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#cure hear loss
mylittleredgirl · 9 months
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so one of my skills in life is that i test very well, largely because of pattern recognition, and i realized today that it’s pretty detrimental to the medical evaluation process. i basically scored perfect on a hearing test today that ruled out some diagnoses, and i am only now going back over the process in my mind and realizing that i didn’t actually hear a bunch of stuff i said i did, i just knew the right answer because the pattern of words and beeps was a consistent speed and pattern and they told me in advance what words they were going to use so like? yeah?? of course i knew when to raise my hand and could figure out what word you were saying? anyway i got an A in hearing which is normal to want yet perhaps detrimental to achieve.
and i can’t really call them and go “sorry i think i outsmarted your test, like a dumbass” so if i notice my hearing getting worse i’ll call them back and get re-tested, and bring someone with me to be like “your goal is not to pass the test. repeat after me. your goal is not to pass the test.”
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dyketubbo · 1 year
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girl help someone is applying their personal issues to the community at large and bothering me about it
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sas-soulwriter · 7 months
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Creative misfortunes for characters
Identity Crisis: Have your character lose their memory, forcing them to rediscover their true self and past.
Betrayal by a Loved One: A close friend or family member betrays the character's trust, leading to emotional turmoil and inner conflict.
Physical Transformation: Give your character a physical ailment or transformation that they must come to terms with, such as sudden blindness, a debilitating illness, or turning into a different species.
Unrequited Love: Make your character fall deeply in love with someone who doesn't reciprocate their feelings, causing heartache and a quest for self-discovery.
Financial Ruin: Strip your character of their wealth and privilege, forcing them to adapt to a life of poverty and face the harsh realities of the world.
False Accusation: Have your character falsely accused of a crime they didn't commit, leading to a desperate quest to clear their name.
Natural Disaster: Place your character in the path of a devastating natural disaster, such as a hurricane, earthquake, or tsunami, and force them to survive and rebuild.
Loss of a Sense: Take away one of your character's senses (e.g., sight, hearing, taste) and explore how they adapt and cope with this profound change.
Forced Isolation: Trap your character in a remote location, like a deserted island, and make them confront their inner demons while struggling to survive.
Haunted Past: Reveal a dark secret from your character's past that comes back to haunt them, threatening their relationships and well-being.
Time Travel Consequences: Send your character back in time, but make them inadvertently change a crucial event in history, leading to unintended consequences in the present.
Psychological Breakdown: Push your character to the brink of a mental breakdown, exploring the complexities of their psyche and their journey towards recovery.
Unwanted Prophecy: Have your character be the subject of a prophecy they want no part of, as it places them in grave danger or disrupts their life.
Loss of a Loved One: Kill off a beloved character or make your protagonist witness the death of someone close to them, igniting a quest for revenge or justice.
Incurable Curse or Disease: Curse your character with an incurable ailment or supernatural curse, and follow their journey to find a cure or accept their fate.
Sudden Disappearance: Make a character disappear mysteriously, leaving the others to search for them and uncover the truth.
Betrayal of Morals: Force your character into a situation where they must compromise their ethical values for a greater cause, leading to moral dilemmas and internal conflict.
Loss of a Precious Object: Have your character lose a cherished possession or artifact that holds sentimental or magical significance, setting them on a quest to recover it.
Political Intrigue: Place your character in a position of power or influence, then subject them to political intrigue, manipulation, and power struggles.
Existential Crisis: Make your character question the meaning of life, their purpose, and their place in the universe, leading to a philosophical journey of self-discovery.
Remember that misfortunes should serve a purpose in your story, driving character growth, plot development, and thematic exploration.
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kikiyoomis · 2 months
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when you first met suna, the first thing you thought was that “yea he definitely smokes, drinks and fucks around.” and every time you saw him that impression only cemented itself.
your university program had this famed student run party. it was the only highlight of the new school year. people got so incredibly wasted, lost their virginity, got high as fuck… it was a party that encaptured the student body.
you were excited to go to the party, it was a chance to dress up, look sexy and maybe flirt with a couple of guys way out of your league using liquid courage. and besides you had your trustworthy friends with you, so at least you have someone watching your back… at least when they’re sober.
entering the party, the loud music pounded into your ears. people were dancing, drinking, playing games. you scanned the room looking for any familiar faces to go and talk to.
unsurprisingly, you saw suna standing around the patio with a couple of his friends and some girls. he had a red solo cup in hand while his friends smoked. the girls were all giggling and the boys’ body language seemed to give off a flirty intention.
a girl touches suna’s arm and he turns to face her, her hand slipping back to herself. he smiles and laughs and you think to yourself that if he does that more often he could easily be the most popular person on campus. he has the looks and the body it would easily attract a vast majority of people. and it already has for the most part.
‘but it’s none of my business’ you think before heading off towards your friends for a round of shots to start off the night.
drink after drink, dancing with your friends, talking with people you know you’ll never see again, it was really a fun night. so fun in fact, that you’ve ran away from your friends to hide in a dark corner kissing a man you don’t have a single clue about. no seriously. one moment you were dancing, and then the next moment you were no longer on the dance floor with your friends and instead with this man. not that you really care that much consider you’re having the best moment you’ve ever had in your entire life.
he was such a damn good kisser. after every breath you pull him back because you didn’t have enough. tongues fighting for dominance and lips bruising themselves purple with the intensity of the kiss.
“god, fuck, you’re really not gonna let me go huh,” he teases and you leave a hickey on his neck. he places a hand around your ass and leans back, bringing you down with him.
“mmm shut up and kiss me some more” you say locking your lips with his again. it was addicting and you couldn’t get enough of it.
“hey suna where are you?!” a voice calls out suddenly, startling the both of you. the two of you sat in silence, waiting for the guy to pass. you can hear him walking around the little corner you were in, making your heart beat in anxiousness. it would be so embarrassing if someone spots you two…
only when another friend tells him to forget about suna and to just go to the second party that the first guy leaves.
“i thought they’d never leave. that friend has some sense to just leave suna. he’s probably getting high somewhere…” you mumble, a little grumpy at the interruption. the guy you’re with laughs and pulls you closer to the point you’re straddling his lap.
“why? don’t want to share me?” the comment almost cures your drunken mind. despite literally locking lips with him for who knows how long you finally take a look at his face.
suna smiles smugly at you, amused at the fact that the person he’s been kissing simply never bothered to see who it was.
you sat there stunned, at a loss for words. suna leans forward and places a couple of kissing on your exposed nape, travelling upwards until he reaches the corner of your mouth.
“i’ve never been a stoner or done any drugs but i think what you’ve done to me is getting me higher than any drugs could” he teases.
“… you’ve never done drugs?” you say surprised as you mindlessly wrap your arms around his shoulders. though there wasn’t any proof that he did do them, it was just an assumption considering the crowd he involves himself with.
“the worst i do is drink since i am a professional athlete and need to care about diets and shit like that. but im such a lightweight that two drinks is all it takes to have me drunk.”
the reality was so far off of your impression of him. but then again it makes sense.
“do you do this often then? considering what we’re doing now?” you ask, purposefully leaning closer to him to the point you can feel each others breath.
“jealous are we?” he teases, pulling your hips closer to his.
“do you want the whole truth or should i just lie to get this over with so we can book a hotel room and have some fun” he asks, his hand reaching under your shirt, his finger lifting the underwire of your bra ever so slightly.
“if i ask for the whole truth is the hotel room offer still gonna be up?” you ask.
“of course, i’ll make you feel so good that even if you got blackout drunk your body will still remember everything when your mind doesn’t”
it wasn’t that you’ve never liked him, but you’ve also never hated him. he was someone you thought you would never be entangled with so you were indifferent. both of your lives were so different that there wasn’t going to be any reason the two of you would even speak. maybe it was the alcohol in your system but there’s something attracting you to him. something that makes you want to know him more and a little something that would make you sad to see him go.
“i want to know” you tell him.
“i don’t do these things with other people” he says.
“huh? but your frien-“
“my friends do, but i didn’t want to seem like the type of guy to flirt around and seem like an unfaithful partner around my crush. though i seem to have failed according to you”
you raise an eyebrow at suna who seemed to accuse you of ruining his character.
“did your crush reject you? considering you’re even willing to go to a hotel room with me” you act boldly, kissing his cheek while your hand caresses his body lower and lower. suna catches on quickly and grabs your naughty hand and presses to his mouth.
“i don’t think so but i don’t think they’re rejecting me since they’re so excited to go to the hotel room that they can’t keep their hands off of me”
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guitarguitarworld · 2 years
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Tinnitus: The Musicians Demon/ Rick Beato: My Response!
 CLICK SUBSCRIBE! Tinnitus: The Musicians Demon/ Rick Beato: “Tinnitus AVOIDANCE” My Response! In the above video I discuss my experience with Tinnitus and what you need to do and be aware of. I hope this video is of help. IF THIS VIDEO WAS OF VALUE TO YOU THEN PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO US ON YOUTUBE BELOW, THANKS! #RickBeatoTinnitus #BeatoTinnitus #RickBeatoHearing #CureTinnitus #MusiciansEarPlugs
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Love in the Time of Cordyceps
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pairing: joel miller x f!reader
summary: when the world ends, you promise you'll never love again. joel miller makes that rule hard to stick to
words: 7.1k
warnings: mentions of gore (pretty tame but still), swearing, sickness, angst, fluff, two dummies not realizing they love each other until one of them almost dies 🙄
a/n: this was supposed to be more angsty but then i remembered life is hard enough already. and i just want soft joel soooo here we are. also i meant to write 2k at most but boy do i love to ramble
read on ao3!
After the world goes to hell, you promise yourself you’ll never love again. A person, an animal, a place, nothing. Only a fool would choose to make themselves that vulnerable, needing every fiber of your being one hundred percent devoted to your survival and nothing more. 
Was a life without love worth living? Every time that question enters your mind, you swat it aside. It’s like a nagging fly that buzzes around you until your persistence finally drives it away completely. Of course you could live without love. You’d been doing it just fine these past fifteen years. 
Living without attachment proves useful in the new world you find yourself in. It makes the countless people you lose along the way easier to move on from. In the early days, your heart still twinges as the people around you drop like flies. Most fall victim to the bites of clickers, some to raiders’ gun, a few by their own hand. 
The first group you had travel with is filled with Midwesterners who see the terrors of the new world and still somehow have a smile and a joke for you. Their joviality can’t save them, though. Clickers swarm you one rainy night two years after the fall of civilization. The sight of Gail, a woman who reminds you of your grandmother, having her stomach ripped out by an especially voracious clicker cures you of your need for any connections to the living. 
Over the years, you make your way to the East Coast. Smiles, defiant in the face of adversity are replaced by permanent grimaces etched into the faces of everyone you meet. It seems as though every survivor has lost the ability for happiness of any kind. Good, you think, they’re finally learning. You wonder what took them so long. 
Tales of peace the Canadian wilderness has to offer reaches your ears. In your heart you know it is most likely a tall tale spread by desperate survivors. But the good thing about a zombie apocalypse is you now have nothing but time on your hands. Working your way north, if all goes well, you’ll reach Saint John by May, continue to Port Elgin and then decide if you’d try for Prince Edward Island or turn east to Nova Scotia. 
Plans are made to be broken, though, and yours, along with your ankle, break clean through one day as you make your way through Boston. It would have been over for you if not for the two survivors that find you nursing your injury in a department store that will most likely be swarming with clickers by nightfall. 
The woman, after she puts her gun away, introduces herself as Tess. The man doesn’t offer his name, preferring to keep the barrel of his shotgun pointed at you. As they argue quietly over what to do with you, you observe their faces. Both are etched hard with years of loss and worry. Even harder than your joyless face. It’s impressive albeit in a sad kind of way. 
Tess had somehow persuades the man to help you back to the Boston QZ. Joel. You hear her call him Joel. “Fine,” he had grumbles as he places your arm over his shoulder for support, “but if she scans red, I will not hesitate to put her down.” Oddly enough his threat somehow makes you almost like him. You sense a kindred spirit. Another follower of the “no love, no attachment” way of life. 
You do not, in fact, scan red and are allowed to enter the QZ. An apartment is assigned to you, a crappy little studio with faded lime green paint. The old you would have adored it, called it quirky and planned out how best to decorate it with your meager funds. The new you just appreciates a safe place to sleep. 
After your ankle heals, Tess invites you to join her smuggling scheme. Thoughts of Canada flee your mind for the time-being and you gladly welcome something to keep yourself occupied. 
“But what about the cowboy?” you ask. 
“Joel? What about him?”
Your eyebrows arch, “He threatened to shoot me.”
“Only if you were infected. Just don’t get infected.” She says it like you’re discussing the weather. 
Joel allows you into the group begrudgingly, probably because he thinks they can use you as bait or a distraction if needed. Fine. Let them label you bait. You’ve been called worse before. 
The first few months working together are tense. Joel reprimands you for the smallest mistakes and warns Tess you’ll get them all killed. At first, you bite your tongue, reminding yourself of the part he had in saving you. But one night after he scolds you for the millionth time about not checking your blind spots for clickers, you snap. “Fuck off, Joel! I survived the clickers for fifteen years. I think I know what I’m fucking doing!.”
He holds up his hands in surrender, wandering off with a hurt pout like he wasn’t the one who was just being the asshole. You wonder why your victory leaves you feeling hollow. 
After that, Joel keeps his mouth shut around you. No nagging, no “helpful” tips. Just the bare minimum of whatever he needs to convey. You’ll never admit that it hurts. You don’t have to, though. Tess, at the end of her rope, explodes one night as the three of you eat dinner in awkward silence. “Couple of fuckin’ babies I’m working with,” she seethes. “If you don’t grow up I’m finding a new crew.”
It’s decided that you and Joel will do the next supply run to Bill’s. Alone. No Tess there to act as buffer between you and him. Joel grunts at that but doesn’t argue, always deferring to your leader. The trip to Bill’s goes as well as you can ask. There are no arguments between the two of you at least. You’re sure you even see Joel crack a smile. Of course it’s when you clumsily tripped over a raised tree root…But hey, progress is progress.
With the supplies in tow and Frank’s compound behind you, you actually think this trip might be a success. A gang of raiders lying in wait to sabotage you dashes your hopes of that. They had seen the two of you lugging your supplies and thought it would be an easy win. At first, they are correct. They outnumber you and Joel in size and wickedness. The four of them aren’t content to kill you outright. They tie you up and discuss what to do with you next. 
Of course their attention quickly falls on you. The man with an ugly gash across his face leers at you. “Maybe we should keep her around awhile. She looks like fun.” Try as you might to act tough, that sends the blood rushing through your ears. 
You almost don’t hear Joel snarl at them. “You lay one finger on her and it’ll be the last thing you ever do.” The venom in his voice snaps you back to reality. While their attention is on him, you discreetly start ripping at your bonds with the little pocket knife you thankfully decided to stow in your back pocket. 
They beat Joel senseless by the time you get free. You honestly think you’re too late as you stab the goon nearest to you in the thigh, by some miracle hitting his femoral artery. The others turn to you, blindsided as you go wild at the sight of your bloodied and broken companion. Gash-Face comes roaring at you, all brawn no brains. The look of surprise as you lodge the knife in his neck makes you smile with sickening glee. 
The remaining two corner you, murder in their eyes. Your gun is just beyond them, taunting you to come retrieve it. The only “weapon” you have is the belt you’re wearing, it’s clasp heavy and silver. You undo it and swing it at the nearest man. He grabs it, cackling victoriously as he uses it to pull you closer. In their grasp, you become the target of their blows. You curl into the fetal position, angry that after all the near death experiences you’ve had, this will be the way you go out. 
A shot rings out, then another. Two thuds on the ground next to you make you open your already swollen eyes. As you look up, you realize your savior is Joel. Back from the dead. His face is covered in blood, like some kind of ghoul. But in that moment, you have never seen someone look more like an angel. The two of you limp back to the QZ where Tess nurses you as she simultaneously curses the deceased thugs. 
Joel corners you in the bathroom the next day as you study your bruised face. “You could have run,” he hisses at you, making you jump. You don’t know what he wants so you just shrug. He invades your space, making you back against the counter. “Why didn’t you run?” His voice has gone low, anger simmering just beneath the surface. 
Faces inches from each other, all you can muster is a weak, “We’re a team. I wasn’t going to leave you.”
Several emotions flicker across his face in quick succession. Anger, fear, worry and something you can’t quite put your finger on. Pride? Maybe that was you projecting but you hope you were right. Joel studies you for a moment longer, then reiterates, “Next time, you run.”
******
After that, things change. Joel is still a man of few words but the ones he does grace you with are softer and more intentional. Instead of berating you for the knowledge and skills you lack, he takes them time to teach you. He shows you how to identify fake ration cards and to spot the kind of guard you can bribe. Nights are spent with you following behind him like a shadow as he shows you all the secret ways in and out of the QZ. When your hands shake during target practice, he places his calloused ones over yours. It steadies your hands but frays your nerves, threatening to awake a feeling long thought dormant. 
It goes both ways. Joel lacks attention to detail in certain situations and you show him how to read people and ascertain their flaws that can be exploited. During your runs you point out the flora that can be consumed safely or used as medicine. At Flynn’s, the only bar in the QZ, you teach him how to play pool. An essential to survival? No. But it sure helps you win a huge stash of ration cards from your fellows survivors. It also gives you an excuse to sidle up behind him and mold your body around his, all in the name of helping him get the “proper pool stance.”
Your excuses to fleetingly touch one another became more and more common. They are all perfectly innocent but carry the weight of something elicit, at least to you. Joel is never one to give away his innermost thoughts, happy to wear a permanent poker face. For all you know he couldn’t care less about you. Maybe he just knows keeping you alive is good for business and that’s why he takes a particular interest in making sure you’re safe. Whatever the reason, you hope he never stops. 
******
During one supply run, a torrential thunderstorm forces you to spend the night at Bill and Frank’s. You know it makes Joel nervous to be indebted to anyone for such hospitality but you can’t hide your glee. A night there means a cozy bed and a hot shower, something hard to find in your home where the water runs tepid at best. 
Afterwards spending way too long in the bathroom, you curl up in your bed, toasty and content, only to find sleep won’t not come. Your hosts are dear to you, even the grumpy Bill, but their snoring through the wall you share makes hopes for a deep sleep impossible. 
After an hour of tossing and turning, you decide to go make your bed on the couch. As you tiptoe down the stairs you run into Joel, on his way up . “Going somewhere?” he drawls, exhaustion making his voice deeper than usual. You shrug, “Couldn’t sleep. There are two buzzsaws in the room next door.”
Joel chuckles, “I’ve had that room before. Can’t say it was the best night of sleep I’ve ever had.” You lived for these little snippets into Joel’s life before you came around, always eager to hear more. But the trek to the house through never-ending sleet and over the turbulent river left you more tired than you had felt in years. Right now all you want is to get where you could pass out immediately. “I’m just gonna make camp on the couch,” you say, stifling a yawn. 
Joel shakes his head. “You take my room. The couch is good enough for me.” This man. Hadn’t anyone told him chivalry is dead. You sigh tiredly and beckon for him to come back up the stairs with you. “It’s a big bed. We can share.” There is silence behind you where there should have been footsteps. Joel’s smile disappears as his forehead creases in thought. “Please,” you pout, “I can’t sleep in my room and I won’t get any rest knowing you’re crammed on that dainty little loveseat.”
It takes far more coaxing than it should but finally Joel gives you a little nod and follows you into his - your - room. You gesture to the bed, “Care which side you get?” Joel thinks, then shrugs. “Left is good.” You flop onto the right side, eyes immediately drooping shut. Once again, there is no movement from your companion. Without opening your eyes, you chide him, “If you’re gonna be weird and watch me sleep all night then you can go sleep on the couch.” That got him moving again. 
The sound of the shower turning on lulls you to a sleep that is disturbed only when you feel the dip of the bed several minutes later. You watch through barely opened eyes as Joel does a strange shimmy under the covers. It’s clear he’s trying his best not to wake you. The sight makes you laugh softly and his head whips to you. 
“Thought you were asleep,” he murmurs. 
You hum, “I was. You woke me up.” 
It’s meant to be a joke but Joel grimaces. “Sorry.”
The sight is sweet and your heart flips, his frown making him look almost boyish. “It’s ok. It’s your bed.” 
As you burrow into your cocoon of blankets, Joel props himself up, a pillow behind his back. He looks from you to the bedside lamp and back again. “You mind if I read for a few minutes?” 
That surprises you. In all your time together you had rarely seen Joel do something just for the pleasure of it. There was usually no time. But Bill and Frank’s is a sanctuary and even the hyper-vigilant Joel Miller is able to slow down here. You nod enthusiastically, perking up. “What are you reading?” 
It’s like you had asked him what his darkest secret was. He reddens, then finally grabs a book from the table. Pride and Prejudice. He stammers, “It’s just…I never had a lot of time for reading before and this was a favorite of…it was a favorite of somebody I knew.”
“You can read out loud to me if you want,” you offer with a grin. Honestly it was half in jest and half a serious hope. It had been decades since anyone had read aloud to you. Joel, always thinking you were making some sort of fun of him, smirks sarcastically. “Not a chance.” 
Your glower slowly melts away at the sight of him putting on his reading glasses and settling in. Silently you curse as you feel your hardened heart crack just the tiniest bit. Idiot that you are, you try to talk yourself out of your own feelings. You aren’t attached to Joel. How could you be? He’s just a handsome, rugged man who keeps you safe and reads Jane Austen in his spare time. Maybe some lesser fool would fall for him but not you. No, sir.
The next morning, you find yourself curled into him, chest pressed against his back and arm draped over his side. Like a bomb diffuser, you carefully try to extricate yourself from the position, every movement slow and precise. Joel, still asleep, lazily grabs your hand, keeping your arm around him. He sighs contentedly as you settle back down and you swear under your breath, nestling your head at the crook of his neck. You are so that lesser fool. 
******
The thunderstorms of summer give way to the pleasant days of autumn. Those good days don’t seem to last long enough. You should have appreciated them more while they were there but so is the way of being human. 
Winter in Boston isn’t fun. Ok that’s an understatement. It makes you long for the soul-sucking, never-ending Midwestern winters you had lived through for most of your life. There is something about being next to the ocean that makes everything feel colder. 
The nights are especially hard, the wind seeping through the cracks in the walls of your apartment. No matter how many blankets you tuck around yourself, your body never truly feels warm. Runs to Bill’s or anywhere outside the QZ become less frequent and more difficult. Only those deemed truly necessary are attempted and even then there is always a long discussion beforehand weighing out the pros and cons. 
Runs between the months of November and January are too risky and after much debate, it  is decided you three would lay low in the relative safety of the QZ. In the meantime, you’d assess your stockpile, make connections over the radio and wait for the spring thaw. With less food smuggled in from the outside, you decide to put your energy into earning ration cards. Even though no one could argue you don’t pull your weight in the group, you often feel like the weak link. Making sure Tess and Joel have a hot meal every night is the least you could do. 
Joel had always told you to stay away from sewer work. It paid double what the other jobs did but at a high risk. Besides not being able to wash the stink off for days, the tunnels under the city were treacherous. Many had gone down there only to be blindsided by a stray clicker or jumped by a loner who made their home away from society up above. Some just got lost in the labyrinth, never to be heard from again. Or at least you had been told. You hoped those were just myths. 
You and three other desperate souls are sent down to the sewers with the task of clearing the rubble from a recent cave in. A hard day’s work definitely but you were optimistic that you could get it done in a few hours time and be on your way.
The first few hours go well, the biggest pieces of the concrete being cleared easily enough. Your back aches and callouses quickly form on your palms. But still, all of that you can deal with, mollifying yourself with the thought of the stack of ration cards you’ll proudly gift to Joel and Tess. 
Maybe if you hadn’t been daydreaming you would have heard the shouts of your fellow volunteers sooner. Finally coming back to reality, you move just in time to avoid another piece of falling rock. You save yourself from being crushed but lose your footing, coming down hard on your shin. 
A stream of bright blood instantly trickles from the gash and you swear as you try to keep the tears that spring to your eyes at bay. Wanting to prove yourself, you brush off your group’s insistence that you go get it checked by the doctor. It doesn’t matter if you complete ninety percent of your shift. You still don’t get your payment if you leave early. So you suck it up for another hour, slogging through the muck as you finish the job. It’s fine, you tell yourself, it’s just a scratch. You’ll wash it off when I get home and be good as new. 
With the job done and ration cards tucked away in your pocket, you hobble back towards your apartment. The thought of a shower, as lukewarm as it will be, is the only thing keeping you upright. That is until you feel someone putting your arm around their shoulder. Joel helps you the few blocks to your house, his icy silence hurting you more than the cut that now throbs with every jostle. 
It’s only after you get inside and are deposited on the couch that Joel speaks. He rolls up the leg of your jeans, cursing as he sees the already festering wound. “I told you to stay out of the sewers.” 
You suck in a pained breath as he starts wiping away the dirt. “I’m fine. It’s just a little cut. Besides, it was worth it,” you pull out the stack of ration cards and present them to him proudly. The sight gives him pause. But the look on his face isn’t one of gratitude, it’s worried exasperation. His signature grimace returns, “It’s not worth it if you lose your leg.” And people claim you’re dramatic. 
Pushing him away with a shoo, you rise, limping to the bathroom. “I just need a shower. Then I’ll be right as rain.” As you peel off your now ruined clothes, Joel hovers on the other side of the door. “I can hear you pacing,” you call over the sound of the warming shower. 
Even through the almost closed door you can hear Joel sigh. “I just think we should take you to the doc. Make sure you’re alright.” The water hitting you makes you audibly moan, the filth on your body washing down the drain and with it, the memory of the hard day. You appreciate the concern but all you want to do know is forget about the day. You call out to a still pacing Joel, “I’m fine. You worry too much!”
******
It turns out Joel worries the right amount. Of course he does. As eager as you are to forget about your day, it’s not long before you can’t ignore your leg. The wound is an angry red and the area around it has swollen, leaving it tender and throbbing. Thankfully you have Joel there to dress it because, honestly, you can’t stomach the sight of it. These past years have been filled with much blood and gore at your own hands. But there’s something different when it’s your own blood. 
In any other circumstance you would have reveled in the feeling of Joel holding your leg so tenderly, his fingers brushing against your skin as he wraps the bandage around you. It would have driven you insane seeing him crouched in between your legs as he is now. But at the moment all you can think about is how you much pain you’re in. 
You try not to show your discomfort, but your poker face is nonexistent. Joel’s eyes flick up to yours as you slowly exhale, trying to keep calm. Avoidance has always been one of your favorite tactics when dealing with uncomfortable situations so you pipe up, overly perkily, “See? All better. Now about those ration cards, I was thinking for dinner-“ 
Joel rolls his eyes, standing with a groan, his knees audibly cracking. “The only thing you’re gonna do tonight is rest.”
You slowly turn your body to prop your leg up on a pillow as he watches. Pouting has never worked on Joel but you figure it never hurts to try. “I still have to eat,” you mope. 
“You will. I’ll open a can of soup or something.”
The disappointment is real and bubbles to the surface quicker than you realized it would. “I just wanted us all to have a nice dinner. You and Tess do so much and I feel like…” Thinking how you feel is different from saying it out loud and you have to psych yourself up. Joel’s softening gaze helps you continue. “I feel like I’m useless. I just thought this was one thing I could do to really contribute.”
The silence between you feels heavy as you avoid his stare. Finally, he speaks, confusion contorting his features, “Of course you contribute. We wouldn’t have kept you around if you hadn’t.” It’s meant to make you feel better but it doesn’t, especially in your current laid up state. 
“So are you going to get rid of me if I’m no longer useful?” you gesture at your leg, feeling your eyes beginning to sting with tears. 
Joel sits down next to you. Your fear has made you defiant and you meet his gaze, wanting to fight. But Joel speaks in a soft, level voice, as if teaching a child a lesson. “First of all, you’re going to get better. You just need to be patient. Second, you’re thinking there’s only one kind of way to be useful.”
“I can’t shoot like you two can. I can’t fight. I can’t threaten people into getting what I want. I can go on runs and earn ration cards. That’s it. I’m too soft for anything actually important.” 
Joel frowns, “You say that like it’s a bad thing. ‘Being soft’ in a world like this is an act of defiance. It’s brave as hell. What you consider important? I don’t want that for you.”
Warmth spreads through your chest as you observe him. He’s trying so hard to find his next words, to make you believe his truth. “Me and Tess, we let the world harden us more than it needed to. It was easier that way. But having you around reminds us there’s still innocence and good out there.”
The angry tears have turned to ones of gratitude. The sentiment is too much for you, unused to such vulnerability from Joel. You give him a small smile and he returns it, leaning over to wipe a tear off your cheek. “You’re useful just being you.”
While you still wish you matched Joel and Tess’ levels of badassery, the conversation helps ease your mind. You might not think much of your survival skills but you remind yourself that you’ve stayed alive in a world that wants you dead. Fifteen years you’ve been fighting and surviving and that’s nothing to look down on. 
“And for what it’s worth, “ he adds, “you scared the hell out of me the first time we met.”
You grin at him, shocked, “Really?”
He nods, smirking cheekily, “Really. Still do sometimes.”
******
Joel heats up a can of tomato soup for you to share. You try not to think of how old it must be as he prepares it. But actually, it’s not bad, the taste reminding you of your childhood. 
It also helps that you’re sharing it with someone you care about. A part of you hates that how easily you’ve let him into your heart. The one thing you swore off all those years ago is now all you can think about as you watch him sitting across from you, ladling out the steaming liquid. 
He catches you staring and breaks the silence, “Were you even going to tell me you got hurt today if I hadn’t run into you.” The fuzziness of your feelings for him makes your brain a little mushy and instead of having a grownup conversation, you reply with a childish, “No, I thought I’d let it be a soup-rise.” 
Joel rolls his eyes in mock annoyance. You chuckle and continue eating your rapidly cooling dinner. You sober up a bit and add, “The extra ration cards will be good, though. Right?” 
He nods, “Yeah. I think it’s soup-er.” His eyes flick up to yours as they crinkle, the only sign that he finds himself amusing. 
After dinner, Joel excuses himself to go work his overnight shift. When he leaves and you’re left along, the throbbing in your leg returns with a vengeance along with a mild fever. Your usually chilly apartment now feels stuffy and you have to remove all of your layers except your t-shirt to be even somewhat comfortable. 
Worry creeps in as you sit there, alone and increasingly unwell. You long for the company of Joel or Tess, anyone to reassure you that you’re fine. But you’re alone and the dark thoughts creep in, whispering in your ear that whatever is brewing is not good. Unsure of what else to do, you slip in to bed, hoping that whatever this is will be better by morning. 
******
You don’t wake for two days. Or at least, you have no real memory of the past 48 hours. Later, when the worst is over, Joel will tell you the details of that lapse in your memory. He’ll recount how you faded in and out of consciousness, sometimes submitting to your fever for so long that he wasn’t sure you were coming back. His voice will waver as he remembers how bad it got and how fragile you looked…
But for now, he stays by your side, foregoing his own health to make sure you stay alive. The first thing you remember is waking up to the sounds of Joel and Tess arguing in hushed tones. 
“We need to get her to a doctor. Now.” Joel’s voice sounds strained, like he’s trying desperately not to lose it. 
Tess still maintains her signature composure. “We can’t, Joel. It’s too late for that.”
Joel must make some kind of face because Tess sighs and re-words. “It’s too late to take her in because if we bring her to the hospital all they’ll focus on is her fever. They’ve put people down for way less. You know that.”
In your addled state, you wonder who they’re talking about. Your throat hurts to much to speak up though and ask. 
“The doc will give us the meds. We’ve bribed him before.” 
Tess shakes her head, “Antibiotics are on lockdown. Shipments have been delayed because of the weather. No one gets any without FEDRA knowing. Breaking in guarantees we get caught. We’re no good to her dead. ”
Joel scoffs, “So what do you suggest we do?”
“She rides it out.”
“She’s been ‘riding it out’ for two days. Look at her,” Joel’s voice gets closer as he peers down at you, “she’s fighting but she’s losing.”
Oh. Fever may have taken hold of you, making your brain fuzzy and concentration near impossible, but you understand now that you are the subject of their argument. For Joel to sound so forlorn you must look bad. 
If you’re dead soon, you want to let them know to leave it and just let you slip away. Your well-being means nothing if it puts them in unnecessary danger. Rule be damned, they’re your family now and you care about them. If you’re being honest, you’ve cared about them since you met them. It breaks your heart thinking you won’t be able to tell them that now. It nearly kills you right then and there to know you won’t get the chance to tell Joel you love him…
Opening your mouth to articulate all of that takes great effort and when you do try and speak, all that comes out is a strangled groan. The two rush over, Tess sitting down beside you. She takes your hand, an uncharacteristic show of tenderness. Yep, you’re dying. 
“You’re ok, kid,” she whispers, “you just have to hang in there.” It would be easy to ignore reality and blindly trust her. But you’ve always been stubborn and so you shake your head and continue trying to speak. Again, nothing comes out but garbled nonsense as you writhe around trying to make your limbs do what your brain wants. 
You must look a sight because Joel lets his anger overflow. “Maybe you can sit here and watch her die, but I can’t.”Heavy footsteps and Tess yelling are all that you can focus on as you fade back into oblivion. 
******
Living is hard and unconsciousness is addicting. Peaceful and cozy are feelings you can scarcely remember having. It would be easy to stay in that enveloping darkness but the feeling of the back of someone’s hand on your clammy forehead pulls you back to the realm of the living. You grumble weakly as you’re made to come to. 
Everything is painful. Stabbing jolts of electricity radiate up your leg from the cut. Your chest is tight, making breathing troublesome and your eyes can barely stand the dim, watery sun coming through the shades of the window. Someone places a damp cloth on your forehead to keep the fever at bay. Still out of it, you try and swat it away. 
A gentle hand grabs yours, shushing you. “It’s alright. It’s only me.” 
Joel. Maybe you have died and this is heaven. The man you love by your side, nursing you so tenderly. It’s more than you could have ever hoped for. This might be the afterlife believers talk about if only you weren’t in so much pain. The neurons in your brain begin firing more rapidly as your fever dies down. They remind you that you and Joel aren’t lovers. Your cowardice, disguised as intelligence, has kept you from telling him how you feel. 
“What’s happening?” Your voice comes out croaky and soft but at least it’s intelligible. The bed dips as Joel moves closer to you. As you peer up through barely opened eyelids you can see him leaning over you. His tired eyes look down at you as he caresses your hair. 
“You got real sick, honey. That cut you got festered and turned into a fever. We thought we were gonna lose you.” The slight falter in his voice makes your already tight chest contract. 
“How long was I out?”
“Three days. We got you some meds, though. You’re gonna be ok.” He says it firmly, which does some good in easing your worry. 
Trying to open your eyes a bit more you continue your questioning, “Where did you get the antibiotics from?”
Joel hesitates, “Bill and Frank had some.”
You try and sit up, angry that he made that trip and put himself in danger. Even now, you can see the snow whipping around outside your window. Knowing he made the trek there and back through that storm makes you curse. Joel tuts and puts a gentle hand to your chest, keeping you down and resting. 
“It’s done. No use getting angry about it now.”
You glare up at him even though you’re really just upset with yourself. “Why would you do something so stupid?”
His smiles peacefully down at you, exhausted but eyes bright. “We’re a team, remember?”
It’s too much for you to handle. You cover your face just in time to hide the angry, relieved and grateful tears that spring to your eyes. Silent sobs wrack your frame, making you seize with pain. 
Joel pulls you into him, shushing you as he resumes stroking your hair. You hide your face in his side, trying to regain your composure. Crying shouldn’t be something you feel the need to earn. But you’re all sorts of broken, so you take this rare opportunity to not judge yourself and weep with abandon. You almost died, for Christ’s sake. Surely that warrants some show of emotion.
After a few minutes, the tears stop and your breathing calms. Peeking up, you see Joel has his eyes closed. His face is the most serene you’ve seen it in ages, most of the worry lines softened. There’s still a few that refuse to relax, though. The crease in between his eyebrows remains stubbornly indented. You gaze up at him as he continues to run soothing patterns along your back. 
Feeling the weight of your stare, he opens his eyes. Coward that you are, you glance away. “Thank you,”is all you can mumble out as he gazes at you. After a moment, you add a shy, “I would do the same for you. You know that, right?”
Joel pulls you gently into him, almost to remind himself you’re still here with him and that the danger has passed. He nuzzles into your hair, murmuring an affectionate“I know, honey. I know.”
******
After a few more hours and another dose of antibiotics, you begin to feel more like yourself. Joel still won’t let you get out of bed yet, except for a trip to the bathroom for a quick shower. Even though you’ve been dead to the world for much of your ordeal, you’re quickly getting bored with bed rest. But you’ve learned long ago that resistance is futile with Joel. So you shower like a good patient, scowling as the water hits your scabbing cut. 
Once you finish, Joel hops in and washes the grime and worry of the past three days off. As you settle back in bed, you can hear him singing softly to himself. Through the patter of the water you can hear his soft rendition of Fleetwood Mac’s Songbird. It’s one of your favorites, too, and you hum along as you settle back into your pillow. 
After a few minutes, sleep still won’t come. You toss and turn as Joel finishes getting ready for bed. He comes in to find you still awake. “I thought I told you to get some sleep.” He says it like a loving mother gently scolding their rebellious child. 
You flail as you try and get comfortable. You shoot back a moody, “But I’m just not tired.” Joel chuckles as he sits down into the arm chair next to your bed. He smooths back his wet hair and gives you a faux stern look. “Your body’s been through a lot. You need rest.”
“What are you doing?” you ask. 
Joel looks confused, wondering what he did wrong. “Sorry I just thought I’d sleep here tonight in case you need anything. I can leave, though.” 
“No!” you yell out, completely abandoning any hope of looking cool. You give him an apologetic smile, “I want you to stay but you’re not sleeping in that chair one more night.”
Joel glances to the spot on the bed beside you, then looks to you for confirmation. He sighs, a smile playing at his lips. “If I stay will you promise to go to sleep?”
You nod very seriously. “Of course.”
Joel grins, knowing you too well to believe you. “Liar,” he chuckles but still gets up and makes his way to the other side of the bed. You pull back the blankets so can get in, then cover him up. Settling on your side, you watch as he suddenly looks lost, unsure of what to do now. It’s cute, this powerful man rendered helpless by something as innocuous as sharing a bed. 
You can’t help but laugh at him and he looks down at you, eyes wide. Taking pity on him, you make a suggestion. “If you’re not tired you could read to me.” Joel opens his mouth to refuse but you blurt out a quick, “I did almost die, you know.” He glares at you but his lip quirks up. He grabs the book from the other room then flops back down in bed, opening to a spot in the middle. 
Frowning, you reach out to touch Joel’s arm. “Do you mind starting from the beginning?” He rolls his eyes but flips back to the first page. You grin triumphantly as you settle into his side. Joel places his arm around your shoulder as he begins to read. “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife…” 
His southern drawl mixed with the Romantic Era style of writing makes for an amusing but  pleasant combination. After a few chapters, your eyes get heavy and Joel feels you nodding off against him. Jane has just been invited to Netherfield Park but even that can’t keep you awake. Joel puts the bookmark in to save your spot and places the novel on your bedside table. 
You grumble in weak protest as he tucks you in and turns off the light. “We can keep reading tomorrow. But right now you’re going to sleep.” Joel lies down beside you and with the pale light of the moon through your curtains you can see him studying you. He caresses your face and you close your eyes, delighting in the sensation. 
“Don’t ever scare me like that again,” he whispers. 
You force your eyes open, needing him to see the truth of it when you pledge a soft,“I won’t. I mean it.”
Joel nods gratefully and you reach out for him. He slides into your arms and you rest your chin on the top of his head. He’s watched over you for long enough. It’s your turn to take care of him and reassure him that, in this moment, you both are safe. 
For most, an outright admission of affection is needed to understand how you feel about the other person. But you and Joel are cut from the same cloth, stubborn and slow to reveal your feelings. In this world, for people like you, ’I love yous’ are rare and replaced with actions and deeds. 
You realize that even though you've never told Joel that you love him, you’ve shown it. Joel has been showing you all this time too and you were just too dull to realize it. While you know you’ll long to say the words to him soon, for now it’s enough to have him in your arms. 
Joel’s breathing deepens and you feel him completely give himself over to sleep. Looking at his face bathed in the moonlight he looks like a new man. His edges soften and his vulnerability brims to the surface. It tugs at your heart and you understand how rare of a sight this is for Joel to allow anyone to see. 
Smiling sleepily, you close your eyes and nestle into him. This feeling coursing through you is something foreign but familiar, an old friend you thought you had said your final goodbye to long ago. The love you have for Joel will leave you vulnerable. But it’s a price you’re willing to pay a thousand times over. 
******
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sinnful-darling · 6 months
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yandere! god hcs
tws: confining, implied stalking and keeping tabs, gore, religious themes, cult themes, blood drinking, death, loss of loved ones, reader tried to kill themself but they dont actually hurt themself, intimidation, forced immortality
— yan! god whose true name has been lost through the millennia he's been alive. he now goes by silthos, god of fantasies, fertility, and love. or at least that’s what the humans said.
— yan! God who is actually the god of infatuation, devotion, and obsession. silthos can’t believe that the humans has twisted it so badly throughout the centuries he’s been alive. it doesn’t matter to him though, so long as he has devoted followers and continues to receive worship, he will remain a powerful god
— yan! god who everyone worshipped, but longed for a connection of his own. he wanted a lover of his own; being by himself for centuries on end was damaging to his mental state, you know?
— yan! god who has never had a lover despite all the goddesses and demigods that throw themselves at him. none of them were worthy of his time or effort, nor were they worthy of bedding him. the lot of them were shallow and conceited anyway, not to mention the fact that he found none of them attractive.
— yan! god who actually inherited his title, or rather took his rightful place. though none of the humans knew, he killed his predecessor and inherited his powers through drinking the old man’s ichor.
— yan! god who decides to take a stroll down in the human realm to cure his boredom, and boy is he glad he did. standing in the midst of a crowded street was little ol’ you. lovely, innocent, jaded you. the only human in his territory that didn’t worship him is right in front of him. how amusing.
— yan! god who approaches you as a tourist, asking you questions about the local customs, feeling pride swell in his chest when he hears that starting tomorrow, the annual week-long festival in his name begins.
— yan! god who asks your opinion on the town’s god, eye twitching as your nose scrunches in distaste.
“i don’t like the old fuck. did some digging because something wasnt sitting right with me, and ended up finding some old scripts stating that silthos was not the god my town thinks he is, and is actually a god of obsession and infatuation. pretty fucked up guy if you ask me.”
— yan! god whose heart nearly beats out of his chest while he eagerly listens to your long winded rant about why no one sane would worship him. something clicks and snaps in his chest, an undeniable attraction to you beginning to form.
— yan! god who gets your number (he stole some poor victim’s phone smh) and asks you if you’d like to get coffee with him under the guise of wanting to hear more about how you found out the true nature of what he rules over. the two of you become rather close within a few days.
— yan! god who you stand up a few weeks later. he immediately goes to your home and finds that you’ve already left. it seems the cat and mouse game has started..
— yan! god who in a blind rage slaughters all of your friends and loved ones. tearing their viscera from their body and making crude shapes with them. on the walls of each home is a lovely note for you.
you can’t run. i know where you are.
— yan! god who finds you cursing his name in an empty parking lot, eyes red and puffy as you curl into yourself and your nails dig into the meat of your arms.
— yan! god who is quick to whisk you away to his domain, your home. he takes your screaming and pleading in stride, and he even puts up with each wound you inflict on him. but the moment you turn the blade on yourself is the moment he loses it.
— eyes glowing a bright pink, yan! god releases a fraction of his aura, causing your movements to come to an abrupt halt, the blade inches from your throat. he’s quick to snatch the blade from your hands and grip your chin.
“if you ever try to harm yourself again, you will not like the outcome. am i understood?”
— yan! god who descends with you to hold a ceremony amongst his people and announce you as both his spouse and mate. the people rejoice and congratulate the two of you, ignoring the pleading looks you send their way. they shower you in gifts and make plans to rebuild the statues and temples to fit the image of your newly announced marriage.
— yan! god who forces you to drink his ichor, reconstructing your genetic composition into a deity befitting your standing. now the two of you can be together forever.
397 notes · View notes
wileys-russo · 8 months
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toilet paper party II a.russo x reader
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some tooth rotting gf lessi fluff to try and cure all of our post game depression, with a dash of supportive best friend and arsenal icon lotte wubben-moy ofc
toilet paper party II a.russo x reader
"-she's going to blame herself again, it's like the world cup all over again." you sighed quietly to lotte who was sat beside you on the bench, both of you wincing as the ball was smacked away and saved as alessia kicked it, and unfortunately it of course had to be the deciding penalty.
"but she doesn't need to, she kept us in the game she-" lotte tried to justify but with a look from you she fell silent, nodding in agreement. the two of you knew alessia well enough to know that though she shouldn't blame herself, she already would be.
"come on, time to start damage control." lotte sighed tiredly, slinging an arm over your shoulder as the two of you joined the team for the thank you lap and clap.
as much as you wanted to rush right to your girlfriends side to comfort her, crushing defeat already plastered on her face, you knew she needed some time and space. you also knew that you needed to give the rest of the team the opportunity to build up their own relationships with the blonde, and consoling her after a loss though never pleasant was a way for bonds to strengthen.
sure enough katie and lia were quickly plastered tightly to alessia's sides, lia squeezing her shoulder comfortingly as katie was gripping onto the younger girls hands tightly as she talked at her.
you weren't close enough to hear what was being said but you'd known the irishwoman long enough to know she would be doing her very best to remind alessia of all that she achieved this game rather than the one thing she missed.
it made your heart soar to see one half of your life mold with the other so successfully.
both you and alessia had been incredibly nervous for how the team would take the two of you dating when she was signed, with only a handful of them you were the closest to knowing about it prior to the announcement of her signing.
however besides the relentless teasing and jokes about how obviously smitten you were with one another, it had been smooth sailing and your favorite blonde had been welcomed into the team with hugs, grins and open arms.
you'd both of course made a pact about how you'd interact and communicate with one another around the team in professional environments, this was your job and a workplace after all. though as said you were smitten with one another, so some days you were a little less strict about this than others.
it wasn't until you were all in the change rooms after the loss that you finally had the chance to be with alessia, a lot of the team and coaching staff having pulled her aside to try and build her back up. affirming she had nothing to feel bad over, keeping you feeling grateful that your second family had her best interests at heart.
even jonas had taken her one on one and provided some well intended feedback about ways she could approach things a little different next time, and reminded her firmly that penalties were the worst way to decide a game, she had nothing to be sorry or beat herself up for.
after all the majority of the girls, yourself and your girlfriend included, had played in the world cup just over a month ago. and without a pre season there was still a lot of work to be put in before you'd all be up and running as one cohesive unit, and now at least you had the time to focus on that if you had to draw one positive from all of this.
however the break of time in between the final whistle and the team huddle to now the change room debrief had given you and lotte some valuable time to brainstorm ways you could try to cheer the blonde up, and you almost had a plan in motion.
half the girls had already filed out of the room and headed for the bus, or were spending a little time talking to the dwindling group of fans waiting eagerly by the exit, you all had around forty minutes until you were scheduled to depart.
you didn't say anything as you sat beside your girlfriend on the bench by her locker, the striker clearly lost in her own thoughts as she jumped slightly when she felt your warm hand land gently on her knee.
still nothing needed to be said as your eyes softened and hers conveyed utter defeat and exhaustion, long blonde hair slightly damp from the quick shower she'd taken in an attempt to wash away the immense guilt wracking her body.
your lips curled into a half smile seeing she'd tugged on your travel hoodie, having stolen it out of your kit bag as you were side tracked whispering away in the halls outside with lotte.
your smile only widened when your girlfriend wordlessly dropped her travel shirt and hoodie in your lap for you to put on later, the blondes head coming to slump on your shoulder as her long arms wrapped lazily around your torso.
you grabbed one of her hands with yours, intertwining your fingers and lovingly brushing your thumb against her knuckles. your other hand rubbed circles into the small of her back and you felt her body heave a long and tired exhale as she crumpled into you.
"i'm really proud of you lessi, i hope you know that." you whispered to her quietly, sharing a small smile with katie and jen as they walked past the two of you, the older girls looking on somewhat proudly seeing your girlfriend curled into your side as you were obviously trying to comfort her.
though it also must have looked quite awkward given the striker was a good foot or two taller than you, and you knew if she stayed in this position for too long she'd be rewarded with a stiff neck and back tomorrow.
"my golden goal scoring girl." you mumbled sincerely, the blonde squeezing your intertwined hands in a silent thank you before pulling herself up. "have a quick shower and i'll meet you on the bus tesoro." the italian nodded behind her to the showers before pressing a short but sweet kiss to your lips, grabbing her belongings and heading out of the change room with lotte.
~
showered and changed you felt an immediate and immense sense of calm settle over you as you clutched at the red material and inhaled deeply, senses drowned in the comforting aroma of your girlfriend.
sweet notes of lavender and bergamont from her favorite body mist that was used every game day, as well as the more subtle hints of green apple and roses from her shampoo. due to your height difference your body was swallowed in your girls shirt and hoodie, but you never minded.
given that for the majority of your relationship you'd been doing distance in some way with playing for different clubs, only really having proper quality time in the off season or during national camps. the ease and comfort of stealing one anothers clothes had become tradition, and it felt like a warm hug from the taller girl anytime you wore something that you knew was hers.
noticing you were one of the last to leave you hurried to collect and pack your belongings, tripping over caitlin's boots she'd left behind you grabbed them with a roll of your eyes and headed out of the stadium.
you took a few quick pictures and flashed a pearly white smile with a soft thank you to the last few fans hanging around before ascending the steps of the bus.
you couldn't help but laugh quietly at the scenes before you. beth was as usual on her karaoke machine, clearly trying to up everyone's moods by belting out an incredibly tone deaf version of river deep mountain high as she danced her way up and down the aisles.
some of the team were clapping along in encouragement while others had headphones on and were tucked away in their own world, clearly reflecting on the match that had been and what it now meant for you all as a team.
though beth seemed to respect this and only engaged with those who seemed willing participants of her chaos.
"you'd forget your head if it wasn't attached to your body foordy." you teased the australian as you offered up her boots, the girls eyes widening as katie cackled beside her and she elbowed the irish woman before accepting the boots, stating over and over that she owed you one which you playfully affirmed you'd not forget.
the smile remained on your face as you spotted alessia halfway down the bus, sat in front of lotte and across from viccy and cloe. the striker was chatting away to the small group with a much more relaxed demeanor, small smile on her face as she seemed in decent spirits.
her features brightened as she noticed you making your way toward her, of course wearing her hoodie.
"i didn't know we were allowed to change our numbers y/l/n? 23 now are you?" viccy teased, instantly noticing you were wearing your girlfriends clothes as you flipped her off, shuffling past alessia and dropping down into the vacant window seat beside her.
"my favorite 23." alessia turned her head and murmured quietly with a smile, kissing your cheek fondly as she tugged your legs to drape over hers.
"whose wearing my missing shoes too it would seem." she shot you a knowing look as admittedly you might have previously lied about not knowing the whereabouts to the adidas trainers, which were a favorite pair of the blonde.
"good news, i found them!" you smiled innocently, head thumping back gently against the window as you turned your body more to the side to get comfortable.
a few more minutes of chatter among you all and everyone had boarded, beth finally ceasing her verbal abuse to your ears in the form of her singing, instead joining lia, gio, frida and lina in a heated game of blackjack.
the engine roaring to life the bus was to take you back to the hotel where you'd all pack and have dinner together before heading off to germany tonight on a late night flight.
"can i ask a stupid question?" you asked your girlfriend quietly once everyone else had settled and she nodded, her attention now focused back solely on you as she absentmindedly traced shapes on your bare legs which laid in her lap, goosebumps arising along your tanned skin at her gentle touch.
"how are you feeling baby?" you asked somewhat cautiously, knowing it was stupid considering the loss you'd all just taken. "can i get back to you on that a little bit later love?" alessia replied with a somewhat pained smile as you nodded reassuringly, a comfortable silence falling between the two of you as she offered you one of her airpods.
you both busied yourself making a shared playlist for the flight later tonight, already having chosen to sit next to one another as you'd opted to sit with other team mates on the flight to sweden, and given the late time of night you both knew you'd likely want to sleep during the journey.
you glanced down to your phone in your lap as lotte sent you an influx of messages, confirming everything seemed to be moving along well for your little plan to lift alessia's spirits even more.
you poked your head over the top of your seat and gave her a thumbs up when your girlfriend wasn't looking, and before you knew it the bus had pulled into the hotel.
you both took your time getting off, allowing those who were in a rush to hurry forth as you dawdled, chatting with lia as the older girl dropped down into the seat in front of the two of you.
but once you were finally all off and had grabbed your belongings, the plan begun to come into affect.
"hey russo! come play a few rounds of cards in our room." katie called from a few feet away once you strode into the hotel lobby, an offer which though was sincere, was also set up by you and lotte to give the two of you a little alone time.
"come on, i heard the united girls had some sort of a poker cult going. let's see what you're made of then!" the irish woman grinned teasingly at the striker who hesitated and glanced toward you by her side.
"go on baby, she needs the humbling." you encouraged softly, poking her sides as she nodded with a soft smile, kissing your cheek and hurrying off after katie who subtly gave you a thumbs up behind the strikers back before disappearing into the elevator.
"we'll do it in my room in case she comes to yours looking for you, katie just said she'll try to keep her occupied for about a half hour or so. then we have a few hours till dinner!" lotte recounted as you nodded along and the two of you headed up toward her and alessia's shared room.
again with it being both of your first away games you and your girlfriend had opted not to room with one another, again giving her the chance to bond a little more with the team and not flaunt your shared relationship in everyone's face.
"okay, operation toilet paper party is a go." "lots that is not the name we agreed upon." "maybe, but you have to admit operation cheer up lessi just doesn't have the same catchy ring to it." "whatever you say wubben-moy."
~
it was down to the wire but the two of you just managed to pull it off, giving a satisfied nod at your efforts as katie messaged to say alessia was on her way back to her room as you'd planned, jen informing her that you were doing some media before dinner to assure she didn't head to yours looking for you.
"ready?" lotte mouthed and you nodded as you both watched the light click from red to green as alessia swiped her card in the door, pushing it open.
"congratulations lessi!" you and lotte both yelled loudly with a cheer, alessia jumping and clutching at her chest in shock from the sudden unexpected fright.
though once the messy hastily cut up homemade confetti came raining down upon her, her face morphed into a slightly confused smile, which only widened seeing the rushed half hazard toilet paper hung around the room as makeshift streamers.
"what is all this?" alessia asked with a small laugh of surprise.
"it's a toil-" lotte started as you elbowed her sharply with a firm look. "it's for you. a congratulations you scored your first goal for arsenal and are currently the leading goal scorer of the team with two epic goals that kept us in the game party!" you rambled out in one breath.
"i tried telling her the name was too long, but we both know how stubborn she is." lotte sighed dramatically with an eye roll making alessia laugh. "hey!" you frowned in offence, shoving the taller bruntte lightly.
"but regardless, congratulations!" you and lotte gave another cheer, throwing your other handfuls of confetti though with yours was done with poor aim as it landed in the blondes face.
"sorry." you whispered with an apologetic wince, taking a step forward and plucking off a few stray pieces of confetti which had stuck to mouth.
"guys." alessia breathed out, biting her bottom lip as a few tears welled up in her bright baby blue eyes. "hey don't cry! this is a happy moment, something to celebrate. that second goal was a worldie less." lotte assured with a soft smile.
"yeah baby you crushed it. and its only our second game! the droughts been broken and the flood gates are open and you're going to be a goal scoring machine." you affirmed, lotte nodding along in eager agreement.
"a force to be reckoned with!" "the italian stallion." "the russonator!" "the golden boot goddess." "taking names and kicking goals!"
your girlfriend let out a half sob half laugh at the assortment of nicknames, reaching out to the both of you for a hug which you both gladly allowed her to pull you into, lotte rubbing her back as you kissed her cheek.
"you're both the best. thank you!" alessia smiled, clearly overwhelmed with emotion as you reached up to tenderly wipe away her tears with the sleeve of your hoodie, making lotte aww as you rolled your eyes.
"oh and we have snacks! because what toilet paper party doesn't have snacks." lotte remembered, gesturing to the somewhat strange assortment of food laid out on the coffee table.
"lotte that is not the name we agreed on!" you huffed with a frown at her words, alessia tugging you into her and kissing the side of your head affectionately with a quiet laugh, mumbling how much she loved you in your ear.
"we don't technically know what most of it is. stina sort of went door to door collecting for us from everyones mini bar, and she said they all taste good!" lotte shrugged, rubbing the back of her neck as you all surveyed the swedish treats in front of you.
"we have a couple hours before dinner to snack, we have pitch perfect loaded and we grabbed extra pillows from reception so we can be extra comfy." you explained, alessia crumbling internally at how much obvious thought and care had been put into this.
"correction she stole some extra pillows from reception." lotte teased as you stuck your tongue out and the girl excused herself to use the bathroom, encouraging you both settle in and begin the movie.
"well hi." you mumbled against alessia's lips with a laugh as the striker pulled you into a searing kiss the moment lotte closed the bathroom door. "babe!" you laughed again as she easily picked you up, wrapping your legs around her waist as she bear hugged you as tight as she possibly could.
"i love you so very much lessi baby, you're amazing. you know that right?" you cupped her face and pressed your forehead to hers, reaching out to gently swipe away a loose tear which carved its way down her cheek.
"i can't-baby i don't know what to say." alessia managed to stammer out, still overcome with a waterfall of emotions. "you don't have to say anything, i just want you to feel supported and appreciated. without you coming on and changing the game we wouldn't have even stood a chance yeah? you alessia mia teresa russo are brilliant."
"god i'm so fucking in love with you." the blonde breathed out, eyes burning with a loving passion, the taller girl admiring you as if it was the first time she'd ever laid eyes on you.
"aw i love you both too!" lotte clapped sarcastically, throwing a pillow at the two of you with a groan and collapsing onto the bed as alessia placed you back down on your feet.
the two of you soon joined her, opening some of the swedish snacks as lotte clicked play on the movie.
"cheers to a successful toilet paper party!" "lotte for the one hundreth time that is not what we agreed on calling it!" "hey i don't know amore mio it is the first toilet paper party i've ever been to but it seems successful." "alessia! don't encourage her, whose side are you on?" "best toilet paper party ever!" "i simply cannot stand either of you."
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supernaturalgirl20 · 1 year
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Letting Go
Pairings: Joel Miller x f!reader
Warnings: Angst, cursing, light smut, unprotected sex, talking about the past, hurt feelings, Joel being mean, fluff. Contains spoilers for episode 6.
Summary: you think Joel doesn’t care, the problem is, he cares too much.
A/N: wrote this in an hour so forgive any mistakes. Still can’t get episode 6 out of my head and I had to write this.
Comments and reblogs really appreciated 🥰
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You knew his past. His losses. His guilt. How he shut himself off from the world once the outbreak happened and you were happy with your lot when a close partnership turned into something more.
Warmth on a cold night and a body to lose yourself in when shit got rough, which if you were honest with yourself, happened more times than not.
What you didn’t know was how he truly felt. About Tess dying, about Tommy leaving, about Ellie and the possibility of a cure, you didn’t even know if he felt anything for you beyond lust. Joel held everything in revealing nothing of the man he truly was.
You’d grown used to it. Used to him never showing an ounce of emotion other than anger. That all changed the night you made it to Jackson.
***
Ellie had stood, eyes flickering around the hall as she began to follow Tommy, abandoning the movie that was showing. Her curiosity getting the better of her as usual and unable to shake the anxious feeling that settled in your stomach, you followed her.
The cold air hit you like a frate train and your whole body shuddered as you emerged from the hall, pulling your jacket up over your mouth. Turning the corner onto the main street you stop in your tracks when you spot Ellie standing outside one of the small buildings, ears glued to the door.
Your gut told you that Tommy and Joel were inside and from the look on her face, they’d been talking about her. Suddenly she rushes off with tears in her eyes and you instinctively want to run after her, comfort her but you need to know what they were talking about.
Pressing your ear against the door, you can make out the muffled sound of Joel’s voice. He’s crying. A fact that completely tilts you off axis. Joel never cries. At least not that you’ve ever seen. Your heart begins to break.
“I just know that when I wake up. I’ve lost somethin’. I’m failin’ in my sleep, that’s all do. It’s all I’ve ever done is fail her, again and again.”
The strangled sob he lets out at the end obliterates whatever remains of your shattered heart and all you wanna do is hold him close until you’ve mended him. Put every broken piece of him back together until he can see his worth.
He asks Tommy to take Ellie to the fireflies and you are suddenly hit with a wave of anger. How can he so easily let her go? You know she means something to him even if he is unwilling to admit it to himself.
Unable to listen anymore, you turn and march back to the house Maria had set up for you all. Maybe Joel could leave her but you couldn’t.
***
As soon as you open the door you can hear her sniffling from upstairs. With a glance around the house, you decided to make some of the tea Maria had left you and bring a cup up to Ellie. Your mom always said that tea solves everything.
Maybe not this, but it couldn’t hurt.
“Can I come in?” You ask as you stand outside her door, two cups of tea in hand. You're met with silence and just as you're about to turn and leave, Ellie slowly opens the door.
Her eyes are red and puffy from crying and you smile softly down at her as you hand her a cup. “Thought you might like some tea. It warms the soul or so they say.”
She smiles at you as she wipes the tears from her eyes and takes the cup from your hand. “Thanks.”
She moves away from the door but leaves it open, an invitation to follow. With the door closed gently behind you, you make your way over to the bed, taking a seat as Ellie sits in the window seat.
The room is quiet. Neither one of you says anything as you sip your tea. You want her to be the first to talk.
“You followed me didn’t you?” Her voice is strained from crying as she turns her gaze to you.
“Yeah, M’sorry I just-I was worried about you…”
“It’s ok. You don't have to apologise.” She quiets again and her gaze drifts back to the cup in her hands. Standing you make your way over to her and take a seat beside her pulling her close.
“He’s going to leave me. Everyone leaves me..” she trails off as she cuddles into you. “I’m not leaving you. I promise.” You squeeze her arm as you pull her closer and you both just sit like that for a moment until the sound of footsteps can be heard ascending the stairs.
The door opens and Ellie’s gaze snaps towards Joel. The expression on his face is hard to read but you know he knows that Ellie heard what he said.
He tells her how old he is and how she would only be in danger if she went with him. That she was better off without him. The whole time you hold her close to your side until she pulls away and storms over to him.
“I’m sorry about your daughter Joel, but I’ve lost people too.” You can tell from the set of his shoulders that she’s hit a nerve.
“You have no idea what loss is.” His voice is an equal mixture of hurt and anger as he towers over her. The urge to step in gets more prominent as the conversation continues.
“Everybody I have cared for has either died or left me. Everybody, fucking except for you.” She shouts as she pushes against isn’t his chest. “So don’t tell me that I’d be safer with somebody else because the truth is I would just be more scared.”
The room is silent for a moment but then Joel turns his gaze back towards Ellie, his voice void of emotions as he stares her down. “You’re right. You’re not my daughter. And I sure as hell ain’t your dad.”
He turns and storms out, slamming the door behind him and Ellie stands motionless as her gaze remains on where he had just stood. You walk up behind her and hug her close. “It’s gonna be ok, I promise. And I know Joel didn’t mean what he said. He’s just emotional right now. I think everything is finally catching up to him. Just get some rest and we’ll take off in the morning, ok?”
Your voice is above a whisper as you give her one last squeeze, Ellie’s nod confirming that she’d heard you and then you leave to find Joel.
***
It doesn’t take long. He had made his way into the other bedroom and was sitting on the bed with his head between his hands when you opened the door.
He didn’t acknowledge you. Didn’t even lift his head as you slowly walked towards him, dropping to your knees and nestling yourself between his open legs.
Your hands rub along his arms as you pull them away from his face and when his gaze meets yours, you can see the unshed tears. Oh, Joel.
You reach up and wipe a rogue tear that has fallen down his cheek and his eyes close at the contact as he sinks his cheek into your embrace. “What’s going on Joel? Why are you just leaving her with Tommy?” You ask even though you already know the answer. You just don’t want him to know you heard his conversation with his brother.
“I’m old. I’m deaf. And I can’t shoot for shit anymore and you know that. She’s better off without me. So are you.” His tone has changed and you know that this is how he deals with his feelings. Buries them deep inside and pretends that he doesn’t care.
“And you think Tommy is gonna be able to take care of her? The brother who didn’t even care enough to tell you he was ok? Joel, you may be older but he ain’t gonna give a shit about Ellie, not like you. So when things get hard, and they will, he’s gonna cut loose and run home to Maria.”
His eyes darken and his jaw ticks as he stares down at you, the softness from a moment ago long gone.
“You don’t know Tommy. Hell, you don’t even know me. You don’t know what I’ve been through, what I’ve done. Not really.” His tone is angry now but you’re not giving in.
“And whose fault is that? We’ve been together for years and I’ve tried to get you to open up but every time you get close, you clam up. I know you blame yourself for Sarah.”
He stands at the mention of her name pushing you off him and moving to the other side of the room, trying to put as much distance as he can between you both.
“Don’t. Mention her name. You don’t know shit. And we ain’t together. You were just a warm body to bury myself in, Nothin’ else. Don’t go thinkin’ you mean anything to me, 'cause you don’t.” He snaps, his whole body tense as he breathes raggedly.
Your chest tightens at his harsh words but after hearing him with Tommy earlier, you know he doesn’t mean it. That he just wants to push you away.
“I know that you have done terrible things to survive because that’s what needed to be done. I know that Tess’ death hit you hard because she was like family. I know you care for Ellie like a daughter but are afraid to admit it because you think you’re replacing Sarah.”
You try to step closer but he pulls back. “Tess was family. Been with me since the beginning and she knew how it was. How I was. You thought, what, that you were different? That I’d care for you? That I’d love you? Well hate to break it to you darlin’, I don’t. Never have, never will.”
Your heart aches. Your chest hurts. And all you wanna do is cry. His words cut deep even though that small voice in the back of your head is telling you he means the exact opposite.
A strangled sob slips past your lips and your body begins to tremble. Something that seems to snap Joel from his trance. He moves fast. Wrapping his arms around your waist and pulling you close, his face buried into the crook of your neck as he breathes you in.
“M’sorry, baby. I didn’t mean it…I didn’t…” his voice breaks as fresh tears roll down his cheeks and you run your fingers through his hair as you shush him. “It’s ok. I know. I know. Let’s just lay down, and get some rest.”
He nods his head as you pull away and guide him toward the bed, helping him out of his shirt and trousers, leaving him in only his boxers. He doesn’t argue that it’s safer to stay dressed because he needs to be close to you.
You help him under the covers before stripping off, throwing on his shirt and slipping under into bed with him. He pulls you close. His breath is hot on your skin as he whispers into the shell of your ear. “I do you know, love you.”
Your breath catches. You had long thought you’d never hear him utter those words. Turning in his embrace you kiss his lips softly. “I know you do. And I love you too.”
It’s silent as you take in the feature of his face, illuminated by the faint light coming through the curtains. “I heard you earlier….talking to Tommy. I didn’t mean to, I just….I know you blame yourself for Sarah but Joel, that wasn’t your fault. None of it was. Not Sarah, not Tess, none of it.”
You run your fingers along the stubble on his cheek. “I know you care about Ellie, that she’s like a daughter to you and Joel, that’s ok. It’s ok to feel like that. To care. I know I didn’t know Sarah but I know she wouldn’t want you to be like this. She’d want you to be happy.”
“I just can’t fail her. I failed Sarah. I can’t do it again.” His grip on your waist tightens.
“You won’t because you have me this time. I’m gonna be with you every step of the way. No matter what.”
His lips crash into yours as he lays you back in the bed, nestling himself between your thighs. You can feel him hard beneath his boxers and you know what he needs. What he’s always needed.
“I love you darlin’. M’sorry it took so long to say it.” His lips leave a trail of hot kisses along your neck as he pulls at the buttons in your shirt. His shirt.
You slip your hand between you both and beneath the band of his boxers, feeling the weight of his cock in your hand as you pump him slowly. He groans into your chest as his breathing hitches. “Need you, darlin’.”
“Then take me. I’m yours.” You whimper and he shudders above you as he shucks off his boxers. “Need me to get you ready, baby?” He asks through ragged breaths.
You shake your head. “Are ya sure?”
“I’m sure. Please, Joel. Need to feel you.” Pulling your panties to the side he lines up the head of his cock to your entrance and sinks himself into you slowly, groaning at the feeling of your tight walls stretching to accommodate him.
He moves above you, rolling his hips into you slowly, savouring the feeling of you wrapped around him. Something you don’t normally have time for.
Through soft whimpers and low moans, he works you through orgasm as he seeks his release, grunting loudly into your neck as he comes apart above you. Both too lost in each other to realise he’s come inside you.
The weight of the day begins to take hold and you feel yourself slowly succumb to sleep. You whimper as he pulls out, feeling empty without him as he walks through to the en-suite and grabs a washcloth to clean you with.
Slipping under the covers once more he pulls you flush to his chest, draping his arm over your waist. “We should get some sleep. Gonna be a long trek to the fireflies,” he mutters as he drifts further into sleep.
You can’t help the smile that works its way onto your face. Turns out, Joel Miller does care.
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Text
Plastic heart - (3)
<<<Prev Next>>>
---
Ken's dealing with some feelings too 🥺
---
“So what are the symptoms?”, weird Barbie questioned and you were trying not to stare at the markings on her face or the asymmetrical manner in which her hair was cut.
“Burnt food, loss of appetite and motivation. Also this pain in my chest.”, you stated your common issues.
“How about dizziness?”, she asked further tapping a pen against a clipboard as she narrowed her eyes at you.
You didn’t get nauseous often but that nervous sensation was only ever when Ken was around.
“Not often.”, you contemplated.
“No, does it happen when a Ken is around?”, she asked and you couldn’t mask your surprise.
“Ah I know what you’ve got.”, she eased and it got you to feel comfortable too. She could give you a cure and everything would go back to being normal.
“But only time can fix it though.”, she shrugged her  shoulder but it only stirred up confusion within you. Nothing took too long to heal here in barbieland. In fact nothing broke in the first place.
“You’re heartbroken.”, she turned to you with her diagnosis. You didn’t believe her and so huffed a laugh, no wonder she was the odd one out.
“That can’t be it.”, you said confidently folding your arms.
“Fine. When does your day feel the best?”, she asked and as you thought back to certain moments of the day, you come only think of the moments he smiled at you.
“Ok, different question.”, she shifted her stance once she knew you hadn’t answered the first one.
“Where do feel at ease?”, she asked and the answer was instant.
“The beach.”, you lit up just thinking of the warm sand and salty air.
“Why?”, she asked and as the question settled it was as though your mind was not your own. Because all you could think of was him, his surf board, his platinum blonde hair being ruffled by the breeze, the smell of sea salt on him as his skin gleamed under the sun but as the other facts poured in, his eagerness to do foolish things just so he could impress Barbie, him passing you by at every turn, your head began to feel heavy.
It all fell into place now. You were heartbroken. Somehow in the high of it, this pain had found it’s way in.
“Unusual though, no Barbie worries about a Ken. He’s just another accessory.”, she turned away but it sparked an anger within you.
“How could you say that?”, you got up.
“Ken is so much more than that.”, you pressed your fingers on your forehead.
“I’m just stating facts.”, she said calmly while digging around for something.
But the facts seemed wrong. He wasn’t just an add on, he was just overlooked. Although many wouldn't agree, that was how you saw it, I'm every great even, he was left out.
“Alright, so you’ve got two options.”, she had a pair of rollerblades in one hand and in the other a heart shaped box of chocolates.
“Why don't you try the first one? Tell him how you feel.”, she gave you the chocolate box and patted your arm but somehow it was the worst possible solution.
“He’s a Ken. He’s bound to fall in love with you.”, she clicked her tongue and all you could feel was panic.
“What’s the second option?”, you asked and she pursed her lips.
“He’s in love with someone else.”, you argued.
“Well in that case –
But she was interrupted when you could hear the sound of heels clicking against the tiles on the stairs.
You turn to see stereotypical Barbie walk in, her complexion a little pale and her skin not so glossy under this light.
“Two Barbies in a day. That’s a record.”, weird Barbie commented as she moved to inspect her and you knew that you had to do your best effort with the first option because now that she was here, she couldn’t know why you were here to. So you gave her a smile and she returned it as you turned to leave. Thanking weird Barbie for her support, you walked down those stairs, clutching onto those box of chocolates like they were your cure.
*
Any outfit you had didn’t feel like the best, the nervousness was eating you away as you took a stroll down the streets near dream house. You knew where he would be, if he wasn’t on the beach, then he was sitting out by the steps of her house waiting to catch a glimpse of her.
And as you had predicted, he was there. Sitting in the middle, his long legs stretched out beneath the twilight sky as he fiddled with his thumbs as though he was bored. But the closer you approached, the quicker you spotted the forlorn expression on his face.
“You look a bit sad this evening.”, you stated, it got him to look up and you stopped to smooth down your skirt, knowing why you were here.
“Do I?”, he asked with confusion drenching the tone of his voice. You took a seat next to him but he looked like he was preoccupied with his thoughts.
“I don’t know why.”, he shook his head as he was slowly slipping back into his innocent and cheerful personality.
“Does being sad mess up your hair or crinkle your shirt?”, he turned to you suddenly, with worry etched in his eyes.
“I don’t think it does.”, you couldn’t help but smile because you knew nothing more than him when it came to feelings.
“Close call.”, he gave a low whistle as he set his already combed hair into place.
“I need to be perfect.”, he mumbled, his focus now on fixing his shirt.
And you thought that maybe this was the best time. To tell him that he didn’t have to be.
You pushed the chocolate box to him. Your actions getting his attention to flit back to you.
“You are perfect.”, you said not feeling strong enough to catch his gaze.
“and I like you as you are.”, you looked up at him only to see that his eyes were boring into yours, his elegant face wrinkling at the edges when various emotions flickered across his face. When it finally settled to one.
“But I’m not yours.”, he said quickly with an indifference but as a second passed his brows furrowed together and for the first time, Ken was angry.
“I’m not yours to like.”, he furrowed his brows and there wasn’t a particular moment you could point out but somewhere between hearing him say those words and the anger in his voice, it felt as though your heart had plummeted into the unknown depths of emptiness. The pain wasn’t just in your chest anymore. It was everywhere.
Barbie was heard talking to her friends a few feet away as she was approaching her house and all the bitterness on his face vanished as he turned to her.
“I have to leave to the real world.”, you could hear her and as your gaze followed Ken, you watched as the same hurt you felt, mirrored on his face. He had forgotten all about you and you just wanted to stay here, frozen forever.
“You’re leaving?”, he jogged up to her, you took the chocolate box used this diversion to walk away till the curb.
Once in the clear, you began to run, you wanted to leave everything behind.
---
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@ateliefloresdaprimavera @meowkid1000
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faerunnn · 8 months
Text
Pain.
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Before we get started, i have not written ANYTHING in over 10 years, so please, bear with me. I felt the need for some Astarion angst. You getting hurt, him confessing deep and true feelings. You get the drill. Please let me know your thoughts and feedback!! It is greatly appreciated :D
Astarion x GN (dark urge) TAV
Trigger warnings: Mentions of suicide, please please PLEASE read with caution. And know you are not alone <3
Word count: 2040 (sorry it is on the shorter side)
It was cold. Dark. The ultimate void. There was nothing here, only darkness, emptiness, for the first time in your life you felt truly alone. But the void came with a certain peace. The silence is a refreshing change of surroundings. Alone at last. No more bickering, no more painful thoughts and memories, no more tadpole. It was almost like you were relieved. Was this really the blissful ending you have been yearning for? You didn't even feel like you were missing anyone or anything. It was just you. At rest. At peace.
Just when you started getting used to the feeling of true peace, you felt yourself being pulled away from it. Like you were being sucked out of the bliss, pulled back into a life you did not want to live anymore. It had been too much. There had been too much loss, and even for you, there was a limit to what you could handle. There seemed no ending to the pains, the fights, the conflict within you. A darker force urging you to walk down a path you did not want to follow. You were able to resist some of its urges, but there were too many times where you  blacked out, woke up and were covered in blood. The lives of countless innocent souls burned your hands.This was the only way out. But now you were being pulled back. 
Gasping for air, you try to lift yourself to the surface, only to realize you weren't there anymore. You were not in the water, but on land, surrounded by 6 very worried faces. Unable to properly catch your breath and too embarrassed to make eye contact, you hastily get up and try to walk away. Shadowheart wants to get up and follow after you but Gale steps in front of her.
 ‘’Let them be for a second.’’ You can hear him say to her while the sounds of their worried voices get more silent by the second. Unable to contain your feelings and emotions any longer you try to kick a big rock into the water. Angry, that you failed. Upset, that they found you. Raged, for the voices are back in your head, urging you to let off some steam in the form of a bloodbath. A single tear rolls down your cheek as you lift your foot to the rock. It is simply too large to just kick, you cry out a little as your foot makes contact and the rock simply just stays put. You drop to your knees, head in your hands in a desperate attempt to just force the voices out with all the power you have collected in your body. A soft sob leaves your lips as you realize that this is an impossible task. There is no cure lying in the palms of your hands.
‘’That rock seemed a bit too large to just kick.’’ A soft voice behind you says. You don't have to look over your shoulder to see who it is. You stay put, but rest your head on your arms while they are propped up on your knees. A small sniffle escapes your mouth as you try to somewhat calm down. You feel your tadpole squirm behind your eye. He is trying to probe your mind, trying to figure out what the hell just happened. You frown, not in the mood to talk about anything right now and block as much of yourself off as you can in your fragile state. But him being him, you know he can peak through the cracks of your already cracked walls. No matter how high you put them up. 
‘’We can talk about it, you know?’’ He says, sitting down next to you. ‘’We don’t have to of course, but this is a bit dramatic. Don’t you think?’’
You can almost hear the smirk in his tone, knowing he is trying to lighten the mood in a situation he also knows is very serious. You shrug, unable to  really comprehend a full sentence without letting your emotions take over. 
‘’I didn’t want to fight anymore.’’ You say after a few moments of comfortable silence. Finally being able to look up at him after voicing your thoughts. You are met with worried red eyes. ‘’I didn’t think i would be a valuable asset to this group, hells, to this life anymore.’’ 
He looks at you but stays silent, giving you space to explain further.
 
‘’The only thing I can think about is death. It is all we seem to face, surrounding us everywhere. No matter the situation. The voices in my head, they’re only getting stronger after each kill. Justified or not, I have way too much blood on my hands. I didn't want to contribute anymore. There was no other ending for me here anyway. We will die by these tadpoles in our heads, or by my urges. I don't want to be a liability anymore. We have been through enough, don't you agree?’’ You look at Astarion with watery eyes, but not giving in to the satisfaction of fully crying. Just letting the tears linger there for a moment. He hums in agreement. 
‘’ We indeed have been through a lot. It has not always been a walk in the park, so to speak. But there is more out there. More people who can help you, who can cure you.’’ He says while not breaking eye contact. ‘’Besides, imagine how boring it is going to be for me when you are not around anymore. I can’t imagine being stuck with the rest of them for the remainder of however long this journey is going to take.’’
 
You smile a little at his comment, breaking eye contact and looking out on the river, seeing Baldurs gate in the far distance, bright lights from bustling streets.
‘’I just wish things were different, you know.’’ You say, sadness lingering on your voice.
 
‘’I know. I wish they were different too.’’ Astarion says softly, with a small sigh.
‘’Do you think we would have met each other if this were not to have happened to us?’’ You ask out of nowhere.
“Maybe. It is a big city after all.’’ He says.
Looking back at him you see him staring at the city the same way you were just a moment ago. His white locks perfectly curled around his face, a light smile resting on his lips and his skin looking even more ethereal in the moonlight. He truly was such a beautiful being. You might not have known each other prior to the events of the tadpole but a part of you hopes you will remain in touch after all of this is over. You look back at Baldur's Gate before being caught staring at him, sitting together in a comfortable silence. The only sounds you hear are the distant fire back at the campsite and the water that is breaching the shore of the river in front of you. You enjoy the combination of soft, gentle sounds, somehow feeling a little bit more at peace. The voices seemingly have backed off out of your mind, for now.
 
‘’You really scared me.’’ Astarion says after a while, a delectable sadness lingering on his voice.. ‘’I thought I really lost you, for good.’’
You can feel his eyes boring into the side of your head but you are too embarrassed to make eye contact. Your eyes lower to the sand and gravel at your feet, unable to really know what to say to that.
‘’I know I cannot take away the pain for you, but god's darling, if there was a way I could, I would in an instant. I want you to know that no matter what happens, no matter what situation we are being put in, I will be there. And would I risk a knife in my back when I'm asleep? Maybe. But i think if you wanted to hurt me, really hurt me, you already would have by now. This, this is not you. I know you. You are the sole reason my heart is aflame, lit up, every single day. I know this sounds selfish, but I really am not ready to let you go. And I know deep down you are not ready to let go either.’’ He turns his position and takes your hands in his. Finally being able to meet his stare, you notice his eyes are just as glassy as yours. He was being truthful. Nothing of what he just said was deceiving. Some tears roll down your cheeks as he lifts his hand and wipes them away for you.
 
‘’I am sorry.’’ You softly say. A soft sob escaping from your lips.
 
‘’You don't have to apologize. There's no need. Just promise me that you will talk to me? About anything. Anything and everything that is bothering you from this moment forward. You do not need to face these demons alone, not anymore.’’ He looks almost desperate. You nod in agreement. He gives you a soft smile and cups your cheek. Staring deeply into each other's eyes before emerging into a tight embrace. A hug so deep, one that can heal almost all wounds. One you didn't know you so desperately longed for until you were experiencing it. You cry out on his shoulder while he rubs your lower back with one hand and holds your head soft but firmly against his form. 
Lingering on for quite some time, you finally break free from the embrace. You need rest. Looking over your shoulder to the camp, you see that everyone has already gone to bed. You give Astarion a look and as he gets up he reaches out his hand for you. You take it and as he helps you up you notice your body is much weaker than you thought. Now that the adrenaline of the whole situation has worn off. You stumble into him as he catches you before you could hurt yourself, again. A small, but so much more meaningful gesture that now has a lot more meaning to it that it had before the events of tonight. As you both walk towards your tent, he has his hand on your lower back and the other is holding your arm that he draped around his shoulders. Making sure you got to your bed safely. 
When you reach your tent you try to take off the layers of damp and clammy clothes. It was not by any means cold outside, but the fabrics still clung to your skin in the humid climate. Your body not being able to put enough strength together to take them off yourself, you sigh and almost drop to your knees again, in frustration and sadness. Astarion not having left your side, catching up on your emotions and softly and oh so gently starts removing the layers of fabrics. You lean into his touch, missing it when he is not gracing your skin with his gentle touch. And then it hits you.
Safe. You felt safe. A feeling so overwhelming, one you haven’t felt in so long. One you craved for so long. You felt it, now, in this moment. And maybe have been feeling it for a while. Ever since he confessed his feelings for you, and you confessed yours for him. Ever since he started looking out for you instead of looking back for himself. Small gestures with big impacts, you never truly recognised them. Never truly appreciated them, until now. In this moment, you felt it all. The way he was caring for you, how gentle, understanding and cautious he was. He did it because he wants you to feel safe. And you do. A space he created, just for you to let your guard down. An effort no one has made for you. A gesture so big that you almost couldn't comprehend how much this man cares for you. 
As you put on your sleeping garb, you turn around and look at him. 
‘’Thank you. For everything.’’ You say with a soft smile. He smiles back at you. Genuinely. ‘’Will you please stay here with me tonight?’’
 
‘’I will stay with you every night, for as long as you will have me. Darling.’’ 
764 notes · View notes
blueberryarchive · 8 months
Text
—the sketch and the smaller eye; kth
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Lonely man Kim Taehyung leads a fairly stable routine in his life away from civilization affected by an infection without a cure. Stability ends the day you arrive, no one knows how you got there, but one thing is for sure: Taehyung won't let you go.
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🌿pairing; Artist!Taehyung x Fem!Reader
🌿word count; 8.1k
🌿tw; widower!tae, post-apocalitic scenario, mentions of disease, weight loss and death, very brief mention of arms, age gap (21 & 30-ish), smut (manhandling, whiNY Taehyung, edging, spanking, oral (f. receiving), creampie, dirty talk), gruesome details of the virus.
🌿themes; strangers to lovers, slow burning, cottage-core.
🌿inspired by; ⋆ ˚。⋆୨୧˚
ᵗʰⁱˢ ⁱˢ ᵐʸ ᶠⁱʳˢᵗ ˡᵒⁿᵍ ᶠᵃⁿᶠⁱᶜ ⁱⁿ ᵉⁿᵍˡⁱˢʰ ᵖˡˢ ᵇᵉ ᵘⁿᵈᵉʳˢᵗᵃⁿᵈⁱⁿᵍ
˚₊‧꒰ა ☆ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚
The walk all the way home was always one of his favorite things to do when it was hunting day, the way the wind danced between the dying leaves and made music inside the hollow trees, the sun setting with the most beautiful tones of pink. It always reminded him of the times he spent just drawing all alone until you came into his land.
The day was August 8th, the heat was overbearing and like all of the other days around the same time, probably four or five (he wouldn't know because his only clock died a year ago), Taehyung sat down in the shadow of an old oak tree that has been his only friend, besides his dog, since he came to this lonely and God-forgotten place, were he was blessed and cursed with solitude and the cruel nature.
He had a small tin box with all of his drawing supplies, broken pencils, a piece of eraser gum the size of a nail, and a reddish tint drying up in a baby food crystal jar. Every day he told himself that he was making more yellow with the few sunflowers in his backyard, but today of all days he actually stood up to look for the petals.
The flowers were right outside the kitchen window, the sun was going down, and they were hunched over, withered, and full of little flying butterflies. His calloused hands took a pair of petals, the most vibrant and alive.
The sudden sound of cracking leaves and the barking of his dog disturbed him.
Taehyung perfectly remembers the moment he saw your frightened eyes, the color of the sunset over your weak body clinging to a log, an improvised cane. Torn clothes, dry mouth like a corpse, wet hair for some reason. Did you cross the river?
The first reaction of both was primal, like two animals that didn't plan to meet. Taehyung only turned on the fireplace at night, only for a couple of hours, so as not to attract attention. 
So what were you doing there? Were you lost? Impossible, he was too far from civilization. Were you infected? The wolves would've eaten you by now. Either way, he didn't like the idea of someone new.
The petals sweated their amber ink on Taehyung's hand, you tried to maintain your position, your gaze... almost afraid to blink. The man was not afraid to take action, hand already inside his overall pocket. Without much, his hand raised a pistol, sleek and silver. He was pointing straight at your face, your hair in a ponytail revealing your exposed forehead, like an invitation to explode it with a bullet.
"No, please." You muttered. So soft and yet, Taehyung got scared hearing someone else's voice. It wasn't a growl, nor the crash of stones from the river, nor the rain, nor the cawing of crows, nor his own grunts when chopping wood, nor the barking from his old dog. "I'll go." You begged again, letting go of the log. Taehyung tensed, even more, hearing you again.
So soft and sad. So delicate when the world around was burning.
"Are you coming with someone else?" he growled, getting closer and looking around. The forest seemed quiet, and his dog would have warned him.
"No, just me."
"If you lie it'll be worse for you."
"I know." You lowered your head to avoid the black eye of the gun.
"Are you sick?" the question was simple. Taehyung was trying to look for signs of infection. He hadn't felt this fear since the last time he lost his wife to that fucking disease.
You denied it, slowly.
"Show me," he said with a lowered tone, calm eyes as you undressed as quickly as possible. No marks. Elbows, hands, neck, eyes. All clean. With a sigh from both, the barking stopped.
"Walk to the tree over there, and if you try to do anything funny I'm going to put every fucking bullet in your head," he said giving a simple condition. He started moving with you in front.
Without saying anything else, you both walked slowly to the trunk. The afternoon was already turning blue, cicadas were playing a tense melody. Your bare back revealed your vertebrae, hard balls under your skin looking as if it was going to break. You hugged yourself, trying to keep the heat of your body, perhaps even your modesty.
With a whistle, Frank appeared: an old dog with red eyes and floppy ears. Seeing the naked stranger, he growled loudly. Your hands began to tremble, the weapon and the animal made a cry of pain come out of you, a plea with tears falling down your ashy cheeks. But you didn't see a drop of mercy in Taehyung's eyes, you knew that having this kind of loneliness was not achieved without having to kill several from time to time.
The eyes of the man in front of you were unbending and cold, lips pressed into a thin line, thick hands gripping Frank's chain and his gun. Stains of watercolors and charcoal on his fingers.
"C'mon, buddy," he whispered and the dog came closer little by little to sniff your body. "Bend down." You obeyed.
The animal took its time sticking its wet nose into your hair and skin until it snorted as it sat down. Taehyung lowered the gun.
That was the beginning of your recovery, long days lying between rough, thick sheets. Yellowed pillows that smelled of Taehyung's hair, hand-rolled cigarettes on the nightstand. Every morning he would get up before the sun came up and carry his hunting artifacts over his shoulder. Frank stayed with you while you tried to kill time in the cabin.
You learned how to garden and cook, roll the cigars, and dry the tobacco in the sun. The books were plenty, but reading was an activity you only did if Taehyung was the one reading to you, he did it every night. Even when the fever was so high you couldn't keep up with the story.
When you were at your worst, he held your head to put you in one of his sweaters, and even left the crackling fire all night to keep you warm in the cold.
Every night he started, with a rough and tired voice, around 8 o'clock, to read you a chapter from a book of poems or letters; or the list of lost people in the old newspaper.
"I do it to keep me sane," he said. "I went a long period without saying a word, and I started to forget how to say them, my tongue used to get jammed." He explained to you while drawing an empty cup of tea next to you.
You could only tell him a couple of questions each night, he used to get tired very easily. The first two weeks you couldn't even pronounce two words before he started to lose his patience.
"You don't have to know anything about me," his eyebrows locked in a frown. "When you get better, you can go and it will be like we never met."
But now it has been three months, you think. You recovered pretty well, and you can do the chores while he's out. You try your best every day so he notices that you won't be a bother if he lets you stay.
He doesn't ask questions about how you came to be on this side of the river, and you thank him for that. The memories blurred in your mind, like a sketch that's been erased again and again. 
Taehyung get's home at sunset, you are outside breaking some newspapers into pieces. The notebooks he used to draw in were already full, so you decided to make him a new one. 
You are wearing a dress he found in an abandoned house, it was a teen size but he loves it. He doesn't know your age yet, but he knows you're probably in your early twenties. He loves when the sun is scorching hot and your only choice is to let your thighs and shoulders out while you cook and clean. The hem flows with the wind letting him see your bare ass while you put the paper to dry.
You two haven't had sex, you never gave him signs, maybe because he looked a little bit older. He never felt like he had to hide an inexistent lust, until a few weeks ago. 
Two, to be exact. 
You were in the nearest river. A flimsy white t-shirt, wine-drunk, and talking so much. You were so irksome with your questions. The cold water sticking the fabric to your body like marble while you asked about Taehyung's boring routine. Your babble was such, you started asking about him jerking off and how sex works in solitude.
The way you laughed made him blush with anger. Sketches he was trying to make from the water lilies turned into ones from your eyes. 
That day he had to take a cold shower in the river after leaving you by the fire in the house. His face was boiling red, tired of your babbling and hard as a log.
The idea of you making him horny made him mad for some reason; it made him feel like a high school boy, but it was natural. He had years without seeing a woman. And you were pretty. So pretty for no fucking reason.
He knew that being in his early thirties probably made him less attractive to you, he was a grumpy man, almost a caveman how he reacted to your ways. That's why he didn't try, not even think about it... not always.
Now you have him going to abandoned houses on the other side of the river, looking for things for you: like a small bottle of perfume, a broken mirror, and old photos of people who are probably dead by now. A way to show he cared without using words. 
When he got to the rock path, the crackle made you turn around, you were smiling like always, and his heart felt warm.
"I told you to do that earlier. The paper won't dry today," He grunted, acting more tired than he was so you leave everything behind and get near him. You get a cigar from a basket near you and light it for him. You pass it to him after taking a puff.
"But you can draw on one piece of paper."
"That's not how it works."
"It'll have to work."
Taehyung pressed his lips together, he knew you enjoyed arguing with him, but more than those few words would not come out of him. You rolled you eyes going back to hang the wet paper.
"I'm making dinner tonight," he muttered like ten minutes later and then silence again. Another cigar, the old Frank by his side while he watched the sunset disappear.
The reading hours were around six to seven, right after dinner. It was the same routine when you first stayed, and it is the same now: After dinner, he gets comfortable in bed, takes a cigarette from the nightstand, and with the gas lamp he lights the tip. Book in hand. 
The words he didn't say all day would overflow as he read chapter by chapter. In an appropriate tone, pauses at the commas, giving life to each character. A treat for the ears.
After looking for a book on the first floor, he entered the room and stood up, his eyes went to the corner where there was a broken mirror, and in its reflection, you were, combing your hair in a ponytail, so poorly done that it was better to leave it loose. But the strands that were floating in the air, in front of your eyes, made Taehyung's fingers tingle, wanting to take every strand and pull it towards him.
There was a heaviness in the air that early autumn night. The silence was thick, and the yellowish lamplight cast heavier shadows on every piece of furniture. Abrupt and defined as in a baroque painting.
The curve in which his eyes concentrated more were the ones that defined your waist and your stomach, how it bulged slightly like a hill stamped with the flowers of your skimpy dress.
"Turn around," you muttered, like you didn't care if he did it or not, as you started to remove your dress; snapping Taehyung out of the sketches he was drawing in his head. He went to open the window to let some of the heat out of the room, letting the smoke creep through the curtains.
"I think I know what I'm going to read to you today," he cleared his throat, looking down at his bare feet pacing anxiously across the room. The shadow of your silhouette moving on the floor, the bone-white nightgown falling on your curves, exposing one of Taehyung's weaknesses: the connection of your neck and your shoulders, subtle but lethal.
He wanted to press his face between and close his eyes, inhaling the scent of your skin. Rich and peachy, like when the trees have so much fruit that they start to ripen on the same tree.
"You haven't finished showing me the stamp book yet." You dropped on the bed.
"I'm already bored of it."
"Odd." you noticed, watching him bend down and open a suitcase under the bed. "And those?" As you approached you saw a collection of books.
They were small, wrinkled, and minimalist in cover. Some were yellowed papers seized by the red wax on the spine.
Taehyung snorted at the question and looked up, daring you to keep acting innocent. He knew that you knew every corner of the house.
"I want you to say it," you smiled.
"Force me."
"I want you to say that Taehyung, the hard-faced man, has a collection of erotic books under his bed."
"You already said it. I don't have the need."
"Why do you have it under the bed?"
"What are you talking about?" Taehyung moved the books until he found a small book in Spanish. The pink cover with a painting of a mischievous Renaissance woman smiling.
"Kept under the bed, in a suitcase. Like a secret."
"I'm not ashamed of reading erotica if that's what you assume." he closed the suitcase and dropped his body next to you. His head near your legs, yours lying on the opposite side.
"And why do you have it like they're illegal." you held the cigarette he offered you.
"Habits of a human who lived in a society, I suppose."
You inhale the cigarette while he searched for the short between his long fingers, the book opened softly. His thumb pressed down the middle of the pages.
The glass of wine had you sparkling, you still hadn't gotten used to the alcohol. You had not drunk in so long that you did not remember its effects. There was something on the tip of your tongue, a confession that couldn't wait, an itch that needed to be scratched.
Before you could speak, Taehyung let out a soft "Ah" as he found the story for the night.
"A man who came about five years ago translated this story by Anaïs Nin for me. When he found out that I painted, he told me that he had a story for me."
"What's it called?" Without realizing it, your hand began to caress Taehyung's leg.
"La Maja," he pronounced. "Like Goya's painting"
Your head fell back on the stacked pillows, Taehyung's lips moved as he read a homemade translation of the story.
"He pulled back the sheets that covered her and slowly lifted the silk nightgown. He was able to lift it over her breasts without her giving the slightest sign of awakening. When it was uncovered all over the woman's body, he contemplated it for as long as he wanted. Her arms were detached from her body; her breasts stretched out before his eyes like an offering. He was aroused by his desire but he did not dare to touch her. Instead, he brought paper and pencils, sat by her bedside, and took notes. As he worked, he had the sensation of caressing each of the perfect lines of the woman's body."
Taehyung's eyes would lift to yours after reading the paragraph, turning back to the page with embarrassment flushing his cheeks. The human habit of blushing when you want things so badly, he thought.
The smoke from the dying cigar between your fingers snaked through your hair and the softness of your chin. Taehyung was never more jealous of something so ephemeral.
He couldn't find where he had stayed and the silence became so loud that you could only do what was right.
"I followed you today."
"What?" Taehyung didn't understand, you had spoken so low that he almost didn't notice it.
"To the woods, when you left this morning."
When he closed the book, you knew that what little sweetness Kim showed you turned sour. 
"I have told you that you must stay here, with Frank. Safe." You both got up at the same time, you followed Taehyung looking for his gaze which he averted.
"I'm not asking you to keep me safe, Kim" you replied.
There was a pause as he pricked at his bottom lip. Was that in his pupils the sign of an offense? Taehyung clucked at you, turning around.
"Kim," you tried to fix it by brushing against his shoulder. "It's not that I'm a helpless deer, I know how to protect myself." You laughed to lighten the mood. Bad idea.
A question, like a small forgotten flame, reappeared in Taehyung's brain. Out of courtesy when you got sick in the first few weeks, he didn't ask where you came from, why you were alone, or how you came to cross the wide river that divided a civilization almost thousands of kilometers to the left. When politeness turned to infatuation, the question was no longer so important. He felt that he could trust you and that he had a new purpose besides survival: to keep you safe.
Fallacies.
"How did you come to find me?"
"What?" the smile faded from your face.
"I'm not going to repeat myself."
Your eyes moved erratically in his gesture, a frown. Just like when you came in drenched that August. No trust.
"Don't know."
He just snorted denying, he didn't believe you, and that irritated you.
"Sure, of course."
"Do you think I'm lying to you?"
"I don't believe it, I know." His body moved from side to side, arranging books and picking things up off the ground.
Your flushed face and clenched fists. Boiling alcohol in your veins.
"Well, you can go to hell with your lonely man farce."
"OK." Taehyung sighed daring you to continue insulting him.
"You do know that things aren't as horrible as at the start of the pandemic anymore, right?"
"Oh yeah?" His eyes widened in theatrical surprise.
"The infected are controlled and-," Seeing how he continued to feign interest, you pushed him aside and grabbed your dress from the floor, beginning to change. Tears accumulated without permission in your eyes. "Whatever," you mumbled.
"Then you do know something about your past."
"Fuck you, Kim."
"No, because you lied to me and now you say things like how you know how to defend yourself in a forest full of wild wolves and that you traveled several kilometers by water and land to get here. And you want me not to ask questions about it." He moved closer to you so close that he could see the torment in your eyes.
"Exactly." You muttered putting on your garden boots.
"That request is absurd and you know it." his laugh was careless. He was drunk too.
"I know."
You both stared at each other, your hair was no longer tied up and its shadow hid both of your features under its shadow. Your lips parted at the sight of his.
"I don't remember how I got to this place," you whispered, a tear fell to your cheek and you cursed how sensitive alcohol made you. You saw how Taehyung's face softened in the presence of your pain. "I swear I would have told you if I knew."
Taehyung swallowed hard and looked out the window. He hated seeing others cry, he hated when his wife did it, and he hates seeing it now in your lost gaze. There was something in the way you were, in the quality of your emotions and your hope in everything that reminded him so much of her. His wife died at the same age you were.
Taehyung and her were both idiots and thought that living far away was all it took to escape the infection.
It was stupid of him to let her go hunting alone that day, he shouldn't have let a simple fever keep him in bed when she was out there.
He spent years waiting for her to come back. Waiting for some afternoon that he will hear her quick steps coming down the gravel road. Much later, he found a piece of her shirt floating on the bank of a river.
Taehyung closed his eyes and nodded. It was dangerous to let you stay, he still didn't fully trust you. But what was the use of being alone so much when he only waited for the next day and the day after until one day he could die naturally?
Your body tensed as his hand rose to sink into your hair and kiss your forehead. So delicate, without causing any noise.
"Sleep well," he whispered leaving the book on the table. His chest hurt with the immense amount of feelings you make him feel in one day.
It's overbearing and he loved it. But his poor soul needed time.
For the first time in all that time together, he decided to sleep on the first floor.
You didn't know what to say, you were already ready for him to just ask you to leave. So you were thankful he actually just…left.
When the door creaked shut, you let loneliness engulf you. You cried, glued to the pillow like a child. Of relief, of uncertainty, for that kiss.
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The days are long when there is nothing to say. When you don't look at him, when you ignore him with your unsubtle ways: you leave your clothes poorly folded, you don't finish the dishes he makes for you, your cigarettes are badly rolled, and you punish him by wearing those shirts that reveal your cleavage.
If you knew what you did to him, would you take advantage of him? Would he hate it?
Taehyung can feel your eyes on his back as he tries to light the fireplace at night, the cold is cruel in the mountains, even crueler than the tension in the small living room. You find yourself sitting watching the flame grow and grow, Taehyung trying to appear as calm as possible as if he didn't have the gears of his brain fed up trying to figure out how to talk to you.
Apart from a 'what do you want for dinner?', a 'yes' or a 'no'.
He felt he talked more with poor Frank, who slept about eighteen hours a day.
He cleared his throat at the smoke and held up his hand for more newspaper. You gave it instantly. And suddenly, a miracle: for the first time in weeks, your voice.
"Tomorrow is my birthday," you said embarrassedly, arms crossed.
With a tight-lipped smile on Kim's mouth, he nodded and looked into your tired eyes.
Your voice was still just as sweet and calm, you wanted to try to sound weary. But he noticed every afternoon when he came home from hunting, the way you moved through the little orchard and sang while you bathed Frank. Your laughter was his antidote, it healed his tiredness and the ache of his soul.
"We should celebrate it." He proposed, but you instantly denied it.
"I want you to take me."
"What do you mean?" he blushed, looking deep into your eyes.
"Take me somewhere."
Taehyung dropped the newspaper on the fire. He sighed softly, (not in relief, but disappointed) and sat in the old chair in the corner, legs apart as he rolled a cigarette.
"Where do you want to go?"
"To the house on top." you pointed east.
"How do you know there's a house on top?"
"Because I saw it in your drawings." your pupils let you see its shine for the first time in weeks. The cold made you look so beautiful. The little contact he had with you, he missed it so much.
Your cheeks took on color with the coming of winter, your lips like two slices of ripe fruit, red and full of juice. "And I found your binoculars in the warehouse."
"Mm," he couldn't even get mad at you and your insatiable curiosity. He was glad to hear you. Besides, who was he to deny you going up to that abandoned mansion, even when fear consumed him that they would attack you?
"Sure, we'll go." you let the corner of your lips rise, Taehyung feigned seriousness. "But it can't be tomorrow. We need at least two days of walking to get there, and we have to prepare."
You licked your lips and got up, letting the cloth that wrapped you from head to toe fall to your shoulders. You raised your arms, and Taehyung frowned, not understanding the gesture.
"Come here, it's almost twelve, and I'm going to be twenty-one."
Although they both knew that no clock gave them a certain time, Kim didn't care and you less. Leaving the cigarette next to him, he stood up and awkwardly let his strong arms swallow you, your head on his chest.
The hug was a thank you from you, but with just a few more seconds, you realized that Taehyung didn't want to let go. You opened your eyes, he could feel your confusion.
"Just-" he stammered, tensing his arms a little more to bring you closer to the warmth of his body. Silence.
Rich and peachy.
"What?"
"No, nevermind."
"Kim." you wanted to look at his eyes but didn't let you.
"I haven't hugged anyone in years." he murmured, a sigh of relief.
The confession made your chest sink. The breathing of the man in your arms was soft and ragged. As if he was nervous.
"Can you play with my hair?" he hummed, timid and needy, warming your shoulder with his breath; chills covering your skin.
You let your fingers explore his fluffy hair, the little ripples covering your palm and fingertips. You heard another sigh from him and felt how his arms slid to hug the sides of your waist.
"Feels good?" you dared to ask, breathing the musk on his jacket. He just nodded longingly, closed eyes and brows knitted; the crackle of the fire in the fireplace melting his heart.
Your throat was dry, and your lips parted, God knows you wanted to enjoy that hug, how Taehyung bent his body slightly to hide his head in your neck. Perhaps it was the lack of contact or the fire in the fireplace, but your body bubbled over a slow fire with each exhale that collided with your neck.
"Tae-" you swallowed and grabbed his shoulders so he could see you.
The drunkenness in the eyes of the man in front of you was so short but so sweet. Discovering his attitude, he pricked the bridge of his nose and cleared his throat.
"Sorry, don't worry about the trip. We can start packing tomorrow."
"I think I remember some of what happened to me."
"Oh." His eyes widened, gesturing as he tried to ask you to explain. You loved the gestures that came out of Taehyung when he didn't know the protocol of conversations. It wasn't 'thank you', but a tightening of the lips into a brief smile; no 'Don't move' when he painted but a little grunt and a deny.
You both took a seat on the furniture and got as close as possible, there was no one around, but this was how both of you got used to talking to each other. Whispers, watching each other's lips and laughter, when it was intended, with the hand on the mouth.
"I remember a boat, I remember several women and two men," you murmured, your eyes tilted into the fire. "A group came on another boat and threw us on the shore, they beat the men so much that they died and left the women to suffer."
Kim bit the inside of his cheek, he knew the day you would remember your past would be difficult. The beginning of the lethal virus was so surreal for him.
"I don't remember their faces much, just their hair. I remember…one feverish night, the women covered me with a blue coat that they had taken from one of the men." your hand trembled, and Taehyung took it without hesitating. "When I woke up, they were all in stage two."
Stage two of the virus was when their bodies began to slow down, sleep being the main activity, even at times when they needed to urinate. Your body didn't feel like getting up.
Taehyung remembers how one of his college classmates slept fully for two days, he opened his eyes when called but closed them instantly.
"When I saw them I thought the same thing was going to happen to me, apparently they killed an infected animal and ate it among themselves without giving me a piece. I don't blame them. I also thought the fever was going to kill me that night," you shrugged. "When I woke up I found trash, fruit, and headless bugs on the floor. The virus searched for everything it could to feed before going into coma…, and then, um-"
Your gaze drifted away, as if you saw the women sprawled on their backs with their mouths open and sunken eyes on the cabin rug.
"Their bodies started to swell, their chests and stomachs and throats. The eggs-" you denied and Taehyung felt chills. "They began to grow and incubate, I cried for hours and hours in silence, sitting on a log." your voice quivered. "I crossed the river at low tide, and stayed on the rocks to wait."
"You were sent to explore the area. You were the same as I was years ago." Taehyung bit his lip, squeezing your hand.
"I don't understand."
"I thought they didn't send scouts to this area anymore. The infection is so old I thought they wouldn't need any more information."
"What do you mean when you say you were the same?" You frowned and stared at him.
"I was a soldier, my family needed money, and the doctors found a way to make us think they could save my dad from the virus." the memories made his tense neck move involuntarily. "They sent me to this side to find information about the virus, the source."
"You and how many others?"
Taehyung shook his head with a sad smile. Maybe he was even making up the story of his father getting sick, who knows at this point?
"I still don't remember. I just know that I kept walking and walking wit this girl by my side,until we found this hill, and even she disappeared."
They both fell silent. Taehyung had already told you about the disappearance of his wife, unlike other topics, this was the one that seemed like a fable. There were no traces, like smoke that vanished on a sunset.
You can see on his eyes that ache every time he mentions her; you wish you could lick his old wounds, not to cure them, but to soothe the pain.
The way he was holding your hand and the fire trembling on his tan skin made him look like an angel. An untamed one leaves instead of feathers, strong arms to carry the world around him.
You couldn't take it anymore.
"Taehyung," you called, and he didn't have to move because your hand took him by surprise. Guiding him to your hungry lips.
He moaned lowly, making his free hand into a fist to control the euphoria that was running through his body. The wet sound of your mouths devouring each other, he didn't know how much he needed that, the warmth of your tongue licking his lips, the little pant coming out of your strawberry lips.
Oh, how much he hated the fact that he was getting hard just from a kiss, but how couldn't he, good God? You were so delicious.
He snatched his hand from yours and took both of your hands to squeeze above your head. Your back arched, and you mewled as you felt his hand squeeze your wrists.
Taehyung's eyes flickered to your face. Was he doubting what he was doing? Did you do something wrong?
"If you want to stop-"
"No," he growled desperately. With ease, his free hand grabbed the hair at the nape of your neck and kissed you again, clashing teeth.
"Slow down, Kim." you gasped as he devoured your neck, covering in saliva the fabric of the coat that covered you, almost tearing it apart.
Your hand explored his corduroy pants until it reached the tight bulge against his thigh.
"No. I don't want to," he screeched as he watched what you were doing. "Please, I'm too sensitive right now." It was a plea for you to let him enjoy touching you for a few more minutes, his glassy eyes and red lips.
You were cruel, and God, how he hated you for that. You chuckled low and spread your legs to climb into his lap. The sudden movement knocked the air out of him, hands on either side of the couch.
In one sitting, you were pressing his cock against your clothed pussy.
"Oh no, please. Let me-," his hands went to his mouth, squeezing it hard, the words coming out muffled.
With so few moans he had you addicted to his susceptibility. To his droopy eyes and his angelic whimpers over every little thing you did.
"Please," he asked again but it was in vain when you started moving back and forth and licking his neck. "Fuck me, i can't. Baby-" he mumbled rolling his eyes, reaching heaven with so little. The 'baby' scaped again and again from his lips until it died out.
It was embarrassing, but so sublime.
You loved it. No. You became obsessed.
When he finished, you could feel the wetness on his thigh. You laughed again, taking his face in your fingers; he hung from your fingertips like a puppet. His chin resting on them.
"You look so cute when you're sweaty in the middle of a blizzard," you said. He closed his eyes, enjoying the compliment.
Without saying anything else, leaving a wet spot on top of his zipper and his mouth open; you got up and went up the rustic stairs.
You were going to be the death of him.
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The morning arrives quietly and with the sun coming in gently through the windows, you are grateful that the snow has stopped as you get up to put on your socks. Frank was sleeping between woolen sheets in the closet. When he heard you calling him he opened his eyes and lazily moved his thick tail.
The bed was made on Taehyung's side. Last night you hardly slept thinking about what you two had done in the living room, you waited anxiously for him to go to the room to finish what you had started, but you fell asleep waiting for him.
Maybe he was upset because you rushed him or he was embarrassed. Either way, you could still feel the moisture your pussy had let out just thinking about his face coming. Like a broken record, just as his pelvis raised to make one last contact with your clit.
You sighed and let the cool water calm your arousal. The small mirror showed your reflection, you were pale. Since the sun doesn't rise so often, you feel like you're withering. The tinting of your cheeks was already disappearing.
Your eyes were guided to the small photo pasted on the mirror, it was an ID with your face. The ink on the image was fading, with your name and date of birth right next to it.
It was the only thing you had for sure, maybe your face wasn't even that one. You returned to your reflection and began to notice every little detail: the dark circles under your eyes and the dry lips from biting them so much, the slightly yellowish teeth, and the eye that was smaller than the other. 
That's new, you thought. Only if you looked hard enough could you see how your right eye involuntarily closed a little more than the other, the more you looked at it in the mirror, the more obvious it was.
The sound of a pot falling followed by a grunt made you snap out of your morning exam. You walked quickly to the stairs going down in a hurry.
You were surprised to see Taehyung in the kitchen, his hands covered in whipped cream and the sweet smell of freshly baked bread. A small tight smile apologizing for waking you up.
"Uh," he wiped his hands clean and leaned closer to you, placing an awkward kiss on your forehead. "Happy Birthday."
"Thank you." You smiled softly, his hand found yours to guide you to the rustic table that he had made years ago, it was heavy and robust. It combined with everything that was seen in that kitchen, small details you had done here and there, but the smell of oak and the thick fabric of the curtains and the tablecloth were essentially Taehyung.
"I made you breakfast. You must eat it all or I'm really going to stop talking to you for a month."
As if he could.
"Because?"
"I spent all night trying to make whipped cream, found a book in the stack and it took me almost a dozen eggs to get it right."
"That's where you were last night." You smiled and he tensed, embarrassment painting his cheeks red. "Did you need a book to know how to follow our...?" You made an obscene gesture that made Taehyung turn to finish breakfast.
"You are so intense in the mornings."
"You've stopped smoking in the morning, have you noticed?"
Taehyung frowned. "It's true."
"I annoy you so much you don't need the nicotine to wake up."
"If that achievement makes you happy, go ahead." He crossed his legs as he sat down next to you. "Bon appétit."
You looked in front of you, on your plate was a piece of freshly baked bread toasted in the color of the sun. The whipped cream was smooth and slightly eggy, with peach slices decorated on top creating an attempt at a flower. The smell was intoxicating and your mouth watered from it.
Taehyung's chest swelled with joy as you took the first bite and inhaled. You looked at him tenderly. That human habit of food being the perfect language to show love without touching.
"It's good," you agreed taking another bite. "Did you try it?"
Taehyung denied raising his hand to ask you to continue tasting.
"I have something else for you," he said before you took another bite. You could see and hear in the silence of the kitchen how his foot bounced with eagerness to show you the other things.
Taehyung took a paper bag from his jacket hanging on the door and put it on your lap. His hands didn't let you open the material, kneeling on the floor in front of you.
"Slow down, Kim. For God's sake." you laughed looking at him. He imitated you.
"Sorry, it's just that I've been saving this for a long time."
You couldn't stop seeing him, it was impossible how much you loved him in such a short time. You looked down at your lap as he lowered your chin with his hand.
Inside the paper were many trinkets, colorful and very varied. Buttons, an old lighter with a rose carved on it, a ring in the shape of a butterfly, a deep red dried ink, and underneath it all the pale lace of a lingerie set.
You smiled as you put everything else aside and looked at the pieces in detail.
"Isn't there a more subtle way of saying you want to fuck me?" you joked
Taehyung didn't laugh, again he was looking at you with nervous eyes.
"I want to give you a portrait."
You put the lingerie on the table and looked at him. You knew that his painting materials were becoming more and more scarce. You denied it instantly.
"Don't worry, I'll use some oils that I have saved, they are in perfect condition and I want to use them with you." he rose clutching your face in his hands, like something ethereal. How could he see you in the morning and make you feel so lovely?
"I want to paint your lips," he ran his thumb over your bottom lip, "And your eyes."
"Even when one is smaller?"
He chuckled slightly at your sweet question.
"Especially the smaller one."
His hand grabbed the last bite of toast and opened your mouth with his thumb, delicately inserting it. "I told you to eat it all." his face was serious.
His thumb began to smear all the cream that remained in the corners of your mouth, pressing your lips while your tongue tried to lick his fingers.
"That is my girl." he hummed cocking his head at you.
Your toes tensed when you heard him say that.
"Open up," he commanded and you obeyed, opening your mouth to remove the sticky cream from his finger. He swallowedwhen he saw you lick every drop.
Your beautiful face, your messy hair, and your mouth covered in peach juices and whipped cream. So sweet and erotic that it made his stomach clench with the urge to eat you.
"I would like you to paint me in the summer, though."
"Because?"
"Because that way I could return the color to my cheeks, to see myself more..." you didn't know what the word was.
Taehyung could have cared less.
"Fine." he sighed and tossed the plate to the side with a crash. Suddenly, you were in his arms, he laid you down gently on the wood of the table.
"Tae?" a squeal came from you when you felt the cold in your pussy, Taehyung ripped your panties and began to rub his digits on your clit with such delicacy.
"Shh," he responded, grabbing the chair to walk over to the table and sit down. With one hand he brought your body closer to his face and began to run his tongue through your folds.
This is what he wanted to do last night and you didn't let him.
Your legs began to shake and he looked up through narrowed eyes. Your surprised face was so funny, it almost made him want to let you cum as fast as you let him.
"Spread your legs, let me see you." there was something so obscene about the way his voice deepened. He embarrassed you. "Aren't you going to let me eat you?"
You didn't know what to say.
"What happened that pretty girl who wouldn't shut the fuck up, huh?" His wet lips kissed your entrance with each word. "Where are your smart answers and the fucking questions about how I jerk off?" With one hand he hit your clit and you whimpered. "There it is." he smiled.
"God," you moaned so loud trying to get your nightgown down, it hurt so good. Taehyung squeezed your wrists with one hand and started devouring you again, your juices flowing on his nose and his tongue and you knew how much he liked it by the way he growled and bit the inside of your thigh.
It hurt but you couldn't stop moaning, your hands turning into claws from the tension wanting to grab his tangled hair, to see his face covered with it in a transparent and shiny layer.
"Atta, girl," he inhaled, snapping back. "Look at you," he smiled at you as he licked the edges of his lips. "The color is returning to your cheeks."
"What?" You stuttered before you felt how his hand collided with your ass. You screamed biting your lip.
"Come here."
His hand carried you to help your weak legs. With his hands under your armpits, he led you to the nearest wall.
"Get naked, pet."
"It's cold."
"Still?" Taehyung asked confused and piled the fabric of your dress in his hand until he found your wet pussy again. Without saying much, he inserted two fingers, curling the tips.
"More," you whispered, you were short of breath and you felt like you were in another cosmic plane with the long fingers of the man behind you.
His other hand began stroking your tummy until it reached your neck, squeezing gently. Hearing your sweet request, he laughed.
"You're a mess and I haven't even fucked you. Are you sure?"
You nodded awkwardly, your head pressed against the wall. A third finger was unexpected and burned.
"You're so wet, it's not fair." Kim sighed. "I want to do everything for you but you won't let me with that little body of yours."
"Mm," was all you could answer, your tongue was heavy and the knot under your stomach had you seeing stars.
"Those short dresses and the laughter and the erotic books and your perfect tits." he moaned turning you around to remove your dress.
Seeing your face again, Taehyung made up his mind; he couldn't take it anymore. Whipped cream decorated your cheek and your open mouth.
"Are you still cold?" His eyes saw you straight into your soul. You denied hugging his neck, hitting your lips with his.
If you didn't kiss him you felt like you were going to implode. His furrowed brows and his broad shoulders, the way he'd talk dirty to you but he'd kiss your shoulder calming your nerves.
There it was again, that tickle in your throat of saying things at the wrong time.
Shut me up with kisses, you thought, shut me up by sealing your lips with mine.
"More." Now it was Taehyung's turn to ask, moaning as he felt how your naked body hung from his waist.
He quickly lowered his pants until he took it off completely. Then his coat.
"Down," he murmured kissing you one last time crashing your body into the wall.
With one hand you grabbed his cock and started to move your hand. A cry came from him and you both nearly fell to the ground in a crash. Taehyung's legs failing from the sudden touch.
You laughed at Taehyung's irate gesture.
"In four. Now," he barked, after kissing you softly. "I want to fuck you, I don't want games anymore, 'kay?"
You nodded drunkenly at the way he spoke to you.
You stopped smiling when he repositioned you like a doll on your knees and hands.
You arched your back as you felt the tip stretch your entrance, you closed your eyes in pure pleasure. The sting was unbelievable, perfect.
"Mmhm," Taehyung ran his finger down your back, "Let me listen to you, love."
How can he call you that without melting?
You pushed yourself into him until your ass touched his pelvis. You both moaned each other's name.
"Fuck," he mumbled, grabbing both sides of your waist to guide your movements. The sounds that filled the kitchen were indecent, your cream accumulated at the base of his cock and your moans drove him crazy.
Yes, he was like a schoolboy when it came to you, he couldn't see your cleavage without wanting to touch himself or look at your lips without wanting to bite them so badly that they bled. You were in addition to his antidote, his new favorite morbidity.
"Atta girl, squeeze me more," he hissed at you slowing his pace down. His moans turned to whimpers as you began to feel the cum dripping down your thighs. You were about to cum and he could feel it. "Let me feel those walls, baby. Cum for me."
You lifted your upper body so you could move against him and with two brushes of his fingers on your puffy clit you began to scream his name letting your face fall into your hands.
You both panted hard, abruptly, Taehyung pulled his cock out, revealing how his cum came out of you. God, he prays that this is the one that knocks you up.
Getting up, he grabbed your delicate body and took you to the sofa, lit the fireplace, and left you alone for a few minutes. When he returned he brought with him a blank canvas the length of his forearm and a couple of charcoal pencils.
The afterglow had your cheeks with the most beautiful tint. Flushed and plump lips from biting it so much. You let your hair do what it wants, just how he likes it and you smiled at him when he sat down in front of you. You squinted your eyes when you smiled and his shoulders relaxed.
"Stay still, please," he whispered while he took a pencil in his hands.
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wangxianficfinder · 10 days
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In the mood for...
Apr 19th
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1. Hi, I'm looking for fics where WWX is drunk/high and LZ noncons him @thehappyyellow
the sweetest dream would never do by honeyandviscera (E, 2k, WangXian, Modern AU, Dark LWJ, Somnophilia, Non-Consensual Somnophilia, Body Worship, Breaking and Entering, Drugged Sex, Stalking, Come Eating, Unreliable Narrator, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat)
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2. Hey, hope you guys are well. For itmf, any opwwx! recs? Preferably completed please. Thank you for your time!! @tinyfoxpeach
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3. Helloooo Just came here jajsjs I'm desperate, lately I was thinking about some caveman! Or prehistoric ice age wangxian but I could not find something like that :( any rec? (Tysm for this page)
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4. more fics like lwj's big dick agenda? or just fics lwj being possessive. thanksss!
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5. Love your blog!!!!thank you for the hardwork!
Would love some disabled/chronic health issues wei wuxian pretty please 💖💖
🔒 the thread may stretch or tangle but it will never break by RoseThorne (E, 91k, WIP, WangXian, Canon Divergence, Soulmates, Self-Esteem Issues, Fix-It, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, PTSD, Handfasting, Panic Attacks, Getting Together, First Time, Aftercare, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, /Referenced Torture, Scars, Chronic Pain, Golden Core Reveal, First Time, Switching, sex-related injury, LWJ Stays at the Burial Mounds, LSZ is a Wèi, Good Sibling JC, Dissociation, Burial Mounds Settlement Days, Disability, Scheming NHS, Disabled Character)
🔒 a star called sun by thelastdboy (E, 120k, wangxian, SL/XXC, JC & JYL & WWX, JYL & LWJ, WWX & WN & WQ, JYL/JZX, Canon Divergence after Xuanwu Cave, Fall of Lotus Pier, But worse!, Power Imbalance, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Not Everyone Dies AU, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Canon-Typical Violence, Sunshot Campaign, Miscommunication, Heavy Angst with a Happy Ending, Slow Burn, Major Character Injury, Loss of Limbs, Chronic Illness, Seizures, WWX’s Three Months in the Burial Mounds, Wēn Remnants Live, Wēn Remnants Deserve Better, WWX Creates a Sect | Yílíng Wèi Sect, Additional Warnings In Author’s Note, Hurt/Comfort, Selectively Mute LWJ, Service Animals, Crows)
The Darkness Before Dawn by PsycheStellata707 (M, 113k, wangxian, Angst with a Happy Ending, Time Travel Fix-It, Canon Divergence, BAMF WWX, Attempt at Humor, PTSD, Oblivious WWX, WWX-centric, Blind WWX, Sentient Burial Mounds, Everyone Lives AU, Except Those Who Deserves to Die, Oblivious Pining, Not Canon Compliant, WIP)
🧡 the river brought you here by chilianxianzi (Not Rated, 11k, WangXian, Canon Divergence, POV Outsider, Amnesia, Past abuse, Strangulation, Found Family)
please don’t let me be misunderstood by sysrae (T, 3k, WangXian, Modern AU, College/University, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, getting hit by cars, Past Child Abuse)
some foolish thing I've done by sysrae (M, 4k, wangxian, Modern, College/University, partial hearing loss, Past Child Abuse, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, the real OTP is everyone x therapy)
🔒 how to make your dad fall in love with your high school teacher in five steps; the complete and bulletproof guide by ravenditefairylights (T, 90k, wangxian, modern, coffee shop au, nonbinary LSZ, hurt/comfort, trauma, past abuse, past domestic violence, healing, hurt WWX, found family, hospitalization, therapy, single parent WWX, pining, teacher LWJ, unreliable narrator, chronic pain, queer platonic relationship, genderfluid WWX, autistic LWJ, fluff & angst)
🔒 some things go forward by everythingispoetry (T, 73k, WangXian, Modern AU, Hospitals, Teenage Drama, Slow Burn, Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Happy Ending)
Cure by Yukirin_Snow (M, 100k, WangXian, XiCheng, XuanLi, Modern AU, Hurt/Comfort, Sick Character, Cancer, Medical Procedures, Medical Jargon, Romance, Eventual Smut, Fluff and Angst, Love at First Sight, possible trigger warnings) Wwx has cancer, happy ending. It's a really good fic. I love it.
Rest is Resolution series by MarbleGlove (T, 32k, JC & WWX, JYL/JZX, JZX & JGS, LQR & LWJ, wangxian, Fix-It, Post-Sunshot Campaign, this might be crack, Niè Cultivation, BAMF NHS, BAMF JYL, Canon Divergence, Madam Lan Backstory, Getting Together), but especially the first one, Elder, an Aesthetic It's WWX without his golden core leaning into needing assistance
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6. Hiii! For the next itmf, I’m wondering if anyone has read fics inspired on creative reality shows? I’d love to read about wangxian having to team up for something like baking impossible or blown away. I hope y’all are having a great day, thanks!
❤️ Knight Hunt! Phoenix Mountain by travelingneuritis (E, 51k, wangxian, modern, dating show, Modern Cultivation, but in the silliest way possible, Reality TV, the juniors are interns, Smut, Illustrations, low-stakes pining)
Wangxian Strictly AU Series by Selenay (E, 135k, WangXian, Modern: No Powers, Dance, Strictly Come Dancing Fusion, Ballroom Dancing, Dancer!WWX, Violinist LWJ, Pining While Dancing, Oblivious WWX, Gratuitous Costume Descriptions, Gratuitous dancing descriptions, Slow Burn, Ballroom dancing, Established Relationship, Romantic Fluff, [Podfic] Falling to the Rhythm by semperfiona_podfic (semperfiona))
Previously, on LEGO Masters by trippednfell (M, 55k, wangxian, Reality TV Show Contestants/Judges, Modern, Mutual Pining, Forced to compete together, strangers to reality show contestants to lovers, there's only one bed, Platonic Cuddling, Autistic LWJ, WWX Has ADHD, Grief/Mourning, Wangxian miss their moms, so much pining, More Pining than LEGO in this LEGO fic, Additional Warnings In Author's Note, POV Alternating, Lego Masters AU, Not YZY friendly, Dysfunctional Jiang family dynamics)
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7. Do you by any chance know if there's any fic about the kid playing hanguang-jun role and the kid playing to be the yiling patriarch of that bunch of kids playing to be cultivators? As they have no names idk where to start looking. I'm in the mood for something wholesome 😌 Thanks in advance!
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8. Itm A) miscarriage fics where it causes problems in wx marriage.
B) girl dad wwx
C) cat dad wwx
Please find all of them in >20k or atleast 10 k. Please. Thankyou.
Rise of the Divine Oracle by BlakSalt (T, 291k, WangXian, Boy Love, Hurt/Comfort, Romance)
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9. hi! :3 itmf junior-central fics :) can be any combination of the quartet. ship fics are fine but no sizhui/jin ling pls bc they are cousins in my heart. thanks!! @monstergreentea
🔒 blue flies buzzing by RoseThorne (T, 2k, JL & LJY & OYZZ & LSZ, JC & WWX, wangxian, LSZ & WWX, LSZ & LWJ, LSZ & LXC, Gossip, Rumors, Mentioned Wen Remnants, Sect Leader Yao Bashing, JC & WWX Reconciliation, NHS is a Little Shit, POV LJY, POV Third Person, Threats, Justice, Cultivation Discussion Conferences, LWJ is LSZ’s Parent, LJY Being LJY, Podfic Welcome)
🔒 hills and rivers are waiting by LtLJ (T, 15k, wangxian, Post-Canon, Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Domestic Fluff, Family Feels, Canon-Typical Violence, the family that hunts demons together stays together, and doesn't murder each other, Case Fic, BAMF WWX, Mojo's post)
💖A Dramatic Reading by pupeez4eva (Not rated, 5k, wangxian, post-canon, humor, public confessions, curses, getting together)
❤️ Tragedy is Not the End by Hobbsy3 (T, 358k, wangxian, Time Travel, Torture, Hurt/Comfort, Golden Core Reveal, Canon Divergence from Qiongqi Pass, Angst with a Happy Ending, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Yunmeng sibling bonding, good dad wwx, good dad lwj, JZX Lives, JYL Lives, Junior Quartet Dynamics)
Would You Come Home? by s6115 (Not rated, 46k, WangXian, Junior Quartet Centric, Time Travel Fix-It, Canon Divergence, Junior Quartet Dynamics) Might work, though it's a little more Sizhui centric, but it's a very lovely showing of their dynamic in a low stakes setting
❤️ grow by cafecliche (T, 14k, WangXian, Age Regression/De-Aging, Character Study, Post-Canon) link in #12
You Bring the Colour by fuddy_duddy (rainier_day) (G, 12k, wangxian, art school, art restoration)
🔒 Yearning by Sanguis (T, 9k, WangXian, LingYi, Modern AU, Professors, Established Relationship, Married Couple, Bunnies, Pre-Relationship Secrets)
climbing up that coastal shelf by Sour_Idealist (T, 15k, JC & JL & WWX, JC & JL, JC & WWX, JL & LSZ, JL & WWX, Post-Canon, Mutually Unrequited Forgiveness, JC & WWX Reconciliation, Family History, Generational Trauma, Discussion of Canonical Abuse, Awkward Attempts at Communication, mentions of past JC/WQ, Fairy is a good dog)
history by tongzhi (T, 16k, LSZ & WN, JC & LSZ, LSZ & WWX, LSZ & LWJ, LSZ & Wen Remnants, LSZ & Juniors, LSZ & MM, Post-Canon, Angst, Grief/Mourning, Hopeful Ending, LSZ gets angry, LSZ and JL refuse to take their family's trauma forward, jiujiu is the best, Character Study, MM abolitionist queen)
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10. itmf any pregxian fics! thank you for your hard work admins :)
Reluctant partner by sacrificial_fawn (G, 31k, wangxian, LXC/JGY, Modern, Mpreg, Family Reunions, bonding over your shared trauma, Reluctant Bonding, Married Life, Supportive LQR, Past Miscarriage, LXC's excessive use of kaomojis, Male Lactation, non-graphic birth, LQR tries to be a good uncle but he doesn’t know how to, Intersex WWX, JGY can hold the baby as a treat, LWJ can have words and verbs as a treat, Slight OOC) very sweet imo, it has a bit of Meng Yao and Wei Wuxian friendship, it's also a teene tiny bit sad
All I Want by Selenay (E, 47k, wangxian, Modern, Mpreg, Post Holiday Romance, Consequences, Reunions, Idiots in Love, wangxian attempt to be sensible adults about it, they are very bad at it, Teacher WWX, Rating earned in later chapters, Handwavey Biology)
Until The End by abCEE (M, 365k, wangxian, canon divergence, communication, established relationship, sunshot campaign, mpreg, canon typical violence, WWX has new golden core, canonical character death, happy ending, fix-it of sorts) He's not pregnant for a large portion of the fic, but it's not an insignificant amount of time.
Impermanence, Transience, Permanence by Best Bepsy (BepsyGray) (E, 39k, wangxian, canon divergence, unplanned pregnancy, mpreg, gore, sunshot campaign, assumed miscarriage, medical procedures, childbirth, golden core reveal) I'd be surprised if you haven't already read this one, but it's one of the few ones of the genre that I like.
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11. Hi!! For itmf, is there any fic where Lan zhan and wei ying personality swapped? It only temporary but the chaos cannot be contained @chibiizzy
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12. hey admins, any fic recs on wei ying getting injured or sick and lan zhan takes care of him or just anyone who gets very worried about him?? thanks <3
🔒🧡 rain falls and soaks into the earth series by RoseThorne (T, 57k, WangXian, WIP, Near Death Experience, Attempt Drowning, Madam Yu Bashing, Recovery, No war AU)
Rotten Work by ShanaStoryteller (Not rated, 63k, wangxian, JL & WWX, post-canon, Protective WWX, Protective JL, POV JL, JC & WWX Reconciliation, eventually, Reluctant Matchmaker JL, this kid is doing his best, Pre-JL/LJY if you squint)
How to Treat Your Injured Yiling Laozu by merakily (T, 3k, wangxian, Chronic Pain, Whump, Love Confessions, Literal Sleeping Together, Burial Mounds, Golden Core Reveal, LWJ has a lot of feelings about WWX being in pain, Hurt WWX)
hunters seeking solid ground by Attila (E, 23k, wangxian, Canon Compliant, discussion of canon character death, Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, bed sharing, Getting Together, Yearning, Literal Sleeping Together, Really Excessive Amounts of Hurt/Comfort)
something left to save by androids_fighting93 (E, 57k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, No Bloodbath of Nightless City, JYL Lives, Not Everyone Dies AU, Hurt/Comfort, single dad wwx, Sick Character, Golden Core Reveal, the lightest d/s dynamic if you squint, handjobs, Anal Sex, Canon-Typical Dynamics)
Heart of hearts series by apathyinreverie (M, 40k, wangxian, WIP, Dark LWJ-ish, Not Cultivation World Friendly, Amnesia, WWX gets to be Not Okay after the BM, Recovery, Possessive LWJ, Possessive WWX, Protective LWJ, not nearly as dark as the tags make it sound, Golden Core Reveal, Hurt WWX, Caring, WWX Goes to Gusu, ridiculously self-indulgent, Canon Divergence, Amnesia, some definite manipulation, but not everything is as it seems, Golden Core Transfer Fix-It, Domestic WangXian, Fluff, WWX happily atticwifing away, Sunshot Campaign, BAMF WWX, BAMF LWJ)
❤️ grow by cafecliche (T, 14k, WangXian, Age Regression/De-Aging, Character Study, Post-Canon)
What's Wrong With Him? by GrapefruitSketches (G, 2k, JYL & WWX, JYL & LWJ, JC & WWX & JYL, wangxian, Hurt/Comfort, Hurt WWX, Pining LWJ, POV JYL, Canon Compliant, Oblivious WWX, Unconscious WWX, Concerned JYL, JYL Knows Everything)
let the yoke fall from our shoulders by occultings (microcomets) (G, LSZ & LWJ, LSZ & WWX, wangxian, LWJ & LSZ & WWX, Hurt/Comfort, Light Angst, Character Study, Mentions of Canonical Character Death, Grief/Mourning, Gusu Lan Juniors Dynamics, let capricorns cathart agenda, Happy Ending, Family Feels, Established Relationship)
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13. Itmf serious fics. Where wwx has personality like he has in 12 moons n a fortnight, he's so mature there uk. Ik that fic has funny and crack moments too, but it's mostly feels and serenity there, more fics where wwx is like that please?
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14. Hello. Thank you for all the hardwork.
For the next itmf I'm looking for fics whe WWX is not the only one to be resurrected.
Or where he is resurrected in other people bodies (I have seen the fic comp here ).
Thank you once again @anime-trash-parody
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15. itmf,,, a fic where wwx atracts the supernatural, the divine, the eerie,, like he has a connection with the burial mounds or the dead in general, they like him, they are atracted to him; spirits and deities like huli jins or like the fliwer maiden are also atracted to him or interact with him,,, does what im saying even make sense?
Ad Oblivione by Baph, HikariNoHimeWriter (M, 70k, WangXian, Time Travel Fix-It, Temporary Character Death, Canon-Typical Violence, POV Multiple, Hurt/Comfort, Grief/Mourning, Identity Reveal, Golden Core Reveal, Cultivation World Critical, Not JC Friendly, Abusive YZY, Angst with a Happy Ending)
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16. itmf any fics where they actually end up meeting baoshan sanren when going to or while doing the core transfer
Can't Tell Me Nothin by natacup82 (T, 35k, wangxian, Canon Divergence, Everybody Lives, Family Feels, Communication, BAMF Women) They don’t meet during the transfer so it might not quite be what u have in mind but she does do something about it.
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17. Would love some genius modern wei wuxian extra if the juniors are involved thank you 💖💖💖💖💖
💖 One Can Keep A Secret (If He Does Not Know It’s There)by H_Belle (T, 5k, wangxian, NHS & WWX, modern w/ cultivation, inventor WWX, secret identity, identity reveal, YLLZ WWX, rogue cultivator WWX, pining LWJ, WWX pov)
living in my memory/living in my mouth by tardigradeschool (T, 32k, wangxian, modern w/ magic, reincarnation, college/university au, hurt/comfort, sharing a bed, light angst, nightmares, epistolary, pining, friends to lovers)
🔒 care by everbrighter (T, 35k, LSZ & WWX, wangxian, modern w/ magic, resurrection, family bonding, getting to know each other, past character death, pining)
🔒 The Second Jade of Lan's late but incendiary sexual awakening by KizuKatana (E, 41k, wangxian, First Time, LWJ's Horny Grip,LWJ does not know what hit him, and yet somehow he still realizes it before WWX, canon wangxian dynamics, college AU, LWJ starts off annoyed at WWXBut quickly discovers both his competency kink and a caretaking kink, Genius WWX)
i really want to know (who are you) by Stratisphyre (M, 19k, wangxian, LQR & WWX, Modern with Magic, Golden Core Reveal, Single Dad WWX, Reasonable Authority Figure LQR, Allusions to violence and murder, Hospitalization)
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If you didn’t get an answer to your ask here, don’t forget to make use of @mdzs-kinkmeme and MDZS KINK MEME on Dreamwidth. Authors actually do use them for ideas. You may get what you order!***Your prompt doesn’t have to be kink! Fluff, crack, whatever - it’s all good!***
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ahdraftingco · 1 year
Text
Oneshot: Trouble
Pairing: Dark!Joel Miller x Innocent!Reader
AO3 Crosspost: https://archiveofourown.org/works/44157645
Summary: Ellie's gone. She ran away a while ago, after she discovered Joel's lie. It was a lie he had to make for his own sake because he couldn't handle losing her but still, he lost her. Now, he walks the wasteland alone, searching for purpose…and that's when he stumbles onto you. A bright, young woman who had gotten through the worst of it without losing her innocence to a world gone mad. If only you knew what was in store for you now that Joel has found a new person to latch onto…
Word Count: 8.2k+
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A/N: As always, please read through ALL the warnings before proceeding: porn with plot, dead dove: do not eat (this story is not for the faint of heart so don't say i didn't warn ya), borderline non-con, dark!joel miller, loss of virginity, dom/sub undertones, age gap, use of the word "daddy"/"baby girl", bondage, forced orgasms, gunplay, praise kink, somnophilia, size difference, genuine fear/peril, death threats, cum play, rough sex, sexual coercion, squirting, breeding kink (unprotected piv, possible pregnancy/pregnancy talk), angst, mentions of violence, degradation, references to death
This fic will contain spoilers to TLOU Part One, so if you haven't played the game, please be aware that I will be referencing canon events. Hope you enjoy the sinister Joel I've made up and yes, I did based the physical description off Pedro Pascal's portrayal of Joel ~ ♡
It's been months since Ellie left Joel. He had gone out to look for supplies, since she had been sick. It wasn't until he got back and saw that she had taken up everything she could carry that he realized it had all been an act to let his guard down.
He had thought they were past what had happened at the hospital, since it's been almost five years, but the truth is…he knew what he had done was unforgivable. She was the cure. She wanted to die for the cause. She knew what she had to do but he was the one who wasn't ready to let her go.
This is the price he will pay for it.
It breaks Joel down more and more every day that passes as he scavenges the east coast, hoping he'll find clues of Ellie's whereabouts somewhere. Though, he taught her well, which meant he was almost certain she'd be hard to find.
If she's smart, which he knows she is, Ellie would've made it to the north before the winter began. That way, there's no chance of Joel ever catching up to her in the snow.
With a heavy sigh, Joel makes his trek up the state highway, weaving through abandoned cars. He'll be in New York soon. There once was a station there, but it quickly grew overcrowded and fell soon after.
Not enough food for people to eat, not enough protection for people to survive.
The infected would be roaming in the city, but Joel knew to avoid the densely populated areas. He didn't want trouble.
And yet, trouble always finds him.
Trouble had a name this time. Your name, though he didn't know it just yet.
Instead, as he watches you from a distance, Joel calls you baby girl in his mind, seeing how much younger you were than him. It was obvious you were older than Ellie though. You were an adult, a young one, but an adult all the same. It makes him wonder how you ended up here all alone.
You're humming to yourself, as if the thought of a threat nearby didn't phase you. It's a song he has heard before. Edge of Seventeen by Stevie Nicks. He can almost hear the guitar riff, but it wasn't anything he could play.
However, at this moment, he wished he could.
Seeing you happily whispering the lyrics to yourself as you take down your laundry fills Joel with a kind of desire that taints his soul. It's dark and twisted, the way he wants to bottle up your joy and keep it all for himself.
How could you be so carefree in a world gone mad? It's as if no one has ever hurt you before.
Maybe…you didn't even know the infected existed.
That's impossible, but it looks like you're completely self-sufficient. You have a lake house and he can see the fishing equipment. You also have a garden with rotating crops that are growing well despite the incoming winter.
Who taught you to live life like this?
Peaceful, alone, without a care.
Joel is almost…disappointed. He'd imagine if anyone else had stumbled upon you, you'd be taken easily. You were like the easiest prey for a hungry predator, since you were clueless to the danger you could be in.
It makes Joel want to protect you…but it also makes him want to own you. There's an insatiable need to show you how much you need him to keep you safe, from people just like him.
So, that's exactly what he's going to do. Joel will make you his. He will weave himself into your life until you can't possibly live without him anymore.
That way, you'd never leave him like Ellie did…
❅❅❅❅❅
Today's catch went swimmingly, as it always does. You reeled in enough to have extra to dry into tasty jerky. Winter is approaching and you start to see your breath in the air, knowing that a storm is brewing. You'll have to start chopping some more firewood to store in the basement in case it's an extra cold winter. The temperature has been dropping every passing year, while the summers have gotten hotter.
You're thankful you won't have to think about summer preparations right now. Having to deal with those forest fires took up so much of your time. Winter is destructive as well, but at least it requires you to stay in instead of slave away all day.
Another winter alone, though. You let out a sigh at the thought. How long has it been since everyone you loved passed away?
You're tired of burying people…
Last month, you had to clean up the house a few miles down the lake. You hated having to do it, but your parents taught you well. The moment someone died, you needed to put them out of their misery or they'd fester and become worse creatures than the resurrected undead.
So, you put a bullet in their head and dug a grave for them. Then, you would spend hours rummaging through their house for any supplies before giving it a good thorough cleaning. It was your way of laying them to rest.
You'll miss that man though. Neither of you exchanged names, but you would trade fish for some of his pepper plants. Sometimes, he'd have canned goods for you that he had made himself. You still have some in your basement now. That'll help for the winter.
All these thoughts help you get through deboning your catch. You light up your wood fire stove so you can make a serving of stew and start the dehydrating process. It isn't until everything is in the pot that you register the rustling outside.
Is that the wind or…no, it can't be.
No one ever comes around these parts. It's so hidden by the trees that only an experienced person would think someone lives out here. That's sort of why your parents bought this house. It was secluded in the best kind of way, which aided a lot when everything went to shit. You were born here, raised here and will likely die here.
However, you weren't expecting that day to come so soon. Whoever is out there…they won't hurt you, will they? Your nerves heighten as you walk towards your door, debating if you should grab your gun.
You don't, because the person knocks.
It's a gentle knock, just three light taps. You calm down a little at that. You figure if it was a malicious person, they'd just break down your door. You haven't ever encountered a malicious person before, since you try not to believe everyone is bad. The people you know have all been kind, despite everything.
You hope this person will be the same.
So, you open your door and…
"Hello there." The older man at your doorstep says in his southern accent. "I was just passing through and I noticed you had a fire going. I don't mean to bother, but would it be alright for me to spend the night here, away from the cold?"
You look the man up and down. He doesn't seem like a threat, though he does have a rifle on his back and a pistol tucked at his belt. He's wearing a brown jacket with a flannel underneath along with several other layers that look like they're getting soaked through from the light snow that's starting already. He has a patchy beard with some grays in it along with soft brown hair that matches his eyes.
The man doesn't look intimidating, besides the weapons he's carrying.
So, you do what your parents had always done when people stumbled upon your little house and tell him, "you can stay the night if you agree to bury your weapons somewhere outside. There's a shovel out back. Choose any spot away from my garden, please."
"I will happily take that offer, thank you." His voice is smooth and gentle, so you ease up a little as you watch him leave to go fulfill your request.
The man returns later with just his bag and as a show of faith, he empties it at the doorstep so you can see what he has in it. You notice how few supplies he has, so you sift through your cabinets for some spare canned goods.
"You can have these." You bring them to him. "I've got plenty."
"You're very kind." He gives you a brief smile before taking the cans from you. "Are you always this welcoming to strangers?"
"I wouldn't call you a stranger. You're simply a traveler passing through. Nothing strange about that in our world."
You quickly leave after you say that to give him a change of clothes, since his are soaked and the spare in his bag doesn't look very warm.
"Would you like to use my bath?" You ask, pointing over at the bathroom down the hall. "I haven't heated any water, so it'll be a minute, but you can take a nice, warm bath if you'd like."
"That sounds wonderful." He seems pleased with your offer. "You're a very good girl, treating me with such hospitality."
"We all deserve some normalcy." You leave him with those words so you can go start the fire for the bath water.
It takes around half an hour to boil enough water in intervals, since your stove is quite small and you can only carry so much water at a time. Though, the man, who lets you know that his name is Joel, helps with that, lugging the pot of water back and forth for you until the tub is filled. You tell him to take his time and that dinner will be ready whenever he's done.
When Joel finishes his bath, he meets you in the kitchen and you pour him a bowl of stew, which you invite him to eat by the fire. You've already eaten your portion so you opt to spend time organizing stock since the storm is coming in stronger than you anticipated. You haven't harvested your winter vegetables yet and you should probably do that now before they get buried.
"Something on your mind?" That southern accent sounds close now and you look up to see Joel standing beside you, empty bowl in his hand. "Thanks for the stew, it was delicious."
You smile, taking it from him so you can quickly wipe it clean and set it aside. Then, you answer his question with a light sigh, "I didn't expect the snow to start falling so quickly. I need to go out and salvage what I can from my garden before I'm snowed in."
"Can I help with that?" Joel offers and you shake your head.
"I can't ask you to do that. You just bathed, plus you're my guest."
"I can always bathe again. You shouldn't be out there alone right now. Let me help." His voice has this tinge of leadership in it that makes you want to follow him, so you eventually agree.
"Alright. In exchange, you can have some of the harvest." You make him a deal.
"Can I ask for something else?" Joel catches you by surprise with that. "Would it be okay if I stayed here until the storm ended?"
"Oh…" He's right. If the storm has started already, he'd be stranded out there if you kicked him out tomorrow.
But, is it really smart to spend an entire storm with a man you've just met?
You can't let him trek through the storm though, so you tell him, "if you help me with some repairs around the house, then you can stay as long as you'd like."
"I'd like that." His smile makes your heart skip a beat.
The rest of the evening is spent shoveling snow and pulling out as many vegetables as you and Joel can carry back and forth to the house before the storm gets significantly worse. You're both soaked head to toe and you're freezing once you both get back into the house. The fire isn't going to warm you up, so you'll definitely need a bath. But, you don't want Joel to get sick, so you offer to have him bathe first, but he declines, since you need to too.
"One of us is going to get sick waiting to bathe." You tell him as you start boiling the water for the bath.
"Then why don't we bathe together?"
Your ears must have been deceiving you and you turn to Joel, who is peeling off his soaked outer layer. He doesn't seem phased at all by what he just said but you're flustered.
"H-how would that work?" You're suddenly feeling warm all over, despite your shivering.
"It'll be like sharing a hot tub." He says with a chuckle. "Just keep your underwear on. I can keep my shirt on too, if you're more comfortable that way."
Now you're embarrassed for a whole other reason. Why did you just assume he meant getting into the bath with him naked? There's no way he'd ask that of you and you feel bad that you even thought such a thing.
"That would work. You don't have to keep your shirt on, but I think I will." You're too shy to be that bare in front of him, but keeping your shirt and underwear on is fine. He doesn't say anything else about it as you both start prepping the bath once again.
When it's ready, you realize there's another problem with this scenario. It's not all that big of a bath. How would you both fit?
"You'll just have to sit between my legs." Joel tells you while he strips. "I'll get in first and guide you into a comfortable position."
You let him take the lead, though you turn away when he pulls off his shirt and don't turn back until you hear him get into the bath. Then, you strip as quickly as you can, leaving yourself in just your shirt and underwear. Joel puts his hand out and you take it, letting him help you in. He has you sitting between his legs, with your back against his chest, and…it's oddly nice.
The bath water is very warm and your shirt rises a little since there's air under it, so you try your best to smooth it out, though that doesn't help much.
"Do you want to take it off?" Joel asks you, his warm breath tickling the back of your ear.
"I…" You would but… "I'm not wearing anything underneath."
You aren't the biggest fan of bras. They're only good when you're exercising or doing some heavy lifting and don't want your breasts to get in the way. So, you don't wear them regularly unless you feel the need to.
"I won't look." He rests his chin on your head. "I'll keep my eyes up so you can get comfy."
That would be nice. It's odd how easy things are around Joel because you feel like you can trust him to do as he says, so you opt to pull off your shirt, tossing it aside. It hits the floor, the wet sound echoing through the room. You adjust yourself so that your breasts are submerged beneath the water and when you tilt your head up, Joel has his lifted to the ceiling, not stealing any glances at you.
Though, it wasn't his eyes you should've been worried about. You hadn't noticed where his hands were resting until you felt one of them slide up to cup your breast and the other slips down into your underwear. You're about to say something but then Joel rolls his thumb over your nipple and you can't stop the light moan that leaves your lips at the sudden sensation.
"Does that feel good, baby girl?" He whispers right into your ear with such sultry affection. "Do you want daddy to keep touching you like this?"
Before you can reply, Joel presses a finger against your entrance and forces his way into you, making you gasp. Your toes curl when his finger does, filling you up so much out of nowhere. It's nothing like when you touch yourself and in combination with his other hand teasing your breasts, you can't hold in the soft whimpers from how good it feels.
You need to tell him to stop, but then he thrusts another finger inside of you and you cry out from how much he's stretching you out. You've never been this full before.
"You're so tight." That word lingers in the air and you're getting dizzy from his seductive tone. "Has no one ever touched you before?"
You shake your head, not knowing why you're able to answer him but not able to tell him to stop…
"Are you telling me this is all mine?" He pushes up against a spot inside of you with his fingers that makes your whole body shiver in reaction. "You're sucking me in, baby girl. I'm jealous of my own fingers."
There's so many questions you want to ask him, like why he's doing this to you and why it feels good even though you shouldn't want a random man you just met to touch you, but none of those questions can be asked when every breath you take is stolen by a moan or whimper.
Something's building inside of you, that tension you've only felt on occasion when you've been bored and masturbated. However, this is even more intense than those times, because you're not the one setting the pace.
Joel is aggressive with his touch, fingering you at a pace you wouldn't be able to. Then, every now and then, he spreads them, reminding you of how big his fingers are as they stretch you out.
You're on the cusp of your orgasm and that scares you.
Why are you about to cum from this?
Why aren't you stopping him!
"Don't hold it in." He urges you to let go. "Cum for your daddy."
You're not my—you can't seem to finish your own thoughts because he's forcing your orgasm onto you, his fingers ruthlessly grinding against that spot inside of you that makes you cum hard. You're thankful you're in the bath right now because you swore, you squirted for the first time. You've never came that much before, tears streaming down your eyes from the intensity of it.
The pleasure sears every inch of your skin, making it hotter than before and the steam from the bath isn't helping your mind calm down. You're getting lost in that daze and it's not ending.
Especially not when Joel keeps going and he adds another finger, spreading you wide open. You're gasping for air from how filled you feel and he must not like that because he takes his other hand and shoves his fingers into your mouth. You gag on them, not expecting to have his fingers invade your mouth, but he doesn't care that you feel that way.
Instead, he goes, "be a good girl and enjoy yourself."
You wonder how you're supposed to enjoy yourself when your mouth is as full as your pussy is but soon enough, you understand. Every moan you want to make is forced back down your throat by his fingers and it's hard to breathe like this but that just causes your body to tense up more around his fingers. They're hitting you so deep inside that you're going to cum again all too quickly.
You try to tell him to stop but your words come out all gurgled up from the saliva pooling up in your mouth since his fingers are playing with your tongue. You're practically drooling and you try to swallow, but that means you have to suck on his fingers to do so, which only riles him up more.
"That's good practice, baby girl." He encourages you to keep doing that to prepare yourself for something else. "I can't wait to bury my cock in this pretty little mouth and your tight wet pussy."
You're on the verge of tears again and you don't know if it's out of fear or arousal as you get closer and closer to your next orgasm. You don't want his cock anywhere near you but you realize then that he's been pressing his hard cock up against your back this whole time. If you thought his fingers filled you up, you were certain his cock would break you.
You start to panic, trying to shove his arm away from you so he can stop fingering you but that only angers him. So, Joel retaliates by pulling his fingers out of your mouth and wrapping his hand around your throat, squeezing it hard.
"Don't make me kill you." He threatens and you go completely still. "I don't want to, but if you keep misbehaving, I will."
"Please…" You sob out of pure fear. "Don't hurt me."
"I would never want to hurt you. You're my precious girl, so don't make me do anything I don't want to, okay?" He lightens his hold on your neck then and you inhale as much air as you can, trying to find your composure. "You're going to cum for me again and then I'm going to take you to bed. Understood?"
You don't want to say it but he'll kill you if you don't so you nod and tell him, "I understand."
"Address me correctly when you're talking to me." His fingers press into your neck, as a little warning.
You swallow your nerves then go, "I understand, daddy."
"Good girl. Daddy likes it when you listen." He gives you a soft kiss on the cheek, changing his tone all too easily. "Now, let me spoil my baby girl."
You brace yourself as his fingers curl their way back inside of you, going much more gently this time. Strangely, it's not enough to get you close. His pace is too slow, too soft, and you're trembling from how much you want him to be rougher with you.
"Say what you want." It's like he can read your thoughts. "Tell me and I'll do it for you."
You shouldn't say anything but your body is craving that feeling too much, so you give in and say, "more, please. I want more."
"Do you want me to go faster?" He asks as he does exactly that and you nod profusely. He suddenly slows though, so you know what you have to do.
"Yes, daddy, please go faster." You say what he wants to hear and he ramps up the speed again, giving you what you need. "Please don't stop, I'm so close…"
"I want to see it." Joel growls in your ear before you hear a pop and the plug in the tub is no longer in place. The water suddenly drains out rapidly and you stiffen at the cold air hitting your warm skin. "You better cum a lot for me."
You don't know what he means until he starts to move his fingers side by side inside of you and you squirt uncontrollably, screaming from how forceful he is at drawing your orgasm out of you. You can't think straight because you can't stop cumming, every orgasm gushing out of you against your will.
"Stop!" You shout because it's too much, you're too sensitive now and you're going to pass out. "I keep cumming, I keep–"
"That's good." He slowly corrupts you. "You want to keep cumming. You want to drown in the pleasure only I can give you. Enjoy it, baby girl."
And you do.
You hate how much you end up enjoying it, bathing in such bliss. It consumes you completely…and you faint somewhere along the way. You've never felt so good before. Your body can't handle it and you pass out from the high…
❅❅❅❅❅
Joel dries your hair for you while you're unconscious. He likes how peaceful you look, having fallen asleep to the orgasms he gave you. He wants you to look like this everyday and he'll make sure it happens.
A sweet girl like you deserves to be treated well.
Maybe that's why he can't resist touching you in your sleep. Joel watches as your chest begins to rise and fall more and more with every gentle stroke of his fingers. You're getting so wet for him now. He wonders what you're dreaming of and if he's in it.
He'd like to be. He wants you to only think of him. He's the only one that you need. He's the only one that matters. No one else will take you from him.
Joel refuses to make the same mistake twice. He loved Ellie like a daughter, raising her to be a strong woman. A woman strong enough to leave him in the dust because of a lie he made.
So, he has to be more careful with you. You're malleable, he's certain of that. You'll need some persuading, but you'll listen to him. First, out of fear, but eventually, out of love.
All he needs to do is tie you to him the only way he knows will work…by making you fall for him.
❅❅❅❅❅
It isn't until you wake that you realize your body is still heated from all the orgasms. You're aching from the waist down and you wonder why…until you see Joel between your legs, his tongue dragging up and down your pussy like he's starved for your taste.
How long has he been…you can't even formulate the sentence because he flicks your clit with his tongue and you squirt just a little from how overstimulated you are. A whimper leaves your lips because of it that draws Joel's attention to you and he smiles, happy to see you awake.
"How did you sleep?" His voice is so eerily calm…
You're unsure of how to answer that, so you ask back, "did you sleep?"
He nods. "I slept great, holding you in my arms."
"How long have I been asleep?" You're confused…
"A little over two days."
Your eyes widen at his words. Have you really been passed out for that long?
"Why are you down there?" If you've been asleep, why is he touching you?
"I needed to make sure whenever you were awake that you'd be nice and ready for me." He teases your entrance with three of his fingers before slipping each one inside of you slowly.
You brace yourself, expecting for the sudden stretch to hurt but…it doesn't. His fingers feel thick inside of you, but it's not anything you can't handle.
What did he do to you while you were asleep…
"You're almost ready for me, baby girl." His thumb presses lightly on your clit when he says that, sending shivers through you. "I've opened you up as best I could."
"Please, Joel…" You plead to him. "I don't want this."
"Your body says otherwise." He tells you as he curls his fingers and you nearly cum just from that. "See, you want this. Why are you running from it?"
"You're not giving me a choice." He's throwing himself at you and you're unable to stop him.
"I did give you a choice." Your breath catches in your throat when you hear the safety of your pistol flick off and Joel presses the barrel against your bare chest, right where your heart is. You only notice then that you're completely naked. "Either I kill you, or you enjoy my touch. I had assumed you'd chosen the latter, but if I'm wrong…"
His finger hovers over the trigger and you shake your head profusely, not wanting to die like this, not when his fingers are still teasing your insides. It's unbearable, the weight of the gun on your chest while his fingertips drag along that spot inside of you that makes your toes curl.
So, you succumb to the scenario you've found yourself in, "you're not wrong. I want this. I'll enjoy myself. I promise."
"Then, cum." He commands, keeping the gun steady on your chest. "Show me you're being honest."
You bite your lip and choke back your own dignity as you grind your hips against his hand, thrusting his fingers inside of you the way you need them to. You gasp when he starts to follow your rhythm, pushing you closer to the edge. It's a great distraction, because you barely notice the way he's trailing the pistol up your chest, but you're well aware of it when it brushes against your lips, forcing you to part them open.
Before you can beg him not to, Joel rests the barrel of the pistol in your mouth, the cold metal coating every one of your taste buds. You gag a little when he drags it against your tongue, but you can't focus on it while his fingers are inside of you. Tears start to stream from your eyes out of sheer terror and the most warped and frightening smile curves on Joel's face the moment he sees you.
That's when he undoes the safety of the pistol yet again and rests his finger on the trigger, his voice more menacing than ever as he goes, "cum for me right now or I'll blow your brains out, baby girl."
Every muscle in your body tightens at the threat and that's all it takes for the tension in your body to explode. You can't tell if you're screaming or moaning as your orgasm ripples through you violently, locking up every sense with nothing but pleasure. You can't feel, you can't see, you can't think.
All you can do is cum because that's what he wants from you.
Relief washes over you when Joel pulls the gun out of your mouth and tucks it away behind his back. His fingers release you from their hold and an empty feeling is tainting your mind. You've been so full for so long that it feels…wrong to be hollow.
How much has he corrupted you? How long is he going to stay until you're exactly what he needs you to be?
His baby girl…
You need to get out of here. You need to run. You need to fight Joel for your life back because you can't be his.
And yet, you can't find it in yourself to shove him away.
Not when he's whispering so softly to you, "good girl, that must've felt great. Let me make you feel even better now."
It isn't until you feel the tip of his cock press against your pussy that you snap back to the reality of it all. You're going to have your first time right now and he's going to fuck you raw.
The last bit of rationality courses through you as you plead, "please, don't do this. I don't have any condoms, I don't want to–"
"It's okay, darlin'." His southern accent sends shivers down your spine. "This is what you were meant for. This is what your body craves. Just let it happen and I'll take care of you."
You claw at his chest the moment he starts to force his way inside of you, his cock stretching you out more than his fingers did. You've never felt this kind of pressure before as he opens you up with every thrust. He doesn't like that you're trying to fight him, so the next time you shove at him, he smacks you right across the face. You gasp at the feeling and he pushes more of himself inside your swollen pussy then, smiling.
"You're so tight and yet you're taking every inch of me." Joel suddenly grabs you by your hair, pulling you forward so you can stare at the way his cock is slowly disappearing inside of you. "Almost there, just a bit more."
"Let me go." You cry out, wanting him to take his hand out of your hair. "Please, it hurts."
"Grab onto the headboard and I will." He makes you a deal and you listen, wrapping your hands around the metal.
His hand leaves your hair, letting your head drop back onto your pillow, and you relax just a bit. It doesn't last though, not when he pulls out a piece of fabric from his pocket and binds your wrists.
"Now, hold on tight, baby girl." His hands rest at your hips now, gripping your flesh. "I wouldn't want you to hurt yourself."
You don't understand what he means until he pulls his cock out of you and rams it back inside, hilting all of a sudden. He's too deep, too big and all too much for you.
You try to say something but he raises his hand at you before you can, instructing, "if you want to speak, you better address me correctly or I will have to teach you a lesson."
You swallow at his threat, your throat going dry. Goosebumps rise on your skin and you're scared to say anything but you want him to be gentle. He'll break you if he keeps being this rough.
So, you stuff your pride away and beg, "please go slowly, daddy."
His smile softens then, liking how you've listened, and he rewards you by rolling his hips, letting you get used to him being inside of you, grinding himself back and forth against every spot that makes your pussy tingle.
It's starting to feel good and that's frightening because you're biting back your whimpers. You can't enjoy this. It's wrong. He's taking you by force and yet your body is desperate enough to meet him halfway, wanting more.
"Does my baby girl enjoy being fucked?" Joel adjusts a bit so that he can thrust upwards into you, hitting that spot that makes you see stars. "Tell me you do."
You keep your mouth shut, not wanting to say a word, and he doesn't like that at all. So, when you're right at the cusp of your orgasm, he pulls out of you, leaving you struggling against your restraints.
"If you want it, say it." He starts to rub his hard cock against your pussy, teasing your sensitive clit with the tip of it. It's torture because it's not enough to get you there.
You need more. You need him inside of you.
Joel takes his time to torment you, dipping into you just a bit before pulling out, dropping his cock over and over again on your pussy, rubbing circles around your clit.
Eventually, you can't handle the denial anymore so you cave and go, "please fuck me. I want to cum."
"Say it again." He wants you to embarrass yourself further and your skin burns from it.
"I want to cum. Please fuck me. I need you, daddy." You add on, hoping that's enough.
It is, because the moment he thrusts inside of you, you cum. You cum all over his cock and he rewards you by fucking you harder, making your orgasm even more intense. You're gasping for air because it doesn't seem to stop. You're throbbing inside and every thrust sends such waves of pleasure through you.
"You're milking my cock so well." He praises you. "Someone's desperate for my cum."
Your eyes widen when you realize he must be close from the way he's pumping into you and you panic, "please cum outside, don't cum in me."
"How am I supposed to cum outside when you're not letting me go?" He tries to pull out but your pussy is gripping onto him too tightly.
"No, don't, please." You can't get pregnant. You can't have a baby with a man you've just met. You can't…but he won't let you decide otherwise.
"You'll feel so much better once you're all filled up." Joel reassures you in the worst way possible. "Soon, you'll beg for it."
There's no way you would. Why would you ever want such a thing?
"Enjoy it." He says sweetly to you, looking at you with such affection. "We won't be able to fuck much when you're pregnant, so it's best to make every time count."
You want to ask why he wants you of all people, a random girl he met in the middle of the woods in the winter, but you're certain he won't have an answer. Perhaps this was all just bad timing and even worse luck.
It doesn't feel like much at first, when he finishes inside of you. It's hot and it spills out of you when he pulls away. Joel takes his time, pushing as much cum as he can back inside of you. You hate the orgasms you have from that simple action.
It isn't until the second time that it feels…primal. You can't explain it, but when he's fucking you like a feral animal, you find yourself leaning into it. Your body isn't in tune with your mind anymore. It's not listening to your pleas because it knows it feels good to be taken by him. He never hurts you unless you do something he doesn't like, which is rare. He only ever wants you to feel pleasure.
Days go by of this, of just…constant breeding. You will sleep, then wake up, fuck, have breakfast, fuck, have lunch, fuck, do house chores then fuck in the shower afterwards, then eat dinner which always ends with you bend over the dining table because you're the meal he's actually hungry for. This cycle repeats until you get your period.
The disappointment on Joel's face stings. It's like you failed him. You couldn't give him what he wanted. You don't like the feeling…but a tiny voice in your head reminds you that you shouldn't want to please him anyways.
During your period, Joel teaches you how to suck his cock, since he can't fuck you. As a reward for learning, he caters to you, helping you with your cramps, rubbing your belly when it aches, cuddling you like you're the love of his life. It's…jarring, to say the least. You'll go from him fucking your face to him caressing your back and whispering sweet words to you.
Run. That tiny voice yells into the abyss that is your mind right now. Run far away from here.
You want to listen but…where would you go? You grew up here. You don't know anywhere else. This is your home and he's the intruder.
An intruder who's making himself at home.
"Does your stomach still hurt?" Joel asks because you've tensed up against him, your thoughts influencing your nerves.
"A little." You lean into his chest, not because you want to, but because he's warm and the winter has been cold. "I'll be okay."
"You'll always be okay, baby girl." He presses a soft kiss on your forehead, taking in a long breath before saying, "I'll keep you safe."
Safe from who? You wonder, because you aren't safe from him…
❅❅❅❅❅
Another month passes and you're late. You counted the days, mainly because Joel made you, and you're late. You've never been late before, which can only mean…
"We won't know for sure, but we can find out." You suggest. "There's a convenience store a few miles up. There's no food there, but there's plenty of pregnancy tests. I remember seeing them."
You chew on the inside of your cheek, hoping he'll take the bait. Please say yes.
You need to get him away from your house. You need to kill him but you can't do it here. You need to do it somewhere he isn't familiar with.
A place where you know a gun is hidden.
"Better to be sure." Joel agrees to the trip. "But you're coming with me."
"Okay." You knew you'd have to. "I'd like to walk with you. It's a nice hike, now that the snow has melted."
The rest of the day is spent preparing for the day trip. When it's finally time to sleep, you're surprised to feel Joel's cock harden behind you as he spoons you. He rubs himself against you and you hate how your body reacts to it, leaning into the feeling.
"Just to be sure." He whispers to you and you know what he means. He doesn't have to say much else.
You feel him nudge you until you're on your hands and knees and he's situated behind you, pulling down your pajama pants. Joel lines his cock up at your entrance and in one single motion, he fills you to the very brim. You can't hold in your moan, not when his body is pressing down onto you, engulfing you completely as he starts to pound into you.
"How does it feel to be mine, my sweet baby girl?" He asks, his hips meeting your ass perfectly.
"So good." You don't lie because you know it'll be the last time you do this with him. "Please don't stop, daddy."
"Never." He says, grabbing you by your hair so that he can kiss the back of your head. "I wouldn't dream of letting you go."
With his hand still in your hair, Joel continues to fuck you from behind, tugging you back to meet him. His lips on yours are sloppy, but you kiss him back, feeling connected with him on all levels. Your body moves against his in perfect harmony and you drown in the moment
It isn't until he whispers the words "I love you" that your heart pinches just a bit, remembering the reality. You're going to kill him tomorrow, this man who loves you in a sick and twisted way.
"Fill me up." You whisper back, giving him something else, since you can't give him your love. "I need you, Joel."
That's enough for him to finish inside of you, the heat spilling into you in waves. His cock pulses inside of you for a few moments before he pulls out and lays back beside you.
You go back to the way you were laying before, and he spoons you to sleep. You wonder what it'll feel like to sleep alone, now that you've slept with someone for this long.
You're going to miss it…maybe even him too…
❅❅❅❅❅
Now that the snow has thawed, the ground is much less muddy. You still had to wear your boots, which aren't uncomfortable but they're harder to run in. You don't think you'll need to run but…you want to stay prepared.
Joel tells you a bit more about himself on the walk to the convenience store. You're unsure if you want to know more about the man you're about to kill, but you can't refuse him, so you listen.
You don't expect him to tell you about Sarah…but now everything makes sense. Perhaps, he's been waiting for a chance to make things right. To raise a child who won't end up dying in his arms and leaving him forever.
You clutch your stomach when he's not looking, scared of your own mind. Scared that the tiny voice in your head is now whispering guilty thoughts…
You can't. It's not reasonable to have a child in a world like this. Especially not with a man like him.
You say that, but Joel has warped you in a different way. You won't lie and say you won't miss him when he's gone. It's hard not to miss someone you've spent the last two months getting to know in more intimate ways than two normal strangers would.
As a war breaks out in your mind, you and Joel get to the convenience store. The front glass is shattered, but it's always been like that. Looters at the very beginning of it all broke it, which is why there's moss going on the shards that were left behind. That's what your parents told you.
You miss them more and more with each passing day. They were well-prepared to have you, knowing they've set up a little oasis in the middle of disaster.
You can't have this child with Joel. You're ill-prepared to be a mother. You're unsure if Joel would even be a good father, even if he claims that's all he wants to be.
Would a good father taint someone else's daughter the way he has tainted you?
You hold back your sigh as you and Joel walk over the glass to get into the store. It's a small store, so it's not difficult to find what you're looking for. You wonder if these will even work, since they probably have an expiration date, but you just have to know.
For your own sake, more than Joel's.
Once you've packed a fair amount of pregnancy tests into your bag, you tell Joel that you've stashed some canned goods behind the counter in the off chance you might get stuck out and about, and you wanted to check if they were still there. It's not a lie, but you stashed a gun there too.
So, you go to the floorboard you hid everything under and pull it open and—
The sound of a gun's safety flicking off freezes you in your tracks. You swallow, hard.
Fuck, did Joel figure it out? You're too frightened to look up, scared that you'll be staring into the barrel of a gun.
But then, a new voice appears and she goes, "step away from her, Joel."
You glance up then and your eyes meet the girl's for a second. She's young, maybe barely eighteen, and yet she wields the gun you had hidden in the floorboards like she's used to handling them. That thought should worry you, but you're more worried about how she knows Joel.
Did he…do something to her too?
"Ellie, please." Joel pleads, his hands up. "Don't take her away from me."
"I know what you did to her." Ellie has her finger on the trigger, ready to shoot him. "I saw what she put in her bag."
"She's pregnant. We're going to be a family." He tries to reason with her. "Come back with us. We have a home. You'll have a little brother or sister soon. Wouldn't that be nice?"
"You're sick, Joel." She gestures for you to come over to her and even though Joel's eyes pierce into yours to stop you, you still make the trek over to her. Once you're securely behind her, she continues her harsh words to Joel, "you don't know what it means to be family. Family wouldn't do this, wouldn't do the things you've done."
"I can change. I can do better. I'm sorry."
You've never seen Joel so weak before. The once scary man that held you captive is now cowering before this girl.
"Sorry won't bring them back." Ellie tells him and you wonder what she means by that. "So, don't come looking for us. I'm taking her and I'm leaving now."
"Please, don't take her." He begs, his voice cracking as he goes, "I love her."
You open your mouth to say something, but Ellie stops you. Maybe she knows what you're about to say, or maybe she just doesn't want you to say it back to him. Not that you would…right?
"This isn't love, Joel." She tells him for you. "Whatever this is…it sure as fuck isn't love. I'm sorry. You did this to yourself."
The moment those words leave her mouth, she shoots Joel. You cover your ears at the sudden sound as it echoes through the quiet.
You hear Joel scream and you realize then that Ellie didn't shoot him in the head. She shot him in the leg, so he couldn't catch up to you two.
"We have to go, now." She grabs your hand and you both start to run.
Run, that voice comes back in your mind, run and don't look back.
❅❅❅❅❅
You and Ellie take a break once you're a good distance away from the convenience store. You give her some of your water, since it looks like she's low on supplies. She asks you about what happened and…you tell her. Not in full detail, but enough.
"That fucker." She seems angry at Joel for more than just what he did to you, but you won't pry about what exactly.
"Who is he to you?" You ask Ellie, wanting to know that instead.
"He's trouble. The kind of trouble I need the strength to take care of before he hurts anyone else…" She says, the anger leaving her voice as a sadness seeps in, "but I'm not strong enough yet. I couldn't kill him…but I will one day."
You can tell she doesn't want to, and you understand why. You might be the only one out there who understands her because you feel the same way.
There's no way Joel isn't looking for you two.
So, your journey with Ellie begins. You're both on the run from Joel, but also finding the will to hunt him too. All while wondering if he's imprinting himself onto you the way he wanted to.
You press your hand on your stomach and chills run through you.
You should've known Joel was trouble the moment he walked through your front door…
A/N: I've always wanted to write a villain!joel since I feel like it actually fits his character a lot, if he was given the right set of circumstances. I also am a big fan of the "I need to kill him before he kills me" trope, but with a twist! The addition of Ellie in this part makes me really happy and gets my mind rolling. The latter half of this one-shot is very plot-heavy, which is new for me but I kind of like it? It really builds up to a possible sequel! So, if you're interested in a sequel, please let me know! This really does have the potential to be a whole series ♡
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ouroborosorder · 1 year
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I once heard someone say that because Arknights' disability representation is mostly tied to their fantasy turbo-cancer, then it doesn't feel like real disabled representation, and I've been unable to get it out of my head, like a piece of popcorn stuck in my teeth. So, rather than doing my homework like I'm supposed to be, I want to talk about why I disagree and why I love Arknights' approach to disability.
So, for those who are unaware, Arknights has a shockingly high amount of disabled characters, and characters who are disabled in a lot of different ways, both caused by being Infected and just being disabled in the way that normal people are. Nightingale has chronic pain, Lemuen is the best sniper in Laterano while being in a wheelchair, Akafuyu is mostly blind, Eyja has severe hearing loss, Rosmontis has severe memory loss, Amiya has very severe PTSD, I could go on and on.
And of course there'd be a lot of operators with disabilities! Rhodes Island is a medical organization dedicated towards long-term care of terminally ill patients. Of course many of them would develop disabilities, and of course Rhodes would have the resources and facilities to help them. They even make notes of how to treat them in their medical files, like how Ejyafjalla's has a little guide on how to best have a conversation with her. It makes perfect sense, but I can't say a lot of games would think about it on that level.
And that why I like this game's approach to disability so much. A lot of video games just treat disability as "someone missing an arm" or "someone in a wheelchair because of Their Injuries From Combat. It's usually treated as an individual thing, just someone who got hurt, or who maybe has a frail constitution or whatever. But in Arknights, disability isn't simply treated as a character trait for individuals, but as part of the worldbuilding itself. The world is largely defined by Oripathy, this fatal degenerative disease with no cure. And the Infected are treated as second-class citizens, considered free labor that they don't have to treat ethically because they're dying anyway. The writers realized that this would cause severe disability, both real and fantastical, and worked it into the story and world.
This runs the other way, too! Arknights' worldbuilding follows a sort of social model of disability, in a way. There's a lot of fantasy stories that treat the inability to use magic as a sort of disability, but to Arknights, it's... not. Because Arts require specialized training, and so a lot of people just don't know how to use them, and might not even know they can't use Arts. So it's not treated as such, even though it is still a physical inability to perform things other people can.
But on the other end, Laterano's culture is based around the Sankta having empathic communication between each other. Mostima, as a fallen angel, can't use this telepathy anymore, and she speaks about how othering it feels sometimes, to be physically unable to engage with an important part of her culture. While it's not explicitly stated as a disability to the Lateran culture, I certainly feel like it's treated as one to some degree. Namely that it's explicitly contrasted with Fiametta's PTSD rendering her unwilling to empathize with the people around her, as opposed to Mostima's physical inability. It's the fantasy disability treated with the same weight as real world disability, because within the world of Terra, they're the same thing.
And of course there's just some of the more fucked up fantasy stuff like "On top of her existing narcolepsy, Ptilopsis was forced to become plural after she had to have part of her brain replaced with a computer that forces her to speak and think like a computer or else it causes her severe mental stress to the point of physical pain." Which uh. I don't know where that fits in the conversation but jesus christ someone hug that owl
Of course, its representation isn't always perfect. Just off the top of my head, Nightmare is a pretty rough stereotype, with the whole "Oripathy gave her multiple personality disorder with a violent personality trying to take control of her body!!" trope. And, of course, I'm sure other people have complaints with the representation of their disability in ways that I'm not aware of because I only have the perspective I have.
But... what I remember about this game's treatment of disability isn't when it fails. What I remember is reading Glaucus' module for the first time, the story of the first time she ever put on the mechanical exo-suit legs that allowed her to walk for the first time in her life. And I started bawling my fucking eyes out. I cried because, even though I don't know the specific feeling of walking for the first time in years, I know well what she felt. That feeling of liberation from something you secretly feared was just who you are now. Even though you know it won't be a perfect solution, the physically choking emotion that you're able to get a little closer to a normalcy you've always wanted. The feeling that right now, the only thing you can do is run like the wind.
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