#.. and well after a winter my mom went to check instead and its good that she did it and not me bc well yeah sdiuguh | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

slutsofren · 3 years

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Danger Days Chapter 7: I Never Told You What I Do For A Living

summary: Joel isn't looking good after the recent run-in at the university. Ellie and you have to do everything you can to stop the bleeding and save his sorry ass.

word count: 2,648

content warnings: gore, hurt/comfort, cursing, unconscious Joel, general canon-typical violence, you know the drill.

note: this was so exhausting to write lol

read on ao3 here / masterlist

“I think we're safe.”

You look over your shoulder, back to the stone walls that lined the university. The three of you narrowly escaping it and you wanted to scream, yell, throw a fucking tantrum at the situation but you held it in. “For now,” you replied spitefully. “C’mon, kiddo, we should put more distance between us and them.”

“How is he holding up,” Ellie asks you tensely,

“If I’m being honest, I won’t know until we find somewhere safe.”

“You gotta tell me what to do,” she was beginning to sound more and more scared as your back got coated with Joel’s blood. What little patching up you did on Joel wasn't holding up, and wouldn't for much longer.

“Keep an eye out for where we can hold down for a couple nights. I gotta watch Texas here and make sure he doesn't fucking die on me.” Literally.

Ellie looks over at Joel, “Let's go.”

The two of you took off, Whiskey sensing your agitation and being the gentle beast he is, didn't jolt around too much. Speeding as best you could've in the situation you were tied down in, you suggested to Ellie that it would be nice to find somewhere rather far away from the university, far from trouble. She agreed, not wanting to run into whatever group that was again.

After a couple miles, safety seemed within grasp.

“Look, over there,” Ellie points off to the distance. You can see it, just barely. A shopping mall.

Like everything else in the area, it looks abandoned. Even by infected standards. It’s quiet and private, therefore it’s perfect.

Upon further gazing at the storefront, you recognize the banner. “Is that Swirls? The yogurt place?”

It takes you a bit off guard, recognizing something familiar from the time before, but for some reason it brings you a tiny bit of hope. Maybe.

“It says ‘Colorado Mountain Plaza’ over there,” Ellie points out.

“Looks safe enough.”

“Thank fuck.”

“Language.”

“Sorry,” she apologizes. Then sarcastically adds on, “Mom.”

You snort at her, shaking your head. Although she teased, you’ve come to enjoy the way she called you mom, but those were thoughts for another day.

Approaching the yogurt bar, Ellie jumps off Callus and reaches for the garage type door and lifts it. It creaks loudly which puts the two of you on edge but no signs of infected ring out. Joel does grumble a bit over your shoulder, likely at the sound of metal grinding on metal.

“Careful, Ellie.”

She waves you off then ducks beneath the door, disappearing from your sight. You hear a muffled ‘it’s clear’ from the other side as she lifts it up again to its full height. She leads Callus in by his bit and you follow with Whiskey.

“I’m gonna need your help, El.”

You try not to jostle around too much as Ellie comes close to your side, “What do you want me to do?”

After taking a couple moments explaining how to safely pull him down, you adjust yourself on Whiskey. Side-saddling him, you put your arms around Joel, “He is not gonna like this one bit.”

“Damn straight he’s not,” Ellie mumbles.

“On three.”

Sliding down Whiskey, you pulled Joel with you and with her help, the two of you managed to get him down with potentially only minor bruising. Laying Joel on the ground as gently as possible, he groaned harshly at the adjustment. “I know, cowboy, I know,” you said to him softly.

Checking over him one last time, Ellie looks up at you. “Now what?”

“Now,” you sighed. “We try to stave off an infection. The bar itself wasn't clean by any means. And you see this,” you pointed to where the puncture wound was. “This is where his large intestine is.”

“Okay,” she shrugs. “What does that mean?”

You hesitate for a moment, mouth agape. “It's where food gets absorbed and gets-,” you trail off.

Ellie looks at you for you to continue.

You sigh, “The biggest problem is his poop okay? Basically if the bacteria from his intestines, specifically his colon leaks out into his body then we're going to have much bigger problems than the wound itself.”

“Gross.”

Chuckling, “Yeah. Imagine how he's gonna feel if his own shit kills him.”

Ellie lightens up just a little at your off-colored joke. “He would be really pissed.”

“I'd argue maybe even a tiny bit of embarrassment.”

The two of you lightly laugh, both just as drained as the other. “How do you know all this stuff anyways?”

“I was a field medic with FEDRA, remember? Didn't last long there, after I lost my finger but I picked up a thing or two from the other nurses.” You shrug, you never found out much about the soldiers you aided, if they survived or not but maybe that wasn’t the best thing to tell her right now.

You point towards the metal garage door, “Go lock that up for me will ya?”

She gets up and does it, using a padlock to secure it shut. “Think there's anything out in the mall?”

“Possibly,” you groan as you get up off the ground. “I'll have a look around.”

“No, you stay with him, I can go,” Ellie offers. For a moment you want to argue with her, you know what you're looking for, but you see it in her eyes. Just a hint. A hint of uncertainty and fear. “You know how to keep him alive.”

It takes you a second but it clicks, Ellie doesn't want to see Joel like this. “Okay,” you relent. “I saw a map on the way in, I think there's a pharmacy on the second floor.”

“What do you need,” she asks, shifting on her feet.

You rapidly tell her everything within reason - needles, thread, alcohol, gloves, anything and everything that could possibly help the situation within reason to help the fucking dying man laying in front of you. “I'd be grateful if you found a saline bag or a IV or, fuck, even a staple gun but that’s bein’ too damn hopeful. Whatever you find, just bring it back alive. Take your bow.”

She nods as she picks it up along with her backpack and you give her a tight hug. “There and back, Ellie.”

“There and back, promise,” she says, her words slightly muffled by the embrace.

She backs away and opens her mouth to say something but decides against it. Instead mumbling a couple words of encouragement to herself as she leaves. Turning on her heels and lifting the gate separating the shop from the mall with little to no hesitation, Ellie is gone before you know it.

As the metal slams behind her you sigh, listening to the sounds of her locking the gate behind her. Faintly hear her talking to herself. You chew on your bottom lip, thinking of what to do next.

Well, for starters, it would be awfully nice if the man of the hour didn't fucking bleed to death before Ellie comes back, you thought.

Taking off to your left, you scoured behind the bar looking for something, anything, that would help. The shop itself looks picked over so whatever is here isn’t going to be much. Finding nothing but nearly empty drawers until you find a roll of duct tape. Nice.

You walked back to Joel and dropped to your knees, taking off your backpack. Lifting his shirt up to see the poorly done bandages you had applied earlier were thoroughly soaked in sickly copper tinged blood. “Shit,” you whispered.

“Okay, Texas, this shit is gonna hurt like a bitch but you're just gonna have to suck it up and deal with it.”

You took a moment listening to Joel’s uneven breathing, the moans of pain. Hoping to hear some kind of response from him but received nothing from the man. Nodding to yourself, you went to work. “Okay, I can do this,” you mumble to yourself. “Nothin’ you haven’t done before.”

Reaching into your backpack you pulled out some fresh gauze, water, and the bottle of alcohol you were genuinely hoping to drink one day but it is what it is. Next, you grabbed the duct tape and pulled off some strips and lined them up, making a square patch.

Lifting his shirt, you removed the front bandage from his stomach. A slight gag came up from the smell but you suppressed it, allowing yourself to dissociate from the situation and work mindlessly. Grabbing the water bottle, you rinsed your hands then his stomach, repeating the same motion with alcohol, and used one of the extra shirts you had in your backpack to dry him off. Blood still seeped from the wound but you used the gauze to seal the puncture then covering it with the duct tape square.

One side down, now the other.

“Hold tight,” you told him as you pushed him onto his side. His back looked just as bad as his front but you grabbed another spare shirt and shoved it under his head, adjusting him to make him lay on his stomach in an indirect way to put some pressure on the front.

Joel groaned in pain at the movement, you tried to be gentle but he was not being a rather good patient. “I know, I know, I'm sorry,” you whispered.

You got to working on his wound, doing the same as what you did on his stomach. Rinse, disinfect, gauze, patch. Once the duct tape square went on, you sighed heavily looking down at yourself.

Truly a sight of horror. Your hands and clothes were soaked in Joel's blood. Blinking once, then twice, turning your hands over, seeing the glistening and the flakes peeling off from long since dried blood, you rose and reached for more clothes to change into.

Discarding the stained ones save for your coat. It was going to get colder, winter was soon. Shit, winter was already fucking here, you recalled the first hints of it when snow started falling earlier. It would be best to not throw away the only thing that would give you warmth in the coming days.

After you changed, you thought you should also change Joel. His dirtied clothes would only worsen his situation if any germs or bacteria got into his injury. You approached Callus and got Joel's pack, scouring around until you found a suitable shirt, flannel, and coat for him.

“This is going to embarrass me more than you,” you told the unconscious Joel.

If you were being honest with yourself, this was not the way you wanted to undress him but those were thoughts for another day. One where he survives this whole fuckin’ ordeal.

You got to work on him, doing everything humanly possible to be careful. Once the bloodied clothes were off and fresh new ones were on, you were going to take one hell of a break.

Adjusting the coat back onto his body, you laid him down gently as before, resting his head on a makeshift pillow. Now the only thing you could do is wait for Ellie.

She’d been gone for an hour tops, nothing to worry about just yet. Maybe the pharmacy was a bust and she’s looking around for first aid kits, you think. It wouldn’t do you any good to worry just yet.

The two horses start chittering behind you. “Looks like we got a couple of chatty birds over here,” you raise a brow at them.

Callus neighs a bit loudly at you and before you say anything you hear a very loud voice. “Hey! I hear the fuckin’ horse behind here! Help me get this open,” then the locked gate started rattling. Those fucking people must have followed you all through the fucking snow.

“Oh, shit,” you curse and immediately start rummaging through your things to reload your empty guns. Your hands were shaking, making the reloading just that much more difficult. You looked up once you heard another voice.

“Yeah, yeah, we’ll get the door. You guys keep searchin’, I don’t wanna get ambushed.”

No shit, I don’t either, you think.

You try to make haste and get your shit together. After you top off with whatever remaining bullets you have available, you corral the horses against the wall and drag Joel behind the bar to shield him from any debris or accidental fire.

Just as you finish you hear a loud bang, someone kicking the door in frustration. “Fuckin’ door!”

You couldn’t help but smile. Good door.

“Get the kid, take the woman, and find the old man. I’ll go for the door,” the same voice shouts.

Then another voice further away, “Shit! There’s someone out here.”

Ellie.

“Wait, shit, I think it’s starting to give,” the first one shouts as the metal door begins to creak and whine.

You decide to do something incredibly stupid but before you could talk yourself out of it, you dive and lay down next to the door. It begins to lift and you hear how the men start to cheer. Just as it gets high enough you take aim and shoot at them, unloading a healthy mix of lead, anger, and frustration into them.

Just as the door slams back down with a loud clang, you hear two soft thuds as their bodies drop.

“Oh fuck this, I’m comin’ Ellie,” you say as you get up and begin lifting the metal door. Just as it slides high enough for you to get under, you slam it shut behind you as you run forward and take cover behind some metal crates that were conveniently positioned just outside the yogurt place. As you do, you see a flash of pink and white to your left as Ellie comes running next to you.

“It’s the same guys from the university,” she says breathlessly. Her freckled face is etched with frustration, matching yours. It’s like none of you could catch a break, catch a breath.

You put a hand on hers, “We got this, sweetheart.”

Her hand squeezes yours and the two of you start fighting back. Fighting for survival, each other, for Joel, fighting for the sake of seeing another sunrise together.

A bullet whizzes overhead and hits the wall, “We got them pinned down over there! Finish them!”

You smile at the men’s clear underestimation of the two of you. Chuckling, “You go left, I’ll go right. Meet here in say ten with dinner?”

“Sounds good to me,” she bumps her fist with yours. With a nod, she’s off. You, the same.

Trying to take it easy, you found yourself trying to be stealthy by using the hunting knife Gustavo had gifted you months ago. It was hard between the harsh winter wind and lowering visibility with the ongoing snowstorm outside that was leaking through the broken roof of the mall. It possibly hurt more than helped.

Two gunshots rang out on the opposite side of the mall than a shout, “Shit! Infected!”

“I’ll take that as a no for dinner,” you mumble to yourself.

You pick up a couple bottles and throw them at the men who were hunting you, screams and clicks followed the noise until you heard more gunshots until silence. Figuring it would save you on ammunition if they just fought and killed each other. You followed this same sequence until there was complete silence, only for it to be broken by Ellie.

“That’s it! If anyone is alive don’t even think about surprising me! You’ll end up like your friends. You hear me? Yeah? Yeah.”

You laugh a little loudly, tears welling up. Just for a moment you let yourself reel in the moment that the two of you fucked up those people on your own. “C’mon kid, let’s save that old bastard of ours,” you shout at her.

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is-it-madness · 3 years

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Metal Fingers

A/N 1: This fic is for my lovely beta/bestie @wowjeena Heyyo, would you be up to writing a soulmate au with Bucky? You can choose which type of soulmate au but can you make the reader a normal person (so not an Avenger or anything related)?? Thanks girl and if you don’t wanna that’s chill 👉🏼👉🏼 So... it’s not exactly a soulmate au, but I hope this is okay instead ☺️💜💜 I’m also so sorry it took so long. I hope you like it, my dear.

A/N 2: The Bucky Barnes Exhibit states he was born in 1916, but at the bottom where it gives his life span, it says he was born in 1917. I googled it to find the correct year, and it said 1917… I don’t know what to do with that information, other than to tell you guys there’s a mistake in the movie.

A/N 3: I apparently couldn’t make this a one shot, so it’ll be a multi part story. I’m aiming between 3-5 parts

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x single mom!reader

Warnings: None

Word Count: 1.5k+

~~~

Part 1

A Fallen Comrade.

James Buchanan ‘Bucky’ Barnes

Born in 1916, Barnes grew up the oldest child of four. An excellent athlete who also excelled in the classroom. Barnes enlisted in the Army shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. After winter training at Camp McCoy, Wisconsin, Barnes and the rest of the 107th shipped out to the Italian front. Captured by Hydra troops later that fall, Barnes endured long periods of isolation, deprivation and torture. But his will was strong. In an ironic twist of fate, his prison camp was liberated by none other than his childhood friend, Steve Rogers, now Captain America.

Reunited, Barnes and Rogers led Captain America’s newly formed unit, The Howling Commandos. Barnes’ marksmanship was invaluable as Rogers and his team destroyed Hydra bases and disrupted Nazi troop movements throughout the European Theater.

He knew these words. He read and reread them dozens— if not hundreds— of times. He wrote them down in every one of his notebooks as he was scrapping, searching for his memories that were just out of his reach. He could nearly taste them. They fluttered teasingly in front of him: close, but not close enough for him to snatch out of the air of uncertainty.

He pulled a fresh notebook from his bag and a pencil, worried away from teeth and words.

Start with what you know…

My name is James Buchanan Barnes. I was taken captive by Hydra and was used by them. I know a man named Steve. He was my friend.

He trailed off. This is where he always was left floating in a sea of not knowing. He was left grasping for more. He was a starved man, empty without his memories. The few he managed to uncover did little to tide him over from insanity. He bit at that familiar indentation on his pencil, trying to think of something, anything at this point that was more than those four simple sentences he’s written everyday for the past several weeks. Sighing and pulling his baseball cap lower in frustration, Bucky returned his supplies to his bag, stood, and swung it over his right shoulder. Eyes low, and clutching his bag, Bucky made his way towards the exit of the crowded museum. Ever since the Potomac, this section of the Smithsonian was more packed than usual.

Nearly there. Nearly there.

It was an understatement to say that Bucky Barnes didn’t like crowded areas. Too many bodies, pressing, and pushing against each other, loud noises, pointless conversations discussing mundane things.

Nearly there. Nearly ther—

“Oof!”

He wouldn’t have noticed the boy that ran into him if his bag hadn’t slipped from his hand, spilling out the contents onto the floor. Bucky hurriedly crouched to retrieve his precious memories. He barely registers the boy picking up the items that had strayed a bit further.

“Here you go Mister! I’m sorry for bumping into you like that.”

Bucky silently takes his belongings back from the little boy standing in front of him.

Bucky unintentionally begins to analyze him.

Probably seven or eight. Bright eyes. Tousled hair. Skinny. Doesn’t clear 100 pounds soaking.

He shakes his head. Stop. No more.

“Whoa, cool! Metal fingers!!”

Bucky quickly retracts his fingerless-gloved hand.

The boy pulls his hand from his sweatshirt pocket. “Yours are cooler, but I have metal fingers too! Well, actually it’s a metal arm because the doctors had to get rid of my real one because I got hurt super bad, but I think it’s really cool.”

The boy said this all extremely fast, Bucky had to blink a few times to register what he had said. A compliment? For his hand? A hand that’s maimed, killed, and caused so many people to suffer?

“Uh… I… I have a metal arm too.”

The little boy’s eyes widened even more. He wasn’t sure what made him do it, but Bucky took off his glove and showed it to the boy.

He took Bucky’s hand in his and stared at it, looking back and forth at Bucky’s hand and his. Bucky stood there stiffly, unsure how to respond. The boy looked up at Bucky solemnly.

“Do you have super powers?” he whispered.

Bucky couldn’t help but crack a smile at his seriousness, but before he could answer, a woman came running through the crowd.

“Noah!”

The boy turned to give her a lopsided grin. “Hi Mom!”

“How many times have I told you to stay by my side, young man?”

The boy, Noah, dropped Bucky’s hand and took a step closer to the woman. “Sorry. But Mom!”

A raised brow silenced Noah. The woman looked up at Bucky.

“I’m so sorry if he was bothering you. He’s very social.”

Bucky forgot how to speak for a minute. The woman standing in front of him was… well, he’d never seen anyone as beautiful as her. Bright, sparkling eyes confirming where Noah got his from, a soft voice, and a sweet smile.

“Oh, uh, no. I mean, he is. I mean‒” When was the last time he had gotten tongue-tied?

Bucky cleared his throat, forced himself to try to ignore the sweet smile that was widening, and tried again. “He wasn’t bothering me. We were just talking about‒”

“His metal arm! Look at it, Mom!” Noah hurries back to Bucky’s side and holds his mechanical hand. “Look how awesome it is! And it’s huge!” He started poking Bucky’s upper arm and gasps. “And so are his muscles!! I bet he could crush anything!”

Noah began miming picking up heavy objects or crushing imaginary things, complete with sound effects. Bucky doesn’t miss Noah’s mother’s eyes widen slightly when Noah pointed out how massive his biceps are.

“Noah, honey, why don’t we go check out the exhibit?”

“Oh yeah! Let’s go, Mom!” He nearly takes off again before giving his mother a sheepish smile.

“What did you do?”

“I… I turned our map into a paper airplane.”

“And?”

“And... it… flew out of my hands?”

“Mm hmm. I see. Well, I guess we’ll just have to come back another time.”

Noah gasps and clutches his mom’s hand. “No! Please Mom! Don’t do this to me!!”

Her laugh causes Bucky’s heart to skip a few beats, and it frustrates him that he doesn’t know why.

“Which exhibit are you looking for?”

Noah looks at Bucky and salutes. “We’re here to see the Mister Captain America exhibit.”

“I could take you guys there.”

What. On earth. Gave him that idea?!

“Woo! Let’s‒”

Noah’s cheer was cut off by his mother. “Oh, no that’s okay. I’m sure you’re busy and you probably have something to get to you.”

She’s right… Why did I even offer in the first place? I can’t‒

“It’s not a problem. I was heading over there right now actually.”

Jesus! What’s wrong with me?

Noah grabbed his mother’s hand and followed Bucky to the famed exhibit.

~~~

“So, I take it Noah’s a fan of the Captain?”

The beautiful lady standing next to him nodded. “Yeah, Noah loves him; really looks up to him.”

“Makes sense, he’s a good guy.”

“Sounds like you’ve met him before.”

“You could say that.”

They were pulled away from their conversation when Noah ran up to them, grinning.

“Mom! Look how skinny Steve was! And, and his friend? Um… Bucky? Yeah! Bucky! He would always help Steve out because Steve would always get in fights! So Bucky would come and have to save him!”

Noah then proceeded to animatedly tell his audience how Steve became the Captain and fought in the War. When he went to go read the display in front of Steve’s motorcycle, Bucky turned back to the woman.

“Is this his first time here?”

She nodded and smiled. “I promised I would take him when I had a day off. He’s been waiting for weeks.”

A pause.

“How ‘bout you?”

“What?” Damn that smile! He got distracted.

“I take it this isn’t your first time here?”

“No, ma’am.”

Her giggle caused his firm expression to slip into a small smile.

Bucky spent the rest of the afternoon showing Noah around. He learned that Noah and his mother had been in a terrible car accident two years before. The injuries Noah sustained to his right arm were irreversible, thus leading to an amputation, a prosthetic arm, and even though she didn’t say, expensive medical bills burdened on his mother.

When the museum closed, Noah was asking his mother when they’d be able to return.

“I’m not sure baby. How about next weekend?”

Noah did a little dance showing his affirmation. Then he looked at Bucky.

“Will you be here too, Mr. James?”

“Uh, yeah sure kid. I’ll be here.”

Noah fist pumped as his mother said goodbye to Bucky.

~~~

Holy shit. Holy shit!

You had been trying to keep your cool ever since you found Noah with James. You were eating dinner and you still hadn’t gotten over him. That man was fucking stunning. Blue, blue eyes that were filled with such sorrow, a smile that made your insides flutter, and a deep voice you were willing to listen to for hours on end. Soft and sonorous. And he was so sweet and kind with Noah. That alone had you taking a liking to him.

“Mom?! Mom!”

“Oh— sorry, baby. What’s wrong?”

“Thanks for taking me to the museum.”

You ruffle his hair. “Thanks for being so patient for me.”

He smiles as he shovels pasta into his mouth.

~~~

My Ride or Die:

@lehuka123 @thejournalman @myraiswack @loki-yoursaviourishere @rebloggingeverything @just-the-hiddles @confetti-its-an-imagine-blog @thehumanistsdiary @fanfictionaries @astheworlddturns @bbarnestan @buckyfan12

#bucky fic #bucky barnes #bucky fluff #Bucky Barnes fic #Bucky x you #Bucky Barnes x you #Bucky Barnes fluff #bucky x single mom #Bucky Barnes x single mom #bucky x y/n #bucky barnes x y/n #Bucky fanfiction #Bucky Barnes fanfiction #Metal Fingers #thea writes #Metal Fingers part 1

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zaikaglow · 3 years

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Umbrageous Part 4

Pairing: Hange x Reader, Eren x Reader, Erwin x Reader (soon to be Levi x Reader)

Summary: Erwin is out and leaves you under Eren’s watchful eye to keep you out of trouble but when he gets called into the office on a Saturday what is a girl to do to entertain herself while plotting her next move of her office conquest

Content Warnings: Step dad! Erwin, alcoholism mention, size kink, cheating, pseudoincest

This chapter is the longest yet but I decided not to break it up for cohesiveness (if its to hard to read I may break it up if I get that request)

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

You were laying in bed wrapped under the covers when you felt a hand touch your foot, Erwin you assume. A smile spreads across your face even while it's buried into the pillow, you feel happy knowing Erwin couldn't resist you so badly he was sneaking into your room while your mother slept off her hangover upstairs. But it's still only 7am and you're tired so you just tug open the covers as an invitation to slide in next to you. Instead of feeling a warm Erwin sliding in next to you to wrap you up in his big arms you're jolted as someone jumps into the bed and a nose starts to nuzzle behind your ear and under your jaw. “Eren”??? You exclaim as you sit up in bed looking bewildered that somehow this boy had gotten into your room. He’s laying down, head propped up on one hand, his elbow digging into the pillow next to yours. “Your dad told me to come and wake you” he says smiling ear to ear “uhh what are you doing here? On a saturday?” you reply still confused as to why he’s here. His eyebrows raised a little, seeming almost a little hurt that you seemed more confused than excited, the poor boy was so down bad for you at times you almost felt a little bad that he was a pawn in your deprived incestous game. “Mr.Smith told me he had an event to go to today and that I should come hand out to keep you company today, he’s making breakfast downstairs”. You place a hand onto his cheek rubbing your thumb in circles in an attempt to placate the saddened look on his face. It works and his smile returns and he takes your hand in his “let's go downstairs”.

Erwin is at the stove wearing a white tee shirt and his old plaid pajama bottoms, so simple and yet he looks oh so handsome especially when he turns around and smiles “Thanks for getting y/n out of bed Eren”. You both take a seat at the table Erwin places plates of pancakes in front of you and Eren and the dark haired boy slides his hand onto your thigh. “So are you and mom going out tonight or something” you say, still confused as to why Erwin would have invited the “Jaeger boy” into your house and then sending him into your bedroom. Erwin now sits down with the two of you at the table “Yes we have an engagement for her work this evening but we’ll be leaving soon. I figured your friend Eren here could keep you company while we're gone. Keep you out of trouble” He says with a wink. “I'll do my best Mr.Smith” Eren says mouth full, he’s lucky he’s hot otherwise that would have been utterly repulsive.

A few hours later and your mom and Erwin had left, they were probably going to be staying the night at some Inn since the event was so far away but Erwin had made sure to tell Eren that while he was to keep you company today he shouldn't be staying the night and that he’d be checking in. You and Eren were sitting on your bed, you laying down feet propped up against the headboard scrolling through your phone ignoring a text from Jean asking how you were doing over break and asking if you wanted to hang out once the break ended and that he missed you.. Like he missed his other friends of course (him trying to cover up his feelings only making them more obvious. Eren is sitting at the foot of the bed rattling off things that you could be doing. He wanted to prove to you that he could show you a good time, hopeful that after you both went back to school that you’d still want to see him. You two had been at the same campus this past year and you had never even known he existed; he worried about how easy it would be to forget him after the winter break ended. “Well we could go sledding? I have some old ones back at my place and there's this hill right in town I think that will be fun? Would you think that would be fun?” Eren was rambling when suddenly his phone went off and his eyes went wide “Mr.Ackermen? No it's okay, yeah I can help. Uh actually I was supposed to watch Mr.Smith's daughter today can I bring her? Oh really? Okay I guess that works out” he hangs up the phone. The words coming out of his mouth are so fast they almost blur together “Uhh y/n Im really sorry but Mr.Ackerman’s client had a problem come up and I know it's saturday but I have to come in a help but also the client is there and they're pretty cool i've met them so do you want to come with me? You could hang out with Hange or something. I'm sorry” he looks so nervous that you're about to get mad or upset but his face relaxes as you turn your head and just say “sure” right as you send a text saying the exact same thing to Jean.

It feels strange being back at the office on a saturday the normal bustle of people gone but also you were excited this felt like a way to get your foot in the door or zipper? Of Mr.Ackermans pants. You still knew that this would be the best way to get under Erwin’s skin and force his hand, but you hoped you could do it without Eren finding out it would break the poor boy's heart and he was a pretty good lay in the meantime besides you’ve never even seen Mr.Ackerman for all you knew he was an ugly old guy. You werent even sure if he’d be someone you could tolerate fucking for pure revenge yet.

But that fear was quelled when you saw him, surprised a little by his height he was tiny and you’d have to look down to meet his eye but he was beautiful. His undercut raven hair makes his stealy eyes look exceptionally blue. He was so perfect and little it was almost like he was a doll. And you were surprised at yourself, you mean you had laughed at the jokes about short guys before using the word “manlet” but you couldn't help but notice the tingling in between your thighs thinking about how hot it would be to be towering over him tilting up his perfect little chin to look you in the eyes as you pinned him down with your thighs.

“Eren, when you said you had to watch someone I figured it be a child” Mr.Ackerman said raising an eyebrow

“Yeah well my dad seems to think I’m one” you replied, voice dripping with sarcasm. The corners of Mr.Ackerman’s lips lifted and he let out a small chuckle “I’m Levi, you dad's business partner” he says extending his hand. You give it a slight squeeze to his hand shake admiring how delicate his hands were. “Im y/n it’s nice to finally meet you”. Eren steps out from behind you “So does this mean I can call you Levi now?” Eren chimes in “No” Levi replys rather flatly. It looks like he’s about to say something else when suddenly you see someone emerge from Levi’s office “Leeeeviiii is that your little friend whos here to help? Oh Eren it's nice to see you again!” you're a little surprised how this stranger is also very attractive, you were so used to messing with boys that you were a little caught off guard by just how attractive this feminine presenting person was. What the fuck was in the water in this town. Instead of walking around the couch that was placed by the office door they clamored over it, Levi wincing as their feet touched the cushions. “Hi, I’m y/n” you say extending your hand the stranger grabs it with both of their hands “I'm Hange Zoe, it's nice to meet you” they say with the most endearing smile. “Hange I told you to keep your goddamn feet off my couch!” Levi exclaims, still holding onto your hands Hange replies ``oh relax, you're so uptight I know you’d make everyone take their shoes off in here if you could”.

“Absolutely I would. Eren we have work to do, Hange try not to bore y/n to death” Levi says before closing the office door behind him. Hange pulls you back onto the cough they had previously just climbed over and asked you how you felt about science. “I like it, I'm actually majoring in biology right now” you say Hange’s eyes light up. They tell you about how they owned a small biotech company that was undergoing a merger and that was what brought them to Levi and Erwin’s business. They went on for a few hours about the intricacies of what they did when suddenly they stopped noticing you staring “Im sorry am I boring you? I’m told I have a habit of droning on” they say apologetic looks in their eyes. “No you're not boring me, I just noticed how beautiful your eyes are”. That's when they invited you back to their hotel, you had both been there so long, Eren and Levi were still working and it would be a while so why not? They popped in to tell the men they’d be giving you a ride home and that when you found yourself sitting on a queen sized bed drink in hand when Hange tucked a strand of hair behind your ear.

“I’ve never done this before, had sex with someone who’s not a man” you say shly Hange is kissing up your neck when they make it to your ear they whisper “youre a scientist” they nip at your earlobe “consider it a sort of experiment” they kiss you tasting sweet tang of their drink on your mouth. You bite your bottom lip sliding your hand up their thighs “will you teach me?” Hange bends down to kiss your ribs over your shirt their hands starting to move towards the button of your jeans when you place your hands over their harms running them up till you meet their jaw and pull their face back up to meet yours “you first” you mutter before dropping to your knees your head now between theirs. Your fingers make quick work of Hange’s button down and when you get to their chest you notice they weren't wearing a bra under their shirt. You kiss by their navel dragging your tongue up till you reach their nipple swirling your tongue around it before latching your lips to it. With how soft they felt in your hand and the way they moaned, threw their head back and gripped at the bed sheet you could feel your own panties getting soaked. You start to move your head back down kissing along their stomach until you get to their waistband you look up at Hange while your delicate fingers start to unbutton their slacks ``you're going to tell me what to do right?” their hand brushes your hair back, their fingers massaging through your scalp “of course my dear”.

Hange’s hands are pressed to both sides of your face “hhmm thats it, keep circling just like that” you have 2 fingers inside their tight cunt moving in and out making sure to use your knuckles to hit that sweet spot at the top just like Erwin does for you. You keep your pointed tongue moving in quick circles around their clit pausing every few strokes to wrap your lips around it and suck, until finally the fist your hair in their hands as you feel them start to clench around your fingers “good girl, now your turn”. They take your arms pulling you up as they lay down bringing your core right above their mouth kissing your slit over your panties hand running down your thigh, trailing their finger down the crease of your thigh and and core until they reach around the fabric pulling it to the side before dipping their tongue inside you. Your thighs squeeze around Hange’s face as they drag their tongue out of you and up around your clit. Fingers starting to run up your body making their way to your bra. Instead of unclasping it they pull down the cups letting your breasts spill out, fingers tweaking your nipples. It's all too much as you reach back to undo the rest of the bra you feel yourself getting closer as their tongue is back and forward from your dripping slit to your clit and you throw your head back in ecstasy as you ride out your orgasm on their thick tongue.

Laying back in bed Hange has their hands folded behind their head while your sitting cross legged blankets are pulled up to your wrist but your chest is still bare “hey Hange this may not be the best time for this.. But uh is that Levi guy single?” you say playing with fabric between your two fingers too embarrassed to look at the person who just fucked you into oblivion about another. A smile breaks across Hange’s face as they sit up and prop their head up under their fist “Levi?? You're interested really?” you look over at them trying to contain the nervous smile you feel tugging at your lips “yeah I think I am”. They laugh “That little hardass he seems tough but I know he’s lonely he’d appreciate attention from someone as delectable as you”, they tilt their head to the side “I'll introduce you to him again, I know how to warm him up”

Tag List: @thestrugglesofateenagedirtbag

#hange x reader #hange zoë #eren x reader #erwin x reader #aot x reader #aot fanfiction #aot smut

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angelicmichael · 3 years

Text

Pretty Please

Jim Mason x reader

Summary: Jim and Reader decide to throw a christmas party but get distracted while trying to do so. Christmas fic!!

Words: 2.5k+

Warnings: Hella sexual tension, no smut but almost smut?? Very sexually suggestive hehe, fluff with no plot basically, SO much fluff its gross

A/N: based off this prompt I found in a christmas prompt list 'Making out under the christmas tree because the lights reflecting in their eyes just looked too ethereal for them not to kiss them until they lost their breath' sorry I cant find the specific prompt list this came from. Jim and Reader are both 18+, and this is kinda canon rewrite?? Basically as if the ending in ttopv didnt happen and Jim actually lived.. and got a gf haha. ALSO loosely based on the song 'pretty please' by Dua Lipa. Enjoy 💖 read the tags for more thots

You felt as if the wind had been knocked out of you once you entered the apartment.

The minimalistic decorations that once adorned the small apartment you and Jim owned were now paired and even doubled with new, shiny, Christmas decor. The last thing you were expecting to come home too was christmas decorations, to be completely honest. You knew the decorations were new because prior moving in together- you two had nothing.. christmas decoration wise anyway.

Saying that Jims childhood and even high school years were rough was definetly a understatement; you were thankful you didnt have to see him in that state and that you met him after that time.

You only met his parents once; well his mom anyway and almost immeadietly you knew why it took him so long for him to introduce you to her.

She was a fucking nightmare.

She told you immeadietly about Jim's dark past, probably in a lazy attempt to scare you off. She told you about Jim's father, the drugs, and even the drug overdose that nearly killed him. That didn't scare you off - but what it did do was break the final fucking straw for Jim who happened to overhear everything she said.

He hadn't talked to his mom since.

Medina frequently came over, she was practically your best friend and stayed incredibly close with Jim. In fact, you were supposed to see her in roughly a hour... along with a handful of other Jim and yours close friends.

With Christmas being so soon you and Jim decided to have a spontaneous christmas party. The idea was to decorate together but.. apparently Jim had other plans.

There was a wreath on the front door for one, and multi colored lights and Garland that were kept nearly on every surface of the house. Smaller christmas related knickknacks were placed too on the dining and coffee tables. It looked beautiful. You couldnt believe Jim would do this all for you, you meant to help but work unfortunately ran short so you had to cover a coworkers shift.

The entire living room was kept pretty dark and dim, only candles and the soft lighting from the christmas tree lights allowed you to see at all- but it was still enough. It was romantic if anything.

Jim didnt say anything as he came out to the living room to greet you. He stayed silent, watching you and your reaction as you spun around - trying to admire the apartment from every angle possible.

As you continued to keep walking in the apartment and admiring Jim's work, you couldn't help but dumbly giggle.

"Jim; dont get me wrong, I love the apartment but why didnt you just wait for me"? You marveled.

He smiled shyly, a light blush coating his cheeks.

"I wanted to spend as much time with you that I could when you got back before people started to show up for the party". He admitted, sounding slightly bashful and shy as he spoke.

He approached you, and you couldnt help but to feel butterflies at the closer he got. You dont know why you were suddenly starting to feel nervous at doing a act so simple; like kissing your boyfriend. Perhaps it was because normally when you two kissed or showed affection it was done so quickly and without second thought; it wasnt 'special'. You weren't blaming Jim for that either, you knew that was typical in long term relationships. However - tonight he was actually taking the time to be with you. It was beyond romantic.

He looked delicious. His hair wasnt messy but it wasnt kept up enough to look like he brushed it recently, yet it still managed to look so soft. You were yearning to run your fingers through it.

Once you were within arms reach, he quickly enveloped you in a hug. Forcing you to inhale his scent while you quickly buried your nose in his jacket, trying to take him all in.

He smelt like a hint of weed, but mostly like the ocean. You suspected he must've went surfing a while ago.

Even though the apartment was decorated for christmas and it was currently Winter; the air was still warm, maybe even a little muggy. The sun had finally decided to set, just sinking below the far off treeline - making the sky in a state of in between. Not dark but not quite light out either.

In the part of California you and Jim lived in, it only dropped about 10 degrees in the winter. You wore a warm cardigan since you came just home from outside; along with a pair of jeans and cozy boots that seemed to be your go to outfit in the winter.

Jim on the other hand wore a tight fitted dark navy shirt under his typical Jean jacket which you gently clutched onto.

"I missed you. I hate when you have to work during the holidays". You heard him softly grumble, which made you giggle.

You slowly moved, you backed your head up just enough so that your faces were now right next to each other. You bumped noses - you considered kissing him for a split second but you chose not too. Instead ghosting your lips over his; and gently resting your forehead together.

"Why? It's not like today is a holiday or anything". You asked, a playful tone apparent in your voice.

Your breath hitched in your throat as you felt Jim's lips inch closer, you could nearly taste his breath. Minty mostly, and warm on your lips.

You suddenly were itching to kiss him, unconsciously moving forward to ease the growing tension between the two of you. You jumped a bit when you felt a hand start to rub your back, quickly relaxing when you realized it was just Jim being handsy. You heard Jim's voice, even though you were incredibly close to him, it was so soft you could still barely hear it. A quiet, sultry whisper.

"It doesnt matter if it's a holiday or not". Jim started, he backed up a bit.

Just enough to make eye contact with you, now gently cradeling your face in his hands.

"This is the first Christmas season I've had where I'm not in between my parents trying to break up a fight. I'm so thankful I get to spend it with you, I just wish I had met you sooner". Jim said, with a shy blush starting to dust his tan cheeks again.

By the time he finished talking you were beaming. Pure happiness and joy was coursing through your veins as you stepped forward and fully enveloped yourself in him, your hands grasped his shoulders to steady yourself while your lips feverishly and slowly met his.

Jim's hands quickly adjusted, moving from your face down to your waist. His fingers gripped your skin tightly; the slight pain made you moan. It didnt really hurt persay but you knew your skin would be purple and sore tommorow. However, in this moment you didnt really care about how your skin would look - you just wanted him.

Jim kissed you menacingly slow; his lips working against yours so slowly in a deliberate attempt to make you frustrated and it was working. Your fingers flexed into his shoulders as you let out a throaty moan. You broke the kiss and let out a hiss,

"Stop fucking teasing". You spoke, titling your head slightly and arching your neck out - trying to hint to Jim that you wanted him to start kissing down your neck.

However; that's not what he fucking did.

Instead of feeling Jim's soft warm lips on your neck, you felt his wet tongue lick a fast stripe down your neck - most likely tracing a vein. You yelped and jumped, only realizing after how stupid you probably looked for getting startled. Jim was laughing too, fucker.

"What the fuck, Jim"?! You asked, laughter mixing in with your voice.

Jim giggled before quickly leaning in and stealing another slow kiss from you before mumbling against your lips;

"As much as I would love to sit here and make out with you all day.. we have business to attend too".

He pulled back suddenly, his lips up turning in a smile as if he knew what exactly he was doing.

"Business"? You mused.

"Yes. We have company coming over in 30 minutes, love" Jim reminded you.

You rolled your eyes, completely unamused.

"Do they have to come"? You whined.

"Yes. They do. Now c'mon make yourself useful". Jim said.

He turned around, grabbing a box that sat idly in the living room which you didnt notice previously. Opening it, he pulled out a ornament. You dumbly smiled, knowing exactly what this meant. He approached you, ornament in hand with a corny smile on his face.

"I decorated everything but the tree. I wanted to save something for us to decorate together". Jim stated.

"Your such a sap". You said fully laughing.

You grabbed one of the ornaments out of the box and walking up to the tree. You felt dumb for not noticing how bare the tree was before. No ornaments, no lights, no tinsel.. nothing. Well, nothing execpt for the one shiny ornament that you had just hung on one of the branches right center in the tree.

The one ornament on the tree quickly doubled, and then tripled until the tree was fully adorned with ornaments. You and Jim (mostly Jim) hung a string of lights around the tree. Making the already ambience scene in your living room even more cozy and romantic.

"This was a good idea, babe". You said, quickly kissing him.

You quickly checked the time, there was still 20 minutes before anyone was supposed to show up.. An idea popped up in your mind.

A wonderful, awful idea.

You were already standing comfortably close to Jim; you turned casually around and place your hand square on his chest.

"Its too bad we finished decorating so early, hmm"? You purred.

You didnt dare take a step forward; you knew Jim would make the next move and sure enough he did. He took steps closer to you.

You cheeks were slightly rosy, with the slight embarrassment you felt from suddenly taking the reigns and being in control. Needless to say this wasnt something you were really used too.

"We still have the tinsel to put up, you know". Jim chuckled lightly.

You looked down for a split second and looked back up into his circealean blue eyes, batting your eyes at him.

"Or.. you know, theres something else I can think of we can do that's less boring". You said.

You let your hand slip and travel from his chest up to his shoulder, feeling the muscle that lie underneath your hands as you took your other free hand up to his other shoulder. Your heart skipped a beat when you heard Jim groan.

It's not like you two have never been intimate before; that was far from the issue. Even though you knew Jim for fucking ever and you two have had sex countless of times - he still managed to give you butterflies.

That's how you knew he was the one for you. Even after all this time he still seemed to make you nervous and blush.

"Is that what you think"? You heard Jim say. His voice lowered in a husky manner.

You felt his arms quickly grab you as he gently pushed you onto the ground. He pinned you on your back; his hands on your shoulders as he softly panted above you. His face hovered right above yours - and his legs on your thighs. Not that you were complaining but you certainly couldnt leave or escape even if you desired too.

You merely giggled beneath him at this realization, not really wanting to switch from this position at all.

It sounded incredibly corny but you honestly wouldnt be surprised if you had took a brief visit to heaven. You felt pure, unfiltered ecstasy as you looked into Jims eyes.

The aroma from the pine tree that was directly above you and Jim filled your senses; the smell along with the candles set the atmosphere perfectly. Ornaments hung directly above you two, the rainbow lights from the tree reflecting in Jim's light blue eyes.

Because of the nature of how light Jim's eyes were, typically seeing reflections of other objects or anything really in them was close to impossible... but, maybe it was the already dark lighting in the room or a bit of christmas magic that made seeing the lights in Jim's eyes possible.

It made the already beautiful man look nothing but ethereal. You were left speechless as you could do nothing but stare, and get lost in his eyes.

You couldnt help but feel how lucky you were to even be in this situation, how lucky you were to be loved by him.

You could do nothing execpt for smile cheesily and blush at your new realization. Instead of craning your neck awkwardly to reach his lips, you chose to be smart and innovative instead, by taking one of your hands and pushing his head into yours - gently of course.

His lips met yours and you nearly moaned from the anticipation. You kissed him slowly, relishing in the feeling of being on the floor with non other than Jim Mason. You knew for a fact you would never do this with anyone else, nor did you even want to spend the time thinking about doing so.

His lips were warm and soft - not chapped in the slightest. They danced perfectly with yours; making separating for air almost a painful and undesired act.

When you separated, Jim still didnt let up off of you. He remained on top, breathless. His lips were swollen and pink, and were his cheeks. His eyes still looked beautiful, but even more so now that his pupils were dilated.

You heard him let out a soft, shallow growl. Bending down swiftly, almost animalistically, to the side of your mouth to give you a quick kiss. His lips ghosted and drifted down over your jaw; until you felt them meet your neck in gentle soft kisses.

Your mouth fell open, your fingers gripping the soft tree skirt below you that was riddled with tree nettles.

"Jim, wait". You spoke, barely even able to get the words out of your mouth without moaning.

You saw his head immeadietly snap up, those gorgeous blue eyes meeting yours again.

"Arent we having company over in like.. 10 minuets"? You asked, laughing.

You noticed Jim let out a brief chuckle as well before replying.

"Ugh, your right but if only I could bring myself to get off of you, baby". He spoke, gently attacking your neck in slightly more aggressive kisses than what you were typically used too. Although, you certainly weren't complaining.

You felt Jim slightly push his hips into yours, you automatically opened your legs - wrapping them around his waist and lower half. He gently started to grind into you; and there was no point in even trying to bite down or mask your moans at this point. All you felt was pure, unfiltered love for the man who was on top of you.

"I love you, Jim".

Taglist: @mina672 @michaellangdonstanaccount @langdonsexual @jimmason @blakewaterxx @dark-mei-rose @9layerdevilfoodcake @prophecy-is-inevitable @matildaofoz @beautyiswithinchaos @frenchlangdon

#i hope yall like this #im about to post to ao3 #also let me know if you wanna be on the taglist #but this fic is rlly unlike the rest of my fics and i hope u still like it hehe #its not rlly plot heavy and i feel like the grammer is kinda rough but.. i just wanted to post something happy and full of fluff haha #ALSO theres a very very slim reference to The Grinch in this.. try to find it haha #also i was very high when i wrote like 2/3rds of this?! so guess which paragraphs dhdhd #i will be back to add a read more line #jim mason x reader #jim x reader #fanfiction #my fics #my work #ttopv #jim mason

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backtothestart02 · 3 years

Text

Teacher’s Pet - 1/? | westallen fanfiction

A/N: Written for Mi on twitter. <3 Is there any new fic I won’t start and never update? *nervous laughter* Hopefully this will be updated soon. Hope you all enjoy. It’s the forbidden college teacher-student romance au you never knew you needed. Iris is much older than Barry and the rest of the chars (minus Scott). Just an fyi.

...

Synopsis: AU - Fresh off a break-up, the last person Barry expects to fall for is his new English teacher.

...

Chapter 1 -

The university building loomed just ahead on the far side of the courtyard. It was menacing in its stature, for what it represented. A return to academics, sure, but that was something Barry had always enjoyed. No, this building was menacing because it thrust into his face the reality that he almost hadn’t passed any of his classes the previous semester. He had a long way to go to get back to the top of his class and to a place where his parents would be proud of him again. That was important to him.

He stepped out of his car and shut the door behind him, gulping as he looked up at the flag whipping in the wind in plain view of the building. It was cold outside. There was still snow on the ground. His boots crunched as he walked on the ground and around the car to pop open the trunk and grab the two duffel bags he’d taken home with him on winter break.

His phone started to buzz when he was halfway to the building. Reluctantly, he dropped his bags in the snow and answered it.

“Hey, Cisco.”

“Barry! Finally, you answered!”

Barry frowned.

“I just got back to school. You know I don’t pick up the phone when I’m driving.”

He could practically feel Cisco rolling his eyes on the other end.

“Yeah, yeah, I know. Where are you at?”

Barry looked around.

“Right in front of our building,” he said. “Think you can come down and open the door for me? My hands are kinda full.”

“Oh, uh, yeah, sure thing.”

“Unless you’re too busy?”

“Mid-game actually.” Barry could hear video game noises in the background. They abruptly stopped. “But for you, I pause. I’ll be right there.”

“Great. Tha-”

But Cisco hung up before he could finish.

Barry shoved the phone back in his coat pocket and picked up his bags again. Then he trudged over to the building, stuffing the dread he’d felt on seeing the place again as far down as he could muster.

“There he is! Man of the hour!” Cisco declared, opening the door just as he arrived.

“Thanks, man.”

“It’s the least I could do. Personally, I was starting to wonder if you’d ever get here.”

Barry snorted.

“I don’t exactly live close by.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. Here let me-”

But Barry held both bags out of reach.

“They’re heavy, Cisco. I put as much as I could into them before I left.”

“I remember. I was surprised the zipper didn’t break.”

“Ha, ha, very funny,” he drawled, shifting one bag over his shoulder. “Just lead the way.”

“Suit yourself. You may change your mind though.”

“What would make me do that?”

“The fact that the elevator is under construction for another month.”

Barry abruptly dropped one of the bags just shy of his foot.

“What, for real? I thought they were going to finish that over break.”

Cisco shrugged. “Guess not.”

Barry blew out a puff of air and reluctantly handed a bag over to his roommate.

“Shit, what do you got in here, bricks? Cement blocks? Oh, I know, pure gold.”

“Told you it was heavy.”

Barry moved past him towards the stairs.

“We still on the third floor?”

“Last time I checked.”

Barry nodded and took the stairs two at a time.

“Hey, Mr. Long Legs,” Cisco called out when he was only halfway up the stairs and Barry was turned the corner to the next staircase. “Slow up a bit, would ya?”

“Sorry.” Barry stopped. “But if I stop for too long, I’ll lose my energy and before you know it, I’ll be unpacking in the middle of the stairs.”

Heaving by the time he reached them, Cisco could only gesture for him to continue. Barry had to smile a bit to himself, but by the time they reached it to the final platform, he was due for some extra oxygen too.

“We should start working out.”

“On campus?” Cisco asked. “You know who’s always hogging the fitness center.”

Barry didn’t need a reminder.

“Wally West, yeah, I know.”

“He doesn’t exactly like you.”

“He stole my girlfriend.”

“To be fair, he’s been working out longer than you.”

“I don’t work out.”

“Case in point.”

“We could start walking.”

“In this weather?” Cisco visibly shivered. “Nah, I don’t think so.”

“So, what, we just stay skinny and pale for the rest of our lives?”

“I’ll just stay skinny, thank you very much. And after what you went through last semester, maybe the last thing you should be focused on is buffing up for the ladies.”

Barry rolled his eyes. He didn’t need the reminder. He hadn’t been in love with Linda, so her breaking up with him for cocky jock Wally West bruised his ego more than his heart, but it still hurt. He liked her, and he thought after a year of dating, they had something real. Guess he was wrong.

Spending the tail end of the semester trying to win her back instead of focusing on his finals was probably the reason he’d nearly flunked out of every class he’d been taking. He wouldn’t be doing that again.

Abruptly, he realized Cisco was still talking.

“You know the real reason Wally bothers you so much isn’t just because of Linda.”

“No? What is it then, oh, wise one?”

Cisco turned the key in the door to their room and stepped inside, dropping Barry’s bag on the floor for him to pick up and carry across the room.

“It’s because he skates by in his classes too. He rarely shows up, rarely puts in an effort, and yet, because his sister teaches, she has an in with his records and sweet talks the other teachers to let him slide by.”

Barry straightened after shrugging out of his coat and kicking his boots off.

“I didn’t know that.”

“Surprise!” Cisco said animatedly.

Barry was not amused.

“I have her as my English teacher this semester.”

Cisco winced. “Yikes.”

Barry scowled.

“I hear she’s pretty though. Like, drop-dead gorgeous.”

“I’m not gonna date my teacher.”

“Who said anything about dating her? She’s just something nice to look at. Maybe she’ll be sweet on you.”

“Oh, yeah, the woman who’s cheating the system so her brother graduates will give me – the ex to her brother’s girl whose gpa has seriously tanked over the last months – a fair chance.”

Cisco shrugged.

“It’s only one class?”

Barry sighed.

“Yeah, I guess.” He shook his head. “I need a distraction from all this.”

Cisco snapped his fingers.

“Video games!”

Barry considered it.

“Yeah, I guess that might do it.”

“It will do it.” He picked up a controller and handed it to him. “Here. I’ll even delete all my progress so we can both play.”

Barry snorted.

“Thanks, man. You’re one in a million.”

“Better than Linda and Wally combined.”

“And Ms. West.”

“Professor West she likes to be called.”

Of course she does.

Barry rolled his eyes and reached over to Cisco’s controller to start the game and shut him up.

“Hey, what did y-”

“Play!”

Cisco shook his head and started to play, eventually forgetting his minor irritation and focusing wholeheartedly on the game and having his best friend back in his space again.

It would be a good semester. Despite all odds, Barry would excel. He had no doubt.

…

Iris draped the fuzzy blanket over her legs and sank into her couch. After a tasty dinner for one and an exhilarating bath, here she was ready to enjoy a few chapters of her current favorite book for the night. Tomorrow classes would start up again, and she would have to be up at the crack of dawn to be in teacher mode. It had been a solid month and a half of relaxation and freedom – minus the small inconvenience of having Wally crash with her and frequently invite his new girlfriend over. But aside from that, it had been nice.

She enjoyed teaching though, always had. Running the school newspaper helped channel her passions for something more. And when she wasn’t worrying about whether or not she would be the only one in her family graduating college, she could enjoy being a flirt to just about every man on staff. The other women envied her. She didn’t care. She didn’t sleep around. It was all in good fun. And it would all resume tomorrow morning, bright and early.

A sudden loud noise interrupted her thoughts. She looked toward the door and found to her great annoyance that it was her brother, whose lips were attached to the new girl she’d met only twice over the last month. Her eyes narrowed when she realized his hands were searching out the hem of her shirt and the zipper of her skirt.

“Uh, Wally?”

No response. Just more moans and groping.

“Hey, Wally!” She snapped – literally.

His eyes opened, and he distanced himself from his girl, though only slightly.

“Iris. Hey. What are y-”

“I live here, remember?”

“Yes, right. I know. I just thought…”

“It’s nine o’clock, and you’re crashing on my couch. Where were you expecting to go?”

He had the gall to have a straight face.

Meanwhile, the girl just inches from him blushed.

“Oh, my God, Wally,” she whispered under her breath. “I thought you said she wouldn’t be home.”

Iris got to her feet.

“You were going to fuck in my bed.”

“Well, I…”

“You were!”

“Maybe I should go…” the mortified girl muttered.

“Yeah, I think you’d better,” Iris barked.

“Hey! Don’t talk to her like that!” Wally ordered.

Iris’ eyes widened.

“Maybe you should leave too.”

“And go where?”

“I don’t know. Home?”

“I came here so I didn’t have to. You know they’d never take me. They can’t stand the sight of me.”

“Yeah, well, right now I can’t really stand the sight of you either.”

He fumed. She fumed right back.

“I’ll just go,” the girl piped up again. “I’m so sorry about this, Iris.” She swallowed hard.

“You’re not going anywhere.”

Both women gave him a deadly glare until finally Wally relented. He softened as he turned to his girlfriend.

“I mean, do you really want to go?”

“I…”

Iris was in disbelief. This was her apartment!

“I’m calling mom.”

He spun around to face his sister instead.

“You wouldn’t.”

“Leave.” She pointed toward the door. “Come back when you have your priorities straightened out.”

He scoffed but wrapped his arm around his girl and guided her to the door.

“Come on, Linda. We can go to your place.”

“I have a roommate,” she panicked.

“Guess you won’t be fucking then,” Iris said dryly.

Wally glared but left the apartment. Iris locked the door immediately. He had a key, so it wasn’t going to keep him out, but it would give her some peace of mind until she went to bed.

Heaving a sigh, she collapsed back on the couch and closed her eyes for a few minutes before grabbing her book and relaxing into it again.

It took a while, and she was just about into the zone of where the characters were headed when there was a knock on the door.

She sighed, aggravated, and deliberately set the book down on the coffee table. Then she got to her feet and headed toward the door.

“So help me, Wallace, if that is actually you… If you lost your key… If you’re coming back this soon, there better be an apology,” she muttered heatedly.

She was so focused on the possibility that it was her brother that she flung the door open without looking through the peephole and was fuming when she came face to face with a familiar yet completely unexpected face.

“Scott?”

“Did I…come at a bad time?”

She blinked, suddenly aware of just a teddy beneath her fluffy robe. She looked him over and debated her options. He looked dashing, as always, and the easy charm was there in his half-amused smile pulling at his lips. There’d been an easy flirtation between the two of them since they’d met five years ago, but they’d never acted on it. Now here he was the night before the spring semester started with red roses in one hand and an uncurling fist that was probably sweaty as the other.

Suddenly, she needed nothing more than to act out one of the steamy love scenes in her book. Damn it all to hell what the next day brought.

She grabbed him by the collar of his jacket and pulled him into her apartment, kissing him soundly on the lips. He made no attempt to push away, and in fact moved to undress her through the far less layers as she was undressing him.

The door was shut, and the flowers dropped in the flurry of it all, and before either of them realized the gravity of what had happened, they were in Iris’ bedroom fucking, and Iris was kind of smug about it because it should serve Wally right for trying to do it first.

That didn’t mean she’d let him spend the night however. If Wally saw him gossip would spread, no doubt to get back at her, and she didn’t need either of their teaching reputations ruined like that.

So, about ten minutes after they’d crested, and Scott was laying in bed beside her with a gigantic grin on his face, Iris propped herself up and made a gesture towards the door.

“Okay, time for you to go.”

His jaw dropped.

“Are you serious?”

“Dead serious.”

“Did I do something wrong?”

“No, honey.” She stroked his chest. “You were fantastic.”

“Then?”

“We’re not together. I was just feeling stressed out, and you alleviated my stress. Thank you.” She smiled serenely.

He blinked.

“Seriously, go. If Wally sees you here, gossip will spread before either of us gets a word in our classes tomorrow. That’s hardly the best way to start the semester.”

He blinked again, still trying to process. She didn’t like that.

“Go!” She pulled on her robe and yanked him out of her bedroom.

He seemed to figure out what was going on by that point and caught his clothes as she threw them at him.

“I…uh…”

“I’ll see you tomorrow in the hall.”

“You will?” he asked hopefully.

“In the hall,” she repeated.

He frowned, and she sighed, moving swiftly past him to open the door and usher him out.

“Did you like the flowers at least?” he asked pathetically.

“They’re lovely,” she assured. “Goodnight, Scott.”

Then she closed the door in his face and locked it, promptly turning and throwing out the flowers without even a single sniff. Wally couldn’t see she had flowers. He was annoyingly observant and picked up on shit like that.

She returned to her bedroom, changed the sheets, and took a quick shower to rinse off the sweat. Then she settled in to sleep with a smile on her face. Amazing what a one-night stand could do for a girl’s mood.

This semester was going to be great.

#westallen #westallen fanfiction #backtothestart02 fanfiction #teacher's pet #chapter 1

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shackermanwrites · 3 years

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Summary: When everything’s falling apart in your life, and you don’t know what to do anymore, maybe asking the universe for something isn’t a bad idea after all. In which Sol Reader finds herself in another reality after begging the universe for something. Everything is going well not until she was put into Levi’s squad.

A/N: Hi guys! we're finally done with their introduction! the next chapter will contain time skip and we will get to see more Reader and Levi's interaction and developments! Comments, likes, and reblogs are appreciated thank you for reading and i am open for suggestion and recommendations! <33

Chapter 6 -> Chapter 7

Lifetime Masterlist

The pitter pater sound of the rain hitting the roof woke you up in the middle of the night. You could have gotten back to sleep since the cold wind, along with the sound of the rain brings comfort to your body but your mind chooses to be stubborn and doesn’t let you go back to sleep by occupying your head with thoughts.

Rain somehow brings comfort to your body and to your soul, you cant put it into words but rain feels like home to you, if that even makes sense.

You slowly got up from the bed and grabbed your green jacket that was provided by survey corps after graduation. You are glad that its material is thick enough for cold weather and long enough to reach below your knee. It is suitable for winter and cold weather.

You carefully wear it and not bothering to put the belt around the waist since you can just hold it in place when you fold your arms on your chest.

Just what you’ve expected, there’s no one outside the headquarters, and only torches around the halls are the source of light.

The soreness of your feet was finally gone after you took a hot bath and after letting it rest for hours. You were glad that the pain already faded since you don’t want to miss training, and you don’t want to burden Eren since he is the only person who has the time to check up on you, considering that Mikasa, Jean, and Armin are busy just like you are.

Your feet decided to stop at the halls near the bench you always sit in, but since it’s raining, you cannot sit on it. You let out an exhale of disappointment while looking at it.

You were about to head back to your room when your eyes glanced at a faint light inside Levi’s room.

‘Why is he even up at this point?’ you thought to yourself, but then you remembered the pile of papers he was reviewing the whole day. But the idea of him leaving the candle lamp on his desk crossed your mind. With the amount of paper he has in his office, it is no doubt that it can burn the whole building in a blink of an eye.

You walked over to his door and gently knocked with your knuckles allowing only him to hear it. You heard a delicate sound of footsteps coming towards the doorway.

You were greeted by a scent of black tea and fresh lemon-scented soap when he opened the door, but that was nothing compared to a tired-looking Levi right in front of you, dark circles under his eyes, messy locks, and pale complexion.

“What are you doing here?” He casually asked as he looks at you.

“I was just checking, I thought you left your candle lit so I just-“ Shiver ran down your spine as soon as a wave of cold wind run through your body, making you hug yourself even more.

“I'm not an idiot to do that.” He replied while narrowing his eyes at you.

“Right, sorry well I-“ You glanced at his desk and you just know that he is still working on those papers and you feel bad for the man standing in front of you.

The dark circles under his eyes and pale complexion are the result of him staying up all night, but you couldn’t blame him for not getting enough sleep, if you were given a shit ton of paperwork you might as well do them if you have free time till it drives you crazy.

“I uh Captain? Do you need some help with that?” You pointed at his desk making him turn his head around to look.

“You know what, yeah you need help I insist.” You gave him a soft smile hoping that he might approve.

“No, now go to bed and get some sleep brat.” He rolled his eyes at you before attempting to close the door on your face but you were quick enough to block it with your foot.

“I can't sleep anyway so just let me do some Captain.” You softly said hoping that you can persuade him.

Levi stared at you for a good couple of seconds while he contemplates whether he should let you in or not before letting out a sigh of annoyance. He stepped back to let you enter his office.

Without a second thought, you slowly entered the familiar place and stood obediently on the side as you wait for him.

“Take a seat and do tell me why you are still up at this hour.” Not that he cares about you and your business, but as a squad captain, he needs to know since it might be something troubling his squad members. He knows that if one of his squad is not in good shape, it can affect the others that is why he needs to look after each and every one of you.

You took a seat in front of him, your hands rest on your knees as you were afraid to rest it on the table since it is filled with papers and books.

“The rain woke me up and I feel suffocated in my room, I went out for a walk and that’s when I knocked on your door sir.” You confessed to him. There was no point in keeping secrets to your Captain since it was not of a big deal to open up your struggles to others. You don’t see it as a weakness but rather the opposite of it.

Levi hums in reply to your answer as he sit on his chair. You just noticed that he is wearing a casual long thin shirt and pants, with that you remembered that you were only wearing a thin silk nightdress which made you hug yourself even tighter from the embarrassment.

“I assume you know how to write and to read. Here, read the papers and encircle the dates, names, and the sender in each letter. And put your name on top of it so I can identify in the future that you're the one who is responsible for it.” He handed you a pen and the papers you need to look into.

It was an easy job for you, reading and just encircling pieces of information is nothing to you compared to your text books in college.

With that you remembered your other life. You mentally slap yourself for forgetting that you are not in your world and how you choose to ignore your problems in exchange for a new start. You remind yourself to go to the library to find something useful about what was happening to you.

You know that this is not a dream, you have been here for days and you can feel things and see things clearly. At first, time-traveling was the first thing you thought, but then you noticed that you have a life here, if you are right then you jumped into your body but in different dimension but you don’t know how you did it nor how to goback.

You pushed your worries at the back of your head since you don’t want to overthink and have a mental breakdown in the middle of the night, let alone in front of your Captain.

As you started reading the papers, Levi was now the one who were consumed by his thoughts.

Levi clearly isn’t the type of person who butt into people’s business but there was something about you that doesn’t sit right with him, and he intends to know more. He was shocked when you obediently followed every task and command he was given to you. Sure, some people might call you a dog if he says that out loud but not him, you followed him with respect and dedication, you are straightforward and blunt to him, not afraid to say what's on your mind but not to the extent that you are rude to your superiors. Only Hange and Erwin was the only person who talks to him like that and he can't help but admit that you might be put into this to become a leader in the future, and that is something he respects.

“I didn’t know that you came from a wealthy family.” He bluntly said when he noticed the red necklace hanging on your neck that made you caught off guard.

You cock your head up to look at him before opening your mouth

“I didn't.”

Levi didn’t bother to reply and instead he only nod in response to yours before looking away at the ruby on your neck. Levi knows that it is a genuine piece of accessory because he has seen real diamonds back in the underground, not that he’s proud of but he already touched one and has seen it up close. Only a glance since they were stealing it.

“I grew up in an orphanage with Jean and I already have this since I was a child if that’s what you're wondering sir, it was my mom’s.” It may felt a little weird that you need to explain things like this but then again, who would wear something expensive like that when you're just a military personnel.

“I see, so you’ve known that brat Kirstein since forever, so why did the two of you joined military? Right decision would not just live ordinarly.”

“Well, we've thought of that, living inside the walls until we're old or if we found someone whom we would like to marry but it’s not for us.”

You were shocked that he was engaging a conversation first, you would like to ask the same question to him but you don’t want to overstep the line.

The both of you worked in silence after that and only the sound of the rain is the only thing that can be heard. You didn’t engage in a conversation since being there was enough company for the both of you and you figured that the Captain doesn’t like to be interrupted while he’s working.

It was pleasant to your mind.

The silence, the cool breeze of the wind coming from the open window and the presence of Levi felt oddly calm.

It has been three hours since you entered Levi’s office and your eyes are starting to feel heavy and sore from reading.

Levi on the other hand, fell asleep on his chair. He told you that he would just take a quick break for a minute but it has already been an hour and he still hasn’t opened his eyes. You didn’t bother waking him up since you figured that he needed sleep, poor man looks and sounds tired when you asked him some questions regarding the paper you're working on.

You, on the other hand are no doubt burned from working straight all night.

You raised your arms up in the air to stretch your back and body causing it to make a ‘pop’ sound which made you froze for a second before glancing at Levi in front of you.

The peaceful look on his face while his jet black hair naturally falls on the side made you stare at him without you even noticing it. Not to mention his rolled-up sleeves while his arms are folded as his chest slowly rises and falls from breathing.

‘He’s not that bad.’ The inner voice in your head whispered.

You're not going to lie when you felt irritated by him the first you met him, he quickly judged you and he looks at you like you were some kind of a disappointment to him but that changed in a matter of day.

You seriously don't know what the hell is happening but he’s not as bad as you thought he would be.

As your mind accompany you with thoughts, your eyes are slowly giving up from being tired so you placed your arms on his desk and rested your head on it before closing your eyes.

“How do you even keep up with these paper works captain, no wonder you have no patience with us.” You whispered to yourself before you slowly fall asleep.

While you were falling asleep, Levi was already awake from his sleep, if that was even considered a sleep.

Levi was greeted with your tired features while you’re asleep when he opened his eyes. He heard everything you had just said but he pushed it aside to forget about it since he doesn’t know if you're pity or concerned.

The sun is already rising from the sky and some people are starting to wake up to do their tasks. Levi doesn’t have the energy to stand up after a very long day but he doesn’t have a choice.

It was a cold morning and he could drink some tea to refresh his mind and bring warmth to his cold body but he decided to wash up first before he makes some.

Besides, he wouldn’t want you to drink a cold bitter tea.

Funny that almost all people think that Levi doesn’t give two shit about the people around him but he actually does. He respects every person who dedicates their heart to something they want. At first, he doesn’t like the idea of it and he thinks that it’s just a bullshit mindset anyone can have but not until he met Hange and Erwin. Those two helped him not in pity and most definitely not by force but because they want to. They are the person who taught Levi how to write and read when he joined them and they didn’t judge him for his past lifestyle, especially Hange. The woman was loud and full of energy which is the complete opposite of Levi but he was thankful for them, especially at his lowest.

Levi cares for his new squad and for everyone who works hard around him. His past squad was bombed when they went into the north direction of the sea. Levi's special operation squad consists of jobs that an ordinary soldier wouldn't do, which includes going undercover, exploration outside the island for lookout, and handling confidential cases.

It wasn’t easy for Levi to see his squad getting blown and being shot. They were looking out for any ships and boats at that time even though it was dangerous since they are exploring the territory of Marleyan sea.

He doesn’t want history to repeat itself for his new squad.

Soon after Levi got out from the bathroom of his office, he immediately made tea while he dries his hair with a towel. He is not a morning person that is why he isn’t a fan of breakfast.

Levi sat on his desk and carefully placed the two cups filled with black tea in front of him before looking at your sleeping figure. He was thankful for your company and helped yesterday and last night and a cup of tea is his way of saying thank you.

He neatly arranges the papers in front of him to prevent them from getting wet from the tea, just to be sure. Levi noticed that you did more than you were given. In a span of a short time, you finished almost all of his paper works.

“Remind me not to let Hange spend a night with you. Both of you are mad.” He muttered under his breath.”

“Oi Reader, wake up it's already morning.”

Your body and mind were too tired to even open your eyes to the sound of Levi’s voice. You were now awake and slightly conscious of your surroundings, but you choose not to move.

“If you don’t move from your seat, I will personally throw you on the river.” Levi was now pissed. He doesn’t like it when he repeats himself.

You cock your head up to meet his same expressionless stare. You cover your mouth with your hand as you yawn.

“Sorry I fell asleep.” You apologized.

“It's already morning, get back to your room. We have training in two hours so I suggest getting some sleep before that.”

You nod in response before fixing your now messy hair. You felt the pain in your wrist and eyes from overworking yourself, what more later when you went out for training.

“I didn’t know sitting all night doing paperwork can make you feel like shit.” Not that you were engaging in a conversation, you wanted to let him know that you sympathize with him with how draining it is to do that let alone every night.

Levi sips on his tea before opening his mouth. “You insisted on it so deal with it.”

That sounded wrong because he worded it wrong.

He didn’t mean it to sound like a jerk but to you, he sounded like one. Levi mentally curses at himself in his head for putting his thoughts into the wrong word. Not only does he sounds ungrateful it also sounded like he doesn’t care about what you felt, which is the opposite of it.

You on the other hand were clearly mad at his response. Sure, you insisted on helping since it is your job but a simple thank you from him would make your day.

“Yeah, I will.” You coldly said before rolling your eyes at him and storm your way out to his door to leave. You slam his door as loud as you can, not caring if he will get mad at you.

Levi was left in his office irritated and sorry for what he just said. Nonetheless, he ignored what happened and decided to go on with the day and maybe he can talk to you later about it.

“So much for that though last night Sol, not even a ‘oh thank you for helping me last night sol I appreciate it’ geez.” If people can see you right now, they would thought that you're going crazy by talking to yourself and imitating a person by the tone of your voice while you stop your feet hard while walking.

“Damn, who even talks like that?”

You turn your head to the side to see Reiner leaning over a wall while holding a cup in his right hand with a grin on his face.

Reiner was one of the top 10 soldiers in your batch and he is an outstanding person due to his strength and leadership. You only talked to him twice and that was when you became a sparring partner in your training days. Reiner is cool from your perspective and gentleman even in training.

“Oh hey Reiner, sorry about that. Guess I woke up on the wrong side of the bed.” You smiled at him as you walk over closer to him.

“Figured. Why are you even on this side of the building? Visiting Jean?” Reiner asked before sipping on his mug.

“Yeah, something like that, making sure the boys aren’t causing troubles.” You lied. You didn’t want anyone to know that you spend the night at your Captain’s office since it sound so wrong.

“Bet they're a pain in the ass huh.”

“Oh please, Mikasa and I can’t even catch a break.”

The both of you laughed at your conversation. You didn’t know why but you felt shy at just laughing with him.

Reiner stopped laughing when he noticed your Ruby necklace hanging at your neck. He straightens his composure before exchanging his glance at your face and on the jewelry.

“That’s a very pretty necklace Sol, where did you buy it?” Reiner moves a little closer to you to look at the necklace. You heard a small gasp when he got a better view.

“I don’t know, I already have this since I was born.” You simply replied.

Reiner gave you a small smile as he nods at your answer.

You can't blame the people around you for asking about your necklace. It is indeed a pure Ruby and anyone who will meet you for the first time will first notice the necklace rather than your face.

“I see, it's interesting.”

“Well, I gotta go, it was nice seeing you.” You gave Reiner a last smile before marching your way back to your room.

“Sol, wait!”

You turn your head back and saw Reiner running in your direction.

“I was just wondering if, if you would like to grab something to eat sometime.” Reiner wasn’t the only one who was shy at that moment.

He was scratching the back of his head while you look away while biting your lower lip. It's not a bad idea to go out with someone, especially Reiner. He is a good man and not a trouble maker and not to mention, he's very disciplined.

“I'll think about it and ill let you know.” You softly replied before smiling at him again and started to walk away from him. It's not that you don’t want to go out with him and avoid rejection by saying that but you need your friends' opinions first.

“I honestly don’t see why not.” Mikasa butt in the conversation while reading a book.

“Yeah just go. If he did something funny to you, Jean and I would kick his ass.”

“Shut up Eren, I can beat his ass alone.”

“Oh yeah, Jean? Why don’t you kiss my ass then?”

“Why don’t you kiss my ass Eren?”

You throw yourself on the couch beside Mikasa while Eren and Jean continue to fight about kissing each other’s ass. You told them the conversation you had with Reiner that morning and they were pretty much supportive about it.

The idea of dating wasn’t a bad idea for you. Spending your days with a person you can lean on and love is something rare to even encounter, but not in these circumstances where you're slowly achieving your dreams, not to mention that you are still confused and know nothing about what's happening.

“But isn’t it weird that Reiner’s suddenly interested in you?” Eren suddenly asked.

The three of them dart their gaze at you to check you out that made you feel a bit uncomfortable and a pinch of insecurities are slowly coming into you.

“Stop looking at me, I'm tired and I don’t need my friends judging me just because someone asked me out geez.”

It was a hot afternoon and you just finished training with them the whole day and all of you are in Levi’s office waiting for him to report and ask for any announcement. You had not seen him in training since there was a meeting he needed to attend to and you're in charge earlier that’s why you're tired physically and mentally because of Jean’s dad jokes while training.

“Eren didn’t mean it like that. We just want to know if he’s worth it.” Mikasa pats your head for assurance before glaring at Eren.

Before you could even talk, the door suddenly opened, revealing Levi in a casual suit. Levi was surprised by all of you in his office since it has been long ever since he had a squad whom he sees after training and the sight of his squad welcoming him after a long day brings a slight joy to him.

All of you stood up and greeted him with a salute.

“All of you look like shit, we’ll train again tomorrow since I was absent earlier.”

Levi proceeds to sit on his desk before looking at everyone in the room.

Especially you.

He did not forget your little chat that morning.

“All of you are dismissed except for Reader, stay for a minute.”

Everyone left the room and only the two of you and the silence were filling the room.

“Listen, about earlier I didn’t mean to come off like that, what I meant was you just-“

“I just need to go through the day since I can.” You cut him off.

And it was indeed what he wanted to say. Levi was surprised that you understood him despite the barrier of his wordings, he was impressed at you.

“It's okay captain, I understood what you meant just a little while ago.” You smiled at him, causing him to look away.

The idea of people understanding him in this kind of situation bothers him since he grew up not being understood because of the lack of communication he has but admit it or not, Levi felt nice knowing someone understands him.

“What’s your deal?” it may be nice for him, the idea of trusting you and you being able to understand him doesn’t sit right for him.

“Excuse me sir?” You let your hands fell on your side while maintaining the broken eye contact.

“I’m sure a strong woman who topped her class wants to be a commander or Captain in the future, don’t get me wrong I'm not labeling you as a captain’s pet, but what do you really want? I'm curious because I don’t get you.”

You thought for a moment about what he said. The truth is you don’t want to lead and you also don’t know what you want in the future.

You thought about what you did wrong that made him feel like you want something just because you were acting like yourself and the idea of Levi thinking that you want something from him that’s why you're being kind to him somewhat brought pain to your heart.

‘What did you have to go through to think like that?’

“I need nothing captain, I just want to do my job so you don’t have to worry about me kissing your ass because I want something in return. I would just like to be there with you and do my job since you trusted me for being your assistant.” Yo genuinely smiled at him to show your sincerity.

But your voice is enough for Levi to know that you are indeed sincere.

“Fine, you are dismissed. Be here in my office early in the morning tomorrow, we need to attend a meeting.”

“Yes sir.” You calmly replied to him.

You looked at him for a second before leaving his office.

You haven’t even known him for that long, yet you do feel some kind of connection.

Maybe it’s because of being not understood and heard, or perhaps it’s the drive to do excellent at your jobs.

Who knows, not even you know, and not even you knows that he felt the same.

And it's eating the both of you.

#levi ackerman #levi fanfiction #levi fic #levi #captain levi #aot fanfiction #levi aot #aot #aot x reader #aot x y/n #attack on titan #levi angst #angst #levi attack on titan #levi x reader #levi x y/n

19 notes · View notes

fan-girling-101 · 3 years

Text

Pogue Winter

Pogues x Reader x Kooks, Rafe x Reader

Summary: After almost dying on Halloween Y/N stays with Rafe. Until he surprises her with a too expensive gift.

Word Count: 2k

Warnings: Rafe being a sweetheart, My sucky writing, I think that’s it

Thank you @thisismynerdyself who let me use her story which was part one. This is part two there’s going to be a part three and maybe four. Please go check her out and read the original. And thank you for letting me use it. This is all my writing, also if you read the first then second chapter the writing style is completely different.

Part one here

Original part one here

Her Tumblr

Imagine he’s dressed up not sweety in awe of how you look

The next few days I’ve been quiet, not talking to many people, mostly just Rafe, I haven’t even answered JJ. I mostly stayed in Rafe’s room reading or watching any movie on disney plus. Rafe got some clothes from Sarah for me to wear, Ward and Rose had no idea someone else was in their house. I guess that would happen if you never pay attention to your son.

“Hey Pumpkin.” Rafe called making me look up from Harry Potter: Prisoner of Azkaban book in my lap. “I wanted to go golfing with Topper and Kelce, but I don’t want to leave you alone, so do you want to come?”

“Do I want to come watch the most boring sport, if it can even be called that, in the world?” I looked out the window thinking for a moment before answering with a sure.

“Ok it’s not boring.” I rolled my eyes walking over to Rafe. “You keep telling yourself that.” I pat his shoulder walking around him to grab some clothes to change into.

“It’s not!”

♛

We’ve been at the golf course for what feels like an eternity, but probably only an hour or less. The boys are golfing while I sit in the golf cart, tempted to drive away and go anywhere but here, reading my Harry Potter book. The sun makes it almost too hot to bear, It’s November for God sakes stop being so hot.

“Come, I’m gonna teach you how to golf.” Rafe grabs my hand pulling me up and over to the golf tee. Handing me a golf club, I stand there not making a move to actually golf. “How hard can it be to hit a ball with a club?” I ask, laughing and going to walk back to my book.

“Pretty hard Y/N,” Topper said, hitting a ball himself that went super far. I roll my eyes hitting the ball Rafe so kindly set up for me. The ball ended up going further than Topper’s so I smirked at him and walked away. “Beginners luck.” He muttered.

♛

Over the next few weeks Rafe has been taking my golfing with him just the two of us. He says I could be amazing if I tried. I rolled my eyes everytime but went along anyway. By now I couldn’t really remember why we ever hated each other. Well I mean I know he was always kinda mean to friends, who I haven’t spoken to in a long time, but I can’t remember one time he said something mean to me. Ever.

It was now Christmas time, I was still living in secret with Rafe and if you’re wondering where my parents are. Right when I turned 16 I got emancipated. Their idea, not mine, not that I wanted to stick around with them. So back to Christmas, Christmas in the Outerbanks means the annual Winter Ball.

“So Y/N/N what are you doing December 18th.” Rafe asks me, coming to lie on his bed with me. His smile told me he was planning something, and I couldn’t tell if I wanted to be a part of it. “Come on Pumpkin, it's not a hard question. 18th are you or are you not doing anything.”

“Well…. Let me check my schedule.” I pretend to pull out my phone. “Hmm.. well the 18th that's a Monday meaning, one o'clock, wallow in self pity. Four thirty, stare into the abyss. Five o'clock, solve world hunger; tell no one. Five thirty, jazz-ercise. Six thirty, dinner with me. I can't cancel that again! Seven o'clock, wrestle with my self-loathing… I'm booked! Well if I bump the loathing to nine I could still be done in time To lay in bed and stare at the ceiling and slip slowly into madness…”

“So you’re free. Good.” I shake my head at him letting him continue anyways. “December 18th is actually a Friday, also the day of the Winter Ball. So Y/N L/N will you come to the winter masquerade ball my me?”

“Rafe-”

“That doesn't sound promising.” He pouts looking at me sadly trying to get me to guilt me into coming.

“You didn’t let me finish. Why would you want to bring me? I don’t know if you’re aware but I’m a pogue, your sworn enemy. And being a pogue means I have no money, no money means no dress, no dress means no Y/N at Winter Ball. It’s really just logic.”

“Why wouldn’t I want to bring the most gorgeous girl in the universe to the winter ball.” A blush found its way to my cheeks, making me look down. “Also I already planned for you to come so…” He gets up leaving the room for a second and when he comes back he has a sparkling red dress. I was beautiful.

“Rafe-” I gasp looking at the beautiful dress. “I-I can’t take that. That probably cost you a fortune, Rafe I could never repay you for it. I mean when did you even. That cost more than my whole house and things combined.

“Y/N I don’t need to be repaid. Take it. At least try it on please.” He hands me the dress leaving the room. I reluctantly put the dress on facing the mirror looking at how the dress flowed. I couldn't help but smile. A soft knock on the door of Rafe asking if he can come in.

“If you’re making me do this I don’t want you to see me on the dress until the ball.” I heard the groan from outside the door.

“Fine but I have your shoes, mask, necklace and earrings.”

Full outfit

“Rafe! I’m gonna owe you for the rest of my life and more.”

“I don’t want anything, just take them please.” I open the door just enough to grab the stuff quickly putting it all on. “Sarah helped me find everything one night while you were asleep, the shoes took the longest, or I would have asked you sooner instead of a week's notice. Does everything fit, I was scared it would be too big, or small. Or you would hate the color. Or the style of it. It took me almost three nights to find that one, it had the prefect and I needed Sarah and Wezzie to say it looked good and you would like it.”

“Rafe shut up I love it ok. It fits perfectly, the shoes are my size, I love the color,and the style is beautiful. Stop panicking ok.” I open the door dressed back in my Christmas pajama pants and Rafe’s old football jersey. “Come on, ice cream my treat. And I’m driving your truck.”

The whole way there Rafe was acting like a scared mom in the car with their child. Telling me to slow down. I was an amazing driver, he was just paranoid. Sure I was a little reckless but I’m also too good to ever get in a crash.

We go through the drive thru Rafe ordering a plan oreo, while I got a candy cane ice cream because Chritmas time is here bitches! As I pull up pay I grab my cash going to give it to Matt a tenth grade that I go to school with. Out of nowhere Rafe reaches over to hand Matt his own money.

“Rafe!”

“I can't let you pay what kind of gentleman would I be if I let you pay.”

“The kind that already bought me a dress, shoes, and jewelry.”

♛

Soon enough the 18th came, Sarah, Weezie, Rose and I were all getting ready in Sarah’s room. Rose was so excited when she heard Rafe was bringing someone, never once had Rafe brought someone to a kook event. When she found out it was me I saw the fake smile with clenched teeth.

Sarah had me sit down on her vanity chair to do my makeup. I told her to do whatever would look nice with my dress. When she finished she started my hair curling my hair and braiding some small red flowers into my hair to match my dress and give me a pogue type look with the random small braids. Rose did everything for Weezie and after the two of us sat on Sarah’s bed playing a card game while Rose and Sarah got themselves ready.

Sarah’s Outfit

Weezie’s Outfit

I knew Kie was coming of course with her parents, Pope was coming to help his dad and John B was Sarah’s date. But I had no idea if JJ was going, usually the two of us would sit around drinking and smoking while the others were at the fancy parties, or on a rare occasion we’d crash the party, while being drunk and high. I haven’t spoken to any of them in a long time. I felt bad, really bad. I mean JJ was my best friend, basically a brother to me.

We all had our dresses and me, Sarah and Weezie started taking instagram pictures all dressed up. I say I was nervous was an understatement. I mean I was going to a kook party dressed as one of them. I was going with Rafe fucking Cameron, the kookist of all kooks.

Weezie and Rose left when Ward called us down. I started fiddling with my freshly painted nails. I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up at Sarah. “Don’t be so nervous, if you get bored of my brother and his boring friends me and Weezie will come and save you. We have a secret place we go to.” She gives me a reassuring smile giving me a small hug.

“You go down, I'll be there in a sec. I have to mentally prepare for this.” She laughs leaving the room and heading down with everyone else. I pace the room a little before heading down myself.

Rafe’s POV

We all stand in the front room waiting for Y/N. I hear heels clicking on the stairs as someone walks down. I eagerly look at the stairs waiting for the girl that’s been living with me for over a month. The one who I always thought was beautiful. The one who deserves the world and more. The one I think I fell in love with. When the person came into view the excitement fell from my face seeing Sarah instead of Y/N.

“Sorry to disappoint.” She laughs going to stand with Weezie whispering things in her ear. “This is why you don’t bring someone like her.” My dad sighed clearly, not happy with having to wait.

“What do you mean ‘someone like her’?” I ask him. “Someone who’s never been to anything important in their life. We’re going to be late. Next time invite someone with some social class. If this was some way to piss me off congratulations Rafe you’ve done it.”

I would have yelled at him, I would have told him to shut up. But I head the soft click of heels on marble. This time I knew it was Y/N. I completely forgot about what was said about her. I couldn’t wait to see her all dressed up. The only time I’ve seen her in a dress was when she’d crash our formal parties. It was always the same one, a peach sundress.

When I saw her in front of me I had no words, everything else suddenly didn’t matter. I didn’t hear when everyone else went to the car. All I could see was Y/N, she looked like a goddess. No one was more perfect. Her Y/H/C hair was lightly curled with flowers braided into it. To be fair Y/N would look perfect in anything, and nothing.

I lied before, I don’t think I’m in love with her…

I am in love with her.

#obx #obx imagine #Outer Banks #outerbanks #outerbanks imagine #rafe cameron #rafe cameron imagine #rafe cameron x reader #obx x reader #obx x y/n #sarah cameron #pogue life #pogue style #kook #christmastime

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readyplayerhobi · 4 years

Text

Flower | 19

; Hoseok x Reader

; Genre: Fluff, slight angst

; Word Count: 5k

; Warnings: Brief mentions of depression, anxiety

; Synopsis: You finally decide to take a dip into the world of online dating and find the Flower dating app. One of the top matches for you proves to be a guy who looks to be your complete opposite; tattooed, pierced, a metalhead and oh…incredibly handsome. What happens when you throw caution to the wind and reach out to him?

; A/N: A chapter that’s a little bit more fluffier :D thank you for the love and as usual, please send me comments or feedback so I can see you’re enjoying it still! :D We’re almost halfway through!

; Flower Masterpost

“Ooh, look at that house.” Hoseok murmurs, almost to himself given how quiet his voice had gone. Pausing from your walk, you turn around and see that he’s stopped a feet away, his camera being held up to his eye as he looks through the viewfinder. There’s a few moments where he shifts around, trying to find the best angle and lighting before you hear the click of the shutter.

He’s not even looking at you as he begins walking again, instead his eyes are focused on the LCD screen on the back of his camera. Leaning against him a little when he finally reaches you, you peer around at what he’d just taken a photo of and smile in amusement.

After all of the bad stuff that had happened recently, you’d found yourself needing to do something to distract yourself. The antidepressants no longer gave you any major side effects and you thought that they were working, though it was probably too early to say yes or no for definite. But you also wanted to thank Hoseok for being so sweet and reliable.

As such, you’d asked Chungha if her family might let you use their beach house for the weekend. It was one of those big, rambling wooden beach houses that always looked so pretty, its yard bumping up against soft white sand and an endless expanse of beautiful blue ocean as far as the eye could see.

The town it was in was equally picturesque, one of those places that looks like it’s been transplanted from some old European place with plenty of old style charm and warmth. Chungha’s house had apparently been in her family for generations; some long ago ancestor had built it themselves when they’d arrived and since then, her family had moved on and it had become more of a holiday home.

You’d been there once during college when Chungha had invited Soyeon and you for spring break. It had been a great time and you’d just known that Hoseok would love it all, particularly for his photography.

So you’d told him to make sure he wasn’t doing anything this weekend and to bring his camera before driving out here. He’d been excited enough to know that you were both spending a weekend at the beach, apparently he loved the ocean, but when he actually saw the town as you were driving through and then the house he’d been thoroughly charmed by it all.

That had been yesterday, the both of you getting to see the town just as the sun was setting in the winter hours and so today, Saturday, was the first time you were getting to show him it all properly. The house he’d just taken a picture of was on one of the little side streets and it looked adorably quaint, its wooden front painted a delicate shell white with baby pink window frames and a soft yellow door.

Flower boxes full of what must be winter blooming flowers and plants were hung from the windows while planters of small, ornate bushes framed the door. The awnings along the roof were also wood but had been intricately carved, giving it the impression of some kind of fairytale house.

The photos that Hoseok had taken looked pretty enough, but you knew that he’d do some magical editing later and they’d look beautiful. You could already see how the contrasting colours would look perfect against the greenery surrounding the building and you couldn’t help the smile that spread over your face as Hoseok made little noises as he walked.

He did that a lot when he was happy, and you didn’t know if he knew he did it. You weren’t going to tell him though, because you didn’t want him to get embarrassed about it and stop doing them. It made you happy to hear his vocalisation of his own emotions, and you needed some happiness lately.

Wrapping your arm around his, you pressed against him until he veered slightly off course. Looking up, he checks that he’s not about to walk off the road before looking down at you with a grin, letting his camera drop to hang by the strap around his neck and withdrawing his arm from your grasp before placing it around your waist contentedly.

“This place is great, my photos are gonna look awesome.” He commented, his tone already distracted as he spotted something new in the distance that had attracted his attention. Smiling, you simply lay your head against his shoulder and just…enjoy his presence. You’d been well aware of his love for photography and had watched over the last few months as he’d done some casual stuff around the place you lived in alongside taking your photos for your Instagram.

But this was the first time you were truly seeing the raw passion he had for it. The way his eyes lit up when he got a good shot or how bright his smile became when he saw something that he knew would look perfect on camera.

“Why didn’t you do photography professionally? Your photos are great and you obviously love it, you’ve got a good eye.” You ask, looking up at him as he evidently decides that he’s not going to take another photo.

For a few seconds, he doesn’t respond but you can tell by the way he purses his lips slightly and his dimples come to life that he’s thinking about the answer for you. Eventually, thought he just shrugs.

“Because I was young and dumb? I liked photography when I was a teenager but it was never my number one thing. And then I went to college and finally learnt to handle my emotions better. By that point…I just wanted something stable in my life. As much as I love photography, I know that it’s not really a hugely stable job and I might never make it. I wasn’t ready to risk myself when I’d finally gotten my life on track again.” He sounds a little bit wistful but it vanishes as he shrugs lightly.

“It’s fine, I love my job now and I love computers. I get to enjoy photography as a hobby, which is all I want to be honest. I’d be worried that if I turned my hobby into my job then I wouldn’t love it anymore, you know?” Nodding, you hum gently as you ponder on his question intently.

Hoseok is only two years older than you, and sometimes it feels like he’s got his whole life sorted out already. Like he’s a real adult and you’re just a pretend adult. The thought makes you laugh to yourself, shaking your head as Hoseok gives you a querying look.

He’d probably think the same thing if you told him. What was being an adult anyway? You still called your dad for the simplest of things after all.

Smiling to yourself, you huddle further into Hoseok’s warmth and take the opportunity to simply chat lightly with him. Next weekend, you would be going to his parents for the first time. And if he’d been nervous to meet your parents, then you were terrified to meet his.

Hoseok’s family was pretty well off compared to yours and he’d never really wanted for anything. The fact that they’d lost a daughter made that all seem pointless in comparison really, but it made you feel a little sick thinking about it. You were dating their only child now, the only child they had left out of what had been two.

He’d never said anything but nice things about them but you knew that parents were always god in their children’s eyes. Especially if they had no negative emotions or feelings towards them. And Hoseok adored his mom, you knew that. But that just made it all the more worse.

You’d read more than enough subreddits to have realised that there was a special category of mom and that was the moms of sons. Some seemed to be fine, but some seemed to act like a girlfriend was taking their place in their son’s life. There were plenty of horrifying stories out there of women treating their sons girlfriend or wife horrifically bad and the son being unable to see it because of how much he loved her.

While you doubted Hoseok’s mom was like that, and for that you didn’t really think Hoseok would react happily if his parents were mean, it was still a worry. You’d never met a guy’s parents before. So that was all rushing through your mind as well. Yet another reason you’d opted to spend this weekend just enjoying each other’s company.

Taking a breath, you let you a small ‘ooh’ as you realised that you smell something delicious. Looking to the side, your eyes widen as you see a café with its door swinging shut, sending a waft of delightful smells your way. The delicious looking array of baked goods and sweets in the shop front make it even more enticing and you purse your lips as your mouth waters.

Pausing, you let go of him to step closer, focusing intently on a delicious red velvet cake that was topped with decadent buttercream frosting. You don’t even realise you’re making a face at the cake until you hear Hoseok’s chuckle and the sound of a shutter once more.

Looking at him with wide eyes, you sigh affectionately as you see him pulling his camera down with a grin. Turning it around he shows you see the image that he’d just taken and you smile at how he’d focused on your face, the background soft and pretty as you stared intently into the café front.

You always hated having your photograph taken, until Jung Hoseok had started taking them. As long as he was the one behind the camera, you knew that he wouldn’t make you look ugly or anything.

“Do you want one?” He asks, gesturing to the display. Humming lightly, you chew on your lip before nodding with a smile. This was a weekend of doing stuff to make you happy, which obviously meant that you had to treat yourself.

The answering grin on Hoseok’s face tells you that he probably knows that, but he doesn’t comment on it. Instead, he gestures for you to go inside the dual café and shop. It’s nice and warm inside, making you realise just how brisk and chilly it had been outside and you unwrap your scarf from around your neck.

“Go sit down, I’ll get your stuff.” Hoseok says, leaning forward and kissing your forehead quickly before handing you his camera and backpack. You take both from him without complaint, wanting to tell him that you’ll pay but you know there’s no way he’s letting that happen right now.

You’d learnt to pick your fights with Hoseok, or arguments rather. Particularly as you hated arguing and all of that so you tried your hardest to not argue at all. And this wasn’t something worth the time or effort.

The café isn’t that busy so you make sure to grab a table a little further inside. It’s only knee high but the dark red couch that accompanies it looks far too comfy to give up, particularly given the abundance of soft, multi-patterned cushions.

Carefully placing Hoseok’s camera on the table and his backpack on the floor, you add your own bag before sinking down into the blissfully squishy couch. The cushions practically envelop you and you can’t help but smile as you almost fall backwards, resting against the equally soft back.

Yeah, this was a good spot. And it let you people watch in the whole café along with a perfect view of the street outside.

Hoseok came over with a tray in his hands and you take a moment to peruse him, enjoying the little triangle his lips have turned into as he concentrates on not dropping anything. It makes him look adorably cute, which is at complete odds with the rest of his look.

His one concession to being in this pretty town today had been that he was wearing a white shirt, just a hint of the outline of his tattoo whenever he moved a certain way. But that was it though. Otherwise, he definitely didn’t look like he belonged in this place.

Grey distressed jeans with holes ripped into the knees met his new pair of black Dr Martens, a present he’d bought himself after a particularly hard week. An equally dark leather jacket was slung casually over his shoulders, the silver points on it highlighted by the silver necklaces he wore and the new hoops in his ears and the ring in his lip.

As usual, he looked incredibly handsome and the perfect picture of grunge and rock. But he really didn’t fit this overly…dainty town and you almost wanted to laugh at how out of place his fashion was, even in this café. He must be used to it by now, particularly given he was dating you but it still amused you anyway.

“What are you laughing at?” Eyes widening, you realise that you must’ve been smiling or something at him because he had a decidedly amused look on his face as he places the tray on the table. A big slice of red velvet cake is placed in front of you alongside a fork while he puts a fancy looking sandwich down in front of himself before sitting.

He’s got you a tall glass of water, flavoured with some real strawberries that makes you ‘ooh’ in delight while he takes a sip of whatever tea he’d bought. Peering over at his plate, you give him a raised brow and he smiles.

“Pastrami, Swiss cheese, mayo, tomato and lettuce.” He grins and you make another noise, watching intently as he takes a bite. A spot of mayo stays on the corner of his lips and you reach over, wiping it away with one of the paper napkins he’d brought too.

“Good?” You ask, curious as you eye the thickly stacked sandwich questioningly. Pausing, Hoseok looks at you before nodding and making a sigh so quiet that you almost didn’t hear it. But then he offers it to you, gesturing for you to take a bite and you grin happily.

The flavours burst in your mouth, combining together beautifully and you let out the tiniest moan of contentment at just how delicious they all are. You’re surprised Hoseok doesn’t mind the mayonnaise given he’s not a fan of it, but you suppose it’s just like people liking tuna mayo and not mayonnaise.

The next fifteen minutes are spent with the both of you slowly eating the sandwich, one bite at a time and you can’t help but hum happily with how…content you feel with everything right now. It’s a very bizarre concept to you and you’re sure it’s the antidepressants, working properly like they’re supposed to.

Maybe it’s just a placebo effect, but you can’t find it in yourself to care.

“God this place is so nice.” Hoseok sighs once he’s finished, slumping on the couch and resting his hands over his stomach. You poke it gently and giggle as he overly exaggerates a pout before reaching forward for the plate of cake. Take a large section, you eat it slowly and make an appreciative noise before glancing back at your boyfriend.

“This is so good, holy shit.” You whisper, eyes widening as he laughs loudly at your reaction. His mouth is engaged pretty quickly though as you feed him a piece of the cake, watching as he contemplates for a second before nodding agreement with you.

Wriggling in your seat, you continue to eat the cake with sole minded focus while Hoseok just watches you for a moment. That is, until he reaches for his camera, popping the lens off and changing it for you knew was better for closer shots. Sure enough, just like you’d suspected, he lifts the camera up and raises a brow at you, asking the question silently.

With a mouth full of cake, you don’t answer verbally but instead nod a little shyly as you swallow as quickly as possible. It just makes him snort though, lifting the camera to his face and angling it exactly how he wanted. You’re not entirely sure what he wants you to do but you can’t help but look down at the plate, fork cutting into the soft cake as you try not to feel too embarrassed about him photographing you in a place where other people are probably looking.

Outside it felt fine, but it felt very personal in here with the dimmer lighting and such.

“You’re so beautiful, you know that?” Hoseok says, his voice soft as he checks over the image and you feel so many emotions at once that you’re not sure what you’re actually feeling. Embarrassed? Pleased? Shy? Happy? He’s the only man who’s ever called you beautiful outside of your dad.

So you deflect it with sarcasm, because that’s how you dealt with things that made you feel shy. A terrible coping mechanism, you know, but it has got you through life so far.

“Has that sandwich turned you sappy? Or was it the cake?” From the way Hoseok’s lips twist, you can tell that he wants to laugh but instead he just continues to flick through the photos he’s taken over the day. It’s one of the things you like best about him, that he never lets your awkwardness interrupt.

“Can I take one of us?” He asks, his voice gentle as he poses the question to you. You loved that about him, that he’d learnt to always ask if he could take a photograph of you both together. Nodding, you lean into his body and smile at the camera as he holds it out in front of you both. There’s a moment of nothing before he clicks the button a few times.

Placing the now empty plate down, you lean back on the couch and let out a deep sigh, belly full and your mind happy. There would have been a time when you’d have been ashamed of your body after eating, not wanting Hoseok to see anything that he might find ugly. But you’d learnt by now that he wasn’t like that, and he didn’t even notice that kind of stuff.

So you let yourself just relax fully against the cushions, moving your hand to rest on his thigh and simply enjoying the contact while he looks at the selfies. He shows them to you and you can’t help but feel a flutter in your stomach at how happy you both look, your eyes bright with sweet smiles on both your faces. You’d also discovered that you liked having your photo taken with him.

The two of you fall into a comfortable silence after that, the sounds taken up instead by the gentle music flowing through the speakers, the quiet chatter of other customers and the clinking of cutlery on plates. It all feels very…domestic and you have one of those moments where you realise how strange this all is for you.

If you’d been told a year ago that you’d be sat here, on a weekend break to a little beach town with your boyfriend of nine months after suffering a breakdown and finally reaching out for help, you’d have laughed in their face. Being on antidepressants might have been believable sure, but a boyfriend? That’s been with you for nine months?

No, you would’ve never believed that.

And yet here he was, in all his outrageously attractive glory with his calm and reassuring presence. For you. Because of you.

Hoseok smiles at something on his camera and you can’t help the smile in response, a bubble of emotion rising inside you as you watch the way his eyes almost glitter, the skin beneath them swelling in that way they do when he’s happy and the shape of his eyes becoming those sweet little half moons that he always got when he was feeling particularly joyful. It was a mix of happiness, fondness and something else, something much deeper.

“You have such pretty eyes.” You whisper without meaning to, practically purring with delight as those eyes get even smaller as his cheeks rise from the size of the grin he’s sporting. There’s just a hint of pink on them now and you coo at him, carefully taking his camera and putting it into the shooting mode.

Lifting it up to your eye, you wonder if the camera will ever be able to get across just how much you care for this man. Just how much you adore him and will treasure him for as long as you are able to have him. You’re not sure, but you want to try at least.

His face comes into focus in the tiny viewfinder and you watch in enjoyment as he gets a slightly bashful look on his face, your compliment evidently still being consumed. But you don’t let him off that easy and instead decide to lay it on a little thicker.

“Such pretty eyes and a beautiful nose. You’re so handsome, I swear. It’s not fair. Even your smile is like a heart!” The pink starts to stain deeper, his ears slowly turning too while he bites at his lip, the silver ring catching the light perfectly and you snap away happily.

He lets you take photos with the camera until finally he reaches out, gesturing for it. You give it back to him happily, content that he went along with you long enough that you got some pretty pictures of him. Leaning back against his arm, you rest your head on his shoulder and watch as he flicks through the pictures.

“I want those pictures. Just so you know.” You state, letting him know that he’s going to have to edit them for you and he can’t just delete them. He doesn’t argue back, just nodding before pressing a kiss to your forehead affectionately.

The sea here during summer is a beautiful blue that shimmers like a jewel, but at the moment it’s duller. A coldness rolls in from afar, the waves harsher with the oncoming winter and you shiver inside your coat, wrapping your arms around your waist.

After leaving the café, Hoseok and you had walked around the town some more. He’d taken a few more pictures of things he thought were interesting before you’d asked if you could take some photographs too. That has resulted in him giving you a quick tutorial in how to use his camera in depth. You had a brief experience with it obviously, but actually doing anything more than just simply clicking wasn’t something you had experience with.

It had been fun though. Not only had you enjoyed taking the photos themselves, along with the process of trying to decide what would make a good shot, but you’d enjoyed interacting with Hoseok about something he was passionate about. You felt like he’d done a lot of the heavy lifting in your relationship so far, and you wanted to try and show more of an interest in what made him happy.

And he seemed to quite enjoy teaching you different shooting techniques. It wasn’t ever going to be your thing, but you’d decided that you would be more than happy to go along with him whenever he got the creative urge.

Now though, you were both walking along the beach back to the house. It perhaps wasn’t as nice of a walk as it could have been given the chilly temperatures, but it gave you the perfect opportunity to get closer to Hoseok.

Leaning into him as you both trudge against the shifting sand beneath your feet, you can’t help but smile as the wind blows the familiar smell of Hoseok to you. You’d always thought that he smelled good and the thought runs through your mind even now, thankful that he was someone who actually took care of himself.

There had been far too many guys in college who had thought that hygiene was just a word they couldn’t spell properly.

Neither of you says anything, too happy and content in the familiar silence between you both and you’re thankful for that too. It had always been hard to find people with whom silence was just a comfortable experience and not an anxiety inducing event where you mentally scrambled for a topic to talk about.

With Hoseok though, you didn’t feel that need to talk and he didn’t bother with any small talk either. Instead, you both just enjoyed the world around you and the simple company of each other.

You don’t notice that he’s fallen behind you once more, too concentrated on not falling over in the sand as you spy the house in the distance. It’s only when you go to reach out for his hand, hoping to curl your fingers together inside the pocket of his coat and find nothing but air that you realise.

Turning around, a particularly harsh and severe wind cuts through you, causing you to wrap your arms around yourself even tighter as you shiver while you stagger slightly from the force. Looking back at Hoseok with wide eyes, you can’t help but laugh when you see how red his cheeks have gone from the windchill. His camera is being slowly lowered and you can see that even his fingers are red too.

Reaching up, you cup his cheeks and coo gently at how cold they feel against your hands, thumbs stroking the slight stubble growing from his lack of shaving this morning. Grinning, you eye his nose in amusement, the elegant tip now pink from the cold sea breeze.

Pushing up onto your tiptoes, you press your lips to said nose affectionately. It’s gentle and quick, but you bite your lip as you see the happy look in his brown eyes.

“Cold nose.” You tease him lightly, moving one hand to press the tip of your forefinger against it. He lets you for a few seconds before moving his head just enough to allow him to kiss your finger instead, his gaze warm against the chilly conditions.

“I love you.” Hoseok says it so casually that you don’t even really register what he’s just said at first. Instead, you’re still just smiling at him with a look of pure girlish happiness on your face from how sweet he looks and the adorable reaction he’d had to your kiss.

And then it does. Those syllables become words in your head and those words gain meaning, causing you to jolt back from him slightly as you comprehend them.

Your eyes must be astonishingly wide right now, your jaw dropped open at some point and in the back of your mind, you note how cold your teeth feel against the wind. But that’s not what you can focus on.

Hoseok loves you. He loves you. He loves you and he’s told you this.

No one had ever told you that they loved you outside of friends and family. A swirl of emotions forms a vortex in your stomach and you’re not sure whether you want to cry, shout, dance for joy or throw up. It wasn’t really a big deal, people said it to each other all the time, right?

“I don’t expect you to say it, and I’ve held back until I felt you might be able to accept it a little better. But I really do. And I hope me telling you can make you as happy as I feel telling you.” Now he’s cupping your face, the palms of his hands so hot against your cheeks.

And he’s smiling, lips spreading and his white teeth showing as the gesture gets wider and bigger with dual amusement and happiness. For a few seconds, you simply gawp at him, unable to form words before you look away, shyness you haven’t felt in months with him rising to the fore.

“Even after…everything?” You don’t need anyone to pull apart what you’ve just said as you understand it better than anyone. After the breakdown and crippling depression, the side effects of the antidepressants, the long time it’s taken for him to get anywhere with you in terms of a relationship. You were happy with how everything had gone with him, but you knew that there would be many men who would be frustrated.

“Yep. And I don’t want to make a big thing out of this, okay? It’s just how I feel. I don’t want to overwhelm you or have expectations on you. The sun is hot, space is big, this wind is really cold and I love you. That’s all. Now, I think maybe we should head back to the house, call for takeout and then spend the rest of the night cuddled up. Sounds good?” Just like he’d said, he doesn’t ponder on what he’d said.

And you understand him instinctively, because you would be the same way. He evidently doesn’t want to analyse his words, maybe because he just doesn’t want to or maybe because he didn’t want to make you overthink.

But you can’t deny the fizzing happiness that zaps through your veins as you smile at him brightly, the emotion beating out everything else you’re feeling to be the most prominent. He loves you.

“Netflix and chill?” You ask, your voice a tiny bit hoarse and a little shy, but Hoseok takes your words with a grin of relief as he nods.

Tangling your fingers together, he begins to walk back down the beach while you keep pace beside him. “Thought you’d never ask.”

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wiypt-writes · 3 years

Text

Stark Spangled Forever

A Very Rogers Christmas Part 1- The Best Things In Life Are Tree

Summary: It’s that time of year again and the Rogers family prepare to go and pick their Christmas tree. But when Emmy calls with a bit of bad news, it puts a little downer on the whole thing for Katie and Steve decides to call in reinforcements to pull off the best Christmas Heist he can…

Pairing: Steve Rogers x OFC Katie Stark

A/N: So here we go, Part 1 of my Stark Spangled 2020 Christmas special- A Very Rogers Christmas. This one was written for For @sweater-daddiesdumbdork and @sagechanoafterdark ‘s Winter/Holiday Challenge.

Prompt- Finding the PERFECT Tree.

"Daddy, I found something else I want to ask Santa for, for Christmas." Rori bounced into the study and Steve closed his eyes on the papers he was trying to grade and sighed. "I bet you have." He mumbled before he glanced up at his daughter and couldn't help but smile at her as she skipped over to him, her long pony tail swinging behind her "What is it, Princess?" "A capybara." she said, scrambling up onto his lap. "A what?" Steve frowned. "A capybara. Look!" she turned the tablet she was holding towards him to show him a picture of the brown animal "They're like huge guinea pigs. I saw one at the zoo with Uncle Buck yesterday and when I said I wanted one he told me to tell you that I was gonna ask Santa." "Course he did." Steve sighed, mentally cursing his asshole best friend. "You know, Rori, don't think Santa can get you one of those." "Why not?" "It’s too big." He attempted “There’s nowhere for us to keep it.” "Our garden is huge!" Rori blinked at him. "And when Emmy and Petey move into the Tower he can live in the cabin." Trust her to be as damned smart as her mother. "They're wild animals honey." Steve shook his head as he tried attempt number two. "But they live in a zoo." Rori looked up at him, her face full of eager excitement “That’s not the wild.” "Yeah but that’s different." Steve reasoned patiently. "They're not like dogs or cats or regular guinea pigs. They need very special care.” "Oh." Rori looked down a little, her shoulders slumping and Steve sighed.

Fuck you, Bucky.

"Okay. Never mind." She clicked off the screen of her tablet and turned towards Steve, looking up at him with those damned green eyes. "Do you think he could get me a kitty instead?"

No, just say no… "Maybe."

Way to go, Rogers. Rori's eyes lit up and Steve inwardly groaned. It was a well-known fact in their house that whenever Dad said maybe, it meant yes. Fuck.

“I love you Daddy!” she beamed, reaching up to press a kiss to his bearded cheek before she hopped off his lap and skipped towards the door “Oh, me and momma are going to make gingerbread men for tomorrow so we can have them when we decorate the tree.”

“Can’t wait baby.” He smiled

“Are you gonna be working tomorrow afternoon?” she asked a little shyly and he shook his head.

“No, I promise.” He assured her. “All day tomorrow is family day.”

She gave him another huge smile, one that truly warmed his entire being as it made her look even more like his wife, and then headed out of the room, her feet pattering on the tiles of the hallway as she skipped back into the other part of the house. Steve exhaled and looked back down at the paper, groaning as he realised he’d lost his place. He’d been home early that afternoon hoping for more peace and quiet than he got in his office at the University to concentrate on getting through all these and for the most it had worked, until Jamie and Rori had arrived home from school full of it as usual. Katie had kept them out of his way for the most but the realisation that Christmas was well on the way had hit the eldest two and whipped them up into a fever.

Not that Steve particularly cared. He adored this time of year. It was Katie’s holiday and from the day after Thanksgiving the Christmas period started in full throttle in the Rogers household, and they’d picked tomorrow, 2 weeks before the schools broke up, to go and pick the trees for their lounge and hallway. He was a little disappointed that it hadn’t snowed yet, there had been a good covering the previous year but, still it was set to be a cold and dry day so they could still get bundled up and have their hot chocolate and snacks as usual.

He rubbed at his eyes and focussed, reading through the paper in front of him on the ‘Strategy, Diplomacy and politics of Axis and Allied forces in WW2’, wishing to God he was marking something on the course he was actually employed to teach now- Fine Arts- but all those had been done and graded last week. This was the module of History that he taught, because as the Uni said- he was a living, breathing expert.

Aparently.

An hour or so later he finished red-penning the final six paged essay, with a proud smile as that one had been particularly good and he quickly checked it over once more, making sure he’d captured all the notes on the electronic copy and queued it up to send on Monday, just like Katie had shown him how to, so that each student had the hard copy and soft copy back. He stood up, stretched, turned off his laptop and headed through to the main area of the house, the smell of baking and cooking hitting his nostrils as he went.

He walked into the kitchen to find Rori kneeling on one of the tall stools over the island-slash-breakfast bar, her hands and face smeared in pink icing as she decorated a gingerbread man, her little tongue poking out of the side of her mouth in concentration. Katie was stood supervising Harry who was also covered in frosting, this one bright green. Flossie sat in the highchair opposite, banging a spoon on the tray occasionally letting out a yell or babble of something incoherent. As soon as she saw Steve she gave a huge grin and her shouts became louder and he smiled.

“Hi Floss-Floss!” he beamed, crossing to drop a kiss to her head before he looked across at Katie “Where’s Jamie?”

“Upstairs in his room.” Katie gave a little sigh “He said, and I quote, ‘I’m ten now, far too old to decorate gingerbread, mom.’ I could have cried there and then Steve.” She finished with a pout.

Steve gave her a sympathetic smile, the fact her eldest baby boy was growing up was something he knew she hated “Yeah, I bet he won’t be too old to eat them, though.” He appeased and she smiled.

“That’s what I said.” Rori gave a dramatic roll of her eyes and Steve chuckled.

“You finished Grading?” Katie asked as she gently guided Harry’s hand over the cookie shaped like a Christmas tree.

“Yeah, all done. Sorry it took so long.”

“It’s okay.” She looked up at him, smiling “Your dinner is in the oven. I already ate with the kids. Sorry, I was starving.”

“I didn’t expect you to wait.” Steve walked over the room and dropped a kiss to her cheek. “Thanks, Sweetheart.”

He made his way over to the Aga stove and opened the door, giving a little groan when he saw she’d done his favourite, a Mac and Cheese bake laced with chicken, chorizo and broccoli. He turned to look at her and didn’t miss the flicker of a smile on her face as she knew what he was thinking, before he pulled out the plate giving a yell as it burnt his fingers, dropping it onto the side with a clatter.

“Careful daddy, hot!” Harry turned to face him, and Katie burst out laughing.

“Yeah, thanks Son.” Steve tried not to roll his eyes as he sucked his thumb. Grabbing a tea-towel he gripped the plate, found some cutlery and sat down at the table to the side of the kitchen, tucking in.

“I finished all mine, Momma.” Rori grinned, placing the tube of squeezy frosting down on the side. Steve watched as Katie moved to look over Rori’s shoulder.

“Good job sweetie.” She smiled, “Creative, I’ve never seen a pink cat before.”

Steve paused and looked at Rori as she grinned “I know they’re not really pink, and my kitty won’t be, but it can have a pink collar.”

At that he winced and hastily shoved another forkful of food into his mouth, praying that the conversation stopped there.

Katie sighed “Rori we’ve been over this, you can’t have a cat.”

“Daddy said I could.”

Shit.

Katie’s eyes shot to Steve and he gave her his best innocent look, but from the way her features grew stern he knew he was utterly busted and he swallowed the food in his mouth which turned to cement in his throat.

“No, that’s not what I said.” Steve shook his head.

“You said maybe.” Rori shrugged “Same thing.”

“We getting a kitty?” Harry asked, looking at Katie.

“No.” she shook her head.

“But I asked Daddy if Santa would bring me one and he said maybe.” Rori looked at Katie.

“Well Daddy is wrong.” She glared at Steve and he visibly shrank in his seat. Katie’s green eyes narrowed before they turned back to Rori. “Santa can’t bring live animals. It’s in the rules.”

“What rules?”

“The Christmas Rules” Katie said quickly “No live animals. It’s not fair on them. They don’t like the sleigh.”

“But…”

“No buts Rori.” Katie sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose “I’m sorry honey, but it’s not gonna happen.”

Rori pouted a little but she knew when she was beat and glanced down at the cookies on the tray before she looked up, grinning smugly. “I’ll just ask Uncle Bucky to get me one. He got me Dory.”

“Oh for the love of…” Katie spluttered “Uncle Bucky won’t get you one either.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’ll tell him not to.” Katie looked at her “We have Stark. No more animals.”

Rori folded her arms and at that point Steve stepped in, sensing an impending tantrum.

“Aurora.” He said sternly and she turned her head to face him as he pointed his fork at her. “Enough.”

She glared at him before she sighed and looked at Katie “Can I get down now please?”

Katie obliged and pulled her stool out a little allowing Rori to hop down. “Stay right there little miss.”

“Why?” Rori frowned as Katie headed to the sink, coming back with a cloth. With a groan, Rori held out her hands so Katie could wipe them clean, along with the little smear of icing on her face “20 minutes and then its bath time. We’re up early in the morning.”

“Ooh, yeah!” Rori bounced excitedly “To pick our trees. Hey, can I get one for my room?”

Katie hesitated before she shrugged “You know, I saw some in the shop that already have the lights on and they change colour. We’ll get a big one for the lounge and hallway like normal and I’ll get you a special one. And you get to keep it for next year and the year after.”

Rori pondered this for a moment before she shook her head “I want a real one from the farm.”

Katie groaned, and threw her hands out to the side “Fine, just, go and watch TV or something in the Play Room.”

“I watch TV too please, Momma?” Harry asked and Katie nodded, cleaning him up too before she lifted him down off the stool. He toddled after Rori, yelling for her to wait and as soon as they were gone Katie rounded on Steve.

“Honey, I…” he began and winced as she exploded on him.

“Seriously? A damned cat?”

“She caught me unawares.”

“She always catches you unawares!” Katie scoffed “After six, almost seven years I’d have thought you’d be used it by now.”

“I only said-“

“And as usual I’m left to be the bad guy.” Katie ranted, shaking her head as she moved to turn Flossie’s chair so she was facing the table. “You’re an asshole.”

“This is technically Bucky’s fault.”

“Oh, no, Steven Grant Rogers! Don’t you are try and blame this one on Buck.” She hissed.

“But he took her to the zoo and told her to ask for a capybara!” Steve practically whined “When I said no she asked for a cat, the maybe just slipped out.” Katie paused, her arms folded, face furious and Steve peered up at her giving her a little smile “Don’t be mad, come on baby. I didn’t mean it.”

“You’re still an asshole.” She grumbled, before she crossed to the fridge and pulled out the wine. “And for that you can deal with bedtime. I’m going for a bath.”

“Sure, not a problem.” Steve nodded, swallowing more of his food. Katie poured herself a large glass before she moved to put the bottle back and then changed her mind. With the bottle in one hand, full glass in the other she made for the door. “I love you.” Steve shot as she passed him, and despite her annoyed demeanour, the slight smile that played on her face told him he wasn’t in too much trouble.

****

All kids were bathed and in bed little over an hour later. The youngest three settled down to sleep, Jamie instructed he had an hour of TV or reading time before lights off.

“Ok Dad.” He nodded, running his hand through his hair as he tidied up his games console a little, Stark curled up on the bed.

“I’ll be in to check.” Steve looked at him, and Jamie rolled his eyes.

“Yeah, I got it. You can trust me.”

“I know.” Steve gave a chuckle “Night son.” He crossed the room to drop a kiss to his head and Jamie pushed him away.

“Gerroff, I’m ten.”

“Yeah, well, you’re still my kid so…” Steve grumbled, and Jamie burst into laughter as the pair of them began to play fight, Jamie digging Steve in the ribs with a well-aimed jab. “Ouch! “ Steve stood up, rubbing at his side, that had hurt a little too much for his liking. “Nice shot.”

“Bucky said I had a good right hook.”

Steve rolled his eyes “I don’t wanna know how he even found that out.”

“He has a punch bag in the garage.” Jamie shrugged as he flopped down onto his bed. “Like yours. He was teaching me to swing.”

“I could teach you that.” Steve replied, a little petulantly.

“Will you?”

“No. You’re ten.” He shot back and Jamie let out a groan of frustration, before Steve chuckled “Ok, I’ll teach you a little IF you promise not to use it anywhere but on the punch bag.”

“But what if I need to use it?”

“Well, that’s different.” Steve pondered, before he shook his head. “But you’re far too young to be getting into situations like that.”

“Uncle Buck said you were fighting people form the age of six. And getting your ass kicked.”

“Well, you do as I say…”

“Not as I do, yeah I got it.” Jamie grinned and Steve arched an eyebrow before he made his way to the door. He paused and turned back to look at his son, not for the first time taking in how damned tall and broad he was for his age. He pointed to Stark “Don’t let your mother catch him on the bed.”

“You know she says the same thing about you.” Jamie looked at him and Steve chuckled.

“I do, but let’s just pretend I don’t okay?”

“Okay, night dad. Love you.”

“Love you too.” Steve smiled, closing the door behind him.

He made his way back downstairs and into the lounge, and paused as he saw Katie talking into the laptop, her eyes brimming with tears.

“Don’t worry about it.” She said softly, and he could tell she was fighting to keep her face straight as Emmy’s voice came from the other side.

“I’m just gutted we can’t get home to come with you guys for the tree.”

“What’s going on?” Steve frowned as he sat next to Katie on the sofa, looking at Emmy and Peter as they both waved to him on the screen “Hey Kids.”

“The UK has been caught up in a huge snow storm.” Katie turned to him. “Their flight has been cancelled.”

“Bummer.” Steve’s frown deepened “Is there nothing from another airport?”

“Not in London.” Emmy shook her head “And the roads are that bad, even if we managed somewhere else…”

“Don’t wanna risk driving Mr R.” Pete shrugged and Steve had to give it to him, that was a sensible move.

“Wise decision.” Steve bit his lip, before he turned to Katie “Can we not get The Stark jet over? You guys should have used that anyway, not gone commercial.”

The irony of his statement didn’t pass him by, as there’d been a time when he had hated using a private jet as he felt it was ostentatious, but he’d fast learned to live with it as it was less hassle and a damned sight comfier and quicker too.

“I told you we didn’t want to.” Emmy shot back and Peter hastily cut in to prevent an argument.

“Already tried Happy before we called. He can’t get in any airfield be it private or other. I’m really sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.” Katie shook her head “If you need anything just call. Have you got a place to stay?”

“Yeah, The Savoy found us another room.” Emmy shrugged before she grimaced “I’m gonna have to put it on my credit card though.”

“Don’t worry about that.” Katie shook her head “Just do what you gotta do, we’ll sort the bill out. Do you need us to wire you some cash or-“

“No, we’ve got enough between us for that.” Pete smiled “Just the hotel. We could get somewhere cheaper if that’s-“

“If it’s that bad out there you can stay where you are.” Steve shook his head. “Don’t worry about the money kids, it’s not important.”

“Just call us if you need anything.” Katie added.

“Thanks Mom. Look, we’re gonna go try and get something to eat and then sleep” Emmy sighed “It’s past 1 am now.”

“Sure, call us tomorrow okay, keep us updated.” Steve instructed and Emmy nodded.

“Will do. Love you both.”

“And you.” Katie smiled “Stay safe, and look after each other.”

“Got it.” Emmy grinned and with that she blew them both a kiss as Peter waved and the screen went blank.

Katie bit her lip before she tapped at the keyboard of her laptop “I’m going to send her some money, just in case. I know she has plenty in her savings, but…”

Steve nodded “Good idea. Those are for a rainy day, not a snowy one.”

Katie gave a small smile as she logged into the banking, and hesitated before she transferred a few thousand over to Emmy and closed the laptop, running her hands over her face. Steve saw her shouldes shake and he gave a sigh, pulling her to him.

“Hey, come on. They’re safe. In the poshest hotel known to man.” He pressed a kiss to her head “No doubt thinking this is some kind of huge romantic adventure. Snowed in, in London, with a mini-bar, room service.”

At that thought he grimaced, as his mind took him to a very dark place about just exactly what the spider kid would be doing to his daughter in said hotel room but he shook himself out of it as Katie spoke, sniffling a little.

“I know it’s just, well we started this tradition with Emmy that first Christmas she lived with us.” Her voice cracked “We went with Tony, Pep and Nat remember?”

“I could I forget.” Steve chuckled, his hands rubbing Katie’s back “You were almost five months pregnant and had that jumper on with a huge Christmas pudding on the front.”

“I’ve still got that.” Her voice was muffled as her face pressed into his Henley.

“And Pepper was going mad when Tony bought that nine foot tree for their lounge.”

“Ours wasn’t much smaller.” Katie laughed, leaning back to wipe her eyes. “You had to trim the top off.”

Steve chuckled, his hands cupping her face “A few days after that we found out bump was blue. Hello Jamie.”

“God it seems so long ago.”

“It was.” Steve smiled pressing a kiss to her lips. “11 years.”

“Yeah.” Katie looked at him “We’ve been through a lot since then.”

Steve nodded, as he wiped her face with his thumbs “And a lot worse than this. I know it’s disappointing, kitten, and I’m gutted as well, but it can’t be helped. We’ll still have a good time and we can go out with Emmy and Peter when they get back, nice meal and a few drinks somewhere instead, just the four of us. Start a new tradition now she’s all grown up.”

“Yeah suppose.” Katie sighed “I mean when they moved out in the New Year, they might not wanna come with us to get a tree anymore.”

“Like that’s gonna happen.” Steve snorted “She’ll simply be getting one for her own place. You know she loves Christmas as much as you. All the kids do. Because you make it so special.”

“It isn’t all down to me.” She smiled “You help.”

“It’s definitely your speciality.” Steve shook his head “You do the baking, the carols, the cooking…suss the decorations out.”

“Yeah, but you hang them. And you’re the one that started leaving Santa footprints by the hearth.”

“Okay so it’s a team effort.” Steve shrugged, dropping another kiss to her lips. “It always is when the kids are concerned.” He pulled back a little and nodded to her glass “You want another?”

“I wasn’t going to but yeah, now I do.”

Steve chuckled “I’ll go get us a drink, you find us something suitably Christmassy to watch.”

He stood, pressing his lips to the crown of Katie’s head before he wandered into the kitchen. As he closed the door behind him he pulled out his phone. He’d had an idea, but hadn’t wanted to mention it to Katie just in case it didn’t work…but if it did, well, he was going to reunite his family for their tradition and earn himself major husband points.

Win win situation.

“Hey punk.” Bucky drawled as he picked up.“What’s crackalackin?”

“God you talk some shit.” Steve rolled his eyes and Bucky laughed

“Sorry, we were watching Madagascar.”

“Yeah, I know where it’s from. I got five kids, remember. Six if I count you.”

“Well you could argue Diva Doll counts for two so you really have seven.”

“Yeah, speaking of which, I got a bone to pick with you about her and a damned capybara.” Steve narrowed his eyes as he spoke and there was a pause before Bucky burst out laughing. “Yeah, laugh it up, jerk. That got me in some major shit before.”

“You didn’t say yes?”

“No of course I didn’t.” Steve sighed “But she sideswiped me asking for a damned cat and I said maybe, so…”

“You fucking moron.”

“Whatever, listen, that’s not why I’m calling anyway.” Steve sighed, his voice growing serious. “I need a favour, Buck.”

“I’m listening.” Bucky replied, before Steve explained the predicament and possible solution. When he finished there was a pause and Bucky let out a long whistle. “Man, that’s…”

“I know, I know.” Steve sighed “But I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t desperate. Katie’s heartbroken Emmy can’t get home.”

“Well, we can’t have the second most important woman in my life upset now can we?” Bucky replied “Leave it with me.”

“Cheers buddy.”

“You’ll owe me a life time of favours if I can pull this off.”

“We’ll call it quits for you almost getting me couched.”

“Not my fault you can’t say no to your likkle Princessa.” Bucky responded and Steve snorted.

“You’ve met her, right?”

There as another pause and Bucky laughed “Point taken.”

“Not a word to Katie.” Steve instructed “Just in case you can’t do it.”

“You seriously doubt me after all this time?” Bucky sighed “That hurts Stevie.”

“You know what else will hurt?” Steve shot back “My foot up your ass.”

“You want me to do this or not?” Bucky scoffed “Because threatening me aint gonna make me wanna do you any favours.”

“No but not wanting to see my wife upset is.”

“You fight dirty, Steven.” Bucky’s voice was low and Steve could imagine the narrowed eyes he was pulling as he spoke. “Okay, I’ll call Sam now. Leave it with me.”

“Thanks Buck.”

Steve cut the call and stuffed his phone back in his pocket, running a hand over his beard. Buck was right, it was a big ask and ridiculously over the top but, well, nothing was too much for him where his family was concerned. And after everything they’d been through this year what with Flossie’s horrific birth and Katie’s post-partum depression, his amazingly brave and gorgeous wife deserved the damned world. With a sigh he yanked open the fridge as he pulled out Katie’s wine and a beer for him, simply hoping that it worked.

**** “You good?” Steve asked as Jamie hopped into the back of the Q7, taking his place on the rear row of seats.

“Yup.” Jamie grinned “I prefer it back here, Rori can’t bug me.”

“Wanna bet?” Rori turned her head and peered at him from her place in the middle of the second row and Steve shot her a look.

“Enough. I hear one sound outta you that’s annoying him, we’re coming straight home.” He said sternly. Rori eyed him shrewdly, as if weighing up whether he was serious or not and he raised his eyebrows, challenging her.

“Ok Daddy.” She shrugged, turning back round. Steve shot Jamie a wink as turned and collapsed Flossie’s little stroller. He slotted it down the side of Jamie’s seat before he shut the trunk and then quickly inspected the roof rack. Satisfied he looked up just as Katie came out of the house, Flossie on her hip, Harry jumping down the steps in front of her. He headed over to his dad and peeked up, Steve giving a laugh as his little woollen hat slipped down over his eyes.

“Come here, buddy.” He said, swinging him into his arms. The little boy gave a giggle as Steve pulled his hat straight so he could see.

“Thanks Daddy!” he smiled and Steve pressed a kiss to his rosy cheek.

“No problem. You ready to get a tree?”

He nodded “Big one!” he threw his arms out wide and Steve nodded seriously.

“The biggest.”

Ten minutes or so later they were sailing out of Brooklyn in the winter morning sun, heading for the tree farm some forty or so minutes away. True to her word, Rori was behaving and chatting to Harry, Jamie was quiet in the back doing something on his tablet and Katie was gently humming to something on the radio. Steve’s hand reached over for hers and he entwined their fingers, gently bringing her arm across his body, pressing a kiss to her wrist.

The journey pass uneventfully and as Steve announced they had arrived the kids all gave a cheer. He parked the car up and then the disembarking began along with issued orders for Jamie and Rori to stay where they were as they sorted the youngest two.

“I think I’ll just carry Floss.” Katie glanced around. “Pushing her stroller is gonna be a pain. I’ll put her in the carrier.”

“You sure?” Steve asked “I would say I’d do it but…”

“You’re gonna be carrying trees, yeah I know.” Katie waved him away. “Its fine, she’s not heavy. Besides, she’ll be too big to do this with next year.”

Steve smiled at her wistful tone, and between them they had Flossie strapped to Katie’s back in no time, having become experts at it over the years. Katie glanced over her shoulder as Flossie gave her a hug grin, before she peeked around and started to gabble animatedly.

“Ready?” Steve looked around and held the hand that wasn’t containing the saw out, Rori taking it as Katie took Harry’s, Jamie falling into step at her other side next to Steve who strategically placed himself between his eldest son and Rori to avoid any potential arguments between the two siblings.

“Want me to take that Dad?” Jamie asked, nodding to the saw. Steve hesitated then shrugged, it had the safety cover on so he handed it over, Jamie slinging it over his shoulder proudly, stepping in front of them a little and Harry wriggled his hand free of Katie’s and ran forward to take Jamie’s. Jamie smiled down at him and Steve shared a glance with Katie as she smiled at him, slipping her hand into his. The family made their way to the entrance and as they approached the various little trade stands, one of which was selling various hot drinks and baked snacks. Katie took a deep breath and smiled, the warming scents of spices, cinnamon and pine hitting her nostrils.

“Smells exactly the same.” She beamed and then frowned as Steve was looking around, blatantly not listening to her as he was busy studying something to their right.

“Hey!” she tugged on his hand and he glanced down at her.

“Sorry, honey.” He diverted his attention “Just saw someone I know.”

“Oh, from work?” she asked.

“Not exactly.” He nodded in the direction he had been looking and Katie spun at the same time Rori let out a shriek.

“Emmy!” she yelled, wrenching her hand free of Steve’s and bolting towards her sister as she strode towards them alongside Peter, Bucky and Sam.

“I don’t-how?” Katie was struggling for words at the sheer emotion of seeing her eldest daughter, who should still be stranded in England, sweeping Rori into hug. “Steve? What?”

“You got Bucky and Sam to thank.” He said gently, as she spun between them all, before she strode forward meeting Emmy halfway and throwing her arms around her.

“Hey mom!” Emmy smiled, before she pulled back and gently waggled Flossie’s hand. “Hi Floss!”

“How did you get here?” Katie sniffed, wiping her eyes, chuckling before she gave Pete a hug.

“Quinjet.” Emmy grinned “It was awesome. Hey Dad!”

“Hey, sweetheart.” Steve swept her up into a huge hug, picking her up slightly off the ground kissing her head. “Nice to have you home.”

“Hold up, a Quinjet?” Katie looked at Emmy, then to Bucky who shrugged.

“Yeah well Steve rang me last night begging for my help…” he began, putting on a whiney voice “Please Buck, I can’t do this without you Buck, you know the usual.” Steve rolled his eyes as Bucky sniggered. “So, me and Birdbrain set off on a daring rescue mission.”

“Yeah, we totally used and abused Fury’s equipment.” Sam chuckled, as he pressed a kiss to Katie’s cheek as he gave her a hug. “He’s gonna be pissed when he finds out.”

“Oh, screw him!” Katie gave a laugh as she turned to Bucky, wrapping her arms round him. “Thank you so much!”

“Anything for you darlin’” he beamed before she stepped back and spun to face Steve, reaching up and grabbing his face. With a smile she pulled him down to meet her in a long, deep kiss.

“Thank you.” She whispered against his lips, and he beamed at her, his nose brushing hers. “I love you, so much.”

“Love you too.” He smiled, before he drew himself up, a little embarrassed at their PDA in front of his two friends and the kids. “Right, who’s ready to go tree picking?”

“We’ll leave you to it.” Bucky smirked as various excited shouts rang out around them. “I’ve got stuff to do with Jen and Sam’s…ahhhh, crap.” The smile on his face turned into a grimace and Steve spun round to see a familiar figure in a trench coat and eyepatch stood by a black SUV watching from a distance.

“Son of a-” Steve snorted, shaking his head as Fury started walking towards of them. “He still knows everything.”

“You have no idea. “Sam muttered.

“Oh, trust me, we do.” Katie grinned as Fury stopped in front of them.

“Someone wanna tell me why one of my jets was in London this morning?” Fury looked at Bucky, then to Sam, then to Peter, all three of them giving him an innocent look.

“Well, there was a thing.” Bucky shrugged “Emergency.”

“Emergency.” Fury dead panned “So nothing to do with a certain Miss Rogers and Mr Parker being stuck in London in snow storm?”

“How do you know this stuff?” Bucky looked at him.

“I told you Barnes, you wanna get one up on me you gotta keep both eyes open.” He levelled him with a look. “Happy called me in a flap to see if I could action a pick up and I told him I wasn’t running a damned Uber service. And then one of them went missing so I put two and two together and looks like I came up with four” He paused and shrugged, smirking a little “Plus, you forgot to wipe the mission log.”

“Damned it Tin Man!” Sam shoved Bucky “You dick, I told you!”

As the two men began to squabble Fury raised his eyebrows and turned to Steve and then Katie, a small smile flickered across his face “Nova, Cap. Long-time no see.”

“Hi Nick.” Steve smiled, reaching out and shaking his hand.

Fury jerked his head as Katie shook his hand, his eyes roving over each of their kids in turn. “I’ll say. You’ve been busy I see.”

Katie gave a huff “One way of putting it.”

Nick arched an eyebrow before he sighed and turned to Bucky and Sam who were still bickering. “Imma let this one slide.” He spoke loudly, the two men instantly turning to face him. “But only because it’s the holidays and I’m in a good mood.”

“You know technically Stark Industries owns half those jets. Tony paid for and designed a lot of the tech on them after all.” Katie quipped and Nick looked at her, before he let out a laugh.

“You’re more like your brother than you’ll ever care to admit” he shook his head as she snorted, pointing at her.

“Worse people to be like.” She smiled fondly, and Fury gave one last scoff before he turned to Sam and Bucky.

“I’ll see you two later. Now, imma go get me some churros then split.” He looked back at them all “Merry Christmas.”

As they all waved him off, watching the curious glances he attracted as he strode towards the hot food stand and then Harry tugged on Steve’s sleeve, causing him to turn his attention from Fury to the little boy.

“Daddy, who’s the pirate?” Harry asked.

There was a pause before Katie burst out laughing, Steve following suite as they both shared a knowing glance, remembering Tony’s fond little nickname for their one time director.

The Goth Pirate.

“He’s an old friend of mine and your momma’s “Steve explained before he glanced up, not surprised to find that once more Fury had disappeared from sight. “We haven’t seen him in a while. And I doubt we will again for a long time.”

There were more hugs shared and after another final thank you to Sam and Bucky, Katie demanding they come over later for drinks, the four remaining adults and four kids all headed into the farm and the chaos began as they began to scout for their perfect trees.

“So we need two large ones.” Katie spoke, “And one for Emmy and Pete in the Cabin and a smaller one for Rori’s room.” she paused “Jamie, did you want one for your room too?”

“Nah, it’s okay.” He shook his head “Thanks though.”

“So four over all.” Steve nodded. “Okay gang, let’s find us some trees.”

They decided to get Rori’s first as it would be smaller and easier to carry once they’d picked it. They set about walking down the various aisles, and before long the jokes started flowing and they were getting worse and worse with time.

“What would you get if you ate the Christmas decorations?” Pete asked and Jamie looked at him, arching a brow. “Tinselitis.”

“Oh God.” Emmy snorted “That’s as bad as one of dad’s”

“Which reminds me.” Steve said, a smirk on his face, “Did you guys hear the forecast for Christmas eve? They’re predicting rain, deer…”

Katie and Emmy both let out a groan as Jamie and Peter howled with laughter.

“What do you call an elf that runs away from Santa’s workshop?” Jamie asked and Steve paused before he shrugged.

“No idea.”

“A rebel without a Clause…”

Katie, Steve, Emmy and Pete burst out laughing as Pete held out his hand to hi-five him. Jamie grinned.

“That’s a good one buddy.” Steve chuckled. “Where did you hear that?”

“Moo text me before.” He smiled “She said her and Auntie Pep had been googling them to put in their cards this year.”

“Like Father like daughter.” Katie smiled to herself, a little nostalgically as a memory of her brother crashed over her and Steve pulled her a little closer, his hand tightening on hers as he dropped a kiss to her head.

After half an hour or so of scouting and plenty of excited shouts and laughter, Rori paused in front of a tree that was the same height as her and she gave a gasp.

“Daddy, that one.” She pointed.

“You sure?” he cocked his head to one side. The tree was leaning to one side, the branches completely uneven, sticking out at all angles and the top was bent. “It’s a bit-”

“It’s perfect.” Rori insisted.

“Okay Princess, whatever you say.” He looked at Katie as she smiled, her hand dropping to the back of Rori’s head. “Jamie, you got the saw?”

“Yup.” Jamie nodded, passing it over and they all watched as Steve gripped the trunk of the small tree with one hand a little higher up and began to cut it towards the bottom. He could have easily snapped the trunk with his bare hands but he played the part and in four strong swipes it pulled free with a little crack and Rori gave a shriek and clapped her hands.

“I love it!”

Once the safety cover was back on the saw they continued their search, walking towards the slightly bigger trees they spotted and Katie paused in front of a large, Norwegian spruce and reached out, gently crushing one of the needles between her fingers. She took a sniff and stepped back, nodding.

“That one.”

“I still can’t believe you pick them with the smell.” Steve shook his head.

“It’s not all the smell.” She protested “There’s a lot to consider. The height, width and spacing of the branches…this one’s just right for the corner in the lounge. And that one two down will do for the hallway.”

Steve chuckled, knowing better than to argue. “Positive?”

Katie nodded and once more Jamie passed him the saw. This time they all stepped back as Steve crouched down on the ground, expertly cutting the trunk and just the right place. As he took the final swipe, the tree pitched over to a loud shout of “Timberrrrr” from Jamie and Peter and it landed with a thud.

Harry gave a loud cackle and clapped, Flossie shrieking too as Steve then moved two down and repeated the action with a slightly smaller one that would sit in the entrance lounge directly in front of the photo of the pair of them at their wedding, so it would be the first thing anyone saw as they walked into the house.

Emmy strode past the tree to one that was behind it and then nodded to Pete “I think this one will do. I kinda like the way it fans out at the bottom.”

“Sure, Em.” He smiled “Mr R?”

“Oh, here.” Steve handed him the saw and watched as Pete cut his and Emmy’s first Christmas tree down, his arm round Katie’s waist, lips softly kissing Flossie’s cheek as the baby grinned. He arched an eyebrow as Emmy pressed a kiss to Pete’s lips, giving a soft huff as Katie dug him in the ribs, shooting him a warning glance which he returned with an innocent one of his own.

“Well, that was easy.” Emmy commented “It took us 2 hours last year.”

“They need to be right.” Katie shrugged simply, Steve and Emmy exchanging a look before Steve watched as Pete hoisted his tree easily onto his shoulder. It still surprised Steve how strong Peter was, even though it shouldn’t, he knew he was enhanced after all.

“I’ll take Rori’s, Dad.” Jamie stepped forwards, puffing his chest out a little, picking the smaller tree up easily and placing it on his shoulder, in an identical manner to Pete. Steve actively fought the urge to laugh as Jamie began to walk besides Peter and Emmy, clearly proud as punch at being able to help before he turned to Katie.

“Don’t say it.”

Katie laughed “Oh I’m gonna.” she smirked “If he was any more like you I’d be convinced he was a clone.”

Steve snorted as he bent down and easily lifted their two trees onto his shoulders, before they followed a little slower due to Harry being with them. Steve maneuvered around the other tree pickers as they went, his boot clad feet traipsing on the damp of the ground as they made their way back towards the main entrance and joined Pete, Emmy and Jamie at the place ready to pay. As the various helpers, all dressed in little Elf outfits bustled around to wrap their trees and strap them to the roof of the Audi, Katie was suddenly struck with a little problem.

“Hang on.” she turned to Emmy as she thanked the man who’d been dealing with and handed over the cash. “How are you two gonna get home if Bucky and Sam left?”

At that Pete gave a little grin and pulled a set of keys out of his pocket, “Mr Wilson let me borrow his Chevvy.”

“Yeah they went home on Buck’s bike.” Emmy shrugged and at that Steve let out a huge laugh.

“What?” Katie asked.

“Sorry, I’m just picturing those two riding pillion.” He snorted “I give it five minutes before Sam ended up tells Buck to let him off on account of him driving his Ducatti like a maniac.”

“You’ve no room to talk.” Katie scoffed and Steve looked at her with mock outrage.

“Mom?” Jamie asked and Katie turned to him “Can we get a drink now please?”

“Sure, come on.” She smiled and they headed over to the stall. She purchased a hot cider each for her, Steve, Emmy and Pete before hot chocolate for each of the kids along with a selection of donuts, churros and Stollen as Steve took Flossie back to the car so they could pop her in the stroller. They made their way over to one of the benches by the side and sat down and Steve returned, parking Flossie besides them before he handed her a piece of a donut and slipped his arm round Katie, pressing a kiss to her cheek.

“You have a good time?” he asked.

“Yeah.” She beamed, before she glanced over at the other side of the bench. Jamie was settled to Emmy’s left, talking to her about school, as she nodded along whilst Rori was perched on Peter’s knee as she animatedly told him about how she was going to decorate her tree in unicorn colours. Harry meanwhile sat in between both Pete and Emmy, his little frame chewing on a donut as he grinned at his parents who smiled back. Katie turned to look a Steve again, leaning up to kiss him softly “It’s been perfect, thank you for making sure we were all together.”

“Well it wouldn’t be a Rogers Christmas otherwise would it?” he smiled, kissing her again.

“Get a room.” Emmy grumbled and Steve turned to her as she smirked, shoving a piece of donut in her mouth.

“Watch it young lady.” Steve pointed at her.

“Daddy.” Rori asked “Can I go with Pete in their car to Target? I need decorations for my Princess Tree.”

Steve hesitated for a while and Pete hastily cut in “It’s no bother Mr Rogers.”

“Yeah we need some for ours.” Emmy nodded.”So we’re going anyway.”

“I come too?” Harry asked hopefully and Emmy shrugged

“If Momma and Daddy say it’s ok, course you can, squirt.”

Steve looked at Katie who shrugged “Fine by me. Sure you can manage them?”

Emmy rolled her eyes “They’re no bother.” She then turned to Jamie “You wanna come too?”

“Hell no.” he said hastily, peering round at Rori before he shook his head “I’m going home for some peace and quiet.”

Both Steve and Katie let out a loud laugh, as Katie shook her head “Oh Jamie.”

“What?” he frowned.

“Nothing pal.” Steve smiled, reaching for his cider. “Nothing at all.”

#stark spangled forever #ssholidaychallenge #steve rogers #katie stark #steve rogers x ofc #steve rogers x original female character

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shortkingzuko · 4 years

Text

title: carving out a life together

relationship: bato/hakoda

warnings: mentions of canon injuries and death, non-graphic animal death

summary: Of course, it’s Katara who brings it up, ever the romantic that she is. It’s the evening, with the bulk of the day’s work done, the remainder being tomorrow’s problem, and Hakoda is sitting in front of the fire in his home, enjoying a pleasant conversation with his daughter while they wait for Bato to return from his work, when Katara, suddenly and without preamble asks, “So when are you and Bato getting married?”

(my late submission for the final day of @bakodafleetweek, prompt: wedding [but.. barely lmao])

read under the cut or on AO3 for the full list of tags + notes

After their many years of pining, silent affection, tentative touches, their eventual confessions, Hakoda and Bato found that they didn’t quite know where to go from here. In the two years since the war ended - an impossible fact that never lost its dreamlike quality when Hakoda thinks about it - the two men have fallen into an easy routine, characterized by early mornings and kisses softer than their battle-harden bodies ever thought possible, by meals shared in the comfort of their own home, and by long days coming to an end when they were able to wrap their arms around each other in bed.

Being with Bato, Hakoda often thinks, feels natural and right, like slipping into his favourite parka; it fits so perfectly that he barely thinks about it, until he contemplates wearing anything else, and then he appreciates its' comfort all the more.

He knows that Bato has harboured feelings for him since they were children, no older than Katara was now, and while he never expressed it freely, Hakoda had always known, in some way. The way that Bato would roll his eyes but still laugh at all his jokes early on, the way that Bato would drop everything whenever Hakoda asked, the way that Bato was dedicated, devoted, to him like no one else - bar Kya - gave it away. It wasn’t hard to accept that Bato loved him, as Hakoda knew that if Bato ever loved anyone else, he would feel a sense of loss and sadness, mixed with the joy of seeing his friend being happy and in love.

It had been harder to come to terms with his own feelings, even years after Kya’s death. Hakoda knew there would always be a piece of his heart dedicated just to her, a love that only she had, but as time went on, he (re)discovered his feelings for his friend, falling in love with his dry wit, his deep voice, the way that would smile whenever he caught Hakoda’s eyes.

During the war, it was easy to rationalize his growing desire to be near Bato at all times, to share a tent with him, to be close enough that at any point he could reach over and place a hand on the taller man’s arm. It was safety, Hakoda remembers telling himself before he finally got his shit together, it was for safety and because he wanted to make sure his friend was okay at all times. And yeah, maybe that was a small part of it, but mostly it was because he enjoyed being close to Bato, revelled in feeling his warmth against his side, in being able to hear the rumble from his chest as he spoke, and from being able to link pinkies with him at a moment’s notice.

Bato always seemed to know Hakoda better than he knew himself because he would just look at Hakoda whenever he initiated an unnecessary touch, and smile coyly, before looking away. He never commented on what Hakoda was doing, until one night in their tent he reached across their sleeping rolls, and placed a gentle hand on top of Hakoda’s. When he didn’t pull away, Bato shifted slightly, laced their fingers together, before whispering, “Goodnight, Koda.”

And they had fallen asleep like that, though Hakoda had spent what felt like hours just memorizing the warmth that he felt, the feeling of Bato’s rough skin behind his calloused fingers, how tenderly and gently Bato’s grip was, and how it loosened even more as he fell asleep. During the night, of course, they had both moved and their hands had separated, but the knowledge of the night before was enough for them, and they spent many more nights falling asleep like that. Eventually, under the gist of doing an impromptu patrol, Hakoda and taken Bato outside the camp, and under trees taller than they could have ever imagined, Hakoda reached for Bato's hand in the daylight. He laced their fingers together, before leaning up - and, to his slight embarrassment, Bato had to hunch down - and pressing a kiss against Bato's chapped lips. They had returned to camp soon after, and if they held hands at dinner, then no one mentioned it.

There were bumps that they hit, as one might expect, considering that they were in a war, that Bato was Hakoda’s second-in-command, and considering that Hakoda was entering the relationship as a widower with two children. Though Sokka and Katara both knew Bato well - the man had taken them ice dodging! - and loved him like an uncle, or even as a second dad, they were still confused, shocked, and a little bit hurt when Hakoda had finally sat them down after the comet, and with one hand on each of their knees, Bato sitting stiff as a board next to him, that he and Bato were dating.

In the two years that passed, any apprehension that his children carried has melted away to easy acceptance and happy neutrality at seeing their father sharing his life with a man that made him smile in a way that they hadn’t seen in years. They roll their eyes at the sight of Bato and Hakoda holding hands as they walk around their under-construction village, when they see their father leaning up to press a quick kiss to Bato’s chin, and when they see Bato sporting matching beads in his hair as Hakoda.

The two years since the end of the war seem to fly by, with Hakoda and Bato learning to readjust to life that isn’t constantly under threat. He’s happy to be with Bato, happy that for once, everything is simple and happy that he and his partner can just go with the flow for once.

Of course, it’s Katara who brings it up, ever the romantic that she is. It’s been about a month since Hakoda and Bato’s anniversary, a date which is vague at the best of times and which had no formal celebration, though the dinner that night was more fanciful than usual, that was due to Katara and Sokka’s friends visiting, saying farewell as Katara and Sokka were needed in the village for the upcoming winter months.

It’s the evening, with the bulk of the day’s work done, the remainder being tomorrow’s problem, and Hakoda is sitting in front of the fire in his home, enjoying a pleasant conversation with his daughter while they wait for Bato to return from his work, when Katara, suddenly and without preamble asks, “So when are you and Bato getting married?”

If Hakoda had been drinking anything, he would have spat it out. Instead, he blinks a few times, before asking, “What?”

“When are you getting married?” She repeats. “You guys have been together for a few years now, right? Are you planning on getting married?”

“Uh,” Hakoda is still trying to gather himself from the whiplash that the conversation has given him. “We weren’t… we haven’t talked about it?”

Katara hums, and fiddles with her necklace. It’s not a move that goes unnoticed.

“Do you want us to get married?” Hakoda thinks for a moment then corrects himself. “Would you be okay if we got married? If I got married?”

Hakoda knows that in theory, his daughter wants him to be happy, she wants Bato to be happy. But, he knows Katara still has complicated emotions over Kya, still misses her deeply, and that her wanting them to be happy was different than her feeling comfortable with her dad marrying someone else.

Sokka, Hakoda knows, harbours somewhat similar feelings, though he leans more towards the opinion that Kya would have wanted her two best friends to be happy, would have wanted his dad to find love again, and if nothing else, Sokka has a few more years worth of memories of Bato being around and taking care of them.

Katara lets go of her necklace and sighs. “I don’t know.” She looks a bit surprised at her own honesty. “I guess? I want you to be happy, and I know now that you’ll always love mom and that Bato isn’t trying to replace her, but, it’s just…”

“Weird?” Hakoda offers.

Katara shrugs. “Yeah. It’s a little weird.”

They sit in a silence of understanding for a few moments before Hakoda clears his throat. “Well, as I said, Bato and I haven’t spoken about marriage yet, but if we do then I’ll check with you and Sokka first, okay?” Hakoda waits until Katara meets his gaze again. “I’m not going to do anything that hurts you.”

Katara smiles, a little watery, before leaning over and giving Hakoda a brief hug.

It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy because, after that conversation with Katara, the topic of marriage keeps appearing in his thoughts. Really, there’s nothing tangible that they can gain from getting married. There are no illusions of virtue that they need to maintain - after all, Hakoda has two children and no one has ever accused Bato of celibacy - and they already live together, Bato not even attempting to rebuild his previously destroyed igloo when they arrived home.

Hakoda thinks of his own engagement to Kya, how he had to humble himself in front of her parents to get their blessing, how he had worked so hard leading up to that point to prove that he would be a good husband, that he could provide for them and make her happy, how he spent so many nights carving designs into whalebone before Kanna eventually gave him her necklace to gift. It had been terrifying, anxiety-inducing and wonderful, the mixture of confidence and worry that he felt every time he looked at his half-finished carving and every time there was a moment with Kya where he thought, “ This is it!”

Bato doesn’t have parents anymore, nor does he have any other family members that Hakoda could ask to give him their blessing. If Bato was interested in marrying Hakoda, they already know that Kanna would give them her blessing easily, even casually. They have nothing to prove to one another; they’ve been to war together, have hunted together for years, and even with Bato’s scarred arm and the slight limp that Hakoda has gained, it’s clear to both of them that they can provide for one another.

Hakoda knows that they would have no issue getting the tribe to acknowledge their marriage, arguably the most important part of the wedding ceremony. Half the children in the village already refer to Bato as ‘Chief’, ignoring the slight smile and correction from Bato and their parents that technically that’s not his title. And considering that no one has even tried to set Bato up with one of the nice Northerners that blush when he makes eye contact with them, and the fact that some of the adults in the village - the ones that remember how long Bato’s been pining after Hakoda, the way that he used to go out of his way to spend time with him and his family, despite his self-proclaimed dislike of babies - have been asking if they’re going to be seeing any tall, dark-haired, strong-jawed children anytime soon, well, it’s pretty obvious that everyone has already written Bato and Hakoda off as a forever thing.

Hakoda is pretty sure that they’re right.

He knows that he should actually talk to Bato about this, instead of just bouncing the thought around in his head, weighing the pros and cons of marriage before he’s even found out if Bato wants to get married. They’re pretty happy as is, Hakoda thinks, as he braids Bato’s hair in the morning, making sure not to pull too tightly as he threads the strands through beads that match his own. Bato has never liked too much fuss, has always been a little more private and withdrawn than Hakoda; maybe he would think that a wedding would just be a waste of time, too many people getting involved in their private business. It’s always a balancing act with Bato, between him wanting to show that he’s in love, that he is loved by the man that he’s been pining after for years, the desire to show slight affection with him in public, and his discomfort of being so open, so obvious to the public eye. It’s a balance that Hakoda isn’t always perfect at maintaining - sometimes pushing Bato too far when he pulls his down to kiss him at the end of council meetings, or when he introduces Bato as ‘his partner’ first, instead of ‘second-in-command’ - but it’s a balance that he’s always ecstatic to try and perfect and maintain.

Finally, weeks after his talk with Katara, as he’s rubbing soothing balm into Bato’s shoulder, he asks, “Bato?”

Bato hums. “Yes, Koda?”

“Ever thought about getting married?”

Bato turns his head to look at Hakoda, eyebrows furrowed. “If this is you asking, this is a terrible proposal, so the answer is no.”

Hakoda laughs and shakes his head. “No, no, not a proposal, I’m just. Wondering, I guess, if you ever thought about marriage or…. Or kids? The future, I guess.”

Children are a touchy subject, he knows, but he might as well get all the awkward conversation out of the way now.

Bato’s answer is immediate. “We are not having any more kids, Sokka and Katara are more than enough and they’re not even mine.”

“You know that’s not totally true,” Hakoda mumbles. Bato smiles a bit at that, reaches across his chest to lay a hand on Hakoda’s forearm.

“Besides, I’m getting old , Hakoda, I don’t even think I could… have a kid,” He levels a look with Hakoda, trying to put the emphasis on the right words so that Hakoda knows what he’s trying to say. It works, and briefly, Hakoda remembers back to Bato’s youth, when his voice dropped, when he got his growth spurt, the way he was so proud when the tribe finally stopped shoving him with the women and let him learn how to hunt and fight. Bato has either ignored or changed so many of the functions that would allow them to have a biological child together for so long, and Hakoda understands his uncertainty. “Besides, the only kids I like are yours, and who knows if you can go three for three.”

“You seem to like Toph pretty good.”

“Toph doesn’t count,” Bato says defensively, but his tone has a slightly frustrated edge to it, showing he doesn’t want to talk about it anymore. Hakoda rolls his eyes as they laugh for a moment.

“Okay, fine, she doesn’t count. But, how about marriage?”

Bato sighs. “You know that the only person I’ll ever want to marry is you.” He says it so casually, with such neutrality, as if it’s just a fact of life - like he was telling Hakoda that summer days were long and that the water that surrounded them was cold. It makes Hakoda’s heart feel like bursting, hearing Bato’s declaration of love, even if it's a few years later than Bato wanted it to be. Hakoda leans over from where he’s kneeling on their bed to kiss Bato’s cheek.

“You know, Katara asked me if we were going to get married.”

“Oh?” Bato says as he shifts away to pull on his nightshirt, now that they’ve thoroughly abandoned lotioning his scar.

“Yeah, she said that she would probably be okay with it. You know how much she misses Kya,” Hakoda adds hastily, feeling a bit guilty. Bato nods as he lays down in the furs, watching as Hakoda goes to put out of the candles that are illuminating the room. It’s almost winter, and as the lights flicker out, the room is soon sent into near pitch darkness. Hakoda leaves one candle lit, and when he lays down next to Bato he admires how the light and shadows dance around his face.

They lay in silence for a few minutes, the only sounds being the noise of shifting bodies as they intertwine limbs and get comfortable. Hakoda ends up face pressed against Bato’s strong chest, enjoying the warmth and softness of it as he lightly tosses his own arm across Bato’s waist. He nestles in when he feels the weight of Bato’s scarred arm fall across his shoulder, hand hanging loosely down Hakoda’s back. Bato nuzzles slightly into Hakoda's hair, though he'll never admit it. It’s comfortable and familiar, and Hakoda can’t believe that he gets to feel this safe, this warm, this happy after all the years of war and violence and suffering that they had to live through.

“If the kids are okay with it,” Bato’s chest rumbles as he speaks, tickling Hakoda’s cheek. “Of course I would like to marry you.”

Hakoda smiles into Bato’s chest, feeling giddy like he’s a teenager again. “Okay. We can think about it and talk later.”

Later comes soon than either of them expected, when Hakoda and Sokka end up hiking up a mountain to hunt a polar bear that chased some of the Northern Water Tribe members. Hakoda doesn’t really want to kill it - if the creature wanted the Northerners dead, then they wouldn’t be complaining about the ‘dangerous wilderness’ to Hakoda - but he knows that if the animal ever ends attacking one of the members for real, then he’ll have a crisis on his hands. They take a sled and begin the long trek up the mountain. They’re partway up the mountain when they find one of the caves that mine for engagement stones in, and they decide to take a rest. Hakoda sits down, watching as his son leans his spear against the wall walks deeper into the cave, unsheathing his sword as he goes.

“Don’t go too far, Sokka, we’re not stopping for long.”

“Ugh, I know, dad, I’ll be fine,” Sokka calls back noncommittally. Hakoda sighs and lets him be. He hears some clanging a few minutes later but decides that Sokka is old enough to waste time and energy if he wants. Once he's done resting, Hakoda stands up and is about to call out for Sokka when he comes scurrying back to the entrance. He dashes to one of the cloth bags that sit on the sled, shoves something in it, before going to collect his weapon. Hakoda raises an eyebrow at him and gets a sheepish smile in response.

They find the polar bear a little further up, and after taking it down, load its body onto the sled. They catch a few gopher-hares and collect the few edible plants that have survived so far into the season as they make their way back down. It’s hours later when they finally arrive back in the village, with Sokka needing to run ahead to get more help the lug the bear and the sled across the vast, flat plain of ice that stretched between their village and the base of the mountain. Despite his displeasure in having to hunt the bear, Hakoda looks at it and thinks about how proud he is of his son, how much of an accomplished hunter and provider he’s become, and how this catch will be nice padding for the village’s winter food stock. The fur will make some excellent clothes, and Hakoda is sure that a few of the animal’s claws and teeth will appear on someone’s wrist or neck as jewelry. It’s after they’ve pushed the sled into the village, and various people descend on it and the various bags filled with plants and other animals, that Sokka calls out, “Hey, there’s carving stones in one of those bags, someone give them back to us when you’re done!”

Someone makes an affirmative sound as they prepare to butcher the animal, and Sokka nods and turns to walk away. Hakoda follows him and looks at him strangely. “Why did take carving stones?”

“So you have something to carve for Bato,” Sokka says it as a statement, but looks confused at his father’s asking. “I thought you and Katara talked about you guys getting married?”

Hakoda sputters. “Yeah but we weren’t planning on getting married now .”

Sokka shrugs. “That’s why you gotta plan in the carving time, dad! Carving takes a long time! It takes like three weeks if you don’t chip or crack the stone.”

Hakoda can’t bring himself to agree vocally, so he stares ahead for a few seconds until he realizes, “Wait, how do you know how long carving a necklace takes?”

Sokka flushes and starts walking faster.

“Sokka- Sokka, you are WAY too young to be marrying the Firelord! Sokka, get back here!”

In the end, Kallik, one of the younger men that Hakoda led in the war, brings four rocks, all shades of dark blue to grey, already cleaned of dirt and blood and wrapped in leather, a few days later, smiling slyly as he passes the lumpy package over. “Good luck, Chief!”

Hakoda mumbles a thank you, and hastily tucks the parcel under his arm and puts them in his and Bato’s room. He tells himself it’s not technically hiding if a blanket just happens to fall on top of the container that he’s placed them in, and the container happens to be under a shelf that Bato never looks in. He doesn’t care if Bato finds them, he tells himself, as he pushes them box further into the wall.

He knows that he’ll have to talk to Katara and Bato about this more, will have to make sure everyone is fine with it, and then plan the ceremony, all of which will take a while.

But , he tells himself as he fishes out one of the stones, hiding it in one of his pockets before setting out on his canoe to ‘check the traps’, all of that can happen once I’m closer to finishing this carving .

The first step of necklace carving, Hakoda remembers, is to shape the stone down to a circle-ish shape, breaking off any protrusions off and then shaving pieces off, little by little, until it’s the right shape to actually carve. Hakoda cracks the stone on his first attempt - not unlike he did twenty years ago when he was carving Kya’s. Hakoda checks the traps and hauls a couple of urchin-crabs back to the village. He drops the broken rock into the sea.

The next week Hakoda goes out to check the guide rope that surrounds the outer wall of the village. One of the children of the village said that the rope had broke in the last wind storm but couldn’t remember where since they had been going out to find otter penguins and had got distracted, and as tedious as it is to walk the entire perimeter of the continuously expanding city, everyone knows that if the rope is broken, then there’s a chance someone could get lost in a blizzard. Hakoda volunteers, since everyone else is so busy. Bato offers to come with him, but Hakoda waves him off.

“Your arm has been hurting you,” Hakoda says in the doorway to their igloo. Bato rolls his eyes.

“Doesn’t stop me from walking.”

“Just stay here, love.” Hakoda stretches up, Bato leans down automatically, and Hakoda places a kiss on his lips. “I’ll be back soon.”

He finds the break in the rope just a few minutes past the entrance, ties the pieces together, and continues walking around the perimeter, fishing a new stone out of his pocket.

The second step to necklace carving, once the stone is the correct shape and dimensions, is planning. Each necklace is meant to be unique, meant to represent the recipient and the shared love of the couple. But, the design also depends on the stone, on what the medium will allow. Hakoda is trying to gouge out a tall, deep line in the rock, meant to represent the tall trees of the earth kingdom that surrounded them, that Bato was so impressed by, and under which they first admitted their feelings for each other. He presses either too hard or at the wrong angle, and it splinters, a piece of it chipping off. Hakoda sighs and tosses the broken mineral in one of the tiny ice fishing holes that they use to teach children how to dig through the ice. There are no other breaks in the rope.

Bato goes off to help repair some boats - even with an arm that occasionally seizes up, he’s still one of the best boatsmen in the tribe - and once all of Hakoda’s meetings are done for the day, he’s left with an empty igloo and a few more hours until Bato is likely to return. Hakoda pulls out the second to last stone that he has and starts to carve.

The third step in carving a necklace is to create the eye that either the metal or leather bail will go through to connect it to the choker. It’s not particularly hard, but it’s time-consuming, twisting a blade or tool in circles for hours until it breeches the other side.

The fourth step is connecting it to the leather choker. The fifth step is presenting it.

Hakoda finishes step three, looks at his carving and hates it. The tall lines of what is meant to be a forest seem crooked and nonsensical, the swirls at the bottom barely register as waves, and there are knife marks around the eye look intentional instead of accidental and confuse the setting. It looks sloppy and bad, and even if Bato will accept it happily, Hakoda's stomach turns at the thought of presenting something so poorly crafted to him. He groans and throws it to the side of the room.

He doesn’t know if carving Kya’s necklace was easier or if he just repressed how hard it was from his memories. It all seems silly, all the stress when he and Bato are perfectly happy as is. He wonders if he should just forget it, just give it up, let good things stay as they are. Except.

Except he knows that underneath his reasonable tone, and understanding air, Bato wants to marry him. Hakoda doesn’t know what he did in a past life, what spirit he worshiped or what king he saved, but he must have done something because in his life he’s had two great loves and both of them wanted to marry him.

You know the only person I’ll ever want to marry is you.

Bato wants and asks for so little. He wants Hakoda to lay next to him as they sleep, he wants Hakoda to help him rub his shoulder, he wants Hakoda to go fishing with him, he wants Hakoda to not ask about kids or his body or his medication, he wants Hakoda to kiss him in the privacy of their home and hold his hand for a few minutes when they walk outside. Bato wants Hakoda to marry him, and like all the other open secrets about himself, he’ll never tell Hakoda outright, leaving him to put together the clues together until he can find out how to make Bato happy.

Hakoda is pretty sure that’s all he wants, really; to make Bato happy. He deserves it.

He hears Bato stomping the snow off his boots as he walks into their home. Hakoda sighs, and gets up, collects the rock he threw and slips it into his pocket. He goes to greet his lover, wrapping his arms around the taller man’s torso under the gist of ‘warming him up’, even though his parka was plenty warm, and thinks about how he has one more stone left.

He swears that he’s not trying to put it off, but Hakoda figures he should talk to his family before he moves forward. He talks to Katara to make sure she’s still ‘okay’ with the prospect of him marrying Bato. She gives somewhat the same answer, though she concedes, “You guys are pretty much married already, so…”

Sokka is already enthusiastic about it, though Hakoda is pretty sure that’s just because a wedding ceremony is an as good excuse as any to invite all their friends back. Privately, Sokka finally admits to Hakoda that he thinks mom would have wanted her two best friends to be happy, even, or maybe especially if it’s with each other.

He talks to Kanna, even if traditionally that’s meant to be Bato’s job. Hakoda figures Kanna is the closest thing Bato has left to a mother. As expected, Kanna is fine with it, thinks it’s a bit silly that Hakoda seems to stress about what’s clearly a sure thing. Hakoda doesn’t know how to explain to his mom that even if it’s a sure thing, even if Bato will say yes if Hakoda hands him a piece of clay attached to a string, he wants it to be right. He wants Bato to look back at their engagement and feel satisfied and fulfilled.

Hakoda is still nervous about carving but the unbearable pressing of anxiety has lifted some. The last stone left is a dark grey-blue, less glossy than the other prospective stones, and more opaque. Hakoda begins to carve it during the dead of winter when everyone in the village only spends a few hours a day outside, and they only step foot outside the village if completely necessary. This means that much of his secrecy of the matter is gone, but whether Bato is intentionally staying out in the main area of their igloo during the day, or if he’s there because the fire there is warmer than their bedroom, Hakoda doesn’t know. He sits on their bed of furs, trying to keep his swears quiet as he chips and carves away at the stone. The sounds of Bato just a room over, speaking to Katara and Sokka, laughing at their jokes, and going about his day seems to calm Hakoda's nerves and steady his hands.

It takes him less time than his previous attempts. He’s limited the lines of the trees to just two vertical ones, one slightly taller than the other. The waves at the bottom now have mirrored swirls at the top, land sandwiched between sea and sky. Hakoda is more carful carving out the eye of the pendant and is surprised when he actually adores it when it’s finished. He carves some designs into some whale teeth and polar bear claws, knowing that even though the addition of bone will make the necklace more noticeable overall, it’ll draw some of the attention away from the pendant, and he suspects that Bato will appreciate the small amount of privacy and intimacy that will afford him.

Hakoda knows that Bato knows what he’s doing. The way he smiles when he sees Hakoda retreat into their bedroom after he’s done working for the day, the way he sees the new callouses and cuts on Hakoda’s fingers and doesn’t ask where they came from, only presses small kisses onto them because he knows it’ll make Hakoda smile. If Hakoda wasn’t certain before, when he finds a piece of spare leather - raggedy and unusable - but cut to a specific and familiar length, just casually laying on Hakoda’s desk, it’s confirmation.

He gets a new leather band, of course, one that’s just slightly thicker than traditional, soft on the inside and tanned a deep, dark blue. He punches the holes for the bones with Bato leaning over his shoulder, telling him where he wants a tooth and where he wants a claw. Neither of them mentions how the centre of the leather is left blank for now.

Their engagement is nothing like Hakoda and Kya’s was. Hakoda proposed to Kya in the spring and they got married in the summer; he had asked while they were outside, basking in the sun, and with some of Kya’s friends peering around igloos to watch as the scene unfolded. Hakoda had stuttered, had proclaimed his love for Kya, had made her laugh as he helped her place Kanna’s necklace around her neck.

In contrast, winter has only just started to end, the sky only just barely brightening for about an hour or so each day, before it plunges back into darkness. All of their friends are either dead, in the Northern Water tribe, or busy with their own families. Hakoda doesn’t even ask Bato, not really, he just slides the finished necklace across the table, ignoring the way Sokka and Katara gape at it. Bato looks at it and smiles, gingerly picks it up and ties the leather around his neck. He asks Katara to make sure the knot is secure, and Hakoda’s heart soars when she readily gets up, moves Bato’s hair to the side and readjusts it. The necklace sits at the base of his neck, the teeth and claws sprawl across his collarbones in the most delectable way, and the pendant sits flat on his chest, looking so natural and casual, that Hakoda can trick himself into thinking it’s always been there.

Bato looks happy wearing his necklace, he looks comfortable when his hand gets finding its way to the pendant, nails finding all the groves and uneven surfaces that Hakoda couldn’t smooth away.

There are few opportunities for anyone else to see it, with as cold and dark as it is. Even inside some of the newly build halls and offices, most people still wear an outer coat, to fight off any chill that passes through the complex halls, designed to keep the wind from blowing straight in. But the few who do see it get a sly grin on their face, wiggle their eyebrows and give Bato a playful nudge.

“Finally making an honest man out of Hakoda, huh?” Some people joke and even Hakoda can’t help but laugh.

“More honest than you, at least.” Bato sometimes fires back, earning a gasp of fake insult.

They’re busy, Hakoda and Bato, the village, their children, the whole world, and weddings take time. Hakoda asks Sokka and Katara if they have a preference for when the wedding is. They hem and haw for a while, before tentatively asking if it can wait until spring.

“Zuko won’t be able to visit for long if there’s not enough sun,” Sokka mentions shyly. Hakoda shoots him a look that he hopes reads as We Will Be Speaking About You Dating This Firebender Soon But Not Right Now. Sokka dutifully looks away.

Later as Bato is laying down next to Hakoda in bed, Hakoda asks, “Are you okay if we wait until spring?”

Bato shrugs. “I’ve waited for decades, I can wait two more months.”

When they sleep, Hakoda can feel the cool press of bone and stone against his cheek. It’s more comforting than he ever thought it could be.

The sun has returned, and with it brings new chores to do, new game to hunt, new responsibilities, and various children that were born during the winter months. There’s plenty to do, and every second of light brings them one second closer to the winter once again. There are boats to build and repair, there are walls that were damaged by wind and snow, there are stocks that need replenishing, and children that need hunting, singing, dancing, fighting, and history lessons.

Hakoda is pretty sure that everyone should be anxiously anticipating the start of all their work.

Instead, everyone is gathered in the new village square - complete with archways and fountains around the sides, columns that hold up a domed roof, and a ground that doesn’t shift when people walk over the same place too many times - throwing decorations on any available surface. The columns have been covered in swathes of fabric and dyed ropes, various beadwork decor has been hung from the ceiling and archways, carved bones have been placed around the area for luck, and good tidings, and just to make the place look interesting. Hakoda isn’t sure if it’s because no one has been out long enough for their clothes to get overly messy, but he’s pretty sure that everyone is dressed up in their more formal coats and boots.

It throws him off guard. Weddings in the Southern Water tribe truly aren’t that grand of an affair, but he assumes that the influx of Northerners has resulted in their more festive approach gaining some traction.

“Or maybe, they’re excited that their chief is getting married.” Bato offers, smiling at Hakoda when he presents his theory. Hakoda smiles back.

“I think I saw some men weeping when they realized they officially lost their shot with you.”

Bato rolls his eyes. “They never had a chance with me.” It’s a joke, and Hakoda wants to laugh, but Bato places a gentle hand on his shoulder, and Hakoda reads between the lines.

He doesn’t tease Sokka about running off with Zuko - the Firelord bundled up in more red and blue fabric that Hakoda has ever seen on him at once - the minute he steps off his ship. He doesn’t tease Katara about the way she shyly kisses Aang when he slides off Appa, before going to help Toph navigate her way across the ice. Bato is excited to see the young earth bender and starts an easy conversation with her and Suki and he leads them around the village, letting Katara go off to hold hands with Aang away from her father’s watchful eye.

They marry a few hours later, with nearly the whole village pressed against each other to watch as the two of them kneel in front of one of the elders, the old woman standing tall and proud in her furs despite the slight hunch she has in her spine.

She asks Bato if Hakoda has presented him with a betrothal necklace.

“Yes,” He says, voice deep and happy, and so soothing, even as dozens of eyes - including Hakoda’s children and their friends - stare at them. He digs the leather and pendant out from under his clothes, allowing the elder to see the design. The elder nods and smiles.

“Do you have a gift to present to your betrothed?” She asks Bato. He nods and pulls out a cloth gift. He hands it to Hakoda, who has to restrain himself from thanking him as he unwraps the fabric. A small gasp escapes him, when he sees the ivory of carved walrus tusk, carved and sharpened into a knife, the leather around the handle soft and worn but well cared for. It was Bato’s father and had been passed down in his family for generations. For a second, Hakoda almost turns to asks if Bato is certain if he wants to give it to him, before realizing that Bato wants it to be Hakoda’s so that it can go to Sokka. Bato wants to pass his family heirloom onto Hakoda’s children, because, and Hakoda’s heart skips a beat when the realization finally hits him, they’ll be the same family.

“Thank you,” Hakoda says a little watery. The woman in front of them takes that as acceptance of the gift.

“And do both of you intend to provide for each other and your family? Will you work together in the light of the summer, collecting what the Spirits give you, and in the darkness of winter, when only Tui smiles upon us?”

Both of them nod, and they hear an excited titter go through the crowd.

“Do either of you have any qualms or objections to your union.” They both shake their heads hastily and Bato’s necklace clicks and clacks as he moves his head. The excitement in the crowd grows as the elder clears her throat and calls, “And does the tribe accept this marriage?”

The crowd erupts with excitement, Hakoda can just filter out his own children cheering, Aang’s ‘whooping’ and Toph’s cackling at the sound. People clap and shout, and he and Bato can’t help but look at each other and laugh at the commotion. The Northerners have definitely spread their own modified traditions throughout the village. The elder in front of them works to control her own smile as she waits for the noise to settle.

“The tribe has acknowledged this union. Chief Hakoda, Bato, you are now wed.”

The cheering starts up again and Hakoda and Bato stand up, holding each other’s hand tightly. Hakoda surges up and presses a kiss to Bato’s lips, earning more cheers and a few whistles, and an exaggerated gag from Sokka, and grins when Bato blushes and pushes him lightly.

Hakoda can already tell that they’ll have to just write this day off, judging by excited energy that comes and goes through the crowd like waves. Hakoda wouldn’t be surprised if he found some people passing around fermented wine. He barely cares though, when he looks up to Bato and sees him smiling wider than Hakoda has ever seen him before.

He’s still gripping Hakoda’s hand, still blushing from the kiss and all the attention, and Hakoda can’t stop himself from leaning up and kissing him again. Bato doesn’t push him away this time, even though his flush gets darker.

“Worth the wait?” Hakoda asks.

Bato nods. “Yeah. It was pretty worth it.”

#m #bakoda #bakoda fleet week #my fic #hakoda #bato #bakoda fic

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nerdyfangirl67 · 4 years

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Supposed to Be Easy - Criminal Minds Reader Insert

Pairing: Tony DiNozzo x reader, Spencer Reid x reader

Warning: language, angry!Spencer, brief moment of cheating

Word count: 1700

Requested: @that-damn-clown-movie

A/N: I hope this is what you were looking for darling! This story is a continuation of the Everywhere But On one-shot. It can be read as a stand-alone as well. A beautifully tragic moment for both NCIS and Criminal Minds fans. Guys, I don’t like the ending very much but was struggling to end it with either one or another character. As always, requests are open!

Six months, that’s how long it took for your life to completely change.

You had become an established member of the white-collar crimes task force and had helped in the apprehension of major fraud criminals, famous art thieves, and bank robbers. You had been such an asset to your new team, with your background from various different FBI units, that you were being fast-tracked to become the next unit chief.

You had become a mom, not to a child, but to a stray cat that had wandered into your apartment through a window you had left cracked open by the fire escape after a near oven fire during a frigid, fall day. The next morning you had taken the cat to the vet for a microchip check, as well as a health check, and after finding nothing, you had not so reluctantly brought him home with you. The cat had come in and never left, quickly becoming attached to you, and you to him.

You had moved out of your crappy, three-room (the room count of which included the kitchen and bathroom) apartment into a posh, chic apartment that felt more like a house than an apartment. It was clean, the building manager was prompt with answering service calls, and the kind lady next door checked on your cat, whom you called Agent (for obvious reasons), and baked you sweets.

You had gotten a completely new hairstyle, one you’d been wanting for months but you’d been too scared and stuck in your look (because changing it meant leaving behind a part of you that was connected to Spencer, the love of your life). After much deliberation and a few mimosas, you’d booked the salon appointment for the next day and had forced yourself to go through with it. You were glad you had because you loved it.

-----

And on this particular day, a late Friday evening in the dead of winter, you were enjoying the fact that you had the weekend off by curling up on the couch in your favorite pajamas, wrapped in your warmest blanket, a mug of (possibly spiked) hot chocolate on the coffee table in front of you as you binge-watch your favorite TV show. Despite knowing you should have been to bed over an hour ago, you couldn’t bring yourself to be anything but content.

A knock on the door bursts the peaceful bubble you had built around yourself. You let out a soft groan of displeasure, knowing a visitor at this hour would only mean trouble. You heave out a frustrated sigh before climbing out of your warm cocoon on the couch.

As an FBI agent, you should have thought to look through the peephole on the door, but you didn’t. Instead, you pick up your standard-issue from where you keep it up on the coat rack, pull it out of its holster, and while holding it in one hand, use the other to open the door. Out of all the possibilities that had started circling around in your head since the knock, this was not one of them.

You were so surprised by him arriving at your door, that you hadn’t realized the grip on your gun had loosened, sending it clattering to the floor. After jolting you out of your stupor, you pick up your weapon, reholster it and place it back where it belongs. You grab his wrist, knowing if you twined your fingers with his you would lose your resolve, and pull him back out into the hallway, leaving the door open just a crack behind you.

“Spencer.” You say, hating the way your voice cracks and makes you sound, just as much as feel, vulnerable. You squeeze your eyes shut for a moment, hoping to either calm your now frayed nerves or make this horribly painful and confusing mirage go away. Upon reopening your eyes, you know that you succeeded in doing neither of those things. So instead you focus your attention on the man in front of you.

His slender, lanky figure feels smaller somehow, almost as if he has decreased in height, which you know isn’t right. His shoulders are hunched together as he unconsciously leans his body towards you. The next thing that catches your eyes is the way the material of his button-down dress shirt strains slightly across his chest and over his arms, in a way you hadn’t ever seen. His hair is just as unruly as it always is, and regardless of you wanting to card your fingers through it, it isn’t what was keeping your attention from what he was saying. Your eyes were currently fixated on the scruff that covered the lower half of his face.

You had never seen Spencer Reid with anything more than a five o’clock shadow and the very obvious beard on his face now was making it hard for you to concentrate. And being the genius that he was, he could tell that you hadn’t heard a word of what he said. He halted his talking, for how long you weren’t sure, because after what felt like hours, you finally realize that the low hum of Spencer’s voice in the background had stopped. Your intense scan of his appearance abruptly stops as you lift your eyes to connect with his.

Still, he was silent. Pent up feelings of frustration, hurt, rejection, and sorrow come to the surface as you snap at him. “What do you want Spencer? You said all you needed to say all those months ago.”

“I thought I did too. But after not being able to see you every day or talk to you like we used to, I realized that what I said didn’t match what I felt.” His voice is filled with something akin to guilt.

You clench your teeth together to prevent yourself from spitting out a few choice words, followed by a long buried truth. You chose to instead ignore his words and asked him the question that’s been running around in your head.

“How did you find me? I explicitly asked Garcia to not tell you.” As much as you loved your friend, she did have a knack for spilling secrets if she deemed it was for the ‘greater good.’

His face fell at your blatant neglect of his words before he answers, “Garcia didn’t tell me. After I went to your apartment and, after a few midnight visits found you weren’t there, I begged Garcia to tell me. When she wouldn’t I desperately tried to run into you at work. Finally though I went to HR and made something up so they’d tell me.”

Your heart squeezes painfully as you hear the despair and hopelessness in his voice. Again, you don’t answer because you know your facade would crumble if you did.

“Well if that’s all you came to say, I think it’s time for you to go. I am not in the mood to have the ‘friends but also I love you’ conversation with you Spencer. Now if you’ll excuse me.” You turn back towards your door, a hand on the knob when his voice stops you.

“We weren’t meant to just be friends and you fucking know that.” His voice is deeper and louder now, and you know you got under his skin. You don’t turn because you know if you do, you’d be in his arms before you could stop yourself.

“Look at me Y/N and tell me you don’t feel the same and I’ll go. I’ll leave you alone but I need to know if you do.” A hand on your waist has you spinning around into his chest. You move to shove away from him and suddenly his lips are on yours, kissing you passionately and fast. And not only are you enjoying it, a lot actually, but you’re kissing him back, just as intensely.

You can’t keep track of your hands, as they are rapidly roaming his body. Fingers through his hair, which is just as you remember, a hand on his chest, which is far more defined than you thought, a palm dragging over his beard, tickling your hand in the process.

You pull back when your need for air takes over your thoughts. His eyes are blazing, but with something other than anger, as he stares at you.

“Why didn’t you do that months ago?” You question brokenly, your heart pounding hard in your chest.

His eyes search yours as he runs a gentle thumb over your cheek. “I wish I had.” His words have tears collecting in your eyes, which you roughly brush away as you step back. You had to clear your head because the way this “conversation” was going, you knew it could become something more if you let it.

“I-I...I can’t do this Spencer. I lived a life that was so entwined with yours, I couldn’t see where mine ended and yours began. I’ve finally made a life that doesn’t focus on you and here you are, wanting in.” You answer, your voice cracking as you stare at your feet.

Neither of you say anything for a while before you lift your eyes to his. He is staring directly at you, a sea of emotions swirling in his hazy brown-green eyes. A few you can name, disappointment and love, but also a few you couldn’t.

The spell is broken when a voice sounds from deep inside your apartment, causing the two of you to rip away from each other's gaze. “Doll, where are you? You said you were going to come to bed an hour ago and I need you in my arms.” The voice of the man you’d come to love, albeit in a way entirely different than the way you loved the man in front of you, calls out to you.

You give Spencer a small shove, pushing him out of your doorway. “That’s Tony. You have to go Spencer.” Another hand pushes him away, although it lingers slightly as you release him. You return to the apartment, closing the door behind you. You didn’t know if that was the last time you’d see Spencer, causing your heart to squeeze tightly.

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thenewlarislynn · 4 years

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The Sticky Web of Fate’s Strings

Pairing: Bucky x Reader Soulmate AU (Gender-neutral pronouns)

Word Count: approx. 3k

~~~

Soulmates, connected by the strings of Fate, shared a similar life force. In simpler terms, every time your soulmate was injured, from the tiniest scratch to a broken bone, the same thing would happen to you.

Growing up, Bucky always found himself getting into scrapes trying to defend Steve. But every bruise, every scratch, he got on his own. Never once did a single bruise or cut appear that wasn’t his own. Even his sisters started showing some little cuts when they were only toddlers. Hell, half of Steve’s were from his soulmate.

Every time it was brought up, Bucky’s mom would try to reassure him, stating that maybe his soulmate was just very cautious or didn’t get hurt easily. But by the time he was in his 20s and there wasn’t even a sign, he knew his soulmate just wasn’t out there. That’s why he didn’t hesitate when signing up for the war, knowing there wasn’t anyone out there he’d be leaving behind. That’s also why when he fell from the freightcar, there wasn’t any fear, only acceptance at what the Fates had dealt him. HYDRA didn’t mind the fact he didn’t have a soulmate. It guaranteed less memories, less trouble. Until the day Bucky got a cut that wasn’t his own. You were born missing your left arm, The doctors reassured your parents it wasn’t anything that happened to you, but rather your soulmate and you were given a functioning prosthetic to use. You were never upset about having to relearn everything with the prosthetic, however. And on the upside, there weren’t a lot of people missing a whole arm, which would only make finding your other half easier.

Or so you thought. You were five when it first happened. It was during recess, you were sitting on the sidewalk next to your best friend Stephanie and drawing a flower with chalk. Suddenly, you felt a piercing pain in your leg, followed by blood seeping from your wound. You weren’t sure who screamed first, but one of you did, drawing the teacher’s attention. Seeing what happened, her face paled and she rushed you to the nurse. The wound looked like a bullet had caused it, but since there was no way it would have been possible for you to have been shot, they concluded that it had been your soulmate.

You spent the rest of the day in agonizing pain, and the teacher’s gave you the rest of the month off to heal. You can imagine the surprise when your wound fully healed in about a week. You returned to school, and passed a few more years without incident.

Occasionally, you would get pounding headaches followed by bouts of amnesia that would last several days. But it seemed every few years, a bullet wound, or stab wound, or sometimes both, would appear, only to heal in about a week or so. But through it all, you were less worried about yourself and more concerned for your soulmate’s safety. It was puzzling not knowing who they were, and even more so not knowing how they healed so quickly. You did countless hours of research on soulmates. Everyone knew the basics. When you were born, the Fates tied a thread that connected your life to your soulmates. This connection wasn’t just spiritual, but physical as well. Your injuries would appear on your soulmate and vice versa. Some people didn’t have the same soul connection as others, and instead experienced a purely platonic relationship with their soulmate. After another long night of reading numerous articles, you were no closer to finding anything that was similar to what you experienced.

Your alarm was blaring in your ear. Rolling over, you grabbed your phone to check the time, and then proceeded to have a miniature heart attack. You hated morning shifts but Stephanie asked you to cover for her and you agreed. You couldn’t refuse your best friend, especially since she covered your shift last week after another bullet wound appeared.

You rolled out of bed, taking a quick glance around your apartment. You found your uniform through the mess and grabbed your keys before heading out the door. Cursing, you turned around and went back inside. The sunlight glinted off the wood floors, temporarily blinding you. As you set out a bowl of cat food, you prayed another wave of amnesia wasn’t starting. You felt something scratch at your leg, drawing a few drops of blood, and looked down where Nala meowed up at you. You shook your head at her before grabbing your phone, which you also forgot, and headed out, for real this time.

The morning was hot and humid as you walked to work. The summer sun was beating down on the pavement, still wet from the previous night’s rainstorm, causing a faint mist to hang in the air. You groaned internally at how many complicated iced coffees you’d have to make.

Arriving at the corner coffeeshop, you realized you’d be the only one working that morning. You unlocked the door and turned on the lights inside. The smell of coffee filled your senses and you felt a feeling of familiarity wash over you. You flipped the sign on the door to say ‘open’, and then turned on the television. Although you would have loved to watch some morning talk show, you switched on the news, deciding to get caught up on what you missed while you were recuperating.

A picture of Avengers tower was on screen, and you wondered what controversy they had sparked this time. A newscaster stated, “Today James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes, best friend of Captain America and former Winter Soldier, is officially becoming a member of the Avengers. Although his past with HYDRA has made people skeptical of him, most are excited to see what he has to bring to the team.”

When a picture of him was shown, you gasped. He was handsome, with piercing blue eyes and shoulder length locks of chestnut hair, but most apparent was his metal arm. You grabbed your laptop and looked up his name. Apparently he had fought next to Steve Rogers in World War Two, where he allegedly died. But instead, he was found by HYDRA and brainwashed into being an assassin.

You shook your head. It couldn’t be true, there was no way he could be your soulmate. You closed your laptop and pushed it away, electing to think of something, anything else.

The bell on the door jingled as a group of customers entered the shop. As you prepared their order, you felt a sharp pain in your thigh, and you instantly knew it was a stab wound. Gritting your teeth through the pain, you continued making their drinks. After dealing with this for twenty-some years, you had developed a high pain tolerance.

A breaking news alert appeared on the television just as you felt a bullet enter your other leg.

~~~

It was the big day. Bucky was nervously suiting up for his first official public appearance since joining the Avengers when he felt something scratch the back of his leg. Glancing down, he saw a few drops of blood appear.

He remembered when he first started to get small marks from his soulmate, and he always managed to hide them from HYDRA. Even while brainwashed, he knew that they’d find a way to use his soulmate against him.

Trying to brush it off, he finished getting ready and started out the door. The moment he stepped outside Avengers Tower he was flocked by the press trying to get an interview with the infamous Winter Soldier.

Cameras were flashing all around him, and he squeezed his eyes shut, his head starting to get fuzzy. He couldn’t deal with flashing lights, not since the “shock therapy” that HYDRA had put him through. Luckily, Steve pulled him out of the crowd, guiding him towards the stage where the press conference would take place.

Once he was sure no one was around, he glanced over at Steve, “I got another scratch today. It wasn’t from anything I did, so it had to have been from them.” Steve smiled, “Well that’s a good thing Buck. That means your soulmate is out there somewhere.” “That’s just it, Steve. I don’t know,” he paused, “I don’t know if I want to find them.”

“Why not? When we were younger-” “Because things aren’t the same as when we were younger. You know that just as well as I do. The things I’ve done,” he trailed off before continuing. “Besides, the amount of times I’ve gotten hurt on missions, my soulmate got hurt too. If they have any sense, they won’t want to find me, either.”

“Bucky you can’t mean that.” But before he could answer he was swept away by another wave of reporters.

By the time the press conference had started, Bucky had managed to dodge a lecture from Steve at least three times. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to find his soulmate. He longed for that connection more than anything else. But there was something so daunting about the thought that someone out there was meant to be his other half. And when that someone found out the Winter Soldier was their soulmate? They’d go running the other way, and he couldn’t bear that. He didn’t need someone else to be scared of him.

Stepping on stage, he felt everyone’s eyes on him, judging silently. He now wished that Steve hadn’t talked him into his current outfit. It was tasteful tactical gear, but there were no sleeves, meaning the metal arm was on full display. The sunlight glinting off of it didn’t exactly help make it any less threatening either.

Steve was at the mic, warming up the crowd. “And now, I would like to introduce my closest friend, Bucky Barnes.”

Just as he was about to take the microphone, bullets started flying.

A tall man with pitch black hair emerged from behind the makeshift stage. Grabbing the microphone, he shouted over the din of the crowds, “Your Avengers cannot save you, in time all empires fall.”

A knife found its way into Bucky’s thigh and he winced, but kept going. This wasn’t any time to tend to his wounds. He could feel bullets bouncing off his suit, which he was now thankful for, until one lodged itself into his side.

Over the intercom he could hear the others talking and discussing different strategies, but FRIDAY’s voice spoke over them all. “An explosive has been detected in a building a few blocks from here. It may have a connection to all of this.”

“Bucky and I will head over to check it out,” Steve replied. Bucky sighed to himself, even during a crisis Steve would find time for a lecture. “Look,” he said as they made their way towards the row of buildings, “your soulmate is someone who’s going to accept you, no matter who you are or what you’ve done. Why don’t you give them a chance?” “Because say they do accept me, then what? Something like what’s happening right now happens, and they get hurt or killed in the crossfire, just because they’re my soulmate? And HYDRA can literally use them to hurt me. It’s not worth the risk to put them in that kind of danger, I can’t risk it.” “And what if they already know? I mean, your soulmate has been getting bullet wounds their whole life, and is probably missing an arm. Seeing you on television, they might make the connection.” Bucky considered it for a moment, “Look, if I somehow find my soulmate, it might work out. But I just want to make sure they don’t feel pressured to fall in love with someone who used to be the Winter Soldier because of it.” “I’m glad you-,” before Steve could finish his sentence, an explosion came from a nearby coffee shop and at that moment Bucky felt the wind get knocked out of his lungs.

~~~

As much as you usually tried to hide your pain from the customers, it was hard not to cry out in agony as a building crumbled on top of you. Breathing became a struggle as the weight of the debris began to crush your lungs. Something sharp was digging into your back but when you tried to move dots danced in front of your vision.

Over the ringing in your ears you were able to make out some voices. “Help,” you called out weakly, coughing as you spoke. “I’m over here, please, someone help,”

Dust fell from the rubble above you as some bricks were moved. Some of the weight shifted off your chest, and you felt like you could breathe again. The debris was moving faster now, and soon a stream of sunlight came through and fresh air entered the rubble. As you were finally able to move around a bit more, you realized your prosthetic arm was hanging limp at your side. As much as you wanted to get upset about it, that was the least of your worries. Blood was dripping from your head and back. You probably had at least a few broken bones, but you were thankful you were even alive.

An arm reached through the rubble to help you out, and as soon as you made contact a shock went through your body. It couldn’t be possible.

Once you were back on your feet you made eye contact with the same pair of piercing blue eyes you had seen on the television. Very elegantly, you said, “You, you’re my, my-” “Soulmate,” he finished with a sad smile. “We have a lot to talk about, but you should probably get some rest first.”

You could only nod in response, between the shock and the thrumming headache forming in the back of your mind, no words could be found. So in a way, you felt lucky that the blood loss hit you at the exact moment, causing you to pass out.

A steady beeping in your ear awoke you. Groggily, you tried to open your eyes, but promptly squeezed them shut again as a blindingly white light hit them. A cleanly smell filled your senses, and you realized the loose fitting clothes you were wearing were not your own. You realized you were in the hospital, a place you were used to, needing to go there frequently because of your soulmate.

Your eyes shot open. Soulmate. All the memories came flooding back to you, The building collapsing, the pain, him. As you tried to sit up you realized the hospital you were in was not your own.

A man in a white lab coat stood near your bed, a warm smile on his face. He looked familiar, although you couldn’t quite place where you knew him from until he spoke. “I’m glad to see you’re awake. I’m Bruce Banner, I’ve been tasked with making sure you recover fully.”

“Bruce Banner? What alternate reality did I wake up in,” you asked yourself. “Where am I?”

“You’re safe in the hospital at Avengers tower,” he answered reassuringly. “We were able to fix your arm, and the man who set off the explosion has been apprehended. Oh, and Steve told me what happened, about the whole, uh, soulmates thing. Bucky’s been recovering in the room over, since he sustained all the same injuries you did. But he’s been feeling much better, so when you’re ready I can send him to see you. If you’re alright with that,” he said.

You hesitated for only a moment before replying. “Can you send him in now?”

A few moments later the door swung open and Bucky entered, looking tired, but not much worse for wear. You noticed he wasn’t wearing a hospital gown but was instead back in some kind of tactical gear. “Hey doll,” he smiled softly, “how are you feeling?”

“A lot better, thank you. Are you alright, I know from first hand experience that having a building fall on you isn’t much fun and since,” you trailed off, leaving the rest of the sentence unspoken.

He pulled a chair next to your bed, “I’m doing better, the super serum definitely has its benefits in situations like this.��

You took a sharp breath in before speaking, “So, I’m guessing you want to talk about all this soulmate business.” Almost immediately after asking you felt a bit embarrassed and the bedsheet seemed a hundred times more interesting than it had a minute ago.

“If you want to,” he paused, and you nodded a brief ‘yes’. He continued, “No one knows besides us, Steve and Dr. Banner. So you aren’t in any danger. I understand if you don’t want this, I know I’m not the ideal soulmate-” Your head snapped up as you cut him off, “Bucky, why would I not want to be your soulmate?” “With everything I’ve done,” he sighed, not meeting your gaze, “and all the pain you’ve been put through because of it. And being my soulmate comes with a lot of dangerous consequences. I just assumed that it would be easier for you to just walk away.”

You gently held his hand and intertwined your fingers. Meeting his gaze, you said, “What you did in the past was not you, and it has no reflection on who you are as a person. And every scar I have just served as a reminder that there was someone out there to complete me.” You ran your thumb over a scar on his hand, a perfect match to a scar on that was your palm. “My whole life I’ve known my soulmate led some kind of dangerous life, I’ve come to terms with that. It would not be easier for me to just walk away from you, in fact it would be damn near impossible.”

He smiled as he untangled your fingers to brush a piece of hair behind your ear. Leaning towards you, he whispered, “Doll, would it be alright if I kissed you?” And when you answered yes, his lips met yours and your heart fluttered. And although you might not have the “safest” life with Bucky as your soulmate, you knew it would be perfect.

~~~ General taglist:

@sydneyisnotawriter

@dark-night-sky-99

To those of you who just found this one shot, welcome! And to those of you who are here after reading Coffee Stained Confusion, welcome back! I will be posting a few one shots over the next few weeks before starting the next longer fic! As always, likes and reblogs are much appreciated and let me know if you’d like to be added to the taglist! Love you all <3

#Bucky Barnes #james buchanan barnes #james bucky barnes #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes fanfic #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes and reader #bucky x reader #james barnes x reader #bucky x y/n #bucky imagine #the winter soldier #Steve Rogers #captain america #soulmate au #bucky barnes soulmate au #reader insert #marvel fic

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im-just-trying-to-get-bi · 3 years

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Hello, everybody. Thanks for comin’. I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees. And I’d like to say a few words, if you please. Regarding the story that you’re about to see it actually happened. Just take it from me. But there’s more to this story than what’s on the page, so please pay attention while I set the stage. We open in Thneedville, a city they say that was plastic and fake, and they liked it that way! A town without nature, not one living tree. So, what happened to them? Cue the music! Let’s see. Buzz. Buzz. ♪ In Thneedville, ♪ ♪ it’s a brand new dawn ♪ ♪ With brand new cars ♪ ♪ and houses and lawns ♪ ♪ Here in ♪ ♪ Got-all-that-we-need-ville ♪ ♪ In Thneedville, ♪ ♪ we manufacture our trees ♪ ♪ Each one is made in factories ♪ ♪ And uses 96 batteries ♪ ♪ In Thneedville, ♪ ♪ the air’s not so clean ♪ ♪ So we buy it fresh ♪ ♪ It comes out this machine! ♪ ♪ In Satisfaction’s-♪ ♪ guaranteed-ville ♪ ♪ In Thneedville, ♪ ♪ we don’t want to know ♪ ♪ Where the smog and trash ♪ ♪ and chemicals go ♪ ♪ I just went swimming, ♪ ♪ and now I glow ♪ ♪ In Thneedville, ♪ ♪ we have fun year round ♪ ♪ We surf and snowboard ♪ ♪ right in town ♪ ♪ We thank the Lord ♪ ♪ for all we’ve got ♪ ♪ Including this ♪ ♪ brand new parking lot! ♪ ♪ Parking lot! ♪ ♪ Oh, look, it’s Aloysius O’Hare ♪ ♪ Aloysius O’Hare ♪ ♪ The man who found ♪ ♪ a way to sell air ♪ ♪ And became a zillionaire ♪ ♪ Hip-hip-hooray! ♪ ♪ In Thneedville, ♪ ♪ we love living this way ♪ ♪ It’s like living in paradise ♪ ♪ It’s perfect! ♪ ♪ And that’s how it will stay ♪ ♪ Oh, yeah! ♪ ♪ Here in ♪ ♪ Love-the-life-we-lead-ville ♪ ♪ Destined-to-succeed-ville ♪ ♪ We-are-all-agreed-ville ♪ ♪ We love it here in… ♪ ♪ Thneedville! ♪ Yes! Oh, hi, Ted. Oh, hey, Audrey. Hi. Did your ball land in my backyard again? What? No. A model airplane, this time. Hey, do you want to see something cool? Come on. Whoa! Did you… Did you paint this? Do you like it? What? Are you kidding? This is amazing! What are those? Those are trees. Real ones. They used to grow all around here. And people said that the touch of their tufts was softer than anything, even silk. And they smelled like butterfly milk! Wow! What does that even mean? I know, right? Oh, yeah. What I want more than anything in the whole world is to see a real living tree growing in my backyard. So if, say… I’m just thinking out loud here. If a guy somehow got you one… I’d probably marry him on the spot. I bet that sounds crazy. Does that sound crazy? No! Not crazy. Not crazy at all. * * * Ted, honey, don’t play with your food. You, either, Mom. So, Mom, do you happen to know if there’s any place where I could get a real tree? Ted, we already have a tree. It’s the latest model. Yeah, but I mean a real one that grows out of the ground or whatever. You know, a real tree. Really? You would rather have some dirty, messy lump of wood that just sticks out of the ground? And it does what? I don’t even know what it does. What’s its purpose? Look at what we’ve got. It’s the Oak-amatic. The only tree with its own remote. Summer, autumn, winter, and disco! Mom? Come on, Ted. Get into it. Dance with the tree. Oh, it hurts, Mom. Please stop. So, anyway… Let’s just say I need a tree. Where would I go? What do I do? Then you know what? You need to find the Once-ler. The What? Mom, it’s not really the time for one of your magical fables, okay? That’s right, I forgot. I’m old and can’t even remember to put my teeth in. Stand down. That’s not what I meant. No, really, I forgot my teeth. Would you be a dear and go get them for me? Sure, Mom. Okay, here’s the deal. The Once-ler is the man who knows what happened to the trees. You want one, you need to find him. The Once-ler? Mmm-hmm. Okay. Grammy, is this a real thing that we’re talking about now? Oh, he’s real all right. Well, where can I find him? Far outside of town where the grass never grows and the wind smells slow and sour when it blows. And no birds ever sing, excepting old crows. Quit doing that. That’s the place where the Once-ler lives. Wait, outside of town? People used to say if you brought him 15 cents, a

nail and the shell of a great, great, great grandfather snail, he would tell you everything. * * * Hmm. Mr. O’Hare, what we’ve got for you is something that is going to take O’Hare Air to the next level. Now, Mr. O’Hare, I know what you’re thinking. One, “I’ve gotten rich selling people air that’s” “fresher than the stinky stuff outside.” Two, and here is the important one, “How can I possibly make even more money?” We can tell you, sir! We can tell you. Check out this commercial, huh? Well, here goes another lame Saturday. Dude, I don’t think so! Huh! Hey! Man! Oh, yeah! What! Yeah! O’Hare purified air. Freshness to go. Please breathe responsibly. Ah? Oh, my goodness. Yeah! Love it. You got to be kidding me. You really think people are stupid enough to buy this? Our research shows that if you put something in a plastic bottle, people will buy it. Exactly. And… And what’s more, when we build a new factory to make the plastic bottles, the air quality is just going to get worse. Which will make people want our air even more, and drive sales where? Through the roof! So, in other words, the more smog in the sky, the more people will buy. See, that’s why he’s the genius! It even rhymes! I’m aware it rhymes. Coats. Big. What do you two knuckleheads want? I’m in the middle of a meeting! What? Why is he leaving town? No one ever leaves town! See what he’s up to. * * * Whoa! Huh? Whoa! Whoa. Oh, man. Whoa! All right. Okay. What the… Whoa! Who are you? Who are you and what are you doing here? I’m Ted. I’m Ted. I can’t breathe. Are you the Once-ler? Oh, man. Didn’t you read the signs? No one is supposed to come here. Get out of here and leave me alone! And don’t let the boot hit you on the way out. The boot? Hello! Ow! Listen! People say that if someone brings you this stuff that you will tell them about trees. No, no, no! Trees? Yeah, real ones. You know, that grow out of the ground? Hello? Sorry, it’s just… Well, I didn’t think anyone still cared about trees. Well, that’s me. The guy who still cares. I’m here. Hey! What? Do you want to know about trees? About what happened to them? Why they’re all gone? It’s because of me. Wait, what? It’s because of me! And my invention, the Thneed. It was an amazing product that could do the job of a thousand. All right. Sounds ridiculous, but I mean, that’s cool. You’re darn right it was cool! It all started a long time ago. Can we start not so long ago, maybe? Do you want a tree? Yes, yes. Then it all started a long, long time ago. I was a young man leaving home… Well, here I go, Mom. Off to change the world with my Thneed. I’m actually doing it! Yes, but just remember, Oncie, if somehow your invention ends up a failure instead of a success, oh, it wouldn’t surprise me at all! Nice wheels. Burn! Ow! Yeah, “Burn!” But you will see, okay? I’m going to prove you all wrong. Come on, Melvin! So, there I was at the very bottom. With nothing but a wagon, a mule, and a completely irrational sense of optimism. I was searching the globe, obsessed with finding the perfect material for my Thneed. But I’d had absolutely no success. Until one day, I found paradise… Oh! We’re going to be there soon, I’m sure. Whoa! This is the most beautiful place, okay, I have ever seen. Oh. Ta-da! Whoa! Yeah. ♪ This is it ♪ ♪ This is the place ♪ ♪ These Truffula trees ♪ ♪ are just what I need ♪ ♪ Gonna chop one down ♪ ♪ and make my Thneed ♪ ♪ But first… ♪ ♪ Na! Na! Nanana Na! ♪ ♪ Na Na Nana Nanana Na Na… ♪ ♪ Now you! ♪ ♪ That’s great! ♪ ♪ So now our ♪ ♪ friendship can begin ♪ ♪ Hand in hand, ♪ ♪ and wing and fin ♪ ♪ There’s nothing ♪ ♪ you and I can’t do ♪ ♪ So let’s all make ♪ ♪ my dreams come true ♪ Hey, guys! Come on, where is my back-up chorus? What? Ah-ha! Oh. Ooh! Hey, hey, wait. Wait a minute. Excuse me? Yeah, that’s awesome. Feeding junk food to forest animals? That’s great. But, uh, is there a musical number where you show me how to get a tree? Because I would love to hear that one. Oh, yes. Right after the musical number about the kid who kept interrupting the story, and was never heard from again. Right, got

it. Proceed. All right, here we go. About to make a Thneed, about to change the world. Check it out, guys… Where did everybody go? Little did I know that by chopping down that tree I had just summoned a mystical creature as old as time itself. The legendary, slightly annoying guardian of the forest. The Lorax. Hey! Whoo! Did you chop down this tree? Uh… No. Who did it? What’s that? I think he did it. Leave! Vacate the premises! Take your ax and get out! And who are you? I’m the Lorax! Guardian of the forest. I speak for the trees. So you’re telling me, you just didn’t see me magically appear out of that stump? With all the lightning and thunder and stuff. You didn’t see any of that? No, but that sounds amazing. Can I see some of that? Uh, yeah, I could show you. But that’s not how it works. Okay. Um… Didn’t really happen. Oh, I know what you want! I’ve got one of these for the cutest little guy I ever saw! Yummy, yummy, yummy, yummy, yummy… How dare you! Give me that! Mmm. I’m going to eat this, but I am highly offended by it. What are you… Hey, Mustache! Will you stop that? What’s your deal, man? Pull them right out Time for you to go, Beanpole! Just going to put them right back in. We can do this all day. Stop right there! Stop it! So you would hammer one of nature’s innocent creatures? What? No! I would never hit this little guy. You, on the other hand, I would gladly pound you and your mustache into the ground! Behold! The intruder and his violent ways. Shame on you. For shame! All right, you know what? That’s it! You listen to me, you furry meatloaf. I’m going to chop down as many trees as I need. Okay? Newsflash! Not going anywhere! End of story. Then you leave me no choice. If you’re not gone by the time the sun sets on this valley, all the forces of nature will be unleashed upon you and curse you until the end of your days! You have been warned. Thanks. Yeah, okay. You have been warned. But I didn’t listen to his warning. And you won’t believe what happened that night. What? If you want to hear more, come back tomorrow. Hey, wait, wait! Tomorrow? Whoa! Whoa-ho-ho. Are you serious right now? Ah! You live in the middle of nowhere! It stinks out here. Don’t make me come back! I guess you don’t really want to hear the rest of the story. No, no. I do. I really do. I want to hear the story. I just… Nah! You don’t have what it takes. Goodbye. Wait, wait! I have what it takes. It’s all right. It’s okay, I’ll come back. It’s no problem. See, here I am, leaving. Walking away now. I’ll see you tomorrow. Mmm. Maybe. Just maybe. * * * What did you wish for, Audrey? Well, I would love to tell you, but, sadly, according to the universal wish laws, I cannot I know what she wished for. Was it, perhaps… This? Ted, you didn’t. Oh, no. I totally did. Happy birthday, Audrey. Kiss him! Kiss him! Ted. Ted. Tedster. Huh! You’re kissing the cereal again, hon. What? I just… I like this cereal. What one is this? Yeah! Okay. Well, I’ll make sure to buy extra next time for you. All right, cool. Hey, I got to run. I got to go do a thing. So, I’ll see you guys. Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! You’re not going anywhere, young man. It’s Sunday. You know what that means? Family time, and we’re all playing board games! But… Hmm. Mmm? Oh, man. Mom, seriously, every turn? Hey, back off! Ooh! No. Okay! Family time is over. It is now personal time. I’ll be in my room. Okay, dear. Have fun. I knew I could break her. Go. Huh? Go see him! Oh, yeah! You rule! Thank you, Grammy. * * * Whoa! Hey! Ted, right? Um, Mr. O’Hare? So, I hear you have become interested in trees. What’s that all about? Oh. Um… Where did you hear that? Oh. Teddy, there’s not much that goes on in Thneedville that I don’t know about. Here’s the deal, I make a living selling fresh air to people. Trees? They make it for free. So, when I hear people talking about them, I consider it kind of a threat to my business. I don’t even know what you’re talking about. You listen to me, boy. Don’t go poking around in things you don’t understand or I’ll be your worst nightmare. I’m Frankenstein’s head on a

spider’s body! Yeah, um… Okay, my mom is expecting me. So, I’m just going to… Of course, of course. Now, go back to your family game time. Grandma just finished her turn. How did you know? Please. I have eyes everywhere. Huh! You got a beautiful town here, Ted. Lots of fun stuff to occupy your short attention span. Why, I can’t think of any reason you would ever want to go outside of town again. Even. Okay! Good talk. Really good talk. Oh, no. Look out! Hey, man? You know, you need to change that door bell. Oh, you missed me. What? You’re already back. Clearly, you missed me a little. Right? No, I didn’t. I’m just here to hear the end of the story. Why are you so interested in trees anyway? Why aren’t you like other kids, break dancing and wearing bell-bottoms, and playing the Donkey Kongs? Yeah, right, right. I don’t know. Uh, I just thought it would be kind of cool to have one, you know? Huh? It’s a girl, isn’t it? What? No! Really? Because when a guy does something stupid once, well, that’s because he’s a guy. But if he does the same stupid thing twice, it’s usually to impress some girl. Hey, she is not some girl! She’s a woman, in high school. And she loves trees. And I’m going to get her one. Aw! How nice to see someone so undeterred by things like reality. Thank you. All right, but where did we leave off? * * * Now that’s a Thneed. Nothing unmanly about knitting. No, sir. Look at that… Oh! Who taught you guys how to steal a bed? Shh! Okay, nice and easy. Nice work, you guys. Couldn’t have done it without you. You got to be kidding me. Can he swim? Of course he can’t swim! Hang on, Pipsqueak! I’m coming to get you! Hey, you fishies! Stop that bed! Whoo! Whoo! Jump, jump! Come on, get up there. Come on. Go, go! A little bit more! A little bit more! Now what? Mmm-mmm. Get up there. Okay, Pipsqueak, give me your hand. Come on, reach out for the Lorax. Where did you go? Bar-ba-loots. Oh, that’s bad. Hey, Beanpole, wake up! What’s happening? Where am I? Hey! We got trouble, and it’s coming up fast! Whoo! We’re in a river! Whew! Oh, no. Just do something! Help is on the way! No, no! Just a minute! Oh, no! Wake up! Wake up! Yuck! Clear! Ah! I was heading into the light, and you pulled me right back and here I am! You saved my life! Yeah, I know. Well, no, it’s not that big a deal. It is a big deal! Look, I almost went over that waterfall! Wait… On my bed. How did my bed get in the river? Uh… About that… Actually… I put your bed in the water. I didn’t mean you any harm. I just wanted to calmly float you away. Look, everyone here needs the trees and you’re chopping them down! So, we’ve got a big problem. All right, look. I hereby swear that I will never chop down another tree. I promise. Thank you. But I’m going to keep my eye on you. Good. Now, I’ve got a big day tomorrow so I’m going to get some sleep. Right after I find my bed. * * * Ow! Okay, what are you… Question, what are they doing here? And follow up, if I may, what are you doing here? Well, after the incident last night, we found one of your socks and came here to return it. But when we got here, you were asleep. What? Ew! Exactly. And sleeping is the body’s way of telling other people to go away. I know, but you looked so cozy. And it was cold outside, and we just fell asleep. No harm done. “No harm done”? “No harm done”? Okay. Okay, I put my lips on those. Well, I used to, anyway. Ew. Did you just… In my bowl! Why do you have one of these? You don’t even have a mustache. Okay, that’s it! What? I thought we made a deal last night. Yes, we did. And I said I wouldn’t chop down any more trees. And I said I was going to keep an eye on you. I’m starving. What’s for breakfast? Breakfast is overrated. You know what? I got work to do. Yeah. I got to go into town and sell my Thneed. You chopped down one of my trees to make that piece of garbage? Look at that… “Garbage”? Oh, no. Oh, no! You do not get it. This is a revolutionary product that will change the world as we know it. It has a million uses! Look at this. It’s a swimsuit! Mud tracked all over your floor by

uninvited guests? Well, the Thneed sure comes in handy for that! But wait, there’s more! Thanks to its all-natural microfibers, the Thneed is super-absorbent! It also works as a hat. Of course, you probably want to wring it out first. Go ahead, knock yourself out. But nobody is going to buy that thing. Good to know. Well, fortunately, you are not the target market, weirdo. You’re bringing a guitar? Oh, yeah. I got a little jingle. I’m gonna blow some minds, gonna sell some Thneeds! Yeah. ♪ Everybody needs a Thneed ♪ ♪ A fine thing that all people… ♪ Sit down, go on. Unfortunately, I didn’t sell it the first day. ♪ The Thneed is good ♪ ♪ The Thneed is great… ♪ Hey! Or the second day. Hey! Or the third, or fourth, or fifth day. Okay, that one hit the tender spot. Until finally… That’s it! You know what? I’m done with this thing. Aw. My family was right. I quit! Hey. Cool hat. Oh, my gosh! I totally want one. That thing makes me like you more. Hey! Where’s your Thneed, did you sell it? Hey. No, no. Didn’t sell it. Turns out, it’s ahead of its time, I guess. Hey, you gave it your best shot. Right? What more can you do? Come on, take a seat, we’ll deal you in. What are we playing? I’m playing poker. He’s playing Go Fish. And I think he’s hungry. Ohhh. ♪ Pancake, the pancake ♪ Up! Who is up for ninths? Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Whoa! All right, pass them over. Yeah, see? What’s going on? Oh, no. That’s a lot of people. ♪ Everybody needs a Thneed ♪ ♪ A fine thing ♪ ♪ that all people need ♪ ♪ The Thneed is good ♪ ♪ The Thneed is great ♪ ♪ Let’s hope we’re not too late ♪ ♪ It’s a super trendy hat ♪ ♪ It’s a tightrope for an acrobat ♪ ♪ A net for catching butterflies ♪ ♪ A thing we use for exercise ♪ ♪ Everybody needs a Thneed ♪ ♪ A fine thing ♪ ♪ that all people need ♪ ♪ Everybody needs a Thneed ♪ Oh, yeah! We’re in business, baby! ♪ We need a Thneed ♪ Mom? Hey, it’s me! I told you I was going to be a success! You need to bring the whole family here right now. We’re going to be rich! What? I’m going to need all the help I can get. Don’t worry. * * * So, has he told you how to get a tree yet? Actually, no. But I think he’s going to get to that part really soon. Here we are. What? I’ll just be a minute. Oh, wow. Hey, Audrey! Oh, hi, Ted! What’s up? You know me, just cruising. Putting out the vibe. Just me and my thoughts. Oh, is this the girl you’re always talking about? Grandma! Stop making things up. She’s even prettier than… Okay, got to run! Bye. Okay, Grammy, let’s get you home! Yeah! Whoa! I’m so sorry. So sorry. Did not wanna see that. Whoa! Whoa! Whoa-ho-ho! Hey! Hey, I’m back. What have you got there? Yes! Whoa! Thank you, Ted. Now, picture this. Sun shining, a blue sky, a perfect day. It was all downhill from there. Whoa! What a dump. Hey, Aunt Grizelda! Hey, Chet, check this out! Go long! No, Brett, that’s actually not a… Okay. Go long! Go long! I got it! I got it! Got it! He totally ran into that tree! Ow! Oncie, is that you? Mom! There he is! There’s my big, suddenly successful son! We always knew you would make it, Oncie. Right? Hey! I love this guy! But you always said I wouldn’t amount to anything, remember? Hush your mouth. I was just trying to motivate you! I am really glad that you clarified that because it actually hurt my feelings for a really long time. Anyway, you’re all here, you all work for me, and that’s cool. So, let’s get to work. Brett, Chet, set up the RV! Would you stop throwing that bear? Time out. Back up. Stop. Don’t move an inch. Nobody’s moving in here. You got to go. Goodbye. So, who invited the giant, furry peanut? You calling me a peanut, huh? I’ll go right up your nose! Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! You wouldn’t hit a woman. That’s a woman? Okay. Everyone, cool it. Let’s not get off on the wrong foot here. Um, family, this is my friend… Acquaintance. Yeah, acquaintance. Very good acquaintance, the Lorax. He speaks for the trees. That’s right. And on behalf of the trees, get out! Will you just be nice! This is my family. And I’m going to need their help if my company is going to get bigger. Okay?

Bigger? Yeah, this isn’t some rinky-dink operation anymore. I got plans. Big plans! A vision of a world filled with Thneeds. It’s going to be huge! Which way does a tree fall? Uh, down? A tree falls the way it leans. Be careful which way you lean. * * * I mean, look at this. It’s amazing. I am so proud of me. Oncie, we’ve got us a little problem. Problem? Mmm-hmm. See, we’re not making Thneeds fast enough. Harvesting the tufts takes too long! Well, what else can we do? Well, and this just came to me, we could always start chopping down the trees. What? Now you’re thinking. That would speed things up! But… No “but” s, Oncie. You’re running a business now. You have to do what’s best for the company, and your momma. Well, I guess it couldn’t hurt to chop down a few trees. You’ve made me so proud, Oncie. Come here! Hey! I love this guy! No! No, no, no! Stop it! Please, stop. Take that, you stupid tree! Where do you think you’re going? Excuse me, sir. I need to talk with your boss. Oh, I’m sorry, but Mr. Once-ler’s not seeing anyone right now. Yeah, well, he’ll see me. So… Hey, keep your paws off me! Give me a reason, Shorty. Hey, you broke your promise. You’re better than this. You gotta stop! This is bad! Have a nice day! Bad? I’m not bad, I’m the good guy here. He just doesn’t get it. Do you think I’m bad? Thank you! I mean, something good finally happens to me, and he just has to come along and rain on my parade. What’s his problem? See? Yeah, bad! Right. ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just doin’ ♪ ♪ what comes naturally ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just following my destiny ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just doin’ ♪ ♪ what comes naturally ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ How bad can I possibly be? ♪ ♪ Well, there’s ♪ ♪ a principle in nature ♪ ♪ Principle in nature ♪ ♪ That almost ♪ ♪ every creature knows ♪ ♪ Called survival of the fittest ♪ ♪ Survival of the fittest ♪ ♪ And check it, ♪ ♪ this is how it goes ♪ ♪ The animal that wins ♪ ♪ gotta scratch and fight ♪ ♪ And claw and bite and punch ♪ ♪ And the animal that doesn’t ♪ ♪ Well, the animal that doesn’t ♪ ♪ Winds up someone else’s ♪ ♪ La-la-la-la lunch ♪ ♪ Munch, munch, munch, munch, ♪ ♪ munch I’m just sayin’ ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just doin’ ♪ ♪ what comes naturally ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just following my destiny ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just doin’ ♪ ♪ what comes naturally ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ How bad can I possibly be? ♪ ♪ There’s a principle in business ♪ ♪ Principle in business ♪ ♪ That everybody knows is sound ♪ ♪ It says the people with the ♪ ♪ money People with the money ♪ ♪ Make this ♪ ♪ ever-loving world go round ♪ ♪ So I’m biggering my company ♪ ♪ I’m biggering my factory ♪ ♪ I’m biggering my corporate sign ♪ ♪ Bigger, bigger! ♪ ♪ Everybody out there ♪ ♪ You take care of yours ♪ ♪ I’ll take care of ♪ ♪ mine-mine-mine-mine-mine ♪ ♪ Shake that bottom line ♪ ♪ Let me hear you ♪ ♪ say Smogulous Smoke! ♪ ♪ Smogulous Smoke! ♪ ♪ Schloppity-Schlopp! ♪ ♪ Complain all you want It’s never, ♪ ♪ ever, ever, ever gonna stop ♪ ♪ Stop! ♪ ♪ Come on, ♪ ♪ how bad can I possibly be? ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just building the economy ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ Just look at me ♪ ♪ petting this puppy ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ A portion of proceeds ♪ ♪ goes to charity ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ How bad could I possibly be? ♪ ♪ Let’s see! ♪ ♪ All the customers are buying ♪ ♪ And the money’s multiplying ♪ ♪ And the PR people are lying ♪ ♪ And the lawyers are denying ♪ ♪ Who cares if ♪ ♪ a few trees are dying? ♪ ♪ This is all so gratifying! ♪ ♪ How bad? ♪ ♪ How bad can this possibly be? ♪ So, how are things? What are you doing here? Happy yet? You fill that hole deep down inside you? Or do you still need more? Look, if you’ve got a problem with what I’m doing, why haven’t you used your quote-unquote powers to stop me? I told you, that’s not how it works. Right, I forgot. You’re a fraud. I need you to get out. Now! Why? Do I make you uncomfortable? Remind you of the promises you made? The man you used to be? You know what? You can just shut your mustache. My

conscience is clear. I have done nothing illegal. I have my rights, and I intend to keep on biggering and biggering, and turning more Truffula trees into Thneeds. And nothing is going to stop me! Well, that’s it. The very last one. That may stop you. Somebody sure made a bundle on that thing. I wonder what the next million dollar invention’s going to be. Yeah, I wonder… Son, you have let me down. Brett, you are now my favorite child. Hey, look, I don’t want any trouble. And you won’t get any. Not from them. Thanks to you and your hacking, and smogging and glupping, they can’t live here anymore. So, I’m sending them off. Hopefully, they’ll be able to find a better place out there somewhere. Melvin? Melvin… Hey, Pipsqueak… Hey… So, this is really all your fault. You destroyed everything. Yes. And each day since the Lorax left, I’ve sat here regretting everything I’ve done, staring at that word, “unless,” and wondering what it meant. But now I’m thinking… Well, maybe you’re the reason the Lorax left that word there. Me? Why would he leave that for me? Because unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not. The last Truffula seed. You need to plant it, Ted. Yeah, but, nobody cares about trees anymore. Then make them care. Plant the seed in the middle of town, where everyone can see. Change the way things are. I know it may seem small and insignificant, but it’s not about what it is, it’s about what it can become. That’s not just a seed, any more than you’re just a boy. I won’t let you down. I know. * * * Hey, Audrey! Audrey! Ted? What are you doing? Meet me at my house. Wait, but… My house, okay? Got to plant the seed. Okay, we’re going to need water. And uh, something to dig with. Um, what do I have… Ted? Mom, I’m busy, Mom. Theodore Wiggins, get down here right now, and I am not kidding with you! Ted, I would like you to meet Mr. O’Hare, the most powerful man in town. There he is! Hello, Ted. Uh… Hi. Isn’t he clever, Mr. O’Hare? He knows his own name and everything. You know what I would love right now, Mrs. Wiggins? A delicious cookie. Wonderful. Teddy and I’ll stay here and talk. Sure, why don’t you go ahead and adopt him? I’m just kidding. That was a joke. I was just joking. I’ll get your cookie. I know you have it, Ted. So, let’s put an end to this nonsense, shall we? Hand it over. I’m sorry… I don’t know what you’re talking about. Really? Well, then… I guess you wouldn’t mind us checking your room. No, no, no! Morty! McGurk! Find the seed! No, you can’t go up there! Guys, this is ridiculous. Stop! Hey! No, you can’t come in my room! Find it! Find it! What is going on here? This doesn’t involve you! Get back downstairs! Excuse me, down there! I don’t care who you are, you little crazy baby-man! Get out of my house now. This is outrageous. Fine. Sorry. Must have been a misunderstanding. We’ll be leaving now. And my apologies, Ted. You be safe. Mind telling me what’s going on here? The seed! Where is it? Seed? Where’s Grammy? It’s alive! I remember you. Ted, what… Audrey! Hey, did you want to… Well, okay! Ted, what is this about? It’s about this. Wait, wait, wait. Is that… Yes. The last Truffula seed. And you’re going to help me plant it right in the middle of town where everyone can see it. I could just kiss you right now! We don’t have time for that. I don’t know, we have a little time. But, you know what, let’s just go. Let’s go. Forget about it. Maniac! Hey! Ah! Here it comes! I’m going for it. Oh, hello! Ted, big scary blimp coming. Whoa! You won’t get away with this, boy! Bam! Go faster, you idiot! Yeah! Step on it, Ted! Whoa! You’re fired! Whoa! Ted, look out! Nobody beats Aloysius O… Ted… This is not good. How’s it doing? Whoa-ho-ho! Loser! Oh, really? Oh, no. The seed! Get that seed! Hang on! Here we go! Grammy! Seriously, how cool is your grandma? No! Come on! Yeah, that’s right. There it is! Hey! Watch the road, you meathead! Ah! Hey, ow, ow! Oh, come on! What the… Get it unstuck, get it unstuck! Bring it on, Teddy! You don’t have the guts! Ted! Grammy! Whoo-hoo!

Yes! Hey, hey, hey! Hey! It’s Mr. O… Take that, shorty! Okay, we have to get this in the ground. But where? There’s no dirt anywhere. No, Grammy… Hey, get out of there! Ah! Hey! What? See, what did I tell you? Easy. Huh? Hey, they broke O’Hare’s head! What do you think you’re doing, kid? Um, I’m looking for a place to plant a tree. A real one. Why would we need a tree? Exactly. Oh, man. Folks… The last thing you want around here is trees. They’re filthy! Spewing that sticky, nasty sap all over the place. They bring poisonous ants and stinging bees. Hey! Ouch. Think about the kids. And, I just thought, you know, they make leaves! You know that, right? Then these leaves, they just fall. They just fall wherever they want! Come on! We know why you’re really against trees. Because they produce fresh air. For free! Oh! I am wounded! You have lied! It is not a lie! It’s called photosynthesis. Come on. She’s making that up! That’s a made-up word, people! Thneedville is perfect just the way it is. We don’t need trees! That boy has a seed. We need to stop him! Who’s with me? Come on! O’Hare is right! Seeds will ruin us all! Stop it! Last chance, kid. Hand it over! Where do you think you’re going? Come on, let’s go! Get in, get in! Hey! Stop that maniac! Excuse me, excuse me. Watch out! Ted, you’re going to hit the wall! Yeah. I know. Wow. Did you see that? Who does this kid think he is, huh? I am Ted Wiggins. And I speak for the trees. And the fact is, things aren’t perfect here in Thneedville. And they’re only going to get worse, unless we do something about it, unless we change our ways. And we can start by planting this! Okay. Come on, now. Everything is fine. Right? I say we tell this kid what we think about that seed! People, come on! You! Get out there right now and get these people on my side, or else you’re fired! Go on, tell them what you think. ♪ You don’t know me, ♪ ♪ but my name’s Cy ♪ ♪ I’m just ♪ ♪ the O’Hare delivery guy ♪ ♪ But it seems like ♪ ♪ trees might be worth a try ♪ ♪ So I say let it grow ♪ ♪ My name is Dan ♪ ♪ And my name’s Rose ♪ ♪ Our son Wesley kind of glows ♪ ♪ And that’s not good, ♪ ♪ so we suppose ♪ ♪ We should let it grow ♪ ♪ Let it grow, let it grow ♪ ♪ You can’t reap ♪ ♪ what you don’t sow ♪ ♪ Plant a seed inside the Earth ♪ ♪ Just one way to know its worth ♪ ♪ Let’s celebrate ♪ ♪ the world’s rebirth ♪ ♪ We say let it grow ♪ ♪ My name’s Marie, ♪ ♪ and I am three! ♪ ♪ I would really ♪ ♪ like to see a tree ♪ ♪ I say let it grow ♪ ♪ I’m Grammy Norma I’m old, ♪ ♪ and I’ve got gray hair ♪ ♪ But I remember when ♪ ♪ trees were everywhere ♪ ♪ And no one had to pay for air ♪ ♪ So I say let it grow ♪ ♪ Let it grow, let it grow ♪ ♪ Like it did so long ago ♪ ♪ It is just one tiny seed ♪ ♪ But it’s all we really need ♪ ♪ It’s time to change ♪ ♪ the life we lead ♪ ♪ Time to let it grow ♪ ♪ My name’s O’Hare, ♪ ♪ I’m one of you ♪ ♪ I live here in Thneedville, too ♪ ♪ The things you say ♪ ♪ just might be true ♪ ♪ It could be time to start anew ♪ ♪ And maybe change ♪ ♪ my point of view ♪ Nah! I say let it die! ♪ Let it die, let it die ♪ ♪ Let it shrivel up and… ♪ Come on, who’s with me? Nobody. ♪ You greedy dirt-bag-‘ ♪ ♪ Let it grow, let it grow ♪ ♪ Let the love inside you show ♪ ♪ Plant a seed inside the Earth ♪ ♪ Just one way to know its worth ♪ ♪ Let’s celebrate ♪ ♪ the world’s rebirth ♪ ♪ We say let it grow ♪ ♪ Let it grow, let it grow ♪ ♪ You can’t reap ♪ ♪ what you don’t sow ♪ ♪ It’s just one tiny seed ♪ ♪ But it’s all we really need ♪ ♪ It’s time to ♪ ♪ banish all your greed ♪ ♪ Imagine Thneedville ♪ ♪ flowered and treed ♪ ♪ Let this be our solemn creed ♪ Thank you, Ted. ♪ We say let it grow ♪ ♪ In Thneedville ♪ ♪ We say let it grow ♪ ♪ It’s a brand new dawn ♪ ♪ We say let it grow ♪ ♪ In Thneedville ♪ ♪ We say let it grow ♪ ♪ It’s a brand new dawn ♪ You done good, Beanpole. You done good. By the way, nice mustache. UNLESS someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not. —Dr. Seuss THE END

Bigger? Yeah, this isn’t some rinky-dink operation anymore. I got plans. Big plans! A vision of a world filled with Thneeds. It’s going to be huge! Which way does a tree fall? Uh, down? A tree falls the way it leans. Be careful which way you lean. * * * I mean, look at this. It’s amazing. I am so proud of me. Oncie, we’ve got us a little problem. Problem? Mmm-hmm. See, we’re not making Thneeds fast enough. Harvesting the tufts takes too long! Well, what else can we do? Well, and this just came to me, we could always start chopping down the trees. What? Now you’re thinking. That would speed things up! But… No “but�� s, Oncie. You’re running a business now. You have to do what’s best for the company, and your momma. Well, I guess it couldn’t hurt to chop down a few trees. You’ve made me so proud, Oncie. Come here! Hey! I love this guy! No! No, no, no! Stop it! Please, stop. Take that, you stupid tree! Where do you think you’re going? Excuse me, sir. I need to talk with your boss. Oh, I’m sorry, but Mr. Once-ler’s not seeing anyone right now. Yeah, well, he’ll see me. So… Hey, keep your paws off me! Give me a reason, Shorty. Hey, you broke your promise. You’re better than this. You gotta stop! This is bad! Have a nice day! Bad? I’m not bad, I’m the good guy here. He just doesn’t get it. Do you think I’m bad? Thank you! I mean, something good finally happens to me, and he just has to come along and rain on my parade. What’s his problem? See? Yeah, bad! Right. ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just doin’ ♪ ♪ what comes naturally ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just following my destiny ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just doin’ ♪ ♪ what comes naturally ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ How bad can I possibly be? ♪ ♪ Well, there’s ♪ ♪ a principle in nature ♪ ♪ Principle in nature ♪ ♪ That almost ♪ ♪ every creature knows ♪ ♪ Called survival of the fittest ♪ ♪ Survival of the fittest ♪ ♪ And check it, ♪ ♪ this is how it goes ♪ ♪ The animal that wins ♪ ♪ gotta scratch and fight ♪ ♪ And claw and bite and punch ♪ ♪ And the animal that doesn’t ♪ ♪ Well, the animal that doesn’t ♪ ♪ Winds up someone else’s ♪ ♪ La-la-la-la lunch ♪ ♪ Munch, munch, munch, munch, ♪ ♪ munch I’m just sayin’ ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just doin’ ♪ ♪ what comes naturally ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just following my destiny ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just doin’ ♪ ♪ what comes naturally ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ How bad can I possibly be? ♪ ♪ There’s a principle in business ♪ ♪ Principle in business ♪ ♪ That everybody knows is sound ♪ ♪ It says the people with the ♪ ♪ money People with the money ♪ ♪ Make this ♪ ♪ ever-loving world go round ♪ ♪ So I’m biggering my company ♪ ♪ I’m biggering my factory ♪ ♪ I’m biggering my corporate sign ♪ ♪ Bigger, bigger! ♪ ♪ Everybody out there ♪ ♪ You take care of yours ♪ ♪ I’ll take care of ♪ ♪ mine-mine-mine-mine-mine ♪ ♪ Shake that bottom line ♪ ♪ Let me hear you ♪ ♪ say Smogulous Smoke! ♪ ♪ Smogulous Smoke! ♪ ♪ Schloppity-Schlopp! ♪ ♪ Complain all you want It’s never, ♪ ♪ ever, ever, ever gonna stop ♪ ♪ Stop! ♪ ♪ Come on, ♪ ♪ how bad can I possibly be? ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ I’m just building the economy ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ Just look at me ♪ ♪ petting this puppy ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ A portion of proceeds ♪ ♪ goes to charity ♪ ♪ How bad can I be? ♪ ♪ How bad could I possibly be? ♪ ♪ Let’s see! ♪ ♪ All the customers are buying ♪ ♪ And the money’s multiplying ♪ ♪ And the PR people are lying ♪ ♪ And the lawyers are denying ♪ ♪ Who cares if ♪ ♪ a few trees are dying? ♪ ♪ This is all so gratifying! ♪ ♪ How bad? ♪ ♪ How bad can this possibly be? ♪ So, how are things? What are you doing here? Happy yet? You fill that hole deep down inside you? Or do you still need more? Look, if you’ve got a problem with what I’m doing, why haven’t you used your quote-unquote powers to stop me? I told you, that’s not how it works. Right, I forgot. You’re a fraud. I need you to get out. Now! Why? Do I make you uncomfortable? Remind you of the promises you made? The man you used to be? You know what? You can just shut your mustache. My

Omg

#tw long post #josh's random thoughts

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