#car ride in new jersey | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hischierhoney · 2 months

Text

OFF LIMITS

nico hischier x hughes sister!reader

part 2: I Know available now!

It’s not the first time they’ve run into you on a night out, and Nico’s pretty sure it won’t be the last. You live in New York, close enough that your paths overlap quite often. It is, however, the first time he’s seen you this drunk. On top of that, it’s the first time Nico’s run into you without your brothers with him.

Jack may be younger than you, but what he lacks in age he makes up for in overprotectiveness. When they run into you at a bar, Nico rarely gets a chance to even say a word to you before Jack is questioning how much you’ve had to drink or why you’re even out in the first place.

But Jack is in Toronto, for the All Stars game, and Luke’s still too young to be out at a bar and is also out of town, and you’re there, standing under a neon sign, leaning up against the wall. You look hazy. Out of it. There’s a guy standing nearly over you, arm next to your head on the wall. Nico’s stomach twists.

“Isn’t that Hughes’ sister?” Someone asks.

Nico nods, juts his chin at the scene unfolding. “Does she look uncomfortable to you?”

His teammate lets out a snort. “Was wondering the same thing.”

Nico keeps a watchful eye on the situation for just a moment. He doesn’t want to overstep, but something feels off. When you put your hand on the guy’s shoulder and try to push him away, and he stays put, caging you in farther, the switch flips. He’s gone from concerned friend to overprotective captain within a second. He passes his beer off to someone and makes his way across the bar in a few short steps.

“Hey man. Back off.” He snaps.

The guy turns with a glare. Nico stands his ground. Your eyes meet his, and he watches relief wash over your face. He knows then that he’s made the right choice.

“I saw her first,” the guy sneers.

Nico really didn’t want to get in a fight tonight. He was supposed to have a chill night out with the guys, maybe talk to a couple girls, get his mind off of… things. But now he’s here.

“Nico,” you say, softly, and he watches the guy’s face drop as he realizes you know Nico.

“Hi,” he says, kindly and quietly to you. He juts his chin at the guy and shoves his shoulder firmly. “Get lost.”

The man melts away into the crowd. Nico watches him go. Then he turns back to you, to where you’re leaning against the wall, doe eyed and drunk as hell as you stare up at him. His breath gets caught in his throat for just a moment- if your brothers knew the things he thought about when you looked at him like that, they’d have his head. Jack and Luke are a bit oblivious, he thinks. He’s lucky he’s not around you and Quinn at the same time very often. There was that game last year, in Vancouver- you in your Devils jersey, elbowing him lightly, and Quinn’s glare trained on him, one raised brow, like he was just waiting for Nico to take a wrong step.

“My hero,” you say, reaching out to tug on his wrist.

Your words are extremely slurred, and when he gets a closer look he realizes you’re probably close to blacking out. The light is gone from your eyes. He winces.

“Okay, schatz,” he says. He ruffles your hair just to get you to stop staring up at him through your eyelashes, afraid of the way it makes his heart jump. “Can I call someone to come get you?”

You shrug. “Where’s Jacky? Or Lukey?”

Nico groans. “Toronto, and who knows. Not here, though.”

You purse your lips. “Right.” You dig in your pocket for your phone, find it, and Nico watches you try and turn the screen on with no luck- it’s dead. “Huh. That’s not good.”

And… Nico could call one of your brothers. Could ask for some sort of phone number- a roommate or a friend or anyone. But as you stare up at him, you lean away from the wall and fall into his chest, and he knows he needs to act quickly. Preferably before you pass out at the bar.

…..

You don’t remember the walk out of the bar, or the car ride, or the elevator up to the apartment that you’re sure you must’ve taken. Your world zaps back into focus on the entryway of Nico’s apartment. You’ve been here twice- both for parties. It’s different when it’s not full of people. Feels more like Nico.

You toe your shoes off in the doorway. Nico swipes them to the side with his foot and then reaches out to catch you when you stumble. You lean into his shoulder and laugh- he smells good, like honey and whiskey. You want to breathe him in. He laughs, too- you can tell by the way his broad shoulders shake.

He leads you out of the entryway and into the kitchen. He grabs you by your hips to maneuver you, and you nearly squeal at the feeling of his fingers splayed against your body. Instead, when he moves you to lean against the counter, you sigh. You brace yourself, elbows on the granite, and stare up at him as he moves through the room.

“Stop staring at me like that,” he says in a warning tone.

“Like what?” You ask, innocently.

If he’d look at you, you’d bat your eyelashes at him. But he’s not looking, and you’re not going to waste your energy. He has his head in the fridge, an empty glass in his hand. He returns with a pitcher of water and pours it into the glass before sliding it over to you.

He never clarifies what he means by staring like that. You want to circle back to it, but you’re getting really tired, and the water is cool and refreshing. You laugh when you spill a little bit, the water running down your chin and neck. Nico just groans and rolls his eyes.

“You’re drunk,” he states, like you both didn’t already know it.

You nod. “I had a lotta tequila.”

He gives you a look of exasperation mixed with affection. “Trying to forget?”

You shrug. “Something like that.”

Once you’ve finished the glass, he starts maneuvering you again, hands on your shoulders this time as he walks you down the hallway. You wonder what it would be like to have him do this all the time- maybe when you’re not drunk. Does he manhandle his girlfriends, his dates, like this? Maybe manhandle isn’t the right word. You don’t feel handled, you feel… taken care of. Like he’s making sure you’re exactly where you should be. It’s sweet. It makes you shiver just a little bit.

He mistakes the movement for a chill, and he rubs his hands up and down your shoulders. You sigh. The two of you step into the bathroom, and he digs through the drawer until he finds a new toothbrush and toothpaste, and he hands them both to you.

You stumble your way towards the bedroom five minutes later, his hands on your hips again. He pushes open the door to his bedroom and leads you to the bed, having you sit down on the edge while he heads for the dresser. You look around. You’ve been to his place, but never here. It’s… calm. Quiet. The sheets and duvet beneath you are soft, and the lmao next to the bed casts a warm glow over everything. He has trophies taking up space on his desk. The bed is unmade, blankets rumpled and messy.

“Always wondered what your room looked like,” you say.

His shoulders tense, though he shakes it out a few moments after. “Yeah?”

You nod, forgetting he isn’t looking at you, and then supplement with words. “Can learn a lot about a person from their bedroom.”

He laughs and looks over his shoulder at you. “What have you learned, then?”

You shrug and cast your eyes to the ceiling. He goes back to rifling through the drawers. You flop backwards onto the end, laughing lightly at the way it bounces beneath you.

Something lands on your stomach- a large t-shirt and a pair of shorts. You pick them up and hold them above your head.

“Get changed,” he says. When you lean up to look at him, the whole room spins. He sighs, like he can tell. “I’ll be back in a second, okay?”

…..

Nico nearly panics five minutes later, because he knocks on the door to ask if you’re decent and you don’t answer. He’s torn between worry about seeing something he shouldn’t, and worry about you dying- one of them trumps the other, so he shoves his way into the room frantically.

You’re laid out on the bed, swallowed up by his t-shirt, the drawstring of the shorts pulled tight around your waist. Your lips are just barely parted, soft sighs escaping with each rise and fall of your chest. You’re asleep. He could leave you, but right now you’re asleep on your back, and very drunk, and he’s worried you’re going to throw up and- they warned him about that, years ago, when he first started going to parties. Friends don’t let friends sleep on their backs.

He crawls up onto the bed and tucks you into the blankets. Then he rolls you onto your side, and sighs when you immediately try to roll back onto your back. He repeats the process, and this time you groan loudly in response. Without really thinking about it, he sits down on the bed behind you and props his leg against your back. That seems to keep you in place- you lean into the warmth but you don’t try to roll over again.

So. That’s great, except, now he’s stuck. Realistically, he was going to stay anyways. If he was the last person to see you and something awful happened, he’d never forgive himself, and neither would your brothers. So it’s fine, really, that you’re leaning against him, but… you’re warm, and breathing softly, and your hair is strewn all over the pillowcase, and god, he hates the way it all makes him blush.

He can’t do anything about it, especially not now, with the state you’re in. So he just sits and watches you sleep, the way he’s sort of always dreamed about.

Hours later, Nico’s woken from a half asleep state by a loud noise- it’s his cell phone, ringing on the nightstand. He scrambles to pick up, blinking blearily at the screen. 4:53 am, and Jack is calling him. He wouldn’t normally answer, but it’s Jack, and by now he’s probably heard about you, so he swipes to take the call.

“It’s not even 5am, Jack,” he says softly.

“Hischier.” A voice returns- it’s not Jack.

“Quinn.” He replies, carefully.

He keeps his voice low. His gaze flickers down to you. You’re asleep -on your side, thank god- one arm wrapped around his leg. He swallows tightly and carefully brushes a stray piece of hair from your face. You don’t stir.

“It’s not even 5am,” he repeats.

Quinn scoffs. “I know. Woke up to go do some early morning training, and imagine my surprise when I see about ten texts from various people telling me you took my baby sister home with you last night.”

Right. Everybody knows everybody in the NHL. Nico rolls his eyes. You’re older than both Jack and Luke- you’re not a baby. He refrains from saying that, though- knowing it’ll only upset Quinn more. He may sound relatively calm now, but Nico can sense the undercurrent of tension.

“It’s not like that,” Nico says.

“Right. And you’re just whispering for the fun of it, then? Not because you’re afraid to wake her?”

He pinches the bridge of his nose. “She was wasted. I brought her back here to keep an eye on her. Did they tell you about how I nearly punched a guy to get him to leave her alone?”

He hears Quinn falter whatever he was going to say next. Then he speaks up again. “Doesn’t explain why you’re close enough to her right now that you’d need to be whispering.”

“I was worried she was going to choke on her own vomit,” Nico says curtly. “So I stayed up most of the night making sure she stayed on her side.”

“Right, sure, by what- curling up with her?” Quinn sneers.

Nico slumps down against the headboard. “Jesus, Hughes. You trusted me to take care of your brothers. You said that yourself. You can’t trust me with this?”

“It’s a bit different and we both know it,” Quinn says.

Nico figures that’s fair. If it was his sister… he understands. He just wishes Quinn would give him the benefit of the doubt.

“Look, man. Nothing happened. I swear to you, I wouldn’t ever do anything to harm her, alright? We ran into her at a bar, she was wasted and by herself and trying to push some guy away and he wasn’t letting up. So I put a stop to it, and we couldn’t call any of her friends because her phone was dead. And not sure if you’ve noticed, but your brothers are out of town. I didn’t want to leave her alone.”

He hears Quinn sigh. “You just happened to be there to save the day?”

Nico groans, this time a bit too loudly. You shift next to him, and suddenly you’re awake, blinking up at him with soft eyes. His heart catches in his chest. You wrinkle your nose, likely in confusion at the sight of him on the phone at 5am. He mouths your brother’s name, and your confusion only grows. You gesture for the phone.

“Quinn,” you say, sleepily. “It’s 5am. Why the fuck are you calling?”

Nico can’t hear what your brother is saying anymore- a welcome reprieve, really. You roll your eyes and he holds back a laugh. When he meets your gaze, you’re fighting a laugh, too, he thinks.

“So you called because you were checking on me, right?” You ask, blinking up at Nico. “Not to harass my friend, right? Because that would be a rude thing to do at 5am, you know.”

You’re quiet for a few more moments. Then you yawn and roll your eyes again. “Okay. Well. I’m fine. I’m going back to bed. Goodnight.”

You hang up on him. Nico’s torn between laughter and panic, wondering if Quinn’s going to call again. The phone stays silent in your hand, though. He takes it from you, sets it down on the nightstand carefully. Your arm wraps back around his leg, and he tries not to let it make him sigh in relief.

“Sorry about him,” you say, quietly. “He’s like a guard dog. But one of those little yappy ones.”

Nico laughs. “Ankle biter.”

You nod and laugh, too. “Why’d you even answer?”

Nico drags a hand down his face. “He called from Jack’s phone.”

“Sneaky little bitch,” you scoff.

He shrugs. “To be fair, I probably should’ve at least let someone know where you were. If I’d woken up to a message about my sister like the one Quinn probably got…” he scrubs at the hair on his jaw. “Not sure I’d have reacted differently.”

You huff- your warm breath washes over his leg. “You hockey players are a bunch of gossips, you know that?”

He grumbles at that, not even giving it a real response. He slumps down further against the headboard, eyes feeling heavy, head feeling even heavier. You pat your hand against his knee and sigh.

“You should lay down,” you mumble.

He sighs. “Yeah. If you’re feeling okay I can go to the couch. Didn’t want to leave you alone, I was scared you’d throw up.”

You stare up at him. He stares right back. Pretty eyes. God, your brothers would kill him.

“No, like, just- lay down,” you tell him, patting the bed next to you. “It’s your bed.”

His heart does a somersault. His stomach follows suit. He shouldn’t. Jack will punch him, Luke will deliver the final blow, and then Quinn will fly down from Canada to stomp on his grave. But he’s exhausted, and the bed is comfy, and you… you’re there, like he’s always dreamed. He won’t touch you. He’ll just lay down right next to you, barely under the blankets, plenty of space between the two of you in his big bed. It’ll be fine.

…..

You wake up hours later with a raging headache and your head against Nico’s chest. You nearly panic until you remember who he is. Then you worry he’ll think it’s weird, having you pressed against him like this, but you realize his arm is wrapped tightly around your waist. He’s strong. You know that, but it’s different to feel it for yourself, the way the thick muscle presses against your back. His cheek is resting on top of your head, too, and he’s just barely snoring, soft sounds through his lips.

You’d stay right there forever if your head didn’t hurt so bad.

When you try to wiggle free, he holds on tighter, groaning softly. You try to pry his arm off your waist and he grunts this time. When he finally wakes up enough to be somewhat coherent, he doesn’t let go.

“Whatimesit?” He asks groggily, lips brushing against your forehead.

“Dunno,” you admit. “Head hurts. S’there ibuprofen in your cupboard?”

He groans softly and then peels his arm away. Before you can make a move, he rolls out of bed and stumbles towards the bathroom. You watch him go and try to pretend you don’t shiver at the roll of his back muscles beneath his t-shirt. He comes back with a glass of water and pills in his hands.

You fight a laugh at the sight of him, sleep rumpled and groggy, brows furrowed tightly. You push yourself up to sit up, leaning on your left hand and rubbing your eyes sleepily with your right. He hands over the water and the pills. You take them eagerly.

You blink up at him after you down the whole glass and cock your head. “Did I dream that Quinn called?”

Nico snorts and sits down on the edge of the bed. “Nope. That was real life.”

You roll your eyes. “Overprotective asshole.”

Nico laughs at that, eyes slipping closed. “Like I said. If I were him, I’d have had the same reaction.”

You let yourself fall back down to the bed. “Right, like you’d ever…” you cut yourself off with a laugh. “I mean, he and Jack and Luke are always so worried about teammates being into me or something. It’s ridiculous.”

Nico laughs, but it sounds hollow. You lay on the bed and stare at the ceiling. You’re already planning how you’re going to chew Quinn out for this one.

“I don’t blame him,” Nico says, quieter this time. “Just wish he wouldn’t have called so early.”

You close your eyes. “He’s annoying. Why’s he worried? Like… none of you guys have ever shown any interest in me, so. ”

Your lack of dating hockey players is not for lack of trying. There’d been Quinn’s teammates in college, and Jack’s from the other teams, too. You’ve had crushes that you’ve eventually let fizzle out after getting nothing in return. Nico’s the only crush that’s stuck around this long. Because despite the fact that you can barely even call him your friend, sometimes he pulls shit like this- taking you back to his place and staying up late to take care of you, fielding phone calls from your protective older brother. Nico’s a giant human teddy bear. You think at this point it’s gone beyond a crush.

“Why d’you think that is?” Nico asks, breaking you from your train of thought.

“Why do I think what is?” You reply.

You swear you feel his hand brush against your wrist.

“That none of us ever show any interest?” He says.

He’s quiet. Quieter, at least. More tentative. Softer. You pry one eye open and look up at him, and you swear he’s blushing. Hm.

“Because…you’re not- nobody’s interested?” You say, softer than even him.

He tilts his head. Your mouth feels dry.

“You remember the first Devils game you came to?” He asks. You nod, and he continues. “Before the game, in the locker room, Jack mentioned his sister was going to be there, and, well, you know how hockey players are. Couple people made comments about wanting to meet you, asked if you’d be at the afterparty. Jack made it pretty clear you were off limits. And, you know. Guys do that shit all the time, get overprotective over their sisters, and it’s never been, you know, an issue. Half the time I don’t even meet the guys’ family, you know?”

He trails off and scrubs his hand through his hair. You watch him closely.

“But that night, after the game, I was leaving and I saw… this girl. This beautiful girl. And she was wearing a Hughes jersey, and I was…” he laughs and closes his eyes. “I was coming up with all these stupid pick up lines, about how I was better than him, and I was walking towards her, and I swear I looked away for a second and then Jack was there. Hugging you, and glaring at me over your shoulder. I got the message.”

You reach up and pinch the bridge of your nose. “I hate my brothers.”

Nico laughs. “In Luke’s defense…”

“Don’t defend any of them, Luke’s the worst of them, he’s just quiet about it,” you scoff. “He chased my college boyfriend out of my dorm with a hockey stick.”

Nico laughs. You laugh, too, but you shake your head. He nudges his knee against yours. When his thumb brushes against your wrist this time, you open your eyes. That blush is there, soft and rosy on his cheeks.

“So you get it, then,” he says, head tilted as he blinks down at you. His hair is falling over his forehead messily. “Why I’ve never made a move.”

You’re so busy trying to process all the information of the day that you almost miss it. Why I’ve never made a move. It could’ve been a fleeting moment, just a quick crush when he saw you the first time, but something about this tells you it’s not. He presses his thumb to your pulse point on your wrist, and the warmth of his hand on your skin makes you shiver slightly. You stare up at him and chew on your lower lip.

“I think you should ask me about my limits,” you say, quietly. “They’re a lot different than my brothers’, you know.”

The grin on Nico’s face grows wider. “S’that so?”

You nod eagerly. He lets out a low, slow breath, like he’s bracing for impact. Something in your chest aches. He plants a hand next to your head and leans towards you, and your heart leaps in your throat.

“What’re your limits on kissing hockey players?” He asks. His other hand comes up and cups the side of your face. He brushes his thumb against your Cupid’s bow. “Y’know. If the opportunity were to come up.”

You shrug. “Would depend on the player, I suppose.”

He nods in understanding, pursing his lips. “How about… hm. 6’1”, brown hair, brown eyes. Team captain. Nice guy, I guess. Would definitely make sure you got home safe from the bar.”

You reach up and draw a hesitant line on his jaw with your fingertip. “Team captain, huh? I do like a man in charge.”

He nods. You nod back. For a moment, the two of you sit in limbo.

In the end, you’re the one to wrap your arms around his neck and pull yourself up to kiss him. When you do, though, he responds eagerly. He cages you in with both arms, and as you melt for him, he does the same for you. It’s a sweet kiss, one full of hope and excitement. You’re surrounded by him, by his arms and his touch and the smell of him on the sheets. You’ve never been more happy you ran into him at a bar than in that very moment.

…..

You’re back in that same bar from weeks ago, standing under the very same neon light. Except this time, there’s no guy hovering over you, and this time, you and Nico both know the other is going to be there. He’s at the bar, pretending he’s just noticed you, smiling and waving as he orders. You shake your empty cup at him, and he nods.

He wanders over a few minutes later, drinks in hand. He leans against the wall next to you and hands you the cup. The neon light glows bright on his dark hair. You sip your drink and smile up at him. Politely. Friendly. Nothing more. He’s a polite, friendly distance away. There’s space between the two of you.

“If we’re gonna make this believable, you’re going to have to come say hello to the rest of the team,” he says.

You nod. “In a minute.”

Across the bar, one of his teammates is yelling about a game on the screen. For now, you want just a minute with Nico. A moment for just the two of you. One where he’s not your brothers’ team captain, but your boyfriend instead.

The word feels new in your brain, would feel even newer on your lips if you said it. So far, you’ve only tried it out a couple times- when he asked the question, and then after that in the bathroom mirror, a wide grin on your face. You haven’t told anyone else. Nico’s worried about Jack and Luke’s reactions, and the season’s almost done- he wants to wait to tell them afterwards, when the results of a game won’t rest so heavily on how they take the news. It’s been a lot of staying in dates, movie nights at home on his couch, which both of you are partial to anyways. And lots of this, too- seemingly chance meetings at local bars, quick texts from him telling you where he’s headed with his friends and you showing up, purely coincidental to anyone other than him.

Eventually, you follow him through the crowd of people to a secluded corner full of hockey players. You spot your brothers, blissfully unaware, nursing matching beers. Just before everyone catches sight of the two of you, Nico sneaks a hand back and squeezes yours. You smile brightly.

“Look who I found!” Nico calls out.

He moves his grip on your hand to your wrist, raises your arm like you’ve won a fight. You laugh and shake your arm free of his hold. You’re met with cheers from the team, loudest of all from your brothers. You can wait to tell them. For now, the way he smiles at you is more than enough.

…..

“Should we just tell them we know they’re… a thing?” Luke asks.

Jack shakes his head, watching you and Nico. “Nah. Let ‘em sweat. She’ll slip up eventually, or he’ll start to freak out.” He sees Nico reach to grab your hip, then pull back at the last second like he’s been burned. A mix of disgust and amusement passes through him- you’re his sister, after all. “Jesus, dunno why they think they’re fooling anyone.”

Jack’s known since the day he got back and saw you at lunch. You’d been overly happy but basically refused to talk about your impromptu stay at Nico’s. Then, he’d seen Nico at practice, and he’d been much the same. By the time the team had gone out to a bar and you mysteriously happened to show up, he’d had his suspicions and had relayed them to Luke. They’d watched you and Nico leave the bar together one night when you thought nobody was looking.

Luke laughs. “Okay, but, when do we tell Quinn?”

Jack turns to him with wide eyes. “We don’t! D’you want our captain to die?”

Luke directs his gaze back towards you and the aforementioned captain. Jack follows suit and tries not to roll his eyes. The two of you aren’t touching, but the smiles on your faces say it all.

“I mean,” Luke starts quietly. “They’re kind of cute. And we want them to be happy, right?”

“Don’t even start,” Jack says firmly.

He’ll let it go for now, in the interest of finishing out the season on a good note. But after that, all bets are off. Definitely. Probably. Jack’s the one who set the rules, who declared you off limits, and he’ll stick to his word.

No matter how much the two of you together are starting to grow on him.

Part 2: I Know

if you’ve made it this far, thanks for reading! i hope you’ve enjoyed

#nico hischier x reader #nico hischier x you #nico hischier fanfic #Nico hischier fic #Nico hischier fluff #Nico hischier oneshot #Nico hischier fanfiction #Nico hischier imagine #nhl fic #nhl fanfic #nhl oneshot #nhl fluff

992 notes · View notes

puckinghischier · 6 days

Text

Jersey Talk

nico hischier x fem!reader, jack hughes x platonic!reader, luke hughes x platonic!reader

summary: reader finds herself engaging in a lot of jersey talk

notes: part 3 of my lil unnamed nico series!! i loved writing this part and hope you enjoy it as much as i do 🥹 also, i didn’t really proofread so ignore any mistakes. and just a disclaimer, i don’t claim to know everything there is to know about any of the players mentioned in my writing, so if there’s inaccuracies on timelines or personality traits, just ignore them and assume it’s for the plot 😌

p.s.!! i’m thinking about starting a tag list for this/any of my writing i post so if you want to be a part of that, let me know!!

part 1, part 2

[6.4k]

You absolutely love how foot travel friendly New Jersey is. Coming from an area where foot travel is virtually nonexistent, the change is a welcomed one. You appreciate being able to simply grab your favorite totes, your headphones, and make the fifteen-minute walk to the small corner store. Surely in the winter you’ll feel differently about the five-block trek, but you’ll have your car by then. For now, the comfortable Autumn air makes the walk enjoyable. The fresh air, the beautiful buildings, and the surprising friendliness of the strangers you pass on the street make you feel like you made the right decision in relocating your life to the garden state.

Luckily this grocery run was fairly light, only needing to pick up some essentials until one of the boys can give you a ride to the larger chain grocery store on one of their upcoming off days. You really just needed the ingredients to make dinner tonight, making good on your promise to be their personal shopper and occasional chef in exchange for a place to live. You even stopped in a small bakery about a block from your apartment and picked up a few assorted pastries for a sweet treat later, knowing how much Luke loves his dessert.

As you walk into the apartment, courtesy of your shiny new key Jack gave you last week, you see both him and Luke on the couch, each with one hand on an iPad held out so both could view the contents on the screen. You assume they’re watching game film, preparing for their game later in the week against the Rangers, your assumption confirmed when you hear the unmistakable sound of sticks slapping against pucks and ice coming from the iPad in question.

They’re both so engrossed in the game film on the screen that they have no clue that you’ve even walked through the door. You make your way to the kitchen to unload what’s in your hands, putting away what little groceries you bought. Once you’re finished in the kitchen, you make your way back out into the living room, wanting to catch up with your roommates on how their midday practice had gone. As you walk towards the living area, rounding the loveseat adjacent to the sectional where the boys sit, Luke catches your moving figure from the corner of his eye. His body jerks slightly, clearly startled until he notices its only you.

“Oh my god you just scared the shit out of me,” you hear him exhale, holding his hand to his chest.

You just chuckle as you see Jack whip his head up, confused as to what Luke was referring to until he saw you sitting down, tucking your feet up under your legs to get comfortable.

“When did you get home? Have you been here the whole time?” Jack asks, pausing the game film and sitting the iPad on the small coffee table in the center of the room.

“No, you two were just lost in hockey land when I came in. I went to the corner mart a few blocks down to get stuff to make dinner, then put it all away before coming in here. Thought I’d give you guys a few more minutes before I came in here and interrupted,” you replied, laying your head on your hands that rest on the arm of the loveseat.

“Well, you have our full attention now, what’s up?” Jack leans back into the couch once again, stretching his arms above his head.

“Just wanted to talk to my boys. See how practice went today. Figure out how you guys are going to fare against the Rags,” you throw in a small dig at their biggest rival team.

“The Rags? Since when do you participate in hockey talk?” Luke chimes into the conversation, laughing slightly at your attempt to assimilate into the world of hockey.

“Since I overheard a conversation at this cute little bakery down the street. While I was waiting in line there was a man in front of me with a Devils hat on and the guy working the counter was asking him about his thoughts on the game this week. He was talking about how much he wishes ‘the boys can pull their heads out of their asses and beat the damn Rags’ and I thought it was funny. Figured I should probably adopt the local vernacular if I want to fit in around here. You know, participate in the Jersey talk” you recall with a shrug of your shoulders.

The two brothers let out a little chuckle at your story, amused at your attempt to insert yourself into their world. They’ve taught you a lot about how hockey is played and the rules over the years, but their hope of you fully getting involved in all of the aspects of hockey and the fanbase quickly dissolved. They would sit and force you to watch game film with them over the summer at the lake, and you would just sit there and whine because of how badly you wanted to go out on the boat or drive the golf cart down to the local ice cream shop, not listening to a single word the two would say to you. Once you made the decision to move in with Jack and Luke, you figured you should probably put a little more effort into the whole hockey fan experience, considering you would likely be attending games on a regular basis.

“Well, we’ve been preparing for the Rags, so that old man in the bakery can rest easy knowing we’re working our asses off, which our heads aren’t in, by the way, so we can win on Saturday,” Jack speaks, seeming a little offended by your story a few seconds ago.

“Yeah, we’re doing really well, actually. We keep splitting the team up and forcing one half to mimic the Rangers and some of their techniques, so we’re actually getting really good at stopping them from getting the puck into our zone. Plus, our goalies are putting out some insane stops during practice, so I really think we’ve got this in the bag,” Luke adds, excited to showcase their hard work.

Practices have been hard for the boys this week. A lot of naps and ibuprofen consumed. You haven’t really seen much of them, if you’re being honest. They’re usually gone by the time you wake up in the mornings, and so tired by the time they come home they go straight to the couch or their bedrooms and fall asleep. By the time they wake up from their naps you’re usually already cooking dinner, chatting a bit while you cook. After finishing dinner they’re back to the couch, watching game film or heading back to the arena for various events and strategy meetings. They go to bed fairly early, considering all of their early morning starts, so evenings are usually spent in your room by yourself watching tv or catching up with your friends back home. You suppose you should get used to spending time by yourself, though, knowing you’ll be here by yourself more often than not during the season.

They had a game in Boston a few days prior, leaving you with your apartment to yourself for the first time. They were only gone for one night, but it was definitely lonely. You really haven’t been here long enough to have an abundance of people to call up anytime Jack and Luke were unavailable. You had passed the time by exploring the area around your apartment complex a little, finding the perfect park to go sit at to soak up some much-needed sunshine. You couldn’t hide your excitement when the two brothers returned home the next evening, though. You got up from the couch and ran over to the door, ready to greet them and ask them all about the game (you had watched it on tv, but you really just wanted to talk to someone after a full day with no one’s company but your own), but you were greeted with tired eyes and frowns, despite their win the previous night. You simply gave each of them a hug and then sent them off to bed, knowing once they got some sleep they would be up for conversation.

This is why, right now, even though you have zero knowledge of what preparing for a rival hockey game consists of, you’re taking in every word the two have to offer about the subject. You’re just happy to have a few uninterrupted minutes to sit and talk with them.

“Good! That’s great! Really…good,” you say, giving a thumbs up and awkward smile after failing to come up with a better response to Luke’s statements.

Luke just laughs, appreciating your attempts at interest in their jobs.

“You’re coming to the game, right? We put back a ticket for you, but if you can’t make it that’s okay too. Got you a pretty sick seat, though. Glass seat, right beside the net,” Jack reveals, raising his eyebrows a bit, as if trying to convince you.

“Of course I’ll be there, I wouldn’t miss it for the world!” you exclaim, a little offended at the mere thought you’d skip out on such a big game for them.

“You won’t be disappointed, I swear. We’re gonna kick some major Rags ass,” Luke adds, excitement showing at the idea of you being in the crowd.

“The real question here shouldn’t have been if I was going to come or not, it’s whose jersey i’m going to wear,” you throw out, poking fun at the two.

“Pshh, c’mon that one’s a no brainer. You’ll obviously wear mine, I’m your favorite,” Jack waves off your words, fully confident that you’ll agree with him.

“I don’t know, Rowdy. I feel like plenty of people will have 86 jerseys on. It is Moose’s rookie season, maybe I should wear his so he feels included.”

“Yeah, dickhead. You have a whole arena full of people wearing your number, she should wear mine. We all know it’s the better number anyways,” Luke retorts.

Jack rolls his eyes, opening his mouth to fire back an insult at Luke, but he’s cut off by a knock at the door. You look over at the two boys to see if they know who might be at the door, but both of their faces mirror your confused look. So much for your uninterrupted time with them.

“Did you guys invite someone over? Or should I be worried that there’s a murderer standing on the other side of our door right now,” you ask.

“Well first of all I don’t think a murderer would knock on the door. They would probably pick the lock or something. Isn’t the whole point of murdering someone to do it when they don’t see it coming?” Jack responds, standing up. “Second of all, it’s probably just Nico. I had mentioned watching game film together at practice earlier and he told me he’d see how he was feeling later. Kinda forgot about it, if I’m being honest, but this is around the time he wakes up from his post-practice nap.”

You sit up a little straighter when Jack mentions his teammate and captain. You hadn’t seen him since your first night in town about a week and a half ago. You’d caught little bits of information about him in passing from both Jack and Luke, but felt it was too odd for you to ask about him outright. The two of you were still practically strangers, not having had any reason to communicate after that night. He’s been as busy as Jack and Luke, coming and going far more than you. Still, you’re surprised you haven’t even run into him once, not even in the elevator. You figure his captain duties keep him far busier than even Luke and Jack.

You hear the front door open and then two sets of voices making their way down the short hallway. You look over to see Nico in a hoodie and sweats, a hat hiding his long hair. You think back to that night at the bar when his hair was uncovered and he was having to push it out of his eyes for most of the night, wishing you could catch a glimpse of the brown locks right now. The two were continuing their short conversation from the door, so Nico had yet to acknowledge you or Luke yet. You look away, starting to pick at a loose thread on your socks, knowing you needed to avert your eyes before you were caught staring. Unknown to you, Luke had already noticed your stare, observing how fixated you were on his captain. You look over to find Luke staring at you, an undecipherable expression on his face. You give him a puzzled look, as if to say ‘what?’ and he responds by simply shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders a bit.

“Oh, hey you two. How’s it going?” Nico’s voice pulls you from your silent conversation with Luke.

“Hey, man. How was your nap? Your shoulder okay?” Luke answers, adjusting his body slightly on the couch to make room for Nico to sit down.

You turn your head to look at Nico once again, a small hint of worry surfacing. He doesn’t look injured? His arm isn’t in a sling or anything, and he’s not holding it in pain. You watch as he sits down to see if even the smallest wince makes its way across his face as his back comes to rest against the plush cushions. If he’s in any sort of pain, he’s not letting it show in his actions.

“Yeah, perfectly fine. Don’t give yourself that much credit, kid. You don’t hit nearly as hard as you think you do,” Nico chuckles, taking his hand and tapping Luke on the knee a few times.

“Trying to hurt your captain before a huge game, Luke?” you speak for the first time since Nico entered the apartment. “Maybe I should wear Jack’s jersey on Saturday.”

“I knew it! See, my jersey is clearly the better choice, Moose. Sucks to suck, huh?” Jack interjects with a grin, walking from the direction of the kitchen, glass of water in hand.

“Now c’mon, y/n, that isn’t even fair. It was an accident! We were running drills and I was trying to stop, but I misjudged and ran into Nico. He didn’t even hit the glass that hard, you heard him!” Luke argues back, looking between you and his brother.

“All I’m saying is, it won’t look good if the rookie is the reason the captain can’t play against public enemy number one. Then you’ll become public enemy number one, and I can’t be caught at a game wearing the new public enemy’s jersey. I’m already a newcomer, I can’t tarnish my reputation this early,” you hold your hands up in defense.

“What have I just walked into?” Nico asks, eyes darting between the three of you.

“Well right before you walked in, we were talking about which jersey y/n was going to wear to the game on Saturday, and I told her the obvious choice was mine, but she decided to spew some bullshit about there being too many 86 jerseys already so she should wear Luke’s since he’s new and needs to feel included,” Jack uses finger quotes around the last part of his sentence.

“Well, she has a point.”

“See! Even Cap thinks so! That’s it, you’re wearing my jersey, y/n. Cap’s word is final,” Luke leans back, taking in his assumed victory.

“Maybe I should be fair and not wear either jersey. Just go down the roster and pick a random name and then buy it,” you joke, watching the brothers widen their eyes like you just told them you ran over their childhood pet.

“That’s…not even funny. How dare you even joke about something so important,” Jack stares at you, seriousness painted on his features.

“C’mon, y/n, that’s just…that’s just cruel,” Luke emphasizes the last word dramatically.

“I think you should do it. In fact, I have a spare jersey I think you can wear,” Nico adds, addressing you directly for the first time.

“Oh, well that actually sounds lovely, Nico, thank you! What better way to show my support to my first Devils game than sporting the captain’s jersey?”

Jack and Luke both turn their heads to glare at their captain sitting between them. If looks could kill, the poor Swiss man would be six feet under right now. The Hughes brothers don’t play around when it comes to their jerseys. You remember when you had gone to one of Luke’s games while he was playing for Michigan, wanting to buy a Michigan jersey in support, but the gift shop had run out of Luke’s number once he announced his contract with the Devils. You knew you could have simply asked him for a jersey, knowing he had several lying around his dorm room, but the trip was supposed to be a surprise.

You weren’t wearing anything else to show your support for the team because of your intent on buying a jersey, so you were forced to buy a random jersey with some lesser known last name on it. You don’t even remember whose name and number it was, but you remember the look on Luke’s face when he saw you during warm ups, going from pure joy to disgust in seconds. He skated off, going to the locker room briefly before returning with a yellow Jersey that he then threw over the glass to your seat, motioning for you to put it on. You just laughed and did as you were told. You’ve had similar arguments with both Jack and Quinn over threatening to wear a teammates jersey over the years, but you just like to poke fun at how protective the three are over you. Jack explained to you once that they want you to wear their jersey’s because it shows their teammates that you’re off limits, seeing as there’s usually unspoken rules around sisters and friends of teammates.

“Cap, please don’t make me kick you out of this apartment right now,” Jack looks at Nico with complete seriousness.

“Maybe I need to work on my body checks in practice tomorrow, Cap,” Luke tries to threaten.

Nico simply laughs, shaking his head at the sudden unity between the two bickering brothers.

“Alright, chill out you two, all jokes. Unless…” You trail off, standing up.

“No, no unless. You’re wearing one of our jerseys, preferably mine. Hey! Where are you going, this is serious!” Jack yells after you as you walk towards the kitchen.

“Unless you want to starve tonight, someone has to start making dinner. Plus, I have some jersey shopping to do,” you say, hearing Nico’s laughter ringing out once more as you enter the kitchen.

———————————————————————————

“Hey, Nico! Are you staying for dinner? I need to know how much pasta to make!” you shout from your spot by the stove, having just sat down a large pot of water on the hot eye.

You walk over to the cabinet to grab the box of pasta and a couple jars of sauce, waiting for an answer from the living room. You decided to go with just simple spaghetti and salad tonight, not really in the mood for having to prep a ton of food and spend an hour and a half cooking. Jack will probably complain about the amount of carbs he’s consuming on an off day, but he’ll get over it. As if he doesn’t burn enough calories from practice and his personal workouts he does on a daily basis. Luke will just be happy to have something that isn’t chicken, seeing as that’s all you made for the first few days of your new living arrangement, trying to stick to the meal plan Jack had the nutritionist send you. After the third night of some form of chicken and vegetables, Luke was quick to inform you that no one on the team follows the meal plan exactly and Jack is going through some phase of eating nothing but chicken or steak and brown rice, learning that that’s what the two mostly lived on during the weeks leading up to your move. You had told Luke he should learn to cook for himself, and then he wouldn’t be forced to eat what Jack or you decide to make if he doesn’t like it, and he just rolled his eyes and told you ‘this was the agreement, right? We won’t let you pay rent, so you told us you would contribute by cooking. So really, I’m just helping you fulfill your roommate duties’.

You still don’t have an answer from the living room, assuming they’re too busy with game film to hear you, so you decide to just make enough for Nico, too. You can always pack up the leftovers and have them for lunch the next few days if needed. You dump what you think to be the proper amount of pasta for four people into the pot once it reaches a boil, then work on pouring the sauce into a pan to let it heat up. You cheated on the salad, too, deciding to just buy two bags of salad mix, dumping the bag into a large bowl and adding the small packets of toppings. You’ve just dumped the now done pasta into the colander in the sink, turning to put the pot back onto the stove to cool off a bit when a voice causes you to nearly drop the hot pot in your hands.

“It smells delicious in here,” Nico announces his presence, walking through the doorway towards the fridge.

You settle yourself before setting the pot down safely on the stovetop before speaking. “You know, I really need to get on ordering those squeaky shoes if I want to avoid a heart attack by 25.”

Turning your body, you see Nico hunched over looking in the fridge, arm reaching towards a water bottle before raising up, flashing you a smile.

“Nah, even if you buy them I wouldn’t wear them. This is like, our thing now. Me sneaking up on you, you getting mad, me getting a good laugh out of it,” he stands back at his full height now.

“How comforting that you find enjoyment out of my jumpiness. Such an admirable trait to have,” you grumble, taking the pasta from the sink and transfer it into the pan filled with sauce. “I was going to ask if you wanted to stay for dinner, seeing as it looks like I made enough to feed the entire team, but I think I’ll just leave you to fend for yourself. See how funny that is.”

This earns another laugh, Nico moving to lean against the counter opposite of you, watching you try to combine the sauce and the pasta without making a giant mess.

“Why don’t you just put it back in the pot you cooked the pasta in. You’ll be able to mix it easier.”

“Because apparently that would have been too easy,” you step back and huff, wondering why you didn’t think of that before you created an overflowing mess of sauce and noodles.

Nico makes his way over to you, causing you to move out of the way while he picks up the pan and dumps the contents into the pot sitting next to it, not spilling a single drop.

“There, now you can mix it easier and it won’t spill out over the sides and cause an even bigger mess,” he states, placing the dirty pan in the sink behind you.

“Okay, captain chef, next time you’re cooking dinner, since you clearly have more kitchen skills than me,” you tell him, making your way across the kitchen to collect plates to sit on the table.

Nico just chuckles as he watches you grab the plates, sitting one in front of each chair around the small dining table that sits in the kitchen.

“It smells so good in here, please tell me its almost done,” Jack enters the kitchen, Luke trailing behind him.

“It is, just finished actually,” you look up, Nico carrying the pot of steaming pasta from the stove to the table, careful not to drop it.

“Rowdy, grab the salad over there by the sink for me while I grab some forks for everyone,” you move towards the silverware drawer, walking around the Swiss man in your kitchen, having to turn your body slightly has he steps back from the table.

“Well, I better get going, my leftovers aren’t going to heat themselves up,” Nico announces, starting to make his way out of the kitchen.

“Cap, are you crazy? Do you not see how much food Bouy made?” Jack takes his seat at the table.

“Jack, I’m being so serious right now, if you keep using that stupid nickname for me I will sneak laxatives into your protein shakes.” You take the seat across from Jack, Luke falling into the seat to your left.

“Well, as long as it’s okay with Bouy, I’d love to stay.” Nico walks back over to the table, taking the seat next to Jack.

“I know where you live, so the threat extends to you too, Cap” you glare at Nico.

The rest of the meal is mostly filled with talk between the three hockey players, you chiming in here and there, until Jack shifts the topic of conversation to you.

“So, what’s the update with your new job? You have everything lined up and ready to go?”

“Yeah, talked to them earlier today, actually. They said they’d have my office ready in about a week, so I should be starting not long after that.” You shrug, not wanting to bore them with the details of the corporate scene in New Jersey.

“Where are you going to be working?” Nico asks, genuine interest present in his tone, wiping his mouth with his napkin.

“I got offered a position with a small publishing company not too far from here, actually. Mostly independent, up and coming authors, but still exciting,” you reveal, perking up a bit at the opportunity to talk about your passion.

“Was super worried I wasn’t going to be able to use my degree after college, seeing as the market for English lit degrees isn’t too wide unless you want to teach. At least, that’s how it is back home. After I graduated and Jack offered the spare room here, I applied to a few positions here in Jersey and a few in New York, willing to make the commute if needed. Only heard back from one place, though. And it just so happened to be a thirty-minute drive from here, so I accepted and started packing,” you explained.

“It was meant to be. The gang back together once again,” Jack beams.

“Well, the gang minus Quinn. The fucker just had to end up in Vancouver of all places,” Luke grumbles, still upset the oldest Hughes is so far away.

“Well, the good news is I can work remotely if I ever need or want to, so this summer at the lake we can all be together again,” you try to cheer Luke up, knowing how much he wishes the three brothers could have played on the same team while making their dreams come true.

“Hell yeah! This is going to be the best summer at the lake house yet. We’re all grown, most of us legal drinking age, but don’t worry, we won’t tell if you won’t, Lukey,” Jack winks over at Luke, knowing the underage drinking rule has never really applied in the scared space of the lake houses, “and we’ll all finally be there together again after, what, like 6 years?”

“It’s been awhile, at least that long,” you try to think back to the last time everyone was there together.

It was the summer before Quinn got drafted. Quinn had signed to play hockey at Michigan a few months before everyone was set to arrive at the summer oasis. You remember being so proud of him. You couldn’t wait to finally see him and congratulate him in person, knowing how hard he had worked for it. You figured things would stay the same for a few more years, expecting him to come home every summer for the next four years before moving on to the NHL. You had no clue that he would be drafted only a summer later and that it would be the beginning of the end for the summers of fun at the lake house.

“Nico, you should come up this summer! It’s always such a good time!” Jack pulls you from your reminiscing.

“I mean, maybe. I’ve been talking to my parents about flying home during the off season this year, since I didn’t get to last year. But I could probably come for a few days, at least,” he shrugs his shoulders.

You try to picture Nico at the lake house, hat covering his hair, swim trunks and a t-shirt covering his body. You picture him lounging on the boat in the sun while Jack takes everyone out for a midday ride, finding a secluded spot somewhere on the lake to stop and swim for a while. You picture him trying to wake surf, wondering if he’d be instantly good at it or if he would end up wiping out in the water. You picture him sitting around the fire at night, a light hoodie on to the mask the chill that never fails to make an appearance on Michigan summer nights, the glow from the fire illuminating his face just enough for you to admire him. You picture him with a slight sunburn on his nose, tan skin glowing from being in the sun so often.

You must have been lost in your thoughts for longer than you realized, because you came back to the conversation with several calls of your name from the seat next to you.

“Are you even listening to us anymore? Or do you really not want Cap coming to the lake house?” Luke looks over at you, slightly waving his hand in front of your face.

“What? No,” you say, looking around at the expectant faces surrounding you. “I mean, no I don’t care if he comes. It would be fun, yeah. If he can make it, of course. You heard him, I’m sure he’s excited to see his family.”

“I’m sure I can work something out. Have the best of both worlds. These two have talked about the infamous lake house so much I’m curious to see if it really lives up to all the hype,” Nico leans back, nodding his head towards both Jack and Luke.

“Then its settled! Cap is coming to Michigan this summer!” Jack cheers, throwing his arms up in celebration.

You laugh in response to Jack’s excitement, noticing that everyone seems to be done eating, plates clean and glasses empty. You stand up and start to take some of the dishes to the sink, setting them in there before walking back over to the table.

“Since you’re in such a good mood, I think now would be the best time to tell you that you and Luke have dish duty tonight.” You clear the last of the dishes off the table.

You watch Jack’s face fall, while Luke’s does a sharp turn in your direction. You turn your back to them to walk back over to the counter, opening the cabinet below you to find Tupperware to store the leftovers in.

“Well, I better get going. Have some laundry I need to get done before practice in the morning,” Nico stands, bringing over a few stray pieces of silverware you seemed to have missed.

“Oh, no you don’t, Cap. You heard her, she cooked, we clean,” Jack turns to look at his captain from his spot at the sink.

“No, I said you and Luke have dish duty tonight. Nico’s name was never mentioned. Guests don’t do the dishes, Jack. I know Ellen raised you better than that.”

“Nico is hardly a guest. He’s over here all the time!” Luke chimes in, drying off a glass jack had just washed.

“He doesn’t pay any rent for the apartment, therefore he’s a guest. Just accept your fate, you two. You’ll survive, I promise.” You hand the pot you just emptied into Jack’s hands, taking the food in your hands to the fridge a few steps away.

“You don’t pay any rent, and you’re not a guest,” Jack mumbles, hands covered in soapy suds.

“Exactly! That means I don’t do the dishes, either. I knew you’d catch on eventually! And they say you’re just a pretty face,” you shut the fridge door, looking over at Jack with an amused grin.

“That’s not what I meant and you know it!” Jack whines.

“C’mon, man, you walked right into that one,” Nico adds, laughing at his teammate.

Jack glares at the taller man. “I thought you said you were leaving, that you had laundry to do or some shit.”

“I am, I am,” Nico throws his hands up in defense.

“I’ll walk you out, Nico. Leave the children to do pout while doing their chores,” you jest, walking toward the kitchen’s exit.

“Thanks for dinner, y/n. Ten times better than whatever I would’ve found in my fridge,” Nico says as you pass through the living room.

“Anytime, cap. After all, I owed you for rescuing me from sleeping in the hallway.”

This earns another one of those laughs you love to hear fall from his mouth, smiling to yourself as he follows you down the small hallway towards the front door.

“I feel like you definitely had to put in more effort on your end of that deal,” He steps through the door you’re holding open.

“I’ll just wait until you owe me a favor, then I’ll make sure to cash in some extravagant request,” you joke, leaning against the door as he stands in the hallway.

“I’ll be eagerly awaiting the day.”

Nico takes his apartment key from his pocket and unlocks his door, opening it and stepping inside, turning around to face you once again, his stance mirroring your own in his own doorway.

“So, I’ll see you at the game on Saturday, then?” He stalls a goodbye.

“Yep, I’ll be there. Still deciding which brother I’m going to piss off,” you reference the earlier argument over whose jersey you’ll wear.

“Oh, that reminds me-“ Nico says before propping his door open, leaving you alone in your doorway, confused as to where he could’ve gone.

After about a minute of you standing there, wondering if he was going to come back, he returns, holding a red jersey in his hand.

“Here, figured there’s no sense in you going out and buying one if you really wanted to mess with their heads.”

He hands you the jersey in his hands, stepping back into his doorway. You unfold the jersey and notice the big black C on the upper right corner of the jersey. It was a solid red jersey, the team’s symbol in the middle, two black stripes on the forearms of each sleeve, more black accents on the shoulders of the jersey. You look up at him, a little surprised.

“I- I can’t take one of your jerseys, Nico. What if I mess it up, or spill something on it? I’ll just wear one of the many Hughes ones I own. This looks too nice to risk it,” you attempt to hand the jersey back across the hallway.

“No, I insist. I think it’ll be fun to mess around with them a little. Especially Jack, since he seemed so convinced you were going to wear his. They’ll never even see it coming,” Nico refuses.

“Okay, but if I end up getting kicked out of my apartment I’m knocking on your door to sleep on your couch.”

“My door’s always open for you.”

You look back down to the jersey in your hands, admiring how pretty it really is. You guess it would be funny to show up wearing Nico’s jersey instead of either Jack’s or Luke’s. But what if you seriously hurt their feelings? What if it affects how they play because they’re mad at you? What if they ignore you the whole game? You know the two brothers love you, but you also know how petty they can both be when mad.

“Stop overthinking it. I can see you getting lost up in that head of yours. It’s a harmless joke. They’re not going to freak out on the ice or anything. If anything I’m in more danger than you are,” Nico reassures you, scaring you a bit with how well he can read you already, only having spent a small amount of time around the man.

“You better at least score a goal if I’m risking being homeless for you.”

“How about I do you one better. If you promise to wear my jersey, I’ll score a hatty for your first ever New Jersey Devils hockey experience,” Nico offers, his eyes flashing with something you assume is delight at a challenge.

“Well then you better work on your slapshot tomorrow morning, Captain. I’ll be holding you to that Saturday night,” you take the bait.

“No need, I know I’ll have the right motivation night of to get it done. And if I don’t, well then consider it your IOU for that extravagant request you might need one day,” He responds, crossing his arms and shrugging his shoulders, the nonchalance of his body language making you hope for his failure, just so you can think of some ridiculous task for him to perform.

“Thanks for the heads up, I’ll get right to brainstorming.”

Nico lets out a small laugh, standing up straight and placing his hand on the handle of his door. “You do that. Let me know what you come up with. Have a good night, Bouy, see you Saturday.” He shuts the door before you can berate him for using the nickname you hate.

You walk back into your apartment, door shutting behind you, going straight to your room to hide the jersey before either of the boys see it, wanting the reveal to stay a surprise until Saturday. As you’re walking past the kitchen you hear Jack’s voice.

“Luke, am I stupid or did y/n call me stupid earlier?”

“Jack, think about how you just worded that question and you’ll have your answer,” you hear Luke respond as you make it past the kitchen unnoticed, making you stifle a giggle so you won’t be discovered.

Oh how you loved being back with your boys.

423 notes · View notes

roosterforme · 1 month

Text

Covering the Classics Part 3 | Bob Floyd x OC

Summary: When Anna finally agrees to meet her new friends at the bar, she learns pretty quickly that the hot guy from the bookstore is actually Bob Floyd. But the fact that she ran and hid from him, thinking she'd never have to see him again, leaves her feeling mortified, and Bob is left to draw his own conclusions.

Warnings: Fluff, angst, adult language, eventually 18+

Length: 3700 words

Pairing: Robert "Bob" Floyd x Female OC (this story is part of the Beer Boy/Sugar and Jake/Jessica universe)

Covering the Classics masterlist. Check my masterlist for more! Thank you to @mak-32 for the beautiful banner!

Anna took a deep breath as she swiped on some mascara and found her tube of lipgloss. She finally caved and agreed to go to the Navy bar that her friends couldn't stop talking about at lunch every day. She only had about five dollars in her wallet to buy a drink since she sold her car for rent money. She couldn't believe was going to take an Uber all the way to Coronado just to make an absolute fool of herself in front of this Bob character. And worst of all, she was still thinking about the hot guy with glasses from the bookstore.

"It's okay," she told her reflection in the bathroom mirror. "At least you're absolutely killing it at work. And you're having a good hair day." She dabbed at her lips, but skipped the concealer. Kevin used to love it when she covered up her freckles which made her never want to do it ever again. Every time she thought about him, her heart skipped a beat, but not in the fun way.

She counted to five and said, "Kevin isn't here." Then she put her makeup away and made sure her computer was plugged in so she could mess around online when she inevitably returned to her miniscule apartment within the next hour and a half. "Let's get this show on the road," she muttered.

The ride to the bar was uneventful, as she was sure the rest of her evening would be as well. Bob sounded like an absolute dream when Advanced Calculus and Advanced Physics talked about him. Anna couldn't imagine him being outright rude to her after the two of them said he was sweet and had perfect manners, but she could already tell what his reaction would be: a kind but forced laugh, and maybe a halfhearted smile. And then Anna would probably get to watch him pick up a different girl instead if she didn't leave right away with her proverbial tail between her legs.

Maybe she should have stayed home.

"Here we are," the driver said as he pulled into a beachside parking lot as the sun started setting over the ocean. "The Hard Deck."

"That was quick," she murmured, wishing she could stay in the solitude of this backseat a bit longer as she climbed out. "Thanks."

The fact that every day in San Diego was warm and beautiful was going to take some getting used to. The weather almost never wavered here unlike back at home. Anna opened the weather app on her phone and scrolled to her saved location in New Jersey, and sure enough, it was raining there. She nibbled on her lip and checked her work email, dragging the toe of her beat up sneaker on the gavel parking lot.

She was just stalling now, wondering if her friends would even notice if she didn't show up. They just met her two weeks ago; they probably didn't even really like her that much. Her thumb hovered over her rideshare app as she thought about the two other women just going about their business like normal if she never went back to the weird tree at lunchtime. She was inconsequential to their day.

Anna pressed her lips together and tapped the app. There was a car two minutes away, but the guilt of having wasted eighteen dollars to come here in the first place was eating away at her mind. "Damn it," she whispered as she closed out of the app and shoved her phone into the pocket of her snug jeans. She started walking up to the sand covered wood planks that led to the entrance of the bar, and she didn't stop until she was inside.

Slow Ride was blaring from the sound system, and the place was pretty packed. It took a few seconds for her eyes to adjust so she could get the lay of the land, and when she did, she realized she was surrounded by mostly men. "Great," she mumbled, earning a few looks, probably because she had barely taken a step beyond the entryway before freezing up.

But as Anna made her way closer to the bar, a big guy in a khaki uniform winked at her and called out, "Hey, Red!"

She felt her cheeks warm up which was certainly not going to help with that nickname. "Oh no." Deftly, she squeezed her way through the many bodies until she had one hand resting on the bar. Why were all these men so attractive? And why were they looking at her?

When a different guy next to her turned and saw her, he stuck out his hand and said, "Hey, I'm Jackson."

"Anna," she replied, slipping her smaller hand into his very briefly before trying to take a step back. But she just ended up bumping into someone else.

"You gotta let me buy you a drink," Jackson told her with a grin. "Seriously. You're already the best part of my night."

Anna swallowed as she looked around for her friends, but she didn't see either of them. "Um... not yet. I'm not a big drinker."

Jackson laughed merrily. "Aww, honey. You came to the wrong place. Hey, Penny!" Anna watched the bartender turn around with her hands full of two martini glasses. "Can you get this one anything she wants on my tab?"

Penny laughed, and said, "You'll have to get in line, Jackson. You're number four on her roster already."

"Damn it!" Jackson complained with a laugh.

Anna's eyes went wide as Penny delivered the two drinks and then came back and leaned on the bar right in front of her. "By the looks of things, you won't have to pay for a single drink all night. So what'll it be?"

Penny had friendly looking eyes that made Anna feel a little more comfortable. "A ginger ale?"

"Coming right up," Penny replied, reaching for a pint glass and the soda dispenser gun without looking away. "I've never seen you in here before, so I feel like it's only fair to warn you that these guys can get a little relentless."

That was literally the last thing Anna wanted to hear right now. Even Jackson hadn't moved an inch away from her, and her hands were starting to sweat as the ginger ale came gliding across the bar. When she wrapped her hand around the cold glass, she told Penny, "I'm actually supposed to meet some friends here. But I don't see them?"

She smiled and said, "Give me a name."

Anna looked down into the bubbles of her drink and muttered, "Jessica Reed?"

The response was immediate but kind. "By the pool table. Where she always is. Oh, and do not challenge her to a game, because she will kick your ass."

Anna laughed as she picked up her drink. "Thank you so much. And um... could you thank whomever paid for my ginger ale?"

Penny nodded as Anna started to head for the pool table. Jackson pouted at her, and the big guy in the uniform called out, "Come back, Red!" She ignored both of them as she fought her way through the crowd, desperately trying not to spill her drink on anyone. There were a lot more khaki uniforms and even some one piece jumpsuit type things that had patches sewn onto them. She read a few of the patches as she got closer to the pool table. Harvard. Omaha. Halo. Those were some weird names.

"There she is. Anna!"

She turned her head when she heard her name, and she saw Jessica waving one hand in the air as she juggled a beer and a pool cue in the other. Jessica actually looked happy to see her as she stood there, all wrapped up in the arms of a guy that Anna couldn't fully see yet. And then her other friend was waving both hands in the air, too, so she waved back. "Hi."

Both women squealed, "Hi, Anna!" in unison, and it was honestly one of the nicest sounds Anna had heard in recent memory. She already felt better about being here now, and that's when she caught sight of who she assumed was Jake. And she was momentarily struck dumb.

The blonde man kissed the side of Jessica's neck and whispered something before releasing her, and then his green eyes met Anna's as he smiled. She decided immediately that he looked like a GQ model, and that was actually pretty fitting for what would pair well with Jessica.

"Hey," Jessica said, reaching for her hand and pulling her closer. "This is my boyfriend, Jake." She gestured over her shoulder to the GQ model who reached his hand out.

"Hi, Anna," he said with a southern drawl. "I've heard a lot about you."

"Oh. Same," she replied, biting her tongue before she told him she'd never heard of a man who was sweet enough to pack his girlfriend fancy sandwiches and also had the nerve to look like he belonged on a magazine cover.

"And that's Bradley," Jessica said mildly.

"My god," she whispered to herself. Her other friend was wrapped up in a pair of thick arms that belonged to a man with a mustache and alluring scars that ran along his left cheek and down the side of his neck into his floral shirt collar. He was every bit as good looking as Jake, but he had dark hair and eyes and looked decidedly a little bit rougher around the edges.

She blushed as she remembered the comment about how he and his wife liked to use math as foreplay in the bedroom. Right now, he kept pulling his wife closer for another hug and kiss while she playfully tried to escape his grasp, and Anna had to look away, because a flash of jealousy hit her like a brick.

"Hey, Anna," came Bradley's gravelly voice as he finally released his wife, and she shook his hand as well. "Sugar told me you're from New Jersey."

Sugar? Anna was definitely beat red in the face now. "That's right."

He laughed and reached out again for a fist bump. "Way better than all these west coast losers," he said over his shoulder, earning a middle finger from another seriously good looking guy.

"Stop trying to make her think you're cool, Beer Boy," his wife told him with an eye roll before he turned away to talk to the other guy.

The problem was, Anna already thought they were all devastatingly cool, and now she was standing here like an awkward fifth wheel. "Do you want a beer?" Jessica asked with a smile. "They have Sam Adams."

Anna didn't want to tell her about the scant five dollars in her pocket, and she also didn't want to have to thank one of the random guys who told Penny they wanted to buy her a drink, so she just shook her head.

Then her other friend said, "Well Bob is up at the bar right now. You just missed him, actually." She was smirking as she added, "He's probably getting himself a ginger ale, but if you want a beer or something else, he'd be happy to get it for you."

She made like she was about to call out his name when Jessica said, "Bob also likes ginger ale. And the bookstore in North Park."

Anna met her eyes before turning and craning her neck. "He does?" she asked softly, thinking about those pretty eyes and wire rimmed glasses and the smell of tea leaves. And then she saw him. He was here! "Oh," she gasped. He was Bob?

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

"Thanks, Penny," Bob said as he accepted his drink. Two of the guys at the bar were talking about a cute redhead, and all he could think about was the girl from the bookshop who decided after probably four minutes and seventeen seconds that she didn't want to talk to him anymore. He wanted to look around for this mysterious, new redhead, because if he was being honest, that was something he really thought was pretty, but what was the point? She was probably already over trying to talk to Bradley or Jake or Mickey.

Yesterday, Bradley told him to start wearing his uniform to the bar if he wanted more girls to talk to him, but Bob wasn't that desperate. He still had this fantasy where he met the girl of his dreams kind of organically. But maybe wearing a Dungeons & Dragons shirt wasn't the best thing he could have paired with his jeans tonight. Jake took one look at it thirty minutes ago and told him to go home and change into something else.

"Your girlfriend likes it," Bob had told him with a smirk, and sure enough a minute later Jessica was making a fuss over it.

But now he was making his way back to the pool table where the two couples were most likely on the verge of being indecent. Seriously, if Bob had to watch Bradshaw's hands all over his wife's rear end for one more minute, he was going to scream.

Then he saw her, and he nearly dropped his glass of ginger ale on the floor. It was the girl from the North Park bookstore. Red hair, brown eyes, freckles, kissable lips. She was looking back at him in disbelief.

Oh my god. He was hallucinating. He must be. Jessica was talking to the redhead who wasn't paying an ounce of attention to her, because she was focused on Bob. Her lips curled into a smile, and he thought he'd better make sure. When he glanced to his left and then his right, he didn't see anyone else who could be on the receiving end of that smile besides him.

"Bob!" called Bradshaw's wife. "Come meet Anna!"

Anna. That was the name of their new friend from the university. They talked about her all the time even though they just met her. They told him he would like her. But this was the girl who wanted that horrible Vonnegut book last weekend. This was the girl Mickey thought he imagined.

Apparently he hadn't stopped walking, because now he was right in front of the three women, and he had three pairs of wide eyes trained on his face. "I remember you," he said softly. "From the classics section." Her lips parted softly, and her pupils went wide as Bob asked, "Are you Anna?"

She nodded, her cheeks tinged with pink beneath her freckles. He almost groaned, because she was so much cuter in person than what his memory supplied. Nothing about her was flashy, which he almost preferred, but there was no way she wasn't the hot girl that those guys at the bar were talking about.

"I am," she replied. "And you're Bob?"

He glanced at the other two women, wondering what exactly they told her about him. They looked like they were both holding their breath as he held out his hand and said, "I'm Bob Floyd. It's nice to meet you. Again."

"I'm Anna Webber." She bit her lip, a look of embarrassment overtaking her features as she shook his hand gently. Then he remembered that she ditched him last weekend, leaving nothing but the book he'd already devoured in her place like some sort of parting gift. He released her hand abruptly and cleared his throat.

Now she looked a little hurt, but he didn't know what to say. He ran his fingers through his hair, his nerves getting worse by the second as the other two women practically vibrated with excitement on either side of Anna. "Uh, thanks for that book recommendation. I loved it," he said, barely meeting Anna's pretty eyes.

She gasped and asked, "You read it? You actually read it?"

Bob was trying to formulate another coherent response, but the urge to walk out of the bar was very strong. He was already embarrassed right now, and then he heard Mickey's voice as his friend walked over. "Holy shit, she does have red hair and brown eyes."

Mickey seemed to capture Anna's attention for the time being which really grated on Bob's nerves. Nat would never do this to him, and he couldn't wait until she got home from being deployed. Then Bradshaw's wife was in his personal space along with Jessica. "So she was the girl? From the store in North Park?" she whispered, squeezing his hand.

"The one you had instant chemistry with?" Jessica added hopefully.

Bob swallowed hard. "Yeah," he murmured. "It was Anna. But the two of you need to knock it off now, because it's probably not going to happen. There's just something about me that doesn't translate well. She kind of ditched me at the bookstore."

"What do you mean?" Jessica practically shrieked, and Bob had to hush her. "You're perfect for each other!"

He closed his eyes and shook his head, letting his awkwardness wash over him. "I don't know, Jess."

When he opened his eyes again, Anna was looking at him while she talked to Mickey, and Bob knew it would take even longer to get over the mystery woman now.

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

Anna couldn't believe Bob was the mystery man from the bookstore. Their chance meeting read like a piece of poetry that had no business being in her life, but the fact that she was meeting him for the second time felt something like fate. And she didn't like it. Not one bit.

He was so handsome, just like Jake and Bradley. Now Anna was wondering what they fed these men in the Navy, because Mickey was very good looking as well. But the more she spoke to him, the more irritated Bob seemed. And she didn't like how his brow was pinching above his glasses. Not compared to the way he'd looked at her in the bookstore.

Her mind was a mess right now. And then she remembered that she actually ran and hid from Bob last time she saw him. She started to panic and look around, silently coming up with an escape route, but it was too late.

"Let's play pool?" Jessica asked a bit cautiously, and that was when Anna fully pieced it all together. Her new friends from work were going to think she wasn't attracted to Bob, but that couldn't have been further from the truth right now. Frankly she didn't know what she should do, so she followed everyone over to the pool table.

Well, everyone except for Bob. He remained at the bar alone, and she couldn't really blame him for not wanting to talk to her after the stunt she pulled in the bookstore. But she was only trying to protect herself. Maybe she could explain that to him.

She was trying to decide if she would have hid from the most attractive man who had given her the time of day in years if she knew it was actually Bob. That's when she set down her empty glass of ginger ale because she was being handed a pool cue and told to team up with Bradley. She went through the motions, playing as well as she could while she chatted with everyone, but she found herself hoping to catch Bob's pretty eyes looking at her. Once she lost and handed the cue to Jessica, she saw him heading her way, and he had a glass of ginger ale in each hand.

"Anna," he said softly in that voice that left her shivering. She took the drink he offered her and tried to act normal, but she was still so startled by what he said earlier.

"Did you really read A Room with a View?" she asked quickly before she lost the nerve.

Bob smiled softly and met her eyes briefly before glancing at the floor. "Every word of it."

She bit her lip to keep from screaming. Kevin never once read any of the novels she suggested for him, preferring modern horror monstrosities instead. And then he went and actually turned her life into a horrific monstrosity which she should have probably seen coming. But right here in front of her was Bob who she had actually already met and formed a pitiful crush on, and she couldn't bring herself to say more than, "I'm happy you read it."

He was blushing now as he sipped his own ginger ale before saying, "Yeah, it was great. I wouldn't mind some more of your book recommendations, honestly. As long as you don't try to get me to read that Vonnegut."

"Cat's Cradle," she said with a laugh that had his gaze snapping back up to hers. His eyes were hopeful as she smiled at him, but she rubbed her hand along her forehead and said, "I'm sorry I... vanished. The other day."

"What happened? I told Mickey I needed a minute, and you were just gone."

She wanted to be honest with him, but she didn't know how to explain herself. And now she was starting to feel like she and Bob were in a fishbowl; so many pairs of eyes were looking their way with next to no subtlety. She cleared her throat and decided to avoid his question. "Have you read any Jane Austen?"

He looked a bit disappointed by her response, but he said, "I have not."

"I think you'd enjoy Persuasion. Or Northanger Abbey. What about Virginia Woolf?"

Bob shook his head. "I feel like I'm about to embarrass myself again like I did last weekend at the bookstore, but no, I haven't read either."

Anna practically moaned at his bashful expression and pink cheeks. He smelled so good, it was unbelievable. Why did she feel so drawn to him? Why couldn't she stop herself from taking a step closer when he muttered, "As soon as you said you knew what Cat's Cradle was about, I figured I was in way over my head. The classics kind of elude me. I'm actually more of a poetry buff."

"Poetry?" she gasped, heart pounding at an overwhelming rate as he swirled his glass of ginger ale around with nonchalance. As if he hadn't just said the sexiest thing any man had ever told her.

"Are the two of you just going to stand here and play footsie all night?"

Anna looked up to see Jake with a smirk on his face right in front of her. She didn't even notice anyone else in her vicinity before he spoke. Bob was shaking his head and already taking a step away from her when she asked, "Do you want me to text you some more recommendations?"

Bob froze and turned to look at her with a soft smile. "That'd be great." When she handed him her unlocked phone, he quickly added his number before handing it back to her. His calloused fingers felt even more exhilarating this time, which was very bad, because she'd already been thinking about the way he accidentally touched her at the bookstore on repeat.

"I'll send you some of my ideas," she muttered, pocketing her phone again before allowing Jake to pull her away toward the pool table again. She tried her best not to let her attention return to Bob over and over again, but she mostly failed. Sure enough, after a while, she saw another woman break the perimeter of the pool table and make a beeline toward Bradley before eventually turning toward Bob.

She was really pretty with shiny brown hair, and it made Anna uncomfortable when she touched Bob's arm. It wasn't fair. He was so lovely and soft spoken and handsome. He was even wearing a shirt Kevin would have never been caught dead in, but it made Anna smile. In another version of her life, she would have gone for it tonight. Instead she got to watch the brunette woman hand him her phone just like she'd done a few minutes prior.

"It's pretty late," she said suddenly even though she had no idea what time it actually was. "I'm going to head out."

Advanced Calculus and Advanced Physics both looked a little alarmed. "Already?"

"Yeah," she said, setting down her ginger ale and trying to skirt past Bob and the unknown woman. She gave both of her friends a quick hug and said, "I have a lot to prepare for my upcoming classes this weekend."

"Let me walk you to your car," Bob replied immediately, slipping away from the brunette to be closer to Anna. "Maybe you can give me the titles of the Jane Austen books again?" His cheeks were flushed, and the other woman looked annoyed now which did make Anna smile.

"Persuasion and Northanger Abbey," she repeated for him as she started to walk past the bar sending a wave in the direction of the pool table. Bob was following her now as she added, "And I don't have a car, so there's nothing to walk me to."

"Persuasion and Northanger Abbey," he repeated softly to himself. "Will you let me drive you home then?" he asked hopefully. "All I had to drink was ginger ale."

Anna let herself look up at him before she shook her head. "I'll get an Uber, but thanks for offering. It was nice to meet you. Again."

"It sure was," he agreed as he continued to follow her all the way to the door.

With one last glance over her shoulder, she noticed the dark haired woman on her tiptoes looking around for Bob. "Your brunette friend is looking for you," Anna said softly before slipping outside into the cool night air and opening the rideshare app on her phone. Bob didn't follow her any further, and she rode home with disappointment and sadness thrumming through her body. She was out of cheap wine, but at least she had her favorite poetry website to keep her company.

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

Bob groaned as he nudged his glasses up his nose and pressed his fingertips to his eyes until he was seeing stars. "But I like redheads," he moaned to himself. He could not believe it. He really just couldn't get over the fact that tonight of all nights some random woman started to chat him up. Anna could barely look at him to begin with, but now he'd be damn lucky if she actually texted him the book recommendations at all.

His dream girl was Anna. Anna was the perfect woman he met at the bookstore. Anna was the one he'd been thinking about nonstop, but now he had confirmation that she wasn't into him. That's why she vanished last weekend. That's why she gave him the cold shoulder tonight when he was practically tripping over himself at the sight of her. She was perfect. He was just hopeless. He could keep thinking about her, but what was the point? Now that he knew she worked with his friends, he had to stop this crush in its tracks and try to save face.

"There you are, Robby." A hand snaked around his side to his abs, and he almost jumped a foot in the air. He hated being called that, and he hated that Anna saw this woman talking to him.

"Hi," he said cautiously, taking a step away from her.

"Is the redhead your girlfriend?" she asked, clearly annoyed now.

Bob sighed and said, "I wish."

She rolled her eyes and vanished back into the crowd, leaving him alone again. He never imagined he'd have such an eventful night involving the fairer sex. "Damn it," he whispered as he made his way back toward the pool table to his friends.

"There he is!" Bradley called out with his hands cupped around his mouth. "Big ol' Bob! Did you just give your phone number to not one but two women?"

His wife and Jessica both looked mad now. "I thought you liked Anna," Jessica snapped. "Once we realized she was the redhead from the bookstore, we thought you'd probably end up sneaking off with her or something."

Bob could feel the heat rising in his face. "Come on," he replied, giving Jessica a look. "There's no way that would have happened. And I didn't give that other woman my number. I didn't even want to talk to her." In a softer voice, he added, "She just started touching me for no reason."

Bradley's wife pulled Bob in for a quick hug as she said, "Pretty soon, you'll be as good at dodging them as Bradley is." She looked him in the eye and quietly asked, "Now what happened with Anna?"

"I don't really know." That was his honest answer. "I was excited to see her again. I guess I imagined she vanished in the bookstore like some sort of romanticized Cinderella fairytale or something stupid when in reality she just... kind of got tired of talking to me. She seemed a little uncomfortable when she saw me again tonight, so that must be it."

"I think you're wrong," she said with conviction that almost made Bob believe it himself. "Jess and I will ask her about it next week."

"Please don't," he groaned, shaking his head. "I'm going to go home. See you at D&D tomorrow," he told Jessica before stopping by the bar to pay for the ginger ales, but Penny just waved him on. He left her a ten dollar tip and walked out to his truck.

It wasn't even that late, and when he parked in front of his duplex, his elderly next door neighbor was still awake with her door propped open for her cat to come back inside. As Bob trudged up the shared walkway with his key in hand, she called out, "Robert! Is that you?"

"Hi, Suzanne," he replied with a laugh. "It's me."

She was sitting on her couch, and he could hear game show reruns playing as she loudly said, "You're home pretty early for a Friday night. Still haven't found a girlfriend?"

Bob groaned. He could kick himself for even mentioning that he wished he had a girlfriend a few weeks ago when he took dinner over for her one Sunday evening. "Still single," he confirmed as he headed for his front door which was all of ten feet away from hers.

She scoffed, and Bob saw her massive cat, Sylvester, streak back inside. "You must not be trying very hard, Robert. Handsome, strong thing like you."

It was like arguing with his grandma, so he just avoided it completely. "Okay, I saw Sylvester run inside, so I'm going to close your front door. Make sure you lock it before you go to sleep. Good night, Suzanne."

He pulled her door closed for her and then unlocked his, and he walked inside to find his copy of A Room with a View sitting on the coffee table. It seemed to be taunting him like it knew he'd seen the adorable redhead again. And struck out a second time. He was confused and hurt and annoyed, and he just wanted to go to bed and pretend like he wasn't as hopeless as he felt.

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

These babes need to get themselves straightened out! Anna, he thinks you're not into him! Bob, she's scared to admit she is! Thanks @mak-32 and @beyondthesefourwalls

PART 4

@thedroneranger

@theamuz

@cherrycola27

@katiedid-3

@yuckosworld

@je-suis-prest-rachel

@callsign-magnolia

@t-nd-rfoot

@wkndwlff

@eddiemunsonreader

@wintercap89

@the-fever-of-mankind

@sio-ina-bottle

@lovingperfectionsblog

@daisydont-lie

@sappy-seresin

@birdy-bat-writes

@cutelittlefakejourneys

@cottagecori

@fandom-princess-forevermore

@sotalife

@novastories

@xoxabs88xox

@rileyanntoinette

@mannsachds

@midnightmagpiemama

@greatszu

@zetasaturno99

@lovingrobertfloyd

@taytaylala12

@captain-fandomwriter58

@grxcisxhy-wp

@hobireasns

@wolfquake23

@paintlavillered

@seitmai

@noonenuts

@amiets2

@sylviebell

@imnotcreativeenoughforthisblog

@lonelysoul50

@sweetwhispersofchaos

#robert floyd x oc #robert bob floyd x oc #robert bob floyd #bob floyd #bob floyd imagine #robert floyd imagine #bob floyd fic #bob floyd fanfiction #bob floyd x oc #robert floyd fic #robert floyd fanfiction #robert floyd #top gun imagine #top gun maverick imagine #top gun fanfiction #top gun maverick fanfiction #roosterforme #covering the classics

411 notes · View notes

its-time-to-write · 6 months

Note

how about a Jamie x reader fic when they go away to Amsterdam they sit together on bus and they wake up cuddling and then there’s an issue w hotel booking and there’s a one bed trope and they end up waking up cuddled together and then they admit feelings and reader goes to game with a tartt jersey on <3

I’ve been thinking about this forever, and I’m terribly sorry it took so long!! I do enjoy being an adult, but I’m at a point in life where I don’t have much free time and if I do, I use it to sleep😂

I really miss the days when Ted Lasso was still airing and the x reader tags had new content every day. I feel like that one meme of Thanos when he’s like “Fine. I’ll do it myself.” Shoutout to all y’all who are still here and reading my stuff! Love you!!

smile at me

It’s straight-up fucked. It really, really is. But also maybe it’s good, as Keeley pointed out, because not having a boyfriend anymore means you can focus on yourself?

Or something.

Of course he had to break up with you right before leaving for Amsterdam. Hell, he broke up with you because you were leaving for Amsterdam.

“I don’t want you going to another country with a bunch of other guys,” he had said. “It’s them or me.”

“It’s literally my job,” you told him.

Apparently, that didn’t matter.

But what-fucking-ever, you’re at Keeley’s waiting for a car to take you to the airport, and she’s promised to make sure you don’t think about your stupid ex even once.

It’s times like these you wish Ted were still here with a spot-on pun and some dad-type advice. All you ever get from Beard is a weird anecdote and a vaguely threatening look.

Keeley chatters on for the entirety of the ride to the airport, through customs, and all the way to the lounge.

“You’re gonna get loads of great content for the socials, babe. Candids, action shots, behind-the-scenes. Friendlies are fucking amazing!”

Last time Richmond were in Amsterdam, they had lost horribly. They’re hoping to make up for it this time around.

The plane is full of Greyhounds, both footballers and coaches alike, with Rebecca at the very front. Keeley plops done in the seat next to her as Dani waves at you from the middle.

“I saved you a seat!” he calls. You smile as Sam takes your bag to put it in the overhead. “Thanks, Dani. You excited?”

Dani grins. “I think this time I am ready to see a whole field of tulips!”

You laugh as the lads roll their eyes. Jamie leans across the aisle toward you and says, “Oi, what’s the twat doing while you’re away?”

You press your lips into a thin line. “Not a clue.”

He raises an eyebrow and says, “You break up with him?”

“He broke up with me.”

Jamie twists his face into a scoff. “And you wonder why I call him the fucking twat. Prick. Bet it was so he could finally fuck his coworker.”

You shrug. Jamie’s never liked your boyfriend. It’s not like you were together long, only a few months. And sure, he was a little bit of a twat, but sue you. You had a special place in your heart for pricks with a heart of gold, only he didn’t even have a heart at all.

“You should date someone better,” Jamie continues.

You glare at him and retort, “Oh yeah, because it’s just that easy. You got some one in mind?”

Jamie gives you his most angelic look and says, “What about me?” which makes half the plane dissolve into laughter, yourself included.

“Cheers, Jamie,” you say as you wipe your eyes. “I needed that.”

A strange look crosses his face, but it’s quickly replaced by his usual cocky expression. “Anytime, love,” he replies as you turn to start a conversation with Dani.

As much as you’d like that, Jamie would never date you. His joke stings a little but you brush it off. Maybe you’ll find another twat in Amsterdam to distract yourself from the fact that you’re half in love with Jamie Tartt.

—

“I’m sorry, we don’t have a booking under you name,” the hotel concierge says.

You tap your nails to your wrist. “Are you positive? I’m with AFC Richmond, they should’ve had one.”

The concierge taps on his computer for a moment before shaking his head. “No, I’m afraid we don’t have anything. And all of our rooms are booked this weekend. Might I recommend the hotel down the road?”

Damn it. There’s no way this is happening. Everyone else has gotten to their rooms without a hitch and here you are, alone in the lobby as you pull out your phone to call Keeley. There’s no way this is fucking happening.

“Everything alright?” asks a voice behind you, and you jump.

“They don’t have a room for me, and they’re fully booked,” you explain.

Jamie looks at the concierge, who shrugs apologetically, then back to you. He asks, “Why don’t you share with me?” and you frown.

“I thought you were rooming with Declan,” you say.

Jamie lifts a shoulder. “Yeah, but he switched with Richard because O’Brien fucking snores and he don’t give a shit.”

You say, “So you’re with Richard, then,” and he shakes his head.

“Nah, Richard’s with Jan.”

“I thought Dani was with Jan,” you say. These fucking footballers. What’s the point in having set rooms if they’re just going to switch it all up.

“Dani is with Jan,” Jamie says patiently, as if this all the most obvious thing in the world. “But Dani’s a cuddler, so he’s probably going to fucking end up with, I don’t know, Isaac or someone. Which means I get a room all to meself.”

“Right,” you say slowly. “Alright, I can do that. As long as you don’t mind.”

Jamie winks. “Sharing a room with a pretty girl for four days? Ain’t a problem, love.”

You laugh and follow him to the elevator.

—

It feels a bit like playing with fire, agreeing to room with Jamie. Especially since you’re freshly single and definitely open to a rebound. But there will be two beds and a lot of space and anyway, you’ll be busy with the match and social media, respectively.

Except as soon as you walk through the door, you realize there’s a tiny little hitch.

“There’s one bed,” you blurt out, so surprised you’re unable to filter your words. Jamie blushes a little bit as he says, “Yeah, um, Cockburn and I hate sleeping alone, so we asked for one. He grew up sharing a bed with his brothers and I just fucking hate being alone. I can sleep on the couch if you want.”

“No,” you say firmly, “you need good rest. It’s not a problem.”

It’s not a problem.

Or at least it wouldn’t have been if Isaac had been a shittier captain.

But as it is he’s great, so he’s got the whole team going out to dinner at a pre-determined location complete with a dress code of no t-shirts and apparently you count as part of the team, so you have to go too. You’re in your massive bathroom trying to curl your disgusting travel hair when Jamie walks in wearing one of those white hotel bathrobes.

He asks, “You mind if I’m in here?” so you shake your head, struck temporarily mute by his bare clavicle. Fucking hell, you feel like a repressed Victorian woman.

Jamie says, “Mint,” and goes about his alarmingly detailed skincare routine. You’re pretty sure you’re done with your hair so you crane your neck in an attempt to check the back.

“Missed a spot,” Jamie says. “Want me to get it for you?”

You shoot him a dubious look but hand him the curler. He runs a hand through your hair, picking up the offending strand and it’s all you can do not to shiver.

“Mum taught me,” he explains and you nod ever so slightly, not wanting him to accidentally burn your neck. Jamie says, “All good,” and runs his whole hand through your hair this time, making the curls bounce.

You choke out, “Thanks,” and hurriedly put away your things, desperate to leave before Jamie can pick up on the fact that you can barely handle being in the same room as him, and that you have great concerns about what the night will bring.

—

“You look fucking hot,” is the first thing Rebecca says when you meet her in the lobby. Keeley looks mildly offended that Rebecca took the words out of her mouth, but she just laughs and taps your arm.

“Gonna break a few hearts tonight, yeah?” she grins.

You’re not sure about that, especially since dinner turns out to be a very domestic affair. It’s loud, sure, but it’s definitely toned down since it’s a pre-match celebration instead of a post-match one. You’re with Sam, Keeley, and Roy with Jamie far, far away. You push all thoughts of him from your brain only for memories of your ex to surface. You frown.

“The fuck’s wrong with you?” Roy says and for a moment, you think he’s talking to you. But he’s actually talking to Jamie who has moved from his place across the restaurant to right behind your chair.

“Fuck off grandad,” Jamie says good-naturedly. “Wanted to tell this one that some of the lads are going out dancing after this. Not too late,” he hastily adds at Roy’s burning scowl, “just for two hours and we’re only allowed one drink.”

You’re pretty sure that’s a bit more liberal than Roy likes, but he nods his head slightly so he must be in a good mood.

“So, you coming?” Jamie asks and before you can reply Sam and Keeley chorus, “Yes she is.”

You give Keeley a Look before turning back to Jamie. “Guess I am,” you reply.

The smile Jamie gives you does more to make your head spin than any amount of alcohol you’ve had in your lifetime.

—

Jamie has taken it upon himself to wipe that frown off your face. He might have been watching you over dinner and that might have been why he chose that exact moment to invite you out, but he’ll never fucking admit it to anyone except Sam. And Keeley. And maybe Cockburn when it was the off-season and they were a little tipsy. (But not drunk, never drunk.)

So yeah, sue him if he’s spinning you around on the crowded dance floor just because it makes you laugh. It’s not his fault that he’s been wildly in love with you since the day Higgins hired you. It’s not his fault that you’re easy to be around and have the most beautiful smile he’s seen in his life.

And fuck, it certainly isn’t his fault you can’t see in yourself what others do. Why you settled for a piece of shit like your ex, he’ll never know. But he’ll be damned if he doesn’t do his best to show you how special you are. He knows you’ll never feel the same about him, but maybe he can help you level up your standards. Maybe if you’re with someone good, it’ll hurt less that it’s not him.

So he lets you hold his hand for the entirety of the two hours that the team is out and doesn’t say a word when you don’t let go in the cab back to the hotel.

You’ve gotten that closed-off look in your eyes again, the one that means you’re thinking about your ex, so Jamie knocks his shoulder into yours and asks why he can’t have the password to the team’s Instagram account, which is a sure fire way to get you to lecture him on irresponsibility and aesthetics and the best way to get your eyes to come back to life.

—

Honestly, it’s easier to fall asleep than you might have expected. It’s a big bed and you’re fucking tired.

You just didn’t expect to wake up in the middle of the night crying, but it’s always fucking like this when you go through a breakup. You go to sleep fine and wake up sad, so you do your best not to wake up Jamie except you’ve both ended up entangled in each other’s arms, so he can feel you shaking.

“Hey,” Jamie says in a soft voice, “You’re okay, love.”

You half expect him to push you away once he realizes you’re so close, but he only pulls you closer and presses a kiss to your forehead. Maybe it’s because you’re both half-asleep, but it feels like the most natural thing in the world.

You sigh and settle into him, drifting off in a matter of moments.

—

You wake up to a pair of blue eyes watching you.

“How you feeling?” Jamie asks, voice gravelly with sleep.

You just blink at him. It’s hard to form coherent sentences within the first ten seconds of waking up, and even harder with the memory of Jamie’s arms around you last night.

Wait. Not just the memory. The present reality because neither of you have moved.

Jamie misinterprets your silence and begins to extricate his arms.

“Sorry,” he says, “I’m not to trying to like, cross and fucking boundary or something. Should’ve left you alone.”

You’re still not awake enough to talk so you grab him to stop him from moving away. He gives you a questioning look so you say, “I wouldn’t have agreed to share a bed if I thought you were a creep.”

Jamie grins. “So like, if Jan had offered to share a room you’d’ve said no.”

You wrinkle your nose as you say, “Jan’s not a creep.”

“He’s the fucking worst,” Jamie grumbles, “And anyway, can we not talk about Jan fucking Maas this early in the morning?”

“Sure,” you say, “let’s talk about something else.”

Despite your comment, you both lapse into silence. You’re enraptured by Jamie’s blue eyes. You’ve never been able to study them this close before, and you want to take this opportunity to memorize every fleck of green.

Jamie seems to have a similar thought, except his gaze flicks to your lips.

“I have morning breath,” you tell him and he says, “Real men don’t give a shit, babe,” before leaning forward.

It’s softer than you’d expected, sweeter.

It’s also strange to think that you’re making out with Jamie in bed, and that he’s the one who initiated it.

The thought is so absurd that you giggle, mid-kiss. Jamie breaks away and says, “Oi, there’s no way that was a shit kiss.”

“No,” you say between giggles, “it’s just weird that we’re doing this. Like, how are we supposed to look each other in the eye after?”

Jamie moves so he can look at you better, and you roll from your side to your back. “What do you mean?” he asks.

“Oh come on, we share a room and a bed, we kiss because I have all these sad feelings and you’re feeling a lot of emotions about the match, and then we have to work together after. It’s silly.”

Jamie cocks his head. “That’s what you think is happening?”

“Yes?” you say. None of this is going how it’s supposed to. “What do you think is happening?”

“I like you,” he says, and there is absolutely no mistaking his meaning.

“Oh,” you reply in a small voice. “Since when?”

“Since before you started dating the twat. When Higgins introduced ya to the team.”

“That’s a fucking long time ago!” you exclaim. “Were you ever going to tell me?”

Jamie rubs his face. “Yeah, ‘cept you showed up to work tellin’ everyone how you started dating the twat. And I ain’t a home wrecker.”

You groan. “Fuuuck. I literally only dated him to try to get over you.”

Jamie shoots up. “What?!”

“Yeah,” you say, “I’ve been like a little bit in love with you ever since you winked at me during that first promo I did.”

Jamie blows out a breath. “Okay. Think that’s enough talking. C’mere. We’re making out proper, like, then we’re going to breakfast.”

You grin as you climb onto his lap.

#jamie tartt x reader #jamie tartt fanfiction #jamie tartt imagine #jamie tartt x y/n #jamie tartt x you #jamie tartt #ted lasso

418 notes · View notes

thewintersoldierdisaster · 1 day

Text

a/n: happy regular season finale! i am first and foremost and islander girly so i’m beyond excited for the boys and ready to get the playoff craziness going 💙🧡 had to write a quick, fun, smutty fic in honor of the clinching! enjoy! ☺️

tw: unprotected sex, creampie, fingering (f receiving), thigh riding, wall sex, praise kink, dirty talk, terrible jokes, minimal editing

word count: 2.7k

summary: mat and the boys clinch a playoff berth in game 81, you celebrate with him when he gets home

It’s so late when Mat gets home from New Jersey, but the both of you are buzzing with the adrenaline of winning and clinching third in the Metro. You’d been too nervous to watch the game with any of the girls, spending the entire sixty minutes of game action jumping around and pacing the den.

Your text thread with Mat after the game was an incomprehensible string of emojis and exclamation points, too excited to form words.

When Mat’s little Find My Friends dot appears in your driveway, you yank the front door open and dance in place on the steps, waiting for him to get out of his car. You can see his huge smile even at a distance.

“Playoffs, baby!” You shout, jumping into Mat’s arms before he even has a chance to step into the house. His arms wrap automatically around your waist, your legs locking together at his lower back. The oversized shirt you’re wearing rides up around your hips, extra fabric bunching up in between your bodies. “I’m so fucking proud of you, Mat!”

You cup his face in your hands, his stubble scratching your palms, and press your mouth to his in a deep kiss. Mat grins under your lips, licking at the seam of them so he can gain entrance to your mouth. He holds you closer, carrying you as he steps inside and kicks the door shut behind him. The fabric of his suit jacket tickles at your bare thighs and you clench your muscles, practically grinding yourself over his stomach. The kiss makes you lightheaded, teeth and tongues and saliva making it messy.

“Fuck,” Mat breaks the kiss with a breathless gasp, hazel eyes blown dark from arousal. You can feel the hard heat of his erection under your ass and grin wickedly, pressing open mouthed kisses against the sharp edge of his jaw and down his neck. “Wish you came, you should’ve come! Playoffs!”

“Playoffs!” You repeat on a delighted laugh, pride swelling in your chest. It hasn’t been the easiest season, a rollercoaster of losses and wins and a new coach, injuries and quite possibly the world’s worst penalty kill, but you’re beyond proud of Mat and the boys and what they’ve accomplished. Your arms tighten around Mat’s neck and you squeeze him in a huge hug. “I am so, so beyond proud of you.”

Mat kisses the corner of your mouth, resting his forehead against yours. His hips twitch up into yours.

“I never had a doubt,” you whisper the praise, enjoying the way Mat’s grip tightens on your hips, the way his chest starts to rise and fall rapidly against yours. Your fingers card through his hair, tugging gently. “My Mat, fighting for every point. You guys accomplished something and now you’re going to have some fun.”

“Better get working on those fancy jackets,” Mat teases, walking forward until your back hits the wall. You grin, intimately familiar with the sly curve of his smirk and the twinkle in his eyes.

“Better get working on that playoff beard,” you tease back, gasping when Mat thrusts his hips up into yours, your panties immediately soaked from the hard press of his cock against your core. You whine and dig your nails into his scalp.

Mat nips at your jaw. “Yeah? You like the beard?” He keeps you pinned against the wall, his pelvis pressed into yours, hands gripping tightly to your ass.

You whine again, nodding. “Wanna feel it between my thighs again,” you gasp, his teeth sharp against your pulse point. “C’mon, Mat, fuck me against the wall.”

He laughs, the sound vibrating against your chest, and hikes his leg up so his thigh is pressed solidly against your cunt, thick muscle the prefect spot for you to rub your aching, throbbing clit against. Your head thunks back against the wall as you grind over him as best you can while being held up by one of Mat’s hands and his leg.

“There you go, baby,” Mat murmurs, using his other hand to make quick work of his belt buckle. The mental clinks together and you hear the zipper of his slacks slide down. “Soak my pants, come on. Look so pretty trying to make yourself come.”

The fabric of his pants and the thin, soaked cotton of your panties create a delicious friction against your clit. Your stomach tightens and your thighs tremble.

Mat bounces his leg a little and you gasp, grabbing onto his shoulders for support. He grins and you look down to see him fist his cock out of his boxer-briefs, the swollen tip of him leaking pre-cum all over his fingers. Your cunt clenches around nothing, a rush of arousal slicking down your thighs.

“Mat, please, oh my god,” you babble, desperate for him. You need something, anything, to relieve the pressure building between your legs.

“Be patient, Squeaks,” Mat smirks, his hand gliding easily up and down his length. His knuckles press against your lower stomach on each upstroke, pre-cum staining the hem of your shirt. “Had to wait eighty one games to clinch, you can wait a few more minutes.”

He hoists you a little higher on the wall, his forearm braced under your ass, both feet back on the floor, and you whimper at the loss of his thigh between your legs.

“Just wanna feel you,” you drop your head to the join of his neck and shoulder, brushing your lips over the exposed skin of his collarbone. You’re glad he ditched his tie, a whore for the sight of his collarbone through the unbuttoned oxford shirt.

“Reach down and hold your panties to the side,” Mat orders and you comply quickly, reaching a shaky hand down to pull the soaked fabric away from your cunt. The elastic bites into your skin and the tip of Mat’s cock is pressed against your damp skin. You jolt in his grip, a choked gasp working past your lips. “There we go,” he coos, “good girl.”

“Fuck,” you mutter, your entire body growing hot at his praise, the tip of Mat’s cock circling your clit and sending electric shocks down your spine. “Please, please, oh my god,” you babble, chanting his name until Mat sucks a mark against your neck, lining the head of his cock up at your soaked entrance.

His hand keeps a tight grip on the base of his cock and you’re barely ready when he pushes into you, feeding his cock into your cunt inch by inch. “There we go, come on, baby,” he mutters, breathless. “Can take all of me, my good girl. My best girl.”

You slide your fingers over to play with your clit, rubbing the sensitive bundle until arousal is dripping down Mat’s cock. He grunts in your ear, bottoming out, his hips locked against yours. The zipper on his slacks rubs painfully against your inner thighs, his belt buckle smacking against your hip.

“Oh my god,” you exhale harshly, clenching experimentally around Mat, savoring the ground out curse and groan that he can’t hold back. “Mat, baby, please move. Please,” you beg, panting just from the feeling of him filling you up and stretching you out. The burn of the stretch borders right on painful pleasure and you suck in a shaky breath.

He’s got both hands gripping your ass now, fingers digging bruises into your skin. “Gonna move, gotta move, so fucking tight for me,” Mat groans, a bead of sweat rolling down his temple. There’s barely any room between your bodies, heat pouring off of the both of you. Mat pumps his hips, bucking them slowly at first, enough to get a whine clawing out of your throat, enough to get the coil of pleasure tightening in your stomach.

His hips slap against yours with his thrusts, short, sharp bursts that keep his cock bumping up against your g-spot. Your clit rubs against the hair at the base of his cock and tears roll down your cheeks from the stimulation.

You chant Mat’s name, murmuring broken praise for his game play, begging him to fuck you harder. “Wanna feel you come in me,” you wail, one hand grasping his shoulder and the other buried deep in his hair.

Mat bites little marks against your neck and collarbone, sliding your body up the wall with the force of his thrusts. “Gonna give you everything, baby, promise. Every drop, deserve it, earned it,” he says, barely coherent. “Love you, supported me all season, fuck, baby, come on my cock.”

He thrusts up into you and you clench around him, clit throbbing and cunt squeezing him until the coil snaps in your stomach, your orgasm hitting like a freight train. You moan wildly, too far gone to worry about how pathetically loud you’re being. Mat grunts in your ear, fingers squeezing your ass painfully. He keeps you on his cock, buried as deep into you as he can be, still trying to get deeper by pulling your ass closer.

Mat keeps thrusting up into you as you’re coming down from your orgasm, grunting against your collarbone, and you stroke his hair, encouraging him to come inside of you. “Come on, Mat, finish in me, please. Want you to fill me, so proud of you,” you’re barely aware of what you’re saying, but Mat seems to hear you and if isn’t long before he’s groaning into your skin, filling you with ropes of cum, keeping you held in place on his cock.

He shivers when he’s finished, cock softening inside of you, and you let one leg fall to the ground, keeping the other hooked over his hip. “Jesus,” you giggle, thighs shaking and core burning from helping to keep yourself upright. “Good thing you’re off tomorrow,” your smile, tired as it is, turns a little wicked, “because I really do not want to leave you or the bed.”

Mat rewards you with a sleepy smile and a sweet kiss to your forehead. You wince as his cock slips out of your cunt, smearing cum all over your inner thighs. “Tomorrow’s definitely a day for naked celebrations,” he laughs quietly. You can see that the adrenaline of the game and the sex is wearing off and his eyelids are starting to look heavy. He gives the underside of your thigh a gentle squeeze.

“Why don’t you go shower and change,” you suggest, smoothing your hands over the crumpled fabric of his suit jacket. “I’ll bring you up a snack and we can get some sleep.”

“Rather shower with you and eat you out,” Mat mumbles, letting your other leg fall to the floor but keeping you pinned to the wall. He rolls his hips lazily against your thigh. You can feel every inch of him and you’re not sure if he’s hardening again or if he’s still coming down from his orgasm. “We clinched, I should get to decide what we do.”

You burrow your face against his chest, the warmth of Mat’s body surrounding you while your arms snake around his waist, under his jacket. “If you’re this demanding when you clinch, I can’t wait to see how bossy you’ll be when you win,” you say cheekily.

Mat’s hand slips between your bodies to tuck his cock back into his pants and you press closer to him, trapping his hand between your stomach and his, making him laugh a little. He wiggles his fingers against your stomach playfully. “When we win the Cup,” he says, quietly but sincerely, “I’m going to fuck you until neither one of us can walk.”

Arousal pools low in your stomach again, your thighs clenching together. “Oh,” you murmur, “I’ll start manifesting from now then.”

Mat’s hand, still trapped between your bodies, works its way down over your stomach, fingertips close to where you want them. But not close enough.

You let out a soft little whine, poking your lower lip out in a pout that makes Mat laugh and duck his head to kiss you. He sucks your lower lip into his mouth and brushes his fingers even lower, your hips pushing up to try and slide his hand down.

You’re not quite tired anymore, frissions of lust sparking in your veins.

“You’re adorable,” he says, nipping gently at your lower lip. You wriggle against him, getting worked up again just from Mat’s proximity. The heel of his palm rubs against your lower stomach, the wide span of his hand stoking heat between your thighs.

“Imagine,” you breathe, “how adorable I could be on my back, moaning your name.”

A gasp punches out of your lungs when Mat’s fingers finally slide home, curling up into your cunt with a wet squelch, his cum leaking out of you and around his fingers into your panties. You clench around his fingers and let your head fall back against the wall while Mat’s fingers work you over.

“I love when you dirty talk me,” Mat props his free hand on the wall next you your head, his suit jacket opening and forming a curtain next to you. His head falls forward and he watches his hand disappear under the hem of your oversized shirt. “Pull your shirt up, baby, I want to see how you’re dripping down my hand.”

Your hand shakes a little as you lift the hem of your shirt up and hold it just at your belly button, Mat’s hand is down the front of your panties, stretching the fabric as he moves his wrist and fingers. Arousal drips down your thighs and your knees are threatening to give out as your second orgasm builds quickly. His name falls from your lips like a prayer and Mat’s pace never wavers, his gaze trained on the way his hand disappears between your legs.

With a twist of his wrist and a curl of his fingers, Mat presses the pads of his middle and ring fingers against your g-spot and the coil snaps again, your entire body going taut with the force of your orgasm and then boneless as you soak his hand and your thighs. Your knees buckle and Mat catches you, kissing your neck softly as he guides you through the aftershocks.

“You are aggressively good with those fingers,” you murmur, breathless.

“Gotta keep them warm for the playoffs,” he teases, pulling his hand away from you slowly. You wince at the sudden emptiness, cunt fluttering around nothing.

A smile plays at your lips and you fight it, trying to resist the urge to make the innuendo. A little puff of air escapes your nose as you try not to laugh and Mat pulls back, squinting at you, “what’s with the look?”

You shake your head, rolling your lips together to smother the worst of your laughter. “Nothing, I just…can we go upstairs so you can practice your stick handling?” The laugh you’d been holding back is finally released and you can’t stop your giggles.

Mat stares at you for a heartbeat, your laughter filling the silence, before his face cracks into a smile and his laughter joins yours. “Shit, you’re the worst,” he grins, shaking his head with an affectionate look on his face.

“I couldn’t help it!” You defend yourself, holding up your hands in surrender, your shirt falling back into place.

Still laughing, Mat leans in and kisses each of your palms. You curl your hands around his cheeks and squish them a little, forcing his lips into a pout for you to kiss. When you do, Mat pokes his tongue out, licking your upper lip.

“So….” you drag out the syllable, giggling and looking up at Mat with wide eyes, “is that a yes?”

Mat hoists you up into the air, hands under your thighs, and your squeal, legs wrapping around his waist instinctively. His smile is hungry and you know it’s not just for you, with the clinching fresh Mat’s mind is going a mile a minute thinking about the cup run.

“If you’re good, Squeaks,” Mat says, heading for the stairs, bouncing you a little in his grip, “I’ll let you do your own stick handling.”

You laugh until Mat makes you moan his name again.

#mat barzal #mat barzal x reader #mat barzal fic #mat barzal x you #nhl fic

168 notes · View notes

wandasfifthwife · 14 hours

Text

4+1 times ✩‧₊˚

—> hockey player/coach!wanda x afab!reader

tw || SMUT MDNI, top!wanda x bottom!reader, established relationship, fluff, strap (r receiving), oral (r receiving), fingering (r receiving), oral (w receiving), fluff, slight hurt/comfort at the end, not proofread!

series m.list ✩ ══╡˚1.1k words˚╞══ ✩ wanda m.list

: ̗̀➛ 1 time Wanda got needy 🌷

It’s simple enough really. You could’ve been smarter, knowing that walking out in a jersey with her name on it and pants that fell hidden under the shirt would trip her up.

She had a game in only a few hours. She was required to be there on time, but the way you would whine when she pressed her tongue over your cunt had her weak in the knees.

You were at the arena already, car parked in the back, far away from the doors where her teammates were entering into. She kept looking over at you on the ride over, mind blanking during the conversations. It concerned you as you took it for fear, nerves about the game that night. You were proved to be so incredibly wrong when she had you in the backseat, fingers and tongue working you open.

Her eyes kept flickering over to the clock in her car, pushing her time with you to the limit. You had trouble relaxing in the beginning, nervous she would’ve be able to make it on time, but she reassured you that she could make you come in 5 minutes. And she did.

: ̗̀➛ 2 time Wanda got needy 🌷

It had been her birthday. You felt nervous about the gift you had planned for her, both gifts. First gift was a picture frame with a minimalistic painting your friend had done. The details were beautiful, simple but they told the story between the two of you. You wondered if it was too little, sometimes if it was too much.

She ended up loving it, tears forming in her eyes as she looks over the painting. It was successful and each nerve fell away after witnessing her reaction. You ended up underneath her, both of you teary eyed as you made love.

She ignored your attempts to get back at her, mentioning your earlier plan for her birthday. There’s no doubt she didn’t appreciate her efforts, but she’d double down again and state how she just wants to cherish you. How it would be a gift to her to be able to show how much she loves you.

Needless to say it made you cry, pulling her face down to kiss her gently.

: ̗̀➛ 3 time Wanda got needy 🌷

This was the worst timing. At her family’s home in her bathroom, she had you pressed against the shower wall, strap splitting you open. You had to keep quiet, teeth biting down on your bottom lip as to not make a single noise.

Her parents were just outside sitting in the living room watching tv. You surprised the both of you with how quiet you were, only making a sound when you came and that was reduced to a whimper.

: ̗̀➛ 4 time Wanda got needy 🌷

You were with friends, overhearing their conversations about keeping their partner satisfied. You had shyly asked for advice, seeking what they did to their own significant others.

You had tried it when she came home from the gym, pulling her into a deepens kiss. She was shocked that night when she felt your tongue circle her clit, moans falling from her lips. You tried the tricks they talked about, feeling confident each time she moaned or rubbed her hips against your face.

She was panting by the end of it, looking down at you with her eyebrows raised. You explained where you learned these new moves, stating you’ve been concerned about how good you are in bed and wishing to improve.

She felt her mind implode thinking of you being so cute. You were thankful for them and their advice seeing as it brought on a new record of how fast you’ve been able to make your girlfriend come from oral. But now you’ve decided on listening to Wanda and hearing what works best for her instead. Come to find out that the best option and your new record got pushed to second.

: ̗̀➛ 1 time you got needy 🌹

Wanda was being mean.

Well you were since you’re to blame for making this stupid bet, but she’s being mean for not having broken it already.

You made a bet with her on who can go the longest without needing sex. Both of your bets were placed on each other, saying with confidence that you both know when you’d give in and that the opposite person was going to first.

It was fine the first few days, the time period being normal as you usually go a few days between your intimate sessions.

The next week was terrible. You grew relentless when you’d see her workout or intentionally flex a muscle.

After two weeks you were thinking about it too often. Any little touch set you off. A busy of her hand in your hip, her good morning kiss, the way she easily picks you up. Your mind was running, thinking of all the ways she could take you. On your back, on your hands and knees, on the wall.

It was a normal day to her apparently. You were jealous of how she made this challenge look so easy, like she wasnt going crazy. She had come back from another workout, pressing a kiss on your head when she walked by, staying she was going to take a shower. Your show was long forgotten, eyes trailing back to the bathroom door.

You missed her touch, you missed being intimate with her. The past two weeks had thoughts creeping in seeing how easy it looked like wanda was resisting you. You grew concerned, fearful that maybe she didn’t want to be intimate like that with you anymore.

You clambered off the bed, scrambling into the shower with her. She had looked back in shock, eyes widened when she took in your appearance. You still had your pajamas on, the clothes growing darker with every second you stood under the water. She had asked you what was wrong before you surged forward, kissing her.

You begun to cry into the kiss, thankful for the shower so she didn’t notice the ache in your heart spilling onto your face. It’s stupid, you shouldn’t base a relationship solely off of sex. You felt so stupid for doing so, but even then here you are crying out of relief to feel her press her fingers into you, mumbling on and on about how bad she’s been needing you the past two weeks.

You didn’t tell her. Even after your session in the shower, you couldn’t bring yourself to, feeling stupid for feeling that way at all. But she knew, she knew your sobs weren’t from pleasure. She could hear the hitch in your breath and your shaky sighs. She noticed the redness in your eyes, the way you pulled her closer and begged for her to stay.

Wanda held you to her chest that night, whispering assurances and tightening her hold on you. She would always take care of you.

series m.list ✩ ══╡˚1.1k words˚╞══ ✩ wanda m.list

168 notes · View notes

angelwithdemonictendencies · 7 months

Text

i wear my shame like tar in a vacant town square, spitting out feathers like blood; you touch my hand and ask if i'm ready to go home.

cc22 x reader: the two of you never go out of style (ft. best friend ax72).

(warnings: longest story yet (12.5k, get comfortable), obviously blasphemous filth (i'm getting back in the swing of it, i think), unprotected penetrative sex (m on f), oral sex (f on m), choking and hair pulling and oral fixation and all of my usual nonsense (this one is a little touchy, don't ask me why), bodily fluids (you guys know the drill), depiction of self-doubt and burnout and failure and general unhappiness (you always get a happy ending, though! because you deserve a happy ending), don’t read if you’re not 100% sure.) gif is not mine.)

(a/n: favorites! this story poured out of me over the course of the last couple of weeks, all thanks to one of my friends who showed me a picture of cc22 on pinterest (thank you, country music festival season. you will be missed). and here we are! with many creative liberties taken, you have yourself a story with my typical mythical and religious imagery, way too much description, dialogue that no one would say, and plot holes the size of canyons. but you guys keep indulging me anyways, and i love you and thank you for that. you're a stylist in this one! (something fun and different, i think). as for takeways - too often we get caught up in what we think we should have accomplished by now, what we think others expect from us, how terribly we must be letting them down. deep breath and let it go, favorites. all you can do is show up, over and over again. that will always be enough. you will always be enough. enjoy this piece of my heart until inspiration next strikes and please tell me what you think. go canucks (under el capitano hughes, even! that c on his jersey stands for chokes out his girl). my snakes say hi to your snakes. love and gentleness and strength to you, always always always.)

the first car ride to your new client's house was stressful, to say the least. and that wasn't even with arber's haphazard driving style taken into account.

"jesus," you bit out from the passenger seat, "i'd prefer to be alive for this meeting, bear."

"relax," he said, taking a right. you didn't have to be looking at him to know he was fighting the urge to roll his eyes. "and stop with the fidgeting. this isn't an interview. you're already hired."

you dropped your hands to your sides, stopped twisting your rings around your fingers as he had requested.

you exhaled a deep breath. he was right, after all. you already had the job. that honestly wasn't what you were worried about. you were worried about styling someone who wasn't arber. that was entirely new territory.

after all, you had known arber practically your entire life. he had been your best friend, your first boyfriend, then your best friend again. he was the number one person in your life, the person you felt most comfortable with.

you had been the first person he hugged after his family when he signed with the habs, the person who he called to pick him up after a night out, the one who he asked for help when he was texting a new girl.

so, when he had asked you to be his full-time stylist, you had dropped everything, said yes immediately.

to be fair, though, you hadn't had to drop much. you knew he had asked you partially to be kind, as the offer came during the worst period of your life. freshly dropped out of school, cheated on and broken up with, without a purpose or direction in sight, arber had been the one to extend a hand, offer you a new dream like it was nothing but a jacket in the cold.

and it was your dream, genuinely. you had been studying at school to be a fashion journalist, aspiring to work in new york one day, have an office in a skyscraper, read your pieces in the print of a glossy magazine.

but things change. things fall apart. and things get glued back together again like china teacups.

you were so, so grateful, though. you loved your job. you loved bringing out the best in arber, you loved discovering new sides of the fashion industry, you loved the travel and the events and the fact that your best friend was your employer.

sometimes though, you couldn't help but feel like you were missing something, like your heavenly wings had been sawed off, leaving only dissipated potential and thick blood running down your back. and the weight. oh, how you felt the weight of your wings even though they were gone, stolen.

you felt the weight now, as arber pulled you both into the driveway, parked, turned to you. "deep breath, okay?"

you obeyed, your exhale coming out a little shaky. he put a warm hand on your shoulder, squeezed. "ready to expand your business?"

you gave him a smile, a genuine one. he had always referred to this whole agreement as your business, even though it was entirely his idea.

you nodded, to which he smiled. you both got out of the car and walked to the door. arber rang the doorbell as you straightened out the legs of your pants, even though you had pressed them this morning.

not a big deal, you thought to yourself. just adding another client. just adding another client, that's all, nothing serious.

you knew you were wrong as soon as the door opened.

your new client stood in the doorframe, much shorter than arber and maybe an inch taller than you. he looked like the human embodiment of stability, in all senses of the word. he was broad, so strong looking, you knew it must be impossible to knock him over. but his kind eyes, his warm energy, he just looked so stable. so happy, so secure.

and his smile. what other way was there to take that smile, if not serious as death?

you blinked. arber slapped you on the back, made you cough. had someone been talking?

"this is cole," arber said, shooting you a look that said dial in. he gave cole your name.

you cleared your throat and extended your hand, smiled softly. "pleasure to meet you, cole," you said. "'m excited to start working with you."

you were hit, then, with the full force of his gaze, the entirety of his gorgeous smile. "'d bet you i'm more excited, love," he said, so laidback, enveloping your outstretched hand in his, giving you a first shake.

"easy," arber warned his teammate with a look, referring to the obviously flirtatious tone cole had adopted. cole just smiled.

his palm was rough with wear, with work, and warm with promise. your hand felt heavy in his. you felt like your body might let out a comical sigh of relief at the perfect easiness of his touch.

at that realization, you dropped your hand, brushed your palm on your jeans. you didn't see his eyes follow the movement, nor did you see his jaw work for only a moment.

"i'll leave you to it, then," arber said, clapping his hand in cole's in goodbye. he had told you he would introduce you, but you knew he had things to do, and now the actual work had to begin. your work. surely, you could expand your circle, just a bit, right? make some room?

"thanks again for sharing," cole said to your best friend.

"be good to each other," arber warned like a chastising parent, moving a pointed finger between the two of you.

"if you're anything like wifi," cole said to you, "don't think that'll be hard."

arber shook his head. "oh, she's much better than me," he said, and you knew he believed it, which made you feel those phantom scars on your back. not even close, you thought.

you rolled your eyes, his antics bringing a smile out of you regardless. "sure," you said. "i'll see you tomorrow, bear."

the corner of cole's full mouth ticked up at your nickname for his teammate. he stepped back and held open the door to his house. "after you, love," he said, gentle as anything.

you bowed your head slightly in thanks, partially to hide the flush that now bloomed on your cheeks at the prospect of being alone with cole.

"i hope arber told you that you can trust me, and stuff," cole said, rubbing the back of his neck as you both walked through the entryway. "i know this is kind of out of the blue, and all that, but apparently, i really need your help, so-"

you bit back a grin. "apparently?"

he tilted his head, sucked on his teeth, gave you a guilty sort of smile. "alright," he started, "i didn't think i needed any help in the fashion department." he pulled out a stool at his kitchen countertop for you before walking around to the fridge, beginning to pour two glasses of water.

"did you?" you asked to his back as he faced away. his back that rippled under his t-shirt. which you definitely didn't notice.

there was a goofy, fake accusative look on his face as he turned back to you, placing one water in front of you. "what are you implying?"

you reached across the counter to grab two coasters and set them in front of you both, thanking him. "nothing," you teased, "except that i've seen your instagram, and maybe that my presence here wouldn't be the worst thing in the world."

he squinted for a moment, maybe confused, as he leaned forward, resting his forearms on the counter. "well, we agree on that, then," he replied.

a pause that felt like caramel settled between you two for a moment as you held each other's gazes. his, comfortable, and yours, curious.

you cleared your throat, brought up a hand to rub at your shoulder. "so, apart from thinking you don't need a stylist, what else do i need to know?"

"i don't know," he started. his forearms flexed, making the veins in his arms more prominent. "i like hats on gamedays?"

a grin broke across your face like sunlight. you let out a laugh. "yeah?"

"what?" he asked, fake offended again, but his smile was nothing but so utterly pleased.

you shook your head, crossed one leg over the other. "nothing," you said. "just don't know why the clients i attract are dead set on hats, of all things." you were thinking of all the times arber had insisted on a hat, even though you thought his hair had looked just perfect for the camera.

"how did you and wifi meet?" cole asked easily, perhaps also thinking about arber and his colorful hat collection. "or bear, right? that's what you call him?"

you blushed, nodded slightly.

"only if you're comfortable," he clarified, and it surprised you that you actually were. sitting here, in this stranger's house, you felt normal.

"we've known each other since grade school," you began, clasping your hands. "he's my best friend."

"you don't come to the games," cole said, nothing more than an observation.

you shook your head. "not a hockey fan," you admitted.

he tilted his head. "maybe you just haven't been watching the right player, love."

you rolled your eyes at his obvious arrogance. "okay, big guy."

he took a sip of water. "so you guys have always been friends?"

"we dated for about a year in high school," you said, leaning on your clasped hands. "my first boyfriend."

something interesting sparked in his gaze. something you noted. "and?"

you narrowed your eyes. "and some people aren't meant to be dating. arber and i are meant to be friends. why?"

just a bit of a blush crept across his nose. "no reason. how did you get into styling?"

you rubbed at your shoulder blades again. "arber offered me the job." you swallowed, omitted the rest of the story. you were comfortable, but not that comfortable. "he's the first and only person i've styled, up until now. until you."

meaning flooded his eyes. "i'm honored, then."

don't be, you thought, i'm not worthy of something like your honor.

"thanks for making some room for me," he finished, giving you another smile that had your heart feel like it was bubbling.

"if you didn't want a stylist," you asked, trying to slow down your heartbeat. "why am i here?"

"i was catching too much heat from the guys," he confessed, honest and unserious. "and wifi said he could hook me up. said you were the best of the best."

you closed your eyes and gave the slightest shake of your head as you smiled. of course he would say that.

"so, how do you usually start out?" he asked.

you thought to yourself for a minute. you didn't really know. "when i started with arber, i already knew everything about him," you said. "and i don't know anything about you, cole."

"except," he clarified, "that i like hats."

"yes, except that." you let out a low laugh. what must life be like, to take everything so lightly?

"what do you want to know?" he asked, running a hand through his soft-looking hair.

"style is about showing everyone a little more you," you explained. "what do you want people to see when they look at you?"

he scrunched his mouth to the side in thought. "i don't really care what people see." his emphasis told you that he cared about specific people, not people as a collective. what would it be like to be a part of those select few?

you took a breath. what it must be like. "okay. who are you dressing for?"

he appeared confused again, and he wore the expression like a child. "what do you mean?"

you could never be anything but patient with him. what would disappointment look like on him? you shuddered at the thought.

"you mentioned the guys in the locker room. are they your audience? or maybe the girls on social media?" he blinked. "who do you want to look good for?"

"how does arber answer this question?" cole asked.

you pressed your index finger to your lips playfully. "client confidentiality," you explained.

"i want to look good for me," he said. "i play better when i know i look good before the game."

you nodded, making a note of that. "good." his gaze softened into something lovely.

"but i wouldn't be mad if your help meant i get some more edits made of me."

a laugh burst free from your chest, organic and loud. it seemed to echo across the high ceilings, and it echoed in cole's head. "got it. show me your closet?"

you made to get up as he pushed off of the counter, his arms and chest flexing as he did so. you willed your flush to dull, not wanting to give yourself away or make him uncomfortable, although that seemed impossible.

"take me out to dinner first," he joked, making you roll your eyes as he led you to the master bedroom, then to his massive closet. he held the door open for you again.

"do we have enough hats?" you asked sarcastically, your eyes immediately drawn to his excessive collection.

"okay, lay off," he said, grinning, leaning against the doorframe. "they aren't going anywhere."

you panned through his button-downs, his trousers, his ties, overall pretty impressed. "lots of color," you observed. "especially in your accent pieces."

"i like to be a little different," he admitted.

you were glad you weren't looking at him head on. as if his presence wouldn't make him stick out in any crowd, no matter the size.

"you have a lot of nice pieces here," you complimented, finally.

he looked at you with such hope, you melted. "really, love?"

the name made you flutter off the ground, like you had wings again. like they had never been severed off with a rusted blade.

you nodded, met his gaze, decided you could probably live there, drowning in his attention. "yeah, cole. i'm excited to help the world see a little more of you." lucky world.

i'm excited to see more of you, you wanted to say.

something warm swirled in the air around the two of you. "thank you again for taking me on," he said. "you didn't have to, and i'm really happy you're here."

you could have sighed at those words. when was the last time someone had told you that, so explicitly?

you bit your lip. "okay, so wednesday? we can do measurements?" you said, hoping he didn't notice your breathlessness.

"perfect," he agreed.

so, on wednesday, you were back at cole's house, this time with all of your supplies, ready to begin what you hoped would be a wonderful partnership. and you were sure it would be, if only you could stop getting so distracted by your client.

and he was ever so distracting, now, having obviously just showered, flushed from steam, hair damp and dark, his eyes a drowsy and delicious sort of comfortable.

"you came back," he said as you stepped inside past him, past what you could assume was the smell of his shampoo - something fresh and almost floral.

you clutched your clipboard to your chest, looked at him curiously. "of course i did," you said. this was your job, after all. you were dedicated to your business, your craft. to your people. and cole was technically part of that circle now.

he put his hands in the pockets of his sweatpants, shrugged. "just happy you're back, 's all."

you bowed your head to hide how much his words meant to you. how could he say things like that? things that meant everything to you, but he said them like they were the easiest thing in the world? like they were just an exhale?

"how was practice?" you asked softly as the two of you walked side by side to his closet. you knew it had been exhausting, at least from arber's curse-filled rambling that had blown up your phone the second his ice time ended. you had empathized with him, but mostly just reminded him to chug some gatorade and suck it up, he was a professional athlete.

the thought of telling cole caufield to suck it up almost made you sick to your stomach.

he blew out a breath. "tough, today," he said. "i won't bore you, though. know you're not a hockey fan." he said the last part with a joking sort of bite.

i want to know, you wanted to say. i want to know about you.

but you didn't want to scare him off, or come across as weird, so you didn't say anything.

"what's your plan for today?" he asked.

right. you had a plan. you put your clipboard between your side and your arm, pulled out your tape measure. "measurements," you said with a smile, almost shyly.

now that you thought about it, taking someone's measurements was an intimate act in itself. standing here, in front of him, you realized how dangerous this was.

was there anything more tense? than to know the width of one's thigh, having never seen it bare? to deeply understand the curve of one's neck, but through numbers, never touch?

"where do you need me?" he asked, and you wondered briefly if he registered why his words made you jittery.

one look at his ghost of a smirk and you had your answer. you cleared your throat. you put a pen behind your ear, tape measure and clipboard in your hands, held your arms up in a t. "like this," you said, and he mirrored you.

you took a breath before closing the space between you, beginning to measure the distance from the center of his chest to his fingertips.

did the silence weigh as heavily on him as it did you? like kindling, one spark away from a wildfire?

you recorded the number on your paper.

"what did you do today?" cole asked you gently, as if not to spook you. you wrapped the measure around his bicep as you thought to yourself.

"not much," you said, thinking about your slow morning, which you had spent drafting something like an article, exploring recent trends among male athletes. something no one would ever read, you were sure.

you were almost embarrassed at your inability to talk to him - keeping everything short, so short, as if keeping distance from a rabid animal.

he didn't seem to notice. "what did you have for lunch, then?"

a small smile began to pull at your mouth. "a grilled cheese."

he tilted his head back and let out something like a moan, something that had you bowing your head to hide your face.

something that made the air scream.

"that sounds amazing," he said as you bent down, held the measure at his feet and began to work it all up to his knee.

"yeah?" you replied, happy to not have to look at him, to have something to do with your hands. "maybe i'll make you one sometime."

there was a pause. "would you?" he asked, voice slow.

you scrunched up your face, met his gaze for only a second before turning back to your task. "yes," you said simply before pulling the measure up to his waist.

the number made your shoulder shake in a rumble of laugh.

"what?" you could hear the glow of a smile in his voice, bouncy and bubbly.

you shook your head. "nothing," you tried. "'m just used to different measurements."

"are you?" he asked. "don't tell me you're thinking about another man right now, love. it'd shatter my heart."

you laughed for real, at that. "it's just that arber is so tall, barely proportionate," you explained, writing on your clipboard again. "and you're-" you faded out, at a loss for words.

how could you even describe him?

"not six four?" cole offered, not even close to offended. almost cocky about it, somehow. he ran his tongue along the edges of his teeth, gave you a grin.

you shook your head. "not six four," you agreed. you twirled your finger in the air, motioning for him to turn around, his arms still in a t.

you now faced his back, became closely acquainted with the damp curls at the nape of his neck, with the practically pornographic indents in his shirt that marked his triceps.

"tall enough, though," he said into the air in front of him, snapping you out of your trace, cockiness oozing from his voice like blueberry syrup. "don't you think, love?"

you thanked every star there had ever been that he couldn't see you.

what could you say, here? what would be the normal thing to say?

"i think so, cole," you squeaked, trying not to let the smell of him so close make you dizzy. if you looked at his face, what would you see? what part of you would that heal?

you held the measure at one end of his full wingspan, pulled it all the way to his other outstretched hand. your fingertips just barely grazed the backs of his hands, only just a brush, and yet it felt like some private secret, like a stolen touch in an ancient ballroom.

you longed to run your hands across the planes of his shoulder blades, check for the wings you were sure you would find.

this golden boy would never have the ugly, jagged scars that you felt marred your own back. no, his wings would be bright and proud and every bit the wonder that he was. this beautiful angel boy would never know the grief and theft that you understood so personally.

"alive back there?" he said, a roughness to his voice that made you shiver.

you nodded although he wouldn't see it, finished your last measurements, cleared your throat, tapped the top of his spine once in finality.

he turned to you. face to face, his smile was so brutal you could have flinched.

"all done, love?" he asked, little more than a whisper. you couldn't stop your gaze from slipping to his mouth, if only for a second, maybe lingering on his full lips before snapping back to his shimmery eyes.

"all done," you repeated, low and heavy. "you should probably do your inseam." you forced a lightness into your tone to dissolve the tension you felt pressed between the two of you. "and don't embellish."

his smirk was nothing like the boys you'd had in the past. there was no trace of cruelty, only a cocky sort of satisfaction. a knowing. "i'd never lie to a pretty girl like you," he rasped. "and besides," he added. "embellishment's not necessary."

you bit back a nervous laugh, tried not to let your mind wander, tried not to wince at the word pretty in his voice ricocheting against your head.

then he was handing you back your tape measure, giving you a number with that smirk on his face.

and then the cockiness was gone, replaced by something soft.

his head tilted ever so slightly as he leaned forward, just an inch, angled his face to your neck before retreating back to meet your gaze again.

your face felt hot, your feet like someone had poured cement over the tops of your shoes.

"you smell nice," was all he said, ever the gentle observation.

you blinked at him, rubbed at your shoulder blades unconsciously. "thank you," you breathed.

all of a sudden he was glowing much too bright, like staring into the midday sun, just this mass of potential, so much potential without even a smidge of doubt.

this potential, his potential, there was no doubt that it would be realized, exceeded even. no doubt at all. beautiful golden angel boy. his wings were too much to bear, just now.

you mumbled an excuse to leave, rushed to gather your things, ignored the confused scrunch of his brow, nodded affirmation about your shopping appointment tomorrow, hurried out the door with a shy goodbye. so rushed, so shy, you missed the way longing invaded his gaze as he opened his front door for you, watched you get into your car and drive away.

you hated the way slow, burning tears ran down your cheeks as you drove, the kind that hang at your jaw and feel like they must leave some kind of mark behind - some kind of ugly scalded scar.

and you weren't mad at him, that would be impossible. you weren't even jealous. you had known for years that you would never get your wings back, and it wouldn't even be the same if you did. to sew them back in would be so painful, so traumatic. so no, you weren't jealous.

it hurt, then, it hurt so terribly to want someone so, so different, someone so much better. you felt as if you would never deserve to bask in the glow of his attention, to hear what his voice sounded like when it was drenched in syrupy sleep, to know what his perfect mouth would feel like on your collarbone.

you went to sleep with a phantom ache. you went to sleep sad.

the next morning was better.

you were at arber's, laying out a couple of options for him to wear to a casual sponsorship event he was attending later.

after your usual catching up while you sorted through some of his shirts, his voice adopted an airy sort of inquiry.

"so," he began, sitting and leaning back against the wall, his elbows resting on his knees. "how's coley? 's he being nice to you?"

you scrunched up your face, laying one shirt down on top of some dark brown trousers. "'course he's being nice to me," you said. "don't think he's got a mean bone in his body."

"alright," arber relented. "you bein' nice to him, then?"

"yeah." you met his eyes, couldn't shake the worry in your tone. "why? did he say something 'bout me being mean?"

you knew the smugness on arber's face all too well. a set up. it made you roll your eyes, throw a balled up t-shirt at him.

he laughed. "i knew it," he said. "since day one. since before day one, actually."

"shut up, bear," you grumbled.

"i'm just excited for you," he defended, still in that teasing tone. "been a while since you've had a crush, eh?"

in reality, you hadn't really had a crush since your fall from grace. since that demon from your past had left you like you were nothing, like you were a pointless chore.

you grabbed a couple pairs of sneakers. "whatever," you said, tried not to sound defeated.

"what does that mean?"

"crushes are meaningless," you said.

"crushes are fun," arber corrected you.

you scoffed. "it's basically painful for me to be around him."

"fuck." arber threw a sock at you. "so you really like him, then." he shrugged to himself. "i called it."

"how could you have possibly called this?" you asked, genuinely, holding a baseball cap next to a sneaker to see if the shades of navy matched. "cole is, like, the opposite of my usual type."

arber laughed again. "and what good has your usual type ever done you?"

you rolled your eyes, despite that fact being absurdly true. "you know you count as part of that demographic, right?"

"with me being the obvious exception," he amended. "as i'm not a sadistic asshole."

you finished laying out his options, stepped back.

"i like the navy one," arber said immediately.

you were nodding already. "i knew you would."

he made to stand up. "so, you seeing him today?"

"we're shopping," you said, taking a breath.

"sounds fun," arber tried. you lack of a response was notable.

"i'm scared," you whispered eventually. "he's just so..."

no words seemed to do him justice.

"good?" arber offered, half shrugging a massive shoulder.

maybe that word did.

"wanna know something?" he asked, slowly draping his arms behind your head and pulling you into a hug. you relaxed into his familiar embrace.

"what?" you said into his chest.

"you are, too."

you carried your friend's words with you like a talisman as you mentally prepared to see cole again.

and when you arrived at your agreed meeting spot, like a vision, he was there, waving at you. and no preparation would have been enough, you realized, as his easy kind of beauty would stay breathtaking no matter how long you knew him.

his hair curled into his face as he pushed his sunglasses to the top of his head, drawing your gaze to the slope of his nose, the symmetry of his high cheekbones.

you rubbed at your shoulder blades and waved back at him. "hey," you said when he was in front of you.

"you came," he said, his voice laced with such pleasantness you could taste the sugar of it on your tongue.

"of course i did," you sing-songed, knowing you had had a conversation like this with him before.

"well, i'm happy i get to see you," he replied as you began to walk side by side. "where to first?"

so you went shopping with your client, and as you did, you couldn't help but recognize how cole had this way of making you feel like showing up was all you ever needed to do.

like the phantom weight of your wings was gone, like they had never been there, because the only you he knew was the one standing in front of him right now.

and that you seemed perfectly enough for him.

every time you held up a shirt to his frame, every time he met your gaze, each accidental brush of a touch - it all felt like something you had dreamed up.

"can i ask you a question, love?" he asked at one point as you both entered a store that specialized in sneakers.

you nodded.

"how come you always wear..." he trailed off, opting instead to gesture to your daily uniform of well fitting jeans and a flawlessly ironed button down.

"how come the stylist isn't more stylish?" you asked, a teasing smile beginning to come free.

"not necessarily." cole shrugged. "you always wear the same thing. just wonderin' if there's a reason."

your heart fluttered at the idea of him observing something about you and wanting to understand the reasons why.

you quickly realized it was probably important to him, from an employer standpoint, to understand his stylist's clothing decisions, and the fluttering wilted.

you looked away. "because it's not about me," you said, picking up a unique looking pair from a shelf.

when you turned to show him, his confused expression startled you. it looked so genuine on him.

"it has to be, sometimes, right?"

no, you wanted to tell him, it's all so much easier when it's not about me. when it's not about what i want. please don't make me think about what i want.

"yeah," you said instead, less than convincing, "right."

and the day continued, successfully, if you said so yourself, as you got a better sense of what cole actually liked to wear. unfortunately, you also got a better sense of who cole was, and that was very much not helping in your desire to stop wanting him.

how his laugh came so often, and still so truly. how his smile never dimmed, a glow that seemed to permeate the thick thorns around your heart. how he asked you more questions about yourself than maybe anyone.

when you suggested a darker color, so as not bring attention away from his eyes, he asked, "where did you learn that?"

and he would listen so intently as you explained how color theory was one of the first things you learned in university.

and he would say, "that must be why you wear red shoes a lot, then. to match with your undertones."

and you would nod and try to hide your blush before it began to match your patent red slingbacks.

and then later he said, "i didn't know you went to university, love. what did you think of it?"

and you would feel embarrassed but still compelled to say, "i didn't finish it." because lying to him about that seemed cruel, stupid, petty. because lying to him seemed impossible.

and he would say, "but what did you think of it?" with no trace of judgement or expectation and you almost didn't ever remember what it was like to have wings, what your fall from grace was like, what that searing blade felt like on your back.

so a smile that was beautiful because it was true would grace your mouth as you told him, "i loved it." and it would feel so deliriously liberating to tell someone that. for someone else to know that you really had loved school, and that dropping out hadn't been what you wanted but what you needed.

and that while you were so, so grateful for what you were doing now, there was a part of you that was so utterly glutted with rage at the fact that someone had taken that from you.

that someone had broken you so critically and completely that something you loved had morphed into something you couldn't manage, something that would only break you more.

and that every day was another day closer to healing, another day closer to being okay with the fact that the past had already happened.

and cole would smile just because you were smiling.

later on, towards the end of your excursion, when he held up a positively dreadful hat that matched definitively nothing, you couldn't help but laugh.

and if your eyes weren't shut you would have seen how something sparkled in his eyes like rippling water.

"c'mon," he pleaded. "it's perfect."

"it's definitely something," you conceded, hating the hat but loving the way he seemed to love it.

"please, love," he begged, and you didn't even know why he was asking you, as it was his money, and at the end of the day, his wardrobe.

you didn't mind the tone his voice had taken on, though, if you admitted it to yourself. he made pleading sound so pretty.

"how about this?" you offered. "we can do a 'one for me, one for you' rule." you met his excited gaze. "to make sure we balance what i think is right and what you want."

"one for me, and one for you," he repeated.

you nodded. "almost like we're working together on an art project, or something."

he laughed, and it was glittery. "but i'm the art project," he responded, delighted at the metaphor.

you wanted to tell him that he was a masterpiece.

the following weekend marked the first preseason game that you would be styling him for.

very early the morning of, you drove over, having already met with arber and gotten him squared away.

"don't you dare make him look better than me," arber warned you on your way out.

you rolled your eyes. "good luck today, bear," you called over your shoulder.

"i'm serious! no playing favorites just because you want to fu-"

you shut the door before he could finish his sentence.

now, here you were, pulling pieces from cole's closet as he sat on the edge of his bed.

"what are you feeling like today?" you asked him as you thumbed through jackets. "brown or black?"

"i'm feeling like that light purple tie over there," cole replied immediately, pointing to the one he was talking about and not answering your question.

you shook your head. "well, we'll do one for me," you said as you grabbed a beautiful soft brown suit, "and one for you," you finished as you plucked the purple tie from its holder.

you completed his look together and then waited in the kitchen for him to change.

you heard his footsteps behind you, causing you to turn. "well," his rough voice asked, "what do you think?"

seeing him made you feel like the wind had been knocked out of you.

but there was something almost sinisterly personal about seeing him in clothes you had styled him in, a collaboration of his likes and your knowledge, a combination of him and you, right in front of you.

just as you had imagined, the soft brown complimented his coloring beautifully, the purple adding the perfect pop of spontaneity.

would it be like this every time? would he always feel like best thing you had ever done?

"trying to take your silence as a compliment, love," he joked, and you scolded yourself that he had even gone a second without knowing how beautiful he looked.

you approached him, then, reached up to adjust his collar, one of the first times you had willingly and unnecessarily thrust yourself into his personal space. which he noticed, by his sudden intake of breath, the way his chest rose and fell.

"look so handsome, cole," you told him honestly.

and you'd tell him a thousand times if he kept looking at you like this, like you were the sweetest thing he'd ever seen. like you were unscarred. or maybe that you were scarred, but that you were sweet anyway, like a just-over-ripe end of summer plum, the kind whose dark juice dribbles down your chin at first bite.

"thanks to you, love," he breathed, his voice a little short.

you dusted off his shoulders, relished in the sculpted muscle you felt under your palms. "you're a job well done, then," you said, and you loved the way his eyes warmed at your words, at the way you could physically see the effect you had on him, the way he wore his desire so shamelessly.

oh, to be shameless. you weren't there, not just yet. couldn't yet meet him at a shameless middle.

but as you left him to do any final preparations before his game, you couldn't help but feel that you were gliding, slowly, but absolutely, towards that meeting.

that feeling was strengthened that weekend, the last weekend before the real season began. you were scheduled to style both arber and cole for a country music festival in toronto.

for the last two years, you had styled arber for this event, as it was one of his favorite weekends of the summer.

it was one of your favorite events to style, too, as you rarely got to lean into a more western, almost cinematic sort of look.

it would be your first time thinking about this event from the perspective of two different clients.

arber's side was easy. he already had a favorite cowboy hat, a refusal to wear boots, an insistence on sneakers. it was only a question of colors, of brands to satisfy sponsorships, of what flannel shirt to rip the sleeves off of.

"and you're sure you don't want to come?" arber asked, ever the inclusive best friend.

"'m sure, bear," you said, although part of you wanted to come. something was holding you back though, something you didn't like very much. a fear of being a burden? a fear of feeling alone, surrounded by thousands? something like that.

arber knew you well, though.

"i'll see you at the festival," he said as you left him to get ready.

"what?" you asked, confused.

you could hear his smugness even though your back was turned. "know coley's going to ask the same thing and you're going to go all gooey-eyed. 'of course i'll come, cole,'" he said, doing a dreadful imitation of your voice at the end, "anything for you!"

you were happy he couldn't see your vengeful flush, your embarrassment at how accurate his statement had been.

anything for you was echoing around your brain when you showed up to cole's house, made your bow past him extra bashful, made his presence seem extra indulgent. being around him today smelled like brownies, like chocolate, like fudge that gets stuck on your teeth. it was rich. and it felt a little shameless.

you handed him a container with a grilled cheese you had made that morning. "'s your off day, right?" you explained. "just don't tell your trainer."

and maybe somebody else would have looked at you with expectation, maybe someone else would have thought what else will you do for me?

but cole's gaze was so genuine it melted you away. "for me, love?" he asked, and you could sighed at how happy he was in that moment. how easy it was for him to be happy. how it still felt so lovely to make him happy, despite the ease.

"of course for you," you said, willing nonchalance into your tone, even though that couldn't be farther from the truth. you began to walk to the closet. "now, about today's event-"

his hand grasped your wrist, ever so gently, like you were some kind of precious porcelain doll. like to disturb your beauty would be a malevolent crime. like he would lock himself up if he did.

his barely there touch stopped you where you stood. "thank you," he breathed, some kind of meaning twisted up in his words that was beyond you.

and you wanted to laugh nervously, wave him off, mutter something about how it was just a grilled cheese, for god's sake, how it didn't mean anything.

but lying to cole caufield had always felt like an impossible ask. so of course what you ended up saying was, "anything for you."

and of course you wanted to bang your head against his beautiful wallpapered wall after you said it. you could hear arber's grumble of a laugh in the back of your head.

if you had been focused on cole's face, then, you would have seen how the heat in his eyes burned like embers, how his jaw worked at your words.

but you were already opening his closet, the place in his house that was quickly becoming your safe space. "about today," you began, forcing the squeak out of your voice. "how do you feel about standing out a bit?"

"as in...." he said, an easy smile on his face like he was just happy to listen to you talk.

"as in full western," you answered, hope dripping from your tone like granulated sugar.

he looked at you with a teasing skepticism.

"please?" you asked, barely noting how his eyes darkened, if only for a second. "please let me dress you up, coley?"

you knew you had him. and you were right, but to a greater degree than you realized.

"dress me up, then, love," he conceded, leaning against the doorframe.

your smile was nothing short of triumphant. when was the last time you had felt triumph?

"one for me," you sing-songed as you placed a pair of cowboy boots at his feet like an offering, setting the tone of the final look immediately.

"and one for me," he said, soft, picking out the hat you had been going to choose anyways. something told you he knew this, which made your blush begin to creep up your neck and past your ears.

so you went spar for spar, picking out pieces until you the final look of your dreams was laid out in front of him.

you left him to get changed, but as you passed him in the doorway, you rubbed gently at his shoulder. "you're too good to me, cole," you said, in a joking tone, but you meant every word. "letting me win."

he exhaled and relaxed into your comfortable touch. "like it when you win," he said.

and what could you even say to that? so you didn't say anything, went to wait for him in the kitchen. everything felt warm. what a delicious pleasure, to have someone say they were rooting for you. suddenly being a professional athlete made a lot of sense to you.

"'m glad i let you dress me up," he said as he walked in, adjusting his hat. "i think standing out might be exactly what i need before the season starts."

and when he stood in front of you, a vision of western silhouettes and muted denim colorways, a pop of red here and there, you could have clapped yourself on the back. he looked like a truly wonderful combination of a trashy airport romance novel and a luxury magazine editorial.

his embroidered denim button down strained at his thick biceps and shoulders, his shorts the same sort of tense around his thighs.

you clasped your hands behind your back to release some of the pressure that had begun to coil up inside of you like a mechanical snake.

you didn't think you would ever get used to seeing the fruits of your imagination painted across cole's body. it was a special kind of intimacy. a torturous one, almost.

you approached him again, pulled at his sleeves in a teasing sort of way. "a little small in the arms, yeah? maybe around the thigh, too?"

he tilted his head, his gaze filled with cocky knowing. "and who took the measurements, love?"

you had entered an unknown land, the boundaries of which were unclear, blurry. it fizzed at the edges with danger.

accordingly, he brought a hand to your chin and held your jaw gently. "starting to think you did it on purpose," he breathed, something rough and raspy beginning to invade his tone.

"i'd never do such a thing," you defended, emboldened by his hand, by his courage. your hands were again clasped behind your back. don't cross a line, you thought to yourself. don't.

"i'd be willing to forgive you," cole started, his trailing off meaning there would be a condition.

his thumb had begun to trace feather-light circles on your jaw.

"if?" you asked.

"if you come with me today," he said plainly, openly, easily. always easily.

"done," you said, almost as easily. even if you knew there would be hell to pay when arber saw you. even if you knew the line between work and pleasure was becoming very, very thin. perhaps transparent.

as you drove back to your place to change into something a bit more suited for a festival, it dawned on you that you hadn't thought about your wings at all, hadn't rubbed at your shoulders the whole time you had been with cole that day. not even once.

with him, you didn't need to be the beautiful, smart prodigy practically overflowing with potential. you didn't need wings.

you just needed to show up. so, that's what you did.

you showed up for him at the festival, very notably not in your everyday uniform, instead in a vintage sundress you had been dying to wear and your boots, a unique pair of accent sunglasses pushed up into your hair.

it felt good to wear something different, to wear something a little more out there, to wear a bit of you. you were not used to giving the world a bit more of yourself, having felt before that perhaps the world didn't need any more of you.

you glanced at your phone, approached the spot that arber suggested you meet the group at, quickly recognized the clothes you had put together this morning.

you hugged arber first, elbowed him lightly when he whispered, "change your mind, did you?" into your ear.

you smiled, rolled your eyes, but you could see in his gaze that he was just happy that you had decided to come, that whatever you had going on with cole was enough to bring you here.

he introduced you to some of his other teammates, their respective friends and partners, everyone being especially welcoming.

some of his other teammates joked about how they might be needing your stylistic help soon, too, and their girlfriends might have shared a look with you and mouthed "please" with a friendly grin.

you could feel cole's eyes on you the entire time you stood there, could have touched the side of your face to check if his gaze had seared a burn into your skin.

finally you turned to face him, were starkly unprepared for the vulnerable desire you found lurking in his eyes like some kind of mythical beast.

you couldn't help but smile at him, tilted your head, asking him a silent question.

can i trust what i'm seeing? how do i know my vision isn't a liar, like everything else?

"you came," he said to you, then, like he had so many times before.

"of course i did," you said, like you had so many times back to him.

you adjusted his hat on his head, straightened it, tilted it down slightly, creating a bubble-like barrier between the two of you and everyone else.

you picked up right where you left off, on the fringes of danger. danger you felt as he only barely touched your fingertips with his, not quite holding hands, almost.

he thumbed the hem of your dress between his fingers. "wear something pretty for me, love?" his gaze flared across your figure like high beams, getting stuck on your exposed legs like sediment, coating your bare shoulders thickly, like brownie batter.

who are you dressing for, that's what you had asked him at the beginning.

"'cause you look it," he clarified, raspy, "just so pretty."

and you blushed strawberry pink, let the group lead you to the main stage, settled into the space as the artist came on.

set after set, you couldn't remember the last time you had existed so carelessly, so gently, so shamelessly.

there were no thoughts of the past, of wings that once were, of anything but dancing with your best friend, laughing with his teammates, singing along with their girlfriends like you had known them your whole life.

you felt so light, so present, so perfect.

light on your feet, almost floating, each time your gaze caught on cole's, immediately tugging a smile free on your face, the kind you felt in your ears, in your jaw, in your squinting eyes.

present, absolutely no where else, each time you heard cole's starburst of a laugh, the sound ringing through the air and your head like a bell, like a lullaby.

perfect as anything, each ghost of a touch you both stole from each other throughout the afternoon. making an excuse for hair in your face, for a bustling crowd, for having a bit to drink, for a thread that had come free. excuses that were unnecessary, that nobody believed anyways.

late into the afternoon, you pressed a hand to your collarbone, felt a glow of heat under your palm. you bit your lip, found cole next to you. "'m gonna get burned," you said to him, shaking your head like you had said a joke, like you had said can't take me anywhere, hm?

but he only started to unbutton his shirt, making your eyes widen more as he revealed more and more skin.

"what are you doing?" you whispered, a sort of pleading tone injected into your voice. something like please don't do this to me.

something that he heard, must have, given the smirk that crept onto his face at your flush, at your voice. "gentle, pretty girl," he soothed, now entirely shirtless, entirely distracting. he handed his shirt to you. "can't have you burning up."

you tried not to be too terribly touched. you took the sunglasses off of your face and handed them to him. "one for you, one for me," you said with a smile as you traded.

"one for you, one for me," he repeated like a child repeats a prayer, doused in a desperate kind of faith. he pushed your sunglasses up onto his head, making his soft hair stick up in a million different directions.

you let him hold your drink as you shouldered on his shirt, fastened the top two buttons, tried not to get dizzy at the scent of him all over you.

just then, your favorite artist in the lineup came onstage to begin their set, cheers from the crowd loud and warm.

you faced the stage now, away from cole, clapping your hands, flushed with excitement.

a flush that only deepened as the music began, as you felt cole behind you, as he wrapped his arms around your front and swayed with you to the rhythm, something twangy and groovy.

"'s this okay?" he whispered, resting his chin between your head and shoulder, his mouth so close to your ear that you could feel the heat of his breath.

maybe okay wasn't the right word for this. this being his thick arms resting lazily around your hips, his bare broad chest against your back like puzzle pieces slotted together.

you nodded, regardless, had a hard time focusing on anything but the feeling of him, so close. "'s okay," you breathed.

maybe okay wasn't the right word.

"can you see?" you asked, hesitantly relaxing back into his chest, draping yourself across him like some kind of quilt.

you felt his laugh more than heard it, the shiver it evoked making it's way up to your hairline.

"tall enough, remember, love?" he whispered.

you snaked one of your hands back, ran your nails lightly across his neck, his curls. "more than enough," you said, not really referring to his height, more so just him. how this beautiful golden angel boy was more than enough.

the night fell like blackberry jam, thick and sweet and like home. you lost track of time as you slouched deeper against cole's body, as he began to hold you up a bit as you grew tired, continuing to sway to the music all the time. you had never been more comfortable. nothing had ever been easier.

too soon the night was over. you felt the residue of the sun on your face like a blush, the weight of the day in your legs. too soon you were hugging your new friends goodbye, handing your number out to the ones who were interesting in perhaps becoming a client, a few of the girls saying they better be seeing you at games, soon.

too soon you were at the passenger door of arber's truck, as he had arranged to drive you home after you told him you were coming.

cole walked you to the door, opened it for you, held your warm hand as you hopped into the lifted truck.

"you have everything for the road trip?" you asked him, referring to the outfits you had picked out together for him to wear for his series of away games.

he nodded, something flickering in his eyes. did he feel the shadow of you against him as you did him? was he cold like you were, without his exhales on your collarbone?

"travel safe," you said, your words brimming with meaning. i'll miss you went unsaid, but not unrecognized.

"the gala when i get back, yeah?" he said, almost drowsy.

"i've already got some ideas," you said, and the thought brought a smile to your face.

something dangerous flashed across his face, making your stomach flutter, your heart tense. "i've got some ideas too, pretty girl."

and then arber got into the driver's seat, said goodbye to cole, who returned the sentiment.

"i'm really happy you came," he said to you as the car started. i'll miss you, too.

you had a dreamy smile on your face as arber drove away.

"i like your friends," you said.

"they like you," he returned before smirking. "some more than others."

you rolled your eyes, but it was no use. hope bubbled up in you like caramelizing sugar. "does it bother you?" you asked then, squinting, realizing you hadn't really asked your best friend what he thought.

"does what bother me?" he asked. "you coming out to things you never would have a couple months ago?"

you went to cut him off, but he pressed on.

"or that you smile more now than i've seen in years? or that you seem to be genuinely enjoying your work?"

he wasn't lying, wasn't wrong, wasn't even critical.

you had always felt that you connected with arber because he, too, walked with the distinct slouch of a fallen angel, of a being, once heavenly, now devoid. the same evidence of struggle, of lack.

it dawned on you then that you had never judged him for it, had only appreciated him more. maybe it was time to extend yourself the same appreciation, the same forgiveness.

it was arber who had extended a hand to you in that place of darkness, but it had been you who had taken it. it had been you who had gotten up.

you had always been the most wonderful team. the kind of trust existed between you that perhaps one only offers their first love.

"you know i just want to see you happy, don't you?" he said, a bit softer than his typical biting humor. "if that's him, i could never be bothered."

"i do know that," you said, and you meant it. "i don't tell you enough how much i appreciate you, bear. but i do."

how lucky you felt to know you had him by your side no matter what, that no matter what happened, you had your best friend. to know that he had you, too.

you made sure he was all squared away for his trip, gave him a hug goodbye, told him to text you when he landed.

and such began the week of time away.

a week you filled with planning, preparations, shopping, lists, moodboards, drafting articles that (probably) no one would read but you wrote them anyway.

a week you wore things that didn't match, clashing colors and aesthetics, frilly silk skirts and sneakers, jerseys and business trousers. just to see how it would feel, just because you could. shameless.

no matter how busy you kept, you missed cole. you missed the way your stomach would flip when he would open his front door, the way he smelled after he showered, you missed his firework of a laugh and the way his voice would get raspy with use.

it was hard to leave off at the point that you did - seemingly on the precipice of the point of no return.

part of you hated that you had left everything so uncertain still. every possibility of what he felt, what would happen, it twisted around you like a lovesick tornado. what would happen when he returned?

would you have to build up to everything again? would he forget what you felt like against him? would he even want you to remind him?

or maybe he would kiss you immediately, like you so desired. as he was away, your workdays became interrupted by visions of his lips, phantom hands on your hips, your fingers on his throat, his in your hair.

visions that left you a little breathless. a little flushed. but wanting, above all else. they left you wanting.

so you were a little scared, a little tense, but mostly full of want when you arrived at cole's for the first time since he'd arrived home after a successful string of games on the road. the week had gone by fast, but also painfully slowly.

today you planned to prepare for the gala tomorrow for one of his teammate's charities, a black tie event, sure to be a fun night to style.

today you wore a dress, and that said enough.

when cole opened the door your breath caught. beautiful golden angel boy.

he looked so soft, then. the angle of his jaw, of his cheekbones, perfectly distilled by his halo-like messy hair, his flushed face, almost girlish nose. you missed seeing his face in front of you, noticing everything about him.

what a privilege, to be close enough to cole caufield to notice things about him.

"after you, love," he said, stepping back and allowing you though. you bowed your head as you walked past him, a plume of his scent dissolving around your face.

how many times had you had this same interaction? had it always felt so electric? had the air been vibrating like this the whole time?

you made your way to his room, to his closet, just like always, catching up, asking him questions about his trip.

yes, he was a little tired, and yes, the team looked good, though he wished he had finished a couple more of his net-front chances. yes, arber did well, even coach said so.

and he asked you about your week as you began to lay out some options, occasionally referring to your clipboard of notes, moodboards, ideas.

yes, you had a nice week. yes, you ate well, really. you wrote a bit, and he could read the articles, if he really wanted to, which he insisted that he did.

"and how do you feel about a three-piece?" you asked.

"that depends," cole began, taking up his usual post, leaning on the doorframe. "how do you think i would look in a three-piece?"

you felt a blush begin to creep up your neck. "remember when you said you dressed for yourself?" you said in a teasing tone.

"still do, love," he defended. "just got a panel to consult, first, these days."

you exhaled. "you know i think you look lovely in anything, cole," you said. it had always felt like a crime, the prospect of lying to him.

you could feel the heat of his gaze on you as you panned through his dress shirts, his vests, his ties. you could feel the sparks of his eyes ignite into flames, flames that licked at your legs and tensed the coil inside of you.

was his halo beginning to singe the ends of his hair?

"did i ask you yet if you missed me?" he said, lazy but attentive, his eyes sharp.

you approached him, held a couple of ties up to his face. a forest green, a baby blue, a burnt orange. "you didn't ask me," you said, your gaze glancing to meet his between swatches. "do you really need to?"

the air fizzed and sparked. you could practically smell smoke.

you looked back to the ties, scrunched up your face in thought before nodding. "one for me," you began, referring to the baby blue tie you had chosen.

"and one for me," cole breathed out, all in one motion grasping your face in his rough hands and capturing your lips with his. his kiss tasted like a home-cooked meal after a semester away at university. it smelled like sugar and smoke and cinnamon and felt like floating, like flying.

it was rushed and just so desperate and rough but also gentle. there had never been anyone, after all, who had been as gentle with you as cole had, as if he was holding your delicate, bleeding heart in his hands, taking care of it for you until you were ready to house it again.

you dropped whatever you were holding, wrapped your arms behind his neck, your way of saying, closer, please. your way of saying finally.

he walked you backwards until you were the one leaning against the doorframe, the plane of it pressing between your shoulder blades. you twisted one hand in his hair, pulling gently.

he moaned into your mouth, making you smile into his as he brought one hand to brace against the frame, just next to your hip, the other still resting on the side of your face.

"please, love," he said, little more than a whimper. "i need you."

pressing himself against you using his leverage, you could feel exactly how desperate he was, just how much he had missed you, too. was there any better feeling than bringing an angel to his knees?

your sly smile turned mocking, your voice dripping in desire, still. "stop whining," you breathed.

the way he immediately did as you said, without question, eyes wide and glossed in waiting for your next move, it felt shockingly beautiful.

you had always been plagued by the struggle of a fallen angel. but here, now, with cole, you didn't feel like an angel at all. he made you feel like a god. and what good did shame ever do any god?

you gripped his shirt and pulled him out of the doorway, away from the closet, the place that had become something like a cathedral for both of you.

a cathedral for which the only accepted sacrifice was the sacrifice of shame, left bloody and dead on an altar welded from want.

you pushed him back onto his bed, the one you had walked by so many times, had barely allowed yourself to look at.

he leaned back with a grunt, put one elbow behind him and the other on his thigh, seemingly waiting patiently for you. ever so patient. always had been.

you sunk down to your knees, rested your elbows on his, now spread apart, looked up at him through your lashes, tilting your head as he brought one hand from his thigh to your head, lacing it through your hair. your mouth watered.

"can i suck you off, coley, please?" you begged as his grip on your hair tightened. "want to feel you in my mouth so bad, baby, can i?"

he whimpered at your words, was already nodding feverishly, moving clothes aside so you had better access to him.

you bit your lip as you pulled him out, felt the weight of him in your hands, hot and thick and -

"told you i didn't have to lie about measurements." cole's joking words broke you from a trance of heavy seriousness. you looked up at him, your delicate grip pumping him up and down, and found him to be smiling, a big, toothy, goofy one.

you couldn't help but laugh, a real laugh, one that had you flushing and shaking your head.

this, this was the real privilege. to be on your knees in front of him and still have him making you laugh. you knew then that you could be awkward and messy and still be beautiful, perhaps even because of your awkwardness and messiness. you could be a beast of desire and want and still be worthy of his smile.

then you took him in your mouth, moved your head slowly up and down, hollowing out your cheeks, promptly catching the laugh in his throat and urging it into an almost anguished moan instead.

he held your hair to the side, tilted his head back when you took him all the way to the back of your throat.

"fuck, love," he groaned, the curse guttural on his typically clean tongue. "bein' so perfect for me. feels so good."

his words spurred you on, pushed the pace of your rhythm, made you rake your nails down his thigh.

you felt his overstimulated shudder in your teeth as he grew impossibly harder in your mouth.

his breaths grew short and choppy, his moans whiny as his thighs tensed under your hand.

you pulled yourself off of him, spit running down your chin, your eyes watery and lashes clinging together as you pumped him with your hand.

he met your gaze and promptly moaned. "look so pretty, love, gonna cum if you keep lookin' at me," he whined.

and so the dirty, messy, and awkward god grew bashful at the angel's words.

"want you to cum for me, coley," you pressed, running a thumb over his sensitive tip. "please?"

something dark flickered across his gaze like lightning in a storm, powerful and inevitable. in a motion he pulled you to your feet, pushed your legs apart so you could straddle his hips, your dress pooling around you both, your center precariously and dangerously against his hard cock.

"hate sayin' no to you, pretty girl," he said, your faces again just a breath apart. "but gotta fuck you first, yeah? been dreaming about it."

now it was your turn to nod feverishly, to lift your hips up gently and let him angle himself underneath you. the seconds felt gelatinous. you both took a breath.

a breath you both released as you sank down onto him that first time, his coming out strangled and yours full of relief.

you both paused for a moment, you adjusting to him and he to you.

his stretch made you dizzy, a pull you could feel in your throat, in your fingertips. he mumbled something incoherent that dissolved into a groan as you began to move your hips up and down, each push deeper than the last.

you rested one hand on his lower stomach, grounding you, the other coming to gently grasp at his throat, squeezing only the tiniest bit. "like you've been dreaming, baby?" you asked, only a little teasing, only because you knew he could take it.

he moaned louder, nodded, dug his hands into your hips, began to meet you thrust for thrust.

something possessed you then, something hazy and hot, something had you moving your hand from his throat to his cheeks, clutching at his face in a way that forced his mouth open. open enough for you drop your head, almost like you were going to kiss him again, but instead letting spit drop from your mouth into his.

you could have sighed at how easily he swallowed, how his eyes were brimming with lust and something softer when he opened them and found you, there.

his eyes made you whimper, which made him thrust up into you harder, a little faster, somehow deeper.

"so wet for me, love, fuck," he bit out, dragging a slow hand from your hip to your bottom lip, sticky with spit. "take it," he moaned, an order but also a plea. "so good, love, take it."

you let him push his fingers into your mouth, let him rest them there, your eyes rolling back at the feeling of him everywhere inside of you. so deep you felt him in your stomach, the back of your throat. your heart, most of all.

you became aware of the hair sticking to the back of your neck with sweat, the pleasant evidence of effort that burned in your thighs, the croak of wear that had begun to tear at your voice.

you built up a rhythm, quick and hard. you rolled your hips back against him, hitting a new, perfect spot inside of you, making you clench tighter around him.

"feel you close," he rasped, "where do you need me?"

and you were back to that day, so far away, now, taking measurements. where do you need me? he had asked.

here, present you thought, here and now.

you tugged his hand from your mouth and led him to your folds, showing him exactly how to touch you. exactly what you needed.

his touch jolted through you, an electric current of desire, bringing you brutally close to your high as he continued to rub at your clit, thrust into you hard.

"fuck, coley," you whined, "'m so close for you. gonna cum all over your cock, baby. stretchin' me so perfect."

the muscles of his stomach clenched under your fingertips, his shoulders tense under your other palm as your motions up and down became messier, his thrusts sloppier, both of your breathing choppy.

"please cum for me, pretty girl," he breathed. "make me feel so good, yeah?" he grunted, almost a pained noise. "need you."

you did as told, his words and the beautiful vulnerability in his eyes sending right over the precipice of pleasure you had been teetering on. you came with a shuddering moan, collapsing into cole's damp chest, triggering his own orgasm, warm and raspy.

draped over him like a velvet curtain, you felt the rise and fall of his chest slowly become regular again against your cheek. the air around you was warm and stained with the enormity of your want, realized.

you tilted your head up to gaze at him, found him glowing, flushed, his hair fussed. he looked so beautiful.

"you look like an angel," you said, your voice all but a rasp as it escaped your worn-out throat.

his laugh was like honey and lemon. he shook his head, traced your jaw with his fingertips. "just a human, love," he said, a whisper. your eyelids grew heavy, your voice lazy. too lazy to stop the sweet smile that tugged at your mouth. one that he mirrored.

"me too," you breathed. he pressed his swollen lips to the top of your head.

and with that, with a sigh of relief, you finally laid your wings to rest, in the graveyard of things that had never been.

fin.

#hockey #nhl #hockey smut #nhl smut #cole caufield #cole caufield smut #cole caufield x reader #cole caufield imagine #jack hughes smut #jack hughes #trevor zegras smut #trevor zegras #quinn hughes #smut #jack hughes x reader #montreal canadiens #arber xhekaj smut #arber xhekaj

618 notes · View notes

rowdyslove · 7 months

Text

𝐃𝐎𝐍’𝐓 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐌𝐄. | luke hughes

꒰ pairing: luke hughes x genderneutral!reader

꒰ genre: angst + fluff (slightly suggestive) + hurt/comfort ;established!relationship!au | short oneshot

꒰ synopsis: the time comes for luke to set off to new jersey, however the both of you find it difficult to assess the situation of his leaving. with emotions rising to their peak and unwanted thoughts taking over, he assures you the best he can that he will not forget you while he’s away.

꒰ word count: 2.6k

꒰ warnings: kissing, very small hint towards sex. (not pursued)

꒰ author’s note: i didn’t really know how to write the description around this one, but i tried :// here i come again with lukey angst (so sorry) it gets better throughout i promise

the most unusual part of the early morning drive to the airport was just how quiet it was.

there was never silence between you and luke, no matter where the two of you were. especially when in the car, there was always some sort of music playing or conversation happening. luke loved to rant on and on about how his previous games had been, or how his classes were coming along. and you always listened intently, staring at him so lovingly as he talked about the things going on in his life, just clinging on to every single word that left his lips.

but this time, the only noise that was filling the car was the ambient humming of the engine as luke drove through the streets of michigan.

neither of you could think of a single sentence that could break the silence. the both of you had spent the entire night leading into the morning just trying to avoid the situation that was coming to you—but neither of you could simply stop what was coming.

despite all of the sweet kisses, precious words, and the long night you spent tangling yourselves in his sheets with soft movements and nothing but pure love being spread into the air around you, luke was leaving for new jersey now. luke was leaving to fulfil his dream of playing in the nhl alongside his brothers, and you were staying back in michigan to continue on with university.

the car ride was completely silent, but that never stopped you from shamelessly admiring the love of your life. you took in all of his lovely features one by one and imprinted them into the forefront of your mind; the adorable mole on the left side of his nose, his soft yet drowsy eyes that stared out at the roads in front of him, his plush lips that still looked swollen from the activities that took place the previous night.

he looked so stunning sitting beside you in the driver’s seat. one hand on the wheel and the other clasped in yours. he never let go of your hand for even a second the whole car ride. no matter how much sweat could be felt between your fingers and palms, he never unlatched his hand from yours.

your boyfriend pulled into one of the very few parking spots of the parking lot he could find with perfect ease, having had done his best practicing for the entirety of his freshmen and sophomore years of university and even ever since he first got his license. he always made sure to bring you along to every one of his games, picking you up from your dorm almost two hours before he would be on the ice, and he would always have you back to the dorms or bring you back to the umich hockey house to enjoy the rest of the day or night with him.

as he finally put the car in park and cut the engine, the both of you refused to speak first. technically, it should've been him, considering that he was the one that had a flight to catch in just about twenty minutes, but he just couldn't. really though, how could he? how could he when he knew that this could be the last time he would be seeing you right in front of him for the next six months?

just like him, you were also having trouble putting your thoughts together as well. now that luke couldn't just divert his attention to driving, the hand on the wheel dropped down to fiddle with the bottom hems of his hoodie nervously. on any other day, his hands would be on you the moment he turned off the car, just touching you in any way he could before you both had to get out. whether it be placing his hands on your waist, or your soft cheeks, or your neck, or just anywhere.

but this time, he really didn't know what to do, especially when you looked like you were teetering right on the edge of tears crashing through the seams of your eyes, and honestly he was feeling the same.

"are you all packed?" you finally asked, forcing your voice to be the first to speak, although it clung at the back of your throat.

"yeah, I finished everything yesterday morning," he answered quietly, looking down at his feet as he continued to distract himself away from the truth of his departure. any people that were walking past the car could have easily assumed that you two were just awkward friends and not a couple that's been together for almost three years now.

somehow, through the heavy awkwardness and the slight stumbling over his words brought a small smile to your face. It almost made things feel normal again. just like the way they always were when luke would act like he was the strongest person in the world and then would suddenly get completely flustered the very moment your lips simply brushed against the skin of his cheek.

"are you ready to continue on with your classes?” the question sounded a bit strange to him, yet it still slipped from his thoughts and into the suffocating air surrounding you both.

“umm yeah, even though we’re starting to look over the most difficult section of the class, i think i’m ready.”

"that’s no surprise honestly. you picked a class that is too much for that brain of yours to comprehend.”

“h-hey!”

the two of you fell into a short yet lighthearted kind of banter, and you were almost surprised about how genuinely easy it was to shift back into a normal with him. after time spent feeling so many emotions and feeling nothing but sadness, you’ve been spending your last moments together pouting about everything rather than just relishing in every last second. you opened your mouth to quickly apologize just as luke spoke to do the same thing.

“luke i—”

“i’m—”

you looked up at him, eyes slightly wide and startled before you released a few giggles, "I'm sorry," you said gesturing and urging him to speak, "you go first."

luke wore a dumbstruck expression across his face, gazing at you as if you were the most precious person in the entire world as the sound of your laughs subsided. unbeknownst to you, you really were the most precious person in the world to him. he lightly shook his head, looking down for a brief moment before looking back up at you, "no please, you first."

looking down at your intertwined hands, you struggled to find the right words to say to him.

i’m going to miss you? have fun in new jersey? i’m so proud of you? please don't forget about me while you're away?

nothing sounded right, and as your eyes gazed into luke’s, you admitted what you were feeling, "I..I really don't know what to say.”

a part of you grew nervous, expecting luke to scoff at your words or be disappointed with how short you were being with him, but he let out an awkward chuckle instead, "honestly, i don't either.”

you released a smile at that, knowing he was feeling the same way you were. yet, the car was now once again filled with silence, however it didn't feel as suffocating anymore. it felt somehow familiar, like the reminders of how peaceful it was whenever you would be with him in bed, huddled under his soft blankets and facing each other, just gentle smiles adorning your faces as you stared at one another.

the two of you gazed at each other. the longing, the sadness, and the love you both held so tightly onto for each other was all being conveyed through the soft sunlight beaming in your eyes. it spilled out and sifted itself through the entire car until the silence bursted wide. your feelings overpowered the knowing goodbyes that were coming, and suddenly, neither of you could control yourselves from spreading your love through touches.

luke was the one to act first, as he always did, but you weren't far behind him. tilting your head quickly to the side just at the perfect angle for him to turn and press his lips firmly against yours. his hand ceased its nervous fiddling of his sweater and moved up to cup your cheek, feeling your soft skin beneath his fingertips.

the kiss was slow and even, as if time had stopped and the only thing that mattered was this moment; luke’s lips against yours, his other hand freeing itself from yours to come up and caress through your hair, carding his fingers in it softly.

you loved this. you loved the way luke made you feel. the bubbling of comfort and safety that you always felt when you were with him.

this was familiar. the gentle push and pull that gravitated between the two of you, not being rushed even in the slightest.

and then, luke slipped his tongue past the parting of your lips and into your mouth, causing you to let out the softest most innocent moan, and you felt the atmosphere change instantly. luke’s hands trailed down your sides, his fingers gripping your waist tightly as he began urging you to glide over to his seat. and what else could you do other than give in to him? especially when his lips were starting to smack so eagerly on yours, his teeth tugging at your bottom lip every now and then, and when his tongue explored your mouth with such a newfound kind of yearning.

you quickly clambered over the middle console just as luke reclined his seat back to give you more room. you settled yourself on his lap, gasping for small breaths right before diving back into his heavenly lips for more. you didn’t care about the people outside that could have been walking by the car, everything around you becoming a complete blur as you and luke became the only thing clouding your mind.

this kiss was so different. the sense of urgency you felt, as if every second that passed was just stolen time for the two of you, and the desperation luke was feeling for you; a strong desire to touch you until the last possible second. just to feel you against him, kissing him, caressing his face. anything that you could give him, he would take it all in like a starving man.

neither of you stopped your movements until you were truly at your peek, teetering on the edge of falling into each other too deep and possibly taking things further right then and there. It was then that you pulled away from your him, chest heaving with fast rises and falls as a thin trail of saliva connected his naturally plump lips to the swollen mess of yours. his hands, which had been roaming over every part of you that he could reach, every part that he was allowed to touch, had finally settled, finding a home in the sweet curve of your waist.

you stared at each other, his eyes a shade darker than usual and yours most definitely glazed over with complete bliss. luke had never ever kissed you like that before. whether it was to preserve your innocence or to avoid making you uncomfortable, even though you’ve already explored over the barrier of just intimate kisses a few times already, you wanted more of it. you wanted him to kiss you like that again and again and again.

through all the passionate kisses and feverish touches exchanged, you still can’t knock away the fact that luke still had a flight to catch; he still had to leave.

"hey hey, wait (y/n)—please don’t—” luke slightly panicked as he caught the sight of your eyes suddenly welling up high with tears. the once ravishing and sultry persona you had gotten out of him just a few minutes ago completely vanished as he quickly took his hands from their placement of your hips and up to cup your cheeks and pad away at the watery tears with his thumbs.

"I'm s-sorry—” you stammered, not having even realized that you were actually crying until you felt the wetness roll down your cheeks, "I'm sorry lu.”

"no no, please don't be sorry sweetheart," luke gently cooed to you in hopes of calming you down. using that oh so gentle tone of voice he would whenever you either had trouble sleeping or when you refused to take breaks during your most stressful of days, "you have nothing, absolutely nothing, to be sorry about, okay?”

"b-but we promised that we wouldn't cry, remember?” you smally said, your voice cracking as luke continued to dab delicately at your tears, "we promised, and now I've just gone and ruined it.”

"(y/n), when have I ever kept my promises about not kissing you in public, or not bringing you to my games because the guys always tease me?”

“n-never?”

luke chuckled lightly at the questioning look on your face, smiling tenderly as he wiped away a stray tear with his thumb as he pressed one final peck to your lips. "exactly sweetheart. our promises are meant to be broken," he hummed, resting his forehead against yours while letting his thumbs rub soft circles over the apples of your cheek. “and before you say it, i know what you’re thinking. so don’t worry, i could easily burst into tears right now too."

you choked out a small giggle, bringing your hand to his cheek, "you such a dork moosey.” the smile you give him is shaky, slightly quivering at the corners while your lips tremble as you still try simmering down from your breakdown.

even though the last smile you wanted to give luke before he left was the brightest one you could ever muster up, your emotions got in the way of that. it wasn’t quite your happiest smile, but it was as happy as you could feel when saying goodbye to the love of your life.

"i’m gonna miss you," you mumbled, stroking his cheek with your thumb just as he did to you.

"i’m gonna miss you too, my love. so damn much," luke’s hand once cupping your cheek dropped down and back to your waist, gripping even tighter than before as he held you closer to his chest. you found comfort in his warmth, placing your ear tight against his shoulder settling feather light kisses to his neck once in a while, curling your legs up onto his lap and letting your fingers move to fiddle with the drawstrings of his sweater.

you wanted to stay like this forever. you wanted him to stay with you, like this in the car, cuddled up together with kisses being shared and not a care in the world about you might see.

your worst fear about this goodbye, was the one question that filled your mind every single waking second of the day for the past week now. and before luke could even get the chance to speak first, you beat him straight to it.

"you…you won't forget about me, right?"

it was almost relieving to him, hearing that his greatest fear for what was to come for the two of you in the future was actually yours as well. in some way, it felt reassuring. it confirmed the feelings in his heart, showing that you truly cared for him in the same way he did for you.

that no matter what you were doing—you were still thinking about him and how he would be feeling.

and now that he was leaving, just knowing that felt like enough for him.

reaching for your hand, he wrapped your pinky finger lightly around yours and brought your interlocked fingers to his lips, and with a gentle peck to the soft skin, he smiled as he spoke, "i will never forget you, my love."

#—ness writes #luke hughes #luke hughes x y/n #luke hughes x reader #luke hughes angst #luke hughes oneshot #luke hughes imagine #luke hughes fluff #nj devils #new jersey devils #umich hockey #nhl oneshot #nhl x reader #nhl x y/n #nhl imagine #nhl fic #nhl fluff #nhl angst

333 notes · View notes

leaentries · 2 months

Text

the moon & its stars | luke hughes

summary: luke “knows a spot” hughes

a/n: i’m so so so so soft for luke right, it’s not even funny. also im sorry if this is inaccurate, i don’t know the geography of new jersey and i don’t want to look it up

The car ride was bumpy and long. And you were getting frustrated.

Your night began early, since the Devils had a couple days off from their normal activities. Luke and yourself had every intention of staying cooped up in his apartment, wrapped in blankets..or the more appealing option: each other.

However, this didn’t last long as Jack bursted through the door with some of the guys claiming that he had called dibs on the apartment for the night. Luke tried his best to reason, more like argue, with Jack, but to no avail. Instead of sticking around the loud environment, Luke simply grabbed your hand and his keys and walked the both of you to his car.

“Where are we going, Lukey?” Your voice echoed through the empty parking garage.

“Don’t worry, I know a spot.”

You rolled your eyes at his response, “Luke, I’m serious. This is kidnapping.”

He turned to face you as he stood by the black car, “I can’t kidnap you if you’re not a kid, angel.”

“Then this is abduction.” You huffed.

Luke just smiled before placing a kiss on your cheek and ushering you inside the car.

❥.

Soft country music lulled in the background as Luke’s hand rested on your thigh comfortably. You watched as the buildings of Newark got smaller, your brows furrowed. Looking at the clock, you noticed you had been driving for at least an hour.

Breaking the peaceful atmosphere, you try to wear down Luke’s resolve.

“Lukey, can you please tell me where we are going. We are completely out of the city at this point.”

Luke laughed, squeezing your thigh lightly, “I promise we’re almost there, angel. Just a few more minutes.”

You groaned, going back to looking out of your window.

Another few minutes passed before Luke pulled up to an empty clearing. You looked around suspiciously.

“Oh my god, you actually fucking abducted me.”

Luke let out a breath, “Would you stop with that, woman. Get out of the car.”

You have him a dumbfounded look, “Out there?” You gestured towards the unknown territory, “I’ll die.”

“Oh for heavens sake, y/n. Come on.” Luke took it upon himself to open your door and help guide you into the outdoors. He walked over to the back of the car and popped open his trunk.

“I found this place one night with Nemo and Holtzy. We were bored and just started driving around. It was actually sort of traumatic.”

He grabbed a red and white blanket out of the car, “Holtz had google maps pulled up, but somehow got it turned around and going the wrong way. Next thing we know my tires’ blown out and we had to pull over here.”

You helped close the car door as you followed him further into the clearing, “How come you’ve never told me this story?”

He shrugged, “Don’t know, I guess I wanted to surprise you one day.”

You smiled at his confession. Even the little things he does is enough to make your insides all warm.

Luke continued a for a short while, before laying the blanket down and plopping himself right on top. He looked up at you expectingly, patting the spot next to him.

“C’mon, angel. I won’t bite.” He smirked at you.

“That,” You laid out next to him, “Is a lie. You have bit me before.”

Luke shrugged once more, brushing off your statement, “The past is the past, baby. Let’s focus on the present.”

“I genuinely dislike you.”

Luke gave you a cheeky smile in return.

He moved to lie on his back, gently pulling your body to lie on-top of him. You snuggled closer to his warmth, taking in the sound of his steady heartbeat and the smell of his cologne.

You closed your eyes for a moment, before you felt Luke’s nose nudge into your hair.

“Hmm?” You hummed out to him.

“Look up at the sky, angel.”

Peeking your eyes open, you looked up. You felt your breath disappear as millions of stars shone back at you in their blazing glory. It was very rare to see a sky full of brightness like this back in the city. You wished you could take a picture, to be able to frame this moment forever. But you knew nothing could bet do it justice.

You were speechless. Nothing you could say or do would be able to show how happy you were in the moment.

“You’re my moon, ya know?” Luke’s voice came out in a hushed whisper, “Something that brings light to the darkness. And helps guide me through the night.”

You sat up as he continued talking.

“I always feel connected to you when I look at the moon. Even when we are apart. Sometimes when I’m back in Michigan, I’ll look up at the moon when I miss you.”

Your chest clenched at his vulnerability. You don’t think you could ever love someone as much as you loved the boy in front of you.

“If i’m your moon, then you’re my stars.” You smiled at him, “Because one is never without the other.”

Luke felt his throat tighten with emotion, quickly pulling your face down to his. The both of you remained there until early into the morning, relishing in each other and the night sky.

The drive home was soft and warm, the glow of the early sun kissing your face. What the night brought had been changing for you and Luke, feeling closer to each other than you ever thought possible.

But, after-all, the moon is never without its stars.

#luke hughes #luke hughes x reader #luke hughes blurb #luke hughes imagine #leawrites💋

380 notes · View notes

maxislvt · 1 year

Text

Moths To A Flame

Summary: Being a detective wasn't easy in New Jersey. It becomes even harder when you're tasked with capturing demons, witches, and other supernatural beings. Juggling that herculean task leaves your love life high and dry. Despite this, your friends encourage you to find a partner. That leap of faith lands you the perfect girlfriend, but what if that protection is only an illusion?

Warnings: dark themes, manipulation, tracking, obsession, possessive behavior, gore, blood, organs, gentle kidnapping (?), Stockholm Syndrome, smut, afab reader (no gendered terms), pet names (baby, puppy), fingering, brief orgasm denial, rough sex, gentle sex, pet play, mommy kink, strap on use

Author's Note: this shit took nine billion years but I'm so proud of myself :)

Being a detective meant you had to be ready for everything. It didn’t matter where you were or what you were doing, sometimes you'd have to drop everything for the sake of justice. Working with regular everyday criminals was one thing, but it became even harder when you were up against the supernatural and occultists. That often meant you'd be forced to cut a date short or leave the house at odd hours, a combination that certainly wasn't ideal for many relationships. You were fine with that. Your job was important and you weren't selfish enough to demand someone stay by your side despite how little time you had for them.

Your friends on the other hand were less okay with that revelation. No matter how many times you reminded them of your undateable schedule, they signed you up for dating apps and websites without care.

Sometimes it was "Everybody needs somebody!'" as Monica would insist. She was always the romantic one among your friends. Other times, you'd get a much more practical "I can't keep coming over here to patch your ass up and cook you." from Sam. There was nothing you could do to get any of them off your case besides get a girlfriend so you just decided to let them have their fun.

Now you were a little upset you let them do it.

After a few days of humoring her flirtatious texts and eventually trading phone numbers, you landed yourself a date with one of the most beautiful women you'd ever seen. Her fiery red hair and serene emerald eyes pulled you in with ease. The way she spoke to you had you wrapped around her fingers in only a matter of days. Just the sound of her smooth, sultry voice made goosebumps rise over your skin. For a moment, you were worried you'd fallen for a siren.

Now that she was sitting just arm's length away, you were sure she wasn't. Wanda was just a really pretty woman.

"What, never seen a pretty girl before?" Wanda asked with an amused smile. She noticed you were staring on the car ride here. It was adorable. You were so easy to tease and fluster.

"Not one as pretty as you," You said without thinking. It wasn't until Wanda started laughing that you even registered what you said. "I- Sorry, I'm just not…I'm not used to dates and stuff like that." A blush covered your face in a matter of seconds. Your hands nervously played with the fork on the table to distract yourself.

Wanda rested her hand on top of yours and leaned in to whisper in your ear. "If you keep playing your cards like this, we might have to leave here a little earlier than intended." She placed a soft kiss on your cheek before leaning back in her seat. A proud smirk covered her features, the exact opposite of the bashful smile on yours.

Controlling your heart rate during the rest of the date was near impossible. Your only saving grace was the waiter coming by with your food. Even that didn't stop Wanda from teasing. She saw it as more of a reason to do it. Wanda had already taken the lead by ordering for you but continued to dominate you subtly just in case you didn't catch the hint.

The final nail in the coffin was when it was time to pay. When you reached into your pocket to pay for it, your wallet was mysteriously gone.

"What? I swear I put it in here…" You glanced up at Wanda to find your wallet sandwiched between two of her fingers. "How did you do that? I felt it in my pocket until a second ago." It was like magic. Not as grand and chaotic as the one you encountered on your job, but certainly had an air of mystery. You would've sensed it by now if she was.

Wanda winked and tossed you your wallet. "You seem like the chivalrous type, it was just a precaution." She reached across the table for your hand and squeezed it gently. "I couldn't let you drive me all the way here and pay for our food. That's just unfair."

The drive to Wanda's apartment was dead silent. Not that you two had run out of things to talk about, but because Wanda's teasing persisted and you were worried you'd crash the car.

A sigh of relief escaped your lips as you safely parked in front of Wanda's apartment. It seemed much bigger now that it was dark. "Um, tonight was fun and I appreciate you for inviting me out." The words left your mouth in a rushed haze as Wanda began to play with the strands of your hair next to your ear.

"Well, I was thinking we could take our little party up to my room and keep it going." Wanda's hand cupped your chin and forced you to face her. "That's only if you want to, sweetness." Her thumb rubbed over your bottom lip. "If you're too needy, I could always take you right here."

Just the thought made you wet. "Um, I- Public sex is a misdemeanor, your bedroom is much better." Wanda's amused giggle made your ears burn. You were thankful she thought everything you did was cute. Your fun fact earned you a kiss on the cheek before Wanda got out of the car and led you toward her apartment building. You could tell it was expensive from the outside, but just getting to the elevator made you feel like some cheap peasant.

Wanda didn't give you much time to lament about your financial situation because she pounced on you the second the elevator door closed.

Wanda wasted no time exploring your mouth. Her tongue wrapped around yours and sucked to her heart's content. "Fuck, you have no idea how long I've wanted to touch you like this." Her arms snaked around your waist to keep you still. The stiffness of your body would've been adorable if she wasn't trying to strip you naked. "Relax, we're going straight to the penthouse floor with no interruptions," She whispered into your ear before kissing the side of your neck.

Just as you began to give in to Wanda's seduction, you caught on. "Did you say penthouse?" You glanced behind Wanda and saw the biggest apartment you'd ever seen. "Oh my god, you live here by yourself?" You slowly stepped out of the elevator in awe.

Wanda grabbed you by your collar and guided you to her bedroom. She has you pinned up against the door in a matter of seconds. Your questions about her house were quickly muffled by your pathetic whining. Her hands began to explore your body excitedly. She grabbed your ass and was surprised to feel some strange hardness. "Is that a gun in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" She asked teasingly.

You cleared your throat nervously and pulled out the object in your pocket. "It's just my badge, I keep it on me in case I get called out." The words die in your mouth as you watch Wanda carelessly toss it to the side. You leaned forward to get it only to be pushed back against the wall. "I need to be able to find that in the morning, what if-"

Wanda cut you off with another kiss and began unbuttoning your shirt. "And I'll help you find it if you need it. Just focus on me right now. Pretty please?" It was like she got prettier every time you looked at her. Her lips are quick to cover any newly exposed skin in kisses. It takes so much self-restraint not to litter your skin with bite marks and hickeys, but she pacifies the desire by just lightly nibbling on your skin. "You sure know how to dress nice."

Your brain is far too clouded with lust to form a proper response. Instead, your brain focused on the way she slowly began unbuttoning your pants and pulling down your underwear. The skin of your thighs isn't given the same leeway as your stomach and they're littered with bruises in a matter of seconds. "Ah, you're rough!"

Wanda chuckled darkly. "Something tells me you like it that way." Two of her fingers ran down your slit and were immediately covered in your slick. She eased one of them inside of your cunt and started at an agonizingly slow pace. "I know you wanna be fucked senseless baby, but I gotta stretch out this little hole of yours first." A satisfied hum escaped her lips as you began mindlessly grinding against her. All it took was a little praise and you were hers to keep.

Another one of her fingers slipped into your hole and she spread them apart. She could feel your walls fluttering already. "Poor baby. You need to cum?" A proud smirk spread across her lips. Watching you hold off an orgasm was the cutest thing ever. You squirmed and whined while biting your hand, but none of it worked. The second her fingers rubbed against that spongy patch of nerves inside of you, you were done for. "There we go, let it out."

You shuddered and whimpered helplessly as Wanda's fingers continued to make a mess of your hole. Every word you tried to speak left your mouth in a string of broken moans. "Ah, right, that's- that's enough," You whispered with all the firmness of a tired kitten.

Eventually, Wanda pulled away and helped you stand upright. "Oh sweetness, I hope you didn't think that's all I had planned for you." She forced her fingers into your mouth. "Good little detectives like you deserve a reward, don't they?"

☲☲☲☲☲☲☲☲

The adventures of last night left your body aching. Wanda's self-restraint whittled away the more opportunities you gave her to use your body. The love bites littering your chest was proof enough. You rarely got the chance to bottom and even then no one had ever spoiled you that much before. It was like a dream come true.

But of course, you had a job to do and that always came before romance.

"Hello," You said into the phone without checking the caller ID.

"Hey, uh, how fast can you get to Upper Montclair?" Monica asked nervously.

"Monica?" You immediately got out of bed and looked outside the window. "About half an hour. What's the problem?" The search for your badge and clothes was frantic and quickly proved to be unsuccessful. At least your shoes were where they should've been.

"There was a fire in one of the condos up here."

You stopped your search. "A fire? Monica, that's the fire department's job, not ours."

"If it was just a fire I wouldn't have called you! There are these weird symbols in the ashes and Jimmy doesn't want any of the guys touching anything without you here."

You sighed and continued looking for your clothes. "Alright, tell the guys I'll be down there in a half hour…if I find my clothes that is." You grumbled as you searched underneath the bed. Monica's excited gasp almost made you drop your phone. "I'll tell you everything when there are no magic fire runes to deal with, okay?" You hung up the phone.

After nearly twenty minutes of aimless searching, you found your clothes neatly folded and your badge freshly shined on top of the dryer. You put them on in a rush and made your way toward the elevator.

Just as you pushed the button to go down, the elevator opened. "You're back," You said as your eyes trailed down to the bag of food in Wanda's hand. "And you brought breakfast…god I'm so sorry." You were disappointed in yourself. Whether it was because you were about to break Wanda's heart or because you weren't fast enough to avoid her you aren't sure. "Last night was really fun, but- but I can't just hang up on work. I promise I'll make it up to you when I have the time."

The corners of Wanda's mouth flicked upwards in what you thought would be a sad smile. "Hey, it's alright. You told me last night, I just wish I left a bit earlier." She handed you one of the bags in her hands. "Just eat up and call me when you have the time. We'll work out a second date later." Wanda affectionately pinched your cheek before going to the kitchen.

You were shocked. Most people weren't as understanding when it came to your random work calls. It was a first. Not only that, you had a second date. That realization didn't even hit you until you pressed the first-floor button. Your first second date with a girl. "Thank you for last night!" You said excitedly just as the elevator closed.

Your head was so far in the clouds, you almost forgot about the grim scene waiting for you.

As the smell of ash and smoke filled your lungs, you began dreading the investigation ahead of you. Something strong had been in the area, you could feel it in your gut. Magic and murder mixed quite often in New Jersey. It didn't matter if it was the pretty mansions or the overcrowded apartment complexes downtown. Blood sacrifices, demon summonings, and generational curses. You'd seen it all, but none of it had ever been as professional as what lay in front of you. For one, the fire didn't jump. Even though there was less than a foot of space between the condos, only one had been destroyed. The one still standing didn't even have ash on it.

"Well, this was certainly personal." You began taking photos of the runes and rubble. A heavy sigh escaped your lips as you put on the latex gloves Monica handed you. "Do we have any casualties?"

"One dead and one injured but all other tenants escaped unharmed." Monica was one of your closest friends. She knew how you worked better than anyone at your station. Working with her was the easiest thing in the world. "Vision and Tony Stark. I tried talking to Tony but I think he's still in a state of shock. That and he looks sick, but not burned. I think you should check him out before anything."

You looked over at the ambulance. Sitting out the back was a man not much older than yourself. His hair had streaks of fading brown and the bags under his eyes seemed exaggerated by the looming cloud of dread. "Okay, I need you and Jimmy to search for anything magical while I try talking to Tony." You took the sunglasses hanging off your shirt collar and put them in Monica's face. Enchanted glasses always came in handy when working with the nonmagical.

You grabbed a bag out of your car. It was full of herbs and potions. If Tony wasn't burned, it was likely he was feeling the side effects of whatever spell that was meant for his brother.

"Hello, I'm Detective L/N." You stuck out your hand for the other man to shake.

"James Stark, his husband, but Rhodey is fine." Rhodey shook your hand firmly. His face was tense. "We're not going to be much use, just got here ten minutes ago and Tony hasn't spoken a word."

You nodded. "Well, I did come to ask questions, but part of my job is making sure everyone on the scene is safe. I just want to make sure your husband isn't suffering from any spells or curses." You placed your bag down and gestured towards Tony "May I?" When Rhodey gave you his approval you began your inspection immediately.

Fortunately, you weren't working against anything too crazy. You couldn't figure out what exactly caused it, but it wasn't difficult to undo. Slowly, the paleness in Tony's face faded away.

"Please come by the station as soon as possible for questioning, but there's no rush at all." You pulled a contact card out of thin air. "Don't hesitate to call me if you have any questions or concerns."

☲☲☲☲☲☲☲☲

Tracking down witches was never easy. It was even harder to do on an empty stomach. The easiest way to combat that was to track down witches in a local diner. You, Monica, Darcy, and Jimmy were all regulars at May's Diner. The four of you spent countless hours in the booth writing up reports and putting together information. That or you'd just spend hours eating your frustrations away. Today it seemed to be the second.

"I'm stomped. This doesn't look like any of the symbols in this book," Darcy complained while nibbling on a french fry.

You groaned and closed the book in front of you. "I got nothing either." With Tony still sick and the runes undeciphered, the investigation was already at a standstill. This was already starting to get a little difficult but you were determined to keep pushing.

"Cheesecake for the lead detective."

You shook your head and immediately handed the plate back to the waitress. "Pete, tell your aunt to stop giving us free dessert every time she thinks we need to take a break. I'll lose all my teeth at this rate."

The young man frowned as he put the plate back on the table. "We both know she's never gonna do that, but this is just for you. The lady at the cash register bought it." He tilted his head in the direction of the registrar.

It was Wanda.

You didn't even sense her entering the diner. "Fuck, oh my god. Thank you, Peter." You quickly took off your jacket and smoothed down your shirt before leaving the booth. "Hey, Wanda. How's it going?" The expression on her face was unreadable. Was she upset with you or just happy to see you?

Wanda's hand immediately reached out to cup your face. Your cheek fitted perfectly in her hand as she began to caress it. "You didn't call me last night and I was worried you got hurt." She said teasingly, but there was a twinge of bitterness in the way she spoke. "I see now you were just exploring your options." She frowned as she shyly played with your fingers.

God, she could pull at your heartstrings sometimes.

It broke your heart to see Wanda upset. "Hey, it's not like that at all," You whispered. You gave her hand a firm squeeze and stood closer. "I got a little hyper-focused on it and haven't been thinking about much else." Explaining yourself seemed to make Wanda feel a little better but you wanted to make sure she was okay. "Are you free tonight? I have to go back to the station soon and clock out, maybe we can go out afterward?"

Wanda hummed. "Alright, but you have to promise me that you won't end up leaving before breakfast this time." She stuck out her pinkie finger.

You laughed and wrapped your pinkie around Wanda's. "I promise to stay until breakfast." It was childish, but a promise was a promise and those couldn't be broken easily.

☲☲☲☲☲☲☲☲

As the investigation dragged on, things began to heat up in more ways than one. The cool breezes of spring had disappeared and the bold flames of summer started to lap at your skin. Wanda was becoming a much more constant part of your life. Most importantly, Tony was starting to recover.

Though it wasn't a part of your job to do so, you decided to keep tabs on Tony. His recovery was integral to the case. He was your only key witness and you couldn't afford to lose him. This meant you'd occasionally have to make sporadic, late-night calls with Rhodey to keep up with them.

"The doctor says he's experiencing a bit of brain fog and that could take months for him to get over, but I think he's good enough to answer a few questions."

That wasn't the best news to hear, but it was something. "Well, I still need to take emotional distress into account so I'll give it another few days before questioning him." It was around eleven pm when Rhodey had called but it didn't feel right letting it go to voicemail. Rhodey had enough on his plate taking care of his husband and running a business, the last thing he needed was for you to be flaky in your communication. "I must ask, how are you feeling going through all of this?"

Rhodey sighed. "I don't have any reason to think this, but I'm just worried someone is going to come after Tony next. It's just unsettling." The unrest was heavy in voice.

You nodded along. "I understand. If you find anything that even remotely suggests that, just call me and I'll do my best to have you both out under witness protection. Please try to rest easy, for all three of us." You and Rhodey talked for nearly an hour. It would have been longer if a familiar pair of lips hadn't begun attacking your neck. "It's getting late — ah— I'll call you later this week." Rhodey's goodbye fell on deaf ears as Wanda continued staking her claim.

How did she always manage to sneak up on you?

"You said you wouldn't leave," Wanda said with a heavy pout. Her hand slipped underneath your sleep shorts and headed straight for your crouch. It cupped the warmth between your legs and hummed. "Does my little worry detective need help to get back to bed?"

A blush spread across your face as Wanda began to grope your thigh. "I was coming back to bed, I just had to take a call." You desperately tried to collect the files you spread out across the table. "Let me clean up and I'll come back right after."

Wanda's eyes landed on one of the photographs that landed on the floor. She let go of you and immediately picked it up. Her face immediately fell. "Do you know what this stands for?" Wanda asked, pointing to the symbol in the photo. The features on her face turned to stone.

You took the photo from Wanda and glanced over it. "Uh, no actually it's had me stomped for weeks." You slipped the photo back into the folder and stacked it neatly on the table. "Don't worry though, my witness is healthy again so I'll be able to move forward just fine!" Wanda's serious expression was lost on you. Cases got slow sometimes. There was no way for Wanda to know that but you didn't want her worrying about you too much. "Why don't we go back to bed, yeah?"

Wanda grabbed you by the shoulders and turned you around. "I'm gonna tell you something and I need you to listen to me every step of the way." She dragged you to the bedroom and forced you to sit down. Once you settled down, she bolted over to her closet and began shuffling things around.

You were endeared at first. You thought Wanda had a book she thought would help or maybe she even recognized the symbol. If that had been the case, it would've been helpful. Maybe even a little cute. It only took one metallic click for your thoughts to change. "What are you looking for?" You asked nervously.

There was something magical in Wanda's closet. You could feel it. Something older and much more powerful than you. Just being in its presence was suffocating. It was almost nauseating.

Wanda pulled out a book. It was heavy and covered with dust and runes you could never begin to understand. "I know you probably don't believe in this kinda stuff but my mom used to tell me this story about a witch." The book was huge, but she held it with ease. She opened it to reveal a drawing with a tall woman surrounded by magical symbols that were foreign. "That was a symbol of the Scarlet Witch."

The evil radiating from the was practically suffocating you. "What- who is the Scarlet Witch? I've never heard anything like that before in my life." Terror had overtaken your entire body, but you didn't want to back down. It was the first actual lead you had. "I mean like, obviously she's a witch but what kind?"

Wanda watched your facial expressions carefully. You leaned away from her like something was going to jump out of the book and grab you. She just giggled and cupped your face. "It's late so I won't scare you, but just promise you'll be safe going forward. Okay?" She placed a kiss on the top of your head and got up to put the book away.

You sent a text to Darcy about what Wanda told you. Though you tried your hardest to act unaffected by the story, the tight grip you had on Wanda while you slept was a dead giveaway.

☲☲☲☲☲☲☲☲

"I was doing some research on what you sent me the other day and I'm about to completely ruin you guys' weekend." Darcy placed the large stack of files on your countertop. "I did organize all of them from oldest to newest and put some notes in there but the three of you are gonna have to read all of this."

Sometimes cases got too graphic to be studied in May's Diner and the only other option was to board up in someone's house until all of you made a breakthrough. Since you were the only one with enough food in your fridge and counter space for everyone to work, it usually ended up being your house.

A heavy sigh escaped through your nostrils. "Alright, well let's get this going." You grabbed the file off the very top and opened it. Most of the magic identification was left up to you but Jimmy, Monica, and Darcy took care of profiling and other things. The cases became more and more disturbing, but you swallowed the fear and kept pushing for the sake of justice. If all of these cases had been done by one person, they needed to be caught.

But the longer you kept researching, the more strange things started to occur. Every case you studied came with another wave of nearly unexplainable sleepiness and no amount of cold water or coffee shook it. Then you'd catch glimpses of someone staring at you through your window. Your vision would blur and your ears would ring at random. You worried someone in your neighborhood was playing with magic, but you would've detected it if they were this close.

Then, someone knocked at your door. You all turned to look at each other.

"Did y'all order anything?" You asked. Everyone shook their heads and you got up to open the door. You didn't know why, but you felt sick to your stomach. Something was wrong. Your heart pounded in your ears with every step you took. Everything moved slowly.

Only for no one to be at your door. The street was empty and dead quiet. Not even your neighbors were up. Except for the mysterious plastic bag sitting on your porch. Hesitantly, you picked it up and brought it to the counter in front of everyone.

"This feels wrong." You said, eyeing the bag in front of you. There was no smell or markings on it, but it made your skin crawl. It set off so many alarm bells in your head. "Someone else should open it."

Everyone's fingers touched their nose at the same time.

Jimmy clocked his tongue. "It could be nothing. Maybe some door dash driver dropped it off. It could be a neighbor's!" He always tried to be reasonable even in the most senseless situations. Even when he was just as irrational as the rest of you.

"You open it then!"

Jimmy stepped back. "I didn't say we had to open it. I just said we could give it to the neighbors."

Monica grabbed a pencil from the counter and threw it at the bag. "It's not an animal…or at least it's a dead one."

You huffed out and headed to your bathroom to get a pair of latex gloves. "Fine, I'll open it. Either it's nothing and I'm crazy or it's something and I'm calling the station." The confidence in your voice didn't match the growing sickness in your stomach. You walked back to the counter and slowly untied the knot in the bag. The brown box inside had a note attached to it. "Your heart should only beat for me…heart emoticon." You could feel bile rising in your throat. The ink didn't look right. It was a weird faded red color and pooled in seemingly random places.

All that was left to open was the box. You carefully took it out of the paper bag and placed it on the space of your counter. Your eyes instinctively closed as you removed the lid of the box. A distinct smell of blood hit your nose. It was worse than anything you could have imagined.

A still beating heart with your name and badge number burned into it.

"Call the station, call the station!" You shouted as you slammed the lid back on.

It had taken about ten minutes for the police to arrive at your house. In that time, both you and Monica had thrown up and Jimmy had gone into a panicked fit pacing around your house trying to find signs of an intruder that didn't exist. All four of you were forced to sit outside while other officers searched your home and tapped it off.

You could sense another magic user in the area.

"Detective L/N?" A tall, much older woman approached you slowly like you were some injured kitten waiting to be picked up. She had on a dark purple windbreaker and a beanie to match. "I'm Detective Harkness, but you can call me Agatha." Her smile was small but genuine. Most importantly, she was very strong. It made sense because she had some years on you. You felt honored just to be in her presence. "The other officers spoke very highly of you on the way here, I can tell you're very talented."

Her words made your heart flutter. Of course, you'd never say it out loud but thrived on praise and validation. It was even better coming from a pretty woman. "I- thank you Detective Harkness, but I must ask why you're here. I thought they were just getting the human heart out of my house"

Agatha's face fell. "There's no real easy way to tell you this, but all four of you are being taken off this case."

Your heart dropped. "I-I'm sorry, what?" Maybe it was some sick joke or another of those hyperrealistic nightmares you had when you fall asleep right after reading case files. "Detective Harkness, I'm sure this isn't your doing but I'm the only witch in this district." You were pissed. Months of research and investigating were snatched right out of your hands over something so stupid. "You can't take us off just cause some freak left a heart on my doorstep!"

"A human heart on your doorstep that had a note written in blood and your badge number engraved into it." Agatha gave your shoulder a firm squeeze. "I get it. If we can prove it's not a serious threat we'll put you back on but for now, just find somewhere safe to stay for the next few weeks and I'll get back as soon as possible. Get some rest tonight and we'll work on getting you guys relocated as soon as possible." The older woman slipped a card into your pocket.

You let Agatha walk away. Even though you didn't want to say it, she was right. This case was bigger than you and it was even bigger than your friends. Who knows what kind of danger you'd put yourself in trying to catch your suspect? You took a deep breath. "Okay. We got this. I'll just crash in Jimmy's futon tonight and find a decent hotel to sleep in until I get my house back. I'm fine. We're going to be fine."

Your friends all shared a look but chose not to say anything.

Some hours later, you were curled up on Jimmy's futon dreading the day ahead of you. You had already called Rhodey and Tony to give them Agatha's contact information. The reality of your situation had only just settled in. Your suspect had their eyes on you and you had no idea how to protect yourself. Everything felt hopeless and there was nothing you could do to distract yourself.

Then your phone rang.

Wanda was calling you, but you weren’t entirely sure wanted to answer it. Wanda could always tell when you were upset and that made it near impossible to keep secrets from her, but maybe you needed to be honest.

You press the green button on your screen and put the phone against your ear. "Hey, Wanda."

"Hey, Sweetness! Are you okay? I know you said you were working late but I just want to check in on you." Wanda's voice was silk smooth as it filled your ears.

The sleepy rasp in her voice brought your comfort. "I want to tell you I am but I don't think that's the right thing to do. I'm not even sure I can legally tell you what's wrong." You could hear the sound of her sitting up on the bed. Your fingers played with the flimsy bed sheet underneath you. "I...I got removed for the case and I won't be going back to work for at least a month."

"What? Did they suspend you?" Wanda was surprised. Sure she had planned for it to happen, but she didn't think it'd happen so quickly. "You're not in trouble, are you? My family knows a good lawyer if-"

You flinched at the sudden yelling. "No, I didn't do anything wrong and I'm not wanted for anything. They just want me to go somewhere else for a bit until they catch the arsonist." You tried your very best to make the situation sound as simple and harmless as possible. "It's not like witness protection exactly but my house is currently a crime scene so-"

"A crime scene!? Where are you, I'm coming to pick you up right now!" Wanda got out of bed and immediately grabbed her keys.

"No no no, I'm fine right now! I'm safely in Jimmy's house and sleeping here until they figure out what they need me to do." You ran your fingers through your hair. "They'll probably want me out of town for a bit. I couldn't stay at your apartment even if I wanted to."

"I have a cabin a few hours away! It's a bit out there but I'm willing to drive us both out there if it means keeping you safe." Wanda's tone was frantic but serious at the same time. "We don't even have to stay the whole time you're off. Just two weeks to get your mind off things, please?" The whine in her voice was heavy.

"Are you pouting?" The small 'mhm' made you laugh a little. "Alright, fine. Just gimme a few days to do the serious detective stuff and then I'll pack what I can." You couldn't help but smile and Wanda's excited cheers. "Now I gotta get to sleep…I love you, good night."

"I've always loved you."

☲☲☲☲☲☲☲☲

Love was a very loaded word for Wanda. To be loved by Wanda was to be hers completely. Wanda told you that early into your relationship, but you were starting to see the extent of that living with her for days with little to no interruptions.

Wanda had been very handsy. Every time you walked by she'd grope and tease you as long as you later her — which was never for a short period. It happened so much you just decided to go without pants or a shirt. It wasn't the best solution considering it was just an incentive for Wanda's addiction to your body to worsen.

You were spoiled and loved every second of it, but you were starting to get antsy. Wanda didn't let you do anything. Occasionally, she'd let you accompany her to the store or take you to the beach — but even that lost its novelty after three weeks. You didn't want to sound ungrateful, but you were bored. Being idle was like a death sentence for you.

Despite all the love in her heart she had for you, Wanda seemed uncharacteristically apathetic to your complaints. You were starting to worry the relationship wasn’t going to work. Things you used to love about Wanda were starting to irritate you. She was starting to smother you. You weren’t even sure why you liked it in the first place.

"Wanda, can I go into the city for a bit? I'll be back in time for lunch." The heavy pout on your face and collar on your neck did nothing to sway Wanda's answer. You groaned and made your way back to the shared bedroom. The once lush sheets now felt uncomfortable and suffocating against your skin. You learned pretty quickly not to stomp off whining or whimpering because Wanda would handle your frustrations. Which wouldn't be a problem if she had a solution besides fucking you senseless. That brain would get foggy and all you could think about was clinging to Wanda.

After frustratedly tossing and turning on your bed you realized something. You didn't need Wanda's approval to do anything. Asking was just a courtesy. Nothing was stopping you from putting on your clothes, hopping in the car, and going out to explore the city close by. That's exactly what you did. You washed your face, got dressed in the nicest clothes you had, and grabbed your keys. Then, you headed for the front door. It was that simple.

"Where are you going?"

Wanda's cold voice made you shiver. "I'm going out. I just need some fresh air, I'll be back soon." You unlocked the door only for it to lock back. A frown formed on your face, but you kept tugging at it until a hot red mist surrounded it. "Ah! What the fuck is wrong with the door." You shook your hands to ease the hot pain.

Wanda grabbed both your hands and peppered them with kisses. "I said no. You need to learn how to listen." Her voice was still stern despite the affection she gave you. "If you need to go out, play around in the backyard but you are not to leave this cabin." She squeezed them gently before letting go. "I know your little puppy brain is telling you to run around and do whatever, but you have to do what mommy says." A confident smirk spread across her face and a blush spread across yours.

You huffed and stomped your way out towards the backyard. The breeze did very little to cool your heated skin. You hated being so easily flustered. Wanda wasn't above using it to her advantage. That anger caused something to shift and you couldn’t tell what is was. It was like someone had taken off your rose-colored glasses. "Go away. I'm not in the mood to talk." You could sense her before Wanda even said a word. Something wasn't right. Wanda's presence usually slipped under your radar. She was always a pleasant surprise. Now she felt big. Bigger than anything else you've ever been around.

"Oh sweetness, you're so strong and don't even know it." Wanda's hand reached down and gripped your neck with uncharacteristic amounts of strength. "Shush, your little attitude put you in this situation." She let you thrash around and scream to your heart's content. Watching you struggle always stirred up something deep and sadistic within her.

You looked up into the face of a woman you'd never seen before.

She looked like Wanda but she was a much darker, twisted reflection of the woman has grown to love. Her brown hair turned a fiery red. The bright green eyes you fell in love with were now darker and glazed with a hint of red in them. Bags under her eyes were now much more prominent and more than just a product of the sleepless nights both of you had.

"It takes a lot of work getting past that little sixth sense of yours. I was worried you'd figure me out too early." Wanda leaned down and forcefully kissed you. She could feel your heartbeat and hear all your frantic thoughts. "Nothing will work, I'm much stronger than you and we both know it."

You flinched as Wanda nuzzled into your cheek. Your body was frozen with fear. "What…Wanda, what are you?" Your voice trembled as you spoke. The power you were detecting felt millions of years old, but Wanda was only twenty-seven. How could she have mastered something so powerful so fast? Agatha was almost just as strong, but she was much older than both of you. "And no weird cryptic fake folktale shit either."

Wanda rolled her eyes and dragged you back into the house. "I'm just like you, puppy." Her magic forced you to sit on the couch. She cupped your cheeks. "I am the Scarlet Witch and I'm so proud of you for catching me!" Her hands slid down your neck and all the down to your stomach. "I knew all you needed was a little push and you'd be strong enough to do it."

You tried your best to avoid Wanda's touch. "Get away from me." You didn't want this to be the woman that you fell in love with, but it made sense. Before, there was nothing about Wanda that stood out to your senses. Even the weakest of fighters had something, but Wanda was nothing to your sixth sense. It would always explain how she was able to find you or could tell how you are feeling. The thought of loving something so evil should've made you feel sick. It upset you how little it did. "And I'm not your puppy, stop calling me that!"

"Really? 'Cause this," Wanda flicked the tag on the collar around your neck, "says otherwise." Her hands explored your body. Not even the darkness could get in the way of how much she cared for you. "You still love me and you will learn to accept that, especially if you want your little friends safe."

Your heart stopped. There was no telling how far Wanda was willing to go to keep you. If you couldn't handle her, your friends wouldn't stand a chance. "Fine, whatever. Just get off me." You said through gritted teeth.

☲☲☲☲☲☲☲☲

She was right. You did still love her. No matter how much you wanted to hate her, you couldn't find it in you. Every night you snuggled into her side looking for the comfort she'd given — and Wanda gave it to you without question. That didn't stop you from trying your hardest. Every slight disagreement escalated into a full-blown argument with the hopes she'd become irritated with you. It usually only left you in tears. Either you were frustrated that you couldn't escape or mad at yourself for still being in love with Wanda. She was stronger than you and more mature too.

"Mommy did this because she loves you." Such a heavy statement with the most jarring delivery. It made you sick.

"I don't want anything to do with your or that weird ass book." The edge in your voice had long disappeared. You couldn't keep up if you put your all into every argument. You wouldn't get very far wrapped up in Wanda's arms either, but something was better than nothing. "Just leave me alone."

Wanda kissed the side of your head. "We both know you don't want that." It was all she said because that was the only lie you told. Wanda was fine if didn't want to be what she had become, and she loved you for you. She could not stand by and watch you hinder yourself out of spite. "You're safer here, you're safe with me. What kind of girlfriend would I be if I let you go back to work knowing you'd get hurt?"

"You're not my girlfriend. You're a liar and a criminal." You shrugged Wanda off and got out of bed. "I don't know if you've noticed, but you kidnapped me and trapped me in the middle of fucking nowhere!"

Wanda pulled you back into the bed and pinned you down. "I'd let you go back if you weren't so disobedient." Her strong hands gripped your chin and forced it to the side. She began littering your exposed neck with love bites. "If I let you go now, you'll report me and I'll have to go away for a long time. We don't want that, do we?" She harshly sucked on the gentle skin of your neck.

Your body wouldn't listen to you. Every touch lit your body on fire. "Stop, please." You whimpered. The wetness growing between your legs felt like a punishment within itself. A shiver ran down your spine as Wanda's tongue glided over your neck. "Just let me go."

The desperation in your voice made Wanda's cunt throb. "But your parts are so sticky. Why don't you let mommy help?" Her voice was low and seductive. She has you wrapped around her finger. You'd never really say no to her. All your squirming came to a halt the second her hand slipped into your underwear. "I know you wanna go be big and play detective, but you have to learn how to be a good pup first."

Hate ran hot through your veins. Why was it so hard for you to fight back? She wasn’t controlling your mind or being more aggressive than usual. All you had to do was leave. Yet, your body chose to stay. You chose to let Wanda have her way with you.“T-that feels good.” You mumbled. Her fingers were cold, nothing like the warmth you had grown to love, but that made it easier to pretend it was someone else touching you. It wasn’t Wanda who was tugging off your clothes and forcefully stretching out your cunt. Wanda would never manhandle you so carelessly.

“Pretending I’m someone else doesn’t change the fact that you like it.” Wanda slipped her fingers inside of you with ease. She didn’t bother with taking her time. Two of her fingers made quick work of cunt. “You like it when I’m mean and you like being treated like some stupid pup that can’t do anything without a mommy.” Her thumb pressed harshly against your clit as she continued fucking into you. “Say it.” Her voice was so commanding and rough. “Say you like being mommy’s dumb little puppy.”

You frantically shook your head. “I don’t and I hate you!” Internally, you braced yourself for punishment. You thought maybe she’d spank you until you caved in or smack you for having the gall to say you hated her. Instead, she just went quiet. Her fingers pulled out of your cunt and left you hanging high and dry. “Where are you going?”

“I’m not your mommy, why do you care?” She rubbed her slick-covered fingers down your cheek. “Be difficult all you want, but I mean it when I say you are not to leave this house until you learn to be obedient.”

You were left cold, naked, and alone on the bed. Wanda didn’t even bother checking in on you that night.

☲☲☲☲☲☲☲☲

That’s how Wanda broke you. Apathy. If you didn’t want to listen to her, she felt no obligation to listen to you. It didn’t matter how many tantrums you threw or how loud you cried, Wanda didn’t care. She was perfectly content with waiting. You were the impatient one. Which was to say you didn’t even last a full week before crumbling without Wanda’s attention. After several days of breaking things and screaming your heart out, were tired.

It was cute watching you burn yourself out.

After a particularly rough night, you found yourself desperate for comfort. Your hopes that the Wanda you had fallen in love with would magically return were dashed. You had to learn to love the new one.

You stood in the entryway of the kitchen and watched as Wanda typed away at her laptop. It was hard to give up. Your suspect was sitting just feet away and you were about to let her win. If you loved her, there was no way you could turn her in. But you needed her. You needed someone to take care of you and Wanda was offering to be that person. All you had to do was let her.

Wanda looked up from the monitor and raised her eyebrows. She pulled out a chair from the table, but didn’t say anything to you.

You swallowed a lump in your throat and slowly made your way toward her. The first thing you noticed was the darkness covering her fingers, but you decided to ignore it for the sake of your relationship and sanity. Just apologize to Wanda. Don’t argue and don’t ask any questions, just apologize. “I’m sorry.”

Wanda stopped typing and turned to look at you. You looked pathetic. So small and defenseless compared to her. That’s how she wanted you. “I’m going to need a little more than that. I know you can do better.” She cupped your face and used her thumb to caress your cheek.

You sniffled in an attempt not to cry. You couldn’t believe you were really about to do this. “I’m sorry for being so mean to you. You wanted to take care of me and I was being ungrateful.” Part of you felt sick, but the other part was relieved. You were torn. Should you go back on your word or should you just accept your situation? You felt empty, but at least Wanda felt warm again.

Wanda leaned forward and placed a kiss on your lips. “I’m proud of you, baby.” Her arms wrapped around you and pulled you into a tight hug. “I know that was hard for you,” She whispered. There was nothing she could comfortably do about your shame, but she could love you. She could train you to love yourself. “Are you gonna learn to be mommy’s good puppy?”

You nodded and buried your face into her neck. “I’ll be good. I promise.” You let yourself be guided to the bedroom. There was no doubt about what would happen next. She’d claim you all over again and you'd let her do it. Denying yourself was so hard. "I wanna be mommy's puppy again."

Wanda laid you down on the bed and straddled your hips. "You were always mommy's puppy. Just because you have a bad time doesn't mean I don't love you anymore." Her hands slipped underneath your shirt and immediately began playing with your nipples. "Mommy loves her puppy detective even when they're mean and trying to hurt her feelings." It took almost nothing to get you all mushy and obedient. She took her sweet time stripping you naked. Leaving kisses and hickeys over every inch of newly exposed skin.

This time, you didn't try to hold back. You let yourself get lost in the comfort of Wanda's weight on top of you and the way she held you. You weren't ashamed of the wetness growing between your legs or the desperate little noises coming from your mouth. "I need mommy, please?"

Wanda smiled fondly as she let her hand wander down to the wet patch in your underwear. "Oh puppy, you're such a mess down here. I promise I won't tease you anymore." A heavy strap-on appeared around her waist. "Lay back and let mommy fill up your little puppy parts." She grabbed the base of the toy and circled it around your clit.

"It's too big." You immediately clung onto Wanda as she thrust the toy inside of you. It practically split you in two, but it felt so good. "G-go slow, it's too much!"

Wanda giggled at your sensitivity. "Baby, I haven't even moved yet." She carefully leaned down to kiss your forehead. Her hips moved as slowly as they possibly could. Every distressed whimper and small whine earned you another soft kiss from her. "I know it hurts now, but I promise you it'll feel good soon."

Wanda was right. Eventually, the pain subsided and you just felt full. The pace Wanda set for you was deep and slow. Whimpers turned into moans. You were starting to lose yourself fast. "Thank you, mommy. It feels so good."

One of her hands pinned both of your wrists above your head. The needy whines coming from your mouth were music to her ears. "Don't be shy, mommy loves hearing how good she makes you feel." Her pace slowly got faster until you were practically screaming for her. The hand she wasn't using immediately began to massage your clit. "Is my sweet little puppy gonna cum already? It's okay if you do, mommy's here to help you afterward."

Your face burned as you desperately tried to escape Wanda's nimble fingers. "N-no, I can…I can hold it!" You most certainly couldn't. Wanda was going to make sure of it. Never had Wanda denied you and she'd never let you deny yourself. "Mhm, I'm cumming! It's coming, please slow down!"

Wanda did no such thing. Instead, she trapped you in a passionate kiss as she continued rutting into you. "Come on, baby, make a big mess for mommy." Her thumb continued to torture your poor overstimulated clit until she was satisfied and sure you had gone as far as you could. Once she was done, she slowly pulled out of you and let you go limp against the mattress. "There we go, you look so cute all fucked out for mommy." She bent down and peppered kisses all over your slick-covered thighs. "I'm going to run you a bath, okay? Just stay still and relax."

For a moment, you were in pure bliss. Mindless, completely satisfied even.

Then everything began to settle in. It didn't matter how gentle Wanda was. She was a killer. You'd given yourself up to a killer and enjoyed every second of it. Not only that, but you were going to let her keep killing. You were just as bad as she was. Maybe even worse for being bribed with something as simple as good sex.

You were a dirty cop now.

#pvntherz #wanda fanfic #wanda maximoff #wanda x reader #wanda maximoff x reader #wanda maximoff x you #wanda maximoff x y/n #wanda maximoff smut #dark!wanda maximoff #arsonist!wanda #dark!wanda smut

807 notes · View notes