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honeybadgercomeback · 1 year

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No Goodbyes

Goodbyes happen. But sometimes when they do they can become something so much better. You didn’t think that hiding from Daniel would cause this, but with his hand in yours and people trusting and believing in both of you, this is going to become something more than a final race week. Part two of Not Yet Goodbye.

AN: I still can’t fully believe the reaction to Not Yet Goodbye, I’m in absolute shock at how wonderful you all are. Thank you for the support and kindness.

Warnings: McLaren folks, Christian Horner (but being nice?). This is mainly fluff tbh.

—

As soon as the fact that Daniel Ricciardo was holding your hand got through to the garage, things got awkward to put it mildly. There was joking around, but as soon as they could get Daniel away for his final debriefing you were pulled into a meeting. That first meeting with Andreas was almost painful. The team principal had rushed you into his office, Zak following close behind. The two men looked at you in surprise as you held their gazes evenly.

“How long as this been going on?” The CEO asked you. You checked your watch and did some mental maths.

“Around twenty two hours, officially. I didn’t hide anything from anyone and after tonight Daniel no longer works for McLaren Racing. I didn’t need to report anything. You stayed calm despite the heartbeat thundering in your ears.

“If there was anything going on, anything you didn’t want…” the words hung in the air as the implication hit you like a ton of bricks. You shook your head fervently in denial.

“Daniel and I made a mutual decision. I wasn’t forced into anything. I spent last night having dinner with his family.” A deep breath centred you before you continued speaking. “While I appreciate that you’re looking out for me because of a potential power imbalance, it couldn’t be further from the truth. There was no coercion or anything inappropriate. Nothing happened between us until last night because we’re both aware of our jobs and what we do, but thank you. Now it’s the end of the season and my boyfriend is waiting for me so we can go for dinner with his family to celebrate that he was in the points today. Do we still have two weeks off before planning for next year starts?”

Your final question was directed to Zak who nodded in response. “It’s Thanksgiving at home next week, I won’t be in the UK until the first full week of December.”

“Perfect. I’ll be working remotely until then. I need to clear my head from the season, you can reach me by email.”

You held yourself together as you left the room, trying not to shake with frustration as you made your way back to the table you’d nabbed for yourself in hospitality. Normally you’d have never spoken like that to either of them. But this was different. You’d been in the room and watched the awkward moments as Danny had lost some of his sparkle because of everything that had happened. You’d been at the MTC when he made that speech. There was a large group of you who didn’t agree with how things had happened and you’d always been in that group. Yes this relationship was new but your loyalty was always going to be to your boyfriend. Jobs came and went but men like Danny didn’t.

It took all of two minutes to pack your tablet and laptop into the grey and papaya bag when your phone buzzed with a text. Holding your breath you opened it.

That was inappropriate. Once the cargo is gone take the time off, you deserve it.

Thank you.

You couldn’t reply with anything more than that, your frustration was still too high and you didn’t want to snap at him.

“Are you leaving?” You looked over at Danny’s sister, Michelle, standing there with her kids. You smiled at the slightly shy children who waved nervously and nodded your head.

“Finishing packing. I don’t need to be here for the tear down so I like to leave pretty soon after.”

“You’re coming for dinner, right? We’re getting pizzas delivered to his suite. None of us want to go out, it’ll be all family.”

“That sounds really good.”

It was quiet between you while you zipped up your branded bag. Your routine stayed the same, triple checking the pass around your neck was firmly in place and you had everything. Michelle walked out with you, the kids holding her hands before grabbing one of yours too.

“He really likes you, y’know. I was telling him for months to man up and ask you out. But then the break happened and…” she trailed off and it was clear what she thought of everything that had happened with her brother’s career.

“I wouldn’t let him say goodbye.” Michelle looked at you as you spoke, but you kept walking and looking straight ahead. “Yesterday. He was saying goodbye to everyone except Lando and the mechanics, but I kept hiding because I didn’t want to say goodbye. So I get it. And I’ve no intention of hurting him.”

She relaxed as you both swiped out and you helped the kids to do it.

“I’m glad. Want a ride to the hotel?”

You ended up in the back of the rented SUV, jammed between two child seats as the kids settled down. There was casual conversation between you, Michelle, and her husband as he drove back and you felt calm. The season was over. You could relax for a little while. Tonight was about dinner and chatting and later on working out when you and Dan could spend time together that wasn’t just filled with work related things. And getting the details on what he’d be doing next year. Milton Keynes wasn’t as far away from Woking as it could have been. Plus he’d be at races so that made things easier to plan. But this was oh so right and you wanted it.

After a shower to wash away the desert heat and sweat and changing into comfy clothes there was a knock on your bedroom door. Dan stood there with a bouquet of flowers in his hand and a wide smile on his face.

“Long time no see,” you murmured as you reached up to kiss him in hello. Once you separated he came into the room and put the arrangement on the desk before pulling you in for a proper hug.

“Missed you.”

“It’s been two hours.”

“I still missed you.” He pouted at his words and you kissed it away before filling him in on Zak and Andreas’ words. Anger started to fill his face but he took a breath and squeezed your hand.

“Do people really think that I’m forcing you? Seriously?”

“No. And we both know that this is completely consensual. Anyone with eyes knows that. But we also know that until after the last race there was that power imbalance. They were right to check in, just not the way they did it.” He calmed at your words, pulling you close and kissing the top of your forehead.

“I’m going to Red Bull tomorrow to sign my contract and flying back to Monaco the day after. Will you come with me? I know you can’t be in any of the photos or anything but I want you to be there. Mum and Dad will be.”

You took a deep breath. It’d be more than just your secret or even your colleagues in McLaren knowing then. It’d be known immediately around the paddock and as soon as you arrived in Bahrain for the first race next year everyone would know you were Danny’s girlfriend. But you wanted it. You wanted to be there to support him in whatever way you could.

“Is signing this the best thing for you to do?” It was a simple question and he sat on the edge of the bed, pulling you into his lap.

“I’m not ok right now. I…I’m burnt out. I’m miserable. Driving these cars isn’t fun anymore, I’m half afraid when I do it. It’s become something I’ve started to dread and if I don’t have full confidence I can’t do it. They’re giving me sim time to help with racing lines, a chance to help develop the car for next year and beyond, and I can be at whatever races I want. Plus it’s Christian. Even when I was leaving and he didn’t want me to go he supported me. He always has. It’s nowhere near a guaranteed seat but it’s a chance to try love the sport again with people who believe in me and want me to succeed.” He looked like he was about to say more but you cut in.

“Then I would be honoured to be there to watch my boyfriend sign his contract. You deserve the world, Danny. You deserve everyone to know that you’re a good driver, that you’re successful and easily able to battle anyone on the track. I want to see that happen.”

The kiss you shared with him was filled with meaning and hope. Even after your lips separated you stayed with your arms wrapped around each other.

“I should have kissed you last year. I nearly did at Monza. Remember the after party?”

You never could have forgotten it, delaying your flight to stay and celebrate the 1-2 finish. You’d been standing at the bar ordering a drink when Daniel appeared beside you and handed over his card to pay for your drink instead. When you’d thanked him he just grinned and pulled you in for a hug to cement the friendship you already had. It made you think that anything romantic could never happen.

“I’d have kissed you back.”

“We were fools.”

Dinner that night was bright and happy, the knowledge that the contract was being signed tomorrow and Daniel was happy helping everyone. He’d been invited to Seb’s goodbye party and had stuck around for a few minutes before leaving. It was Seb’s night, he didn’t want to bring the mood down and instead said he wanted to spend the night with his family. The walk from your room to his suite was about a minute, everyone standing there and greeting you both with hugs and kisses on your cheek. Michael shook his head at the way Danny wouldn’t keep his hands off you, making you smile shyly at the knowledge.

Once the pizzas arrived they were opened and spread over the table, people handing slices through as wine was poured. The kids had juice and were clinking glasses with everyone between each sip. When they chose you to clink with you couldn’t help the grin spreading over your face. Dan’s arm was around your shoulder as you all sat at the table. It was a nearly perfect night.

People started slipping away as the night went on. Hugs goodbye were given and you were surprised to be included in them. Finally it was just you and Dan left in the room and he pulled you to them, arms holding you close.

“Stay the night?” You smiled up at him and reached for a kiss, sealing exactly where you were staying.

When you woke up in his arms you were pleasantly sore with a warm hand rubbing a circle into your hip.

“Good morning,” you murmured as you turned over to see him there.

“Morning.”

Getting ready would have been a lot quicker if he hadn’t dragged you into the shower with him, heated kisses between the two of you making it take much longer in the warm water than you truly needed. Once Dan was dressed he went down to your room for clean clothes, returning with a navy shirt and jeans. You raised an eyebrow.

“Look, there’s no logos. But you can’t wear orange today.” Your laughter pealed through the room before grabby fingers ticked you. You made him stop so the two of you could meet his parents and get there on time.

The Red Bull motorhome had always been somewhere you’d wanted to visit and learn from. Their set up was effortless and when you had a few minutes you enjoyed watching how they worked together, wanting to see if you could steal some of their efficiency for McLaren. Today though there was no paddock passes and turnstiles, just you and Danny arriving hand in hand with Grace and Joe behind the two of you. His fingers fit perfectly between yours as you walked beside him. There were looks from your team breaking down the McLaren motorhome but you just smiled and continued on to the far end of the paddock. Once you reached Red Bull Daniel looked down at you.

“Ready?” He asked and you squeezed his fingers.

“As long as you’re ready.”

It was mostly boring while you watched him sign away what felt like his life with multiple signatures. You stood at the back of the conference room with Grace and Joe while mostly Daniel and Christian spoke and you felt completely out of place. Finally it was done, the two men standing up and shaking hands before pulling each other into a hug. Christian greeted Grace and Joe but Daniel reached over to take your hand and pull you forward.

“Christian, you know my girlfriend from the paddock, right? She does the McLaren setup and travel planning. Meet Christian Horner. He’s nicer than he seems to most people, I swear.” You smiled and held your hand out, Dan holding onto your waist.

“It’s nice to meet you.” You introduced yourself and Christian shook your hand.

“I’m well aware of who you are. You turned down Ferrari last year, didn’t you?” Your cheeks heated at his words. The job offer they’d given you had been kept hush hush, but it would have been highly paid. You didn’t want to leave McLaren at the time so you turned it down. You didn’t think that anyone except you and Binotto even know that there was a firm offer on the table.

“I did. I wanted to stick where I was.”

“And if I offered you a job here?”

You took a beat but shook your head. “I’d appreciate it, but my answer is still no. I want my reputation to stand on its own. I don’t want people thinking I’m just following my boyfriend around the paddock to his new team. Ask me in another year and I might consider it.”

Horner laughed, clapping your shoulder. “I should have guessed that would be your answer. Binotto still wants you there, so I’d prepare for that job offer if things settle down in Maranello. Now we’ve got photos to do outside. Not that I want to face the sun after last night, Sebastian got the Jaegermeister out and it was a mistake.”

There were photographers snapping as the two went outside, Grace and Joe slightly behind and you following at a distance. Danny slid the navy polo shirt on and you had to admit it really did suit him. They sat at a table and signed the last page before taking questions and filming content. It was so clear to you just how happy this made your boyfriend. He was relaxed and grinning, smiling and joking even when Christian grabbed his chest. You laughed at the scene, taking your own photos of them. Once it was done Daniel came back to you with his fingers grabbing yours and holding tightly.

“Do you want lunch?” Christian asked, Daniel shaking his head.

“I can’t be here when afternoon practice starts. I need to get a clean break, and I’m back in Monaco tomorrow. I’m in Milton Keynes in two weeks?”

“We want you at the parade. Will you both be there?” The second part was aimed at you.

“I won’t be,” you replied. “I still have my own job to do, so I’ll be supporting at a distance and outside of work.”

“We’ll see you around.”

The drivers were starting to come in for the practices, Lando hugging the two of you briefly and Oscar looking nervous to see you there. Daniel squeezed your hand before going to speak to him for a moment, the two separating looking brighter. It was nods to everyone else you saw before getting in the car and Dan leaning his head back.

“I’m going to Monaco in the morning, do you want to come with me? I want to spend time with you away from the tracks. Eat food, spend time together, get our shit together. What do you think?”

You grinned at him, leaning over to nuzzle your head to his chest.

“That sounds like one of the best ideas you’ve ever had. I want to spend time with you and get to know you properly, Daniel Ricciardo. Plus, I think I’ve made friends with your family.”

“I think they’d pick you over me.”

It was a lie, but a sweet one. You smiled and agreed, pulling up your travel app and cancelling the flight to London. You could book the Nice flight later on that evening. The afternoon ahead beckoned with laying out at the pool to enjoy the October sun, jumping in and splashing the family that had quickly welcomed you as a member. Dinner that night was another family dinner in the restaurant but out in the main area rather than a private room. Anyone could see all of you together but you weren’t worried. The almost out of clean clothes situation did worry you slightly, but it was manageable as you pulled an outfit together. Dan had done some magic to move your belongings to his hotel room, your toiletries mingling with his in the bathroom. The way they just fit together didn’t go unnoticed.

“How come you didn’t take the Ferrari job?”

Dan had just finished clasping your necklace when he asked, pressing a kiss to where the chain hit your neck.

“I didn’t want it.” You turned around and looked up at him, a small smile on your lips. “Carlos put my name in for it when it came up. He told Binotto that I’d be perfect for it and Binotto agreed. I didn’t even need to interview. But I told you, I’m awful at goodbyes.”

“You stayed because of me?” You’d have been lying if you said he wasn’t part of your decision, the friendship you’d shared meant so much.

“Not just you. But I was loyal to McLaren. Now though I’m loyal to you.”

Photos from the dinner ended up online, shared on instagram and TikTok. You really liked one of them that had you and Dan with a child on each of your laps. It was taken from far enough away that nobody’s face was truly visible so you took that opportunity to lock down your instagram account before anybody could work out it was definitely you. Even though you’d appeared on his photography account in a work context you wanted to keep what little privacy you could for a while.

It lasted all the way on the hour or so drive to Dubai International for the direct flight to Nice. While not as busy as Abu Dhabi would have been the airport was still filled with people who’d been in the UAE for the race. Thanks to your lack of non work clothes Dan had given you one of his tees to wear - laughing at how it was essentially a dress - and you were clearly together as he checked you both in and whisked you into the lounge after saying goodbye to his family. People stopped and stared at him but only a few asked for photos which let you relax a little. It was a little bit scary and definitely unusual, and you didn’t know quite what this relationship would involve but you were determined. This wasn’t going to end in a goodbye, even with the what could be of next season.

Just before you boarded both of your phones dinged, Lando creating a group chat with you. You opened it up to a link to an instagram post putting the dinner photos together with the times you’d been caught on camera and the one and only time Ted Kravitz had spoken to you, naming you as Dan’s girlfriend.

Just saw this, thought you should know. For the record you look adorable.

Dan squeezed your hand before the two of you handed over your passports to the gate agent, holding on as you walked down the jet bridge. Once you were settled into the plush first class seat - and you’d have a conversation with him about paying for it later - you looked at him, catching his gaze. He seemed slightly worried but you smiled.

“Fuck ‘em all?” You asked, his eyes lighting up at the familiar words.

“Fuck ‘em all. We know what we’ve got.”

Dan took your hand as you listened to the pre flight information. You took a photo of the hands linked, Dan’s rose tattoo showing clearly. You sent it to him, watching as he smiled and picked up exactly what you were thinking. Less than a minute later he nudged you to open instagram. When you opened the app his latest post was the first on your feed. The caption made you grin.

Honey Badger’s being tamed. FEA, babe.

You kept the smile on your face as you sat back and put your feet up, waiting for the six hour flight to begin. Whatever the media wanted to throw at the two of you could suck it. This was the best non goodbye you could ever receive.

Tagging: @vroomvroommbtch

#daniel ricciardo x reader #daniel ricciardo fluff #daniel ricciardo x y/n #daniel ricciardo x you #f1 x reader #f1 x you #f1 fanfic #daniel ricciardo one shot #daniel ricciardo fanfic #daniel ricciardo imagine

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datawyrms · 8 months

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It’s Invisobang time!

behold the fic I’ve been working on instead of...anything else! The full thing will be posted this week so stay tuned :v (and enjoy the lovely art surprises on AO3! We’ve only got plaintext here on the tumblrs so you look at their cool posts)

On AO3

Melon slices in neat little triangles, custom cut to be easy to snag with just two fingers. An absolute plethora of salted seeds and candied nuts sat right under them, a tempting selection. His favourite ones, actually. None of dad’s fudge dunked cashews that were way too much chocolate to nut ratio, or those gross banana chips Jazz insisted were the best thing ever- instead of the cardboard disks of disappointment they actually were.

The dream snacks to have if planning to hang out with his friends, or even just to hog for himself. A week ago he would have begged to have even a fraction of this, flown foolish circles of thanks.

Now his stomach was too busy churning to even think about chowing down. Flying was just as impossible. Was he meant to just feel better because he had better snacks? As if that could ever make up for never flying again. Not that it was meant to make up for it. Mom and dad were just being nice. Make him feel loved or something.

“Maybe they’re too busy to come? Like there’s some movie Tucker wanted to go-“

“Danny. Sam and Tucker are coming over. You don’t need to convince yourself they aren’t.”

He wanted to flinch at the scolding, and some of him did. His now worthless muscles twitched and his skin crawled. It probably didn’t look like anything to his mom, a gesture that couldn’t really be finished. “But-“

“They are coming. No more of that.” Maddie’s wingtips gently flicked against his face, messing up his already unruly hair.

He wondered if his parents would hunt his friends down and drag them here if they dared to not show up. Probably. Which would be the worst thing ever. Then he’d have to see how much they didn’t want to be near him in person. Instead of trying to argue he just held his knees close and stared at the open balcony, as if expecting them any second now.

He wondered if it had always been this cold before, if that was just something else about him that was broken. The wind should be refreshing and enjoyable, not making him shudder and huddle up.

The upside to staring at nothing was that he did spot the two specks that ended up being his friends. How they just went right towards his home, how they didn’t play or dart around. Just full speed to their destination- the most boring way to get anywhere. He couldn’t really remember the last time they’d gone anywhere without Sam trying to divebomb one of them at least once. How loud her laugh was when she yelled at them to pay attention, leaving them to either roll out of the way or join her in a stoop.

He never thought he’d just never get to do any of that again. Should he have cherished it more? Now that it was too late?

“Danny!”

Danny blinked, only having a second before Tucker barreled into him, half lifting him as they crashed into the blankets and pillows. “Why didn’t you answer my texts dude?! You’re okay!”

“Um.” Danny said, trying to look away but too surrounded by soft things and feathers to really look away from his friend entirely. Especially when Tucker was squeezing him so tightly. “I was distracted. That’s all.”

“Too distracted for your best friends?” Sam had joined the mess of a huddle, but had her wings more folded back and out of the way.

“Sam! Shh!” Tucker snapped, trying to wave her away with his foot. “Are you still mad at us? ‘Cus I get it and I’m sorry-”

“You guys didn’t do anything?” Danny cut Tucker off before he could get caught up in rambling, wondering if he was hearing things. “Why should you be sorry?”

“Well we all know you wouldn’t have gone in that thing if Sam-”

“Don’t make me throw you out a window, Tucker.”

“If SAM didn’t insist we check it out-” his explanation was cut off with a yelp as Sam flung herself at him. The two wrestled and flapped for a solid minute of chaos, making enough mess that Danny could almost pretend there were enough feathers for three now all over the floor.

“Okay, okay, I take it back! I give! Get off!” Tucker whined, unable to push Sam away and leaving him pinned flat on his back, what flapping he could manage looking pathetic and barely raising from the floor.

“That’s right you do. Jerk.” Sam looked like she might not get off right away, but sighed and helped pull him up after spotting how Danny was staring. “How are you, anyway? We haven’t seen you around.”

“It’s not like I want to go shopping with mom and dad.” Danny said, doing his best to sidestep the question. What else could he do? Say he felt awful and empty and never wanted to leave the house? Just upset them? Say he thought they were only here because his parents would murder them if they didn’t come?

“Yeah but you haven’t been anywhere fun either. The crows keep chasing us for the seeds you’re always spoiling them with.”

“Then give them some? They’re nice.”

“No way man! I’m not spending any allowance on rodent food.” Tucker stuck out his tongue, settling comfortably beside Danny, still ignoring the elephant in the room. “And I’m definitely not giving them any of my jerky.”

“Oh, so you won’t want any rodent snacks. More for us.” Sam moved the bowl of treats away before Tucker could snag a salted peanut. “Right Danny?”

Danny looked up, and back down, stomach twisting. It felt so wrong. Like he wasn’t meant to be here. All the talking and laughter and jokes were just wrong. This was ‘normal’. He wasn’t normal. He didn’t get to have normal.

“Danny?” Tucker was shaking him, gently, arm over his shoulders. “Dude, do you need us to do something? You’re kinda pale.”

The words caught in his throat, thick and too heavy to dislodge. It felt like he was in a cage, not a friendly embrace. Holding him so he could be mocked, so he’d see how wrong and awful he was. His back spasmed, uselessly.

He couldn’t be here. He was ruining everything. He twisted, trying to struggle away from the strangling grasp, panting as he broke free from the black feathery curtains. His eyes darted back and forth as he looked for somewhere to run, somewhere to hide, but all of the best spots were too high. There was a closet, a place to store blankets and jackets. Somewhere you reached into, not a place to be entered.

Yet he could fit now. Easily. He scrambled and closed the door behind him, flattening his back against the wall and letting the darkness act as his wings, his weak shield against a world that was too much.

He felt nuttier than the snack bowl. Freaking out, sobbing in a closet. For what? For getting a hug? That he knew his friends were just pretending because they felt guilty? Waiting for them to ditch him, to get it over with so he could mourn his lack of friends already.

“What’d I do!”

“He can’t push you off if you’re too close, stupid!”

“What, am I supposed to stay far away and act like he’s got some nasty fungus?!”

“No, but you could pretend to be considerate for like, five seconds! Instead of smothering him!”

“Just because you’re all stand-offish doesn’t mean Danny is-”

“Oh, you want to have another go?”

Danny wasn’t sure if their arguing was making him feel worse or better about his stupid ‘escape’. Mostly worse, but it did make the little voice in his head insisting they didn’t want him around shut up a little bit. Wow, what a good friend he was. Needing his friends to fight to feel better about himself, real nice.

He should stop them. Stop acting like a baby, hiding like this. Yet the enclosed dark space felt safer, better than out in his own room. Even if the shirts hanging above him were just another mockery. Nothing fit right anymore, all tailored to accommodate limbs he didn’t have. He always liked his shirts a bit loose, but now they made him seem like he was swimming in fabric, completely emaciated instead of just scrawny. Patching over the holes wasn’t a real fix. Just like how there wasn’t any fix for what happened to him.

“You can stay in there if you want, I clobbered him for you.”

“For no reason! I’m innocent here!”

The sounds of wings flapping and slapping against the ground continued, Tucker apparently trying to fight back again. While failing, like always. Sam was just stronger than both of them were, even if she wasn’t using her wings. If they ever wanted to win they had to team up. And they still lost, sometimes. Always would now, probably. He could hardly help Tucker with his scrawny arms and legs alone. Unless he suddenly started looking like his dad- which had its own downsides. Though he didn’t really have to worry about weighing more, making gliding difficult, or how much more effort his dad had to exert just to keep up with everyone else.

Tucker would like the help, but why even try? It wouldn’t actually get him upright. At best he’d be an annoyance.

Which should be fine. Yet escape was so much harder now. He shouldn’t feel safer hiding in a small, dark space. He wasn’t a bat, or a rat, or some mole thing. Just more reason to think something was wrong with him.

“We can go see your crow friends once you feel better.”

Danny pressed more into the long coats at the back of the closet, the warmth helping a little. Seeing the flock shouldn’t be a whole outing, just something they did while on the way to somewhere else. Why couldn’t anything be normal?

“Do you want some snacks in there?”

He was so stupid. Still hiding. He had to stop. He was making it more weird, not less. Hiding from his friends like an insect. “I’m good! Just um. Getting a different shirt. So we can go.”

“Dude if you just need some time, it’s okay,” Tucker sounded a bit muffled, but Danny couldn’t tell if his friend was trying to keep his voice low or it was the door’s fault.

“I’m fine! Seriously. Just forget anything happened.” He couldn’t keep acting like a total freak. So he ignored how his hand shook as he reached for the door and forced himself back to the well lit room.

“Sorry Danny, I can’t imagine away my bruises.”

“You’re so dramatic Tucker.”

Judging by the amount of feathers, Tucker wasn’t just being dramatic about their struggle. It did make his room seem more lived in, at least. He could pretend some of the feathers might be his. If it was dark. Somehow they both managed to avoid spilling any of the snacks.

Wait. Did they pretend to fight? To lure him out to help Tucker?

Great. Now he sounds paranoid too. There were always little scuffles. “I guess we can go to the park. If you’d want to get away from my parents hovering around.”

“Great idea! Did your dad find your old bike?” Tucker said, acting like they hadn’t been the one suggesting the idea in the first place.

“Yeah.” Not that he really wanted to use it. Bikes were for babies. They were so much slower than just flying, and you had to stow them somewhere, and you had to follow a trail. Not to mention that peddling was hard work too, it just wasn’t worth it once he didn’t need one anymore. “I don’t have anything for you guys though. So I guess you have to do some laps?”

“Nah. we’ve got some scooters!”

“I brought them over ahead of time,” Sam said, offering an explanation. “Thought it might be fun.”

“Really it’s lucky your parents like living so close to the ground, imagine how sore your arms would be with a ladder to Sam’s place!”

He had imagined that quite a lot actually, but Danny just gave Tucker a weak sort of grin as he reached for said ladder. The Fentons were ‘weird’ for not wanting to have their house on a larger structure- practically hermits with the low to the ground home. Anti-social, hiding something, freakish experiments- he heard lots of people guessing why. Even though the real reason was super obvious. The little lab that made the family a bunch of weirdo freaks. A family that chose to own a place completely on the ground, that wasn’t just a shed. Where his parents studied ghosts.

Where he lost his wings to their life’s work.

He wouldn’t be going in there again, that’s for sure. Instead he could focus on his old bike. It was too small, really, but his mom and dad had ‘adjusted’ it so his legs wouldn’t hit the ground when trying to peddle. At least they found more astral body stickers to slap on the weird green sections. They still stood out but you could kind of pretend the space themed kids bike should look like that?

Okay. Not really. At least it worked.

Tucker wasn’t having a great time, wings tight against his back as he gingerly pushed the scooter forward, wobbling a little in the second his foot left the metal frame. “Hey Sam? Why did I let you talk me out of a powered scooter?”

“You need the exercise. That, and you started crying when we looked at the price.”

“That could be like, three computer upgrades! I’m not made of money!”

Sam only snorted in response, shooting forward easily. “Maybe you’d have more if you weren’t upgrading every time something new came out.”

If his legs weren’t a bit sore, if he closed his eyes and peddled hard it almost felt like nothing was different. The wind in his hair, the playful bickering was reassuring. It felt more real, that his friends actually meant it like this. Instead of inside and dreading and waiting.

Reality fell back on his shoulders hard the moment they parked their equipment. Having to fumble for a lock and a place to actually secure them was weird. Who’d care enough to steal it? He just couldn’t risk it happening, or he’d be even slower at getting anywhere.

They’d picked a good time of day, at least. No families with their fledglings near the play structures yet, and there weren’t many people in general. Anyone just stopping by would probably be way up high on the rest platform anyway, where all the water and snack vendors set up shop.

Just him, his friends and nature. He shouldn’t feel uneasy.

“So, Mr. Expert, which snack does this mob of birds like?” Sam’s question nudged him out of his worries, for the moment.

“They’re not super picky. They like pretty much anything. Though there’s a smaller one that really likes the walnuts.” Which he’d packed specifically. That one was sort of his ‘favourite’ in the murder. A braver little guy that sometimes actually perched on him for a bit. Not a real tamed bird or anything. Just sort of a friend? In a bird way? “It’s weird, they usually caw hello”.

“I have no idea how you tell any of these guys apart. They aren’t even all cuddly like the pigeons,” Tucker said, half hiding behind Danny.

“You’re just mad one tried to take your glasses that one time,”

“Hey, friends don’t try and poke friend’s eyes out. Which is totally what they’re doing when they go for my glasses like that,” Tucker said, defending himself.

Sam frowned, watching the small birds hop away with short cries. “Danny? You sure this isn’t a different flock?”

“It’s definitely them, there’s the one missing a toe- and that one over there always favours the right foot,” he said, but couldn’t help frowning either. Why were they trying to get away? Even the more standoffish members could be lured over with the promise of a treat. Yet they seemed skittish and wary. As if they didn’t know what they were looking at.

“Come on guys. We aren’t foxes!” Sam spread her wings out, hopping a bit into the air to give the tossed nut a bit more distance- which was quickly swarmed by the birds. “Birdbrains. It’s kinda weird to think they aren’t that different from us sometimes.”

Satisfied, more of the flock seemed to get over their caution to hop over and get Sam’s attention, but they kept giving Danny and Tucker a wide berth.

“Aren’t crows meant to be like. The smart ones? Or is that ravens?” Tucker asked.

“They’re both pretty smart birds. Even if they can’t talk like parrots can. Or figure out our faces as well as the pigeons can. I hope the little guy didn’t get hurt.” Danny tried to bite down the dread that found his stomach again, tried to ignore the cruel thoughts that the birds were scared of him. They were friends, of a sort. Corvids had pretty good memory, and passed that information on. They knew he was safe.

Yet the birds happily approached Tucker once he stopped cowering and offered his snacks, wings relaxed and easy for all to see.

None of them would approach him.

Worse, when he approached, one shrieked a warning. A threat. Then another, and another as more joined to back up their fearful flockmate until he scrambled backwards.

“Danny? You okay?” Sam asked, somehow much closer to him than he thought she should be. Maybe he’d spaced out.

“Y-yeah. Totally,” he lied, trying to ignore the bird that had chosen to sit on Sam’s shoulder.

“We can do something else or just y’know. Bike around,” Sam said, still frowning at him. Trying to figure out what had him upset.

The crow gave a warning squawk as she approached again, turning her frown into a scowl. “If you’re gonna scream at my friend you can buzz off, feather brain.” Sam shrugged the crow away, that seemed content to just stay away from Danny.

He didn’t want to admit it, but the world was being even more unfair. It escaped even when he wanted to pretend he didn’t know. “It’s like they don’t recognize me.”

“Well you are kinda smaller now, dude,” Tucker chipped in, but cringed when Danny winced. “They just don’t get it! They don’t remember like, faces, I don’t think?”

“Or even wild birds think I’m a freak.”

“Hey. No. They’re just racist jerk birds, alright?” Sam snapped.

“What.” Tucker scoffed a bit. “They’re birds!”

“Yeah, I know. And I know wild birds can be monsters to ‘different’ birds. Come on. We’re gonna go see Iridescent,” Sam said, not allowing for any argument as she grabbed both of the boy’s wrists and started dragging them towards their scooters.

“We’re going to see who now?”

#danny phantom #dp #wing au #invisobang2023 #Tucker Foley #sam manson #aaaaaaaaaaaaa #on and i guess this is like #a sequel #hm

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taurussuitjake · 1 year

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safety net

hi guys, this is my first fic! i haven’t written fic in soooooo long so please bear with me here lol, here’s a cute little friends-to-lovers with Danny that will have a part 2 with a little more steam to follow! ENJOY 🌝 2.6k words (i think)

warnings: depression, lack of self care, platonic intimacy, fluffy as FUCK, best friend! Danny.

it’s been 6 days since you left your bedroom.

october brings about an emptiness that swallows you whole. you can’t seem to put your finger on why, exactly… but nonetheless, that’s about the time your seasonal depression sets in.

while your brain will tell you that everyone around you is burdened by the rain cloud that hangs over you these days, they definitely put up a hell of a fight. Jake and Josh have both texted you every morning and every night to see how you’re feeling and ask if you need help with anything. Sam calls you at least once a day just to try and make you laugh (and it usually works, even if it’s just a little bit.)

but Danny is texting you consistently throughout the days that pass, calling you around the same time everyday, bringing you food, staying over on the weekends just so you don’t have too much alone time. Danny is your very best friend, and he literally will not let you forget it, now more than ever.

your house is still. it’s quiet. you can only imagine that if the void had a sound… it sounds like this. it’s 6PM in the middle of october, so not only is it still, but it’s cold and dark. your ear picks up the sound of a key in your deadbolt, the turning of the lock and the click of your front door. there’s only two people who have a key to your house… and your mom always calls before she comes over.

Danny. thank God, it’s Danny.

while you were still in your silence and comfortable in your solitude, you’d be lying if you said that Danny’s presence didn’t make you feel better. even though the sun has set, it’s like you have all the sunshine you need in your doorway at this very moment.

he doesn’t call for you, he just slips off his shoes and pads his way to your bedroom door, which is left slightly ajar to keep air flow circulating throughout the house. the slit of dim light from the hallway gets wider as he lightly pushes your door open.

“how is Y/N today?” he asks, walking around to your side of the bed and taking a seat beside you. you turn to face him with tears brimming your eyelids, threatening to loosen the floodgates, but he notices immediately.

“hey-hey, sit up. c’mere.” he demanded ever so gently. you oblige, wiping your tears away with the sleeve of your shirt.

“what’s got you upset?” he whispers as he pushes the stray hair out of your face with his calloused hands, “what can i do?” he asks.

you hesitate to speak for a moment, embarrassed of what you’re about to admit.

“Danny, i haven’t showered in 6 days. i feel so gross but i don’t wanna leave my bed. i feel so exhausted.” you choke out, tears streaming at this point. “i almost don’t want you this close to me because it’s probably very obvious.” you admit.

“Y/N,” he pauses, a merciful smile splayed across his face. it brings you a small sense of comfort. “it doesn’t matter whether it’s obvious or not, it’s hard to take care of yourself when you don’t have the energy to do so. i understand how it feels. don’t be embarrassed or anything.” he reassures you.

it lifts a small weight off your shoulders, visibly. his eyes gleam a little at the sight of you sitting up a little straighter. it makes you crack a smile for the first time since Sam called you this morning.

you both sit there, letting the silence fill the room. the only audible thing you have to hold onto is the sound of Danny’s steady breathing. by this time, he’s grabbed both of your hands into his and starts rubbing the back of your hands with the pad of his thumb. it’s like he just knows. he knows how to make it all better. the silence brings about an idea- a strange one- but an idea nonetheless.

“this is a strange request, but it’s something you could do.” you speak lowly into the space around the both of you.

“whatever you need, Y/N.” he assures you.

you pause, looking up and your ceiling, debating on whether or not you should speak the thought into existence. “would you mind sitting in the bathroom with me while i shower?” you say, finally.

it takes him a moment to grasp what exactly you’re asking of him, so you feel the need to damage control and elaborate on what exactly you want him to do.

“i don’t mean anything risqué, i just think it might help me if you sit on the counter or something while i shower. kind of like body doubling.” you pause for a moment. “it holds me accountable to complete the task.”

he analyzes your face for a moment, he can tell that you’re starting to get a little nervous, as he hasn’t actually answered your question.

“yeah- yeah, i think i can do that.” he nods his head subtly, a small smile breaks across his face. you’re not sure if it’s because he’s happy that you’re wanting to get out of bed and do something for the first time in almost a week, or if he’s happy that you asked him a favor of that nature.

he gets up from the bed and warns you as he reaches up to pull the ceiling fan chain to turn the light on. you grab your respective necessities: a fresh pair of underwear, set of pj’s, a towel and an old t-shirt to dry your body and hair with. meanwhile, Danny waltzes to your bathroom to start running your shower, making sure it’s comfortably warm for you when you eventually get into it.

you make your way into the bathroom, and he steps out for a moment, grabbing the door handle before closing it, “just to give you some privacy. just call for me when you want me to come back in, okay?” he requests. you nod as he closes the door quietly.

you remove your clothes and throw them in your hamper, almost relieved at the feeling of the fabric no longer touching your skin. you avoid looking at yourself in the mirror, in fear that it’ll talk you out of doing anything in favor of showing yourself some love. you push back the shower curtain just enough to shimmy behind it and finally let the warm water rush over you. you take a deep breath in to fill your lungs with the hot steam. you exhale. so far, so good.

“you can come in now.” you call for Danny. you hear the handle turn and the door click open and close. he shuffles across the bathroom floor and sits atop the closed toilet seat.

“how ya feelin’?” he asks as soon as he sits down.

you snicker tiredly, “first impressions? i’m just glad i can feel something other than my clothes.”

he chuckles, it almost resembles a sigh of relief. you’re trying. and he’s so happy to see you trying.

you make small conversation as you conduct your normal shower routine. he tells you about his week this far and it almost makes you wanna join the real world again. you took a temporary leave of absence from work for two weeks to try and get yourself together after about three days of being on autopilot while slowly sinking into whatever hole you’ve been in for the past week.

“Danny?” you say meekly.

“yeah?” he answered you almost immediately. it made your heart jump a little.

“thank you for being here.” you reply.

he doesn’t say anything for a few seconds, then you hear his lowly tone say “i just want you to be okay, i’ll be here however and whenever you need me.” as the words passed through his lips, the love that dripped from his voice evaporated into the shower steam you slowly breathed in. for the first time in a while, you felt something other than nothing.

“i think i’m ready to get out now, will you hand me my towel, please?” you changed the subject before you started overthinking the moment. you see the towel peel through the slit of the shower curtain and take it from Danny’s hand. you wrap yourself up in your towel, tucking one of the corners back into the towel to hold it in place at your chest. you began to feel exhaustion creep up on you again, and your hair was still sopping wet.

“do you need me to step out for a minute?”

for a reason you’re going to assume was simply feeling too drained, you begin to cry again. you sniffled and he must’ve heard you and known what was happening behind the shower curtain.

“Y/N, what’s wrong? what happened?” he sounded a little panicked, you felt guilty for making him worry.

“i feel like i sound so stupid for this.” you say, nearly sobbing.

“for what?” he asks, concerned. like he was on the edge of his seat.

“i need to dry my hair but i still feel too drained to do the work. i feel so fucking useless! i’m so tired of feeling so useless!” what started as a gentle cry, ended as a temper tantrum.

“Y/N, you’re not useless.” he assured you calmly. “are you covered?” he asked.

“yeah, why?” you asked, not prepared for him to draw back the shower curtain slowly.

“c’mere. let me dry your hair.” he already had the t-shirt in his hands and a soft smile on his face. he grabs both of your hands, “watch your step.” he offers as he looks down to make sure you had the right footing to step out of the tub and onto the bath mat. you both look back up at each other simultaneously, and his hands reach up to your face to push all of the stray strands stuck to your face from the water. he offers a warm smile.

“there you are.” he says, relief woven in his phrase.

in that moment, you could diagnose a present emotion. you could diagnose happiness for the first time in (what felt like) forever. you held back tears, for it was no longer time to cry.

he gently places his hands atop your shoulders and motions you to turn around.

“i’m gonna dry your hair a little, okay?” he says. you nod your head and tip it back just a little so that he can get the under layer of your hair.

his hands tousle through your now damp strands, working diligently to get as much moisture out of your hair as possible. you feel his body heat vanish for a moment and you slump your shoulders at the loss of him being close to you. he returns not half a second later and he begins brushing the ends of your hair gently.

“you don’t have t-“ he cut you off.

“respectfully, if i don’t do it… i’m not sure you will.” he chuckled a little. he was right, you couldn’t even deny it. you chuckled along with him for a brief moment, as the bristles crept up closer and closer to your scalp. when he was done brushing through the tangled, he even parted your hair for you, just as you part it all the time and tamed both sides afterwards.

you turn to face him, unsure of what to do or say. a ‘thank you’ would suffice, but your body moved faster than your brain did, and you pulled him into a hug. he wrapped around you so graciously. he physically made you feel whole. like he glued all of your pieces back together. he planted a gentle kiss on the top of your head and squeezed you just a little tighter before he let go and pulled away just enough to take in your features. he scanned your face for any sign of discomfort, and to his delight, there was none.

“i’m gonna let you change into your clothes and then i’ll come back in if you need me to.” he nodded while slowly peeling himself away from you. he didn’t want to let go, but he didn’t want you to lose your winning streak. you nodded back in agreement and turned toward the counter and quickly dressed yourself after you heard the door close. after your clothes were on, you took the opportunity to brush your teeth. you were pretty good about doing that at least once a day since you fell into your bout, but maybe this would set you back on your normal nightly routine.

after you were done, you opened the door to see Danny stopping mid-pace in front of the door and offering a wide smile. “how do you feel?”

you smile at the sight of him. also, in the name of hopefulness.

“i feel better. very much so.” you exhale slowly, still gleaming a little.

“i’m so glad, you look so… yourself.” he said.

you take in your surroundings for a moment, trying so hard to chain yourself to this present moment. you can feel the way he’s watching you attentively. you got confirmation of that as soon as your eyes landed back on him, because he was already looking at you.

“i love you.” you said, just above a whisper. and not the ‘i love you’ that you give him when you guys part ways or hang up the phone. this felt different as it left your lips.

and he knew exactly what you meant. it’s almost like he was waiting for you to admit it. out of all the close friends you could’ve asked… you asked him. he’s the first person you run to with anything; exciting news, a bad mood, sadness… Danny was your safety net. your truest love. your very best friend. and he knew. and he waited for as long as he had to. for this moment.

he smiles gently, stepping closer to you with caution; he’s reading your expressions like a book. he sees no sign of discomfort, as he inches closer to you to close the gap in between you two, almost completely. he lifts his hand to push the hair in your face back behind your ear once more, traces his fingertips along your jawbone and rests his index finger and thumb on the tip of your chin. he flicks his eyes up and down, from your eyes and back down to your lips. you allow fate to take hold of this moment and stand motionless, your breathing hitching slightly as he inches closer to your face. his eyes flutter closed, yours following close behind. you feel the peaks of his pillow-soft lips ghost over yours. within seconds, his lips are fully attached to yours. if this was the kiss of life, you were revived with great success. you felt the heat in your cheeks radiate and your heart thrum in your chest. it was beautiful; it was missed so dearly.

he pulled away slowly. his eyes fluttered open, bliss warping his vision only for a moment. the caution that lingered previously had returned; he read you for any signs of discomfort before he spoke.

“i love you too. so much. you’ll never understand how much.” he gushed, smiling blissfully.

“i’m so glad you’re here.” you returned the smile.

“right back at you.” he said, pulling you into his chest. you were lost in his heartbeat and the rise and fall motions of his chest.

#greta van fleet #danny wagner #jake kiszka #josh kiszka #sam kiszka #josh gvf #danny gvf #jake gvf #friends to lovers #gvf #gvf fluff #gvf smut #my fic #sam gvf

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vroomvroommbtch · 2 years

Text

From me to you I hate everybody - DR x fem!OC

Masterlist

Summary: Jas loved France until she didn’t, at least not that weekend.

Pairing: Daniel Ricciardo x fem!OC

Warnings: fluff all over the place, dad!Danny and nothing but love with some hints of bad mood.

Word count: 4.6k

A/N: Kids! Vacations started so we have good news in form of a oneshot. Welcome to J&D little world which I decided to call House of memories. I have been dying to work on this two for forever but I never had time bc I was too consumed with M&M🤭 Its gonna be a bunch of oneshots bc I’m seriously too lazy to write another whole story like So it goes😌 Vacations and my hate for Mclaren turned into this thingy right here and I made it mostly in one day so bare with me if its a mess😅. Also should I make a timeline since this is gonna be kind of mixed with So it goes? Let me know? Okay, I hope u like it and let me know what you think? See u soon! 🫶🏻

From me to you I hate everybody.

July 2022.

Hearing Daniel's voice over the radio saying that tired 'I tried' was like the little drop that filled the glass. It wasn't such a bad race considering he made it to the points, but it was more than enough for Jas to want to leave.

Jas never left the garage until Daniel passed on his way to all the media obligations after a race. Since the first day she has stayed at the garage and not hiding at the RedBull hospitality, and after four years of relationships, Jas has stayed there after every single race, no matter how good or bad it was. She stayed through thick and thin, waiting for Daniel with a smile on her face, ready to grab his hand and squeeze it, but for the first time she just couldn't stay.

Not even on the worst days with Redbull she did such a thing, and some days she really wanted to just go away because she didn't want to see anyone there except Michael and Blake, but that day she couldn't handle anymore. She couldn't keep seeing all that orange garage around her. She couldn't handle all that people around her. She just couldn't deal with it to the point that she was disgusted, so she decided to leave.

Jas touched Michael's arm, and as soon as he took his headset off, she said she was going to the hospitality to get Olivia and then back to the motorhome. She could see the worry on her friend's face the second those words left her lips, but she assured everything was fine, that she just needed some air. Daniel didn't need to see her pissed-off face. The last thing he needed was that, so she asked Michael to let Daniel know she was going to be there waiting for him once he was done. And just like that, she left.

She found Maggie and Blake playing with Olivia. She was a little happy sunshine, with a smile on her face as she was in Blake's arms, standing on his legs and trying to grab his glasses. She was a happy almost six months old beautiful sunshine, always smiling like her dad, and Jas was more than happy knowing her daughter completely ignore the bad mood her mom was having. Neither her sister or her friend needed much explanation; they knew Jas and her face said it all, so they just let Jas take Olivia as they assured they would take care of everything with Michael. There was no need to explain how that 'Everything' meant 'Daniel', knowing perfectly fine he was gonna freak out as soon as he saw how her usual spot in the garage was empty.

Jas was sure the first thing Daniel did was text her, way even before any interview or other compromise he had. The sweet little 'Mike just told me. Are you ok? Love you, be there asap' that she received was enough to make her smile for a minute as she walked away from the noise, the cameras and the people, holding her daughter close to her chest, covering her from flashes and pictures. That was the only text she answered. She didn't say anything to Michael, Maggie, or Blake when they texted. She was just too exhausted to talk. She just wanted to go home and lay in bed with her daughter and her fiancée and forget about all that circus, even if for a couple of hours. They were the only two people she really wanted to see that day, even when it was impossible because they had to fly back to Monaco that same night.

At least Jas could have silence for an hour and some stolen minutes. A long hour where all the company she had was Olivia, which was the best company in the whole world. A long hour where she sat on bed, playing with her daughter and covering her perfect face with kisses to make Olivia giggle as she moved her tiny arms and legs. It wasn't until that long hour passed that she heard the door to the motorhome opening.

The giggles and play time were over, and after Jas fed Olivia, she fell asleep right in the middle of the bed while her mother just looked at her and stroked her tummy. But not even the door or the soft knock on the wall letting her know Daniel was finally there took Jas' attention from her daughter. Jas could have taken a nap, too, but like every single day from the moment Olivia was born, she couldn't stop looking at her. Jas couldn't really focus, pretty much lost on her own thoughts as her eyes were fixed on the way Olivia's chest was raising and falling slowly. She didn't want to move, not even knowing Daniel was there to pick them up because they had to fly back to Monaco, even if just for two days. It was in moments like those where Jas was nothing more than thankful for the fact that their daughter was just a baby who still couldn't understand what was happening around with her dad and his job, and damn, how much Jas envied being able to ignore all that.

But Daniel's hand stroking her cheek was what brought her back to reality. It was like a magic trick, but it worked every single time, no matter how badly Jas was feeling. It worked every single time she was so stressed it felt like there was no way out. It worked in the nights when she couldn't get herself to sleep and even when she was exhausted before and after Olivia was born. It had worked every single day and night of the four years they spent together, so it wasn't really a surprise the fact that it worked that Sunday after too. In fact, knowing Olivia and Daniel were safe, by her side and exactly under the same roof as she was where the breeze of fresh air she needed that day.

"Everything suddenly got too much. Too loud and too warm, I guess. I wasn't in the mood to be there at all" Jas explained before Daniel could even ask; eyes still focused on Olivia as she tried to keep it together.

"The fact that your husband had a mediocre race doesn't help" Daniel affirmed softly, kissing her temple as Jas laced their fingers together and placed them over her chest.

"This has nothing to do with you. I'm just having one of those days" she shrugged, squeezing his fingers as she closed her eyes, feeling Daniel's lips against her skin again.

That's how they stayed for some minutes, lost in their own little bubble. Fingers lacing, eyes fixed on their baby girl and soft kisses to remember how they were there for each other. They didn't need any real reminders, not when their eternal reminder was right there by their side, wearing a cute Enchanté turquoise onesie with a pair of baby Vans, being a tiny copy of her dad.

"I was expecting you to explode at some point, y'know? You've been dealing with too much shit" Daniel whispered, breaking the silence of the motorhome.

It would be a lie if Jas didn't say everyone thought she was going to explode soon or later. She was always composed, but deep down all the shit was bubbling, especially the last couple of months and weeks. People always talked, she was used to it, and with time she learned to build a wall around her and them. She learned to make her skin thick because Daniel needed her, but since Monaco everything was going downhill, and she could point exactly at the guilty ones.

But the last thing Daniel needed was her fiancé exploding. He had too many issues, too much weight on his back, and too much pressure, so Jas took deep breath after deep breath waiting for herself to calm down, and it worked. It worked until that afternoon. "I'm just tired. I need to sleep. I need that summer break more than I thought" Jas insisted, turning in the bed to lay on her back and being able to look at Daniel.

What made her feel worse was how tired he looked. The bags under his eyes were too big and too noticeable. He looked exhausted and drained and on any normal day she would drag him to bed to get some rest, but that wasn't a normal day.

"Are you okay?" Jas asked, stroking his cheek with her fingers and then leaving her hand there, holding his jaw as carefully as possible. "You really need to sleep, baby. You really need to get some rest but we can't till we get to Monaco and I'm here laying like we don't have a plane to catch"

"Honey, I love you but stop for a damn sec. I'm alright. The one who's clearly not fine it's you" Daniel stated, stroking her face just like Jas was doing with him, all while their hands were still together, resting against her chest.

And then it came the guilt. Daniel shouldn't be worrying about her. He should be focusing on everything else but her. Her job was to help Daniel so he didn't have to worry about anything, at least on weekends when he should focus on everything except racing. That was her job, but Jas couldn't help but feel like she was failing miserably.

"I'm so sorry, Dan-"

But before she could keep talking, Daniel made her stay quiet with a kiss. It was so slow, so soft, so gentle, and so loving, that it made her mind shut up, even if just for a minute. It was all she needed in that moment to understand that it was good. It was going to be good no matter what happened as long as they were together. That's how it has been since the night they met.

"Hey, there's no need to apologize for anything. You're tired, it's normal. Nobody can blame you, especially not me" Daniel affirmed against her lips, stealing one last kiss as he moved apart just to be able to look at her face. "Let me ask you something. You sure you wanna have a weeding now? We can move it. Summer break, winter break, it's the same thing. We don't need a paper to say we love each other. We never needed one"

That was all Jas needed to suddenly sit down on the bed and drop his hands. She knew Daniel didn't mean wrong. She knew Daniel would never hurt her, but those words were like ice water suddenly falling all over her. They waited years for that moment. Between timing, the pandemic, restrictions and then the pregnancy and Olivia and everything, they had waited years. They waited so long that once Daniel finally proposed they just couldn't wait to do it, so they decided to not wait until winter break and instead do it during the summer break. Olivia was going to be six months by that time, so they thought it would be a good time to have their little dream wedding, surrounded by their families and friends in the place they called home. They thought it was a good idea, but maybe Daniel changed his mind.

"We're getting married in two weeks and you wanna move it? Are you having cold feet on this?" Jas asked, suddenly feeling like the air in the motorhome wasn't enough. The whole oxygen in the world wasn't enough as her chest was raising and falling too damn fast.

"No, babe! I want to marry you since the night we met, so believe me, I can't wait to do it. But-"

Even if Jas felt her soul going back to her body and her heart stop racing inside her heart, this time it was Jas' chance to make Daniel shut up, but she didn't do it with a kiss. Instead, she placed her fingers over his mouth, letting him know it was better to not keep talking. "No buts. We're gonna get married, then we get all the rest we need to come back and kick ass on track"

"You ain't regretting telling me to keep racing, right?" Daniel suddenly asked, between kisses all over her hand, but especially over her engagement ring. It was almost normal to hear Daniel ask such a thing, especially on the worst days. It was also normal for Jas to answer a very simple 'Shut up, babe', but that day she wasn't in the mood, not even for that.

"What's with you and the silly questions, babe?"

"I'm just saying…"

"No, Dan. I don't regret it" she started, getting up from bed because every single time Jas was overthinking and over-worried, she would pace around enough to leave a hole in the floor. "I'm just tired of seeing you work your ass off every single day and all for what? So your team makes a shitty strategy and both you and Lando get stuck behind some car? And then people and your own boss keeps talking shit and it goes on and on and on. You work your ass off at the factory and then you work your ass off at home to be a good husband and a good dad for our baby and to be present as much as possible because I know you're worried as fucking hell to let us down even if you could never do such a thing because you already are the best dad and husband" she rambled, moving her hair from one side to the other as a nervous tic she always had.

"J, princess, c'mon-" Daniel tried to interrupt her, even knowing it was impossible when she was nervous.

"No, you know it's true!" she exclaimed, maybe too loud, almost forgetting their daughter was by their side sleeping. And in those moments was when she was nothing but thankful for the fact that Olivia was a deep sleeper, not like them. "And damn, its not just you working your ass off. Look at Blake! And Mike? That poor boy's working none stop all the damn time to keep you healthy and ready to go while he's also trying to hold Maggie as tightly as possible because poor kid's a mess. He's doing every single possible thing to keep her going because she's also in the verge of losing it. She's running around like a chicken without head, Dan" Jas breathed, feeling the tears threatening to fall from her eyes. "And goddamn, I feel like I should do something else to help you all guys and I don't know what or how. I'm all over the place because Maggie and Mike are a big ass mess and I'm so fucking worried about them and it's their relationship but they're my family and at the same time I need to focus on you and Oli because it's my job. You're my priority and I need to look after you both because if I don't do it what kind of bad mom and wife I am? I can't even sit on that goddamn garage because I'm just tired of seeing everyone just smiling at me like it's all cool when it's not. But I should be able to stay because of you. You need me there, babe. I know you want me there. And then there's mom, dad, grandma, grandpa and our friends and the wedding and I feel a bad daughter and a terrible friend for not being more present for them and now for pulling all this shit on you when you have way bigger problems like driving a shitty car at 300 kilometers per hour at an unhealthy temperature and why I am even letting you do that? What kind of wife I am? What kind of mom I am letting the father of our baby do that?"

It wasn't until she took it all out of her chest that she stopped talking and walking. It wasn't until she was done, she also realized her heart was racing again, just like her mind. She knew Daniel could count with one hand how many times he'd seen Jas like that. The first time was when she had to tell him about the bad encounter she had with Christian Horner during the Monaco GP when Daniel and Jas had been dating for just a couple months back in 2018, which only gave Daniel another reason to leave Redbull. Then when they found out about Michael and Maggie and she had to explain to Daniel why she was so furious about the situation. Then when she found out she was pregnant. And the last was after she had a very long and very uncomfortable talk with Zak Brown. But even when it happened once in a while, Daniel knew what to do. He knew the best thing was to let her talk until it was out of her chest and that's exactly what he did.

"Are you done?" he wondered, getting up from the bed and going straight to her to place both hands on her shoulders.

"I don't know. If you give me another second I'm sure I'll find some other things where I'm failing miserably" Jas breathed, rubbing her face with both hands. Then it clicked. "The next collection! We need to finish asap with the new collection, babe! You're about to drop the rodeo collection and I don't have the next one done!" she exclaimed, pressing her hands over Daniel's chest and grabbing a handful of his shirt.

"When I asked you all those years ago to do this together, I didn't do it for you to freak out, babe. It's supposed to be fun" Daniel stated, looking down at her as he held her hands between his and resting them against his chest.

The memory of all those years ago was what made Jas finally smile in what felt like forever. It felt like it was yesterday when Daniel had the crazy idea to drop his own collection and asked Jas to do it with him because there was no one he trusted to do it more than her, even when Jas had almost no idea about clothes design. It felt like it was just days ago when he had to insist for a damn week to finally convince her to do some simple, cool design to see if they both liked it. It felt like no time passed since that first collection dropped and they worked on another and then another and another. It had been her favorite thing to do, her favorite job so far, and the most rewarding one, even if more than once she freaked out thinking it wasn't good enough. There was nothing as fun and wonderful as working with the man she loved, so it was nothing but a delight, at least almost all the time.

"It's fun ninety percent of the time" Jas shrugged, pretending it wasn't a big deal. "And I thought you did it cause I'm your favorite graphic designer"

"You're my favorite everything, kiddo" Daniel affirmed, kissing her once before he kept talking. "You're my favorite designer, but also the best mom, wife, friend, aunt and sister. And you gotta believe me when I tell you you're there for everyone all the time, J. Nobody knows how the hell you do it but you do, so nobody can say anything about you not being present. Plus, you're a badass. Not much people would've the courage to stand up against some of the most powerful people in Formula 1 and her boyfriend's bosses, and there you were calling out their shit, and not once but twice"

And again, Jas smiled, but this time thanks to the proud look on Daniel's face. Any other guy would probably get mad at his girlfriend for getting in on his business and standing up against his boss, but not him. He didn't do it all those years ago and he didn't do it weeks ago. He was just worried about what his bosses said to Jas, ready to stand up and fight anyone who would mess with the woman he loved more than anyone in the world. Not that Jas needed someone defending her, but Daniel was ready to do it.

"Gimme a chance and I'll do it again. Nobody messes with my baby daddy" Jas murmured, letting go of his hands to place them on his neck, stroking his jaw with her thumbs.

"I know, sweet mama badger" he smiled, placing his arms around her waist, bringing her even closer to his body. "You're a badass and that's one of the things I admire the most about you. That and the fact that you handle all my shit, you pull up with me as I go around racing cars, all while you're handling motherhood like a pro doing most of the things on your own"

"Danny, baby, don't. It's not like that"

"You know it's true. You do most of the things on your own and it's not like when it was just you and me. With the three of us it's just harder. Between the hours I spend at the sim, working, racing and everything else you spend most of the times on your own with Oli. And you do it anyway and never complain about a thing when you totally should, so it's alright if you do it now" Daniel affirmed, moving her hands under her shirt to stroke her back as he kept talking, never moving his eyes away from hers. "Just like it's alright if you're not in the mood to be at the garage. You don't have to if you don't want. And if you don't then that's not gonna change a damn thing. You're the best mom and wife in the world, that's why we love you so much. Thats why I love you so much and I can't wait to finally say this wonderful, smart, beautiful woman's my wife"

"I love you too, D. More than you'll ever know" she smiled, getting in her tiptoes to kiss him. Jas never needed a reaffirmation or a path on the back; everything she did was out of nothing but love and devotion for the man in front of her and then for their daughter. It was her job to look after them and there was nothing she loved more in the world, but to hear Daniel saying those words was all she needed to know she was doing the right thing. It was all she needed to know she wasn't fucking it up. "Sleeping with you that night was seriously the best decision I ever made" she joked, moving her arms around his neck to scratch his head and play with his short curls.

Jas was surprised Olivia didn't wake up by the sound of her dad's laugh. It was the next thing Jas needed to feel better and like every single time, it worked wonders. "Na, it's the second best. The first one is right there, sleeping like she doesn't need to get her tiny ass on a plane" Daniel affirmed, pointing with his head to Olivia.

And like every single night when they put her in her crib, they couldn't help but stay in each other's arms, just looking at her, still not believing she was real and with them. "We did a cute one, uh?"

"Cute? Look at her face. She's the most beautiful baby in the world!"

"She is. Besides those dimples and curls made her even cutter, just like her daddy" Jas smiled, looking from Olivia to Daniel and then back to their daughter. Everyone said Olivia looked like Jas. Everyone said she was her mother's face, but the youngest Ricciardo had her dad's brown eyes, his dimples and his cheeky smile. Besides, even if they weren't crazy and defined as Daniel's, Olivia inherited the brown curls, but they were more like a waved version of it. But Jas favorite thing was how Olivia also took the always-smiling thing from her dad. She was always giggling and smiling, which made everyone say she was nothing but a sunshine of a baby.

"Beautiful as her mum and pa" Daniel affirmed, kissing Jas' head. "Do you trust me?" he suddenly asked, looking back at Jas with the sweetest expression on his handsome face.

"You came inside me the first night we met, I started to travel the world with you not even six months after dating and then I moved in with you not even after one year and there you ask if I trust you" Jas joked, getting in her tiptoes again to kiss his cheek as she moved her arms from his neck to his waist to hug him.

"We were insane for that. But trust me when I say everything's gonna be alright. There's nothing you and me can't fix"

Has couldn't help but nod at his words. There was nobody she trusted as much as Daniel. They had been through roller coasters after roller coaster and they always made it work together no matter what the problem was or how hard things were, so she knew that was just another hard time in their story. "I know it's gonna be alright and I know there's nothing we can fix. I just miss home. I wanna lay down in our bed" she shrugged, getting out of her chest another of the things that were haunting her. Home was anywhere she was with Daniel and Olivia, but she missed Perth. She missed her favorite place in the world and being there with her favorite people.

"I know you do, kiddo. I miss it too, but just some days and we'll be there. Can you do that for me?" Daniel asked, kissing her forehead, then the tip of her nose, and lastly her lips.

"Just for you"

"You're the absolute best. Bestest of best in the world"

"I know" she shrugged, closing her eyes as she rested her head on his chest. She knew they didn't have much time left; she knew they had to go soon, and that meant going back to reality, so she took the chance to enjoy the last minutes of silence, but especially the last minutes of not sharing her husband with the world. "Remember when you told me you were thinking about switching to Renault?"

"I do. You told me if we had to move to France then we were going to move to France" Daniel remembered, kissing her forehead as they thought of those years that seemed like centuries ago.

"Exactly. And you told me 'I know you love Paris, but the Renault factory is in UK, princess'. That's how much I know about F1" Jas giggled, feeling as silly as she felt that day for having zero idea about ninety percent of all the things related to Daniel's work. Four years later she knew like a 30 percent more, but that was it.

"All I know it's you were all ready to make your bags and go to France with me. You've no idea how happy I was to hear you say that" he smiled, looking down at her with nothing but love in his brown eyes.

"I'm still ready to pack and go anywhere you want, but I don't really like France today" she murmured as a sad smirk appeared on her face.

"What about we grab our baby girl we get out of here?" Daniel offered, and those were probably the best words she heard in the whole damn day.

"Alrighty, let's get out of this shit hole" Jas affirmed, the slightest Aussie accent she kind of adopted with the years appearing at her finest in one single phrase, making Daniel smile even more.

"That's my wife!" he exclaimed, kissing her once more before they let each other go, ready to forget about that French weekend.

#daniel ricciardo #daniel ricciardo imagine #daniel ricciardo one shot #formula one #formula 1 #formula 1 fic #formula one fic #f1 #f1 fanfic #formula one imagine #formula 1 imagine #formula 1 oneshot #f1 imagine #f1 oneshot

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age-of-greta · 1 year

Text

The Moon

The Moon represents illusion and deception, and therefore often suggests a time when something is not as it appears to be. Perhaps a misunderstanding on your part, or a truth you cannot admit to yourself.

Author’s note: hi!! welcome back to the moon! Things are falling into place now… as always, I proofread but typos happen. No posting schedule for this one. But all parts will be posted Wednesdays at midnight EST. How about them teasing us with this new album huh???? Anyway! Enjoy :)

Parings: Sam x reader & Jake x reader

Warnings: cursing, alcohol consumption, drug use, angst

Word count: 3.1k

PART 7:

It’s been two days since what happened with Jake. You haven’t spoken to him since. You had a brief conversation with Danny about their trip, but that was about it. You felt like you were going crazy. Did you hallucinate the things that happened between you and Jake? The things he said to you? It was all you could think about. There was so much anxiety in your body at all times hoping he would call or text you. Which is why when your phone rang you nearly jumped out of your skin. But it was Sam. You answered.

“Hey Birdie. What are you up to this fine morning?”

You clear your throat in an attempt to sound normal. “Nothing too exciting. Just working through some emails.”

Sam scoffs. “Sounds positively enthralling. So, funny story, I was unpacking my bags and I came across the stringiest black bikini I think I have ever seen. For a minute I got it confused with mine, but then I checked the size and realized it must be yours from the beach trip.”

You chuckle at his antics. “Oh shit yeah I definitely thought I had left it in the airbnb. I’m glad to know it’s safe and sound with you though. Sorry I must have thrown it in your bag or something.”

Sam laughs. “It’s quite alright. Would you like for me to bring it to you?”

Then a devious idea pops into your head.

“Actually, you know what? I can come by and grab it. I have to head over there anyway to stop by the office within the next hour.” You lie.

“Yeah sure, cool.” Sam says. “I’ll see you soon then?”

“Mhm I’ll be leaving here in a bit. I’ll bring over an early lunch.” You say, thinking of ways you could stall in the house.

“Birdie, you’re too good to me.” Sam says.

Then you hang up and sprint into your bathroom. Thankfully, you had already showered and done your hair. You really did need to go by the office, but that wasn’t until later. But you couldn’t wait. You had to see Jake. You had to know how he would react. You threw on a black skirt with a white tank top and a light knit cardigan. Then you threw on a pair of tall black boots, chunky gold hoops, and did some makeup. Finally you sprayed yourself down and threw on your sunglasses. This was record timing that you were ready. On the way you stopped by and got you and Sam salmon bowls from a local cafe. Then you arrived at their house. You saw Jake’s car sitting there and a wave of hope ran through your body. You collected yourself and went up to the door. You were greeted by Sam.

“You look lovely per usual.” He says, embracing you in a hug.

“Why thank you. I brought us salmon bowls.” You say holding up your offering.

Sam takes the food bag from you and says. “You’re an angel.” Before escorting you to the kitchen.

Josh and Danny are in the living room, but there’s no sign of Jake.

“Damn you didn’t bring your own cousin anything?” Danny asks, throwing his hands up in faux disbelief.

You chuckle. “Hey I’m repaying a favor here.”

He waves his hand off at you while Josh gives you a big smile. You and Sam sit down at the island and he immediately goes into conversation. You try to listen and participate, but your eyes are wandering around the house. Where is he? You continue to poke around at your bowl.

“Something on your mind?” Sam asks, in a lower voice.

You shake your head. “No, I'm good. It’s just been a strange past few days with work and all.”

“Well if you need a little escapism just know I’m your guy. We can go anywhere you want.” Sam offers.

You smile at him. For a moment Sam had made you feel better. You felt grounded. But that was yanked right out after you once you heard their front door unlatch. In walks Jake with a cocky smirk on his face. Then Danny and Josh start clapping and cheering at him.

“I take it your night went well?” Josh says, in a tone you can’t quite describe.

“Oh you bet your ass it did. Look at him, she did a number on him.” Danny chimes in, nudging Josh.

She?

Jake laughs. He doesn’t see you yet.

He opens his mouth to speak, but his eyes look over at Sam- then he sees you. Immediately that smirk is gone off of his face. You can tell by his demeanor and disheveled appearance he had just come back from sleeping with someone. You feel your heart physically shatter.

Jake quickly approaches you. “I didn’t know you were here.”

You nod your head. “Yeah I’m just grabbing something from Sam.”

“Oh shit, yeah let me go get that.” Sam says, getting up.

Jake just stares at you, he looks concerned. Like he knows how fucked up all of this is. You stare back at him blankly. Neither one of you speak a word to one another. Then Sam is back.

“Here you go. I was going to wash it, but with all of these strings I didn’t know how that would go.” Sam says.

You snap yourself out of your trance and force a smile on your face. “Thank you Sam. I actually better be off. I still have to go by the office. I’ll catch you later though.”

Sam boos you. “But you just got here!”

“Not all of us can live the lifestyle of a rockstar.” You say through a chuckle, but then immediately glare into Jake’s eyes after.

Jake sucks in his cheeks and hangs his head down a bit. You say your goodbyes and then get out of these as fast as you can. You don’t even make it to your car before the tears start flowing. You didn’t make it into the office that day.

You were gutted. It had been days since you left your apartment. You spoke to Margo briefly and then shut off your phone, only answering emails that you needed to for work. Honestly you weren’t even too sure what day it was. You decided today you would try to be a little better. So you got in the shower. You really ended up just sitting down until the water turned cold, but you did manage to bathe. Then you brushed your teeth and combed your hair. You slapped on some moisturizer and decided that was good enough. Then you changed into a huge t-shirt and sleep shorts. With your wet hair still dripping down your back, you decided you needed some tea. So you began the process of making green tea and threw a bagel in the toaster while you were up. It was bad, but you had absolutely neglected your body while you were wallowing in self-pity. If you ate, it was nothing more than a bag of chips or whatever candy you found in your drawer. When all of your things were ready, you decided to sit at your table and eat. It was a sunny day out, maybe you would go for a walk. You think the sadness had left your body, now you only harbored anger and resentment. You hated feeling this way, but nothing could change your mind. Then, your doorbell rang. You had no idea who it would be, but a small part of you hoped it was Jake. Hoping he would be there saying it was all a misunderstanding. That he’s sorry. But when you opened the door you saw Sam.

Sam doesn’t say anything at first. He just stares up at you, maybe even a little concerned. Then finally, he hits you with a “Hi.”

“Hi. Danny isn’t here.” You say softly.

Sam makes a face at you. “I know that. Can I come in?”

You nod your head and allow him inside. Your place could have been cleaner, that’s for sure. But Sam never said a word about it.

“Birdie. Are you okay? You’ve been radio silent the past few days. I came over to check on you because I was worried.” Sam says as soon as he’s inside.

“I’m fine. Just have a lot going on right now.” You say, not really looking Sam in the eye.

He bites his lip. “Do you want to talk about it?”

You shake your head. “No actually. I think that’s the last thing I want to do.”

“Okay.” Sam says, walking off to your living room and plopping down.

You huff a laugh. “What are you doing?”

Sam smiles up at you. “Not talking about it.”

You smile at him. You think it’s the first time in days that your mouth has made this shape.

“I’m not going to let you sit here and mope around on such a beautiful day. Go put on some outside clothes.” Sam says.

“Sam-“ you start.

“Nope!” He says, putting his hand up. “I’m not hearing it. Come on now, daylight is wasting.”

A part of you wants to just go crawl into bed. But you decide to do as Sam says. You hair is almost dried at this point, so you let it go naturally wavy. Then pull out a simple sage green sundress. It’s spaghetti strapped and linen material that comes to your lower thigh. You decide to forgo a bra and slip on brown sandals with it. You put on a small gold necklace and some pearl studs. Then slap on concealer, a little bronzer, and brushed through your lashes. This was all you had energy for so you decided it was good enough. On the way out you grabbed a pair of tortoise shell sunglasses and sprayed yourself with perfume.

You came back to Sam about twenty minutes later announcing you were ready. He complimented you and then you were off. You really didn’t know where exactly you were going, but it felt good to leave your house.

Sam didn’t talk much on the way there. He just put on music and asked you if it was okay if he rolled the windows down. You said yes. Before long you couldn’t tell what hair was yours and what was Sam’s when the wind was flowing through, but it felt peaceful. The sun on your face, wind through your hair, music playing softly like the soundtrack of your life. You looked over briefly at Sam. He had a content smile on his face and gripped the wheel with one hand. You took in a deep breath and thought everything was going to be okay.

Eventually, Sam had pulled up outside of a park.

“Ready?” He asked, unbuckling his seatbelt.

You smile and nod.

You two casually stroll onto the sidewalk. It was a nice day, so there were quite a few people about. Children were playing and riding bikes. Many people were walking their dogs. Sam couldn’t help but smile and say hello to any dog he saw. That made your heart feel warm.

“So Birdie, how would you feel about ice cream?” Sam asked.

You pretend to contemplate. “Hm. I guess I wouldn’t protest.”

“Great. Because the reason I took you here was for that.”

He turns you and points about fifty yards to your left. There is an ice cream truck with a giant cow on the top.

“You’ve been here before?” You ask.

Sam shakes his head. “No, but it’s listed on trip advisor in the top ten of hidden date sites in Nashville.”

Sam’s cheeks grow pink and he doesn’t say anything else. It’s like he suddenly realized how he worded that.

You notice, but opt to make him feel comfortable so you smile. “Well let’s go.”

You had gotten a strawberry cone while Sam went with a pistachio cone. You two had made your way to a bench. Licking up your ice cream in comfortable silence.

“If you want to talk about what’s bothering you, I hope you know I’ll listen.” Sam suddenly says, softly.

You glance over at him then sigh. “It’s really nothing. Some guys just suck.”

It’s quiet for a moment, then Sam speaks. “Fuck em. Whoever it is, I’m certain you deserve better. Hell, you deserve the world Birdie. Don’t ever settle.”

You smile and reach over, putting your hand on his and give it a squeeze. “Thank you Sammy- and thank you for making me get out today. I feel better.”

Sam smiles and nods. “It’s the ice cream isn’t it?”

You let out a laugh. “Yes, most definitely the ice cream.”

You and Sam had walked around the park for a while until the light began to fade. Truthfully, you had forgotten mostly about your broken heart. You had been caught up in the conversation with Sam. Talking about anything and everything. You had decided to go back to your house to order food and watch a movie.

“Pizza?” Sam asked, sitting down at your counter while you got some seltzers for you two.

Your stomach fell at that. “Pass.”

“Okay. What about Chinese?”

You hum. “Vegetable fried rice and spring rolls?”

Sam smiles. “You’ve got yourself a deal. I’m going to call them. Go change into something comfy.”

You nod and Sam heads outside to call them. You pad back to your room. It feels good to take off the dress and be comfortable. That’s what it was like with Sam, comfortable. You opted for a pair of knit shorts with a large t-shirt. No bra, but the shirt was big enough that it wasn’t super noticeable. Then a pair of fluffy socks. When you headed back out Sam was back on your couch, smirking at you.

You give him a look. “What?”

“The food should be here in about twenty minutes, but I do have some party favors. If that interests you of course.” Sam retorts.

You let out a laugh. “Oh Sam I don’t know if you can keep up.”

“Me? I don’t think you’ll be able to hang Birdie.”

“Glad to see we’re both still degenerates.” You say, sitting down next to Sam.

He smiles at you. “Me too. But let’s eat first so at least we can taste this food. Do you have snacks?”

“Oh yes Sammy. In fact I have nothing but snacks. We will be good to hole up here for the night.”

Sam chuckles. “Perfect.”

The rest of the night consisted of you and Sam eating, smoking, eating again, watching documentaries, smoking again, and eating some more. You had both overcompensated on your tolerance, trying to impress the other. At the end of the night you insisted Sam stay and you both had a sleepover in your living room. It felt nice not to be alone. You had dozed off with your head on Sam’s shoulder, and you woke up in a similar position.

The sun was bright as you batted your eyes. Your mouth was insanely dry. It was hot. Then you realized why. You were in a ball on your couch and Sam was right next to you. You glanced up, he was still out. You needed to stretch so you quietly got up. You pinched your shoulder blades together and felt a satisfying crack. Then you made your way to grab a bottle of water, you drank the whole thing. After you went to pee and brushed your teeth. After you headed back into the living room and laughed at the scene. There were snack wrappers everywhere, blankets strewn about, the tv was still on, and Sam cramped on the couch. You covered him up and began cleaning. It was only a matter of minutes before he was awake.

“Good morning Birdie.” Sam says stretching up.

“Hi Sammy. Happy to know you survived.” You say with a smile.

He laughs. “Yeah me too. But I am going to steal a water.”

Then he’s up heading for your kitchen. He also slams a whole bottle then rejoins you. He jumps right in and helps you clean up everything. He even lights a candle to try and help with the faint odor leftover.

“Can I take you to breakfast?” Sam asks.

That makes your heart beat a little irregular.

“Yes.” You say with a smile.

Sam freshens himself up and you change. Then you’re both at a pancake house. Smiling and giggling at one another over coffee and hash browns. Giddy. That’s the only word you could think of to describe it. Sam had made you feel so at ease. He was caring, sweet, thoughtful, dependable. That was swirling in your head as you listened to him tell you a story about a camping trip he took. His smile made you smile. His laugh made you laugh. You were realizing that you were feeling…feelings? Is that what it was? Or was it a rebound from Jake? Just something to fill the void? You tryed not to think about it too much, but this was different than what you felt for Jake. But you had no idea how to formulate that into words.

“And then a fucking fire broke out from that idiot not dumping water on the embers. I single handedly stopped a massive wildfire from breaking out by sacrificing my favorite flannel.”

You giggled. “So you’re saying you’re the next Smokey the Bear?”

“Damn right. Sammy the lumberjack who was on mushrooms.”

You laugh again at him.

“Can I get y’all anything else?” The waitress asks.

“No ma’am. Just a check please.” Sam responds.

The waitress rips off your ticket and lays it on the table.

Sam picks it up without hesitation and pulls out his phone and wallet. “So I was thinking.” He says. “Would you like to get dinner later maybe? I have to run by the studio for a bit to work on some keys, but after I would like to take you to this vegetarian cafe. You don’t have to if you don’t want to or anything-“

“I’d love to.” You say with a smile.

Sam smiles back at you and lets out a breath. “Great. Ah shit, do me a favor Birdie. My phone is dead. Can you calculate twenty percent?”

You nod and begin to dig through your bag. You hadn’t really touched your phone in a few days. You turned it on and immediately became bombarded with messages. A few from Margo, Sam, one from Danny, and then…fuck.

One from Jake.

Can we talk?

That was it. He sent it yesterday. Nausea washes over you.

“You okay?” Sam asks, brows furrowed.

You swallow. “Yeah, yeah. What was the total?”

Sam told you and you calculated it, then turned your phone off again. You knew you couldn’t continue on like this.

You had to let it go.

You had to let Jake go.

***

• thank u for reading :)

#greta van fic #greta van fleet #greta van fleet fic #jake gvf #jake kiszka #jake kiszka x reader #sam gvf #sam kiszka #sam kiszka x reader #the moon #jake x reader #sam x reader #jake kiszka fic #sam kiszka fic #Sammy kiszka fic

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scribeoffate · 2 months

Note

for the valentines ficlets truedemon + catfishing the hell out of them online leading up to the holiday pls?

Thanks for the prompt, anon!

Cut for explicit rating and vibes BDSM elements.

"Let me get this straight," Stiles says, leaning back in his desk chair and crossing his arms across his chest.

"I don't know that there's anything straight about it," Scott retorts.

He has Mystery Man's page open. There's no face in the picture, just his chest and abs and a picture of him- or someone, holding an erect cock that Scott has gotten off to more times than he wants to think about.

"That is not the point. The point is, you've never seen his face. You've never heard his voice. Those may or may not be pictures, but you get off on him telling you what to do." Stiles pauses. "AND he thinks you're in your late 30s?"

"And that my name is Miguel."

Stiles shakes his head. "Rude, using Derek's pseudonym like that."

"You using the name twice to lie to my dad and Danny doesn't make it *his*."

Stiles sighs. "And he wants to meet you at the club downtown tonight? And since you are not in your mid-thirties, but in fact, nineteen, you need a fake ID? And you think I can get one on next to notice?"

"Can you?"

"Scotty, of course I can. But what if he's some kind of serial killer?"

Scott flashes his eyes. "I think I can handle myself, don't you?"

Stiles shuffles through items on his desk before shoving him a card, with his name on it. The picture is close enough and makes Scott twenty-three.

Stile shrugs. "Lydia and I made everyone fake IDs after the fiasco in Mexico. We figured they might come in handy one day. Do NOT tell her that this is why I gave it to you."

Scott takes the card. "If he really were a serial killer, she'd know."

Stiles throws his hands up. "Will it help at all to tell you to be careful?"

Scott pockets the ID and types a message agreeing to meet Mystery Man at nine. "I"m always careful."

Scott doesn't tell Stiles the other details. About how the man ordered him to wear a butt plug and black briefs. Or the instructions to wear a black tank top, tight jeans and trainers. He'd had to look up what trainers meant and wondered if Mystery Man was British.

The idea of the man telling Scott what to do in an accent was almost enough to tip Scott over the edge, but the man had also told him not to come.

Scott's still hard when he makes his way to the club. The bouncer barely glances at his ID.

How will I know it's you, he types into his phone.

I'll know you, if you followed your orders

Scott's cheeks heat as he makes his way to the bar. He doesn't really want anything to drink, it doesn't do anything anyways.

why don't you dance? there's a group of attractive young men in the corner

you want me to dance with other men?

i want you to as you're told

then why phrase it as a question

Scott orders a Coke from the bar and watches the dots on his text message.

very well, if you must be so cheeky about it. join the young men, grind against at least two of them and find an excuse to lose your shirt before the next song is over

Scott swallows a drink of his soda and makes his way to the dance floor. The song's bassline thumps loudly against his enhanced hearing. He looks around for where Mystery Man might be while grinding against the nearest guy, who is definitely into it.

It doesn't really take that much to work up a sweat; the club is filled with bodies, and the dancing is rigorous and fast-paced. He peels off his shirt right as the song ends. He feels his phone buzz against his pants.

very good

Scott flushes from the praise. There's too many bodies to make out where his date might be hiding.

leave the shirt with a lucky young man and meet me in the allewya

Scott ignores Stiles's voice in his head, screaming about serial killers. If the man wants to hurt him(more than he wants), Scott can just scare him away. He gives the man he'd been grinding against the shirt with a sheepish smile before walking away.

The man smells disappointed but turns back to dancing quickly.

Scott finds his way to the side exit, into the alley.

It takes a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dim light. Strong arms grab him from behind.

"Has no one ever told you it's dangerous to meet strangers in alleyways? Miguel."

Scott's heart thumps wildly. He'd recognize that condescending voice anywhere. "I guess it's a good thing we aren't strangers."

Deucalion chuckles and runs a hand down Scott's side, tugging at his jeans. "I suppose we are not. In fact, we are rather, *intimately* acquainted. I've watched the videos you sent me frequently."

Scott doesn't resist as Deucalion tugs his jeans the rest of the way down, leaving him exposed, cock straining against his briefs.

"When did you know it was me?"

"Would you believe I didn't know for certain until this evening?"

"Does it matter if I do?"

Deucalion pulls at Scott's briefs and rips them away with claws. He's not careful and scratches Scott's skin enough that he smells blood. Scott's cock pulses.

Deucalion slides the butt plug out and slams into Scott without warning. "I thought you'd resist a little more than this," he whispers, grasping Scott's hips and thrusting.

"You gave it away early on," Scott gasps, "would you believe I knew it was you the second time we talked?"

Deucalion fists Scott's hair. He bites Scott's neck hard enough to hurt before answering. "Does it matter if I do?"

#teen wolf #scott mccall #deucalion #truedemon #the way this is very inspired by a current wip #but anyways banter is a genre okay #stiles stilinski

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moxleys-darlin · 1 year

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Do You Still Love Me? (1/?): The Birthday Boy's Escape

Pairing: implied Shield/BCC/Renee

Summary: It's Yuta's birthday, he should be celebrating, but he and Bryan are fighting again.

Disclaimer: I don't claim anything but the idea; characters (unfortunately) and gifs aren't mine.

(Gifs belong to AEW and @allelitewrestlings)

Yuta watches Bryan leave the locker room as soon as they are able to cut the chains off, letting the door slam behind him. He knows that Bryan is worried about Mox, but he can't help but think that he's trying to get away from Yuta as fast as he possibly can.

"It'll be alright sunshine. He's only worried about Jon, he'll come back around and we will continue the conversation, settle this once and for all." Yuta leans into Regal's hand and almost purrs when those long fingers scratch at his scalp.

"Besides, it's your birthday, mein Liebling (my love), we should be celebrating you. So let us put this aside for the moment and take you home, we have a surprise for you later tonight."

Claudio comes up behind him, wrapping his strong arms around Yuta's stomach and shoulder. Yuta leans back against his Swiss lover, relaxing his body and trying to calm his thoughts, but one is very prominent.

"I think I want to see Mox real quick and then I'll come back here," Yuta sees Regal out of his peripheral jerk his head up at that. "I promise I'm not going to start anything or fight with Bryan, I'm too tired to do that again. I just want to check on Mox and maybe talk to Renee."

"Of course, sunshine, do you want us to come with you?"

"I'll be back soon," he says, getting up after Claudio unwraps his arms from around Yuta. "Don't look so sad, mon cheri (honey), I'll be back soon." He lays his hand on Claudio's cheek, tapping it when his lover laughs at his attempt at French.

"We really need to work on your pronunciations, darling." Claudio chuckles again as he watches Yuta grab his phone and wallet.

"You're the one teaching me French, sweetheart, so I blame you."

Yuta leaves the locker room, hearing a conversation had started between Claudio and Regal, probably about the situation, but he tunes it out. He runs into Danny on his way to medical, trying to just walk by him, but is jerked to a stop by a hand clutching his upper arm.

"Danny-"

"Are you okay, Wheeler? I saw the confrontation, you didn't deserve that, especially not today." Danny speaks low, knowing that anyone could walk by and hear them.

"I'm fine, everything's fine, Danny. Thank you for the concern though." Yuta tries to walk away but is stopped again.

"Hey, listen. We're still friends. okay? We always promised we'd never let any of this get in the way, so if you ever need a place to crash or get away, just text me."

"Work and friendship separate, yeah. Thanks Danny, I really appreciate it." Yuta ducks his head slightly and feels Danny squeeze his arm before releasing him.

"Happy birthday, Philly." Yuta lets out a surprised grunt at Danny's hug before returning it.

"Thanks, Death." He whispers quietly into his friend's shoulder before letting him go and walking toward to medical bay.

He hears them talking, but can't make out what is being said and decides to just walk in. His heart skips a beat at the sight in front of him, staring at the scene of Bryan running his fingertips around Mox's face, neck, and shoulders. He loves to see his lovers when they are focused on one another, any of them in any combination, it lets him know how loved they all are. He clears his throat gently to get the men's attention and his heart freezes at the ice that enters Bryan's eyes as he makes eye contact with Yuta.

"Hey Pup, coming to check up on me too? You should be getting ready to go home, we have a surprise for you tonight."

"Yeah, Claudio told me there was something, I was just really worried; I know how hard Morrisey can hit so I wanted to see you for myself." Yuta is surprised to see sadness flicker through Bryan's eyes, but he ignores it when he watches the anger flash through Mox's.

"I swear-" Yuta puts his hand up to stop Mox's tirade.

"Hey, we already talked about this, none of you could have known what was happening, you two were getting ready, Claudio was hurt, and Regal was going between all three of you. I wasn't gonna let Max talk about Regal like that." Yuta shakes his head. "But really, I just wanted to check on you and see for myself that you were okay, but you're in good hands so I'm going to head back to the locker room."

"Hey, c'mere birthday boy." Mox rumbles and opens his legs so that Yuta can slot himself in between them.

Mox grabs the back of his neck and kisses him sweetly, and Yuta whimpers unexpectantly. Mox chuckles as he leans away, and Yuta tries to follow him but steadies himself. His hurt lover takes pity on him and kisses him again, this time with more bite.

"I love you Pup, and I can't wait to celebrate with you when we get home," Mox says as he leans back again. "I'm sure we're all going to have fun and drop things for the night, right Bry?" Yuta freezes momentarily, forgetting that Bryan was still here.

Bryan just continues to lean against the wall, looking at the floor like he doesn't hear Mox speaking to him. Yuta whimpers again, closing his eyes so he can't see Bryan, but shakes his head to clear the dark thoughts in his brain. He can hear Mox sigh and start to berate Bryan, but Yuta puts his hand on Mox's arm to stop him.

"Just- get checked out and we'll go home, okay Moxie?"

Yuta runs his hand down Mox's arm until he reaches his hand and squeezes, kisses Mox on the forehead, and then leaves the room. He can hear Mox yelling at Bryan, but he doesn't hear anything from Bryan. He feels wet trails fall down his cheeks, but he doesn't wipe them away. He pulls out his phone and sends a quick message, surprised when the response is almost instant.

Philly 🤛: Can I crash with you tonight?

Red Death 🤜: 205, Hilton, I’m rooming alone.

Yuta's tears flow faster, and he decides to leave his things so he doesn't have to return to the locker room. He puts his head down and walks as fast as possible without looking suspicious. He almost makes it out the door when he accidentally knocks into someone's shoulder.

"Hey watch- Yuta? Yoots, are you okay? Hey, why are you crying? Talk to me, Wheeler!"

Yuta feels his throat close up, and he truly starts to cry when he feels arms wrap around him and his face pressed into a familiar neck. He doesn't know how long they're there before he can make himself stop crying. He picks his head up and stares at Chuck, surprised.

"Feel better, son?" Chuck brushes the fringe off Yuta's forehead when they step back from the hug.

"Yeah," Yuta sniffs softly. "Thanks Chuck, I don't know where that came from."

"You shouldn't be crying on your birthday, Yuta, that's like, against the law or something." Yuta laughs, almost forcing it so he can feel something but sadness. It's almost a perfect moment until-.

"So, guess it's not so great being one of the best wrestlers, is it? Bet you're wishing you were still a Best Friend, huh Yoots?"

"Trent," Yuta puts his hand up to stop Chuck.

"Thank you for that Chuck, I think I really needed a hug from my dad, so thank you, I gotta go though, birthday plans with friends." Yuta quickly hugs Chuck again and breezes past Trent without acknowledging him and heads out the doors. He hears his phone chime and recognizes it as the polycule's notification sound. He steals a glance at his screen, then silences his phone and puts it in his back pocket, feeling the vibrations as his lovers realize he should have been back by now.

Polycule ❤️ (Yuta’s Phone)

His Lordship 👑: Darling, where are you?

Swiss Machine ☕️: Amoureux (lover)?

Wild Thing 😡🩸📌: What are y’all talking about?

Where’s the pup?

Renee 🎤😇: Yuta, sweetheart?

Big Dog 🐺: What is going on?

Charming 🤓☕️: Baby, please answer

Dragon ❤️🐉: Wheeler? Please… where are you?

I was feeling super angsty after a long night at work, so have a sad Yuta, basing this off what happens after relationship counseling by Mama Claudio and Daddy Regal and after Mox got jumped by the Firm.

I was sad so Yoots had to be sad, and then Trent had to be a jerk *waves hand* do with it what you will lol

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy! Much love! Also wanna give this one to @blackpoolcombatwriter for keeping my soul fed with their wonderful BCC series 😘

#the shield/bcc/renee poly #blackpool combat polycule #blackpool combat club #the shield #birthday boy yuta #jon moxley #roman reigns #wheeler yuta #seth rollins #bryan danielson #william regal #claudio castagnoli #all the tags #daniel garcia #the best friends

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mrs-mikko-rantanen · 3 years

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All I wanted was to listen to se music and shoot some arrows into oblivion like I did when I was an angsty 14yo. Is that asking too much?????

#ugghh #i just #want to shoot so bad it hurts #and i dont want to junp yhrough a ton of hoops to do it #and dannys always all 'texte if you need anything before i leave work' so i texted her like 3 hours ago #bc like at very least id be able to try to do some work on the fixerupper bow #but she texts back 'oops we just closed and i didnt see this sorry'#so like now i dont even have that #uugh #i should not be this upset #and YET #and yet here we fcking are

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dyns33 · 2 years

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Little Devil

I said I wouldn’t do a De-aged Matt story.

I lied to myself.

Matt had always refused to work with a team.

He was a lone wolf, he didn't need anyone.

Besides, with his enhanced senses, it made things complicated if he had to focus on both enemies and allies at the same time.

He also didn't want to have to explain to them why he didn't really know what they looked like, or why he couldn't read, or understand the signs they were making with their hands.

No, working alone was fine.

So, no Avengers, ever.

The Defenders ? It was just once in a while, when he knew he could need some back-up.

And Spiderman ? He wasn't teaming up with Spiderman, Matt just wanted to make sure the kid didn't get hurt.

But the rest of the time, Matt is on his own. He didn't need anyone. He had said it very often to Peter, Danny, Luke and Jessica. Karen and Foggy. Y/N too.

They were all going to fucking annoy him with all this when this story was over, if this story was over one day.

For, during a mission against the Hand, a mission he had chosen, and for which Danny and Peter had insisted on following him against his consent, he had been touched by some magic, and he had been de-aged.

A child of about ten years old. Already blind. Not really knowing how to fight, being totally lost in the middle of the combat zone. Looking for his father, before remembering his father was dead. Then searching for Stick.

As Danny fended off the enemies, Spiderman managed to grab him and lead him to safety. Then they called Doctor Strange.

The wizard didn't know what to do. The spell they had put on Matt was weird.

Because Matt, even though he was a kid again, remembered some things.

He knew he was a lawyer. He knew he could trust Peter and Danny.

When they called him, he recognized Foggy's voice.

But all this does not completely help to calm him down. He was screaming, and crying, and hitting, didn't liking those grown-ups who were talking about him and touching him, and telling him things he didn't understand.

Then a voice came to his mind. A smell. A name. And without having to think, he knew he needed to see this person and only this person.

"I want Y/N !" he cried, curling up on Danny's couch, refusing to move.

"Matt..." Foggy sighed. "I don't know if..."

"I want Y/N ! Y/N !"

Foggy sighed again, but agreed to text Y/N.

Then he took the others aside, quickly writing a few things on a piece of paper, since he knew that if he spoke, Matt would hear him.

Matt remembered Y/N, who was a good, nice person, whom he loved more than anything, with whom he had a relationship. Matt did not remember that it was no longer really the case. For the relationship part.

Y/N and him had broke up. For many months now. They didn't speak to each other at all. Foggy didn't know the details. He didn't know if she would come and he was afraid of little Matt's reaction when he found out.

But Y/N was really nice and she came.

"Thank you, really thank you for helping him." Foggy repeated, greeting her in the hallway of Matt's apartment. They had managed to convince the kid to go these, to see if he would remember anything else while being in a familiar place.

"Please, I'm not a monster Foggy, give me some credit. Of course I'll help him."

It was obvious that Y/N wasn't totally thrilled to be there. She had left for a good reason, and she had no desire to fall under Matt's charm again. Even though she still loved him and cared about him, worrying a lot. Lots of worries. That was partly why she left.

But when the little boy heard her come in and started crying as he ran towards her, throwing himself into her arms, repeating her name like a prayer and begging her not to leave him, it was difficult to resist.

She promised anyway, because she wasn't going to abandon a child in distress. Much less a blind child who had almost no one else.

Matt's smile didn't help. He was a real little angel. Shy, touch starved. He didn't want to show that he was scared or needed help, but at the same time he clung to her, panicking whenever she pulled away.

So it was decided that she would stay with him until they found a way to restore Matt to his true age.

Foggy called Y/N's work, explaining that she had a family concern, and Danny promised to take care of any financial worries she might have because of all this mess.

It wasn't a money issue. It wasn't a problem of time either, although Strange didn't seem ready to find the solution to the problem. For several days, he had searched through all the books, asked Wong, tried spells, potions, everything.

He had even proposed true love kiss. Matt grimaced, not wanting everyone to kiss him.

They had tried anyway, and it hadn't worked. With nobody. Not even with Y/N.

Strange had sighed, because he had kind of offered this as a joke, but still hoping it would work.

Matt felt hurt, and unloved. But immediately Y/N reassured him, telling him that it didn't work because it wasn't the solution, not because they didn't love it. Of course they loved him.

The boy smiled again, snuggling up to her. Because she wasn't lying.

There was at least one good news, it was that the more time Matt spent with Y/N, the more he seemed to remember certain things. He wasn't aging, no one really knew if it was because Y/N was there, but it seemed like good news.

"I dreamed that we went to eat an ice cream together, in a park. Vanilla. You also smelled of vanilla. It was a bit cold for an ice cream, but that was okay, we were just happy to be together."

"Our second date, yes." smiled Y/N remembering this moment.

A magical, sweet moment. It was really the beginning of their relationship. When everything was going perfectly well. Before she knew about Daredevil, and all that came with it.

Y/N had really tried to accept that part of Matt's life.

He had at least made the effort to tell her about it, before she found out by finding him half dead on the floor like Foggy, or letting her imagine the worst because he was out late without telling her where he was, coming back covered in scars.

He didn't want to make the same mistakes again, he didn't want to hurt her or worry her. At the same time, he didn't want her to be in danger because of him, so he begged her not to ask questions about what he was doing.

It was not easy. As it was not easy not to worry, and not to feel hurt by seeing him bleeding on the couch. Knowing that he wouldn't stop, even if she asked him to.

She understood why. So she didn't ask. But after two years together, she left. It was no longer possible.

Matt didn't fight it. They didn't really talk about it, there was no argument. A few tears, she cried a bit, but he didn't react, as if he knew that this moment was going to come one day or another, that he had resigned himself to it and that he couldn't do anything to prevent it.

Maybe he was right.

Since then they had not spoken. Y/N sometimes had news from Foggy and Karen. She heard about him in the newspapers. She continued to sleep poorly, praying that he would come home alive.

And now she was taking care of little Matt. Who didn't remember all this, who was just happy to be with her and who made her melt with his smiles, his hugs and his constant need for attention.

Their life was really great...

Each new day, Matt remembered something wonderful they had experienced together. Until he remembered the breakup.

Y/N was startled awake when she heard him crying in his sleep. Thinking he was having a simple nightmare, she carefully woke him up, whispering reassuring words, hoping it would calm him down.

But when Matt was fully conscious and heard her voice, he stirred even more.

"You... You left."

"What are you talking about Matty ? I haven't moved."

"You're left !" he cried jumping out of bed to run into the bathroom, where he locked himself.

It didn't take long for her to realize what he was talking about.

With great patience and gentleness, Y/N tried to get him to open the door, but Matt wasn't listening, crying and screaming. It would probably wake up the neighbours, but it didn't matter right now. Y/N wouldn't answer if someone knocked.

She had promised not to leave Matt. She then sat down in front of the door, continuing to talk, hoping that he would eventually calm down.

"Matt... I'm sorry. I should have told you. The others were afraid of your reaction. We didn't want to hurt you."

"You left me." he sobbed miserably, and Y/N could feel his desperation.

"I didn't want to leave. But I couldn't stay. Matt, you have to understand... It wasn't easy for me. But I love you. I love you more than anything and I always will. I'm so sorry. That sounds stupid, I know it was selfish and that I hurt you, but I was too scared. I'm so scared, Matt."

Slowly, the door opened behind her and the boy's small head appeared. His eyes were filled with tears, but he wasn't crying anymore. He knew she wasn't lying to him. Y/N had never lied to him.

"... I don't understand." he muttered. "If you love me... Why did you leave ?"

"Come and sit down."

Taking her hand, he followed her onto the sofa, letting her pull him into her lap and stroke his hair, then his cheeks, wiping the tears away.

"You remember you're Daredevil right ?"

"Yes."

"Good. First I want you to know that I'm not judging you. I know why you're doing all this. And I know it would have been pointless to ask you to stop. That it would be pointless. And awful of me. Because you hear the whole town screaming and crying, all the time, and you'd feel guilty if you didn't do anything. I can't ask you to act like everything is perfectly fine, or to act as if you didn't hear them. You never asked to hear all this. What you're doing... It's admirable. But dangerous. Terribly dangerous. I've lost count of the number of times you've come home half-dead. And you always said everything was fine. You were smiling, joking, you were trying to make me think of something else, but Matt, don't take this the wrong way, I'm not blind. I saw your body covered in wounds, your face, and I was so scared. That one day it will not be fine at all. To see you die in my arms. Or to receive a phone call, without having been able to be there for you at the end. And I felt so useless, having to call Claire, or Foggy. I couldn't stay like this anymore. And I couldn't ask you to choose between me and the mask. I think... I was afraid you would choose. And I know what you would have chosen. So I made the decision for you. And you let me go. But of course I kept worrying, all the time. Foggy told me it was worse since we broke up. He worries too, you know ? A lot of people care about you, we don't want to lose you. But it's hard, Matt. It's hard to watch you destroying yourself and feel like we're not enough."

Taking a deep breath, Y/N suddenly felt lighter, and without really knowing why she started to cry. Just like that.

Little Matt, who had been listening to her very carefully, while certainly checking her heartbeat, immediately snuggled into her, his face in her neck, his arms around her shoulders, letting her cry shamelessly, repeating that she was sorry.

Then the kid suddenly seemed heavier on her legs. His arms were bigger. His face rubbing against her skin was... itching ?

"Matt ?"

When he looked up at her, Y/N thought two things.

First, what had made him an adult again ? Did they do anything in particular ? Or the spell had simply disappeared on its own after several weeks ?

And, second, that she had forgotten how handsome Matt was. His dishevelled hair, his slightly red mouth and his eyes. Oh, his eyes. He couldn't see her, yet he was staring at her.

"I love you." he said after a long silence.

"Matt..."

"No. It's my turn to speak. I'm sorry too. I knew you were scared, which is completely normal, but I was hoping I could save you from all of this. I didn't think you were in so much pain. That you felt useless. I imagined that you just left me because I couldn't provide you with a stable life. But I don't want you to think that you aren't my priority. I... I'll stop if you ask me. I love you. You're right, it wouldn't be easy but I can try. On the other hand, you have to know one thing. You're not useless at all, because... You give me a reason to be careful. I know you're waiting for me at home, and that I have to go back. I promise you... to always be very careful, and not to die, neither on the sofa, nor in a trash. I'll always come back for you. Always."

Fucking lawyer. He was really good at making beautiful speeches. And his pretty face, with that sad puppy look, it really wasn't fair play.

"... You promise ?" she asked cautiously.

Matt just smiled, crossing his heart with his finger. Cute fucker.

"Well... Since I also promised not to leave you..."

"You promised a child. Which was really nice of you. But I'll understand if you..."

"Murdock, shut up and kiss me."

Of course, Foggy had to arrive at that moment, finding them on the couch.

At first he grimaced, because he absolutely didn't want to see this. Then he squealed with delight, finally noticing that Matt had become an adult again.

He was even happier realizing that it wasn't just a meaningless kiss. He looked like a teenager fangirling about them. With a big stupid grin, and a wink, he left them alone.

The next morning, Y/N woke up next to Matt. He had his eyes open, staring up at the ceiling and a big smile almost as stupid as their friend's, but terribly adorable.

"You seem happy."

"You're here." he said, his eyes twinkling and his voice shaking slightly.

"And you're here."

They stayed all day in bed, never wanting this moment to end.

Matt groaned when they were again disturbed by the Defenders, Peter, but also Karen and Foggy, even though he had asked them to let the love birds alone. But they all wanted to check that Matt was okay, and also to remind him that he was an idiot who needed them.

Pouting, refusing to respond to their teasing and small remarks, Matt simply kissed Y/N on the forehead. Because yes, maybe he had a great team and he needed them at the end.

#daredevil #matt murdock #matt murdock x reader #matt murdock imagine #matt murdock fanfic

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chuckbass-love · 3 years

Note

Johnny smut#4

Hello lovely anon. Thank you so much for this request, again, i’m sorry for the long wait but i didn’t want to write this when i didn’t have much motivation and then have it turn out any less than perfect. I hope it’s worth the wait for you and that you enjoy it.

Also a lil A/N for everyone: To everyone who has requested, i’m gonna get back on it and try and get at least 2 or 3 out per week if possible. I lost motivation for a hot minute but i’m back. I love you all so much. Also, part 7 to only love can hurt like this will be up sometime in the next week or so. I’m still working on it but i already can’t wait for you all to read.

Disclaimer: My work is not to be posted anywhere else other than MY Tumblr, Wattpad and Ao3 without my permission. However, reblogs are welcome.

Pairing: Johnny Storm x Fem!Reader

Prompt #4: “You’d better be quiet if you don’t want to get caught”

Warning: Smut, explicit content, sexual intercourse, hair pulling, choking, mouth covering and swearing. 18+

Word Count: 5,160

GIF NOT MINE!!! Credit to @mcustarks go check them out❤️

Best Friends Brother

As your eyes glance around the beautiful garden filled with white chairs either side of the aisle with flower arrangements all the way to the alter. You can’t help but feel utterly enchanted by the scene, it’s stunning. However, you’re in the wrong place right now, Sue specifically asked you to meet her out back to help her get ready but as soon as you turnaround to head there, you bump into Johnny of all people.

To put it simply, Johnny isn’t exactly your favourite person and you’re not his either. Well, that’s a lie. When around others you don’t get along, you don’t hate each other you just don’t really have much to say since he’s always so cocky and you’re his older sisters best friend. But behind closed doors, the sexual chemistry is off the charts and you’ve spent too many nights tangled up in his sheets to count on two hands.

No one knows about your late night rendezvous though, especially Sue. And she can never find out. It would hurt her. You’re her best friend and Johnny is her little brother. So it’s a secret and it will always remain one.

“Wow” his lips curl up into a genuine smile as his eyes take in your figure in the floor length dark purple bridesmaid dress you have on “you look, great” he says as he tugs on his bottom lip with his teeth, clearly unable to stop those dirty thoughts running wild in his head.

“Just great?” you ask, brow raising slightly before you chuckle and move to walk past him but he grabs your arm just in time to stop you from going anywhere “not just great, but gorgeous. In fact if this wasn’t my sisters wedding then i’d say you were the best looking one here” he turns his head in your direction, his dreamy blue eyes meeting yours, both filled with lust and need. But you can’t do this here. Today is Sue and Reed’s day.

“Johnny” you whisper lazily, the feel of his skin on yours makes you shiver with desire for him to fill you up, kiss you and make you cum around his cock multiple times but that will have to wait. You really need to snap out of this. So you do, you blink and look back up at him before slowly pulling away from “Sue needs me now, i have to go” and just like that he’s behind you, watching as you walk away. Mostly just to watch the way your ass moves in that dress. You can’t say you blame him though, your ass does look good.

The second you step foot indoors you hear Sue moaning about anything and everything to who sounds like Alicia.

“Your saviour is here” you announce and Sue turns around, beaming at you and you can’t help but stare at her. She looks absolutely breathtaking and her dress is the most beautiful you’ve ever seen. She looks just like a princess. Alicia then leaves to go and check on Ben, leaving you two to it.

“Sue, you look amazing” tears brim in your eyes, drowning out your vision, she spots it immediately, rushing to hand you a tissue “don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry. You’ll ruin your makeup”

You take it from her, dabbing underneath your eyes before taking the eyeliner from her to re do what couldn’t be saved in time “i can’t believe you’re finally getting your big day” you finish zipping up her dress before helping her out with her veil.

“Well i’ve waited long enough” she laughs as you finish up and you turn her round so she can look at herself in the mirror.

“Now, i just need to finish my make-up. Help a girl out?”

You don’t even bother to respond, instead you start helping, picking up her bag of products. Her foundation is done so it’s just her eye makeup and lipstick that’s left to do. You go with a nice subtle smokey eye with a little silver glitter on top. Then to finish it off you apply some nude lip gloss to her lips before leaving her to do her own mascara, you would hate to mess it up after all.

“Oh i forgot to check with you, is Johnny outside?”

Even the mention of his name has an obvious effect on your body and it’s something you’ve never been able to control but instead of letting it show, you put your poker face on, clearing your throat and mumbling a quick “yes” and thank god she doesn’t catch on or say anything. You must have hid it well.

“Right, ladies the guests are arriving now and Reed is helping them all to their seats so are you ready?” Johnny pokes his head into the room and Sue nods, letting out a deep breath.

He glances at you before Sue walks over to him to make their way to the other room in which she’s going to be leaving out of to walk down the aisle, leaving you standing there sighing.

Guess it’s time for you to take your own place too. You follow closely behind them and then you and Alicia wait for your queue to go, she goes first, then you. Flowers in hand, smiling around at all of the guests, every one of them dressed up in bright colours, wedding hats galore. And as you take your place next to Alicia at the side of the alter, you watch your best friend walk down the aisle with pride. She means the world to you and if there’s one person who’s the most deserving of happiness, it’s her.

Reed wipes away tears as she stands next to him and you feel your heart melting, more tears forming. Johnny watches you from across the way, wiping your own tears of joy before his focus shifts to the vows.

Sometimes he gets urges to ask you out on a date but as quickly as those urges form, they fade. There’s not a chance in hell of you saying yes to him and he knows it. He’s just a hookup and he’s no stranger to half platonic relationships. He’s never particularly been one for commitment anyway but something about you changes his mind. Since you’ve been Sue’s best friend for god knows how long now, he’s watched many guys come and go in and out of your life. He’s watched and even listened to the many times Sue has held you whilst you cried and to tell the truth, he’s never been able to fathom why anyone would ever want to hurt you. Why anyone would ever cheat or leave you. He always had the biggest crush on you and it’s never left.

Hence why one day he made a move, giving you his best cheesy pick up line at a party Sue threw one weekend. But you ignored him, it was only 2 hours into the party and you weren’t drunk enough to be taking him seriously. However, multiple drinks and shots later, he tried his luck again, and he hit the jackpot. You took him up on his offer. Whilst Sue was in the other room trying to clean up after her guests, you were in Johnny’s room, stripping off in-between heated open mouthed kisses.

It’s pretty obvious where that lead and the next day, you were so mad at yourself for letting it get that far. You cursed alcohol and your stupid brain as you quickly re dressed, repulsed at yourself and your actions. That’s when Johnny shot up, trying his best to make you stay, shutting the door as you tried to open it and standing in the way. You made eye contact with the player and he kissed you. You can’t recall anything else other than feeling captivated by him. His lips moved in sync with yours like they were always made to touch and you couldn’t control the way your body yearned for more.

And the rest is history. Since then you’ve been late night texting and meeting up whenever you could to hook up. Johnny eventually got his own apartment too which only lead to more often than not, the pair of you fucking like rabbits.

It hasn’t just been hookups though, as much as you’d love to lie and pretend that it doesn’t mean a thing, it does. You like Johnny, of course you do. He’s actually the only guy that’s ever been able to make you cum. The only guy who isn’t completely selfish in bed. He makes it all about you, every dam time and you feel torn when it comes to him. A huge part of you knows the two of you feel something deeper and more than just sex. You feel something more intimate. It’s definitely not love but it could be, one day.

Before you know it, you’re ripped from your Johnny themed thoughts as everyone starts cheering and clapping. You join in, watching Reed kiss Sue passionately before the two of them walk back up the aisle. You, Alicia, Johnny and Ben all follow behind with the guests joining in.

The reception is just inside and as soon as you all enter, the music begins. The real old school music. You’re The One That I Want from Grease. The DJ really has a way of luring everyone onto the dance floor right away. Usually at weddings, everyone sits down drinking and chilling before the buffet food comes out but not this wedding.

Sue grabs your hand and the two of you re enact the classic Sandy and Danny scene, overly dramatic though of course and unbeknownst to you, Johnny is watching your every move, unable to stop himself grinning like a cheshire cat. It’s very clear you’re having the time of your life and all he wants is to be able to dance with you.

Once the song is over, you walk around the room to look for the table that you’re going to be sitting at until you hear “over here” and you know that voice anywhere. You turn around to find Johnny sat down, a large glass of wine next to his beer. He ordered for you? Why?

“You’re next to me, hope that’s okay” he stands up, helping you into your chair and tucking it in for you before taking his seat again and sliding the glass of wine to you.

“White wine is still your favourite, right?” nerves fill his voice as he keeps his eyes locked on you “yes, it is. You remembered. Thank you” you waste no time in taking a big gulp of it, you can practically feel yourself getting aroused just by sitting next to the man and to think you’re going to have to deal with it the whole day is torture.

You press your thighs together, trying your hardest to stop whatever is happening in its tracks.

“You not going to dance some more?” he asks, sitting back in his chair, one arm draped round the back of yours “maybe in a minute, i’m still recovering from the first one” you giggle nervously, scared of being seen with him. Sure, you were put with him by Sue herself but what if your farce comes apart now, after all, he is being nice to you and the resting bitch face is missing instead a happy expression has taken its place.

Maybe no one will notice since it’s Sue’s big day, that could be the excuse you use if anyone says anything but then again, why should you care to make excuses? If you enjoy his company that shouldn’t be an issue. Maybe Sue won’t care. She’s always wanted Johnny to settle down with someone nice and you’re nice, right? She’s also wanted you to find someone too. But her best friend and brother getting together probably isn’t what she had in mind.

The song Crazy In Love by Beyonce comes on and Sue practically summons you to the dance floor, so you down the rest of your wine before you rush over to join her. Skipping the regular moves, you and Sue both start dancing like it’s just the two of you. No move off limits as you both grind your hips in circles, shaking your asses and laughing your heads off. She is the only person in this world that can make you laugh like that and you feel incredibly lucky to have her and to be here for her big day.

As your moves get more risqué you catch Johnny adjusting his cock in his dress trousers before drinking more of his beer.

The tension is building within you and you’ve never had to fight temptation so much in the whole year that you two have been doing this. You’re usually very good at waiting and making him wait for it but right now, it’s too hard. The next song that comes on is Check On It by Beyonce, again.

The more of the song that you dance to, you notice the lyrics surprisingly match your situation and a wave of confidence drenches you like rain.

If you got it flaunt it, boy I know you want it While I turn around you watch me check up on it Oh you watchin me shake it, I see it in ya face Ya can't take it, it's blazin’, you watch me in amazement

You continue to show off your best assets, making sure you tease and wind him up more before you make any kind of move which is what you usually do. Any time the two of you fool around, you make him wait and earn it, but it’s one of many reasons why he loves hooking up with you, you’re not easy, you know your worth and you’re 100% worth the wait.

The song finishes leaving yourself and Sue breathless almost. Reed stalks closer, handing his bride a drink and you head over to the bar to get another for yourself before sitting back down again. The buffet will be available soon and you’re desperate for something to eat. Peckish isn’t the word.

“Hello again” Johnny beams and you sip some more wine, a rather big sip yet again before you respond “hello. Are you gonna sit here the whole night?” you question with genuine curiosity, he only really danced a little when the Grease song was on but that’s about it and you aren’t oblivious to the other women checking him out.

“No i intend to dance i just need to be drunk enough for it first”

“I see, maybe then one of those lovely ladies will get a chance to dance with you” you say, observing one in particular who has been staring non stop.

“Please, i’d rather dance with you”

Your heart skips a beat and dare you say it, your vagina develops one. He’s such a sweet talker.

“You looked good out there, y’know” he motions towards the dance floor as if you didn’t already clock on to what he meant and you can’t deny the way your cheeks start to heat up as you thank him shyly.

That’s when he leans closer to your ear, his arm round the back of your chair again as he rasps “and that ass of yours in this dress, baby you got me so hard” his breath fans your neck as he returns to his normal sitting position but he doesn’t miss the way your breath hitches at the dirty comment. He knows all too well the effect he has on you and you know the effect you have on him.

In the past all it’s taken for him is for you to bite your lip and stare him down for him to get hard before. You’re his weakness.

Before you can even go to respond to him though, he clears his throat, tapping away on his phone as he stands up “anyway, if you’ll excuse me, nature calls” he slips his phone back into his pocket, walking away towards the toilets which just so happens to be right behind the DJ.

Your phone buzzes and you check to see a message from him ‘You coming?’ the text reads.

And that alone is enough for you to choke on your own saliva. You quickly sip your drink before standing up yourself and making your way over to the mens toilets. Thank God no one saw you.

“Johnny” you whisper yell until one of the cubicle doors opens, the bigger one at the end. He winks at you as he appears in the doorway and you strut over to him, allowing him to pull you in and lock the door. Your body is flush against his as he starts to kiss your collarbone first. If Johnny is anything it’s a man who loves to savour the moment. He hates quickies and loves to take his time with you.

You’re obviously not the first woman to fall victim to his touch but you’re the only one right now and you’re glad that he’s had experience, it’s clearly made him all the more sensational in the bedroom.

“Oh” you throw your head back on a quiet moan, hoping not to be too loud despite music blasting outside making it impossible for anyone to hear you.

“Every time you dance, you drive me crazy. Shaking that perfect ass of yours in this dress, making me want you so bad” his lips hover over your sweet spot, his breath fanning it just like it did before.

You wrap your arms loosely round his neck as your back arches and his lips attack your neck like a man possessed, everything about this moment should feel wrong and yet it feels so right. The thought crosses your mind that everyone is out there dancing and most likely eating now all while Johnny is playing with your dress, lifting it up to reveal the new panties that you brought for today. Purple lace to match your dress.

“Oh baby” he groans, tugging on his bottom lip at the sight as his fingers wonder down and slip inside. His cold palm cups your sex making you shiver in surprise before he makes you forget all about it by spinning you around so that you’re pressed against the wall. Caged in by his muscular body as he towers over you.

He presses a chaste kiss to the back of your neck and heat starts to rise to your cheeks, you can’t contain the flustered feeling that fills you. He’s always had a way of being so dominant and stealing all control from you in an instant, since you’re so used to the roles being reversed in your life, he was more than into changing that. And to tell the truth, it’s one of the many reasons that you keep coming back. He pushes you out of your comfort zone in more ways than one.

His fingers play with the flimsy material of your new panties, grazing over your clit multiple times until you’re poking your ass out into his hand. “Someones keen, huh?” his low, raspy and taunting chuckle fills your ear sending shivers up and down your spine and causing goosebumps to form all over your hungry body.

“Please, Johnny” you beg pathetically, once again pushing back against his hand in hopes that he’ll get a move on and touch your properly. Which of course he does. You know he can never resist your charm. All the more reason why he’s slipping your panties to the side now so that his fingers can circle your arousal covered hole, almost dipping into your honey pot but holding back.

“Beg for it” he growls, taking your right earlobe between his teeth and biting down lightly “beg like the good girl i know you are” he continues and you gasp before breathing out a quick plea “p-please touch me Johnny, i need it” as your hands find purchase on the wall.

The feel of his knee spreading your legs apart gets you all the more excited for what’s the come and that’s when he gives you all that you’ve been craving, slipping two thick digits inside of you, coating them in your juices as they hit that spongy spot. He’s never had much trouble when it comes to finding your weak spots, he knows your body inside and out at this point and there’s not a time where you don’t cum when you’re with him.

“That good baby? My fingers getting that little cunt ready for my cock”

Your eyes roll to the back of your head in reaction to the pure filth leaving his not so innocent mouth and just as you go to let out a near enough pornographic style moan, throwing your head back too, the restroom door opens making you stop yourself. Footsteps make their way to one of the cubicles that just so happens to be next to the one your in.

Johnny then takes it upon himself to pull his drenched fingers out of you, reaching his hand in front of your face and shoving them into your mouth for you to suck on, using his free hand to undo his belt and now you know that you’re done for. You know exactly what he’s about to do. His cock rests at your entrance, staying there for a second before he slides in. Your walls welcome him in the best way, wrapping around his cock as he splits you open, stretching you beautifully yet again just like he does every time. The all too familiar feeling consumes you.

“You’d better be quiet if you don’t want to get caught” he mutters in hushed tones, switching it up so that his hand is fully covering your mouth, suffocating you as he drags his cock along your warm velvety walls deliciously. Obviously you don’t want to get caught but right now the anticipation of what could happen is enough to make you clamp down around him, earning a hiss.

A noise that obviously catches the attention of whomever is next door to your cubicle since the unsuspecting gentleman speaks up “are you okay in there, man?” shit. It’s Ben. You feel a wave of shame wash over you as Johnny picks his pace up slowly “yeah, everything's fine” he chirps, as if he has all the time in the world to converse when he’s buried balls deep inside of you.

“If you say so” Ben responds before flushing, washing his hands and then leaving the room. Now it’s just the two of you again. Johnny takes full advantage of the alone time by pushing you right up against the wall, your cheek squished against the tiles, his calloused hands splaying across your ass cheeks now and spreading them apart. Only so he can take a good look at the way he disappears into your tight chanel with ease.

“Doing so well baby, taking this cock like a fucking pro” he grunts, wrapping his hand around your neck and pulling your head back with the help of his other hand grabbing a fistful of your hair at the scalp but keeping your whole body pressed into the wall.

Sinful moans escape your mouth and at this point you’re way past the point of caring or trying to be quiet. Unless someone walks in then you’re going to let go and revel in the feel of him. The way his body traps you in makes your clit pulsate, you love being manhandled and you always have but only by him.

Anyone that takes even so much as a look at Johnny, they think ‘player’ and they’d be right but they’d also think he’d never be the type of man to be as filthy as he is in reality. Not only has he got a foul mouth on him but he’s kinky not to mention skilful in more areas than one. Dick and tongue game on point as well as those magical digits of his and the way they dance across your sex both delicately and brutally all at the same time.

You’re certainly not complaining though.

“Fuck, Johnny” your back arches even more so than it was before as you shakily cry out his name with the kind of want that only he can spur on “what is it baby?”

“Don’t stop, i’m so close” you whimper desperately.

His pace is now rendering on animalistic as he fucks you into the wall with such vigor, wanting nothing more than to feel you come undone all over his cock, something he’ll never grow tired of.

“Come on then baby, give it to me” he eggs you on, keeping one hand wrapped around your neck still, tightening as the seconds tick by whilst his other hand smacks down on your exposed ass cheek, making it wobble a little which earns him a satisfied hum.

The two of you go crazy with you pushing back to meet his thrusts and him spanking your ass, both of you hungry for that release.

All of a sudden though the blaring music coming from outside stops. Making you panic. Johnny on the other hand is so close to reaching his peak and he knows you are too, so he doesn’t bother to stop.

But you hear the faint laughs of the wedding guests before what sounds like the DJ addressing everyone. Fuck. This better not be the speeches. You had one planned and so did Johnny.

He continues to fuck into you, grunting, growling and panting in your ear, driving you closer and closer to that edge. You can feel the coil twisting and turning in your stomach, on the verge of snapping at any second and you don’t think you’ll be able to hold back the noises when it happens.

“Gonna make you cream all over this cock baby and best believe i’ll be filling this sweet cunt up with my cum”

You rest your hand over his around your neck as your whole body starts to shake. You clench around his cock some more and just as you can taste the orgasm, the addition of his fingers pressing down on your clit push you off the edge and your head drops back onto his shoulder. The music starts up again, allowing you to really enjoy this. Your mouth hangs open whilst you scrunch your eyes closed, seeing stars as you fall into a pit of ecstasy. You can feel your legs shaking and threatening to give way but luckily for you Johnny moves his hands to your waist, wrapping around you so he can hold you up whilst he comes close to reaching his own end.

“Fuckkkkk, squeezing me so good baby”

You do it again for good measure and sure enough, he twitches inside of you, his hot cum painting your walls just like he said and a fucked out spent smile forms on your face making him laugh when he sees.

He rides the two of you through your highs before his thrusts come to a halt and he slowly pulls out. He then grabs some tissues, dropping to his knees and pressing yet another chaste kiss to your clit this time before cleaning you up. He can see that you’re struggling to stand so the second he’s done he rises to his feet, pulling you flush against him and then proceeding to push you up against the wall.

The two of you stare deep into each others eyes for a couple seconds, both of your chests rising and falling as you try to normalise your breathing. That was certainly an adventurous, dangerous and thrilling experience, one that you won’t be rushing to partake in again anytime soon. But it was amazing to say the least. The way he’s looking at you right now makes you want to throw caution to the wind and kiss him. So you do. You crash your lips to his, wrapping your arms loosely around his neck and as expected, he kisses back. His grip tightens on your hips, pulling you even closer if that’s even possible.

“What was that for?” he asks as you come up for air and you shrug, not even sure of what it was yourself. But all you know is you like him and this isn’t just some fling to you, some form of messing around until the two of you get bored. There is a genuine connection there, one that you can’t wait to explore some more.

“I don’t even know” you giggle, pecking his lips again.

Silence falls upon the two of you before he finally blurts out “go out with me” as if he’s telling you rather than asking.

“What?” you furrow your brows in confusion.

“Go out with me, on a date”

“I thought Johnny Storm didn’t do dates” you quip back, raising your brows with a smirk to match “i don’t but i’d like to try if it’s with you” and that alone warms your heart. The same heart that’s been crushed and broken so many times before and it’s almost like he’s mending it. Not that you’re complaining.

You take no longer than a second to think before you’re agreeing and kissing him some more. That’s when the music stops and you both look at each other.

He quickly zips up his pants, doing his belt up again and shrugging his jacket back on before turning back to you. With you both now looking decent again, you get him to check your makeup, he wipes the stray bits of mascara that smudged before kissing your forehead.

He lets you leave first whilst he waits an appropriate 2 minutes before he heads out too. No one suspected a thing and now it’s time for the speeches.

This is definitely going to be a wedding to remember...

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Me and all my hoe personalities after writing this one:

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Just Chris & His Characters Tags: @onetwo3000 @persephonequeenofthedead @whiskeytangofoxtrot555 @rynabarnesrogers @princess-evans-addict @stxvercgersslut @chris-evanslover @bval-1 @thejemersoninferno @denisemarieangelina @janeyboo @evansphnx12 @whxre4cevans

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bluebloodsgurl · 2 years

Text

The Past is Back: Part 1

Characters: Jamie Reagan X Reader, Danny Reagan, Jackie Curatola, Renzulli, Erin Reagan, (Frank Reagan, Henry Reagan, Linda Reagan, Nikki Reagan, Jack Reagan, Sean Reagan Mentioned-ish) Jake (OMC)

Word Count:

Warning: Language, Angst, Domestic Violence, Crazy Ex, Stalker Ex, Character injury's, Character Death,

A/N: PLEASE READ THE WARNINGS!!! PLEASE DON NOT READ IF YOU THINK IT WILL TRIGGER YOU! I don’t want to upset anyone.

A/n #2: This was originally supposed to be a sister Reagan fic, but once I was basically done with it I decided to change it. I think there is only going to be 2 parts not 100% sure yet.

Feedback is always welcome. The Good and The Bad. Requests are also open.

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Becoming a cop has been one of the best decisions that you have ever made. You were proud that you were following in your dad’s footsteps. Your mother was completely against you becoming a cop. Being the stubborn person that you are, it made you want to do it that much more. Waking up every day, going to work and helping people, it is one of the best feelings in the world. The only problem was there was one person that you could never seem to help, who needed it the most.

You.

You dated a guy name Jake for about six months. When things first started, he was amazing. Things were perfect. Now looking back, things were a little too perfect. When you guys were about four months in, it was like a switch in his brain flipped. You don’t know what caused it, but things went down hill quicker than you could blink.

You guys were fighting all the time, most times he would get violent. Especially when he was drinking, there were a handful of times that he was sober, but it was mostly when he was drunk. You tried to break it off multiple time but some how he made you feel sorry for him. He would promise to change, and he would never do it again. This is something that you have seen and heard a million times working in law enforcement. You had helped many women and men dealing with the same crap that you had dealt with. You were always supportive when you talked to them. Once you had finally gotten the courage to leave. You packed up your things and moved across the country, just to get away from him.

Here it is five years later, and you were happy again. You were doing the job that you love. You have met and work with some of the best people. You became close to Danny Reagan and Jackie Curatola. After getting to know Danny, Jackie told you that you were surprised that the two of you got along so well. You are both stubborn hot heads. Which is why you guessed it worked, sometimes.

You even opened up your heart again, to the most loving and caring person. Jamie was the complete opposite of Jake. At first it was really hard to let Jamie in. You didn’t want to have your heart broken again, you didn’t want to deal with the same shit you had dealt with. Even though you knew that he wouldn’t do anything like that you were still hesitant.

Over the past three months, you started getting texts and calls from an unknown number. It was causing you to become jumpy and paranoid. Anytime Jamie would ask you about it, you would just tell him that you didn’t get much sleep the night before. Which wasn’t a lie, you would stay up super late because you would get a message from the unknown number saying something that would freak you out.

Shortly after receiving the first message, you started seeing Jake everywhere. You didn’t know if you were just seeing things or if he was actually there. You soon found out that he was really in the city. You tried to take every precaution that you could but unfortunately it wasn’t enough.

After a while you started pulling a way from Jamie. You needed to make sure if something happened, he would be safe. You didn’t want to drag him into your mess. Anytime he would ask you out or even just to hang out, you would tell him that you were busy or too tired. You hated lying to him, but you needed to protect him from your past.

Danny would always try to reach out to you on behalf of Jamie. You would just come up with another excuse. You couldn’t completely get away from him though, due to the fact that you were working in the same precinct. The only time you would really talk to him now was when you were at work. He started noticing that you were starting to ware baggy clothes a lot more, you were even wearing your uniform jacket all the time. Even when it was hot outside, once again you would make up excuses.

You didn’t want anyone to know the truth. You were dealing with an abusive stocker ex-boyfriend. Or even that when you were together, he had broken you physically, mentally and emotionally. You felt weak for not being able to get away from him the first time he was physical. You did leave him, but he was able to find you. You still don’t know how but he did. You were this badass at work but once you were off duty you turned into someone you didn’t recognize anymore.

The Reagans knew about Jake. It had come up in conversation when you were talking about why you had made the sudden move to New York. You had a conversation with Jamie about him before you ever told the rest of the Reagan’s. For you it was a hard conversation to have. You didn’t want Jamie to see you as the weak person that you thought you were.

When that talk was over, he made sure to comfort you. He didn’t see you as someone who was weak. Quite the opposite actually. You were stronger than you give yourself credit for. Not everyone has the strength to leave a relationship like that. He promised you that you would never have to deal with that ever again.

A few days ago, Jake had confronted you at your home and it didn’t end well for you. He had come over to try and convince you once again that he had changed, and he was sorry for everything that he had put you through. You could see straight through his lies. The two of you argued, up until he became physical. You did your best to fight back, which only enraged him even more. He had dropped you to the ground, hovering over you. Telling you that this wasn’t over, before walking out the door. Once he left you tried to move but the pain was too much. You laid on the ground clutching your sides, until late into the night when you finally gathered enough strength to get up. When you made it to your bed, you just collapsed. You didn’t have enough strength to change or even pull the blankets back for you to get inside.

Now you were in the locker room changing into your uniform before shift. For the last couple of days, you would make sure that everyone was out by the time you were changing into your uniform shirt. You didn’t want anyone to see the bruises on your body. You pull off your hoodie, you felt your tank top slide up. This didn’t bother you because you were the only one in the locker room, but you didn’t hear Jackie come in.

“Oh my god. Y/n.” You turned around quickly, pulling your tank top down as you did.

“Jackie, what are you doing in here. I thought you already left with Danny.”

“I forgot something.” She walked up to you. “What happened to you?” She pointed to your hip that was still partially exposed.

“It’s nothing.”

“That’s not nothing.” She had a concerned look on her face. “Does Jamie know about this?”

“No, and he doesn’t need to know. I slipped and fell in my tub okay. I hit the side and I didn’t want to tell anyone because its embarrassing.” You tried to give her the most defeated look to make her believe it, but in the back of your head you knew that she didn’t.

“Okay…” She let out a sigh as she ran one of her hands through her hair. “You know you can tell me anything right?”

“Yeah, I know Jackie.” You looked down at your hands. You hate lying to her but it’s what you have to do. You also hated what she seemed to be insinuating, Jamie would never lay a hand on you or anyone.

-Reagan’s-

A few days later, everyone was sitting down to Sunday dinner. It was quiet until Erin spoke up.

“So, Jamie, how’s Y/n doing? I have been trying to set up a lunch with her, but she is always busy or she’s with you.”

“What?” He gave Erin a confused look.

“Yeah, she says she’s either working or she has plans with you.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I haven’t been able to spend any time with her in a while because she’s always working, or she is too tired.”

Now everyone was looking around at each other. You weren’t only lying to Jamie you were lying to his family too, and he needed to find out why.

“I’m going to go to her house after dinner and see what’s going on.”

“I’ll go with you, if you want?” Danny spoke up, wanting to know what’s going on with you.

“No, that’s okay. I don’t want it to seem like we are ganging up on her.

“Okay, just let us know what’s going on.”

“Will do.”

There was a knock at your door. You looked at your watch to see that it was almost eight o’clock. You quickly grabbed the closest hoodie and slipped it on, before going to the door. You opened it to see Jamie standing there with a bag in his hand.

“Jamie what are you doing here?”

“Well, when I haven’t been able to see my girlfriend in what feels like forever, I think it’s time to make a visit. Also, I brought you food.” He holds up the bag in his hand.

You stepped back, waving him in. Which he gladly accepted, kissing you on the forehead as he moved passed you. He walked to your kitchen and placed the bag on the counter, pulling things out of the bag.

“Have you eaten?”

“I’m not hungry Jamie.” He raised one of his eyebrows at you.

“That’s not what I asked. Have you eaten?”

Now he was standing on one side of the kitchen island with both hands on his hips. Waiting for you to give him an answer. You mirrored his stance across from him, but like always you were the first one to cave.

“No.” You sat down in one of your bar stools. “Ya know you’re starting to act like Danny.”

“Wow, I’m not that bad.”

You just looked at him with your eyebrows raised and a smile on your face. He was happy to see your smile, he hasn’t seen it in a long time. He gave up and started moving around your kitchen grabbing a plate, utensils for him to plate your food and for you to eat with. He placed it on the counter in front of you. You sat there for a second, just staring at it. You could feel Jamie staring at you.

“I’m not gunna have to force feed you, am I?” Making you look up at him. “I can do the airplanes like people do with little kids.” He moved his hands in a whooshing motion.

“No, I told you I wasn’t hungry.” You pulled your leg up onto the bar stool and rested your head on your knee.

“Will you please eat a little bit? I mean I could just stay here until you do.”

“Fine.” You knew he was serious when he said that. He was more stubborn than you were. You picked up your fork, impaling some green beans before putting them into your mouth. Jamie came around the Island and sat down next to you before speaking again.

“What’s going on with you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about, Y/n.”

“No, actually I don’t. Care to enlighten me?”

“How come I haven’t been able to see you for the last few weeks?”

“I told you I have been working a lot and when I get off, I am super tired. Then I wake up tired as well.”

“Really… Then why did you tell Erin that you couldn’t set a date to have lunch with her because you were with me?”

“I…” You let out a sigh. “Nothing is going on.”

“Is there someone else?” He kept his head down when he asked you this.

“Excuse you?”

“Are you seeing someone else?”

“NO! Why on earth would you think that?”

“Because you have been avoiding me. You have been lying to me and my family.” He was up again, running his hands down his face as he turned away from you.

“I’m not cheating on you Jamie.”

“Then what’s going on?” He turned slightly towards you, you could see the pain in his eyes.

“Do you trust me?”

“What?”

“Do. You. Trust. Me?”

“Yes, but…”

“Then trust me when I tell you this. I’m not cheating on you, I would never do that to you or anyone.” You got up and stood in front of him. You looked into his eyes; you placed your hands on the sides of his face. “I am sorry that I lied to you and have been distant. It’s just that…”

You felt your phone buzz in your pocket. You take it out, turning slightly so Jamie couldn’t see the screen before clicking it on.

New message: Unknown

Get rid of him.

“You need to go home now.” You walked over to the door; Jamie followed close behind you.

“I’m not done talking about this.”

“I’m not doing this right now.” You grabbed him by the arm and pull him out to the porch.

“Will you just tell me what’s really going on?!?”

“Nothing is going on! Why can’t you accept that?”

“Maybe its because I know that you are lying to me.”

New Message: unknown

Better yet, break up with him. I would hate for something bad to happen to him.

“Damn it Jamison! It’s over!” You had tears pricking at your eyes.

“What!?”

“I can’t do this.” You were on the verge of crying. “I think it would be best if we break-up and went our separate ways.”

“Did I do something wrong? Why are you doing this?”

“No, this has nothing to do with you. This ones on me, I’m sorry.”

You turned around, walking back into your house. Leaving a shocked and confused Jamie on the porch. He walked up to the door, calling out your name and trying to get you to open the door. You pressed your body to the door, and just stood there crying until you heard his car start. Then you slowly walked into your living room, preparing yourself for the hell that is to come.

The next day, you called in sick to work. The night before was a particularly bad day. There was no way of hiding the black eye that you were currently nursing. You were in too much pain to even try to hide anything. You also didn’t want to explain to Danny why you broke his brother’s heart after three years of being together.

You were in your room resting, when you heard your front door fly open. You got up and grabbed your gun. You walked to your bedroom door, slowly opening it and looking out. You didn’t see anyone, but you could hear rustling in the living room. You tip-toed your way to the front of your house. When you looked around the corner to see your ex-Jake messing around with things. You quietly put your gun in the back of your leggings, before moving out to where he could see you.

“Jake what are you doing here?”

“What do you mean what am I doing here?”

“What I mean is what are you doing in my house? How did you even get in here?”

He walked over to you. You could instantly smell the booze on him before he even opened his mouth.

“And you’re drunk, that’s just great. It’s seven in the morning, why are you drunk?”

“What is your problem Y/n?”

“Right now, my problem is you. Get the fuck out of my house.”

“And what are you gonna do if I say no?” He leaned in and was now inches from your face.

“Get out Jake, right now. I’m not going to deal with your bullshit today. I left you for a reason. You can’t just show up and make my life a living hell again! I am so done. You made me ruin the one good thing I had left in my life. Now get the fuck out of my house!”

You turned around to go grab your phone out of your room. He grabbed you by your hair and slammed you to the ground. Your gun was now pressed into you, it was going to leave a nasty bruise to match the rest.

“Well look who finally found their voice? Do you really think that you’re going to scare me?” He was standing over you, he had his hand holding your face to look at him. He laughed in your face.

You grabbed his wrist, trying to pry it from your face. It only made him dig his fingers in deeper.

“You think that you can just leave me? Disappear and start a new life like I never existed. No, you don’t get to do that, you ungrateful little bitch.”

You did the first thing you could think of. You brought your leg up and kicked him in the balls, causing him to double over and fall forward. You moved to the side so that he would fall to the ground. As he hit the ground you were up and running to your room. You got in as quickly as you could and locked the door. Running over to your nightstand. Just as you grabbed your phone, there was banging on your door. You ran into your bathroom and locked that door as well.

You hid in the back of your attached closet. You sat on the floor pulling your legs up to your chest. You pulled your phone out just praying that you had enough signal to make a call out. You clicked on the first name that you could.

“Hello.”

“D…Danny.” You were out of breath and trying to be as quiet as possible. You didn’t know where Jake was, but you know he is still here.

“Y/n? What’s wrong?”

“I... I…”

You went silent again. You were trying to keep your voice even. You could hear the faint noise of things being tossed around; things being broken.

“Y/n? Where are you?” You could hear his keys jingling, and him talking to who you could only assume was Jackie. “Kid? You gotta talk to me.”

“I’m… I’m hiding in my closet.”

“Why are you hiding?”

“Jake… He’s here… Danny I need help.” You had started crying, you were trying so hard not to, but it wasn’t working.

“I’m on my way, you need to call 911. Then you call me right back. I will be there soon.”

“Okay.” You quickly hung up with Danny and dialed 911.

“911 what’s your emergency?”

“My ex-boyfriend is in my house, and he is drunk and… and…” You were trying to get your voice together. “He threw me to the ground. I was able to get away. I’m currently hiding in my closet, but he’s destroying everything in my house.”

“What’s your name?”

“Y/n Y/Ln.”

“Okay, Y/n. I am sending the police and an ambulance to you. I need you to stay in your closet. Do not leave there until an officer comes to get you. Okay?”

“Okay.”

You hung up with dispatch, but just as you were about to call Danny back you realized it was silent. You pulled your gun from behind you, hissing as it grazed your skin. You put your phone in your pocket and walked to the door, putting your ear to it. Hearing nothing you slowly open the door to your bedroom, finding it empty. Things were all over the floor, including part of the door that leads to the rest of the house.

You moved to the now broken door, walking carefully not to step on anything. At this point you were hoping that Jake left. You maneuver your way around the door and start walking down the hall. There was glass from broken frames all over the floor. You did your best to avoid it. Once you came to the end of the hall you looked in the living room to see it completely trashed due to his fit of rage.

You had looked to the wall next to you, the shelves were now empty. Books, nick-nacks, more photos were all gone and thrown in every direction. You heard the crunching of glass behind you. You turned around to see Jake with something in his hand. He threw it in your direction; you didn’t move fast enough. It ended up hitting you in the head and breaking on impact. There was blood on the top of your head and coming down onto your face.

While you were holding onto your head, he rushed you. Pushing you back into the shelves, you ended up hitting your head on one of them. You could feel yourself getting tired, but when you realized he was grabbing your hand that had your gun, your eyes shot open.

You were holding on to it as tight as you could. You were able to get the clip out of the gun and throw it away from the two of you. Now you just had to worry about the one in the chamber, but you were getting tired again. You felt the barrel of the gun get pressed to your chest. Next thing you heard was yelling and a shot go off before everything went black.

Tags:

Reagans (Everything)

@the-wolfie

#Blue Bloods #Danny Reagan #Jamie Reagan #Jackie Curatola #Renzulli #Frank Reagan #Nikki Reagan #Erin Reagan #Linda Reagan #Henry Reagan #Jack Reagan #Sean Reagan #Reagan #Fanfiction #Fan Fic #Fan Fiction #Fanfic #Angst #Jamie Reagan X Reader

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ficauthor · 3 years

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inspired by the prompt by @danphanwritingprompts:

Danny narrowed his eyes as the Uber arrived at the church, and he finally remembered the occasion. “Wait, Mom? Did we just pregame Vlad’s funeral?” Danny asked. Maddie scowled. “Shut up and act sober. For some reason, your dad loved that miserable creep,” she told him. “It’s the only way to get through the day,” Jazz agreed, fumbling to open the door and step out.

and some other headcannons that I've seen float around tumblr about trans Danny fic below cut if you dont wanna follow the link.

Looking out the window was making him nauseous, like really really nauseous. The kind of nauseous he only got when sick or from a good punch. He knew a thing or two about good punches. He’d been taking them for a few years now.

It really wasn’t fair if you asked him. One should ask him because it was an experience that only he could experience. After all, halfa's were rare as can be. Skulker had certainly told him enough for him to know. Every brush with alcohol in his younger days was, well, a mixed bag. He processed it faster than the average person so he was lucky in that aspect that he got drunk faster. But if anything his messing about with alcohol before he was 21 told him it was that it also left much faster than normal. Bullshit ghost rules and all of that. Genuinely being a ghost even half one had very few upsides. Some people online speculated about how cool ghost powers must be to have but clearly none of them knew about the burden that it came with. Sometimes he still wished that he didn’t know.

However this time for whatever reason the alcohol was hitting him and staying. Maybe it was because the previous times he’d been drinking cheap party booze in Dash’s garage with Sam and Tucker, no one but the three of them aware that they were even there. Instead this time the booze was some semi expensive shit, he didn’t know the name or type but he’d been promised quality. Why he of all people was being given quality alcohol he'd never know but he wasn’t going to turn it down.

That being said seemed the trade off was intense nausea. It wasn’t that bad all things considered, he actually preferred being sloshed for the upcoming event but his body was not agreeing with that. Not that his body agreed with a lot of things. The disagreement between ghost and human sometimes really bit him in the ass. His head was floaty, the world in front of him was spinning badly, maybe it’d be worth it to never drink again. Especially if he was going to have this reaction . If only he’d invited Sam and Tucker. They were great fun and always knew how to reel him in. Man he missed them, if only they didn’t all go to different colleges. But nooo all of their majors just had to have few overlapping colleges. At least they were all within a drives (or in his case a flying) distance. When he wasn’t feeling too sick and unbalanced he’d have to fly over to their dorms for a movie night. It’d be nice. Sam might even be able to get them into someplace cool again.

In a stagnant attempt to push the feeling away he turned away from the window and towards his family. Jazz was studying a text on her phone. Probably a message from her girlfriend at university. Maybe she was inviting her. That’d be nice. She seemed nice when he’d saved her as Phantom a month ago, then everyone was nice when their life had just flashed before their eyes and they were rescued from it’s visions. Even when he and Valerie were on the worst of terms he was always grateful when ever she rescued him in either form. Bar Johnny 13 his sisters' taste in partners wasn’t actually all that bad. He actually liked her last girlfriend. Even then with Johnny he wasn’t sure how much of that was actually her taste and how much was Kitty’s possession.

Certainly Jazz’s apprehension couldn’t be blamed, three of her previous partners both highschool and college were driven away by how weird their family was. She claimed she was fine with it, something about them not truly accepting all parts of her but still. That sucked. School had been rough enough, he couldn’t even count the amount of people that had been weirded out from being his friend because of his parents. Well there was also his reputation but his parents being renowned ghost hunters and chaotic town kooks certainly did not help. Looking back on it more of that might have actually been on his reputation. A nerd with A+ grades until highschool only to then end up with Ds on the best of days and bruises on the worst. Yeah some of that was probably on him.

Jazz gave him a look, he’d spaced out and looked at her for too long, it was weird now. He gave her a shrug and turned to their mother.

Laughing would be rude; he had to remind himself when he spotted her dancing along to the car radio in her dorky adult grooving. It was peaceful in a way. A down time he didn't usually get to appreciate before something bad (normally ghosts) interrupted. It was almost nice in a way to be calm with his mom and sister. Even if the former looked really really stupid.

He snorted anyway at his mom’s dance moves. Discombobulated shoulder jerks and little hand motions mixed in with little head rolls that had no rhyme or reason. It was wildly out of beat and didn’t match the tone of the song on radio. It was definitely the kind of dancing that Tucker would disparagingly call “white people shit”. The thought alone of Tucker's pain at his parents' dance moves was almost enough to send him into hysterics.

Man he missed Tucker.

He’d have to check in on Tucker soon, since he started the latest school assignment he’d sort of ghosted everyone, for the lack of a better word. It was probably the stress of dealing with his assignment partners, he’d done the same last time. Still… in a town and world with ghosts it couldn't hurt to try to check in on him. Tuck was a big boy now he could hold his own in a ghost fight but he didn’t like the idea of leaving him to it. Call him what you will but obsessions were just like that.

Maybe he was a little possessive.

Just a touch.

“Oh Danny!” his mom squealed as a new song filtered in. The Uber driver rolled his eyes, clearly he thought no one could see him but Danny caught it in the rear view mirror. ” I love this song, isn't it rad!”

He tried not to laugh, he really did, but it was so ridiculous. His parents were doing this on purpose! They had to be! There was no way that they weren’t no one was that out of touch. That behind on lingo. Warm giggles and chuckles bubbled forth, messy and loud. The kind of laugh only those closest to him could coax out of him. Back in school it was only Tuck and Sam that got him to laugh like that (maybe Jazz if she was lucky) make him lose his composure so quickly, but more and more readily his parents had been able to also force the laughs out of him.

If only fourteen year old him could see him now. He’d be so embarrassed. Sitting in the back of an Uber laughing openly at something silly his mom was doing. She said something he couldn’t catch, teased him probably for laughing. A random pop song and the air coming in from the drivers open window were just loud enough to cover even a raised voice. Even still the there was comfort. Whatever she said was from a place of love.

He loved car rides sometimes. He didn’t always appreciate them when he was younger, kind of like how he felt about his parents. Especially when he was 14 but now? They were some of his favourite times spent with his parents. He just couldn’t help it, something about the rolling scene and music with easy conversation lulled him. It helped keep his obsession at bay, blocking it from flaring if he could see that some of the most important people in his life were there, in front of him safe and sound.

He still ached. Felt that compulsion to check Sam and Tuck. Rather than scream like normal it was a soothing whisper. He was able to drunkenly send them a text about how much he loved them without the skin crawling need to see that they were still standing.

The Uber slowed to a crawl, the Sudan squealing as they stopped. Man that guy really needed to replace his breaks. He could get in a wreck and then whoever he was ferrying around could get seriously hurt.

No!

He shook his head; he couldn't let his obsession obsess on something so small. It was probably safe to look out of the window again so he chanced a look. Danny narrowed his eyes as the Uber arrived at the church, and he finally remembered the occasion.

“Wait, Mom? Did we just pregame Vlad’s funeral?” Danny asked.

Maddie scowled,“ Shut up and act sober. For some reason, your dad loved that miserable creep,” she told him.

“It’s the only way to get through the day,” Jazz agreed, fumbling to open the door and step out.

Damn he hadn’t meant to forget the occasion but he couldn’t help it his mind was already prone to wandering and the alcohol was just making it worse. Really it was a miracle he passed highschool in the first place, even when sober his mind just struggled to latch onto subjects, and that was before he had to nightlight as Phantom, hell it wasn’t even nightlighting it was a full double life. Really he didn't even know how he was managing college with the heroing on the side. Best guess if he was pressed to give one was that his parents’ disappointment and the desire to go to space was combining into the ultimate peer pressure. Funny how his brain worked like that, maybe Jazz could explain that to him. She was good for stuff like that. Explanations for why his brain was weird. She tried to give him an acronym for it one time something with A's. An attention thing of some sort. He'd have to ask her about it again sometime so he could wrap his mind around it.

“Hey!” Jazz opened the door, her face inches from his, the scent of some fruity cocktail on her breath,” get out Danny, and remember, act normal. At least for dad’s sake.”

“Yeah,” he waved her off stumbling to his feet, honestly it wasn’t fair that the ground was so unsteady beneath him, kind of transphobic if you asked him. “If you wanted me to act normal then why’d we all get plastered?” he joked.

“Shush,” Jazz clamped a hand on his face, their slow amble up the church's many steps paused. “Don’t lick a gift horse in the mouth Danny, you know this will be insufferable.”

He licked her hand, she recoiled, wiping the spit off on her fancy black dress.

“Danny!”

He stuck out his tongue in retaliation.

“Behave, ”she chided.

He rolled his eyes and followed her. It was just a funeral, what was the worst they could get into?

The second he stepped in the church threshold he knew. It put his whole body on edge, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and the faintest trickled of mist? ghost vaper? Ghost breath? He actually had no clue what it was that came out of his mouth.

Well he never really understood what he was saying half the time anyways, his mouth had a habit of running out from under him. The worst case of that was just the other week, he was talking to Sam over skype about something and he’d forgotten that she knew about Phantom, how really he had no clue, and he just went on for about twenty minutes making some out there wild excuse for why he’d missed their last hang out when she’d stopped him.

Honestly it was getting embarrassing, even worse was trying to keep things he said to his parents in each form separate. He really had to tell them soon.

It was so easy when he was 14 the breadth of his conversations with them as Phantom at the time could be summed up with a snarky quip from him or a “I’m gonna dissect you” from them. Now though they seemed to be fully taking seriously the notion that ghosts had depth to them. Which while true was deeply inconvenient for him. That meant he had to have interactions with them as Phantom and keep his identity straight ( ha ). Maybe he should be grateful, they weren’t threatening to dissect him anymore that was certainly a plus, they still definitely wanted to examine him however. He had considered it, in the depth of the night, allowing them to examine him only to drop the transformation part way through. It’d be funny, just a little bit to catch them off guard like that. But they didn’t deserve a coming out like that. He stifled a groan, he thought he was done with the closet when he’d come out but no life just had to never end and add in ghosts.

“Danny,” Jazz hissed at him.

He slurred out a huh at her in confusion.

Damn he’d been staring out at nothing, the Pastor? Priest? He didn’t know the difference to be honest, was still talking about Vlad. Shit that’s right! The second he’d walked in his ghost sense had gone haywire, Vlad was still (half) alive in that plush ass casket. He wondered how bad it'd be to fake a stomach ache and transform into Phantom for some ass kickery. Knowing his luck though Vlad might just feign full death embrace just to make a fool of him.

He would do that, fake his death, hell he was doing it right now! Motive was still unclear to him but Danny was going to get to the bottom of it. The man at the front, religious figure of whatever denomination, was gesturing large and big as he wrapped up. It was really official, and stuffy, when he finally fully died he wanted his funeral to be nothing like this. Maybe Tuck's ideas of dramatic funeral pranks were where it was at. Or maybe even Sam's ideas of celebratory parties that remembered the dead's life. He wouldn’t object to either of those.

Alcohol was fading out of his system again, well it’d been nice while it’d lasted but it’d probably be best to not be sloshed if Vlad wanted to cause a scene.

He sat at the edge of his seat as his father came up for a speech.

“Vlad,” his father stopped to blow his nose,” Vlad was a good friend of mine in college, w-we,” his lip trembled, his large jaw hammering up and down as he stammered for words. It took everything in Danny to not sink into the pew bench in embarrassment. Jack was for all intensive purposes the only person in the entire church that seemed genuinely broken up about the billionaire’s death.

“We drifted apart for a while, and he’d just started to come back to mine and my wife's lives a few years ago and- and- I-I sorry,” he winced as his fathers voice died.

While he didn’t understand his fathers affection for the man his heart couldn't help but ache for the man’s sorrow. His father had such a large heart. He was so trusting and held so much affection in his large beating heart. It was a weakness and a strength. One his mother often said he inherited. He didn’t know if he could see it. He wasn’t so soft, so trusting, so eager to love and care as his father. Then the larger man hadn’t been burned the same. Hadn’t had his heart half electrocuted to death like him.

His mom walked up on the stage, he was briefly impressed by her composure, she was buzzed but also in heels and looked to all the church exceedingly well put together. Quietly she was speaking her hands gently on Jack’s shoulders patting his back soothingly. She often sold herself short. Stating her heart not to be as big, Danny didn’t believe that, not really, his mother was just more careful in those she let in.

“I wasn’t as close to him as my husband,” she admitted, having softly taken the mic from Jack. her fingers were curled around it softly, but her other hand was in her hair. She was fidgeting and searching for words,” but I’m sure those he was close to will miss him dearly.” she said tight lipped. Jack whispered something to Maddie quietly making her smile tightly and nod. The man moved to his seat and let his wife continue his speech in his stead.

It was nothing notable really, Danny wasn’t one for paying attention to speeches or lectures and a funeral would not be an exception. He caught a few snippets though, his moms implication that she liked him better in college. A line hoping that in death that he could hopefully move on from the past. He really tried to not laugh at that one clearly because she'd noticed the exes. How many of them had known before? How many of the exes had to learn of their blueprint right then and there in the funeral.

Still he sat teetering on the edge of his seat, half paying attention to her words and mind half trained on that open casket. Vlad lay there in the plush box waiting. What for he couldn’t tell yet but he wasn’t going to be caught unaware.

The speeches couldn’t have ended any slower in his opinion. He wished that the alcohol hadn’t run it’s course already. It was so much easier to get through shit when his mind was quieted and his obsession was dulled. Instead he was forced to wait, his waking obsession tearing at his insides making him wait. Watch the lingering guests with apprehensive eyes. A few were expected. Gaggle of divorced exes. Some smattering of people that vaguely had Vlad's chin and nose. It was bizarre, some looked wildly like him and others well. They were utter strangers to Danny. They all were but they seemed almost faceless in how unknown they were. Interestingly none of them really seemed that choked up. He’d never expected troves of people depressed about Vlad’s passing. Still to only have one sobbing mourner? Maybe they just grieved differently...

Yeah maybe.

About when he got his water from the refreshments table he realized that Vlad really wasn't pulling a stunt. Still he had no clue why he was in that damn casket if he was still (half) alive in there. He almost laughed at the absurdity of it all, his worst nightmare was being trapped in one of those, yet Vlad had clambered in willing foot after foot laying stricken and board straight for all that he knew to see him. It didn’t make sense. There had to be some trick.

There had to be.

He thought maybe after his father had bowed his head over the casket head in hands loud body wracking sobs shaking his shoulders that Vlad might then spring to life (ha) and attack them. No, instead he remained laying in that coffin, the soft plush pillow under his head holding him still, the flowers in hand still clutched in strict fingers. He must have some sort of long con going on then. Some sort of goal he was aiming to reach by laying stricken and dead.

Wouldn’t be the first time the man had pulled a bizarre stunt. The time he’d kidnapped Danny and his mom sprang to mind. But there were few situations that came to mind where faking one’s death could come in handy.

A severe looking man walked up to him a small plate of hors d'oeuvres in hand. Sam would hate the sight of the small snacks, not a single one was vegetarian. And Tuck? He’d be laughing his head off at the name and size. He really had to rope them into a trip to the movies or arcade sometime soon.

The man greeted him, straightening his professional looking tie as he spoke. The man was exceedingly out of place, in a clean and crisp business suit that hardly matched the tone of mourning clothes. Then his parents were wearing their jumpsuits under their fancy clothes so glass houses and all that.

The man was painfully dull giving Danny his condolences in a rather stilted and clunky tone. The man clearly didn't want to be there. He raised an eyebrow at the man as he finally asked how he knew the ‘deceased’.

Telling the man something to the effect of, “Just through my parents,” somehow making it clear to the man that he wasn’t particularly choked up by the billionaire's death. Gee he wondered what gave it away, his flat unaffected tone? Or the fact that Vlad was a billionaire with no moral backbone.

Huh, he must really be missing Sam a lot to be thinking like that. he hated to admit it but she was kinda right.

Business suit was disinterested in conversation with Danny after that, he hastily wrapped up the conversation. Man even muttered “shame.” under his breath, if Danny wasn’t half dead he wouldn't have caught it. But well nothing ever really worked out well for bureaucrats did it?

Had Vlad seriously faked his death to avoid paying a few measly bucks? The man was a billionaire! He must really owe them a mean amount of money for them all to arrive at the funeral like this. Maybe they hoped the will would work in their favour? Not far in front of the refreshment table were two suits talking unabashedly about the amounts that Vlad owed them. If it weren’t for the setting Danny would think that they were coming or going from an important meeting.

For what was probably the first time he properly looked at all of the guests. Actually taking them in, a good chunk like he’d noticed before were the exes that half looked like his mom, and their kids (hopefully they weren’t biologically Vlads). Then there were the vague family members that looked like Vlad watered down with kindness. But the rest? Suits and-

Oh.

Oh he had to step behind an archway and stuff a fist in his mouth to stop himself from laughing out loud. Vlad had fucking bounty hunters being sent after him! It was karmic, he had to stop himself from busting a gut right then and there in the middle of a church. It was already blasphemy enough to be the walking dead he didn't want to also throw in disrespecting the (only mostly) dead into the mix.

Well at least they weren’t all debtors, lurking around the corners and edges of the room was a guy he’d worked with as Phantom a few years ago. He was kind of hot in a rugged sort of way. If it weren’t for Sam and Tuck he’d have considered flirting seriously with the other man. As it was his joking flirting got him in trouble with the other two.

He was really acting up being normal, that rugged man. Mingling about with other people dressed neatly.

Clear to only Danny what he was, what the others like him were, the man wandered unaware that Danny was watching him. Ironically he only knew they were bounty hunters because Vlad had hired the rugged man and his crew to hunt Phantom that time a few years ago and now? Oh the tables have turned. Someone, maybe one of the exes, or the debtors wanted him dead. Damn what had Vlad done?

Ghost Zone inhabitants had mixed opinions on him, many of which wanted him dead or knocked down a peg. But that was the Ghost Zone, half of them wanted Danny dead at some point or another. This was the human world. Earth and shit, it was much harder to piss off someone to the level of murder. Not impossible but damn. He grinned at this, Vlad was (half) alive and (sorta) well in that casket and he couldn’t do anything if he started to stir shit up. Life was beautiful, twinkling and gorgeous, he decided. He Didn’t need Tucker and Sam to have fun.

He started with one of the exes. He went out of his way to ignore her dyed red hair and pale purple eyes as he talked with her. It wasn’t her fault that Vlad had a complex, he reminded himself as the woman talked. Fault couldn’t be pinned on her for the parallels he could search between his mother and her. She was nice in a weird way, again really like his mom. It was unnerving. He kept trying to ignore her beady eyed gremlin of a child as she talked to him about the will.

Whatever Vlad had done for all the people in his life to only care about the will and the will alone Danny wanted to do the express opposite. It was almost painful in a way to watch all of these people act like they weren’t only here for the money. Served the man right, it was still depressing, the man had everything on paper but not a damn thing in reality.

“Do you think his daughter will show?” he tactfully added into the conversation after the woman had made some condolences about his family and Vlad.

“Daughter?” the woman asked, her large eyes blinking slowly,” I'm sure you're mistaken, Vlad told me he doesn’t have kids.”

“Oh,” he said, feigning apology, inside he was loving this, sure Vlad couldn’t admit the truth about the clones but clearly the man had seriously left out some details to his ex lovers. “Are you sure? ‘Elle is nineteen now,” he said, it was technically true if you counted right. She was also only seven if you counted right. It was all about semantics.

“Ninete-” the woman stammered something hard settling in her eyes,” he told me he didn’t want to have children,” she looked down at her angry eyed child (he hoped the little dude didn’t kick him in the shin) who had a hand fisted in the end of her dress. “If you’ll excuse me, Daniel, this was an- enlightening conversation.” he watched her walk away to a woman with a big chunky bracelet.

Also a redhead. Of course.

A sharp pain seared in the top of his ear he prevented himself from yowling out as the fingers attached dragged him over to a corner.

"ow ow ow," he whined out quietly trying heard not to draw attention to himself. It didn't really work.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Jazz hissed at him when they were hidden away from the rest of the group.

“First of all: ow!” He rubbed his ear delicately between his finger pads,” I’m not a child anymore, maybe borderline sibling abuse was funny in 80’s sitcoms but it's not anymore.”

Jazz rolled her eyes,” second of all?” she pressed, she was still slightly buzzed and yet she was still holding herself with so much composure. Kind of impressive, if she hadn’t just physically threatened to rip his ear off.

“Secondly I’m not doing anything wrong.”

“Not do-” Jazz floundered,” Daniel!” she hissed out again struggling to keep her tone low. Damn she was mad, she only pulled out the full name when really fucked up,” I know your relationship with Vlad was- complicated.”

He snorted,” he tried to kill me multiple times, Jazz.”

“Yes bu-”

“Dark Dan,’’ he pressed further.

“I get it!” she snapped in a whisper-shout,” but a funeral isn-”

“He isn’t dead Jazz. Or really fully dead I guess I should say,” he laughed

Jazz rolled her eyes,” This is concerning behaviour Danny.”

“W-what?” he asked.

She tapped her chin pensively, she was psychoanalyzing him again, gag, “You must be transferring your complicated feeling about him into-”

“Jazz,” he groaned. It was best to stop her before she got on a roll, “Ghost senses remember? He’s still not fully dead, I can tell. He faked his death.”

“Okay,” she said with a sigh," I'm not saying I believe you, but say he did fake his death-”

“He did.”

She shot him a look, “Why? Why would he fake his death? He’s a rich ceo multi-billionaire with more money than most of us can conceive of, nonetheless actually obtain, what does he get out of faking his death?”

He pinched the bridge of his nose, this was easier when Jazz was talking to one of Vlad’s cousins ignoring him stirring the pot.

He explained what he’d pieced together so far, with the suits and hunters lurking around the edges of the room it was easy to point out how out of place they look. Slowly a realization fell on her face, an acceptance of what he was saying.

“When I was talking to the stepford exes they were all talking about who would get the estate.”

“Do they know who?” he asked.

Jazz shook her head,” no the will was kept really secretive from all of them. There was even a bit of an altercation from two of the younger ex girlfriends over it.”

He winced at that, he couldn’t blame them for being mad he just wished Vlad wasn’t faking death for them to take it out on. “The bottle red and the one with the big bracelet?” he prompted, remembering the end of his conversation with the former.

“No that’s Maddison and Maggie, the two that fought were Morgan and Melenie.”

“Maddison? Maggie? Morgan? Melenie?” he repeated with a grimace voice getting higher with each name.

“Yeah I know,” she said with a sigh,” a textbook case of projecting an ex, or in this case crush, on future partners leading to a string of failed relationships,” she frowned looking over at the group of clustered red heads. Danny followed and examined them, they were all looking at something their eyes occasionally darted over to-

Oh of course, mom, they ‘d probably done the math already. He winced at the thought. He’d half thought about it before finding the notion funny. Now in his sparkling sobriety of the evening he couldn’t find the humour.

“At least they all mostly get along,” Jazz offered, trying to look away from how the dozen or so women were looking at the one woman they were all stacked against.

“Really?” he blinked at her,” I’d have thought that they’d all be fighting cause of the- well you know,” he gestured to the, everything, of the situation.

She shook her head,” no, they seem to all understand that it was all on Vlad, two of them, Mackenzie and Melody,” she clarified to even more of his confusion,” even found out that they were seeing him at the same time. How they didn’t know with all of the press that followed him I’ll never know, but they decided to team up on the legal front if there are any issues with the will.”

“Really.”

Jazz nodded,” yeah I was surprised too, but good for them, Vlad went around causing too many issues in their lives.”

He nodded in agreement as he looked at at the sea of redheads, some of them had grown out their hair revealing dark roots, some had hair styled in poufy curls reminiscent of his mothers old style and one of them had completely cut her hair into a half shaved look, it was actually similar to the look that Sam had now.

“Want to cause some problems for him?” he asked.

“Danny, legally and socially he’s dead, what could we do?”

“Legally yeah,” he agreed,” but technically he’s still half alive in there, and can hear everything that people say-”

“Are you suggesting that we ruin his reputation?” Jazz asked with a poorly hidden smile. He loved that in the years she’d loosened up. It was a good look on her, relaxation.

“Ruin?” He said, in mock scandal, ”I'm merely suggesting we bring it down to where it belongs.”

“Oh ‘merely’ what is that a fifth grade word? I'm impressed!” Jazz teased.

He shoved her lightly with a laugh,” oh fuck off I’m in college now you know.”

“Really? Accredited and everything?”

He stifled his laugh,” shut up, you know dealing with ghost shit messed with my grades.”

Truthfully he’d expected her to joke further about it, to razz him about doing so much, or maybe analyze him, diagnosis him with trauma. Instead she hugged him.

“I’m sorry so much was put on your shoulders so young,” her voice was raw. Too raw.

He patted her back, stomach squirming. Because what was he to do with that? The tender care held for him in the cracks of her fingers. The sorrow that settled in her pores all for him?

“Hey stop that,” he eventually said, pulling back,” or I'll make clockwork take me back in time so you never find out.” He didn’t mean it, he never did.

Jazz laughed a little wetly, he didn’t comment on it. Why would he? Also didn’t get a chance as she ruffled his hair, despite the fact that he was now much taller than her. “People are allowed to care about you, asshole.”

He scrunched his nose up at that,” ew what? I detest affection.”

“Oh detest another good one, really racking up those vocab words huh?” she sniffled her hands on her hips, a little lean in her back as she smirked.

Snorting, he stepped back and fixed his hair,” how about we make this a competition?”

“Huh?”

“First one to make Vlad burst out of his casket and rage in ghost mode wins.”

“Really? What would the winner get?”

He tapped his chin making a humming noise,” how about this, loser has to reveal their secret.”

Jazz laughed nervously,” I don’t have a secret Danny.”

Danny gave her a look,” Jazz, I’ve met your girlfriend.”

She bit her lip looking down at his outstretched hand, a debate playing in her eyes.

“Hey you don’t have to if you don’t wanna,” he said softly,” this is just meant for fun after all.” he knew better than most what forcing this stuff did.

”No, it’s fine,” she took his hand and shook, if a little clumsily,” that doesn’t mean they have to meet her though.”

“Oh don’t worry,” he said,” it won’t be my fault if they do that’ll be entirely on them.”

“Danny!” she exclaimed at him as he fled to the other side of the church. Finally this funeral was going to be interesting!

“Can you keep a secret?” he asked the swaying uncle of Vlad. The man smelled of beer and hors d'oeuvres. Not that Danny could judge if it wasn’t for the thick layer of spray on deodorant that his mom smothered him in right before he got in the uber then he’d probably smell just as rank. Then there was the fact that he’d pregamed to.

The older man narrowed his eyes at Danny, he was shocked to see the man he looked to hardly be much older than Vlad yet he was his uncle? He’d gone to ask about it but thought better about it, the less lore he knew about Vlad’s family the better, he really didn’t want to know about how many kids and when and how the Masters ‘clan’ had. Conversation with the older man was… stilted, to say the least. But he was certain that if he told him something then it wouldn’t get back to him. And that was half the game wasn’t it? Finding a way to spread the most rumours without people finding out it was him or Jazz. All without powers of course, that almost went without saying.

The man didn’t seem too broken up about Vlad, they probably weren’t that close and Danny had always gotten the impression from the billionaire that he was a smidge too snobbish to fully have developed relationships with people. As often as he teased Jazz for being snobby, she at least was nowhere near as bad as Vlad. Man damn near invented snobbishness and assholery. He’d have to ask clockwork if Vlad’s ancestors were just as bad. Judging by some of his family, probably not.

“Well before he passed,” Danny prompted, pausing in a way to snag the older man's attention.

“Yes?” the older man asked when he didn’t continue.

“Well,” Danny fidgeted with his nail,” you know his signed Packers jersey?”

The older man nodded eagerly.

Danny looked to the side,” it’s a fake,” he whispered to the man.

“Really?”

He nodded,” yeah, but please don’t tell anyone,” he added,” it’s bad enough that they know he was banned from buying the team-”

“He was what?”

Danny fought to hide a smirk. He knew it’d be easier to sell this lie if he started smaller.

“I thought everyone knew!”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, most of the town knows, it’s just, no one talked about it to be polite.” okay that might have been overselling it a bit but the distant relative seemed to really be drinking it in.

“What did he do?”

Danny looked side to side like he didn’t want anyone to overhear.

“Well a few years ago when he was closing the deal to buy the team he got caught stalking some of the members!”

“Really?” the uncle asked,” wha- why?”

Danny shrugged,” they never really found the reason he was following them, he was even trying to seduce some of the wives.”

The man gasped,” I- really?”

Danny nodded. “But you can’t tell anyone you have to promise me.”

He watched as the man smiled in what he thought was slyness,” of course! I just, with all of those wives he had!”

Within the next five minutes Danny heard the rumour circulate across the room and it had grown legs. How glorious those rumours legs were.

“I heard he’d tried to break up a marriage on the team!” an ex wife (Maggie maybe?) hissed.

The other ex (Mary? The other woman might have called her) laughed,” would it really be any surprise? With what he did to Morgan and Melenie?”

The first woman nodded sagely,” fair I can’t believe I even fell for his tricks.”

All things considered the rumour was spreading well, and there was not even a gasp of a suggestion that he was the source. He couldn’t wait to hear what Jazz had invented, with the rumbles he’d already started to hear, it was probably great. Jazz always did have a way of getting into people’s heads. Find what interests them the most.

“So this daughter of Vlad's?” the woman he was talking to prompted, he vaguely remembered Jazz saying her name was Maddison. She’d found him again some time later; her child now safely deposited over by the other kids with their group babysitter. They were in the middle of the church now, the other two still whispering about the packers' spouses.

“ ‘Elle?” he asked as if he’d forgotten.

The woman nodded her curls bouncing as she did.

“Can I see a picture of her?”

He pulled up an older photo of them hanging out, the picture was grainy and they were both sticking their tongues out at the camera. Shit he’d really forgotten how alike they looked.

“You both-” the woman said before stopping. She glanced at his parents.

Shit he had to go into damage control,” well she’s also my cousin,” he fibbed.

“Cousin?”

“Yes! Technically once removed? Or something like that, I didn’t meet her until a few years ago, we were really blown away with the family resemblance!” he laughed. "Really it's uncanny!" He continued.

Too far! Too far! He was leaning into it too much! It wasn’t like he could just tell her the truth, that Dani was Vlad's only successful half dead clone of him! Then he’d also have to out two things about himself to her.

“She travels a lot,” he added. He really needed to learn when to shut his big mouth,” she was in Paris a few years ago actually.”

“Really?”

He couldn’t even blame the alcohol! He was just this stupid naturally huh? They’d been saying it for years Sam and Tucker, if only he’d taken them seriously before this. His idiocy might really be terminal.

“Yup, I haven’t seen her in awhile though, hopefully she visits again!”

Scrutinizing eyes scanned him up and down, darting from each corner of his face hunting out the ruse. He really needed to learn to shut his big mouth.

“Do you have her number?”

Crashing noises filled his brain. Her number? The last thing that he had expected was interest in ‘Elle. he’d just thought that they’d get upset at Vlad and leave it at that.

“ ‘E-elle's?” he asked.

“Yes, I’m sorry if this is prying but me and the other ladies,” she gestured to a few of them,” we’re talking and we want to support her!”

“I-” he hesitated, he hadn’t really planned for this,” what?”

The older woman nodded,” we all talked it out and if we get the estate we’re going to support one another and the kids, and it seems like ‘Elle just got stuck in the middle of this like the rest of us.”

“Yeah uh, let me just text her first?”

“Of course honey!”

Danny walked away from that conversation feeling distinctly weirder than before. Regardless he pulled up his phone and slid out the keyboard.

He opened up the “With an I” contact.

Hey i accidentally got you adopted by like fifteen random women that used to date vlad

5:43 p.m.

You what? Lul

5:45 p.m.

He looked up around him before typing out the next message

Yeah long story short he faked his death. Its weird

5:46 p.m.

I’m at the funeral and the exes wanna like support you?

5:46 p.m.

Well Vlad wasn’t good for much but at least i now have a multitude of mothers

5:47 p.m.

So i can give them your number?

5:47 p.m.

Yeah have at it! If this causes chaos for vlad im all for it !

5:48 p.m.

“So her phone number is.”

By the time he’d separated himself from that conversation a few more rumours were floating.

“I heard that the reason he died in a car crash is because he was on the run from the law!” one of vlad's relatives whispered.

“Really!” another responded.

Elsewhere some of the attending staff were murmuring too. “I heard that he got caught smuggling maple syrup cans from canada!”

“Cans?”

“Yes apparently the good stuff is canned there.”

He walked to a new group this time with the suits.

“I hear that the money in the accounts is dirty.”

“According to my source his invested stocks were backed with illegal funds.”

“If there’s drugs really attached to it like I was told then I don't want anything to do with it.”

“I agree it's hard enough to get money from wills with spouses involved. It's even harder if the feds sniff any drugs.”

“It might not even be worth it to try with all of the ladies,” a different suit complained,” I overheard them talking about lawyering up together if anything goes wrong.”

Another much older suit scoffed,” this business was much easier before the exes started working together.”

Finally he heard his own new rumour starting to gain some traction.

“Wasn’t it found out that he was stealing science equipment from the nearby college?”

“Oh whatever for?”

“I heard it was for making a specialty shampoo.”

“I’ve always wondered how he kept his hair so nice and shiny.”

Jazz was good, too good, considering that neither of them had really clicked into any social cliques in highschool. Now she was gossiping better than even any of the A-listers.

“It’s just such a shame that they can’t come,” Jazz was even fake sobbing, damn he was going to have to up his game.

“Who couldn’t come?” One of Vlad's older cousins asked, Danny wondered if Jazz was screaming inside at the hand she had around one of the older exes' waists, it was casual and tender. If one of Vlad's exes was getting together with his cousin because of the funeral , Danny would shriek from laughter, hell if he accidentally used his ghostly wail it’d be well worth it. Vlad of all people deserved to have a partner snatching occur to him.

“Oh I’m sorry,” Jazz said,” I thought that everyone knew,” she looked from side to side,” please don’t tell the other ex wives Monroe I’d hate for their feelings to get hurt over this.”

Damn she was good. The wife- Monroe who was leaning comfortably on the cousin nodded.

“Of course Jazzie,” she said in a deep comforting New York accent,” this can be brought up to them later more delicately later. Though I must admit,” she said after a pause where Jazz thanked her for her discretion.” I myself am curious who wasn’t able to come.”

“Well you know how he used to do ghost research with mom and dad?”

Where was she going with this? She was selling it well, Danny had to admit but for the life of him he couldn’t guess where this was going.

“Yes of course,” the cousin nodded as Monroe spoke.

“I can’t name the amount of times he used to write home in our youth about his little ghost adventures,” the cousin added.

Jazz nodded ,” well at the school there was the Lunch Lady Ghost and the Box Ghost, he was seeing them romantically in between their stays in the ghost zone.”

Danny held back a snort box ghost! If he laughed too hard in that moment he’d drop the ghost form and would fall on top of the group that’d gathered around her. As much control as he’d mastered over his abilities over the past couple years there was nothing that would be able to save him from Jazz’s wit.

“I’m sure box ghost is very helpful for moves,” one of the crowd commented amicably. The others though had nothing to say. Clearly they’d all actually met Box Ghost.

The gossip might have even stayed in that circle if it weren’t for another one of the cousins being right there and then deciding to tell his wife, who then told one of the ex-wives, who then told another, who then told a suit. So on and so forth.

By the time that Danny was back in human form and settled on the opposite side of Jazz’s conversation he was hearing the children that some of the wives had brought talking about Vlad ‘holding hands’ with the Box Ghost and Lunch Lady. Why couldn’t he have thought about that? It was so good, it was perfect, literally no one could prove it wrong. And embarrassing, seriously Box Ghost!

All the stuff he knew to be true about Vlad sounded so far-fetched.

Half ghost?

Well most people didn’t know about them.

The time he infected his two closest and longest friends with ghost pimples?

Needed the half ghost context.

If only there was some-

“I hate Vlad!” one of the kids near him cried out stomping down his foot.

Unsurprisingly all of the kids agreed, okay he was a little surprised, usually Vlad had the wool pulled over on most people. So the fact that all of these kids hated him really meant something.

“He stole my cotton candy at the fair!”

“Well he told me that I didn’t need to see daddy anymore cause he was gonna replace him!”

Eager ears pointed at them he drank in their every complaint. He’d known that Vlad was cartoonish levels of evil for awhile (see the infecting teens with ghost acne for personal gain as proof, or kidnapping him and his mom) but never had he truly expected for him to be so stupid as to do it all in the open in front of all of these kids. Then again some of this might be his obsession making him act out. Smallest sliver of him almost felt bad about that, the fact that Vlad was in a way forced to be this way, but it wasn’t really anything he wasn’t before. Obsessions just highlighted what was already there. Made it more severe.

“Uhm excuse me,” he tapped the shoulder of one of the shorter women,” Mallory?” He'd asked the babysitter for her name but for the life of him he was struggling to keep all of the exes straight in his head. There were just too many of them and they all looked too similar to his mom.

“Yes,” her eyes flickered with recognition,” Danny?”

He laughed,” yeah that’s me!”

“Some of the others were mentioning you!” she said with a bright smile taking his hand,” thank you for telling us about ‘Elle! I can’t believe he kept her a secret from all of us for so long.”

He nodded in agreement,” well about Vlad-”

“Oh no, what else was he hiding?” she asked, there was a laugh ringing from her but Danny didn’t need ghost senses to know it was dead on arrival,” I’ve learned so much more here at his funeral than I ever did when we’d been together.”

He laughed a little at that, a stilted awkward laugh that only filled his chest halfway. He almost felt bad telling her about this, but she deserved to know the truth. “Well I overheard some of the kids complaining about Vlad.”

He filled her in on what he’d overheard about the kids, the petty little actions of Vlad. The cotton candy he’d stolen (which was weird he’s rich), the fathers he threatened to replace, it was all so bizarre. Danny was about halfway through when the casket began to shake.

Vlad masters was not an impulsive man. He was calculated, smart and forward thinking. At least he certainly liked to think so. No impulsive man goes out of his way to plan his nemesis’ death and demise for twenty years. No reckless person would spend his time building an empire carefully crafting his abilities and connections for taking down his enemy. Vlad however to his greatest distaste was in fact still half human and not infallible. While he was meticulous and in his personal opinion exceedingly intelligent he had no way to properly plan for wrenches in his schemes.

The fenton boy, Daniel was his biggest hurdle but it was only a matter of time before he found the right way to tackle the issue. He was just a particularly big roadblock. If only his emotional attachment to his dunderheaded father wasn’t so strong. These issues were all small potatoes compared to the one he was in now. The details can be spared and smoothed over all that was truly important was that he was at his own funeral.

He’d always wondered what people's reaction to his death would be. Contact with his extended family had been… loose, for the lack of a better term since his ‘accident’. Deep down however he knew that when or if his time came, truly came, that they’d have a reaction. Probably sadness, he had been close to a few of them before his accident, hell he’d been close to them before his company had taken off. At the end of the day he simply had better things to do. Plans to make, revenge to ruminate on. It wasn’t his fault that they’d fallen to the wayside. They simply weren’t as important as Maddie.

He’d toyed with the idea that maybe his dear Maddie would sob over him, that she’d denounce Jack when she saw that he was no longer an option. How deeply poetic it’d be for that to happen. He never liked the idea of her only realizing their potential then but he couldn’t ignore the artful symmetry of it all. Some of the books that Maddie used to read in college had those even beginning and ends, those swooping through lines that tied it all nicely in a pretty bow. His first death had ripped her away from him. It’d gifted her to Jack on a silver platter, and his second oh how glorious it’d be if it drew her to him. Making her denounce her imbecile of a husband. Leaving the stocky man discarded. Beauty was in the eye of the beholder and even with its harsh edges his death bringing her close to him was something to behold. If only that was what he was watching happen.

Unfortunately for Vlad Masters Owner, Ceo, and founder of Vladco. Life was not an art piece nor a well orchestrated game of football. No instead he got to lay still (half) alive in his exceedingly expensive casket and listen to the dolt sob.

It started like all of the worst things while heading to the Fenton's for another plan to be set in motion. The restraining order was still being held up in the courts so there was technically nothing legally stopping him from seeing them, or especially her. Besides he was a billionaire, those things were more fine machines than anything for him. Once it was enacted all he’d have to do was pay a fine.

Unfortunately it was during the drive that issues started. Again finer details notwithstanding for he’d run them all in his head a thousand times now while laying in this blastedly comfortable casket. While on the drive it became clear to him he was being followed. No matter , he’d smugley told himself. He’d been followed by techbro fans before they were easy to deter. Easy to remove from his time and life. However in a deeply detestable turn of events the car following him did not belong to a fan.

He knew from the offset of seeing the make and model that it wasn't his average follower, those types usually had older beaters or worse highly expensive care that they had no business owning. No, instead this car was perfectly down the middle of class and price. How he detested those cars, they had no class. It was effectively similar to the many unmarked police cars that he used to have follow him during his brief stint as mayor.

Regardless the car was tailing his limo, it was simple at first to attempt to outmaneuver them. Eventually his limo was pinned.

Blah blah blah mindless details later some pointless shooting at him with guns and he’d jacked their car. In the end it was simply easier to fake a fatal car crash. then there were all of those witnesses that had to see his death. Walking it back was impossible all circumstances considered. At least when they attacked him they only knocked his driver out, the legal case of that would have been a logistical nightmare and he still had some hopes of getting access to his funds later.

It was almost funny in a karmic way. Almost as poetic as he had wanted pretending to be dead to be. Only problem was it was poetic in exactly the opposite way. The person that he hated most there sobbing the loudest. It’d be so much easier if it was Madeline sobbing. If she was sobbing, a faked death could be almost satisfying. If she melted down it could almost be worth it. Instead it was Jack Fucking Fenton.

Numerous things were to be expected from his funeral, Daniel's arrival, yes, Maddie’s, undoubtedly. Even Jazz’s and Jack’s all expected arrivals. Some of them were more annoying than others but they were the requisite arrivals. Even his gaggle of ex flings was to be expected (they had to try and get their hands on the estate and money somehow. Well jokes on them he’d left it all to Maddie). No, what he hadn’t been prepared for was Jack’s incessant wailing and sobbing.

The man was besides himself absolutely losing his mind right next to his goddamn open casket. It was getting hard to keep a straight face when he wanted nothing more than to leap from the plush silk sheets and throttle the man. His hands might not quite reach around the other mans thick neck but he could give it a good try he was sure. To put it simply and without intense amounts of rage he had mentally calculated for a lot of variables, not one of them being Jack of all people struggling to breath, choked out sobs instead of breaths coming from him as he hovered nearby. Not a single variable included being cried on by the most loathsome man in all of Amity Park. Every tear that fell on Vlad’s extremely expensive make up was another tally against the man’s. Had he no clue how hard it was to not flinch every time a drop of water splattered on his face? It was much harder than it looked he’d have him know.

Didn’t the idiot realize that he hated him? That he’d never cared for him? At least not since his death.

Worse was when Maddie and the Fenton children staggered in, he could smell the alcohol on them from a mile away. It was tasteless! The smell alone nearly made him leap from his casket and throttle them where they stood (Maddie with exception of course). Have they no respect for the dearly departed? Have they no care for social decorum? Those Fenton spawn would never survive in high class society. Not like himself and Maddie. Oh how he wished he’d never gone for those pale imitations. They hardly kept up with all that he needed.

All he had to do now was ignore everyone and get through the funeral and he could be Plasmius full time. Pursue Maddie 24/7 with no worries of the law (though with some worries of Phantom). If only those blasted Fenton's would stop spreading rumours about him! And he knew it was them! Who else would say such outrageous things?

Okay certainly if one wanted to be technical Danielle was his daughter, but he hadn’t raised her. She was not his blood, she was not his in the most important ways.

Then there was that rumour about the-

“He-hey Vlad.”

Oh, oh no.

“I uh, I’m gonna miss you.”

No no no no no! He couldn’t do this! He wouldn’t do this! He would not stand for this! He did not go out of his way to fake his death for this.

Jack blew his big blubbering nose into a handkerchief so hard it honked. Honked! He was going to throttle this man at his earliest convenience. Getting cried on he could deal with, revolting as it was. What he couldn’t and wouldn’t deal with getting yammered at. That was not in the details. He did not plan for this.

“I- uhm- I know we weren’t really close these last few years.”

That was putting it lightly.

“Or really at all since college,” there was a wet laugh from Jack.

If that oaf ended up coughing slobber on him- Maybe if he tried hard enough he could die for real, that’d be nice. He’d never really craved death before, not like in this moment. It’d be so much easier if he just didn’t have to hear this.

“I-I know you didn’t really like me in the end.”

Wait what? Had he finally gotten a clue? That was a first. Maybe his overt plotting had finally gotten through to the oaf. If Jack attacked him now that’d almost make this all worth it. He might even consider revealing he’s Plasmius if he did.

“I know I messed up, I-I must have hurt you, I don’t really know how, but- but uh, I just wanted to say I’m sorry.”

Yes ye- He was what?

There was another laugh sob from his ex friend,” It’s probably too late since you’re uh- dead, but whatever it is I did to hurt you, I'm sorry. I hope,” he trailed off into a high pitched keening whine.

Stop stop stop! This is not what he wanted!

“I hope you rest well Vlad.”

Footsteps receded away from him at that.

Well what the fuck was he supposed to do with that? What in the world was he supposed to do with that knowledge? Internalize it? Grow and change as a person? He was (half) dead! He was well past the point of growth! He was beyond growth.

For all Jack knew he wasn’t coming back! For him and basically all of them he wasn’t coming back! The only person that would know was Daniel and maybe his sister if he told her. Maybe his brat friends if he messaged them.

What did Jack get out of telling him all of that?

Certainly not money, the will had left everything to sweet Maddie, not him. Some sort of moral upper hand? A sense of feeling like he got one over Vlad?

No the dolt wasn’t that complex, his intelligence lay somewhere between absentminded and incompetant on a good day, there was no moral forethought. Yet why did the words settle so deeply in a corner of himself? Carving out a crevice in him that ached and burned?

“Did you hear about why Vlad couldn’t buy the green bay packers?”

Why? Why did it dig in his flesh? why when he’d thought he’d burned all of that away.

I'm Sorry.

“No, why?”

Life was easier when he was fully alive. College life was simpler. At least then he could fool himself that Maddie thought of him equally as she did Jack.

“Well I heard that he was stalking the team!”

What?

Why would he stalk them? He’d never stalked someone once in his entire life! (death maybe but he’d never admit that) he could buy all the tickets to their games he had no reason to stalk them!

There was no practicality in stalking them. Just like Jack had no reason to apologize to him! The idiot didn’t even know what he’d done to hurt him. He hadn’t ripped the apology from Jack. He wasn't on his knees begging from him. Hell he didn’t even know that he’d killed Vlad. Jack Fenton was as oblivious to the fact that he’d died back in college as he was to the fact that his own son was dead and playing hero as Phantom.

The density of the man was rivaled by no other.

But then why did he apologize?

“Did you hear?”

He got nothing out of it.

Why did it ache?

Burn? He wanted for years nothing more than to make the man sob and beg for forgiveness.

Why did having it fulfill nothing?

“About him and the Box Ghost?”

Would it burn just as painfully if he finally got sweet Madeline’s confession? Would it ring just as hollow?

“I thought it was the lunch lady ghost?”

No. There was something about Jack that made it wrong. Something about that blathering moron that lashed the words to him like a blade.

“I think it was both.”

And what the hell were they all blathering on about? What was all of this nonsense about Box Ghosts and smuggling and stalking? What were any of their empty little words?

Did any of that really matter? Their blathering human rumours and petty squabbles when he, the very guest of honour in all ways but one was laying here before their very eyes on the precipice of something? He was teetering at some edge, he didn’t know what it was but he could just make out the shape of the hole he was almost toppling in, he just had to know what it was. He just-

“Well I heard-”

They heard- they heard! What did it matter what they’d all heard! Nothing that they heard could matter in the slightest not when he was dealing with this! Not when he was reeling with whatever this was! The weight and size of it completely overtaking him and yet none of them aware, he was suffocating being overtaken by the edge of knowledge some realization he’d yet to make and hee still couldn’t read it. All because they wouldn’t stop blathering on and on about what? Lies?

Stupid foolish tales spun by his greatest enemy!

By a child.

If it were not for the show and pageantry of it all, if it were not for the display that he’d set about around him he’d be yanking his hair by the roots, tearing it slowly strand by strand from his scalp. And if there was one thing that Vlad Masters was, it was a showman! He was dramatic and he was going to be so unabashedly it was not his fault that there was no one that yearned for his life to roll onwards like Jack. None of it could be held against him. He was a romantic! Everything he did was for her.

Had it truly all been for nothing?

All these years.

Had she never really cared?

“Dirty money, attached to drugs. I wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pool.”

All this time.

Did he really-

“Never even mentioned a daughter!

All his schemes!

Jack's tears were so warm when they cut the thick funeral makeup.

“So many secrets for him to keep.”

Dozens of attempts on his life!

Did he really care? The water on his face was still warm.

“Wasn’t the cause of his crash a run from the law?”

“Would you all just shut up already!”

Silence blanketed the church as Vlad’s voice finished ringing out the wooden box still perched on its little stage. The casket was still shaking and the flowers were falling from the box as the hush grew sharper. Energy crackled from the casket shooting out and blowing the bulb above. Glass fell from the light falling gently on the flower petals.

None one spoke, Danny’s father had a hand over his mouth, new large tears welling up. He looked green and pale, unlike most of the stunned guests he looked like he was about to be sick.

Danny shot a glance at Jazz, she nodded and jerked her head to the side. He ducked out. Things were about to get hairy.

There was no response from Vlad for a second as it seemed the outburst was done. Even the children who’d been shrieking with laughter and joy from their play for most of the funeral were silent. The falling glass and shaking box were deafening in the silence. Danny ducked behind a pillar and into the doorway that led to the restrooms. There was no one there. The closest person was his mom but she was standing silent and stunned not an eye tilted away from the casket. He couldn’t blame her.

It wasn’t everyday your incel stalker had a breakdown after he’d legally died.

He transformed. On the most part there weren’t many people near the casket. It was just a few lingering Exes, most people were near the refreshment table. His first line of action should be to grab the people near the stage and get them to safety. Then?

Well the rest was adlib.

At least he had stored the Fenton thermos in his suit jacket (just in case). If only Sam or Tucker were there. Things were so much easier with their help.

Just as he was about to jump into the situation, the group of exes all swarmed Vlad. Shit he’d have to replan everything. He wouldn’t be able to get in an ecto-blast with out the fret of hitting one of them. He could always try Ice or a little storm cloud?

Just as a new plan was starting to formulate one of them (Maria?) slapped Vlad hard across the face.

Smack.

The noise echoed loudly across the church.

He grimaced.

Oh.

He did not want to get in the middle of whatever that was. He really didn’t want to get in the middle of it at all. Backing back into the bathroom he turned back to normal. Didn’t matter what the situation was, he was not going to get in the middle of a dozen or so angry exes and Vlad. It was his grave (even if Danny had helped him dig it a little) like hell Danny was getting buried with him.

“Vlad Masters!” one of the exes screamed,” you slimy pathetic excuse of a man.”

Yeah Danny was not getting in that, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to watch.

“Ow!” Vlad cried out, his eyes were glowing red, but aside from that he still looked very much the same.

Weird, Danny didn’t expect him to stay in human form. He guessed it made sense if he changed into Plasmius the gig would be up. There’d be a lot of questions too. Knowing Vlad’s tendency to monologue he might even explain the concept of Halfa’s.

“M-Maria!” the older man stammered out,” darling hello-”

The woman smacked him again,” I’m Maggie,” she spat out.

Danny winced, yikes. Makeup covered Vlad's gaunt face but Danny could imagine the smarting red forming on his cheeks.

“Y-yes of course, how could I mistake your beauty, how foolish of me to compare the two of-”

The clearing of a throat interrupted as Maria herself tapped her foot.

“Maria!” Vlad exclaimed this time correct, even if taken by surprise.

“Yes,” the woman agreed,” but don’t mind me, what were you saying? Something about comparison?”

The billionaire awkwardly laughed as he seemed to take in the fact that he was surrounded by all of his exes. Phantom wasn’t even needed. Villain defeated right then and there by the rage and power of his many exes. Again Danny found himself desperate to find out whatever the older man had done to make everyone hate him so just to do the express opposite.

When he actually fully died he hoped his funeral wasn’t this… whatever plan he actually ended up with he just didn’t want this.

“So,” Jazz said as she settled next to him leaning on the pillar with him,” any idea what got him up?”

“Nah,” Danny shrugged looking over to his sister. She looked more sober now, less unstable on her feet.” He didn’t really decree what his gripe was this time.”

Jazz sighed,” so no winner yet.”

“Unfortunately,” he said,'' He also technically didn’t go ghost mode.”

Jazz groaned resting her head on his shoulder,” I wanted to go home, these heels are killing me!”

He stuck a tongue out at her,” shoulda transed your gender like I did,” he teased quietly.

“Ha! Really funny Danny,” she flatly commented with a roll of her eyes at the tired joke.

“Ah meany,” he pouted.

“You walk in these heels at a funeral,” she complained again,” At least if he went full ghost It’d be socially acceptable to ditch them.”

He bit his tongue remembering a rant that Sam had gone on recently about heels and social pressure. How she’d then thrown one of her platform boots at Tuck when he made a remark. Jazz probably wouldn’t appreciate his lovesick ramblings about them.

“Looks like we'll just have to continue to watch this unfold.” he said instead with a sarcastic twinge.

“Oh what a shame!” Jazz said flatly,” sucks to be us.”

Danny snickered as Vlad continued to try to dig himself out of his hole. How he wished Sam and Tucker were here. Unfortunately for him they were both far too busy. Ah well he’d just have to video it all for them.

How unfortunate for Vlad that he was made to sit through his own will reading, and how fortunate for Danny Fenton that he was the one that got to watch it all go down. In the entire time that he and Vlad had been nemesis he never knew just how much he wanted exactly this to happen. Actually if someone ever suggested this happening younger him probably wouldn’t have appreciated just how funny this was. No fourteen-to-fifteen him was far too invested in things like learning his powers and finding out just how observant the rest of town was. Also looking cool. Adult him however? Freshly 21 and college attending him? Oh he could enjoy the fuck out of this situation.

There was some minor debate among some guests over how ethical it was since Vlad's ‘ghost’ was now here to view the reading. Some point could be made that it might be weird...

“Isn’t it rude?” one family member had suggested.

But...

“It might be in bad taste,” another guest had even pipped up.

No one really liked Vlad anyways

“Oh no!” Morgan said,” I want to know what it says, and who better to see how accurate it all is.”

Oh how glad he was that those few were beaten out. How glad he was that the crowd was seeing blood. That the group was too nosey and invested in the drama to really get caught up in such small things as ethics. How grateful he was that the exes were in half a mind to Kill Vlad a second time.

Fortunate he was, that his luck was finally turning up. It might even be the universe trying to pay him back for all of the shit he’d been dealing with since he was fourteen. Return investment on the untimely youth death. Honestly if it was it was a pretty bang up start all things considered. He’d have to find out if there was a ghost involved in the control of karma. They might just end up with an edible arrangement on their lair door. Older adults loved that shit so ghosts should too.

“Hm,” the lawyer said when they entered the room with the walking corpse of Vlad masters. The office was small and hardly held everyone, but snugly, far too snugly for comfort they all fit on the other side of the large desk.

No one said anything to the lawyer. Whether the man had been privy to the rest of the funeral or had just arrived Danny didn’t know but he had to admit this entire situation was bizarre even with full context. Not many of them knew ghost rules and the only ones that did were in either stunned or gleeful silence. There was no objection to the fact that Vlad had dragged his body with him, not a voice descenting on the fact that his form hadn’t shifted. Not a single attendee seemed perturbed by the fact that Vlad was not really a ghost.

Even the paid bounty hunters didn’t know how to discern ghosts from humans judging by their stunned expressions. Though he’d love to watch one of them attack Vlad in the middle of a church. Stabbing a man in the house of god might just be a big sin, though Danny wasn’t sure.

“Well this is unprecedented,” the lawyer commented,” never in my time have I ever seen a dead man rise for the reading of his own will.”

Vlad grumbled but no one could make out the words as the two exes on either side of him glared.

Oh how fortunate Danny was indeed, never before had he ever been so glad for his untimely death. If it all led to watching Vlad squirm like this still trying to keep his alter ego a secret? Pain and strife, the many attacks and attempts on his life were worth it.

“Well if there is no protest,” the lawyer said. For a moment Vlad looked very much like he wanted to protest, but the glares of the exes kept him silent and made him snap his jaw shut. Danny knew what went into keeping a corpse looking fresh. Shame the mortician seemed to have skipped wiring the jaw shut. Then, Vlad didn’t seem to need physical wires to keep him silent and well behaved, his Exes were all doing that job very well.

“In that case,” the lawyer sounded queasy, if Danny wasn’t so invested with the drama unfolding he might have turned to verify. “Then I believe we will begin.”

The man started out by reading the long legal preamble, the paragraphs upon paragraphs of titles and information about Vlad that was included. Danny understood that him being the owner of VladCo was technically important for the will but did he need to include all of his ten titles at the company in the will? It just felt excessive. ‘Ceo, entrepreneur, founder, head of decisions, etc.’ did anyone care? Leaving out the most important title of ‘asshole’ was the biggest mistake of his will.

“Yes I think we get it,” Monroe said, her accent clipping the words in stiff professionalism. Bless her for cutting the pain short. “I do have,” the woman glanced at the cousin who was still holding her hand,” A more important social engagement to attend to with Carmila.”

The lawyer stammered,” yes of course ma’am my apologies.”

“It reads:

‘First, I hereby denounce all previous wills made by myself, Vlad Masters, no matter nature or kind.

Second I Vlad Masters hereby appoint,” the lawyer paused making a face before he continued,” Madeline Fenton love of my life as the executor of my estate, networth, and-” the lawyer paused,” the ownership of my beloved cat ‘Maddie the cat, the third-”

“Huh, I guess you listened to my suggestion after all and got a cat.” Danny muttered as at the same moment his mother reached her breaking point

“You what?” Maddie was standing out of her chair, indignation flaring in her eyes,” Vlad! I don’t want any of this.”

“But but,” Danny tuned the man out as he made the normal declarations of love. Trite at this point his mind was already trying to entertain itself. Fast forwarding this would be nice, if only his core was time based. But no he got Ice, and Weather, and other weird disconnected powers. He was electrocuted to death! Cruel that he didn’t get cool electrocution powers.

They were still arguing when he tuned back in. Loath wasn’t a powerful enough describer for this love diatribe that Vlad spewed every three to five business days. His mom yelled something back, a few of the ex wives even chiming in agreement. Well at least they didn’t hate mom that was a plus.

He shot Jazz a look as he repositioned his phone camera to get a better shot.

‘This again?’ he tried to communicated with his expressions. Tuck usually laughed when he tried and Sam told him he looked to constipated.

She shrugged and nodded as if to say ‘this again.’

“I am happily married! I told you I won't leave Jack for you!”

Tuning out the conversation didn’t seem to leave out many details. Everything was falling exactly into the same patterns as always.

“Maddie please-” the billionaire tried to beg.

This made the woman snap,” no don’t Maddie please me! You have not respected my decision to marry Jack since it happened, well guess what Vlad it’s too late for you! You were never even an option!” she turned to Jack and put a hand on his shoulder. her voice much softer when she spoke,” come on honey we’re leaving. Kids?” She turned to the two Fenton children. The both of them stood with no protest. Like hell they were going to end up on the wrong side of their mother right now. Mission orientated as she was they had no doubt she could commit Vlad's murder and get away with it. legally she might even considering the fact that he was technically a 'ghost' right now.

Just as she was about to step out the door she turned,” oh and ladies, don’t worry about a legal battle I’ll work with our family lawyer to transfer everything to all of you.”

There were some small thanks from the stunned Exes as the office door latched shut behind them.

The air in the car was-

Well the word tense didn’t really sum up the air but it was the best approximation that Danny had. It could have gone worse, he supposed he could have genuinely ended up fighting Vlad again. Chances where that if he fought Vlad while he was Plasmius that the formerly rich business mogul would then use the moment to out Danny as Phantom. Not just his family but all of the church. If he had to rate the evening it was definitely not as bad as he expected. About a six or seven, depending on his critical he was being.

“Uh so who won the bet?” he whispered to Jazz. he wasn’t worried about his parents, Maddie was soothingly rubbing circles on Jack’s back as the man drove. That and they were sat in the back, sometimes the front seats struggled to hear them at a normal level forget a whisper.

Jazz furrowed her brows,” I guess neither of us really won, he didn’t even go ghost.”

Nodding, he thought back to the man’s loud entrance,” He also didn’t say what rumour got him up.”

“So do we both lose?”

“I guess?” he looked over to his parents,” so we both tell them?”

Jazz sighed leaning back in her seat, hair dramatically laying behind her,” yeah I guess.”

“You don’t hav-”

Jazz cut him off with a snort,” no it’s fine, my things not really as big all things considered.”

Fair, she had a point with that. Their parents already knew that she was interested in men and women but still revealing partners to them was always weird and nerve wracking. The first time he’d introduced Sam and Tuck as partners and not friends he’d expected a lot more questions. Turns out if you hunt ghosts for a living nothing is really weird after that. They just bought him new sex ed books. Sentiment appreciated but still weird considering he could google that sort of thing now.

“So Danny,” his mom said, her fingers tightened on her phone. They were lucky she got old brick Nokias instead of those new Smart phones. She’d break them in a week. Jack wasn’t paying them much attention as he drove, he seemed to still be shell shocked. Hopefully he didn't crash, okay so maybe he didn't always like car rides. Sometimes the looming threat of a car crash really messed with his obsession.

“Yeah mom?” he asked.

“I was talking to some of the ladies.”

“Uh huh?” wherever she was going with this he didn’t like the tone.

“And imagine my surprise when one of them tells me Vlad has a daughter.”

“Weird right,” he said. Please stop, please stop! He begged, wherever this was going it was nowhere good. It would have been better if he’d just died in that accident. Screw whatever he thought back when he thought his luck was turning up. He was still the most unlucky bastard in all of amity park.

She hummed in agreement,” and imagine my surprise when they said she was your cousin.”

Danny didn’t have a response to that, Jazz was stifling a laugh next to him.

“And then,” she said,” she showed me a picture of her.”

“Really.”

“Yeah, Danny," there was a pause as she seemed to collect her words," why does she look like you pre transition?”

“Does she?” sweating wasn’t really something he did so much anymore, not since his core started cooling his mortal flesh, it was nice sometimes. But it didn’t stop nervous sweating. “I hadn’t noticed.”

“Hadn’t- Danny,” his mother sighed,” sweetie if you want to start presenting as a girl again you can. We won’t judge you.”

Wait what, “ what?!”

Shrieking loud bursts of laughter came out of Jazz.

“Jazz!”

That set him off, it was just so ridiculous.

“Honey I’m serious,” his mom sounded so upset her tone lost. She really was trying.

He couldn’t help it, it wasn’t his fault. It was just so out of the realm of what was happening. Man his parents really didn’t have any of the facts.

“Danny?” his father asked the tenseness in his shoulders from the funeral leaving way to confusion.

Him and Jazz made eye contact and the laughing got so much worse. If being part dead didn’t make him need to breathe so much less he’d be choking. He’d die, it was just- they still didn’t know and somehow that was all the funnier. God he was calling Tuck and Sam right after he explained everything they were going to get such a kick out of this. Especially Tucker.

“That’s not-” wheezes high and stringy, cutting him off, he was struggling even with his ghost lungs.

“Danny my boy,” Jack asked quietly,” what’s funny?”

“We’re trying to support you Danny!” his mother exclaimed.

Finally he quelled the laughter enough to speak,” okay okay,” he whipped a tear from his eye. “I’ll explain it all it just probably isn’t something dad needs to be driving for.”

“Danny what do-”

“Just trust me okay?” he grinned at his mom in what he hoped was reassurance.

She sighed and looked at her husband, Jack furrowed his brows and the pair silently communicated before the man hit his turning signal.

The small side road was perfectly out of the way enough that no one would be able to peer in. It was some half abandoned picnic area but none of them reached for their seatbelts to leave the car. It was just the closest spot they could stop.

“Okay,” he started giving Jazz a look, she nodded comfortingly,” Remember how the portal didn’t work at first?”

It took them a moment but they nodded in remembrance.

“Right well I died.” it was best to just rip the Band-Aid off.

“What?”

“Danny- honey you’re not dead.”

He thought so at least, he sighed pinching his nose,” I need you guys to wait for questions till the end okay?”

“But honey you’re not dead!” she didn’t sound so sure as she looked him over.

“What your mother said my boy! You’re sitting right there!”

Danny groaned,” guys please?” there was a pause as they looked at each other and finally finally agreed to wait till the end. “Sam said I should check it out, see if I could fix it. I put on my suit, and,” he made a buzzing noise with his tongue,” the button shocked me to death when I hit it. It was dark so I didn't see,” he looked to the side. The trees outside were swaying peacefully in the wind. Jazz put a hand on his shoulder, he took a steading breath and clenched the hand with the thin invisible scars. “It was an accident but,” he turned back to them resolution in his eyes,” I died that day, When I woke up, well, brace yourselves okay,” he let the tugging cold of hic core shift and change his appearance.

There was silence. He’d expected something but, no, even Jazz wasn’t saying anything.

He cracked an eye open, his parents were staring at him dumbfounded. Yeah that was about par for the course.

“Well this happened and now, I’m half Ghost,” he admitted,” everyone in the ghost zone knows that’s why there were always so many attacks at the school.”

“Half?” his mom asked despite herself.

Danny nodded,” yeah I still age, and need to eat and breath... mostly on that last one. It’s kind of cool I can go invisible,” he demonstrated before changing back,” and phase through things and float,” he demonstrated both in succession allowing the belt to glide through him as he hovered up an inch. “Shoot Ecto-blasts… probably best if I don’t do that one in the car though,” he laughed.

“Okay,” his mom said.

“Okay?” he asked.

His father nodded,” sure Son, we love you. It’s weird but, well we hunt ghosts for a living.”

He laughed,” yeah fair enough.”

"I-" his mom looked over at Jack," We're proud of you sweetie, that's a lot to undertake at so young."

he chuckled," it wasn't so bad, I had a lot of help," he grinned at Jazz," Between her Sam and Tuck I don't know if I would have lasted half the battles I did."

"You knew Jazz?" Their father asked his tone soft and slightly hurt.

She smiled softly," yeah, I walked in on him transforming. Thought it was best if I let him tell you guys."

"Part of the apprehension might have been the dissection thing," Danny addmited.

"I- honey-" his mom put a hand over her mouth in shock.

"I'm sorry son," His dad said," it was closed minded of us to assume stuff about ghosts we didn't know."

"Well you weren't always wrong. Just usually."

“So ‘Elle?” his mom prompted before Jack could pepper in questions about what the got right.

He sighed,” yeah her full name is Danielle, technically she’s the only living clone of me Vlad made.”

“Only living Clone?”

“Vlad made?”

Man he had a lot to explain. Years of events just gone unsaid. Some small part of the divide between them was shifting, growing smaller.

“Is now a good time to tell you guys I have a girlfriend?”

Danny choked on a laugh. Not to long after his parents followed after the tension disrupted, Well at least he had Jazz to help explain. Sam and Tucker too when they weren’t busy. It'd be a mess and weird to finally clear the air between them, but at least he knew they were proud of him.

#My writing #danny phantom #trans danny fenton #trans danny phantom #everlasting trio #thats their ship name right? its not like super there its minor but ye #danny phantom exists in my brain in vague memories and nothing else #only the smallest amounts of cannon may be contained in this fic #idk i dont have enough brain to know tho #danphanwritingprompts

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