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yukidragon · 3 years

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Our Life Snippet - Clingy

As I mentioned in my asks today where I was gushing about Our Life: Beginnings & Always by @gb-patch, it’s about time for another clip of my fanfic novelization of this lovely game!

It’s been a while since I showed a clip of Step 3, so here is a slice from Errands! Thank you to @gb-patch and everyone else who enjoy seeing me gush and write about Cove and Jamie! You all make me so happy I cannot even!

Oh, and since this is Step 3 content, spoiler warning for those who haven’t played this far in the game yet.

...

Liz folded her arms over her chest and let out an amused chuckle. “We couldn’t have picked a more perfect trip. It’s been too long since we’ve had a true family outing.” She then gave a pointed look to her little sister and the baby boyfriend for emphasis.

The three parents laughed approvingly at the familiar joke. Jamie rolled her eyes at their mirth and the teasing note to her older sister’s tone even as she fought to keep from smiling herself. Her favorite next door neighbors had joined the Leimomis on this outing, which was what made it a ‘true family outing’ as Liz put it.

Cove offered Jamie a sympathetic smile when their eyes met. Some things never changed and some jokes never died, especially when it came to teasing them about their relationship. It was something they had both long since accepted. The fact that they had been holding hands since they left the cars behind naturally didn’t help lessen such teasing, but neither of them felt inclined to let go of each other.

Jamie finally allowed herself to smile as she squeezed his hand a little, her smile only widening when Cove returned the gesture. Teasing aside, she was bubbling with anticipation to explore the market and see what sort of hidden gems they might uncover. Sure, that meant wading through a sea of people to find them, but she wasn’t alone, so she didn’t pay them any mind.

The idea of spending a day traversing through such a dense crowd of strangers was not something Cove looked forward to, but at least he wouldn’t have to deal with them by himself. He could tune them out as long as he had Jamie by his side. Seeing her so animated with excitement as she looked around raised his spirits, and when she smiled at him, it was like the world around them no longer mattered anymore.

Cliff turned to the group as he clapped his hands together, the sound catching everyone’s attention. “Well, I’m ready to get started. I’ve got plenty of dishes in mind I could use ingredients for.”

It was easy to see that everyone held the same sentiment. Noelani and Pamla were especially excited as they shared a conspiratorial smile with one another.

“Yes, that’s a very good idea, Cliff,” Noelani said cheerfully as she turned back to the others. “This place is much larger than it seems. It’s difficult to visit each part in a single day.”

Such a challenge did nothing to diminish Cliff’s enthusiasm. “I’m sure we can make a decent dent together at least.”

“Actually…,” Noelani said as she let her gaze wander to the rest of the group. “Since there are so many of us this time, we could take different sides of the market.”

For a second, Jamie swore she saw a hint of mischief in Pamela’s eyes before her mom turned away to look at the stalls.

“Divide and conquer, eh?” Pamela said. “That sounds brilliant.”

The suggestion took the rest of the group by surprise. No one else had considered splitting up to be an option.

Pamela flashed the group a dazzling smile to banish any misgivings there were towards the idea. “Though, it’s a little unfair that there are four Leimomi family members and only two Holdens here, so I’ll go with you boys to even out the odds.”

“That’s fine with me,” Noelani said cheerfully.

Despite the upbeat attitude and smiles Noelani and Pamela showed the group, it was clear that they were the only ones excited for the idea. Liz pursed her lips in a frown, her brow furrowing, but she kept her mouth shut. By contrast, Jamie’s mouth hung open in a small ‘o’ of surprise. Cliff awkwardly scratched the back of his neck and his gaze wandered aimlessly, as he found himself at a loss for where to look or what to say. Neither was a problem his son had.

Cove tightened his hold on Jamie’s hand reflexively, drawing her attention to his frowning face. The grip wasn’t anywhere near painful, but it made his thoughts on them being separated crystal clear even before he spoke up. “I don’t like that idea.”

Noelani was nonplussed by the resistance, smiling at Cove despite his obvious disapproval. “Don’t worry, we’ll be apart for only a few hours, and then we’ll have something to talk about at the end of it.”

Cove wasn’t especially convinced. He had never been comfortable with plans being changed without notice, especially when he wasn’t even consulted about the change. Unfortunately, he could already tell that this was a battle that he wasn’t going to win. He could be stubborn with his own parents or peers, but when it came to the Leimomi matrons, he couldn’t dig in his heels with only the argument that he didn’t want to be separated from Jamie. His shoulders slumped in defeat, and he let out a sigh. Reluctantly, he nodded and released his girlfriend’s hand.

Liz let out a thoughtful hum and shrugged off her confusion. “Alright,” she said, her frown melting away into an easy smile. “I don’t get the point, but I also don’t mind spending the first part of the trip with Jamie and Ma.

Delighted, Noelani clapped her hands together in a brief show of cheer. “Wonderful. Are the teams ready to go?”

Like her sister, Jamie didn’t understand why their moms thought splitting up was a good idea. The entire point of both of their families going to the farmers’ market together was to enjoy each other’s company, wasn’t it? Splitting the group in half felt like splitting the fun in half too.

Actually, it would be even less than that if they expected Jamie and Cove to spend the day apart when they could be together.

If this was going to happen regardless of any of their opinions on the matter, Jamie knew that she had to at least suggest a compromise. “Can I be the one who goes with the Holdens instead?”

Jamie clasped her hands together as she looked between her moms hopefully. They would understand why she wanted to spend the day with Cove, right? He just got back from Nevada, and after he had been gone a long time to boot. It felt almost cruel to spend a day apart from one another when they didn’t have to.

Cove immediately perked up at the suggestion, his defeated frown turning into a hopeful smile of his own.

Unfortunately, the expressions Noelani and Pamela wore were not promising. Noelani pouted at their youngest daughter while Pamela merely shook her head with a grin.

“Sorry,” Pamela said. “No can do this time, kiddo.”

Jamie saw not even a flicker of reluctance between her parents, and the disappointment on Noelani’s face, however played up to keep the mood light, made her feel a twinge of guilt for suggesting she leave her ma’s group. Her shoulders sagged in surrender as a quiet sigh escaped her. “We won’t be split up too long, right?” she asked weakly.

A cheerful smile returned to Noelani’s face as she moved to her youngest’s side and wrapped an arm around Jamie in a little side hug. Her comforting gesture was rewarded with a lopsided smile from her daughter. “Yes, thank you, Jamie.”

With things finally settled, Pamela walked over towards Cove and Cliff, grinning in spite of the confused looks they still sent their way. “Come on, boys, we’re heading out.”

“Sure,” Cliff said.

“Okay,” Cove said with far less enthusiasm than Pamela. This trip had suddenly become a lot more of a chore than it started off as.

His gaze then turned to Jamie, and he offered her a soft smile when her eyes met his. He was drawn towards his girlfriend, stopping just short in front of her. The smile he wore wavered as he hesitated to leave. “Bye,” he said quietly, unable to hide the note of regret from his voice.

Jamie was no more thrilled to separate than Cove was, but she managed to offer him a small smile in return anyway. “Bye.”

Cove took his girlfriend’s hand in his once more and gave it a gentle squeeze, which Jamie returned. Her smile grew just a little stronger at his attempt to reassure her, which raised his spirits as well. He then dipped his face towards her for a parting kiss, his cheeks warming as his eyes drifted closed.

Jamie started to close her eyes as well in anticipation of the kiss, only to notice Cove suddenly jerk to a halt stiffly a few inches away from her.

The reason why became immediately clear as Cove twisted his head around to stare back at Pamela with wide eyes. She had seized the hem of his shirt and physically held him back. She gave another firm tug, urging him upright before letting go.

“No, no, no,” Pamela chided with a wide grin on her face as she wagged a finger at Cove. “Time’s a wastin’, Cove, and I’ve known you long enough to be aware that you’re one to linger. If I don’t stop you now, you’ll only drag your feet on parting ways more.” Her smile then turned mischievous as she shifted her gaze from him to Jamie and back again. “The two of you can snuggle and make out as much as you want later. We have important shopping to do now.”

Jamie felt her face grow hot from being called out so publicly by her mom. Cove outright gasped at Pamela, completely taken aback by what felt like a truly obscene thing for her to say.

Once Cove overcame the initial shock, he forced himself to ignore how fiercely his cheeks burned as he made an unimpressed show of rolling his eyes. “You don’t need to literally pull me away from Jamie. I’m not that clingy.”

Pamela made no effort to hide her snickering as she shook her head wryly.

The reaction wasn’t one Cove expected. He raised his eyebrows at her before he looked over at Noelani. However, the other Mrs. Leimomi refused to look him in the eye as she whistled in a supposedly ‘innocent’ manner.

Cove noticed the look Liz sent his way, particularly the sly smirk she wore that stretched from ear to ear. He whipped his head around towards his dad next. Cliff met his gaze, but could only offer a lopsided smile and an apologetic shrug.

It was only then when it dawned on Cove - everyone really thought he was that needy.

Finally, Cove dared turn to face Jamie, his eyes wide and pleading with the desperate hope that at least she didn’t agree as well.

To his relief, the look Jamie gave him was a sympathetic one. She then leveled a stern gaze to the rest of the group, folding her arms across her chest. “Cove is totally capable of being independent when he wants to be,” she said in a very matter of fact tone.

After all, Cove had recently traveled to Nevada by himself for weeks. Willingly separating from her for that long was the exact opposite of clingy. In fact, that was all the more reason for them to enjoy each other’s company as much as possible now. There was no reason for them to poke fun at her boyfriend for wanting to show her affection. How they expressed their feelings for one another was no one else’s business but theirs.

Unfortunately, it seemed that no one else saw it that way, and her attempt at chastising them for their teasing was met with a few snickers from her family. Unlike them, Jamie was not amused.

Cove, on the other hand, beamed at having his girlfriend’s support. Without thinking, he took a step towards Jamie, feeling drawn to her once more. Also, once more, Pamela snatched the back of his shirt, freezing him in his tracks.

Pamela attempted to suppress the urge to laugh, but a few chuckles escaped her anyway. “Actions speak louder than words.”

Caught newly embarrassed all over again, Cove struggled to come up with something to say in his defense. His mouth twisted and his cheeks reddened as he looked sideways at their families, who were having way too much amusement at his expense. “Yeah, well…” After a few moments of struggling, he finally had to look away with a frustrated huff. “So what?”

That admission had their parents and Liz bursting into laughter, much to Cove’s mortification.

Jamie felt her irritation grow when everyone started laughing at Cove. “Yeah, so what?” she said in a challenging tone. Before anyone could make what she was certain would be another teasing retort, she closed the distance between herself and her boyfriend. She cupped his cheek to turn his face back towards her and stole a kiss from his lips before her mom could stop them a third time.

Cove barely had a moment to register the kiss before it ended. It was so brief that he hadn’t had the chance to really enjoy it, much to his regret. He could only stare wide-eyed at Jamie as she moved back from him, though involuntarily, as this time it was Noelani pulling her back by the shirt.

“I believe you were saying something about being independent?” Noelani said, though her chiding didn’t come across as particularly authoritative since she was chuckling as she said it.

Jamie was unrepentant for her act of defiance, her grin wide and proud, though she did step back at her ma’s prompting, if only to spare her shirt from further punishment. “Cove is, but I didn’t say anything about myself,” she said wryly. That comment along with her little display set off another round of laughter from the group, but it was worth it.

Pamela shook her head with a wide grin. “I don’t know about that, but I think we both better keep the kids on a short leash if we want a chance of getting any shopping done before nightfall, ‘Lani.” She gave a little tug on Cove’s shirt for emphasis, much to his chagrin.

“I think you’re right,” Noelani giggled as she kept her grip on Jamie’s shirt firm.

Cove didn’t have any further defense for himself or Jamie, not with the way everyone was having way too much fun at their expense. Grimacing, he strode several feet from the group, his face red all the way to his ears. He wanted to move on from this teasing, even if it meant physically moving on and away from her. At least Pamela let him go despite her idle threat to keep him on a leash.

Seeing Cove start to leave washed the taste of victory from Jamie’s mouth, but she just had to accept it. “I’ll see you soon,” she called after him. When he glanced back at her, she smiled softly at him and gave him a little wave.

Despite how Cove still burned with embarrassment, the reminder that he had Jamie’s support helped him relax a bit. He nodded at her ever so slightly as he pulled his mouth into a bent smile.

“See you in a few hours!” Pamela said as she gave her wife and daughters a cheery wave.

“Take care of yourselves,” Cliff said with a nod of his head.

With that, the groups were divided. Pamela picked a direction and set a course for destinations unknown, leading the Holden men who followed not far behind her.

Noelani gave the departing group a grin and waved enthusiastically with her whole arm. By contrast, Liz gave a much more dainty wave of her own.

Jamie continued to wave goodbye as she watched Cove disappear with his dad and her mom into the dense crowd. Because of his height, she could still spot glimpses of his pale green hair for a little while, but all too quickly even that small sign of him was lost from view.

As her arm fell limply to her side, Jamie tried to banish all the negative feelings she had towards this turn of events. Sure, this wasn’t what she wanted, but that didn’t mean the trip couldn’t still be fun. Sure, it sucked that she wasn’t going to explore the market with her boyfriend, and that was the thing she was looking most forward to and now, poof, that wasn’t happening… but she would see him in a few hours. It was silly to feel sad or let down that they wouldn’t all be traveling together.

It wasn’t as though she was actually clingy like she joked.

#My Writing #Our Life Beginnings & Always #ourlifeba #Our Life #Cove Holden #Jamie Last #Jamie Leimomi #Elizabeth Last #Pamela Last #Noelani Last #Cliff Holden

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myhockeyworld87 · 3 years

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Bubble Wrapped - Part 11

Word Count: 3,827

POV: Reader

Warnings: Same as always, Language, Smut, NSFW, Please see the note in the Masterlist

Teams: Bruins, Caps, Flyers, Lightning, Pens, Jackets, Canes, Islanders (more to come)

Notes: You guys have spoken and so here it is the next part of Bubble Wrapped. The new Jamie Benn series RUINED will be out on Thursday.As always feedback is greatly appreciated and wanted...hahaha! Luv ya all!! Happy Reading to all!

The elevator door opened and you walked with Dougie, Joel, and Svech to your suite. All you could think about was how you were going to live with these three for the next few days. They were extremely easy on the eyes, not to mention the comment you swore you heard Edmundson say in the elevator, had you wondering if he'd be sneaking into your bedroom. Not that you were opposed to that, but the bedrooms were kind of close together so the other two would know what was going on. That was unless they were all in there with you.

Oh god, you needed to get your mind out of the gutter. You opened the door, inviting them all in. "I'll be sure to have keys made for you guys for the next couple of days." Though if you had to guess Carly was probably already taking care of that as you spoke. "So I'll give you a quick tour. This is the living room, obviously, and over there is the dining room." You pointed out each thing as you went. "The bar is fully stocked, but please don't drink all my pinot noir." The last thing you needed was them showing up to a game drunk and their coach reading you the riot act, but they were grown men and it wasn't like you were going to lock up all the alcohol as if they were teenagers. Well, on second thought, maybe you should after what they did to your hotel room. "This is the kitchen. If there's something special you want, just write it down and I'll have the staff bring it up."

Svech opened the refrigerator doors and took a peek inside. "Man, you've got cookie dough ice cream in here!" It wasn't something that you indulged in every night, but there were times that you just needed a couple scoops to get through the week.

"If there's another kind you like, just let me know." You told him and his face lit up like a child on Christmas morning. "Now, if you want to follow me upstairs; I'll show you your rooms." They trailed after you and you felt like a mama duck with her ducklings. "This door right here will take you to the rooftop pool, but please don't go up there if it's not your team time." The last thing you need was someone being pushed off the roof or some such nonsense. "This is my room." Joel craned his neck inside and damnit if you didn't blush as one of your bras was laying on top of the bed from when you were getting ready this morning. You tried to keep them moving down the hall. "Over here is the room with the king and then this one has the two queen beds. Your stuff should be up in a few minutes, but feel free to make yourself at home. I'm going to have to get back to work and clean up the mess that you made."

"We're really sorry," Dougie told you, with a sad look in his eye. It was really hard to be mad at someone when they were being somewhat adorable at the same time.

"I know, it's fine, but please tell me what the hell you guys were doing that you broke a water pipe."

The three of them exchanged glances debating on whether or not to spill the beans, while you tried to give your best impression of your mother. It was the look she always gave you when you did something wrong that just made you so guilt ridden that you finally confessed all your sins. Svech, being the baby of the group, finally couldn't take it. "You see we have a game tonight against Boston," he explained as if that was supposed to be the answer. When he didn't say anything more, you crossed your arms across your chest and just waited. "Anyhow…we heard that Pastrnak's room was above Joel's here. We thought we could interrupt his sleep and maybe throw off his game."

Oh my god, you had to be kidding. Did these three really think that something like that would work? From the look on their faces, the answer was a resounding yes. "What about you guys? Wouldn't you be missing sleep as well?" They all looked at you dumbfounded as if that never occurred to them. God, athlete's were really didn't think sometimes, did they? "So I take you were banging on the ceiling a little too hard with the hockey stick that I saw?"

"Yeah," Joel answered sheepishly for the group. "Again, we're really sorry."

"Well, please don't let it happen in this room. I'd like to keep my job."

"No, never," Dougie told you.

"Besides, we're on the top floor. We couldn't annoy anyone if we tried." Svech added. Obviously, he didn't include you in that anyone part.

"Well, I need to get back to work." Just then there was a knock on the door and you took off downstairs to answer it. It was a couple of bellhops with all their luggage. "The guys will show you what rooms to put it in. Thank you two for coming up so fast with all this stuff. I'm off to the lobby, if you need anything just give me a call."

"Will do," you heard the trio say as you headed out the door.

"Oh, and one more thing. No parties up here."

"You got it, boss." This time you weren't sure if it was the bellhops or your new roommates calling out to you as you shut the door behind you.

The day went fast, as you were helping Carly find parts to fix the room as well as trying to get all new furnishings in. You literally had a small window of time you were working with. Thankfully, you still had some new mattresses tucked away, when you changed some of the queen beds to king-size. It was the dressers and televisions that you needed to get in, as well as new flooring. Before you knew it, the night shift was taking over and you were headed up to your room.

The guys were still playing game three and the suite was quiet as you entered. Last you heard they were losing but you hadn't been able to see any of it on television. You hurried upstairs and changed into some comfy clothes, before putting the game on. It was in the third period and the Canes had the puck in the offensive zone. You were too busy following the puck to see exactly what happened, but then the whistle blew and you saw him laying on the ice. Players often went down and then only seconds later got back up and were back ready to play, so you tried not to think the worst, but then they replayed what actually happened. What you couldn't decide was whether it was Svech's knee or ankle that seemed to totally snap as he fell. Your stomach dropped and you couldn't even watch it again, as the camera seemed to zoom in. Trainers dashed onto the ice to take care of him until they finally helped carry him off; Svech not putting any weight on his leg. You weren't sure if he'd be back tonight or not, it was obvious that he needed to go to the hospital to be evaluated, but he was definitely going to need someone to take care of him when he did get back.

It was a couple hours later when Dougie and Joel came in, neither of them knowing how Svech was doing at the moment, only saying that he was getting scans and MRIs done. They were both mentally and physically exhausted and everyone headed to bed, including you. It was about one-thirty in the morning that you woke up, your brain in a slight sleep fog as you remembered you forgot to set the coffee pot to have your morning brew ready. Let's face it you weren't a functioning human being until at least one cup of caffeine in the morning, well unless you were greeted by a certain smiling hockey player when you rolled over. Quickly, you darted out of your room and down the stairs. You fumbled with the coffee maker for a few minutes in the dark before setting everything up for auto-perk, then went to head back up to your room.

You'd just stepped into the living room when a figure in white moved on the couch. "Jesus!" you gasped, not sure if you were asking for his help or seeing his spirit move in your suite. As your eyes finally adjusted to the dim light, you could make out that it was Joel squishing his large frame on the sofa. "What are you doing down here?"

"I couldn't sleep." He mumbled, punching at his pillow before throwing it behind his head in hopes of finding some sort of comfortable position. His gaze lingered on your body a little longer than necessary and it was then that you realized you were only in a cutoff t-shirt and a thong. You hated wearing sleep pants to bed as your legs always got overheated and, in your haste, to get the coffee ready, you hadn't thought to put any on.

"Is something wrong with the room?"

"God, no," he was quick to tell you. "It's just…" he seemed to hesitate, so you took a step closer, knowing that it probably wasn't the smartest thing to do given your lack of dress, but you wanted him to know that he could talk to you. "I rolled over and saw Svech's empty bed and kept thinking about how he went down. Thought if I came down here, I could maybe get some shut-eye."

"How's that working out?"

He obviously knew you were teasing, as he gave a light chuckle. "Not so bad." His eyes looked you up and down again, and the sympathy you had for him a moment ago, almost vanished.

"Oh good, then I'll just head back up to my room if you're all comfy."

"Wait," he said stopping you even though you were kidding. There was no way you were going to let this nearly six-and-a-half-foot body, fit on that tiny couch all night. "Does this thing pull out or something? This couch is actually kind of small."

"Well, no it's not a pullout. I was actually going to offer my bed to you." His eyes got huge at your suggestion and he started to grab his pillow and sit up. "I'll just take your bed if you don't care."

"Oh, no I can't let you do that. I'm fine here." Fluffing the pillow back up he threw it behind his head. His frame curling up as best he could on the sofa.

"Don't be an ass, and take my bed."

"What kind of gentlemen would I be, if I did that?" Was he just trying to be difficult now or nice; you couldn't really tell?

"Seriously, you'll be all cramped up if you sleep down here. Now, get your butt upstairs."

"We could share your bed." Ah, so there it was, the real reason, he wouldn't take your bed. "I promise no funny business." He sounded like your grandmother when he put it like that.

"If it lets us both get some sleep, then sure." Joel jumped up off the couch as if he hadn't been curled up in a ball on it, grabbing his pillow and following your up the stairs. Once ensconced inside the room, you shut the door before asking, "Which side do you want?"

"Doesn't matter." You went to crawl in the under the right side of the covers and heard him make a noise, obviously distressed that you'd chosen that side.

"You could've just said you wanted this one," you teased him, then scooted over to the left side of the bed.

"I'm trying to be accommodating."

Turning, you faced the middle of the bed. The fact that it was a California king meant that even with how tall Joel was there was still enough room between the two of you to fit another person. "Goodnight," you whispered over, closing your eyes and wondering if he'd make any sort of move on you.

"Night," you heard him as he lay facing you. You were almost asleep when you felt him shift, not wanting to open your eyes to see if it was closer to you or if he actually just turned over. Instead, you laid there and waited, and were surprised when nothing happened. Sneaking a quick peek told you that he was laying on his back. You took a moment to take in his well-chiseled form; arms well defined from lifting weights you assumed, a smattering of chest hair barely noticeable in the moonlight, and that indent leading to a happy trail which was covered by blankets. If he didn't do something soon, you were pretty sure you were.

He moved again, this time presenting you with his back. "Is something wrong?" you called over, and he flipped back once again. Thank god this wasn't a waterbed or you'd have been seasick.

"Hmm," he mumbled. "No…sorry." You opened your eyes then, and he was just laying there staring at you. "God, you're beautiful...sorry…I promised nothing…" You didn't let him finish, as you scooched over and planted a kiss on his lips. It didn't take long for it to turn into something heated as his tongue quickly sought entrance into your mouth. His hands slipped up under your shirt so he could cup your breasts. The globes molding perfectly in his large hands. A moan escaped your lips as he tweaked each nipple and you felt a rush of wetness go straight to your core.

You slid your hands down his chest, raking your nails over his abs and causing him to shiver. Joel gathered the hem of your shirt, then lifted it over your head, tossing it somewhere in the bedroom. Pushing his boxers down, you palmed the length of him, and god was there length to him. He hissed out his pleasure as you slid your hand up and down his shaft.

His hand slithered into your panties; his fingers toying with both your clit and pussy. "So wet," he breathed out and you took the opportunity to push him down so he lay on his back. You quickly disposed of the flimsy garment that was your underwear, before straddling his hips and positioning his cock at your core. Leaning down you touched your lips to his as you slowly sunk down on him.

Once he was buried fully inside you, you broke the kiss. Whispering for him to be quiet as you started to rock back and forth. Grabbing the headboard for leverage, your body moved up and down on his length. Joel's hand went straight to your hips, helping you find a rhythm that both of you enjoyed. It didn't take long to find a pace that had you both worked up. "Don't stop baby." He hissed out, then took one hand and started to rub your clit. Your back arched and you felt the hand on your hip slide up to cup your breast as you rode him. His hips were rising to meet you now and with the flicking motion on your clit, you could feel the orgasm start to build. Your pussy started to spasm, squeezing his cock as you climaxed. "Fuck," he moaned and flipped you on your back mid-orgasm. Joel, grabbed your hips pinning you to the bed as his cock pistoned in and out of you, as he thoroughly fucked your pussy, and though you'd just climaxed seconds ago, you felt another bursting to the surface. Your legs started to tremble and you clasp them around Joel's waist holding on for dear life. His head dipped down to your shoulder and he softly bit you there as he thrust a few more times before spending deep within you. His arms were shaking with an effort to remain upright and not just topple on you, but he managed to kiss you quickly before rolling back onto his side of the bed.

You laid there, chest heaving as you tried to catch your breath. Fuck, had you ever orgasmed so close together like that before? There wasn't a time that came to mind, well except when Tyler was playing with that vibrator, but that really didn't count. Joel was like some sort of sex god, and you had to wonder if you had sex again would it be just as good? Hopefully, you'd find out tomorrow night or the next for that matter, but for now, you needed to not act like the man had just given you one of the best orgasms of your life. You rolled onto your side to face him, propping your head on your hand. "Think you'll be able to sleep now?"

He laughed at the comment, still a bit out of breath. "Oh yeah," he responded finally, though he padded out of bed to the bathroom and you heard him splash some water on his face, before coming back in with a wet washcloth to clean you up. Joel pulled the covers back, then gently spread your legs, before wiping your thighs and then your pussy. It was all rather intimate but after what the two of you had just done, nothing seemed off-limits. He tossed the cloth, back in the bathroom, then crawled back into bed, bringing the blankets up around both of you, before scooting closer to you and tucking you into his side. "I think I'll sleep even better if you're like this. Unless this is too uncomfortable for you?"

Damn, if this man wasn't a gentleman. "Not at all," you told him and snuggled a little closer toward him. His breathing evened out in minutes and the hand that was idly stroking your back, slowly stopped. It took him all of about two minutes to fall asleep. You chuckled to yourself at that fact, though quickly followed behind him.

You were still locked in the same position the next morning when you felt the sun peeking through the small opening you'd left in the blinds. Slowly, you opened your eyes, careful not to move too much in hopes of not disturbing Joel if he was sleeping. Though as you opened them, you were greeted with his staring back at you. "Morning," you whispered groggily.

"Morning, beautiful." You stretched as much as you could, while still held within the comfort of his arms. "Thanks again for last night. Best night's sleep I've had since I got in the bubble."

"Well, we do pride ourselves here in our customers getting a good night's sleep."

He laughed, then dropped a kiss to your forehead. "You definitely live up to your word."

Glancing over at the clock, you noticed the time and knew that you had to get ready to start your day. "I'd love to stay here in bed with you all day, but some of us have work."

He pulled you close, and took the opportunity to kiss you fully on the lips before answering. "We have practice as well. I should probably grab a bite to eat first. I'll meet you downstairs in a bit." He kissed you one last time, before climbing out of bed and heading back to his room.

It was about forty-five minutes later, that you came downstairs to find both him and Dougie sitting at the dining room table where a full breakfast was laid out. "Wow, what's this?"

"I took the liberty of ordering room service," Joel told you. "I wasn't sure what you liked, so there's a little bit of everything." You were used to just grabbing a yogurt and maybe a banana, but the Belgium waffles smelled delicious, so you sat down and joined them.

"Thanks," you said, as you grabbed a bit of fresh fruit and put it on your plate. "Did you guys sleep well?" You already knew Joel's answer but you wanted to make it look good so that Dougie wouldn't know what the two of you had been up to.

"I slept like the dead," Dougie answered. "Haven't had that good of sleep in a long time."

"Same," Joel said only his face turned a delightful shade of red and he started to cough.

"Dude, are you choking or something?" Dougie said, patting him on the back.

"I'm fine," he finally got out. "Wrong pipe." Joel was saved from further embarrassment as the door to the suite opened and in came Svech, hobbling on a pair of crutches and wearing a boot on his leg.

"Hey man, how are you?" Dougie asked as you all got up to go check on him.

"Ok, still not sure the extent of anything. They're going to do another MRI tomorrow. Doctors just said to stay off it and take it easy." Andrei answered the question you were all dying to know.

"Well, here why don't you sit down," you told him, motioning for him to go on the couch. He plopped down and you immediately went and grabbed a few pillows to prop under his leg. "Can I get you something to eat?"

"Yes, I'm starving. I haven't had anything since before the game." You went over and made him a heaping plate of breakfast food, while the guys talked specifics with him. He was definitely out for the rest of the series and you had a feeling it would be the rest of playoffs if the Canes made it through this round. "This is great, thank you."

"I need to get downstairs and check on things, are you going to be ok here?" You asked Svech.

"Yeah, I just have to figure out the stairs. I slept like hell." His face confirmed the words he'd just spoken as there were bags under his eyes. "Sure, that wasn't the case for you guys."

Joel avoided looking at his younger colleague and you almost burst out laughing. "If you can wait here for about twenty minutes, I'll take you in through the pool." You told him. "We can use the door upstairs that has a private entrance into the suite that I showed you yesterday, that way you don't have to use the stairs. You just need a different key to get back in."

"Wow, been holding out on us." Dougie teased. "We could've had a pool party last night." You rolled your eyes.

"Finish your breakfast, and I'll be back in a few." You headed off to make sure that everything was fine in the hotel and to see if you were needed for anything as you had a feeling that Svech was going to need a lot more help than just making it upstairs.

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wineandhargreeves · 3 years

Text

What a Mess (We’re Making)

[Read it on AO3 here!]

Rating: Explicit

Pairing: William Poindexter/Connor Whisk

Summary: The captaincy of a renowned college hockey team comes with a great deal of stress. So Dex bakes as a way to get his mind off of it. However, when baking turns out to be a source of stress in and of itself, Whiskey takes it upon himself to help his captain and boyfriend relax in a mutually beneficial way.

Whenever there was a baking event, particularly one that was close to a roadie, the Samwell Men’s Hockey team knew to steer clear of the Haus- particularly the kitchen. While in years past, Bitty would bake on a constant, regular basis, Will would get into these spells of moving pies and pastries in and out of the oven like clockwork.

Chowder once joked that during these times, the local power grid would experience a sudden surge of demand; he lost his senior dibs on the first slices of pie for a week for that comment.

Now was really no different- there was a charity fundraiser for restoring a park and playground just off of the campus and Will had offered to bake some pies to sell as part of it. However, he was adamant about doing this alone. The risk of burnout was all too real, but Will insisted that he was ahead on his coursework and could spend the day getting all the baking done.

As he set down the tray of blueberry pies, Will just barely registers the sound of a bag dropping and the feeling of someone coming up behind him. “These still need to set for an hour,” he answers without looking up. “So you’re gonna need to wait-”

“Oh, I’m not here for the pies, Dex.” The sultry tone of Connor’s voice sends chills throughout Will’s body, as does the way his teammate pushes his hand under the front of his apron. “You need to take a break.”

“I promised Jamie I’d bring 20 pies-”

“And you’ve been baking non-stop since we got back from practice this morning.” Connor’s hand is pressed against Will’s chest, forcing him to back against the former’s body. Will can feel Connor’s breath ghosting along his neck, his lips just barely grazing his skin. The already shaky resolve he had to keep his mind focused was unravelling at an alarming rate.

He used what was left of his rational thinking and pushed back against Connor, only to turn around and move them both to a part of the counter that wasn’t occupied by baked goods- both completed and in progress. “So what are you suggesting, Con? What do you want from me?”

Connor was briefly surprised, but quickly closed the space between them again. “I want you,” he murmured, hand moving to Will’s back to untie the apron before dropping to the curve of his ass. “To let off some steam, understand?”

There was a certain dominant air in his voice that under normal circumstances, Will would have to reimprand him for. Instead, Will slipped the apron over his head and tossed it to the side. However, that didn’t seem to be good enough for Connor, who brought his other hand up to cup Will’s jaw, forcing them to lock eyes. “I need to hear it from you, Will- do you understand? Do you want this?”

“Yes, fuck, Con… Please…”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Connor’s lips were crashing against his. Will could feel himself melt with every flick of his boyfriend’s tongue- Connor was clearly more experienced and passionate than he liked to let on. The hand that was formerly on his jaw was now at the back of his head, grabbing at the unruly hair that Will had meant to cut at some point this week. “Did- fuck… Did you want me to…”

“You’re going to stay right here and let me take care of you, alright?” Connor asked, though his tone made it clear that this wasn’t actually up for discussion. With that, he sank down onto his knees and started to open up Will’s fly. Although he swore up and down that he didn’t buy skinny jeans, a steady workout regiment meant that his pants were quite form-fitting. Thus, Will let out a whimper of relief when Connor tugged them down to around his knees.

His hands grabbed the edge of the counter as he tried not to buck up against his boyfriend’s mouth. “You said you’d take care of me, not tease me,” Will groaned, cracking an eye open to watch as Connor dragged his tongue along the front of his boxer briefs.

“Do you want me to stop then?”

“Fuck, no. ” Will let his head fall back as his dick was finally freed from its confines. The exhale of relief was quickly stopped in his throat as Connor got his mouth around him. There was an almost competitive edge to the way he bobbed his head up and down. Connor’s palm was rough as it jerked the part that he couldn’t fit into his mouth. For someone who claimed that he wanted to help Will relax, he was bringing the same kind of quiet intensity he had on the ice.

He really wanted to warn Connor that he was on the edge of finishing, but one swift swipe of his tongue was enough for Will to finish in his mouth. His knuckles went white as he clutched the counter like a vise. The broken stream of praises and ‘Connors’ that fell from his lips probably made no sense, but his brain had stopped functioning in the moment.

“How’re you feeling now?”

Connor’s voice broke through the haziness of his mind. Will could see that his boyfriend was now standing up, a satisfied smirk on his face. Still, he reached out and gently wiped a stray streak of his own cum off of his bottom lip. “Couldn’t be better,” Will chuckled, his voice rough even though he wasn’t the one giving head. “Though I’m wondering if you wouldn’t mind a break either.”

“You did mention that those pies still needed to set,” Connor agreed, his eyes widening as he took in just how flushed Will was. “But are you cool with-”

Will was already moving the cooling racks out of the way and resting his forearms on the counter. “Fuck, yes, so, so cool with it.” He relished the way that Connor wolf-whistled as he opened up his own pants. “Do you have-”

The small ‘click’ of a bottle opening answered that question for him. As he pushed two coated fingers against the rim of Will’s hole, Connor leaned in to kiss down the back of his neck. There was a sort of burn that Will had gotten used to expecting- they’d already joked about him being a literal tight-ass the first time they got into bed together. “Breathe for me, babe,” Connor murmured, his own voice trembling in delight. “Want this to feel good for both of us.”

“Never let it be said that Connor Whisk wasn’t a gentleman, through and through.”

As the fingers pushed into him, Will tried to put all of his stressful thoughts out of his mind. The fundraiser, their ranking compared to other schools, the one-sided rivalry between Nursey and Bully that seemed to be brewing some unresolved sexual tension- all of it, gone. With each breath in and out, he focused on how Connor’s body heat was radiating through their shirts, the way he nipped at his pulse points.

After a few more angled thrusts in and out, Connor withdrew his fingers, eliciting a pathetic whimper from Will. He let his head rest against the cool laminate of the countertop. Even though he was trying to clear his head, a thought came to his mind; had Bitty and Jack ever done anything like this? The situation wasn’t preposterous- but he couldn’t help but imagine the two of them getting heated and giving into one another.

“Maybe I really do have a type.”

His daydreams of past captaincy crushes were soon dissipated by the feeling of Connor’s hand on his hip. They both let out soft grunts as Connor pushed into Will, the former taking it easy to give the latter time to really adjust to it. Though this was far from the first time he’d bottomed, he still greatly appreciated the slow start every time.

“Ready, Will?” Connor asked once he’d bottomed out inside him. Will answered him by tilting his head up for a kiss and a breathy plea for more. That was more than enough incentive for Connor to start pulling out, only to slam back with a snap of his hips.

They quickly settle into a familiar rhythm, their motions punctuated by the sounds of skin against skin and their gasps of pleasure. Sometimes, Connor would let himself rest deep inside Will for a few beats, just long enough for them to share another needy kiss before he moved back out for another thrust. Other times, he’d drill him so quickly that Will forgot his own rule of being quiet and let out a shameless cry.

Just as his arms were getting tired of supporting his weight, Will was suddenly pulled back by an arm reaching across his chest. The feeling of Connor’s hand applying just the right amount of pressure on his throat felt absolutely euphoric. “So good for me, Will,” his boyfriend groaned. “So- fuck, so good… I-I’m gonna…”

“Do it,” Will practically begged, letting his head fall back again. Connor rolled his hips before snapping into Will once, twice, then bottoming out inside him on the third. The hand around his neck tightened as he felt Connor come inside him, the warmth nothing compared to their shared heat.

As they stilled, Connor lowered his hand, though he still helped hold Will up. He lazily rubbed circles into his shirt with his thumbs as he pressed kisses to the back of his neck again. “I… I think we both earned that break…” he laughed breathlessly.

“Definitely… guess we can cross kitchen sex off the list, huh?”

Connor snorts as he turns his head to look at Will properly. “You’re telling me you keep a list of places to have sex?”

Will shrugs, trying to act as casually as one could when they were half-naked in the open with their boyfriend’s dick still inside them. “What, doesn’t everyone?”

“I had no idea- you’ll have to tell me more about it.” Connor then pauses for a moment as he looks just past Will’s profile. “Maybe over some pie?”

“You’re not going anywhere near those pies- you can wash your hands and get some leftovers from the fridge.”

“Whatever happened to romance?” Connor sighed dramatically, earning himself an affectionate flick to the head from Will.

“Yeah, yeah; love you too, Connor.”

#my writing #omg check please #william poindexter #connor whisk #dex x whiskey

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talpup · 3 years

Text

Summary: Yami Sukehiro just wanted to join the Magic Knights and make his mentor proud. He knew there would be trails. He knew trouble would come his way. Knew he would be faced with discrimination for being a foreigner and a peasant. What he didn’t know. Didn’t expect. Was that literal Chaos would come his way. That he and his mentor’s sister would be at the center of world ending trouble. Or that he would fall in love with his mentor’s sister and face more than discrimination; but the jealously of Nozel Silva who loved the same woman he did.

Please remember this fic is rated mature and has warnings of violence, abuse, sexual tension, eventual sexual behavior, and other possible triggers. For a full list of story tags please check the fics AO3 (link to that at the top of my tumblrs homepage).

Chapter 74

Teris awoke to one of the loudest claps of thunder she had ever heard. Sitting up in bed, hand to her racing heart, she looked out the window expecting to see darkened skies. Instead everything was calm and sunny. Quickly getting dressed, she headed downstairs. Yami and Tobin had been out on another mission when she had returned to base shortly before lights out last night. But Venice had told her the two were expected back sometime today.

Before heading to the dining hall, Teris poked her head outside the front entrance, looking again at the skies. Finding that direction clear and unclouded as well, she shrugged pulling her head back in and closed the door. Turning she jumped, startled by Iban’s presence.

“Damn it, Iban! You need to wear a bell or something.” Teris cursed, stepping around him.

Iban watched her, impressed at how quickly her system had recovered from the surprise. Her hammering heart already almost returned to normal in its rhythm. Opening the door he exited without word, fully believing Yami when the man said he would harm him if he didn’t keep his distance from Teris.

Shaking off the weird encounter, Teris headed to the dining hall.

“I swore I heard thunder.” Teris commented as she served.

“You did. And you can expect much more of it.” Olsen said.

Teris sat down at the table. “The skies to the north and south were clear.”

“The Vice Captain's are practicing.” Olsen explained.

“For?” Teris asked, looking to him.

“Seems there’s to be a changing of the guard for the Purple Orcas.” Olsen said.

Teris’ brows rose at that. “Heath is leaving?”

“What’s this?” Bran asked, eyes clearing as he looked up.

“Whenever a Captain retires the Captains and Vice Captain's battle it out in a set of two challenges.” Olsen explained. “It’s a sort of going away fun time celebration, preparedness, and hazing all rolled into one. The first battle in which four of the nine Captain's go against all of the Vice Captain's is timed. The second isn’t timed, and usually ends up being Captain against their own Vice Captain as all the Captain's participate. While the first battle the Vice Captain's have to subdue a Captain before time runs out the second challenge is left to a win, call, or draw for each of the Vice Captain's.” Olsen grinned. “Most of the Vice Captain's end up calling or drawing but if the Vice Captain meant to be taking over the squad doesn’t come out with a win or a draw--”

“They don’t become Captain?” Bran asked.

“No.” Olsen said. “They’ll still become Captain. Usually. But it will likely be hard going for them. Especially among the other Captain's.”

“I don’t know much about Whilf. Do you?” Teris asked Olsen, wondering what kind of Captain the Purple Orcas Vice Captain would make.

“You’re the one with a friend in the Purple Orcas. I was hoping you could tell me.” Olsen said.

Teris shrugged. “Zara hasn’t mentioned him. Then again, he never mentioned Heath leaving. And I just saw him at the Decoration Ceremony a couple days ago.”

“How was that by the way?” Olsen asked. “Nozel loving it as much as you hated it? Everyone bowing and scraping before him.”

“I didn’t hate it.” Teris said.

“You finally turning into a proper royal on us?” Olsen teased.

“No.” Teris huffed. “But thanks to a friend I got a new outlook on that sort of stuff. As for Nozel. I don’t think he enjoyed any of it. Not personally at least. He didn’t want to be an acting Captain in the first place. His Majesty set him with a task and though I’m sure he was pleased and proud to have achieved it after a fashion, I don’t think he thought he deserved the Golden Clover Medal of Honor.”

“I never would have expected that.” Olsen said.

“I didn’t either. It—he surprised me. In more ways than one.” Teris smiled at the memory of yesterday.

Olsen's eyes narrowed. “What’s this? With your face.”

“I can smile.”

“You certainly can and often do.” Olsen agreed. “But never when you’re speaking about Nozel Silva.”

“He surprised me with a really pleasant birthday gift yesterday is all.” Teris said, unable to stop smiling despite her efforts.

“I hope you didn’t let on how much you liked it.” Olsen said, feeling protective of her on Yami’s behalf.

“Stop it.” Teris snipped. “All of that has been made painfully and uncomfortably clear on both our parts. Nozel and I have moved past his feelings.”

Olsen gave her a dubious look. “Has he really?”

“We can still be friends.” Teris said. “Our friendship is more important than any hurt feelings he may have about Yami and I being together.”

“Especially when he thinks you are going to do as you’re told and marry him.” Olsen put in.

“Stop it.” Teris got up leaving her plate untouched. “I’m not talking to you about this. Where is everyone anyway?”

“Out at the training field watching the show of course.” Olsen answered watching her. He may have over stepped his bounds a bit. But with no one else here to remind her what guys were really like he had felt it his responsibility for both her and Yami’s sake.

74.2

Fuegoleon and Randall stood together watching their Vice Captain.

Quince pointed at the royal Vermillion. “No telling your sister of our plans.”

“Of course not.” Fuegoleon called back, grinning. “You’ll need all the help you can get to best a team that has Mereoleona Vermillion on it.”

Bronn rolled his eyes. “I’ll subdue that Lioness quicker than her mouth can shoot off.”

“Oui!” Quince snapped. “That’s my Captain you’re talking about.”

“Remember your loyalties here.” Bronn snapped back. “Stupid Crimson Lions. Next thing you know Quince will go apologizing we’ve knocked the Lioness on her ass and turn on us, trying to back her up.”

“I’m more worried about Julius.” Kess, Vice Captain of the Silver Eagles, said. She cast Julius’ Vice Captain a look, blushing slightly when Jon’s dark eyes met hers.

“I think everyone’s worried about Julius.” Bronn said.

Jaynee, Vice Captain of the Blue Rose and Captain Jamie’s sister, began arguing with Tryn, Jamie’s Vice Captain.

Bronn sighed and shook his head. “What we should be worrying about is if we’ll kill each other before we even make it to the day of the challenge.”

Teris came up beside Venice who was standing in the front row of the spectators circle. “I had wondered if you had been put on another mission.”

“Thankfully things are beginning to calm. Though I doubt we’re at the point of slacking off and letting you and Yami handle it all for us again.” Venice teased.

“Good luck with that once Bronn retires and we become Vice Captains.” Teris warned, playfully.

“I don’t know if it’s because the Vice Captain's are practicing on our sparring field and he feels responsible or what, but he’s pretty much been the one keeping them from imploding.” Venice remarked, watching the Vice Captain’s.

“Who? Bronn?” Teris asked in disbelief.

Venice nodded. She glanced at Teris. “I was kind of afraid to ask last night. But how was your birthday? Not one of the worst to date I hope.”

“One of the best, if not the best, to date. At least I would hope.” Fuegoleon smiled, joining them.

Teris looked at the Crimson Lion, returning his smile. “Leon’s right.” She told Venice. “Yesterday was actually pretty great.”

“Pretty great? You had a grin the entire time that I don’t think the healers would’ve been able to remove.” Fuegoleon said, glad Nozel had come up with the idea and had convinced Lord Silva into allowing the excursion.

Venice looked at the two royals. Happy as she was that her friend had had a good birthday, she wasn’t overly pleased the good time had been while in the company of Nozel Silva. Fuegoleon, she didn’t mind so much. The Vermillion wasn’t all that bad once you got to know him. Nozel on the other hand. The Silva was the type of person Venice would’ve hated even if he had no connection to Teris.

“Why? What happened?” Venice questioned.

Looking back at her friend, Teris told. “There’s a water, ice, and sand sculpture contest in Racine every year. I’ve always wanted to go, but it’s held October first through the third. So I’ve never been able to. Nozel somehow convinced his father to forgo the usual itinerary for my birthday and allow us to attend.”

“It was a simple matter really.” Nozel said, joining from behind, having just arrived to view the spectacle that was all the Vice Captain’s training together. “With all the royal fanfare the day before your birthday it was easy enough to convince him.” He smiled at Teris. “I’m glad you enjoyed your day. After seeing you that happy I was disappointed I hadn’t thought to try and convince my father sooner.”

Fuegoleon fought against rolling his eyes. As glad as he was Teris was so grateful and pleased with Nozel for his efforts, he couldn’t help but think Nozel was pressing the matter a bit over much. At least Teris didn’t suspect anything. The surprise event in Racine apparently enough to either explain away or make her forget about Nozel overreacting and dragging her into a private room.

Teris smiled at Nozel. As much as she wanted to forget about his affection for her and preferred to think that Nozel had already moved on, she was always mindful with her ways and words around him just in case. “Thanks again.” She glanced at the Vice Captain's. “I wonder if Quince’s compass magic could somehow negate, or at least redirect, Julius’ time magic.”

“What was that Black Sheep?” Bronn asked from several paces away.

“Yet when you’re standing right beside me and I directly ask you something you don’t hear.” Teris complained to her Vice Captain.

“I hear what I want when I want. Deal. Now get over here.” Bronn ordered.

“What are you doing?” Jaynee asked.

Bronn gestured to Teris. “She has an idea how to combat Julius. Unlike Jon who’s either too dumb or too loyal to give away his Captain’s weaknesses.”

Teris shook her head. “No I don’t.”

Bronn snapped his fingers at her and pointed to the ground in front of him.

“What does some girl know that we don’t?” Whilf asked.

Bronn shook his head in disappointed disgust. “And they’re thinking of making you a Captain? Well this one’s gonna be a Vice Captain soon enough.” He gestured to Teris. Looking over his shoulder, he told his follow Vice Captain's. “Oh, and in case anyone wasn’t aware. It takes two to replace me.”

Quince and Jon chuckled.

“Step to it Black Sheep. We don’t got all day.” Bronn said.

“Actually, we do.” Kess said.

“Not to wait on her.” Bronn snapped.

Wishing she could disappear, Teris stood in front of Bronn on the Black Bulls training field. Everyone, from the Vice Captain's to the spectators were watching her.

Bronn crossed his arms and looked down at her. “Now, how do we beat that pesky brother of yours again?”

74.3

Yami and Tobin both hated flying by broom. So with their mission completed they decided to walk. It meant they’d get back to base by late evening instead of early morning but Tobin hadn’t much cared. What somewhat bugged him was Yami hadn’t seemed to care either.

They had just passed the small village of Rimrock and were turning onto the smaller dirt road that led to the Black Bulls base when Tobin finally got the nerve to ask. “Everything alright with you and Teris?”

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Yami tossed back.

“Don’t know. Just don’t see why you chose not to fly when Teris was suppose to get back last night and is probably waiting to see you.” Tobin said.

“Cause I hate to fly by broom.” Yami said.

“So no other reason then?” Tobin asked, looking at his friend.

“No. Now get out of my face.” Yami rumbled, giving Tobin a shoved creating more space between them as they walked.

“I was just concerned was all.” Tobin said, righting his steps.

“Things are fine.” Yami assured. “We just need to slow things down a bit.”

At that Tobin gave a hearty laugh. Turning serious, he told. “You’re lucky.”

Yami’s eyes slid back to his friend. “Why’s that?”

“Teris is still shy and innocent. Venice is far from that. That woman will toy with me. Get me riled up just enough.”

“You two haven’t...” Yami left the rest unsaid simply because he wouldn’t like Tobin asking so directly.

Tobin shook his head. “Not for lack of trying on my part. She wants to wait a bit. Though who knows why or how long. It’s not like with you and Teris. Venice is no blushing virgin wanting to wait till marriage.”

Yami raised a censuring brow. “And because of that you figured she would just accept?”

“No! Not at all. Still, I didn’t think she’d make me wait this long or tease and tempt me as she does.”

“You do realize who you’re with, right?” Yami questioned, Even he knew Teris’ friend well enough to know Venice was the type to toy and tease.

“Yeah, yeah.” Tobin tried to shove Yami.

Yami halted a step, easily dodging the attempt.

“I know the way she is.” Tobin went on. “It’s my own damn fault for loving her. All I’m saying, is as difficult as you think you have it you don’t know difficult. Not with that stuff. Be grateful for your girls innocence and don’t do anything to take it from her too soon. Especially if you’re planning on waiting till you wed.”

“Don’t give unasked advice.” Yami grumbled, humored temper turning. He didn’t mind when he was the topic of so called guy talk; but once Teris was brought into it, it was a completely different matter.

There was a concussive boom from ahead, followed by a rain of soil. Yami was meters ahead before Tobin began following. As Yami got closer he heard voices. A lot of voices. But it didn’t sound like fighting. He had been a part of enough battles to know what those sounded like. Also, the many Ki’s he sensed weren’t the same as what would come from a mass battle. Yami slowed.

Tobin reached him. “What?”

“It’s not an attack.” Yami said.

“Then--”

Another boom sounded.

“The training field.” Yami said, tracking the sound.

“This late?” Tobin questioned. It was then that he heard the crowd.

The two made their way up the path and came across a group of excited Magic Knights walking away from the training yard.

Recognizing one of the Magic Knights, Tobin called. “Oui. Dmitri. What’s going on?”

“The Vice Captain's training has turned into an open challenge.” The Coral Peacock answered.

Yami and Tobin looked at each other wondering what they had missed in the two days they’d been gone.

Entering the training field that was still overly large from the combination of Yami and Teris’ magic three years ago, Tobin looked around in amazement. The area had a festival-like atmosphere. There were people from the village selling food and drink. Tobin noted Yami moving to one such person and buying an ale.

“What?” Yami asked, seeing Tobin looking at him. “I’m thirsty.”

Tobin shook his head and went to find Venice.

Yami sniffed and followed his nose, buying something to eat as well. Sensing Teris’ mana Yami knew exactly where she was in the field but decided to let her come to him rather than seek her out. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to see her. After three days away from her, he was chopping at the bit to see and hold her. But in leaving Teris falling over and wanting in an effort to heighten her desire and make her comfortable after what happened in the Diamond Kingdom, Yami had discovered just how much he enjoyed being pursued by her. Though he hadn’t told Tobin as much, that was why he had been fine walking home. To leave Teris wanting and waiting. To heighten her desire and excitement of seeing him.

Yami stepped up to watch the fight and found himself standing beside William Vangeance.

“I’ve always wanted to see the Azure Deers Vice Captain go up against Lady Neyres.” William said. “Dragon and Wolf. Fire and ice. It’s almost as opposite yet similar as your and Teris’ dark and light magic.”

“Hardly.” Yami said, taking in the combatants. He figured Venice’s ex could easily best the Silver Eagle girl due to his greater experience and power. Not to mention that Jon had Julius as a Captain. As kind as Julius was, he was an exacting teacher, as both he and William could attest.

Looking around the ring of spectators, Yami saw someone with Fuegoleon and Randall. The Purple Orca appeared older than the Crimson Lions but the three seemed friendly enough.

Pointing the man out, Yami asked. “Who’s that?”

“That’s Lord Julius and Lady Teris’ Purple Orcas friend.” William told.

Yami looked the man over with a bit more interest. “Don’t know him.”

“Apparently Zara Ideale managed to make three more high ranking friends while teamed together on their mission during the Nine Day War.” William said, watching the trio across the field.

“That’s the fourth member of the Ball of Pride’s squad?” Yami said more to himself. The Purple Orca certainly wasn’t a royal or noble. Which peaked his interest all the more. Sensing Teris behind him, Yami smiled. “Hello, Ikigai. Took you long enough.”

Teris didn’t need to see Yami’s face she know he was smiling. Four days might not have been long; but when it came to not seeing Yami, it felt like forever. Her eyes hungerly raked over his muscular back. Taking in his thick thighs and fine ass. It was a struggle not to touch him but the bustling crowd and Julius’ rules about open affection rang in her ears, staying her hand.

“I told you if you’re not going to tell me what that word means to stop call me it.” Teris lightly scolded. When Yami didn’t turn, her small smile faded. “I would’ve thought you’d find me to tell me you’re back.”

“Wanted to see how long it took you to sense and come find me.” Yami teased, eyes on the match even though every other sense was focused on her.

So that’s how he was playing it, Teris thought. Well two could play at that game. She turned to leave. Yami dropped his food and turned. Reaching out, he grabbed her wrist. He managed to stop short of pulling her to him, feeling several eyes watching them.

Growling, he slowly let go of her wrist. Mana, he hated that he couldn’t openly do as he wanted with her. But with Lord Silva sending another gang to try and kill him Jax had thrown his full support behind Julius’ decreed. The two Captain's adamant about his and Teris’ so called public appearance. As much as Yami hated it, he had to admit they had a point. Even if he didn’t see what good it would do now. It all seemed a little too late to him. He couldn’t see how Nathyn Silva would stop sending hired gangs and forget about him simply because he wasn’t physically affectionate with Teris where someone might see and word get back to him.

“Stay. Please.” Yami said, trusting his eyes to get across the message of how much he missed, and wanted to hold and kiss her.

William smirked, watching the scene out of the corner of his eye. Asking her about the Summer Solstice, an all too familiar voice echoed in his head. Not now, William thought back.

Teris looked Yami over, tamping down the urge to grasp him and pull him down for a kiss. Eyes shifting away from him, she cleared her throat. “You dropped your food.” Looking over her shoulder she gestured to a passing girl.

“Yes, Miss?” The girl asked, bounding up to her.

Teris pointed at the food on the ground. “Three more like those and a mead, please.” She handed the girl a silver coin.

The girls eyes lit up. “Right away, Miss.”

Teris smiled after the child.

“You’re too generous.” Yami told, having seen the glint of silver in the torchlight.

“How was your mission?” Teris asked.

Yami took a quaff of his drink thinking he should’ve added an ale to Teris’ order, or possibly two. The coin she’d given the girl would've covered it and more.

“Went well enough.” Yami answered. He looked her over and grinned. “Good to be back. Even better having you back where you belong.”

Teris smiled shyly.

“Here she is.” The girl said, returning with a boy of maybe seventeen who carried the drink and one of the orders of food.

The boys eyes widened at the sight of Teris. To the girl he whispered in a hiss. “That’s Lady Nova.”

“She’s nice.” The girl said, cheerily.

The boy gave a clumsy bow. “Forgive my sister, my Lady, she--”

“Did nothing wrong.” Teris finished, smiling down at the girl.

The boy gave her a nervous smile a slight color flooding his cheeks.

Yami smirked at the lad, the boys Ki telling him that he found Teris attractive.

“I’ll take those.” Teris said, holding her hands out to the lad.

Yami chuckled seeing how flustered the kid got handing over the mead and food. The boy’s neck and face turning beet red when Teris’ hand brushed his during the transfer of goods.

Teris looked at the girl. “And you can give one to each of these gentlemen.” She gestured to Yami and William.

William turned his head, though his eyes had been watching the entire time. “Me?”

“Unless you don’t want it.” Teris said.

William smiled at the Nova’s generosity. Accepting the offered food from the girl, he told Teris. “Thank you.”

“That coin she gave you can cover another ale.” Yami told the boy, taking the food from the girl.

The boy nodded and dashed off.

“Making me pay for your drink?” Teris teased, brow raised.

“You already paid, I’m just seeing you get a bit more out of it.” Yami said.

“And how is another ale for you getting me anything?” Teris played, stepping between him and William to watch the match.

“Cause it makes me happy and you like it when I’m happy.” Yami said, feet shuffling to the left till his arm brushed hers. He looked her over glad his hands were once again full otherwise the temptation to grab and kiss her would’ve been impossible to resist.

Yami looked across Teris at William to see him watched them with interest. The two men's eyes met and held a moment before William’s bright smiling eyes flicked away. Yami turned back looking across the field to find and focus on Zara.

“So that’s your Purple Orca friend.” Yami commented, jutting his chin in the man’s direction.

Teris followed his gaze. “Zara. Yeah.” She huffed seeing Randall speaking to him. Remembering how the Crimson Lion had all but ignored the Purple Orca after the Decoration Ceremony at the Kings Castle, she said. “Glad to see Randall finally seems to remember he knows Zara.”

Having attended the past two day events at the Kings Castle that celebrated the end of the Nine Day War, William asked. “Can you blame him? Randall could hardly converse so readily with a peasant when among his peers.”

“I did.” Teris challenged.

“As a member of the oldest royal family, you can speak to whom ever you wish with little condemnation.” William said. He chose not to add that as the Intended of Nozel Silva, the heir to the second family of the kingdom, she could converse with whom ever she pleased without fear of lowering her status.

Teris scoffed, recalling the censuring looks Nozel and his father cast her way when she had conversed with Zara after the Decoration Ceremony.

“I could name a number of people who don’t agree with you there.” Teris told, looking at William out of the corner of her eye.

The boy returned with Yami’s ale. Yami downed the one he had and held the mug out to trade for the full one, only the kid was too busy making eyes at Teris.

“Can I get you anything else, Lady Nova?” The boy asked, softly.

Too softly apparently, because Teris who hadn’t noticed his appearance, kept her back turned to him. The boy looked her over and stared at her butt.

Yami’s eyes narrowed. He thrusted the empty tankard into the kids chest, hard enough to send him back a couple steps.

The boy turned his gaze to Yami who snatched his drink out of the kids hand.

Staring down at the boy, Yami commanded. “Go away.”

The boy sprinted off.

Yami watched the kid with an amused huff. Turning back around he asked Teris. “How was the ceremony?”

“You mean, did I behave myself?” Teris asked, eyes sliding to him.

Yami smirked at her. “You said it, not I.”

“Lady Teris was most genteel.” William offered. The feelings of his hidden friend melded and infected his having him go on. “Well, except for when Nozel dragged you away.” He looked at Teris. “Though I’m sure it’s difficult to appear elegant when being pulled behind someone. You were alone in that room together for quite some time. I hope whatever Nozel wanted of you turned out alright.”

Teris glared at the masked noble. The hair on the back of her neck prickled feeling Yami’s eyes bore into her. There was no doubt in her mind that William said what he did on purpose. The way his blue eyes danced behind his mask made her want to rip it off. What was he hiding anyway?

“I suppose it did.” William went on. He felt guilty, but not enough to stop. “You arrived on his arm for the dinner and danced not once but three times with him at the ball. Is it true that he even convinced his father to allow him to take you to Racine to view the sculptures of the Ice, Water, and Sand Contest? I’ve always wanted to go myself. But from what I’ve heard it’s mostly a romantic event meant for couples. Maybe next year. If I have someone close enough in my life.”

“I don’t see that happening.” Teris said in dry monotone, wondering what she’d done to offend Julius’ other protege.

“Ah! Vice Captain Jon has won the match.” William said. “Excuse me. I must congratulate him. Thank you again for the food.”

Teris watched the Golden Dawn slip under the bar that marked the perimeter of the training yard. Turning to Yami, she noted the once full mug of ale dangling from his hand, empty.

After taking a long, slow sip of mead, Teris asked. “How was you and Tobin’s mission?”

“You already asked that.” Yami said, dropping the empty tankard next to where he dropped the food when he grabbed Teris by the wrist. He took a bite of food more for something to do than hunger which he no longer felt.

“No problems?” Teris asked.

“Nope.” Yami said, chewing.

“It’s just Venice said you and Tobin were expected back early today.” Teris said, wishing Yami would look at her. “I had begun to worry.”

“I can tell.” Yami snarked.

Teris’ eyes hardened. She was tempted to throw her food at him. Instead she threw it on the ground.

Yami felt a breeze kicked up by Teris spinning around and storming away. He tossed his food down and cursed, regretting his sour sarcasm. It wasn’t that he was jealous. ...Okay, he was jealous. But not in the way one would think. He trusted Teris, and didn’t need to trust Nozel to know nothing happened. What Yami was jealous of was that Nozel could take her to some romantic event supposedly meant for couples, and he couldn’t even go out alone with her unless it was for a mission.

“Who’s next!” Bronn hollered from the center of the training yard.

Annoyed at Julius’ rules, and angry at his response, Yami gripped the hilt of his katana and lept over the bar. He needed to hit something and Bronn had just given him an excuse.

Bronn saw him and grinned devilishly. “I was hoping you’d get back in time for this. Sure you got enough mana left after that mission? Can’t mix with Black Sheep like you use to top off and cheat.”

“You gonna talk all night or fight?” Yami questioned the Vice Captain.

Bronn rolled his neck and cracked his knuckles. “The Captain's Challenge is meant to prepare and show what it means to be a Magic Knights Captain. The power, strength of will, and all that nonsense. There’s no Vice Captain's Challenge. But seeing as you’re suppose to take my place soon enough, I’ll happily take you on here and now. Feel free to let loose and use magic, fists, and whatever else you got.”

Yami cloaked himself in mana. He didn’t put it passed Bronn to take an early cheap shot before the matches start was called. “Works for me. So long as I can kick your ass and you can’t cry about it and have me kicked out.”

“You sure you don’t want any help?” Bronn taunted. “It apparently takes two of you to take my place. Black Sheep--”

Yami unsheathed his katana, cloaking it in darkness. “Leave her out of this.”

Bronn shrugged. “It’s you’re infirmary stay.”

Standing with Randall and Zara, Fuegoleon looked between the two Black Bulls. It was obvious this wasn’t a challenge so much as an excuse to fight. He looked for Teris among the spectators hoping his cousin was watching Yami’s brutish display but didn’t see her. At least Nozel had left, called away on a mission. Given that Yami had left Nozel in the dark about Lord Silva sending another gang to kill him; Fuegoleon wouldn’t have put it passed Nozel to step forward and join the current challenge against Yami.

Jon left Kess’ side, ducking back under the railing and moving near Bronn. “I don’t like this.”

“Neither do I.” Quince said.

Fuegoleon silently agreed with his Vice Captain. This was suppose to be a challenge of skill. Not a brawl of passed grievances. They were Magic Knights not petty thugs.

“Get behind the line.” Bronn ordered the Azure Deer.

“Let the two fight. Bronn has a point. Why isn’t there a Vice Captain's Challenge?” Jaynee asked.

“Because you’re stupid, that’s why, Jaynee.” Tyrn said. “Bronn. I’m all for whipping upstart subordinates into shape but this doesn’t feel right. You might be use to getting into trouble but the rest of us aren’t.”

“You might be leaving soon but I’m looking to be made Captain. I won’t let you do this. You want to fight the foreigner, do it another time.” Whilf put in.

Bronn sighed heavily, stance relaxing. “Seems I’m being overruled. Sorry, Lord of Destruction. You won’t be visiting Healers Hall tonight.”

Yami sheathed his katana and spat. “Coward.”

Bronn made for Yami. Quince lept over the bar. Tyrn ducking under. The two reached Bronn and held him back. Jon moved between Yami and Bronn in case Yami made for the Vice Captain or Bronn broke through. Bronn struggled against his fellows, cursing up a storm.

Senses alert in case Bronn used his magic or broke free, Yami turned his back. An insult he knew would enrage the Vice Captain further.

Shoulders tense, sure word would get back to Julius and his Captain would have words for him, Jon ushered Yami away.

Seeking to quickly move on and deflect from the scuffle, Jaynee took up the call asking for an opponent.

Yami took a drink out of someones hand and downed it, tossing mug back at the person. Jon apologized, handing the Magic Knight a coin as payment. Reaching the treeline Yami plopped on the ground exhaustion suddenly catching up to him.

“What was that about?” Jon questioned, watching Yami yawn.

Blinking heavily, Yami said dully. “Bronn’s an ass and deserves an ass kicking.”

Jon shifted on his feet, looking around before agreeing. “Can’t argue there.”

The Azure Deers Vice Captain wasn’t sure how he felt about Yami. But he didn’t think he’d ever consider the man a friend. It wasn’t just because of the way Yami had insisted on a bribe before agreeing to go out on what had ended up being the worse double date of Jon’s life. It wasn’t even because Yami was close friends with Venice’s new boyfriend, Tobin. Nor was it because it had been Yami’s suggestion that Tobin had followed which had made Venice so jealous and led to their break up. Okay, may be it had a bit to do it. But it mostly had to do with how different the two men were.

For the entirety of his life, Jon strove to behave as perfect courtly gentleman. He showed far more noble grace than either of his legitimate siblings and likely knew more about proper decorum too. As a bastard, Jon had done all he could to show himself to be better than what people expected. To be more than the noble children who sneered at him and had it so easy. Yami, on the other hand, didn’t try in the least to raise and better his behavior to prove to others that he was capable of it. That he was more than the uncivilized foreign peasant the hierarchy believed him to be. Worse than not trying, in Jon mind, was that Yami didn’t even seem to care what people thought.

It bothered Jon to no end. Still, despite his lack of friendly, though not necessarily unfriendly, feelings toward Yami, Jon felt a responsibility toward him given Yami was one of Captain Julius’ proteges.

Jon looked over the crowd milling about and sighed. At least no one seemed to be paying them much attention any more.

“Is everything alright?” Jon asked. Seconds passed without answer. “Yami?” He looked back down the Black Bull to find him laid back against a tree trunk asleep. Jon shook his head in annoyance. He’d never understand what his Captain had and still saw in foreigner.

74.4

“Are they dating?” Jax asked.

Julius shrugged in his seat. “Don’t know. Jon’s been exceedingly careful of his personal doings since he learned we knew so much about him and Venice.”

Jax tisked, taking a sip of his drink. “It’s our duty as Captain's to know what our squad is up to. Hard as one tries, personal life can’t completely be removed from work.”

“I’m just glad he’s no longer moping about the break-up.” Julius said.

Jax nodded into his cup. “It’s been six months. It’s about time he got over her and back out there.”

Julius smiled sadly. As if his friend should talk when he was still hung up and hadn’t been on a date in years. Not that Julius hadn’t tried helping Jax get back out there. The man deserved to find happiness. Especially after what happened.

“Is he?” Jax asked.

Julius raised his brows and blinked in question.

“Over her.” Jax elaborated.

Julius shrugged again. “Don’t know. But his better humor and interest in someone else is a good first step.”

“Just so long as he doesn’t go after Tobin or hold any animosity against Venice.” Jax said.

“That was never a worry.” Julius said of his Vice Captain.

“Talking about the Captain's Challenge?” Teris asked entering the Black Bulls base just in time to hear Julius’ comment. Her eyes narrowed. “Don’t tell me you two are spying. Hoping to learn the Vice Captain's strategy.”

“You mean it hasn’t devolved into an open contest for all comers yet?” Julius asked, remembering that’s how it was when he was a Vice Captain. Sadly, the Captain's didn’t have near as much fun preparing. Too busy to even schedule a group practice before the challenge, they were left winging it the day of. At least it gave the Vice Captain’s a chance at winning.

Teris nodded, moving to stand before her brother who sat in her favorite spot in the great room. “That happened shortly after sundown. People from the village have come to sell food and drink. There’s even music. You’d think it was a festival.”

Jax shared a smirk with Julius. “Nice to know somethings never change.” His eyes focused back on Teris trying to stifle a niggling worry. “Yami and Tobin back yet?” Even if the two dallied, they should've been back by now. But Yami and Teris hadn’t seen each other in four days. Jax would've figured the couple would be together if Yami had returned.

“Yeah. They’re out there.” Teris grumbled.

Jax and Julius glanced at each other. Though both wondered, neither wanted to kick a possible hornets nest by asking what Yami had done. At least Yami and Teris didn’t argue often. And the few times they did they seemed to handle it quickly enough on their own; with the exception of that one time last year before they got together.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you some questions. Have a seat.” Jax commended. He reached for an empty glass on the coffee table and poured a fingers worth of whiskey, sliding it over to Teris who sat beside Julius.

Julius’ eyes followed the serving of amber liquid as it glided across the coffee table. He gave Jax a look for offering his little sister such a hard drink.

Teris picked up the glass. Julius’ narrowed eyes fixed on her, eyebrow arching.

At her brother’s critical gaze, Teris paused. “What? I’m eighteen.”

“You’ve been eighteen for two days.” Julius remarked.

“Girl’s still eighteen.” Jax said.

Julius shot his friend another look.

“What? If the kingdom can send her to war and have her face possible death in service as a Magic Knight, she can have a drink.” Jax said.

Teris didn’t see the problem. She had partaken of ale and mead for years.

Julius turned back to his sister, disapproving expression warning her against drinking the hard liquor. Eyes locked with his, Teris took a sip.

She sputtered and coughed, eyes tearing and squeezing shut as her face scrunched.

Julius plucked the glass from her hand and set it on the coffee table. “Serves you right.”

Jax chuckled at both Nova’s. He took a swig of his drink and admitted. “It’s an acquired taste.”

Vision still blurry from watery eyes, Teris watched her Captain. Now she knew why they called it fire water.

Setting his glass down, Jax rested forearms on knees. “Have you had anymore disoriented awakenings like the ones that happen when the page of Chaos communicates with you?”

“You, Julius, and Commander Greywright were quite clear that if I did I was to report it to one of you.” Teris replied.

“That wasn’t an answer.” Jax said.

“Why would I disobey an order from three of my superiors?” Teris asked.

An uneasiness tugged at Julius’ stomach at Teris’ deflection.

“Answer the question.” Jax commanded.

“No.”

Stern eyebrows knitting together, Julius’ head snapped to Teris. Reprimand on the tip of his tongue.

But Jax spoke first. The single word weighted with danger. “No?”

“No, I haven’t had any communicative dreams with the page of Chaos. At least not any telling sign of them.” Teris answered.

“Has Yami mentioned any dreams or signs that the page of Chaos is communicating with him?” Jax asked.

“Shouldn’t that be a question for Yami?” Teris wondered, still cross with her boyfriend. She had been so excited to see Yami upon his return only for him to act like an idiot. At least they didn’t have to worry about showing affection in front of everyone, she consoled herself.

Rather than scolded Teris, Julius did something far more effective. The Azure Deer sat back and crossed his arms. “I don’t know, Jax. You sure you want to make her co-Vice Captain? She can even answer a simple question without giving lip.”

Teris’ eyes widened. Her jaw dropped, struggling for words.

Jax pretended to consider. “You have a good point.”

“Yami’s way worse about cooperating and listening.” Teris said, incredulous.

Jax sighed knowing all too well how true that was. “Which is why I’m asking you.”

Teris shrugged a shoulder. “He hasn’t said anything.”

“We’re a little under three months out from the Winter Solstice. That’s about the time you began experiencing somewhat regular signs of communicative dreams before the Summer Solstice wasn’t it?” Jax asked.

Teris nodded.

“Yet Yami hasn’t mentioned any sign of the same?” Jax pressed.

Teris shook her head. “No. And he promised he’d tell me.”

Jax looked to Julius in open question.

Julius scratched his brow and speculated. “It’s possible the signs of the dreams are different for Yami and he hasn’t yet figured out what those signs are. But Marx would need to preform his Memory Absolute spell for us to know for sure if Yami’s had any communicative dreams.”

“Yami won’t like that.” Teris said.

Jax almost said he didn’t care what Yami would like but instead admitted. “It wouldn’t do us any good anyway. Not when we still can’t see or make Yami remember what’s going on in those dreams.”

Julius hung his head feeling like a failure. For all his searching he still hadn’t found a spell or magical technique that would help Teris and Yami remember what the page of Chaos was communicating with them. His hands balled into fists, knuckles turning white. When it came to the Agents of Chaos matter he had failed too many times to count. In truth even his small victory’s hadn’t been wins so much as barely there catch ups. But there was one thing he refused to lose at; and that was keeping his sister and Yami safe and out of the Agents of Chaos’ hands this Winter Solstice.

Though it was only October fourth, the dreaded day loomed large with seventy-eight days left until December twenty-first. As much as Julius wanted to find a way to help Teris and Yami remember what the page of Chaos was saying; it wasn't necessary. With or without that knowledge he would stop Alowishus Spade and end his plans.

Thank you to those who have left hearts. And a special THANK YOU to those who have recently left comments or re-blogged. They really mean a lot.

*So we won’t being seeing the Captain's Challenge this time around. But we will be seeing one later when Yami, Teris, Nozel, and Fuegoleon will be able to participate as Vice Captain's. For now we’ve got other sorts of drama to get to.

Next chapter snippet:

Now that he was looking, Yami noted bruises on her other shoulder too. His hands lifted hovering over Teris’ shoulders lining his fingers over each mark.

#yami sukehiro #julius novachrono #william vangeance #fuegoleon vermillion #nozel silva #Zara Ideale #randall luftair #light in the darkness

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thatmultifandomhoe · 5 years

Text

Strawberry Cream and BBQ: Move in Day

Word Count: 4,288k

Pairing: Hybrid Hoseok and Human Reader

A Strawberry Cream and BBQ Drabble

Overview: It’s been five years since you and Hoseok were reunited. And things are not like how they used to be.

Genre: Hybrid AU - Fluff - A teeny tiny bit a smut - Rating is somewhere in the middle of PG-13 and NC-17.

Warning: Fluff. Absolute, tooth rotting fluff. Also some minor smut, light fingering, implied Daddy kink, Hoseok bites the reader cause he’s a horndog.

Master List

Click here to read Strawberry Cream and BBQ from the 1st part!

A/N: Surprise! I couldn’t help myself, and so here’s a glimpse into the life that Hoseok and Strawberry have built together!

©thatmultifandomhoe Do not repost, translate, or use my stories without permission.

You hummed while stacking another box in the living room, giving the room one last scan before turning to the two babies that sat in the play pen. “You know,” you playfully spoke to them. “I think that’s everything. Now Daddy gets to carry them all.”

They smiled as they spoke gibberish up at you. At only a year old, it was the best they could do for the moment. While they played with their toys, you slowly turned around. Your son and daughter weren’t going to have any memories of this apartment, but as you walked through the small rooms one last time, you softly smiled.

It had been five years since Sue moved to Hong Kong. According to Hoseok, she was doing well and worked for a high-end fashion company. You tried a few times to keep in contact with her, but each phone call felt forced and uncomfortable and as time went by, the conversations dwindled down to none. Hoseok found it to be a little easier, he’d tell her about the Dance Studio and your children and a few other miscellaneous things, even going so far as to send her pictures of the kids around Christmas time. But it was nothing like it used to be, and you had long ago made peace with that.

In those five years, you graduated from college with your degree and to your utmost surprise, your boss had handed over the keys and became the owner of the bookstore. It had been completely out of the blue, but apparently, he wanted a change of plans – and scenery since he packed up his belongings and moved to the west coast.

Hoseok also had a change in career plans too. Unknown to everyone except for the owner of the of the Dance Studio, there had been a talent scout in the audience that night at the May show. He showed up a few days afterwards when Hoseok was working and offered him a spot in their dance company. He’d be on a team with other highly elite dancers and would be touring the world with them.

The offer was a dream that every dancer wished they could get, and he got it. The scout gave him a week to think it over and inform him of his decision. You had been ecstatic for him, literally jumping around the apartment in excitement, that it took you a moment to realize that he wasn’t jumping around. Instead, he had looked glum.

“Strawberry,” Hoseok gently explained. “The company is in South Korea. Including all the practice days and the actual tour, I’ll be gone for maybe a year, if not longer.”

The reality of how long he’d be gone hadn’t kicked in until then, but as you sat back down on the couch, you thought of how great of an opportunity this was for him. This was a once in a lifetime chance, and you knew how much he loved to dance. Like the night of the show, he was meant to be on stage performing.

“I want you to do this Hobi,” you said, slipping your hand in his. “You’re a dancer, you were meant to do this. We’ll figure this out. I’ll take time to fly out before the tour, and then we’ll be able to decide what’s best during it. But if you give up on this chance, you’re going to regret it baby, even if you won’t admit it now, I know you will. Maybe not today, but you will one day.”

He leaned his forehead against yours, slipping his arms around you as he pulled you down on the couch. “I just got you back,” he whimpered.

“I know, but it doesn’t start right away, does it?”

Hoseok shook his head. “If I take it, I have to leave at the end of June.”

You mulled over the numbers, but ultimately, nodded. You were going to miss him greatly, but this was worth it all and then some. “Take it,” you repeated. “This is everything you’ve ever dreamed of Hoseok.”

He stared into your eyes, a smile slowly appearing. Instead of responding, he hugged you tight and bent his head to nuzzle your neck, sweetly kissing your mate mark as his tail wagged against the cushion.

Hoseok had been right. He was gone for a little over a year. But between all the phone calls, face time videos, and those few visits you were able to make, that year went by faster than you imagined. Not only had he gotten to perform like he’s always dream of, but the pay he received was more than what either of you thought.

His bank account wasn’t going to be low for a very, very long time.

“Is Mommy playing hide and seek?”

Hearing his voice, you smiled as you left the old bedroom, your heart warming up when you saw him bouncing your son Mick on his hip. The baby was giggling as his father tickled his sides at the same time, his little baby tail wagging rapidly.

“Oh, there’s Mommy!” Hoseok gleefully announced, pointing at you as you joined Hoseok’s free side.

“Is Daddy being silly?” You asked, kissing the top of Mick’s head and then Hoseok’s cheek.

Wrapping his arm around you briefly, Hoseok smiled at you before stealing another kiss from you. “Me? Silly? No idea what you’re talking about.”

Being mindful of Mick, you lightly pushed Hoseok’s chest, his laughter filling the room. As he played with you son, you went to the play pen where your daughter Jamie was sitting, her arms instantly raising for you to pick her up.

“I think Daddy’s telling a big lie,” you teased as Jamie wrapped her arms around her neck, coming to lay her head on your shoulder. “He’s always silly. A very silly man.”

The twins had been another surprise. A big one, but a very pleasant and worth every single moment surprise. The two of you were always careful and you took the pill every day, all except for one month. It had been a careless mistake, but you had forgotten about the little pills. You had been running the bookstore on your own for three years at this point and you were busy between scheduling author events, creating new displays for the store and window displays, participating in town events, and book orders, that it slipped your mind to take the small little pills. Besides, you and Hoseok weren’t having sex every single day.

But then, his heat came earlier than it should have and during those three days where you two lived in that bedroom, neither one of you remembered that you hadn’t been taking your birth control, and Hoseok didn’t use condoms since you were on the pill. Which meant, your body was extremely fertile and ready to make a baby.

Hoseok found out that you were pregnant the morning after his heat ended.

That morning had started like any other day. It was Saturday and you both had the day off from work – he still continued to work at the Dance Studio despite the sudden fame he acquired with the dance company – and after his heat, the two of you were taking full advantage of sleeping in.

You had woken up flat on your back and confused because Hoseok was snug in between your legs but with his cheek pressed against your stomach. It took you a few seconds to understand what you were seeing. The position was a familiar one – one he had been in multiple times in the last three days – but not with him crying as he smiled.

“Hoseok,” you groggily asked, propping yourself onto your elbows. “What’s wrong babe?”

He lightly laughed as he shifted so he was hovering over you, sweetly kissing your lips despite your whine about having morning breath. “Everything is perfect Strawberry. I know you just woke up, but did you forget to tell me something? Something that may involve your birth control?”

You frowned. He knew that your mind didn’t work first thing in the morning, especially before your coffee. But if he was asking you questions before coffee, then it had to be important. “Um...they’re in the medicine cabinet.” You murmured, rubbing your eyes when you paused. “I…I think I missed a few days…but your heat…”

The realization of what this meant made you gasp, suddenly feeling wide awake. “Oh God, your heat. Am I…are you even able to tell?”

He slowly nodded, his smile taking over his face. “Your scent’s different,” he softly explained. Seeing and feeling your emotions rocking back and forth, he kissed the tip of your nose and then your cheek to help you relax. “You still smell like strawberry cream, but there’s something else. It reminds me of those flowers that Jimin’s mate likes. You know the small white ones.”

“Baby’s breath?” You supplied.

“Yeah, baby’s breath. I know that’s such a strange smell to associate with being pregnant but…you’ve never smelt like that before. And knowing that you weren’t on the birth control during my heat, it makes sense.”

Leaning back, the smile on his face disappeared when he saw that you were still nervous. “Baby, I know we haven’t talked about when we’re going to start a family, but if you’re not ready yet, we don’t have to do this. It’s still extremely early.”

Taking a shaky breath, you lowered yourself back down on the bed and covered your face with your hands. This wasn’t the reaction Hoseok was expecting, it was the opposite really. Even though he wanted you to want this as well, his ears lowered as his tail stopped wagging.

Your mind was racing. How could you have been so foolish? Those pills were necessary with Hoseok being a hybrid. Now you were pregnant.

You were pregnant.

For some reason, whether it was Hoseok smoothing back your hair and caressing your sides, or the thought of being pregnant, your mind stopped racing, allowing you to think. The idea of starting a family had been talked about, especially after you graduated from college. Waiting until after you were out of school was something the two of you had immediately agreed upon.

It had been five years since you learned that he was your mate. Five years of loving, and learning about each other on a deeper level.

Removing your hands, you gazed up at Hoseok. The spot between his eyebrows was crinkled with worry as he waited for you to say something.

“I’m really pregnant?” You whispered again. It was almost like you couldn’t believe that it was true.

Hoseok swallowed the lump in his throat. Just hearing you say the word ‘pregnant,’ had his heart racing in an unexpected way. “Yes baby,” he answered. “You’re pregnant. If you want, I can pick up some pregnancy tests at the store. Buy a bunch so that you can know for sure.”

You could easily picture him buying one of every pregnancy test in the store, and it made you giggle.

“I’m pregnant,” you whispered, this time saying it for yourself and not asking him.

He frowned, not understanding why you were repeating yourself. Even as he honed in on your emotions, they were still scattered all around that he couldn’t figure out which you were feeling. He was focusing so hard on your emotions, that he almost missed the smile on your face and glassy eyes.

“Baby?” Hoseok hesitantly asked, brushing back a stray hair.

You simply shook your head, giggling as you grinned up at him, the tears sliding down your face. “We’re pregnant,” you said, looping your arms around his neck.

He gasped, hearing the way you happily said it this time. Tears welled up in his own eyes and he wrapped his arms around you as he settled back on the bed and pulled you against him. He kissed you everywhere he could, the bedroom filling with the sounds of your combined laughter and tears.

“Are these the last of the boxes?” Hoseok asked.

Blinking, you frowned in confusion, still lost in your memories. “What?”

Hoseok raised an eyebrow at you but chuckled. He had a feeling that you were taking a trip down memory lane, so he didn’t repeat himself. “I’m going to bring these down to the truck, then we can pack the pups up and bring them to the car. Then we can go home. That sound good?”

“Yeah,” you answered, smiling. There were only two boxes left and while he did that, you could pack up the few toys that you left out for Jamie and Mick to play with.

“You know,” Hoseok murmured, stepping in front of you as he held his son. “We’ll make new memories in the new house too.”

Feeling caught in the act, you leaned forward so you head was against his chest. He maneuvered one arm around you and rested his chin on the top of your head, momentarily leaning back so he could kiss your temple before getting comfortable again.

“I know. There’s just so many that we’ve made here. It’s going to be different in the new house.”

Jamie moved in your arms, forcing the two of you to lean back to see that she wanted to get down. Once you set her down, Mick immediately wanted to be with his sister.

With his hands now free, Hoseok pulled you in for a hug, gently swaying you back and forth. “And we’ll always have them,” Hoseok reassured. “They’re our memories for a reason. And we’re going to make more than enough to last a lifetime in our new house. Where we’ll have plenty of room for the kids to play and grow up in.”

You hummed in agreement, knowing that he was right. You were being sentimental but you couldn’t help it. “Alright.” You relented. “Go bring these boxes down and I’ll pick up the toys. By the time you’re back we’ll be ready to go.”

He smiled and with one last kiss to the lips, grabbed the last two boxes and made his way down the stairs with them. With a sigh, you joined your children on your knees, reaching over to give a loving scratch to their German Shepard ears. They released pleased giggles which made you laugh, continuing for a little longer before stopping.

“Don’t worry, Mommy will make sure to do it again when we get home,” you promised.

In no time at all, their toys and the play pen were all packed up and you were just waiting on Hoseok once more. He brought their toys and the pen down to the car along with their diaper bags, that way you each only had a baby to carry.

This time carrying Mick, Hoseok carried Jamie down to the car, the sun shinning brightly as you locked them into their car seats.

“Alright,” Hoseok said, coming around to the driver’s side window. He leaned in so his head was inside for the moment and sent a smile to the kids in the back seat before focusing on you again. “I’ll park in the driveway, that way it’ll make it easier to carry everything in.”

“You got it babe.” Leaning up, you smiled in the kiss, and watched to make sure that Hoseok pulled out of the driveway with the Uhall first, following right behind him.

The drive from the apartment to your new house was only ten minutes away, but when you pulled up to the house, it felt like you were in the country. The neighborhood wasn’t packed like some of the houses you looked at were, but there could have been another house comfortably built in between your house and your neighbors because there was enough space.

The white picket fence came up to your hip – personally the perfect height in your opinion – and there was a wraparound porch on the two-story tan house. You weren’t sure what the square feet was for it, but there were five bedrooms, an attached bathroom with the master bedroom, then a full bath on the second floor and a half bath on the first floor. It was huge compared to the apartment and what you were used to, but the second you and Hoseok walked in to see it, you knew this was the home that you wanted to raise your children in and live with Hoseok.

So Hoseok made an offer, and thankfully, the owners accepted.

Parking in the street, you got out and started unbuckling Jamie. She and Mick were already dozing off in their car seats.

“If you can set the play pen up in their room, they can nap while we start unloading,” You suggested when Hoseok started unbuckling a sleepy Mick.

“Yeah,” he agreed, carefully bringing Mick on his hip. “These two are so easy to get to nap.”

“You say that now, but just wait. When they turn two, we’re in trouble.”

Hoseok chuckled, slinging the diaper bag over his shoulder, waiting for you to join him to walk up the driveway with you. He had already unlocked the front door and so he just walked in. There were boxes and furniture scattered about from previous trips he made, having recruited the guys to help when it came to moving the larger pieces of furniture.

Once the play pen was up and laid a blanket underneath the kids to sleep on top of, the two of you made quick work to bring in as many boxes as possible before they woke up. There were a couple hours guaranteed as they napped, but neither of you wanted to risk them both waking up early and still have to unload the truck.

Luck had been on your side, because you finished bringing in all the boxes and any remaining pieces of furniture by dinner time, and Mick and Jamie were still sleeping. Hoseok had even called Namjoon and together, they returned the Uhall back to the store it was being rented from.

When Hoseok came back, he found you in the kitchen unpacking a box of plates and stacking them in one of the cabinets, a baby monitor sitting on the counter with a red light on. There weren’t many moments when it was just the two of you alone anymore, so he came up from behind and hugged you, resting his palms on your hips and nipping at your mate mark.

Your body automatically jerked as you giggled, leaning your head to the side and back to look up at him. For five years he’s nipped at your mate mark, and not once has it gotten old. “What are you doing?” You teased, allowing your body to relax in his embrace and forget about unpacking.

His lips curled into a smile against your skin, his hands sliding across your waist and stomach, fingers grazing the bottom of your bra. “New house,” he murmured, his kisses slowing in pace as he trailed them up your neck and pressed his body against yours.

A soft moan slipped through your mouth, your responsibilities disappearing as your own desire started to match his.

“New memories,” he added, sliding his hands underneath the old t-shirt you wore. His touch lighting a fire on your skin. “I can already think of a few memories we can make in our room tonight.”

“Mhm,” you hummed, tilting your head to the side as he nibbled at your jaw.

The morning that you found out you were pregnant with Mick and Jamie, you and Hoseok had spent the day in bed to not only enjoy the day off along with the good news, but to discuss how many kids the two of you wanted. You remembered that day when he explained that it was possible have multiple kids in one pregnancy, which had been the case with the twins.

While both of you wouldn’t mind a large family, in the end, it was decided that it would be best to play it by how old the kids were. Hoseok had been adamant in making sure that he didn’t want you to overdo anything, especially by having his kids.

Within the Hybrid community, there were still owners who treated Hybrids poorly, and then there was the illegal Underground. It was the black market of Hybrids, and just like there were people who ran puppy mills for pets, there were people who ran Hybrid Mills, forcing the women to have babies and purebred hybrids for the highest bidder like they were some machine.

You had only heard rumors of it, but Hoseok once knew a girl who was a result of an illegal Hybrid Mill. They had both been too young to understand what it was, but now that he was older and he remembered what she had described, he knew what she had lived in.

Jamie and Mick were already a year old, and while you knew that people normally waited until their kids were at least a few years older…the idea of having another baby warmed you from the inside out. Being a mother came automatically for your, and while there were points you had complained during your pregnancy, it was all worth it when you got to hold your little babies.

“Hoseok,” you sighed, feeling his fingers undo the button of your shorts and zipper before sliding them under your panties and over your core, earning a moan from you. He softly growled when he felt how wet you already were for him. At the rate he was going, there were going to be some memories made right here in the kitchen.

Lifting his head, Hoseok said a soft yes before focusing on the other side of your neck. Since there were no marks on this side, he couldn’t help himself from lightly biting the skin.

Wetting your lips, your eyes briefly closed, feeling Hoseok’s chest rumble before hearing it as he smelled your lust and desire. “What if…we have another baby?”

Hoseok had been getting ready to slip his fingers in-between your folds when you suddenly asked, his heart beginning to race. Not in fear of having another baby while Mick and Jamie were only one, but in happiness. He didn’t want to push you, but he had always wanted to have his kids close together in age.

He leaned back just enough remove his hands out of your pants to turn you in in his arms, his eyes revealing his happiness. “Are you sure?” He asked, wanting to make sure that you were certain.

You grinned and wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him back for another kiss. “Of course, I’m sure.”

Thumping was heard in the room and for a split second, you thought it was one of the kids coming down the stairs, but then you remembered that they couldn’t walk on their own yet. With a glance down, you laughed when you saw that it was Hoseok’s tail hitting his thigh.

“I love you,” Hoseok said, promptly kissing you in-between everything he had to say. “I love our family, our kids. And I love making babies with you.”

You giggled again. As the two of you kissed, each one was more passionate than the last, leaving you wanting more. Even though you’ve been together for five years, and had a son and daughter, each kiss and touch were always like the very first.

His hands were palming your ass over your shorts, the counter digging into your back as Hoseok firmly grinded his hips into your, eliciting a moan to rip through your lips. You were lost in his touch, your hands roaming over his back…when a cry came over the baby monitor.

The two of you froze as if you were caught in the act by your parents and about to get punished because you snuck your boyfriend. But then you remembered. Hoseok was your mate, this was yours and his house, and the two of you were the parents here.

It took a second, but you were able to decipher who the crying was coming from. “It’s Mick,” you said, removing your hands from Hoseok while he straightened up. “I’ll go take care of him and Jamie while you go shower.”

He raised an eyebrow at you, but you pointed at the front of his pants. “I don’t think you need to scare the children so young.”

Hoseok glanced down, but casually shrugged as he grinned at you. “Fine. But don’t think this over.” Even though he knew you wanted to go tend to the babies, he wrapped his arms around your waist and suddenly pulled you against him. He heard the way your breath hitched, feeling his erection against your core again. Your cheeks were flushed, riling him up all over again. Leaning down, he kissed your ear lobe, gently tugging on it with his teeth before whispering in your ear.

“Don’t think Daddy will forget about this baby.”

Your heart skipped a beat – there were many things that you and Hoseok discovered after his first heat – but when he leaned back to look at you, you couldn’t help but lovingly smile up at him despite the sexual tension filling the room. His eyes softened when he noticed the way you were looking at him, and so when he kissed you again, it wasn’t rough or fueled with lust, but with absolute pure love.

That was the thing. These past five years were filled with so many life changes, that you were excited for what the future had in-store. Because no matter what, as long as Hoseok and your babies were by your side, there was always going to be love.

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cup-half-full-of-anxiety · 4 years

Text

Taron Fic - Working Title (Chapter Six)

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Authors Note:

I-am-so-damn-sorry-this-took-so-long.

I have no excuse, nothing was coming and then last night and today…BOOM it hit. This is a slightly angsty filler chapter. I hope you like it.

It was 8 am and Adelaide was timidly walking into the Rocketman production office at Bray Studios, dragging her 2 make-up suitcases with her. It had been a few days since her fight with Taron. She had written at least 50 texts to him in hopes of somehow explaining herself, but nothing sounded right so they all went unsent. How could she even begin to explain herself?

She needed to give Taron time.

Today though, she was going to have to fight off her urge to stay hidden because today she would have to face him…literally. Filming was to start next week, and David, Dexter, and Matthew wanted to see a run-through of the first few looks and to do some blocking. Adelaide was also going to be shown around the lot, shown her make-up and hair trailer, meet her team and get situated.

Taron was already there when she walked in, he and David Furnish were in hushed conversation. They stopped abruptly when they realized they were no longer alone.

“Hi” Adelaide awkwardly waved.

Taron gave a tight smile but turned back to David.

“David, this is Adelaide DeFay, she is the new head of make-up that just signed on.” He explained. “Adelaide, this is David Furnish, he is one of the executive producers on Rocketman and also as you know Elton’s husband”

“Yes, Adelaide! It is so nice to finally meet you” David had such a warm and welcoming smile. He made his way over to her, kissing both her cheeks “I am so happy you were able to sign on and join our little family so quick. Tilly and Taron have spoken so highly of you and your work. Always great to have old friends working together.” He paused as his phone began to ring.

“Hold on a second darling, it is the boss man. I will be right back” He began walking out of the room “Hello my love, are you on your way?- Taron why don’t you start the tour for us, show Adelaide around and where the make-up trailer is, I believe the core make-up team is here today- okay love I am back” David walked out of the room, leaving the two in awkward silence.

Neither of them knew what to say, but the building tension could be felt. Something needed to be said, they can fight all they want outside of work but the two of them were going to have to learn to be adults and put their feelings aside for the film.

“Thank you for-”

“I’m sorry about-”

They couldn’t help the small laugh that bubbled up.

“Go ahead” Taron gestured.

“Oh um, thank you for putting in a good word for me. You didn’t have to but it means a lot”

Taron waved it off “Well it’s true. I have always told you how talented you are” He flashed a small smile her way. She never knew she could miss a smile so much.

“And you?” she asked

“Oh right, yeah” he paused, running his hand over the back of his neck “I am sorry for the other night”

“Don’t be. I deserved it” She shrugged her shoulders.

“No, you didn’t. No one deserves to be talked to like that.” He paused, trying to find his wording

“I talked to mum about it the other day. After I left Grans I kind of drove straight to Aberystwyth and stayed a couple of nights. I just needed to clear my head”

Adelaide nodded in understanding but stayed quiet.

“She’s not mad at you by the way. She wants to see you. She feels hurt but she said from the single mom perspective and what runs through a person’s mind when that stick says positive, she said she can understand the fear.” Adelaide let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding when Taron finished.

“I want to see her too” She couldn’t help the watery smile.

“Well, let’s get this tour started.” Taron clapped his hands together, taking ahold of one of the suitcases already knowing what was in them, Adelaide took them on every gig. He moved toward a back door in the corner of the room, it led out onto a spacious back porch that overlooked the lot.

“It’s not too big but the sound stage is huge, there is an open lot next door too, we’re doing the carnival scene in there in a few weeks.”

The two made their way around the lot, Taron showed her the sound stage, the crew was in working on what looked to be the Troubadour. He showed her where craft services was, both of them grabbing a quick snack to take with them as they walked. The tour concluded outside the make-up trailer.

Tilly was sitting on the steps leading up to the trailer.

“And this is your palace, it comes with your very own Tilly” Taron jokes, giving his best Vanna White impersonation as they stood outside the trailer, Tilly throwing up her best jazz hand to add to it.

“I am going to see if Dex or any of the guys are here. You get settled and we’ll be back to run through looks. Tilly can show you around inside and the wardrobe trailer” He leaned in, leaving a kiss on Adelaide’s cheek, awkwardly stalling for a second when he realized what he was doing.

“Right” He cleared his throat “See you soon” And he was off.

Tilly made her way over to Adelaide when she didn’t move right away.

“Looks like you two are trying to bury the hatchet?” Tilly questioned.

Adelaide shrugged “I have no idea. This is the first we talked since the fight the other night”

“Oh yeah, the fight that happened when Taron came over at 3 am the other morning. Not booty call hours or anything” Tilly teased; Adelaide rolled her eyes.

“How many times do I have to tell you, nothing happened, He came over, we talked fo-”

“Yeah yeah, you talked for a little bit, nothing too detailed, then you went to sleep, the two of you in your bed and then woke up sometime later and fought. You already plead your case and since I have no other evidence or witnesses to go off, I will just have to take your word for it” Tilly looked at her accusingly. Adelaide rolled her eyes.

“Can we just get in the trailer? I want to get my stuff set up before they come in for the run through” Adelaide gave Tilly an annoyed look and started making her way inside.

Adelaide had just finished rolling out her makeup brushes when there was a knock on her trailer door, a second later Taron walked in with Jamie and Richard, followed by Dexter, Matthew, David, and lastly Elton himself. In all the commotion of the last week, with emphasis on the last few days, Adelaide hadn’t even put any thought into meeting Sir Elton John and yet here she stood just feet away from a man that had been an idol of hers for as long as she can remember.

“Adelaide!” Dexter tossed his hands in the air before making his way over to her for a hug.

“Have you had a chance to meet your team?” Adelaide nodded at the question.

Tilly had introduced her to her team of 10 amazing make-up artists and hairstylist, a few she had meet at the mixer a few nights before. There was a much larger team that would come in for the dancers and extras make-up but these core people would be working on the main cast.

“Good, let’s get the rest of the introductions done” With a small wave to Jamie and Richard, Dexter introduced Adelaide to the 3 men she hasn’t met yet, she smiled politely, said ‘Hello, nice to meet you” and shook their hand, that is until they got to Elton.

“And lastly, Adelaide, this is Elton. Elton, this is Adelaide” instead of being a normal person and shaking his hand, her body instantly went into a curtsy without any help from her. She instantly stood straight up, eyes wide and face as red as could be.

“Oh my god, did I just curtsy?” She covered her mouth with her hand as she started to laugh “I am so sorry” Everyone laughed with her.

“Darling, I have been greeted in far stranger ways, I can promise you” Elton reached out and shook her hand. She smiled, still red-faced.

“Well let’s get started, shall we?” Dexter clapped his hands together.

An hour later and the group was standing around staring at Taron as he stood on a slightly raised platform in white coveralls over a tight navy blue, three-quarter sleeve shirt and 4-inch platform heels.

“I don’t think that flipper is going to work, I think it is going to hinder his singing” Dexter commented in reference to the false teeth Adelaide just had Taron put in “Everything else looks great but that flipper needs to go”

“But Dex I think we need to have that gap, it’s apart of the look. It’s apart of Elton” Taron tried to argue but he was only proving Dex right when he struggled around a few of the vowels and make Elton sound like Oton. After Dex gave Taron a ‘see what I am talking about’ look, he turned to Adelaide.

“Any other ideas for the gap?” Adelaide thought or a moment.

“Give me some time, we’ll figure it out”

They moved on, Taron went in to change into the next costume and Jamie in a pair of bellbottom jeans over a pair of brown cowboy boots, a brown leather belt with an oval buckle and a green plaid shirt tucked in.

“We need a different shirt color” Tilly commented from next to Adelaide.

“Agreed” Dex nodded.

“Maybe lighter?” David added “something blue”

Tilly walked over to one of the many racks of clothes, this one labeled ‘Jamie’ and flipped through the selection, as she did Richard made his way out of the dressing room in a coal colored pinstriped suit. A slight heel in the black boots, a tie, and handkerchief. He was struggling to do up the gold watch, Adelaide walked over and helped him fasten the watch before stepping back to take in the look. His hair was very full and dark brown.

“Dex” Adelaide called his attention as she walked back up to Richard, she had him step off the platform as she stood upon it and began messing with his curly locks, “I think we need to go darker on the hair” she looked over to the John Reid imageboard “His brown is too light, I think we need to do black” She looked at Richard who was still taller than her without the platform.

“Would you want me to dye it or talk with the wig-master?” Adelaide asked her friend.

“I would rather dye it then deal with wigs each day this summer, already gonna be sweatin’ my bloody balls off in the suits” he joked.

The day continued on like that for a few hours, only breaking for a much-needed lunch. The boys tried on their first few outfits, only a few alterations needed to be made. Adelaide had made plans with Richard to get his hair dyed in a couple of days. Right now, she found herself in almost the same position she had this morning. Just her and Taron, the rest of the group had calls they needed to make about the production, lines they needed to run and alterations they claimed they were going to start tonight, the last one running out of the make-up trailer at a suspicious speed.

Adelaide currently had her fingers deep in Taron’s locks, Taron giving an overexaggerated groan each time she pulled a little hard.

“Oh hush, the wig glue does not hurt that bad coming off” she commented after a particularly loud groan.

“It does when it’s pulling baby hairs” he hissed, she shook her head at him.

They found themselves falling back into a comfortable silence. They were good at being quiet together, they would sit for hours sometimes, the two of them reading, Adelaide would be painting while Taron memorized lines, they like the silence.

A sudden giggle from Taron ended that.

“What?” She questioned.

“You curtsied for Elton” the sentence didn’t even get fully out before he was doubling over with laughter.

“Like-” laughing “like full-on-“ laughing “oh god, full-on curtsy”

Adelaide stared daggers at the back of his head before giving one last hard tug that may have had some hair attached to it. Taron yelped but continued laughing.

“Oh god, and your face when you realized. Oh Doll, I wish I had been filming.” He had actual tears in his eyes at this point. “Oh it made my whole day so thank you” he wheezed out another laugh before he began to calm down.

“I really don’t like you right now” she pinned the wig to the mannequin and pulled the nude-colored cap off Taron’s head.

As she throws face soap and a make-up remover towel at him her phone began to ring on the counter. She quicked a look at it and saw a picture of her mom and Elea flash on the screen alerting an incoming facetime.

She quickly grabbed the phone, hoping Taron didn’t notice but seeing as how the phone was directly in front of him, she knew it wasn’t missed once she felt the tension come flooding back.

“Um, wash your face. I’ll be back in just a second” she excused herself to the other room. She clicked accept and a way to close-up view of Eleanor’s teeth came into view.

“Hi mommy!” She smiled wide.

“Hi Little Bird!” Adelaide laughed “why don’t you pull the phone away a bit so mommy can see all of your pretty face?” Eleanor did just that.

“There’s my pretty girl”

Taron stood for a second, looking at the door Adelaide just disappeared behind, he wanted so badly to be apart of that conversation. He shifted uncomfortably before he went to the sink in the corner and began washing off the lite make-up that had been put on. His eyes kept looking to the door when he would hear what sounded to be a child’s laugh or excited voice.

As he dried his face he slowly walked toward the door.

“Mama, Grandma said we get to come be with you in 3 weeks” a tiny voice said excitedly. The voice sounded just like his little sister Rosie.

“That is right Little Bird” he couldn’t help the smile that pulled at his lips when he heard Adelaide use the nickname she had hoped to pass on to her child one day.

Her child...their child.

He needed fresh air.

The large make-up trailer suddenly felt like it was shrinking in on him. He grabbed his messenger bag off the couch, made sure he had his phone, wallet, and keys. He had changed back into his clothes after they had finished pinning what needed to be altered. Once he was ready he hastily made his way out of the trailer, taking a deep breath as he walked out into the late-afternoon sun.

He knew he needed to get a hold on himself before he went back in. His anger was starting to bubble over again and he refused to let himself explode like he did the other night. The intruding smell of cigarettes caught his attention. He looked up to see Richard walking his way, a smoke hanging from his lips as he walked, his fingers free to type away on his phone.

“Hey, Dicky!” Taron called out “Bum a smoke off you?” he asked when Richard looked up.

“Course, thought you quit though?” he asked as he handed the cigarette over.

“Yeah, just need to calm my nerves” he explained as he lit the smoke.

“Yeah, been meaning to ask you, just didn’t want to ruffle anything up. You good mate?”

At that moment both boys looked up at the sound of a trailer door opening, Adelaide took a step out, she looked around the lot, her eyes stopping on the boys as they stood in a small plume of smoke.

“Got time for a pint?” Taron asked, his eyes still locked with Adelaide’s.

“Yeah Mate, where you thinking?”

“Anywhere, just need a drink and an ear” He nodded to Adelaide but followed Richard to the main office to get their stuff before they left.

Chapter Seven

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So my original post got swiped somehow but I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I know it was a bit of a filler. I will do what I can to have the next one up soon. Stick with me guys!

PS. Let me know if you want to be tagged in updates!

@xceaf @sarahegerton96 @primaba11erina @hcfavoritegal @shereighties @aberystwythboy

#Taron Egerton #Taron Fanfiction #fanfiction #writing #taron x reader

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malicerewatchesdoctorwho · 5 years

Text

The Underwater Menace - Episode Four

Written by – Geoffrey Orme Director – Julia Smith Producer – Innes Lloyd

Episode Four

("It's only the wee things outside that are, well, alarming." - Jamie on his first adventure.)

Likes

- Huh, So the king who is called Thous didn't die from being shot last episode. Will have to go back and change the death count for last episode. Hah, nice.

- Jacko being given the job of moving people to higher levels so the lower levels can be flooded. Sean will be his helper this time.

- Pfff, Ben getting the Doctor and himself into the generating station by bluffing the first guard by stating that it doesn't matter if he has the password or not, look at the Doctor and tell me he doesn't look like a prisoner. Then getting the actual password out of him to say to the other guard. So funny.

- How dedicated to his plan Zaroff is. He thinks that everything the Doctor says is a lie to keep him from enacting his plans and doesn't take into consideration that the place is literally flooding by the sea breaking in. Idiot genius.

- The workers in the lab running for their lives the moment they hear the sea has gotten in and will drown them. Smart cookies.

- Lolem just hating Zaroff so much he will try to kill him. He should never have insulted the Goddess Amdo.

- Jacko surviving. Didn't really care for Sean, but I am glad that Jacko lived. He was a nice guy.

- Everyone laughing and teasing the Doctor for not knowing how to properly control the TARDIS. Lovely little bonding moment between team TARDIS.

Dislikes

- You live in an underwater city. You'd think swimming is one of those things all children there are taught because of the real danger of a flood and everyone drowning otherwise. Unless disability stops them, there is no reason anyone there shouldn't be able to swim.

- Zaroff willing to work his slaves...er, I mean, his men and scientists to death even though they're too busy panicking about having no food and starving to death. They're not going to do very good work in that state anyway.

- Where did Ben get the cable cutters from?

- Polly's little breakdown while climbing to higher ground in the tunnel system. Where did that come from? From what we've gotten from Polly so far, that's OOC for her.

Awesome

- I still really like the look of the lab equipment. Too bad we didn't get that last episode.

- The generator. I don't know why. I would have loved to see that generator just going all over the place by the sound effects alone XD

- The sound effects. Love when they use good sound effects to go with actions, makes it easier to imagine it in my head during recons.

- The still shot of the fallen idol of Amdo. Would really have liked to have seen that in motion.

- Hahaha, the recon I am watching is so bad that the microphone Zaroff is using to tell everyone to stay where they are and keep working looks like a thin vibrator. That's hilarious XD

- We get the shot of Zaroff going under the water level stuck in his lab in motion, hahaha. Yes.

Shitty

- It's missing.

- The magically appearing cable cutters. Just...what?

- So, did the Doctor start the radiation leak, or was it naturally occurring? On the shitty list simply because it wasn't that clear to me at all.

In Conclusion

I actually liked this episode even through the shitty recon I was watching. Especially when the place started flooding and everyone was in danger of dying without the help of Zaroff trying to blow them all up.

It moved at a much faster pace than the last episode, as things were happening all over the place. Zaroff is delightfully mad. And shoots someone else. Did Lolem die from the shooting? Who knows?

This was also a good episode for the one shot actors. Sean didn't annoy me so much this episode, Jacko lived, yay, and the others all get small moments (with the exception of Ara, who I couldn't tell even survived or not by the end, as I only saw still shots of the men...)

An enjoyable episode.

Body count - 2. Lolem, the High Priest and Zaroff. Lolem is shot or drowned, can't be too sure which with the recon since Zaroff seems to be the worst shot in history while actually shooting someone with a gun. And Zaroff drowns.

The Underwater Menace as a Whole

All up I would count this one as okay. Not great, not bad, but okay. Half of it I enjoyed, and the other half just was meh. It kind of balances it out as a full story I think. Also one meh was in full motion while one of the enjoyable episodes was a recon, so yeah, balanced pretty well between the two.

I think it a pretty strong Ben story, as he gets to do a lot in it with acting his way out of problems and succeeding. Not very good for Polly, though she has her moments.

Jamie by this point was a surprise addition and it pretty much shows. Sometimes he is forgotten about entirely in dialogue. Like Ben worried for Polly but not even mentioning Jamie. But he gets some lovely moments especially at the start and end while the TARDIS team is relaxed and joking around with each other or exploring the beach.

All up I wouldn't really recommend unless you want to see the fabulousness that is Zaroff in action (or inaction as the case may be in recons.) He hams it up to eleven in this and it is glorious. If that is your kind of thing, then yes, watch it. Or listen to it.

#Classic Doctor Who #doctor who #The Underwater Menace #episode four #epic rewatch #Second Doctor #Polly Wright #Ben Jackson #Jamie McCrimmon #atlantis #Mad Scientist

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so-very-small · 6 years

Note

for the headcannons meme you posted- I can't pick favs so gimmi ur hc's about ur overwatch otps and favs pls >:3c

hfdsskjghkd literally everyone is my fav but boI here we go

Ana (top tier fave i lov her and am actually planning a fic abt her as a smol)-single mom borrower, moved into the Gibralta base bc where else is a safer place to raise her daughter after the crisis, is the Sneakiest-her sole weaknesses are tea and Premium Beef aka Rein-eventually after she and Pharah stop hiding in the walls, she becomes an Overwatch agent and honestly is more compitent than any human, she’s esp. good at recon and breaking/entering and gathering intel

McHanzo (im basic lmao)-Hanzo’s the smol and he’s very angry abt it; McCree’s the tol and he’s very smug about it. gotta tease the tiny bf abt his height. he’s even shorter than usual adorable-Hanzo loves to ride in McCree’s serape, like right on his shoulder pressed up against McCree’s neck. it’s cozy, he can hide if needed , and hes touched deprived as hell let him be smushed against the tol gently-despite being a small, Hanzo’s dragons are like. cat size. they’d listen to him when he was normal height but he’s small now, so they have to protect. sometimes if he’s doing something stupid or in trouble they just pick him up w/ their mouf by the back of his shirt like a mama cat with a kitten and just tote him back home-OR McHanzo Issun-bōshi au with Hanzo as Issun-bōshi and McCree as the girl/chancellor’s daughter (but w/out the sexisim/creepiness lmao)

Roadrat-dear god is Roadhog tired because Jamie is so tiny and he never sleeps and he nearly died like twenty times this week-Jamie sleeps in a jar bc if he were anywhere else he’d climb out and cause a mess. on no less than seven occasion Mako has awoken to fire. now Jamie is banished to a jar and doesn’t get up til Mako does, until he gets his pyromaniac tendencies under control-Mako had nice eyebrows until Jame Fire Incident No. 5. now he has to pencil them in -Mako is selectively mute, but sometimes Jamie hides in his scarf and pretends to be Mako’s voice for him. no one questions where the voice is coming from and why Mako’s mouth doesn’t open when he talks. too intimidating-Jamie is the only one who isn’t intimidated by Mako at all, despite their size difference. if anything, half the time he doesn’t notice the size difference. Mako’s just a teddy bear to him.

BunnyRibbit-Ultimate borrower duo they’re smol but they’re fierce-how have they not died of malnutrition all they borrow is chips and soda and occasionally cake-would absolutely do anything for each other including fighting tols and rats-OR tol!Hana with smol!Lucio, lil pocket frog boy who likes to sing. he’s smol and it gives him the most unique voice and he loves sitting on his gf’s shoulder and serenading her-OR tol!Lucio and smol!Hana, Lucio gets NO rest because Hana is everywhere she won’t stop how is she this energetic plEASE STO P YOU’LL GET HURT-tiny!Hana absolutely stole a Barbie RC car so now she has the coolest ride. just this pink blur on the floor shes everywhere it’s incredible

other ideas I like-team Talon all being smols except for Akande who has to deal with tiny Reaper who wants to get revenge on his ex Jack, tiny Sombra who’s absolutely everywhere at once, tiny Moria who’s too busy doing SCIENCE to be CAREFUL, and tiny Widow but she’s p chill actually-Amelie/Gerard with Amelie as a smol, who wound up small due to Talon genetic testing and stuff, now she lives in the walls of Gerard’s apartment and although she’s pretty stoic and defensive oh no he’s cute-Gabe/Torb/Rein/Jack/Ana being the BEST borrowing squad ever. or like, a team of smol Overwatch agents bc wow they can do so much others can’t either way they’re the bomb-Symmetra as a tol, she helps build cities of hard light and they’re always perfect and precise and beautiful-literal pocket Mercy-Genji with lil Zen floating on his shoulder like an angel; OR tol calm Zenyatta with tiny Genji who’s nyoom everywhere you can’t catch me Zen watch this backflip here i go-literal gentle giant Reinhardt-TALL BRIGITTE IM GAY

ANYWAYS I LOVE OVERWATCH AND U SHOULDNT ALLOW ME TO TALK ABOUT IT BC I RAMBLE FOREVER SORRY IM JUST. GT OVERWATCH. OH BOY

#tinypancakes #THANKS FRIENDO SORRY THIS TOOK FOREVER #gt overwatch #tinywatch #g/t #giant tiny #ask #THIS ISNT EVEN ALL MY SHIPS L M A O

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televinita · 7 years

Text

Zoo 3.12

Preview: Sam can go DIAF with Abigail, Interrupting Dariela is the worst and the writers need to stop using her to squee-block me, Mitch/Jamie is my everything and I need Jackson to come back into the fold with them, and how the hell did I come up with so many words for an episode that was mostly plot advancement and only had like five standout scenes.

Mitch/Jamie 1. Looks like at least part of my headcanon last week about Mitch letting Jamie out can't be jossed! I'm so glad we got this scene in a sneak peek, because I replayed Jackson's indignation and Mitch's cheerfully dismissive response to it about 80 times. 2. Would it be irresponsible of me to assume that they spent last night together? Because part of me is still wondering if they've even touched in the wake of everything, but I would really like to believe they drowned their sorrows in each other. I don’t know how to reconcile the easy banter of the next number or the fact that they don’t touch in this episode. 3. I love the glee Mitch takes in pestering Jamie about her apparent fear of babies, all geared up to tease her mercilessly -- this must be the most fun he's had in days -- and how fast the truth wipes the smug smirk off his face. It's beautiful and terrible and I hope it socked him right in the gut to see the extent of the damage his words did. If he didn't introduce the thought into her head, he sure cemented whatever doubts she already had. 3.5. And kudos to Kristen Connolly for being able to sell those lines with a straight face, because on paper it looks hella dramatic to be like "I'm so awful that I will physically curse a baby if I touch it" 4. I am little embarrassed that my headcanon gets shot down when Mitch not only doesn't take back the darkness line, he doubles down to include himself in it -- but I also really, really like him admitting he would have killed Abigail himself? "I've been thinking" is a fic prompt and I would love a little character study of Mitch coming to this realization, but either way, I’m intrigued by Dark!Mitch. I want the antidote in hand, I need to be able to believe they will eventually run away and find the light at the end of tunnel, but right now I could be very into a Dark & Twisty OTP of Pain and Feelings. 5. "She kept me away from everything and everyone I ever cared about. Everyone I love." Said with bold and unflinching eye contact and I am 6% frustrated that this is about the third time he's confessed his feelings and Jamie is still batting a hundred on insufficient reactions to them, but 94% overjoyed that the L word is out there to more than just some thugs in a bar. Sometimes there are more exciting ways to hear it than the standard 3-word way. (not that I would turn that down) 6. Now I just need to know who is responsible for Interrupting Dariela arriving on TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS instead of extending either "darkness" convo scene literally ten or twelve more seconds for some kind of proper resolution before a scene change. Tell me he wasn’t about to reach for her hand in the first one. (Also. It takes a magnifying glass and freeze framing, but I'm pretty sure in the split second before they get interrupted the second time, it looks like their hands were or about to be in contact and are drawing apart as the shot goes wide?) A Series Of Live Viewing Reactions To Clem's Baby Daddy 1. Awwww @ Sam hoping (in vain) that Mitch will accept him as a real member of the family. 2. WHAT THE SHIT, SAM. I TRIED TO BE NICE TO YOU. 3. All right, abort that whole plan from last week about letting him be HOH, Sam can fuck off and die and I hope Mitch takes such full ownership of the baby* that he takes to introducing him to people as "my kid, once removed." I'm not Jackson and I don't care who was raised by a madwoman. If Abe's voice + everyone's love for Clementine didn't convince you you're on the wrong team, you are beyond help and I’ll put you down.

*I don't think I can fully convey to you the amount I love Mike Baxter's relationship with Boyd on Last Man Standing, mostly because I'm not sure how many people know this show exists. 4. ...ABIGAIL R U SERIOUS. (Guys, I'm sorry if I previously claimed to be off the sympathy-for-the-devil train; those were lies but I am sure as hell off it now with her baby-snatching reveal and subsequent taunting. That's not even emotional torture porn, that is just cruelty for its own sake.) 5. Welp, I think you know what this means, Mitch and Jackson bonding over shooting straight from raising a baby to parenting a 20-year-old Y/Y?? 6. But seriously, I am so upset at not even considering this theory before today. He's the right age! He's a conveniently random orphan! This show is all, "People love twists!" I kept assuming the father of the Miracle Baby had to be someone super significant! The biggest kicker of all is that I've assumed from the get-go that Jackson's late wife was black (which I hope is not somehow racist to assume?), and Sam is right there looking plausibly biracial as heck, and somehow not once did those two threads of thought ever cross. Come On Guys, Be Bros When I made this tongue-in-cheek request last year re: Mitch and Jackson, I could not in my wildest dreams have imagined them to one day share a grandchild, so while I honestly don't care how Jackson's being-a-daddy issues will play out, I care VERY MUCH what it means that he and Mitch are now on the same family tree, starting with how he now has an ironclad excuse to bond with Clementine and never be out of her life again. (I guess he can bond with his actual kid too. if he must.)

But that short chat on the upper level, just listening to them talk about their respective families is like catnip to my ears. I don't know how I'm supposed to read Mitch's expression after Jackson walks off in his "you worry about your family, let me worry about mine" huff, so I've elected to interpret it as "You're my family too, dumbass." (hush and let me have my dream) (Also I would kind of like to know why Jackson is still as willing to talk rationally with Mitch as he is given that Mitch is on Team Jamie, or as Jackson prefers to call it, She Devil Incarnate. I mean, it boils down to Jackson being a sexist jerk, but I still want to have All The Thinky Thoughts about how Mitch functions as a go between.) Beta Ship 2.0 MY SHIP RADAR IS BACK ON AND FULLY FUNCTIONING. I don't want to scare it away by being too excited about it. Just know that my heart burst into bloom when they got their reunion hug*, crescendoed for the kiss, and by the time they were fawning over the baby together it was pretty well at a tea kettle pitch. *Abe and Dariela take over as the center of the frame immediately, but am I looking at it or listening to them at all? No. I'm trying to shove them out of the way and peering at the edge of the screen where my new faves are nearly out of the frame, persistently tracking Jackson's hands on Tessa as they examine her cut and cup the back of her head and asdlkasjdfasd time to go dig up the 3x01 Time Capsule O' Sweetness. Various and Sundry -I enjoyed the writers finally acknowledging how awfully prone to hacking / general failure this plane is. -This was going to be its own category, but it's late, so suffice to say that Mitch + Not Being A Mess Of Emotions About His Dead Father was very nicely dovetailed with concern for Clem and a cute debate about baby names, and I'm just happy they addressed it all, if still annoyed that the impact of Max's death on Jamie was not. -Jackson takes up Mitch's vacated seat next to Clementine when the plane starts falling and has his hand bracing the baby's head and yes hello I am dying. -Clem is so excited to offer her baby to Jamie for holding, even eager to reassure her "you won't hurt him," and yes hello I am dying again. -"I know I'm right. Want to be more specific?" = thank u for this small slice of "sass that totally happens in the Normal World AU of Domesticity" (also, the pushing up his glasses bit here? ridiculously cute)

-"I don't need you to tell me what needs to be done [about Abigail]." OK Jackson, but like...you kinda do.

-I told you before I had 18 heart attacks watching this episode live, so I don't think it's unreasonable to mention dying again re: the part where Jamie has the baby foisted upon her before she can protest, and Baby immediately stops crying*... Wait, no, this is the opposite of dying. This moment is Life.

-*nice insufficient reaction to noticing her finally holding the baby, Mitch. Who is directing this episode, because they are Bad at it. -I literally could not be more neutral about Logan's face or potential longevity. I am a 0 on the PH scale of feelings. -Everything about Jackson's final face off with Abigail and her stupid endless villain gloating was the wooorst. -I am a little concerned that reaching the barrier is supposed to qualify as our traditional episode 12 "get off now if you want this series to have a happy ending" exit, both because it's not that satisfying and because there is way too much left unresolved. I can only hope this means that we'll get it near the end of the real finale, with only a tiny twist at the end to set up a hypothetical season 4 that can be easily pinched off and forgotten if need be. Up Next: I'm not sure if I can watch the finale live. I have to have all my work done 6 hours earlier than usual, and then I'm taking off to go dog-sit all day, and if I watch it live I am gonna be useless from the time it starts airing until I drop from emotional exhaustion around 3 AM. If I can get enough work done by 9 PM, I probably will, but I also kind of want to savor it in case this is the last new one I ever get.

#cbs zoo #what kind of 2200 word swamp mess #episode reactions #zoo 3.12 #queued

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myhockeyworld87 · 4 years

Text

Nervous Regrets - Tyler Seguin - Part 18

Word Count: 4686

POV: Reader’s

Warnings: Smut, like NSFW, cursing

Notes: I’m just going to apologize in advance for the smut, I don’t know what came over me; but at the same time I really enjoyed writing this smut. Is that wrong? hahaha! If it is I don’t want to be right...hahaha. I hope you guys enjoy it as much I do. Peace, Love and Hugs!

Of course, arriving at the new house at two in the morning wasn’t the way you wanted to see your dream home; but it still took your breath away when you walked through the door. The décor almost looked like something out of a magazine, and not your home. You couldn’t believe the amazing job the designer and her team had done in such a short time. You walked around the place in awe; it literally was your dream come to life.

The chandelier over the dining room table looked gorgeous and cask the room in an intimate glow; you couldn’t wait to have a meal in there. The office still had work to do, but you just overlooked that. When you entered the open concept kitchen and family room; it looked warm and cozy. The designer had placed pictures of both your families, as well as some of you and Tyler throughout the room. The built-in bookshelves also housed some, as well as vases and unique decorations. You felt like your head was on a swivel taking everything in; everywhere you turned there was something else to see. Tyler’s words, brought you out of the spell that had been cast from when you walked inside. “Wow! The place looks amazing.” You could hear the wonder and awe in his voice.

“I know! It’s simply gorgeous. I can’t believe we live here.” The two of you strolled into the game room, where all of Tyler’s memorabilia had been put out on display. “Oh my god, I love this. It looks so much better in here than where it was in the old place.” His framed jerseys were hung on the wall, as well as some of the most important pucks from goals he’d scored.

“Come on let’s go see the upstairs.” He grabbed your hand as you made your way up the staircase. The room you had chosen for the baby was left empty, though three other bedrooms had been transformed into beautiful guest suites for when family stayed with you. In the movie theater, you could just picture you and Tyler curled up watching one of your favorite flicks. An authentic popcorn machine adorned the back wall, which you had a feeling you’d be using soon, as a craving suddenly hit you.

You made your way through the rest of the house, before Tyler scooped you up in his arms and carried you into the master suite. “Ty, is this really necessary?” It seemed to be a new habit of his lately.

“Yes.”

The bedroom furniture that you’d ordered fit the room perfectly. On the nightstand was the black and white photo of you and Tyler that was your favorite. The bedding gave the room a cozy vibe and made you want to crawl up among all the pillows; which you would have, had you not still been in Tyler’s arms. “It’s gorgeous in here.” You squirmed in his arms, so you could take the whole view in; and he gently laid you down on the pillows.

“You’re the gorgeous one.” He crawled on top of you, a distinct look in his eye that you recognized so well. It may have been close to three in the morning, and you were exhausted but one look at Tyler and your whole mood changed. Reaching up you placed your palm on his jaw and brought his lips to yours; where you kissed him lovingly. “I want you so bad baby; but I know it’s been a long day.”

“Ty, stop talking and take this damn costume off; so we can christen this bedroom properly.” He laughed, then tugged the sleeves of the one-piece Mario getup off his arms; while you wiggled out of the dress, both of you moving feverishly. Finally, you were both stripped down to your undergarments; only then did you come back together, hands roaming each other’s bodies, as your mouths fused together. As you trailed your nails down his back, he shivered and pressed his body into yours; a moan escaping you when he did. He slid your bra straps down, his lips going to the skin he exposed. Popping the clasp, your breast sprang free and he took a taut nipple into his mouth. You squirmed underneath him, as jolts of pleasure pooled in your core. His thigh was between your legs and you found yourself grinding on it, as he continued to suck on your tits. Your hands ran threw his hair, part holding him close and pulling him away.

Your body felt on fire, as you thrust your hips seeking more. “Easy baby.” His hand skated to your hips, holding them down as he rubbed his thigh against your clit; you whimpered. Releasing one hand from his head, you reached inside his waistband and felt his hard length; sliding your palm up and down him. “Fuck (Y/N), the things you do to me.” You pumped him in your hand and felt him harden even more. His hand went to your panties, pulling on the one side to get them to come off. “Lift up, I need these off.” You happily obliged, as he finally rid the lingerie from you.

He removed his boxers at the same time. “Ty, I need you.” It was a moan and a plea all in one; and his hand snaked between the two of you to make sure you were ready for him.

He didn’t need to check; you’d been wet from the moment he laid you on the mattress. You felt his fingers slip between your folds and you sighed from the pleasure of it. “Fuck baby, I need to be inside you.”

“God, yes Ty.” Spreading your legs wide, you invited him to enter you. Cock in his hand, he ran the tip against you; coating himself with your wetness. He leaned his forehead against yours; then thrust fully inside you. “OOOOooo, you feel so good.”

He started to slide in and out of you; your hips rising to meet him. Bodies fitting perfectly together, as he rocks into your pussy. His eyes locked with yours, as the two of you move as one. “God, I love you.” He pants out.

“I love you too Ty….so much.” He thrust into you and you shattered, calling out his name; the sound causing him to fall off the edge with you. You were both sweaty and breathless, as you laid in the new bed sated and happy. Idly you stroked his head, playing with his curls. Neither one of you spoke, and you could feel your lids growing heavy; so, you stirred.

“Babe, where are you going?” Ty’s voice was garbled, laden with sleep; as he tightened his hold on you.

“Bathroom and to let the boys in. It’s their first night too.” You padded across the floor quickly, half disoriented when you entered the ensuite. It took you three attempts before you found your makeup remover and a wash cloth. You made your way back to the bedroom, where Tyler was under the covers asleep. Letting the dogs in, you crawled into bed beside him careful not to wake him up.

All three dogs jumped on the bed, rooting around trying to find a comfortable spot. “Babe, why are you so far away.” He was reaching for you, trying to draw you closer to his body.

“I thought you were sleeping and didn’t want to wake you up.” You scooted over, making Gerry move in the process. You kissed him quickly before rolling over so he could spoon you; within five minutes you were both sound asleep.

At eight in the morning the alarm went off, startling you both. “Why in the hell is the alarm ringing?” Tyler grumbled over at you; as he squeezed you tighter and shut his eyes.

Leaning over as best you could, you grabbed the phone; silencing the alarm. “The designer is coming at nine to finish. Can you let me up?”

“Uh-uh” A small chuckled escaped your lips at his childish answer. “Call her and tell her to come tomorrow.”

“I have to work tomorrow and you’re leaving on a road trip.” His arm around your waist grew heavier, you could tell he was relaxing back into slumber. “You sleep, I’ll handle the designer; and try to keep them quiet.” Thankfully the office was on the opposite side of the house. Moving his arm, you slipped out of his embrace and the bed; kissing him on the forehead as you made your way to get ready.

Shortly after nine the designer and team showed up and got to work. She went over the few changes she made yesterday to the house with you; and a few thoughts she had about the nursery. You and Tyler hadn’t had time to discuss the baby’s room yet; though you were quite fond of what she had put together for you.

Tyler came out to the kitchen around ten-thirty. “Morning babe. You want me to make you some breakfast?” You asked going up on your toes to greet him with a kiss. He held you longer than necessary with random people roaming your house; though you didn’t mind.

“Sure, if you’re going to eat too.” He knew you too well; knew that you’d only grabbed a protein bar earlier. You nodded your head yes; then went about getting ingredients for omelets. “So I forgot to mention to you last night; that Chubbs and Rads are coming over this afternoon.” You glanced over at him before he continued. “When we were waiting out in the garage, we were talking about the place and I said to come on over and check it out. You don’t care do you?”

“No, why would I? What time are they coming?”

“Around four I think. That ok?”

You threw the eggs in the skillet and started to cook them. “Yeah that’s fine. Why don’t you text them and have them stay for dinner. I told Jamie I would cook when you guys got home, but we could do it tonight as well.”

“You sure babe. I don’t want to put you out or anything.”

“I planned on cooking for us; it’s no biggie to add two more.” Adding the cheese to omelets, you gave them a few more seconds in the pan. “Did you want to grill or want me to make something else?”

“You know what I really want?” you looked at him questioningly. “Your stuffed shells.”

Placing his plate in front of him, you teased. “Those take forever to make, and you don’t even like pasta.”

“I made that comment one time in an interview; and you’ll never let me forget it.” You both laughed. “But you know I love your stuffed shells, their one of my favorite foods.”

“I know. How about I have them for you when you come back.” You’d be in the kitchen all day if you made them; between the homemade sauce and then cooking the meat to fill them.

“Alright. How about that roast you made that one time your parents came up?”

“God Ty, that was like what; this past May or something. Wasn’t it?”

“Yeah, well what can I say; it was unforgettable.” He forked a mouthful in; his breakfast practically gone before you even sat down.

“Alright, I’ll run to the store and get the stuff; while you clean up from breakfast.” He scrunched his face but then grabbed a bite of your omelet.

“We could both clean up and both go to the market.” Which really meant, you’d be doing the dishes while he sat there and watched you; which was fine. The man would really do anything to get out of loading the dishwasher.

“Ok.” You finished your breakfast; Tyler stealing bites here and there. The two of you headed to the store, grabbing all you needed for your impromptu dinner. By the time you returned home, the designer was just finishing up. Everything looked perfect, and you thanked her for all her hard work; telling her you’d be in touch soon.

You were just finishing up dinner when Rads and Jamie came by. Tyler was giving them the grand tour of the house; when they finally ended up in the kitchen. “So what do you guys think?”

“It’s really incredible.” Jamie stated. “I can’t believe the backyard.”

“Yeah, really nice digs.” Rads added. “Smells good in here.”

“Thanks, I hope you guys are hungry.” You’d set the table in the kitchen, instead of the dining room; since it was just the four of you. “You guys want a beer or some wine? Ty, would you get them some drinks?”

He got the drinks, while you took the meat out for him to carve. Everyone sat down at the table, as you brought the meal over. You were mid-step carrying over the asparagus, when the baby kicked you hard. “Woah, easy there little one.” Jamie looked at you with a worried expression. “It’s fine, the baby is just kicking a lot at the moment. Want to feel?” You placed his hands on your abdomen where the baby was kicking.

“Wow that’s amazing.”

Tyler set the meat platter down, an expression on his face you couldn’t read. “Well dinner’s on the table.” He was glaring a bit as Jamie removed his hand from your stomach. Dinner was awkward. While the meal itself was fine; it was the conversation or lack there of that put the room on edge. It seemed as though Tyler was pissed at Jamie for some unknown reason; for he all but shoved him and Rads out of the house as soon as dessert was done. Claiming they all needed to pack for the long road trip ahead. You wished them both good luck as they left and told them you’d have them over again soon.

“Ty, what the hell was that about?” You asked as they were pulling out of the driveway.

“What do you mean?” He was heading back the hall to the bedroom.

“I’m talking about how rude you were during dinner. What set you off?”

He was in the closet, grabbing suits out. “I’m fine. I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He pulled out a burgundy based plaid with a navy tie; one of your favorites. You stood there hands folded across your chest as you waited for him to say more. “Stop looking at me like that.” He acted this way a few times before, most recently with Robert. Which is why you continued to remain silent, until he told you what was going on. “Fine, do you really want to know what’s bothering me?”

“I asked, didn’t I?” It was a snarky comment, but he was pushing your buttons at the moment.

“I’m tired of you and Jamie flirting all the time.” Taking a step back, you were thrown for a loop with that comment.

“What are you talking about? Jamie and I do not flirt.”

“Last night, I found you in his arm twice; then today he’s got his hands on your stomach feeling my baby.” Was he serious? One look at his face and you knew the answer to that question before even asking that.

“Ty, you’re being ridiculous. First off, I’m madly in love with you. Secondly, he’s your best friend and my friend as well. We’re not flirting with each other.” How could he misinterpret a few simple hugs?

“Well, it seems like that. He’s always saying that he’s going to steal you away, when I fuck up. Now he’s feeling my baby kicking. That’s supposed to my thing; you know?”

“Ty, you feel the baby all the time and talk to it. I didn’t think it would be that big of a deal.” Really, you hadn’t thought anything about it, when you’d offer Jamie to touch you; honestly you would’ve asked Rads as well if Tyler hadn’t declared you all eat. “And you know he’s just kidding when he says he’s going to steal me; at least I hope you do. Jamie’s been nothing but a friend to both of us.” His back was towards you, sifting through clothes; so, you placed your hand on his shoulder to turn him. He pivoted easily. There was hurt in his eyes, and tore at your heart. “Babe, you know I love you right.” He nodded.

“You and the baby are my world. I’m not really sure what all this is about, but I think you know deep down that Jamie nor I were ever flirting. So talk to me and tell me what’s wrong?”

He blew out a frustrated breath. “I know you’re right.” His hands went to caress your baby bump. “I don’t know what was wrong with me, I just got so jealous of him touching you like this. It’s completely stupid. I know Jamie doesn’t want to steal you away; though he does like to tease me about it all the time. And I know you love me; and I love you more than anything. I guess I’m just still scared of losing you to someone else. I couldn’t take it, ya know.”

“Babe, I’m not going anywhere; and especially not with Jamie.” You both chuckled; the tension leaving Tyler a bit. “And now that I know people touching my baby belly sets you off, I’ll not let anyone do that.”

He was still rubbing your belly, as the baby kicked again. “I know I sound irrational right now. I think I’m just on edge cause we have this road trip coming up. I just hate leaving you anymore.” You narrowed your eyes at him. “It’s just the whole Robert thing happened when I was going on a roadie, then the car accident.” He pulled you close to his chest, and you wrapped your arms around him. “I’m afraid every time I leave anymore, and I know I’m just imagining things with Jamie. You don’t have to stop people from touching the baby; maybe…I don’t know let me feel first.”

You smirked into his shirt. “I can do that.” Looking up into his eyes, you reminded him. “You know the baby and I are going to be fine right? And that no one, and I mean no one; is going to steal me or the baby away from you.”

“I know.” He said smiling down at you. Raising up on your toes you kissed him passionately, pouring all your love into him. When you finally broke apart, he said. “See, now I don’t want to leave again.”

You snuck out of his arm, then tapped his ass. “Get back to packing Seguin…Oh, and apologize to your best friend, for being a butthead tonight.”

“Did you just call me a butthead?”

“Mmmm I did. I’m going to the office to do some work. Come find me when you’re done.” With that, you grabbed something out of the closet and headed out the door.

By your estimations you had about ten to fifteen minutes before Tyler would be in the office; but since you’d been planning this all day, it wouldn’t take long for you to get set up. It took exactly eighteen minutes before you heard his voice in the house. “Hey babe.” When you didn’t answer he yelled again. “Babe, do you know where that burgundy suit coa……” His words died as he stood in the doorframe of the office, drinking in the sight of you. You could only imagine the sight he was seeing; sitting in the office chair, in only his suit coat and navy tie, clad in the black pair of Louboutin shoes he bought you for Valentine’s Day, with a pair of thigh highs on.

The suit coat was buttoned so that it didn’t expose your breasts. As you ran your fingers through the tie, you said. “Looking for this?” Your feet were propped up on the desk, exposing the red soles of the shoes you only wore on special occasions.

Tyler’s eyes were wide, and he was blinking hard. “I…I thought you were….working?”

“I thought about it.” You shrugged. “And then I thought, we still have more rooms to christen in this place.” Dropping the tie between your breasts, you added. “So are you just going to stand there? I think I might be getting wrinkles in this jacket.” You sat upright, doing your best impression of Basic Instinct. He was in front of you before you could say another word. Mouth crushing yours in a kiss that was raw and savage; neither of you holding anything back.

“Fuck babe, this is so hot.” He pulled you out of the chair and into his arms. Grabbing the hem of his shirt, you threw it over his head and across the floor. His tie followed, while his mouth sucked on your neck. The two of you turned, your ass bumping up against the edge of the desk. You’d taken the liberty of removing anything breakable in the fifteen minutes before he came, though you’d left a few stray odds and ends. He pushed them aside, like you’d see in some cheesy movie; it was sexy as hell, and part of the reason you’d left things on the desk. Then he lifted you, sitting you down on the desk; as he unbuttoned his suit coat you were wearing.

Draped across your shoulders, it hung there loose; exposing your breasts to him. He drew a nipple in his mouth, lightly biting down. You moaned and arched your back; feeling yourself sliding down on the desk top. “Ty, stop.” He raised his head immediately, a stricken look on his face; thinking he’d caused you pain. “The coat.” You struggled slightly, trying to remove it. “I really don’t want to wrinkle it.”

He laughed, though he took the jacket and lay it across the chair. “God woman, what you do to me.” He followed you down onto the desk, stripping his jeans to the floor as he did. His hands trailed up and down your body; lighting a fire inside you. You pulled his mouth down on yours, sweeping your tongue inside his; taking control of the kiss. His hands skated up to knead your breasts, and you groaned with pleasure; breaking the kiss. “You like that baby.” He pinched your nipple hard and you moaned again. “Yeah babe, let me hear you.”

His other hand reached down to your wet pussy; where he sank a finger deep inside you. “Fuck Ty, yes.” Your hips bucked up against his hand.

“You’re always so ready for me babe. Do you know how that turns me on?” He added a second finger as he continued to pump in and out of you. “Are you wet for me when I’m gone? Do you think of me doing this to you when I’m away?”

“Yes…Ty…Yes” You panted out.

“Do you touch yourself here,” He pushed his fingers deep into your pussy. “When I’m on the road.” You moaned, the sound filling the room. You were incapable of speech at the moment, as pleasure coursed through your body. “Do you know I picture you doing that when I’m gone. I think about you lying on our bed, naked; your pussy dripping wet thinking about me, as you slid your fingers in and out of it.”

“Fuck Ty!” You couldn’t deny it, for every word he said was true. You’d pleasured yourself numerous times that way when he’d been gone.

“I get so hard thinking about you like that.” Reaching down you took hold of his cock; feeling how stiff he actually was. Though he was leaving in the morning, you wanted him inside you right now; while he was still here. “I stroke my cock, while I think about your legs spread wide open as you play with your clit. Sometimes I cum just thinking of that right there.”

Your body arched off the desk. “Fuck Tyler…I need you…please babe, fuck me now.”

He took his cock out of your hand then. “You want this baby.”

“Ty…please.” You were begging, but you needed him inside you. “Please.”

He placed his cock at your entrance, rubbing it against you. A whimper escaped you. “So needy,” he smirked; but you could see how much holding back was killing his as well. The tip of him entered you and you sighed from even that small contact. “You want the rest baby?” you nodded. “Then tell me.”

“Fuck Ty, stop teasing.” You rocked your hips trying to take more of him; but he pressed your waist down to the desk with his free hand at the same time. He would make you wait no matter how bad it was killing you both. After he’d expressed his vulnerability to you earlier tonight, he must need affirmation that you were his. You’d let him have this, at least this time. “Ty, I need you…I need you to fuck me…right now. Please baby, I need your cock inside me… I need you, only you…so bad.”

Your begging put him over the edge and he plunged his dick inside you, filling you until he bottomed out. “Oooo…fuck (Y/N) you feel so good.” He leaned down and kissed you, not moving his cock that was buried inside you. Looping your legs around his hips, you pressed him deeper inside you. He rested his forehead on yours. “You know your mine baby…all mine.”

“Yes Ty…yours, only yours.” He slid his cock slowly out of you. “Mmmm” Inch by inch he filled you back up again. “Oh god!” Hips rising to meet him, you couldn’t stop the rush of desire that went through you. Sweat broke out across his brow, from his painstakingly slow progress. “Faster Ty...please.”

Even though you were begging again, he continued to move slowly; taking the full length of himself leisurely in and out of your pussy. “I love you (Y/N).” In went his cock. “Tell me you love me too.” Gradually he glided out. “That you won’t leave me.”

His vulnerability was written across his face, and it tore at your heart. “I’ll never leave you Ty.” Tears slid down his cheeks. “We’ll never leave you.” Your eyes borrowed into his, as you spoke the words, emphasizing we’ll, so he knew you meant both you and the baby. “I love you….I love you so much Ty.” Reaching your hands up to his face, you caressed his tears away, as you kissed him with all the love you had. He started to pump rapidly into you then; his cock hitting the perfect spot inside you. “I love you.” It was a mantra you kept repeating over and over, as he made love to you; until finally you reached that peak, falling over screaming out his name. “TYLER”

He thrust one last time into you, his face filled with ecstasy; as his cum poured inside you. Falling on top of you, you felt his tears as he whispered. “I love you so much (Y/N).”

You held him close to you, one hand stroking the curls on top of his head. “I love you too. I’ll love you forever and so will our baby.”

He picked his head off your chest, looking you straight in the eyes. “Promise?”

“I promise Ty.” You’d only seen him once like this before, so raw and emotional; when you told him about the baby. This road trip was really messing with him; he needed reassurance and so you gave it to him. “Babe, I’m not going anywhere. I’ll be right here waiting for you when you get back.” He nodded knowing the words you spoke were true; a smile spreading across his face. “Now can we go to bed, in this place? Because as much as I like this new desk, it’s not extremely comfortable.” You both giggled, as he rose off you; then scooped you up in his arms, carrying you back to your bedroom. The jacket, wrinkles and all, ended up being worn to the arena on his next game day; a huge smile on his face as he walked with it on.

#tyler seguin #tyler seguin imagine #tyler seguin imagines #tyler seguin smut #dallas stars #dallas stars imagine #dallas stars imagines #nhl smut #nhl fanfic #nhl imagine #nhl imagines #hockey imagines #hockey imagine #hockey fanfiction #hockey smut

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high5nerd · 4 years

Text

Into the Open Air - ROTG

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9041929/1/Into-the-Open-Air

Date: Feb. 23, 2013

Fandom: Rise of the Guardians

Ship: General/None

Genre: Hurt/Comfort

Into the Open Air

Out of all the other things I've heard happen to people, I always thought, "It'd never happen to me." And for a long time, I believed it. I was healthy, I was athletic, I ate good meals, and I hung out with my friends. I was loved by my parents, I was cared for. I helped accomplish something no other children would experience besides my close buddies, because they were there with me. We witnessed the dark sand, the towering Boogeyman. We saw the beautiful golden sand rain down on the opposing, turning the most frightening nightmares to blissful images. I believed in all of them, even Jack Frost.

But…I'd never thought I'd end up here.

My life was planned out, of course. Mom and Dad were thrilled at my excellent grades; how I yearned to go to college, raise a family just like them. I'd enter college with a soccer scholarship, and make new friends down the road. I'd end up becoming a gym teacher at the same school I went to, keeping those past memories with me when I would walk down the hall to the gym. If I couldn't be that, I would want my face to be on television, the whole world watching me kick a goal at the Fifa World Cup Championship, in the name for America. Crowds would chant my name and people would wave flags. I'd tease the opposing team with my expert moves. Once I'd reach my old age, I'd hand down my soccer gear to the oldest grandkid, and just spend my days relishing the things I did in the past on the back porch of a ranch house. I'd be faithfully married to a man I loved with all my heart, and he'd love me equally back. He'd always be by my side, even during the deliverance of our kids. Maybe two or three, but no more than four. We'd live in a big house with large land, big enough for a dog to run laps in. I knew what my future life would be like. I wanted to have it.

But apparently God didn't want me to.

The doctors said I've been diagnosed with cancer for a while, and it hasn't been detected early like it should've. Mom was crying most of the night, afraid of me. Well, maybe not afraid OF me, maybe just for me. The kids at school didn't notice a thing when I wore that annoying hospital band around my wrist, and I tried keeping my cool. I wanted to seem like nothing was wrong, like I was the normal Pippa everyone knew. But Jamie was the first one to see. I guess he does in fact pay attention to things more than I realized, because he pulled me aside from a soccer game after school.

"Pippa, are you okay?" he asked me seriously.

"Yeah! Never been better, why?" I forced a smile. My chest was starting to hurt again.

"You're not a very good liar, Pips." He frowned, "and look, I'm not the only one noticing you're getting thin. I mean, look at you! You look like a walking stick!" he poked my side.

I just laughed it off like it was nothing. To me, it was nothing. To my friends, it was worrying and curious. To my parents, it was scary and worth crying about.

One night, I sat in my room on the floor, playing a one-on-one game of checkers with myself. The doctor said I had to stay home for a while. He said it was getting worse. Dad knew I was worried about my own leukemia, so he said as he was bringing in my dinner, "Hey, baby cakes; let's look up what leukemia is. Maybe we can learn something, kind of like school." He tried putting on one of his small smiles.

"Like health class?" I look up, knowing my dark circles from painful sleep were visible even in the dim light.

He bit his lip as he sat down next to me with his laptop open. I couldn't tell if he was thinking or trying to hold back tears. All I knew is that he was struggling.

"You got it, Pips. Just like health class."

I learned about different childhood cancers, and a little bit more on leukemia. It's a cancer in the blood cells, mostly the white ones. It starts off in my bones, and then spreads on from there. Dad says it's because the marrow-I don't know what that is-in my bones makes the blood cells, and the disease is in there. Also, I have a type of leukemia called AML. I don't know what that stands for. The worst thing I read even made me close to crying. Dad had to leave the room, knowing something I didn't. Usually, there's a five-year survival rate for children; for me. If I live beyond those five years, then it only means I'm cured.

For the first time in ages, I prayed that night. I prayed that I would live, that my marrow would become healthy again. When I got into bed and turned off the light, I couldn't fall asleep. I knew even as I lay there, I wasn't safe. I was wallowing in fear. What if the Boogeyman came out and gave me a nightmare? So I said out loud, strongly and bravely:

"Now is not the good time, Pitch. You crawl back to whatever hovel you call home and leave me alone. Do not come near me."

I fell asleep listening to my mother's crying and the wind howling outside, not knowing what was in store for me.

That was three years ago. Now, I'm permanently stuck in the hospital. The leukemia was fighting back against the medications and the chemotherapy, and I was losing the war. I stayed in bed mostly, watching the other hospitalized kids play on the play mats, draw in the coloring books, or talk to one another about their reason being here. I called in a nurse and asked her if I could play with them once, and she gave me a sad look and then said, "No. You need to stay in bed."

I can't even move. I ache all over. I feel pain. I'm a weightless freak. Mom tried taking my white cap off, but I choked out a yell when she almost tugged it off my head. I may have lost my hair, but there's no way I'm losing my favorite hat. She would sit next to me after work hours to read me the paper, or one of my favorite books. She even brought in the DVD player so we could watch Finding Nemo together. Something tells me she's never watching it again.

More days passed, and the doctors finally had the guts to tell me my cancer was terminal. I didn't know what that meant, and I guess that's why they told me. They knew I didn't know the term, so they told the innocent truth. So, being the sneaky girl I always am, I clicked the red button near my bed that called in a nurse. She came in hurriedly, quickly asking what was wrong.

"Can I have a dictionary, please?" I did my always-victorious puppy eyes.

"Of course, sweetheart." She smiled warmly.

I cried for a long time that night once I read the definition. Afterwards, I hated Webster dictionary. I blamed it like it was its fault for me having leukemia, that it was terminal. Terminal means the end.

Terminal cancer means there's no cure.

I'm dying. There's no hope. I have no life. I can't live the life I dreamed of having. I can't see any of my friends anymore, or even my family. I can't listen to music or kick a ball around. I'll be dead in the ground, all cold and dark. I can't imagine myself going to Heaven. I feel like I haven't been good enough. I wasn't given enough time.

The last night of my life came. I lay awake, listening to the other's heart monitors, especially mine. By and by each hour, it was slowing down. I closed my eyes, not in sleep, but in hope,

"Sandman…please…I need you. Sandman, I need you now." I opened my eyes.

Nothing.

I closed my eyes again, tighter, "I need a dream, Sandman. I need a dream to escape this nightmare. Please…I'm begging you."

I opened my eyes again.

Nothing.

Tears stung my eyes as my head sunk back into the pillow, ultimately defeated. I couldn't help it, I was breaking. I've been strong and brave throughout the entire operations and doctor visits. It's about time I let loose those tears I've held back for a long time.

"Help me." I cried, feeling my cheeks wetting.

Images of birthday candles, snow falling, soccer trophies and smiling friends flitted across my mind. Mom and Dad's happy laughter rang in my ears, along with the drone of the school teacher's. Memories of rainfall, of hiking with my parents, of sleeping over at Jamie's house, of playing with dogs all tortured me. I can never count to ten to play hide-and-seek. I will never finish a good novel I started long ago. I can't wrap any Christmas presents in silvery paper and green bows for my loved ones, and I can't help Jamie's sister Sophie find Easter eggs. I can't sleep in my room, and I can't eat enormous amounts of popcorn on Friday nights. Never again.

Suddenly, I felt a warm hand touch my bare arm. My eyes jolted open at the sudden feeling. I can't help but feel startled. But soon, the fright was replaced with overflowing joy. A smile spread across my face.

Sandman put a finger to his mouth, and then waved. He wanted me to be quiet. He was just the same as before, during that Guardian fight. He literally glowed with bright sand, and he was floating on a sand cloud to be level with my bed. He held out his hand, offering comfort. I squeezed his hand, but not too hard. He looked worried.

"I'm dying." I choked out between tears.

He nodded sadly, patting my hand with his other one.

"Will it hurt?" I whispered, hearing one of the kids stir in their sleep.

Sandman shook his head, looking at me straight in the eye. He was serious.

"Will I ever see you again?" I lay down, watching his sand dance around him and my bed.

He frowned, thinking deeply. He then looked back up at me and shrugged. A sand image of a phoenix rising from ashes formed above his head, along with a question mark.

"Reincarnation?" I guessed, smiling at the small games of charades.

He beamed at my accurate guess, and then patted my head approvingly. I could almost know what he's saying, Good job! I didn't think you would guess that

He stopped smiling when I hoarsely cried in pain. My whole body was starting to really hurt, especially my heart. I let go of his hand to hold my chest, hoping maybe that would help. I took deep breaths, and then soon, the pain passed again. It's been doing that for a while, soon to be never again.

"Sandman, can I ask for something?" I whispered.

I couldn't help it. My eyes were fluttering shut and my breathing slowed down. The heart beeping was becoming less frequent.

Sandman nodded, watching me with sad eyes.

"Can I have a dream? One more dream?" I looked at him, trying to keep my eyes open.

He floated up and sat next to me on my bed, Indian style. He touched my cheek and nodded, knowing my time was drawing to a close. He pointed to me, and then shut his eyes.

He wanted me to close my eyes. Does he know they'll never open again?

I did so. Soon, I felt a small tickle on my shoulders and on the tip of my nose. It was sand. I calmed down, taking a deep, shaking breath. Maybe even my last one.

Images of stars floated in front of my eyes. The dream he gave me was like nothing I've ever had. For the first time, I had all my senses in the dream. I touched clouds of nebula, I raced shooting stars, I spun around asteroids with a smile on my face; freedom. I was free. No pain. I felt like I was being tickled, hearing the best jokes from the funniest people. I was having a ball. I danced between comets, twirling among the shining stars.

I never woke up.

#hurt/comfort #fanfiction #rotg fandom #rotg #rise of the guardians #movies

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