#'yeah yeah just had a thought and it's silly' alex brushes it off as his thumb swipes over willie's knuckles

[jmrothwell]

TUESDAY!!!! "You're so cool!" || "…I am?" for Reggie and Willie plz?

Reggie paused at the door of his new dorm room. Once inside he’d finally get to meet his new room mate, assuming the guy had shown up before Reggie had. He had tried to do what the new student guide had suggested and reach out to the guy before today, but their schedules never lined up. The most they had managed to do was pre-arrange who would get which bed.

He took a deep breath, shook out the nerves pulsing through his veins as best as he could with his two bags and bass slung over his shoulders. Right here goes nothing. Another deep breath and he entered the room.

Sure enough there were a couple of bags on the bed that the two had decided wouldn’t be Reggie’s. No sign of the potential roommate though. How had they decided on beds but not exchanged names?

Reggie internally groaned as he dropped his bags on what would be his bed for the next few months at least. He rolled his shoulders as the blood flowed unencumbered by the shoulder straps.

“Oh hey man.”  

Reggie turned around to face the vivid smile of the young man whose long dark hair was partially falling into his face.

“I’d shake your hand or something but.” the room mate gestured to the large box he was carrying in his arms, a skateboard balanced on top.

“All good.” Reggie chirped with a small wave, “hi, I’m Reggie.”

“Willie,” came the equally cheery response as Willie deposited the box on one of the desks. He finally brushed the hair back away from his face.

“You skateboard?” Reggie pointed to the board in question as he sat down on his bare mattress. In the time it took him to sit he realized it was a bit of a silly question. He tried to follow it up with a better one, “You any good?”

Operative word being tried.

Willie’s smile broadened “Yeah, yeah, good enough to land me some of my scholarship.”

“They have scholarships for skateboarding?” 

“Yeah man. They have scholarships and grants for almost anything. You just gotta look for them. I’ve also got an art scholarship and some money I won from a dance competition.”

“Oh,” Reggie was definitely openly gaping now, “You’re so cool.”

“...I am?”

“Yeah dude.” Reggie shot off his bed and bounded toward Willie in a few steps. “You’ve got to be seriously talented to have earned those kinds of scholarships.”

“I mean talent doesn’t equal cool.”

“Says who?” Reggie kept himself from wrapping his arm from WIllie’s shoulders and settled for lightheartedly slapping one of his shoulders. “If you need a second opinion we can go and ask my friends. They should be settling in now.” 

“They go to school here?” Willie looked dubious, “Why didn’t you apply to live with them?”

“Alex will be attending, Luke and Bobby won’t. The three of them decided to share an apartment off campus.” Reggie started with a smile as he guided Willie out of their dorm.

“But the only place they could find is barely larger than our dorm room, and I wanted to have at least a small taste of the true college experience while I still could.”

“Plus, I figured if I didn’t share an apartment with them it would force Luke to not be constantly focused on the band.”

“Band?” Willie hesitated as Reggie tried to lead him towards his friend's apartment.

“Oh yeah, our band, Sunset Curve, tell your friends.” Reggie answered with a wink.

“You’re in a band, and you think I’m cool?” Willie’s shocked expression was echoed in his tone.

“I don’t think it, man. Like I said, you ARE cool. Just you wait, Luke, Bobby, and Alex will say the same thing.” Reggie smirked, and thought to hell with it, threw an arm around Willie’s shoulder. He bombarded Willie with questions regarding his skateboarding as they continued on to the apartment.

____

50 Fluff and Angst Prompts

#jatp prompt fic #reggie peters #willie #reggie & willie #fluff and angst prompts

[banannabethchase]

3 Geniuses and Alex

Alex has been...focused on himself lately. Shock of his lifetime when he realizes that Nora and June are together.

Note: Silly little plot bunny that's hopping around my noggin. I'm trying to decide where to perchance go with this :)

~

Alex isn’t sure when he started not noticing.

It hits him one day while they’re planning the 2020 Young Americans Gala, while Henry snores on FaceTime and Alex sorts out invitations, because of the way June’s drooling on Nora’s shoulder. He’s not being metaphorical, either. Drool, actual drool, is oozing from June’s mouth onto Nora’s shoulder, and Nora hasn’t even responded. In fact, he notes, Nora presses a kiss to the top of Nora’s head and keeps on working.

“Um.”

Nora doesn’t even notice him. She’s typing something, god knew what, but it’s fast and its focused and – there it is again! She paused her work – paused her work!!! – to brush some hair from June’s face.

Alex tries to subtly clear his throat, but it comes out like a hacking cough.

Nora looks up at him. “Are you dying or something?”

He opens his mouth, then closes it. Then tilts his head to the side. “That?”

Nora snorts. “You’re gonna have to be more specific. This is why you’re the Alex in 3 Geniuses and Alex.”

He blinks. “Is – you and Nora?”

That’s when June sits up, blinking. “Hmm?”

He looks between June and Nora. “You – y’all’re…” he trails off. He’s never felt this bamboozled in his life. Devastated, yes. Startled or shocked or horrified, of course. But in this moment, he is truly bamboozled.

June’s face splits into a shit eating grin. “Holy shit, did he finally figure it out?”

“You couldn’t have been stupid for three more weeks?” Nora asks, exasperated. “I would have won the bragging rights of the century.” She pouts. “I bet it would take you a full year to figure it out.”

“I’m sorry, a year?!” Alex exclaims. “You – when did you two – the last Gala?!” He makes some sort of noise he couldn’t recreate if his life depended on it. “When – when me and Henry…” He stares at them. “How dare you two have a moment and not tell me!”

“You were very wrapped up in your Henry problems, you sweet, foolish dumbass.” June says. “Yes, since last Gala. Where do you think the two of us and Pez ended up? A staff meeting?”

Alex closes his laptop, because no amount of organization could distract him right now. “You guys are FUCKING?!”

There’s a distinctly British sound of startle from the phone. “Who’s fucking, love?” Henry asks, bleary eyed. “Turn me. I can’t see anything but your jaw on the floor.”

Alex turns him to June and Nora. “They!”

“They what?”

“They – they are DOING things!”

To his horror, Henry just cackles. “Oh, wow.” He looks annoyingly good as he shifts and runs his fingers through his hair. Dick. “Took you long enough.”

Alex turns the camera back to himself. “YOU knew?!”

“Of course I knew,” he replies, clipped accent sounding all the more infuriating. “They were all over each other in Texas, when we did karaoke.”

“They were not!”

Nora, who had been strangely silent, pulls up one of the photos they took in Texas. It’s June, draped over Nora’s lap, with her hand in Nora’s bathing suit top. Nora’s face is gleeful, laughing, and her hand is on June’s ass. “You took this picture, you goddamn shit for brains.”

He blinks. He did take the picture, but he thought they were just – “Oh, fuck, I gal pal’ed you two!”

Henry laughs. “Yeah, that’s the day I asked them if it was the real thing or not. It’s one of the reasons I panicked that day, you know? Seeing them so casually in love made me have one of my moments.”

“And you didn’t tell me?!” Alex makes what he hopes is comparable to Henry’s distressed British noise, but Texan. “Why?”

Henry shrugs. “I wanted in on the bet.”

Alex slumps against the chair, making some sort of involuntary whimpering sound. “You’ve kept this from me for a year, though?”

“Did you think all our bedsharing was platonic?” Nora laughs. “No, babes, you and Princey are the fanfiction stereotypes.” Her grin goes a little dirty. “Unlike you two, when I know what I want, I go for it.”

Alex recoils. “Oh, god. Oh, no. No, I don’t like this line of conversation at all.” He looks to June, who is putting her hair back into a ponytail with a look of victory. “You! You are sleeping with my best friend!”

“Okay, first, our best friend,” she corrects, not even giving him the dignity of pausing her hair, “second, dating. Girlfriends with. And, you know,” she returns Nora’s dirty grin, “sleeping with. Fucking. Banging.”

Alex whimpers. “But – but I did first.”

“Alexander Dumbfuckery Claremont Diaz,” Nora says, her voice dangerous, “if you are insinuating that I am your sloppy seconds, you will die tonight, and no one will find your body.”

He shakes his head. “I just…” He stares blankly into the distance.

“Ladies, I think you’ve broken him,” Henry says, and, in Alex’s opinion, sounding far more pleased than appropriate.

“Wait until he finds out about the Pez part.”

Alex sets his phone down and scrubs his face. “There – there’s a Pez part? I’m gonna need so much alcohol for this.” He reaches out to June briefly, then snatches his hand back, horrified.

“Oh, I’m not gross like you, I wash my hands after,” June says firmly, and she stands up. “Plus, we showered, like, four hours ago.”

“Yeah, but it wasn’t a clean shower,” Nora says, and the way she says it, while typing away at god knows what, without even looking at Alex, breaks him again.

“Do I want the story?” he asks, feeling like the world is crumbling around him but also hitting him with one of those toy mallets.

“You’re getting it whether you like it or not, darling,” Henry says. “Plug in your phone. I’ve got to be here for this.”

#red white and royal blue #in which Sara writes #rwrb #FirstPrince #June x Nora #Alex is oblivious and I love him so much

[aries-writingblog]

Detonation

Summary: As an FBI agent, YN deals with bad guys all day long. So does Bucky as an Avenger. When their worlds collide, it’s never pretty. Especially not when they are the targets.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Word Count: 4620

Warnings: language, violence, bombs and explosions, bomb threats, hostage situation

AN: This was another request from @cherry-season and if you can’t tell by reading this I’ve been watching criminal minds again so I hope you guys like this one. GIF is not my own credit to original creator.

YN leaned back in the desk chair, spinning it halfway back and forth. Boring a hole into the scattered papers of the police department. She was exhausted. Their team had been after this same guy for a week now. A real piece of work: planting bombs in DC banks. Leaving cryptic messages with them. Fortunately, their bomb squad made it in time to dismantle the charge before it blew. But they were no closer to catching the guy than before.

“Shitty coffee?” A deep, masculine voice approached her side. Placing a coffee cup in front of her. YN smiled, gratefully accepting the beverage. She glanced up to the provider, one of her teammates, Alex Knowles. “Look like you could use it.”

“That a way of telling me I look worse than the coffee?” YN teased, chugging the lukewarm drink down. So accustomed to cheap, watery coffee, she barely even gagged at the bitter taste as it went down. “No leads?”

Alex shook his head, pulling up a chair and plopping beside her. He sighed, gazing out over the bustling police station. Watching the beat cops go in and out of the doors, suspects and victims all being questioned or held in the same room. A Mecca of activity unfolding before their eyes. Progress. Just not the progress they needed.

“Kinda hoping Bryant would bring something back in- he went to question a couple witnesses that were around the bank at the time the guy dropped the bomb off.” He reported, sitting forward to shuffle through the papers on the desk. “What’s all this?”

“Those are previous reports…” YN explained, brushing stray hair back from her face. “I thought he could’ve had a previous record… he built these bombs with some kind of knowledge- whether it be academic or street smarts, I’m not sure yet. Besides, not doing anything else.”

Alex nodded, letting the paper slip through his fingers and back to the desktop. He watched his teammate reorganize the stacks- the glittering diamond on her finger catching his eye. A devilish grin cracked his lips, whistling appreciatively.

“Barnes finally asked that question, did he?” He asked, putting his cup down and gesturing for her hand. YN rolled her eyes, suppressing a smile as she complied. Alex studied the rock more closely, examining the quality. “Got good taste for somebody as old as he is.”

“Oh shut up.” YN laughed, yanking her hand back.

She and Bucky met on a case. Their FBI team had been invited into a local investigation of suspicious activity. Turns out, the Avengers were also looking into it. Well, a team of four Avengers anyways. Bucky Barnes being one of them. He was smooth, a sweet talker. Managed to wriggle his way into her phone, later he would swing a date. Two years later, Bucky was down on a knee in her bedroom. Asking one of those life altering questions.

That had been three weeks ago. They barely had time to see each other after that night. She was pulled back into work, he was pulled halfway across the globe on a mission. He did call every night, checking in. Asking about her day. Making outrageous, silly promises about the wedding and their new home, their future. Making her smile, distracting her from her day. At the same time, allowing himself to dissociate from the mission he was on as well.

“I’m happy for you.” Alex’s tone turned sober, serious. YN glanced over to him. He leaned his elbows on his knees, smiling broadly. “You both deserve someone like the other… you deserve each other. I mean it in the best, possible way.”

“Thank you, Alex.” YN replied, reflecting her sincere gratitude as best she could. Alex was always in her corner. No matter what- he trusted her. In their world, that meant everything and more.

“Hey, LN- Knowles!” Ricky Bryant came rushing into their area, flushed and out of breath. “Listen, I think we might’ve found the bomber’s identity: Casey Griffin. ”

“What?” YN leaned forward, staring up at him. Her eyebrows furrowed, a faint pin struck the back of her head. “Griffin… Casey Griffin- that sounds familiar. Why is that familiar?”

Ricky opened his mouth, ready to spill all the information he had gathered about the man. A woman interrupted their circle, a panicked look in her eyes.

“Agent LN- there’s a call on line six for you. He claims to be responsible for the bombings and he’s demanding to speak with you.” She interjected, nodding to the desk phone. YN glanced from Ricky to Alex.

“Get Robbie on the phone- tell her we need to trace this call immediately.” She instructed, rolling to the desk to pick up the phone. She waited a moment, allowing Ricky to call Robbie, the fourth member of their team. Their tech analyst. “Ready?”

“Yeah- go ahead.”

YN took a deep, calming breath. Her fingers tightened around the phone anxiously. Swallowing back her creeping nerves, she pulled the phone off the receiver.

“Agent LN, may I ask who’s calling?” She began slowly, giving Robbie a chance to snag the call’s location. There was heavy breathing on the other end, as if he had been running.

“You know who’s calling, YN. Don’t play coy- it isn’t a good look on you.”

Recognition struck her like lightning as she heard his voice. He had been one of the hostages in the first emergency scene. YN had taken down his statement herself. She ground her teeth together, anger flooding her system. She had been played.

“You’ve got me there, Casey.” She chuckled, her free hand wiping down the thigh of her tactical pants. “This is the first time you’ve called- why are you just now contacting us?”

The sound Griffin made was far from a laugh- the dark, slow noise was bone chilling. Nauseating. She could feel it deep into her clothes, settling like frost against her skin. She bit her cheek, staving off the urge to shiver through the discomfort.

“I’ve decided I want to give you front row tickets to the show, of course.” He crowed, voice leaping in octaves. “Corner of West and Fifth. You have half an hour, unless you want all these lovely people to end up blood splatters and burn marks on the floors.” YN winced, clenching her jaw. “Oh, and YN? Come in alone.”

The telltale click and beep ended the call, leaving YN to stare blankly at the desk before her. Clenching the phone in her grasp so tightly the plastic creaked. Knuckles lightening. She swallowed, something was clutching her throat. Restricting her lung capacity. Her shaking fingers pressed the phone into the receiver. Pushing her chair back, she stumbled to her feet.

“YN- “

“I just need a minute, okay?” She snapped, snagging her jacket from the chair across from the desk. YN shoved past the incoming traffic of people, fumbling her way outside.

The city was full of noise; Blaring car horns, shouting, a low murmur of pedestrian conversations. Sirens. The thrum of the city’s heartbeat under her feet. Taking a left into the alleyway, YN dug through her pockets, fingers brushing against the carton of cigarettes and lighter.

Hands trembling, she put a stick between her lips. Blowing smoke as soon as she lit it. Tilting her head back against the weathered brick of the station. A shaky exhale following the wavering grey smoke. She clenched her jaw, bowing her head.

She knew it was a trap- Casey was asking to meet alone. But he was holding hostages in a bank loaded down with explosives. And who knew what he wanted, why only her? Why alone? And why was that name familiar? None it made sense- facts blurring together. Shrouding him from her senses.

A sudden buzz against her abdomen sent her reeling back into consciousness. Her cigarette was gone- flicking the filter to the ground. Pushing it into the cement with her boot. Her fingers scuttled through her pocket, retrieving her phone.

Bucky’s contact photo- one of him fast asleep with fridge magnets on his arm. She smiled- somehow Bucky always knew right when she needed him. Like he had a sensor on her emotions, giving him timely reports. Updating him constantly.

“Hey, Buck.” She greeted, begging her voice to not crack. It sounded normal. Or at least enough that she hoped Bucky didn’t question it. Tucking the phone between her shoulder and ear, she lit another cigarette. Blowing the stress away from the speaker.

“Hey, sugar,” She could hear his smile through the phone. That excited one he always got when he first saw her. Wide, showing off his teeth. Stretching his face so much she wondered if it hurt. “I’m just callin’ to tell you I’m home. And I know you’re busy but, I wanted to hear your voice again.”

YN laughed, falling into the regular rhythm with him. Allowing herself to feel the stress melt from her bones. Bucky always had that affect on her. Something she couldn’t quite understand. Why the man was such an addictive drug.

“Well, you’re in luck- I’m on a break right now.” She wanted nothing more than to sit and talk with him, listen to his baritone drawl. Lulling her into a state of comfort and security. But she knew she couldn’t- she had limited time. She had to make a decision. And soon.

“Are you smoking again?” Bucky asked. YN smiled, biting down on her lip. She made a noncommittal noise, neither agreeing or disagreeing with his statement. He had been after her for their entire relationship to make her quit the habit. Trying to help her kick it. Nothing ever really helped. “YN…”

“I know… I’ve only had two. I just… I needed a break.” She admitted, bowing her head. She shifted her eyes to the alleyway opening, seeing Alex and Ricky approaching her. “I’ve got to get back. I’ll see you at home?”

“Yes, I’m making that soup you like for dinner. Don’t let it go cold.” He warned.

“I won’t. Love you.”

“Love you too.” She shoved her phone into her back pocket, meeting her partner’s halfway. Their faces drawn with concern and hesitancy.

“Gear me up.” She pushed between them, not looking back. She feared if she looked at them again, she would lose her nerve. Holding her shoulders back, chin tilted with her head held high. She had to keep the air of confidence around her. If she didn’t- they would never believe her. YN needed full backup for her plan. “I’m going in.”

~~~~~~

The building seemed to loom over her, taunting her as she stood before it. The large windows were gaping at her, a threat to her minuscule presence. YN swallowed back the terror she felt, pushing it down and locking it away. Out of reach.

“We’ll be talking with you through the comms unit the whole time.” Ricky explained, securing the equipment over her ear. He carefully tightened the straps on her vest, glancing to meet her eyes. His brows dipped. “You don’t have to do this you know? We can raid the building or get a sniper down here. This isn’t the only option.”

YN shook her head, clipping her holster over her belt, around her waist. She sighed, the exhale was shaky. Biting down on her bottom lip to keep it from trembling, she clipped extra ammunition to the side.

“It’s the one where everyone makes it out. Those hostages are the main priority right now.”

“Hey.” Ricky stopped her nervous movement, hands on both of her shoulders. Forcing her to look up at his face. “Don’t do that. Don’t make it seem like some small bust… this is serious. We’re worried about you. About this. It’s dangerous. Give a little of that focus to yourself.”

“Okay.” YN agreed. She inhaled again, this time a little more steady. Giving a final affirmative nod, she squared her shoulders and backed away. She turned, facing the group of DC police officers and FBI squads. “Alright, these comms go both ways. I’m negotiating for hostages first. If anything goes wrong, clear the site. We don’t know how many explosives he has in there.”

YN watched the groups follow her orders, setting up to accept hostages. Loading guns for a raid if needed. Both ambulance and fire department had been called in. The companies were also preemptively preparing for the worst. She began walking toward the bank, eyes forward. What felt like thousands of eyes followed her to the door, fire burning against her back.

As she approached, she could see a woman standing at the glass door. She had been crying- her face stained with tears. YN stopped at the glass door, standing face to face with the woman. After several moments of staring, the order was finally given to open the door. The woman’s shaking fingers unlocked it, pushing it open.

“You’ve served your purpose.” A quiet voice spoke across the lobby, echoing on the tiled floors. “You may go.” The woman burst into tears, shoving past YN and onto the street. “Agent LN… how courteous of you to take her place.”

YN entered the lobby tentatively, keeping her head on a swivel. She turned the corner, coming face to face with the bomber. Casey Griffin stood behind the group of hostages, hands tucked behind his back. A twisted, sacrilegious grin on his lips. The group at his feet were huddled together, most were sobbing quietly. Holding people they most likely didn’t know. She knew from experience that tense situations erased all lines between humans. Everything begins to blur when terrified panic sets in.

“I’m here, Griffin. What do you want?” She demanded, her hand resting on her weapon. There was a buzz of static in her ear, the line opening.

“We don’t have a visual of you anymore, LN. Get back into sight.”

Griffin took a step forward, around his subjects. A small, black remote in his hand. Eyes steady on her face. Studying her. He exhaled sharply, coming to a stop right before her.

“I was hoping you’d be more… well, more.” He frowned, disappointed. YN’s eyebrow lifted, unable to follow his thoughts. “Such a shame… I’ve read all these great things about you. Every case you’ve solved, every step you’ve made to get here. You’re much more impressive on paper.”

“Get to the point.” YN sneered, her jaw clenched. Griffin smirked, eyes scanning down her face again. He sighed, rolling his eyes.

“All you feds- no taste for the theatrical. I much rather prefer the Avengers.” He grinned, eyes sparkling dangerously. YN felt her heartbeat pick up It’s pace. Heart threatening to burst out of her chest. “Oh, that’s right… congratulations, by the way. What’s it like- being engaged to a fossil? Are his brains still scrambled?”

“Shut up.” She hissed, fingers itching to reach out and wrap around his throat. He only tilted his head, pouting. He began pacing, orbiting around her slowly. Her shoulders tensed, defenses began raising even further. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, you see, I’m very well acquainted with Sergeant Barnes.” Griffin slowed to a stop again, on her right. He leaned in, close enough she could feel his breath against her skin. “He murdered my husband.”

The pounding in her chest seemed to have leapt into her throat. Breathing was much harder now, her skin crawled as her brain went into overdrive. Something was wrong… what was going on?

“He doesn’t do that anymore.” YN admitted, her voice lower than she thought it would be. Threatening to crack.

“But he does.” He hissed, gripping her arm tightly. Yanking her to his chest. His free hand came up to her ear, ripping the unit out and flinging it into the wall. His fingers fluttered down to her chin, grasping it tightly and forcing her face to his. He stared down at her. Anger burning in his irises, the dark circles under his eyes. His nostrils flared. “What makes it even worse is that he chose to do it. With Hydra, he had no choice. But with the Avengers? He had every decision laid out before him and he chose.”

YN flinched, flecks of saliva landing on her cheek. Her jaw clenched down tighter, eyes closing momentarily. Griffin’s hand crept down from her face, into the pocket of her pants. His fingers grasped the device, pulling it out. He held the device to her face, unlocking it then shoving her away.

“So now,” Griffin gave her a maniacal grin. YN was beginning to get whiplash from his mood swings. He was unpredictable. Unstable. Devolving before her eyes. She glanced back to the group of hostages. “He gets to flex that autonomy again. Oh, how lovely- he was your last call.”

“Why do you have me here, Griffin?” YN demanded, attempting to take control of the situation. If he was distracted, she could maneuver and gain the upper hand. “If you wanted to go after Bucky you would’ve done it. Why do any of this? Why do you need them?”

Griffin spared a quick glance to the group of shivering civilians. He hummed quietly, pressing dial for Bucky’s number. YN felt a drop of sweat bead down her neck. Rolling to meet the bulletproof fabric over her torso. She was alone in here, responsible for the lives of those petrified people. Staring and waiting for her to do something. Help them.

Her eyes fell to the remote in his hand. She could snatch it. The bomb was his power move. His leverage. Then again, the hostages were bargaining chips. He had to give something up. She had to remove variables.

“Let them go.” YN urged, holding her hands out in surrender. “You’ve got me, you’ve got my attention. Let them go.” He sighed dramatically, eyes rolling as he pressed the button for speakerphone.

“It’s no fun without an audience.” He whined, shrugging as he turned to the hostage group. “And to think- we were just getting to the good part. Fine! Leave, all of you.”

The group all scrambled to their feet, taking their leave before he changed his mind. The stampede rushed the door, cramming themselves out into the street. YN’s heart slowed, the adrenaline fading in her veins slightly. Her priority was taken care of- they all made it out alive.

“Hello?” YN never thought she would be nervous to hear Bucky’s voice. Casey smiled at the phone, eyes boring into her skull. “YN? Hello?”

“She can’t make it to the phone right now.” Griffin responded, giving her a mocking pout. The other end fell silent. YN could almost feel the paranoia settle over his body. “I would ask you to leave a message but I’m afraid she won’t be around much longer to hear it.”

An idea began to form, tingling at the base of her skull. YN gulped nervously. She had to keep him distracted- keep him focused on Bucky. But that also meant she had to stay focused on Casey. She couldn’t say a word to Bucky. Not yet.

“Who the fuck are you and what do you want?” Bucky hissed. YN closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She could pull her weapon. But could she pull it fast enough? Griffin could blow the place to smithereens. She could try to get the remote- every solution seemed to fall back to the same outcome. She grit her teeth- he had the upper hand. She could do nothing but wait it out.

“Joshua Rivers.” Casey replied. While his voice was smooth and unrestrained, his eyes told a different story. Seething, red hot rage burned in his veins. “Does that name ring any bells to you, Sargeant? Let me give you a hint anyways- I know how fragile the mind can be in the older years. He was a lead operative for Hydra. Four months ago, you raided his warehouse and instead of arresting him, you put a bullet through his skull.”

“He deserved more.” Bucky hissed, his voice crackling through the speaker. Echoing in the empty building. Casey scowled, his nose scrunching in anger. “That warehouse housed human experimentation projects.”

“That doesn’t matter!” Casey screamed, veins in his neck popping out against his skin. Pumping adrenaline in time with his heart. “He was a person- he had people who loved him, cared for him. You took that away from me. I can’t help but wonder… how you’ll feel about the same circumstances.”

“Where is YN?” Bucky demanded, keeping his voice level. YN began to creep her fingers up, toward the gun in her holster. She had one chance. He was distracted- she could gain the upper hand.

“Well, that’s a tricky question. It’s only a matter of time before she’s… everywhere.” Griffin shrugged, swinging his gaze back to YN. Her fingers faltered, halting at her hip. She was close, her thumb brushed the cold metal of the gun. “So now… now I think I’ll return the favor. You took something from me. The only person that ever mattered. You destroyed my world.”

“If you touch her, I swear to-“

“You don’t believe in God, Sergeant.” Griffin’s slow drawl interrupted the threat. His tongue ran over his lips, taking a deep breath. “He’s not real. If he were, don’t you believe that none of this suffering would happen?” There was a ruckus of noise on the other end of the phone, Bucky panting heavily. A door slamming. “This is your repentance, James Barnes.”

YN’s fingers wrapped around the metal plating, her nerves settling. She could make this draw. It would be fast enough. It would be accurate. She could end it once and for all. She exhaled slowly, counting down.

Three…

Two…

One…

In a flash, YN pulled her gun from her side. Aiming it at Casey’s chest and pulling the trigger. The loud gunfire echoed- ringing in her ears. Her heart sank. Stomach plummeting to her feet.

She missed.

Casey’s expression settled into one of contempt. Disappointment. The hell fire turned to her, his focus shifting from Bucky to YN. Surging toward her, his hand swung out, shoving the muzzle to the ceiling as she fired again. Casey’s fist tightened around her phone, a strong punch to her kidney sending her to her knees, wheezing for air. YN grunted, her hand swinging at a wide angle, but it was only deflected as the heel of his hand connected with her nose. Releasing a sharp cry, YN cradled her nose carefully. Eyes watering and face stinging. Bucky’s frantic shouts barely audible as she knelt, gasping in pain. Her thoughts muddled and slow.

Casey sighed dramatically, ripping the weapon from Yn’s hand. She groaned, disoriented as a fresh wave of pain throbbed from her face. Blood seeped from between her fingers, dripping down into a puddle on the tile floor.

“Say goodbye to your fiancée, Sergeant.”

~~~~~~

Bucky all but tossed the motorcycle onto the curb as he skidded to a stop. A blazing inferno consumed the building, scorching the blackened trees that once surrounded it. The hand gripping his throat squeezed tighter as he stumbled toward the police line. Shoving his way through bystanders.

He felt sick- choking back the nausea bubbling from his stomach. Fire bellowed from the gaping, blown out glassless windows. Portions of the building were collapsed, the rest soon to follow. He barreled through shouting police officers, desperate to reach the building.

“Barnes!” He didn’t turn- even though the voice was familiar. He had to get to her- she was still alive, he knew she was. She had to be. “Barnes- man, you can’t go in there!”

Hands grasped his metallic shoulder, pulling him back roughly. Bucky grunted, swinging his arm around, taking hold of the man’s bulletproof vest. He clenched his jaw, staring down at Alex Knowles. One of her partners. Knowles’ eyes were puffy and rimmed with red. His skin was irritated, probably from wiping tears away.

“She’s still in there.” Bucky stated, without asking if she had been pulled out yet. He knew the process of these kinds of situations. The fire chief had to clear it and the area was nowhere near safe enough. But his girl was in there, in danger. Dying slowly, the longer he stood around. It had already been too long.

“Teams haven’t been sent in yet… I know you’re scared but you could make it worse if you go in there guns blazing. It could collapse the rest of the way.” Knowles warned, his eyes begging Bucky to stay put. Bucky shoved him away. Stripping off his jacket, Bucky scowled at the man.

“I will be the something worse if she’s not alive. Don’t test me, Knowles.” He growled, tying the jacket sleeves around his waist. Bucky turned on his heel, sprinting for the blown out doors of the bank. Ignoring the shouts of the firemen and police officers on the scene.

Inside, the flames locked the walls, staying maintained. It seemed the only thing the department had been doing since the explosion was clearing the fire. They had been prepared somewhat.

Bucky stumbled through the rubble, boots tripping over chunks of concrete and twisted metal. He had to find YN, she was somewhere. He had to keep himself from thinking the worst- she was alive. She would be okay. He just had to find her first.

He turned what would’ve been a corner of the bank, his heart rocketing through his chest. The beat thumping wildly.

Two bodies. Lying side by side.

“YN!” He picked his way through rubble, skidding to his knees beside her. Deep cuts laced her dirtied features, trapped under a chunk of concrete from the waist down. For now, he didn’t care of the implications that could lie beneath the rock. His trembling fingers found the pulse point in her neck, bowing his head and stifling a sharp sob as he felt a faint, slow thrum. He brushed the hair from her face gently, biting his lip to keep himself together. “Don’t worry sweetheart, I’ve got you.”

Bucky shuffled down to her waist, hooking his fingers into the rock. Just as he began lifting, a sharp gasp startled him, almost dropping the rubble. He glanced back at YN- wide awake and sobbing. Carefully, Bucky spared a glance under the concrete. A metal rod went directly through her thigh, blood seeping from the wound.

“Shit…” It had been contained until he lifted it- now she was going to bleed out. He had to move fast. “YN, doll, I’ve got you. This is gonna hurt but it’ll be okay.”

She didn’t respond, sobs ripping from her chest as he stilled. Bucky took a deep breath, collecting his nerves. He moved quickly, throwing the concrete across the room with a loud grunt. An ear piercing shriek fell from Yn’s lips, her fist pounding the ground at her side. Bucky untied his jacket, wrapping it tightly around her injured thigh.

“Okay, sweetheart. We’re gonna get out of here.” Bucky’s chest tightened as he gathered her in his arms. She was shivering, huddling close to his body as best she could. Her skin was filthy, covered in soot, dirt, and blood. “Try to talk with me, sweet girl. Stay awake.”

“Ja- James…” YN’s fingers twisted into his shirt, tears soaking into his fabric. His heart clenched. It was his fault- that idiot had gone after her because of him. He held her closer, tighter, as he picked his way back to the doors. “I… I think I’m done- done smoking.”

Bucky almost laughed, forgetting his location. The situation fading as he spared a glance down to her face. She was grimacing, lips pulled and forehead wrinkled. But here she was- trying to joke with him.

“Why’s that, doll?” He questioned, emerging from the collapsed bank. The sunlight was strong, glaring down into his eyes. He hunched slightly, trying to block the intense light from her sensitive eyes. YN groaned, tugging weakly at his shirt. “We’re almost there, doll. Keep talking. Why’re you quittin’?”

“I’ve had enough smoke for one lifetime.” She replied, eyes fluttering. Paramedics rushed toward them, a gurney wheeled to their side. Bucky carefully lay her back, grasping her hand tightly as they rushed toward the ambulance.

Bucky didn’t reply, lips pressed together. Concern running rampant as they moved. His eyes caught Knowles and Bryant’s, averting his as soon as they landed. Loading into the ambulance.

“Bucky?” He quickly stepped up, sitting down in the back. Squeezing her hand tightly. YN gave a half- hearted return. Her fingers tangling with his, eyes closed. “Stay… please…”

“I’m here, sweetheart.” Bucky smiled, hoping his face could mask the desperate panic he felt in the pit of his stomach. “I’m not goin’ anywhere.”

#bucky barnes x female reader #bucky barnes x y/n #bucky barnes x you #bucky x reader #bucky barnes fic #bucky x you #bucky x y/n #james barnes x female reader #james barnes x y/n #james barnes x you #james barnes x reader

[the-dream-team]

What You Truly Are

I'd like to dedicate this fic to @thejilyship & my cousin, Alex <3

Years of doubt and confusion about her sexuality were thrown away the instant Lily met James Potter.

Mr. Slughorn had assigned James to partner with her in Chemistry because he was new to Hogwarts Prep and she was top of the class. He had kind, hazel eyes hidden behind wire-rimmed glasses and a curly mop of bangs that immediately grabbed her attention. He was smiley and funny and perfectly content with his own shortcomings when it came to Science, happy to let her take the lead on their lab, something most boys would never set aside their egos to do.

But James wasn’t like most boys. He complimented things like her handwriting or how kind she was to strangers instead of the clothes she wore or the color of her hair. Plus, he seemed unconcerned with appearances and popularity, instead focused almost completely on making the school’s soccer team.

He spoke about soccer constantly, and Lily loved the way he lit up when talking about the training he’d been doing for tryouts and the way he’d managed to complete a bicycle kick for the first time. She’d be lying if she had her doubts whether James would make the team, what with his slight build and short stature. The boys on Hogwarts Prep’s Varsity team were all about a head taller, sixty pounds heavier, and had actually defined muscles, which James lacked.

But that was what drew Lily to him. He was softer, blushed easily, giggled openly. There was a feminine energy to the boy that clicked all the gears into place. All this time, Lily had been straight, it just so happened that she preferred boys that were a bit more effeminate. Boys like James.

When he actually made the soccer team, she was the first person he told, wrapping her in a wonderfully intoxicating hug outside of her dorm room, his smooth, soft hands brushing her neck in a way that sparked an ember of hope that maybe he looked at her the same way she looked at him. They spent the rest of the evening celebrating in the cafeteria with slices of pizza and unlimited soft serve, discussing the team’s first match against Durmstrang High. Lily admitted that she’d always loved playing soccer as a kid and how she wished Hogwarts had a girl’s team. James looked at her with an entire forest fire behind his eyes and said with a surprising level of intensity that it was bullshit that the team wasn’t co-ed.

The next day he showed up to her room, a smile on his lips and a soccer ball under his arm. He took her to the fields and they ran drills and practiced shooting on each other until the sun began to set. She never thought she understood a ‘runner’s high’ until they raced the length of the field as blues and purples chased pinks and oranges in the sky, sprinting against each other until their lungs emptied out and their legs gave in. They tumbled onto the cool, evening grass, shoulder to shoulder, head to head, stealing glances and sharing laughter. She thought he might kiss her when they both turned their heads and parted lips, but instead, he sat up, mumbling something about it “not being fair to her.” Whatever that meant.

She tried to take a step back after that day, a silly effort to protect her heart. Maybe it just wasn’t the right time for her and James. Maybe they were better as friends. Plus, his big first game was in a matter of days and she wanted to support him in every way she could. Distracting him with her feelings wouldn’t be helpful…

And that decision seemed to be for the best when Hogwarts beat Durmstrang handily four to one, with James scoring three of their goals. The bleachers erupted into applause as the buzzer went off at the end of the game, but no one was louder than Lily as she cheered for James, who was lifted up by his teammates like a king on his throne.

Lily found herself running down to the field, searching for James in the crowds of fans, hoping to hug him the way they’d hugged before. When she finally spotted him, he’d been approached by the school’s broadcasting club and his face was blasted onto the jumbotron, his voice carrying over the speaker system.

“James Potter, you’re clearly the breakout star of the game today,” said a student reporter into a microphone. “Any thoughts you’d like to share with us today?”

Lily pushed through the swarms of fans, finally making it to the camera crew, and when James saw her smiling at him, his eyes flashed.

“Yeah, I’ve got some thoughts,” he said, his voice echoing around the field and bleachers. “I think Hogwarts should let girls onto the team because they can be just as good as the boys.” He was met by a chorus of confused chatter and a handful of boos. But Lily’s heart soared. “Sure, boo all you want, but I think you’d be surprised to know a girl was Hogwart’s highest scorer in today’s match!”

The jeering turned to a strange mix of laughter and dismissive shouts, causing James’ face to scrunch up. Lily’s heart pounded through her ears.

“It’s me!” James shouted, flustered frustration lining his (her?) face. “I’m the girl! My name isn’t James, it’s Jamie!”

Lily’s jaw hit the floor and her stomach swooped as James- no, Jamie- reached up to fiddle with her hair, grabbed a hidden bobby pin, and let a mess of wavy curls fall to her shoulders.

The crowd continued their shouting, mostly echoing a strange chant of “prove it, prove it!” until Jamie finally rolled her eyes, sent Lily a smirk and a shrug, and grabbed the hem of her jersey, pulling it up to her nose.

The crowd let out a collective gasp, and Lily quickly came to terms with her sexuality.

Once the cameras turned off, Jamie was immediately in front of her, eyes wide and waiting, lip caught between her teeth with a worry that Lily wanted to immediately wipe off.

“I’m sorry, Lily,” she started, “I didn’t mean to trick you or anything like that, but I didn’t expect to meet someone like you and-”

Lily rushed forward, feeling more secure in her thoughts and feelings than ever before, and grabbed Jamie’s face, pulling the girl down until their lips met in a collision of soft smiles, unwavering happiness, and plenty of giggling.

#jily fic #jily #she's the man #surprise! #fem!jily #also technically #shirtless jp may #(shirtless jamie potter may heyooo) #wlw

[davidsons89]

Turner Family - part 1

chapter 1 - “prettiest princess”

Alex Turner x Reader

𝐀/𝐍: i adore writing alex as a father. it helps with my sleep scenarios hehe

𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘: you and rock singer alex turner began dating a few years ago. it was nothing serious at first, until a baby came along. then soon came another...

𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒: mentions of anxiety, light swearing

𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒: i used random names for the children, please change them if you wish to <3

you and alex aren’t exactly the ideal couple. you’re not even sure if you’re a couple anymore. you’ve been on and off with each other for years, the only thing keeping you close is your five year old daughter olivia. you’re sticking together as a strong couple right now, but you have some news to tell him.

you and alex were dating for a long time before you fell pregnant, the idea of having children never came to his liking. he’s constantly surrounded by his friends kids, but was never interested in having any of his own. the thought of being responsible for a little human was something he dreaded to think about. you were the “it” couple at one point, until that news hit you both unexpectedly. you fought every single day, not a day went by without an argument occurring. alex didn’t want the kid, so you broke up and he disappeared for the entire the pregnancy.

through the whole nine months of carrying your baby, alex gave you hell. you argued over the phone, sent mean text messages to one another, and even threats were involved. all of that caused you stress and made you develop major anxiety, which harmed the innocent life inside you. the reality didn’t hit either of you until she was officially born into the world. that’s when alex came back.

after olivia was born, alex finally adapted to being a father. he realized that the tiny human in his arms was his. his blood, his daughter, his family. you soon resolved your fight and got back together, adjusting to parenthood as a couple. you didn’t trust alex the same way ever again, your anxiety forced you to stress and overthink about little things. over the years, alex tried to be a better boyfriend to benefit you and your daughter, but you’re afraid of abandonment again. you can’t do it alone.

7:34AM

alex walks through the front door to collect olivia, taking her to school. he didn’t come home last night, though he’s normally busy with his friends through the night till early morning. god knows what he could be doing, but it’s fame. you know that. “daddy!” olivia exclaims, running towards alex as he walked through the door. “hi, sweetheart” he says, crouching down to give her a warm hug.

“where’s your mother?” he asks, pulling away from the hug shortly after. “in there.. she’s sad” olivia quietly says, pointing to the living room from the hallway. “sad?” alex frowns, peeking in to see you sat from afar. “go get your shoes and coat on, olivia.” alex says, patting her back to guide her away. he walks into the living room to see why you’re upset.

“y/n, you ok?” he asks, sitting next to you to see your face being covered by your hand, clearly trying to avoid him. “babe?” he says, grasping his hand around your wrist, pulling it down to see your face. he sees your red cheeks and wet, puffy eyes. “what’s wrong, love?” he asks, immediately putting his hand around your back to comfort you. “nothing” you build up the courage to say with your voice cracking and nose sniffling. “it’s not nothing, what is it?” he asks, leaning his head down to look at you, but you keep turning away to ignore him.

“y/n, stop looking away” he says, putting his hand on your chin to gently pull your face toward him. “daddy” olivia says from the doorway, making you and alex look back to see her. “just go.. i’ll tell you later” you wipe your tears and look away. alex sighs and stands up, ready to take olivia to school. “come on, love” he says, putting his hand on her back to guide her out. you feel guilty for not giving her a kiss or a hug goodbye, but you didn’t want her to see you like this. especially what it’s about...

in the car now, alex drives away after strapping himself and olivia in. the first few minutes of the drive is silent, until olivia had a question. “daddy, why is mommy crying?” she innocently asks, worried about her mom. “it’s just hormones. you’ll understand that when you’re a little bit older” he tries to explain the best he can. “what’s hormones?” she frowns. “don’t worry, ok?” he sighs, not taking his eyes off the foggy road ahead of him. it’s the middle of october, mornings are crisp cold and nights are colder.

a few more silent minutes passed. neither of them could think of anything to talk about. you were the only thing on their minds. “so, what you doing at school today?” alex asks, changing the subject to a better one. “arts and crafts” olivia grins cheekily. “yeah? what you gonna make?” he chuckles. “um.. crowns and tiaras because i’m a princess” she giggles adorably, warming alex’s heart. “the prettiest princess of them all” he reaches his hand over to her, tickling her to hear her precious laugh. becoming a father wasn’t something alex wanted, but he’s very glad it happened. his princess is his whole world.

after driving some more, they finally arrived outside the school gates. alex parked up and the two got out of the car. they both held hands as they made their way into the school grounds. alex has olivia’s backpack flung over his shoulder, carrying it for her. alex is well known, even at school, making olivia relatively popular with lots of friends. “there she is” olivia exclaims as the two spot her class teacher from afar. she waits outside for her students every morning. “here you go, sweetheart. have a good day, love you” alex says, dropping her hand to pass her backpack to her. he reaches down and plants a kiss on her forehead before she ran inside to start the school day.

“she’s always full of energy in the mornings” the teacher chuckles, beginning a conversation with alex. “i don’t know where she gets it from” he chuckles, watching his daughter through the window as she sits on a table with her friends. “she’s a wonderful student. i’m very glad to have her in my class” the teacher says, placing her hand on her heart to show kindness. “i’m glad to hear that” alex smiles, the two finish their conversation shortly after.

about twenty minutes later, alex arrived back at the house. you hear the car door shut outside, so you quickly wipe the tears you’d been crying. he walks in, and immediately joins you in the living room to talk to you. “you’re still crying? jesus, y/n, what’s wrong?” he asks, sitting next to you and wrapping his arm around your shoulder, pulling you closer to him.

your head falls onto his shoulder, where you continue to cry. he patiently waits for you to speak, he isn’t rushing you or forcing you to talk. he waits. “i don’t want you to leave me again” you sniffle, tightly wrapping your arms around him. he feels bad, but wants to know why you’re thinking of that.

“why do you say that, darling?” he asks softly, comforting you while you cry. “i can’t tell you” you shake your head, nuzzling your head into the crook of his neck so you could avoid him. “you can. you can tell me, i won’t leave you. never again” he reassures, teaching his hands down to your face to pull your head up. he cups your cheeks in his hands and looks into your eyes, he sees how upset you are but can’t imagine why. you place your hands on his wrists to try and pull him away, but he doesn’t let you. “no, talk to me. it’s ok, i’m here” he says, rubbing your tears away with his thumbs on your face.

you fell silent for a few moments, trying to build up the courage to tell him what you’d been hiding all morning. “it’s ok” he whispers, looking into your eyes as he waited for you to speak, ever so patiently. you stare into his eyes and take a deep, shaky breath. you open your mouth and hesitated to speak, but you needed to get it out otherwise you’d feel worse. “i’m pregnant” you quietly blurt out, rolling your eyes, expecting him to be angry again.

he doesn’t say or do anything, so you look directly into his eyes. he looks shocked, his eyebrows are raised and he seems lost for words. “oh..” he responded after moments of not answering. “it’s ok, i don’t expect you to stay” you sigh, sniffling as you make yourself upset again. he sees your tears coming back, so he pulls you in again, immediately hugging you tightly. “shh.. it’s ok” he whispers, rubbing your back as you cry into his chest. you’re both feeling an incredible amount of emotions, unsure whether they’re good or bad ones.

“are you mad?” you ask shakily, not raising your head from his chest. “no i’m not mad. of course i’m not” he whispers, hugging you tighter than he possibly could. his reaction is much different from last time, which shocked you more than the news shocked him. when he found out you were pregnant the first time, he was angry and violent with his words. the two of you would fight for hours on end, yelling at each other. but now, he’s different . he’s the one telling you to calm down and that it’s gonna be ok.

“if you don’t want the baby it’s ok.. i’ll get rid of—” you begin to say in panic, willing to do anything he wanted if it meant he wouldn’t leave you again. “y/n, stop it.” he cuts you off, shushing you and rubbing the back of your head to comfort you. “i totally understand if you don’t want it” you sniffle shakily, your thoughts racing as you overthink. “please stop talking. you’re being silly” he says, shaking his head as he pulls you further into his chest. you do nothing but cry tears and more tears.

you took a few minutes to calm down, in which you managed to control your breathing and finally gained courage to look at him again. he’s holding your red stained cheeks in his hands, brushing his thumb under your eyes to catch your fallen tears. “let’s talk about this, ok?” he raises his eyebrows as the two of you lock eyes onto one another. you nod, waiting to hear what he has to say.

“i want the baby” he says, nodding his head. you furrow your eyebrows with shock and confusion. he kicked up enough of a fuss last time, but now he’s fine with it. “you do?” you ask, still frowning. “i want olivia to be a big sister. and i love being a dad” he reassures you, smiling to see you smile.

“but.. i didn’t think you’d want to stay because of last time...” you say nervously, quietening down as you finish your sentence. “y/n, that was almost six years ago. things are much different” he sighs. he loves being a dad, he loves having a family of his own. he’s more than happy to welcome another child into his world.

“ok..” you take a deep breath, taking in the news and sniffling to keep yourself calm, trying not to start another breakdown again. “look, we’re fucking great parents. we make beautiful babies” he chuckles, pinching your cheeks cutely to make you giggle, and it worked. “i wasn’t ready to be a dad last time, but this time i am. i promise i’ll be here the whole time. whenever you need me” he says, pulling you in for a hug. you wrap your arms around one another and share this sweet moment.

“i’m so sorry for what i did last time. i was cruel and stupid, i’ll never put you through that again” he makes a promise to you, kissing your forehead and holding you close. you can tell how sorry he is, the guilt breaking through his voice. he knows how anxious you get over everything, how hormonal and emotional you get when the two of you have a disagreement. you’re scared of abandonment, and he feels at fault but is trying to make up for what he did, and he will make it up to you.

“we’ll get through this together, and be blessed with another angelic baby. i love you” he cheers you up, kissing you on the forehead every few moments to show you how much he really cares. and if he didn’t care, he’d have already walked out the second you told him. he loves you, he really does.

“it won’t be angelic.. you never get two” you chuckle to enlighten the mood. alex chuckles with you. “olivia was so good as a baby, this one’s gonna cry non stop. it happens to everyone” you giggle and wipe your leftover tears, you felt happy now. “well don’t jinx it” he says, pushing you away from the hug slowly. “how are we even gonna tell people?” you ask. “it’s halloween soon, maybe we could tell everyone at your moms?” alex suggests.

your mom hosts halloween parties for family and friends every year, so it would be a great idea to let everyone know at the same time. “yeah, that’s good” you say, pointing your finger at him to agree with his plan. you both begin to settle down in the living room for a while. it began storming outside, which was such a comforting weather while you’re snuggled up on the sofa. you shift your legs from the sofa to the floor as you lay against alex’s chest while watching a movie. “where you going?” he asks, feeling you about to move. “to grab a snack” you say, lifting your body up but alex pulls you back down.

“i’ll get it” he grins at you, showing you that he wants to take care of you during this pregnancy. he will literally do everything to have you trust him again, you’re still not 100% on it, your trust issues from last time haunt you. “ok” you giggle as alex stands up, walking to the kitchen to grab you a snack.

he takes a little while, so you wonder what the hell he’s doing. “alex” you raise your voice so he’d hear you from the kitchen. “what?” he yells back. “hurry up you’re missing the movie” you say, unable to pause the screen as it’s on a television channel. “my bad” he says, walking back into the living room and sitting next to you. he hands you a bowl of cut up fruit, so you smile at his effort. “aww” you giggle, looking at him. he takes a piece of strawberry from the bowl and places it near your lips. you take a bite, and he eats the rest of the bitten strawberry.

“i’m gonna be here with you and olivia the whole time, ok?” he begins to talk. he really wants you to know how much he’s committed. “i’m gonna take some time off to be with you” he says, you look at him and immediately shake your head. “you can’t stop your music” you frown. “i’m not gonna stop, family’s more important right now” he nods his head. “i’m really sorry for what happened last ti—” be begins to talk, but you completely shut him up. “alex, alex, shush” you cut him off by speaking above his level.

“the past is in the past.. you’re a great dad and i know you’ve changed” you smile to show him your understanding of the situation. he will forever feel guilty about being the main cause of your stress, anxiety and trust issues because he’s the one who caused you shit while you were pregnant. he ignored you, practically ghosted you while you needed him most, begging for him. you cried almost everyday, you felt alone and thought you’d face motherhood all by yourself, but he came back.

“the reason i was so scared to show you is because i know you’ve never wanted to be a dad, one kid is hard but two kids will be harder. i just didn’t want you to disappear again” you sigh, explaining to him. “i’m making this promise to you now. i’ll never do that again, not to you or olivia.” he says, grasping your free hand with his, holding it firmly to show how much he really cares. a few moments of silence went by, the same time as thunder rumbled outside. you glare into each other’s eyes and really feel each other’s love.

“i love you” he whispers, smiling as he brings your hand up to his mouth and plants a kiss on your skin. you smile, feeling his apology through his soft lips. “i love you too” you warmly smile, feeling forgiveness in your words. “and we do make the prettiest babies, you’re right” you giggle, pulling your hand away from his to grab another piece of fruit from the bowl. “fuck yeah we do. the turner babies will be models” he chuckles, picking at your fruit bowl too. you spend the rest of the morning into midday watching movies and sharing each other’s love through the stormy, gloomy weather outside, snuggled up on the sofa.

#alex turner #arctic monkeys

[lydias--stiles]

canon juke fluff based on “till forever falls apart” by ashe and finneas

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

Raucous laughter disappeared in a snap as the door slammed behind her. Her feet stumbled from the sudden change, finding her balance again and then hopping towards the garden gate. She left a glitter trail in her wake.

Julie turned seventeen today. She knew it’d be special the second she woke up, Carlos blaring ‘Dancing Queen’ like a little shit before her alarm clock went off. It was the most brotherly way he could congratulate her and she loved him for it. (Not after she chased him though - who the hell did that?!)

Flynn came by during breakfast, phasing through Alex without realising as she placed a glittery crown atop Julie’s curls. It was plastic and clunky and the number 17 was pink and glowed in the dark. Luke sat on the kitchen island teasing her for it, Reggie helping Ray make pancakes and yelling he wanted one too. It was barely seven am and her day was the best.

At school, she was showered with birthday wishes and her Instagram flooded with messages of people that confirmed they’d come to her party.  

Despite everything, her traitorous thoughts always ended up in the same spot. Luke. He teased her at breakfast, but he didn’t hug her like Alex and Reggie. He didn’t poof beside her as she walked down the driveway to quickly impart a joke or a secret or a lyric, something for her to mull about on the trek to school with Flynn. There was nothing.

On the one hand, it could just be pre-performance jitters. Luke took every gig a hundred percent seriously and got pretty intense if a lot of people were going to be watching. If he didn’t set the stage on fire in one song, he’d feel like he failed. So yeah, Julie allowed herself to think that was the case for his absentmindedness.

If only she didn’t know him so well. She knew it was something else entirely. She knew it had to do with her age; the fact that she aged. It was hard to not let it temper her birthday excitement, but all she wished for (just like when she blew out her candles for her sixteenth birthday) was for them to hide in her daydreams and be together without qualms. That he was hers.

Luke and her have made plenty of mistakes over the two years that they’ve known each other. Falling in love wasn’t one. She couldn’t believe that - even if he’d given her mixed signals since their fated gig at The Orpheum.

The party was a hit. Dad bought a big peanut butter chocolate cake and they played their best set ever, the studio decorated in an explosion of flowers and butterflies and streamers. Julie was in a glittery purple dress, the crown to match, each lyric coming from her lips laced with glee and pink lemonade. That perpetual thrill coursing through her as she danced with Reggie and hyped up Alex and - her favourite part of all - shared the mic with Luke. His aloof behaviour from before was gone then, coming towards her in that greedy way that made her heart stutter out of place.

Julie wondered if anyone ever believed he was a hologram prior to the band ‘moving to America’. How could they, when he’s always looked so alive and real and warm and with his eyes so intently on hers that it felt like he bore through her, straight to her soul.

Pushing through the sensation, she shot him a teasing grin and returned to the piano.

After the set, Flynn put her DJ skills to good use and put on a killer playlist. Julie danced until her feet ached, sang along until her throat hurt, ate cake until she was full. She was happy and seventeen. As the hours went by, more and more classmates trickled away, ending with her family hoarding the kitchen island as they ate the remnants of cake. All except one.

It hurt. Julie knew Luke was brooder - but on her birthday? Because he couldn’t handle it? Tomorrow, she'd be on her way to surpass them. First Reggie, then Alex and then Luke. Was it selfish of her for wanting to spend time with him? For wanting to dance with him? If just once? If Alex and Reggie could, why couldn’t he?

Without a second thought (or third, fourth, fifth - it was always and forever tethered to Luke), she stumbled out the front door towards the garden gate. Glitter stuck to the pavement.

The light was on in the studio, their safe haven surrounded by fallen decorations as if a storm had passed. Her bare foot kicked a balloon, a smile tugging on her lips as the purple thing drifted and bounced against the trees.

She slid the doors open. There he was.  

“Luke?”

His back was turned towards her, head bent over the grand piano as he fervently wrote in his trusty songbook. More songs were theirs than just his in there, she knew, and it left her warm.

He perked up, head turning, a gentle smile on his lips. “Hey birthday girl. You look like shit.”

She laughed, coming closer, and watched as more glitter fell to the floor. She must look like a sweaty, exhausted disco ball. Despite this, a sense of calmness washed over her. Luke was here and he was smiling at her and everything made sense again.

“Thanks,” she jabbed. “You look even worse.”

Tensing his muscles, as if she hadn’t seen them before, he smirked. “Please. The sweat makes my arms look better.”

The smile stuck to her cheeks, stupidly enamoured by his silliness, and remembered a time when she didn’t allow herself to feel like this. But that was before the late night sessions in the studio, before he became corporeal, before he placed tender kisses on her forehead before important gigs, as if infusing her with the power to kill it, before he hung out in her room and before he allowed her to know more about 90s-Luke. (There wasn’t much difference. According to his stories, he was just as endearing then.)

Before one frustrated kiss between them, months ago, nearly blew everything up. If the band and their connection wasn’t so tight, she didn’t know what would’ve happened. They never spoke about it. Perhaps the knowledge that it happened, the idea that it could happen again, realising that her daydreams weren’t one-sided - it left her yearning. Who would blame her? She was seventeen.  

The kiss had been a mistake, but that ‘stupidly enamoured’ feeling? It was only a natural reaction. She didn’t want anyone else.

Crossing the final distance, Julie tightly wrapped her arms around him. Luke held her close, face burrowed in her neck and letting his waning body spray and her flowery perfume melt together.

“You haven’t given me a hug today,” she whispered.

He nodded. “I know.”

She bit back a sigh. This couldn’t be a mistake too. “Why?”

“Cause you’re seventeen,” he muttered. “I can’t pretend you’re-”

“Younger?”

His palms curled around her, pulling back slightly to look her in the eye. The green, bright yet troubled, flitted across her face. Dejected, it dropped to the ground, as if the sight of her brought him wonder and ache at once. Could she tell him it was mutual? Could she-

“Able to be mine.”

It was uttered so quietly, she almost didn’t catch it. It was as if the world went off its axis, both precariously close to falling off the edge and Julie debating whether that would be a bad thing or not. If it really was that insane if it meant she got to be right here, in his arms.

The feeling coiled in her stomach, pushed itself up her ribcage, straight through her heart and slid past her throat. The words danced on her lips, lively and colourful and devoted.

And then she said it. “I love you.”

His eyes slowly locked with hers, a glint of uncertainty found beneath. The lack of surprise on his part would make her laugh had she not been so terrified to lose him completely, all at once. His fingers pressed into her skin, like she’d be the one backtracking her words and running out. Like he wasn’t the one with the ability to vanish from her grasp.

Luke exhaled and dropped his forehead against hers, gaze unwavering. Her instincts told her to shut her eyes, look away, maybe even bridge the gap, but they were so close to finally becoming something. Whatever that might be.  

“Why aren’t you scared?”, he breathed. 

Her nervous hands found solace on his cheeks. “I am scared. And it’s despite that. All I wanted today, Luke, was have you be with me.” And then her eyes clenched tight anyway, overwhelmed by the moment. “I’m scared and- and despite everything… I love you.”

Her vulnerability hanging by a thread, she watched as he processed her words. She had no clue if she said or did the right thing, though her hands were frozen in place. Her heart rate picked up when he mirrored her, calloused fingers slipping from her shoulders to her face.

Luke swallowed, hard. “I’m sorry that- that I’ve been distant. But I’m scared and not for the reasons you think. I’m scared cause-” His chuckle was like a candle awakening in a dark cave. “-cause I don’t wanna spend a minute loving anyone else.”

The previous terror washed away, a brilliant smile blooming on her lips at his confession. Her head tilted, allowing her nose to brush his and sigh when he didn’t pull back.

“I was scared cause I thought you didn’t want that,” he finished.

Her voice drowned in reverence. “I do want that. I want you. Until…” Shaking her head, she let out the truth. “Until the universe takes you back.”

The boy laughed, relief sagging his shoulders and pulling so impossibly close, so tightly it should’ve hurt - had euphoria not been bursting in her chest at the simple action. His watery eyes held all she ever wanted to see. Him. Honestly, truly, him.

“I-”, he stuttered, his own anxious smile stopping him. Her thumbs pressed into the lines, urging him to keep going. It softened, in that earnest way only he knew of. “I think I fell back on this earth to be with you, Julie. I think- I know I’m yours.” That incredulous laugh erupted from his chest again, so full, as if it’d been waiting. “I’m so glad I get to hold you.”    

There was so much she wanted to say - that she was his, has always been his, that it was insane because they were so young, but what the hell was time anyway? Julie wanted to be with him, forever, until forever disintegrated like smoke between her fingers.

Now, she cradled his cheeks and he was warm. And he told her he loved her, in ways she never expected him to.

Instead of speaking, Julie kissed him. Her lips were sticky from soda and his still held the taste of lovesick words and lyrics, but it was perfect. Their mouths puckered from smiling, that damned kiss from months ago replaced by this one. It felt as if all her wishes, her restless midnight questions, all were granted by one simple touch. By his arms wrapping around her and hers gripping onto his jaw and hair. So tight, so close, as if the tides of Fate would pull the other away right this second.

But nothing happened that second. And the one after that. And again, again, again. They kissed and the universe allowed them to.

Julie didn’t think there was a more beautiful way to fall in love.

With a quiet thrill leading up her spine, she told him. “I think this year might be fun,” the girl grinned against his lips. “The first year of forever of giving my heart to you.”

His tender gaze rested on hers, relaxed hands caressing her back. Love was a good look on him. “Are you gonna say stuff like that now? To fuck with me?”

She giggled, glee bursting at the seams. “You started!”

“Yeah.” Luke trailed off, a dopey smile glittering his eyes. Just as he leaned in for another kiss, he stilled. “Oh! I was writing some stuff for a song!” Nodding at the discarded notebook on the piano, he asked: “Wanna work on it?”

Just like that, they were back to being Luke and Julie. Singers, musicians, writing partners, best friends, each other’s forever.

Propping the glittery crown on his head, she matched his fond expression and went to sit on the piano bench. “Yeah, show me.”

Julie would look back on that moment and smile. Two seventeen year olds, defying Fate and the Universe and everything in between, mocking the stars that yes, Luke and her did belong together. There was strength in knowing their forever was predetermined, that they knew it wouldn’t be eternal, but that that was okay. Every second mattered then. Every laugh became fuller, a kiss more passionate, a smile brighter. They spent a lifetime, counted in quick adolescent years, sharing their hearts.

For a while, Luke was hers. And forevermore would they be together - in the whispers of songs, in memories, in lingering cologne on clothing.

It was the sweetest, most adventurous romance of all.  

But that wasn’t important now. Luke sat next to her, held his notebook out, and together they did what they knew best. When the clock struck midnight, all he did was kiss her again.

“You know,” he muttered, lips brushing her ear. “The things we said? Might make for a killer song.”  

Julie’s nose scrunched up in delight, thumbing to a fresh page and clicking her pen. Nuzzling into his neck and interlacing their free hands, she swore she felt it. Their tether. It was real - just as real as him loving her and her loving him. It was there. She took a deep breath.  

“Let’s do it.”

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

@blush-and-books​ @bluefirewrites​ @unsaid-emily​ @willexx​ @ourstarscollided​ @constantly-singing​ @ruzek-halstead​

#juke #jatp fanfiction #julie and the phantoms #otp: i think we make each other better #i was supposed to make this when the song came out but i got sidetracked

[nicknellie]

Anonymous requested: Can I request a one bed trope for willex?

Oh, you absolutely can request that! I’m a sucker for this trope and I think this is my second time ever writing it (first for this fandom) so this was a lot of fun to get into. Thank you for the request, anon!

Champagne and Roses

Alex was never trusting Luke to book a hotel again. There was a reason Flynn handled admin for the band despite not being in it, and that reason was that all the actual bandmates were useless at it. Still, Luke had found a hotel that he had described as “super insane, like bro, it’ll be awesome, I promise” and had insisted on being the one to book it so nobody had the surprise of what was so good about it ruined for them. But it looked like Alex was set to reap the consequences.

Technically, Julie and the Phantoms were on tour, but what they were really using the opportunity for was something more akin to a road trip with just their nearest and dearest. Alex, Luke, Julie, and Reggie were there to attend their shows and meet-and-greets, Flynn had come along as their manager, but Carrie and Willie were also tagging along for the fun of it. So far they had stopped off at six different venues around North America, and they were on their way to the seventh, namely the hotel Luke was so pumped about.

He hadn’t stopped talking about it since they’d got in the tour bus the previous night, and it was starting to drive Alex a little insane. He was sat on one of the bus’s plush sofas with a cushion clamped over his ears as he tried to drown Luke’s voice out, but it wasn’t working all too well. Sat next to him, Willie was clearly trying not to laugh at him.

“I know I said I wouldn’t tell you guys anything about the hotel,” Luke was saying, the biggest grin plastered across his face, “but just wait until you see the pool. It’s gigantic, and there’s like a thousand slides. And Reggie, bro, you’re gonna love the breakfast buffet they set out, from the photos on their website it looks like they’ve got literally everything.”

“It sounds expensive,” Flynn called from the front seat, sat between Julie (who was taking her turn at driving the bus) and Carrie, who was somehow managing to paint her nails immaculately in a moving vehicle on the highway. “If you’ve blown the band’s budget on a hotel, Luke Patterson, I’m going to hop back there and murder you.”

“It wasn’t that expensive,” Luke said, looking sheepish. Still, Flynn’s threat shut him up a little – Alex decided it was probably better not to ask how much Luke had spent on the booking. “Besides, I saved money by booking shared rooms instead of individual ones.”

That grabbed Alex’s attention. If ever they were away as a band they shared rooms – Alex would buddy up with Luke and Reggie, and Julie and Flynn would be together – but this time there were two extra people in the mix, and Alex didn’t really see how it would work having Willie and Carrie share a room when they hardly spoke to each other outside of this kind of setting.

“Who’s with who?” Alex asked, removing the cushion from his ears and setting it down next to him. A moment later, Willie reached across Alex’s midriff, plucked the pillow from the sofa, and put it behind his own head, laying back comfortably. Alex’s pretended that he wasn’t blushing profusely at the brief touch.

“Well, we can probably change it if we want to once we get there, but I’m with Julie, Flynn and Carrie are together, Reggie’s got a room to himself, and you’re with Willie.”

Alex had no idea how to react. The moment Luke had spoken, his mind had imploded. At every other hotel they’d stayed at so far, everyone had got their own room, purely to give themselves some alone time because they were spending every minute of every day together on the tour and it could get a little suffocating. To go from that to sharing a room with Willie of all people?

Luke had to have known what he was doing. He knew how Alex felt about Willie, so this plan had to have been formed in the deep dark corner of his brain that was designated for doomed matchmaking. It wasn’t like Alex had never shared a room with Willie before, but they had always chosen to, it had never been forced upon them like this. He couldn’t help but wonder what Willie made of it, if his heart was hammering the same way Alex’s was, if the thought of sharing a room made him giddy and nauseous all at the same time too.

He cast a quick, careful glance in Willie’s direction, only to see that his expression had remained completely unchanged, which was unhelpful. Complete neutrality could mean anything. Still, Alex supposed it was better than Willie looking annoyed or disgusted or downright angry at the thought of sharing a room together.

This was silly, Alex told himself. He had shared a room with Willie before, they’d had the occasional sleepover and it had always been lovely. There was no reason that this time should be any different. He tried to calm himself, school his features into something resembling nonchalance.

“Alex,” Reggie said, sounding concerned, “are you feeling travel-sick again? You look like you’re about to vomit all over Willie.”

Apparently nonchalance hadn’t worked.

Alex seized the opportunity. “A little bit of fresh air might be nice,” he said.

Julie pulled over a minute or so later and Alex hopped out of the tour bus. They had pulled off the highway a while back and were now on a much smaller road lined with tall hedges and completely deserted except for their bus. Alex let a gentle wind wash over his flushed face, closed his eyes, and let himself calm down a bit.

It would be fine.

“Hey,” came a voice behind him, startling him. Alex jumped and looked to see Willie stood beside him, his hair blowing elegantly behind him. Not for the first time, Alex wondered how he managed to look like an angel constantly. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Alex replied, trying to smile. “The roads were getting a little twisty. I’ll just take a minute to cool off. I’m fine, though.”

He leaned back against the cool metal of the tour bus and felt Willie do the same. He could feel Willie’s side pressed against his and his heart starting beating faster at the slight contact. Their fingers brushed gently together and Alex felt a smile tugging at his lips.

“If you don’t want to share a room with me, that’s fine,” Willie said. He rushed the words out as if he didn’t really want to say them, avoiding eye contact until he’d finished speaking. Then he turned to look at Alex – Alex was bad at reading expressions at the best of times, and all he could make out of Willie’s right then was something close to nervousness. He just couldn’t pinpoint why.

“No,” he assured Willie quickly, “I don’t mind. I do. I do want to share with you, I mean. It’s cool. We’re cool.”

“You sure?” Willie asked, sounding unconvinced. “Because the moment Luke mentioned it you freaked.”

Alex felt himself blush faintly. “No, I told you, it was just the roads getting too twisty. I’m not worried about sharing with you, if that’s what you think.”

“So we’re okay?”

“Of course.”

“Great,” Willie said. He beamed, and Alex couldn’t help but smile back. It was impossible not to smile when Willie did. “I’m going to head back onto the bus. Take as long as you need – I don’t think any of us want to clean up after you again.”

“That was one time and it was four years ago,” Alex protested, though he couldn’t help but smile at Willie’s teasing. At that, any nerves he’d had were gone; how could he be worried about being with Willie when doing just that was so easy? “I’ll come back in a minute.”

As Willie disappeared back onto the bus, Alex closed his eyes and leaned his head back again. His panic was replaced with butterflies in his stomach, silly with excitement at the thought of what the night might hold. Not much, he reminded himself, it was just sharing a room with a friend. Still, he suddenly couldn’t wait.

To Luke’s credit, the hotel was amazing. They arrived there in the late afternoon, checked in, and had their luggage taken up to their rooms for them, leaving them free to explore the hotel. The pool looked bigger than the actual building, with six different slides, people zooming out of them gleefully every few moments. They found the restaurant, which was currently preparing for dinner, and the smells wafting from the kitchen were to die for. There were bikes to hire (Julie suggested a group bike ride which led to mixed responses from the others, ranging from Reggie’s immediate enthusiasm to Carrie stating monotonously that she’d rather do literally anything else), an enormous duck pond nearby, and a small cinema which that night was showing some generic action film Alex had never heard of. Overall, Luke had really outdone himself with the booking.

They busied themselves for the rest of the evening, splashing about in the pool (or, in the case of Alex, Willie, and Carrie, relaxing by the side of the pool on the sun-loungers) and spending far too long in the mini arcade that Reggie had stumbled across. Luke hadn’t been wrong about the food either – the staff set out an enormous buffet that had every food Alex could think of. Alex tried to stick to a regular meal because mixing so many different foods felt strange, but Luke’s plate was piled with pizza, curry, and a slab of chocolate cake.

The evening had been so hectic and jam-packed that by the time Alex and Willie bade farewell to the others, he had almost forgotten all his whirring thoughts surrounding the shared room. But by then he was too full and tired to be too bothered anyway. It was just sharing a room with Willie – what could go wrong?

Willie pushed open the door to room seventy-three and entered ahead of Alex, flicking the lights on as he went. Alex was exhausted and his vision slightly blurred as his eyes kept closing, but he could still make out that this room was nothing short of luxurious. There were chocolates on the pillow, complementary tea and biscuits, a bottle of champagne cooling in a bucket of ice, a vase of roses, a flat-screen TV so big it looked as if it would fall off the wall, and a gorgeous king-size bed with rich red satin sheets.

It took Alex far too long to realise that there was something a little off.

He looked around again. Chocolate pillows, tea, biscuits – that was fine, that was normal. Flat-screen TV – expensive, but every hotel room he’d ever stayed at had a television. But champagne, roses, only one bed… Alex felt the pieces click in his mind.

“This is a couples room,” he said.

He was never letting Luke book a hotel ever again.

Willie looked just as bewildered as Alex felt. They had both frozen in the doorway when they saw the room, but now Willie headed in cautiously, picking up the champagne and one rose as if trying to work out whether they were real. He smoothed down the bedsheets, not that they were rumpled, and then turned back to Alex. His expression was infuriatingly neutral and hard to read again.

“Yep,” he agreed, “definitely.”

Alex carefully followed him into the room and looked around. Those old nerves about sharing a room with Willie came back – if they had to share this space then surely it was going to be incredibly awkward. Especially since they weren’t even dating.

“Do you think there’s been some sort of mix-up?” he asked, eyeing the singular bed. It looked invitingly comfortable, and Alex was knackered. He wanted nothing more than to just crawl in and sleep beside Willie as the room was clearly telling them to do. But he couldn’t do that, not if Willie wasn’t comfortable with it, not if there had been a mistake.

“I don’t know,” Willie said, shrugging. “It’s definitely the right room, otherwise the key wouldn’t have worked. I could go and ask at reception if there’s a different room, if you like? With two beds?”

There was something in the way Willie said it that caught Alex’s attention, but he couldn’t identify what it was. But he could see that Willie was watching him carefully, looking for all the world like all he wanted was to make sure the night went well. He thought, Alex realised with a start, that Alex wouldn’t want to share a bed with him. It nearly made Alex laugh, but his nerves stopped him.

He did want to share the bed, but the idea terrified him.

He shrugged, trying to seem indifferent. “If you want. It’s up to you, I don’t mind.”

“You sound like you mind,” Willie countered.

“I don’t.”

They stared at each other for a minute or two, sizing one another up. Alex didn’t want to seem like the idea of sharing a bed with Willie made him uncomfortable, but equally he didn’t want to seem too eager. He wasn’t sure what the middle ground was – indifference maybe? But if he seemed like he didn’t care at all then it could look like he simply didn’t feel one way or the other about Willie.

He decided he was reading too much into it, worrying about it too much. So he was the one to break the silence.

“I don’t mind sharing a bed with you, Willie,” he said. “It’s late and I’m exhausted, I could sleep anywhere right now. And I’m sure you don’t really want to go all the way back downstairs just to ask if they have another room. It won’t make any difference. We can share a bed – we’ll be fine.”

Willie blinked, seeming surprised, but then he smiled lightly. Alex felt his heart flutter despite his exhaustion – it was incredible how Willie could have that effect on him no matter what.

“Okay, hotdog,” Willie agreed, nodding resolutely. Just with the use of the nickname, any tension in the room dissipated. Suddenly they were just two guys about to share a bed and it was completely fine. “You’re right. Let’s get some sleep.”

They took turns getting ready for bed in the bathroom (which was far bigger than a bathroom had any business being, Alex thought) and eventually settled down into the bed, side by side, plenty of room between the two of them. Though the day had been hot, the night had turned cold, and the satin sheets were doing very little to keep them warm. Alex burrowed further into the covers, pulling them up to his chin and trying to settle himself. He was still a little nervous, it would have been impossible to be completely chilled out about the whole situation, but he was too tired to really notice.

There was total silence for a few minutes before Willie quietly said, “You talk in your sleep sometimes.”

Alex turned to his right to face him. Willie was laying on his side, facing Alex, one hand under his head on the pillow and the other hidden by the duvet. The top he wore was oversized and revealed most of his collarbone, his hair was mussed as it spilled out over the pillow, and he had the sweetest little smile on his tired face. Alex, heart hammering, mirrored his position without realising he was doing it, but he did register that his movement brought them much closer together.

“Do I?” he asked, voice low and hushed.

Willie giggled gently, nodding. “Yeah. I’ve heard you on some of our sleepovers.”

“What do I say?”

“Nonsense, mainly,” Willie told him. “But sometimes you talk about the band, that’s always sweet. It’s a change from you calling Luke and Reggie annoying so often. And it’s nice to know you love them really.”

Alex grinned. “Of course I love them. They’re my brothers and Julie’s my sister. Although I am still annoyed at Luke for this whole thing.”

Willie’s expression changed abruptly, from amused to… what was that? Hurt? Had Alex said something wrong without realising it? Oh god, had he just changed the tone of the situation back to awkward?

“I thought you were okay with this,” Willie said. His voice was a different kind of quiet. Small now in a way it hadn’t been before.

“I am,” Alex said quickly. “I’m more than okay with this.”

“Then why are you still angry at Luke?”

“Because he knows how I–”

He stopped himself abruptly. He knows how I feel about you. That had been what he was about to say. The late hour had loosened his tongue and he had almost ruined everything. He stopped, changed course, started again.

“He knows how I get nervous about this kind of thing. If I’d been sharing a room with him and Reg like normal then there wouldn’t have been this whole problem.”

“Why is sharing with me a problem?” Willie asked, brow furrowed in confusion. “Would you have been like this if we were just sharing a room, not a bed?”

Alex opened his mouth but couldn’t think of anything to reply with that wouldn’t prompt further questions. He couldn’t see this night ending well for him at all. It was barely midnight and already he had offended Willie by saying the wrong thing. How was he meant to carry on from this?

“I wouldn’t have been so worried if there were two beds,” he admitted slowly. Willie deflated, nodded, curled into himself slightly. It broke Alex’s heart. “But it’s not because I don’t want to share a bed with you.”

“Then what is it?” Willie asked pleadingly. “Just tell me, Alex – whatever the reason is, it won’t change anything between us. I won’t hate you or anything like that. Just tell me what’s on your mind.”

Alex couldn’t help wondering from that if Willie had already guessed. And if he had then there was no point in pretending anymore. Perhaps he wouldn’t have done it if he hadn’t been so tired, his brain working so slowly, but he made his decision then and didn’t back down.

Willie’s hand had come out from beneath the covers and was now resting in the space between them on the mattress. Alex placed his hand over it and linked their fingers. He heard Willie gasp quietly and didn’t stop to think whether that was a good or bad sign.

“Luke knows how I feel about you,” Alex said. His voice wavered nervously and he couldn’t look Willie in the eye, but he still felt a thrill knowing that he was finally saying this, taking an enormous weight off his shoulders. “He knows that I’ve liked you for as long as I’ve known you. He knows how much this could mean to me, but also how nervous I’d be. I don’t know if you feel the same way, Willie. If this is weird or I’m out of order or anything like that then you can tell me to stop talking. I was just nervous because Luke did this, got me this close, without telling me about it and it threw me off. You threw me off. I’m sorry if I’ve upset you or made you uncomfortable. But that’s what’s on my mind.”

Alex finally took his eyes of his and Willie’s interlinked fingers to look Willie in the eye. Willie’s eyes were sparkling, an incredulous half-smile on his face. Alex took that as a good sign.

“Really?” Willie asked.

Alex swallowed heavily and nodded once. “Really.”

Willie said nothing. He just used their intertwined hands to pull himself closer to Alex and rest his head on his chest. Alex was glad his heart was on the other side of his chest, otherwise Willie would have been able to hear how fast it was beating. Willie had thrown an arm over Alex’s waist, holding him close, so Alex’s wrapped his around Willie’s back. He felt Willie sigh contentedly, and on a burst of confidence he pressed the lightest kiss possible to the top of Willie’s head.

“Does this mean you like me too?” Alex asked. He was fairly certain, but it was always good to double check.

Willie chuckled and Alex felt his heart swell with love. “Yeah. I like you too, hotdog.”

“So the couples room worked out after all, I guess,” he joked.

Willie tilted his head to look up at Alex, looking for all the world like an angel on Earth.

“Definitely,” he agreed. “But I think we finally use this bed for its real purpose and get some sleep.”

“Goodnight, Willie.” Alex reached over and flicked off the little bedside lamp, plunging them into total darkness.

“Goodnight, Alex.”

*

Taglist (if you want to be added or removed just let me know): @ace-bookworm @williexmercer @willex-owns-my-heart @itstiger720 @the-reckless-and-the-brave @that-one-newsie @bluedarkness @lookingthroughmirrors @tmp-jatp @salty-star @julieandthequeers @lmaohuh @sunnysbright @sylphrenas

#me writing any willex fic: it’s Luke’s fault. #perhaps its a problem that this is such a common theme in my writing lmfao #jatp #julie and the phantoms #julie and the himbos #jatp fic #willex fic #willex #willie x alex #alex x willie #alex mercer #willie jatp #luke patterson #reggie peters #julie molina #flynn jatp #carrie wilson #fanfic #fanfiction #my writing #writing #only one bed #one bed trope #request #friends to lovers #declarations of love #getting together

[bidoldaccount]

Luke Patterson // Miscommunication

"Where are you going?" You ask as you watch Alex fix his hair.

"Me, Julie, Reggie, and Layla are going to the movies," he said distractedly.

"Oh, that sounds fun. Can I come?" You asked with a small, hopeful smile. He had asked you to come over and help him with his math homework but an hour in, halfway through the worksheet he had gotten a text and dropped his pencil.

"Oh, Layla already bought our tickets," he said, sliding his hands through his hair once more.

"I can buy my own ticket," you laugh breathily.

"Well we're going to get dinner after and Layla made the reservations," he said, not looking up from the laces of his shoes.

"Okay, do you want to hang out later?" You asked.

"Maybe tomorrow. I'll text you, okay?" He ruffled your hair before he was leaving the room, leaving you alone in his space. You felt almost like a little sibling, too young to hang out with the older kids. You swallowed it down, assuring yourself that you were just reading too much into previously made plans. You shake it off as you pack up your stuff.

-

To Julie: you wanna hang out?

From Julie: I kinda already have plans :/

To Julie: okay, maybe another time? :)

Read

To Reggie: you busy?

From Reggie: yeah, got plans.

To Reggie: oh okay :)

Read

To Alex: you wanna do something?

From Alex: sorry babes, plans.

To Alex: wyd?

Read

You throw your phone down and link your fingers on your stomach, staring up at the ceiling as you process. All of your friends are together right now and none of them invited you.

Except Luke.

-

"Babe?" You whispered to yourself. Reggie never called you babe. He called you 'sport' and 'kid' to be a dick because you're the youngest. You shake your head, trying to force the entire text conversation out of your head as you grab your book from your locker.

"Yo," you flinch when someone appears beside you, and your cheeks flare up when Luke comes into your vision. The butterflies in your stomach are very quickly squashed when you remember Reggie's words. "You wanna hang out later?" Luke asked, poking your cheek.

"Um, I can't, my mom needs me to pick up my brother from school," you said, staring into your locker to avoid his eyes.

"I can drive you there," he offered, ducking his head to try and catch your eyes.

"I um, I have a lot on my mind so I'm just going to walk, but thanks Luke," you give him a halfhearted smile, slam your locker shut, and turn to walk away. Luke calls your name but he doesn't try and chase after you.

-

"Where have you been, I feel like I haven't seen you in years," Alex said as he climbed onto your bed and draped his entire body over your back. You grunted, hiding your face under the covers as he took it upon himself to cuddle you.

"I saw you at school today," you muttered into your blankets.

"No, I saw you, I said hi, and you ran away," Alex corrected.

"I didn't run away," you mumbled. Alex tugged the blankets down to reveal your face and he smiled softly at you.

"Whats going on?" He whispered. You sighed, rolling over until you were on your back and he was beside you. He brushed your hair away from your forehead and waited patiently as you worked up the courage to say what you were thinking.

"I feel silly," you covered your face with your hands as you groaned.

"For what?" Alex pushed.

"Cause I feel left out," you whispered.

"What? All you have to do is text me and I'd be here within the minute. You're like my favorite person ever, Y/n," Alex chuckled.

"Alex," you uncover your face to look at him. "I've texted you every day this week and you keep telling me you're busy," you said.

"What?" Alex furrowed his eyebrows. "No, I've been texting you nonstop, you haven't answered." Alex struggled to lift his hips and pull out his phone, then he showed you messages of your name and a long two of texts from him. You click on the contact with your name and your forehead creased.

"Alex, this isn't even my number!" You said.

"What?" He took his phone back. You pulled your phone out and showed him your message thread, with all of your messages. Alex grabbed your phone and tried to call his phone.

His phone didn't ring.

"Okay, this is weird," Alex mumbled.

"Wait," you looked down at your phone, eyebrows furrowed. "Look at these texts from Reggie. I thought it was really weird that he called me 'babe' because he's never done that," you showed Alex the thread and he furrowed his eyebrows. Alex looked up at you with a slack face of realization.

"Layla calls everyone 'babe'," he said.

"Layla? Why would she text me as Reggie?" You asked.

"She likes Luke!" Alex exclaimed, making you flinch. "She likes Luke, you like Luke, and Luke obviously likes you, it makes so much sense," he smacked his forehead.

"Luke doesn't even like me though," you deflected.

"Now's not the time for denial, we have a bitch to bust," he jumped up from your bed and dragged you out of it.

"Don't say anything like that ever again," you laughed as he tried to pull you out of your room. "Alex! Wait, i need clothes!"

-

"Y/n!" Julie cheered as Alex tugged you into Layla living room.

"Hey guys," you wave a bit shyly, which is off character at this point.

"Please tell me you're staying," Reggie pouted.

"Actually, we're here for a bit of an interrogation," Alex said, crossing his arms as he looked over at Layla. She raised her eyebrows with a look of innocence.

"Raise your hand if you've texted Y/n at all this week," Alex said. Only Luke raised his hand.

"I've tried, but she hasn't answered," Julie said.

"Yeah, same here," Reggie nodded.

"Yeah, I thought it was weird that she hasn't been around so I went over to her house. We made some pretty shocking discoveries too," Alex took your phone from your hand and opened up the messages that Reggie had supposedly sent you. "Do you remember sending these messages, Reggie?" Alex asked, handing him the phone. Reggie read them over and his face twisted up.

"What the hell? No, I didn't send any of these," he said.

"Let me see," Luke reached for the phone.

"No, Luke, wait," you tried to grab it but it was already in his hand and he was already reading them. You muttered a curse as you tried to hide behind your hand, stepping a bit behind Alex.

"Oh," he whispered. "I never said that!" He assured, pointing to the phone.

"I don't think any of us have been talking for ourself. Layla, anything to say?" Alex turned to her with an icy expression.

"Why would I have anything to do with this?" She said, raising her hands and softening her eyes.

"Because you've been trying to throw yourself at Luke since we met you and you knew they liked each other," Julie said, standing up and walking to your side, crossing her arms as Alex was.

"I wouldn't do anything this manipulative or sneaky, that's not who I am! I genuinely like you guys, I wouldn't do anything to betray your trust! Why-" she was cut off as her phone started to ring. Alex smirked, turning Y/n's towards her, Reggies name flashing on the contact.

"You changed our numbers so our messages would go to your phone and had Y/n believing that we were icing her out. As far as I'm concerned, you're a jealous, manipulative bitch," Alex smiled like he'd just complimented her shoes.

"Let's go," Julie demanded, ushering everyone out of the house.

"Whatever! You're all lame anyways!" Layla screamed, her face red.

"Everyone to Y/n's house, we have some serious bonding to do," Reggie said, ruffling Y/n's hair. Luke grabbed Y/n's wrist before she could walk to Alex's car, and tugged her back. He cupped her jaw and held her waist and leaned in to press his lips to hers. She melted into it instantly, trusting that her knees wouldn't buckle and if they did, trusting he would catch her.

"Okay, maybe not that much bonding," Reggie laughed.

"Eh, let them have their moment, they've been pining long enough," Julie said, waving them away.

You wrapped your arms around Luke's shoulders and pressed you chest against his, kissing him harder.

Im sorry if you read this without the visuals, I didn’t realize I didn’t upload them :)

#jatp #jatp one shot #jatp imagine #jatp preferences #jatp fluff #julie and the phantoms #julie and the phantoms imagines #julie and the fat ones #julie molina #luke patterson #luke patterson imagine #alex mercer #reggie peters

[kimoralov3]

Love to Hate Me

Requested by: @NuclearPizza84

Word Count: 2314

Pairing: Erik Lehnsherr x mutant!black!fem!reader

Warnings: swearing, fighting, fire, use of mutant abilities, Erik being an ass

(Y/N)'s POV

Picking up my book, I flipped through the pages. Yeah, I'll leave the science stuff to Charles.

"(Y/N), I would like to introduce you to my new friend Erik. He'll be staying with us while I build up the school. Erik, this is my younger sister (Y/N)." Charles said as he walked into the living room. I looked up, waving at Erik.

"Hello, nice to meet you." I got up and held my hand out for him to shake, but he just looked at it then looked back at me. Well that was rude. 

"(Y/N), do you know where Raven is?" Charles didn't seem to notice his new 'friend' being a dick. 

"Last time I checked she was in her room. She might be taking a nap right now though." I explained as I pointed in the direction of the bedrooms. Charles nodded and made his way down the hall, leaving me and Erik alone.

"So do you have any abilities?" Erik finally spoke up. So he does speak. Good to know.

"I can control and create fire. You?"

"Now why would I tell you that?"

"So I tell you mine but you're gonna bitch about me knowing yours? Seems totally fair." I sassed as I crossed my arms over my chest. Erik rolled his eyes, brushing past me and going in the same direction as Charles. Asshole.

----

6 months.

6 months of having to deal with that asshole named Erik Lehnsherr. Surprised I haven't 'accidently' killed him yet. Charles had gotten the school set up to open in the fall, so me, Raven, Hank, Alex, Seth, and him have been perfecting courses for any possible mutation our future students might have. Erik was supposed to be helping, but he spent most of the time complaining about the way things were playing out.

"I'm glad to see that all our hard work has paid off." Erik announced as he walked into one of the training rooms. This specific one was made to withstand high temperatures, so it was perfect for me and Alex to use for practice.

"Your work? You ain't done shit this whole process." I said as I took off my gloves. 

"Like you have? Every time I run into you you seem to just be standing at your desk." Erik scoffed. 

"I'm the one who's been hiring all the builders and chefs, Erik. I'm the one who's spent 20 hours a week contacting parents and trying to convince them that we can properly care for their child. And what have you been doing? Walking around and putting your unwanted opinions in the air. So don't come to me talking about how I'm the one who hasn't done any work." 

"Is everything alright here?" Charles asked as he walked in. 

"Your sister is being a bitch." Erik said calmly.

"I'm being a bitch? Real mature." I rolled my eyes, turning my attention to what I was doing before Erik interrupted me. As I was getting a mannequin from the storage room, I felt a pull on my bracelet. What the hell? I looked up to see Erik holding his hand out in the general direction of my arm. "So you're seriously gonna do this?"

"(Y/N), Erik, enough. Now is not the time." Charles warned. Before he could step in, Erik used his powers to push him out the room, locking the door. 

"That's better. Now, shall we begin?" Erik asked as he took off his jacket and threw it on the floor. I took off my bracelet, throwing it at him. 

"I'm not wasting my time with this, Erik. I have training to do."

"So you're backing out, just like that? That's a shame. I thought (Y/N) Xavier would have more courage than that." 

"You want to fight, Lehnsherr? Fine, let's fight." I huffed out as I summoned a fireball, purposefully missing him by an inch. He dodged it, although it wasn't going to hit him anyway. 

"There we go! Come on, don't hold back." Erik shouted as he slipped my bracelet back onto my arm, pulling me towards the wall. I focused all the heat in my body to my wrist, melting off the bracelet. That was one of my favorites. I made a trail of fire around the room, taking it up and down the walls and around the ceiling. The final curve made a circle around Erik, trapping him where he stood. 

"Is that good enough for you?" I asked as I dusted my hands on my pants. Erik tried to step closer to me, causing it to grow high enough to reach his waist. "Is this what you wanted? For you to be 6 steps away from catching fire? Because if so, all you had to do was ask."

"Oh don't be like that, (Y/N). You know this is all in good fun." Erik gasped out.

"Do I? Because the whole time that we've known each other, you've been an ass. I tried to properly introduce myself, you ignored me. I offered to show you around the grounds, you called me a silly girl and walked off. I even offered to help you train, but you just pushed past me. I have tried multiple times to get to know you, yet everytime you act like a dick. So no, Erik Lehnsherr, I don't know that this is all in good fun, because I don't know you at all!" I shouted. Each word I got closer, and each sentence I became more and more upset. The fire grew bigger, the circle around Erik closing more and more the angrier I got. Erik didn't speak, he just hung his head down in shame. Pathetic. "So now you have nothing to say?" 

"(Y/N), I didn't-" Erik was cut off by the sound of the doors swinging open, Charles and Raven standing there. I extinguished the fire, brushing past the two of them and running to my room.

----

Erik's POV

"Why can't you just get along? What's the point of the useless bickering and fighting? What has she done to deserve this kind of treatment?" Charles shouted as he paced back and forth in front of his desk. 

"Charles, you know I never meant for it to get as bad as it did just now. I thought that I was helping her." I explained as I watched him pace.

"I know that Erik, but you can't expect the woman you've treated like gum on the bottom of your shoe to know that. Why can't you just tell her the truth? (Y/N) is very understanding."

"It's not that simple, Charles. Especially after all this time. She hates me." 

"You'll never know until you try. At least start with an apology. While you're doing that, I'm going to go asses the damage in the training room. I wish you luck, my friend." Charles patted me on my shoulder, walking out of the room. 

This is not going to go well for me.

----

(Y/N)'s POV

"What's going on between you and Erik? I mean, I know the two of you have never gotten along that well, but it's never gotten to the point where the two of you use your abilities against each other." Raven asked as she sat on my bed, handing me a cup of tea.

"There's nothing going on between us, that's the problem. Ever since he's gotten here, he's done nothing but pick at me. I've tried to be nice to him, but he always shuts me down. It wouldn't be so annoying if he wasn't so fucking hot." I grumbled as I took a sip of tea. 

"What did you just say?" Raven asked as she looked at me in shock. 

"What?" I didn't say anything out of the ordinary.

"You just called Erik hot." Shit.

"What? No I didn't." I avoided her eyes, setting my tea on my dresser. Wow, that's very nice wood work. How have I just now noticed this?

"Yes you did! I definitely heard you say it." Raven said as she moved to stand in front of me. I sighed, rolling over so I was facing the window. "(Y/N), tell me the truth. Do you like Erik?"

"Maybe." I whispered. 

"Well why haven't you asked him out yet?"

"Did you not see what happened earlier today? Erik clearly hates me, and I don't think that that's ever going to change. So why even bother." I explained as I rolled onto my back. Raven laid next to me, putting my head on her chest and rubbing my back. 

"I don't think he hates you, (Y/N). I just think he doesn't know how to properly express his feelings. He's been through a lot, so it might take a lot to bring down those walls. Just give him time, I'm sure things will fall into place." 

"You sound like our brother." I mumbled as I closed my eyes. She giggled, patting me on my arm.

"Well, I am the one who has to sit there and listen to his stupid thesis, because somebody just so happens to be asleep whenever he needs opinions."

"Yeah, well you spend enough time listening to Charles and you'll learn how to avoid his 3 hour long thesis."

----

It's been 2 weeks since the incident, and Erik hasn't even attempted to make it look like he hasn't been avoiding me. I went back to helping make final preparations for the start of school, and Erik went back to whatever the hell it was he was doing. 

"(Y/N), Charles said that he wants to talk to you in his study." Alex said as he walked up to. 

"About what?"

"He didn't say, just said that it was urgent." He walked off, leaving me to make my way to Charles' study. Wonder what he wants now. I knocked on the door, pushing the door open slightly.

"Charles? What's up?" I asked as I stepped in. Charles wasn't at his desk, but there was someone sitting in front of the desk. Erik.

"He isn't here."

"Yeah, I can see that. Guess I'll come back later." I said softly as I moved to leave the office.

"(Y/N), wait." Erik called as he softly grabbed my hand. I looked at him, then down at our hands. We've never actually touched before. "I want to apologize for what happened a few weeks ago. And for how I've been treating you ever since we met. You've done nothing to deserve that."

"Apology accepted, I guess. Is there something else you need?" I asked as I looked him in the eyes. I think I just found my new favorite shade of blue. 

"Yes there is. I guess there is no time like the present." Erik said as he looked down at me.

"What are you talking about?" 

"Follow me." He said. He didn't give me much of a choice, he just grabbed my hand and pulled me somewhere more private. He walked towards the stairwell, taking me onto the roof. 

"What, are you gonna push me off the roof or something?" I joked as I looked over the ledge. It is a pretty far drop.

"Why would I ever do that?" Erik asked as he stepped closer to me. 

"I don't know, maybe because you hate my guts." I said nonchalantly. Something flashed across his eyes, but it quickly disappeared. 

"(Y/N), I would never do anything to hurt you." Erik whispered. 

"Really? Why have you been treating me the way you have then?" I crossed my arms over my chest, tilting my head to the side slightly. 

"Because I think I love you." He said softly. My heart skipped a beat, causing my breathing to slow a little.

"What?"

"I said I think I love you. And I think I fell for you the moment that I saw you. That's why I was such an ass; I wasn't sure how to properly show you how I felt. That's not an excuse for my actions, though. You don't have to accept my confession, but I just thought that I'd let you know. I'll leave you alone for now." 

Before Erik could walk away, I grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him down so we were eye to eye. I looked in his eyes, then to his lips, then back at his eyes. "If you're going to kiss me, go ahead and do it." I said softly I gave Erik a slight smile. He leaned down some more, our lips brushing. I pulled him down more, our lips finally meeting. I've been waiting for this moment for almost 7 months now.

"Sorry, I didn't realize that I was interrupting something." Charles' voice called from the entrance to the roof. Erik and I pulled apart, turning our attention towards Charles. 

"You're always messing something up, Charles. What was it you needed?" I asked, not stepping away from Erik.

"It's not important. Carry on you two." Charles said as he made his way back into the house. I turned to Erik and slapped his chest lightly.

"You didn't think to lock the door?"

"Well to be fair, most normal people don't go onto the roof when they're looking for someone." Erik explained as he wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him.

"We both know that Charles is far from normal. He probably used his telepathic abilities to find us." He said as he looked back at the stairwell door. I giggled, turning his head back to face me and giving him a quick peck on the lips. 

"Or he set this up to get you to confess your feelings." I said as I leaned my head against his chest. He seemed to mull over the thought for a second before letting out a scoff.

"That little shit."

#erik lehnsherr #erik lehnsherr x reader #xmen #erik lehnsherr x mutant!reader #erik lehnsherr x black!reader #erik lehnsherr x you #marvel #x reader imagines #x men universe #x men fanfiction #x men #x men first class #x men movies #lokis-reindeer-games

[ageofevermore]

The Sun Met The Moon

SUMMARY — and finally the sun and the moon met, and they fell madly in love 

WORD COUNT — 2.5k

NOTE — part three to part one + part two

───── ･ ｡ﾟ☆ﾟ: *. ☽ .* : ☆ﾟ. ─────

alex’s drums:

Sweat clung to his brow and shone in the golden light of midday. She smiled at the sight of him, stripped of all awareness and singled in on the task at hand. He had Alex’s drumsticks between his fingers, and a black ballpoint pen between his teeth. She watched him for a while, tracing the flex of his biceps every time he beat at the mounted toms. A blush of sheer adoration spread across her stomach lining, unleashing that same kaleidoscope of butterflies through her being that she had been introduced to weeks ago. Maybe it was too soon to say she loved him, but she could see the rest of her tomorrows in his arms. 

“Hey, Ghostie.” She smiled at him from halfway across the room, advancing with less stealth now that he was aware of her presence. “What’cha working on?” She questioned. When her bare torso brushed against the snare drums, she leaned forward to kiss his lips sweetly. He tilted his chin upwards and pushed his bottom lip out, asking for another just seconds after she pulled away from the first. 

“Just some new instrumentals.” He mumbled, setting the drumsticks and ballpoint pen aside on the floor tom. He reached for her hands, mumbling a gentle breathed, “come here”, and pulled her down into his lap when his hands could guide her waist. Luke smiled against her neck when she giggled, turning her head so she could tickle his ear with kisses. 

“What are you doing?” She giggled when his hot breath tickled the patch of skin his tongue had just caressed. He was being his usually sweet self, though something else was prompting these touchy motives. “Alex is going to kill us if we mess up his drums.” She pulled away from the lips on her neck when they began to distract her, and instead she leveled her eyes with his. 

“Said you wanted to play the drums with me.” Luke smiled, nipping at her lips when she pulled them tight in a sheepish grin. She broke out into a full fledged smile at his silliness, cupping his cheeks with her hands and pulling his lips to hers in a proper kiss. “Put your foot on that pedal.” His arms looped around her waist, holding her tightly against him so she wouldn’t slip away from his touch when they started. “That’s the bass pedal. Push it every four counts and when we get to the pre chorus every eight, yeah?” 

Luke had gone through relationships and heartbreaks prior to what he had with Mia, but he had never been with someone who understood music like she did. He hadn’t ever met anyone like Mia. 

hair braiding:

She left him with Julie and the boys while the sun was still high, letting the band get a few solid hours of practice in without her distraction. She loved Luke, but he was incapable of getting anything done while she lingered, always wanting a cuddle or a kiss. It was cute, made her feel desirable, but she feared it would get annoying for their friends. 

She felt his gentle breath against her neck before she felt his arms snaking around her waist, pulling her back into his chest. She didn’t care that his hands were cold as he wiggled them between the waistband of her shorts and dug them into the flesh of her hips. She was just thankful that she still got to feel him against her.

“How was the rest of rehearsal?” She asked softly, reaching her hand up to gently twist silky strands of his milk chocolate locks.  Her nails scratched against his scalp, encouraging his arms fall heavy across her sides for a few blissful seconds. She strained against his hold, but he didn’t seem to notice her writhing, or when she let out a soft whine of discontent. 

Luke went on about practice, and the song he and Julie introduced to the boys. His smile was evident against her neck, and this time he noticed when she flexed against his hold and tried to twist in his arms. His retelling of practice seized, a smile cradling his lips as he squeezed her tighter, keeping her still. 

“What are you trying to do?” Luke taunted, watching her strain once more before admitting surrender to his tight eskomo embrace. He kissed a path along her neck, but it did nothing to distract her from her ultimate goal. 

“Let me hold you.” She managed through smiles and hums when his lips tickled her skin, heating the already dangerously hot exposed skin. Luke broke out into a full fledged grin, biting gently at the hollow of her neck.

She wrapped her arms around his shoulders loosely, digging  her fingers into his hair, and smiling contently.  His head was heavy on her chest, but the weight was welcomed greedily. She loved just getting to hold him like this, considering most days he was pulling her into his lap and showering her with love. Absentmindedly, she had twisted strands of shaggy brown hair into a french braid. 

reggie + alex being younger siblings: 

Mia and Luke had finally settled down in the basement for a movie night. Julie had been the cover story, though once Mia’s parents were convinced of the girls sleepover, she snuck out of the window and made a mad dash for Flynn’s. 

Mia grinned at the blue reflecting off of Luke’s eyes. She had seen Mamma Mia more than a handful of times, in fact it was her favorite modern musical, but Luke had never experienced it, and watching him was better then any scene between Meryl and Amanda. 

“Do you like it?” She grinned eagerly, watching Luke’s smile widen when he looked down at her expression of sheer excitement. 

She nearly shrieks when Reggie’s voice sounds instead of Luke’s, and her head snaps to the side to find both Alex and Reggie curled up in two spare blankets. Luke looks majorly annoyed, forcing a glare at his bandmates. 

“What are you doing here?” He seethed, not lightening up despite the amused smile growing on Mia’s lips. 

“You said it was movie night.” Reggie shrugged. “You know, Mia, this isn’t what I expected from you.” He vocalized, not batting an eye when Luke threw his head back in exasperation and threw a handful of popcorn in his direction. The leather clad brunette hummed, picking up a popped kernel and throwing it into his mouth, nodding towards Alex in confirmation of it’s good taste. 

“So much for date night.” She whispers into Luke’s chest, though she was just happy to be beside her boyfriend and sharing her favorite film with him. 

pre show + post show cuddles: 

Luke’s head was buried in the crook of her neck, his anxious fingertips digging into the flesh of her hips. Julie and the Phantoms were playing the Orpheum, again, and his nerves were unrelenting in their assault towards his confidence. 

“It’s gonna be great, baby.” She whispered into his ear, fingers twisting at the loose strands of hair that had slipped from the two braids down his scalp. She pulled the elastic tighter, laughing when Luke winced. “You’ll be great.” 

“Phantom’s your on in 5!”

Luke squeezed her waist tighter, though whatever nerves had plagued him just seconds ago seemed to dismantle. He was hyping himself up, thrilled by the approaching gig. He got so in his head that he forgot he loved this, it just took a couple braids and kisses to set his confidence back. 

“You’ve got your bearings now?” She teased, kissing Luke’s nose and standing from his lap. She held her hands out for him, helping him up and off of the chair. The blue eyed boy nodded, shaking out his hands and forcing a wide grin onto his lips that had her laughing. “Go knock your socks off, Rockstar.” 

-

Luke made a b-line for her after their set wrapped, his sweaty body pinning her in a hug while she squealed and tried to worm away. 

“Luke! You’re disgusting. You’re all sweaty.” She whined. Her arms were pinned to her sides and her face was pressed into his chest, filling her with only the scent and feel of his sweaty and smelly body. “Stop it!” She threw her head backwards with a laugh, somehow managing to break away from his embrace. 

The braids she had tied into his hair were dripping with sweat so much so that the elastic was falling to the ends of his chocolate locks. She bats at his chest, nodding in the direction of the showers around the corner, “Go take a shower, smelly ellie.” 

Luke breaks out into a grin, forcing a ket kiss to her cheek before rushing off in the direction of the communal bathroom and showers, chasing Alex and Reggie who had clearly had the same idea. 

guitar lessons: 

“These chords right?” She looked up with the same crescent moons in her eyes that Luke had fallen in love with. She had yet to stop trying to impress him, getting better and better at her musical craft by the day.

“Exactly.” Luke smiled, blue eyes glistening releasing the same kaleidoscope of monarchs in her stomach. “Move down to G, baby.” Luke instructed softly, not wanting to break the soft focus she held. He motioned to the neck of his own guitar, smiling widely when she mimicked his actions and strummed the same note. 

Seeing her tongue poke out from between her strawberry lemonade lips when she focused and the crinkle of her nose every time she smiled up at him in delight made his half ghostly heart jump. 

When she went down to the wrong chord again, and frustratingly looked up at Luke with stars in her waterline, he reached over and adjusted her positioning. His fingers lingered around hers for longer than was needed, but neither party minded as they shared a highly sought after moment. 

“You play it.” She whispered, having had enough of her own lessons for the day, wanting to focus instead on her boyfriend's delicate craft. 

Luke smiled complying to her demand, nodding her along to sing the softly aged lyrics, “Here comes the sun…” 

finger kiss to lips thing: 

She’s rambling. She knows that she’s rambling yet she can’t bring herself to stop. Luke had opened a wormhole of thoughts and hadn’t expected the emotional breakdown to follow. Her hands are fisting at his t-shirt, but her eyes are alight with wild emotion that he’s never seen before. She’s dangling over the edge and he’s unsure of how to pull her back to safety. 

“Baby.” He tries, pointer finger beneath her chin and directing her attention to himself, “Baby girl. Mia.” Her eyes fall on his but she’s still a mess of hiccups and syllables, shuddering out apologies between every harsh intake of breath her lungs don’t reject. She’s gotten herself so worked up she can’t calm down. She wants him to understand her, but she knows that the more she talks the less he will. 

“That’s not what I meant! Of course I want to spend forever with you, I mean, if you want to spend forever with me. I just, I didn’t mean--” She rambles, her eyes pinching tightly when she understands the bending of Luke’s expression. 

Luke watches her struggle for a moment more, wishing he could just fill the miniscule amount of time before her next sob and tell her she had nothing to worry about. He wanted to spend forever with her as well; he loved her, but every time he tried to talk she shook her head and looked frantic. 

Finally, he pulled his middle and pointer finger together, pressing them to his lips before smothering them against hers. Mia’s eyes drew wide as she tried to comprehend what just happened, but Luke only smiled at the silence at her doe-like expression. 

“I love you too.” 

forgetting they can feel each other: 

They’re working together on a song, surrounded by broken picks and instruments. Julie’s keyboard is on the ground by her thighs and drumsticks are poking out from the tops of Luke’s ears. He’s nearly inverbal, mumbling broken words to her from behind pens and picks, but the sight of him pulls her heart in further. 

She plays another melody on the keys, coupling it with the notes Luke had insisted on. It sounds sweet in her ears, and Luke looks up with a smile when it draws him away from his concentration with lyrics. A pick is between his teeth again, so the compliment he tries to throw at her is muffled and close to uninterpretable, but she understands him. She understands everything about him. She understands why he holds her for as long as he can and why he pops into her classes at random. She understands the way he mumbles behind his hands and pens and picks, and why he insists on her making the two of them food even when he’s capable of it. She gets it. 

Luke watched Mia bring her lip between her teeth, eyes scanning the workspace before she lands sight on a faded leather notebook. Her path is blocked by his body, but she doesn’t pay it any mind as she pushes onto her hands and makes a start for the lyric book. 

Her head collides with Luke’s chest firsts before she falls uncomfortably over the guitar and into his arms, looking bewildered for a moment before she’s brought back to the reality of Luke’s status. She can touch him now, it’s not like three weeks ago when they were condemned to ghostly hovering. 

“If you wanted me to hold you, all you had to do was ask.” Luke beamed, moving the guitar aside so he could cuddle her properly. Mia’s cheeks flushed, “Did you forget you could feel me? Well, maybe I have to remind you.” 

HONORABLE MENTIONS — the three times mia knew luke was in love with her and the seven she thought he was in love with reggie:

TAGLIST — @r0s3mm @midnightmagicmusings​ @joshy-obx​ @parkeret​

#julie and the phantoms #julie and the phantoms luke #julie molina #netflix julie and the phantoms #julie and the phantoms imagine #jatp #jatp luke #jatp alex #jatp reggie #willie jatp #luke jatp #luke patterson #luke patterson x reader #luke patterson blurb #luke patterson fluff #julie and the phantoms blurb #jatp blurb #sunset curve #luke patterson headcannons #julie and the phantoms headcannon

[serenasoutherlyns]

Not a Summer Crush Part Four

a/n: this is a long one! enjoy. this chapter features coffee, colds, cuteness, serena southerlyn, schemes, saturdays. all feedback makes me LOVE you, so please please reblog, reply, like, anything! you can always find this on ao3 as well. happy evening, and part five coming at you soon!

Part Four

"Haley," Anderson stopped you in the kitchen the next day. He was reaching into the fridge to get one of the terrible salads he always ate and you were rinsing out your French press (you figured, there were plenty of coffee shops nearby but a) you didn't need to be spending your money like that and b) the way the grounds fell as you pushed them slowly to the bottom had more than once brought you moments of enlightenment). You didn't stop to listen initially but he continued. "Haley," he said, "how do you do," he paused, gestured to your whole body, "that."

You looked at him, blinked, expecting him to clarify, but he did not. You laughed at him, gently, appropriately. "I don't know, Anderson, I was born 27 years ago," he winced, "I did some things, I'll do some more things, in fact, I spend most of my time doing," you gestured to yourself, "this."

He opened his mouth a few times, trying to think of what he meant, but said, "I mean, you work sex crimes, and you're so,"

"Exuberant?" You said.

"I was going to say bubbly."

"Hm."

"Forget I said anything."

"No," you said, taking pity on the guy. "It's ok," you patted his shoulder, "You learn to deal with it, right? I mean, I think I am."

“How do you keep it from getting to you?” His question made you laugh, then your face fell, something serious behind your eyes.

“It gets to me. I’m so sad all the time. But if I always acted how I felt, I don’t think I could do it.”

"Right," he said, not quite convinced. "Look I've been with homicide for five months and I still don't think I'm there yet."

"Give up or give it more time then," you said to him with a raise of your newly cleaned French press and a shrug. As you walked back to your office (you had banned him from having meals in there in your first week on the job) he watched the way you occasionally raised yourself up on your toes, in awe at your apparent ability to stay sunny.

Someone else noticed your little rise and lower. Alex Cabot had, today, decided to leave the blinds to her office door open. It was so she could catch moments just like this one, you bopping along in the hallway with your coffee maker, somewhere between walking and dancing.

Fuck, she thought, not even bothering to stop the grin, that's so cute.

Alex had talked to Casey. Well, Casey brought it up, actually, but Alex would have.

---

"So, I talked to Rita," Casey'd said almost before she shut the door behind her.

"Good evening to you, too, baby," Alex said, greeting her in the entranceway, kissing her sweetly. Casey smiled into it. Casey broke the kiss and walked towards their living room, her body aching for a comfortable seat. Alex walked behind her, pinching her (lovely perfect gorgeous) ass, causing her wife to yelp in the silly way she reserved for Alex alone. Casey always flopped onto the couch, which had originally annoyed Alex. She'd once insisted Alex try it, and while she did not move to change her habits, she admitted to seeing the appeal.

Alex, having followed Casey to the couch, bypassed the ample seating and chose the same side as her wife, who was sitting against the arm rather than the back, providing a perfect avenue for Alex to make her way up her body, continuing what she'd started. When Casey moaned, Alex got up and walked to the kitchen, ignoring Casey's whines. Alex picked up the plates where she'd put dinner (ok, it was carryout, but still, plates!) and joined Casey, another habit that was Casey's first, this one she was happy to go along with.

Casey and Alex sat on the floor, playing quiet music and making their usual conversation, routine and comforting.

"So, you talked to Rita?"

"Mm, mmhmm," Casey said, Alex having caught her mid-asparagus-bite. They laughed. "Yeah, I talked to Rita. She almost broke my door down to ask if I was sleeping with Caroline.”

Alex paled, “I was just talking to Serena about the same thing.”A panicked look flashed across Casey’s eyes. “Oh god, no, I don’t think you’re cheating on me. I mean, I went to Serena’s to be all emotional about Caroline.”

“I nearly cried.”

“In front of Rita Calhoun? And she didn’t melt?”

Casey scoffed, “She’s made me cry so many times.”

“I try to forget that fact,” Alex said.

“Fair enough. Anyway, apparently, her prowess in deductive reasoning led her to believe that I was having an affair.”

“A one-sided affair, that’s new.”

“Two-sided, unless both of us are only one side.”

“Two-sided implies there’s something there.”

“Isn’t there?”

“Isn’t that it.”

“Yeah.”

“Yeah.”

They both picked at their salads, wondering why Alex had bought salad. Casey looked up at the ceiling, Alex looked down, fiddled with the rug. Alex skipped a couple songs on her phone.

“Casey, what are we going to do about this. I don’t, I mean, I think, um.”

“I don’t know. I guess, our options are, pursue what we want or don’t and get over it.”

“If you put it that way,” Alex said, pausing, “I think we need to know what we want.”

“What do you want?”

“I want you. I want us both to be really happy, and I want her.”

Casey took a sip of her wine, agreeing with her fingertips, taking Alex’s hand. “You said what I was thinking.”

“What do you want, though? Serena said this thing about me being upset over a threesome we haven’t had and I kind of thought like, I don’t think I just want sex, um. I don’t know if that’s how you feel.”

“I do feel that way, actually, Lex.”

Casey held their hands up to her cheek, kissed Alex’s.

“So we’re pursuing that?”

“So we’re pursuing that.”

“What if,” Alex started. Casey responded with a shrug, and Alex thoughtfully nodded.

---

So, they were pursuing it. What that was going to mean was unclear as of the moment Alex saw you being very cute in the hallway, but they’d agreed that they wanted some kind of relationship, romantic, sexual. They wouldn’t want it if you only wanted one of them, they wouldn’t want just sex. It all would work out, Alex hoped. Casey was more confident than she was, but Alex had more of a cautious spirit when it came to relationships. They were well balanced. Alex hoped (and hoped and hoped) that you would want them. She gave herself a few more moments to smile, then turned back to her work.

Despite Anderson’s impressions and what Alex saw, you were not, in fact, feeling good. It was the middle of summer, but you couldn’t get warm. It’s just a cold, you thought, as you held your hands against the warmth of the coffee. Your cases were getting overwhelming, and you couldn’t afford to take any time off right now, not even to be sick in bed. Getting sick in the summer was exactly your luck.

A knock on your door startled you. You quickly collected your composure, turned on your peppy demeanor (you told the truth to Anderson: you learned how to seem OK a long time ago).

“Hey,” Casey said. “Are you in court at all today?”

You shook your head. “No, just paperwork, research. Why?”

Casey shrugged. “Thought you might want to have lunch or something.”

“I ate already,” you lied. You just didn’t want to request a place that served chicken soup. Your appetite had disappeared. “Sorry,” you said with an apologetic smile. “You want some coffee?” you asked, gesturing to the full pot.

“Sure, actually. The setup is a smart idea.”

“Isn’t it?” you said, getting up to pour two cups. “My apologies for the lack of sugar and cream.”

“Ah, it’s ok.” Casey said, accepting the cup and sitting down across from you in the extra chair. “No honey?”

“Alex told you,” You said, smiling, and Casey nodded. “It’s more of a special occasion thing.”

You watched her blow on the drink, her lips pursed over the top of it. They were a lovely shade of pink, you decided. She stuck her tongue out a bit when she took a sip, like a butterfly and its proboscis, you thought. You promptly scolded yourself for thinking that sort of thing at work. You had been considering Ramin’s advice, to “use your feminine wiles” on Casey and Alex, make them want you so bad that they believed it was their idea. It was sneaky and exciting. You’d resolved to start doing tiny, almost unnoticeable things around them (however convincing they could be when congested). Before you sat, you brushed your hand along your hip; as you held your mug, you ran your fingers along the handle.

“How’s your day going?” you asked her, knowing she’d had lots of tough cases recently. SVU had brought you on as a junior ADA because with the rising awareness of sexually-based crimes (a good inconvenience), the caseloads had risen to an all-time height, even after they brought Gillian back in to cover some cases. They were both very relieved that the gamble the office had taken in hiring a young person, whose experience had mostly been in property crimes, had worked out. It stood to reason, Casey had pushed for a younger lawyer, knowing first hand how much of a strength that could be; and when Alex had seen two Stanford degrees on your C.V., she felt sure too. You’d been a good choice. Still, you were all four overextended.

“Eh, it’s been fine, all things considered,” Casey replied. She watched as you fiddled with the tips of your hair. You’d begun wearing it curly more often, which had proven to be somewhat distracting for her. “How good can any day be in this line of work.”

You agreed with a nod. “I was just talking to Anderson about that.”

“What did he have to say?” Casey asked, knowing the attorney’s propensity for putting his foot in his mouth.

“I feel for the guy. I think he’s having trouble in homicide. He called me bubbly.”

“You are bubbly.”

“I’m energetic.”

“He should transfer to white collar. He’s got the attitude for it.”

You squinted your eyes scoldingly. “You would know.”

“I would.” The two of you broke into much-needed laughter. You were about halfway through your cup, but wished you were at the beginning again. “Was it hard?” you asked, “moving from white collar to sex crimes? I mean, just the level of emotional complication required, it must be so different from all that, detail.”

“It’s the hardest thing I think I’ll ever do in my professional life, yes.” Casey always looked you right in the eye, it was intense, the way she never averted her gaze. You tended to shift your gaze around rooms, taking in details, never resting on anything for too long. People sometimes wondered if you were paying attention, and explaining that looking them in the eye made it harder to listen didn’t work. Casey never cared, or at the very least never brought it up, just let you be the way you were. She set her coffee cup down. “I cried in my office my first day, in front of Olivia. I practically begged Arthur Branch to reassign me. I had wanted homicide, major cases. You know, all the glory less of the gore.”

“Have you ever regretted it since?”

“Never long enough to think about leaving. Voluntarily, that is,” she stated with a smile, referencing her suspension. You didn’t know all that much about what had happened, and you let her talk with a warm and open demeanor. “In all honesty, I needed that suspension to rewire my brain, I was drowning. And it didn’t last as long as I thought it would. That’s actually when I got together with Alex,” she said, smiling again, wider this time. “In a stupid hipster bar. She had brown hair at the time, I almost didn’t recognize her.”

“Please tell me you have pictures of brunette Alex Cabot.”

“Oh, I do, but they’re all buried deep in different camera rolls…” she trailed off in memories, “I’ll find them for you when I need to embarrass her. I, for one, liked the brown, but she can be very self-conscious.”

“You wouldn’t guess that when you meet her.”

“No, you really wouldn’t. But, Caroline,” Casey said, and hearing your name out of her mouth never failed to give you butterflies, “truly, I don’t think ‘like’ is an appropriate word for what I, what we do, but I feel called to it.”

“I think I do too.”

“Retention rates in this field are low. You’ve already outlasted them. I think that’s proof enough.”

You finished your coffee and brought your mug to the little table where you kept it. How you had such a messy desk but such a tidy coffee space evaded Casey, and probably told her more about you than you’d like. Alex walked by your office coming back from a meeting, pleased to see you and Casey conversing in the junior office. Casey finished her coffee shortly after you did. She met Alex in the hallway.

---

“Counselor, do you need a tissue?” Judge Catano said to you in an irritated tone in chambers the next day, apparently after one sniffle too many.

“Or a nap,” John Buchanan added under his breath as you pulled a nearly empty packet out of your suit pocket and wiped your nose.

“Thank you for your concern, I assure you both that I am quite alright.”

---

“Go home, get some sleep. Your cases will be there in the morning.” Alex said the evening after that, passing by the open door to your office on her way out.

“I won’t stay long,” you replied, knowing full-well that you would.

---

The day after that, Anderson got in your way at the wrong time and found himself unfortunately sneezed on.

---

You made it to Friday, and despite what you were telling yourself, you kept getting sicker. Every day was like time couldn’t decide between speeding and slowing down. Sometimes, you’d look up from what felt like ten minutes of work and an hour had passed, sometimes a meeting that felt like an hour was only ten minutes. And you still had work to do. Casey tapped on the door, unsurprised, again, to find you were the only one there. Anderson had left about a half hour ago, the other juniors often left right at 5:00.

“Hey,” she called from the doorway.

“Yeah?” You replied, looking at her over the top of your laptop.

“Come work in my office?” She asked. You’d taken to working with her or Alex or both of them in the evenings, with the general idea that many heads make light work. Or something. Really, for you, it was just a good excuse to spend time together.

“Sure,” you replied, “meet you there.” She walked off as you packed up your things. You were a bit woozy as you stood up from your desk. Oh well, that was how it went. You made yourself comfortable in Casey’s office (Alex, she explained, was off picking up some documents at the precinct).

You shivered in your seat on the couch, you blew your nose Casey eyed you, having noticed how you’d been sniffling all week. “Allergies? I have some Zyrtec somewhere in this desk,” she said, opening her drawer up to look.

“Oh, no, I’m not allergic to anything, I just didn’t,” sniff, “sleep well last night.”

This was an attitude Casey knew well.

---

Alex always liked summer evenings in the city. Yes, the smell required some getting used to, it could get noisy and crowded, but something about the way the orange light (that lasted longer than any other time of year) played off the tall buildings, the metal vendors on the sidewalk-- it just got to her, made her enjoy the walks she took from place to place. She checked her notifications on the way back from the precinct.

Casey: Caroline is sitting in my office sniffling and looking pale.

Alex: “Allergies?”

Casey: She denies them.

Alex: So the cold she’s had all week caught up to her?

Casey: Can you pick up some meds and we can make her go home?

Alex: I mean, good luck to us…

Casey: Alex.

Alex sighed and crossed the street, ducking into a Duane Reed for the requisite illness package. convincing you to take advantage of it was going to be a wholly different task.

When she arrived back at the office, she discovered a different scene than she expected. As she reached Casey’s office door with the supplies, her wife caught her eye through the window, motioning at her to be quiet when she came in. Alex was, and saw you, on Casey’s couch, deeply asleep with your fingers still on your laptop keyboard, typing endless spaces in a Word document.

“Well,” Alex whispered, coming to Casey’s side, leaning against her desk. “That’s certainly adorable.”

“I couldn’t bring myself to wake her up,” Casey said, “poor thing.” Alex looked at you, your curls flipped up over your forehead, your pink cheeks, your pile of work beside you. A warm sense of nostalgia lit up inside her.

“Remember, when we first came back to the DA’s office,” Alex said, seeing Casey smile playfully, the same feelings building in her chest.

“And there was a horrible bug going around the office,” Casey continued, telling the story for her wife.

“And I refused to admit I’d gotten it,”

“And I found you asleep, with your head on a legal pad,” Casey squeezed Alex’s hand.

“Because I was late to a meeting,” Alex tucked a strand of hair behind Casey’s ear.

“And when you lifted your head up, your forehead was covered in ink,” Casey finished the story with a grin, teasing her wife. “Yeah, I remember that. And I remember trying and failing to get you home, and I remember you getting me sick.”

“Only because you couldn’t keep yourself from kissing me,” Alex said. Casey just shrugged, acknowledging that her wife was correct. They had no need to say what they both were thinking, and, in fact, no time.

You stirred, stretching out, very sleepily. They snapped out of their reverie. “Hey, you two,” you said, your voice nasal. “You guys are so cute,” you continued, still not quite awake, you said what was on your mind. You felt a bit voyeuristic, but you didn’t mind. “Sorry for eavesdropping,” you said, waking up more fully, “sorry I fell asleep, Casey,” you said. You started to pull the notes you were looking at back up to your lap, but as you picked them up, you noticed someone else was holding the other end. Alex had a grip on them, and you were too weak to resist as she picked up all your papers and put them back in your bag.

“Laptop,” she said, holding out her hand. You gave it to her, looking to the side, embarrassed. She held out a packet containing two pills. “Take these,” she said, giving you a bottle of water as well. You wanted to protest, tell her that you were perfectly capable of getting what you had left done, but as you looked at her, then across the room to Casey, you realized that not only would any attempt be futile, you wanted nothing more than to fall asleep in your bed and stay there until you didn’t feel like this anymore. You nodded.

Casey’s voice came from behind Alex, gentle. Still raspy, but more than quiet, sympathetic, understanding-- gentle, a tone meant to be heard from close by and listened to in earnest. “Please take care of yourself.”

Who could refuse that?

---

Alex accompanied you on the cab ride home. Casey genuinely had work she had to finish, and neither of them was about to let you ride your bike or take the subway in your state. You lived in Brooklyn, but close enough to the courthouse that you didn’t feel too guilty about accepting her help when she offered. You tried to make conversation, but you were simply too tired to talk much, and as the sun finished setting, you arrived at the townhouse. Ashley and Ramin lived in the three bedroom unit on the first floor while you lived in the one bedroom unit on the second. It was really a glorified studio, the bedroom was just big enough for a queen-sized bed, the living room barely fit a couch, and the kitchen was mostly good for making tea; but that was why you had a key to your best friends’ apartment. You hesitated on the steps in the still warm air, considering if it would be a bad idea to ask Alex to come up the rest of the way with you, but she had clearly already made up her mind to do so (she had not bought all those supplies for nothing).

Your apartment was cozy, Alex thought as she placed the medicines and magazines and bottles of Gatorade in convenient spots in your tiny kitchen. You went straight for the bathroom, using what energy you had to change into pajamas, brush your teeth, and wash your face. Not much food in the fridge, lots of coffee and tea. A little table covered in papers and books; some law journals, some fantasy novels, some picture books. There were stuffed animals in a bin beside the couch, a couple clearly old enough to be yours. You had one of the fluffiest rugs she’d ever seen and enough throw pillows to drown in, and candles all over the place. Your walls were covered in art; some clearly original abstract pieces signed R.R, some prints from the MoMA, old post cards and family photos (only a couple of your siblings, but countless of Ashley and his family, dancers too), and kids’ drawings, all displayed together, given equal weight. It made no sense aesthetically, technically, but everything about the place screamed Caroline, so she found herself enamored with it.

You emerged from the bathroom with your hair tied on top of your head, wearing an oversized tee and fuzzy pants. It wasn’t your usual choice, but being sick had you feeling like everything around you needed to be soft and cuddly. Alex showed you where she placed everything she’d bought for you, but as she talked, your (maybe feverish) focus could only follow her beautiful blue eyes as they followed your own. You felt warmth, gratitude; you watched her seem concerned and adoring all at once. This whole scenario; Alex in your apartment while the stars were out, taking care of you, seeing you in your pajamas, sniffling and blushing, it made no sense when you thought about it. Yet, it seemed perfectly natural to you, having her in your place. Part of you wanted to kiss her then and there, pull her into your bed and try to get her to cuddle, but, of course, those were not thoughts you shared out loud. Instead, you expressed your gratitude as emphatically as your could manage.

“Get some sleep, Caroline.”

“I will. Alex, thank you.”

---

Alex made you take the following Monday and Tuesday off. Since she didn’t technically have that ability, you responded to her texts by telling her as much. Then, she got Jack McCoy to email you the same sentiments, and that, you couldn’t fight. You arrived at work on Wednesday refreshed, well-rested, and decidedly not sniffly, and she was only a little bit smug. She all but said “I told you so” when you said hello that morning-- but you very quickly shut her up by giving her a smile and an eye roll, taking pride and pleasure in the tiny bite of her lip you saw flash by as you returned to your desk.

That afternoon, you were happy to run into Serena Southerlyn on the courthouse steps, her leaving as you and Alex were returning (there was a case you were working together, you as second chair). She greeted Alex with a professional hug, you with a warm handshake. She had a glint in her eyes, something mischievous about her when she asked, after the usual workplace pleasantries, “you’ll both be there tomorrow, right? For drinks? Gillian said she had something to celebrate, I bet she got accepted to one of those PhD programs.”

“Casey and I will be,” Alex said, looking to you. You tucked a curl behind your ear, another habit of yours she’d noticed, when you were worried.

“I’ll certainly try,” you said, happy that you were now getting regular invitations to drinks, “I promised I’d help Ophélie’s mock trial team prepare for this weekend, she gets pretty nervous about them.”

“They have mock trial that young?” Serena asked.

“Yeah, it’s pretty cute too. A bunch of 12-year-olds in suits using legal language.” As you spoke, Alex understood a little better, Casey’s perspective on children. She chuckled lightly.

“Is she the prosecution or the defense?” asked Alex. You groaned in response.

“Don’t remind me. She chose defense specifically to spite me, and now I go to her school twice a month to teach her how to do it.”

“I think I like this kid,” Serena said. “But I really hope you can make it tomorrow.”

“I’ll do what I can,” you said, knowing you would likely be able to go, but not wanting to promise anything.

“Good,” Serena said as she started walking down the steps again. She turned around when she was struck with an idea. Alex had told her about her and Casey’s ideas, but, frankly, she felt like they were not moving fast enough, and having known them both for years, knew how they needed a push sometimes to go for what they wanted. You and Alex had only gone a few steps, so you didn’t miss the swoosh of blonde hair coming back towards you.

“I remembered,” Serena said, “ I was going to ask you, Caroline, are you going to any salsa nights again soon?” You looked taken aback as she clarified, “I’ve wanted to pick it back up for a little while. I was going to ask last time but the conversation moved too fast.”

“You dance salsa?” Alex asked, blindsided. Serena nodded, an implied obviously in her expression. “When did you learn?” She asked again, knowing that Serena’s upbringing had been astonishingly similar to hers as far as old money and conservative attitudes went.

“Study abroad.”

You let it be quiet for a short moment, seeing Alex and Serena communicate with looks, something panicked in Alex’s and something scheming in Serena’s. You filed the moment away to think about later.

“Yes, actually, I think I’m going to one on Saturday, in Brooklyn as usual,” you said, testing the waters of their reactions. “Ashley’s still on tour so I was going to see if one of my old teammates would want to go with me,” you said. Alex squinted her eyes slightly, Serena knit her fingers together as you spoke. “But if you would like to, Serena,” you decided to just go for the invite, “we should go together.”

You thought you saw a flicker of jealousy from Alex when Serena enthusiastically accepted your invitation. You couldn’t be quite sure, but it was enough hope to leave another little piece of you burning.

---

@addictedtodinosaurs @nocreditinthestraightworld @sweetprentiss

remindr to sign up for my tagłist if you vvant to be tagged in these! (some of my keys are broken)

#svu #svu fanfic #law and order svu fanfic #alex cabot #casey novak #serena southerlyn #rita calhoun #casey novak x reader #alex cabot x reader #alex cabot x casey novak x reader #ofc #schemes!!!! #matchmaking #calex #calex x reader #please rb and 1ike

[raiseyourvoicetotherain]

Happy Anniversary -- A jatp fic

Here’s my first Julie and the Phantoms fic, inspired by this post. I hope you enjoy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Maybe we need to put ourselves in danger?” Reggie said, breaking the silence that had lingered over the studio for longer than he was comfortable. “Last time, Julie thought we were all going to disappear forever. Maybe if she thinks that again, she can figure out how she did it before.”

Alex broke out of his blank stare to turn his head to Reggie. He stared at the bass player just long enough to give him time to really think about what he’d just said. When Reggie didn’t seem to get it, Alex said, “Seriously? We’ll just go back to the Hollywood Ghost Club and ask Caleb for another stamp, then, shall we?”

“Yeah, let’s not do that,” Reggie responded quietly, sagging back into his chair. He put a hand to his chest and started to rub it a little, remembering the pain of the jolts the stamp had caused. “But maybe there’s some other way to put us in danger.”

Then Alex turned his head to Julie and gave a look like he couldn’t answer another silly question and he needed her to take this one.

“You want to put a ghost in danger?” Julie asked Reggie skeptically.

Reggie went quiet when he saw her point.

Flynn looked between Julie and the seemingly empty chair she was talking to. “What’s going on?” she asked her best friend.

“Nothing helpful,” Luke said with a roll of his eyes.

Knowing Flynn hadn’t heard that, Julie—less sarcastically—answered, “Nothing that’s going to work.”

Julie and Luke had spent the last hour trying to get their hands to touch, but every time their hands got close, every time they thought, maybe this time, their hands passed right through each other and the two would sigh. Julie could see Luke get more frustrated each time.

Ever since the night of The Orpheum show, the band had spent a lot of downtime trying to work out how to repeat whatever magic is was that had made Julie able to touch the boys, and Flynn able to see them.

Flynn hadn’t originally gone back to Julie’s after the show, but when she’d gotten home, she realized that Julie had seemed fine at the show, but there was no way she was going to be okay when she got home to the studio. So Flynn had gone straight down to the garage when she got to Julie’s and the first thing she noticed was how bright the room was. Then she saw Julie wasn’t alone, she could see the boys with her in a group hug.

“Oh, my god,” Flynn almost screamed when she realized what was happening. But no sooner had she spoken the words and Julie turned around, that the boys vanished.

Ever since that night, Julie had been trying to figure out how to make the boys visible when they weren’t playing—so far, she had only managed slight flickers as her hands passed through Luke’s. She hadn’t been able to touch him since.

Julie looked at Luke now, knowing he wanted just as bad as she did to recreate that magic. He wanted to hold her hand, feel her arms around him like he had that night.

He reached out again for her hand, only for his to slip right through it again. He gave a frustrated groan and turned away from her. He didn’t usually get like this—he actually hadn’t felt like this since he’d found out Bobby had stolen his music—but right now he wanted to hit something. He couldn’t remember being more frustrated with himself in all his life and afterlife.

Not sure what else to do, Luke stormed out through the garage door. Julie tried to call his name, but he kept going until he was outside.

Alex came and stood behind Julie, both looking at where the guitarist had walked out. After a quiet moment, Alex sighed. “So, do you wanna . . .?”

Snapping out of her own frustration, Julie said, “Yeah, yeah I got it.”

Julie walked outside to talk to Luke, and Alex was relieved he didn’t have to go. He’d been trying to support Luke through this, but he never seemed to know the right thing to say. Alex hated it, he was usually the one to know what to say to make things better, but he didn’t now. He didn’t understand what Luke was going through. He was still sneaking around with Willie, trying to work out how to free him from Caleb, but at least when Alex was able to steal a moment away with his dream boy, he could hold Willie in his arms.

Outside, Julie closed the garage door behind her. “Hey, you okay?”

Luke, who had begun throwing stones into the garden, frustrated, sighed and turned to look at her. “You know I want to be able to do this right?”

“Of course, so do I,” Julie said softly. “But even if we don’t figure it out, it doesn’t change . . .”

“Change what?” Luke encouraged when she paused.

With a sigh, Julie only answered, “Nothing.”

Then Luke looked frustrated again. “Nothing,” he repeated. “Right.”

“No, Luke, that’s not what I—” but he poofed out before she could finish.

Reggie stuck his head through the garage door. “Where’s he going? We’ve got practice.”

He was yanked back inside by Alex. “We weren’t listening,” Alex lied after sticking his head through where Reggie’s had just been.

“It’s okay,” Julie answered. Still facing away from the boys, she wiped a tear from her face. “I think I know where he’s going.”

 -

Emily was in the kitchen when Luke poofed in. She was drying the clean dishes to be put away and her hair was pulled back.

The first time Luke had seen her after coming back as a ghost, he was shocked by her now completely grey hair, but what hurt him the most was the look in her eyes. They were as sad as when he used to sneak by the house before he died, but they had an added layer of looking lost.

Now she looked . . . not happier, but definitely not as lost. Luke knew it was Julie who had done that. Bringing his mother that song had changed the whole mood in the house. A huge amount of his guilt had been lifted when Julie had come by, and now it seemed some of Emily’s had been, too.

“Good afternoon, my beautiful wife,” Mitch said, walking into the kitchen. Luke saw he was holding something behind his back and when Emily turned around to greet her husband, he pulled out the fresh bunch of dahlias. “Happy anniversary.”

“Oh, darling they’re beautiful,” Emily said, taking the bouquet from him. “Happy anniversary.”

They shared an affectionate kiss and Luke smiled—forty-five years and despite all their tragedy, they were still so in love. Emily put the flowers in a vase with water and Mitch went to change from his golf clothes. Luke didn’t know, but their anniversary had been such a non-event since he’d died. But with new life in the house since Julie’s visit, Mitch felt compelled to acknowledge the day once again.

As he watched his mom continue to put away dishes, Luke looked past her to the window sill, and saw a folded up piece of paper tucked in the window tracks. She took that bit of paper everywhere with her now.

“I could really use some mom advice right now,” Luke said, sitting on the kitchen bench, leaning his back to the wall. “Julie is . . . incredible. She’s insanely talented, and caring. I don’t have to tell you that you’d like her. I love her, Mom, but I don’t know if I should tell her. I can’t touch her, I can’t hold her—or kiss her. I think she feels the same way I do, but is it fair to ask her for something so complicated? Should I encourage her to go for something normal and just let her be happy with Nick instead?” he said the name with spited jealously. “I don’t know if I could stick around for that.”

Emily continued to clean the kitchen and he wished so badly that she would respond and help him decide what to do. But after a moment, he knew he didn’t need her to.

“I know what you’d say,” Luke spoke with a little smile and shake of his head. “You’d ask me if writing and playing music with her was worth it. That if nothing ever changed, could I be happy with things the way they are?” After a quiet moment, he looked over at his mom. “And the answer is yes, it will always be yes. I’d go the rest of eternity never getting to hold her again, as long as I still got to write music and perform with her.”

Emily finished putting the dishes away and grabbed the coffee pot to fill with water.

“If you could only know, I never let you go,” he sang quietly to her. But as he sang, he realized something new—his mother was singing along with him. Luke sat up straighter, thinking he must have imagined what he heard.

He tried again to be sure. “If I could take us back, if I could just do that.” He wasn’t going crazy, she was singing the tune. Not only was she singing it to the right melody—a melody she’d never heard—but she was singing in time to him. When he stopped singing, she stopped and looked up, surprised to catch herself singing at all.

“And write in every empty space, the words I love you in replace,” Luke kept going, hopping off the bench and walking up behind her as she put a now full pot of coffee on to brew.

She continued to sing with him and he looked at the piece of paper in the window sill with the Unsaid Emily lyrics written on it, still in the same spot. He continued to sing with his mom as he reached over to grab the paper.

“And the words I most regret are the ones I never meant to leave.” Her back was still turned when he tapped the paper out of its place and onto the bench.

Emily turned around to the light noise the bit of paper made when it landed. When she walked over to pick it up, Luke let out a breath, causing the paper to drop to the floor. Emily pulled her hand back, shocked. After she bent down to pick it up, she started to turn it in her hands, looking at it in curiosity.

Luke wasn’t really sure how, but he knew that his mother knew he was there. He reached up a hand and brushed his fingertips on her cheek. Emily gasped lightly, and brought her hand to her cheek.

Her eyes lit up with a joy he hadn’t seen before. Her hand went straight through his now, but for a moment, she could feel his touch.

 -

Luke poofed back into the studio to find it was only the boys. “Where’s Julie?” he asked immediately.

“In her room, why?”

Without answering, Luke poofed into Julie’s room. She was on her bed studying and almost jumped off in fright.

“Jeez, Luke,” she cried. “What are you doing? I could have been getting changed!”

He ignored her anger. “Julie, listen, the coolest thing just happened.”

Whatever happened at his parents’ house, he was so excited about it that Julie realized she couldn’t stay mad at him with that cute, eager look on his face. “Okay, what’s so important?”

Then there was a knock on the door and Julie’s dad interrupted them.

“You okay, honey? Thought I heard a scream?” Ray asked, leaning through the doorway.

“Oh, that,” Julie panicked for an answer. “Just homework frustration, you know? High school.”

Luke stood around impatiently, thinking Ray would leave after that, but then he walked into the room completely and sat on the chair across from Julie’s bed. Why did Ray have to choose this of all moments to have a catch up, bonding session?

When Ray finally walked out of the room what felt like an eternity later, Luke sat on Julie’s bed, ignoring the books and school work she had to move before he sat on them.

“Okay, so I went to my mom and dad’s,” Luke began.

Julie smiled sadly at him. “I figured as much.”

“No, listen, while I was there, I—” Before Luke could continue, they were interrupted again by Reggie and Alex poofing in.

“You guys need to come outside, right now,” Reggie said.

Luke waved them off in annoyance. “Not now, guys, okay?”

“No, really, dude,” Alex said more seriously. “There’s someone here, you need to come out to the studio.”

Alex’s tone stopped Luke short of telling him off again. Who could be here that was so important? Julie got up off her bed and walked downstairs. The boys all followed her instead of poofing out.

When they got to the studio, Luke couldn’t believe his eyes.

 -

Emily had caught herself singing all afternoon and wondered how she knew the music. After the folded up paper with her son’s handwriting all over it had fallen to the floor, she thought of Julie—the precious little girl who had brought her son back to her with that piece of paper.

The first time Emily had read the lyrics, she realized that she hadn’t lost her son like she thought she had. She thought she’d lost him long before that devastating night the police lights had lit up her living room. But with Julie’s actions, she now knew that if not for the tragedy, she might one day have had him back, and that meant the world to her.

Now she was singing to the lyrics she had only ever read. Maybe she’d heard the tune somewhere before. Then she got thinking about it. Perhaps Julie had performed the song before she knew what it was—or she might have even performed some of Luke’s other songs. After making herself a fresh coffee, Emily went to sit at the computer and searched for Julie.

It took less than a minute for Emily to find the girl—once Emily found the right keywords, Julie and the Phantoms was the first hit.

“Stand Tall at the Orpheum,” Emily muttered to herself. “Impressive.” Emily didn’t have to be a musician to know that a performance at the Orpheum was a pretty important event.

“Hey, Mitch, honey,” she called to her husband. He came into the room with his own fresh cup of coffee.

“Everything alright?” he asked.

“Julie played the Orpheum a few weeks ago—I thought you might watch it with me.”

Emily didn’t have to say anything else—they were both thinking the same thing. They were going to support Julie as best they could, to make up for not supporting Luke when they had the chance.

As they both watched the video start, Emily admired Julie’s beautiful speech. The young girl hadn’t mentioned that her mom had passed away, but Emily could tell now, by the way she spoke about her mom on stage, that Julie had suffered that same dreadful loss.

When Julie started performing, Emily and Mitch both began to smile. She was so talented, just like Luke. Definitely not for the first time, Emily wished more than anything that she’d had the opportunity to see Luke perform. If he’d had half the spark and talent that Julie showed, she would have loved to watch him.

Suddenly, Julie wasn’t alone on stage, a drummer and his kit seemed to flash in out of nowhere.

Emily looked at Mitch in surprise. “That’s very fancy,” he noted. But then his eyebrows creased together as he looked closer at the monitor.

Emily looked back herself and saw right away what her husband had. That drummer looked an awful lot like—

Another flash and another performer appeared on stage. “It can’t be,” Emily said.

Mitch and Emily looked at each other, shocked, but also realizing the same thing—if that was Alex and Reggie, did that mean their son would be there too?

Both of them turned back to the monitor, their eyes glued as they watched another figure flash in and out. Emily couldn’t believe it, she must have imagined it. Then the figure flashed in again, still too quick to be sure, but enough that it gave her hope.

Emily’s heart raced and Mitch put an arm around her—his heart had almost stopped.

“I’m going out of my mind!”

There he was.

They watched the rest of the performance, completely speechless. Every second the camera showed Luke on screen, Emily’s heart skipped a beat. She wasn’t even questioning the how or the why, she was just so happy to see her son again.

At the end of the video, Alex, Reggie and Luke flashed off screen the same way they’d flashed in and Mitch looked at his wife, who was still staring at the screen. She had tears in her eyes and he watched them start to roll down her cheek, then she looked at him.

Without a word, Mitch went to grab his car keys and Emily followed him out to the car. Almost fifty years of loving her and she still didn’t have to say a word for him to know what she needed.

They drove in silence as Mitch tried to remember where he was going. It had been over twenty-five years since he’d taken Luke to band practice, but he was sure he still remembered the way.

When they arrived at the house they hadn’t seen in years, Mitch pulled up to curb out front and turned the car off. Emily didn’t move for a few moments.

“Do you really think he’s here?” Emily asked, staring down where she could just see the roof of the garage. “What if . . .”

Mitch took her hand. “There’s only one way to know.”

They got out of the car and walked down the drive.

The large white garage doors were closed, but Emily knew if the boys were anywhere, it was in there. So Mitch opened the door.

The studio had definitely changed since he’d last seen it. A fresh coat of paint and a grand piano he was sure hadn’t been there the last time he’d dropped Luke off were the most notable changes. Mitch remembered the fights he’d gotten into with Luke every time he had come to pick his son up. That boy never wanted to leave.

When Luke had first started practicing with his band, his parents never thought he would want to drop out of school to pursue music. They thought it would just be a high school hobby, and had always treated it as such. Mitch had thought many times over the years how different things might have been if they’d taken it half as seriously as Luke did.

Alex and Reggie sat up, stiff as boards when they saw who had walked into the garage. They looked at each other, staying completely quiet, as if Emily and Mitch could hear them anyway. Not sure what else to do, they poofed up to Julie’s room.

There was no one in the garage when they walked in, but that didn’t stop Emily from saying through tears, “Luke?”

When nothing happened, Emily thought about going up to the house to look for Julie. Then she heard someone walk in and turned around.

Alex and Reggie stayed just outside when Julie walked in with Luke at her heels — they both froze at the sight of his parents.

Luke took a step and stood directly beside Julie. They instinctively grabbed hands, so caught up in the shock of who was in front of them, they didn’t even notice that they were actually holding hands.

“Mom?” Luke said, tears in his eyes.

Emily gasped and put a hand to her mouth. She was looking at him—at him. “Luke?” she said with a sob.

Luke and Julie looked at her in shock, then down at their interlocked hands, then back to Emily.

Family, Julie realized. That feeling of family was all she was thinking of in that moment. How much her family—including her found one—meant to her, how much she loved them, how much Luke loved his.

Emily walked over towards her son, tears streaming. She still didn’t care how—she just wanted to know it was real. She reached out and touched his arm, and she could feel it. He really was there.

“Mom, I—”

Luke was cut off when his mother wrapped her arms around him, crying with overwhelming emotion. He wrapped his other arm around her, not daring to let go of Julie’s hand in case the magic went away. Julie wiped away tears and Emily pulled her in as well. Mitch walked over and wrapped himself around all of them. Emily’s legs gave out then as all her energy had been taken by her tears. Luke carried her down until they were on their knees.

Then he felt Alex and Reggie join them. Emily looked at them, so happy to see her son’s chosen family here as well.

My beautiful boy, Emily thought. Oh, how I’ve missed you.

Even if the magic never worked again, Luke would never be able to repay Julie for this moment. She was his shining star, his savior—and he would love her forever. In that moment, surrounded by all of his family, Luke had never felt so at peace.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope this was alright, please let me know, maybe share it if you enjoyed it? I really liked writing it. If you want to see more stuff, drop me some ideas, and definitely check out my pinned post for more stuff by me. You can also bookmark this story on ao3 here. Thanks for reading x

#jatp #julie and the phantoms #fanfic #fan fiction #fic #luke jatp #luke patterson #unsaid emily #julie molina #julie jatp #ao3

[mollymauk-teafleak]

I can see in your face that you mean it

Guess whose back. Back again.

Yeah I had a bad anxiety day so dived back into some old comfort media and decided to finish off a fic I started back in my intital Nightrunners obsession phase.

It's fluff and smut and emotions and if you like it, please consider leaving a comment over on Ao3!

-------------

Oh Aura, he’s beautiful.

Seregil would have thought, hoped maybe, that after months of pining after Alec and everything they’d been through, after finally getting him into bed and opening his heart in a way he’d never done before, he’d be done with this. That there wouldn’t be moments when his lover’s eyes caught the morning light or he grinned in that way that showed the slight gap in his front teeth or he’d feel his soft hair run through his fingers and Seregil’s heart would drop like he was half a child again and didn’t recognise the taste of love. And in his mind he’d just sigh he’s beautiful.

Except now he got to feel the second heart throbbing behind his own with it’s own silly, dizzy, free falling love and Seregil would get to follow it with and he’s mine.

Five days since their first together and none had been exactly like any other. Each one had been unique as Alec’s confidence grew and he began to ask for more, push further, move into the spaces Seregil left for him. He was as quick a learner as he’d ever been though Seregil couldn’t remember ever being quite so delighted by it. Maybe as he’d watched him learn his letters and read his first books while delight dawned in his eyes, perhaps that would come a fairly close second.

But when he closed the door to their Watermead room behind him and flicked the lock across with a reassuringly heavy metallic thunk, turning to see Alec already sprawled naked across the bed, Seregil thought maybe it wasn’t that close at all. Because what could compare to this?

Gods above, he’s beautiful.

“Come on,” Alec stretched out a hand to him playfully, a needy whine in his voice that may have been part of the game and may not have been, “I’ve been waiting for ages, how long does ‘one last cup of beer’ take?”

“When it’s as good as Kari’s? Quite a while,” Seregil smirked with amusement, coming over and catching Alec’s hand in his own, “And besides, I was trying to make it slightly less obvious what we would be doing. Trying to save what little of your modesty was left after you tore up the stairs as soon as dinner was done.”

Alec blushed a little but not as much as he might have done a few nights ago, “Everyone in the house already knows...and besides, you promised me something new.”

“That I did, talí,” Seregil raised Alec’s knuckles to his lips, “I would add that it’s only if you're willing but judging by how you tripped rushing up here- everyone saw that, by the way- you’re more than willing.”

His cheeks now the bright cherry colour Seregil knew and loved, Alec shivered, “You said perhaps we could go a little further…”

Seregil nipped at the inside of his wrist before letting go so he could make short work of his own clothes. Wearing any scrap of material while his lover was so pleasingly naked was unbearable. As he did, Alec rolled onto his back, stretching like a contented cat as if to make absolutely sure there was no possible inch of him he hadn’t seen. They’d been repairing and painting fences that day, there were still scrapes on Alec’s palms and knees from their work, white wash on his hairline he’d missed as he’d scrubbed off the marks from their duelling with paintbrushes. Little imperfections, lingering traces of the time they’d spent together, like a map Seregil was eager to follow.

Gods, he’s just so beautiful.

Twice in one night, what was happening to him?

Now undressed, Seregil nudged Alec’s legs open enough that he could kneel on the bed between them, “Not so much further, my talí, I won’t be asking a lot of you. I just...well, offering you some more of me?”

Alec’s eyes widened at the edges, as he gazed up at Seregil, “Oh. Like, um...like the tavern board?”

Seregil grinned, he really owed some of his green lantern friends a drink if they were ever back in Rhíminee, “Well, not quite as athletic as all that. And strictly just the two of us. But in essence? In mechanics? Yes.”

There was a soft inhalation, a flush creeping down Alec’s neck, “So...me...me in you?” Just saying the words sent the flush bleeding down across his collarbone.

“That is the way I’m used to doing things though I’d certainly be interested in covering all of our options, as it were,” Seregil tilted his head playfully, “Another night. For now, I thought this would be a little less daunting.”

Alec’s teeth snagged his lower lip, his clever mind clearly working behind his bright eyes as they slid down the length of Seregil’s body. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t rather smug at the look of hunger and want that swiftly gathered in them.

“I’m willing to try,” Alec murmured eventually, his smile coming back quick and coy and daring, “As long as you promise I won’t be hurting you.”

Seregil raised an eyebrow and let his own eyes wander shamelessly, focusing between Alec’s open legs, “Well...it’s your rather superior equipment against my experience, isn’t it?”

“Oh hush!” Alec snorted, kicking out at him lightly, “I’m serious!”

Laughing, Seregil caught him by the ankle, pressing kisses along the inside of his leg, “I promise I’ll tell you if I need you to slow down or hold still. Communication, yes? Just like we talked about.”

Alec nodded, melting into the touch, growing pliant and supple. He knew this, he’d grown pleasantly familiar with such attentions to Seregil’s joy. And where his lover’s limited experience ended, Seregil could take his hand and lead him.

So he took his time, devotedly ensuring Alec was boneless and purring contentedly, soft and relaxed everywhere but between the legs. Only then did he pull back and go for his pack, left carefully within reach just over the edge of the bed. He drew back, holding a small bottle of oil made in red glass and shaped rather fancifully into a heart, stoppered with black wax.

“What’s that?” Alec asked, now watching every one of his movements very carefully.

“Ah,” Seregil slipped easily into his instructing voice, naturally holding the same tone he would if he were introducing Alex to a new type of lock, “When people make love in this fashion, a little extra help is required to allow things to move easily. That’s what this oil is for. Very important, particularly from my perspective.”

“Oh, to his credit, Alec was blushing less ferociously each time, “And, um...what do you do with it?”

Seregil smiled indulgently, eyes sparkling, “Why don’t I show you, talí?”

He opened the stopper with his teeth, holding the bottle at a height so Alec could watch it ooze thickly onto his fingertips. In the low candlelight, it shone like glass fresh drawn from a blower’s oven, it moved like honey.

Immediately, Alec sniffed, eyes brightening, “It smells nice...what is that?”

Seregil chuckled, tilting the bottle back to stem the flow once he judged he had enough, “You’re not getting away that easily. You tell me.”

“I thought we were making love, not a lesson,” Alec wrinkled his nose but he wasn’t one to miss a chance for praise, “Um...roses. Vanilla. Oh, those yellow flowers that grow in the Oreska House park, I can’t remember their name…”

“Ylang,” Seregil supplied, beaming proudly, “Well done, my love. This is the finest stuff from the Street of Lights so it’s scented. I expect we’ll have some leaner times in the future but fortunately there are a lot of other cheaper options that work just as well.”

He worked as he spoke, working the oil between his thumb and fingers, warming it a little. In moments, the air was filled with that rich, floral smell, the kind of scent you could get drunk on. Alec inhaled deeply, watching closely so he didn’t miss a moment of what Seregil was doing.

“And that stuff goes where exactly?” he breathed, curiosity and lust making him a little impatient.

“Plenty on your cock before it comes anywhere near me,” Seregil hummed, “You may think I’m flattering you, talí, but I’m perfectly serious. You’re one of the more...physically gifted lovers I’ve had.”

“One of?” Alec muttered as Seregil shifted, lazily stretching out onto his back then propping himself up on one elbow, stretching his legs out across his lover’s. Alec took immediate advantage, running his hands up Seregil’s calves, enjoying the play of muscle there.

Seregil either didn’t hear or chose not to hear, continuing, “But first my body needs some preparation. Other times this can be your task, if you like, but for tonight...just watch and learn.”

Alec nodded hard, his attention now fully caught on Seregil’s hand, two fingers shining with the oil, and it’s path down between his open legs. He’d spent the last five nights exploring every inch of his faie’s body but he still felt a slight shiver when he was allowed to see these most intimate parts of him, when he was allowed to feel some sense of ownership of them. Five nights was not nearly long enough that Alec’s pupils didn’t widen, his breath didn’t quicken, his mouth didn’t dry at the sight of Seregil sinking first one finger into himself, then two. He wasn’t sure an entire lifetime would be enough.

“Gods…” he murmured, apparently unconscious of the naked awe on his face, “And that...that feels good?”

Seregil rather thought his rapidly hardening prick answered that question but he was charmed nonetheless, “Yes. There’s a spot a little deeper, hold on...ah, there, right there...not strictly the point of this but gods, yes, it feels good.”

His voice grew more strained and breathy as he brushed his sweet spot, as he coaxed his muscles into slackening, scissoring his fingers and chuckling at the expression that put on Alec’s face as he watched, enraptured and practically salivating. He’d started leaning forward, apparently not realising that he was now sat right up off the bolsters.

“That’ll do,” Seregil eventually sighed, drawing his fingers back, “If it were you, I’d give you a little more but I rather like when it has a bit of bite to it.”

“Now me,” Alec reached for the oil, still in Seregil’s other hand, clearly eager to progress.

But Seregil sat up quick, holding the red vial just out of reach with an amused smirk, “Ah ah. Sit back, talí.”

Alec swallowed hand but did as he was bid, hands flitting to his chest where they waited like anxious birds. He watched, wide eyed and breath coming in snatches, as Seregil poured oil on his trembling erection from a few inches above, giving a strangled moan as the cool liquid met his burning skin.

“I want to make the most of this,” Seregil purred, “The first time I get to have you share my body...I won’t rush this, talí.”

Alec’s youth flashed through for a moment as he stuck his tongue out but then fell quiet as Seregil’s fingers caught the oil dripping down the side of his cock, working the slick across the flesh. Both of them seemed to realise the importance this night had taken, maybe feeling it in the talímenios bond humming with love and need between them. They would have hundreds of nights together over their long lives, they would know each other in so many ways, but everything would have a one and only first. And that was cause to hold your breath, bare your heart and pay attention.

Seregil kept his attentions brief and light, remembering that Alec had the stamina of someone very new to sex. He stopped as soon as his lover’s cock was shining in the rapidly dimming glow of their bedside candle.

“How…” Alec murmured, pupils now wide enough that little of their blue colour could be seen.

Seregil smiled indulgently, “You lie back, talí. It’ll let me set the pace of things and I want to see your beautiful face.”

That made Alec chuckle as he slid completely onto his back, making room for Seregil to mount him, to bracket his hips with his knees. He didn’t sink down just yet, taking a moment to admire his young lover’s face, the anticipation and surprise at a new, unfamiliar desire. Seregil lightly touched Alec’s cheek and, there again, that thought.

Oh Aura, he’s beautiful. How can he be so beautiful and not know? How can he be so beautiful and be mine?

Alec just smiled, turning his head slightly and kissing the tips of Seregil’s fingers, tasting rose and vanilla. Either the thought hadn’t made it across the talímenios bond in its entirety or Alec had simply heard, he’d glimpsed the insecurity that lay not all that deep beneath Seregil’s crooked smile and had swept it into the pile of things he loved about him without a second thought. Like it could be so easy.

“I love you,” the words were rawer than he’d intended, bursting from his chest like a bird fleeing through a bent bar in its cage. He’d said it before and he’d meant it but this time it came from the very soul of him.

And Alec smiled, bright as sunlight, meaning it just as much but finding it so much easier, “I love you too, Seregil.”

Dark strands of hair falling in his face, Seregil had no answer to that but to reach back and take Alec’s cock in his hand, guiding him inside him as he slowly sank down. Any more words and he felt he might explode. But this he could do, he could give Alec his body and gladly.

Alec gave a strained moan as soon as the head of him pushed past the tight ring, face tensing, “Gods...oh gods, Seregil…”

Seregil took a deep, slow breath, allowing and not forcing his body to stretch to accommodate Alec. There was pain, just an edge to it, the kind he had always loved about this act. Eventually, inch by inch, he took him down to the hilt, shifting both hands to brace on Alec’s chest.

“You’re so tight, fuck…”

Seregil gave a trembling, breathy laugh, tilting his head back, “Just give me a moment, talí…”

Alec held obediently still, even as a low moan echoed through his chest. His blonde hair fanned about the sheets like a sunburst, his jaw clenched tight, his eyes fixed on Seregil’s face with such devotion. He looked almost godlike, something to be worshipped.

Finally, Seregil felt ready, moving his hips slowly and then gradually faster. Each time, Alec pressed against his sweet spot, direct and undeniable, pulling a high gasp from him at the peak. Eventually he felt his talímenios move too, angling his hips to meet Seregil’s movements, near lifting him clear off the bed. He could only express his approval in a broken, wanton cry, drawing his nails down Alec’s chest.

“Oh talí, my talí,” he gasped, high and wild, falling forward so his hair fell in a waterfall about them, pulling him into a desperate kiss that was lavishly returned. He bucked wildly now, body instinctively seeking release.

“Seregil…” Alec keened into his open mouth, “Fuck, I...I can’t…”

“Let go,” Seregil gasped, pressing their foreheads together, “I’ve got you, it’s alright.”

“I...Seregil...fuck,” he near screamed the last few words, whole body snapping taught and rigid, hands flying up to seize his lover’s hips hard enough to bruise, holding him in place as he flooded him with heat.

Seregil cursed in Aurënfaie as he fell, bare seconds behind, painting Alec’s chest and chin in spatters of white. Not just their bodies but their bond thrummed as if set alight, pleasure almost painful to hold like you weren’t sure your body could hold it. But finally, just at the point where it would become too much, it peaked and both men were left panting and shaking.

Somewhere in it all the candles had finally guttered, Alec and Seregil coming back to their own minds in darkness. Outside, an owl called out a sweet, lowing song.

Alec moved, catching their lips together again, kissing him now gently and sweetly. Sergeil was helpless in his hands and his tenderness, feeling small and soft and safe above all.

“That was...gods, that was incredible,” Alec eventually murmured, his voice raspy and fractured, “What in the name of the gods was I doing for a year when we could have been doing this?”

Seregil laughed, feeling Alec soften and slip out of him, letting him fully sprawl across his lover and fully give in to his exhaustion.

“We have hundreds of years to make up for it, my sweet. Don’t you worry.”

Alec sighed happily, that thought giving him so much comfort as he threw a leg over Seregil to press him closer, “I don’t know how you do it. How you make me feel so brave so I can do things I never thought I could.”

Seregil pressed a kiss to the underside of his jaw, “I don’t make you brave, talí. I just remind you that you are.”

Alec sounded like he wanted to argue but was too tired, just embracing Seregil all the tighter, “Do we need to bathe now? After all that?”

“We should,” Seregil admitted, sighing and forcing himself to roll onto his back, “Especially me. You’re running down the backs of my legs…”

Alec wrinkled his nose and groaned, throwing his arms over his eyes as Seregil made himself stand, “Why is making love so messy when it's two men?”

Seregil looked over his shoulder, intending to make some wry comment but it died on his tongue. Alec had let his arms drop, revealing his face. Edged in what moonlight could creep past the curtains, his face flushed from exertion, gloriously naked and open and honest. Smelling of roses and sex, conquered and triumphant. Everything Seregil had told himself he didn’t deserve and yet here it was.

“What?” Alec was looking back at him, a soft smile playing on his lips, “You keep staring at me.”

Seregil inclined his head, padding back over to the bed and kissing him again just because he couldn’t imagine doing anything else at that moment. When he was done, he drew back just enough that he could see his lover’s face, knowing Alec could feel his love just behind his own heart.

“You’re just so beautiful.”

#nightrunners #Alec #seregil #smut #stag and otter #Alec x seregil #lynn flewelling

[xbunnybunz]

Daybreak (4/?) [Wolf Keum x Reader x Alex Go)

Summary: The day brings to you Alex Go, and in the night, Wolf Keum. Your past is inescapable. They build you up and tear you back down, but this is what you need to survive.

Genre: Romance, Angst, Drama —–

When you pick up the call, Alex is talking to someone else in the background.

The flame of excitement you feel flickers, and for a second you deflate. You stop your stride down the street, shadow falling long from your feet and quivering in the glow of the moon.

Did he dial you by accident?

You hear his voice, but it sounds distant. “—Shut up Ben, I know what I’m doing!”

Another voice you don’t recognize cuts in, sounding like he was holding in laughter.

“Man, Gogo, I think you pressed the call button already.”

“What? Oh shit, you—”

There’s distant, hushed arguing, then loud rustling. Suddenly, Alex Go’s voice is right by your ear, breathy, sounding as sheepish and awkward as ever.

“Oh, hey there! What’s up?”

You feel your lips turn up again, the burning in your chest and cheeks slowly returning. You press a hand to your mouth to stop yourself from laughing.

“You tell me, Alex Go. You’re the one who called, after all.”

There’s a pause, and you can almost see his face now, eyes darting, a dumb smile, leg bobbing with a nervous jitter.

“Hah! Haha. Yep, that’s me. Me who called you.”

He pauses- a thing he does when he’s nervous, and you count, one, two, three seconds until he speaks again.  

“So, ha, what are you up to tonight?”

You think you hear someone give an exasperated sigh in the background, but it could just be a car passing by a street down.

“Not much. Pretty much the same night as all the others.”

You swing one foot in front of another, less focused on taking steps and more focused on balancing on the curb. Wonder if you always felt this way talking on the phone, wonder if it’s just Alex.

Alex hums on the other end, the sound tickling your ear.

“And what about tomorrow afternoon?”

A cartwheel flips in your stomach, and you almost loose footing on the curb. It sounds too smooth, and you bet he’s been practicing it in the mirror. It almost takes you off guard, but you keep a level head.

“What about it?”

There’s a dare in the question, and it sits boldly in the silence hanging between you and him.

He flounders, like you expect him to, but you smile regardless.

“Well I, uh,” He gives a nervous chuckle and your eyes soften. “I was wondering if you’d want to hang out tomorrow."

You give your head a tiny shake, feeling your eyelashes brushing your cheekbones. “Are you asking me on a date, Alex Go?”

He laughs gently, it’s sweet, but there’s a bit of a raw edge from nerves. “It depends how you answer.”

“And if I say yes?”

“Then I’d tell you to meet me at Eungang High School at two thirty, tomorrow.”

The fingers curled around your phone are alight with tingles and you flex your grasp on it, wiggling your toes in your shoes.

“I’ll be there.”

You catch Alex breathing a sigh of relief, attempting to dilute it with an airy chuckle. It’s cute, you think, and funny.

“That’s great- it’ll be great, I promise. I know just the place.”

“Anything’s better than another cup noodle lunch, so I’ll take your word on it.”

Alex laughs, and this time he’s not holding back. It’s real and it’s sunny, warm. It reminds you of something, but you can’t put your finger on it.

“I should’ve known you were still eating that stuff. You’re in for a treat tomorrow, I’ve heard people say their cakes are the best in Yeongduengpo.”

“Sweets, huh? I haven’t eaten out in a while.”

You turn a corner and stop at a red light, the dim scarlet glow splashes over the street, the sidewalk, colors your shoes. When was the last time you hung out with a group of friends? Hung out with anyone?

A thought pops into your mind and you turn back and look at the restaurant you came from.

“No way!” Alex’s voice sings into your ear again, just as the light turns green. “There are so many good places that opened recently, we gotta check them out!”

Your lips curl at his enthusiasm, and you turn back to cross the road. Listen to the tik tok tik tok of the countdown. “Yeah, I’m looking forward to it too.”

You can almost hear him smiling through the phone when he pauses, trying to find more things to convey his excitement. But he reels himself back in.

“Well, I don’t want to take up too much of your night, so I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Yessir, unless you get cold feet.”

Alex laughs again. “Nothing to worry about then, seeya later.”

“Goodnight, Alex Go.”

You pull the phone away from your ear and stare at the call time, crawling up second by second, until the call drops and the screen goes dim.

The next day rolls around without much nuance. Your head is pounding when you wake up, but not as much as it usually does after a night out.

Was it because you had something to look forward to today, or because you couldn’t drink with Wolf staring you down?

The question bounces around in your head for the duration of your morning classes, but fades by the time you’re pulling up directions to Eunjang High.

The school is relatively easy to find, given it was the only all-boys academies in the area. You wait outside the main gate, and chuckle at all the strange looks you’re getting, no doubt wondering what a student with your uniform was doing at Eunjang.

Eventually you catch a glimpse of black hair and a shock of green eyes in the upcoming wave of students, and wave. Alex perks up and throws up an arm in greeting as well, almost hitting a familiar, bowling-alley-carpet-eating redhead beside him.

Alex claps him a few times on the back in apology, and a taller boy with green hair taps his shoulder and points in your direction, lips moving to form a question.

Your gaze wanders and catches a purple one. The way his eyes shoot through you sends a cold shiver down your spine. His eyes pierce you, like he’s trying to remember something. Then his eyes snap up to your outstretched hand, in a wave. Unnerved, you retract your hand and pull your arms back into your body, turning and placing your back flush against the stone gate.

What the hell was that? You wonder, wringing your hands. Why was there so much space between Alex and his friends from the rest of the kids? Did they have a reputation or something?

“Whatcha thinking about?”

Alex’s face pops up from behind the stone gate, plastered with his usual goofy smile and all your thoughts melt away. Alex Go? A reputation?

“Haha, nothing. Just something silly.” You uncross your arms, brushing a piece of hair behind your ear. “Where did your friends go? They were with you a second ago.”

Alex folds his arms behind his head, leaning back a bit to peer back towards the school. His button down rises a bit, and you have to snatch your eyes away from the tantalizing sliver of skin that unveils itself.

“Ben said he left something in the classroom and made everyone go back with him to get it. He’s so scatterbrained, I don’t know what to do with him.”

You don’t have the heart to tell Alex what the real reason probably was, so you don’t.

You both begin your walk to the location, Alex leading the way.

“So, that uniform is pretty fancy huh?”

You look down at what you’re wearing. “Oh, this?” You tug a bit at the hem of the blazer. “Right, you haven’t seen me in my school uniform yet, huh?”

Alex shakes his head with a smile, his hands in his pockets. “Nope! To be honest, I almost didn’t recognize you. It’s like you’re a whole different person with an academy uniform on.”

You watch your feet next to Alex’s, faux leather uniform shoes beside brand name sneakers, both falling into sync. A bit of a half-smile slips onto your lips, teasing.

“Oh? My clubbing dress isn’t that flattering, is it?”

Alex holds his hands up, pink tinging his ears. “H-hey! You know I didn’t mean it like that!” He rubs the back of his neck abashedly, casting his gaze elsewhere.

“I was just a bit surprised you attend Jagga Academy. I mean, I’ve heard they’re super selective.”

Your smile takes a gentler curve, and you sigh. “Yeah, I studied really hard my eighth year to get in. Those were the days.”

Memories of your younger self flood your mind. You were fresh out of middle school, hopeful, bright, and stubborn. Unstoppable, that’s what all your teachers had used to describe you. A fighter. A writer. And memories they would stay.

His face flashes in your mind, like a haze, like a dream. One second he’s there, then he’s gone. You push the thought back into your mind.

Right now was about having a good time, and you didn’t want to ruin that.

Alex takes a turn and you follow him, willing yourself out of your thoughts.

You look up, skimming the area, unsure of where you were.

You look to the left, just past Alex, and see a familiar karaoke center. You look to your right and see the flash of a familiar scaffolding, leading to a bank you knew the name of without reading the sign.

A cold wash of something creeps up your body, something that feels like a licking flame, a cold fire. It inches up your back and into your fingers, and you ball them up, pressing your nails into your palms until the force has you trembling.

Something in your chest aches, and it keeps twisting, turning, throttling itself in your body and this can’t happen here, not now, not with him, not after being alone for so long.

A hand appears in front of your face, waving.

“Hello? Anyone home?”

You jerk your head up, pearls of sweat beading down your back and dotting your temples.

“Huh? Yeah?”

Alex gives you a look, brows furrowed, and lips pressed together. “Are you alright? You’ve been looking kind of out of it for a while.”

You swallow thickly and give what you hope is a convincing smile, but you can see a glimmer of yourself in Alex’s eyes. Shaking, scared, and shrinking, shrinking, shrinking away.

“Hah, yeah. Sorry, I’m just…”

You trail off. Don’t let yourself finish. You hate that your voice sounds so thin, so weak. You hate how you can’t even finish a sentence because of how your words sound like they’re teetering on the edge of oblivion, scared of falling into that dark, endless pool of vulnerability.

“…Tired.” You choke out, and it sounds like a cough. Feeble and sick.

Alex looks concerned now, but doesn’t ask any more questions.

He looks around, like he’s looking for a distraction, and you hate that he has to do that, hate that you’ve made this awkward, made him feel strange, fucked up this shit, again. It’s just past this block, you think. Then you’ll be fine, this will be fine.

“Hey!” Alex’s fingers graze your arm, and his fingers feel like freezing static on your body. “Look at that!”

He points a finger at something, you don’t know what, so you follow his gaze upward.

“Check it out!”

He jumps up and slaps the hard plastic backing harshly, the sound booms against your ears like a car crash, like any crash, like--

“Me and Ben used to do this all the time!”

Your lips feel dry when they part, you want to ask what he’s talking about, why he did that. But when you speak, no questions come out. Just a small and pathetic squeak,

“Huh?”

His green eyes glitter in the sun, his black hair is tousled, he’s happy and laughing and beautiful but you feel so so cold.

“We’ve been doing it since middle school, haha! We used to have competitions to see who could hit it first on the way home from classes.” He demonstrates with a few swings, but you’re not looking at him.

You turn around to focus on the traffic light again, remembering the noise it made when Alex’s hand struck it, like unrelenting thunder.

“The traffic light?” Voice like crinkling paper.

“Yeah, but there’s kind of a funny story here. There was a day Ben said I wouldn’t be able to slap the top of the traffic light, so I took a running start from half a block down and struck that baby right where it hurts.”

He laughs and it hollows your heart like a great echoing cavern.

“I hit it way too hard though, and the thing started spazzing out. I think it took them like a whole three months to get it replaced!”

Alex smiles fondly at the memory and you try hard to smile with him, but turning up your lips feels like a dreadful task. Your heart thrums in your chest and it feels strained with each beat, like it’s imploring you to run.

There’s a huge storm now, whipping into a hurricane in your head. Two pieces of the same broken person trying to pull themselves together by tearing someone else apart. It’s not his fault, you know. You think this, but you keep seeing his face, those eyes, and the memories stay with you, make it impossible to move on.

You want someone to blame for everything that’s been lost, for every day you’ve had to live with blaming yourself not reacting fast enough, for not doing something.

The screech of tire, the scent of burning rubber, the beeping of the heart monitor echoes in your mind, the clicking of hospital tiles underfoot.

And then you see him. He’s there, illuminated by the halo of yellow light, flickering, flickering, then gone- and instead now you see green eyes, black hair, a radiant smile, and it’s so blinding.

The tik tik tik of a broken stoplight echoes in the back of your mind, like a haunting melody in the abyss of a night.

It couldn’t be Alex, you think, but you can’t stop clenching your jaw. Alex is too sweet, you reason, too kind, too oblivious, too careless, too reckless-

You stop yourself and take a shaky breath in, no. When would you ever learn to stop pointing fingers, to move on from this? Would you ever even get there? This wasn’t anyone’s fault, you think, but it was also yours. No one but yours, who was there and failed to stop it.

And Alex? Well…

You take in another stuttering breath of air and it floods your lungs, and you wonder how long you’ve been holding it. Your hands are shaking, so you push them into your pockets, carefully.

Alex has his gaze turned away from you, but his arm is hovering a bit, like he’s ready to grab you in case you pass out, and only then do you realize how pallid you look, you feel.

…Alex Go, silly, thoughtful, bright Alex Go.

And you remember his smile, the way he shines like the sun when he smiles at you.

Smiles.

At you.

He helped you feel things you hadn’t felt in what seemed like years, he had given you wings to fly with again. And for the temporary moment you were with him, you were free to soar through the endless sky.

You gulp, and feel the warmth of his arm hovering over your body. Like an offer, an invitation. You want to lean in, to lose yourself in his touch, in his grasp. But something is stopping you, and you don’t.

For now, being afar is good enough, it’s as much as you deserve.

You both make another turn and he slows beside you, pulling you out of your trance, a gentle smile on his face, patient, and warm.

“We’re here, (y/n).”

#weak hero #webtoon weak hero #weak hero x reader #alex go #wolf keum #wolf keum x reader #alex go x reader #daybreak

[whythinktoomuch]

v. a deadly giveaway

(pt. i)  (pt. ii)  (pt. iii)  (pt. iv)

“No, it’s huge deal,” Kara insists. “Alex hardly ever lets anyone choose their own weapons. Plus, she likes to judge people based on their preference in firearms. Like, for example, Mike with his big ol’ shotgun, which... well, don’t make me say it.” 

“It’s just that either way, I’d have to give it back, no?” 

Kara’s brow crinkles. “No...? Of course not. Why would we make you give it back?” 

“Well, when I leave, I mean.” 

“Oh... right,” Kara says. She hadn’t really considered a possibility in which Lena wouldn’t stay with them indefinitely, but nods as if she had. 

Lena looks over at the marked silence, one corner of her lips quirking up in a wry smile. She leans into Kara, resting her head on her broad shoulder. “So, what does your gun say about you?” 

Kara glances down at her trusty semiautomatic pistol and shrugs. “That I’m a quick shot?”  

"Oh?” Lena laughs, and the delighted sound has Kara’s spirits lifting, just a little. “It’s also a Glock.” 

“Sure.” 

“Which means you have big hands,” Lena continues. She takes one of the hands in question and traces over the callused lifelines with her fingertips. When Lena plants a kiss at the very center of her palm, Kara’s spirits practically skyrocket. 

So, Lena intends to leave one day, and Kara keeps forgetting about it until she’s forced to remember. Whether it be a stray comment or a pointed silence in response to questions about the near future, the reminder never fails to soil Kara’s mood for the rest of the day. 

Naturally, Lena notices. Kara makes no secret of her feelings, after all, though she’s somehow managed to keep certain choice words to herself thus far. But Lena makes a real effort to make it up to her every time: 

holding Kara’s hand, 

tracing lazy shapes around each knuckle with her fingers, 

telling her a silly joke, despite not remembering the punchline,  

pressing lingering kisses to her shoulder, the warmth somehow bleeding through two layers of cotton, 

falling asleep with her head in Kara’s lap, etc. 

But honestly, in the end, it all just makes it that much worse for Kara. 

“You can’t force her to stay,” Alex says with a sigh. 

Kara scowls because she knows that, but still. “Well,” she says, “you made Kelly stay here with you, didn’t you?” 

“Did not. I just made her like me enough to stay.” 

Kara mumbles something into her pillow that Alex has to force her to repeat more clearly, “Lena likes me too.” 

“That she does,” Alex says, rolling her eyes. “You know, she stares at the back of your head whenever she’s behind you. Not at your ass like a normal person, but your head. Like, she’s just waiting for you to turn around and see her.” 

Kara buries both her fists into her belly, trying to stave off the ache that comes with Alex’s words, and just groans and groans. 

“So, why haven’t you tried to kiss me again yet?” Kara asks, the next time she and Lena are killing time in the library together. There’s no one else around and Kara’s frankly got nothing much to lose these days. “Was it really that bad?” 

Lena doesn’t answer, but her forehead goes bright red behind the cover of her latest novel. She starts turning the pages a bit more quickly, at a pace that surely even she couldn’t be reading at. 

“Because if it was... this might be the perfect time to let you know that, well... it had been a while,” Kara says slowly. “And I wasn’t really ready or expecting a beautiful woman to just, you know—”

“Kara!” Lena slaps the book onto the table before her, her entire face blushing furiously. “What are you doing?”

Kara blinks. “Explaining?” 

“Explaining what?” 

“Why I think our next kiss would be so much better.” 

“You... think about that a lot?” 

“About kissing you?” Kara says incredulously. “Yeah, like, all the time!” 

Lena nearly upends the table in her mad scramble to get across, the momentum resulting in Kara’s chair tipping backwards and crashing to the floor, with the two of them toppling along with it. 

“Ow...” Kara wheezes, her back already sore from landing heavily against the back of the chair. “And wow, um... Cool.” 

“Sorry, sorry,” Lena says breathlessly, grinding her hips against Kara’s like she’s ready to beg for forgiveness. “Are you okay?” 

Kara shakes her head in amazement. “I’m fine. And you’re perfect.” Then she pulls Lena down for a hungry kiss, and in accordance with her predictions from earlier, it is indeed much better than their first. 

Kara’s panting, then Lena’s panting, which only makes Kara pant even harder. She lets her hands wander—cupping the back of Lena’s neck, cradling her face, tangling in her long dark hair and tugging insistently, sliding down her arching back in reverence—until finally, they rest at the gentle swell of Lena’s hips. 

She pauses with her fingertips skating just past the hem of Lena’s shirt. It’s as far as they got to last time when Lena froze up on her, and now, as somewhat expected, Lena’s freezing up all over again. 

“You don’t have to apologize,” Kara says, cutting Lena off before she could try. “Kissing’s the best part anyway. Honest.” 

Lena ducks her head, pressing her forehead against Kara’s thumping chest. “I want to, Kara. I really do want to...” 

“Okay.” Kara strokes Lena’s hair, and she relaxes into the touch with a soft sigh until she’s boneless atop Kara’s blessedly solid frame. “Well, I’m okay either way.” 

“I just...” Lena’s muffling her words into Kara’s shirt now, and it’s harder to hear, but infinitely more distracting. “I just don’t want you to see...” 

Kara blinks a few times up at the ceiling in question, but it holds no answers for her. “See... your boobs?” she asks Lena instead. 

“What? No!” Lena says sharply, as if Kara’s the one who’s being cryptic right now. “Of course not!” 

“I’m not sure what we’re talking about then... but would it help if I went first?” 

“What do you mean?” 

But Kara’s already sitting up, leaning slightly back to give herself more space, then she whips her t-shirt off with a careless flourish. Lena’s hand—braced against Kara’s hip for balance—seizes up and her nails briefly bite into Kara’s skin. 

“... You... can’t be serious...” Lena says, her voice strained. “What the fuck?” 

Kara frowns, definitely not having expected that sort of reaction. “I ran out of clean bras.” 

“No. Just... you look like this?” Lena presses her entire hand flat against Kara’s abs, gasping when they tense up against her touch. “God, you’re such a dick.” 

Kara bursts out laughing, wrapping Lena up in the tightest of hugs, just so, so utterly charmed. They don’t even kiss again for the rest of the night. Instead, Kara just points out all the various scars that cover her body—a scattered, yet tangible timeline of everything she’s endured since the world fell apart. 

Lena brushes her lips against each one upon introduction, attending to these long since healed wounds like Kara was still hurting. 

Later on, when Alex accidentally walks in on them, she very loudly wonders why on earth couldn’t they just be having sex like normal people, goddammit.

Alex reiterates her very pointed question again when she’s getting ready for the next scavenging trip. “Please do it sooner rather than later. Preferably when I’m still out there, safe from catching you guys in the middle of whatever it is that passes for sex for the two of you.” 

“Shut up,” Kara mutters. “You can’t order us to do it.” 

“Sure I can,” Alex says easily, but she adjusts her tone at the pout her sister directs at her. “Look, I’m just saying. When she’s gone, you might end up regretting it. Who knows how long it’ll be before someone else you take liking to comes along?” 

“Never. I’m never going to like anyone ever again.” 

“Jesus.” Alex ruffles Kara’s hair affectionately until she flashes her teeth in a begrudging smile. 

“Oh, hang on,” Alex says, once she gets to the front gate. “I think I left some spare rounds under my bed. Can you go get it?” 

Kara rolls her eyes. “Why can’t you just go get it?” 

“Because with my luck, your girlfriend’s probably already there half-naked or something.” 

Kara ignores the flip her stomach gives at the very thought that Lena could be her girlfriend, let alone a half-naked one. “Because I’m faster, huh?” she says all cheeky instead, and Alex swats her over the head for it. 

When Kara shoulders her way into the room, she doesn’t expect to see Lena, but her presence in and of itself isn’t surprising. No, what’s surprising is the fact that Lena’s not wearing her flannel, and she normally wears that thing all day, every day, even with all that wear and tear, even under the scorching sun, even to sleep. 

But right now, the flannel’s off, and Lena’s wearing naught but a snug tank-top and the most terrified expression. 

It takes a beat for Kara to notice—so distracted by the sight of all this newfound skin now at her disposal—but Lena’s holding something in her hand. 

“Kara,” Lena starts, voice trembling. “I can explain.” 

But before Kara could ask for clarification, she sees it. A jagged oval of tiny divots on the outside of Lena’s bicep. It’s an angry red, swollen, and unmistakeable.

Kara feels the floor drop out underneath her, and her stomach plummets right after it. 

“That—that’s a bite. You’ve been bitten,” Kara’s shouting, oh god, when did she start shouting? “You were bitten, Lena! When were you bitten? When did you—god, when were you going to tell me, when—”

Lena quickly sticks herself with the item in hand—a syringe filled with some bright blue fluid—depressing the plunger right into the bite. Within seconds, the redness and swelling die down, but the bite—ugly and prominent even on pale skin—remains. 

Kara’s throat hurts, from the shouting, from the hopelessness lodged in the very center of it all. She’s inexplicably crying already. 

“I was bitten eight months ago,” Lena explains swiftly, quietly, as she throws her wretched flannel back on, disappearing the bite that’s already been branded in the forefront of Kara’s mind. “It’s... manageable. I can keep it at bay. It’s just a monthly injection. I’m fine.” 

“It’s not a cure,” Kara says in a croak. 

“No.” 

“Monthly... injection?” Kara swipes at her eyes with a clenched fist. “How long do you have left?” 

Lena hesitates, her lips pursed. “I’m... running out.” 

“How. Long?” 

“Four months,” Lena says, and Kara feels hitherto unregistered parts of her heart crumple and die. “I have to leave, Kara.” 

Kara wants to protest—it’s still her natural inclination despite everything—but before she can even open her mouth to do what she does best, Alex steps into the room behind her. 

“What the fuck is going on here?” 

#finally got to the part i wanted to write (: #hope y'all enjoy the ride (: #my words.

[soemthingsparkly]

Duvet Days

Duvet Days

Anon asked: 

some reggie and julie fluff 👀 them being best siblings uwu

Reggie & Julie being siblings.

Julie finally has a day to herself, but a certain someone is in need of entertaining. 

Warnings: artery-clogging sugary fluff. 

Words: 1.3k

~~

It was a Sunday afternoon in October and Julie finally had the house to herself. Carlos was at a friend’s house and her dad had ‘nipped’ to the studio for some last minute shooting and editing a few hours ago.

But Julie didn’t mind. What with the band, school, and family, she rarely had any time to herself these days. So, she did what any sixteen year old with an empty house on a chilly Sunday afternoon would do.

She stayed in her pyjamas, made herself a hot chocolate, and climbed back into her bed to snuggle down and watch some good old fashioned cartoons. She’d recently binged the entirety of Glitch Techs on Netflix and noticed there was a new season of Miraculous Ladybug to watch.

She settled down and got lost in the bright colours and high tempo of the animation. Her eyes tracked the subtitles as the characters spoke in a quick, upbeat French.

“Hey, Julie!”

Julie jumped and splashed hot chocolate on her duvet. The sweet milk dribbled down the side of her mug where it sloshed out and she nudged her laptop out of the way to prevent it getting sticky or damaged. When she looked up, she saw Reggie leaning through her doorway, looking guilty.

“Reggie,” she said, pulling a face and licking her palm. “I thought you were all out, today.” As she said this, it occurred to her that she was still in her fluffy pink penguin pyjamas and had pushed her knotted hair off her face with a purple barbie hairband she’d found in her junk drawer last night. She pursed her lips and ran her fingers through the small hairs at the back of her neck.

Reggie sighed. “Luke’s with his parents - something about a cousin’s birthday - and Alex’s gone off with Willie.” His mouth twitched to one side. “Now I’m bored.”

“Oh.”

“I was going to see what your dad was up to but he’s not here. Carlos, too.”

“Dad went out to do some last minute things at work and Carlos is at a friend’s house.”

Reggie released a soft, “oh,” and nodded his head. He drummed his fingers against the doorframe. As he looked around the room, Julie raised her eyebrows.

“Yeah…” she said, dipping her eyes back to her laptop. An image of Ladybug and Cat Noir swinging over the rooftops of an animated paris was currently frozen on her screen. Her cheeks felt warm. She looked up at Reggie again and shrugged.

“Okay, well…” Reggie said. He hesitated, his torso hanging through the door. The two stayed like that for a moment, both waiting for the other to speak.

Julie wiggled her finger on the trackpad when her screen went dark.

“Okay, well, If no one else is here, I guess I’ll go practice or something,” Reggie said. “Luke was asking me about some kind of riff earlier, maybe I’ll check it out. I’ll, uh, I’ll be in the studio if you need me.”

Julie bobbed her head. “Okay.”

He gave her a small wave before he disappeared through the door again.

Julie released her breath, brushed the chocolate off her sheets and settled back against her pillows. She carefully brought her hot chocolate to her chest and dragged her laptop closer again.

She was cosy and warm and the smell of sweet chocolate wafted up from beneath her. But before she hit play, she stopped herself. She thought of Reggie, alone in the studio, plucking on his guitar and she sighed.

“Okay, Reggie, you can come back.”

Almost immediately, Reggie’s head popped through the door again. He had a grin on his face. “Really?”

Sshe gave him a good natured eye roll when she patted the sheets next to her. Reggie’s eyes creased in excitement and he hopped over to her, jumping on the bed as she cried out for him to mind her drink.

“What’re you watching?” he asked, leaning over her shoulder.

“Uh, just a silly cartoon,” Julie said, quickly closing the Netflix tab, once again feeling that rush of heat in her face. “We can watch something else.”

“Oh man, I love cartoons. I used to watch them all the time when I was alive. Is it Animaniacs? I loved that show. So crazy."

Julie blinked at him.

“Or Ducktales? Chip and Dale? Darkwing?”

Julie shrugged one shoulder. “I’ve heard of Ducktales… I think there was a remake recently.”

“Remake?” Reggie pursed his lips and frowned, then chuckled self-conciously, playing with the string of one of his corded bracelets. “Yeah, I guess I forgot about the time skip thing.”

Julie ran her finger around the rim of her mug. “Sorry,” she said.

He smirked and shook his head. “It’s okay.”

She chewed her bottom lip for a moment, before she reopened Netflix and returned to the series she’d been watching. “It’s called Miraculous Ladybug - well, The Miraculous Adventures of Ladybug and Cat Noir - but Miraculous for short.”

Reggie leaned in and nodded.

“It’s not… well, it’s not a great show, exactly, but it’s fun and predictable and the heroes always win, so… I like it. It’s just silly.”

The boy grinned. “Sounds like fun. I like heroes.”

Julie couldn’t help the smile on her lips. “It’s ridiculous, too, because the heroes are in this complicated love square.”

Reggie dropped his chin and looked at her through his eyelashes. "For real?”

“Mhm,” Julie said, rubbing her thumb against the lip of her mug as she considered her explanation. “So there’s these two heroes of Paris, Chat Noir and Ladybug, and Chat Noir likes Ladybug, but Ladybug - or Ladybug’s civilian identity, Marinette - is in love with a boy that she goes to school with, Adrian”

Reggie’s eyes were wide. “Oh man, poor Chat Noir…”

“Okay, but here’s the thing, Adrian is actually the civilian identity of Chat Noir."

Reggie gasped. “No way.”

“Right? They're in love with each other but they don’t have a clue!” Julie’s whole chest was swelling with the excitement of it all. “And it’s so crazy, because they don’t know about each other and of course they can’t know each other’s secret identities because–”

“Because they’d be putting themselves and their loved ones in danger, of course.” Reggie jutted out his hand. “Classic masked vigilante problems, right?”

Julie stared at the glowing boy for a moment. His smile was a beam of warm light in the cold afternoon and Julie found her hand absently reaching up to touch his face, her thumb brushing the short hair around his ear.

The warmth of them always pleasantly surprised her.

Reggie’s eyes darted up and down Julie’s face. “Uh, Julie?”

Julie blinked and then recoiled, yanking her hand away. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Reggie said. He swallowed and dipped his head, chewing his bottom lip. His fingers found the tassels of one of her many throw pillows. “I actually kind of liked it…”

And Julie melted. She put her hot chocolate to one side and held onto her laptop as she pulled the quilt out from under him. “If you’re going to be here, you might as well be here.”

For a moment, Reggie couldn’t tell if she was being serious, watching her to see if she would pull a ‘gotcha’ moment on her, but she nodded her head again at the spot. “Come on, my arm is getting tired.”

Reggie rolled off the bed and held up a finger. “I’ll be right back.”

And then he poofed out and Julie was left alone, confused. It was only a minute later when he returned, this time in soft sweatpants and a pink hoodie. Julie cocked her head. “That’s Alex’s.”

“Well, he’s not using it right now, is he?” He said as he pulled back the duvet and blankets and climbed into the bed next to her. He rubbed his hands on his thighs and nodded. “Okay, now, I’m ready.”

For a moment, Julie could do nothing more than stare at him. He looked so soft and alive and she felt overwhelmed with affection.

She released a short, soft laugh before she decided to snuggled down and settled her head against his shoulder, bringing the laptop to a more central position. She felt Reggie’s cheek against her head and once again thanked whatever magic let her feel this.

She hit the spacebar and the poppy theme of the French animation began to play.

#julie and the phantoms #jatp #Julie molina #Reggie Peters #reggie moline #jatp fic