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awkward-sultana · 1 year

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5 Times Joel Engaged in Minor PDA + 1 Time He Engaged in Major PDA

Pairing: Joel Miller x Reader

Word Count: 6.6k

Warnings: Implied smut, use of Y/N, medical terminology and mentions of medical conditions (child death/miscarriage, head injuries) and operations (stitches,) injuries, drinking/alcohol, cursing, mentions of death, guns and shootouts, PDA (mostly kissing), panic attacks, unwanted advances from minor male characters.

Summary: Joel Miller has always had a bit of trouble with PDA, but he's learning.

I. You loved Jackson, loved this new normal you had never even considered possible in your 30 years of life. You had only been 10 when the outbreak happened, all scraped knees and tangled hair, giggling over notebooks and glitter pens. Now, after losing your entire family, being expedited through an intensive medical training program, and trekking across the country with a feral 14 year old and a loaded gun of a middle aged man, you felt about 100.

Here, in Jackson, surrounded by laughing children, smiling parents, and a wall that seemed to keep out the rest of the world, you felt like maybe you could discover some semblance of the normal you had before.

Even you, Joel and Ellie had bloomed into the little family you dreamed of having on those warm nights when you couldn't sleep for the sound of death in the distance. It had been rough, the three of you settling into your small home in Jackson, especially between you and Joel. It had all culminated one night in a screaming match in the barn between the two of you when, like you knew he would, he tried to run away, afraid to lose another family. You had told him to leave and never come back, so goddamn angry he would abandon Ellie like that, make her lose another person when you had both promised her you'd give her a good life with two people who loved her. Joel had left, shattering your heart and sending Ellie into a spiral that resulted in quite a few fist fights with older kids. Thankfully, she had had Dina to ground her. You had no one. You didn't let Ellie see your heartbreak after he rejected you, didn't let her take on the weight of someone else's world again. Joel had ended up returning a week later at 3 AM with soft words you didn't know he was capable of, promises to never leave again, and a ring you didn't pry about, not wanting to know where he got it. You had forgiven him almost instantly like the lovesick idiot you were, but it took a few days and a few rancid curses and half hearted shoves from Ellie before he found forgiveness from her.

Now, your normal was beginning to lay a foundation. Ellie was attending school, Joel had found his footing as a handy man and patroller, while you were at the medical clinic, using your medical education from one of the last remaining hospitals in the US and learning from the more experienced doctors already set up in Jackson.

Things were as perfect as they could be. Except for one or two things that irked you a little bit. Most specifically, Joel's complete aversion to PDA. You were young, pretty (of course you were pretty, you looked like your mom and your grandmother), and had a growing appetite for physical affection now that you found a man who spoke to every part of you. Joel, on the other hand, struggled quite a bit with physical affection in public settings. He was affectionate in private and had no problem keeping up with you behind closed doors, but out in public...let's just say, people were honestly shocked when they found out you were a couple, and not just because of the age difference.

While it was something you had long ago made peace with, you still found your mind wandering down other avenues of possibilities, such as now as you finished putting away the last of the files at the clinic. It was Friday afternoon and the clinic was closing early because there were no patients on the schedule and it was the first day of fall, so everyone wanted to get outside while the sun was still up and enjoy the beautiful weather before the winter chill settled in. The other staff had taken off before you, eager to go and be with their families. You were happy to stay behind and close up, as Ellie was staying after school to help out with one of the teachers and Joel was on patrol until late.

"Need any help?"

Cursing hysterically, you whirled around at the sound of a male voice behind you. Greg, one of the farmers stood in the doorway, having the courtesy to look bashful for scaring the hell out of you.

You took a moment to catch your breath, putting a hand to your pounding heart and letting out a startled laugh. "Jesus. Sorry. No, thanks, Greg. I appreciate it but this is all confidential information. I'm actually almost done anyway."

He grinned and you had to admit that he was handsome. "Is anything really confidential in Jackson?"

You laughed again, seeing his point. Nothing was private in such a small town. Sometimes 300 people felt more like 30. "Even so, I know at least four people in these files who would be pissed if anyone besides their doctors saw their medical information."

Greg held up his hands in a well meaning acknowledgment of defeat. "Totally understand. I actually have a question for you."

More than used to having citizens pull you aside and bashfully ask for medical advice, you set down the stack of files in your hands and turned to fully face Greg, your stethoscope swinging on your neck.

"Sure. What the problem?"

"What are you doing tonight?"

You blanched, but recovered quickly. This wasn't the first time a man in Jackson had asked you out since you had arrived in Jackson, and you were sure it wouldn't be the last. Greg was the second this week. Of all the gossip that seemed to travel around Jackson, the fact that you weren't interested in dating didn't seem to be part of it.

You pasted on what you called your 'patient smile.' "I'm flattered, Greg, but I'm not really looking right now."

He chuckled. "I'd be careful with that. Pickins' are pretty slim here. Wouldn't want to find yourself runnin' out of time." You pursed your lips and narrowed your eyes, not impressed by his not so subtle implication that you were already over the hill at 30 years old.

"I'm actually not too worried. Again, I'm flattered, but I'm not interested." When Greg took a step closer, you instinctively backed up further into the room. You didn't know if he was purposefully being intimidating, but you weren't a fan either way. "Any way I can change your mind?" he asked.

"She said she wasn't interested."

You jumped at the deep voice coming from the doorway and Greg turned, neither of you having heard Joel come into the clinic. He stood in the doorway, his rifle slung over his shoulder and his brow furrowed deep. In his heavy boots and heavier coat, he looked even bigger than normal.

"Hey, Joel," Greg chirped, somehow unaware of the menace in the room. "I'm just chatting with y/n here. Thought you were on patrol."

Joel was walking through the room this time, sticking to the perimeter, his eyes not leaving Greg. "Horse started limpin'. Doc Jetson's takin' a look at her." Joel had made it to your side and had angled his body toward you, the front of his coat brushing your shoulder. He looked ready for a fist fight. You were just shocked he was being this obvious about getting close to you in a semi-public place.

"Well," Greg continued, somehow missing the obvious body language of the two people in front of him. "I was hoping to talk y/n into changing her mind." A bright, boyish smile. "Got any tips?"

"Don't think it's going to work out for you this time, bud," Joel responded, no longer looking at him. He was now reaching very deliberately across your chest and pulling the stethoscope from around your neck and tossing it gently on the counter next to you. "You ready?"

You nodded, still baffled at his behavior. His hand on the small of your back sent a thrill up your spine and you allowed him to usher you past Greg, who was staring at the both of you with raised eyebrows.

Outside, the sky was frosted and there was a glorious bite in the air. You had been in the clinic all day and the sharp temperature change made you shudder and wrap your arms around yourself.

Joel looked down at you and quirked an eyebrow. "You bring a coat?"

"No, Bev Lanson's daughter fell out of her bed and needed stitches in her scalp at 5 this morning so I didn't get to grab one."

"And Ellie said she never saw you at the mess hall for lunch."

You grimaced at the chiding, but a glance at Joel showed his mouth was quirked up in amusement and he was shaking his head. "Hold this." You only just caught his rifled as he hauled it over his shoulder and plopped it in your arms to take off his coat.

It was heavy and warm as he settled it around your shoulders. You grinned like an idiot as you held it around your shoulders and leaned into him. While he didn't put his arm around you, he let you lean deep into his side as you walked through the town.

II. You exploded out of the clinic, making three women who were headed to 5 AM morning patrol jump and look at you like startled deer, their rifles clattering together as they stumbled against each other. You ignored them and Dr. Hansen's voice behind you as you stormed down the steps and down the road toward the barn.

Your chest was tightening. Your lungs were constricting. Your heart was a hammer in your chest. You were having a panic attack. The first since you got to Jackson and the first in months. Your last panic attack had been when you though the fireflies were going to tear Ellie's brainstem out. Flora's baby hadn't made it. Only two months left on a seemingly health fetus and she had miscarried. Jackson didn't have the equipment for an operation, so you had done your best to stem the bleeding, then held her as Dr. Hansen finished up. She had been bawling so hysterically you thought she was going to pass out and you were the only person she would let hold her.

It was the first time in Jackson that something had felt so truly hopeless. Was this the future here? Watching people die? You had come to Jackson to escape that and now you wrist deep in the blood.

You sucked in a violent breath as you approached the sheep pen, a new sense of panic settling in when you realized breathing was getting more difficult.

In...Out...In...Out.

You closed your eyes and repeated the mantra in your head as you leaned against the rails of the paddock, gripping the splintered wood in your palm.

"Y/N?"

Starting violently, you whirled around and ran straight into Joel's chest. When he grabbed your arms to steady you, you jerked back, your body defaulting to fight or flight. He held fast, pulling you back into his chest, even as you shoved at him.

"Calm down, honey. Take a breath. Just like you taught me."

You closed your eyes again and took another deep breath, but it only whistled through your lungs in a weak gasp. Gripping the lapels of his thick coat in your hands, you tried again, shutting your eyes tight and bending your head in concentration. Joel took a step forward until the top of your head was pressed to his chest. After a few more deep breaths, he cupped your face in his callused hands and pulled your head up to rest your forehead against his heart. You listened to the strong beat beneath his sternum and the soothing words he murmured into your hair, felt the bite of his zipper against your palms and the scent of hay on his flannel.

After what felt like a lifetime, your breathing returned to normal and your heart resumed it's regular beat.

"There, honey. Good. Good."

Pulling your head from his chest, you opened your eyes and stared up at Joel's bearded face, his eyes creased with worry but strong with resolve. Leaning forward, you buried your nose against the exposed patch of skin beneath his shirt and took a deep inhale. The two of you stood like that in comforting silence until you cleared your throat and pulled lightly at his grip. He let go of your face, but cupped your shoulders and pulled back slightly to look down into your eyes.

"What happened, baby?"

You cleared your throat again. "Nothing. I mean...I'll tell you later. I have to get back before Dr. Hansen finds me and calls me a pussy." A grizzled old army surgeon, he didn't take lightly to what he perceived as weakness.

"I'll walk you back."

That took you a bit by surprise, but you wouldn't say no. One of the first things Joel had ever told you when you met - after nearly blowing your head off - was that he didn't do comforting or coddling. He had gotten better, but he was always visibly uncomfortable.

He didn't press any further as you walked down the road back to the clinic, but he reached his hand out to brush it against yours and eventually tuck it into his own.

You took another deep breath when you got to the porch of the clinic, bracing yourself for Dr. Hansen's inevitable speech.

"You sure you're okay?" Joel asked again.

"Yeah," you answered, not actually lying this time. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Thanks."

Before you took a step forward, he took the back of your neck in a gentle grip and laid a long kiss to your temple.

As you trudged up the stairs, you turned and gave him a sultry look over your shoulder. "You can just talk me through anything, can't you?" You squealed and laughed, jumping through the door as he reached out to pinch your ass.

III. "Hey!

When Joel didn't immediately turn around, you looked around for something to throw at him. Spotting a bucket of freshly picked apples, you picked one up, tested the weight with a little toss, then hurled it at the back of his head.

He turned immediately, looking every bit the grumpy old man as he glared at you and rubbed the back of his head.

"What the hell was that for?"

"You didn't answer me."

"I didn't hear you."

"Hence the apple."

Joel rolled his eyes as he picked his way through the sheep he had been corralling into the paddock. Slipping yourself through the gaps in the fence, you leaned back against it and gave him an innocent smile.

Crossing the paddock, he fixed you with an exasperated but amused look. "What do you want?"

"What do you want for dinner tonight?

He snorted. "That's what you threw an apple at my head for?"

You rolled your eyes in response. "Ellie left for that nature trip with her class this morning so we can make whatever we want." For a feral cat of a child, Ellie could be surprisingly picky.

That seemed to peek Joel's interest. "Hmmm. How about steak and potatoes?" You grinned, having started prepping this morning knowing he would choose that. "Perfect."

You stood in companionable as Joel got the sheep settled and fed. You piped up again, "Ellie won't be getting back until Sunday night."

"That's what I heard."

"And neither of us are on shift this weekend."

"Yeah, 'bout time."

"I wonder what in the world we'll do all weekend."

Joel shrugged, your innuendo flying straight over his head. "No clue. Probably catch up on the sleep I haven't gotten for the past 20 years."

You rolled your eyes. "Joel...Joel." His head shot up from the stubborn sheep he was trying to push around with his knees. "What?"

"We're alone for a whole weekend, with no reason to leave the house, for the first time since we got here and all you can think about is sleeping?"

It took him a long moment, but then his mouth turned up into a sly smile and he maneuvered around the sheep to stand in front of you.

"Did you have something else in mind, darlin'?" His broad hands settled on your hips.

You pretended to think. "I'm not sure. Sounds like sex isn't on my husband's mind half as much as mine. Plenty of other single men to choose from--"

You squealed and laughed when Joel plucked you up off the ground and sat you down on the top rung of the fence. You hooked your feet around the bottom rung and clutched his shoulders for balance. He squeezed your hips and gave you a narrow eyed look, oblivious to the stares you had garnered. "Brat. Try it and I'll suddenly remember how to brawl."

"I've seen you brawl at least ten times since I've met you."

"Should've seen me in my twenties."

You squeezed his shoulders, kneading your nails into the thick material of his coat before murmuring quietly, "All I care about is that you know how to brawl with me." Joel groaned and hauled you down for a long, desperate kiss to your mouth. Turning, he tried to adjust himself as discreetly as possible before walking back out into the pen. You remained on the fence for a little while longer, heart glowing every time Joel walked past to give you a peck on the knee and a sultry look that promised many things.

The two of you turned in about three hours early that evening, your carefully prepared steak barely touched.

IV. "Where'd you get that dress, y/n?"

You turned away from the carrots on the counter to Ellie, who was flopping down the hallway of your home with her usual puppy-like grace.

"Oh, Mrs. Sawyer made it for me for delivering her new grandbaby. Do you like it?" It was short and airy, made you feel feminine and beautiful after spending day after day in scrubs. It was unseasonably warm today, probably the last warm day before fall fully settled in. "Yeah, I like it a lot," she answered as she swiped a carrot off the counter.

You gave her a side eyed smirk. "Want me to ask her to make you one?"

Ellie blushed and sputtered. "What? No! No way! I mean...I'm okay. Seriously. Where are you going?"

"Maria, Leslie and Megan invited me to the bar. And no I'm not sneaking you a beer."

Elli glared and grumbled something as she headed to the front door, trying and failing to dodge the hand you reached out to ruffle her hair. As you turned back to your food prep, you heard Ellie say hello to Joel as he walked into the house, heard his answering grunt of greeting. The door closed behind Ellie and you heard Joel stride across the wood floors until he was standing right behind you. You shuddered when he traced his hands lightly up the sides of your thighs, inching the dress up your legs. "I like this dress," he rumbled, laying a long kiss to your hair.

"Yeah, me too. Brenda Sawyer wanted to pay me somehow." He was pressing in tight to you now, cradling your hips back against his, your dress above your waist now. He nuzzled another kiss to you hair. "I'll have to thank her. Where you headed all dressed up?"

Your grip tightened on the hilt of the knife as he slowly kissed down your neck, his hands kneading your hips. "Tipsy Bison with Maria and, um, some other women. Drinks." Joel gave your hips a squeeze one final kiss to your shoulder before pulling away. "I'll go with you." You looked over your shoulder and raised an eyebrow. "Really?" He raised an eyebrow right back. "Yes, really. Why is that so shocking?"

You shrugged and went back to chopping carrots. "No, it's just you've never gone with me before. I guess you're usually on patrol." He struggled being idle.

"First time for everything. What time you going?"

"I was thinking about 30 minutes?"

"Plenty of time."

The knife was pushed out of your hand and the carrots swiped to the side. You shrieked and laughed when Joel whirled you around, shoved your dress back up your hips, and plucked you up onto the counter. You wrapped your arms around his broad shoulders as his mouth found yours.

A quick 20 minutes later and narrowly avoiding a second round, you two were walking into Tipsy Bison, which was already in full swing. Joel had walked a little closer to you than normal, his fingertips brushing the hem of your dress as you walked. After a brief brush of his hand on the small of your back, you went your separate ways in the bar, you heading toward a booth with the women who had invited you, and Joel toward his brother and some other men he often found himself paired with on patrol. As much as you would have liked to stick by his side all night, you were happy he was trusting people enough to make friends. Despite the fact that he fucked you hoarse nearly every night, you felt a bit like a proud mom sometimes.

As the night went on, the drinks flowed and the laughter became louder. The warm weather seemed to settle in everyone's bones and everyone was on the small dance floor, from the 70 year old carpenter shuffling with his three toddler granddaughters to the fifteen year old girl shyly asking her classmate to dance. You and your friends had made your way out to the floor as well, your drinks sloshing onto the floor as you laughed and danced like teenagers. When a slow song came on and the lights dimmed, the string lights on the ceiling coming on, you began to make your way back to your booth, but a warm hand on your wrist stopped you. Turning, you found Joel standing behind you. You frowned in confusion. "You okay?"

He frowned right back as he tugged you toward him, pulling your arm around his shoulder and sliding his other hand across your waist. "Does something have to be wrong for me to dance with you?"

Smiling big, you tightened your arms around his shoulders and pressed tight to his front as his callused hands settled on your hips, massaging your skin through the thin fabric of your dress. "Joel Miller knows how to dance?"

He chuckled as you both began to sway to the beat. "I never said that." Grinning back, you massaged the nape of his neck and nuzzled you cheek against his shirt, closing your eyes and listening to the strong pulse of his heart. When the song ended, he wrapped your hand in his and led you back to the bar, shouldering through curious looking patrons. Maybe it was the whisky, but he was handsy for the rest of the night, pulling you between his legs as he sat at the bar talking with some of the other guys from his normal patrol, his arm around your waist as he laughed and sipped his whisky. Around midnight, it was you who tugged on his hand and informed him it was time to go. You only made it around the back of the bar before your dress was around your waist for the second time that night.

V. It had been a long, busy day at the clinic. All the doctors and nurses were called in to treat all sorts of injuries, allergies, bites, coughs, stomach aches, bloody noses, etc. By 6 PM, all you wanted to do was collapse into bed, but a pile of charts was waiting for you and you had already been hounded twice about being behind. Scrubbing your hands over your eyes, you reached for the folder at the top of the file.

"Y/n?"

You turned as Maria came into the clinic, red cheeked and huffing like she had run there.

"Yeah, hi, what's wrong?"

"It's Joel. Sally's gun went off close to him, grazed him on the side of the head. He says--"

You were already shoving past her and sprinting down the road, your heart hammering beneath your ribs. You heard Maria call after you then curse, but you didn't stop, dodging people and moving past the guards through the now open gate.

The patrolmen had stopped a few hundred feet from the entrance. A few had dismounted their horses and were gathered around someone with their head down. "Move," you ordered, putting every ounce of hard earned medical authority into your voice. The crowd parted and you saw Joel standing there, his head bent and his gloved hand prodding at a serious laceration at the side of his head. Your heart flew into your throat as you stopped in front of him and pulled his hand away from his head. "Stop doing that," you snapped.

Joel rolled his eyes but did as he was told, letting his arm fall to his side but keeping his head bent so you could take it in your hands and turn it this way and that. You cleared your throat, not fully trusting yourself to speak, but knowing you had to nonetheless. "Decent laceration, nothing serious. Worse than it looks. Few stitches should be fine."

"Can you make it to the clinic, Joel?" Tommy asked, earning an irritated look from his big brother. "Yes, I can make it back to the damn clinic. She didn't blow my head off." Then he turned back to you. "And what are you doing out here without a gun or an escort?"

You gave him a furious glare. "Don't start. C'mon before you faint." With that, you turned on your heel and strode back toward the gates. There was some shuffling and mutters before you heard the group following behind you.

You got back to the clinic a few minutes before them and grabbed the suture kit, laying it all out for when they arrived. Hearing heavy boots come up the stairs and Joel tell Tommy to "get off me", you turned in time to see Joel poke his head in, then quickly duck back out. You came to the door. "What?"

He cleared his throat, looking a little green. "It...It smells. I'm gonna be sick if I have to go in there."

"You're nauseous?"

"Yeah, I guess."

The anxiety flared back up but you slammed it back down. "Then your head wound is worse than I thought. You might have a concussion. Fine, sit down on the bench."

He did as he was told, this time not yelling at Tommy for guiding him with a hand to the elbow. He sat down with a grunt, pulling off his gun and disarming it.

"Ya'll good here?" Tommy asked and you nodded. "Yeah, I'll patch him up and put him to bed."

"I don't need-"

"Be quiet."

Joel scowled at you and then at Tommy, who didn't bother hiding his grin before turning away toward Maria, who was waiting at the bottom of the stairs.

You unloaded your kit in silence, cleaning up the dried blood before running a lidocaine pad over the cut. It really wasn't too bad, but it was over his old scar and would be tricky to suture at the angle you were now at. After a few minutes, you very gently prodded the skin around the cut. "Feel that?"

"No ma'am."

"Good, tilt your head to the side and don't move or I'll sew your ear to your head." You heard him chuckle, but he once again did as he was told. Stepping closer to him, you angled his head to the side. You were so focused you almost didn't notice his hands come up and begin massaging the backs of your legs in slow, sweeping motions from the tops of your thighs to the back of your knees. When he got close enough to your backside to make you shudder, you gave his hair a little tug. "You're distracting me."

Joel only hummed in answer, his eyes closing almost in relaxation, as if you weren't sewing his head shut. His hands settled at the backs of your knees, his forehead resting against your chest as you finished up your work. He didn't let go of you immediately, instead pulling his head up and resting his chin between your breasts, blinking lazily up at you. You let yourself wrap your arms around his neck and stare down at him, the forceps and scissors still in your hands.

"You were shot."

"Yep."

"Don't let it happen again."

His mouth curved in an amused smile and his hands squeezed your knees. "Yes, ma'am."

"Now go to bed."

He seemed to open his mouth to object but you cocked your eyebrow in a withering glare. Sighing, he stood with your help, gave you a chaste peck on the head, and grabbed his rifle before moving off toward your home.

+ I. "Wait, so are you and Joel actually, like, married?"

You blinked at Maria's question. You had never actually never been asked that before, as most people didn't even know you were together. You often wore the ring he gave you, if not on your hand, then on a thin chain around your neck, and you had never bothered getting a ring for Joe, as you wouldn't even know where to get one. You did refer to him as your husband and he told you he thought of you as his wife and referred to you as such whenever it came up.

When you were younger, you had, of course, had the girlhood dreams of a big white wedding and a storybook marriage, but when the virus struck, it all seemed so trivial. Now...you weren't really sure how you felt.

"I mean, I guess not," you finally answered with a shrug. "Never really considered making it official."

"What're you two yappin' about back there?"

Both you and Maria flinched in your saddles when Chet barked back at you, nudging your horses faster to keep up with the rest of the patrol. They had been short a man today after Will sprained his ankle, so you volunteered to step in since the clinic was slow and fully staffed. Joel had groused about it, but you were excited to go beyond the walls for even a few hours. And nothing had happened on patrols in months, so you weren't particularly worried.

"Do you want to make it official?" Maria prodded when the two of you got a little closer to the rest of the group, but still far enough back to have some privacy.

"Again, never really thought about it. We've just been getting settled and making sure Ellie gets settle." Another shrug. "It just hasn't been a priority."

"Do you want it to be a priority?"

You gave her a hard side eye. "What's with the sudden investment in me and Joel's relationship? When we got here you didn't even like-"

"RAIDERS!"

Your stomach dropped, panic barreling up your spine into your heart as chaos ensued. Shots rang out and people shouted as horses screamed and reared up in surprise. You scrambled for the gun at your hip, pulling it out just in time to get a raider in the knee and finish him off with one to the head. More shots sounded, closer this time and there was another cry of pain as eleven more raiders closed in.

Pain burned through your arm and you cried out, dropping your gun, which went off as it hit the ground. Your horse reared up in surprise, sending you out of the saddle and sprawling to the ground. When your back met the grass, the pandemonium faded away, overwhelmed by a deafening ring as your head snapped back on your spine and your brain slammed against your skull. Groaning, you tried to breathe through the pain.

It all came roaring back when a massive weight fell into your gut, pushing the air out of your lungs in a massive below. The unblinking eyes of the raider sprawled over you stared back at you and you heaved him off with a grunt. Pushing to your knees, you just avoided a riderless horse as it galloped past you, back toward the commune.

There was still shouting, gunshots, shrieking horses and grunts of pain. As everything came back into focus, you managed to reach out and grab a raider by the ankle, sending him sprawling onto the ground in front of you. He turned onto his back, eyes wild as he leveled the barrel of a pistol between your eyes...

His head snapped back and his gun dropped from his hand, his whole body going limp from the bullet in the back of his head. Blinking against the sun, you could see the group of people running from the direction of Jackson, each of them stopping sporadically to steady themselves and fire off a shot. It was Joel who slowly lowered a rifle aimed in your direction, his eyes wild and his chest heaving.

The group was on you in the next second, falling on the last remaining raiders as they attempted to escape, leaving their dead behind. You hadn't made it to your feet yet, the pain in your arm screaming even as the pain in your head receded. It was Joel who finally hauled you up despite your cry of pain when he grabbed you under the arms.

"What is it? Where? Where does it hurt? Show me! Show me!!" You had never heard him sound so frantic as he ran his hands roughly over your body, unzipping your jacket to look for blood on your shirt.

"My-My arm. It's my arm."

His hands became gentle as he took your arm in his hands and cradled it for Dr. Hansen as he bustled over with a medical kit.

"Just a flesh wound," he said gruffly. "Let's get her back to the clinic. You'll need quite a few stitches. Thank christ you're the only injury."

Joel rounded on you, taking your other arm in his hand and placing a hand on your back to guide you back toward Jackson with the rest of patrol following close behind.

An hour later, you and Joel walked out of the clinic, your arm freshly stitched but still burning in pain. Joel had watched over Dr. Hansen like a bear until you thought the two of them would come to blows. You were exhausted and just wanted to shower and sleep forever. Joel had been quite since you had gotten back and you had a feeling he would blow up when you got back to your house, ban you from ever going on patrol again, and sleep outside your bedroom door with his rifle.

"Joel," you finally prodded as you stepped onto the porch of the clinic, his back to you as he stared out over the town, hands on his hips. "Are you okay?"

Silence.

You sighed. "Joel, will you please--"

"Let's get married."

You blinked, not sure if you had heard that right or if you had rattled your brain more than you thought.

"I'm sorry?"

He turned to face you, his face completely serious. "Let's get married. Right now."

"Joel, what are you--"

He strode toward you and cupped your face so tenderly you could have cried. He let out a trembling breath as he leaned his forehead against yours. "We should have gotten married the day we got to Jackson. It didn't seem important then but now...I didn't know why."

You reached up to grip his wrists. "It doesn't matter to me if we make it official in any way or any of the legal stuff. Is that what's bothering you?"

"You could have died today."

That realization settled into your stomach for the first time and you barely suppressed a shudder. "I could have."

"We've both almost died a hundred times since we've met, and every day I wondered...would they have buried us next to each other? Would anyone have known that we loved each other after we're gone?"

For the first time in a long time, you were speechless, enamored by this man who made you weak.

"I just..." he took a shuddering breath. "I-I love you on purpose. And I want everyone to know. I want you to know."

You opened your mouth once. Twice. "I...okay. Yes. Yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes."

"TOMMY!"

His shout sent your brain reeling again and you nearly fell as he let go of your head and whirled around.

Tommy poked his head out from behind the horse he was leading to the barn. "Yeah?"

"Where's Pastor John? Y/N and I are getting married."

"What?"

"Pastor John? Where is he?"

"I heard that part." Tommy had abandoned the horse to a passing woman and headed over, his face comically confused. "You're getting married?"

"Yeah."

"Right now?"

"Yes! Right now!"

Joel had grabbed your hand in his and was pulling you down the stairs toward the church.

"I...okay." Tommy trailed behind the two of you, cupping his hands around his mouth and calling out for Pastor John. You had drawn a crowd by this point, Jackson citizens wandering out of the buildings and murmuring excitedly as Joel beat a warpath toward the church and you stumbled after him, grumbling at Tommy to stop yelling before you punched him.

Finally, Pastor John appeared out of the mess hall, adjusting his glasses and straightening the collar of his flannel like it was a full cassock. "What's all the hollerin' about?"

"Y/N and I are getting married," Joel stated as he came to a stop, causing you to run into him with a grunt. "Right now."

Pastor John blinked and looked at you as if for confirmation. You leaned into Joel and nodded happily, the reality of the situation finally beginning to settle. You were getting married. Joel wanted to marry you. And he wanted the whole town to see.

"Ah, okay," Pastor John finally said, adjusting his glasses again. "I guess we should head on over to the church."

The mass of people at your back grew with every step you took through the town until you were all 300 of them were tittering like school kids behind you.

"Move! MOVE! No, you get out of my way. Y/n!"

You turned in time to see Ellie shoulder her way through the crowd until she was at your side, her chest heaving like she had personally shoved aside all 300 people to reach you. She stared up at you with huge eyes. "Were you really going to get married without me?"

You cupped her face in your hands. "Baby, I didn't even know I was getting married until five minutes ago."

"Can I be your bridesmaid?"

You laughed. "Of course." She gave you a massive grin and threw her arms around your middle, holding you tight and you could hear her sniffling against your chest.

Twenty minutes later, every citizen in Jackson, from the oldest to the youngest, had squeezed into the small church with you and Joel at the front with Pastor Joe, Elli standing behind you holding a handful of daisies she had ripped from the ground outside the sheep pen.

"...I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."

You expected a small, chaste peck on the lips, but Joel took your face in his hands and swooped down to take your mouth in a kiss so intense you had to grip his shoulders to stay upright. The church exploded in applause and cheers and Joel pulled you back upright, giving you one more chaste kiss before giving you the biggest smile you had ever seen on him. Taking your hand in his, he walked you down the crowded aisle.

He never let go of it again.

#The Last of Us #The Last of Us HBO #Joel Miller #Pedro Pasal #Joel Miller x Reader #TLOU #Joel Miller fic #Joel Miller x Y/N #Joel Miller x You #The Last of us fanfiction #Awkward-Sultana #5 + 1 #TLoU fanfiction

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cceanvvaves · 6 months

Text

dress; m.sn

(moved to isanggayfrog) warning: swearing

"god, i'm so bored," you groan into sana's shoulder, holding your arm out a little to prevent your drink from spilling. the brunette only laughs at your misery, taking a sip from her own glass.

"you were the one who came."

you huff and roll your eyes. "you were the one who begged me to come."

"i did not beg!" she protests.

"oh, please," you raise an eyebrow, "with the endless 'please please please' and puppy eyes?"

"well..."

her retort dies down in her throat, having no argument. she simply scoffs. you smirk in triumph, leaning into the nearest table and downing your drink in one gulp. "your mom is so bad at parties," you start. "like, where is the music? where are the dancers and the hot people?"

sana laughs again. "you expect that in a business party? this thing's hosted so that i can greet old men and talk about business and shit."

"no wonder i'm bored."

"you're lucky you're not the ceo's daughter," sana complains. "you don't get the 'oh, you're the little minatozaki girl!' and the 'you've grown up to be a gorgeous young lady!'. you just have to stand there and look pretty for me."

"i'm gonna ignore that last part." you snicker at the irritated look on her face.

"ah, sana, am i right? minatozaki's little girl?" a balding man says, approaching the two of you. sana plasters on a fake smile and you avert your eyes, taking interest in the brownies.

they talk for a bit, you eventually losing your interest in seeing sana shifting uncomfortably. you excuse yourself and head to the snack table, helping yourself to majority of the desserts - after all, you came for the free food.

you'd just taken a bite out of a cupcake when a voice comes from behind you. you spin around and come face to face with a man - your age, maybe, or a little older.

he's fairly attractive, you can't deny, with an almost angelic smile. sadly, nothing can compare to a certain minatozaki girl's smile-

your thoughts are interrupted when he glances at your lips. "um, you've got something there-" he extends a hand and wipes off the frosting from the corner of your mouth.

eyes widening, you grab a tissue and wipe your mouth. "oh, thank you! i didn't notice."

"i'm taehyung," he continues. "i saw you from across the room and.. well, i really couldn't guess who had brought you. also, i wanted to introduce myself, so.."

"nice to meet you, taehyung." he seems nice and polite, so you decide to entertain him. "i'm y/n."

"that's.. a really pretty name."

you and taehyung stay together and talk, laughing when he tells you a story about his childhood and groaning when you tell him about an accident you'd had as a kid. you realize that he's actually fun to talk to, and a great listener, and you don't notice the time passing by until a hand slithers around your waist.

a surprised squeak leaves your lips as you glance at the newcomer, sighing in relief when you see that it's sana. "hi," you breathe out.

she has yet another fake smile on her face - but unlike those from earlier that night. it's a little stiff, a little... colder. "hi," she replies through gritted teeth. "i see you've made a new friend."

"oh, yeah!" you beam at taehyung. "sana, this is taehyung. taehyung, sana."

"oh, minatozaki sana? finally, nice to-"

"a pleasure to meet you, taehyung, but may i talk to y/n? alone?"

taehyung blinks, looking genuinely confused. he glances at you and then at sana, at you and back to sana again. "yes, sure, of course. you look really good in that dress, by the way, y/n."

you watch him walk away before turning to sana. "oh, come on, he was really sweet."

"i bet he thought you were really sweet, too," she grumbles, scowling.

"what, jealous?" you tease, but you can't tear your eyes away from the way her jaw tenses.

"no."

"okay, well, i'm gonna find tae-"

before your sentence even finishes she grabs you by the wrist. "stay."

you smirk and cross your arms, raising an eyebrow. "what, scared you'll be the the single one between us?"

"please don't joke about that."

"why not?"

sana sighs. "look, i don't really like him, but..."

"yes?"

"he's right about one thing." she carefully scans your figure. "you look good in that dress."

in a sudden burst of confidence you lean closer to her. "only bought this dress so you could take it off."

her 'tough' exterior crumbles and she's reduced to a confused puppy expression. "w-what?"

you pull her closer by her tie, close enough that your breaths ghost over each others' faces. "i want you. but i don't want you like a best friend."

you pull away and stare at her face for a reaction. "so? ditch this party with me?"

sana's face lights up in a grin.

#twice #female!reader #twice imagines #sana x reader #minatozaki sana

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bellarkeselection · 5 months

Text

Our Little Kenobi

Request from @starvingbrokestudent Can you do a super sweet pregnancy fic with Obi Wan? Like the reader finds out she’s pregnant after fertility issues and Obi Wan is just so excited?! And how they try to keep it a secret from the council and eventually she has a baby boy?

This will be a mini series like you asked 😁

Rushing to the bathroom I didn't even get the chance to remove my lightsaber and my robe from my body because the sickness was coming on so quickly. Holding onto the toilet I puked what I had ate in my stomach feeling out of breath afterwards. This wasn’t the first time this had happened and it was the third time I had gotten sick. Wiping my hand across my mouth I gagged on the taste leaving the bathroom once I had finished. Finding my communicator out of my robe pocket I thought of the first person I could call who wouldn’t ask too many questions. “Padme, can you come to my room please?”

“Of course. Do you need anything specific?” She asked me appearing as a blue hologram.

Running my fingers through my hair with my freehand I whispered under my breath almost like somebody else was listening on the other side of the door. “Could you uh…could you bring me a pregnancy test. I can’t have the medical droids look I into this. They can’t keep a secret if there is something going on.”

“Sure, I’ll be right over.” She hung up the call making me more nervous just waiting for her to come over.

Pacing back and forth across the floor frantically trying to calm my nerves but it wasn’t working. This couldn't be happening to me. I was a Jedi knight and a leader of one of the clone armies. There was a war going on all on top of it. I heard three knocks on the door before I opened the door quickly. “Come in, Padme.”

“Here it is. Why exactly did you need one?” She asked and I knew that she would after she told me about her and Anakin sneaking around.

Taking it from her hands I went into the bathroom quickly doing the test since the waiting was killing me. Sitting on the toilet I just stared at the test in my hands thinking that my life was now screwed. “Padme, I'm going to be forced out of the order.” I croaked through tears feeling her presence in the doorway of the bathroom just watching me.

“I thought Jedi were encouraged to love. That's what Anakin told me.” She responded.

Lifting my head up I felt tears building up. “But you're sneaking around aren't you. It's exactly what me and Obi-Wan are doing…stars he's going to be upset over this.”

“Maybe he will want the baby.’ She tried being hopeful. “Wait a second I should be asking do you want it first?”

Dropping my gaze to the ground floor silence filled the entire room at that point. I didn't know how to answer her question. Being a member of the Jedi order meant that things like love, marriage, and children were out the window. Gripping my hair in my fingers I screamed dropping the pregnancy test on the floor at my feet. “I don't think I can do this, Padme. I can't…I'm not prepared to be a mother. I barely even remember my own parents after the council found me. And then there's Obi Wan…he…I have no clue what he will feel.”

“Have you ever talked about the possibility of having kids with him if you weren’t Jedi knights?” Padme came into the bathroom and sat down beside me on the floor.

Burying my face into my knees I croaked. “We took an oath, Padme. No marriage, no children, no possibilities of going to the Dark Side.”

“I’m sorry Y/n. But I am here for you and whatever you decide to do.” She placed a hand on my shoulder and we both just sat in silence with me thinking back to that night between Obi wan and I.

Opening the door, he walked towards the bed and dropped me down to the bed. My back hit the soft silk sheets before I rose up from the bed staring at him softly and brought a hand to his cheek stroking it softly. He leaned into my touch and brought my fingers to his lips, kissing them softly for a moment before releasing them. Standing tall, he lifted his shirt over his head and threw it to the ground. My heart began to beat for a second as I stared at him, my eyes directed down to his muscular chest, and blushed at the sight.

I averted my eyes with my hands covering them quickly and tried to contain my blush, he looked up at me and smirked at my reaction. “You don’t have to be embarrassed, Y/n. You can look if you want to.”

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to do…have you ever done this before.” I pointed out to him where I peeked through my fingers for a split second.

My hands started to trace his form, I began to run his fingers up and down his muscular chest softly while I began to feel his hand start to crawl underneath my shirt. He yanked my shirt off my head, throwing it to the ground only once breaking the kiss until I was not able to not joke with him at least once. “Woah….you look just wow.”

He glanced down at my clothed beasts staring at them deeply before reaching behind my back and began to unclip the straps off and tear it off me in a split second. I gasped at him instantly reaching a hand to cover my breast, he let out a growl at them pushing my hands away. “ Don’t hide from me, my darling. You are perfect.”

He hovered over me and brought his lips down upon mine. I wrapped my arms around his neck and embraced more into the kiss. I felt a hard rock positioned at my lower religion, he placed his member at my center and looked up at me. “My love, this may hurt for a few minutes, I promise I'll go slowly. We can do this together, the both of us. Since….I haven’t done this before either. Are you sure you want this, I'll stop if you're not ready.”

“I want you. I want you, Obi.“ I said, gripping the bed sheets in my fingers, never moving my gaze from his. “ Please just go gently.”

Obi wan nodded his head slowly brushing some hair out of my face just admiring my face in the small light that was provided by the bedside lamp. “I want you just as much as you want me.”

Within moments I felt the pain suddenly vanish and began to feel pleasure. I began to move against him and leaned up pressing my lips down upon his. He embraced me back instantly when my fingers dug into his back. And that was the most enjoyable night of our lives.

I decided after a few days later to finally tell him what was happening. He deserved to know the situation so that we could figure out what to do next together. Standing out of his door I sucked in a shaky breath raising my fist and knocking three times on his door where it opened slowly for him to greet me. “Y/n, what can I do for you?”

“We need to talk…alone. If you have some time before our council meeting.” I almost whispered under my breath before he allowed me to come inside.

He shut the door behind himself, raising a brow. “What is going on, darling?”

“Did you remember the night we shared together? Well something I thought wouldn’t happen ended up actually happening.” Fiddling with my fingers in front of me I lowered my gaze to the ground trying to not show how terrified I was.

Obi wan was a much sharper Jedi then I thought I was though when he takes a few steps towards me. “Y/n, if something is making you nervous you can tell me. You know that right. So what is bothering you?”

“Obi, please don’t be upset. I already don’t know what I am going to do with the result. I can’t handle it if you rat me out and abandon me.” I lifted my head showing him my face was turning red with heavy tears coming down my cheeks.

Obi touched my shoulders, shifting his blue orbs down to my eyes. “Darling, please tell me what is wrong. I can’t help you if you don’t tell me.”

“I….I’m pregnant.” I croaked out lowering my head into his chest sobbing. “I’m pregnant with your child.”

The Jedi master froze for a moment so unsure of what to say. He was in the same position as yourself. He knew that the council wouldn’t allow you to remain in the temple. Yet he slowly wrapped his arms around my waist holding me gently letting silence fill the room until he finally separated the hug. “I’m not going to leave you, Y/n.”

“Wait what…are you being serious?” I sniffed clinging onto the fabric of his brown cloak for strength and his arms were still around my waist holding me close to his embrace.

He moved one hand to cradle the side of my face feeling me lean into his palm when he replied longingly. “I said I won’t leave you because you're pregnant. I know the risks that it means for us. But I’d be the biggest idiot if I left you over something we both consented too.”

“You have no idea how much of a relief that is to hear you say that, Obi wan.” I chuckled through tears with such relief off my shoulders as I fling my arms around his neck hugging him tightly but gently.

He tightened his grip around my waist, burying his face into my loose hair. His heart skipped a beat at the realization that he would be a father, he was terrified since he didn’t remember his own much. Yet there was more joy in his mind than fear. “I have been considering this for a long time. I guess you finally gave me the courage to do so…”

“What are you talking about…omg.” I gasped covering my mouth watching him lower himself down on one knee directly before me.

He revealed a tiny black box from inside his brown robe, opening it showing me a simple silver ring that had three jewels in the middle of it. His bright blue eyes poured up into mine. “Y/n, I love you. I know that we are told not to get attached to one another but I couldn’t help it. You are everything that I never knew I wanted until we started spending time together. This baby doesn’t want me to run away from all of that. It makes me want to stay by your side even more. So will you marry me?”

“Oh Obi Wan….yes.” I giggled letting him slide the ring on my finger getting to his feet. He cupped my face in his hands kissing me for the first time in a few days. I leaned up on my toes kissing him back.

Comments really appreciated ❤️ Tag list - @iifloweringnightsii

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bosbas · 6 months

Text

Chapter 8: no one wanted to play with me as a little kid

series masterlist previous part || next part

pairing: benedict bridgerton x best friend!fem!reader WC: 3.4k words

Warnings: period-typical gender roles, idiots in love being idiots in love (sort of. it's like pre idiots in love. on the cusp of idiots in love), fluff (so much fluff)

Summary: You and Benedict have been best friends since childhood, but things change dramatically once you come out in society. You’re struggling to find someone you’re as compatible with and who knows you as well as Benedict, all while trying to quell your ever-growing feelings for him. Shenanigans ensue.

A/N: you know what. let's pretend all of the ages/years make sense. kisses to all of you!

December 4, 1809 - Dearest, loveliest, most wonderful Y/I (your initial),

I am so sorry I have not written in almost two weeks, though I did enjoy the very strongly worded letter you sent me reminding me of this fact and demanding a response. I wish I had a better excuse, but truthfully, this term has just been hectic. But to answer the question you so politely asked: yes, I will be home in time for Christmas, and I will be staying for New Year's and your birthday (your birthday is not even two weeks after Christmas, darling, give me some credit!). Though I rather think you owe me a present instead of the other way around after calling me an oblivious toad.

As an apology for my silence, I've attached my reading list for the courses I am taking at Oxford this term so you can also read them. I am sure you will be able to find them in your library but do let my mother know if you cannot find them. We should also have copies in our library. I will be heading back to Aubrey Hall in ten days to see the lot of you, and I will eagerly be awaiting all of your thoughts on this term's reading.

Yours, B

You couldn't help the excited gasp that left your lips as soon as you were finished reading Benedict's letter. You hadn't even managed to leave your entryway before you hastily opened the envelope addressed to you, blurting out a thank you to your slightly startled butler, who had been taken aback by your eager rifling of the mail.

Now that Benedict was at Oxford, you barely got to see him at all, so you were more than a little excited when you read that you would only have to wait ten more days to see him. The three weeks he was home for the winter holiday were the bulk of your in-person interactions with him for the year, as had been the norm for the past three years he had been at university.

It wasn't all bad, though. Proof of that lay in a box in your bedroom filled with every single letter or note you had received from Benedict while he was away at Oxford. Even the short ones, when he was studying for an exam and barely had time to write a coherent response, had found a place inside your box. You supposed the box contained most of your friendship with Ben over the past three years, neatly organized by date from oldest to newest and separated by term.

Sometimes, you found yourself missing Benedict more than usual, and you would read through your favorite of his letters. Often, it ended up being the shortest notes that were the sweetest and ones you would read over and over. Even years after he had sent the letters, you found comfort in his messy scrawl after an afternoon playing Pall Mall without Benedict and his typical banter. But once you saw him at Aubrey Hall every December, it would be like no time had passed at all. You kept him up to date on everything happening at home with your family and his, and he told you wild stories from his time at Oxford.

And although you enjoyed hearing about his life, it was also bittersweet. You were so jealous of him, wishing more than anything that you could go to university, too. But alas, the pesky issue of your gender prevented you from furthering your education. You got as close as you could, though. Benedict would send you all of his readings every term, and you enjoyed discussing the books you read at length when he returned for the holiday season.

This is not to say that your conversations about literature and art were limited to your in-person time. In fact, most of your correspondence was about the books you were reading or the galleries you had gone to. Ben could spend pages and pages talking about a particular part of a painting, the way the artist had captured the way light filtered through the trees. And you loved every bit of it, engaging in your usual discussions. In a way, if you ignored how much you missed him, it was lovely to have a physical representation of your friendship.

However, you would soon stop being constrained to receiving correspondence from Ben every few days, and you could simply knock on his door if you were particularly interested in talking about an aspect of your book. Your time at Aubrey Hall had become your favorite time of year, three weeks of daily interactions with your best friend being the absolute best birthday present you could've ever asked for.

But this year was different. This was the last time you would have to say goodbye at the end of the holidays, seeing as Benedict was graduating in the spring and returning from Oxford permanently. To say you were over the moon was an understatement. You could barely wait to spend hours in his studio watching him paint again or reading aloud to him under the shade of the tree in your backyard on particularly warm days.

---

August 12, 1799 - Y/I, I thought you would like this one. Yours, B

Bypassing Alex and Anthony having a heated debate about who was better at billiards, Benedict headed straight in your direction across the garden, ignoring Daphne, Colin, Theo, and Bastian, who had been playing some team game that devolved into an argument. Benedict patted your head as he came by to sit beside you on the grass, momentarily drawing your attention away from the massive book on your lap.

Grabbing the book from your lap and transferring it to his own, he asked, "So, what do you think?"

You let out an excited squeal, shaking Benedict's nearest arm with both hands. "It's amazing, Ben! An entire book about flowers, who knew? I've spent hours looking at it already, and I'm not even halfway through! It's got so much information I could die. It's incredible. Thank you so much." Though it was left unsaid, Ben knew these were hours you would have otherwise spent alone. The twins were especially adamant about not having you play with them, and Alex and Anthony were too caught up in their never-ending competitions to pay any attention to you. With your mother and his being occupied with the toddlers, Francesca, Cass, and Eloise, who had only just begun to walk and talk, you and Ben were truly the only odd ones out. But it was no bother to him. He loved when you read aloud to him, and you would happily listen to him talk about his sketches for hours on end, something he could not say about any other member of the Bridgerton-Beaumont cohort.

Ben could only laugh fondly at your excitement, internally very proud that he had found a book you really enjoyed. "It's called an encyclopedia. There are loads of them about just about anything and everything in the world," he told you, leafing through the book himself. Gently pushing the book back in your direction, he prodded, "Well, go on then. Show me your favorite flowers so far."

Grabbing the book, you hastily turned the pages until you reached the flowers, starting with the letter 'd.' Standing up, you rushed to the nearest corner of the garden and dug around for a few seconds, coming back with a bunch of small white flowers clutched in your small hands.

Ben let out a short laugh, but you quickly shushed him, whining, "Stop it! It'll make sense in a second, I promise."

"I didn't say anything!" responded Ben defensively, putting his hands up in the air but unable to conceal the smile you had elicited from him.

"Okay. Look at the page. The daisies. They're also called Bellis perennis, but that's in Latin. We have them here in the garden! Isn't that lovely?" you said excitedly, placing the flowers beside Ben.

"Oh, that is quite nice, Y/N," he responded, picking one of the daisies up and placing it behind your ear, eliciting a bright smile from you. "Did you know that a Violet is a type of flower? And so is a Primrose."

"You mean both our mums have flower names? That's so fun. I wish everyone could have a flower name," you responded, excited to have learned new information.

"You could always give your daughters flower names," Ben suggested, enjoying the pure joy you were getting out of this.

"Well, before I have daughters, I would have to get married. And I don't want to do that! I just want to keep reading books. I want to read every single encyclopedia in the world!" you exclaimed, reaching your arms as high as they could go.

Ben laughed, highly amused by your antics. "Just like me, then. Except instead of reading it's painting," he responded as he laid down fully on the grass, looking up at the sky and feeling particularly thankful that someone understood how he felt. On the other hand, you took the opportunity to dump all of the flowers you had picked onto his torso, arranging and rearranging them into different designs. He could only laugh, not at all bothered that his shirt would surely be dirty now, just happy to watch you enjoy yourself.

After a few minutes of comfortable silence, you spoke up as you tried unsuccessfully to stack the flowers on top of each other. "That's perfect, then. We can get married, I can read, and you can paint, and we can have a daughter and give her a flower name."

"That sounds wonderful! I'm glad that's sorted," he laughed, lifting his head to find you flashing a toothy grin. "D'you like the name Daisy for our daughter, then?"

"That's lovely! And you can paint her a painting of a daisy for her room!" you responded eagerly. Benedict hummed in assent, busy imagining the dynamics of a blissful imaginary marriage.

---

January 3, 1810 - Y/I, Happiest of birthdays, darling. Come downstairs, where I have a proper gift and card waiting for you. Yours, B

As you came downstairs, you already feared the fate that awaited you. Every year, your birthday would begin with a very extreme and frankly excessive snowball fight involving all the Bridgerton-Beaumont children. You could trust no one. Alliances would easily crumble under pressure, and people were just as likely to betray their siblings as they would someone from the other family. You and Benedict, ordinarily inseparable, could become sworn enemies in the span of two snowballs. You couldn't even trust sweet Hyacinth, only seven years old, to be loyal to any team, seeing as she was an outstanding double agent, a lesson you had all learned the hard way. It was absolute chaos, and you loved every second of it. It didn't matter how old you were; this was always the best part of your birthday.

As soon as you stepped outside, a snowball the size of your fist hit your right shoulder. Slowly turning toward the perpetrator, you narrowed your eyes once you saw it was Gregory, who had helped you defeat Bastian and Francesca in one fell swoop last year. Clearly, that alliance was gone, and you would have to find someone else to rely on this year.

Since it was your birthday, the fight officially started when you threw the first snowball, and this year, you chose to throw it at Cassandra, your own sister, who had annoyed you at dinner yesterday by incessantly flinging peas at you. Once the tightly packed ball left your hand, all hell broke loose. You were hit in the stomach and leg simultaneously as you fired snowballs in every direction you could, laughing as you did.

You briefly ducked behind a tree trunk, needing a moment to breathe. You took advantage of the fact that you weren't a target to form a massive snowball. You carefully stepped away from behind the trunk, checking that the coast was clear. Without a second thought, you flung the snowball as hard as you could in the direction of the person closest to you.

Unfortunately, it hit Benedict straight in the face, blinding him for a few moments. Your mouth hung open, trying not to laugh because you knew you had packed quite a bit of force into your throw. You ran to Ben's side, apologizing as much as possible without bursting into laughter. He cleared the snow from his eyes and turned to you slowly, an evil grin forming on his face.

"I believe you have just declared war, Miss Beaumont," he said finally.

You screamed and ran in the opposite direction, knowing he would be absolutely merciless. You couldn't even look back, not wanting to slow down. After a few seconds of frantic sprinting, you felt Ben tackling you onto a massive pile of snow. Both of you were laughing hysterically while trying to catch your breath. He turned you over so you were lying down side by side, both of you panting heavily, looking up at the winter sky.

"I miss you," you said finally, turning your head toward him, only to find that he was already looking at you. He pulled you closer, wrapping both arms around you tightly before he helped you up and brushed the snow off of your coat.

"I know. I miss you, too. But it'll only be like this for a short while longer, and then you can come round every day and read to me while I paint, yeah?" he said, lifting your chin to look at him.

Your breath caught in your throat, and you felt your heartbeat quicken, his brown eyes not letting yours go. Your eyes flickered to his mouth briefly, your lips parting slightly. Looking back at his eyes, you saw something flash in them that you couldn't quite parse, an expression you hadn't seen before. Finally, you nodded, letting him pull you into him and kiss your forehead, enjoying the warmth and comfort you felt as you were wrapped tightly in his arms.

---

September 17, 1805 - Y/I, I can't believe you had a book about the exact artist I was talking about! I'll pop by yours later to say a proper thank you. Yours, B

Benedict walked into your sitting room, sprawling on the couch before you with his arm behind his head, silently waiting for you to look up from your book. But you had just gotten to an exciting part, and your eyes remained glued to the page, ignoring your best friend's attempt to get your attention.

You heard him huff and muttered a soft "Just a second, Ben" as your eyes raced across the page, eager to know what happened next. In response, he slid further down the couch and crossed his arms, eliciting a laugh from you and finally drawing you away from your book.

"You were barely waiting ten seconds, Benedict!" you exclaimed, secretly pleased he was so eager to see you. He was leaving for Oxford in a few weeks, and although you were trying not to think about the reality of him going, you were acutely aware that you would soon be unable to see him every day.

He rolled his eyes good-naturedly, responding with a teasing, "It felt like ten years!"

In recent months, the two of you had become inseparable. Your days were spent reading next to him as he painted, listening to him talk about his most recent artworks, or going for nature walks if you found yourself in Aubrey Hall. Anything to keep him close by before he left for Oxford, you reasoned. Though you couldn't help the growing affection, you were feeling, finding it impossible to look away when he tousled his hair just so and being a bit too pleased every time he complimented you. Every handsome smile or cheeky wink he sent your way lit you up inside, melting your heart just a little bit.

The problem was, and of course, there was a problem, that Benedict was always like this. Nothing about his demeanor had changed; your friendship was still the same as it had always been. Except now you found yourself spending a little too much time in the mornings making sure your hair looked good in case he popped by unannounced. Regardless, you knew Ben did not reciprocate your affections, so you tried to ignore these feelings as best as you could, folding them up very small and tucking them neatly in the corner of your heart for later examination.

Now, you found yourself on a couch against a wall of Benedict's studio, reading Romeo and Juliet as he was quietly sketching. This was quite possibly your favorite thing to do. Spend quiet afternoons together, reading and painting, enjoying each other's company. You took a moment to look at him as he scrunched his nose, unhappy with a certain aspect of the sketch.

He sighed and looked up at you, nodding toward your book. "What has Shakespeare got to say today?"

"That marriage is a death sentence," you replied, voice deadpan.

Ben burst into laughter. "Oh, come off it. It can't be that bad in real life. That's only a play! Besides, you've still got a while before you have to think about that," he tried to reason with you.

"Well, maybe. But it just sounds so unappealing. I want to do this. What we're doing now. I want to keep doing it. I don't want to be a wife! I just want to read and study," you argued.

Benedict stood up, coming to sit beside you and placing a comforting hand on your shoulder. "I know, darling. I'm sorry," but he knew you had more to say.

You groaned, pushing your forehead into his shoulder. "I just don't think I'll ever be happy if I'm forced to marry. And I most likely will be, knowing my mother. She'd rather die than have one of her daughters turn into a spinster," you huffed, missing the sympathetic look you got from Ben. "And who will my husband be? A clueless man with no interest in me beyond my ability to be a good wife? I cannot imagine a worse fate."

---

May 8, 1810 - Y/I, I'll keep this one short, seeing how I'll be properly back in a few days! I've been quite busy with graduation, but I'm excited to come home. Yours, B

You smiled as you placed the last letter you had received from Benedict back in your box. The collection was complete. Three years of correspondence between the two of you finally come to an end. You carefully closed the box and returned downstairs, where a big family gathering was occurring in the garden.

As soon as you stepped outside, Ben was at your side, chatting your ear off about one thing or another. He had barely left you alone since he had been back, granting you only a few minutes to yourself, but you couldn't complain. You wrapped an arm around his torso as you walked back to the garden table.

"Oh, you look so darling!" cried Violet, cooing at the two of you.

"You're proper adults now! Both of you! How the time has passed," your mother added, reaching out to hold Violet's hand.

Benedict could only smile, too happy to be back at your side to focus on anything else. He had missed you loads while he was at Oxford, but having your arm around him now, he realized just how much he needed you. Ben placed a soft kiss on the top of your head, unable to help himself as you sat down at the table. He sat right next to you, taking one of your hands into his own so he could play with your fingers as you chatted with Primrose and Violet.

Oxford had been a riot, to be sure, but he was so glad to come home to you.

—

previous part || next part || buy me a ko-fi!

Tag List (lmk if you want to be added!): @bellahadidnt16 @like-gabriel-and-castiel @riverraingrayworld @5sos-calm @elissanatok @titanicnerd-blog @noonenuts @moonwayne @lilasblogg @mmontgomeryb @fulltacoparadise @joyfullymulti

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yelenasvestenthusiast · 6 months

Text

i don't want you like a best friend; kate bishop

summary: there are other things more entertaining than business parties. warning: swearing , slight jealousy , fluff , suggestive if you squint

"god, i'm so bored," you groan into kate's shoulder, holding your arm out a little to prevent your drink from spilling. the black-haired girl only laughs at your misery, taking a sip from her own glass.

"you were the one who came."

you huff and roll your eyes. "you were the one who begged me to come."

"i did not beg!" she protests.

"oh, please," you raise an eyebrow, "with the endless 'please please please' and puppy eyes?"

"well..."

kate laughs again. "you expect that in a business party? this thing's hosted so that i can greet old men and talk about business and shit."

"no wonder i'm bored."

"you're lucky you're not the ceo's daughter," kate complains. "you don't get the 'oh, you're the little bishop girl!' and the 'you've grown up to be a gorgeous young lady!'. you just have to stand there and look pretty for me."

"i'm gonna ignore that last part." you snicker at the irritated look on her face.

"ah, kate bishop, am i right? eleanor's little girl?" a balding man says, approaching the two of you. kate plasters on a fake smile and you avert your eyes, taking interest in the brownies.

they talk for a bit, you eventually losing your interest in seeing kate shifting uncomfortably. you excuse yourself and head to the snack table, helping yourself to majority of the desserts - after all, you came for the free food.

you'd just taken a bite out of a cupcake when a voice comes from behind you. you spin around and come face to face with a man - your age, maybe, or a little older.

he's fairly attractive, you can't deny, with an almost angelic smile. sadly, nothing can compare to a certain bishop girl's smile-

your thoughts are interrupted when he glances at your lips. "um, you've got something there-" he extends a hand and wipes off the frosting from the corner of your mouth.

eyes widening, you grab a tissue and wipe your mouth. "oh, thank you! i didn't notice."

"i'm dante," he continues. "i saw you from across the room and.. well, i really couldn't guess who had brought you. also, i wanted to introduce myself, so.."

"nice to meet you, dante." he seems nice and polite, so you decide to entertain him. "i'm y/n."

"that's.. a really pretty name."

you and dante stay together and talk, laughing when he tells you a story about his childhood and groaning when you tell him about an accident you'd had as a kid. you realize that he's actually fun to talk to, and a great listener, and you don't notice the time passing by until a hand slithers around your waist.

a surprised squeak leaves your lips as you glance at the newcomer, sighing in relief when you see that it's kate. "hi," you breathe out.

"oh, yeah!" you beam at dante. "kate, this is dante. dante, kate."

"oh, kate bishop? finally, nice to-"

"a pleasure to meet you, dante, but may i talk to y/n? alone?"

dante blinks, looking genuinely confused. he glances at you and then at kate, at you and back to kate again. "yes, sure, of course. you look really good in that dress, by the way, y/n."

you watch him walk away before turning to kate. "oh, come on, he was really sweet."

"i bet he thought you were really sweet, too," she grumbles, scowling.

"what, jealous?" you tease, but you can't tear your eyes away from the way her jaw tenses.

"no."

"okay, well, i'm gonna find dante-"

before your sentence even finishes she grabs you by the wrist. "stay."

you smirk and cross your arms, raising an eyebrow. "what, scared you'll be the the single one between us?"

"please don't joke about that."

"why not?"

kate sighs. "look, i don't really like him, but..."

"yes?"

"he's right about one thing." she carefully scans your figure. "you look good in that dress."

in a sudden burst of confidence you lean closer to her. "only bought this dress so you could take it off."

her 'tough' exterior crumbles and she's reduced to a confused puppy expression. "w-what?"

you pull her closer by her tie, close enough that your breaths ghost over each others' faces. "i want you. but i don't want you like a best friend."

you pull away and stare at her face for a reaction. "so? ditch this party with me?"

kate's face lights up in a grin.

#kate bishop #kate bishop x reader #kate bishop x female reader #kate bishop x y/n #kate bishop x you #oneshot #imagines #drabble #hailee steinfeld #marvel #mcu #hawkeye #dress #taylor swift

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daintyys · 6 months

Text

in sickness and in health

fem!reader x remus lupin, 648 words, VERY LIGHT swearing

tw for throwing up and other sick stuff. also in this the daughter is named gracie!

Your daughter was a germbag, and you knew that, but as a mother, of course you had to take care of your baby. So when you got sick from her, it was no surprise to you or your husband Remus.

It started with a cough, which Remus immediately pointed out.

"Love," He said as you walked through the front door hacking loudly. "how long have you had that cough?"

You cleared your scratchy throat and shrugged. "Woke up with it, probably just allergies." Hanging up your scarf, you felt two strong arms snake their way around your waist.

"Hi handsome." You breathed, turning to look up at Remus. He smiled, his curly hair falling over his eyes perfectly.

"Y/N, I really don't like the sound of that cough, you have the same one that Gracie had." He looked worried, and you didn't like that.

"I appreciate your concern, Remus, but I'll be alright. I'll run a bath and maybe that'll help clear my lungs." You kissed your husband's lips quickly and made your way upstairs.

You ran a hot bath, and tried to relax. It was working until your daughter Gracie burst into the bathroom, tears streaming down her face. Remus ran in after her, trying to pull her out of the bathroom. "Gracie, Mama needs some quiet. Can we please just go read in your room?" He pleaded.

You stayed quiet, not wanting to make the situation worse, until you were suddenly overcome by nausea. "Remus, please get out with her right now." You squeaked, grabbing your towel.

"What's wrong? Oh-" He began as he watched you run to the toilet.

You hated vomiting, and Remus knew that, so he immediately called your parents to come pick up the kids.

"Good thing Gracie doesn't have school tomorrow." He whispered, rubbing your back and sitting with you next to the toilet. You let out a small laugh, and then immediately vomited again.

"My beautiful, sick, lovely wife," Remus cooed, pulling your hair back. "I am so sorry for you." You turned your head toward him, with a slight grin on your face as you proclaimed: "You're next".

After finishing up in the bathroom, Remus lead you to your bedroom. "What pajamas do you want, baby?" He asked, going through the drawers of your dresser. "The fluffy white ones." You sighed, shivering profusely.

"I love these on you," Remus said as he helped you get changed. "you look like a polar bear in them."

"A polar bear who feels like shit." You groaned. Remus laughed, grabbing your hairbrush. He brushed your hair back into a bun and helped you into bed.

"I can do this stuff for myself, you know, but I'm not complaining." You giggled, cuddling up in the blankets. Remus smirked, laying down next to you. "I love being at your service." He purred, kissing your cheek.

"Oh don't do that! You'll get sick too!" You gasped, pushing him away slightly. He gasped dramatically, and pulled you closer. "If getting sick means I get to spend more time with you alone, then I'm all in." Remus professed, gently playing with your hair.

You couldn't fight him on it, so you let him stay, and when you woke up in the morning, he was already out of bed.

Along with waking to being alone, you now also had an awful headache, and a stuffed up nose. You jumped a little as the door opened and Remus walked in, shirtless and holding two hot mugs of tea.

You blushed, still feeling that girlish crush for him even though you were married. Remus noticed, and laughed quietly, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"How are you, Y/N?" He asked, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear as you took a mug from him.

"Well, much better now that you're here." You said, kissing him tenderly.

#remus lupin #remus lupin x reader #hp #marauders #daintyys #fluff

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tarjapearce · 8 months

Text

Bad Teachings (Pt. 8)

Older!Miguel O'Hara x Reader

WARNINGS: Slow Burn, Relationship Building, Mild squeeze of jealousy, daily snippets of life, strained parental relationship, gossips, awkward truths, friendly bickering, a little instrospection on main characters.

Summary: Rekindling things lead to new and unexpected discoveries.

Absolute thanks to my beta reader <;3 @oharasmommymilkers00

Comments and reblogs are highly appreciated c: Masterlist Pt. 9

"So, how's it going? When did you return?"

Manicured hands clasped together, inviting Simon to keep talking. After your little impromptu reunion, you had texted him the next day, and between little jokes and mild flirting, Simon asked you on a date.

Let's catch up and see where it goes.

He had stayed the same since college. Ever straightforward and head-on with his words.

Even though the small restaurant bustled with people, you could still hear each other.

"Been alright. I was back a couple of weeks ago. I have been wandering the city to see any changes, but nah. The same. Can't say the same about you."

Your eyebrow arched at his words, which he quickly tried to explain.

"Not in a bad way! I swear! It just... took me by surprise seeing you so different. All I can remember is you wearing hoodies, jeans, or sweatpants."

Chuckling, you took a sip of your drink and pursed your lips.

"Had to get my glow up one way or another."

"What I'm trying to say is that you look fantastic."

"Thank you, Si. You look great as well."

And he did. Both of you had changed for the better. He used to be that average exchange student that was more remarkable for people making fun of his accent between lighthearted jokes and a bit of a chubber.

Simon was tall, but if it came to compare heights, he'd reach Miguel by the shoulders. He had to crane his neck up to meet his eyes. And now that he had been gone for nearly three years to pursue his dream of finishing his career abroad, he had changed physically.

Earning looks from the people as he walked by. He was handsome. But the goofiness and soft-spoken person he was remained the same.

Your glasses clinked as both of you enjoyed the talk.

His eyes remained fixed on your face with a guilty smile "I am sorry, though. For leaving so suddenly."

Your eyes widened softly at his words but quickly dismissed them.

"Are you kidding me? I would've done the same if I had a chance to study abroad with a scholarship, too. Don't feel guilty about it."

"I want to make things right and avoid any misunderstanding between us. Or for you to think I escaped from you."

You couldn't help but laugh and cover your mouth to tone it down.

"You say so like it was so bad and toxic!"

It was his turn to giggle.

"It was."

You gasped as he laughed while taking your hand.

"I'm joking, of course. I had fun those four months."

"Even though we barely had time in between classes?"

"Yes. I was so glad when we had to take that class together with... Miss Lyla, I think?"

"Oh! Office Automation. Yeah. Man, she was such a good teacher."

"She was unhinged."

You had to hold back an ugly snort as your cheeks reddened in laughter.

"She was. But I owe my job to her and Mi-... Mr. O'Hara." You swallowed, "That's what I do daily."

"I'm surprised you know Mr. O'Hara after all these years."

You've got no idea.

Your brow quirked nervously, and he leaned in towards you.

"Like, I heard so much about him back then, but I didn't know who he was, and when he introduced himself when I found you, it clicked. Didn't know he was that guy."

"That guy? What do you mean?"

Simon cleared his throat.

"I know this is an old story, but a couple of days before my dropout, I heard Miss Lyla and him were hooking up."

You blinked as little waves of confusion washed over you at this information. Even though Miguel had told you about his little affairs here and there, you didn't expect it to be with one of your favorite teachers.

"The things you learn. Like for real?"

"Yeah. I mean, both hooked a couple of times before he called it off, but don't believe me. The source was a girl that had a massive crush on him."

A little glint in your eyes shone as he mentioned Miguel stopping it.

"It makes so much sense now! She was one of the few teachers, along with Mrs. Drew, that you could see him being comfortable around enough to be more talkative."

You spoke, and he shrugged.

"I wouldn't know for real. I quit before the semester ended, and I never took classes with him remember? But damn, gossip was a thing."

"He was brutal."

"Oh, I bet. Mr. O’Hara looks quite intimidating. You passed?."

You laughed humorlessly

"I nearly fail. But I pushed through. He was demanding, but yeah."

"Right. College aside, are you still... y'know, living with your parents?"

"Oh no, no. I moved out. Mostly to be near my job."

"Great. I just moved in with my roommate as well. Nice guy, gives me his leftover pizza."

Both giggled and mocked at the silliness of the situation. It brought you back to times when you'd be holed up in the library, either talking or sharing quick kisses between studying sessions when you had the time to do so.

But right now, catching up with him felt good. Your social circle expanded in baby steps, which made you feel like a blooming social butterfly.

Simon's hand took yours to squeeze it softly with a charming smile.

"Wanna go for a walk?"

"Sure."

---

As days went by, your work grew more interesting. The new Bossman, Julius, was strict enough to make most of your coworkers work for real.

You had a couple of photoshoots redone since his eyes were as critical as his mouth. But you had not only learned. But apply those tricks to your arts and hobbies.

The knitting had improved despite the need to buy more supplies soon, but finally, you got the garter stitch right. And as predictable as it was, you'd get started with a scarf. So far, it looked decent, and the wools Hobie sold you seemed perfect for the task.

As you created a mental note to tell Hobie to save you some colors in your next paycheck your phone buzzed. Miguel's name on your screen gave your chest a little irregular thump upon remembering the conversation with Simon. It seemed like the perfect timing.

"Huh-lo?"

You could hear him laughing on the other line

"It's Aló, not huh-lo."

"I'm trying!"

He chuckled "Try harder 'cause that was awful."

"Teach me then." You rolled your eyes, and there was a silence as he gulped involuntarily.

"Are you sure?"

"You were already a teacher, so yeah. You want me to understand it, right? Then teach me."

His grip on his phone tightened as he sighed, asking for strength from the heavens.

"I will. Promise."

"Good. Anyways, is everything ok?"

There was a slight shuffling on his side of the call before the sound of a dragged chair made you scrunch your nose at the sudden noise.

"Yeah. Sorry for that, deep cleaning day."

"Oh? Cool. Want me to make you a Playlist for your cleaning days?"

His rich, deep laugh sent you chuckling, and your skin crawled.

"No, thanks. Though, music is a good way to start learning a language."

"Aye, sir. Any artist you recommend?"

He chuckled

"Might do get you a playlist for simple things. It's a good start."

"Why, thank you. Mr. O'Hara."

He groaned in annoyance, and you giggled. If you’d had any idea of how much he hated when you called him like that, he was sure you’d stop. Even if it was just to annoy him. It made him feel old.

"I appreciate it though. I always wanted to learn another language."

"How's the French going?"

It was your turn to groan. A 'How's Simon doing' would be the most accurate translation of it.

"Not so good. My tongue gets twisted. Might do ask Simon directly as well."

There was more shuffling on your line as you got the Bluetooth earbuds and linked them to continue your closet and makeup cleaning as you were on the call.

The silence stretched for a solid minute until you spoke again.

"Hello? Are you still there?

"Yeah, I was getting some coffee."

His tone was soft.

"Jesus, stop drinking that much coffee." You shook your head with a disapproving look you were sure he’d just laugh off. "Anyways, I wanna ask you something. And I need you to be honest."

"Why do I feel you're about to ask something ridiculous or unhinged?"

You laughed

"Up to you to decide if it is. Did you hook up with Miss Lyla?"

He burned his tongue at your sudden question with the coffee, truly surprised you’d ask such things.

"Oh... That." He cleared his throat, "I did. Just twice, though. Why?"

Your eyes widened as your mouth clammed up for a moment. As uncomfortable as it was, Miguel didn’t lie. After all, he had told you about these things in your first outing together.

"Was it before... or after me?"

Clearly. you remembered the conversation like a lucid dream.

Desperate times.

"Before. Why are we discussing this? More importantly, who told you this?"

You swallowed and sighed. His voice was a bit on the edge.

"Old stories I recently heard. And Simon did. Our date was full of old stories. I'm so glad he didn't take classes with you."

His eyes drooped in boredom upon you saying the word date. Of course, you’d have a date with him. It was natural to return to what one knew. He thought you were less naive than that but would watch it unfold from afar. He’d never miss a chance to say “I told you so”.

The satisfaction of being right about his intuition was a pleasure he enjoyed terribly.

"Bien pinche chismoso" (Such a freaking tattletale)

He grumbled after taking a sip of his bitter coffee

"Uh, what?"

"Nothing. I assume you dated him?"

You threw a couple of old eyeshadow palettes in the trash.

"Yeah, just for four months before he went back to France to finish his career there."

"How cute.”

“You’re just being mean. Don’t you trust my judgment?”

“ I don't trust Simon."

You laughed again, but his face remained serious

"Ah, C'mon. Why?"

"I was young too, guapa. Guys his age are up to no good."

You folded a couple of skirts as your lips pouted.

"I appreciate your concern regarding this. But seriously, Simon hasn't changed that much. He's the same goofy ass from college days."

He scoffed nonchalantly "Are you sure of it? People change. And sometimes is not precisely for the good."

You smiled at his words.

"Well, thanks for the support. Means alot. But I'll be fine."

You heard him sigh

"Right."

"And you're not that old."

He snorted as he put the half cup of coffee on the table

"I'm forty-two, guapa. I say I'm old enough to have my fair share of life wisdom. And that guy is certainly hiding something."

"I'm not arguing against that. You look like you have gone through a bit more stuff."

"Are you calling me a mess?"

Again, you laughed. The sound made him smile.

"My my, so sensitive!. I say you look mature enough. Even though I know maturity isn't linked directly with age, your way of carrying yourself about things makes you a reliable and trustworthy friend. I like that."

His eyes widened a bit at your words

"Didn't know you were into older guys."

"Yup. I mean, you guys know what you want. Or at least most of you do. And that's good cause I don't like teaching younger people what they want. I'm not a rehab center." Your lips pursed, "I like learning."

He gulped and wet his lips with his tongue.

"But yeah, anyways, thanks for calling. Always good to hear you."

"Likewise, guapa. Take care.""Bye, Miguel."

The call ended, and you smiled. Miguel on the other hand, rubbed his face as he pondered at your words.

You liked learning. That was certain. Either academically or in life. But you did. And he liked that too.

-----

— Hello Sweetheart

Dad's number had popped out on your screen, but Hobie's rambling snapped his attention back to you.

You returned home from work a couple of hours early and Mrs. Brown invited you over for a cup of tea.

The apartment smelled like a mix of spices and herbs, along with a touch of vanilla cigarettes. The apartment had two bedrooms, the kitchen was bigger than yours just like the living room area.

Your apartment was the smallest on the floor. Everyone had a two or three-bedroom lease, but for you, a one-bedroom accommodated just fine.

Mrs. Brown was gentle but didn't doubt voicing her concerns and opinions with such delicacy and refinement one would think she'd be complimenting you. No wonder Hobie or Hobart, a little giggle from you when she called him that when he arrived from work carried himself the way he did.

She was supportive and loving. The only authority I wouldn't rebel against said the tattoo artist as you accompanied him into getting his weekly grocery shopping.

His van had been in repair, and now he wasn't sure if he’d get any news anytime soon.

Hey, Dad. How are you? —

Hobie took a look at your piercings and approved your current care. You had also told him about the wools, even paid him ahead, which he used to pay for the groceries.

—Missing you, darling. Are you alright?

The question had you smiling softly. He was always so caring and worried about you. When you first told him you'd move out, he was glad. Congratulated you even, au contraire of your mom who started complaining almost immediately.

"Birdie?"

"Hm?

Your eyes left your phone screen to look at him.

"You good? Kinda spaced out there."

You nodded.

"Yeah, just talking with my dad."

"They want you to visit?"

You nodded with an annoyed groan.

Not that you disliked your parents. Their relationship with you was strained as it was.

"Hard upbringing?"

"More like... Not really there- sort of upbringing."

Hobie put the groceries in the back seat of your Cooper and sat on the passenger seat.

"Yikes."

You shrugged. Not dwelling on the past trauma wound that remained ever fresh. You drove back to the apartment building.

"Sorry to hear that. Seems like people have kids to fill their inner voids."

"Right?! But man, saying that out loud is sure a social death sentence."

"Hypocrisy at its finest. Society is always changing, most of the time is never for good reasons."

You nodded but snorted softly.

"Whut?"

"Nothing, It's funny when we talk like phylosophers on weed."

Hobie chuckled and relaxed into his seat.

"You know? I owe you an apology."

"Whatever for?"

You stopped at a red light and looked at him.

"My mother... she said some comments I didn't like when she came up for a visit a couple of days ago."

"And why do you apologize on her behalf?"

I'm good. A bit busy with work as usual, but I was planning on calling you—

"No, I apologize 'cause it wasn't nice."

You mumbled as you typed in your screen.

"Why are you assuming other's wrongdoings as yours? And in all honesty, I couldn't care less what people think of me. Specially corporate slaves."

The light turned green and you drove again.

"I don't know. Just..."

"Apologize when you are the one at fault, birdie. The rest is irrelevant. Thanks for the warning tho’."

—Yeah, your mom told me that you still have things packed up and that you're not ready yet to live alone.

—Wanna talk about it?

If only his passiveness wouldn't be so dragging to the point of always ending up siding with your mother in little matters that only added more weight to the already full bag of terribly handled emotions. He'd be your favorite.

You parked in the building and helped Hobie to carry the shops. Mrs. Brown made you both a delicious English breakfast for dinner. They didn't believe in consistency, if Mrs. Brown wanted something, she made it. And her cooking was good, especially in the pudding making.

You hadn't looked at the screen yet, so blissfully ignorant to not care for a bit.

Hobie then kept boasting about how it was bad for people to keep assuming other's fault. He told his mom about it, and she just agreed. They had this strong bond you had stopped longing for a long time ago. It was easier for you to see smells and taste colors than to keep a healthy relationship with your parents.

—Honey?

But of course, you dreaded so many things. Even though the upbringing seemed the perfect chance to toughen your mind, angry confrontations weren't your thing. Cause in a hypothetical perfect world, everyone is emotionally intelligent enough to know how to express and regulate their feelings.

But neither the world nor your life were perfect.

You went to your apartment and finally took a look at the messages. Anger boiled in your head, and as usual, you'd have to explain yourself.

You were tired of it.

I would appreciate it if you'd stop believing everything Mom says.

The message was clear, but you deleted it last second as you snapped a quick video and sent it to him instead.

Do you see any boxes on the floor? —

It sounded way too curt and petty than you intended to, but maybe that way he'd start getting his criterion in check.

—No, I'm sorry. When are you coming for a visit?

When you stop taking sides

Again, the message was deleted. Being passive-aggressive with them wouldn't help either. Sighing, you typed once more.

Next weekend, but I will stay Saturday night only. I use Sundays for prepping for the week :) —

Not even Judas was so disingenuous as that emoji at the end.

—Oh gotcha, gotcha. Still, would be wonderful to have you over.

Please don't tell Mom. I want it to be a surprise. —

More like, I don't want her to be all nagging and harassing my inbox with her pretentious texts.

Your mind chanted

—Of course. Love you

Hopefully, she will be out on a business trip and you'll be enjoying with your dad.

Love you too, dad —

It was going to be draining and difficult. But you’d push through. You always did.

You had to.

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Taglist:

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#miguel o'hara #miguel o'hara x reader #miguel o'hara x you #atsv miguel #miguel o'hara fanfiction #miguel o'hara fluff #spiderman 2099 #miguel spiderverse #t writes✨#bad teachings

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omegalomania · 3 months

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What are some of your favorite aro-/ace-coded fob lyrics?

oh fuck yes a little bowl of seeds just for me

boycott love from disloyal order of water buffaloes is a personal favorite of mine. its a lyric i really really want tattooed at some point. that's not the only lyric i latch onto from an aro perspective but it's probably the biggest one

basically the entirety of it's hard to say "i do" when i don't but a special mention goes to you are appealing to emotions that i simply do not have as well as the only ring i want buried with me are the ones around my eyes

it's true romance is dead / i shot it in the chest and in the head from the music or the misery is also a favorite of mine, also just that whole song in general

i thought i loved you but it was just how you looked in the light in hum hallelujah resonates with a lot of queer folks i've found, and it's no different for me

same goes for it's a strange way of saying that i know i'm supposed to love you from g.i.n.a.s.f.s.

i'm outside the door, invite me in / so we can go back and play pretend from alone together brings me back to when i was trying to perform heteronormativity/amatonormativity even if it was making me miserable

i also hold to a very similar vibe with she said "i love you 'till i don't" / i am just playing house, no idea what i'm doing now from sunshine riptide and also most of burna boy's verse, frankly. i fell in love but i didn't fall down and feel like i'm bulletproof, baby in particular

american beauty/american psycho, particularly the first verse. i think i fell in love again / maybe i just took too much cough medicine

golden is a big one for queer folks in general i've found. the chorus especially hits hard from an aro and/or ace reading. and i saw god cry in the reflection of my enemies / and all the lovers with no time for me

i've got a dark alley and a bad idea that says you should shut your mouth is a heavy song no matter how you slice it. but that chorus gets to me in particular: we can fake it for the airwaves / force our smiles, baby, half-dead / from comparing myself to everyone else around me

the kids aren't alright reads to me as one big anthem for platonic love above anything romantic, which resonates super hard with me. the second verse has a lot of good lines that i latch onto from an aroace lens too. your love is anemic and i can't believe / that you couldn't see it coming from me

pretty much the whole chorus of HOLD ME TIGHT OR DON'T does it for me, and those verses have got some good aroallo vibes too! i never really feel a thing... confidants but never friends...

the whole of fake out is a gimme. that chorus rings real true. starts with love is in the air, i just gotta find a window to break out and finishing with but it was all a fake-out

i've got all this ringing in my ears and none on my fingers is one that has another highly applicable title but the whole refrain of the truth hurts worse / than anything i could bring myself to do to you paired with the one-two punch of that second verse REALLY gets under my skin

and of course, the culminating one: you are what you love, not who loves you from save rock and roll. obviously there are a LOT of ways to read that line

there are a couple other songs i latch onto - wilson (expensive mistakes); a little less "sixteen candles", a little more "touch me"; the (after) life of the party to name a few - but the ones listed above are the big lyrics that resonate with me on a personal level

just in general i have a shitton of fob over on my aro playlist (which doubles as a general aroace/queer playlist but has a lot of emphasis on aromanticism) in case i forgot to mention anything but like i said those are the big ones

#askin hours #anon #happy aro awareness week lol ive had this in my drafts for mONTHS and forgot about it #sorry it took so long to answer i have a million asks in my inbox and just do not have time most days #go listen to aromanticism by moses sumney for black history month and aro awareness week btw #now THAT there is an album that rewrote my neural chemistry

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mrghostrat · 5 months

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i was hoping to stream this afternoon but i woke with my shoulders hurting so bad that i have absolutely zero capacity for anything. to the point where i experienced my first autistic rumbles in the supermarket 🥸 but i have adhd meds now so maybe we can try tomorrow.

zita's suspected i'm on the spectrum for a little while now, but i've always been on the fence about it. there's a lot i don't relate to. but most of that is bc i have so much learned behaviour, and i mask really well. when i try to break down how i think for autism diagnostic quizzes, my gut reactions DO fit the bill, but they are so so so buried under 30 years of life experience that feels like it comes naturally.

but i am an introvert. an extreme introvert. even while living alone with my best friend, who i get on perfectly with and feel zero need to mask around, i still need to excuse myself and be left alone in my room from 10pm at LEAST.

so i only really unmask when i'm dead alone. even though i dont feel like i'm putting up any kind of front around of zita, i still do, automatically. the only time i see myself completely bare is when i'm alone and it's silent and there is absolutely nothing challenging my comfort.

sooooo hoooooo boy waking up in pain, with zero capacity to even finish a thought, still empty of ADHD medication because of the fuckin manufacturing shortage (thankfully today's trip into town was to finally pick some up! but that wasn't until noon), i got to see a side of myself i don't know if i've ever actually seen before? maybe as a kid but i can't remember specifically that far back?

i've been short tempered and overwhelmed and exposed to sensory nightmares whilst home alone before, but it's usually so quick bc i'm at HOME and i can adjust the situation and i never think much of it. i felt like a bluescreen at that supermarket today, popping in for less than 10 things across 3 aisles.

it was so busy. there were so many people. i felt dread just to walk through it, so aware of my own body and the space i had to inhabit. but par for the course so far. what was less par for the course was having to stop and look at my list every 3 steps, unable to put together a course of action in my head: chicken is on the far left, so we grab that first and get broccoli on our way to the soup aisle. but the broccoli is right there. do i grab that first, go get the chicken, but then double back from where i just came? i might get myself some bananas too, how do i fit that into my path—

i had to keep stopping and looking at my list because every item i thought of made me forget the previous one i just looked at. eventually got fed up with myself and went to the closest thing and started there, regardless of whether i'd have to double back or not. that's what trips me when i take these quizzes n shit. i can get over the hump and do the task in the end, so that must mean i'm totally allistic! no autism here.

i remember thinking "jesus christ this is bad" when i was on my way to get zita's soup (if you've read this far, thank you and kisses to you, pls send some loving vibes to zita by reading her fic i just reblogged, bc she's got a cold and is miserable today) so i was kinda aware i was having a bad sensory day. as expected: there were a lot of people there, and i was in pain. but i just short circuited looking at soup. zita gave me the brand name and soup type of 3 cans she wanted. and i went to the aisle i've been to a thousand times, found the brand, and just stared. it was all stew. all chunky brothy things with bits in. not a single creamy soup in sight, so, the soup must be somewhere else.

i came to that conclusion immediately but i couldn't. process it? or like, what to do with that information. the soup is somewhere else. OR IS IT? keep looking at this shelf to make sure, your eyes are tired, you might've missed it. there's like 20 different cans of campbells here, just keep reading them left to right until soup appears. still no soup? read them again, you might've missed it. maybe campbell's is out of soup? read every other brand here until you Don't see soup, then you can walk away and try somewhere else. but if you don't see any soup, read it again because you might've missed it.

thankfully it took all of 30 fuckin seconds for a store employee who was shelving next to me to see my glazed fuckin stare and ask if i needed a hand with anything. and i stammered through some "haha my silly eyes today!! haha thanks! sorry, thank you!" as she happily pointed like 3 metres down the aisle for me, while my internal monologue immediately raged like "wtf why would they put the soup that far away but also barely far away at all, what's the point, bad design 😡"

got soup. check list: packet of gravy. zita told me the gravy was in the same section as the soup. it was not. i walked up and down that aisle five times and there was no gravy. i just. i had completely forgotten how to problem solve. it was the strangest, most frustrating experience. like i was looking at an empty word document in my brain, with a little flashing cursor and everything, so i knew it hadn't frozen over. it was just empty.

i even had the thought "just walk up and down the aisles until you find gravy; you have to do this all the time" and even had ideas of which aisles to start with. but my brain said no. we're not going to walk around aimlessly, even if we have a neat little structure and path to follow. we were told (by myself, too) this would be a quick in out trip, pluck the known items off the shelf and beeline straight for the checkout. so meandering down aisles was for some reason non negotiable. i wasn't in a rush. i had nothing to do today. i barely even felt a rush to get out of there, as busy as it was. it just wasn't an option.

so rather than start solving that problem i just jumped to the next thing on the list. strepsils. text to ask what kind she wants, have a whine about my broken brain, ask if she knows where the gravy is. remember when i pass the hair brushes that i broke my hairbrush this morning and need a new one!! oh and i've been wanting new hairclips too. look at me picking a new hairbrush and poking through the hairclips for one that i know will feel comfortable against my scalp, i'm not autistic because i can change my plans and make decisions on the fly.

oops didn't mean for this post to be an entire play by play of my thoughts through this extremely bland grocery shop. i cannot believe how long i stood there choosing soup. the line at the self checkout was so long and i felt the dread kick up again. barely/silently whispered "oh god" to myself when i realised the line, but repeated it about 20 times to feel the tap of my tongue against the roof of my mouth before i realised i was doing it. stop that, don't mutter to yourself. but i'm standing still in a line and there's nothing left to (ineffectually) problem solve, so the second i stop i notice a weird little slice in the plastic around the trolley handle that i can't stop flicking my thumbnail against.

OK. we need to stim. heard, chef. just click your piercing ffs. your mouth might look weird when you do it but at least everyone can see you're just clicking your teeth against your piercing, rather than talking to yourself or damaging public property.

something made a noise, can't even remember if it was a child or a trolley or what, some loud sharp single high pitched screech a few metres away, and i jolted so hard i thought i felt like i was going to throw up. finally think, fucking hell i'm autistic today. my back hurts. which is making my head hurt. i want to go home and take my vyvanse.

#ghost scribbles #autism #extremely long unimportant recount of my day #but it was quite cathartic to write #feeling very vulnerable and tired now ufgh

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beanghostprincess · 4 months

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The Strawhats go to Syrup Village when their adventure ends because they want to say hi and thank everyone they've met along the way. Luffy misses his old friends! And Usopp, of course, wants to see the Usopp pirates and... And Kaya. Kaya, mostly. They were dating before Usopp joined the crew and when Usopp started having feelings for Sanji, he sent a letter to her asking if she was fine with that being a thing. And of course, she said yes, because Sanji seemed like such a nice gentleman and if he made Usopp happy then she was happy too. But he hadn't taken into consideration how nervous Sanji would be meeting her. Which, you know, understandable. Meeting your boyfriend's girlfriend. Something totally, uh, normal for Sanji's little mind who had to have a whole crisis for two years about his sexuality and relationships. But you know, it's okay, because it's Kaya. So everything will be fine.

And it surprisingly goes great! Well, surprisingly for Sanji. Usopp knew it would be okay! Obviously!

They encounter the kids first, and they're- They're older and it makes Usopp feel old too. Because what the hell. They're taller and they look almost like teenagers and it's making his heart melt. God, he has missed them so much. They go running to him and asking questions and hugging him and Usopp doesn't think he can take this much happiness, really. He keeps bragging about his cool, awesome, powerful crew and bounty and says that he'll tell them all their adventures later. Piiman directly asks "So, which one of them is your boyfriend?!" and Usopp freezes because "How do you know I have a-" and Tamanegi jumps in like, "Kaya told us!" and Usopp obviously can't be surprised at that. Or mad. He wrote the letters for the kids too, after all. So while the crew waits there watching it all happen, Usopp tells Sanji to come with him and meet the three idiots he had for a crew. And Sanji knows them, of course. He takes a drag of his cigarette, stares at them, and instantly goes "Ninjin, Piiman, Tamanegi" pointing at all of them correctly. They're astonished, but before they can say anything, Sanji squints his eyes at them "I remember because you look like vegetables-" / (Usopp): Ooookay, Sanji, babe, enough!" And he changes the subject to ask if Kaya is home right now. The kids say yes. Yadda yadda yadda, and they start walking to her house. (On their way to Kaya's, btw: "If I cook tonight we're not having vegetables, I would feel bad-"/ "Sanji!" / "C'mon, it's funny- They're cute, I swear. Like cute little potatoes-" / "Do you want me to punch you?" / "If we have children, do you think they'd look more like a radish or a cauliflow- / "Dumbass. And those are the only children we're having for a while. Get used to them." / "Wait, I was joking! Do you- You want children? With me? I-" / "Sanji, please, not today.")

So they get to Kaya's and... And Sanji is excited. Nervous. But excited. Nami won't stop teasing Usopp about it, too. And he's not worried. He's okay. He's not anxious. Everything's gonna be okay and she will love the person he has become. Definitely. Nothing to worry about. But he's visibly shaking, and he didn't expect Sanji to be the one holding his hand to calm him down, but it happens. And he couldn't be happier.

So, of course, Luffy can't be fucking quiet and starts knocking on the door and yelling for Kaya to come to greet them. Even if it was supposed to be a surprise. And Nami says "Gosh, Luffy, calm down! She can hear you. Everyone can hear you, actually. Shut up and wait for-" but she can't finish her sentence because Merry is already there with the biggest of smiles, opening the door for them. Usopp just says a soft "Hi!" while Luffy wastes no time in going in.

Nami: Luffy! Wait for a damn second! Merry: Oh, well, not that we can control the King of the Pirates, can we? Nami: You don't need to tell me. Franky: You look like Merry. Merry: ... I am Merry? Franky: No, I mean the ship- Usopp: Franky, we've explained this to you. Franky: Not the part where the butler looks exactly like the ship, though? Usopp: Oh. True. Well. There you have it.

Everything happens a bit quickly. Kaya is walking down the stairs when they're walking in, and the second she sees Usopp she just has to hug him tight. Sanji steps away because, well, he doesn't want to get in between their reunion. And everyone thinks he's jealous or weird about it, but it only takes a moment to realize he's staring at them with the fondest of looks in his eyes. She's the most beautiful girl he's ever seen (apart from Nami and Robin, of course. But it's another type of beauty) and there's just this glimpse in his eyes nobody can actually describe.

Usopp and Kaya kiss and he starts to feel a bit dizzy because- Wow. Remembering her kisses is just as overwhelming as he thought it'd be. She's precious. He says they'll tell her all about their adventures. That he has truly become somebody she can be proud of. She says she has always been proud of him, and Usopp dies a little bit with that. When she's done staring at him, she tilts her head to the side saying hi to everyone else and she spots Sanji, hands on each side of him and bouncing his right leg. She lets go of Usopp to approach Sanji and grab his hands, and with a soft, tender smile, she says "I'm so glad you've been looking out for him. I've heard so many great things about you, Sanji! I truly hope we get to know each other better" and Sanji dies. Sanji instantly dies. Not from a nosebleed but a heart attack, probably. He's speechless for a whole second and nobody says anything. Because this sweet girl just said this in front of everyone and let's be honest, everybody is wondering how the fuck Sanji and Usopp are the ones with enough rizz to pull this wonderful girl. Anyway- I can imagine Jinbe laughing and saying "Usopp! You have a type!" and he's being genuine and sweet but it's so fucking embarrassing the sniper just wants to curl up and die.

Luffy, Nami, and Zoro see Kaya again and it's so, so sweet to see her being a doctor just like she wanted. She's healthy. She's adorable, like always. And she welcomes them into her house gladly. Kaya says hi to the rest and she. Absolutely. Adores. Chopper. That's probably the cutest doctor she's ever seen, and also the smartest! If Usopp and Sanji didn't need to talk with her, she'd probably spend the day talking to Chopper. She also gets along with the older members of the crew! They're all just so nice to her <3 Robin comments about how Usopp and Sanji have been talking a lot about her and Kaya giggles but it makes Usopp want to run away to a private place as quickly as he can. If Robin is the one talking about this, this means they will all keep the embarrassing conversation going and he can't have that.

They decide to stay for dinner, the way they had planned because Sanji is dying to cook for her and they just knew Kaya wouldn't let them go without having dinner with her. Besides, they've been staying for a while in every island so that they can enjoy their time with each person and decide what they want to do next. If they want to, you know, stay with the crew or choose to keep going with their lives outside of being a pirate (everyone chill, they're staying together. At least for a long while until they're old. Because otherwise, I will cry). So, Sanji cooks while the crew waits around the house. Talking to Merry and Kaya and wow!! The kids are staying too!! Awesome!! Usopp is in the kitchen with Sanji because he just needs a second to calm down. It's too much. In a good way! But god, he needs a second.

Usopp helps Sanji with a few things while they talk about everything and nothing. A kiss here and there. And then, Usopp is suddenly a bit uncomfortable about what he's about to say. "What do you think about, um, Kaya?" / "Are you really asking me that?" / "Yeah! Why wouldn't I? Maybe you don't- Fuck. I don't know. Maybe now that you've seen us together you don't want-" / "I want to, Usopp. More than anything." / "Really?" / "Yeah. She- She makes you happy. She even makes me happy and I just met her. And- I don't know. I guess she just looks a lot like my-"

But then the kitchen door opens quickly and it's closed just as fast, because Kaya is there, resting her back against the wall and smiling shyly at them both.

Kaya: Hi! Hi. I- Am I interrupting or-? Sanji/Usopp: No! Kaya: Oh! Oh, okay! I just thought It'd be nice for us to be together for a while? Alone? Usopp: ...... Luffy is being- Kaya: Nami? Usopp: Oh, fuck, yes, makes more sense. Sanji: Nami-san can be a bit assertive sometimes, but it's alright. Kaya: So it's okay if I stay? Usopp: Kaya, it's your kitchen- Sanji: Of course, madame. You're gonna be the first one to taste our dinner, then. I need opinions. Kaya: Oh, I'm not a cook. But I am sure your food is excellent! Sanji: Indulge me, please? Eat whatever you like. Usopp, whispering: Why are you being more romantic than me? She's my girlfriend. Sanji: And I am your boyfriend. She's, like, my girlfriend too, now. Usopp: Does that work like that? Sanji: Uh, not sure? Kind of? Usopp: ... As long as you two are happy. Sanji: You should eat too, by the way, mon amour. I am being serious when I say I want feedback.

They end up spending a long while together making dinner. While Usopp tells her about their adventures, she tells her about her life without him and her studies. How much she has been trying to help the village, too, and how the kids have been doing. Sanji asks them their opinions on the food. Asks them for help, too, if needed. And everything ends up being so domestic and nice that Usopp is surprised Kaya and Sanji just met. They're so in sync and they look so pretty together they even look like a couple already. Usopp thought he'd end up feeling left out (because he always does) but there's just something about them being together that makes his heart melt.

Skipping the dinner part, because it's just all of them having fun as usual and besides a few cute glances and blushes and compliments, there isn't anything remarkable about Sanusokaya here. They end up in Kaya's room after dinner, while the other crew members go do whatever. They have designated rooms and beds (the place is a fucking mansion, and there's room for everyone).

The thing is, they go to Kaya's room to talk about... Them. They don't know where to begin, so Usopp breaks the silence by telling Kaya about how he met Sanji. Things she already knows from letters, but she hasn't actively heard. And it's obviously more entertaining this way. So Sanji and Kaya sit on her bed while Usopp talks. And one thing leads to another and he's also explaining Skypiea. And Water 7. And when he gets to Dressrosa, something they had already talked about during dinner, Sanji decides to explain what happened back in Whole Cake Island. He didn't have this in mind. Opening up so much, he means. But there's just something about Kaya that makes him want to keep talking. So he explains a bit (not everything, of course) about his past. And she's so, so sweet about it. Holds his hand all the time. Rests her cheek on his shoulder. Usopp kisses both of their foreheads. And that's when Sanji stares at Kaya and says:

Sanji: You know? You remind me a lot of her. My mother, I mean. Kaya: Do I? The way you talk to her is so wonderfu- Sanji: You are wonderful. Kaya: Oh- Usopp: Sanji, you can't say that to her! That's my job. You're wonderful, babe. Kaya: Thanks, darling. I just- I was thinking that it could... If you are okay with it. Maybe I'm overstepping. That it could also be his job? God, I am explaining this awfully. I am a doctor, not a writer- Usopp: He would love to be your boyfriend. Sanji: Don't answer for me! Usopp: Weren't you going to say yes? Sanji: In a more romantic way, yes. Of course. Kaya: Really?! Usopp: I think he likes you more than he likes me- Sanji: Idiot. Don't ever say things like that. He's always so- Kaya: No, yes, you have to force the love into his head, huh? Sanji: Exactly! Usopp: Don't get too excited, Kay. He's just like that too. You say something good about him and he starts sobbing.

Long story short, they sleep together in Kaya's room, all tangled up and cuddling because they're the cutest, most adorable couple in the world. They stay for a while in the Village and spend some days together, growing closer and clingier every day. And sadly they have to say goodbye because they want to keep going with their journey (they have stuff to do. They tried to bring Kaya along, but she's the doctor of the village. She can't leave them alone) but she knows they'll come back to her. She trusts them to

#THE SANUSOKAYA WORMS ARE EATING MY BRAIN #THEY'RE JUST SO DAMN SWEET #I THINK THEY SHOULD HOLD HANDS AND KISS #kjwefnjkfnewnfjkewnklfewn they make me go insane #i was just thinking wow kaya is so much like sora and i died a little #the first time sanji and kaya kiss usopp faints i think he'd faint #tooth rotting fluff but it's literally giving me diabetes #one piece #black leg sanji #usopp #sanuso #kaya one piece #usokaya #sanusokaya

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