Tumgik
#To think this actually aired in the first place
erwinsvow · 2 days
Text
Tumblr media
really, rafe hadn’t even realized he’d done anything special. 
he was used to having sarah’s litter of friends over at tannyhill, as annoying as it was. after one of them had needed an ambulance and a stomach pumping after too many shots snuck in upstairs in his sister’s room, he was trying to keep a handle on things, keep an eye on the situation. be proactive, be the man of the house, which he was when ward wasn’t there.
he thought he’d heard a bunch of girls scurry out in the morning, but he must have been wrong, because when he’s walking to his truck, he finds you, sitting on the ground next to your bike, blocking his exit.
you look angry, mumbling curses under your breath while you fiddle with something he can’t see—though your bike is tipped over and the wheel looks slightly deflated. 
the first thought in his head is to tell you to move with your bike or he’ll run you both over. but that’s not what the man of the house would say, so instead he gets closer, crouching next to you.
“what’s goin’ on?”
you look up, startled. you were so focused on your broken bike that you hadn’t heard the footsteps of sarah’s older brother, the one she always complains about.
“everyone left for the beach already, i was gonna bike there. i got on and the wheel just gave out and i fell off. i don’t know what’s wrong with the stupid thing.” you’re facing your bike now, looking at the various gears and chains trying to make sense of it. you don’t look back at him but he’s still staring.
rafe doesn’t think he’s met you before, thinks he would have remembered—you were too pretty for him to forget.
he hoists the bike upright, spinning the tire until a gleam of silver comes around.
“nail in the driveway. your, uh, little bike didn’t have a chance.”
“crap. i don’t have the thing with me.”
“the thing?”
“the air pumpy thing. you know, the thing?” you look up at rafe to see his furrowed eyebrows.
“yeah, kid. sure.” he takes a step back, leaning the bike against his truck. “lemme go see what i can find.” you’re still perched on the ground, but pressing your palms flat on the pavement to get yourself up. “here-” he offers you his hand, helping you up.
even standing, you still have to look up at rafe to see his face. 
“you don’t have to do that. i’m sure you’re busy. i can always walk-”
“nah, it’s fine. you saved my tire from getting that nail. stay here, i’ll be back.” 
and you listen, twiddling your thumbs waiting for rafe. he comes back with a tire pump and other things that you don’t recognize, but you watch intently. when he pulls out the nail, he offers it to you, and you offer him your cupped palms to drop it into. 
finally, rafe stands and moves the bike slowly, testing it out.
“here, kid. good as new.”
“wow. thanks rafe!” you beam, smiling brightly. “that was so nice of you. you’re so nice.” you think you sound a little dazed—but you are. rafe is so nice to you, nothing like what sarah had told you about him.
at first rafe can’t tell if you’re just joking or not, but he decides not when you don’t immediately get on your bike and ride to where your friends are.
“uh, thanks. it’s nothin’. m’not just gonna leave you here like your shitty friends did.” you laugh, still smiling at him. “well, uh, i’ll see you around, kid.” for once, he actually hopes he does.
after the beach that day, you swing back home, making sure to ask sarah what her brother’s favorite dessert is. you pack a big batch of oatmeal raisin cookies in a pretty pink tin and put them in the wicker basket attached to your bicycle, riding over to sarah’s place. 
instead of going upstairs like you normally do, you wander into the kitchen, where rafe is standing, looking at some papers spread out on the island.
“hi, rafe,” you say, and when he turns to look at you, you smile big. 
“hey, kid. uh, i don’t think sarah’s home yet-”
“oh, i didn’t come for her.” you open the tin, placing it on the counter infront of him. “i just wanted to say thanks for this morning. sarah said you like oatmeal raisin.”
he looks up down at the cookies, then at you. 
“thanks. y’know, you didn’t have to do that.”
“maybe. you were just so nice this morning, i felt like i should do something.” you’re looking up at him with big, fluttery eyes and a thudding heart. “is there anything else i can do? that you want? to say thank you?”
he cocks an eyebrow, tilting his head, hoping he’s understanding you correctly while knowing that he is.
“yeah-yeah? anything else?”
“i just want to thank you properly,” you sigh, getting closer. being bold’s not new to you, but this is only the second time you’re talking to him. you’re sure he understands, with the tiny dress you wore here, the one with the low neck and thin straps.
“yeah. alright, kid. c’mon, upstairs.” you beam, darting up the stairs and giving him a show in the process. he stares from the foot of the stairs for a second before joining you.
you’re so glad you stuck that nail in your tire.
Tumblr media
296 notes · View notes
delirious-donna · 2 days
Text
The Surprise [Higuruma Hiromi]
Tumblr media
an: it’s 2am and here I am posting this smut-filled fic because I can’t sleep and I can’t stop thinking about this man. p.s. requests are open for Higuruma specifically so drop me an ask if you wanna give me some ideas for everyone’s favourite lawyer!
pairing: Higuruma Hiromi x female reader
warnings: lingerie, pussy drunk Hiromi (it’s canon don’t fight me), multiple orgasms, unprotected sex (wrap it folks) and other goodies
Masterlist
Tumblr media
“Will that be everything for you today?” The cheery assistant asked offering a genuine smile whilst they rang through your purchases and packed them carefully into a neat little box.
Your stomach fluttered with the thought of what might transpire this coming weekend, a long-planned weekend that couldn’t arrive quick enough. The delicate tissue paper wrapped around the items inside the box before the assistant closed it over, tied a ribbon securely and placed it in a paper bag.
“Yes, that’s it. Thank you for your help earlier, I appreciate it!”
With a bounce in your step and a sizeable dent in your bank balance, you exited the boutique store to daydream about your husband’s reaction to your little splurge. Neither of you were accustomed to dropping large sums of money so randomly, both believing that an air of caution and frugality would see you through any potential storms on the horizon, but you had walked past this store so many times and finally been tempted into their den of sinful delights.
Inclusive-sized mannequins displayed a range of differently styled lingerie, from demure bridal wear to raunchy strips of leather and wide mesh that would leave very little to the imagination. At first, you were convinced it would only be window shopping, however, when you spied an elegant-looking black bodysuit that seemed like it would hold all your bits in without compromising the sex appeal element, it was game over.
Once you were interested, the friendly young assistant swooped in and soon you were trying it on in the fancy dressing room. The lighting was complimenting rather than garishly fluorescent, and the lull of soft, sensual music added to the overall experience, one you were rather enjoying. The strapless bodysuit hugged your curves and accentuated your décolletage nicely. Clearly, it was designed by scientists to support your breasts without cumbersome straps, and you silently praised their ingenuity. Paired with crotchless fishnet tights that you could secure beneath the suit—a suggestion from your enthusiastic little helper—you knew that Hiromi would likely lose his mind and you couldn’t wait.
Your poor, overworked and perpetually exhausted husband had been burning the candle at both ends for the past nearly four months, neck deep in a case that if he were to win would be a monumental victory in his career. In support, you packed him off every morning with a full lunch consisting of his favourite foods, mostly to encourage him to actually eat instead of consuming mug after mug of rancid instant coffee. In your evenings, you helped him go over witness testimonies, read over his arguments for clarity, and did everything you could to lighten his load around the house. It wouldn’t be a permanent arrangement, you both knew that, and to say he appreciated your support was an understatement.
That’s why when he told you that it was all drawing to a conclusion and that he was cautiously optimistic it would end in his favour, you revelled in that knowledge. Whether it did come to fruition or not, his weekend would be free, and he promised to spend some real quality time with you without the cloud of looming work. There was nothing more he could do, no more past cases he could study and the thought of basking in his undivided attention warmed your heart and soul.
With two days remaining before your scheduled weekend plans to do absolutely nothing but relax and unwind in each other’s presence, you again peeked at the box you’d tucked into your side of the wardrobe, away from prying eyes. Maybe it was a bout of nerves, a moment of body consciousness, that made you pull your surprise out to examine the contents. Whatever it was, you worried your bottom lip once the intimate outfit was laid out on the bedspread.
“What was I thinking… this is too much,” you quietly scolded yourself.
Flopping beside the expensive scraps of fabric, you brushed a palm down your face and reminded yourself that you looked fucking divine in the changing room of the boutique, so why would it be any different now? More so, you knew deep in your heart that Hiromi adored you and thought you were a goddess, one he claimed he didn’t deserve.
A few moments later, you stood in front of the mirrored wardrobe to scrutinise your reflection. Your eyes narrowed as you tugged the sweetheart cups into place and felt the soft squish of your breast jiggle inside. Turning to the side, a hand ran the length of your torso with a grin unfurling at the tight hug of the sheer-panelled fabric. Damn, your backside looked real good from this angle. But maybe the fishnets were too much, you mused, turning this way and that.
You ran your fingers through your hair, wondering if you should try to style it, maybe give it some more volume and texture. It was at that moment, whilst making kissy faces at your reflection with your hands scrunching handfuls of your hair and up on your tippy toes to extend the length of your legs, that the bedroom door opened, and you froze like a deer in headlights.
~
Higuruma Hiromi was on cloud nine. Not only had he won a career-defining case against all the odds, but the judge had also taken less time to deliberate than anyone expected they would. After a hearty swig of celebratory champagne drank from crappy paper cups with his partner and their secretaries, he was on the first train home to truly celebrate with the only person that mattered—you.
What he didn’t expect to find when he entered the house as stealthily as he could manage was the vision of you standing in the middle of the bedroom looking like one of the pin-up models from the magazines he would hide under his mattress as a young man.
Like a slightly tipsy house cat, he tiptoed his way through the rooms, listening for signs of you and driving straight towards the bedroom to surprise you with his unannounced return. The door bounced open on its hinges and he stood, shell-shocked for a moment before it turned to white-hot appreciation.
You looked beautiful, stunning, breathtaking even. There weren’t enough colourful adjectives for how he felt about you at any given time, but right now, modelling a black bodysuit that hugged both your butt and your breasts, he was entirely dumbstruck. Hiromi didn’t know where to look, or whether you’d rather he look away given your strangled yelp of surprise at his sudden appearance. You made no effort to cover yourself or shove him out the door, no, you both faced one another as if neither of you knew what to do or say.
His eyes continued to betray him, slowly caressing the length of your figure and finding new things to appreciate; the sweetheart cups, the gauzy panels that allowed him glimpses of your skin beneath, and not to mention the fishnet tights. He hadn’t seen you wear anything like those since your dating years, and he had forgotten how much he missed them, or how many he had ruined by ripping through the gusset in his haste.
“What are you doing home?” You glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table and back to your husband, heat filling your face but something else followed on the tails of your embarrassment, something more pleasant.
Hiromi ran this thumb over his mouth, gaze pointedly fixed on your chest, and you cleared your throat with emphasis until he finally met your eye and the arch of your eyebrow. Already his neck looked red, like a rash had spread from below the collar of his shirt and travelled towards his jaw. If you could describe a person as having hearts for eyes, it would be one Higuruma Hiromi and you adored him for his open adoration.
“We… I won,” he managed weakly, smiling as if coming out of a daze and you blinked for a moment while processing the words.
“You won?”
He chuckled. “I won.”
A wealth of emotions passed over your face until you ended with ecstatic pride, tears near pricking your eyes as you launched yourself into his arms and peppered his cheeks and nose with enough kisses to make him blush more furiously. His hands settled on your hips, his touch more hesitant than you would expect given the circumstances and you pulled back to give him a questioning look.
“What’s wrong? I thought you’d be more excited than this.”
“Darling…” he started, skimming his fingertips up and down your sides before rounding to your full backside and squeezing as he spoke. “What’s this?”
In your joy, you had forgotten that Hiromi had walked in on you wearing the lingerie that was meant to be for this weekend and meant to be a surprise. You guessed it still had been, although not the one you planned. “Oh, just a little something to show my hardworking man that I love and adore him. Nothing much.”
“Nothing much…” he repeated in a disbelieving whisper. A finger ran the length of your spine, from the top of your backside to near the base of your skull, dragging it slowly and watching you shudder beneath his deliberate touch. Your shoulder blades shifted, pushing your chest out further and into his, which earned you a groan of appreciation.
“I wouldn’t call this nothing much. You look like a wet dream come to life.”
He walked you backwards, the scent of champagne hot on his breath and your stomach curled into a mass of twisted anticipation—heavy in the depths of your belly. Your thighs crashed into the edge of the bed and Hiromi used your moment of imbalance to shove you atop, quickly shucking out of his jacket and crawling over you.
“Hiromi,” you squeaked between peals of laughter. The man in question only hummed in response, his hooded eyes heavy with nothing that spoke of fatigue. The whisky colour of his eyes appeared blown almost completely black by the dilation of his pupils, and he licked over his lips in what looked like anticipation of a hearty meal.
That meal was you…
Any protest you might have offered died in your throat when he claimed your mouth like a man possessed. His tongue curled over your teeth, pushing the memory of champagne into the space he dominated and greedily swallowing your answering moan. His forearms bracketed your head, keeping you caged and unable to run from him, not that you had any desire to, not when you could feel the press of his cock thickening against your lower half.
Loosening the knot of his tie with one finger, you took the moment to grab fistfuls of the shirt at his back, tugging the tails out of his trousers and sliding your palms beneath the starched surface to scratch along his spine. Hiromi shuddered, the disconnect of your lips an audible pop that left a web of saliva between you, only breaking with a quick swipe of your pink tongue.
“I don’t even have my make-up or hair done, you beast!” The half-hearted protest fell on deaf ears, or so you thought when his mouth moved to your neck and down to your collarbone, sucking little blooming lovebites on his journey. When he reached the abundant swell of your breasts, he glanced up whilst his tongue pathed across the top of your left breast, dipping into the valley between and then resuming the path over the right.
“You think I need face paint or styled hair to love you more? Fuck, sweetheart… I nearly came in my briefs the minute I opened the door.” The length of his aquiline nose nudged between your breasts, nuzzling the soft mounds like a cat warming by the fire. Carding your fingers through his hair, you wriggled beneath him and let out a breathy sigh, the weight and conviction of his love settling over you in perfect comfort. There would be no more argument from you, and Hiromi won for the second time that day.
With methodical slowness he kissed his way down your body, stopping to lave the sheer panels at either side of your abdomen and forcing you to arch from the warm sensation of his eager tongue. You’d barely managed to get his shirt off his shoulders before he was exploring you like this was his first time with your body. The white button-up hung down his back, sleeves caught by his elbows, and he made no move to strip it off much to your annoyance.
He stopped abruptly when he reached your pelvic mound, chin resting there whilst his fingers trailed the arch of your foot, up the inside of your calf and tickled behind your knee. “Stop that, mister!” You scolded with laughter threatening to bubble out.
“Spread ‘em and I will,” he challenged with a smirk.
The space between your freshly parted thighs became his home, an arm wound around your hip pawing at the fat of your thigh and the line where it met your arse, eliciting shivers that rippled over your skin like a calm lake disturbed by a skimming stone. He fingered the two snaps that kept the bodysuit in place, stroking firmly over your clothed cunt and pushing the barrier deeper until it started to feel sticky from your arousal. Looking all too smug, he freed the snaps with a grunt of satisfaction, sure that his next step would be to rip through the gusset of your raunchy fishnets so he could taste you. That moment never came.
You felt the vibration shudder through your husband, his head falling forward to obscure what you could see of his face, and you rocked your hips back and forth in invitation. The cool air of the room contrasted by the hot fan of his breath on your slit made you clench around a disappointing nothing, frowning at his sudden pause.
For a long moment, there was only silence. When he looked up, his expression nearly stole your breath. Thick black eyebrows pinched together, visible strain around his drooped eyes and a throaty whine made your pussy flutter with need. This was the Hiromi that only came out to play every now and again. The one who would wring you like a wet dish towel for just one more orgasm, one more mouthful of your hot nectar.
“Crotchless, really?” he murmured, dragging a finger across your puffy folds where the thin membrane of the tights should have resided and you nearly jolted upwards to the ceiling, having forgotten that little fact in the heat of the moment.
Cupping his cheek in your palm, you gave a cheeky wink. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten about all the pairs of tights you’ve ruined over the years. These were just a… precaution.” Hiromi groaned, thrusting his face into your pussy without warning. The flat of his tongue ran the length of you, making you perfectly slippery in mere seconds, only for the tip of the wet muscle to fuck into your entrance immediately.
“Oh, fuck… Hiro!”
You yanked great tufts of his hair to no avail; he was lost to eating you out like a man starved. The prominent slope of his nose slid back and forth across your bundle of nerves, and it lit up your insides like the continuous explosion of miniature firecrackers.
Whining from his sudden onslaught, you tried to run by easing up the bed, but your attempts were shot down in flames by sharp insistent tugs of your hips. Hiromi was enthusiastic at the best of times when it came to going down on you, but it was nothing compared to right now. The wet squelching sucks of his lips and tongue flooded the bedroom, only being accompanied by your decadent moans and panting breaths as you tried not to lose your sanity entirely.
Hiromi was lost in you; the scent of your favourite body wash, the taste of your arousal when it trickled from your core mixed with the slight salt of your skin, the plush silk of your thighs beneath his prodding fingertips and the unrestrained noises that caressed his ears.
He almost missed your orgasm so clouded was his mind in the quest to turn you into a puddle of liquid goo for only his consumption. The wave of it crested through the length of your body, vibrating every limb and twitching each nerve ending. Your spine arched from the unmade sheets, the hand coiled tight in Hiromi’s hair spasming and tugging without even meaning to and that’s when he noticed. Without missing a beat, he wrapped his lips around your pulsing clit and sucked it deeper into his mouth.
Stars winked into your vision at being thrust from one orgasm directly into another so violently. Your pussy fluttered ceaselessly, a craving deep in your gut to be filled at all costs, yet right now all you could do was hold on for dear life whilst you bucked and rutted against your husband’s face, wetting it thoroughly. He nosed at your quaking thigh, sharp incisors nipping your yielding flesh until you yelped and tried to close your legs without success.
You became aware of movement, the absence of shoulders beneath your thighs and you blinked to find a desperate predator stripping off his clothes whilst prowling back and forth at the foot of the bed. Hiromi grasped his cock, tugging it down to the base to spread the leaked precum that continued to dribble from his cockhead. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think he had already cum, but he was always the excitable type who would leak and leak until you did something about it, usually opting to take him down your throat until he convulsed and spilt everything he had to offer.
Your hand trailed lower down your body, fingers playing in the spit-soaked mess he’d left behind in his hurry to stand and strip. Hiromi whined; head cocked to the side as he watched you play idly with your puffy lips flooded with the surge of blood and circling your pert little pearl. He fucked his fist harder, the other hand rolling his heavy balls until his stomach sucked in and your nostrils flared in warning.
“C’mere mister lawyer, I don’t want you wasting your orgasm when it could be filling me nicely.”
How quickly the tables could turn. One minute he was the predator, pawing and demanding, taking what he wanted without question, and the next he was the prey. Trapped on his back with cheeks a ruddy hue and eyes that begged for clemency. Your much small hand encased his dick, twisting your palm on each upward stroke while you straddled him and rocked yourself against the balls he’d just been palming.
His hands shook with restraint as they reached for your breasts, filling his broad palms and massaging them until you dipped low to claim his lips. You could taste yourself on his tongue, in his mouth and the sensation empowered you, fucking his throbbing cock through your folds until he twitched and whimpered some more.
“Please… fuck. Need to be inside. Might not last. God, you’re so fucking sexy. Don’t deserve you.” Hiromi babbled every syllable, sounding drunk when there was little to no alcohol left in his system.
His fingertips dipped inside the cups of your bodysuit, tweaking at your nipples and you indulged his silent request by allowing him to fold the cups down and let the spill of your tits fill his face. With renewed vigour and enthusiasm, he mouthed at you and ran his tongue in circles around your nipples one at a time.
You keened at the familiar sensation, swept away by a current of pure indulgence when he moved to suckle you. It was the perfect moment to strike, with Hiromi distracted in flicking his tongue over and over, round and round your swollen bud, you guided him to notch at your entrance and slowly sank onto his needy dick. He grunted; his grip tightening on your waist, but he refused to come up for air, continuing to nudge his nose into your breast, lips pulling the nipple taut until he finally released with a gasp.
“Fuck, I love you. I love you more than I can express.”
Hiromi worshipped you with his gaze, eyes full of devotion and unbridled passion whilst you rode him steadily. The sticky pap pap pap of your pelvis meeting his was the soundtrack to your lovemaking, because beneath the sexy lingerie and the ideas you had planned for the weekend, that’s what this was and always would be. You knew he didn’t need the extra faff to love you with his whole heart. You knew that he was aroused by you simply walking through the kitchen in a pair of his boxers.
You knew he loved you for you.
His dappled cheeks darkened further, the furrow of his brow telling of how he was trying to stave off his release, but you wanted him as undone as you had been, and you would not be denied. Leaning forward, your palms found purchase on his shoulders, breasts bouncing freely in time with your hips, and you squeezed around his shaft until the vein in his temple popped and he let out a guttural groan.
Hiromi grabbed around your middle, flipping you up and over so that he could thrust himself into overstimulation without hindrance. Pressing your thighs to your chest, you heard the telltale rip and knew that another pair of tights had fallen victim to Higuruma Hiromi despite your best efforts to keep them safe. His swollen cock pumped thick spurts of his milky cum against your cervix, filling you to the brim yet continuing to sloppily thrust in and out.
“-cum again… gotta—fuckkk. You’re so tight,” he bit through the words, fighting the steady burn of overstimulation to see you orgasm for the third time and you were close. A glob of spit landed against your clit, thick fingers shaking from exertion rubbing the frothy mess into you with insistent motions. He was a man possessed, falling apart for him was as easy as drawing breath and he caught you on your free fall.
You chanted his name in some semblance of a prayer, thrashing and clawing at anything you could reach until you milked him again and he lost the ability to hold himself up. Hiromi fell atop you, his face pressed into the juncture between your neck and shoulder, hot shuddering moans stifled by his mouth on your neck while he weakly tried to bear some of his weight onto an arm.
“Stop squirming, you’re not that heavy, Hiro,” you teased with a light slap against his back.
Once you could both speak without sounding winded, you combed your fingers through his sweat-dampened hair, moving the strands that stuck to his forehead away until you could trace his eyebrows, his jaw, and the bridge of his nose. “Y’know… you ripped my tights—again.”
Hiromi chuckled, rubbing his cheek against your chest. “I did, and I’d do it again. Maybe give them a miss if we do this again, hm?”
“You liked the surprise then?”
“I already told you that I did, not that I needed it. All I ever need is you.”
It was your turn to chuckle, booping the tip of his nose. “Maybe when I show you the receipt, you’ll change your tune.”
“… sweetheart. How much did it cost? Don’t roll away, missy! Answer my question. Hey. Hey! You have to answer the lawyer when they ask a question.”
Tumblr media
322 notes · View notes
xxchumanixx · 2 days
Note
Hii, can you write one with reader that is Tim’s rookie, she is really flirty and an extrovert with him, but one day she sets him up, like Lucy did. He gets upset because he feels like she led him on and then he starts a full on love confession because she is the one he wants. And then smut, very sweet with her kinda dom but both of them are switch
Lead me on
Tumblr media
Tim Bradford x rookie!reader
Warnings/Tags: 18+, mdni!, smut, p in v, unprotected sex (wrap it before you tap it!), slight fingering, fluff, angst, hurt
Word count: tba (not entirely proof read yet)
Authors note: Hello love, thanks for the request! Really liked the idea, and I hope you'll like how I wrote it. Im glad to find my way back to writing your requests and I hope that I'll be a bit quicker with posting again!
Now, enjoy!
Tumblr media
Tim had noticed that you were lost in thought, for the third time this shift.
He'd seen you chew on your bottom lip, worrying about you drawing crimson, so hard you'd bitten down on the soft cushion.
It made him wonder what had you so deeply thinking, as he bit on his own lip.
"Everything okay?" he breached the silence, only then noticing how heavy it had been weighing in the air between you. Looking up from the dark display of your phone, you nodded.
"I'm just thinking about something, nothing important." you tried to soothe his worry, sending him a small smile that was meant to reassure him.
He cocked a brow, reading you like an open book. "Don't lie to me, boot."
You hated the nickname, instead wanting him to call you different names - very different ones.
Swallowing, you looked back down. You had to at least test it, see how he'd react. So you gathered all your nerves, reminding yourself, that you wanted to do this as a prank.
It was meant to be funny, after all.
"You said I could be open with you." you began, fumbling with your phone in your hands. He nodded, motioning for you to continue, as you hesitated.
"I have feelings for you."
The shop skidded to a stop on the empty street, as he suddenly slammed the breaks, the seat belt holding you firmly in place. Shock was clear as day on his face, as he looked at you, before he gathered himself enough to park at the sidewalk.
You had to be out of your damn mind, he thought, his heart - unbeknownst to him - matching the racing of yours.
The sudden movement when he stopped the car again, almost had you laughing despite everything, ruining the prank. But the shock on his face, made you swallow.
Maybe he wouldn't find it as funny as you would do. At least you hoped you would at the end of the day.
"Wait-" he asked of you, his tongue brushing over his lower lip in uneasiness. He didn't know how to react properly, you had hit him like a truck with your confession.
"Y/N-" he began, taking a deep breath, as he tried to make sense of the situation, get a hold of it. "Look, you're a beautiful woman - really you are. But you're my rookie, a-and-" he had to stop himself, biting his lip.
This had to be a bad joke.
You did the same, your lip hurting as you bit down to stop yourself from laughing, teeth almost drawing blood. Even if you actually had feelings for him, the moment he would find out you're pranking him, would still be priceless.
The silence grew tense, as the playfulness of the situation slowly faded, though.
Maybe you shouldn't have done this.
He swallowed, you heard it. "Tim-" "Y/N-" you interrupted each other, both closing your mouths.
"I'll go first." you decided before he was able to speak up again, taking a shaky breath. "It was a prank - or at least it was supposed to be one. It should have been funny, but it wasn't. I'm sorry."
He inhaled sharply, as he abruptly turned his head away from you.
That was not how you expected him to react.
Swallowing, you kneaded your hands, the phone tugged away under your thigh. Were you supposed to say something?
Before you could, though, he turned back around sharply, gaze hardened as he fumed silently, with his tongue nudging against the inside of his cheek.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" he then suddenly snapped, causing you to flinch in your seat.
Yeah, you had definitely crossed a line there.
He inhaled deeply, trying to calm himself in case he would miss when the radio turned on - failing miserably.
"What do you mean you wanted to prank me? Telling me that you have feelings for me, practically running me over like a bus with your confession! What did you think you were doing? What did you expect?"
You were taken aback by his sudden outburst, not sure how to react. Or how to make up for it, if you'd get out of this alive in the first place.
"I-I-" you stuttered, looking down on your fidgeting hands. "I didn't mean to upset you like that, really. I thought you'd find it funny."
His brows twitched, as did his mouth. He felt like you'd just ran him over again with that damn bus.
"But it isn't." he stated, gaze fixed on you. "It isn't funny. For a moment I thought you'd mean what you said. But then you tell me it's a prank."
He almost sounded hurt, somehow.
Turning away from him, you bit on your cheek, the flesh already raw from all the biting. It was a nervous habit of yours, one you weren't able to get rid of.
Your cheeks burned, most likely turning a deep shade of red.
Honestly, you had expected a lot, but not this.
Lucy had told you how he reacted when she did it - okay, maybe it wasn't original to copy her prank, but she told you how funny it was, so you thought what could go wrong?
A lot, apparently.
But why did he react so differently now?
You were a mere inch away from leaving the car, quitting your job. It was so embarrassing, and you were sure you'd never recover from this.
The silence grew more tense the more time passed, as neither of you knew what to say.
Would he report you? Get you fired? He had your fate in his hands, after all.
"I'm sorry." you pressed out through clenched teeth, trying to not burst into tears. The fact that he reacted that way, made you even more insecure about your feelings for him.
If he'd react like this, getting angry at you, when you'd tell him honestly, you didn't know what you would do.
He forced the car to move again, angrily shifting it into drive, before you drove down the quiet street.
He didn't even react to you trying to apologize.
Breathing in shakily, you looked out at the street, straightening your posture. You had to be attentive. If you'd miss anything, it surely wouldn't help his sour mood.
For a while it was quiet, and for the first time since you drove with Tim, you were happy about your shift ending soon, as the sun settled.
When he parked the car in the garage, you hastily climbed out, opening the trunk to gather the bags and guns. He stayed in his seat, only leaving the car when you closed the trunk again.
Without sparing him another glance, you walked to the output, handing Jerry the items with a forced smile.
The old man didn't know what happened, so you tried to be as calm as possible.
Walking to the locker room, you hurried to get changed, stuffing your things into your backpack, before you slung it over your shoulder.
You didn't wait for Lucy, as you'd normally would when your shifts ended at the same time, instead walking straight towards the exit.
How would the following day get? Would he stay angry at you? Would he ask to be replaced as your TO?
You desperately hoped not, even if you'd never be able to look into his eyes again.
Wiping at your eyes, you put the backpack on the passenger's seat, slamming the door shut, before walking around the car to get inside.
"Y/N!" you heard someone call out your name, panicking as you realized it was Tim, who'd been standing at his truck, now walking towards you.
You hadn't seen him before in the darkness of the parking lot.
It was out of instinct, that you climbed inside the car, starting it, before you hastily moved out of the parking lot.
He knew you'd heard him, your eyes had found his after he'd called out to you. That you were ignoring him now, driving past him, as he stood speechless where your car had been parked, caused his heart to crack.
Had he scared you off?
He was sure he'd upset you, there was no denying it, but that you simply ignored him and chose to flee instead, made him feel all the more insecure.
His heartbeat felt cold in his chest, as he gripped the straps of his backpack tighter.
He had to follow you.
And so he did.
After a few turns, you saw his headlights behind you - his car familiar enough to recognize them. Groaning, you tried to concentrate on the street, ignoring him for the moment, as your heart picked up its pace and your hands began to sweat.
When you eventually parked in your driveway, he parked right behind you, effectively blocking your car, so there was no way for you to escape him again.
Or better yet, flee again.
Now angry, you got out of your car, walking straight towards him as he did the same.
"What do you want?" you asked, frustration seeping out of your pores. "I want to talk." he gave back just as evenly frustrated, stopping a few feet away from you. "I wanted to talk back at the parking lot, but you just drove away."
Your cheeks grew uncomfortably hot, gaze shifting from Tim to the ground beneath him. It seemed so ridiculous to you now, the way you chose to flee instead of letting him confront you.
He would have either way.
A humorless chuckle left you, followed by another. "And now?" you wanted to know, looking back up at him with crossed arms. "Do you want me to tell you I'm sorry? I already did. It was just a stupid prank, I don't even know why you followed me or what you wanna talk about."
Your self defenses flickered to life, not sure what he wanted to hear from you.
His jaw ticked, teeth gritting.
"Did you do it on purpose?" he asked, shaking his head as a look you weren't able to place passed over his features. "Did you lead me on?"
Your brows knitted together in confusion, not fully understanding him. "What do you mean, leading you on?"
He huffed, taking a small step closer, causing you to swallow at the nerves bubbling up inside you, trying to fight them.
"I mean the constant flirting, the way you talk to me." he started to explain, taking another step closer. "The way your hand would brush mine, a simple touch so irrelevant, yet so important. The way you made me-"
He cut himself off, the sentence being left hanging in the air. But you wanted to know the rest of it, wanted to know why he was saying these things.
"Made you what?" you demanded to know, head tilting as your brows furrowed even more.
The light on your porch went out, engulfing you in darkness, but with a flick of your hand it came back to life, illuminating his features in the golden hue again.
Illuminating how painfully handsome he was.
Instead of answering your question, he decided otherwise.
"I believed you, when you told me you have feelings for me." he began, swallowing, as one of his hands balled into a fist at his side. "I believed you and I hoped for it to be true. But then you tell me it's a prank - I-"
He cut himself off again, shaking his head in disappointment, as his eyes looked away. He bit his lip, tearing at the soft cushion so hard, it almost ripped.
Meanwhile, your heart seemed to have caught on fire. You didn't quite get what he wanted to say, yet, but your body grew warmer, the more he spoke.
He ignited the smallest flame of hope inside you. It licked at your heartstrings dangerously, threatening to burn you at any moment.
"I got defensive, pushing you away." he eventually continued, looking back up. The fire in his eyes seemed diminished, their light faded.
"I was angry - to be honest I still am. I wanted to wait for your training to be over, before I- Before I would ask you out on a date."
Your breath hitched in your throat, body involuntarily taking a step back, as the force of his words hit you, setting the small flame ablaze. It momentarily knocked the air out of your lungs, the blood pumping loudly in your ears.
You must have misheard him - that was the only explanation.
He had planned to ask you out on a date?
Tears welled up in your eyes, a horrible realization settling in your stomach, quickly drowning the growing flame: you had scared him off, hurt his feelings.
It was a feeling you didn't like - not at all.
You wanted to say something, but he was faster.
"All this time I thought your flirts and the things you did were intentional, had a meaning. But now I know, that I was wrong. All you did was lead me on, making me believe that you felt the same way, but I was wrong."
"Tim-" you dared to speak up, interrupting him as you took a step back towards him. The words got stuck in your throat, though.
Would he even believe you?
He shook his head, biting his cheek, drawing blood. But he didn't even flinch at the sting it brought, instead breathing it in, to distract him from the turmoil of feelings raging inside him.
"I was so excited, because I was happy that your training is over soon." he continued, breathing in through his nose deeply, as his voice shook the slightest bit. "I was excited, because the waiting would have finally been over. But - again - I was wrong. I have feelings for you, and you decided to make my heart leap out of my chest, just so you could crush it all in the same breath."
You felt like he'd slapped you across the face. His words send a chill down your spine, knowing that he wouldn't easily forgive you, if he even would in the first place.
"Made you what?" you rasped out, choking on your tears as you demanded an answer for your earlier question. He tensed, swallowing, before he finally answered.
"Made me fall in love with you."
One of the tears spilled, followed by another and another. Eyes closing, your head hang low. His confession was what you had hoped to hear for the last months, almost a year, yet it crushed you, groping at you with iron claws.
One stupid prank had ruined everything.
Eyes opening again, you lifted them, meeting his. His gaze was glued to you, even when you hadn't been looking at him. He seemed like he demanded an answer, yet fearing what it would be.
"You are in love with me?" you choked out, hands trembling. Your heart nearly stumbled, having trouble to believe him, but he nodded.
"I'm in love with you, too." you confessed, even though it might have been too late now. "Have been for almost a year now."
Something flashed through his eyes, the light of your porch going out again, before he brought it back to life with a wave if his arm.
Suddenly, he was way closer than before, having used the moment of distraction.
"Say it again." he breathed out, hope making his eyes glitter. "I'm in love with you." you repeated, relishing in the way it made his eyes flutter closed briefly. "Again." he whispered, hands finding yours.
"I'm in love with you, Tim Bradford."
He inhaled sharply, his grip on your hands tightening. "Why did you prank me?" he wanted to know, reigniting the guilt inside you. Sighing, you looked down.
"It was Lucy's idea." you admitted, biting your tear stained lip, tasting the salt. "She told me about how she did it last year, so I thought I could test the waters with it. But you reacted so badly, that I decided to leave it as a prank, not telling you the real intention I had."
"I wanted to be the first." he spoke, tugging at your hands slightly, pulling you closer, as your eyes found their way back to his. "I wanted to ask you out on a date, tell you how I feel. I wanted it to be something special."
Swallowing, you nodded. Your eyes flickered to his lips, his breath on your own.
"Then make it something special." you said, voice husky.
You didn't have to tell him twice, as his lips found yours in an eager kiss. You inhaled him, as you kissed him back. Your hands entangled from his, finding his neck instead. His own grabbed your waist, tugging you closer.
The wood scraped against your back, as he pushed you against the front door of your house, demanding entrance with his tongue.
You greedily let him in, fumbling for your keys, as you did so, coming up with nothing.
His fingers impatiently brushed your pants pocked, eliciting a hushed giggle from you, as he fumbled for your keys.
"God damn it." he grumbled, braking apart from you, as he didn't find them either. Your brows furrowed, as he jogged to your car, ripping the door open and retrieving the key.
In your hurry to get to him, you had left it in the ignition.
Brushing the hair out of your face, you huffed as he held it up, locking your car, before he stepped around you, opening the door to let you both in.
The intensity of the situation was thick, palpable, as he closed the door behind you, not wasting any time to pull you back to him, his lips back on yours.
He blindly walked you backwards into the open living, kitchen and dining area. Your hips hit the dining table, causing the few things on it to rattle and shake. His hands gripped your thighs, helping you to sit on it.
Yours found the hem of his shirt, tugging it upwards, as he did the same with yours. Your arms tangled, causing you to break apart.
His eyes narrowed, as he tugged at your shirt meaningfully, but you were too stubborn to let him go first, as you tugged as well.
You stared each other in the eyes, both too stubborn and dominant to give in. His head dipped down, lips finding your neck. He began to suck, causing your eyes to flutter closed, as you momentarily lost focus.
He used the distraction to remove your hands, tugging the shirt over your head.
You huffed breathlessly, realizing how he had distracted you to go first. He chuckled, sending you a smirk that sent sparks down to your core, making your legs weak.
Removing his shirt as well, you let it fall to the floor, before his lips found your neck again, kissing downwards and over the swell of your breasts, as he pushed you down on the table.
Your breathing faltered, as one of his large hands cupped one of your breasts through the fabric of your bra. His thumb brushed over the covered nipple, making you shiver at the distant sensation.
Suppressing a moan, you pushed up on your elbows, as he unfastened your bra, throwing it on the floor, as his mouth attached to one of the hardened peaks.
His tongue swirled around it, tearing a gasp from you, the pleasure sent straight to your core.
Grabbing his shoulder, you pushed him back. He looked at you with confusion, tilting his head, but you continued pushing, until he was sitting down on the chair beside him, as realization struck him.
Chuckling in amusement, he adjusted so he was sitting more comfortably, eagerly reaching for you as you straddled his lap.  
Your hands found his bare chest, tracing over the muscles that contracted underneath your fingertips at the touch. His hands found your waist, fingers digging into the soft flesh. 
His breathing hitched, as you rolled against his covered erection with your jeans clad core. His grip on you tightened, most likely leaving marks.  
He guided you, as you did it again, softly moaning at the bit of friction it gave you. Pushing down as you did it over and over again, he tried to increase the pressure, his hard-on painfully straining against the fabric of his pants.  
He liked your dominant nature, often having imagined what you’d act like in a situation like this, with unholy thoughts filtering through his mind.  
"Fuck." Tim muttered, hazy from the friction, yet unsatisfied. He tried to regain the upper hand, but you wouldn't let him. Chuckling into his ear, you teased the shell of it with your tongue, his hard-on rocking into you, as he shuddered in response.
Fuck, you were dominant, but so was he.
Letting you continue your movement, he tugged at the button on your jeans, opening it, before he grabbed your ass, causing you to moan into his ear, as he temporarily lost focus at the heavenly sound.
He took you with him as he stood, causing you to yelp slightly in surprise, as he put you back on the table, pushing your down on it, so you were lying on it.
He didn't have the patience to move to another room or surface, as he unzipped your pants, tugging them down your legs along with your panties.
Gasping as the cold air hit your wet cunt, you watched him strip his remaining clothes as well.
He was gorgeous, for all he was worth. Shaped in just the right way, no matter which part of his body.
His lips found yours, as he leaned over you, his fingers parting your folds to collect some of your arousal, before he used it to rub your clit in delicate circles.
You moaned at the feeling, arching into him, as one of his fingers slipped inside you, soon followed by a second, pumping in and out of you, preparing you for his cock, eliciting beautiful sounds from you in which he bathed.
He watched your face as it contorted, teetering on the brink of your first orgasm. Just as you almost made it over the edge, he removed his fingers, using the remaining liquid on them to stroke his cock, aligning it with your entrance.
You fell down the cliff, but on the wrong side, as the build up tension slowly subsided again, leaving you deeply unsatisfied.
He teased you, brushing through your folds with the tip, barely pushing inside. It made you see stars, as you desperately pleaded for more - a stark contrast to the dominance you had emitted only moments ago.
He liked the sound of that even more.
Your pleas were fulfilled, as he suddenly pushed inside, stretching you deliciously. He slowly inched forward, groaning at how tight you gripped him.
You believed to burst, when he filled you to the brim, his hips meeting yours in a chaste kiss, as the tip of his cock lightly brushed your cervix. You moaned, not having expected him to be this big.
His lips attached to your neck, sucking, kissing and nipping, as he waited for your go, hips rutting into you the slightest bit, as he had struggle to compose himself, now that he was finally buried inside your heat.
Your fingertips brushed his nipple and he jerked forward, eyes meeting yours, as you grinned up at him. Shaking his head, he took it as his signal to finally move.
He slid out of your dripping cunt slowly, before he pushed back inside with a snap of his hips, causing you to choke on a breath, gasping afterwards.
His lips parted in a strangled moan, at the way you clenched around him, dragging him closer to the edge with each thrust. He pulled back out, but you clenched down on him on purpose, causing him to rut right back inside you, before he even had a chance to really pull out.
He shook his head at you, laughing quietly, as he smirked down at you.
Two can play this game.
His lips found your nipple, your back arching as he sucked it into his mouth, all the while slowly rocking in and out of you. The pace was brutally soft, teasing you to the brink of tears, as his tongue flicked over the hardened peak.
"Tim..." you breathed out desperately, heels digging into his back to make him move faster. He smirked against your nipple, but complied, as he picked up the pace.
Soon he was pounding into you, the tip of his cock brushing that spongy spot that made you moan his name with each thrust, believing to see stars. You were a panting and moaning mess under him, fully subjected to him.
He groaned and moaned into your ear, as he chased your releases, trying to hold back until you would be coming. His pace was relentless, as he fucked into you, the objects on the table soon tipping over, but neither of you cared.
"I'm close." you announced out of breath, though gasping, as he hit that one spot again. His lips found yours, as his fingers ghosted down your body and to where you were connected, parting your folds to find your clit.
He rubbed circles on it and you cried out, coming hard on his cock. Clenching down on him, you made it even harder for him to move, dragging him over the edge with you, as he moaned your name in bliss.
His warmth filled you up, as he stilled, harshly breathing as he tried to calm his racing heart. Yours seemed like it would never stop racing, lung desperately burning for air.
"Wow." you breathed, still feeling a bit dizzy. He smiled down at you, brushing a sweaty strand of hair from your face.
"Yeah."
You fell silent for a moment, as his eyes searched yours for any sign of regret. But he found none.
"I want you." he admitted, clearing his throat as he shifted his weight on top of you. "I want to go on a date with you."
His words caused you to smile up at him, the happiness spreading through you as you still glowed from your high.
He believed he'd never seen anything this beautiful before.
"I want that too." you admitted, nodding. "I want to go out with you, even if we have to hide for the rest of my training."
His face fell slightly, only then remembering your current situation, before he nodded as well, pecking your lips. "I'm willing to hide with you." he spoke, his hips connecting with yours again as he rocked forward, earning a gasp from you.
He chuckled, lips brushing over your cheek.
"And then, when your training is over and you're officially a p2, we won't have to hide anymore." he continued, kissing down your jaw and to your neck, butterflies erupting in your stomach.
"I will tell everyone that you're mine."
Your body shivered pleasantly at his words, sighing in bliss. "I like that idea."
"Good, 'cause now you'll never get rid of me again." he promised you, looking back up into your eyes.
"Wouldn't dream of it."
Tumblr media
Tag List
@newobsessionweekly @laheysfilm
@rookietrek @augustvandyne
98 notes · View notes
grammmarli · 2 days
Text
Tumblr media
「 RAIN WALKS... OR NOT 」
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
synopsis: just a lovely walk in the pouring rain with a guy who could care less about you, or so you think
pairing: zenin naoya x gn reader
tags: fluff, profanity, vulgar language
word count: 1k
Tumblr media
"Tch... I don't get why I had to come along with you in the first place."
"C'mon! It'll be fun."
"Fun, my ass. Can't you be fucking reasonable for one second and—"
"Being reasonable can wait!"
What had originally been a mere grocery trip with Naoya turned into a rainstorm when, all of a sudden, it started to pour. Hard.
To hell with Naoya's handsome looks and freshly shampooed hair that afternoon. You immediately went and dragged him by the arm and out of the comfort of shelter.
"It was either we waited for the rain to stop or walked in the rain. And knowing you and your nonexistent sense of patience, you wouldn't pick the latter. So~! Therefore, I went ahead and made the executive decision for you," you said with a proud smirk.
Naoya's voice dripped with sarcasm as he sneered, "Well, congratulations on mastering the art of being an idiot, like always. No shocker there. Maybe next time, use that genius brain of yours to make decisions that actually make sense."
His sarcastic remark hung in the air, but you were having none of it—or instead, you were already used to his antics. It was quite refreshing, actually. Even as the rain poured, he still wasn't letting up.
With a mischievous grin, you let go of Naoya's hand and cupped your two together, collecting some rainwater, and, with a single motion, you threw it directly at the Zenin, colliding with Naoya in a triumphant splash of victory.
His clothing stuck to him like it was soaked in sarcasm, and his once-confident countenance gave way to one of astonishment. His mouth hung open, and his face slowly shifted into one of plain disgust.
"You were saying?" you smirked. "Hmph. Now you're soaking wet, just like I am."
"You..."
But before he could say another word, you once again grabbed him by the hand and led him, walking together on the sidewalks as the rain continued to pour down on them.
"Let's go. My house isn't far, and we can dry off and freshen up a bit. After all, we just brought some groceries from our haul."
Naoya gruffed in response, but he didn't resist, even as you pulled him along by the hand like he was a dog. How pathetic.
But it was something that Naoya, for some reason, felt oddly at ease with...?
As cold as it was while walking in the rain without an umbrella or even a hood to block the water from your face, your hand was still oddly warm. It was much smaller and softer than his, a stark contrast.
He was unable to take his eyes off of you. It was only because you were in front of him, dragging his hand like a guide. Yes, that's right. Where else was he supposed to look? Down?? A Zenin like him would never.
But amid all that, there was something about you that entranced him. Was it the rain? Never. That same pathetic rain was ruining his perfectly styled hair he had just for today with you—though that would be something he would never tell to you straight.
Or was it the way how you always managed to defy expectations just to do whatever the hell you wanted? Perhaps.
...Or maybe, it was—
"Here we are!"
Great. That wretched shriek that, god forbid, came from a human being, was back. 
Just as you and Naoya arrived in the empty home, you threw off your shoes and left the wet bag of groceries on the carpet to dry.
"Make yourself comfortable," you mused, unclothing your jacket.
"Ugh."
Naoya peered closer, only to see the clothes that you were wearing, or rather, what was under them. The thin t-shirt you were wearing was nearly close to being see-through.
Naoya was close to making a fire of his own—using his own rage, that is.
Did your dumbass seriously not even fucking notice?! What if it was someone else who saw you like this!? Would you have been so stupid then with them?
"Here."
The next thing he felt was a towel on top of his head, and your face was right in front of him. You had a small towel of your own wrapped around your neck to keep your wet hair from dripping onto the floor.
Your hands came abnormally close, and with your eyes focusing on him and him only, you used your hands, grasping the towel sitting on the top of his head to dry his hair.
He flinched. "What the—"
"Hold still," you commanded. "Your hair is soaking wet."
"Well, you were the one who wanted us to walk in that dang rain to begin with," he grumbled.
You blinked once and then twice before yanking his hand off, forcing his arms to his side so that you could finally get to what you wanted to do. "Then, just let me do this."
"...."
For whatever reason, Naoya was silent. It was sort of peaceful, really. Feeling your hands comb through his hand with an expression of concentration. 
The ruffian creature eventually relaxed, even to the point where he closed his eyes and let out a content sigh as your fingers played with his hair. If it weren't for the towel covering most of his face, he would've ratted himself out—revealing a rare vulnerability.
To even begin to think that the Naoya Zenin would suck up his pride and let someone else even touch him, but he was also secretly pleased—even if his arrogance wouldn't allow him to admit it. He tilted his head back a little closer to your chest and lowered his posture, permitting you to have an easier time tending to his damp hair.
Naoya smirked, rather pleased with himself.
Look at him. He was being far too kind to accommodate you.
No one else would've had the oh-so-magnificent pleasure of drying his hair. So you had better savour it.
You both lay there silently for a few minutes, enjoying each other's company as you continued to dry his dark hair with a towel as Naoya held his body still. That is, until you suddenly stopped. And you could've sworn that you heard a noise coming from Naoya's mouth, but you didn't push it.
"There," you said happily. "All dry! Hehe, now how about that?"
"...Just this one time."
Your hand stilled for a moment before continuing your gentle strokes. "Huh?"
"You're the only one I let do this. So savour it," Naoya said, his voice softening for a mere second, only for him to split back into an expression of aloofness.
You smiled before moving your hands again. "Then I'm flattered."
You weren't about to tell him about how you could see everything from the very beginning. He would never let you hear the end of it otherwise.
Guess it'll just be your little secret.
69 notes · View notes
the-apocrypha · 21 hours
Text
a soft place to land part 7 of the cottagecore series Dream of the Endless/Hob Gadling || G || 5k || Complete
Alternate Universe - Medieval, Domestic Fluff, Old Married Couple, Injury Recovery, Hedgewitch!Hob, Fae!Dream of the Endless, Warning: Hob Gadling's Dad Jokes
Dream and Hob, healing slowly, in their cottage in the woods. [A series of hurt/comfort and fluffy vignettes about their life post-wolf heart. First up, a very important origin story for a very important member of the family.]
“But a part,” Dream says, “is not a measurement.” 
“Well. No, it's not, that’s just—” Hob has never actually had to verbally direct the process of baking, let alone explain the maths behind it. “It means that if you use one cup of water, you use two cups of flour. That’s all.” 
“Yes, I am aware of the concept of ratios, Hob,” Dream says impatiently. “My question is regarding quantities.”
Hob, personally, has never even heard the word ratio before, but he also doesn't care to invite a lecture about whatever higher mathematics had been included as a part of Dream's royal education. They have other priorities right now.
“I mean, a lot less than a cup?” Hob shifts a little in the bed, leaning past Dream to size up the sack of flour sitting on the table, amongst the other goods they had purchased from Lucienne earlier today. “It takes a week or two to get a starter going, and half of what you make will get dumped. No point in wasting ingredients. Start small.” 
Dream holds up a fingertip questioningly. 
“Not that small.” 
Two fingertips. 
Hob shakes his head. “No, you’ve got to have enough to actually use, in the end. Think, like, a handful.” 
“A handful,” Dream repeats. 
“Yeah, I don’t know.” Hob mimes grabbing a fistful of air. “Like this for the flour. Two of those. Then—” He cups his hands together. “—maybe one of these for the water?” 
“Your confidence is most reassuring,” Dream informs him.
Read on AO3
60 notes · View notes
mirai-e-jump · 22 hours
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
TV Guide Dan Vol.51, April 2024 Issue ft. Sakai Taisei x Higuchi Kouhei Interview (translations below)
Publication: April 5, 2024
UNIQUE
"Could you please introduce the role the other plays in the V-Cinext films King-Ohger VS Donbrothers and King-Ohger VS Kyoryuger?"
Higuchi: Gira Husty, played by Taisei, is a character that has the right characteristics of being a so called main character, and I thought he was a completely different Red from the one in Donbrothers. The atmosphere Gira created was one you couldn't find in Donbrothers.
Sakai: Gira and Higuchi-kun's role of Momoi Tarou are the exact opposite in terms of character design. Tarou is an absolute ruler who brings everyone together, which is different from King-Ohger, where everyone has their own individuality but are still able to keep up with each other. In a way, I also feel "jealous."
Higuchi: Still, I think all Super Sentai members feel "jealous." The Producers and Scriptwriters give other Sentai "colors" we don't have, so it's only natural for us to think, "I like those colors."
Sakai: That's why the history of Super Sentai continues, and the fans enjoy it every year. I definitely wanted a "color" I don't have. That's why I'm happy to have the opportunity to be involved with other Super Sentai members like this!
"What were your impressions of each other before you met? Did your impressions change after meeting?"
Sakai: At first, I thought he was a cool guy, but on set, all the two of us would do was talk!
Higuchi: I felt the same way, and thought Taisei was a quiet guy (laughs). Actually, that wasn't the case at all, as I was surprised and happy to find that we were compatible when we talked in the dressing room. During this shoot, even though I had my own dressing room, I would go to Taisei's dressing room instead.
Sakai: I thought Kouhei was cool and manly, and my impression of his manliness is probably the same as it was before we met. We're similar in that we both get carried away.
"How would you describe your relationship?"
Higuchi: This is just my opinion, but in the context of our relationship in Super Sentai, I'm his senior Red, but in terms of our age, I'm his junior. In my case, regardless of age, as long as there's mutual respect, I want our relationship to be that we're like friends. That's why I unconsciously treated Taisei like he was already my friend. I'm sorry!
Sakai: It was also easier to say things like, "Let's go out to eat." I'm the same as Kouhei, I think it's easier that way. It makes me happier if you come to me without hesitation, rather than be cautious because I'm older than you, I think it makes it easier to talk about the performance and acting.
"Have you seen each other's shows, King-Ohger and Donbrothers? Please tell us about any episodes that were most memorable for you."
Higuchi: I remember very well when the first episode of King-Ohger aired while we were performing at Theatre G-Rosso. We saw it on the TV backstage at G-Rosso, and everyone was envious of it, saying, "It's really cool!" (laughs). I still love the first episode.
Sakai: For me it has to be the final episode, I thought it was really great that it ended with the very memorable, "We've formed a bond." I thought it was nice that it started and ended with those words. It's also easy to use at things like events! It's hard to find a place to say, "I'm going to rule the world!" (laughs). I like the fact that the first episode established the bond, and while the ending came, it was also a beginning.
"Were there any challenging or fun parts during filming?"
Higuchi: Speaking of challenges, the filming location was at the King-Ohger's studio, and it was my first time using a green screen that covered all sides. So, on my first day in the studio, I was surprised and thought to myself, "How do we do this?!" Once you get a feel for it though, you get used to it.
Sakai: Donbrothers was shot entirely on location. On the other hand, we had the pleasure of filming on a set. As for difficult scenes, Kouhei seemed to have a hard time in the scene where Gira choked on some mochi. It's because he had to put his hand firmly in my mouth (laughs).
Higuchi: It was harder for Taisei, wasn't it?! Wouldn't it have been easier to simply put it in? If it were the other way around, I think I would've felt awkward afterwards (laughs).
"What did you feel after watching each other's performance?"
Higuchi: I thought Taisei always took his acting seriously. Also, his eyes are incredibly pretty and distinct. I think he's got alot of strong points.
Sakai: I thought Kouhei was a stoic person in his performance. He spent alot of time thinking on his own, doing things like sorting out his emotions abit before the cameras started rolling. Even after he was given the OK, he studied things from the side the moment after and thought, "I could've done this better," so I respect that stoicism.
"Please tell us some of the highlights this time."
Sakai: They're both Super Sentai with tons of personality that rival each other for first and second place of this generation, so I think it'll be a highlight to see how they'll unite and how the story will progress. Also, this time, both Reds are characters that laugh out loud. Within the battle scene is a scene where the two of us are laughing loudly, and it was pretty difficult to film, so I want you to see it. It was a long scene, about 30 seconds, and we were laughing the whole time (laughs).
Higuchi: It's as if two Super Sentai were combined to form a new Sentai, and I think this is a movie where each member has their own highlights. Also, the King-Ohger's costumes are really cool, so it's worth seeing. Among us, Jiro, the Noto, and Inuzuka's costumes might be as good as the Kings. The other four are in ordinary clothing (laughs).
"You both have experience playing soccer, and you kicked a ball around during the photoshoot, so what are your thoughts on each other's skills?"
Sakai: I think this is probably common in soccer clubs, but I can tell just from the ball rolling alittle bit if someone is "good."
Higuchi: I get that! The moment someone kicks a ball and stops it with their foot, an experienced player can tell that, "This guy's good." However, I'm sure this is a feeling that baseball and basketball teams also have.
"Did you talk about soccer during filming?"
Higuchi: If I'm remembering right, after filming finished for Donbrothers and King-Ohger was about to start, Taisei said to me, "You used to play soccer, didn't you? Let's play futsal!"
Sakai: Right, I just thought since you had experience playing soccer. Futsal is fun, so I'd love to do it again!
"This issue also features Iuchi Haruhi-kun and Hayama Yuki-kun from the currently airing Bakuage Sentai Boonboomger. As their seniors in the Super Sentai series, please give them a message."
Higuchi: The quality of Super Sentai is really different each generation, but I think the one thing they all have in common is that they're "very challenging." That's why, when it comes to acting, I can never say, "It's better like this." The only thing I can think of to say is, "Please have fun in Oizumigakuen, where the filming studio is located." I enjoyed it tremendously (laughs).
Sakai: Right! Depending on whether or not you have fun in Oizumigakuen and at the filming studio, the story could change. The more favorite places and stores you have, the better, and you can go out to eat with ease. As Kouhei said, it's challenging to film every day, so I think it's good to find a place you can "rely on." It'd be nice if after enjoying Oizumigakuen, you go to a different site for another job and end up thinking, "I want to come back here someday."
"And finally, when speaking of Donbrothers, oden may come to mind, so please tell us what both of your favorite ingredients are."
Higuchi: Chikuwa!
Sakai: I love eggs, and I also love daikon radishes!
Higuchi: In the end, which one's the very best?! (laughs).
55 notes · View notes
wttcsms · 2 days
Text
repeat offender, hiromi higuruma.
Tumblr media
pairing hiromi higuruma x f!reader  word count 1.9k  synopsis vignettes of hiromi higuruma's life, featuring his inevitable early-onset mid-life crisis, his disillusionment with the justice system, and how he can't seem to shake you off. content contains law partner's daughter!reader, no curses au, corporate/big law lawyer!hiromi, bratty, always trying to get a reaction out of him reader x just trying to survive the day hiromi, slight age gap (hiromi is 26, reader is 20), eventual smut in later parts, sfw but suggestiveauthor's notes something a bit different; just wanted to test out diff narrative formats lol (and also, this was the closest thing in my gdocs to being finished & i feel guilty for not giving y'all new content)
Tumblr media
all the wrong dialogue options were chosen here
Despite the ceiling clearance being so high that it’s enough to make a man of his stature feel small and the fact that despite all the warm bodies in this banquet hall right now, it would still be more of a challenge to bump into someone rather than avoiding them; despite the fact that the air conditioning system must be working overtime since he hasn’t felt the need to shrug off his tuxedo jacket once, despite the fact that he’s free to leave at any time he wants since he’s already gone through the obligatory introductions and the empty pleasantries—
—despite it all, Hiromi Higuruma feels trapped. The walls are slowly closing in on him, and someone from across the massive room is laughing a bit too loudly, and the ceiling, with its intricate crown molding, feels like it’s going to collapse onto him at any second. 
That’s the problem when you decide to be someone you’re not. He’s constantly on his toes, always having to look behind him, always trying to make sure his mask isn’t going to slip. Fresh out of law school. Top marks, top of his class, actually. As expected, as always. 
Hiromi is used to setting the curve, so it doesn’t take him long to learn how these circles operate. Laugh at the right jokes, order the right drink, find the right people to praise, the right suit to wear — he’s good at figuring out the right answers to everything. 
“The party’s never going to end, so if you feel like leaving, you might as well just go now.” 
Hiromi turns to face the source of that sentence, only to have to glance downwards, taking in the sight of you. Glossy lips, long lashes, slinky gold gown clinging to the curves of your body. He swallows. Hard. 
You smile. Sweetly. 
“Before you go, though, you mind getting me a drink from the bar?” You point to the bar that’s across the room, the area Hiromi just left, one old-fashioned in his hand. 
The first wrong thing Hiromi says is, “It’s an open bar.” 
Your shining smile barely falters, but he catches the subtle curve of a frown almost taking shape. 
“Do you really think I could fight off that crowd?” You give him a faux pout, one that only emphasizes the pretty shape of your lips. 
Looking like that, he thinks you wouldn’t need to fight the crowd to get the bartender’s attention. Everyone would probably be clamoring for yours, actually. He doesn’t tell you this, though. Instead, he says, “Like you said, I might as well just go now.” 
Boo. This stranger is no fun. What a waste of good looks, you think to yourself. Taking in the way his body fills out his suit, the tall bridge of his nose, the sharpness of his features — maybe it’s for the best that he’s no fun. You’re not sure how you would be able to keep your cool if he actually was interesting. 
“Don’t just paraphrase. I remember saying that after telling you you should do that if you feel like leaving.” 
He wonders what you’re doing here, at one of the biggest charity galas sponsored by the big law firm he’s going to be joining shortly after his graduation. There’s no way you’re a law student; only a select few final year students were invited in the first place. He can’t fathom you being someone’s plus-one; looking like that, he certainly wouldn’t be able to let you out of his grasp. 
He doesn’t ask you anything, though. He doesn’t compliment you, or say anything that’s on his mind. Instead, he hands his half-empty glass to one of the catering employees walking by that’s collecting dirty glasses, and he tells you, “I’ll be heading out now. Good luck with the bar.” 
It certainly wasn’t the right thing to say, but being a genius comes with some pressure. He figures he’s allowed to give out a few incorrect answers every once in a while.
Tumblr media
apex predator 
The click-clack of your four-inch heels making impact against the tiled floors of your father’s law firm serves as a signal to everyone that they need to seek immediate shelter (read: cower in the nearest coworker’s office) and try not to make direct eye contact with you. 
When the boss’s daughter comes to visit, everyone’s on edge. 
Everyone except the new hire. 
Hiromi Higuruma is by no means slow on the uptake, but he’s clocking in the most billable hours out of everyone. Very rarely does he get a chance to take a break, and he doesn’t plan on wasting what few precious minutes of a break he can get on hiding from some brat whose single defining characteristic is sharing the same last name that’s plastered on this skyscraper of a building.
When he passes you by in the hallway, you catch a glimpse of him from the corner of your eye. Broad shoulders, slim waist, and a familiar slope of a nose bridge you’ve seen before. You almost falter in your footsteps — almost. 
Tumblr media
bucket list idea: fuck in an elevator
There’s something intimate about being in the same elevator as someone else.
When there’s a handful of people, it’s casual. Simple. Someone who forgot deodorant, someone who’s running late for work, someone who just burnt their tongue trying to drink their coffee too fast. All of it is mundane. 
Being in an elevator where it’s just you and him — you haven’t decided yet if it’s a gift or a punishment. 
“My father loves the work you’ve been doing,” You’re the first one to break the silence. You can only hope that he’ll be the first one to break the distance between you two: a respectful four feet apart. 
Hiromi clears his throat, straightens his tie. He’s staring straight ahead, right at the shiny silver of the stainless steel doors. “Thank you.” 
“Don’t thank me. I’m not the one who said anything about your work.” 
The corners of his mouth almost turn up at that. He fights the urge to smile. 
“Then thanks for the honesty.” 
“Do you like that?” You ask him. 
“Like what?”
“Honesty?” You ask it innocently enough, but when you give him those eyes, and make your lips form that pout, everything comes out sounding sultry. He’s convinced you could be reading his most recent M&A deal out loud to him and make it sound like you’re reading an erotic romance. 
“Well, I’m a lawyer.” He finds that he has to bite back his smile when he’s around you. He stares at the slowly changing numbers on the screen. The two of you entered from the parking garage, and the elevator’s making its steady ascent to the thirtieth floor. 
“So that’s a no.” You muse.
Hiromi makes no comment.
Tumblr media
whatever pays the bills, i guess
Hiromi Higuruma, unlike every other undergrad trying to get into law school, does not take… creative liberties when it comes to his personal statement on why he wants to become a lawyer. Potential medical school students lie and say they want to “save lives” because “living with six-figure student loan debt for the first decade out of school and then making crazy bank afterwards seems like a good trade-off” just doesn’t sound very awe-inspiring, does it? 
In another life, he thinks he’s probably a defense attorney. Representing the Little Guy. Keeping alive his desire to uphold the principles of justice and that the wrongfully accused receive fair representation. Even with the odds stacked against his client, he’s certain that he’s good enough to win their case.
However, the world is unfair. Doing the good thing rarely pays off. Being a good person doesn’t get you very far, either. One of his former classmates was such a bright, kind girl. Passionate statement of purpose, too. She applied to all the same law programs as Hiromi and got accepted to exactly zero of them. 
Hiromi got into every single one, and his statement of purpose was honest, straight to the point, and damn-near clinically cold.
I need a competitive environment that takes pride in its intellectual rigor, but I have no desire to pursue medical school just to spend a decade in college and residency. Law school seems most appropriate for my needs.
Tumblr media
who hired the intern?
Hiromi doesn’t know what you do around the firm, just that you’re constantly here. 
Even when you’re not physically present, he still finds traces of you lingering everywhere. The scent of your perfume that sticks to the elevator’s walls, your now-empty medium sized iced matcha latte in the trashcan of the breakroom, whispers of your names when his colleagues are in the mood to gossip, the click-clack of your heels that he can hear from inside his office even though his door is closed.
He can’t tell if you’re just inescapable or if he’s constantly subconsciously seeking you out. He doesn’t want to know the answer.
What he does want to know the answer to is why you’re sitting on top of his desk at seven in the morning, your medium sized iced matcha latte in all its green glory (this is the first time he’s seen it full and not as an empty plastic cup in the trash). You’re wearing a fitted white button down with a gray wool skirt that will have the HR manager doing a wide-eyed double-take when you walk past her. Your legs are crossed, and Hiromi scolds himself for noticing. 
He focuses on your face instead, upset to see that you’re still doing that unfair move of yours — that pout, those eyes. 
“What are you doing in here?” Hiromi manages to get the words unstuck from his throat. He’s not even sure how you got the keys to his office, and then he remembers who your father is. 
You smile brightly. 
“My dad says I need some ‘resume-boosting’ activities, and how convenient is it that the firm is looking for an off-cycle intern?” 
How convenient, indeed.
“Still doesn’t explain why you’re sitting on top of my desk.” During your chirpy exclamation, Hiromi manages to pull himself together. He’s getting a few steps closer to you. He’s not going to sit behind his desk, not yet, but his approach only serves to bring you two into closer proximity. If you stretch your legs, the pointy tips of your stilettos will brush against the fabric of his trousers. 
“Well, every intern at the firm is apparently assigned a lawyer to work under. Y’know, to be a mentor.” 
He can’t decide if he likes or detests where this is going.
“And,” you continue. “Dad only wants the best for me. It’d be, like, kind of suspicious to be working directly alongside my father, though.” Yes, Hiromi muses. Because getting a law internship at one of the most prestigious firms during your undergrad is certainly not suspicious at all. “So, the next best thing would be the so-called prodigal lawyer that everyone can’t stop praising. How convenient is it that you’re able to watch over an intern for the semester?”
“Very convenient.” Hiromi raises an eyebrow. “Are you going to get off my desk now? I can’t imagine you’ll be able to learn much if your back is going to be facing me when I’m sitting at my desk.” 
“Whatever you say, sir.” You hop off the desk, gently tugging your skirt down in place. He keeps his eyes focused on your face the whole time.
62 notes · View notes
whiskygoldwings · 2 days
Text
Anecdotes of a Guard Life: Oh honey, honey
Senate Galas were one of the... Less interesting parts of Fox’s job. Stand around, look imposing yet approachable and pretend he’s not sneering behind his helmet at all the drunken Senators. Other then the approachable part, it’s a cakewalk.
That isn’t to say they don’t have their perks. One being that he’s not doing datawork. The other... Well...
The internal comms crackle to life. “The Prune’s approaching the soapbox, operation Flavour’s a go.”
Fox calmly turns and walks towards the podium, placing himself in full view to the left. He tucks his arms neatly behind him, grasping wrists and sets his feet perfectly apart in parade rest. The Chancellor passes him with a “Commander! How lovely to see you!” and Fox salutes crisply, before returning to position.
“Decoy in place,” he reports, and gets a “Received!” in return.
The rest of his role in the operation is simple. Stand there and be obvious. It’s not hard. He’s well aware of what he looks like. White painted chest armour a beacon against all the red. Helmet sticking out amongst all the uncovered faces. There’s always a few Senators who dismiss the Guard along with the rest of the serving staff, but if one is looking for them, he draws their attention.
He’s also strategically placed himself under the slightly brighter light near the podium. Carefully orchestrated by their best engineers.
He’s pretty sure this is not what the Kaminoans intended when they flash-trained them in Infiltration methods. But fuck ‘em. They also debated engineering out their tastebuds so they would eat basically anything. Instead they just fed them that anything and expected them to like it anyway.
This is their own fault, really.
Thorn casually walks around the crowd, helmet facing out, checking for any signs of trouble. The hand facing away from the crowd twitches in a series of handsigns and Fox sighs.
“Thorn, comms work just fine.”
Thorn’s sigh is heavier. “Fox, have a little fun once in a while.”
“No.”
Several different snickers come over the internal comms and a noise that is very clearly Thorn blowing him a raspberry.
Fox rolls his eyes, safe in the knowledge that no one around him can tell.
“You did get that we’re halfway done though, right?”
Fox groans, just managing to keep from tipping his head back in exasperation. “No, I forgot how to read hand signals.”
“It’s all that caf, rots the brain.”
Fox doesn’t even dignify that one with an answer. Not all of them can be all flowers and sunshine first thing in the morning.
Actually, he has absolutely no idea how any of them can be like that. Thorn is a freak of bioengineering. Somehow they got away with their blonde hair, but Fox isn’t sure how the Kaminoans missed the disgusting morning cheerfulness.
Clearly something had critically failed in their tube before decanting.
He nods absentmindedly at a Senator who’s approached and is drunkenly thanking him for his “fine service”. A click of the tongue sets his helmet to circulating internal air, but it’s not quite quick enough to prevent the stench of expensive red wine from getting through the filters. Great. He’ll have to sit with that for a while.
The man is just slurringly getting to the point where he’ll ramble about how his planet’s taxes are funding the Coruscant Guard’s efforts when Thorn speaks again.
“Fox, Taa on route to point Alpha.”
“Apologies, Senator,” he has no idea what the absolutely kark-faced Senator’s name is, but the title always works. “I am required for an internal matter.”
He doesn’t wait for the man’s wide-eyed enquiries, simply turns away and walks towards the buffet table at the other end of the hall. He can already see Senator Taa weaving his way towards the buffet table, taking advantage of the other guests being distracted.
There’s a saying. One about smart minds thinking alike or something. Fox is a little less then impressed to find Senator Taa thinking along the same lines as them. He would not bet on Senator Taa against a Kowakian monkey-lizard.
“Senator, may I have a moment?” He slides infront of him, standing like a barricade in the path of the man’s assault. Senator Taa actually jumps a good inch off the floor.
Fox probably shouldn’t be amused at that. He is though. He was also recording it. That’ll make for good viewing on a rough Senate duty.
“Ah, Commander, must it be now?” Senator Taa looks anxiously over his shoulder, and Fox calmly sidesteps to block his view of the buffet table.
“I apologise sir, this won’t take a minute.” Fox clicks his tongue at the end of that, switching the outward going comms off.
A crackle of internal comms then “Understood, troops, one minute.” from Thorn.
They could be efficient and professional, when the need was high.
What followed for Fox, was an excrutiating minute of going over security plans he was already very certain of, and manouvering himself to prevent Senator Taa from slipping round him. The Twi’lek Senator was... Persistent, would be a good way to put it. Fox was the taller of the two of them, which was fortunate, as the Senator kept rising onto tiptoes to try and look longingly over his shoulder. He’s never tilted his head so much in conversation and frankly, his neck hurts. He actually resorted to raising up on his own toes at one point.
The things he does for his troops. Force damn the little fuckers.
He can see them in his peripherals though. Casually moving towards the long table set with food, as if on a floating patrol. He’s pretty sure he spots Thire carrying away a whole roast bird of some sort, and if that’s actually the case he might have to promote the cheeky little shit...
Finally, FINALLY, Thorn walks up behind Senator Taa with a “Sir!”. The Senator jumps again, and sadly, Fox wasn’t recording that time. He’s not entirely sure how a man can be so completely oblivious to everything going on around him, but it works for their purposes.
“Commander?” Fox enquires, and as the Senator turns to face Thorn, flashes a slightly-more-emphatic than he intended THANK YOU hand signal.
“The Chancellor has requested a further perimeter sweep.” Thorn intones, voice carefully modulated to project bored professionalism.
“Understood,” Fox looks back to the Senator and nods at him. “Apologies Senator Taa, we can discuss this matter further later.”
“Yes yes, mustn’t keep you from your fine work, good job Commander,” the Senator waves dismissively at him, then heads over to the buffet table with an air of victory.
Fox watches him go, then turns back to Thorn.
“Do you think he realises you’re the one who stopped him?” Thorn asks, a thoughtful tilt to their helmet.
Fox just sighs, and walks away to the sound of Thorn’s snickers in his ear.
------
He’s only able to review their proceeds after the Gala is completely done and over, made sure everyone has left for their own homes, and checked Senator Deechi isn’t, once again, comatose drunk under a table somewhere. He marches back to the barracks (alone, because he isn’t making any of his troopers stay at one of these stupid events any longer than necessary) and makes his way straight to the second rec room.
The sound of laughter and joy hits him as soon as he rounds the corner to the hallway, and he lets go of the tension with a grateful breath. Pulling off his helmet, he strides into the room, where troopers in various mismatches of bodysuits and armour are sprawled around a lumpy pile covered in a white sheet with CG stamped in red in the corner.
“Took your time!” Thorn waves at him, grin wide and delighted. “Deechi wasn’t passed out again, was he?”
“Thank the Maker, no,” Fox rolls his eyes to chuckles from the others. “You waited for me?”
Thorn rolls their eyes right back. “Duh, get your shebs over here.”
Fox goes and sits next to them, then promptly gets back up when Thorn tries to side-arm him into a hug and goes to sit next to Comm who snickers at the pair of them. Thorn pouts. It’s a good pout, full and wide-eyed, but Fox has developed immunity to their banthashit and graces the attempt with a middle finger.
Thire sighs loudly and exasperatedly. “If the two children would kindly settle down, the adults would like to check out the spoils of battle now please?” He glowers at the pair of them, and Fox glowers back, showing him how it’s done.
Thorn reaches forward and grabs the edges of the blanket. “My friends, my family, my wonderful idiots! Enjoy!” They whip off the sheet with a flourish, and there’s gasps and noises of joy as even Fox feels his eyes widen.
They’ve outdone themselves. There’s little squares of delicate crisp bread with curls of meat pate. Glistening honey-coated carrots roasted to perfection. Candied nuts and fruit sitting powdery in a bowl. The roast bird he’s going to have to make Thire a commander over. And even...
“Is that sugar?” Fox breaths, picking up the beautiful ceramic bowl filled almost to the brim with beautiful, wonderful, white crystals of perfection...
Someone passes a steaming hot cup of caf over his shoulder and holds it out for him. “Commander,” Stone murmurs, a warm smile on his face as Fox turns to him. Comm holds out a small spoon, and Fox is not an emotional man, but he kind of wants to kiss the whole kriffing room at this point.
“Thank you,” he sniffles, taking the proferred mug (and decidedly doesn’t care that it’s the pink one with a Fox-head that Stone got him as a joke) and places it in front of him. With gentle fingers, he takes the spoon from Comm, gets himself a hearty heaped spoonful of sugar, and stirs it into the inky-dark liquid in his mug.
Reverently, he lifts the mug to his lips, tilts it gently and... Oh...
“Mesh’la,” he whispers, eyes closed and lips curving into a smile in the wake of the sweetened nectar of the little Gods.
There’s laughter all around him, and he opens his eyes to the sight of his family, all taking carefully selected pieces of food and trying them out with noises of glee and excitement.
Fox sits, sipping his delicious cup of caf, and thinks life doesn’t get much better than this.
60 notes · View notes
Text
Splatoon 3 Version 7.2 patch notes breakdown
The patch notes for version 7.2, which is going live tomorrow, dropped earlier today, and this is a fairly beefy patch balance-wise, so let's take a look together, shall we?
First of all, the patch includes the renovated Undertow Spillway, but we won't know how it's been changed until it goes live, so let's jump right into the main weapons:
Tumblr media
Sploosh's bullets have had their hitbox size increase, and while they don't specify by how much this should in theory make Sploosh's damage more consistent.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Splattershot Pro and H-3 now do 3 more damage, which doesn't change much about them directly but if you've been even lightly chipped by anything they're now gonna 2-shot you and that can be pretty scary. Watch out!
Tumblr media
Nova is now 8% more accurate when its feet are on the ground, which means it might actually hit what it's aiming at every once in a while!
Tumblr media
Luna Blaster's explosion ink is now 20% bigger, which means it paints more and can trap people in its paint more reliably, though I can't see that changing much with how fast it fires.
Tumblr media
S-Blast's long-range mode will now do 50+ damage more reliably. Note that this is not a splash radius buff, it just makes it deal damage more reliably within the radius it already has.
Tumblr media
Painbrush now paints more when rolling and starts recovering ink faster after rolling. This seems like a very meh buff to me, but it does speed up the weapon a bit, and it definitively needs that.
Tumblr media
And the final main weapon change of the patch, Dapples now move faster when walking and shooting. It's a bit quicker on its feet now, and that only makes sense for the lightest dualies, doesn't it?
Now, moving on Specials:
Tumblr media
Big Bubbler receives a chunky durability buff on its weak spot. This thing's gonna take a lot of effort to take down now.
Tumblr media
Splattercolor Screen now does 10 more damage. This makes it combo with a couple of more damage sources, but did you know that you can squid roll through a Screen to take no damage from it? Now you know.
Tumblr media
Triple Splashdown is getting a buff and a nerf. You now spend about ten frames less time in the air, but the splash radius was reduced to compensate. My gut feeling is that this is an overall buff, as it makes it less risky to use, but we'll have to see how things pan out.
Tumblr media
And finally, and this is actually a big deal, when you Super Jump to a teammate using Kraken Royale you'll no longer jump to their location, but instead to the place where they activated their Kraken. This is huge because it deals a massive blow to the popular Clam Blitz cheese strats that the special had become known for where you use it to swim up to the basket and let your team jump super clams to it with no effort required. It was a huge sore spot in the mode for a lot of people, and this change pretty much kills the entire strategy. Very nice!
And with there being no Sub Weapon changes, let's move onto the final section, the points for Special changes:
Tumblr media
Neo Splash and N-Zap '89 are the winners of this patch's "random shooter buff" lottery, and I expect the '89 to be incredibly common and incredibly annoying in turf wars after this. Carbon Roller becomes the first weapon in Splatoon 3 to hit 160p, and considering how poorly it paints that's only fair. Splat Charger and Dapples get 10p taken off their special charge as well, and in the case of the latter it's a buff that works pretty well with its mobility buff from earlier. In the nerfs department they hit a bunch of the most popular meta weapons with 10 extra points for Special, with Squeezer becoming the second ever weapon to get 220p after Sloshing Machine (and unlike it, squeezer kind of deserves it).
Overall, I think this is a good patch. The biggest pain points for competitive play going into this patch was Trizooka spam and the utter dominance of Snipewriter, and this patch does address both of them, albeit indirectly. Trizooka still probably needs a nerf, and nintendo remain as hesitant as ever to address any problem directly, but it's still a step in the right direction.
48 notes · View notes
yaytheboop · 2 hours
Text
I absolutely support paying artists and supporting creators, and seeing the quality of Watcher's videos especially lately I've understood that it wouldn't be sustainable for a while now. I will never say that I expect anyone to come out with so much high-quality content so regularly without being financially compensated for it.
That being said, I think the way they've gone about this has just not been the smartest. First off by doing this so suddenly with no warning, and also having a big countdown to it when it's actually quite a sad thing to see them go. Like it felt like they were counting down to a party but then it was a funeral that took place instead, and even the mood of the video they put out was quite somber. I think it put the wrong expectations in fans (me included), which just made the shock even bigger than it needed to be (especially for this sort of announcement).
I think they actually were quite respectful of the fact that people wouldn't be able to continue to follow them over to WatcherTV, but the comment about "making it affordable so everyone could subscribe to their plan" and then it being $60 a year was kind of insulting. It would have been better if they'd been realistic about it and said that they understood that it might be a steep price for some, but that they hoped it would be affordable for some of their subscribers while still giving them the chance to produce high-quality content or something along those lines.
What I don't understand however is how this is supposed to be sustainable in the long run? Because if I'm someone who's scrolling Youtube and comes across one of their old videos, I'll watch them all there. If I'm scrolling and come across one of their newer videos, and see that the rest of those videos are behind a paywall, then I'm gonna continue to scroll, I won't pay $60 to watch someone I previously didn't really know.
I don't know businesses, especially businesses in creative fields, and definitely not USAmerican businesses in creative fields, so I'm not sure how this would work financially. However, I think there's one of two things they could have done to make it easier for us as fans to transition, as well as still earn them some of that extra revenue (to start with):
They could add a free subscription with ads on their streaming service. I don't know how easy that is, getting sponsors and incorporating pop-up ads on a service, but that's an option.
They could have started out by putting some of their bigger projects on the service, but still regularly making content on Youtube that was not as produced or financially
I think having their own streaming platform is a good idea because then they won't be bound by Youtube's restrictions and have more creative freedom, as well as the whole economic side of this. The way they're executing it however is just alienating and frankly a bit insulting to the fans who have been with them for so long and supported them through so much and now suddenly can't watch anything new anymore with barely any warning.
Yeah, this became very long but I had some thoughts that I just needed to air.
47 notes · View notes
jeanbie · 2 days
Text
Tumblr media
WORDLESS #5 ★ masterlist.
pairing: levi x reader
genre: sugar daddy & contract killer au | warnings: implied violence, establishing feelings, mentions/references to john wick & the continental | wc: 6.8k
note: who expected me to actually finish this? (answer: no one) i'm so glad that i got to finish "wordless" and put these two losers in a place they deserve to be in! this chapter is the finale and also almost entirely from levi's pov, and this one flows in a chronological order :)
★ ch1. ch2. ch3. ch4. ch5
⏤ Sometimes, saying “I love you” is inappropriate, and given your circumstances, you think it might send Levi over the edge if he hears them again. But maybe he's ready now.
Tumblr media
(41) Giving them space when they express wanting to have some time alone.
It’s been a hot second since Levi saw you — and it’s killing him more than he’d care to admit.
Since the blow up in the shower over girls he wasn’t fucking in the first place, Levi hasn’t heard from you, and he hasn’t made much of an effort to reach out either.
Why did he even lie? There was no benefit from telling you he was seeing other girls; the only reason he said that so often was to manage the healthy boundaries between you, to remind you not to get too close, to remind himself that being with you is a risk.
Not that pushing you away has made his life any easier. On the contrary, he thinks it’s made everything worse.
It is almost dehumanising to admit it to himself, but he misses you. Since your rather unconventional first meet — which was a far cry from any ‘meet cute’ that normal situationships had — Levi has been telling himself that the circumstances surrounding you being in his life were unique at best, and that you weren’t permanent.
But now, he lives his life around a ghost of your body, making room for you in his home, making time out of his schedule, making arrangements to keep you happy. 
Okay. Maybe it’s a little bit too late to acknowledge the feelings he has for you. Levi knows they’re there — he’s not an idiot. But making those feelings real is something he just can’t afford to do. Not yet. Not while there’s too much going on in his life.
Still, he stares longingly at the door every night when he staggers back home, as if hoping you might take him by surprise and crawl back into his arms. Not that you do, at least not for a while; not until Levi grows fed up of waiting and finds you first.
But for now, he’ll grant you he space that you need, the space you deserve. And in the meantime, he’ll try and make peace with the waging war in his head.
Tumblr media
(42) Holding their hand while walking, even if there isn’t a crowd.
“This is nice.”
The neighbourhood Levi now lives in is much smaller than the last one. It pales in comparison to the condo it took forever to finally move out of, but having consistent security breaches just for a tiring view of the river didn’t feel worth it for Levi anymore. It made no difference to him if the apartment he all but owns for you is much farther away — you’re barely ever there, anyway.
Since putting his angst to rest, and since making it known to you that you’re quite literally the only woman he likes enough to keep buying houses for and invite over, things have been calm between you.
There’s still a strange unspoken thing, the remains of an agreement made out of convenience so long ago, to feed both the lust and pride Levi wanted and the safety you craved; but in general, Levi acknowledges that what he has with you right now feels like the closest thing he’s had to a partner in a long, long time.
Levi looks over at you, feeling your hand tighten in his as you cross a cute little park covered in flowery bushes and beds of tulips. 
“I’m glad my neighbourhood has your stamp of approval,” he replies, tightening his fingers around yours before pulling up slightly to stuff your joined hands into his pocket. Though it’s spring now, there’s still a bite in the air, a chill that Levi is determined to shelter you from.
“Technically,” you start, and Levi can predict, like a robot, what you’ll say next, and mouths the words as they fall from your lips, “it’s mine, too.” Your eyes turn piercing as you scowl at him, “Hey! Don’t…predictive text me.”
“Then stop being so predictable.”
“I think we spend too much time together,” you mutter, looking back at the flowerbed you’re currently passing by.
Levi scoffs to himself and playfully scratches a nail against the hand lodged in his pocket.
“Then go away,” he says. No chance, is what runs through his head, and the coy smile you flash him is as equally predictable as the word he knows you’ll say next, starting with n and ending in o.
Tumblr media
(43) Holding shopping bags that are too heavy for them.
Ever since Levi figured out how to share locations, he’s become obsessed with watching you move around on the map on his phone. Numerous times, he’s slipped up on spending hours watching your little circle move, sometimes not even moving at all.
If you had any complaints, he hasn’t heard them, though he very much doubts that you’ll complain in the future now that his stalking has worked out in your favour.
You might have initially thought that bumping into Levi outside the supermarket was a rather delightful coincidence — that was until he moved across the city, and has no real business in your area unless it concerns you.
“Perfect timing,” you say once you see him crossing the small car park in your direction. He has half a mind to pretend he hasn’t seen you and keep walking, but watching you struggle with your shopping is painful enough.
He grunts, reaching for the bag that is squeezing the blood from your fingers. “Don’t get proud about it.”
Sniggering, you happily let Levi grab the overweight bags and fall into an even step beside him. 
“Why do you have so much stuff?” Levi huffs. To be fair, the bags aren’t that heavy, but he can’t see any reason for you to have bought so much considering you live at his house more often than you do your own. “You gonna share this shit?”
“If you want,” you reply. “You paid for it.”
His tongue clicks. Levi hasn’t paid you a penny since he last felt guilty about the fact he rarely paid you, despite that being the very foundation of your relationship in the first place, but even with what he paid you and hasn’t since that point, he knows your bank account is more than comfortable. Paying for all of this has barely made a dent, but that’s what the money’s there for.
He makes his way to his car pulled up outside the car park turning in a layby and struggles in his pocket for his keys.
“I live five minutes away,” you remind him, steps slowing. 
“No, you just said you’d share it, so we're going to mine.”
With a sigh, you’re left with no other choice but to follow him to his car. “You know, the romance of you carrying my bags is lost now you’ve only walked it to the car.”
Before he pops open the boot of the car, he turns to you and sneers, “You want me to walk back and let you do it yourself?”
There’s no argument to be had. You get into the car.
Tumblr media
(44) Standing between them and a busy road.
Habits. Levi hates to keep track of how many he’s developed since you entered his life almost two years ago. Time has gone by so quickly since the day he first met you, in the worst way possible, but since then, he’s transformed into a whole new person, a whole new paranoid man who overthinks everything because there’s no other option.
His habits as of late include worrying about you whenever you’re not around — whenever he’s at work, he’ll think of you. Whenever he’s in a different city or country, Levi will obsessively worry over what you might be doing, who might be on your trail, scenting your every move while you’re vulnerable. Another habit includes feeling like an overbearing parent even when he’s in the same five mile radius, but at least he’s self aware of it.
If you’ve noticed Levi becoming more clingy, less like who he swore he’d never change from, you haven’t mentioned it yet. Perhaps a small mercy to save him the mortifying task of admitting that he has feelings stored away for you. 
Today, Levi has fallen victim to his habits of worry and has walked himself all the way to your university just to walk you all the way back home. His home, not yours. In a sense, your home, too. In an unspoken way.
Levi stands waiting for you in the overhang, gaze trained on the thick grey sky until he hears your class file out of the building in a chatter. Sasha is who he sees first, followed by another one of your friends he’s never met but has seen on Instagram once or twice, and then he sees you, looking thankfully in good spirits, and all too beautiful for your own good.
When you see him standing with his hands in his pockets, he allows himself the pleasure of pride when you break away from your friends just to join him, the smile on your face so genuine and radiant that he has to scoff in amusement.
“Hey, you,” you call, falling into his arms. 
“Hey, yourself.”
“I didn’t know you were coming today,” you confess, pulling away to stare curiously at his withdrawn expression. Levi is already twisting an arm around your waist to walk you down the step and across the lawn. “I told Sasha I’d go to her café and wait for her shift to end. Didn’t you have that thing today?”
“What thing?” he mutters.
“The thing with Erwin. And some deadbeat called George, or something.”
“How many Korean men do you know named George?” Levi deadpans, though his arm does tighten around you in caution. “You shouldn’t even know about that. How do you even know?”
The busy road widens into view as you leave the closed campus. Levi’s pretty much counting the days before you graduate and never have to come here again, and the time is passing strangely slow in that department. It feels like it’s been ages since you enrolled, and he wants nothing more than for you to leave and become the greatest journalist in the world — or whatever it is you even want to do when you’re done. 
As you walk, you lean into Levi’s side, furthering the distance between yourself and the road bustling with cars and buses. He frowns.
One of your habits since the accident on the bridge with your family had been to avoid busy roads, as if convinced something might happen again. You’ve told him numerous times that it’s irrational, but Levi doesn’t think so. It’s a very normal thing to feel afraid of everything, even when those things are a little on the unrealistic side.
Naturally, it results in Levi sliding his arm from around your waist and replacing it with his other one, positioning himself between you and the chaotic lines of commuting cars going home.
His heart flips when you smile at him for it, linking your arm around his while moving your waist out of his grip. Levi tries not to let it get to his head how much you trust him, how much he cares for you. But by the minute, he’s losing the will to keep it hidden.
Tumblr media
(45) Rubbing the back of their hand with a thumb.
Back to habits, there are some that Levi has that he’s not particularly as proud of. But, as expected, you’re as good as it gets, and any habit he thinks he might have gotten away with hiding, somehow you pick up on it.
Levi flicks through a blueprint laying flat over his kitchen table, his hands nervously drumming the edge of the tabletop as he tries to memorise the elaborate labyrinth of a building he’ll be breaking into later to find his next hit. Usually, Levi has you at his home before and just after taking a job, just to eliminate the threat of you being hurt as a punishment. 
He wishes that the company gave you unrestricted entry and protection without him being there to clear it, but in order for that privilege, Levi needed to address you as his partner, which just felt like an even larger target on your head. So, he settles for his home, though the worry does not cease.
This building is riddled with passageways and vaults, basement levels with so many access points that studying them feels intense. One wrong recollection could come at the cost of his life, and at the minute, his life has increased in value. Things are finally going right for him, it would be a shame to have it all taken away from him again.
A text from Erwin sounds next to him, and Levi all but glances at the screen to see what’s happening. All assistance available should he need it — he almost sighs with relief at the words.
In the past, Levi had thought he could never work in cohorts with other hitmen, but becoming partners with Erwin and his henchmen has been working in his favour. 
Still, it doesn’t hurt to learn the layout off by heart. So, Levi pours himself over the blueprints and maps, memorising every detail, becoming so engrossed in it that he barely even hears you letting yourself inside of his apartment.
Your shoes hit the wall with a noise that makes him suddenly aware of your arrival, and he glances up to see you peeking into the kitchen, eyes scanning the room for any unfortunate signs of Elio before you approach him.
He notices the street market bag and inhales the smell of spice before looking back at the maps. “Hope you’re gonna share that.”
“Of course,” you reply, offended he even thought you might not. You place the container of tteokbokki on the table before sliding around to his side, eyes glued to the rolls of paper. “Where’s this?”
“Less you know, the better,” he mutters, leaning his head into your mouth as you kiss his jaw. 
For a while, you say nothing, letting Levi memorise what he needs to while you assess the prints for yourself. Eventually, you shift your hand over his and squeeze, making him glance at you sideways. 
You’re looking at him already, though you can’t see his eyes from the way he’s hunched over. Spotting Levi’s signs of anxiety must be incredibly easy, because somehow you’ve caught on, and begin to rub the back of his hand with your thumb, nose pressed into his bicep. 
“Come eat,” you suggest quietly, after a while of basking in the silence with him.
He grunts, a typical Levi sound, and nudges you away. Though, you only shuffle to the drawer to fetch two forks — forks! He scoffs, rolling his shoulders as he rounds the table to take one from your fingers. 
“Easier to stab with a fork,” you offer as an explanation.
“If my mother was here to see me eating tteokbokki with a fork, she’d lose her goddamn mind.”
“Well…” You start, trailing off after a moment. You’ve got nothing to say; he’s won the argument just by bringing Kuchel up, and both of you know it.
Scowling, you stab another wedge of tteok and chew it furiously, meanwhile Levi smirks to himself, victorious.
Tumblr media
(46) Giving them a back massage when they flop on the couch or bed.
“I need to retire. I’m getting too old for this shit.”
“No way. How old are you now, like, twenty eight?”
“…I’m thirty.”
“Best looking thirty year old I’ve ever seen. Roll over, I’ll massage your back, if you want?”
If he ever refuses a massage from you, he’s an idiot.
Levi rolls over ungraciously, hitting the mattress on his stomach with a low groan. He rolls his shoulders, the bones cracking comically loud, and as you shuffle up to straddle his back, he groans again.
“Oh fuck off, I’m not heavy.”
Levi sniggers into the pillow, though as soon as your hands start to work their magic, he moans, the pleasure instantaneous. 
“Make a house back there, if you want. Just don’t stop.”
Tumblr media
(47) Staying up half the night to finish a game with them.
“I can’t do it if you’re not here, Levi. You need to get over here.”
“Do you not see that I’m trying?”
“You’re terrible at this game.”
Levi scoffs. He wouldn’t be so terrible if he actually knew how to play properly. His character begins to run in circles without him even asking him to, and Levi growls angrily.
“Fucks sake, this bitch is pissing me off.” Then, he wrangles the controller from your hands as you protest and says, “You be him instead.”
“But I don’t want to be Cody.”
“Me neither.”
As soon as you start moving little Cody around, Levi peers in scrutiny at the controller in your hand and how it so suddenly has stopped drifting on its own. There’s a circular dent in your inner cheek where your tongue is, and Levi scowls in your direction.
“You were sabotaging me,” he accuses, eyes focused back on May as she stumbles around uncoordinatedly.
“I think you’re just really bad,” you reply. Cody is moving fine, and finally, the mechanism moves and the story can progress. Hm.
Levi’s eyes bore into yours as you shift to face him, elbows snug in the blanket bundled around you both. Levi has been laying low for around two weeks now — he’s surprised with just how much he likes not having to work. Though, there have been a few times whilst playing this infuriating game where Levi has wished to be anywhere else. 
“You’re good at a lot of things,” you tell him sincerely, “but just not games. And that’s okay. You tried.”
“I’m good at games,” he replies, offended.
You raise your eyebrows, “Like what?”
“Your animal living game.”
“Animal Crossing?”
“Sure, that too.”
All Levi has ever done on Animal Crossing is make a character and proceed to hit everybody with his fishing net, not to mention dig holes around your front door so you can’t get out. Still, you say nothing — the look of disbelief speaks volumes to Levi and he rolls his eyes, turning back to May as she wanders off to the side of the screen and falls off.
Okay. He’s bad at games. That he’ll admit. But you like it, and by the time he’s gotten the hang of the controls, it’s already four in the morning.
Tumblr media
(48) Getting them a coffee just the way they like it.
Remember those habits?
“You remembered!”
If not just to see your smile, Levi likes to bring you one of the expensive bags of coffee from Erwin’s studio. You could quite easily buy the bags yourself, but there’s no thrill in ordering something and having it arrive in due time, not like there is in making Levi steal three at a time as he leaves a meeting or training session.
Levi sets the bags with a loud thud by the coffee machine and hums. 
“And you got me a drink!”
Yes. He has also become a barista and familiarised himself with the exact way you like to drink your coffee. The takeout cup he also borrowed from Erwin is placed down by your laptop as you relentlessly type away at an assignment at Levi’s kitchen table, and he presses a kiss to your temple and mutters under his breath.
“Thanks, babe,” you say, already sipping at the steamy contents.
“It’s hot,” he points out. “You’ll only cry when you singe all your taste-buds off.”
“I will not—” You slurp, then hiss, “Ow!”
“I warned you.”
Tumblr media
(49) Buying them a special treat when you go out shopping.
You know what? No. Levi has given up on pretending like he doesn’t enjoy you being in his grill all day, every day, which is the reasoning for why he ends up in an expensive jewellery store with Erwin one day after a long haul of inspecting an upcoming raid location.
In all honesty, Levi wants to put his work to rest once the raid is all over. It will be their riskiest ploy to date, and quite frankly, Levi’s tired. He’s been killing people for years, cutting at the humanity he has left, and back in the day he would have been very comfortable with being a monster, killing until he was killed.
But now he had you. Now, Levi had someone to care about, so deeply and so passionately that it often left him feeling sick.
“That’s called love, Levi,” is what Erwin had said when Levi chose the rare option of opening up when he tried to explain why he wanted to retire early. 
“Love,” he scoffed. But then Erwin had said something profoundly wholesome, leaving Levi with a bitter taste in his mouth.
“You’re not unloveable just because you loved nothing for so long. I know it took you awhile to get back to where you are now, but just because love went wrong once before doesn’t mean it has to again. Besides, almost two years of your bullshit and that woman is still there — I don’t think you need to be worried about her pulling away from you once you tell her how you feel.”
Which roughly translated to: Buy her something nice and quash until you can’t any longer.
Once Levi gets home, he hears you giggling at something and finds you with a book over your face, your legs kicking as you squeal like a goblin. His face twists and he asks, “That book got jokes in it, or something?”
You peer around the spine and look at him. “They kissed. They. Kissed!”
“Who kissed?” Levi makes his way to the couch and takes a seat where you were just lying down. The cushions are warm — you’ve been here a while, and the thought makes him smile. 
“Evangeline and Jacks. It’s all so perfect. I didn't like most of the book, but what matters is that they kissed,” you tell him, a little too excited. You plant your feet in Levi’s lap. “I love love, Levi. It is the greatest. I love books. Men written by women!”
“Why are you giggling over other men in my own house?” 
“I giggle over you when you’re not around, too.”
He hums once from the back of his throat, watching as you mark the page with your bookmark and close the book before crawling into his lap and curling into his arms. He welcomes you instinctively, the blocky shape of the ring he bought in his pocket.
After smooching your lips for a long fifteen minutes, Levi pulls away and reaches for the box. “Got something for you.”
“Ooh, show me!”
He produces the little box and hands it to you, but when your eyes round and you hesitate in taking it, he worries.
“I’m not proposing,” he says quickly.
“Thank god. I was about to be very upset,” you sigh dramatically, finally taking the ring box. “Most unromantic proposal ever.”
“The fact you think I’d be that lousy with a proposal is actually really offensive.”
The genuine grumble in his voice puts a flutter in your stomach, though soon after, it simmers into a cool pit of shock when you flip open the box and see the most delicate, gorgeous ring that you’ve ever seen in your life, not counting ones you ogle in shopfronts.
Cautiously, you lift your head to peer at Levi’s expression. It’s not a proposal — he’s just told you so, and considering you’re not even his girlfriend in official terms yet, it seems unlikely that anything like that will be happening soon. But it has to be more than just an offhanded purchase, and you’re determined to figure out.
Levi’s eyes tremble as he looks between you and the ring. “Is it ugly?”
You immediately shake your head, “Of course not!”
“Put it on, then,” he urges. The steady beat of his heart stutters out of tempo. Suddenly, he feels quite nervous as he watches you take out the ring and study its appearance up close. “Need help?”
“Yeah, it’s so hard, I can’t figure out how to put it on. Needs instructions.”
Levi tuts and gently takes the ring from between your fingers, grabbing your ring finger whilst trying to look as casual as possible. Somehow, he manages to slide the ring on without making a fool of himself, but when he looks back at your face and sees gemstones of your own lining your waterline, he frowns.
“I’m not gonna sit here and give a speech,” he starts. By now, you know him better than that. He’s never opened up about his feelings to you, at least not without feeling regretful of it the morning after, and you nod simply, eyes catching the glint of the diamond. “But you know why I’ve bought it. I don’t need to tell you what you already know.”
And he doesn’t. Somehow, despite Levi being tremendously unromantic, having no manners, and in general being a terrible companion, you at least know that he cares. And with his upcoming job creeping up on you both, it doesn’t require an above-average intelligence to work out why this ring came when it did, what it means if things go south, what it means regardless.
“I know,” you tell him. “Thank you. It’s beautiful.”
Instead of saying anything, Levi curls you tighter in his arms and presses a kiss to your forehead, closing his eyes when you snuggle your face into his collar and relax. 
His mind has been made, his plans set. As soon as the job is over, he doesn’t want to look back. Only forward, with the woman who has made him feel alive again.
Tumblr media
(50) Giving them a tight hug that makes them lose their breath.
Something is wrong. Something is horribly wrong, and there’s nothing you can do about it.
It has been days since Levi told you he’d touched down in New York, working out some stuff in the very famous Continental until he was set to join Erwin on whatever mission they had planned and prepared for. Levi hadn’t told you the details this time because the risks were too high, and now, it feels like a major setback. 
New York is on fire, and Levi barely kept his life getting out of the Silver Sword compound. An entire mob wiped out by two guys with no backup — it was practically unprecedented, unseen or unheard of since John Wick was knocking around. 
The Continental had done everything right in the aftermath, including keeping Levi in their small infirmary for days whilst tending to his excessive wounds. Fuck, he had been so reckless, so vengeful, so stupid. It had almost cost him his life ensuring that no leads followed him and Erwin back to Seoul, and although he had succeeded in destroying every last bit of incriminating evidence, the risks had been too great. 
When Levi finally gets discharged from the infirmary, it is almost eleven in the evening, and New York has finally calmed down and settled in for the night. Erwin greets Levi in the lobby, a frown on his face, holding a destroyed black bundle of phone parts that bear a striking resemblance to Levi’s missing device. He swears.
Levi hasn’t heard from you since he got here. Since the last risky job he took in Gwangju last year, you’ve never been lax while he’s been away; he can almost imagine your fear, your paranoia, and before he can even hear Erwin’s well wishes, Levi’s crossing the lobby for the customer payphone and dialing in your number.
The line rings twice before someone picks up.
“Baby?” Levi asks, after three attempts of saying your name and no coherent response. He cranes his head around the curly wire and glares at the clerk, though she looks less than pleased being interrupted by Levi, “Is this a global line?”
“Obviously, sir. It’s a telephone.”
“I fucking know it’s a telephone, but if it’s global, then why the hell isn’t it working?”
The girl gives him grief about his manners and Levi is forced to give up on calling you, slamming down the phone angrily and feeling his body growing hotter and hotter with worry.
He knows you're fine, in his house with the big cat you hate to love, but he knows you. He knows how you operate, how you worry, how you love him too much.
“Look, we’ll catch the first flight we can,” Erwin assures him as soon as Levi has caught his breath and taken a seat on one of the black leather sofas. His hands are shaking violently. “She’s fine. I promise.”
“I know she’s fine,” Levi grumbles.
“Then get a hold of yourself,” sighs Erwin, his frown low and face tired. “There’s nothing you can do but wait. I’ve got people waiting on me, as well, you know.”
“It’s not the same thing.”
“Dogs miss their owners just as much as girlfriends miss their boyfriends,” Erwin protests, because that’s all he has back home these days.
There had been a time where you had offered to set him up with your friend, Sasha, who deserved to be with a man who could handle her energy but also make her feel safe after her last terrible relationship, but Erwin is basically married to his work, and had got a dog despite Sasha being deathly allergic.
Still, Levi’s not heartless enough to know that Erwin isn’t missed by his dog, and probably other people in his life. And he’s right, there’s nothing he can do about the connection problems. All he can do is reign in his worries and wait.
The earliest flight they can find is the next morning, and Levi spends every second up to that point and up until he pulls up outside of his house in a complete state of panic. Would you be there? Did you leave, thinking he’d never come back? 
Levi abandons his bag and leaves it in the backseat as he sprints from the car up the stairs, past his front door, and into his house. He kicks off his shoes once he’s in, the door hitting the wall with a booming slam.
He hears what he thinks might be scuffles, potentially even Elio’s claws, and right as Levi calls out your name, he sees you round the corner with a blotchy red face and feels his arms stretching out for you.
“What the fuck is wrong with you!” You slam into his chest, almost taking him to the floor, and encircle your arms around his neck so hard that the breath knocks out of his lungs. Still, he isn’t even annoyed; he squeezes you so tightly, tighter than he’s ever hugged anyone before, and shoves his face into your neck, inhaling the smell, feeling the way your body felt in memories while he was away. 
“I’m sorry,” he says in a whisper, his features tugged in displeasure as you whimper into him, no doubt crying over his shirt. “I’m sorry, baby.”
“I thought you were dead!” you blurt, “I even cried on Elio’s back because I thought you had died! What’s the point in having a phone if you never pick it up or charge it?” You snatch yourself from his arms and gently beat against his chest with your fist. “I’m so pissed off at you!”
“I’m sorry that my phone got crushed,” he says, affronted that you would even think he’d ignore your calls on purpose. “I was in a hospital bed for three days! And then the bitchy receptionist got smart with me about their shitty phone, and I called but the line cut out. Sounded like a goddamn robot, I couldn’t hear a word you were saying.”
Your jaw drops, “That was you? I thought you’d died and some enemy gang guy was trying to call me to kill me!” Levi has to laugh at the look of worry on your face. He hasn’t been cared for in this way in a long time. Never been loved to this volume. “I unplugged the landline, I was so scared! Jesus Christ, Levi!” Then, like you never left, you rush back into his arms and let out a shaky cry. 
“You did the right thing,” he tells you. Unplugging the landline was the silliest thing he could have ever thought of, but then he realises that you’re still here, and that you made peace with Elio just because you thought he had died.
Levi strokes the back of your head and shushes you, feeling your heartbeat hammering furiously against his chest. His is most likely the same, though he’s not so eager to acknowledge his own feelings.
After a while of standing there, and after Levi’s stroked behind Elio’s ears when he prowls towards them and rubs his head on Levi’s trousers, Levi looks back at you softly and takes everything in.
He has missed you more than anything, grieved the missing piece of his soul that is shaped like you. And, while he’s at it, yes! Fucking hell! He loves you!
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” you tell him, and Levi kisses you, his hands cradling your face. The kiss is firm, desperate, though he has no intention of walking you backwards towards the bedroom like he normally does after a job.
Instead, he pulls you in for a hug again. 
“I missed you,” he mutters. “So fucking much.”
“Me too.”
He says with his mouth pressed into your head, “I’m done with this shit. I’m not taking any more jobs.”
You twist out of his arms, eyebrows raised. “Really? Why? You love your job.”
“I hate my job,” Levi confesses. “I have too much to lose. I just wanna live my life. And make it all count for something.”
For a moment, you stand there, looking at his face so intently that he almost feels uncomfortable. But then, as a smile spreads over your face, Levi feels like he can finally breathe again, finally feel like himself.
“Alright. If that’s what you want, babe, then let’s do that.”
And we can do it together.
Tumblr media
(51) Getting adjusted.
Levi forgot what it was like to be normal.
He now wakes up at whatever time he wants to, feeling next to him for the lump in the bed where you sleep. Once he knows you’re still there (because despite being retired, he doesn’t think the habit of making sure you’re safe will ever go away), Levi wakes up and starts his day. 
Coffee for one becomes coffee for two. Levi never has to eat breakfast on his own, never sits alone on the sofa or sits in silence at the kitchen table. Levi has lost half of his sink counter space to your belongings, lost half of his wardrobe to your own clothes. There are so many shoes by his front door that it looks like a storefront. 
Elio has a mother, in a strange, estranged, visitation-hours-only kind of way. Levi has made room for you in his life and you fit perfectly, so perfectly that he barely remembers what it ever felt like to live alone.
The shower is always filled with two people. Levi finds your things all over the house in the most bizarre places. He has candles on every coffee table, pictures in frames, finds your cardigans hanging over every chair. But he loves it. He loves it so much. He can’t imagine ever not having it, having you, having this life.
Tumblr media
(52) Finally saying the words.
“This is my first time using this thing.”
“What?” you gasp as Levi comes to sit next to you on the balcony.
Elio yawns inside, sleeping on the couch. It is partly his fault that Levi’s out here in the first place, though the thought of being tucked beside you on the outdoor couch in a blanket, watching the sun sink behind the skyline, is thankfully rather appealing, and he voices no complaints.
Levi takes a swig of his whiskey and abandons the cup on the table, throwing an arm around your shoulder and pulling you close. It’s not exactly cold tonight, but he knows you too well, and knows that within an hour, you’ll be dithering next to him.
“Imagine having a balcony and never using it.”
“I’m using it now,” Levi huffs, pinching your neck. You squeal, “Fuck off, it didn’t hurt.”
You’ve been officially living in Levi’s home for two months now, although sometimes it feels like you’ve always been here. Still, despite you making yourself very much at home on the inside, neither of you have once come out to sit on the balcony, to bask in the lovely sun as it settles for the night, not until today. 
“When’s Erwin coming?”
“Bout an hour or so,” Levi says in a low drawl, his head tilted back and hand massaging the side of your head. It had been your idea to invite a bunch of people over to your house — the house you now shared — and frightfully, Levi hadn’t opposed. It would be nice to share the wealth of simply being alive with people he now had the patience to care about. 
You shuffle to look at him, and Levi picks up his head at the sound of you moving. Like always, Levi thinks you look beautiful, but since he’s made you his girlfriend, it has felt like every time he looks at you, he can’t breathe properly.
“I’m excited. This is our first time hosting a party together,” you grin, while Levi thumbs your ear and smiles. “Do you think Elio will eat Erwin’s dog?”
“No. Elio’s moved back onto a pescatarian diet, so I think Erwin’s mutt will be safe.”
“Good. I bought him a bone, do you think he’ll like it?”
“He’s a dog. Yes, I expect, why are you asking me this?” Levi asks, eyebrows scrunched, though he pulls you close to where his mouth is and kisses you straight on the lips. “Stop stressing.”
“I can’t help it. I’m nervous! It’s all so serious! What if nobody likes our house?”
He shrugs. “I don’t give a shit who does or doesn’t like our house. It’s ours.”
“Hnnngh. And I want you to have a good time!” you whine. “You deserve a bit of fun in your life.”
“My life is always fun now that you’re my girlfriend.”
He’s instantly won himself brownie points by saying that.
“Just tell me if it gets too much,” you mutter, lips on his, mouths together. “Okay?”
Levi hums. “Yeah.” Then, after he’s kissed you three more times and felt his heart shake, he nudges his nose against yours and says, “I love you, y’know that, right?”
You pause, eyes rounding wide as you take in the sight of him. Levi has never said those words before, not explicitly. But now is as good a time as any, right?
Levi has spent far too much of his life withdrawing from his emotions, hiding away from what matters most out of a fear of caring too much. In the past, he had cared too much and lost it all. You were never supposed to be something he cared about, but when it had happened, it happened so fast he hadn’t had the time to make sense of it all.
But now, now that he’s been through it all with you, ticked every box imaginable, become comfortable being vulnerable again, Levi thinks he’s finally ready to accept the love he deserves and dole it out to those who mean the most to him.
Your mouth moves against his, though he can’t understand the words coming out. He laughs, confused, and somehow manages to pull away and ask, “What’re you even saying?”
All for you to blubber out in a laugh, “I’ve been waiting for ages for you to say that!”
His heart bursts, chest soars. “You could have said it first.”
“I’ve said it before,” you protest, “in actions.”
He scoffs, “So have I.”
And he has, you really can’t deny it.
“Say it again, won’t you?” you ask sweetly, kissing the corner of his mouth, and Levi sighs, like asking that of him is simply too much.
“I love you. You make me very happy.” Levi groans when you cackle and squish the breath out of him with a hug, but this time, he sniggers too. Why waste the moment on pretending to be indifferent when he’s actually the happiest he’s ever been?
Levi Ackerman can finally say that he feels good. He feels safe, he feels content, he feels comfortable — and most of all, he feels loved. And in love. And totally at peace in the world with the person who makes him the happiest.
29 notes · View notes
richonnesbitch · 2 days
Note
I would argue that people not going out to look for the kids was actually just bad writing and doesn’t even completely fit with the Alexandrians are useless thing. I don’t think I’ve seen that ep since it aired so I could be misremembering this point but I think it is shown/implied that a bunch of them do go look for the kids but we only follow Michonne & Daryl. HOWEVER by the time they return, they are/seem to have been the only ones still looking and like.. I need the writers to be fr. You’re telling me none of the actual parents of the kidnapped kids were out there??? What? Did they say, hmmm we looked for 5min, couldn’t find our kid(s), I guess that’s that then 🤷🏽‍♀️ Bffr. And even if we take the more useless and non-fighters Alexandrians out of it, you’re telling me Aaron wasn’t out there? Rosita?? BFFR! It was just bad bad writing. All of that just to torture Michonne in unnecessary ways. And then for everybody to be mad at her for years for..reasons. Mind you, Alexandria was the only place thriving 😤😤 Everything about it still pisses me off (clearly 😂)
I also haven't seen the episode in years so it probably was implied more people went out 😭😭 but yeah it was definitely due to bad writing. The torture of Michonne was so BEYOND necessary. Like physical torture? SERIOUSLY???? By children??? REALLY??? It's so fucked up on its own but when you take into account that she was seven months pregnant and in the midst of traumatizing grief about losing her soulmate.... like why did she deserve that?
And the way she probably couldn't even properly grieve the whole situation because she had to be constantly reminded by her shit stain friends how she should worry less about security. Fuck all of them! Michonne is always right, she's THE smartest character in the show, and I will ALWAYS stand by that. Not to mention how bad off Alexandria was when Michonne left. They owe everything to that woman! I mean she's the one who got them there in the first place. Like 10 years later and they are STILL there.
24 notes · View notes
sashketter · 2 days
Text
Passing Stars (Chapter 1)
Summary: Din Djarin meets Omega.
Word count: 1.9k
Warnings: Mild violence (blaster bolts, two implied deaths)
Notes: This takes place after The Book of Boba Fett and maybe before season 3 of The Mandalorian, I haven’t decided yet. I've actually had this idea since season 1 of The Bad Batch, wrote it all out last year when TBB and Mando overlapped for a month, and then forgot about it 💀 Now that TBB is ending, I wanted their story to continue. For ease of convenience, I’m ignoring Favroni's weird naming convention and keeping Din as his first name.
Din couldn’t believe it. For years, he had evaded stormtroopers, warlords, gangsters, and smugglers, carefully plotting his movements through the galaxy to minimize his chances of capture and complications. Whenever he found himself in a dog fight, shields down and cannons hot, he always found escape. This band of pirates, however, were unfamiliar to him. With the New Republic preoccupied with the Core and Mid Worlds, the Outer Rim remained the lawless frontier it had always been.
Din had stopped on a small planet to refuel the N-1 on his way back to Nevarro. The kid played in the grass while he looked over the ship, noting damage that could be handled later at better facilities. No point wasting more credits here, Din thought. Satisfied, he had knelt down to pick up Grogu when he felt something hard hit the base of his head, and everything went black.
He woke up sitting in a chair with his wrists tied together behind his back. Cool air met the ache in his jaw, and a chill ran throughout his body. He was in his flight suit, stripped of his helmet and armor. Anger and indignity flared on the edges of his hazy consciousness, but was soon replaced by sharp fear: Grogu was nowhere in sight.
With his heart beating in his ears, Din looked around the dingy room. He could make out a mix of Trandoshans and Weequays along the opposite wall, palming his Beskar like ancient artifacts, no doubt as rare and valuable as kyber crystals. He saw a door on the far side of the room just as a fist connected with his left temple. He was jerked to his feet, heavy as his battered head, towards the door and down a narrow corridor. Hyperspace flickered outside the portside windows.
“Put him in the brig with the girl,” a voice behind him said to the one holding his handcuffs.
“Together?” Din didn’t appreciate his captor’s tone.
“No, you karking scughole.” A muffled punch mingled with the sound of the lift doors opening. “In an empty one.”
Din was surprised by the size of the brig. Ship’s not big, he calculated. The edges of his vision were still blurry, but he could make out at least eight cells descending from a long, central platform, four on each side. The third on the right glowed red. When they stopped in front of it, he peered through the ray shield while his captor, one hand on his wrists, opened the opposing cell.
“Got company for ya, doll.” The pirate turned around and saw no one through the ray shield. “What?”
Shoved down five short steps to the floor of his cell, Din landed on his side, too sore and dazed to get up and see the pirate hurry to the other cell. He heard the opposing ray shield open as his closed. A few seconds of silence followed before sounds of a scuffle echoed across the platform. Din heard grunts and sharp blows land before the distinct sound of a neck snapping. He got to his feet, arms fused to his sides. He didn’t think to call out, still unused to the prolonged feel of air on his face and injuries.
Looking up through the flickering entrance of his cell, he saw a small shadow emerge on the platform. He couldn’t see her eyes grow wide with the discovery of another prisoner. She hurried to the panel next to his door and opened the ray shield.
“Are you alright,” she asked as he stood motionless at the bottom of the steps. “Are you hurt?”
She noticed his arms before he could answer. Her mouth opened and her right index finger shot up before she disappeared from view. As she made her way back down into her cell, Din tiptoed out of his. They reached the platform at the same time.
“Turn around,” she said, flashing the keys to his cuffs in her palm. The pirate’s blaster was tucked under her arm. He turned reluctantly, wary of being unarmed.
“You’re not hurt,” she pressed, concerned by his silence.
Din fumbled for words but finally coughed, “N-no, I’m fine.” He felt air on his wrists. “Thank you.”
“Good,” she said as he turned to face her. “I’m Meg.”
He hesitated, surprised by her friendliness. “Din.”
He looked down at her. Blonde hair curtained brown eyes where it wasn’t pulled back in a long braid that fell over her left shoulder. She was slight, yet strong and capable enough to overpower a Trandoshan alone. How’d they manage to knock her out, Din wondered. She also wore a flight suit, black and frayed at the hems.
She nodded. “I take it you didn’t come like this,” she asked. She held the blaster in both hands and motioned for him to follow her down the platform. On the wall past the empty cells was a panel with a monitor.
“Can you shoot,” she asked, grabbing the barrel of the blaster and pointing the handle towards Din. He stared at her a beat too long - she trusts too easily - before taking it and positioning his back to the wall.
With one hand on the wall next to the monitor, Meg started tapping on the panel’s keys, looking for schematics of the ship.
“They took my armor,” Din confessed. “And my child.”
“They separated you?” Meg’s fingers came off the panel briefly as her eyebrows scrunched and her head turned halfway towards Din. “That’s odd.” She shook her head and returned to the panel.
“There,” she said after a moment, pointing to the command deck on a map of the ship. Din turned to look at the monitor. “Looks like they’re holding your kid on the bridge. And your armor,” she moved her finger in an L shape over two corridors, “should be there with mine.”
Before he could ask, a blaster bolt sparked across the left corner of the monitor. Din and Meg ducked and turned around to face three pirates stumbling through closing doors. Din sent a bolt through the chest of one, the bottle of nog in his hand flying and spilling on the walls.
~~~
Din dressed quickly. Nothing was missing or out of place, all whistling birds accounted for. They had no idea what they had, he mused. He checked his scanner and found the N-1 onboard.
“Did you come with a ship,” he yelled at the wall. He had his back to Meg who was hidden behind two rows of crates.
“Yes,” she offered breathlessly. “But I’m not going anywhere without my droid.”
Din scoffed quietly, but swallowed his scorn. “Is it that important?” He holstered his blaster and wondered if they should part ways now.
“You have no idea,” Meg said. “But we’ll get your kid first.”
Din started to turn in her direction but stopped, respectful of her privacy as she continued to dress. I guess I can trust her, he concluded. “Thank you.”
Before he could put his helmet on, he heard Meg exclaim, “You’re a Mandalorian! Haven’t seen one of you in awhile.”
He turned around to face her. She stood in the middle of the room with her helmet tucked under her left arm, its front painted to look like a skull. It and the rest of her armor was weathered black with red and white markings. Is she older than she looks, Din wondered. Her armor was clearly old. And it looked familiar, even similar to his. A kama? Is she…
“Interesting armor,” he said as he put his helmet on and walked past her to the door. No time for questions.
“Not as shiny as yours,” she chuckled before putting her helmet on, too. She followed close behind, vibroblade in one hand and blaster in the other.
These pirates seemed uninterested in strategy. The route to the bridge was unguarded. The few that crossed Din and Meg’s path seemed to have more stumbled in their direction than intentionally sought them out.
“Why are you stunning them,” Din growled as he clotheslined one pirate while shooting another. They don’t deserve mercy.
Meg was handling her own pair a few steps ahead. “I don’t want to hurt them!”
When they reached the bridge, they found the doors jammed.
“Cover me,” Meg instructed. Shuffling behind Din, she punched the air with her left arm and unsheathed a scomp link under her vambrance. She plugged in and maneuvered through the ship’s protocols until she unlocked the command deck doors.
They walked onto an empty bridge. Din and Meg’s helmets turned slightly towards each other, confusion suffusing the air. Ahead, they could see the ship was still in hyperspace. On the right, Grogu was perched on a control panel, eyes and ears downcast. As he looked up at the sound of footsteps, he squealed and put his arms up. Din rushed over.
“You alright, kid,” Din asked, picking Grogu up. It was Din’s turn to examine something priceless in his hands.
Meanwhile, oblivious to the reunion on her right, Meg rushed to a table on the left where a droid had been taken apart, its head and arms separated from its torso. Wires connected the head to a monitor where lines of code and information appeared and quickly crawled up the screen.
“Oh, AZ, what did they do to you,” Meg sighed. She cradled his head in her hands, and his eyes flickered on slowly.
“O-O-O-Omega?” His voice ascended quickly to its usual register.
“I’m here.” She seemed to take a moment of silence before remembering where she was. “It’s alright, I can fix you” she said, putting his head down and starting to unplug wires. “We’ve been through worse.”
A short minute passed before AZ’s eyes were fully lit. “L-l-l-l-look who-who-who else is he-he-he-here.”
Meg turned around and saw Din with a small, green creature in his hands. Her mouth opened but couldn’t find words. She hurried her helmet off and onto the table. Grogu saw her face and jumped out of Din’s hands, squealing and scurrying across the floor as quickly as his little body could take him. She covered the remaining distance and met him in the open expanse of the bridge, scooping him up in her arms and squeezing him to her chest, her chin on his fuzzy head. Grogu cooed excitedly, happily.
“What are you- How-?” She still couldn’t find words. She pulled him away to smile down at him. “I never thought I’d see you again.”
Din’s left foot came forward as his right hand jerked towards his blaster. They were smiling and laughing, momentarily forgetting him. He lowered his hand.
“You know each other,” he interrupted, more curious than cautious now.
Meg looked up. Delight dropped to disbelief as she eyed the Mandalorian, her face betraying her suspicion. “You said ‘your child’…”
Before Din could explain, Meg cradled Grogu in her left arm and aimed her blaster at Din’s T visor. The bolt whizzed past his helmet and sparked against the monitors behind him. His arms went up in surrender. Surprised, Meg looked down at Grogu. Recovering quickly from deflecting her shot, he motioned downward with his right hand and Forced Meg’s blaster out of her grip and onto the floor. Din lowered his arms and met her glare.
Without warning, the ship lurched forward and dropped out of hyperspace. The flickering lights through the viewport gave way to a golden haze from a yellow star far too bright to be at a safe distance. Before Din could register the panel behind Meg light up with each ejected escape pod, the proximity alert rang. I’ve got a bad feeling about this.
17 notes · View notes
itaehynz · 2 hours
Text
three’s a (choi) charm! ˙ ⋆ . ˚ ☆
08. DO THEY KNOW?
warnings: written and socmed. (written under cut!)
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
2:50 A.M.
you have your airpods in, keeping all sound stored in your ears, away from the quietness of your shared home hoping to wake absolutely no one. your phone begins vibrating lowly, vibrations slightly awakening your senses.
incoming facetime call: yeonjun (tinder boy #3)
you gasp softly, getting up and walking out of your room quietly hoping not to wake yunjin.
you walk into the living room with quiet steps, seating yourself on the couch and answering the phone.
“helloooo,” yeonjun says shyly. you smile at his quiet yet warm voice, saying hi back.
“why are you so quiet?” he asks, raising his brow in curiosity. “why aren’t you?” you ask, he shrugs, flipping the camera over to who you’re assuming is his roommate, who’s on his pc playing whatever game.
“he doesn’t mind me being loud so,” he adds, smiling at you. you nod and hum at his response, silence filling the air. he clicks his tongue, “date with beomgyu tomorrow, correct?”
you roll your eyes playfully, already knowing what he’s getting at. “yes yeonjun, why?” he chuckles softly, shrugging his shoulders once more. “just curious, i would be the last person to know,” you scoff, “i personally think you’d be one of the first to know, actually.”
he laughs at your response, “why do you think that?” he asks, genuinely curious. you shrug, “well for one; he’s your cousin. two, you live together and three, oh this one is my favorite, you’re apparently competing for me? how’s that?” you respond, eyebrows furrowed.
he laughs once again, shaking his head at your words, “fair enough but all jokes aside, i did know, i just wanted to see what you’d say.” he smiles, blinking slowly. you roll your eyes at him and smile softly.
“you’re so stupid,” you say, making him laugh louder. you laugh along with him, his laugh being oddly contagious and comforting. “ah, really? would i be stupid for saying it’d be better for you to go out with me instead of gyu?” he questions cockily.
your eyes widen in surprise, caught slightly off guard. “i mean, it wouldn’t be stupid but it would be pretty rude of me to just bail on beomgyu after all this planning he’s done,” you reply, frowning at the thought of beomgyu’s reaction once he realizes you bailed on him for his cousin.
“y/n, i promise you, he literally wouldn’t mind, he’d be shocked that i was able to even persuade you and probably try harder next time, if he even gets a next time.” yeonjun says, exaggerating his words. you take his words into consideration, thinking hard on his suggestion.
“okay, what would we do though? like as a date,” you ask, intrigued. he seems to think on it for a few before coming to a decision, “there’s this place i go to, they offer couples dance lessons sooo if you’re interested, i can set an appointment for you and me? for 11 am tomorrow?” he asks with a large smile plastered on his face.
you scoff and smile, “we’re not a couple though,” he rolls his eyes, “not yet at least.” he says, making your smile widen. “look, i could schedule it and if you’re not up for it by 9:30 am, i’ll cancel it and you can go on your date with beomgyu, i guess. how’s that?” he suggests with the same smile that’s been on his face since the beginning.
you laugh quietly, “no need, i’d be happy to go. i just need to figure out how to tell beomgyu somehow…” to that, he rolls his eyes at the mention of his cousins name. “don’t tell him, we can do a hard launch kind of thing and tag each other on our posts, with a picture.”
you smile, shaking your head at him. “sounds good,” you say before getting up and walking to the bathroom. you sit your phone upright, hoping it stays. once it’s positioned correctly, you turn on the water, starting your skincare routine as yeonjun watches you in awe.
“are you getting ready for bed?” he asks softly, still looking at you. you nod, cleaning all product out of your eyes. he hums, eyes still locked on you. once your eyes are able to open, you catch him staring, “what’re you looking at?” you ask as he smiles.
“i’m obviously looking at you, y/n. you’re so pretty,” he says, catching you off guard once again. you feel your cheeks rising to a burning heat, but you continue to apply your skin serum with a gentle smile.
slowly but surely, your skincare routine is coming to an end. you wash your face with warm water and dry it thoroughly. you look away from your phone for a moment and look back to see yeonjun no longer surrounded by light, he’s now in the dark and laying down.
you begin turning off all lights and walking back into your room but not before shushing yeonjun. he nods and smiles, watching as you quietly step into your room and lay down in your bed, resting comfortably under the covers.
“do you wanna sleep on the phone? i’m not implying anything but i’m just asking,” he whispers. you only nod to that as you plug your charger into your phone. he smiles at you softly once again and you roll your eyes once more, “what’re you smiling at now?” you whisper.
he chuckles lowly, “it’ll always be you i’m smiling at, y/n.” you hide your smile and only show your eyes. his laugh increases in volume, never seeming to die down anytime soon.
you quickly snap a facetime photo of him, catching him off guard. “wait let me sit up and turn this light on, then you can retake it.” he says, reaching for his bedside light.
he lays back down and hides himself under his covers, showing nothing but his eyes. “mmkay, take it like this,” he says, smiling with his eyes. you smile gently as you take the picture. “i’m gonna go to sleep,” you say, eyes filled with tiredness. he hums and says, “me too, night night y/n!”
“night night, jun.”
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
MASTERLIST ☆ NEXT ★ PREVIOUS
TAGLIST: @https-yeonjun, @sugaringgcaramel, @boba-beom, @ur-mother-realnotclickbait, @nan-lzzn, @txtbrainrot, @soobsfairy444, @wonunuwoo, @coconutjjun, @headlockimnida, @dinosluver, @gwookie, send an ask or shoot me a dm to be added! ^^
A/N: “little beomgyu and y/n moment before their date 🤭” YOU’VE ALL BEEN PRANKED!!!!!i’m such a silly goofy goober 😁
17 notes · View notes
lil-vibes · 7 months
Text
need me a fem! skk ballet and/or figure skater au so bad yall dont understand
121 notes · View notes
roseverdict · 28 days
Text
a $3 "grocery tax" by default on non-gas-pump transactions at the convenience store/gas station where everything is already overpriced (see also: arizona tea cans being sold at over $2 a pop) and the nearest Other Place to Get Necessities is multiple miles away is bullshit and i will commit unspeakable crimes on this hill
4 notes · View notes