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reidmotif · 9 months

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Behind Closed Doors Pt. 2

Summary: Reader and Spencer get caught having sex in the storage closet, in possibly the most embarrassing way possible.

A/N: This is a requested Part 2 to my other fic by the same name, "Behind Closed Doors" . For the full experience, read them back to back!

Couple: Spencer Reid/Fem!Reader

Category: Smut

Content Warning: Reader POV, drinking/drinking games, rough sex, unprotected sex, hair pulling, semi-public sex, tipsy sex (if you squint), exhibitionism (kind of)

Word Count: 2.9k

The storage closet at the BAU had become somewhat of an unlikely sanctuary for Spencer and I.

I didn’t realize how much I’d end liking it, especially since my boyfriend and I had always managed just fine with no PDA at work for long periods of time, but once I got a taste of it- I was fucking addicted.

Maybe it was the thrill of knowing we could be caught at any moment, or the idea of someone hearing my moans through the thin door of the small space, begging Spencer for more and more until I was practically sobbing.

Or maybe it was that Spencer seemed to lose all control when we were in the closet, any and all previous inhibitions and protests leaving him as soon as we closed the door, his hands immediately sneaking under my shirt, cupping my bra and removing it, touching me in any way fathomable. His lips would make their way down my neck, teasing me until I was needy and desperate, and then he’d let loose, fucking me like we’d never get the chance to do this again.

All in all, the closet was definitely a wonderful addition to the places we’d had sex in.

When Spencer and I had arrived at the bar for drinks after our most recent case, we weren’t really expecting too much from the night. It was meant to be celebratory, to commence a job well done from the entire team and while nights like this could get rowdy, Spencer and I had already planned to leave earlier into the night than usual to spend some time with just each other. (And to just have loads of sex, truthfully).

Spencer had his hand in mine as we entered, spotting our team in the back in a little booth, already seeming to have gotten started on their drinks for that night. They smiled and waved us over and we approached them. Spencer let me slide in first, while he scooted in next to me, our thighs touching due to the small and intimate setting of the booth. It didn’t bother him, and he let his hand let go of mine before placing it on my thigh. It was comforting, as if a way to subtly tether us to each other even while we were in front of the team.

We all exchanged hellos and pleasantries before Derek pushed two shots towards us.

“Drink up.” He said, with a smirk. “For being late.” He added.

I rolled my eyes playfully, before grabbing the drink and tipping my head back and taking it. The familiar burn of tequila hit the back of my throat, and I made a face.

“Eugh. Tequila? Seriously, Derek?” I said, scrunching up my face and placing the shot glass down, watching as Spencer mimicked my actions, having a similar reaction, albeit less pronounced than mine.

“Come on, pretty girl.” Derek said, winking. “Live a little. Plus, we all did them before you were here, so it’s only fair.”

I laughed a little, already feeling a little tipsy and nodded. “Fine. Fine.” I said. “I’m not leaving here without at least one Cosmo in me though.”

After a trip to the bar and a few drinks, conversation became lively, and jokes were exchanged freely. Everyone had loosened up quite a considerable amount, including Hotch, who was known for a much more stoic appearance at these things.

It was JJ who eventually suggested we all take part in a drinking game, a habit from her teenage years emerging, when the options for entertainment in her small town were limited between drinking or visiting a local grocery store. If there was anyone skilled at turning a seemingly mundane situation into a lively one, it was her.

“Ooh!” Penelope said, clearly enticed by the idea. “What do you propose we do?” She said, clasping her hands excitedly together and laughing.

“How about Never Have I Ever?” JJ suggests, smirking. I internally groaned. Never Have I Ever was fun, but when it turned sexual it was always a bit awkward for Spencer and I specifically. Whereas the married members of our team had the luxury of not having their partners there when risque questions were asked, Spencer and I would awkwardly put down both our fingers at the same time, watching as our team put two and two together and realize we’d actually done that thing together. It was all in good fun and it didn’t bother me or him that much. We were a couple. Of course we had sex- but still. Having everyone at the table know that the man who was the cause for all my put-down fingers and empty shot glasses was actually right next to me always proved to make some interesting situations for the two of us.

Still, we agreed good naturedly and smiled, as noises of approval spread among the table, everyone seemingly on board with the idea.

JJ looked happy, opting to ask the first question, since it was her suggestion in the first place.

“Okay, okay.” JJ says, excitedly. “Never have I ever.. slept with a coworker.” She flashed a mischievous smile, her eyes seemingly drifting towards our side of the table.

Spencer and I immediately groaned and the table erupted in laughter.

“Sorry, sorry.” JJ said, putting her hands up in playful defense. “You know I had to. It’s practically tradition at this point when we play."

Spencer and I clinked our respective drinks with a small smile exchanged between the two of us, letting the bitter and burning liquid plague our throats. Penelope took a shot as well, since she had been with Kevin. We all argued for a bit that technically JJ’s relationship hinged on the fact that she’d met her husband working on a case. It was eventually decided that since Will never worked at the BAU specifically, JJ was void from putting a finger down. Even then, JJ wasn’t about to turn down the opportunity to drink and took a shot anyway, and grinned. “Onto the next person.” She said, raising her shot glass to the person on her right.

Derek beamed brightly, being the next person in succession to ask a question. “Alright, my turn.” Derek pauses. “Never have I ever had a threesome.” He says, confidently.

Emily smiled, sipping from her glass. “That’s me.” She said, tipping her head back and seemingly having no reaction.

“Really Prentiss?” Derek said, smirking a bit. “How was he?”

“Who said there was a ‘he’ at all?” Prentiss fired back, with a smirk and Derek nodded, raising his eyebrows and nodding. “Damn.”

“Damn indeed.” Prentiss said, laughing a bit. “My turn. Erm. Never have I ever had sex in public.”

Spencer and I glanced at each other, hesitated, before lifting up our drinks to our lips simultaneously. The entire team’s eyes widened, watching us.

“Hold on- what?” Penelope said, leaning over. “No way! You two are so.. proper!” She exclaimed, in disbelief. “Where would you even..?” She says, trailing off, trying to figure out how she could reason this in her mind.

“Hey, I don’t kiss and tell.” I say with a smirk. Spencer let his hand snake around my waist, away from the eyes of our incredulous coworkers.

Derek laughs a little. “Well, at least we can be sure you two aren't the closet couple.” Derek remarks, and the team laughs. "That isn't something you'd ever do."

“Closet couple?” Spencer says, and even if he’s trying to hide it, I could sense the edge in his voice.

“You know!" Penelope said, excitedly. “Nobody knows who they are- but there’s this couple who keeps sneaking into the storage closet off the hallways to have sex.”

Prentiss interrupts. “I’m telling you, it’s that guy and girl downstairs in Records.” She says, nodding with absolute certainty. “All alone in that basement all day? I’d want sex that makes me scream like that too.”

I heard the words and could feel my cheeks immediately heat up. Jesus, they were talking about me. Spencer and I were fully aware of the fact that we could be caught, especially since we weren’t exactly the best at staying quiet, but hearing our team discuss us- our sex, right in front of us without even realizing it was a mortifying experience nonetheless.

“I just wanna know what he’s doing to her in there.” JJ muses, and everyone nodded in agreement. “Like, are you having sex or absolutely murdering the girl in there?”

Spencer blushed at that, and now both of us were avoiding eye contact with the team, but they seemed totally unfazed, considering they were continuing their conversation about the aforementioned couple.

“I swear, somedays I want to stand outside that closet just to see who comes out, but they spend such an ungodly amount of time in there and there’s only so long you can listen to two people having sex before it gets weird.” Emily remarked, and JJ laughed.

“We’d have to take shifts, trying to catch them in the act.” and everyone agreed, nodding. “He must last long if they can spend that much time there..” JJ noted, offhandedly.

“As fun as it is to speculate on who’s having sex in a closet.” Hotch starts, “It’s getting late. I’m going to finish us off with an easy one.” Hotch says, looking at the team.

“Never have I ever had sex in a storage closet.” Hotch says, clearly expecting none of us to take the last few remaining shot glasses on the table.

Spencer bit his lip, hesitantly reaching over the table to take two shots for himself and me, and we both downed it. As we set our glasses down, we were met with the shocked faces of our coworkers. Derek's mouth was slightly agape, and Penelope pointed between the two of us, trying to connect the dots.

“You know what?” I say, loudly, before any of them can say anything. “I think that’s our cue to leave.” I comment, starting to push Spencer out of the booth, and he immediately understands my urgency. He grabs my hand and nods.

“Yeah, it’s getting late.” He says, hurriedly getting out of the booth. “We’ll see you all on Monday!” He let his strong grip nearly drag me out of the booth, and we had our backs to the team in a split second.

“Hold on! You can’t just-” Penelope called out, but we’d already made it halfway across the bar before our coworkers could question us about what had just happened. As we left the bar in a panicked rush and felt the cold wind nipping at us, we took one look at each other and burst into laughter.

“Is it safe to assume they know?” Spencer said, through laughs.

My own chuckles came out a little embarrassed. “Incredibly safe to assume, actually.” I said, smirking at him nonetheless. “Now we know that all our coworkers think you’re murdering me during sex.” I say, playfully nudging his shoulder.

Spencer wraps his arm around my waist, pulling me into a soft, yet passionate kiss. It takes me by surprise but I immediately melt into it, wrapping my arms around him. I can feel his lips moving against mine, and when he slips his tongue in, I can feel the taste of liquor transferring from his mouth to mine. He pulls back and grins, boyishly.

“I’ll take it as a compliment.” Spencer said, his lips brushing against mine as he spoke.

I bit my lip. He looked so fucking sexy right now, the adrenaline from the game and the drinks making his complexion look rosy and hot. His hair was messy from our kiss, and his lips slightly swollen. Despite what felt like embarrassment in the bar, I realized it didn’t corrode the fact that I desperately wanted the man.

“Spencer.” I say, tugging on his shirt. “I need you.” I breathe out.

"I need you too, baby." He responds, rubbing small circles into my waist.

"No, I need you. Please." I say, hoping he caught onto what I was asking for, without me explicitly saying so.

He knits his brows, understanding, and he let his hands linger on my waist. “Okay, baby.” He says, hesitantly. “Let’s get back home-”

My desire, only heightened by the alcohol I’d consumed, caused me to shake my head. “No.” I interrupted. “Please, I need you now.” I say, using a voice that would go straight to his cock, full of broken desperation and need for him, just for him.

It worked. He took one look at my blown out pupils and my parted lips and looked around. “I don’t wanna go back to the bar since the team could see us.” He groans.

“Then here.” I say, frantically.

“(Y/N).” He says, rubbing my shoulders. “I love sex just as much as you do but the front of a bar is not-”

“Not here.” I say rolling my eyes. “The back. That one alleyway?” I say, praying to every God that my boyfriend would just say yes. And thankfully, he did. His face broke out in a smug expression, realizing we could actually have sex now, nearly dragging me as much as I’d allow him. I could feel the exhilaration and lust permeating from both of us, and as soon as we got to the alleyway, he got to work, kissing up columns up and down my neck. He didn’t even bother to check if someone was out there, turning his entire focus to me, to us, and how badly he wanted this.

With every kiss and bite at my neck, my whimpers grew louder, and he cruelly put a mouth over my mouth, muffling my sounds.

“Stay quiet.” He growled, and I looked at him, my eyes begging him to just fuck me already.

“I think enough people know how much of a needy slut you are already, mm?" He says, beginning to undo my jeans and flipping me around, so his broad chest was up against my back. "Or are you that much of a whore that you want the people at the bar to know too?”

He let the hand encompassing my mouth drop, and leaned over to whisper in my ear. “Make one noise, and I stop.” I then realized that I could feel the head of his arousal rubbing against my folds, and my knees nearly went weak from the sensation. I hadn’t even realized we’d moved this fast, and suddenly, he entered me with a rough thrust, nearly pushing me into the wall.

It took everything in me not to let out a yelp of surprise, and the bite I had on my tongue in this moment was sure to draw blood, but I didn’t care. All that mattered was every rough thrust that Spencer fucked into me, holding my hips with a bruising force, jutting into me like a man possessed.

“You like that, mm?” Spencer whispered, leaning over to let his ears brush over the shell of my ear. “You like the idea of being caught? Of everyone knowing how fucking well I treat you?”

I nod, wildly. “Yes.” I whisper. “Spencer, please-”

But my words are cut off by another pass of his cock in me, leaving my jaw dropped but no sound coming out.

“Come on, baby.” He grunts, cruelly. “Gave you one rule, didn’t I?” He says. He notices how weak my knees have gotten in the midst of our rendezvous, and he quickly grips onto my hair, pulling me up against him. “Can’t be a good girl for me?” He teases, a ruthless lilt in his tone.

I whimper, nodding. “I can. I can” I mumble incoherently. I start to fuck back on him, matching the movement of his hips into mine, feeling myself rapidly approach my orgasm. “Please. I need- I need-” and without thinking of the consequences, I come, feeling the tension leave my body in pleasure inducing waves that cause my entire body to convulse. This only spurs him on to go faster, feeling the clench of my cunt around his cock.

“Fuck- you feel so good. So fucking good around me.” He praises, and in an instant, his head is thrown back and I can feel him emptying himself inside me with a shudder, still gripping my hair with a desperate, primal need. He's panting, and breathless, and he pulls out as he finishes, tucking himself back into his pants quickly. He lovingly turned his attention to me, fixing me up as well. I whimpered softly as he took care of me, brushing my hair back and pressing small kisses to the back of my neck.

He turns me back to face him once he managed to get my underwear and jeans back up, and caressed my face, planting a tender kiss on my lips, then my forehead, and then bringing me close for a hug. I can feel the scent of sex, liquor and his cologne swarming my senses, and it only causes me to retreat into him deeper. I sense him breathing in my scent, and it makes me smile, knowing we both derived the comfort we needed from each other in that moment.

Finally, he mumbles against the top of my head.

“Let’s get a cab and go home. Let me run you a bath. You’re so good to me.” He murmurs, still holding me in his arms like I was the last precious thing on Earth.

I giggled against him, nodding. “Yeah. Yes, please.” I say, still a bit breathless, retreating from his embrace. “I’m surprised I managed to convince you to do that.” I remark, smirking a little, despite myself. “I can’t imagine how many germs are in an alleyway.”

My boyfriend, of course, cringes. “Don’t remind me.” He says, squeezing my hand. beginning to lead me to the main road to find a cab. He then looks at me, a little smugly. “But I’d say it was worth it, right?”

“Absolutely.” I respond, squeezing his hand back, a smile gracing my face. He smiles back, and I feel my heart jump.

I don't think I'll ever stop feeling like I’d won the lottery when it came to him.

ahh! only got it out 1 day late. so that's good. hi! hope you enjoyed. nearly 4 people requested a part 2, so i hope you guys liked my take on the team "catching" them. any likes, reblogs, comments are so appreciated. thank you for reading. i am eternally grateful. ty!!! cannot say it enough

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euovennia · 1 year

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oh oh - and if it’s not too much trouble to ask, an addition to mom/dad friend simon, maybe another hc where reader takes a bullet for him and he’s like "why would you do that" and she’s all like "because your my friend" and he’s like "🥹" rubbing my hands together deviously

so for anyone new, this post is a continuation of this request, but it can be read as a stand alone if you so choose! i will say simon may be a bit ooc but you've already been besties forever so it's fine. thank you to the anon who requested this, i hope i did it justice. now please, enjoy <3

so by this point it's become well established that you and simon are pretty much a package deal

one can never be seen without the other trailing too far behind

unless of course one of you (usually simon) is actually trying to do their job

but even then you both have a tendency to hover

well

the hovering is usually done by simon who will take it upon himself to sit somewhere in the same room as you while you work

but you're more direct in your approach

which basically means you have no hesitation in pulling up a chair and talking his ear off

depending on his mood/what he's working on he'll either slide something your way in hopes of distracting you into silence or he'll take part in your mindless chatter

it's usually the latter much to the annoyance of price whose come to notice that simon tends to submit his mission reports just a tad later than normal when you're around

but he doesn't dare say anything because he's just happy simon finally has someone to keep him company

even if it does mean him missing a deadline here and there

now with the amount of time you two spend around one another, there was the small concern that you two may become a bit more reckless on missions together

but honestly?

that couldn't have been farther from the truth

as much as you like messing around with simon, you're very aware that your line of work requires your full attention

so, despite how hard it can be at times, you limit your jokes and general shenanigans to the bare minimum so you can get the job done

and obviously it goes without saying that he does the same by shedding the name simon riley and becoming the infamous ghost

it was a bit startling for the team to witness this change at first

they honestly thought you two were mad at each other

but after the mission was said and done, you and simon started hanging out again and it just kinda clicked

simon probably uses you as an example to soap to be honest

anyway, point is

you both know how to keep your friendship out of the way in the field, you've practically mastered the art of it

but the moment you see him get into a knife fight with an enemy soldier on a mission, you can't help but worry

and you can't help the way your worry morphs into panic as you see a tiny red dot plant itself on his body as he finally drives his knife into the neck of the rival soldier

and you certainly can't help the way your feet seemingly begin to move on their own as you sprint toward ghost and practically ram him into the ground

and you most definitely can't help the yelp of pain that drops from your lips as you feel a searing hot pain rip through your lower abdomen

so much for those bullet proof vests

simon looks up from his position on the ground, knife in hand and ready to stab it into the poor soul dumb enough to tackle him like this

but then he sees you

he sees your face, eyes wide with shock and mouth agape

his eyes trail down your body and he swears his world nearly crashes as he stares at the dark red spot currently staining your shirt

he can only fear the faint sound of yet another gun going off before you're tumbling onto the ground

he snaps out of his daze to catch you and he can't help but feel horrified upon seeing another bullet wound lodged into your thigh

he can hold in his cry of agony and heartbreak as your breathing soon becomes labored and your eyes fill with tears

he gives your struggling form a once over before sucking in a sharp breath and dragging you to a nearby hill that was littered with enough rocks and boulders to offer shelter from the incoming storm of bullets

he settles your head onto his lap as he harshly barks out words you can't even begin to understand through the comms

you can barely register the way his hand gives your face a small smack

your eyes connect as he pulls a roll of gauze from his tactical backpack, "come on, kid. don't do this to me. just a bit longer."

even with the searing hot pain that was overruling all your other senses, you can't help but smile

you grab onto his inked forearm and he stops as he looks back at you, eyes wild and frantic

"hey simon?"

"what?"

"thanks for putting up with me."

your eyes begin to flutter open, a small hiss of discomfort escaping your mouth as you cringe at the bright overhead lights

you make a move to bring a hand up in front of your eyes to shield yourself form the harsh fluorescents, but stop your movements when the lights suddenly begin to dim

confused, you begin to look around the room only to see simon standing by a wooden door with his hand on what you assumed to be a light dimmer

he stares at you through the eye holes of his balaclava, "better?"

you offer him a nod paired with a small smile and open your mouth to offer your thanks but stop when he puts the lights back up to their full brightness causing you to let out a groan

you open your mouth once more to vocalize your complaints and throw a half-hearted insult his way, but stop when you hear the heavy footfall of simon's boots making their way over to your hospital bed

he comes to a stop by your bedside as he glares down at you, a swirl of emotions darkening his already hardened gaze

after giving your eyes a few moments to adjust he speaks, "you're the stupidest person i've ever fuckin' met."

your eyes widen as your jaw goes slack, "excuse me?"

he leans down and stops just a few inches short of your face, "i said you're stupid and i'd yank you off the field myself if i could."

you can feel your heart drop at his harsh tone but decide to soldier on, "you're in a good mood today, aren't ya?"

his eyes narrow and a growl of anger and frustration escape the lips hidden by his mask, "don't give me any of that shit, you know what you did."

you sigh, "i'm in a hospital bed, simon. i don't think i could've done any–"

you don't even get to finish your sentence before he's interrupting you, "why'd you do it?"

you stare up at him, confusion and annoyance evident on your face

"simon, what are y–"

he scoffs, "the fucking bullet! you took the fucking bullet! why'd you do that? what made you think that was a bloody good idea? do you have any fucking clue what you put this team – what you put me through?"

right

your expression melts into one of sheepishness as you attempt to get in a word, but stop when simon decides to continue

"i had the situation handled, i could've taken care of myself! i'm smart, i'm capable, and i have years more experience than you do so tell me, i can handle myself! i don't need you steppin' in and throwin' yourself in front of bullets! you coulda fuckin' died!"

"simon–"

he points a finger in your face as he continues on with his rant, "no, you don't get to call me that, not anymore. from here on out, you either address me as ghost or lieutenant, nothing else until you can learn how to handle yourself on the field. we need soldiers, not daredevils. do you understand?"

you exhale, "no."

before he can continue with his angry tangent you sit up with a painful grimace and grab the pillow the pillow your head once rested upon and fling it at him

he narrowly dodges it and stares at you with a mix of rage and pure disbelief with a glare that practically screamed, "what the fuck."

hit block limit again. i'm afraid this may become a habit. anyway.

taking his silence as your cue to speak, you do just that, "okay fine, you're right. i probably shouldn't have tackled you down like that and taken a bullet for you, i probably should've remembered that you're a fully capable man with more experience than me, and i probably should've remembered that the field is no place to be playing favorites. you're right, i should've kept that all in mind but–"

you let out a small sigh as you avert your eyes to the think blanket draped over your body, "when i saw that gun pointed right at you i...i couldn't bring myself to care about any of that. at that moment, all i saw was you in danger and i couldn't have that so i did what i did. you can reprimand and punish me all you want for doing it, but i don't care. i stand by my actions."

simon eyes you for a few moments longer before grabbing onto a chair nearby and settling it beside your bed

you watch as he sits down with a small sigh, his eyes never leaving yours

"why?"

your brows knit together in confusion

"why what?"

"why'd you take a bullet–no, why'd you take two bullets for me? you and everyone else on this team know i could've handled it, so why?"

you frown, "because you're my friend, simon. why else?"

once those words leave your mouth, you're greeted with his blank ghost stare

again, he's just 👁️👁️

and you feel a small wave of concern wash over you

this is the same man who was torturing you with the bright fluorescent lights and lecturing you to hell just a few minutes ago and now he's just staring at you

still and silent as ever

you almost ask if he's okay, but stop yourself when he brings his large hand up to the edge of your hospital bed and begins inching it closer to yours before eventually resting it over yours

it's quiet for a few moments longer before he speaks in one of the quietest voices you've ever heard from him, "you took that bullet cause i'm your friend?"

you can't help but soften your own voice as you respond, "my best friend."

upon hearing you say that, simon can just feel the small well of tears that begin building up in his eyes

and as much as he wants to fight them off, he just can't

you, already being able to sense the internal war he's got going on inside his head, simply turn your hand so you can grip onto his and give it a firm squeeze

and by god he hates you for that

because now he can't help but disconnect your hands in favor of surging forward and wrapping his arms around you

you swear you can feel the small rumble of his shoulders as he tries and fails to conceal his quiet sniffles but you decide to overlook it because oh my god simon 'ghost' riley is crying in your arms and it's all your fault

so you decide it's best to just hold onto him as tight as you possibly can

he notices this and he just melts

what did he do to deserve you?

what overpowering force of life felt that he was good enough for the sunshine that is you?

who gave him the honor of being blessed with you?

he's not sure but quite frankly, he doesn't really care

not when you're holding onto him like your life depends on it

not when you pull back from the hug, look into his eyes, and offer him the brightest smile he's ever seen

and certainly not when you grab onto his hands and speak in that sweet honey voice of yours, "i'll always take a bullet for you. i can't lose you, simon."

jesus christ you're going to make his heart burst

he sucks in a small breath and squeezes onto your hands, "i can't lose you either, kid."

you only smile, "you won't, i'm always gonna be here with you."

words that once would've annoyed him to no end now set his cold heart alight

"you fuckin' better."

your smile widens and you lean forward to capture him in yet another hug

with his arms wrapped tightly around your body and you pressed up against him, he can't help but smile

it's definitely nice to have a friend

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dailyadventureprompts · 9 months

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The Mechanics of Baldur's Gate 3

As someone who's constantly tinkering with the mechanics of my favourite RPG, I LOVE a lot of what Larian has done with D&D; not only accurately translating the base system but improving upon in ways I never thought of.

Playing BG3 feels good, and I want to see how much of their work I can adapt for my own table. As such, here's a breakdown of a bunch of little tweaks they've made to 5e (taken from the bg3 wiki) and whether or not I think they're a good fit for regular pencil and paper d&d.

Shove is not a part of the attack action. It is a bonus action available to all characters. Shove only pushes the target back an amount that depends on the shover's strength and the target's weight. It normally does not knock them prone unless they are shoved off a high ledge.

This might be THE best design Larian implemented and is instantly going in my games. Bonus action shoving is such a natural addition to combat, gives so many more tactical options. My one protest is that I am NOT calculating the weight of every creature and object ( mainly because I'm terrible at guessing weights for things) so I'd go with the distance calculation based on the creature's size and con score.

Gaining inspiration based on backgrounds

Gee, a mechanical reward for roleplaying your character, one that's way more straight forward than the DM arbitrated "ideals, bonds, flaws," system. From now on I'm going to give each of my players an upfront " You gain inspiration when you ______" note on their character sheet based on their backgrounds.

The party is limited to two short rests per long rest. Short rests restore each ally's hit points by an amount equal to half their maximum HP (rounded down). There is no hit die rolling. Long rests require camp supplies, which are food items that must be looted or purchased. In towns you will be able to rest at an inn.

This is a mixed bag for me only because I like hitdie as a mechanical abstract and I don't want to see them removed. Tbh I wish more mechanics interacted with them and they were called something abstract like "stamina" or something. That said I ADORE the camp supplies idea because it not only gives you something minor to reward exploration with besides GP. On the otherhand tracking all those supplies without the game's inventory management would be tedious as hell so it'd need to be highly simplified.

I especially like the idea of limited short rests/supplies in larger survival based adventures where time isn't at a premium like it is inside a dungeon.

If you hide while not in a creature's sight cone, you automatically succeed. If you try to hide while in a creature's sight cone, you automatically fail. If you are hidden and enter a creature's sight cone, you must roll stealth against the creature's passive perception. This may be a straight roll, advantage, or disadvantage, based on the creature's senses and the level of lighting. Some creatures with different senses such as blindsight may follow different rules

Congrats on fixing stealth rolls Larian. No notes.

LOTS more opinions under the cut.

When a creature is at least 10 ft above their target and makes a ranged attack, they receive a +2 bonus to the attack roll due to high ground. When a creature is at least 10 ft below their target and makes a ranged attack, they receive a -2 penalty to the attack roll due to low ground.

This is fine, and quite inline with a lot of fixes I've seen for flanking rules. I'm fine with a little extra battlefield math in order to make moments of advantage (spending inspiration, reckless attacking etc) shine.

The game does not stop a character from casting a leveled spell with both an action and a bonus action

Mixed on this, on one hand I've played enough clerics to know how much it sucks to have to use your bonus action to do a necessary spell and then be stuck with a so-so cantrip or melee attack for standard. On the other hand there's some design balance issues at play here.

Help is an Action. This ability allows characters to aid an ally in combat and remove negative Conditions. Using the help action on a downed ally brings them back to 1 hit point and leaves them prone.

Love the idea of help doing multiple things AND being a solution to minor status conditions. and giving everyone the ability to help means I can be a lot more aggressive when it comes to knocking character to 0. if I had to further patch this, I'd say that this also allows for a medicine check to allow a creature to spend a hitdie when they're downed, or allows the helping character to make a "SNAP OUT OF IT, WE'RE YOUR FRIENDS" charisma roll for charmed allies.

Jumping is a bonus action which consumes 10 ft of movement speed. With a Strength score of 10 or below, a creature can jump 15 ft, and this increases by 5 ft for every two points in strength above 10. At 20 Str a creature may spend 10 ft of movement speed and a bonus action to jump, and can travel 35 ft effectively increasing the creature's movement speed by up to 25 feet.

This, combined with the prone rules (see below) is JUICY, as it allows for risk-reward battlefield mobility . That said I'd add some caveats/clarifications: The jump always succeeds in moving you, but if you're taking damage, jumping up or down more than 10ft, or into rough terrain you need to make an acrobatics check not to beef it and fall prone (ending your turn). Your jump is likewise a buffer for how far you can willingly fall before taking damage, but if you fall after your jump, you always land prone.

Weapon actions, 'nough said.

It's more complexity than I'd give to first time players but HOT DAMN if it isn't a great idea to give the martial characters some options instead of just making the same attacks over and over again. I've actually been sockpiling 3rd party versions of this for a while now and I can't wait to add them in.

All The conditions are great:

Blinded: In addition to the other effects, ranged attacks are limited to 15 ft range. Blinded creatures can also make opportunity attacks.

Frightened: Creatures which are frightened are unable to move at all (rather than being unable to move toward the source of their fear), unless the effect instead makes them "fearful" which gives them the frightened effect as well as making them flee.

Prone: Being prone gives disadvantage on Strength and Dexteritysaving throws, attacks against a prone creature have advantage out to a range of 10 ft rather than 5 ft, and ranged attacks against a prone creature do not have disadvantage. Your character cannot do anything while prone. Starting the turn while prone will cause you to automatically use half your movement to stand up. Becoming prone during your turn automatically ends your turn.

Wet: This is a new condition that prevents the character from burning (e.g. from Searing Smite) and grants resistance to fire damage, but also makes the creature vulnerable to lightning and cold damage

#bg3 #baldurs gate 3 #d&d mechanics #dnd homebrew #homebrew mechanic #dnd #dungeons and dragons #d&d #ttprg #pathfinder #yes I know I misspelled the title

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sagencelestient · 9 months

Text

Love in the Storm

⋆☆.⭒.~~Genre: Smut!

afab!virgin!reader x dom!Scaramouche (Not wanderer, but they're basically the same person)

⋆☆.⭒.~~Warnings: Fingering(?), Giving head, Intercourse, and some degradation

-⋆☆.⭒.~⋆☆.⭒.~⋆☆.⭒.~⋆☆.⭒.~⋆☆.⭒.~⋆☆.⭒.~-

You definitely didn’t think this was how you were going to spend the night. You listened to howling winds and the absolute pouring rain that was outside the small cave you and Scaramouche found. The storm didn’t show any signs of stopping, so you and him were definitely going to be stuck in here for some time.

The fact that you thought that everything was going to be fine too! You and Scaramouche were paired up for a mission before all this happened… Well, the only thing you can do is to wait it out.

You were very ill-prepared for this, as your bag had a limited amount of food, and the clothes you were currently wearing weren’t the best choice for the rapidly dropping temperatures of the cave. And with no means to light a fire, your only choice was to pace in circles to try and conserve as much heat as you can.

“My god, COULD YOU STOP WALKING AROUND?!” Scaramouche chided, “Your footsteps are getting annoying. Just sit still. Are you really that pathetic as to not even be able to stay still for a few minutes?”

“I’m just trying to keep warm, okay!?” You shot back at him. The cold was getting on your nerves, and he would soon be too.

You continued to walk around, ignoring what he said earlier.

“When’s this rain going to be over anyway? This is wasting my time. And you’re making the time pass by slower!”

“So then? Help me find a way to warm up without moving! We can’t make a fire or anything, and I don’t have any spare blankets! So what do you expect me to do? Cuddle with you or something?!” You retorted.

“I wouldn’t touch you with a metre-long stick, you know,” Scaramouche spat out.

Suddenly, an idea popped into your head on how to warm up. Maybe you should try to get him to cuddle with you. You begin to walk toward him, before throwing yourself at him, wrapping your arms around his neck, and sitting on his lap.

“Hey- What are you-” Scaramouche spluttered, turning a bit red, “Get off of me!”

“Nah. Since you didn’t give me any more ideas, this is my solution.” You said while smirking.

Though you did notice that he wasn’t any warmer than the cave you were in, but you weren’t gonna give him the satisfaction of getting off of him, so you stayed put.

Surprisingly, he didn’t make any attempts to shove you off of him, so that was a good sign. You two stayed like that for a few moments— you hugging him, and him being frozen in place, before you noticed something poking at you.

So you unwrapped your arms around his neck to look down and confirm your suspicions.

“You- you’re kidding me right?” You said in disbelief, “How can you have a- a that right now?!”

“...I told you to get off of me.”

An unbearable silence stretches out for a couple of moments. What could you even say in this situation? Well… you could hel- no. Who knows how Scaramouche will react to that? He may be disgusted and never interact with you again! You don’t want that!

But maybe it’s worth a shot..? Maybe? Might as well ask, right?

“So, um, do you… need help with that?” You asked, stumbling over your words a bit.

“What did you just say?” Scaramouche asked, sounding amused. While he was saying that, you noticed a smirk appearing on his face.

Oh shit. Oh shit. Was he mad? Was he into this?

“Hm? What’s that look on your face for?” he whispered into your ear, “You were the one that asked that, you know?”

You feel his breath against you and you start feeling warm. Very warm. You suppose your “method” of warming up worked after all.

“Hmm? Cat got your tongue?” He teased.

After a couple of seconds, you respond.

“W- would you like help or not?” You manage to get out. You could feel your face flushing up with embarrassment as you mutter out those words.

“Well,” he responded, “since it is your fault-”

“I guess I should then,” You interrupt, hopping off of his lap, and onto the ground.

“Desperate, aren’t you? Worried I’d change my mind?”

You ignore his mockery as you move in front of him, staring at the bulge he had.

It was right there… right there…

You look up at him, waiting for him to give you any sign of permission.

“Go ahead, I’m waiting,” he responded, looking down at you.

You sheepishly begin to move your hand to the waistband of his pants, pulling it down, and freeing his dick from its confines.

You experimentally put your hand on it, and stroked. Scaramouche tensed slightly as you did that, and you scootched a bit closer to him to be able to do what you were about to do.

You held it close to your mouth, giving it a kitten lick.

“Hurry up! We don’t have all day!”

You scoffed at that, “We most certainly do, considering outside has gone to shit right now,”

You still decided to indulge him though, putting the tip in your mouth, and sucking. He inhaled sharply at that, thrusting his hips a bit. You’re only able to get in a few more inches before you start to gag a bit. Scaramouche didn’t disappoint in that aspect. You wrap your hands around the parts that weren’t encased in your mouth, and you start to slowly bob your head up and down on it.

He groaned at the sensation of you sucking him off, gripping your hair ever so slightly. You continued on, doing the best you can. Suddenly, he thrusted hard, his dick hitting the back of your throat, causing you to gag.

He continued to basically throat-fuck you, while you were trying your best to multi-task trying to breathe, and trying to suck Scaramouche off, and make him feel good.

“Breathe through your nose, dear,” he said.

You glared at him as if trying to say: “Thanks a lot, genius, didn’t know that.”

Scaramouche kept on thrusting in your mouth, and at some point, his thrusts got sloppier.

Oh shit, he was about to cum, wasn’t he?

And with a final snap of his hips, he did, filling your mouth with the warm sticky liquid. You removed your mouth from his dick, wiping the sticky fluid off of your lips with your tongue and swallowing it down.

“Satisfied now?” You asked.

“Well yes, but there is one more thing you could do…” Scaramouche said, his eyes glinting slyly, but you hear a tinge of hopefulness in his voice.

“Oh? Like what?”

He glanced down at his dick, before looking at your… area.

You burned at the realization of what he meant.

“I- W-What?!” You stammered, “You can’t be serious, right?”

He shrugged, “Well if you don’t wanna, we won’t.”

“Well, I do.”

A look of surprise materialized on Scaramouche’s face.

“What?” You said, “ I sucked you off a few minutes ago, why not go all the way?”

He smiled mischievously at you, “Well, I wasn’t expecting you to accept so fast. Were you waiting all this time for this opportunity, just to have sex with me?”

“Wh- what?! No!” you say, caught off-guard by the question, though you could already feel a wet patch forming.

“Really?” he hummed, reaching towards the hem of your pants.

You put your hand on his, and pull it down, revealing your panties. He smiles, and notices the wet patch forming down there.

“Wet already? Are you sure you weren’t waiting for the opportunity?” he teased with a smirk, before sitting you on his lap and moving his hand closer to your pussy.

You felt him touch it, and it sent shivers down your spine.

“Is it your first time?” He questioned.

“W- well…” you trail off, “it is. I- I haven’t really lost my virginity yet…”

Right as you said that, your breath hitched. You felt him slide his fingers onto your panties, massaging your pussy from the outside. It was slow at first, but he began gradually speeding up. He then moved up to your clit, and your breath hitched again. Was it… supposed to feel this good…? Not only that, but his other hand was busy fondling your breast. His touch was so light and soft, yet rough at the same time. It felt like heaven. His pace quickened on your pussy, as he sensed that you were about to release.

“S- Scara! I- I’m going to-” you start, but you quickly feel the sensation that you were just feeling leaving, as quick as it came.

You look down, and you notice that he had removed his hand from the surface of your panties. His fingers were covered in your slick, even though he hadn’t touched under. You look at him in a mix of disappointment and longing.

“Why? Why’d you stop?” you ask, desperate for him to continue.

He smiles.

“If you want me to continue, dear, you better beg for it,” Scaramouche answered, whispering in your ear.

“B- beg?” you asked.

“Get on your knees, take off your panties, open your legs, and tell me how much you want me,” Scaramouche directed, “and tell me how long you’ve been waiting for this moment. And don’t lie. I know you’ve been waiting for a while, darling!”

“Wh- I- I can’t-” you stammered, noticing a bulge appearing in his pants once again.

“Your choice.”

You are unsure what to do. It’s so embarrassing, doing something like that. But at the same time, you could feel the heat building up down here. It was throbbing. You need some relief right now, and the answer to your troubles was right there, in front of you.

You gulped, swallowing your pride, as you obeyed. Your panties drop to the floor, and you lay down, opening up your legs so Scaramouche could see how wet you were for him.

“P- please… Scaramouche, I need you…” you beg, “I- I was waiting for this moment for so- so long, I’ve always wanted you, so- so please, put it in me…”

You were obviously desperate, and so he pulled down his pants and boxers, revealing his hard dick once again. You wondered if all of it would even be able to fit. It’s big, to say the least. He comes closer to you, placing his tip right at your entrance.

“What a whore!” he laughed, “But so cute too… since you’re being good, I’ll give you a gift.”

It hurt at first. Only at first. Your eyes widened as his length slowly penetrated your pussy, taking your virginity in the process. You needed a moment to catch your breath, trying to get used to the feeling of his cock inside you. After you adjusted to the feeling, slowly, you motioned to him to start moving.

He started off slow, of course, allowing you to enjoy the feeling of his cock slipping in and out of you. He then leaned over, entangling his hand in your hair, and started kissing you. His lips were so soft, yet he was violent with it. Your tongues intertwined as your saliva mixed, and strung out when you pulled apart. As he thrusted into you, a hand of his was playing with one of your soft boobs and his mouth was sucking all over your neck, sure to leave marks the next day.

“You look so hot right now…” Scaramouche muttered under his breath, “I love you so much, y/n.”

You moaned as Scaramouche quickened his pace. You felt as if you were going to cum. Desperate to reach your high, you grinded onto him as well, getting a little bit of extra stimulation to send gooey white liquid out of you.

“C- cum inside…” you say, right as Scaramouche follows, releasing his warm seed into you. You could feel it filling you up, as your eyes roll back in pleasure. You were barely able to think, yet you were still longing for more.

“A- ah… It’s all inside,” you say, weakly, “I- I think you can… do it… harder this time, since I kinda k- know what to expect now,” you mouth, barely making a noise.

But Scaramouche heard you, and he was glad to give you what you wanted. After all, you were such a good girl today, just for him.

⋆☆.⭒.~La Fin!~⋆☆.⭒.

#scaramouche #wanderer #scara x reader #scaramouche x reader #wanderer x reader #genshin impact #genshin smut #scaramouche smut #wanderer smut #genshin x reader #scaramouche x you #Sage #Celestient

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bloggingboutburgers · 2 months

Note

Hey, allo anon with an ace partner here. I wanted to say thank you so much for the well wishes! I figured I would send this in here again, so anyone else who is curious about what this experience looks like from the other side can see it.

My girlfriend came out to me a little over 2 years into our relationship. At the time it surprised me a lot, because she'd never given me any signs that she wasn't enjoying what we were doing. After we talked more I understood that she wasn't repulsed by sex and she didn't hate it, but she didn't really love it either and wanted to stop doing it for a while (so a sex-neutral ace).

Honestly, at the time, I did get anxious about it. Not just because of social conventions, but because I had viewed sex as an important bonding part of our relationship. I don't do well with change, and I was super worried about how a lack of sex would change our dynamic. I also had some insecurities about my own body, and my girlfriend admitting that she didn't see me as sexy was upsetting. But after speaking to my therapist, I realized that I was projecting my own issues on to the relationship. So I spoke with her again, and she reassured me that she wanted to be with me, and that she was confiding these feelings because she trusted me. She likes how I look, she just doesn't have the same sexual impulses I do.

So, I realized this was pretty much like cuddling. I love physical touch a lot, and I want to cuddle for a much longer time than she does. I like it when someone lies on top of me. She doesn't want me on top of her chest during cuddling. She still cuddles with me, but she tells me when she's satisfied, and we stop.

A few months went by, and I noticed that she wasn't spending any less time with me; she was actually spending more. We would still call every evening when we didn't meet up in person, we would still joke around, and she still told me she loved me and did everything she could to show it to me. We also began trying out new stuff together, and playing games and watching stuff more often. We also still had plenty of physical intimacy with things like cuddling and kissing, which made me really happy.

I realized that I didn't feel like anything was missing from the relationship. I just needed her to show and tell me she loved me in the ways she normally did. Sure, I am still attracted to her that way, but it wasn't something that would make or break the relationship.

It's been years since she came out, and at this point, I never expect anything sexual. It happens rarely, and I always check in with her multiple times before and during. We stop at any point she tells me. There are quite a few hard boundaries about what is and isn't off limits, and I always keep them in mind. I would rather satisfy myself forever than make her uncomfortable, and she knows it.

It's been over 5 years and we are still going strong. I am hoping to ask her to marry me in the next few years, because honestly, I can't picture wanting anyone else by my side. She is kind, funny, beautiful, intelligent, and treats me well. I could never ask for anything more from a partner.

Thank you SO MUCH for sharing. I myself definitely lack knowledge of what it feels like from an allo's perspective, so this was very educational for me, but beyond that... You have no idea how much hope this gives me.

From you being aware of how much sex meant to you in the context of your relationship and still being fine without it, to just... Heck, even your therapist for not blaming her for the situation. Therapy is still very much, in my country at least, an area where the absence or lower levels of sexual attraction will be hastily labelled as something wrong physically or mentally, so... Yeah, the amount of relief I felt reading that, you have no idea. And I can only imagine how much your partner appreciates it too.

Honestly I teared up a bit reading this - I sincerely wish you guys all the best and I hope you have a bright future ahead! (Also fun fact, seems you guys have been together as long as my partner and I have, it's nice to be able to relate to that too hehe^^)

#anon #asexual #ace #allosexual #thank you so much for sharing

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unrequitedloveletter · 1 year

Note

Hi! I’m here to send in a request for platonic crows x reader where the reader can shapeshift - The main thing I was thinking of was just kinda friendship w the crows in general and their reactions to different things they learn about reader overtime and what they first though about reader vs now. Also here’s some ideas I’ve had about reader for if you do choose to do this request that might help!

-> I feel like reader would probably be able to change their body to be able to take on like a half form of things so like they could give them-self ears or something and depending on if they have a ‘Main form’ of sorts they could probably have some of the features of that thing like idk enhanced hearing or their good at being quiet/Sneaky.

-> Also I imagine that they might get like aches if they haven’t done it in a long while just based on the fact that in a way it’s like changing your bones/Bone structure if that makes sense so if they do it too much (Like an unhealthy amount like every single day for hours on end) Or haven’t done it in a long time they’d get aches n stuff

-> and also (Last thing I promise) They would probably use smaller/Quieter forms to scare/sneak up on people and just be an overall menace rlly

And of course if you aren’t interested in doing this request that’s fine too! Just let me know ^^ hope you have a wonderful day! :]

(Also could I be an anon? If so could I be 🍒Anon?)

Platonic! Crows x gn! Shapeshifter! Reader Headcanons

Hi! You can totally be the cherry anon if you want, that's cool with me! I'm sorry it took me a bit to see this, I've been writing requests from the bottom of my inbox to the top of it lately so that I could get the oldest requests done first, and seeing this in my inbox, I just knew I'd have a blast! I was right, writing this was so much fun.

I did it as headcanons to keep the fic from breaching a 15k word limit which I knew I'd get to if I let myself and I didn't want this fic to run too long! I hope that that's all right with you and if not, I apologize and I can rewrite if you'd like me to!

Fic type- fluff

Warnings-mentions of tarantulas, flies (the reader once turns themself into a fly on the wall) and spiders

(no gif because I sadly couldn't find one of the crows on the rooftop)

Okay, so!

Your status as a shapeshifter is kind of just...known amongst the crows?

Like, they all know about it and it just kind of exists as another one of your attributes. It’s not a big deal, and nobody has ever really made it out to be.

You’re able to enhance your hearing so that you can hear pretty far out, which comes in handy a lot on heist jobs, especially if you can make it so that you can be standing on the total opposite side of wherever you need to be for the heist and still be able to hear Kaz and Nina bickering at the checkpoint.

You’re also able to make yourself quieter, which comes in handy a lot on jobs too, especially when you need to focus on being stealthy and go unseen and unheard.

Now that I think of it, there’s probably a way that you can shift to match your surroundings or like, make them match you kind of, and make yourself invisible, which is actually a super cool concept and I don’t want to get sidetracked by it, so next thing!

There’s a healthy amount of times that you should shapeshift on a regular basis. You go off that and start doing it too much or not doing it enough, you get really bad aches and pains.

I feel like you’d get them all over and they would hurt as much as a really bad migraine. It happens at random and can sometimes last a couple of days, too. All in all, the pain part of it isn’t really a fun or enjoyable experience so you try to shapeshift consistently

YOU WOULD TOTALLY SHAPESHIFT INTO RANDOM SHIT TO SCARE THE SHIT OUT OF PEOPLE-

forgive the caps, I would a thousand percent do the same thing and I got excited when I remembered that that was a possibility.

You’d probably shapeshift into something like a tarantula and just spend hours relaxing in a random corner of Wylans lab weaving webs and hanging from the ceiling and being all cool, and then Jesper comes in and you go to greet him and he’s like “saints, what is that?"

and then Wylan is just like “it’s Y/N? Their favorite color is the dots on their back? How could you not recognize them?”

“Oh, I’m sorry Wylan, I’m just not so used to seeing my best friend as a bloody tarantula!”

You probably shapeshift into a cat to be a menace to Kaz

the concept of you just kind of showing up at his office window and then doing that thing that cats do where they nap in direct line of wherever the sun is coming in is something I love more than life itself

that’s nOT MENACING, BACK ON TRACK

AFTER you’ve sunbathed an appropriate amount of time, you, in the form of a cat, jump onto Kaz’s desk and glare at him the entirety of the time that it takes you to bring his to-go cup of coffee closer and closer to the edge of his desk, until it tips over and spills.

that concept has made me laugh for the last ten minutes

Kaz almost hates you for that every time you do it, even though he knows you’re only doing it because he did something to piss you off first and he just considers it fair when he remembers that much.

You also buy him a replacement coffee out of the kindness of your heart, though you never actually apologize to him

to be menacing in the direction of Matthias and Nina, you also take up the form of a spider. Neither of them really like spiders and you just kind of mess with them for two minutes before it gets old and you switch into something else.

Inej is a cat person through and through, and there aren’t many ways in which you can mess with her, nor do you want to because knife wife WILL use knives if she doesn't recognize the fact that whatever you shift into is you and the possibility, though slight, is still there.

You go to Inej as a cat the most often, though.

You’re able to keep up with her when she’s running through the barrel on her missions for Kaz, and the naps in the sun are best when you’re laying on one of Inejs coats while she spars with Jesper

You’ve also been a literal fly on the wall to get intel for Kaz before, but that was because you’d offered, and it was exhausting. You got a lot of good intel from that but you were like “nah, never again. Not for less than a hundred million kruge. Never”

generally, it’s a very chaotic but a very fun existence, and you wouldn’t trade a minute of it for anything

#kaz brekker #inej ghafa #wylan van eck #jesper fahey #nina zenik #matthias helvar #kaz brekker x reader #inej ghafa x reader #wylan van eck x reader #jesper fahey x reader #nina zenik x reader #matthias helvar x reader #six of crows #shadow and bone

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footballerimaginess · 5 months

Text

Fluff Alphabet | Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone! Here is a a fluff alphabet with Joao Felix, hope you enjoy it and let me know what you think of it. Word Count: 1,347 ADVENT CALENDAR - You and Joao were like little children and had to get advent calendar's each year, each year you'd get chocolate but this year Joao made you a book calendar and he wrapped them all up and left them out in the mornings for you to collect. It was the cutest thing anyone had ever done for you.

BAKING - There were so many new recipes that you wanted to try, there were just so many you'd seen on TikTok that you wanted to make and you knew you had so much time and were ready to prepare some sweet treats for Christmas. CHRISTMAS DAY - As this season you were back in Spain, you were so excited to be celebrating in Spain with his family coming over and you were just so excited to be with everyone DECORATIONS - "There are just so many decorations here, why do you need even more?" he asked as you shook your head. "I dunno, I am obsessed with just picking up new decorations. They are cute right?" you showed him as you took the new sparkly lights in the box. "I guess, but we don't need anymore" he moaned again. EMOTIONAL - When Joao handed you your presents, you were feeling extra emotional. "This is for you" he smiled as he sat down beside you as he watched you pulling the ribbon off of the box. "Shit is this what I think it is" you muttered as you opened it up and it was the bag you had dreamed of for years. FOOD - "We just have so much food" you laughed as you plated up. "It all looks so good" you grinned as you watched as everyone played up. Smiling away as you were just so proud of how you had achieved so much in one morning. GENEROUS - You were just so generous at Christmas and had to buy so many gifts and never stuck with the spending limit. Christmas was one time of the year where you had to really treat everyone. HOT CHOCOLATE - You and Joao were snuggled up on the sofa together as you were sipping on your hot chocolates that you had just made. Laying under the blanket as you were watching Christmas films. ICE SKATING - One of your traditions is going ice skating with Joao. Despite the both of you being absolutely shocking, you still loved going yet embarrassing yourself was a talent in itself. JOY - Seeing your family all together at this time of the year was just so joyful and it was always the most amazing get together's. KITCHEN - The kitchen was a complete mess, there was just so much stuff around, where you hadn't cleaned up at all. "How can one person make this much of a mess when you are only cooking for two people?!?" you turned around as you looked at the mess. "I know it is crazy, I just kept picking up dishes and making stuff" you laughed. "I suppose you'll have to be helping me" you smirked. "Hmm, don't think so LOVE - You and Joao were so in love, this year was the first proper year where you had time to relax and just enjoy Christmas whilst you were resting and taking it easy. MARKETS - "Ooh look at those churros, can we get those?" you asked Joao as you pointed to the stand. "yes sure, but what else do you want? because that smells so good" you muttered. "Fine let's go and see what else we can get. Everything looks and smells so nice" he grinned.

NORTH POLE - You and Joao were going to Lapland, you had hinted at wanting to go for ages now. "This is so magical, but my god it is sooo cold" you shivered as you felt like you were just so cold and had no way of warming up as you grabbed his hand as tightly as you possibly could. "I feel like this is what it would be like if we went to the north pole" you let out a laugh and immediately regretted it as it was just so cold you were frozen. OUTFIT - Your Christmas outfit just needs to be comfy, it was all about your comfy clothes at this time especially as you were eating so much yummy food.

PRESENTS - The amount of presents underneath Christmas were crazy considering there were only a handful of you here for Christmas. "This is madness babe, think we went overboard" you smirked. "Nope, never" you giggled. QUEUE - The queues for the shops were just insane, all you wanted was a last few minute Christmas presents and you had been standing here for about 35 minutes now and you couldn't wait any longer. But it was slowly worth it. REINDEER - "What are all the reindeers called?" Joao asked as you were watching it on the tv. "Rudolph, prancer that is all i can remember" you laughed as you grabbed your phone and decided to google the reindeer's names. "I, Vixen and Cupid" you told him. "There are 9 but I could have sworn there was way more than that" you laughed as you showed all of the names. "There was no way I was going to remember all of that" you laughed. SNOW - A white Christmas is all that you wanted, you were just so happy and it was just so incredible. "Wow J, look how beautiful it looks. I have never seen snow at Christmas time, it is just so beautiful" you whispered as you watched the large snowflakes falling down as it hit the window. TINSEL - "What is this?" you turned around and saw Joao holding tinsel in his hand. "Tinsel?" you looked at him confused as you knew he had seen it before. "You know what it is right?" you asked as you turned to face him. "Yes but what is the purpose of it?" you shrugged as you didn't know yourself. "I dunno, just decoration. It always makes me think of my Nan so that is why I have to have some in the house" you smiled as Joao nodded, knowing how much she meant to you. UP (couldn't think of anything lol) - One of your favourite things to do was watch dinsey movies at Christmas. Your choice of film this year was UP, it was one of your absolute favourites and I just couldn't wait to watch it. Joao would moan because you never ever picked his favourite film which annoyed him, but this time it was your choice. VOICE - You hated singing and wasn't going to even attempt to sing, but Joao loved singing even though he always told you that he hated his singing voice. But you'd always catch him singing a Christmas song or two. WINTER WONDERLAND - When you were in London with Joao, you really loved going to winter wonderland. So when Joao had a break for a few days, you headed to London so you could go to winter wonderland. "This is so much fun, I am just glad we could do this again. Feels weird that we were in London for only one season, I miss being here" you replied as you walked around. "Course I miss it too, shame it didn't work out for us" he shrugged. Xxx - Christmas was the best time to be with family and you were so excited to have your own family one day and make Christmas even more special. YOU - You and Joao were so happy this Christmas, it felt different. Last year was completely different from being in England for the first time. You were excited to do something different but this time you felt so content with life and was so excited for the year. Zzz - Christmas was so hectic that all you wanted to do was sleep, you had to have a small little nap on the sofa whilst Joao sorted all his presents out because he had to get rid off all the boxes straight away. You just napped your Christmas away.

#hayleysinstagramfiles #joao felix imagine #joao felix x reader #football imagines #football imagine #football x reader #football one shots #football one shot #futbol imagines #futbol imagine #instagram au #football instagram au

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munsster · 2 years

Note

i’m so glad u want to start writing for keys i feel like he’s pretty underrated on here </3 maybe something where him and reader have interacted a lot in the game and one recognizes the other’s voice in real life in public? idk i think that would be really cute! x

free life on earth

A/N: listennnn i consumed every tumblr fic i could find of him in one night and decided there was not enough nor will there ever be.

Pairing: Walter “Keys” McKey x GN!Reader

Summary: He thought he was just out getting coffee. But then he bumped into his cyber crush. 2.1k words.

Warnings: fluff, meet (?) cute, you know i had to put this in a coffeeshop, shamelessly awkward flirting, mutual pining, a teensy little accident kiss (unless…), cursing

He was fascinated. From the very beginning, despite how cliché and theatrical it sounds; he swore up and down he'd never go all puppy-dog-eyed again. And then you let out a whip of deafening expletives, and he swan dove right into a new obsession.

But saying obsession seemed too intense and creepy, so he's been calling it his online thing like it's a business meeting. Like he's not lovesick and doting and you have no idea he's worming himself around your little finger.

"You've gotta be—Keys! Don't fucking throw that while I'm standing right here."

The laugh rips out of him and jolts him back in his chair. To think that the limited amount of time he spends not working on this godforsaken game he happens to spend playing the game. He must have something wrong with him. He drops the flashbang back into his inventory and scuttles over to your crouched avatar.

"Sometimes I wonder why they let you graduate," you poke, swiveling in circles in the wavering shade of a big tree, blank eyes staring up at the sky.

"Hey, if I didn't graduate, we never would've met."

You chuckle. "Oh, Keys, life would be so horrible without you"—you click your tongue and your avatar's knees straighten, and his heart shouldn't skip a beat the way it does with your digital face this close to his—"because I have nothing better to do than sit at my desk all day and talk to a stranger on the internet."

"A handsome stranger," he teases.

"I'm logging off."

"Wait—"

"Nope!"

"Come on," he whines, "you know you love me."

Curse him with that sometimes confidence and all-the-time charm. And maybe that's the one thing you don't know. He smoked you out just to get at you while unassuming and lovely. You blink hard just to realize you've gone a little blurry, and the sun slices through your blinds and glares against your monitor.

"Is it light where you are?" you mumble, a songbird cooing and flapping away outside your window. His character goes still, no longer shuffling across the grass, just still. Strands of his hair animated to flow. It makes you smirk every time you think of it.

"Yeah, think so. Geez—"

"What if I was a stalker? Now I know the sun is up for you. That eliminates like... a lot of places," you say, very proudly and kind of worried. You don't rest well as it is, and now this boy might be giving out his address to random users.

"Okay, but is the sun rising or setting?"

"...Maybe it's neither," you hum.

"Maybe it's both."

It takes a second for him to laugh, and he's crazy but it's contagious. You shake your head and press your face into your palms to muffle a soft laugh. Hoping he doesn't hear you humor him. But you do, and he does.

"You're delirious, go have caffeine," you huff, definitely smiling, even with your jaw aching from wearing a headset for much too long. But you're sure the tightness in your neck is worth it when he hums softly and rustles with something on his desk.

"No," he whines, spamming the space bar, sending his character hopping down the grassy slope of the park's small hill. He sighs. "Alright, fine. Didn't feel like staying online anyway."

"Oh, hush, it'll be good for you. Plus, I gotta head out, and I don't want you missing me too much."

"Yeah, yeah," he mumbles, "but you better be on tonight."

"C'mon, baby, you know me," you say, head lulling to the side as he sprints back up the hill just to slip down once he's halfway there. He must be too tired to think about it. Because you've called him that once before, and it sent him reeling. He's glad the game wasn't designed for webcam gameplay. Not only would that be nightmarish, but you would immediately catch him beet red and fidgety.

He yawns.

"Alright, see ya."

You chirp something nice into his ear. Like a goodbye, but you'd never say it. He powers his desktop down and throws on a crewneck before heading a couple blocks north, hands shoved in his pockets the whole way. Head incessant with the thought of you. Even if he could stop it, he wouldn't. If you'd stay holed up in his noggin until the next supernova, he'd be satisfied. And the coffee shop is sticky and warm when he steps in from the chill.

But something makes him smile. Only a few tables have anybody seated there: mostly couples. Except, there's one person sitting alone. Occupying the table closest to the register, scarf draped over the back of the oaky chair, fingertips patting along a dim phone screen.

"Morning, two sugars," the barista chirps, "the usual?"

Keys hisses in a deep breath, eyes flicking over the extensive, swirly-lettered menu.

"You know what—?"

"Aw, break my heart, man—don't tell me you're switching it up on me now."

Keys chuckles with a shrug, "what can I say? I'm a sucker for a limited time offer. Gimme one of those seasonal drinks.”

"That's it, no more discounts for you," he huffs, already scribbling 'Keys' and a pouty face across the side of a bright orange cup.

"You were giving me a discount?"

"Keys," a soft voice chirps. And it's not something he could've imagined if he tried, because it sounds like you, and maybe this is some wishful thinking hat trick, but he turns to the side. And there you are. Arm perched on the back of the chair, torso twisted around to peer up at him. And he peers back. It's you. Wide-eyed and grinning.

"Hi," he pants, "it's you."

Your chair scrapes across the wood flooring, and you get real close to him like you're still not sure this is real life and not a simulator. Or you accidentally signed up for a drug-induced sleep study, and this is the desired, coma-adjacent lucid dream.

"In the flesh." You scoff, hands on your hips. He wonders if you're letting him look at you. It's a little perverted, but he's in denial, watching your mouth and the way it's so different from your in-game avatar. "I was hoping... I mean, I wanted it to be you. You sound like you."

He nods. And his hair flops into his face. Hides his soft pink forehead and the line between his furrowed brows.

"You're... taller than I thought you'd be. And you wear glasses," you say, lifting your hand like you're about to touch him. It makes him happy. He knows you—he's known you exclusively by your code and the sound of your voice, and yet your first instinct was to reach for him. And even though you drop your hand and glance away, he smiles.

"Disappointed?" he teases like he's expecting the rejection. Like you'll laugh and tell him to scram because yes, he's not what you had imagined. Maybe you had imagined him to perfection and doomed him in the process.

But you shake your head.

Decisively, a serious conclusion, borderline frowning at the sentiment. How could you be disappointed after spending days upon days doing absolutely nothing and everything with him. Just him.

You sigh, "You techies are always a wild card. To be honest, I'm just glad you're not a serial killer."

He chuckles and takes a deep breath. Letting it buzz through him because by some miracle, you're glad.

"I take it my dashing looks are just an added bonus," he huffs, raising his brows, but out of the corner of his eye, you smile. You don't laugh, but you smile. Brightly, too, sincere in the creases by your tired eyes.

"Toffee latte for... Keys?"

He scratches the back of his neck when you look away, feeling like he's sweating buckets all over the polished floor. Then you look back at him, lips only parted for a breath, mouth quirked. You look cute. Like he couldn't have imagined you sweeter. He just knows you're gonna leave him all syrupy and stuck on you after this.

"So... d'you—"

"Keys! Latte for Keys?"

"I think that might be you," you tease, nodding over to the pick up window with a grin.

"Oh. Oh, right!"

He hurries over to the disgruntled employee, grabbing his coffee and a couple of napkins and a stopper between his teeth before popping it into the lid. When he turns back around, you're not there. And his heart sinks. Frantic, he cranes his neck, spinning dizzily before catching your wave and the bell above the door. And you duck outside.

The cold smacks him into reality. It’s terrifying the way you look back at him with a smile because he’s been thinking about it since the day he first heard your voice. And now you’re letting him catch up to you, walking backwards with your arms crossed over your chest.

"Sorry for ditching. It was kinda stuffy in there—"

He chuckles, suddenly shy with the way you look right through him. And you’re right. Everything’s clearer. Crisp and frosty, but it’ll melt away with the sun.

"No, yeah, it's totally..." he huffs, "I know."

"Good, 'cause I was hoping you'd walk me home."

He shudders, not knowing whether it's the cold or the way you're so sure of him. Even with sweat rolling down his back. He doesn’t think he’ll make it as far as you plan on taking him. Not after you've flattered him enough to lay him bare on the sidewalk.

“You live around here?”

“‘Course I do. I’m not about to drive fifteen minutes for a cup of coffee,” you grumble, skipping over the cracked pavement where weeds sprout up into teensy yellow flowers. Then the toe of your show catches a jilted and offset curb, sending you teetering forward.

“Woah”—Keys catches you by the hand, too focused on the way your fingertips find their way to his, slotting down hard and curling. “I gotcha.”

“Pssh,” you scoff, tugging him close as an excuse to catch you breath. Only, you’re in the middle of the sidewalk and a biker wheels by with a groan. “White knight.”

“I prefer the term gentleman, but whatever floats your boat.”

You stick your tongue out at him when he takes a swig of his coffee and flinches away from it, fingers clenching around your knuckles.

“Hot?”

“Burning.”

“Thanks,” you say with a wink. And his tongue isn’t the only thing burning when it settles into his ears and nose.

“So, are you nearby, or…?”

“Oh! Yeah, this is my building.” You thrust a thumb over your shoulder and yeah, he’s hooked. So hooked he doesn’t realize you’re less than a block up the road from his building. He doesn’t realize he could have been yours. He could be yours, but he’s too hooked.

“Shit. Then I guess this is goodbye.” He leers up at the art deco apartment complex with a squint. Kind of disappointed before he realizes his palm is damp pressed to yours. Suffocating into the space you give him when he scuffs against the rough concrete.

“Guess so.” The sunlight beams from between the strands of his mussed hair, catching the rim of his lenses, and rendering you in awe. “At least we have the game.”

He scoffs. “We’ll always have the game.”

You shrug and tap the bottom edge of his cup. “And you’ll always have this.” Your finger traces the digits and dashes along until they’re dotted off with a heart. “Definitely didn’t slip him ten bucks for that.”

“You’re pretty desperate, huh?”

You smile. “Yup.” You squeeze his hand and tug him close to kiss the supple place his cheek dimples just slightly when he smiles. And he shifts a little. On accident. But suddenly, your mouth is pressed to the corner of his, and he’s short-circuiting when you pull away. “Sorry!”

“It’s… it’s okay, I’m not—I don’t mind,” he sputters and you laugh despite yourself, “Really, don’t worry about it, I mean, I’m not worried, it’s not a big deal, I just—”

You kiss him again. In front of the steps of your apartment building, holding his hand, and boiling him up inside. He can’t help but smile when you tongue at his bottom lip and drop his hand in favor of his waist. He thinks only you’d be so delicate with him. After all, it’s you. And when you pull away, his mouth is a little pink and a little slobbery, and you swipe your thumb across his chin.

“You better call that number,” you warn. He smirks.

“Beats talking to strangers on the internet.”

masterlist

#walter keys mckey fluff #walter keys mckey fic #walter keys mckey x gn!reader #keys x reader #walter keys mckey x reader #keys x gn!reader #x reader #x gn!reader #x gn reader #fluff #meet cute #free guy #keys free guy #joe keery x reader #joe keery #walter keys mckey #keys fluff #keys fic

766 notes · View notes

httplilyyy · 2 years

Text

𝐘𝐎𝐔’𝐑𝐄 𝐀𝐍 𝐈𝐃𝐈𝐎𝐓 𝐁𝐔𝐓 𝐈 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 || 𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐗𝐈𝐀 𝐏𝐔𝐓𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐒

pairing: alexia putellas x reader

request: ‘an idea for a part 2 for the alexia fic. reader and alexia are dating and alexia is at another one of the readers races but the reader ends up getting into an accident and alexia spends time with the reader at the hospital having a heart to heart conversation’

summary: it’s the first race back after the summer break and it doesn’t go as well as you’d like. you end up in the hospital and have a heart to heart conversation with alexia, the both of you at the brink of breaking down

warnings: brief description of a car crash, swearing, teeny tiny bit of angst, slight sexual themes but no smut

word count: 3.0k

a/n: this is a rollercoaster of a fic, i wasn’t planning on a part two but by popular demand it’s finally here :)

woso masterlist | prev. part

It was the first race after the summer break in which you spent your whole time with Alexia, or as much of it as you could.

After having a month off you were ready to get back in your car and race again. This time you were racing in Spa, Belgium. It was one of your favourite tracks on the calendar year.

Throughout the whole weekend you had Alexia by your side and you couldn't be more happier. FP1 and FP2 went by perfectly, as well as qualifying.

Although you were not starting on the front row, placing in third, due to exceeding track limits, you still had a solid chance of winning.

It was the night before the race and you and Alexia were cuddled up in bed in your hotel room.

The tv playing on in the background, completely forgotten as the two of you shared kisses and tender touches underneath the sheets.

As the night progressed you two continued to soak up every amount of affection that you could. It was around one in the morning, the two of you entangled with each other.

Alexia’s head was resting on your chest, listening to your heartbeat. One hand was drawing patterns on your stomach while the other was intertwined with yours.

“You ready for tomorrow?” Alexia asked quietly, her voice just coming out above a whisper, afraid she’ll ruin the peaceful moment between the two of you.

“Yeah,” you replied with the same amount of quietness to your voice, “It’s always an interesting race in Spa.”

“Please be careful, I can't handle another heart attack like in Silverstone.”

“I’m always careful.”

“Mhm.” Alexia hummed, not saying anything as a small smile appeared on her face.

“I can feel you smirking.” You chuckled. “When am I not careful?”

“You are the clumsiest person I have ever met.”

“No way.”

“Yup.”

“I call bullshit.”

“Need I remind you of the night we first kissed?”

“That was my plan all along.”

“Sure it was, amor.”

“That was hot.”

“What? Me saying amor?”

“Sí.”

“Eres un idiota pero te amo.”

“Hey! You called me an idiot!” You sulked, “What else did you say?”

“I’ll tell you after the race tomorrow.” Alexia smiled.

“Or you could tell me now?”

“Where's the fun in that?”

“You’re mean.”

“You need to sleep.” Alexia said as pulled the covers over the two of you a little more.

“Or we could do something else.” You suggested, wiggling your eyebrows in a teasing manner.

“If you win tomorrow, then maybe, but now you need sleep.”

“Fine.” You huffed, looking out of the window you watched as it began to rain.

“Buenas noches.” Alexia mumbled, closing her eyes and letting sleep consume her.

“Good night, love.”

It was the next morning and you were awoken to the sound of rain hitting the hotel window repeatedly. Although you don’t mind the rain nor driving in it you knew it would set Alexia on edge.

Alexia’s eyes fluttered open, her face scrunching as she was met by the sound of thunder rumbling in the sky.

Rubbing the sleep from her eyes she rolled onto her back and raised her arms above her head to stretch out her limbs, releasing a content sigh as she did so. She turned her head to the side when she felt you wrap your arm around her waist.

The Catalonian slowly turned onto her side so she was face to face with you. She carefully raised her hand and her fingers trailed along your facial features.

"Y/n." Alexia whispered as she ran her fingers through your hair. Your eyebrows raised signalling that you were awake. "It's time to get up."

"What time is it?" You mumbled as your fingers drew shapes on Alexia’s hip.

"It's around six."

You let out a small hum before removing your hand from Alexia’s waist and turning onto your back. You held your arm out and signalled for Alexia to cuddle up next to you, which she happily obliged to.

"I don't want to get up." You groaned. "Can't we just go back to sleep?"

"I wish we could but you have a race to win." Alexia mumbled.

"Okay, give me five more minutes."

"Nope. You gotta get up now." Alexia said as she peppered your face with kisses making your face scrunch up.

"Okay, okay, I'm up." You said as you slowly pulled yourself up to rest against the headboard.

The peaceful morning was cut off by a loud beeping noise coming from your phone. The two of you groaned and you leaned over to turn your phone off but it was too far away.

You tried to reach for it again but it resulted with you falling to the floor with a thud and the woman, who was beside you, chuckled with laughter.

"Ow." You muttered as you rubbed your head and finally turned off your phone.

"Are you alright?" Alexia asked between her laughter.

"I might have a concussion." You murmured as you stood up from the floor and moved over to your suitcase to get your things out.

“And you're apparently not clumsy.” Alexia mumbled, referring to your conversation last night.

As you turned back around you saw Alexia sitting criss crossed on the bed with a teasing smile on her face. "What's got you smiling like that?"

"Nothing." The midfielder shrugged.

“Okay.” You trailed off, not really believing her.

“Come here.” Alexia smiled as her pointer finger did a ‘come hither’ motion.

Doing as told you made your way to the edge of the bed, in front of Alexia and awaited for what she was going to do. The midfielder got out of the criss cross position she was in and got up to sit up on her knees.

“Did you really forget we went to bed in just our underwear?” Alexia chuckled as she slowly grazed her fingers over your abs making them contract and harden.

“How-” You trailed off wondering how you forgot such a thing. You were brought out of your thoughts when she moved her fingers downwards, playing with the elastic of your underwear.

“Go get ready.” Alexia said as she moved away from you and laid back down on the bed.

"You're such a tease." You huffed.

"Perhaps, but for now go take a cold shower." Alexia smirked. “It’ll help you out.”

“I hate you.” You said as you made your way into the bathroom.

“You love me.” Alexia smiled as she dragged out the ‘o’ in love.

“Hello and welcome back to the world of formula one,” Crofty said, “it's the first race back after the break and all the drivers are hungry for a spot on the podium.”

“Although, it will be a tricky one today as the heavens have seemed to have opened up,” Martin added, “but that won't stop the drivers.”

“The front row looks a little different without our championship leader there.”

“Yeah, y/l/n had to stick with P3 as they exceeded track limits during Saturday’s qualifying on turn eight.”

“They usually thrive in this sort of weather, having Hamilton and Leclerc in front of them will be sure to put up a fight as well as Verstappen in P4.”

“I’m rooting for them.”

“I know I definitely am.”

“Radio check.” Tom, your engineer, said.

“Loud and clear.” You replied.

“The rain seems to have subsided for the time being but should come back in around fifteen minutes.”

“Okay, can I speak to Alexia?”

“Yeah, one sec.” Tom said before you heard Alexia’s voice through the radio.

“Hola, amor.”

“Hey.”

“You alright?”

“Yeah, just needed to hear your voice.”

“Buena suerte.”

“I’ll see you after.”

“When you lift that trophy.”

“Okay, y/n. You’ve got to concentrate now. Only a minute to go.” Tom said instead of Alexia making you switch your mindset into race mode once again.

You watched as the front drivers pulled ahead to start the formation lap and you followed quickly behind them, trying to warm up your tyres in the wet weather.

Weaving from side to side you noticed how slippery it was outside of the racing line, taking a mental note on which areas were the worst.

Coming around the final corner you pulled back into your position and waited for the grid to fill up and for the lights to go out.

“Its lights out and away we go.”

Pressing your foot on the accelerator you got an amazing start but not enough to pass either Hamilton or Leclerc. Coming out from turn one you were full throttle till turn five. Having control of the car you decided to play around a little.

You remembered the wettest parts of the track so you pushed extra hard around those areas, hoping to drive the car in front into a mistake, letting you go through but it was no luck.

By lap ten you were ready to change from intermediates to full wets as the rain was coming down harder and harder.

You managed to bypass Leclerc on the sixth lap, not giving you much of a fight and your sole focus now was on winning.

“Box, box.” Tom said through the radio.

“Copy.”

Pulling into the pit lane you noticed a couple of other drivers having the same idea as you. The stop was a solid twenty-two seconds overall. But as soon as you came out from the pit exit is where it went downhill very fast.

You came out the pit lane side by side with Fernando Alonso and the 2x world champion was not going to give his place up easily.

You two battled for a good couple of laps and on the thirteenth lap you were coming through Eau Rouge and as you were pulling ahead slightly Alonso tried to switch driving line behind you however his front wing clipped your rear tire causing you to lose control of the car.

You tried to regain control of the car but it was no use, you hit a particularly wet spot of the track causing you to spin and head straight for a wall.

Bracing for impact you felt the g force go through you as you hit the wall head on.

The whole paddock went silent and a red flag was immediately put out.

“Wha-? Tom what happened?” Alexia asked as she stared at the screen in front of her.

“I- Alexia-” Before Tom could finish, the answer was on the screen.

Your car was in the wall with you still in it, making no effort to get out.

Everyone watched as the stewards rushed over to your car, trying to see if you were alright however they got no response. Ultimately deciding that you needed to get to the hospital and you needed to get there now.

After multiple failed attempts of getting you out, the stewards and paramedics called for an air ambulance. The paddock now no longer had access to what was going on and they were relying on the FIA and stewards to keep them updated.

With no news for around fifteen minutes Alexia’s mind had already gone to the worst possible scenarios. She was hugging her phone as she sat on the floor with her knees brought up to her chest.

Hoping and praying a notification or a phone call will come through saying that you were alright, but that wasn't the case. She heard the air ambulance over head and she finally let the tears flow.

Alexia was approached by Tom who kneeled in front of her, placing a comforting hand on her knee.

“They’ve got her out of the car and she’s on the way to the hospital.” Tom said softly, trying not to cry himself.

“I need to see her.” Alexia mumbled as she stood up in a rush, trying to gather all her belongings.

“Hey, calm down-”

“Calm down? You want me to ‘calm down’? Are you serious?” Alexia shouted, startling everyone in the garage. “My girlfriend is on the way to the hospital and I dont even know if they’re alive and you want me to calm down!?”

“I didn't mean it like that.” Tom said apologetically, “I was trying to say that I could take you. To the hospital, that is.”

“You could?”

“Yeah, she needs you more than anything right now.”

After quite a long drive, Alexia had finally arrived at the hospital you were at. She thanked Tom as she rushed out of his car and straight to the front desk, asking for which room you were in.

However, you were currently in surgery so Alexia had to sit and wait for her to be called by a doctor, telling her where to go.

Anxiously bouncing her knee up and down, Alexia lifted her head up once she saw a doctor calling out her name with yours coming right after. Getting up from her chair she made her way over to the doctor.

“How are they?” Alexia asked as she walked aside the doctor.

They didn't say anything causing Alexia's mind to spiral until they stopped in front of a door, the doctor placed a hand on her shoulder and sent the midfielder a sorrowful look before gesturing to Alexia she was outside the room you were in.

Alexia rushed in and once she saw you laying down on the bed she broke down into tears. She ran over to the side of your bed, clutching your hand afraid if she let go, you would never wake up.

Minutes that passed felt like days to Alexia. All she wanted was for you to wake up.

"You know, if you hold my hand any tighter it might fall off." You mumbled as you tried to sit up. Alexia had never moved quicker in her life once she heard your voice.

"Y/n." Alexia whispered breathlessly. She gently held your face and brought her head down so your lips connected in a small but meaningful kiss. "I thought I lost you."

“It's just a scratch, don't worry.” You said, pulling away from the kiss and a little further from the woman beside you.

A beat of silence passed through before Alexia spoke up.

“Y/n?”

“I can't do this Ale.” You whispered, looking down at your hands.

“What do you mean?” Alexia asked, her voice breaking.

“I can't keep hurting you.” You said. “You deserve someone better than me, someone who can be there for you, it would be so much easier.”

“I don’t want easy, I want you. I don't want anyone else but you, can't you see that?”

“Ale, please.”

“No, don't push me away.”

“I’m not good for you.”

“I don't care, you’re stuck with me.”

“Alexia-”

“No, you don't get to tell me what's best for me.” Alexia sniffled. “That's my choice and you don't get to make that for me.”

“You don't understand.”

“I only want you.” Alexia said as she punctuated every word. “You hear me? I can't lose you.”

"You could never lose me." You said softly, finally coming to your senses and realising that the woman next to you means nothing but the entire world to you.

You moved over a little so Alexia could sit next to you. Carefully she sat next to you and she made sure to hold your hand as well as being mindful of your injuries.

"I keep repeating it in my head.”

“Don’t do that. I’m okay, I promise.”

“Every time I blink I just see you heading for the wall and- when you didn't get out of the car I thought you were dead." Alexia sniffled as she nuzzled her face into your chest.

"It's okay." you said as you kissed the top of Alexia’s head gently. "I'm okay."

Alexia sat up a little and looked at you, her cheeks stained with tears.

"You can't die." Alexia said as she shook her head.

"I won't." You chuckled as you cupped her face with your left hand.

"I'm serious. Like never- you can never die.. you just can't..."

"Never?" You smiled softly as you used your thumb to wipe away the tears that fell down Alexia’s cheek. "I think I might have to one day."

"Well just do it after me."

You pulled Alexia back into your embrace and kissed the top of her head once she rested her face in the crook of your neck.

"I'm not going anywhere. It's you and me against the world."

“Eres un idiota pero te amo.” Alexia mumbled.

“You said that last night. What does it mean?”

“You’re an idiot but I love you.”

“You're not joking are you?”

“No, I promise.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“Te amo también, incluso si soy un idiota.” You smiled.

“You knew, didn’t you.”

“Maybe.”

“Why didn't you say anything?”

“I thought it was cute, you thinking so low of me-” You started but were cut off by a gentle slap to your shoulder. “Hey! No abusing the injured.”

“I don't think low of you, I just didn't know you knew Spanish that well.”

“Dualingo has been a great help.” You chuckled.

“Next time just use me.”

“Ooh, kinky.”

“Not like that.” Alexia smiled as she felt heat rise to her cheeks.

“I know.”

“Te amo.”

“Te amo mucho, querido.”

“When are you allowed out?”

“In the next couple of days, then I can fly back to england.”

“I’ll come with you.”

“There's no need.”

“But-”

“I was thinking of going to Barcelona instead.” You smiled as you looked down at Alexia, watching as a smile broadened on her face the realisation settling down on her.

“I’ll be out for maybe two races so I was thinking I could come stay with you?”

“Yeah, definitely.”

“I can't wait.” You smiled and wiggled your eyebrows suggestively.

“No way, you are bed bound and injured.”

“But-”

“No buts.”

“What about yours?” You joked.

“No.”

“You promised me last night.”

“I said if you win then you could but you ended up crashing your car so...”

“No fair, it wasn't my fault anyway, one it was raining and two Alonso crashed into me.”

“I'm only joking, as soon as you feel better we can do whatever you want.”

“Whatever I want?”

“Whatever you want.”

#alexia putellas #alexia putellas imagines #alexia putellas imagine #alexia putellas x reader #woso x reader #woso imagine

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killa-trav · 2 years

Text

Delusional Horner is tarnishing the whole sport of Formula One

Red Bull principal is rivalling José Mourinho for gracelessness, Matthew Syed writes.

Lewis Hamilton was robbed. I think we should make that plain at the start of this column. I emphasise this because Christian Horner and Max Verstappen of Red Bull decided to boycott Sky Sports after one of their reporters used this word in relation to the finale of the 2021 season, after a controversial safety car restart in the last moments of the race. Even the FIA, the sport’s governing body, admits that this was a significant error from the race director.

So, permit me to say it again: Hamilton was robbed. If the rules had been correctly applied, he would now have an eighth world title. If the race director had done his job, Mercedes would boast another champion. Horner may now be pondering whether to ban The Times, and perhaps The Sunday Times too, on the basis of this assertion. If so, it won’t be long before Red Bull are avoiding all press outlets, and perhaps all social media too. Because “robbed” is the way most people think about that incident. This doesn’t imply that Hamilton was robbed by Horner or Verstappen — it just means that he was denied what was rightfully his, which is pretty much the textbook definition of the term.

But there’s another aspect to the controversy that has engulfed Formula One over the past few weeks. We now know that Red Bull broke the rules in the amount they spent last season. There is a limit set by the FIA and all teams sign up to remain within this envelope, but one team failed to do so. The amount of the overspend is — according to both the FIA and Red Bull, who accepted the verdict of the governing body — £1.864 million, amounting to 1.6 per cent of the budget, set at £114 million. This may not sound like a lot, but in a sport where margins are measured in factions, it might have been decisive.

So not only did Horner and his team benefit from a poor decision by a steward, in violation of the rules, they were also the beneficiaries of their own breach, albeit — they claim — an inadvertent one. So, let’s go back to Hamilton again: was he robbed? Is the terminology in keeping with what we know about the facts? I think most reasonable people will say “yes”. Indeed, it seems rather delusional to deny this, as Horner has sought to do.

But this isn’t the end of the matter. Zak Brown, the chief executive of McLaren, pointed out that when teams breach their spending limits, it amounts to “cheating”. “The cap is a rule, no different to the technical rules in the sport,” he said. “We feel it’s a performance benefit if someone has spent more than the allocated cost cap.” The word cheating is quite strong in this instance, but many people will agree with it. At the very least, Red Bull’s actions represented the gaining of an unfair advantage. Every other team was carefully audited and stayed within the agreed limits.

Yet Horner was scandalised by this terminology too. He claims that the breach was an oversight and had no performance effect, but this is a curious argument. If you exceed a budget, you presumably benefit from doing so, otherwise what is the point of the cap in the first place? Moreover, when it comes to breaching these (or any other) rules, it is surely important that the miscreants face reputational damage. Horner wants the payment of a fine — $7 million (about £6.07 million), to be exact — and reduction of permitted research to be the end of it, but that is too easy an escape route for a team awash with money. Social stigma is crucial for any rule to have teeth but this is what Horner is unwilling to accept.

And here we move from the regrettable to the surreal. Instead of owning up to his error, Horner has lashed out on those who have dared to criticise him. At a press conference last week, he said that the censure Red Bull has received has undermined his team’s “mental health” and has led to the children of staff being “bullied” in the playground. I had always thought that José Mourinho was the ultimate in gracelessness under pressure (to invert Ernest Hemingway’s quote) but Horner has taken it to a new level. How dare the Red Bull principal deploy sensitive moral issues such as bullying and mental health to deflect from his own rule-breaking.

If there are mental health issues at Red Bull as a result of their rule breach, the responsibility lies with them and them alone; not with those who have criticised them. To say otherwise is an Alice in Wonderland inversion, a gaslighting of those who stayed within budget. Like Mourinho at his worst, Horner is willing to blame everyone else, to distort reality, even to boycott those with whose opinions he disagrees, to sustain the pretence that everything Red Bull does is pure and it is only the ill intent of others that obscures this fact.

And, on the wider point, what of the mental health of the teams who have worked diligently to stay within the agreed budget? What about the drivers whose ambitions have been thwarted by Red Bull’s overspending? What about people with genuine mental health issues whose difficulties have been trivialised by Horner’s self-serving cant?

What makes this worse is that Horner is the first to point the finger at others when things don’t go his way. Remember at Silverstone when he lashed out at Hamilton after the clash with Verstappen, calling the British driver “desperate” and “completely out of order”? Remember when Horner savaged a “rogue marshal” after Verstappen received a grid penalty for failing to respect double yellow flags in qualifying at the Qatar Grand Prix? I could go on.

The older one gets, the more one realises that it is not winning that matters in life, but the way one conducts oneself. Horner may have won both the drivers’ and constructors’ championships this season but in his manner and example, he is tarnishing not only his team but F1, too. You might even — at the risk of a fresh boycott — call him a loser.

BY MATTHEW SYED

#mexican gp 2022 #long post #lewis hamilton #u kno what the times recently have really upped their game #in terms of sports shit

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upat4amwiththemoon · 2 years

Text

Misunderstandings | part 2

Summary: Words have a bigger impact than you’d think.

Pairing: WandaNat x daughter!reader

Warnings: angst, Natasha still doesn’t really understand, my knowledge of adhd is limited

Word count: 1278

a/n: thank you for all the love you gave to the first part, here is a second one! Heavily inspired by this, thank you for the ideas! <3

Tags: @thought-of-you-and-me @rafecameronswhore

”Y/N!” The minute Natasha yells her name from the downstairs, Y/N is already running down the stairs. “Could you empty and clean the kitchen table?”

“Yea.” Y/N’s answer comes out as a mumble as she walks past her mom to the kitchen.

Natasha watches her put the dirty dishes into the sink and grab a wet rag to clean the table. She does the cleaning quickly, but still not half assing the job, scrubbing some spots harder than the others so the dirt comes of. After putting the rag away, she takes a few pieces of paper to dry it and then throws them into the trash.

“Thank you, honey.”

Y/N doesn’t answer, she just goes back upstairs to finish her homework. Natasha frowns but pays no mind to it, surely Y/N is just tired. She has done a lot of work these few days, all the chores Natasha asks her to do are done in an instant, and she has done her homework every day in her own room.

It makes Natasha quite happy, her words have stayed in her mind. Even though she wasn’t happy with the way she expressed her feelings, she’s glad Y/N has seemed to remember the most important ones.

The real world won’t allow you to slack off.

In reality, Y/N has tried her best to avoid her mother. She did everything she asked right away so she wouldn’t have any time to forget it, no talking back, never acting out as Natasha would call it.

It’s affecting her mental health, a lot. She’s more tired than ever. Spending most of her time in her room, taking multiple naps a day to get her energy back. Sometimes she just cries. It all overwhelms her to the point she can’t do anything else than sob quietly. But she doesn’t want to upset her mother again. She wants to be a normal kid.

At dinner Y/N just pushes her food around quietly. She doesn’t have any appetite. “How was school today?” Natasha asks in between of eating.

“Fine.” She mumbles, her eyes cast down.

“You did your homework?”

“Yes.”

“Great.” Natasha smiles.

Wanda observes the interaction with a frown on her face. The short answers and dismissive tone worries her, usually Y/N is a rather lively kid, who likes to talk. “Is everything alright, Y/N?” Natasha gives Wanda a questioning glance.

“Yes, mama.” She gives her a small smile and brings a small amount of food to her mouth.

“You’ve been doing so good lately, doing everything when I ask you to.” Natasha praises her.

“Mhm.”

“You think you could wash the dishes after you’re done eating?”

“Sure.”

Natasha smiles and nods. “Thank you for dinner, love, it was amazing.” She kisses Wanda’s cheek and puts her dinnerware in the sink before going to the living room.

“I’m not hungry anymore, can I put the rest to the fridge?” Y/N looks up at Wanda, finally making eye contact.

“Of course, honey.”

Y/N gets up from the table and scrapes the rest of her dinner into a Tupperware, putting it in the fridge and the plate to the sink. “Are you done eating?” When Wanda nods, Y/N takes her plate and mug, setting them into the sink as well.

She takes a sponge, puts soap on it and changes the water temperature to warm. Her eyes are brimming to the top with tears, but she doesn’t let them fall, not when Wanda is still in the kitchen. Her throat hurts from holding in the sobs, but she doesn’t want her mothers see her cry. Not over some dishes.

“Do you want me to help with them?” Wanda asks, setting her hand on Y/N’s shoulder.

Y/N just shakes her head, not trusting to her voice at the moment. The way Wanda keeps rubbing her shoulder makes her lip tremble. All she wants is to be embraced by her. She needs the comfort.

“You can tell me if anything is wrong, you know that right?” Again, Y/N just nods while rubbing the dishes clean. “Oh, sweetheart.” Wanda takes the sponge and plate out of her hands.

Y/N looks up to see Wanda looking straight at her face. As she pulls her into her arms, the dams break and she starts sobbing.

At the sound of crying, Natasha gets up quickly and comes to the kitchen. “What’s going on?”

Y/N presses her face into the crook of Wanda’s neck, wanting to hide away. The fabric of Wanda’s shirt is tightly in Y/N’s fists, her knuckles turning lighter from the pressure.

“Shh shh, everything’s okay. You’re okay.” One of Wanda’s hands rubs her back while the other is holding her head. “Mama is here.”

“What’s wrong?” Natasha whispers, mostly to Wanda as Y/N is in no condition to speak. She sets her hand on Y/N’s arm, but lifts it off when Y/N moves away from it. Her head snaps to Wanda, face full of worry and confusion.

“Y/N, do you think we could talk? All three of us.” Wanda asks quietly, still holding her close.

Y/N shakes her head. She doesn’t want to talk, not again. The last conversation was awful. It made her feel less than.

“We really need to talk. Something is wrong and we want to fix it.”

“You want to fix me.” Y/N sobs. “Because you think I’m broken.”

“No, no, absolutely not.” Wanda presses Y/N against her even tighter. “We do not think you’re broken.”

“Mom does.” She whispers, hiccuping from all the crying.

Natasha’s eyes widen. She and Wanda look at each other, tears starting to gather in her eyes. “I don’t think you’re broken, I don’t. Why- Why do you think that?”

“Because you want me to be normal.”

Natasha thinks back to the argument and talk they had two weeks back. She thought they had solved it. She figured Y/N took the lesson to heart and forgot about the things said out of anger.

“Honey, no.” Natasha says immediately. “I said those things because I was angry, not because I think they’re true. I never should’ve yelled those things, it was very bad of me to do. You don’t have to change. I love you for being you.”

“But you got angry at me for being me.” Y/N cries out, finally turning to look at Natasha. “You yelled at me for taking breaks, but I need them, I really do. I haven’t been able to do anything these last weeks because I’ve been so tired.” Her voice cracks. “I’m so tired.”

“Okay.” Wanda mumbles. She brings Y/N to her arms length, holding onto her shoulders. “We are going to get you into therapy, okay? I’m not letting this get on any longer.”

“What if they just confirm something is wrong with me?” Y/N whispers.

“There’s nothing wrong with you if your brain is wired a bit different.” Wanda reassures. “The only thing that needs fixing here, is me and mom. We will do better and listen. When you tell us you need a break, we will give you a break. Got it?” Y/N nods. “That also means you need to come to us right away when you’re feeling bad.”

“Okay, mama.” Wanda smiles, wiping away Y/N’s tears. “I’m sorry, mom.” Y/N hugs Natasha.

“You don’t have to apologize for anything. I’m sorry, I’m very sorry.” Natasha embraces Y/N tightly, kissing the top of her head. “You’re an amazing daughter, and I love you.”

“I love you too.”

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inventors-fair · 5 days

Text

Made to Order: Creator's Pet Runners-Up ~

Our runners-up this week are @corporalotherbear, @grornt, and @hanavesinauttija!

@corporalotherbear — Toymaker's Key

Even all these years later, I still love me some Ensoul Artifacts. This is a finely tuned package of effects that really does feel tailor-made for the archetype. On-demand animation that can repeated as many times as you have mana or targets is already a great bit of utility that more than makes up for the slight steepness of the associated cost compared to similar options. It also boasts the ability to grow smaller artifact creatures you may have lying around thanks to the lack of a noncreature rider. The real standout here is the second effect, though. I love how the placement of the tap cost forces you to pick the best target in any given situation and forces a degree of commitment to get the most out of it that leaves a window for a clever opponent to exploit. While the typical situation will just have you spend 4 for an unblockable 4/4, there are sure to be plenty of times when you'll have something larger lying around or are content to only spend mana on the second ability to chip in with something smaller. My only gripe is the fact that it can target itself, which feels like it goes a bit against the spirit of the effect somewhat.

@grornt — Tenth District Tipster

I'm a big fan of the fact that "somewhat to extremely specific Future Sight effect" has somewhat come into vogue recently. It's a great source of card advantage that rewards clever deck construction, and just feels fun to play in general. Multicolor is a good category to tackle there too, as it enforces a degree of specificity without carrying a specific theme with it, meaning you're free to build your own out of whatever multicolored cards most strike your fancy. Gates are a fair deal more specific, and aren't really seen outside of extremely dedicated strategies or limited, but the strong Ravnica flavor nearly necessitates it. Having the card itself be "multicolored," by it only costing one color and declaring itself all-colored, is pretty smart. The fewer cards a multicolor support card is, the more unqiue color combinations it can reasonably fit into, so logically making it the fewest colors opens up the most amount of versatility. Although, to be honest...I mostly just like multicolor-matters strategy because I like how the frames look.

@hanavesinauttija — Nutmeg, Flighty Fae~

While the ongoing trend of trigger doubling seems to be pretty hit-or-miss with most players, I usually find myself on board. While they tend to be as explosive as you would expect something that increases the potency of effects multiplicatively to be, they're quite fun as long as they feel relatively "fair." Principally, this is by far one of the more specific conditions I've seen for one of these effects, which goes a ways towards justifying its low cost and versatile self-protection. On the subject of its protection, making it a slow blink feels very smart. Even if your opponent fails to remove them, you're still left without the doubling effect for the rest of the current turn. This can potentially be really disruptive to a gameplan, especially if the stack has several triggers you would really love to have doubled immediately afterwards. But to backtrack a bit, this really does feel "fair." Like, it's not doing anything that Panharmonicon and its ilk don't already have covered, but the specificity goes a long way towards not drawing as much ire from opponents as these effects usually do. At the very least, I can say I'd be a lot less concerned to see this on the other end of a Commander table than I would to see the Mother of Machines.

That's about it! Commentary's definitely coming this week, pinkie swear. @spooky-bard

#mtg #magic the gathering #custom magic card #inventor's fair #commentary #runners up #your favorite contest

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shiyorin · 1 year

Note

please please I'm on my knees yandere alphabet Mortarion

You little heretic. But here is for you.

Tw: Yandere

Yandere Alphabet Mortarion

Affection: How do they show their love and affection? How intense would it get?

He is very quiet and reserved, and that he'd spend a lot of time just watching you from afar. That's his way of showing his love and affection, just simply observing and watching every little thing that you do. He is satisfied with just watching you from afar but on the other hand, he also wants you to know his feelings. He admires your every action in silence. And if only you knew of his affection, then you would love him back. He just wants to hear it, to know that the feeling is mutual… just a simple acknowledgement of his love, and all would be fine.

Blood: How messy are they willing to get when it comes to their darling?

He'd get pretty messy, honestly. Because, in his mind, he's already so in love with you, that going to such extreme lengths is completely reasonable. Why wouldn't he go to ridiculous lengths to make you realize how much he loves you? Everything he does for you is done purely out of love, out of affection. He's lonely, so he'll do whatever it takes to be with you. At least, in his own logic.

Cruelty: How would they treat their darling once abducted? Would they mock them?

Surprisingly gentle. Despite his unhinged tendencies, he still cares about you, and he would never want to hurt you, especially not before he came into your worlds. He'd try to convince you that he's doing this for your own good, that he needs to keep you safe. And if you don't listen… then I think Mortarion might resort to less friendly methods.

Would he mock you? Well, he'd start to get a little bit sarcastic after a while, and might even say some things that could really hurt you. But he wouldn't do it out of malice, he'd do it because he's genuinely just frustrated. He doesn't understand why you don't understand why he's doing this, or why you can't just love him back. The idea that his love wouldn't be returned drives him crazy.

Darling: Aside from abduction, would they do anything against their darling’s will?

Oh, absolutely. He'd probably do it without really realizing how much he's doing it. Your privacy will be limited. Mortarion staring at you whenever he gets the chance, and that idea he's watching you might end up being the main thing that drives you crazy. He's constantly just watching. Waiting. And if you don't like it? Then you should just accept his love, or else.

Exposed: How much of their heart do they bare to their darling? How vulnerable are they when it comes to their darling?

Not much. He keeps everything locked away very deeply, but a small amount of it leaks out through his actions and his mannerisms. It's the little things, the way he stares at you for hours without blinking, the way he's always watching you, the way he's obsessed with you. Those things all come from his heart. But do you think he'd ever admit that?

Fight: How would they feel if their darling fought back?

It would probably infuriate him, honestly. There's this small part of his mind telling him that your reaction might be perfectly reasonable, but the bigger part of his mind tells him that you just shouldn't be so resistant, because he's doing this all for you. And you're ungrateful, and ungrateful people deserve to be punished.

Game: Is this a game to them? How much would they enjoy watching their darling try to escape?

Absolutely no. To Mortarion this is a need. He needs to be with you. Watching your attempts to escape wouldn't really be something that makes him happy, per say. If anything, it would just remind him of how complicated you and his entire situation is. If you'd just give in, then everything could be so simple. But you don't give in, and that frustrates Mortarion to no end.

Hell: What would be their darling’s worst experience with them?

Honestly, he hasn't done anything too terrible to you. But the way he constantly stares at you and invades your personal space and does nothing after that… Well. It's not Mortarion's direct actions that makes the experience so horrible, it's just being around his constant presence that makes you so miserable.

Ideals: What kind of future do they have in mind for/with their darling?

Mortarion dreaming about a relatively simple future. He will take you away from this horrible galaxy that drove him so mad. You and he will be living a nice, quiet little life together and forever. And if the future life involves kids, even better.

Jealousy: Do they get jealous? Do they lash out or find a way to cope?

Very possessive and jealous, but he tries to cope, keeping it all bottled up inside. He tries to convince himself that he can handle this all on his own, without you, without anyone who cares for him. And yes, he was handling it on his own, it was just someone who disappeared for no apparent reason. But that's not the point, is it?

Kisses: How do they act around or with their darling?

Mortarion being fairly aloof and cold towards you, actually. The vast majority of interactions are him just kind of being there. But he's still just watching from a distance, ready and willing to strike when the opportunity presents itself. In the meantime, maybe you and him would share the occasional quiet conversation, where Mortarion would be his usual, stoic self. It's not much, but it would be something.

Love letters: How would they go about courting or approaching their darling?

He'd do so slowly but surely. He'd start out by just watching you from afar, just learning the ropes from a distance and trying to learn about you without interacting. And then he'd try to be around you more, not talking much, and not necessarily getting close… just… around you, if that makes sense?

Mask: Are their true colors drastically different from the way they act around everyone else?

Mortarion is usually this aloof, distant man, someone who's almost completely impossible to get to know. But you? Oh, he's absolutely different around you. Even he can't quite describe it. He's not just a man around you, he's desperate, and lonely and confused, and so many things at once. And you have no idea, because he keeps it all hidden for his own. Until he can't….

Naughty: How would they punish their darling?

He just gives you silent treatment. But that punishment would hurt him a lot more than it would hurt you. He would just be silently stewing in his own anger while you are just confused. (Actually, you would want this because he left you alone, but it won't be for long)

Oppression: How many rights would they take away from their darling?

Just personal space, not much but that's all he'd need. He'd be constantly right next to you at all times, because he sees it as a way to protect you from harm. And he knows that the longer you stay with him, the more you'd fall for him, the more your feelings grow. And then maybe one day you'd choose to never leave him. Honestly, this is his rare optimistic thought.

Patience: How patient are they with their darling?

Incredibly patient. Mortarion is all about patience. It's one of the few things he's good at, honestly. He's not the type for explosive temper tantrums of any kind, the worst he gets is just snappish, or maybe he'll throw a few empty threats around, but that's it. He'll just wait. And wait, and wait. No matter how long it takes.

Quit: If their darling dies, leaves, or successfully escapes, would they ever be able to move on?

Never. He would never be able to move on. Not from his love. Not from the person who changed his entire world. Once he snaps, there is no going back. He could never replace you. This would be the absolute constant of his life. He could never, ever move on.

If you somehow managed to escape. He's frustrated, you're ungrateful, How dare you leave him after what he did for you? His mind would still be filled with thoughts of revenge, in a way? A very personal kind of revenge. If he can't have you, then… Well, no one will.

Regret: Would they ever feel guilty about abducting their darling? Would they ever let their darling go?

Not guilty but he'd question his sanity over and over and over again. He'd feel awful, he'd be miserable. But he also thinks that he's in the right, that you need him, and that his actions are just what's necessary for now.

Would he ever let you go? Mortarion has spent most of his life being miserable and alone, and he'll damn before he's gonna spend any more time that way. You are his, his salvation, from his own mind. And he's never, ever gonna let you go.

Stigma: What brought about this side of them (childhood, curiosity, etc)?

I'd think it's his isolation. Mortarion has spent so many years on his own, suffering silently with himself. He grew accustomed to loneliness, eventually. Even comfortable with it, to a certain degree. And then you come into his life. You're a way out of his madness, a way out of his torment, a way out of his misery. You are the only person who can help him save himself from… himself.

Tears: How do they feel about seeing their darling scream, cry, and/or isolate themselves?

He feels awful, terrible. A part of him wishes he could help, but he just doesn't know how. He doesn't know what to do. Your suffering is a sign that he needs to change, even when his entire being feels opposed to that. So he just sat there, watching all of it. And not do a thing, because he's helpless. His mind has already snapped, and he's no longer thinking that rationally.

Unique: Would they do anything different from the classic yandere?

He'd definitely be very patient. Even through all the stress and anxiety and guilt and confusion that you put him through, he would never snap the way that a classic Yandere does. He's more than content with just watching you for now. He'll take action when it's necessary but, until then, silence will have to make do with its cruelty. And honestly? If you showed any sign of improvement, any sign that you loved him, he would probably be over the moon.

Vice: What weakness can their darling exploit in order to escape?

Honestly, I don't think you need to do much. He always suffers silently with himself. With enough of a push, he could finally spiral out of control, and that would provide the perfect opportunity to escape. But the push has to be carefully calculated, one wrong move and it will be that much harder to get anywhere with him.

Wit’s end: Would they ever hurt their darling?

Physically? No. He would never hurt you, no matter how mad you made him. Mentally? Maybe. He doesn't mean to hurt you but his mentally is also slowly being destroyed.

Xoanon: How much would they revere or worship their darling? To what length would they go to win their darling over?

He would worship you immensely. You are his everything, his whole world. The light that leads him out of darkness. He would worship your every action and your every word, but keep it hidden. It's just that he doesn't really know how to show it, so he just doesn't. Oh, and yes, any length. There is nothing that he would not do if it meant that you would love him back. Nothing. And honestly, he's desperate to even just see the possibility of that becoming a reality.

Yearn: How long do they pine after their darling before they snap?

Honestly, he already snaps. He starts snapping the moment he meets you. The instant that Mortarion lays his eyes on you, he's caught by a whirlpool of anxiety, stress, and guilt that he has no clue how to control. But even that snapping wouldn't be all that violent, really. Just him being incredibly upset and resentful, maybe saying a few hurtful things that he might regret. It would take a long, long time before he actually reaches the breaking point.

Zenith: Would they ever break their darling?

He'd break you in a million different ways, and he'd be incapable of seeing that he did so. He'd be oblivious to it, thinking that it's just a bump in the road, a small bump in an otherwise relationship. He would break you, but be oblivious to the damage that he causes. Why? Because he is also broken.

#warhammer 40k #cw: yandere #tw: yandere #wh40crack.#mortarion #reader insert #yandere au #romantic stuff in 40k #actually i don't think it's romantic #shiyorin's writer #shiyorin's answer

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13-reasons-ideas · 1 year

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Can’t Go Back Part 24

A/N: Guess who’s back! Thank you for sticking with me. It’s been a rough several months and I think things are finally getting to a point where I can focus on my hobbies again. As always, feedback is appreciated and Character Q&As are open. Much Love -Em

I had finished the last book on my To Read shelf by mid-May. Hopping off my bed, I went over to my bookshelf. There was only one shelf of space left. The stack to shelve had gotten a tad out of hand. Sighing to myself, I sat down to start reorganizing. I pulled the books from H to Z down to fit the new additions to my collection in. My dad poked his head in when the stack fell over.

“Everything okay in here?” I was surrounded by books. Dad tried not to laugh as he took the scene in. Grabbing books, I turned back to the shelf.

“Perfect. Totally meant to sit in a sea of books this afternoon.”

“Sure. You have fun with that. I have to head into the office for a while. Tell your mother I probably won’t be home for dinner.”

“Will do.” I nodded, not turning my attention back to him.

Monty texted me shortly after I had finished the M’s. What are you up to today?

Organizing my bookshelf. I finished my TBR so now they go in the permanent collection.

Only my girlfriend would make a permanent book collection and a separate section for books that aren’t done.

Hey! Lots of people do this.

Yes honey.

What are you up to today?

Trying to study for my last History test. It’s very boring.

I’m sure it is. If you’re free Saturday, how about a get out of studying free card?

Oh? What did you have in mind Doll? I rolled my eyes and grinned. Of course he thought I meant something dirty.

Cool your jets Monty. I was going to see if you wanted to go to the bookstore with me?

I can make that happen. What time?

I think Clay and I are getting lunch to go over our study guide for the Math final. I could do like 1?

Sounds good. Do you want me to meet you at the bookstore?

Sure. I go to the B&N at the Everglade.

It’s a date.

I smiled and went back to my books.

When it was done, I snapped a picture and sent it to Justin. I finished my TBR! You know what that means?

Oh no. More books?

More books!

Do I have to come with you?

No. The parents gave me a limit of 10 books this time.

Only 10?

I have points saved up. And 10 is a perfectly reasonable amount of new books.

For you? Yes. For normal people? No.

Oh shhh, or I’ll make you come with me.

Okay, okay. It’s reasonable lol. I texted Monty a picture of my bookshelf too. He responded with a laughing emoji.

Teachers were beginning to wrap up final units and hand out study guides for finals. Justin was still mad about summer school so he kept up his not giving a shit attitude. I rolled my eyes whenever he sighed or complained about finals. And I stopped offering to help him. If he wanted to do more work in summer school, that was fine by me. It gave me more time to spend with Monty.

On Saturday, I met Clay at Rosie’s and we both got milkshakes. I wasn’t very hungry, and I didn’t want burger breath later. “So Clay, how’s Hannah doing?”

“I don’t know. We have hung out a few times, and I see her at work, but I don’t think we have hung out hung out.”

“You still haven’t asked her out?”

“I mean, we went to Jeff’s place not together, but we were both there, and I feel like maybe we connected?”

“Connected?”

“Well, we were doing… stuff… and we talked.” My eyes widened.

“Clay Jensen did you do drugs in Jeff’s basement?”

“Maybe?” I was stunned.

“Well, I’ll be damned. Clay Jensen, having fun. I never thought I’d see the day.”

“Ha ha.” He joked.

“I’m kidding! But seriously. Take the risk Clay.”

“I’ll think about it. Can we look at this study guide now?” I sighed and pulled it out of my bag. We both shuddered. This is not going to be a pretty exam.

By the time Clay and I called it an afternoon, it was 12:30. That gave me just enough time to get to the city. We packed our notes and headed outside. “Man, I really need a car.” Clay sighed, unlocking his bike.

“Your parents said no?”

“I have a bike.” He waved towards the bike.

“That you do. I would offer you a ride, but I’m headed into the city for the afternoon.”

“No worries, Addy.” He smiled. We waved goodbye and I watched as he biked down the street. I started my car and texted Monty. Leaving Rosie’s now. Might be a little late. Drive safe.

Sounds good, drive safe Doll.

I stopped at Starbucks when I got to the mall and got an iced coffee to sip while I browse and a coffee for Montgomery. He was waiting outside Barnes & Noble for me. “Hey handsome. Fancy seeing you here.” I winked as I walked up to him.

“Hey gorgeous. What can I say, thought it would be a good way to find a girl. You know what they say about the readers.”

“I have a feeling I do.” I laughed and handed him his coffee. “Something to do with being high strung, overachievers with daddy issues?”

“Somethin’ like that.” Monty took my hand and let me lead him into the bookstore. I decided I would keep my ten-book limit to myself. I knew how many points I had, and I still had birthday money left from last year.

He chuckled as I practically dragged him towards the YA section. I didn’t stop to look at the romance displays or the cookbooks or the journals. I was on a mission. There were books to buy. I sipped my coffee as I browsed. As usual, I made my way up and down the aisles quickly once to see if anything immediately caught my eye. A couple of books did, so I grabbed them to look over after I was done my power walk. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you move that fast.”

“Ass.” I laughed as I read over the synopsizes of the two books. Neither of them was my cup of tea in the end, so I decided to put them back. I could feel Montgomery watching me as I looked at the shelves. “What?” I asked as I pulled a book down and skimmed the back.

“Nothin’. You’re just cute is all.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. And those shorts are very nice.” I blushed and smiled softly.

“Thanks.” I handed him the book.

“Oh, I see. You needed someone to carry the books.”

“Well, who else would I have asked, when I have my strong, athletic boyfriend to follow me around the store?” He only laughed in response. I grabbed a few more books as I sipped at my coffee. Once in a while, I would notice him watching me and turn to smile at him.

There were six books in Monty’s hands before he finished his coffee. “I’m going to throw this out. Try to leave some books for the next person, okay Bookworm?”

“I’ll try. No promises though.” I mused. By the time he came back, I had three more books. I looked up when I heard him laugh. I grinned at him and held out the books. He took them, tucked them under his arm, and stepped towards me. My brow furrowed and he reached to tuck my hair behind my ear, trailing his hand down to cup the back of my neck, and pull me towards him to kiss me. I kissed him back softly. It was nice to be able to kiss in public. I liked our little bubble. It felt like we were the only two people in the world. He pulled away first.

We continued to peruse the store for a while and stole kisses and glances along the way. Monty slid his hand in my back pocket as we walked. I grabbed another couple of books and sighed. “What’s up?”

“I guess that’s enough books for a little while.”

“For a little while? Addison. There’s like,” he paused to count, “sixteen books here.”

“Yeah. And that isn’t even all of what is on my TBR still. And it’s buy one get one half off all books.” I shrugged.

“Jesus. Crazy woman.” He muttered softly and kissed the side of my head. I sighed and turned to head for the till. After discounts, points, and birthday money, my total was twenty-five dollars.

“Now to figure out how to sneak the extra six books into the house.” I muttered as we left.

“The extra what whats?”

“Uh… nothing.” I smiled sheepishly. He shook his head playfully. “Oh, hey. Pretzels. Split one?”

“Nice change of subject. Sure. Pretzel sounds good.” He rubbed my hand as he held it. This is nice.

In late June, just as finals week was hitting its peak, tragedy struck our little group of jocks. The boys were at Bryce’s trying to blow off some steam. I was trying to be nice to him and make an effort for Justin, so I tagged along. The way his family approached and flaunted their money always took me by surprise. I wasn’t oblivious. I knew my family had more money than most. More than I liked to consider or admit. But it was never flashed around the way it was with the Walkers. I came from old money on my dad’s side, like his mom. But unlike him, I wasn’t exposed to it on a daily basis. The concept of a twice a week maid was enough to widen my eyes. The only time my family had a maid come was when Gran was coming to stay with us, or we were hosting Christmas back when all my grandparents lived state-side, so a very deep clean was needed. The fact that they had a chef come in once a week to meal prep for them was… almost incomprehensible. The only time I met a chef was when I found a hair in my food when my family went out one night.

I had been to his house before of course. I was friends with Justin. We shared custody of him most weeks. Even still, I found myself hanging back and watching the boys socialize. Or I was trying to at least. Bryce thrusting a bottle of water in my hand startled me. I jumped slightly. “Thanks.” I muttered.

“Don’t mention it.” He chuckled. He settled himself next to me and leaned back against the counter.

“Hi.”

“Hi. You know that they will talk to you, right? They know you.”

“I know.”

“Okay. I’ll talk to you then.” Great. Just what I want.

“Sure Bryce.”

“How are finals treating you?”

“I cried before my honours English final yesterday.”

“I almost forgot about my math final.”

“So, we are basically in the same boat.”

“Basically. You had bio and history today?”

“Yeah.”

“How were they?”

“I think I did fairly okay. Can you imagine what my mum would do if I bombed the history final?” He stared off into space with me and shivered.

“I would say something nice about you at your funeral.”

“Thanks Walker. Killing me does seem like a lot of hassle for that though. Like it seems like it would just inconvenience them. Maybe locked in my room to study until I’m forty?”

“True. I would text you news updates. Keep you updated in all things Bryce and the boys.”

“Prefect. Make isolation at least a little bit bearable.” He was actually kind of nice sometimes. Maybe. If I squinted.

“Yeah. My dad would have freaked if I missed my math final.”

“How could you take over the family business if you fail tenth grade math Bryce?”

“No idea. Not like he doesn’t pay someone to do all that math for him. Speaking of, he wanted me to ask you if your dad is taking on any new clients now that tax season is winding down?”

“I don’t know. I don’t think he is, but I can get him to email your dad.” I don’t think he’s going to take your dad on.

“I’ll let him know.”

“Where are you off to this summer?”

“I think we are summering in Fiji?”

“Because California isn’t summer-y enough?”

“Mom thinks the sun feels different. More sunny. I tan better in tropical environments.”

“Sure, you do.”

“What are your family’s plans?”

“We have our annual family trip to Boston at the end of July into the first week of August. Dad pushed his vacation time this year.”

“Doesn’t he own the company?”

“Yeah. But his associate wanted to take vacation in mid-July. She’s taking her kids to Disney World.”

“Again, doesn’t he own the company?”

“Again, yes. Why?”

“Shouldn’t he get first pick?”

“Well, our vacation basically costs us airfare, food, and spending money. Hers and everyone else’s costs a lot more. And requires more planning. So, he lets them have first pick and takes whatever’s left for the most part. Because of that, people are more willing to pick fairly.”

“Interesting.”

“Are you two going to come outside or not?” Justin called from the back yard. Bryce and I looked up and found the house empty. All the boys had moved to the back. We shrugged and joined them. I needed to pass the sniff test so I didn’t dare go in the pool house. Anders and Dylan were in the pool house enjoying Bryce’s stash. It was already nearing eighty degrees in the daytime. We were in for a hot summer. Justin pulled off his shirt, dropped his pants, and jumped in the pool. Shaking my head, I followed Bryce outside.

I sat on the edge of the pool and dipped my feet in the water. Monty was trying to be discreet and swim backwards towards me. He stopped just shy of me and shared a look with Zach. I pretended not to notice. It looked like I was busy watching Justin goof off with Bryce and Garrison. I was watching my boyfriend out of the corner of my eye though. I felt a wave close to my foot. “Montgomery. If you touch my foot, I’m not responsible for what happens to your face.” His hand stopped and his eyes widened. Justin laughed and called from across the pool.

“She isn’t wrong dude. She kicked me in the face when I was trying to bug her one time.”

“I wasn’t going to….” Monty trailed off.

“Sure, you weren’t.” I shook my head and moved to stand up. I pulled my tank top over my head. The shorts I was wearing were fine to go in the water.

Seeing as we had to keep up appearances, I couldn’t very well ask Monty to tighten the tie on my bikini top. That would be too much. The boys would question that. Joking around and talking to each other in a group was okay. Touching was not. “Hey Justin, do you mind?” I gestured to my back, not looking at the pool.

“He’s a little busy.” Bryce said. I could hear splashing behind me.

“Zach?”

“Sure.” He climbed out of the pool and untied the bottom strings. He pulled them tighter in a knot and doubled the bow. “Good?”

“Yeah.” I turned around. “Thanks.” Bryce whistled. Gross.

“Why are you keeping her all to yourself again?” He asked Justin. I flipped him off. Why am I being nice to you again?

“I’m not. It’s Addison. Even if I was, I don’t share Bryce.” He seemed to shut the conversation down. Only I could pick up on the stern undertone in his voice. Just as quickly as it came, it was gone, and they were back to goofing off again.

I slipped in the pool and noticing Justin was distracted, I swam over to him and jumped on his back. I may have accidentally splashed Monty in my jumping. I snuck a peek at him and he was rolling his eyes and laughing. “Chicken?” Justin asked. His hands went to my thighs unconsciously.

“No. You dropped me last time. Though it would be entertaining trying to watch the rest of you lift each other.”

“We’re strong.” The boys around me protested. They all made a show of flexing.

“Yes, yes. You’re all strong and hot. With superior athletic abilities. Go you.” I laughed.

“Ha! I told you she thinks I’m hot.” Bryce pointed at Justin.

“It doesn’t count if you’re objectively attractive Walker. I also think the blond guy from the Percy Jackson movie is hot. Because he is objectively attractive.”

“Objectively attractive?”

“You’re lucky you’re rich.” I muttered. Justin choked. “You’re a very pretty man Bryce Walker.”

“Do we get called pretty too Addison?” Monty asked.

“If you don’t call me by my full name again then sure Monty. You are also pretty. Foley, I swear if you drop me, you’re sleeping on the floor tonight.” His hand tightened around my thigh.

The group of us hung out for a while. At some point Scott joined us. Even though we weren’t friends per say, he was still nice to me when I was around. He swam over to my corner of the pool. “I’m supposed to ask you if you think I’m pretty?”

“Scott. If you don’t know you’re pretty, I don’t know what to say to you.”

“Alright then. Why was I supposed to ask?”

“I acknowledged Bryce is objectively attractive and the children felt left out.”

“I see. Why are you hiding in a corner?”

“Hiding from Justin. He’s trying to get me to play chicken. But I don’t feel like getting dropped again.”

“And why does he think you’d get to play with anyone else?”

“I think the attempt would be very entertaining actually.” There was a ringing over by the table.

“Someone’s phone is ringing.” I called. The ringing stopped and started again immediately. Zach looked up. It was his phone.

“It’s probably his mommy calling to tell him he has to come home before it gets dark.” Bryce teased. The boys laughed. I even chuckled a little to myself. Oh, how bad I would feel about that chuckle in a few hours. Zach splashed him. By the time the phone began its second round of ringing again, Zach was out of the pool and grabbing it. He was smiling when he answered it.

“Hey Mom. I’m com-.” It was quiet. “Yeah, I’ll be right home.” He hung up and quickly pulled on his pants, over his wet swim trucks. He threw on his shirt and practically sprinted back in the house. He didn’t say a word to any of us as he left.

“What’s going on with him?” Bryce said. We all stared after him.

A few hours after I got home, I got a text from Bryce. Justin got the same text. Zach’s dad died. Justin and I sat and looked at each other at the table, shocked. We sat there for a solid ten minutes, trying to absorb the information we had been given. I was sure our friends were in the same position. How did you respond to something like that? None of us had ever lost a parent. Sure, I had lost a couple of grandparents. I probably wasn’t the only one. But they’re sort of expected to die. They’re old. They’ve lived. Our parents weren’t old. Not old enough to die yet anyway. I picked my phone back up and texted Zach the only thing I could think to say. He would hear the words a lot in the next few months. I am so sorry. I knew he wouldn’t answer.

Zach wasn’t at school for the rest of the week. Not that he should have been. He had been excused from all of his other exams. Because of course he should have been. I didn’t see him until I was walking home from a date with Monty over the weekend. He was just… walking around town. He didn’t see me at first. When he noticed me standing up the street, he waved a little. I waved back and slowly walked over to him. Even though Zach Dempsey and I weren’t really friends, we were friendly. That’s why it didn’t feel weird when the only thing my brain said to do, was hug him. He didn’t cry. He didn’t say anything. He just hugged me back. We didn’t talk about that random, silent hug on the street again. Not for a long time at least. We simply nodded as we parted ways. He walked one way and I walked the other.

July changed a lot of things. Bryce left town with his family a few days after Zach’s dad’s funeral. Seth was back in town too. That meant Justin spent most of the first couple of weeks of July at my house. He was right. My parents were not happy about him doing summer school. As his not-mom my mum had a strict ‘no fun until homework is done and checked’ rule. At first, I spent my time with Monty during school hours. We weren’t really sure what the summer meant for our relationship. Those first few dates, we mostly talked about that.

“Well, I don’t want to not see you.” Monty said, between kisses in the backseat of my car. We had parked at a secluded clearing overlooking the river.

“I don’t want to not see you either. It’s going to be hard though.”

“Don’t talk about hard right now Doll. Please.” I pulled away and looked at him wide-eyed. “You don’t strike me as a public sex kind of girl. And I don’t want to get a public indecency charge.”

“Yeah. I’m not.” I sat up. “Justin being at my place complicates things.”

“Oh, I know.” He ground out as he adjusted his jeans. I could tell my cheeks were flushed.

“We knew we couldn’t see each other every day.”

“But it’s not easy not seeing you.”

“I know it’s not.”

“Why does this have to be so hard?” He sat back.

“I don’t know.” Neither of us were ready nor willing to have the ‘tell other people’ talk. Even though it had been almost a year. And probably needed to happen.

“Seeing each other while school is in, isn’t such a bad thing, is it?”

“No.”

“And I do have other friends. I could say I’m going to the city with Alex or something. Give us some more time?”

“That’s true.”

I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. “I could take you to the bookstore.” He blinked at me. “What?”

“The bookstore?”

“It’s air conditioned.” I shrugged and climbed into his lap. His hands instinctively found their way to my hips.

“You just need someone to carry your books again.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I smirked.

There was something different about Justin since he started summer school. I couldn’t put my finger on it. He was… distracted. I noticed he spent more time on his phone after homework than paying attention to what we were doing. Which was fine when it was show re-runs or my mom’s pick for movie night. But when you’re trying to play Ticket to Ride with a guy, it’s much easier when they are paying attention. “Hey. Earth to Justin. Hello?”

“Huh?” He looked up from his phone.

“It’s been your turn for the past five minutes.”

“Shit, sorry.” He looked at his cards and the map. Picking up a red and a pink from the pile, he settled back in his chair. Interesting. I frowned at the board, trying to figure out what he was doing. I came back with nothing. His phone buzzed again. I glanced at it. So did he. Then my phone buzzed. He glanced at it. So, did I. It was like we were waiting to see who would grab their phone first. After a few beats, his hand went to his phone. He smirked a little and put it down. I didn’t check mine.

I came home from a date with Monty a little late on Thursday. It was nearing five when I walked in the door, after I fixed my hair. I dropped my purse and stopped dead in my tracks. Justin had company. Company in the form of Jessica Davis. Who was currently sitting in his lap. On my couch. Making out with him. On my couch. They had their hands up each other’s shirts. On my couch. I cleared my throat. Jessica pulled away and turned towards me. “Oh, hey Addy.” She greeted, like this was normal.

“Hey Addy. You’re… just getting home?” His speech was slowed. Are you shitting me?

“Yeah. What’s going on?”

“Your parents said I could have a friend over after class.”

“Okay.” I blinked. She was still perched in his lap. I glanced at the clock. “I suggest you fix your shirts because they should be home soon. And I don’t think they want to see, uh, this.” I motioned in their general direction. Jessica laughed and climbed off Justin.

“Oh, don’t be such a priss, Addison.”

“I’m not being a priss. I just wasn’t expecting to come home to people making out on my couch.” She rolled her eyes. “Great to see you too. Hey, Justin. Can I steal you for a sec?” I waved upstairs. “There’s snacks in the cupboard, Jess.”

Justin followed me upstairs, trying not to giggle at, assumingly, the fact that he didn’t get caught by my parents. I shut the door when we got to my room. “What the fuck Justin?”

“What?” He shrugged.

“What do you mean what?”

“What?”

“Making out with a girl on our couch?” He was trying to avoid eye contact. My parents are going to kill him.

“No one was home. It’s not a big deal.”

“How long has this been going on?”

“I don’t know, a couple weeks?” I blinked at him. He was still trying to look away from me. I grabbed his face and made him look at me.

“Are you fucking high right now?”

“No? What? Why would you ask that?” His eyes were bloodshot. He was acting very much like Justin when Justin has been indulging in Bryce’s stash.

“Don’t lie to me Justin Foley. You know my parent’s rules. Do you want them to freak out?”

“Oh, come on Addison. It was a little weed. It’s not that big of a deal.” I sighed heavily.

“You know what, whatever. You obviously don’t care. So, I suggest you tell your girlfriend to leave or figure out a way to sober up before they get home. And if that fails, tell her to leave, and come hide in here until you’re sober enough to face them.” I grabbed a book off my shelf and went back downstairs. I nodded at Jessica, who had made herself some crackers and dip. Sitting at the table, I texted Monty.

Justin and Jessica? Did you know about this? He responded a couple of minutes later.

No? Actually?

Yeah. They were making out on my couch when I got home. And to make things even more awkward and complicated, they’re both high.

I mean, to be fair, weed isn’t really that bad.

Yeah. I know. But that’s not the point. My parents are going to freak. Now is really not the time to be pissing them off.

Oh crap. You guys leave for Boston soon, don’t you?

Next week. And if Justin can’t keep his shit together… I left the unspoken implication hang in cyberspace. Are you really just going to ignore the fact that they were on the couch?

I was hoping to just ignore that fact.

Our make out spots are becoming fewer and further between.

We could just stay in your bed, Doll.

But the couch has the TV. So we can not watch a movie without worrying about my laptop falling.

“Who you texting so much?” Jessica asked, trying to peer at my phone.

“Friend from Boston.” I said, locking my phone.

“Oh, friend from Boston, you say? Is he cute?”

“I guess? His girlfriend probably thinks so.”

“Oh. Not a secret long distance lover then?”

“No. And we grew up together. It would be weird.” I slipped my phone in my pocket and grabbed some cereal. We both looked up when my parents got home. I took that as my cue to go get Justin. I practically kicked him downstairs so he could go entertain his girlfriend with my parents and I could have some time to process how I missed it. Probably the same way he has missed me having a boyfriend for… almost a year.

The day before we left for Boston, Justin and I were running around like mad men. I had plans with Monty and Justin had plans with Jessica tonight, so I didn’t want to be too long packing. Unfortunately, neither of us could find anything we wanted to bring. It was going to be nice so I wanted to bring some dresses. We had a few things planned, but like with our other trips, there would be plenty of time to lounge around the house.

“Have you seen my pink and green dress?”

“The one with the stripes? No. Have you seen my blue shirt?”

“I think mum put it in the wash.”

“Okay.” Justin went down the hall to the bathroom. “Has anyone seen my shampoo?” He called.

“It’s in here.” My dad called from their room. I was busy ripping apart my closet. I groaned in frustration.

“You know, it’s just Boston. We go every year.”

“I know Justin. I just like to be prepared for every eventuality.”

“Yeah. Wait… are you trying to impress Adrian?” Justin laughed. I turned and he was leaning against the doorframe.

“No. Absolutely not. Besides, he has a girlfriend.” A girlfriend I happen to like.

“If you say so.” He smirked. I rolled my eyes and flipped him off as he went back to packing his bag. I gave up on my closet and decided to tackle our toiletries. I wasn’t too concerned with travel sizes because it was all going in my checked luggage.

“Decide what book you’re taking with you Addy?”

“Don’t you mean books, plural? It is a 6-hour flight after all.” He laughed.

“Okay, okay. Books?”

“I’m happy you asked.” I grinned as I pulled out the Barnes & Noble bag from under my bed. His jaw dropped. I shrugged.

“Your parents are going to freak.”

“They know I went book shopping.”

After a very long day of packing, Justin left to go meet Jessica. I texted Monty to let him know I would be leaving in about fifteen minutes. “I’m going to hang out with Alex and Clay for a bit.” I told my parents.

“Just remember we leave early tomorrow for the airport Addison.” My dad said, not looking up from his list. My mom was emptying the fridge.

“I will.”

When I got to the cliffside where we agreed to meet, Monty was waiting for me. I couldn’t help myself. I ran and held onto him like it was the last time I would ever see him. “You’re only leaving for two weeks Addison.” He grunted at the impact.

“I’m going to miss you.”

“I’ll miss you too.” He kissed the top of my head. We stood like that for a few more minutes before finally separating. I took his hand and led him up the trail. It was good for both of us to be walking the trails. He was starting summer training with the boys while we were gone, and I was going to be sitting for around 8 hours straight tomorrow. Provided our flight wasn’t delayed, of course. It was just starting to get dark, and I stopped along the way to take in the town’s skyline in the evening dusk. Monty rested his chin on top of my head, and I sighed, leaning back into him. It was so peaceful. I looked up and him and noticed a small bruise forming on his jaw. Not wanting to start a fight right before I left for two weeks, I pretended I hadn’t seen it. I smiled sadly to myself still. I wish he would just talk to me about it.

After a few hours, wandering around and soaking in the last time we would have for a couple of weeks, which feels like an eternity when you’re 16, we knew it was time to say goodbye. When we got to the parking lot, he made me turn around at his Jeep. I furrowed my brow. Before I could ask, he twirled his finger in the air. I clamped my mouth closed and turned. He rummaged around for a minute. “What are you doing?”

“You’ll see. Just wait a minute.” I huffed. He chuckled. ��Ah.” He muttered. He tapped me on the shoulder. I turned. He held out a small Barnes and Noble bag. I was taken aback. I wasn’t expecting anything. I pointed at the bag and then at me.

“F-for me?”

“It’s not much so don’t start.” He smiled, shyly.

“Okay.” I took the bag.

“I can’t wrap stuff worth shit, so the bag is as good as you’re going to get.” I laughed and shrugged. It was a fair enough explanation. I opened the bag and pulled out a spiralbound notebook. The cover was pink with the titles of all the classics on it. I smiled. “You won’t be here for your birthday, and I know your notebook is getting full so….” Monty trailed off.

“Thank you. This is really sweet.” I flipped it open and gasped. On the first page, he had drawn a book like on the cover, and titled it The Next Classic and written Hawthorne at the bottom where the author’s last name sometimes appears.

“Happy birthday, Addison.”

“Oh.” I smiled. My eyes had started to tear up. This was the sweetest gift anyone had ever given me. I closed the gap between us and kissed him. He pulled me closer to him and I deepened the kiss just a little. Not too much, just enough to make him remember me while I was gone.I had finished the last book on my To Read shelf by mid-May. Hopping off my bed, I went over to my bookshelf. There was only one shelf of space left. The stack to shelve had gotten a tad out of hand. Sighing to myself, I sat down to start reorganizing. I pulled the books from H to Z down to fit the new additions to my collection in. My dad poked his head in when the stack fell over. “Everything okay in here?” I was surrounded by books. Dad tried not to laugh as he took the scene in. Grabbing books, I turned back to the shelf.“Perfect. Totally meant to sit in a sea of books this afternoon.” “Sure. You have fun with that. I have to head into the office for a while. Tell your mother I probably won’t be home for dinner.” “Will do.” I nodded, not turning my attention back to him. Monty texted me shortly after I had finished the M’s. What are you up to today? Organizing my bookshelf. I finished my TBR so now they go in the permanent collection. Only my girlfriend would make a permanent book collection and a separate section for books that aren’t done. Hey! Lots of people do this. Yes honey. What are you up to today? Trying to study for my last History test. It’s very boring. I’m sure it is. If you’re free Saturday, how about a get out of studying free card? Oh? What did you have in mind Doll? I rolled my eyes and grinned. Of course he thought I meant something dirty. Cool your jets Monty. I was going to see if you wanted to go to the bookstore with me?I can make that happen. What time? I think Clay and I are getting lunch to go over our study guide for the Math final. I could do like 1?Sounds good. Do you want me to meet you at the bookstore? Sure. I go to the B&N at the Everglade. It’s a date. I smiled and went back to my books. When it was done, I snapped a picture and sent it to Justin. I finished my TBR! You know what that means?Oh no. More books? More books! Do I have to come with you?No. The parents gave me a limit of 10 books this time. Only 10?I have points saved up. And 10 is a perfectly reasonable amount of new books. For you? Yes. For normal people? No. Oh shhh, or I’ll make you come with me. Okay, okay. It’s reasonable lol. I texted Monty a picture of my bookshelf too. He responded with a laughing emoji. Teachers were beginning to wrap up final units and hand out study guides for finals. Justin was still mad about summer school so he kept up his not giving a shit attitude. I rolled my eyes whenever he sighed or complained about finals. And I stopped offering to help him. If he wanted to do more work in summer school, that was fine by me. It gave me more time to spend with Monty. On Saturday, I met Clay at Rosie’s and we both got milkshakes. I wasn’t very hungry, and I didn’t want burger breath later. “So Clay, how’s Hannah doing?” “I don’t know. We have hung out a few times, and I see her at work, but I don’t think we have hung out hung out.” “You still haven’t asked her out?” “I mean, we went to Jeff’s place not together, but we were both there, and I feel like maybe we connected?” “Connected?” “Well, we were doing… stuff… and we talked.” My eyes widened. “Clay Jensen did you do drugs in Jeff’s basement?” “Maybe?” I was stunned. “Well, I’ll be damned. Clay Jensen, having fun. I never thought I’d see the day.”“Ha ha.” He joked. “I’m kidding! But seriously. Take the risk Clay.” “I’ll think about it. Can we look at this study guide now?” I sighed and pulled it out of my bag. We both shuddered. This is not going to be a pretty exam.By the time Clay and I called it an afternoon, it was 12:30. That gave me just enough time to get to the city. We packed our notes and headed outside. “Man, I really need a car.” Clay sighed, unlocking his bike. “Your parents said no?” “I have a bike.” He waved towards the bike. “That you do. I would offer you a ride, but I’m headed into the city for the afternoon.” “No worries, Addy.” He smiled. We waved goodbye and I watched as he biked down the street. I started my car and texted Monty. Leaving Rosie’s now. Might be a little late. Drive safe. Sounds good, drive safe Doll. I stopped at Starbucks when I got to the mall and got an iced coffee to sip while I browse and a coffee for Montgomery. He was waiting outside Barnes & Noble for me. “Hey handsome. Fancy seeing you here.” I winked as I walked up to him.“Hey gorgeous. What can I say, thought it would be a good way to find a girl. You know what they say about the readers.” “I have a feeling I do.” I laughed and handed him his coffee. “Something to do with being high strung, overachievers with daddy issues?” “Somethin’ like that.” Monty took my hand and let me lead him into the bookstore. I decided I would keep my ten-book limit to myself. I knew how many points I had, and I still had birthday money left from last year. He chuckled as I practically dragged him towards the YA section. I didn’t stop to look at the romance displays or the cookbooks or the journals. I was on a mission. There were books to buy. I sipped my coffee as I browsed. As usual, I made my way up and down the aisles quickly once to see if anything immediately caught my eye. A couple of books did, so I grabbed them to look over after I was done my power walk. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you move that fast.” “Ass.” I laughed as I read over the synopsizes of the two books. Neither of them was my cup of tea in the end, so I decided to put them back. I could feel Montgomery watching me as I looked at the shelves. “What?” I asked as I pulled a book down and skimmed the back. “Nothin’. You’re just cute is all.” “Oh?” “Yeah. And those shorts are very nice.” I blushed and smiled softly. “Thanks.” I handed him the book. “Oh, I see. You needed someone to carry the books.”“Well, who else would I have asked, when I have my strong, athletic boyfriend to follow me around the store?” He only laughed in response. I grabbed a few more books as I sipped at my coffee. Once in a while, I would notice him watching me and turn to smile at him. There were six books in Monty’s hands before he finished his coffee. “I’m going to throw this out. Try to leave some books for the next person, okay Bookworm?” “I’ll try. No promises though.” I mused. By the time he came back, I had three more books. I looked up when I heard him laugh. I grinned at him and held out the books. He took them, tucked them under his arm, and stepped towards me. My brow furrowed and he reached to tuck my hair behind my ear, trailing his hand down to cup the back of my neck, and pull me towards him to kiss me. I kissed him back softly. It was nice to be able to kiss in public. I liked our little bubble. It felt like we were the only two people in the world. He pulled away first. We continued to peruse the store for a while and stole kisses and glances along the way. Monty slid his hand in my back pocket as we walked. I grabbed another couple of books and sighed. “What’s up?” “I guess that’s enough books for a little while.” “For a little while? Addison. There’s like,” he paused to count, “sixteen books here.” “Yeah. And that isn’t even all of what is on my TBR still. And it’s buy one get one half off all books.” I shrugged. “Jesus. Crazy woman.” He muttered softly and kissed the side of my head. I sighed and turned to head for the till. After discounts, points, and birthday money, my total was twenty-five dollars. “Now to figure out how to sneak the extra six books into the house.” I muttered as we left. “The extra what whats?” “Uh… nothing.” I smiled sheepishly. He shook his head playfully. “Oh, hey. Pretzels. Split one?” “Nice change of subject. Sure. Pretzel sounds good.” He rubbed my hand as he held it. This is nice. In late June, just as finals week was hitting its peak, tragedy struck our little group of jocks. The boys were at Bryce’s trying to blow off some steam. I was trying to be nice to him and make an effort for Justin, so I tagged along. The way his family approached and flaunted their money always took me by surprise. I wasn’t oblivious. I knew my family had more money than most. More than I liked to consider or admit. But it was never flashed around the way it was with the Walkers. I came from old money on my dad’s side, like his mom. But unlike him, I wasn’t exposed to it on a daily basis. The concept of a twice a week maid was enough to widen my eyes. The only time my family had a maid come was when Gran was coming to stay with us, or we were hosting Christmas back when all my grandparents lived state-side, so a very deep clean was needed. The fact that they had a chef come in once a week to meal prep for them was… almost incomprehensible. The only time I met a chef was when I found a hair in my food when my family went out one night. I had been to his house before of course. I was friends with Justin. We shared custody of him most weeks. Even still, I found myself hanging back and watching the boys socialize. Or I was trying to at least. Bryce thrusting a bottle of water in my hand startled me. I jumped slightly. “Thanks.” I muttered. “Don’t mention it.” He chuckled. He settled himself next to me and leaned back against the counter. “Hi.” “Hi. You know that they will talk to you, right? They know you.” “I know.” “Okay. I’ll talk to you then.” Great. Just what I want. “Sure Bryce.” “How are finals treating you?” “I cried before my honours English final yesterday.” “I almost forgot about my math final.” “So, we are basically in the same boat.” “Basically. You had bio and history today?” “Yeah.” “How were they?” “I think I did fairly okay. Can you imagine what my mum would do if I bombed the history final?” He stared off into space with me and shivered. “I would say something nice about you at your funeral.” “Thanks Walker. Killing me does seem like a lot of hassle for that though. Like it seems like it would just inconvenience them. Maybe locked in my room to study until I’m forty?” “True. I would text you news updates. Keep you updated in all things Bryce and the boys.” “Prefect. Make isolation at least a little bit bearable.” He was actually kind of nice sometimes. Maybe. If I squinted.“Yeah. My dad would have freaked if I missed my math final.” “How could you take over the family business if you fail tenth grade math Bryce?” “No idea. Not like he doesn’t pay someone to do all that math for him. Speaking of, he wanted me to ask you if your dad is taking on any new clients now that tax season is winding down?” “I don’t know. I don’t think he is, but I can get him to email your dad.” I don’t think he’s going to take your dad on. “I’ll let him know.” “Where are you off to this summer?” “I think we are summering in Fiji?” “Because California isn’t summer-y enough?” “Mom thinks the sun feels different. More sunny. I tan better in tropical environments.” “Sure, you do.”“What are your family’s plans?” “We have our annual family trip to Boston at the end of July into the first week of August. Dad pushed his vacation time this year.” “Doesn’t he own the company?” “Yeah. But his associate wanted to take vacation in mid-July. She’s taking her kids to Disney World.” “Again, doesn’t he own the company?”“Again, yes. Why?” “Shouldn’t he get first pick?” “Well, our vacation basically costs us airfare, food, and spending money. Hers and everyone else’s costs a lot more. And requires more planning. So, he lets them have first pick and takes whatever’s left for the most part. Because of that, people are more willing to pick fairly.” “Interesting.”“Are you two going to come outside or not?” Justin called from the back yard. Bryce and I looked up and found the house empty. All the boys had moved to the back. We shrugged and joined them. I needed to pass the sniff test so I didn’t dare go in the pool house. Anders and Dylan were in the pool house enjoying Bryce’s stash. It was already nearing eighty degrees in the daytime. We were in for a hot summer. Justin pulled off his shirt, dropped his pants, and jumped in the pool. Shaking my head, I followed Bryce outside. I sat on the edge of the pool and dipped my feet in the water. Monty was trying to be discreet and swim backwards towards me. He stopped just shy of me and shared a look with Zach. I pretended not to notice. It looked like I was busy watching Justin goof off with Bryce and Garrison. I was watching my boyfriend out of the corner of my eye though. I felt a wave close to my foot. “Montgomery. If you touch my foot, I’m not responsible for what happens to your face.” His hand stopped and his eyes widened. Justin laughed and called from across the pool. “She isn’t wrong dude. She kicked me in the face when I was trying to bug her one time.” “I wasn’t going to….” Monty trailed off. “Sure, you weren’t.” I shook my head and moved to stand up. I pulled my tank top over my head. The shorts I was wearing were fine to go in the water. Seeing as we had to keep up appearances, I couldn’t very well ask Monty to tighten the tie on my bikini top. That would be too much. The boys would question that. Joking around and talking to each other in a group was okay. Touching was not. “Hey Justin, do you mind?” I gestured to my back, not looking at the pool. “He’s a little busy.” Bryce said. I could hear splashing behind me. “Zach?” “Sure.” He climbed out of the pool and untied the bottom strings. He pulled them tighter in a knot and doubled the bow. “Good?” “Yeah.” I turned around. “Thanks.” Bryce whistled. Gross.“Why are you keeping her all to yourself again?” He asked Justin. I flipped him off. Why am I being nice to you again? “I’m not. It’s Addison. Even if I was, I don’t share Bryce.” He seemed to shut the conversation down. Only I could pick up on the stern undertone in his voice. Just as quickly as it came, it was gone, and they were back to goofing off again. I slipped in the pool and noticing Justin was distracted, I swam over to him and jumped on his back. I may have accidentally splashed Monty in my jumping. I snuck a peek at him and he was rolling his eyes and laughing. “Chicken?” Justin asked. His hands went to my thighs unconsciously. “No. You dropped me last time. Though it would be entertaining trying to watch the rest of you lift each other.” “We’re strong.” The boys around me protested. They all made a show of flexing. “Yes, yes. You’re all strong and hot. With superior athletic abilities. Go you.” I laughed. “Ha! I told you she thinks I’m hot.” Bryce pointed at Justin. “It doesn’t count if you’re objectively attractive Walker. I also think the blond guy from the Percy Jackson movie is hot. Because he is objectively attractive.” “Objectively attractive?” “You’re lucky you’re rich.” I muttered. Justin choked. “You’re a very pretty man Bryce Walker.” “Do we get called pretty too Addison?” Monty asked.“If you don’t call me by my full name again then sure Monty. You are also pretty. Foley, I swear if you drop me, you’re sleeping on the floor tonight.” His hand tightened around my thigh. The group of us hung out for a while. At some point Scott joined us. Even though we weren’t friends per say, he was still nice to me when I was around. He swam over to my corner of the pool. “I’m supposed to ask you if you think I’m pretty?” “Scott. If you don’t know you’re pretty, I don’t know what to say to you.” “Alright then. Why was I supposed to ask?” “I acknowledged Bryce is objectively attractive and the children felt left out.” “I see. Why are you hiding in a corner?” “Hiding from Justin. He’s trying to get me to play chicken. But I don’t feel like getting dropped again.” “And why does he think you’d get to play with anyone else?” “I think the attempt would be very entertaining actually.” There was a ringing over by the table. “Someone’s phone is ringing.” I called. The ringing stopped and started again immediately. Zach looked up. It was his phone. “It’s probably his mommy calling to tell him he has to come home before it gets dark.” Bryce teased. The boys laughed. I even chuckled a little to myself. Oh, how bad I would feel about that chuckle in a few hours. Zach splashed him. By the time the phone began its second round of ringing again, Zach was out of the pool and grabbing it. He was smiling when he answered it. “Hey Mom. I’m com-.” It was quiet. “Yeah, I’ll be right home.” He hung up and quickly pulled on his pants, over his wet swim trucks. He threw on his shirt and practically sprinted back in the house. He didn’t say a word to any of us as he left.“What’s going on with him?” Bryce said. We all stared after him. A few hours after I got home, I got a text from Bryce. Justin got the same text. Zach’s dad died. Justin and I sat and looked at each other at the table, shocked. We sat there for a solid ten minutes, trying to absorb the information we had been given. I was sure our friends were in the same position. How did you respond to something like that? None of us had ever lost a parent. Sure, I had lost a couple of grandparents. I probably wasn’t the only one. But they’re sort of expected to die. They’re old. They’ve lived. Our parents weren’t old. Not old enough to die yet anyway. I picked my phone back up and texted Zach the only thing I could think to say. He would hear the words a lot in the next few months. I am so sorry. I knew he wouldn’t answer. Zach wasn’t at school for the rest of the week. Not that he should have been. He had been excused from all of his other exams. Because of course he should have been. I didn’t see him until I was walking home from a date with Monty over the weekend. He was just… walking around town. He didn’t see me at first. When he noticed me standing up the street, he waved a little. I waved back and slowly walked over to him. Even though Zach Dempsey and I weren’t really friends, we were friendly. That’s why it didn’t feel weird when the only thing my brain said to do, was hug him. He didn’t cry. He didn’t say anything. He just hugged me back. We didn’t talk about that random, silent hug on the street again. Not for a long time at least. We simply nodded as we parted ways. He walked one way and I walked the other. July changed a lot of things. Bryce left town with his family a few days after Zach’s dad’s funeral. Seth was back in town too. That meant Justin spent most of the first couple of weeks of July at my house. He was right. My parents were not happy about him doing summer school. As his not-mom my mum had a strict ‘no fun until homework is done and checked’ rule. At first, I spent my time with Monty during school hours. We weren’t really sure what the summer meant for our relationship. Those first few dates, we mostly talked about that. “Well, I don’t want to not see you.” Monty said, between kisses in the backseat of my car. We had parked at a secluded clearing overlooking the river. “I don’t want to not see you either. It’s going to be hard though.” “Don’t talk about hard right now Doll. Please.” I pulled away and looked at him wide-eyed. “You don’t strike me as a public sex kind of girl. And I don’t want to get a public indecency charge.” “Yeah. I’m not.” I sat up. “Justin being at my place complicates things.” “Oh, I know.” He ground out as he adjusted his jeans. I could tell my cheeks were flushed. “We knew we couldn’t see each other every day.” “But it’s not easy not seeing you.” “I know it’s not.” “Why does this have to be so hard?” He sat back. “I don’t know.” Neither of us were ready nor willing to have the ‘tell other people’ talk. Even though it had been almost a year. And probably needed to happen. “Seeing each other while school is in, isn’t such a bad thing, is it?” “No.” “And I do have other friends. I could say I’m going to the city with Alex or something. Give us some more time?” “That’s true.” I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. “I could take you to the bookstore.” He blinked at me. “What?” “The bookstore?” “It’s air conditioned.” I shrugged and climbed into his lap. His hands instinctively found their way to my hips. “You just need someone to carry your books again.” “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I smirked. There was something different about Justin since he started summer school. I couldn’t put my finger on it. He was… distracted. I noticed he spent more time on his phone after homework than paying attention to what we were doing. Which was fine when it was show re-runs or my mom’s pick for movie night. But when you’re trying to play Ticket to Ride with a guy, it’s much easier when they are paying attention. “Hey. Earth to Justin. Hello?”“Huh?” He looked up from his phone. “It’s been your turn for the past five minutes.” “Shit, sorry.” He looked at his cards and the map. Picking up a red and a pink from the pile, he settled back in his chair. Interesting. I frowned at the board, trying to figure out what he was doing. I came back with nothing. His phone buzzed again. I glanced at it. So did he. Then my phone buzzed. He glanced at it. So, did I. It was like we were waiting to see who would grab their phone first. After a few beats, his hand went to his phone. He smirked a little and put it down. I didn’t check mine. I came home from a date with Monty a little late on Thursday. It was nearing five when I walked in the door, after I fixed my hair. I dropped my purse and stopped dead in my tracks. Justin had company. Company in the form of Jessica Davis. Who was currently sitting in his lap. On my couch. Making out with him. On my couch. They had their hands up each other’s shirts. On my couch. I cleared my throat. Jessica pulled away and turned towards me. “Oh, hey Addy.” She greeted, like this was normal. “Hey Addy. You’re… just getting home?” His speech was slowed. Are you shitting me? “Yeah. What’s going on?” “Your parents said I could have a friend over after class.” “Okay.” I blinked. She was still perched in his lap. I glanced at the clock. “I suggest you fix your shirts because they should be home soon. And I don’t think they want to see, uh, this.” I motioned in their general direction. Jessica laughed and climbed off Justin. “Oh, don’t be such a priss, Addison.” “I’m not being a priss. I just wasn’t expecting to come home to people making out on my couch.” She rolled her eyes. “Great to see you too. Hey, Justin. Can I steal you for a sec?” I waved upstairs. “There’s snacks in the cupboard, Jess.” Justin followed me upstairs, trying not to giggle at, assumingly, the fact that he didn’t get caught by my parents. I shut the door when we got to my room. “What the fuck Justin?” “What?” He shrugged. “What do you mean what?” “What?” “Making out with a girl on our couch?” He was trying to avoid eye contact. My parents are going to kill him. “No one was home. It’s not a big deal.” “How long has this been going on?” “I don’t know, a couple weeks?” I blinked at him. He was still trying to look away from me. I grabbed his face and made him look at me. “Are you fucking high right now?” “No? What? Why would you ask that?” His eyes were bloodshot. He was acting very much like Justin when Justin has been indulging in Bryce’s stash. “Don’t lie to me Justin Foley. You know my parent’s rules. Do you want them to freak out?” “Oh, come on Addison. It was a little weed. It’s not that big of a deal.” I sighed heavily. “You know what, whatever. You obviously don’t care. So, I suggest you tell your girlfriend to leave or figure out a way to sober up before they get home. And if that fails, tell her to leave, and come hide in here until you’re sober enough to face them.” I grabbed a book off my shelf and went back downstairs. I nodded at Jessica, who had made herself some crackers and dip. Sitting at the table, I texted Monty. Justin and Jessica? Did you know about this? He responded a couple of minutes later. No? Actually?Yeah. They were making out on my couch when I got home. And to make things even more awkward and complicated, they’re both high. I mean, to be fair, weed isn’t really that bad. Yeah. I know. But that’s not the point. My parents are going to freak. Now is really not the time to be pissing them off. Oh crap. You guys leave for Boston soon, don’t you? Next week. And if Justin can’t keep his shit together… I left the unspoken implication hang in cyberspace. Are you really just going to ignore the fact that they were on the couch?I was hoping to just ignore that fact. Our make out spots are becoming fewer and further between. We could just stay in your bed, Doll. But the couch has the TV. So we can not watch a movie without worrying about my laptop falling. “Who you texting so much?” Jessica asked, trying to peer at my phone. “Friend from Boston.” I said, locking my phone. “Oh, friend from Boston, you say? Is he cute?”“I guess? His girlfriend probably thinks so.” “Oh. Not a secret long distance lover then?”“No. And we grew up together. It would be weird.” I slipped my phone in my pocket and grabbed some cereal. We both looked up when my parents got home. I took that as my cue to go get Justin. I practically kicked him downstairs so he could go entertain his girlfriend with my parents and I could have some time to process how I missed it. Probably the same way he has missed me having a boyfriend for… almost a year. The day before we left for Boston, Justin and I were running around like mad men. I had plans with Monty and Justin had plans with Jessica tonight, so I didn’t want to be too long packing. Unfortunately, neither of us could find anything we wanted to bring. It was going to be nice so I wanted to bring some dresses. We had a few things planned, but like with our other trips, there would be plenty of time to lounge around the house. “Have you seen my pink and green dress?” “The one with the stripes? No. Have you seen my blue shirt?”“I think mum put it in the wash.” “Okay.” Justin went down the hall to the bathroom. “Has anyone seen my shampoo?” He called. “It’s in here.” My dad called from their room. I was busy ripping apart my closet. I groaned in frustration. “You know, it’s just Boston. We go every year.” “I know Justin. I just like to be prepared for every eventuality.” “Yeah. Wait… are you trying to impress Adrian?” Justin laughed. I turned and he was leaning against the doorframe. “No. Absolutely not. Besides, he has a girlfriend.” A girlfriend I happen to like. “If you say so.” He smirked. I rolled my eyes and flipped him off as he went back to packing his bag. I gave up on my closet and decided to tackle our toiletries. I wasn’t too concerned with travel sizes because it was all going in my checked luggage. “Decide what book you’re taking with you Addy?” “Don’t you mean books, plural? It is a 6-hour flight after all.” He laughed. “Okay, okay. Books?” “I’m happy you asked.” I grinned as I pulled out the Barnes & Noble bag from under my bed. His jaw dropped. I shrugged. “Your parents are going to freak.” “They know I went book shopping.” After a very long day of packing, Justin left to go meet Jessica. I texted Monty to let him know I would be leaving in about fifteen minutes. “I’m going to hang out with Alex and Clay for a bit.” I told my parents. “Just remember we leave early tomorrow for the airport Addison.” My dad said, not looking up from his list. My mom was emptying the fridge. “I will.” When I got to the cliffside where we agreed to meet, Monty was waiting for me. I couldn’t help myself. I ran and held onto him like it was the last time I would ever see him. “You’re only leaving for two weeks Addison.” He grunted at the impact. “I’m going to miss you.” “I’ll miss you too.” He kissed the top of my head. We stood like that for a few more minutes before finally separating. I took his hand and led him up the trail. It was good for both of us to be walking the trails. He was starting summer training with the boys while we were gone, and I was going to be sitting for around 8 hours straight tomorrow. Provided our flight wasn’t delayed, of course. It was just starting to get dark, and I stopped along the way to take in the town’s skyline in the evening dusk. Monty rested his chin on top of my head, and I sighed, leaning back into him. It was so peaceful. I looked up and him and noticed a small bruise forming on his jaw. Not wanting to start a fight right before I left for two weeks, I pretended I hadn’t seen it. I smiled sadly to myself still. I wish he would just talk to me about it. After a few hours, wandering around and soaking in the last time we would have for a couple of weeks, which feels like an eternity when you’re 16, we knew it was time to say goodbye. When we got to the parking lot, he made me turn around at his Jeep. I furrowed my brow. Before I could ask, he twirled his finger in the air. I clamped my mouth closed and turned. He rummaged around for a minute. “What are you doing?” “You’ll see. Just wait a minute.” I huffed. He chuckled. “Ah.” He muttered. He tapped me on the shoulder. I turned. He held out a small Barnes and Noble bag. I was taken aback. I wasn’t expecting anything. I pointed at the bag and then at me. “F-for me?” “It’s not much so don’t start.” He smiled, shyly. “Okay.” I took the bag. “I can’t wrap stuff worth shit, so the bag is as good as you’re going to get.” I laughed and shrugged. It was a fair enough explanation. I opened the bag and pulled out a spiralbound notebook. The cover was pink with the titles of all the classics on it. I smiled. “You won’t be here for your birthday, and I know your notebook is getting full so….” Monty trailed off. “Thank you. This is really sweet.” I flipped it open and gasped. On the first page, he had drawn a book like on the cover, and titled it The Next Classic and written Hawthorne at the bottom where the author’s last name sometimes appears. “Happy birthday, Addison.” “Oh.” I smiled. My eyes had started to tear up. This was the sweetest gift anyone had ever given me. I closed the gap between us and kissed him. He pulled me closer to him and I deepened the kiss just a little. Not too much, just enough to make him remember me while I was gone.

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