#i started typing and waited for the joke to come and it came. all hail aromaybe

[neoculturetravesty]

We met in online class - Part 7

Image adapted from here.

Pairing: Renjun x Reader Genre: College AU, romance, angst, fluff Warnings: Strong language, descriptions of a shiner, a character gets Covid-19 Word Count: 7.3k

Navigation: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | You are on Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Last Part

A/N: I’m sorry for all the angst, you guys.

You only stop walking when you’re out of the apartment building. Eyebrows scrunched, face scowled like you were trying to hold onto the anger. But the more you had walked, the more you had realized that you couldn’t hold onto something that wasn’t there in the first place. It would be like holding onto smoke: futile and baseless. You weren’t angry. You stop moving to just breathe for a moment. And as the cool night air hits your face, you get a little more clarity in your thoughts. No, you weren’t angry. Not really.

Suddenly, you find yourself smiling to the sky and scoffing. Oh, how stupid. How stupid and how typical. This was classic you. Only this time, you couldn’t believe you had fallen for the broody artsy boy type. The kind of boy that blew hot and cold. The kind of boy that would keep you on edge and never like you as much as you liked him. God, you were such a cliché. Fuck, how embarrassing. So no, you weren’t angry. You were embarrassed. You had spent the last few weeks simping over a boy that never really liked you. God, you were so stupid.

‘The only reason I’ve kept you around for so long is because I wanted to get to your brother.’ His voice echoes in your head. 

Your friends had told you that you were doing way too much for a boy you weren’t even official with yet. You had literally spent the past couple of weeks running to him to dote on him. Bringing him food and checking up on him even though you were drowned in work, and making sure he was okay. And all this time, he had been using you. Oh, God. You were like the embarrassing second female lead in every drama ever. The kind that would bring cartons of milk to her crush in the hopes that he would like her back. Only you had actually believed that he liked you back. Oh, how embarrassing. 

‘Y/N, you are not my girlfriend. So stop acting like it.’

Oh, how freaking embarrassing. You had been acting like the girlfriend. But you had been the second female lead all along. 

You groan and make yourself keep walking. You didn’t want to be near his building anymore. Not where he could step out any moment and humiliate you some more for reading the signs all wrong. You keep walking as your phone keeps ringing. You don’t pick up. You wanted to put as much space between yourself and the building as possible. You walk and you walk till you reach the bus stop. And then you finally sit and take your phone out.

There are around 8 missed calls from Haechan as well as a string of texts. You sigh and hail a cab from an app before you get the spirit to read his messages.

‘Y/N, please pick up.’

‘Where are you???’

‘I can’t find you. Where are you???’

‘Pick uppppp’

‘Can you at least tell me where you are?’

‘I’m calling Yeri.’

That’s Haechan’s last message and you let out another groan. Why did he have to call Yeri? She was going to be worried for no reason. She was already under so much stress with her thesis. You didn’t want her to sit in the apartment and have all sorts of thoughts going through her head about what happened to you. So you text him back.

‘I’m just going home. Don’t worry.’ you write back. Not even ten seconds pass by before he replies.

‘How? You don’t even have your car! And you’ve been drinking.’

‘I called a cab. Don’t worry.’

‘Y/N, please tell me where you are? Let me take you home.’

‘The cab’s already here, Haechan. It’s fine. I’ll text you when I get home.’ you say as you get into the car.

‘No way. Share your location.’

‘The cab’s already moving.’

‘Okay, but share your live location so I know you’ve safely gotten home.’

You sigh and give into his wish. ‘Happy?’

‘I’ve shared it with Yeri as well.’

You groan again, making the cab driver give you a quizzical look through the mirror. ‘Haechan, please don’t bother Yeri.’

‘Text me as soon as you get home. I’m coming over first thing in the morning.’ 

‘Okay.’ you reply and sigh again, resting your head against the window because it felt like the sort of thing to do in this situation. But it only makes your temple awkwardly rattle against the glass as the car moves. How did people do this in dramas? Look so elegant as they pensively looked out the window? Because right now, you neither felt elegant, nor pensive. You just felt stupid. You feel your phone buzz again and see another text from Haechan.

‘You’re my best friend and I love you to the moon and back. Nothing changes that, okay?’ the message reads and suddenly, you feel tears brimming in your eyes. That’s the first time he had called you that. What a stupid boy he was, Lee Donghyuck. Why did he have to attack you like that with all the feels? Silly boy. Well, at least there was something that came out of this mess. 

How had you been so stupid? Renjun had practically told you of his motives on the very first date. He had told you that his lifelong wish was to get into Midnight fucking Arthouse. And instead of staying away, you had run to your brother the very same day to fulfil that wish. The thought chases away the tears that Haechan’s text had brought. You were so stupid. Even your brother had warned you.

“Y/N, I don’t trust his eyes.” Doyoung had told you that afternoon at the party. And you had laughed at him.

“What does that even mean?” you had rolled your own eyes at him, because really, you were watching Renjun into the distance as he talked to another artist. God, he looked so handsome, you had thought as you ogled.

“He just seems like he’s hiding something. He just seems like a guy who would have something to hide.” your brother had warned you and you had just laughed and joked it away.

“I mean, sorry to break it to you like this, big brother, but he’s a serial killer by night. The art student stuff is just for show because when people aren’t looking, his ass goes full Joe Goldberg in You.” you had teased your brother who had exhaled long and put his arm around you.

“Fine, fine. Don’t trust your big brother. Do what you want. I just don’t like him for you.” Doyoung had cut it out for your sake and you had cuddled into him happily because you were so giddy that day. Nothing could’ve spoiled your mood then because the boy you liked had just kissed you. He had held your hand and held your face and kissed you and kissed you and kissed you.

“Of course you don’t like him for me. You won’t like anyone for me because you’re my big brother.” you had baby-talked at Doyoung and cuddled him till he had ruffled your hair and pushed you away.

God, you were so stupid. Did everyone know but you? Could everyone see how he’d been using you? Had your crush on him really been so bad that it blinded you? Oh, how embarrassing. How fucking embarrassing. Well, at least the two of you weren’t official yet. That was a plus. Otherwise, there would’ve been a break up involved. Then again, that would mean that Renjun liked you enough to make you his girlfriend. Or that he would have gone so far as to exploit you like that. Would he have done it? You don’t even want to think about it.

You were fine, really. This was okay. It’s good that he cleared that you weren’t his girlfriend. This whole situation would’ve been sillier if the two of you were official. You chuckle as you enter the elevator of your building. You were fine. Everything that had happened was just a silly misunderstanding. You had just read the signals all wrong. You knock your knuckles on your head. Silly you. It was just a silly crush. You had just chased a boy you had a crush on and it hadn’t worked out. There was nothing wrong with that. These sorts of things happened all the time. You were fine. 

But Renjun hadn’t been just a boy.

He had been the boy of your dreams. He had been the boy that had smiled at you over his coffee cup on your first date and you had felt that he looked into your soul. He had been the boy who would wait outside your lecture hall with the most hopeful look in his eyes and you would melt because he wore that look for you. He had been the boy who had laid his head on your shoulder and opened his heart to you and you had thought that you would do everything it takes to give him the world. He had been the boy that had held your hand and made you feel so incredibly safe that day at your parent’s house that you had found yourself falling. He had been the boy who had taken you in his arms and kissed you so sweet that you had felt like flying. He had been the boy who would lay out in the sun next to you and you’d think that everything was alright. 

Renjun hadn’t been just some boy you had chased. You couldn’t lie to yourself like that anymore, even though you were trying. He had been the boy you had given your heart to. 

You don’t realize that your feet had carried you all the way home till you look up to the door opening on it’s own. And Yeri is standing there like she was expecting you.

“Haechan called me.” she says and you have no idea what she sees on your face because she says “Baby…” in the softest voice before she grabs her Lysol concoction and starts spraying you carefully.

You stand there in the doorway, watching her as she sprays at your feet and takes your shoes off for you with so much love. You don’t know what it was about seeing her face. But anytime you did, all your walls came tumbling down. You could never hide from her.

She looks up at you and whatever she sees makes her speed up her sanitizing ritual. And you realize your shoulders are shaking. You feel the wetness on the tops of your cheeks. You feel the scrunching between your brows. You hear your breath coming out in sniffles. It probably looks like the strangest scene in the world. You, standing there unmoving, looking at her as you crumble in the doorway. And her looking back at you worried, and hurriedly soaking you in Lysol.

Yeri takes your hands in hers and sanitizes them, then takes your purse from you while you do nothing but just stand there, looking at her. She takes your jacket off and then your mask and then finally kisses your cheek and pulls you into her arms. She holds you and kisses your forehead and strokes your hair.

“You will always have me, okay?” she tells you and this time, you’re fully aware that you’re sobbing. Because she puts an arm around you and walks you to your room. She lets you cry as she takes your makeup off for you and brushes your hair. And you watch her attending to you with so much love in her eyes, that for a moment, you’re not sure what’s making you cry. Your broken heart, or her pure, unadulterated love for you.

For as long as you could remember, this girl had been there for you through all your highs and lows. She hadn’t just been a friend. She had been more like a sister. Come to think of it, she had been more a parent to you than your actual parents. You could never hide from her. So when she puts you to bed, you cuddle into her and cry when you tell her,

“I really liked him, Yeri.” Because what was the use of lying to yourself or anyone else? You liked him. You had unabashedly, completely and without any sort of a restraint given him your whole entire heart. And he had broken it. This was something that had happened. So why would you deny it? You had been hurt so you were going to cry to your heart’s content. That’s what people do when they have been hurt.

“I know, baby girl.” she strokes your hair and holds you and kisses the top of your head and your eyes go to your nightstand. You see things that would look like trash to other people. But to you they were the most important treasures.

A paper napkin folded up into an origami crane. Renjun had made it on your very first date.

A can of coke, flattened and leaned against your nightlight. Renjun had drunk from it the first time he came over to your apartment.

A scrap of paper taken from a notebook in a photo frame. Renjun had doodled on it one day as you two had waited for class to begin.

A daisy, pressed and preserved in a little glass disc. Renjun had randomly plucked it from the grass and given it to you as you two had lazed about. It was the first flower he had given you.

God, you were such a sentimental hoe. This boy had broken your heart and you had kept his trash in your room, right on your nightstand so his would be the last thought on your mind as you went to sleep. Realizing that just makes you cry more.

“It’s okay, baby. Your heart’s been broken so you’re going to cry. It’s okay to cry.” Yeri coos at you, echoing your own thoughts. But somehow hearing it from her makes it more soothing. She was right. You had liked a boy and he had broken your heart. It had happened. You were going to cry. 

So you laid in Yeri’s arms and let her comfort you. Even Galbi the asshole had joined your pity party as he sat on top of your head and purred, as if he realized you needed comforting and all the purring was going to heal whatever hurt you were feeling. You laid and you cried and you cried till you were all cried out and sleep was taking you.

“That is a shiner.” you say, eyes wide.

“Mhmm. It’s my mark of honor.” Haechan smiles his smug, annoying smile as he leans back in his chair.

The library was emptier than usual, because really, exams were over for most students. So people that lived in and around campus were basically using it as a common room.

“I mean, it’s a shiner as big as I’ve ever seen.” you say, leaning over and lightly tracing the hues of red, purple and black under your friend’s eye. And he just sits there, chin jutting out, smiling broad, proudly allowing it to be touched like a trophy.

“It’s the outcome of me being the biggest little shit, so it goes with the vibe.” Haechan says and you make a face at him.

“Honestly, I’m surprised it took someone so long. Lowkey impressed that you’ve avoided these so far, despite being that professional little shit.” you lightly press the pad of your index on a particularly discolored area and watch as he moves away.

“Guess I’d just been looking for the right reason to get one.” he says, still wearing the smug look on his face. But he must have noticed a change in your expression because he gives you a look of disapproval. 

“Hey, stop that.” he snaps at you.

“Stop what?” you retort defensively.

“Stop it with those sad puppy eyes. I don’t like it.” he almost scolds.

“I’m only sad because it’s making you look uglier than usual.” you reply pouting.

“Please. It’s making me look sexier than usual.”

“If ugly was the new sexy, then sure.”

“Yo, he’s not ugly, he’s just not in his moment right now.” he pouts and nothing on Haechan’s face says that he’s joking which somehow makes it funnier.

“What’s that even supposed to mean?” you wanna smack him on the head.

“It means that you need to give it till tomorrow to finally see it in it’s full bloom.” he says with the most satisfied look on his face but it deflates you. Shit. This wasn’t even the worst of it. He was probably going to look worse in the next couple of days.

Haechan sighs because you figure he finally sees that this conversation isn’t exactly making you feel any better. So he addresses the elephant in the room.

“He’s an asshole.” he says simply.

“Haechan…” you stop him because honestly, you didn’t really want to talk about it anymore, especially not with him. You didn’t want to be that person that makes mutual friends pick a side. Besides, Renjun had been right. They were technically his friends. But they were also your friends. This was a hot mess already and you didn’t want to add to it.

“I’m only saying it because it’s true. But, also, Y/N…” he’s taken your nickname and his voice has suddenly gone small and so apologetic that you look up, just to check if he’s the one talking. Your stupid friend had a way of never reading the room and keeping up his joking antics no matter the circumstance. So hearing his voice do that got your attention to say the least.

“I, uh…” he goes on and he looks like he’s uncomfortable, like he’s trying to find the words to break some bad news. “He’s an asshole and all, but… I’m kind of the one that put that idea in his head in the first place.” he fesses up and finally meets your eyes.

You jump a bit as you see a strong arm reach over your shoulder and set down a coffee cup on the table with a resounding thud. Jeno has appeared as if on cue and he now has those arms crossed over his chest as he pins Haechan down with a death stare.

Haechan looks up at his audience of two and decides to address the boy that stands there looking like he would most likely complete his shiner set. “I just told him Y/N was Kim Doyoung’s sister! You know he had been dying to get into Midnight Arthouse! And Y/N was the one that asked him out! Didn’t you, Y/N?” he looks at you with eyes that plead for help “I only told him he should accept her date, I promise. But yes, it was my stupid idea and fuck, I wish I could take it back. I’m an idiot and I deserve whatever you want to do to me, Y/N.” he holds his hands up as if in surrender as he watches Jeno’s cold expression and your unreadable one. 

You reach your hand over towards him and watch as he closes his eyes and braces to perhaps be punched in the face again. But you don’t punch him. You ruffle his hair.

“Don’t do it again, okay?” you scrunch your nose at him and give him a smile to put him out of his misery.

Heachan lets out a long, dramatic exhale that finally matches his true personality. “Cross my heart and hope to die.” he says, actually crossing his heart over his chest and he looks up at Jeno to seek his forgiveness as well. 

Jeno’s expression has softened and he’s smiling, almost as if he had expected this confession and its outcome. He was always more perceptive than he let on. Although his arms are still intimidatingly crossed over his chest as he says

“Follow me to the rooftop, Lee Donghyuck.” 

“Yes, yes, I know I deserve it, because I know she’s your childhood friend. But she’s my best friend now and if she’s forgiven me, then--”

“--you’re a piece of shit.” Jeno declares and takes a seat next to you, laying out the rest of the breakfast he got. You snigger and hug onto his arm, as if to thank him for... everything. You and Jeno had never been one to talk things out, but an advantage of being friends for so long was that you didn’t have you. He would understand what you mean, even though all you’d done was held and leaned into his arm.

Haechan looks at the two of you fondly and waits a couple of beats. His voice is soft and empathetic when he says, “He probably didn’t mean those things he said, you know? He was drunk.”

“We were all drunk.” you agree, tracing your finger over your coffee cup.

“He’s an asshole, but… he likes you, you know?” Haechan says and suddenly, you can’t look anybody in the eye anymore. You don’t want to say anything either, because you’re afraid your voice would give you away. 

So you purse your lips and take a deep breath before you say “Yeah, well… it doesn’t really matter now, does it?”

“I’m going to kick his stupid ass.” Haechan mutters but it only makes Jeno chuckle.

“You mean when you’re not too busy getting your ass kicked by him?” he pokes fun while he feeds you a bit of his croissant. And despite everything, you find yourself laughing out loud.

“Hey! I could totally take him down if I wanted to. I was just holding back.” Haechan puffs his chest and Jeno smiles wider, shaking his head.

“Ugh, you know what. We’re on semester break. We’ve literally been waiting for this time. Let’s just chill before I have to leave.” you declare.

Haechan snaps and points his finger at you. “That is the right attitude, Y/N L/N.”

After that, he goes on and on, talking nonstop about everything you could do while you didn’t have classes, doing the most to make it up to you. You listen to him fondly as you happily enjoy breakfast with your friends.

Down the rows, Renjun had walked into the hall, hoping the library could be his sanctuary for the day. How very wrong he was. Because now, he just watched into the distance as you reach out to ruffle Donghyuck’s hair and Jeno smiles down at the two of you. Unbelievable. Renjun turns on his heel right away and leaves. Because this was unbelievable. 

How come Lee Donghyuck came out of this situation unscathed? It was his stupid idea to begin with. Renjun had been happy living his life normally till Donghyuck encouraged him to date you. So how come neither you nor Jeno were mad at him? Renjun was the only one that came out of this as the bad guy. And everyone else just continued on to be one big happy fucking family.

Last night, Jisung had left to stay over at Chenle’s, and Renjun assumed it was so he didn’t have to be in the same room as him. He hadn’t seen Jeno, and it was probably because he had woken early morning to have breakfast with you. The only one of his friends that Renjun saw this morning was Jaemin. But the only thing he had said before he walked out the door was that he was spending the day with his girlfriend and won’t be home either. 

It seemed like everyone around him was doing their best to avoid him. He felt like a dementor. Like he was putting out lights wherever he went. Like he was draining hope, peace and happiness out of everyone that came in contact with him. That’s perhaps why his friends wanted to stay away from him.

There was maybe some advantage to that. Renjun wanted to be alone. You had pretty much stolen all his friends. It was clear that they had taken your side in all of this. No one had wanted to know what Renjun was going through. But they were all too concerned about the poor little rich girl. It’s why they were with you this morning and not him. Poor little rich girl that got her heart broken by Renjun the asshole. Of course, no one would want to know the other side of the story, Renjun thinks bitterly.

What was the other side of the story, anyway? That you had been too kind to him? That you had been thoughtful and understanding? That you made so much effort to be a part of his life, and he had made none? That you had put a word in with your brother right after you had first met Renjun, before your relationship had even begun? 

You had done everything in your power to make Renjun look like the bad guy. And he realizes that this was precisely the reason he never wanted to look at you ever again. Renjun feels nothing but bitterness in his heart. He had spent all those weeks exploiting your feelings for him. Making you believe that he was interested in you so he could get close enough that you would introduce him to your brother. But all of it had been for naught. Because you didn’t need a relationship or a reason to be kind to people. You had just heard Renjun’s dream and fulfilled it that very same day you had met him. You had granted him his biggest wish whilst wanting nothing in return, expecting nothing back. You had put him in your debt. And he hated you for it.

Renjun needed a break. Because his life seemed to be throwing him more curveballs than he could possibly manage. He wanted to reverse it all. Go back to the time when he hadn’t met you. He should’ve turned you down during that ill-fated online class. Then none of this would’ve happened. 

But almost as if the heavens wanted to give him a cruel reminder that all of it, in fact, had happened and he, in fact, had exploited you, he gets a phone call. Whilst he can barely make out the number through his cracked screen, he recognizes the voice right away.

“Huang Renjun!”

“Kim Doyoung.” Renjun replies automatically, because his mind is still processing the irony of it all.

“I have a proposition for you.” Doyoung goes straight to the point and Renjun realizes that he’s not talking to him as your brother right now. He’s talking to him as the owner of Midnight fucking Arthouse.

“Uh, okay?” Renjun says and almost instantly regrets it. He should’ve said something more professional, but he has to admit he has been caught off guard.

“Can you come meet me at the studio in an hour?” he states more than he asks. And Renjun gets the feeling that this man hasn’t been told ‘no’ enough. At least not in this context.

“I… I can.” Dammit. Why wasn’t Renjun able to put more than two words together today?

“Great. Let’s have a lunch meeting at my studio.” Doyoung once again states. Renjun would usually be annoyed when someone was this imposing with him. But for some reason, Kim Doyoung’s boss voice is working on him. 

“Okay, see you in an hour.” Renjun says and he’s glad he’s spoken a full sentence this time.

“Great. Oh, and Renjun?”

“Yes?”

“Bring your portfolio along.”

Renjun doesn’t know how long he sits there. The steak that was served to him in a pretentiously off-centered plate remains mostly untouched. Because Renjun couldn’t keep more than two bites down. Not when Kim fucking Doyoung was standing up and flipping through his portfolio without a sound. 

This portfolio was Renjun’s lifelong work. Who knows how long he had spent on each piece. Some day, when he had the time, he was going to calculate the number of man hours he spent on building the whole damn thing. And then calculate how many days, weeks or months it amounted to in total. Because the way Kim Doyoung was flipping through it without much care minimized his life’s worth to mere seconds. He had spent hours and hours on each work and Kim Doyoung didn’t even spare more than half an eyeful on each piece.

And not a single word. 

Doyoung seemed to be a different person at work than he had been at the party at his parent’s home. Here, he was the Kim Doyoung, and for a moment, Renjun could finally see how he might have risen all the way up to the top. Because every single minute of his life was accounted for. From the moment Renjun had walked in, all he could see was how his assistant kept pushing him from one task to the other. He hadn’t even spent too long on pleasantries before he took Renjun to his office for lunch. And if he thought that lunch for Doyoung would be a time of peace, he was wrong. Because he ate quickly and Renjun couldn’t possibly meet his speed. He supposed that’s how successful people ate. Because every minute they ate was every minute they were not making money. Renjun was only halfway through his lunch when Doyoung had gotten up and started going through his portfolio.

And Renjun hadn’t been able to take a single bite since. His stomach was in knots. He felt small, sitting here in this grand old office in one of the biggest arthouses of the country. Weirdly, Renjun finds himself internally smiling at the fact that Doyoung had called this place a studio. Because, no way. The place that Renjun interned at was a studio. This was a fucking art museum and nothing less. 

A finalizing shut of the portfolio is what breaks Renjun out of his thoughts.

“Okay, Huang Renjun, I’m going to cut to the chase.” Doyoung says and Renjun sits up straighter, his eyes and ears attentive and open. “I need new artists for the 2021 Midnight Arthouse Annuale. Every artist that I’ve ever introduced in spring has gone on to become a best seller by winter.”

Of course he knew that. Renjun could name every single artist that had gotten that exposure. But hearing it straight from the man that gave it to them was making goosebumps run down his spine.

“I’ve got two spots to debut artists that no one has ever heard of. And someone put in a very convincing word for you.” he says and Renjun feels his stomach do a flip before it drowns in guilt, because he knows that the both of them know who that someone is. “But I’m going to be honest with you. Nothing I see in here is worthy of the Annuale.” he says plainly. Renjun looks up. His heart drops.

“Um… nothing?” Renjun asks stupidly. Suddenly, he doesn’t feel like the big man that had punched someone in the face from an inflated ego the night before. He feels like the little fish in a sea of big fishes. He feels like someone is finally showing him the mirror and telling him exactly what he’s worth in the context of big names and big opportunities. And it’s a humbling and sobering experience. Because Renjun feels his hangover dissipating. 

“This is basically an art student’s portfolio. What you’ve shown me is essentially a series of assignments you’ve made for your professors. Nothing is inspired. Nothing has vision. Nothing in here jumps out at me and tells me who Huang Renjun is.” Doyoung is speaking to him straight up. No niceties. No filters. He’s speaking to him like the owner of a huge motherfucking company and nothing less.

And maybe someone had to speak to Renjun this way and deflate his ego, so he could finally open his eyes to the real world. Because Renjun doesn’t feel angry or broody or venomous over these words. He feels like he has been sobered. He finds himself agreeing with everything that has been said. Like he’s opened his eyes for the first time and finally seen what he’s actually like without his ego or conceit filtering his vision. He was absolutely right. Kim Doyoung had been the one to tell him this before. But sitting here in his huge fucking office, in a building where he was surrounded by art that was in every way better than his… it puts everything in context, and Renjun finally realizes that he had been right all along.

“So, here’s my proposition.” Doyoung begins. “Make me something worthy of the Annuale. And I’ll help you make your debut.”

Renjun’s eyes widen. His mind races. He didn’t have much time. And the stakes were too high. How could he possibly make the best work of his life, the work that would help him launch his dream in a span of two weeks? It wasn’t enough time.

Then again, this was the opportunity of a lifetime. This was make or break. So Renjun doesn’t even think much before he replies “I’ll do it. I’ll show you.”

Doyoung smiles. “I had a feeling you’d say that. In that case, I have another meeting to go to. But my assistant will help you sort out the details. I’m sure you’ll understand.” he says, already getting up and putting his jacket on. 

Renjun stands with him. He doesn’t believe it. Suddenly, this opportunity feels too big for his breaches. But it’s there for the grabbing. And he could only ever miss the shot he never shoots. 

Yet somehow, Renjun also feels like he’s about to make a deal with the devil. Is this how the unassuming hero feels in movies when he’s made an agreement with the mob boss? Renjun reckons it comes close. He’s not sure whether to shake hands or to bow in these situations. So he stands there awkwardly and does neither as Doyoung walks to his door.

“My assistant will be in contact with you. I look forward to seeing your masterpiece.” he smiles a loaded smile and in that moment, Renjun decides that your brother was nothing like you. 

“Oh, and Renjun. The theme is ‘The Past Year’ but don’t tell anybody that.” he smiles and Renjun nods as Doyoung takes his leave. He’s not sure why he’s been given that extra bit of information. He’s not sure if that pointer has come from Kim Doyoung of Midnight Arthouse or Y/N L/N’s older brother. It is a bit of a mindfuck, but Renjun tries not to dwell on it too much. He had to leave his intellectual capacities free for his bigger purpose.

Renjun looks up to see Doyoung’s assistant smiling professionally at him. “Would you like a tour, Mr. Huang?” she says and Renjun once again gets the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory feels he always got around your family’s grandeur. But this was more than riches. This was art from people Renjun had admired and closely followed. Maybe this would give him some inspiration and put him in the right headspace.

“Yes, please.” Renjun says a bit too eagerly before he is led outside.

It is once again, a humbling experience. Renjun had already seen most of the work displayed here in one form or the other. But watching it with the naked eye and up close was a different experience altogether. The art here was in a different league and now Renjun starts to understand what Kim Doyoung had meant. None of Renjun’s existing works came close to what he was seeing displayed right here. He had thought Midnight Arthouse was some sort of a viral launcher. The kind of company that only looked for social media sensations rather than trailblazers and actual talent. But Renjun realizes that he had been massively underestimating them. Kim Doyoung knew what he was doing. Renjun did not. 

All this time, Renjun had walked the earth with a chip on his shoulder. He had been envious of everyone who ever did better than him. He had resented every artist that had risen to fame for reasons Renjun could not understand. He had judged every person ever who was well connected enough to rise to the top. 

And now, standing here in the majesty of Midnight Arthouse’s proud displays, all Renjun feels is small. Like he’s been served a slice of humble pie. For the first time in a long time, Renjun feels inspired, but not from a place of envy or jealousy or bitterness or vengeance. He feels inspired to make the most out of the opportunity that his life had given him. Because who was he to judge anyone that used connections when he was standing here doing the same? The mere fact that he, a junior in college had gotten a meeting with Kim Doyoung over lunch in his office while his assistant was personally showing him around… that was proof that Renjun had become one of those well-connected people.

Renjun’s initial feeling had been right. This was a deal with the devil. Because Renjun had paid a pretty big price for it. His stomach feels queasy. Was it only last night that he was going around throwing punches and being a general asshole? He doesn’t want to think about it. Because then he’d be forced to remember the faces of all his friends, and he didn’t want to revisit that memory through the lens of a deflated ego and a dissolving hangover. So Renjun is almost thankful when Doyoung’s assistant speaks to him.

“Are you ready for some paperwork? Just some general entry applications and agreements.” she says, still smiling that strictly professional smile.

Renjun takes a deep breath in. He feels unprepared, yet ready. He was going to take this opportunity. Or everything he had done this past year would have been for naught. 

“Let’s do it.” Renjun says, nodding.

“Great. Follow me.” she says and Renjun starts walking. Each step forward feels like a heavy, purposeful and loaded step towards his future. Here it was, a few strides away from his grabbing. Forget the past year. His whole life had been amounting to this moment. 

Every stroke of his brush had led him here. Every drop of his sweat. Every sleepless night. Every decision he had made. Every heart he had broken. Every friend he had lost. 

Renjun was walking towards his goal a man with nothing left to lose. And he had heard that they made the most dangerous men. His future was two strides away now. Two more strides and he’d be one step closer to achieving his life goal.

But when he’s about to make the final stride, Renjun receives a phone call that shatters his entire world as he knows it. 

And in that moment, he turns on his heel and runs faster than he ever had in his entire life. The future that was so close that he could almost taste it, now becomes smaller and smaller as it fades into the background behind him. Because Renjun had run in the opposite direction and left it in his dust.

Renjun pushes through the doors and doesn’t even absorb the pain he should be feeling in his shoulder from the force of the contact. 

“Where is she!” he yells. He doesn’t feel like a person. Because how much could one person take, anyway? How many times could he be beaten down by the universe before he would fall to his knees and beg to be spared?

He looks around and finally spots the man he calls his father standing near a watercooler, talking to someone he doesn’t recognize. So he has no care about rushing up and getting in his face. Because what more was there left to lose?

“Where is she?” he yells at his face. His father nods a farewell at the unassuming man before he turns to his son.

“In the isolation ward, Renjun. Where else would she be?” his father says and his voice is so calm that Renjun wants to grab at his collar. But he takes in a deep shaky breath to calm himself. It doesn’t happen. So he finds himself yelling again.

“How did this even happen! She hasn’t even been outside her house this entire time!” Renjun is trying so hard to hold back the tears of rage. But they’re threatening to explode any minute now.

“What does it matter how she got the virus? It’s a global pandemic. She has it now, like thousands of people around the world. The doctors are doing all they can.” his father says and if Renjun had been in his right mind, he would’ve realized that this was the first time he had spoken to him in over a year. But all he could think of right now was so what if others had it? So what if every fucking person in the world had it? How dare his father say that? 

“How are they doing all they can when she’s on fucking life support?!” Renjun growls through his teeth and he’s inhaling sharp breaths to keep himself from breaking.

“Your mother is with her, Renjun. The best you can do now is pray.” he replies and Renjun wants to hit him. He wants to punch that holier than thou look off his face. His grandmother was probably on her last breath and his father had the audacity to ask him to pray.

“I have to go see her. I have to take care of her.” Renjun turns and looks around, breathing heavily before he begins to move. But his father grabs at his arm.

“You can’t see her, Renjun. Are you even listening to me? Your grandmother is in the isolation ward. There’s only one family member allowed and your mother is it.” he has raised his voice at him.

“She doesn’t know! She doesn’t fucking care about her! I’m the only one who knows! I have to be there with her!” Renjun shouts at him and he’s only acutely aware that he’s sobbing because his words are loud but inchoate. 

“Renjun. Son. There’s nothing we can do.” his father shakes his head at him and watches with his mouth open as his son sobs and barges to the door like a madman. Because Renjun will find a way to get to her. No one cared about her like he did. No one loved her like he did. It had always been him and his grandmother against the world. He needed to be there for her. But the hospital staff is grabbing at him and pushing him out while his father watches from a distance like a helpless man. 

Renjun is barely aware that he’s doubling over because his tears are blinding him or that he’s been led outside because the cool air is hitting him. He gets up to charge back in but his resolve is so much weaker now and he feels another hold around him, keeping him back. 

"Renjun I'm so sorry. Your mother called me. I don't think she knows about us." Yoo Jimin whispers softly as he falls to his knees. She crouches next to him and puts her arms around him.

And in this strange, awful moment, Renjun finds himself realizing that the arms that are holding him aren't the arms that he wanted. The arms that are soothing him and holding him while he cries into the ground are not the arms he craved.

He wanted the arms that had held him that one night while Renjun had laid his head on their shoulder and bared his heart for the very first time. He wants the arms that had enveloped him and had, for at least a moment, made everything alright. He wanted the arms of the person whose heart he had cruelly broken.

Copyright © 2021 NeoCultureTravesty. All rights reserved.

#renjun fic #renjun angst #renjun fluff #ficscafe #kpopscape #neowritingsnet #dreamwritersnet #huang renjun #renjun #nct #nct dream #nct fic #nct dream fic #nct angst #nct fluff #nct college au #renjun x reader #we met in online class

[study-coffee-chicago]

Stars on your Sleeve (Part 2) [A Jay Halstead Imagine]

A/N: The name of the girl is Y/N (I mostly write my imagines in second person POV...except for the one you guys might see in a few weeks) and cariña is just a nickname/term of endearment in Spanish that means sweetheart. Sorry if anyone got confused about that in part one!

"Dad," you started as you walked into Jay's office after school that day.

It was a Thursday and you had taken the bus from school to the district. It wasn't often that you did this, but you had gotten texts from both your mom and dad telling you that the current case was going to drag on and on tonight, so they wanted you at the district so that you wouldn't be home alone until two or three o'clock in the morning.

"Hi, cariña. How was your day? Learn anything interesting in school?"

"Dad," you groaned. "It's high school, half the stuff they teach me I won't ever use again."

"Well, excuse me for wanting to know about my daughter's day."

"Just can't wait for this week to be over to sleep in."

"You and me both, kid."

"Half the time you work weekends though, Dad," you pointed out.

"Comes with the sergeant title."

"And your sleeping in is like 7:00."

"Point taken. Now, did Mom pack you a few extra snacks or do you need some money for the vending machines?"

"She didn't--"

"Don't even finish that sentence, young lady," Hailey said as she burst into Jay's office. "I packed you a few extra things and you know it. You just want--"

"--Oreos," Jay and Hailey said at the same time.

"Hey, don't blame me! They taste good," you protested. "Anyway, Dad, can I use your laptop to do my homework?"

"Don't you have that school-issued one?"

"That one blocks Netflix."

Jay crossed his arms across his chest. "Homework, huh?"

"I'm just writing a paper. It's not like I'm doing math or reading something."

"What type of paper?" Hailey asked. "Because, I'm pretty sure that if it's a research paper, you need to focus."

"It's a narrative, so I don't need to be constantly focused, Mom."

"Makayla does the same thing," Adam said as he entered the office as well. "Let the kid have the laptop, Jay."

"Thanks, Adam."

"Uh," Jay groaned, "I guess."

"We also have a lead, so you wanna roll out after I give you the info?" Adam asked.

"Yeah. Sorry, Y/N, you need to go into the breakroom now."

"But why can't I stay in here?" you whined. "I want your spinny chair."

"Y/N, this is a case," your mom told you. "You know the rules: no being around the case talk. It's for your own good, we don't want to scar or scare you."

Mom, you know what I've seen, you wanted to tell her, but you knew it would be no use as your parents would never budge on this rule.

"I know, Mom."

Jay pulled his laptop from his desk along with the charger. "Rules?" he probed, holding onto the laptop and charger.

"Dad, I know the rules. Mom, c'mon, tell him."

"It's your dad's laptop, Y/N. I'm not arguing with you or him on this one."

Jay cocked his head to the side. "I'll give you the laptop after you tell me the rules...even though I know you know them."

You sighed. You went through this every time you used his laptop when he was going to be gone. "Only use my account, don't try to login to your account, and do not delete my search history."

"Here you go." He handed you his laptop and charger. "Good luck on your paper. Don't work too hard."

You went into the breakroom and opened the laptop. First, you pulled up Netflix, and then you pulled up your paper. It was your paper for your senior portfolio, which most people were putting off, seeing as you were only a freshman, you didn't need to work on it yet. But, you knew it had to be long, so starting it now would probably be helpful.

The paper was basically a narrative telling a story about each year of school. The stories had to be from two to five pages long, which meant that the paper in its entirety would be between 26 and 65 pages long. But, you didn't mind. It's not like you had to write a boring research paper. You also had to write about your career goals and one wish for your future as well, which would make the paper even longer still.

Seeing as your schooling didn't exactly match up with the American school system until you were around nine and in third grade, you had gotten permission from your teacher to just write about the sections of kindergarten, first, and second grade, as just memories from when you were six, seven, and eight years old.

You'd save the memories of six and seven for later, since you'd have to dig into the part of your brain where you were in the orphanage with your older sister, Illiana.

For now, you just scribbled down a few lines for ideas of when you were eight years old...which was pretty simple since a lot happened in your life that year.

***

"Y/N, we brought you some food if you--"

"Shut up!" Mouse hissed as the rest of the unit clambered up the stairs and into the bullpen. "She's sleeping."

Yes, when Mouse came home he returned to his job as the tech analyst of the Intelligence Unit. And, when Jay became sergeant, he pulled a few strings and got him a huge salary increase.

"I'll pull the car around front," Hailey offered.

"No," Jay whined. "That means I gotta be the bad guy and wake her up."

"Sorry, babe. I call dibs."

"Ew, guys, please keep the lovey-dovey nicknames to home. I don't need to see that," Adam joked.

"Shut up, Ruz."

Hailey swiped the keys from Jay's office and Jay went to wake you up. But, before he did, he saw the laptop, still open to both Netflix and your paper.

There wasn't much in the paper yet, as Jay had expected, only a few bullet points. His name caught his eye below the age 8 section...whatever that meant. He didn't mean to pry (well, really he did), but he closed the laptop without logging you out so that he and Hailey could take a look at it later.

"Y/N, Y/N, wake up."

You were woken up by someone gently shaking your shoulder.

"Quiero dormir, vaya," you whined. That was one thing you always did: reverted back to Spanish when you were tired. At least both Jay and Hailey understood it now because they had learned Spanish...which helped them with parenting because when they were mad at you, they'd talk in Spanish and that's how you know you were in deep shit.

"I know you want to sleep, and I'm not leaving," Jay answered. "But, we're going home so you can sleep in your bed instead of here."

"Mmmm, okay," you mumbled. You rubbed your eyes, but then decided it was too much work to get up, so you just sat up and closed your eyes once again.

"C'mon, cariña. Mom's got the car out front and then all you gotta do is stay awake until we get home, okay?"

"Mmmm," you mumbled and then stood up. He already had your backpack slung over his shoulder and was holding his laptop in the other hand. "Can I skip school tomorrow? I'm tired."

"Not a chance," Jay chuckled. "But, I can drive you to school and we can get you a frappucino on the way there."

"Mom won't be mad?"

"We don't have to tell Mom everything now do we?"

"No, we don't."

***

"What are you doing?" Hailey asked Jay as she slid into bed next to him that night. "Are you seriously checking our daughter's search history this late at night? C'mon Jay, she's a good kid. You won't find anything."

"That's not what I'm looking at. But, now that you mention it, I should probably check that, too."

"Then, what are you reading? Because I know for a fact that your case notes are definitely not as organized as that."

"Wow, Hails, you're so sweet," Jay said sarcastically. "It's Y/N's paper. The rubric was pasted at the top and it looks like she has to write about a memory from each year of her life and her career goals and a wish for the future."

"And you were snooping because...?"

"Because I saw my name. I wanna see what she says about us, Hailey."

"Jay, she loves us, baby. We're her parents. We both know that. You don't need to read her schoolwork to know that."

"Either way, I'm still reading it. Join me if you want, or go to sleep."

"Uh, fine. But if she asks, this was your idea and I will not hesitate to throw you under the bus."

Age 8, they both read to themselves, leaving/running away from orphanage

"God, no matter how many years it's been since she told us what happened, it never fails to break my heart," Hailey said.

Jay wrapped one arm around his wife. "I know, babe. I feel the exact same way."

"Hey, Y/N," the therapist started and you looked up at her. "Do you want to in that room over there and watch some tv while I talk to jay and Hailey? I can even turn on the Spanish movies for you."

"Okay!"

After getting you all set up, she left you in the room with a Spanish children's movie playing while she went to get Jay and Hailey.

"Jay and Hailey?" she asked as she entered the waiting room.

"Dr. Smith," Jay greeted.

"I have something to tell both of you, and Y/N told me it was okay that I tell you. When I asked if she wanted to be the one to tell you this, she said no because she didn't want to make you sad."

They entered the room where you had previously been and Dr. Smith sat in a chair and Jay and Hailey sat on the couch.

"What's this about?" Hailey asked.

"Well, she told me why she ran away from the orphanage."

Jay and Hailey were shocked. You'd been with them for three months and hadn't once mentioned why you ran away and what happened before Jay found you. It wasn't for lack of trying on Hailey and Jay's part, though. They tried. After all, they knew how to talk to child victims. But, they didn't want to push you too hard, and eventually, they just dropped the topic all together because they knew you'd talk about it when you were ready. Apparently, today was the day that you were ready to tell that story.

"And?" Jay pushed. "Why'd she run away?"

"She said that they came for her, the people who you were fighting," Dr. Smith said.

"Los Rebeldes," Jay said, more to Hailey than to anyone else.

"They came for her specifically?" Hailey asked.

"No, they just came to the orphanage. She said that she heard voices--male voices--telling them to get down on the ground and then some shots rang out. Her sister, Illiana, told her to hide and slipped the necklace around her neck. So, she did. She said she closed her eyes really tight and she just laid there, hiding and barely breathing. She said she heard a gunshot and then she heard Illiana scream and she heard squishing noises."

"Oh my God," Hailey gasped.

"You're saying they shot and killed her?" Jay asked, his voice cracking.

"That's what it sounded like, yes."

"How did she get out?"

"She said that she snuck out through a small door in the back of the room. She said it wasn't a real door, but it was a small door that led to the outside, by her description, it sounded about three feet tall and two feet wide."

"The waste doors," Jay muttered.

"The what?" Hailey asked.

"The waste doors...well, that's what we called them on Base anyway. They were these little doors where you could place stuff outside. Sometimes we'd put the packaging of our MRE's there or other crap we didn't need anymore. Not good for the planet, but yeah, that's what we did."

"So, Jay, you're telling me that Y/N essentially snuck out of the orphanage through a trash chute?"

"Well, we used them for waste, which is why we called them waste doors. But, I heard rumors of them being used at orphanages for parents to put their baby in a crib. They'd just open the door and place the baby in the little crib on the other side of the door."

"She moved the crib and snuck out through there?"

"If there was a crib, then she moved it and got out. If not, she just crawled out through there."

"Did she tell you anything about when she left?" Hailey asked Dr. Smith.

"She said that she didn't have much with her, just her teddy bear and that locket. But, she said that she walked for the rest of the day. And, according to her timeline, the soldiers came right after breakfast. She said she was really scared that they were going to find her and so she just kept walking. But then, she found a bit of a forest it sounded like and since it was starting to get dark and cold, she laid down."

"I found her in the middle of the night and she must've been there since sunset. No wonder she was hypothermic."

"We got her her first banana split after that therapy session," Hailey said. "I honestly don't know whether the food was to get her to try something new or to comfort us."

"Yeah, that was a rough night. I didn't even want her to leave my arms," Jay said. "Jay found me and I went home to Chicago," he read aloud. "Man, that night was rough, too. Probably worse than the night where we found out why she left."

"Now, it's crowded here, cariña so stay cerca to us or go mano a mano with me or Hailey, okay?" Jay asked you as the three of you found a parking spot at Navy Pier.

Adam, Kim, Kevin, and Will were all there as well. They had planned to go out and party and go to a bar when Jay returned home, but that changed now that he and Hailey had a kid to take care of, so they had decided to take a trip to Navy Pier.

In the airport, Jay had gotten a huge coffee from Starbucks, seeing as he had barely slept on the way home. Before coming to Navy Pier, you had gone to a place called iHOP where you had gotten some really yummy pancakes, and Adam, Kevin, and Will had made you laugh a lot and Kim spoke Spanish with you.

"What does that word mean?" you asked.

"What word?" Jay asked, looking down at you as he took your hand.

"Cr-crowded," you sounded out slowly.

"Uh, it means there's lots and lots of people."

"Oh, okay. I stay by you."

"So Y/N, what do you like to do?" Will asked you.

"I like reading and play fútbol," you told him.

"Really? Jay loves playing soccer!"

"We played back at the big house in España," you told Will excitedly. "We won and I got lots and lots of goals."

"Looks like you have a pro soccer player on your hands, little brother," Will said to Jay.

"Don't I know it."

"We go on the big thingy you showed me in the little book in the plane?" you asked Jay.

"The Ferris wheel?" You nodded excitedly. "We can do that, but let's walk around first. We might be able to play some games and win you a friend for Osito."

"Really? Osito have a friend?"

"Really," Jay promised.

As you walked down Navy Pier, you were excitedly pointing out every little thing you saw from the ducks and the seagulls to the big yachts floating down the Chicago River.

"Let's go into Garrett's, babe," Hailey suggested when they were inside the big atrium. "Give her a taste of Chicago's world-famous popcorn."

"I think that's a great idea," Jay agreed. "What do you think, cariña? Want to try some popcorn and then we'll get your favorite?"

You tilted your head to the side. "Popcorn? What is that?"

"Palomitas," Kim clarified for you in Spanish. "Hay muchos tipos diferentes de palomitas allí para probar y comprar."

"Oh, okay. Yes, please."

"What did you say to her?" Hailey whispered to Kim.

"Just gave her the Spanish translation of popcorn and then told her that there's a bunch of different types of popcorn that she can try and buy in there. But, you and Jay most definitely have your work cut out for you when it comes to learning Spanish. You're lucky that she's pretty good with English already and that I'm here to help you learn Spanish."

***

"Sleepy, cariña?" Jay asked as he heard you yawn from the backseat.

Hailey was driving and he was holding a big bag of caramel and cheddar popcorn...which Hailey was telling him not to eat all of it because she knew he would. You were in the backseat with your big stuffed bear, whom you had named Osita since she was a girl bear because she had really soft white fur and a pink ribbon tied around her. Jay had won that for you when he played a shooting game. You also had a stuffed duck that Will had won for you when he played a guess the weight game. You named him Pato...which meant duck in Spanish. You had gone on the Ferris wheel and had pointed out all the pretty things in the sky when you were up there. Hailey had never seen Jay so happy as when he was smiling wide at every little thing you pointed out and he tried to explain to you what they were.

"No," you answered as you laid your head against Osita. It was currently 3 pm Chicago time, which made it about 9 pm Spain time.

"Tell you what," Hailey started, "When we get home, we can show you your room, and then we can watch a movie and eat this popcorn. Because, if we don't start eating it soon, Jay will eat it all."

"Jay eat it all if we no eat it too?"

"Jay eats a lot," Hailey joked.

You reached your hand in front of you and towards Jay. "Palomitas please." Jay chuckled and Hailey smiled as he put some popcorn into your little outstretched hand. "Gracias."

"De nada," Jay told you.

"When we watch movie, how I get it?" you asked.

"We get it on the tv," Jay told you.

"No, how I know what they saying?"

Hailey hadn't thought that far ahead when she had suggested watching a movie. "Um," Hailey faltered. "We can make it so it's in Spanish."

"But then you no know what they say," you pointed out.

"We can put words on the bottom of the screen in English for us," Jay suggested. "Then all three of us will know what they're saying. Is that okay?"

"Okay!"

"Hailey," Jay whispered. "What are we gonna watch?"

"She's too old for princesses probably and way too young for action movies...how about Disney Channel movies? We could try High School Musical? That one's pretty good."

"You're kidding Hails. You watched that? Didn't it come out when we were like 20 or 25?"

Hailey held back a laugh. "Yes, it did. But, I babysat a lot of kids in my neighborhood who were around Y/N's age, and we'd always end up watching those Disney Channel originals."

"Okay, whatever you say, babe."

***

"I think I'm gonna bring her to bed," Jay said.

You had fallen asleep halfway through the movie. Before starting it, you had seen your room. It was purple! And, in black letters behind your bed, it said Salon de Y/N, which meant Y/N's room. Jay assumed that Kim had helped Hailey with the spelling and the boys had helped move the furniture into your room. There was also a little basket with a few things they thought you would like, such as a few different colored soccer balls and a bookshelf.

On the bookshelf, Hailey had picked out some books in Spanish that she had found at Barnes and Noble and some short chapter books in English that she used to read as a kid, such as the Nancy Drew series and Little House on the Prairie. She knew that you might need help reading them and might not be able to completely understand them all by yourself yet, but she knew that she and Jay would be there to help you.

"It's 6:00," Hailey protested. "Shouldn't we wake her up and have her stay awake for a few more hours so that her body can adjust?"

"If you're asking an adult like me that, yes, I'd stay awake. But, she's a kid. She needs her sleep. And, I'll probably be up before you anyway, so I can deal with her if she wakes us up at five in the morning."

"Okay super dad," Hailey joked. "Bring her to bed. I'll make us a quick dinner and cover this popcorn so it doesn't get stale. Can't wait for us to go to bed tonight." She winked.

"Hails, as much as I would love to take you up on that, I don't think it's a good idea when it's Y/N's first night. But, I will give you all the cuddles in the world tonight, don't you worry about that."

"As long as you didn't pick up the habit of snoring overseas then I'm all for that, babe."

***

Jay woke up to the sound of soft whimpering. It sounded like it was coming from the hallway but he couldn't be sure. He reached over Hailey and was about to grab her gun from her drawer where he knew that she kept it, but stopped when he remembered that it was probably just you. It wasn't just Jay and Hailey in the house anymore; you were there as well and that's probably where the noise was coming from. And, he didn't want to scare you by holding a gun.

He glanced over at the clock. 3 am. Yeah, sounds about right that you'd be waking up right about now since you'd slept for about nine hours and it was 9 am in Spain right now.

Jay slowly tiptoed out into the hallway, cursing himself that he hadn't left a light on or kept his and Hailey's bedroom door open so you could find them easily.

Jay reached out for the hall light switch and flicked on the lights, causing you to jump. "Hey, hey, it's just me. It's just Jay," he said calmly once he laid eyes on you. You were holding Osito and there were fresh tears running down your cheeks.

Jay never knew the force of an eight-year-old running into him could be so strong as to almost knock him over. You dropped Osito and wrapped your arms around him as if your life depended on it.

"It's okay, it's okay," Jay soothed. "What's wrong, cariña? Can you tell me what's wrong?"

"I-I no know where I was," you mumbled into his shirt. "Was dark. Think you and Hailey left, so I came to find you."

"Oh, sweetie," Jay started. "I'm sorry. I forgot to turn the light on for you in your room so that you'd know where you are. And, me and Hailey would never leave you."

"You promise?"

"I promise." Your stomach grumbled. "Hungry?" you nodded. "Alright, let's get you a sandwich and then get you back to bed."

"You eat too?" you asked.

"You know, I could go for a sandwich."

***

The next morning, Hailey rolled over to see that Jay wasn't in bed next to her and his side of the bed was cold. Then, she remembered you and walked over to your room and slowly opened the door. You looked up from the Spanish book you were reading and put a finger to your lips.

"Jay sleeping," you told Hailey.

Jay was sitting upright in your bed against the headboard, his thumb holding a place in what looked to be a Nancy Drew book.

"Did Jay read to you last night, huh?" Hailey asked as she walked closer to you and Jay.

"Yeah, he told me that Nancy does what you and Jay do with policia. Then, I sleep again and then I wake up and he sleep again, so I started reading in Spanish."

"I think we should let him sleep a little more while we go finish High School Musical and eat palomitas before Jay eats it all. Does that sound good?"

You nodded eagerly and closed your book. Then, you got out of bed and followed Hailey out of your room. And, after hearing that Jay had read to you and seeing him sleeping upright in your bed so that you'd be able to sleep, she had one more reason why she was truly head over heels for the man she married and got to call her husband.

"Look, Jay. She wrote her birthday in here for age 9," Hailey said as she pointed to the laptop screen.

"God, I don't think I'll forget that day for the rest of my life. It was such a good day."

"You are such a sap when it comes to Y/N."

"Hey! let me be sappy about our daughter, Hailey Anne. She's in high school now, high school. That means she'll be going off to college soon."

"Don't get too far ahead of yourself, sergeant," she joked. "Just keep reading this. It was your idea to snoop through her stuff after all."

"Jay, you got the stuff?" Hailey asked as she was sitting cross-legged on their bedroom floor with wrapping paper, tape, and scissors in front of her.

"Jesus, Hails," Jay laughed, "You make it sound like we're doing a drug deal."

"Well sorry if I want her birthday to go really well. Now, did you get them or not?"

"They're in here." He set a plastic bag down on the bed. He took out three framed pictures and laid them out on the bed. Of course, he made sure that the frames were different shades of purple. "Good?"

Hailey stood up and looked at the pictures. "I never know the CPD's sketch software could work miracles like this, so yeah, I'd say we did good."

Over the past month, everyone in Intelligence had told you that they were testing out a new sketch software to use to try to track down criminals. They let you play with it because they said they wanted to see what it would do...even though they knew what it did, how good it was, and it wasn't new. It was just a ploy to make sure they got your birthday gift right. They had told you to try and input someone's face from memory, someone like your older sister, Illiana.

So, when you had to go to the district for the day with Jay and Hailey, you'd ask to play with that software to work on your sketch. Little did you know, they were printing it out on fancy photo paper and putting it in a frame for your birthday. Jay had also swiped your necklace one day when you had taken it off to go swimming and had taken pictures of what your mom and dad looked like. Then, he and Hailey each took one parent and worked on making their faces through the CPD's sketch software.

"Now what the hell is this?" Jay asked as he held up a big board that Hailey had laying out in front of her as well.

"That, Jay, is so we can stick the back of the frames to it so that we don't have to give the three of them to her separately. Then, she can just take them off from it and place them wherever she wants in her room."

"You're smart. Maybe you should've gone to law school."

"Haha, very funny, Halstead. But then I wouldn't have met you."

"Eh, I beg to differ. You'd probably end up being some prosecution or defense attorney and then I'd have to testify, and after getting yelled at by you on the stand, I'd end up making an ass of myself and ask you out for a drink."

"Is that so?"

"That is very much so."

He walked up to her and grabbed her by the waist and she gave him a peck on the lips. "Hails," Jay whined. "Why'd you phone it in?"

"Because we have presents to wrap. Now, sit your ass down on the carpet and help me."

"Yes ma'am. But, damn, you're really going to be the death of me."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

***

"Before we do cake everyone, me and Hailey have one more gift for Y/N," Jay announced by tapping a fork gently against his champagne glass. Yes, the adults were drinking champagne because they were celebrating your first birthday with them as their kid. No, they wouldn't even give you one sip...but you didn't care and you didn't ask.

You had gotten spoiled all day. Will had taken you out for breakfast where you had gotten chocolate chip pancakes with all the toppings. Then, he took you to the sporting goods store where you bought an FC Madrid jersey and to Barnes Noble where you bought a few new books.

Then, when you got home, you were surprised to find everyone from Intelligence there along with some people from Med, and firehouse 51. Emilia, Mouse, and Makayla were there, and your friend, Rosa, whom Emilia had introduced you to earlier in the year at her welcome home party since Rosa was one of Emilia's little cousins.

You had gone outside and played a huge soccer game. And, when you got sick of playing soccer, Emilia busted out a makeup kit she had bought for you. And you, Makayla, Emilia, and Rosa did each other's makeup. While the four of you were doing makeup, a soccer tournament had broken out where Intelligence played Med, and then the winner of that game played Firehouse 51. Intelligence won against Med...mostly due to Jay. But, then they played 51 and they got creamed.

"Here you go, nena," Hailey said as she passed you the gift. Hailey had started calling you nena since Jay had a nickname for you, cariña, which you learned now meant sweetheart in English. So, she decided to call you nena, which meant honey. And, you and Hailey had thought it only fair if you came up with a nickname for Jay. So, the one you decided on was quite fitting in your mind: pecas...which translated to freckles. And, Will, well Will calls you Osa because your favorite animal is a bear. It's probably one of only three words he knows in Spanish next to hola and adios.

The gift was long and hard...like a piece of wood. You slowly opened the gift, wondering what else you could have possibly gotten.

You bit your lip as you finished tearing the paper off and flipped it over. "Mamí, Papí, Illiana," you whispered as you held back tears. "¿Cómo lo hicisteis?" you asked. Seeing as Jay and Hailey had been working very hard on their Spanish for the past nine months, they could understand you and could sometimes explain an English word to you in Spanish if needed.

"We didn't really need to test out the drawing thing," Jay answered. "We just needed a picture of Illiana. And, I got the pictures of your parents from the locket."

At this, you started to cry harder, remembering that day when Jay had to cut your necklace off of you in the back of the Med truck in Spain.

You stood up and hugged both Jay and Hailey at the same time. Now, you had both of your families watching over you: your biological family from in heaven and your parents in the here and now. And, your biological family now had no doubt in their mind up there that you would never, ever forget them.

"You remember what she called us that night?" Hailey asked.

"How could I forget? It was the first night she called us mom and dad. I still remember her exact words when I told her we weren't trying to replace her biological family: Son mi familia en el cielo y en mi corazon, pero vosotros sois mi familia aquí."

"They're my family in heaven and in my heart, but you are my family here."

"Exactly."

"Oh my God!" Hailey laughed. "She wrote sixth-grade: I cheated on a literature test and Mom had to come to pick me up and I got in trouble. And then, Dad went full-on dad-mode."

"No fucking way," Jay laughed as he brought the laptop closer to him and looked for the sixth-grade section. "I can't believe this is what she's going to write about!"

"Well, in her defense, it was the first time we had to ground her and the first time you went full-on, overprotective, my daughter can do no wrong dad-mode."

"Pretty sure the next time I'll do that is when she gets asked to the homecoming dance later this year."

"Jay! You will not! You will not scare the boys away from our daughter!"

"Well, they should be scared!" Jay argued. "We're both cops, babe. We can make their death look like an accident."

"Jay, what you're talking about is murder and I shouldn't have to remind you that that is illegal. If so, I am going to the Ivory Tower tomorrow to get you stripped of your sergeant title."

"Fine, fine. The next time I'll do that is when she gets her driver's license."

"Hey, on the bright side, we wouldn't have to pick her up from the principal's office then," Hailey pointed out. "She could just drive herself home."

"We wouldn't have to figure out which of us should go pick her up like last time?"

"Exactly. And I'm pretty sure she was thankful that it was you and not me who picked her up in sixth grade."

"Miss Halstead," your literature teacher said as she stalked over to you from the other side of the classroom. "Care to tell me what you have under your sleeve?"

"My arm?"

"I don't like being disrespected in my classroom. We both know you have your phone in there. And, lying to me will just make this worse."

"I-I needed it," you stammered, not wanting to have the whole class hear how stupid you were.

"For a test? You know the rules: no cheating. Principal's office, now. Grab your stuff. And, I'll be calling your parents as you walk down there."

You grabbed your backpack and started your walk to the principal's office. It's not like you had a choice...well, you did have a choice. You could've just not used your phone on the test. But, after that last grade you got on that essay and how weirdly worded the questions were, you basically had no choice but to use your phone. It's not like you were using it to look up the answers per se, but you were using it to try and understand the questions because there was no way you were going to ask that teacher.

"Mrs. Halstead, right this way," you heard the office secretary say as they led Hailey to the principal's office. Your phone was sitting on the principal's desk, the tab you had been using to cheat open and you were fiddling with the strings of your hoodie. You had thought about deleting your search history, but knew it wouldn't be of any use because Jay and Hailey would just be able to look it up with whatever police software crap that Intelligence had access to. You knew you'd be in more trouble if you deleted it and they found out that you were lying, so you decided you wouldn't delete it...even though you were regretting that decision as your phone screen stared back at you.

"May I ask why my daughter is in the principal's office when I thought she should be taking a test?" Jay and Hailey knew all about your literature test that day as you had read the book twice to be ready for it.

"That's exactly why she's in here, Mrs. Halstead," the principal told Hailey. "She was trying to cheat on her literature test."

"She wouldn't do that!" Hailey defended you. "She studied so hard!" She looked between both you and the principal, but your gaze stayed trained on the floor.

"Just take a look."

He passed Hailey your phone and she looked at the search history and the timestamps of said history. "Y/N, is this true?"

You nodded. Hailey sighed. "I'm assuming she's suspended?"

"Since this is her first academic infraction, I'm not going to suspend her. She does need to go home for the rest of the school day, though."

"Thank you. C'mon Y/N, let's go."

You hung your head as you left the middle school, Hailey holding your phone and still trying to figure out why you did this. But she knew that one thing was for sure: the minute Jay got home, he would not be happy.

***

"You're kidding me, right?" you heard Jay ask Hailey in the kitchen.

You were currently in your room, but the kitchen was right down the hall, so if you were quiet and focused enough, you could hear their conversation.

"I wish I was, Jay," Hailey said. "Just...here, take a look."

You assumed that Hailey was handing Jay the phone and he was looking at your search history.

Jay took a deep breath and restrained himself from shoving the chair into the kitchen table.

You heard his heavy footsteps coming down the hall and quickly locked your door and then sat back down on your bed.

You heard the doorknob jiggle as Jay tried to open your door.

"Y/N! ¡Abras la puerta inmediatamente!" (Open the door immediately!)

You were in deep shit if he was yelling at you in Spanish.

You didn't move from your bed.

"¡Ábrelo ahora!" (Open it now!)

"¡Estoy viniendo! ¡Calmáse!" (I'm coming! Calm yourself!) You got up from the bed and opened the door.

"Do not ever, ever tell me to calm down ever again! Do you understand me?" Jay asked angrily as he flung open your door after he had unlocked it. You nodded. "Now, I understand that you were caught cheating on a test. Care to explain that to me?"

"Not really," you sighed as you sat on your bed.

"I'm giving you one more chance to explain to me why you chose to cheat. And I suggest you tell me the truth, kid."

You looked up to be met with Hailey standing in the doorway. She nodded to you as if to say you better listen to your dad.

"Well?" he asked as he crossed his arms across his chest.

"I needed to cheat!"

"Nobody needs to cheat!"

"Well, I did!" You dug through your backpack and found the paper you had to write for the class that your teacher failed you on. "Because of this!" You threw the paper on your bed. "And because my teacher is a puta!"

"You do not call your teacher a bitch, young lady!" Jay yelled.

"Jay!" Hailey yelled. "Take the paper, go to our room and read it and calm down!"

"So Mom can tell you to calm down but I can't?"

Jay turned back to you, but Hailey grabbed his arm. "Bedroom Jay. Now." He left the room and Hailey turned to you. "As for you. You're grounded from your phone for the foreseeable future. Sorry, nena. Now, we'll be back to talk to you after we've read whatever it is you threw on your bed."

***

"We read the paper," Jay said as he and Hailey entered your room again fifteen minutes later. "And, I'm sorry for yelling. I know me and your mom are both detectives, but it'd look better if you told us why you cheated instead of leaving us to put the pieces together."

"I'm sorry, I really am. It's just, I failed that paper. And, I worked really hard on it. And, she said it wasn't a real tradition."

The paper topic was to write about a family tradition and you wrote about the Spanish tradition of eating grapes on New Year's Eve. With twelve seconds left of the year, you'd put a grape in your mouth for every second that passed. You'd try to get all twelve grapes in your mouth, but that was really hard. You wrote about the last time you did it with your family and your papí almost got all of them in your mouth while you only got three in your mouth since you were only three years old at the time.

One of the grading criteria for the paper was that it had to be a real tradition.

"She said that it wasn't a real tradition, Dad. She said that because she had never heard of it and that it sounded weird to her, that it wasn't real. So, she failed me. I also put some Spanish words in there, but I put the translations next to it. I thought it would make it more...what's the word? It's kind of like real? Like it'd make it more real to read? You know that word for it?"

"Authentic?" Hailey asked.

"Yeah, that. I thought it'd make it more authentic to read. And, I knew the material of the book. But, the questions were so confusing and I didn't want to ask her to clarify because she's mean."

"So you googled the questions to try to figure out what they were asking?" Hailey asked.

"Yes. I'm sorry. I really am. I just didn't want you to be disappointed in me and think that I've been here for four years and not know English."

"Oh, cariña." Jay crouched in front of you. "We'd never think that. I promise. And I know Mom would never think that either, right?"

"That's right," Hailey agreed.

"Now, I have to go make a phone call."

"You went off on that teacher, Jay! I don't think I've ever heard you that angry when you weren't in interrogation!" Hailey laughed.

"Well yeah! That teacher's logic and grading criteria were seriously flawed. And, you read that paper. It was really good. As Y/N put it that day, she really was a puta."

Hailey rolled her eyes.

"Wish for the future," Jay read aloud. "I wish that I could figure out why Los Rebeldes came to the orphanage and killed Illiana."

"I think that's enough snooping through her stuff for the day, babe," Hailey said, beginning to feel uncomfortable reading this. "Let's just go to bed."

"Yeah, I'm just gonna take a quick shower and I'll be back, okay? I love you." He gave Hailey a quick peck on the lips and made his way to the bathroom to take a shower.

"I love you, too."

But, Jay barely heard her. He was so lost in thought about how to get answers for you, for his daughter. Hell, he wanted those answers just as bad as you. What kind of sick bastard would come into an orphanage heavily armed and just kill innocent civilians and innocent children?

***

"Mouse," Jay said as he entered the bullpen the next morning, "I need your help with something."

"Jeez, Jay, you're late," Ruzek commented. "Where's Hailey?"

"It's her RDO. And, I promised Y/N a frappuccino because she had to wake up early for school and had to go to bed late last night because we were working a case."

"Does Hailey--"

"No, Adam. Hailey does not know that I gave our fourteen-year-old daughter sugar-laced coffee this morning. And, if you so much as say the words frappuccino, Jay, and Y/N in the same sentence, I will bump you back down to patrol so fast you won't know what hit you."

Jay started to walk towards the tech area where he assumed Mouse would be. His voice carried, so he hoped he'd heard him when he'd said he needed his help.

"Whose idea was it to give Jay all this power?" Adam asked rhetorically. "I think it's going to his head."

"I heard that Ruz!"

"You needed something, Jay?" Mouse asked as he turned around from his laptop and took a sip of his coffee.

"Yeah, can you do something off the books for me?"

"You don't even have to ask anymore, man."

"Just need to make sure you don't assign a case number to it."

"I can do that. Now, what do you need?"

Jay pulled out his phone and pulled up a Spanish newspaper article from two weeks ago. He laid the phone in front of Mouse. "This. This is why I need you."

Mouse looked at the phone and back up at Jay with raised eyebrows. "I'm gonna need you to translate that. I don't speak Spanish."

"Says that the guy who killed everyone in the orphanage that Y/N was in is meeting with his lawyer about an appeal. That son of a bitch. And, it's happening on Monday."

"He's meeting with his lawyer on Monday or you'll know if he won the appeal or not on Monday?" Mouse asked.

"He's meeting with his lawyer on Monday."

"And you need me because...?"

"Think you can hack into Spain's maximum-security federal prison system?"

"You cannot be serious."

"I am dead serious, Mouse."

"Why don't you just wait to hear the news?"

Jay sighed and took a seat next to Mouse. "Y/N has to write a paper and was using my laptop. It was this narrative thing for her senior project, so it's due in a few years. But, I'll spare you the details. Y/N had to write what one of her wishes for the future was and she wrote that she wants to know why the guy killed everyone in the orphanage. Not who, because we already know that it was Raúl Rodríguez. She wants to know why."

"That guy's the one who told them to attack the orphanage? The one that killed her sister, right?"

"That's the prick."

"Okay, I'll see what I can do. I'd know that if it was my sister or my kid that I'd want to know."

"Thanks, man."

"Video and audio?"

"Yeah. I'm probably gonna get Emilia in on this too to translate."

"Why? Don't you and Hailey speak Spanish?"

"We do, but they're gonna talk really fast and I probably don't know law lingo except for the word lawyer."

"Fair enough. I'll get to work."

***

"Hails, Hails," Jay shook Hailey awake.

"Jay? Why are you home so late?" she asked as she rolled over and opened her eyes. It was almost 11:30 and she had gone to bed half an hour ago...she thought Jay would've been home by 11:00.

"Paperwork," Jay answered honestly. He instantly regretted his decision of waking Hailey up knowing her history of insomnia. "But, I shouldn't have woke you up. I'm sorry, babe."

"No, I'm awake now. What's up?" She sat up in bed and turned on the lamp to see Jay changing out of his clothes and into his pajama pants and an old t-shirt. "You don't have to sleep with a shirt on you know."

Jay smirked. "You'd like that, wouldn't you? But, don't want our daughter to walk in on me shirtless."

"She's spending the night at Rosa's," Hailey informed him.

"In that case..." Jay trailed off and took off his t-shirt along with his pajama pants so that he was just in his boxers. "Better?"

"Much better."

Jay pulled back the covers on his side of the bed and slid in next to his wife. She cuddled into his side and he wrapped an arm around her.

"What'd you want to tell me?" she asked.

"How do you know I wanted to tell you something?"

"You had that look in your eye, Jay Halstead. Now, tell me."

"So persuasive." He rolled his eyes playfully.

"Shut up."

"You love it, though." He gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "You know how Y/N's biggest wish was to know why Raúl Rodríguez attacked the orphanage?"

"Mhmm," she mumbled.

"Well, I'm gonna find out why."

She pulled away from him. "What? How? You're going to Spain? To interrogate him? You know the CPD doesn't have jurisdiction there even though you were a ranger there, right?"

"Hails, I'm not going overseas to find him. I promise you that."

"Okay." She settled back into his embrace. "Then what are you doing?"

"Having Mouse see if he can hack into the prison system so that I can watch the lawyer talk to him."

"And you're going to be able to understand everything they're saying?"

"No, but Emilia will."

"You called her and told her your plan before you told me?"

"No! The only person who knows is Mouse. I figured I'd call Emilia tomorrow. Like I said, I was just at the district late doing paperwork."

"Okay, I believe you. And, we're not going to have her in the room with us, Y/N that is? We're going to tell her why he did this so she doesn't have to hear it from him?"

"Precisely. Now, am I right in assuming that since Y/N's gone for the night that we can be as loud as we want?"

"You are very much correct in that." Then, he gave her a kiss...and this time, he didn't phone it in at a peck.

***

You were sitting in the breakroom Monday afternoon trying to do some American history homework. There was so much reading involved, but it was okay because you liked history. And, there were pictures in the textbook...it wasn't like you were reading Romeo and Juliet like you had to do in English class.

You knew Emilia was here because she had brought you some fries, much to your mom and dad's dismay since your mom had packed you a few extra snacks. But, Emilia said she had to hold up her reputation as your cool aunt...even if she wasn't related to you whatsoever. And so far, she was holding it up.

You didn't know why she was here, but you assumed it was because Kim was in the field and they needed someone to translate audio. Sometimes Jay would call in Emilia if he knew that she wasn't working to do some translating so he didn't have to deal with calling up a patrolman. You also knew from hearing some of his conversations with Will that Will wanted to ask her out.

And, you hoped she say yes. You wanted Emilia to be your actual aunt. Apparently, she had a thing for doctors according to Jay's side of the phone conversations you'd heard, so you hoped it'd work out if your uncle Will ever got the balls to ask her out.

All of a sudden, Emilia came into Jay's office and he took off running. Hailey saw this and she started following them.

"What?" you asked yourself.

They always would tell you if they had to leave and they'd always be sure to tell you they loved you before they left.

You quietly walked out of the breakroom and towards where you had seen them running to. You assumed they were in the tech area because of the direction they ran in and the fact that whenever Emilia was here, she was most likely in the tech room.

As you got closer, you started hearing Spanish.

Someone talking about an attack...an attack on an orphanage.

A man said it was in the Tabernas Desert.

You peeked your head around the corner to see that on the screen there was a man in a nice suit and someone sitting at a table with handcuffs on.

"Anything we don't already know?" Hailey asked.

"Not that it sounds like right now," Emilia answered. "They're just talking about the orphanage Y/N and Illiana were in and where it was."

So this is the guy who did it. This was the guy--no, the monster--who led the attack that killed your sister.

"The lawyer just asked Rodríguez why he did it," Emilia said.

"And?" Jay asked

"Jay, I need to be able to hear them talk, so shut up."

Jay held his hands up in a sign of surrender.

"The lawyer just asked if it was something personal, something like Rodríguez being an orphan and he didn't have a good experience there so he attacked it, something that would tug at the board of appeals heartstrings essentially." There was a pause as Emilia continued listening. "He said no." She paused again. "Oh my God."

"What?" Jay asked frantically. "Why did that prick kill innocent children?"

"He said he ordered the attack because the orphanage was receiving aid from the US, for things such as food, clothing, and basic necessities."

"Un-fucking-believable." Jay wanted to punch something, but he restrained himself. "So, because our country was helping those who couldn't help themselves, this prick went after them?"

"That's what it sounds like. I'm sorry, Jay."

"Hails, how are we going to tell Y/N?"

"You guys don't have to tell me," you said as you made your presence known. "I heard the whole thing."

Jay sighed. "I'm sorry cariña, really I am. I'm sorry that this happened to you. That you had to find out this way. That this was the reason for what that monster did. I'm sorry."

"Dad read my outline?" you asked, turning to Hailey.

"Yeah, nena, he did. It was just open and you know him, he couldn't stop himself."

"Because he's a detective before he's a sergeant, just like Nancy Drew," you said, bringing it back to the books you'd used to read with your dad every night when you had just come over to the states from Spain and were working on your English.

"This should never have happened," Jay said softly as he walked over to you and brought you into a tight hug. "People that do these kinds of horrific acts shouldn't have the right to be born, much less to live."

"But if that wouldn't have happened you wouldn't have found me. And I wouldn't have found my forever Mom and Dad."

A/N: I wrote over 6.5k words to get this posted today! That's a new personal record for me! Also, my neuroscience class is kicking my butt right now, so if I don't update as frequently, that's why. Hopefully, I'll get one out every week or every two weeks at the latest. Please like/reblog and comment because I love getting feedback and it keeps me motivated to write. If you want to be added to the taglist, just tell me and I’ll add you! 

taglist: @theambracer88 @virtualreader @kelelas-life @celyndavies @brookerz122493 @musicismyescape27 @anotherfan07 @thexplosivegirl @dreamingwithlens @xoxmariaxox @onechicago18 @iamasimpingh0e 

#jay halstead #jay halstead imagine #will halstead #ranger! jay #chicago pd #writer #writing #fanfic #fanfiction #imagine #chicago pd imagine #chicago pd fanfic #chicago pd fanfiction #jay halstead fanfiction #jay halstead fanfic

[anna-justice]

But We Do - Upstead

Summary: 5 times Jay and Hailey said they were “just friends,” and 1 time they knew they were something more. 

Warnings: swearing, fluff, maybe mentions of violence?

Requested: No

…

1 - they don’t cancel other plans, have conversations with nothing but their eyes…

Jay walked out of the breakroom, phone pressed to his ear and a cup of coffee in his hand. They were wrapping up an intense day in intelligence, they had closed a big case involving a tender age victim, all of them were taking it pretty hard. 

“Hey man,” Jay said quietly as he approached his desk. He watched his partner sigh, running a hand through her tousled blonde hair. 

“Hey,” Will said, “We still on for the game tonight?” 

Jay kept his eyes on Hailey, she looked distraught. “Uh…” Hailey looked up, catching his gaze and giving him a weak smile. Jay furrowed his eyebrows at her and she shrugged, her chest heaving as she looked back down at her report. “Sorry. I can’t tonight, something came up. Raincheck?” 

“Yeah, no worries man.” Will said, “I’ll see you later.” 

“See you.” Jay agreed, finally finishing the last few steps to his desk. He sat down, placing all the reports on his desk in a neat pile. Swiftly, he leaned over the monitor in front of him and swiped a stack of papers off his partners desk, replacing them with his cup of coffee. 

Hailey was startled by the commotion, glancing up at the man across from her. He was focused on his computer screen, deep in thought. Hailey smiled softly, taking a sip of the coffee before getting back to work. Jay felt her gaze on him, he avoided it, focusing on the task before him. If he looked up he’d get lost in those bright blue eyes, and then he’d never get any work done. 

About an hour later, Jay threw his pen down on his desk, groaning. “I’ve written the word ‘offender’ so many times that it doesn’t even feel like a word anymore.” He said. 

Hailey cracked a smile, “You done?” She had been for about 20 minutes, but they were the last ones left, and she didn’t want to make him work alone, especially since he was helping with her work load. 

 Jay nodded, “Yep, just finished, ready to get out of here?” 

“Yes.” Hailey said immediately, grabbing her coat off the back of her chair. “Give Will my best.” 

Jay stood, “I’m not meeting Will.” He confessed. 

Hailey looked at him, confused. “You said you were going to the Hawks game, Jay, you’ve been excited all day.” She frowned, but he just shook his head.

“Will gets tickets for every game, there will be another one.” He jokes, but Hailey doesn’t look convinced. “I’m not really feeling it tonight, not after today…” It was true, he didn’t want to ignore his problems for the night, not when she’d call him out on it later anyway. Plus, Hailey was way more fun than a Hawks game.

She eyed him cautiously, “As long as you aren’t ditching on my account.” 

Jay laughed, “I am.” Hailey glared at him. “Not cause you need it, cause I do.” Her expression softens as Jay grabs his keys and coat, “Come on, drinks on me.” 

Hailey smiled, falling into step behind him. “You spoil me.” 

2 - they don’t call you in the middle of the night, couldn’t even tell you why…

Hailey shot up in her bed, her chest rising and falling at a rapid rate. She held a hand to it, trying to control her breathing. She hated to admit it, but nightmares were a constant issue for her, it was rare that she slept a full night.

It made sense, the trauma of her childhood, in addition to the horrors she sees on the force. When her mind wasn’t actively fighting against the memories, they were all consuming. Tonight though, was a special type of terror. It was often that Hailey dreamed of her green eyed partner, but sometimes he snuck into her nightmares. Every once in a while, she was transported back to that day, the day she almost lost him. And even though he lived, in her mind at night, the fear that he didn’t was overwhelming. 

She rolled over, clutching her pillow. All rationality said he was fine, probably asleep in his own bed. Her phone caught her eye, like it was pulling her to it. It sat there taunting her. Finally, she couldn't take it anymore, she just needed to hear his voice. 

Obviously, she had him on speed dial, only needing to click his contact. The ringing started and after the fourth one, she considered hanging up. Then after the fifth… “Hello?” A groggy voice asked. 

“Hi.” She said softly. She had the sudden urge to throw her phone out the window.

Jay sat up immediately, running his hand over his face, “Hailey? What’s wrong?”

Hailey froze, she hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Nothing.”

“Okay?” He said, not really convinced. 

“I just needed to make sure you were okay.” Hailey rushed out. She blushed to herself, thankful that he couldn’t see her crimson cheeks. 

That woke Jay up all the way, he sighed, his voice laced with concern. “Hailey, I’m fine.” He waited a few seconds. “Are you?” 

Hailey took a breath, she debated confessing everything she had been feeling lately. How affected she was by her dreaming that he was dead. “Uh, just a bad dream.” 

“About?” He asked. 

“That day.” She said softly. He didn’t say anything. “I’m okay, Jay.” She said,trying to reassure him.

She heard rustling over the line, “I’m sorry Hailey.” He said, “For what I put you through.” 

“I know.” They sat in silence for a few minutes, just listening to each other breathe. It was oddly comforting, the constant assurance that the other one was there. “Jay?” Hailey asked.

“Yeah?”

“Will you stay on the phone...until I fall asleep?” She asked, cautiously. It was a strange ask, especially because Hailey knew that there was no way she was going back to sleep, but she wasn’t ready to hang up, and she wasn’t ready to talk.

Jay sat there shocked, there was something so intimate about her request, something he wasn’t expecting, but certainly something he wasn’t upset about. “Yeah, I’ll be right here.” 

They both laid back down in their respective beds, phones laying on the pillow next to them. Eventually Hailey heard the sound of soft snores, she smiled to herself. She closed her eyes and just listened: he was alive and he was there.

3 - they don’t almost say “i love you,” when they’re downtown somewhere just a little drunk...

Jay sat in between Kevin and Will at Molly’s knocking back his third beer. They were celebrating Adam’s birthday, which meant they were in for a night full of alcohol. Adam was a bit of a control freak when it came to his birthday, insisting that everyone was at his beck and call for the day. They all let it slide, after all, he acted like their own personal assistant on each of their birthdays. 

“Okay boys.” Adam called to the long line of their friends sitting at the bar. “Time for shots!” 

Kevin laughed, “Are you paying?” 

Adam shrugged, “The party is on me tonight, but you all are responsible for getting me home alive.” 

Kevin nodded, looking to Jay, who nodded. “Copy that.” He turned to Herrmann, “I’m going to need two of those badboys and a glass of that fancy bourbon I know you are hiding back there.”

“Make that two,” Jay said, holding up his hand. 

Hailey, Kim and a few of the other girls watched the antics from across the bar. Stella came over, carrying a tray of miscellaneous cocktails and bottles. Kim’s jaw dropped and Hailey started laughing. Stella shrugged, setting the tray down. “I heard Ruzek’s buying.” She said, before floating back over to the bar.

“Thank you!” Hailey called.

Sylvie picked up a cup filled with green liquid, “Why is it green?” 

“Absinthe?” Kim asked.

Hailey quickly took the drink from Sylvie, “Believe me, you don’t want this.” 

Sylvie laughed, picking a different drink. “Yeah, probably not.” 

Hailey smiled, taking her pick of the tray. She played it safe, pulling a beer off the back. “Lame.” Gianna teased.

Hailey shrugged, “Someone has to get those losers home.” She glanced at the bar, watching her partner down a shot with Adam.   

Kim raised her glass, urging the other girls to do the same. “Happy Birthday Adam.” She said, and they all took a sip. 

About thirty minutes later, Jay was more gone than he had been in a long time. The man could hold his liquor, but he could not keep up with Kevin or Kelly. He was handed another shot by his brother, who was right there with him. Jay tossed it back, barely feeling the burn. 

He slumped over on his stool and turned to scan the bar, his gaze landed on his partner and it stayed there shamelessly. She was laughing, her head thrown back and her body visibly shaking. He smiled, leaning back against the bar and just watched.

Kevin glanced over, following his friend's gaze. He chuckled. “Jay, man.” He said, nudging his shoulder. “You’re staring.

“No I’m not.” Jay said, his gaze never leaving her. 

“Sure.” Kevin slurred, grabbing his shoulder and spinning him around to face the bar. Jay glared at him, Kevin held up his hands in surrender. “I’m just trying to help you out.” 

“Chuckles is staring at you.” Trudy teased Hailey from across the table. Hailey, not so subtly, snapped her head around, causing the whole table to laugh. “Well, he’s not now.” 

Hailey slowly faced her friends again, her cheeks bright red. “Yeah, just checking.”

Sylvie giggled, she had taken a small sip of the absinth anyway. “You like him.” 

Hailey shook her head, “What? No.” She stared down her drink, “We’re partners. He’s my best friend.” 

“Okay.” Kim said, smirking, everyone else following suit. 

Before he knew it, Jay’s gaze was back on Hailey. She was so pretty, he didn’t even understand how someone could be so beautiful. He picked up the full shot glass, downing it quickly. He had spent the whole night thinking about her, and he couldn’t pretend he didn’t feel the way he did anymore. 

Jay pushed himself off the stool, stumbling a little, he couldn’t keep the smile off his face as he made way across the bar. “Hi Hailes.” He said, grabbing her attention.

Hailey smiled brightly. “Hey, having fun?” She asked, cocking an eyebrow. She could tell he had been just by the way he was swaying in front of her. 

Jay nodded, “Yeah...um...I need to tell you something.”

The whole table watched him eagerly, “Yeah?” She asked, her heart racing.

Will looked over and his eyes widened at the empty seat next to him. “Kev.” He said.

Kevin looked over, “Shit.” He said. He motioned for Will to follow him and they raced over to Jay.

“I-” He started, but Kevin and Will appeared on either side of him. 

“Hi Hailey.” Kevin said.

“Bye Hailey,” Will continued, before grabbing his brother's arm and yanking him away from her. Hailey sat there in shock as they walked away, talk about a let down.

Jay huffed, ripping his arms away. “What was that?” He snapped.

“It was us saving your ass.”

4 - they don’t talk about the future, and put each other in it…

Hailey shifted in her seat, turning her body slightly towards the center console. She held up the camera in her hand, looking through the lens. She snapped a picture of the license plate of the car that just rolled up. 

“You see that?” Jay asked from the driver's seat, leaning back. Hailey nodded, taking another picture. Jay scribbled down the make and model into his notes before they watched the driver re-enter the car and drive away. 

A few minutes went by and they sat in silence once again, they had been on a stakeout for several hours and all they had to show for it was a few license plates. Hailey sighed, “So, the Sergeants exam sign up was posted this week.” She said, bringing up something she’d been meaning to for several weeks. 

“Okay?” Jay said, “You planning on taking it?” He asked, chuckling. 

Hailey shook her head, laughing lightly. “Me? No way. I think you should.” 

“What?” Jay, finally looked over at her. 

Hailey looked at him in disbelief, he really hadn’t thought about it? “Jay, you’ve been a detective for almost ten years, don’t you feel like it’s time to take the next step?” She asked.

Jay shrugged, “I hadn’t really thought about it...maybe in a couple more years. Why? You sick of me?” He teased.

“No,” Hailey said, rolling her eyes. “I just want you to succeed, and Voight has always said you’ll take the unit one day…”

“Yeah, one day.” He said, cracking a smile. To be honest, he had thought about the test, but he wasn’t sure he was ready to potentially move on from Intelligence or from his partner. 

Hailey turned to face him completely, “Well, when one day comes, I’ll help you study.” 

Jay watched her, her smile so genuine. He had just said that he was going to wait a couple more years, and Hailey intended to be there for them. “So, you’re keeping me around?” 

“Yeah, you haven’t pissed me off yet.” Jay gave her a look, “Much.” Hailey took a breath. “I’m serious Jay, I’ve got your back, no matter what, no matter when.”

“Thanks.” Jay said, squinting at her. 

Hailey scoffed, “You sound surprised…” 

Jay shook his head, “I’m not surprised, it’s just nice to hear you say it.” He turned to face her, “We don’t talk like this very much.” 

“Yeah, cause you show emotion once every three weeks.” Hailey teased, slapping his bicep.

“Oh, you’re one to talk.” 

Hailey laughed along with him, leaning her head against the window. “Jay, you know I’d follow you anywhere, even to another unit. I’m not losing this.” She gestured between the two of them.

Jay nodded, he knew she was talking about their partnership, but couldn’t help but hope she meant something else. “I know, and you’ll always have a spot, wherever I am.” 

“Good.” 

5 - they don’t stand around playing with their keys, finding reasons not to leave…

“Jay, can you stop hovering.” Hailey said, turning to face him. He had been following her around her kitchen for fifteen minutes while she did random things.  He had brought her home from the hospital a few hours earlier, and he hadn’t left her alone since. 

She was tackled down by a suspect earlier that morning and after getting checked out by Will, they learned that she had a few bruised ribs. It was nothing too serious, but it was enough for Jay to have a mini aneurysm about it, which is why Hailey was coming close to stabbing him with the knife she was trying to put away. 

Jay took a step back at her harsh words, putting his hands up. “I’m sorry, I just don’t want you to hurt yourself.”

Hailey stood up straight, placing her hands on her hips. “I think I’m capable of unloading my dishwasher.” 

“Alright,” He said, admitting defeat. He grabbed his keys off the counter and headed towards the door. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

“See you, thanks for dinner.” She said kindly, before turning back to her work. 

Jay opened the door, watching her for a few more seconds. He was about to leave when heard a thud, followed by a hiss. Within seconds, the door was slammed shut and he was back by her side. “Hailey.” He said, picking up the bowls that fell on the floor.

She huffed, leaning against the counter, hand draped over her stomach to cover her rib. “I’m fine, I just couldn’t reach.” She explained, nodding at the open cabinet. 

Jay sighed, “You’re not fine.” He set the stack of bowls neatly in the cabinet before turning to face her. “Come on.” 

Hailey rolled her eyes and followed him into the living room, sitting down on the couch next to him. He threw a blanket over her before getting up again. “What are you doing?” Hailey called after him.

There were sounds of rummaging in the kitchen, and then a few seconds later Jay appeared with a glass of water and a bottle of ibuprofen. “Here.” He said, “You should take these.” 

He handed her the cup and Hailey took it gratefully. “Thanks.” 

“Yeah,” He took a step back, standing next to the couch. He shifted nervously, keeping his eyes on her. “Well, I guess I’m gonna go. Promise me you’ll stay put?” He asked, and Hailey nodded. “Okay, Goodnight Hailey.” He said, before walking out of the room.

Hailey sighed, as much as she hated being fawned over, she didn’t want him to leave. “Jay!” She yelled.

Two seconds later he was standing in front of her again, “Yeah?” 

“I’m probably going to need your later…” She said, watching a smile appear on his face. “Do you just want to stay?” 

“Yes.” He said immediately, “I mean…” He rubbed the back of his neck. “If you really need me to.” 

Hailey laughed, “I do.” Jay took it as an invitation to reclaim his seat on the couch, pulling the other half of the blanket over him. Hailey leaned her head on his shoulder and stayed put, exactly like she promised she would.

but we do…

Hailey sat with her head resting in her hand as she watched Jay from across the room. She was staring, and it was obvious, but he was too busy chatting up some girl to notice her gaze. Molly’s was crowded, like normal, but tonight she had decided to sit alone. She had been watching the girl flirt with her partner for a while now, and she didn’t want to bring anyone else down with her mood. 

She thought things had changed, that maybe Jay felt the same way about her, but the look on his face right now was telling her otherwise. Hailey sighed, averting her gaze and staring absently at her phone, trying to distract herself. It wasn’t working. 

“You know,” A familiar redhead said as they slid into the seat across from her, “You could just tell him how you feel.”

Hailey sat up straight, looking at the other Halstead in disbelief. “What?” 

Will laughed, “Don’t even deny it Hailey, I’ve been watching you make eyes at my brother for the last hour.” 

“I’m not making eyes.” She snapped, keeping her gaze trained on him. 

“Okay.” Will said, taking a sip of his beer. “Just for the record, I think you would be satisfied with his answer.”

Hailey jumped off her stool, throwing a ten down on the table. She was glad she had decided to only have one beer, she was sober enough to get the hell out of there. “Goodnight Will.” She said shortly before rushing towards the door, not giving her partner a second glance as she passed. 

Jay watched the blur of blonde hair fly past him, noticing that it was Hailey walking out the door. His eyebrows laced together and he stood, “It was really great to see you Marissa, but I need to go.” He said quickly before grabbing his jacket and racing out the door after his partner, he was gone so fast that he didn’t even hear the girl say goodbye.

“Hailey!” He called after her.

Hailey turned around, she was only a feet ahead of him, she blamed her short legs. “I’m fine Jay, go back to your date.” She said a little harsher than she meant to before turning to walk away again. 

“Date?” He asked, grabbing her hand and pulling her back to him. “Hailey, that was Will’s ex-girlfriend, I was friends with her brother in high school, we were just catching up.” 

Hailey scoffed, “That little shit, ugh, it doesn’t matter. You don’t have to explain yourself to me Jay, we’re just friends.” 

Jay ran his hands through his hair, letting out an exasperated sigh. “Are we?” He snapped. That got Hailey’s attention, she watched him closely as he took a step forward. “Hailey, I’ve to convince myself that there was nothing here, because you are my best friend. But friends don’t act the way we do, I saw you watching me tonight, that wasn’t a ‘friendly’ look.” He said. 

Hailey blushed, looking at the ground. “Jay-”

He tilted her chin up to look at him. “You can lie to yourself all you want, but I can’t. I love you Hailey...and I think you love me too.” Hailey swore she stopped breathing for a second, his eyes were locked on her and she couldn't believe what he was saying. She searched his face for any trace of regret or concern for her, because half of her still thought she was hallucinating. “Feel free to say something-” She reached up and pulled him down to her, attaching their lips. Jay arms secured themselves around Hailey’s waist as he lifted her up to meet his height, her arms wrapping around his neck.

Jay held her tightly against him, his lips never leaving hers. Finally, Hailey pulled away, breathless. “For the record,” She said, taking a deep breath, her hand running down the side of his face. “You’re my best friend too.” Jay smiled, but she knew he was waiting for something else. “And I love you too.” 

…

A/N: I’ve had the idea for this fic for forever, so I’m glad I finally had a reason to write it. I’ve been a Maddie & Tae (ft. lyrics from “Friend’s Don’t) fan since the beginning and I’ve always thought that this song was the Upstead anthem. It’s perfect for them. Thanks for reading!

#upsteadlovesongs2021 #jay halstead #hailey upton #upstead #upstead imagines #chicago pd #one chicago

[fictionalabyss]

Saltine.

Pairing : Crowley x Plussize!Reader

Word count : 1,930

Warnings : AU (Crowley isn't a demon but is super fucking rich), Cam girl, Cam show, drinking, partial nudity

Header by : @sorenmarie87, as always. She's the best and I adore her and her work.

Masterlist • Patreon • Ko-fi.

The internet was filled with so many girls thinking they could get rich quick just by taking off their clothes. Like they were something special, something to behold. But really, they were one in a billion. Forgettable. Nothing different from the next person.

You were one in thousands. Slightly better odds.

Being a BBW, while nothing overly special on it’s own, did do one thing for you. People who ended up in your room knew what they wanted. They wanted a curvaceous goddess in their face. Curves and softness, something you had plenty of. The pool of plus size cam girls was smaller than the pool of everyone else.

Beyond that, you did what people paid you to do. If a guy paid you to fill your room with balloons and pop them one after another by sitting on them, you did it. Rub lotion all over your stomach and then spit on it, sure. Wear clothes that were two sizes too small, why not.

Tonight was kind of like that. Packages from a few regulars had shown up in your PObox, and one of them had contained a bottle of booze. Glencraig, a scotch whiskey you’d never heard of until James showed up in your chat room and paid for a private show where you drank and talked with him for an hour about two months ago. Now you had your own bottle. So you had taken a picture of it sitting between your legs, put it as your profile pic on the site and titled your chat “Me and Craig. Let’s see where this goes.”

Crowley’s bored and frustrated. The office is empty and he’s supposed to be working but he’s pent up. It’s been a long day of morons fucking shit up and he needed a god damn break. Billions of dollars at his disposal and he still couldn’t buy good fucking help to run his business.

He’s scrolling through women, looking for someone to catch his eye and quickly realizing he doesn’t think anyone will. They’re all the same. Once you’ve had one, you’d had them all, and he’s had plenty in his time. Fergus McLeod was no innocent. He was the farthest thing from it.

With a grunt of disapproval, he started looking for something different, hoping for something new. Key words being typed into searches, but nothing catching his eye in half of those either. Not for long, anyways. ‘BBW’ was a keyword he’d hit. Not many girls online, some of them into some niche things that he’d honestly consider, but all their pictures were the same. Every single one.

Except one. It had him leaning closer, trying to read the label. Interested enough in that at least, he hit join. What he found inside made his cock twitch.

A dark leather chair, not too different from one he  sat in himself. Smooth thick thighs he found himself wanting to bite into. And between them? The item that had taken hold of his interest, the reason he’d clicked to join. Glencraig. The bottle was freshly opened from the looks of it, about three fingers missing, so probably only on her second glass at most. He leaned in again, trying to get a closer look at the label. A soft curse fell from his lips when he saw the numbers 1974, and then ‘Aged 34 Years’. His cock twitched again, and he found himself reaching down to grip it through his slacks.

It was a close up of the bottle right now, and he wasn’t complaining. No one complained when she went to refill her glass, either. A whiskey glass was brought down to her thigh, then the bottle was brought out of where it was nestled, and a bare pussy was exposed. Chimes rang through his office, followed by a soft giggle as she poured, and then the bottle was placed back down, her pussy hidden once more behind the amber liquid and the black label. Then the camera moved.

It was tilted up more, following the glass as it was brought up to her lips and she took another sip. A shiver ran down her spine as it burned, and Crowley found himself smiling along with her. He heard another chime, then her laugh again. The tip amounted to about 75$, give or take.

“James, don’t be absurd, you already paid for the bottle.” She spoke as she pushed the camera back, giving a full view. Bottle between her legs and that seductive smile on her lips.

A message came up in the chat that read ‘Maybe I want you to be able to get yourself another. Hey guys! Let’s get her enough to order another bottle so we can have another night like this!’

The chat sped up, messages agreeing with the sentiment, and more chimes of tips being given for the cause. Another giggle came from her lips as she brought the glass back up to her mouth.

Not to be out done, Crowley made a donation of his own.

You were smiling, giggling, happy that everyone seemed to enjoy the theme of the room tonight. Glad that James approved of how you used his gift. You tilted the glass back just as a few chimes went off signaling more donations, and one of them made you choke on the scotch and spit it out. You stared at the screen, stunned as the liquid ran down off your chin.

Who the fuck was TheKing, and why did he just drop what had to be about 2 grand on you?

A new alert sounded, and you noticed you had a DM. Speak of the devil.

>> TheKing : From one Glencraig lover to another. I hope you enjoy it, love.

You stared at it, still in shock. In all your time as a cam girl, on here, on BBW specific sites, nothing like this had ever happened before. People bought gifts, sure, but this?

>> TheKing : Breathe, darling. >> TheKing : Don’t forget to breathe.

Realizing you had just been sitting there staring at the screen, you wiped your chin off and licked your lips, trying to collect yourself. The main chat was blowing up, you weren’t the only one dealing with shock and awe with what just happened.

“Uhm.” you breathed out awkwardly, not sure what to say, how to react. Was this real? “All hail The King?” an awkward chuckle followed the words, but the chat room was filled with messages of ‘all hail TheKing!’  “Should I bow.. or..” you joked, with a shy smile.

>> TheKing : No need to bow, love. >> TheKing : Though I wouldn’t say no to a conversation.

A soft smile graced your lips before you typed out your answer.

<< Saltine : We’re having a conversation. >> TheKing : I was thinking something a little more face to face. >> TheKing : I hear your voice, you hear mine.

You licked your lips, the general chat room forgotten for the moment. With money he dropped on you, your undivided attention for a moment was the least you could do.

<< Saltine : I don’t meet people from the site in person. It’s a safety issue, I’m sure you understand.

Three little dots in the corner let you know he was typing almost immediately.

>> TheKing : I wouldn’t expect you to, love. I meant more of a chat where I have my camera on too. Make it a little more intimate. I don’t mind paying for a private show where you don’t need to show anything. I would just like a drink with you.

You chewed on your bottom lip for a moment, considering the offer. Private shows didn’t really happen a whole lot, but when they did, it was charged by the minute so it was worth the time. You found yourself using your thumb to crack the knuckle of your index finger, and then your middle one before you nodded. “Yeah, we can do a private chat.” you spoke, letting the chatroom know your cam would be shutting off in there in a minute.

>> TheKing : You just made me a very happy man, darling. Whenever you’re ready, you let me know.

You were chewing on your lip as you waited for his cam to kick in. It was a moment of black before a bright light seemed to come on, and quickly it shifted. There was black in the middle of brightness, and then slowly the light seemed to adjust. It was a window. A massive window. As the lighting adjusted, you found yourself looking at a man in a suit and behind him, a city skyscape all laid out for him.  Glancing at the time, you wondered where in the world he was. Was it evening like where you were, the sun still holding on and not yet ready to set, or was that a morning glow behind him. Either way, it looked beautiful.

The man himself was something to behold. Not stunningly beautiful, not young and fit like some of the guys who popped up on camera for you, but captivating. He seemed to demand attention, radiating power. He was someone. A few very short hairs touched his forehead, he had a short beard as well, one you had the urge to run your fingertips over. Dark piercing eyes that you felt burning into you as one side of his mouth turned up into a smirk at your reaction of seeing him.

“H-hi.” you stuttered, then curse yourself for it.

His smile only widened. He brought a glass up, and that’s when you noticed the bottle on his desk. The same as the bottle still sitting between your thighs. He took a sip, then placed the glass down on the dark wood. “Why Saltine?” he asked, and you felt your stomach flutter at the accent.

“Because I’m so fucking salty all the time?” You gave him a shy smile. “Why TheKing? What are you the king of?”

“Your dreams.” He answered without hesitation and a fuck ton of confidence. He was cocky, he knew the effect he had on people and how to use it. “If you wish it.”

“Tempting.” you try to tease, lifting your own glass to your lips. “Why me?” you ask before sipping.

“Glencraig. Aged 30 years or more, there is no finer drink, love. It’s rare to find a woman with such tastes.”

“It was bought for me.”

“But you enjoy it, yes?” You gave him a nod. You had to admit, it wasn’t bad. “A woman of taste.” he smiled again. “What other things do you enjoy, Saltine? Money? Things? Travel?”

“Are you offering?” he intrigued you. He really did. Something about him made you want more and you didn’t even know him. “I could use a vacation.”

“Anywhere you want, darling. Where would you like to go?”

“Paris.” You answered quickly, and it didn’t seem to faze him at all. “Scotland.” you added. “England. Ireland. India. Japan. I want to see it all.”

His smile widened again. “Scotland, eh? It has been a while since I’ve been home.”

“I was joking.” you chuckled.

“I wasn’t. In another life, I could’ve given you everything you wanted and more with just a snap of my fingers.” You sat there, stunned again. “Choose a place and I’ll send you there. If you want, I’ll take the time and meet you there. The choice is yours, darling. It’s been a long time since I’ve been this interested in anything.”

“All because of a bottle of Craig?” you asked.

“Everything good in life starts with a quality scots. Be it a whiskey, or a scotsman.” he winked. “So where first?”

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#crowley x reader #plussize!reader #crowley #crowley fic #reader insert #crowley au #au #au fic #spn #spn fic #spn au #supernatural #supernatural fic #supernatural au

[forever-rogue]

Hi! Could you please do #2 from your prompt list with Javi or Frankie? Thank u!🤍

#2 - Kiss

I had to go with Javier 💕🥰

Javier Masterlist

»»————-　♡　————-««

"Can you stare more quietly?" you looked up from your paperwork finding, just as you knew you would, Javier's dark eyes watching you intently. You'd felt him watching you for some time, silent, but his silence often spoke volumes. He cleared his throat before looking away and reaching for his cigarettes. He groaned lightly when he realized he'd gone through another pack; his chain smoking was particularly strong when he had something on his mind. Clearly there was a lot going on under that dark mop of hair, "Javi?"

"Nada," he said gruffly with a shrug of his shoulders, leaning back in his chair as he looking at the dirty old ceiling. You knew that look all too well. This time it was your turn to stare, and you tossed your pen onto your desk, and walked over to him motioning for him to get up, “what are you doing, dulzura?”

“Let’s go,” you quirked your head towards the door. It was late, and most of the office was dark, leaving only you and Javier there with a few other stragglers. He leaned forward and gave you a curious look but you could see a smile tugging on his features, “come on, Javier. Let’s get out of here. Want to go for a drink?”

“You read my mind,” he said gruffly as he stood up and grabbed his jacket, following close behind you, out of the dingy, dirty office and into the cool of the fresh air of the evening.

»»————-　♡　————-««

“What’s on your mind?” you asked as you nudged the neck of your bottle against his. He’d been quiet, more so than normal, and it was startling. This wasn’t your normal Javi, this was a different Javi... and you were worried. He opened and closed his mouth a few times but nothing came out, “Javier?”

“Fuck,” he hissed under his breath as he downed the remainder of the foamy yellow liquid before setting the bottle roughly onto the dirty bar table. He drummed his fingers for a moment before giving you a searing gaze, “I like you, Dulzura. You know that.”

“Javier,” your heart stopped for a moment as you listened to his words. You wished you could just easily accept his words and let them wash over you in peace. But you couldn’t...not with Javi. Not with his reputation and his tendencies...you know it wasn’t anything...but still.  You never judged him or cared about it. Javi was Javi....your friend and partner. But you wanted to guard your own heart, “stop please. You don’t have to do this...we don’t need to.”

“What if I want to,” he insisted softly as you looked away and shook your head. How desperately you wanted to slide into his side of the booth, wrap your arms around him and kiss him. “we’ve been skirting around the issue for weeks now and I think we need to address it.”

“What’s there to address?” you asked innocently although you did know that it really should be discussed at some point...but you wished it could be at a point in the future...a far. far point in the future.

“Really?” he scoffed slightly as he reached into the jacket pocket and fished out his newly acquired pack of cigarettes. He made quick work of sticking it in his mouth and lighting it up, blowing out long, billowing puffs of smoke, “come on, we’re both adults.”

“Exactly,” you agreed, thickly swallowing the lump in your throat. Gods you wished he would just drop the subject, but that was definitely not one of his traits, “look, Javier, let’s just call it what it is. It wasn’t a good day and we were both tired, and hurting - vulnerable - and we took comfort in each other. One thing led to another and we have sex, it doesn’t need to be more or less than that.”

“That’s a lie,” he took the cigarette out of his mouth and tapped it off in the ancient ashtray, “don’t fucking deny it. You’ve always been a terrible liar.”

“Javier,” you looked away, taking a swig from your own bottle as you avoided his gaze, “we’re friends - partners. I don’t want...I don’t want to ruin what we have. Why?”

“Because we can be more than that...so much more,” he insisted, his low dropping low as he silently willed you to look at him, “I have liked you for so long, I know my feelings aren’t...fake.”

“I’m not exactly your type, am I?” your small laugh was bitter; dry. You realized it had cut a little more than you had intended. You hadn’t meant to go for a low blow, but you did want to remind him that he had a reputation for a reason. Judging by how he froze and the almost hurt expression on his face, you knew your words had their intended affect, “look, Javi, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I didn’t...I didn’t mean it.”

“Then what did you mean?” his voice steeled as he watched you intently, his gaze trained on you, all consuming and disconcerting. You shrugged as you played with your hands in your lap, knowing that this was a dangerous and thin line you were treading, “come on Dulzura, I’ve never known you to be so quiet.”

“I’m scared, Javier,” you finally admitted after a few moments, as you stared at the table, “I’m scared to let you in and let down my guard. I’m afraid you’re going to break my heart. A-and I don’t deserve that...I don’t deserve to deal with a broken heart and I don’t want to ruin you. In my eyes or anything else.”

“You’re so sure that I would break your heart?” it was a small laugh, a bitter thing, that made your stomach drop as soon as the sound met your ears, “you don’t know me well at all then, baby.”

“Javier...” you leaned in closer to him and dropped your voice, “I don’t...I love you, Javier. But I don’t....this can’t happen.”

“What did you say?” he asked before you could ramble on and get too lost in your train of thought. You hadn’t even realized those three little words that slipped out of your mouth. But as he stared back at you, those brown eyes soft as ever as he searched your own, you realized what had happened, “what. Did. You. Say?”

You wanted to deny it, pretend it had never happened and take back your words, but you couldn’t. Not when it was the truth, not when they were already out in the open, not when they were true.

“I...umm,” your face instantly warmed up as you turned away, wishing the ground would open up and swallow you whole, “don’t make say it again. Please.”

“Say it again and I’ll never ask you to repeat it,” his face was almost lit up with joy as he realized he had you right where he wanted you. You groaned as you finished your beer, unable to contain your own laugh as you quickly flipped him off.

“You realize that your statement itself is a fallacy,” you teased as he sat back in the booth and shrugged, bringing a hand to his mouth as he brushed his fingers over his mustache. You sighed heavily, letting go of all the worries and nerves that were racking your body, “fuck...Javi...”

“I love you,” he blurted out before you could say anything else. Your mouth dropped and formed a small o as you realized what he had said. At first you wondered if it was some sort of colossal joke or he was just pulling your leg to try and get you to repeat those damned words. But when he remained silent, waiting for some sort of reaction and didn’t make some sort of start remark, you realized he wasn’t joking.

“I...huh?” your brow furrowed as he laughed lightly giving you an expectant look, “Javi?”

“I’ll say it again if you will.”

“I love you?” you asked as you looked at him with wide eyes. His grin spread across his features, brilliantly highlighting his dimple, “is that what you wanted to hear?”

“Only if you mean it,” he cocked an eyebrow before taking the cigarette out of his mouth and stubbing it out in the ashtray, “do you?”

“You’re an asshole Javier,” you insisted as he noncommittally nodded, “but yeah. I, umm...I do. I have for a long time.”

“Well that settles that then,” he stated simply, a satisfied little look on his face as you just sat there in confusion.

“Settles what?”

“I love you,” he said as you didn’t bother to hide the little smile on your face, “and you love me. Maybe that’s all we need. Maybe that’s all that matters.”

“Javier...”

“Do you ever think that we think too much?”

“I would argue that as DEA Agents its our job...”

“Maybe we’ve gotten too lost in that,” he stated simply, “maybe we need to think less and just...be.”

“Sage words coming from you, Javier Peña.”

“I’m not just a pretty face,” he smirked as you dramatically rolled your eyes, “but I’m being honest with you. Maybe we shouldn’t think too much about any of this...and just see where things go.”

“I’m scared...”

“I am too,” he admitted, almost laughing, “I haven’t felt this way about...anyone before and its...scary. God, I’m grown man and here I feel like a fuckin’ kid.”

“Javi?”

“Dulzura?”

“Will you...will you kiss me?” your cheeks felt like they were on fire as your question hung in the air for just a moment. There was a wicked little glint in his eye as he nodded with a light, nervous huff of air, “but not here.”

“Oh? Oh.”

“If we’re going to do this, I want to do this properly,” he insisted softly, “and I’m not kissing you in this dirty, run down bar. I want to do this properly. Let’s get out of here.”

“Okay now that I can get behind.”

“Let’s go for a walk,” he suggest softly, earning a smile from you, “ice cream sound good?”

“Yeah, Javi,” you agreed as you gently took his outstretched hand, “that sounds good.”

»»————-　♡　————-««

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#javier peña #javier peña x reader #javier pena #javier pena x reader #narcos #pedro pascal #pedro pascal x reader #one word drabbles #is this slightly ooc javi? #idc but i love him!!

[ocw-archive]

TIME Magazine, Feb. 29, 2004

He's With Him

By Joel Stein/Los Angeles;

It's hard to be funny alone. First, who's going to laugh at the jokes? But it's also just not natural; comedy is inherently competitive and interactive. And although the idea of comedy duos seems antiquated — from the black-and-whiteness of Laurel and Hardy to the '60s snobbery of Elaine May and Mike Nichols — Ben Stiller, 38, and Owen Wilson, 35, have resuscitated the concept, playing off each other in a series of six simultaneously smart and stupid films, including The Royal Tenenbaums , Zoolander and Meet the Parents . Stiller, whose parents Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara were a comedy team in the '60s and '70s, updates Lou Costello with an agitated everyman, while Wilson does the smartest dumb guy ever, thanks to a slacker knowingness.

For their new film, a campy remake of the campy '70s cop show Starsky & Hutch , Stiller and Wilson play their set roles broadly. They sat down with TIME for a chat about the film, the pressures of being a comedy duo and hitting on women. The suitable-for-a-family-magazine parts appear below:

STILLER: I wanted to ask if we might have a cover shot with this.

TIME: No.

WILSON: You did a Miami Vice cover: COOL COPS, HOT SHOW. I loved that show.

STILLER: I was on a Miami Vice episodelate in the series, when they were saying Crockett wouldn't come on the set until Tubbs was on the set.

TIME: Do you guys do that?

WILSON: I like to keep things loose when I perform. Ben has a really different approach.

STILLER: I read the script. Owen likes to use the call sheet as a starting point as to when to show up on the set.

TIME: This is good. You have tension.

Wilson: We're both up-and-down personalities. We've been friends for a long time, and we have a similar sense of humor, but [to Stiller] you're pretty sensitive to stuff. Sensitive to me. On the Zoolander DVD commentary, they start slamming the way I look, saying "What's the deal with his nose?" And I could hear Ben try to defend me.

STILLER: People are obsessed with your nose. I don't get questions about my nose, and I have a huge nose.

WILSON: This whole story was about your sensitivity to me, and now you're talking about my nose?

TIME: When did you figure out that you were a comedy duo?

WILSON: People ask if we have chemistry. You have to wait to see what the public says.

STILLER: I think that's a weird thing anyway, chemistry.

WILSON: Every movie I've been in, they say, "You have great chemistry," whoever I've been with. Sort of the way I've never worked on a movie where the dailies haven't been "incredible." And I always fall for it.

STILLER: Owen describes us as Hope and Crosby without the huge following.

WILSON: Martin and Lewis without the fans. That makes us more authentic, I think. Or more committed to being a duo.

STILLER: I think there are certain similarities to Bob Hope as far as his onscreen persona.

TIME: The nose.

STILLER: Well, the nose. But Owen does that lovably, rascally coward type of guy.

WILSON: Let me refer you to a movie called Behind Enemy Lines . There's a guy who had the chance to run and jump on the helicopter but chose to go back into a hail of bullets.

STILLER: That's when I realized we were a comedy duo, when I saw Behind Enemy Lines . I realized Owen should never be alone.

TIME: Why'd you let Ben drive the car in the movie? He grew up in Manhattan.

WILSON: I was disappointed to show up on-set and see that Ben was doing all the driving.

STILLER: Again, if you read the script, you can see what is actually going to happen in the movie.

WILSON: It was three weeks into the movie before I found out we weren't doing Dukes of Hazzard .

TIME: As kids, when we played Starsky and Hutch, we always fought over who had to be Hutch.

WILSON: I don't know if this is a controversy, but I liked Starsky as a kid.

STILLER: We can't dis David Soul, though. I think they're a duo. When those guys came out to do the movie, they went right back into it.

TIME: Maybe that's because they haven't done other characters since then.

STILLER: Starsky is a director.

TIME: And David Soul made that beautiful song you sing in the movie.

WILSON: Don't Give Up on Us, Baby.

TIME: It didn't sound at all like you were singing that. It sounded as if it had more computer-generated effects than Shrek.

STILLER: It's Owen's voice put through that auto-tunes thing. He broke two of them.

WILSON: They said, "You're going to take some guitar lessons and sing." And I'm not musical at all.

STILLER: That and your predisposition against preparation.

WILSON: I saw the hard work you put into driving the Gran Torino paid off great. You're one of the worst drivers I've ever seen.

STILLER: What did I do wrong? I hit all my marks. I did power slides.

WILSON: Ben always had a technical term for every mistake he made. If he hit the wall, it was a power slide.

STILLER: There's a fine line between aggressive driving and bad driving.

WILSON: Ben and I used to do some brainstorming. You've never heard two guys less interested in another guy's idea. We had a tape recorder. We walked around New York with it. I'd get excited about one of my ideas, and Ben would click it off, like he was worried about using up tape.

STILLER: Remember the girl?

WILSON: We were standing on the corner of the street and talking about our ideas, as a shortcut to avoid working, like we found a way out from having to actually sit down in a room for three months and write. And we see this incredible-looking girl walking her dog, and we both trail off. And after she goes by, Ben says, "I'm tired of letting my insecurities rule me." And I'm like, "I know. Why didn't we say hello to that girl?" Then we both start bucking each other up.

STILLER: We have successful careers. We should be more self-confident. Then she turns and comes around the corner again, and we do the same exact thing.

WILSON: Right after saying that was the last time we'd let that happen.

TIME: You know what? We all feel much better knowing that you guys do that.

#2004 #photoshoot #interview

[chaoticallysapphic]

Panda Lilies

Summary: You both are terrified of admitting your feelings for one another, but an old gift finally rips the truth out of you.

A/N: this was requested by a nonnie, it’s from the prompt list N1 and is number 9 in the surprise section. I hope it lives up to your expectations Nonnie! 

Word count: 2K

You were a coward. Sure you’d taken multiple benders at once, won spars, and fought alongside others to right what was wrong. But when it came to your feelings, you clammed up and became something pitiful. It’s at your grandfather’s funeral that you reunite with your first love, snowfalls in little flurries, and the sun is already setting despite it only being midday. Winter had come and taken with it a piece of you.

She sets a hand on your shoulder and gives it a comforting squeeze “He was a remarkable man,” Lin says. You let out a sigh and look over at her, your grandparents had practically raised you, what with your mom dying while giving birth to your younger brother and your father dying a few years later in a shipwreck. 

Suki had died two years ago, that’s the last time you’d seen Lin. The ceremony was a beautiful mix of water tribe and Kyoshi traditions, warriors that hailed from your grandmother’s homeland had all come to properly bury her in their traditional garb with the white makeup painted across their faces. You knew all the women who came, having trained alongside them growing up, and despite Sokka not having any ties to Kyoshi island, they had also come today to offer support. Your closest friend among the warriors eyes Lin’s hand and gives you a look of encouragement before turning her back and leaving. 

“Thank you for coming,” you say, completely turning your body to face Lins. You shouldn’t have been surprised about her showing up, but she’d been so busy in Republic City, her letters had lessened over the years and the yearly winter solstice call you two shared stopped a few years ago. You remember idly sitting by your telephone as you twirled the cord around, waiting for it to ring. Lin always called you, the second she got home from work on the winter solstice you’d talk the night away. 

Your brother used to tease you about it, going on about how you’d give up the delights of the delicious foods and games only held on this night for some girl oceans away, but he stopped when he came home to you staring at the phone with your knees brought up to your chest. Lin was a bit older than you, what with you only being thirty but you didn’t think that would stop her from contacting you… Until it did, because that had to be the reason she cut you out. You must not be mature enough for her. 

“Of course, I…” Lin drops her hand, seeming to have forgotten it was even there. She clears her throat and sighs “I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I had skipped this.” Sokka was like a father to Lin, that much you know. Lin didn’t know her real father and so he had stepped up to fill that male role in her and Suyin’s life. When he had taken in you and your brother, he had immediately introduced you to all the Beifong women, you’d been crying about feeling so alone, the weight of it crushing you, and they all helped piece you back together. You were only seventeen then and terrified of a world without your father. 

Now you’re thirty and honestly, you’re terrified of a world without your grandfather. You gulp and a shudder passes through your body as you try to keep it all down. Lin must notice this because she wraps her arms around you and presses you close. You immediately wrap your arms around her waist and bury your face into her neck as you cry. Technically you should become the new Chief, but you’d begged your younger brother to take the role, the idea of ruling a nation made your hair fall. You stay there in each other’s arms until your fingertips start to go numb and when you pull away with a groan, Lin leads you to your home. You ask her if you can go there instead of to the wake, you don’t want to listen to even more people offer their condolences. 

“Of course, whatever you want” she replies, your arm is looped through hers and she sets her hand on top of yours, she states its to keep you warm and maybe it is, but you like to think its because she likes you back. Once inside she lets go of you, and you reluctantly drop your arms, it’s unbearably silent and you immediately try to busy yourself. 

“Tea?” you say, grabbing the pot and filling it with water. Lin is used to seeing you do this to avoid any type of serious conversation, you busy yourself with something and usually, it ends up being tea. “I’d love a cup,” she says softly, it’s best to let you get it out of your system. 

She sits down onto your couch that is covered in different thick fur blankets, Lin picks a familiar one up, it’s from your first boyfriend, he’d gone on a hunt with your grandfather and skinned it into a blanket just for you, he thought it was truly romantic whilst you held it with a look of fake happiness. Once alone you’d looked at Lin and laughed, you joked about how barbaric that was and how you’d never want a significant other to give you a dead animal in the future. 

Besides, blankets were typical presents older relatives gave in the south pole. A chuckle escapes her as she fingers the blanket, you glance over and blush at the sight of Lin sitting so comfortably in your home. Even when she came to visit Suki she’d been quite distant, she still comforted you but left shortly after. It made you cry even harder than you already were, but your friends held you together and tried to convince you to get over her. But you knew you never would. 

Lin has her legs spread open with her elbows on her knees as she stares at that stupid blanket. “Can’t believe you kept this” she says, breaking the silence. The whistle of the teapot keeps you from replying at first, you pour the hot water into two cups along with the jasmine leaves. You picked them both up and walked over to her, she leaned up and took her cup, “thank you.” 

You sit down on the other side of the couch and hold the steaming cup between your hands. “I don’t throw out gifts people give me” you admit, softly blowing at your tea. Unbeknownst to the earth bender, you have a wooden box hidden away underneath your bed, and inside is every gift Lin has ever given you. Even the box itself was a gift from her. 

“Not a single one?” She asks, raising her brows. You’ve been given some weird stuff over the years especially seeing as you were originally next in line to be chief, everyone tried to butter you up with so many things you’d never use nor want. “Nope” you reply. 

You take a sip of your tea and let out a hiss at the burnt feeling it leaves on your tongue, but you like it, it distracts you from the pounding in your chest. “Even…” Lin pauses, she looks down at the teacup in her hands, its a set Iroh II sent you last year for your birthday, he said it reminded him of the south pole with the deep bluefish and the silver snowflakes smattered about. “Even my gifts?” 

You swallow down a large gulp of tea that scolds your throat on the way down and nod, “Uhm, yeah I still have them all.” 

“Can I see?” Well, you most certainly didn’t expect that spirits help you. “Sure, yeah I’ll go grab them,” You say, you hastily set your cup on your coffee table, some of the contents slosh out the side but you simply leave it be and practically race into your room. Your cheeks feel warm, you bring your hands up to your face and walk over to the mirror on top of your dresser. 

Almost your whole face is red due to embarrassment, but you could never say no to Lin and so you take a deep breath and pull the box out from under your bed. It’s a carved box, with details of fish and polar dogs on the side, on top of it is your full name in elegant handwriting. Lin had made this for you using her bending, she swore it only took a few hours but with the craftsmanship of it your so sure it had taken weeks to prepare. 

“You can do this, it’s just Lin,” you say to yourself, but that’s the problem, it’s Lin. You’d dated so many people in hopes of getting over her but at the end of the day, you’d always wish the person beside you in bed was a grouchy earth bender with a scar across her cheek. It’s honestly embarrassing, you’d never even dated, never even kissed. But alas, feelings are a horrible thing.

You finally work up the courage to leave the comfort of your darkroom and reenter the living room, Lin’s eyes widen at the box in your arms and you set it between the two of you on the couch, you don’t notice, to transfixed by the calluses on your hands to see Lin blushing at the sight. She made this for you for your first birthday as friends, she honestly forgot it even existed up until now. 

Lin hesitantly flicks up the latch and opens it up. The box lets out a loud creak that makes you cringe a bit. Inside is everything, it’s like a time capsule and Lin is truly speechless. The necklace she metal bent you, the ticket you got from the pro-bending match you both attended together, which was your first-ever as well. A dress is folded underneath along with every letter ever sent to you. What makes Lin’s whole body freeze is the sight of a pressed flower encased in glass to protect it. 

She had given you that flower when you visited republic city one summer, you had been crying over some stupid girl who decided you weren’t enough to make her happy, way before that day you had once ranted to Lin about how all you ever wanted from someone was a flower, you said it seemed so intimate and personal. She’d given it to you in hopes of cheering you up. It was worth going to the florist, your whole face lit up and your tears ceased as you marveled at it. 

“It’s just a simple panda lily” Lin had said, trying her hardest to keep her composure at that moment, knowing that she made you smile that big made her feel like she was some kind of hero, she had thought about how she never wanted you to direct that smile at anyone else but her, it was different from your usual one. 

You look up from your lap and your whole face flushes a deep red when you see what’s halted her movements. “I didn’t know you kept all this,” Lin says softly, she clears her throat and pulls away from the box, you hastily shut it, latching the lock back into place and setting it down onto the floor, out of sight. 

“I told you, I keep everything…” you look down at your hands, you may keep everything simply to be polite, but you kept everything from her because holding it made you feel like she was with you. 

“Even a stupid flower?” Lin quirks a brow and you gasp, your eyes shooting up to look into her green ones. 

“It’s not a stupid flower, it was one of the best gifts I’ve ever been given!” 

“It’s not even one of those rare ones, it’s just a panda lily” Lin replies. She doesn’t know why she’s saying this, maybe she wants you to say something, admit something that might give her even just a speck of hope. 

“It’s…” you sigh, your brows knit together in frustration, “it’s the only gift I’ve ever received that made me feel special and I’d like it if you wouldn’t talk badly of it.” 

“Why does it make you feel so special?” Again, she’s hoping you keep going, keep giving her something to go off of. You roll your eyes and stand up, picking up the box as well. 

“It’s nothing, I should… I should get some sleep” you say before disappearing into your room. You aren’t sure when she leaves but you do know when you wake up the next morning the teacups have been cleaned and she’s nowhere in sight. You’re such a coward, she already hardly keeps in contact with you, she probably won’t at all anymore. There goes your twice a year letters. 

You get ready for the day and head over to the Chief’s house where you know your brother and friends will be, maybe they can calm you down before dinner tonight where Lin will probably be. When you arrive your brother is nowhere to be seen, instead you find your Kyoshi friends who all give you tight, long hugs. When you reach your best friend she hugs you longer and murmurs “I’m sorry about your grandfather and Lin.” 

You rip yourself out of her grasp, your face pinched in confusion “what happened to Lin?” you ask, the warriors all look at each other, waiting for one of them to fess up. “She told your brother republic city needed her back sooner than she thought, said she’s gonna take the first boat back.” One of your friends says softly with a pitying look, no. 

You push past them and race down the stairs, the first trade ship docks around the afternoon and leaves the harbor only an hour after, It should still be in port if you make it in time. You race down the wide icy streets of your home as fast as you can, just two more blocks, you tell yourself. You zip around a corner and crash into something hard and wooden, you crash to the ground and let out a groan at the pain the erupts from your fall. 

“My cabbages!” a man yells out and you open your eyes to see dozens of cabbages rolling around. “You-” he turns to you with a face full of rage but you pull yourself up despite the aches in your bones and run past him. 

“I am so sorry!” you yell over your shoulder, there it is, the port. It’s in front of your eyes and there’s a trade ship still docked there, you don’t slow down as you weave past oncoming traffic and race down the steps before finally you’re on the icy dock, and ahead of you is her, she’s talking to one of the men loading the ship, probably ordering him around, you think fondly. You run over to her, her back is facing you so she doesn’t see you run-up, so you grip her arm and spin her around. 

She’s surprised and you see her shoot out a metal wire which thankfully misses you, when she sees it’s you her face pinches in annoyance “I could have hurt you! You can’t just snea-” you interrupt her in a way you’ve only ever dreamed of doing and pull her lips down to crash into your own. She lets a sound of surprise that sounds like a mixture between a squeak and a groan which if she doesn’t slap you across the face and shun you for eternity you might just tease her about it. 

At first, she remains completely still and the courage that finally pumped through your veins vanishes, you pull away from her, your hands dropping from her cheeks as you try to formulate an apology in your head. Before you can even think of one, Lin has pulled you back into a kiss and this time she readily returns it. Her hands thread through your hair and tilt your head back so she can properly slant her lips against yours and spirits, this feels better than your wildest dreams. 

Her lips are so soft and her hands are rough from a lifetime of work and fighting away bad guys but you love it, you love the feeling of them against your cheeks, of her long fingers tugging your hair. 

Finally, you pull away for air and you stare deep into Lin’s eyes, she keeps her hands in your hair as you blurt out, “I know this is a really bad time but if I don’t blurt it out now I don’t think I’ll ever be able to tell you. I think I’m in love with you!” Your voice raises a bit at the end. “It was special to me not because it was a flower, like I had ranted about years before you even gave it to me, but because you gave it to me!”

Lin looks deep into your eyes as you confess to her, all these years she’s been pulling more and more away from you in fear she might slip up about her feelings but you’ve reciprocated them all along if she had just told you sooner as she’d always dreamed of.

“I…” Lin blushes, she’s not good with words or talking about her feelings but she knows she needs to say this, even if you don’t make her, “I love you too, I think I realized that day when I gave you the panda lily.” 

Laughter bubbles up through your throat and it escapes you, she’s loved you all these years? Spirits you both are clueless. 

“If you’ll let me, I’ll like to give you a million more,” she says softly, you bite your lip to keep from grinning to wide as you slowly nod. “I’d love that.” 

#request #lin beifong #lin beifong x reader #lin beifong/reader #lok #legend of kora #sokka #suki #kyoshi #toph #suyin #angst #fluffy ending

[musings-from-mars]

part 4 por favor? Maybe Ruby starts noticing the "tension" between Cinder and Blake and starts setting them up?

Freelance Love Triangle AU - Part 4

They arrived at the outdoor gallery, and Ruby was already zipping around here and there, thinking out loud about angles and framing, all while gushing about the art on display, choosing her favorites. “This is so cool!” She said to Blake and Cinder.

“It’s a lovely installation,” Cinder agreed, the corner of her mouth turned up. “Don’t you think so, Blake?”

It was a pretty magnificent showcase. Crude marble pillars of varying heights and widths stood in a seemingly random arrangement, each with art pieces hung on the sides. The pieces of 3D art stood in spaces between pillars. While there were two equally tall pillars that served as the “entrance” to the exhibition, it was open air and seemingly boundless, as the pillars became fewer and farther between the further from the center you moved.

At the very center of the gallery was a massive metal sculpture of what looked like a suit of armor, but it was matte black, and the plates of armor were spaced out from one another so it was easy to see right through the gaps. It stood on a concrete cube labeled “SOAPBOX” with “various artists” engraved underneath. The artists were making a point, and Blake’s mind raced trying to decipher what it might be.

But then Ruby started talking to Cinder, and that broke Blake’s focus immediately.

“The suit is faceless, and the armor having such obvious gaps indicates that the suit is vulnerable,” Cinder explained to Ruby as she looked up at the sculpture, which Ruby craning her neck to do the same. “Yet it stands on a soapbox, elevated and arrogant, despite the flaws in its defenses. I think it makes a point about the illusions of authority and strength of those in power, and the general populace’s compliance despite the obvious flaws that everyone can see if they look close enough.”

“Woah, that’s so cool…” Ruby murmured with wonder.

Blake didn’t want to feel as annoyed as she did, because Cinder’s take on it was pretty much exactly how Blake viewed the piece, but dammit, she wanted to impress Ruby too! She tried to come up with something original to say, but she didn’t want to sound desperate. Cinder was too smooth and eloquent.

“I imagine it took a long time to fashion the metal and assemble it, probably took several weeks, even for a team of artists,” Cinder pondered.

“If you were to get into contact with the artists, you might know for sure,” Blake remarked, not intending to sound so combative, but it was said. “There’s more to this than what the viewer can interpret. Anyone can come around here and write an article about what they think it all means in a day, but we’re putting together something bigger. We need testimonies from the artists, opinions of other creatives…”

Cinder had turned from the sculpture and was glaring at her, arms crossed over her chest. “Well, isn’t that why you’re here? You’re the networking specialist, after all.”

“It’s your project too, you know,” Blake said, stepping closer to her, then sort of regretting doing that now that she was close enough to smell her perfume. “I’m not doing all the interviews while you sit back and write down your opinions. You’ve got to pull your weight.”

“I’ve pulled plenty of weight. I haven’t even shown you the drafts I have yet,” Cinder countered, and for some reason thought it appropriate to smile at Blake. She looked down her nose a bit at her, making Blake resent Cinder’s slight height advantage. “After all, isn’t it only fair that I handle the majority of the writing, you acquire the testimonies, and Ruby handles the accompanying media? Let’s all do what we’re good at here, huh?”

Blake hated it when she made a good point. She wanted to counter-argue but she knew that would be counterproductive. “So I’m going have to handle all of the interviews? That will take up so much of my work time, you really will be on the hook for pretty much all of the writing.”

“Like I said, it’s what we’re good at,” Cinder repeated and shrugged. She leaned her weight on one leg in that sexy way that kind of pissed Blake off. “You think so, Ruby?”

Ruby had been silent the whole time, pressing her lips together as she stood by during the intense exchange. When she heard her name spoken, she snapped out of it a bit and blinked. “Oh, yeah, I think that’s a good idea. Uhm, Robyn wanted us to allocate, right?”

“Right,” Cinder agreed and nodded. “That was easy, we’ve already allocated. Wonderful job, team.”

If Blake gritted her teeth any harder she’d have to book a dentist appointment. Thankfully, Cinder took that moment to turn away from her and walk over to one of the gallery’s pillars, swaying her hips like an annoying exotic bird.

I hate you I hate you I haaaaate you—

“Ruby, I think if you got one of these pillars in the foreground with the sculpture in the background, that could maybe be a candidate for cover,” Cinder said.

Ruby hurried over to look at what she meant, leaving Blake standing next to Soapbox, shoulders slumped forward and her face burning hot.

Was getting cover worth it? Was getting to work with Ruby worth how insufferable and annoying aloof Cinder was? Blake was seriously considering it, but then she watched as Ruby giggled at something Cinder said, and she knew then that she had to stick with this, for whatever other reasons, but mostly to make sure Ruby and Cinder didn’t become a thing.

Was that shitty of her? Maybe. But the thought of that happening made her blood boil.

~~~

“How about I take you both for a drink?”

The offer felt like it came out of nowhere. The three of them were waiting on a bench not far from the gallery. Night had fallen, and while they had gotten plenty of photos and Blake had gotten the chance to take some notes about the various artists, it wasn’t that late. Blake was about to hail a rideshare because she just wasn’t in the mood to walk all the way home, but (while she kind of hated that she did), Blake considered Cinder’s offer.

“That sounds like fun, sure!” Ruby said. She sat between Blake and Cinder, tapping away at her laptop as she backed up the photos of the day. Even as time went on, she hadn’t lost any energy, which Blake was impressed by. She certainly couldn’t say the same for herself she was fresh out of college.

“Lovely,” Cinder said with a smile.

Well, if Ruby was going with Cinder, Blake was definitely going, too. “Sure. I could use a drink. But I’m not staying out late, nor should any of us. We’ve got more work to do tomorrow.”

Cinder nodded knowingly. “Just a little excursion. We’ll save the proper night out for Friday.” Blake couldn’t tell if she was joking or not. “I know I nice little bar near here. It’s the quaint type, for hipsters like us.”

Blake chuckled a bit at that. “Great, I love craft beer,” she said sarcastically.

“I’ve never had anything other than hard seltzer,” Ruby admitted with a shy chuckle. “Do they have that?”

“I’m sure they do, hun,” Cinder assured her with a smile that made the hairs on the back of Blake’s neck stand up.

Ruby rubbed the back of her neck bashfully as she shut her laptop, having finished saving her images. “Not to be a stereotypical gay or anything.”

Blake snorted a laugh, then blushed at the fact she’d snorted. “What, do gays like hard seltzer?”

“I guess?” Ruby shrugged, still blushing.

“I’m more of a red wine lesbian myself, we all have our tastes,” Cinder told her, her voice dripping with a flirtatious lull, as if she were already a glass deep.

Blake chewed on the inside of her mouth. She figured “whatever sounds good at the time bisexual” wouldn’t sound as sexy as red wine lesbian. Then again, she’d never had a hard seltzer. “I’ll get whatever you get, Ruby. I’m curious.”

Ruby giggled, her cheeks rosy and dimpled when she grinned. “Oh no, now I really hope you like it or else I’ll seem like I have bad taste.”

Blake smiled and shook her head. “Don’t worry, hun, I think I’ll like it just fine.” She felt proud of herself for slipping a “hun” in there like Cinder had. The combination of Ruby blushing and Cinder shooting her a glare of recognition was a satisfying confidence boost.

Ruby tapped her feet on the concrete a few times, like she was letting out a sudden excess of energy, and she hopped off the bench. “We should go! The night’s not getting any younger, right?”

Cinder stood with her, her hands tucked in her jacket pockets. “We should. I’ll lead the way.”

Blake sighed as she followed, the group beginning to follow Cinder’s lead away from the park. She hoped she’d seen the end of Cinder’s funny business, but she knew that was a hope in futility. She had to be planning something, right?

The best Blake could think to do was be there to see what it was.

#freelance love triangle au #pawling petals #rwby #ruby rose #blake belladonna #cinder fall #drabble

[softjeon]

Falling for you | Pt. 1

• Pairing: Jimin x Namjoon • Genre: fluff, nsfw-content  | Rating: Mature | Christmas!AU / Curse!AU • Words: 4,1k | AO3 • Disclaimer: mentioning of blood, accidents, alcohol

written with @cassiavioletblue​

↳  Everyone told him that love was the highest aim, that it was what completes you and made you happy…but he was never lucky like that. It just took a piece of him and left scars on his heart every time. He was done with that. He had given up on love a long time ago so he should stick to it or else not only he would be affected.

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He glanced up at the luxury property as he crossed the street walking towards it. A massive twenty-something story modern building of tinted glass and stone. In front of it, there was a doorman wearing white gloves and dressed in a long red coat hailing for a taxi for an old man, before opening the door for him with a big smile. A shy thank you came from his lips, as he slipped into the building where he felt even more out of place than before. Maybe he should have decided to wear something else? He had never been to this part of the town and had never planned to do so. Usually, he had no business being here. But he really needed the money. 

He frowned, trying to ignore the fact that the chandelier hanging in the lobby probably cost more than he had ever spent in his entire life, walking up to the elevators to push the button, Jimin took a deep breath.

… 

"Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, jingle all the way!" His voice was echoing through the hallway, as Jungkook wiggled happily, dancing around, while holding a bunch of folders in his hands. "Oh, what fun it is to ride…" His singing stopped abruptly, when someone's chest hit his nose, making him stumble back. Jungkooks gaze wandered up the dark blue tie until he met his boss's eyes. "I know, I know. You're more the Halloween type of guy but the spooky season is over, Mr. Kim. Only four more weeks until Christmas!" A big grin appeared on his face as he pushed the folders into Namjoons hold. "No more warlocks, demons or witches. Just cinnamon, cookies, presents ...and love. It's my personal mission to get you into the mood, sir." 

“Then I’m afraid I have to tell you your personal mission is bound to fail spectacularly.” He wipes a bit of glitter from the folders that he has no idea where it came from as Jungkook isn’t carrying actual Christmas decoration but he wouldn’t be surprised if Jungkook love for Christmas would manifest in glitter that magically appears on people who hate Christmas whenever he is near. 

He wonders how someone can be so happy about a season where you have to hear the same songs you had to listen to all the years before, where everyone is stressed but points out that it's about ‘peace and family’ while everyone is getting crazy about how many presents they still have to buy and how much money it’s going to cost. He hates it with a passion, honestly, but keeps it to himself. Maybe it’s also because it’s supposed to be the ‘season of love’ and he closed that chapter a long, long time ago.

Jungkook frowned a little, but it was soon replaced with a smile again. “Are you always this self-fulfilling prophecy type? With this mood, how are you supposed to even enjoy the most wonderful time of the year? He sang the last part of it, posing as he stretched out his arms with jazz hands as if he’d just finished a massive dance piece waiting for his applause. But there was none. “Can’t believe I took the spot,” He sighed dramatically, “If I had known I’d be working for the grinch himself…” Jungkook grinned teasingly, knowing that Namjoon could take a joke - or else he really wouldn’t have been working for him as his personal assistant. It was his dream job actually. 

When he first arrived at the interview, Jungkook didn’t think he’d stand a chance against all the other people with far more expertise than he had. Kim Designs was a very well-known Company, that Jungkook always had admired and in a ‘go big or go home’ moment, he had filled out the application in the middle of the night, a little frustrated and drunk on wine after being dismissed for the nth time by various of companies because of his lack of experience. And to his own surprise, the former assistant had called him in for an interview. The elegance, the simplicity and yet, the intricate little details that were Kim Namjoon’s trademark were always a personal favorite of Jungkook and although he still wasn’t so sure why he had picked him, he was happily working for him now. 

“But you’re coming to the office party, right?” Jungkook asked with a raised eyebrow, before another sigh came from him. “The Christmas party? In your office? That is every year and you never attend?” The ring of the doorbell made Jungkook walk a little more backwards towards the elevator that was about to arrive on their level, without leaving his boss out of view. “I told everyone you were coming this year. Said you were really happy about it!”

Namjoon just pulled a face, “You’re lucky I need you or I would send you straight out to door so you can bring your Christmas-nonsense somewhere else!” The truth was Jungkook was the best that could have happened to this company and he was really fond of him so he would keep him no matter how crazy he would get during those last two months of the year. 

The party would probably be like every year: He paid for it, for delicious food and colorful drinks, for decorations and little surprises - all made by a party company of course so he didn’t have to even step foot in the room. No one expected him to be there anyways, except for Jungkook maybe, who somehow never ran out of hope and determination.

“You can say it, Joon! You love me!” Jungkook winked at him, before turning around swiftly just right at the moment the elevator stopped. He pushed the button and the two metal doors slid open. Knowing about Namjoon’s appointment, Jungkook was keeping a smile on his face, awaiting the substitute maid that Hayoung wanted to send in, while she was on vacation. 

Inside the elevator, he was realizing that he was facing the wrong way, Jimin turned around with blushed cheeks. “I’m here to see Kim Namjoon. I’m supposed to be taking over for Hayoung.” He spoke as calm as he could, trying to cover up the fact how nervous he was. He knew who Kim Namjoon was. Everyone did. 

“That would be me.” Namjoon tried to hide the fact that the person in front of him was nothing like he had expected. Hayoung was a sweet old woman, the motherly type and somehow when she had said she would get someone to cover for her during her holiday Namjoon had thought she would ask a friend, someone her age. However, the boy in front of him couldn’t be older than himself! And he was pretty enough to be a model with full lips and a soft smile that turned a little shy when Namjoon looked too long at him. He cleared his throat, getting himself together before walking ahead. “Let’s go to my office, there we can do the formalities and we can decide when exactly you will start. I suppose Hayoung already explained all your duties to you before she sent you here?”

Jimin gave him a nod, passing Jungkook with a smile, who turned back around to let his eyes wander up and down the maid’s back. His eyes widened as he raised his eyebrows at Namjoon, pursing his lips into an appreciative nod. Pointing at the young man, he gave his boss a thumbs up, his mouth shaping all kinds of ‘wow’ and ‘omg’ words as he walked into the elevator. To top it all off Jungkook began to form hearts with his hands before he started to hum ‘all I want for Christmas’ again.  

Namjoon furrowed his brows, shaking his head at Jungkook to tell him to stop. He received a very confused look from Jimin and realized that the younger’s relaxed and confident facade was slowly but surely starting to crumble. Was he scared of him? It didn’t surprise him when people from outside believed the media that painted him as an ice cold, scary, power hungry man because of his sudden success but he would have thought that Hayoung had told Jimin that he wasn’t like that. He opened the door for Jimin and the younger almost stumbled when he stepped on the carpet. 

What a great start for someone who was supposed to clean his precious apartment… 

Jimin sat down on one of the chairs in front of Namjoon’s desk, folding his hands together to keep them from nervously shaking. Was his expression already a ‘no’? Had he found someone else?

“Hayoung told me everything I need to know.” He began answering Namjoon’s question from before. “What your preferences are, where I can find everything, and she gave me a list of duties that need to be done daily or weekly. Oh, and of course the list of things I shouldn’t touch. She made sure I studied it well, before coming here, so I hope I can replace her for her vacation accordingly.” Jimin took out a thin folder, holding it out for Namjoon to take. “My personal information as requested.”

Namjoon put it aside right away, never taking his gaze from Jimin. He could read that later. What was way more important to him was if he could trust Jimin to stick to the rules, to not sniff around or steal or…worse. “Why did you take this job, Jimin? I’m sure you have better options than cleaning, don’t you?” He cut straight to the point. 

Jimin froze on the spot like a deer in headlights.

“I mainly work as a florist but as you might know, it’s a job you have to do with all of your heart and yet, it doesn’t pay much. That’s how I know Hayoung. She always comes to buy fresh flowers for years. I assume some of them were even for your apartment.” He explained without hesitation. “I’m not really the type to work in a bar or be a waiter. I don’t mind cleaning, though and Hayoung has been speaking so kindly about you.” He smiled at Namjoon, feeling a lot more at ease the more he was talking. “And it’s Christmas, Mr. Kim. I hope you don’t mind me saying this, but I could use a little extra money.”

“Money won’t be the problem, I pay well - if you do your job right. If you have a problem or need more cleaning supplies or anything comes up you can talk to me. And I mean talk to me first. My apartment is very personal and private and exclusively visited by me. As you might have guessed there are things that are of utmost importance to me. I am very peculiar about order and privacy and that you keep everything you see and hear to yourself. Do you think you can handle the weight of this responsibility?” He downright stared at Jimin by now who didn’t seem to know where to look.

“Absolutely,” Jimin’s smile reached his ears, looking up at him with a smile, before averting his gaze shyly again. In front of him sat a man with way more influence than he could ever dream of. He could destroy him and his reputation with a snap of his fingers. Jimin had absolutely no interest in angering him. Hayoung had explained it to him perfectly, the need for order and privacy, when it came down to the newest collection. Just one word to the wrong person could mean a great damage for Kim Designs.  

“Then I’m glad to have you here.” He pushed the paperwork over to Jimin. “Please fill those in before you start. The money will be transferred to you at the end of your job. Two weeks, is it? Unless you need it sooner, then I can talk to Jungkook and he will figure something out as I trust you wouldn’t get Hayoung or yourself into trouble by just taking the money and vanishing.”

“That’s fine,” Jimin took a pen and began to fill out the form quickly but thoroughly. “When do you want me to start?” He asked, lifting his head to look at Namjoon again. “Oh, Hayoung hadn’t told me about it, but I happened to notice there was no decoration. Do you want me to set up some Christmas lights? I bet they would look great in your entrance.” 

“No!” He blurted out, startling Jimin so much the pen slipped over the paper. He felt immediately sorry for him. “Ah, sorry for that, it’s just... I don’t really like the whole Christmas ordeal. It’s Jungkook who makes a fuss about it. Jungkook my personal assistant, you’ve seen him pass you at the elevator but I’m sure you’ll get to know him properly some other time, he basically handles my schedule on his own for me.” The alarm on his watch reminded him that he had to be in a zoom meeting in ten minutes, so he got up and Jimin mirrored him right away. “As for when you start, the sooner the better.” He got out his set of spare keys from the drawer and gave them over to Jimin. “These are my keys, don’t lose them or you’ll have to pay for the locksmith. You can let yourself in whenever you want, I often work late so you can clean whenever your other job allows it. Take your time in the beginning, I’d rather pay for an extra hour than coming home to a half-cleaned apartment.”

Still confused about his behavior but with a smile, Jimin took the keys from him. “I will do my best.” Was all he could say, before Namjoon had closed the office door right in his face, leaving Jimin startled once more. 

Taking his bag, Jimin placed it on the kitchen counter and looked around the apartment. He could hear faint noises of a conference call behind the office door and because he didn’t want to be noisy and listen, Jimin took out his notepad, where he had scribbled down everything important that Hayoung had told him. 

The apartment was far bigger than he had imagined, so Jimin was glad for the order of tasks he was given or else he’d have probably felt a little overwhelmed. After dusting off the shelves and cleaning up each and every counter, Jimin was sweeping the floor, making sure he didn’t miss a spot, and everything was back at its place just like before. Not an inch too far to the left or right. Just like Namjoon wanted it. 

Hayoung would have been proud of him, Jimin thought to himself, when he pushed the button of the elevator again, waiting with a content smile. 

…

“So, when was the moment you wanted to tell me Hayoung would send such a bombshell, huh? Is he single? Maybe I could slip my number in...or drop my card here somewhere...He probably is married, right?” Jungkook let out a small whine, as he looked up from his notepad, where he had scribbled down everything Namjoon had said in the last twenty minutes. “You know what you should have done, make him wear a maid’s costume.” He grinned, leaning back a little, “I’m just joking!” Raising his hands in defense, he added quietly, “You can’t deny he’d look good in it, or well, he probably looks good in anything. What was his name again?”

“I didn’t know who Hayoung would send and I also don’t care how he looks.” The last part was a blatant lie, but he knew if he confessed that he thought Jimin was very attractive Jungkook would never let him live it down. Also, he refused imagining Jimin in a maid costume (maybe at home in his bedroom when he was alone...) 

“I don’t know if Jimin is married…” Jimin didn’t wear a ring on his finger but maybe he was wearing it on a necklace under his clothes “...but you better be quick if you want to ask him out because he will only be here for a couple of weeks.”

He placed his pen aside and looked directly at Jungkook. “Is there anything else on my schedule today? If not I’ll leave you to your swooning over Jimin to make some private calls.”

Jungkook shook his head, as he got up and took his bag with him. On his way out, the elevator already opened up before he could even push the button and Jimin smiled right back at him. Jungkook greeted him with a light bow, slipping into the elevator while the other passed him.

Jimin was holding onto something wrapped in paper and only the green ends sticking out told Namjoon what it was: flowers. 

“I thought you might like them on your dinner table?” The younger man walked up to Namjoon, showing him the bouquet of flowers. “Do you like them? I arranged them just how I’d normally do it for Hayoung, just added a little more...now that I know what your lovely home looks like.” His eyes fell onto the phone in the other’s hand and the papers in front of him that indicated the other was still working and quickly added. “Maybe they make working a little easier if you can look at something pretty. I’ll put them in a vase for you and then you can decide.” 

“That’s nice.. thank you.” Namjoon was a little overwhelmed. Normally he asked Hayoung to get flowers for birthdays or celebrations; he rarely got them for himself for no reason. However, Jimin had a well-trained eye and the light, soft colors brightened the room very nicely. The call that he was about to make was forgotten as he put the phone aside, following Jimin into the kitchen where the younger was busy filling the vase. “Did the cleaning go well?” He asked after a moment of silence, because he didn't know how else to start a conversation with Jimin.

“Yeah,“ Jimin cocked his head aside, looking at Namjoon with a smile. “Did I miss anything last night? I’m sorry if I missed a spot, I tried working off the list Hayoung gave me. Maybe you want to look it over and see if everything is included?” He arranged the flowers a little more, so they looked perfect, before turning it around to Namjoon to make him see. “I didn’t vacuum your office though, as you were still working when I was finishing everything. Are you always working this late, Mr. Kim?”

“No, no, it was perfect.” Had he sounded like he was questioning Jimin or wanted to reprimand him? Namjoon pressed his lips together. He really didn’t have a talent for small talk. He could handle a room full of people easily - if it was a meeting. But as soon as he tried to talk casually with someone it backfired.

“You made the right decision, please don’t try to vacuum my office while I’m still in it.” He tried a small smile. “I’m in contact with people from various time zones that's why I’ll have to be in my office during strange hours.” He explained, keeping it to himself that yesterday he had simply lost track of time.

“Just making sure you’re not overworking yourself. Even a busy man like you need to rest. I don’t think you come up with all your ideas on sleep deprivation…” Jimin pushed the vase over to Namjoon carefully. “Do you mind placing it onto the table for me?” He turned around to open the cabinet with the cleaning supplies to get out all the things he needed today. There was no need to do all the rooms daily, so he was switching routines, taking out the piece of paper again to check Hayoung's notes. 

Namjoon didn’t move, holding the vase to his chest but keeping his eyes on Jimin, fixated by the way the younger licked his lips in thoughts while studying his list or how he pushed the hair away from his face. He wondered if it was as soft as it looked…

He was about to head to the stairs that lead to Namjoon’s bedroom, when Jimin noticed the vase still being in his hands. Jimin chuckled, looking up the taller man. “The dinner table, Mr. Kim. Or do you want it to be somewhere else? Should I take them up to your bedroom maybe?” Namjoon’s stare made him nervous, the long gaze he was holding made him avert his own. “Is…is there something on my face?” Jimin wiped over his cheeks nervously. He had quickly eaten some sandwich on his way over here, after he had closed his shop, so he wondered if there was sauce on his face. That would be more than embarrassing!

“Ah, dinner table of course!” He rather had Jimin thinking that he hadn’t been sure where to put the flowers then confess that he had been caught by how beautiful Jimin was. He was also pretty sure that Jimin was doing all those lovely little things that made him so charming without even realizing it. “Your face is fine.” He answered Jimin’s question a little stupidly, leaving it at that without giving another explanation, simply because he didn’t have any that wouldn’t include how he could stare at Jimin for hours without any reason.

Jimin couldn’t help but giggle at Namjoon’s cuteness. It was strange to see a man, who he only thought of a well-known designer, someone wealthy and smart so flustered out of a sudden. It was kind of cute.

Walking up the staircase, Jimin smiled at the other over his shoulder when out of a sudden he stumbled forward and over the rug that was laid out at the top. Falling hard on his knees, Jimin yelped in pain, just for it to turn into laughter, quickly giving Namjoon a sign that he was doing okay. 

Namjoon hurried over to him, nonetheless. “Are you okay? Did you slip?” Jimin fell so quickly that he hadn’t seen anything at all. Hopefully the other wasn’t hurt because - and he felt a little guilty thinking this - if he couldn't come clean then Namjoon would have no possibility to see him again. And he really wanted to see him…

 “I’m fine,” Jimin was about to get up, when Namjoon’s strong grip pulled him up easily. “Oh, please don’t worry.” He quickly waved the other off, I just stumbled over your rug, that’s all. I’m usually not very clumsy, but I think looking one way and going the other is never a good idea.” His eyes fell down to where Namjoon was still holding onto him and his heart skipped a beat, quickly trying to cover the blush appearing on his cheeks while he brushed off his knees. “It’s best I fall up the stairs, not down, right?”

Namjoon chuckled. “If you put it that way then yes, please only fall up the stairs.” They were standing a little too close together from how he had pulled Jimin up but neither of them stepped away. Up close like this he could see Jimin’s eyelashes that fanned out beautifully, hiding Jimin’s eyes with the way the younger was looking down right now. There was a rosy blush high on Jimin’s cheekbones and Namjoon almost brushed over it out of instinct, before he quickly stepped away, shocked by his own desires. What the hell was he doing here?

Jimin flinched from the sudden step back when moments before he had gotten lost in Namjoon’s eyes. “I ehm…I need to be in your bedroom.” He stuttered the words nervously, realizing too late how they sounded. “I mean…clean your bedroom. I wanted to change the sheets and…that’s where I need to be. Not in the sheets, I eh…” Jimin was about to slap himself, feeling his cheeks flush red as he grabbed the cleaning utensils again and taking another step away from Namjoon. 

With that Jimin vanished so quickly Namjoon couldn’t even utter another word. Which was probably better because else he might have told that he would very much like it to have Jimin in his bedroom and in his sheets. 

Namjoon shook his head hoping to get rid of those strange ideas. What was he doing? One night stands where fine but this? This was dangerous. He had given up on love a long time ago so he should stick to it or else not only he would be affected but also Jimin. 

The poor boy had no idea what he had gotten himself into, he was just sweet and charming and Namjoon should make sure to keep his distance from now on if he didn’t want to destroy that.

A/N: Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells... Let’s get into the christmas mood with a little love story shall we ;) Once more we couldn’t keep ourselves from writing our favorite pairings. Thats how it is now lmao. Anyways...why is Namjoon afraid of affecting someone with falling in love? What’s happening there huh???

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[cosimuhs]

haven’t seen you (since i was your little girl)

“Oi, Poppins, there’s a lady here to see ya,” she barely gets out, before the woman is turning and Dani’s face is falling, hands grappling for purchase on her pots.

“Mom?”

[or: Jamie has never been good with parents, but this? This feels important.]

read on ao3 or under the cut!

It’s a slow afternoon when the bell on the door jingles open, bringing with it a brisk wave of autumn air.

Honestly, as much as Jamie grumbles about it, autumn in Vermont has grown on her. She’s not one to celebrate the death of plants lightly (unless it’s a pesky invasive species) but there is something to be said about New England foliage. In quite the contradiction, it feels like life is abound in these months - the crunch of leaves and the brightness of Dani’s laugh that settles deep in Jamie’s chest.

As the heat of the summer slips and then disappears altogether, so does her personal space. In the newfound chill, Dani takes it upon herself to warm up, not with extra layers, but by pressing as close as possible — in the street, their joined hands stuffed into Jamie’s jacket pocket, shoulders knocking, or in the middle of the night, when Jamie will wake up, half off the bed, a pile of blonde hair heavy on her sternum.

Yeah, it definitely is one of her favorite seasons.

The only downside is the dip in sales, people sequestered at home against the chill, not looking to start gardening as they face the winter head on. Not to mention, as the months trip slowly past the autumnal equinox, the housewives who pop in, begging for mistletoe and holly in the middle of October.

The woman who has just entered, greying around the temples with lines of age deeply indented around her eyes, seems like just the type, and Jamie steels herself to send her packing for another month or two.

She looks strangely surprised to see Jamie, which is dumb because it’s her bloody shop, and even more taken aback at the lilt in her accent when she asks if the woman needs her help. That at least, she’s well acquainted with, because for some reason, no one in this town is aware that Brits exist.

So caught up in her stewing, she almost misses when the woman speaks. Almost.

“Maybe I got the wrong shop,” she mumbles, wringing her hands.

Jamie has to try hard to tamp down her annoyance because, really, what kind of product do you expect from a store called The Leafling?

Instead she tips on her customer service smile, the one that Dani says makes her look like she swallowed a lemon. “What were you looking for?”

“Who,” the woman corrects and pauses long enough that Jamie thinks this odd lady is not going to provide any other information before she continues.

“I’m looking for Danielle… er — Clayton. Danielle Clayton.”

There’s something familiar about the woman, yet Jamie doesn’t recognize her as one of their regulars. Even weirder, Jamie has never heard anyone refer to Dani as Danielle in her entire life.

“Ah, she’s out at the minute, but she should be back soon,” Jamie says, and she’s about to ask how and why and who, but the lady must see the confusion in her eyes and cuts her off.

I’m Karen,” the woman adds helpfully, as though that will clear literally anything up for her.  

“Okay, Karen,” she says, drawing out the vowels and trying desperately not to roll her eyes at the lack of context. “I’m Jamie…?”

Karen’s shoulders have dropped from around her ears, the worry lines fading into her forehead now that she knows she’s in the right place, though the anxious energy surrounding her doesn’t completely dissipate.

There’s a spark in Karen at Jamie’s introduction, like her name means something.

And.

The familiarity is scratching at the base of her neck, that feeling where you know you should know something, but it’s an inch past your reach and you’re forced to scrabble aimlessly, trying to connect the dots. She knows , can place this stranger in the swirl that connects the two of them, but she just can’t name it.

Thankfully, the door is pushing open again before she can guess, this time bringing in the object of their conversation, windswept and harried as she nudges hair from her eyes with a wrist, arms laden with multicolored arrangements.

Dani looks beautiful like this, cheeks flushed from the cold, even with the scowl on her face.

Her afternoon has been filled with endless options and the sharp bite of a bridezilla who needs everything to be practically perfect and Jamie knows Dani can’t wait to let the long day soak away, curl up with Jamie and a strong cuppa — said as much before she left the sheets this morning.

She’s going to close up shop early tonight, she decides the second she sees the strain in Dani’s shoulders, and help release the tension in other ways.

They just need to get rid of Karen first.

“Oi, Poppins, there’s a lady here to see ya,” she barely gets out, before the woman is turning and Dani’s face is falling, hands grappling for purchase on her pots.

“Mom?”

And oh .

Shite.

They have the same eyes, Jamie realizes belatedly, and the aging woman in front of her clicks into place with the grainy childhood photos Dani has tucked away in their apartment.

Karen — Mrs. Clayton — steps forward, enveloping Dani in a clumsy hug around the planters clutched to her chest. Dani doesn’t move to put them down, and Jamie would think it’s all rather laughably awkward if Dani weren’t looking at her over her mother’s shoulder, mouth set and pleading.

“How did you — Why are you… here?” Dani asks like she doesn’t really want to know the answer and Jamie’s chest aches because she knows Dani is waiting for the other shoe to drop. Thinks her mother has come to convince her to move back yet again, or to make her feel bad about leaving in the first place all these years later.

Could never just be a trip to see her daughter.  

Jamie knows Dani has told Mrs. Clayton about her, on their sporadic calls throughout the years. Not about them necessarily, but that they work together, live together. Dani had never said they were just roommates, but her mother assumed and she never bothered to correct her.

Even still, it’s a warmth with which she is greeted by Dani’s mother that she wasn’t expecting, one that must have emerged in the years following Dani’s maturation if the look on her wife’s face is any indication.  

“I looked you up in the Yellow Pages!” Mrs. Clayton looks remarkably proud of herself, her palm still warm on Jamie’s forearm. “I figured not many flower shops have the same name in Vermont.”

Dani cringes and Jamie almost snorts, knows she’s regretting telling her mother the name of their store right about now.

Mrs. Clayton pushes forward, not even noticing the strained energy of the room.

“I’ll be here for a few days, in the inn down the road,” she beams. “I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to come out here!”

There’s a reason she hasn’t been invited. After years of bombarding Dani with questions of when she’s coming home, not willing to listen to the truth of she’s not, not now or ever, it seemed the pestering had suspiciously disappeared.

Now they know why.

Jamie clocks the quiet resignation that settles in the slope of Dani’s shoulders, but she thinks she sees a spark of eager excitement, smothered and tamped down, behind the solemnity.

Well. No way to avoid this now.

She’s hardly a religious person, but she sends up about ten Hail Marys in preparation for the evening, splayed long and endless, before her:

“You staying for dinner, then?”

---

Supper is maybe the worst thing Jamie’s ever sat through, and she had had to deal with Peter Quint for a good portion of her life.

She ruins the chicken and usually, Dani would grin, wide and teasing, before kissing her breathless against the stovetop.

This time, she sends an exasperated sigh towards the heavens and orders Chinese.

It’s stilted and uncomfortable and she finds herself constantly trying to stay afloat in this weird staring competition that Dani and her mother have got going on. Mrs. Clayton had already tried to mention Eddie, and Dani’s curt, “Don’t,” and the way her eyes flashed over the tableware had thankfully been enough to snap her mother’s mouth shut.

Dani had told her once, the hum of her words spilling into the dark warmth of their bedroom, that her mother had started truly caring about her too late, too removed. By the time she came around to the fact that she had a daughter worthy of time investment, Dani was past caring, had already learned to seek shelter in other, different people — too burned.

And now they’re here. At an impasse - mother and daughter who know nothing about each other, when it really comes down to it - who have spent decades tiptoeing around the mutual hurt and pain of being pushed to the side. Swept under the rug in favor of brief and surface level phone calls since Dani left for London.

Yet, Dani is so open, so achingly vulnerable always, in her emotions, that Jamie can see the longing drawn in the soft lines of her every time she hangs up the phone, sees the way Dani wants, violently, to tip headfirst into the notion that her mother means it this time around, right at the dinner table.

Jamie has been rough around the edges her whole life and she has never, ever been good with parents and, luckily, hasn’t had much opportunity in her life to make her impressions worse.

But this — Dani’s parent — feels important.

So she fills the space between by talking about hydrangeas, her favorite brand of manure composite, and whether she dabbles in vegetable growing. With each breath, she watches Dani breathe out of the corner of her eye, loosening in tune with the flow of Jamie’s brusque accent.

By the end of her blabbering, Dani is giggling at a particularly bad joke she makes and Mrs. Clayton eyes her daughter curiously across the tablecloth.

“Well, I would love a tour of your apartment, ladies,” Mrs. Clayton claps, and it jars Dani so much the table shakes when her knee jumps.

Her knee is the last of Jamie’s worries as she meets Dani’s wide eyes, because she totally forgot that they only have one bed, and how in the fuck are they supposed to just be roommates now?

Dani’s entire body has returned to rigid, fingers white-clenched on her chopsticks and Jamie longs to reach over, smooth her fingers over the groove of knuckle, kiss the promise sitting mercifully unnoticed on her ring finger.

Christ, this is so not how Jamie imagined the evening going.

“Sure,” Jamie yelps. “Why don’t you take a look around the living room while we clear up?”

She ignores Mrs. Clayton’s protestations and politely pushes her towards the record player in the corner as Dani fills the sink with warm, soapy water and they settle into a well worn routine; hip to hip against the counter, one washing and one drying.

“I’ll just be Bert the Chimney Sweep tonight, Poppins,” she murmurs, stroking a subtle hand down the length of Dani’s back when she’s sure Mrs. Clayton is distracted with the photographs on the wall.

Dani rolls her eyes.

“Bert was Mary Poppins’ love interest,” Dani whispers, but the corner of her mouth tilts up and she sags into Jamie’s touch for a moment.

“Allegedly,” she lobbies back, revelling in the grin she gets over the suds.

“I am serious, though,” Jamie continues, knocking Dani’s elbow gently with her own. “Just say I’m in the process of moving out or something and I’m crashing on the couch for a few days, that’s all.”

Jamie can see the moment that Dani decides, what she decides. Can read it plain as day on the face of the woman she loves more than life, in the curve of her lips and the set of her jaw.

“Are you sure?” They’re words from another time, another life, but Jamie means it just as much this time — would rather prioritize comfort, security, over rash decisions.

“I am always sure about you,” is the reply and Dani looks at her so softly, so carefully, that Jamie thinks she could cry, heart ricocheting against her ribcage.

---

She does it in the most Dani Clayton way possible.

“Mom, this is our bedroom,” Dani says, syllables burning quiet and destructive, nostrils flaring. “Where we sleep together.”

Jamie doesn’t know what she’s expecting, but it’s certainly not what happens.

Mrs. Clayton nods thoughtfully, brushing past the door frame to inspect the plant prints above the bed. She doesn’t speak for a long moment, fingertips running over the worn paperback on Jamie’s side table.

Finally clears her throat, thick and sticky.

“It’s a lovely apartment, Danielle.”

Dani’s mother glances up, meets their surprised faces, turns towards Jamie. “It seems like a lovely life you’ve built together.”

“You… Oh?” Dani manages, her calm belied by the tremble in her voice.

Jamie is frozen watching it all, the beauty of it unfolding in front of her with bated breath.

“I may not be a great mother, but I’m hardly an idiot,” Mrs. Clayton chides with no real malice.

At this, Dani’s eyes well up and she stumbles forward to sink onto the mattress, mouth opening and closing without a sound.

Jamie shoves her hands into the pockets of her jeans, suddenly feeling like she is intruding.  Wants to give the pair the time they so desperately need from each other.

“Tea, Mrs. Clayton?” Her voice sounds loud in the still acceptance and she thinks she says something about Dani being terrible at it but her ears are buzzing too loudly for her to be sure.

“Please, call me Karen,” Mrs. Clayton says for the umpteenth time, and Dani lets out a watery laugh and nods, fingers slipping over Jamie’s briefly in quiet reassurance. She will be okay by herself, and if she isn’t, she trusts Jamie to help her pick up the pieces.

She dips her head and excuses herself quietly, winking sweetly and reveling in the faint blush that pinks Dani’s cheeks.

The apartment is quiet for a while and if Jamie makes more noise than usual putting the kettle on to give them their privacy, then no one has to know.

The drinks have long gone cold by the time they emerge, raw and yawning in the waning candlelight. Mrs. Clayton bundles herself into her coat when she sees the time, clutching her daughter’s hands in her own, and Dani hugs her, actually hugs her, eyes red rimmed and gentle.

“I would love to see you both tomorrow,” Mrs. Clayton looks at Jamie with Dani’s cheekbones, Dani’s kindness, and smiles.

It feels like approval.

---

After, when the door is long shut behind her and Dani has flicked on the television, feet curling under Jamie’s thigh, they will breathe again.

“All good?”

Dani looks at her with those mismatched eyes and presses a kiss to her cheek, the corner of her mouth. Keeps peppering long soft pecks until Jamie has to lean forward to capture her in a proper kiss, lips slotting together easily, eagerly.

Thank God for those Hail Marys because this is definitely her heaven.

Jamie gets lost in it, has barely been able to kiss this woman all day. Can feel the tightness in her chest unwind when Dani sighs into her, pulls her close and vows not to let go, maybe not ever with the way Dani’s hand is winding around her neck. She makes a little noise in the back of her throat and Jamie cracks open, splintering into oblivion to settle within Dani’s bones.

When they finally separate, foreheads tipped together, lips swollen and hair mussed, delight is written in every curve of Dani’s body.

She is radiant.

“All good.”

#the haunting of bly manor #thobm #dani x jamie #damie #the haunting of bly manor fanfiction #mine #dani clayton #jamie #my fic

[hateswifi]

For your Deadpool AU, does she ever see her father again?

Thank you anon. You’re asking the important questions (others were important I’ve just been waiting for someone ask). Ngl I’m a bit unsure how this one went short answer yes, long answer below...

Master List

Wade thought his daughter was dead cuz that’s what the kidnapper said.

Vanessa and Wade had a mourning period before moving away. They didn’t want to stay with the memories if they couldn’t have her.

Everything went on normal, well as normal as it could with Wade as a husband and a dead child.

That was until there was an explosion in Paris that was on the news cuz no one knows how it started.

Wade, having nothing better to do, decided he’d take a merc job in Paris so he could see what it was about.

When he got there was a card with his face, well not his face because wherever there was supposed to be red, there was black and vis versa, that’s read “Poolman, if you’re reading this come find me.”

“Who the FUCK do they think they are to call me out like this!?” He screamed at his job. “I don’t know but if you need a therapist that’s not me, so you can just let me go?” “Nah you’re getting killed twice for that.” “You’re from Paris, who is this shithead?” “That’s Black Death, they’ve been chilling around here for a while.” “That’s all I need you for.”

His job got shot in nuts, later being shot in the head, square between the eyes.

“Oh I’m going find you”

He did research on Black Death, he found a blog dedicated to her? The one thing that caught his eye was she lost a limb during a fight, somehow he didn’t bother figuring it out, but a couple of days later, came back as if nothing happened.

It wouldn’t be till three months later when he thought about her again. She was in Gotham.

“Nessa! I’m going to Gotham.” “No, you’re not! Remember what happens last time!” He was shot on sight, also got into a fight with Talia, but that’s for a different time.

“You can come with, I just need to do some research!” “You’re so funny! Wait you weren’t joking? Fine, I’m coming with.”

Every night they were there Wade would put on his suit, but stayed out of sight just like Vanessa wanted, he would watch this Black Death.

She didn’t just work with the bats, but also hung out with the Sirens.

At the start of the last week they were staying, Wade needed coffee if he was going to go out another night. The cashier took his order so he sat down at his table.

“Good morning, here’s your coffee.” A different voice greeted. He grumbles as a thank you.

He was drinking his coffee when the bell rung. “Marinette! Damian is in one of his moods.” That caused Wade to look at the voice.

“Where is he?” “He’s at the Uni, Wait you’re supposed to be there too! You have class.” “Shit!” “Someone’s going to end up dead.”

Wade stood as fast as he could and tried to follow them but they climbed into a car and they were gone.

He hailed a taxi and told them to go to Uni. He followed her for the rest of the day, he realized she’s dating Damian Wayne. He also figured out where she lived. (he’s totally not creepy just following his suspected daughter.)

He went back to the hotel room. “Vanessa I have something important to tell you, I just have to check my theory.” “You’re really trying to pull off this whole research thing, aren’t you?” “Well it’s good to research, but if I’m right we have something to do tomorrow night.”

He then put on his suit and jumped out the window. He ran to Marinette’s apartment and waited for Black Death to exit it.

Black Death came out the window, used what look like Robin’s grappling hook to pull herself on to the roof, and flipped him off.

“You’re grounded!” “Try me, bitch!” She said before running off.

He tackled her, just to be pulled off by an angry Robin.

“Nope, don’t get too close to Death or she’ll come after you.” “You have two boyfriends!” “No!” She screams. “You got Robin and the little Wayne brat!” Wade explains, being thrown across the roof.

“Oh! Dami, this is my father, Deadpool or Wade Wilson.” She explained taking off her mask. “Fuck! There’s two of them!” Batman says, landing beside them. “Brucie! Don’t use that type of language there are innocent ears here!” Red Hood said, dropping down beside the group.

“How are you alive!” Wade screams. “She’ll explain everything during dinner tomorrow at the Manor,” Robin grumbled before the group ran off.

Cliffhanger! Hope you enjoyed! You ask I’ll answer!

Tag List:

@colorfulmongerpsychicranch @elmokingkong @jardimazul @lil-1254s-blog @professionalfangirl1738 @maybemanymuffins @itsmorelikelythanyoudthink @maribat-is-lifeblood @iglowinggemma28 @dorkus-minimus​ @littleblue5mcdork

#maribat #batfam #marinette dupain cheng #damian x marinette #marinette x damian #ml salt fic #deadpool #DP Bio! Dad #ml x marvel #ml x dc #miraculous crack #wifiwrites

[optimistic-dinosaur-nacho]

Are You Up For The Challenge? PART 1

Chris Evans x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Language

Summary: You and your friend went for comic book store to get some new comics. But without knowing, one single Captain America doll brings them up for a quest.

Author’s Note: This is gonna be good. I just was scrolling through the media and remembered this darn video. So I’m gonna make it.

Love you!

~~~

You and your friend were about to head over to a comic store you saw on your way to the hotel. You two wanted to go after you settled in your hotel room before walking over there. You and your friend loved the Avengers comic books, even though you were adult women, you just loved to read comic books.

“Oh wow, it’s really small,” Jade says, looking around the place. You looked over to the comic books in the corner, seeing a few books before you heard Jade gasp.

“Look, Y/N,” She says, you turned around to see the Captain America doll. You laughed and walked over, “That’s pretty cool,” You reached for it and picked it up.

“Uh, excuse me?” The doll spoke, you yelped and dropped the doll, backing up with Jade. “What the hell?” Jade laughs. “Thanks for dropping me,” It says. You laughed, “Who-?” You picked it up, “I’m sorry, Mr. Captain America... doll.” You looked around to see if anyone was around you and Jade.

“Hey, eyes over here,” You look down to the doll, “I need your help. Are you up for the challenge?” It asks.

“He sounds kind of cute,” You muttered, spinning the doll around to look for some kind of camera. There was a short pause from the doll, “Are you two up for the challenge?”

You look at Jade who just shrugs at you.

“Yes.”

You waited for a response, “So this may look like a standard comic book store, but it’s actually a secret Hydra base. And I need your help to take it down. I need you to look around the room for a code,” You and Jade look around the room. “A four digit code. And time is of the essence.”

“Four digit code? Is he asking for our pin numbers?” Jade jokes, walking around the room. You look up and spot the sign, “Oh. Found it. Hey, cute guy we found it,” You shout into the doll faces.

You raise the doll up to the sign. “It says 1600.”

THE CODE IS 1600

“Now take that code and look for anything else on that sign that might be helpful,” The doll says. You move up to the sign and saw the triangle with a zap on it. “There’s a triangle with a zappy thing on it. That’s the power box, right? Where’s that at?” You asked.

Jade looks around, “Oh! There,” Jade runs over and puts in the code. “What was it, 1600?”

“Yeah. Hey, cute guy we found it. Are we done?” You asked, Jade opens the box and it swings open. Jade yelps.

The words written on the lid was PROVE YOUR WORTH.

“Um, Mr. America, we’re in.”

“Now. One of you is going to have to stick your hand in that hole. And I hope no one has a problem with snakes,” The doll says. You look at Jade who shakes her head immediately. “Nuh-uh, I ain’t dealing with live noodles, okay?”

“Really?” You asked, Jade nods. “Let your man do it,” Jade points at the doll. You look down, knowing you were holding it close. “I’ll do it, here, hold the doll.”

You hand Jade the doll and walked up to the box. You rolled up your sleeve and sighed, “Where’s the store clerk, if I get bitten I’ll sue the man.” You see Jade bite her nail as you reached into the hole, hearing the loud rattles and hisses.

You yelped when a harsh hiss booms in that box. You never pulled your arm out, “Pull out whatever you find in there.” You felt items and you pulled them out of the box, revealing masks and goggles. “What the heck?” You say.

“Suit up,” The doll said. You tossed Jade a mask, “Oh, we are now the Men in Black.”

“Yeah, it’s not like he’s gonna ask us to rob a bank now, are we?”

“You’re gonna have to walk out to the street to find an undercover Hydra operative, so you’re gonna have to very subtly, casually start asking around,”Jade throws on the goggles and poses.

“I feel like I look cute,” She says, you rolled your eyes as you were not happy about wearing these things. “These goggles are squeezing my brain, I can’t think straight. Come on.” You and Jade walk out of the store to the side walk.

“Start asking around,” The doll says. Jade walks up to a man, “Excuse me, sir. Are you a Hydra operative?”

The man shakes his head confusingly. “Jade, stop you look like you’re gonna kidnap them!”

“What? He said ask!” She says.

You threw your arms out, “I think the safest thing to do would be scream, ‘Hail Hydra’,” Your shoulders drop at the sound of the doll’s voice. 

“Jade, give me the dang doll,” You took the doll back, Jade looks around, “I’m gonna scream it.”

“No, Jade!”

“Hail Hydra!” You rubbed your forehead as Jade looks around. “That was good,” The doll says. You look over to see a man in shades walk up to you two.

He slips something into your hand, “Head back to the start.”

“What did he give you?” The doll asks, Jade watched him leave you two at the front of the store. “A flashlight and a Hydra pin,” You said.

“Good work, girls. Head back inside and find where in the store that Hydra emblem could fit.” You and Jade walk into the store again and you ripped off the goggles. “If we put on some tactical suits next, we’re gonna die,” You say.

Jade looks around the room, “Oh, there! Y/N, here!” Jade waves at you so you come over and saw the same hydra marking on the wall. “Okay,” You gave Jade the pin and she puts it right on the spot and a door opens causing you two to yelp and back up.

“God damn it, Cap, you have reflexes what’s going on? You gotta tell us these things!” You said.

“Okay, girls, you’re gonna go through that door and I think the Hydra base is downstairs.” Jade shoves the flashlight into your hands, “I’ll take your boyfriend, you take the flashlight,” She says.

You glare at her before turning on the flashlight, “If I die, I’m haunting your home.” Jade laughs as you two head down the stairs. “I got your boyfriend, don’t worry. Hey, Y/N’s boyfriend, what do we do now?” Jade asked.

You saw the fog at the bottom of the steps and you felt chills run up your spine. The doll never responded. “Hello? Hail hydra? AH!” Jade screams when the light cuts out and you’re in darkness.

“Y/N! HAIL HYDRA!”

“Shut up, Jade!” You said, moving forward. “Hello?” You called.

You heard gentle breathing in front of you before you felt a pair of hands grab your shoulders causing you to scream in terror and the lights go on. You see a figure stand in front of you, you quickly backed up and turned away.

The man soon laughs as Jade held the doll up for protection. “Oh my god!” Jade shouts, you turn around to see the man himself, Chris Evans.

Jade laughed, “Chris Evans!” She squeals. “You girls made it!” He says, you hold your hand to your chest. He laughs as he looks at you, “You were one of the first to get that code so quick,” He points at you.

You laughed, “I thought we were gonna die or something. But this better,” You say. Chris laughs, “Come here,” He gestures you for a hug and you got pulled into his chest.

His little belly laughs made you blush, you were so close to him. “You guys did good. I loved how much you two were arguing,” Chris held you by his side as Jade comes in for the next hug.

“Oh, god. That means you heard us say-” You cut yourself off and covered your face. Jade laughs, “She called you cute!” She laughs again, bending over her knees cackling.

Chris laughs, “Hey, it’s okay. I know I’m tough to handle,” He jokes. 

You lightly laughed, “Oh, man. That was pretty fun but kind of sketchy.”

“You guys, I gotta say, are really smart. I think you beat the high score. That had to be like 10 minutes. Maybe even five,” He says. You laughed, “I guess we were skilled. Oh, my god, this is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. We literally came here for Marvel stuff and I was just about to get that doll.”

Chris laughs, “I spooked you guys there. I can’t believe you dropped me.” You all laughed and began to chat more. Chris had the staff who were working on this small escape room showed you the cameras, you all laughing to the video.

You gotten pictures with Chris Evans, he added some different pictures of different poses. You two hugged, stuck your tongues out, whatever, you let him check out the results of them with some laughter. And after that, you gave Chris one last hug along with your friend and you headed back to your hotel.

“I can’t believe we just met Chris Evans. I think he really likes you,” Jade said, throwing herself onto her own bed. You closed the door, “You’re just speaking nonsense now because we met him and you knew I liked him from the beginning don’t get my hopes up.”

“You don’t believe me?” She asked, she pulls out her phone, “I might’ve took some secret photos of you chatting.” You groan, “Jade, why-?”

“Because you two were adorable, you clearly his type. You two are only 6 years apart of age, how could you not date him?”

You pulled out your phone, “I would not because I know he does not like me.” You opened your phone and you saw that you were in your contact app. “Oh, no...”

Jade looks up, “What?”

You scrolled through your contacts and met the name in the ‘C’ section. Chris had added his name and number into your phone. He must’ve gotten the chance to. “He added his phone number into my contacts.”

Jade gasps, “OH MY GOD! You’re gonna have babies-!”

“Jade, stop it, you sound drunk!”

“No, that’s just how I act! You got his number!” She hops off the bed, “You’re gonna send him pictures and all the fun stuff, you’ll love it and he’ll return them back-”

“Jade, stop!” You laughed as she squeal throughout the room. “Can you relax?” Jade takes a deep breath. “Okay. Okay. Sorry.” You sighed as she drops her shoulders.

“Text him.”

~~~~

I’m sorry I had to end it there!

Want a tag? Just ask!

TAGS OF LOVELY PEOPLE: @joannaliceevans-fanficblog​ @chrisevans-imagines​ @princess-evans-addict​ @ifuseekamyevans​ @lowkeycapsvision​ @mizcaptainphoenix​ @justice-avengers​ @my-favorite-fics-and-imagines​

#chris evans #cevans #chris evans x reader #steve rogers x reader #captain america #prank #chris evans imagines

[anna-justice]

When The Party’s Over - Upstead

Summary: It’s New Years Eve and Jay isn’t a big fan of  Hailey’s boyfriend. (Booth vs. Hailey college addition)

Warnings: Physical/Mentioned sexual abuse, swearing…

Requested: No

...

“I think red is your color.” Kim says as Hailey pulls down the hem of the piece of fabric she’s wearing. Hailey shifts uncomfortably in front of the mirror as she looks to Vanessa, who is hiding her laughter with a pillow. “You have to wear that dress, you look amazing.” 

Hailey turns to her side and scoffs at the sight of her barely covered behind. “Kim, I’m not sure that this counts as a dress.” Kim frowns, sighing as she turns to search for the perfect dress for Hailey. 

“I don’t know Hailes, Rony would sure love to see you in it.” Vanessa says.

Hailey throws the now discarded dress at her from across the room, slipping into the next one from Kim. “I’m not sure I care what Rony thinks.” She smooths out the shimmery, dark blue material. “I do know that I like this.” She states, changing the subject. 

“So you are still going to break up with him then?” Kim asks, plopping down on the bed next to Vanessa. 

Hailey pulls her hair over her shoulder and gives herself a once over in the mirror. “Yeah.” She turns back to her friends, “The feelings have faded, I can’t pretend there is something there anymore.” 

“Good for you then.” Vanessa says, jumping up. The girls get themselves together, putting on their shoes and fixing any blemishes. Hailey’s phone buzzes and she smiles down at it. 

Jay: We still on for breakfast tomorrow? 

Hailey quickly types back a reply, but her grin did not go unnoticed. “Jay?” Kim asks, raising an eyebrow. She nods, sticking her phone is her clutch. 

Vanessa sighs, “I can’t wait to see the look on his face when he sees you tonight.” Kim giggles as Hailey swats at Vanessa’s arm. 

Jay had been Hailey’s best friend for years. They met the first day of classes their freshman year, Hailey a Criminal Justice major and Jay still undeclared. They clicked right away. It’s actually how she met Kim, she began dating Jay’s friend Adam and they quickly became friends. Then she met Kevin, who pledged the same frat as Jay and Adam. Vanessa was the last to be added, she met Hailey in Constitutional Law. Hailey loved her friends like family, because they were. That was something they all had in common, they each had a reason for needing the others. And even though Hailey had the most amazing friend group anyone could ask for, none of them were Jay. 

It had always been a running joke between girls that Jay had feelings for Hailey. She of course always dismissed them, especially when she began dating Rony around eight months ago. But to Kim and Vanessa, he only added more fuel to the fire. He and Jay couldn’t stand each other, which was part of the reason that Hailey was ending things, even though she would never admit that to anybody. Hailey hadn’t told Jay that she was planning on breaking up with Rony, and she really wasn’t sure why. She told herself it was because she didn’t want to be influenced by his obvious opinion, but she was even without talking to him about it. 

“Alright, let’s go.” Vanessa says, pulling the door to her and Hailey’s shared apartment open. Hailey grabbed her clutch off her bed and followed them out the door, into the endless party that was Chicago. 

…

Jay grinned at his phone. 

Hailey <3 : For sure, I’ll be ready at 9.

He shoved his phone back in his pocket. He thought back to freshman year when their little tradition started. Hailey had gotten rejected at the annual Alpha Delt New Year’s party by the upperclassmen she was crushing on. She got so drunk that they didn’t even make it to midnight, and she rang in the new year vomiting in the bathroom of Jay’s quad dorm. Instead of letting her wallow the next morning, Jay insisted that they get up and get breakfast. After that they decided to get breakfast after every big party they attended together, especially New Years, as to not let the other one give into their hangover. 

“Man,” Adam says, pulling Jay out of his trance, “This is getting pathetic.” 

Jay collapsed on the couch behind him, pretending to be clueless about Adam’s dig. “What?” 

Adam tosses Jay a beer, “Just tell her already.” He takes a swig of his own, “This whole pining thing is not a good look for you.” 

Jay fakes offense, “Wow Adame, that hurts.” He touches his hand to his chest, Adam chuckles. “And I am not pining. I’m just...silently awaiting the day that she realizes she is in love with me.” Adam gives him a pointed look. “Okay, I’m pining, but what do you care?” 

“I hate seeing my best friend in pain.” Adam says, struggling to keep hold of his somber expression. Before Jay can respond, Adam’s phone dings. “That’s Kevin, we’re late. Come on.” Jay stands, grabbing his jacket and wallets and follows Adam out the door. 

...

Hailey walked in the already crowded frat house and immediately began her search for Rony. Part of her felt bad for ruining his night, but she knew that if she didn’t do it tonight, she never would. She even purposefully didn’t come with him, as to not have to pretend she was happy. The middle of a party was the perfect place, quick and painless, he would probably be drunk and she could easily fade into the crowd. 

After several minutes of wandering around the sea of wasted college students, she found her way back to her friends. Kim and Vanessa held questioning gazes as she approached, but Hailey shook her head. 

Jay noticed the exchange, the way he notices everything Hailey does. “Where’s Rony?” He shouts over the music.

Hailey just shrugs, “No clue.” Jay nods, knowing that his voice would betray him, it wouldn’t be the first time he said something stupid like “good” or “thank God.” 

Thankfully, everyone decides to move on, the clock continues the approach midnight and Hailey is very aware of Rony’s non-existence. She wasn’t upset, more angry. There was no feeling of sadness, she had no feelings for him, but it was odd that she had not seen him the entire night when he insisted that she come in the first place. She would have come anyway, but as of right now, she was present by his invitation. 

Hailey excused herself from the group, saying she was yet again, going to look for Rony. Jay watched her closely, seeing that she looked more aggravated than hurt as she walked away. Hailey made her way to the staircase, ascending slowly as she looked through the crowd below her. She ran over to her “It’s not you, it’s me,” speech in her head as she searched, wanting to get the damn thing over with already. 

Once at the top, she wandered from room to room, finding most of them locked. Smart boys. She thought. When she reached a door that was not locked, she swung it open to reveal a shirtless Rony on top of a girl with very little clothing on. “What the hell Rony?” She yelled, and his head whipped around. 

His eyes looked panicked, “Hailey, baby, it’s not what it looks like.”

Hailey scoffs as the girl slides out from under him, grabbing her abandoned clothes and running for the door. “Wow, what a line. Got anything better?” She spit. 

Rony rushed past her and shut the door, turning to look at her. “I’m so sorry, I lo-”

“We’re done Rony.” 

Hailey attempted to walk around him but he grabbed her arm, “No, please, let’s talk.”

His grip tightened. “Rony that hurts,” she said, ripping her hand away, but he still wouldn’t let her past him. “I was going to end it anyway, there is nothing to ‘talk’ about.” 

“When I say we’re going to talk, we are going to talk.” Hailey was shocked, Rony’s temper had always been bad, but this was a side of him she had never seen. He backed her across the room until her exposed back hit the cold dresser. “You know, you look amazing tonight.” He said, placing his hand on her hip.

Hailey sucked in a breath, “Let me go Rony.” He dug his fingers into her side and Hailey gasped in pain. 

He pressed his weight into her, she was pinned against the dresser, he smiled and brought his face down to hers. “No.” Hailey thrashed, trying to get out of his grip, she tried to scream, but he delivered a harsh blow to her cheek. “Shut up.” She continued to wiggle around, her shouts muffled under his large hand. He grabbed her tight by her arms and slammed her harm against the wall, her head ricocheting off it. 

She tried to call out again, but her head was spinning. She could smell the alcohol on his breath as he attached his lips to her neck. Hailey tried to push him off her, but he punched her square in the jaw, sending her flying into the dresser beside her before hitting the ground. She kicked and squirmed as he climbed on top of her, Rony responded by hitting her over and over again. He pressed his leg between her knees to separate them, it was then she began to cry, she felt so helpless, she had no strength left. “Rony, please, don’t…” He pushed her hand over her mouth once more, muffling her final scream. 

Jay kept his eyes trained on the staircase as soon as she disappeared, which he realized was a while ago. Part of him wanted to go find her, but he knew she was probably with Rony somewhere, doing something he didn’t want to see. Jay shuddered at the thought, the possibility itself making him want to punch a wall. 

Finally his curiosity got the best of him, he made his way to the stairs, not bothering to give an explanation to any of his friends. He had a bad feeling, and when it came to Hailey, that was all he needed. 

When he made it to the stairs, he discovered the same thing as Hailey did: locked door after locked door. When he reached the end of the hallway, he heard the sound of muffled screams. Jay threw the door open to find a bloody Hailey with her dress hitched up over her hips underneath Rony. He saw red, he ripped Rony off of her and slammed him into the wall. 

Hailey wasn’t exactly sure what was going on, she could barely see through her teary eyes, but she recognized Jay, who was using Rony as a punching bag. Hailey backed herself up against the opposite wall, trying to slow her breathing, but she couldn’t, she needed him. “Jay…” She whimpered. 

That was all it took to pull Jay out of his rage, he was immediately at her side. He wrapped his arms around her and Hailey held on for dear life. He ran his fingers through her hair as she cried. He had absolutely no idea what to do, he knew he wanted to kill Rony, but that was it. 

Hailey gripped him harder, “He-He was going to,” She said, hiccuping. 

“Shhh, I know.” He said, his heart clenching in his chest. He held her tighter, if that was even possible. “I know.” 

The two sat there for what felt like hours, Jay trying to calm Hailey, which was proving to be ineffective. Some time later, the rest of their friends began to look for them. Adam was the first to find them. He spotted the blood on the carpet, and then on the wall. “What the-Jay?” He yelled, “Holy shit, what happened?” He knelt down next to him. 

Not long after, Kim came running in, “Hailey!” She looked over Hailey, who was now drifting in and out of consciousness. “We need to get her to the hospital now.” Adam nodded and called 911, Jay also told him to call the police, because he was making sure that Rony was going down, for some reason or another. 

The ambulance ride was agonizingly slow, Jay found himself waiting in the ER for hours for an update. A doctor finally came to tell him that she was fine, they suspected bleeding in her brain, but all her scans came back clean. Jay followed him to her room, finding her awake when he got there. “Hailes,” He said, rushing to her side. 

“Hi,” She said sheepishly as he took her hand. 

Jay searched her face, the bruising leaving evidence of the terrible event. “How are you?” 

“Thankful.” She said quickly, “Thank you...For pulling him off me, if you hadn’t-”

Jay saw her eyes fill with tears, “I know, I know.” 

Hailey nodded, “So I guess we are going to have to raincheck on breakfast.” 

Jay chuckled and Hailey cracked a slight smile. Hailey was able to check out the next morning, Jay drove her home, because he sat with her the whole night. Hailey thought back to her conversation with Vanessa earlier that night…

“I can’t wait to see the look on his face when he sees you tonight.” Vanessa said.

Hailey stared at Jay, finally seeing what everyone else saw. He had saved her, stayed with her, comforted her. He was like a knight in shining armor. Her gaze met her favorite set of green eyes and in that moment, Hailey Upton knew she was falling for Jay Halstead.

...

A/N: Part 2?

#hailey upton #jay halstead x hailey upton #jay halstead #jay halstead x hailey upton imagine #upstead imagines #upstead #Chicago PD #One Chicago #chicago pd imagines

[spiderparkerpeterman]

kissing your best friend

anonymous asked: Hi this is a rly cringe-y request huhu but do u know the “i try kissing my best friend” tiktok trend? [...] Hehe sorry it’s v specific but lots of changes are up to u ofc ily

this fic made me feel real old, i'll tell you that. but it was fun to write! specific requests are good sometimes. i had no idea what this trend was before the request, so it was a cute learning experience. thanks so much for the request! i've shortened it as to not give away the plot.

content: fluff, tiny bit of angst, peter parker the awkward gen z wildcard

warnings: i only use tiktok to let out meme steam and it shows, really bad twerking

word count: 1579 (whoops i went off hard)

--

peter was a nervous wreck. he had invited you over to his apartment- not an unusual occurrence- and led you into his bedroom- this happened all the time- and set up his cracked and duct-taped laptop so you could watch silly youtube videos together while curled up on his bed- what was new?- with a bowl of popcorn rested in-between his crossed legs. but this normal, everyday situation wasn't why he was borderline sweating, his heart pounding, fingers shaking.

it was that damn tiktok he'd seen earlier this morning. he had woken up and scrolled through tiktok to see what was new and popular. he came across one, where a girl was holding her phone with a guy behind her, the two smiling, the caption saying "this is my best friend". there were a few clips of them being all cute and whatnot until it said "i decided to kiss him!" and then she had tapped him on the shoulder, held his face and pulled him in, sharing a kind of awkward kiss, until they broke apart and her best friend leant in again and the video looped. something within peter's chest had done double flips, only intensifying when he thought of maybe... maybe doing that with you.

and now here you were, on his bed, laughing at the meme compilation you two were watching- well, that you were watching, while peter daydreamed and sweated some more- eating popcorn that you were getting from a bowl in-between his legs, being all cute and sweet and pretty. but he wanted to do this. he really wanted to do this. he'd liked you for ages, after you had run into each other at the same circuit in gym class and he had taught you the proper form for situps. the way you had smiled at him, completed your circuit and jogged off and then later caught up with him at lunch to say thanks and "maybe we should hang out sometime?" had made him obsessed. it had got to the point where even ned was throwing hints that you liked him and he liked you and wouldn't you two make such a cute couple? and then you were paired up together for a spanish project and the way the language rolled off your tongue made him fall even deeper in love and-

peter had to do this. for ned's sanity. for his own sanity. because if he didn't do this soon he would give up and maybe kiss you in the middle of class or something.

he cleared his throat, prompting you to look at him.

"can i make a tiktok?" he asked, his voice somewhat strained. "there's this thing going around where people show off their best friends, it's pretty nice."

"oh, sure," you replied sitting up. "what do you want me to do?"

peter pursed his lips, unlocking his phone and opening tiktok. he went into his bookmarked sounds, selected that song to make a tiktok with, and then held it up like he was going to take a selfie. "maybe just like smile and wave? and then i wanna get a few videos of us just doing our everyday things, y'know?"

you nodded, taking a second to fix your hair. peter pressed record and grinned, somewhat nervously. you also smiled softly, raising a hand and waving. he stopped the recording, and the two of you collapsed into giggles.

"sorry, that was really awkward," he groaned.

"you're really awkward," you countered, running a hand through your hair. "what's next?"

"i dunno... maybe just you mucking around? i, uh, i really don't know!" peter laughed.

you rolled your eyes with a grin, getting off peter's bed and standing up. peter was typing a caption for the portion of the video, so you waited for him. he held the phone camera up at you.

"what are you gonna do?" he asked. you looked off at the side, considering, but while you were doing that peter pressed record.

"you should dance with me," you said. peter put his phone down, and you gasped. "did you- you just filmed that!"

"yeah, i did," peter laughed. he felt his nervousness fading away as he joked around with you, so he felt like he could really do this. "you wanna dance?"

"yeah," you replied, leaning forward to grab his hands gently and pull him up. peter felt his skin burnup where you were touching him, but he smiled. "set your phone up, and we'll dance."

"what kind of dance?" peter asked as he bent back down to get his phone, crossing his room to set it up on a shelf at shoulder-height so that the video would capture your antics. he selected how long to record hands-free, but didn't press record just yet. he turned to you.

"you should twerk," you suggested jokingly, but peter had an idea. he pressed record, smirking, ran over to you, and started shaking his butt at you. the acoustic music played, nowhere near suitable enough for his "twerking". you laughed aloud and started mockingly hitting his butt. you messed around for a few more seconds, even after peter's phone stopped recording.

he stood back up and nudged you, laughing. his face was bright red, and you laughed even harder at that. he went back to get his phone and selected another few seconds to record hands-free.

"what should we do now?" he asked.

"not sure," you replied, crossing the room to rest your head on his shoulder. you reached out and pressed record for him. "i could just stare at you creepily like this."

the music started playing so you widened your eyes and stared intently at him, but peter immediately burst out laughing and knocked your head off his shoulder. you grinned at the camera just as it finished recording.

"okay," peter said, selecting the last bit to film. this was it. "now i want you to stand here, and like make weird faces at the camera or something, i don't know."

"i can do that," you replied, standing next to him.

he reached out and pressed the record, looking at you through the phone's capture as you put two peace signs up. he smiled then turned, and gently cradled your face, turning it towards him. he leant in, hearing you gasp and feeling you also lean in and-

a loud ding came from his phone- a police alert. he sprung away from you, swearing. you looked away from him, your cheeks bright pink. he left tiktok, now playing the loop of the tiktok, and went into his police app, seeing a shootout in brooklyn.

"i have to go," he stammered, rushing around his room to take off his clothes- you looked away pointedly- put his spider-man suit on, find his spare web fluid just in case and where the hell was his mask? he stopped just as he was about to climb out the window.

"stay here," he said, "please. i'll be back soon. just stay. i'll explain everything, i promise."

he lept from the window, leaving you shellshocked, webbing himself up and away. he almost smacked into multiple buildings on his way over to the shootout, too distracted to really pay attention.

did you really lean in?

he arrived at the scene, not saying his usual quips as he pulled guns away and webbed people to walls and avoided the hail of bullets coming his way and broke one guy's nose.

no, he totally imagined it.

when he had dealt with everyone he didn't stop to chat with the police, just webbed himself back to where you were, hopefully waiting, please be waiting...

he leaned in really quickly, and he was nervous, but maybe...?

he clambered back into his window and pulled off his mask. you were curled up on his desk chair, scrolling through your phone. he stared at you.

"i looked it up," you said, not looking at him, your voice quiet, "best friend tiktoks. the only thing that came up was kissing your best friend."

it took peter a few seconds to open his throat back up. "yeah."

you looked at him, something sad in your eyes.

"did you-"

"i only-"

peter bit his lip, gesturing for you to speak first. "go."

you took a deep breath. "did you- did you just do it for views? it's a kinda popular trend and so i was just wondering... i mean, it'd kinda suck if you did, and i mean- um..." you trailed off, looking away again.

"i- no, i just... uh, did you see that most people who do it have a crush on their best friends?" he asked, hoping you'd get the message.

you looked at him again, confused. but then that confusion morphed into comprehension, and then that comprehension morphed into hope and-

"you mean it?" you whispered.

peter threw his mask away somewhere, striding up to you and pulled your hands up so you'd stand. he held your face again, so gently, as you stared back at him with your big eyes, and leaned in. your lips touched, and something exploded in peter's chest. he shifted an arm to your waist, holding you tight against him, as your arms snaked around his neck, holding him closer.

a few moments later, you broke apart, your face bright pink again. peter knew his face was just as bright.

"i think we need to adjust the tiktok," he murmured, before leaning in to kiss you again.

#no i'm not linking my tiktok i only use it once every six months #this made me want to redownload it tho i blame you anon #anonymous #peter parker #peter parker x reader #peter parker x yn #peter parker x you #peter parker imagine #oneshot #my work #spiderparkerpeterman #marvel fanfiction #mcu fanfiction #marvel #mcu #spiderman #spiderman fluff #spiderman x reader #spiderman fanfiction #marvel au #marvel imagine #ask box: open #requests: open #answered #request

[floral-and-fine]

Endless Orange Part 2

Fred Weasley x fem reader

PART 1

Summary: Feeling lonely, fate leads Fred to a coffee shop. 

A/n: Thanks @luna-xial​ for all the help. 

“Morning George!” Fred greeted as he burst through the front door slightly out of breath and rushed up the stairs in the shop.

“You’re late,” George tutted, “might have to dock your pay, Weasley.”

Fred laughed, “Promise it won’t happen again, Mr. Weasley, sir.”

The shop was already bustling, groups of first years wandering around with their arms full of merchandise, girls giggling over the pygmy puffs and love potions, employees scurrying about.

“So what happened?” George questioned, it wasn’t like Fred to be late, ever.

“Nothing,” Fred shrugged, trying his best to act nonchalant. “Just had to stop at Gringotts on my way here.”

“What for?”

“Had breakfast with a goblin,” Fred joked. “What do you mean what for?”

“Well typically when you need money, you usually just take it from the register,” George reasoned.

Fred went quiet, his brother had a valid point after all. Gritting his teeth, Fred mentally kicked himself, for not thinking this through. Of course, George, being equally as clever, could tell something was up with him and most likely wasn’t going to drop the subject any time soon.

“Well?” George pressed. “It can’t be that bad?

Fred sighed, “I’ve got a date tonight.”

For the past few nights Fred continued visiting y/n at the coffee shop, she had been generous so far and treated him to free coffee and pastries with each visit.

But tonight, they had a real date and there was no way in hell he was showing up broke for that. So this morning he made a stop at Gringotts to acquire some muggle money.

George smiled, “that’s great! I was beginning to worry about you, all work and no play was making you like Percy, Fred.”

“Please, George, if I ever start acting like Percy, have the decency to put me out of misery!”

Both brothers chuckled, as they finally started working.

“Oi George! I’ve got a few ideas I want to run past you,” Fred beamed, turning to his brother. “What do you think of an ordinary-looking cushion, but when someone sits on it they break wind, and I mean literal wind, like a massive gust that could send a small child flying through the air!”

“That’s brilliant!” George exclaimed, “We could even offer a variety of scents! How did you come up with it?”

Fred chuckled, “you know how these things work, inspiration just strikes out of nowhere.”

As the day progressed, Fred began feeling antsy, he tried keeping himself busy working on a new display for his and George’s latest creation, but his mind kept wandering back to y/n.

In just a few short hours, he’d be sitting across from her, having a nice dinner. Maybe they could take a walk and find a nice place to sit. For a brief moment, he pictured cupping her cheek and kissing her, his stomach fluttered at the prospect.

“Fred,” George called out, suddenly snapping Fred out of his daydream. “You alright? You’ve been staring at the shelf for like 5 solid minutes.”

“I’m fine,” Fred grunted, getting back to work.

George smiled smugly. “Oh I see,” he hummed. “Fantasizing about a certain someone are we?”

Fred’s ears started turning red because of George’s teasing. “I-I wasn’t.”

George clapped his hand on his brother’s shoulder, “Why don’t you leave a little early, hm? Get your date some flowers or something.”

Fred opened his mouth to object but was immediately interrupted.

“Don’t argue,” George wagged his finger. “You let me leave early all the time.”

…

Fred appeared in front of y/n’s door a few minutes early. In his hand was the largest bouquet of flowers or at least a close second. He had insisted at the shop that his date needed a few of every flower they had in stock.

He had to admit when they handed him a bouquet the size of a small bush with flowers of practically every color and type, that maybe it was a bad idea... but still it could pay off.

Biting his lip, Fred knocked on her door and took a step back holding the flowers out in front of him.

The bewildered expression on y/n’s face as she answered the door convinced Fred that he had made the right choice.

“Fred?” She gasped, barely able to see his face past all the flowers.

“These are for you,” he said, handing her the bouquet.

“They’re… beautiful, there’s so many of them,” y/n commented as she looked at the massive bundle. Did she even have a vase big enough? “I’m gonna put these in some water.”

Fred tucked his hands in his pockets, he thought about following her inside but decided against it.

When she returned, Fred was finally able to get a good look at her. She was stunning, although she’s always looked lovely to him, even when she was working.

“You look incredible by the way,” Fred said, leaning forward to kiss her cheek.

“Thank you,” she muttered, giving him a quick peck in return. “You look incredible too.”

He was wearing another one of his suits that she found so interesting. This one was brown with olive green accents.

“Shall we?” Fred asked, offering his arm to y/n.

She nodded entwining her arm around his, “so where are we headed?”

“Well…” Fred muttered, tapping his index finger against his chin. “I was thinking we’d take a chance and find an interesting place nearby.”

“Alright,” y/n  laughed lightly. “Sounds like a plan.”

As they started idly walking along, Y/n looked up at Fred who had the biggest smile on his face. She couldn’t quite figure out why, but every time she was with him, his good mood just seemed infectious.

They must have looked like quite the pair, walking arm in arm as if they had all the time in the world. All the cars and other people around just seemed like a blur.

Occasionally, Fred’s head would turn to admire a window display that piqued his interest. It was so fascinating watching muggles go about their day, hailing cabs, drinking coffee as they briskly walked past. Each time he noticed anyone staring at him and y/n, he’d smile and wave.

He felt as though he was walking on air. He couldn’t even remember the last time he had been so excited on a date.

Fred abruptly stopped.

“What is it?” Y/n asked, tilting her head.

“Something smells fantastic,” he answered, inhaling deeply.

Whipping her around, y/n spotted a quaint little pub. “My guess it’s coming from there,” she said pointing it out to Fred.

Squeezing her hand tightly, Fred practically sprinted towards it, dragging her behind him.

Inside it was relatively crowded, a large group of people were gathered by the bar focused on the football game playing on the tele.

“Seat yourselves,” the bartender shouted at them.

Finding an empty table in the back, Fred pulled a chair out for y/n. “This place looks fun,” he commented, his eyes full of wonder as he took the seat beside her.

The waitress soon came by with menus and took their drink order.

Suddenly, loud cheers erupted from the bar, catching Fred’s attention.

“Are you a football fan?” Y/n asked.

“No,” he answered, still fixated on the screen as he tried to figure out the objective of the game and who this particular crowd was cheering for. “But I like being loud and competitive, so I could be.”

He watched as the players kicked the ball to each other, their footwork was quite impressive as they manipulated the ball across the field. A player from the opposing team with incredible speed snatched the ball and made a goal.

With impeccable timing, Fred shouted at the TV, “Rubbish!” His energy imitating those who were also booing, however, he seemed much more entertained and pleased by it all, rather than upset.

Y/n found herself wanting to join in on all the rowdiness as well. Gently, laying her hand over Fred’s, she focused on the game as well.

Moments later, their waitress served their food, and they chatted a bit as they ate, still paying attention to what was happening with the game.

Things started getting exciting as the scores between the teams were timed, Fred and y/n both jumped to their feet cheering as their team scored.

Without thinking, Fred wrapped an arm around y/n’s shoulders and pressed a kiss to her lips. She blinked in surprise, the kiss was short-lived and ending before she had a chance to respond.

“Y/n did you see that!” He shouted sitting back down. “That play was bloody brilliant.” He wondered if something similar could be accomplished in a quidditch game.

When the waitress dropped off the tab, Fred took out his wallet, figuring a couple of the largest notes he was given this morning ought to cover it. “Keep the change.”

The waitress hurriedly accepted, with a gracious thank you.

Y/n slightly gaped over the fact that he just gave their waitress an unexpectedly large tip, but quickly shut her mouth and decided not to question him over it.

He did seem like the generous type or at least the spontaneous type. In fact, he was absolutely unlike anyone she had ever met, carefree, charming, witty, confident, a little ridiculous but she loved that too. She gulped, realizing how much she already adored him.

Leaving the pub, y/n raised her arms above her head and sighed. It had gotten rather stuffy inside so she welcomed the cool refreshing night air.

“We should go to a game sometime,” Fred suggested thoughtfully. “We’ll do it right, with jerseys and face paint, the works.”

“That would be great!” Y/n nodded eagerly. “We’ll even buy some of those giant foam fingers, and get into a scuffle with another couple.”

He laughed, “I can't wait.”

For a moment, he pictured taking y/n to a quidditch game, getting the chance to watch her face light up as the teams flew in on broomsticks. But first, he’d have to tell her the truth, and he was far from ready for that.

Quietly, they started making their way back to y/n’s flat, but at the pace of a snail. Neither of them were quite ready for this date to end. As they got closer to her home, Y/n wracked her brain for an excuse to make the date last just a little longer.

“Dessert!” She shouted suddenly. “We should get ice cream! I know a place close by.”

Fred perked up at the suggestion, “lead the way.”

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