few customers, mostly tourists passing through, who had flirted with him before. He had always been generally awkward, stuttering his way through the interaction and then suffered through the teasing of the older women who lived in the small town and had known him since he was in diapers. It was great, obviously.

And then someone showed up and broke his routine entirely.

It was a busy day, the town selectman had been arranging a festival of some sort to “encourage tourism” which meant that Minho had a whole lot more customers than usual. He was running around taking and delivering orders, refilling coffees, and wiping down tables as fast as he could. He inwardly sighs when he hears the bell over the door ring again, because as much as he loves running a successful business, he’s busy enough as it is.

“I’ll be with you in a moment,” he says over his shoulder as he’s wiping down a table.

“No but see, I don’t have a moment,” a woman’s voice says back, a sort of panicky twinge to it that makes him turn around to look at her.

She’s gorgeous. Her eyes are shining in the sunlight streaming through the windows, and her hair is a tangled mess. Her clothing is a bit rumpled, and she’s not wearing any make-up, but suddenly the urge to flirt has returned to him from the dead. Then he hears the bell signaling food is ready, and he’s snapped out of his brief stupor.

“Yeah, well,” he starts, moving toward the two plates readily waiting for him on the counter, “neither do I. Wait or go somewhere else for coffee.”

Once he’s grabbed the food and turned around to give it to the customers at one of the tables in the corner, he is immediately stopped in his tracks as the woman is standing two feet in front of him with a gleam in her eyes that somehow both intrigues and terrifies him.

“No but you don’t understand,” she starts, and Minho heaves a sigh as he dodges around her to actually complete the order delivery, “my coffee machine at home broke, and my five-year-old is sick so I had to stay up all night, and the coffee at work has run out and so I am here, desperately begging you for like five cups of coffee before I collapse in a heap on the street and it’s all your fault.”

The woman follows him to the table and keeps incessantly nagging, and the only thing he can think is wait, she has a five-year-old? She doesn’t look older than 20 or so, if even that. At least that gave him a reason to stop looking at her beautiful eyes, stop his stupid heart from wanting him to talk and flirt with her, because he cannot handle a kid. He kind of hates kids, honestly - they’re always sticky, and never have intelligent answers to anything, and always get on his nerves.

“Listen, it sounds like your day isn’t going particularly well and I have the utmost sympathy for that having had a few bad ones myself, but I have a diner full of hungry people, so if coffee is all you want I’m gonna have to ask you to wait.”

At this, the woman gasps out loud, her eyes widening and jaw dropping indignantly.

“Excuse you? Just coffee? This is classism! Discrimination! You’re the one who serves coffee in the first place, which I know by the way because I saw someone with a take-away cup with your logo on it, and if you don’t want my business then I guess I should just leave.”

This makes Minho snort out loud and turn to her bemusedly. “Fine by me.”

She lets out another indignant gasp and goes up to the counter, grabbing a newspaper that’s just lying there. He hears the bell signaling another order is done, and goes to fetch the plates, but he keeps her in the corner of his eye.

“You,” she says when he walks past her to take another order, “what’s your zodiac sign?”

He stops in his tracks and turns to stare at her. What in the world was this woman even doing in here? She must be some kind of crazy. Or many kinds, he mutters in his own head.

“Well if you’re not gonna tell me, I’m just going to assume which one,” she says defiantly, staring at him for a moment before huffing. “Okay, taurus it is then.” She then grabs a pen, writes something on the section of horoscopes in the newspaper and tears it out, holding it out to him. “Take it,” she says when he just keeps staring.

“Why should I?” He asks in confusion, and she huffs again.

“Because you should read your horoscope, of course,” she says in a tone that implies he’s being an idiot. Boy, does he feel like one when he takes the note. It says Give the crazy woman a cup of coffee, or she’ll never leave you alone.

“What is this?” He asks exasperatedly, spotting the customers wanting to order becoming impatient.

“It’s your horoscope, duh,” she replies, rolling her eyes at him. “You should do what it says and keep it, I’ve heard that horoscopes have been updated to be the same every day from now on.”

“Every- just fix your coffee-maker, or better yet, get a new one!” Minho finds himself yelling back, and the woman just smirks at him.

“No, I like my old one, my kid put googly eyes on it and we named him Lambert. Now get me my coffee so I can get back to work on time!” Minho stares at her for a bit longer. “You do know that if you’d just given me the coffee when I asked for it I would have been gone already, right?”

He realizes that she’s right, even though he hates to admit it. He gives her a stern glance and goes to take the couple in the corner’s order first before quickly pouring four cups of coffee and handing them to her in a cardboard tray.

Once she gets them, she gives him a huge smile that makes his stomach do a flip before grabbing them and running out the door - not before giving him more money than the coffee is worth. He huffs, staring after her through the window for a moment before being pulled back to reality by the loud clearing of a throat - a customer wants to order.

A few days later, it’s the middle of the afternoon lull. All the dishes are done, all unused tables are cleared, and Minho is filling salt and pepper shakers at the counter when the bell above the door signals that someone entered the diner. He looks up and immediately regrets it when he sees the crazy woman from before accompanied by a little kid.

He begrudgingly has to admit, he had been thinking about her a lot. Her eyes had been so captivating, and the smile she had given him before leaving had made him feel completely out of his depth somehow. Every time he poured a cup of coffee for someone, all he could think about was her. Which is crazy, because he doesn’t even know her name.

This time, her hair is let down and styled in gentle waves. Her clothes aren’t rumpled, and she’s wearing make-up. And yet, the one thing that pulls Minho in is her eyes. Well, that and her absolute angel of a kid. The kid’s eyes are the exact same shade as her mother’s, her cheeks round and rosy, her hair long and neatly brushed, and her bag so full of books it hangs slightly open due to the zipper not being able to close all the way around the sheer volume of them. Her mother helps her hop onto a chair at a table, taking the bag and placing it on the floor. The little girl immediately reaches to grab a book out of it, but her mother snatches it mid-air and places it on the other side of her own chair, out of her daughter’s reach.

“But mom,” the little girl whines with such an adorable pout Minho is sure he would have given in after 0.2 seconds flat, but the woman just shakes her head.

“I know you want to read, and I’m really really glad about that, but we’re gonna be eating now, honey. You don’t want those library books to get all sticky, now do you?”

At her mother’s words, the little girl gasps and shakes her head. It’s the cutest thing he’s seen all day. “I would never let them! That’s gross, and I would probably be fined!” Then she gasps again, her eyes even wider than before. “Would it get put in a record somewhere?!”

Minho expects her mother to simply calm her down, tell her that she probably won’t be put on some list of wrong-doers and that, even if she was put on one, it wouldn’t have any consequences other than a $2 fine.

“Oh yes, you’ll be put on a record. It might even go to the police,” is what she says instead, and Minho blanches. Aren’t you supposed to comfort kids instead of scare them?

“No way,” the little girl says, eyes still wide as saucers.

“Yes way,” her mother says with a straight face and a playful tone. “They’ll put you on a list, and then they will forward it to the police, and they will pay to have a man with a camera to follow you around and take pictures whenever you make a mess. Then all those pictures will be sent to Harvard when you apply.”

The story is ridiculous, and yet… Minho finds himself smiling. It’s kind of funny. Then he starts to fear that the kid is going to cry. He really can’t handle children crying, he hates the sound of it and never knows how to fix it so he gets all panicky and ends up leaving most of the time. (It also kind of breaks his heart, but no one needs to know that.) However, the little girl doesn’t cry. Instead, she grins at her mother.

“Ah yes, whatever shall I do.”

At her response, her mother huffs happily and ruffles her daughter’s hair. The little girl opens a menu and starts browsing through it, looking remarkably concerned as she reads it over. Her mother starts looking around, and suddenly locks eyes with him. She smiles awkwardly. That’s when Minho pulls himself together and realizes he should go take their order. He clears his throat and walks over to their table.

“You’re back,” he remarks in a monotone.

“Ah, yeah,” she says, looking down at her hands on the table. “What are the chances I didn’t act quite as crazy as I remember? Because what is crazy when you think about it, you know?”

“Well, I’m not a doctor, but I would say you qualify,” Minho answers before he really registers what’s going through his head. He freezes, scared that he offended her. She might get on his nerves (kind of), but he doesn’t want to be mean nonetheless. He might lose a customer, after all.

“I agree,” the little girl chimes in, looking up from the menu and grinning at Minho so brightly he’s sure it could have blinded him. He feels his heart squeeze tight. “Mom gets crazy when she doesn’t get her coffee.”

“Hm, well I don’t think you’re old enough to know whether I’m crazy or not, missy,” the woman responds, sticking her tongue out at her daughter, which the little girl does right back.

“I read more than you do, so I would say I am more qualified to make a judgment on that than you are,” the woman’s daughter bites back with a sarcastic grin, and Minho just stares as the woman rolls her eyes and calls her daughter a nerd under her breath with a proud smile through it all.

Having to move on for the sake of his sanity (because if he gets any more opportunities to stare at the woman’s eyes and demeanor and general presence he will absolutely lose it - out of frustration or attraction is unclear), he clears his throat a little and raises the notepad and pencil he has at the ready to take their orders.

“Oh, right,” the woman sighs, grabbing a menu and flipping through it quickly. “I’ll have a cheeseburger with fries, a milkshake, a grilled cheese, two donuts and a cup of coffee. Hana?”

Minho just blankly stares at the woman, shocked at the amount of food she had ordered just for herself. It’s 4pm and she ordered food for at least two people? Then again, he muses to himself, she did have a kid so there was probably a husband around somewhere. Maybe they were meeting up and having an early dinner before the town meeting that night?

He tries not to think too hard about the notion of her having a husband; it’s stupid to be disappointed, especially when he still doesn’t know her name or really anything about her except for her crippling caffeine addiction.

“I want a cheeseburger, too,” the little girl - Hana - says thoughtfully, chewing on her lip. “Oh, and can I have extra fries, please?” He can’t say no to her adorable angel-like face (just as he predicted), and just nods, so she continues. “I also want a milkshake and a chocolate muffin, please.”

Her bizarre order goes over his head first, as he is distracted by the little girl’s impeccable manners and the thought that maybe, just maybe, all children aren’t demons, but then he registers what she said and raises his eyebrows as high as they can go.

“Are you sure? That’s a lot of food,” he points out gently. She thinks for a second, chewing on her bottom lip again, and then nods firmly.

“Yes, please,” she says, and he just nods.

“Okay then,” Minho says, half expecting her mother to chime in and tell her that no, it’s a Wednesday and she can’t have that many sweets, but nothing comes aside from an indulging smile.

He goes to the kitchen, tearing the page he had written on out of his notepad and handing it to the chef dazedly. Then he turns around to look at the table again, and just stares. There was no way that little girl could eat that much food, was there?

As it turns out, there was. Minho watches in astonished horror as the sweet angelic little girl puts away a cheeseburger, extra fries, a milkshake and a chocolate muffin. Who really takes the cake, however, is Hana’s mother. His theory about the father joining them had evidently been entirely false, as the food that already had been a tall order for thwo people to consume had been completely devoured by no one except a mid-sized woman and her tiny six-year-old. On top of that, halfway through their meal, the older woman had ordered an extra plate of chili fries. How in the world those were gone in ten minutes, Minho would never know, and he is pretty happy that he can escape that knowledge.

When they are done eating, Hana’s mother patiently helps her wipe down their table so she can take out her homework and get started on it. She then looks around until she finds Minho and waves at him to come over with a smile. He ignores the somersault his stomach does at the gesture.

“Want to pay?” he asks, fully expecting that to be the case.

“Uhm, not yet. Could I just have another cup of coffee?” the woman asks, and he decides enough is enough.

“You do know caffeine is horrible for your health, right? So are burgers, fries, chili fries even more so, donuts and milkshakes,” he points out, fully expecting a screaming match. To his surprise, the woman just smiles brighter.

“Sure I know that. So, my cup of coffee?”

He just blinks in pure astonishment. He then turns around and goes behind the counter to grab the pot of coffee, returning to their table to fill her cup. Then the little girl looks up.

“Excuse me mister, what’s your name?”

The way the little girl has him wrapped around her finger already is terrifying. His heart is melting, he feels the urge to be all sappy and ask her about school, her friends and her hobbies, and play games with her or something. Whatever would make her smile. He has no idea where that urge came from.

“Uh, it’s Lee Minho,” he answers dumbly, looking down into those innocently sparkling eyes.

“Okay. Mr. Lee, could I have some orange soda, please? I’m a bit thirsty,” she says, and he feels the need to save the poor girl from her mother’s habits. Not really, but he is a healthy man himself, and he wants a kid like her to live a long, healthy and happy life.

“Are you sure you wouldn’t prefer some water, then?” he asks gently, but when she shakes her head, he just sighs. “Coming right up. Oh, and you can just call me Minho.”

“Okay. Thank you, Minho. My name is Hana, and this is my mom Y/n. It’s nice to meet you,” she beams at him, and he feels himself melt once more. Damn it.

“Nice to meet you too, Hana,” he says and goes to fetch her soda.

Since that first afternoon the L/N girls visited his diner, Minho sees them at least three times a week for the next 3 years. Well, he sees Y/n pretty much every morning for her regular coffee fix. Apparently they did manage to fix Lambert, but apparently his coffee was “better than anything Lambert could ever make.” They told him vehemently that Lambert could never know this, and he had to keep it a secret from him. They both now greet him by name, and they usually have a quick chat about what’s going on, just like he does with some other regulars.

Then again, he can’t exactly claim that he is quite as interested in the other regulars as he is in the mother-daughter duo. He asks them about work and school, and they pull him into their debates over stupid stuff (that Hana almost always wins), and he finds himself enjoying it. It must be something about their positive outlook on life, or how crazy smart Hana is, or just about how excited they are about seemingly dull and boring things. They talked about the little town’s makeshift cinema as if it was entertainment of the highest degree, better than most things you can do in big cities, despite it being someone’s living room with a cheap projector and a popcorn machine. He does not understand it, but it sure is refreshing.

He’s still just as smitten with Hana as he was the first day, if not more. She’s intelligent and funny, and even though she does certain childish things, she largely feels like an innocent grown-up. He had once asked her about a book she was reading, which turned into a (one-sided) debate on different classical writers and their influence on both society and one another, and he was lost in the first minute. He briefly wondered if her mother had any idea what she was talking about, but it quickly became clear that she did not.

Then one day, only Y/n comes bursting through the door of the diner, during mid-morning no less. She is almost frantic, breathing hard and fast, eyes wild and hair ruffled.

“Minho!” she exclaims when she sees him, body sagging in relief. “I need your help.”

He immediately sets down the pot of coffee, walking towards her with furrowed brows. “What’s wrong?”

“My coffee?” a customer says impatiently.

“Bite me,” Minho responds over his shoulder without hesitation.

“It’s Hana,” she breathes, tears welling in her eyes. Minho puts a hand on her shoulder as he feels his heart speed up to a truly concerning pace. He doesn’t know if he’s trying to make her feel better, or if it’s purely to steady himself, but he thinks it doesn’t matter. “She-she has this, uhm… this stomach ache, and a really, really high fever, a-and it won’t go away and I was, uhm, I was reading this book, and,” a breath leaves her in a whoosh before she gulps down another one, “and it said something about if pressure on her stomach makes her feel better, she should go to the hospital because it might be appendicitis so I was going to take her to the hospital, but my stupid car won’t s-start and I need…” she stops and takes a deep breath, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment before looking at him with absolute fire in her eyes. “I need you to take us. Please.”

Minho’s brain is going a mile a minute. He thinks about nothing except for that poor girl in pain. He thinks about how awful he feels whenever he has a fever, and how much worse it must be for such a tiny, innocent little girl. And then he thinks about whether or not she’s staying warm despite her high temperature, because he heard something about keeping the temperature up helping the body beat viruses and bacteria and making you healthy faster. And then he thinks about what he should be doing in this position, because he’s never been a father bef-

And then he stops. He stops and thinks about the fact that he is not her father. He is not the person who should be worrying like this. He is not the person Y/n should be turning to, because she should have a support system in her husband, and he wonders why in the world her husband isn’t currently breaking a million traffic laws speeding down the highway to get his daughter into capable hands. And then…

He doesn’t like to think about it too much, but sometimes he can’t stop himself. Mainly when it’s late at night, and the town is quiet, and all he can hear is the hum of his broiler and the light shifting of the sheets whenever he breathes. That’s when he can’t stop his mind from imagining. Imagining being Hana’s father. God, how proud he would be. He imagines walking her to school, buying her gifts for her birthday and spoiling her without spoiling her too much because he still wants her to be a rational adult some day. He imagines cooking for her, imagines the day he gets her absolute favorite food right, and the way that Y/n would be in the kitchen while he cooks, sitting at the kitchen table in the house they would have, talking absolute nonsense with their daughter. He imagines waking up in the middle of the night to the sound of Hana getting a glass of water in the kitchen, only to roll over in bed and find Y/n, his wife, right there, sleeping soundly beside him.

That’s usually when he stops himself. But this time, he imagines that whole situation. And then he imagines Y/n, his (hypothetical) wife, asking another man to help her take his sick daughter to the hospital, and he can’t do it. So he does what he has been so diligently avoiding, and asks her.

“What about her father?”

Minho’s voice is gentle, and he looks into Y/n’s eyes just as softly. He wants her to understand that he would do absolutely anything for Hana, hell, he would do anything for her because he has no doubts that he is so in love with her he would marry her on the spot even though they’ve barely broached the basics about one another, but in this particular instant he really does not want to step on any toes.

But then, she scoffs. She scoffs at him, rolls her eyes, and her jaw clenches a bit. It’s a clear signal to him that her father is most likely not an option at the moment.

“Okay I know we haven’t talked about this and we really should, and I promise you we will, but please can we talk about it when my daughter is not in excruciating pain and needs her mommy? Please?”

So he lets go of all his preconceived notions and nods. He squeezes her shoulder once, then turns around and grabs his keys. He doesn’t even glance into the kitchen as he yells for his chef, Felix, to handle things for the rest of the day, even though he hears a startled and confused shout right before the door swings shut behind the pair of them, because he thinks that as long as Hana and Y/n are okay, his business could burn down for all he cares.

They get to the hospital okay, and Hana is immediately ushered into an exam room and then to an operating room. Minho isn’t in the exam room with them, but he does go to see the little girl off before the surgery.

“I’m scared,” she whispers to her mother, eyes shiny with unshed tears, but her mother just shushes her with a calm smile.

“That’s okay. I’m right here, and I’m not going anywhere except for the waiting room and maybe the cafeteria until you can come home with me.”

“Even if Channing Tatum asks you on a date right now?”

“Mm, I would have to consider it, but I think that if Channing can’t wait, we weren’t meant to be anyhow,” Y/n teases her daughter who just giggles in response. Then Hana turns to Minho.

“Thank you for driving us,” she says meekly, and he feels his heart twist and crush into a ball in his chest. “You really didn’t have to.”

“I wanted to, little one,” he smiles gently, and she reaches out a hand to him which he grasps immediately. “Thank you for letting me see you off before your surgery.”

“I’m glad you did,” she says back, eyes a little less teary. Then she gets a thoughtful look on her face. “Do you think I’ll have a cool scar?”

He can’t help himself and scoffs a little laugh, squeezing her hand encouragingly. He sees Y/n smile too, and he has somehow never felt as complete as he does in that exact moment. It scares him. It’s not real. But he will keep pretending for as long as he can.

“The coolest,” he answers before the doctors let them know that the OR is ready for them.

Minho and Y/n walk out to the waiting room and sink onto the chairs heavily. He is briefly impressed by how well she seemed to be handling everything, before he turns to her and sees her shaking, tears streaming down her face. She seems to be holding her breath, too, probably not wishing to openly sob in a hospital waiting room.

He briefly considers his options of hugging her or not before deciding that screw it, she needs comfort and he’s there so he will provide it for her. He smiles gently despite his heart breaking in his chest at her tears, and gets in front of her to half-crouch so he can give her a hug.

For a second he worries that he overstepped her boundaries, but then he feels her completely melt into his embrace and bury her face in his shoulder to muffle the sobs she no longer can hold back and shield her tear-streaked face from the other people in the room. She relaxes so much that they almost fall onto the floor, and Minho decides that it’s best to just pick her up in his arms and settle on one of the chairs with her in his lap.

It’s a horrible moment. She’s crying, sobbing, shaking, and he can’t do anything except hold her there. The woman who was so strong, so determined and so unique just crumbled in his arms like a tower of sand. He doesn’t say anything, just holds her. He puts a hand on the back of her head, the other remaining around her waist as she sits horizontally across his lap. He gently squeezes whenever her sobs get louder or her breathing picks up, just reminding her that he is there and he will remain there until she asks him not to.

After twenty minutes or so, her crying subsides into regular sniffling, and he feels her pull back from his shoulder to wipe at her face with the sleeve of her shirt. Then she clears her throat and sits up a bit straighter on his lap.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers, voice still shaky.

“Don’t worry about it. I’m just happy to help,” Minho says sincerely.

And it is sincere. There is nothing that has ever fulfilled him more than this moment, helping and feeling useful and needed and wanted. It’s a sad moment, awful even, but he feels like there is nowhere else he would rather be either way.

He has come to terms with the fact that he views Hana as family. He sees her so often, and she always talks to him, listens to what he has to say almost as if she admires him, and it fills his heart more than anything. When she gets full points on her homework, as she always does, no one (except her mother) is more proud than he is. As long as he gets to be in her life, he is happy.

“God, I’m sorry for bursting in there and just babbling and making you take us,” Y/n breathes out as if she didn’t hear him. “You really didn’t have to, but I pushed and now you probably hate us bo-”

“Impossible,” he interrupts, and Y/n stops rambling. “You two are part of my routine now. I care, you know?”

She gazes at him in shock, searching for any trace of insincerity. When she doesn’t find one, her face slowly melts into a fond smile despite the fear still present on her face. He briefly thinks that she never looked more beautiful, although he’s pretty sure he thinks that every time he lays eyes on her.

“Thank you, Minho,” she sighs out, slumping a bit again.

She seems to realize she’s still firmly positioned on his lap, and immediately gets up, clearing her throat. He immediately mourns the loss of her weight on him, but doesn’t say anything.

“So, I think I promised you a talk about Hana’s dad,” she says after a few moments of silence.

“Oh, that,” Minho says, suddenly feeling like a douche. “Look, if you don’t want to talk about it, you don’t have to. It has nothing to do with me anyway. I just wanted to make sure I don’t… make a situation uncomfortable.”

Y/n snorts, and he immediately shuts up. What’s that supposed to mean? Did he say something stupid?

“Minho, how many times have we been at your diner in the past few years?” she starts, an unreadable look on her face. He thinks it’s unnatural how she manages to look beautiful even in hospital lighting. “I can’t count the amount of times. If her dad was around, don’t you think that he would have shown up, or we would have mentioned him at least once?”

He casts his mind back over the years, and realizes it might have been a stupid question. Then again, some fathers weren’t very present in their children’s lives. Maybe he lived out of the country, or he worked night shifts so he was always asleep during the day. He had no way of knowing.

“I don’t know,” he answers after a few moments. “Some people are just like that, I guess.”

She slowly nods, mulling over his words for a second. “I suppose,” she then says, smiling faintly. “He kind of is, actually. Either way, to set the record straight; her father - Changbin - isn’t in the picture.” When he failed to mask his intrigue at the answer, she just laughed a little. “I got pregnant at 16. He wanted to get married, but I didn’t. Kind of glad now, to be honest - I doubt he will ever grow up.” Her words hold an edge of irritation, but she is evidently trying to push that feeling back. “He talks to Hana on the phone sometimes, when he gets the time. Last we talked I’m pretty sure he said he was in Ibiza? It doesn’t really matter. I have Hana, and she has me, and we’re okay like this. We learned not to expect too much from him long ago - not that we were expecting much in the first place.”

Minho listens until Y/n stops talking. He struggles a bit to figure out what he thinks of the situation. At least the man had offered to do the right thing, he supposes. Then again, from the sound of it Y/n had made the right decision in not marrying that guy, whoever he is. He comes to the conclusion that it doesn’t actually matter. Like she said, the two of them have one another, and if they say that’s enough, then he believes them.

“Okay. Thank you for telling me, and letting me know I wasn’t severely pissing some dude off for acting like a father to his daughter for a few hours,” he jokes mildly, and then regrets it. He shouldn’t have said father. Just because he sees Hana as a sort of surrogate daughter does not mean that she or her mother feel the same way, or even think that it’s okay.

But then Y/n smiles softly again, and he can relax. “Yeah. She’s lucky to have someone who does.”

His heart feels like it’s beating in his throat, his body warm from the inside due to all the feelings filling his chest. God, he wishes he had the courage to offer to do it always, to move in and help Y/n with raising her daughter because he knows that she must have it hard at times, no matter how angelic Hana is. But he doesn’t. So he just nods and smiles.

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sansaorgana · 2 years

Text

— THE PRODIGAL DAUGHTER

GIFS: (x) // (x) // (x)

PAIRING — Darth Vader (and kinda Anakin Skywalker) x fem!Dark Jedi!Reader

SUMMARY — When the Grand Inquisitor finally finds Obi–Wan Kenobi, you are the first one to know. As the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Forces you pay your old Master a visit but you don’t want to fight him. Actually, Obi–Wan Kenobi might be your only hope to save your daughter from the Emperor.

AUTHOR’S NOTE — Honestly, I usually don’t like angst but this idea has just been occupying my mind for way too long... I just had to finally write it down. Reader is not described in any way physically, I just found that gif of Jodie Comer to fit the vibe and honestly, it inspired me to start writing, therefore I decided to include it. Also, Reader and Vader are like... together but not really. No romance between them anymore surely.

WARNINGS — angst, mentions of getting pregnant with the help of the Force, Reader is not a good person, canon is changed a lot

WORD COUNT — 3,550

ENGLISH IS MY SECOND LANGUAGE.

THE PRODIGAL DAUGHTER

When Darth Vader was about to enter his private quarters, he could sense someone else’s presence inside. He was more intrigued than angry – after all, he didn’t expect any average member of the crew to enter his private quarters. For that, they were too terrified of him.

The doors opened with a loud whoosh noise and he walked inside before taking a long breath.

“Darth Vader,” a familiar voice greeted him and he turned around to finally see the person through his lenses.

She was sitting on his throne so casually. Looked like a natural, he had to admit. Her legs were crossed and she had a faint smirk on her face because she had known perfectly well that she was teasing him by sitting there.

No matter how many years would pass, deep down inside she was still the same girl he had met all those years ago at the Jedi Temple.

“Deputy Commander (Y/L/N),” he greeted her, pretending that he wasn’t bothered by her occupying his throne.

Because why would he be, to be honest?

“I was visited by the Grand Inquisitor this morning,” she started. “Top secret information he had for me, I was the first one to find out and I promised to deliver the news to you personally. The Emperor doesn’t know yet.”

Darth Vader didn’t say anything, only let out another long and loud breath.

“We’ve found Kenobi,” she lowered her voice.

The remaining muscles of his face twitched at that but of course she couldn’t see that through the helmet.

“Where?”

“I’ve decided I will go,” she stood up from the throne to approach him.

“No. It must be me,” he shook his head. “Where?” He repeated the question.

“You haven’t fully recovered after the previous fight,” she reminded him of the week before. He had come back with his suit damaged, almost dead inside of it. “I will go,” she faced him and looked up to stare deep into the two black holes that were his lenses.

“Bring him to me alive,” he only said.

He couldn’t see her properly once the vision was disturbed but every time she stood so close, he could feel the pain, almost physical one. She was so beautiful despite getting older and she was a constant reminder of the life they could have had. But now, he couldn’t even touch her properly.

“I am the only person on this ship who isn’t here out of fear. And the only one who doesn’t secretly wish you to die. I’m the only one you can trust,” she whispered and placed her hand on his glove to squeeze his hand but it wasn’t his real hand. It was just a mechno–arm. For her, it was an illusion but for him it was nothing but another reminder that she was so close… yet so far away.

“If I don’t come back,” she smiled softly, “he’s on Tatooine.”

She gave him a few seconds to process that information but he didn’t answer, so she only nodded and left his quarters while putting the hood of her cape on her head.

When you landed your ship in the desert and got out of it while following the tracker, you couldn’t believe that you would actually meet Obi–Wan Kenobi. He was too powerful to be found so easily, you thought.

Unless… Unless he wanted to be found for some odd reason.

However, if he wanted to lure anyone, it would be Vader himself or the Grand Inquisitor. He would never expect you and you couldn’t blame him.

You were never being sent off to such missions. Vader was keeping you at one of his palaces or on the ships most of the time. You were surprised that he had allowed you to go on Tatooine so easily, without his usual rants about your safety.

But Kenobi was a job he wouldn’t trust anyone else with and Kenobi was the most important job for the both of you and it was kept a secret even from the Emperor himself.

The tracker started to beep more frequently and you furrowed your brows while looking around. You were in the middle of the desert, there was nothing there except for huge rocks. But when you pointed the tracker at them, it started to signalize that the target had been inside.

You turned the tracker off and climbed on the rocks, a little bit more clumsily than you would like to admit. Years of no actual experience in combat made you weaker, though.

You feared Obi–Wan but you hoped he would be as rusty as you were.

When you were finally at the top of the rocks, you noticed that there was actually an entrance leading inside. You took a deep breath in and activated your lightsaber to use it as a flashlight.

The red glow of your weapon brightened the dark path between the rocks. It was like a maze leading to the pitch black cave.

You froze and looked around. You could sense someone but you couldn’t see them until you heard the familiar sound of the activated lightsaber and the blue light appeared on the other side of the cave.

“Obi–Wan,” you greeted him.

“(Y/N),” he hummed. “I’ve been expecting him to come here personally.”

“I am not here to fight, Obi–Wan,” you turned your lightsaber off and took the hood off of your head.

He froze for a few seconds and contemplated all the possibilities. Of course you could had been lying to him. It could had been a trap. But looking into your eyes – the eyes of his old friend – made him turn off his lightsaber as well.

The darkness didn’t last for long, though. Kenobi moved one of the smaller rocks aside and the pleasant and warm sunlight was allowed to get inside. You chuckled at that “innovative” window of his “home”.

“Please, take a seat,” he offered you a wooden chair and you sat down on it, playing with your hands on your lap like a padawan being scolded by their Master.

“Why Tatooine, Obi–Wan?” you asked.

“To understand him better,” he admitted and sat next to you.

You could take a better look at his face. He still looked the same. Older and more tired but it was still your Obi–Wan. Your Master.

When he had presented Anakin Skywalker to the Jedi Council, they insisted that instead of teaching the boy, he should had taken you in as his padawan. In the end, they had allowed him to keep two apprentices. After all, he was a living legend. A man who had defeated a Sith before even becoming a Jedi Knight.

How ironic it was that he had raised people like you and Anakin.

“Sounds like you’re obsessed,” you smirked.

“Aren’t you two obssessed with me, too? The Inquisitors are looking for me all over the galaxy.”

“They’ve found you,” you pointed out. “Why? I know a man like you must want to be found in order to make it possible.”

“I’m getting older. I have no purpose anymore. I wanted the last meeting and he didn’t even come personally,” Obi–Wan sneered.

“So I don’t count, Master?” you teased. “You didn’t want to say goodbye to me?”

“You’re not like him, (Y/N). You’ve never been,” Kenobi sighed. “Why did you go with him?”

“I love Anakin…” your eyes widened at that question like the answer hadn’t been obvious.

“But he’s not. He’s not Anakin, is he?” Obi–Wan’s voice cracked. “Why did you join Darth Vader?”

You sighed and didn’t answer for a moment. Then, you decided to tell him the truth. He was your Master. Your friend, your brother, your father. He was your Obi–Wan.

And you were the prodigal daughter.

“Because the Jedi were right,” you said suddenly and Kenobi furrowed his brow, surprised. “Love is a stupid thing. An awful one and there is no cure for that.”

“I’m sorry…” was all he could say.

“I won’t leave him. I will always follow wherever he goes. We are no longer… lovers… but the bond is strong. We are partners. We are… We are one,” you sniffled your tears back.

“So that is why he’s sent you to kill me. It’s like he’s here himself,” Obi–Wan nodded with a sad ghost of a smile.

“No,” you shook your head. “We don’t want to kill you. Not anymore,” you swallowed thickly.

You knew that being force sensitive prevented the Emperor from getting inside your head but you still feared him nevertheless. What you were about to do was treason.

“Because of Shmi,” you whispered almost inaudibly.

“Shmi? Anakin’s mother?” Obi–Wan looked absolutely puzzled.

“Our daughter.”

Long and awkward silence occurred between you two. You looked down to focus on your own fingers while playing with them nervously.

“You have a daughter with… With him?” Kenobi swallowed thickly. “How? I’ve seen holograms of what he’s become.”

“When I joined Ana…” you stopped and closed your eyes for a moment to take a deep breath in. “Vader,” you fixed yourself. “When I joined Vader, the Emperor hated me. He didn’t want me by his side. He said I would only weaken his apprentice,” you wiped a few tears that had escaped your eyes. “He was trying to get rid of me… Kill me, I mean by that.”

“Kill you…?”

“He hoped that the grief would make Vader easier to control but when he witnessed his anger after I had almost died… He quickly realized that by keeping me alive, he can control him even better. I am kept a hostage, Obi–Wan. The most protected woman in the galaxy… for a reason. Vader does anything The Emperor wants because he doesn’t want me to be killed. Do you understand now?”

“I do,” Kenobi nodded, his voice filled with so much pain, sadness and sympathy for your situation that you reached your hand out and squeezed his.

You both felt the bolt of electricity going through your bodies after that. It had been ten years since you saw him for the last time and you both hadn’t touched many people since then. You assumed he was a hermit, meanwhile touching Darth Vader’s suit hardly counted as touching a human being.

The only person you had been really touching was your daughter.

“Anakin could defeat the Emperor,” you continued and looked deep into your Master’s eyes, “Vader cannot. The Emperor is disappointed in his apprentice. You’ve crippled him and he lost a great amount of power,” you gritted your teeth.

Everyone thought it was Vader that had wanted Obi–Wan’s death the most but it was not true. For many years you had wanted it just as much. You would never forgive him for what he had done to the man you once loved.

“So, now, Vader is no longer the apprentice Palpatine hoped for. The only person in the whole galaxy as powerful as Anakin used to be, would be his…”

“His child,” Obi–Wan’s eyes widened.

“Suddenly, the Emperor started to like me more. He found the purpose for me,” you snorted. “You see, Vader didn’t want that because he had known why Palpatine wanted us to have a child. He wants to raise the greatest and the most powerful Sith Lord that has ever existed. I became pregnant with the help of the Force.”

“The Force?” Obi–Wan asked to make sure. It wasn’t new to him, of course, he had known about Anakin’s mother after all.

“When two parents are force sensitive, it’s not that difficult. Not for a Sith Lord anyway,” you shrugged your arms. “Shmi is a normal child, just like any other. I named her after Anakin’s mother and… She is our highest priority, Obi–Wan. On the day she was born, I could sense Anakin again somewhere in that awful suit of Darth Vader. He doesn’t want Shmi to become the Emperor’s next apprentice but she’s growing older day by day… Now she’s always by our side, Palpatine allowed us to raise her. But soon, he’s going to take her away from us. And once she’s trained, he’s going to kill Vader and me because he won’t need us anymore,” you explained. “Obi–Wan, you said your life had no purpose. I want to give one to you,” you squeezed his hand harder.

“What purpose, (Y/N)? What do you want from me? How could I possibly help you?” he didn’t understand what role he would play in this messed-up scenario.

“Protect my daughter,” you swallowed thickly, waiting for his reaction but there was none except for pure confusion. “The Rebels are attacking us more boldly these days. Their main target is Vader. They’re attacking our ships but wherever he is, I am… and so is Shmi. If the attacks don’t stop, Palpatine will have an excuse to take her from us in order to protect her. That will be the last time I’ll see my daughter unless he’ll send her to kill us personally. But Obi–Wan… I am the one who trains her how to use a lightsaber and the Force like you were once teaching me. I spend every day with her, she’s all I have… And there is… There is no darkness in her heart, she’s so forthright and passionate… She’s so like Anakin,” you burst into tears and took your hand away to hide your face with it.

Kenobi stood up and approached you to caress your trembling shoulders before crouching down and holding your wrists in order to move them away and look deep into your eyes.

“I know you’ve loved Anakin. I know you’ve loved me. Can you love our daughter now?” you sniffled, begging him shamelessly like every mother would beg for her child.

“What can I do for her?”

“I know you have friends amongst the Rebels. Please, tell them not to hurt her. I know they have a lot of resentment in their heart. I know that Vader’s responsible for many children’s deaths so I don’t expect them to show mercy but they will listen to you, I know they will… And Obi–Wan, if something happens to us, promise me, you will take care of her…”

He hesitated with his answer, still looking at you and silently crying. It was painful for him to see and hear what a mess your life had been now. As the man who had once called himself your Master, he felt guilty for that.

“She’s more powerful than Anakin was,” you whispered. “I’ve never been a powerful Jedi but I am force sensitive. She’s a mix of us both, therefore she’s even more powerful than he was.”

“You were a great Jedi, (Y/N),” Obi–Wan’s voice cracked as he caressed your face to wipe the tears. “You were my girl, remember?” he reminded you and your lower lip trembled.

“If Shmi becomes a Sith Lord, it will be over. You can’t let Palpatine win,” you sobbed.

“I will contact my friends and inform them about a special child on every Vader’s ship,” Obi–Wan nodded his head and you put your arms around his neck to hug him, crying out of relief.

When you finally calmed yourself down and wiped away all of your tears, you stood up and fixed the robe nonchalantly.

“We don’t talk about it, of course, but as I’ve mentioned, Vader and I have a bond… I know what he’s secretly planning to do,” you looked at Kenobi, still crouching down by the chair. “What I’m saying is, overthrowing the Emperor is not an easy task. We can end up dead soon.”

“I will take care of your daughter. I promise you, I will find her and keep her away from him if something happens,” Kenobi stood up as well, his voice as sure and confident as ever.

“Thank you, Obi–Wan Kenobi. You are my only hope,” you whispered before turning around and disappearing once again in the dark tunnel to go back to your ship.

“Deputy Commander, I swear…” the Grand Inquisitor’s voice cracked as his eyes widened out of fear.

“Kenobi is not on Tatooine,” you pointed your finger at the man as other ship crew members watched the scene, terrified. “You should be grateful it was me going there and not Darth Vader himself, you incompetent imbecile. How could a man like you get such a responsible position when you can’t even check the information you have been given by some cheap informants?! And you dare to come to the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Forces, hoping for what? A medal?! Next time you feel like impressing me, you better do your job properly!” you finished as your eyes filled with rage.

“I… I… I promise it won’t happen again, Deputy Commander. I will find Kenobi, I…”

“No,” you cut him off. “Do not waste your time on looking for him anymore. The chase after that old man is gone. I am sick of Kenobi and so is Darth Vader. Soon, Grand Inquisitor, your job will no longer be needed. We’ll see how you’re going to handle that,” you smirked and crossed your arms. “Now, I want you to leave my presence.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he nodded his head and left the deck as fast as possible.

“What is going on here?” the robotic voice interrupted you all. Everyone turned around to face the tall figure in a black suit. “Deputy Commander?”

“Kenobi is not on Tatooine. I have just disciplined the Grand Inquisitor for repeating incorrect information to me, Darth Vader,” you straightened your posture and approached him.

He nodded at that as all the ship crew members went back to their duties, trying their hardest to stay as invisible as possible.

“Deputy Commander,” one of the droids walked up to you. “Miss Shmi is about to finish her training.”

“Thank you,” you nodded at him. “Come with me,” you mouthed out to Vader’s face before turning around to enter the elevator.

Darth Vader followed you in silence as you patiently waited for the door to close.

“He said he would protect her,” you whispered once you were alone.

“Do you trust him?” he let out a robotic question and a loud breath before a short silence occurred.

“He’s the only one we can trust in the whole galaxy. He’s the only one out there who still loves us a bit,” you answered and that was when the door opened and you found yourself in your private quarters.

Shmi was running around after a Marksman-H training remote with her blue lightsaber and a training helmet on. She was giggling and jumping around the room, blocking every single blast.

You watched her for a while until she eventually let out a scream and twisted the lightsaber behind her back a few times before cutting the remote in half.

After that, she turned her weapon off and got rid of her helmet, visibly proud of herself.

“Mom! Dad!” she yelled at the sight of you and ran into your arms. “Have you seen what I did?!” she asked, making puppy eyes.

“That was incredible, sweetheart,” you cracked a smile and caressed her hair.

“Daddy, one day I’m going to be as good as you are!” she gave Vader a wide smile, showing off her teeth with a few of them recently missing.

Your heart squeezed in your chest.

When you had told him that you were the only person on this ship who was not scared of him, you lied. Sometimes you were. It was hard not to be when you couldn’t even read the expression on his face or look into his eyes, especially when he was angry.

The only person who truly wasn’t scared of Darth Vader even a little bit was his daughter. For her, his unusual look was completely normal because she had never known any other.

“Good job,” he said and for a brief moment, instead of hearing a cold, robotic sound, you heard Anakin’s voice.

You saw Anakin, in fact. You saw his face and the scar on it, his hair and his hand being placed on Shmi’s shoulder as she giggled. It was nothing but a short vision but it broke your heart. Each vision like that was breaking your heart more and more.

You were sure there had been nothing left inside your chest but then another vision would come and break you even more. It was an endless cycle.

Shmi ran away to change her clothes before dinner and you looked at Vader. He froze and hadn’t moved a bit from the moment she touched him. After sensing your gaze on him, though, he eventually turned his head around. You faced his black helmet and the emptiness of his lenses.

If only you two had left the Jedi Order to live on some nice planet together and raise your children like you had proposed back then…

But what was the point of considering what–ifs?

Your reality was the man in front of you… That creature.

Those short visions where you could see Anakin in him again, they were heart-wrenching. You would spend yet another night reliving this moment a hundred times.

“A-Anakin…” you whispered and ran after Shmi, wiping your tears away and leaving him alone in an empty training room.

MASTERLIST

#lilysfiction #anakin skywalker x reader #darth vader x reader

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countrymusiclover · 10 months

Text

40 - Newest Dutton Baby

Country Rancher

This is the final chapter ❤️ thank you for reading

Tags @whateverthecostner @rosie-posie08 @kayceduttonn @kcloveswrestling @the-morning-star-falls @kaymudd @hcwthewestwaswcn

I gasped seeing water coming from between her legs since she was wearing just a dress and some socks after her shorts were tighter. “Oh my god. I think the babies coming.”

Kayce and I frantically turned our head towards one another sharing the same terrified look that we weren’t expecting this yet. Her due date wasn’t supposed to be until the rest of the family got back in town. “Call the helicopter!”

Kayce carried his first born daughter in his arms while we had someone else flying the helicopter for us. Carter had grabbed the baby bag. With the rest of our kids piling into the truck. “I’ll follow behind ya’ll. You stay with our baby girl.” Kayce told me when I climbed into the helicopter shutting the door behind me.

“Mommy, I’m scared.” Bree winced reaching for my hand when we rose off the ground flying as fast as we possibly could.

Grasping her hand in mine I sniffled through tears, remembering what it was like when I had her around my early 20’s. I still felt like I was a kid back then but nowhere near as young as she is. “I’m here, B. I’m always here. It’s you and me against the world.”

She sucked in a breath closing her eyes. And she remained that way for the rest of the flight. Finally we landed on the hospital building. Some medics rushed outside, rolling her into an elevator. I never let go of her hand even when her doctor came into the room. “Ms. Dutton, you are almost ready to push. But we will check up on you in a few hours.”

“Thanks doc.” I told her simply before she left the room leaving us alone.

Bree croaked through tears when she had some more contractions in her lower back. “Mommy, what if I can’t do this?”

“Don’t worry, baby girl.” Brushing hair out of her face I blinked through tears. “You are the strongest person I know. Heck when you were five years old you fell off my horse for the first time. But you wanted to get back on the second it happened.”

The door opened where I saw Carter and the others coming in. Kayce shut the door gently behind him. “How’s she doing? I called my dad and told him what’s going on. Unfortunately he can’t be home until the end of this month. So it will be a few weeks before he sees the new grandkid.”

“The doctor said she’s almost ready to deliver. But it would a few hours before she’s fully given the green light.” I shrugged my shoulders at my husband.

Carter went to her other bedside taking her other hand that I wasn’t holding. “Bree, I’m here. Uh…whatever you need from me.”

“Thanks Carter.” My daughter mumbles squeezing his hand.

Tate was helping Dallas and Elsa playing some games on the iPad we had got recently. Kayce walks over to me removing his hat where I got to my feet since he clearly needed to say something privately. “Little B, we’ll be back in a few minutes.”

Bree just nodded where we stepped out into the hallway shuttling the door behind us as we went. Wrapping my arms around myself I sighed heavily. “So what’s going on, Kayc?”

“I just needed a minute. Cause when I look at her right now I…it makes me think back to when I left you and how scared you probably were.” He ran a hand down his face.

Holding my hands I shake my head not being able to handle him crying right now. “Kayce, please don’t cry right now. Okay we’ve gone past this. Was it hard, yes. But you are here now. And I know you’re scared for our girl. But you aren’t alone. We’re in this together.”

“I just….feel like such an ass. For abandoning you for years because I chose Monica first over you. When it’s always been you who holds my heart and no one else will ever be that for me.” He sniffs through tears until I tug him against my chest. He buried his face into my neck where I ran my fingers through his hair.

“Kayce, I’ve forgiven you. Now we have to be there for Bree.” Breaking the hug we went back into the hospital room and just waited for about two more hours before the doctor came back in and said we had the green light.

Bree had asked that me and Kayce be in the room while she delivered even though we knew she loved Carter. So he stayed outside with Tate and the twins. “Alright Ms. Dutton. I need you to start pushing for me.” The doctor instructed her while she clasped our hands in hers.

She bared her teeth down while she began pushing as hard as she could until she threw her head back needing to rest. “I can’t do this, daddy…” She began panicking with her chest heaving up and down.

“Hey, hey, Little B. You are as strong as your mama. If she could get through this, so can you.” Kayce kisses her forehead holding back tears hating to see his daughter in pain and he could really do anything about this.

She gulped, gripping our hands tighter than she already had. She screamed while she was pushing with everything she had left in her. After a few more long pushes she threw her head back in relief hearing a baby’s cry filling the room. “Ohhh…” Leaning forward I kissed her forehead, smiling through tears.

The doctor handed the crying infant over to a nurse. She wrapped the baby in a soft blanket before he delivered the news. “Congratulations Ms. Dutton, you have a beautiful baby boy.”

“Have you all picked out a name yet?” The nurse asked Carter and her.

Carter chuckled nervously. “Uh no we haven’t.”

The nurse nodded gently, handing their baby boy over to them. “He’s perfect.” Bree began crying while she held her baby closer to her chest crying through happy tears.

Covering my mouth with my freehand Kayce moved around the bed. He wrapped his arms around me crying through tears. “Looks like we’re grandparents now huh Kayce. I…I can’t believe it. We’ve got a grandson.”

“Our little girl is just as strong as you are, darling.” He kisses my forehead watching the doctor and nurses leave the hospital room giving us time alone together.

Carter shifts his gaze down to the infant in his girl's arms. “He’s so tiny…”

“Can we meet the new baby now?” Dallas burst into the room.

Tate came in with Elsa dragging him behind her. “Are you going to name it after grandpa or daddy?”

“Kiddos enough with the questions. Alright your sister has been through a lot tonight. Let’s let her get some rest now.” Kayce looks down at the rest of our kids who were being impatient.

Tate dropped his smile. “Awe come on, dad.”

“Tate, don’t push it.” I warned him with a glare.

Bree cleared her throat causing all of us to turn our attention to the teenage couple. “Mommy, I think I might actually have a name for this little guy. Because I have been reading some letters from 1923. And I found a name I rather liked.”

“Honey , you don’t have to rush into this. It took me a while before I found the perfect name for you.” I reassured her by squeezing Kayce’s hand in mine.

Bree shook her head glancing over at Carter. “It’s okay, mom. The name I want is Spencer. Spencer Kayce Dutton.”

“Are you two going to get married at some point?” Kayce asked his daughter, blinking through tears while a grin was plastered on his face at hearing his name being the boy's middle name.

Carter rubbed the back of his neck avoiding his gaze before Bree sent him a grin. “Uh no sir. But I ain’t going anywhere, Mr. Dutton.” I laid my head on Kayce’s shoulder where he tugged me closer to his embrace, happy that we were all okay.

Comments really appreciated ❤️

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whatsk-poppinhomies · 1 year

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"I can't do this without you!" Pairing : Yang Jeongin x F!Reader TW : emotional manipulation ; I guess it's kind of yandere ; Jeongin being a master manipulator ; Word Count : 2.1k

When do things usually go wrong? Is there a set timeframe for when relationships go off the tracks and end in pain and sadness? Is there a certain amount of time that two people have to be together before the tracks run straight and there’s no chance of anything actually going wrong? Does it really matter the length of time that two people are together to have a healthy relationship?

You and Jeongin had been together for a while, it felt like you had been together forever, although, according to the calendar, it had only been a year. A year can feel like a lifetime when you’re spending it with someone you love, some people might say. Others might say that a year would go by too fast if they were with their favorite person. Truthfully, you had no concept of time, the days just went on and on and you were lucky to be able to see Jeongin once or twice a week due to his schedule. You didn’t mind it though, sometimes spending time apart made it all the better when you were able to see him again, and he’d happily agree with that. The both of you always found time for each other, and maybe that was the staple of a healthy relationship, just being there for each other, finding a way to be there for each other.

Everything was perfect with the two of you, it really was, there were no bumps in the road as some might say, there was nothing that could have signaled the out of the blue sharp turn that was coming up in the tracks. Nobody knew it was coming, not you, not Jeongin… Nobody…

Jeongin wasn’t always the jealous type, at least he wasn’t always forthcoming with the emotion if he ever felt it. To be quite honest, he didn’t really have a reason to be, although you’d never invalidate the emotion if he were to feel it, but Jeongin was perfect in every single way in your eyes. He was funny, he was sweet, he was attentive, and he was attractive. There was no one else that you’d want to be with, and you counted yourself as lucky every single day that you woke up and got to call him your boyfriend.

That alone wasn’t enough though, not for him at least. You had always reassured him that he was the only one that you wanted, but as time went on, his fears got worse. He wanted you with him all the time, whether he was going on tour or going to work or just going to the grocery store. You didn’t even know where his worries stemmed from, what caused them. One morning they weren’t there and the next morning they were, and then things started getting bad.

You tried to excuse them, making yourself feel better while dealing with it by saying that he just loved you so much, but soon enough, that excuse just wasn’t enough to excuse his behavior.

He wasn’t violent, but his anger over the smallest things was terrifying sometimes, and you’d spend some nights crying in your room for hours trying to make sense of why he was so angry at you. It didn’t make sense, none of it made sense.

If you went to the store without him he’d flip out, even if it was just to the corner store right next door to the apartment. He’d lash out at you for opening the door when the postman delivered mail, accusing you of setting it up that way, that you somehow had gotten the postman's phone number and you were texting him so that you could meet up with him. His accusations left you flabbergasted and in tears as you tried to tell him he was wrong, but that only pissed him off more.

You just couldn’t wrap your head around what was wrong, you didn’t know why he was acting the way he was, and the more he did it, the more it happened, the more broken you got. It was exhausting, both emotionally and mentally. It was hard to love someone when all they did was accuse you, yell at you, and make you feel smaller than a speck of dust, and it was even harder to love him when you didn’t even understand why he was doing it.

Some days were better than others, some days were the absolute worst, but most days were just… eh. They were bearable, but you hated waking up most of the time, wondering what kind of day it would be, how he would be.

“I need to go to the store…” You whispered nervously over a cup of coffee, the liquid inside sloshing against the pristine white cup and staining it a dark tan as your hands shook. You didn’t want to have to say it, but your period had come on and you had run out of pads and tampons during your last cycle.

His head slowly lifted from his own coffee, already looking agitated. “You know that I have to work today. Why would you put that on me now!?” He was already seething and, although your body hadn’t moved an inch, it felt like you were slowly but surely shrinking.

“I… My… Period came and… I thought that I had… But I don’t… I don’t have what I need.” You stammered over your words, feeling your heart begin to speed up already. “It’ll be quick… I just need to go to the store…”

You shouldn’t have to rationalize something as simple as going to the grocery store, it’s something that most people have to do to get what they need, and you weren’t exempt from that. “Well whose fault is that? Huh? You should have checked and then you would have known to tell me yesterday, or any other day. But now you want to tell me before I go to work?! Why? Because there’s someone there that you want to see, right? There’s someone else, isn’t there?!”

Here it was again, the sudden outburst of accusations that had no just cause, it was simply his emotions running rampant and there was nothing that you could do to stop them, not when he was like this. “I-It’s not that, Jeongin! I just really need to get the stuff… I-I’m sorry!” Although for what, you weren’t quite sure. Deep down, you knew you shouldn’t be apologizing, you hadn’t done anything wrong, but you felt that maybe it would make him ease up a little. “I won’t go… b-but… could you please… go to the store and get me some… Please?”

He groaned loudly, tapping his phone screen to check the time and then shaking his head. “God, the shit I put myself through for you. Now you’re gonna make me late, are you happy?” It wasn’t your fault… you knew it wasn’t your fault… he did this to himself, yet he was blaming you. He always found a way to make himself the victim.

“I said… I said I’d get them myself.” You mumbled, and maybe it was the surging emotions from your period, or maybe it was the fact that you had finally had enough, but you finally said it, the words that you never thought you’d say, the two words you never thought would be uttered towards him from your lips, but you meant them when you said it this time. “I’m done… I can’t take it anymore. You’re… You’re driving me fucking crazy and I don’t even know what I did wrong! I feel like I’m losing my mind.” Was it just a feeling though, or were you really losing your mind right alongside him? You didn’t even know anymore, you weren’t sure of anything.

“Done?” He mulled the word over, as if he were tasting it, his nose contorting into one of distaste. And then, as if what he had just heard you say was simply a figment of his imagination, he shook his head, snorting softly. “No you’re not. You’re staying right here. I’ll get the stuff you need, don’t be stupid.”

Stupid… He thought you were stupid for finally having enough, you were stupid for finally wanting out of a relationship that gave you emotional whiplash and made you feel like shit whenever you saw him. That made you stupid…? It was just another thing about his frame of thinking that made absolutely no sense to you, and it only further proved that you needed to get out of the relationship, you needed to be done with him. “I’m not staying with you, Jeongin. I’m done… And if that makes me stupid… Then I guess I’m the biggest fucking idiot in the world, but I’d be a happy idiot because I wouldn’t have to deal with your shit anymore.”

It was so… liberating, the wave of freedom that you felt crashed and washed over you, it was like you could breathe again and relished in the short moment that you felt it because you knew that once your words really sunk in, he’d lash out. “Why?” He asked, his eyebrows furrowing, and the immediate anger that you thought you’d receive was slightly delayed by his question, a question that had you wondering whether he knew just how shitty he was actually being to you. “Because I love you? Because I want you to be mine and mine only? Why does that make me the bad guy?!” His voice raised in pitch and volume until he was screaming, but it wasn’t the usual screaming, not what you were used to. Now he just sounded… Sad… And while a part of you wanted to feel sorry for him, you knew that that part of you was fueled by the love that you had for him, a love that had grown in the beginning stages of your relationship, before he had gotten like this. “What am I supposed to do, Y/N?! I can’t do this without you!”

He was breathing heavily, tears welling in his eyes that he tried to blink free, but they clung to his lashes in a last ditch effort to try to hold on, much like he was trying to do with you. “You can’t do what without me? The only thing you do in regards to me being here is yell at me, accuse me of doing shit that I’d never do. Do you know how that makes me feel? Do you even care?!” Why were you crying? It wasn’t tears of anger, you knew what anger felt like, and while that feeling was there… You could only feel sadness, and you didn’t know why you felt that way, you didn’t know why you cared so much about him to the point that seeing him so distraught would make you cry.

“I do… I do care. I just get so scared… That you’ll leave me… I don’t want that.” His hands moved shakily through his hair, pushing it away from his face as if to show you the full degree of the emotion filled mask that he was wearing. “I can’t get through life… I can’t do anything… Not if you leave… I won’t be able to think straight…” He took a step closer to you, his hands reaching out for you, and you were stuck on the fence between holding your ground and leaving him, or becoming soft at the sight of the man you love the most in the world breaking down in front of you. “Don’t do this to me… You can’t… You’ll kill me…”

And maybe it was those words, the thought of a zombified Jeongin trying to make it through life without you, the thought of him never being happy again, that had you letting him wrap his arms around you, your face nuzzling into his neck as you held him close, as if he were the one that needed to be comforted and reassured. “One chance, Jeongin… One more chance… That’s all I’m giving you…” You murmured against his skin, and you immediately felt him relax, the tension that had filled the air evaporated into nothingness.

It was just a small curve in the track of your relationship, and while it hadn’t been seen or expected, the train had somehow stayed on. You weren’t sure how much longer it would be before another sharp turn came up though, and you didn’t know if the train would be able to handle it… Only time would tell… And right now…. Right now things would be good… At least, you hoped they would be. That was all you could do.

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isshua · 2 years

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Messianic Aureation

Chapter 6: Answers Lie Behind Forbidden Doors

Summary: With a disguise hiding her face and her friends by her side, Cara puts her plan to sneak into the library's restricted section to seek the answers she needs. Will she find information about her purpose and identity in this world, or will the false Creator's forces catch her before she can find success in her mission?

Sixth chapter is up now! It's a bit shorter than usual, but just as packed with intensity! Likes and reblogs are greatly appreciated! Enjoy the chapter :)

Chapter 7 is here

There was a chilling wind biting coldly at the nape of Cara’s neck as she quietly followed Kaeya up the stairs leading to the Knights of Favonius Headquarters-an unnatural occurrence, considering it was the middle of summer in Monstadt. Her mind wandered back to her terrifying encounter with Venti, and she wondered if this wind was a result of his animosity towards her. She couldn’t help but steal glances at the roofs of the surrounding buildings, searching for the hateful eyes of Barbatos glaring down at her as he watched her from a place of hiding. All the more reason to get this over with as quickly as possible, she thought.

She didn’t know what to expect when returning to the headquarters she had harrowingly escaped from two weeks ago. Perhaps an increased number of guards, or maybe even Vision bearers like Amber or Eula keeping watch. Kaeya silently signaled her, Bennett, and Razor to duck down behind the staircase wall while he surveyed the area. He was gone for only a moment before he returned and gave them the sign to move forward. It was then that Cara saw there were no guards whatsoever; the two knights who usually stood outside of the headquarters entrance were gone.

“Where are the guards?” she asked Kaeya.

“Off to investigate a recent sighting of the imposter near Dawn Winery,” he replied with a knowing smirk. “Direct orders from the Acting Grand Master, with courtesy from an anonymous tip. They shouldn’t be back until we’re well gone.”

“How did you get them to do that?” Bennett questioned.

“As I said before, not everyone in the Knights of Favonius is our enemy. I got someone else of reasonable power to deliver my message to Jean, with the proper precautions, of course.” Kaeya opened the entrance door slowly, the hinges making a low creak. He poked his head in to survey the inside. “All clear. Let’s go.”

The lobby was quiet, with the only noise being the echoes of their footsteps bouncing off of the walls. After Kaeya did a quick sweep of reconnaissance and determined that there was truly no one in the building, he relaxed. “We should be alone,” he said. “But we don’t have much time before someone realizes that the anonymous tip was a trick. Bennett and Razor, you accompany Cara into the library. Lisa should currently be at Dawn Winery right now, and if I remember correctly, she leaves the key to the restricted section in her desk when she’s not here.”

“Why aren’t you coming along?” Bennett asked, brow furrowing in suspicion. “Are you planning to betray us and trap us here?”

“Someone has to keep watch in order to make sure the knights don’t come back too early, right?” Kaeya answered. “Relax, I promise you can trust me. Haven’t we been through enough together for you to know I’m on your side?”

“I believe you,” Cara said. “It’ll be okay, Bennett. If he wanted to betray us, he probably would have done it by now.”

“Well…alright,” Bennett relented. “But if this does end up being a trick to turn us in, I’ll punch you so hard you won’t know what hit you.”

Razor grunted in agreement. Though both boys looked fairly intimidating as they stared Kaeya down, the Cavalry Captain didn’t look alarmed at their threat, and only nodded. “I understand. Now go. We’re wasting time. Collect anything you can find on the Creator.” He grabbed Cara’s forearm and squeezed. “Please be careful, Cara. If the knights return, I will do everything I can to stall them so you three can get out safely. I could not live with myself if I allowed you to get hurt on my watch.”

She offered him a reassuring smile to mask the anxiety fluttering in her core. “It’ll be fine, Kaeya. Just promise me you won’t give yourself away if the knights come back. I don’t want you getting hurt, either.”

She turned to the library door, and with great caution, pushed it open. The hinges didn’t make any noise, to her immense relief, and they entered silently. The scent of books and dust hit her nose-a familiar smell, being that she had spent much of her time studying in her college library before her transport into Teyvat. The wall sconces and the massive chandelier hanging from the roof were dimmed to the point where they flickered like candles, casting limited illumination upon the interior. It certainly looked like the library was closed for the night, and from the sound of it, there really was no one else here except for them.

Bennett was the first to make it to Lisa’s desk. He opened its drawers one-by-one as quietly as possible, searching through them. “Uh, guys? I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there’s no key here.”

“Let me check.” Cara joined him and rummaged through the desk’s contents. There were various papers written in what appeared to be German, a booklet filled with return receipts for different checked-out books, index cards, folders…but Bennett was right. No key. “Well, shit. This is a problem.”

“Maybe Teacher took key with her?” Razor suggested.

“Or Kaeya lied to us.” Bennett gritted his teeth. “I knew we shouldn’t have trusted him.”

“No, that’s not it. I think…I think Razor might be right. Lisa has to have the key with her.” Cara tried to return the desk’s insides to their prior neat appearance, both out of kindness and because she didn’t want Lisa to know someone had been looking through her private notes and items, then closed the drawers. “This wasn’t planned by Kaeya. I don’t want to believe it was, so until we have solid proof that he hasn’t betrayed us, I won’t believe it.”

“What do we do, then? Without the key, we can’t get into the restricted section,” Bennett said. “Do we try to knock the doors down? It wouldn’t be a problem with Razor’s claymore.”

Razor shuffled his feet. “Teacher will get mad if I do that…don’t want to destroy.”

“You won’t have to,” Cara said. “We’ll find some other way in.”

They left the desk and headed down the staircase leading to the bottom floor of the library. Each light Cara passed seemed to respond to her presence and glinted madly when she walked by. The silence of the library had her on edge, and with how silent Bennett and Razor were being as they trailed behind her, she could tell they were feeling anxious, too. Soon, they were standing in front of the massive oak doors of the restricted section. Cara pressed her hands against them and pushed; they remained stubbornly shut. “Shit, they’re locked,” she said.

“Here, let me try.” Bennett grunted when he pushed against the doors with all of his might. Still, they didn’t budge.

“What made you think you would have any chance of opening them if I didn’t?” Cara questioned.

“Pure luck?” Bennett replied with a shrug.

“Shhh!” Razor suddenly hushed. He jumped back from the doors. “Someone is coming! Through the doors! Hide!”

Cara couldn’t discern what Razor’s sharp hearing was picking up on beyond the wood of the doors, but she trusted Razor’s senses to know this was a serious matter. She dove behind a large column that also acted as a bookshelf, pressing her arms to her sides and trying to make herself as slim as possible, so that not a piece of her would be seen. Razor and Bennett did the same with another bookshelf column parallel to hers. Thankfully, it was wide enough for the two of them to hide together. There was an agonizing moment of silence…and then, footsteps. The restricted section’s doors opened. Cara carefully peeked out from behind the bookshelf and saw Lisa walking out. In her hand was a simple brass key.

Cara’s heart leapt. That has to be the restricted section’s key. So, Lisa’s been here the entire time? What about the anonymous tip Kaeya sent out? I thought she was supposed to be with the knights.

Unless someone specifically told her to stay here to be a guard in case I tried anything like this.

Vermillion eyes flashed through Cara’s mind. Could this be the work of the entity ordering Monstadt to hunt her down? It wouldn’t surprise her, but that didn’t mean she was ready to accept that theory. Lisa didn’t look particularly mind-controlled when she locked the restricted section’s doors and walked past the columns. Her eyes weren’t red, and she appeared to be quite exhausted. Cara saw her yawn and mumble incoherently to herself when she started for the stairs to the library’s upper level. The key was slipped into a pocket; internally, she cursed. Fuck, how are we supposed to get into the restricted section now?

And then, to her immense shock and horror, Razor suddenly jumped out from behind the bookshelf and made a bee-line for Lisa. “Teacher!” he yelled. “Wait!”

Lisa turned around. “Razor?” she said dumbfoundedly. “I thought I heard someone shuffling around out here. Sweetheart, what are you doing in the library all by yourself?”

Razor answered her by promptly flinging himself at her and sending her falling to the floor. Lisa yelped, her hat flying off of her head. Something metallic clattered loudly, but Cara couldn’t tell what it was. “Razor-!” the librarian started to say.

“I could not find you all day!” Razor said as he hugged her tightly. “I missed you! Came to find you, so I can get a bath!”

Lisa’s expression softened. She helped Razor to his feet and brushed her disheveled hair out of her eyes. “Oh, Razor, I would love to set up a bath for you, but I don’t think I can right now. Jean needs my help with something very important.”

“Please?” Razor begged. “Doesn’t have to be a long bath, just a warm one. Will Teacher help me?”

Lisa sighed. Razor was giving her his best puppy dog eyes, and Cara knew the wolf boy had her confirmation even before it was verbally expressed. “Now that I think about it, I can’t remember the last time you got a bath…alright, just a quick one. Let’s go see if Jean wants to help.” She picked up her hat, brushed it off, and settled it atop her head. Razor took her hand, and the two of them disappeared up the stairs. Cara waited until she heard the opening and shutting of the library door before she emerged from her hiding place. “Bennett?” she whispered.

“I’m here.” Bennett walked over to her, eyes dazed confoundedly. “I don’t understand. Why did Razor do that? Lisa was going to leave. She wouldn’t have noticed him if he didn’t give himself away.”

Cara opened her mouth to answer, but stopped when she noticed something on the floor where Razor and Lisa fell. When she crouched to observe it, she gasped. “Bennett, look!”

She picked up the key and held it up to the light of the chandelier. Everything about it seemed real, though part of her felt like it was some sort of illusion. “It’s the key to the restricted section!” she said.

Bennett gasped. “It must have slipped out of Lisa’s pocket when she fell!”

“Or Razor secretly grabbed it out of her pocket when he threw himself on top of her. Don’t you see? Razor gave himself away to help us. He must have known that Lisa wouldn’t suspect him of doing anything suspicious because he’s her pupil. She would never believe that Razor would be helping an imposter.”

“Wow, that was clever. Kudos to Razor for thinking of that one!” Bennett frowned. “But still, I hope he’ll be okay. I feel bad that we’re separated.”

“I think he’ll be fine. Lisa wouldn’t hurt him. She is his teacher, after all.” Cara went over to the restricted section doors and pushed the key into the lock. With a twist and a loud clunk, the doors unlocked, and this time, she pushed them open with ease.

They were met with a wall of darkness that was so thick, she couldn’t see anything beyond it. The scent of books and dust was even more prominent here than in the regular section of the library; it hung so heavily in the air, she could practically taste it. It was a clear sign that this place wasn’t meant for the prying eyes of typical citizens…and that made Cara feel even more nervous than she already was.

“Bennett,” she whispered. “We need light.”

“Got it.” A ball of flame erupted in Bennett’s hand. Rows upon rows of bookshelves appeared with the arrival of the Pyro power. “Here, give me your hand. My fire won’t hurt you unless I want it to.”

He took her hand and gently pressed the Pyro against her palm. Warmth flooded through her as the fire was shared, and when he pulled away, a ball of flame identical to his was left behind. Cara waved the fire carefully in front of her. Though the flames licked at her skin, no burning pain followed. “Woah. I had no idea you could do this.”

“Not many people do. Pyro is seen as an aggressive element that’s meant to destroy. I’ve learned that it can do more than that.” Bennett observed the bookshelves before them. “So, how are we going to do this? Should we just grab random books and hope they have information about the Creator?”

“I mean, I guess? There are so many books here, but there’s no telling where writings on the Creator could be stored.” As she observed the seemingly endless rows of bookshelves, she felt a sense of helplessness descend upon her at the thought of how much ground the two of them had to possibly cover in such a short window of time, but she didn’t verbally express it for both her and Bennett’s sake. Stressing about this would only make things more difficult for them. “Let’s just start with the closest row and clear it together. I’ll go to one end, and you go to the other. We’ll meet at the center and then repeat with another row if we don’t find anything.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Bennett grabbed a book from the nearest shelf. “We’ll get through this together. If you find anything, just call for me, alright?”

“Okay. Good luck.”

“You too.”

With the help of Bennett’s fire, she went to the very end of the row and started to browse through various books. Each one held information that definitely could be counted as 'restricted content.' In one book, she found spells of necromancy with horrid pictures of decaying zombies rising out of graves. In another, there were anatomical pictures of dissected hilichurls that made her want to vomit. She flipped open book after book, yellowed pages crinkling as she read their secrets, if she could manage to read them at all: a few of the books were written in languages that were completely foreign to her. All of the ones she could read held forbidden wisdom, but so far, after what felt like hours of reading, she hadn’t found a single thing about Teyvat’s Creator. She shoved a book back into its place with a frustrated huff. “This is never going to work,” she muttered.

And then, she felt it. The previously stagnant air vibrated around her and whispered against her ears with barely enough power to be noticeable. It was a similar phenomenon to her first escape from Monstadt, when the wind spoke to her and urged her to run and not look back. “Over here,” it breathed in the form of a soft sigh. “This way.”

She followed the call until she was standing in front of a bookshelf she hadn’t searched yet. Bennett was just a speck of Pyro light in the distance, a flickering orange blob barely noticeable through the darkness between them. Cara scanned the spines of the books, waiting for the air to give her orders. “Well?” she whispered. “Which book should I take?”

A breeze brushed against her left cheek. Cara lifted her hand to the tiny cold draft and followed its trail to the end of the bookshelf. Her eyes landed on the spine of a book that immediately stood out to her from the others; this one was completely accented in a golden color that matched the hue of her scars and blood. She reached out and took it, and when she saw the cover, her heart stopped.

Gracing the thick hardcover book was the image of a white six-winged dragon with piercing gray eyes and a golden halo…the same exact dragon from the stone tablet in the grove where she had awoken on her first day in Teyvat.

“Bennett!” she called. “Over here!”

Bennett’s boots caused sharp echoes to ring through the room when he ran to her side. “What’s wrong?” he asked. “Did you find something useful?”

“This book,” she answered. “This book has to have answers. Whatever writings are in here will tell us how to get me home.”

“Well, then what are we waiting for?” Bennett shook her shoulder eagerly. “Open it, open it!”

Cara started to flip open the book’s cover, when her free hand abruptly began to burn with a pain akin to being shocked by a spark of electricity. The book flopped onto the floor, a cloud of dust erupting from its pages. “Ow, fuck!” she hissed.

“Woah, what happened?” Bennett asked, alarmed. “Are you okay?”

Cara flexed her hand and noticed little specks of purple Electro crackling painfully over her skin. They dissipated shortly, and that’s when she tentatively picked the book back up. This time, it didn’t shock her again, but when she pressed her palm over the cover, she didn’t have to concentrate to feel that there was some sort of elemental power attached to it. There was a faint scent of static in the air. Suddenly, the translucent image of a purple hourglass appeared over the cover.

“Oh, I know what that is!” Bennett said. “It’s an elemental spell! Lisa casts them over every book in the library so she can track them down if they’re stolen or not returned on time. Fischl and I know from, uh, experience. I don’t know how to remove one, though. I think only Lisa can do that, or you’d need an Electro Vision to cancel the spell out. Ugh, we really need Razor.”

Cara’s fingers itched. Some instinct rose within her, strange and unlike any sort of feeling she had ever felt before. It was telling her to lay her hands upon the book, but she had no clue what would happen if she did. She stared at her free hand. The scars on her wrist glowed in the light of her and Bennett’s fire. What do you have to lose? she found herself thinking. You need this book. If there’s a way to get rid of Lisa’s spell, then take it. Bennett, Kaeya, and Razor think there’s some hidden power within you. Maybe this instinct is that power.

“Hold your fire closer,” she said to Bennett. She shook out her ball of Pyro and held her extinguished hand over the book’s cover. For a moment, nothing happened. And then, golden light started to glow from her hands. She heard Bennett gasp, but paid him no mind-it was like she was lost in a trance, her mind focusing solely on Lisa’s spell. The light grew brighter and brighter, until it was outshining Bennett’s fire. The hourglass sigil began to rise off of the book, shuddering as it gave resistance and attempted to remain attached to the item it had been cast to protect. But it was no match for whatever sort of power Cara was using, and quickly yielded. The protection spell shot into her hand, strands of silken Electro snapping free and contracting, dangling limply like the discarded skin of a snake. Energy thrummed through Cara’s veins when her fingers automatically closed and crushed the spell into a scattering of tiny fractured pieces. Purple sparks fizzled through the air, and then all was dark. The golden glow retreated back into her hand, as if it hadn’t been there at all. She returned to reality with a lurch, a small breath releasing from her lips as she realized what she had just done.

“Woah,” Bennett whispered. “How did you do that?”

“I have no idea,” she whispered back. Everything that had just happened was pure instinct, but there was no time to think about what she had just done now. They could do that later. Her backpack manifested over her shoulders when she reached for it. “We have to go,” she said as she shoved the book into her pack.

“You just…removed the spell with your bare hands.” Bennett was looking at her as if it was their first time meeting. “Spells like that are supposed to be impossible to get rid of without using elemental energy, but you did just that! What was that glow? I’ve never seen something so golden before! That had to be your true powers! They’re beginning to return!”

“Can we talk about this later?” Cara asked. She stood up and hurried for the doors. “Something feels off. I don’t want to be here anymore. Let’s go and meet back up with Kaeya, and then we’ll try to find Razor.”

“Okay.” Bennett was running beside her, eyes filled with a wondering excitement. “I can’t believe I just witnessed the power of the Creator. That was so cool!”

Cara placed the key in Lisa’s desk when she and Bennett made it to the library’s upper level. She opened the main door, preparing to call for Kaeya and tell him their mission was a success-and nearly ran into a wall of armored knights.

She stumbled back and nearly tripped backwards into Bennett, who had frozen momentarily upon seeing the knights in front of them with their swords pointed forward and their eyes cold and angry. At the front of the hostile party was Eula Lawrence, her claymore resting by her side as she looked at Cara with a glare that could make an Archon cry. “Well then, look what we have here,” the Spindrift Knight said. “The little imposter, snooping around places she doesn’t belong in. I would be lying if I said I was surprised, but Her Grace blessed me with her voice and let me know you were here, so frankly, I’m not.”

“Um.” Cara’s mind went racing. This was not what she was expecting to see after coming out of the library. What are Eula and a bunch of knights doing here? Aren’t they supposed to be at Dawn Winery? Where’s Kaeya? Is he okay? You have to distract them. You have a disguise on, you can trick them!

“What imposter?” she blurted out. “I, uh, I’m just…a Fatui soldier. Notice the mask?”

She wanted to slap herself. Yeah, that’s right, tell the Favonius Captain that your part of a Snezhnayan terrorist group. That’ll really convince her to back off. God, when did I get so stupid?

“Do you take me for a fool? Don’t make me laugh.” Eula scoffed condescendingly. “I know it’s you beneath that mask, heretic. How dare you come here, breaking into the headquarters of Monstadt’s protectors, walking around like you own the place? Who do you think you are? In the name of the Almother, vengeance will be mine! I will bring your head to Her Grace myself!”

Bennett forced himself in front of Cara and took out his sword. “How did you know we were here?” he barked. “You stay away from Her Grace! I won’t let you hurt her!”

“Ah, and look. You seem to have brainwashed someone into believing your lies.” Eula raised her claymore and pointed it directly at Bennett. “You would be wise to step aside, boy. With how young you are, I would like to believe there is some chance we can save you from damnation. Let me kill the imposter, and you may live to seek forgiveness from Her Grace.”

“Over my dead body!” Bennett yelled. “It’s you who's been brainwashed! I just saw Cara use a power only the Creator could possibly have! If you let us go, she’ll be the one to let you live!”

“How dare you?” Eula roared. Her Vision activated with the intensity of her emotions: a gust of icy wind emanated from her and pushed Cara, Bennett, and the rest of the knights back. “You dare to call this heretic the Creator’s name? I take back what I said before. You are obviously a lost cause! I will have vengeance for this! Knights, attack!”

With a war cry, the knights rushed forward. Bennett planted his feet firmly and brought back his sword, flames of Pyro swirling across its blade as his Vision glowed intensely. With a powerful thrust, he released the built-up energy and sent the knights hurtling back with the sound of roaring fire. Swords went clattering to the floor. Knights crashed into each other and groaned. Only Eula stood unaffected, the cold of her Cryo Vision shielding her from much of Bennett’s attack. Cara took the turn of confusion to grab Bennett’s arm and flee.

“You can’t escape!” Eula screamed. “Get back here!” She swung her claymore at them, the edge aimed right for Cara’s neck. But Bennett managed to parry the blow with his sword, shoving Eula back and rushing in. The battle was like a dance: Eula was obviously stronger and had the deadlier weapon, but Bennett was faster, and dodged her strikes with ease. His Pyro easily burned through her Cryo, rendering her Vision useless and forcing the knight to rely only on her raw claymore skills.

“Cara, stand back!” Bennett yelled. He launched himself into the air with a boost of Pyro, raised his fist, and slammed back down onto the floor. An eruption of Pyro energy was released and encircled the both of them in a protective barrier. The symbol of a thumbs-up flashed across the floor: an Inspiration Field. Bennett had just used his ultimate attack. The walls of the headquarters shuddered, bits of stone raining down upon their heads. Cara could have sworn she felt the floor crack from the power of Bennett’s impact.

Eula staggered and was forced to go on the defensive. She held her claymore in front of her and let her Cryo power block her and the other knights from the intense blast of heat. “Let’s go!” Bennett cried to Cara. The two of them pelted out of the headquarters as fast as they could.

She heard the yells of the knights behind them, and one glance over her shoulder confirmed her fears: Bennett’s burst had only offered a temporary distraction. The knights were following, with Eula leading the front. When playing Genshin Impact, Cara had initially believed the young aristocrat’s dedication to swearing vengeance was just a masking of her true intentions to keep a list of people she wished to repay with kindness. Now, however, she could tell that Eula truly was hellbent on fulfilling her vow of violence by literally taking Cara’s head from her shoulders. The Song of Broken Pines claymore she was wielding proved that.

“Quick, this way!” Bennett yelled to her. They ran down the staircase and past the fountain in front of the Grand Goth Hotel; Cara felt a serious sensation of déjà vu as they did it. This time, however, instead of running in the direction of Monstadt’s side gate like she did the last time she was caught in this sort of situation, they squeezed through the narrow opening between the hotel and a wall to come out onto a wide stone balcony overlooking the row of signature shops.

They weren’t alone for long. Knights came running onto the balcony from the left and the right, boxing them into the center. Bennett grabbed Cara’s hand and pulled her towards the balcony wall. “We have the jump!” he yelled.

“Are you kidding me?” Cara protested. She looked over the wall and saw how far the ground was. “But I don’t have a glider!”

Bennett was already scrambling over the edge. “I’ll catch you! There’s no other way we’ll escape!”

“Stay where you are!” a knight ordered. Cara pressed closer to the wall, at a loss of what to do.

“Cara, you have to trust me!” Bennett cried. He desperately stuck his hand out to her. “Come on!”

One knight swung his sword. Cara narrowly avoided it and swore. “Fucking shit,” she muttered under her breath, then climbed onto the wall, hesitated for only but a second, and jumped. An instinctual scream erupted from her throat, and she closed her eyes, waiting for the impact of her body splattering against the ground. But two hands grabbed tightly at her wrists, and when she opened her eyes, she was gliding through the air with Bennett holding her up. The young adventurer was obviously straining to keep both of them aloft, the wings of his glider working on overtime with frantic flaps. They descended at a rapid pace, and when they were close enough to the ground, Bennett’s glider withdrew, and he let her go. Both of them were separated by their tumbled landings.

“Bennett, are you okay?” Cara yelled. She pushed herself to her feet with a wince and tested her arms and legs. No broken bones seemed to have been procured, which was definitely a good thing. Bennett stood with similar shakiness. “Yeah,” he responded. “I’m fine. I think we might have lost them for now-”

He had spoken too soon. Some of the knights had followed their path down and were jumping with gliders of their own. Four of them landed much more softly between them, separating Cara from Bennett. One of the knights grabbed Cara’s arm. “Nowhere to run now, imposter,” he spat into her face.

“Let go of me!” Cara screamed. She slammed a fist across his face and sent him staggering backwards with a pained cry. More knights closed in on her. She backpedaled away from them in a panic.

“Cara!” Bennett cried. He was fending off the knights with blows of his sword, attempting to clear a path to her. It didn’t take much to see that the knights had a serious advantage; there were more of them, and there was no way Bennett could fight them all. She looked over her shoulder and spotted the main teleport waypoint floating nearby, the same one she always used to teleport into Monstadt in order to craft or receive her rewards for completing her commissions. An idea popped into her head. If the teleport waypoints worked for her in the game…would they work for her now?

There was no more time for stalling. The knights were closing in, and she couldn’t even see Bennett anymore through the crowd of white-and-gold armor, let alone know if he was even still here at all. “Bennett!” she yelled at the top of her lungs. “I’ll come find you! I promise!”

“The only place the two of you will be finding each other is in a prison cell.” Eula strode towards Cara, glowering at her. “You will be coming with me. Cooperate, and I might let you keep your head until Her Grace decides your way of execution. Somebody fetch me a pair of handcuffs. This little imposter’s days of spreading heretical lies are over.”

When Cara saw a knight give Eula handcuffs that were identical to the ones she had been forced to wear at the hands of Lawrence and Swan, she panicked. She whirled and ran, knowing that if those things were put over her wrists, there would be no opportunity to escape them a second time. Her hands slammed against the cool stone of the teleport waypoint when she got to it. Its blue light was slightly numbing when it washed over her skin.

“Come on, come on, come on,” she muttered, closing her eyes and focusing on the hum of the waypoint’s power. “Get me out of here, please! Take me anywhere but here!”

A clatter of metal and unsheathing swords caused her to open her eyes and look back. The knights had her surrounded. Eula didn’t look impressed. “That mechanism is a device from ancient times,” she said. “It doesn’t work for anyone here, and it will not work for you. Don’t make this harder than it has to be. Your death is imminent, and you might as well accept that you have lost. Give up the fight, little imposter. Don’t resist, or I might just have to cut off your legs to prevent any more escape attempts.” She reached for Cara, the handcuffs open and ready.

“No!” Cara screamed. She shied away from Eula’s grasp. “Get away from me! Don’t-!”

The teleport waypoint suddenly let out a loud beep. Warmth rushed through Cara’s body as the mechanism’s blue glow intensified. Shouts of alarm rose from the gathered knights. Eula stepped back, eyebrows rising in surprise.

“She activated the waypoint! She’s going to escape!” a knight yelled. “Somebody grab her before she gets away!”

At least a dozen hands all shot forward, including Eula’s. But it was too late. The waypoint’s light grew so bright, it completely enveloped Cara’s vision, and then she was sucked backwards into a vortex of swirling blue. An incredible force pressed in on her from all sides, squeezing the air out of her lungs. Agony quickly had her in its horrible grip. Her mind and body were being stretched to their very limits. She opened her mouth to scream, but no noise came out. Did she even have a mouth anymore? Did she have a body? She couldn’t feel her arms or her legs, nor could she sense the presence of her heart or lungs. This gyre of energy the waypoint had thrust her into was consuming her very existence, and it hurt, it hurt so much.

“Get me out!” she thought she howled, but her voice was lost, and she didn’t even know if she still had the capability to speak at this point. “Let me out now! Stop it, stop it please, stopstopstop-!”

The pressure crushing her body suddenly relented. Everything was spinning, and the wormhole’s blue color collided with pure white, opening up into a light that blinded Cara completely. The roar of the vortex released with a loud beep, and then Cara was falling, landing on a surface that she could only fleetingly recognize as soft, wet, and cold. Her body was back, but it was heavy, and she found that she couldn’t breath. Spots danced across her vision when she tried to open her eyes.

She had no idea where she was. She didn’t even know if she was alive. Before she could find it within herself to begin to think, unconsciousness consumed her, and she was drawn into its great black wings. The howl of the wind was the last thing she heard before she completely blacked out.

#genshin sagau #genshin impact sagau #sagau #genshin impact #genshin isekai #isekai #genshin fic #genshin impact fanfiction #fanfiction #lisa minci #razor #bennett #eula lawrence #sagau impostor au #messianic aureation

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heartsoulrocknroll · 6 months

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AEW Dynamite 12/7/22

Dynamite Diamond Battle Royal -- This was as boring as every battle royal. The final two are Ethan Page and Ricky Starks, and Starks gets the win, making him the number one contender for both the AEW World Championship and the Dynamite Diamond Ring.

As soon as the battle royal ends, MJF's music hits!!!!!! I was honestly not expecting him to be on this show!!! What a wonderful surprise!!

MJF enters the ring and tells Starks, "I'll be with you in one second." Lmaooo. MJF addresses Bryan Danielson, saying that Danielson isn't there because he is terrified of MJF. MJF doesn't blame Danielson, because after what he did to Regal, he'd be scared too.

Then MJF turns to Starks. "Richard, these people seem to really like you around here. They talk about you like you're some underutilized god of professional wrestling. And trust me, you are very talented. But you wanna know the truth, bud? (Shut the fuck up chants.) You wanna know the truth, absolute? The truth is, in comparison to me, you're the absolute (MJF uses air quotes here) drizzling shits. Or should I say (MJF puts on his best Rock voice), you're a roody-poo candy ass!! Considering the fact that you've stolen literally everything else from that guy. Because no offense, Richard, you ain't nothing more than a dollar store Dwayne. So you know what I'm gonna start calling you? I'm gonna start calling you the pebble. And here's what's gonna happen next week in the main event of Dynamite, little pebble. (Pebble chants!! Loool) I'm gonna put you in my pocket. I'm gonna hop in my brand new Porsche, because unlike all these simple-minded humanoids, I'm actually rich. I'm gonna drive to the nearest body of water. I'm gonna take you out of my pocket, pebble, and I'm going to skip your scrawny little pigeon-toed ass all the way back to Billy Corgan's NWA, so you can wrestle on YouTube where you belong." GO OFF, MAX, OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oohhhohoo my god, as that promo went on, I kept thinking it couldn't get any better, and it just kept getting better. I need a moment to collect myself off the floor.

Ricky chants from the crowd!! Starks calls MJF "Maxipad" and calls him a fifth-rate Roddy Piper wannabe. Starks says MJF smells like paint thinner and ass. Loool. Starks says everything about MJF screams cheap, including the cheap suits, the cheap shoes, the cheap heat. "With that AEW Championship comes a big responsibility that you know nothing about. The difference between you and me is that when these people got behind me, I gave them a reason to keep going. When they put faith in you, you let them down. But when it comes to Ricky, I deliver on time, every time, every night, every week, every month. You can take your little ass to Greece for three months, because you didn't get paid enough. But the fact remains, I've been here busting my ass. Let's talk about the fact that you avoid responsibility. You avoid any type of pressure. I show up to sign at meet and greets, where you don't care. You just blow it off, because hey, everybody hates Max, so he has nothing to lose, right? Guess what buddy? There comes a lot of responsibility when it comes to people actually liking you." Starks talks about living in his car, grinding, and providing for his family and says MJF knows nothing about that. "I'm gonna do you a favor that you've never had done in your life. I'm gonna take the responsibility off your plate, little boy."

MJF responds to this heartfelt speech with a swift low blow, and I am almost in tears because I am deranged. MJF winds up to hit Starks with the Dynamite Diamond Ring, but Starks stops it with a huge spear!!!

MJF was absolutely on fire here once again. I cannot adequately express how obsessed I am with him. I am staring at the TV with the most literal hearts in my eyes. Someone please help me. I have lost my grip on reality entirely. I am taken to another world when MJF speaks.

Starks did a great job here too. Some weird things came out of his mouth that I don't think he intended and he meandered a bit on the way to the point, but for the most part, he cut a good promo here. Starks is on the rise, but the contrast between him and MJF here is very apparent. Nonetheless, Starks managed to get me excited about him as MJF's challenger, where I wasn't really excited at all last week. Let's go!!!!!

Moxley promo up next. He says he is starting to like Hangman Page, because Page fell off his horse, dusted himself off, got back in the saddle, and did his talking with his fist. Moxley says there is too much talking in AEW lately. He says this is not All Elite Talking, and there is no Blackpool Microphone Club. Lol. Good stuff.

Samoa Joe (c) vs. Darby Allin for the TNT Championship -- Darby takes Joe off his feet with a dropkick! Joe to the outside. Darby tries to follow with his suicide dive, but Joe walks casually out of the way, leaving Darby to fall hard on the floor! Joe picks up Darby and swings his head into the barricade, then into the ring apron!!! Joe peels back the mats on the floor, bangs Darby's head into the apron, and tries to powerbomb Darby, but Darby reverses. Darby runs at Joe, but Joe intercepts and powerslams him HARD on the exposed floor!! Back in the ring, Joe takes Darby off his feet with a hard chop!! Darby with some shots to Joe's abdomen, but Joe takes him down again with a headbutt! Joe smashes Darby's head into the ringpost while Darby is on the apron! Darby bounces off the post to the floor! Darby gets back into the ring at 9! Big boot takes Darby down again! Huge senton by Joe! Outside again, Darby drives Joe into the ring steps, then lands a Coffin Drop from the top to Joe on the outside! Inside again, Darby hits a stunner and a CODE RED ON JOE!!!! Darby charges Joe in the corner, but Joe cuts him off with a huge STO!! Joe goes for the Muscle Buster, Darby stops it, but Joe neutralizes him with a HUGE chop!! Darby bites Joe's head!! This sends Joe stumbling off the top. Darby goes for a Coffin Drop, but Joe catches him in the Coquina Clutch!! Darby passes out!! Joe retains!!! I liked this match a lot. Great contrast of styles that made a great match. Both of these guys are so good.

Darby gets up and shoves Joe after the match. Joe takes Darby down with a headbutt, then lands a Muscle Buster on the wheels of Darby's skateboard!!!! Taz: "Live by the board, die by the board." Lmaoooo. Joe puts Darby out with the Coquina Clutch again!!! Wardlow comes out to stop Joe.

Backstage, Orange Cassidy tells Kip Sabian he doesn't have to attack him. If Kip wants a shot at the All Atlantic Championship, all he has to do is ask.

Claudio Castagnoli and Wheeler Yuta vs. Daniel Garcia and Jake Hager -- This was solid. Good stuff between Yuta and Garcia here, as usual. Nice Claudio hot tag with a vicious, unrelenting series of uppercuts to Hager and a hurricanrana to Hager off the top!! Claudio gets the pinfall on Hager after reversing Hager's ankle lock, driving Hager into Garcia, and following with a big uppercut.

After the match, Schiavone shows Moxley, Castagnoli, and Yuta an interview he recorded a few weeks prior with Regal. Regal says people are only going to see this interview if something bad happens to him. Regal says the BCC doesn't need him anymore, but they wouldn't let him go, so he had to show them that they don't need him. Regal says Moxley is a very calculating man (looool), so he will understand this. Regal says the reason he did what he did at Full Gear was to teach the BCC the final thing he could teach them, which is to always keep eyes in the backs of their heads. Regal says he is BCC for life. Moxley and the BCC have no comment on this. Moxley basically ignores it and just says that after Final Battle, the BCC's war with the JAS is over. Weird. You'd think Moxley could address what Regal said.

Schiavone has a sit down interview with Jamie Hayter. She says she is going to be a reigning, defending, fighting champion. She says the winner of Shida vs. The Bunny on Rampage will get a shot at her title. Hayter is great here. She doesn't say much, but she comes off very cool and confident.

The Acclaimed (c) vs. FTR for the AEW World Tag Team Championship -- Caster raps that FTR's name stands for find the remote. Loool. Beautiful side headlock takeovers and waist lock pinning combo by Cash on Bowens. Nice hip toss and pretty, pretty arm drag by Caster on Dax! Dax and Bowens trade chops! Dax goes for a Sharpshooter, but Caster reverses. Double Sharpshooters by Caster and Bowens on Dax and Cash! Outside, FTR send Bowens into the ring post and catapult Caster face first into the bottom of the ring apron!! Bowens gets a hot tag and takes out Dax and Cash. Flurry of strikes and kicks from Bowens to Dax!! German suplexes by Dax on Bowens!! Neck breaker on the knee from Bowens to Dax!! FTR land an assisted piledriver on Bowens, Dax performing the piledriver and Cash jumping off the second rope to assist in driving Bowens down into the ring!! Bowens kicks out!!! FTR have Bowens in position for a double vertical suplex, but Caster comes out of nowhere to spear Cash!! But Dax holds onto Bowens and rolls him up!!! Bowens kicks out! Big rolling elbow by Bowens!! Cazadora cutter combo by the Acclaimed on Dax!! Dax kicks out! FTR go for the Big Rig, but Caster reverses! The Acclaimed go for a Big Rig of their own, but Dax and Cash reverse! Dax sends Caster shoulder-first into the ring post in the corner, then FTR finally land the Big Rig on Caster!! Bowens barely makes it into the ring in time to break up the pin! Arrival by Bowens on Cash! Mic Drop attempt by Caster misses!! Huge back hand chop from Caster to Cash! Big lariat by Cash to take Caster off his feet!!! Caster kicks out! Two more HUGE lariats by Cash!!! Damn!!!!!!!!!! Powerbomb by Cash into a jacknife pinning combo, but Caster rolls through into a pinning combo of his own and steals the three count!!! This was really good. FTR continues to pull great matches out of everyone they wrestle. This was a good finish to allow The Acclaimed to retain without hurting FTR too much.

After the match, the Gunns read FTR a note from the Briscoes, challenging FTR to a double dog collar match for the ROH World Tag Tean Championships at Final Battle. Wow!!!!!! Hype!!!!

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