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#I mean I think I deserve at least one nice relaxing peaceful night
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Me: decides it’s bedtime, because I’m tired
My body: haha nope. It’s panic attack time
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hrh-the-royals · 6 months
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Transcript Below:
Najwa: Bit of a night cap? Noelle: We're drinking beer at six pm, eating pizza, donuts and kababs. Najwa: Sounds like a very fun night cap. Noelle: Hn. I'm just happy for a bit of relaxing time. It was nice of the guys to take the kids out. Najwa: Yeah, wait, has Imani been to the magic realm yet? Should I tell Abeni not to take them? Noelle: It's fine, I haven't taken her yet but it'll be fun for her. And Luca. I haven't seen any signs in her though. Najwa: That doesn't mean she can't access the power. Noelle: Yeah, I'll worry about it later and if she wants to do more, I'm sending her to Auntie Najwa for training. Najwa: And we'll welcome her with open arms. So, don't hold back, what did you think about the party. Noelle: Way less stuffy than the ones I attended in Windenburg. The food tasted better as well. People weren't too scared to talk, I didn't even have an issue with the media present. Noelle: Well, the Oasis media is far less….horrible? evil? so many words…than the media in Windenburg but it was a great party. I felt the love for Auntie and Uncle. Najwa: That's good, that's what I wanted. And I was filled with stress with all of the people we invited. I saw you had a talk with Miliana. Noelle: Yeah, managing to get all of us with tension in one room and not kill each other? Did someone say Sim Peace Prize. You deserve and Miliana isn't bad. She's just not cut from the cloth, not all the way at least. Najwa: There seems to be some hope for the Windenburg royals Noelle: Maybe but enough about them, I have some news to drop. Luca's coronation is coming up, Otto wants to step down and see it happen before he he kicks the bucket. Najwa: From what I know of King Otto, that is something he would say, but I didn't think it'd happen so soon. Let's eat and drink before that day. Noelle: Sounds like a plan, the calm before the storm.
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mindofharry · 3 years
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In which bucky and you are hooking up and he doesn’t appreciate you until you’re gone.
angst!! so much angst!! swearing, bucky saying stuff he doesn’t mean and a whole lot of crying. feedback is welcome as always <3
roughly based around the time the falcon and the winter soldier meet up again :D enjoy, lovers!
losing you masterlist.
You met Bucky just after he moved into the apartment block. He looked pretty lost and you, being you, decided to lend a helping hand and help out a neighbour.
You did not expect him to end up in your bed the next morning.
It was unexpected and kind of childish, but he made your heart pound and your lips to as red as a cherry. Bucky barnes had you wrapped around his finger before he even knew your name, he just had that kind of charisma. You wanted to be around him all the time, be more than just the causal hook up. Not just someone he calls when he needs to let off steam. You want to be it for him. Bucky is unpredictable and stubborn, but you were sure you could fix him or at least help him onto a better path.
He just wouldn’t let you in.
You’d have sex, and then he’d kick you out. He wouldn’t even let you stay the night. Which at first you didn’t really care about as he would always greet you with a smile and walk you to the local bar. Bucky would have actual conversations with you, that was only for a week. The sex got more hot, more steamy and a lot more fucking rough. He didn’t greet you in the morning, not even a smile and he most definitely didn’t walk you to the bar anymore. He said it was a waste of his time.
You’re a confident person, you don’t usually let people like bucky barnes hurt you this much.
But he was so much more than a hook up to you, you loved him.
It was wednesday, so that means when bucky is done with his lunch he’d text and you’d meet him at his apartment. That’s what happens every wednesday and you never question it. Why would you? A strapping man like bucky wants you in some way. You’re not going to let it go because you have feelings for him.
It might be a little selfish, but you loved him too much.
You made yourself something to eat and watched some downtown abbey to calm yourself down. Bucky liked it when you were chill and not your usual bubbly self. You’ve changed yourself completely for this man. You hope it’s all worth it in the end.
After eating and relaxing for a bit, you decide to shower and get ready for buckys. You want to look nice, show him what he’s missing.
You wash your body with multiple shower gels, and decide to shave your legs - which really, you didn’t want to it’s a lot of effort and you’re just not in the mood today. But if bucky likes it, you’ll do it.
He mentioned once while you were in bed that he loved how smooth your legs are. So you shaved them before every hook up.
“You’re amazing” You reminded yourself, putting on your mascara. The make up will only come off, but again you want to make a good and lasting impression on him. You never used to wear makeup, just a bit a blusher and the occasional gloss. But bucky likes it. It’s always about what bucky likes and dislikes. Your mother would be so disappointed in you.
You shake your head to get rid of those thoughts and walk into your room. This time you pick something you want to wear. Opening up your closet you pull out your flowery, summery, dress that got at a marker in spain. Your family flew there and spent the summer in a nice little villa. It was the only bit of a peace you felt. When you came home, it felt like everything you left behind came crashing down.
Maybe that’s why you depend so much on bucky. You never wanted to be that person, but bucky makes it so hard. And you’re definitely not blaming him for you becoming so attached, you’re definitely the one to blame. But bucky is just, he’s just this great guy.
Or at least he was.
You get it, he lost a lot of people in the blip and after the blip. You lost people too. But it obviously affected him more, so you’re cutting him some slack.
Even if he doesn’t really deserve it.
After getting dressed and making yourself look some what presentable you text bucky to let him know you’re on the way to his apartment - it was only a 30 second walk, but you know he liked his privacy, so you warn him each time.
There was no response. As per usual, you thought rolling your eyes. You strolled down to his apartment taking your time, the weather looked nice enough. Maybe you’ll go for a walk after this, you know you won’t be staying long in buckys home.
You knock on the door, looking down at your phone. Still no messages. Now this, was surprising. Even if he didn’t text he’d always let you know in some way if he couldn’t make it. Bucky may be a dick, but he’d never leave you waiting.
You wait outside for a minute and contemplate leaving, but your hear footsteps walking towards you. You look over and see the man you love.
Bucky Barnes.
And he did not look happy. Angry, frustrated and confused maybe, but not happy. Usually he’s in a good mood after meeting up with his little friend for lunch. Did something happen? You don’t want to pressure him, but you need him to know you’re always there for him.
You were snapped out of your thoughts when bucky stepped infront of you, his eyebrows furrowed and scowl on his face.
“What are you doing here?” He asked fishing out his keys. You start to get annoyed, this man is really testing you. But you push that feeling down and put a smile on your face, placing a hand on his shoulder. Bucky shrugged it off, the smile fell off your face. Bucky noticed, but didn’t say anything.
“I’m busy today” He said putting the key into the door, trying to open it. He obviously put the wrong one in, frustrating him even more.
“We always meet up on wednesdays, and i did text you. But you never replied so i just assumed” You said, messing with the hem of your dress.
You wish he’d compliment you.
“Well you assumed wrong and i need you to leave. Got a date tonight” He said finally opening up his door. Your heart broke, it actually felt like it shattered into a million different piece. A date? With another person? Fuck, you didn’t think this far ahead. You thought that one day he would just realise. That it’s been you, you’re the one he wants. But obviously you were wrong.
You were wrong about a lot of fucking things.
But you put a brave face on and walked into his apartment, closing the door behind you. Again, you didn’t want to intrude but you needed to know how serious this date is. You need to know if this is the end of you and bucky.
Bucky sighed as he saw you standing in his hallway, he looked exasperated. Like you were a chore he forgot about or had been putting off. He looked at you like you were exhausting. Maybe you are. You should’ve never agreed to this hook up, friends with benefits shit. It always ends badly.
“Y/N, i said you need to leave” Bucky said placing a hand over his eyes. You nodded and instead of leaving you sat beside him. Bucky looked over at you and you’ve never seen him angrier.
“Are you deaf?” he asked and you flinched at his tone. “I have a date, and i need you to get the fuck out of my house” Bucky said and you sighed standing up.
“You’re an asshole” You mumbled and bucky stood up as well.
“You don’t say that when i’m balls deep in you” He replied, placing a hand on your cheek. He wasn’t rough when he grabbed you, but it did scare you a bit.
“This was just sex Y/N. Nothing more. You’re not my type, you’re too exhausting and tiring for me. I’m not interested in that sort of shit. Get the hell out of my home” Bucky said sternly letting go of your face. You searched his eyes for any sign of remorse or guilt, but nothing. He looked proud of himself really.
You sighed to yourself and wiped under your eyes. This is it. Fuck, ok don’t cry Y/N.
“I hope you enjoy your date” You said walking past him.
“Oh, I will” he smirked, watching as you left his apartment. You held back a sob as you ran to your apartment, ignoring on the stares and pitiful looks. You needed to leave the place.
You called your mom and told her the whole story and surprisingly she wasn’t disappointed.
“I could never be disappointed in you, baby. look at you, you’re amazing” Your mom said making you giggle. “That man doesn’t know what he just lost. a great friend is one of them. Now, men aren’t something you should be crying over. Go get yourself freshened up and then relax. You deserve it, honey” She said and you nodded to yourself, sitting up on your bed.
The tears were almost instant. Your mother hated to hear you cry. She lived so far away, and you just needed her hugging and cooking to make all of this pain go away. Heartbreaks are normal, their natural and everyone goes through it. It just hurts even more when the person you love the most doesn’t love you back.
“I love him” You admitted and your mom sighed. You could tell that she hated this too. “I met him when he was kind to me, he would walk me to the bar sometimes work too” You said and tried to stop the tears, but they just kept coming. “He was sweet. He would cuddle with me and not throw me out of his home. And he would listen, he would listen to anything i had to say” You sobbed.
“What did i do wrong? What did i do to make him hate me, mom?”
Your mother let out a pained sound. She just wanted to hug you and tell you everything would be ok.
“You did absolutely nothing wrong. This is all on him, honey. He didn’t appreciate what he had. He took advantage of your kindness and love towards him. You did nothing wrong. Never blame yourself for something like this.” She said quickly and groaned.
“I’ve gotta go” You said, and before your mom could get a word in you hung up and threw your phone against the wall.
Another thing to get fixed.
You did actually have work; but you decided you would get anything productive done. So giving yourself the day off would be good. Sit around, pig out and do not think of bucky barnes.
That lasted all of 5 minutes.
You’re now watching the notebook and didn’t get through 5 minutes of it without thinking of bucky. It’s not like you guys did actual couple things. Why are you so upset? Because you loved him, you idiot.
And now you have to get over him. If he was going on dates, you would too. If he was sleeping with other people, you would too. It’s time bucky barnes got a taste of his own medicine.
A week went by where you through yourself back into work and focused on catching up with old friends. During the day you didn’t think once about bucky, but when you got home that’s when the sob fests start. You’re pretty sure your neighbours can hear you, you feel a little bad.
Wednesday came and you didn’t once check your phone - one because it was smashed and you could barley see the screen, and two because you’re not going to be that girl anymore. You’re come to terms with the fact that bucky wasn’t for you, and although your heart is still very, very broken.
You’re doing better. You’re getting there.
On the other side of the apartment block, bucky barnes was not getting there or doing ok. You hadn’t texted him in a over a week, that’s a new record for you. Usually you send him memes or little reminders randomly. But there’s nothing, he’s been staring at his phone screen for far too long waiting for you to text.
He sighed and began typing.
‘ Hey, it’s bucky. Wondering if we’re still on for tonight? X ‘
He sent it and then put his phone down, turning on his tv. The date he went on was a bust. The girl wasn’t you, he figured that out pretty quickly. It’s not the girl wasn’t good looking or anything and she was nice enough, he just couldn’t stop comparing her to you. Y/N wouldn’t get the drink or Y/N wouldn’t sit that far away, or Y/N wouldn’t totally flipped that jackass off. He left abruptly in the middle of the date because he couldn’t handle it anymore. He couldn’t handle not being with you, and that, to him was a problem. Bucky hadn’t been this dependent on a person since steve.
And steve left.
Bucky was just protecting himself, but while he was doing that - he hurt you. Immensely. He put you through so much pain in after this relationship. It was barley even a relationship, but it hurt just as much.
10 minutes went by, and there was still no response. You didn’t even read the message. Now he knows how you feel. Instead of waiting a little longer, bucky decided to just go to your apartment instead. He strolled down the hall and knocked on your door. Your neighbour came out of his home. Bucky nodded his way, the man only tutted at him.
“Poor girl” The man mumbled walking away leaving bucky confused. He shook it off and knocked again, this time you finally answered. You looked beautiful. You were wearing a tight, red dress showing all of your curves off you hair was straightened and you weren’t wearing any make up - you still looked behind beautiful.
“Bucky....” you said with furrowed brows.
“I texted but there was no reply” He said walking into your apartment and taking off his jacket. He grinned and put his hands on your hips. You were even more confused, did he just forget about last week? What he said to you?
“Did you get dressed up all for me?” He asked you cleared your throat moving back so his hands would fall off you, bucky looked at you with a scowl.
“What’s up?” he asked moving his hands to your cheeks, you remembered how he grabbed you the last time and you flinched. Bucky froze for a second and dropped his arms to his side. Something was obviously wrong.
“I’m going on a date, bucky” You said and buckys world stopped for a second. A date? With who? This can not be happening.
“Whatever we have going on, it’s done. So i don’t know why you’re here” You said walking into your room to finish getting ready, you needed to find your black heels.
You met this guy at work, and you really hit it off. So when he asked for a date, you didn’t hesitate. You were putting you first, like you should’ve been doing all along.
“Done?” Bucky asked following you, you nodded and shrugged your shoulders. “You made it pretty clear last week” You said and bucky sighed rolling his eyes. “So this is about the date?” He said and you didn’t reply.
“It’s about what you said to to me, bucky. You’re selfish and mean. And i deserve better”
Bucky sat down on the end of your bed beside you. He knew what he was doing, you were an easy lay. Bucky hates himself for breaking your heart, god knows he broke his own letting you go and saying those awful words to you. You do deserve better.
“So with that being said, i think it’s time for you to leave”
And this time, it was you kicking bucky out of your bed.
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honey-milk-depresso · 3 years
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That Charm Shop In Liyue (Various Liyue Characters)
Fresh early morning in Liyue and someone has already entered your shop house. What type of charms do they wish for?
“Good morning!”
“Ah, good morning, Miss y/n,” a deep voice greeted you back.
Ah, so it’s Zhongli again.
He’s a regular customer, he comes here to see and perhaps buy one or two or all of your charms, pottery and other handmade trinkets you had made.
“Have you come here to see the charms? Have you thought of buying some?” you questioned. Most of the time, he didn’t bring the money, to which a certain someone would come in to his “financial rescue”.
“This charm,” he pointed to the brown and gold six flower knots that had a few auburn and burnish jade beads attached to the tassel, “what was the inspiration of this charm?”
“Ah that one. This charm was inspired by the Liyue god himself, Rex Lapis. It’s to bring about prosperous opportunities and benefits, find a trustworthy and loyal partner..” you spaced out.
Zhongli chuckled to which you snapped out of your own dreamy daze.
“Ah, well, that’s for mostly me and the other ladies who hope for a partner like that. Ahehehe..”
Zhongli simply gave you a small smile. “I’m sure you will.”
“Ah.”
He took a good look at the charm again. “Perhaps I shall hang this outside of the funeral parlour. So Hu Tao wouldn’t be constantly asking me how our profits are doing.”
You giggled at his remark. “Miss Hu Tao’s just worried about her company is all. I’m sure she meant no harm!”
“ Putting that aside, I would like to buy this charm.”
“Did you bring your wallet?”
“Let me-”
“No, he didn’t . Let me help you, Mr Zhongli.”
There comes Mr Zhongli’s walking wallet, Childe.
He’s the one who ends up buying the charms and other things Zhongli wanted to buy.
“Good morning, y/n! How are you this morning? Remembered to eat breakfast? If not I got some.” Childe placed a bento on the wooden counter in front of you.
“Did Xiangling made this?”
“Yeah. She said you should really eat up. She noticed how you were getting a lot more locked up in that little working studio of yours.”
“Is that so?” Lately, you’ve been getting more engrossed in your own charm making and crafts for your shop. You had so much inspiration for the past few weeks.
“ You have to remember to take care of yourself, y/n.”
“Yes, yes. Of course. I’ll make sure of it.”
“You better. Welp, me and Mr Zhongli gotta buzz. See you around, y/n!”
“Bye Childe and Zhongli!”
========================== “Ganyu?”
“Ah! Miss y/n. How is everything going so far?”
Ganyu is not a buyer, but she comes in to patrol. She seems to really enjoy being in your shop to just chat with you, and you of course didn’t mind having to talk to her. Who wouldn’t?
”Great and normal as per usual!” you chuckled stupidly.
Ganyu giggled. “Well that’s great to hear!”
“So are you still taking lessons from Xiao?”
“Yep, still am.”
“How are things going?”
She sighed. “Alright I guess. It’s just a tad bit tiring. But I can manage.”
“Well remember to take breaks every now and then. Don‘t overwork yourself.”
“Thank you, y/n. Take care!”
“You too!”
========================== “Need help?”
You yelped in surprise as you almost toppled the box of charms you were carrying towards the trade boat.
Xiao would appear randomly out of nowhere in the evening to check up on you, for who knows what reason. It’s not that you don’t mind the adeptus’ company, it‘s just that he should really just stop startling you every 5 seconds.
”Oh! Xiao! Um, yeah! Thanks..”
He simply huffed and took the boxes from your hand, carrying it and loading it on the boat.
By that time, you scrambled back into your tiny shop house and took out a plate of his favorite dish; almond tofu.
“Thought you might have come back from your missions. Here as thanks for protecting Liyue and...er helping me carry boxes?” you chuckled awkwardly. He simply grunted. “It’s the job of an adept to protect Liyue. ” Yet he took that plate.
This softie.
You simply smiled and rolled your eyes a little. “Yeah, yeah, of course.”
“Hmph.”
Xiao glance back to the Inn Verr worked in.
“I should get going. And thank you for... the meal.”
”It’s no problem.”
He put on his mask and leaped onto your roof before jumping back to the inn.
You had to admit. He looked really cool doing that.
==========================
“Oh, Lady Ningguang?”
“Hello, dear y/n.” She smiled warmly.
Ningguang sometimes came here to buy your charms, or simply just browsed your items while having conversations with you. Sometimes, she gives you small gifts when she leaves. She wasn’t a regular customer like Zhongli, but she definitely wasn’t a rare sight to encounter, well, at night mostly.
“I actually have an invitation for you.”
”An- an invitation??”
Now that’s something new.
“Yes. I‘m inviting you over to Wangshu Funeral Parlor for some tea. I think you need a well deserved break.”
“Oh. Well, you’re very kind Lady Ninggaung, but I’m not quite sure.” Why that place though?
“Come on now. I insist.”
You sweat dropped. Ningguang sure is persistent.
”Well, I guessed it can’t be helped..”
She beamed.
”Wonderful! Be there at 7 in the evening. Here’s the invitation.”
She handed you a white paper that had words engraved in gold. “Thank you, Lady Ningguang. I’ll be sure to come!”
” Likewise.”
===========================
“Okay,” you mumbled to yourself. You had just set foot outside of your shop house, dressed nicely and presentably as can be for your chat with Ningguang.
“Y/n.”
”Ah! Xiao stop scaring me like that!”
He simply shrugged.
“Where are you going?”
“Wangshu Funeral to meet up with Lady Ningguang.”
Xiao’s eyes widened ever slightly. “Oh yes, it’s 5pm...”
“ What was that?”
“Nothing. Come, I shall help you go to the parlour.”
“You know you don’t have to, Xiao. I’ll be fine. It’s only the evening.”
“No, it’s unsafe during this hour. I’m following you regardless.”
==========================
“Huh?”
“Surprise!”
There stood not just Ningguang, but Zhongli, Ganyu, Childe, Hu Tao, and so many others. Even Keqing was there. And Qiqi and Xiangling!
“Wha- What is all this??”
“It’s to say thank you for always being out for us!” Yanfei exclaimed.
“Out for you..?”
“You’re shop has always brought a peace of mind to many of us, and we thank you for being a friend when we felt down, even if it was unintentional or indirect, we would still like to thank you for being there for us to be invited in your open arms, and for the hard work you have put in,” Zhongli stated as he bowed slightly and took your hand ever so gently, enough to make your cheeks dusted in pink over the charming gesture.
“O-oh, I, um, I never knew that...ahehehe...Well...I’m glad to hear that!”
“Mhm! This party is also for you to relax and hangout!” Ganyu smiled.
You glance at the table that’s filled with dishes of food.
“The food...”
“Don’t worry, y/n! There’s plenty of food to go around! You’ll get the lion’s share obviously!” Xiangling said.
“Yeah, we also bought you gifts! Or at least, I bought half of the gifts on that table over there,” Childe stated as he pointed to a table on the left just loaded with gifts, “not to make it look like you’re birthday, but, ehhhh, yeah.”
“Hmm?”
You looked at all the gifts, the food and everyone else who loved coming to your shop house. What did you do to deserve these wonderful people. You tear up a little, overwhelmed by emotions that couldn’t be explained through words.
“H-hey! I didn’t mean to make you cry!!”
“Way to go, Childe.”
“N-no,” everyone else looked at you worriedly. 
“I-I’m just really grateful for all this.... and you guys mostly. Thank you for also being there for me...” you smiled.
Xiao just smiled a little, but it was sincere.
Zhongli went up to you and gently cupped your face up, rubbing your tears away with his thumb. He smiled warmly at you.
“Likewise.”
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duuhrayliegh · 3 years
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my hero - request
request: anon: hi could you write a sebastian x female reader fic where she suffers from anxiety and feels bad because of it but he comforts her and tells her there’s nothing wrong with her and how strong she is even though she has this disorder
pairing: sebastian stan x female!reader
warnings: self-esteem issues, anxiety, toxicity in the fandom, language?
a/n: hey nona! you weren’t super specific on what type of anxiety that you wanted to reader to have, so if this isn’t what you had in mind, lmk and i’ll write you another fic! other than that i hope you like it!
p.s.: my requests and tag lists are open!!
xoxo ray
check out my m.list
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You and Seb met at a coffee shop in New York. It was totally cliche and seemed straight out of a storybook. You had somehow managed to spill coffee on that specimen of a man, and he was kind enough to let you pay for his dry cleaning. Your relationship didn’t grow until you ran into him again while you were at a bar with your friends. If he had any say in telling the story of how you met, he spotted you from across the smoky bar and he knew then and there that he had to get to know you. Truthfully, you liked his version, but the real one was just indescribable. It seemed, to you at least, that you were destined to be with this man. Seeing him twice in one week? Come on, that’s possible if you were in the small town you grew up in, but not New York.
You obviously had recognized him as an actor, but really you didn’t care. That’s what drew Sebastian to you in the first place. You treated him as if he was any other guy on the street, he was able to be a normal person around you. Now, two years later, you lounge on the couch of your apartment in LA that you shared with the man you love. He’s still auditioning for any role that catches his eye and you’re supporting him no matter what.
His fans for the most part adored you and your relationship with Sebastian. The fans who didn’t like you were your only issue with this whole affair, but they had nothing to do with Sebastian other than flood his socials with nasty messages about you. You weren’t perfect, that you knew all too well, and you tried to let the comments roll off your shoulders. Most of the time you were successful in your efforts, but other times they clung to your skin like an unwanted disease.
Sebastian was currently promoting his new project Endings, Beginnings. You were so unbelievably proud of Seb, he was doing something that made him happy. In this particular film, he was acting alongside Shailene Woodley, who was just amazing. Seb always came home gushing about the new inside jokes that they had come up with. One of your favorite things that Seb did with you was run lines. You liked having the inside scoop on his new works, but this one was harder for you. It had quite a few sex scenes between Seb’s character Frank and Shailene’s Daphne.
Not that it bothered you. Nope. Didn’t bother you. At all.
...mmm, okay maybe it bugged you a little. It wasn’t that you didn’t trust Sebastian, it was… well you couldn’t really describe what it was. Whatever the case may be, it was putting you deeper and deeper into a funk, one that you were having a hard time coming out of. And Seb’s fans who weren’t in your corner, weren’t really helping you any.
A few nights ago, Seb surprised you with a casual night out in LA. He texted you before he got home and told you that he was going to be taking you out. Did he give you a dress code for the evening? No, he did not (wonderful, thanks so much Seb). You decided to dress in a half business casual, half rail me when we get home outfit. You ended up wearing an adorable bustier top that was embroidered with pretty blue and pink flowers, a pair of destroyed jeans covered your legs. You finished it off with a pair of nude heels, when you looked in the mirror, you thought you looked hot as fuck. It was around seven when Seb picked you up, mouth hanging open, in awe of your outfit.
“Oh my god. You look so beautiful, Y/N.” He opened the passenger door of his car after he hugged you, giving you a small peck on the lips. Sebastian drove you to a restaurant a block off of Thai Town called Home Restaurant.
“Babe, this place is so cute!” You squeezed Sebastian’s upper arm, jumping up and down beside him. “How’d you find this place?” Sebastian shook his head, smiling at you.
“I asked Shai, actually.” He rubbed his hand on the back of his neck, and your heart sank a little. Why did it do that? “She said that the paps hardly ever come around here.” He leaned down pressing a kiss to your temple. “I thought that draga mea deserved a quiet night out on the town.” His voice rasped as he spoke in his native tongue, making a shiver race down your spine.
“Well, tell her I said thank you.” You offered him a small smile. He wrapped his arm around your waist, drawing circles on the exposed skin above your jeans. He spoke with the hostess as your mind drifted away. You were pulled out of your thoughts when he guided you to your table. Sebastian sat across from you, staring deeply into your eyes. You brought your hand up to rest your chin on it, staring back at him. “How’s everything been going?” You were genuinely interested in the answer and it made your heart warm watching his face light up.
“It’s been going really well. Everyone we worked with was real nice, it made all the scenes more comfortable.” Seb’s eyebrows rose at the mention of the scenes and you knew which ones he was referring to.
“Oh, right.” You tried not to let your emotions show.
“Yeah, we’re about to start teasing some of them to promote the show.” Seb sighed at the thought of having to use social media, you shook your head at him.
“I’ll help you with it, you dork.” You laughed to hide your discomfort. “Which scene did they approve for the posts?” Sebastian began to speak when he was interrupted by your waitress. After the two of you ordered your food, the waitress returned with your drinks. Sebastian took a large gulp of his before answering your previous question.
“They want me to post the trailer and then the scene between Frank and Daphne at the bar.” You tried to think back to the script, remembering the context. Frank and Daphne were meeting after Daphne had gone out on a date with Jack. Daphne was claiming that she didn’t want to be a wedge in their friendship, then proceeded to make out with Frank. If you were recalling correctly, Frank and Daphne’s first sex scene followed soon after.
“Okay, we can do that. Do you have any behind the scene pictures you wanna post too?” Seb got out his phone, scrolling through his camera roll to see. He had several different photos of him with Jamie and then him with Shailene. He showed you his phone on a picture of Shailene leaned against him on a couch, her arm over his waist. A red filter colored the photo, you had to hand it to him, it was a good one to use. “We can post it whenever we get home, love.” Sebastian locked his phone and shoved it in his pocket, to focus solely on you.
“How has your day been, draga mea?” You bit your lip as you thought about what you’ve been doing. You’ve been working towards your Master’s, so your days have been filled with preparing for your dissertation. On top of that, you’ve become a bit of an influencer on different social media platforms. Really, you believe your popularity came from your relationship with Sebastian. You’ve been giving his fans the content that they’ve always wanted. Not only that, but you’re active with them.
“My day was good today. I had to edit a few papers from my other classmates but other than that I didn’t do much. I did make a few TikTok videos, but really today was a bit of a lounge day for me.” Seb smiled at you, proud of how hard you’ve been working.
“I should be getting a few days off soon, so we can relax together in the apartment, if you aren’t too busy with your classes.” He stretched his arm across the table, palm up waiting for your hand. Seb pulled your hand up to his mouth, placing a sloppy kiss onto the back of it. His eyes settled on you lovingly. To Sebastian, you were the greatest thing that had ever happened to him.
The two of you managed to finish your meal in peace. No fans came up to Sebastian asking for photos, no paparazzi swarms when you left, just a quiet meal for a normal couple in love. After you got home and you were snuggled in your pajamas alongside Sebastian in your comfortable bed, he handed you his phone to read over his post for his Instagram. The paragraph was sappy, about his time working with Drake, the director, and working with the rest of the cast. Seb always was a softy, never was able to hide it, especially in promo posts.
“It looks good to me. Are you going to post it now? Or wait until tomorrow morning?” Seb debated, he probably should wait and do it tomorrow, but he was most likely going to forget to do it. He clicked post, putting his phone on charge and snuggling into you.
“Thank you for always being there for me, Y/N.” He kissed your jawline, nuzzling his face into your neck. “It really means a lot to me, baby. I love you so much.” He wrapped both hands around your waist, pulling you to his front. You smiled wide, momentarily forgetting all of your troubles.
“I love you too, Seb.” You turned your head slightly, pressing a kiss against the corner of his mouth. “Now let’s get some sleep, love.” Little did you know that a single post could ruin all of the progress that you thought you had made.
*********************
You woke the next morning, alone in bed. You could hear pots clanging in the kitchen of your home, bringing a smile to your face. Before you left the safety of your bed, you checked your socials out of habit. You opened Instagram first, seeing an absurd amount of notifications this early in the morning. Your smile dropped as soon as you opened the first post. Comments on Sebastian’s post about Endings, Beginnings and his chemistry with Shailene weren’t entirely out of the ordinary. They were to be expected, they were playing parts in a love triangle. People were ‘shipping’ Shailene with Seb and Jamie, so that wasn’t too crazy.
What hurt you were the comments saying, “living for shailene and sebastian! she’s a much better match for him than y/n.”
“never thought that y/n girl was going to last, glad he’s going w shailene”
“shailene and seb supremacy”
“yes! i’ve always supported seb in everything he’s done, but i rlly questioned him when he got w that y/n girl. what was he thinking?!”
Tears gathered in your eyes as you continued scrolling. You never thought you and Sebastian never fit. You knew that people had issues with your relationship, but you never let it get in your head this bad. You checked your explore page, pictures of you and Sebastian from last night were riddling the page.
Your heart dropped.
There were pictures of the two of you from last night with parts of your body circled. The exposed skin above your waistband, the excess skin on your neck and arms. You don’t know where they got these pictures, but your stomach was steadily sinking with each picture you saw. The door of your room opened, revealing a smiley Sebastian with a plate full of eggs in one hand and a cup of orange juice in the other.
“Good morning, baby.” You quickly shoved your phone away from you, wiping your tears away from your eyes to meet his. His brows furrowed immediately. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?” You snuffled quietly, before answering.
“Uh, nothing. I’m just so proud of you.” You smiled at him, not wanting to bring down his already happy mood with your problems. Was that entirely healthy? Probably not, but you were doing it anyway, consequences be damned.
“Oh, well you don’t have to cry for me, Y/N. Even if you’re proud.” He walked up to your side of the bed, placing the cup and plate on your nightstand. He brought his hand up to your cheeks, wiping away your tear streaks. “You know that I only like to see tears whenever it’s me causing you so much pleasure you beg me to stop.” He winked at you, smirking at your rising blush. To say that didn’t lift your spirits for about half a second would be a lie. Sebastian brought the plate to your lap, waiting for you to start eating. At this particular moment, after seeing all those horrible pictures of your body, your appetite had gone out the window, but he was so smiley.
“After you eat, I want ya to shower.” Sebastian’s hand came up to your jaw, cupping it as you used it to chew the eggs. “We’ve got a long day of lounging and enjoying each other's company ahead of us.” Sebastian stood from the bed, throwing a wink at you as he left the room dramatically. You stopped eating soon after he left, the food tasting like ash on your tongue. At some point, you got into the bathroom, staring at the reflection in the mirror.
Your phone was in your hand again. The pictures flooding your Twitter feed. Shaky breaths left your mouth as you watched your reflection tilt its head. Tears began gathering in your eyes as it felt like you weren’t in your own skin anymore. You had worked so hard to be comfortable in your own body.
It’s amazing how just one picture can ruin everything.
You leaned forward on the countertop, hands holding up your weight. You shifted towards the mirror, examining every miniscule detail that your eyes could see. Your lids came down quickly, tears dragging down your cheeks. You squeezed your eyes closed, shaking your head back and forth.
“You are not going to let this get to you.” You took a few deep breaths as you turned on the shower. Not wanting to be around the mirror anymore, you kept your bath short, talking to yourself the whole time. By the time you left the bathroom, it was steamed completely, you couldn’t see your reflection even if you wanted to.
“He loves you.” You had a mantra and you continued to repeat it as you walked into your shared closet. “He loves all of you.” You pulled one of his old t-shirts off a hanger. “Sebastian loves you.” A pair of your underwear and his loose boxers covered your lower half. “Sebastian loves all of you.” You shoved your feet into a pair of fuzzy pink socks, leaving the closet still muttering to yourself. You tucked your phone into your waistband after checking your socials again. You know you shouldn’t have, but there was some part of you that just wouldn’t let you not.
The same shit covered your For You page on TikTok. Videos from the trailer of Seb and Shailene and then videos of you and Seb, comparing the two relationships. “They do fit well together.” You thought to yourself. A part of you wondering why Seb was with you in the first place.
“Did you say something, love?” Sebastian looked at you from the couch. A blanket was strewn over his lower half, his upper body inviting, waiting for you to join him. His smile dropped when he took in your glassy eyes instead of your usual happy expression.
“Oh baby, what’s wrong?” He started towards you, eyes running over your body for any outward injuries. An understanding look crossed his face when he saw your phone clutched in your hand. “Y/N, talk to me, baby.” Sebastian’s hands rested on your shoulders, lightly caressing your biceps. You recoiled from his touch, feeling uncomfortable in your own body.
“Just some stuff that some fans posted.” Seb’s thumb traced just under your eye, wiping away the tears. He held his right hand out for your phone, to understand what you were talking about. His brows furrowed deeply as he scrolled, not fully processing how destructive his fans could be. Sebastian always believed that they were the best fucking people in the world. He knew that they could be mean, but this was something else.
“They don’t know what they’re talking about, Y/N.” Sebastian’s voice was firm. It was almost strong enough to cut through the fog invading your brain, but not quite. You had officially zoned out. Dead to the world. Lost in your own thoughts. No matter how destructive those thoughts may be.
Sebastian noticed that you were already too deep, having experienced this with you many times before. He was aware that you were self-conscious, insecure, however you want to describe it. Your anxiety always got worse when you were stressed. Prepping for your dissertation was definitely a stressful time. Add on top of that, Sebastian was constantly pulling you from your work for various reasons. Had he contributed to this? Scratch that thought, he didn’t have time for that. He needed to bring you back down to Earth, back to him.
“Y/N.” His hands hovered over your hips. “I’m going to touch you for a second.” He directed you to the couch, settling on the coffee table in front of you. His fingers lightly traced circles onto your knees, as he assessed how he should approach this.
“Y/N. Baby?” Sebastian hesitated before bringing his fingers up to your chin, not wanting you to react badly. “I’m right here, Y/N, it’s Sebastian.” His left hand hadn’t left your knee, continuing to trace small patterns into your skin, giving you something to ground yourself with. He watched you blink and swallow harshly, inhaling sharply before opening your mouth.
“Why are you with me?” Your chin trembled with unvoiced sobs. “You deserve the world, Seb. I’m not even--” Your sentence was cut off by a loud whimper causing tears to start streak down. Sebastian wasn’t sure if this was a situation where you wanted him to be involved, so he waited for a sign.
“I’m not even worth a glance from you.” Your hand came up to wipe at your runny nose. “They’re so right. You need to be with someone like Shailene.” A bitter sob racked your body, making your body fold in half. Sebastian caught you before you hurt yourself.
“Y/N. I love you.” He always heard you say that to yourself when you thought he wasn’t listening. He knew that you suffered from anxiety, so he was always watching. Always paying attention to your little cues. The little things that he could use to help you as much as he could. “I love all of you.” He held one of your hands, running his thumb over the back of it.
“I don’t care what they say, baby.” He lifted your face to his, steel blue eyes locking with your cloudy pair. “I picked you.” He pecked your right cheek. “I want you.” A peck to your left. “I want only you.” One to your forehead. “It’s always been you, Y/N.” Another on your chin. “I love all of you, Y/N.” Sebastian landed a final short kiss to your lips, lingering for only a second.
“I want you to understand something, Y/N.” His gaze never left you. “I’m not going anywhere.” His brows raised as he hardened his voice. “I’m especially not going anywhere at the behest of my fans. I love them to death, but they don’t get to decide who I love.” Sebastian shifted to sit next to you on the couch. “Is it okay if I put my arms around you?” All he got was a brief nod in return, which was expected.
“I’m yours, Y/N. As much as you’re mine.” His arms descended around you, wrapping you in a loving embrace. You turned to face him fully, bringing your own arms around his waist, shoving your head into his neck.
“I’m sorry you have to deal with all my shit, Seb.” Sebastian almost missed your comment because you spoke into his shoulder and through loud snuffles. He backed away to look you in the face.
“I signed up for this, Y/N. I’m here for whatever we go through.” He tucked a stray hair behind your ear. “We go through ‘your shit’ together, Y/N. This is a partnership, a two-way street.” He looked at the weak smile on your face, heart warming slightly at the sight. His face turned serious, casting a glance at your phone on the coffee table.
“How long have you been sitting on this?” He knew how quickly your mind could twist things, so he wasn’t sure what to expect. You bit your lip, not meeting his eyes anymore.
“Just since this morning.” He held you away from his body, watching your expression.
“Is this why you were crying earlier?” You gave him a meek nod in response. “Baby, I thought we talked about this. We have to talk to each other when we think we’re going to go into a funk.” The two of you had talked about it before, but you didn’t think this was going to be a funk.
“I should’ve been able to just shake this off because I know you love me and you won’t leave me because of something that some people on the Internet say.” The words left your mouth before you could process everything, your mind quick to defend itself.
“It’s okay, Y/N. You don’t always have to be able to shake something off. We just have to keep each other in the loop.” Sebastian looked over your tear-stained face, pressing a kiss to your forehead again. “Let’s ditch the phones today. Just spend the day in each other’s arms, how’s that sound?” You smiled softly, nodding at the man in front of you. He got up quickly hiding both of your phones in the kitchen somewhere.
This definitely wasn’t a solution to dealing with your anxiety, Sebastian knew that. It also wasn’t dealing with the toxic people on the Internet, but you didn’t need that right now. You needed to be immersed in an environment that accepted what you were going through without judgement, Sebastian could provide that. Seb hummed happily when you snuggled into his side under the covers on your couch while he searched for a movie. He kissed the top of your head and he felt you smile against his stomach.
“I’m proud of you, draga mea.” You turned to face him, a confused expression lacing your features.
“For what, Seb?” He stroked your face with a single finger, mapping out your features.
“I’m proud of how you handle yourself. I’m amazed at how strong you are, even when you think you’re not.” He leaned closer to you, whispering his next words. “You’re my hero.” One corner of your mouth twitched upwards, not wanting to accept it. You rolled your eyes playfully, settling back onto his stomach before speaking.
“I love you, Sebastian.”
“And I love you, Y/N.”
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robininthelabyrinth · 3 years
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This one's gonna take two asks, I'm incapable of making it more succinct. In Accurate description NHS said "I’m taking you back with me to the Nie sect when all this is over. If your parents want you back, they can come ask nicely.” Could we get that AU? And the Jiangs HAVE to ask nicely, because with the war on the horizon they can't risk alienating the Nies, but they are so bad at it? NHS's half assed plan to poach JC gets more and more solid the longer he has to watch this train wreck.(1/2)
How hard can it be to love your own flesh and blood? Even NMJ has stopped admonishing him for wanting to poach another sect's heir. What a political nightmare that would be. But JC is so relaxed with NHS's birds? And keeping up longer and longer when training with da-ge? And smiling more? And JYL said, she's never seen him so loose in the shoulders? NHS can make this work. JFM and YZY never valued JC anyway 
Part 2 of Accurate Description (necessary to read that first)
-
“Absolutely not,” was the first thing Nie Huaisang’s brother said when Nie Huaisang first raised the idea of kidnapping Jiang Cheng for his own good. “Absolutely fucking not.”
“Nie sect principle three,” Nie Huaisang said.
“Well, shit,” his brother said.
This was because Nie Huaisang’s brother is the best.
“I’ve gotten other people involved in this,” Nie Huaisang added helpfully.
“You’d better have,” his brother said. “I am not dealing with the fallout from this on my own.”
Nie Huaisang nodded happily. That was about what he’d expected.
A few moments later, his brother asked, “Why are we kidnapping him, anyway?”
-
“This is temporary,” Nie Mingjue said gruffly.
“Very temporary,” Jiang Cheng agreed, sounding stiff and awkward. “I don’t even know why I’m here.”
“You know exactly why you’re here,” Nie Huaisang objected. “I told you why!”
Jiang Cheng gave him a dirty look.
“Also I have no idea how da-ge got you here, but you’re staying,” Nie Huaisang said firmly. “For as long as it takes for your parents to show that they deserve you returning to them. You’re not getting a choice.”
Jiang Cheng’s face was turning red.
“That’s not the deal, Huaisang,” Nie Mingjue interjected. “Jiang Wanyin can return home at any time he wishes.”
Nie Huaisang glared, but his brother ignored him.
“He can also stay as long as he wishes,” he said, and this time it was Jiang Cheng’s turn to stare. “If you want others to respect him, you must first pay him the respect he deserves yourself. Now, I have to go, but Jiang Wanyin – know that our home is always open to you.”
He put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it, then ruffled Nie Huaisang’s hair, and left.
Jiang Cheng looked dazed.
Nie Huaisang smirked.
“…you said something about him giving out hugs?”
“Oh yeah,” Nie Huaisang said. “Great hugs.”
-
“I can’t believe you would betray me like this,” Nie Huaisang whined. “And after all I’ve done for you!”
“A little training’s not going to kill you,” Jiang Cheng said. “Come on already.”
“My brother put you up to this, didn’t he? You sold me out for a hug.”
“I sold you out for the opportunity to go on a proper night-hunt,” Jiang Cheng said. “Also, he said he was proud of the progress I’ve been making on my cultivation and sword training since I got here. And gave me a hug.”
Nie Huaisang grumbled but conceded that his brother was especially difficult to resist when he was in full big brother mode. If he wasn’t, Nie Huaisang wouldn’t have been nearly so willing to give up the neat new sword he’d found in the Xuanwu’s cave and store it down in their saber halls until his brother and Baxia could figure out how to suppress it - he hadn’t even realized it was full of resentful energy at first, and he still thought it was especially aesthetic.
“Besides, if you don’t practice something soon, he’ll come after you himself,” Jiang Cheng said. “Wouldn’t you rather train with me?”
“No. You’re just as crazy as he is.”
Jiang Cheng looked disturbingly complimented.
“I’ll come look at your birds later,” he offered.
“You’d do that anyway,” Nie Huaisang said. “You love my birds.”
Jiang Cheng did, too. Nearly as much as he loved all the feral cats that roamed the walls of the Unclean Realm, every single one of which seemed to have immediately pegged him as a soft touch and come nosing around for treats – Nie Huaisang had never seen Jiang Cheng look so calm and peaceful as when he had a cat under his palm.
It really put into perspective how stressed he looked the rest of the time.
“Oh, all right,” he groaned, and Jiang Cheng beamed. “Just know that I hate you.”
“Same to you, Nie-gongzi,” Jiang Cheng said, completely insincere. “Same to you.”
-
“You know, I’m surprised my parents haven’t shown up to demand me back yet,” Jiang Cheng said over lunch one day. “It’s not – it’s not a problem. It’s only – I thought – Mother at least –”
“Oh, they’re demanding all right,” Nie Huaisang sniggered.
“…Nie Huaisang, what have you done,” Jiang Cheng said.
“Conspired, that’s what,” Nie Mingjue said. “I don’t know if I should thank you for discovering my brother’s sole talent, namely for scheming and conspiracies, or to blame you for it, Wanyin – but you do have very loyal friends.”
Jiang Cheng blinked.
“Well, first your parents went to Lanling,” Nie Huaisang explained. “On account of Jin Zixuan and Mianmian very obviously sneaking food around and buying all sorts of things that you would like before smuggling them – very poorly and obviously, mind you – into Jinlin Tower, and of course they were also overheard talking about something that sounded an awful lot like ‘Wanyin’; everyone assumed they were hiding you. Turns out they weren’t, of course; it was just a stray dog they’d named something with similar tones. Not their fault everyone got the wrong idea!”
Jiang Cheng’s eye twitched.
“And then, of course, they went to Gusu, on account of Lan Wangji telling everyone you were his sworn brother –”
“His what?!”
“Well, close enough. On account of how you saved his life.”
“I did not!”
“I thought I heard something about how you carried him on your back as you fled from the Xuanwu’s cave and the Wen sect’s ambushes, when he was exhausted and could not walk,” Nie Mingjue said mildly, and Jiang Cheng spluttered. “Had I heard wrongly?”
“…well, no…but...”
“Of course, you weren’t at Gusu,” Nie Huaisang continued, ignoring them both. “Though there were some heavy implications for a little while that you’d gone off with Lan-gongzi –”
“Isn’t he missing?”
Nie Mingjue coughed and looked down at his plate.
“And none of you said anything?” Jiang Cheng asked, looking between them. “At any point? Did you just, what, not talk to them?”
“I have spoken with your parents several times since they have started looking for you,” Nie Mingjue said, and his voice was suddenly hot with roiling anger. “I have concluded that Huaisang had a point regarding the necessity of their learning how to ask for your return.”
Jiang Cheng blinked.
“Your parents are jerks,” Nie Huaisang volunteered. “And you deserve better.”
“Yes, thank you,” Jiang Cheng said, a little strangled. “I think I – got that.”
“Good.”
-
“It’s just, my jiejie –”
“Supports you being here. She sent you a care package. It’s in your room.”
“…Wei Wuxian –”
“Sent a note along with the package. Says to keep up the good work.”
“How did you even get something like that?!”
“I have my ways.”
-
Nie Huaisang was staring blankly at the wall when Jiang Cheng walked in and did a double take.
“Okay,” he said to Nie Mingjue, sitting patiently nearby with a letter in his hands. “You broke him. How?”
“He just discovered that he inadvertently saved a great deal of lives,” Nie Mingjue said. “As did you, by agreeing to come here.”
“I only agreed to come here because you lied and told me it was necessary to help defend my sect,” Jiang Cheng grumbled, clearly not meaning it.
Nie Huaisang let out a high-pitched and somewhat hysterical giggle.
“It was,” Nie MIngjue said solemnly, offering him the letter. “It appears that Wen Chao was given permission to attack and crush the Jiang sect, but has been delaying in anticipation of your return on account of wanting to deal with all of you at once. The delay allowed our spies time to discover his plans, and to carry warnings to your parents. They were thus able to fortify the Lotus Pier’s defenses against invasion, and to hold it off until aid could arrive – which they wouldn’t have managed if he’d attacked at once, as he would have if you’d been there.”
Jiang Cheng stared.
“Would you like to sit down and stare at the wall?” Nie Mingjue offered kindly.
“…yes please.”
-
“How’d you convince him to let me come here, anyway?” Jiang Cheng asked Nie Huaisang as he packed up his things. He was finally heading back to the Lotus Pier, albeit only long enough to collect soldiers and come back to join what they’d started calling the Sunshot Campaign – his parents had finally figured out where he was and sent word that had, in the view of the Nie, just barely qualified as sufficient to get some leeway.
Lan Wangji was waiting in the hallway to escort him there, and he’d sworn to Nie Huaisang that he would not allow either of Jiang Cheng’s parents to say anything untoward while they were there. He’d looked very serious while he said it, too, which pleased Nie Huaisang to no end and made Jiang Cheng look more than a bit nervous.
“You’re only asking that now?” Nie Huaisang asked, amused.
Jiang Cheng shrugged. “You going to tell me or not?”
“It was easy,” he said. “I just invoked Nie sect principle three.”
“…what’s that?”
“‘A fire burns all the same’,” Nie Huaisang said. “Variously interpreted as: ‘Treat your neighbor’s harm as your own’, ‘Do not stand idly by as your neighbor bleeds’, or ‘Indifference to evil is equivalent to evil’.”
Jiang Cheng stared.
“How about ‘if you see someone who needs you, you have an obligation to act’?”
Jiang Cheng blinked. “Okay,” he said. “And?”
“And what?”
“And what else did you say? You convinced him to literally kidnap the heir of another Great Sect; I can’t believe that you accomplished that simply by saying ‘hey principle three applies here, let’s do this’.”
“Maybe I did,” Nie Huaisang sniffed.
Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes. “Fine, keep your secrets. I’ll get them out of you one day.”
“Maybe you will,” Nie Huaisang said.
-
“Da-ge,” Nie Huaisang said. “If I wanted to keep Jiang Cheng permanently, what principle would I have to invoke for that?”
“Nineteen.”
“Nineteen?” Nie Huaisang frowned. “But, da-ge, principle nineteen is the one about marriage – oooooooh.”
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Text
Catching Up (Adrenaline Junkie Part 9)
Part 1     Part 2     Part 3     Part 4     Part 5     Part 6     Part 7     Part 8     Part 10     Part 11     Part 12     Part 13     Part 14     Part 15     Part 16     Part 17
Spotify Playlist (collaborative)
Warnings: swearing
Word count: 2,156         
“Did you kidnap a child?”
“I can ex- wait what? Of course I didn’t! Why would you think that?”
“Well, for starters, you just came home with a random kid! What were-”
“Dad. I didn’t kidnap anybody, especially Arthur,” you said exasperated. “It started when I was leaving the village.”
And so, you told your dad about how you met Arthur. Needless to say, he was furious. “(Y/n) (m/n) Minecraft, you yelled at a child? Not just a child, but an orphan that was so clearly in need of help?! I raised you better than that.”
“Dad, I know that yelling at kids is wrong. Just-just let me finish.”
He gave you a wicked side eye and nodded at you to continue. “So then he told me that he was alone. That he had no family. I couldn’t just leave him out there Dad. He would’ve been alone in the city. Hell, he’s been alone for god knows how long already” you ran a stressed hand through your already messy hair. “I’m sorry I didn’t ask you if he could crash here-”
“(Y/n).”
“-but he could’ve got hurt! The village’s dangerous at night-”
“(Y/n).”
“Do you know how many people get mugged there just in a day? God, I can’t imagine him getting hurt, he’s so young and-”
“(Y/n) (m/n) Minecraft.” Your hand froze in your hair. “...Yeah?”
“It was a good idea to bring him here. But there’s gotta be someone out there looking for him.”
“I really don’t think so Dad. You saw him when I brought him here, he looked like he didn’t get a proper bath in months! Even if he did have someone, I’d rather him be here instead of with the bastards that left him like that.”
He sighed. “You’re right. I remember when I found you when you were a baby. Your biological parents were awful, they ignored you. I found you on the porch, they must’ve left you there overnight. You were filthy and you were so small and fragile. I remember being so pissed that they treated you like that, but they never gave me their names.”
You squinted at him. “You’ve never told me that. You told me that you found me in an alleyway.”
“I didn’t want to tell you how I actually found you, it was never important for you to know.”
“What do you mean it’s not impor-” you stopped yourself. That’s not important right now. “We’re going to talk about this later. Right now, we need to talk about Arthur before he gets out of the shower.”
Glancing at the clock, you felt worry engulf your being. “Speaking of, he’s been in there a while, do you think he’s okay?” You felt your heart drop. “What if he slipped!” You stood up in a panic. Philza pulled you back onto the bed giving you a knowing look.
“He’s okay hun. Remember, he’s probably just enjoying the shower.”
You bounced your leg. “You’re right, you’re right… What’s with that look?”
“What look?”
“That look.”
“I just think-”
You heard a knock on your door and a small voice calling your name. Immediately jumping up and forgetting about the conversation, you opened your door. 
“Hey buddy, have a good shower?”
He yawned, rubbing at his eye with a closed fist. The pajamas he wore were slightly too big, but he would grow into them. His auburn hair that he came in the house with was now a brilliant copper color and you could now make out freckles dotting his pale cheeks.
“Mhm.”
You softly smiled at him and grabbed his hand leading him to Wilbur’s old room since it had the comfiest bed. You helped the small-statured boy into the large bed and he flopped down without pulling the covers over himself. You huffed in amusement, pulling the soft blankets out from under him and tucking him in.
You spoke in a calm voice, not wanting to disrupt the peace that engulfed the room. You gently brushed the hair out of his face. “Sleep well, Artie.”
As you stood up and turned to walk away, he grabbed the back of your shirt. Glancing back, you saw that he had his eyes groggily half-open and he stared at you blearily. “Stay?”
Oh, you couldn’t say no to that. Feeling your heart melt, you whispered “of course buddy.” You pulled up an old chair and sat next to the bedside holding his small hand in your larger one. He was out like a light. 
He was so small for his age. It was probably because of the malnutrition from being homeless, and that broke your heart. Your poor, poor baby.
…Wait.
Wait.
Your poor baby? What the fuck were you thinking? This child doesn’t even know you, you only met him earlier in the day. And yet, you already felt affectionate towards him. You wanted to protect him from danger. Why were you feeling like this?
You heard the door creak open and a small sliver of light streamed into the room. Philza poked his head through the small crack in the door. He smiled at you when he saw you sitting next to Arthur holding his hand as he slept. Reaching in an arm, he gestured for you to follow him before slipping out and closing the door.
Reluctantly, you slowly let go of the boy’s slender hand and quietly opened the nightstand drawer. You pulled out a pen and paper and wrote a quick note for him in the morning in your messy handwriting.
“Arthur, when you wake up, Philza and I’ll be downstairs making breakfast. Hope you like bacon and eggs : )
-(Y/n)”
You placed the paper on the nightstand where you hoped that Arthur would see when he woke up and quietly left the room. Philza leaning against the wall greeted you. He was smiling softly at you. He once again gestured for you to follow him downstairs.
Philza felt ecstatic that you were going to give him another grandson. Even if you would inevitably deny being a parental figure to Arthur, he knew that you were going to accept it sooner or later. He raised you, so he should know when you deeply care for someone. Arthur and you both shared a love for innovation and creativity, so he knew that you two would bond over that. He felt like soaring high in the sky. He was so happy that there’s going to be another addition to the family soon. 
He sat you down onto the couch and disappeared into the kitchen. A few moments later, he came back with two steaming mugs of hot chocolate. Your favorite.
“Thanks.”
“Anytime hun.”
You both sat in a comfortable silence on the couch and stared into the crackling flame in the fireplace. The fire swirled with various reds, oranges, and yellows illuminating the living room. You closed your eyes for a brief moment, savoring the flavor of the chocolate and the smell of smoke with the fire popping in the background. You felt relaxed.
“So, how’s Tommy and Wilbur? Are they adjusting well to L’manberg?”
“Oh, they’re thriving. Wilbur’s a natural leader so he’s in his element and Tommy’s always exploring with Tubbo. They get into trouble sometimes, but they always come back in one piece, so I’m not worried about them. They’re having fun.”
“And you?”
“I set up my new workshop next to the capitol building. I think I’m gonna start selling some of the stuff I make, I think it’d make a decent profit.”
“I think that’s a great idea. Ya know that the people in the village are crazy about you, right?”
You groaned, dragging your hand down your face tiredly. “How could I not? I hate it.”
“Why would you hate it? They really admire your work, you should appreciate that.”
“Dad, I do appreciate that they admire my work, but do you remember how they treated me when I first went there after I lost my wing? They treated me like a fucking outcast. And now they’re acting like they actually know me and that they were always friends with me. I know everybody deserves a second chance, but I can’t help but feel like they’re on thin ice.” 
“People change hun. Maybe they realize that how they treated you was wrong and they want to make amends?”
“That’s the thing. They’re only treating me like this only because of my inventions. I can only tolerate it for so long. I don’t even know why they’re treating me like this, I’m not special. I’m just another person.”
“...You aren’t gonna let a few two-faced people ruin your vacation, right?”
“No.”
His cheeks slowly stretched into a smile. “Why? Who are you?”
“I’m (y/n)?”
“I said who. Are. You?”
You spoke up a little more confidently, but kept your voice down. “I’m (y/n) (m/n) Minecraft.”
He quietly laughed. “Damn right you are. You’re ‘(Y/n) Minecraft, Conqueror of the Unknown’. You’re (y/n) goddamn Minecraft and don’t you forget it.”
You chuckled. “You read that book? ‘(Y/n) Minecraft, Conqueror of the Unknown’ was a bit too dramatic for my taste.”
“Why wouldn’t I read something all about my precious little inventor?” He drug out with an overly sweet tone.
“Dad, I’m 20 years old. I’m not little anymore.”
He slung an arm across your shoulders and pulled you into his side. “I know, I know, but you’ll always be my child.”
You sighed and leaned into him. You haven’t spent any time with him since you left the house to help Wilbur and Tommy fight for independence, so this felt nice. “I missed you Dad.”
“Not a day goes by where I don’t miss you or your brothers. It’s way too quiet around here without you four.”
“Do you remember when Tommy put green dye in the shampoo to try and prank me?”
An almost silent laugh reverberated throughout his chest, sounding slightly muffled. “Of course I do. It took at least a few weeks to get it off my skin and a full month after that to get it out of my hair.”
“You should’ve seen his face when I walked into the kitchen in the morning,” you deepen your voice. “‘If you’re not in the shower, then who is?’ Aaaannd then you walked into the kitchen looking like you lost a fight with a witch.” You snorted. “You didn’t know why everyone was staring at you.”
He huffed. “You guys didn’t even tell me until after breakfast.”
“Have you seen yourself in the mornings? You’re literally so grumpy. We didn’t have a death wish.”
“Hey, I’m not that bad in the morning, Mx. I-can’t-function-without-eight-hours-of-sleep.”
“At least I’m fully awake in the morning.”
“Oh, wow, what a zinger,” he said in a monotone voice.
You reached up to playfully slap his arm. “Shuddup.”
You both quietly laughed before the room fell back into a comfortable silence. You took a deep breath. “Arthur knows about The Warden. What it did to me”
You felt him tense up and heard his heart start to beat a little faster. He moved his arm away and leaned back to look you in the eyes.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. He said that he knew what happened and he needed my help. He… he said that The Warden took someone important to him.”
“Was it his paren-”
“I don’t know. I’m going to talk to him about it tomorrow.”
“Do you want me to talk to him with you?”
“I don’t know if Arthur’s comfortable with that yet. I’m not even sure if he trusts me enough to tell me.”
You grabbed your’s and Philza’s empty mugs and took them to the kitchen. You ran your hands down your face. You felt very drained after everything that happened today. You weren’t used to so much human interaction, let alone people staring at you like you were some kind of deity when you weren’t. You leaned against the sink and closed your eyes. 
“(Y/n), I’m turning in for the night. Is there anything you need before I go to bed?”
“No, thank you Dad.”
“Alright, goodnight. Love you.”
“Love you too.”
You heard his retreating footsteps gradually fade out and the room was thick with silence yet again. The darkness in the room was cut by the moonlight streaming in through the window. Your mind was racing as you remembered that you were going to have to talk to Arthur about The Warden soon. 
You hadn’t talked about The Warden for years and now you were being forced into it. You didn’t think you were ready. You wanted to move on with your life, but The Warden was inevitable. It was everywhere around you. It won’t ever leave you alone, will it?
You didn’t think you were going to get much sleep tonight.
Taglist (comment if you want to be added):
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kanonsarchivedblog · 3 years
Text
Might Be Onto Somethin' (Kiss Me More)
Word Count: 2142 Rating: E Character(s): Mitsuri Kanroji Ships: None; Mentions of Rengoku Kyōjurō, Iguro Obanai, Sanemi Shinazugawa Genre: Smut Author's Notes: I... Have no excuse other than the fact that Mitsuri is cute and she deserves so much love. And many partners. Give her all of the partners please. She has so much love to give- This can also be read over on my ao3! ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ The perks of having your own portion of the compound meant the peace and quiet that came with it. It was nice to be able to just relax, to not have to worry about being walked in on. A nice soak in the hot spring had been well earned! A trim to the ends of her hair to get rid of any split ends and to keep the long layers still looking good, and then a bit of skin care! Mitsuri was even able to paint her nails! And her toe nails!
Evening was falling, the sounds of laughter coming from her siblings filling the air as she closed the shoji. Dinner was already done; they would all be retiring to their own spaces soon enough. Summer was in full swing, the heat of the day melting away, though that didn’t mean it still wasn’t warm- too warm to wear proper clothes. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d stripped out of her dinner kimono so quickly; she took a moment to simply stand in the nude, enjoying the slight cool breeze that drifted through the room from an open window.
Open window. Naked. Oh, no!
A squeak escaped her as she grabbed hold of a light cotton yukata, slipping it on to cover herself, cheeks growing rosy in embarrassment. What if someone had come by? And seen her? That would have been so awkward! What if it had been Tomioka-san? OR Shinobu-san? Oh, she wouldn’t have been able to look them in the eye! Or even Uzui-san!
… Or Rengoku-kun.
Or… Or Iguro-san…
Swallowing roughly, Kanroji turned on her heel and marched herself to her bedroom, chastising herself for even considering those thoughts. That- that wasn’t ladylike! Was it? No- yes? A groan slipped free as she flopped onto her futon, face pressed into the blankets. It wasn’t… Wrong to feel lust. She knew this. It also wasn’t wrong to feel love! And it… Wasn’t a bad thing to be attracted to people- to people she knew well! There wasn’t anything bad with that at all!
Kyōjurō had been her friend for years- they’d known each other long before they became Hashira. He’d been her teacher, even! And she’d watched as he grew- as they both grew! Cheeks tinting with an emotion she couldn’t quite place, she rolled over onto her back, staring up at her ceiling. Her window was open in here, too; from there, she could see down the hill to where the Rengoku compound sat.
Her gaze drifted to the window, watching as clouds began to drift across the night sky, the stars peeking out from behind clouds occasionally. It wasn’t a bad thing to… Want. Everyone wanted something, someone- it was natural. Her thighs clenched, an unconscious movement that drew a soft gasp out. Her eyes slid shut, the battle beginning to wane in her mind. This was okay. It was! Especially with… How good it would feel, oh- oh, it would feel good.
“This is okay,” she decided, speaking softly to the empty bedroom. Pushing herself up, she glanced around- as if making sure she was truly alone. Which was silly- of course she was alone! She would have heard if someone came in. A giddy smile curled her lips as she settled back down against her pillows, nimble fingers quickly undoing the tie that held the yukata together, allowing for the fabric to shift.
Her eyes slid shut as she drew in a slow, nervous breath. It wasn’t as if she never touched herself- she did, more often than she really wanted to admit. The tint in her cheeks darkened as she squeezed her thighs together again, creating a gentle sort of pressure that had a sigh slipping free. A hand raised- not her own, not in her mind, no, this hand was much larger than her own, somehow still so soft despite wielding a wicked blade- and came to peel away the yukata, baring her naked form to the room. She was proud of her physique- she was soft, her tummy softer than her fellow Hashira, but beneath that layer of softness was muscle she’d always had, would always have. She liked it- liked having soft hips, a soft tummy, soft thighs.
Iguro-san liked her thighs. He’d complimented her on them a few days ago- when they’d all been granted time off to have their blades sharpened. It had been an idle comment in a conversation with Shinobu-san, who had brought up the idea of a lighter fabric for their summer uniforms. They’d all agreed- it would be nice not to smother in the heavy, dark fabric. Tengen had mentioned how it was smart to have a uniform like her own- a skirt, which did mean she was able to cool off faster than her companions.
The conversation had drifted, which let Obanai murmur close to her ear that he enjoyed her uniform quite a bit- after all, it allowed him to see her beautiful thighs. It had made her blush, had made her squeeze her thighs together and hide a smile.
“Iguro-san,” she sighed out, hand drifting lower, nails ghosting against the skin of a thigh before digging in in a way that gave both pain and pleasure- something she was certain he would enjoy. Something he would do. “Please…”
He wasn’t the only one who looked- she would never admit it aloud, but she caught Kyōjurō looking at her chest a few times, his gaze soft, lids heavy before he caught himself and looked away, cheeks rosy. She thought it was cute! She was more than aware of her bust- it caused her problems at times, especially if she couldn’t bind the proper way before a mission. But oh…
A hand cupped her left breast, fingers squeezing the soft flesh. She pictured the hand to be larger, much larger and warmer, massaging and squeezing, pinching at her nipples just so, drawing out a soft squeal because oh, that’s sensitive! “Kyo-” she whined, head turning to the side, thighs parting as the hand shifted to the other, giving it the same treatment. “Sensitive,” she whispered, though she didn’t hear her own voice- the rasp of another, of a tongue drifting across her nipple, of silver hair and wild eyes.
The hand on her thigh slipped upward, dragging sharp nails along the inside of her thigh. It sent a shock through her system, her legs jolting with the pleasure it drew forth. “Iguro-san!” She gasped, and for a moment, she swore she heard a chuckle- his chuckle, but it only made her hand settle over herself, adrenaline and lust mingling in her veins. Her toes curled as she slipped her middle finger between her folds, surprised to find herself already wet. Then again-
She had been excited for days now, hadn’t had time to handle this.
Oh, but the finger pressing against a bundle of nerves drew her from her thoughts quickly, a moan drifting into the open air of the bedroom at the relief that brief touch gave. Her eyes opened, blinking in the darkness of her bedroom, the images dispelling for a moment.
Toy. She needed something. She needed to be filled- to feel full. It wasn’t as if she could just… Go get the real thing! No, instead she rolled over, grabbing an ornate box that looked as if it should hold jewelry, and tugged it closer. It was inconspicuous; no one would ever think of what it would hold. The toy itself was a good replica of the real thing, thicker near the base, thinner towards the top with a flared head. The material used was soft so as to not cause discomfort- perfect for her, considering how sensitive she could be sometimes. And tonight was certainly one of those times.
Rolling back onto her bed, she took hold of another pillow and slid it down, settling it beneath her rear. Eyes closing once more, images flooded back to the forefront of her mind. The toy pressed to her lips, and if she thought hard enough, she could imagine it having heat along with the weight it held. Her lips parted, the toy slipping in, her tongue curling around the head before she forced her jaw to relax. She’d never admit it out loud, but she’d trained herself with this toy, her throat relaxing. Fingers of another hand drifted low, gathering the slickness that had formed between her lower lips before slipping inside, drawing out a whine around the toy. Her brows furrowed as she tried to time the thrusts with the toy in her mouth, brushing against that one spot every now and then.
In her mind, it wasn’t her fingers in her, or a toy in her mouth- no, the fingers belonged to a man with golden and ruby hair who pressed kisses to her thighs as he opened her up and tore her apart, as he coaxed her closer and closer to the edge with his delicate touches. In her mouth sat the cock of the Snake Pillar, thrusting slowly, deeply, fucking her face.
Too close, too close- she pulled her fingers free and slipped the toy from her mouth with a whine, head falling back. Not yet, she didn’t want to stop yet. Licking her lips, she readjusted, bringing the toy down to settle between her lips, rocking slowly, the head nudging against her clit with each rock until she couldn’t handle it, slipping the toy inside slowly, a hiss slipping free at the stretch. It wasn’t painful, not in the least- no, it felt good, wonderfully so. She whined, nose scrunching up as it bottomed out. She took a moment to adjust, shifting her hips to get a more comfortable angle.
A hand settled at her breasts once more, groping, teasing as she began to move her hand. “Oh,” she whispered, brows furrowing, “yes- yes, like that! I like that, please, yes,” she began to babble as the toy sped up- no, not a toy. Obanai was between her thighs, Kyōjurō behind her, holding her, his hands on her chest as Obanai used her. “Harder, harder, harder- please, I’ve been a good girl!” She whined, lost to her fantasy. “Obanai- Obanai, please.”
'Only good girls get to cum. Are you sure you've been good?' The phantom image asked, voice gruff- Oh. Oh, that would be Sanemi.
“I have!” She squealed, hips rising as the toy began to hit that one spot dead center. “I have, I’ve been good! ‘Nemi, ‘Nemi!” She whined, body moving with the force she used. “Kyo- Oba- oh, there, there, there, don’t stop!”
'We won't stop,' Kyo’s voice whispered in her ear as his fingers played with her nipple, twisting, pinching, massaging. 'Not until you're sobbing and making a mess for us.'
“Fuck me!” She pleaded, something so vulgar that, had she not been in such a worked up state, would have embarrassed her. “Please! I’m a good girl! I’m your good girl! Fuck me, please, God- Obanai, you feel so good! So good in me, so good, yes, yes, 𝘺𝘦𝘴!”
'Gonna be a good girl and cum for me?' Obanai asked, panting. 'Cum on my cock like a good girl, Mitsuri?'
“Yes, yes- Obanai, Ob-” She clamped a hand over her mouth to muffle her scream as she tumbled over the edge, legs twitching, chest heaving as she kept fucking herself. “Harder, harder, please-” she begged, working herself higher and higher up before her hand stopped, body stilling. Tears spilled free, trailing down her cheeks as she removed her hand from her mouth, panting harshly. Wet- very… Wet? Blinking to clear her vision, Mitsuri shifted her hips.
Oh.
Oh!
“Oh, no- that’s- that’s new, oh dear, oh no,” she whispered, pulling the toy free so that she could sit up and gawk at the wet… Puddle. That was a puddle. “OH-” She squeaked, cheeks red as strawberries as she realized what she’d done. She couldn’t stand to clean off her bed- not yet, anyway. She’d clean the blankets and sheets tomorrow, but that poor pillow… “At least you were already ready to be tossed,” she murmured, a giggle bubbling up.
She settled back down on a clean portion of her bed, body relaxing. Sanemi? Kyo? And Obanai? Oh, my! She covered her face with her hands and let out a soft squeal. How would she look them in the eye tomorrow! She shifted, staring at the window- were her eyes playing tricks on her? Brows furrowing, she rose to her feet and stepped closer, poking her head out. No one was there.
Huh.
She could have sworn she’d seen golden and ruby hair. Strange.
Perhaps it was wishful thinking. Shrugging, she turned back to the mess she now had to clean up. Or…
“Or I could… Have some more fun?”
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os-hyoideum · 3 years
Text
"I have come to a coclusion." Shinsou Hitoshi x fem!plus size!Reader
"i figured out why you're so into me… it's because wherever you grab it feels like a boob" (my inspo, in the form of my stupid thought - I wanted to do a few more of my fav characters, but we'll see)
Word count: 1263 Content: Pro!Shinsou (over 18), fluff (I think), funny (I hope), slighly just suggestive at the end (letting out a perv a bit, but just teensy bit), plus size/chubby/fat Reader, Reader has nipple piercings (I just think everyone -who wants them ofc- deserves them), Reader has big? (heavy) boobies
a/n: Like I'm never inspired to write, this time I just did (and had fun, surprisingly... it's that Shiso brainrot 😔). This is literally THE SECOND time I have ever written something (that isn't an academic essay) in English. Also, THE FIRST time using the second person in writing, but I wanted to try. It's just some quick fic, so enjoy! Also, sorry for, perhaps, a weird use of commas, I don't think I'm ever gonna be able to put them correctly everywhere.
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Hitoshi let out a relieved sigh once he stepped over the threshold to your shared apartment.
It wasn’t anything particularly special, with its open space kitchen-living room combo, bathroom, and decently sized bedroom, but it was a home that brought him comfort after hard days (or nights) of work. Particularly, when it was an unexpected task of giving the talk to aspiring heroes at his former high school - UA.
It was a bit weird for him to get home during late afternoon, as his usual night patrols made him used to getting back at rather early morning hours, but still, he was just glad to be finally in the comfort of his own place.
After taking his shoes off and walking a bit more inside, he was met with a sight to behold (by his own requirements).
There, laying face down on a couch was you, clothed only in a pair of black panties and a sports bra. Electric fan, standing on a side table, was blowing straight onto your exposed back. Hitoshi supposed it wasn’t anything particularly strange, given it was the middle of summer and, additionally, you must have been tired from your work trip; nevertheless, he decided to ask.
“Well, hello there,” he started, crossing his arms and quirking an eyebrow, “That’s a nice view of your ass, but why are you basically naked?”
You propped yourself on your elbows and turned your head back to look at him. The breeze from the fan stung your eyes a bit, so you sat up straight and faced Hitoshi properly. Partly, to just be able to admire him (like usual) and, partly, so the breeze would still be directed towards your back.
“First of all: it’s hot as hell today. I have never been more grateful for our AC… that still was not enough, but well…” You listed lifting one finger up.
“Okay, fair.” Hitoshi nodded. He looked at you lifting another finger.
“Second of all: I had a little, hmm… mirror sesh? I guess it could be called like that.”
Hitoshi knew exactly what you meant and instantly was put on alert. He did not know what to expect from the outcome. You weren’t particularly insecure, but drops in confidence happen to everyone, at the best of times. Having a truce with your body didn’t mean an endless peace.
He looked at you with intensity, looking for any indicators of feeling low, but relaxed a bit seeing you being at least in a neutral, if not even good, mood.
“Oh? Is that so?”
You stood up, the slight jiggle of your soft body not concealed by anything. He had seen you bare many times before (like, a lot of times), but still caught himself admiring the patterns your stretch marks drew upon your skin. He knew it’s not anything special, quite the natural part of the human body, yet he still saw some intricate artistic thought behind it.
“Yes,” you said, putting one hand on your hip and gesticulating with the other, “and you know how I, personally, feel about myself. Like, sometimes it’s good, sometimes bad, nothing new, right?” You asked rather rhetorically, to which Hitoshi still nodded slightly, listening from behind a bar piece separating your kitchen and living space.
“BUT,” you emphasized and pointed a finger at him,” today I was wondering in particular, why YOU like THIS-” you paused to encircle your body with one hand “-so much. And I have come to a conclusion”
Hitoshi hummed and took a sip of iced coffee he took from the fridge in the meantime.
“Yeah? And what’s your conclusion then?”
“You are so attracted to me because everywhere you touch feels like a boob.”
That was an unexpected sentence that left your lips; so unexpected actually, that Hitoshi almost choked on his coffee. Luckily though, he did not. Not paying much attention to your could-have-died significant other, you continued with your reasonings.
“Arm? Boob.” You squeezed your upper arm to emphasize. “Tummy?” A little squeeze creating a roll between your fingers. “Boob.” You propped your leg on the couch to poke at your inner thigh. “Thigh? Boob. Calf? Boob. See? Everything’s a boobie!”
Hitoshi just laughed looking at your excited expression, he assumed from coming to such boob-tastic revelation. He fixed his black headband, keeping his beautiful hair out of his face, and pointed at your leg.
“Well, I don’t remember your boobs being quite so hairy. Though my memory might be failing, after all this time.” He said with a chuckle, hinting at your two weeks of separation, due to your dreadful trip.
“How DARE you!” You gasped dramatically and threw a pillow that Hitoshi expertly caught with a laugh. “Are you shaming my body hair?”
“Oh, of course not,” he smirked playfully, “I quite like your hairy legs.”
With a slightly frustrated groan, you fell on the couch and loudly sighing slid off onto the floor. Sitting behind your low coffee table, you tilted your head down and glared at Hitoshi from under your eyebrows. He knew someone could have gotten scared had they been on the receiving end, but spending so much time with you, he was used to it and just found it amusing. Seeing the lack of reaction from him, you just stood up and walked towards the bar to stand in front of him.
“If you don’t stop, I WILL sit on you.”
Hitoshi quirked an eyebrow at you and turned around. He took a step towards the kitchen sink and, after turning the water on, splashed his face.
“What are you doing?” You asked, not quite expecting him to start washing his face in the middle of a conversation.
After taking a small, clean kitchen towel to dry himself off, he looked you straight in the eye.
“Prepping your seat, baby.”
You stared at him for a few seconds with wide eyes, before slowly clapping and nodding with approval.
“Huh… outstanding move. True dedication to a joke.”
“I wasn’t joking.” But you already knew that.
“Damn…” You started, holding his intense gaze. “Okay, Mr Shinsou, you’re on.”
He looked you up and down with an expression of a man starved.
“You’re in for a ride…” But you already knew that too. “Mrs Shinsou.”
“I’m not Mrs Shinsou.”
“Not yet.” You knew it was mostly playful banter since neither of you was in a rush to make your relationship official. It was comfortable enough, to the point actually, that others did mistake you for a married couple at times. So it turned into a joke, being called by his name.
“Alright…” You smiled softly at him before your expression became much more devious. “Wanna take a shower before I take my rightful place upon my throne?”
Without waiting for his response, you pulled your sports bra over your head. In an instant, Hitoshi’s gaze fell onto your heavy chest. Decorated with shining metal nipples perked up, due to the slight chill from the AC and the fan, both working at full capacity. You turned around and walked towards the bathroom with a nice sway in your hips. In the doorway, you slid your panties off and threw them at Hitoshi with a heated look from behind your shoulder.
He caught them with one hand and, looking you straight in the eyes, brought them to his face. He took a long breath in, taking in your scent mixed with sweat that almost made him dizzy with desire.
He put his cup into the sink and, with your panties in hand, followed you into the bathroom.
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drwcn · 3 years
Text
maybe after today’s acls training i can finally write that chengqing ER oneshot. 
— “Patient male, mid-twenties, motor vehicle collision, eta 3 mins” 
— “What no vitals? No GCS? ETA 3 mins? Who’s on the paramedic team?!” 
— “No one….Dr. Lu hit someone with her car on her way out of the hospital.” 
【A Midnight Conversation in Your Local ER】- Complete
[1] 
The night hunt had gone to shits.
That much was undeniable.
Jiang Cheng heard the panicked shout of his disciples just as he saw the array that he had stepped on.
Fuck.
The ghost of an once mediocre demonic cultivator wanna-be was going to bring Jiang Cheng, Jiang Wanyin - the Sandu Shengshou - to meet his maker. The irony of the situation would be laughable, if he wasn’t so irrevocably screwed.
That was his last thought before his entire body was engulfed by a blinding light and the world he knew disappeared.
The ground beneath his feet gave away, weightlessness paralyzing his body though he did not fall. He felt…launched, his body warping and squeezing and stretching, the air sucked from his lungs into the endless black vacuum.
But just like that it was over. Jiang Cheng barely had time to make peace with his death before his feet touch solid earth again.
Or at least….he thought it was earth, this black, tarry hard thing striped with yellow and white. He stared at it dumbly, breathless and disoriented, barely able to react when a loud blare assaulted his senses and his world went blindly bright yet again.
This time there was pain.
Jiang Cheng clutched Sandu, ready to fight, but then his head hit the ground and everything went dark. When he woke up again, an indeterminate amount of time later, he was in a small tube and had a distinct feeling he was not wearing pants, socks or shoes.
How the fuck do you ‘scan’ a cat???  
[2]
Method actor. The nurse, from the other side of the curtain, mouthed silently.
“Sir, can you tell me your name.”
“Jiang Cheng, Jiang Wangyin.”
The resident paused, awkwardly contemplating how to continue. “Uh…..which is it? Jiang Cheng or Jiang Wanyin?”
“Jiang Cheng, zi Wanyin.”
“Traditional parents?” The resident tried to crack a joke, but it fell flat. The strange man stared up at him with a blank look in his eyes and a frown that was rapidly deteriorating into a scowl. The resident cleared his throat and cast his eyes back onto his clipboard. “Uh, ahem, just the name on your ID please.”
“My what?" 
"Your personal ID….like a driver’s license?”
“Cultivators of the gentry fly on swords or ride horses. We do not rely on carriage valets.”
“Eh… right. Uhm, can you tell me how old you are and what year it is.”
“I’m 39, and the year is jiachen.”
Lu Qi frowned from where she stood by the door, arms crossed, watching her resident and medical student work. 39? He looks like a college student. But he also thinks he can fly, so I guess age is the least of our worries. 
“Jiachen.…?”
The M3 fished his phone out from his scrub pocket pocket and typed it in. “Sounds like the ganji system, like an old timey way to record year used in the past.” He whispers clandestinely to the resident.
“….Right. And uh, do you where you are?”
The man scowled at him. “Am I supposed to?” 
The resident scribbled something on the chart, and then looked up with a plastered awkward smile. “Well, thank you Mr. Jiang for your patience. Wang Fei here is the medical student on our team. He’s going to stay and ask you a couple more questions if you don’t mind. Afterwards we’ll confer with our attending and the team will be back to see you shortly.”
As he turned away, the R3 grimaced and shared a look with Lu Qi, who was the youngest attending physician in their ER, but was not technically working at the moment and so was not on the case. And technically, as the perpetrator who hit Jiang Cheng with her car, she had a severe conflict of interest.
At least this Jiang Cheng dude didn’t seem keen on pressing personal charges against her for MVA or suing the hospital in general… but that being said…
Yeah, they’re going to need a psych consult. 
Unless he’s on acid. 
Well… okay, psych consult either way. 
[3]
"It’s okay, you can relax.” Jiang Cheng said, waving dismissively at the woman standing by his bedside. “I’m not going to take you to the magistrate for hitting me with your carriage - car. You didn’t mean to, and I just came out of nowhere.” 
“....Thank you.” 
“You’re not Wen Qing. I know that now. Your name is Lu Qi. You can call off those psychia - psych - psychics - head healers - or whatever, I’m not crazy. It’s not my fault, you just… look so much like someone I used to know."
"Wen Qing.” Lu Qi echoed. 
“Yeah. Wen Qing. She was a healer - a doctor - like you, but different.” 
“I see. What happened to her?"
"She died. Almost twenty years ago."
"I'm sorry... that's awful.” Lu Qi’s response rolled off her tongue so well, because she had said those word a thousand times during her residency. So much so that it no longer had much meaning to her. Tonight however, she meant what she said. “Were you two close?"
"No, well…yes, maybe. No we weren’t exactly friends if that’s what you’re asking. She...operated on me. Without my consent or knowledge. Took my brother’s golden core and put it in me and then lied with my brother to my face about it. So no we weren’t “close”, but Wen Qing saved my life - well the purpose of it anyway. Saved me from a life of ordinariness.” 
Lu Qi did allow herself to dwell too much on what the fuck a “golden core” was, because her gut response was almost instantaneous. “That’s shitty of her.”
She clamped down on her tongue. 
God, why did I have to say that? To his face?! He was obviously in love with this Wen Qing person and they were encroaching on some dangerous emotional territories, but Lu Qi swallowed down her caution and plowed on nevertheless. There were things she felt she had to say, and since she’d already hit him with her car, how much worse could this shit get? “What I mean is she shouldn’t have. Not without telling you. Besides...there’s nothing wrong with ordinary.” 
Jiang Cheng chuckled bitterly. “Maybe you’re right. Still...she didn’t deserve to die. What her clan did was not her fault.” 
Now that threw Lu Qi off. Did this guy...kill her? 
Lu Qi half wondered if she stumbled upon a Yakuza-esque member whose psyche finally snapped after years of murder and violence. And yet, he seemed perfectly coherent, no flight of ideas, no tangential thought, no hallucations. Even his delusions seemed...logical. 
I must be the one losing, damnit.  
Jiang Cheng scratched a little at his chest, as if palpating for the “golden core” that he spoke of. "She saved my life, but when she needed help, I couldn't save her. But, if I were to go back… I can't say I'll choose differently. My clan needed me, my clan who was almost cleansed by hers. No, no I wouldn’t choose differently. I don’t regret my choices, but I am sorry. Sorry to her, sorry to my brother. I'll always be sorry that she died, and that I failed her when she needed me." 
Jiang Cheng had no idea why he was telling this stranger any of this, but maybe after twenty years, he was finally ready to address this guilt that he lived with. I mean who else was he supposed to tell? Jin Ling? It was nice, to have that face as an audience, receiving his words of confession. 
"She would forgive you." 
Lu Qi had no idea why she was offering absolution as if she had authority in this matter, but when she said it, the conviction she felt was so real, it was almost as though some external force was acting through her.
Which was ridiculous of course, but... 
"How do you know? You're not her." Jiang Cheng shook his head. “I wouldn’t forgive me.” 
"No, but you said she was a physician. So she should know, more than most, that sometimes there is no choosing who gets to live or die."
Jiang Cheng fell quiet at that, and his gaze grew distant. Lu Qi thought perhaps he was no longer seeing her as she was in front of him - white coat, scrubs, stethoscope -  but someone entirely different. The tension he held in his shoulders slowly eased, and he sighed. In the silence that stretched between them, Lu Qi hoped that this strange man with his strange past could find a sliver of peace. 
[4]
— Did you love her? 
— I thought so, foolishly, but maybe I didn’t. Even if I did, it was not well enough. 
— Do you love her still? 
— No... I don’t know. It’s been too long...but sometimes, late at night when Lotus Pier is quiet, I think I do. 
...
— Are you ashamed of it? 
...
— No. No I’m not. 
[5]
The patient known as Jiang Cheng left AMA, that is, against medical advice. It was the term they used sometimes for people who just up and leave without informing the team. 
Lu Qi had gone out to check on his labs, which came back with bonker numbers (I mean really, a hemoglobin of 455, sodium of 200, and a HCO3 of like...3?), but Jiang Cheng was gone from Bay 6 when she returned. The nurse made the overhead page, a code yellow was called, but four hours later, Lu Qi was ready to admit that she was never going to see this Jiang Cheng ever again. 
Somehow, she was okay with that. She had said what needed to be said.  
Her chief had given her a call on her cell and told her to go home and sleep. The guy didn’t look like he was gonna press charges, let’s count our blessings and move on. But the night had just been too damn strange that Lu Qi was all wired up from it and couldn’t possibly fall asleep. She had handover at 10 anyway. There was a change of clothes and toiletries in her bag. She could always take a shower in the anesthesia staff’s on call room and sleep until then. 
Dr. Sun was the anesthesia staff on-call tonight and was currently stuck in trauma OR. They were buddies since medschool; she’d understand.
Sighing, Lu Qi took a seat on the bench across from the bougie cafe in the lobby of the hospital. At this hour, it was the only one still open in the entire facility. The drinks they sold cost an arm and a leg, but Lu Qi needed the pick-me-up after the night she had. 
As she nursed the last bit of her matcha latte, two bickering voices pulled her attention to the front entrance. 
“Aiyo, A-Liang I already said I’m fine! I don’t need to be here!” 
“Fuck out of here with that bullshit, Chen Zhaoxi. You fell off the fucking roof! If Wu Kun hadn’t called me, you’d have gone on -”
It was him! Lu Qi shot up. It was Jiang Cheng! 
But no...no it wasn’t him. The well-dressed man dragging the second man (dressed in red pajamas) into the hospital was not Jiang Cheng. He had the same face - chiselled, handsome, scowling - but it wasn’t him. For one, his hair was trimmed short and neat, unlike Jiang Cheng who looked like he walked straight out of a BL xianxia tv drama. Secondly, his face was softer, eyes younger, and he couldn’t have been older than Lu Qi herself in her early thirties. 
“I was just trying to get to the litter of kittens trapped -”
“Yes, yes, and it was very heroic and I’m sure it would’ve made Wu Kun very horny, and you morons probably would’ve fucked once he got home had you not made a valiant attempt at breaking your neck -” 
“Excuse me,” the security guard manning the information desk chastised sharply. “It’s 4am. This is a hospital! Lower your voices, sirs.” 
“Sorry.” The men apologized sheepishly. 
Then, A-Liang, Jiang Cheng’s doubleganger asked, “Could you please direct us to the ER? This is my brother, he fell off a roof.” 
Lu Bin had no idea what possessed her to interject. “I can take you there.” 
All eyes fell on her. She walked towards them, heart pounding. 
This can’t be happening, this kind of thing just can’t happen... 
A-Liang’s face broke into a grateful smile. “Thank you, Miss -” Then his gaze trailed to her badge, and he corrected himself, “Dr. Lu. I’m Shen Liang. This is my brother Chen Zhaoxi. I think he fractured...well multiple things, please help him.” 
“Of course, come with me. Let’s get him a wheelchair. If he fractured is leg, he probably shouldn’t be walking.” 
“I didn’t fracture -” 
“You, you shut up.” Shen Liang rolled his eyes. “Don’t listen to him. He can lose three out of four limbs and say ‘ t’s but a flesh wound’.” 
Lu Qi couldn’t help but chuckle as she put an arm under the complaining Chen Zhaoxi and helped him towards the wheelchair. 
Shen Liang’s smile widened. 
[Extra]
“Holy shit, took you long enough!” 
When Jin Ling and Lan Sizhui finally dragged Jiang Cheng to their portal site, Jiang Cheng realized that the transportation talisman had created a channel through realities between what looked like two metal garbage dumpsters in a back alley behind a food establishment marked by giant yellow bunny ears.
Standing guard there, Lan Jingyi and Ouyang Zizhen were each munching on a strange layered bread and holding tall drinks contained in...what was it called again? Right. Styrofoam. 
“What is that?” Jin Ling wrinkled is nose at it. Brat. 
“It’s a Big Mac.” Replied Lan Jingyi as if Jin Ling was stupid. “And this is a milk shake.” 
Jin Ling scowled. “I said the bag of gold I gave you was for emergencies.” 
“Yeah but we were hungry.” Ouyang Zizhen defended. He neglected to tell them that the cashier had refused to accept the gold and instead asked for “cash” or “card”, neither of which they had, so Zizhen used a liiiiil confounding talisman he learned from Wei Wuxian. They did leave more than enough gold though...and that ought to cover the restaurant’s cost for their “burger”lary . Reaching into the brown paper bag he held under one arm, Zizhen pulled out a little box that opened to show pieces of... something. “These are chicken nuggets. They’re delicious! Try one! They’re really good with this sauce....hold on...” 
Lan Sizhui sighed. “We don’t have time for this. The portal will close soon. Let’s get Jiang-zongzhu home and we can sample these exotic food later.” 
The boys agreed. 
Jiang Cheng shook his head and huffed. 
288 notes · View notes
kim-ruzek · 3 years
Text
Messy, chaotic perfection
Summary: Family isn't just who is blood, but who is in your corner, who makes you feel loved and cared for, who is safe and who is home.
Season 8 au, goes off if Kim never miscarried, Burzek are together, and season eight still went somewhat how it did.
Warnings: mentions of canon events (shooting, foster situations).
Word Count: 3.5k
Read on AO3
Notes: This is a Feel Better fic for the amazing, incredible and so, so strong and brave Cíara (@fighterkimburgess ). Cíara I love you, you deserve the world, and you deserve to know that I (and all of us in this fandom) have your back and wish you all the best in your life ♥️
Life can be unpredictable, events that you never expect to happen can occur and feel like that was always meant to happen all along. This is a lesson Kim has learnt over and over throughout her life, but one she’s only finally beginning to fully understand it, that it’s always going to happen in ways you don’t expect.
Like today.
Today, when she woke up, Kim thought she’d have a tiring day at work with all the racists that Kevin, and by extension them since Kevin is their family, is having to deal with but that it would be relatively drama free and she and her boyfriend—which is a word, that no matter how juvenile it sounds, makes her feel all giggly inside at—would come home and have a nice relaxing evening with their daughter.
She didn’t expect Patrol to not show up when they called and she definitely did not expect Adam to get shot. But that is life, as Kim has kept learning recently.
“Careful, let me grab the door.” Kim quickly darts in front of a very impatient and unfussed Adam, moving so she can unlock and open their front door before he can. Adam sighs.
“Kim, I’m not an invalid.” He grumbles and she flashes him a glare before she opens up the door.
“Adam, you were shot.” She holds up her hand. “And no I don’t care if it’s was in the vest. You were shot and you were lying there and I thought you were dead. And now you’ve got a bruise on your chest and Will said that you have to take it easy—it could affect your lungs if you overwork yourself.”
Kim already knows that she’s probably going to spend the next few weeks seeing Adam lying there on the grass whenever she shuts her eyes. Just like she knows that Adam gets why she’s being so fussy, even if he’s being his typical bad patient self.
“I can still open doors. You know I like opening our door for you,” At that, Kim turns away from the door, facing Adam. She closes what little distance they had between them, resting her hands gently on his chest.
“I know, but you’re injured. Let me look after you. And—we’ve only just found our way back together again, I don’t want to loose you, and I don’t want our daughter to loose you.” Adam’s eyes soften and he gently kisses her forehead.
“Yeah. I’m sorry, darlin’. I’m just stubborn.”
If this had happened years ago, this probably would’ve ended up making an even bigger dent in their relationship, and god knows if they’d be able to communicate—and truly understand each other back then. But they’re not those young people now, they’ve grown and learnt so much, and are completely dedicated to making this work.
Especially because they’re parents.
“Hey, Ally!” Adam is immediately greeting their six month old as soon as they enter the flat, Kim not far behind, the two parents cooing over her instantly.
“Can you hold her?” Trudy gives Adam a wary eye, holding the child she, without hesitation, claimed as her granddaughter. Normally they’d have their nanny here, taking care of Ally, but given that Adam was shot and had to be looked over, Trudy had relieved their nanny instead, just in case they arrived home later than usual.
“You’re as bad as Kim, of course I can,” Adam grumbles again, mostly with good humour. Still, Trudy glances at Kim just to double check, who nods and then Trudy is helping to pass the girl to her father. Usually, Adam would scoop the girl out of her arms with ease, but—showing that he is taking Will seriously, or at least their daughter’s safety seriously—he had hesitated, waited for Trudy to help.
“You should sit down, I’ll get dinner on.” Kim tells him. She then looks at Trudy. “Are you staying or going home? You’re welcome, of course.”
“I’ll leave the three of you be. Randall has his shift in the morning.” Trudy kisses her granddaughter good-bye—leaning down to do so, Ally babbling in Adam’s arms on the sofa—and then it’s just the three of them.
If you had told her a year and a half ago that this would be her life, Kim would struggle to belief you. Adam and her felt like history, something that never had the timing it deserved and that they’d only be relegated to friends with benefits.
And being a Mom? That was so far out from the cards Kim was dealt, she didn’t think it would happen for quite a few years, and even then, it felt like a impossible and distant thought.
But she has both. A relationship with Adam that is strong and decent and a proper, communicating relationship and the beautiful daughter who made it possible.
At first, Adam and her were determined to be co parents only. More her than him, if she was honest, but he understood her side.
But then Kim hit her second trimester and with it her renewed sex drive and inability to keep her hands off him and platonic co parents got more and more unbelievable—especially as they moved in together.
The reasons why they decided to just be platonic still hung over their head, however, and so they had to have a serious conversation—several, in fact—about their relationship and what it would look like and be like. They both knew that with a child in the mix, they had to be committed and determined because their baby would be impacted.
Kim did have worries about it, about if they could keep communicating and not fall back on old habits, but by the time Ally came along, their relationship had only grown stronger. The new-born stage is a tough time for parents, and they had their moments, but that only brought them even more closer and Kim now no longer has any of those worries.
Domestic bliss is something she’s always wanted to have, alongside a fulfilling job, and there’s days Kim can’t quite believe that she’s found it.
Her life isn’t perfect, no life is. And there’s tensions at work, and with their best friend going through some horrific stuff, life doesn’t feel easy. But they have each other, and they have Ally, and Kim keeps feeling like she’s reached as close to perfection as she could have.
When she was younger, Kim imagined that having perfection would be calm, would be peaceful. And maybe for others it is, but it’s not for her. There’s always some madness in her life; she’s a cop, after all. And she’s learned to appreciate the short peaceful moments that she gets. But sometimes, sometimes life is just quiet.
It had been a few weeks of quiet that Kim had realised her life hadn’t had any madness in it. Her and Adam were just going about their routine, day in, day out, watching as Ally continued to grow and marvel them and she realised that.
And then she knew instantly that the madness was coming.
It came the next day.
Adam and her had just picked up their morning coffee from a coffee shop. It had been a while since they could, usually having to make do with the district coffee—having a baby means time is precious and money is dear—but they did this morning, the two of them in a good mood and having a ridiculous conversation about boats.
And then there was a lost six year old girl walking through the road.
Everything got a lot more busy after that, as they tracked down her family and worked out what had happened.
Being a Mom has definitely changed Kim, and she had to go into a corner—Adam joining her, wrapping his arms around her—and have a little cry in the locker room. All she could think about her daughter, her Ally, loosing her family like that and it activated the still distantly present hormones leftover from her pregnancy.
And it made her more determined to help the little girl, Makayla, especially when the girl had apparently bonded to her. Kim was told that she was the best person to talk to her, and even though she’s a mother, she had doubted her abilities. There’s a difference between her baby who’s just learning to talk and move about to a traumatized six year old but the doubts were misplaced, Kim managing to get that connection.
Makayla had wanted her to come to the safe house with her, which Kim did. Luckily Adam was by Trudy’s desk and he gave her nod, telling her that Ally and him will be okay. Still, Kim was glad that she’s already had a night away from her daughter so that she could go with Makayla, so that she didn’t have to let down this vulnerable girl who needed her just as much.
The safe house had turned out to not be so safe, and Kim’s mama bear instincts—as Adam has affectionately coined—kicked in and she instantly said she’ll be taking Makayla home, no questions.
Of course, she had glanced at Adam, silently checking with him. Adam had nodded again.
“Ally’s already with her grandparents so yes, Makayla will be staying with us.” Adam had immediately supported her, his voice just as firm and decided. Kim had already worked out Ally was with Trudy and Mouch, as he was there and they are their emergency babysitters but she felt so lucky to have a partner who was willing to not have the night with his daughter for what she wants.
Seeing Adam interact with Makayla that night had made Kim’s insides twist, and she wonders if they might end up accidentally conceiving a second baby soon with how his paternalism stirred feelings inside her.
It left her feeling sadder than Kim would’ve thought to say goodbye to Makayla after everything was sorted, an emptiness in her heart. The girl had made an impact on her and it felt wrong to end the story there.
That night, Kim had hugged Ally close to her, Adam arm wrapped around her as he cuddled up to them.
“I think I want another,” Kim had said, and Adam choked. She had laughed, then, careful not to wake the sleeping baby on her chest.
“Not now or anytime soon. One baby is enough at one time. But in the future. This—us—being a family, it feels right and as perfect as our family is, I want it to be bigger.” She had explained. She’d have been nervous, but this is Adam, possibly the only person she knows whole heartedly that she can be herself, no judgement.
“Darlin’, nothing would make me happier.” He had kissed her temple firmly then, lacing their hands together and Kim got that feeling of perfect domestic bliss again.
“I’d say let’s have another right now but, yeah, one baby is enough. Although we could practice?” He then joked and Kim rolled her eyes at him.
It isn’t that long after that they’re at social services and Kim spots that precious six year old who, if Kim is honest with herself, hadn’t left her thoughts since, every few days Kim wondering if she’s okay, if she’s settling and adjusting and if the cousin Cathy would need to call her.
“Kim!” Makayla immediately runs to her, hugging her and Kim’s heart twists and constricts, warming at the gesture but breaking that she’s here.
They’re in the middle of a turbulent case, a case that plagues Kim, but her mind is still spilt, focused on worrying about Makayla.
“Where were you?” Adam asks her when she gets back from Cathy’s. Kim knows that she should’ve told him before, that going off alone like this when in a relationship and a parent isn’t how she should be behaving but as the couple’s therapist they went to say said, sometimes Kim can have tunnel vision. It’s something she’s working on, but sometimes she reverts back, like when a six year old needs her.
“I went to see Makayla’s Cathy.” Kim then tells him, and she tells him all about it.
“What if I take her in?” The words fall out Kim’s mouth before she can really process them. It’s nothing she should say, not just for the reasons Makayla’s social worker lists. But because Kim isn’t an I anymore. She’s in a relationship and she’s a mother. This isn’t just her life, but she can’t get Makayla—or the bond they have—out of her head.
After the conversation with her social worker, Kim sees Kevin. She wonders if she should ask him about this, about his siblings and that decision, knowing that he’ll have value to add to the conversation, especially as a black man. But she stops herself, knowing that she’s getting that tunnel vision again, that she needs to discuss this with Adam before she spirals too fast.
“I want to foster Makayla.” It isn’t the most tactful conversation, or the best place for it. But Kim’s mind is in overdrive and all she can think about is how she could feel at six, feeling like only Nicole loved her, and about that precious girl, and her own daughter.
“Us. I want us to foster Makayla.” Kim quickly amends, because they’re a team. Everything they do, they do together. They’re entwined and interlinked and the only way to make the relationship successful is by accepting and respecting that.
It’s a long conversation. It’s really not the time or place but that’s something that just doesn’t matter as much as talking. Kim tells Adam all about why she does, and he talks about how he feels. That he gets it, that he would want to give her a home just as much but has she thought this through.
They work out if they want it to only be temporary, how they’ll do it with Ally, if they’re ready and if they’re only doing this because they’re adapting to being parents, parents who often felt unloved as a child.
And they grab Kevin, adding him to the discussion, getting his two cents.
And then they come to a decision—that they should take Makayla home and they’re jumping into action. Kim calling the social worker, Adam arranging for Ally to be at her grandparents for the night as they get Makayla settled.
Everything picks up after that, quiet days rarely a thing even more than before.
They get Makayla into school, sets up their home so it feels more like hers, they get her into therapy and family therapy. They introduce her to Kevin, knowing he will have to play an important role in their foster daughter’s life.
Makayla adores Ally from the first time they meet, treating her with such care and love and Ally immediately bonds to her. It fills Kim with such joy and affection, and makes her heart feel so, so soft.
Kim was worried that them having Ally already would make Makayla feel like an add on, but it has the opposite affect, making her feel more like part of the family—two weeks in, Makayla tells Kim that she always wanted a little sister, and Kim’s happy that she may not have been able to save Makayla’s family, but at least she could do something.
It’s not smooth sailing. It’s tough and it’s work. Nights were hell, Makayla waking up screaming and rousing Ally, but it gets better, especially after they get Makayla trouble dolls. It’s an adjustment, for sure, but it’s fulfilling.
For Adam too, who’s taken to calling Makayla his lil darlin’ and all three of them his girls. Kim already knew he is a great dad, but seeing him dress up and play with Makayla, and being so calm and loving through her trauma just reaffirms that over and over, making Kim feel so happy that she gave them another chance.
Makayla is family long before the adoption going through.
Mack is one of the first words Ally says, reaching for her sister as she did so. Kim—and Adam, as they discussed it later—will never forget the utterly joyful grin that had spread across Makayla’s face at that.
“Ally said my name!” Makayla had exclaimed to them happily, and proceeded to tell everyone she saw over the next week, her excitement and joy never waning.
Trudy and Mouch immediately accept Makayla as another grandchild and the rest of the family treats Makayla like she belongs. Kim never had any doubts, but it warmed her heart to see how much Makayla clearly loved and was taken by it—and how it made her feel so much more settled, knowing she’s gained so much family even after loosing so much.
Sylvie takes it upon herself to be her honorary godmother and Makayla quickly learns that Sylvie is one of the best to play princesses with. Stella comes with Sylvie one day and Makayla is immediately enamoured by her, and soon Stella decides Makayla needs two godmothers.
The Atwaters are an essential part of their family, as they help Makayla keep that connection to her black culture, helping to make sure her identity doesn’t get lost and that she doesn’t feel like she has to pick sides between her old and new life.
Makayla and Uncle Kev have a day every month, just them, doing whatever they want. It’s not even about doing anything relating to their shared skin tone, but just a routine to establish that Kevin is there for her.
Jordan takes to Makayla quickly, as well, finding her cute and endearing. He tells them that she reminds him of Vinessa at that age, and quickly starts calling her his little cousin—another thing that Kim knows helps makes her feel like part of the family.
Makayla loves her ‘big cousin', Jordan often teaching her age appropriate jokes and helping her play harmless pranks. He also teaches her some dance moves, and laughs with her when she tries to teach Adam them, who fails spectacularly.
Jordan loves Ally as well, having seen Kim as part of his family for years but Kim knows that they’ll never have the bond that Jordan and Makayla have, and it’s something that makes her feel warm and fuzzy inside—that Makayla with have things that’s just hers, that she won’t ever feel like she’s in her little sister’s shadow. It’s important, Kim thinks, and she’s glad of it. Makayla is no less her daughter than Ally and deserves to never feel like she is.
Makayla is family before she is legally, before she’s adopted into a family who barely has any blood in common anyway. But the day the adoption goes through is a joyous day for all of them.
“I love you.” Makayla has said it to them before, and more to Ally. But that day she says it and it’s louder than a shy whisper but firm and sure and Kim can’t help getting teary eyed as they hug her, assuring their daughter that they love her too, so much.
“Thank you for wanting to be my mom and dad.” Makayla says that night, so earnestly and Kim tears up again, Adam too. And nothing has ever felt so right. Kim knows she’ll never replace her mom, and she doesn’t want to, and she knows that Makayla might not ever call them mom and dad but they are and Makayla sees them as that and it feels so right.
“We’ve got two daughters.” Kim giggles against Adam’s chest that night, when everyone is asleep.
“That we do. And we got to skip the baby stage so we could get our two daughters straight away,” Adam replies, referencing their conversation from the night Makayla went home with Cathy. Kim laughs again, cuddling against her fiancé—as of a week ago.
Life is unpredictable. It’s messy and chaotic and full of madness, and Kim’s learnt and accepted that. And life is wonderful and amazing, and not despite of that, but because of that.
Two years ago, Kim would not see herself like this. In bed with Adam, her fiancé, their two daughters sleeping and feeling like she’s got the most perfect life. And it’s all because life is unpredictable.
Kim used to think that perfect meant calmness. And then she thought that can’t be her life, because she’s choose a mad and crazy life, a life not designed to be calm. But as she lies in bed that night, Adam cuddling her, Kim knows that’s wrong.
Life does mean calmness, but not because her life is quiet and calm, but because it’s messy and chaotic. It’s messy and chaotic and it’s hers. She has all what she ever wanted, fulfilled in all areas, and it doesn’t matter if it’s unpredictable because that’s the beauty of it.
There’s such a peace and calmness inside of her, an ease that has been brought on only by the messy, imperfection and unplanned events of her life—and that’s what makes everything feel perfect; perfect within the chaos.
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multific · 3 years
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To Be Free
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The Elder x Reader
Requested by:  ateliefloresdaprimavera
Summary: John was the closest thing you ever had for a friend. Even if you wouldn’t really call it a friendship, it still felt like that. And so, when John left to be with Helen, you felt like you were alone again. Your only living relative was your father who you never met. After finding out your real father’s identity, you couldn't take it any longer, you had enough, you needed out, you wanted to be free.
You were a fierce assassin. No doubt about that.
Rumor was that you defeated even John Wick himself, but of course, everyone thought that to be just a myth. 
Only you and John knew the truth of that evening. 
After that you and John formed a sort of friendship. You were first to know about Helen. And you were the first to tell him that he needed to leave. He deserved to have a nice life. 
After that, everything changed. Your whole world was turned upside down when you learned that you were Winston’s daughter. You felt disgusted to be the offspring of a man who didn’t about you at all. And he knew who you were, of course he did. He knew everything, yet he didn’t care. When you got shot, nearly bled to death, he didn’t even bat an eye.
You had enough.
No matter how good you were at your job, you couldn’t handle Winston anymore.
So, to Morocco you went. Hopefully you would be able to get a deal, or a job in exchange for your exit.
But life had other ideas.
As soon as you stepped into the tent, as soon as your eyes met with his, it was over for you.
You have never seen such a man before, handsome, charming, calm and kind. The way he spoke was collected, confident and it was clear, he was the boss.
What you expected was a job to complete, however, instead the Elder decided that you will stay with him and serve by his side.
You hated the idea, you wanted your own life, but you would take anything over the Continental.
***
You stayed in the desert, and if you were honest, you quite enjoyed it. 
You got your own tent, your schedule was great. You had time for yourself, and your tasks weren’t too complicated. 
You felt like this was retirement. Like this was what it felt like to be free. Even if you weren’t truly free, but who ever is?
“Something’s troubling you.” 
Although you were trained to be on high alert, Elder somehow managed to sneak up on you each time.
You jumped a little before turning to him, one hand on your chest.
“Why do you always have to scare me like that?” you weren’t annoyed, but you weren’t happy about the sudden fright either.
“I apologize. I just saw you walk in here, and couldn’t miss the expression on your face.”
He said motioning around the library you were in at the moment. You had a few books picked out that you were interested in. 
“Botanics?” he asked, you let out a sigh, finally your heart calmed down.
“Yes. I used to have a lot of plants and flowers in my apartment. But here... in the desert. The plants are rather limited. I do have like six cactuses, but that’s about it.”
“Hm. Well, I’m not going to bother you. Sorry again, for scaring you.”
“You are not bothering.” you said with a reassuring smile which he returned, your heart skipped a beat, he was just so handsome.
“I will see you later.” he said before he left you with your books.
***
The next few days you haven’t seen much of him. Although you worked very close to him, and you saw him every day, for the last three days it was as if he disappeared. You asked others about it, but they all said he was busy with something, not wanting to sound like you are spying around, you just let it go. 
“Y/N.” your name made you jump. You turned and saw Elder standing there, in the entrance of your tent, smiling at you.
“You got so stop doing that. You’ll give me a heart attack at this rate.” you said.
“I didn’t mean to. Come with me please?” he asked holding his hand out for you. You looked at him, bit suspicious about his behavior. Yet, you ended up taking his hand.
His hand was big in comparison to yours. Your skin felt like silk against his rougher one, but you didn’t mind. For some reason the way his thumb circled the back of your hand felt so nice and relaxing. You wondered if he did that without thinking. But then again, he was a man who always knew what he was doing.
“Where are we going? Are you going to kill me and dump me in the sand?” you asked as you looked at him. You noticed a rather big house with a smaller one next to it. It looked new, yet it wasn’t out of place. This is where he lived.
You heard about his home, others said he lived a bit further from the tents in a house, but you have never seen it.
However the green grass looked like it belonged there.
“This is my home, and I have a present for you.”
He soon opened the small house’s doors to let you in as it turned out it was a green house. Just during the night, you couldn’t recognize that. 
“Is this...for me?”
“Yes, you deserve this. You have helped me so much since you came here. You have everything you will ever need, but if you don’t just ask me.”
“But, why?”
“You are special to me.”
You finally looked at him and noticed his eyes on you.
“You may reject me, even if you do, this will be yours, I’m not that kind of a man. I do admit, you sparked my interest from day one, but if you don’t feel the same towards me, that’s also fine.”
“I-I don’t know what to say.”
“I would love for you to accept my courting and go on a date with me, but please only do it if you feel the same.”
It was a bit much to wrap your head around. But who you were fooling with? The butterflies in your stomach new better as your hand tightened around his and you smiled at him.
“I didn’t know you felt like this.”
“You can say that I am good at hiding them. But I am tired of doing so.” He was about to lean down and kiss you but you put a finger to his lips.
“Let’s go on a date first.” you said as he smiled against your finger.
***
After his long bath, John changed into his new suit, it fit him perfectly.
He knew what his mission was and how to achieve it.
Although he got pain killers for his new wound, the missing finger didn’t hurt any less. 
As John walked around, he noticed two children playing in the shade, a girl, she looked to be about four and a little boy, still a toddler, barely one years old. 
“John?” a woman asked him, he quickly turned to see you standing behind him, before he could react you hugged him.  “I told you that you should’ve left.”
You pulled back and looked at him, noticing his finger.
“I’m sorry about Helen.” you offered him a friendly smile, but his face was of shock and confusion.
“Why are you here?”
“After I found my father, I couldn’t live with that. My father is Winston, John. That backstabbing man, he didn’t even care about me. And he knew who I was, the whole time. So, I needed to leave, and I came here to be free.”
“Are you? Are you free now?”
“Are we ever truly free, John?” you asked.
“Mommy!” came a little voice from behind John. John turned half-way to see the toddler walking rather unstable towards him and you.
“Abbas! I told you to stay in the shade with your sister.” you said as the little boy arrived and you picked him up. You adjusted his little hat. “Abbas meet John, he is an old friend of mommy’s.” the little boy turned his head to John and smiled at him.
“Is he yours?”
“Yes, and the little girl over there too. You can say that I didn’t find my freedom, but I did find peace John, I wish you the same.” you said.
“Papa!” yelled the boy in your arms as you put him down, he rushed to your husband and John’s eyes grew even bigger. You and the Elder? John was shocked and amazed at the same time.
He watched as he spoke Arabic with his son before turning to you to place a kiss on your cheek.
“Good luck on your mission, Johnathan.”
“Good luck, John.” you smiled as the three of you walked to join your daughter.
John was very happy to see that you found your peace. Now, he would have to find his own by finishing his mission.
As he walked away he heard the happy noises of children playing and you laughing.
At least one out of the two of you had a happy ending.
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pink-imagines · 3 years
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the little things
request: Hi! I saw that your requests were open and I've being thinking about requesting for a while now. It's my first time requesting on any blog so, if it's bad I'm sorry. I would like to ask for a Todoroki x reader, where the reader is overwhelmed and stressed because of their work and he comforts them. I'm kinda living this now and Shoto is my comfort character and I hope it could help other readers also :). You don't have to do it if you don't want and thank you! :D
a/n: i wrote it as fast as i could, i hope you feel better soon anon :)
warnings: stress and crying, otherwise fluff
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The only thing you wanted to do at the moment was to take a nice peaceful day off. Even if that was possible it wouldn't even be close to peaceful. The stress had been building up over the past month and weighing down heavy on your shoulders. It felt like you had too much to do but at the same time you couldn't seem to finish any of it. Every time you sat down to do it you barely got halfway done, and whenever you did finish anything there were ten other things to worry about at the same time.
You needed a break and you needed it now, but you couldn't get it until you were finished with all of these tasks. At the same time you had chores to do around the apartment, which your partner Shoto couldn't because he was off to work for almost the entire day every day. There was simply too much to do with too little time to finish it.
One evening you were cleaning up the dishes after making a quick and simple dinner for yourself. It was one of your worse days, you hadn't finished anything at all. You were at your breaking point and so the water spilled over the edge and you started crying in the middle of doing the dishes. The door opened and you knew that Shoto was home, so you tried to wipe away the tears and look the least bit normal. "I'm home.", Shoto called for you as he walked into the kitchen. "Welcome home.", you said and accidentally let out a sniffle. "Are you okay?", he walked up behind you and wrapped his arms around your figure. "Yeah, it's been a bit of a rough day...", you said and tried to hold back your tears. "Are you sure? You look like you've been crying, Y/N.", Shoto muttered as he rested his head on your shoulder. As soon as he said your name the last drop of water landed in the cup that made it all run down the edges. "It's just-", you dropped the dish you were holding in the sink and brought up your hands to your face to try to hide the fact that you were crying, but your voice made it evident. "Sweetheart...", Shoto let out a light sig and turned you around, "Let's get you seated down on the couch and then you can tell me what's been going on, okay?" He took a towel before you could even answer and dried off your hands. Shoto took you to the couch in the livingroom where you sat down in front of him. "Just stay here for a few and try to calm down a bit, I'll just go wash up and then I'll be with you again.", he explained and went to the bathroom. You wrapped a blanket around you and did your best to stop crying before he came back, which happened rather quickly.
"So can you tell me what's wrong, princess?", he never called you princess unless he was trying to be soft with you. "I just keep getting new things to do all the time... work is so incredibly hectic and it doesn't help that I have to do everything from home now either.", you wiped away the last of your tears, "I feel like I can never take a break and it's becoming a bit too much for me. I know that you probably have it worse but-" "No. This isn't about me, alright?", he stopped you, "You're stressed. you don't need to compare your stress to anyone else's for it to be valid, okay?" You nodded and he took your hands in his. "Let's get you to bed and you should get a good night's rest." "But the dishes-" "I'll take care of the dishes, yeah?", he said softly, "Just get some sleep and I'll see what I can do to help you." Not knowing what he meant by that but being too tired to ask, you simply nodded. Shoto led you to the bedroom and as soon as your head hit the pillow you fell asleep.
The next morning Shoto wasn't next to you, like expected since he goes to work before you do. You walked into the kitchen to get some breakfast before you had to have a zoom meeting. "Good morning.", Shoto said, making you jump back in shock. "Holy- you scared me!", you exclaimed and put your hand over your chest, "You're still here?" "I took two weeks off from work after you went to sleep last night.", he shrugged. "You did what!?", you watched him calmly walk up to you. "Yeah, and I emailed your work to make sure you get a week off next week too.", he said and put his hands on your hips, bringing you closer to him. "Why would you do that? You know if you take a break from work your rankings can lower.", you sighed. "I can't go to work knowing that you're at home completely crumbling.", he smiled softly, "I'm a hero, I save people. Even if it's just one person at a time." "Shoto..." "Let's not get emotional. I made you coffee and I'm about to make some breakfast, go get ready for the day in the meantime.", he said and rushed you back to the bedroom.
The day went smoother than it normally did. Shoto ended up doing most of the house work during the entire day, saving you time to finish some work. The rest of the week was the same, Shoto even started helping out with your work to the best of his abilities. By the end of the week you had nothing left to do.
You laid down next to Shoto on your bed. It was Sunday night and you had finished your last projects. For once you were calm. A warm smile rested on your lips. "Thank you for this week.", you whispered to him. "Don't thank me yet, we have a week of just relaxing now.", he said. "I still can't believe that I'm actually going to have a week off..." "Just wait.", he gave you a kiss on the top of your head.
The next day you woke up to hear someone russtling around in the bedroom. You looked at the clock to see that it was only 6 am. "Shoto... what are you doing up?", you said in a groggy morning voice. "Sorry, did I wake you?", he looked up from the bags he was packing. "Why are you packing suitcases?", you questioned. "I have a surprise for you.", he said and when he saw your suspicious glance he added, "Just trust me." You nodded and went back to bed.
Another hour passed until someone woke you up, this time meaning to do so. You looked over at Shoto who gave you a small smile. "Good morning.", he said quietly. "... good morning... why are we up so early? I want to sleep more...", you whined and pushed your face back in your pillow. "Hey, you can sleep in the car. C'mon you just need to get dressed.", he took off the covers from your body even though you tried to fight against it. The fact that he was a lot stronger than you and that you had just woken up made taking the covers away from you a piece of cake for Shoto. He got you up and led you to the bathroom where you started doing your morning routine. "We can bring some breakfast with us in the car, it's a pretty long ride afterall.", he told you as you dried off your face after just washing it. "Where are we going?", you asked, a lot more awake than before because of the cold water you had splashed on your face. "It's a surprise, didn't I tell you that before?", he grinned before walking out of the bathroom, "I packed your bag for you, so you just need to worry about getting dressed." He didn't usually grin like that, he must have one hell of a big surprise.
When you got out of the bathroom you checked your phone. You saw a message from Shoto saying that he was waiting for you in the car. Since you didn't want to keep him waiting you hurried into the bedroom to get changed. Before you could rummage through your closet for something to wear you saw a neatly folded pile of clothes laying on the bed, which was also neatly made. You smiled, knowing that Shoto had started getting a habit of making the bed just because it made you a bit less stressed by seeing a clean room. You picked up the first clothing item and immediately noticing that it was one of Shoto's hoodies - because it was your favorite one to steal. Under the hoodie layed your favorite sweatpants. Before you started getting emotional over clothing you put it on and went out to the car where Shoto was waiting.
He let you sleep in the car for as long as you needed to while he was driving to the surprise. When you woke up you realized that you were far away from the city already, as you couldn't see any tall skyscrapers anymore. The only buildings around were small countryside family homes. "The houses here are so cute.", you commented sleepily. "Ah, you're awake.", he gave you a thermos, "There's coffee in this if you want any. Oh, and there's breakfast in the backpack in the back." "Thanks.", you smiled.
The drive wasn't long after that. In under two hours you arrived at your destination. You were surrounded by woods and there was a little lake nearby along with the mountains that weren't far from your destination. When you drove up to a building you immediately looked at the sign. "A spa?", you gasped happily and unbuckled your seatbelt. "I think it'd be relaxing, don't you?", he looked around the car park, "And it seems like we're the only ones here too." You turned to Shoto with tears in your eyes. His calm and slightly tired expression changed quickly to a worried one. "Do you not like it?" You threw your arms around him and burried your face into the crook of his neck. "Thank you. I love it. It's wonderful... thank you, thank you, thank you.", you muttered, "What did I do in my past life to deserve this?"
When inside the spa and inn you got settled in your room quite quickly. The two of you ended up taking a nap together because of the tiring car ride. When you woke up it was already evening. You were offered dinner by the staff there and afterwards you made your way to the hot springs.
You sat close together with your legs in the warm water, looking at the stars that had started peaking out as the sun went further and further down. "I love you.", you whispered even though no one was around, "Thank you for helping me last week." "It's what I wanted to do, no need to thank me for it.", he lightly pressed his lips to your temple, "I love you, why wouldn't I want to help you? Let's spend the week well, okay?" "Sounds good to me.", you answered in pure bliss.
--
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tomtenadia · 3 years
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A Little Braver ch.6
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Here we go with chapter 6. I edited but if you see any typos I am sorry I had a long day at work.
During the call they attend in the chapter they mention a substance called ANFO. Click here for more info. I did some research hopefully it makes sense. I am no an expert but I needed something for the scene.
Our two idiots... well, I hope you will be happy (for now) *evil laughter*
I hope you will enjoy the chapter
-------------
Three months later.
Rowan landed back at the airbase in the morning. The carrier had docked on the coast a few hours earlier on and then they had flown back to the base with their jets.
He got off his plane and smelled the air of home. Winter had given way to spring and he could smell flowers and wondered if the kingsflames were in bloom already.
“Damn it feels good to be back.” Shouted Gavriel getting off his jet and stretching his back “I am dying for a very long relaxing bath. And peace, without you idiots annoying me.”
“Oh yeah,” said Fenrys “Not having to hear Connall and Vaughan snore will be so good.” He turned to Rowan and Gavriel “Not everyone has the rank to get their own quarters.”
Rowan pretended not to hear the youngster and started walking around his aircraft to do his post-flight checks. He had enough of their bickering and of Fenrys moaning in general.
“Guys.” He bellowed “Less talking and do your post-flight checks.”
“Someone is grumpy.” Added Fenrys.
Connall slapped him on the back of his neck “don’t anger the man even further. Now shut up and do your job. I am so tired of your voice.”
Rowan silently thanked Connall for putting his twin in place.
Once he was done, Rowan grabbed his duffel bag and went to the changing room and took a shower. He would take a proper one at home, for now he just wanted to remove some dirt from him.  
The changing room was busy and he opened his locker with a sigh. He definitely needed peace and quiet and not to be in close quarters for a while.
“I am so looking forward to my month off.” Commented Gavriel “and decent food. I want to sit down for a meal for more than ten minutes.” Then he turned to Rowan “Any plans?”
“Not really.” He shrugged.
“Are you going to see your captain?”
“I don’t know.” He said quickly. He did his best to put her out of his mind during those months away. To ignore those pesky feeling that had been taking root in him even while far away from her. He had hated how he left her and throwing himself into work had been the best way to try and forget. But now he was back and he felt as if he was stuck.
He put his uniform back on and grabbed his stuff “Just stay out of trouble,” he told them before leaving the room.
While walking to his office he pulled his mobile out of the bag, switched it back on and a barrage of notifications hit him and two voicemails awaited him. The first one was from Aelin and she was mad at him. How could he blame her. He had disappeared without a word. How could he even begin to apologise? When he listened to the second and a glimmer of hope appeared in front of him. She wanted to talk. He grabbed his stuff and blitzed out of the airbase. The taxi he had called arrived ten minutes later and once at the station he paid the driver and got off, his duffel bag on his shoulder. An array of emotions passed through him while he moved the first step in the direction of the firehouse, panic being at the top of the list.
He lifted his sunglasses on his head and took in the scene in the distance. Two fire engines were parked in front of the yard. Aelin and the rest of the team were washing them, the day was sunny and mild so the perfect occasion. He chuckled and noticed that she was standing. She was walking normally and he sighed. Rowan found himself staring at her walking around the truck and shouting orders. She was just as stunning as he remembered her. He missed her. He realised in that instant looking at her from far away that somehow, although there was nothing but vitriol between the two, he just missed her. Was his heart actually racing?
Aelin lifted her gaze for one instant and in the distance on the pavement she noticed a tall figure with silver hair. She squeezed the sponge and threw it in the bucket, then stood and marched to him doing all her best to maintain her cool to try and pass as aloof and not minimally interested that he was back. A lie to herself she struggled to believe.
“I am back safely.” He said when she was close enough.
“Well, at least you can do your job well enough to stay alive.” Her tone was hard and unforgiving.
Of course she was still mad at him, what was he expecting?
“Follow me.” She turned around and began walking back inside the station and Rowan knew she was headed for her office. Better have some privacy, he had a feeling he was not going not enjoy the conversation.
“Sit,” she ordered, once inside her office and he complied like a good soldier.
She moved around the desk and plopped on her chair.
“Aelin I—“
“No, you don’t get to go first,” annoyance quite thick in her voice “You left.” She sat up straight “you left me at the hospital and left again three days later for your mission and neither time you bothered to tell me why. You left.” She searched for his gaze and looked at his pine green eyes “Do you have any idea how I felt when I fully woke up and found out you never got back?” She told him unleashing all the anger she had bottled up while he was away “I went to your airbase and I was told by one of the guards that you all had gone for a week already.” She was not shouting but her tone was full of annoyance toward him.
Rowan had thought over and over again how he could apologise to her, but doing so it would mean reveal his secret and he was not sure he could. He should expose his fears and come clean with her, she had lost, just like him, she would understand his struggle.
Eventually he stood and started pacing “I heard what you said in the hospital… about your feelings. And I panicked.” He stopped for a moment “I freaked out because…” he collapsed on the chair, his head in his hands and Aelin knew exactly why but she had to hear him say it.
He had to do it, be a little braver and tell her why he fled, it was his only chance if he even contemplated the idea of being with her or to have any kind of relationship.
“I am scared of getting involved again.” He sighed deeply and Aelin saw pain in his eyes “Over a year and a half ago I lost my wife.” He confessed and Aelin gripped her hands under the table to avoid crying. “She died in a car crash. It was winter and the roads were bad and she just… lost control of the car according to the police.” He looked away for a second “Lyria was also pregnant.” His voice trembled for a moment. “I was away. I was on the other side of the continent when it happened. I left my pregnant wife alone.”
Aelin’s eyes became wet all of a sudden.
“She was going to leave me.” He admitted painfully and Aelin almost gasped at the unexpected ammission “a few days before I left I was looking for something for her in her drawer and saw the papers. She had all the documents ready to file for divorce, my signature was the only thing missing. She had also a letter from her lawyer saying that she would win full custody of our child since, because of my job, I was not fit to look after a child. I would probably win to see my child from time to time.” He stood again “I never told her that I had found out. I left for my mission and she didn’t even come to the airbase with me as she used to do in the past.” He ran his hand through his hair “I loved her. But apparently not enough.” He stopped again as if to gather his thoughts “I got a short compassionate leave and when I got back I just threw myself into work. It kept my mind busy. Since then I haven’t been with anyone.”
“I know.” Aelin whispered and he look at her in a strange way”About the accident, I mean.” She said softly.
“One day I was curious and I looked you up.” She stood and went around the table and sat at the front, facing him. No barriers between them “I read about your wife. Then I read the article about her accident.” She hoped she was not to mess up this one “I recognised our engine in one of the photos from the article.
His gaze widened.
“My team and I attended the accident.” And stared at him but his expression was illegible “It was bad. Only one person survived that night. I had nightmares about it for a week. She… your wife… I think she did not suffer much. I know it’s not much consolation, but from the dynamics it was probably instantaneous.”
Rowan looked at her and she saw tears in his eyes.
“I still have the file.”
“No.” He said calmly “I don’t think I can.”
She took a step to him and took his hand in hers “I know the pain” it was time for her confession. It was only fair.
Rowan looked at her and remembered about the man she had lost.
“His name was Sam. He was a firefighter and a captain at west station. I lost him over a year ago. He attended a call. We could not assist straight away because we were busy on another one. Once we were done we ran in their help. I was too late.” She buried her face in her hands “when I got there they were just carrying his body outside the building.” She looked at him “he did not die a nice death. He suffered and I was not there. I was too late to help him.” She squeezed his hand “I know your pain and your fears because they are the same as mine.” She took another step toward him “losing Sam almost destroyed me. I can’t go through that a second time.”
“How do you get out of the abysm?” He asked tenderly, both with eyes moist.
“One step at a time.” She added and her body was now almost close to his.
Rowan hesitated for an instant then his arm reached out and pulled her closer “Together, then” he whispered, leaning his chin on her head “we can try together.”
“Yeah…” she whispered, her hands against his chest “I am sorry I was mad at you.”
“Shhh… I deserved it.”
She leaned closer and inhaled his scent of pine and snow. He always smelled of home.
“I am sorry I was always so mean to you. I think I was just trying to push you away and keep my distance.”
Aelin smiled and with her fingers brushed his name tag “I think we both did our best to show our unpleasant side.”
She felt him tighten his arms around her “Can we please not? I don’t mean not fighting because I have a feeling that we might get into a few fights from time to time. I mean stop being actually nasty to each other.” He admitted and she felt his thumb tracing circles on her back “whatever this is… I want to give it a go. If you are okay of course,”
She looked up at him and saw a faint smile that reached his eyes. Even with a small smile the man was stunning. She didn’t want to think about with a proper smile.
“Yeah. I want to. I am still terrified, though.”
“That makes two of us.”
“So, where do we start, captain?”
“You owe me two so what about we start with me taking you out for dinner and then we move from there?”
Aelin chuckled “Do you have your mortgage ready?”
He smiled. He gave her an actual real smile and Aelin had to restrain her instinct to slam him against the door and have her way with him.
“The bank apparently does not offer mortgages to pay for meals.” He pulled back a bit to look at her “are you free tomorrow night? I am on my month off so I am totally free.”
Aelin nodded “yes, we will be coming off night shift around 9am. I can go home, sleep and I will see you at night.”
“I still have your address. Can I pick you up at seven?”
“I think I will be alive again by that time.”
“What do we say to our friends if they ask?”
“None of their business.”
He looked down at her “I like it.”
They pulled apart and Aelin went back to sitting on the desk and him on the chair “So your knee is okay again?”
“Yes, physio was a bitch but it’s getting better. The guys, as a joke, gave me kneepads.”
She saw him smile and she realised she would say all sort of stupid things to see that reaction in him. The result left her breathless.
“And you performance review?”
She gave him the biggest grin ever “We crushed it. Absolutely nailed it and I am so proud of my team”
“I had no doubts.” He leaned back on the chair “and I see that you got another engine. That must be great news for you guys.”
She nodded “we got it two weeks ago. It was all thanks to the protest after the embankment fire. Dorian pushed and he got it.” She took a pen and tapped it on her knee “we still don’t have a full team, so at the moment we use it if  the situation requires it and we split our team and Aedion leads it. It’s not optimal but the team is coming,” she explained “west is giving us half of their experienced team in their second truck and they are taking half rookies so we’ll both have a truck of mixed crews. Again, not the best but we can’t have an engine with all newbies.”
“That is wonderful.”
“You interview helped as well. The one outside the hospital.”
He looked away for a moment “they made me so mad. Giving all the credit to us when we did very little. I had to.”
“Thank you.”
In that instant the dispatch alarm went off.
“Shit.” She jumped off the table “Don’t go anywhere. There’s a tv, a kitchen. Stay here.”
He nodded and grabbed her hand “Be safe, please.”
She nodded and ran outside.
“There you are. You are the last one here.” Joked Aedion while they were both getting ready.
“She was with her captain.” Added Ansel with a wicked smile.
“Uh, getting nasty in the office?” Added Brullo.
Aelin opened the door and jumped in the engine at her seat “stop behaving like children and jump in the bloody truck right now.”
“Aedion, you lead the second one. ”
Rowan noticed the two engines and the ambulance drive away and once they were away he wandered around the empty space.
He walked around the deserted station and tried to discover more about that interesting team. He walked back the same way as her office and found a corridor that lead to their beds. On a wall there were pictures of the whole team. He stared at Aelin’s picture. She had the most beautiful grin and it was so like her. He smiled at her and traced his step back to the resting area. He sat on the sofa and switched on the tv and on the news he saw a raging fire as breaking news and he guessed that’s where they were going. The headline quoted a fire in an explosive warehouse near a quarry. It looked terrifying.
“Aedion,” said Aelin over the radio “we are going to the warehouse near the quarry. Explosives. This is your kingdom.”
“I saw it.  Dispatch confirmed west is coming as well. It must be bad for four engines.”
They arrived at the site five minutes later.
Aelin jumped off the truck “Fuck.” Was her first reaction at the scene in front of them.
In the distance she heard the evacuation sirens for the quarry. West station arrived a moment later.
The fire was raging. Luckily the warehouse was near a quarry and away from inhabited areas, that at least was a start.
She saw a man with a high visibility jacket and ran to him.
“Captain Galathynius.” She introduced herself.
“Captain. I am the manager.” He explained “We evacuated the quarry in time as soon as we heard the first explosion. The warehouse team was loading a new load of explosives to be sent to the quarry. Something must have gone wrong. We lost contact with the team in the north wing where we store the explosives.”
Aedion arrived a moment later “what are we dealing with?”
“Mostly ANFO.” Replied the manager “it was meant to be moved.”
“Do you store any other agent or fuels?”
The manager nodded “but in a separate section. Something must have gone wrong while carrying it away. ANFO must have been in contact with any of the other fuels we use. ANFO is just an oxidiser” the manager explained and Aedion nodded aware of how ANFO worked.
“How many people do you have in the warehouse?’ Asked Aelin trying to assess the situation.
“About 60 and I have 40 accounted for.”
“We’ll get them out.” She said. Grabbed Aedion’s arm and walked away.
“Still twenty people inside. You are the expert. What are the chances I can send the team in and make it out alive?”
“Heat will cause ANFO to detonate. The fire is spreading qui—“
Another savage explosion ravaged the area. The blast so strong that the aftershock was felt quite a distance away. Aedion had pulled Aelin down on the ground and when they lifted their heads they noticed the rest of the team had done the same.
“Thomas,” she shouted while standing up “Connect to the water supply and get the water going and keep the temperature down as much as you can.”
He nodded and spurred his team into action.
“Aedion, you and I are going in.”
The man nodded.
“Luca, Brullo, keep the water going as well. We need to cool down the place as much as possible.” Then she walked to Thomas “Aedion and I are going in. There are still twenty people trapped. We’ll see if we can do something. Call dispatch and order all the units they can send in.”
“You can’t be serious.” The other captain protested “Dorian will not be happy.”
“I am.” she said finishing to don her gear fully “we’ll se you on the flip side. Keep the water coming.”
He stared at her and Aedion ran to the area less affected by the fire. It was a suicide mission and Dorian was not going to be happy.
Back at the station, Rowan was on the edge of his seat. He had felt the explosion, heard it mostly. He kept staring at the screen where he had seen Aelin and Aedion running into the building and his heart raced to the point of pain. There was no way there was anyone alive in that inferno. Why was she risking her life like that?
The four engines were woking hard channeling as much water as possible on the building but from his perspective it seemed like the fire was not yielding at all. He stood and started pacing.
In that moment Lorcan called him “Are you seeing the news about the fire?”
“Yeah.” Rowan replied not removing his eyes from the tv.
“They are there.”
“I know.” Rowan felt sick “Aelin just went in.”
“Are you at home?” The man on the line asked.
“No, at the station.”
“Let me know when they are back.”
Rowan hung up and resumed his pacing.
Dorian arrived on the scene and ran to Thomas as soon as he noticed the captain.
“Where are they?” He asked with panic in his voice.
Thomas inclined his head and indicated the building and Dorian swore savagely.
“How long? I got an update on my way here.”
“Five minutes.” Added the captain directing the water to another area of the building “I have called for more units. Two more are on their way.”
“That is not enough,” raged Dorian grabbing his phone. He walked away calling someone. When he came back he was slightly less furious “Being the chief has its perks. All the units available are coming in. This is not—“ another explosion.
Much stronger than the previous one. A mushroom of yellow fire went up in the sky and the blast rocked the ground all the way to Orynth.
“Chief to Captain. Aelin please come in.” No answer.
“Aelin, damn answer that bloody radio.” He started pacing nervously and a hand ran through his hair “Aedion, come in.”
“Fuck, fuck.”
In that instant the sound of sirens filled the air.
Dorian turned and saw a long line of engines filing down the main track.
He ran to the station captains and started shouting orders. The other engines deployed around the warehouse and started tackling the fire.
Thomas joined Dorian “I am going in. My men are manning the engine and the hoses. I am going to get them out.”
“No you are not.” The tone in Dorian’s word was harsh “I am not having another one of my captains in that building. They should not be inside in the first place.”
“We have still twenty civilians trapped inside.”
“Captain, you and I have done this job for a while. You know better than me that with three such explosions the chances someone inside is still alive are slim. We stop the fire and hope they are safe.”
“Do nothing?” Thomas shouted “How the fuck do you expect me to do nothing?”
“I am the chief, I am ordering.”
Thomas stormed away and resumed his position with the attack lines with the rest of his team.
“Aedion?” Aelin’s voice was faint. She removed the pile of debris from her body and tried to stand “Aedion?” She called again, panic rising. The smoke and fire were making visibility non existent “AEDION.” She shouted.
A moment later she heard a groan and noticed his bulking figure sprawled on the floor. She ran to him and saw he was awake “answer me for fuck’s sake.”
He removed his mask “my oxygen tank is bust.”
She removed hers and passed it to him “use mine, I still have some juice left.”
“We need to get out.”
“We haven’t found anyone.”
“Aelin,” he breathed removing the mask and giving it back to her “we need to get out. Another explosion like the last one and we are roast. And the fumes are bad. We don’t have long.”
“Fine.” She helped him stand. Slowly they tried to navigate their way through the fire and smoke.
The radio crackled static as they took a few steps deeper in the inferno.
“I heard something.” Aelin moved to the sound and Aedion followed. They found a heavy door and opened it slowly. Inside they found the twenty workers still missing.
“Is anyone injured?”
A woman nodded and showed her leg that clearly had a fracture and then pointed at at another man who lay unconscious.
“We’ll get you out of here.” She looked at their scared faces “pull up you clothes and cover mouth and noses” then she crouched down and offered the woman a piggyback. Aedion placed the unconscious man on his shoulder. She started to walk but one of the workers stopped her “This way.” They walked to a door that was locked.
“It’s a secondary route. It will take us to some tunnels underneath.”
Aelin looked at Aedion and the man nodded. It was their only option. They deposited their victims on the ground and with their axes they started knocking down the heavy door. Once through they recovered the people and walked on “stay behind us. Do not walk away form the big man behind me. Hold hands and form a line like at school.”
The civilians nodded and followed. The tunnels were full of smoke. They needed to be quick. The fumes from ANFO were toxic. Her oxygen tank started beeping and she knew she had ran out of juice as well.
“This way,” said the man who seemed to know about the tunnels “these were used in the olden days when we still used dynamite to blast the quarry. They would carry it under here. Apparently it was safer than outside were there were people everywhere. They never had any accident.”
Aelin followed the man with apprehension, everyone had started coughing quite badly.
“How far?”
“Not long. We are almost out. My dad was a worker here in the olden days. He told me everything about the tunnels.”
She heard Aedion cough behind her and she followed next.
Then she felt it. The breeze and a few minutes later the tunnel opened up right in front of the quarry. Everyone collapsed exhausted and took great gulps of air. Aelin looked up and saw the fire was diminishing and gasped when she noticed the crazy amount on fire engines.
“Captain, Thomas,” she croaked, while her chest spasmed in another fit of coughing.
“Chief, captain, where are you?”
Fuck, of course Dorian was there. Lovely, a dressing down from him was all she needed “In front of the quarry, we found some tunnels. We have all civilians with us.” And her coughing resumed savagely.
Dorian walked to the manager “my men saved your trapped civilians. They mentioned some tunnels.”
The manager nodded “follow me,” they reached some SUVs, Dorian jumped in and they started driving. Not long after they stopped in a car park and Dorian in the distance noticed two firefighters uniforms.
“You damn fools,” he shouted when he was in close range “that was definitely one of the most stupid thing you two have ever done.”
Aelin coughed “Glad to see you too, buddy.”
Aedion stood “ two of the civvies are injured, the other ones just need to be checked.”
“Load them in the SUVs,” said the manager “we’ll take you all back to the main area with the EMTs.”
“Civilians first, Aedion and I can wait.” The man helped carry the survivors and sat back beside Aelin waiting for their turn and breathing deeply.
Dorian stood in front of them glaring “The whole fire department in the region has been mobilised for this.” He looked away “how did you two survive the two explosions?”
“We have super power.” She joked but from Dorian’s reaction she realised she had gone too far. The man was pissed.
“I should be mad at both of you and suspend you for being reckless.” He growled “Instead I will just keep on venting my displeasure for a few days more and also thank you for saving the civilians. But I am still displeased with you two. You do your job, you do not play heroes. Do you both read me in this?”
The two nodded silently without adding any comments to avoid angering Dorian even more.
The SUVs came back and both Aelin and Aedion made their way to the vehicles after the chief ordered them to get their arses back to their teams.
When they got back to where their team was cheers erupted.
Thomas passed his hose to a team member and ran to hug Aelin “you idiot. You damn idiot.”
“Such sweet words.” She joked patting the man on the back.
Aedion was dragged away by Lysandra for some checks and now Elide was pulling her jacket “come on, you will smooch later. Now I need to check on you. It’s protocol and you inhaled enough shit for today.”
Rowan noticed the black SUVs bring back some civilians and his worry grew when neither Aelin nor Aedion appeared. The flames were now under control thanks to the effort of all the engines involved.
Then he spotted her, her dirty blonde hair popping out of one of the SUVs that had just come back, and Aedion followed.
He collapsed on the sofa and finally let out the breath he had no idea he had been holding. She looked a mess but she was walking. She was fine. He saw the west captain ran for her and hug her and for a very brief second a pang of jealousy hit him. The he realised it was just a colleague being relieved to see they were alive. 
Elide dragged Aelin away to the ambulance and he hoped Lorcan was following the news. Elide was petite but he had a feeling the woman had just as much fire as Aelin.
He relaxed and then he had an idea. He grabbed the phone and rang Gavriel “Hey man, listen I have an idea and I need your help.”
Aelin sat on a gurney in an ambulance, with an oxygen mask attached to her face.
“I am fine,” she complained, trying to remove it, but Elide slapped her hand.
“You are violent.”
“What were you two thinking? You and that idiot cousin of yours? Going inside that hell?” The woman complained checking again her blood pressure and oxygen levels.
“It’s our job.”
“Not when the bloody place is about to blow up. You scared the heck out of everyone.”
“How’s Aedion?”
“Probably getting beaten up by Lys.”
Aelin laughed and more coughing wrecked her body. When she reopened her eyes her entire team was in front of the ambulance “Don’t you two do that ever again. You crazy bastards.” Were the loving words coming from Ansel. Everyone nodded “Dorian had to call all the fire trucks in the area.” Explained Ress.
“I guess you two will soon receive another invite from the mayor.” Joked Nox and Aelin gasped.
Brullo looked at her with a grin “that’s what you get at playing damn heroes. Police has been stopping people coming any closer all night. There is a sea of reporters out there.”
“Don’t you have jobs to do?” Groaned Elide “let the woman recover.”
“I always forget how scary you can be Lochan.” Ren shouted back at her while walking away from them.
“How are you feeling? Can you breath better?”
Aelin nodded.
“Your oxygen levels are back to normal. Does it hurt when you breath?”
“No, I am fine.”
It was much, much later when they did manage to finally get back to the station. Aelin got off the truck and then a wall of muscles slammed into her and enveloped her in a fierce hug. She looked up and noticed a pair of green eyes staring at her. She leaned her head against his chest for a second and the smell of pine and snow hit her. His scent.
“Don’t do that ever again.” He whispered in her ear.
“Where you worried about me, captain?” Then she pulled back noticing her team staring at the two. Fuck, no one knew they had sort of reconciled.
“What is the arsehole doing here?” Shouted Aedion pulling Aelin away from Rowan.
“He was here before the call. I told him to wait for me. That’s why he is here. And his name is not arsehole.” She growled back at her cousin.
Then a few more people came out of the station and they recognised Rowan’s squadron.
“We made food. Gavriel is a great cook. We helped. I just thought that you might all be starving.”
“Damn he is good,” said Ansel looking at Rowan from top to bottom.
Lorcan looked at Elide and the woman smiled at him. He tried to smile back but he was nervous and instead walked back to the station with the rest of the group.
“They need domesticating,” commented Lysandra when she noticed her friend’s dejected expression “Let’s go, I hope the food is as good as last time.”
Rowan and Aelin were the only two left behind “Sorry I hugged you in public.”
She shook her head “It’s fine. It actually felt nice.” Then smiled “I just hope you are now ready for all the comments that are going to rain on us as soon as we get back in there.” She brushed his uniform “I covered you in soot.”
“I don’t care. I have never been more terrified in my life. And I had some hairy experiences in my job.”
“Sorry,” she looked down but she felt his fingers lift her chin.
“You were amazing. Totally insane, but I am in awe.”
He took her shoulder “come on, you need food and we got loads ready.”
Together they walked back and Aelin walked to the sink to wash her face. She wanted a shower but she wanted food more.
“Aedion you could have at least washed your face.” She sat beside Rowan and noticed her cousin’s state.
“I am hungry.”
“Lys, did you kiss him in that state?”
“Hell no,” said the woman taking a bite of her food “I gave him a pat on the back and told him to get his arse in the ambulance.”
“Uh, someone is not getting any tonight.” Chimed Ress and the group laughed.
“Probably more than you, boyo.”growled back Aedion without rising his gaze from his meal.
“Well, someone is definitely getting some,” added Fenrys and nodded to Aelin and Rowan who were just sitting normally eating their food, not even brushing against each other.
Rowan growled at the man and Aelin laughed.
“So what is it with you two?” Asked Elide curious.
Aelin and Rowan’s head popped up from their plates.
“You hugged, he did all of this, are you two dating and pretending to fight so we don’t annoy you?”
“We are just us for now.”explained Aelin “before the fire we talked.”
“We are figuring things out. No labels. No rush. One step at a time.” He grabbed Aelin’s hand under the table and turned to her “we will let things develop.”
“That’s boring.” Comment Aedion, mouth half full.
Aelin snorted out loud “You pined after Lysandra for two years. Two years of driving me crazy because you were head over heels for her but could not make up your mind.”
“Aelin.” Shouted the man.
“Two years?” Asked Lysandra “why you never told me?”
“You know him. He always tries to do the right thing. He kept telling himself that it was not proper since you worked together. I had to read him the regulations and tell him that EMTs are not under our chain of command so he was in the clear. Had it be Ansel, now that would have been an issue since he is her superior.” Explained Aelin who enjoyed the shift of the conversation moving away from her and Rowan.
“You are an idiot.”
She noticed Lorcan throwing glances at Elide and she elbowed Rowan but he had noticed as well.
Elide stared at Lorcan, then blushed savagely and went back to her food “this is amazing,” she said out loud.
“Lorcan made those.” Said Gavriel and Aelin was sure that the man had noticed the exchanges as well.
“So you are a good cook as well?”
Lorcan grunted but Connall elbowed him. A very brave manoeuvre considering that Lorcan was his boss.
“I live on my own. I need to know how to cook.” He managed, never looking at her.
Aelin texted Rowan is he always this bad at flirting?
She could hear Rowan silent laugh this is actually going well for his standards.
Aelin rolled her eyes “who has a house big enough with a garden that we can have a nice barbecue? All of us? Just to get to know each other?” Announced Aelin.
Gavriel raised his hand “I do. I have a big yard and I haven’t used my barbecue since last year.”
“Awesome. What about this Saturday?We are off and you guys are on your month off. So it’s perfect.”
“How do you know about our month off?” Asked Fenrys, staring at Rowan.
“Ro— Captain Whitethorn told me.”
“Oh, of course he did, didn’t he?”
She was going to slap Fenrys.
“Lieutenant, I don’t see why it might be any of your business what the captain and I talk about.” Rowan had put on his captain voice and Fenrys went back to his food.
“The barbecue sounds amazing, spring is in full swing.”
“Good,” said Aelin standing and going to the fridge “I think we all need it after tonight.” Then she brought a bottle of coke to the table “we  can’t have wine because we are still on shift.”
“It’s fine,” said Vaughan “we are used to stay dry.” And he pointed at Rowan and Lorcan “their no booze policy is outrageous. We can’t even drink when we are off shift.”
“Blame the twins,” replied Rowan “they are the ones who got drunk, brought two girls on a heavily secure aircraft carrier, got busted and are still on active duty just because Lorcan and I saved their arses.”
“Oh yeah, that was epic.”
“So after that, Rowan and I decided to tighten things and now they can only drink once their mission is over and their arses are back on Terrasen.” Explained Lorcan.
“That’s brutal,” commented Aedion.
The twins had gone silent all of a sudden.
“It must be hard keeping big kids in place,” Elide asked Lorcan and the man attempted a smile at the woman.
“That’s why Rowan is the one who deals with that. He is the babysitter. The perks of rank.”
Rowan gave Lorcan a rude gesture and Aelin burst out laughing.
“You are lucky we are off duty, Whitethorn.”
“Why? Are you going to spank me?”
The group burst into laughter. No one expected the stiff necked captain to come out with such a remark.
“No, because you might like it and it’s gross.”
Aelin was in stitches, her stomach in pain from too much laughing.
“Who is the kinkiest?” Asked Lysandra.
The fire station team pointed at Ansel and the woman stood and bowed happy to be the winner of such a title.
The pilots group pointed at Lorcan and Elide blushed savagely.
“I think he and Essar covered every place of their houses and tried every position known to the human race.” Commented Gavriel.
Elide stared at Aelin in disbelief and Aelin knew the woman’s fears. Elide was the opposite and had no experience and could see why Elide was now panicking.
After their meal, the fire station boys had been put on kitchen duty and were washing dishes and cleaning, while Ansel, Lys, Elide and Aelin were having their meeting in the ambulance.
“I can’t.” Said Elide.
“Why?” Asked Ansel.
“Did you hear Gavriel? Lorcan is basically a sex god and I am the opposite.”
“There is no need to freak out now. All you are doing is staring at each other. When the time comes you just have to talk to him.” Explained Lysandra calmly.
“And tell him what? Sorry Lorcan I do not know what to do with men?”
“Yes,” said Aelin “if he is a decent man he will understand.”
“If he is not, I‘ll deal with him.” Aelin liked Ansel a lot. The woman wan’t always easy to get along with but when it came to them four they had formed their tiny support group and Ansel would back them up at all times. She was loyal and quite an awesome firefighter.
“Yeah but he might want to do things I do not feel comfortable with.”
“Consent, Elide.” Said Ansel sternly “If you say no it’s no. If the bastard pushes, you dump his arse straight away because he is not worth it.”
“Ansel is right,” said Aelin, taking Elide’s hand “If you want to go slow, you tell him. If he says no, well he can fuck off.”
Rowan was helping in the kitchen when he noticed all the women had disappeared “where did they go?” He could not see them anywhere.
“Girls meeting in the ambulance.” Explained Aedion “Aelin, Lys, Elide and Ansel sit in the back of the ambulance and have their girls meetings. Probably to gossip or complain about us.”
“Oh.” Was Rowan’s only comment.
“But I think tonight you and I are in the clear.” He finished washing the dishes “I got a feeling they are talking about Elide and Lorcan.”
“So everyone noticed, eh?”
“They were definitely not being subtle.” Replied Aedion “you tell you CO to go easy on her. He breaks her heart, I break him.” Then he turned to Rowan “same goes to you. You break Aelin’s heart and you are a dead man. She has been through enough.”
Rowan leaned against the counter “I know about Sam.”
Aedion’s mouth fell open.
“She told me.” Rowan admitted quietly while drying some of the dishes “We are taking things slow.” Confessed Rowan. He felt like he could talk easily to the man, although he was positive Aedion was not his biggest fan “I lost my wife over a year and a half ago. I know how Aelin feels.”
“I am sorry, man.”
Rowan brushed him off “Aelin and I are trying. But I don’t want to hurt her anymore.”
“You’d better.”
In that instant the kitchen became populated again and the two stopped talking.
“We gave the guys the tour,” explained Ress, happily “are the girls still in their meeting?”
“Looks like,” said Aedion and patted Rowan on the shoulder “guys I am going for a shower.”
“Go and make yourself pretty for your woman.”
Eventually the women came back as well and Lysandra cheered when she was told Aedion had gone for a shower.
Aelin walked to Lorcan “can I talk to you?”
The man looked at her with a questioning look.
They walked outside in the yard “do you like Elide? Are you interested in her?”
The man looked away clearly not comfortable talking about his feelings.
“Elide likes you, for some obscure reason. She is wonderful and a dear friend of mine. She does not have the same… experience you have. You are free to try and date her if she is okay with it. But you break her heart, you hurt her and I swear you’ll be flying from Terrasen under false identity because Lys, Ansel and I will come after you.” The man was a giant but she was not scared “do you read me on that, sir?”
Lorcan nodded.
“Now you stop playing side glances and go ask her out for a coffee.”
“Are you planning on managing my relationship with her?” He asked annoyed.
“No, but I will be watching you.” And walked away.
With her eyes she followed the man going to talk to Elide and once he was done she saw her friend giving her the thumbs up.
Happy with her job she went to find Rowan and found him sitting hiding beside one of the engines.
“Hey,” she said sitting down beside him “what are you doing down here alone?”
He replied with a heavy sigh “Our two teams together get along a bit too much. I just needed peace and quiet. I landed only this morning. We haven’t slept in a while and jet lag and all. I am a bit wiped.”
“You should go home.”
He leaned his head against the vehicle ‘you should too… after the night you had.”
“Can’t, night shift remember? I will go and take a shower though, and collapse on my bunk. But I am stuck here until tomorrow and hope no more emergencies.”
“It’s not fair though. After that fire you should go home and have someone relieve you.”
“That’s not how it works, captain.” She stood “go home. Sleep, I believe you promised a lady to go out for a meal.”
“Yes, and hopefully this lady will find some time to relax as well.”
Rowan stood as well and stopped in front of her.
“Thank you for the meal. It was awesome.”
“You deserved it.”
She grabbed the tips of his fingers and held them gently “I will see you tonight at seven.”
“Hopefully with less dirt on you.”
She flipped him off and walked away. Rowan chuckled and in the end took his leave as well.
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xsugarysweetsx · 3 years
Text
𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 7
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A/N: Yes it has been slow and I am so sorry about that but I hope you all enjoy the chapter!
Warnings; some language; suggestive themes (kinda in a way); fluff; tension; relationship???; minor angst; tiny argument; nee character 👀;
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"It's cold you should come inside" you hear a voice approach you. It was pretty nice outside that morning, so you decided to sit on the porch for a bit and just think things over. You've been here for almost 3 and a half months already, you've been attacked and people got hurt. It was safe to say you felt the guilt, even though Erwin had woken up and Hanji was still herself as usual and held both held no resentment towards you. They keep telling you it was something you cannot control, and therefore not your fault.
It has been about three days since the incident happened. You remember having countless nightmares where Levi had to come and call me down. You endlessly apologized to everyone in the home, for bringing such a mess. you had spent nights losing sleep, afraid that Zeke may return. luckily during those late nights, you have someone stay up with, and talk with. sometimes he would bring you tea, and how do you smuggle in close to him. The faint smell of his detergent and lemon still lingered in your nose as you drifted into sleep.
"I'm okay...you should get sleep though.." you offer looking back at him. Luckily the porch was covered by a roof so he comes to sit behind you. You didn't know what you two were, you kissed and you feel the attraction--but what were you? would he consider?
"It's not your fault," he said calmly wrapping his arms around your shoulders as you sat between his legs. "you sound nostalgic when you're thinking a lot"
Even though it has been a short time he's picked up a few things from you. How you react, what you'd pick, and even little behaviors, the same thing went for Levi. You knew he liked his space to be clean, tea was calming for him, he kept to himself but there was more on his mind than anyone.
“I just can't help but think....something worse could have happened..." you admit feeling your heart sink slightly
"Hey..." he turned your head to face him "nothing was your fault. You did as you were told and we were caught off guard." he pecked your lips trying to bring peace to your mind.
"Levi..?"
"Yes?"
"...what are we?" you ask with genuine wonder
"Well...whatever you want it to be," he says "A kiss can be more than that or a kiss can just be a kiss," he explained with another peck to your lips it felt a bit loner this time.
"oooo someone is getting all romantic out here~~" a third voice joined making Levi groan. Now that he was affectionate towards you more Hanji loved to tease him
"Aren't you busy with research four eyes?" he asked her standing him and helping you up.
"Well, we've all been under a lot of stress lately and I thought maybe...we should go out" she offered with a hopeful look "We've got a nice swimming spot"
"Really? In the daytime?" you ask
"Oh, we have our ways" she winked "there's a small path through the forest with enough shade for us, and it's going to be cloudy today. Along with that, the swimming spot is in a cave so sunlight won't be a problem"
"Well, that's fortunate huh?" you perked up "I don't have a swimsuit though" you point out "Don't worry I think I have an extra you can try" Hanji offered "Everyone, get ready! We've got a swim day today!" She announced to make sure everyone could hear. It looked like you were taking a day off today. You turn to Levi and take his hand 
“I hope you can swim” you tease with a smile 
“Hm, we’ll see about swimming,” he said walking with you inside.
To get ready, he didn’t need sunscreen for obvious reasons. He got changed and threw on a white t-shirt and his swim trunks, and his shoes with some towels. He wasn’t that convinced to just go out after that night, but at the same time, some stress-free time was needed. Also, it was time to spend with you now. You were just amazing to be around and to know you had felt the same way he did. 
You made him feel like he was worth something again. Maybe it was because you had been around each other for some time now but, he did feel the connection. You balanced him out like the day and night, like warmth and cold. If he had to give his life to protect you. Walking out of his room he could hear Hanji squealing from your room. As he approached he hears
“Y/N when he sees you he won’t be able to keep his hands off you!“ she said in a high pitch 
“Hanji! I don’t look that good“
“Oh come on! As soon as he sees you he’s going to get a har-Levi! Look how well this fit her!“ Levi stopped and looked at what you were wearing. It was a black two-piece with a high-waist bottom. You hugged you perfectly with each curve, and dip in your body. He could feel his cheeks heat up with blush, which wasn’t common 
“Y-you look...nice..“ he said looking away in the other direction. “Anyway are we ready to go?“ he asked holding up his bag
“Sure are! Molbit and Erwin should be waiting downstairs“ Hanji smiled picking up her bag that seemed to weigh more than she did. As she waddled down the hallway excited to get to their location.
“Well she seems excited, “ you said coming to his side 
“It has been a while since we’ve all been out to have some fun since the whole Zeke thing happened, “ he said taking your bag in his hand and walking along with you 
“Well, I think you all deserve it. Some time to relax and unwind...don’t ya think“ you said bringing your hand into the crook of his elbow 
“Yeah...I think you’re right“
The walk along the forest was nice, there was a passage with hundreds of trees. The branches creating the perfect passage for everyone to walk and enjoy. You walked hand in hand with Levi, it was nice almost like your first date together. While looking at your surround you take in a deep breath, almost like you had forgotten what was going on. The breeze was fresh and crisp and clear.
“Hange, we almost there? I don’t remember it being this far away“ Levi asked after about 16 more minutes of walking. 
“Yeah, yeah grampa, just a little more and the cave should be just ahead“
“Huh, I’m not that old-“
“Well...“
“What do you mean well?“ he pushed on to hear your answer 
“Well...you’re 100 years older than I am so...uh...“ this caused laughter and giggles to erupt from the group. You thought you even saw a smile on Levi’s face. 
“Oh! We’re here!“ Hanji shouted as she ran over still waddling due to the weight of her bag.
She made her way to a regular-sized entrance, about the size of a garage. Moving the vines aside you look inside to find a much larger cave. It was like nothing you had ever seen! A pool filled with fresh water, it was clean, with icicle-like rocks hanging from the top. There was even a few small holes in the roof of the cave letting in some light. The light hit the pool at just the right angle to give it a magic glow
“Wow...“ was all you could muster up
“It’s nice isn’t it?“ Molbit saying putting down more of Hanji’s stuff “We used to come here every other week with everyone until...things took a turn. Oh, I’m sorry I didn’t properly introduce myself“ he held out his hand for you to take “I’m Molbit Berner.“
“Y/F/N, so how old are you?“
“I’m 127 actually“ oh, so he was a younger one...well in this group at least
"Well, let's get on the water then!" Hanji's voice echoes into the cave as she dives into the water. She had said something about a pocket of air in the pool and want to discover it. She had some scuba gear which she claimed to have bought. From the groan, Molbit made you could tell there were some holes in that story.
Everyone strips from their shirts and such, and into their swimwear. You do the same and feel a pair of eyes on you you turn around only to see Levi whip his head the other way. you were about to tease him when your eyes had caught a view. It's a miracle you didn't have a nose bleed.
This man was built like a god! For as short as a statue or was, he made up for it in different ways. You always knew he was strong but wow was he built. You would hear him working out in the morning, but you didn't think you'd have the guts to peek while he did. pretend as if it didn't faze you, and made your way to the water. The water was a bit chilly, but it was expected since it was the morning.
You decided to rush in until it was up to your waist, not wanting to extend the cold feeling. You swim out a bit more to rest your back against the edge of the pool
"Whoa look at Levi getting in the water so soon," Erwin chuckled "trying to impress a certain lady I see?"
"Shut it eyebrows" Levi flipped him off as he swam towards you with a light blush. "uh..hey," he said slightly bashful
"Hey, Levi.... aren't you cold?" You said trying not to seem awkward while a shiver ran up your spine.
"Eh, I can deal with it, I actually know a trick to get used to the cold water" he offered
"Really?" you ask
"You trust me?" he asks back, he receives a nod and moves closer to you. His arms come around your waist and pull your flush against him. Your legs tangling and swimming together "all right then."
He dunks you both under the water, the water encasing your bodies. You come back up and you gasp as a rare chuckle escaped his lips. Still holding your close his warmth contrasting with the coolness of the water
"Feel better?" he asked
"Oh haha, mister" you smile pushing him down underwater again. You had never seen him this playful. You giggle as you swim through the water trying to get away from him. You could feel his hands grazing your legs as your start to reach the shore of the pool on the other side. He eventually catches you causing you both to fall to the ground, with him over you. You were panting but still giggling. His hand comes up to brush away some hair from your face
"You're fucking gorgeous..." he whispered inching closer to your face. Small drops of water falling from his hair and to your face. You feel your eyes droop as the tension grows stronger. With a single swoop, he captures your lips in a kiss. It was loving and passionate but also gentle. Your arms droop over his shoulders and your fingers tangle in his hair, bringing him deeper into the kiss.
Sometimes you thought this was just a dream. Being targeted by a vampire, eventually falling in love with another one, and now, here you are. Sometimes you pinch yourself to make sure that you were awake, and 99% of the time you were awake. Either where you weren't complaining. Just as the kids started to get heated up, you felt something sharp against your lower lip. It must have been his fangs, damn. He pulls you up with him as he sits back and has you sit in his lap
"Levi...Erwin is still there" you shy away into his shoulder
"Damn eyebrows is probably asleep, he can't see us" he kisses your shoulder with a tight hug "But we can stop if you want."
"No, this is nice, and if he can't see us it's fine" you shrug your shoulders
"Listen I won't do anything while we're here" he warned you making your chuckle
Coming up you rest your forehead on his and lay a quick peck onto his nose. It feels almost as if you had known him for so long in so little time, He made you feel something strange, something foreign yet something you wanted to feel.
"I'm sorry" you hear him break the silence
"For what?"
"..for being a monster. You deserve so much in this world, I don't think I deserve to be with you. I-"
"Who was the one who almost killed me?" you interrupt him
"...Zeke"
"And who saved me, each time?" you ask again
"Me..." he whispered
"You" you cup his face "We may be from two different worlds but when our worlds collide, I feel something I've never felt before. Like, you're the one..maybe I'm jumping too far ahead but *sigh* you just make me go all blah!" you say hiding your face into your hands, why were feelings so hard to explain?
“I hope I’ll be the only one to make you feel that way.“ he said bringing his hands to your hips 
“Awh, Levi’s being soft with me“ you tease him “Come on they’ll start thinking we’ve run off to do things~, “ you said bouncing your eyebrows. Taking his hand he stands up with you and back into the water. Levi has you rest on his back as he swims back to your original spot. Hanji was back from her small trip
“Hey you two, did you get some steamy time in?“ Hanji bounced her eyebrows with a smirk 
“Did you find hit your head while looking for that pocket?“ he shoots back coming to a stop near the edge. 
“Very funny Levi, but no. There was no pocket it just leads out of the cave into a stream. Oh well, at least we got out of the house for once“
Coming out of the pool Levi grabs a towel for you and him. He puts one over your shoulders and begins to dry off his hair. Looking outside he still causes us to, the time, and what was around you guys. Even though this is supposed to be a time of rest, he could never let his guard down. Not after what happened. 
“It’s just about sundown we should head back“ everyone nodded in agreement packing up their things. Levi gives you an extra sweater to keep you warm. The walk was a bit cooler at night but still enjoyable. Sometimes it seemed you forgot about your city life. Your job, bills, money....your friends and oh god Mochi. You missed seeing him every morning. Luckily you stayed in touch with Sasha in which she sent pics of him every day.
You made sure to check on her and thank her for everything she’s been through with you. You promised her to make things up to her as soon as you could. Maybe you’ll take her to an all-you-can-eat buffet. Making it to the house the moon was full and at its highest peak. Walking inside Levi stumbles a bit making you worry 
“Whoa are you okay?“ he takes your hand to regain his balance ”you look exhausted.“
“Just fine. Go to bed I need to get something“ the way he said 
“Maybe I should go with you.“ you offer 
“No Y/N.“ Erwin got in “You should go to bed. He’ll be fine“ with a worried expression you look at all four of them and nod your head 
“O-okay then....goodnight“ walking to your room you couldn’t help but worry more for him. Walking inside you change out of your clothes and into some sweats and an oversize t-shirt. You laid in bed for bout an hour but you only tossed and turned, not able to get sleep. Something was gnawing at you to check on Levi. Getting up from the bed you peer into the hallway, everything seemed fine so you make your way outside. 
You were going to the kitchen first until you heard cursing coming from Levi’s room. Walking carefully you stay outside the room as you listen in 
“fuck...I can’t stop thinking about her...“ at first you had thought he may have been talking about the woman he was once with but then he said “I can’t put Y/N in that position. Damn it.....I know you’re there. I can smell you.“
You walk in shyly as you were caught spying in on him. He was slouched in his chair as he looked out the window, gazing into the sky. He looked so lonely and hurt.
“H-hey Levi, are you okay? You don’t-“
“You shouldn’t be here...“ he cut you off “I’m not like you Y/N...maybe you should just leave that way you’ll be safer.“
“Levi, what are you talking about? I can’t leave or Zeke might come for me, or he can come for you guys!“
“Out of town then! Another city, hell out of the country!“ he snapped his head towards you making you surprised at his attitude. “Far from Zeke and me.“
“Levi, what the hell has gotten into you? We had an amazing day today, come on talk to me“ you said coming closer to him only for your breath to gitch as he quickly pinned you to his bed.
"Don't you get it?! I'm a monster! A monster who can't get you out of my head!" he now admits "I want to have you for myself and no one else but...but you need better." he confesses as he lets you go and plopped down next to you on the mattress. Standing up you walk in front of him.
"Levi, look at me," you say gently taking his chin and tilting it upwards look at you "you are not a monster. And if you are one, you wouldn't have helped me, and I probably would have been with Zeke right now"
Straddling his love you bring your arms around his neck into a warm embrace. His arms come up hesitantly around your waist and pull you even closer. His lips pressed into the crook of your neck, nothing too intimate but something loving. he loved the way your fingers would play with the hairs at the end of his neck. How they would massage the skin ever so gently. For someone like him to have been cursed with immortality, how lucky could he have been to meet you within his lifetime?
He moves further back onto his bed until you're both laying down facing each other "Y/N?" he said in a quiet voice
"Yeah Levi?"
"I'm going to end that bastard if it's the last thing I do." he brings your head to rest in his chest as if shooting you from the world around you "I swear it on my life"
<><><><>
"So just what makes you so sure you're fit for this?" Zeke interrogated the young man who sat with him at the booth of a bar "After all you were just some rando around the neighborhood. Next thing you know you're asking to join me. Why is that?"
Leaning forward his face comes into the light. His chestnut hair casting a shadow over his face that held a grim expression
"Let's just say, I have an interest in our precious little Y/N. Along with a grudge."
"And your name?" he said puffing out a cloud of smoke
"Floch"
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