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bibbawrites · 3 years

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Papa and Maggie’s Weekend - Single Dad!Charlie x Owen

THIS IS PART 11 OF THE SINGLE DAD!CHARLIE SERIES, YOU CAN FIND THE OTHER PARTS HERE

Request: none

Word Count: 5924 words!!!

Summary: Part 11 of Single Dad!Charlie, Charlie goes camping for the weekend and leaves Margaux in the care of Owen

Warnings: referenced drug use, swearing

A/N: i’ve had this sitting around for so long that i actually have almost two more full parts done so i figured i’d get this one out there before they stack up any more haha, i know most of you don’t care about this series much any more but it’s my comfort series so i’m gonna keep writing it for me (and ella, this is our series @happinessinthedarkesttimes lol) anyways, enjoy almost 6000! words of owen and margaux being the cutest little buddies and owen just trying his best

Tag List: @happinessinthedarkesttimes @herbrutals @youngbloodblog @courageous-she @littlemissaddict @gloomybrieyxb @itsyagorlemmalyn @jatpxmultifan @moneybagmgk @emeliii1 @mybradforddream @lovesanimals (the strike through means it wont let me tag you)

SATURDAY

“Be good, okay?” Charlie crouched in front of Margaux. She nodded sleepily, the early morning wakeup something she wasn’t used to.

“When will you come back?” She mumbled, rubbing her eyes with a fist. Charlie swallowed, willing himself not to cancel the whole trip. They needed to do this, he had to get used to spending time away from her eventually.

“I’ll be back tomorrow night. So you and Papa will spend all day today and then all day tomorrow together and then Daddy will be back in time for bed time tomorrow.” Charlie explained, his voice soft.

“Why can’t I go too?” Margaux pouted.

“Because it’s a big person trip.” Charlie sighed slightly. He knew this wasn’t going to end well.

“I’m a big person. I’m four!” Margaux protested.

“You need to be a little bit bigger to come. But I promise we can go camping next week, okay? Just you and me.” Charlie promised, knowing there was nothing Margaux loved more than going camping with her dad.

“Pinky promise?” She questioned, holding out her hand, and Charlie wrapped his pinky around hers.

“I pinky promise.” He agreed, before catching sight of the time on his watch.

“Fuck.” He mumbled. “I gotta go now baby, I’ll see you tomorrow. I’m gonna miss you.”

He pulled the four year old into a hug, biting his lip as she started crying. Maybe leaving when she was tired wasn’t a good idea after all...

“Don’t go.” She sniffled, and Charlie pulled back, kissing the top of her head gently.

“I gotta.” He whispered. “I love you so much.”

“Daddy, don’t go.” She cried, throwing herself back into his arms and Charlie felt his eyes prick with tears of his own.

“I’ll be back before you know it.” He promised. “I love you.”

“Love you Daddy, don’t go.” Owen stepped forward, reaching out and taking the crying four year old from Charlie’s arms.

“Go.” He instructed, as Margaux screamed out, Charlie’s heart breaking with every cry of his name. He stood up, hesitating, and Owen gave him a small smile.

“I’ve got her. Go have fun. We love you.”

“I love you too.” Charlie replied, and with one last glance towards Margaux he turned and climbed into his car.

And no one had to know if he cried all the way to the organised meeting spot.

Charlie’s car pulled away and Owen waved slightly, knowing that his boyfriend would be taking this separation just as hard as his daughter was. The blond boy sighed, carrying the still screaming four year old inside, humming softly as he walked in an attempt to soothe her, his mind drifting back to the first time Charlie had left him alone with Margaux on the first day he had met her.

“Just watch her for a second, I need to pee.” Charlie said, standing up and placing the two year old down next to Owen, before walking away. Margaux watched him go, her face scrunching up as she began to cry. Owen’s eyes widened. What was he supposed to do now? He reached out, patting the top of Margaux’s head awkwardly.

“Don’t cry.” He mumbled, in what he hoped was a comforting tone. Clearly it wasn’t, however, since Margaux’s cries got louder, causing people to start to stare.

“Hey, Maggie. It’s okay. He’ll be back soon.” He tried, moving to pat her back. Still no use, and Owen began to panic. What were you meant to do with a crying kid? He bit his lip, still awkwardly patting her back.

Out of the corner of his eye he spotted Charlie heading back over to the table, and Owen breathed a sigh of relief as the older boy scooped up his daughter, holding her close to him and mumbling something in French. Margaux relaxed into his arms

“I didn’t know how to make her stop.” Owen admitted, as Charlie sat back down, Margaux still wrapped up in his arms. The Canadian boy laughed.

“Don’t worry, you’ll learn.” He replied. Owen gave him a small smile.

He sure hoped so, for everyone’s sake.

As usual Charlie was right. Owen did learn, and now here he was, officially on his own for the weekend with Margaux having a complete meltdown in his arms.

He bounced her slightly, humming the tune to Stand Tall, hoping the familiar tune would calm the four year old.

“Daddy!” Margaux wailed, her face red with anguish.

“Papa’s here.” Owen reminded her, swaying back and forth with her head tucked into his shoulder.

“I want Daddy.” She protested. Owen bit his lip.

“Daddy will be back tomorrow but for now, think about how much fun we’re gonna have together! We can paint each other’s nails and get pizza for dinner and watch all of your favourite movies. Or we could go out if you wanted to go somewhere? We could go swimming?”

“Don’t wanna.” Margaux cried.

“Okay.” Owen sighed, moving over to the couch and sitting down on it, shifting Margaux so that she was in his lap. Surely she’d tire herself out eventually, especially since it was barely 7am... maybe the best thing would be to just let her cry.

So that’s what Owen did, let the four year old cry as much as she needed, as he held her tight and hummed whatever songs he could think of, his fingers tangled through her curls.

Margaux cried non stop for the first hour until she fell asleep in Owen’s arms, exhausted from her tears. Owen sighed. He knew there were things to do but he couldn’t bring himself to leave Margaux’s side.

So he stayed on the couch for almost four hours, Margaux curled into his chest, while he played video games on mute waiting for her to wake up.

Eventually she did stir, just before lunch time, which Owen decided was the perfect distraction.

“Good morning princess.” He whispered. “Are you hungry?”

Margaux yawned before nodding.

“I found a really cool place for us to go have lunch and some friends we can invite along to come play with us. How does that sound?” Owen suggested and Margaux just nodded again, staring at the TV blankly. Clearly it was going to be a bit harder to get her to talk than he’d thought.

“Should we get dressed? You can even pick your own clothes!” Margaux didn’t reply, so Owen just stood up, the four year old still held safely in his arms, and made his way down the hallway to her bedroom.

He kicked open the door, and placed Margaux onto the ground, before opening her wardrobe.

“What do you wanna wear?”

Margaux stepped forward and Owen internally cheered at the slight progress. The tiny blonde scanned through her clothes, eventually grabbing at a pair of overalls, before turning back and looking at Owen expectantly.

“You wanna wear those ones?” He asked, and she nodded, before grabbing onto a Julie and the Phantoms shirt that Madi’s dad had made her. Owen smiled slightly, taking the two items of clothing out and quickly helping Margaux get dressed.

“Now, what’s next?” Owen mused, hoping to get a reaction from Margaux. She didn’t answer, staring down at the ground as Owen grabbed her hairbrush and settled down with her standing between his legs as he sat on the end of her bed.

“How do you want your hair?” Owen asked, running the brush through her curls. Margaux thought for a moment.

“Bun.” She mumbled, and Owen grinned.

“There’s that beautiful voice of yours. I missed it.” He teased, and Margaux smiled slightly.

“Okay, let’s get this bun going.” He pulled her hair back, tying it somewhat messily in a bun. “How’s that?”

“Good.” Margaux replied.

“Yay!” Owen cheered and Margaux giggled, the sound warming Owen’s heart.

“Do you wanna go watch Paw Patrol while I get dressed? Or you can stay here and play?” Owen suggested, and Margaux shook her head, clinging to his leg.

“With you.” She mumbled and Owen sighed but took her with him nonetheless.

Two steps forward, one step back.

Almost an hour later Owen climbed out of an Uber, before unclipping Margaux from the safety seat, removing the safety seat from the car, and thanking their driver.

“You ready to make some friends?” He questioned, looking towards the large building that housed an indoor play centre where they would be meeting a few members of the cast.

“No.” Margaux replied and Owen laughed.

“Don’t worry, you’ll like them.” He said.

They entered the indoor play centre and Margaux’s eyes widened in excitement, taking in the various areas of the room, before settling on a high ropes course in the middle of the room. Of course Charlie’s kid would choose the most adventurous thing in the room to be excited for.

“Owen!” A voice called, and Owen turned to find Cheyenne heading towards them, with his twins holding onto their father’s hands.

“Hey guys.” Owen greeted. “It’s so good to see you.”

“You too. And little miss Margaux here, look at how much you’ve grown!” Cheyenne gasped playfully and Margaux grinned, Owen smiling at the switch in her behaviour.

“Cause I’m four.” She boasted. Cheyenne smiled.

“So are my little ones. This is Willow and Ethan.” He smiled, gesturing to each twin as he introduced them. “And this is Margaux.”

“Hi!” Willow grinned and Margaux smiled slightly, leaning into Owen.

“She hasn’t had very good experiences with kids her age.” Owen explained. “Plus we’ve had a bit of a rough morning.”

“That’s okay. Why don’t we head back to the table we’re at. Kenny and Sacha are there and Tori and Jadah are coming soon. Kenny booked the whole place out for the day so there’s no rush and no other people.” Cheyenne said, and Owen nodded, following the older man through the entrance and over to a table where Kenny and Sacha were sitting.

“Hey guys.” Owen smiled, once they arrived at the table.

“Hey Owen. How are you?” Kenny questioned.

“Not too bad. Hopefully will be better soon.” Owen replied with a small grin.

“Daddy can we go play?” Ethan questioned, and Cheyenne nodded.

“Why don’t you take Margaux with you.” He suggested and the twins both turned their attention to the blond, who turned to Owen, a worried look on her face.

“You’ll be okay.” Owen promised her, moving to take her shoes off as she clung to him. “I’ll be right here the whole time.”

“Okay.” She decided, and Owen placed her on the ground, watching as she hesitantly took a hand of each of the twins and allowed them to drag her towards the biggest playground.

“How was this morning?” Kenny questioned as Owen flopped down into an empty chair. Owen sighed, watching Margaux climb the stairs of the playground, any hesitation already gone.

“Not good. She was okay until Charlie said he had to go and then she had a complete meltdown. He was about 30 seconds away from cancelling his trip, you could see it in his face. So I grabbed her and made him leave, and then she cried for literally an hour until she fell asleep again.” He said, and Kenny smiled sympathetically.

“How long is Charlie gone for?” Sacha asked.

“He comes back tomorrow evening.” Owen bit his lip. “I’m worried about how she’ll go tonight when she realises he isn’t there to put her to bed.”

“You’ve got this.” Kenny assured him. “We’ve all seen you do it before and you do this all the time with Charlie around.”

“I hope so.” Owen replied. “I’m kinda hoping she’ll exhaust herself here and just pass out tonight.”

The group laughed.

“That’s pretty likely.” Cheyenne agreed. “I’m hoping for the same thing.”

The door chimed again, signifying another arrival, and both Kenny and Sacha stood up to go greet the newest guest. Cheyenne gave Owen a small smile.

“If you don’t mind me asking, you said Margaux hadn’t had very good experiences with kids her age. What happened?” He questioned.

“Charlie had something to do, I think it was some beach cleaning thing, so he enrolled her into a childcare program. She lasted a few hours before she got into disagreements with the other kids about her not having a mum, and the bitch teacher backed them up saying she had to have a mum. So next minute Charlie’s being called in to discuss Margaux’s “issues with authority figures”, and she never went back.” Owen explained, and Cheyenne frowned.

“That’s horrible.” He said. “I’m glad she didn’t go back.”

“Me too.” Owen agreed. Cheyenne gave him a reassuring smile.

“At least we know with my kids they won’t worry about her not having a mum.” He joked and Owen smiled, instinctively glancing towards the playground, where Margaux and the twins had decided to attempt to climb up the large slides the wrong way, the three of them giggling loudly as they slipped back down.

“She reminds me so much of Charlie.” Cheyenne commented, following Owen’s gaze. “They have the same adventurous spirit and cheeky personality.”

“She’s his clone.” Owen laughed. “Everything except the hair.”

“Personally I think her hair makes her look like your daughter.” Cheyenne said, and Owen’s heart skipped a beat.

“Really?” His tone was filled with disbelief. He’d never considered that before.

“Definitely. If people didn’t know they’d assume she was yours biologically.” Cheyenne nodded. Owen smiled slightly.

“That means a lot to me.”

“Anytime.” Cheyenne smiled, as they were rejoined by Kenny and Sacha, who were now accompanied by Tori and Jadah.

“Now,” Kenny started, as everyone sat down around the table. “Should we order some food?”

So maybe not all kids her age were horrible, Margaux decided as she sat at the top of one of the large towers in the playground. The twins seemed nice enough and her Papa promised her that he would be there, and she knew he wouldn’t let anyone be mean to her, ever.

“Do you have a brother or a sister?” Willow questioned, plopping down next to her. Margaux shook her head.

“No.” She said. “Just me and Daddy and sometimes Papa. But he lives in Oklahoma most times.”

“You don’t have a mummy too?” Ethan asked, joining them. Margaux shook her head again.

“Do you have a mummy?” She glanced between the twins, who also shook their heads.

“We have Dad and Daddy.” Willow told her. Margaux grinned. There was no way they’d be mean to her about not having a mum if they didn’t have one either.

“Do you like Paw Patrol?” She asked, and the twins nodded quickly.

“Yeah! I like Skye.” Willow answered.

“I like Marshall.” Ethan added.

“I like Everest cause she likes snow and I like snow too.” Margaux explained.

“Can we go on the slides again?” Ethan questioned, and the girls exchanged a look before nodding.

“You go first.” Margaux instructed, and together the three made their way through the tunnels, back to the slides.

Yeah, Margaux thought as she followed the twins, maybe all kids weren’t mean.

After several hours of running around, the three four year olds were clearly exhausted so the group decided to call it a day.

“Do you need a lift?” Cheyenne asked. Owen nodded, glancing down at Margaux, who was hugged tightly between Willow and Ethan. He couldn’t wait to tell Charlie that she finally had some friends her own age.

“That would be great, thanks.” Owen smiled, which Cheyenne quickly returned.

With a few last goodbyes to the rest of the group and promises to meet up again soon, Owen, Cheyenne and the kids left, Cheyenne leading the way while Owen brought up the rear to make sure the kids didn’t wander.

And before he knew it Cheyenne was pulling up in front of Charlie’s place and Owen was unclipping Margaux’s seat as she clung to the twins, begging to see them again soon. It was only after Cheyenne and Owen promised they’d organise something that she let Owen lift her out of the car and the two of them stood and waved goodbye to the car as they drove away.

“Come on Maggie, lets go inside and decide what we want for dinner.” Owen said and Margaux’s eyes lit up.

“Pizza?” She asked. Owen chuckled.

“Sounds good to me.” He agreed, unlocking the door and letting her in, placing the car seat near the door in case they needed it again.

“Can we watch movies?” Margaux questioned, squirming in Owen’s arms until he placed her down on the ground.

“We sure can.” He smiled. “Whatever movies you want.”

“Nemo?” Margaux suggested as Owen flicked the TV on, going to Disney Plus and finding the movie in response to her request.

And once the movie was playing Owen settled down onto the couch with her, and was determined he wouldn’t move unless he absolutely had to.

Eventually it was time for the moment Owen had been dreading. Bedtime.

“Okay princess, it’s time to go to sleep.” He said, as the credits rolled on Frozen 2.

“Daddy said he would come back for bedtime.” Margaux frowned.

“Bedtime tomorrow, remember?” Owen reminded her softly.

“Oh.” She pouted, tears threatening to fall. Owen’s eyes widened, trying to think fast.

“I know!” He exclaimed, and Margaux looked at him curiously. “We should have a sleepover. We can get your toys and sleep in Daddy’s bed and maybe even watch TV until we fall asleep.”

Margaux grinned widely.

“Yeah!” She squealed. “I wanna do it!”

“Okay, well we’ll have to go get your friends from your room.” He said and Margaux grabbed onto his hand.

“Hurry.” She giggled, tugging him down the hall to her bedroom. He flicked the light on as they entered, and Margaux jumped onto her bed, eyeing the large pile of Squishmallows stacked at the end of the bed. Madi had bought her one and ever since then she had been addicted to the stuffed toys.

“Okay, who are we bringing?” Owen questioned, sitting down on the edge of the bed, already grabbing the toy penguin that Margaux never slept without. The four year old frowned at the pile before reaching towards an orange octopus, depositing it in Owen’s lap. She scanned the pile again, grabbing a small brown and white cow, a grey dragon, a green dinosaur and a large purple and blue cat that was almost as big as she is.

“That’s all.” She decided. Owen nodded, grabbing the toys in his arms.

“Anything else we need?” He asked, and Margaux grabbed her blanket.

“Done.” She decided. Owen grinned, standing up.

“Lead the way Miss Maggie.” He instructed, and Margaux giggled, rushing out of the room and across the hallway into Charlie’s room, leaving Owen to follow her after struggling with the light switch. Eventually he got it off and entered Charlie’s room, dropping the toys onto the bed for Margaux to sort out.

“Do you want to watch one of those house hunting shows?” Owen asked, flicking the TV on. Margaux hummed in response, too busy figuring out the placement of her Squishmallows to pay full attention to him.

“What’s it ‘bout?” Margaux mumbled, settling into the middle of the bed. Owen pulled off his shirt before climbing in next to her, smiling when the four year old latched herself onto him in the same way she did to her father.

“It’s about people who are looking for a new house.” Owen explained.

Margaux thought for a moment before nodding.

“Okay we can watch it Papa.” She agreed, so Owen changed the channel to the lifestyle channel.

Hopefully the show would put the four year old to sleep.

It did not put her to sleep.

It was well past midnight and somehow Margaux was still awake, happily watching a couple decide between an apartment close to their ideal location, or a large house a little further out.

Owen yawned, glancing towards the time.

“Maggie, aren’t you tired darling?” He questioned, and Margaux shook her head.

“I’m awake! My Squishmallows wanna know if they buy the little house.” She informed him. “I want the big, big one.”

If Owen wasn’t half asleep he would have laughed at how invested Margaux was, but he was struggling to keep his eyes open and her not being asleep was not something he found funny in that moment.

“After this we’re gonna turn it off and go to sleep, okay?” He told her, and Margaux frowned, shaking her head.

“I wanna watch more.” She replied, and Owen groaned.

“We gotta go to sleep, otherwise we won’t be able to wake up for Daddy coming home tomorrow.” He said, and Margaux pouted.

“I wanna watch it more. You said I could watch it ‘til I sleeped, and I’m not sleeping yet.” She reminded him, and Owen cursed his past self for using those words, and cursed Charlie for raising such a smart kid.

“But I’m falling asleep.” He whined.

“You sleep then.” She answered, and Owen sighed. Time to put his “parent voice” on.

“Margaux, we’re turning it off after this episode, and we’re going to sleep.” He said firmly and Margaux glared at him.

“No.” She retorted and Owen tensed up. Now what was he meant to do? Margaux was rarely in trouble so he didn’t really have experience in how to discipline her if she acted out.

“Margaux Ivy.” He warned. “Do you want to go back to your own bed?”

Margaux shook her head.

“Then after this episode finishes the TV goes off and we’re going to sleep. And if you go to sleep straight away maybe we can go get breakfast somewhere in the morning. How does that sound?” He tried, hoping the promise of a nice breakfast would make her back down.

“Don’t wanna.” She mumbled. “Want Daddy. You’re a meanie.”

Owen stared at her, his heart shattering at those three little words.

“You don’t mean that, you’re just overtired.” He said, his voice sounding small, not quite sure who he was trying to convince. Margaux crossed her arms.

“Yes I do. You’re a big meanie and a bossy pants and I don’t like you now.” She replied firmly.

“Maggie...” He trailed off, not knowing what to do.

She ignored him, turning her attention back to the TV where the couple were about to sit down to decide between the three houses.

Owen bit his lip, reaching for his phone to text Charlie, even though he knew the chances of Charlie replying were probably slim. He was probably out of cell range, or already asleep, or both.

Messages between OPJ and Char

OPJ one day without you and she hates me

Charlie’s reply was almost instant.

Char she could never hate you O, i promise

Owen sighed, glancing at Margaux who had tucked herself into a ball with her chosen Squishmallows surrounding her, and was mumbling something under her breath in French.

OPJ she said, and i quote, that i’m a “big meanie and a bossy pants and she doesn’t like me now” so yeah, pretty sure she hates me

Char what happened?

OPJ she got sad at bedtime so i promised her we could watch tv until we fell asleep and now its 1 in the fucking morning and she’s still awake watching house hunters and i told her its time for it to be turned off, like the asshole i am, and she said no so i used my parent voice on her and now she hates me and she’s still fucking watching tv and i don’t know what to do

Owen had barely pressed send when his phone began to ring, Charlie’s photo appearing on his screen.

“Hey.” He answered sadly.

“Give the phone to Margaux.” Charlie’s voice came through the phone and Owen didn’t respond, holding the phone out to the four year old.

“It’s for you.” He said, and she glared at him, but took the phone nonetheless, face lighting up when she heard her father’s voice.

Owen flopped backwards onto the bed, relaxing instantly as Charlie’s scent engulfed his senses. He zoned out, just focusing on breathing, until he was jolted back to reality by Margaux poking his cheek.

“Daddy wants to talk to you.” She informed him, and he took the phone, pressing it back to his ear.

“Yeah?”

“She’s gonna go to sleep now.” Charlie said, and Owen breathed out a sigh of relief.

“Thank you.” He whispered. “I’m sorry I disrupted your night and bothered you when you’re trying to have time off.”

“You didn’t.” Charlie assured him.

“I couldn’t even get her to go to sleep.” Owen mumbled, glancing at Margaux, who was already fast asleep, just proving how tired she had actually been. “I’m a failure.”

“You are most definitely not.” Charlie replied firmly. “You’ve made it all the way til now with no issues, even after the complete meltdown she had this morning. Parenting isn’t always easy Owen, even I struggle with overtired Margaux.”

Owen sighed, reaching for the TV remote and turning the TV off, engulfing the room in darkness.

“Fuck, can you just promise me you believe me? I’m too high right now to figure out a better argument.” Charlie whined and Owen giggled, only just noticing how out of it Charlie actually sounded.

“Kid free time is going well then?” He teased, thankful for the lighter topic.

“I haven’t been this high since she was born, it’s nice to be able to smoke without worrying about her waking up or not being sober by the time she gets up the next morning.” Charlie replied, and for a moment Owen felt an overwhelming sadness for the 18 year old Charlie who had been forced to grow up so quickly, with no chance to be an actual kid himself.

“I miss you.” Owen admitted. “It’s hard being here with her without you.”

“You’re halfway there babe, just keep going.” Charlie reminded him and Owen blushed slightly at the pet name.

“I will. Thank you again, for getting her to sleep.” Owen replied. Charlie hummed in response.

“Any time. How was the rest of your day?” He questioned.

“After you left she cried for a bit, and then slept until lunch time. And then we went to this indoor play centre thing with Cheyenne and his twins, and Kenny, Sacha, Jadah and Tori, and Mags loved the twins.” Owen recounted.

“She did?” Charlie cut in, and Owen could hear the smile on his face.

“She did.” Owen grinned. “She begged me to see them again soon, so you’ll have to organise something with Cheyenne. Then we just had pizza and watched some movies before we went to bed.”

“Sounds like you had a great day.” Charlie replied. Owen opened his mouth to respond, but instead yawned, eyes drifting shut for a second.

“Go to sleep babe.” Charlie’s voice was gentle and Owen nodded, before realising his boyfriend couldn’t see him.

“Okay.” He answered. “Night Char, I love you.”

“I love you too Owen. See you tomorrow afternoon.” Charlie replied, before hanging up. Owen let his phone fall to the pillow, too tired to even plug it in to charge.

And with Margaux’s steady breathing in his ear, he finally drifted off to sleep.

SUNDAY

Owen woke the next morning to Margaux attempting to braid his hair, Bluey playing quietly on Charlie’s iPad.

“You awake Papa?” Margaux questioned. Owen hummed in response.

“Yep.” He replied, voice deep with sleep. “You doing my hair?”

“Yeah.” Margaux responded simply. After a moment she spoke up again.

“Are you still mad with me?”

Owen sat up, reaching out to the tiny blonde. She wriggled closer, settling into his arms.

“Oh darling no, I could never be mad at you.” He told her. Margaux thought for a moment before looking back up at him.

“Do you still love me?” She asked, her voice small. Owen’s heart shattered.

“Of course I still love you. You’re my little girl, I will always love you. Just like how your Daddy will always love you no matter what.” He assured her.

“But I was mean to you.” Margaux frowned. “And Daddy said that’s naughty.”

“It is naughty, but I forgive you. Because I know you were just very tired.” He told her. She sighed, resting her head on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry Papa.” She said quietly. Owen pressed a kiss to her head, playing with her curls like he knew Charlie did, hoping the familiar gesture would reassure her.

“I know honey, it’s okay, I promise.” He whispered.

“Love you.” Margaux mumbled, pressing her face into his neck. Owen smiled, wrapping his arms around her tightly and squeezing.

“I love you too.” He replied. “Now how about we get dressed and go out for breakfast?”

“Yeah!” Margaux grinned, perking up instantly at the mention of food. Owen laughed.

“Okay then, let’s do it.”

Just over an hour later the two of them were curled into a tiny booth in the back corner of a café, the table chosen especially to try to remain unnoticed by any fans that may have been around. Owen loved the fans but sometimes they could be a little much, and having Margaux with him made him hyperaware of how necessary it was to remain anonymous. He had no idea how Charlie did this.

Owen glanced around the room, picking at his eggs. There didn’t seem to be anyone around who might recognise them, but there was never a guarantee that they wouldn’t be noticed.

“Can I have some of your one Papa?” Margaux questioned, catching Owen’s attention.

Owen’s head snapped back, his attention now solely on the four year old in front of him.

“Which one darling?” He asked.

“That one.” She pointed to the cooked tomato that he had pushed off to the side of his plate. Owen nodded, placing it on her plate and shaking his head when she dipped it into the leftover maple syrup. Charlie really was raising his clone.

“Are you full?” Margaux questioned after scoffing down the tomato, eyeing his eggs. Owen chuckled, scooping the eggs onto her plate too.

“Hungry this morning huh?” He teased. Margaux grinned at him, her mouth full of his eggs.

“Patrick says it’s cause I’m a growing girl.” She informed him.

“I think Patrick is right. You were only tiny when I first met you and now you’re huge!” He emphasised the last word and Margaux laughed loudly.

“You’re silly Papa.” She said between laughs. Owen grinned.

“Excuse me?” A voice came and Owen’s heart stopped for a moment, looking up to find an elderly woman smiling at him.

“Yes?” He answered politely. She didn’t look like the type to watch the show, but you could never be sure.

“Sorry to interrupt, I just wanted to compliment you on how well behaved your daughter is.” She smiled and Owen couldn’t help the light blush that covered his cheeks.

His daughter.

“Thank you.” He replied and the woman nodded, smiling at Margaux, before wandering away.

Owen took a deep breath, collecting himself, before tuning his attention back to Margaux.

“You ready to go kiddo?” He questioned. Margaux nodded, so Owen stood up, taking her hand and leaving the cafe, thanking the waitresses as they left.

“So what do you wanna do today?” Owen asked as they began the short walk back to Charlie’s place. Margaux pulled a face as she thought.

“Can we watch some more House Hunters?” She questioned, making Owen laugh.

“Of course we can.” He agreed.

It was just after 2pm when Margaux shifted in his arms, where she had settled down to watch House Hunters hours ago.

“Papa? I’m hungry.” She mumbled. Owen played with one of her pigtails.

“What would you like to eat?” He asked.

“I don’t know.” She shrugged, as Owen’s phone vibrated in his pocket.

“Why don’t you have a little think then.” Owen suggested, pulling out his phone and smiling when he saw Charlie’s name on his screen. He answered quickly.

“Hey!” He greeted.

“Hey babe. I’m just leaving now, will be home in maybe an hour?” Charlie’s voice came through the phone.

“That’s great, we can’t wait to see you. We were just talking about getting some lunch, would you wanna pick something up on the way home?” Owen asked. Charlie laughed.

“I can do that. Anything in particular?” He questioned. Owen turned his attention back to the blonde in his arms.

“You decided on what you wanna eat yet Maggie?” He asked. She shook her head.

“No.” She replied simply. Owen chuckled.

“Want Daddy to pick something? He’s coming home now and he’s gonna get lunch for us on the way.” He suggested. Margaux lit up at the suggestion. Or maybe the idea that her Dad was on his way home. Probably both.

“Yes please.” She grinned.

“Hey Char? Your pick. Just not pizza cause we had that last night.” Owen informed the older boy.

“Okay cool, I’ll see you guys in like, 30 minutes then.” Charlie answered, and Owen could hear his car starting in the background.

“See you then.” Owen smiled. He really had missed Charlie, and he knew Margaux had missed her father just as much, if not more.

“Love you.” Charlie’s voice came, breaking Owen out of his thoughts.

“Love you too.” Owen replied, before hanging up and turning to Margaux. “Okay Maggie, what house are they picking?”

The four year old paused, thinking.

“The blue one.” She decided.

“With the pool?” Owen checked, and she nodded.

“Yeah that one.” She said. He looked up at the TV, just in time to see the house again.

“Cause it’s got a pool?” He questioned. Margaux nodded, settling back into his arms again.

“And it’s blue.” She giggled. “Blue house and blue pool. That’s the best one.”

“You know what? I think you might be right.” Owen laughed, and the two of them turned their attention back to the TV to find out which house the couple chose.

Just under half an hour later Charlie arrived home, unlocking the front door and entering the quiet house, his arms full of Chinese takeout.

He could hear muffled giggles coming from his bedroom, so he dropped his bags and headed down the hallway, entering his room to find Owen and Margaux curled up in a pile of Squishmallows, the lifestyle channel playing loudly on the TV.

“Daddy!” Margaux exclaimed, jumping up and throwing herself at him. He stumbled, but caught her, handing the food off to Owen so that he could properly hug his daughter.

“Hey baby.” He greeted, squeezing her tightly as she clung to him like a baby koala.

“I missed you.” She whined. “Don’t go away again.”

“I’ll try not to.” He laughed. “Did you have fun with Papa?”

She launched into a complete recount of her weekend as Charlie placed her back down onto the bed and plopped down next to Owen, snuggling close to the blond in greeting.

“You survived.” Charlie grinned, placing a kiss to Owen’s shoulder. Owen chuckled.

“Barely.” He replied, scooping fried rice onto one of the paper plates that the restaurant had provided. Charlie shook his head.

“But you survived. That’s all that matters.” He said, and Owen glanced at Margaux before nodding.

“Yeah it is.” He agreed.

And as Charlie settled back into Dad life, he couldn’t help but wish that this was how life could be every day.

#single dad!charlie #single dad!charlie series #single dad!charlie x owen #charlie gillespie #owen joyner #owen patrick joyner #margaux

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moretreasurewithinarchive · 2 years

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"How dare you look down your nose at me like that."

Open to mutuals

#The Courageous {Muse; Ella}#V; A Creature Of Ash & Toil #V; Believe In Everything #V; You Shall Be Queen #V; Just A Little Bit Of Magic #V; Would Always Return

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fatbottombucky · 4 years

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Three’s Company *Ransom Drysdale x Reader*

Summary: M!Reader’s girlfriend, Ella, wants a threesome. After discovering it’s going to be with another dude you set some ground rules, a clear rule being “no gay shit!”. Despite not being gay, yourself and Ransom find yourselves intently wanting Ella to be gone throughout the fucking.

Pairings: Male!Reader x Female Original Character/ Ransom Drysdale x Male!Reader / Ransom Drysdale x Female Original Character

Rating: [+18] Explicit

Warnings: Internal homophobia. Threesome shenanigans, female and male oral-giving and receiving. degrading talk. Swear words. Two men wanting to fuck one another, but they can’t cause of their internal homophobia.

Word Count: 2854

Note: There’s nothing against gays in this, lmao I am gay. It’s just mostly reader and ransom wanting to fuck but being like “we shouldn’t cause we’re straight! But I am going to look directly into his eyes as this girl sits on my dick!”

“When you said threesome I expected another female to be joining us,” you exasperated.

It was only a week ago when your girlfriend of eight months had propositioned you with the idea of a threesome. It had caught you off guard, nonetheless you agreed wholeheartedly. You weren’t a guy to shy away from sex adventures, you’ve seen and done plenty with women.

It’s what made Daniella, or Ella to you, so interested in you. You aren’t exactly in her social class, she comes from old money and has a trust fund, whereas you come from- well, no money and you work everyday of your life just to scrape by. You’ve often had the thought she’s only with you to rebel against her family, bringing you along to social gatherings to cause a fuss. It’s whatever. She’s beautiful and nice, so you’re willing to go along because, hey, you’re not alone then.

What caught you off guard was the third member she wanted, a male. You expected one of her high-class girlfriends, they’ve always had a keen interest in your relationship with Ella. Wondering why she’d be with you and for so long.

“Hell, no.” Ella grimaces like the thought of kissing another girl is repulsive, “I’d prefer to have another guy having their way with me.”

There’s a glint in her eyes, a playfulness. Her fluttering lashes normally work on you but not this time.

You’re apprehensive. The photo of the man in question serves him well; sharp jawline, piercing blue eyes and a wicked smirk, he oozes some sinful confidence that you severely lack. Who even is this guy? Where did she even meet him? Had this guy been the reason all along for the threesome to be brought up?

“Ransom Drysdale,” Ella smirks and flicks her eyes back to her phone, the picture still blindly on display. You almost snap the steering wheel off, deciding to focus on driving her Audi through the bustling New York streets. “He’s in New York right now, our families know one another and I’ve always wondered if the rumours are true about him.”

Great.

This guy has a reputation and she’s been thinking about it.

“I don’t know how I feel about another guy fucking you,” you somehow get out and the way she snaps her head to you, well this is going to be a big L in your books. “Or being with a guy in this setting, so what? I thought threesomes are where we all participate but I don’t wanna be with some guy like that.”

Ella snorts, she’s laughing at you. “How would a girl be any different?”

“I don’t know, Ella, it just would be different.”

“That’s so pathetic,” you roll your eyes and just stare at the road ahead, “You don’t have to do anything with him and anything I do with him you’ll be there. In fact, you can say right now if there’s anything you don’t want to happen. I just want two dicks, that’s all.”

There’s a beat of silence. “Besides Ransom isn’t gay, so he won’t even go near you like that.”

“This is so bizarre,” you muttered and shifted in your seat beside Ella. The restaurant was fancy, super expensive and elite. You had already downed half a glass of red wine-of which you expected cost more than the suit you were wearing. “Why are we getting dinner with him?”

Ella snickered and rolled her eyes. “Good manners, babe,” voice sweet as she looks at you.

You’d done some Googling on Drysdale when you got back to the hotel earlier. Whole family is filthy rich due to his grandfather, Harlan, famous murder-mystery writer. You haven’t read any of his books because books are commitments, more so than relationships.

Ransom’s name pops up in headlines every few weeks; new girls hanging off his arms or some outlandish story being featured on tabloids.

He’s not the type you’d personally hang out with, then again, Ella isn’t the usual company you keep.

“Sorry I’m late, Ellie.” You snap your head up as Ella stands up, embracing the well-dressed man. “Traffic was shit. You guys haven’t been here long, right?”

Yourself and Ella both speak at the same time. “No, of course not.”- “Twenty minutes, actually.”

You’re gifted a bitchy glare from Ella as you stand up, you’ve never been one to shy away from speaking up. Rich people aren’t an exception to your patience. This makes Ransom smirk at you though, clearly not offended or peeved off by your remark.

He shakes your hand firmly. “Ransom Drysdale, sure you’ve heard from me.”

“Y/N Y/L/N, honestly, only just learnt who you are today.” The three of you sit down and then you go silent, staring blankly at your glass of wine because what are the rules here?

Ella had told you she had asked Ransom. So, he knows why the three of you are here. But now what? You order food and eat, wine and dine, then fuck back at the hotel and that’s it. Of course, that’s it. There’s nothing else to do, but you can’t help but think there must be more steps. Some kind of conversation that needs to happen.

If there is a conversation that needs to happen, it doesn’t happen. Ella and Ransom are deep into conversation about ‘old times’. You sit just drinking and listening, usually how it is in your relationship. You never really have anything interesting to say to the wealthy, mostly because they wouldn’t listen anyway.

“So Y/N, what do you do?” Ransom’s voice is smooth and deep, his face is illuminated by the candles in the centre of the table. You raise an eyebrow at the causal question, “what? I think it’s better than me asking, why did you agree to let me fuck your girlfriend?”

You dryly chuckle and take another sip of wine, able to hold off on the question as your meals are placed before you. You contemplate and mull over his questions, either Ella hasn’t told him that you aren’t rich or he knows but wants to goad you into it anyway.

“Well, I work a lousy job as an accountant and I’m mostly paying off my student loans from university.” Better to be truthful than stupid in front of the rich. “Before you ask, no, I’m not using my degree at this job. I studied for five years to use it for nothing. I’m also agreeing because I’m no prude, done a few things and whilst I’d prefer you be another female, I can sort of see the appeal of two dicks.”

There’s a few seconds of just silence. Ella is volleying her eyes between you both. Ransom chews his steak slowly, eyes intently watching you and looking you over. It’s intense. You want him to stop, but you don’t look away.

A smirk spreads across his face and he nods. “We’re going to have fun tonight.”

“Splurged on the room then,” Ransom smirks as he unties his scarf, pulling it off of his neck and throwing it carelessly on the back of the armchair. “Must be nice to have the finer things,” he pats your shoulder roughly and gives you a knowing smile.

You shrugged, the nerves being knocked away from the liquid courage you guys have consumed. “Can’t complain about the nice rooms we stay in.” You walk over to the minibar and nod, Ransom gives a curt nod.

Ella scurries off towards the bedroom, a sultry smile of her ‘freshening up’ for the both of you.

“She’s told you the rules, right?” You asked and poured yourself another drink, Ransom let’s out a light chuckle as he sauntered over to you. You lift an eyebrow in question, “It’s just for… boundaries really, I’m sure you understand.”

The corner of Ransom’s mouth curls up, bringing the bourbon to his lips and taking a thoughtful sip, he’s standing close to you. Rubbing his shoulder against yours, he smells earthy and expensive, like spicy leather and musky mornings.

“I got your rules, don’t worry.” Placing the tumbler glass down. “More rules about us not doing stuff than me fucking your girl, though.”

You looked at him hesitantly and quickly looked away, downing your own drink hurriedly. Before you can defend yourself, not that you need to, Ella calls for you both. Standing in the bedroom doorway, hip leaning against the frame and her arms crossed.

Ella is dressed in nothing but simply lacy lingerie, that you know cost more than your rent. She looks beautiful, the lilac set matches her skin perfectly, hair is styled into a relaxed mused style- so you can play with it, you imagine.

“Are you boys coming to join me or not?”

That’s all the invitation you need before you’re walking around Ransom, placing your hands on her hips and pressing your lips to hers softly, she whimpers into your mouth before pulling away. Taking your hand and then extending her other towards Ransom, you chance a glance at the taller man.

His cock sure smirks makes you look away, taking Ella’s other hand and she pulls you both into the bedroom. The big, soft, luxurious bed would do fine at handling your three bodies.

You glance stiffly at the white sheets, well, now what? You know what to do when with just Ella but now you’re left in uncharted territory. Turning to look at the both of them once you’re stood in front of the bed, hands getting clammy for some reason.

“Well, undressed yourselves.” Ella smirks as she sits on the end of the bed with a bounce, crossing one leg over her other, leaning back on her elbows as she looks at them.

You start to unbutton your shirt, looking over at Ransom to see he was doing the same. You don’t take your eyes off of Ransom as you remove the shirt, letting the pale blue fabric to fall to the floor and then starting on your belt. Ransom begins to do the same, the clanging of his expensive Gucci belt is enough to numb your other senses.

You're both down to your boxers, both black Calvin Klines. Ella raises an amused eyebrow and allows her legs to fall open. Lifting a hand and crooking a finger in a come hither motion, you follow with little relcultance. Falling to her side and pressing open mouth kisses to her soft neck. One of your hands sneaking up and cupping one of her lacy breasts, squeezing the flesh harshly as you suck at her neck.

Ella let out a breathy moan, a sharp gasp escaping her at Ransom running his fingers over her clothed pussy. You help her sit up and unclasp her bra, allowing her perky breasts to slip free of the confines. Ransom slips the panties down her long legs before pushing her thighs apart, slotting himself between them.

For a brief moment you are captivated by him, watching as he languidly licked up her core and wrapped his plump, pink lips wrap around his clit. The moans Ella whines out are white noise, your brows furrow together and you wet your lips. You’re about to look away but Ransom looks up, capturing your eyes in with his deep blue ones. His left eye drops down into a playful wink.

You break out of his spell and look back at Ella, her eyes are screwed shut and her mouth is open wide, moans and groans leaving her wildly. You’re quick to attach your mouth to her nipples, already pebbled and peaked into hard nubs, lavishing her nipple with your tongue.

“God, your mouths,” she breathes harshly.

Time seems to meld as yourself and Ransom tease Ella with your tongues. You tease her nipples and softly bite on them as Ransom pushes two fingers into her and sucks on her clit. You both work in tandem, almost competitively, trying to see who can draw the most noises from her.

“You sure I’m not allowed to fuck this hole?” Ransom asked punctuating the question with a forceful thrust of his fingers.

His crude words make you shiver, a smirk pulling up on your mouth as your eyes narrow in delight. He’s asking permission, he certainly seems like the type to just take what he wants, save the consequence for whenever.

“You think you’ve earned it?” That question throws Ransom off, it even has Ella raising her eyebrows at you but you don’t spare her a glance. Your eyes bore into Ransom’s, unable to look away like the previous times.

Ransom grabs Ella’s ankle and flips her onto her stomach, tapping her hip and she raises them wordlessly, he gives you a questioning glare.

“She likes it hard and deep,” you sit up on your knees, a hand softly running through her hair and gripping it tightly, “don’t hold back, Ran. I won’t be,” you pull down your boxers with your other hand and free your straining cock.

You haven’t felt this hard in a while; you put it down to the fact this is new and exciting. You push the leaking tip into Ella’s waiting mouth, she hums approvingly around your girth. A low groan falls from your lips and you look up in time to see Ransom rid himself of his own underwear.

A large hand is wrapped around his own cock, rubbing it lazily and, for some reason, you can’t take your eyes off of his member. Seeing him naked has stolen your air away; his whole body is immaculate and strong, truly a vision.

You shake your head when Ella gags around your length, slowly pulling it out of her before looking up. Ransom had caught you staring at him, but instead of a disgusted look like you thought he’s wearing a curious look. An unreadable look.

As he pushes in his impressive length he gives you a look, his hands gripping Ella’s hips tightly. The warm caven of Ella’s mouth envelopes you again, you moan loudly but you’re unable to look away from Ransom and he seems to not be able to look away from you either.

“That’s it,” Ransom grunts as he starts to pound Ella from behind causing her body to jolt, pushing her further onto your cock.

The force of his thrusting hips and yours into her mouth, using Ella to reach your peaks. Finding a hard and rough rhythm together. A pushing and pulling rhythm. You’re both grunting and groaning, looking into one another's eyes intensely.

Ella’s whimpers and gagging sounds are numb to your ears, only focused on Ransom. His eyebrows are drawn together, jaw is clenched and his eyes are hard; dark and lust filled.

“You like that?” The question momentarily makes you stutter, Ransom locked on you but Ella hums in admission.

It wasn’t directed at her, though.

You nod once, careful to only groan loudly and not make it seem that it’s going to be Ransom that’ll make you cum.

“Of course, you do!” Ransom chuckles darkly, thrusting into Ella harder and grinding his cock deep into her, “fucking filthy. Dirty little whore for me, aren’t you?” Again Ella answers in whimpers and spit slicked sounds, but you have Ransom’s attention.

“Going to cum, I can feel it. Go ahead, fuckin’ cum for me.”

Your hips stutter deep in Ella’s throat, she gags but groans at the feeling. You cum down her tight throat, copious amounts of cum spurting out of you, a strained growl is yelled from you. Eyes being forced shut at the suddenness of your orgasm.

Ella greedily swallows every drop, licking your cock clean as you slowly drag it out of her mouth and fall back against the bed. Beads of sweat across your forehead and chest, Ella looks at you and smiles before whining again. Ransom keeps going ramming into her harder and faster, his eyes still scorned onto you.

You watch as Ella reaches her peak rather quickly after you, trembling under Ransom and whimpering, you sit up and cup her face in your hands. Kissing her softly before pulling away, looking up at Ransom who has his eyes shut before looking down at you.

“Cum inside of her.” You demand without hesitation and Ransom seems to take it.

His whole body becoming rigid and spasming, hips stilling inside of Ella as he cums deep within her walls. It’s a few silent seconds of heavy breathing. Till he pulls out and sinks back on his hunches, chest heaving and hair stuck to his forehead.

Despite the fact you both had such an intimate moment during this, you can’t bring yourself to look at him in the eye now. Knowing you orgasmed because of him, that you likely got hard because of him.

It’s weird. It’s odd. Ella stretches out on the bed, a low hum of approval to what just happened coming from her.

“Give me a few minutes and we can change positions and one of you can stick it in my ass.”

A deep part of you wished she’d fall asleep and it was just yourself and Ransom.

(Let me know what you think!!! So, yeah... I am writing a part 2 where Ransom and Male Reader get some alone time and get to... do some activities ;) but I wanted it to be like this whole weird sexual competitiveness between them with little moments of mxm - Rosalie)

#ransom thrombey #ransom drysdale x reader #ransom drysdale x male reader #ransom drysdale x male!reader #ransom drysdale smut #ransom thrombey x reader #ransom drysdale one shot #chris evans x reader #chris evans smut

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recordsstraight · 2 years

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what do you think! me & ella

Send me "what do you think" + a muse name and I'll tell you what sort of relationship you, the mun, may have with my muse!

Omfg listen you're both crazy horse girls can I say anything more? LOL but seriously I think you guys would get along so fucking well. She would LOVE your courage and would trust you wholeheartedly in literally every aspect of life. You would be her first pick to go riding with, and I feel like you two would share some fun ass night ins to talk shit about people and talk about life in general.

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kit-charmont · 2 years

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All my characters start from an emotional core. I look for this as I read through their bio, and if I can connect with it quickly, that is the character I pursue. After that, they tend to be placed within three character archetypes. These are characters with strong internal voices from years past. This helps in moments when maybe their voice is slightly wavering because there is a place I connect back to help with muse (even though these characters can be wildly different from each other).

Name: Kit Charmont

Emotional Core: Perfect posture, lonely, seeking, kindness, restless, a charming smirk (his is a bit more abstract still as I narrow in on what it is I feel in his space of my brain when I write him)

Character Archetype:

Lady: Sophisticated, usually upper crust, surprisingly mischievous

Dot: Upbeat, adventurous, courageous

Anna: Blunt, headstrong, loyal

How I Used the Bio/Movie:

I’m a movie purist, so most of what I get, I got from the original version of the movie. I was lucky enough to have Philip and Florian to compare against, as well, both in the movies and the Walt characters. I made note that while there is an emphasis on fate, or they just run across their love in the wood, Kt’s prince meets Cinderella, she disappears, and he sends out the troops fitting that shoe on every damn foot in the kingdom. He is not a sit and wait kind of guy. Understanding this, looking at his bio, I then had to ask myself, what does that mean for a guy who takes action to be forced to wait? My answer is in that restlessness, the rebelliousness that his bio mentions, and also a gray cloud and a sadness as he just wishes to start his life. He had Ella, he had his kingdom, and now he has nothing and no way to get them.

Constant Truths:

· He wants to help you. It doesn’t matter what happens, if he follows through or not, but he forever wants to help.

· After the night with Ella and not being able to go find her, along with the impending death of his father, Kit is in a depressed state. (Not clinical, simply a prolonged stay in a gray space of his life.)

· He would rather be outside.

Formative Songs:

· Surface Pressure, Jessica Darrow

Pressure like a drip, drip, drip that'll never stop, whoa Pressure that'll tip, tip, tip 'til you just go pop, whoa-oh-oh Give it to your sister, it doesn't hurt And see if she can handle every family burden Watch as she buckles and bends but never breaks No mistakes

· The Impossible Year, Panic at the Disco

There's no you and me This impossible year Only heartache and heartbreak And gin made of tears The bitter pill I swallow The scars souvenir That tattoo, your last bruise This impossible year

· Ghost of You, 5 Seconds of Summer

So I drown it out like I always do Dancing through our house With the ghost of you And I chase it down With a shot of truth That my feet don't dance Like they did with you

#watask

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freckled-petals · 4 years

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The Relationship: Part 2; Talbott/Reader

Summary: When Talbott’s “fan club” causes him trouble, Penny’s idea for you to step in causes quite the uproar.

Word Count: 5474

Part one can be found here!

——

The night passed fitfully for you. Your head was swirling with thoughts and the room felt entirely too hot. Your mind kept drifting back to Talbott’s hand in yours, and each time the thought entered, you let out an unhappy huff before rolling over. You didn’t want to think about this afternoon. Doing so would be admitting just how electric the contact had felt.

“Merlin, it was just hand holding,” you silently hissed to yourself. You pushed yourself up and out of bed, silently crossing to the window for some air. You exhaled, rubbing your forehead in frustration.

But eventually, your mind reminded you that this was just the beginning. It wasn’t going to just be hand holding. If either of you wanted this to be believable, there would be more you’d have to do.

Suddenly your mind was racing with other thoughts. Some physical contact? Okay, that wouldn’t be terrible. At least, you tried to tell yourself that. If holding his hand had caused such a reaction within you, what would happen when he touched you elsewhere? Merlin, the thought of him touching you elsewhere...

You quickly shook your head, expelling the thought. What else had Penny suggested? Longing glancing? Surely that would be the easiest, right? All Talbott did was scowl and glare, so you were sure you’d be immune from his sharp, deep, piercing, beautiful eyes—stop, you mentally hissed.

As you forced yourself back into your bed, you couldn’t stop the one thought that was screaming in the back of your mind from coming to the forefront. What if he tried to kiss you? You felt like you were going to explode from the heat spreading across your cheeks. You were too exhausted to stop yourself from thinking about his lips - warm and soft - wrapping around yours, tugging, nipping, sucking.

You grabbed your pillow, pulling it down onto your face so your fellow Gryffindors wouldn’t hear your frustrated whines.

——

By the time you had to get up, you were considerably more exhausted than you had been before going to bed. You didn’t know how you were going to make it through the day. The morning dragged on and you couldn’t help but think about meeting up with Talbott after his class. Your mind certainly hadn’t been helpful in preparing you for whatever was going to happen then.

All you knew was that you would be in front of those third years, and you and Talbott would have to be convincing. Whatever that meant set your nerves on end.

As one o’clock approached, you found your breathing growing heavier as you made your way down the the dungeons. Brave of heart, brave of heart, you mentally chanted, steeling yourself for what was about to unfold. You were a Gryffindor. You needed to be brave.

Stepping off the final stair, your eyes settled on a group of students, all gathered around the door where you could pick up Snape’s monotoned voice lecturing. It didn’t take long for your eyes to find a head of curly blonde hair belonging to Isabella Mott. She was closest to the door, periodically glancing in the classroom and giggling to her friends - a few of which you recognized from last night.

Sucking in a breath, you made your way closer to the classroom. Bravery, courage, you mentally chanted, making your way closer to the door. It was only then that you felt eyes shifting to look at you, but you kept your gaze on the classroom, spotting Talbott at one of the tables with his head in his book. You mentally scolded yourself for the little flip in your stomach that you felt.

“You’re the curse breaker,” a voice spoke, pulling you from your thoughts. You turned, finding none other than Isabella Mott grinning up at you. She seemed...excited.

“That’s definitely her,” one of her friends whispered softly, nodding. You thought it was Ella Wilson, but you’d never been great with names.

“I suppose I am,” you responded, glancing down at the shorter Ravenclaw. Her face seemed to light up at that. Once again, you were struck by how pretty she was, and you couldn’t help but be surprised that Talbott hadn’t entertained her advances, at least a little bit.

“So cool,” another friend - the Slytherin, Avery Thorne, you thought - spoke up, arching an eyebrow in your direction.

“How do you balance quidditch and curse breaking?” Madison Lee chimed in, leaning towards you. Okay, you could see how one could get annoyed with the barrage of questions. Isabella was quick to cut in, though, before you could answer.

“What brings you here?” She questioned, gazing at you. You grinned to yourself: it was showtime.

“I’m waiting for someone,” you said simply.

“Us, too,” Amelia Stevens interjected, and the rest of her friends giggled excitedly. Just wait until they realized you were all waiting for the same person.

Isabella grinned, glancing once more into the classroom before turning back to you. “It was really cool to meet you. You’re quite the celebrity at Hogwarts,” she said, and you couldn’t help but laugh. The girl was clearly a suck up.

“Thanks, I guess,” you laughed, scratching the back of your head. You were sure her opinion would change any minute, though. Looking back in the classroom, you noticed the students packing their things, and you felt your heart rate quicken.

“Here he comes,” Ella whispered excitedly, shaking Isabella’s arm as the sixth-year potions students began filing out of the class.

You chanced a glance at the third years, each one practically pushing to get a glance at Talbott. They just about had hearts in their eyes. You glanced back towards the classroom, surprised to immediately lock eyes with Talbott. He’d seen you, and was quickly making his way towards you. You felt your breath catch in your throat.

It suddenly dawned on you that Talbott and you hadn’t even discussed what you were going to do! All you had told him was that you’d meet him, but then what?! You were sure you could feel your heart pounding against your rib cage as he made his way closer.

“He’s so handsome,” Avery gushed as he exited the classroom.

“Hi, Talbott—“ Isabella’s voice spoke but Talbott didn’t even look up. He closed the remaining distance between you two, a soft smile making its way onto his features. You weren’t sure you’d even seen him look so content, and it only made you more self conscious since he was looking at you.

“Hey, you,” he spoke levelly, reaching up to lightly tuck a strand of hair behind your ear. Your face felt hot, but with the way he was looking at you, you couldn’t help but return the smile as you gazed up at him.

“Hey,” you responded, your voice almost getting lost in your throat.

His smile only grew, and not another moment passed before his arm had slid over your shoulder, effectively pulling you into his side. You let out a soft breath and raised your own arm to wrap around his middle, keeping you secured against him. The gasps from the other girls did not go unnoticed by either of you as you began heading away form the area.

“How was class?” You questioned, trying to ignore the uproar from the third years behind you.

“Much better now,” he responded, leading you out of the dungeon.

Once you were a decent distance from the classroom, his hold on you dropped, though you couldn’t help but be a tad disappointed. He was warm and inviting, but you were quick to mentally scold yourself for such thoughts. This was all an act, remember?

“You’ll be pleased to know,” you hummed as you headed towards the great hall for a late lunch. He raised an eyebrow, glancing down at you as he waited for you to continue. “You’re apparently dating a Hogwarts celebrity,” you grinned up at him, and he immediately snorted in amusement.

“Excuse me?” He grinned, taking a seat across from you.

“Isabella Mott. She was practically gushing over me before you came out,” you laughed, grinning at him. “The whole lot of them had questions, actually.”

“Careful,” he warned, though a grin was plastered on his face. “You might have a fan club before we know it,” he joked.

You scoffed, playfully rolling your eyes. “Not bloody likely,” you drawled.

“Perhaps Penny was right about choosing you for this,” he mused, beginning to eat.

“Perhaps so,” you hummed, taking a few bites of the food in front of you. “Did you happen to get a look at their faces?” You questioned. You weren’t able to see anything from how tightly you were pressed against his side.

“Briefly. Pretty amusing looks if you ask me,” Talbott grinned, glancing at you. “I think they bought it.”

“How could they not?” You laughed. You practically bought it. Talbott smiled and nodded in agreement, only to purse his lips moments later.

“I don’t think that’ll be the end of it, though,” he mused, resting his head on his fist before looking off in thought. “I don’t think they’ll give up that easily.”

“Then neither will we,” you said, offering him a smile. “When do you expect we’ll see ‘em next? Dinner?” You questioned.

“Mm, probably,” he agreed.

“Then that’s when we’ll strike next,” you laughed, though you couldn’t help but feel your heart beat quicken at the thought of what was to come.

“Alright,” he said, offering you one more smile, though he didn’t speak any more on the subject. Was he not as affected as you were? Were you reading too much into this? Probably.

——

After lunch and two classes later, you were about to pass out from exhaustion, but at least you only had dinner left to get through.

Entering the great hall, your eyes scanned the room until you found your group of friends chatting amiably. Your eyes met with Talbott, only for your heart to do a little flip as he sent a small wave in your direction.

You made your way closer, smiling as you took your seat among your friends.

“It’s about time. This one’s been watching the door like a hawk for the last ten minutes,” Charlie laughed, nudging Talbott. The bird pun wasn’t lost on you.

“Oh really?” You grinned, glancing across the table at Talbott who was looking anywhere but at you. Had he been waiting for you? The thought was a bit exciting.

“How’s your day been?” Penny questioned from beside you, an eager look on her face. She was clearly hoping to hear about something between you and Talbott.

“Pretty eventful,” you laughed, just as you felt a hand take yours from across the table. Looking up, your eyes met with Talbott’s and a fresh wave of heat spread across your cheeks. Why was he having such an affect on you?!

“So cute,” you heard Tulip whisper from the other end of the table. You had half a mind to retract your hand, but Talbott’s grip remained firm, even lacing his fingers with yours.

“Are they here yet?” You questioned him softly, turning to glance in the direction where the third years had been the other night.

“Right there,” Talbott said quietly, nodding his head to the side. Creasing your brow, you turned, surprised to find the third years at the same table as you. They were a fair distance away, but the fact they were this close at all!

“Merlin,” you scoffed, spotting Isabella angrily twisting her wand in her hands.

“Someone isn’t happy,” you grinned, looking back at Talbott.

“I’m guessing they’ve noticed that Talbott’s off the market,” Penny laughed, glancing between you two.

“With the show we put on earlier, I’d say so,” you grinned, glancing back at Talbott, who seemed to be staring intently at you.

You creased your brow, watching as his eyes seemed to dart along your face. “What is it?” You frowned, gazing at him. His gaze was so piercing and a bit unnerving. “What are you doing?”

“Counting your freckles,” he murmured, continuing to gaze at you intensely.

“What?!” You gaped, your eyes widening.

“Stop moving,” he murmured, clearly trying to concentrate. You were sure to any onlookers, it would look like a passionate exchange. For you, it was making your insides flutter uncomfortably. It didn’t help that he was lightly thumbing the back of your hand either.

“You guys are naturals at this,” Penny giggled, glancing between you two.

“Talbott,” you murmured, flushing deeply. It was a bit embarrassing being under his scrutinizing gaze. “Is it working?” You questioned Penny, unable to look away from Talbott.

“Oh, yeah,” she laughed, leaning forward slightly to glance at the third years.

“You’d think they smelled dungbombs with the looks on their faces,” she said, and you couldn’t help but laugh.

“Good,” you hummed, smiling at you continued gazing at the boy in front of you.

“Almost finished? I’d like to eat,” you playfully drawled. He remained unflinching for a few more moments before nodding.

“Thirty-one,” he responded, turning back to his own food.

“Huh?” You frowned, gazing at him for a moment longer.

“Freckles. You have thirty-one,” he said simply. You couldn’t help but self-consciously touch the patch of freckles that scattered along your cheeks and nose.

“I-I see,” you murmured, you face feeling hot once more. Just what was he playing at, making you feel like this?!

——

Dinner didn’t last much longer, though you had been sure Isabella was going to scream at you two when the third years left dinner a bit early.

Just to really rub it in, you’d raised yours and Talbott’s linked hand, just to make sure she’d seen. She practically had steam coming out of her ears as Avery and Madison tugged her along.

“Well, that was amusing,” you grinned at Talbott and Penny. “Hopefully they’ll give up soon,” you mused. You didn’t think your heart could stand much more.

You let go of Talbott’s hand - despite his subtle protest that didn’t go unnoticed by you - before standing and stretching.

“I’m going to call it a night,” you yawned and turned to bid your friends good night.

You were unsurprised to find Talbott standing as well, following you towards the exit of the hall. He’d taken your hand once more, gently lacing his fingers through yours before you left the hall.

Once you were out of the boisterous hall, you turned to him, confused why he hadn’t dropped your hand like he had the night before once you’d been out of sight from others. You were beginning to expect that he enjoyed the contact, especially with how often he did it. Surprisingly, you didn’t mind all that much.

“Walking me to my common room again?” You questioned, glancing down at your linked hands that he had yet to drop, before your gaze lifted back to meet his eyes.

“I...was hoping you would accompany me to the library,” Talbott said, momentarily glancing off into the distance. Was he looking to see if the third years were lurking about?

“Why?” You frowned, rubbing at your eye. You could feel the exhaustion hitting you like a wall. “I think the third years have gotten their fill for tonight,” you said.

“They won’t be there,” he responded, glancing back at you.

“Then you don’t need me,” you said. The more he gazed at you, the more frustrated you became. It was bad enough that mere thoughts of him had kept you up all night, but here he was, wanting to continue parading around this fake relationship some more. It was torture...or so you told yourself.

“I...I want you there,” Talbott spoke, his voice lowering slightly. You were taken aback by his sudden admittance - when did he ever like people around? Sure, he’d let down some of his walls around you during the events of last year, but asking for company was completely out of the normal for him.

“I thought you preferred being alone,” you argued, pulling your hand from his to cross you arms over your chest.

Talbott let out an exasperated sigh, looking down at your unamused form. “It’s important we be seen together,” he pointed out.

“Enough people have seen us together today. I’m tired,” you countered, yawning for emphasis.

“It’s...it’s important at the start of a relationship,” he said, keeping his gaze level, though his voice faltered the slightest bit. You wanted to argue that this wasn’t a real relationship, despite what the butterflies in your tummy were telling you, but you couldn’t force the words out. “Just for a bit,” he added, taking a hesitant step closer to you.

“I really shouldn’t,” you frowned, another yawn escaping you. You were so close to curling up in bed, but something about the look he was giving you prevented you from rejecting any further. “Alright, alright,” you sighed, letting out a huff that ruffled your fringe.

“Thank you,” Talbott said softly, reaching down to take your hand once more.

“Just for a bit,” you repeated his words, eying him challengingly, to which he simply smiled and nodded.

You continued to pout, but allowed him to lead you to the library. You were unsurprised to find it as empty as it was given the hour, but you supposed that would give you ample quiet to nap.

“What was so urgent that you needed me to accompany you for?” You questioned, watching as he pulled out a chair for you. It made your stomach lurch pleasantly - which only served to frustrate you more.

“Herbology,” he answered softly. Once you were seated, he disappeared down an aisle, returning a few minutes later with two thick books. “I have a test on bouncing bulbs at the end of the week that I haven’t had much time to study for,” he said.

“Won’t I be distracting or something? Wouldn’t you prefer to study in peace?” You frowned, crossing your arms on the table to rest your head on.

He glanced at you for a moment, silently observing before chuckling softly to himself. “I don’t think you’ll be much of a distraction with how heavy your eyelids look,” he hummed, flipping through a few pages from one of the books he’d grabbed.

“Never discount how distracting I can be,” you childishly argued, though your eyes were already shutting. It was warm and quiet and Talbott smelled rather lovely...you could certainly get used to this feeling.

“Duly noted,” you heard Talbott’s voice respond before everything seemed too far away.

——

You were asleep - not too deep but not nearly as conscious as you could have been - though you were vaguely aware of the hand you felt tangled in your hair. Fingers were lightly moving, massaging and lulling you back into unconsciousness.

——

“Hey,” you heard a soft voice, rousing you from the rather pleasant dream you’d been wrapped up in.

“Mm?” You breathed, your brow furrowing before your eyes flitted open just a crack. You were met with Talbott’s form, gazing down at you with a soft smile. It suddenly came back to you that you were in the library, not your bed, though you were still too tired to really care.

“It’s time to go,” Talbott spoke gently, his head resting on his hand. You noticed the books were gone from in front of him and his bag was all packed. Was he just waiting on you?

“Wh-what...time is it?” You blinked a bit more, groggily sitting up.

“Almost nine,” he said, enough sense to respond sheepishly.

“That’s a few more hours than a bit,” you grumbled, rubbing the cheek that had been resting on your arms.

“I needed to study, and...I was a bit distracted,” he admitted.

“Were you...playing with my hair?” You questioned suddenly, remembering the sensation. Talbott quickly looked away, his eyes settling on a spot on the table in front of you.

“A few people had been walking by, so I figured I’d keep up pretenses,” Talbott murmured, tucking his hand under him.

“It felt nice,” you admitted, your voice thick with sleep.

“Right,” he said, and you noticed the bit of blush coating his tan cheeks.

“Well...we should be off. Pince is making her final rounds,” he said, standing up. He offered his hand to you, and you took it, allowing him to raise you up and escort you out.

Perhaps accompanying him to the library hadn’t been the worst thing that could have happened.

——

A few days later, you were in your afternoon potions class - one of the few times you weren’t with Talbott - absently skimming through your textbook as you allowed your potion to simmer.

“You know, I really can’t stand it,” Merula drawled, lazily stirring her cauldron beside you.

“What is it today?” You drawled, shifting your gaze to the yellow concoction you were working on.

“You’re all anyone talks about. It’s sick,” she glared at you.

“Let’s just face it: I’m a celebrity,” you cooed, repeating the words Isabella Mott used to describe you. It made you laugh to yourself at the very thought. You finally glanced over at her, taking in her look of utter disgust. You lived to see Merula Snyde get ticked off.

“Sod off,” she glared, turning back to her potion.

“Out of curiosity,” you hummed, adding some porcupine quills to your cauldron.

“Who was it that was talking about me. So I know who to send an autograph to,” you teased, smirking over at the Slytherin beside you. Merula didn’t look up, angrily throwing peppermint sprigs into her potion.

“Avery Thorne and Amelia Stevens,” Barnaby chimed in from across the table. Merula shot him a look but didn’t speak any further. “Third years,” he said. Your eyes widened, looking at Barnaby incredulously. They were asking...about you?!

“What’d they want?” You asked, attempting to remain indifferent.

Barnaby creased his brow as if he was trying very, very hard to remember the conversation. “They wanted to know more about you. Classes you had, places you liked to go...oh! How long you’ve been dating Talbott,” he said. There it was. “I must admit, I’m surprised,” Merula spoke up then, crossing her arms over her chest. “I always figured you’d go for some dumb, strapping Gryffindor,” she drawled.

“Talbott’s...strapping,” you said, your cheeks heating up.

“Winger’s a twig,” she said. “Doesn’t suit you,” she challenged.

“We get on just fine,” you defended, narrowing your eyes. Merula raised an eyebrow, only to smirk. Clearly, she’d found a soft spot, and was ready to dig the knife in.

Merula opened her mouth to start, but within moments, Snape was hovering behind you both with his characteristically unamused glare.

“If you insist on incessant chatter, that can only mean you have produced a potion of exceptional quality, therefore not finding need for my instruction,” he drawled unhappily, inspecting your cauldrons.

“No, sir,” Merula and you spoke quickly and quietly.

“Then see to it that you finish in a quiet manner,” he spoke harshly before strolling off. You quickly stuck your tongue out at Merula before returning your attention to your potion. Of course, that just gave you ample time to wonder why the third years had inquired about you.

——

“Something...odd occurred in my potions class this afternoon,” you told Talbott as the two of you headed to your Divination lesson. Your hand was wrapped around his arm while he carried both of your books. He’d insisted, and admittedly, you found the gesture sweet.

“What? Snape crack a smile?” Talbott questioned, grinning to himself and you couldn’t help but laugh.

“I said odd, not impossible,” you grinned, playfully nudging him. “No. Apparently, the third year Slytherins were asking Barnaby and Merula about me,” you said, glancing up at him.

“Were they really?” He questioned, a surprisingly happy tone in his voice. “You think they’re ditching me for you?!” He asked hopefully and you nudged him again.

“No,” you drawled. “Asking about us,” you amended. “How long we’ve been dating,” you said, and his face fell.

“Oh. Bugger,” Talbott muttered under his breath.

“I just hope they don’t start following me around now,” you drawled, exhaling a sigh that ruffled your fringe.

“Maybe we need to be more convincing,” Talbott posed. “So they just give up,” he shrugged.

“It’s worth a try,” you shrugged as well, though you couldn’t help but be a bit excited at the prospect.

——

If you had thought your potions class had been odd, you certainly weren’t prepared for what the next day had in store for you.

It was one of your slower days class-wise, so most of your time was spent catching up on homework or meeting with teachers when necessary, but today was certainly going to be different.

Starting with breakfast in the great hall, you were acutely aware of the feeling of being watched. You couldn’t pinpoint the person...or people, though you supposed Barnaby’s news had rattled you. What reason could the third years have had for asking about you? You were almost certain it wasn’t just curiosity.

After breakfast, you were certain you were being watched. You’d been leaving Snape’s classroom - you had to hand in your notes and had tried to apologize for your dispute with Merula - but after he’d kicked you out, you’d passed the waiting third years who had class. Your eyes had settled on Amelia Stevens and Avery Thorne who were most certainly glaring at you. You tried keeping your gaze focused in front of you, but you knew you’d heard them whispering about you as you passed.

Heading up to your dorm room after lunch to pick up some books for your afternoon lessons, you were certain the third years had it out for you. Whilst on the grand staircase, Madison Lee and Ella Wilson has shoved past you so hard, you’d had to grip onto the railing to avoid losing your footing as the staircase shifted. They’d simply glanced over their shoulders, laughing in amusement. Your afternoon study hall had been the worst, though. You hadn’t thought things could get much worse than almost tumbling to your death on the grand staircase, but Isabella Mott had proved you quite wrong.

You were sitting in the library, your nose buried in A Guide to Advanced Transfiguration when you heard the chair across from you scraping against the floor.

Looking up, your eyes locked on Isabella’s unamused face staring back at you.

“Can I help you?” You questioned, inspecting the third year.

Isabella was looking at you as though you’d set her hair on fire. For such a pretty girl, she had a fierce glare...which was being directed at you.

“Or...not?” You trailed when she didn’t speak. “Look, I’m trying to study, so if—“ you began as more uncomfortable silence came from the third year, but at that, she finally spoke up.

“I don’t know what you’re playing at,” Isabella spoke, her hands clenching into fists as they rested on the table. “All of a sudden, you’re glued to his side?”

Your eyes widened, surprised to find her confronting you about Talbott. This certainly hadn’t been a part of Penny’s plan.

“Talbott and I have always been close,” you said, and her rage seemed to boil over.

“Don’t speak his name,” Isabella snapped, and you noticed a few other students turning to look at the commotion. You were used to dealing with these sort of outbursts from Merula all the time, though, and you kept a level expression on your face. That only seemed to irritate her more.

“And why wouldn’t I say my boyfriend’s name?” You asked calmly, but that only caused the third year to slam her hands on the table.

“He’s mine!” She shrieked, and you leaned back slightly from the harshness in her tone.

“Miss Mott!” A voice called, and you turned to find Madame Pince rushing towards your table. “This is the library,” she scolded. “Take your outbursts elsewhere. Shoo,” she said, ushering the third year out. Isabella was sure to shoot you a final glare as she marched out.

You were sure that wouldn’t be the last outburst you heard from her.

——

You were sure you’d had enough. These third years were going to kill you before the day was out. Deciding you needed to be away from it all, you quickly made your way towards the greenhouses, knowing that no Herbology classes were going on at this time. Entering, you shut the door behind you before leaning up against it and letting out a relieved sigh.

“What are you doing in here?” A voice rang out through the silence, and your body jolted in surprise. Looking towards the direction of the voice, your eyes settled on Talbott sitting on the floor with a pot in front of him. His robe was absent and his sleeves were pushed up to his elbows, his hands almost completely covered in dirt.

“Talbott,” you breathed, resting your hand on your chest as you attempted to slow your racing heart. You took a few steps towards him, inspecting him curiously. “I...I didn’t think anyone would be in here,” you said.

“Clearly,” he grinned, gazing up at you. “What’s going on?” He asked, confused bu your arrival.

“Your fan club has it out for me,” you drawled, lowering yourself on to the ground next to him. “So I figured I’d hide out in here,” you said.

“Brilliant,” he hummed in amusement, only to scowl moments later as the bulb that was sitting in the pot suddenly jumped out and began to bounce around.

“Get back here,” he grumbled, trying unsuccessfully to corner the bulb.

“Still studying for your test?” You grinned, watching as Talbott grew more frustrated.

“No, I’m doing this for fun,” Talbott drawled, shooting you a look before he was able to grab hold of the bulb.

“Professor Sprout won’t be impressed,” you teased, moving the pot closer to him so he could quickly plant the finicky bulb. “I thought you were good at this,” you joked.

“I am,” he grumbled, finally succeeding in planting the bulb. He let out a sigh before turning his attention back to you. “I going to fail this test tomorrow,” he groaned and you couldn’t help but giggle.

“Probably,” you hummed, and he cracked a grin in your direction.

“Thank you for your vote of confidence. You’re really a supportive girlfriend,” he joked, though you couldn’t help but flush slightly at the use of the term.

“Surely there’s got to be other aspects of Herbology you don’t completely fail at,” you joked, looking around the room in hopes that he didn’t realize the affect he had on you.

“You’re so mean today,” Talbott said, but there was no harshness in his voice. Chancing a look at him, you found a smile tugging on his lips as he stood to place his pot by the window. “There is one thing I’ve been working on. Not part of class but I’ve been helping out Professor Sprout in my free time,” he said.

You gazed up at him curiously, watching as he offered you his hand to help you up. You took it, only for your face to heat up when he didn’t drop it. Lacing your fingers - something you’d learned he did each time when taking your hands - he led you over to the opposite side of the room.

“What is it...?” You questioned, glancing up at him. In a decorative pot was a clump of dark, flower-less stems. It sort of looked like it was dying. “You’re not helping your case for being good at herbology,” you teased and he rolled his eyes.

Taking out his wand, he waved it over the stems. You watched curiously, and not another moment passed before heaps of white flowers began blooming out of every section on the stems. They were quite beautiful, and you couldn’t help but smile at the magic he’d done.

“It’s asphodel,” Talbott told you, pocketing his wand. “I help Professor Sprout grow it for Snape and Madame Pomfrey,” he explained, glancing down at you.

“It’s beautiful,” you smiled, lightly touching the pointed leaves.

“Here,” he spoke, quickly snipping off a stem before handing it to you. Talbott Winger was giving you flowers. You were sure this day couldn’t have gotten any stranger. “Just...don’t tell Sprout,” he added with a sheepish laugh.

“It’ll be our little secret,” you answered, smiling softly as you leaned in to sniff the blooms.

Talbott leaned against the table, watching you with interest. He’d yet to drop your hand, and you couldn’t help but find it curious that he was acting this way with no one around to watch. Perhaps this wasn’t as fake as you’d brought yourself to believe.

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