#anyways I think he deserves a fancy outfit and some jewelry.

[vpofcookies]

You say he slayed at the Red Banquet? But don't you know that Technoblade slays the aesthetic all the time?

#Technoblade #technofanart #vpoc draws #red banquet #dsmp #dream smp #technoblade being told he needs to kill at the banquet: yeah i'll kill the look. oh and the people too dw #anyways I think he deserves a fancy outfit and some jewelry. #if you follow the immortals headcanons you cannot convince me that he and phil don't know how to make basically anything. #he totally spent a couple years making the most intricate armor and jewerly possible for no reason (the reason is the aesthetic) #the eye symbol is the one i use to represent the voices! since in canon the voices are the reason he could resist the egg <3 #blood #necklace inspired by the one from hell's belle designs :>

[ur-fav-valen]

i have a request!!<3 mountain fluff (female reader). mountain taking reader for a date cuz he knows she's been feeling down about herself and comforting her. (or just anything with him if you dont like this idea^^)

i hope you like it!! sorry if it’s short.

——————

you were currently in your room, just staring at your ceiling. some tears were rolling down your face. it wasn’t anything bad. you were just being dramatic about your weight today. you sighed before deciding to get up and wiping your tears. you were supposed to be meeting up with the ghouls in an hour, you didn’t wanna diss them just to lie around your room all day. you put on a baggy band shirt, and some jeans. you were gonna wear something fancy but it made you look weird. so you just decided on your regular outfit. you threw on your shoes and make up. you grabbed one of the necklaces off of your jewelry stand and saw it was the necklace that mountain had given you when you started dating.you smiled and put it on. then you were on your way. as you were driving you thought about what you and the ghouls were going to do. they said they wanted it to be a surprise, so you were excited to find out what it was. so you pulled into the church driveway and headed up to the door, then knocked. mountain answered the door, and let you in. after looking around you noticed none of the other ghouls were here. so you looked back at mountain and asked where the other ghouls where. he scratched the back of his neck. “they had to cancel plans. but if you want we can still do something together?” he asked. you smiled “yeah of course! what do you want to do?” he thought for a second before asking if you wanted to go to the new restaurant in town. you of course agreed, you grabbed your keys but he snatched them right out of your hands. “hey!” you pouted. he laughed “i’m driving, i’m the one who wanted to go anyway” you pouted again, “fine but don’t crash my car.” he walked out and started the car. soon enough you had arrived at the restaurant. you both walked in and sat down at a table. the waiter came up to you two and asked what we wanted. then we started talking about random things, but then you saw a beautiful girl in a skinny red dress walk by. you saw mountain look at her too. you started thinking about your self, how you looked, and how you didn’t deserve mountain as your boyfriend. and even though you didn’t mean to a tear slipped down you face. mountain suddenly grabbed your hand. “what’s wrong?” he said with a concerned expression. you sniffed “i’m sorry i’m not pretty. or confident or smart or outgoing. you deserve better than me.” he frowned. and leaned forward and kissed your head. “you are pretty, the most gorgeous girl i know. i don’t care if your not outgoing or smart. that’s why i like you. you match me perfectly. you are my other half.” you looked up at him. “you mean it?” he held your hand. he smiled “on everything i have.”

#ghost bc #ghost band #the band ghost #ghost fanfiction #ghost x reader #the ghost band #mountain ghoul #mountain x reader

[idamariaw]

A one-shot where you meet a british man, a bit clumsy for his own good sometimes but at least it brought him to you.

This is dedicated to @atlafan, Happy Birthday 🌸

The air was humid, warm and had a strong scent of your favourite jasmin bodywash as you carefully stepped out of the bathtub to continue to get ready for your date tonight. A date that you’ve been looking forward to all week and made it way easier to get through classes and exams, even though you didn’t know much about Harry yet. That was his name, Harry Styles.

You met him just over a month ago in the coffee shop near your apartment where you spend most off your afternoons to study or read, the earthy and warm environment having a calming effect and the staff always sweet. You were reading an article for your course in political science, Stevie Nicks ’Wild Heart’ playing with your notes and books neatly in a pile by your side as eveything sudden flew to the ground with a large thud. It startled you a bit and you took your headphones off to register what caused the mess while you heard a voice beneeth you along your dropped belongings,

”Shit! I-i’m so sorry. My guitar bag got stuck in the corner of your books, I really didn’t mean to.”

A mop of chocolate curls cought your eyes while speaking to you with his deep voice and keeping to apologize even though it didn’t matter, you knew it was an accident. After picking up your things he got up to his feet and you got the oppurtunity to really look at him now. Tall, broad build at the shoulders, skinny jeans with a button up in different patterns, curls to his chin and the most beautiful green eyes you’ve ever seen.

”I’m so fuckin’ clumsy, first time at this coffee shop and this happens.” Now you noticed he had an accent, a british one? Well if your cheeks weren’t burning before they sure were now.

”Oh no it’s okay! I promise. Accidents happen, i’m pretty clumsy myself so you’re not alone. I was getting zoned out on my work anyway so you helped me with that” You said with a smile to reasure you’re not irritated or anything.

”Thank you for trying to make me feel better, but your muffin got on the ground as well. Let me buy you another please?” He furrowed his eyebrows a bit and pouted his heartshaped lips and you just couldn’t say no.

”Oh and I’m Harry by the way, Harry Styles.”

After that you asked him to sit down with you and tried to give him a good impression of the shop although it’s caotic beggining. You learned that he actually was brittish, was majoring in English Literature, wrote music and sang covers with his band.

You met him every now and then the following weeks and after sharing a carrot cake with a latte a few days ago he finally got the courage to ask you what you thought about for weeks,

”Would you be willing to see me outside this coffee shop for dinner on Friday? Please?”

And here you were, freshly out the bath and in your closet looking for an outfit. It was early autumn and Harry said he’d pick you up at 6, so a leo printed long skirt and a sage green knitted sweather along with maroon converse and a bamboo knitted purse with some jewelry would work. A pretty little matching lace bralette and panties underneath just in case things would go that way. Just as you put on a layer of your strawberry flavoured lip gloss you heard the doorbell ring and your heart skipped a beat. You looked over yourself once more before getting your purse and rushed to the door.

There he stood, so good looking it almost made you angry, with his signature black skinny jeans, a black button up, brown boots, a tan coat and hair up in a bun.

”Hello darling, I’m sorry if i’m a tad early. These are for you by the way.” He came in for a hug and kissed your cheek as he handed you a bouquet of red roses and you got a chance to take in his strongly scented perfume that consumed your senses.

”No I was just ready so it’s okay! Wow thank you, i’ve never gotten flowers before. I’m just gonna put these in a vase and I’ll be right with you.” He furrowed his eyebrows a bit as he leaned against the treeshold.

”Really? Hm I’ll remember that then. I’ll just wait by the car, we’re going for a drive about 20 minutes away if that’s okay. Take your time darling.”

As said, he waited by the car and opened the door for you on the passenger side and then you were on you way.

”Can I have a guess at where we’re going? Dinner somewhere maybe?” You asked even though you didn’t really have any but you’ve always loved surprises and he didn’t even know that.

”Well you can guess darling but i’m not sure you’re gonna figure it out that easy. But yes, we will have dinner in a way.” He answered you with a crooked smirk, showcasting his dimples.

After the 20 minute drive he parked by a black steele double gate leading the way to something you were quite familiar with but haven’t visited in ages.

”The botanical garden?” You asked surprised while Harry opened the door for you to step out.

”Yeah, is that alright with you? I figured as you like the atmosphere at the coffee shop so much this could be nice.” He said a bit shyly.

”Are you kidding me? Ofcourse I love it, I used to be here as a kid with my parents a lot but haven’t been in ages!”

”Thank god, I got nervous there for a second. I’m just gonna get some things in the car but you can start walking up and I’ll meet you at the front.” He said as he started to pick some things out from the back.

You felt giddy and excited as you approach the building and started to walk up to the front like Harry told you. It was when you came to the entrance that you noticed it’s closed and locked. Did Harry know this? Then you felt a hand at the small of your back and the smell of his perfume announced his presens as you turned around and what you saw made you melt to a puddle inside. The guitarbag was secured aganist his back and in his arms he held a picnic basket with a blanket and filled with all kind of goods.

”An evening picnic at the botanical garden with some live music, can’t go wrong with that can we?” He said with a cheeky shrug even though you could sense the nerves in his eyes.

”Seriously? That’s so nice Harry, oh my god. It’s to much to be honest. But how do we get in? And is it even aloud?” You didn’t want to doubt him or his plans but you couldn’t help it as it was actually closed.

”Hm don’t need to doubt me darling. I know the owners son as I helped him with a poem analysis in our class so he owned me a favour.” He explanied as he fished up the key in his coatpocket and opened the door with ease.

The setting and environment was everything you remembered from when you were younger and visited this place, green and thriving plants and vegetation everywhere, even a little pond in the middle with a fountain. The ceiling was made of pure glass so you could clearly see the sky that began to darken and stars starting to shine through, it was breathtaking.

”I was thinking we could set up and get up these stairs close to the roof to we get the best view.” You heard Harry speak up as he lead the way up to a white spiral stair that got you to a spot near the roof to spread out everything and sit comfortably.

He really didn’t spare anything on the food or drink, a nice rosé wine, fruits and berries of all kinds and a fancy charcuterie board.

”Harry I hope you know that you didn’t really need to do so much for our date, a romcom with a burger and fries would have been just as nice. But I really appriciate this, thank you so much.” So said honestly because it was true, just being with him was more than enough.

”Thank you for being honest darling but it’s not to much. You deserve the effort and I want to show you how important this is for me, how important you are for me. Feed me a strawberry please? And do you have any song requests?” He said as he brought up the guitar from its bag.

”Maybe ’Leather and Lace’ by Stevie Nicks if you know that one?” You asked softly as you brought the strawberry to his pouty heartshaped lips and your throat got a bit dry when he hummed against the fruit as he took a bite.

”Mmh, thank you darling. And yes I know that one, a pretty big Stevie fan myself actually.”

He said as he started to play the strings on the guitar, the melody started to fill the garden and softly singing the lyrics made everything complete. It was almost like the man in front of you couldn’t be real with how perfect he looked.

”You’ve been staring at my lips quite a lot this evening.”He said taking out of your trance and making you blush down your neck.

”W-what? Oh i’m sorry Harry, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable…” You started to explain yourself but he cut you off quickly,

”Shh, no darling it didn’t make me uncomforable at all. Come here please.” He made grabby hands at you as you sat opposite to him on the blanket so you could come up to his lap.

”I promise you it didn’t. I’ve been looking at you too you know, so beautiful today it makes my heart ache. So happy and thankful, proper cuite you are. Must have the sweetest mouth to. Would you let me have a taste?” He said as his fingers came to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear and lips almost touching yours.

”Yes Harry please.” You almost whimpered against his mouth until you felt his lips softly pressing aganist yours. You shifted in his lap to wrap your fingers in the nape of his neck below the bun to deepen the kiss, Harry leaning back to take a breath.

”Tastes like strawberrys darling, gonna give me a toothache with this sweet mouth of yours.”

You continued to kiss for a while and as he moved down to your neck he felt you shift against him more and he got the courage to lay you down on the blanket and hover over you to get better acess to the rest of you.

”Can I take this off? Or will you be cold?” He asked while playing with the hem of your sweather.

”No I want it off please, I won’t be cold.” You barely finished the sentence before the sweather was off and Harry started to kiss from you neck down to the crease of your breasts.

”Smells like flowers darling, and so soft. Perfect tits you have.” His raspy voice sent a shudder down your core the same time as he carefully touched your breasts and started to kiss them through your lacy bralette.

”What’s this hm? A fuckin nipple piercing? Almost as if you’re tryin to kill me, fuck.” Oh yeah, you almost forgot about that one in your right nipple and he sucked and nipped at it as a man obsessed.

Being teased and played with for so long now made you whimper again and you tried to buck your hips into him for more friction now as you started to ache from your lower region.

Harry noticed this and made the decision to use this against his favor.

”Do you want my mouth somewhere else darling? Seems like your aching pretty bad. Or fingers maybe? Need you to talk to me.”

”Yes please, I want your mouth on me so bad. Please Harry.” If you weren’t so worked up you would feel embarassed for your neediness but you just couldn’t care right now.

”So polite, ofcourse I’ll give it to you. Anything you want, you’ll have. Can I take the skirt off?”

You nodded quickly and he got down so he was facing your core and budged up the skirt around your hips. He kissed your mound over your panties and looked up at you with a cheeky smirk.

”Matching knickers, hm? You’re flattering me darling, being so pretty for me.”

”I-i was just being hopeful…” You let out a breathy laugh at his observation feeling the blush creeping to your cheeks again.

”I was to if i’m being honest but I didn’t want to push you into anything, i’m so thankful that you let me see you like this but I really want to take these of as pretty as they may be and taste you properly. Smells so fuckin’ good I’m going insane.” He took the panties of and let out a low growl while spreading you open with his fingers and see how you were glistening from the wetness under the starlight. Going in for a long stripe with his tounge from your slit to your swollen nub, sucking and nibbling at it just the right way to make you give out a loud shaky moan. He continued playing with your clit with his tounge and lapping up all the sweetness he could get while he felt your legs starting to shake against his head and your moans only got louder.

”Making such pretty noices for me darling, keep going. Need to know that I make you feel good. Want my fingers as well while I play with your clit? Already so swollen for me.”

”Yes fuck i’m gonna cum soon, please Harry I want your fingers please…”It was all you could say before you felt two of his fingers press against your slit and tounge going back to your clit. Your hands found his hair and he let put a growl against you as you tugged on it harder than you intendent, small strais of hair coming out from the bun.

”You can cum darling, I’ve got you. Being so good for me and letting go like this. Sweetest pussy I’ve ever had, so so fucking good for me. Let me have it, please.” He continued to thrust his fingers as he said his dirty words and that sent you off the edge and gave you the most intense orgasm of your life. Small tears rolled down your cheeks and Harry kissed your inner thighs to help you come down. He licked his fingers clean and covered you again with the skirt, going up to face you and kiss your lips.

”Mmh, hi pretty girl. Felt good?” He asked nuzzling against your nose and stroking your cheek.

”Oh my god, yes. You’re literally perfect Harry, thank you.” You closed your eyes and cuddled into his side as he laid beside you looking up to the stars against the glass ceiling.

”No I’m not darling but thank you. What do you say about cleaning up and head over to mine, watch a movie and I can make you a cuppa? Sounds good?” He asked you before whispering quitly to himself ”And thank god for me being a clumsy fool.”

#harry styles preferences #harry styles fluff #harry styles fic #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles blurb #harry styles smut #harry styles x y/n #harry styles x reader #harry styles imagine #harry styles one shot #harry styles story

[villainess-supremacy]

headcanons of the four lords celebrating pride for the first time with their s/o

notes: you told them that it's pride month and asked if they would like to celebrate with you. none of them have ever celebrated pride before. I made the lords and s/o queer because I can

type: sfw, gender and sexuality of the s/o are not specified

tw/cw: slight mention of alcohol, blood, lgbtphobes

requests: open

Alcina Dimitrescu

her daughters have mentioned pride month before, but she's not sure what it entails exactly

you gladly explain it to her in detail!

she loves the idea since she is fruity herself loves celebrating for such a wonderful reason

you being part of it makes it so much better

and a whole month?? she's in

she would love to go to pride events with you, but she's afraid other mortals will be scared of her due to her height so you decide to just have your own celebrations in the castle

you love watching movies together so you show her all of your favorite queer movies and shows

you bought a pride flag to hang up below the balcony in the entrance hall

she loves the smile on your face when you proudly look up at it

"maybe we should extend pride to be all year if it makes you this happy, my love."

she already regularly gives you presents, but during the entirety of pride month she additionally leaves little gifts for you in your shared bedroom, the kitchen and all of your favorite places in the castle

and that daily

if there is any queer owned shop you like she will literally buy their entire stock

if there are any charities you mention she will gladly donate in your name and give you the certificate as a surprise

she realizes that something about June just makes her want you even more in general, in the private chambers, whichever is up to you wink wink

as a surprise she decides to make a special wine without blood of course named after you and your sexuality/gender if you use labels, but in fancy Latin words

she loves to drink, but of course watches over you so you don't have too much

mortals don't process it as well as she does...

if you come across any lgbtphobes and are noticeably saddened she will be there to distract you right away

everyone who dares to make her love sad will feel her wrath! be ignored since they're not worth her time

but if she finds out that anyone in the village doesn't support you or anyone who is part of the lgbt community, they will be forced asked to vacate their home

she will pamper you and shower you with her love even more

you once jokingly say "be gay do crime and turn maidens into wine" and she makes it her new motto but she's serious about it

Donna Beneviento

she knows a couple things about pride since she reads a lot, but you're so excited to tell her about it she simply lets you talk

you'd love to go to pride events with her but she's too shy and tends to have anxiety attacks when around too many strangers so she sends Angie instead

afterwards she will gladly listen to both of you tell her all about it!

she has her own collection of books that have queer characters in them which she never told anyone about before you and will read all of them with you if you like

there will be regular dates picnics while Angie takes care of the house

she's a cottage core sapphic and pride month brings out that side of her more

she has made dolls for you before, but this time she makes one that looks just like you

it has a pride flag embroidered on the top above the heart

of course you love it!

you're so glad that she accepts every part of you

she will make one of herself with a similar outfit and a small pride flag as well so she can set them up in couple settings

ever since she found out about online shopping it has opened up a whole new world for her so she will definitely get both of you matching outfits or jewelry from an lgbt owned shop

you love doing arts and crafts together so you suggest making bracelets for each other, either color coded or with letters

Donna's house has a flagpole she hasn't used in decades, but for you she'd gladly call for maintenance if it turns out it's unusable after all these years to hang a pride flag

anything to make you happy!

if there are any lgbtphobes bothering you or your friends, she will be right there to comfort you and won't hesitate to send Angie and her other dolls she can control to deal with them

even if you tell her that it's fine and she should just ignore them she's great at distracting you so you wouldn't notice until it's done oops-

since she has no portable device that can access music streaming platforms, but knows the password to your phone she decides to steal it for a bit and makes you the softest playlist that you since then often play for comfort

Salvatore Moreau

he has spent decades almost completely separated from humans so he has no idea what pride month means, but instantly agrees to it because he loves you so much

he will agree to anything that makes you happy

you both sit down and he looks at you with puppy eyes while you tell him all about pride

he loves the idea of celebrating a group of people you both are a part of

he thinks you deserve your own month to be cherished and celebrated!

he may be a little awkward with expressing his feelings, but he sure knows how to prepare a romantic dinner

with mother miranda needing all of the lords a lot to assist her, he usually barely has time to prep food, but for pride month he does his best to cook for you every single day

part of his usual outfit is a cape to cover his back and a type of crown made out of bones and rope

he's not the best with his hands, but he makes a crown for you that resembles his anyway because you're his queen/king/majesty

you love it so much!

you want to give him something in return so you go to the village and visit the shop you know is lgbt owned and get him a custom necklace with a fish pendant that has your initials engraved

he literally bursts out in tears because he is so touched :c

when you started dating he initially was scared of what you would think about his giant fish form, but you turned out to be really impressed and love it and since you'd be tiny compared to him he suggests taking you on an adventure of sorts

meaning you sit on his back while he swims around the lake which is like a roller coaster ride but more wet

he leads you to a hut you never visited before and he shows you treasures he has collected when he was still mortal

he starts making a list of things you could do and stays up all night to complete it but ends up with so many activities and ideas to celebrate pride you'll have to extend pride month... by possibly years....

if he hears about anyone being mean to you he'll just encase them into the blobs of gooey mass he can make but you don't need to know about that, pride month or not

he has always wanted to propose to you so he might be able to work up the courage to hint at it by the end of June

Karl Heisenberg

of course he knows about pride month!

he knows more than you might think

he isn't considered the rebel child for no reason

in the past he has done some celebration for himself, but it was never anything too special

he thinks it's no fun alone and his experiments servants aren't much fun

sure he could program them, but unless it's to attack something they're not really... party animals

since he has you now he'll gladly give it another go!

he'd love to go to pride events with you, especially if you go to drag shows

he didn't know about them before you made him go to one

something about them fascinates him so much, he's more excited than you

he's not really into cooking, but nothing will stop him from making you a nice breakfast in bed

you always love watching him work on his machines because he likes to take off his shirt when he's hot seeing him do what he loves makes you happy

so he decides to gift you some robots to assist you with your everyday endeavors

it's not really necessary but of course you appreciate the gesture

it means more time to spend with him after all

he once sees you with a keychain that has a pride flag on it so he paints it on one of his machines that he uses more often

mostly he will end the day by having a drink and dancing with you

it's a celebration, so celebrate he will

if you're more in the mood for chilling on the couch he won't say no to watching some queer shows or movies

after working on his machines he has a way of just melting into your arms

if he sees you smile at certain scenes in movies he might attempt to do the same with you

of course you notice, but you definitely can't complain especially if you smile on purpose at the spicier scenes

anyone who will come between you and happily celebrating pride will be visited by Sturm banned from his factory and getting anywhere near you

he likes to name his subjects so he will start naming them after all of your favorite queer historical figures, activists and famous people in general

any smile he can get out of you is a win

a win for the gays you might say

when he was younger he may have had a phase of spraying graffiti around the village so you're not surprised when he goes around his factory and writes "be gay do crime" on several of his machines and doors

#hc #headcanon #lady dimitrescu #re8 #resident evil village #resident evil #resident evil 8 #alcina dimitrescu #re: village #re #karl heisenberg #re heisenberg #heisenberg #donna beneviento #re beneviento #angie beneviento #lady beneviento #re8 beneviento #re moreau #salvadore moreau #moreau #four lords #happy pride 🌈 #pride

[bluebellhairpin]

Be My Valentine?

Attack on Titan X Reader

A/N: Look at y’all, giving me a sweet tooth. A few days too early too. I wrote this like a week ago. - Nemo

Warnings: A little suggestive. Much Fluff. Modern AU. 

Listening to: ‘That’s What I Like’ by Bruno Mars (slowed) - ‘You deserve it baby, you deserve it all.’ 

Masterlist

Armin Arlert 

He is so organized, and no I’m not meaning he remembers to buy chocolates, flowers or a stuffed bear - no no no, to Armin that is not acceptable.

To Armin those are things he does every day. 

So you can bet your lovable ass that you have a much better Valentines Day than anyone else you know. 

He even manages to top it every year.

Once, he rented a penthouse for the night just because - tbh he probably said something dumb like ‘you deserve this and more’. (okay not that dumb, I’m just upset because no one will ever do that for me.) 

He had to save up for like, two years to do it though. 

Baby boy just wants to show his appreciation.

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Erwin Smith

He’s less organized than Armin, but he does have more money, and he is 100 per cent not afraid to ask for help. 

But like he’s an old fashioned guy.

Dinner, red roses, mayhaps a night in afterwards *wink wink*

But deadass this guy just makes it seem so special every time? Like you did it last year and you know you’ll do it again? But it’s so exciting anyway? 

Def feeds you the choccy strawberries. Or chicky nuggies. Whichever. He don’t care as long as his beloved is happy. 

Probably has a new item of jewelry bought a week in advance. Even if you don’t usually wear it, just do it for that night and he’ll be satisfied. 

He like’s buying you stuff, and he likes seeing you with/wearing the stuff he buys.

Dunno why, some shady possessive stuff probably, but who are we to complain? 

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Levi Ackerman

Smh. 

Man’s does not care.

At all.

‘Valentines? Who is that?’ 

But seriously, the only reason he doesn’t care is because he think’s ‘it’s dumb that we only have one day in the whole year to show our love for that one person when it should happen all the time.’ 

If he see’s a particularly nice bouquet or a brand of sweets you like that’s around during this time of year - however - he will get it for you. 

Because he knows you like whatever it was.

And if you do like Valentines day, he will do something for you on that day. 

He doesn’t think his opinions should always be yours and vice versa. 

But don’t catch him browsing the valentines themed isle in the grocery store otherwise you’ll get beat. 

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Reiner Braun

nEVER forgets. Ever. 

There are three dates set into his brain and he forgets everything else.

1. Your B-day. 2. Your Anniversary. And 3. Valentines Day. 

Bed’s covered in the petals of your favorite flowers. There’s matching bouquet’s in every room. 

Music’s playin’ as soon as you walk in, he’s standing there in that outfit he knows you like. Favorite dinner and drinks all set out. JUst walking home to that is *chefs kiss* ahhhhhh

But make sure you get something for him. 

The way he melts that you got him something? Even if it’s little, he will grab you and not let you go for like half and hour. 

Please return the favor. Hold him this night. Do not let go. Hold him tighter and tighter and he will not stop saying how much he loves you.

Even as he starts to fall asleep he will keep telling you. 

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Zeke Jaeger

Probably takes you on an overnight trip somewhere way too expensive and acts like it’s nothing. 

‘Zeke, this is a private jet.’ - ‘And?’ - ‘It’s going to Paris Zeke.’ - ‘Yeah? That’s like the whole point?’ 

Mans sees no problem spending a minor fortune on one night’s worth of activates and items. 

Goes all-out and is not afraid to do so. 

Will have you dress-up all nice and take you out on his arm to go to dinner. He’s trying to show you off. Like ‘look at this beauty I scored. You wish you were me.’ and I think that’s very in-character of him. 

Like legitimately the most fancy thing you ever wanted to - he’ll have it. 

Ball gown? Slim shimmery red-carpet dress? A suit that matches his that you pull off so much better than him? 

Shows his love through gift-giving, so just let him do what he gotta do. 

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Jean Kirstein 

He’s another classic roses, chocolates, and teddy bears guy. 

There’ll be a few times where the date creeps up and catches him off-guard, but he’ll always go out of his way to make sure he doesn’t see you empty-handed. 

Yes, that has once meant he rocked up to your door with a handful of flowers that were definitely from your neighbors front yard. 

You do also have one section of your bookshelf designated to stuffed animals he’s gotten you for valentines day. Yeah, not just bears. There’s a llama, lizard, and a bigfoot also. 

More like ‘at least’.

ALWAYS WRITES A NOTE OR CARD - depending on how much time is left - AND IT’S NOT JUST REALLY CUTE AND ROMANTIC BUt he draws a little mini him and you in the corner holding hands. 

Jean write me a valentines note plz, I’m so lonely and I love you.

───────✱.｡:｡✱.:｡✧.｡✰✧.｡:✱───────

Connie Springer

Dumbass never remembers.

And if you don’t remember either then oh well. Guess a midnight Macca’s run is in order.

Yeah, he CAN make McDonalds romantic. Don’t think so? Fite me.

But then he feels bad, so he ducks into the closest open store and buYS YOU A RING POP -

‘Sweetie, I got you something?’ - ‘Yeah, what?’ - ‘A new cushion because dat ass keeps ruining all mine.’ ‘A ring, I hope you like it uwu.’

OFC YOU LIKE IT HOW CAN YOU NOT?

tbh if you rock up three days later - candy eaten - but still wearing the ring part he’ll start bawling. 

He ends up getting you a real ring a little later - a muther fooken PROMICE RING. OF aLL thingS. So yeah, He does top every single other person on this list. Don’t @ me. 

You still keep that ring pop tho. Cherish it forever. 

#armin arlert headcanons #erwin smith headcanons #levi ackerman headcanons #reiner braun headcanons #zeke jaeger headcanons #jean kirstein headcanons #connie springer headcanons

[canary3d-obsessed]

Lost Tomb Lewks: Reboot Part 11

(LTL Masterpost) (All Canary Masterposts)(Part 10)

I’m making my post titles more specific because I’m loving the clothes in The Mystic Nine and in Ultimate Note, so I expect I’ll continue this series with other shows when I get to the end of Reboot Season 2. 

Look 56 is - surprise! - a cozy sweater. This one is a deep, huggable brown in a sort of waffle stitch (OP is not a knitter; knitters pls feel free to elaborate in comments). He wears this with loose blue jeans and...shoes. This show doesn’t feature his feet often enough for proper shoe commentary. 

This is a perfect look for pacing and talking, half to yourself and half to your buddy, as he gets absolutely, completely baked. 

Wu Xie is doing his pacing while he gazes at an enormous pin board filled with pictures linked together with red string. The red string board is becoming one of my favorite CDrama tropes. I’ve seen it in Detective L, Mystic Nine, that new show with Wue Xie number 2 Psych Hunter, and probably a couple more shows. It’s a thing in older American detective dramas, too, but not in modern ones and not nearly as often. 

It does look cooler than a whiteboard with magnets, but it seems like a lot of work. For this pin board, Wu Xie Wang Meng had to cut a bunch of red string and print out a bazillion cell phone pictures, which someone managed to take during all of the running around & death defying action. All so Wu Xie could theorize that everything connects to...some random point in the middle of the board? I don’t know who these guys are in the middle picture, but I don’t think they’re responsible for all of the rocks in the other pictures. 

If you change your mind about a connection, and move a pin, do you have to re-loop all the string to keep everything taut? What if you need to move an end pin when you’ve already cut the string? Perhaps OP is overthinking this. 

This look is a comfortable one for lying on the couch when you’ve exhausted yourself with string management. 

(more behind the cut!)

I love the aesthetic of this apartment. It appears to be full of furniture taken from Wu Xie’s study in Wushanju, but because it isn’t mixed in with the fancy older antiques, the vibe is totally different. The furniture is midcentury modern, with a lot of warm tones and leather, which matches Wu Xie’s clothing choices. This quality of furniture subtly reminds us that these guys are antique dealers. Even when they’re down and out, they have discerning taste.

The textiles, cushions, the throw blanket on the table, are all colorful, tactile, and comfortable, matching Pangzi’s clothing and overall vibe. Overall the space is a nice mix of both of their looks, which is appropriate for an old married couple long-term roommates. 

He completes this outfit with a olive-green hooded jacket with lots of flaps and pockets. 

Side note: their buddy  Jin Wan Tang (on the left) might be officially gay? Unlike the blatant subtle queer coding that appears in a lot of CDramas, this character (and that one guy in the Rain Village section) seems flamboyant in a stereotypical “gay best friend” way. But I’ve only ever seen one acknowledged gay character in Chinese cinema--the very stereotypical tailor in Kung Fu Hustle--so I don’t know if the semiotics are the same as in western media. 

Anyway, I dig his mix of business suit and funky jewelry, and I share his appreciation of shirtless Xiao Ge (in Season 1, not today, sorry).

Look 57 is actually a rerun of Look 45, but it’s one of my favorites, featuring a beautiful soft suede jacket in a warm camel color. This time we get a much better look at the jacket, so I’m featuring it a second time. (Previously he wore this to hijack Li Jiale’s truck.) The jacket features detailed tailoring, with pleated pockets with flaps and buttons, and a nice strong collar and lapel that contrast with the softness of the material. 

Under this lovely jacket he wears a cream colored sweater, jeans that fit really well for a change, and work boots. 

This outfit is good for mournfully looking at a heap of smashed ceramics. 

It’s also good for struggling through a gas attack designed specifically to destroy your unhealthy lungs...

...and make you hork up blood, because it’s not a Zhu Yilong show if there’s no mouth blood, and it’s been at least a couple of episodes since we’ve had any. 

This look is perfect for going to visit your snippy ex-boyfriend while you’re unconscious, so he can bitchily save your life. 

“Hey, Canary,” you might have thought up above, “with all these above-the waist shots, how can you tell his jeans fit well?”

This. This is how. 

Oh and hey, we finally get a really good look at his shoes. His shoes, people. 

Look 58 belongs to bitchy doctor/chef Huo Daofu. 

He’s wearing a white double-breasted chef’s coat featuring contrasting piping and buttons. It is perfectly fitted, which will will learn is true of everything this man wears. 

Over the jacket he’s got an immaculate work apron, and under it he’s wearing a thin grey turtleneck sweater with ribbed collar and cuffs. He wears turtlenecks a lot. Whoever is giving him hickeys, it’s not Wu Xie any more because he hates Wu Xie. Hates him! 

Cue endless tender medical care and eventual deep abiding friendship. Also possibly shacking up, it’s hard to tell how many people really live in Wushanju at any given time. 

The first part of Look 59 is a deep olive-green long-sleeve tee shirt worn over a grey undershirt. 

It’s a shirt. It’s green. 

He looks really fucking good in it, okay? His arms are beautiful even when they’re covered up.  This shirt needs three gifs because...it just does.

Look 60 is Bai Haotian’s awesome green satin roller-disco jacket. 

The styling is straight out of 1979, which is long before she was born, making this a fun retro throwback. Or possibly she borrowed it from her grandma. The collar and cuffs have sporty black-and-white ribbing.

The jacket has nice contemporary details to give it a fresh look. These include suns, moons, and mountains (I think) running down the arms in a contrast stripe, and the words “magical altitudes” in embroidered sections on the back and chest. 

Wu Xie’s Look 59, Part 2 is also featured in these caps. He’s put a strangely short waisted grey jacket over his nice green shirt. Other than the short waist, it fits nicely. 

Those jeans, on the other hand. Wu Xie’s ass deserves better treatment than this. Paging Xiao Ge

Periodic reminder: Xiao Bai is absurdly, absurdly pretty. 

So is Wu Xie.

Bonus Look 1: Okay, Xue Wu is a bad bad man but damn, his clothes are always amazing. He favors emphatically Chinese looks, but always  with contemporary tailoring details, so he doesn’t look old fashioned. For his daughter’s wedding he’s wearing a deep blue suit with blue embroidery and this cool gold collar pin. 

Bonus Look 2 is Wu Xie in his favorite blue marl sweater. Or he has a few blue marl sweaters. Anyway, this time he’s lying down and resting his eyelashes while he wears it. 

#reunion: the sound of the providence #the lost tomb reboot #the lost tomb reboot spoilers #zhu yilong #wu xie #bai haotian #lost tomb lewks #canary3d-original #my gifs #huo daofu

[spiralhigh]

ranking the sdr2 cast by how much their formal wear hits

this is just my opinion, but my opinions are great and i know what i’m talking about! this will be long so it’s under a cut

S TIER:

s tier is reserved for only the best of them all, the cream of the crop, the fit that i would gladly lay down my life for. s tier is the crown jewel. s tier is what everyone else should strive to be... but only one can take the prize.

#1: AKANE OWARI

the undisputed champion. this look is everything to me. EVERYTHING. the red-trim cape with the fur. the contrast of the airy, gathered blouse with those skin-tight shiny (leather? vinyl??) pants. the pumps. the belt that screams disco style. the necklace accentuating the tasteful titty window. the red white and gold color scheme  are you FUCKING WITH ME miss owari this look could bring ARMIES to their KNEES in an INSTANT. whoever drew this deserves full creative control of the danganronpa franchise and i’m not kidding

A TIER:

a tier is for the fits that frankly own bones. they’re not as jaw-dropping and legendary as owari, but they’re still razor as hell and deserve to be met with riotous applause.

#2: KAZUICHI SOUDA

kazuichi, i didn’t know you had it in you, but this FUCKS. the character of the pins on the lapels, the sneakers, and the mispinned tie. the absolute CLASS of the suspenders, watch, and tiny round glasses. the handsome slick in the hair now that the greasy beanie is gone. the tasteful highwater. he looks like the host of the larry king show if the larry king show was exclusively about ska bands and he has never looked better

#3: HIYOKO SAIONJI

tell me this isn’t the cutest shit. the colors here are EXQUISITE. the bright notes from the blue on top, the way the soft pink is a perfect middle ground of the pink + white flowers on her sleeves, the subtle way the green in her bow matches the green in her collar, the white petals breaking up the sky blue that might otherwise look out of place? remarkable. stunning.

#4: PEKO PEKOYAMA

the ELEGANCE is EVERYTHING here. the monochrome is offset by just a splash of red that ties everything together with her eyes and the flower in her hair, the checkerboard pattern is visually interesting but not distracting, and her hair in that loose ponytail with the little white ribbon? ugh. ADORABLE! but most of all, look at those BOOTS. those CUTE LITTLE HEELS on those SICK LACE-UP BOOTS..... QUEEN shit!!!

#5: CHIAKI NANAMI

rounding out our a tier is chiaki in this adorable little dress just LOOK at her!!! she looks like a little rose, a perfect flouncy skirt with a glittery mesh overlay, a fun and fresh over-the-shoulder collar, a fucking big old bow tied in the back?? i can literally feel the way this dress would feel in my hands. it’s simple and perfect and frankly a GORGEOUS color on her this is flawless

B TIER:

b tier is a perfectly respectable place to be. these fits lack the lustre and flavor of the a tier entries, but they’re still dressed to impress and they still look fine as hell.

#6: TERUTERU HANAMURA

say what you will about teruteru (and i do) but this suit is ADORABLE and it fits in with his theme + talent better than any other mfer on this list. the tasteful white/brown/red palette gives it a flashy chocolate cookie look, which is amplified in the fun pattern on the jacket. the chef’s hat switching out for a little top hat and the way the cumberbund looks a lil bit like a chocolate bar is also VERY cute

#7: THE IMPOSTOR

now on its own, the suit is just alright. a vibrant pinstripe blue three-piece with the classic red tie wouldn’t land the impostor in b tier on its own... but that FUR COAT, LUXURIOUSLY DRAPED OVER THE SHOULDERS does WONDERS to pull this look together. not only is it worn with “yeah, it’s real mink, no, you can’t touch it” confidence, but it also ties the otherwise arbitrary white loafers into the structure of the look. it’s subtle and class as hell.

C TIER

c tier is full of looks that are... fine, but ultimately either are boring, lack cohesion, or have a confusing design choice or two that make it hard to get all that amped about. c tier is a passing grade, but nothing more.

#8: NAGITO KOMAEDA

there’s a lot that’s good about this outfit, but there’s also a lot that doesn’t really work. let’s start with the good: the slutty loose bowtie and collar, the tight-fitting vest that ends before the hipbones so you can see the belt, the cute little ponytail? (chefs kiss) exquisite, all of it. but the suit itself is boring as sing, and who the hell decided to put the t-shirt symbol on the sleeves??? was it to add visual flavor to an otherwise bland suit? this does NOT have the black/white/red elegance that peko had.

#9: FUYUHIKO KUZURYUU

the silver and gold mob-boss look, complete with matching shoes vest and fedora, are a nice nod to fuyuhiko’s talent! the plaid is teetering on the edge between fun and garish to me, but the fact that it’s consistent and the only pattern means it isn’t too offensive. quick question though: why are his pant legs rolled up like that?? this isn’t a cute “cuffed at the ankle” look, dude looks like he had to wade across a pond to get to the venue. what gives

#10: GUNDAM TANAKA

out of everyone here, gundam’s suit might be the most boring of all. the scarf is just his normal scarf. the red tie and trim don’t do anything to tie the look together. the only mild point of interest is the asymmetrical vest, and i can’t even tell if that’s intentional. simply put, this “““fancy”““ outfit isn’t even in the same ZIP CODE as the level of ostentatious chuuni that gundam serves us every single day in his casual wear. maybe even worse than being ugly... it’s disappointing.

#11: IBUKI MIODA

now, look. is this dress buckwild and ugly as hell? yes. but you know what else it is? it is IBUKI MIODA’S DRESS. there might not be a single cohesive thing about this dress aside from its color scheme. the huge poofy ruffles of the skirt and arm things with the spiked bow and corset are baffling. the artist somehow managed to draw the awkward, clumping shape of the skirt to make it look exactly like an emergency cosplay sewn four hours before a convention. frankly, i can’t justify ranking it as a c! but i’m doing it anyway, because the sheer level of craftsmanship demands it, and in this house we respect diy queens that are totally off the shits.

D TIER:

d tier is for outfits that aren’t offensive, exactly... but like, they sure don’t look good! d tier is not a respectable place to be. those in d tier won’t be laughed out of the ceremony in shame, but they should really run their outfit by someone else first next time.

#12: NEKOMARU NIDAI

now don’t get me wrong: i have nothing but respect for the titties-out look. keeping the shirt unbuttoned all the way down to where the lapels of the jacket end? that’s sexy as hell. however, this flawless idea has a confusing execution. why emerald green and orange? what’s with the... long-sleeved printed (hawaiian?) shirt? why the red pocket square? and the jacket itself, while fitted perfectly along the chest and midsection, has a weird, unflattering scallop shape flaring out at the bottom. i want to like this fit, but there are just too many bad choices.

#13: HAJIME HINATA

oh, hajime... literally nothing about this ensemble is it. the creamy manila suit might have had potential if there were literally any color variation in the vest (or potentially shoes) to give it a little more shape, or even if you just went with a white shirt underneath it! i could get behind a light, off-monochrome look! but that leprechaun-green shirt is downright perplexing to me. it looks like a mistake! did you get dressed in the dark? did you spill something on your other shirt? this is a mess.

F TIER:

f tier is inexcusable. f tier should never have happened. how does it get this bad. who did this? who’s responsible for this?

#14: SONIA NEVERMIND

y’know, the colors are pretty! i dig the white and teal! but... girl... what the fuck is this construction. the ruffles are all over the place. the bodice looks like it has less fabric than space it needs to cover. the bottom half of the skirt looks like it was sewn on as an afterthought because the top half was too short for dress code. what’s with the weird choker collar detached from everything else. why is the hairband a slightly different shade of green. so many decisions were made here and none of them are flattering

#15: MAHIRU KOIZUMI

yknow, i like the idea behind this. i can see what you were going for! the dress on its own might have worked, even! but everything else about it is just... so ugly. what the fuck is happening with those shoes??? the sheer black tights aren’t the sexy OL look you think they are. the collar of the dress looks like it’s... braided for some reason??? those earrings are so huge for no payoff, statement jewelry with nothing to say, and worst of all... that headband. GIRL. that headband and that belt...... there’s nothing here. also i love orange but it’s not her color.

and finally... the worst.

#16: MIKAN TSUMIKI

what the fuck. what the fuck is this. this is straight up cheap rubber fetish gear. why is the HAT rubber? that skirt ruffle makes this look like fucking polly pocket clothes. why the fuck is she wearing that. the clothes are so bad that it makes her hair look like rubber too. was she dared to wear this? is this some cruel punishment? i don’t even know what to say. this is the worst possible outfit. there is not even one redeeming quality about it.

#danganronpa #sdr2 #new tab

[howaboutleeches]

Are you still doing request on that Au/Troupe/Prompt thing? Can you make a Troupe - Fake Dating Lucio?

You Are My Favorite Memory - Lucio x Reader

Word Count: 3.094

"C'mon Y/n, it's just one night! You don't even have to stay close to me all time! I mean, it would be better if you did, but anyway, just please do this for me!"

You sighed, feeling a few stares on you from some of the palace workers. You tried to walk faster, but it wasn't like Lucio couldn't catch up to you. He gripped your arm a bit tighter, pulling you closer to him, which made you stumble.

"Lucio, stop! I already told you I won't be your escort" You pulled your arm back, not looking at his face.

"I think escort is a strong word for what I'm asking. I asked you to accompany me to the party and pretend that we're dating. Not to be an escort"

You rolled your eyes. He had been bugging you for almost two hours now. It was a miracle how you haven't smacked him yet and how he hadn't given up on the idea. You sighed and turned around, looking at Lucio. If you weren't so angry, you would've giggled at his facial expression, literally begging you with his eyes.

"Fine! But I have rules!" You pointed your finger at his face, but he kept the puppy eyes, nodding his head vigorously.

"Anything you want Y/n! A fur coat? Fancy clothing? Shiny and gold jewelry? A crown!? I'll give you a crown!" He held your hand, the one close to his face, with both of his, completely covering it.

You felt a little sorry for him, seeing the level of his desperation. You shook your head 'no' and pulled your hand back softly, raising your eyebrow at him.

"First, no interviews and no autographs from my part. Second, your limit is to introduce me as your partner to five important people only. Third, I get to take as much food as I want back to the shop"

"Yes, yes, and yes! Phew, if I knew that's all you wanted we could have ended this conversation so long ago. Hmpf, why didn't you make it all simpler?" He gave you a disappointed look and shook his head, making the urge to punch him come back "I'll make sure to send you many dressing options. I'll go personally to the shop to pick you up, so be ready, huh?"

And with that, he gave you a charming smile and started walking away. Lucio knew how to act like a child sometimes, but it was kind of part of his whole charm. You laughed a bit and started to make your way to the shop.

×

One week had passed since that conversation. During those seven days, tons and tons of clothes, shoes, ornaments, perfume, jewelry, and things you didn't even knew arrived at the shop. Asra didn't mind much, occasionally making fun of Lucio's fashion choices, but Faust found it hard to move around with so many things around. "Friend messy!"

"I can't believe he's still sending things for you to decide. The party is tonight!" Asra groaned once he closed the door, carrying into the shop a delivery Lucio had sent to you.

"What is it this time?" You chuckled and grabbed the package from his hand, moving to a nearby table, putting it on it.

"Open it up, I'm curious" Asra rushed behind you, planting his hands on the table, giving him enough impulse to sit on top of his, a few inches away from the package.

You undid the tie on the package and set it aside, raising the box lid. You gasped and let the lid fall on the floor. Asra peeked inside the box, his eyes widening up as he did. You carefully reached inside the box, tangling the necklace string around your finger, bringing it up close to your's and Asra's face.

"A Memorium...." Both you and Asra said it in a hushed tone, not believing what was right in front of your eyes.

"Hey Y/n, what are you doing?" You jumped a bit in surprise on your chair, holding the book tighter due to the reflex. You relaxed a bit when you saw it was Lucio.

"Just reading this book about magical artifacts. Always good to learn more" You smiled up at him, seeing his body moving in front of you.

He looked at the book with a frowny face, grabbing it from your hand and holding it sloppily, paying attention to the page you were in.

"Memorium....what is that? Oh, it looks fancy! Is it magic jewelry!?" He turned the book to you, still holding it on his hands. He had turned one page, showing the image of the rhombus-like shaped Memorium.

"You can say they are fancy in a certain way. They're very rare and expensive. A Memorium is like a portable center of information. You can use it to record your own voice, the voice of others, spells, and even short events. For example, if I decided to use it now, we could  see our clear image projected on it, with our voices and everything" You explained, excitedly

"But it looks like a necklace..." He turned the book to himself, examining the image closer.

"That's the point. It's small but very useful. That's why it's so expensive" You concluded, getting up from your seat and grabbing the book from his hands.

"That's interesting...I guess. Oh well, I came here for a reason. I have to ask you a huge favor, the biggest favor, that if you do, will make me very happy" He opened a bright smile, hoping it would make it easier to convince you.

"Okay...? Tell me then" You crossed your arms with suspicion.

"I want you to accompany me to a party next week and pretend to be my partner!"

"If I knew he was going to give you a Memorium, I would've offered to accompany him instead" Asra smirked playfully, looking at you.

"I...I also had no idea...." You felt hypnotized by it. Had Lucio really remembered that brief conversation?

"Well, you have time to stare at that later, now you need to pick an outfit" Asra reached for your waist, gently guiding you to the immense piles of clothes and all other things as you kept your eyes glued to the necklace.

“O-Oh, you’re right. Lucio will be here in any minute, I need to be ready”

It didn’t take you very long to find something you liked. It was simple, but very elegant. Comfortable, and yet, it looked stunning. You looked at your reflection and felt like an angel. Asra’s look on you only made you feel even better. A proud and happy smile. He went behind you and carefully placed the Memorium around your neck. Once he finished, you heard a knock on the door. Asra smiled at you through the mirror.

“We’ll definitely explore that thing later, but now, someone awaits you” He backed away a bit, making way for you to walk through. 

You let out a sigh and made your way to the door. Once opening it, you could see Lucio’s confident face, proudly holding a rose. He extended his arm, bowing a bit, and extended the rose to you.

“You look magnificent! I am such a lucky man to be with you” He says in a playful tone, making you snort in response. You take the rose and place it behind your ear since he had removed the thorns - or asked for someone to have them removed - and the stem had been trimmed.

“Oh my, how lucky of me to be favored by the Count” You play along, grabbing his arm. You look back, seeing Asra with crossed arms and Faust on his shoulder.

“Back before midnight. Unlike you, some of us have responsibilities the next day” Asra said with a stern tone, but you knew he meant well. You looked at Faust, who had her eyes squinted. “Friend home soon!”

"Don't worry, I'm not stealing your apprentice......tonight. Bye now!" Lucio didn't even give you time to say goodbye properly and pulled you into a very flashy chariot, closing the door and tapping the ceiling, alerting the Coachman that he could get moving.

The carriage was going on full speed and you could see the streets of Vesuvia passing by rapidly by the window close to you. Lucio sneaked an arm around your waist, holding you close as you entered a bumpy road. If it wasn't for his grip, you would be bouncing on your seat like crazy. You put your body close to his, trying to keep your body steady.

Once the road was over, he pulled back his arm, resting it comfortably on his leg. You felt self-conscious of your actions and pulled your body back, sitting up straight. Part of you wanted his arm to keep holding you and for your bodies to stay close together, but those thoughts quickly went away when the castle lights hit your face.

You squinted your eyes a bit, trying to get used to the bright environment and you could see Lucio's excited face from the corner of your eye. Once your eyes were accustomed enough, you peeked out the window. Colorful lights both directed at the castle and the sky slowly moved in synchrony. All kinds of people entered the castle on their fancy clothes and some of them talked outside. All of their eyes turned to yours and Lucio's chariot, making your heart beat faster.

Lucio held your hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. You looked up at him and met a kind smile, a sincere and kind smile "No need to worry. You're with me. It may be a bit overwhelming, but I'm sure you and I will have a good time. Ready?"

He moved his hand away and extended it close to your face, a sly smirk on his face. You took a deep breath and placed your hand on his, giving him a confident nod and a smile. "Ready"

...........

It hasn't even been ten minutes. Ten minutes into the party and Lucio was already gone. You sort of expected it to happen, but that didn't make it hurt any less. He had introduced you to a few people as his partner but soon vanish to do something else.

You had stares on you, which didn't help with the situation at all. Some were apologetic, pitiful even, feeling sorry for you for being one of Lucio's failed dates. Others were filled with sarcasm and superiority, scoffing as saying that's what you deserved for being with a man like him. A few others were jealous, wishing that they were in your place, even if you were alone now. All of them made you feel bad.

You held back a few tears and walked to a balcony, only a few people there. Some drinking, others talking, but all of them looked at you and went away discreetly, leaving you alone under the night sky. You looked down at the garden beneath you and your eyes laid on the roses. It made you remember about the one behind your ear, but when you moved your hand to touch it, you noticed it wasn't there anymore.

You sighed in frustration and looked down again, wondering if you could sneak there and grab another one unnoticed. With all the stares on you though, it would probably be challenging. You felt a hand on your shoulder, pulling your thoughts away from your scheme and turned around, seeing Lucio.

"I'm afraid you lost something?" He extended his hand to you, holding out the missing rose. You put a displeased expression on your face and snatched the flower from his grasp, placing it behind your ear once more and turning back around, supporting your arms on the balcony.

Lucio didn't say anything, which was new. Maybe he knew that words wouldn't help him out now. You hear his footsteps getting closer until they stopped at your side. He looked up for a few moments, probably admiring the starry night, then looked down at the garden, giving out a chuckle.

“I hope you liked the rose. It was a ton of work to go down there and get that for you, plus removing the thorns was just awful. But seeing how it looks on you makes it all worth it”

You looked away, embarrassed, wanting to show him you were still mad, but with him acting so......so sincere and yet bold as ever at the same time made it almost impossible. You noticed the song slowly getting lower on the dance floor and then changing to the next one.

You couldn’t help but to shake your head with a defeated smile. You never thought Lucio would be the type to remember small details, but he has been proving you wrong the whole night. The soft and embracing tune that brought you back many memories played loudly inside, making it come out to the balcony in the perfect volume.

You turned around to look at Lucio and he was already staring at you, a cheeky grin and an extended hand. He wasn’t good with verbal apologies, but he did his best with what he could. You held his hand and he pulls your bodies closer together, his golden arm involving your waist.

“Did you play with your new toy yet?” He said, looking down at your chest. You followed his gaze, looking down at the Memorium. You had forgotten about it due to all the commotion of the evening. And only now you realized. You knew all the facts about the Memorium, how it was supposed to look, the average size and weight, even how many were produced in the last one hundred years....you just didn’t know how to use it.

As if reading your mind, Lucio used one of his hands, keeping the other on your waist, to get a gentle hold on the Memorium. “Would you mind holding the top part dear?” You gave him a small nod and, since one of your hands was also free now, you held the sharpish tip of the Memorium.

Lucio grabbed the bottom and slowly twisted it, as if opening an upside-down bottle. It was now evident that it was like it was divided into two attached parts, since you could see a source of blue light coming through a slit in the middle of the artifact. 

Lucio slowly let go of the Memorium and so did you. but it kept shining, now pressed on your chest. You looked at it, amused, for a few moments until looking back at Lucio who had a very proud look on his face.

“Apparently I know more about magical artifacts than the magician. What an irony, huh?” His look was so smug you couldn’t help but to giggle a bit, making him feel ego inflate even more. You felt his hand on yours again, starting to move with the song on the background.

“I can’t believe you remembered that tune...It was a long time ago and-”

“-And we were walking on the market, on a day I had insisted to stay in the Palace since it was awfully hot. But you made me go out anyway to....have a picnic. It was an incredible day, especially after that musician kept on following us, playing this song”

You smiled at him. He may act like he didn’t care in the slightest, that he didn’t notice the small details, but he always wanted to make you happy in the ways he could. You pressed your head on his chest, the soft blue light shining in between your bodies, making it look as if your hearts were becoming one.

-------------------------

You were tired. Your feet were aching like crazy, burning even. After the dance had ended, Lucio grabbed your hand and pulled you through the Palace halls, laughing and telling you to ditch your shoes, as he was doing. He led you to the garden, where you had danced and danced, ran after each other, and almost fell on a pond. You were exhausted. But happy.

Lucio had taught you how to see the memories on the Memorium on the way back, which was simpler than you thought. Obviously, he had given you a ride back to the shop, and obviously, he had instructed the coachmen to go as slow as he could.

Once at the shop door, with your fancy shows in hand and Lucio barefoot, you shared a passionate and real kiss. You could feel the happiness coming from his lips and the sincerity they held. It was funny to see him walking back to the carriage, trying his best to ignore the dirty floor of the streets. You touched the rose behind your ear as you saw him poke his head off the window and wave at you. You waved back with a smile and entered the shop, the sweet scent of lavender dancing towards your nose.

The lights out, so you guessed Asra and Faust were already asleep. You silently made your way to the kitchen and poured some of the lavender tea on a mug, silently thanking Asra for his kindness. You decided to leave both the rose and the Memorium on the table in the living room, wanting to show it to Asra on the next day. The tea was no longer on the mug when you arrived in your room. You placed it on a nearby nightstand, fell on the bed, and drifted to sleep, feeling fulfilled.

Maybe it was the tiredness, or maybe the lack of lights, but you failed to notice Asra sitting in an armchair, in the corner of the living room. Once he saw you were asleep, he got up and made his way to the table, looking at the gifts you had received that night. He pulled up a chair and sat close to the table. Of course, he knew how to use a Memorium. He didn’t tell you to give you the satisfaction of figuring it all by yourself.

He contemplated it for a few moments before touching it. The Memorium glowed and floated around half an inch over the table. The image of you and Lucio dancing was as clear as day. The music on the background was soft, like a music box. And the happy expressions on your faces was obvious. It was love, wasn’t it? The love that he couldn't give you, displayed to him, as if he was just a mere bystander. 

Which, at the end of the day, he was.

---------------------

Was the angst necessary at the end? Nope

Did I enjoy putting it there? Absolutely

I hope you all like this. The last gif is from the anime "Sword Art Online" - Season 1

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#the arcana imagiens #the arcana imagine #lucio x reader #lucio imagine #lucio #the arcana lucio #count lucio #lucio fluff #asra x reader #lucio x apprentice

[fan-girling-101]

Pogue Winter

Pogues x Reader x Kooks, Rafe x Reader

Summary: After almost dying on Halloween Y/N stays with Rafe. Until he surprises her with a too expensive gift.

Word Count: 2k

Warnings: Rafe being a sweetheart, My sucky writing, I think that’s it

Thank you @thisismynerdyself​ who let me use her story which was part one. This is part two there’s going to be a part three and maybe four. Please go check her out and read the original. And thank you for letting me use it. This is all my writing, also if you read the first then second chapter the writing style is completely different.

Part one here

Original part one here

Her Tumblr

Imagine he’s dressed up not sweety in awe of how you look

The next few days I’ve been quiet, not talking to many people, mostly just Rafe, I haven’t even answered JJ. I mostly stayed in Rafe’s room reading or watching any movie on disney plus. Rafe got some clothes from Sarah for me to wear, Ward and Rose had no idea someone else was in their house. I guess that would happen if you never pay attention to your son.

“Hey Pumpkin.” Rafe called making me look up from Harry Potter: Prisoner of Azkaban book in my lap. “I wanted to go golfing with Topper and Kelce, but I don’t want to leave you alone, so do you want to come?”

“Do I want to come watch the most boring sport, if it can even be called that, in the world?” I looked out the window thinking for a moment before answering with a sure.

“Ok it’s not boring.” I rolled my eyes walking over to Rafe. “You keep telling yourself that.” I pat his shoulder walking around him to grab some clothes to change into.

“It’s not!”

♛

We’ve been at the golf course for what feels like an eternity, but probably only an hour or less. The boys are golfing while I sit in the golf cart, tempted to drive away and go anywhere but here, reading my Harry Potter book. The sun makes it almost too hot to bear, It’s November for God sakes stop being so hot.

“Come, I’m gonna teach you how to golf.” Rafe grabs my hand pulling me up and over to the golf tee. Handing me a golf club, I stand there not making a move to actually golf. “How hard can it be to hit a ball with a club?” I ask, laughing and going to walk back to my book.

“Pretty hard Y/N,” Topper said, hitting a ball himself that went super far. I roll my eyes hitting the ball Rafe so kindly set up for me. The ball ended up going further than Topper’s so I smirked at him and walked away. “Beginners luck.” He muttered.

♛

 Over the next few weeks Rafe has been taking my golfing with him just the two of us. He says I could be amazing if I tried. I rolled my eyes everytime but went along anyway. By now I couldn’t really remember why we ever hated each other. Well I mean I know he was always kinda mean to friends, who I haven’t spoken to in a long time, but I can’t remember one time he said something mean to me. Ever.

It was now Christmas time, I was still living in secret with Rafe and if you’re wondering where my parents are. Right when I turned 16 I got emancipated. Their idea, not mine, not that I wanted to stick around with them. So back to Christmas, Christmas in the Outerbanks means the annual Winter Ball.

“So Y/N/N what are you doing December 18th.” Rafe asks me, coming to lie on his bed with me. His smile told me he was planning something, and I couldn’t tell if I wanted to be a part of it. “Come on Pumpkin, it's not a hard question. 18th are you or are you not doing anything.”

“Well…. Let me check my schedule.” I pretend to pull out my phone. “Hmm.. well the 18th that's a Monday meaning, one o'clock, wallow in self pity. Four thirty, stare into the abyss. Five o'clock, solve world hunger; tell no one. Five thirty, jazz-ercise. Six thirty, dinner with me. I can't cancel that again! Seven o'clock, wrestle with my self-loathing… I'm booked! Well if I bump the loathing to nine I could still be done in time To lay in bed and stare at the ceiling and slip slowly into madness…”

“So you’re free. Good.” I shake my head at him letting him continue anyways. “December 18th is actually a Friday, also the day of the Winter Ball. So Y/N L/N will you come to the winter masquerade ball my me?”

“Rafe-”

“That doesn't sound promising.” He pouts looking at me sadly trying to get me to guilt me into coming.

“You didn’t let me finish. Why would you want to bring me? I don’t know if you’re aware but I’m a pogue, your sworn enemy. And being a pogue means I have no money, no money means no dress, no dress means no Y/N at Winter Ball. It’s really just logic.”

“Why wouldn’t I want to bring the most gorgeous girl in the universe to the winter ball.”  A blush found its way to my cheeks, making me look down. “Also I already planned for you to come so…” He gets up leaving the room for a second and when he comes back he has a sparkling red dress. I was beautiful.

“Rafe-” I gasp looking at the beautiful dress. “I-I can’t take that. That probably cost you a fortune, Rafe I could never repay you for it. I mean when did you even. That cost more than my whole house and things combined.

“Y/N I don’t need to be repaid. Take it. At least try it on please.” He hands me the dress leaving the room. I reluctantly put the dress on facing the mirror looking at how the dress flowed. I couldn't help but smile. A soft knock on the door of Rafe asking if he can come in.

“If you’re making me do this I don’t want you to see me on the dress until the ball.” I heard the groan from outside the door.

“Fine but I have your shoes, mask, necklace and earrings.”

Full outfit

“Rafe! I’m gonna owe you for the rest of my life and more.”

“I don’t want anything, just take them please.” I open the door just enough to grab the stuff quickly putting it all on. “Sarah helped me find everything one night while you were asleep, the shoes took the longest, or I would have asked you sooner instead of a week's notice. Does everything fit, I was scared it would be too big, or small. Or you would hate the color. Or the style of it. It took me almost three nights to find that one, it had the prefect and I needed Sarah and Wezzie to say it looked good and you would like it.”

“Rafe shut up I love it ok. It fits perfectly, the shoes are my size, I love the color,and the style is beautiful. Stop panicking ok.” I open the door dressed back in my Christmas pajama pants and Rafe’s old football jersey. “Come on, ice cream my treat. And I’m driving your truck.”

The whole way there Rafe was acting like a scared mom in the car with their child. Telling me to slow down. I was an amazing driver, he was just paranoid. Sure I was a little reckless but I’m also too good to ever get in a crash.

We go through the drive thru Rafe ordering a plan oreo, while I got a candy cane ice cream because Chritmas time is here bitches! As I pull up pay I grab my cash going to give it to Matt a tenth grade that I go to school with. Out of nowhere Rafe reaches over to hand Matt his own money.

“Rafe!”

“I can't let you pay what kind of gentleman would I be if I let you pay.”

“The kind that already bought me a dress, shoes, and jewelry.”

♛

Soon enough the 18th came, Sarah, Weezie, Rose and I were all getting ready in Sarah’s room. Rose was so excited when she heard Rafe was bringing someone, never once had Rafe brought someone to a kook event. When she found out it was me I saw the fake smile with clenched teeth. 

Sarah had me sit down on her vanity chair to do my makeup. I told her to do whatever would look nice with my dress. When she finished she started my hair curling my hair and braiding some small red flowers into my hair to match my dress and give me a pogue type look with the random small braids. Rose did everything for Weezie and after the two of us sat on Sarah’s bed playing a card game while Rose and Sarah got themselves ready.

Sarah’s Outfit

Weezie’s Outfit

I knew Kie was coming of course with her parents, Pope was coming to help his dad and John B was Sarah’s date. But I had no idea if JJ was going, usually the two of us would sit around drinking and smoking while the others were at the fancy parties, or on a rare occasion we’d crash the party, while being drunk and high. I haven’t spoken to any of them in a long time. I felt bad, really bad. I mean JJ was my best friend, basically a brother to me. 

We all had our dresses and me, Sarah and Weezie started taking instagram pictures all dressed up. I say I was nervous was an understatement. I mean I was going to a kook party dressed as one of them. I was going with Rafe fucking Cameron, the kookist of all kooks. 

Weezie and Rose left when Ward called us down. I started fiddling with my freshly painted nails. I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up at Sarah. “Don’t be so nervous, if you get bored of my brother and his boring friends me and Weezie will come and save you. We have a secret place we go to.” She gives me a reassuring smile giving me a small hug.

“You go down, I'll be there in a sec. I have to mentally prepare for this.” She laughs leaving the room and heading down with everyone else. I pace the room a little before heading down myself.

Rafe’s POV

We all stand in the front room waiting for Y/N. I hear heels clicking on the stairs as someone walks down. I eagerly look at the stairs waiting for the girl that’s been living with me for over a month. The one who I always thought was beautiful. The one who deserves the world and more. The one I think I fell in love with. When the person came into view the excitement fell from my face seeing Sarah instead of Y/N.

“Sorry to disappoint.” She laughs going to stand with Weezie whispering things in her ear. “This is why you don’t bring someone like her.” My dad sighed clearly, not happy with having to wait.

“What do you mean ‘someone like her’?” I ask him. “Someone who’s never been to anything important in their life. We’re going to be late. Next time invite someone with some social class. If this was some way to piss me off congratulations Rafe you’ve done it.”

I would have yelled at him, I would have told him to shut up. But I head the soft click of heels on marble. This time I knew it was Y/N. I completely forgot about what was said about her. I couldn’t wait to see her all dressed up. The only time I’ve seen her in a dress was when she’d crash our formal parties. It was always the same one, a peach sundress.

When I saw her in front of me I had no words, everything else suddenly didn’t matter. I didn’t hear when everyone else went to the car. All I could see was Y/N, she looked like a goddess. No one was more perfect. Her Y/H/C hair was lightly curled with flowers braided into it. To be fair Y/N would look perfect in anything, and nothing.

I lied before, I don’t think I’m in love with her…

I am in love with her.

#obx #obx imagine #Outer Banks #outerbanks #outerbanks imagine #rafe cameron #rafe cameron imagine #rafe cameron x reader #obx x reader #obx x y/n #sarah cameron #pogue life #pogue style #kook #christmastime

[peacedolantwins]

Resentment (G.D)

When you and Grayson first got together, it was like a dream come true. He was your prince charming ready to be everything you ever wanted, but instead of a horse and carriage, it was with a baby blue porshe.

He would pick you up and take you out just about anywhere. Theater, movies, fancy restaurants, anything. You weren’t in the relationship for the money and fancy things, you would have been just as happy watching netflix back at the house or just sitting in a park talking, but he always insisted on going out.

“A beautiful girl deserves beautiful things,” he would always say.

And while you knew the truth, any time the fans saw you two out somewhere expensive or going shopping, they were quick to call you a gold digger.

Grayson would see the comments and tweets and at first he just ignored them. But after a while, he started thinking.

Were you just with him for the money?

So he stopped.

He stopped buying you gifts, he stopped with fancy dinners, he stopped just about everything,

And you didnt mind. You didnt need fancy jewelry or clothes he would get you. As long as you got to spend time with him, the man who you loved, you didnt care.

But then things started to change.

When you two would hang out and you offered to go to the mall and walk around and maybe do some shopping he looked at you like you just offended him.

“Not Rodeo?” he raised a brow.

“I mean, if there was something you wanted to buy there, we can go.” You really werent a fan of going there since everything was way more than you could afford on your own. But if he had planned on buying something, you were okay with going with. You could go to the mall later.

So you two went and he was quick to head straight to the designer stores. You two separated while in the store. While he was picking out things he could actually afford to buy, you were simply window shopping.

You lost track of time when you felt Grayson reach out and touch your arm. Thats when you noticed he already paid.

“You already paid?” you glanced at the bag.

“Yeah, you didnt buy anything?”

“No?” you were confused about why he was asking. You never bought anything when you came to stores like this. You werent about to drop your rent check on something that honestly looked kind of ugly in your opinion.

“Hm figures,” he rolled his eyes at you.

“Excuse me?”

“Nothing, lets go,” he walked ahead of you, leaving you to follow after him.

It went on like this for over a month, him making small remarks when you wouldnt drop an insane amount of money for something. But you got used to it. You didnt let it get to you. Until he did something you thought he would never do.

You woke up late after having spent the night with Grayson in your apartment to find your jewelry box open. You figured you must have forgotten to close it the last time you put something in and you shrugged it off and got ready for the day.

But as you did your makeup you couldnt help but feel something was wrong. You walked over to the box and thats when you noticed it.

The box was nearly empty.

A few of your earings and a few bracelets were there but all of the jewelry Grayson had gotten over the course of your relationship was gone.

And so was your grandmothers ring she left to you.

You started looking around, thinking maybe Grayson might have knocked the box over this morning and everything just fell out, but there was nothing on the floor anywhere. You were starting to panic when you heard your front door open and saw Grayson come in.

“Grayson did you knock over my jewelry this morning?”

“You mean the jewelry I paid for?”

“Sure, whatever, yeah, but did you knock it over?” You didn’t even care about the remark about him paying for it all, you just needed to know what happened.

“I pawned it,” he said casually.

“You what?” you felt your heart drop.

“Its not like you wore it anyway.” While that was true, its not like you didnt wear it because you didnt like it. You had a tendency to lose everything and you werent about to risk losing a bracelet over a thousand dollars while going to the grocery store.

“Did you take my ring?”

“Which one?”

“Grayson this isnt funny! Did you take my ring? The one with the diamond?” you were scared to hear his answer.

“The one I got you? Yeah.”

“You didnt get me that one, Grayson! That was my grandmothers ring! You have to get it back!” you were beyond upset right now.

“So you seriously want me to go buy you the ring now?” he asked annoyed.

“It wasn’t yours to sell! Why would you even take it!”

“Well you better get to it before someone buys it,” he shrugged.

You looked at him in complete shock. You couldnt care less about the other jewelry, but that ring was important to you. It was the one thing you had left from the woman you spent the majority of your childhood with since your parents were always working.

“Grayson, I cant afford to buy it back!” you had gotten it appraised when you first got it and when you found out how much it was worth, you never wore it.

“Then figure it out!” He couldn’t believe how you were acting about it. Hes worn a full outfit that costs more than that ring so he didnt understand why it was such an issue.

You looked at him in complete shock.

“Unbelievable.” you muttered as you slipped on your shoes and you were out the door as soon as you had the address to the store he took it to.

You quickly found it, driving probably more than the speed limit and parked. You walked in and the man behind the counter asked if he could help you find something. After describing the ring to him he motioned you over to one of the cases.

“Yes! That one, how much is it?” you tried to mentally prepare yourself for the price he was about to say.

“That one is going to be $7,899.”

You closed your eyes and did your best to stop the tears from forming. You knew you couldnt even put it on your credit card because you had a $2,500 limit set.

“Would you be able to hold it for me? Just for today while I go to the bank,” you pleaded with him.

“The most I can give you is until four today,” he explained.

You quickly glanced at the clock behind him and started to panic. It was already twelve, and you knew the bank was closed until one, which meant you had two and a half hours at the most to go and get the loan you needed to buy it back.

“Ill be back in by then,” you gave him your information and you started your drive to the bank.

Once you arrived you sat in your car and did your best to keep your composure as you waited for it to open back up. As soon as the clock hit one you practically ran in and waited for one of the employees to tend to you.

A kind looking woman came from the back rooms and called your name and introduced herself as the person who would be helping you.

She had you fill out paperwork and once you were done she put all the information into the computer. She said it would take a little while for the credit report to come in and she left you sitting there in her office while she went elsewhere.

It was already 2:15.

It was three o’clock when she came back in and told you it all went through and you were approved. You rushed through the final paperwork with a few signatures where needed and you were out the door and driving back to the pawn shop.

You quickly found the same man who helped you from earlier and you bought back the ring.

When you got to your apartment building you sat in your car with your head resting on the steering wheel.

Looks like you were back to living the same way you did through college. Ramen noodles and cereal for every meal from now on.

You glanced around the parking lot and noticed the stupid baby blue car was no where around. Good, because you didn’t want to deal with him right now.

The next few days you found yourself at the restaurant you worked at picking up every shift you could. You had been ignoring calls from Grayson and Ethan too once he started calling you.

You didn’t have time to deal with any of them. You had an eight thousand dollar loan to pay back.

It wasn’t until the two of them walked into the restaurant and got seated in your section when you had to finally deal with them.

“Hi my name is Y/n, I’m gonna be your server today, can I get you something to drink?”

“Y/n? It’s us you don’t have to be all hospitality with us,” Ethan was confused as to why you were being so formal with them.

“We have water, tea, and pepsi products,” you placed the menus in front of them.

“Um, just water, babe-“ Grayson looked up at you and for the first time in days he noticed how exhausted you looked. You were running on fumes and he could see it.

“Great, I’ll be right back with your drinks,” you quickly walked off to get the drinks.

“Dude what’s up with her?” Ethan asked his brother.

“I don’t know, I know we had a fight a few days ago but I thought she’d be over it by now,” he explained.

“Here you go,” you placed their water down in front of them, “and did we need more time to look at the menu or are you ready to order?”

“Y/n, stop it-“ Neither of the boys liked how you were acting towards them.

“Don’t worry, take your time, I’ll be back in a few minutes,” you walked away again.

“Gray, what did you do?” Ethan had never seen you this way. You were being so cold and lifeless despite the fake smile and cheery voice you had slapped on.

“I accidentally pawned one of her rings,” Grayson explained.

“Why did you… what ring? Doesn’t she only have the one her grandma left her?”

“I didn’t know,” Graymuttered more to himself.

“You didn’t…” Ethan stared at him in shock. “Are you serious! That would be like her pawning the ring dad left us! Did you get it back for her?” Ethan knew how much that ring meant to you. And from the few times he saw it, he had a general idea of how much it cost.

His brothers silence was all he got but it was enough to let him know the answer.

“Where did you sell it? Fucking hell Grayson! Why wouldn’t you get it back!” Ethan was ready to walk out of the restaurant right now and go buy it back for you since his idiot of a brother didn’t do it himself.

“I went back later and it was already gone okay! I tried!”

“How much did you get for it?” He questioned.

“About six and a half thousand.”

“Well you gave her the money right? Maybe she went and bought it back,” Ethan was trying to be hopeful of the situation.

Silence again.

“Grayson you didn’t even give her the money?” Ethan knew you weren’t made of money and knew how much you made. Which meant he knew there was no way you could have afforded to buy it back yourself.

“Have we made a decision yet?” You appeared out of what seemed like nowhere.

“Just a salad for both of us, babe talk to me please,” Grayson knew he fucked up and he didn’t know how to make it better.

“I’ll go ahead and send that in, any appetizers while you wait?”

“No, Y/n please,” Grayson covered your hand with his.

“I’ll be back with your order,” you pried your hand away gently, not wanting to cause a scene.

What you didn’t know was that your manager was standing close by and saw someone touch one of his employees. And most restaurants didn’t care much about the workers being hit on or made uncomfortable, but he cared about his employees.

Once he saw you leave to take the order to the kitchen, he went up to the table.

“Excuse me,” he crouched down next to the table, “I’m the manager here and I’m not going to have you harassing my employees. If I see anything like that again, you’re out of here. Enjoy your meal.” He patted the table and went off to find you.

“Y/n, I’m giving your table to Erin, take one of hers,” he gestured to the two boys in your section.

“No it’s okay, I can handle it,” you would much rather deal with the twins than the group of kids who looked like they were coming in for homecoming.

“Are you sure?”

“I’ve had worse than someone trying to hold my hand, I’ve got it,” you assured him.

“Okay, you let me know if he tries something again,” he looked at you.

“Yes sir,” you mock saluted him at which he rolled his eyes.

You went and checked on the other tables in your section and felt Graysons eyes on you the whole time. You eventually went and took them their salads and asked if they needed anything, but you left before they could answer.

Eventually they asked for the bill and you brought it out, more than happy to have them gone. You returned their card and waited for them to leave before going to clean up the table.

It was then that you saw the giant tip they left.

$500 in cash.

They carried more on them then you made in a week.

You grabbed it and passed by your manager and quickly explained they left something behind that you were going to return to them before following them out the front door.

“Grayson!” You called after him.

“Y/n, look I’m so sorry about-“ he started.

“Can I see your keys really quick?” You cut him off

He handed them over, confused as to why you were asking for his keys. But then he saw you sliding your key off the key ring.

“Y/n no, please don’t,” he knew what this meant.

You tossed him back his keys before you took the money out of your apron and slamming it to his chest.

“That should be enough for the price of my key back.”

With that you walked back into the restaurant and slapped the fake smile back on your face. While you really could have used the five hundred dollars, you were not going to let him try to feel better about what he did.

No amount of money he tried to spend on you now could fix the damage already done.

Pls like/comment/reblog I need validation

@pgm-dolan @dolandolll @dolanshellyes @mysecretsaremydemons @mmmmmgd @ethandolxns @dolantwinsfavss @knee-deep-in-feels @godlydolans @dolanstwintuesday @sarcasm-at-its-finest2444 @fandomsfeministsandothershit @graydolan12 @ilsolee @inlovewithethandolan @someonedoingnothing @vintagebitttch @sunshinedolantwins @chonisberonica @ardordolan @ethantasy @wasabisama331 @graysavant @atlas-of-a-human-soul @wolfpuppii009

#ethan dolan #grayson dolan #dolan twins #grayson dolan fanfiction #grayson dolan imagine #grayson dolan fic #grayson dolan angst #dolan twins angst #ethan dolan fanfiction #ethan dolan fic #ethan dolan imagine #ethan dolan angst #dolan twins fic #dolan twins fanfic #dolan twins fanfiction #grayson dolan fanfic #ethan dolan fanfic #fic #mine

[letstalkaboutshtufff]

Geralt x reader We're Married? Part 2

Ok here part 2! Its probably crap but anyway...

part 1

Pairing: Geralt x reader

Warnings: Blood, cursing, mentions of past sexual abuse, violence

**************************************

The second you entered the hall was the second you forgot who you were supposed to be..

"HOLY SHI-" a rough hand quickly clasped your mouth shut. "If you wouldnt give us away in the first 5 seconds that would be terrific" Geralt muttered.

"Mmmph mmmph- alright alright sorry" he removed his hand. You sighed and looked around, more quietly this time. You'd been to a party like this before, well snuck into a party like this before.. but never this lavish.

The royal family spared no expense it seemed considering every inch of the great hall was exquisitely decorated. Long tables were lined with delectable looking dishes, which you would definitely visit later...

And there were many eating tables that had beautiful flower petals atop them. In between was a large area which was meant for socializing and dancing most likely. Boy did you feel out of place..

The man on your arm felt the same you guessed by the way his face contorted watching all the "fancy people" socialize. "I have a bad feeling.." he spoke quietly to himself.

Curious you turned to him "why do you say that?"

His eyes scanned the room suspiciously, "Because something's not adding up.."

"Y/n listen to me" he suddenly turned to you seriously.

"Hmm?" You eyes rose

"This thing..whatever it is..is different from what we've encountered before" he started

"Yeah I know that.." What was he getting at?

He grunted before continuing, "Promise me something" he said with earnest eyes which was incredibly rare for the witcher. It always made you soften tho.

"Sure anything.." you were worried now.

"When the monster shows up-whatever it is. You will leave with Jaskier"

"Except that" you deadpanned. "Are you crazy?? Why would I leave??" You unlinked your arms and faced him fully.

He pressed his lips tightly and led you to a corner away from people who began to notice the dispute.

Jaskier sensing the rising tension, stepped away.

"Y/n listen to me" he said firmly, "we don't know what we are dealing with, and for that reason it's not safe for you"

You threw up your arms in disbelief, "When has monster hunting ever been safe Geralt?!"

He huffed, clenching his jaw, "You will leave when it shows up and that's final" his tone leaving no room for argument.

You decided causing a scene would not be wise so you settled for giving geralt your best, "I'm angry and this isnt over face" before swiftly walking away.

"Y/n!" He caught up with you and just as he grabbed your arm an older couple blocked your path.

"Why I don't believe we've met before?" The older man dressed in blue said with bright eyes.

Geralt forced a smile and stood beside me, "I suppose we just havent had the pleasure yet"

"Well allow me to introduce myself and my dear wife count and countess Barano at your service" he bowed his head slightly and his wife followed suit.

"A pleasure" you chimed in moving slightly away from Geralt. "This is my husband, sir Bartholomew Tristan, and I'm lady Lina Tristan." You gestured lazily beside you.

The next half hour went similarly like this, a new couple introducing themselves every now and then, and talking about nonsense. You could hardly focus on anything they were saying. All you could think about was how Geralt was being an absolute arse wipe.

How dare he try to keep you away from all the action?! You're training had been relentless since the incident with the visser. And you were more than ready to fight anything that came your way. Geralt has been this way the last few missions. Although he never told you to completely leave before. Maybe a stay back or a few to many be carefuls. But run away?? What's the point of training if you couldn't even use it!

The dinging of a bell shook you from your thoughts. Dinner time..great more boring conversations with people you didnt like.

Playing the part of the ever so doting husband, Geralt pulled out a seat for you. You didnt even spare him a glance as you sat down. He sighed as he sat beside you. Throughout the evening he had tried to talk to you but it always ended badly. You were both pissed and stubborn..

"Y/n-" he began but was cutt of by lady borano.

"So tell us about yourselves, it's not often we meet new friends." She smiled sincerely.

Geralt turned with a hand in the air, "What would you like to know?"

"How long have the two of you been married?"

Geralt thought back to the extra information Yavert told him, "3 years"

" Ah still practically newlyweds" sir Borano joked.

"Any children?" A beautifully wicked idea formed in your mind,

"Unfortunately no, my dear husband here can't perform."

The sound of a feminine gasp and the whip of his head made you smirk as you took a sip of the wine before you. Its contents easing your mind, and your tongue for that matter. He forced a smile in an attempt to ease the awkwardness.

" ah I see..." she responded quietly." Well children aren't everything" she also made an effort to improve the mood.

"And thank god for that, because she'd make a terrible mother".

This time you were the one whipping your head around nearly choking on your drink. That little!! "I'm sure that's not true.."sir Barono offered with an uncomfortable smile.

"Well you can't raise children by lazing around all day and eating crumpets" he laughed while the others laughed along too, awkwardly that is..

"Well at least you know where I am, on the other hand I sit at home all day wondering what you and our servant boy could possibly be doing taking so long attending to "business". All eyes shifted to a fumbling Jaskier who stood behind us, "that's uh...not...she didn't..." he tried defending himself.

If looks could kill you would have been a goner. Geralt fists clenched beneath the table. Good, he deserves it for being a butthead.

In a few sentences you had emasculated him and implied he was having a passionate affair with the servant boy. Not bad y/n, not bad at all..

To the relief of the table, the royal family entered cutting off all conversation as everyone stood up. Curiously you peeked over the shoulders in front of you to get a closer look.

The king and queen of servia were announced along with their daughter the princess Annora. She held her head high and had an unreadable expression. She was very beautiful, long flowing hair, slim figure, beautiful blue dress. Total cliche if you ask me. But one thing stood out, the cute little fluffy puppy she held in her arms, he wore a little golden collar with a bell. Awwww litte baby pooooo.

The rest of the family was dressed obnoxiously with large puffy sleeves and glittering jewelry. No question who they were. They were led to a large table in the front center of the hall with 6 ornately decorated chairs. Makeshift thrones basically. They stood in front of them but didnt sit, which meant that you couldn't either.

A moment later another set of doors opened. In walked what you could only assume was the king, queen, and prince of Targeris. There was nothing special about them, without the fancy outfits they would've looked like any other couple. The sons attention was immediately on the princess. His eyes raked over her body without a hint of subtlety. Ew have some class dude. She on the other hand kept a straight face, not acknowledging him in the slightest.

Finally they sat down and dinner went by rather uneventfully. You and geralt hadn't said a word, although the tension was definitely still there.

Most couples had taken to dancing for the rest of the night, you however felt suffocated and decided to escape outside for a breathe of fresh air.

This was not how you wanted the night to go, you let out a sigh, watching the air turn slightly foggy. Why was Geralt acting like this? Why doesnt he trust you? What's it gonna take for him to see you as an ally instead of a weight he has to carry around?!?!

Ughhhhh you dragged your fingers across your face and through your hair. This was so frustrating! Leaning your head back you closed your eyes and let the cool air wash over your flushed face, relaxing you slightly.

When you opened your eyes again a flash of blue caught your attention. You peered downwards leaning over the balcony slightly to see. Oh it's just some couple from the party..

Wait a minute..

You leaned over more narrowing your eyes, Is that?...no way it can't be...but...you quickly walked back into the party, eyes aimed at the royal families. C'mon where are you??

You scanned every inch searching for the princess but she was no where to be found. The other members were deep in a political conversation and hardly noticed that their daughter had snuck away.

So that was her?? What was she doing? Feeling something amiss you made your way to the entrance and down the long staircase. Ugh stupid heels, you kicked them aside on the steps feeling much more free.

Oh I hope no one trips on them..oops...

You ran around to the side of the castle where the balcony was above you. Frowning when all you saw was an empty garden. Now where did she go?? You stepped further into the garden listening for any out of place sounds.

All that could be heard was the wind rustling some rose bushes and the chirping of crickets.

A girlish giggle made you spring into action. Following the sound you discreetly peeked around a column of the garden.

There stood the princess flirtatiously pressed up again one of the Servian ambassadors you were forced to socialize with earlier.

The man himself was wrinkly and balding, why was the princess interested in him when all night she seemed to detest everything?

Why did her laugh feel...wrong somehow? "Let's go somewhere more...private" she smirked pulling him by his wrist. The puppy you noticed was there as well following behind her. What a well trained dog...

Lifting up your dress again you followed the couple at a distance until you saw them stop at a hanging tapestry on the wall. What are they doing?

Annora smiled and lifted back the tapestry, it revealed a small opening only big enough for one person. She led the way and they soon dissapeared from sight.

After waiting a few moments to be safe, you stepped lightly after them. The opening they went through was pitch dark and every bone in your body was telling you to turn back.

Then you heard the giggles again, sucked it up and moved forward.

You kept walking until you ran into something soft.

What? Oh? Another tapestry? You shoved the material aside and it took your eyes a moment to adjust to the light.

You were in a candlelit hallway with several doors on either side. You heard a door click close and laughter coming from inside.

Hmm well you couldn't just barge in now.. I guess she does like him..wonder what her fiance would think of this. Well anyway it wasn't any of your business..

What a waste of time geez.. you spin around in the direction you came about to pull back the fabric.

"WAAHHHHH" you jerked around when a loud scream broke out. And not the fun kind either.

Without a second thought you kicked open the door with a bang.

"What the fu-" the princess snapped her head around with a growl. "Who the hell are you?!" She hissed.

"Better question, what the hell are you doing?!" You questioned eyes wide in disbelief at what you saw. Annora had bound and gagged the pitiful man. He was tied to the end bed post and sat whimpering on the floor. Why was he so afraid?

"Doesn't matter, you're going to die soon anyway" she smirked and her eyes flicked to something over your shoulder. It was then you realized there was another presence in the room.

Whipping your head around you came face to face with a four legged beast. Its ribs protruded crudely and its body was covered in a sickly black goo. Its eyes were red and fiery and the realization came crashing on to you when you saw the same golden collar around its neck. Fuck...

You blindly felt around for the short sword hidden under your dress. You just managed to grab it in time before the "puppy" lunged. Swinging the sword you caught its face. It hissed in pain and you took the chance to bolt through the door.

A loud growl erupted behind you. You sprinted further down the hallway and about had a heart attack when you saw Jaskier casually walking. His eyes lit up when he saw you but then widened in horror. You grabbed his arm probably giving him whiplash and the both of your were running for your lives. There was no way you could fight that beast in the tiny hallway.

"Jaskier what are you doing here?!?!" You shouted panicking.

"I-I was just following you!! I saw you leave all of the sudden and got worried!!" You both sharply turned into a corner. Thank god for these long ass hallways.

"So mind explaining WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING!!" He screamed frantically.

"Princess bad, monster bad, I'll explain the rest later when we're not about to be dog food!!" Fuck you were approaching a dead end, think think think!

"GROWWWWWWWWL" the beast was gaining on you two. You did the only thing you could think of, which was shoving jaskier into an open room and spin around to face the beast head on,

"Barricade yourself in Jaskier!" You shouted.

"W-what no! I'm not leaving you" he yelled back.

Ugh idiot! Theres no point of us both getting chomped! "Then do something to help!" He looked around frantically. Something to help something to help.."GERALT!!!!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.

Youd be lucky if he could hear that..

The beast was finally upon you, its row of razor teeth glinting in the candlelight. Fuck.. one bite and youd be literally chow.

You braced yourself as it charged forward, it leaped up and you waited until that moment to run and slide under it. You were successful but the damb beast was quick to turn around and catch your shoulder with a sharp claw.

"Aghh" you let out a welp of pain as it pinned you down.

"Y/N!" Jaskier shouted worriedly

You gripped your sword and thrust blindly upwards. It howled as the sword ripped through its flesh.

It reacted by throwing you across the hall. You rolled over in pain. Fuck, bad dog.. Its attention was on the frozen Jaskier who lamely held up a candle stick in defense.

"Jaskier run!" You winced getting up again and charging at the monster, you picked up your fallen sword and lunged onto it's back stabbing its head.

"GROOOOOOOOWL" it wildly whipped its head side to side trying to throw me off.

"JASKIER GO NOW!" he wasted no time and bolted around, "I'll go find Geralt!!" His voice faded away with his hurried footsteps.

You couldn't hold on much longer due to the stinging in your shoulder.

You fell off and rolled away nearly getting hit again by its claws.

"Y/N stay down!" A large whoosh of air shot over you as you pressed yourself flat on the ground.

"Geralt!" You exclaimed in relief. He ran over to you and helped you up. Before he could ask if you were alright the monster shrieked. God why wont it just die?!

Geralt grunted pulling out another sword and stepping in front of you.

Jaskier gently pulled you back, "Are you ok? Your shoulder-" he began but you gasped,

"Fuck!" You left him bewildered as you pushed him aside and ran back the way you came. The princess, the man, just what was going on?!?!

You flew into the room, eyes locked on the princess who stood over the unconscious man.

She tilted her head in your direction, and you narrowed your eyes noticing something that wasnt there before. Her eyes were an electric purple, and her hair was flowing around her slightly.

"You're....a mage?" You asked completely confused.

She chuckled sinisterly, "you managed to escape my dear pet, no one has been able before" she walked a couple steps in your direction.

"No matter, I'll finish you off myself" she raised a manicured hand up and the air around you seemed to get thinner.

You tried to step back but some invisible force was holding you in place. Fuck it was getting harder to breathe. Geralt I hate being the one needing to be saved but your appearance would be much appreciated.

"I-if I'm going to die anyway, tell me what's going on".you said in a hoarse whisper. The least you could do is have her distracted why you tried to find a way out of her spell.

"Hmm well I suppose it would be entertaining to watch the horrified look on your face". The side of her mouth flitted up.

"Lemme start by introducing myself, my name is Lisanna, and you're half right, I AM a mage, the princess I'm currently controlling however is nothing more that the poor dear that was too desperate to know better"

"W-what?!" You were on the floor now starting to feel lightheaded, you milked it a little so she wouldnt notice your hand creeping to the back of your head un clasping the long hair pin.

"Yes, it was some time ago I came to the princess in a dream. You see I was cursed along time ago, my soul was trapped outside my body, so I improvised. I summoned the power of the dark spirits and was able to enter whatever vessel I so choose. The only downside is they had to be dying or willing which was very annoying. If the vessel I'm in dies, I die along with it. And as you could imagine there weren't many willing people. But that's when I came across dear Annora here." She gestured to herself.

"T-the p-princess was willing??" you coughed out confused.

"Well, when I found her she was desperate you see. Her marriage had just been announced and she was willing to do anything to escape it. I very graciously, offered a solution. Let me temporarily control your body, and I'll make sure no one forces you to do anything you dont want to again."

You gripped the pin and brought it down by your side, "that still doesnt explain everything? The dissapeances the-" you coughed again.

She laughed to herself, "Oh that? That's just good old fashioned revenge, you see our poor princess has suffered at the hands of these perverted old men for years. No one cared enough to believe her, in fact they shamed her. Does that seem fair? No it doesn't" she kneeled before you and tilted your chin upwards.

"I rather enjoyed kidnapping them and torturing them till I put them out of their misery days later. It was the perfect plan, Runald, got a little excited though and killed the man right here on the floor. It was a truly gruesome sight, but dogs will be dogs" she shrugged as if it was the most casual thing in the world.

"W-why would y-you help?" You whispered shakily.

"Well you see it's all part of the bigger picture, the king is the one who needs to suffer" a look of disgust flashed across her face.

NOW! You jabbed the pin in her neck and the spell dissipated instantly. "YOU BITCH" she shrieked crawling back in pain clutching the bloody pin.

You gained your strength and stood back up running to her. "Why the king?! Answer me!" You tackled her binding her arms with the curtain tassels.

She struggled violently, her neck bleeding profusely. "If you keep moving you'll just bleed out faster.." you glared at her.

"Tell me everything and I might save you.." you stood back up allowing her some space.

"He deserves it! He fucking betrayed me!" She said angry tears beginning to fall down her flushed face. "He said he loved me! He said he'd leave her! And then she got pregnant and he threw me out like garbage! He let all those stupid men influence him! I begged him! And when I tried to kill his bitch which I had every right to do, he got a mage to put a curse on me! He has to suffer!! They all do!" She was shaking now.

You thought over her words for a moment, "So the men..the murders.." You couldn't believe what you were hearing.

"Two birds with one fucking stone, the princess and me have similar interests, we deserve justice! It doesnt matter how it happens, one by one or an all out war! They all must suffer! We didnt deserve this!" You looked down quietly ,

"You're right... you both didnt deserve that, but this.." you gestured to the unconscious man, "is not justice, it makes you like them, criminals.."

"So what!? They can call us whatever we want, it doesnt mean anything! If they get what they deserve they can call us whatever the fuck they want!" The angry tears were streaming now.

"No" you shook your head softly. "It does matter, because it's not over for you yet. I won't let it be.." you crouched beside her, "I'm sorry for what they did to you... to the both of you... but there has to be a way..a way to move past the pain and move forward"

She scoffed, "What the hell would you know! You've never suffered like I have".

Memories of your master flashed through your mind and without a second thought you threw your arms around her shaking form.

"I do.." you whispered quietly.."pulling her tightly against you, "Someone came along...someone stronger, and prettier, and better than me...and he threw me aside...like everything we ever went through never happened...he was everything to me and I thought I was everything to him..I felt like the whole world was going to collapse onto me. For a long time I was lost..and so so angry. I too wanted revenge..more than anything..but then I realized I couldn't let him control me anymore..that the best revenge was to live a better life. A life where I didnt have to depend on some stupid guy to give it meaning. And I was ok thinking that I would be alone for the rest of my days. But then things changed because I made them.. I found people who are truly good. And now I thank god that I didnt let myself be consumed by my feelings of rage, because now I'm truly happy...and I promise you" you squeezed her tighter, "your story is not going to end this way.." .

Her soft sobs grew louder as she buried her head in your chest. You smiled gently and with one hand untied her bindings. She immediately wrapped her arms around you and let out all the pain and sorrow she had built up.

"Its going to be ok" you gently cupped her head, "I promise".

When she finally looked up, her tear filled eyes met yours, "It hurts so much" you gently stroked her tears away, "I know, but amazing girls like us cant spend the rest of their lives obsessing over some scumbags now can we?" You laugh softly.

She matches your smile and leans in close to you, "thank you..." she whispers kissing your cheek.

A visible purple aura formed around her before altogether gathering and leaving the princess. You smiled sadly and watched Lisannas soul dissapear through the window.

The princess's body went limp in your arms, a moment later she stirred, "where am I?" She whispered confused and exausted. "Don't worry..you're safe now, everythings going to be alright" you held her close and tied a piece of fabric from your dress on her neck wound. Luckily it wasnt too deep.

That same moment 2 very disgruntled men rushed in, "Y/n?!" Geralt came over and knelt beside the two of you.

"I'm alright..we both are.." you smiled at him. "I'm getting the feeling we missed something.." Jaskier raised his brows looking at the man rousing on the floor.

You couldn't help but let out a laugh as the both of them gave you a weird look.

**************************************

After the events you had a long talk with the princess. You were proud as she stood in front of the room and told everyone of the scandalous crimes that the king didnt bat an eyelash towards. Anybody who looked as if they were going to protest were promptly shut up with one stern glare from the witcher.

Everyone agreed that a new era of peace could not begin with a foundation of crimes. The king and queen were arrested by Targeris guards and the princess was crowned queen right then and there.

There was actually alot of protest but a certain mage was able to convince everyone. Something about making the room dark and the floor quake made everyone agree that you couldn't argue with destiny. Thanks Lisanna, I hope to see you again some day. Well as long as your not possessing someone against their will...then again how will she really live without doing that? Eh whatever shes good now, its probably fine...probably..

The princess-well queen now decided that she would not marry the prince, however the peace had to continue. Everyone was too scared to "go against destiny" again so everything seemed to be ok for now.

As for the missing officials, we explained there was a monster but we swiftly took care of them. Actually, doggy poo was turned back to normal when the suffocating spell broke and he sat wagging happily by the queens side. Usually jobs didnt end this happy. Not bad y/n, not bad at all..

*************************

"Ouch.." you wince as rough hands rub a cool salve on your aching shoulder.

"Sorry.." Geralt apologized and tried his best to be gentle.

The mood was peaceful, the only thing illuminating the two of you was a few flickering candles. The two of you sat quietly on a bed in one of the guest rooms. You felt more vulnerable than usual as the dress you wore was pooled on the floor. A thin strapless slip was the only thing covering you. Geralt was gentle as he tended to your shoulder. You felt ashamed at the way you behaved earlier. He was being annoyingly protective yes but..you may have taken it too far.

"Geralt?" You said quietly turning to face him.

"Hmm?" His golden eyes like fire in the flickering light.

"I'm sorry for the things I said...and how I acted...but I'm not sorry for getting upset at you telling me to leave." I said truthfully.

He sighed and I expected a protest, "No I should be the one apologizing.." he finished wrapping your shoulder and gently stroked the bandage

"I know telling you to back off was unfair but.." he looked troubled.

"But?" You urged him on.

He looked down, "Everytime we encounter another monster, I cant help imagine that its going to end up with you almost dying" he looked back up and the look in his eyes was so raw you caught your breath. He was referring to the last time when the visser had almost killed you.

"Geralt..." you whispered leaning forward so his forehead was touching yours. "I'm right here, and I'm not going anywhere..." you placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned back smiling, "Besides who else are you going to engage in witty banter with? Jaskier?" You teased and a corner of his mouth lifted. "Dont think I've forgotten what you said.." he raised a brow.

"Hey it's not all my fault! Just dont leave me out of things again and we'll have no issues"

"Alright..I promise I won't do that again ok?" He offered.

You nodded your head happy now that you had finally come to an agreement.

He shook his head, "Well at least if you're by me, I can keep an eye on you......speaking of..."

Uh oh bad feeling. Geralt was shifting into scolding mode you could feel it..

You scooted off the bed slightly ready to escape if need be, "Why the hell did you go after the princess by yourself!?" He was more stern now.

"Jaskier? Is that you calling? I'm coming!" You dashed off the bed swinging open the door, "We can talk later Geralt! Jaskier needs me!"

You bolted down the hall ignoring his bark of protest behind you, "Y/N! Don't--ugh" he sighed shaking his head. That woman was gonna be the end of him...but he couldn't help the smile plastered on face. His fingers gently touched where her forehead was. She sure was a special one. He grunted and left the room, now where did she run off too...

*******************

Ok so there it is! I didn't feel very confident about this story but wanted to finish it anyway. Hope it was ok xoxo lemme know if I should write more stories, till next time!

@marvels-gurl @shane-isa-shame @waitingtobeimpressed @viking-raider @dream-alittlebiggerdarling

#the witcher #geralt of rivia #geralt x reader #geralt #self insert #apprentice reader #jaskier #injury #hurt #mage #part 1 #pt 1 #Geralt x reader we're married #injured #injured reader #wife #husband #married #fake marriage #love #romance #party #blood

[shoryubug]

Standing Up. Chapter 2: Andre Glacier

Ahhhh so it's been a while, and my laptop got back to me today...but I'm not feeling that great D: plus with everyone around me assuming it's the big plague going around (when in fact I don't interact with other humans so it's very much indeed just a dang cold), I haven't been in the best of moods to write...but I did promise as soon as I could that I'd get Standing Up continued, so I hope you guys don't hold it against me! Tumblr: Chapter 1, 2 (here), and Ao3 (for registered users).

Alya was always doing this kind of thing, pushing her ideas and thoughts and plans aside...it wasn’t just hers either. Continually she’d been witness to Alya doing the very same thing to Nino, and it was frustrating. It didn’t matter that it had just happened, Marinette wanted to stop thinking about it, so after stomping her way over to Rose and Juleka who were both outside the school gates, she wasn’t exactly angry, that would be too simple, she was more irritated. The fact that Alya continually railroaded her time and time again was frustrating, and the worst part was that it was getting to the point that Nadja Chamack wasn’t willing to trust her as much as a babysitter, so all the spare money that she was earning before was now reduced heavily, due to every instance that Alya was around both her and Manon.

"So Marinette, we got a trailer for Juleka’s bike so that we can all go to Canal Saint-Martin for the photographs, Luka said he’d meet us at your place so that we can all ride down there together because he found a place that we can all change in!" Rose gushed as Marinette had felt a wave of peace wash over her for a moment.

"Yeah, let’s just go to my place for all of it!" she said cheerily as the three of them made their way to the bakery, Rose waited outside guarding the bike while Juleka and Marinette had gone inside to gather a few piles of clothing, three outfits for each Juleka, Rose, and Luka, and Marinette’s mind began to wander to Juleka’s older brother for a moment while the pair of them silently went down the various rows of stairs to dump the folded piles of clothing in the trailer.

Luka was definitely a godsend to her in these moments, and she didn’t know what she would have done without his support. She had given up everything she felt before for Adrien, to give him and Kagami a fair chance at being together, because they were both her friends, and they both were interested in each other, and they both deserved to be happy...even if it had meant that she had to sacrifice the potential of any future she might have wanted with him. That wasn’t as important as the happiness of two of her friends, no matter how much it hurt her in the end.

Marinette found herself to still be lucky to have the support of friends like Juleka, Rose, Luka, Mylene, Alix, Kim, Nino, and of course Tikki in the moments that she could feel the weight of that sadness pulling her down and she was grateful for it. Not a lot of people in the world had that kind of support.

"Wasn’t there also some jewelry you wanted us to model?" Rose asked, breaking Marinette from her reverie.

"Ah-umm, yes, but I wanted it to be a surprise so let me go get the box, and once you’re getting dressed in the outfits you can choose what jewelry you want to model!" Marinette stated, rushing back up the stairs to search her room for the three boxes of jewelry she had packed away, each labeled with her three models names affixed in permanent marker, written in the same fancy script as what was on the T&S bakery door before she made her way back down the stairs.

"So, since you’re getting us ice cream after I kind of wanted to bring something up…" Juleka stated as Marinette turned her gaze to the girl, setting the boxes in the trailer then zipping the casing up and turning her gaze to the girl.

"Oh yeah! I wanted to know too, but I’m going to ride ahead to meet Luka! Please let me know the answer Juleka! I’m really curious!" Rose’s sweet voice broke through as Marinette nodded, trying to follow along confused while Rose grabbed a helmet from the trailer and sped off like a speed-demon, making Alix’s speed craze look tame in comparison.

"So...you had a question?" Marinette offered as she looked up at Juleka, admiring the girl’s beautiful figure and face.

"Well...everyone is assuming that your new flavors are hinted at Luka...but the colors seem more like you yourself, don’t you think?" Juleka’s question lingered between the two of them for a moment as Marinette sighed.

"I don’t really know what to think...I try not to think about the ice cream...I know my dad proposed to my mom with a scoop of it, but...I think I lost my faith in it when Andre was akumatized because I didn’t want to eat it." Marinette admitted, giving Juleka a knowing look.

"Wait he was akumatized because you didn’t want to eat ice cream?" Juleka asked, perplexed "I thought it was because something else happened, that’s what everyone made it sound like!"

"Well...Mylene, Ivan, Alya, and Nino invited me and Adrien to go get ice cream with them...a couples thing I guess...but Adrien couldn’t go, and I was upset, so I felt like a fifth wheel to them, you know, two pairs of couples and one single person...and when they all went to get their ice cream, he kind of...tried to force me to take some myself, claiming that it would 'make my true love materialize'" she used air quotes at that. "And I was fooled for a second, into thinking that this boy was Adrien for a moment...but then I dropped my ice cream and my appetite was gone, so I told him as much...and he insisted on making another one, and...I kind of said that I didn't believe ice cream could bring true love...that ice cream was just ice cream...and I left...everyone kind of followed after but mostly I just wanted to be alone..." she stated with a sigh before shaking her head.

"Wow...it sounds a lot more like he was being a jerk," Juleka whispered, and Marinette sighed.

"I don't know...I shouldn't have overreacted the way that I did...but I didn't know what to do...he was a grown man, and he wound up getting akumatized over it...and I don't know how long it took him to find me, luckily for me Chat Noir was with me that night, or I might have been turned into an ice cream sculpture..." she stated, wrapping her arms around her frame.

"You were with Chat Noir that night? You know how funny it would be if he was your true love? I mean, your old colors kind of match his too." Juleka offered as Marinette burst out into a fit of giggles.

"Yeah, right, me and Chat Noir. That's the best joke I've ever heard!" Marinette managed through her fit of giggles, though aware in the back of her mind that even the possibility of her and Chat Noir together was the making of something catastrophic.

It figures that it would start with the word cat too, effectively making it a pun. Ugh.

she thought, before bouncing in her step trying to match Juleka's pace.

As they had finally gotten to their destination after a few more minutes of chit-chat that was more lighthearted, Juleka and Rose had gone off to one bathroom while Luka stood and waited in one of the new outfits that he was modeling for her, a smile plastered on his face the moment that she'd approached him, and as he was about to speak she held up a finger to silence him, her eyes raking over every detail before she went to the trailer of the bike and came back with a small sewing kit, quickly setting up a ladder stitch on the back of the coat, while it was still on him, then pulling the seam to make it better fitted to his form.

"That looks much better...you were about to say something though? I'm really sorry for interrupting!" she murmured before he shook his head and smiled wider at her.

"Nothing, it's always great to watch you when you're in your own mind, it's like watching a rickshaw in action, something you just can't peel your eyes from because it's intricacies are too alluring." His compliments set her cheeks ablaze for a moment. Leave it to Luka to make her blush. "Anyway Ma-ma-ma-Marinette, how have you been? Rose said you were having some trouble earlier." He patted the space beside him, beckoning her forward. "You can always talk to me if you need...or not talk, you know." His intense aquatic gaze made her feel at ease for a moment.

"It's...It's not that it's bad or anything it's just that...Alya keeps...pushing my buttons. I mean...before when she tried to invite herself to everything I had always thought it was just her trying to be a good friend, but today it just felt too intrusive. She tried to pull Adrien and Lila in too, and just disregarded me telling her no...it was just...too much." she stated, giving a sigh. "I know I probably shouldn't have gotten so angry about it, but I couldn't help it! I mean, she just wouldn't listen! Sometimes she's so stubborn that I just...want to scream at her!" Marinette felt her eyes beginning to water. "I guess I kind of did today though, huh? So much for keeping my cool..." it was then that she had felt Luka's arms around her, embracing her tightly, the warmth of his body spilling into her like an ocean meeting the sand.

"You don't deserve to have your plans stomped on by anybody Marinette...standing up to her was the best thing that you could have done in this situation, maybe now she'll start to understand that she needs to take your requests seriously," Luka stated before he pulled away and his gaze met his sister's who had quickly turned away as if she were caught up in an embarrassing moment...though there was nothing embarrassing about it. Intimate maybe, but not embarrassing.

"Thank you, Luka...I guess I really needed to hear that," she stated before wiping at her eyes.

The photoshoot had gone well, each of the three models posting around the various spaces that Marinette wanted them to while she took multiple high-resolution photos from her phone, which now had a special magnifying lens affixed to it. All in all the four of them had fun, them in making new poses and her in fixing things up, jokes all around between them, and it was one of the happier moments that Marinette had experienced in a while, full of laughter and joy.

"So now that we're all done, do you guys still want to go for ice cream?" Marinette offered, pointing out the Andre Glacier ice cream cart to the trio. Juleka and Luka had simultaneously shrugged while Rose's wide ocean eyes had somehow gotten wider.

"Yes! Ice cream sounds amazing! We should all get our own though if that's okay! I'm just not in a sharing mood!" Rose stated which had made Juleka burst out in laughter. All of them had made their way over to the ice cream cart where Rose and Juleka had gone first.

"We'd like some ice cream please!" Rose stated in earnest as Andre had looked the duo over.

"Strawberry for her darling smile, blackberry for her hair, and blueberry for your ocean blue stare! This shall keep your love together through any affair!" Andre sang out, scooping out the ice cream and putting a cherry and two-scoop spoons on top, to which Rose gave a disappointed look, taking the ice cream to share with Juleka, before Marinette pursed her lips while Luka approached, being gifted some ice cream himself, the same pink and blue colors that he and Marinette had often gotten before Marinette had gotten to Andre.

"I'll take one of each of the previous sets please," Marinette stated as Andre gaped at her then awkwardly laughed.

"Ah, pretty Marinette! You know how the ice cream is here---" he began before Marinette's gaze turned to steel while she looked directly into Andre's eyes.

"As I said, I'll take one of each of the previous two sets of ice cream please." Her voice was cold, anger seeped into her words.

"That isn't how I run this stand Marinette--"

"This isn't a practical way to run a business Andre." She snapped before grabbing two five euro bills and slamming them on his stand before stomping off, notably without ice cream as she made her way over to the trio that had made their way to the bike as Juleka had taken leave on it, to go drop off the clothing and jewelry at Marinette's and the trailer at Rose's. Luka himself had been there with Rose who shrugged about it, though Marinette only sighed.

"So...do you wanna share?" Luka offered as Marinette shook her head 'no'.

"I'm fine...thank you though. I'm not really in the mood for ice cream...I was hoping Andre would be understanding, but apparently, he isn't." She murmured, as the first time that she'd gotten ice cream with her friends replayed in her mind for the second time that day. Irritation laced that memory, just as it had infected her formerly happy mood. "I think I'm gonna head home...actually...thank you guys for today, and let Juleka know that I'll get her some pastries for breakfast tomorrow to make up for what happened with Andre today..." Marinette offered as Luka nodded, Rose softly sighed.

"It's just too bad...I don't like this ice cream much now..." Rose whispered. "I think I might just go get it from stores from now on! You get more for your money in them!" Rose offered, joyously.

"That sounds like a plan to me!" Marinette stated. "I hope you guys have a great rest of the day! I've gotta study for this Friday's test in physics, I'll see you guys later!" She stated as she began to make her way home, no doubt to hear about how rude she'd been that day from Tikki, and get a lecture from her kwami...which she wasn't in the mood for.

@spicybelladonna @vixen-uchiha @doglover82 @captainmac6 @my-name-is-michell @schrodingers25 @mewwitch @princertain @geminikessa @legallyspawned @falling-electricxangel @miraculous-mango @novicevoice

#ml salt #alya salt #andre glacier salt #miraculous salt #ml fanfic #ml fic #mlb fanfic #miraculous ladybug #ml salt fic #ml standing up

[evalinkatrineberg]

Good

A/N: Product of a C4 RP with @arin-schreave . Unedited because its 15k, its 3:30am, I’m just trying to catch up, and of course We Die Like Men. Mentions include @ladyreggiewright @clemencewestley @idaliamoretti @melanie-schreave @ladyjenli and @safiya-schreave . May have forgotten some, sorry! Also I can't think about windmills without thinking about Pilot Peter BUT ANYWAY WITHOUT FURTHER ADO,,,FIC!

I yawned, staring at the blank piece of paper in front of me. My plan had been to respond to the letters my family had written to me - my mother’s, in particular - but after fifteen minutes of sitting at my desk, I hadn’t even written a, “Dear mother,” or anything of that sort. With a sigh, I rubbed at my eyes, earning a frown from Julia, who stood behind me, brushing my hair.

“How much sleep did you get last night?” She set down the brush, narrowing her eyes at me as she picked up a handful of bobby pins, sticking some on the hem of her dress sleeve.

I frowned in response, deciding whether or not to tell her the truth. I truly had tried to go to bed at a decent hour, settling back into my room at ten o’clock, but I had laid there for at least an hour, not being able to fall asleep. At that point, I had decided to read, hoping that would tire me out. That had ultimately backfired, because when I checked the clock again, it had been two in the morning. I’d tried to sleep once again at that point, but had maybe gotten an hour or two before I woke up again, at which point I just gave up and went for my morning run earlier than usual.

“Don’t even bother answering,” Julia said with a disappointed sigh. “It’s written all over your face.”

“That bad, huh?” I looked down at my hands where they sat in my lap, running my fingers over each other.

From the corner of the room, Grace fixed me with a soft smile, her eyes warm as she folded some hand towels. “Do you want to skip dinner, and take a nap instead? We can have something to eat brought here later.”

I pressed my lips together. The option was tempting, but ultimately, I shook my head, looking at Grace through the mirror atop my vanity. “I’m not much of a napper, and besides, I’d never hear the end of it from Reggie if I was absent from yet another meal.”

Grace opened her mouth like she was about to say something more, but a sharp knock at the door cut her off. Odd. I hadn’t been expecting any visitors. I furrowed my brows, making eye contact with Julia through the mirror, but she just shook her head, finishing the low bun she had been styling my hair in before taking a few steps back.

Without my shoes on yet, it only took me a matter of seconds to cross the floor to the door. I opened it a crack, peeking through to see who it was. The moment I made out Arin’s face, I blinked twice, my spine straightening. I smoothly opened the door just wide enough for me to stand directly between him and my room, knowing that Christina had probably already dropped whatever she had been doing to try and figure out who had knocked. I loved her dearly, but her penchant for gossip could get on my nerves, sometimes, and I definitely did not need rumors of Arin being in my room spreading around.

“Oh,” I began, crossing my arms as I leaned against the door frame, painfully aware of my half-complete appearance at the moment. I was dressed for dinner, my hair done, but my makeup wasn’t finished. At least I wasn’t still in my glasses. “Good evening! To what do I owe this pleasure?”

The smile he offered me in return was tense, as if he was just as confused by this interaction as I was. Why would he be though? He had been the one to come here, after all. It wasn’t as if I’d invited him.

Maybe it was revenge for me showing up to his office unannounced, the last time we had spoken.

“Hey, Evalin” he started, his slightly forced smile still in place. “Are you busy?”

“Don’t miss dinner,” I head Grace mumble from within the room, her tone teasing. “Lady Reggie will never let you hear the end of it.”

I quickly turned to look at her over my shoulder, hoping Arin hadn’t heard what she’d said. If he was here, it had to be important. Was that why he seemed so uncomfortable - had something bad happened? It had been a few nights since that awkward conversation I had had with my father. Anything could have happened in these past few days.

My heart was racing as I turned back to him, not even bothering to cover up the concern I was sure was evident on my face. “No, not at the moment! What’s going on?”

He glanced down at his watch. “I was wondering if you'd want to do something with me.”

I reached up to fiddle with the small, bird-shaped charm on my necklace, needing something to do with my hands. The memory of being in his office was still fresh in my mind. It shouldn’t have been as big of a deal as I was making it out to be, but I was still confused over what exactly he felt for me - if he felt anything at all. If he was asking me to go somewhere with him, he likely didn’t dislike me, but that still didn’t quite make up for the other instances in which he had acted like he wished I didn’t exist.

I pursed my lips, considering his offer further. Maybe, doing whatever he wanted to do would offer me some clarity. I met his gaze, flashing him a half smile as I finally gave him an answer. “Sure!”

“Okay,” he replied, nodding. “Do you want to get changed and I’ll meet you at the car?”

“Sure,” I repeated, starting to turn around, but then stopping in my tracks to look over my shoulder at him. “Is there a dress code I should know about?” I wouldn’t press him for details he wasn’t going to give readily, but I didn’t want to show up wherever we were going looking outlandishly out of place.

“Nothing too fancy,” he answered, taking a step backwards. His words lacked conviction, though. Another date planned by someone else for you, then. Why I even expected anything else at this point was becoming a mystery to me.

My mother’s voice rang through my mind, reminding me to mind my manners. He was trying to be better, after all - he had told me as much. I should give him the benefit of the doubt. It was only fair.

So I nodded once, glancing back inside my room at my maids, who were now buzzing about my room, throwing together what I could only guess was a new outfit. I was doing this, then.

I turned back to Arin, offering him a small smile as I began to close the door. “Okay, I’ll meet you outside in a few minutes, then.”

Once I shut the door all the way, I leaned back against it, eyes closed as I exhaled heavily. When I reopened them, I saw Julia inclining her head as she looked at me, her eyes narrowed slightly as she laid a dark blue dress out on top of my bed. “Are you not excited?”

“No, I am,” I answered, pushing myself off of the door and making my way towards where she stood, Grace and Christina already getting started on unzipping the dress I was in now and applying makeup as soon as I came to a stop. “I just wasn’t expecting this, is all.”

“Not a fan of surprises?” Grace mused, placing my original dress on a hanger.

“No,” I admitted, shaking my head and stepping into the dress Julia had chosen. But that isn’t why I’m like this right now.

As soon as she had zipped up the dress, Julia made quick work of my hair, undoing the bun she had worked so painstakingly on earlier to make perfect, brushing my curls over my left shoulder. She left my jewelry in tact, the silver bird necklace still clasped around my neck as she handed me a pair of heels, leaving me to do my best to put them on without moving my face as Christina applied some eye shadow with her index finger.

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Julia’s voice was uncharacteristically soft as she placed some of my flyaway hairs back in place. I must’ve seemed like a nervous wreck. The thing was, I wasn’t nervous - more just apprehensive. My last date with Arin had gone so poorly, and I didn’t need to repeat that. Not unless he was intent on sending me home.

I just shook my head, forcing a smile on my face. “Not unless you happen to have a shot of espresso on hand,” I joked with a weak laugh.

“We could send for one,” Grace offered, her tone dead serious.

I shook my head, laughing a little and waving my hand through the air. “I don’t think we have enough time for that.”

“Of course,” Julia agreed, huffing a sigh and placing her hands on her hips, looking me up and down one last time before shooing me towards the door. “You don’t want to be late.”

I nodded as she practically shoved me into the hallway, closing my bedroom door behind me. Taking the first step down the hall, after that, my body went on autopilot, my legs leading me down the hall and the stairs while my thoughts led me in a whole different direction. My last conversation with Idalia came to mind, her advice plastered to the walls of mind like graffiti. Should I even bother asking Arin where we stood? He probably wouldn’t answer, anyway.

Stop. For once, he was doing something nice, for me. Or, at least I thought he was. I shouldn’t let my own worries about outside subjects ruin that for either of us. I should take a number out of Jen’s book, and do my best to fake it, to have a good time, enjoy myself, even if this wasn’t meant to last.

I deserved a little happiness.

The evening air was cool against the bare skin of my arms as I stepped outside, a small grin on my face. Arin’s car was already waiting, the engine turning over as soon as he caught sight of me from the driver’s seat. Where was he taking me? Out to dinner, maybe - the timing made sense for that. Yet, that lacked the usual thought and effort put into every other detail of the Selection.

So, something else, then. I wracked my brain, trying to think of a common interest that had come up in any of our conversations. We both had an interest in history - so were we going to a museum? That would make more sense than the other interest that had come to mind, which was razor clams. We were both far too dressed up for the beach.

I smiled at him as I opened the passenger side door, pulling it closed behind me after I had slid inside. Buckling my seatbelt, I laughed, remember how dreadful my last experience in this car had been. “I promise to try and not get a nosebleed this time, so long as you don’t fall down again,” I joked, hoping it might break the tension between us somewhat. When had things become so awkward between us? When I took Hugo’s advice, and asked him about the ballet? When we had kissed in the library? When he had mentioned Felicity?

Maybe it had always just been this awkward.

He smiled, but said nothing in reply, looking ahead as he began to pull out of the driveway. That was fine, I supposed. It was important that he not crash the car. I didn’t particularly want to die tonight.

At least, not yet. We’d have to see how this date went, first.

I peered behind me for a moment, expecting to see the guard from our roller skating date in the seat behind me. I’d heard rumors that his name was Kevin. However, Kevin - if that was truly his name - was nowhere to be found, replaced by a different guard that I didn’t recognize. Mildly disappointed, for no real reason at all, I turned back to the windshield, staring at the sky as the car slowly made its way down the driveway. It was a beautiful evening, a few picturesque clouds littering the sky, but not enough to stop the sun from coating the landscape in a warm yellow light.

Still smiling, I peered at Arin out of the corner of my eye. He didn’t appear to be in a bad mood, but I still didn’t want to take any risks that might ruin this. One more slip up, and I was done for, for sure.

Why did I even want to be here, if every step I took stressed me out?

I didn’t care to linger on the question.

“Dare I ask where we’re going this time?” I asked him instead, hoping he’d at least give me a hint. The suspense and anticipation were starting to get to me.

“We're going somewhere you'll like, I think,” was all he said in answer, his eyes still glued to the road that was leading us down to the gates.

Well, that’s less of a non-answer than usual. I opened my mouth a little, wanting to ask him for more details, but I stopped myself before any words left my mouth. He was doing something nice for me, taking me somewhere he’d thought I’d like, and I didn’t want this to be yet another bittersweet memory. We’d made enough of those recently to laugh me a lifetime. Why was talking to him like walking barefoot and trying to avoid stepping on shards of glass? Between all of our previous interactions, and the way he’d just shut down if I said one wrong thing, even if I didn’t know what I’d said to upset him, I just didn’t know what to expect from him anymore. If I kept my mouth shut, though, I couldn’t say anything wrong.

So I did just that, glancing between the windshield and the passenger side window at the scenery we passed, the buildings, the sky, and occasionally the ocean. The novelty of it all hadn’t worn off on me yet, though I was sure it had on some of the other girls. Clemence and Idalia left the palace almost daily. This was only the second time I had, though. The city itself was entirely new to me, a landscape yet unexplored, memories waiting to be made.

Some people came every day, though. Maybe I could too. Maybe I should take Leana’s advice, and see if he could help me in my predicament. Maybe I could enroll in the biochemistry lab course I needed at Angeles University.

Just as I finally had worked up the courage to ask, though, the car began to slow to a stop. I blinked, quickly drinking in as much of our surroundings as I could. We were pulling into a parking spot that had clearly been blocked off for us. Around us were throngs of well-dressed people, chatting and laughing as they made there way towards the performance hall we had parked near.

A performance hall, for something he thought I would like. Surely he hadn’t. My eyes went wide as the puzzle pieces began to latch together, painting a picture I hadn’t even thought to consider.

“We’re here,” he announced, shutting off the car and looking over at me.

I turned back to him, my grin so wide it almost ached. “I thought you said…” I trailed off, shaking my head as I unbuckled my seatbelt. All that fuss before the proposal submission about him not liking the ballet, about it not being his thing, about how I should ask Safiya to take me, and here we were. I didn’t wait for him to open the door for me, still to in shock to think straight as I stepped out of the car.

I stood there for a moment, just drinking it all in - the lights, the people, the excitement in the air  - only vaguely registering the sound of Arin’s car door closing behind me. The last ballet I had been to had felt like the grandest event in the world, but compared to this, it seemed almost insignificant. I had just turned nine, and had insisted to my parents that I didn’t want a birthday party. The only people who would’ve come anyway were my family and June, and at that point, why bother spending the money on a party? So instead, my mother had told me that my grandfather - her father - had said that he wanted to treat me and Lydia to a special weekend, in honor of my birthday. He had picked us up early from school, driving Lydia and I the four hours to the house my mother had grown up in, where my grandmother had had nice dresses waiting for the two of us. As soon as we had changed, we got back into the car, driving another hour east until we hit Raleigh, where my grandfather revealed that he and my parents had pooled their money for three tickets to the Carolina Ballet’s production of Giselle.

It was one of my favorite memories, even to this day. I hadn’t known that people were capable of combining that level of athleticism with artistic expression before that moment. According to my grandfather, I had been leaning so far forward in my seat the entire time, so enraptured by the story playing out before my eyes, that I had almost fallen out of my chair. I had been so upset by him saying that, that I had argued with him nearly the entire hour back to his house. In hindsight, I wished I hadn’t. It was one of the last times I had ever seen him.

I blinked again, realizing that Arin now stood by my side, his hand extended towards me. Interlocking my fingers with his, I looked up at him, feeling my smile soften into something more earnest than excited. “Thank you,” I said, pouring every ounce of sincerity I had within me into the words. “Really, this means so much to me.”

“It’s not a big deal,” he replied, shrugging. With that, he squeezed my hand, his grip neither vice-like nor bone crushing, but rather almost surprisingly gentle. His hand was warmer than I had expected too.

I smiled as he led us away from the car, towards the entrance of the performance hall. I simply could not get enough of it, all other thoughts completely erased from my mind. Worries, fears, cares - what were they again? Did they even exist? All I knew was my wide eyes, my grin that stretched from ear to ear, how excited I was to see the ballet, and how nice it felt to hold Arin’s hand.

Right, he was here too, even though this wasn’t his thing, according to him. He had elected to suck that up for me, though. Why? Had he been put up to it by somebody else, or, better yet, did he actually care enough about whatever we had between us to make an effort?

Something like that went both ways, right? By that logic, I should make an effort to make this experience as enjoyable as possible for him as well.

I tore my gaze away from the performance hall, looking up at him, where he walked to my right. “I’m almost finished with that book you recommended, by the way! It’s very interesting, actually.” It wasn’t much, but I figured it was something, a token of gratitude just large enough to be recognized for what it was.

“Really?” His surprise was evident in his tone, his eyebrows furrowed in questioning as he looked back down at me.

“Yeah,” I answered with a nod, feeling a faint blush begin to color my cheeks. “Once I started, I could hardly put it down. I accidentally stayed up until two in the morning last night reading it,” I admitted, laughing a little at myself. At least in saying that, I had also unintentionally created a half-true explanation for why I might seem so tired. I meant what I had said about the book. It was interesting, and I had stayed up later than intended to, lost in the content of its words. It hadn’t been my intention to read it purely out of interest, though. Had it been boring, like I had kind of thought it would be, it might have put me to sleep. Curse Arin for having good taste in books.

“It definitely wasn’t at all what I expected it to be,” I added after a moment, “but I think that just made it more interesting.” Especially since it was about a portion of history that we so rarely got to touch on in history classes. Most of the courses I had taken in both high school and college had glossed over everything after the 1970s, if we even made it that far in the curriculum by the end of the semester. All I had really known about the 2020s prior to reading his book had been World War III, riots over social injustice, and of course, the global pandemic that had occurred early in the decade. Even at that, I lacked knowledge of the context surrounding those situations.

“I’m really glad you liked it. It’s not for everyone.” He came to a stop as we reached the doors, smiling at me as he let go of my hand to hold the door.

“Thank you.” I walked through the entrance, trying not to lose track of the conversation at hand as I took in the architecture of the building itself. The whole entryway was alight with a golden glow from the chandelier hanging in the center of the room, the tint complimenting the gold accents on the carpets that covered the floor. Closer towards the main doors, at the other end of the room, were two marble staircases, sweeping dramatically upwards towards what I could only assume were private boxes that must’ve cost a fortune.

“Girls, take a seat on the stairs, quickly.” My grandfather let go of my hand, placing his hand on my back instead, gently nudging me towards the staircase. “I want to take a picture to send to your mother.”

I giggled, grabbing Lydia’s hand and swinging it back and forth as I more or less skipped towards the stairs, turning on the ball of my foot when I reached them, and gently plopping myself down on the third step from the floor. She laughed through her nose at my antics, taking a seat to my left with all the grace of the ballerinas we were about to watch. I leaned over towards Lydia, my head just in front of her shoulder, smiling as my grandfather readied his phone to take the picture.

I had turned out looking absolutely wild. My hair was frizzy, my smile had led me to squint so much that my eyes were almost shut, and to top it all off, I had been missing a tooth at the time. I wasn’t sure I had ever looked happier, though.

I looked over my shoulder at Arin, forcing my mind back into the present. “But, yes, it was very interesting. Especially since it wasn’t that long ago, when you really think about it. I mean, when you sent me the name of the title, I realized it was only six years before my own father was born, which blew my mind for a moment.”

With a few large steps, he caught back up with me, taking hold of my hand once again as the crowd pressed in around us, leading us towards the auditorium doors like a tidal wave. The contact settled something within me that I hadn’t even realized was stirring, like an anchor in a stormy sea. I marveled at it, peering down at his hand. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting. It wasn’t as if I would see it clothed in some magical glow, that would somehow explain how he had this effect on me. He was just a man, after all. A man with a fancy title, sure, but a man nonetheless.

I couldn’t be this head-over-heels already. That was enough to scare any man away. Hadn’t I been conflicted about this only minutes ago? I simply couldn’t feel that strongly for him.

“My grandfather remembered the war,” he admitted, his expression growing distant.

Oh, crap. The last time his family had come up in conversation had been our date, right as it started going downhill. Abort mission. Change the subject.

I shot him a sympathetic smile, making sure to keep my voice low as I spoke. “My grandfather refused to talk about it. Not that I can blame him, though, at all.” He fought in it actually. Maybe you’ve heard of him - Edvard Berg? No, now was not the time to open up that can of worms. I didn’t know many of the specifics of my grandfather’s life before he had moved to Swendway. My parents had always kept that information hush hush, under lock and key, and for good reason, I was sure. All I knew for sure was that he had been a naval engineer, and possibly even somewhat of an inventor, though the details on that were kind of unclear to me. That, and I knew that he had been the one to propose leaving Swendway to my grandmother and my father, twenty years after the third World War. I had hypothesized about why he had elected to leave, but I couldn’t confirm or deny any of my theories, given a lack of evidence and information from him and my father. One day, soon, maybe, I’d have to ask for more details.

Arin opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by the ushers announcing the final call for people to enter before they closed the doors. I was about to pull him forward, not realizing how close we had been to being late, but he began pulling me in the other direction, inclining his head towards the stairs. Of course his family would have a private box. I should’ve known that.

I looked upwards, using my hand to shield my eyes from the bright stage lights beaming down on us. There were people on the balconies upstairs. Why? They were so far from the stage! Could they even see the dancers from up there?

“Grandpa,” I began, tugging a little on the sleeve of his suit. “Who sits up there?”

He followed my gaze upwards for a moment before turning back to me, his expression grim as he answered, “Important people.”

I frowned. “But you’re important! You’re my grandpa!” I leaned to the left, nudging him with my shoulder. My words earned an appreciative chuckle from the couple behind us, but I didn’t find them funny at all. What made those people more important than the rest of us? We were all here, right now, for the same reason.

“Yet, I couldn’t even afford these tickets on my own,” he mumbled under his breath, looking down at the bulletin the usher had given us.

I was pretty sure I wasn’t supposed to have heard what he had said, but my frown only deepened anyways. “Why didn’t you and grandma become Threes when mother became a Three, when she married father?”

He made a sound then that sounded like something halfway between a cough and someone choking. Even Lydia leaned forwards in her seat, her brown eyes wide as they met mine. She shook her head. My grandfather, however just looked down at me, a small smile playing on his lips. “That’s just not how it works, Evvy.”

“Why not?” Surely, he’d be able to afford tickets to the ballet if he was a Three like mother and father, and me and my siblings.

“Hush now, the show is about to begin.”

I almost had to run to keep up with Arin, my smile growing nonetheless, even as we began to ascend the steps, my thighs protesting with each step. Starting my run earlier meant I’d end up running longer than usual, apparently. I’d stopped tracking my distance since being here, just running until my head was clear, and I felt more prepared to take on the day. This groggy morning, it had taken me until just after sunrise to get to that point.

Once we were up the stairs, Arin’s guard trailing a few feet behind us, he led me down a hallway, past numerous sets of closed double doors. For someone who didn’t like the ballet, it sure seemed like he knew where he was going, as if he’d done it a thousand times before. Maybe he had been given specific instructions beforehand, though.

He didn’t stop until the last set of doors, where an usher stood, alert, two programs in his hands. Arin entered first, grabbing one of the programs on his way in. I followed suit, thanking the usher quickly before turning my head forwards to size up the private box. The view wasn’t terrible, in fact, it was rather amazing, but it was a little more off to the side than I was used to. There were only two rows of chairs, all empty, but still just as close together as I remembered the ones in the main auditorium of the Carolina ballet being. The only thing I could see being an issue was the lighting, which was dimmer up here than it was downstairs. Even with glasses or contact lenses, I was as blind as a bat in poor lighting.

Arin kept his grip on my hand as he led us to two seats in the middle of the first row, the door softly closing shut behind us. I took my seat, realizing that the poor lighting up here might actually prove to be an advantage, because it was easier for me to focus on the well lit stage, where I could actually see what was happening.

I still couldn’t believe this was happening.

“Wow.” My voice was little more than a loud, breathless whisper as I turned to Arin, shaking my head and grinning like a bobcat. “The view is incredible!”

He squeezed my hand in response, but then let go, flipping through the pages of his program. The air conditioned air around my hand felt colder than it should have. It was as if my hand was frozen. I couldn’t move it off the armrest shared by our chairs.

He glanced over at me, now on the third page of his program. “Have you seen this one before?”

Right, the program. I somehow had to read that in this lighting. I picked up my own program, squinting as my eyes strained to make out the title on the cover. He must have thought I was illiterate, or something, having a hard time reading something typed in black, in a large font, on a white page. Seconds seemed to last an eternity as I finally made out the words. Don Quixote.

I shook my head, already feeling an ache starting behind my eyes. “No, I haven’t. I’ve heard of it, though - all good things!” Looking over at him, I smiled. In all honesty, it was probably the best ballet he could have been forced to see. I couldn’t imagine him making it all the way through something like Sleeping Beauty, or Romeo and Juliet. He’d probably fall asleep before intermission, and then I’d curse the rules against flash photography, wishing I could snap a picture and send it to Idalia with the message, “we’re even.”

He nodded, pointing to something written on the front cover in a smaller font than the title. “I think this choreographer is supposed to be good.”

I’d take his word for it. There was no way in hell I was going to waste five minutes of our time trying to read the name. “I can’t wait!” With a nod, I turned to him, feeling my smile soften as I took in the apprehension on his face. He looked like he was trying so hard to hide it, for my sake. “I think you might find this one rather tolerable, at least. It’s based off of the book Don Quixote - I’m sure you’ve at least heard it mentioned in a history or English course?”

I saw him nod before the lights dimmed further, obscuring my vision even more. “I’ve read it before. It wasn’t too bad, but not my favorite.” A pause, then, “But I’m sure it’s different in ballet form.”

“It’s abridged,” I confirmed with a nod of my own. The only thing I could see at this point was the stage, and the very edges of the orchestra seated in front of it. They all sat at the ready, their conductor just beginning to make his way to his stand. In another timeline, was this the kind of job my mother could have been doing? Was this the kind of job I could have been doing? I had never had a natural inclination towards creating music, but if it was one of the only career options I had had, I believed I likely would have put more effort into mastering it. Who would I even have been, in this world where biology wasn’t my passion? It was near impossible to imagine.

My lips tugged upwards into a smile as I recalled one detail about this ballet that a friend of my mother’s had shared with me once. “They kept the part where he fights the windmill, though.”

I felt him lean in closer then, wrapping my hand in his once more. I resisted the urge to let out a sigh at that. I needed to get a grip.

“How could you cut that part?” He whispered.

I turned towards him briefly, nodding as I grinned into the darkness around me. “It’s inarguably the best part.”

The first notes of the introduction began to sweep through the air then, and a hush fell over the crowd below us as the strings slowly began their initial crescendo. I let my focus be taken over by the music and the dancers beginning to make their appearance on the stage, each move they made carefully calculated and executed, and yet somehow, still effortless. It didn’t take much for me to get wrapped up in the story. Much like Arin, it seemed, I hadn’t cared much for the book version of Don Quixote. The ballet, however, had snared my attention like it was nothing, especially as the dancer playing the role of Kitri came on stage. If only I could ever possess that level of grace and talent. I understood she had definitely dedicated a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to become this skilled at her craft, but there was no denying that some people were born with an innate predisposition for some skills - such as athletics, music, or academics.

Time flew after that, and before I knew it, the lights began coming back up, signalling the start of intermission. It felt like being woken up from a good dream, the kind that you wished you could pick right back up from where you left off the instant you fell back asleep. I blinked, my eyes taking a second to readjust to actually being able to see more than just one set point. The first thing I noticed was the flurry of activity below us, people scurrying about like ants on an anthill, rushing in and out to fetch refreshments for their friends and family. The second thing I noticed, as I looked over to my side, was Arin, glancing over right back at me. I couldn’t help but wonder how much time he had actually spend watching the ballet, and how much he had spent looking at me, while I couldn’t see him. The thought made my heart speed up a bit, and my face grow a little hot.

I shifted in my chair, in order to face him more fully, grinning from ear to ear. “I cannot thank you enough for this.”

“You like it?” He squeezed my hand, the sensation grounding me back in reality further.

I squeezed his back, my smile growing wider, if that was even possible. “I love it.”

The corners of his own lips tugged upwards then, a small smile of his own flitting into existence. “Well, I’m glad. It should be enjoyed.”

“Yes,” I began, squeezing his hand yet again. What else could I even say? He likely didn’t want to be regaled with my thoughts on Basilio’s treatment of Kitri, or the foolishness of Don Quixote’s actions. He’d probably already heard as much from whatever teacher he’d had to read the book for. “I agree.”

He looked forward then, peering over the railing of the balcony at the crowds down below.

The lights coming back on awoke me from my stupor. I rubbed the last of my tears out of my eyes, hoping that my grandfather hadn’t seen me begin to cry when Giselle had died. She had deserved so much better! She had finally found her true love, her soulmate, only for her heart to give out right then and there? How could that be right?

People began to stand up from their seats, pressing against each other in the aisles on either side of the row we sat in. My grandfather began to do the same, turning around to face Lydia and I as he stood. “I’m going to get some water. Do you girls want anything?”

“Peanut M&Ms?” Lydia asked, smiling widely and clasping her hands together a few inches below her chin.

Grandfather sighed. “So long as you don’t make a mess of your dress. Your mother and your grandmother would both kill me.” He shook his head, and then fixed his eyes on me. “Ev?”

“I’m good,” I answered with a shake of my head. “Thank you.”

“Alright.” He began to scoot his way down the aisle, grinning down at us as he passed by. “I’d better hurry. I don’t want to miss the second act, now do I?”

“Well, they’re all in a hurry, aren’t they?”

I bit my lip, glancing over the edge of the balcony as well, a small close lipped smile forming at the memory of my grandfather’s words. “I guess they don’t want to miss the second act.”

“I’d be in a hurry too, I guess,” Arin replied, his tone insincere as he raised his eyebrows.

He was really trying so hard to pretend to not be bored to death by all of this, that it was almost sad. Glancing back at him now, I sighed. This had been a real treat, for sure, but I had no intention of torturing Arin, especially since he had already been on so many dates he hadn’t wanted to go on. Yes, both those and this had been in part by his own doing, but one of us had to be willing to meet the other halfway.

“Look, Arin,” I started, shooting him a sympathetic smile, “I cannot stress enough how great this has been, and how much you doing this has meant to me, but I really don’t want to be the one to force you to sit through the second act if you don't want to.” We both knew full well he didn’t want to. I had to laugh. “It’s really okay.”

To my surprise, he shook his head. “No, really, it’s fine. You’re enjoying yourself, and it wouldn’t be fair to leave.”

Well, I gave him an out. It’s not my fault he didn’t take it.

My smile grew slightly, and I squeezed his hand, my voice little more than a whisper to my own ears as I said, “Thank you.”

Once again, he dropped my hand, looking away as he stood up and began to stretch. First his arms, then his legs, finishing with his back, before turning around and taking a seat on the floor, facing me, his back against the wall of the balcony.

I chuckled a little at that. What would the people of Illea say if they saw their crown prince sitting on the floor when there were perfectly good chairs available for him? Not that I could blame him. I was often guilty of sitting on the floors of hallways in my school, outside of my classrooms, reading my notes in an attempt to cram that last bit of information into my brain before taking an exam.

“How’s the view down there?” I leaned forwards, bracing my elbows on my knees, interlocking my fingers. If only he was holding my hand instead. Am I that touch starved?

He raised his eyebrows, his eyes locking onto mine. “Stunning. How’s the view from up there.”

Stunning.

I almost kissed him again, right then and there.

Instead, I smiled, feeling my blush deepen at my own thoughts. “Pretty incredible.” What was I, twelve? Was I going to ask him if he like-liked me next?

He dropped my eye contact the, sighing as he glanced down at his watch. I was beginning to get the sense that this was the most enjoyable part of the night to him. With a sigh, he announced, “We have thirteen more minutes.”

I raised an eyebrow at him, unable to get a read on how he felt about that. “And is there something in particular you’d like to do with those thirteen minutes?”

He simply shrugged, tilting his head back to look at the ceiling.

Oh, no. We were not doing this. Not now, in the few minutes where we would actually be able to talk, in the few minutes he might actually look back upon fondly. Rolling my eyes, I pushed myself out of my chair, sliding down the balcony wall until I was seated on the floor next to him, smoothing out my skirts once I was still. Upon finishing that, I followed his gaze upwards towards the ceiling tiles. There was nothing particularly interesting about them, that I could discern, at least. They were just your average, everyday ceiling tiles, sometimes spaced out to make space for larger stage lights. Was he trying to blind himself by looking into the lights before the second act? I’d have to give him points for creativity, if that was the case.

“Well, hello there.”

I looked over, finding him looking right back at me, his eyes wide with surprise. I had startled him again, so it would seem. “Right back at you,” I replied, chuckling as I playfully nudged him with my shoulder. The gesture wasn’t rough at all - really, he probably shouldn’t have even felt more than a light tap.

“What is it with you guys and hitting me?”

Who’s been hitting him? Isn’t that against the rules.

He mustn’t mean on purpose then, or rather, not with the intent to cause harm or damage. I was beginning to get the idea of what he meant. Laughing lightly, I raised an eyebrow at him. “I take it Idalia’s gotten to you, then?”

He chuckled. Bingo. “She has.”

I loved being right.

Laughing along, I shook my head, glancing at Arin out of the corner of my eyes as I thought over the last conversation I had had with Idalia. “Classic Idalia. She hit me with her pillow at least three times the last time we spoke.”

“And just think -” he shook his head “- she knows how to use swords.”

I chuckled, fairly certain that actual fencers didn’t refer to them as “swords,” but rather as “weapons,” but I didn’t have the heart to correct him. Besides, who knew - maybe Idalia did know how to use real swords! I wouldn’t put it past her. “I’m glad she and I generally get along very well, for that reason.” You might want to be a little scared, though, Arin. Our opinions on you differ greatly, it seems.

The thought crossed my mind then, of the possibility of the two of them fighting. Not just bickering, or arguing, but seriously feuding, to the point where they asked other people to take sides before sorting their own issues with each other out. Whose side would I take in that scenario? My past actions, in insisting that we prank Arin after he had been such a dick to Idalia on their date, suggested that the likely answer was Idalia, but our last conversation had left me rather uncertain. She had almost made me cry. To be fair, I was sure she hadn’t intended for that to happen, and I truly believed she was just trying to look out for me, and yet, as horrible as Arin had been on that first date, I had never come close to crying.

That likely said more about me than it did about either of them, though.

Arin nodded. “She’s something.”

“That seems to be your descriptor of choice,” I pointed out, chucking as I turned my head to look at him. I would admit, I had perused his social media a bit every now and again, and almost invariably, whenever someone asked him his thoughts on a topic or a person, his answer would be that it was something.

Apparently, this was news to him. “Does it?” He asked, raising his eyebrows at me.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “I don’t think we’ve made it through  conversation without you describing something or someone as, ‘something,’ or without me apologizing. We should start a penny jar, or something like that, to keep a tally.”

“Really?” He asked, frowning.

Oh, no, is he upset? That hadn’t been my intention at all. God, why did this always happen? I had stopped walking on eggshells for one moment, and here we were.

It was kind of exhausting.

Or maybe that was just the sleep deprivation talking.

“I mean,” I began, my smile faltering, despite my efforts to keep myself together, “the penny jar part was a joke.”

“I got that,” he stated with a nod.

“Okay,” I began, clearing my throat as I tried in vain to figure out what he hadn’t understood, “but, yeah, my point still stands. I genuinely am not certain we’ve made it through a conversation without one or both of those things being said.”

“Well, maybe it’s just the way I talk.”

It was more likely that it had simply been the way he was taught to talk, but I felt like that was a conversation best saved for another time. He already appeared to feel so attacked by this surface-level discussion of the subject. Nice going, Evalin.

My face had completely fallen by this point, a frown replacing what had previously been a wide smile. “There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s just something I’ve noticed, I guess.”

“Something,” he repeated, a flicker of a smile on his face and a hint of amusement in his voice.

Lord, help me. I truly understood why his mother was so fond of wine, now.

“That word sure is something,” I repeated back with a small laugh.

“What else would you like me to say then?”

“I don’t know.” I pursed my lips, considering it, but ultimately, I just ended up shrugging. “I guess sometimes it’d be nice to hear more of your thoughts and opinions on things.”

My conversation with Idalia came back to mind. Was I just another, “something,” to him? I wouldn’t be surprised if I was. He had started out with thirty-five girls, and had narrowed it down to fourteen, but I knew that wasn’t entirely of his own doing. He must have been given advice on who to eliminate, and who to keep, and why. There was no other way to justify the mass elimination that had occurred after the brief thirty-minute interview we had had with him early on in the Selection.

“Well,” he began, raising his eyebrows, “in my opinion, this has been my favorite part of the night so far.”

Just as I had suspected. Still, I wasn’t necessarily disappointed by that fact. If anything, the thought of me being the highlight of his night made my heart beat a little faster. Raising my eyebrows, I cast my gaze downwards, interlocking my fingers with his one again. Almost instantly, something within me clicked into place yet again, as if this was so inexplicably right. Gently, I gave his hand a squeeze, whispering, “I’m glad.”

“It’s really not so bad,” he assured me, squeezing my hand in return. I swore my heart fluttered. Why was I like this?

I laughed a little at what he said, knowing it was a blatant lie, and unable to stop myself from presenting him with a way out yet again. “I respect how hard you’re trying to get through this for me, but my offer still stands -” I leaned over a bit, peering down at his watch “- though this may be your last chance to get out of here before the second act.”

“Maybe I don’t actually want to leave,” he replied, shrugging. “There’s this girl in the audience that has the most adorable reactions to ballet.”

Stunning, adorable - I hope he knows I’m keeping a list.

“Oh really?” I smirked at him, raising both of my eyebrows this time. “You’ll have to point her out.”

He tilted his head a little to the side, a small smile making its home on his face. “She’s wearing blue, and she’s hard to miss.”

I couldn’t resist. “And why’s that?”

He raised his eyebrows at me now. “Because I've never seen anyone look that happy while watching someone fight windmills.”

I leaned back, looking up as I laughed. He had been watching me throughout the ballet, then, and I was quite literally too blind to even notice. I was surprised he had even noticed that the fight with the windmills had even occurred. Maybe he had only known about that scene because I had mentioned it earlier, though. As much as I wished it didn’t, that option made a good deal of sense.

I turned to face him again, intent on just carrying on the conversation. “She sounds like quite the girl.”

“She’s not too bad,” he replied with a small shrug.

I leaned a little closer to him, raising an eyebrow. “I would sure hope she’s not.”

“I don’t think she is.” His smile grew a fraction of an inch, but I’d take it. It was still better than a frown, or a scowl.

“I’m glad to hear it,” I replied, my own smile growing in response to his, “Sure would be a shame if you spent that much time focusing on her, otherwise.”

“And why’s that?” He asked, raising his eyebrows yet again.

I leaned in a little closer, chuckling lightly. “Well, you wouldn’t want her to get the wrong idea.”

“Well,” he began, his smile growing a bit more. At this right, he might have a full smile by the time we left here tonight. What a success that would be! “I try to avoid spending time with people I dislike, so I doubt I'd have taken her to the ballet if I didn't like her.”

The floodgates of my mind burst open then, my conversation with Idalia a few weeks ago hitting me at full force. Hey, at least that means he must like you. Apparently, he did. You could always ask him. I hadn’t had to, it seemed. I’d literally teased the fact that he maybe, sort of liked me out of him. Do you think he cares about you? Yes, I was almost sure of it, now.

I exhaled, my smile only growing more as the breath left my lungs. “Thank you.”

“It’s only a few hours. I will live.” He just shook his head, but I thought nothing of it. Just as I wasn’t a mind reader, neither was he. There was no way for him to know what that one little sentence he had just said, probably without even thinking about it, meant to me.

“Yeah, I know, but still.” I sighed a little, leaning my head on his shoulder, staring ahead at nothing in particular. I didn’t even care if the second act started while we sat here, if I was being entirely honest. Just sitting, touching, like this, felt good. Right. I wanted to capture this moment, and freeze it in time, like a scene in a snowglobe.

He rested his own head against mine. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, now,” I answered, shaking my head as much as I could without disturbing his. “Sorry, I was just thinking about a conversation I had last week, but it’s irrelevant now.” The questions that had plagued me now had answers, and ones that I liked, at that.

“Conversation?”

“It was nothing, really,” I reassured him, giving his hand another squeeze. “It’s unimportant, now. I mean it.”

“Are you sure?” His voice was softer when he spoke this time, his concern genuine, and more than simply laced in with his words.

Do you think he cares about you? Yes, I could honestly say I did.

“Yes.” I moved a little closer to him, readjusting my head slightly so that it fit a tad more comfortably on his shoulder. “What you said earlier resolved it.”

“Okay.” He didn’t sound confident, but he didn’t press me further, which I was fine with. I didn’t need my own uncertainty to spoil this moment, especially not with the newfound clarity it had brought me. He liked me - enough to want to spend time with me, even.

It was a pretty low bar, but it was still better than the worst case scenario my mind had come up with over the past few days.

I sighed, squeezing his hand in what I hoped he would understand was a gesture of reassurance, and then dragged my gaze to the chairs that loomed in front of us. “We’re going to have to stand up soon, aren’t we?”

“We don't have to. I'm pretty content down here, honestly.”

“I will admit, I am pretty comfortable right now.” Not just down here, but with us - this starting point. I might not have had the political knowledge of Reggie, or the legal skills of Jen, or the confidence of Clemence, but I was still the one here, snuggled up with him, on the floor of the Angeles Ballet’s theater. I’d made it this far. I stood a chance of making it further.

He chuckled. “Somehow the floor is more comfortable than those chairs.”

“Agreed,” I said, laughing along. Those chairs had felt so spacious when I was a child, but now, I was of the opinion that they were not made with people over the height of five foot six in mind.

A small noise of contentment issued from him, the sound standing out against the noise wafting up from the general auditorium below, where I assumed people were making their way back to their seats, completely unaware of our existence at all. I kind of liked it that way. There was a sense of normalcy to it, that was a luxury we didn’t have much of nowadays. You knew what you signed up for.

I did know, I realized as I shifted my head slightly, hoping the motion didn’t disturb him too much. “This has really been the nicest evening I’ve had in a long while.”

“Really?” Was that teasing I detected in his voice? “I thought that time we went roller skating was nice.”

“I do remember the part where you fell rather fondly,” I admitted, laughing quietly.

He let out a loud groan at that. “Thanks for the reminder.”

I had to laugh. I couldn’t help it. That moment would be something I’d never let him live down, even if we didn’t end up together at the end of the Selection. “Anytime!”

“I'm glad I made an impression.” I couldn’t see his reaction from our current position, but I was willing to bet that he had rolled his eyes.

That’s one way to put it. I exhaled heavily through my nose, the noise that ensued somewhere between a snort and a laugh. “Don’t worry, I’m sure my nosebleed made quite the impression on you.”

He lifted his head then, looking down at me as he shook it. “No, actually I'd totally forgotten about that.”

How? I lifted my own head now, narrowing my eyes at him as I moved it off of his shoulder. “Well, that’s nice to hear,” I admitted, averting my gaze to our hands. “I was honestly mortified about that.” I hated how soft my voice had gotten towards the end of my sentence.

“Why?” His look now mirrored my own - eyes narrowed, brows furrowed. “It's not like you had any control over it.”

“I know that, but -” I sighed. Would there ever come a day when verbalizing my thoughts or emotions wouldn’t prove to be such a challenge? “- it’s not exactly like it was an ideal scenario, and the date itself had already been so rocky, and just combined with what had happened that morning, it was just not how I had wanted the day to end, I suppose.”

You know he doesn’t love you, right?

I was tired of letting Lukas’s phone call from that morning loom over my interactions, like the spectre of a friend long forgotten, and yet, I couldn’t figure out how to stop thinking about it. It was as if his voice was trapped in my head, and I wanted to let it out, but I wasn’t strong enough to undo any of the locks on the windows of my mind. I had blocked his number. I had determined I didn’t care about him. So why was I letting his words get to me, weeks after I’d hung up the phone on him?

“But it was still out of your control,” Arin insisted. “Don't focus on it too much. We just saw a man fight windmills and you're worried about something that happened a couple months ago.”

If only he knew.

I kept my gaze on our hands, unsure of how to proceed. I had a few options here. I could come clean with him, entirely, and stop the secrets between us, at least on my side. That might make communication clearer, easier. Alternatively, I could continue to ignore what was bothering me, until I couldn’t ignore it any longer. I was approaching that breaking point, but I wasn’t quite there yet. I could hold out a little longer.

I blinked once, my decision made. Turning my head to look up towards him, I forced a smile on to my face. “I suppose you’re right. Too bad there no windmills around here, huh?”

The frown that formed on his face told me that I must have been an even worse actor than he thought he was. “Evalin, what's wrong?”

“Sorry.” I shook my head. It appeared that there was only one way this conversation was going to go, after all. Still, maybe I could mitigate the damage. We didn’t have enough time to dissect my life’s problems, nor did I want to burden Arin with them. He had enough going on on his own, without me potentially adding to it.

I’d keep it vague, then. “There’s just a lot going on back in Carolina with the professor I used to work for, and my family, and classes, and I’ve been trying not to think about it, but I think it’s all starting to catch up with me now.”

“You know you can take a break, right?” He leaned a bit closer, a note of genuine concern in his voice.

Why is my heart fluttering again?

I looked up at him, my brows furrowed. “How?”

“Well, it's summer, right?”

“Yes, but that doesn’t really change the situation,” I argued, shaking my head.

“Summer break?” He furrowed his brows in confusion, looking at me like I had grown a second head.

Yes, Arin, believe it or not, I know what summer break is.

I just continued shaking my head, looking up at him and taking a shaky breath as I attempted to keep my smile in place. I had to keep myself together. I would not fall apart in front of him. I would not unravel next to him on the floor of the Angeles Ballet. “The situation is a bit more complicated than just summer break. I’d explain it, but it’s a long story, and I don’t want to make you sit through that on top of this.” I punctuated my sentence with a gesture over the top of my head, towards the stage below us.

“Alright.” He pursed his lips, nodding once and then glancing away. “Sorry.”

My words must have come out all wrong. This wasn’t what I had intended to happen. That’s why you have to be honest with him, and tell him the whole truth. Yet, I couldn’t bring myself to. The list of people I was willing to be that open with was short, and consistently decreasing in size. Idalia or Clemence, maybe, but the jury was still out there. Sometimes, I felt more burdened when I finished talking to them than I did before I spoke with them. Lydia, of course! We had shared a room for almost our entire lives. It was impossible to hide anything from her. June, because she was the most loyal person I knew, and I had complete faith that she would guard my secrets until the day she died. Yet, I hadn’t told her about Proctor, or Lukas, for that matter. I realized then that I also hadn’t told Lydia. That meant the only people who knew about Proctor and Lukas were my father, and Proctor and Lukas themselves - and even then, I hadn’t told my father all of the details.

My list had dwindled down to zero.

“No, don’t apologize. It’s not your fault!” I squeezed his hand lightly before pursing my lips. Maybe telling him something - even if it was vague, or only a part of the story - would help. “I can explain after the second act, if you want. It’d be a tad hypocritical of me to ask you to be more open, without being more open myself.”

“Alright,” he replied, nodding as he glanced down at his watch. “I guess it's probably going to start again soon.”

I leaned over, squinting at his watch in a futile attempt to make out the time. No luck. Between the glare of the lights, and the small size of the numerals on his watch, I really had never had a chance of seeing the time for myself. I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, though. “That would make sense, I think.”

As if on cue, a little chime rang out through the speaker system, signalling for everyone to return to their seats, “Perfect timing, I guess,” Arin noted.

“Impeccable, really.” I began to scoot away from him, bracing my hands on the ground in preparation to stand back up. If I ever had access to a time machine, I was going to go back in time and have a chat with whoever had come up with the idea of high heels. They were inarguably the most impractical form of shoe I had encountered in my almost twenty-one years of life.

We settled back into our seats, the lights dimming once again as the company retook the stage for the second act. I let the production take me away once again, losing myself in the high pitched runs of the flute, and the complex turns and leaps of the dancers. By the time the second act was over, and the company was taking their final bows, all I knew outside of the stage itself was that I was smiling, and I was clapping.

Right, and Arin was still seated next to me. How had I almost forgotten that? I turned lo look at him then, offering him a small grin. “You survived.”

“Barely,” he retorted, rolling his eyes.

Smartass. I chuckled. “I hope the reactions of that girl in blue you mentioned earlier were as nice as you expected them to be.”

“Oh,” he began, a small smile playing on his lips, “they were very entertaining.”

So he had been watching me again, then. I liked that, but I wasn’t about to tell him that. Instead, I simply smiled, taking his hand in mine and squeezing it as I thought back to our earlier conversation. I had agreed to open up to him - and I would hold up my end of the bargain - but was I just supposed to start speaking now? Would it be better to just wait until we were outside?

As I was debating what to do, he squeezed my hand in return, yawning. “Dinner?”

Those four seconds were filled with the most stereotypical “man things,” - the yawn, the thinking only of food - I had ever witnessed in one sitting. I didn’t know what else to do but laugh, and reply, “Sounds good!” In the thrill of coming here, I had forgotten all about the fact that we had missed dinner. I’d have to brace myself to be lectured by Reggie once again in the morning, over breakfast. Assuming I didn’t miss breakfast to run, again.

“Alright, then.” He stood up, practically dragging me with him, as we were still hand in hand. Still, I found I was kind of grateful for the help up. Sitting in the same position for so long had left my legs kind of cramped.

I rubbed my skirt with my free hands in an effort to smooth out any wrinkles before looking up at him again, and asking, “What were you thinking for dinner?”

“Honestly?” He chuckled. “I thought I'd just ask you want you felt like having.”

I hummed thoughtfully, biting the inside of my cheek as I thought about it. He wasn’t going to let my own indecisiveness slide, then. That was probably for the better, though. I needed to start stepping up, speaking up, and making decisions for myself. “I’m not super familiar with what’s around here, obviously, but I do like seafood.” I shrugged, offering him a smile before adding, “Really, though, I’m good with anything.”

“Seafood it is, then,” he decided with a nod, leading me out into the hallway, through the throngs of people attempting to do the same thing we were.

“Sounds good,” I replied, more focused on not losing my grip on him as the crowd swelled around us, than anything else. I knew I would be able to find the car, if need be, but it would just be easier if we stuck together. He must have had the same idea, because he held on to my hand firmly, even as he weaved in and out of the maze of people, practically just dragging me along for the ride.

As soon as the cool, night air of the outdoors his us, I exhaled, smiling in relief as I took in the open space before me. We continued walking towards the car, still hand in hand. A childish part of me was tempted to start swinging our hands back and forth, but I refrained, getting the sense he wouldn’t enjoy that very much.

I looked up at Arin. “I suppose it’s time for me to hold up my end of the bargain, then, and continue the conversation from intermission?”

“Only if you feel comfortable,” he answered, giving my hand a squeeze as he met my gaze.

A different memory came to the forefront of my mind as we continued making our way down the steps.

“I -” I cut myself off, shaking my head. I could feel how flaming red my face and the tips of my ears were, despite the cool winter wind nipping at my exposed skin. “I’m too embarrassed by it.”

Lukas narrowed his eyes, the creases in his forehead deepening. “I deserve to know,” he pointed out, “friends don’t keep secrets from each other.”

Even then, something about his phrasing had ticked me off, but I hadn’t been able to put my finger on just what it was. I had never pressed him for details about his home life, his family, or really anything, if I was being honest. When I asked, I took what he gave me, never requesting more when he paused, or glossed over something. He had never afforded me the same kindness, though. Every detail that was mine was his, because friends weren’t supposed to keep secrets from each other. I had considered it a good thing at the time - he was bringing me out of my shell, ensuring I had someone to confide in, but now, I wasn’t as sure of how pure his intentions had been. Had he had the same conversations with June? I was doubtful.

In contrast, here was Arin, offering me an out. There was no way I could take it, though. He hadn’t took the out I had offered him, and I would be a complete hypocrite if I didn’t open up to him, as I hoped he might one day open up to me. That didn’t mean I had to spill everything right off the bat, though. I’d start small, just to test out the waters.

“It’s only fair,” I pointed out, giving him a small, close-lipped smile, “and it’s really not that big of a deal. There’s just this in-person lab component to one of my classes, which the professor has been super helpful about trying to find a way around. She suggested that maybe I could get the work I had done during my internship to count for the lab credit, but the issue is -” I paused, sighing, not having even really dealt with the issue yet, but already tired of dealing with it “- the professor I used to work under and I had a falling out back at the end of the spring, and she’s still really not happy with me because of it, so she told the professor of the class that I’m taking that I could count the work I did for my internship for credit, but she’d have to have my name redacted in all of the publications that I’m mentioned in.”

God, I sounded so whiny. There were so many people - even here, in Angeles, at the palace - that had been through so much more taxing situations, and overcame them with grace. I shook my head, disappointed in myself, now that I had voiced my thoughts aloud. “I really shouldn’t complain. It could be so much worse. It’s just that that includes the experiment that I came up with, which would essentially mean that I get no credit for my own idea, which kind of sucks.”

“You can't get the credit and keep your name on the papers?” His brows were furrowed, his eyes narrowed at me as we continued making out way down the steps.

Trust me, I feel as confused as you look. “Apparently not,” I replied, frowning and looking down briefly as I shook my head. “I’ve never heard of that happening to anybody before, but her email claims it’s department policy.”

“Well, did you check with someone higher than her?” He led me to the passenger side of the car before letting go of my hand, opening and holding the door for me.

I might have been surprised if I wasn’t so annoyed over my own situation. I shook my head, offering him a small smile as I slid into the car, as if that would make up for him having to listen to me complain about an issue that really, probably meant nothing to him. “She’s one of the heads of the department, the other head being my father, and we try to avoid dragging each other into things like this, in order to minimize the amount of times the word, ‘nepotism,’ is thrown around.”

“Can you go higher than them both? Not use your father at all?” He asked before closing the door and walking around to the diver’s side of the car. At the same time he got in, his guard got in the back seat, the two of them shutting their doors in somewhat eerie synchronization.

I furrowed my brows at the suggestion, turning it over in my mind as we buckled our seatbelts. Who even was higher than the head of the department? “I hadn’t considered that. I’m not sure who would be higher than them, to be honest.”

“What about the dean?” he suggested, starting the car.

Oh. Duh. I frowned. Even the dean couldn’t tell the heads of each department what they were allowed to do with their publications outside of the university itself, if I understood the universarial political structure correctly, but Arin might be on to something. “I think the dean might be able to clarify the policy, so if it is something that the professor I worked under made up on the spot, that could work.” Looking over at him then, I added, “Logically, though, I know that either way, it’s not the end of the world. It’s just frustrating, I guess.”

He was silent for a moment, staring ahead at the bushes that lined the parking lot, before offering up his two cents on the matter. “It’s up to you, but wouldn’t you feel better if you didn’t have to worry about it, though? And you could move on?”

I paused, looking down at my hands as I processed what he had just said. Was he trying to see the problem from my perspective - something he had been so adverse to doing when we had talked about understanding other cultures as a method of improving international relations during our first date? That was a big step in the right direction. Plus, he did have a point. I guess he can read me a lot easier than I can read him.

“Yes. I’ll see about emailing the dean tomorrow morning,” I answered finally, turning back to look at him then. “Thank you.”

“No thanks needed,” he replied with a shrug, looking at me once more. “So, what are you in the mood for?”

I frowned. Hadn’t we just been over this, inside? Either, he wanted to know if I had somehow remembered the name of a specific seafood restaurant, or he had a really terrible memory. “Well, what’s good around here? You’d know better than me!”

“Well, what do you feel like having. I can base my choice off that.” He raised his eyebrows at me expectantly. So, he had a pisspoor memory, then. Noted.

“Well,” I began, raising an eyebrow at him, pausing for a moment to give him a chance to remember that we had already had this conversation. I smiled at him as well, but he didn’t seem to even understand that I found this mildly amusing. “I mentioned seafood earlier.”

He nodded, taking the car out of park and looking out the back as he began to pull out of the spot. “Seafood it is then.”

“Perfect.” I gave him a nod and a smile, before turning back to the window. If his memory really was that bad, I couldn’t blame him for taking a long time to remember the names of any of the Selected girls. Still, if he knew he had a poor memory, he should have known that he’d have to devote a little extra time to memorizing our names, to begin with. Then again, with his schedule, extra time was likely a luxury he did not have.

It wasn’t worth losing more sleep over. I turned back to Arin, a new topic of conversation already in mind. “Do you get to come into the city often?”

He waited until he had pulled the car onto the road to answer. “Not too much. I've been a few times, recently, but not as much as I'd like.”

I nodded. Once again, that made a good deal of sense, with what his workload appeared to be. “It seems nice. A lot bigger than I’m used to, though, for sure!” Knoxville truly wasn’t even comparable to Angeles. The two places were as different as night and day, though each had their own unique charms, from what I had seen.

“Is that good or bad?” He asked, looking at me out of the corner of his eye.

I gazed off into the distance at the buildings rising up before us, and then to the shoreline beyond, so distant it was hardly even visible. Angeles felt like a never ending sprawl of buildings to me. Someone could so easily get lost, mixed in with the crowd, anonymous to anyone except those who were looking. Yet, it was also a city where many big names had been able to make connections and rise to fame. There was a little something for everybody.

“Good,” I decided, “I think.”

He barked out a laugh at that, the sound almost making me jump. “You should write the travel brochures. ‘Visit Angeles- Good, I think.’”

“To be fair, I’ve only been two places in this city,” I pointed out, even as I laughed along. “‘Highlights include - roller skating and ballet.’”

“Let me guess, your tag line for the roller rink is ‘It’s a great place to fall on your ass.’?” He cut me a glance for all of a second, still leaving me tempted to remind him to keep his eyes on the road.

Still, I had to laugh at that. Although, no travel brochure I had ever seen would be so crass. “How about, ‘great place to settle disputes - in various languages!’”

“Well, there you go. You’ve got a promising career!”

“Good to know I’ve got a backup plan,” I retorted, rolling my eyes. Lord only knows I’ll probably need one, if this doesn’t work out.

“I wish I had one of those,” he admitted with a wry laugh. “This’ll either pan out or it’ll be like 18th century France.”

My laugh came more from a place of surprise than anything else. He must be nervous about how capable of a king he was going to be. This was likely the closest I was ever going to get to him admitting something about himself, at least, until we got to know each other better. It was a roundabout method of learning more about him, sure, but it’d have to do for now.

So, I was going to laugh away his admission with a joke. “Never too late to run away, I suppose. Though you’d need to plan it out well. You might need a lookout.”

He only sighed at that. “Even if I got out my sister would track me down. She’d never let me get away with it.”

I hummed thoughtfully, nodding. Presumably, he was referring to Safiya, whose medical career would undoubtedly be ruined before it even started if she was forced to become the heir or the queen. I could only imagine what lengths she would be willing to go to to prevent that from happening. “She is certainly capable of doing that.”

I narrowed my eyes, side-eyeing him as I attempted to come up with another approach. “What if it was like eighteenth century France, but instead of you actually dying, you just faked your death, and then ran away?”

“I'm pretty sure the Bourbons tried that- it didn't work out well,” he states, “and Guillotines only stopped being used less than one hundred and fifty years ago so I'm not sure I like my chances.”

Ah, of course, the Bourbons. How could I have forgotten about them, after the conversation Arin and I had had over two glasses of the alcohol that shared their name. “Fair,” I relented, laughing lightly as I looked at him. “I guess you’ll just have to ensure that nobody start rioting in the streets about bread, then.”

“Or I can just cut back on the cake,” he joked, chuckling. “Which, for the record - I know she never said that.”

Damn, I had been so ready to point that out. Nonetheless, I grinned, shaking my head a little in mock disappointment. “One if history’s biggest myths - right up there with Napoleon being short. Why do all of the fun tall tales come from France?”

“It’s probably because of all the wine they drink,” he stated with a pointed look in my direction.

Did I have a reputation as a wine connoisseur? I chuckled, knowing that if anyone thought that, they couldn’t be further from the truth. “Good thing there are better alcoholic beverages out there, then.”

He inhaled sharply. “Don’t let my mom hear you say that.”

I debated informing him that I had gotten along with his mother just fine when I had bumped into her in the kitchen a few nights ago, but I decided against it. Somehow, I didn’t imagine he’d be too fond of the idea of Jen and I accidentally having a brief wine night with his mother. “My lips are sealed,” I promised, chuckling lightly as I leaned back in my seat, “and it’s not like I dislike wine. I just like other things more.”

“Oh? Like what exactly?” Thankfully, he kept his eyes on the road. Good, I’d like to make it to dinner in one piece, please and thank you.

“I don’t think you’d believe me if I told you,” I admitted with a laugh.

He glanced over at me for just a second. “Hit me with it.”

Smirking a little, I met his gaze out of the corner of my eyes. No matter who I told this to, they always seemed so surprised, as if I was the last person they expected to be able to handle shots. “My drink of choice has always been tequila, no chaser.”

Arin was no different. He turned to face me fully then, tearing his now wide eyes off the road. “Seriously?”

I tossed my head back laughing as I took in the expression on his face. I really couldn’t fathom why this news was so shocking to so many of the people here. Even Clemence had seemed rather surprised that I preferred tequila to wine, when we had last talked in her room. Considering the context of where I was coming from, though, my drink of choice made sense. At least, I thought it did. “Well, I am a college student, in a big school, in a part of the country notorious for very active fraternities and tailgates.”

“Should I be worried about Wylan’s party?” He asked with a slightly nervous laugh.

Getting my earlier fit of laughter under control, I turned back to him, smiling and shaking my head. “I can handle myself, don’t worry.” Though, Wylan’s party did raise a whole new slough of questions. Was he going to seek me out there - even with other girls present? That seemed unlikely, but it was a nice thought. More importantly, did his question mean that there would be shots of tequila available at Wylan’s party? If that was the case, things could get very interesting, even without me there.

We pulled into a parking lot that was about half full then. It wasn’t difficult for Arin to find a spot. After putting the car in park, he hopped out, coming around to my side to open the door for me. “Thank you,” I said, looping my arm through the one he offered, letting him lead me towards the restaurant. A part of me still wasn’t entirely sure what to make of this new Arin, who actually minded his manners, and opened the door for me, but I certainly wasn’t about to complain or question it. He held the door for me again when we reached the entrance of the restaurant, letting me walk through as I smiled and nodded in acknowledgement of the gesture. Now, this is what I had been expecting when I had signed up for the Selection, and in the fantasies I had dreamed up as a child.

I didn’t linger on the realization long, as happy as it was. Instead, I took in my surroundings yet again, trying to get a feel for what I was in for. I turned around as Arin followed me in, offering him a smile as I asked, “I’m assuming you’ve been here before?”

He nodded. “Yeah, I have. Don’t worry.” With that, he turned to the maitre d’, stating, “We’d like a table for two, please, and then a table for one.”

As the maitre d’ searched through his podium for something, I glanced at Arin sideways. “Why would I worry?” Did he think my nerves came from dealing with the unfamiliar? This is why you need to open up to him.

Maybe I would.

Later.

He shrugged. “Some people needlessly worry.”

My name was definitely implied in there, somewhere.

I laughed a bit, the sound tinny to my ears. “What would there even be to worry about, in this case?”

“I'm not sure. Maybe it was just a bad turn of phrase.”

I frowned, still looking at him out of the corner of my eye, right as the maitre d’ reappeared, ushering us towards out table. Upon getting there, Arin pulled out my chair, waiting until I was seated to walk around the table to his own chair. To my left, a large glass window gave us a perfect view of the beach, the ocean waves gently lapping against the shore as the sun set in the distance, basking the world in a golden glow.

With a little sigh, I turned back to the table, folding my napkin in my lap and opening my menu. Arin was already two steps ahead of me, his eyes scanning the menu with careful consideration. Seafood had been a staple in my house, but nothing nearly as fancy as what I saw on this menu. Maybe I should’ve been more specific in my description of “seafood.”

“Is there anything in particular you recommend?”

He glance up at me, setting his menu down on the table. “What do you usually like?”

“Salmon is usually my go-to.” My father cooked it almost every sunday for dinner, at home. It was the only thing my mother would allow him to cook in our kitchen, since, according to her, it was the only dish he could cook better than her. Plus, she got a break from cooking, as an added bonus, though she’d never admit that she saw it as such.

“Do you like pasta?” He tilted his head to the side, keeping his eyes on me, but not quite staring. Not yet, at least.

“I’ve only had it a few times,” I answered, “but I remember liking it well enough.”

“A few times?” He frowned. “Pasta? That’s what we’re talking about, right?”

“Yes,” I confirmed, laughing a little nervously. “My parents weren’t big pasta chefs, I’m afraid, and we rarely ate out, because getting five young kids to sit still at a dinner table was no easy task for them.”

He nodded slowly, though all it took was one look for me to know that the fact that pasta wasn’t a staple in my household baffled him. “Well, then I recommend the salmon ravioli.”

I tilted my head to the side, having never have heard those two particular foods being combined before. “That sounds good,” I offered, along with a smile. “I’ll keep that in mind, along with my apparent pasta ineptitude.”

“You're right, it does. I think I'll have that too.” With that, he closed his menu, setting it on the edge of the table. “Anything to drink?”

I raised an eyebrow. “Are we about to test my wine tolerance?”

“We can if you want.”

“As long as it's not a red,” I replied with an amused laugh. Maybe I should make it my goal to drink wine with all of the Schreaves before this all was over. Out of the ones currently in the palace, the only one I was missing was Safiya. The idea was intriguing.

He let out a low chuckle, and then replied, “You can get whatever drink you like.”

“Sauvignon Blanc, then,” I decided after quickly scanning the list of white wines.

He nodded. “Sure, if you'd like. I think I'll have something else though.”

Had he thought I was deciding for the both of us? My eyes went wide, and I shook my head quickly. “No, of course.”

I turned to my left, watching the sunset out the window. Change the subject. Change the subject, Change the subject.

“Random question,” I began, turning back to face him once again, “but what led you to find the book you recommended me?”

“Oh, it was just something I read some years back. I think it’s important to have an understanding of what made Illéa the way it is and to have multiple opinions on controversial subjects,” he answered nonchalantly.

I nodded, biting the inside of my cheek as I mulled his answer over. “It’s an interesting read, for sure, and has definitely answered a lot of the questions I had. I think it’s just left me a tad frustrated, though.” I shook my head before continuing. “I mean, I know this was a time that my grandparents were alive, but my parents always instructed my siblings and I never to talk about it, but now, especially, I would love to hear what they have to say about it.”

“They may not have wanted to share with you for their own reasons. The war isn't remembered fondly.”

No shit, Sherlock.

“No, I know, and my grandfather was a naval engineer, so…” I trailed off, looking back down at my hands, in my lap, not sure of where I had even been going with that sentence.

Luckily for me, the waiter came back over at that moment, asking us if we were ready to order. After placing our orders, the rest of the night went smoothly. Once the food came, Arin was too distracted to chat, and by the time we had gotten in the car on the way home, it was a struggle for me just to stay awake. I practically collapsed into my bed when we finally got back to the palace, pausing only to change into pajamas and take off my makeup.

I slept soundly, for the first time in a long while.

#selectionoc

[nastybuckybarnes]

A Broken Fairytale  -  Four

Pairing: Prince!Bucky x Reader AU

Summary: Sold by your mother, you work as a servant for the King and Queen of Acadia. The Prince, much to his initial dismay, takes a liking to you. When a wicked woman intervenes, your life is nothing more than a prison sentence. With a war on the horizon and a betrothal to a missing Princess that he can’t escape, Bucky is forced to be the Prince -and King- that his father wants. A pawn in a bigger game than the two of you realize.

Warnings: Angst, Language (Maybe), Fluff (Squint for it)

Word Count: 5K

A/N: Now we’re getting somewhere. Plz enjoy dis

SERIES MASTERLIST MASTERLIST UNEDITED CAUSE IM A SILLY GOOSE

~*~

“Rumour has it you’re going to the ball tomorrow night in a new fancy dress, as Prince Steve’s personal guest.” You find yourself smiling as you polish the marble floors. May stands a few feet away, cleaning the large stained-glass windows.

“He insisted. Taught me to dance too.” She laughs softly. “Mary showed me the gown. It's beautiful. I can hardly wait to see what it looks like on you.” You giggle, “she hasn’t let me allowed me near it. I can only imagine what it looks like. I’ve been dreaming about it for days.” You sigh wistfully. “You didn’t hear it from me, but Prince Steve has gotten you some jewelry and lip rouge as well. Oh, you’ll so beautiful. I just hope you and Wanda don’t get too comfortable out there with all those dukes and duchesses and princesses and princes.”

You turn to her with a soft smile, “never.”

~

“Goodness, Steven. Your skills are... incredible. Truly. This is really just... utterly exquisite,” Queen Winifred whispers. Steve chuckles nervously and scratches the nape of his neck. “Well... I’ve recently found some inspiration.” He flips to the first sketch of you and his aunt and mother both gasp.

“That’s... (Y/n). The new one. Such a beauty,” Sara whispers while admiring the detailed sketch. Steve’s managed to catch every perfection. “She’ll be my guest tomorrow night. After all the hardships she’s been forced to endure in her life, a night of the finer things is the least I can offer her. She deserves it.”

Sara smiles at her son, “do you fancy her?” He chuckles and shakes his head. “No mother. Although she’s beautiful and smart with a kind heart and a good spirit, I fancy a different dame.”

Queen Winifred laughs gently while Sara ponders something.

“What is it, mother?” She looks up then sighs. “It’s foolish, but... the princess of Corona was taken as a baby nearly nineteen years ago. (Y/n), who is quite possibly from Corona, is almost nineteen. She was adopted as an infant by a wicked and cruel woman who might even be the type to kidnap a child in order to get her way. Perhaps?” Steve’s eyes widen at his mother’s suggestion.

“You think... you think (Y/n) is the lost Princess of Corona?” Queen Winifred thinks about this for a moment. “It is a possibility, but why then would Lady Griffon willingly give her to us? That seems counter-productive. If her goal is to stop the marriage.”

“Well, she sold (Y/n) as a servant girl, giving the impression that she isn’t who she truly is?” Sara purses her lips at her son's suggestion then nods. “I don’t think we should rule out her being the lost princess. Her locket is made out of silver which is quite common amongst the wealthy and royal in Corona. And it seems to be enchanted, which isn’t uncommon in our neighbouring kingdom,” Steve says.

“I want you to find out every little thing you can about her. And this shall stay between the three of us. No one else is to hear a breath about our theories. If (Y/n) is indeed the Princess, then I fear she may be in danger even here,” the Queen says sternly.

As the other two are nodding the door to Steve’s study gets pushed open.

“There you are, Steve. Mother, Aunt Sara.” Bucky bows quickly to the two women.

“My, what have we here?” The young prince looks at the sketch, his eyebrows raising. “This is (Y/n), correct?” Steve nods. “Your skills have certainly improved, punk,” Bucky teases while looking at the other drawings of you. “You fancy her, don’t you?” Steve simply rolls his eyes. “She provided inspiration. Innocence and beauty all encompassed in one.” Bucky nods, deep in thought.8

“Well, I suppose we’ll take our leave now,” Winifred says before walking out of the room with Sara right behind her.

“These are actually magnificent, Steve. Unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. Would... can...” He groans as his cousin laughs at his flustered state.

“What? Would you like one? Or two perhaps? Maybe the entire sketchbook? I thought appreciating her beauty would do no one any good or whatever stupid excuse you spewed.” Bucky punches his shoulder.

“Quit being a punk. I just want one.” Steve smirks but carefully pulls out one of the finer sketches of you and hands it to his cousin. “It’s all yours. Do with it what you’d like, just don’t tell me what you’re doing.” Bucky punches him again and Steve snickers to himself.

The brunet holds the paper with a gentle hand, admiring the way you look in the picture. Beauty and innocence, just as Steve said.

~

“Okay... almost finished... just one last finishing flower...” Mary trails off and you twiddle your thumbs nervously as Wanda continues covering your eyes while Mary pulls on the gown clinging to your figure. “Okay, I’m gonna put your mask on and a tad bit of lip rouge. Then you’ll be ready.” You fight a smile as Wanda lifts her hands, only for a smooth cool fabric to take their place.

“Oh, you look like an Angel right out of heaven! Now, a teeny tiny bit of lip rouge, not too much because we don’t want to take away from the entire ensemble. Pucker your lips a tad, darling.” You do as she asks and jump slightly as you feel something waxy on your lips.

“Alright dear. You can look now.” You snap your eyes open and spin around in your new flats.

Your jaw drops as you see yourself in the mirror.

The gown is incredible. With a dark blue-grey chest, a navy blue bow cinching your waist and making you look curvier. The skirt is made of a lovely pink fabric, covered in a navy chiffon-type fabric. It has small fabric flowers and gems decorating it, but not too many. The mask is the same pink as the gown, however, it has gold trim and some embellishments in the same colour, as well as a little bow and some lace.

You look... stunning. Like royalty.

“Wow. You look beautiful.” You look to the voice and smile. “Thank you, Pietro. You look quite handsome.” He chuckles then walks to his sister, who looks absolutely gorgeous in a floor-length, figure-hugging red velvet dress. Her mask matches her dress and her hair is flowing down her back.

“Steve asked me to escort you to the ball. He’ll meet you there for a dance.” You smile lightly. “So you’ll be escorting not one beautiful woman but two to the Queen's masquerade ball? Will you dance with us both?” Wanda teases. Her outfit matches her brothers and you can’t help but smile at that.

“I do plan on dancing with both of you at some point tonight, however, I think Steve craves the first dance with you, (Y/n).” You smile timidly and Wanda giggles, “does he fancy her, do you think?” You shake your head furiously, “Steve and I are just friends. Nothing more.” Wanda smirks deviously at you.

“You don’t fancy Steve... what about Prince James? Do you fancy him? You have been looking at him quite often ever since he ran into in the library. When the two of you talked for quite some time.” You shake your head again, “I hardly know him, Wanda. How could I possibly fancy someone I know nothing about?” She shrugs, a sly smile still plastered on her face.

“Then why are you fiddling so much? And why do you always fiddle when he comes up in conversation?” She motions to where your fingers are playing with a bead on your dress. “You like his royal stiffness? Pain-in-the-ass Prince James? Bitchy Bucky?” You glare at the twins. “No. I don’t. And even if I did, it wouldn’t be your concern and it wouldn’t matter anyway. He's royalty, and I’m not.” Pietro gingerly links his arm through yours.

“You could be a Princess. There’s something... regal and royal about you. You should be wearing a crown, not scrubbing the floors.” You smile gently up at him. “I should be here with Wanda and May. If I were born royal then I might not have met you or any of my friends. I like who I am.” He smiles and presses a kiss to your cheek.

“Now, we should be going. I can hear music and laughter already,” Wanda says while taking her brother’s other arm. Pietro escorts the two of you to the ball, smiling as he meets up with Sam, Nat, and Clint.

“I see you’ve already taken (Y/n) for yourself,” Sam says, looking you up and down. “You look like royalty. You’ll make visiting Princesses jealous.” You laugh softly, “thank you, Sam.” He smiles and offers you his arm.

After a glance to Pietro, an eye roll and a nod given, you let go of his arm and take Sam’s.

“Steve’ll be arriving shortly, along with Bucky, the King, the Queen, and Lady Sara,” Sam informs as you reach the ballroom doors. You nod, your jaw almost dropping as you enter the ballroom.

It’s filled with people -men and women- dressed to the nines in clothes that cost more than you’ll make in your entire lifetime.

“Incredible, isn’t it?” Nat asks while coming up beside you in a light green dress with a mask to match. “It’s... intimidating if I’m being honest.” Natasha rests a hand on your shoulder.

“You look like you belong here. Even if you feel like you don’t, you look like you do, so act like it. No one will know anything that’s true or not.” You smile at her words and take a big breath in. Squaring your shoulders you raise your head and walk with Sam into the room.

The people you pass stop their conversations and stare at you as Sam leads you to the centre of the room right across from a large staircase.

Conversations hardly have time to grow before a horn sounds loudly, gathering everyone’s attention.

“May I present Lady Sara, Her Majesty Queen Winifred, and his Majesty King George.” The royal family walks down the stairs as graceful as swans with their chins held up high and smiles on their faces.

“Wow. (Y/n) you look... incredible.” You smile shyly up at the man speaking, having recognized his voice. “Thank you, your highness.” Sam snickers while Steve rolls his eyes.

“Now, I must steal you from Sam. May I?” Sam places your hand in Steves and you find yourself giggling as Steve walks you deeper into the room.

“Mary absolutely outdid herself,” Steve says while admiring your gown and mask. “She did. You look rather dashing yourself.” His cheeks flush and he looks down while chuckling.

He’s wearing a well-tailored grey suit and a matching mask. The suit hugs his body perfectly and the mask brings out the vibrant blue in his eyes. And of course, there’s a lovely silver crown sitting atop his blond hair.

He smiles at you then takes a small half-step away from you as the band starts playing again.

“(Y/n), may I be the first of many men to ask tonight, if I may have the honour of this dance?” You beam up at him.”Of course, Steve.” He takes your hand in his and places his other hand on your waist. You bring your free hand up to his shoulder and start dancing with him.

People around you mumble and whisper. as Steve dances you around the floor.

“They’re wondering who you are. They know who I am, but no one knows the Princess I’m dancing with,” he whispers, the cool fabric of his mask brushing against your cheek. You look down, away from the curious and envious eyes of the upper-class men and women.

“They’re making me quite nervous,” you reply softly, grinning as he chuckles.

“Well, I doubt any of them know who you are. So what they think doesn’t matter anyway.” You nod, trying to let his words ease your nerves.

The song comes to a close and Steve sighs.

“Excuse me,” a smooth voice says, “but may I?”

You look up at the man and smile awkwardly as he takes Steve’s place. A new song starts and you dance with him, feeling exceptionally nervous.

“I don’t think I’ve ever met you,” he says after a moment, his brown eyes warm and filled with wonder. “You haven’t. This is the first ball I’ve ever attended.”  He spins you then nods. “You’re stunning. Have you any suitors? Husbands?” You shake your head no. “None at all.” He smiles, “what a shame for them. I’d like-” a hand is on his shoulder, stopping him from dancing with you.

“May I cut in?” That voice makes butterflies swarm in your stomach. “Of course, your highness.” The man disappears and Prince James takes his place, one of his hands fitting perfectly in yours while the other rests comfortably on the curve of your waist.

He starts leading you in a dance, keeping your body close to his.

“You look ravishing,” he whispers, his thumb rubbing on your hip. “Why thank you, your majesty.” He smiles, his hand slowly moving around your waist.

“Do you have a name?” You grin as you realize he doesn’t know who you are, a wave of confidence washing over you.

“I do have a name.” He chuckles and pulls you closer to his warm body. “May I be so bold as to ask what it is?” You pull your bottom lip between your teeth, trying - and failing- to contain your smile. “Maybe. But do you deserve to know?” You’re honestly not sure where this much confidence comes from, but you’re liking it more than you want to admit.

“I think I do. But let’s say, for argument's sake, that I don’t deserve to know. What could I do to change that?” You slowly look up, your eyes lingering on his pink lips before moving up to his stormy orbs.

“I suppose I’ll have to think about that,” you whisper. His eyes flash down to your lips and you can’t help but lick them/ His fingers flex on your waist and you smile, watching as his eyes meet yours again. “Please do.”

The two of you dance in silence for a few minutes before he chuckles. “What?” You ask, smiling slightly, “do I amuse you?” He shakes his head and sighs heavily.

“You’ve bewitched me. Your voice... your beauty... like nothing I’ve ever experienced in all of my years. Have you and suitors?”

You swear your jaw drops.

“Forgive me, Prince James, but are you not betrothed? To the Princess of Corona?” He shakes his head and looks deep into your eyes. “I do not wish to marry someone who I know nothing about.” You find yourself giggling softly.

“And what do you know about me?” He looks down, seemingly shy. “I know that you’re like no woman I’ve ever met before. I know that I know nothing about you when I’d really just like to know everything. I know that not a day will pass where I don’t think of you. You’ll be in my every dream ‘till the day I die.”

You can’t seem to find any words.

“I’ll ask my father and yours if I can court you. If you’d give me the opportunity, of course.” You’re shocked, to put it lightly. “I-I can’t. You’re betrothed. I couldn’t interfere with that. I’m sorry, Prince James, but I cannot.”

You break away from him and hurry out of the ballroom, desperate to breathe. You remove your mask and lean against the wall, trying desperately to catch your breath.

“You weren’t sold to go to balls and celebrations as a guest,” an all-too-familiar voice says. You straighten up and look at the woman.

“Step-mother,” you begin, “I was invited. By Prince Steve-” a slap to the face cuts you off and you gasp, tears pricking your eyes. “You won’t speak of the Princes! You are filth!” She raises her hand to strike you again and you squeeze your eyes shut, waiting for the pain.

When it never comes, you open your eyes.

Steve’s holding your step-mothers wrist and another woman is rushing over to your side, giving little thought to her expensive gown as she slides down to the floor beside you.

“Guards!” Steve calls, “escort Lady Griffon and her daughters out of here. Don’t make a scene about it either.” You watch as the woman who raised you gets escorted out of the palace that has recently become your home.

“Are you alright, child?” The woman beside you asks, her voice gentle and soft. “Yes, I-I believe I am. Thank you.” She smiles and lightly places her hand on your shoulder. “(Y/n) I’m so sorry,” Steve says. You wave off his apology and take a deep breath, trying to calm down.

“Queen Valerie, thank you for letting me know. (Y/n), this is Queen Valerie of Corona. Queen Valerie, this is (Y/n). A very close friend of mine.” You look at the woman beside you and scramble to your feet, only to bow before her. “Y-your Highness.” She shakes her head and stands up, “no need for that. You’re sure you’re alright?” You nod your head yes then clear your throat.

“I... I’m going to retire to my chambers. Thank you for inviting me, Steve. Queen Valerie, I hope you enjoy the rest of the night.” They nod and watch as you hurry up a flight of stairs.

“Where’s she from?” Queen Valerie asks while Steve’s escorting her back to the ballroom.

“We’re not sure. She was adopted by Lady Griffon as a baby. She has a locket that seems to be enchanted from Corona so we do believe she may be from there. How she ended up here, I know not. Perhaps you have an idea?” The Queen on his arm clutches her necklace tightly.

“I mustn’t let myself hope,” she whispers softly, letting go of Steve’s arm and heading back to find her husband, leaving the young prince confused out of his wits.

~

“Mother, Father, I need your help!” Bucky exclaims, walking to where his parents are seated. “What is it, my son?” Winifred asks concern lacing her voice.

“A dame, beautiful as a sunrise. I want to court her. She’s...” He trails off while looking around, trying to find you.

“My son, you know you are to be marred. There’s no way you could court her. What is her name?” Bucky stares at the door where he saw you last.

“I don’t know. But mother, her voice was that of an angel. Her eyes sparkled brighter than diamonds. Her smile... I have no words to describe her beauty.”

Winifred sighs and takes her sons hand. “If everything fails with Corona, then you may court the girl. Is she a Duchess? Or perhaps a Princess?” Bucky sighs and shrugs his shoulders.

“She was dancing with the Duke of Winchester,” King George chimes in, looking around the room.

“I’ll ask him!” Bucky practically runs through the crowd.

“You shouldn't give him hope, George. He’s betrothed. You know he’s meant to marry the Princess of Corona,” Winifred scolds. “Let the boy have his fun. He knows his responsibilities. And if we go to war with Corona, he’ll have this Duchess or Princess or whoever she is. You’ll get a grandchild or two and James will get a strong heir to the throne.” The Queen sighs at her husband and watches as her son talks to the Duke.

“I found her dancing with Prince Steve. A beautiful one, she is. I plan to court her, as soon as I figure out who her father is.” Bucky clenches his hands into fists and smiles tightly at the Duke before setting off to find his cousin.

“Steve! Who were you dancing with?” The blond looks up, slightly startled. “Who?” Bucky groans at his cousin’s response. “She was wearing pink. Her eyes, they’re beautiful and (e/c). She was... a dream.”

Steve raises his eyebrows and chuckles. “You mean (Y/n)?” Bucky freezes, his eyes wide and his mouth agape. “(Y/)? Like... servant girl (Y/n)?” Steve nods slowly and Bucky curses. “Why? Is something wrong?” Bucky pulls Steve into the hallway and looks around to make sure they’re alone, then he rips his mask off and tosses it aside.

“She’s. stunning. Beautiful and witty. I asked if I could court her. But she’s not of noble blood. Fuck. What do I do?” Steve pats his cousin's shoulder.

“Talk to her. You don’t need to formally court her. Does your mother know that you fancy her?” He asks. “Yes, but she reminded me of my betrothal when I spoke of her.” Steve snickers despite his cousin’s glare.

“Winifred knew that was (Y/n). I had her help me design the dress.” Bucky chuckles at this, his anger momentarily forgotten. “Of course she did. She enjoys seeing me in pain.” Steve sighs and looks towards the staircase where you disappeared to. “Lady Griffon was here. She got mad and struck (Y/n). I had the vile woman escorted out and (Y/n) went to her chambers. You should go check on her.” Bucky looks at his cousin as if he’d grown a second head.

“Lady Griffon Struck (Y/n)?” Steve nods, “go see if she’s alright.” I’ll cover for you.” Bucky nods before he can think too hard about it. His feet bring him through the Palace and up the stairs until he’s outside of your room.

He knocks twice then slowly pushes the door open, looking around the room for you. Humming from the bathroom gets his attention and he realizes you must be bathing.

Just as he’s about to turn and leave, you walk out of the bathroom. Bucky’s frozen, staring at you and you’re frozen, staring at him.

You're wrapped in a thin towel, water dripping down your skin and pooling at your feet.

“Your Highness. W-what are you doing in here?” He doesn’t answer, too busy staring at your body. You shift nervously and his eyes snap up to yours. “Why didn’t you tell me it was you?”

You swallow hard and hold the towel tighter around your body.

“I… I didn’t want to ruin the fantasy.”

He walks towards you and you back up, gasping as your back hits the wall.

“You’re a fantasy? A dream? No, you’re much more than that.” He cages you against the wall between his strong arms and stares in your eyes.

“W-what do you mean? What do you want from me?” He closes his eyes for a moment before cracking a half-smile. “I told you,” he whispers, “I want to court you.” You cast your eyes down, shaking your head at him.

“I met Queen Valerie. You’re betrothed to her daughter. I don’t want to interfere,” you breathe.

He carefully lifts your chin, forcing you to meet his gaze.

“Tell me you feel nothing. Tell me you don’t want me the way I want you. Tell me that honestly and I’ll leave you be.” You shake your head and close your eyes tightly.

“I’d be lying.”

Those three words are all it takes for his control to shatter.

His hands grip your waist through the towel, holding you tightly as he presses his chest against yours. You pull in a shaky breath, your palms hesitantly resting on his shoulders.

“May I touch you?” You nod breathlessly, gasping as he tugs the towel down a tad. His right-hand cups your cheek while his left ventures beneath the towel, finding your damp skin.

“Someone could come in,” you whisper, head tilting back and eyes staying closed as his lips ghost over your neck.

“Let them,” he murmurs, gently nipping your neck as his left-hand curls around your back under your towel.

You shiver, arching up into him at the foreign feeling of his warm skin on your own. “James.” Your voice is a soft whisper and the Prince grins, his right hand leaving your cheek to pull your towel down a bit more.

“I want you, (Y/n).” You whimper softly, your fingers raking through his soft brown hair. “You’re all I want. Screw my betrothal.” The mention of his betrothal brings you back to reality and you push him off of you.

“This… this isn’t right,” you whisper while pulling the towel tighter around your body.

“Yes. This is right. This is so so right.” He leans down and kisses your lips almost roughly.

“James. James stop,” you mumble against his lips.

He doesn’t stop.

“Stop! Get off of me!” You exclaim, shoving him off of you as hard as you can.

“(Y/n) I-“ “Get out. Get out!”

He looks shocked and reaches out for you.

“Get out now.”

You move under his arm and across the room, eyes staying focused on the Prince.

“(Y/n) please. Just let me-“ “No! You’re to be married and I’m of poor blood! Please, just leave.” Your hands start to tremble as anxiety floods your body.

The Prince turns and leaves without another word, his heart aching and his stomach churning.

~

TAGS:

FOREVER:

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#bucky x reader #bucky barnes x reader #prince bucky x reader #reader x bucky #bucky x reader royal au #bucky x reader au #reader inserts #buck reader inserts #marvel fanfic

[madamsixx]

Beyond The Leather Chapter 28: I Want To Be Your Boyfriend

I was out shopping for gifts to buy for Tommy and Heather's wedding. I didn't know what would be a good gift. I mean I always thought to myself what do you buy someone who already has everything? I looked around in a jewelry shop and settled on a his and her watch.

I haven't spoken to Lisa since we had our falling out. I really missed her and our friendship. Maybe later on I will call her. I called Slash today because I wanted to talk to him about Nikki. He said he will pick me up with Duff. Nikki's call last night really got to me. I wasn't able to sleep at all and I feel like such a crappy person for how I treated him. But in my defense I'm just trying to keep my distance from the drugs. But as Lisa pointed out every body is doing. Slash is doing it and I'm meeting up with him today.

I walked outside the store and saw Duff pull up on the side. "Hey Mani your right on time." He says looking at his watch. I got up and ran into the car. The smell of wet socks and weed hit my nose right away.

"Jesus this car stinks." I say as I'm getting in and plugging my nose. "Whine down the windows."

"Well princess Iman you can always walk to our place." Slash laughs sarcastically. "So what did you get Tommy and his wife?"

"I just got his and her watches. I couldn't think of anything else." I shrugged.

"So what's on your mind doll?" Slash asks.

"Well last night Nikki called me and he sounded really paranoid. He said there were intruders in his home hiding in his closet, his washing machine, and even under his bed." I said with a worried voice.

The boys looked at each other and started laughing. "Iman look theres nothing to worry about he'll be fine." Slash laughed.

"No Slash theres nothing to laugh about. I was really scared for him. I mean he called me for a reason. And ok in London when he nearly overdosed he ask Andy McCoy from Hanoi Rocks to bring him to my hotel room."

"Oh did he now." Duff smiled." So what else did you guys do in your hotel room?" They both started laughing again.

"Saul." I grumbled. "Ok ok geez Mani when did you become such a prude." He groaned. "Look Sixx likes you and clearly he trusts you if he's running to you every time he has a problem. And to be honest what's there not to like about you. Your a good person when your not following what your manager is telling you to do."

"What's that suppose to mean?" I hissed.

"It means you need to live a little. You need to break out of the shell she's keeping you in. And your mommy dearest isn't here so you don't need to report to her like your a soldier and she's your commander." Duff buds in.

"Um who told you about me and my moms relationship?" I questioned Duff.

It goes silent in the car.

Slash takes a cigarette out of his pocket and lights it up. "The point is." He laughs hesitantly. "You need to live. Were going out tonight and your coming."

"Ok but I'm only staying-"

"Iman shut the fuck up! Your staying out till what ever time we tell you too!" Slash yelled.

We finally pull up to a complex it was really small. We got out of the car and walked into there home. Again I was hit with the smell of weed, booze, and sweat. Izzy was passed out on the couch and Steven was snorting up coke off of the table.

"Oh shit Mani what the fuck?" He looked at me shocked. "No one told me you were coming. I would have cleaned up." He looked at the boys.

"Hey Steven." I walked over and hugged him.

The place was filthy there were dirty dishes piled up in the sink, half eaten food was scattered on the table, the walls were peeling, and there were clothes everywhere. How could any one live like this.

"So wheres Axl?" I asked. "He's in his room. He's a bit pissed for some reason so don't bother him." Steven warns.

"Ok." I look down at the so called chair that they had in there living room. I didn't want to be rude but at the same time I did. I cringed when I saw a roach run into the inside of the cushion.

"Sit." Duff got up and pushed me onto the couch making me squeal and get up fast in fear that the roach got on me.

"What... what happened." Izzy woke up in panic. The boys started laughing and I was aggravated.

"Say while your here we need a womans touch. Can you clean up the kitchen and cook something for us." Slash asked kicking his feet up on the table while smoking another cigarette.

"Seriously." I laugh humorously. "I came for advice and your asking me to clean up and cook for you?" I crossed my arms.

"The advice you got in the car." Duff spoke up. "So you have to repay us back by at least cleaning the kitchen and cooking something for us." Duff walked over to the fridge and grabbed a beer.

I groaned and walked over to the kitchen. I opened the fridge and noticed there were no groceries in there for me to even cook anything.

"It would help if you guys had groceries." I pointed out.

"Go buy some we'll still be here. Plus were going out tonight. So when we pick you up, bring the groceries with you." Slash laughed.

I scoffed and started heading for the door.

"Uh doll." Duff spoke up. I turned to look at him. "The kitchen isn't finished being cleaned. Even princesses have to do dirty work." He laughed.

Ugh ass holes. I walked back to the kitchen and started cleaning it up for them. Don't ask me why?

Later on at night...

I started getting ready for the night I was going to have out with Guns. I was hoping that Lisa would be there too seeing as there was something going on between her and Axl. And well also I didn't want to be the only girl tagging along.

I put on a silver short dress and put my hair up in a pony tail. I wore matching silver stelletoes and put a small black jacket over my shoulders to finish up my look. Slash said we were going to the Rainbow. At first I was hesitant because Tamara had told me never to go back there again. And here I was getting ready to go there again. I called the office were Tamara was and told her that I would be out with Lisa. She expected me home by 11. I don't know if Slash would approve but theres nothing I can do.

I grabbed my little wrist purse and the groceries bags I promised to buy and headed downstairs. I waited in the lobby until I heard a knock on the door. I saw Slash waving for me to come out. I headed over to him.

"Here are your groceries." I said with a sarcastic voice holding the bags up.

"Thanks doll I'll put those in the trunk." Steven got out of the car and took the groceries from me and put them in the trunk. I got into the car and we took off.

"That's is not an outfit for the Rainbow Iman." Slash chuckled.

"Well that's too bad." I hiss. This dress was made more for a modeling event. But im choosing to wear it at the Rainbow.

"You are certainly going to get picked up by a fellow at the Rainbow." Izzy piped up putting his arms around my shoulder.

"I am not talking to any guys there and I hope they don't talk to me." I warn.

We got to the Rainbow and the boys were already a mess. They got drunk, did drugs, were loud, and grabbing girls left and right. But im not here to judge. But places like this were not my scene. And being here with out any girlfriends or friends was awkward. Especially because I don't drink alcohol or snort drugs. So I just sat randomly at the bar looking at people drunk or high.

"What's a pretty little thing like you doing in a raunchy place like this?"

I turned around to see a guy or could be a girl with wild long hair and plump lips looking at me. "I...I'm sorry what?" I stuttered.

"You don't belong in a place this." He leaned closer to me smiling.

"What ever." I scoffed drinking my cranberry juice and turning away from him.

He chuckled and got up to walk in front of me. "I meant that with no disrespect. I just mean if I was a guy taking you out I would take you to the most extravagant restaurant there is around here." He smiled looking me up and down.

"I'm not into fancy restaurants. And I'm here with my friends. Guns n Roses." I rolled my eyes.

"Oh shit really? I love those guys." He flipped his hair. "I watched them play a couple times down at the Troubadour."

"Are you a rock star?" I asked with raised brows.

"Not yet but I'm gonna be. And when I do become one and I'm making shit loads of cash. I'm going to take you out on a date." He spoke softly.

I scoffed, "I don't think so." I say with attitude and turn away from him again.

He chuckled and walked closer to me. "I think so. I'm a gentleman and ladies such as your self deserve gentleman's." He signaled for the bartender to come to us.

"I don't have a lot but how much is her drink?" He asked the bartender.

"No you don't have to!" I wave my hands.

"$5.75." The bartender spoke. He placed the money down on the table and the bartender took it.

"I could have payed for it myself." I looked at him with annoyance.

"I said I was a gentleman." He smiled.

He's actually really cute.

"My names Sebastian... Sebastian Bach." He smiled.

"Iman Darlington." I smiled back.

"God I hope I see you again." He took my hand and gave me a sweet kiss on the back of it.

I felt like I had butterflies in my stomach. He walked out of the Rainbow with his long hair blowing in the wind. Lord help me.

2:34 am

The boys dropped me back home and I couldn't wait to take off my heels and get undressed. I tip toed to Tamara's room and noticed she wasn't home. I was startled when I heard the phone ring. I walked back to the living room to answer it.

"Hello!"

"You were suppose to be back at the condo for 11!" She snapped.

I sighed. "I'm sorry I went out with Lisa and ended up seeing Slash. We came back late."

"Iman can't you make better friends. I mean really. Use your break to hang out with Rachel. Hopefully some of her stuck up attitude can rub on you." "Anyways I wont be back till tomorrow morning around 10. I can call Jess if you want her to-"

"No I'm good I don't need a babysitter Tammi."

"Ok alright honey call me if anything. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Ok good night." I hung the phone up walking away to my room when I heard it ring again.

"Tammi I said I was ok." I raised my voice.

"Mani."

I paused for a second hearing Nikki's voice. I was hoping he wasn't a paranoid mess today again.

"N...Nikki are you alright?"

"Can you please come over?" His voice sounded shakey.

"To your home? I asked.

"Yes."

"Nikki it's late I can't"

"I need you. Please!" He cried.

"Give me your adress?" ____

The car drove up to the front gate of the house. I couldn't see the house properly because all the lights were off and it was night time. I whined the window down in the back seat and pressed the buzzer.

"Who is it?" What do you want?" He sounded paranoid.

"It's me Nikki. Its Mani." I replied hesitantly.

The gates than opened and we drove in. I told my driver to wait for me because I wasn't going to be long. I got out of the car and headed up his stone steps. I knocked on the door several times but there was no answer. I twisted the door knob and to my pleasure the door was unlocked. I let my self in and the house was dark except for a little light that was beaming through one room.

I walked around the house. It was a single level home and I noticed there three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The house was interior decorated with red velvet hangings, gothic furniture, antiques and gargoyles that loom at you out of the darkness. It was creepy being in here.

I walked towards the light that was coming out of one of the rooms. I slowly opened the door and saw Nikki. He was holding his pillow sobbing listening to his answering machine. I walked closer to him and listened to the machine play two messages.

BEEP

Frankie this is your mom. I know that your busy being a big star and all. I'd just really like to talk to you sometime call me back.

BEEP

You must have gotten the selfish gene from your father. This is selfish what your doing. I just... I just miss you frankie. Talk to me please. Dammit frankie.

End of Messages

It was his mom, my heart was aching for him. I walked to the answer machine and deleted both of the messges.

"Don't listen to a single thing that she says Nikki. It's not worth it she's not worth it. She's not worth crying over." I calmly spoke.

I moved and sat down beside him and started brushing his hair with my fingertips. I felt guilty for the way I treated him when I was in Italy. I could tell now that he was a very hurt an lonely person. I didn't want to just leave him here by himself.

"Why the fuck did you come?" He sneered.

"Because you asked me too Nikki." I snapped back at him.

He scoffed. "So now all of a sudden you care about me?"

I furrowed my brows. "Nik I always cared about you." I whispered.

"No one cares about me!" He raised his voice. "Not my mom, not my dad, not my band mates. And you especially!" He says sobbing and squeezing his pillow tighter.

"Nikki I do care about you, that's why I came when you called. That's why in London when you nearly overdosed I took care of you. I care about you so it scares me." I mumble and look down at the bed.

He lifted himself up on his elbows and looked at me with his piercing green eyes that had tears all over them.

"What scares you?" He asks with confusion.

I stay silent and just stare at the sheets not wanting to look at him. He leaned and shuffled closer to me. He lifted my chin up with his finger for me to look at him. He leaned closer to face me with his lips barley brushing mine.

"What scares you princess?" He asks again.

"How I feel about you." I breathlessly reply.

He leans forward and kisses my lips. He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me on the bed with our lips still together and lays me down beside him. I kick off my flats and pull my lips away from him catching my breath. He brushes the side of my face with his thumb.

"Mani." He whispers.

"Yes." I reply.

"I want to be your boyfriend."

#motley crue #nikki sixx #vince neil #tommy lee #mick mars #thedirt #model #chanel iman #bwwm wmbw

[itisannak]

One Day (Calum Hood Fluff)

Summary: (Y/N) won't settle for a simple proposal, so Calum blows the bank to make sure he gets her to say yes. (Words: 2.8k)  (Part 1: Can I have this dance?, Part 2: 90 Days, Part 3: 280 Days)

"I always knew that you would look even better holding a baby." I mumble as I take in Calum singing lullabies to our daughter. "I do?" He asks me, cocking an eyebrow as he rocks Stella softly. I hum approvingly, wrapping my arms around his waist. "Well, Stella is almost out, so, maybe daddy and mommy can have a little fun." He murmurs; I can hear the smirk in his voice. "Mmm, no, actually. (Y/B/F/N) and I are going for some last-minute shopping for the tour." I plant a kiss on his shoulder blade. "Uh, come on... Be a little late." He whispers as he places Stella on the crib. "Are you kidding me? I'll be back in like 3 hours." I roll my eyes at him as pulls me close by my hips. "Come on... please, just postpone it for an hour. I need you." He groans, leaning down to kiss my neck. "Mmm, interesting proposal, but I have to say no. I need this, Cal. I need to get nice clothes and maybe something extra for me and you. I need to feel confident again." I state and he sighs. "Ok, baby. We'll wait for you here, daddy and Stella will have so much fun while you are gone." He shrugs his shoulders and I smile at him. "Don't try to guilt me. I'll be back before you know it. You are capable of being alone with your own daughter, right?" I ask him and he groans. "Oh, please, don't question my ability to take care of my daughter. Stella and I will be fine. Go have fun." He whispers, pecking on my forehead. "I will. I'll bring some take-out for dinner. Any preferences?" I ask him, standing on my tiptoes to peck on his lips. He places his hand on the side of my face, holding my face in place to pepper my lips with kisses. "You..." He whispers, stroking his thumb over my cheek. "Well, that was a given... But is Korean ok with you? I am really craving some daktoritang and manduguk..." I suggest and he smirks at me. "Maybe I can text Luke to come over with Andy, and you and (Y/B/F/N) pick up the food so we can hang out while the babies have a playdate. Stella could really use some company since she doesn't have any other siblings to play with..." He says with a pout. "Cal, she is 7 months old. She doesn't need a sibling yet." "Yeah, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't start trying for one... Or maybe practice a bit..." He chuckles and tilts my head to the side to have access to my neck. He kisses my sweet spot, grazing his teeth as he moves lower. "I am not opposed to practicing... You are so good at... practicing. But I don't think we are ready for one more Hood..." I let a moan slip from my lips. "I am good at practicing, huh?" He mumbles and I nod. "Well, in that case, maybe you should call (Y/B/F/N) and raincheck the shopping spree, and stay in here with me and practice." He tries to convince me. "Nice try... I'll go do my makeup now, and maybe you should go pack our luggage since we are leaving in 3 days... And I will see you again tonight, along with our friends." I say, moving away from him as he groans.

"Ugh, Stella will look so good in this..." (Y/B/F/N) says, handing me a tiny dress with roses. I gasp as I see it, feeling the mesh skirt. "It's amazing..." I say, putting it in the basket. "I can't believe our babies are about to go on our first tour..." She sighs, bringing a smile to my face. "I can't believe we are moms... Seems like yesterday I watched you get married to Luke." I coo, shaking my head. "Since you mentioned that, when are you going to finally marry your man?" She asks, nudging me. "I don't know. Probably when he gets the proposal right and stops stuffing Stella's diapers with jewelry boxes." I reply, tilting my head to the side while looking at her smugly. "Come on, he is trying his best." She groans. "I need more than that. After everything we've been through, I deserve a great proposal." I state and she rolls her eyes. "Hey, don't roll your eyes. You are supposed to be on my side." I protest and she side-eyes me. "I am... I just know that it is hard for you not to say yes to those lame proposals." She chuckles. I hand her a t-shirt for Andy, trying to get her to shut up. "Anyway, Calum will have to rack up his brain to get me to marry him." I state, wiggling my eyebrows. "What's left of it, you mean... Because, between you and your daughter, the poor guy has lost his mind." She teases me. "We both deserve it." I stick my tongue out and she giggles. "We need to get you something nice for Paris. I am sure Cal will take you on a romantic day, on a posh restaurant with a view of the Eiffel Tower..." She nudges me again. "I don't think that Calum is that romantic." I mumble, stopping in front of some onesies. "Do I need to remind you about your first date? And how he asked you on that first date?" She asks me, cocking an eyebrow. "No, I remember exactly how it happened. I just don't think he is still romantic." I reply, shrugging as I pick up an onesie. "Need I remind you he is putting on serious effort to convince you to marry him?" She asks again, her voice becoming teasing. "Mrs. Hemmings, can you shush for a moment, please?" I ask, observing the patterns on the fabric in my hands. Or at least pretending to observe it. "Of course, Mrs. Hood. Your wish is my command." She snickers. I feel my cheeks heat up a bit, my stomach twisting in happiness as she calls me Mrs. Hood. It sounds nice, fitting; I've never thought that would sound that good.

"Cal, we are home." I shout as I unlock the door. I get nothing in response, so I place all of the bags on the island and motion (Y/B/F/N) to follow me. I guide us to the backyard, where we find both Luke and Calum along with the kids in the pool, splashing around. "Hey, guys..." I cheer, kneeling at the edge. "Mommy is back, Stella." Calum coos at the cheering baby. "Mommy." Andy shouts, reaching for (Y/B/F/N). "Hey, princess. Did you have fun with daddy?" I ask in my baby voice as I reach to pick up Stella. She babbles, giving me a gummy grin. "Of course you did... You should see what mommy got you for the trip..." I sing, pecking on her forehead. "Did mommy get anything for daddy?" Calum asks, climbing out of the pool. "Maybe..." I wink, holding Stella a little better. "But I brought food for everyone, so maybe (Y/B/F/N) should give the kids a bath and you can take a shower before we make the table." I suggest, stroking my daughter's chubby cheek. "I can make the table while Luke is showering so we can save time." Calum suggests and we all nod. "I'll also feed Stella and prep her for bed. Do you guys want to stay in here tonight, in the guest room?" I ask. "We'll see. Now, let's move and get cleaned, I am starving." Luke groans, making (Y/B/F/N) chuckle.

(Y/B/F/N) and I walk upstairs to the master bathroom to give the babies a bath. I fill the tub with warm water and throw in Stella's bath toys as (Y/B/F/N) sits our kids on the little bench to prep them. "Stella is such a calm baby. I don't think I've ever heard her cry." (Y/B/F/N) comments, turning to look at me as I test the water temperature. "I know. I am so lucky..." I state, getting up to pick my giggling baby up. "We are going to clean this stinky girl." I cheer, bouncing her around. "Wanna clean Andy first?" I ask and she nods. "Sure... Let's go, big boy." She picks up Andy and walks to the tub. I sit on the bench, setting Stella on my lap to play with her while we wait. "My baby girl... You are going to take your first trip! You are going to see so many things, so many people, it's going to be so amazing. And you are going to see daddy sing and play music and do all the things he loves. And you are going to meet daddy's fans, lots and lots of them. And you are going to see one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Mommy bought you so many cute outfits for the trip, you are going to be the most fashionable baby in the world. And you are going to see Aunt Mali." I purr, playing with her hands. She giggles at me as I make my funny faces at her. "Ok, we are set and I refilled the tub for you. Andy, what do we say to godmommy?" (Y/B/F/N) asks as she bounces Andy on her hip. "Thank you, god mama." He whispers, blowing me a kiss. "You are welcome, baby." I blow the kiss back, getting up from the bench.

After we put the kids to bed, we walk into the living room where Calum has set the table and Luke has picked the movie. "They are off." I state, sitting on the floor comfortably. Calum pours me a glass of wine as I take a look at all the food in front of me. "What did you buy today?" Luke asks, handing their glasses to Calum. "Mainly clothes for the kids, little somethings for Calum and you... A fancy dress for (Y/N) for when Cal will take her on a hot date in Paris. And some other stuff." (Y/B/F/N) jumps in before I could open my mouth. "I see... Speaking of it, when are you two getting married?" Luke asks, giving me a side look before he takes a sip from his wine. "Thank you! When are you going to marry me?" Calum asks, poking my shoulder. "And I was wondering why you haven't asked me this far today. When he gives me the proposal I deserve." I state, picking up a dumpling. "Just give him a clue... Look at the poor guy." Luke advocates and I chuckle. "Nah, he is a songwriter, he is creative... He can figure it out..." I state and stick my tongue out. "You are killing me..." Calum groans, pressing a kiss on my cheek. "At least you'll go a happy man." I reply, grabbing his chin to turn his head and kiss him on the lips.

"Why are you so hellbent on not marrying me? You were just as stubborn about not dating me and you were totally wrong about it. And for God's sake, we have a child together..." Calum exasperates, planting a kiss on my shoulder as I rub lotion on my hands. "Because, I want an extra as fuck proposal and the most extra you can come up with is stuffing ring boxes in Stella's diapers, and that sir, is not enough." I reply, shrugging my shoulders. "So, if I make the proposal extra, like nothing before, you will say yes... Right?" He asks me, raising an eyebrow. "I will absolutely say yes." I reply, kissing his chin before I lay on my back. "Ok then. I bet you 100 bucks you will say yes to marry me by the time we are back from tour." He smirks, laying on his back as well. "Deal." I smile, nestling up to his chest.

"How many times have I said that I love waking up in Paris?" I ask Calum as I look outside the window, a mug of coffee in my hands. "We are here 3 days now and you've already said it like 10 times. So I really think you like waking up in Paris." He comments, walking behind me to wrap his arms around my waist. "Can we move to Paris? Like, start living here? Stella will grow up speaking French and in a city known for its cultural environment..." I state and he chuckles. "Maybe in the future... When we are old and wrinkly and Stella is married with kids, and we are grandpas. Because for now, I love my job and I know you love yours, so for now, we have to stay in Los Angeles." He murmurs, picking up my mug to sip on my coffee. "If you had said yes to moving to Paris now, I would have said yes to marrying you." I sing and he chuckles. "You are lying and you are manipulating me." He giggles. "Now you'll never know." I shrug and lean my head on his shoulder. "I can live with that." He whispers. "I really like those mornings... Stella is asleep, we have coffee, I am in your arms... I love these mornings." I state and he hums. He takes a deep breath, moving my hair to the said to kiss the base of my neck. "I love them too." He whispers and I smile as I look outside the window. "So, what's today's schedule?" I ask, reaching to take one of his hands in mine. "Hmmm, concert and then I've booked us a private tour in Louvre because Stella needs to see art early on, it's good for her brain. And then I am taking you for dinner, so dress nicely..." He replies and rubs his thumb over the back of my hand. "I always dress nicely..." I protest. "I will need you to dress even nicer..." He states and I hum. "So you will dress nicely as well?" I ask. "Of course... Shirt and blazer and all." He replies and I gasp in surprise. "Come on, don't act surprised... I dress nicely all the time." He replies, turning my head to kiss my lips. "I am just messing with you." I whisper in between kisses.

Louvre looks even more beautiful without all the people in it. When Calum said private, he meant private... "Look how beautiful it's in here. I can practically live inside a museum, for the rest of my life." I comment, looking at the sculpture of Psyche and Eros like a kid in a candy store. Stella looks just as mesmerized, even though it might be because her dad is holding her. "All this art in this room, still can't take my eyes off of you..." Calum whispers, planting a kiss to my temple. "Cheesy." I whisper under my breath but feel my smile widen and my blush creep up my cheeks. "I mean it. You are the most beautiful woman I've seen, I can't take my eyes off of you." He states, stopping us from walking.

He gestures Ashton over, who smilingly approaches us and picks up Stella. "What are you doing?" I ask Ashton who walks back where he was standing before. Calum moves in front of me, taking my hands in his, without breaking eye contact as he opens his mouth. "It took me almost 6 months to convince you to go on a single date with me, then 3 months to get you to trust me. And then it took me 2 years to screw it up, which was one of the things I will never forgive me for that, but you did... You did forgive me because you have the biggest heart in the world. God, you are stubborn sometimes, if something gets in your brain, you don't stop until you get your way. But this is something I wish our daughter gets from you. You are the kindest, smartest, most incredible person in my life, and all I want is to spend the rest of my life with you, have a dozen children and become a better person next to you because that's what I am becoming next to you. So, for the 5th or 6th time this year, (Y/F/N) (Y/M/N) (Y/L/N), will you make me the happiest man and say yes to becoming my wife?" Calum kneels down in front of me, opening the ring box and presenting a new ring to me. I let out a squeal and bring my hands to muffle me. "Yes, yes... Yes." I cry out. Calum sighs relieved, taking the ring out of the box and sliding it on my finger. Everyone around us cheers, clapping and hollering. "See, it wasn't that hard to come up with something..." I tear up as he gets up from one knee and pulls me in for a kiss. "Thank God you said yes, it cost me a fortune to book this..." He giggles, pecking on my lips. I giggle as well, not fully parting from his lips. "I love you..." I state, biting my lip as I rest my head on his chest. "I love you." He states as well, rubbing my lower back. "Good, cause I just agreed on marrying you." I laugh and he chuckles.

My Masterlist  /  Can I have this dance? / 90 Days  / 280 Days 

#calum hood #calum thomas hood #calum 5sos #calum hood imagine #calum hood fluff #calum hood fluffy #calum hood fluff imagine #calum hood fluffy imagine #5sos #5sos imagine #5sos fluff #5sos fluffy #5sos fluff imagine #5sos fluffy imagine #5 seconds of summer #5 seconds of summer imagine #5 seconds of summer fluff #5 seconds of summer fluffy #5 seconds of summer fluff imagine #5 seconds of summer fluffy imagine #imagine #fluff #fluffy #fluff imagine #fluffy imagine