#I have plans Thursday night and have sort of decided on going to sleep after and when I wake up Friday I will set myself up and watch | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

lunazuniga-smith · 7 months

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Fashionably Late A/N: look who decided to arrive Date: Thursday, September 28th. (Also, fashionably late to post!) @detkhamani

Luna

,"And that is my get ready with me while I'm in labor!" Luna smiled at the camera of her laptop as she pulled up her maternity biker shorts and then threw herself on her and Khamani's bed. She was doing fine. Great, even. After lugging all her stuff to labor and delivery only to be told the baby isn't ready yet really did put a damper on things the night before. She spent a good amount of time yelling and punching the air, walking around, doing exercise, eating spicy foods and exhausting poor Khamani with sex that she thought it was all out of her system. Today, she'd spend the morning talking to her followers, practicing her breathing and trying to remain zen but as she laid on their bed, Luna's annoyance crept up. She gently placed her hands on her belly and sighed. "Please come out so we can meet you, baby! Mommy is so very tired and she wants sushi and a giant pillow and I promise I'll give you all the cuddles if you come out right now!" She was already post date which meant she could be induced by now but she refused to get any sort of medication. After speaking with Juniper, Luna felt this was the path she wanted to go on. The path of unmedicated birth! And that meant no induction. Everything at it's due time. And right when she was about to answer follower questions, she felt another contraction come on. "Oh my God. OH MY GOD! KHAMANI!"

Khamani

Khamani had been doing everything he could think of and was advised of him to help Luna's labor along. And while he wasn't necessarily complaining about the abundance of sex they'd been having lately, adding the day-to-day, and running around with Cannon in the backyard almost daily after he got home from school was making him physically tired. He'd already planned to start his paternity leave from the agency on Luna's due date and because they were small but effective, he'd had flexibility in his schedule.

Presently, he'd been napping on the couch after taking Cannon over to his sister's salon to hang out with her--thankful that she and Tyla offered to keep him entertained overnight. But he'd barely managed to keep his eyes shut before Luna's shouts jolted him out of his sleep. Khamani shot up and practically leapt off the couch, ran--and half slid--across the hardwood floor to their bedroom. "What is it, babe?! Is it time?? The go bag's already in my car."

Luna

She looked up at Khamani, tears in her eyes and the notifications on the computer poured in. This is not what she wanted to do on her live. "Turn it off. Tell them anything!" Luna began her breathing techniques and as she did so she whimpered softly. "It's another contraction. Should we go? I don't know what to do! If I go, they're going to drug me and I swear, I'll flick Dr. Leonard's forehead if he mentions Pitocin again!" The zen Luna hoped she'd find was slipping away from her fingers and oh, her poor husband was left dealing with her flip-flopping meltdowns. "Ok, okay...it's gone..." She took another deep breath. That one was bad. I think she's ready...call Dr. Leonard and tell him we're coming and we're not leaving until they hook me up to a monitor!"

Khamani —

Khamani, who was usually calm, cool and collected had to pause to really take in the scene. Luna was laying on the bed, clutching her belly, and her laptop and ring light were set up on the dresser just a few feet in front of their bed. His brows furrowed, "You're recording right now?" he asked, calming a bit from his panic as he now strode over to her laptop. Seeing himself appear in the tiny rectangular window in the upper corner, Khamani thought for all of two seconds on what to say to Luna's followers before going, "Uh... show's over for now. Bye." There wasn't anything else he could think to say on the fly but he shut off the camera, ended the live stream, and then turned off the ring light so his attention was fully on Luna. After listening to her, he was about to offer her his hand for support, but the contraction subsided. "Okay. Yeah. We're gonna go. No more waiting or tricks to speed this up." He grabbed some shoes to put on and a light hoodie, and then went to Luna again, "What do you need right now? What shoes do you wanna wear on th way there?" He rubbed the back of his neck while looking around the room, "And uh... oh! Okay before we actually leave, you're one hundred percent sure on the clothes you packed for yourself and for baby girl's homecoming outfit, right?"

Luna —

"No more tricks..." She breathed in and out and watched Khamani, who was usually calm look kind of nervous. It was endearing, cute even and she flashed him a tiny smile. Before she could tell him how adorable he was in that moment, Luna felt another contraction come on and she yelled at the top of her lungs. "Ahhh!! Baby! Baby! Ohhhh...." She began her breathing exercises again and for a split-second, Luna considered texting Junipet. She did not want any drugs. She'd find a way. "I--mm hmm mm hmm it's all in there. Can you find my slides? I don't think anything else fits right now." Luna was breathing through this last contraction that felt like absolute hell ripping through her. "Khamani...no drugs, okay?" She looked up to him with pleading eyes. "I can---ahhh. I can do this...."

Khamani —

For a moment, Khamani was torn between crouching beside Luna and helping her through her contraction as best as possible, and gathering up the items needed for them to go. But he ultimately decided to go to Luna, giving her one hand to hold while his other hand rubbed firm circles along her lower back. "You've got this, babe. Keep on breathing. Just keep breathing." He heard what she said and nodded. "You got it. I'll get those, and I'll get the bag." Lifting her hand, he kissed her knuckles and once he had the opportunity to free his hand, he got up from the bed and moved quickly, less out of nervousness and more out of sheer urgency for Luna. He'd snatched up the go bag from their closet and found her slides by the foot of their bed. After plucking a lightweight hoodie for her from their closet and slinging it over his shoulder, Khamani came back to the bed, preparing to put th shos on his wife's feet. "No drugs. I hear you, babe. You've got this. Let's get your shoes on and get going." He'd help her to her feet--hell, he'd carry her to the car if need be.

Luna —

Luna was trying her hardest to put on a brave face. All she wanted was to make it back to the hospital and to not be sent back home again. It had already been hours. "Once the baby is born, I want all you can eat sushi. All of it." She continued her breathing as she got up on her feet. "And a keylime pie. Maybe Tiramisu. Maybe both." She followed Khamani out to the car, gripping his hand the moment she felt another contraction begin. "Ohhhh! Oh God, Oh God. I'm going to have this baby in the middle of San Francisco traffic, aren't I? Ohhhh!!" She breathed in and out, in and out. "Why didn't they just keep me the first time?" She felt her tears fall down her face. "I've been in labor for a million hours!"

Khamani

"You can have whatever you want, Sunshine. You'll have more than earned it," Khamani promised, helping her to her feet after her shoes were on. He'd had the bag slung over one shoulder and her hoodie draped over it, walking with her. His hand pulsed a bit with her tight grip but he took a deep breath and said, "You've got this. You're not having the baby in the middle of traffic. Just keep breathing. We'll get there, alright?" He ducked his head to get Luna to look him in his eyes. "I've got you, alright? You and me, baby." He pecked her forehead and then opened her door to help her inside the passenger's seat. After tossing the bag in the back with the pre-installed car seat and Cannon's booster, Khamani got into the driver's seat, started up his car and carefully but vigilantly began the drive to the hospital.

Luna —

"Thank you," Luna whispered as she tried to shuffle toward the car. Sure, Khamani had to say these things to keep her comfortable but Luna was too busy thinking about the possibility of having this baby in the middle of traffic. When he stopped to look at her in the eyes, she gently pressed her forehead against his and nodded. That's what did it. She needed his calm, his patience, his perfect disposition. Khamani was the best partner she could ever ask for. "You and me." She sighed and climbed into the car with his help. She leaned back a little, placing her phone on her belly and still in awe at how much the baby had dropped over the last couple of days. She was huge. She didn't feel this huge at their shower. "Baby girl, I'm going to need you to help mommy and daddy convince labor and delivery to take me this time, okay? So, give it your all. Don't hold back!" She looked over to Khamani when he climbed in. "I think she likes it in there way too much."

Khamani —

While Khamani drove, he offered his free hand to Luna and listened to her talk to their baby. He'd chuckled a bit and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "What's not to like? She gets fed, housed and soothed by your voice on a regular basis." He was thankful the traffic wasn't too congested this time of day and that they didn't live terribly far from the hospital. It was the traffic lights that mostly held them up. Each time they reached a red light, he looked over to Luna to make sure she was still breathing steadily and then his eyes went back to the road in time for the green light. "Almost there, babe," he promised. And sure enough, when they arrived at the hospital, he parked as close to the entrance as possible and grabbed the go bag from the back seat before coming around to the passenger's side to help Luna out. "We're not going home with just the two of us. They're not sending us back home, alright?" He leaned in and kissed Luna's temple and then prepared to walk with her inside so they could head up to Labor and Delivery.

Luna —

She had two contractions in the car but nothing too painful or too out of the ordinary. She had been dealing with Braxton Hicks since before her due date and at the rate she was going, they were pale in comparison to the ones she had before leaving the house. Luna was starting to believe maybe this was a false alarm too. Khamani's reassuring words were like music to her ears. Even with her erratic demands, he still made her feel like she was on top of the world. "Alright. I believe you." She did. There was nothing that would take that away from her. And as they got into the elevator, she felt a contraction come on, more painful than the ones at home and she felt everything differently this time. "Ohhhh!! Khamani!" She grabbed on to her belly and as soon as the ding of the elevator went off, she was begging for a wheelchair. "Ahhh!!! I'm in labor! I've been in labor for too long and I swear if I don't get a bed, I'm going to have this baby on this AHHHH nursing station!" she began to breathe in and out.

Khamani —

"Yeah, babe?" Khamani replied, trying to keep his voice level, even though he'd been alert and watching the way Luna clutched her rounded tummy. The more he stared at her, the more he was doubting that she'd be able to walk off. Hell, he'd carry her if he had to. He could do it without issue. But Luna's cries about being in labor and getting a bed were enough to grab attention at the nurse's station. A couple of them jumped into action with one hurrying around the counter to bring one of the wheelchairs to them while another grabbed a clipboard. Apparently it was a slow night on the L&D floor which suited Khamani. He helped ease Luna into the wheelchair while answering questions that one of the nurses began asking--the questions he could answer anyway. But he could sense that the nurse was about to turn a set of questions onto Luna and, if her expression was any indication, she wasn't in any position to answer them at the moment. "Uh, lemme stop you right thre for a sec," Khamani said as the one nurse wheeled Luna off the elevator and towards a vacant room. Khamani followed with the second nurse making hurried strides to keep up. "I'm not in the business of telling other folks how to do their job, she's having a contraction right now. So if you could save your questions for when she's not in the middle of one, you're gonna get better answers."

Luna —

,,Luna was so grateful for Khamani. She truly didn't know what she'd do without him and as time went on, the reality of all of this was finally setting in. She was happy for the wheelchair, even happier that this big contraction was subsiding and for a split second, she almost begged for pain medications but she knew she still had time. If worse came to worse, she'd ask for them or she'd give Khamani the signal.

"Right. Apologies. Contractions are less far apart than when she was here earlier, it seems. We're going to hook her up to a monitor. I'll page Dr. Leonard." The nurse that had been talking to Khamani seemed to be the most steady of them all and Luna breathed as she felt the next contraction begin. "Hi Luna! I'm Nurse Maggie and we're going to get you started. This monitor over here is going to be your best friend, it's going to let us know how baby girl is doing, okay?" After Luna was settled on her bed, the other nurses assisted in changing her behind a closed curtain with Khamani's assistance. Maggie then moved to hold on to Luna's hand as the contraction set in. "Oh that's a big one. Okay, Dad, come over here, take her hand for me." The nurse walked over to the computer in the room and began to open Luna's chart. "Non-medicated birth." She whispered and then looked over her shoulder to keep an eye on Luna. "Okay, sweetheart. I really think if you're going to want medications, now is the time. It's my job to walk you both through this. Just keep breathing and let me know what the two of you decide." She looked over to the monitor. "Baby is doing great."

Luna felt the hot tears falling down her cheeks as she continued her breathing exercises. "Why isn't he here yet?" Meaning the doctor. She squeezed her husband's hand. "Text---ohhhh! Ahh! ok-ok. Text Juni. How did they do this?! TWICE!?! And Celeste looks like a goddess!!! AND I KNOW SEBTONY DIDN'T HAVE THOSE BABIES BUT THEY HAVE THREE AND SOMEHOW THEY LOOK LIKE SUPERMODELS!" she began to really cry this time and Nurse Maggie flashed a gentle smile to the couple.

Khamani —

"That's how this is all supposed to go, right?" Khamani asked a little rhetorically when he heard the nurse compare Luna's contractions now to earlier. Neither of them had been happy that she was sent home the first time but they followed orders and left. This time though, Khamani was going to advocate for his wife and daughter. He stayed by Luna's side as much as possible and helped the nurses with changing her out of her clothes and into a hospital gown. Once she was settled on the bed and strapped to the monitors, he heard the nurse ask about medication. Holding Luna's hand, he looked in her eyes and goddammit if he didn't hate seeing her in so much agony.

He was just about to open his mouth and see if Luna had changed her mind when she told him to text their friend, and then continued with their outburst." Khamani froze through it, free hand bumping his cellphone in his sweats pocket, brows raised slightly. Did she just ask about Sebastián and Antony..? Supermodels? Out loud, Khamani composed himself and said, "Babe, everybody's different, okay? Everybody. If you wanna have medication, it's ok. Kendra did when she had Tyla. I dunno what Celeste did but you get to do this in whatever way's gonna be best for you okay?" He brushed some rebellious strands of hair from her face and then kissed her forehead. "You and me, babe. I'm right here for my goddess."

Luna —

"I love you." Luna cried to her husband as she continued breathing. "It's okay--" She breathed in and out. " we have time." Of course they had time, last they checked the baby wasn't budging, she was happily tucked in there and Luna was doing great, they still had time. They had tons of-- "AHHHH! OH GOD. WHERE'S DOCTOR LEONARD? WHERE IS? I CAN'T DO THIS! I can't do this! Why'd you do this to me?!" She looked up at Khamani and the nurse tried to hide her smile.

"Deep breaths, you two. You both got it!" The nurse tried to soothe Luna but she was screaming through the pain. "Luna, honey Are you sure you don't want any..."

"GIVE ME THE DRUGS!" Luna squeezed Khamani's hand with all her might.

"Hello, hello! It's my favorite patient!" Dr. Leonard walked in and Luna shot daggers at him. "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, I've been keeping up with her monitoring and she seems to be doing--" the doctor took a peek at Luna's monitor. "Uh-Maggie My patient is asking for drugs. Get the epidural in. That baby is coming before we know it. Luna, we've already gone through this and how it works we just have to do it a bit quicker. This is going to kick in 15 minutes and then we're going to have to really push, okay?" He looked up at Khamani. "I'm sorry, I thought we had a lot more time."

Khamani —

Khamani offered Luna a gentle but encouraging smile and kept his hand in hers. When she hollered again, he braced himself for her grip tightening and then jerked his chin back, eyes widening a fraction when she rounded on him as the fault for her current state. For a second, he considered answering her but a split second of better thinking kept him from losing his head from the rest of his body.

His wife's decision to be medicated through the rest of the labor caught Khamani by surprise but the last thing he was going to do at that moment was question her certainly. She looked like she was in the worst pain of her life and who the hell was he to question that?

"Whatever you want, babe. As soon as we can, we'll get it for you." But he didn't know he'd made that promise prematurely at the time. Listening to Dr. Leonard, his briws furrowed. "Wait, what? What are you saying?" He asked. "We had a lot of time a few minutes ago. Is it really time for her to push now?"

Luna —

Once the epidural was on, Luna couldn't help the tears falling down her face. "Why did I think I could do this?" She shook her head and held on to Khamani. "It might be too late for the drugs now." Dr. Leonard had the room prepped for delivery as quickly as possible, dreading facing his patient and her spouse now that their timeline had changed. "I'm so sorry, Khamani. I don't know where we went wrong. She probably should have been triaged hours ago. There's a slight possibility the medications won't kick in fast enough but Luna, we're here for you and we're going to have a safe delivery!" he waited for the nurse to help Luna up in a sitting position. Luna looked up at her husband. "I'm so scared." It was the first time she had admitted that to him. She had a whole life in her hands. "I'm so---ahhhh! Ohhh! Oh no, no no no no " Luna extended her free hand and Maggie the nurse ran to take it so she can squeeze it.

"Okay, we're going to start pushing, Luna. I need you to really push for us, okay?"

Khamani —

"Because you can do this," Khamani told her, looking right into his wife's eyes. He tried not to show his upset towards Dr. Leonard at the mention of Luna needing to be triaged hours ago a day the fact that they had already been up at the hospital before only to be sent back home. He kept one hand in Luna's and brought the other up to brush some rebellious strands of hair from her face. He leaned close to whisper just above her ear, "You can do this, Sunshine. I know you're in a lot of pain right now but you're gonna be able to get through this and bring our little girl into this world."

He kissed the side of her head twice and then leaned back to look her in her eyes again when it came time for her to push.

Luna —

She couldn't do this without him and Luna knew in that moment exactly what she needed to do. She needed to focus on him and only him. She wasn't going to think about anyone else in the room. If she concentrated on Khamani, Luna would have nothing to be scared of because he was her rock and she was his. She nodded, keeping her breathing paced just like she had learned and then she pushed, letting out the biggest scream all the while squeezing both hands she was holding on to.

"That's good, Luna! I'm going to need you to push just like that!"

She nodded, tears stinging her eyes and Luna was determined. Another push and her yells could probably be heard down the hall. "Oh my God!" Luna continued her breathing before pushing again.

"She's crowning! Almost there, Luna!"

Khamani —

Khamani kept his eyes locked on Luna the entire time, matching her breaths as much as possible without huffing in her face. "Good job, babe! You're doing it! Wonder Woman, babe!" Khamani complimented through her screams and yells, keeping an even but determined tone. He wiped the tears from one side of her face with his free hand and kept his eyes on her. Seeing her in so much pain felt like his heart being used as a pincushion. But his pain was nothing compared to what Luna was going through, he knew that.

Hearing the update over his shoulder nearly tempted Khamani to look but he thought better of it, very, very quickly and said, "You're almost done, Sunshine and then we'll get to meet her. Just a little more and then you're done." He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze and said, "You got this!"

Luna —

Luna began to sob. The pain was numbing at this point. It was her husband's encouraging words that had brought her to tears. They really were a team and she loved him so much. She locked eyes with him and then squeezed both his and Maggie's hand tight She wished Kendra was here or her mother or Luz but she was happy that Khamani was there with her. With all the strength she could muster, Luna pushed hard, yelling through the pain and almost falling back from the exhaustion until ...

"It's a girl!" The cries from her daughter filled the room and Luna felt her entire body shake from how fragile she was. "is he---is she ok? ten fingers, ten toes..." Luna laid back gently, searching Khamani's face for a response.

"Mr. Smith, would you like to do the honors?" The nurse reached for the scissor and handed it to Khamani.

Khamani —

Seeing Luna cry made his broad shoulders fall. He was fighting the pin prices in his chest and the upset simmering in his head that it could have been eased were they here sooner or not sent away before. But neither of them could change that now. "Stay with me, Luna," Khamani gently encouraged, prepared to lean forward and start rubbing her back.

But he didn't have the chance before their little girl entered the world and announced her presence without question. He broke eye contact so he could look and see their newborn daughter whom they laid on Luna's belly while wiping her back. Khamani gazed in awe and then smiled to his wife. He leaned in and kissed Luna's forehead and cheek. "She's okay. All her hands, feet, fingers and toes. You did it, Sunshine. You did it." He squeezed her hand and gave her one more kiss, this time full on her lips and then gently released her hand for the first time since they got going with the labor.

Flexing and relaxing his fingers a few times, he nodded to nurse, "Yeah," he replied, feeling the word get a little choked up in his throat. He accepted the scissors and followed the instructions on where to cut the cord. And then smiled all over again as nurse Maggie carried their little girl to a nearby area to finish cleaning her up and swaddling her. Khamani set his sights back to Luna, "You did such a good job, babe. Damn, I'm so proud of you. You ready to meet our little troublemaker?"

Luna —

Focusing only on her husband , his encouragement, the way he kept his breathing paired with hers, Luna felt safe. When she heard the cries of their baby girl, her entire body collapsed. It was as if she had been waiting for this moment forever.

Luna felt her tears of joy fall down her cheeks as she watched her husband tend to their baby girl. She fought back a few giggles that became muffled with her quiet cries and then smiled widely when Khamani told her she had done such a good job. “I love you so much. I couldn’t have done this without you.” All the grief and upset she had felt just moments ago was now gone. The only thing that mattered was that their daughter was healthy. Nodding her head in response to Khamani’s question, Luna looked ove to the nurse that was holding their bundle of joy. “Hey, baby girl. Fashionably late like your mommy, huh?” She waited eagerly for the newborn to be placed in her arms.

Khamani —

With his eyes still on the nurses tending to their daughter, Khamani dropped another kiss to the top of Luna's head and told her, "I love you too." He smiled a bit, believing that she would have powered through the labor of birthing their daughter no matter what, but he was thankful that they never had to know anything different than the two of them being together through the arrival of their daughter.

He watched as the nurse brought their newborn back over to her parents and placed the tiny bundle of baby into Luna's waiting arms. Reaching in his back pocket, Khamani took out his phone to capture photos of the moment from Luna's side. Two of the most important people in his life were finally getting to meet after months of waiting. "Beautiful like her mommy too," Khamani quietly added, locking his phone and sliding it back into his pocket. "Hey, baby girl," he added with a gentleness to his voice and a bright smile stretched on his lips.

Luna —

She was the perfect mix of the two of them and as her daughter was placed into her arms, Luna felt the tears form once more. “Hi baby… oh my gosh you’re so tiny!” She was six pounds, nine ounces, 19 inches but to Luna, her daughter was a little nugget. “I love you so much, peanut. Welcome to the world. Everyone’s been waiting so patiently. Especially me and daddy.” Luna slipped her finger into her daughter’s tiny grasp. “I love you so much. We’re going to protect you and love you and shower you with kisses and take you to comic cons and probably annoy you too…” Luna smiled.

She looked up at Khamani who was sitting behind them and smiled. “We have two of the most beautiful kids. My little family. “. She couldn’t wait for Cannon to meet his sister.

Dr. Leonard had taken a moment to clean up and came back to check in on the couple and their newborn, letting them know the baby was great and Luna had done an amazing job.

He shook Khamani’s hand and nurse Maggie congratulated them once more. Dr. Leonard then asked, “So, does the little one have a name?”

The corner of Luna’s lips curled upwards into a tired but bright smile as she looked at her daughter and then her husband. “Go ahead baby.”

Khamani —

"That patience wasn't easy though," Khamani added and soaked up the priceless moment between Luna and their daughter. He gave a small, breathy chuckle at the last couple of things Luna listed to their newborn. While gazing down at her and their baby girl, he leaned his hip a bit against the side of the bed. "Yeah we do. No arguments here," he agreed about their family. In a little more than a year's time, he'd become a father of two with his and Luna's family doubling. He loved the team that they were and didn't have the words for looking forward to this next chapter.

With Dr. Leonard and her team finishing the clean-up in the delivery room, Khamani met her outstretched hand and thanked her, along with nurse Maggie. He knew things could have gone differently had he and Luna been there sooner rather than being turned away, but hearing that their daughter was okay and healthy, and seeing that Luna seemed to be just as okay and healthy quelled his urge to address it. At the question about their daughter's name, Khamani was fully prepared to let his wife share the name; she'd had a closer relationship with the doctor and she'd done the hard work. But she encouraged him to do and so he gently lifted a bent index finger and ran it across their little girl's velvet-soft cherub cheek. "Her name's Ximena Citlali Smith." And almost as if on cue, in her slumbering state, little XImena's tiny bow-shaped lips twitched into a brief smile.

#para: fashionably late #( lumani. )#lumani things

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someoneinjersey · 7 months

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A recount of my trip home

Feel free to skip if you don't want to hear about nice things, or drama, or me being contemplative about life

Got home from NJ/PA at about 4am Monday morning after setting off at 4pm Sunday. I'd intended to drive in the late afternoon because that's when I tend to become fully alert, but I was so tired from the week that I still had to stop and take a nap at a rest area on the way home (and on top of that I set my alarm for a 45 minute nap but never turned it on, so I slept in my car for over an hour and a half).

It was really amazing and good and wonderful and heartwarming to see everyone. Except mom's husband who I nearly attacked like twice while I was there, but that's besides the point. It was really good to see mom and she is actually doing AMAZING and has this new almost glow and energy about her, and she's able to do so many things post-half-successful-transplant that her doctor told her it was miraculous. However, she is so deep in her own depression and stress and pain she can't see it, and she's 62 and never learned to sort out her emotions or mental shit, so she's like ... created this reality that doesn't exist where everyone's against her and wants her abandoned in the hospital -- except the actual people at the hospital who want to get rid of her and send her home.

She got her third chance at a new liver the first full day I was there, which was Wednesday, however after taking her all the way down to the OR for prep, at 2am she was wheeled back up to the room because they decided the liver wasn't going to work for her. Of course neither her nor her husband can see ANY silver lining among the disappointment, and while I can understand that because I have been in such a dark place before (though not because of needing entirely new organs and being in a marriage to someone I hate etc), I still attempted to remind them both that that's the third candidate they had in less than two weeks so the offers are coming in MUCH faster now than they had been before the initial transplant.

Thursday morning, however, after that lack of sleep and the stress of waiting to find out if it would fall through or not followed by the reality that it did fall through, and having to deal with her fuck ass husband and his entire personality and him giving the nurses incorrect information as well as my mom catastrophizing every single thing because she was exhausted and upset, I had to leave despite promising I would stay all day. The need to escape was dire, as I was slipping into panic attack mode and wanted desperately to just get in my car and drive home to Ranger's Rest.

At least my mom "allowed" me to leave because I stressed how much it was all setting me off, telling her it was primarily her husband and the exhaustion, so I went back to my aunt and uncle's place, ate lunch and saw a few cousins and met a few that were born after I moved away which was nice, then I slept for 3.5 hours without moving a muscle. I came back to the hospital that night until mom got her nightly meds then left so I could get some sleep before driving back to my home town to collect some of my stuff and see more family and friends.

Then I stayed up talking with my Aunt until 2am about the insanity that had gone on that morning and was too tired to go back to mom and her husband's house to get my stuff. We agreed he'd take photos of what was left, since I didn't actually leave much, and I could just tell him what I wanted to keep and he'd mail it down to me and throw out the rest. I took the deal so I didn't have to interact with him any more than necessary and so I could sleep more because holy shit, I was so bone tired.

So Friday I skipped stuff collecting and headed down to the shore (later than I wanted because I was dragging ass) to have lunch with another aunt and uncle I hadn't seen. I stayed longer than intended because we were gabbing and it was really nice. I'd planned on making everyone a lasagna dinner when I got back to where I was staying but time got away from me particularly when I met up with Nicole. We hung out for a few hours at Starbucks and in my car in the parking lot and then in her driveway, initially planning on going to look at the ocean but I realized that wasn't as important as just hanging out.

I didn't realize how much I missed my extended family and my friends (or I mean, at least Nicole who was the only one I was able to see as Sarah's son was sick and I couldn't risk picking up extra germs lol) until I saw them again. I managed to keep my shit together but I honestly wanted to weep seeing everyone again. It felt like yeah, I hadn't seen anyone in three years, but also, it felt like I'd just seen them maybe a few weeks ago. It was the most warm and lovely feeling I can remember having in a long, long time. NIkki if you do read this I hope you know I love you and I treasure our friendship so much <3 It's been 28 years since we were in Mrs Gioiella's class together O_O

Tried to see more cousins on Saturday but it just didn't work out with scheduling, plus some of the kiddos were sick and again, I couldn't risk bringing any extra germs around my mom in the hospital (not to mention my uncle is also immuno-compromised and can't risk it either, even with his own grandkids. So I left the cards I'd brought for them with stickers in them and spent the afternoon/evening at the hospital.

Where I had to try my best to talk my mom off her delulu cliff and gently walk her back to reality, which she didn't like and was not receptive to because I wasn't agreeing with everything she said or how she was interpreting things said to her by family members. Went home that night and things seemed better but Sunday morning it was all back on and her husband was present, too. The motherfucker tried to scold me?? Or something?? We were trying to have yet another come-back-from-delulu-land conversation which was making my mom angry, especially because I was being so calm and was using things I'd learned in therapy to try to talk with her. She absolutely hated that. Anyway he came back from pissing or getting coffee or trying to bullshit with the nurses who all know he's full of shit or whatever it was he was doing and was like "I DON'T WANT ANY FIGHTING. POSITIVITY ONLY." and other nonsense because he doesn't know how to be a human being or have actual working close relationships with people. And then he went on about how my aunt (who was being made the scapegoat because A my mom was misinterpreting ENTIRELY what she said to her and B she's the only person who doesn't yes mom's husband to death just to get him to shut the fuck up, and actually challenges him on his bullshit so he hates her) wasn't blood so she doesn't matter and he literally said and I quote, "Her husband never taught her to shut her mouth."

I swear to god I deserve a medal for remaining so calm in that moment, but I very, VERY pointedly made a show of it by closing my eyes, taking deep breaths, and speaking softly when I said things like, "We aren't fighting, we're talking. This isn't about Aunt. We're just talking about feelings." Then I wanted to help by talking to mom's nurse about maybe jotting down notes whenever they came in or a doctor came in to help her remember what was said, because mom feels like she can't do it herself, and her husband again was trying to control me or tell me what to do or whatever by insisting it would never work, don't even bring it up, don't bother the nurses, DON'T BOTHER THE NURSES!!!!!!! Until, when I kept calmly insisting, "Well I'm going to try while I'm here anyway," mom finally spoke up and told him to let me try. Let me try. "Let." As if I'm not almost 37 fucking years old, her daughter, and no relation to his narcissistic ass.

Look. I'll admit I'm grateful that my mom can convince him to pay for things that I/we need down here, like our water, and tires for my car so I could visit, and slipping me money for gas and parking and tolls. I am grateful for that even though I know he's not doing it out of the kindness of his heart. It's still money I didn't have that helped me take the trip and take it safely. But he's a phony piece of shit and I don't think I could handle another visit that involved him, and I was reminded of why I had to move away in the first place by being in both his presence and my mom's presence. I am doing so well right now and I never, EVER would have gotten to this point if I was still there. I'm willing to help my mom divorce him and get her moved down here or something, but even my aunt said it would just be a transfer of her thinking she was helpless and me having to do everything for her, rather than her husband. And before this trip, I thought that wouldn't happen, but now I think that's exactly what will happen. I'll still help her get divorced but she really needs to re-learn how to be independent because she's been crippled by her marriage.

So I left Sunday, got home early Monday, and today (yesterday as of posting?) I had my iron infusion early in the morning. Over six hours of riveting life adventure, and by that I mean receiving steroids and iron via IV and trying to read my book and playing on my phone and falling asleep and sweating my ass off because they keep the room so warm for the people there getting chemo and as much as I can actually chit chat with strangers easily I didn't want to be part of the group that we all found ourselves in trying to make conversation.

Anyway. It was also Kate's birthday so I got her an asshole birthday banner and exactly what she asked for (a Harry Styles coloring book and pack of crayons) and I got us food from our favorite local pizza place after we tried and tried to see how we could make getting Olive Garden from Asheville work with her working a double and me being dead ass tired still. But we had a good dinner and she felt like she had a good day so that's all that matters.

I go back to work tomorrow and I work 5 days in a row so next week I might be full on dead again. I have to remember to take my work keys with me tomorrow afternoon or I'm fucked to close the store. I really want to help my store be successful so I'm motivated to get in there and help us get a system going we can all work well in as we approach the holidays.

Next week is my birthday and honestly no one really ever does much for me on my birthdays so I kinda just ... do whatever on them. I have the day off so at least I can sleep or lounge or whatever as much as I want but otherwise it's just a day I don't really enjoy because I stopped feeling special on my birthday a long time ago. 37 isn't a big deal, just a year closer to 40 and thus towards death. i'm not depressed about it, I just ... I dunno I always just remember the way people I'd make an effort for wouldn't make an effort for me, so it does leave me just a little bummed.

Anyway that was honestly just like a GLIMPSE of my trip and its insanity and joy and misery etc. Thanks, if you made it this far.

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soul-controller · 2 years

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Not All Heroes Wear Capes

In honor of @mrcavanaughtf‘s 28th birthday, I wanted to start his weekend off right with a nearly 7,000-word transformation story for him. Given his status as one of the best writers in the community, I truly cherish his friendship and quite frankly his mentorship as well. As such, I thought it was only appropriate to celebrate his birthday by helping him become one of his favorite hunky actors. So once again, thank you Henry for your friendship and I truly look forward to all of the fun stories we’ll create and conversations we’ll have in the future!

“Alright guys, thanks for checking out the stream and I’ll see you all next time,” Henry Cavanaugh merrily said, giving a smile to the camera before finally ending his Thursday night Twitch stream. After another good yet long Twitch stream, the teacher and part-time streamer was understandably exhausted. Given the fact that he had to teach five lessons early the next morning, Henry had no desire to cook and instead placed a food delivery order at one of his favorite restaurants.

As he awaited his order, Henry took the opportunity to brew up some coffee and sit in his living room scrolling through his emails. Just as he had expected, there wasn’t much in his inbox, but there was one email that immediately caught his eye. Upon reading the subject line that read “Congratulations Henry, you’re a winner!”, he was momentarily annoyed that the email had somehow gotten past the spam filter to end up in his main inbox. Curious though as to what he had seemingly won, the 27-year-old clicked on the email and quickly read through the details.

Congratulations Henry Cavanaugh,

You’ve been selected as the first winner of the Not All Heroes Wear Capes contest, which aims to recognize people like yourself who are underappreciated by either your superiors or society as a whole! Your name had been submitted by a friend who stated that you “needed to be rewarded for his constant hard work”. In association with DC Comics, it’s safe to say that your reward will surely be star-studded. Given our desire to have everyone recognize you for your hard work, the celebration will take place tomorrow morning at your workplace. Do not worry, this event has already been approved by your superiors. We look forward to rewarding you tomorrow!

Sincerely,

S-C Entertainment

Upon finishing up the letter, Henry had several questions running through his mind. Firstly, he was curious about who had seemingly submitted his name. While that was a valid question by itself, he still found himself confused as to what he had apparently won for the contest. He figured it must involve superheroes since DC is involved, but why did they need to show up at his workplace to give him the reward? Couldn’t they have just shipped it to him or had him head to some UK-based DC Comics office? The most important shock of all came from the organizer of the contest. S-C Entertainment was a business he knew well, it was one that his friend and fellow transformation enthusiast Nate ran. While it wasn’t out of the norm for him to use this side business to transform unsuspecting people, it was the first time that Nate had ever used the business when it came to transforming Henry. Usually, these little gift transformations that they did to each other was just some sort of private event (such as when Henry had swapped Nate’s body with his model crush Jordan Torres), so Henry was understandably intrigued by what the man had planned for him.

After his delivery finally arrived, Henry couldn’t resist thinking about his friend’s gift as he devoured his meal. The anticipation soon became too much to bear, so he decided to take a moment to message his friend before going to sleep. As he attempted to grill Nate to find out what he had in store for him, the fellow transformation writer had no intention of revealing any of his apparently well-thought-out plan. Instead, he would only slyly say “You’ll find out tomorrow…” every time Henry attempted once again to get some answers.

Realizing that Nate was fully determined on staying mum on the situation, Henry reluctantly bid his friend adieu for the night, jokingly telling him that his surprise “better be worth all of the secrecy” before finally turning off his phone and heading to bed.

Waking up the next morning, Henry immediately felt bittersweet about his Friday plans. In terms of his day, he found himself dealing with a full five lesson schedule that would surely leave him too exhausted to do a stream to ring in his birthday. But on the flipside, the final lesson of the day meant that he would finally start his well-deserved two-week vacation.

Upon finishing getting dressed, the man took a deep breath and tried his best to mentally prepare for these lessons. Although he had trouble being optimistic, he continued to remind himself that a relaxing vacation awaited him as soon as he exited the school. On top of that, he also remembered that S-C’s transformative birthday gift was supposed to occur during the contest at school today. While he was understandably anxious about what his friend had in mind for him, he was even more concerned about the potential (yet rare) chance of loathing the gift that his friend gave him.

As he finally made his way to school and began to traverse down the hallways with his coffee cup in hand, his anxiousness only worsened while taking in the sights around him. The students were rough-housing even more than usual, so much so that Henry found himself bobbing and weaving around the crowded halls to prevent any collision with any child. Given his already rather low spirits, Henry knew that his day would instantly be ruined if some child rammed into him and caused the cup to spill the still-hot brew all over his dress clothes. Despite the slight time delay due to his desire to be careful, Henry breathed a sigh of relief as he finally entered his classroom with his coffee cup still full and his clothes in-tact. Taking a seat at his desk, the man quickly reacquainted himself with the day’s lesson plans and waited for the final morning bell to ring.

For the first two lessons, Henry found himself struggling to remain focused on the lectures he was supposed to teach. Given his public video statement at the school during Pride month that revealed himself to be an openly bisexual man, the faculty found itself eager to give those LGBT-specific lessons to him to teach. While the teacher was certainly open to teaching these topics and encouraging an open dialogue to help sway students to become more tolerant and accepting, the lingering thought of what kind of gift he would receive from S-C Entertainment kept him from being completely present in the discussion.

Just as he began to settle into his third lesson (this one being a palette cleanser focusing on film) though, his desire for answers was finally rewarded as the door of his classroom suddenly burst open. Upon directing his attention to the doorway, Henry watched as a blonde-haired and glasses-wearing woman casually stepped into the room.

“Uh, can I help you?” Henry inquired, somewhat annoyed by the sudden intrusion.

“Hello there. Mr. Cavanaugh, right?,” the blonde asked, to which Henry wordlessly nodded. “Great,” she continued, “We’re here for the contest. Sorry it took a bit, traffic was absolutely crazy due to all of the press showing up here for this event!”

“Wait a minute, there’s going to be press?” Henry inquired, growing increasingly anxious as he suddenly heard the sound of talking outside begin increasing in volume. .

“Of course! It’s not everyday that a celebrity shows up to reward a local for their hard work,” the woman responded, grinning at Henry with an expression that seemed incredibly forced. Just before her fake smile could falter though, the sudden yet light knocking on the other side of the door allowed her to turn away in the nick of time. “Speaking of that celebrity, it seems like he’s finally ready to see you,” she continued, grasping onto the door handle and pulling it open without any fanfare.

As Henry looked up at the figure standing in the doorway, his jaw immediately dropped upon locking eyes with fellow Brit Henry Cavill. “Holy shit,” he exclaimed, taking a moment to quickly put his hand over his mouth and apologize to the younger students that were still in the room. But upon doing that quick statement, the man’s attention was once again fully devoted to the sight before him. For countless years, his friends and family had told him he had a striking resemblance to the Superman actor, but despite noticing some similarities, Henry was still absolutely starstruck by his surprise. While he wasn’t sure how S-C had been able to convince Cavill to show up for this contest, Henry knew for a fact that he would have to send his friend a very lengthy message thanking him for his birthday surprise.

While still remaining behind his desk, Henry found himself relieved by the desk since it allowed him to fully conceal his immediate boner, which only began to throb harder and faster with each step closer Henry Cavill made towards him. As the actor finally made his way to the other side of the desk, he was quick to make himself at home by sitting on the edge and extending a hand towards the open-mouthed man.

“Hey, the name’s Henry. It’s nice to meet you!” the man merrily said, which only caused more butterflies to emerge throughout the teacher’s stomach as he took ahold of the hand and shook it. Immediately, the man was impressed by the actor’s strength as it was on full display from the strong grip he had around his hand. Instinctively, Henry’s eyes wandered further up Cavill’s arm to take in the sight of his broad biceps concealed within the dark blue sweater he wore. While he tried his best to keep his composure, the teacher’s mind was quick to jump to erotic and incredibly not safe for the workplace areas as he envisioned Cavill ripping off his clothes and taking Henry right there on his own desk.

So, as he began to introduce himself, it wasn’t too shocking that the man found himself tripping over his own words. “Uh, hello there. You’ve uh, you’ve got quite the strong grip there dude! My name is Henry as well, Henry Cavanaugh.” While it was already clear that Henry was nervous, it was still incredibly annoying for him to hear himself talking so strangely. He had never called anyone “dude” or “bro” before unless it was ironically!

Despite the slight annoyance brewing in his head for slipping up already, this wouldn’t be the last embarrassing thing that the man experienced during his conversation with the man. As soon as the man’s eyes darted up and caught sight of Cavill’s perfectly aligned white teeth, angular facial features, and blue eyes, he found himself once again stumbling over his words. “It’s nice to see - I mean meet you. I’ve always wanted to be you - uh, meet you. I meant to say that I’ve always wanted to meet you!” He knew that it wasn’t every day that he got to meet his superhero crush and also apparent lookalike, but goddamn could he at least calm down a bit?! While there was certainly more that he wanted to say, the man opted to instead close his mouth to save himself from further embarrassment. While it was true that Henry had certainly fantasized about becoming Cavill from time to time (who could necessarily blame him?), the constant Freudian slips in his sentences left the transformation writer uninterested in speaking further as his cheeks shifted to a shade of bashful pink.

Although Henry Cavill had more than enough reasons to be uncomfortable around the thirsty teacher, he was able to hide any potential disgust with ease as he smiled back at the contest winner. “Well that’s sweet of you to say,” the actor replied, “It’s always a joy to meet dedicated fans like yourself!” As he put his hands on his hips, Cavill finally took the opportunity to break his attention away from the teacher and look at the shellshocked kids equally excited about being in the man’s presence. “Now, would you kids like to help me celebrate your teacher with some cake and surprises? If you guys behave yourselves, you can even be a part of the photos we take!” the man joyfully said, which elicited plenty of cheers and eager head-nods from the children.

As Henry watched the actor look over towards the blonde woman who he presumed to be the man’s agent and nod his head, the teacher watched as the door of the classroom once again opened. But instead of yet another celebrity on the other side of the door, a mousy brunette wheeled in a gigantic cart that had a large cake and a slew of drinks on it. At a rapid pace, the young brunette girl set up the drink station on an empty desk nearby and began to light the candles in the cake. Before Henry could even ask what was going on, the female agent grasped onto his forearm and pulled him over to the cake. Looking over to her, the woman refused to apologize for her manhandling, instead telling him to blow out the candles. Despite the annoyance at being moved like cattle, Henry complied with the request and quickly blew the several candles out.

For the next thirty minutes or so, Henry found himself giving small interviews to a few local news publications who were covering the contest while everyone else enjoyed the festive food and drinks. Before long though, the female agent was quick to announce that it was time for the photoshoot to occur. As Henry Cavill made his way up towards the front of the room, the teacher also finally began to break away from a journalist and follow the man up towards the front. But just as he was about to make it past the slew of desks, the man suddenly found himself colliding with a nearby student who was frantically running with a piece of cake and a freshly poured cup of soda. Given his speed, there was nothing Henry could do to prevent the cake flying up and splattering against his white dress shirt. The kid’s soda had also made an impact with his clothing, spilling right onto his crotch and down his legs.. Gasping in pure shock from the cold drink’s impact, Henry couldn’t help but clench his fists in anger at the situation at hand. While he wanted nothing more than to take photos with the actor, his outfit was now completely ruined and most certainly unfit for a professional photoshoot. While he stood there in pure shock and anger, his eyes met the bulky actor as if in search of some assistance.

“Oh dear, I’m so sorry!” Henry Cavil said sympathetically, taking the opportunity to try and help out the embarrassed contest winner. “Don’t worry though, I have some spare clothes in my trailer that you can borrow if you’d like. I don’t think we’re a perfect match given the size difference, but I think something is better than nothing right?” He said before flashing a charming smile to try and conceal the veiled jab at the teacher’s lacking musculature.

Without even waiting for Henry to say yes, the female agent quickly approached him and grasped onto his arm. “Follow me,” she sternly said, pulling him along towards the door of the classroom.

“Wait, what about the students?” Henry said aloud, worried about possibly getting in trouble for leaving them alone with an actor and a bunch of journalists.

“Don’t worry, I can handle it,” the actor said with a grin. “Everything will be fine, go get changed and I’ll tell the kids some secrets from the sets of DC,” he continued, which caused the entire room to grow silent as they eagerly awaited the information.

While he wasn’t entirely sold on the concept, Henry found himself nodding his head and mouthing “thank you” to the actor before finally being led out of the classroom and into the trailer a block or two down from the school itself. Throughout the whole journey, the woman remained completely silent, refusing to even offer up a name when Henry tried to introduce himself and make himself appear friendly to her. In fact, the only words she said came when they arrived into the trailer. “Head to the back of the trailer into Henry’s bedroom. Pick something simple and change into it quickly, there’s people waiting on us,” she commanded, her voice remaining as monotone yet stern as ever.

Despite his annoyance at her shity attitude, Henry nodded his head and made his way back towards the bedroom. While he wanted nothing more than to curse her out and tell her to stop being an asshole to him, the sticky and wet sensation of his soda-soaked pants left him desperate to change first more than anything. So as Henry entered the bedroom, he was bemused to see that some sets of clothing were already laid out on the bed. Although he had no way of knowing, he assumed these clothes were the unused options for the event’s attire.

Just as he found himself opting to pick one of the already pre-selected options, the sight of a bright red trail of fabric sticking out of the back of a nearby closet caught Henry’s eye. With innate curiosity, he couldn’t help but move towards the closet and slowly peel back the door. As light finally began to shine into the dark closet, the man couldn’t help but gasp as he found himself staring at the actor’s Superman costume. Given his intense enjoyment of cosplay, there was nothing more exciting to Henry in that moment than getting to look closely and touch the very suit that he had seen in countless superhero films. While running his hand down along the slick and high-quality fabric, there was nothing Henry wanted more than to put on the suit and try it on.

Despite his mind telling him that it was a bad idea and that he could get in trouble if caught by the rude woman waiting for him outside the trailer, he couldn’t resist succumbing to his desires. So upon yanking the costume off the hanger, Henry quickly paced into the connected bathroom before shutting the door behind him. Acting on pure excitement, he wasted no time pulling off all of his clothes (even his underwear) and slipping completely into the iconic Superman suit.

Upon securing himself into the suit, the man grasped onto the velvety-smooth cape and pulled it over his back to conceal the eyesore of a zipper. Turning towards the mirror, Henry smiled with child-like wonder as he took the opportunity to flex within the suit and show off his modest muscles. Although they were a far cry from Cavill’s bulky physique, Henry felt content by the fact that his build didn’t look entirely out of place in the suit. Sure there was certainly room for improvement to make the suit skin-tight on his body, but he was still considering it a win that he was able to even properly wear the suit at all.

Henry stared into the mirror for several seconds before reminding himself not to get too transfixed due to the short time constraint he had before the woman would surely check up on him. Eager to document the fact that he had worn the suit though, Henry grabbed onto his phone and unlocked it before opening up the camera app. While he was too busy taking some selfies posing in the suit, he was oblivious to the fact that his continued usage of the suit was manifesting a life-changing transformation.

It wasn’t until Henry caught sight of the red Superman emblem on his chest changing color that he realized that something strange was happening. As he both looked into the mirror at his reflection and through the lens of his camera, he realized that the red emblem was beginning to glow. With each breath he took, this light red color grew in intensity until it looked like his chest had an S-shaped flame on it. Unsure of what was going on yet eager to prevent any sort of injury, Henry frantically pulled back the cape and searched for the zipper to pull down. But as his hands continued to wander, escape seemed out of the question as no zipper appeared to exist on the suit anymore.

Although the concept of a zipper magically disappearing was enough to leave him scratching his head for days, the man’s attention was too busy focused on the sudden heat that was now accompanying the glowing red emblem. It grew hotter and hotter until eventually, his chest felt like a volcano. Gritting his teeth, he loudly growled in pain and unknowingly initiated his birthday transformation...

Immediately, a sudden wave of both relief and tightness began to rock through every inch of the man’s body. Dropping his phone due to the sudden pain, Henry could only stare into the mirror and watch as the changes manifest in front of him. Despite not being able to see his body from underneath the suit, the man watched as the sleeves of the suit suddenly began to expand as much desired bulk began to fill in his already muscular arms. This growth was awe-inspiring, as made evident by Henry’s gasps and wide eyes as he watched the blue sleeves expand like a balloon filling with air. Within no time, the entire sleeves of both arms had reached their limits as he gained the ideal physique to perfectly fill the suit. Taking a moment despite the discomfort, Henry couldn’t help but lift his arm up and squeeze the bulk concealed within the blue fabric of his upper arms. His flexed biceps were rivaling the size of volleyballs, which didn’t look out of place due to the fact that his forearms had also widened in tandem. Every inch of his arms from his biceps to his hands had undergone an incredible change, which only made Henry more intrigued as to what was going to happen next.

The suit itself also seemed eager to find out as well, as the man soon felt the same waves of growth ripple across his entire torso. Looking down in curiosity, Henry watched as each pec began to bloat and grow increasingly firm until he found himself in possession of an above-average but not extreme set of pecs. That ripple continued to move its way down his stomach, causing him to do a series of forced belly rolls that brought forth one-by-one a complete six pack of abdominal muscles. While they were certainly not as emphasized as the suit made them appear to be, Henry was completely overjoyed to run his wider fingers along his stomach and know that he truly did have a complete six-pack now.

Continuing downward, everything from the waist downward began to undergo its changes simultaneously. His thighs were rapidly widening, growing to the point where he strained to make even the slightest of movements in fear of ripping out of the tight fabric that was already constricting his muscles while standing still. Surely after today, he would have quite a problem finding pants that would fit his immense lower body.

While his thighs grew, the teacher’s ass and cock were undergoing their own changes to make him as heroic as ever. Each ass cheek expanded and grew until they rivaled the size of a bowling ball, only being hindered and forced to stop by the constriction from the non-stretchy suit. Moving each hand over his meaty ass cheeks, Henry couldn’t help but chuckle in amusement. He had often had conversations with Nate about their shared appreciation of men’s asses, so it was amusing to find himself now with an ass that would surely receive praise from both of them.

As if to interrupt Henry’s ass-appreciation session though, the front half of his waist began to undergo its changes as Henry felt his already-firm cock grow harder and harder as the intense heat of the emblem made its presence known. His package felt extremely heated now and began to grow until it completely filled out the crotch of the suit. Despite being a fairly average endowed man, the suit was eager to reward Henry further by causing him to grow to over 9” long with a significant amount of girth. With all of these changes continuing to affect his body, the man couldn’t stop himself from beginning to leak pre-cum into the suit as he watched himself truly undergo his own superhero origin story!

While his calves and feet also grew slightly in size to turn him into a more intimidating and buff individual, the heat that had dissipated from his crotch was making its grand return around his shoulders and head. With these sections of his body not having the suit covering it up, Henry was able to watch firsthand as his trap muscles began to rise and fall. Despite the eerie visual that made it seem as if the muscles were breathing, the teacher was overjoyed to watch his shoulders broaden in order to fulfill the appropriate build of a superhero.

But while most of the changes by the suit involved changes in muscle tone, the changes that affected Henry’s head were eager to do more than some simple changes. This was first made evident to him as he felt both the sensation of heat and numbness permeate throughout his entire skull. Given that he already bore a resemblance to Henry Cavill, such as his nose and similar shade of blue eyes, there wasn’t much to change about the teacher. So in reality, the most severe changes came to his jawline and the man’s hair. Even through the narrowed eyes, Henry could watch in disbelief as his features shifted and grew more angular. His jawline stretched and became much more prominent as his face then lost its rounded edge and gained a sculpted shape that looked as if it had been constructed in a lab due to just how perfect it looked. As if to punctuate his new facial structure, the man watched as a dimple emerged onto his chin, which quickly shifted to give the man a modelesque cleft chin. Then from the roots down, Henry could only stare in disbelief as his light brown hair grew shades darker until it resembled Henry Cavill’s own dark black shade, which had suavely slicked itself back to perfect the superhero look.

Upon watching the final step of his transformation occur, Henry was understandably shocked and unsure of what to do. Somehow, his friend had found a way to turn him into a complete doppelganger of the hunky Superman actor. Was his love for cosplay so obvious that S-C knew that Henry would be unable to resist trying the suit on? It was annoying to realize that he had been so predictable, however he wasn’t entirely too upset given the end result staring back at him in the bathroom mirror. In fact, he couldn’t help but smile every time he caught sight of his new self.

Staring at himself in the mirror though, he found himself unsure of how to proceed. Should he be stereotypical and immediately jerk off looking into the mirror like he often had the characters in his stories do after their transformations? Should he just focus on pulling off the suit and getting a closer look at the even more muscular frame he now possessed? While his mind would have surely been able to come up with more possibilities, a sudden banging on the other side of the door caused Henry to stop his train of thought.

“Hey Henry, are you ready yet?” the familiar sound of the female agent’s stern voice called out. “We need to hurry up and get the hell out of here!” the woman coldly continued, which only caused Henry to grow more enraged about the woman’s behavior. He understood that Henry Cavill was a big actor with countless jobs and press that he needed to do, but it was so shitty how dismissive she was of both the contest and him in general. As such, the man acted rather instinctively as he pulled open the bathroom door in anger.

“Why are you being such an arse about this contest?” Henry growled as he stared directly into the woman’s eyes. But as he found himself staring at the reflection of a suited up Henry Cavill being reflected in her glasses, the man instantly stopped what he was doing. Clearly, he had acted irrationally and now his secret transformation had been revealed before he could sneak out of the trailer.

“Uh, because you’ve got to get back to set soon? We only got production to halt for a few hours so you can do this contest,” the woman said, which caused Henry’s face to turn into a look of pure surprise and confusion. Clearly though, the woman was quick to catch on and respond to the expression on your face. “What’s going on with you? From what I recall, you were dreading this idiotic contest this morning too!”

As Henry took the opportunity to comprehend the woman’s words, it quickly dawned on him that the transformation had an additional side effect. Somehow, it caused the people around him to believe him to be the real Henry Cavill! While this was certainly a relief for him to find out, it left him wondering about what will happen once he finds the real Henry back in the classroom. Will reality rewrite itself where the real Henry has some new identity as a twin brother?

Clearly desperate to see what was going to happen, the man’s face shifted into an eager grin as he tried his best to play the part. “Yeah, you’re right. I guess I was just having too much fun that I forgot about returning to set,” Henry responded, trying his best to explain the apparent forgetfulness about his job as an actor. “That teacher just seems like a nice guy, so I want to give him a good party!” he continued, which caused the woman to just roll her eyes.

“Alright Mr. Philanthropy, then let’s get out of the trailer and surprise these kids before giving that poor teacher one last thrill before heading out!”

While he still wasn’t quite a fan of the woman’s snarky tone, he was willing to oblige with her request and thus followed her out of the trailer and back into the school. Upon stepping out of the crowded trailer, the transformed man took the opportunity to roll his shoulders and adjust to his new form before finally following the woman. As he roamed the halls of the building, he couldn’t help but smile instead of frown. When he was Henry Cavanaugh, these hallways were a constant source of dread and impending doom for a career that he wished so desperately to get out of. But now as Henry Cavill, these halls provided intrigue and mystery that left his heartbeat incredibly frantic and eager to see what would happen. Given the fact that these feelings mixed with the extreme discomfort he felt inside the tight suit, it was honestly shocking to him that he didn’t faint as he pulled open the door to surprise not only his former students but also the real Henry Cavill.

However as he walked into the room and scanned it for the hunky actor, he instead found someone else entirely staring back at him. The real actor had somehow undergone his own transformation, because instead of seeing that gorgeous face and buff body sitting in a chair, he instead found a replacement Henry Cavanaugh sitting in his place. While he hadn’t expected to see his old self staring back at him, Henry found himself excited to see the look of excitement emerging on both the children in the classroom and the actor-turned-teacher. Obviously, his thought of reality warping everyone’s minds had been correct, which was a huge relief and insanely erotic concept. With the former Cavill acting so giddy upon seeing the suited-up man, it told Henry that the man clearly had no idea of who he used to be. Somehow, S-C’s contest had made it so Henry Cavill’s transformation into Henry Cavanaugh made the man and the children he was around believe that he had always been the teacher. Indeed this was true, with reality altering so the teacher-turned-actor made his way out to change into his Superman costume rather than get a replacement pair of clothes from a spilled drink.

With the cameraman still in the room, Henry was quick to move things along so he could hopefully get some alone time with his replacement. As such, he took the opportunity to do a quick conversation and photo with every student before sending them out of the room along with his new agent and the journalists to talk alone to the new teacher. Staring back at himself, Henry was quite amused by getting an outsider’s perspective of his innate awkwardness as the teacher adjusted his pants in a poor attempt to conceal his raging boner. While the new Henry Cavanaugh was clearly quite bashful as he made his way up to the actor, the replacement Cavill was savoring every moment of it. That former shame and awkwardness for the obvious thirst he felt had been swapped out for feelings of pure pride and cockiness as he realized that he was now the object of “his own” desires.

“It’s great to see you again Henry, did you have a great time?” the new Henry Cavill coolly stated, taking the opportunity to put his hands on his hips and pull off a heroic-style pose for the now-younger man’s amusement.

“Ye-yeah, I had a fantastic time. How could I not? I got to meet Henry fucking Cavill!” the teacher cried out, blushing as he failed to hide his own excitement about the situation.

“Well that’s very kind of you to say Henry,” the actor responded, smirking once more as a fun idea emerged in his mind. “Say, would you like to feel the suit?” he continued, that grin widening to devilish levels as the man eagerly shook his head yes. All too willing to give his former body something to talk about and remember forever, Henry lifted his arm up and flexed his impressive biceps. Transfixed on the bulging muscle, the teacher’s hands instinctively moved towards the upper arms to take in both the hardness of his body and the slick feel of his suit.

Turning around, Henry Cavill moved his cape out of the way and encouraged the smaller man to take a moment to admire every inch of the suit. With his face turned to the other side, Henry couldn’t help but smirk as the man’s hands traversed across his broad back and even took a moment to graze against the perky ass cheeks that were stretching the suit to the max. “I heard from my agent that you like cosplay, so hopefully getting an up-close opportunity with this suit can give you some ideas to maybe make your own someday,” Henry teased, turning his head and smiling at the young man who was eagerly shaking his head.

“Oh yeah, I’d love to create a suit like this one day. Obviously I couldn’t fill it out as well as you can, but it would certainly be a fun time…” the man said, his words trailing off before he could finish the sentence. Instead, his hands seemed to continue the conversation as the extremely horny teacher found himself unable to resist reaching around the front of the suit to feel the man’s meaty inner thighs and tight bulge constricted within the suit.

While he was clearly enjoying this impromptu muscle worship session, Henry wasn’t wanting things to get too out of hand and thus moved away from the man before turning around. As he looked at the man’s wide eyes and used his peripheral vision to glance downwards at the still-rock hard boner in his pants, Henry knew that he was successfully able to give his old body and the former actor one last thrill that would last with him forever. But as much as he wanted to spend time with his old self, he was even more interested in jumping right into the actor’s life when it came to working on a film set.

“So Henry, I’m sorry but I’ve got to head out and get back to set. I know you understand, but I’ve had a great time here. It was more life-changing than you’ll ever know,” Henry Cavill slyly said, amused by the fact that the new teacher would have no idea what he was truly talking about. Extending his hand out, the new actor was quick to display his new strength after having Henry Cavanaugh grasp onto it. Even as the new teacher gasped in slight discomfort, Henry’s grip remained tight throughout the handshake until he deemed it time to finally let go. Turning on his heels, Henry finally pulled his hand away and made his way towards the door. Stopping at the doorway though, Henry turned and gave one last smile back at the man whose life he had completely taken over. After taking a second to mentally thank him for his sacrifice and apologize for the impending feelings of being ignored and underappreciated, Henry Cavill made his way out of the school and back onto the trailer to return to the site of his newest film production.

* * * * *

Upon arriving at the small home close to the studio that the film production had rented for their lead actor, the man formerly known as Henry Cavanaugh was quite amused by the events of his day. Not only had he essentially swapped bodies and lives with his celebrity lookalike and long-term crush Henry Cavill, but he also got to spend the later portion of his day seamlessly pulling off his role on a nearby film production. The man hadn’t expected the first few takes to be a breeze, but they ended up being just that as he was seemingly able to tap into the man’s innate ability as if it was muscle memory.

After dropping his bag near the doorway, Henry sauntered his way over to a nearby couch and fell back into it. Just as he took a moment to close his eyes and take a breather, the sudden ding of a wall clock caused him to look up. Amusingly, the clock he stared at had just struck midnight, which would have made it Henry Cavanaugh’s official 28th birthday. But despite not being able to celebrate the festivities in his old body, Henry felt quite at peace with his new 38-year-old self. While it wasn’t quite ideal to lose practically 10 years of life over the course of a day, Henry viewed that as simply a small price to pay for a life of success and vitality. In fact, he had never been wealthier or felt better in his life!

Leaning further back into the couch, Henry couldn’t help but chuckle as he thought back to the contest that his friend had awarded him with. While it was true that not all heroes wear capes, Henry couldn’t help but smirk to himself as he thought about how nice it was to know that he actually did now…

* * * * *

In the few weeks since his body swap, the new Henry Cavill was pleased to find that life was still an absolute dream. Not only was he consistently able to seamlessly deliver top-tier acting performances whenever he was on set, but he was only a few days away from celebrating his own 39th birthday on May 5th. While it was true that he was insanely wealthy and could easily purchase anything he wanted, he still found himself eager to get himself a small birthday present for himself.

Despite how the other actors on set joked with him about his “nerdiness”, Henry was all too eager to use the time in-between takes to discuss the custom PC that he had ordered and was spending time putting together in his free time after getting home from set. Although his life was fairly hectic as a global superstar, Henry found himself still devoted to living a life somewhat similar to his old one.

Since the replacement Henry Cavanaugh was still working extremely hard on creating transformation-themed content for his Patreon and Tumblr accounts, the new Cavill felt no desire to return to that realm of writing. To him, he felt as though when you yourself undergo a dream transformation, there’s nothing much more you can write that really inspires you to write anything new and creative. So as such, his focus was instead narrowing in on his new love for streaming. Given his devilish good looks, killer personality, and level of fame, it wasn’t much of a surprise that Henry Cavill instantly became the #1 streamer on Twitch. No matter how hard anyone could try to convince him to host their streams upon finishing, Henry couldn’t resist sending his tens of thousands of followers to support a small British teacher by the name of Henry Cavanaugh…

Like what you read? Please consider signing up for my Patreon to read more stories and support my work.

#body swap #reality shift #mental changes #age progression #Cavanaugh birthday story

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writing-in-lesbian · 2 years

Text

I choose you, you know? It’ll be nice knowing you choose me too. Pt.6

Pairing: Natasha Romanoff / Female reader Tags: fluff, cursing words. Translations: Detka = baby // Moya lyubov = my love. Synopsis: You know your arrangement with her of being friends with benefits might end up hurting you, yet you choose to jump into her bed every time she asked… until you couldn’t. A/N: I’m sorry this update is like super short. Life has been hectic, my new neighbours are doing renovarions well into the night so I’m a little bit sleep deprived, just wanted to have soemthing out. I promise the final 2 chapters will be longer than this!!

Thursday couldn’t come sooner. You spent the last two days trying really hard not to overthink things. Bucky gave you really good insights into the whole situation and told you, just like Carol had, to just enjoy the present and not worry over things that were or are beyond your control. Given both of them know about your anxiety, they also reminded you they both were there if you need them.

You decided to keep it classic, going for dinner and a movie since it was still a work night and you know for sure Natasha has to be up earlier than you. After all, you’re the one still doing home office and not her. Getting the dinner reservations were easy, you opted for a family-friendly type of restaurant, going for Italian, knowing well Natasha loves it. Once you have everything organized you text her the general plan and tell her you’ll pick her up at 7 pm.

Wanda texts you with her opinion on the outfits you sent her earlier, telling you that it really didn’t matter what you wore since Natasha would probably still love you even if you showed in a garbage bag dress.

You replied to her with the middle finger emoji.

There’s no need to say that you are a ball of nerves. Trying not to think and concentrate on breathing so you don’t get down in a spiral of thoughts and let your anxiety take the best of you. So in order to distract yourself, you took a long bath, bought some flowers online (choosing a pick up at store option), and tried to remember all the lyrics to “Satisfied” from Hamilton while getting ready, something that has helped in the past to calm yourself. Odd, but it works for you.

The alarm sounds. 6:15 pm sharp. If you want to make it on time you need to leave in the next five minutes. Grabbing your wallet and phone you shove it into the small purse (like really small only fitting that, both your keys, a really small bottle of perfume and lip balm) You once wondered what was the reason behind for you to have bought such a small item.

A text distracts you.

Natasha.

Your heart drops and your stomach does that thing when you feel a hole in it.

You can’t (or rather your anxiety) help thinking she’s about to cancel. Cautiously opening the app you read:

Tasha 💫: Can’t wait to see you in a few.

The stupid smile that reflects on your face is all the signs your brain needs to calm itself.

Quickly replaying that you can’t wait either and that you’re actually on your way, you leave your place.

Some curses and a few minutes later, you are finally outside her place. You try to rearrange the flowers, one of the downsides of not finding a parking spot close to the store and rushing in and out made a few of them fall out of place. You take a deep breath in… and let it out.

After the first knock, the door opened.

And she’s standing there, in all her glory… in black slacks, black hills, and a sinful wine blouse that does things to your stomach. You are staring and the grin she has makes you well aware that she notices.

“I think I made the right choice with my outfit then”

“Uh… yeah… I mean, hi, these are for you” you say sort of pushing them into her hands. Her small laughs make you blush.

“So kind of you. Let me put them on water and we can go”

“Sure, sure, yeah. I’ll wait”

This is ridiculous you think. You and Natasha used to talk easily way before your little arrangement so this shouldn’t feel weird. You think is more due to nervousness, as you both are testing new waters in this new side of the relationship. You are distracted from your thoughts when you feel Natasha’s hand on your shoulder.

“I’m ready detka” and the smile she gives you melts your heart. You can’t help but mirror it. Clearing your throat, you open the door and step outside, offering your arm for her to take.

“Shall we?”

“We shall,” she says as she takes your arm after closing the door.

Once in the elevator she steps closer to you, her perfume reaching your nose, a small scent of flowers with a little tone of citric that somehow works on her. The ride downstairs is slow and you can feel a tension building up slowly, if somebody were to enter, they could cut it with a knife.

“Are you finally telling me where are we going to eat or am I supposed to know until we get there”

“Well, Miss. Romanoff if you must know…” her eyes widened slightly, thinking you actually caved in. “It shall remain a surprise” it takes her two seconds to understand what you didn’t actually say, her lips forming an “O” shape.

“I kinda hate you”

“No, you don’t”

“No, I don’t”

“I know you don’t like surprises, and I would really like to keep the destination a mystery but if you want to know I can tell you thou,” you tell her while avoiding contact. After this time you still get shy and nervous around her.

Natasha observes you, part of your charm has always been that shy side you have, that introverted part you claim to dislike but actually love and she can’t help but feel drawn to it.

“I trust you, clearly you spent a lot of time planning our date”

Tree little words, tree hard words for her to utter, you should know, but hearing them directed at you, even if she has spoken them before still makes your heart do flip flops.

“I promise you will like it”

She grabs your hand tentatively. You interwind your fingers with hers. She squeezes your hand.

Masterlist

// TAG LIST //

@poptartpoppyy @s1ut4nat @temptationsbrew @thatonebrazilian @ladyylesbian @ima-gi--na-tion @username23345 @raqelacevedo @norwaynatasharomanoff @strangegardentaco

#natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff x fem!reader #Natasaha Romanoff #marvel #natasha x y/n #natasha x fem!reader #black widow x you #busy writer #cross posted on ao3 #ao3 fanfic #ao3 author

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spencerreidscoffeecup · 3 years

Text

Cigars Before Sex (dom!spencer)

AN: PLEASE READ THIS NOTE! I made up the facts on cigars and stuff like that (like when spencer rambles to reader how she shouldn't be smoking cigars at her age bc of frontal lobe development). They aren't real lmao i just didn't wanna do cigarettes for this story so i decided on cigars and i wanted spencer to ramble to reader about how she shouldn't smoke cigars.

ALSO! I will be doing a lot more sub! Spencer x reader ones! I have a ton of them written down, I just need to write them (obviously lmao). For now, I get lots of Dm's asking to do a Dom! Spencer x reader, so I'm doing this one, then a sub! One. love you all! <33 (i may have a sub! Spencer story coming this weekend(maybe) Im not sure, my exams are coming up soon for school, so i may be a little behind in this book, but im trying my best!)

CW: smoking (but cigars lol not cigarettes), Daddy k!nk, choking k!nk, thigh riding (kind of) edging (sort of), heavy petting, teasing, oral sex (male- receiving), Dom-Sub relationship, sub-drop, pretty big age gap (reader is 20-21, spencer is like 38 ish) [--if you are uncomfortable with that sort of age-gap, please leave or proceed to the next chapter (although it is not mentioned necessarily, that is just how I envision spencer and y/n.) :) ], degradation k!nk, penetrative sex, unprotected sex, praise k!nk, overstimulation, sub-drop (with after care!!), cockwarming

Y/n's POV:

Spencer Reid was a busy man.

When Spencer wasn't working at the BAU, he was teaching college students at the university.

When Spencer wasn't teaching college students at the university, he was at home, in our apartment, grading papers.

I loved how successful he was, but it made me sad that we couldn't spend a lot of time together; the only time alone we got was on the weekends if Spence didn't have a case.

That being said, my needs weren't always fulfilled, and I know for damn sure Spencer's weren't either as he would eat, work, work, work some more, spend time with me, and then sleep; his arms encased around me as he cuddled with me in our bed every night (over course when he didn't have cases).

As much as I loved the weekends when we would spend all of our time together, I needed him.

Like, now.

But at the moment, it was a Thursday night, and Spence was sitting at his desk in our apartment grading papers, a cigar sticking out of his mouth as he rifled through his students' essays, his pen whizzing around each paper; correcting any mistakes that they may have made.

God, he looked so good.

I tried my best to refrain from staring at him as I sat on the couch in front of his desk, reading a book. I tried focusing on my reading- really, I tried..but it was inevitable that I wouldn't be able to concentrate on anything when I saw smoke flow smoothly out of Spencer's mouth.

Heat shot to my core, and I bit my lip softly, trying my best to be good for Spencer; I knew he didn't like to get distracted.. But maybe this particular distraction I was whipping up in my mind would be allowed by him.

So, I carefully put my book down, crossing over the room to where Spencer sat. He didn't seem to notice me-or he just tried his best to stay focused- as he not once looked up from his paperwork.

Not until I plopped myself right on his lap.

"Hi," I greeted, smiling softly as I wrapped my hands around his neck.

"Hello, angel." he said, looking up from his papers to meet my eyes with his; taking the cigar out of his mouth, kissing my nose then tapping excess ash from his cigar onto the ashtray next to him, then placing the smoking cylinder back into his mouth.

He didn't say anything more, going back to work and holding my hip with his other hand.

But that wasn't enough for me. I wanted more of him.

I needed more of him.

Thankfully, I had another plan.

Slowly, I used two fingers to take the cigar out of his mouth, placing the end of it on my lips as I inhaled; the smokey taste filling my mouth.. Spencer, in the meantime, had turned his head around to look at me.

I tilted my head back, then blew out slowly, trying to be as seductive as possible.

Spencer bit his lip softly, watching the smoke flow out from my mouth and into the air as I continued to make eye-contact with him.

Snapping out of his trance, he smirked; his tongue poking the side of his mouth. He took the cigar from my lips very carefully, then tapped some of the ashes off of it on the ash-tray once more.

"You know, you really shouldn't be smoking cigars at your age.. Even though you aren't necessarily inhaling it into your lungs, you're still absorbing it into your bloodstream through the undersides of your tongue. The tobacco can run up through your bloodstream to your brain. And when you're twenty, your frontal lobe isn't completely developed yet. Your brain is fully developed at age twenty five. So, any outside disturbances like smoking cigarettes, cigars, drinking lots of alcohol, can actually mess with your brain patterns and or developments." he rambles mindlessly, and I giggle softly.

"Oh come on, Dr. Reid. It's only a few smokes." I say, combing through his hair with my fingers.

"Mhm, that's what everyone your age says when they want to try something they shouldn't." he mumbles, and I roll my eyes.

"Everyone my age talks to you about smoking cigars?" I question, and he blows smoke out of his mouth once more, creating little ringlets in the air.

"No, but everyone your age talks about wanting to partake in drug and alcohol activity.. Although cigars aren't necessarily 'drugs' they still have tobacco in them." he replies, laughing softly.

"Whatever." I say, and Spencer starts to caress my back as he blows a few more puffs of smoke out of his mouth.. Then goes back to his work.

Ugh, he's so hard to distract!

Fortunately, another plan comes to my mind.

I switch my position on his lap; sitting more-so on his crotch than necessary, and I hear his breath hitch in his throat. I grab the wrist that's hand holds the cigar, and lead it up to my mouth so I can once more wrap my lips around the foot of it.

I feel his eyes burning holes in the side of my head, and I swear, I heard him groan a bit under his breath. I blow the smoke out slower this time, and then turn to look at him.. His eyes fixated on my lips, then bouncing from my eyes, to my lips, then to my body.

He looks at me in awe.

"You better not be teasing me, little girl." he says, breaking his trance and pushing a fallen hair of mine behind my ear.

"I'm not." I say innocently, putting my hands on the sides of his thighs so I can hoist myself higher up on his lap.

I can feel him already hard against my ass, and I slowly move on it; grinding myself on him.

He bites his lip down hard; trying his best not to make a sound so I think that I'm not winning.. But I know I am.

I know that I got him where I wanted him.

"Y/n," he warns, putting the cigar out on the ashtray and then holding my hips down. "If you continue this, you will be punished..do you understand me?" he asks, placing a kiss on my shoulder.

"Please, Daddy, please," I beg. "I need you so bad."

"No. Be a good girl for me, and wait until I'm done." he says simply.

I groan in response, tilting my head back slightly.

I'm pulled out of my trance when Spencer's phone rings on his desk.

"Shit, it's Hotch." he says under his breath, looking at the flashing title on his phone.

"I'm gonna take this, and I want you to be quiet." he says to me before answering the call.

"Hey, Hotch." he says into his phone.

Mentally, I'm groaning, but I have another idea to set him off.

Slowly, I slink down the chair, underneath his desk. Spencer looks at me confusedly as I kneel in front of him.

'He won't be confused for long.' I think to myself.

I take my hand and begin massaging his clothed already-hard dick.

"Y-Yeah, uh, o-okay." he stutters, trying to stop my hand with his, but alas, gives up as I unbutton his pants, sliding his underwear down with them.

I bite my lip, smirking a bit as I begin massaging his dick with my hand, swiping a thumb over the tip that's already wet with pre-cum.

"Fuck." he whimpers softly, his hand balling into a fist on the armrest of his chair. "N-no, sorry that w-wasn't meant for you I-I just, uhm, I j-just stubbed my-my toe." Spencer lies to Hotch and I giggle softly.

I waste no time putting his dick in my mouth; wrapping my lips around the tip of his cock; the same way I did with the cigar earlier.

I take the base of him with my left hand and begin pumping as I bob my head up and down on him slowly; Spencer whimpering softly as a result.

"O-Okay, yeah.. T-that sounds great!" he squeaks, his hand flying to the back of my head, and I take that as a que to go faster. I lightly gag around him, and tears prick the corners of my eyes as Spencer bucks his hips slightly.

I groan around him, and Spencer grabs my hair in a tight grip, trying his best to keep himself from hurting me by bucking his hips more.

"A-alright, t-thanks Hotch!" Spencer says before hanging up his phone and taking a quick deep breath.

He puts his phone down and pulls my head up by my hair.

"What the fuck were you thinking? Do you want to get me fired, little girl?" he seethes.

"N-no Daddy, I just miss you and I wanted to do something for you!" I squeak, and I see Spencer's eyes soften a bit. "I'm sorry." I pout sadly.

"That's okay, pretty girl. Now... finish the job." he says, caressing the side of my face gently with his thumb.

I smile softly, and Spencer's dominant side is broken by a gentle smile crossing over his features.

Quickly, I get back down on my knees and take him in my mouth again.

"That's right little girl.." he groans, petting my head as he tilts his back a bit. "Take it like I know you can- fuck."

I take him deeper into my mouth, and soon, Spencer's breaths become faster and more jagged, a moan ripping from the back of his throat. The sound is so delicious, I begin rocking back and forth; my thighs clenched together as my core begs for more friction. I moan around his dick and the vibrations cause Spencer to come undone. I swallow his seed.

"Good girl." he breathes, looking down at me as I let go of his dick from my mouth with a small 'pop!'

"Now, come sit on my lap while I finish up my paperwork." he says, helping me up and kissing my lips.

Confusedly, I sit on his lap.

"No, no," he chuckles, grabbing my inner thigh then pushes my panties down. "Sit on my lap."

I quickly catch on, biting my lip softly as I giggle; heat creeping up to my cheeks. I pull my panties down, throwing them on the floor.

I mentally thank myself for wearing a skirt as Spencer places his hands on my waist as I sink down slowly onto him; crying out at the feeling of him stretching me out.

"Fuck, you're so tight." he whispers, and I try to move but he stops me with his hand. "Nuh-uh, you have to wait until I finish my work."

"Please, Spencer." I say breathlessly, my pussy throbbing around him.

"No. This is your punishment, angel. Now, be a good girl and sit still." he says, reaching forward to scribbling things out on his papers.

After a moment, he begins caressing my breasts, playing with my nipples. He bucks his hips up, and I cry out, my walls fluttering around him, begging for more of him.

I begin moving but he stops me again.

"Stay. Still." he orders, laying a small kiss on my shoulder blade.

"Please Daddy! I-I promise I'll be good for you." I gasp, clenching around him and he groans.

"No." He says shortly, and I squirm around his dick. "Stop moving, Y/n. This process will only take longer -shit!- it'll only take longer if you don't cooperate." he says, cursing at the feeling of my walls clenching around him again.

"I'm sorry Daddy, I'll be a good girl." I say, wanting his praise.

"Good."

Spencer continues working away, scribbling notes on his student's paper. He bucks his hips up to meet mine once in a while, but otherwise stays still. After a few more minutes, he brings his hand around my body and begins drawing circles on my clit.

I groan, my nails digging into the armrest of the chair.

"Please, move! Please Daddy I need you." I cry, fondling with my hardened nipple.

"If you've got a problem, don't even bother telling me, because I don't really fucking care." as he spoke, he thrusted up into me, his hand gripping my waist with a possessive power.

I turn a bit to see lush flash through his eyes at the sight of me massaging my breasts; his pupils dilated.

"Please. Ugh! Please I need you!" I whimper.

After a minute, he responds back.

"Fine."

I gasp at the feeling of him briefly pulling out of me to flip me over on his desk, my back to his front. "Since you have to be such a little fucking slut and I can't get my things done.. I'll just finish with you first." he growls, entering me, and I choke on a sob as he thrusts himself into me without giving me more time to adjust to his size.

"Fuck, you're so wet little girl.. So wet for me." he says, thrusting inside of me faster. After a few more thrusts he stops, pulling himself out of me once more. I whine at the loss of contact.

"Don't whine, I just wanna see your pretty little face as I fuck you." he growls, kissing my lips hungrily before thrusting himself into me harder now; a book falling off of his desk.

"Fuck!" I sob, and he begins pounding into me relentlessly.

"Language." He shoves his finger into my mouth, and I try my best not to gag on them.

I whine around his fingers, and he moans at the feeling; pulling them out of my mouth, a string of spit dribbling on my chin. He puts his fingers that are covered in my spit on my clit, rubbing circles on it and my back arches off of the table as he puts his hand behind me, keeping me from hurting myself on the corner of his desk.

"Please!" I beg, and although I'm not entirely sure what I'm begging for, he thrusts harder and faster into me, shaking the lamp on the table.

"What's wrong little girl? Got no more fight in you, huh? What're you gonna do..Cry?" he mocks, bringing his hand up from my clit to the back of my head; grasping my hair tightly.

"Daddy, you feel s-so good!" I sob, tears pricking my eyes.

"You like that, don't you? You like teasing me; almost having my boss -fuck- almost having my boss find out you were sucking my dick under my desk?" he teases, taking his hand off the back of my head then caressing my sides gently; the juxtaposition of it all intoxicatingly funny if I weren't in the situation that I was in at the moment.

"Sp-Spe.." I try to talk, but everything is so amazingly overwhelming it's too difficult.

"Awe, can't even say my fucking name? Doesn't matter anyway, you know who you belong to." he huffs, his dick now pounding into my sweet spot, and I cry; my orgasm coming sooner than I anticipated.

As if Spencer could read minds, he bends down a bit to whisper in my ear as he thrusts into me at an unholy pace. "Don't even think about coming before I do, princess.. I get to go first."

I clutch onto the table behind me, my nails dragging on the wood as I try to keep my body upright.

Spencer pushes his books off of the desk and lies my body down on the cold wood, throwing my legs over his shoulder as he pounds even deeper inside of me.

"Please don't stop." I squeak, and clench around him.

"Wasn't planning on it, princess." he growls again, kissing me ravenously on the mouth; our tongues fighting for dominance.

"Fuck me harder, please!" I beg, rocking my hips to meet his.

"God, you're such a little slut, you know that? You fucking like this." he responds, driving into me as the table rocks. "Oh my- fuck- I love you so fucking much." he groans.

Butterflies erupt in my belly, flying up to my chest; making my heart flutter.

"I love you so much, Spence." I cry, spit dribbling down my chin.

His eyes soften at my words, until he remembers his dominance and lust flashes through them.

"Fuck." he growls through clenched teeth, and I feel him cum deep inside of me, although he keeps thrusting even deeper. "Go ahead little girl, come for me." He says, bringing his hand from my waist back to my clit and begins rubbing it with his thumb.

"Spencer!" I gasp, and my orgasm hits me like a bus, my walls fluttering around him as I come. He thrusts deeper inside of me, and my back arches as I squirm underneath him, the feeling of euphoria so strong, I become light-headed.

After a moment, we both come down from our highs, and Spencer pulls out of me gently.

We catch our breaths, and Spencer kisses all over my body as I wiggle, giggling at his hair tickling my skin.

"How are you?" He asks, brushing hair out of my face.

"A little slut." I tease.

I meant it as a joke, [of course], but I see guilt flash in Spencer's eyes.

Quickly, I cup his cheeks with my hands. "I loved it, Spence.. Like I normally do. And I love you." I say, squishing his cheeks a bit as he smiles down at me.

"Do you wanna have a bath?" Spencer asks, and I squeal with excitement.

"Yes, please!"

I grab his hand, and we walk to the bathroom. Spencer turns on the water as I go pee, and takes off his tie. He unbuttons his shirt, getting completely naked.

He takes off my sheer pink tank top for me, and kisses my neck and chest.

I smile softly, emotions coursing through my veins.

I cling onto Spencer, not letting go once as we step in the bathtub; my back against his front as he wraps his arms around me once we sit down.

"I love you." I whimper, tears pricking my eyes.

"Hey, look at me." he whispers, and I turn to him, my eyes no doubt red from tears.

"I-I'm sorry I don't know why I'm crying, I just love you so much." I babble, my bottom lip puffing out a bit.

"Baby, it's okay.. It's just sub-drop." he says, brushing away the fallen tears. He puts his forehead on mine, kissing my nose gently. "And I love you so much."

I wrap my arms around his neck, and he caresses my back gently.

We whisper little I love you's to each other, and he brushes some hair away from my neck to kiss the soft skin.

I pull away, seeing Spencer's face flash with love but guilt.

"Y/n, if I hurt you.. You'd tell me, right?" he asks nervously.

"Spencer, you didn't hurt me. I loved everything about what we did." I say reassuringly, brushing some of his unruly curls out of his face; some of his hair sticking to his damp forehead.

"I know, but you'd tell me.. Right?" he asks again, his golden eyes looking into mine.

"Yes, of course I'd tell you.. But you have never hurt me, nor will you ever." I say, kissing his lips then his forehead.

"Okay, good."

There's a comfortable silence that stretches over us for a moment until he breaks it.

"Also, Y/n, I-I'm sorry for being so busy. This upcoming week is my last week at the university so I'll be able to spend more time with you. I know we barely have time to spend with each other but-.." I cut him off.. I know Spencer rambles when he gets nervous, and as much as I love his rambles, I need to shut him up this once.

"Spence, I'm so proud of you. And although I wish we could spend more time together than just weekends and small breaks.. I'm happy that you have other things besides me that make you happy."

"I rather be with you everyday than work... or anyone else for that matter." he says, swallowing thickly, but smiles at me through somewhat sad-eyes.

My eyes soften, and I kiss him softly on the lips. "I know. But I'm always here.. And I'm sort of glad that this week is your last week teaching.. is that bad?" I ask, giggling lightly.

"No, I'm glad too.. I get to spend more time with you." he replies, blushing a bit, and I kiss his nose and forehead once more.

Spencer and I smile at each other.

The rest of the bath is filled with Spencer washing me off, kisses, and cuddles.

"I love you." he whispers, tenderly caressing the sides of my body, kissing the top of each of my breasts.

"I love you." I say back, bringing his head up with my hands to kiss his lips.

I love him.

More than anything.

#spencerreid #criminalminds #spencerreidxreader #fanfic

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lepusrufus · 3 years

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To bargain for immortality pt.6 END

There were little things, really, that ended up putting her doubts and theories to rest. Nicole hadn't been an active person since she was five, so the occasional mild fatigue didn't stand out from her normal routine. The headaches that came and went or the tiredness that accompanied nights when she didn't get enough sleep were simply chucked to her body adjusting to its newfound immortality. Sometimes it takes longer for the Cadou to fully settle in, Esteria had reassured her, talking from personal experience as her own mutation took close to two years to be done changing her body.

All the doubt was wiped from her mind when she woke up one evening, the day after another particularly unpleasant experiment run with Miranda, with a splitting headache. It soon turned downright nauseating and hasty steps took her to the bathroom connected to Cassandra's bedchambers, where she all but doubled over, as much as her position leaning on the sink allowed.

Her initial plan was to simply splash some cold water on her face, but that soon went out the window when her throat and mouth were invaded by the familiar sensation of thick blood coming and pouring out. The white porcelain got stained in dark crimson as her heart seemed to beat painfully against her ribcage, making a small whimper escape blood stained lips. This experience in and of itself was not unfamiliar by now, but her own body apparently taking offence to simply existing was a new and unwelcomed development. An attempt to take a deep breath was made, but that only seemed counterproductive as it sent a stinging ache through her chest, so she settled for holding her breath until the pain subsided. A few shuddering intakes of the oxygen her body seemed to scream for later, the room and her reflection finally seemed to stop spinning.

Her eyes landed on the crimson mess in the sink and she let out an exhausted sigh, but before it could be cleaned, the bathroom door that she had left ajar creaked open.

"Heyy- ooo that looks bad," Daniela's voice came from her side, tone as over the top as always with the grimace that pulled at her features.

"Oh this? What do you mean, just a normal Thursday evening," Nicole replied, voice dripping with sarcasm and hands still shaking on the faucet when she turned on the water.

The other redhead didn't seem phased, presumably being Bela and Cassandra's sister does render one immune to sarcasm. Instead she shrugged and occupied herself with her sister's collection of perfumes that were placed on an adjacent counter.

Nicole gave her a look through the mirror while trying to splash some water on the remaining blood stains. "Did you… need something?"

"Dumbass number one and two are practicing some sword fighting in the garden. Thought you'd like to see," came the reply complete with an eyebrow wiggle that gained her a playful shove.

"Give me a minute to change," Nicole said, finally pushing herself off the sink when the nausea subsided back to a mild headache and her face was free of crimson trails.

As promised, when they entered the back garden that stood between the castle and its extensive vineyard, the faint clinking of metal against metal could be heard. It raised in volume as they made their way to an area where a few logs had been set on the grass, that made perfect sitting spots around what the sisters reclaimed as their small personal arena dedicated to occasional training. The vine covered statues and bushes with colorful leaves made for a pleasant spot to simply spend time in too, her wife currently dressed in light training gear and sword fighting coming as a big bonus to the beautiful surroundings.

The moment Cassandra's eyes landed briefly on her, a characteristic smirk pulled at her lips, their ashy tone left visible from the choice to skip lipstick for the time being. Their sparring match got cut short by a sudden low swipe at Bela's feet, that knocked her off balance and sent her on the trampled grass underfoot.

"Show off," she grumbled at her younger sister when offered a hand to get up. She took it, but continued to glare daggers at Cassandra as she dusted off her pants.

Not that the middle sister noticed, having turned and came up to her wife for a tender good morning kiss. She let the hand not occupied by the sword's handle rest on Nicole's cheek, eyebrows pulling into a frown upon noticing the tired look in emerald eyes.

"Are you feeling well? You look pale."

"Yeah yeah-"

"Oh just some mild gut-puking in the form of blood all over your sink," Daniela interjected, giving a fake innocent shrug when Nicole turned to glare at her. "You might wanna get a maid to clean it up, she did a shit job of it."

"I did not!" Nicole protested.

"You forgot the underside," Daniela hummed. "That was some mad splatter there."

She was rendered mute as the youngest sister moved to the small fence portion that was turned into an impromptu weapon holder to choose something and take Cassandra's place in another sparring match. Her glare was interrupted when she noticed her wife's worried expression.

"It's fine, just a mild headache now," Nicole sighed as she brought a hand up to interlace their fingers and pull Cassandra with her so they could both sit where Laura and Anita were. "Any chance I'm getting another performance? Since I missed the last one," she then said, a sly smile making its way on her lips.

That got Cassandra to grin, fangs glimmering in the early evening's soft light in a way that anyone else would find downright menacing. "Of course," she answered, eyes momentarily moving to her sisters.

It looked like Bela was winning, despite Daniela choosing her preferred twin swords that she wielded with an odd mix of grace and chaos. A slip past her guard and a hit with the ornate hilt of Bela's sword was what it took to put an end to their match, the youngest sister stumbling forward and breaking into a swarm before she had the chance to fully lose balance and fall face first into the dirt. She reappeared in front of the blonde, tongue stuck out and nose scrunched in an annoyed grimace, complete with a middle finger. If the Dimitrescu sisters had one thing in common, it was that all three of them were the world’s biggest sore losers.

"My turn to kick her ass," Cassandra perked up, picking up her well polished gladius.

Daniela, still miffed about her previous loss, didn't offer her the grace of getting into a proper stance. A flash of flies later, the clanking of metal ringed around them as Cassandra pushed her back.

"We said no swarm!" Bela called out from where she had found a seat on the grass, right in front of Laura.

The youngest rolled her eyes but complied, the buzzing completely dying down in favor of quick swipes and blocks. What Cassandra might've lacked in speed, she more than made up for in an impeccable defense, being near impossible to get near her body even with the apparent advantage of having an extra sword. Their fighting came to a standstill soon enough, with Daniela unable to get near while also being too quick to let any major hit land.

"My ladies."

Alexandria's voice called out from the entrance of their little makeshift arena, distracting Daniela enough for her sister to quickly swipe at her feet not unlike she had previously done to Bela.

The Steward flinched for a second when a long frustrated growl was heard from the youngest, but cleared her throat and did her best to keep up her characteristic poker face as she addressed Nicole. "Mother Miranda's assistant is here for you."

Her face fell, annoyance and dread both bubbling in her chest at having her pleasant day cut short not even two hours after waking up. She got up and exchanged goodbyes with the rest of her family while grabbing Cassandra's free hand in a silent demand to see her to the door.

On their way out, she decided that old jeans and a slightly oversized shirt that had survived her high school days was an attire appropriate enough to being tortured. It should've been concerning how at peace she had become with that idea, at least to any person with a sound mind. She never declared her sanity intact though.

"I'll see you later," she told Cassandra once they were at the heavy doors of the castle's main entrance, a thumb slowly tracing her jaw.

Emma was impatiently waiting for her just outside and blame the slight inherent meanness she had learned to let free since becoming a Dimitrescu, but Nicole took immense pleasure from the woman's uncomfortable grimace when she pulled Cassandra down in a deep kiss that went on for ten seconds too long. Small victories in the face of doom.

---

Nicole choked out a sob that walked the fine line between crying and screaming when the knife that looked way too big for the woman's hands came down at her elbow's joint with a gut wrenching crack.

It felt like Miranda had an unbeatable talent to never disappoint when someone thought she had reached the peak of inhumane with her experiments. The poisons were dreadful as was everything before that. The test on how well she can heal bullet wounds from the previous day had been downright cruel, only stopping after the results that showed how only a bullet through the head can incapacitate her for a while. Today's experiment on regenerating limbs was starting to eat away at Nicole's remaining sanity. It obviously started small, with fingers, but Miranda was always so keen on pushing limits.

She turned on her side with the remaining hand pressed to tear filled eyes and nails digging into skin as she desperately tried to find some sort of distraction from the pain and tingling that felt like static in her veins. Her temples were already throbbing with a headache and her vision was spinning due to the nausea. Miranda and Emma were having some sort of conversation to the side, but it felt distant through the deafening ringing in her ears as she put all her effort into not throwing up due to the sheer shock her body was going through.

The amount of time she laid there sobbing completely evaded her, not bothering to keep a mental track nor raising her head towards the clock mounted on the wall. She just wanted the healing to move and get it over with.

By the time she was mentally prepared to stomach the sight, her hand was already stitching together muscles covering the newly reformed bone, together with the beginnings of skin close to the incision. She tried moving her finger and flinched into a whole body cringe at how utterly wrong it felt.

The door creaking open took her attention away from the unsightly muscles twitching as they got placed together and into their places.

"Lord Heisenberg is here," announced a man, donning a white lab uniform not unlike Emma's.

"Just on time," Miranda perked up, a dangerously gleeful look in her eyes.

She got up, leaving the assistant with the job of timing Nicole's healing as she went to greet Karl. It went on for almost another torturous minute before the tell tale click of the timer and Emma noting it down marked that her arm was once again whole.

"How- how long was that?" Nicole asked, tentatively moving her hand. Good as new, with the exact same mobility function and sensitivity. The only thing missing was the beige nail polish applied just the night prior.

"Five minutes and twenty," the woman replied, not looking up from her paper.

Another few minutes of silence passed, that Nicole spent flexing her fingers. A bit of hot rage coursed through her veins when she noticed her ring finger, the matching band she and Cassandra had having been left on the desk upon entering the lab. At least Miranda had the decency of not slicing her hand off with the ring still on it, but she still wanted it back.

It wasn't long before Miranda came back, motioning for her to follow. "Come," she said, waiting for Nicole to push herself off the hospital bed and onto her feet.

A small burst of dizziness later, she was standing and shaky legs were taking her towards the woman. "Can I get my ring back now?" She did her best to keep the edge out of her tone, too tired to face her wrath.

Miranda simply thought for a moment before waving a dismissive hand at her. "Fine, it won't be in the way anymore."

Nicole wasn't sure if that was good or downright horrifying.

Most of the rooms in the underground maze of corridors were unknown to her. The structure twisting and turning in dizzying patterns that were enough to disorient anyone not familiar with the layout. Not to mention the occasional tunnel that stretched for entirely too long that led to one place or the other from the town above.

Nicole found herself following Miranda through one such unknown area, the corridors new to her but the look not dissimilar to every other part of the underground structure. If it weren't for the numbered plaques on the door, she wouldn't even be able to tell this was a different area than the ones she's seen before.

Miranda pushed open a door and led her inside. It was definitely more spacious than the labs and the space was mostly cleared out save from a few tables lining the walls and some cabinets. The only thing at the center was Lord Heisenberg and a long metal table, leather straps fastened to its sides and a circular saw blade attached to a machine above.

Nicole took a couple stumbling steps back, hips hitting the corner of a table and rattling the papers placed on it. It seemed to peeve Miranda, who grabbed her wrist impatiently.

"Come now, we don't have all day," she said while slowly dragging her towards the table.

With every shaky step, her knees felt like jello under her and her ears started to ring anew with the panic and dread settling like ice in her veins. Her legs finally gave way under her and she fell to her knees with a pathetic sob.

"No please. Please I can't," she said, one hand meekly grabbing at the goddess' lab coat.

Miranda bent down on one knee, brows furrowed in the feign concern that only she could have perfected to such an art. "We have to," she started, voice so soft one could easily believe it belonged to someone else. "We must know the limits of your regenerative abilities. You said it yourself that you want to know them."

She had but not like this. Not like this.

"Then use anesthesia. Please just don't-" she choked out a sob before the end of her phrase. Not that it was going anywhere, it was just a pathetic attempt at bargaining for less suffering.

Surprisingly enough, there were few instances since coming to the Village when she felt truly and utterly terrified. Anxious and afraid? Sure. But not even Lady Dimitrescu hiring her, or Cassandra taking an interest in freaking her out or even getting shot made her feel the dread she was feeling then. She would've rather spent eternity on the cold hard stone under her knees than budge an inch.

Miranda pursed her lips and lifted her chin with one hand, expression like a mother hearing her child make an outrageously unattainable request. "You know that will interfere with the results."

"Then local anesthesia," Nicole suggested, holding onto some kind of feeble hope by a thread.

The goddess seemed to actually consider it for a moment before shaking her head. A hundred meek protests and cries fell past Nicole's lips and on deaf ears as she was pulled up by the wrist and back on track towards the metal table. Miranda was incredibly strong despite her rather short stature, so any attempt at pulling back was completely useless.

Once at the room's center, she pushed Nicole against the table, frowning when she refused to get on. With a sigh, she grabbed her chin once again, putting slightly more force in the gesture. Both a warning and witness to her growing impatience.

"If you keep still it's going to be much less painful," she promised, though the validity behind her words were doubtful.

Though there was something in Miranda's tone that almost demanded to be believed without question. It may have been the inherent authority that came with being almost divine, a goddess in all ways that truly mattered. Or something else entirely, common to every piece of the Megamycete's web, down to the finest and farthest roots.

With a barely visible nod, Nicole pushed herself onto the cold surface of the table. It was far taller than she was so Karl had to spend a few good minutes readjusting the leather straps on the sides until they were in the right positions to wrap tightly around her limbs.

"Uh… sorry kiddo," he said in a barely audible whisper as he fastened a strap around her forehead. "Here," he pressed a folded cloth to her lips, that she bit down on to at least try to not crack any teeth.

He seemed almost as much of an unwilling participant as she was, lips pulled into a tight line under the scruffy mustache. The only one seeming rather gleeful there was Miranda.

The leather was digging painfully into her skin, the belts having been tightened slightly too much to prevent movement. Not to mention the uncomfortable position, with her hands tied above her head and starting to feel numb. Her head also seemed beyond foggy, the shallow breaths she was taking doing a poor job of providing her body with oxygen, to which it protested with a heart painfully beating against her ribcage, almost as if the small parasite that nestled around it was taking offence itself.

Another sob shook her body, deafened out by the metal sound of the circular blade when it was turned on. Thankfully it was clean. At least Nicole hoped as much. And sharp. If she was going through this she prayed that she would at least be granted the mercy of a clean cut as opposed to shredding of skin and muscle with everything underneath.

She shut her eyes when Miranda raised her shirt enough to expose her abdomen and, as the saw forcefully came down, screams were muffled both by the cloth in her mouth and the deafening roar of the saw.

---

The feeble knock on heavy ornate doors was answered by the tall woman positioned on guard duty that night. Nicole did not remember her name and at the moment it was the least of her worries.

She took a handful of shaky steps inside before clearing her throat in an attempt to not let her voice waver. "Cassandra?"

"Out hunting with her sisters and the other ladies," the woman answered promptly.

Nicole simply nodded once and made her way into the castle as the heavy thud of the shutting doors echoed around her. Her movements seemed on autopilot, eyes only focused enough to watch her step as she made her way through the familiar path up to her wife's bedroom. She barely registered passing through the first set of corridors, the paintings and priceless decor she had grown accustomed to every day becoming a background blur.

She felt downright dreadful.

Her ears were still ringing slightly and exhaustion made her limbs feel heavy and aching with every step. The headache from earlier was also back in full swing and throbbing painfully at her temples.

A quick look at a golden clock mounted on the wall in the main hall reminded her that it was near dawn so the rest of her family must be on their way home.

She flinched, a small jump that threatened to throw her off balance, at the heavy footsteps that came behind her. Throwing a look over her shoulder she saw none other than Lady Dimitrescu, her mother in law, making her way under the low arch of one of the doors leading into the spacious room. Thin black eyebrows were pulled into a frown at the sight of the much smaller woman, hunched over and all but shivering, with dark circles under her eyes having taken an almost purplish hue and dried tear streaks on pallid cheeks.

"Oh hi," Nicole greeted with a wry smile. "I thought you were out hunting."

Alcina waved a hand dismissively, eyes still focused on every minuscule shake of her shoulders. "Paperwork had to be taken care of."

At the explanation, Nicole let out an oh and shuffled her weight from one foot to the other, unsure of how to politely book it up the stairs and under the mountain of blankets on Cassandra's bed. There was no escape, it seemed, as a large hand came to gingerly rest on her shoulder, leading her further in and towards one of the plush couches lined in front of the barely lit fireplace. "Come sit," she offered, face softening in a gentle motherly smile.

Nicole just nodded absent mindedly, sitting barely on the edge of the white cushions decorated with a beautiful intricate floral pattern. She passed clammy hands on her jeans, now covered in fine powdery ash from the crystallized remains of the discarded half of her body after she retrieved them following the night's experiments. A disgusted grimace pulled at her lips, deciding then and there that the pants had to be burned as soon as possible.

"How did the tests go?" Alcina asked, taking her attention away from the ruined piece of garment and being met with distant eyes.

"Good," Nicole whispered, but before the word could even be fully out of her mouth a sob shook her entire body, coming out accompanied by choked out gasps as she all but doubled over in an attempt to make herself smaller than she already was.

The Lady's eyes widened at the sudden outpouring of emotion, so uncharacteristic for the woman in the few years she had been part of her family. "Oh child," she whispered, hands resting protectively on small shaking shoulders.

"Did-" Nicole started but interrupted herself with another shuddering gasp. "Did she- do the same thing to-... to you?"

Alcina grimaced, expression unseen by the smaller woman currently curled in on herself in her arms. It had been so long since her infection, the pain caused by her body acclimating to the Cadou a distant memory. Something that would forever remain seared in her mind however was the cruel ice in their goddess' eyes as she ran test after dreadful test, pushing the limits of her body to see how much she can actually heal. It had taken months to finally be content with the results, after her body's defensive response had been mutating and turning into the giant hungry beast she kept carefully at bay from that moment on. Instead of answering, Alcina decided that the better option was to rub her back slowly, not unlike she had done to her own daughters countless times before, to bring some comfort.

"You will get through this," she promised, unwavering conviction in her tone.

---

Date: 20th May 2012

Subject: Nicole [REDACTED] Dimitrescu

Mutation experiments - 5 (Regeneration- 4)

Testing the limits of regenerative abilities - regrowing body parts

Subject can regrow limbs (arm, served from elbow - 5'20'') and regenerate after being cut in half. If the body is cut with a 50/50 ratio, the upper half will regrow the lower half, prioritizing brain activity and the Cadou's placement. If the proportions are different in favour of the lower half, the upper one may still be the one taking priority; results vary. Up to 80% of body mass can be regenerated. If more than that is destroyed (eg. dissolved using acid) subject will presumably crystallize and enter a dormant state like others infected with a Cadou.

The discarded body parts crystallize and disintegrate into a stony/ashy mass.

---

Miranda's enthusiasm seemed to slowly dwindle after a few more experiment runs, the same effects John Abbott's mutations that caused his untimely death coming to knock at Nicole's door every so often.

"You see," the goddess had said the last time she had called Nicole down in the underground labs. "John was missing the healing abilities, which led to his infection slowly corroding away at his body until his death. You can heal, so you won't die, but the negative effects are still present. So try not to get hurt too much too often," she finished, not even sparing her a glance.

And that was the last Nicole had seen of Miranda, at least as far as one on one experiments went. The woman would still pay the castle a visit every so often, sitting down with Alcina for a glass of wine and having the rest of the family joining in on occasion, when their discussions didn't stray too far into matters of their cult.

She was right too. There were days when a migraine would rudely wake her up in the morning, or when her chest seemed to ache to the point where she was sure the parasite that made its home around her beating heart was trying to escape. The Cadou truly was a wretched little thing, constantly at odds with her body's defenses and trying to slowly but surely cause damage to the point of death. But if there's one thing that very same parasite had bestowed upon her was just… being really good at not dying. The healing abilities were in a continuous cycle of repairing any and all internal damage the infection may have caused on a not so good day. Those times had her doubling over the nearest sink, or suitable container if unlucky, a waterfall of blood carrying all the damaged tissue that had been replaced flowing from her lips in crimson rivulets.

A cruel fate, one may think. Not her though, for the knowledge of how her family had helped her through the change was at the forefront of her mind each time she had to sit down due to a burst of dizziness. Cassandra rubbing gentle circles on her back while she was coughing up the clogged blood in her throat grounded her beyond belief. Then, when everything was said and done, there was always something to get back to. A short vacation originally meant for business but that Alcina would always prolong for just a couple days so they could all spend some quality time away from the Village and the cult and Miranda's scrutinizing ever watchful eyes. Or the season's first hunting trip, the genuine glee on her wife's face never growing old to her. Even life's more mundane events, like the weekly movie night that had half the family groaning at Esteria's choice of vampire media. Rinse and repeat, forever under the castle's imposing towers and inside ornate inviting rooms, always warm and welcoming, always feeling like home to her.

If that was the price she had to pay for eternity, then so be it.

---

Subject Name: Nicole Dimitrescu

Cadou Affinity: Favorable

Brain Functions: Normal

Subject can regenerate at an incredibly fast rate, although healing slows down with loss of consciousness. Shows a similar mutation to John Abbott; able to detect illnesses by specific smells. The latter mutation causes the Cadou to have adverse reactions, causing internal damage that is however kept at bay with the regenerative abilities.

An unfit vessel for Eva.

#unhinged maiden™ my beloved #cassandra dimitrescu x maiden #mother miranda #karl heisenberg #to bargain for immortality #fanfic #lady dimitrescu #tw torture #like big fat tw for this one

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andreafmn · 3 years

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I’m Not Afraid - Chapter 4

Word Count: 3,616

Characters: Female Reader Argent Character, Original Male Argent Character, Derek Hale, Allison Argent, Scott McCall, Stiles Stilinski, Isaac Lahey, Lydia Martin, Chris Argent, Jackson Whittemore

Story Description: (Y/N) Argent arrived at Beacon Hills to put to rest her father’s sister, Kate Argent. For the first time, her family has decided to settle down and sustain a life in this interesting small town. After 17 years, (Y/N) has the opportunity to establish interpersonal relationships but will she be ready to face the complications that come with relating to her cousin’s, Allison, friends; especially, the infamous Derek Hale. She will face the adventure of being associated with the Derek and McCall pack as well as being faced with the discovery of certain aspects of her life she never imagined.

*DISCLAIMER* I do not own in any way Teen Wolf, all credits of the pre-established characters, script, and storyline belong to Jeff Davis and MTV Network. The only thing I own is Argent Reader insert, her immediate family, and her storyline, as well as her effects in the others’ storyline.

Chapter: 4/?

A/N: If you enjoy my writing I’ll also be posting them in AO3 and Wattpad along with other stories (I also hope to start taking requests if ya’ll want) Hope you enjoy and all constructive criticism is encouraged.

Follow Me!

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Chapter 4

After the eventful day yesterday, I could say that today was extremely boring. For some unknown reason, Stiles and Jackson had not shown up to school. But, after what happened I would have missed too, but I left my bike here and I needed to get it back. I wasn’t planning on staying longer than needed. Once the day was over and the clock hit three, I sped off to my house. I was still tired from yesterday and all I wanted to do was take a big long nap. My body felt heavy, and my head hurt like hell.

But once I got home, I knew that I wouldn't be sleeping like I wanted to.

"What are you doing here, Derek?" I asked as I took off my helmet.

"We need to talk."

"No, we don't. There's nothing to talk about."

"(Y/N), please. You have been avoiding me for almost two weeks now. I need to know why." He sounded desperate.

"And I want to know how many licks it takes to get to the center of a tootsie pop. Guess we won't be getting any answers today." I tried to walk to the door, but he grabbed my arm. "Let. Me. Go."

"Please, just talk to me. Give me a reason." His stare burned a hole in me. "Please."

"Seriously, Derek. Just leave me alone." He finally let me go, my arm feeling cold missing his touch.

"I won't stop until you talk to me and explain."

"Then get comfortable, sour wolf, you'll be waiting a long time." I entered the house and locked the door, finally letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

I changed into comfortable clothing and started cleaning the house. My parents would be here tomorrow, and I wanted to make sure the house was spotless. Truly, I just needed something to take my mind off Derek. Why did he make me feel this way? Yesterday the only thing I was wondering was why HE was there. And I didn't want to think that way. I didn't want to care about him. Not now, not ever.

After I finished cleaning, I found myself with nothing to do, so I ran upstairs and took a shower. I tried to take all the time in the world but there wasn't enough. I got out and went to bed thinking of the events of yesterday.

I was running through the forest and I felt someone chasing me. No matter how fast I ran, the creature ran faster. Before I knew it my body had collided with the floor and towering above me was the thing that had screeched last night. It looked lost, like it needed to find his purpose. His slit eyes stared down onto mine and his sharp teeth expelled a sort of saliva that trickled down to my face. His tail was moving up and down my legs teasing a cut. I wanted to move but I knew if I did it would try to kill me, so I stayed put. I closed my eyes and awaited what would happen but instead of death, a roar sounded. Startled, the creature screeched, and I screamed back.

I woke up screaming and sweating just 5 minutes before my alarm would make a sound. I got out of my bed and went to take a shower to relieve me from the dream I just had. It sounded just like the screech from two nights ago. My body felt cold, and I had goosebumps everywhere. To calm my nerves, I put the water in a hot temperature and let it ease my muscles and relax my body. I would have maybe called Isaac but, after knowing he's somewhat involved with whatever is going on and him being a douchebag the last few days, I didn't even bother looking up his contact. Maybe it was for the best. After the year ended I could cut ties without any remorse.

Once I was done with my shower I changed into comfortable clothes once again and ran down the stairs. For more than an hour I was enjoying a horror movie on TV when I heard the doorknob rattle.

"Mom! Dad!" I ran and jumped on both.

"Hey, munchkin." My dad ruffled my hair and hugged me.

"Hey, darling. How did your week go?" My mom asked. How could I explain to her something I didn't know?

"Pretty uneventful. Just hanging out around the house, organizing my room and stuff. But, enough about me. Come in, settle down, tell me about your week."

"Honey, why don't you go sit down, we need to talk about something." I looked at my mom weirdly and went to the kitchen to sit down.

"What's going on?" I looked at my parents who were fixing up dinner.

"Munchkin, you know how each year we have to move due to my business. Well, this year is gonna be different."

"We're not moving. Dad, you've said that before. How do I know you're not lying again?"

"We took this week kind of on a trial basis. You’re getting older and can handle bigger responsibilities like taking care of yourself and the house by yourself. So, it seems that we can be away for elongated periods of time and you’ll be just fine. And in any case, your uncle is here to take care of you."

"We will be living here in Beacon Hills and any business that needs to be taken care of we will just leave town for a few days. Are you okay with that?" My mother smiled.

"Okay?! I'm beyond okay!" I jumped up from the stool and hugged my parents. "This is the best news ever!"

"That's great, honey. Now go do something while I start dinner."

When my parents told me the news that we were staying the first person that came to mind was Derek.

I had been avoiding him for such a long time and he did deserve some answers and maybe I could get some from him about what was going on in this freak show of a town. I decided to text him and told him to meet me at his house in the woods. I awaited his answer and rode my bike down the now familiar trail. And just as he had said, there he was, waiting on the front steps of the house.

"Hey, Derek," I said softly. It was hard to swallow my pride after the way I had been acting.

"Hey, (Y/N). Are you finally ready to talk?" He said in a calm and soothing voice. Absolutely the opposite of what I was expecting. I nodded my head and sat down next to him. "So, why have you been avoiding me? Is it something I did?"

"No. I just had to."

"You had to?"

"Look, all my life I have had to pack everything up and leave behind a whole life. Every time the year ends, I need to forget about one life and start another. I have ignored so many people that have only been nice to me because I don't want to grow attached. Cause when I leave, I know I will never see them again and I'd rather be alone than have to pass through that heartache."

"So, once we started growing close you had to cut ties so you could forget about me." I nodded and he let out a sigh. "I get it. But you could've told me."

"Yeah? How? Hey, I'm gonna start to forget you now so I don't have to later. Wouldn't be too sensitive, would it?"

"No, but I would have understood." He looked at me. His eyes held kindness and understandings, things I didn’t deserve for my actions. "But why are you telling me now?"

"My parents told me that we're not leaving this time. We're here for good."

"So that means you'll stop ignoring me?"

"Yes." He smiled and gave me a hug. I hugged him back. "Now that I have given you answers, I need some in return."

"Like?"

"What the hell happened on Thursday?"

"Oh. That." He paused for a second and groaned, but I motioned him to answer me. "Of course. But what I tell you right now must stay between us, and you must give me your word that no one will know that I was the one who told you. Not Scott or Allison, not even your parents."

"Is it that important?"

"Absolutely. Look what's happening here, it's not normal nor human."

"What are you talking about, Derek?" I chuckled.

"Everything around you are not what it seems. There's just no easy way to say this."

"Derek, ballpark it."

"I'm a werewolf, an alpha. And so is Scott, Isaac, Erica, and Boyd, they're betas. Your family, including Allison, are hunters. They kill people like me and the others. That screech you heard yesterday, it came from a Kanima. A walking snake-like creature that kills people, murderers exactly, after paralyzing them with a type of venom it creates." He looked into my eyes trying to search for something. An answer, a sign, anything. It just wasn't there. "(Y/N), please. Say something."

I tried to speak up, but nothing came out. Maybe it was the shock, maybe I wasn't ready to hear this, maybe I didn't want to know that everyone around me was different. Out of this world, sort to speak. Everything was changing and I couldn't do anything about it. I saw Stiles' jeep coming closer. Out of it came Scott, Allison, and, obviously, Stiles. I got up from the steps, ignoring their calls and Derek calling my name.

"Where are you going, (Y/N)?"

"Home." I turned on the motorcycle and tried to leave but I couldn't. I was frozen, listening to their conversation.

Derek's POV "What's happening?" Stiles asked.

"She's leaving, dimwit. Don't you have eyes?"

"Why would she leave like that?" Allison questioned and directed her sight to me. "What did you do?"

"Nothing. We were just talking."

"What exactly where you guys talking about?" Scott asked.

"Everything."

"As in." I stared at him and raised an eyebrow. "Oh, everything."

"Derek, why the hell would you do that?! It was not in your place to tell her about that."

"Oh, like you would have told her anything. Just like you're telling Lydia. She came to me for answers, and I gave them to her."

"That is none of your business."

"I was not going to continue to lie to her. You do whatever the hell you want but I couldn't go on like that."

"Honestly, Derek. What is your problem?! She's nothing to you so I don't understand why you had to bring her into this twisted world." Allison screamed.

"You know why she has to know. I accept that it's not my place, but I knew you wouldn't say anything and, also, I didn't bring her into this. Your bloodline did. Don't pin this on me." Allison starts fuming and closing the gap between us but stops dead in her tracks when she heard the same thing all of us heard. (Y/N) falling off her bike.

"(Y/N)!!" I ran towards her and picked her up.

"Don't touch her!" Allison screamed.

"You can't tell me what to do." I bumped our shoulders and headed towards the house. "But if you wanna help out you can follow me."

Fuming, Allison followed me into the living room with the trail of puppies on her back. She helped me gently lay down (Y/N) on the couch whilst Scott found some gauze and alcohol for a scratch on her face and hopefully what would wake her.

After cleaning the wound, I held a gauze dripping with alcohol under her nose, but nothing happened.

"This is what I wanted to avoid. She seems so strong, but she is so fragile too. I wanted her to find this all out through her parents. Not some stranger she just met." Allison spoke to Scott.

"I think you underestimate the strength she has. And trust me, I am no stranger to her." I spat at her. "At least I was the only one brave enough to give her the answers she was seeking."

"Derek, honestly I could give two shits about what you think right now. It's your fault she fainted. Again, you had no fucking right."

"Look, Allison, I get it. You don't want her in this world because she's better than you. I get it." I smirked at her and she lunged at me. Scott held her back but I wanted the reaction. I was completely fuming, (Y/N) deserved better than lies.

As she struggled, Stiles’s words brought us back from the fight.

"Guys, she's waking up."

I directed my gaze again to (Y/N) and noticed her eyes fluttering open. "See, she's fine."

"But she wasn't."

"Well, she is now." I gritted my teeth.

(Y/N)'s POV

"Um, guys, yeah. I'm still here stop talking about me as if I were gone."

"Are you okay? How are you feeling?" Allison asked as if I had hurt myself.

"I'm fine. My body is functioning normally, my legs are moving one after the other, my lips are opening and closing, and my tongue is moving, and my arms are flailing. I'm super."

"Take it easy, (Y/N). You just found out a lot of stuff." Scott said.

"Yeah, you two are werewolves." I pointed at him and at Derek, then at Allison. "And you, along with our family, a hunter." I looked at Stiles. "And you're human, like me."

"And?" Derek asked in a harsh tone as if trying to keep up the mean façade he had. It made me angry, but the worry was evident in his eyes.

"It's fine. It's weird but fine." This time I did get on my motorcycle and started it.

"Whoa, where do you think you're going?" Stiles tried to stop me midway.

"Um, as I said before, home."

"You can't drive in this state, especially in a motorcycle. You could crash!"

"Allison, I have never in my life of driving crashed a motorcycle whereas cars, enough to start a small dealership, and some of them weren't even mine. I think I'm good." As I tried to leave, once again I was stopped. This time by Derek.

"I'll take you home."

"Um, you've done enough. I'll take her home." Allison stepped in. They got in each other's faces and I had to step in between them.

"Mom, dad. Stop. I hate when you fight." I snorted. "Sorry, but I'll take myself home."

Before any of them could answer I got on my motorcycle and sped off the same way I came through. When I got home, I was out of breath and dizzy. Everything Derek had said kept replaying in my mind over and over, like an endless loop of unimaginable words that seemed to be part of a dream. The front door of my house seemed so far, and it felt like almost half an hour had passed until I got there. Everything passed by slowly and blurry.

My father called out to me and it felt like I answered but I had no idea what I said. Maybe something in the lines of I'm tired, I'm gonna go to bed. I ascended the stairs one step at a time until I reached the top. It felt like climbing the Great Wall of China, but finally, I made it to my bedroom. Once I entered, I got the scare of my life and everything went back to normal. Derek was in my room.

"What the hell are you doing here, Derek?!" I yelled in a soft whisper.

"I wanted to see if you were really okay. You didn't seem good when you left."

"I'm fine," I said in a cold voice and started looking for my pajamas. He wasn't believing me, and neither was I. "Seriously, Derek. I am."

"You don't seem or sound fine. I heard you when you got here, you were out of breath and you took your time to get up the stairs as if it was the biggest climb of your life." It was evident that he was worried about me but there was nothing to worry about. I may still be in a bit of shock. He just needed to chill. Deep down I knew how scared I was. The world had turned into different stop frames. I could see everything pass me by inch by inch. I had time for everything. I could easily have gone to the other side of the planet and back and not more than a minute could have passed.

I went to the bathroom and changed in hopes that he would leave, even though I didn’t want him to. He didn't. He looked around my book collection which, I may add, is quite big. My father had some people make a built-in bookcase and desk. It was probably my favorite place in the whole house, the kitchen ended second. Derek had taken one of my favorite books in his hand.

"Pride and Prejudice? Hm, never would have pictured you to read this kind of book."

"There's many things you don't know about me, sour wolf."

"Seriously, you're gonna keep calling me that? Even after you know it's true."

"That makes it more fun." I smiled weakly. "So, werewolf, huh?" He nodded. "And my family is filled with hunters." He nodded again. "And they hunt you."

"(Y/N), if this is too much for you, we can leave you out of it."

"It doesn't matter if you leave me out of it, I'll still be involved. I just don't want anything to change."

"I know. Me either." He said looking down. I walked over to him and hugged him needing some type of warmth. His arms engulfed me, and I felt relieved, completely forgetting how mad I was at him for being a dick not a few hours ago.

"It's just for the first time in my life I thought I cloud have a normal life with my family and new friends. I hoped to settle in a normal town where it's so boring, but you fall in love with the people there and never want to leave. I guess I just wanted normal."

"And I just ruined that." He sighed, his chest rising and falling against my head. "I'm sorry."

"Don't blame yourself. My parents would have brought me into that world soon enough. I think that's why they've had me working out and training for no apparent reason. They were hoping I would join the family business."

"Would you?"

"Huh?" I looked up at him.

"If they asked you to become a hunter, would you?"

"If I hadn't met Isaac, or your pack, or Scott... or you, I probably would have. But I can't be a part of something that hunts innocent creatures just because they believe the whole species is bad." He nodded but stayed quiet.

I went over to my bed in hopes he would stay but he made his way to the window. I don't know what came over me, but I called out to him. "Don't go. Stay, please."

Without another word he turned off the lights and sat next on the chair that was in the corner next to my bed. Finally, I drifted off with the possibility of words flowing from his mouth.

Derek's POV

"I'll never leave you." I whispered to her as she closed her eyes and drifted into sleep. After some time, she started squirming and her heartbeat began to race. I sat next to her, and without waking up, she got closer and snuggled into my chest. I put an arm around her and heard her heartbeat slowly go back to normal.

At around midnight I heard voices arguing downstairs. I didn't mean to overhear but I couldn't help it.

"You went looking for her again, didn't you, Henry?"

"Of course, I did. I'll look for her until the day I die."

"You know you'll never find her. That was the point. You told her to hide, and she did. So much that not even you can find her. I guess she didn't love you enough." She sighed. "And even if you found her, your father would use all his power to kill her."

"At least I loved her more than I'll ever love you, and that's enough for me."

After that, a long silence.

Then, a door slammed shut.

Moments after I heard footsteps coming up the stairs.I tried my best to move in case they decided to check in with her, but (Y/N)’s grip on me only tightened. I had no escape other than to brace myself for whatever could happen.

My heart started to race faster and faster as the steps became closer to the room.

Step.

Her mother was right outside her door, probably debating waking her daughter up to wish her a good night. My breath hitched in my throat when the door handle started to softly turn; the gears in my brain turning, looking for the quickest escape. The door handle had turned completely and I prepared myself to run. But, it was let go. The footsteps receded and ended in the room next to (Y/N)’s. Once I heard her settle in bed I finally relaxed. I curled (Y/N) onto me and wrapped her tight. Something in me just wanted to protect her and let her know she’s not alone. I hadn’t felt this way in a long time and for the first time I wanted to see where it could lead.

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Tag list: @hellowinterlane @lokisgoddesofpower @mersuperwholocked-lowlife

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marvel-ousnesss · 3 years

Text

Unrequited (Valerio x reader)

Warnings: angst, use of drugs, alcohol, cursing, cheating, breakup, mentions of Valerio x Lucrecia

Word count: 2000-ish

A/N: Sorry this took so long, I hadn't been motivated to write anything until recently. As always, I love to hear comments, thoughts and feedback. Also, thank you so much for supporting my work, hope you enjoy 💜

Masterlist

Request

“Stop it, Valerio.” You abruptly close the book you're holding, eyeing the teacher as you place it on the desk. “They won't even let me get out of the house.”

He had been nagging you all week long about some party he was dying to go to, and you wanted to, really. The only problem was that, a few days ago, the two of you had dragged Guzman on a nightly adventure to the beach, which seemed right at the moment, since he had spent the whole summer sulking. Your dad practically had to drag you home by an ear, and, to say the least, your family didn’t wanna hear a beat about parties or your friends any time soon.

He scoffs, “seriously? Your parents are like the chillest people ever, they weren’t even that mad.”

Incredulous, you look at him up and down, betrayed by the amused grin that flicks on the corner of your lips. “Just checking, were you there on Thursday? One step out of line, and I'll be walking around with an ankle monitor.”

“Y/N, Valerio, is my class, perchance, interrupting your conversation? Should I take it elsewhere?”

With a quick apology and a glare at your boyfriend, cutting the conversation was cut short. However, it was naive to think he'd just settle for the answer you had given him.

“Whatever, Y/N," he grumbles. "I’m sure They'll let you if I,” he frames his face and smiles coyly, “am the one who asks.”

"Geez, why didn't I think of that!". Turning the page of your textbook, you deadpan. "Oh, right, dick-in-a-sock incident.”

Valerio lowers himself on his seat as his face embraces a new tone of crimson. After a second, he recovers. “Can't believe you brought up that teeny-tiny mistake of mine. Low, Y/L/N, even for you.”

You open your mouth to respond, but the bell rings.

When it stops, you continue, “Seriously, V, they've been all over me these last few days, it's a long shot.”

Both of you get out of the classroom and begin to make your way to the lockers. “Just tell them Polo’s gonna be there, don’t they love Polo?”

You sigh, checking the time on your phone. You only have fifteen minutes before your next class began, and, honestly, lack the energy to spend them trying to knock some sense into your mule of a boyfriend.

“Fine,” you settle. “I’ll call them in a minute. But, don’t get your hopes up.”

“Too late.” With a captivating smile, he leans in and pecks your cheek.

After you agreed to at least call your parents, Valerio's mood improved considerably the rest of the day. The rest of the classes went by uneventfully; before you knew it, you found yourself in the car, duffle in hand, on your way to the Montesinos'.

You arrive at their house and let yourself inside, leaving your stuff at the door and heading straight to the kitchen, looking for something to drink. When you turn around to face the stairs, Lu’s making her way down.

"So, how did you manage to dodge your sentence this time?"

"Haggled my freedom, sort of." You place a glass on the table and open the fridge to fetch a bottle of sparkling water.

She rolls her eyes and sighs, exasperated. "A call from my dad would’ve done it".

"Thanks, but it wasn’t that bad, really, " you assure, pouring some water into the glass then cutting a lemon in half. "Just have to take my brother to some birthday party next week and, in exchange, they gave me their blessing for Valerio's thing, and let me stay at yours after."

"God, Y/N, you complain about my brother 24/7 and, in the end, the two of you are just as stubborn."She grabs an apple and takes a bite. "You could've saved yourself the trouble completely."

"Oh, well."You take a seat by the kitchen bar. "Guess it takes one to know one."

"Anyway, what are you wearing tonight?"

You unlock your phone and browse through the gallery. When you find the picture, you stop and point a finger at her. "You're gonna hate me. " You show her the screen smiling from ear to ear.

"Oh, my fucking god, Y/N! How- I- is that the Valentino you were drooling over the other day?"

You just grin.

"You, bitch, how did you get your hands on that?"

"Aunt Millicent."

"Of course," she huffs.

"Turns out that there were a few perks of her going off to Milan." You shrug. "But that's not important right now, what are you gonna wear?"

With that. she drags you up the stairs and into her room. You spend the rest of the afternoon immersed in makeup experiments and debates about fashion until Valerio and Guzman shout your names to start pregaming.

You enter the party together and go straight to the most vacant area of the VIP zone. After grabbing the first round, you join the others at the table and sit down with Polo and Carla for a few drinks. The group remains wrapped in conversation until Ander walks up to his friends and drags them to the bar, probably to tell them about his most recent disagreement with Omar. Soon after, Lucrecia makes eye contact with Nadia, muttering something about her daring to come, and standing up with a huff. Knowing she's physically incapable of keeping herself out of trouble, Carla stands up with a roll of her eyes and follows her.

Valerio lets his arm fall around you and chuckles, taking a sip of his drink. "And then, there were two."

“Wanna get high?" You don't wait for him to answer verbally. Instead, you grab his hands and pull the two of you to stand up.

He laughs, grabbing a bottle of whatever was on the table beside yours.

The two of you sprinted to the nearest restroom in a fit of giggles and lock the door behind you. He puts the bottle on the counter and reaches his pockets, freezing as soon as he lifts his gaze. You dig into your clutch and shake a small bag in his face.

"My treat," you grin, resembling a kid in a candy store.

"Oh, my, little miss Y/LN!" he gasps in fake horror. "What happened to the ankle monitor you were telling me about."

"I won’t tell if you won’t."You smirk, carefully arranging the lines.

The party comes to an end a few minutes before sunrise. You reunite with Lucrecia and Guzman by the entrance of the club and the four of you get in the Montesinos' car. Your head rests on Valerio's chest and he traces lazy patterns on the skin of your arm and shoulder.

When you make it to the house, Lucrecia doesn't waste a minute to drag a tipsy Guzman upstairs, waving a quick goodbye on her way. You giggle, well aware of your friends' plans for the night. Then, you head to the kitchen for a snack.

"Confess it." Your boyfriend stares at you from the stairs, arms crossed over his chest. "The only reason you ever visit is that we have a better pantry."

"To be honest, I thought you already knew that." You grab a pack of chips and walk toward his bedroom, passing by him and kissing his nose softly.

You don't fall asleep that night, writhing in Valerio's arms and debating whether or not to go find something for the hangover that was already beginning to haunt you. When you open your eyes, the first rays of sunlight are already peeking through the window. You decide to get out of bed. You throw the blanket off you and turn, expecting to see your boyfriend, but only find a mess of his blankets instead. You check the time on your cell phone: 8:22 a.m.

Seeing no point in continuing your attempts to get some sleep, you put on the shirt that was laying on Valerio's desk chair and leave the room. As you're crossing the hall to the pool, you hear noises coming through Lucrecia's door. For a moment, you think it may be her and Guzman, but remember hearing him say that he had to go home at dawn to get to a swimming competition.

You try to ignore the noise and convince yourself it's none of your business; but, when you continue to walk away, your ears are invaded by a voice you knew quite well. "It couldn't, they can't-, they're...", a million thoughts invade you. You take a deep breath and to open the door.

There are no words to describe the feeling of your heart being ripped in the blink of an eye. Your legs threaten to collapse and blood rushes to your head, making you dizzy for a brief moment. Not only do you find your boyfriend in the bed, with an unreadable expression coating his face, but you find your best friend redhanded, looking right at you like a deer in headlights.

You don't even try to digest the scene; instead, you run out of the house, suddenly not caring about your current apparel. Part of you wanted to shout what you had seen, to ruin them, but they meant too most to you. You couldn't do it, no matter how much you wanted to get it off your chest.

Luckily, your house was empty. You went straight upstairs and locked yourself in your room for the rest of the morning. You did whatever you could to take your head off what you had seen, but nothing worked. In the end, you wrote it down, desperate to get it out somehow. You hadn't opened your diary since you were twelve, but it was relieving; a weight was lifted off your shoulders.

You spend the remaining of the day so deep in thought, that you didn't even notice your family arriving from the park. You drifted off to sleep after working on some homework, only to be woken up by our brother's voice.

"Y/N, your boyfriend's here!" Hearing the word sends a jab of pain through your body. However, you reply, "I'll be down in a second."

You put on a hoodie, some shoes and leave the fort that was your room. Your parents are focused on a movie, so you take the opportunity to step into the backyard with Valerio.

You face him, trying to appear emotionless, even if your bloodshot eyes give you away.The childish gleam in his face is nowhere to be found, his shoulders are more drooping than normal, and his eyes are almost as red as yours. You wonder if it's because of the crying or the cocaine.

“How long?”

“Before I went abroad.”

You attempt to walk back into the house, but he grabs and pulls your arm, begging you to stay and listen.

You sigh. “I won't say anything, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

He stays silent for a few seconds, bringing himself to believe that your thoughts on him were actually that low. Then he mumbles, “I don’t care about that, I know it’s unorthodox, and that you’re probably gonna stop talking to us now, and-“

You didn’t have the energy to hear him ramble. “Look, yes, I’m really shaken, to say the least, it's the first time I’ve seen something like that.” You grimaced. “But, the point is you betrayed my trust, V! Completely!” Your voice shakes, you try to clear your throat but it comes out as a sob. “I- even if it hadn’t been her, you hurt me. You promised you’d never do it, but you did!

He takes your hands, and, even if you don’t resist, feels how tense that makes you. Hours prior, it would’ve been comforting. “And I’m sorry, really. I did it without thinking, Y/N/N, it won’t happen again.”

You pull your hands out of his. “Please, V, it’s been happening for more than a year, half of the time we’ve been dating.”

He stays quiet.

You quietly question, “do you still love me?”

This time, his bottom lip quivers and his voice cracks when he answers. “I care about you, a lot, you know that.”

That’s the last you bear to hear. You avert your eyes from him. “I forgive you. You can go now.”

“Y/N/N…” He moves closer to you, but you shake your head, stopping him.

“Please,” you croak.

#valerio montesinos imagines #Valerio imagines #Valerio imagine #Valerio x reader #Valerio Montesinos x reader #elite #elite imagines #netflix elite #las encimas #Valerio #Jorge López #x reader #valerio blurb #valerio oneshot

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aliwritesfic · 3 years

Text

The Night Shift Part 6 (F!Reader x Frankie Morales)

Summary: It's Saturday, your dickhead boyfriend is out of town, an old friend is in town, and it's time to get drunk!

Warnings: Drinking, mention of drug use, crippling self doubt

W/C: 4.3k

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Part 1 Part 7

Somehow, the week went exceptionally well. You bugged Frankie each day for the photo he promised you, and each time he grinned and told you that good things came to those who waited. On Wednesday you received a call from the vet telling you the kitten was going to be fine, and she would be put up for adoption when she was old enough. You were initially crushed that the kitten wasn’t going to be yours, but told yourself it was good she was bound to go to a good to a family. You couldn’t give the kind of life a cat deserved.

But most of all, you were almost unreasonably excited for the weekend. You bounced with excitement every time you thought about it - hell, even things with Kurt seemed to be going better. He had planned a hunting trip up north with a few of his friends, and would be gone from Thursday til Monday. He had brought you a bunch of flowers when he ‘broke the news’, not your favourite kind but it was the thought that counted. An entire four days to yourself was more than enough incentive for you to almost force him out the door on Thursday afternoon. With a kiss and a packed lunch and a promise to call, he was gone and the apartment was blessedly empty.

Even better, your best friend Sara was in town.

Fifteen minutes after you watched Kurt’s car pull out of the apartments parking lot, watching the window carefully to make sure he didn’t come back, you called her.

“Can we do something on Saturday? Get drunk, do bad things, anything?” You said by way of greeting.

“Oh hell fucking yes, I’ve been waiting for you to be fun again!” Sara said. You knew that was a not so subtle jab at how much you had changed since Kurt entered your life. You ignored it, like you usually did.

“Saturday sound good to you? I work Friday night and I can’t take it off.” More like you didn’t want to take it off.

“Saturday sounds fantastic. There’s a big fight night happening, and I wanna watch some hot sweaty guys pummel each other.” Sara said. “We can get drunk at the same time. Also I can get some molly if you want.”

“I’ll think about it,” you said, not entirely opposed to the idea of spending the night high as shit. Especially if Kurt wasn’t going to be there to yell at you for it.

“Let me know, sooner rather than later so I can sort it out with my guy,” Sara said. “Anyway babe, I’ve gotta jet, I’ve only got five minutes left on my break and I haven’t eaten yet, love ya!”

“Love you too,” you said, meaning it with your whole heart. Out of all the friends you once had, Sara was the only one who had stuck around after you started dating Kurt. At first, you had choked it up to jealousy, convincing yourself all your other friends were envious of your perfect relationship with a perfect guy. Now looking back, you could see what really happened: you had ditched them. Completely and utterly. Kurt had taken up all of your time, convincing you to stay in when you had plans to go out, telling you that the girls you would have trusted your life with only barely put up with you and it was just so obvious to anyone with an outsider's perspective that they didn’t really like you. You were grateful for Sara, more than words could say.

~*~

Saturday came quickly, and before you knew it, Sara was slamming her fist on your door, a bag stuffed with alcohol slung over her shoulder.

“Bitch!” she screamed in greeting when you finally opened the door, still wrapped in your towel from your shower. She was already dressed, in a tight gold 70s style jumpsuit that made her dark brown skin look like it was glowing from the inside out.

“How do you manage to look so good all the time?” You said, stepping aside to let her in.

“Witchcraft,” Sara said, pulling a bottle of prosecco out of her bag and popping it open. “And like, this whole thing took me all day. Why aren’t you ready yet?”

“I’ve been sleeping all day,” you said, plucking the bottle out of Sara’s hand and taking a swig. It was cold and crisp and filled your partly empty stomach. You continued to take small sips as you got ready, occasionally asking Sara for her girly wisdom on what to wear. She picked out your outfit as you applied makeup. It felt almost foreign, using something other than a mascara and brow pencil. The use of colour and shimmers almost felt like breaking some unwritten rule you had created for yourself since dating Kurt.

“What happened to all your fun clothes?” Sara whined, going through your wardrobe. You shrugged, carefully applying bronzer. Honestly, you weren’t sure. Sometimes things just went missing - you didn’t really question it anymore.

“I’m a miracle worker.” Sara declared after almost fifteen minutes of searching. You looked up at her, then at the small bundle of clothing in her arms. She grinned and flung the pile at you. You held up a black pleather skirt that you hadn’t worn in almost a year, and a black body suit that dipped low in the chest.

“Christ,” you muttered.

“What’s wrong with it,” Sara sounded exasperated, like she had been expecting this from you.

“It’s just-” you hesitated. “I’m not going out to get dick, you know? What’s wrong with a pair of jeans?”

Sara rolled her eyes. “What’s wrong with a pair of jeans? I’ll tell you what: everything. You don’t have to have dick as the aim of the night to look cute. You can look cute for yourself. You know just as well as I do that skirt makes your legs and ass look amazing, especially when paired with the shoes I’ve brought for you. Plus, if someone out tonight decides you look cute enough to buy you drinks, then even better! Because free drinks! You don’t have to fuck them as a thank you, you can just turn around and walk away. So, get dressed and stop complaining.”

You considered Sara’s words for a moment. She was right. After you changed, you admired yourself in the mirror. Your ass really did look amazing, and the strappy black heels that Sara had loaned you accentuated your calves magnificently. Sara stood next to you, arm linked through yours, almost a foot taller in her platforms and with her afro teased to the high heavens.

“God, we’re sexy,” she murmured, taking another swig out of the bottle. “You’re absolutely wasted on Kurt.”

You didn’t bother with your usual retorts to that kind of comment. She’s wrong, you’re lucky to have someone to love you like that at all, no one else would want to if they got to know you, you told yourself. It’s what he had told you over and over again, the words searing themselves inside your brain to repeat each time you began to truly doubt with him.

You finished off the prosecco while you waited for the Uber to arrive, enjoying the warm buzz it left you with. Sara whipped out her phone and began to take photos of the two of you. At first, you shied away from the camera, the words Kurt had said once in a throwaway comment, surely not designed to hurt but did anyway, rang in your ears. You don’t look very good in photos, why do you take so many? After that, you would spend hours staring at old photos of yourself, the flaws that were invisible now glaringly obvious.

Tonight though . . . Tonight you felt pretty. You posed for the camera, following Sara’s instructions as best you could. You took photos of each other throughout the entire ride to the venue where the fight night was taking place.

It looked a little shabby on the outside, overgrown hedges snaked up the walls, covering the windows. A smoking area was off to the side, crowded with people. The inside was even more crowded, with bodies pushing up against the horseshoe shaped bar and surrounding the ring. Two women were in the ring, both bloodied and swinging.

“God there is just something so arousing about hot people consensually beating each other up,” Sara said, unable to tear her eyes away from the ring.

“Babe, you’re drooling,” you joked, stepping in line for the bar.

“I can’t help it, I have an overactive salivary gland,” Sara sighed, tearing her eyes away. “At least my dentist says so.” You grinned at her and ordered three vodka sodas each. It was a tradition with the two of you that you would always order three drinks at a time. Less back and forth, you had reasoned. Although, usually as the night progressed, three drinks were downed in the same amount of time it took to drink one, so it really cancelled itself out in the end.

As tradition warranted, you and Sara cheersed and swallowed your first drink in one breath.

Several more fights occurred, the divisions eventually changing from women’s to men’s. Neither you nor Sara paid much attention to the first few fights: “amateur hour” Sara had said to you “I’m waiting for the good stuff.”

The good stuff, it turned out, started almost an hour and 5 drinks after you arrived.

“Next fight, King V Miller!” The announcer shouted into the microphone to the cheer of the crowd. Sara’s head shot up as if she could sense the sudden change, and she grabbed your hand, tugging you closer to the ring.

“Oh, my god look at him,” Sara said, gesturing to the ring. You knew instantly which one she was talking about. He was tall, with shaggy blonde hair and lean muscle corded over his body.

“He’s pretty spry,” you said, and instantly cringed. Spry? Really?

“I wanna fuck him tonight,” Sara said. Then her voice took on a determined edge. “I am going to fuck him tonight.” Manifestation, Sara called it. If you told the universe what you wanted, the universe would deliver.

Apparently.

“I am going to get more drinks,” you told her. She nodded, not tearing her eyes away from the fighter. You went to the considerably less crowded bar- it seemed like everyone was now watching the fights- and leant against its sticky surface.

You shouted your order over the noise of the crowd, and scanned the bar as you waited. Most faces were familiar in the way that you knew when you had seen someone before, but you didn’t know when or where. That was, until you landed on one dazzlingly familiar face, standing almost right next to you.

“Frankie?”

~*~

Frankie startled at the sound of his name. He looked around, expecting to see one of the boys or maybe an old work friend from the mechanics. The last person he expected was you. But there you stood, looking so good that he was momentarily lost for words.

“Frankie!” You said again, with a huge grin on your face this time.

“Hey!” He grinned back, “what’s a girl like you doing in a dump like this?” His tone held a flirty edge, one he wouldn’t dare have used if he hadn’t already had several bourbon and colas.

“Oh you know, I plan on accosting the winner tonight of all their prize money and taking off into the night, never to be heard from again,” you accepted three drinks from the bartender as you spoke. “What about you?”

“My friend Benny is fighting tonight. He’s actually up right now, the blonde one.”

Your jaw dropped. “No way! My friend wants to fuck your friend.” You pointed your chin towards a tall black woman, dressed like she had wandered out of Studio 54. “Is he single? Can we play wingpeople?”

“He is, we can.” Frankie nodded confidently. Maybe it was the alcohol controlling his brain, but any excuse to spend time with you seemed like a good excuse. “How should we do this?”

“Does your friend Billy-”

“Benny.”

“Benny stick around after the fights?”

“Yeah, he gets free drinks,” Frankie said. You nodded approvingly, taking a sip of one of your own drinks. Frankie watched amazed as you somehow held the two others in one hand, your fingers curling around the hard plastic cups.

“How do you do that?” He asked.

“Do what?”

“Hold your stuff like that,” he gestured to your fingers. You looked down, confused.

“Whatta’ya mean?”

“With your fingers.”

“Oh! Um, I dunno, I just do.” You shrugged and placed the now empty up on a random table, and started on the next drink. It occurred to Frankie that you were well on your way to being very, very drunk.

The crowd cheered loudly as Benny knocked out the other guy with a bloody grin. Frankie whistled his support and Benny caught his eye, saluting tiredly. Santi also caught his attention, and even across the room Frankie could see the wicked grin form on his face. Frankie looked away quickly, not willing to give the bastard any ideas.

“Where’s your boyfriend?” Frankie asked, trying to keep his voice casual.

“Some stupid place doing some stupid hunting,” you said with a roll of your eyes. “Fuck him anyway he never lets me do anything fun.”

“What do you mean ‘lets you’?” Frankie said, his brow furrowing.

“I mean, he’s a controlling dickhead!” You said, then slapped a hand over your mouth. “Don’t tell him I just said that! Please!”

“I won’t, I promise,” Frankie said.

“Just forget I said anything,” your voice had taken on an almost desperate edge.

“It’s forgotten,” Frankie lied. He didn’t know how, but he was going to bring it up later. The idea of your boyfriend ‘not letting’ you do something had taken root in his brain, and somehow it made him furious. He took a deep breath, counting slowly to calm himself down.

“Who’s that guy who keeps making faces at you?” You asked, gesturing across the bar. Frankie sighed.

“Santi.” Frankie rolled his eyes at his old friend and waved him over. His curly hair friend bounded over, flashing you with a brilliant white smile.

“Well, hello there,” he said, winking at you. “Santiago Garcia, but you can call me whatever you like.”

You smiled sheepishly and gave him your name, “I work with Frankie.” Santiago’s grin widened at this piece of information, and Frankie groaned internally.

“You’re the girl Frankie told me about.”

“Chatting shit, I’m sure,” you laughed, but Frankie didn’t miss the questioning glance you sent his way when you spoke.

“Santiago was the one who took that photo I told you about,” Frankie said quickly, not wanting you to get the wrong idea. You nodded and leant over towards Santi.

“He keeps promising to show me but he’s yet to deliver,” you said, winking at Frankie. His stomach jumped, breath caught in his throat. He knew you were joking but he couldn’t help but feel like he had disappointed you somehow.

“That’s my fault,” Santi said, “I keep meaning to get him a copy but since he’s sleeping all day I haven’t been able to.” You nodded and turned to Frankie.

“I should go find my Sara before I lose her for the night,” you said, looking at Frankie. “Come find me - I mean, us later? With your Benny?”

“Yeah, of course,” Frankie said, watching as you disappeared into the crowd. The urge to grab you and kiss you grew with every second, but he restrained himself. He wasn’t that kind of guy, and no amount of drinks would make him think it would be a good idea to do that to someone. Let alone you.

~*~

Frankie’s head was cloudy with alcohol, he couldn’t stop thinking about how good your ass looked in that tiny skirt, how he wanted to plant his face directly in your chest.

“Fucking hell, get a grip,” Santiago said, shaking his friend by the shoulder. They were back in the locker rooms, Benny was buzzing with his win. He and Will were going their post match ritual of smacking each other on the back and releasing loud “woo”’s.

“I’m fine,” Frankie insisted, and Santi scoffed.

“You’re full of shit,” he said. “Ironhead, tell this idiot he’s full of shit!”

“You’re full of shit, Fish!” Will said automatically. “But what’s he full of shit for?”

“He’s in denial about pining for the chick he works with,” Santi said. “Look at the poor bastard, it’s written on his face.”

“Fish, you’ve never been good at keeping a straight face when it comes to emotional crap,” Benny said. “All other stuff, you’re great. Just not when it comes to matters of the heart. Or the dick.”

“You should’ve seen the way he was looking at her,” Santi laughed. “And the way she was looking at him, making bedroom eyes at each other.”

Frankie rolled his eyes, ignoring how the last comment made his heart leap. “You’re all stupid, she’s just a work friend saying hi. Nothing more.”

“Full of shit!” Benny cackles. “Look at his blush!” Frankie groaned. They were right about him at least. He had it bad for you.

But that didn’t matter. You had a boyfriend, and even if everything Frankie found out about the guy made him resent him a little more, he couldn’t change that one important fact. And he wasn’t stupid enough to ruin the beginings of his friendship with you over a stupid fucking crush. He just wasn’t.

Benny showered, singing You Belong With Me and switching out the pronouns as he did. The man was an unashamed Swiftie, claiming that she had a song for every situation. Frankie pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep swig of his beer. Will sat beside him and nudged him gently.

“What are you gonna do?” he asked.

Frankie frowned. “What? I’m not gonna ‘do’ anything. She has a boyfriend, end of story.”

“Sorry to hear that man,” Will said, sounding sincere. He knew Frankie wasn’t the type of guy to wreck someone else's relationship for purely selfish reasons. “You’re a good man.”

Frankie wished he wasn’t.

Benny changed into his regular clothes quickly, and said something about needing a drink. The four of them left the locker room and made their way to the bar, and Frankie couldn’t help but look around for you. When he couldn’t see you, he bit back the slight disappointment that sank in his stomach. Benny brought a round for the group and they found an empty table to sit at. The employees of the bar were dismantling the ring to make room for a dance floor. Loud, thumping music started playing and within moments the floor was packed with bodies.

“Frankie! And Frankie’s friends!” Frankie looked around at the sound of your voice, which was high with excitement. You bounded over, clutching the hand of the friend you had pointed out earlier. You introduced yourself and your friend Sara to the group and pulled up a chair for you and Sara each. Frankie didn’t miss how you placed Sara’s chair next to Benny, or how Benny was staring at Sara with his mouth slightly open. He also noticed with a slight pang how you sat yourself between Will and Santi, directly across from him.

What he didn’t was how much you kept looking at him. Lucky for him, Santi and Will noticed plenty.

You and Sara spent a few hours with the group, until a not so inconspicuous Benny and Sara both disappeared, Sara throwing a wink towards you as she left. Will left not long after, saying that his bed was calling his name. Santi stayed a little longer, flirting with you much to Frankie’s annoyance. To his credit, he didn’t show you the catfish photo. Frankie wanted to show you that one himself, when you were both sober.

“I better head out,” Santi said as it rolled past three in the morning. “I’ve gotta babysit Lee tomorrow, and you know how hyper he is.” He turned to you and kissed your hand. “It was the deepest pleasure meeting you, don’t be a stranger. Frankie.” Santi raised an eyebrow and shot him a meaningful look.

“Good night,” he said a little forcefully, shoving Santi towards the door, mainly to get him to stop flirting with you. He knew the flirting was just incentive to spur him into some kind of action with you, but it wasn’t going to work.

“Your friends are nice,” you said, struggling to connect the straw of your drink with your mouth.

“They’re assholes most of the time. They’re just nice to beautiful women.” Frankie regretted the words as soon as they were out of his mouth. Shit! Now she thinks I think she’s beautiful. She is! But she doesn’t need to know I think that! Frankie finished off his drink to avoid looking at you.

“I’m attractive til they get to know me,” you said with a snort.

“What makes you think that?” Frankie asked, confused as to how that could work.

“I don’t think,” you said, “I know. It’s a fact. One that cannot be argued.”

Frankie was about to argue with you about this when you turned away, stumbling as you did. She’s super fucking drunk, Frankie thought, grabbing your arms to steady you. Your skin was so much softer than he anticipated, sending a jolt through him. He let go quickly, mouth going dry as you beamed up at him.

“You saved me!” You declared, then finished your drink quickly, emitting a small burp. “To thank you, I must give you a token of my gratitude. I know! A drink! Three drinks for the kind sir! And three for me!”

“Jesus, how much have you had?” Frankie asked, laughing.

“Only a little bit,” you shrugged and thought for a moment. “Maybe like, a dozen vodka sodas and some shots and also half a bottle of prosecco. And also a teeny tiny bit of molly, but that was hours ago, so it’s basically gone.”

“Maybe I should walk you home,” Frankie suggested gently, amazed that you were still upright let alone getting served. You shrugged.

“I can just get an Uber or something, it’s fine.”

“No, no, don’t waste your money, let me walk you.”

You looked up at him with slightly unfocused eyes. “Yeah, okay.”

The cold air outside hit the both of you like a wall. Stars scattered across a moonless sky, leaving Frankie wonderstruck for a moment, until he noticed the goosebumps on your arms. Without a second thought, Frankie took off his jacket and placed it gently around your shoulders. You looked up at him, a surprised look on your face.

“Frankie, can I ask you something?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, so, I have this friend, right? And she’s been dating this guy for years now. They live together, no kids or anything. But she told me a little while ago that she’s been feeling . . . trapped.”

“Trapped?”

“Yeah. Like, she doesn’t think she loves her boyfriend anymore. At least, not in a way that she should. And he’s so mean to her, too. He doesn’t hit her or anything, but he’s also not super nice to her, and-and she doesn’t always know what she did to deserve it. She doesn’t know what to do.”

“Can she leave?” Frankie suspected you weren't talking about a friend, but he didn’t press beyond what you were willing to tell him.

“Not easily, I don’t think. She doesn’t have enough money for her own place and- and she’s afraid.” Your face flushed.

“What’s she afraid of?”

“Being alone. Unloved. She doesn’t have any family or anything and her boyfriend is the closest she has to that. So um, if she was your friend, what would you say to her?”

Frankie was thoughtful for several moments. He didn’t want to fuck this up. If his suspicions were correct, you were talking about yourself. “Well, first of all I would tell her that her boyfriend is a massive dick, even if he doesn’t hit her, boyfriends shouldn’t make their girlfriends feel like shit. I would tell her to talk to her friends, ask for their help. I would also tell her that being alone doesn’t have to mean lonely, and it certainly doesn’t mean that she’s going to be unloved.”

You nodded thoughtfully at this. Frankie took this as a good sign. “She can’t know for sure what her life will be like, but my guess is that it will be better if she chooses to leave this asshole.”

The rest of the walk was spent in silence. Frankie knew you were thinking about what he said. He too, was lost in thought. Trying to figure out a plan to help you in any way he could. All too soon, you arrived at your apartment building.

“Thanks for this,” you said, taking off the jacket and handing it to him. Frankie nodded.

“You needed it more than me,” he said simply. “I’ll see you at lunch tomorrow?”

You nodded, and then as if you weren’t entirely sure if what you were about to do was a good idea, you wrapped your arms around him. Frankie stiffened for a moment before hugging you back, holding you to him tightly, breathing in your scent of perfume, sweat, and alcohol. You were warm and soft and everything in him was screaming don’t let go.

“Thank you,” you whispered in his ear, and he knew you weren’t talking about the jacket.

Taglist: Taglist: @hnt-escape @sharkbait77 @1800-fight-me @annathewitch @darnitdraco @frankiecatfish @punkerthanpascal @nakhudanyx @gracie7209

#the night shift #frankie x reader #frankie morales x reader #triple frontier

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sunnysviolin · 3 years

Note

High school Sunny enthusiast here! Would you mind sharing a couple more headcanons about it? I’m so glad you’ll be able to teach again this fall, you totally deserve to develop your passion at full potential 👏🏻

Am I showing up after forever of being gone? Yeahhhhh Sorry y’all got the brain sads lol but!! I’m back w one of my favorite little universes! I actually had a meeting for our teacher prep program on Thursday which is so exciting!! We’re being assigned our working teachers sometime this month which is insane to me.....Anyway today I’m gonna clean and write!! Take some headcanons nonnie you helped to make me feel inspired again!

This ended up being more Sunny and his Mom than Sunny and high school, but it gets there!! So Sunny’s mom used to make him and Mari bag lunches almost every day. The only day she didn’t was on Fridays, because those were pizza days, and she knew pizza was Sunny’s favorite

She made their lunches the night before and they sat on the back right corner of the fridge. She liked to keep it pretty standard- usually a sandwich (or leftovers from their dinner), a snack, a piece of fruit, and some sort of dessert. Sunny used to sit at the kitchen counter and watch her make their lunches right before he went to bed.

It was one of the special things that was him and his mom. He got to choose what they had for a snack, what piece of fruit the two of them had, even what went in their sandwiches. He was the one that chose Caprisun or water bottle. He got to help his mom write a little note for Mari to read on a sticky note when she ate her food the next day at school.

It started as a practical thing (Sunny was such a picky eater, it was best that he decided what they ate so he would actually eat his food) but then it was just their tradition

Sunny was never talkative per say, but during this routine of theirs Sunny’s mom could ask him about his day or his friends, and Sunny would do more than nod or shake his head.

After Mari died, after her husband left, they didn’t need bag lunches anymore. Sunny didn’t go to school, and Mari couldn’t. Sunny wouldn’t speak, not even his infuriatingly endearing head nods and shakes. He just slept. All day long.

But after they move, after those last three days where she left him alone, something changes. At first his mother is furious with herself. She left him alone and he ended up in the hospital, how could she do that? How could she do that to her last living baby? But Sunny is changed, and not in the bad way. He’s getting up, he’s going out, he’s even seeing his friends.

She had been treating him like her baby again. She had thought that’s what he needed. He needed someone to cuddle him close and tell him he was loved. He had needed someone to make excuses, to let him sleep and process. He had needed to be in the house where he was safe and not out in the world where he could get hurt. He needed his mommy

But....maybe that had been what she needed.

Admitting you got it wrong as a parent is not easy. It gets swallowed down like medicine and lemon rinds. It bubbles in the stomach and leaves you nauseous and unsettled. But seeing her son growing in front of her, seeing the shell she had left him in beginning to crumble shows her that yes. She did get it wrong. She had let them both stagnate.

When he tells her he wants to go back to school, she cries. She cries a lot. He is clearly very uncomfortable, but Sunny’s mother holds him tightly and cries. She calls the local high school that day and tries to explain their situation. Sunny had been doing some online classes over the last four years, but his grades were abysmal, and his mother is pretty sure he hadn’t learned a thing.

The school agrees to take on Sunny, but they put him in a grade below his own. He will graduate a year late, but he will for sure graduate. That they promise her. His last school just let him fall by the wayside. This school is already planning out special practices just for him. Sunny’s mother settles the fear in her. Her boy will be looked after this time.

They are worried about his socialization and ask if there’s any hobbies he has. She can only think of blank stares and sleeping, but she tries to remember the quiet sweet boy her son used to be. She remembers endless sketchbooks and colored pencils, and the oh so perfect melody of her children together. On a whim she enrolls him in Orchestra and Art with assurances that if he doesn’t like them he can switch them out.

The night before his first day of school, she walks into the kitchen and beckons him to follow her. They don’t have a bar counter space for him to sit at anymore, but Sunny hops up next to the fridge. Normally she would scold him for doing this, but she just asks what kind of fruit he wants.

He tells her peaches, and she carefully carves them into perfect slices the way her mother used to do for her. She and Sunny begin their traditions once more.

Sunny goes back to school and it is not easy. She doesn’t make it easy. Not on him, not on his teachers, and not on the administration. She calls at least three times a week, telling them that it’s too much. They tell her to back off, to let him stumble. It’s terrifying to do that. It’s worse than any fear to let her child fall and hurt himself. But she does. She does because she’s seen the changes since she left him alone those days in the beginning of the summer.

One full semester is what the administration asks of her. Just two quarters for him to find his footing without her influence. They will reconvene over winter break to make adjustments, but she needs to let him fail if that’s what’s going to happen. He needs a mother, not a mommy. They don’t know the knife they’ve twisted when they say those words, but that knife is exactly what she needed. She agrees.

Sunny struggles to adjust but he does. His failed tests and missed classes slowly disappear one by one. He brings home a practice violin she did not buy from him, and he plays when he thinks she’s asleep. It’s quiet and unsure, but the music is there.

He invites her to his concert. She does not hug him and cry again, even though she wants to. He isn’t a baby, he doesn’t need her to fawn over him. She agrees to come, and secretly begins to covert with Kel’s mother.

She waits outside Sunny’s school for them all to arrive. Hero has come home from college for a long weekend for this. She greets each of them with a firm hug, something she hasn’t done in years. Even Basil, although he seems slightly terrified of her. They sit together in the audience and watch Sunny perform.

She cries as she watches him. She doesn’t recognize this boy. This is not her baby, not the same child she loved and then lost alongside his sister. He’s changed, someone new is on that stage performing, someone for her to discover and love.

She had been so afraid of this, so scared for that change, so sure it would only end in another dead child. Now there’s a teenager, not a child in front of her. He’s not so tall and not so strong, but he is alive and real right in front of her, and she is growing.

She can finally start to let herself be his mother.

#asks #anon #high school sunny #violinist sunny #can't remember the tag i use #omori #omori headcanons #omori headcanon #omori sunny #omori sunnys mother #omori sunnys mom #sunnys mother #She's just...struggling #but she loves him

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matbaerzal · 3 years

Text

Then I Met You | M. Barzal

A/N: IT’S FINALLY HEREEE!! Thank you for being patient, and please, PLEASE let me know what you think!! 🥺❤️ (playlist + pinterest) Songs mentioned, in order of appearance: IDK You Yet - Alexander 23 IDK You Yet (Live on Piano) - Alexander 23 Favorite T-Shirt (Acoustic) - Jake Scott

Summary: Mat is a musician living in New York. He’s got a regular spot playing at the café underneath his apartment. Then, one night, you walk into his life. Warnings: a little bit of swearing, alcohol mentions, lots of fluff.. BARZY PLAYING GUITAR AND PIANO!! (There’s also two different perspectives in this: Yours and Mat’s) Words: 13,8K Copyright © @matbaerzal 2020 All Rights Reserved Tagging: @tkachukme @idontgiveaflyinggrayson69 @thirteenisles @zuucc @captainkreider @tysojost @generallybarzy @yeeehaw-hockey @kerwritesthings @suchalilyofthevalley @softboybarzal @josty @itrocksmysocks @patricksharp @broadstbroskis @laurenairay @charlie-theangelwrites @sorryjustafangirl @konecny-s @canadianheaters @folkloreflyers @shawnsreputation

Your usual cafe is only a few seconds from your apartment. Your usual cafe makes your coffee perfectly and has the best sweets to go with it. Your usual cafe is the perfect environment to do study in - it’s comfortable, predictable, safe.

So why you took a different turn this Thursday morning and headed for another cafe down the street, you had no idea. You’d walked past it countless times, always thinking to yourself that you should check it out one day, but you never had.

Until now.

Walking in, feeling the warmth, was an instant relief. Then you took in the scenery as you unwrapped the scarf around your neck before brushing off some snow from your coat. It was cozy, with a mix of old furniture that would not have worked if it was placed in any other space.

As you took in the exposed brick behind the bar counter, the art and the old guitars hanging on the sidewalls, and the piano that was standing on what could only be a stage, you wondered why you’d never gone in before now.

The young barista, Lucy - you read her name tag, gives you a warm smile as you walk over. “Hey, what can I get you?” she says as you glance over at the handwritten chalkboard menu behind her. “I’ll have a double latte” you glance over at the baked goods, “and a cinnamon bun, please” you decide.

She nods, “are you staying in, or taking it with you?” she asks as she lifts the glass food cover. “Staying in” you smile before looking around to find a place to sit. She puts the cinnamon bun on a small plate before entering your items on the till, as you pay you make sure to leave a little tip.

“I’ll bring the coffee over when it’s done,” she tells you, you thank her as you take your plate, finding a table near the window with a big chair that almost looks too comfortable. Carefully putting the plate down as you sit down before sliding your bag off your shoulder, setting it next to the chair.

You set the plate to the side, making room for your computer and book. Just as you’ve set everything up, Lucy comes over with your coffee, you thank her again as you reach out for it. You scootch your book over a little to make room for the cup, the table barely fitting everything you brought with you.

You hum in content as you take the first sip - smiling as your eyes scan the room. You look over at the couple of friends trying to keep their laughter down at the opposite side of the room. The middle-aged man reading the newspaper a couple of tables over, the grey dog laying by his legs. And the lady ordering her coffee before heading off to work.

Taking another sip you shift your focus back to your schoolwork in front of you, sighing as you put the cup down before opening the book. You absentmindedly rip a piece off the cinnamon bun, only to put the book down for a bigger piece when you taste it. Now you’re definitely kicking yourself for not coming here sooner.

You sit there for hours, watching people come and go, the pages on your document filling with notes, your cup emptying - stretching your legs as you order another one, and another one.

The last cup you order, you notice you can’t keep your focus on the pages you’re reading anymore, deciding to bookmark it to take a break. You put your items back in your bag, taking your time to finish the last half of your cup as you watch the strangers around you.

The middle-aged man with the dog is still there, his paper now folded by the table as he finishes eating the cake he ordered earlier. His dog perks up as he slowly gets up from his seat when he’s done. He takes the plate, lifting it over to the bar counter - giving it to Lucy who takes it from him with a smile, telling him he doesn’t have to keep doing that.

You gather he’s a regular as he walks back to his table calling for his dog and putting his jacket back on. He grabs the leash and picks up the newspaper. He smiles at you as he walks past you, turning to Lucy, lifting the newspaper to wave goodbye to her.

Something slips out of his paper as he lifts his hand, making you call after him as you stand up. Picking up what looks like some sort of flyer, you stretch your hand out to give it to him. He looks at your face, then back at the flyer, “that’s alright, you can keep that” he says with a polite smile before turning back around and continuing out the door before you can say anything.

Confusion takes over as the bell over the door rings when it closes again. You sit back down before you really look at the flyer.

Mat Barzal: Live Friday night at the Blackbird Café 9:00-10:30 PM Get your tickets online or at our venue

You hum to yourself, taking the last cold sip of your coffee before putting the flyer in your bag, making a note to ask your roommate, Olivia, if she has plans tomorrow night - intrigued to see this cozy cafe turn into something else. You slide your jacket back on, wrapping your scarf around your neck. After picking up your bag you take your cup and give it to Lucy who thanks you. You ask her if there are any tickets left for the concert and her face lights up a little.

“Yeah, do you want to buy a ticket?” she says.

“Actually, could I book a table? And I’ll get the tickets online - so, if my roommate wants to come along, she can- “ you trail off, noticing your own rambling.

“Yes, of course. Is that table ok?” she points to a small table a couple of rows from the stage, near the wall. You nod, and she writes down your details. “Perfect, I’ll see you tomorrow” she smiles, “yeah, have a nice day,” you say before bracing yourself for the cold air as you open the door.

The Blackbird Café

Mat wakes up late Friday morning with a headache - groaning as he glances over at the clock. He wants to let sleep take over his body again, but the ache in his empty stomach and the dull pain in his head wouldn’t have let him.

He lifts the covers, swinging his legs over the side of the bed as he sits up, rolling his shoulders before getting up. He cranes his neck from side to side, breathing out as he hears the bones pop. He pulls on a pair of sweats, moving quickly to find socks to warm his feet from the cold floor.

He pulls on a hoodie as he walks out of his room, walking straight to his door to put on some shoes. He didn’t bother putting on a jacket, even though the air in the hallway is even colder than his apartment. There's a hurry in his steps as he walks down the stairs to the tiny lobby. As he walks out the door he instinctively wraps his arms around himself, huffing out as the cold air hits him.

He doesn’t waste time walking to the next door over. The familiar noise of the bell over the door comforts him - his headache lifting a bit already.

“Hey, Lucy” the sleep is still evident in his voice as he closes the door quickly behind him. She perks up when she sees him, instantly starting to make his usual coffee as she greets him, “Mat’s here” she says, quickly peeking her head into the kitchen.

Mat sits down on a barstool by the counter, gladly taking the plain black coffee from Lucy when she hands it to him. “You’re late today” she points out. Mat takes a sip of his coffee, nodding as he hums - “couldn’t sleep”

Lucy raises her brow for him to elaborate, there aren’t too many people in the café so she has time to talk to him, and her dad isn’t around to scold her for taking a break.

“I woke up in the middle of the night, and-” he pauses unsure of where to start. “So there’s this song I’ve been writing, and I’ve been stuck on it for the longest time” he takes another sip of his coffee. “And then it just came to me, and I couldn’t sleep until I’d written it all down and finished it, you know”

“So, there’s a new song in your set tonight?” Lucy hopes. It’s not that his current set was bad, not at all. But, having heard the same songs for months on end, the thought of a fresh song excited her. “Oh, I don’t know about that” Mat averts her eyes, his voice low and void of confidence.

“Mat, please, I’m sure it’s great” she tries to encourage him, but he’s still not sure. “I’ll give you free coffee for a month” she tries to bribe him, but he scoffs - “I barely pay for them as is”

“I’ll think about it,” he says after a moment, and the sheer joy on her face is enough to convince him - but he won’t tell her that she’s won just yet.

Lucy’s like a little sister to Mat - her dad, Daniel, owns the café and the two apartments above it. That’s how he landed a spot to play every first Friday of the month at the café. Daniel helped him move into his current apartment, and when he saw all the instruments he asked Mat to play him a couple of songs. That was almost three years ago, and Mat was still here.

He was beyond grateful for what Daniel did for him, he was sure he wouldn’t still be in New York if it wasn’t for him and this café. If Mat ever struggled to make ends meet, Daniel would help him out any way he could. Whether that was giving him a couple of shifts at the café or hooking him up with various bands in need of a substitute guitarist, pianist, or back-up singer.

But Mat had hoped he’d have gotten further by now.

Sure, he was living off of his music by now. He was able to pay rent and stock the fridge with the money he made off of writing songs. But he didn’t want to write meaningless songs for other artists to fill out a blank spot on their album.

Mat wanted to be on stage, performing his own songs, the ones he didn’t have it in him to sell. And once a month, he had a chance to do just that, and he loved it - he really did. But lately, something just felt off. Like he was missing something - something he couldn’t put his finger on.

And last night when he wrote that song, well, he hadn’t felt that alive in a long time.

The thought of performing it scared him a little, but if it meant he got to feel that way again, and if it made Lucy happy, he knew needed to do it.

----

You were going to be late.

Not that you were too surprised, Olivia had a special talent for being late to any occasion. She’d started getting ready two hours before you had to leave, but somehow, despite insisting she’d make it in time, the concert had now already started.

When she finally comes out of her room you shoot up from your spot on the couch, turning the TV off before going straight to the hallway. You see her stop abruptly, her thinking face on, and you hold your hand up before she can even say anything. “No, nope-” you put on a stern voice. “Whatever you think you’ve forgotten, I swear I have it in my purse” you grab her arm and pull her with you.

“Ok, ok I’m coming” she laughs.

Luckily her habit of always being late also meant that she was a fast walker, and you were at the café in no time. You could see that it was full, the only free table was the one you booked the day before.

As Olivia opens the door, a strange feeling washes over you - almost as if you were nervous. But before you can dwell on it, his voice pulls you in.

As one of the stage lights hits you, you can barely see the man standing on stage, but you swear you see him looking at you. You try to brush it off - it’s just because you walked in during his song. After you’ve sneaked past a couple of bodies to get to your table by the wall, you look up at the stage again and notice the whole room has gone silent.

No guitar, his voice quiet.

A breath catches in your throat - you hadn’t been able to take a proper look earlier, too embarrassed that you were late, but now you see him, really see him.

And he’s looking right at you.

You’re completely frozen in your spot, you don’t even register Olivia tugging at your sleeve to get you to sit down. It’s his tousled hair, his parted lips, and his eyes - his eyes. You’re compelled to walk closer, just to be able to find out what color they are, but you stay still. Though, even from where you’re standing you can see there’s a sadness hidden deep behind them.

Mat had grown tired of the lyrics to his songs a long time ago, as if the more he sang them the more the meaning behind the words faded away. Before last night he’d been in a rut and hadn’t written anything for months. He tried his best to pour his soul into them anyway, but even he knew that his eyes didn’t shine the way they used to when he sang those same old songs.

He’d glanced over at Lucy in the crowd before he began playing his new song, and taken a deep breath before he started picking on the strings, and there was a sense of relief that washed over him. That feeling he felt last night came back, it wasn’t as strong but it was in his fingertips as his music filled the room.

He’d felt every word deep in his bones when he wrote them down on the paper. It was like something took over and wrote it for him - an unknown muse had inspired him. He couldn’t quite understand it, but whoever they were he longed to find them.

Then, you walked in.

He didn’t see you at first, his eyes glued to the guitar, but as the bell over the door rang, he’d lifted his eyes. And the whole world stopped - the words slipping from his mind as your beauty blinded him.

He’s desperate to see your eyes, but as quickly as he gets a glimpse they’re gone - focused elsewhere as you rush to find your seat. Just as you’re about to sit down, you look up at him again.

A breath catches in his throat, and he’s consumed by you. Suddenly the words of his song make sense, and as he looks into your eyes they start to come back to him.

When his fingers pluck on the strings again and his voice fills the room again, it’s as if you can breathe again. The words seep into your soul, and you feel them in every bone of your body. His eyes never leave yours as he finishes the song.

How can you miss someone you've never met? 'Cause I need you now but I don't know you yet

It’s like you and he are the only people in the room, it’s not until you hear people clapping that the world fades back into view. Olivia touches your shoulder, making you tear your eyes away from him, grounding you. Your body is flushed with warmth, it’s almost overwhelming.

“Is it just me or is he staring at you?” Olivia says, you bite your lip looking back at him. His eyes are still on you, but you swear you see him blush before he averts his eyes to his guitar. He clears his throat, his voice is almost shy as he introduces the next song. You look back at Olivia again to answer, but you find yourself speechless. You’re left looking at her with your mouth agape, unable to put words to whatever it is you’re feeling. “He’s cute” she winks at you, and finally you scoff out a breath - “yeah”.

He continues his set, but you can’t quite shake the feeling that his words were meant for you. And you know that’s crazy, you’ve never met him before, never even seen him. Because if you had seen him, you would have remembered. Your breath hitches in your throat every time his eyes drift back to you.

You take a deep breath as he finishes his last song, thanking the crowd as he lifts the guitar strap over his head. As he’s setting his guitar down you recognize Lucy as she comes up to hug him, the man sitting with her follows, patting him on the shoulders with a proud smile on his face. You can’t hear what Mat’s saying but you’re pretty sure he nudges his head towards you.

“I’m gonna go to the bathroom before we leave” you hear Olivia say, and you were hit with the reality that you’d agreed to go to the library tomorrow morning to study. Then, he’s walking your way, his eyes on the floor before he lifts his head, meeting your eyes again.

“Hey,” he says breathlessly.

“Hi,” your voice matches his, and strangely, it feels like you’re greeting an old friend.

“Can I sit?”

You nod, and he pulls up a chair. “You were-, that was great” you don’t know what else to say. He smiles, running his fingers through his hair and you wonder what it would feel like. Now that he’s closer you notice his eyes are hazel, and even in the dim light, you drown in them.

“Thanks,” he smiles.

“I’m Mat, by the way” he reaches his hand out for you to take. You give him your name, biting your lip as you take his hand. His hand wraps around yours and you feel his calloused fingertips against your skin.

“At the risk of being forward, I was wondering if you wanted to have a drink with me”

Your face falls and his confidence falters for a moment before you speak up. “I would love to, but I have an early morning and it’s getting late” you’re afraid it sounds like a silly excuse, but you can tell he doesn’t see it that way. Still, you’re quick to add, “but I’m free tomorrow afternoon.”

“Yeah?” his eyes light up and you nod.

“Wanna meet me here? at 5 - or whenever you’re free” he rambles. There’s a slight blush on his cheeks and you bite your lip before you ignore his question.

“Do you have a pen and some paper?” you ask.

He’s caught off guard, but he’s quick to reach into his jacket, pulling a small notebook and a pen from his pocket before flipping through the pages to find you a blank one. Your curiosity peaks as you get a glimpse of his scribbles, but you don’t act on the urge to check as he hands it to you. Holding back a smirk, you write down your number. Just in time, Olivia comes up next to you, her eyes drifting between the two of you as she introduces herself to Mat, who’s desperately waiting for an answer to his question.

“Are you ready to go?” she asks you, “yeah,” you say as you sign your name under your number in Mat’s book.

You slide the book over to him again, still open on the page you wrote in. As he turns it around to see what you wrote you pull on your jacket.

He looks up at you as you stand up, and just as he’s about to say you still haven't answered his question, you say, “I’ll see you tomorrow, then?”. You feel your heart beating in your chest, and you’re surprised you managed to say it so smoothly. You’re surprised you’re able to stand as he smiles at you, your legs weakening at the look he gives you. You bite your lip as you wait for him to speak.

“Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow”

Smiling at him, you resist the urge to stay as you follow Olivia out the door. You give him one last look as you walk out the door, only to find him still looking at you.

It’s Olivia’s squeal that turns your head again, and you panic to silence her, rushing her down the sidewalk.

“The look he was giving you, oh my gooood” she practically screams, “the look you were giving him too, for that matter” she lowers her voice as she nudges your shoulder.

Despite the cold air, your cheeks feel warm as you laugh at her.

You feel your phone vibrate in your pocket, taking it out to check who’s messaged you this late. It’s an unknown number, but he’s signed his name at the bottom and you can’t help but squeal yourself as you show it to Olivia.

Unknown Number: How do you like your coffee? - Mat x

The first date

Mat’s nervous.

Not in the way he was when he performed his new song. Not in the way he feels when he’s about to go on a first date even - because it feels bigger than that somehow. Usually, before a date, he’s not too afraid of fucking things up, because he knows it’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t work out. But now, for some reason, he knows that if he doesn’t do it right, he’ll be missing out on something big - something important.

He’s been down in the café for half an hour already and it’s still another half hour until you’d agreed to meet. Every time the bell over the door rings he turns his head to check if it’s you, but there’s no way you’d show up so early. Lucy doesn’t know whether to laugh at him or to pat him on the shoulder, she’s never seen him so nervous. Fidgeting with his fingers, asking her if he looks alright, trying to check his reflection in the shiny coffee machine across the bar.

He checks the time once more and sighs out, he swore time was moving slower. “Can you make that coffee now?” he asks Lucy again as if you’d magically appear in front of him when everything was ready.

He’d asked Lucy to make sure there were a couple of cinnamon buns left and he wanted you to have your favorite coffee ready for when you arrived. You’d told him you were studying today and guessed you’d be tired, so he just wanted things to be perfect.

“Mat,” Lucy chuckles at him, and he raises his brow at her.

“You know if I make it now it’ll be cold by the time-“ her voice trails off as her eyes look behind him. “Never mind” she mumbles as she starts making the coffees with a smirk on her face - his eyebrows furrow in confusion. That is until he hears the bell above the door ring and he turns around to see you walk in.

You were early, maybe even embarrassingly so.

You’d gotten ready as soon as you got back from the library and you simply couldn’t wait any longer. You’d tried to sit down on the couch next to Olivia, but you kept checking the time, fidgeting around, and sighing out loud - “Just go” she had laughed at you.

So 20 minutes before you’d agreed to meet up you walk into the café, hoping to grab a coffee before Mat shows up to wake yourself up a little. Only to see him already sitting by the bar, his head turning as he hears you enter.

“Hey,” he shoots up from his seat, a nervous smile on his face matching your own.

“Hi” you breathe out, relieved to be out of the cold and happily surprised that he’s already there.

“You’re early,” he thinks out loud, his eyes drifting over your face, trying to memorize your features now that he’s seeing you in the daylight. Without a second thought, he greets you with a hug, and it’s too short for your liking. You fight the urge to hold on, the brief whiff of his perfume intoxicates you and you want nothing more than to stay wrapped up in his warm embrace. You have to shake your head to rid yourself of your thoughts, you’d only just met this man and you already felt butterflies going wild in your stomach just looking at him, surely that couldn’t be normal.

“So are you” you point out with a small laugh - looking at him just in time to see him blush. “I uh- I live close by” he scratches the back of his neck and Lucy scoffs with a playful roll of her eyes. He glances over at her, with a warning glare, though just as playful as her eye-roll. She slides over your coffees, giving you a warm smile as Mat takes them and walks over to a table with two very comfortable looking chairs.

“I live right upstairs, actually” he motions his head to the ceiling. He gently sets your cups down as you both take a seat at table 13.

“So you’re here often, then” you smile.

“You could say that” he chuckles, “I’ve never seen you in here though, I mean, before yesterday” he continues.

“Yeah, I came in here for the first time earlier this week, and someone gave me your flyer and, well” you trail off.

“It was Barry” you hear Lucy speak up, a confused laugh leaving you as you turn to look at her for a second.

“Of course it was,” Mat says back to her.

“He’s one of the regulars” Mat explains, but it doesn’t answer your internal question - why is it obvious that he’d give it to you? Mat senses your confusion and blushes again before he speaks up.

“Barry’s always telling people about my Friday night shows,” he says bashfully.

“Well, I’m glad he did” you bite your lip, your eyes shying away from his for just a moment.

Time passes as the two of you fall into conversation. Your cups empty, only to be replaced by new ones as he tells you about where he’s from. How he’d moved from Vancouver to New York five years ago into a tiny shared apartment with barely enough space for everyone who lived there. The 3 other guys in his apartment started out as strangers, but were now some of his closest friends. They were also musicians, so they’d quickly bonded when they started playing together here and there.

And he gets lost in your voice as you tell him about yourself, the smile on your lips, your laugh, the way you don’t know what to do with your hands as you tell him a story about when you and Olivia had to run for your lives to catch the last train home a few years ago - it all drew him that much closer to you.

You lose yourself in his eyes as he looks intently into yours whilst you tell him the stories - it’s not until Lucy comes over with some food for the both of you that you realize how quickly time has passed.

“How did you two meet?” you ask as Lucy sets a couple of cinnamon rolls on the table for you. Lucy’s about to speak when someone walks over to the bar to order something, “I’ve gotta-” she motions towards the bar and you nod understandingly.

“It’s pretty funny actually” Mat speaks, drawing your attention back towards him. He explains that the owner of the café and his apartment is Lucy’s dad and that they both helped him move in.

“I’d been living in this shitty apartment, you know, and it was already furnished, so I didn’t really have a lot of stuff. I had to buy a bunch of furniture when I moved out. Dan and I were scratching our heads trying to figure out how to assemble it all, and Lucy-” he nudges his head in her direction, you’re hanging onto his every word even as he laughs through them. “The IKEA genius, saved the day when she came home from school. It’s pretty funny actually - I would’ve had to sleep on the floor if it wasn’t for her”

The café has filled up with people by now, and Lucy’s heading home as coffee orders are swapped out with beer and martinis. With the noise around you, it was getting harder to hear each other, and your chairs were moving closer and closer together as time passed.

For the first time since Lucy came to the table, you check the time again. Your eyelids were getting heavy, and even though you didn’t want to leave, you had to admit you were getting tired. Mat reads you, leaning over “c’mon, I’ll walk you home” he offers.

You think of him walking you all the way home only to walk back here again in the cold alone - and no matter how much you wanted more time with him, you didn't want to feel like he had to.

“Mat, that’s sweet, but you don’t have to-”

“Please, I want to” he doesn’t want the date to end either, he rarely ever feels so comfortable around someone so fast as he does with you. Whenever that happens and whoever it’s happened with before, they’ve always ended up being important to him. And he didn’t care if he had to walk a few blocks away and then back again in the cold if it meant he got to spend just a few more minutes with you.

“Thank you” You give him a soft smile, putting on your jacket and following his lead out of the café. He opens the door for you and you wait a moment for him to step next to you before you continue down the street.

A comfortable silence falls between the two of you, the distant noises of a Saturday night is the only thing filling the cold air. As you meet a couple going the opposite way, Mat steps closer to you to let them pass and you feel his hand brush against yours. Your cheeks warm at the feeling as you look down at your hands, his touch feels electric and it sets off a spark in your body. The other couple has passed you by now but he doesn’t step away, instead, his fingers search for yours. His touch is a question and you answer it by intertwining your fingers with his.

You look up at him to see him looking at you, biting his lips, his cheeks rosy as he squeezes your hand as if to say thank you.

Once you see your apartment building you’re almost tempted to walk around in a circle, to draw out the time, but you come to a stop outside your door with a bittersweet feeling.

“When can I see you again?” he instantly asks once he realizes you’ve arrived.

“I’m free on Wednesday” you’d checked your schedule before the date, hoping that it would go well. But really, he’d blown past every expectation and you felt like a teenager, wanting to skip out on your classes so you could see him sooner.

“Meet me at the café again? I’ll be around there all day, so come whenever you want” he rambles.

“Okay,” you smile, squeezing his hand hoping it reassures him.

You take the smallest step backward, reluctant to go into your building, your fingers slide from his just the tiniest bit before he grasps them again. He’s pulling you to him, carefully, testing the waters. “I had a really great time tonight” he murmurs, and your breath hitches in your throat at how close he is now.

“Me too” you find your voice, eyes dropping to his parted lips as he leans a little closer. Your free hand finds his waist, as his moves to cup your cheek. You close your eyes and shy away from the cold touch with a small laugh.

“That’s cold” you hum.

“Sorry” his voice is soft as he lets out a small chuckle and you lean into his touch again as you open your eyes. He’s looking at your lips, and he really, really wants to kiss you right now.

“Then kiss me,” you say and he realizes he said it out loud.

His forehead presses against yours, your cold noses touch, eyes fluttering shut. You feel his breath as his lips brush against yours and you grip his waist, bringing him closer, his lips finally against yours.

That spark in your body ignites and the fire warms you up from within as your lips move together. And you kiss and kiss and kiss until you run out of air and wide smiles take over your faces. His nose nudges against yours and you give his lips another peck before leaning back in his embrace.

“Let me know when you’re back home?” Your question warms his heart and he nods - ”I will” he promises, pressing his lips against your one final time, savoring it before he lets you go. His hand lingers in yours as he slowly steps back the way you came, and they stay intertwined until the distance between you pulls them apart.

He keeps walking backward, his eyes on yours as you huff out a laugh when he stumbles a little. He turns around then and gives you one last soft smile over his shoulder as you walk up to your entrance.

You start getting ready for bed the moment you get in, Olivia is already in her room, but you have no doubt she’ll ask you about your night the moment she sees you. Your night plays over and over in your head on a loop and it’s a movie you’ll never get tired of seeing.

Mat’s damn near skipping on his way home, wearing a smile he knows must look ridiculous to anyone passing, but he still feels your touch on his hand, on his lips and it’s all he can think about.

Your phone buzzes just as you come out of your bathroom, and you check the message just as you hear Olivia's bedroom door open, peeking her head out with a tired but expectant look on her face. You reread the message with a smile on your face as you nudge your head towards the couch as if to tell her “you’re gonna want to sit down for this one.”

Mat: I’m home Mat: Can’t wait to see you on Wednesday x

The second date

He hasn’t left your mind, not for a day, an hour, or a minute.

You were one step away from drawing silly doodles in your textbook about him in your classes, and it was painfully obvious to you how fast you’d connected.

What didn’t help is that he was texting you, every day.

Because you hadn’t left his mind either.

When he was listening to music he wanted to know what music you listened to. When he was watching a movie he wanted to know if you’d watched it or if you’d like it. When the sunshine poured in through his window he wondered what you’d look like covered in the golden light.

The café was quiet this early on a Wednesday, Mat had been keeping Lucy company since they opened, writing songs on the bar as she cleaned the coffee machine 5 times just to have something to do.

You’d let him know you’d be there around 12, right in time for lunch. You took your time in the morning, deciding to do some reading for one of your classes, but ending up reading the same sentence three times because your mind was elsewhere. Each time you finished a paragraph you’d check the time to see if you should leave soon.

A few minutes after 11:30 you decided to just go, going to the bathroom to check your appearance one last time before heading to the door. You don’t even put on your jacket properly before leaving, locking the door before heading down the stairs - clumsily sliding your arms into the sleeves on your way down to the exit. The air was colder than you expected and for a second you debate going back up for a scarf, but you decide against it, wrapping your arms around yourself instead.

Mat’s filled up more pages than he can count in his notebook since your date, and he’s so wrapped up in it that he doesn’t even notice the time passing him by - doesn’t register the rare few times the bell over the door rings and doesn’t realize you’ve arrived until he hears your voice.

“Hey” you breathe out, making his head shoot up. Lucy greets you before he finds his voice, offering you a coffee as he takes you in.

“Hi” he finally says, writing one last thing in his book before marking his page and closing it.

Lucy turns around to make your coffee as he stands up. You’re about to shrug your jacket off when he steps to you, cupping your cheeks gently before kissing you. Though he caught you by surprise, you don’t hesitate to kiss him back, your hands sliding up to his shoulders.

It’s when Lucy clears her throat that he pulls away, a blush on his cheeks as he avoids her eyes, scratching his neck. You’re left with warm cheeks and goosebumps, speechless - having to shake yourself out of it before taking your coffee from Lucy, a small embarrassed “thank you,” leaving you.

The two of you order food before sitting down at the same table you sat at on Saturday, his hand finding yours across the table. Before lunch, you catch up on the little things you hadn’t already spoken about over text since last time. By the time food comes he mentions that he’d spoken to his family the night before and you notice the tiniest hint of sadness in his tone.

“Do you miss them?” you ask, feeling a bit stupid, of course he misses them.

“Yeah” he sighs.

“I talk to them a lot though, but it’s not the same. I’m super happy that they call me when they get together, but I just feel like I’m missing out on their lives sometimes” he pauses for a moment, “I’m super grateful for FaceTime, don’t get me wrong” he laughs a humorless laugh, “but it’s not the same at all, you know?”

You squeeze his hand - “it’s like they’re with you, but not really” you say, and he knows you understand what he means as he looks into your eyes.

“I don’t know what I would do without Dan and Lucy, to be honest - probably drift away” he smiles, glancing over at Lucy who was now cleaning the fridge doors. And you hum, “my roommate is my anchor” you laugh.

“Yeah?” he asks, a small smile on his face

“She’s a pain sometimes, but I’d be lost without her”

“Any friend you live with is a pain sometimes” he laughs, thinking back to when he lived with his friends. Sure, they were loud and way too messy, but sometimes he missed having someone around to keep him company. He used to go to Daniel’s for dinner a lot, but he’d been so busy lately and Mat didn’t want to impose.

The bell over the door rings again, making you both look over. A man walks in, waving casually at Mat before doing a double-take, turning to walk over to your table.

He speaks your name enthusiastically and you’re confused as to who this man is and why he knows your name. He holds his hand out to you and now that he’s closer you think you might recognize him from the concert, if you were to guess you’d say that this is-

“I’m Daniel, so nice to meet you” he smiles, shaking your hand.

“Nice to meet you too” you smile back, feeling slightly accomplished that you’d guessed right.

He looks between the two of you, “I’ve got to work a little, but you two have a lovely date.”

He walks over to Lucy and you hear them talking about getting some things from storage before his voice picks up again. “Mat, can you keep an eye on the bar for me? Call me if anyone comes in?”

“Of course” Mat smiles.

You’re left alone in the café as they walk into the kitchen. There seems to be something on Mat’s mind and before you can ask him, he’s standing up, pulling you with him.

You’d taken his breath away when he first saw you, but being around you now, he felt like he could truly breathe. Like that first breath of fresh air after being stuck inside a stuffy room, or a cool breeze on a hot day. He felt like he could be himself completely, he could tell you his highs and lows without filtering out any details, and you’d listen to him.

“Can I play you something?” he asks, walking you over to the piano.

As he sits down, he makes room for you on the bench too - patting the spot to urge you to sit down.

“One of your songs?” you hope.

“Yeah, it’s uh- the one I was playing when you walked in on Friday”

A shiver runs down your spine as you think back to it. And you're left with your mouth gaping as he continues to speak.

“I’d written it the night before, and I didn’t know why or who it was about. When you walked in it was like I found the missing puzzle piece, and fuck- it sounds weird but-”

You kiss him.

Threading your fingers through his hair on instinct, as he hums into the kiss.

“I’ve felt those words in my bones since I heard you sing them, Mat. Please, sing it to me again” you murmur against his lips.

His lips find yours again, softly, before he speaks - “okay”

You lean your head on his shoulder as his fingers brush over the keys on the piano.

Closing your eyes as the first note fills the room, his voice finds its way into your soul as he opens his heart to you, for you. You meet his eyes for a moment seeing his emotions painted on them, hearing them laced into the words, hiding between each note. He knows you’re the one the song is about, he knew the moment he saw you, but he’s finally admitted it to himself. And the way you look at him only confirms it. Since he met you his chest hasn’t felt so heavy, his morning headaches were gone, they’d been replaced by you - images of your face, the memory of your voice, your laugh, they all played through in his mind. Grounding him.

A Home

My muse ❤️: My place at 5 tomorrow?

He’d been staring at the text you sent him yesterday for who knows how long. It’s been four days since he saw you last, four days since he sang to you, four days since he kissed you. He’d walked you home that day too, held your hand again, drawn out your goodbye as he pressed his lips to yours again and again.

He’d opened up to you last time, with the smallest fear that it was too much, that he’d scare you away. He was left in awe to see you inviting him into your space now. He’d typed out several replies yesterday before finally settling on one.

I’ll see you then! Need me to bring anything? x

My muse ❤️: No, don’t worry x

You’d answered him straight away, but now that he was searching for any type of clue in your previous messages he still had no idea what you’d planned for him. Locking his phone and looking back into the mirror he hoped the casual outfit he’d gone for was appropriate for whatever occasion. He runs his fingers through his hair a few more times before walking out of his bathroom to get a jacket before making his way over to your place. He follows his mom's advice and stops to get you something, even though you said he didn’t have to.

You’d been a bit bold inviting two people you barely knew into your home, but the short amount of time you’d now spent with Lucy and Daniel had shown you how good they were. When you’d walked into the café the other day asking if they had time for dinner anytime soon they’d been nothing but polite and eager to find a day that fit. As Lucy got someone to cover her shift, Sunday worked out perfectly.

Biting your lip, you hope Mat will like the surprise you planned for him.

When you saw how much he missed his family and felt how much it was affecting him, you just wanted to do something to show him that you cared. And you thought inviting his little world into yours would at least be a good place to start.

Dinner was just about ready. Daniel and Lucy had both politely offered to help and even though you insisted they didn’t have to, they didn’t listen. Lucy prepared the side salad, Daniel prepped the vegetables, while you prepared the meat, and Olivia had made some dessert earlier in the day so she was currently sitting drinking some wine by the dining table. You had all finished in no time, and now you were just waiting for the vegetables to finish cooking - and for Mat to show up.

Just a few moments after your doorbell rang, the timer for the oven went off too, as if on cue. Daniel winked at you as he went to the door, pressing the button to open the door downstairs before waiting for Mat by the door. You quickly got the vegetables out of the oven so you could catch Mat’s reaction when he saw Daniel opening your door.

He barely even gets to knock once before Daniel opens the door - the confused look on his face is priceless. Everyone else comes into his view and he’s not sure where to look, he’s never seen your apartment before, and to see two very familiar faces standing in it threw him off, but he couldn’t be happier.

“Dan- What are you two doing here?” he laughs, looking between Daniel and Lucy, before giving them both a quick hug with one arm. You notice he’s holding something behind his back with his other hand as you step towards them.

“Same as you,” Daniel replies.

He greets Olivia quickly too before you reach them. Everyone else moves back towards the kitchen as you step over to Mat, soft smiles on each of your faces. He reveals a paper bag with some flowers sticking out, holding it out for you in the space between your bodies. At first, you think it’s a bouquet, but you soon realize as you take it in your hands that it’s a potted plant.

You meet his eyes, you’re about to thank him when he pulls you in by your waist for a kiss. It’s short and sweet but it still makes your head spin, “they’re hydrangeas” he nods his head towards the flowers. “Thank you, they’re lovely” you kiss his cheek before stepping away from him - another kiss on his soft lips might have sent you spiraling.

“Please come in, take a seat” you smile, gesturing towards the table that was now set and ready for you all to eat as the others had made everything ready while the two of you were in your sweet little bubble.

You put the flowerpot in the kitchen, admiring his choice for a moment - wondering how he picked just the right colors to go with your apartment.

“Get over here, we’re hungry” Olivia urges you, tapping her fingers at the table. “For someone who’s late to everything, you sure are impatient” you tease her as you make your way to the table, sitting down next to Mat.

“Hey, I was early to this” she argues.

You’re about to open your mouth when Lucy speaks up - “you live here”

The whole table, including Olivia, break out a laugh and you smile at Lucy, “I was just about to say that”

You all settle down and start passing the food around to each other, keeping the small talk up as you all eat, your plates emptying slowly.

Mat takes a moment to take in the scene before him, how comfortable Lucy seemed talking to you and Olivia, how you genuinely laughed at one of Daniel’s awful jokes, how you all forgot to eat because you were too busy getting to know each other. He’s broken out of his thought as your hand comes to rest on his thigh.

“Hey, you alright?” you speak so only he can hear, your eyes intently watching him. He takes your hand in his, raising it to his lips with a soft smile as he presses a kiss to your knuckles.

“I’m perfect - this is perfect”

Without even realizing, you’d reminded him that he has a family here in New York too, and now it has grown to fit you and Olivia. And as he sat at your dining table next to you he felt like he was home.

The Weekend

Friday

The next couple of weeks flew by, and you and Mat spent as much time together as you could. You’d gone for walks, had dinner together a few more times, you’d spent the day with him studying at table 13 while he wrote songs - your feet next to his thighs in his chair, his hand coming down to rub your leg comfortingly whenever she heard you sigh deeply or saw you tense up.

A month has gone by since you first met him and Mat has another show tonight. After a day of classes, you were finally free to go get ready, pull on your favorite outfit, and pack an overnight bag.

The bag was open, standing on your bed - empty. You’d gone through all your drawers, and you had no idea what to bring. Nothing felt right, and you couldn’t really afford to go and buy something either. You were about to spend the weekend at his place, and if that wasn’t enough on its own, his old roommates were coming over on Saturday.

As if Olivia could sense your troubles from the other room, she comes in and plops down on the bed next to the bag, eyeing it.

“Pack that set, you know, the one with the-”

“Isn’t it a bit much?”

She laughs, “I don’t think he’ll complain - but pack a back-up too, then, if it eases your mind”

She got up and started going through your stuff, picking out a couple of items and throwing them haphazardly on your bed. You rushed over, glaring at her as you picked up whatever she threw, folding it nicely again before packing it in your bag.

Mat was pacing in his room.

Not because he was nervous about adding a few new songs in his set tonight - No, he felt perfectly confident about them. And not because you were meeting his friends either, he knew they’d love you. But you were spending the weekend at his place, and while you’d been to his place before, you’d never stayed over.

He’d cleaned and tidied, then cleaned some more, remade his bed about ten times. He knew his buddies would note that it was uncharacteristically clean - he could hear their chirps in his head already. But, now he was running out of time. You’d be at his place any second now, to leave your bags there before you headed down to the café.

His eyes scanned his room one more time before he sighs out, putting his hands on his waist, running his fingers through his hair before pulling himself away and into the living room to wait for you.

He doesn’t have to wait long, but it feels like forever as his eyes are glued to the clock. He shoots up the second his doorbell rings, and runs out his door and down the stairs to meet you.

The second you’re in his view his whole body relaxes, breath evening out, but his heartbeat picks up. He’s dragging you in before you can even say anything - his hand on your cheek as he leads your lips to his in a kiss that makes you drop your bags on the floor, your arms going around his neck, fingers finding his hair. He smiles, breaking away - bumping his nose against yours softly.

“Hi,” you say in unison.

Your fingers linger in his hair as you lean back to look at him, “you nervous for tonight?” you ask.

“For the concert?” he asks, a small laugh huffing out.

You nod, watching him intently as he leans into your touch.

“No, not for that” his words make you furrow your brows, a smile still present on your lips

“What do you mean, not for that?”

He glances down at your overnight bags, giving himself away.

“Me too, a little bit” you admit.

“I don’t even know why, you just- It’s like I feel everything so much more when I’m with you, and sometimes when you look at me I can’t even think straight, but it’s also like I’ve never seen so clearly, never been more sure at the same ti-”

You can’t help but kiss him.

The way his brows move and how he pouts his lips slightly when he’s not sure what to say before he rambles on, too cute to resist. He hums into the kiss, pulling you closer again, breaking away with a slightly embarrassed laugh.

“You’re like never not on my mind, Barzy”

He kisses you again before he moves to grab your bags for you, a clever look in his eyes as he opens his mouth - “you should be the songwriter, not me” he teases,

You bump your hip against his, rolling your eyes, making him stumble a bit - playfully giving you glare before walking up the stairs. “I personally think Never Not On My Mind would be a great song” you argue playfully.

He has just enough time to show you around his apartment before the two of you have to go down to the café to meet Daniel and Lucy. He grabs his guitar in one hand, intertwining his fingers with yours with the other.

There’s already a fair few people there as you enter, the lot of them all greeting Mat and he awkwardly raises his guitar to greet them back, refusing to let go of your hand.

He only lets go as you get to your table, greeting Daniel and Lucy properly with a hug as you do the same. He gives you one last kiss before he gets up on stage to set up and start his soundcheck.

In the corner of your eye, you see Daniel looking at you, you can’t quite read his look, so you raise a brow and hum quizzically.

“He looks happy” Daniel nudges his head towards Mat, making you look over at him. As if he senses you looking at him he lifts his head and meets your eyes, a few strands of hair covering his forehead.

“You both do” he continues.

So much has changed in a month and you’re looking at him with new eyes. And he’s looking back at you with a new set of eyes himself. You’d never felt like you were strangers, and to think that a month ago you didn’t even know of him seemed crazy to you both. But, here you were - not thinking straight, but still seeing so clearly.

Mat was excited. Not just to play his new songs, but he felt like his old songs had been given new life, and he was itching to start plucking at the strings on his guitar - to let the words flow into the room, to finally play them to you properly.

He’d shared snippets with you, sending you short audio files or snaps of him singing, showing you lyrics as he wrote them down in his book. But they were small puzzle pieces and you had no idea what the puzzle looked like.

You’d lost yourself in the music last time, but this time - you found yourself. Small hints of you and him scattered around in his words. It’s all a whirlwind in your head until he plays the final note of the final song and the room erupts in applause.

The rest of the world fades out again as soon it faded in when he strides over to you, wrapping his arms around you, spinning you around - a surprised laugh leaving you.

You stay with Daniel and Lucy for a while after, and you watch him with proud eyes as people come up to him, telling him how much they liked his show. Barry, from your first day in the café, comes up saying he was going to tell everyone he knew about the new songs. You both listen intently as he goes on about the chord progressions and the symbolism in the lyrics.

When your eyelids start feeling heavy, you leave and Lucy comes with as Daniel stays to help close up. You say goodnight to Lucy with tired voices, Mat makes sure she gets home safe even though she lives only seconds away in the same building.

As you get ready for bed, the two nervous people from earlier seem like a distant memory. You move around each other like it’s second nature. Sharing smiles in his bathroom mirror as you brush your teeth side by side, hips bumping into each other playfully. Toothpaste dribbling down his chin as he tries not to laugh, making you spit out into the sink, doubling down in laughter.

Your heartbeat rises as you step into his bedroom, your movements slow as you start to undress. Eyes glued on each other as you take this next step in your relationship. As each layer is peeled off, and your skin is almost bare apart from your underwear, you freeze - taking a moment to really see one another.

Goosebumps form on your arms as the chilly air of his room brushes against your skin. As your arms wrap around yourself to stay warm, he steps closer to you, his hands sliding up from your elbows to your shoulders - his touch warming you instantly. You loosen your arms, fingertips curiously moving across his bare chest, eyes dancing across his skin.

Your lips meet his as your bodies tangle together, breaths mixing, fingers exploring, hearts melting. You fall into the softness of his bedsheets - your body on fire under his touch, his skin burning from yours.

As you drift away wrapped up in each other, sleep taking over your bodies, you’ve never been more content.

Saturday

You drift in and out of sleep in the morning, his arm draped over your waist, keeping you in bed. When you wake up completely, you still stay - basking in the feeling of the warm skin of his chest against your back, his breath on your neck, your fingers tracing patterns on his arm.

He groans in protest when you move, trying to keep you still, but you manage to turn in his arms to face him. His eyes are still closed, breath still heavy as your fingertips trace his pink lips. The move to his nose, moving over his profile as you admire his sleeping form. It’s when you run your fingers through his hair that he nuzzles into your touch - finally stirring from his sleep.

His eyes are still closed as he drags you on top of him, “let’s just stay here, yeah?” his groggy voice sends shivers through your body and you can’t protest - sighing as his lips kiss down your neck.

You don’t get out of bed until your stomachs beg you to, and it’s a slow morning on the couch as you wait for his friends to come over.

Mat’s hesitant to move as his doorbell rings, but you urge him to go open and let them in. You follow after him, a few steps behind as he lets them in.

Anthony, Jordan, and Anders all walk in with smirks on their faces as they scan the room. They look back at Mat and before they can even open their mouths he speaks up - “don’t even say it” he warns, making them chuckle.

“Love what you’ve done with the place” Jordan teases.

“Yeah, so clean,” Anders adds.

“And tidy,” Anthony nods, snickering.

Their eyes then fall on you as Anders speaks your name - “nice to finally meet you” they all agree, patting Mat on his shoulder as they walk into his apartment. They all introduce themselves to you and you repeat their familiar names in your head, trying to connect them to their unfamiliar faces. If it weren’t for Mat’s hand on the small of your back you know you’d feel a bit overwhelmed.

Before you know it you’re gathered around Mat’s living room table, filling your stomachs with the pizza you ordered, the boys trying not to talk through their chewing as they catch up by telling you all sorts of stories, mostly embarrassing ones on Mat’s behalf.

Mat doesn’t mind though as he laughs along, even adding details that the guys forgot with a loud cackle.

You clear the pizza boxes away as the guys find their instruments, and you beam at the thought of getting to be a fly on the wall as they play after having heard Mat talk about it so much. Though as you sit down, they don’t go into a world of your own as you’d expected, you’re pulled into it as they start with a “guess the song” game for you.

Anthony starts off by playing a familiar bass line on his acoustic bass guitar, that you recognize instantly, “oh! Another one bites the dust” the words stumble out of your lips, making Mat chuckle at your eagerness

When Anders gives you a beat on his cajón you have no idea what he’s playing, but as soon as Jordan joins in you can’t help but snort out a laugh as you recognize the melody to Wonderwall - and they laugh as you try to speak up through your laugh.

It’s Mat’s turn and he smiles at you before he starts strumming his guitar, you look around and everyone’s brows are furrowed at first, but it doesn’t take long for the others to pick up what song it is. You’re still lost, however, racking your brain to try to figure it out, you know you’ve heard it and you swear the answer is on the tip of your tongue. When Mat gives you another look, you know what to guess - although you’re not certain.

“Are you- is this Nickelback?” you laugh, squinting your eyes at him, making Mat stop altogether, giving you an amused look.

“Yes, this is Nickelback” his serious expression makes you snort out another laugh, having too fun to even care about how it’s the second snort-laugh of the night, but probably not the last.

“I’m a Nickelback fan and I’m proud of it, babe,” he says straight-faced, before starting the song again, his movements exaggerated as he starts singing too.

As you try to hold your laugh everyone else jumps in singing the lyrics to Rockstar to you. As the chorus comes near you decide to say fuck it, and belt out the lyrics with them - cheers going around the room before the song continues.

You’re out of breath by the time the song finishes and your face hurts from smiling so much, stomach aches from laughing. Mat sets down his guitar next to him, wrapping his arm around your shoulder, pulling you closer to him - kissing the side of your head.

You brush your hand up his side, the fabric of his t-shirt moving as your fingers move underneath it, tickling his skin, but he doesn’t shy away from your touch as you move your head to kiss the first spot of his skin you can see - a shiver running down his spine as your lips touch the nape of his neck.

He wants to play that moment on a loop on his head, but Anthony laughing at something Jordan said drags him out of it - “I’ll never forget when you sang that at karaoke that one night”

“Not my best performance” Mat laughs.

“I beg to differ” Anthony chirps.

It gets late quicker than you want it to, and before you know it you’re hugging Mat’s friends goodbye, wishing them safe travels home. You start to tidy, but Mat brushes your hands away, pulling you to him - “we’ll worry about that tomorrow” he says before lifting you, wrapping your legs around his waist, capturing your lips as he carries you to his bed.

Sunday

On Sunday Mat wakes up before the sun - if he’d been alone he would have shot up out of bed and grabbed his guitar frantically before the lyrics from his dream slipped out of his mind. But you’re here, and he doesn’t want to wake you, and he knows that all he has to do if he forgets the words is to look at you and they’ll come back to him. So he carefully raises your arm around his waist and sneaks out of bed, his feet padding across his floor to grab his guitar and notebook. He gently sits down at the edge of the bed - laying his phone next to him to record.

You’re woken up as the first light of the day peeks through his windows, bed sheets wrapped around you like a warm hug, his t-shirt soft against your skin.

It’s the sound of his soft humming and the gentle strums of his guitar that wakes you, and you stay quiet as you glance at him sitting on the edge of his bed. You try to piece together what he’s singing, but it’s too hushed - as if he didn’t want you to hear. Your curiosity gets the best of you as you fold away his sheets to sneak up to him, resting your chin on his shoulder, making him stop altogether to look at you - turning slightly to get a better view.

“‘Morning” he smiles.

“How long have you been awake?”

He huffs, squinting his eyes, “uuuh, not sure - you sleep well, baby?”

You nod, leaning in to kiss his lips, humming into the kiss, treading your fingers into his hair. You kiss his cheek before making yourself comfortable behind him.

“What are you writing about?” your eyes scan the scribbles in his notebook.

“You,”

Your heart swells, hiding your face in his neck - “me?”

His hand softly urges you to look at him again, “I’m always writing about you.”

A breath hitches in your throat, his eyes never wavering from yours. “Play it for me?” you kiss the spot where his shoulder meets his neck. He nods as you nuzzle into his neck, taking a breath as his fingers find the right grip.

I've been sittin' here, tryna figure out What did I do right to be with you right now?

Worlds Colliding

My Love 💕: I’ll pick you up at 6 x

You checked his text for the tenth time, to be absolutely sure of when he was coming.

“Breathe” Olivia laughs out, looking at you bouncing your leg, your shoulders tense as your nervousness consumes you.

Mat’s arriving in 5 minutes.

Mat’s arriving in 5 minutes and you’re going to a restaurant.

Mat’s arriving in 5 minutes and you’re going to a restaurant with his mom and dad and sister, where you would have dinner with his mom and dad and sister.

This was big, and no matter how many times Mat reassured you that his family would like you, it didn’t ease your mind all too much. Before you can even fill your lungs with air, the doorbell rings and you look over at Olivia desperately, desperate for your nerves to ease, desperate to crawl into a hole and hide.

Of course he’s early.

“Breathe,” she says again, “they are going to love you, you have nothing to worry about”.

You focus all you can on taking one deep breath before standing up, taking another deep breath before you make your way to the door.

Mat stands outside your door, Liana pokes his side in excitement as they wait for you. She jumps when the door cracks open and pushes her brother aside to hug you, which you welcome without a second thought. And just like that, your nerves are gone, his parents meet you with warm hugs too before Mat can even speak up to introduce you all.

“Oh, it’s so nice to meet you, we’ve heard a lot about you” his mom, Nadia, beams and his dad, Mike, nods along. “He doesn’t shut up about you” his sister pipes in, hoping to make him blush, but he just smiles and nods to confirm when you look at him. You smile warmly at him, taking his hand that he offers before turning back towards his family - “I’ve heard so much about you too, feels like I already know you”. He squeezes your hand, “should we get going?”

There’s a chorus of you all agreeing and Mat kisses you softly - you don’t notice his mom emotionally clutching her chest at the sight, pulling herself together as Mat starts leading the way as his sister asks about the menu.

Before you know it you’re sat around a table, eyes scanning the menu for what to eat as you make conversation.

“We’re sad we couldn’t come to catch one of his shows, hearing his new songs over the phone isn’t quite the same as hearing them in person,” his dad says.

“And there are a lot of them too,” his mom adds, with a gleam in her eye.

“I think he’s found some inspiration” his sister, sitting next to you, bumps her shoulder softly against yours.

“You could say that” there’s a gleam in Mat’s eyes when he focuses on you.

As you get to know them more you see little pieces from his family that Mat has brought with him to New York - his dad’s competitiveness, his mom’s kindness, and his sister’s ambition. Your heart warms, seeing Mat around his family, so much love in his eyes. You’d always understood why he missed his family, but seeing first hand how close they all were you had to keep yourself from getting lost in a bittersweet feeling - focusing on here and now instead.

“He was so energetic as a kid - when he was seven months old he was running around the house, and we had to cut bedsheets and tie them around him” Nadia looks at her son fondly, as he shrugs, scratching his neck as he laughs.

“Once he got a little keyboard for his birthday it all changed though - he was still energetic, don’t get me wrong, but he put all his energy into music,” Mike tells you.

“Oh yeah, I’ve seen the garage band photos” you laugh, looking at Liana.

“Oh, he told you how he made me stand there, singing back-up as our neighbors walked past”

“Made you, eh?” Mat scoffs out a laugh, “pretty sure you liked the attention more than I did”

She pokes her tongue out at him and he returns the favor.

The conversation shifts as Mat asks how things are at home, and they all update him on all the small and big changes that have happened since he was last there. This store closed, this store opened, their neighbor got a small dog, so and so got married. They explain who’s who to you as they go along talking about life in Coquitlam.

“You should come visit sometime,” Liana exclaims.

“Mat usually comes home around May, you’re more than welcome to come with” his mom adds.

“You’ve got finals in May, no?” Mat asks, and you nod.

“Yeah, so we’d have to come after those” his hand rubs your shoulder as he looks at you - “if you want to of course”

“I’d love to” you squeeze Mat’s thigh before turning towards his family - “we’ll definitely come to visit after my finals”

You all walk slowly on the way home, planning out the rest of their week here. When you reach your door they all give you and Mat some space, because even though you’re going to see each other tomorrow, kiss each other tomorrow, you can never get enough.

You spend the rest of the night talking to Olivia about them - and they spend the rest of theirs talking about you.

“Then I Met You”

Mat had written so many songs, he had enough for a whole album and then some. He’d filled out his notebook and then another one and another one. He’d gotten some help from Anthony, Jordan, and Anders - recording demos whenever you were busy. They were helping him out tonight for his Friday night show too, and you had no idea.

He wanted to surprise you.

You’d already heard most of the songs, he couldn’t help himself there, but he’d managed to keep a couple to himself. And you’d only heard the others when it was just him and his guitar - which never failed to give you goosebumps and it never felt like anything was missing to you. But with the help of his friends, every feeling in the songs had been amplified, and he couldn’t wait to play them for you.

You and Olivia were meeting him at the café, you’d been busy studying all day - now currently rushing to be there early even though Lucy and Daniel were holding seats for you at the front. Olivia had surprised you as she was ready to leave only a second after you were, seeming just as eager to get there as you - you were too rushed to notice the secretive smile on her face.

Mat’s setting up the stage when you get there, but your attention is pulled away from him as you hear a familiar voice yell your name. Olivia is already on her way over to your table as you turn your head towards the noise.

Mat’s head picks up, just in time to see you hug Anthony, a surprised but pleased look on your face as you notice Jordan and Anders too. “What are you guys doing here?”

“At the bar? Getting drinks”

“In general? We’re playing” Anders points towards Mat, a drink in both his hands.

“What?” you smile, looking over at Mat, who’s got a smirk on his face which only widens when you make your way over.

Only then do you notice how the stage is set up with more instruments than usual - “You’re getting the band back together?”

He laughs, “surprise” his words end up sounding like a question as he drops what he’s doing to meet you with a kiss.

Olivia comes up and introduces herself to the other guys, and you overhear her talking about how hard it was for her to keep this secret from you. “Makes sense now” you muse and Mat raises his brows as he takes a sip from the drink Anders brought him. “I was a bit suspicious of how early Olivia was ready to leave” you add and Mat has to stop himself from laughing mid-sip.

You give him one more kiss for good luck and sit down at your table with Lucy, Daniel, and Olivia. You all make small talk until you hear Mat’s signature the-show’s-about-to-start throat clear, watching the lights in the café dim a little.

“We’ve got a couple more people on stage tonight, if you didn’t notice” the crowd laughs at his silly joke. As he introduces everyone it takes you back to the evening in the living room, how carefree he seems, comfortable - made for this. And they haven’t even started yet.

“We’ve got a whole new set tonight, and I hope you’ll like it - This first song is called Table 13” he turns his head towards you, winking. Your cheeks flush with warmth as a few eyes drift towards you - as if they didn’t all know that you were dating.

“It’s about someone very dear to me, well they’re all about her, but this one’s about our first date” he starts strumming and the rest of the band joins in. You’re left speechless as the set goes on, every song you hear is your new favorite. You’re in awe of him and his talent, and he can’t take his eyes off of you.

He feels alive, on fire - as long as he feels like this whenever he’s playing, he doesn't care anymore, he doesn’t feel stuck anymore. He could play in this café for the rest of his life as long as you were there with him - he doesn’t need the label and the fame and the tour, he just needs you.

You hadn’t fixed him, but you’d given him the tools to do it himself and stood by his side while he did so.

The set is a journey - the story of you and Mat. The band is one with the music and they’re dragging you all with them. Images of your time together flash vividly through your mind as Mat sings the words that are meant for you and you only, and he’s glowing.

After the last note on the last song the crowd breaks out in applause, the rest of the band comes to the front of the stage to thank the crowd. But Mat’s eyes stay on yours as you stand up with the rest of the crowd.

In that moment your hearts pour out and melt together into one.

He can’t wait any longer, stepping off the stage, wrapping his arms around you, laughing into your lips as the cheers grow when he kisses you, you don’t care how sweaty his neck is as you grab him to keep him there just a little longer.

As always, you all stay behind, moving a table and some chairs over to yours to fit the whole band. Mat’s mid-story when Barry comes over to the table, a stranger standing next to him. Mat stands up to meet them both.

“Great show as always, Mathew” he shakes his hand.

“Thank you” Mat smiles

“I want you to meet my friend, Gwen,” Barry continues.

“Loved the show- you don’t happen to have any demos?”

Mat nods, “yeah, we- uh- we have some demos” he briefly looks over at the band. He's a little confused, his mind wants to travel to a hopeful place, but he doesn’t quite let it just yet.

“Great!” Gwen reaches into her purse, pulling out a business card. “Why don’t you contact me, I might know some people who’ll be interested in hearing it” there’s a gleam in her eye as she hands the card over to Mat

Without even looking at the card Mat says, “Thank you, absolutely I will”

“Enjoy the rest of your night” Barry winks at him before they both make their way out.

You’re quick to jump out of your seat, going over to your boyfriend who’s stuck in his spot, staring down at the card in his hand. He almost can’t believe what he’s seeing, but as you stand next to him, your hand wrapping around his bicep you mumble the words on the card, he knows it’s real.

Someone from a record company had seen the show.

Someone from a record company had seen the show and they wanted him to contact them so they could hear his demos.

“Baby, I’m so proud of you” your voice shakes him out of his own head. And he’s a little overwhelmed as he looks over at you.

“None of this- I swear, none of this would be possible without you.” he rushes, pressing his lips hard against yours. You wrap your arms over his shoulders and he presses his forehead against yours, noses brushing against each other. As you tug on his hair at the nape of his neck he leans back, needing to get something off his chest.

“I felt stuck and then I met you and you broke me loose. I was longing for something-, someone and then I met you” he catches his breath, his thumb caressing your cheek as he looks ardently into your eyes - “I love you- so much”

Your eyes tear up, and you don’t hesitate to say, “I love you more”

“Not possible” he laughs, leaning in again.

Epilogue

His hand is in yours as you walk down the broad hallway, following a man in a snapback. The noise around you, though muffled, is loud and a bit overwhelming. Your hearts are racing as you get closer and closer, the noise growing louder and louder.

Everyone you pass, reach their hand out and Mat bumps his fist against theirs as he passes, a small laugh leaving him.

You follow the snapback man and walk through an open door, the noise is almost too loud for you to hear each other now, but as he embraces you in a hug, his lips to your ear, you hear him loud and clear.

“I love you most”

“I love you mostest” you giggle.

You hold on to him still as you give him his good luck kiss, before he and his band are rushed out onto the stage. Tens of thousands of screams grow even louder as they come into their view.

He starts plucking on his guitar, his eyes scanning the crowd as he takes it all in with a deep breath. He turns his head to find you again, and the noise of the crowd fades away when he sees you.

Then it’s as if you’re back in the café, just the two of you.

The smile you share is like a secret you share that no one else knows - I love you, I’m so proud of you.

#mat barzal #mat barzal imagine #mat barzal fic #nhl imagine #nhl fic #op:w #hockey rpf

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