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bellaireland1981 · 10 months

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Starting Over | 9

Summary: You come home to work to find your husband of three years in bed with your supposed best friend. It’s the wake up call you finally needed to take your two year old daughter and get the hell out of Texas. With nowhere to go you head to your big brother in San Diego. The Dagger squad takes you under their wings, and shows you what having a family means. You get a fresh start… will you find your happily ever after?

Characters: Jake “hangman” Seresin x Sister! Reader, Bradley “Rooster” Bradshaw x Seresin! Reader (Eventually), Hangman x Phoenix , Adorable OC Gracie! The Dagger squad

Word Count: 10454

Warnings: Angst, fighting, cheating husband, emotional abuse, eventual fluff, SMUT, Sweet uncle Jake, Adorable Rooster with a toddler… if I miss any please let me know. MINORS DNI

A/N: I don’t own the characters or storyline for Top Gun Maverick. All OC’s are mine. I DO NOT GIVE PERMISSION FOR ANYONE TO COPY OR REPOST MY WORK TO ANY OTHER PLATFORM! DON’T STEAL! Reblogs, likes and comments ALWAYS welcomed. THANK YOU @waywardodysseys and @beyondthesefourwalls as always for reading over my work and helping me flush out ideas!!

Taglist is open! If I missed anyone who asked to be tagged, please fill out this GOOGLE FORM to be added. It’s getting to hard to keep track of asks.

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You’d fallen into a new normal fairly easily. Gracie was loving daycare and the friends she’d made. You’d even managed to set up some playdates for her outside of daycare. You were developing a routine at the Hard Deck, setting up your own system for doing the inventory and falling seamlessly into the work there. You actually really enjoyed it too.

It’d been almost a month since your divorce. Things with Bradley were perfect. You knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was your forever love. He stayed over at the house with you and Gracie often, other nights you’d stay at his house. Neither of you liked sleeping apart.

Trent’s initial court appearance for the violation of the order of protection had been pushed back at the request of his lawyer. You’re not sure what the endgame was, he’d broken the order twice, he was only postponing the inevitable. Your lawyer assured you that you had nothing to worry about. The hearing for custody was scheduled for the following week on Thursday... It had taken longer than you thought to be scheduled, but you tried to stay positive. Gracie’s third birthday was two days later on Saturday and you were already busy planning a party. Jake insisted she needed a huge princess party. Bradley had agreed wholeheartedly, as had the entire Dagger squad.

“Sweetheart, I think we need a castle bounce house.” Bradley said, scrolling through inflatable rentals for the area on his phone.

“Where exactly do you think we’re putting this bounce house, Babe?” You asked, “The backyard is decent sized, but not bounce house sized.”

“You’re right.” He agreed, “We need a bigger venue.”

“You and Jake are out of control.” You laughed, “She’s 3.”

“I know, but this is the first birthday she’s had all of us.” He reasoned, wrapping his arms around you, “And it’s our first birthday with her as a family.”

“You make a good argument, Lieutenant.” You smiled, your arms wrapping around his neck, pulling him down to claim his lips. “I love our little family… and I love our big extended chaotic family.”

“I love YOU.” He said, smiling against your lips, “And our family.”

“I love you too, Brad.” You replied, kissing him once more before pulling back, “Ok, we’ll find a bigger venue…and get the castle bounce house.”

“We can see if Mav and Penny would let us use their yard?” Bradley suggested, “Or Mav’s hangar?”

“I don’t want to impose on anyone.” You said.

“Sweetheart, I promise they’d jump at the chance.” He assured you. “I’ll ask Mav tomorrow at work.”

Obviously, they’d been more than happy to host the party. Bradley called on his lunch break to let you know. It was your off day from the Hard Deck so you’d taken Gracie to go play at the park and run some errands. You were just getting ready to take her home for a nap when he’d called.

“Hey, Sweetheart, how are my girls?” He asked when you answered the phone on speaker. “We’re just heading home so Gracie can nap.”

“Daddy WOOSTA!” Gracie yelled from the backseat, “Mommy, can we pwease go see Daddy?”

“Hi, Princess,” Bradley replied to her, “Daddy has to go up in his jet in a little bit, Baby Girl. I promise, I’ll come see you tonight when I get done with work, ok?”

“OK, Daddy.” She said, “Wuv you!”

“I love you too, Princess.” He replied.

“Mav and Penny are happy to have her party at their house so we can finish planning with the bigger space in mind.” Bradley said, “There was zero hesitation too, Mav was like a kid at Christmas when I asked.”

“You should have seen Jake’s face last night when I told him there was a possibility of inflatables.” You laughed, “He’s a big kid.”

“We were picking out the perfect one before I called you actually.” He laughed, “Him and Phoenix just ran to grab a quick lunch together. They’re on the ground this afternoon so they get to eat a bigger lunch.”

“Come over tonight when you’re done, I’ll make sure you have a nice big dinner to make up for it.” You promised.

“And cuddles with my girls after?” He asked.

“Definitely.” You agreed.

“I’ll see you after work, Sweetheart.” He said, “Love you.”

“Love you too,” You replied, “Fly safe, Bradley.”

“Always.” He promised.

Party planning continued to go smoothly, although with Jake and Bradley helping, you found yourself having to reign them in constantly. You’d already had to veto the live ponies dressed as unicorns, which you learned later had been Mav’s suggestion.

“Penny, he’s as bad as Jake and Bradley!” You laughed, while unboxing an order of alcohol and stocking it on the shelves in back. “He suggested ponies dressed as unicorns!”

“You should have seen him in the Disney Store the other day when we went to get Gracie’s presents.” Penny replied, shaking her head smiling, “Between him and Amelia, I’m amazed we made it out of there without buying out the entire store.”

“I have to admit though,” You said, pausing from stocking the shelves, “I love seeing how much Bradley loves her, Pen. The amount of excitement he has over making this birthday so special for her, absolutely melts my heart.”

“One thing you will never have to doubt, Sweetie, is how much that man loves and adores that little girl.” She said, “In his eyes, Gracie is already one hundred percent his little girl and it doesn’t matter if there is a piece of paper that declares it, or DNA that proves it. He’s her daddy.”

“I love him so much it sometimes scares me.” You admitted, “I’m almost afraid I’ll wake up and this will all have been just a wonderful dream and I’ll be back in that nightmare of a marriage.”

“That part takes time, Y/N.” Penny said, “But I assure you, this is absolutely real. You’re free of him. Next week, I’m confident the courts will free Gracie from him. Trust that this is now your life and it’s not going anywhere.”

“Thank you, Penny.” You said, smiling, “For everything. You’ve been absolutely amazing.”

“You’re welcome, Sweetie.” She replied, “We’re family. I know you’ve heard it a lot since moving out here, but I’ll keep reminding you. This is just what you do for family.”

Once you finished work that day you picked Gracie up from daycare and headed home. Jake’s truck was already in the driveway when you got there.

“Looks like Uncle Jakey beat us home.” You said, pulling in next to him and turning the car off. You got Gracie out of her carseat and you made your way inside

“We’re home!” You called, walking in. You set your keys in the bowl next to the door and kicked your shoes off, before taking Gracie’s backpack and hanging it on the hook.

Jake came out of the kitchen, still in his flight suit but the top part off, tied around his waist. He must have just gotten home ahead of you.

“There’s my Princess G.” He said, holding his arms out for Gracie. She went straight to him to be hoisted up into a tight hug. You could tell he must have had a rough day.

“Hey, you OK, Jakey?” You asked, concern etched on your face.

“Yeah, I’m ok, Tulip.” He replied, offering a small smile. “Just a long, frustrating day where nothing went right.”

“That why you’re home early?” You asked.

“Yeah.” He sighed, “My plane’s grounded for repairs for a few days. I had a close call in the air today. It shook me.”

You stepped forward wrapping your arms around your brother and daughter as best as you could.

“I’m glad you’re OK, Jakey.” You said, “We’d be lost without you. We love our Jakey.”

“We wuv Unco Jakey.” Gracie agreed.

“I love you girls too.” He said, hugging you both tightly. “Life kinda sucked before y’all showed up on my doorstep. I’m really glad you’re here.”

“We’re really glad we’re here too.” You agreed.

A few hours later, Bradley and Phoenix showed up, both concerned about Jake. Phoenix had been in the air with Jake when he’d ran into problems, her heart in her throat until he’d been safe on the ground. Bradley had been listening from inside his plane, waiting to go up.

“I’m glad you’re OK, man.” Bradley said, “Scared the shit outta us. Thought you’d have to punch out there for a minute.”

“Me too.” He said, “I’m lucky I was able to get the engine to refire so I could save it.”

“Now I know how you felt when I had the bird strike.” Phoenix admitted. “It’s not a great feeling.”

“Darlin’, watching you punch out and your plane actually crash about killed me that day.” Jake said, pulling her into his arms. “I couldn’t get to you fast enough. Then it killed me not to be able to hug the shit out of you and reassure myself you really were OK.”

“New rule.” You said, knowing it wouldn't be enforceable, but needing to say it nonetheless, “No punching out, no crashing, no getting hurt. If you take a plane into the air, you land that plane safely on the ground or carrier you took off from.”

“We’ll do our best, Sweetheart.” Bradley smiled, pulling you against him, kissing the top of your head. “None of us want to punch out or crash. It kinda sucks.”

“It doesn't feel great.” Phoenix confirms. “Even when it’s textbook, that shit hurts.”

Jake and Phoenix ended up heading over to her place that night. Jake knew he’d be in for a rough night and he didn’t want Gracie to see him upset.

After dinner, Bradley and Gacie were playing in the living room while you finished getting the kitchen cleaned up after dinner.

“What are you building, Princess?” Bradley asked her while they built with her legos.

“I making a big big castle.” She replied, “Fow you, mommy and me. So we wiv togever! And Unco Jakey and Aunty Nix too.”

“That is a big big castle.” He smiled, his heart melting. “You’d like it if you, mommy and I all lived together?”

“Yes, Daddy!” She beamed, excitedly at him, before continuing to build.

“Princess, Daddy would love that too.” He replied, his voice thick with emotion. He’d already been thinking about asking you to move in with him. Truth be told, he really wanted to marry you, but he knows you just got out of a really bad marriage and you might not be in a hurry to jump into another marriage. He made a mental note to talk to Jake tomorrow though, he wanted to get his blessing to proceed, knowing it would be important to you.

Later that night long after Gracie was tucked into bed you and Bradley were laying in bed cuddling before going to sleep. You were tucked into his side, your arm draped over his middle, fingers tracing patterns over his chest.

“Have you noticed that lately Gracie has started to drop the Woosta and just call you Daddy?” You asked, tipping your head up to look at him.

“I have.” He replied, a smile playing on his lips, “I’ll admit, as much as I loved hearing her say ‘Woosta’ and being ‘Daddy Woosta’, just being ‘Daddy’ is a whole new and amazing feeling, Sweetheart.”

“I know it happened really fast and we didn’t really talk about it in depth…” You said, “You’re really OK with her calling you Daddy? I just don’t want you to ever feel like you were forced into that role…”

“Sweetheart.” He said, stopping you. He pulled you up and flipped you both so you were lying eye to eye on the bed. “I am one hundred percent on board here. Being Gracie’s Daddy is an honor that I am so grateful you’re trusting me with. From now until forever, that little girl is my little Princess. I’m her Daddy.”

“I love you Bradley Bradshaw.” You whispered, tears falling down your cheeks.

“I love you too, Y/N Seresin.” He replied, gently wiping the tears away and leaning in to kiss you. “From now until forever.”

Bradley’s POV

The next day at work, he went to find Jake in one of the classrooms before he had to go up in the air to fly maneuvers. He’d already talked to Phoenix earlier that morning, needing her take on the situation before tackling the conversation with Jake. She assured him that it wasn’t crazy to be thinking about moving in or marriage this soon, that sometimes the right people meet at the right time and it’s just meant to be. She also said that he had nothing to worry about with Jake.

“Hey, you have a minute?” Bradley asked, walking into the classroom Jake was using that day.

“I’ve got nothing but minutes until my plane’s fixed.” He replied, “What’s up?”

Bradley made his way in and hopped up on one of the tables at the front, fidgeting nervously.

“Rooster.” Jake laughed, “What’s up, man? Why are you acting so damn flighty?”

“I was playing legos with Gracie last night.” He said, deciding to start with the easier of the two questions. “I asked her what she was building and she said it was a ‘big big castle’ so that her, Y/N and I can all live together. With room for Unco Jakey and Aunty Nix of course… that might be negotiable though.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure with that one.” Jake said laughing, “Princess G is a determined little one and would find a way to make it all happen. What did you tell her?”

“I just told her it’s something I’d really like too.” He replied, “I didn’t want to make any promises I couldn’t deliver. She’s started to call me Daddy though more and more instead of Daddy Woosta… and I REALLY like that.”

“Have you talked to Tulip?” Jake asked, “What’s her take?”

“On the title or living arrangements”? He asked.

“Both.” Jake clarified, “I’d say both are pretty big.”

“She’s the one who asked if I’d noticed the change in my title with Gracie last night, and asked if I was really Ok with her calling me Daddy.” He said, “I definitely reassured her that I’m more than happy that Gracie calls me Daddy because as far as I’m concerned she IS my little girl.”

“Ok, so that’s good.” Jake shrugged, “And did you talk to her about moving in?”

“That’s part of what I wanted to talk to you about today.” Bradley admitted. “Seemed like something I should run by you… both because you’ve become my best friend and because you’re the most important person in Y/N’s life.”

“Bradley, I’d have already run ya off if I had a problem with you being with my sister.” Jake said, smiling, “You’re probably the only one I WOULD trust with her heart and with Gracie. I pretty much knew from the beginning that they were going to steal your heart and that you’d be the one to claim Tulip’s. Moving in together is the logical next step. As much as I love them being with me, at least I’ll know that with you they’re both happy and safe…and in the same damn town.”

“Thanks, Jake.” Bradley said, “That means a lot. Honestly, it was game over for me the first day when Gracie threw her arms around me and called me ‘Woosta’. I’d have given that girl anything she wanted that day.”

“Remember that when she’s a teenager, sneaking in after curfew and trying to use those big eyes and dimples against you.” Jake laughed.

“Oh Shit” Bradley groaned, “I’m never letting her leave the house. I know what teenage boys are like. They can’t go near her.”

“Good luck with that.” Jake said, “Give me a call though, I’ll be backup. What was the other thing you wanted to talk to me about?”

“It’s more of a asking now for later kinda thing.” Bradley said. “I don’t know if or when Y/N would be ready to even think about marrying again… but if she’s ever on board to give it another shot… would you be OK with me asking your sister to marry me?”

“Of course I am.” Jake said, standing and yanking Bradley off the table into a rough hug, clapping him on the back before stepping back, smiling widely. “She might surprise you, Man. You probably won’t have to wait as long as you think until she’s ready. You may want to start thinking about rings. I see the way my sister looks at you…it’s the same way I look at Nat. Between you and me and the walls… I’ve been thinking along those lines myself lately.”

“No shit!” Bradley exclaimed, “Proposing or moving in? Both?”

“Both.” Jake said, “It’s been on constant repeat since yesterday with the not so nice reminder that with this job we never know what the next day will bring. I just don’t know if it’s too soon. I don’t want to spook her.”

“I acutally was talking to her this morning before I came to talk to you.” Bradley said, “Kinda needed reassurance that I wasn’t about to die for one, and that I wasn’t rushing things. She told me not to buy into the whole social norm timeline for relationships bullshit. Two people meet or come together when they’re supposed to and it doesn't matter what the timeline is. Plus, let’s be honest, the two of you have been flirting with the idea of being together long before you made the move to BE together so that counts towards the bogus timeline right?”

“So… ring shopping this weekend?” Jake asked, chuckling, “To be prepared…”

“I have my mom’s ring that I was planning on giving Y/N, but I will absolutely go with you.” Bradley said. “How do you think Gracie will take the news that we won’t have a castle for all of us to live together?”

“We promise her Disneyland.” Jake said, “And weekend sleepovers with her favorite Uncle and Aunty Nix.”

“So…bribery?” Bradley clarified.

“Yup!” Jake laughed.

Your POV

By the time the weekend rolled around, you knew that Jake and Bradley were definitely plotting something. There’d been a lot of hushed conversations and text messages back and forth. Friday you and Phoenix had enlisted Bob’s help at the weekly dinner to try to ferret out information without any luck. You’d even contemplated using your own daughter.

“Those two plotting together makes me nervous.” Phoenix admitted while you were cleaning up the kitchen together after dinner on Friday night.

“EXACTLY!” You exclaimed, “Whatever it is, probably means trouble. I think I saw them bringing Mav into the mix too.”

“We may need to ask Penny to see if she can put out feelers.” Phoenix suggested, “If anyone can reign in Mav and the boys in it’ll be her.”

“Or at least find out what’s going in.” You reasoned.

“If nothing else, I’ll work on Jake tomorrow night while we’re hanging with Gracie.” Phoenix said

“Am I being kicked out for a super fun fort night again?” You asked, confused. Before she could respond Bradley and Jake came in carrying the rest of the dishes.

“Not being kicked out.” Jake laughed, “So dramatic, Tulip.”

“I asked if Jake and Phoenix had plans, and if they minded if I stole you for a date night ahead the upcoming week.” Bradley said, wrapping his arms around you from behind and resting his chin on the top of your head. “I know this week is going to be a rollercoaster, so before it gets crazy, I wanted to carve out some time for the two of us.”

“And it’s a win-win, because we get time with Princess G.” Jake said.

“Speaking of…”Phoenix said, “Where is the little nugget?”

“With Mav.” Bradley chuckled. You turned in his arms so you were facing him, wrapping your own arms around his neck and stealing a quick kiss.

“I’d love time for just the two of us tomorrow night.” You told him, “I’m really hoping that by this time next week everything will be settled and we won’t have anything left to worry about.”

“You and me both, Baby.” He replied, kissing you softly.

The next morning Jake and Bradley disappeared for several hours. You definitely made a mental note to ask Penny if she knew what the two were plotting. You decided to call Phoenix to see if she wanted to go shopping for some birthday party supplies.

“Since our men are off on a top secret mission, do you want to go get some party supplies for Gracie’s birthday with me?” You asked her.

“Absolutely!” She agreed, “Give me like twenty minutes and I’ll head over.”

“We can pick you up.” You suggested, “Save you a trip.”

“I’ll need my car tomorrow anyway, this way I’ll already be there when it’s time for you and Bradley to go out.” She said.

“Makes sense.” You agreed, “Maybe we just need one giant house at this point instead of three separate dwellings.”

“You might be onto something.” She laughed.

Once Phoenix had arrived you all headed out to the party store. You put Gracie in the cart and headed straight to the Princess aisle, gathering up plates, cups, napkins and other decorations you’d need. Phoenix insisted on a helium tank and enough balloons to float the house. By the time you left the store your trunk was loaded with supplies.

“How about we run to the Disney store and let Gracie pick out a princess dress to wear to her party?” Phoenix said. “We’ve got time before the boys are done on their mission I’m sure.”

“Those dresses are super expensive.” You said, “Any luck getting info from Jake on that?”

“It’ll be my treat for her. She needs a princess dress for a princess party.” Phoenix insisted. “And nope, he kept changing the subject then distracted me.”

“Bradley did the same thing.” You laughed. “And, are you sure? We can find a princess dress cheaper I’m sure…”

“Y/N, Disney Store. NOW.” She replied, playfully glaring at you, before turning to look at Gracie in the back, “Sweet girl, do you want to go pick out a Princess dress from the Disney Store for your birthday party with Aunty Nix?”

“YES!” Gracie exclaimed, “I wuv you Aunty Nix!”

“I love you too, Gracie!” Phoenix said, turning back to smile widely at you. “See? My girl wants a princess dress.”

“When she’s a teenager and still expecting the princess treatment, I’m sending her to you and Jake.” You laughed.

“We’ll take her.” She agreed, getting a soft dreamy look on her face. “Honestly, I love the idea of still being with Jake when Gracie is a teenager.”

“I have no doubts that you will be.” You assured her. “My brother is absolutely in love with you, Nat. I’ve never seen him as happy as he is with you, nor have I ever seen him as content. He’s himself with you, he lets his guard down and is the most at peace around you. He’s never been that way with anyone else before.”

“I love him too.” She said, “Completely in love with him. Not going to lie… it scared the crap out of me at first. I started to see cracks in the cocky Hangman exterior after that last mission, but it was when you and Gracie got here that I really got to see the softer side of him. You say it’s me that brings it out in him, but I think it’s you and Gracie that brought that out in him.”

“So we call it a group effort.” You compromised, chuckling. “The point is… He’s not going anywhere. His heart belongs to you, Nat.”

“That’s good because mine belongs to him too.” She smiled.

Jake’s POV

They’d left that morning once the jewelers had opened. Phoenix had gone back to her apartment late the night before, saying she needed to get some laundry and stuff done there. It made it easier only having to get past Tulip. He knew she was suspicious, but hopefully she’d just think they were plotting something for Gracie’s birthday.

“How can I help you gentlemen this morning?” An older man asked, greeting them from behind the glass counter filled with rings. He was smiling at them as they stepped closer to the cases.

“We’re shopping for engagement rings.” Jake replied, already starting to feel overwhelmed by the sheer options.

“Well congratulations.” He said, looking at Bradley, “What do you have in mind”

“Not me!” Bradley laughed, “I’m here for moral support.”

“My apologies, Sir.” The man said, turning red. Jake looked over at Bradley laughing, relaxing immediately.

“It’s fine.” Bradley said, “That’s definitely going into the best man speech!”

“Of course it is.” Jake chucked, shaking his head. “Nat’s gotta say ‘yes’ first though.”

“She will.” Bradley said confidently, his eyes wandering over all of the options. “What are you thinking for her?”

“She’s not really into flashy jewelry.” Jake said, “I’ve never really seen her wear anything more than earrings and occasionally a simple necklace when we go out.”

“And she’s not going to want anything that’ll get in the way when we’re flying.” Bradley pointed out. “If she decides to wear it while flying. She may opt to put it on dog tags or leave it on the ground.”

“Maybe we should have let Tulip in on this mission and brought her along.” Jake groaned. “What does your mom’s ring look like? Maybe that’ll give me a starting point?”

“It’s a solitaire set in a gold band.” He replied, “It’s pretty simple, but it meant the world to her. I’m actually thinking I’ll bring Y/N in and we can get wedding bands to match it, that way she still gets something new.”

“Rooster, you know she won’t care about it not being new right?” Jake asked, “The fact that it was your moms and has meaning to you will make it the most precious thing in the world to her.”

“I know.” He shrugged, “I just figured that after everything she’s been through, she deserves a little bit of new and spoiling.”

“I have no doubt that she and Gracie will be plenty spoiled.” Jake said, “OK, so let’s start with solitaires.”

“Those are over here.” The man behind the counter said, directing them over to the case with all of the solitaire sets. “We have several options to choose from, as well as matching wedding bands.”

“Shit there are a lot of choices.” Jake sighed, “Ok, so set or solitaire and band? What’s the difference?”

“The set can be welded together so it would become one ring after the wedding.” The man replied, “Some prefer that as opposed to having two separate rings.”

“Ok, that makes sense.” Jake replied, “I think she’d probably rather have that.”

“I think so too.” Bradley agreed. “Less to keep track of.”

“Perfect. Set it is.” Jake said, “That narrows it down some.”

“Does she wear more gold or silver jewelry?” Bradley asked, “I never really pay attention.”

“I think gold.” Jake replied. “I know the necklace she normally wears is a gold pendant.”

“Ok, I’d go with a gold band then.” Bradley suggested, scanning the case of rings.

They both looked over the solitaire case but nothing really jumped out at either one of them.

“Perhaps, something a little more detailed than a solitaire set but not overly showy will be more to her taste?” The man suggested, “We have some lovely sets over here that showcase a larger center stone with smaller stones to the sides that also have matching wedding bands. They’re simple, elegant, and quite stunning.”

He directed them to a case further down the row with rings that were a little more elaborate than the solitaire sets yet still not overly flashy, just as he’d described.

Jake let his gaze wander over the options trying to picture them on Nat’s finger before falling on that looked perfect.

“That one!” He exclaimed, pointing to the set closest to him in the front. “May I see that one, please?”

“Certainly.” The man smiled, pulling the set from the case and gently setting it in front of Jake. It was a yellow gold set, the engagement ring had a larger center diamond just like the man had said then tiny diamonds making up the band about ¾ away around the band. The wedding band was contoured to fit with the engagement band and had tiny diamonds paved into ¾ of the band as well. It was beautiful and elegant without being gaudy and overly flashy. It was simple but not plain. It was perfect.

“This is the one.” Jake said. “I’ll take it.”

“Umm, shouldn’t you maybe find out a price on that first?” Bradley asked, chuckling.

“Doesn't matter.” Jake said, shrugging, “She’s worth it.”

The man went to start the paperwork and process the sale. Jake felt like his heart was about to beat out of his chest. It felt like his body was on fire and breathing was becoming very difficult.

“Jake.” Bradley said firmly, seeing the change in him. He turned to the salesman, “Do you have a bottle of water at all?”

“Yes.” He said, hurrying to the back room and returning quickly with a bottle of water in hand.

“Jake, take a drink man,” Bradley ordered, “Slow deep breaths and concentrate on taking a few sips of water.”

Jake took the bottle, sipping slowly, trying to stay focused on just taking oxygen into his lungs and slowing his heart rate.

“If you’re not ready for this, we can totally come back another day.” Bradley assured him, “You don’t have to jump into anything. There is absolutely no rush.”

“It’s not that.” Jake whispered, “I am ready. I love her. I want to marry her… it just… it got real… and every time I’ve ever gotten really close to actual happiness or my life being really good… it’s all gotten yanked from under me. I guess… I just… panicked.”

“I get that.” Bradley said, putting his hand on Jake’s shoulder. “It’s easy to panic when things go well and everything falls into place when you’re so used to it all going to hell or the floor dropping out from under you when you think you’re on solid ground. But one thing I’ve managed to learn since coming back to Top Gun and even more recently since meeting your sister… is sometimes… it’s ok to trust the good stuff. Life doesn’t always have to suck. People don’t always leave. It’s ok to let others in.”

“The world won’t come crashing down?” Jake asked, a small smile finally making its way to his lips as he glanced over to Bradley.

“Nope.” Bradley replied, returning the smile, “The world just gets bigger and brighter. It gives you even more reason to come home. Hell, man it makes this life MORE worth living. Because let’s face it, were we REALLY living before we let those women in? Honestly?”

“I’d call it more existing.” He agreed. “Ok… this is me… trusting that the universe is not going to turn against me here. I’m going to buy the ring, and when the moment is right, I’m asking Nat to marry me.”

“And we’ll all be there to celebrate the two of you when she says ‘yes’.” Bradley said, clapping him on the back. “Come on, it’s time to go drain your bank account.”

“Worse case scenario, we find that really big house that Gracie wants and we all live together to help cut down on other expenses.” Jake teased, walking over to the counter. “Sorry about that, Sir. What’s the damage?”

“Nothing I’ve not seen before, I assure you.” He smiled gently, before giving him the total. It wasn’t nearly as bad as either of them imagined. Needless to say Jake would not need to empty any accounts. He did however decide to use his credit card because while it wasn’t an exorbitant amount of money, it wasn’t chump change either. Growing up the way they had, he never felt comfortable running his accounts too low now.

Once the ring had been paid for, the salesman polished the rings and placed them both in separate ring boxes then into a small bag. After thanking him for this help, Jake and Bradley headed out of the store and towards Jake’s truck.

“Alright, now I have to hide this until the right moment…” Jake said, “And try not to panic and word vomit the second I see her.”

“That would not make for a very romantic proposal story for your children one day.” Bradley laughed. “I word vomited after buying Mommy a ring…”

“I think that’s why I love when we get to keep Gracie for Tulip when y’all have date nights.” Jake admitted, “I love watching Nat with her… it’s easy to imagine how it’ll be with our own kids one day.”

“I get it.” Bradley smiled, “I get the same feeling when I’m with Y/N and Gracie. I’d love to have more kids with her too.”

“Gracie needs a baby brother.” Jake agreed, smirking, “Maybe name him Bradford Bradley Bradshaw?”

“You know, I’m really happy nobody suggested that to my parents when they were naming me.” Bradley said, glaring at Jake. “We will not be continuing that trend…I won’t do that to my kid.”

Your POV

After the trek to the Disney store, where Gracie had indeed found the perfect dress and matching accessories (Nat had insisted they were needed), you all stopped for lunch before heading back to the house. You ended up pulling into the driveway at the same time as Jake and Bradley.

“Where did you lovely ladies adventure to?” Jaked asked, getting out of the truck.

“Unco Jakey!” Gracie called from the backseat, “Out! Out! Pwease!”

“You’re being paged, Uncle Jakey.” You laughed, as you got out and went around to the trunk. “We went to get party supplies for Gracie’s party and then Aunty Nix insisted on a trip to the Disney Store for Gracie Girl’s outfit for the party.”

“Let me grab the bags, Sweetheart.” Bradley said, coming over and stealing a kiss, “Missed you this morning.”

“Missed you too,” You smiled, kissing him back. “Did you and Jake have fun?”

“Yeah, it was good.” He replied, smirking, “We accomplished our mission.”

“You’re not gonna tell me what it was are you?” You asked, laughing.

“Nope.” He confirmed, “Not happening, Baby.”

“Worth a shot.” You shrugged, smiling, “Come on, let’s get this inside. Gracie needs to go down for a nap.”

Phoenix came around and helped the two of you carry all of the bags inside while Jake carried Gracie into the house. You put all the bags with supplies in the laundry room for the time being so they were out of the way.

“Gracie, it's time for your nap, sweet girl.” You said, finding her sitting on Jake’s lap on the couch, telling him all about the Disney Store.

“You can show me your dress when you wake up my sweet Princess G.” Jake promised.

“Ok, Unco Jakey.” She agreed. “Daddy, you take me nite nite?”

“I sure will, Princess.” Bradley smiled at her, walking over to scoop her up into his arms. “Give Mommy hugs and kisses first.”

“Sweet dreams, Gracie girl.” You said, hugging and kissing your daughter. “Love you.”

“Wuv you too Mommy.” She replied, hugging you back. “Wuv you Aunty Nix and Unco Jakey.”

“We love you too.” They replied as Bradley carried her off to bed.

Bradley left after Gracie woke up to go get ready for your date. He hadn’t wanted to leave while she was sleeping and risk upsetting her. As promised she immediately demanded to show off her new princess dress and accessories to Jake as soon as she’d woken up. You and Phoenix helped her into the outfit and she paraded into the living room to show her uncle. You knew right away you’d have your hands full once she hit the teenage years.

“Wow, Princess G.” Jake exclaimed, “You look absolutely beautiful, sweetheart! Just like a real life princess!”

Gracie beamed at the praise, twirling in the living room to show off the dress, full of giggles. All three of you had your phones out snapping pictures and taking video.

“You’re going to be the prettiest princess in all the land and especially the prettiest at your party, Sweet Girl.” You told her. “Let’s take it off though for now so it doesn't get ruined before your party ok? Do you want to put on one of your costume Disney dresses?”

“Yes pwease!” She exclaimed, not quite ready to be done with dress up, but not wanting to ruin her new dress either.

A while later, Jake and Phoenix send you off to go get ready for your date, taking over with Gracie. You’re not exactly sure what Bradley has planned but you know it doesn’t involve blanket forts this time. You took a quick shower and freshened up, opting to not wash your hair as that would take too much time to style afterwards.

You went through your closet, not really sure what to wear. You really needed to think about expanding your wardrobe, but really hated to shop for yourself.

“Nat!” You called out from your open door, a towel wrapped around you, “I’m having a wardrobe crisis!”

“On my way!” She yelled from the kitchen where she was helping Jake cook. A minute later she slipped into the room, “Alright, what do we have to work with?”

“Not much.” You sighed, “I don’t know where we’re going or what we’re doing and I don’t have a whole lot of options.”

“Ok, no worries.” She assured you, “We’ll find something. You’ve got some pretty dresses, we can glam up or make them casual depending on what we need. Want to text Rooster to find out what the evening calls for?”

“Good idea.” You replied, “I’ll just call him though. It’s faster.” You grab your phone from the bed and call Bradley.

“Hey, Sweetheart,” He answered, “Everything ok?”

“No.” You replied, sighing “I have no idea what to wear because I don’t know where we’re going and I’m currently hating my closet.”

“Ok, well that’s an easy fix.” He laughed, “I’m sorry you’re hating your closet, Sweetheart. We can go shopping and find clothes you don’t hate. I’ll even happily carry all your bags and will make sure you have an unlimited supply of iced coffees while we shop.”

“I love you.” You replied, smiling, all of the anxiety that had been building suddenly melted away, “I’m sorry for the mini freak out.”

“I love you too.” He replied, “And you’re allowed any sized freak out whenever. You don’t have to apologize for that. As for the date tonight… I’m picking up take out and we’re having a picnic on the beach. Then coming home to get comfy and cuddle in bed and watch a movie and eat snacks. Does that help?”

“Yes.” You replied, “It helps a lot. And it sounds absolutely perfect.”

“I’ll pick you up in a little bit, Sweetheart.” He promised, “I love you.”

“I’ll be ready.” You replied, “Love you too.”

After hanging up you took a deep cleansing breath then turned to Phoenix.

“Ok, we need something for a beach picnic.” You said, “Then we’re going back to his house and watching a movie and eating snacks, so I’ll just steal one of his tshirts at that point. The man is literally perfect.”

“He definitely knows how to read you.” She smiled, “Last night he was trying to decide between a big fancy dinner date or a more low key just the two of you no pressure kinda date. I’m guessing the phone call just now may have tipped the scales.”

“Oh God, you mean he may have had reservations somewhere and just completely threw his plan out the window because I’m a basketcase?” You said, on the verge of another freak out.

“And even if he did,” Phoenix assured you, “He would be absolutely fine in canceling it and changing it last minute if it meant making you happy. That man will do literally anything in his power if it puts a smile on your face. But more importantly, that’s what we do for those we love… we adjust as the situation calls for it. Jake and I would do the same for one another. It’s normal, Y/N.”

“I’ve never had ‘normal’” You admitted, “But, I would do the same for him.”

“See? Perfectly normal and healthy relationship.” She smiled, “Now, come on, let’s get you ready and on your way to your perfect date.”

Twenty minutes later you were dressed in a simple maxi skirt with a tshirt knotted at the waist and a pair of sandals. You were alerted to Bradley’s arrival by Gracie’s squeal of delight at her Daddy walking in the front door..

You made your way out to the living room to find Bradley already on the floor playing with Gracie. Jake and Phoenix were in the kitchen finishing up getting dinner ready for the three of them.

“You look beautiful, Sweetheart.” Bradley said looking up and smiling from his spot on the floor.

“Thank you.” You replied, smiling back at him, “You’re looking pretty handsome yourself.”

“Princess G, dinner’s ready.” Jake said coming out of the kitchen, looking over at you he smiled, “You look beautiful, Tulip.”

“Thanks Jakey.” You smiled back, “And thank you again for keeping Gracie tonight.”

“No thanks needed for that!” Jake replied, “I never turn down time with my favorite Princess.”

Bradley stood up and scooped Gacie up with him, hugging her and giving her lots of kisses making her giggle.

“Daddy!” She exclaimed, “That tickles!”

“Just getting all the kisses to power me up!” He reasoned, chuckling.

“Come give Mommy hugs and kisses, Gracie.” You said, holding your hands out to her and taking her from Bradley. “I love you, Sweet girl. Be good for Uncle Jakey and Aunty Nix and Mommy will see you tomorrow, ok?”

“Ok, Mommy.” She said, hugging you back, “I wuv you too!”

You set her down and she ran off to the kitchen.

“Have fun you two.” Jake said, winking, “See you tomorrow.”

“Thanks, man,” Bradley said, “Ready to go, Sweetheart?”

“I am,” You replied, “Let me grab my bag quickly.”

Bradley drove you to a semi private beach and pulled the Bronco into a parking spot. He came around to open your door and help you down from the passenger seat before reaching into the back to grab a blanket and a picnic basket before taking your hand and leading you down to the beach.

“Where did you find an actual picnic basket?” You asked him, as you walked to a secluded part on the beach.

“I borrowed it from Penny.” He replied, setting the basket down to spread the blanket out on the sand. You helped him to smooth out the corners, slipping your shoes off to set at the edge.

“Did you change plans last minute because I was freaking out?” You asked, wanting to confirm Phoenix’s theory.

“I decided in the moment that this would be more in line with what you needed is all.” He replied, smiling softly, “I know this week is going to be a lot for you and the last thing I wanted was to add to the stress and anxiety. This way it’s just the two of us, no stress or pressure.”

“I love you so much, Bradley.” You beamed, leaning over towards where he was seated and softly kissing him, “You’re so good to me, I’m so lucky to have you.”

“I love you too, Sweetheart.” He replied, kissing you back, “And I am the lucky one. You’ve literally given me a family, Baby… so much more than I ever thought I’d have in my life.”

“We’re not going anywhere.” You smiled. “Gracie and I are all yours.”

Bradley pulled out the food from the basket along with glasses and a bottle of wine. He’d picked up Italian take out from the restaurant you’d gone to on your first date.

“Recreating our first date?” You asked, smiling.

“The good parts.” He replied, filling your glass of wine. “Let’s change the ending though.”

“I’ll drink to that.” You laughed. “I’d say your odds of getting me in bed tonight are VERY good, Lieutenant.”

“I can work with those odds.” He smirked, “That would make for a much better ending than the first date for sure.”

“It would indeed.” You agreed. “Although, technically you got me in bed that night too.”

The two of you ate your dinner, talking, laughing and flirting with one another. You only drank a couple glasses of the wine, Bradley only drinking one because he was driving. You put the cork back into the bottle to save it for later.

“Want to go for a walk before we head back to the house?” Bradley asked, once you’d both finished eating.

“That sounds perfect.” You replied.

He stood up and reached his hand down to help you up. You both left your shoes on the blanket, walking barefoot in the sand along the water. You walked hand in hand just enjoying the beautiful evening. The sun was starting to dip lower in the sky, casting a pinkish glow to the horizon.

“The other day, when Gracie and I were playing, I asked her what she was building…” Bradley said, stopping and pulling you around to face him. “She told me she was building a big castle for you, me and her to live in… and Uncle Jake and Aunty Nix.”

“That would need to be a pretty big castle.” You smiled.

“I don’t think we’ll find any big castles in southern California near the naval base.” Bradley said, “But… I would really love for you and Gracie to move in with me…or for us to find a place closer to Jake if need be for Gracie…I just really want to live with my girls. Will you and Gracie live with me, Sweetheart?”

“We absolutely will!” You smiled widely, wrapping your arms around his neck, your fingers threading into his hair, “Your house is already perfect, Bradley. There’s no need to find anything new. We just want to be with you too.”

“I talked to Jake about it already,” He admitted, “I wasn’t sure how Gracie would do with being separated from him again. We came up with a plan… it involves occasional sleepovers at Uncle Jake’s on the weekends and a trip to Disneyland to soften the blow.”

“So bribery?” You laughed.

“Yup!” Bradey agreed, “Also, I figured we’d recreate her Princess room for her at our house… so it’ll be a win-win for her.”

“I think the fact that she’ll be living with YOU full time will be enough of an enticement.” You smiled, “I like the sound of that though, ‘our house’.”

“As of right now Sweetheart, that’s exactly what it is.” He said.

“In that case,” You said, “How about we go collect our stuff and go home, Lieutenant?”

“That’s a fantastic idea.” He agreed, leaning down to capture your lips before spinning you both around and heading back down the beach towards your stuff.

Bradley pulled the Bronco into the driveway, shutting off the ignition and getting out to come around to help you out. Instead of helping you down from the Bronco, he swept you up into his arms, carrying you bridal style towards the house.

“Bradley!” You exclaimed, laughing, “What are you doing?”

“I’m carrying you over the threshold into our home.” He replied, winking at you as he carefully maneuvered to unlock the door without dropping you. “It’s tradition.”

“I don’t think that applies to moving in together.” You answered, smiling at him, “That’s marriage.”

“Well, we’re making our own rules here.” He said, stepping into the house and kicking the door closed with his foot. “Welcome home, Sweetheart.”

“I love you,” You said, pulling his head down to kiss him gently.

“I love you too.” He replied against your lips, “I can’t wait to move you and Gracie in here” He let you slide down so you were standing in front of him, but kept you wrapped in his arms. Leaning down again to place gentle kisses along your jawline, moving to your ear and down your neck.

“And when do you think you’re wanting that to happen?” You ask, your fingers threading into his hair, your head tipping to the slide to allow him easier access to your neck.

“Tomorrow too soon?” He asked, nipping at your ear, causing a shiver to run down your body.

“We might need more than a day to get things ready and to make that happen.” You replied, your voice shaky, “But we’ll go with soon.”

“ASAP.” He said, kissing his way back up before claiming your lips, his tongue slipping into your mouth meeting your own. His hands moved down over the curve of your hips, around to your butt, pulling you tighter into him.

Your hands wandered down to the buttons on his shirt, undoing them one by one until you could slide the shirt off his shoulders, letting it pool on the floor at his feet. He was left in a white fitted tank top that you quickly pulled from where it was tucked into his jeans and pushed it up and off of him with his help, throwing it to land with his other shirt. You let your fingers wander over his broad shoulders, gently tracing a scar on his left shoulder…moving up on your tiptoes to gently trail kisses where your fingers had been, drawing a soft moan from Bradley. His hands are resting on your hips, giving you free reign at the moment. You continue to trail soft kisses over his chest, sternum, and collarbone, moving up to your tiptoes to kiss along the scar on his neck , letting your tongue lick along the raised edge.

“Shit, Baby, you’re driving me crazy.” He groaned, his voice thick with need, “You’re so fucking hot.”

“You’re pretty damn hot yourself, Roo.” You said, nipping at the sensitive skin on his neck by his ear. “Feel like moving this to our bedroom?”

“Jesus, Sweetheart.” He rasped, lifting you off the ground, causing you to laugh and wrap your legs around him as best as you could with your skirt in the way. He hurried up the stairs to the master bedroom, not stopping until he was in the room and falling with you onto the bed, causing you both to erupt into a fit of giggles.

“Hi.” You whispered, once you’d both stopped giggling. You were lying under him on the bed, he was bracing himself on his arms to keep the majority of his weight off of you.

“Hi, Baby.” He replied, leaning down to peck your lips in a soft gentle kiss, before moving down to slowly trail kisses to your neck and the shell of your ear, whispering “I think you’re wearing too many clothes.”

“What do you plan to do about it.” You asked, squirming against him, trying to gain friction where you needed it the most.

In reply, he sat back up, pulling you with him. He continued to kiss over your neck as he hands ran over sides, to the knot at the front of your tshirt undoing it and pulling it up over your head. He tossed the shirt off to the side, not caring where it landed.

“You’re so damn beautiful, Sweetheart.” He said, his eyes roaming over the skin he’d exposed. His hands ghosted over your breasts, moving to your shoulders, bending his head to allow his mouth to follow the path of his hands. He reached around to undo the clasp of your bra, before gently peeling it away from your body and tossing it to join your shirt on the floor. “Lay back, Baby.”

You laid back against the pillow, giving him easy viewing access to your now half naked self.

“Bradley” You moaned, “Please… I need you…” You could feel an ache building deep inside that only Bradley would be able to satiate.

“What do you need, Sweetheart?” He asked, leaning down to plant kisses over your collarbone, moving down towards the tops of your breasts. His hand moves to your right breast, gently squeezing before his thumb rubs over the sensitive nipple.

“Need you to touch me” You begged, your hands threading into his hair.

“I am touching you.” He teased, chuckling. He dipped his head down, his hot tongue licking over your nipple before taking the whole thing into his mouth, sucking hard and effectively stopping any train of thought you were capable of. You gasped, moaning his name, your fingers tightening in his hair.

“Brad…” You cry out, releasing your fingers from his hair and moving your hands down over his shoulders to his back, fingers digging into him wherever you can reach. “Fuck… feels so good.”

He moved his hands down to the waistband of your skirt, his mouth following over your skin, trailing kisses down your torso before he’s sitting up, and tugging off your skirt and panties in one motion. You let out a breathy giggle at his sudden impatience to have you completely naked.

“Now you’re the one wearing too many clothes, Lieutenant.” You teased, sitting up. You move your hands to the button of his jeans, undoing it and slowly lowering the zipper, your hands brushing against his arousal in the process. With the newly found access, you run your hand over his hardened cock now only covered by his boxers, wrapping your fingers around as best as you can, stroking him with his pants still around his hips.

“Baby, as fucking amazing as that feels,” He moaned, “I have other plans that don’t include me coming in my boxers with you stroking me off.”

“Hmm and what do these plans include then?” You asked, smiling at him innocently, continuing to apply pressure but moving lower on his shaft.

“You’re a minx.” He growled, grabbing your hands and pinning you back against the bed, his lips capturing yours in a heated kiss, his tongue pushing into your mouth to dance over your own. After a moment he pulled away so you could both catch your breath while he took the time to finally divest himself of his jeans and boxers before moving back up over you. “My turn, Sweetheart.” he said, sliding his hands up your thighs, his thumbs moving to your inner thighs, pulling your legs apart to expose your already wet center.

“All this for me, Baby?” He asked, running one hand over through slick folds, drawing a moan from your lips. He maneuvered himself down onto the bed so he was now lying between your thighs, his broad shoulders now keeping you spread open, his arms coming around to brace himself and cradle your sides. You nearly jolted off the bed at the first swipe of his tongue through your folds, the only thing keeping you secured to the bed was his body. “Fuck you taste good, Sweetheart.”

“Brad…” You whimpered, arching towards him, needing him to sooth the deep ache he’d created in your core. Your hands fisted in the sheets at your sides, desperately trying to anchor yourself to something. “Please…”

“I’ve got you, Baby.” He promised, dipping his head again and licking a stripe through your wet folds once more before latching his mouth to your clit and sucking, causing you to cry out his name. He continued to run his tongue over your pussy and clit, alternating between licking and sucking, driving your pleasure higher and higher. Your hands moved from the deathgrip they had on the sheets, to your fingernails scraping over his shoulders, to finally threading your fingers into his hair, holding his head to you.

“So close…” You gasped, “Bradley…. Gonna cum.” You panted, trying to suck in oxygen, the band of pleasure tightening in your belly, each swipe of his tongue driving you impossibly higher.

“Let go for me, Baby.” He said, looking up at you. He latched his mouth onto your clit, sucking hard as he thrust his ring and middle fingers into your pussy, curling them in a ‘come here’ motion, hitting your g spot. It was enough to snap the band and send you soaring over the ledge into an intense orgasm, your inner walls clenching down around his fingers.

“Bradley!” You cried out, “Oh fuck!” He continued to slowly move his fingers in and out of your pussy while you rode out the orgasm, waiting for you to come down, kissing your inner thigh and whispering words of praise.

“You doing, OK, Sweetheart?” He asked, smirking up at you from his position.

“Up here… now.” You replied, reaching for him. He happily complied, moving so he was once more leaning over you, his lips coming down to claim yours. You let one hand move to wander over his back, the other moving between you to stroke over his now very hard cock, precum leaking from the tip. “I need you inside me… want you to fill me up, Bradley.”

“Fuck, Sweetheart.” He growled, attacking your lips in a fiery messy kiss, tongues battling for dominance, teeth nipping at your lower lip, before he pulled back to gasp, “Guide me home, Baby.” He returned to kissing you fiercely, bringing his hand up to thread into your hair, his other arm supporting his weight so as not to crush you. You stroked his shaft from base to tip twice before lining him up with your entrance, his tip slipping into your folds, gathering your slickness before he pushed in further. You brought your arm around so both hands were now moving over his back, fingers digging in. You wrapped your legs around his waist, opening up and allowing him more access.

“Don’t tease, Bradley.” You whined, when he still hadn’t pushed all the way in. “Need you, please!” you started to beg.

Unable to deny you, he thrust fully into you, his hips slamming against your own as he fully seated himself inside of you, the tip of his cock hitting your cervix. The movement caused you both to let out a deep moan, clinging to one another in desperate need. He gave you a moment to adjust to his size, even though you’d been sleeping together now since your divorce was finalized, Bradley was still well endowed and you needed a moment to adjust each time.

“I’m good.” You gasped, letting him know he could move now, arching up into him and clenching your inner muscles.

“Oh, shit you feel so damn good, Sweetheart.” He groaned, “Taking me so well…” He started to pull back until he was almost all of the way out and then slammed back down, pushing all of the way in again. He set a steady pace, moving in and out, driving you both closer and closer to a mind shattering orgasm.

“Don’t stop….” You begged, your nails digging into his back, surely leaving crescent shaped marks for later. “So close…please.”

“Not stoppin’, Baby.” He promised, slightly out of breath from the exertion, “You feel so fucking amazing… can’t get enough.” He continued his brutal pace, slamming into you, his cock hitting your g spot with every thrust. He reached between your bodies to rub his thumb over your clit, “Give it to me, Honey, cum on my cock…let me feel it.”

The combination of him hitting so deep, his thumb relentless on your clit and his words, pushed you over the edge. You felt your walls clench down around his cock, trying to lock him inside of you, every muscle in your body tensing up as pleasure washed over your whole body.

“Mmm, shit, Bradley!” You gasped, the pleasure of the second orgasm overwhelming you, this one more intense than the first one, “Fuck… love you… so… much.”

“Jesus you’re squeezing me so tight…” He moaned, close to his own orgasm. His rhythm becoming more erratic, “Love you so fucking much Sweetheart…. So close….. Fuck…. Cumming…” he brought his mouth to yours, capturing your lips in a desperate kiss as ropes of his hot cum painted your inside walls, filling you impossibly full.

Once spent, he collapsed onto you, careful not to crush you. You wrapped your arms around him holding him tightly to you, enjoying the feeling of being connected as you both returned to Earth. After a few moments, he rolled over, taking you with him, so you were now lying on top of him, your head resting on his chest, content to listen to his heartbeat.

“We need to get cleaned up, Sweetheart.” Bradley said quietly after a few minutes, “I should probably get the leftovers out of the Bronco too.”

“I don’t wanna move.” You complained, snuggling in closer to him, causing him to chuckle.

“How about we grab a quick shower, I get the leftovers dealt with, then we cuddle in bed the rest of the night.” He suggested, holding you tighter, “And every night after that… because you and our baby girl are moving in!”

“We are…” You tip your head to look at him smiling brightly, “I can’t wait. I’ll get to go to bed with you and wake up with you every single night…except when you deploy…those nights will suck.”

“Those will be few and far between, Sweetheart.” He said, “We won’t worry about those just yet.”

“Ok.” You agreed, not wanting to focus on anything depressing. “How about tomorrow we talk to Gracie about moving in… maybe we can start looking at some bedroom furniture for her and make a plan on when we can make it official.”

“Sounds perfect.” He said, “Let’s take her to pick out her new bedroom decorations and we can start decorating her room. The sooner that’s ready to go, the sooner I get my girls home.”

“Someone’s impatient.” You teased, turning your head to kiss his chest. “But I get it. I’m ready too. I love you Bradley Bradshaw.”

“I love you too, Y/N Seresin.” He replied, tipping your face up to his and leaning down to gently kiss you, “You’re my whole world, Sweetheart.”

A/N: Sorry this one took so long to get out! Next chapter we return to court! It’s time to free GRACIE! Let me know what you thought of this one! We had a lot of new developments in here <3

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catsflyingg · 10 months

Text

little things you've noticed about dating kenma.

[ things you’ve noticed about kenma while dating him ] you’ve been dating kenma for a few months, and you’ve begun to notice 5 things that he does.

his hands

the way he always finds a way to hold your hands. you could be doing something and just feel something warm and bigger envelope your hand, letting out a hum. “kenma..” you start, closing the gap between you two.

he lets out a hum, his yellow eyes staring at you with such intensity that you began to feel warm. "um - do.. do you wanna go to the mall after you're done with whatever you're doing?" you said, smiling up at to him, feeling him drop his head on your neck, rubbing his cheeks against you, opting out a soft airy laugh out of you. "we can go now."

you blink at his words, "huh? don't you have things to do now?" you furrowed your brows. you didn't want to be a bother if he has things to do.

"i'll do them later, [name]." he said, straightening himself to his full height, tightening his grip on your hand, "let's go." he began to drag you out of the house, and you owlishly stare at him before smiling and walking beside him.

"okay!"

2. his hair

the way kenma parts his hair whenever it's becoming bothersome or when he puts it in a messy low bun or ponytail (which you gush about).

your hands gravitate to kenmas' mop of hair, letting out a sigh. "your hair is so soft, kens." you say, playing with the strands of his hair. he lets out a hum, laying back to you to get more comfortable.

"cause i take care of it." he simply said, a teasing tint to it if you squint just hard enough. you let out an offended gasp, "what are you tryin' to say?! i take very good care of my hair, thank you very much." you huff out, pursing your lips.

"do you now?" kenma looks up to you, eyes half lidded as he smiles to which you playfully slap his shoulders.

"you know i do!"

3. his eyes

the way his eyes always seem to relax whenever kenma sees you. it's quite cute! you always find a way to squish his cheeks just to see his cat like eyes stare up at you in admiration. which you look away in a flustered manner, furrowing your brows. "..you can stop looking at me."

kenma titled his head against your hold, "hm..? why not?" he mused, eyes drooping in awe and admiration. you flush at his teasing, huffing out as you let go of his cheeks. "it's makin' me not focus!" you quickly say, voice rising.

"you can do both, can't you?" he teases, a small cat like smile adorning his lips. his hands grabbing yours to lead them to his cheeks.

you flusteredly stutter out, frowning at his words. “so annoying..” you muttered out.

“but you love me..” he mused, squeezing your hands against his.

4. his lips

the way his lips always seem to find your cheek, lips or anything to place a lovin’ kiss onto. you could be parting your hair, braiding it into twists as you felt something warm and soft on the back of your neck. “kens..” you start out slow, pursing your lips as you paused on what you’re doing. “don’t do that, your lips will be covered in castor oil, babes.” you huff out playfully, feeling him sit on the couch as you were in front of him.

“it’s fine,” kenma says, feeling his cat like eyes on your head. “do you want me to help you finish your hair?” he asks, already getting a loose strand of your hair to twist.

“yeah, that’ll be appreciated.”

5. his nose

the way he always noticed if you used something different on your hair or used a different perfume. you could be trying out a new smell and this mf will appear outta nowhere n be like “u smell nice, are u tryin’ smth new?” while being like 🧍‍♂️… it has been giving you mini heart attacks.

you sprayed some new perfume you bought for the summer, humming as the fruity fragrance floated around and remember the time softly played in your room.

“oh that’s a new smell, are you trying something out?”

and you let out a shriek, turning around to face the cause of your fright. then low and below, your loving boyfriend staring and standing at you in front of your bedroom. “jesus kenma! you can’t just do that!” you huff out, closin the perfume bottle to put it on top of your drawer, putting your hands on your hips as you pout.

kenma walked to you, bringing his hands to rest on your waist, bringing you closer. “sorry princess.” he hums out, not seeming that sorry as he rest his head on top of your head. you roll your eyes at him.

“sure you are kens..”

hi y’all i’m not dead!! sorry if it’s short 🥲 js been doing some stuff regarding w my personal life..! anywayss hope u enjoy this lil’ headcanon??

till next time luvs!! aldo typos?? oopsiee..

#marrywrites #kenma headcanons #haikyuu #haikyuu fluff #livelovelaughkenma #kenma x reader #he's so pretty #fluff #cute #sweet #so sweet that it rots your teeth!!#black reader #kenma x black reader #we love our black girlies #blacklove #blackgirls #female reader

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euphreana · 4 months

Text

Wellp, I felt like writing a companion piece to Nothing To Prove, so…

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Ohoho, you wouldn't BELIEVE the look on her face when I told her who I was dating." Ambrosius laughed. Ballister gave an awkward grin. "She wouldn't talk to either of us for a month after." "Hooo, I wish I'd been there for it!" Nimona slapped him on the back, laughing.

The car they were riding in slowed to a halt as the autopilot slid the passenger doors open. Then it happened. It was only a moment - a fraction of a second - a whirring of hover-brakes, then the horrible crunch of metal against metal as the world tumbled sideways, falling over itself until it landed upside down. Ballister blinked, taking a minute to realize he was laying on his back.

A moment later, Nimona appeared in front of his face. "Boss! Boss are you hurt?" Ballister grunted and tried to sit up. "I'm fine… I think." He touched his fingers to a bloody scrape on his face and winced. "What happened?" "That truck - it just - it just came out of nowhere!" "What…" Ballister blinked and looked at the wreck that had knocked him back several meters. Both machines were a mess - metal and glass littering the ground. There was a flash of bleached hair from behind an oversized piece of debris. "Ambrosius!"

It only took a moment for Ballister to pull the debris away, revealing Ambrosius facedown on the street, unmoving. Ballister knelt at his side, hurriedly rolling him onto his back. Ambrosius stared up at him with a dazed expression. "Ambrosius?" No response. Ballister placed a gentle hand on the side of his boyfriend's face. "Ambrosius, can you hear me?" The blond knight didn't move. Not even a blink.

Nimona came up behind them slowly. "Is he okay?" Ballister said nothing, trying to process what was happening. "Oh…" Nimona's voice came, "He isn't breathing!" Ballister didn't ask how she knew. "Go… go get help!" Nimona was gone in an instant.

Ballister turned back to Ambrosius. He pressed his fingers against his neck, trying to find a pulse. Nothing. No movement. No breathing. No pulse. Just a lifeless stare. Ballister's hands shook as realization set in.

Instinct took over. He'd trained for this. He knew what to do. One hand on the other. Center of the chest. 5 centimeters deep. Ballister could feel ribs snapping under his hands as he pressed down. He pulled back, biting back tears. This was correct. He pressed down again. Again. Again. Again.

Ballister could hear voices behind him. That didn't matter. He needed to focus. 30 presses. 2 breaths. 5 times. Check for improvement. Any sign of a pulse. Any sign of breathing. "No no no…” Ballister whispered. “Come on Ambrosius, breathe… Please breathe!" He went through the motions robotically, trying to control the thoughts flashing through his head. The goofy smiles given over breakfast… gone forever. The tickle attacks in the middle of movies… gone forever. No. No, this had to work!

Nimona returned. Ballister was dimly aware of her saying something. 28. 29. 30 presses. Now breathe. Nimona placed a hand on his shoulder. "I said let me try." "NO!" Ballister turned, swatting her hand away. "I can do this!" Nimona stepped back, hands up. "Okay, okay."

There was a cough. Then a whole fit of coughing. Ballister turned back to Ambrosius. The blond knight's eyes moved. Then blinked. Ballister leaned forward. "Ambrosius?" Ambrosius looked up at him. "… Bal?" his wavering voice whispered. He coughed again, then his eyes focused and he gave a pained smile. "Hey."

Ballister broke down. Every fear that had worked its way into his mind melted away like the tears running down his face. "Oh…" was all he could get out. "Oh thank Gloreth. Thank Gloreth…" He felt a gentle hand on his arm as Ambrosius's voice came again. "It's okay, Bal. I'm going to live." The words were a comfort after the terror Ballister had felt, and he clasped Ambrosius's hand between his own. Ambrosius smiled again. "I'm going to live." he repeated, seemingly more to himself than to anyone else. Then his eyes closed. "Ambrosius!" Ballister dropped the hand and leaned forward. Pulse was beating steadily. Breathing was regular. He was still alive.

It took a moment for the sirens to register. Several medics shoved past him. Ballister wanted to push them away, but Nimona stopped him. "He's going to be okay," was all she said.

Ballister watched, still sitting on the pavement as the medics loaded his boyfriend into the back of the vehicle hovering nearby. Then they were gone. Another medic was telling him he should go in too, even if he felt fine. He didn't feel fine. "Nimona…" Nimona appeared in front of him. "Yeah Boss?"

Without thinking, he wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. Nimona was caught off guard for a moment, then relaxed and returned the hug.

They were all going to be okay.

#and that's the story!#might still post this to ao3 #I'm curious if anyone on there would read it #I'm also curious if anyone reads this before the comic #let me know if you did and what you thought!#nimona #ballister boldheart #ballister x ambrosius #ambrosius goldenloin #ambrosius x ballister #nimona fanfic #nothing to prove #stories #fics #I heard you liked angst #so we put angst in your angst

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qinluofu · 11 months

Text

⊹﹒blue lock boys + younger sibling headcanons ♡

michael kaiser, sae & rin & oliver aiku reacting to a gn!younger sibling who just received an anonymous confession letter

masterlists ^o^

KAISER would think the confession is mid. it's just a letter and you're already fawning this hard ?? the person should've at least paired it with a rose bouquet and some nice gifts too. but noo, it was just a simple letter.

he outright snatches it from you and tells you it's a waste of time and you shouldn't be trying to investigate who sent it to you any further. you think he's being mean but really, he'd never admit he's just protective of you.

after taking the letter for himself, he quickly investigates it on his own. he WILL be texting all his friends about it & asking allll the players in the soccer club. so thanks to kaiser your confession is basically public now.

a few days later, the situation died down and no one brought it up anymore but kaiser never seemed to let the situation go. he started to pick you up from school everyday, waiting for you outside the locker room and also visiting you at lunch to tell you the most random and unnecessary things ever .

SAE & RIN said "lukewarm" at the same time, and stared at each other - giving the "don't copy me" look while you stood between them, letter in your hands. rin thinks the confession is absolute bullshit and sae thinks the confession is someone pranking you and they would be so confused like ??.

these two would always get over each other's personal beef just to protect you. everytime you were alone at lunch they'd automatically be at the seat right next to you, doting on you. not to mention that your social media is always stalked by them too, they see your every post & story, they check your every follower and following and the following of the followers too. they know your every friend and your every gossip and as far as they're aware, there's only 2 guys who you were close with, one being gay and the other already taken.

so who the hell was this anonymous person that just decided to randomly plop in out of nowhere and write a shitty letter to you ?? they were very frustrated the next few days and you were just like :|, the letter wasn't anything special to you but to your brothers it was like the devil had knocked on their door and had taken your soul away.

even as you grow up, they still bring it up, at least twice a month, and they would have the most serious expression ever, telling you, "don't ever accept random confessions without telling us beforehand, okay?" and you'd just nod along wanting them to drop it already. jesus.

OLIVER AIKU is happier than you are. he thinks it's like god has given him a blessing, that you and him are the world's undefeated players. on your way home, he tells you all the tips and tricks about how to get someone whipped for you, how to gaslight someone, how to appear offline in instagram even if you're online, et cetera.

and you just want him to shut the hell up already, giving him the "are you serious?" face. your brother was hot, he was those stereotypical jock guys who has had 25 different partners, every week there'd be a different one knocking at your door and you had just received your first confession letter, seriously.

when the both of you arrived home, oliver went to social media to flex about his younger sibling getting a confession letter. something along the lines of "following my footsteps" and "rizzler" ( you blocked him after he tagged you on 5 different posts about it ). you were slightly embarrassed as you walked into school the next day as his friend group teased you about it.

nevertheless, it was a funny experience for the both of you.

note : definitely went overboard with sae & rin but yolo , should i write more siblings au or should i write romance more ?

#sae itoshi x reader #rin itoshi x reader #itoshi siblings #sae itoshi #rin itoshi #michael kaiser #oliver aiku #kaiser x reader #aiku x reader #sae x reader #rin x reader #bllk #blue lock #itoshi archive fics #sae itoshi x y/n #rin itoshi x y/n #oliver aiku x y/n #michael kaiser x y/n

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zzprompto · 7 months

Text

☆ the way you look at him

clive rosfield x male reader [he / him] (main - joshua rosfield x male reader)

sypnosis: clive watches as his younger brother falls in love with his childhood best friend. (clive and [name] pairing is meant to be platonic, joshua and [name] pairing is meant to be romantic.)

the lowercase is intentional !

- ffxvi spoilers under the cut

clive always saw joshua and [name] together. the two were always together, no matter where they were or whoever else was with them. it was almost as if the two always ended up finding eachother.

clive felt happy for his younger brother. it was nice to see how happy joshua looked whenever he was with [name]. clive was just glad his brother had a friend, even though if the two weren't both men people would assume they were dating.

the first time [name] and joshua met was when they were both 10. clive was out on the training grounds, practicing different sword tricks to help become a better shield for the phoenix of rosaria. joshua was coming to watch before he tripped and landed on his face. clive rushed to help, before was cut off by a young boy who brought joshua back up on his feet.

joshua coughed a little as he stood up on his feet again, slightly wobbling. he then turned to the boy who helped him and smiled, bowing a little. "thank you.." the phoenix spoke. the young boy nodded and smiled back. "no problem, i'm [name]. i didn't think i'd get to see the phoenix!" [name] exclaimed, being an estatic 10 year old in the presence of joshua.

clive also smiled as he watched the two young boys interact from a distance. he was happy his brother finally found a friend and that joshua wouldn't have to cling to him and jill now, even if he didn't mind joshua's presence really. clive went back to practicing his sword skills, occasionally stealing glances of joshua and [name].

months passed, leading joshua and [name] to grow closer and closer and closer. the two were inseparable, even though they had only known eachother for such a small amount of time. clive always saw the two boys together. he was looking out for his brother most of the time, even if joshua was out playing with [name]. clive was the older brother, so it was only natural to feel worried about his younger brother.

joshua and [name] would play in the streets of rosalith, they'd chase after torgal or sneak up on clive and jill. it was all good fun and it'd end up in the two boys laughing and giggling a bunch later. joshua loved it so much, he often thought about the times he and [name] spent together when they were younger. however, he wasn't going to admit that.

then, the inevitable happened. joshua was sent to phoenix gate with his father and brother, whilst [name] stayed in rosalith, awaiting for his best friend's return. clive remembered the look on [name]'s face after he heard of the news. [name] was devistated, he didn't want to be alone from his friend. yet, it was joshua's duty, and [name] was of no position to change that.

all of the chaos then struck... a second eikon of fire appearing out of nowhere, joshua missing and supposedly dead, and rosalith being invaded by another foreign army.

luckily, [name] and his family managed to flee rosalith, finding themselves residing elsewhere for the time being. the 10 year old [name] was devistated. he didn't want to be apart from joshua. his heart ached, yearned for his best friend to be okay, for his best friend to come back to him. yet, he'd only hear from his friend years later.

18 years later, clive, joshua and [name] all reunited. joshua and [name] had found eachother around 5 years earlier on accident, but they've been by eachothers side ever since, and clive could tell.

clive saw the way joshua looked at [name]. it wasn't the innocent, sweet look in his eyes that he had when he was younger, it was a different look, a look that had a deeper meaning behind it. clive thought it looked like.. love. but that couldn't be, could it? two men in valisthea, his own brother for that sake! he couldn't believe it.

then, clive noticed the way joshua was practically all over [name]. joshua spent time with clive, yes, but he always ran back to [name], no matter what. the two of them stayed by eachother's side all the time. clive thought it was because the two of them were best friends and they had a lot to catch up with, but he was wrong. he was so wrong.

the older rosfield brother realised his younger brother was in love. joshua was in love with [name] even if the two were men. it all made sense. everything came into place, everything since the beginning. clive couldn't believe it. how could he not have noticed?

clive rushes to find joshua who's hanging around the hideaway on his own, no sign of [name] this time. clive then put his hands on joshua's shoulders, looking into his eyes deeply. "joshua.. you have something to tell me, don't you?" the ravenette spoke.

joshua was caught a little off guard by his older brother's sudden approach, but he realised what clive meant. "yes. i do have something to tell you, yet you already know what i want to say." joshua sighed, shaking his head slightly. "please do not hate me, brother. i didn't think i'd feel this way towards [name], but alas i cannot change how i feel."

clive wrapped his arms around joshua's frame, smiling. "how could i be angry at you, joshua?" he chuckled, squeezing the phoenix tight. "i was just shocked at first, but then i realised and it made sense." clive spoke quietly, not wanting anyone to hear this conversation between him and his brother.

"i see the way you look at him, the way the two of you are all over eachother and such.. the two of you are so obvious, you should be glad more people haven't found out, or else something worse could happen." clive spoke again before pulling away from joshua. he kept a smile on his face, truly happy for his brother.

joshua nods, smiling back at his brother. "i'm glad you are not angry at me, brother. i didn't think you'd take this so.. well, lightly." joshua shook his head, his thoughts weighing him down.

"go, tell him." clive whispered, putting a hand on one of joshua's shoulder. "go." joshua nods again and he sets off to find [name].

clive couldn't be more happier for [name] and joshua. he saw the way everything played out, but he didn't even realise! 18 years he thought that the two best friends would only stay best friends, but that's not the case anymore. he's glad, really glad.

"go.. joshua.." clive whispered out again as he saw joshua run off after [name], a tear rolling down his cheek.

☆ requests ▪︎ masterlist

☆ author's note: i'll try do requests, but it might take long :( this is so bad lmao

#joshua rosfield #joshua rosfield x male reader #joshua rosfield x reader #clive rosfield #clive rosfield x male reader #clive rosfield x reader #rosfields #rosfield brothers #final fantasy 16 #final fantasy xvi #ffxvi #ff16 #x male reader #x reader #gay #mlm #foryou

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frogchiro · 2 years

Note

I think foxboy!childe would be so cute when having to take care of your pups alone for the first time. Let’s say some time has passed since you’ve given birth, and you tell him you’re leaving the cottage for a bit to have a day for yourself. He’d look so adorable pouting and holding up the pups as you kiss each of their foreheads goodbye 🥺 and while you’re out, he’d be chasing down the rambunctious pups, playing games with them, and just getting overwhelmed when one baby starts crying since they realized you’ve been gone for hours, the rest follow too. Then when you come back, Childe and the pups greet you with wagging tails, and all smiles. He is so relieved! And his heart warms realizing how well you adjusted to motherhood, especially throwing in the fox hybrid babies in the mix.

PAPA FOX CHILDE CARING FOR HIS PUPPIES FOR THE FIRST TIME ALL ALONE

f!reader, hybrids, implied breastfeeding, fluff!

it's really not that he's terrified or doesn't want to spend time one on one with his babies it's just...ever since they were born it was always both of you, whether it be inside his den or back in your cottage it was still mostly you who stayed with the pups with childe busy foraging for food but he'd never ever stay away too far or for too long because he despises being away from his family, so yeah, even if one was gone for a moment the other was always there.

but now after a few month the puppies are much more independent and lively than normal human babies, crawling everywhere and even trying to stand up on their own, their wide curious eyes taking in the big world around them, their tiny ears moving around at any given sound. seeing that the pups are too busy with exploring now, you thought that it would be a good idea to 'take the day off' and go for a day to the nearby town since it was a hot while since you got to have a moment only to yourself. so after informing childe who is now pouting more than your babies and kissing all of them goodbye you set off for your little adventure leaving the kids with their daddy to care for them.

being so used to your constant presence around childe was a bit down for a bit, he already missed you and wanted to scent you all over but he also really understood you well; caring for a litter of 5 very active pups all the time was a real chore and although he was hovering and there all the time too he really wanted to give you time only for yourself so he happily stayed with the playful babes.

and it was going all well! amazing even! ever since the pups grew up a little and were much more active now, he loved watching them explore and play with each other, even play chasing them himself! his buchy red tail was wagging like crazy when all 5 of his puppies climbed onto him, the day spend on fun, love and many happy tiny howls <3

it was only when he noticed that it was already getting dark and you were still nowhere to be found and he started to get worried and his heart broke in two when the youngest of the litter, his lovely little daughter started whimpering with longing after her mommy; the rest of the puppies soon following after and with ears flat to his head he comforted his children as best as he could while also wondering where you could be.

it was only a few moments later when he heard the sound of you climbing into the den and appearing a few seconds later all bright and smiling, all the pups clumsily ran to you to lick and cuddle to their momma, nipping your breasts in search for food since they were hungry.

after settling down and allowing your babies to climb into your lap and feed, it was only then that you began to tell childe all about your day and apologizing that you were so late and made him worry but you ran into some of your friends back in town and you didn't even notice it was this late.

ofc childe would never make you feel bad or guilty, telling you that he spent an amazing day with his babies and he was just happy that you could go and have fun <3

#kin speaks #asks #interactions #i want a hubby like childe :(((#genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact fatui #fatui x reader #childe x reader #tartaglia x reader

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bonebabbles · 7 months

Text

Riverstar's Home Finished

It's a good book in the last 5 chapters. It's a bad book in the first 23.

THE GOOD:

It pumped the breaks BIG TIME on Clear Sky's ridiculous "redemption arc," giving him the space to be the fantastic, greedy villain he functions best as.

The dialogue is written very well. It's been pointed out to me that generally Kate Cary writes good dialogue, and it really shows. There are some excellent lines and quotes in this book.

This scene between Tall Shadow and River Ripple is superb.

Riverstar's arc is handled competently. It's a story about learning to balance peace and self-defense, and not lose what makes him special in the face of Clan pressure.

Night, Riverstar's deputy, is a woman who remains his platonic friend. This is a very low bar but it was cleared.

Arc is a positive portrayal of an adoptive parent, though it is only mentioned briefly. Riverstar thinks highly and lovingly of him.

Gray Wing being angry tutorial tips every time Riverstar died was funny.

Clan cats being able to create rafts and use willowbark as binding is now canon

The ending action is commendable. The struggle over the bridge was compelling, and excellently showcased both Riverstar as a unique perspective who handles conflict in his own way, and Skystar as a xenophobic dictator who uses his religion to justify his greed.

THE BAD:

So many characters come out of nowhere, they are introduced endlessly.

Which especially sucks because those intros aren't terrible, but you don't get the chance to see their traits in action.

A lot of Riverstar's most interesting traits have been removed, or are not complimented by the story.

For example; in Chapter 19 he starts having an identity crisis about who he is and what makes him special; but because he's frustrated and lost about this for several chapters, you just get Grumpy Riverstar until he has his epiphany while fighting Slash.

MOST of this book is recap that destroys a MASSIVE draw of the character by making him less mysterious.

For example; Turns out he couldn't swim until the second book of DOTC, he hasn't been in this territory longer than the other cats, and he spent 6 months locked in a house doing nothing.

It's a real slog and PACKED with filler. God it's boring. The first 18 chapters have nothing to do with the last few and 5 more are dedicated to traveling.

They managed to brutally kill another female character (Flutter) in an arc already notorious for its misogyny, give her no speaking lines before that death, and forced blubbering romantic pining onto a character who was popular in large part because he didn't have that.

His new mate, Finch (later Finch Song), appears suddenly in chapter 24, three quarters of the way through the book, and they fall in love at breakneck pace. She's pregnant 4 chapters later.

Finch also ends up giving up everything she loved, her whole life, including her friends and family, to follow Riverstar home and give him biokittens so he can finally get over Flutter. (they dont even name a kid after her)

Final rating: 4/10 Should have been a novella

It's not as fucking awful as Onestar's Concussion or Leopardstar's Hernia. It is a readable enough book and does have a solid ending, but you could skip more than half of the book and miss nothing.

Fans of Riverstar will probably be disappointed by the pointless retcons, but will enjoy the last 10 or so chapters when he's true-to-form. The original content that's worth reading would have fit just fine into a novella.

If you want to read it but aren't interested in a DOTC recap, I would recommend just reading the Tall Shadow/River Ripple scene I linked above and then starting from Chapter 19 onward. I wouldn't buy this one unless you're a dedicated Riverstar fan, or don't plan to read DOTC and want to use this book as your only experience of the main arc.

#bones reads rh #Riverstar's Home

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project-sekai-facts · 11 months

Note

i sorry i have to link images because i can't send them with anon

while we know 25nj!kaito is the last vocaloid added its implied in a way he mightve been in the empty sekai for way longer and no one else was aware of it or had a reason to even comment on it. this is possible as apparently VBS!luka was in the street sekai for a while and no one just knew and MMJ!kaito's introduction is literally all of the virtual singers only NOW realizing he's been there helping them all this time since probably the sekai's start.

kaito has a line that's been here since the start of the game saying "Someone told me that eating ice cream by the heater is their favorite thing about winter."

mizuki just so happens to have a line mentioning doing that very thing https://www.reddit.com/r/ProjectSekai/comments/10w1ppp/game_crashed_and_i_got_stuck_in_an_infinite/

(linked image)

Yeah KAITO being in the SEKAI for longer than he's been known makes a lot of sense actually. If you consider how repressed Mafuyu's emotions are he probably showed up a long time ago and didn't make himself known until things started happening that Mafuyu should be angry about. I don't know if these voicelines are just some crazy coincidence but that's some seriously good foreshadowing if it wasn't.

I think Luka's first appearance was in a Virtual Live (An's birthday iirc). She showed up, performed drop pop candy and then dipped until Same Dreams, Same Colors. She said she was exploring the SEKAI and lost track of time (Luka, 5 months is a lot of time).

It's the same with WxS Rin and Len as well. Rin first showed up in the release celebration Virtual Live to perform Sweet Magic and then didn't show up again until Resounding Twilight Parade months later, while Len at least got a card, was immediately added to area conversations and showed up in It's On! Wonder Halloween (apparently he spawned just after the main story, presumably with Rin).

MMJ!KAITO is such a weird introduction honestly. Like they really just did:

> Shows up out of nowhere > Heavily implied he's been here for a very long time > Says 3 lines > Refuses to elaborate > Leaves

It's not like his side story gives much insight aside from confirming that yeah he's been here for ages and just somehow has never run into any of MMJ.

I think that's all the Virtual Singers who were implied to be there for longer than they have been making story appearances. I can't remember if VBS!KAITO performed Ifuudoudou in a Virtual Live before STRAY BAD DOG but other than that I think I covered them all.

#lore #project sekai #mod talks #there's more loreposts coming btw. there's one on queue for tomorrow and one for june plus i've had one submitted that i need to queue #asks

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cricketnationrise · 9 months

Note

Hi cricket!! First off, congrats! For the ficlet fest, here's my request (thank you for your consideration!):

Timestamp: 5:19am, Location: Jack's Room, Character: Bitty 😉

Super excited to see what you come up with, friend! 💖

a little sleepy caretaking moment for you my dear <3

there's still like 3hrs left of today if you want to submit your own prompt! rules here

🏒🏒🏒🏒

jack's room, 5:19am

Once again, Bitty’s alarm pulls him out of sleep far, far too early. He’d thought that getting up consistently early would make it easier, but it hasn’t. It really hasn’t. It’s as much of a struggle to actually get out of bed before the sun’s up as the first time Jack had appeared at his suite’s door last year. But putting it off won’t make it any easier and having to pull him out of bed just makes Jack grumpy – so he gets moving.

A hiss when his feet hit the chilly floor, and Bitty half-stumbles to the bathroom. A quick splash of water on his face and he’s feeling slightly more awake. A couple minutes later he’s properly dressed (yes, that means three layers, no chirping from giant Canadian mooses) and on the landing – but Jack is nowhere to be seen.

Bitty has never, in all the months they’ve been doing checking practices, been ready before Jack.

“Jack?” Bitty calls softly through the door, with a gentle knock. A muffled groan is the only response.

“Jack, I’m coming in.”

His room is still dark, and Bitty almost can’t see Jack, bundled under his covers, shaking slightly.

“Jack?”

“Five more minutes.”

“Oh lord,” Bitty whispers, tiptoeing closer. From the side of the bed, Bitty can see how much paler than normal Jack is, almost ashen, with unfocused eyes. Quite without realizing it, Bitty’s hand is on Jack’s forehead, feeling his temperature like his Mama always did to him. He’s burning up.

“‘M fine. Just a sec.”

“You’re not fine. You’re sick.”

“Can’t be sick – got checking practice.”

“Not today we don’t,” Bitty says firmly, stepping back towards the door. “You just keep layin’ there looking two feet from death and I’ll fix you something. Tea, for a start. And Rans stashed some Tylenol in our bathroom – see if we can’t get you comfy enough to sleep some more.”

Bitty bustles as quietly as he can to gather supplies and hurries back to Jack’s room with his bounty.

“Okay so there’s water and Gatorade for later, but you should drink the tea, your voice sounded rough. And I found cough drops in case that starts up, oh and I remembered I had VapoRub so—”

“Bittle.”

“Right, sorry, I’ll just leave this stuff here,” he says, arranging everything on the nightstand, “and let you deal with this in peace.”

He’s halfway across the room when a weak “Stay?” comes from the bed. He spins around, surprised to see that Jack is actually sitting up, holding himself up on shaking arms, but looking determined all the same.

“You want me to stay?”

“Please? Until your class at least? You make things…better.”

“Oh,” Bitty says, breath caught. “I— Sure thing, lemme just get more comfy and I’ll be right back.”

Jack slumps back against his pillows, clearly exhausted, but he flashes a small, trembling smile at Bitty. “Thanks.”

“Got your back.”

#cricket writes #ficlet fest 3 #omgcp #check please #year 2 #the haus #ficlet #thesleepyskipper

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somethingusefulfromflorida · 2 years

Text

I'm going through the complete text of Dracula to try and determine what year it takes place based on the days of the week mentioned by the characters.

The novel can be set no earlier than 1888, as that was the year the Kodak camera Jonathan uses was invented, though the Eastman Kodak company wasn't formally organized until May 1892, so we're really looking at 1893 as the lower bound.

Arthur and Quincey go home after Lucy's funeral on 22 September, and on the 26 September Dr. Seward receives a letter from them dated Sunday, which must have fallen on 23, 24, or 25.

Sunday, 23 September, 1888 [this year is too early]

Sunday, 25 September, 1892 [too early]

Sunday, 24 September, 1893

Sunday, 23 September, 1894

Sunday, 25 September, 1898

Sunday, 24 September, 1899

Sunday, 23 September, 1900

Note: the novel was published in 1897, but all we know is that it takes place in the 19th century (Jonathan says so on 15 May, Seward on 26 September, and Van Helsing on 30 September), so 1898, 1899, and 1900 are not necessarily disqualified. This gives us upper and lower bounds of 1888 - 1900, or more likely 1893 - 1900

Spoiler for events that haven't been emailed yet: on 2 November, Jonathan writes in his journal that Mina and Van Helsing should have arrived in Veresti around noon on Wednesday. A few pages later, Mina's own journal says they arrived at Veresti noon on 31 October.

Wednesday, 31 October, 1888 [too early]

Wednesday, 31 October, 1894

Wednesday, 31 October, 1900

Lucy's very first letter to Mina is not dated, but is said to have been written on a Wednesday. Dracula Daily emailed it on 11 May, but only because that happened to be a Wednesday in 2022. Mina's previous letter to Lucy was dated 9 May, and subsequent letters between the group tend to be delivered very quickly, so let's look for Wednesdays that were less than, say, four days after 9 May

Wednesday, 13 May, 1891 [too early]

Wednesday, 11 May, 1892 [too early]

Wednesday, 10 May, 1893

Wednesday, 13 May, 1896

Wednesday, 12 May, 1897

Wednesday, 11 May, 1898

Wednesday, 10 May, 1899

On 25 September, Mina tells Van Helsing that Jonathan nearly fainted last Thursday when he saw a man that looked like a young Count Dracula. She recorded this episode in her diary three days prior.

Thursday, 22 September, 1892 [too early]

Thursday, 22 September, 1898

A newspaper clipping dated 8 August says that the big storm that hit Whitby came out of nowhere, and that Saturday evening had been as calm as any other. On 6 August, Mina wrote that the day was gray and fishermen were warning people that a storm was brewing. If Saturday evening was calm, but Mina reported gray skies on the 6th, then either she wrote about it late on Saturday after the storm started rolling in, or sometime on Sunday, meaning Saturday is either 5 or 6 August.

Saturday, 6 August, 1892 [too early]

Saturday, 5 August, 1893

Saturday, 6 August, 1898

Saturday, 5 August, 1899

Those are all the days of the week mentioned in the book, so now let's account for the phases of the Moon. Mina says it was full at 3am on 11 August. Full moons rise at sunset, so it would have risen on the 10th. Looking at a phase calendar, let's say a reasonable person in the 1890s would say it looks full for 2 days before or 2 days after the actual full moon (3 days, and you start to notice it waxing and waning). When did the full moon fall between 10 and 13 August?

Saturday, 10 August, 1889 (looks full from 8 - 12) [too early]

Monday, 8 August, 1892 (looks full 6 - 10) [too early]

Thursday, 12 August, 1897 (looks full 10 - 14)

Friday, 10 August, 1900 (looks full 8 - 12)

Dr. Seward says that there was "full moonlight" on 20 September, the night Lucy died. That's more than a month after Mina's full moon, but Seward didn't actually go outside to check, he just noticed the moonlight through the window, so let's give him some more wiggle room and say that the moonlight could appear bright enough to be mistaken for full up to 4 days before and after the actual full moon; it's about one week between the quarter and full phases, and nobody could mistake a quarter moon's light for being full, but I guess you could make that mistake for a gibbous moon if you don't see it directly. When did the full moon fall between 16 and 24 September?

Thursday, 20 September, 1888 (seems full 16 - 24) [too early]

Friday, 18 September, 1891 ("full" 14 - 22) [too early]

Monday, 25 September, 1893 ("full" 21 - 29; kind of a stretch)

Monday, 21 September, 1896 ("full" 17 - 25)

Tuesday, 19 September, 1899 ("full" 15 - 23)

Let's tally up all the data

1888: 3

1889: 1

1890: 0

1891: 2

1892: 5

1893: 3.5

1894: 2

1895: 0

1896: 2

1897: 2

1898: 4

1899: 4

1900: 3

No year won all 7 possible points, so there's no doubt that Bram Stoker was just making up the timeline as he went along; he didn't have calendars and moon charts open as he was writing, so he fudged some details because he figured nobody would ever attempt to put the story in chronological order. That said, the year that fits best would be 1892 were it not for the fact that the Kodak company was brand new in May 1892, so it's unlikely a British law firm would supply their solicitors with American cameras before they became ubiquitous. 1898 and 1899 come in second, and are therefore the most plausible for the novel's setting; if we ignore the moon, 1898 wins with 4 points to 3. I however choose to set the novel in 1894 because that would place the epilogue in 1901, just over the hump of the 20th century, which is fitting, but really you could argue for any years except 1890 and 1895.

#dracula #dracula daily #bram stoker #1890s #1800s #19th century #timeline #kodak #eastman kodak #1892 #1893 #1894 #1896 #1897 #1898 #1899 #1900 #days of the week #reconciliation

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raccoon-eyed-rebel · 1 year

Text

Part 5

Masterlist

Series Masterlist

Part 4 🟣 Part 6

A reverse harem vampire AU ft. Mikey, Marshall, August and Sherlock

Series summary: Somehow, you've managed to live with your boyfriend and his roommates for months before finding out they're vampires, but the real shock first comes when they find out you have a special quality. A quality the guys would love to make use of...

Warnings: Mentions of blood, biting, vampire stuff.

Word count: 3.5k

A/N: Buttload of information incoming!

@geralts-yenn @deandoesthingstome @summersong69

Elective courses on vampirism. Mind reading gifts. Vampires appearing out of nowhere. The strange urge to offer yourself up as dinner you hadn't been able to stop. The term 'blood whore' wouldn't leave your thoughts. Part of you wished Marshall had never shared that with you. And the suggestion that you play walking buffet for four vampires... Now there was something that definitely rubbed you the wrong way.

Thirty minutes went by quickly as you thought about everything that had happened, and not even a second after you caught yourself violently curious and longing for information, there was a knock on the door.

"Mikey told me to tell you that you don't have to scream," Sherlock said as he stepped into your room. "How are you feeling?" The question sounded less feverish than half an hour ago in the living room; he'd obviously calmed down again.

"I'm good. How is everyone else?"

"Gone," he said, "I told them to hit the road."

"Thank you." The last thing you needed right now was Marshall and Mike digging around in your brain. "Where do we start?"

"Curious, huh?" Sherlock asked. "That's good. I say we go through the topics, and you point out the need-to-knows?” Actually, that didn't sound like a bad idea.

"I still can't believe I am taking vampire lessons out of necessity all of a sudden."

"I'm sure you can adjust," Sherlock said, "your curiosity is a perfect indicator for it."

"I mean..." You could tell you were beginning to blush. "It's definitely interesting."

"Certainly," he said. "Now, first of all; thank you. I don't think I've said that."

"You're welcome." You were surprised by how much you genuinely meant that. "How come you were in such rough shape?"

"I was away for research over the summer, there hadn't been an opportunity to feed for weeks. I used my last bit of strength to get home."

"What were you researching?"

"Oh, I'll need to talk you through four more courses to make it understandable." His tone was friendly, and it made you like him even more. He wasn’t a condescending dick, like August.

"Maybe later," you laughed.

"What do you know?"

"Mike and the others brought me up to speed on the garlic, how turning someone works, a little bit about the gifts. And your... Food sources."

"Alright, so the basics. And our version of 'the talk'." Yes, you confirmed, that was pretty much it. "Perhaps a basic rundown of what you are wouldn't be out of place."

"I was hoping that would be one of the topics, yes." You just hadn't been entirely sure that it was 101 enough.

"You have a right to know, but it might be a bit complicated. Some things I may not be able to explain today, I hope you can accept that without thinking of me as a condescending arse?"

"I'm familiar with August, so I'm no stranger to a little derision." Sherlock laughed at your remark.

"That's a fair point."

"Anyway, Marshall called me a 'natural', was it?" If you were this curious about your classes, you’d be a straight A student, you were sure of it. Unfortunately for you and your grades, vampires were a tad more interesting. Especially since you were apparently wired to be food for them.

"Yes."

"Because being a vampire snack comes natural to me? Or 'us', I guess?" You definitely sounded more casual than you felt about the whole situation. There was definitely a lot to talk about, a lot to unpack, and a part of you really just wanted to hide from it all.

"Yes and no. Let me..." He took a tablet from the bag you had never seen him put down in the first place, and pulled up actual lecture slides. "I am going to try to make this an A to B kind of story. I am also going to warn you I'm not very good at those. I probably won't have to tell you vampires aren't the monsters humans once believed us to be."

"Mike took care of that... It took a me a minute to get on board with that." There was no point in lying to him, especially since your education had seemed to be a massive redeeming factor up until now.

"You were raised by the opposition, then?" Sherlock chuckled softly.

"Very much so, homeschooled and everything." Sherlock raised his eyebrows upon hearing your answer, and commented on the fact that Mike had done a very good job at changing your beliefs about vampires.

"There's still a lot to unpack,” you said softly while looking at your hands. It was all strange and new, and you were long past the option of walking away and pretending none of this had ever happened.

"Indubitably." There was something heartwarming about Sherlock’s smile you couldn’t quite put your finger on. He was a handsome man, slightly older than the others, though not by much, with a certain serenity to him that came with years – possibly centuries – of experience. How anyone was able to concentrate with him as a professor, however, you couldn’t figure out.

Somewhere along the way, your subconscious decided it was time to start asking questions, and pushed one to the front of your mind: "How did I become the way I am?" Sherlock patiently explained that you were born that way: It was an unusual, though not rare, mutation.

"What does it do?"

"If you'll allow me more than a single sentence in between interruptions, I'll tell you." Another charming smile gave you the weird urge to giggle – but you suppressed it.

"Sorry, professor,” you said jokingly, and he answered with a chuckle.

"As I was trying to say; humans and vampires have been coexisting peacefully for several centuries. Mike wouldn't even know of a time where they didn't, the rest of us have memories aplenty, and some scars for good measure.

"We made it this far, because we gradually developed a symbiotic relationship with your kind. Now, normally, these types of evolution take far longer than just a few short centuries, and to this day we don't know just what accelerated this change. It's especially curious because your kind is, as I pointed out earlier, quite unusual.

"Now, most humans who voluntarily allowed us to feed ourselves found it exhilarating, a thrill. Which was understandable because there was a significant risk of dying. There still is."

"Excuse me? Mike assured me that the only way to die would be if he… chose to…" Had he been lying to you when he said that dying wasn’t something you needed to worry about in your little experiment? You immediately felt embarrassed for asking. The details of your sex life were none of Sherlock’s business, after all, and you’d rather avoid this topic of conversation altogether – but it was too late for that, now.

"Ah, right. Bear with me for a moment, please? That relationship between vampires and naturals I described, tackles precisely that problem, and the one of the significant pain a normal human donor usually feels."

"Pain? There's no..."

"Not for you, not beyond the pain of the bite itself. For a normal human, even weakened venom would be painful. To willingly go through that would be indicative of serious masochistic tendencies." Sherlock also explained that this was precisely the reason that ‘unmedicated administration of bites’ – as he called it – was something usually reserved for erotic purposes. You appreciated the clinical, professional approach he took to explaining what was – in essence – more kinky vampire shit.

"So when I offered without thought, you knew?"

"I suspected, and I do have to admit I was prepared to confirm my theory. Then I saw Mike's face. Marshall's commentary confirmed my suspicions. I'm fairly sure he got confirmation from Mikey's thoughts directly."

"And how does my… Condition… Tackle the problem of being drained?" Was ‘condition’ the right word? Existence? Nature?

"A fair question that's kept us occupied for quite some time. It wasn't a secret for long that some humans not only felt no pain when fed on, but also didn't seem to run out of blood. You can imagine what a commodity you were. Large sums of money were involved in the trade of your kind. You were stolen, wars were fought over you. Not to mention the crusades against you as much as us, because humans believed your kind's specific purpose was to feed vampires, and they believed that voluntary feeding was of the devil. They tried everything in their power to keep our feeding practices a crime."

"I'm afraid my family is still in that camp…" You shuddered at the thought of your parents finding out about your current living arrangements, let alone them finding out you were anything other than the perfect little girl they thought they had raised.

"Then I can't tell you how glad I am they never found out about your nature." Sherlock had an apologetic look on his face when he said it, and you decided not to push the matter, but it did make you feel uneasy. Luckily, it wasn’t hard to move on from the subject when the next question popped up in your mind.

"What causes it?"

"Right, the actual answer to your question. Your blood contains a chemical that, when it comes into contact with our venom, creates two other chemicals; one of which accelerates the speed with which your blood regenerates to the point where a vampire can't feed faster than you… replenish. Experiments have been conducted with two of us feeding simultaneously, and results showed it was not only dependent on the amount of venom in your system, but also a matter of habituation."

"Like… Breastfeeding?"

"An interesting choice to describe a basic supply and demand economy, but yes, and also very much no. Do you mind if we skip the technicalities for now?" He emphasized the fact that this would become a very lengthy conversation very rapidly if he were to explain everything in detail, though he didn’t want to put you off asking for further explanations, if that was what you really wanted. For now, however, you were good with the basics.

"If you bite me, I make blood faster, got it." The questions just kept coming, and you were really glad to not have asked for more details, because you were sure your head would overflow with information by the end of this talk, anyway. “What did Mike mean when he said he’d have to… drain me on purpose? mean, he didn’t know what I was at that point. Did he lie to me?”

“Ah, right. He didn’t lie. You see, he wasn’t feeding at the time. There would have been no reason for him to drink a large quantity of blood. Does that answer your question?" You nodded in reply to his asking. “Perfect. Moving on to the other chemical. That’s what is responsible for the… It’s been described as a ‘warm, fuzzy feeling’ you experienced during the… exchange. That one has an effect on us, too, if we take it in. It causes the overwhelming urge to take care of and protect you.”

“That’s what that was?”

Sherlock smiles apologetically. “Yes, it was. I’m sorry for not explaining it then and there, but it’s a very strong sense of protectiveness, and it had been a while since I’d fed in general, let alone from a natural. I was a bit preoccupied.”

“It’s okay,” you said, and you meant it.

“That chemical is also what made you so inclined to offer to let me feed. It was a rather strong urge, wasn’t it?” Indeed, it had been. So strong, even, that you doubted whether or not you would have been able to ignore it.

“And those things don’t happen when feeding on a normal human?”

“Indeed it doesn’t. We’ve managed to synthesize the chemical that serves as a painkiller and makes regeneration faster, which is what we now use to allow for safe feeding. But we haven’t been able to recreate the other one. Again, I unfortunately can’t tell you why. Efforts have been made. I suppose it’s hardly necessary to recreate that one, in fact it would be counterproductive to elicit that effect on purpose. Oh well…”

“So, voluntary feeders aren’t in pain, and you don’t have to worry about them afterwards. That sounds like a better deal than feeding on a natural.”

“It isn’t. It’s always better than feeding on an unwilling donor, or someone in pain – who isn’t enjoying that pain. But your kind have…”

“The a5 Wagyu of blood?” You couldn’t quite figure out whether or not that sounded like a brag, but it was out now, time to just roll with it.

“Exactly.”

"And feeding on another vampire? How does that compare? How is it even possible?" You were starting to feel awkward about your relentless curiosity, but Sherlock assured you that it was no problem whatsoever.

"Ah. We'll keep it simple. You know vampires drink blood."

"Obviously, I was lunch not even an hour ago." As if you could ever forget the most basic bit of vampire knowledge out there.

“Right. Logically, vampires can feed on anything that has blood.” “So vampires have blood?”

“Correct. Our metabolism works differently; it processes blood we drink and turns it into our own, which then functions as the fuel for our bodies. It’s as fulfilling as human blood, but the only way for us to come by more of it is to feed. We don’t make more blood. We also don’t taste as good. Alright, we taste very bad.” Sherlock laughed, and it sounded almost sarcastic.

“And human food?”

“That tastes absolutely fine, but metabolizing costs far more energy, because our system isn’t wired for it. It takes about five times as much food to sustain us than it does you.”

It looked like it was finally time to ask the question you’d been avoiding: “When Mike said you all hoped…”

“Ah,” Sherlock wasn’t surprised you asked the question. “When you said ‘McBloodDrive’, that wasn’t far off – conceptually. But it lacked a lot of depth and feeling. I understand your resistance to the idea, but would you allow me to explain?”

“Isn’t that why we’re here?” You tried to conjure up a smile – and failed miserably.

“Good point. Where to begin… First of all; it’s like you said. You have the blood-equivalent of A5 Wagyu running through your veins. Can we at least agree it’s understandable they want a taste of that?” Alright, you couldn’t deny that without lying… “So part of it is a bit of jealousy towards Mike.”

“Mikey doesn’t… He hasn’t…” You felt a blush creep onto your cheeks again at Sherlock’s suggestion.

“He would have asked sooner or later,” Sherlock said, sounding fairly sure of himself, “knowing Mike, it would have been sooner rather than later.” Even you had to admit that that sounded entirely plausible.

“Besides, most humans get curious at some point. I mean. You did.” He made a vague gesture at your neck.

“Are you saying I would have asked him to feed on me at some point?”

“There’s a very strong possibility.” You had to admit you’d been curious, and as much as you hated to admit it now, there had been a part of you that had been wondering what it felt like if someone were to feed on you. Of course the events of this afternoon had satisfied that curiosity – but there was still definitely something inside you that wouldn’t mind doing it again.

Sherlock then went on to explain that these relationships were not just for the benefit of the vampires, but also for your kind. Adverse effects for you were minimal if not nonexistent – though in the olden days, a natural would have been expected to be available without question, at all times. You, however, still couldn’t fathom being anything other than…

“A McBloodDrive?” he asked with a sardonic chuckle. You shrugged. It was really the only thing you could come up with.

“You’re underestimating the nature of the relationship. They are really rather intimate – it’s inescapable. You wouldn’t simply be a food source. Dear Lord, how do I explain this… I can’t do this well, I’m sorry. I think I may need the others. Are you okay with that?” You nodded. Sherlock gave them a quick call, asking them to come back to the apartment before returning to your conversation.

“And… They were gunning for a steady thing, right?” The answer to your question was affirmative. From here on out, the questions that bubbled up in your mind were no longer coherent, the next no longer a continuation of the former – it was a mess, that was the only way you could describe it.

“Those… arrangements… are they common?”

“They are not. In fact, they’re quite rare. Many naturals capitalize on their assets, so to speak.”

“You can make money off it?”

“Oh yes. Quite a lot, too. Some of us pay good money for a steady arrangement with one of you.” He explained a type of relationship that was very reminiscent of a sort of sugar daddy type of setup – not something you were interested in at all. Others, he said, were just able to afford regular feedings from naturals, but the general setting for the establishments that offered those services was much more relaxed, more comfortable, and much more exclusive and therefore less crowded.

“These arrangements… what are they like?” you asked when he explained all of this to you.

“What are you really asking me?” By now you had definitely learned that not much escaped this guy’s attention.

“Is it a sex thing?” You felt blood rush to your cheeks as you asked your question, but you had to know. And you didn’t find it weird, either.

“Is that what this afternoon felt like?” You quickly shook your head. That definitely hadn’t been sexual, although it was absolutely very intimate.

“The intimacy is a given in the kind of situation you would end up with us.” He said ‘us’, you noticed, so he wasn’t opposed to the idea, either. He did express that there was a possibility that such agreements occasionally did lead to deeper feelings of intimacy between participants. It led you to question whether one of you and four of them would be weird, to which Sherlock answered that the other way around would be much stranger.

“Have you ever been involved in such an arrangement?” you asked carefully. Your curiosity was really getting the better of you, and you didn’t know if you could contain it any longer. “You don’t have to answer! I don’t mean to pry. If it’s personal, by all means, don’t tell me.”

“It’s alright, darling, it is personal, but I am more than happy to share the story,” he said. It answered your question; it was obviously a ‘yes’. “It was just over five hundred years ago.” That shocked you, and you realized you had never asked the guys how old they were. Your surprise must have been apparent, because Sherlock answered the question you had never dared ask.

“I am just under nine hundred years old,” he said, “Marshall and August a little over four. Mike was born in the sixties.”

“He’s just a baby?” Somehow you found that incredibly endearing.

“Don’t say that to him. August would be quick to agree with you, though.” Sherlock let out another one of his dark chuckles. The sound of them was incredibly soothing.

“Where were you five hundred years ago?” you whispered. It seemed like such a strange thing to ask.

“English court,” he answered, “serving as a court physician under Henry XIII. The first Duke of Suffolk – Charles Brandon – was one of us, and he had… procured one of your kind – don’t ask me how, I have no idea and I doubt I want to know – to feed on. For services rendered he offered me… access, so to speak. It was a rather clean-cut business arrangement, as impersonal as could be. He refused to allow me to tend to her, afterwards, which made it hard on me, occasionally.”

“How so?” you asked, wondering out loud what would have happened if you had told him to back off.

“Nothing would have happened, per se, but it is a very strong, uncomfortable feeling of needing to do something, desperately wanting to take care of someone, and not being able to. It soured my mood rather thoroughly.” He chuckled softly again, but the sound had a melancholic ring to it, this time. The memories clearly struck a chord with him, still, and you weren’t surprised at all when he changed the subject.

“The others will be back soon,” he said hoarsely before clearing his throat, “I suggest you take another minute, because this wasn’t the last long talk of the day, I’m afraid.”

#mike hellraiser fic #mike x ofc #mike hellraiser #mike (hellraiser)#hellraiser mike #mike hellraiser fanfiction #henrycavill fanfic #henry cavill fanfiction #henry cavill #henry cavill characters #walter marshall #hc sherlock #henry cavill sherlock holmes #sherlock holmes #august walker #august walker fanfiction

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bu1410 · 2 months

Text

''Mr. Plant has owed me a shoe since July 5, 1971." - Chapter III - March 5th, 2024

Bari - Italy

Bar - Montenegro

Kotor - Montenegro

Sveti Stefan - Montenegro

Dubrovnik - Croatia

Lake Skadar - Montenegro.

BAR - MONTENEGRO- FORMER YUGOSLAVIA – October 1982

I returned from Saudi Arabia quite disappointed by the behavior of the Works Director, Eng. Birago. I liked the Taif hospital project, but I think the old Engineer had the whiskey affair tied to his finger, and at the first opportunity he got rid of me. I therefore responded with enthusiasm to the call from VOLANI, a company from Rovereto (Trento, Italy) specialized in industrialized architecture, essentially a direct competitor of FEAL Milan. I went to Rovereto for the interview with the Chief of Staff ''accompanied by Mother''! In the sense that my mother, as soon as she learned that I was going to Rovereto, immediately jumped on the car: beyond the desire to go around, it was one of her favorite destinations! The interview went well, and I was offered a job at their construction site in Bar, Montenegro, then still a territory of Yugoslavia. Before leaving for Bar, I wanted to spend a weekend in Madesimo, in Italian Alps. In 1981 there was no Internet, and therefore we had not booked the hotel. When we were in Medesimo we soon realized that the hotels were all closed (we learned that October/November are the months in which hoteliers go on holiday). In the end we turned to the local Carabinieri station, who suggested we go up to Alpe Motta where there was an alpine refuge that was definitely open.

JOURNEY TO BAR I had bought a new jacket, grey/blue on the outside, and with yellow padding on the inside. I took the flight to Bari, and then from Palese airport a taxi took me to the port. The ferry to Bar would leave in the evening. I enjoyed a single cabin, and the crossing of the Adriatic was uneventful. In the morning, when I tried to open the cabin door, I bumped into the bodies of those less fortunate than me, who had spent the night sleeping on the floor in the ship's corridor. We went ashore, and I noticed that I was surrounded by the usual dozens of women who at the time were shuttling between Italy and Yugoslavia, bringing all sorts of merchandise to their country. One of them, a middle-aged woman, asked me in in somewhat broken Italian:

Do you have something to declare?

No….

Well, it means that you will go through customs with these bottles of cognac, these shoes and these t-shirts on my behalf.

Ok…… Once we passed the customs control, the woman hurried to collect her goods, and she didn't even say thank you!!. I had made a first approach to the typical rudeness of Montenegrins; I would later have to experience other, even worse examples.

HOTEL SUTOMORE At the port exit there was the Site Manager waiting for me. A nice gentleman originally from Mantua: middle-aged, beard, open smile, had already been in Bar for several months with his wife and a few-month-old daughter in tow. He took me to the Hotel Sutomore, located in a village of a same name, a few kilometers north of Bar. The semi-deserted hotel given the season, a 9-storey building, was directly on the small but beautiful beach - the transparent sea reflected the sun of the afternoon that has just begun. It was lunch time, and after a shower, I went to the hotel restaurant, located on the mezzanine. Very large dining room, on Saturdays it was always occupied by receptions and weddings, with horseshoe tables, full of bottles of whiskey as per local custom. (Perhaps this is the reason why wedding dinners often resulted in furious arguments between relatives and friends?) I sat down in the half-empty room, took off my jacket and placed it on the back of the chair in front of me. The waiter, a young man around 20-22 years old, appeared out of nowhere, and without saying a word he took off his white jacket, took my jacket and put it on. -It's fine with me - he said, looking satisfied in the large window - how much do you want?

I looked at him astonished, with a mixture of surprise and anger and told him: it's not for sale, take it off immediately.

And he: but why not? Here all foreigners do this?!

''As well as? I said annoyed.

In the sense that they come wearing new things, sell them to us, and then leave again.

Well - I replied - I'm not "everyone" and I bought the jacket for myself - end of negotiation.

Oh well… if you say so….

What is there to eat? And here was the second unpleasant impact with another locals.

NIGHTCLUB Below the hotel there was a disco-dance hall. On Saturday evening it was packed, with a musical group that performed a Slavic variant of the rock songs popular in the 80s. The evenings inevitably ended in fights, to which alcohol, which was consumed in large quantities, made a substantial contribution. One evening I was at the entrance of the club, and an obviously drunk guy, with the help of a chair, demolished all the telephone booths positioned at the entrance of the club. I asked the girl at the checkout why no one called the police.

It's better not - she replied - things would take a worse turn - and in any case we know who he is, and the police will show up at his house around 5.00 am tomorrow, when he will be sleeping and will be unable to resist.

Ah… okay – I said.

OUR PROJECT The project consisted of the construction of a building for the Municipality of Bar, one to be use by the new Court, plus a school complex. Also included in the same contract were the rehabilitation of an analysis laboratory building in the hospital of Podgorica, 50 km inside Montenegro, as well as the capital of the state - The construction of a clinic in Ulcinj, 26 km south of Bar, the last city in Montenegro next to Albania border. In view of the supervision and some particular processes in which Italian labor was used, the bulk of the workers employed in the project were Yugoslavians. I noticed a detail that I remembered later, when the war broke out in Yugoslavia in the 1990s: carpenters, bricklayers, structure assemblers, were organized into ethnic groups (Slovenes – Serbs – Croats etc) and had no relationship between them. The construction time was from 7.00 in the morning to 2.00 in the afternoon - at 10.00 am there was a break, during which meals were consumed, sometimes cooked on site, with improvised barbecues. All the buildings were of a high standard, with continuous aluminum facades - the Bar complex stood out for a certain elegance, and the imprint of Italian design and materials immediately caught the eye.

THEFT ON CONSTRUCTION SITE Unfortunately the construction site had been the subject of a series of thefts, which essentially never stopped. An estimation made showed that the total value of the thefts amounted to the considerable sum of 870,000 USD. Several reports to the local authorities had brought only one result: one day we Italians were all summoned to the police station where they took our fingerprints. The Chief of Police told us that ''thieves don't exist in Yugoslavia, so it must be one of you who steals the materials''.

We had noticed - and photographed - that numbers of shacks buildings used as garages or warehouses had arisen in the vicinity of the construction site and beyond - all made with particular metal sheet that only VOLANI imported from Italy. One morning I arrived at the construction site very early, and I saw a man had loaded into a van some our anodized aluminum sheets - we used it as pillars cladding - I stopped him and asked him outright what he was doing: - Well – he replied – I saw these sheets of metal on the ground and I thought you didn't need them anymore.

Put them back where you found them – I told him

Okay… okay… no problem….

PODGORITZA Every now and then it happened that for work reasons I had to move to Podgoritza. The road first wound along the coast, and then inland, passing through Lake Skadar, the largest in the Balkan peninsula, which Montenegro shares with Albania. For lunch we used to stopp at a restaurant on the lake shore, where they served excellent fried carp. These gigantic fish were the result of cooperation between the then allies Albania and China: the Chinese had introduced millions of carp's fry into the lake, repopulating the waters which risked being left without fish. One morning we were going from Bar to Podgorica – me and a colleague of mine in two different cars. It was late November and very cold. It had rained during the night, and the morning frost had formed a thin film of ice on the road. Suddenly my colleague's car began a series of spins - I was following him closely, but luckily I managed to engage a low gear, and without touching the brakes I stopped on the edge of the road, also scraping the side of the Ritmo FIAT against the mountain rock that flanked the road. The colleague's car stopped in the middle of the road, with its nose facing against the direction of travel. I ran to help him get out of the car, just in time: another car arrived, the driver had lost control and crashed into my colleague's car! We realized that the situation had become very dangerous, and that we had to go to both sides of the road and try to signal the oncoming cars. Luckily the traffic was light at that time and we somehow managed to stop the traffic before anyone else ran into the two damaged cars. Then other drivers who arrived helped us to push the damaged cars towards a nearby dock. Once everything was over, and traffic was restored, the police arrived. First thing they asked me why we had moved the cars.

Because they were in the middle of the road, and represented a danger to other drivers – we replied.

No, said the policeman, you had to wait for our arrival, how can we do the investigations now?

Well, do as you like – my colleague told him.

But since the local police, when they meet a foreigner, always looked for every excuse to steal money, they gave us a report for having ''caused danger with dangerous driving''. And we had to pay immediately, otherwise the cars would be confiscated. So eventually we could leave that nightmare of wind and ice.

LIFE IN FORMER YOUGOSLAVIA IN '80. We stayed in Podgoritza for about two weeks, there was a need for a major overhaul in the work at the local hospital. Our Construction Manager had reached us and brought his family with him. His wife was desperately looking for diapers for her daughter, a rare commodity in Yugoslavia in 1982. Finally one day, through one of our local employees, the lady came into contact with a transporter who made frequent trips abroad and who had availability of otherwise unobtainable diapers. They met at a newsstand, generally in the early hours of the morning, and packs of diapers were wrapped in newspaper, so as not to arouse ''suspicions''. Annother day a colleague who had just returned from Italy told us that he had brought an 8 kilo bag of coffee. Unfortunately the coffee was in grains, therefore someone suggested to go to a small supermarket, where he had seen that there was a machine for grinding coffee near the cash registers. Very bad idea! While my colleague was inside the supermarket grinding the coffee, when by magic - perhaps attracted by word of mouth - dozens of local people showed up asking ''where is the coffee'…we heard that the coffee has arrived…'' The cashier said no that the coffee had not arrived (we learned that it had been missing from the supermarkets for some time) and that it had been brought by an Italian who had just arrived from Italy. But the crowd did not want believe it, and began to shout that it was ''the usual story of making the goods disappear and then selling them on the black market at increased prices''. My colleague, frightened by the crowd, didn't even finish grinding all the coffee and left the shop in a hurry, fearing for his own safety. In the meantime a couple of cars from the ''Milicija'' had arrived and quickly put an end to the uproar.

NOVEMBER 29TH - DAN REPUBLIKE PARTY

November 29th was a special day in the former Yugoslavia. Two important events in their history were celebrated: the second plenary session of the AVNOJ (Anti-fascist Council for People's Liberation of Yugoslavia) in 1943 and the first session of the Yugoslav Constituent Assembly in 1945. Propaganda via radio and TV had begun about ten days before , and it portrayed Germans and Italians as oppressors, occupiers of sacred Yugoslav soil, and responsible for countless war crimes. We had been instructed to keep a low profile, not leave the house or hotel in the evening, and to limit inspections on site as much as possible. Despite this, we suffered various provocations from the local authorities, until the day when a delegation from the Municipality of Bar held a remembrance ceremony inside the complex still under construction, where they had forced us to prepare a classroom complete with carpet and stage for the authorities. And so after having set up the classroom, the mayor gave a speech lasting almost two hours, during which he did nothing but insult Italy and Germany. The sovereignist and nationalist rhetoric still took root in a nation that would soon descend into a war which, as an Italian journalist said during the Yugoslav conflict ''was fought with the ferocity of ancient wars but with the lethal weapons of the era modern''.

A SAD STORY OF AN ITALIAN COLLEAGUE. There was this colleague, Adriano, a young man from Udine, who had been datinga beautiful local girl for some time. Adriano would be returning to Italy for a period of holidays, and was preparing for the return journey with his own car, with which he had reached Montenegro along the entire Adriatic coast. He asked his girlfriend's mother if he could take advantage of this trip to take her with him to Italy. Permission was granted, and on the morning of departure Adriano arrived early at the girl's house. At the honking of the horn the girl looked out from the balcony and urged Adriano to go up into the house. What happened a once the Italian boy entered the apartment it was never really clarified. From what we learned from Adriano it seems that his girlfriend's policeman brother had returned from Belgrade during that night, where he served. And had said he was against his sister's relationship with the Italian guy. The fact is that we were called around 10.00 am from the local emergency room, where Adriano had been admitted in a state of shock and with multiple fractures, especially in his face and upper limbs. A complaint was filed, but the local police, knowing who was involved in the beating, dropped the matter, classifying it as a ''Private Accident''. Adriano returned to Italy after 2 weeks in hospital, with an ambulance sent by VOLANI Rovereto.

WEEKEND's During weekends I always took the opportunity to visit the region around Bar. I have beautiful memories of Dubrovnik, a walled city built by the Venetians modeled on Venice but dry. Very beautiful and evocative is Svety Stefan, the islet connected to the coast where General Tito spent his holidays - Kotor, a picturesque fjord which during World War II was used to hide warships. Cavtat, a fishing town near Dubrovnik, where you could enjoy excellent fish and local wine. I also visited Cetinje, little more than a mountain town, birth placeof ''Jelena Petrović-Njegoš, princess of Montenegro, and then Queen of Italy'' following her marriage to Vittorio Emanuele III, King of Italy. At the time, Montenegro and Croatia showed great potential for tourism development, even if heavily penalized by the socialist system. In essence, the reception was modest, the infrastructure was missing or insufficient. With liberalization - and the arrival of the large international hotel chains - I believe that these shortcomings have been filled.

END of 1982 - ABANDONMENT OF THE PROJECT At the end of 1982, VOLANI decided to abandon the project in Montenegro, given the continuous thefts on the construction site, and the lack of payments by the Yugoslav Government. All Italians returned safely home for Xmas & New Year Holidays. I board a flight of then JAT Yugoslav Airlines, which reached Milan' Linate airport after a stop over in Sarajevo.

VISIT TO BAR IN 1984 In August 1984, on the way to a holiday in Greece, I did made a detour to see what had become of the Bar complex. Arriving near the former construction site, I found a disastrous situation: the project had been abandoned unfinished, the local population had wreaked havoc, stealing and dismantling everything they could. The unkempt grass reached up to the first of the 4 floors of what should have been the new town hall. Broken glass, false ceilings, doors, blown out windows, everything was in a state of abandonment. A disconcerting and somewhat incomprehensible vision. I didn't understand the reason why the local administration hadn't finished the project and taken the buildings into use, given that it was so close to finishing them.

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