#i swear i'll have the next chapter out by like next sunday. i think | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

aphroditesbaby1616 · 25 days

Text

The Bear & His Honey - Chapter 16

♡ Chapter Inspo: Call It What You Want (Reputation - TS) ; I want to wear his initial on a chain 'round my neck. Not because he owns me, but 'cause he really knows me. Which is more than they can say, I recall late November holdin' my breath, slowly I said "You don't need to save me, but would you run away with me?"

♡ Summary: Carmy x Winnie are finally calling things what they are after 3 months of beating around the bush, YAY!!!

♡ W/C: 10,775

♡ Posted Date: 04/05/2024

♡ A/N: Here we have chapter 16 - I hope you all like it! I have been stepping back and seeing where I want things to go, & I think I have generally a good idea now, so I was able to finish up the next 2 chapters finally haha. As per usual thank you for reading, remember requests for one shots are open - or even if you want to see WxC doing something specific let me know! I am here to please hahah one shots I've already written are on my masterlist linked below! Also - no one has asked, but I usually see people will read one chapter, then go back and read all of them 1-15, so if you want to be on a tag list so you can keep up w/ the story just tell me in the comments and i'll make one!!

♡ Warnings for BTC: Swearing, Speaking of smoking, Weed, Smut!, Nervous Carmy, Mushy fluff!!!

➵ 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐲 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭 ♡

➵ 𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐮𝐩 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 ♡

𝒲𝒾𝓃𝓃𝒾𝑒𝓈 𝒫.𝒪.𝒱. 🍯

It was a few weeks later, and the beginning of spring had well arrived. The trees were becoming green again, the flowers were blooming, and Carmy and I were still hanging out nearly every afternoon, and he was staying over nearly every night.

That Friday evening, around 11pm, after Carmy had gotten off his shift, he came over to mine and had a shower after we ate dinner that he had made us before he came over. Tonight had been a favorite - a true garbage plate per my request.

It was currently 1 am and we were snuggled up in bed, mostly I was watching a rerun of Criminal Minds, and Carmy was distracted by his phone, texting with someone back and forth.

“Did y’wanna come w’me to Richie’s Sunday? We do Palm at his usually. He’s been textin’ me about comin’ over a little earlier to help with the lamb.” He said and I looked up at him from my spot snuggled up on his chest, my cheek adorned with lines from his sweatshirt since it had been mushed there while I watched the show, my hands playing with the tie of his sweats absentmindedly so I didn’t pick my nails.

“Oh- yeah. Sure. I didn’t know you like- did that. Y’re…religious? I mean- I know the chain and everything but..” I gently play with the charm between my fingers. He smiled a bit, forefinger gently rubbing over the dark red marks in my cheek from laying.

“I mean- nah. Not really it’s more like..tradition I guess? Palm Sunday and Easter were huge when I was growin’ up. I guess it’s just an Italian thing, but it’s like- second Christmas. The whole family gets together and has a meal” he said and I nod.

“Well of course I’ll be your date baby. Thank you for asking, I assume we’re doing church? Like Christmas Eve if it’s a big thing right?” I ask and he nodded a bit.

“You don’t…you don’t have to go. I mean- I don’t go unless it’s Christmas Eve or Palm or Easter Sunday. So..but I get it if y’arent comfortable” he bit his lip nervously.

“No baby- no…I think it’s sweet. I grew up Catholic too, well- Irish Catholic. But- I was baptized, so I’m rightfully Catholic. So we can get married someday and not go to hell” I giggled and he snorts a laugh.

“Oh thank god y’re baptized baby, how could we ever marry if you haven’t devoted yourself to our lord and savior” he teased, earning a laugh from me.

“Does this mean I get to crack out my veil again? What do I wear? Well I know I can’t have my tits out - but like, color scheme for your church, still red?” I asked and he rubbed my back gently.

“Yes still red baby.” He kissed my neck, gently nipping at the sensitive skin. “I didn’t know you wore a veil. You were dedicated, huh? Such a good little Catholic” he teased, pinching my bum playfully.

I laugh a bit “mmhmm- my mom was serious about it. I used to hate it but since I stopped believing in the Catholic god- er- worshiping him, anyway, I just think it’s hot. D’you think we could sneak away to the bathroom for a quickie during the service? I’ve always fantasized about fucking in a church it sounds really hot.” I said causing him to laugh into my skin.

“Babe. Holy fuckin blasphemy you trying to get on the big man’s ultimate shit list?” He bites my shoulder playfully.

“Ohhhh we’re way past it Carm. Plus- since he’s so big and mighty and he’s the one that created my twisted fucked up mind- it’s really him who thinks it’s hot. So if he’s mad it’s not on me” I giggled, poking his cheek. “D’you have a bite kink I’m not aware of sir?” I teased.

“Mmm no you just taste good, and y’so cute it just makes me wanna fuckin bite you I can’t explain it” he bites down on my neck gently, running his tongue over my skin.

“Awwww you have cute aggression?” I gently play with his curls and he chuckled into my skin, his breath causing goosebumps to appear.

“That’s a thing?” He questioned and I nod a bit, a wide smile adorning my features.

“It’s super sweet. Like…when I was at college studying, I took my first round of psych credits, and I guess that uh…when we see something that’s cute, or makes us really happy we wanna like squeeze it or bite it because we’re so overwhelmed with how cute it is that we’re like…searching for an outlet almost? But yeah, so thank you I guess. I do have the urge to just” I take his forearm, gently biting down and giggling into his skin and he chuckled.

“Y’can bite me. Maybe not in public so we don’t look like a couple’a freaks, but this is ok” he said and I released his flesh

“Oh yeah I’m just gonna bite you in front of all the staff at work next time I see you. I’ll do it when you’re really angry” I teased, lacing our fingers together and resting our hands over my tummy.

“Ugh no work talk right now baby today was fuckin’-” he rubs over his face with his other hand “remind me to never trust Richie with shipment ever again.” He grumbled, grabbing his phone to resume whatever he was doing. I mentally rolled my eyes.

Really, Richie? The one time. One time, that Carmy decides to let someone else start the day- and sleep until 5 am instead of 4- he fucks it up somehow.

“ ‘m sorry baby. You want a massage? It’s getting late. Maybe it’ll help you sleep, how’s your back?” I asked gently, rubbing his forearm.

He sighed a bit, putting his phone on the wireless charging pad on the nightstand that had begun living there since he had been sleeping over. “Hurts..Think I pulled a muscle ‘er somethin’ in my shoulder too, fuckin bags of rice were on the lowest shelf and I didn’t use my knees at all apparently” he said and I sat up, grabbing my massage oil from the nightstand.

“Alright roll over mister, no more work talk tonight, got it? Were Resting our brains now” I kiss his cheekbone and he nods tiredly, tugging off his sweatshirt and laying on his stomach.

“No more work talk” he agreed with an exhausted sigh. I warmed some of the oil in my hands, kissing the little freckles along his back as I did so and he hums softly.

“Okay so where should I start on the map baby?” I asked him. I had taught him the system my mom and I used to use when she’d give my brother and I massages as kids, where you tell a state on the map so she could better gauge where it was hurting.

“Fuckin’… Vegas to the Carolina’s. It hurts so bad babe” he said and I gently felt over his lower back, this was usually where we started, unless Wyoming and Nebraska which were more his mid back was hurting him worse, that only happened when he went too hard at the gym, though.

“It’s probably Texas. Usually Texas, babe” I said, gently working my thumbs with light pressure from the middle of his lower back outwards and he lets out a groan.

“Fuck Texas” he muttered into the pillow, causing me to giggle a bit.

“I’ve never been, I hear they have great Mexican food.” I said, adding a bit of pressure as I got to his hips where he held a lot of his stress.

“Mmm I’ve been- shit” he hissed as I work at a knot at the back of his hip. “Fuck- keep going babe- ahhh mmhmm- yes” he grumbles. I added more pressure and he sighed gratefully. “Thank you” he said softly, resting his cheek on his forearm, eyes fluttering shut in bliss.

“You’ve been? Lucky! Did you try the Mexican food?” I asked, dragging the pressure across his lower back and he moans out quietly.

“Mmhmm…Dallas…ACF conference- went in November. They do have great Mexican food. And the drinks are enormous, crazy strong for how cheap they were.” He said.

“Ooo that sounds like my kinda place. We should go on a trip sometime, if I could ever afford it that is. But a road trip would be fun” I gently rub up to his mid back.

“You don’t have t’pay anything baby, I didn’t know you wanna travel- where d’you wanna go? I just have to get the time off. That's the problem, not the money. But what’s y’dream place y’wanna go?” He asked.

“Anywhere. Well, anywhere with you. I’ve never been on a plane before, I took the train here. Cause my Grammy wouldn’t let me take a plane, since our Grandpa died in one- she says they’re bad luck. But I’ve always wondered what it was like. It seems fun. Are airports fun like they make it look in the movies?” I smile a bit, gently massaging over his ribs.

“No. Totally not. They don’t really put airports in tv and shit after 9/11 if you’ve noticed because now they’re a fuckin’ nightmare- but I mean…not as shit as being on a train for what- 30 hours babe? Y’not doin’ that t’go do that nanny thing right? I don’t want you sittin for 30 hours with y’hip.” He said and I shrug a bit, continuing to rub over his mid back with the pressure I knew he liked.

“I set a timer on my phone, and get up and walk around every 20 minutes, So it doesn’t hurt so bad. Also- it’s like…50 bucks cheaper so. 50 bucks toward my next therapy session” I say simply.

“50 bucks?! Baby. No. I’m buyin’ y’ticket and you can get there in 2 hours, so I can have you for an extra whole day. No arguing. It’s done” he said and I laugh a bit.

“Oh so you boss me around now?” I said and he smirks, looking at me over his shoulder.

“Hasn’t that been established? That I only make you do something when y’too stubborn to allow me to help?” He asked and I kiss his lips gently.

“Control freak” I teased, starting on his shoulders and his eyes flutter shut in bliss.

“Consider it payment f’r all the massages I’ll need when you get back. I dunno how I’m gonna manage babe it helps so much. Fuck ah- yes. There- there honey” he groaned as I drag my thumb with a good amount of pressure in the dip of his shoulder blade.

“Y’know you can see a real masseuse, Bear. You don’t have to torture yourself until I’m home again” I said, adding a bit more pressure and he whimpered, burying his face in the pillow.

“Mmm- don’t wanna” he said into the fabric as I work his other shoulder the same way. “Holy shiiiit. Baby. Fuck- fuuuuck me.” He moaned and I laughed a bit, rubbing my thumbs up to the base of his neck and back down. “Mmm shit- fuckin’ hurts soooo good”

I laughed at his bear like grumbles “Jesus baby. Thank god I don’t have roommates they’d think we’re sex addicts with the way you moan when I give you your massages” I straddled his hips as I work from the balls of his shoulders in towards his neck.

“Mm not my fault you have tiny magical hands” he teased and I laughed.

“Do not make fun of my little hands. I can’t help it, and it makes my life tedious” I joked, gently using the knuckles of my thumbs to release the tension in the sides of his neck.

“How is me calling your doll hands magical, making fun of them?” He said and I smiled, pinching his arm gently.

“May I remind you Bear who’s mercy you’re at right now?” I bite down on his neck playfully and he chuckles.

“My favorite girls” he counters and I smiled big, a blush creeping to my cheeks.

“You are a big flirt” I sat up, continuing to work at the base of his neck.

“I am being accused left and right t’night, of crimes f’which you have zero admissible evidence” he teased and I laughed, covering my mouth to not wake up the neighbors.

“Okay- we’re watching way too much criminal minds and SVU lately, admissible evidence, babe?” I shook my head, working on rubbing his biceps in sections since they were quite large.

“Not my fault I wake up f’work and it’s still on. That shit can’t be givin’ you good dreams babe. Y’need to turn it off” he said and I smiled a bit at his concern.

“Oh, and you when you go home, and turn on YouTube cooking videos until you pass out, that’s not giving you bad dreams about work?” I mused and he hums.

“No. Cause I usually don’t watch the English ones, my italian is spotty, which makes my Spanish shitty. And our French lessons have only gotten me so far. So- if my eyes are closed, nothin but noise” he countered and I roll my eyes with a smirk.

“And how do you know how much of everything to put in?” I ask curiously, massaging over his biceps.

“By the look” he replied as if that said anything at all.

“So, if I right now, gave you my water bottle- you could tell me how much water was in it?” I snort

“Depends, is there ice?” He asked and I raised my brows.

“ Carmy you can’t just- I mean you can guess. But you’ll have no form of accuracy.” I said and he hums.

“Think of it like Cooking is biology, and baking is science babe. 2 different sides of the same coin. I don’t need accuracy, I need flavor and balance. A good chef doesn’t solely stick to a recipe. But a good baker always sticks to a recipe. F’r cookin’ It’s about what the dish wants. F’baking it’s what it needs. So yeah I’m confident I could give you a fairly accurate measurement by look” he explained and I gently massage over his wrists, paying extra attention to them because of all the repetitive motion he did at work with all the chopping and stirring and whisking.

“Mmm I love it when you get all sexy technical chef on me” I kiss the top of his hand lightly and he smiled a bit.

“Well I’ll tell y’anythin y’wanna know angel” he said, covering his mouth with his hand as he yawned big. “Mmm. Y’always put me t’sleep” he mumbled.

I giggle a bit “that was the point. Geez like a colicky baby sometimes, so overtired y’can’t sleep” I said and he snorts.

“Mmm this is my favorite part” he rolled on his side as I took my place next to him and he lays his forearm over my tummy so I can lightly drag my nails across it for him.

“Spoiled, spoiled little bear” I teased, obliging him and gently dragging my nail across his skin with a featherlight touch causing goosebumps to appear.

“Mmhmm, the most spoiled” he said and kisses me sweetly I hummed softly, cupping his cheek and gently rubbing my thumb over his cheekbone.

“Just one more day” I said when he pulled away, alluding to his Sunday off.

“One more.” He said softly and snuggled into my chest as I continued gently caressing his arm, my other hand tangling in his muss of damp curls and scratching his scalp as I usually did to help him fall asleep.

This had been our routine for the last 2 weeks now, he’d come over after working out, we’d eat dinner, he’d have a shower, then we’d sit on the balcony and smoke together, then come in and get in bed, I’d give him a massage after cuddling for a while, and stroke his arm and give him scratches to help him fall asleep, since the first night I did it for him he was out in less than 10 minutes, (which was an all time record for him) - and he’d be little spoon until he fell asleep. Then when I eventually did as well- we’d wake up in the morning with me having stolen the title of little spoon once more.

He nuzzled his face in the crook of my neck, his warm breath hitting my collar bone. I focused on the tv and continued stroking his arm gently, a few minutes went by like that before he muttered a half asleep “night honey” bringing a small smile to my lips. “Night Bear” I said softly, brushing his curls off his forehead and gently kissing it, lingering for a moment before resting back on the pillow and continuing to stroke his arm gently.

I was woken by the sound of Carmy’s first alarm that he’d nearly knocked his phone off the nightstand trying to silence, before groaning tiredly and plopping his arm back around me, pulling me closer to him.

“Morning” I said softly, my eyes still closed.

“Mornin’ babe.” He said quietly, planting a soft kiss to my jaw. He’d been setting his alarm for 4:00 instead of 4:30 for the past week or so, so we’d get a little bit of snuggle time before he had to get in the shower.

“How’d you sleep?” I asked, lacing our fingers together and turning to face him, wrapping my leg between his and hooking them together.

“Alright. My back feels a lot better, thanks for the massage honey. How’d you sleep?” He rubbed over his face, yawning which caused me to catch it and yawn myself.

“Course love. I slept okay, had a really weird dream, wanna hear about it?” I ask and he smiled lazily, nuzzling his face into my neck.

“Mm. Always” he said softly.

“So-“ I giggle softly at the absolute bizarreness “so, Syd was there- oh I’ll have to send her a voice note about this. But Syd was there, and we were at my middle school? But it was here, in Chicago. And it wasn’t my middle school, it was a hospital? But my teachers were there. Well they weren’t my teachers they were strangers, but I like knew they were my teachers, ya’know?” He chuckled a bit into my skin.

“Okay, and what were you and Syd doin baby?” He questioned.

“Literally Carm- playing with a Ouija board? Like?” I laughed a bit, causing him to follow suit.

“Who were you trying to get ahold of?” He asked.

“I don’t know! But it was like scary lookin. I don’t even - oh! Yes! That’s how I know it was a hospital cause we were in this dingy like basement, and there was a gurney? Like. I dunno. Oh! And she was like” I laughed, shaking my head. “She was like Winnie- they’ll know the right ingredient. Like- like we’re summoning the dead for recipe advice? But she was so stressed like she was dyyying to find out what they had to say” I said and his chest vibrated with laughter.

“And yeah, that was it that’s the dream- dream Syd, and real Syd, both are OCD about recipes to the point of insanity” I said and he shook his head, planting a kiss on my temple.

“Thanks f’r sharing babe. Y’know, maybe the dead could help us out with recipes- dream Syd could be onto somethin’ ” he joked and I gently play with his sleep tousled hair.

“Mmm I think the only ghost that would give a shit about food they can’t eat- would be you and Syd baby. I can totally see that. Us hanging out in the afterlife, and you’re like ‘but honey, if I help them and tell them it needs more lemon it’ll be so good’ “ i mimicked him doing my best Carmy impression and he snorts a laugh.

“I do not sound like that, when did I turn into a fuckin- southside chain smokin’ uncle?” He teased and I laughed, poking his cheek playfully.

“Not too far off, you’re a north side chain smoking uncle in real life, so I guess the accent was a little off” I said and he rolls his eyes.

“Yeah yeah. I’m down to half a pack a day now I wouldn’t call that chain smokin anymore” he mused, kissing my neck with open mouth kisses, trailing down to my collarbones.

“Mmm Bear?” I question and felt him smile into my skin before biting down gently in the fleshy spot between my neck and shoulder.

“Mmhmm?” He mumbled, his teeth still gently clamped around my flesh.

“It’s 4:09” I said, gently scratching his scalp with my nails.

“So that means we have..21 minutes, no?” He questions and I raise my brows with a smirk.

“And what are we doing with this twenty one minutes, Bear?” I muse and he lifted the covers, crawling underneath, and getting between my thighs.

“Don’t they say breakfast is the most important meal of the day?” he asked, kissing over my pantyline in the way that made my breath hitch.

“Real breakfast, baby. Which you refuse most the time” I told him, gently pushing his curls back, watching as he carefully slips my panties to the side.

He licks a stripe up my heat with the pad of his tongue, stopping at my clit and applying more pressure, open jawed, rubbing his tongue messily back and forth. I whined in pleasure, my head dropping back to the pillow.

He hooked my knees over his shoulders, pulling me closer by my hips and gently sucks on the sensitive bud that was now getting firmer and more prominent, flicking and smoothing his tongue over it in small circles, earning hot moans of satisfaction from deep in my chest.

“Oh-“ I breathe out, my voice coming out as more of a squeak then anything and my hips buck involuntarily as a jolt of pleasure cracks through me at his actions.

“Mmm so fuckin sweet” he grumbled into the slick flesh, the vibrations causing my core to clench around nothing.

“Holy fuck Carmy” I gasp as I felt his tongue lapping over my enterence, thrusting his tongue inside in one swift motion, humming in satisfaction as he felt me squeeze tightly around his tongue and I tugged his hair between my fingers.

“Ah- shitholy-fuckingchristCarm” I moaned out as he nudged the bridge of his strong nose against my clit with a pressure that was gonna drive me right over the edge- and fast.

“Mmhmm- mmhmm” I nod quickly, biting my lip hard as I feel that all too familiar tightening in my stomach, the pool building quickly and the dam walls getting ready to snap, all of my muscles tightening and my thighs quivering.

“Breathe” he reminded me gently, reaching up and grabbing one of the hands that had taken grip on his hair, lacing our fingers together and squeezing my hand gently.

I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding, “sorry” I mumble sheepishly and he continued, humming happily into my slick when I gasp in a enormous breath as he flicks his tongue wildly over my clit, pressing my hips into the bed to make me remain still with his other forearm.

“Oh- oh- fuuuck! Ah- ahh! cumming! Yes- yes!!!” I cry out, squeezing his hand tightly, my head thrown back in bliss and spine arched off the bed.

“mm- shit- fuck- too sensitive” I whine, as he continued the rough assault on my clit, digging my nails into the back of his hand.

“I think I can get another one babe - cmon be good f’me, please?” he said lowly, his voice coated in thick, honey-like lust.

“Ah- fuck-fuck- okay- mmmmillbegood” I slur, my thighs pressing against his temples and ankles locked behind his head.

He removed his forearm from my hips. “Y’gonna be a good girl, mmm? Y’gonna stay still f’me? Er do I need t’keep holdin’ you?” He asks and I shook my head.

“Ill be still, promise” I said quickly, squeezing his hand gently.

“That’s my girl” he brought his mouth back to my clit, slipping two fingers in my entrance and curling them expertly into that amazing spongy spot he seemed to have memorized by now, that I could somehow never manage to get to so well on my own.

“Holyfuck” I groaned, tugging his hair taut and he moans into me, the vibrations on my over sensitive clit dragging me to the edge and leaving me dangling there.

“Ah- fuck mmm-d’that- keep doin’ that Bear pleeeease” I begged as I tug at his hair harder, earning a deeper moan out of him. My hips snap back into the mattress, twitching and shaking as I mewl and whine through my second orgasm, my back arched and hand leaving his hair to grip the sheets so I wouldn’t hurt him as I held them in a white knuckle grasp.

His alarm goes off for 4:30 a few moments after my thighs stop quivering in pleasure and hips finally stilled. He messily wiped his wet chin, mouth, and the tip of his nose on my thigh, slick with my arousal, before placing a gentle kiss on my mound, and popping his head out of the sheets, casually hitting the stop button on the alarm.

“Thanks f’breakfast honey” he joked, getting out of bed and stretching his back, before giving me a peck on the lips and heading off to the bathroom, leaving me fucked absolutely dumb.

“Anytime” I said tiredly, feeling exhausted once again after only a few hours sleep and being feasted on so intensely, and so early in the morning.

He left the bathroom door cracked so Persephone wouldn’t scratch the whole time trying to get in and investigate what he was doing, and I heard him start the shower before I rolled back over and fell asleep.

I was awoken by sweet gentle kisses about 45 minutes later, feeling the icy metal of his chain brush over my chin as he pressed lingering kisses on my forehead. “Hey sleepy” he said softly, rubbing my side.

The smell of his cologne and minty toothpaste hits my nose and my eyes flutter open. He was sat next to me, backpack and hoodie already on.

“Already?” I whine, laying over his lap and nuzzling my face in his tummy, breathing in his scent and wrapping my arms around him.

“Mmhmm. But 3:30 yeah? I’ll come pick y’up from the library we can have lunch in the car?” He gently runs his fingers through my hair in the way that made me sleepy, and my eyes flutter shut once again subconsciously.

“Can’t you call out sick?” I mumble into his sweatshirt and he chuckled. This was the same conversation we had nearly every morning.

“And do what princess? Mm? Follow you to the library and sit around while you put away books?” He joked and I huff.

“Yes. Exactly that.” I said and look up at him, puckering my lips, knowing I wouldn’t win this battle possibly ever unless he was actually sick.

“Mmhmm I’m sure y’boss would love to just have a chef loitering around all day waiting for her star employee” he teased, leaning down and giving me a sweet, tender goodbye kiss.

“Be safe.” I said softly when he pulled away, cupping his cheek and rubbing over his cheekbone with my thumb. He leaned into my touch, sighing softly and eyes fluttering shut.

“Always. We have a big catering order today, so if I don’t text back that’s why. What do you want f’r lunch in case I forget to ask?” He took my hand, gently kissing my palm.

“Mmm- dunno. Surprise me, nothin’ spicy but you knew that” I said, covering my mouth as I yawn.

“Surprise it’ll be then baby” he leaned in, kissing me once more before pulling away and rubbing my stomach signaling it was that dreaded time.

I sigh, sitting up off his lap and giving him a big hug, kissing his cheek with a smooch “have a good day baby” I said softly into his damp hair, kissing his head once more before letting him go.

“Thank you angel, lock the door behind me please” he said and I nod, following him to the door and see Persephone was sat on top of his shoes in the hallway.

“See I think Persephone says you should stay home too” I smile and he shook his head with a grin.

“Not t’day snowball” he picks her up, kissing her head and he licks the tip of his nose, causing him to scrunch it adorably.

“Ugh fish breath” he mutters and I giggle.

“She looooooves her Carmy, isn’t that right little baby?” I scratch her chin and he plops her in my arms so he can slip on his sneakers.

“Mmhmm and I love her too but duty calls, stinky” he tells her in a sweet voice and kisses her head once more before pecking my lips once he had his shoes on and opening the door.

“And put some panties on Winnie the Pooh” he said in my ear, spanking my bum lightly before heading down the hall.

I laughed “Sorry- I’ll make sure to put your leftovers away sooner next time” I call after him teasingly, shutting the door behind me and clicking it locked.

I was in the Young Adult section at the library, putting returned books back on the shelf, when I felt my phone start buzzing in my bra. I fished it out, abandoning my cart of books I’d yet to put away, quickly heading to the employee back room once I realized it was Carmy.

I clicked green answer button. “Hey Bear! How’s the-“ he cuts me off suddenly.

“Hey- um- hey. I need like- a huge favor baby”

He said nervously. I put a concerned hand on my hip, nervously pacing the break room. “What is it love? Are you ok? Are you hurt?” I asked, already on edge due to the anxiety lacing his tone.

“No- no I’m ok- it’s uh. Syd. She’s….fuck I’m sorry - her stomach? Something about her stomach. She’s in the office right now, she can like- barely move but she doesn’t want to go to the hospital and uhh.” I could see him in my mind nervously shaking his hand and pacing.

“Okay- okay I’m coming. Is it like a girl tummy ache- or something different?” I asked, grabbing my purse and light jacket I’d worn, quickly putting it on as I held my phone pressed to my cheek and shoulder.

“No - no way honey. This is like- she can barely speak - I’ve never…I’m scared baby.” He said, his voice cracking a bit.

“Shhh. It’s ok, it’s ok, Bear- Syd has had stomach ulcer problems in the past, I need you to get her to try and eat something, ok? Shes gonna say no, but she has to eat- the acid in her stomach is irritating her. I’m coming. I’m grabbing an Uber right now, breathe baby. It’s all gonna be fine” I said and he took a deep trembling breath.

“Ye’…yeah. Ok. Okay, I’ll see you baby, be safe” he said and I sigh softly.

“Always” I said softly and hung up. I shoved my phone in my coat pocket, untucking my hair and heading to my bosses office.

I lightly knocked, waiting for her ‘come in’ before nudging the door open.

“Hey- Family emergency, I have to head out. Could you let Jessie know I left some returns in the YA section?” I ask and she nods.

“Hope everything’s ok, call me if you can’t make it in Monday.” She said and I nodded.

“Thank you” I told her before shutting her office door behind me.

The Uber ride to The Bear was torturous, I’d texted Syd thrice - to no avail. She was constantly pushing herself so hard- that she was making herself literally burn from the inside out. I’d told her time and time again, from everything I’d learned in my 3 years at college- stress can literally kill you, and that she should really take some time off before she seriously injured herself- but unfortunately she never listened.

I got out of the car when we’d barely come to a full stop, rushing to the front door, stepping inside and seeing Sugar at the host stand. “Oh- thank god- Carmy is freaked out Winnie- he literally is convinced she’s dying- can you go cool him off? Please?” She begs and I nodded quickly, heading behind the counter and pushing the back door open to the loud kitchen.

Everytime I was here during the day, I made it a point not to come in this way because the environment made my skin crawl. The noise, the lights, the crashing of pans and pots, the yelling, the sudden bursts of flames while various chefs flambéd dishes that would singe your hair if you weren’t paying attention.

I swallowed thickly “uh- oops! Sorry” I squeak, quickly getting out of a foodrunners way as he briskly moved past me, shoving the door open with his hip and heading to the front of the restaurant with a large tray of food he held with one hand over his shoulder.

“Uh- behind you? I’m behind you!” I tried to call over the noise as I pass various people. Usually if I came through the front, Carmy greeted me and people parted for us like Moses and the Red Sea- but without his presence, I was just another body in here and no one seemed to even realize I was there.

I finally made it back to the hall where the offices were, taking a deep breath to center myself before pushing open the door.

Carmen was knelt in front of the big comfy couch in Sugars office, offering Syd some water.

“Winnie- if you don’t get your boyfriend the fuck away from me- I’m gonna peel off his skin and enjoy it” Syd said through gritted teeth.

“Syd- Syd- eat. Y’have t’eat.” He pleads and I shut the door to silence out all the noise.

“Carmy” I said softly and he looks up at me, concern and worry written all over his face. “Take a walk, yeah? Go have a cigarette ok?” I said gently and squat next to him, rubbing his shoulder that was hard as a rock with all the tension he was currently holding.

“No- no. She’s sick Winnie. She’s just bein’ a jagoff because she hates bein’ cared for. Cmon syd” he looks at her and she glared back at me with the fire of 1000 suns, a look that if I was quite honest- scared me slightly.

“Bear” I gently play with his curls, earning his attention once more. “What Syd needs right now, is the energy in the room to be calm, and you’re literally vibrating with anxiety. Please, f’me? Go relax. Ok?” I said and kiss his temple.

He huffs and got up, leaving the room with a hard closing of the door, but not quite a slam. I look at Syd, and before I could start, we both hear Carmy going off

“I’m steppin’ out f’r 5 FUCKIN MINUTES- If that GOD DAMN DIRTY BOWL I ALREADYTOLD SOMEONE TO WASH IS STILL SITTING AT THE EXPO WHEN I GET BACK HEADS WILL ROLL FUCKERS. MOVE. IM NOT FUCKIN’ AROUND T’DAYISN’T THE FUCKIN’ DAY “ he barks before we hear his heavy footsteps stomping off down the hall and a harsh slam of the back door.

Syd rolls her eyes and I gently sit next to her. “See what I have to deal with? And you wonder why I’m - fffuuuuck oh my gooooddd” she groans, keeling over and laying on my lap as she clutches her stomach. “Fucking kill me. Oh my god- kill me please” she moaned in pain.

I gently rub her arm, digging through my purse and taking out one of my vials of RSO I kept in there for emergencies. “Here, Y’gonna have to go home- but..it’s gonna make it stop” I told her.

“Give it. Give it. Whatever it fucking is. I’d literally take heroin right now holy shit Winnie it feels like I’m being stabbed” she said, hands shaking from how much pain she was in.

“Open.” I told her, tilting her face towards me. “Tongue up” I said when she opened her mouth and I squirt a decent glob of oil under her tongue.

She closed her mouth, nose scrunching at the taste “what the fuck is that weed?!” She mumbles and I nod.

“Mmhmm, well kinda- don’t swallow. Let it sit until the pain stops enough that you forget about it and wonder why your mouth is so full of spit” I teased, gently dabbing her sweaty forehead with a napkin from my purse.

“Thank you” she mumbled, closing her eyes and sighing softly as she waited for it to kick in.

“He was really worried, Syd.” I said after a few minutes of silence, when I knew the pain had started to dull since her hands had stopped shaking.

She shook her head in annoyance, unable to speak yet because of the oil and scrunching her nose as if to say ‘he shouldn’t be.’

“Y’re his only friend. Other then me, and Richie. But Richie raised him. Of course he’s gonna worry for you. Especially when you’re like- near the point of vomiting blood because of how bad this is getting. You have to do the surgery, Syd.” I said and with that she swallowed, sitting up and looking at me.

“No- no. Winnie. No! I’m- I can’t. I can’t and I won’t. It’s not even that bad and I’m not vomiting blood miss theatrics- I’m not gonna take 3 weeks off work to do a stupid surgery that isn’t even guaranteed to find anything wrong! What if they go in there and find nothing and I’m back at square one- and out of work for THREE WEEKS?! I can’t leave Tina yet, she- she’s. No. I can’t let her drown. Carmy too- a-and Richie. We can’t-“ I inturrupt her

“Sydney.” I said in a dead serious tone. “Y’need to get it. This is literally like - this should not even be a discussion at this point! The reason the doctor wants you to have it is because before they can just give you all these medicines to fix your gut bacteria that’s all shot from fucking stress- it’ll hurt you more on the very slim chance you don’t have a stress ulcer, but it is something with your stomach, Syd. It’s an exploratory surgery they don’t do those for no reason.” I said as Carmen came in and his eyes nearly fell out of his head.

“Surgery?!” He exclaims and slams the door shut behind him. “What? Syd- what’s going on. This isn’t a stomachache you didn’t just eat somethin’ that’s not agreeing with you. What is it, Sydney” she said and I crossed my arms, sitting back and letting her do the talking.

A slow smile grows on her face, and she covers her mouth with her hands as she begins to giggle. Fair to say the oil has now done its trick.

“Have I ever told you, when you get mad, there’s this vein in your forehead- and- it’s- it’s so funny” she said, causing me to start laughing with her.

Carm’s eyes flickered to mine. “What the hell did you give her?” He asks and I shrug with a smirk.

“Somethin’ t’make her floaty, and” I shield my mouth from Syd so only Carm could see “agreeable” I mouthed and he smiled a bit, shaking his head.

“Syd.” He looks at her.

“Caaarrrmeeennnn” she replied in a sing-songy voice “I need to get back to the spice mixture for my cod now- but this was a great chat guys. Winnie- you’re the best” she said and got up, heading towards the door.

“Noooo ya’ don’t” Carmen stops her, spinning her around by the shoulders and leading her back to the couch. She groaned dramatically, sitting down next to me once more. “What is this about a surgery, Syd?” He asked, pulling up the rolling chair and sitting in front of us.

“A stuuuuupiiiidd surgery Carmen. Stupid. Doctors wanna slice me open and prod around hoping they find something. And then when they don’t i'll be stuck at home with my dad glued to my bedside, for no fucking reason, and I’ll loose three weeks minimum of work. And that’s if they find nothing. If they do find something, I’ll have to schedule another surgery and I’ll be out for SIX weeks.” She said and Carm nods, rubbing over his face for a moment as he thinks.

“And how long have they been buggin’ you t’get this surgery, Syd?” He asked finally, brushing his hair back and looking at her seriously.

“Mmm….” She crossed her arms, averting his gaze “7 months” she mumbles.

“What?!” Carmen leans forward in disbelief. “Say that- say that again? I know y’didnt just say you’ve been dealin’ w’this f’r a fuckin year” he said and she shrugged.

“They reccomended it a year ago, they’ve just been hounding me for the past 7 months. It’s really not that bad, Carm.” She said and he shook his head, getting up and going over to the filing cabinet silently.

“What are you doing?” Sydney sits up as he opens a drawer, thumbing through different file folders before popping out what looked to be a blank information sheet of some kind and plops back down in the chair, rolling over to the desk and beginning to fill it out with a pen.

“Carmen - what are you” she stood up, looking at the form he was filling out “no” she said, ripping it from under his pen and crumpling it up, throwing it in the wastebasket next to the desk. “Fuck you. No” she seethed.

“What’s going on?” I sit up.

“Syd- there’s like 50 million copies, I really don’t want to do it like this, but I know you aren’t gonna do it unless I make you do it.” He said and got up, walking back over to the same filing cabinet.

She followed him, holding the drawer containing the forms closed with her hand. “No! Carmen are you fucking kidding me?! You aren’t my fucking parent. Stop! We are equals here! You can’t do this” she said and he shook his head, resting his hand atop the cabinet.

“Sydney. This isn’t a discussion, are you really gonna make me say it, you’re really gonna push me?” He asked lowly.

She crosses her arms, “say it.” She countered chest quickly moving with rapid angry breaths.

“As your partner. I’m ordering you, mm? It’s an order, Sydney. Y’gonna go to the back, Y’gonna empty out your locker- because y’not gonna be around here for a while, and you are going to come back to this office, Y’gonna take the short term disability form I give you, Y’gonna call them, file. it. I will be checking, and then, Y’gonna schedule whatever fuckin procedure you need, and when your doctor clears you to come back in the kitchen, then, and only then will you return to work. I’m being more then fair, considering you’re making me force you t’do this, so I’ll be paying you your full wages while you’re out. Even though, im gonna have to train 3 dumb fucks to even-“ he shook his head, sighing deeply. “T’even keep us runnin’ half as well. So there. There. You wanted me to fuckin’ play mean mentor partner there ya go.” He said before opening up the drawer, plucking out another blank form and sitting back at the desk.

She scoffs, looking to me. “You’re just gonna let him do this?” She narrowed her eyes at me, brows furrowed with anger.

“Syd- this..this isn’t my restaurant…you only answer to-“ Carmy cuts me off.

“Do not. No. Sydney, out. Step the fuck out, now. Y’not doin’ this t’her. She fuckin-“ he shakes his head, rubbing his eyes before pointing to the door.

“Fuckin- go. Go before I say shit I’ll regret. Leave. Now.” He orders her and she left the office with a loud slam of the door.

I sighed, dropping my head back on the couch and closing my eyes, wanting to melt into a puddle on the floor.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry baby” he sighed, the soft sounds of pen on paper filling the silence.

“Not your fault” I mumbled, crossing my arms.

“I-it is. Babe I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be bringin’ you into this shit. It’s not fair, she’s your friend” he said.

“Exactly- she’s my friend. I love her, Carm. She’s a hard headed fuck at times, but it’s because she loves being here. She just- has this idea that I have some semblance of control over what you do” I took off my shoes before sitting crisscrossed on the couch.

He snorts a dry laugh, shaking his head. “Well. I mean, not full control- but I listen to you” he gives me a small smirk and I roll my eyes.

“In our relationship of course. But I can’t honestly give you advice about that. Shes gonna cool off and apologize, to you too babe. Shes gonna realize we just want her better” I sighed softly.

He nodded, continuing to fill out the form. “I get if you don’t wanna sit around here, want me t’drive you home?” He asked.

I shook my head “why not? Well if I can stay back here. I don’t like being in the kitchen like at all” I said and he chuckled.

“Why? Too busy?” He asked

“Too busy, too loud, too bright, to many stabbey things, too many people, too many smells, too much yelling.” I said, pulling my kindle out of my purse. “But back here I have a comfy couch, my books, and my bear. So, I’m ok here” i smile a bit and he rolled over, giving me a peck on the lips.

“Thank you f’comin, honey. Really” he tucked my hair behind my ear.

“Baby, any time. If you’re ever scared, or need to talk, or just- I dunno…need a hug? I’m here. That’s what I’m for.” I said and he kissed my nose sweetly.

“Then I’m the luckiest guy alive” he said softly before kissing my lips in the way that gave me a feeling of a swarm of monarchs being trapped in my chest.

“Oh you are the mushiest ever” I said and kissed the cute little moles on his cheek.

The door slammed open and Syd comes in “give it.” She snipped, outstretching her hand.

Carm rolls back over to the desk, handing her the form and she plucks it from his hands. He sighed, crossing his arms over his chest and they look at eachother in silence, almost like 2 lions deciding if it was worth it to continue a fight over dominance.

“Please.” She said quietly after a few moments, her big brown eyes teary.

“Syd” he said softly, signing to her ‘I’m sorry’ over his chest and i bit my lip, looking out the window, trying to appear uninterested so that they could have some semblance of privacy.

“Then I want you to get your back checked out. Fair is fair, Carmen.” She said shakily.

My eyes flicker back over to him and he sits back in his chair, rubbing over his chin for a moment as he thought. “Fine. Fine. I’ll go to the doctor. Back pain is different Syd you know this. But fuckin’ whatever. I’ll go if it’ll make you get Y’r surgery” he said and she nodded once.

“Fair is fair” she outstretched her hand for him to shake, and he rolled his eyes.

“Really, we have to seal this with a handshake?” He asked.

“Fair, is fair.” She replied and he shook her hand firmly.

“And I’m sorry” she said to me. I nodded

“It’s okay, I know this is…it’s hard, kid. I get it. But did you have to give me the near impossible task of getting him to the doctor?” I tease with a smile.

The faintest upturn of a smile replaced her frown and she shrugs. “It’s his deal to go through on. I’ll be checking.” She repeated his words from earlier and he gave her a smug smile.

“And how will you do that? You don’t know what doctor I see, or if I’ll just go to an urgent care and have some random ass doctor write me a pain pill prescription and that’s it.” He countered.

“Oh- because I have eyes on you at every angle.” She told him. “I’m always watching.” She teased, closing the office door behind her when she left.

“What- is she gettin’ daily reports from you ‘er somethin?” He asks and I laughed, shrugging a bit.

“Mmm. Not reports. I don’t like tell her everything, but- mood reports” I giggle and Richie opens the door.

“What the fuck are you doing?! How are we gonna run this shit without Syd?!” He shuts the door behind him and looks over to me. “Sorry sweetheart, nice t’see you” he gives me an apologetic smile before turning back to Carm. “You let her go?!” He asks and Carmen looks at him as if he had 3 heads.

“Let her go?! No, jagoff. I told her to take short term, I’m paying her full wages as long as she needs, and she’s gonna be back when she’s fuckin’ better.” Carmy explained.

“Short term? Short term termination? Short term what?!” Richie asked frustratedly.

“You IDIOT. SHORT TERM DISABILITY!” He shouts at him and I flinch.

“Carmen” I said sharply, he quickly looks over to me.

“That scares me. Please. You don’t need to yell, Bear- also- you aren’t an idiot, Richie. He’s just…in a mood.” I said softly and Carm’s cheeks flush red.

“ok” he muttered, turning back to Richie. “It’s-“ he takes a deep breath. “It’s fine. I have it under control. What I need you t’do, is ask Nat for the login shit for the recruiting website she used to find the runners and shit. Can you handle that f’me while I figure out how this shits gonna work while Syds out?” He asked him calmly, but I could still…feel him. His energy. He’s way too wound up.

I wish I could just tell him to come home, talk it out with him, I knew all of this rage was just him burying his fear. He was so fucking scared.

“I can. I can do that” Richie nodded, rubbing the back of his neck. “So- so what’re we doin’ what’s the fuckin plan?” He asked and I give him a look.

I knew he had to get out of here or Carm was going to rip in to him just because he could. “Richie, Syd just left- like 5 minutes before you came in here? Carmy is still working that out…can you- can you do me a favor?” I asked and his brows raised in surprise.

“Yea? Yeah. Wha’dyou need?” He asked.

“Can you go get that stuff from Nat and then make me a grilled cheese? Eva said you make really good grilled cheese. So Carmy can have some quiet time to figure this out, and you guys can tell everyone what’s going on together.” I look at Carm.

“Because you don’t have to do everything alone, you’re a team. Breaking difficult news is hard, but when you have the people you love with you, it can make it easier to bare the weight.” I said, looking directly at Carmen.

Carm nodded, swallowing thickly and biting at the inside of his lip nervously. “Sure- yeah. She uh…she said that?” Richie asked and I smiled, looking over to him once again.

“She specifically said - ‘My daddy makes the best grilled cheese in the whole wide world’ “ I told him and he smiled a bit, a light blush creeping to his cheeks.

“Alright well the kid has quite the flare f’dramatics, but I can make a pretty good grilled cheese. Comin’ right up” he said and headed back out to the kitchen, shutting the door behind him.

Carm got up, locking the door, before coming over to the couch and laying down with his head in my lap. I knew he didn’t have the confidence to ask, so I gently start scratching his head in the way that he liked and his eyes fluttered shut. He let out a deep sigh, like a pressure valve releasing so it wouldn’t explode.

“So let’s make a plan, baby. I don’t think you need three. I think you know that but you’re planning for someone to drop” I said softly, gently stroking my nails through his hair.

“Cause someone will drop babe it’s how it fuckin goes. If I hire 2 we’re gonna be left short when one quits because they aren’t as good as the other one.” He said.

“Well why do you say that, baby?” I asked.

“Because no one’s gonna fight to be the best when they inevitably find out they’re a temp” he said and I furrow my brows.

“Carmen. You weren’t planning on hiring someone without telling them right?” I asked and he got quiet. “Carmen. Are you kidding me?! Absolutely not! Oh my god that is so- so mean baby!” I said and his cheeks heat.

“Well who the fuck is gonna wanna work here when we already have a full fuckin staff?!” He asked annoyed.

“Because you are the best fucking restaurant in Chicago, are you kidding me baby?! Just like you sent Richie to Ever to gain experience? There are fucking talented chefs Carmy, ones like Richie who don’t have the time to save and go to super nice culinary school like you did and garner that expirience. There would be a line out the door if you were honest and said ‘hey who wants a 2 month opportunity at a luxury fine dining restaurant that’s been nominated for best new restaurant by the JBF in its first year open’ “ I told him.

He was quiet for a moment, thinking it over. “I guess” he mutters.

“Babe cmon we can write the posting together. We don’t even have to do all this today. Don’t rush, y’know what would be a good idea?” I ask. He hums in response. “I think, that you should go back out there, work as usual, keep Syd’s stations covered best you can, and we can have a nice Sunday together, relax, recharge, and then we’ll have Palm Sunday dinner with the family, and then on Monday, you can come in fresh and rested with a great plan on what you’ll tell everyone with Richie.” I explain.

He contemplated for a moment, looking over at the desk in thought before looks up at me, “thank you.” He said softly. I gently caress his cheek with my knuckle.

“Nothin’ to thank me for, Bear.” I said and he took my hand, placing a gentle kiss to my knuckles.

“There’s too much to thank you for. We’d be here forever” he mumbled against my fingers with a small smile.

“You’re getting mushier by the day” I ruffle his hair and the doorknob jiggles.

“D’you still want this?” Richie calls from outside.

“Yeah! Sorry” I said getting up when Carmen got off my lap. I opened the door and Richie offers me a plate with 2 grilled cheeses.

“He hasn’t eaten” he said so only we could hear and I nod.

“Thank you, best cousin ever” I took the plate.

“Course, anytime. Oh Carm” he looks to him “user is MBerzatto87 password is fuckin password234.” He said and Carm chuckled a bit.

“I coulda guessed that shit. But I guess I was hopeful he gave more a shit about cybersecurity” he shook his head.

“RICHIE. DID YOU TOUCH MY ORANGE ZEST?!” Tina shouts from the kitchen and Richie heads back

“What the fuck would I need orange zest for?” He yells back as I shut the door, locking it once again.

“How do things always go missing?” I giggle a bit, sitting next to him and placing the plate on his lap, taking one of the sandwiches and taking a bite.

“Cause people at the same stations doin’ the same thing will think they already did their orange zest, and just take it.” He said, staring at the plate on his lap. “Also I’m not hungry” he put the plate on the desk.

I shrugged, putting my sandwich back on the plate. “Okay” I said, brushing off my hands before grabbing my kindle again and continuing to read.

“What- what’re you doin’ babe. Eat” he said, putting the plate on my lap.

“I’m not hungry” I said, not looking up from the page.

“Yes you are, you - you don’t ask for food unless you’re hungry, Winnie.” He said.

“Mm- I like it when we eat together. I don’t wanna eat by myself so, my appetite is gone.” I lie with a shrug.

“Y’really gonna be difficult right now?” He asked and in response, I playfully stuck out my tongue before going back to reading.

“Oh you are a child” he huffs, picking up the untouched sandwich and taking a bite.

“Oo! I’m hungry again!” I teased, grabbing mine as well and taking another bite.

He snorts a laugh, rolling his eyes. “Y’re lucky y’cute” he said before taking another bite.

I smiled, “I love winning you over. It’s my favorite game” I said teasingly.

“Yeah yeah, I’m just saving myself, you turn into a tiny demon when you’re hungry. Especially on your cycle” he said and I laughed.

“You’ve learned your lesson though so you don’t have to meet that demon again as long as you keep us fed.” I peel off the crust, setting it on the plate.

“You don’t like the crust?” He asked.

“No…well- I don’t know..really. I didn’t as a kid, but Chris did, so I always gave it to him. Never stopped” I said, staring at the crust on the plate as I got lost in memories of sitting in the school cafeteria with Chris over lunch, carefully peeling off the crust after taking my first bite and putting it on the top of the empty ziplock he’d taken his sandwich from.

“That’s sweet. I’m sure he’s happy you still leave it for him” he said. My heart melts at the sentiment and I gently kissed his cheek before resuming eating my sandwich.

“I don’t like pickles, so when we were kids- Mikey always picked em off for me.” He says quietly and I looked up at him. It wasn’t often that he brought up stories about Michael, so each one I safely tucked away in my mind where I’d never forget.

“I love pickles, I could eat a whole jar if you let me. I’ll always take unwanted pickles” I smiled a bit.

“Ahhh ok. So you’re a sour person not a spicy person. It’s usually one or the other” he said before finishing off his sandwich.

“Yes- exactly. You like spicy stuff? We haven’t eaten a single spicy thing” I said and he nods.

“Love spicy shit. But you don’t, so doesn’t really matter” he shrugged.

“Wha- Carmy. No! No you can eat spicy things, I feel bad. I don’t want it to always be what I like. Just like- make mine less spicy” I said.

“It’s fine babe, I try spicy stuff here all the time. Plus the food I like with a ton of spice in it is usually Indian and Filipino and shit where the whole profile is about the heat and the spice so-“ I inturrupt him.

“You like Filipino food?!” I asked and he nods

“Yeah- why, do you?” He asks and I nod happily

“My neighbor! Ms.Mendoza! She’s from the Philippines! Before you started bringing me dinner I’d usually stop by her place because she always made too much and asked me if I wanted it, you have to talk to her babe she’s like- amazing! I’m sure you guys will have so much in common she loves cooking- and she has like all these connections back home in the Philippines and they send her spice mixes and stuff for her to try. You have to try this stew- she calls it um..” I think for a moment “inew? Inihaw? Yeah- I think that’s it. Inihaw na leimpo! “ I said excitedly.

“Oh- the lady- the lady I met?” He asked and I nod.

“Yeah- I…I never asked- was she there when you got there?” I asked

“She- well” he chuckled. “Almost knocked me out with her cane cause I guess she thought I was trying to break in, cause I heard you screamin’ and I was trying to pick the lock, I told her I was a friend and she didn’t really believe me, but then she saw the flowers and she nearly dropped the keys getting the door open.” He said and my cheeks go pink.

“I’m…I’m sorry- she’s like….such a grandma. She’s been hounding me about a boyfriend since I moved in don’t mind her pushyness about it. She’s been trying to hook me up with her friends grandsons left and right” I finished off my sandwich.

“Well, she can stop looking now right?” He asks.

I brushed my hands off before nervously picking at my nail polish at the question. “What does that mean?” I asked and the room went eerily silent for what felt like minutes.

“Cause’…” he trails off. “Are you…are you still seeing other people?” He asks and I look over at him.

“No. No, Carmy. No just you..are you?” I asked and he shook his head. “So…what does that mean?” I asked biting the inside of my lip nervously.

“I…I dunno…” he looked at the clock. “I uh- I have to get out there, you still wanna hang out here?” He asked.

I swallowed thickly, realizing that I didn’t want to be here all day if he was just going to run away.

“So…what Syd said. You’re- you’re my boyfriend now?” I asked and he went pale as a sheet.

I stare at him, waiting for a response, and he opens his mouth like he was going to say something but he closes it again, nervously rubbing his lips together.

“Well- are you?” I ask.

“So- so Y’re like…my girlfriend now?” He asked.

“That’s my question, am I your girlfriend?” I asked and he shrugged.

“I guess? I dunno…I’ve never done this I just…kinda assumed?” He said rubbing his neck nervously.

“Well- I don’t remember you ever asking me…” I nudge his knee with mine gently.

“You didn’t ask me to be your boyfriend either!!” He said.

“Because I knew you’d freak out! And like- Y’re a masculine guy Carm I didn’t wanna make you feel insecure!” I exclaim.

“Okay fine! Will you be my girlfriend?” He asks, a small smile on his lips.

“Hmmmmm….” I put my finger to my lips, pretending to contemplate. “Of course I will dummy” I pull him into a deep wanting kiss and he hums happily, gently rubbing over my hip with his palm.

“Y’know y’mine baby I tell you like every day” he said, his breath fanning my lips.

I look up at him, biting my lip to contain a grin. “I dunno…I thought you said it just t’like..please me when we fool around, I didn’t know you meant it.” I said softly.

“I’d never say something I don’t mean baby, everything I tell you I really mean” he leans in, kissing me again. But this kiss was sweeter, somehow more intimate then the last. It felt…truthful.

I gently cup his cheek, humming softly and he pulls away when the doorknob to the office starts to jiggle and someone pounds on it.

“Chef?! We need more hands out here if we’re gonna be gettin’ this order out on time are you with us?” Tina calls through the door.

“Duty calls” he sighs softly. “You know where to find me baby” he kissed my forehead sweetly before heading back out to the kitchen.

➵ 𝐍𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 ♡♡♡

#carmen berzatto #the bear fx #carmy berzatto #the bear fic #the bear hulu #carmen berzatto fanfiction #the bear #carmy berzatto fanfiction #the bear fanfiction #carmen berzatto fluff #carmen berzatto smut #carmy berzatto x oc #carmy the bear #carmen berzatto x oc

24 notes · View notes

broken-glowsticks · 3 months

Text

What Once Was Mine

Chapter 12 - Missing you

Genre: Childhood friends, Eventual Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, Love corner/love triangle, love rivals, Series.

Not all chapters will be proofread!!

Warnings: 18+, mdni, mentions of sex and alcohol consumption, additional warnings will be added to individual chapters as needed.

Previous • Main • Next

It took hours before you fell into a fitful sleep only for the overly eager sun to wake you up way too soon for your liking. You had debated over calling in sick from work, but what would be the point? Felix had classes, and you knew damn well how busy Chan, Changbin, and Jisung were. You even, for a fleeting moment, thought about reaching out to Hyunjin but had ultimately decided against it. You truly couldn't bring yourself to bother anyone it seemed and thus dragged yourself from bed, resigning to your pitiful fate and jumping into a tolerably cold shower before dressing for what you knew was going to be a shitty day. And shitty it was.

The moment you started your lunch break, you had escaped to your car, needing desperately to be out of that brick and mortar prison. It was only when you had managed to relax a bit that you pulled out your phone and noticed Changbin had sent you a few texts throughout the morning.

❤️✨️My Dwaekki🐇🐽: Good morning, my pretty princess. I'm so sorry for not texting you until now.

❤️✨️My Dwaekki🐇🐽: I wished you were next to me when I woke up. I miss you, Bunny. I hate not getting to see you.

❤️✨️My Dwaekki🐇🐽: I guess you're at work. Otherwise, you would have answered me? I asked Han, but he didn't know for sure. I guess neither of us has really had the time to see you, huh? I'm really sorry about that, Bunny.

❤️✨️My Dwaekki🐇🐽: Let me know the next time you're free. Let's go on a date. I left my princess alone when I said I'd spoil her, I swear I'll make it up. Any day, just say when.

You stared intently at his string of messages, trying not to let yourself get overly emotional. You had been so lonely these past few days, the only respite being those few genuinely platonic moments between you and Hyunjin right up until the almost-kiss and the day before with Felix. You didn't want to bother your swamped boyfriend with your melancholy feelings, doing your best to put on a smile for him, but yet here he was saying how he has been missing you too. Maybe he's been missing you just as much as you've been missing him, if not more.

You stopped yourself before you made yourself any more sad and quickly pulled up your work schedule. Fuck it. It was Tuesday today, so you had decided you would ride out today and tomorrow and call in sick for the rest of the week. You missed your boyfriend, and he missed you, so you were going to see him - whatever it took.

○●☆♡☆●○

My girl: Thursday to Sunday, I'm all yours. I'll take whatever you can give. I miss you, Binnie 💋

Changbin sat in his studio chair, eyes fixed on your text. It was the only reply you had sent, and yet it held so much weight.

Thursday to Sunday. Four days, four full days that he knew you had set aside just for him. He knew your work hours well enough to know you must have made some kind of arrangements to get Thursday and Friday off, and you never worked weekends.

Fuck, Changbin meant it when he told you to just say the word and he'd be there. He would do whatever it took to see you again, but the fact that you set aside four whole days just to “take whatever he can give” simultaneously almost broke his heart and made him fall even deeper into his still massive crush on you.

“Has Y/N replied to you yet?” Jisung asked from his desk chair, his eyes still trained on the computer in front of him.

“Yeah, she did.”

“And…?” Chan asked from the couch on the other side of the small room, his gaze lifting from the screen of his laptop.

“How do you guys feel about me inviting her to the studio on Thursday?”

“I'm amazed you didn't think of it before,” Han said with a slight chuckle.

“Of course she can come, just don't make out right in front of us,” Chan teased with a sincere smile, causing Changbin to laugh.

“No promises, boss.”

○●☆♡☆●○

You could feel your heart pounding as you waited in the lobby of a large building, twiddling with the straps of your large bag. 3racha may own the studio space, but it still resided on only one floor of a massive mixed-use building. A building where you couldn't just freely enter without clearance. Which led to you waiting nervously in the lobby as the receptionist for the entire building phoned for one of the boys, needing confirmation that you were indeed an expected guest before she could give you a day pass.

“Miss Y/N? I have confirmation, I just need your signature to validate your day pass.”

“Yes, of course,” you replied, swiftly making your way to the front desk and scrawlling your signature onto the provided document before the receptionist led you behind her desk and up against a blue square so a photo could be taken and added to your day pass. You didn't look unkempt, but you were definitely feeling underdressed in your light sweater and shorts when you walked into the building's main lobby, and that feeling only doubled once your picture was taken.

“Here you are, ma'am, the office you're looking for will be on floor three. Have a nice day.”

With a small nod to the receptionist, you made your way to the closest elevator. You could feel yourself starting to get jittery with excitement as the elevator took you to the third floor. You didn't think you would get to see Changbin again so soon, not only that you were also going to see Jisung and Chan, too. You felt bad Felix couldn't join. It had been way too long since all of you were able to spend time together.

The elevator stopped with a ding, causing you to jolt slightly. Quickly, you scrambled out of the metal box, expecting to instantly come across the boys' studio. Unfortunately for you, their studio wasn't the only room on this floor, and, for some god forsaken reason, none of the doors were marked with any kind of name plate. Who the hell designed this? Checking your phone, you noticed you had spotty cell signal at best and absolutely nothing at worst. Great, how were you supposed to find these guys? Go from door to door? The idea did not appeal to you.

You paced the hallway a few times before gently pressing your ear to each of the doors in hopes of hearing something - anything. Music, a familiar voice, hell even an unmistakably unfamiliar voice to help whittle down your choices and increase your chances of knocking on the right door.

You groaned, now standing on the other end of the hall, right next to the elevator where you initially started, arms crossed and foot impatiently tapping on the carpeted floor. You really didn't want to do this, but your pride was wearing thin the longer you floundered around the building corridor. Bouncing your gaze about for a moment you finally chose a door to knock on, however as soon as you took a step towards your chosen door, the one on the complete opposite side of the hall opened and out came Changbin.

“Bunny, there you are!”

“Oh my god, Binnie!” You cried out, relieved you didn't have to sacrifice your dignity and excited to finally get to lay eyes on your boyfriend who you haven't gotten to see in some time.

Before you knew it, you had run, full force, towards your boyfriend's growing smile, propelling yourself into his open arms. Changbins’ hold on you was tight as he spun you around, taking in your scent and your giggles as he set you down but didn't let you go. God had he missed you. Now that you were here, Changbin didn't want to go back into the studio. He just wanted to take you home and bury himself into his blankets with you pressed against him. He guessed just getting to hold you as tightly as he could in this quiet hallway would have to do.

“What took you so long? I was getting worried,” Changbin murmured into your hair.

“There are no name plates on these stupid doors,” you complained, pulling away to pout up at him.

“Ah, you're right. I'm sorry, baby, I should have told you. It slipped my mind,” Changbin said gently, taking your face in one of his hands and stroking your jutted lip with his thumb.

“You owe me a better apology than that, I almost went knocking from door to door to look for you,” you said, taking in Changbins’ messy curly hair, his round and wire framed glasses, and his comfy, sleeveless black shirt. He looked so adorable and completely irresistible.

“Oh, really?” He chuckled in response, dipping down to bump his nose against yours, “I hope this is enough then, my princess.” Changbins lips were soft, and kissing him again felt like finally getting to breathe again. You didn't care that you were in an open hallway and that anybody could walk out at any moment and see you. Being without Changbin felt agonizing, and you were going to savor every second you could get.

“Am I forgiven yet?” He asked against your lips and gave a breathy laugh that made your knees go weak when you refused him.

“More,” you demanded, arms wrapped around his neck and your fingers toying with the curls at the nape of his neck.

“As you wish,” Changbin replied with a silly grin, a hand sliding down to rest on your ass. “Chan said I'm not allowed to make out with you in front of him, so I guess I'm just going to have to do it now before we go in. We might be out here a while.”

“They can wait. Right now, you're mine.”

“Only yours,” Changbin replied before catching your lips in another kiss.

○●☆♡☆●○

“Oh there you two are, I thought we were going to have to send out Search and Rescue to find you two,” Han quipped the moment you and Changbin walked into the studio. “They'd probably find you two smashing or something,” he added under his breath as he swiveled back to his computer.

“And I thought it would be nice if I brought you guys snacks, but I guess my stupid roommate isn't gonna get any now after that last quip that I totally heard.”

“Wait, no, wait, I take that back. I want snacks,” Jisung said hastily, whirling around and reaching for your bag, which he presumed had the aforementioned snacks.

“Say sorry first, you twerp!” You said, yanking the bag away from Jisungs hands.

“NO!” Hisung cried, and before you knew it, he had lunged on you from his seat, causing you to falter, lose balance, and land on a black couch you didn't notice behind you. All you could register was the cackling laughter of Chan and Changbin as Jisung wrestled and tickled you for your bag of snacks. You weren't just taking it, though, twisting and jerking your body every which way you could to keep Jisung from getting your bag.

“Are either of you going to help?!” You shouted but were only met with more laughter.

The two of you struggled for a few more minutes before Changbin decided to finally give you some aid. Wrapping his arms around Jisung, who had effectively crawled on top of your hunched figure, Changbin lifted his friends in the air and carried him back to his chair.

“Alright, Han, leave my girlfriend alone.”

“Hey, no fair, you were my friend first.”

“Boyfriend trumps friend when that friend is about to crush everyone's snacks,” Changbin said with a grin. Meanwhile, behind him, you had unfurled to stick your tongue out at Jisung, causing him to frown.

“Fine, Traitor. I gotta get back to this beat anyway,” Jisung pouted, sliding a pair of headphones over his ears.

“Aish, he's not gonna forgive me for taking your side,” Changbin said lightheartedly, settling next to you and slinging an arm over your shoulders. “Can I convince you to forgive him and give him some snacks?”

You mulled the idea over for a moment before nodding, handing the bag to Changbin.

“You give it to him,” you whispered, “pretend you swiped them from me. He loves stealing my food.”

“Okay,” he whispered back with a chuckle, pressing a quick kiss to your temple as he took the bag and rummaged through it to pick out one he thought Han would like the most.

He waited a bit, waiting until you went and talked to Chan to sell the charade before he threw a snack at Hans head. Han swiveled his chair around, initially ready to fight whoever threw something at his head, only for his mouth to seal itself tightly and his eyes to widen when he saw Changbin with the bag.

“Look down,” Changbin mouthed, pointing at the candy that lay on the floor behind Han and flashing a cute pose.

Han smiled, his eyes darting to you before quickly snatching up the candy and mouthing a thank you to his friend. Just like that, all was forgiven between the two, and you tried your best not to let on that you and Chan were subtly watching by giggling.

The day passed surprisingly quickly, filled with silly squabbles that were remedied as soon as they were sparked, jokes and razzing, Changbin acting cute, snacks being eaten, bouts of quiet as the boys busied themselves with work only for a stray groan to break the silence and start up short conversations again. It felt like a breath of fresh air, all of you being together again. The only thing missing was Felix. Maybe he could come over later after his classes? It doesn't seem like he would be in the way. After all, it's not as if any clients have come in all day. Why was that?

“We like to set aside days to work on personal projects or just hammer out details for ongoing projects with clients,” Chan explained, not once looking up from his laptop. "Also, some of our clients hired us to actually write the music as well as produce it, so that takes a lot of time as well.”

“Wow, no wonder you guys have been so busy. With all of that, you really have a lot on your plate.”

“Uhg, tell me about it,” Jisung groaned, slipping off his headphones and sliding down his seat. “I miss having free time.”

“I miss having you guys around,” you admit, tucking your legs into the oversized jacket Changbin lent you earlier

Another silence settled between the four of you, and you regretted opening your mouth. However, the boys all felt sympathetically. They missed the group hanging out. It didn't feel right for three of the five of you to be constantly working, leaving the other two in the dust. While this uptick in business is great for 3racha's career, it’s not so great for their personal lives.

The silence was abruptly broken by someone’s stomach growling.

“I guess snacks aren't a good replacement for a good meal,” you chuckled, grabbing your bag and pulling out your wallet. “I'll go get us some food.”

“Changbin, go with her,” Jisung said as soon as you had grabbed your wallet, surprising you both.

“Don't you need him?”

“Oh god, don't start, just get out of here. I need a break from you two eye fucking each other from across the room,” Jisung said with feign annoyance, but when his eyes met Changbins’, Jisung gave him a wink and a thumbs up. Even after the official start of you two dating, Han was still by his friends side doing everything he could for you two.

“Don't have to tell me twice,” Changbin grinned, snagging his wallet and yanking on the shoes he discarded about an hour or two after you arrived.

“Everyone fine with pizza?” You asked, taking Changbins hand into yours and making your way to the door.

“Bring Korean corn dogs too!” Chan called out before the door closed. You chuckled. Normally, you would complain about having to drive to two different places for food, but right now, that meant more alone time with your Binnie, and you were not going to say no to that.

“You want me to put in the order for everything now?” Changbin asked as the elevator returned you to the lobby. You shook your head.

“Let's wait until we get to the pizza place, I want as much time with you as possible,”

Changbin simply replied with a giggle and a press of his lips to yours. You had a feeling you were going to get a lot of kisses before you made it back to the studio and, boy, how right you were. At every opportunity Changbin had himself wrapped around you, his lips trailing over every available glimpse of your skin, his hands running over everywhere else. The only time he wasn't all over you was when he stole your keys and drove you to his favorite pizza place, which, surprisingly, wasn't that far from the studio.

Once he had paid for parking, the two of you made your way inside, and Changbin hugged you from behind, his arms wrapping comfortably around your middle as you decided on what pizza to get for everyone

“Maybe a meat lovers’?” He suggested, placing his chin on your shoulder and swaying your bodies side to side, causing you to giggle.

“What about a Supreme? I think that has a little bit of something for everyone.”

“Sure, just no olives,” Changbin murmured in reply, his nose nuzzling into your neck, tickling the skin.

“Stop,” you giggled, trying to shrug away.

“No,” you promptly refused, walking the two of you up to the counter to order. Changbin only toned down the affection long enough for you to order once someone came to take your order. The second the worker made their way back to begin your order, Changbin immediately started up his assault on your skin, kissing and nipping at the skin. It tickled, but also you could feel your body heat rising in temperature, and you worried that at any moment someone would come out and see.

“Binnie, stop, someone's gonna see.”

“Nobody's gonna see. This place only ever has a few workers. They won't come out until the pizza's done,” he said in attempts to reassure you, but you still weren't satisfied. “Fine,” he grumbled, his lips pressed right behind your ear.

You assumed he was relenting that he was going to at least wait until the two of you were alone again. That's not what he was doing. Instead, he tightened his grip around your middle and lifted you to a row of seats that were lined up against a nearby wall. You couldn’t help but notice they were placed right next to a section of the wall that jutted out, creating an alcove where even if a worker were to walk out, they wouldn't be able to see anything but your legs from their vantage point. What a sneaky mother fucker your boyfriend was, especially considering that when he set you down he placed you directly next to the protruding section of the wall.

“Think you're being sneaky?” You asked in a coy tone, your lip catching between your teeth as Changbin leaned forward, putting his hand on the protruding wall right next to your head.

“I like to think I can be pretty sneaky when I want to be,” he teased back, his hooded eyes taking in the building color in your cheeks. “Still think someone's gonna see?”

You said nothing, all your focus being pulled towards your boyfriend.

Changbin chuckled, his free hand coming up to draw over your head the hood of his jacket that you were still wearing. You looked so cute in it. He might have to let you have it.

“What about now?” He breathed, slowly leaning in but not closing the gap. You didn't realize when your breathing had sped up, but you did realize the moment you suddenly didn't care if anyone saw. All you cared about was feeling Changbins' lips on yours.

Closing your eyes, you leaned in, slotting your lips over his. Changbin sighed into the kiss, he had been stealing kissing you since you had left the studio, but getting to sit down and properly take in the softness of your plush lips, the lingering sweetness of candy on your breath, the warmth of your skin. If only you weren't in public, he would have you in his arms, on his lap, his hands under your shirt.

You seemed to have read his mind and liked the latter idea because slyly you hand rooted your hands into the hair at the nape of his neck, fisting his raven locks before one hand slid down the back of his neck and slipped under the fabric of his shirt. You were just as lost in him as he was with you. With one hand releasing your hood to caress your cheek, the other hand against the wall by your head, his body beginning to lean over her, all at once you were surrounded in everything that was Changbin.

You were so lost that you didn't notice the bell of the front door ring as someone walked in.

○●☆♡☆●○

Hyunjin sighed in relief as he carded a hand through his newly cropped hair. It had been quite a while since he allowed himself a change in his cut and color. He smiled at himself as he took in his reflection in a nearby window, his hair now short and a dark shade of burgundy. He was hesitant over the short length but was glad he went for it overall. It allowed a proper view of his new brow piercing he had gotten only a couple of days prior. Something about the new look made him feel like he matched the art he had been creating.

With a rumbling tummy, Hyunjin had just one more stop to hit up before going home. Some time during his hair appointment, he had felt the sensation of hunger settling in and had placed an order for pizza from this spot he knew was nestled nearby.

Opening the door, Hyunjin leisurely strolled in, initially missing the couple making out in the chairs nearby as he waved down a worker and told them he had ordered ahead. However, the second he noticed them, he very much wished he hadn't.

‘Gross… Just because the staff can't see you doesn't mean I can't,’ he thought but soon had to check himself, he knew he would be doing the exact same thing with you were he in their place.

The thought of you pulled Hyunjins mood down a bit. Particularly the thought of him kissing you. He had been doing everything in his power to not think of you in that way, especially since the almost-kiss that happened at his place only four days ago. But something about that night had brought every intimate and stolen moment to the forefront of his mind, and, suddenly, he was seeing you everywhere.

Even now, Hyunjin was seeing you in the girl being kissed, hiding in what he presumed to be her boyfriend's hoodie. It was stupid, but Hyunjin wished for a moment that the girl really was you and that he was in the place of the curly haired guy. He wanted to be able to hide away with you one more time, to steal just a few more kisses and to hear more of your shy giggles. If only that guy could be him.

Damn. Was he really getting jealous of strangers right now? Wow, was he getting pathetic. It really didn't help that the girl's legs looked just like yours.

The girl giggled again, and Hyunjin had to physically turn away. Now she was sounding like you, too. Where the hell was his pizza?

Before he could wave down a worker again, Hyunjins eyes darted over to the couple again entirely on their own. Why, he didn't know, all he knew was that when his eyes landed on the “random” couple, his heart cracked. It was you. You and the stupid boyfriend. Hyunjin wondered if you had even noticed that your hood had slipped off your head while you were… having fun. God of all the places, of all the pizza joints, why were you here?

“Y/N?” Hyunjins wavering voice called out to you before he could stop himself, causing you to jolt away from Changbin in surprise.

You didn’t have to look. You knew it was Hyunjin. You knew his voice, having memorized every intonation of it over the years. You couldn't even look at him if you had wanted to. You were too embarrassed. Instead, you squirreled your face away into the crook of Changbins’ neck for protection.

“H-hi Hyunjin,” you squeaked out from your hiding spot. You felt silly hiding from Hyunjin. It's not as if you haven't done worse with him in public places. But at the same time, you also felt like jumping into the pizza oven to be burnt to a crisp. That way, you could avoid the inevitable awkward conversation that was about to come. What was he doing here? Why did he have to catch you kissing Changbin like this? Why did it matter to you so much if you and Hyunjin were just friends now?

“Hwang,” Changbin cut in with a nod of his head, partially in acknowledgment, partially to pull Hyunjins' attention from you.

“Ah, yeah. Hi,” Hyunjin replied stiffly, returning Changbins nod with a curt one of his own but unable to meet the boyfriends eyes. He actually couldn't even bring himself to look at the guy at all.

An awkward silence settled between the three of you, one only broken by a worker pulling Hyunjins attention. It was when you heard Hyunjin speaking to the restaurant worker about how long his food took and being given something extra as compensation that you were able to calm yourself enough to pull your face from Changbins’ neck.

“Still flustered, bunny?” Changbin chuckled, resting back into his chair and pulling you against him with his strong arm. You had only managed to nod as you leaned against Changbins’ strong body, attempting to relax against him as your eyes finally landed on Hyunjin who was only a few feet away from you but felt so much further.

“You changed your hair,” you timidly spoke when Hyunjin finally had his food in hand, “when did that happen?”

Hyunjin paused to look at you and your beet red face, and you couldn't help but notice the red rim to his glassy eyes. Maybe the pain was why he couldn't bring himself to answer you right away. How was he supposed to just talk to you with his heart still aching from watching you kiss someone else? Especially when you looked so comfortable snuggled against The Boyfriends’ side, wearing his hoodie? However, the more he stared at you with that unmistakably hurt gaze, the more unsettled you felt.

“Yo-you also pierced your eyebrow. It looks good on you,” you attempted again, a strained smile pulling at your features. Hyunjins face remained stoic as he continued to stare at you, the air growing stale between you.

This time, it was the sound of Changbin clearing his throat that broke the silence, effectively pulling Hyunjin from his daze. Hyunjin blinked a few moments as if he were refocusing on what was in front of him before turning his gaze away, a hand coming up to scratch at his scalp.

“I just came from the salon, actually. The piercing was the day before yesterday. I was waiting until this weekend to show you. I was hoping I could steal some time to surprise you,” Hyunjin admitted in a hurry, as if trying to make up for the silence he instigated moments earlier.

“Oh, uhm, I'm sorry the surprise got ruined,” you said a little lamely, reaching for Changbins hand as discreetly as possible and squeezing it tightly. Unfortunately, Hyunjin caught this action out of his peripheral vision.

“It's ok, not your fault. Uhm, I gotta go. I don't want my food to get cold,” he said curtly, dashing from the lobby before you could even say goodbye.

“Wait, Hyunjin!” You cried, standing to chase after him but being stopped by the call of your name. The pizza was done, and Hyunjin was long gone.

“Are you okay, Bunny?” Changbin asked as he came up beside you, food in one hand, the other resting comfortingly on your back. You tore your eyes from the door Hyunjin just left through to look at your boyfriend, unsure of how to respond to him.

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

So I tried taking a page out of Miyazaki and writing the more quiet moments, but that's hard to balance! They can easily come off as boring, especially in a strictly written medium. Personally, I think it's easier in a visual medium where you can see the characters being in the moment. I hope I could somewhat convey the concept of "ma" at least a little in this chapter.

Now, onto the story, Solars, come and get yo juice! Lmao, also I'm worried I made Hyunjin come off as a little bit of a twerp when that's not what intended. If that's the case, I'll roll with it, but idk, what do you guys think?

Taglist: @groovygroovyhyunjin @hhwangsmoon @luvyblossom @doggezz@kayleefriedchicken @hyunjinhoexxx @zadkielr @bincxtesworld

#stray kids fanfic #bang chan #han jisung #seo changbin #hwang hyunjin x reader #seo changbin x reader #changbin x reader #hyunjin x reader #skz stay #slow burn #lee felix #angst #pining #mutual pining #what once was mine #Glows Fics #series #established relationship

35 notes · View notes

hogwartsandhawkins · 10 months

Text

Prove Me Wrong

Chapter 4: Looking For Good

Prologue Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6

Summary: Telling Steve she has a new ride to school doesn't go so well.

Warnings: Swearing (but what's new) Billy bullying Max briefly. Also, Billy pressuring reader (Jess) into letting him give her a ride. (I include this because the reader says no after second-guessing her decision, causing Billy to push back, which can have some underlying themes for some, and I wanted to be sensitive to that.) As always, please let me know if I miss anything.

Word Count: 2.4K

Author's note: I know I know, I haven't posted in forever. Moving back to the States was an EVENT, to say the least. I have also been working on this for a while, many chapters are already written and I'll post them as soon as I feel they have been reread enough for them to be slightly okay.

Jess awoke that Sunday morning as she did every Sunday morning: already thinking of an excuse to not attend church that her parents would buy into. Luckily, she didn’t really need to think of one for long as she already had plans to invite Steve over to finally “help” him with his physics project. She was surprised her parents haven’t taken the hint by now, considering that she has been avoiding that place like the 10 plagues of Egypt ever since she experienced the capabilities of the upside down, and of course, Eleven. But since skipping downstairs and laying out why she refused to go was a blatant impossibility, she merely explained that Steve needed her help. Thankfully, she didn’t have parents like Steve. Instead of the guilt trip, she received a slightly disappointed “tisk” from her mother, who then told her they’d miss her.

Jess watched as her parents exited through the garage door, which was located next to the pantry in the kitchen, then proceeded to dial the Harrington’s line. She knew Steve would be up, as his parents were always explaining how if he wouldn’t go to church, he at least needed to be productive on his Sunday mornings, which involved him getting up at the same time as Mr. and Mrs. Harrington, at least when they were home.

“Yup?” Steve’s voice was groggy and laced with what Jess sensed as resentment, most likely caused by his mother’s usual “seize the day” spiel followed by her opening the blinds that shielded Steve’s bedroom from the unwelcomed amount of light.

“Good morning to you too, Harrington.”

His voice seemed to pick up a bit when he heard who was on the other side of the phone. “Oh hey, Jess, how’s your morning been? Better than mine I hope…” Steve’s voice lowered to a whisper at the last part he added.

Jess ignored the question and went straight into asking him to come over so they could finally get his physics project out of the way. With the promise of Steve being allowed to hide out for the rest of the day at her house and an afternoon nap, he quickly agreed and was knocking on the Logan’s door in no more than 20 minutes.

Steve set the box full of different shaped and sized lenses, stands, a light, and everything else Steve was instructed by Jess to bring. “So. How was Friday with Hargrove?” He visibly tensed as he said his name, shaking his head in disgust after thinking about it for too long.

“It was fine.” Jess tried to avoid eye contact as she began setting up his quick focal point experiment, bringing out the ruler as she set up the first lens.

“Fine? That’s all you have to say about a day with Hargrove? Fine?”

She couldn’t help but laugh at Steve’s response, “What did you expect?”

“Really?” was all he could say. He flipped the switch of the battery-powered light to “on”, and then gave Jess a knowing, disapproving look. She didn’t even have to look back at him to know exactly what Steve was expecting: a disaster.

“I mean, he, unfortunately, has a thing for my mom, I’m pretty sure. But it’s Hargrove. He’s gross. That’s about it.”

Jess didn’t know how to tell him that it really wasn’t that bad, or worse, that she may have had an okay time studying with him this weekend. She was also now realizing she didn’t know how to tell him that Billy Hargrove was under the impression that he would be taking her to school tomorrow morning.

She decided maybe the best approach was to do so while Steve was distracted, so as they continued replacing the lenses and repositioning the stand, she started out slowly. “So… you know how Max and Billy live, like, right down the street?”

“Uh-huh…” Steve didn’t look up from his notes, working out the equation for the last lens they set up.

“Well, Max and him were wanting to give me a ride Monday… To school I mean.”

Unfortunately for Jess, he was well aware Max and him just meant him, so he looked up from his notes, amused at the thought of Jess turning him down. “Ha! Did Hargrove throw a fit when you told him ‘No’?”

“He didn’t really accept ‘no’ for an answer…” Not that I exactly tried hard enough to tell him “No”.

Steve dropped his notebook on her coffee table with a plop and then turned back his attention to Jess, who was now holding a tight-lined smile on her face, ready for the anticipated ridicule she was about to receive. “Oh come on. You know, kid, you really need to grow a backbone.”

“I honestly think you’re making it out to be worse than it is. I mean, Max will be there. Plus, it’d save you the time and the gas. I’m like the opposite direction of school for you anyways.”

Steve considered this for about a millisecond before shaking his head rapidly, “I’m sorry, call me crazy, but it seems like you want him to pick you up.” When Jess didn’t answer right away, he continues, “Oh Jesus H, you’re not serious!”

“No! I don’t want him to, but I mean… I think he just wants to study one last time before school, you know, for the quiz and stuff…”

“Look, I don’t like the idea of you around him. When I came to that night in the back of that car and you weren’t there, I freaked.” He then lets out a sigh before continuing, “You just need to be careful with him is all I’m saying.”

“I am.” But that was a lie. There was nothing careful about what was going on. There was nothing careful about him coming over to her room, being able to look through the intimacies of her life. There was nothing careful about spending time at his home, alone with him. There was nothing careful about allowing herself to laugh at his jokes, or allowing him to buy not only her but her parents dinner. And there was nothing careful about getting in the car with him, giving him permission to take her wherever he wanted.

As if reading her mind, he ducked down slightly to meet her gaze, “Jess. I promise. You’re looking for good where there isn’t any.” He then gave her a sympathetic smile and picked up his notebook, continuing to jot down what he thought was the correct answer to the equation.

After a few hours and many corrections made by Jess, they were finally done with the physics lab. She assured Steve they could pick up the materials later and allowed him the couch to take that nap he was promised, and after she made sure she heard him snoring, she grabbed three muffins from the container in the fridge and walked over to the Hargrove/Mayfield household.

As it was three in the afternoon, she wasn’t sure whether Billy would be home from work, but seeing his Camaro in the driveway answered her question of whether or not to knock on the door. It seemed as though Max and Billy were the only two home, something Jess was grateful for considering her first run-in with Mr. Hargrove was not as pleasant as most of her run-ins with other adults. When Max opened the door, she looked excited to see her, but immediately looked behind her and shut the door, holding in her excitement until she was sure Billy couldn’t hear.

“Hey! Oh, you should have seen Dustin’s hair Friday! It was insane.” Max then realizes Jess is holding not one, but three muffins in her hand, and cocks her head to the left. “Are all of those for me?”

“Well, one is, but I’m actually here to talk to Billy for a few seconds. Is he here?”

Max took one of the muffins, bit into it, and then proceeded to talk in between bites. “Ew. Why?”

“It’s about him taking me to school on Monday…”

At this, Max’s distaste turns back into excitement. “Wait, we’re taking you with us?”

“Well, no, not anymore, I was thinking I’d stick to Steve taking me to school.”

“MAX! WHO’S AT THE DOOR?!”

“NOBODY!” Max rolled her eyes before continuing, “Please, please, pleeeaaasee let us pick you up tomorrow. He might actually not be such an ass if you’re there.” As she finished her pleading, the door swung open, with none other than Billy Hargrove standing at the entrance.

“Hey, princess, couldn’t wait to see me?” It was Jess’s turn to roll her eyes as she handed the remaining two muffins to Billy.

“Hey! Why does he get two?”

Jess ignored Max’s annoyed expression and proceeded to change the subject. “So I’m just going to ride with Steve tomorrow. Don’t worry about picking me up.”

Before Billy could respond, Max continued from earlier, “Tell Steve we’ll bring you to school in one piece.”

“You heard the little shit, we’ll make sure to take real good care of you. Plus, I need you in the morning.”

“Why?” Max’s look of disgust made a return, which seemed to irritate Billy as he coldly looked back at her and ordered her back inside.

“She can stay if she wants to stay.” Jess began to remember why she took a disliking to him in the first place. It was easy to forget how… awful... Billy could be if he wasn’t sitting there joking with you, actively trying to be nice to you. You’re looking for good where there isn’t any. The thought made Jess clench her jaw only slightly, but enough to make Billy notice. “Yeah, I’ll just ride with Steve. See you, Hargrove.” She then allowed herself to give him a short smile before heading back in the direction of her home.

He had only watched her walk away for a second until he decided he needed to catch up to her, not liking how that conversation ended. Billy pushed the muffins at Max without thinking and started striding after Jess. “Hang on there, Logan,” he mocked the way she spat out his own last name, “You gotta help me study before the quiz.”

“I don’t gotta do anything.” There it was: the attitude that Billy was sure they have gotten passed. It made him pull his body back in recoil, being discomforted by the thought that she may not have been warming up to him this weekend after all. Sure, it really had only been two days, but he was enjoying her company, considering it was better compared to who usually kept him company, and he could have sworn she felt the same, at least a little bit? “Look, I already promised I wouldn’t say anything about our reading sessions or your dad, okay? You don’t need to keep an eye on me. I’ll see you for our next project.”

“Keep an eye on you? Did I do something wro-“

“I don’t like the way you talk to Max.” She blurted out, which surprised both her and Billy, and when Billy couldn’t think of anything else to say, she continued, “I don’t like the way you talk to anyone actually. Or about anyone. Or with anyone. You- you’re just. You don’t…” Jess didn’t know any other way to say it, “You’re not a nice person, Billy. And I don’t have time for that. So thanks for the offer, but I’m not interested.” She stayed looking at Billy, who refused to look anywhere other than his feet. He began to run his tongue across his top row of teeth, mouth shut and downturned, and began to nod, as if he was thinking about what was said. He then looked up, still not at her, but to her house where he saw a familiar vehicle in her driveway: Pretty Boy’s BMW.

Makes sense. He thought to himself. “So I’m guessing King Steve didn’t approve when you told him, huh?”

The question irritated Jess even more. Not just for the mere fact that Billy didn’t believe she could make her own decisions, but just hours ago Steve accused her of the same. “I can decide for myself who takes me where. Thanks.” Silence. “Did you not listen to a thing I said? I said I don’t want to be around you because you’re an asshole, not because Steve said ‘no’!”

“Oh no, I heard you, Jess. It just seems weird to me that last night you were completely fine with me taking you and now when Steve’s over, you tell me to fuck off.”

“When did I ever say I wanted you to take me to school? When you asked me, or excuse me, told me you were taking me, did I once say, ‘yes’? Did I once ask you to take me to school?” Billy was now looking at Jess with an expression she didn’t recognize, which made her uncomfortable enough to look away.

“Can I take you to school tomorrow, please?” But the softness in his voice jerked her gaze back to him, trying to analyze him, to see if there was any hint of insincerity. He quickly looked over his shoulder before continuing. “You’re right. I didn’t ask. And I’m sorry. You don’t have to say yes, but shi-Max wants you to come with, and, I… want you to too. So.” This made Jess furrow her brows. In some ways, he was right. She had every intention of going with him until this morning. She wanted to help him study, considering how much work he put into their reading sessions this weekend. But of course, Steve was also right. There was no way around it, Billy was a dick. To his sister, to his sister’s friends, to her friends, even to his own friends.

When it was made obvious to Billy she didn’t seem ready to respond, he sighed and continued, “Look, I’ll be at your house at the same time I told you last night, if you don’t come out then I’ll leave, okay?”

“I’ll help you study.” Is all Jess said in response to his offer, and began to walk back to her house. Billy took what he could get and nodded after she had already turned away, and did the same, returning back to his house. Billy didn’t realize that Max stayed out by their doorway, attempting to watch the whole thing. Before he could give her shit for being nosey, he replayed Jess’s words in his head. “Give me those,” is all he said as he took the muffins from her hands and went back to his weights.

#billy hargrove #billy hargrove fanfiction #billy hargrove stranger things #billy deserved better #billy hargrove imagine #billy hargrove x reader #billy stranger things #billy x reader #billy hargrove antis dni #antis dni #stranger things #stranger things 4 #stranger things 3 #stranger things 2

67 notes · View notes

dingochef · 11 months

Text

Take Care

Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x You (OFC)

Warnings: Swearing, Smut (MDNI 18+ Only), Angst with a Happy Ending, Stalking, P in V, oral (female and male receiving), Semi-public sex, light spanking,

Word Count: 3.1k

Summary: Jake takes of El, even if it's from afar and while their relationship hangs in peril.

This is a one shot to my series Stepping to You Toe-to-Toe. Best read after Chapter 12: Cliche.

Masterlist

The moment Jake hangs up with Wolfie about calling in a favor to get Elsa a security system today, he is still plagued by the need to do something, something more to protect Elsa.

He wryly notes that Elsa would be half annoyed because she's said on more than one occasion, "I'm a grown ass woman who can and has taken care of herself, thank you very much." The other half would be secretly touched but the gesture. That stranglehold of sadness of just how much he's fucked things up with her closes in around his heart and he tries to push it away and think of something to he can fix right now.

He recalls her story about letting Creepy Bill have it and Millie backing her up. He knows Millie, she's Phoenix's aunt or something and has been at a few celebrations. He calls Phoenix.

"Come on, come on, pick up, he mutters to himself as he paces around the small kitchen.

Finally, a groggy voice answers, "Hangman, what the fuck do you want on a Sunday morning?"

"Good morning to you too, I need your Aunt Millie's number. "

Jake hears the absolute confusion in her voice,

"Why on earth do you want her number? Trying to move on after Elsa? I'm pretty sure Millie's wife Candace is going to have a few issues with that."

Phoenix's razor sharp wit doesn't take long to come online in the morning.

He gives her the fastest recap of the whole situation he can and finishes with,

"Millie probably has Bill's address."

"Figures creepy old man is involved. One, you're going to promise me that you'll bring someone with you capable of preventing you from beating this dude into a pulp and getting you court martialed. Two, don't think this is going to be enough to get back with Elsa. You know you have a looooooot of shit fix," she says, drawing out the o in a lot to a long syllable.

"I know, I just want to be able to do something, even if she never wants to see my face again," he pauses, the thought creating a deep ache in his chest, "Can you help me out?"

She sighs, it almost sounds like sympathy, and says,

"Yeah, I'll text it to you. Give me a quick sec to call her and let her know what's up."

"Thank you, Phoenix."

"Later Hangman," and then she adds a little more softly, "Good Luck."

He paces around the small house for five minutes trying to wait long enough to call Millie.

A text comes in from Phoenix.

Phoenix: Millie is pissed so she just gave me Bill's address with the promise you won't do anything stupid, I gave her an 85% guarantee on that.

Phoenix: Bill Wilson

8585 Saturna Court

La Jolla

Phoenix: DON'T DO ANYTHING STUPID!

Jake: Thank you.

He gets dressed quickly throwing on some jeans, a white t-shirt, and his bomber jacket. His next stop is Rooster's room. Jake doesn't spare the door when he raps on it to wake Rooster up.

"What that fuck, who is it?" Rooster groans.

"It's me, Hangman, get up. I need a favor from you."

"Fuck off," he shouts back.

"Rooster, this is the least you could do after the shit you pulled last night. It's about Elsa, some guy is stalking her."

"Fine, fine, let me put some god damn clothes on."

"Try to look intimidating."

"Yeah, ok." Rooster snorts.

A few minutes later he emerges wearing a black t-shirt and jeans. They're out the door and walking towards Jake's car. Jake starts the car and pulls away, headed off the island and towards La Jolla.

"So what's the deal and why do you need me to go with you?" He asks.

Jake runs him through the situation and gets him up to speed.

"So, we're going to go beat up some old guy who can't take a hint, or in this case a giant fucking billboard?"

"No, just more of a come to Jesus talk and to scare him a little bit. Phoenix made me promise to bring someone so 'I wouldn't do anything stupid.'"

"Okay, what do you need me to do?"

"Basically just stand there and try to look intimidating, I'll do the talking."

"Okey dokey."

They find Creepy Bill's house and park at the curb. As they walk up to the house, Jake tells Rooster,

"Put your sunglasses on,"

Rooster snorts and points to the very overcast sky,

"It's for effect, dumbass."

Rooster rolls his eyes and complies.

As they stand on the small porch, Jake asks Rooster,

"Ready?"

He nods.

Jake gives three sharp raps on the door, not bothering with the doorbell.

There is a small amount of shuffling and then the door opens to a man in his 50s with slightly graying hair who is a couple of inches shorter than Jake or Rooster

"Are you Bill Wilson?" Jake asks.

The older man nods,

"Yes, that's me. What can I help you with?"

"You and I have a mutual acquaintance, Elsa Matthews."

He interrupts Jake and says,

"Oh yeah, Elsa, lovely girl."

He licks his lips subconsciously in a way that makes Jake's stomach turn. Jake takes a steadying breath and tamps down the overwhelming urge to grind this guy into a pulp.

"Here's the deal, Elsa is a friend of ours," he emphasizes the word friend and uses his thumb to point at himself and Rooster,

"And she made it known that despite giving a clear picture of how she sees you in her life, which is not at all, you keep pushing. We're not too happy with the stunt you pulled with the roses. Which by the way, she said were cliche as shit. So, Elsa has made it perfectly clear for you to stay away and you should be getting a piece of paper today from the police making that even more clear. I just want to add that Elsa has a lot of friends like us, especially a lot that live really close to her on Coronado Island and might not be as level headed next time you do something stupid. You got any questions, Billy boy?"

The old man has gone white in the face and manages to stutter out, "No, no. I get it."

"Good boy, you learn quick. I think we're done here." Jake turns around and motions to Rooster and he follows.

They get back in the car and Rooster speaks first as they pull away.

"I'm surprised, you actually held your shit together and didn't pummel him into the ground."

"Hah, he's a sad old man that thinks he bully his way into a woman's life, but when faced by any real man he's a total chicken shit."

"I gathered that, so now what? You going to go to Elsa and be her knight in shining armor to redeem yourself?"

"No, she doesn't need to know about this. I said I'd give her space and unlike that asshat back there I respect that. I just thought if I could do one last thing for her, I could feel a little better for being a giant asshole and ruining a good thing."

"Shit dude, you're in love with this girl. Huh, never thought I'd see the day Hangman fell in love. Can I buy a ski lift ticket in hell now?"

"First of all, fuck off, Rooster. Two, who wouldn't fall for Elsa, she's smart and funny as get out, a genuinely good person, hot as hell, and just gets me. Like me, Jake, not Hangman, just Jake."

Rooster let's put a low whistle,

"Oh shit, this is real," he pauses, "I'm starting to feel a little bit bad about telling her about the bet, a little bit," he holds his fingers a tiny bit apart. He continues, "What about her? Is the feeling mutual?"

"God, I hope so. I see these moments where she's unguarded about something and I can feel her being vulnerable and then it's gone. She's been hurt before, I can tell. I've got to earn her love.'

"Well good luck dude, just because we've had this little talk doesn't mean I like you any more and or I won't stop secretly hoping you crash. But you and I both know she deserved to know the truth."

"Fair, funny thing is that I was already planning to try again and then you laid down that stupid bet and I agreed it. A decision I hope won't haunt me for the rest of my life."

They arrive back at the house they're sharing and get out. Jake leans over the car roof and says to Rooster,

"Don't worry about us becoming bros, the dislike remains mutual."

"Whatever, dude," Rooster sniffs and walks into the house.

Jake heads to his room and flops down on the bed. He pulls out his phone to send Elsa one last text. His heart pangs at the photo of her I set as the background, it's her in front of the B-29 where they talked about the nose art. He set it as his background as soon as he took jt. She is mirroring the pin up girl's arms holding them up and has pulled up one of her legs with the knee bent in front of her. Her bright smile shining through. He scrubs his face as he sighs and unlocks his phone and pulls up the text app.

Jake: Bill won't be bothering you anymore.

He puts his phone aside and decides to go for a run just for something to do. The run around base is quiet as it's a Sunday with little activity. Running as far as he can to feel exhausted Jake makes his way back to the house.

Jake showers and grabs something to eat and sits on the couch turning the TV mostly for the noise, something to fill his brain other than the replay loop of Elsa's face from the bar last night, her saying "I do, Lieutenant" and the look in her eyes from yesterday in the car, and a quick succession of her laughing, the way she feels under his arm when they were cuddling on her couch, the feeling of waking up to her sleeping face, and what feels like a million more memories. He scrubs his face in frustration and keeps looking at his phone hoping that something will come through. Jake decides to read a book as a distraction, somewhere between the last murder and the brilliant detective monologue he must have fallen asleep.

Jake awakens to a gentle knock on our door, he gets up to open it and it's Lydia. He didn't realize he had gotten his hopes up in the five feet to the door that it would be Elsa. Rooster's room is dark, indicating he's not there.

"Hi Lydia, Rooster is out, but you're welcome to wait for him," Jake informs her.

"Yeah, he said he'd be about a half an hour but to just go on and meet him here," she replies.

Ever the polite host, Jake offers Lydia a drink. She chooses a beer and sits down on the armchair that makes up the second piece of the extravagant Navy issued living room set.

"So how's it hanging, Hangman?" she asks, knowing that he's heard that question a million times before. Jake decides to wave off a smooth response and replies,

"Not great and that's mostly your boy's doing."

"What'd he do? Short sheet your bed, put itching powder in your jockstrap," she pauses, "Wait do guys even really use those ever?"

"No nothing that juvenile, he talked his big mouth and told Elsa about I bet that I took and called off and she is understandably pissed off at me."

Lydia stops mid sip,

"Wait, what do you mean a bet you took and called off. Explain, and how does that involve Elsa?"

"Rooster bet me I couldn't get into Elsa's bed within a week from the night she blasted me at the Hard Deck. The thing was that I was already trying to figure out a way to contact her."

Lydia snorts,

"You're not the first one to become entranced by Elsa, but you might be the only one to get murdered by her and actually come back. So, the bet, you said you took it, why?"

He sighs,

"Because I am apparently a very stupid man who is easily goaded into doing stupid things by your boy, Rooster."

"I gathered that," she says dryly, sipping her beer.

"I didn't collect on it when Phoenix announced loudly that I'd woken up at a girl's house and Rooster confirmed it was Elsa's. I regretted taking the bet as soon as I said yes. I hope I don't regret it for the rest of my life."

Lydia sighs,

"I'll deal with Rooster, although this giant pile of dog shit you have to climb out of is entirely your doing." Jake nods in agreement.

"I'm more pissed Rooster fucked up something that good for Elsa, forget you, no offense." Jake shrugs the comment off.

She pauses for a long moment and looks off to her side, sucking in a deep breath she says,

"I'm going to tell you something about Elsa that she probably hasn't told you. She doesn't open her heart easily."

"I know that, there's these moments when I see these glimpses of her, really her, and then she shuts the door and changes the subject."

"Good, you're at least aware of that, that's a good start. Did you know that Elsa was engaged once?"

"No, she didn't talk about that."

"Yeah, it's not really something she likes to relive. She was engaged to this guy, Liam, who worked with her at SpaceX. She thought it was the real deal and they were living together. She came up with an amazing new design for getting satellites out of the rocket that made things way more efficient, like a solid make your career kind of innovation. The bastard beat her into work on Monday and presented the designs as his own. She only found out because she walked in on the end of the meeting. He didn't get why it was a big deal.''

Jake's eyes widen at that thought, to know Elsa was to know how proud she was of her work and the impact it has on the world. He couldn't think of a quicker way to kill off a relationship with her than to degrade, not value, not respect her work, her amazing brain, basically her. What a fucking idiot.

"She dumped his ass, told her boss everything, quit her job, packed up her shit from their apartment, left him his shitty ring, and drove back to Michigan that day."

"Holy shit, she doesn't mess around. Then she moved here."

"Yeah, and she's had a few relationships, but they've ended when guys get insecure because she's like a 1000 times smarter than them, or that fact she makes more money than them, stupid ego stuff. It just made her harder and she protects her heart."

"So, why are you telling me all this?" Jake asks.

Lydia sighs again,

"Because maybe I'm a hopeless romantic, but mostly because there's been a spark in Elsa and a joy I haven't seen in her for years. For some reason, you, perhaps one of the most egotistical guys on the planet, actually makes her happy. I thought if you knew some of her background you might be able to dig yourself out of this epic hole you've dug for yourself."

She goes on,

"I know you want to run to her and confess your soul to her, but let me repeat, give her space to think. You push too hard, you'll just push her away. If you get a second chance, don't fuck it up because if you break her heart again I will hunt you down and make your balls into earrings." The last sentence is said with such deadly seriousness, that Jake doesn't doubt Lydia's intent for a second.

"Thank you, Lydia. This helps, it helps a lot."

Rooster has chosen this moment to appear, his face lights up at the sight of Lydia and then turns to confusion as he sees the look on her face.

Jake takes that as his cue to leave and escape to his room, as soon as he shuts the door, Lydia says, in a deadly tone,

"Bradley Fucking Michael Bradshaw, you've got some shit to explain."

"Umm, babe what are you talking about?" The alarm in his voice is apparent and Jake is glad he is getting his ass chewed out.

"I heard about a bet you laid down about Elsa, my best friend for 15 fucking years, and then decided to tell her about last night."

There is a long pause as Rooster thinks up a battle plan. He says slowly,

"Yes, there was a bet that Hangman technically won, but that he called off."

"And that bet was?" Lydia asks him, waiting for him to answer.

"That he could get in Elsa's pants in a week."

"First of all, how gross. I get the stupid betting, but on that it's just disgusting. Second of all, Jake said he was already wanting to see Elsa again before the bet, but he let his ego lead him instead of his brain and he took it. He's got to clean up his mess, that's on him for that colossally terrible mistake. I'm more pissed at you that you would deliberately ruin what is or was turning into something good for Elsa. That girl has had some serious heartbreak and for some reason Hangman has been good for her."

Rooster has moved into full apology mode,

"Babe, I am so sorry. Let me make it up to you."

He is shuffling through the usual playlist of apologies trying to find something that sticks.

Lydia cuts him off,

"Rooster, you're a smart guy," Jake snorts where he is leaning against the door at that statement,

"You can't tell me you haven't seen a difference in Hangman. You can tell the boy is stupidly falling in love, why would you ruin that for anyone? You guys are supposed to have each other's backs up in the air, why would you do something that shitty down here?"

"I don't know."

Lydia sighs,

"Well, think about it, Rooster, I'm going home. Maybe we'll talk later."

The door opens and softly closes. Jake sprints to his bed and lays down like he hasn't been listening with his ear to the door. He expects Rooster to come barging in to start a fist fight, instead all Jake hears is the door to his room shutting quietly and the house is eerily silent.

@starswholistenanddreamsanswered

@mayhemmanaged

@callmemana

@dempy

@hangmanscoming

@lanie-k

@callsign-viper

@senjoritanana

@djs8891

@atarmychick007

@memoriesat30

@genius2050

#top gun maverick #hangman #hangman fanfiction #hangman x you #jake hangman seresin x reader #jake hangman seresin x you #jake seresin fanfiction #jake seresin x you #top gun fanfiction #top gun smut

73 notes · View notes

silent-dark-entries · 10 months

Text

This is probably one of my favorite chapters from my Draco Smut I’m writing. :))

I love the sound of the crunchy leaves under my feet. It's too bad it's been raining all day and those crunchy leaves have quickly turned into mush for slugs to hide under. I don't mind though. I love rain on Sunday mornings.

I'm on my way into the village to meet Harry, Hermione, Ron and Neville. Miss.Longbottom will be out of town this Halloween and of course Neville decided to throw another party. I'm meeting them to pick out costumes. I have my mind set on just getting vampire teeth and leaving it at that.

As I approach the seasonal store I see my friends laughing together. Harry is the first to wave at me. We've grown closer to each other as the days go on, being forced to only talk to each other in swim on the days that Neville was sick.

"Maisie, what’s your opinion on Neville being a cactus for Halloween." Harry says pushing me along into the group. Neville rolls his eyes at Harry and pouts.

"Luna is going to be a Oxalis triangularis. It's a matching costume." Neville states.

"Neville for the last time: you're the only one who knows with the hell that is." Ron says. Neville turns to the store door and swings it open letting the rest of the group inside.

"You'll get it on Friday when we win best costume at school and you're stuck in your bloody rat costume." Neville snaps.

"My mums making my costume." Ron mumbles. Everyone laughs as we pour into the shop going our separate ways. Hermione and I head to the women's costumes.

"What are you thinking ‘Mione?" I say rustling through a couple of costumes. Seeing all of the different costumes makes me want to reevaluate my vampire teeth plan. But I hate to spend money, especially with application season approaching. I've decided that Trinity is the school I want to go and that's going to take most of my savings for the next five years.

"Maybe I'll be Cormac's grades, that's scary enough." She huffs. " You know Neville asked him to come Friday."

I laugh at Hermione who's so flustered her face turns crimson.

"How's it going with Malfoy? You never really talk about it." Hermione adds. I bite the inside of my lips and try not the look her in the face. When it comes to tutoring Draco it's going great. His grades in English have improved drastically compared to last years. He doesn't have one missing assignment and his book is coming along, though it's as boring as can be. But in the other sense of what happened physically between Draco and me, we both agreed to start meeting in public spaces like the library after school. We didn't really discuss the whole make out session but surely chalked up as being high. I also blame the rain and the Bauhaus album in the background.

I shrug at Hermione. " He's smarter than one might think."

Hermione picks up and pointy hat from the top shelf and places it on her head. "Maybe I'll be a witch?" She says looking into the mirror.

"I'm starving" Ron grumbles. Ron and I waiting outside the sweets shop for rest of the group while Neville ordered jelly filled brains in bulk for Friday. I swears they're the best thing he's ever eaten.

"We're going to the pub right after this Ron." I say.

"Yeah, a shit pub." He adds.

"Why does it matter. You eat off the kids menus anyway..." I mutter. Ron laughs and looks up at me again. His smile fades into a serious stare.

"I think we should talk about the last Neville party..." Ron says. "You know, after our...uh, kiss. You ran off after and I just don't want to mess anything up. We were just starting to become friends and then I asked if you wanted to go in private....it was inappropriate. I'm just really sorry."

"Ron, I'm okay. It's okay." I say smiling. Suddenly from across the way theres a familiar loud high pitched laugh. It's Pansy Parkinson alone with Draco.

Though I try not to, I see Draco in a different way now. When I see him in the halls, I stare. Just hoping he'd do the same. Sometimes he does the same. I catch him at lunch staring at me and when I do he looks away almost immediately. When we have our tutoring sessions I'll look up from my books and see him staring and not just at my breast. Sometimes he stares at my thighs and at my neck, but mostly at my lips and eyes.

Pansy let's out another annoying squeal.

"You know, he's not that funny." I say to Ron as Pansy and Draco disappears into a bakery. "You know what... I'm in the mood for a lemon sponge." Before Ron can answer I'm pulling him across the street, into the small bakery. Draco and Pansy turns to look at us and I feel my face turns hot. What the hell was I thinking...what's my next move...think dammit.

"Look Draco its Fire Crotch and big-tits-magee" pansy squeals.

"Please Parkinson your laugh is far too annoying for this small space." Draco cringes. Pansy's face drops as she rolls her eyes. Draco searches my face before finding my eyes. He softens his face a little before looking at Ron and then back at me. His face nearly becomes stone. "Is it cold in here or are you just happy to see me Maisie?"

"Don't talk to her like that." Ron says. "Have some fucking respect Malfoy"

Draco looks over at me and smiles then back at Ron. "Who are you Weasley? Her fucking bodyguard? Oh, or are you her boyfriend?" Draco quips. Ron walks up trying to size up Draco but Ron's stature doesn't stand a chance to Draco's.

"You sound a little jealous Draco..." Ron jabbed.

"Oh, trust me, Weasley I have nothing to be jealous of." Spits Draco. Pansy grabs her treat off the counter and snakes her arm with Draco's. "See you Thursday night Maisie. How about we meet at my house this time." Draco smiles at Ron before pushing passed him and exiting the bakery.

"You don't have to take that Maisie.." Ron scoffs. "We can go straight to Snape and-"

"-Please Ron leave it!" I beg.

"What can I get for you?" The boy behind the counter ask.

I dig into my pocket to pull out my wallet. "Two lemon sponges please"

#draco smut #draco x reader #draco fanfiction #draco malfoy #draco #draco x y/n #harry potter #draco malfoy smut #draco lucius malfoy #slytherin #hogwarts #hp fandom

24 notes · View notes

misshoneyimhome · 6 months

Text

Chapter 10 -

Prologue I 01 I 02 I 03 I 04 I 05 I 06 I 07 I 08 I 09 I 10 I 11 I 12 I 13 I 14.I I 14.II

Summary: In December, the pace quickens with a flurry of hockey games, work commitments, a bit of Christmas shopping, more work, and lively snowball fights;

Tags; William NylanderxOfc; “We never go out of style”

Author's Note: So, these chapters are growing a tad, but I can't help it; my imagination is on a run, I think (Sorry, not sorry); and I had a dream about a snowball fight with Willy, so, naturally, I had to include it; I hope you’ll enjoy this chapter! 😉

Words: 6.1K

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas"

As the Sunday morning light slowly crept in, Julia stirred from her slumber, disturbed by the gentle nudging of Pablo at her feet. It took her a few moments to orient herself, but as she blinked away the remnants of sleep, a warm smile spread across her face. Nestled in the comfort of William's guest room, she had slept like a baby, and it seemed the two furry companions, Pablo and Banksy, had kept her company through the night.

Before tending to her morning routine and slipping into her clothes from yesterday, Julia couldn't resist capturing a snapshot of the dogs snuggled up in the bed and sending it to William. And as she made her way to the bathroom, she mentally thanked herself for always being prepared having a small bag with basic essentials and an extra pair of knickers in her bag. Then with the dogs fed and exercised during their morning stroll, she returned to the condo and indulged in a well-deserved morning coffee while responding to William's message.

Wonka: God morgon, hjärtat 😉 how did you sleep? JJ: God morgon 😊 I swear it's been ages since I last had such a peaceful night's rest - how about you? Wonka: I slept alright but we had to get up early to hit the road… 🥱 JJ: Early mornings have never been your forte 😂 Wonka: Nope, and they never will be! 😂 JJ: Perhaps that's why you're always fashionably late to most things? 😂 Wonka: That might just be the trick, babe! 😂 JJ: Anyway, the fur babies are fed and have had their morning walk, so I'll be heading out soon enough 😊 Wonka: Awesome! You're a lifesaver JJ ☺️ JJ: I know 😊 but it's my pleasure

After finishing her coffee, Julia said goodbye to the doodles and made her way home. She had just enough time to shower and get dressed before she’d meet up with Charlie and Clara for a lunch date. Making sure she’d remembered everything, she closed the door behind her, though she knew she’d come back soon enough later in the evening.

Monday came around, and Julia just paid a brief visit to the dogs, ensuring they were well and in good spirits. However, the following Tuesday marked another away game, and she found herself back on the familiar sofa at William's place, accompanied by the cheerful company of the dogs. With a rather delicious meal cooked (if she had to say so herself), her work laptop, and a warm blanket she was all set for face off. And the match turned out to be a massive victory for the Leafs against the Dallas Stars, securing an impressive 4-0 result. It was a game to remember, with the team firing on all cylinders and delivering a dominating performance.

Julia couldn't contain her joy and leaped in exhilaration, the dogs following suit with their boundless energy, and following the match, she had a quick post-game chat with William.

And before they knew it, the boys were back in Toronto, riding high on the wave of their success. The win had undoubtedly boosted their confidence and left fans eagerly anticipating the next game. The atmosphere in the locker room must have been electric after such a convincing victory, and the Leafs were proving once again why they were a force to be reckoned with in the league.

Thursday 8th - LAK 0 @ TOR 5

On this cold Thursday evening in December, Julia found herself at the home game in the company of Andrew and Tyler. Andrew had been swamped with work, and initially, he wasn't too keen on leaving the office for a hockey game. However, Julia recognised his need to take a break and unwind, and she convinced him to join her, which turned out to be just what he needed, and he appreciated Julia's care and thoughtfulness. As for Tyler, he was simply thrilled to be attending a hockey game.

Tyler had become a massive fan of William ever since their Halloween night adventure, and his enthusiasm had only grown after William had taken him for the special private training session. And as they settled into their seats at the game, the young boy's excitement was palpable. Even though he was just shy of eight years old, Tyler's passion for hockey knew no bounds. He eagerly rattled off hockey stats, player information, and game tactics as if he were a seasoned pro.

And as the game began, Tyler’s attention, as well as Julia’s and Andrew’s, was fully captured. The match was fast paced, the arena buzzing with excitement, and the Maple Leafs took control right from the start. The atmosphere was electric as the Leafs scored an impressive 5 goals, while the Kings remained at a frustrating zero.

And following the match, the usual group of partners and friends gathered outside the locker room, excitement filling the air.

While waiting for the players to finish their post-game showers and media obligations, Tyler's excitement was evident as he chattered away about the match.

"I swear this boy has to become a sports commentator," Julia joked, leaning slightly into Andrew, who responded with an agreeing laughter.

The hallway of the Scotiabank Arena was filled with high spirits after the convincing victory, with laughter and lively conversations permeating the air.

And as the rest of the players emerged from the locker room, exchanging smiles and energetic greetings with friends and families, William's laughter was unmistakable as he made his way toward Julia and her companions for the evening.

"Hey Willy!" Tyler exclaimed with unbridled excitement.

"Hey buddy," William warmly embraced the young boy in a hug, his handsome face sporting a wide grin as he fully embraced the role of Tyler's role model and favourite Leafs player. "How have you been? Have you been practicing real good?"

"Yes! I've also scored in almost every game," Tyler proudly shared, his eyes filled with pride and glory as he described the tricks that William had taught him.

As the young boy's storytelling came to an almost breathless conclusion, Julia couldn't help but chuckle and smile. She found it incredibly endearing how good William was with his young fans and how much he loved and cared for them.

"Well, that sounds great, buddy," William applauded Tyler, before turning his attention to the blonde woman in front of him. "And how have you been?" His smirk added a playful touch to his question.

"Busy but good, thank you for asking," Julia replied with a warm smile.

"You've enjoyed my condo?" William's question was laced with a smug satisfaction, as he was well aware of the answer.

Julia, however, didn't want to give him the complete satisfaction. "Maybe..." she teasingly replied, earning a light chuckle from the Swede.

“I get it - it’s a nice place.”

They both shared a heartfelt moment of joy, basking in their connection, before William was called over to greet the numerous young fans who were eager to meet their idols, snap photos, and secure autographs. True to form, he welcomed them with his characteristic wide smile and boundless energy.

As the night progressed and the fans gradually left the area, the players, along with their partners and friends, gathered to chat about their Christmas plans. Everyone was super excited about the upcoming holiday however it seemed that the players’ schedule was rather packed. Nonetheless, it didn’t stop those around them to plan events and gatherings in between games and training sessions.

All the women had already made plans to go Christmas shopping while the guys were occupied, giving them the freedom to enjoy their time together.

As the night drew to a close, Tyler said his goodbyes to his hockey heroes, and Andrew took him home, knowing the young boy would drift off to sleep with dreams of an incredible evening. William, the true gentleman that he was, kindly offered Julia a ride home, an offer she gladly accepted. During the tranquil drive, soft Christmas tunes played through the car's speakers, creating a warm and festive atmosphere.

The two friends shared laughter about the evening's game and their heart-warming interactions with the young fans.

"You know, you're pretty amazing with the fans, Willy," Julia complimented as they neared her building, earning a playful smirk from William.

"Well, I'm just trying to impress you, JJ."

Julia chuckled, "I must say, you're doing a pretty good job."

***

Saturday, 10th - CGL 4 @ TOR 5 (OT)

The following Saturday evening, Julia found herself in the upscale ambiance of a high-end restaurant, her leg trembling subtly beneath the table as the attentive waitress served the delectable main course. Seated with Andrew, his boss, and one of the firm's most distinguished investors, Marcus Kirkland, the renowned Canadian investor known for both his financial acumen and bachelor status, the evening was meant to be all about business and fine dining. However, despite the mouth-watering dishes and the sophisticated atmosphere, Julia's mind was far from the elegant dinner in front of her.

The Toronto Maple Leafs were facing off against the Calgary Flames in a highly anticipated home game, and her heart raced with excitement at the thought of it. As the conversation drifted away from business and towards a more casual tone, Julia couldn't resist the temptation to eavesdrop on the animated discussion taking place at the neighbouring table. Two middle-aged men were immersed in a lively conversation about the game, sharing their expectations and predictions.

And her distraction did not go unnoticed by Andrew, who seemed to read her like an open book. Casually leaning in, a mischievous glint in his eye, he whispered, "Maybe if we speed through dessert, I can distract them, and you can hurry to the game," earning a light chuckle from Julia. She appreciated the jest, though secretly hoped he wasn't entirely kidding, considering the puck had just dropped.

As the seconds ticked away and Julia took occasional sips of the expressive and utterly delicious Bourgogne wine, her nerves threatened to become unbearable. The two men at the neighbouring table discussed the seesaw nature of the match: the Leafs had managed to score the first goal, only for the Flames to tie it up. Then came another goal for the Flames, taking the lead. But the Leafs were resilient, with William stepping up to score, bringing it back to a tie. The Flames once again pulled ahead, but just before the end of the second period, William came through to secure another tie. To put it mildly, it was nerve-wracking to listen to, with the game hanging in the balance.

Julia couldn’t help but chuckle under her breath as she found herself acknowledging her inner turmoil. Who would have thought she'd be sitting in a fancy restaurant, her leg trembling with anticipation, eager to attend a hockey game and mentally calculating the score instead of fully indulging in the sumptuous cuisine and fine wine?

So, when Marcus finally broke the casual conversation and expressed his gratitude to the trio of co-workers, Julia's heart quickened with the hope that she might actually catch the third period of the hockey match.

With a final round of handshakes and gracious expressions of thanks, Julia wasted no time. She hurried as best she could in her formal attire, braving the city's snow to hail a taxi. Fortunately, the restaurant wasn’t too far from the arena, and with a quick text to Charlie, she was on the move. As she reached the arena's doors, she quickly purchased whatever ticket was left to enter, and let out a relieved breath as she saw she was just in time to witness the final 13 minutes of the match. The score was once again a 4-4 tie, and as the final seconds ticked away, the arena was filled with anxiousness. However, all that distress was quickly dispelled when Mitch Marner scored in overtime after just 43 seconds, making the arena burst into cheers and shouts for the Leafs.

After the heart-pounding evening, Julia finally had a moment to calm down and let her heart return to its natural rhythm. She made her way to meet with Charlie and the rest of the girls, entering the hallway by the locker room, and she found herself amidst an electrifying atmosphere. Smiles stretched wide on everyone's faces, and the air was filled with laughter and the players' boisterous banter.

Navigating through the crowd, Julia made her way to William, who quickly noticed her, and he playfully jogged over to her and swept her up into a tight hug.

"I didn't think you'd make it," William cheerfully admitted with a wide grin. "Didn't you have a work thing?" He asked as he put her back down.

Julia's face mirrored his broad smile as she offered a light chuckle. "Well, yes, I did, but for some peculiar reason, hockey seems to have become more important to me," she laughed.

"Well, I get that," William replied, his voice softening a tad, their eyes locking in a moment.

"Just wouldn't miss it for the world," she chuckled. "And first star? Sounds like you actually made an effort tonight," she teased William, earning a light chuckle from the Swede.

They stood close, sharing a silent moment, their connection palpable among the other couples celebrating the victory. But their moment was soon interrupted by a boisterous voice.

"Damn, JJ!" Rasmus chimed in as he joined the two friends. "Aren't you a bit overdressed for a hockey game?" He playfully pointed out Julia's fitted pantsuit, heels, elegant hairdo, and striking makeup.

"What do you mean?" she retorted sarcastically. "I simply thought it was 'dressed to impress' night."

"Well, I'm sure you're impressing most people here, I know at least one," he cheekily winked, subtly referring to William. Though the comment passed with a chuckle, and William simply smiled before his friend moved along.

The chatting went on among the large groups of friends, and the girls quickly stroke up the conversation about their Christmas shopping spree they’d done during the day.

"I'm really sorry, sweetie, that you couldn't make it today," Charlie spoke in a gentle tone, offering Julia a friendly smile. She had been spending a lot of time with the other wives and girlfriends lately, and had been feeling a tad guilty about it. However, Julia quickly reassured her that she didn't mind at all and expressed her happiness at seeing Charlie bond so well with the team's partners.

So, she simply chuckled. “Oh, that’s ok - you know what they say; when your boss asks you to work on a weekend, you say yes because he pays you well and you kind of need the money,” she joked, earning a laugh from the girls.

"Maybe some other time, then?" Charlie responded with a smile.

"Absolutely," Julia agreed, and they shared a warm hug before resuming their conversation.

However, William couldn't help but express a little sympathy for his dear friend, hearing she had missed out on the girls' shopping trip.

"You didn't get to go Christmas shopping?" he asked.

Julia gently shook her head, "No, I had to work all day yesterday… and today… and the same goes for tomorrow." She wore a small, resigned smile. "But I managed to take Monday off, so I'm hoping to make some time to visit a market."

William felt a touch of disappointment on her behalf. He knew how much Julia loved this time of year, and he wanted her to have as much fun as the others. Although he might not be the biggest enthusiast about Christmas, he appreciated the festive atmosphere and the joy it brought to his friends.

"How about we go together?" he then suggested, offering her a warm smile.

"Really? You’d do that?" Julia's eyes sparkled with excitement, and a broad grin lit up her face.

William couldn't help but laugh at her enthusiasm. "Sure, why not? I'm not the best at Christmas shopping, but maybe you can give me a hand. I’ll come and pick you up."

"Deal!" Julia exclaimed with delight.

****

And on Monday, as arranged, William showed up to pick up Julia for their trip to the town market. However, when she opened the front door, he couldn't help but notice the redness in her eyes, as if she had been crying a bit.

"Hey, what's going on?" he inquired, stepping into her home.

"Oh, it's nothing," she responded with a slight smile as she put on her shoes and coat. "Just give me a moment to finish up – I'll be ready in a second."

"It doesn't seem like nothing, JJ," William persisted, his concern evident. "Come on, you can talk to me."

But Julia just chuckled softly. "It's really not a big deal, Willy. I've just been up all night, Face Timing with my dad while we watched England play football at the World Cup." She paused to examine her friend, who still appeared worried. "I miss him a lot, Willy... that's all – and it's just a bit tougher this year because I'm all by myself – single, and far from my family," Julia explained with a gentle smile and a soft tone.

William wasn't entirely convinced but decided to let the matter drop with a nod and a sigh as Julia was almost ready to leave. He understood how challenging it must be for her, with the breakup with her fiancé this year and a whole new city with new friends and no family around for the holiday season. However, not wanting to delve deeper and stir up emotions, he chose to make a playful remark instead.

"I like your jersey, by the way," he said with a grin as he noticed her Harry Kane t-shirt hanging on one of the chairs. "But I prefer it when you wear my name on your back."

Julia couldn't help but chuckle as she grabbed her bag and keys and opened the front door. "Well, if you ever become a professional football player – I promise I'll get a shirt with your name on it."

And as they made their way to the market, Julia couldn't resist adding some festive cheer to the car ride by playing some classic Christmas bangers.

"So, you’ve got any favourite Christmas songs?" she inquired, to which William simply shook his head. "Come on, there must be one you like?" She grinned, infusing the car with her holiday spirit.

But William remained nonchalant. "Honestly, I've never been a big fan of Christmas music."

"Oh, my goodness," Julia playfully exaggerated her surprise. "You're a Grinch, aren't you?"

William chuckled, offering a defence. "I'm not a Grinch. I've just never been big on Christmas, you know."

Julia brushed it off with a laugh. "Well, fortunate for you, I've got enough Christmas spirit for both of us." Then she began singing along to the songs, and William, catching the mood, joined in when he knew the words.

Upon arriving at the market, they wandered through the snow-covered scene, savouring the delightful scents of candies and hot chocolate. Fortunately, there weren’t many people there due to it being a weekday, so it was nice and quiet, beside the carols all around. While enjoying their leisurely stroll, they chatted about their childhoods in Scandinavia, sharing Christmas memories and much more.

Their conversations covered a wide range of topics, occasionally pausing to peruse the various items, as Julia was on a mission to find some Christmas decorations for her new place since her recent move.

"You know," William began in a soft voice, "a lot of the players were actually really touched by your offer to join your Christmas evening," he said, flashing a warm smile.

"Well, I'm glad to hear that," Julia replied. "I just want everyone to have a wonderful Christmas – it's a holiday that means a lot to me, and I guess I just really want to spread some joy and happiness… especially with all the challenges going on in the world."

William couldn't help but admire Julia's spirit. Her heart was brimming with love and care, and he found himself unable to contain his smiles as they strolled through the market.

"Oh, this is adorable," she suddenly exclaimed with excitement, spotting a collection of small figurines.

Meanwhile, William maintained a constant smile as he observed Julia dart from booth to booth, selecting Christmas decorations in all sorts of shapes and colours. And he had to admit, she had quite a good eye for decorations.

"Alright, I don't think I need much more for today," Julia chuckled. "How about you? Do you need anything?"

She glanced at William, who simply shook his head.

"I've told you, I'm not the biggest Christmas fan."

Julia studied her friend for a moment before sighing. "I'm guessing you don't have any decorations at home at all, do you?"

Once again, he shook his head and chuckled.

"Well, come on, Grinch, we've got a few more booths to check out then before I let you off the hook," she teased, before they continued on their merry way.

A few steps away, Julia's attention was captured by another booth selling Christmas ornaments, particularly one that she found beautiful. "Oh, this is gorgeous,” she commented as she held the ornament in her hand, turning it to examine it closely. It depicted a serene white and blue harbour scene with delicate gold text that spelled 'Merry Christmas.' The tiny details in the ornament, from the miniature ships in the harbour to the glittering snow on the rooftops, made it look like a miniature winter wonderland. For some reason, it evoked memories of Copenhagen, her place of birth, where she had spent many memorable Christmases.

However, upon closer inspection, her enthusiasm faded. "Oh, it's not as charming as I thought.”

William couldn't help but chuckle, intrigued by her sudden change of heart. "Why's that?" he inquired, picking up the ornament and letting out an amused "oh" as he glanced at the price tag, realising she might find it a bit pricey for a piece of Christmas decoration.

However, in his playful and helpful way, he simply chuckled and handed it to the vendor across the table. "We'll take it," he said with a wide grin.

"Willy!" Julia exclaimed, her eyes widening in surprise.

"What?" he shrugged, grinning. “I’ve got it. Let's consider it my Christmas decoration splurge for the year." He offered her a friendly smile as he made the payment and handed the small bag to Julia to carry. "Although, it'd probably look a lot better at your place, alongside the rest of the decorations."

With a mischievous wink, he managed to elicit another laugh from Julia. "You're an idiot.”

"Yeah, but a lovable idiot,” he quipped.

Julia thanked the man at the booth just before he chimed in. "You've got a great boyfriend there," he said with a friendly smile.

"Oh no," Julia objected with a light chuckle, feeling a hint of awkwardness due to the man's remark. "He's not my boyfriend..." William joined in on the surprised chuckle, and Julia continued, "We're just friends."

The man simply smiled and then corrected himself. "Well, in that case, you've got a great friend."

"I know," she returned a friendly smile before the two friends continued to explore the final part of the market, filled with laughter and joy. And before they knew it, they had completed their delightful stroll, Julia’s hands full of small shopping bags.

"So, what's the plan now?" Julia pondered as she continued walking, unaware of the fact that William had paused just a few steps behind. "Fancy grabbing a hot drink or something?" she called out to the quiet surroundings.

But before she received a response, a swift, chilly surprise made contact with her back, and she let out a startled shriek. A snowball, expertly aimed by William, had found its mark. "Oh, no you didn’t!” she exclaimed, her voice a delightful blend of playfulness and mock outrage. She spun around, her cheeks flushed with the cold, her eyes a mixture of bewilderment and mock sternness. However, all she was met with was William's hearty laughter as he prepared to craft another snowball.

Amidst laughter and the sounds of their friendly snowball battle, Julia swiftly dropped her shopping bags. She scooped up a handful of pristine snow and was just about to launch her own snowball at William when his second shot smacked her shoulder.

In response, she retaliated with a well-aimed shot that hit him squarely in the face, leaving him momentarily stunned. Her eyes danced with triumph as she celebrated her successful assault, her laughter mingling with the pure, wintry ambiance.

But as William snapped out of his momentary surprise, he leaped forward with a laugh. The chase was on, and they were like carefree children in this winter wonderland. Julia made a dash for a large patch of untouched snow, leaving her bags behind as she giggled, her boots crunching the snow beneath them.

Naturally, William outpaced her, and soon caught up, pelting her with snow as she did her best to fight back. Their laughter was a harmonious symphony, and in the midst of their spirited battle, Julia ended up with her hands on her own face, wiping away the snow that had inadvertently ended up there. William seized this moment of distraction and playfully grabbed her by the waist and tossed her into the soft snow. As a defence, she pulled him down alongside her, and as they both landed in the fluffy snow, he ended up on top of her. Then the world seemed to pause for a moment as they lay there, the cold seeping through their clothes but their hearts warmed by the sheer joy of the moment. Their shared laughter faded into contented smiles as they caught their breath.

But as the seconds passed, a man behind William cleared his throat, breaking the spell of their playful entanglement.

"Are you alright, miss?" the man asked, and William quickly got to his feet, facing a stern security guard who had been alerted by the commotion and wanted to ensure it was all in good fun.

"Oh, yes, sir, I'm fine," Julia reassured, her rosy cheeks evidence of the fun she'd been having. William extended a helping hand to get her back on her feet beside him. "We were just messing about."

The guard, a hint of a smile playing on his lips, nodded and left the still-laughing friends.

“Shit,” William chuckled, brushing snow off his clothes.

Julia joined in his chuckle but then exclaimed, "Oh fuck… I'm absolutely drenched..."

"Yeah, me too..." William couldn't stop laughing, and as Julia gathered her bags, they leisurely strolled back towards his car. "So, how about dinner at my place?" William suggested, and Julia playfully turned to look up at him.

"You're always thinking about food, aren't you?” she casually teased. “But I think I really need to go home and take a shower after this," she added with a soft chuckle.

"You can just shower at my place?" William casually suggested, a soft smirk on his face, which for some reason made Julia smile. How could he always act so nonchalant, she wondered.

"Uhm, sure, if you don't mind," she timidly replied.

"Why would I suggest it if I minded?" he chuckled as they reached the car, and Julia stashed the bags in the boot before settling into her usual spot in the passenger seat, quickly checking her makeup in the mirror.

"Oh, shit..." she exclaimed. "I look like a fucking raccoon, Willy!"

William took the driver's seat, adopting a playful tone. "Why are you blaming me for that?" he quipped as he turned to his friend, with a hearty laugh.

"Because you started the bloody snow fight!"

William chuckled again. "Well, at least you're a pretty raccoon. Besides, you have to admit, it was a fun snowball fight."

Julia joined in his laughter. "It certainly was!"

And with the car once again filled with more Christmas songs, they drove to William's place, both eager for a warm shower and the chance to snuggle up on the sofa.

Upon arriving at William's place, Pablo and Banksy welcomed them by the front door, and while they both wanted nothing more than to pet the sweet little ones, Julia was desperate to change out of her soaked clothes.

"How about I take them out for a quick walk while you hop in the shower?” William suggested with a soft smile, and Julia simply nodded with an ‘okay’, mirroring his smile. "You know where everything is?" he added with a chuckle.

"Yes, Willy, I know where everything is.”

And as William closed the front door behind him and took the dogs outside, Julia fetched a towel and made her way to the guest bathroom.

Allowing the warm water to cascade over her body, Julia closed her eyes and surrendered to the soothing embrace of the steam. Her body slowly thawed from the icy chill of the snow that William had playfully introduced her to. And as her mind began to wander, she reflected on the wonderful day they'd shared, the sweetness of him gifting her that ornament she adored, the laughter that had accompanied their leisurely stroll, and the fun of their snowball fight. She couldn't help but replay the memory of how he playfully wrapped his arms around her and sent them tumbling into the soft, fluffy snow, ending up incredibly close.

Lost in her thoughts, she smiled under the warm water, blissfully unaware of William's return to the condo. Hearing the sound of the running water he casually made his way into the steam-filled bathroom, where he couldn't help but chuckle as he observed Julia standing there with her eyes closed.

"Enjoying yourself?" he asked, playfully peeking his head inside the shower, his mischievous grin causing Julia to jump and hastily open her eyes.

"Willy! You've got to stop startling me," she exclaimed, but her reprimand was met with continued laughter from William. "Get out, you twat," she added, though she couldn't keep a straight face as they both shared a hearty laugh, and William made his exit from the bathroom.

As Julia stepped out of the shower, she couldn't help but notice that William, during her quick rinse, had thoughtfully placed a Maple Leafs t-shirt and a pair of joggers on the bathroom counter. A smile naturally crept across her face as she got dressed and then headed to the living room, where she found William shirtless, energetically exploring the contents of the fridge. His impressively fit physique was not lost on her, although she kept her thoughts to herself.

"I didn't know we wore the same size joggers?" she playfully inquired, joining him in the kitchen.

William chuckled at her comment. "To be fair, they belong to my sister," he confessed, his smile shining. "She left them here, and I've just had them in the closet."

"Well, then please remind me to thank your sister for leaving them here for me to borrow," Julia said with a warm smile.

"Will do," William replied, a soft grin on his face. "Anyways, I'll take a quick shower as well, while you choose a movie and get some snacks ready?"

"Sure, but I thought we were having dinner?" she smiled.

"We'll grab some takeout later. Go ahead and find us a movie," William brushed off her practical suggestion with a casual wave.

"Oh no, don't give me that kind of power," Julia chuckled. "I'll just pick something like Harry Potter, even though I've watched it like a million times," she added. But when she saw the slightly perplexed expression on William's face, her laughter subsided. "What? You've never watched Harry Potter?" she asked in disbelief.

"It's not really my kind of genre..." William attempted to defend himself.

"Oh, dear... I really think I need to reconsider this whole friendship of ours, darling," Julia playfully feigned a disappointed look, causing William to burst into laughter.

"Well, I guess there's a first time for everything – why don’t you just go and put it on."

Julia paused for a moment, offering him a sweet smile.

"Willy, we don't have to watch it if you don't want to."

"JJ, why would I say yes to watching it if I didn't want to," he rhetorically asked.

"Alright," she simply replied, and William then made his way to the bathroom.

While he took his shower, Julia busied herself with gathering snacks and preparing the sofa. She draped a couple of blankets over it and found the movie on one of his numerous streaming services. And of course, following suit, the dogs came to join her.

A wide smile spread across William's face as he re-entered the living room and found all three of them cosily snuggled on the sofa. Taking his place right next to Julia, he wrapped himself in the blankets, drawing a slightly questioning look from her.

"What? We have to sit close so we can share the snacks," he chuckled. "By the way, how many snacks do we even have here?" he asked, noticing the assortment of popcorn, Gifflar, and gummy bears.

"Well..." Julia admitted with a touch of nervousness, "I've sort of eaten most of your snacks while you were on the road, so I had to restock – and perhaps I went a little overboard."

“A little?” William chuckled, but then simply shook his head before he pulled her closer and pressed play on the film. "I'm just glad you're comfortable here," he almost whispered, his gaze soft as he looked at his friend beside him.

Julia met his gentle expression and returned the smile. "Me too."

As the movie played, William found himself surprisingly engrossed in it, though he couldn't quite pinpoint whether it was the enchanting film that filled him with warmth and comfort, the exhaustion from their adventurous day, the holiday spirit in the air, or simply the pleasant company of Julia.

However, about halfway through the movie, the growling in William's stomach became increasingly persistent, prompting them to order some proper takeout. So, they relished their meal for the remainder of the film, and by the end, they were both on the brink of falling asleep, their tummies content and warmed by the blankets.

"Mm..." Julia softly mumbled. "I really need to get going." She glanced at the clock. It wasn't particularly late, but the darkness had enveloped them, and the unmistakable sound of rain was tapping against the windows.

"Just stay here," William casually suggested, punctuating his words with a yawn.

"I can't, I've got work in the morning," she replied with a smile, her expression slightly pouting.

"Alright, then..." William reluctantly heaved himself up from the sofa. "I guess I'll have to drive you home," he sighed.

"Or you can just lend me your car," Julia playfully suggested, only to be met with an arched eyebrow from William.

"How about you take Pablo and Banksy with us and then go for a walk when you return, two birds, one stone," Julia cheekily proposed, secretly longing to snuggle up with Pablo in the passenger's seat.

"Oh, that's quite a clever idea, isn't it?" William chuckled. "But that actually doesn't sound like a bad plan."

Julia laughed lightly before heading to the bathroom to check on her clothes, which unfortunately weren't entirely dry yet.

"You can just wear what you're wearing right now," William suggested as he followed her into the bathroom. "Just give it back whenever," he shrugged.

Julia offered him a sweet, grateful smile before getting dressed to leave. Despite looking a bit comical in her cosy outfit and high boots, she was grateful for the gesture.

During the ride to her place, the speakers once again played soft Christmas songs, and the atmosphere between the two friends was comfortable and relaxed. And as they arrived at their destination, they both turned to face each other.

“Thank you for today, Willy,” Julia spoke softly. “It truly meant a lot to me.”

“Well, I had a lot of fun as well,” he replied with a soft smile. “I just want you to have a good Christmas here, JJ – I know it’s not easy being away from your family, so I guess I’m just trying to help.”

Julia couldn’t help but being moved by his words. William had a habit of acting all cool and tough when he was out on camera, but when he was with close friends, he’d always be extremely caring and sweet.

“You’re doing an amazing job, Willy… I really do love spending time with you, and it means more to me than you realise.”

The two of them shared another moment of soft intimacy before Julia made her move to hug him goodnight, bid her farewell to the doodles, and exited the car to grab her bags and rush to the apartment building.

#we never go out of style #william nylander imagine #william nylander fic #willy styles #toronto maple leafs fic #nhl fanfiction #nhl hockey fic

15 notes · View notes

arlecchno · 2 years

Text

mission accomplished [ scaramouche x reader ]

seven | cat and mouse

prev masterlist next

possibly breaking into someone's frat house isn't exactly the kind of thing you expected you'd be doing on a sunday afternoon. secrets get unfolded as you further investigate the house, and you're once again stuck with scaramouche for the umpteenth time.

warnings: swearing, mentions of blood, close proximity (is this even a proper word), y/n and scara playing cat and mouse with viktor lmao (as the title says)

a/n: this chapter is a bit short unfortunately... i'm still suffering from writer's block but i think this is a bit better than the last chap, so i hope it's at least a lot more enjoyable to read 💔 updates been going slow lately and i'm sorry for that,, i hope this close proximity thing makes up for the debt i owe you guys hehe, happy reading!

grammatical errors may occur so please let me know if i've made any mistakes!

the drive to viktor's frat house was awfully quiet. none of you and scaramouche decided to say anything for the whole ride, opting to just stay in silence instead.

sundays are usually the days you dread the most, mainly because it's the last day of the week before a new one starts. but today was 10 times worse, you didn't think you'd have to do stuff like this undercover.

you wouldn't say you were exactly breaking into viktor's frat house, since he gave you the key to the house. but if you were to tell people that you went back there without viktor knowing, you'd definitely get charged with a misdemeanor, or worse, a felony.

you really don't want that to end up in your records and get suspended from your police work.

you two arrived at viktor's frat house after a short while. getting out of the car, you looked over at scaramouche.

“did you take the stuff?” you asked.

scaramouche pointed out to the sample equipment on his hand, showing you that he's taken them out from the car. “sure did.”

“so...” you mumbled, crouching down at the small patch of dried blood on the carpeted floor. “how should we do this?” you questioned, glancing at scaramouche who's taking out the needed stuff for sampling.

scaramouche shrugged, going past you to start his work. “just scrape it off, i guess. we're never really trained to get samples, usually that's the job for the csi team. we'll just do whatever we can and hope that it works.”

scaramouche put on surgical gloves before trimming a small part of the blooded carpet while you took photos as evidence.

“i think this should do.” scaramouche said, holding and observing the crime evidence sealed in a ziplock.

this could be a breakthrough to your case and might lead you to more details that pinpoints viktor as the crime suspect. you seriously hoped that this case would end sooner, you really don't want to go back as a student for the next few months.

you sighed. “we shouldn't even do something like this, we're undercover. if people caught us doing shady stuff, things could backfire and we'd lose this case immediately.” you commented, taking a look at the photos you took on your phone.

i'll need to send these to childe later.

“should we head back?” you asked. scaramouche stood up from his crouching position, finishing up his work and putting everything back in the sample equipment.

“let's send this to the car first, then we could go back here and check out the house once again, in case we missed anything. there's no one here so it's a great opportunity since we have the keys.” said the short male, already on his way to leave the room.

surprisingly, the house was squeky clean, not a single beer cup nor rubbish in sight. after the frat party, you thought that it'd take at least a few days for viktor to become motivated again and clean up the house, but it's barely been a few hours since you left and it's already spotless.

looks like viktor came to clean the house up after i texted him back.

“ah, well... i'm not sure if we're supposed to be searching for anything, we didn't find a single thing other than that carpet last night.” you complained, standing in the living room with scaramouche.

you were about to leave the room and check out the kitchen when scaramouche stopped you, yanking your hand back.

“what?” you said coldly. scaramouche was looking at something, but you couldn't tell what he was so focused on.

“do you see a bump there?” scaramouche inquired, bringing up his index finger to point it out on the rug at the corner of the living room.

you observed for a second, squinting your eyes for good measure. “huh, that's strange.”

the both of you walked over to the rug and fixate your eyes on it again. it does looks likes there's an odd lump under the rug.

you crouched down, lifting off the rug a bit with your fingers and took a peek of the mystery beneath it.

“well, this is extremely note-worthy.” you blankly said, lifting off the rug completely so that scaramouche could witness it too.

it seemed like there's a secret basement under the frat house, with the lock being the lump you saw earlier. you wonder if people ever noticed it or they were just too stupid and drunk out of their minds to do that.

scaramouche let out a scoff, amused with viktor's so-not-low-key secret base. “we should try to unlock it with the keys viktor gave you. who knows, he might be one of those stupid people who leaves everything in one place.” scaramouche said, pulling out his phone to take pictures.

you nodded, taking out the keys from your pocket. trying out one by one, you started to test out the keys to see which one fits perfectly that'll unfold the secret viktor's hiding from the world.

unfortunately, none of them fit, leaving you guys dumbfounded. you sighed, tilting your head to glance up at scaramouche. “it's not working. he probably hides the key somewhere.”

“...and what are you waiting for? get up and let's start finding that damn key.” the ravenette scolded, crossing his arms at you.

you rolled your eyes, placing the rug back to it's original place. “no need to get feisty, little dude. we have all the time in the world. it's not like viktor's gonna come back here, he's already cleaned up the place.”

well, let's just say you're the queen of jinxing your own words.

the sound of a car engine can be heard from the outside of viktor's frat house, making scaramouche shot his eyes to the window in the living room.

slack-jawed, scaramouche crouched down slightly and shook your shoulder violently. “someone's pulling up here!”

upon hearing his words, you too moved your gaze to the window after standing up from your crouching position, making scaramouche yank you back to the floor.

“are you stupid?! they're gonna see your idiotic ass!” the short male said furiously. you settled on raising your head slightly to the window, just enough to look at the car that's pulling up on the driveway.

“that's viktor, dude! i know that car! what in the world are we supposed to do now?!” you asked anxiously, looking around to find a place to hide.

the male beside you seemed to have an idea. scaramouche grabbed your arm, making you fixate your eyes on his face instead. “i know somewhere. i saw it when we were looking out the place last night. follow me.”

and that's how you ended up cramped with scaramouche inside a wardrobe with plantation shutters under the staircase.

great, you're stuck in a tight space with this guy once again.

“why do you think this would be a great idea? what if he opens this wardrobe?!” you whispered in the dark. you could be spotted in a second if viktor opens the shutter door due to how tiny the wardrobe is, you wouldn't have anywhere to hide in here.

“just– i don't freaking know! pray or something!” the man beside you whispered back, before hearing the main door open. the subtle creaking sound of the door made you two shut up and focus on the man that just walked into the house instead.

looking through the shutters, you and scaramouche both kept an eye on viktor's every move in the house.

suddenly, viktor walked right over to the wardrobe, much to your and scaramouche's surprise.

both of your breaths hitched and you two stood frozen, not knowing what the tall man was gonna do next.

viktor instead placed his keys on the dresser right outside and next to the wardrobe you were currently in. he then headed to the living room, not even having a single clue that two detectives practically invaded his frat house and are now hiding in his exceptionally small wardrobe.

the both of you exhaled at the same time, relief washed over you. goodness, you almost got caught by the prime suspect of a serial killer to your case. you don't even want to imagine what would happen if he were to find you two in here.

“what's he doing over there?” you questioned, looking at viktor just standing idly in the living room.

viktor took out something in his pocket and went straight to the spot you and scaramouche just investigated a minute ago.

mouth wide opened, you observed viktor who is now crouching down to unlock the plank that seals the basement.

what in the world is he doing down there? and what could possibly be there? you ponder, thinking of a thousand possibilities that could be the answer to your question.

the case won't be able to move smoothly if you don't find out what's in viktor's secret basement.

out of the blue, you felt something step on your foot. a few curses were thrown out by you and a thud can be heard from the wardrobe from your reflex.

“shit– ow! what the hell?! you just stepped on my foot, you asshole!” you screamed internally, cursing at scaramouche. the male beside you tried to shush you by making hand gestures but you were only focused on your foot.

viktor perked his head up upon hearing the faint sound, peering around the living room to see if anyone's there. not seeing anything, he stood up from the position he was in and headed to the hallway where the sound came from.

scaramouche was freaking out while you were too busy soothing out your bruised foot, letting out a whine from the pain.

viktor walked near the wardrobe and on instinct, scaramouche decided to do the only thing he had in mind.

and that is to make you shut the hell up.

the ravenette slapped a hand over your mouth and brought you the corner of the wardrobe behind all of the hanged clothes. he had his other hand beside your head, making you shut up instantly.

viktor stopped beside the wardrobe and looked around the house, trying to find the source of the sound.

the close proximity between you and scaramouche made the short male averted his eyes to the shutter instead, slightly flustered by his own bold movement.

eyes widened, your quick breaths fanned over scaramouche's, face mere centimetres from each other. you're flustered, nervous at the thought of possibly getting caught in a situation where you're stuck in a position like this with the male in front of you.

goodness, he needs to start giving me warnings before he pulls up something like this.

scaramouche kept an eye on viktor from the wardrobe instead, silently praying that the tall man doesn't open the shutter door.

as if the archons have answered his prayers, viktor just sighed and went back to the living room. he must have thought he was imagining things. looking over the place once again, viktor made sure that there's no one else in the house before going in the basement, closing the plank back on him.

scaramouche let out a sigh, relieved that you two didn't get caught. you wanted to say something but your words were muffled by scaramouche's hand that was still covering your mouth. he put up an indescribable look upon hearing the vibrations of your voice from his hand, before bringing it to his side.

“what?” scaramouche asked, quite confused with the glare you're giving him right now.

you frowned even more at him. “you could've just told me to shut up, didn't need to do all that.” you pouted, shoving his form away from you to give you two a bit of space.

“i think the word you're looking for is thank you. if it wasn't for my instincts you'd be caught by now.” he retorted, turning his head away from you in spite.

you groaned. it's only been a week since you started this case and it already feels like hell.

you have a feeling the archons are punishing you to the deep depths of teyvat for whatever reason you couldn't tell, given how you always end up in the most undesirable situations during this mission, with your sworn enemy no less.

now you're really praying that this ends real soon.

after a bit of planning and a bit of arguing, you two finally decided it was time to leave and get out from the house. slowly opening and closing the shutters, you and scaramouche tip-toed to the main door and dashed through once you opened it, in fear of viktor finding out you were camping in his fraternity house for the past hour.

in an instant, the both of you rushed to scaramouche's car on the side of a road a few feet away from the frat house, both thankful and regretful that scaramouche parked quite far.

it's good that he parked a bit far from the frat house to avoid suspicions, but archons how you wished it wasn't that far. the running is killing you.

you opened the door to the passenger side of the car after scaramouche unlocked it and immediately got inside. you panted, running out of breath. “archons– i hope that's the last time we'll ever do that.”

scaramouche was out of breath too. “y– yeah. let's– let's not do that.” he stammered, leaning his head back and bringing up an arm to wipe off the sweat on his forehead.

the both of you swore to never do something like that ever again.

after your little escape from viktor, you and scaramouche decided it was best to head over to the post office and drop off the sample addressed to the precint immediately, in hopes that nothing happens and childe receives it safely.

childe

**photo sent**

╏ just dropped off the sample ╏

at the post office

╏ no worries we made sure to ╏

pack it nicely and secure!

╏ lmk when you receive it ╏

╏ btw we almost got caught ╏

╏ lmao ╏

4:42 p.m

childe replied to 'lmk when...'

sure! thanks for the work y/n!!

childe replied to 'btw we al...'

you WHAT?!

HELLO??? Y/N??

WHAT

REPLY BACK WOMAN!!

seen

you sighed. you'll reply to childe later, you're just really exhausted right now from all of the running and escaping.

what if the archons are playing cupid instead of punishing y/n *wink wink

and what if i tell you that some bolded words are actually foreshadowing *double wink wink

taglist; @beriiov @hopesandlegacy @cloudsandrenoswife @salamiwrites @thenightsflower @bleedingwhiteroses222 @lisiastak021 @yuuki4646 @lez-zuha

send an ask, comment, or dm me to be added to the taglist!

or if you're feeling shy, fill out this form with your tumblr user~

#genshin impact #genshin x you #scaramouche #scaramouche x reader #scaramouche x you #genshin #genshin impact imagines #genshin impact reader insert #genshin impact x reader #scaramouche fluff #genshin scaramouche #i love close proximity #h✧˖—mission accomplished

85 notes · View notes

missvelvetsstuff · 2 years

Text

Low Expectations

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Chapter 4

Warning: swearing, angst & fluff

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Y/N ran into Terri Sunday night, Terri started to ask about her date but stopped when she saw her face blotchy and eyes red from crying.

Terri bristled "What did he do? I swear I'll kill him."

Y/N shook her head "It was me. He asked me to be his girlfriend and I said yes but after I got home my brain started and I freaked. Spoke to him earlier and told him I like him and want to keep seeing him but I'm not ready to commit.

Terri, he sounded so sad and I feel awful. I've never been treated so well and I'm afraid he's too good to be true. I fucked it up all by myself" she broke into tears. "I tried to call him but it went straight to voicemail."

Terri hugged her "Oh, honey what am I going to do with you? You have to stop letting your mind run away with you like that. You are just as deserving of love as anyone else, more than some. Send him a text telling him you're sorry for freaking out and would like to talk to him when he's up for it. And take a mental health day tomorrow, we'll eat junk and watch sappy movies. I'll make you those on the rocks margaritas like your mom taught me"

"I miss her so much. I still can't believe she died and I wasn't here to take care of her."

Terri rubbed her back. "I know, I know but you still have me." She snickered "I could call aunt Kathy if you want"

Y/N pulled away and gave Terri a dirty look "Don't even joke about that. She thinks the only way to mend a broken heart is to get laid by at least a dozen people. I'm just not like that. Besides she's in Florida and I don't want to give her any excuses to come up here.

The next afternoon, Bucky was guzzling tequila for the second day in a row, wishing he knew how to get in touch with Thor when his doorbell rang. He grumbled as he got up and answered it.

"Sam, what are you doing here? I'm not in the mood to talk to anyone." He left the door open and sat back on the floor.

Sam looked around "Dude! What is that smell? How much have you had to drink?"

"Not enough, I'm still sober"

Sam shook his head "I'm here to check on you because you were supposed to pick me up from the airport. And why the Hell are you trying to get drunk? Wasn't your big date the other night." Sam paused

"Shit, was it bad? What happened?"

Bucky sighed "I'm sorry, I forgot. The date was perfect, at least I thought it was. She said she would be my girl and we had a really good time."

Sam nodded "Ok that all sounds good so what's the problem?"

Bucky teared up a little "I called her yesterday afternoon, just to see how she was and she changed her mind."

Sam looked confused "What do you mean she changed her mind?"

"She said she isn't ready for a commitment yet. Insisted it was her, not me, and that she still likes me and wants to see me but. Fuck! I'm wracking my brain trying to figure out what I did wrong. I thought it went really well. I thought she might be my person."

Sam thought for a minute "Didn't you say she has self esteem issues? Because of guys she's dated and because Terri always gets all the attention when they go out, right? Maybe she's like you and got caught up in her own head. Like thinking it's all too good to be true, you know."

Bucky nodded "I mean yeah but I tried to be perfect. Do and say all the right things"

"Exactly. You're this good looking, superhero with greatest generation manners. For someone who has been treated badly or taken for granted that would seem too good. Maybe give her a couple of days and call her, see if she wants to go out again."

"She tried to call me last night but I didn't answer. I want to talk to her but I'm scared." Bucky shook his head "What if she says no and tells me to leave her alone?"

Sam chuckled "From what you've told me I doubt it but if she did then at least you would know. Come on, take a shower and I'll buy you dinner."

"Thanks Sam but I'm not up for going out"

"We don't have to go anywhere, I can order in but I'm not staying here unless you wash your ass. You reek" Sam held his nose for emphasis.

"Fine. I'm not really hungry but we can hang out for awhile. Lemme go shower." Bucky said despondently

Meanwhile Terri and Y/N were half drunk, eating chocolate like it had divine healing properties and laughing at A Fish Called Wanda.

"What would I do without Monty Python and everyone involved?" Y/N asked "Those guys always make me laugh."

Terri pouted "Yeah, I still can't get into British humor but this movie is pretty funny. Kevin Kline is so perfect in this.'Asshole!!'"

Y/N looked at her with a gleam in her eye. "Let's see if BBC America has some Benny Hill when this is over."

Terri shook her head "Oh come on. Let's watch The Notebook next"

"No, no, no. I refuse to watch such emotionally manipulative tripe."

Terri scowled at her "How do you know its tripe if you've never seen it? It's really good. And you like Beaches, it's pretty manipulative."

"Not the same. It's about best friends not pining after some guy. Besides I saw Beaches with my mom before I was old enough to know better. Plus, Bette Midler is a BadAss and one of my heroes. She gives zero fucks about what others think of her. Like Pink. I wish I could be like that."

Terri rolled her eyes "Fine but no Benny Hill, he was just a dog. How about the Mummy movies? Brendan Frasier is always fun to watch."

Y/N thought for a minute "This compromise is acceptable to me as long as you don't want to watch the last one where they recast Evy. That lady had no chemistry with Brendan at all.

Do you think I should send Bucky another text? He never responded to the one I sent last night or when I tried to call him. Maybe that's his answer and I blew it before it even really started. Maybe I'm going to be alone forever. Maybe-"

Terri cut her off "Didn't I tell you we aren't doing that? I said give him a couple of days. It's been one day. I'm sure with his history he's had challenges dating in the future. Remember you told me he was sure you would walk away because he was the Winter Soldier? He might be struggling too and not ready to talk.

Honestly, the more I think about it the more I'm convinced that you two are meant to be. He'll call, by the end of the week. Just you wait."

By Thursday Bucky and Y/N were both antsy waiting to hear from the other. Bucky had helped Sam on a mission in Texas, some militia with weapons they definitely shouldn't have been able to get a hold of, for a couple of days but got home around dinner time. Working had helped keep his mind off of Y/N but coming home to his empty apartment brought it all back. He checked his phone and read her last message again. Fuck it he thought, I'll just call her.

Terri and Y/N were eating dinner when her phone rang. She saw it was Bucky and grinned, then froze. "It's James. What do I say to him?"

Terri looked at her "Maybe start with Hi. Before he gives up, don't just stare at the phone"

Y/N dropped her phone trying to answer and it went to voicemail before she could answer it "Jesus, I'm shaking too much. I can't do this, Terri."

"Nope, you absolutely can. Call him back!" Terri insisted

"What if he's calling to tell me he changed his mind? What if he thinks I'm too much?"

"No! You're doing it again. Call. Him. Back. Right now. I'll give you some privacy but I better hear you talking to him or I'll have to do something drastic." Terri got up and went to her room

Y/N took a drink, tried to calm her breathing and called. She almost started crying when it went to voicemail and jumped when it started ringing again.

"Hello? James are you there?"

"Hey, Y/N. How are you?"

She tried to answer but couldn't make any sound come out. What finally came out was a squeak and then a sob. She still couldn't form words.

"Y/N? Are you ok? Are you still there? You're scaring me, doll. Please say something" Bucky pleaded.

She finally spit out "I'm sorry, I don't mean to get so emotional. I was worried when I didn't hear from you. I'm sorry about what I said. Sometimes I get caught up in my head and act stupid. I'm kind of a mess."

Bucky smiled "It's ok. I totally understand, that's a bad habit of mine too. I just got home from a thing with Sam, and I was away the last couple of days. How is your week going?"

She tried to calm her breathing "Pretty unexciting. Terri and I hung out and watched movies on Monday and the rest has been work.

Would you like to-"

"Do you want to-"

They both laughed "You first, doll."

"I was wondering if you wanted to get together this weekend."

Bucky laughed "That's what I was going to ask."

"I'll take that as a yes" she smiled

"Definitely a yes. When are you available?"

She thought for a moment "I dont have anything planned this weekend besides the usual housework and errands. Terri is going out of town so, you could come over here for dinner on Saturday. I'm not a great cook but make a mean spaghetti. And I can bake up a storm. I'll make my grandma's pound cake."

Bucky smiled "That sounds wonderful. What time should I be there?"

"Late afternoon? Early evening? Anytime after 3pm should be fine. I should be able to get my housework done and go to the store before that."

@lokisasgardianvampirequeen

"Then its a date. I'll see you Saturday doll."

Chapter 5

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes fanfiction #james bucky barnes #james bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x you #low expectations #angst #angst with a happy ending

62 notes · View notes

imagines-fandom-backup · 2 years

Text

Up in Smoke- Chapter 1.6

Masterlist

Warning- Usual PB violence and swearing

Within the next few days, Arthur had returned back to normal. At least for now. Tommy walked into my room. My nose was too busy in a book to realize he had walked in. I finally glanced up.

"Hey, Tommy."

"Check your gun."

"Why? What's going on?"

"We're doing it today."

"Doing what today?"

"Family meeting, half ten." He walked out.

I walked down to the kitchen to sit with Aunt Polly and Ada. She was finally speaking to us again. We talked as her baby, Karl, was asleep. Aunt Polly smiled as she looked down at Karl.

"Mine were terrors for the tit. Both of them. You girls never knew my children, did you?"

"I was a child myself then."

"No. Why don't you ever talk about them?"

"Never had a reason to. My heart breaks even when I think about them." She walked away from the basket Karl was sleeping in. "But today, I do have a reason to. Sit down, Ada."

Ada sent me a look as she sat down. I shrugged as we both turned our attention to Aunt Polly. "They were three and five years old. Sally was three, Micheal was five. Well, two weeks away from being six. It was Sunday morning. Uh, I was at church. 'You are not forgiven,' this pinch-faced bitch said to me. 'You are not forgiven.' You see, some sheets I had washed and hung on the line had the name of a hotel on them. They'd been stolen in a robbery and they said some porter at the hotel had been coshed. A woman from around here told the police about the sheets. Jealous, you see, of the new sheets. When the police came, they found a spirit still...making a few drops of gin." Her eyes started to gloss over.

Her eyes darted around the room. She started to break down. "And for that, they took my children from me. They never told me where they took them. They did it because they could and because I was weak. But they will never take your baby away from you. Do you know why? Because Tommy won't let them. Tommy will not let them walk all over us. Tommy has brought strength and power to this family. Cause he knows you have to be as bad as the above in order to survive. I'm telling you this because I want you to forgive him."

"How can I? My Freddie is rotting in jail because of him."

"Ada, Tommy had nothing to do with this. He didn't tell the police he was here, I swear." I said as I looked over at her.

Aunt Polly looked over at me, unsure if she'd believe us. "There's something about today you need to know." Aunt Polly went on to tell Ada what was going on today. We had to break away from this conversation here in order to get to the family meeting. Everyone was inside when we got there. Tommy stood in the front of the room with his hands deep in his pockets.

He looked around the room at all of us. "I've brought you all here today because this is the day that we replace Billy Kimber. This is the day we become respectable. The day we join the official National Association of Race Course Bookmakers. But first, we do the dirty work. We've all known this day has been coming. I just haven't told anyone the date." He turned to look at the board behind him.

"We're going to the Worcester races. The track opens at one. We'll get there at two. Now, Kimber thinks we're going there to help him to fight the Lee brothers. But thanks to the efforts of our John and his lovely new wife, Esme, the Lees are now our kin. So it'll be us and the Lees against Kimber's boys. We take them out but leave the bookies. I expect a swift victory which will send a signal all the way to London that we believe in letting legitimate businesses run peacefully."

"What about Kimber himself," John asked.

"I'll deal with him. Any more questions?"

"Yes," Polly said as she walked towards the door. "Does anybody object if I bring a newcomer to the meeting?"

I smirked as I watched them confusedly look at each other. Polly opened the door, "come on." She whispered to Ada who was on the other side with Karl. "I'd like to introduce the newest member of the Shelby clan." Ada walked through the door with Karl in her arms. Arthur started clapping when she walked toward the crowd. Everyone joined him.

Tommy smiled as he watched them.

"Welcome home, Ada."

"We named him Karl. After Karl Marx."

"Karl Bloody Marx," Arthur joked as he walked towards them. "Let me get a look at him." "Here we go," John shouted.

Arthur put his hat on Karl before holding him up. Everyone laughed. "Hey, look. He looks just like me."

"That's his ass that looks like you, Arthur." John joked.

"He's all right. He's a Shelby." We all started to walk out of the room with him.

We made our way to Garrison to have a few drinks. Well, the boys were going to drink. I preferred to stay sober for this. I had to watch out for Finn. Tommy seemed to be in a really good mood. He was even helping Grace pour drinks for everyone.

"The next family meeting, I'll make sure you're there."

"If I were family but I'm not."

"That could change."

"Tommy-"

"We'll talk about it more when I get back. Alright?"

"When will you be back?"

"Oh, is this how it's going to be? You waiting at home for me saying 'what time do you call this?'" He smiled at her as he chuckled.

"The barrel needs changing." She walked to the back room.

What the hell just happened? I thought they liked each other. He just told her he wanted to be with her. One of Tommy's friends, Jeremiah, walked into the pub. "Two vans are driving up Stratford Road. An old corporal of mine said he recognized some of the men. It's the Kimber boys, they're heading this way." My stomach turned as he stood there.

None of this made sense. Someone betrayed us. Now, we were outnumbered. The Lees were on their way to the races. Tommy took off to tell Ada and Aunt Polly to get ready for anything. The phone in the pub rang. It was Aunt Pol.

They had made the realization that Grace was working for the other side. She had been betraying us the entire time. Aunt Polly was going to deal with her. We had to get ready to fight Kimber and his boys. They were going to need everyone they could. Tommy walked up to us.

"Alright men, you were mostly in the war so you know the battle plans always change and get fucked up. Well, here it is. Things have changed. We fight them here. Today. Alone. Now they're gonna come for the pub. They're gonna try and break us up for good. We'll have no help from the law today. That pub there is called the Garrison. Well, now it really is one. And it belongs to us, right?"

"Right!" All the men and Finn screamed.

"How many are there?" Arthur asked.

"Jeremiah says two Riley vans. I reckon we're outnumbered three to one."

"Fuck," I mumbled as I looked at the ground.

"It's us, boys. It's us. The Small Heath Rifles. We haven't lost a fight yet, have we?"

"No!"

"All right. Jeremiah. I know you vowed to God to never pick up a weapon again. Can you ask him from me if you can help us today?"

"God says he doesn't deal with Small Heath, sir."

"Good man. Arthur, Scudboat. You'll take the flanks. Just like St. Marie."

"Curly, if any Shelby's die here today, you bury us side by side. Alright, we have about 10 minutes. Make your peace with whoever." I talked with John and Arthur for a few minutes.

I headed into the pub to finish off our minutes with Tommy. He put his drink down on the counter to hug me. He rested his chin on the top of my head. I listened to his heartbeat as we stood there. "Tommy," I whispered. Tears started to prick my eyes.

"If anything happens, I want you to know how good of a big brother you are."

"Don't get all sappy on me now."

"Whatever." I looked up at him with a smile.

Finn bursted through the doors. "Tommy, they're here." Both of us headed outside. We made sure our guns were ready and loaded. The men came from the opposite end of the street. We were severely outnumbered. We started to walk toward each other.

They all started to hold their weapons at us. They were showing us what they had. Once the groups got close enough to each other, they stopped. "All guns and no balls, right, Billy Boy," John shouted. It went quiet. "What do we do now? Just give the order," Arthur mumbled to Tommy.

We were all waiting for something to happen.

"It doesn't have to be like this Kimber."

"Too late for all that. You bit off more than you can chew, you little toe rag. And now I'm gonna take over this shit hole."

"Well...if we have to use guns, let's use proper guns." Danny and Freddie walked out of the garage next to us.

Freddie looked like shit. He had a giant machine gun in his hand. "Sergeant Thorne reporting for duty, sir." Tommy looked back at Kimber. "You were saying something about being out-gunned?" Everyone held their guns up at each other. Well, everyone except for Tommy and Kimber.

"Move," Ada's voice came from the back of Kimber's group. She pushed her way to the front. She was dressed in all black. She was pushing Karl in a buggy as she walked between us. Freddie shouted,

"What are you doing?"

"I believe you men call this no man's land."

"Ada!"

"Shut up and listen."

"Have you lost your mind?"

"I said shut up!" Kimber turned to look at his men.

He was just as surprised as we were. "Now most of you were in France. I've got brothers, a sister, and a husband here, but you've all got somebody waiting for you. I'm wearing black in preparation. I want you to look at me. I want you all to look at me! Who'll be wearing black for you? Think about them. Think about them right now. And fight if you want to, but that baby ain't moving anywhere...and neither am I." No one said anything.

Freddie and Ada stood there staring at each other. I didn't think this would end things this easily. I did like the effort though. "She's right, you know." Kimber looked around at all of his men then ours. "Why should all you men die? It should just be them who's caused it."

A gunshot went off. I felt a pain rip through my right shoulder as I nearly flew onto my back. I fell to my knees as everything turned into a blur. I slowly reached up to touch where it hurt. My whole hand was red. It took me a minute to process what was going on. I was shot, Kimber shot me.

Another gunshot went off. I looked up to see both Danny and Kimber laying on the ground. Tommy's voice echoed through the street. "Kimber and I fought this battle one-on-one. It's over. Go home to your families." After collecting Kimber's body, they left.

Tommy ran to me, carrying me into the pub. My body was numb. Well, it was numb until they started to fish the bullet out. They sat me down on a table before stripping off my jacket and half of my shirt. "I'm so sorry," Tommy looked into his eyes. Jeramiah took the end of a spoon to the wound. They all surrounded me as I screamed and wiggled in agony.

They all cheered me on. "Come on, An. You can take it." After a minute or 2, he got it out. "There. I still have the knack." He smiled as he put it in a glass.

"Have a drink," Arthur handed me the bottle. I took a swig before handing it back to him. "Deep breath." Before I realized what was happening, he was pouring it on the wound. I screamed as he held me still. "It's done, it's done," he took a step back. I took a few deep breaths as they wrapped it up.

Aunt Polly and Ada came into the pub. Aunt Polly was not happy. We all gathered in the private room to say goodbye to Danny. His body lay on the table. The only one who was crying was Curly. The boys all kept their composure.

John lowered his head.

"We can bury him properly. In the grave, we dug for him."

"Yeah. It's high on a hill. He'd like that." Tommy held up a bottle. "To Danny Whizz-bang. May we all die twice." They all passed the bottle around to say their goodbyes. "Come on, the day is ours. Let's celebrate." We all left the room.

The pub started to get crowded as our party started. I had to sneak out for a second to breathe. Tommy was actually standing out there. None of us said anything for a second. I asked,

"Do you think he shot me to get to you?"

"He knew my biggest weakness."

"Biggest weakness and pain in the ass." He laughed as he lit his cigarette.

I headed back to the pub to finish parting after standing there for a few minutes. Slowly everyone started to go home. The only ones left in the pub were Aunt Polly, John, Arthur, and me. John and Arthur were too drunk to go anywhere. They were passed out together in a booth. The door opened and Tommy walked in. He went to see Grace before she skipped town.

He walked into the pub with his head hung low.

"There he is."

"Tommy," John called out.

"Drink?" Polly offered.

"Not whiskey. If you check behind the bar you will find a bottle of champagne."

"The one she bought." Aunt Polly placed it on the table.

"Today was a good day. All of Kimber's men were busy here. The Lee boys took all their pitches at the Worcester races. It couldn't have gone better even if we planned it. Shelby Brothers Limited is now the third-largest legal race track operation in the country." He started to walk over to John and Arthur.

"Cheers," Arthur and John drunkenly cheered. "Only the Sabinis and the Solomons are bigger than us, boys. And all my family is here to celebrate." He popped open the bottle.

"To Shelby Brothers Limited."

"Shelby!" Arthur cheered before groaning.

Tommy put his head on the counter. I rubbed the back of his head.

"There will be others." Aunt Polly soothed.

"To others."

"To others." The 3 of us clinked our glasses.

He walked out of the pub without another word.

#peaky blinder headcanon #peaky blinder fanfic #peaky blinder imagine #peaky blinders x reader #peaky blinders fanfic #anna shelby #shelby!sister #shelby!reader #thomas shelby #finn shelby #fanfic #alfie solomons #arthur shelby #john shelby #michael gray #peaky blinders #polly gray #bonnie gold x reader #bonnie gold

55 notes · View notes

bagsybaggins · 10 months

Text

Chapter 1: The Disappearance

I open my eyes, staring out the window as I wait for the bell to ring. It was the most boring class of the day, Math. But I still had my good grades to keep Mom happy, even though Dustin always got better grades than me.

Not that I cared about that.

Sure Mom cared about the good grades the 'reputation' of being a good kid and all that shmuck. But I am not exactly a good kid. Not that anyone knows of what I've done. Not even my little brother who is 4 years younger than me, and I tell practically everything.

But Hopper does, and some of the other police officers do.

But Hopper has 'taken care of it'. I'm not sure exactly what he means by that, but I trust him. After all, he was my dad's best friend. At least he was until my dad died. And after that happened, I wasn't exactly okay. I'll admit, I acted out. Didn't deal with the whole grieving thing properly. Got into picking locks and stealing occasionally.

But I stopped doing that, a while ago actually! I swear.

"Dare! Have you seen my supercomm?" I hear my little brother yell from his room.

I snicker as I toss his walkie under my bed, making sure that I had turned it off.

"Haven't seen it Dusty! Maybe ask Mom for a new one!" I smile as I hear him cursing under his breath, turning into my room's doorway.

"Shouldn't you be getting ready for school too?" He asks as he notices me laying on my bed, with a book in my hand.

I roll my eyes, kicking my feet over the side while closing the book. "I've been waiting for you, you dork."

He rolls his eyes. "I needed to find my super-"

"Mom will get you another one Dusty, don't worry about it. Hell, I'll get you one if you just move your butt so we can go." I say as I walk towards him, slowly pushing him out of my room.

He sighs and nods his head, turning into his room.

"I'll be waiting!"

"Are you going to be at the campaign Sunday?" I hear him ask as I swing my bag over my shoulder, heading towards the door.

I click my tongue as I swing the front door open, hearing his footsteps rushing after me. "Well I have a dinner date with myself at 6:30, and a midnight slumber party including me myself and I. But I think I can rearrange the dinner for another day." I grin as I look at him over my shoulder, noticing his false glare directed at me.

"Ah, you know I wouldn't miss this one for the world Dusty. We've been planning this for what, months? I'll be there, and I'll even order pizza!" I throw my arm over his shoulders and rub my knuckles into his head, knocking off his hat.

He laughs as he shoves my hands away, giving me a nudge with his elbow. "Well good, we'll need you to help us win the fight. Do you think Mike-"

He rambles on but I glance down the street, noticing the familiar car that I had seen many times before.

"Hey Dusty, why don't you start peddling to school before you're late. I'll catch up." I say as I push my bike off the lawn, towards Hopper's car. I hear him mutter an okay, but I can feel his eyes on me as I hop on my bike.

"I haven't committed any crimes Hop, I swear," I state loudly as I press on my break, slowing down as he steps out of the car.

He chuckles down at me, shaking his head. "I would hope so Kid. But I'm here to give you something, for staying clean for so long. Or something like that."

He reached into his car, pulling out a hat. It was dark army green, and it had some pins in it. One flag pin on the right side, with a small bronze star next to it.

"It was mine, but your dad added that to it." He said as he pointed to the other side of the hat.

I turned it and stared at the words that seemed to be embroidered on the left side of the hat. Stretching from the front to back.

"I didn't know Dad could sew," I mutter, and Hopper laughs softly.

"Was full of surprises."

I run my thumb over the wording, feeling the bumps and the smoothness of the string.

'All the world is made of faith, and trust, and pixie dust.'

I scoff a laugh as I realize where they were from. "Of course, he put a quote from his favorite Disney film."

"And he put it on my cap, not his. Thought you would want to wear it since he lost his original one."

I nod my head with a smile, turning to look up at him. "Thanks, Hop."

He pats my shoulder. "Not a problem Kid. Promised your old man I'd look after you, and Dustin. Though he never warned me of how much trouble you'd get into."

Grinning widely, I place the cap on my head, moving my light brown hair behind my ears. "He was good at keeping secrets, but I think he just thought you knew. Besides, my first word was ‘dare’, remember?"

He shakes his head with a snort, "I remember, he wouldn’t shut up about it either. You're just like him Kid. Stalling to try and get out of school."

Pushing on the bike peddle, I smile as I start rolling down the hill. "I'm not stalling! And I won't be late for school! Later Hop!"

"Later Kid!" I hear him yell as I turn the corner, sighing as I see four kids waiting for me on their bikes.

"I thought I told you to go ahead!" I glare at Dustin as I slowly pass them.

"What was that about?" Dustin asked, dodging what I had said.

"He was telling me to keep out of trouble. Said he didn't want to arrest me again for picking another lock at the little corner store. That and he wanted to give me this hat." I explain as Will speeds up and looks at me in shock.

"You've been arrested?"

"Yeah-" "No you haven't!" Dustin yells, and I roll my eyes.

"But why'd he give you a hat? It's kinda a weird thing to do." Mike says as he moves to my other side.

"It was something that Dad had for a bit. He thought I would like it." We turn the corner, and I can hear Dustin's bike move up next to mine.

"Why do you get something of Dad's?" He asks, causing me to scoff.

"Look Dork, I said it was something dad had for a bit. It's Hopper's old army hat, I think. But Dad stitched it a Peter Pan quote and so Hop gave it to me." I look over at him and give him a look. "And you have multiple things of Dad's. But you lose them! So I keep them safe until you stop losing your junk."

He frowns, opening his mouth to say something before Lucas interrupts. "She's not wrong. You already lost your Supercomm this morning."

Dustin sighs and nods. "Fine, alright. But why does Hop come to visit you? You still haven't told me that!"

"What do you mean I haven't told you? You know why he does."

Dustin gives me a look and shakes his head. "No, you haven't. Every time I ask, you just say it's because he was friends with Dad."

I groan as School comes into view, a bubbling feeling of math equations sends my stomach into knots.

"He is- was. But he promised to make sure we didn't into trouble. That and it was to help Mom take a load off so she could watch you more. I just got into trouble."

And before Dustin could say anything else, I push on towards the High School, dodging people and cars.

"BYE, BOYS! SEE YOU LATER!" I yell as I wave to them.

"BYE DARE!" "YOU NEED TO TELL ME ONE DAY!"

I laugh at Dustin's voice, rolling my eyes as I press on my breaks, slowing down at the bike stand. I hop off, inhaling deeply as I feel a slight burning in my chest tighten up. I hold my breath, leaning against my bike as I try to shift the feeling away. After ten seconds I exhale, the feeling lingers but it wasn't as bad anymore.

"Hey, Dare!"

I turn my head, giving Nancy a thin smile as the urge to cough erupts from my lungs. And she notices it, like always. As she sends me a look, I sigh and let myself have a small mild coughing fit.

"You need to stop doing that. It's not good for you." Nancy says as she pats my back.

I shake my head as I slowly stop coughing, my throat hurting from it. I give her a smirk as I grab my bag from the front of my bike. "I was told to do that, by a doctor Nanc. It's supposed to help me grow out of having asthma. Or something."

"Well." She looks at me before she adjusts her books. "I think that's a lie."

I laugh as Barb comes out of her car, a smile on her face. "What's a lie?"

"Nance says my doctor's tips for getting rid of Asthma are fake," I explain as we walk into the hell pit called school.

No, I don't like school. But hey, It's that or child labor.

"I mean, sometimes doctors can be wrong about things," Barb says as I dodge another basketball player, who doesn't know how to walk.

"Yeah, but they should know what helps or not, right? I mean, they studied it for how long to get a doctorate?" I ask as I stop at my locker, which was next to Nancy's thankfully. Can't stand my other locker neighbor though.

"Look, I'm not saying he's lying. I'm just saying that it doesn't help to not breathe. Or to hold back a cough. Where is your inhaler?" Nancy asks as she leans back to look past my locker door.

"It's in my bag, and the nurse has my other one just in case. But I've been fine so far without it Nance, Stop worrying. If it gets bad I'll use it. But, now that I think about it," I pause as I take out my inhaler and shake it. "I don't remember when I last had an asthma attack."

"It was last week, on Monday. You laughed too hard after you saw one of the cheerleaders slip on milk and flipped her skirt, and her entire lunch onto herself. Which I think was sloppy joe day." Barb recites from memory, squinter her eyes as she recalls the incident.

I snort, laughing as I remember it. And like before, I feel my chest tighten and I feel my breath shortening. I hastily cough as I shake my inhaler, Nancy, and Barb rubs my back as I inhale deeply with my inhaler.

"Thanks." I croak, coughing once more. "I needed that laugh."

Nancy sighed heavily while Barb nodded, understanding what I had meant.

"Yeah well, don't leave your inhaler in your bag. I want you to carry it with you at least." Nancy says as she closes her locker, holding her first and second classes books. As she turns to me, I close my locker and I see her looking at my hat. "Where did you get that?"

I smile as I flick the front up a little. "A friend of my dad's gave it to me, said my dad had it," I explain, before waving off their questioning looks. "It's a long story, but it's mine now. that's all that matters."

Barb nods her head quickly. "Alright, well I think it suits you. But I think we should head to class before we're late."

Nancy nods her head and I pat her shoulder as I walk around her. "Don't worry Nance! I won't have another attack so soon. It's uncommon-"

I later did have another attack in my first class. Someone had sprayed too much bad cologne and I ended up having to leave the room for a few minutes.

---

"What did I tell you, I knew-"

I sit my lunch down and wave my hands around. "I'm sorry Nancy! You were right! But I wouldn't have had another attack if SOMEONE DIDN'T HAVE THAT CRAPPY COLOGNE THAT CAUSED ME TO HAVE A COUGHING FIT!" I yell as I slowly look over at the basketball team.

The one who had the bad cologne ducked his head down in embarrassment because he had to use the showers to wash it off. The teacher had almost given him detention but I said it was fine.

Nancy puts he hand on my arm, causing me to stop and look at her. She gives me a look, one that tells me to stop. Like, a mom glare.

"Well, I'm glad you're okay. Are you going to need a refill sometime soon? I'm sure Mom might have some at our house when you left it there."

I sigh with a smile, shaking my head while reaching into my jacket pocket. I bring out my inhaler and shake it. "No, I should be good for the rest of the night. Besides I can just sneak in and take my other inhaler from the nurse's office if I need to."

I see Nancy and Barb look at me, and I pause as I realize what I had said.

"Guy's I was joking! I wouldn't break into the school for that! I have some more at home. I'll be okay!" I exclaim as I sit down next to them, shoving my inhaler back in my pocket.

'I wouldn't break into school again.' I silently repeat in my head as I open my milk.

Nancy and Barb shake their heads with smiles on their faces, looking down at the lunch and beginning to eat.

"I wouldn't doubt if you did do that Dare. You've done some crazy things." Nancy says as she gives me a side glance.

I scoff and look at her. "And what are you insinuating that I've done Nance?"

She hums as she looks at Barb, who snorts in response.

"Great, you're teaming up against me." I look down at my tray, frowning when I realize I forgot to grab a fork.

"Hey, if you ever need to run to pick up a refill, just call me. I'll come to pick you up." Barb says as points her finger at me.

I nod my head as I stand up. "Thanks, Barb. At least someone has my back."

Nancy laughs as she looks at me. "I got your back, Dare. Wait, where are you going?"

I wave my hand as I head back towards the lunch line. "I forgot my fork, I'll be right back."

"DO YOU HAVE YOUR INHALER?" She yelled, to which I glare at her from over my shoulder.

Now, you should pay attention to where you're walking. But I wasn't because I was glaring at her, so I ended up hitting one of the small brick pillars that are in the middle of the room.

"Whoa, are you okay?" I hear someone ask as I rub my nose.

I turn to my right as I hear the small sound of the music being blasted through headphones. A guy, with brown curly-haired mullet, and brown eyes. He looked at me with his brows furrowed, his hands holding his tray.

"Yeah, I'm alright. I think." I scrunch my nose as I take my hand away. "Quick question, am I bleeding?"

He blinks at me before I notice his eyes slip down slightly, and he shakes his head. "No, I think you didn't hit it hard enough." He smiles as he looks back up at my eyes.

I sigh. "Damn, no chance of getting sent home then."

He chuckles and shakes his head. "I don't think so, but you could try again."

I laugh shaking my head. "I think I won't but thanks. Have a good lunch-" I pause leaning forward, grabbing his fork, and trying to hear the song that was playing through the headphones around his neck. "Oh is that Def Leppard? Rock of Ages right?"

He blinks as he visibly stills for a moment, I lean back tapping my fingers against the fork I had taken.

"Uh, yeah it is. I didn't think anyone else here listened to them." He mutters a patch of pink lightly crawling up his neck.

Shit, he's embarrassed. Didn't mean to do that, whatever I did.

"Well, guess you were wrong. They're good, but I've only heard a few of their songs on the radio." I explain as I slowly step back.

He grins, his eyes crinkling slightly at the corners. "Their album's really good! I can lend it to you if you'd like to listen to it-"

I laugh and shake my head. "Maybe some other time, but I gotta head back to my friends before they start having a panic attack. If I'm gone everything goes wrong, ya know?"

I can see his face fall, just slightly before he smiles again and nods his head. "Yeah, I'll bring the cassette another time."

I smile. "Yeah, thanks." I turn around, walking back to my table with Nancy and Barb watching me. I quickly turn around and lift the fork, twirling it around in my fingers.

"Oh and thanks for the fork!" I say as he turns back around, quickly glancing at his tray. I giggle as his mouth drops in shock as he looks back at me, and he smiles and shakes his head.

I speed walk back to my table, dodging another person holding their tray. As I sit back down, Nancy and Barb raise their brow at me.

"What?" I ask as I eat my crappy school spaghetti that barely has any sauce on it.

"Who was that?" Barb asks.

"And what was that?" Nancy smiles with a devious look on her face.

I lean back from her as I twirl another strand of spaghetti onto the fork. "No idea what their name is, and that was me grabbing their fork instead of going back to grab a new one."

Nancy and Barb give me a look that just translates to, really?

"What?" I look at the two of them.

"What was that whole, leaning into him thing? Do you like him?" Nancy asks as her voice grows quieter as she leans closer.

I blink slowly and take another bite.

"He was playing a good song on his headphones. I leaned closer so I could hear it, it sounded familiar. And no, I don't like him, I don't even know his name. Yeesh, Nance, not everyone thinks about dating someone." I say as I give a look.

Barb looks at Nancy with a raised brow, and Nancy's eyes are blown wide.

"Wait- no, I don't think about-" Nancy tries to explain, but we cut her off by looking over at Steve Harrington's table.

He waves his hand as Nancy looks at where we had turned to, smiling at her before turning back to his friends. Nancy, in turn, blushes as she turns back around and looks down at her food.

"Not think about dating huh?" I mutter as Nancy starts pushing her food around.

Barb snickers as she opened her book, pulling out a sheet of homework.

"Shut up." Nancy murmurs as she gives me a false glare, one that holds no bite to her 'mom' glares.

I smirk as our table falls silent, the two either invested in their food or their homework. I exhale silently, looking up from the table as I lift my milk with my left hand, still holding my fork in my right. My gaze shifts from table to table as I slowly drink my milk, and then I see him again. His headphones were on, sitting at the end of a loner's table his bag in the seat next to him. I press back a smile as I see him trying to twirl his new fork in his hand.

He slowly lifts his head, his lips mouthing whatever song had been blaring through his headphones. His eyes look away from his hands, and we meet gazes. I smirk as I lift my stolen fork, and salute him with it as subtly as possible. His lips twitch upwards and I turn away as I snicker to myself.

"Why are you laughing?" Barb asks, her gaze not leaving her homework.

I turn to her as Nancy looks over at me. I click my tongue and blurt out the first thing that popped into my head.

"I was thinking about T rex's trying to fist fight, but their arms don't even stretch that far so they just kinda lean back and slap each other's hands like this," I say as I lean back, bringing my arms close to my chest and flapping my hands around.

Barb and Nancy stare at me for a moment, before they turn to each other. Then our little trio bursts out laughing at my ridiculousness. I smile as I glance over at his spot, feeling a twinge in my gut when I see he wasn't there anymore.

---

"No, I'm fine Mom! I didn't have any asthma attacks at school. I promise!" I say as I walk out of my room, to my panicking mother.

"But they called and said you did! Twice!" She said as she turns to me.

I sigh and shake my head.

'It was actually three times, but no need to correct her.'

"They lied Mom! They just want you to try and get me to be homeschooled. They don't want me to beat the highest grades or something. I was fine all day. I swear." I smile as I hug her quickly.

I see Dustin raise his brow at me from the kitchen, and I glare at him.

"Alright, Dare-bear. If you're sure. I'll be back later after bingo night is done." She kisses my cheek quickly as we part from our hug.

I shake my head. "I don't know why you play bingo Mom. You're not that old. Grandma's play Bingo, everyone knows that."

She smiles as she kisses Dustin's cheek, grabs her purse, and heads toward the door. "Don't flatter me, dear, I'm still going to take you for another visit to the doctors tomorrow."

My neck cracks as I look over at her, a feeling of panic filling me. "Sunday? I can't we-"

I feel my lungs constricting, her back still turned to me, but Dustin noticed.

"We have a campaign Sunday Mom, we can't cancel it! She can go after that!" Dustin comes to my safety as he walks to the door, skillfully moving her out so she couldn't see me.

I hold my breath, closing my eyes as I try to focus on counting. Drowning their words. When I slowly exhale, I fall into a wheezing coughing fit. My eyes water with each cough, and I feel my inhaler being shoved into my hand. I quickly inhale, the sound coming back into my ears. I slowly calm down again.

I slowly look at Dustin, nodding in thanks as the attack dissipates.

"She still doesn't know about it?" He asks as he sits down beside me.

I shake my head. "I try to explain, but she doesn't quite get it. Fear of the hospital is normal, you'll be fine. I just try to push through it."

He nods his head and I smile. "Thanks, for the cover."

He smiles at me, and I chuckle.

"I owe you one, ya I know," I murmur before I pull him into a hug. "But really, thanks."

"No problem, you're my sister. Plus, we can't lose our rogue right before the campaign." He says.

I laugh, shoving him away and shaking my head.

"Whatever nerd, go get ready for bed. We're heading out early on Sunday, gotta go grab something from the store before we head over." I stand up, stifling a yawn as I look over at the clock.

"What are you grabbing?" He asks.

"Girl stuff." I look at him from the corner of my eye, smiling as he falls silent with a confused look on his face.

And then light bulb, he hastily says good night and runs to his room. I laugh silently as I walk to my room, muttering a 'night' through his door. I open my door and shut it, falling onto my bed with a slight bounce. I stare at the ceiling before clicking my tongue and turning onto my side, reaching down at the bottom of my nightstand and shuffling through my books. When I see my yearbooks from middle school, I smile, grabbing them and throwing them down next to me.

I sit up as I grab the oldest one, with little sharpie doodles on the cover and sides. I chuckle at the monkey drawing I had drawn in a bright pink sharpie. I open the cover and slowly sift through it to find a familiar face, that I had yet to put a name to. And page after page, I begin to frown in concentration looking at each face slowly.

When I turn to the M's, I finally see him. At the bottom right corner.

"Eddie Munson huh," I mutter aloud as I look at the fourth-grade picture.

I smile as I flip through the book, smiling at pictures of Nancy and Barbra. They were all ahead of me by one year, I was one year behind despite being the same age. I had been born at the end of the year, December 28th to be exact. Of 1967. We were friends because of Dustin and Mike. I didn't have any friends because I had been sick, and so when Dustin was invited over by Mike, I tagged along. That's where I met Nancy and Barbra, and we've been friends ever since.

But, when I was supposed to be attending my first year of kindergarten, I ended up getting pneumonia. I fell into a coma for six months, missing my fifth birthday, and too much school to start first grade the next year. I mean, I could have gone to first grade with them. But my dad didn't want that, said I should get the joy of Kindergarten first.

And then halfway through kindergarten, Dad died. I was six, and Dustin was barely two.

I exhale shakily as the memories try to resurface, but I ignore them. I flip through the pages, looking at the pictures of different events that happened during that year. A Halloween costume competition. Thanksgiving lunch with little finger turkeys littering the walls. A Christmas choir concert and I couldn't help but notice the boy who stood up in the front. My memory was fuzzy from that, but I did remember someone had hit a really high note.

And it had been him.

I giggle at the thought that that little head-shaven boy had grown a mullet. He had been good at singing from what I remember. I mean that high note, wow.

I slowly close the book and I knock them to the ground, knowing that I would accidentally step on them tomorrow. I smiled as I turned onto my side, pulling the covers out from under me. I slowly drift to sleep, knowing that I would be his friend before this year was over.

---

I curse wildly as I bounce around on one foot, having stepped on the damn yearbooks. I huff and glare down at them, before noticing that they had fallen open.

"Oh shit, I forgot Jonathan existed," I say in awe at the bowl cut he had been sporting back in fourth grade.

"Dare! Dare, you up?" I hear Dustin yell from beyond the door.

"Yeah?" I yell back, kneeling down and closing the book.

"Wanna get breakfast before we head out? Mom made eggs and bacon." He said before I look at the door.

"BACON?" I yell, before throwing the books back under my nightstand, and running to my door.

"Move Nerd, there's bacon." I push past him, heading to the kitchen.

I pause as I realize that there was in fact no Bacon. And Mom wasn't even in the kitchen. I slowly turn to Dustin who smiled.

"Can I request Bacon with eggs?" He asks as I glare at him.

I stare at him, not moving, and watch as he slowly loses his smile.

"Fine, but you owe me," I say quickly as I walk into the kitchen and open the cupboard.

I hear him sigh in relief before he sits down at the table.

"So where's mom?" I ask as I open the fridge, pulling out the eggs and bacon.

He shrugs. "I think she went shopping. At the thingy store."

I look at him as I click my tongue, cracking an egg into the pan. "The thingy store?"

He nods. "The store where she got that, I forgot what- wait. Antique store! She's there."

I sighed heavily and shake my head. "So we'll come home to what, another weird cat statue maybe?"

He shrugs. "Or maybe she'll find another 'rare' plate. I don't think we even have a normal set."

I wince as I start scrambling the eggs. "Yeah, that's my fault. I had used them for target practice."

"What?"

I freeze before correcting the previous statement. "We had used them for target practice. Dad and I. Before and after I had Pneumonia. Which sucked, by the way, don't ever get it."

He nods his head. "I know you told me that before. I keep forgetting that Dad had taught you to shoot when you were five." He frowns.

I shrug. "Dad was paranoid for some reason, the whole PTSD thing ya know? But yeah that was weird." I hum as I think back on trying to shoot our plates.

"I couldn't hold the gun ya know. I was too small, and it would keep flying out of my hand. it was fun, except it was really loud." I say fondly with a smile.

Dustin smiles thinly.

"Hey," I put my hand on his shoulder as he looks up at me. "You might not have had a lot of time with him, and neither did I. But we still have his pictures. And you are almost a replica of him you know. Mom might not say it, but you really do look like him. Except you got Mom's eyes and her hair. I got his eyes and hair," I pause as I frown. "But where did I get my asthma?"

Dustin chuckles and shakes his head. "I know, but I wish I had at least a memory with him before he died in the crash."

I inhale sharply before covering it with a fake hiccup, yes I have mastered the art of fake hiccupping and it's something everyone should do.

"Yeah, I wish you did too. He definitely would have helped you with that radio project that you have going on. He would have also provided the snacks. He had a major sweet tooth." I smiled.

"Really? A sweet tooth?"

I laughed and nodded my head. "Oh yeah, he carried around candy in his pockets all day. By the time the day was over, they would be gone. Anything sweet, he'd eat it. He enjoyed ring pops, suckers, candy canes, anything." I pause for a moment. "I think his favorite candy was 3 Musketeers."

Dustin's eyes lit up. "We like the same chocolate?"

I smile. "Yeah, he would only eat that type of chocolate. But candy, that was limitless. So long as it was sweet."

---

"Wait there for me Dustin, I'll be right back!" I yell as I hop off my bike, running into the music store.

I cringe as the abundance of Elvis was on display. I walk around it, looking at the plastic labels for anything other than oldies music.

"If you're looking for Def Leppard-" I jump as I hear a voice say from the isle behind me.

Eddie's head peeks out from above the self, a smile spread across his face. "-I'll be willing to lend you mine as I said."

"Jesus Joe Cricket, you scared the fuck out of me Eddie," I say as I wheeze lightly, my hand on my racing heart, ignoring the look he gave me. "I thought a ghost was talking to me for a second."

"An interesting selection of words, most people say Jesus H Christ you know." He said as he walked around the aisle toward me. "You know my name?"

I cross my arm, mimicking his stance, and nod my head. "Yeah, there's no one else named Eddie who hit that high note back in our fourth-grade choir class."

His smirk shifted into an embarrassed smile, pink spreading to his cheeks. "And that apparently."

I laugh and shake my head. "No, I looked you up in the yearbook. I'm terrible with names honestly. But the high note? Man, that's something you should be proud of. It was killer, no one else could have made that without some helium."

He looks at me through his hair, raising a brow. "Really?"

I nod my head rapidly, lightly hitting his shoulder. "Hell ya, it was great! I wouldn't be able to do that, so yeah it's awesome."

He smiles, nodding his head while looking down at the shelf. His fingers tap against some of the cassettes. I tap my foot to the song playing in the store, a rock song by a band I didn't recognize.

"Here, your copy of it." He said abruptly as he held out a cassette to me.

I glance down at it and notice that it was Pyromania, the Def Leppard album that he had been listening to the first time we met. I take it from it, turn it over, see the band on the back, and smile.

"You know," I pause looking at him. "I think you would rock the long hairdo."

He stares at me for a moment before laughing, his hand drifting towards his mullet. "My hair not looking good? Is that what you're saying?"

I shake my head. "No, no-"

"So it's not good?"

I nudge his arm as he laughs loudly. "That's not what I'm saying! I just meant that it would look good on you. Not a lot of people can pull it off you know."

There's a moment of silence before he asks, "You really think so?"

Nodding my head, "Definitely. It would be wicked."

He nods his head before I see the clock above the door. My eyes widen as I realize the time. "Oh shit! I'm gonna be late, they're gonna kill me."

I put the cassette back on the shelf and turn to him with a smile. "It's been great seeing you Eds, but I got a campaign to get to." And I walk past him towards the door.

"Wait! Your cassette." He says while he held it back out to me.

Shaking my head with a smile, I reply. "No, I think I'll borrow the one I was offered. We can talk more the next time we meet! Bye Eds!" I open the door and walk out.

"Bye, YN."

---

"Okay! Break time!" I exclaim as I lean back in my chair, wincing at the verbal cracking in my back.

"We can't take a break yet! We're almost at the dragon keep!" Lucas said as he looked over at me.

I stand up and cross my arms. "We are taking a five-minute break. I can hear your stomach growling like it hasn't eaten in two days. So we are grabbing the pizza and the drinks. Plus, I need a pee break and I need Nance to answer the diabolical question for Mr. Pickles's homework assignment."

"There's a teacher named Mr. Pickles?" Will asks.

I sigh. "No, I just call him that because he smells like Pickles, and so does his classroom. Now, five-minute break!" I clap my hands and usher them upstairs.

"Oh, you're coming out of the cave, how's everything going?" Mrs. Wheeler asks as she opens the fridge door.

I sigh as the boys answer, noticing how she tries to hold her smile as they talk about the campaign.

"I got them out Mrs. Wheeler, for a short time. We need food to tame the hunger of the monsters they call stomachs." I smile.

She smiles at me, patting my shoulder. "Thank you for that dear."

"No problem, but I gotta go ask Nance something real quick," I state before moving around her and running up the stairs. "Nance! I got a question."

I open the door and walk in, falling onto her bed with a groan. She looks over at me from her desk, raising her brow.

"Is it already done?" She asks as she stands from her chair and sits next to my head.

"No, I just demanded a break. Anyway, I was wondering." I pause as I try to think of my question again. "Oh right, Mr. Pickles gave me homework, and there's one problem I can't figure out. It's got like 50 melons and the cost of one is 5, but then the inflation is like, 2.2 or something. What do I do?"

She stares down at me before laughing. "Really? That's your question?"

I smile and shake my head before sitting up. "Nope, what up with you and Steve?"

---

"Wait, guys!" I yell as Will and Dustin start racing. "Guys, don't leave me! I have asthma!"

Muttering a curse I try to push myself to catch up with them, and I manage to catch up to Dustin as he stops at our corner.

"I want your X-Men 134!" I hear Will shout as I stop next to Dustin, wheezing.

"Shit," Dustin says, before looking at me. "Fuck, where's your inhaler!"

I flip him off, peddling forward slowly, digging into my pocket for my inhaler. I hear him apologizing but I wave him off, trying to breathe again.

"Whatever. Do you think we beat it?" I ask as we go to our house.

He shakes his head. "No, we didn't. Will found the other dice, it was a seven. We lost."

Cursing again I crack my neck as I press on the breaks, stopping in our driveway. Dustin's breaks squeak loudly and I wince. "We should fix that."

He shrugs as we head to the door, ready to go to bed after a long campaign.

"Hey Mom, We're home!"

[Next Chapter]

10 notes · View notes

useless-bi-otch · 1 year

Text

Cookies'n Cream - Chapter 16

Last chapter / MasterList / art by @aneenasevla

Chapter 16 - Five Points Less

EggHead:

hey guys

wya?

Lihito was the first to see the message in the group chat, feeling his phone vibrate inside his sweatshirt pocket. He picked it up, half absently, concentrating primarily on lifting the drink to his mouth and taking a long sip. And that turned out to be a bad idea, because as soon as he saw who had sent the message, the ingested liquid remade all the way to his nostrils and came out like a fountain, wetting the counter and making Kaneda, sitting next to him, almost fall backwards with fright.

“Good heavens, Rihito! What's wrong?!," He asks in alarm while Rihito has a coughing fit.

"O-Oku-bo-ho-ho-ho...!"

"What? I didn't understand anything! Want something to wet your throat? Maybe a water..."

"Damn it, if- if I get any more wet I'll drown!," Lihito coughs a few more times, hitting his chest with his fist. "It's- It's Okubo! He sent a message at the group chat asking where we are..."

"What? Serious?," Kaneda immediately grabs his phone, clicking on the notification that appeared to be redirected to the chat, his face tense with concern. "But it's barely midnight! Did something go wrong?"

"Don't even joke with something like that! I swear, if that bald fucker messes with his own mojo again, I'll fuck him up!," He starts typing, grinding his teeth angrily. Himuro, having finished serving the other customers sitting at the counter, approaches them while wiping sweat off a whiskey bottle.

"Hey, what's with all the yelling?It won't take long until my boss concludes that you've had too much to drink and tells me to throw you both out..."

"It's Okubo, Himuro. He just texted, asking where we are,” Kaneda explains as he pats Rihito on the back, who was still coughing and sniffling. Himuro widened his eyes.

"Huh? For real? At this time he should be taking Miss Uta to a five-star motel or something, not texting us!"

"And why do you think I'm pissed off like that? I didn't humiliate myself and got mistaken by a stalker that Sunday, under a downpour, for him to fuck with this second chance!," Rihito declares, outraged, while responding to the texts.

Mr_Iron_Fingers:

we're at Dai-Uchu-Sakaba

why? shouldn't you be with miss uta?

you didn’t do anything stupid, did you?

if you did then don't even show your face here!

or I swear I’ll kick your ass til my foot comes outta your mouth!

EggHead:

LMAO

dude calm down

are you pmsing or something?

nothing happened, chill out

anyway, I already imagined that you were at the bar

i'm on my way

i'll be there in 5 min

"What did he answer?," Himuro asks, watching them check their messages while returning the bottle to one of the liquor cabinets. Rihito and Kaneda exchange glances before turning back to him, now decidedly confused.

"He said that nothing happened and that we need to chill..."

“But if the date didn't go downhill, why is he coming here instead of being there with her, lying on one of those round motel beds, being ridden like the donkey he is?"

"Rihito, keep your voice down...!"

"Maybe he got drunk again, this time somewhere else," Himuro muses, a hand under his chin, to which Rihito and Kaneda wince.

"Don't even joke about that, gigolo! To err is human, but to repeat the mistake is to be a dumbfuck," Rihito growls, pointing to his phone screen. Kaneda shakes his head.

"I don't know… these messages aren't full of grammatical errors, which is what happens when he drinks. And anyway, he wouldn't have laughed at Rihito's irritation like that if things had gone badly, would he?," He shows the screen of his phone to Himuro, who leans a little over the counter and frowns.

"Yeah, when you put it like that..."

"Wait, but if that means everything worked out...," Rihito goes back to reading the messages that Okubo had sent, this time with more attention. And then he lets out a hiss through his teeth, followed by a laugh. "Damn, age came early for that bastard, huh. Dude's not even in his forties, but apparently he still can't keep it up for to long, hehehahaha!"

"Lower your voice, Rihito...!," Kaneda asks again in a hiss, turning a little red. Himuro, on the other hand, joins Rihito in laughing.

"And you'd think that, since his date is a hella cute girl, he would feel more motivated. But no, it must've been too much for him."

"I know, right! Guess that's his shortcoming... or more like 'shortcuming'!"

"You two are horrible...," Kaneda shakes his head, disapproving, while Rihito and Himuro burst out laughing. Rihito takes another sip from his glass as Himuro clears his throat to contain himself.

“We're kidding, Kaneda. It's sort of our group's official coping mechanism, you should've learned that by now."

"That's right. And honestly, I'd rather think he jumped the gun in the middle of the deed than think he screwed up the last chance he had to win Miss Uta back," Rihito confesses, now getting serious. "I don't think I can convince her to hear the same excuses a second time."

“Then let's not wait for the worst. He should already be arriving, it's been almost five minutes since the last message he sent," Himuro puts the cloth over his right shoulder. "I'll attend to the other customers. Keep an eye on the door in the meantime, because if he arrives shitfaced, you'll have to stop him from getting in."

"And what do we get for doing a job that should be yours, huh?"

"A pat on the shoulder and a 'thanks, bro'."

"Redo the offer with 'the nightcap is on the house' and then we can negotiate."

"No chance. I need this job more than you need to drink for free," Himuro snorts, going back to where the other customers were, while Rihito and Kaneda turned their backs to the bar counter, still seated.

"I swear, Kaneda, if that motherfucker shows up drunk or crying his eyes out, I'll beat him 'till candy comes out," Rihito grunts. "I reached my tolerance limit for drunk crybabies that Saturday and I don't give a fuck if said crybaby is my friend or not."

"Let's give him the benefit of the doubt and wait for him to show up," Kaneda takes a sip of his drink, seeming to be preparing himself for what was to come. "But if he really screwed up a second time…"

The two looked at each other, making a mutual and silent agreement. If Okubo had screwed thing up again, none of them would have any pity. The group beating would be monumental.

And it doesn't take more than a few minutes for Okubo to finally show up at the bar, having to lower his head a little to cross the archway. He sighs, straightening up and looking directly at the counter. He raises an arm in the air at the sight of his friends. Himuro, finishing pouring a customer's glass, visibly relaxes.

"Okay, he doesn't look drunk or emotionally broken. I'll let the cleaning staff know they won't have to keep an eye for his car this time around..."

"Okubo!," Kaneda waves too, getting up from his seat and going to his friend. "You almost gave us a heartattack with that message of yours!"

"Yeah! You even made Kaneda choke on his beer, dude sprayed the whole fucking counter-ouch!," Rihito, who had also gotten up, screeches when Kaneda hits his shin with a quick and accurate kick. "Fuck you, you two-faced fox! Anyway, what are you doing here? Where is Miss Uta?"

They watch apprehensively as Okubo's expression turns intensely serious. He clenches and unclenches his fists, clenching his mouth in a hard line and swallowing hard. From the counter, Himuro frowns, while Rihito widens his eyes in disbelief, and Kaneda's shoulders slump.

"Oh no, man...," Rihito babbles as Kaneda approaches, his expression saddened, raising a hand to touch Okubo's arm.

"Gods, Okubo…don't- don't be like that, we're here for you and- Whoa!," And he yell, alarmed, when Okubo throws his arms around his torso as if he wants to do a wrestling move on him. What he does, however, is lift him into the air in a tight hug, whereupon Kaneda automatically kicks his legs up, eyes wide.

"Argh! O-Okubo, you're suffocating me...! W-What are you even...!"

"Holy shit, Kaneda... holy shit, guys...!," Okubo babbles, his voice squeaky, sniffing hard before declaring for the entire bar to hear, "Today was one of the best nights of my life!"

"Wha- seriously? So it all worked out?!," Rihito exclaims, his entire face lighting up as a huge smile breaks out. Okubo nods enthusiastically, making Kaneda, who was already turning red from lack of air, shake himself all over.

"It did, man! Fuck, I can't even believe it...!"

"Hell yeah! Guys!," Rihito shouts for the entire bar to hear, raising his fists in the air. "Our mate here had a kick-ass date with a girl! He's going to buy everyone a round of booze to celebrate!"

"The fuck I'm going! I spent all the money I had available in my personal account, down to the last penny!," Okubo exclaims indignantly as the entire bar breaks into laughter, all the men raising their glasses in the air and toasting. Himuro smirks, mixing a drink in a mixer with satisfaction.

"Yeah, he's definitely drunk. But the good kind of drunk..."

"T-That's great, Okubo! We're happy for you! N-Now put me down, please, my vision is starting to get dark in the corners...!," Kaneda pleads in a thin voice, and Okubo puts him on the ground with an embarrassed laugh.

"Sorry bro, I couldn't help it. I'm still having a hard time believing that the night turned out so well," He puts a hand on his forehead, laughing to himself, his face flushed with happiness. "It almost feels like I'm dreaming, damn it..."

"Dude, I won't kick your ass for filling a virile environment like this with your sissy shit because it's too good to see you like this!," Rihito laughs loudly, giving him a tremendous slap on the back, while Kaneda takes a deep breath to draw air in. "We didn't expect to see you today, but since you're here, let's have a drink so you can tell us the details of the night without any inhibition!"

"I can't drink, man, I came driving..."

"Oh, would you look at that! What a good, well-behaved, rule-abiding young man! Do you see what a woman is capable of doing to us, guys?," Lihito raises his voice again, playful, as he guides Okubo to the counter. "Stay single as long as you can, because after you tie yourselves up, manhood diminishes along with your hair."

"Shut up, Rihito," Okubo mutters, but he does it between laughs. He looked too happy even to be irritated by the Rihito's teasing.

They went back to sit at the counter, Rihito and Kaneda making room for Okubo to sit between them, Rihito still slapping him congratulatory on the back. Himuro approaches after attending to a few more customers, now wiping a glass, smiling.

"So it all worked out all right? Thank fucking god. Rihito was already cursing you to death..."

“I told you, didn't I? I wouldn't repeat past fuckups even if someone paid me," Okubo says, tapping the tip of his index finger on the counter. "I was already scared enough when I arrived at the meeting spot, at seven o'clock sharp. One more minute and everything would be over..."

"Wait, didn't you leave your place two hours earlier? How did you manage to arrive in the nick of time?," Kaneda asks with a frown, and Okubo snorts hard.

"It was because of those fucking flowers! I wanted to buy them the day of the date to make sure they were fresh. But seriously, you can't imagine how hard it is to find gladioli in this city. I had to stop at about four flower shops to find 'em, holy shit."

Rihito makes a face.

"Dude, I told you that only daisies and gerberas were enough..."

"No, man, it was completely worth it!," He gets excited again, even grabbing the side of the counter. "She loved it! I hit the nail on the head, I'll tell ya!," He raises a hand in the air, celebrating. "Blessed be that rain last Saturday, for that and other reasons!"

Rihito laughs, raising his glass. "Amen!"

Kaneda again shakes his head in disapproval, but the smile doesn't leave his face. He leans a little to the side, asking, "But what about the date itself? Did everything went well?"

"Well? It couldn't have been better! Dude, I couldn't even see the time go by…," Okubo sighs, smiling from ear to ear, closing his eyes and turning his head a little to the side. "We walked around Akihabara, we talked about maid cafes and baseball…"

"Very specific topics of conversation, I must say," Himuro puts the glass on a drying rack nearby. "I hope she wasn't bored or offended..."

"No, she was the one who brought up the subject," He guarantees, smiling even more. "She invited me to eat at one of those cafes, she even told me that he used to work at one..."

“What? Miss Uta used to work at a maid cafe?!," Rihito exclaims, his eyes widening, his face blushing very slightly. "Holy shit, the mental images... they keep coming nonstop, guys..."

"Show some respect, Rihito," Kaneda warns, but Rihito ignores him in his excitement.

"Fuck, man, you have to convince her to wear a maid uniform for you one of these days, it's a golden opportunity!"

"Bro, if she doesn't mind, you can bet I won't say no," Okubo blushes a little too. "But that's the least of it, honestly. I even forgot about that maid cafe stuff after the subject turned to baseball. She's a die-hard Yomiuri fan, can you believe it?"

"A baseball fan, you say?," Himuro blinks, impressed, and Okubo nods vehemently.

“As much as I am! I even did a basic test just to make sure, and now that I think about it, it was kinda risky. She could've thought I was one of those idiots who think girls only pretend to enjoy certain hobbies to get men's attention..."

"… And was it her case?," Rihito asks, looking to the side, and Okubo turns to him with some indignation.

"Of course not! Just like she doesn't pretend to be into martial arts! She even said that she used to play in high school," He sighs deeply again. "And she even asked for us to eat at a themed restaurant and everything. It feels so fuckin' good to find someone who has so many things in common with you, I'm not even joking. It was as easy as talking to you guys!"

"Jeez… is this even possible?," Rihito asks, surprised. "Be careful not to get too comfortable with her and end up getting friendzoned, bro..."

"Don't be ridiculous, Rihito," Kaneda holds out his empty glass for Himuro to fill it with more booze. "Any relationship needs to have a degree of friendship, no matter if it's platonic or romantic. I think it's great that you've grown closer like this, Okubo, especially after the pedestal she put you on has been properly demolished."

"You don't have to rub that in my fucking face! Especially when I'm so happy...," Okubo pouted, to which Himuro rolled his eyes.

“But he's right, man. If she had stayed that fan who thought the sun rose and set on your ass, you wouldn't have gotten so close, so intimately."

"…Yeah, I guess it's true," Okubo smiles again after pondering. "She even felt comfortable enough to make fun of me. And viseversa. When we went down to the sports center for batting practice-"

"Wait, wait! Batting pratice?," Rihito repeats, wanting to be sure. "At the sports center? What happened to the classic combo of walking hand-in-hand in the park, going to the Shibuya Hikarie observatory to watch the city lights and dinner by candlelight? What kind of date was that?"

"Leave me alone! ... And yeah, we walked hand in hand for a bit," Okubo admits after he can't stand the stares fixed on him anymore, and that brings laughter from Himuro and Kaneda and an approving nod from Rihito.

“Okay, that's the Okubo I know. But seriously, batting practice at the sports center? Did she like it?"

"She loved it! And no kidding, she's a good hitter," He confesses, sounding sincerely impressed. "Not at a professional level, but she has potential. She can get really good if she practice enough, I'll even help if she wants to."

"One date was enough for you to want to take over as her coach?," Himuro laughs again. "What, will you teach her how to fight too?"

"I can try to teach her the most effective way to punch, in case she needs to defend herself..".

“Holy shit, he took me seriously. I think I created a monster, guys," Himuro comments, blinking, to which Rihito and Kaneda laugh. Okubo shakes his head.

"It's not even that, Himuro. Honestly, I'm up for anything she wants to do, as long as it gives me the opportunity to spend more time with her. I didn't lie to you when I said I didn't even see the hours pass. When it turned eleven and there was no place open, I even got upset..."

"Uh... why? That would just mean the best part of the date has arrived!," Rihito leans towards him, his smile opening even more. "Tell me, did you take her to one of those fancy love hotels or did you decide to test the resistance of her bed yourself? Hehehahaha!"

"Rihito...," Kaneda just sighs this time, already giving up on the scolding. Rihito shrugs.

"What? Im just asking! But seriously, Okubo, that's pretty cold even by our standards. You should've at least spend the night with her, instead of just puting your clothes on and going your merry way. Poor Miss Uta must be feeling used..."

"Huh...? Oh!," Okubo's eyes widen after a few seconds of confusion. He looks away, suddenly embarrassed, “Actually we…we kind of…"

“Kind of what? Spit it out!"

"You didn't do anything," Himuro is the one who concludes, blinking in disbelief. Rihito's jaw drops when Okubo doesn't deny it, becoming even more embarrassed.

"Huh? You didn't bang her? Are you fucking kidding me?!"

"Keep it down, you idiot!," Okubo hisses through his teeth, a finger in front of his lips. "Seriously, why do you always have to react to information as if you'd swallowed a megaphone?!"

"Leave me be! How come you didn't do anything?," Rihito insists, pointing indignantly at him. "What was all that dumbassery with the flowers for then?"

"To regain Miss Uta's trust. And apparently it worked out pretty well," Kaneda nods approvingly. Unlike Rihito and Himuro, he just seemed pleasantly surprised. "But really, we didn't expect that. Did you decide it was too soon or...?"

"The... The truth is, we didn't even talk about it," Okubo admits, scratching the back of his neck and looking at the counter. "I just took her home, walked her to the door and gave her the gifts."

"Gifts? Plural?"

"Yup. Aren't you missing anything?," He points to himself, more specifically to his head, smiling shyly. Himuro is the first to understand, blinking again.

"Hey, where's your cap? I rarely see you without it... oh no," He widens his eyes. "Dude, you gave her the Buffaloes cap? Are you serious?"

"Your favorite cap?," Rihito stares at him in astonishment, and Okubo shrugs.

"I mean, yeah. I autographed it and everything. I can look for another one online later. And she'd said that if I wanted to give her a gift, it should be one with more emotional meaning than zeros on the price tag..."

“Holy shit, it's one fag shit after after the other,” Rihito shakes his head slowly like a disappointed parent. Himuro says nothing, still seeming to be processing the night's revelations. Kaneda, on the other hand, smiles.

“And knowing how much she likes baseball, you offered something that would be of equal value to both of you. Well thought."

“Yeah, that's more or less what I told her. From one baseball lover to another," Okubo smiles too, but not before discreetly giving Rihito the middle finger. "She loved it too. I think the combination of gifts, in addition to the incredible night, earned me the points I needed to win her forgiveness," He puffs out his chest, very happy. "We made out like crazy on her doorstep, hehehe."

"Fuck yeah! At least that!," Rihito exclaims, gesturing upwards as if thanking the heavens, then extending his hand to Okubo. They exchange a resounding high-five, and then Okubo does the same to Himuro, who had leaned a little over the counter.

"It was the bare minimum, too. If there hadn't been at least a few kisses, I would have declared you a goner," Himuro comments. "But I'm still confused. What usually follows after that is an invitation to spend a night together. How did this not happen to you?"

"Maybe she concluded that, after a disappointment and a period of recognition, they are kinda back to square one," Kaneda muses, laughing and accepting when Okubo asks him for a high-five too. "She was attracted to the Okubo Naoya she knew from the fight rings and interviews. Now that she's met Okubo Naoya for who he really is, she wants to go through the process of becoming attracted to him all over again."

"... Dude, how come you know so much about women?," Rihito asks after a few seconds of silence, gesturing perplexed. "What are those deep dives that you give into their heads to find these philosophical pearls? It's completely surreal!"

"I have three older sisters, Rihito," Kaneda gets a little red. "I've had to buy more teen magazines at convenience stores at their behest than I like to admit. But the focus of the conversation is Okubo, not me, so leave me alone!"

Okubo laughs softly. "Relax, dude. But really, if it's that or any other random reason… the truth is, I don't care much," He admits, bravely holding Rihito's and Himuro's puzzled gazes.

"What do you mean you don't care? Wasn't that, like, the point of the whole thing? Are you chickening out? You don't think you're deserving of it anymore or some shit like that?," Rihito asks irritably, to which Okubo scowls at him.

"Fuck no! This is still in my plans, okay?"

"Okay, but why couldn't it have been today?," Himuro insists. "Didn't you fished around to see if she was up for it? She didn't gave any hints or anything? Help us help you, man,..."

"Come on, Himuro," Okubo lets out a tired sigh, running a hand through his face. "I told you the truth, it didn't even cross my mind. I had so much fun with her today. Walking around, talking, batting practice, the whole thing. And when I went to drop her off, I felt satisfied. You know? That nice tiredness you feel when you know the day was well spent. It would have been great if it had happened, but… I didn't care too much that it didn't, either. Just spending a few fun hours with her made it all worth it."

"... You forgot the condom and were too embarrassed to go to the pharmacy with her in the car, right?"

"No, Rihito, for fuck's sake!," Okubo punches the bar counter, while Himuro laughs loudly. "Goddammit, why is it so hard to believe that I liked just going out with her? Dating isn't just about sex, you know?"

"Yes, Okubo, well said!"

"... And I only remembered the condoms in the glove compartment when I was already about two blocks away from her house."

"Oh, for God's sake!," Kaneda puts a hand on his face, frustrated, while Rihito and Himuro again burst out laughing, "And here I was, all proud while thinking that you had finally understood all the advice I gave you…"

"But I understood, man! Didn't you hear that I only remembered the condoms when it was too late to use them?," He leans towards him, and now he sounded a little amazed with himself. "Don't get it wrong, I want to get to that part of the process with her. I want it really bad. But... but I'm enjoying the process of getting there," He admits. "I'm not in such a rush for it to be over. Getting closer to her, getting to know her better while she gets to know me better too… I'm enjoying this more than I thought I would. And we agreed to go out again next week!," He raises the index and middle fingers of both hands, opening a wide smile. "Opportunities won't be lacking, right? When it has to happen, it will. And until then... I'm happy watching her hit a baseball farther and farther."

The other three are silent for a few seconds, processing that brief speech. Rihito and Himuro exchange a quick sideways glance, wanting to make sure they were both seeing and hearing the same things. Kaneda, on the other hand, nods with some relief before smiling approvingly again.

“At least that much… but have you seen how the little things make all the difference? I'm sure it meant a lot to her too. And that will count other of these points for you."

"It's what I expect! Not that I'm just doing this to get more points, of course, but after being shunned that, I'm taking any advance I can make,” Okubo nods. Himuro ends up shrugging after not being able to argue anymore.

"Eh, it's up to you. If you're happy with that, then I'm not going to butt in."

Rihito grimaces, taking another long sip of his drink. He sets the glass down on the counter, his brow furrowed. And then he turns to Okubo with a disappointed frown.

"You didn't even touch her boobs or anything? Hey, I’m just asking!," He exclaims when this elicits a chorus of impatient groans "Okay, okay, Okubo wants to take it slow then! I got it. I just don't know why, considering that, before that, you were already going at a sluggish pace..."

"But we made a good advance today, man! We spent a good few minutes making out at her door, it must have been quite a show for her neighbors," Okubo gives an embarrassed laugh. "My back is so stiff, but it was worth it, hehe."

This makes the other three laugh, including Rihito, even if he was still a little upset.

"Yeah, huge height differences have their drawbacks," Himuro comments. "You could've at least lifted her by her legs and pressed her against the wall. A lot of chicks like that."

"This is another future part of the process that I intend to get to, trust me. I'm just testing the waters..."

"Yeah, but that’s not going to be the only difficulty you’re going to face," Rihito suddenly gives a mischievous laugh. "Like, how are you going to do it when the time finally comes? She's so tiny, and you're a freakin' behemoth..."

"Screw you, Rihito."

"Are you really going to let yourself be ridden like a bull? I'm not judging, it's going to be a hell of a sight, hehehe!"

"As you can see, Rihito was quite disappointed that he couldn't hear all the sordid details of a fuck," Himuro jokes, to which Kaneda snorts.

"In my case, I was relieved. And it would be very disrespectful to Miss Uta to go into detail about something so intimate."

"Yeah, but you can't blame us for being curious," Himuro shrugs. "Guys of Okubo's size need to play contortionism often when they date girls smaller than them..."

"And what girl isn't smaller than Okubo, gigolo?," Rihito laughs sharply. "If he wanted one that was his size or even bigger, he'd have to go to space to hunt down an Avatar or something!"

Okubo and Himuro burst out laughing, and it's Kaneda's turn to inhale a good amount of booze and expel it through his nostrils onto the counter. The four remain there, out of breath amidst the laughter, Okubo slapping the smaller one on the back so he wouldn't choke to death. It takes almost three full minutes for them to calm down, Kaneda still coughing and wiping his wet face with a handkerchief.

“Holy shit, Rihito, go fuck yourself…,” Okubo gasps, a hand on his stomach.

"After that, all I can do is go and serve the other customers. At least none of them would try to make me choke to death. I'll be right back...," Himuro walks away from the inside of the counter, still laughing to himself. Kaneda finishes wiping his face and coughs one last time.

"I should be the one saying that. But anyway... I guess this isn't even an imminent concern for you, right, Okubo?"

"Nope! We'll sort it out when it's finally time. And no rushing me, huh!," He snorts at Lihito. "I was forgiven, like, thirty minutes ago. I don't want to pressure her and ruin the whole process."

"Yeah, yeah, I got it. I won't insist," Rihito shakes his hands. "Just don't forget to share the details when it finally happens. Historical events have to be duly recorded in the annals... hehehe, annals..."

"Aaaand with that, I'll excuse myself to go to the bathroom," Okubo gets up from his seat while Kaneda rubs his eyes tiredly. "Before this crazy motherfucker makes me pee in my pants or something. I'll be back in a moment."

"Alright...," The other two answer without taking their eyes off their glasses. Okubo walks away towards the bathroom, Himuro watching him over his shoulder as he mixes a drink in the mixer. He approaches them again, looking at the other two with an arched eyebrow.

"No, seriously… what did you conclude with that?"

"I concluded that I, without a doubt, didn’t understand shit," Rihito snorts while finishing with his glass. "It'd be less weird if he just said that he forgot the condom and thought it would be a bad idea to go buy one while she waited in the car..."

"I already concluded that he finally decided to listen to me. Better late than never, I suppose," Kaneda shrugs, and then looks at Rihito. "Now all that's left is… hnnn… yeah, better late than never."

"Fuck you! Finish the fucking sentence!"

"Yeah, it's about time. But that makes me think...," Himuro frowns a little while pouring the contents of the mixer into a glass. "Okubo seems to be taking this whole thing to another level."

"What do you mean, Himuro?"

"When it all started, he was only interested in a one night stand with a fan. He even told us that he was just giving her the attention she needed without getting too attached. And now he's there, settling for chaste dates, all to spend some extra time with this girl and see her smiling...," He faces the other two with an arched eyebrow. "Is it really still just a non-committal thing for him?"

Neither Rihito nor Kaneda had an answer for that. And the three of them decided, in silent agreement, that the conversation would die there. They preferred to observe more of the ridiculous soap opera their lives had become before drawing any conclusions. But they were certain that Okubo would produce more outlandish episodes of it to entertain them from then on.

* * *

“Hey, hey, Kana, here she comes!," Hiro shakes his hands at the bakery owner, who was inside, in the kitchens.

"So, Hiro? How is she?," Kanami looks from the window connecting the kitchen to the counter. "Does she look sad or upset?

"I don't know, we'll have to ask," he sighs. "But she doesn't seem desolate like the other day, so I guess that's okay…"

And indeed they could see that Tomori, who was slowly approaching the counter, looked anything but desolate. She was clean-faced, healthy flushed, with no dark circles or signs of under-eye puffiness; the face of someone who had had an excellent night's sleep. She hummed softly, a little distracted as she checked something on her phone. She finally puts it in her purse, looking up to find her co-workers watching her intently. She smiles and waves.

"Good morning, you two! Have you taken out the cookie dough I left in the freezer yesterday, Kanny? I'll start working with it as soon as I clock in."

"Oh, yes, I have. I also packed the bagels and…," Kanami starts, then shakes her head. But wait, Tomori…"

"Yes, yes, woman, don't change the subject!," he approaches with the baker when the sous-chef goes through the counter door. "You sent that message yesterday, but then there was nothing else, what happened?"

"Did he treat you well? You look fine to me, but…," Kanami was also worried, looking her friend up and down.

"C'mon, girl, spill the beans!"

Tomori laughs, her face reddening further. She reaches out to pick up the apron that Kanami is holding out to her through the pantry window.

“First of all, I'm sorry I disappeared yesterday. I was dead tired when I got home, took a quick shower and passed out as soon as I fell into bed..."

Kanami and Hiro widened their eyes and gasped, Hiro in excitement, Kanami in shock.

"What?!," they also spoke in unison.

"Yess! Scooooore!," Hiro jumps with joy.

"On the first date?!," Kanami screeches in disbelief. "Stop celebrating, Hiro!!"

"What is it, Kanami? Didn't you yourself say that you were a girl from the 21st century and all that jazz the other day?! Are you going back on your words now?!"

"No! But remember the guy we're talking about here..."

"Oh... yeah, you're right…," the cashier puts his hands on his hips, changing his mood like a TV channel. "That was quite fast, huh…?"

"Aah, I didn't think so…," Tomori pouted while tying her apron around her waist, looking kind of distracted. "He let me take the lead before finally making the suggestion, a good few hours after we'd met at the station . And boy, was I surprised," She rests her right hand on the side of her face, her smile widening. "He was very calm and confident when I said that I wanted to start holding the shaft, and you know how I like men who aren't afraid of women who are foward..."

Kanami and Hiro repeated the chorus. "Whaaaat?!"

"Girl, tell me more!"

"I don't want to hear any more..."

"Come on Kanami, you'll learn some techniques on how to take down a bull…"

"Shut up! I don't want to take bulls down!"

"Do you prefer to tame and feed them instead?"

Hiro narrowly dodges Kanami's neck slap, but he's still laughing as he runs away. "Aye, You violent woman, I'm going to complain to the union!!"

"Do that and I'll fairly dismiss you, you cheeky bastard!," she retorts.

Paikon grunts and wakes up; he was sitting at one of the tables this time.

"Could you pipe itdown, you bunch of crows?"

"Sorry about that, Paikon," Tomori waves to him too, still having fun watching Kanami chase Hiro, the baker still determined to break some labor laws. "t's just that they were excited to know what happened on my date. They can't believe I got to play with bats and balls so early. I don't see what the problem is, I'm a modern woman, with an open mind..."

"And what's wrong with playing baseball with your date?," Paikon raises an eyebrow. "Get a grip, you two..."

Kanami and Hiro stop in motion as she chokes him, blinking at them.

"Wait, baseball?," Kanami asks.

"So you guys went to play baseball?," Hiro blinks, letting go of the baker, almost disappointed. "So you didn't do anything hotter than that?"

"No, the AC in the sports center was very powerful," She comments innocently. And then she bursts out laughing at their expressions. "Ahahaha, s-sorry! It's just that you took that first comment of mine out of context and I just couldn't resist...!"

Kanami sighs, a bit exasperated. "You clown. And here we were, worried about you."

"I'm a little speachless, but not in a bad way," Hiro shrugs. "It's good, but you looked so happy that I thought it was because of other tipes of groans and moans…"

"Or maybe it's because she finally confirmed he wasn't a complete idiot," Paikon intervenes. "It's good that you had fun, Tomori…"

"Haha, thanks! And yeah…," Tomori sighs more deeply this time, closing her eyes. "I had so much fun, I'm still having a hard time believing it. Going to this date without expecting anything was the best decision I could've made, because I only had great surprises! We walked around Akihabara and caught up. I even confessed to him that I worked in a maid cafe and he didn't judge me! He just seemed to let his head drift off into other not-so-innocent directions, but eh... straight men, am I right?," She shrugs. "Then we started talking about baseball, and I asked him to eat at the Grand Slam Cafe. I've never been there with a guy before..."

"Oh, that baseball themed diner? Interesting," Kanami nods, mouth twisting in approval.

“Let me guess, and then you guys went to the sports center and played baseball there,” Hiro points out.

"Yes! The sports center was his suggestion, and it caught me off guard. Then he explained that he wanted to see me batting," She says excitedly. "He was a hitter when he used to play, so he wanted to analyze my technique and help me improve. You should've seen it, it only took three lessons from him for me to hit the ball through the entire cage! I left the sports center all sweaty and with smudged makeup, but I couldn't care less. And then, when he dropped me off at home..."

She looks away, blushing even harder as she bites her bottom lip, clasping her hands to her chest.

"Guys... he gave me his baseball cap. The Buffaloes one, the one he was always wearing when he showed up here. He autographed it and everything, my God..."

"Oh," Kanami and Hiro sighed. the former in exasperation, the later in relief.

"Well, that's good, I guess…," Kanami shrugs, starting to enter the kitchen door.

“Okay, then,” Hiro leans against the counter.

"But it was not just that!," She becomes agitated again, her eyes widening and shining even more intensely. "He gave me another bouquet of flowers, but not just any. He got it right, guys. He got my favorite flowers right, all three of them, and without me tipping him off!

"Wait, those flowers...," Hiro points to her leg, the one with the tattoo. The baker returns, curious.

"And how did he get it right…? Did he see…?"

"He did. It was an accident, I got soaked in rainwater when an idiot ran past us in the Kinokuniya parking lot. You know me, I kinda lost my temper and threatened to kick the guy's rear view mirror if he didn't buzz off, I even lifted my leg to emphasize... and then he saw it," She explains, now embarrassed. "I was wearing a worn out skirt, since my best clothes were in the laundry. He didn't judge either, he was just curious, but I never imagined he could've recognized the flowers! Or that he would have cared enough to research...," She holds her face in her hands, very red. "My God, guys, what chance did I have to resist after that?!"

"Huh," Kanami crosses her arms and leans against the edge of the door. "Okay, that surprised me.

"And how, I'm so happy!," Hiro smiles "For man like that to make an effort like that... I need to take my hat off. Kanami, I think she forgave him. Will you forgive him too?"

Kanami grunts low and then sighs. "Okay… I think I'll let him into the bakery… but don't push it!," she points to the cashier. "He has less five points than the others on my list, and if he does anything stupid, it won't be just a punch, it won't be just me and there's no going back."

"Wow, it's like I asked you to forgive a convict," Hiro makes a face. "He's Tomori's boytoy now, not just any hoodlum…"

"You know she's a pretty tough nut to crack, Hiro," Paikon yawns. "I wouldn't expect anything less. A boss has to be tough when necessary."

Tomori laughs again, happily. "I accept the conditions, Kanny, and I'm sure Naoya will too… I mean, Mr. Okubo will too," She tries to act natural, widening her eyes a little in alarm, but by the faces of the other three, it was too late.

"Oh, you see? She's even calling him by his first name now," Hiro smirks.

"Hnmf… with you talking like that, I find it hard to believe that you got only the flowers and the cap yesterday."

"Yeah… something happened there. This bitch is just like Akane: she catches, kills and eats her prey," Hiro laughs out loud when Kanami rolls her eyes and walks into the kitchen. Tomori puffs out her cheeks, very red.

"A good hunter never starts her hunt without first assessing the terrain! And anyway, I… I didn't even think about it at the time," She admits, shrugging a little. "I was so awestruck after he handed me the flowers, so breathless… I could only think “my god , I want to kiss this man right now”, and I did. We just made out, at the door of the house. Oh, if the neighbors had seen it...," She gives a high-pitched laugh, a bit scandalized. "I even thought for a second about inviting him in, but then he said good night and I concluded that the opportunity had passed. But it's okay, there will be next times, hehe. I regret absolutely nothing. It's so good to see that he's actually a nice guy and that he just had a bout of idiocy due to anxiety... and no, I don't want to justify what happened," She guarantees when Kanami and Hiro throw her disbelieving looks, the first sticking her head out of the pantry window. "That has no excuse. But we even talked about that subject. He said he wants to go down to the bistro and apologize to the staff, that he doesn't want me to stop going to one of my favorite establishments because of bad memories... yeah, I'll believe it when I see it, but for now he gave me no reason to doubt his words."

"Hnm," Kanami goes back into the kitchen. "Okay. But I'll be keeping an eye on him!"

"Me too, but a different eye," Hiro smiles maliciously. "Now let's open this place, I want to make my offer to Cuthulu!"

"Cuthulu?," Kanami raises an eyebrow.

“Hey, look at him over there.” Hiro points to the door.

"Gosh, this guy… he's becoming a pot-cleaner customer…," Paikon comments, getting up to go to the back. "Just bake twice as much and give half to him."

Said and done, Ohma enters through the front door, with a backpack over his arm and a calm expression. Kanami looks at him coming but shakes her head and goes back to the kitchen, but Tomori notices her red cheeks. She smiles to herself. Apparently she wasn't the only one there sighing in the corners because of fighters who fell into her life and turned it upside down. The difference was that Kanami knew how to hide it better.

"You can let me take care of him. Tomoyo doesn't come to work on Sundays, so...," She lets the sentence hang in the air, going to look for a pen and a notepad. She'd had enough daydreaming. It was time to work.

When she finally approaches Ohma's table, she tries to put on her best professional smile.

"Good morning, Ohma! What's going to be today?"

"Oh, hi," he says, looking kind of distracted. "Kanami didn't come today?"

"She did, she went straight to the kitchens as soon as she saw you arrive. She already wants to be on standby," She teases with a laugh; the laughter was coming too easy for her today.

"Oh," he nods. "Then keep the food coming. No problem," he leaves the menu aside. "I already memorized the menu, so…"

"Oh…okay then," She nods after blinking a couple of times, surprise stealing her words for a moment. "Good thing she already memorized your preferences as if they were a whole separate menu, haha ," She jokes again, laughing and doing a little bow before returning to the kitchens, exclaiming, "Today he'll have a little bit of everything, Kanny!"

"As always, Tomori," Kanami says, a bit emontionless. "There's no bad time for him when it comes to food."

Tomori still sees her smiling a little sideways.

"That's how a good customer should be," Hiro smiles, still mischievous, as if he knows something.

"Oh yes. Good of everything, especially with a fork on hand," Tomori jokes; the cashier's expression piqued her curiosity, but the opportunity to gossip had already passed. She enters the kitchens, going to tie her hair in a net. They closed earlyer on Sundays, but with Ohma there, the workload certainly wasn't going to be a light one.

The next few hours passed peacefully. Other arriving customers didn't stay long, wanting only to buy bread and other goods before heading home to enjoy their Sunday. Only Ohma's presence was a constant there, as it had been on other Sundays, and none of them expected it to be different this time. Tomori herself didn't expect it.

Until, around ten in the morning, they heard the bell ring, accompanied by familiar voices.

"Tokita, my guy! You're helping to triple the sugar shack's profits, aren't ya?"

"Sugar snack?," Ohma raises an eyebrow. "This is a bakery, dumbass. The fuck is a 'sugar snack'…"

"Sugar Shack, Tokita. It's just a stupid term Rihito uses to refer to the bakery. I'd kick him in the chin to make him stop if it wouldn't make his hangover worse..."

"Fuck off, Himuro! What's wrong with wanting to celebrate your friend's masterful success, huh? Holy shit, my head..."

"I can see that we're going to have to order a very strong coffee, in addition to bread and cookies..."

"Huh?," Tomori, taking a tray of croissants out of the oven, widens her eyes when she recognizes the voices. "Rihito, Himuro and Kaneda? But they never come on Sundays...," And she peeps discreetly through the pantry window.

"Now they've come," Hiro laughs softly, and then addresses them. "Hello there, sweethearts. Would you like a very caloric and very warm sandwich?"

“Yes, please,” Kaneda nods. He and Himuro looked composed, unlike Rihito, who was pale and a little disheveled, his face covered in stubble, his eyes squinting as if the ambient light bothered them. "Four of them, plus four espressos, four croissants and a cookie box, large size."

"To go, please," Himuro added, raising a finger. "I imagine your boss wouldn't want a hungover idiot getting in the way. She's had enough of that for a lifetime..."

"Screw you, Himuro! It doesn't hurt to say hello to Auntie and Miss Uta...,"

"Enough of the 'auntie' crap!," Kanami shouts from the kitchen.

"Ow! Don't scream like that, autie, please! My head is ringing like a gong...," Rihito whimpers, holding his head in his hands. Tomori can't resist and laughs, finishing arranging the still warm croissants on a tray, complementing them with a chocolate milkshake.

"I'll take the tray to your bottomless pit and attend to the new arrivals. Their order is also big, apparently."

"We'll see," Kanami replies, looking from the pantry window.

"Heh," Ohma smiles. "But tell me, you drunkards, have you been exaggerating again? Is it celebrating? Who won?"

"Okubo. But he won another kind of fight," Himuro smirks, to which Rihito, still massaging his temples, snorts.

"A very underwhelming victory, by the way. I would have considered it a victory with honors if things had gone beyond kissing..."

“You say that but there you are, head throbbing after an entire bottle taken in celebration of the 'underwhelming victory'.” Kaneda makes quotes with his fingers, and Rihito shrugs.

"We have to celebrate the little things too, right? Okubo went out yesterday with Miss Uta, Tokita. She gave him a second chance. And this time everything went well, so of course we were going to celebrate!"

Tomori, who was about to open the door on the counter, can't resist and smiles when she hears the conversation. Damn, who knew that men would also be so excited by the love conquests of their friends...

"Oh," Ohma looked slightly disappointed. "It was to be expected, coming from you. So Okubo made up with Tomori, huh. Does Kanami know about this?"

“Yes, she does.” Hiro smiles.

"So I won't need to beat the shit outta him anymore," Ohma nods. "Thanks, Tomori," He says when Tomori gives him his order. "Keep sending food when you can."

"Ahaha, you're welcome! Kanny is already preparing your next tray. And good morning to you three!," She waves to Rihito, Himuro and Kaneda, and the other three, even Rihito, had the decency to look a little embarrassed.

"Aah, g-good morning... were you listening, Miss Uta?"

"Partially. I heard you guys talking about small victories and Ohma saying he won't need to hit Naoya- I mean, Mr. Okubo anymore!," She corrects herself awkwardly, turning red, but just like with Kanami and Hiro, it was too late. All three had wide eyes, theirjaws dropping.

"Naoya? You're already on a first name basis?!"

"Not even we call him Naoya, dammit...," Himuro comments, impressed, while Kaneda arches an eyebrow at Rihito.

"I know, right! Do you still consider that a underwhelming victory?"

"No, now I consider it a medium-sized victory! That's really cool, Miss Uta!," Rihito exclaims, excited. "He already told us that your date went great, but it's good to know that you share that opinion, hahaha!"

"Of- Of course! Yesterday he outdid himself...," She puts a hand in front of her mouth, smiling shyly. "Even the flowers surprised me..."

"Did you like it? We helped him research the names!," Rihito says, excited, as Himuro and Kaneda hiss at him, index fingers in front of their lips.

"Just one of the names! Don't rain on Okubo's parade, dipshit...!"

"Yes! He already knew about the daisies and the gerberas, Miss Uta, he only needed help with the gladioli..."

Tomori chuckles, waving a hand in a relaxed gesture. "It's okay, that doesn't detract from the gesture at all. Just that he cared enough to go research it means a lot. And thank you for helping him," She smiles kindly. "I promise I'll repay you properly one of these days."

"You can do it now! I guarantee I can give that friend of yours a date as nice as the one Okubo gave you, just give me her number so we can work out the details-"

"Shut up and sit down, you obsessed weirdo!," Himuro gives a light kick to the crooks of Rihito's knees, who collapses on the chair facing Ohma with a high-pitched groan. Kaneda sighs and scratches his head.

“And that's because he's been complaining all the way over here about being sick. Who knew women would be a more effective hangover medicine than coffee..."

Tomori just laughs. "Yeah, but that's a medicine I won't be able to provide."

"And Okubo didn't come with you guys?," Ohma asks, raising an eyebrow. "Is he already tired of seeing Tomori?"

The three of them huff in unison.

"The day that dumbass gets tired of seeing her is the day he kicks the bucket," Rihito grumbles, pointing at Tomori with his thumb over his shoulder, and she turns very red. "He's outside, waiting for us in the car."

"Yes. The cookie box was a request from him," Kaneda says, turning to Tomori. "He said hello and asked if you have plans for after work."

"I was going straight home. Is he already wanting a repeat, even after we've arranged to go out again next weekend?," She asks, embarrassed. "I'd go out to talk to him if I weren’t in the middle of my shift…"

"And why is he in the car?," Ohma snickers. "Is he afraid to come in? Hey, Kanami, he's scared of you..."

"I fucking hope so!," she exclaims from the inside.

"So… can he come in or not?"

Kanami appears from the service door. "I already said he can…"

“Then go tell him that,” Ohma points to the door.

"He can?," Rihito widens his eyes, spreading his hands on the table. "Really, auntie?!"

"Fucking hell, dude, you really want to get kicked in the mouth today, don't you?," Himuro stares at him, bored, while Kaneda smiles at Kanami.

"He'd be very grateful, Miss Kanami. He misses the ambience of the bakery, and of course, he misses being able to sit with Miss Uta during her lunch break."

"Stop it, Kaneda, please...!," Tomori whimpers, cringing all over in a mixture of embarrassment and happiness, and that makes the men laugh. "Is- Is it really okay, Kanny? You can tell him your conditions, just to make sure..."

"Uuhghhhh…," she rolls her eyes so hard that she rolls her head along. "Fine…," she closes the service door with a little forcefully. "For fuck's sake, that’s the first time I’ll kick a guy in instead of out of the bakery…"

They saw the baker leave through the front door, and those who stayed inside couldn't resist and started laughing softly, Hiro and Paikon included. Rihito, Himuro, and Kaneda even leaned over so they could peer out the windows at the street.

"So, what do you think? Will she let him in without a fuss or will she demand to throw him another punch as a toll?," Himuro asks, and Rihito laughs mischievously.

"I hope she demands to throw another punch, I miss the courtesy beatings that only this sugar shack can offer!"

"Preferably when you're not the one getting beaten, right, Rihito?," Kaneda grumbles, and Tomori, further back, pouts.

"Wow, you guys are awful! Do you really want to see your friend getting beaten like that, for nothing?"

"Yep!," The three of them give the thumbs up, and she doesn't know whether to laugh or roll her eyes.

"Damn, now I'm curious," Ohma gets up too, and he does it in time to see Kanami, at the top of her 5′7 inches, pushing Okubo towards the bakery whie he looked at her with a red face. "Shit, I missed the punch…"

"No, he's red for another reason," Hiro says, smiling. From where he was, he could see the whole window.

They see both approaching the entrance door, and when it opens, the bell ringing at the top, Okubo's voice, hesitant and squeaky, reaches their ears.

"... and I'm really sorry about that day, Miss Kanami, you don't have to feel obligated to let me in here again... Tomori! Good morning!," He waves when he sees the sous chef, his anxious expression immediately being replaced by an excited one. "Sorry for not bringing flowers this time, the flower shops are all closed on Sunday... and stop laughing, you fuckers!," He yells at his friends, grinding his teeth. "Even Tokita is staring at me with that know-it-all face, bro...!"

Rihito, Himuro and Kaneda just smirked. Tomori, on the other hand, just smiled and returned the compliment.

"Yesterday's bouquet was worth all the flowers you could give me throughout the week. And good morning, Naoya. Good to see you in here again."

"Yeah… it's good to be back," He scratches the back of his head, smiling. "I mean, as long as Miss Kanami accepts me back in…"

"Don't fucking push it!," She raises her voice a little. "Now that you guys are good again, there's no reason to worry, but you have five points less than everyone else here. If you do it again..."

"Oops, so my ticket to see some beatings still stands?"

“Yes, Ohma,” she nods.

"Great," he takes his seat back.

"Ours too, right? We promise to buy lots of goods from the bakery so we can watch the whole thing while eating!," Rihito exclaims, and Himuro, Kaneda and he laugh again when Okubo gives them the middle finger.

"You suckers will be eating my fists in the sparring session later! And I understand, really," He nods to the baker, his head a little down. "Tomori forgave me, but you have no obligation to do the same. Which doesn't mean I won't at least try, haha..."

"You can try to act like a man and react properly to a blow from me," Kanami complains. "I know you let yourself be punched because you knew you deserved it, but I didn't like that. Do you think that just because I'm a woman I can't punch for shit?!"

There was a small chorus of “ooooohs” from the table; the other three idiots seemed determined to add fuel to the fire that day. Ohma just shook his head while Okubo answered, surprised, "What? No, I never thought that! If there's a woman in this world who definetly know how to punch, it's certainly you," and then he opens an impressed smile, resting his hands on his hips. "My face was sore for almost a whole week, and modesty aside, many of my opponents in the octagons cannot achieve such a feat. You hit like a fucking truck, lady, I’m not even joking! Have you ever thought about becoming a professional fighter? You'd give some of my friends in Ultimate Fight's women's division a run for their money!"

Tomori opens a huge smile, staring at Kanami with an 'I told you so!' look. Ohma is more verbal.

"I've been saying that to her for a while now."

Kanami's face practically deflated, eyes widening and cheeks turning red. Then she sighs heavily, shaking a little, holding back the urge to smile.

"Hnf... alright. If there's a next time I need to punch you, at least try to defend yourself," she takes a step back, hands on her hips. "It's not fun when it's one-sided. Even more so when my opponent is a fucking MMA champion. But that's enough for now. Go sit down, your order will be ready soon. If you stayed in the car, it would cool off before your friends gave it to you," She then turns around and heads back to the counter.

Tomori just sees the baker walk past her and into the kitchen. Through the door crack, she could still see her raise and lower her arm in a victory gesture, laughing softly in a little happiness fit, muttering a “yessss” very softly. It took all her self-control not to burst out laughing, so she just turned to the men, who were all laughing at the unusual interaction.

"And the King of Combat's silver tongue strikes again,"Himuro shakes his head. "You smartass, trying to fall on Miss Kanami's good graces by caressing her ego..."

"I wasn't caressing anything, gigolo. I'm just telling the truth," Okubo snorts. "Take a punch from her one of these days and see if I'm exaggerating. Rihito is probably next on her list if he calls her aunt one more time."

"As if! No woman is going to punch me," Rihito grumbles, but his somewhat distressed expression casts doubt on his statement. The others laugh in his face, and Okubo, relieved that he is no longer the center of attention, turns back to Tomori.

“I swear I didn't underestimate her. It's just that I really deserved to be punched..."

"I know. And she knows it too. It's just that Kanny has her pride as a fighter, just like you guys," She explains. "She'll definitely want a rematch in the future, hahaha."

"Look, I don't fight women purely as a matter of ethics, but if it'll make her forgive me, I'm up for a sparring session," He scratches the back of his head, and Tomori laughs to herself.

"My forgiveness really wasn't enough, was it? You won't stop until you regain all five points that were taken from you..."

"Nope! Your forgiveness was the most important thing, but who doesn't want to be accepted by the friends of the girl they like, huh? It's purely a matter of honor," He arches an eyebrow at her, smiling ingratiatingly, at which she gasps, a little red, before giving him a little shove on the shoulder.

“Stop trying to act all smooth in the middle of my shift."

"Or what?"

"Or I tell Kanny to punch you again."

"Fine by me. You'll tend to my wounds this time, won't you? I know you will...,” He puckered his lips, leaning down and bringing his face closer to hers, and chuckled when she clapped a hand over is mouth, giggling, a little scandalized.

"Not in here! Jeez, control yourself… later,” She promises, stroking his jaw line briefly, and he closes his eyes.

"I won't let you forget… do you want to do something later?"

"How about a walk around the square? Then we can catch up on all the conversations we haven't had in these last eleven hours."

He smiles, all satisfied. "These long eleven hours... I'm in."

And focused as they were on their private conversation, they don't notice how the occupants of the next table are watching them with interest.

"Man, I'm going to need that espresso urgently. I can feel the nausea coming back," Rihito comments, and Kaneda laughs softly.

"I prefer this to the whining and anxious spurts of the last few weeks, honestly."

"Me too. Looks like we're going to see each other's faces a lot more from now on, huh, Tokita," Himuro jokes.

"That's fine. I'm not here to see you guys anyway. You can show up and give Kanami money as many times as you want," He bites another piece of bread. "Oh, I got news. I got out of there," he points to the big backpack between his legs. "I managed to talk to Fusui and Raian and got rid of the house. Now I'm free to go wherever I want."

"Really? Nice going, Tokita!," Lihito gives him a thumbs up. "Did you get your own place? Where it is at? We can go there to celebrate with food and some booze!"

"Seriously, Rihito, I sometimes wonder how come you don't live in a permanent state of hangover," Kaneda sighs, while Himuro offers:

"I’ll provide the booze!"

"No, not yet," Ohma shakes a hand in a negative gesture. "I'm looking for a place now, but I can't say where I'm going yet. I have to settle some business first."

"Alright then. But if you need any help, you know where to find us," Rihito claps his hands on Himuro and Kaneda's shoulders, smiling from ear to ear. "Okubo too. We'll talk to him about that later, when Miss Uta gets back to the kitchens and he stops acting like a giant simp."

"Leave him alone, Rihito. He's been looking forward to this," Kaneda looks over his shoulder, smiling as they watch Okubo and Tomori take their leave, waving to each other as she returns to the kitchens. He sits at the table with them, sighing with enormous satisfaction. He smiles at Ohma.

"Heya, Tokita! Such a nice Sunday, don't ya think? Damn, I've missed the smell of fresh bread from this place..."

"And the fresh-out-of-the-oven cookies too, right?," Himuro asks, and Okubo smiles more.

"Even more so! Have I told you that I love this place? Because I love it..."

Ohma nods, his mouth full. And if they were told that the reasons Ohma and Okubo liked the Heavy Bakery so much were very similar, none of them would believe it. At least, not at that moment.

NEXT CHAPTER

#Kengan Ashura #Kengan Omega #kenganverse #fanfiction #Okubo Naoya #Naoya Okubo #okubo x oc #kengan oc #Rihito #Himuro Ryo #Kaneda Suekichi #Tokita Ohma #cookies'n cream #the heavy bakery series

9 notes · View notes

thevelria · 1 year

Text

Emerald (ErenxReader) ~Chapter 6 -Tantrum~

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

Author's note: 31.000+ characters. It's a long ass chapter.

It contains drinking alcohol, blood, some lemon and an accident during sex.

Enjoy the chaos~

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

The weekdays flew away in a blink, you were doing plus hours every single day, but there was one thing, which saved you from going insane. It was a short week, because of the upcoming holiday you had a long weekend, from Friday till Sunday.

On Thursday you were already daydreaming of a calm and mostly problem free weekend. You had your moments with Eren during the days, but it seemed he finally understood you and since you opened up to him, he kept his distance you asked before. It didn't bother you at all, you felt relieved, focusing on your job.

You just got back from the kitchen with a cup of hot coffee, when you noticed the message on your laptop.

Jean:

-So, did you think about Friday?

-Not really, to be honest. This was a hell of a week with these plus hours. I don't want to be an ass, but I want to relax on these free days.

-What about Saturday? 🙂 And don't say you don't know...

-Will you be angry if I refuse Saturday, too?

-Yeah...I'll be hurt to the bones😭 It's just a dinner...I would like to get to know you better 🙂

-Fine...just a quick dinner. No drinking, no parties!

-Deal!

-Y/N! -you heard Sasha's voice from her desk.

-Yeah?

-Come here, if you have a second.

You walked up to her, seeing a huge smile on her face, offering you a free chair next to hers.

-What's up, Sash?

-I've been wondering with the girls, if you would like to join us tomorrow for a girlish day?

-Uhm...What do you have in mind?

-Shopping, eating, watching the newest action film in the movies. C'mon it's gonna be super fun! You look so burnt out nowadays, I'm sure you need to relax -she winked at you- Annie and Historia would love to get to know you better too.

-Well, yeah. You must be right. I need to relax a bit.

-Awesome! -she laughed with sparkling eyes- I'm gonna text you later with the details.

It surprised you as well that you were looking forward to hang out with them. It's been so long, when you spent time with girls. Even if you had some friends, they all lived in the city you moved out of, not to mention they had a family, husband and children. So yeah, it wasn't the same anymore. You were the only single in your group.

You decided to wear something comfy since you were about to just chill. A simple light blue jeans, with a black tank top, which had the symbol of your fav anime on it. The patch of the Wings of Freedom placed right above your heart with the motto "Shinzou wo Sasageyo" under it. Yeah, you were an adult, but it didn't mean you couldn't dress the way you felt like. You were a nerd, so what? You slipped into a black Converse and grabbed your jacket. You agreed to meet them around 1pm before the biggest mall in the city.

It was past 1 and you were swearing like a lady, because you couldn't find a free parking spot. You heard your phone ringing and it made you even angrier.

-Hey, Sash -you picked up the call, putting it on speaker.

-Where are you?

-I'm here, just trying to find a fucking parking spot...oh wait I see one. I'll be there in a few mins -you hung up.

Historia and even Annie looked nice, they smiled and greeted you with a big hug. As you were wandering in the mall, looking for a shop to go to, Historia walked next to you, hooked her hands on your elbow.

-So, Y/N -she chirped- How do you like our office?

-It seems fun so far -you smiled- I'm sorry I didn't have time for you guys this week. It was such a rush.

-Nah, don't worry -Annie said from behind you- We know how it is.

-Sasha talked about you 24/7, so we really wanted to hang out with you.

-All of you are way too sweet -you laughed. It really felt good. Having these strangers around you, who were claiming for your friendship. You felt somehow special...maybe important. It was a strange, but exciting feeling at the same time.

-I told you at the dining hall, girl -Sasha chimed in- You are cool, so we like you!

-Thanks, really -you blushed- You are cool, too. For real.

-Guys! -Annie gasped- I need to go in there -she pointed at a lingerie shop- I need to get something special for Armin, it's gonna be our anniversary soon.

You all followed her immediately, starting to check the supply. You found some really naughty pieces as well and even if you had no one, you felt the urge to get them. A blood red lace bra with matching french penties and a black-turquoise push up bra with a matching tanga were the ones you immediately fall in love with.

-What did you get? -Historia asked curiously after you left the shop -Wow, hot -she winked at you, peeking into your bag.

-I know right -you laughed out loud.

Annie got a super sexy, seethrough babydoll with lace penties. The smirk on her face told all of you that she was confident that her man was going to love it.

-You and Armin are such a cute pair -you admitted- I saw you guys at work and I have to tell you, you are so cool together.

-Hah, thanks, Y/N -she laughed- He didn't give up and finally I gave in.

She saw the confused look on your face, so she continued as you were walking to the next shop.

-Armin is Jaeger's best friend. I knew Eren before and he was the one who introduced me to Armin. I found him cute, but that's all. Armin kept hitting on me, but I rejected him every single time. Then Eren told me to go on a double date with him and Mikasa and of course Armin.

The name of his wife made you shiver, but you tried to act cool. You couldn't let anyone notice that Mikasa's name made you feel nauseous.

-So, I accepted the offer and yeah the rest is history -she blushed from head to toe. It was clearer than the sun that she was head over heels. So madly in love with her man, it almost made you jealous.

-Yeah -Sasha chuckled- Back then Jaeger was fun to be around. Not like nowadays. Sometimes I hate, when I see him in the office with that annoyed, depressed look on his face all the time.

-He's cool to be around. He can be really cute and fun - you said, slamming your hand against your mouth after you realized you said it out loud.

-Oh, I'm sure -Historia smirked- We all see how he acts around you, but with us he's a total dick -she laughed.

-Are you and him a thing? -Annie asked, raising one of her eyebrows.

-No! -you said strictly- Of course not. We are just friends, that's all.

Sasha looked at you from the corner of her eyes, but kept silent and you loved her for that more than anything. You knew she wasn't stupid since she saw and heard things she shouldn't have had to.

-Who's hungry? -you asked, trying to change the subject. Sasha screamed out loud and headed to her favorite fast food restaurant in a blink of an eye.

-I'm so full -Sasha cried, tapping her tummy with her tiny hand.

-You ate the whole fucking menu, Sash -Historia laughed- Of course you are full.

-I was hungry -she shrugged.

-So Y/N -Annie turned to you- What's up with Jean?

-With Jean? -your eyes widened- Why?

-He was so full of himself that you agreed to date him -she smirked- Telling everyone proudly that you didn't reject him.

-Date? There's gonna be any kind of date -you pulled an annoyed face. -He asked me to have dinner with him tomorrow, but that's all.

-So it's a date -Historia giggled.

-Nope -you shook your head- Plus I heard he's a womanizer anyway.

-What? -Sasha looked surprised-Who said that?

-Does it matter? -you raised one of your eyebrows.

-Well since it's not true... -Annie shrugged.

-So who said that? -Sasha asked again.

-Eren.

-That son of a... -Historia laughed out loud- Well, Y/N. I have to tell you something. Jean is the most faithful and adorable guy I know. He's not a player, nothing close to it...

Her words felt like blades into your heart, because it meant Eren lied to you and you felt angry and offended at the same time. Why did he lie to you? Why did he want you to believe that Jean was an asshole?

-Oh...-that was all you could press out from yourself.

-It seems Jaeger wants you for himself -Annie clicked her tongue.

-Girls, please... -you rolled your eyes- I don't date my coworkers anyway.

-Well, you definitely should give Jean a chance. Believe me, he's an angel -Sasha smiled softly -What about buying you a hot ass dress for tomorrow? -she raised her brows up and down.

-Well - you hummed- yeah, why not?

-That's the spirit! -Annie winked at you.

Historia claimed she knew a shop you would love and was sure that you would find something special for the occasion. Well she was right. You picked a snow white, tight dress, which ended just around the mid thigh and had a decent cleavage. Plus you found a black leather jacket with some silver zippers.

~Your outfit~

-He's going to drool like a dog -Annie laughed, seeing the stuff you bought.

-Good -you smirked. Even if you didn't plan to do anything with him, you felt mad at Eren and somehow it felt like you wanted to punish him by going out with another man.

Speaking of the devil, your phone started to ring.

-Who's that? -Sasha asked.

-Nobody -you smiled, rejecting the call from Eren. But he didn't give up and called you again in an instant -Oh for fuck's sake -you rolled eyes. Sasha picked the phone out of your hand.

-Who's dickhead? -she asked, raising one her eyebrows- Oh wait -she started to laugh, while answering the phone -Jaeger, is it you?

-Sasha, give back my fucking phone -you sighed angrily, but she refused to do so. You felt like in high school again and it honestly wasn't a pleasant feeling.

-Sasha, why do you have Y/N's phone? -he asked confused.

-Why are you calling her anyway?

-Sasha...phone...now -you said strictly with a dangerous look on your face. Sasha gulped big, but screaming in the phone before handing it back to you -I love your contact name...Dickhead!

All the girls bursted out in a loud laughter. You facepalmed yourself, before holding the phone to your ear.

-What do you want? -you asked annoyed.

-Dickhead?

-Yep, that's how I saved your number -you said with a cold tone.

-Fucking hell -he laughed. You thought he might get offended, but he found it actually funny- I should change your name, too...what about Cold ass bitch?

-Sounds perfect -you cracked a half smile- Sorry, but I need to go. I'm busy.

-Yeah -Sasha yelled into the phone- She's busy with buying naughty clothes for her date with Jean!

-Sasha! Shut up! -you shook your head.

-Are you going out with Jean? -he hissed.

-As I know it's none of your business. Not to mention the fact you lied to me about him -you started to lose your cool. You felt your blood slowly boiling. He stayed silent, which proved the fact he really did lie to you.

-Y/N, I can explain...

-Bye, Jaeger! -you hung up the phone.

You tried to collect yourself and faked a huge smile like nothing happened.

-Soooo...which movie? -you kept smiling.

As you were sitting in the movie, watching a pretty cool film you felt your phone kept buzzing. You thanked God for putting it into a silent mood before the movie started. You took a quick peek, seeing Eren kept messaging you without a break. You ignored it anyway.

After the movie ended you hugged goodbye to the girls and headed home. You really did have fun with them and you were grateful for it. Historia made you promise you were going to hang out with them more from now on.

When you stepped in the house your phone started to buzz again.

-God damn it, Jaeger! -you cursed, checking your mobile. But it wasn't him, but Jean.

Jeanboy:

-Hey, beautiful. Tomorrow 7pm would be okay to meet?

-Hey, handsome. Sure, perfect.

-I'll pick you up😘

After you gave him your address, you checked your texts from Eren.

Dickhead:

-Y/N, I'm sorry about lying.

-Please let's talk about it, okay?

-Y/N stop ignoring me...damn it!

You rolled your eyes and ignored him anyway.

***

The next day was about you being extra lazy, laying in bed, watching TV, reading and sleeping a lot. Eren hasn't texted you since yesterday, but you didn't mind it. Around 4pm you started to get ready for the diner. Taking a hot, relaxing shower, putting on some makeup. As it wasn't about a party you chose some natural eyeshadow colors, with black eyeliner and fake eyelashes, making the look perfect with a matte, chocolate brown lipstick. You curled your hair, letting it down. You got ready just in time, slipping into your black heels, when you heard a light knock on your door.

-Good evening, beautiful -Jean greeted you with a wonderful bouquet in his hand.

-Hey -you smiled right away.

-I brought this for you -he handed you the flowers.

-Thanks -you nodded, still smiling -Just a sec, I put them in water -you rushed back, looking for a vase.

Jean opened the car door for you, acting as a real gentleman.

~Jean's car~

-You look beautiful -he added as he got in the car as well.

-You look pretty good, too -you smirked.

He was wearing dark blue jeans with a navy blue buttoned shirt, the last three unbuttoned with a casual suit jacket. His semi long, brown hair and his mesmerizing light-brown eyes made him look super handsome.

Jean took you to a fancy restaurant in the city. It made you surprised and felt a little underdressed.

-You should have told me that you wanted to take me to a place like that. I would have picked another dress then.

-You look perfect, don't worry -he chuckled.

-Good evening, sir -the girl at the counter greeted him.

-Evening, I have a reservation for 2. Name is Kirstein, Jean Kirstein.

The way he talked made your body shiver, you had no idea why, but he looked way too charming.

A waiter walked you to your table, making sure one of his coworkers was on his way to take your orders.

-What would you like to drink? -Jean smiled at you.

-Maybe some wine? -you furrowed your brows, checking the drink list.

-Please bring one of your best wines...with a whole bottle -he smiled softly.

-Yes, sir -the waiter nodded, walking away in an instant.

-I have no idea what to eat -you giggled, slightly shaking your head in embarrassment.

-Me neither -he laughed out loud.

You've been browsing the menu for long minutes before finally choosing a meal randomly.

-I was afraid you would cancel my invitation -Jean looked you in the eye.

-Why?

-I don't know. I was almost sure you and Jaeger are a thing or something -he shrugged.

-I told you we weren't anything -you sighed annoyed.

-So it means I have a chance? -he smirked.

-I didn't say that either -you laughed out loud.

-I like that you seem unreachable, you know -he admitted.

-I don't just seem like that, Jean -you leaned closer, lowering your voice with a naughty smile on your face.

-We will see -he poked his inner cheek with his tongue.

The night went smoothly, you laughed and talked a lot. He was talking about the way he got into the company. The difficulties he had to face every single time someone found out he was the son of the CEO. That he had to work twice as hard as anybody there, because he just had to prove his rightful place. You found him truly honest and at some point you really felt sympathy for him. Like Sasha's words rang in your ears as she was talking about Jean being an amazing human in general.

The food was really delicious, not to mention the wine. You were aware not to drink too much, though you felt you were getting a tiny bit tipsy.

-Thank you for this amazing night, Y/N -Jean said as he opened the car door in front of your house.

-I can say the same, I really did have fun with you -you smiled slightly.

Jean walked you to your door, standing in front of you, while you were facing him with your back to the door. You knew what he was waiting for, or at least you thought you did. But you weren't stupid, sleeping with two of your cowerks within only a few weeks. Nah, please.

-See you on Monday? -you pulled an awkward smile.

-I would really love to get to know you better, Y/N -he grabbed your wrist softly- I want to date you and make you mine.

-Jean, please...-you sighed.

-I can be a perfect boyfriend and I'll prove that -he smirked- Just let me do it...- slightly leaning in for a kiss.

You hesitated, kissing him would have been a huge mistake, right? Yeah...it was. As his soft lips touched yours with so much tenderness, it sent shivers down your spine.

-Good night, beautiful -he broke the kiss, leaving you speechless on the porch.

***

On Monday morning Jean was all smiles, feeling above the clouds. He really liked you and the kiss you shared made him feel special.

-What's up Kirstein? -Connie greeted his friend in the kitchen.

Almost all the boys were waiting in the kitchen to prepare a coffee to start the day with.

-Not much -he shrugged- I had an amazing weekend -he kept smiling.

-Who is she? -Reiner asked with a smirk.

-Wait -Connie raised one of his eyebrows- Y/N accepted your offer, didn't she?

-Shut up! -Jean blushed.

Eren was standing behind them with his mug in his hand, listening carefully to the conversation. Rage builded up in him second by second.

-Oh, she definitely did -Bertholdt laughed out loud.

-Did you kiss her? -Reiner smirked.

-Well...-Jean clicked his tongue proudly- Her lips are as soft as they look -he admitted.

-Bro! -Connie punched him in the shoulder, being proud of his friend.

Eren clenched his jaw, not noticing he tightened his grip on his mug until he accidentally crunched it into pieces.

-Fuck -he hissed as he felt a sharp pain in his palm, seeing blood spreading everywhere.

-What the fuck, Jaeger? -Reiner looked at him in shock.

You stepped into the kitchen just to witness Eren's bleeding hand.

-Oh my God -you rushed to him- Are you okay?

-Fuck off! -he hissed at you, leaving the kitchen immediately.

Eren avoided you all day long and you truly didn't understand what was going on. Jean stepped by your desk from time to time. Inviting you for smoke or coffee breaks and you happily accepted it. As you were standing outside, smoking you turned to him.

-Do you know what's up with Eren?

-Not really -he shrugged- Okay, he might have heard me talking about our date -he blushed.

-Our what? -your eyes widened.

-About Saturday night and about our kiss.

-For fuck's sake Jean -you raised your voice- Why did you have to talk about it anyway?

-Why? Is it a secret? -he pulled a face- I thought you didn't care about him.

-It's not like that...it's just... -you tried to defend your actions.

To be honest you didn't understand either why you reacted so offended, but you felt guilty.

-It wasn't a date -you said with a strict tone, spun on your heels, heading back to the office.

You saw Eren at his desk with a sad and pissed off look on his face. You would have loved to walk up to him, talk to him, but you knew it was the best just to leave it. Thoughts were rushing through your mind and you made a decision. You already dragged yourself into a fucked up situation and talking with him in front of everyone would have made it messier anyway.

At the end of the day you all were about to leave for the beer session. Except Eren, who refused and rushed out of the office without even looking at you. Yep, he was totally mad at you. Everyone noticed that something was off, but they thought Eren had just one of those days. Days, when he was a total asshole. But you knew that you were the reason behind his act.

This time Connie was the loser and the driver, he cursed under his nose, because he really wanted to drink some booze. Well maybe next time. The evening was fun, though. You laughed a lot, drank four or five bottles of beer, and chatted with the girls. Jean kept his eyes on you, but didn't know how to act before the rest of you, since you left him really confused during the day.

-How was the date? -Sasha asked you, while dropping herself down next to you lazily. You were the only one at the table, since everyone else was busy playing pool.

-It wasn't a date, Sash -you pinched the bridge of your nose.

-Yeah, sure. Then how was the night, which was not a date? -she moved her brows up and down.

-It was okay -you shrugged.

-Okay? That's it?

-Yep, that's it.

-Did he kiss you? -she smirked.

You didn't answer, but the slight blush on your cheek gave you out in an instant.

-Oh, he definitely did -she laughed out loud.

-Shut up -you laughed now as well.

-Look, everyone knows he's a softy. He would treat you like a princess, if you'd let him -she put her hand on your shoulder. -But please don't play with him, okay? He's a good man and doesn't deserve his heart to be broken.

-I'm not playing, I'm just...I don't even know what I want -you admitted.

Because that was the truth. You were afraid and confused, all the rules you stuck to and all the things, which worked so great so far, seemed to fall into pieces.

-We all have our stories, Y/N. But you need to decide what you really want. Jaeger is a broken man, he's miserable and mostly a freaking asshole. But Jean is different, he would bring down the stars for you if you'd tell him so -she smiled softly.

She knew...was it so obvious to everyone else too? Maybe this conversation, maybe the alcohol in your system, maybe everything at the same time, but you felt the knot in your chest. Tears building up in your eyes.

-I'm so fucked up, Sasha -you snobbed, laying your head into her neck. She hugged you tight, caressing your back up and down.

-It's okay. I'm here, if you want to talk okay? -pushed you back straight, looking into your eyes- You are not alone. We all are here for you -she hugged you one more time.

-Thanks, Sash...really -you tried to pull a smile.

-What's up, girls? -Jean walked up to you two and looked worried the second he noticed you were crying -What's wrong, honey? -he sat on his heels next to you.

-Nothing -you faked a smile- really. Just Sasha's words made me soft for a second -you laughed out loud, wiping your tears quickly away.

-Are you sure? -he furrowed his eyebrows, not really buying your response.

-Yep!

The night was about to end and you craved nothing else, but your bed. You felt exhausted and mostly confused. You put on your 'I'm fine' mask, so everyone believed that you were truly okay. You faked it so many times during the years that it wasn't even a hard thing to do anytime anyway.

After you walked out of your bathroom you checked your phone, didn't really know what you expected. Maybe a text from Eren, maybe from Jean. You shook your head and placed the phone on your nightstand. As you laid under your blanket the feeling of Eren laying next to you rushed through your body and made you shiver.

-Fuck, I really need to stop this madness -you hissed, being mad at yourself.

During the night you woke up for a loud knock on your front door. You slowly opened your eyes, listening carefully, not being sure you heard it right. The next knock was even louder and harder. Yep, you definitely heard it well. As you crawled out of your bed, you couldn't stop yawning.

-What time is it? -you rubbed your eyes with the back of your hand, reaching for your phone -2 in the fucking morning? -you hissed in anger- Who the fuck is it at 2am? -you walked up to your door, hearing the third, aggressive knock.

-I'm coming -you raised your voice- There's no need to break my fucking door -you cursed under your nose.

The second you opened it, your eyes widened, witnessing a super wasted Eren in front of you.

-What are you doing here? -you raised your eyebrows. You were truly surprised.

-Why did you kiss him? -he clenched his jaw- WHY? -he yelled, trying to stand straight.

-Are you drunk? -you asked the obvious.

-Answer me, Y/N! -he took a deep, annoyed breath- Tell me!

-Go home, Eren -you shook your head, trying to close your door, but he blocked it with his foot.

-I thought you liked me -tears started to build up in his eyes. It made you surprised, confused, terrified.

-Come in -you sighed- And please stop yelling on the street. It's fucking 2 in the morning.

The pain in his eyes was real and it made you feel guilty right away.

-So? -he clenched his jaw.

-Eren, I thought I made it clear for you... -you took a deep breath.

-Oh, drop this shit act, Y/N. I do know you like me! -he walked towards you until your back was leaning against the front door.

-Stop it -you hissed.

-Tell me then...look me in the eyes and tell it to my face that you don't feel anything, that I was just a one night stand and I'm going to leave right now and never come back.

But you kept silent, because it wasn't true. You did feel something, but you couldn't form it into words. He cracked a painful smile and kissed you. Kissed you with so much softness that your knees started to shake.

-You shouldn't...we shouldn't -you mumbled.

-Shut up, Y/N -he smiled into the kiss.

His lips, his tongue tasted like alcohol and smoke, but you didn't mind it. You threw your hands around his neck, deepening the kiss second by second. When Eren started to slowly guide you to your bedroom you hesitated to stop him. For a blink maybe, then let him do it anyway.

Eager hands were caressing your body up and down, he was hungry for your touch, for your body and so were you. You wanted him right there, right now. As you started to undress him, and was about to pull his shirt above his head, he looked you in the eyes and stopped you.

-I'm going to make things clear, first -he said with a serious tone.

-Huh?

-If we do it, it's not gonna be just sex anymore...got it? You will be mine, only mine -he growled with dominance in his voice.

-Eren -you sighed.

-Tell me to stop then -he smirked, guiding you to your bed, pushing you softly down. When you stood up you saw the fear in his eyes.

-Let's take a shower first, you stink from alcohol -you laughed finally.

-Fuck... -he let out a desperate chuckle.

Eren dressed himself down quickly, standing in front of you naked. The sight of his perfect body made you dizzy. His eyes followed your every move as you got rid of your clothes as well. You held out your hand for him, while stepping into the shower. The hot water hit your body and made you shiver, you enjoyed the way as it ran down on your exhausted muscles. His eyes were blinded by lust as you rubbed his chest with the shower gel you just poured into your palm, reaching lower and lower, when finally grabbing his semi hard dick.

-Damn... -he let out a low moan, shaking under your touch. As you kept washing him his breathing got heavier second by second. He pushed you against the tiled wall, caressing your body with passion. Planting tiny kisses into your neck, he smirked when you tilted your head slightly, trying to give him more space. He kissed your shoulder, your collarbone, making his way lower and lower on your body and you let him. You felt the tension between your legs, feeling way too desperate and vulnerable at the same time. When he reached the bottom of your stomach he looked up into your eyes. You bit your lower lip, when you felt his big hand slowly picking up one of your legs and placing it on his shoulder.

-Eren -you moaned his name the second his tongue entered your pussy. He smiled, because he knew...he knew you gave in. The way he was eating you sent you into another world. His tongue danced on your clit, gently tapping and sucking on it. You rushed your fingers through his wet hair, grabbing it harder, when he added one of his fingers to make the tension deeper. You became a moaning mess as he kept pleasuring you in a way you didn't even think he was capable of. Heavy breaths, louder moans rushed through the room as you felt your climax was about to burst out.

-I'm so close -you tried to push him away, but he grabbed you tighter.

-Come for me, darling -he murmured, keeping you standing still.

His husky voice sent shivers down your spine and you couldn't hold it back anymore, riding your orgasm out on his face. When you finished, he straightened himself up with a proud smirk on his face. And you loved it, you loved that look, because it meant you could be weak this time. For the first time after so long. You grabbed his neck and pulled him into a passionate kiss, tasting yourself on his lips.

-Let me take you, please -he broke the kiss with a shaking voice.

-Come -you stepped out of the shower and he followed right away. But he was way too eager, grabbing you in front of the sink. You knew he couldn't wait anymore, so you put your hands on the sides of the marble sink and pushed your ass up a bit for him to be able to take you there and then.

-Damn -you moaned, when you felt his huge cock entering you.

-You take me so well, baby -he mumbled in delusion- I love feeling your tight pussy around my cock- he kept bubbling, thrusting you harder and harder from behind. You tried your best to hold yourself still, but with your wet palms it was way too difficult. As he fastened his movement, you felt your hands slipping out under you, then a sharp pain woke you up from the tension he was giving you.

Blood started to spread everywhere and you slammed your palm against your chin, kneeling on the ground.

-Oh my God, Y/N -he yelled, when he realized what just happened.

-Give me a towel -you hissed as you felt the blood running through your palm, down your neck, reaching your chest.

-Fuck...fuck -he paniced, handing you the cloth.

He helped you up, looking terrified.

-I'm so sorry, I didn't want to -he tried to check your chin. The look on his face revealed you the truth -Fuck, it's ugly. I need to take you to the hospital right now -he breathed heavily.

-I can't believe this shit -you hissed, the pain was unbearable.

Eren dressed up rapidly, helping you to put on some clothes as well.

-I'm gonna drive -you took a deep breath, still holding the towel on your chin.

-What? No! -he argued.

-You are drunk for God's sake. I don't want to die, just help me... -you rolled your eyes. He kept silent, because he knew you were right.

As you entered the hospital he ran to the reception, yelling and arguing without a break. You would have loved to facepalm yourself, but you felt weaker and weaker second by second. You lost a lot of blood after all.

A kind nurse guided you to a room, where a tired looking doctor stitched your chin, putting a huge bandage on it, when he finished.

-Thank you -you smiled with pain in your eyes.

-Next time try to be more careful, when you are having fun with your boyfriend -he cracked a half smile. You didn't even realize so far that it was obvious what happened. He chuckled as your face grew super red in an instant.

-Y/N -Eren ran to you, when you walked out of the room- Is everything okay? -he looked at you worried. Gently touching the bandage.

-She will be fine -the doctor said with a calm tone, leaving you both there.

-Just let's go home -you rolled your eyes.

You kept silent in the car, when you noticed it was already 6 in the morning and you had to get ready for work even though you felt way too tired.

-Do you have clean clothes? -you finally broke the silence, looking at Eren- Or the more important thing -you stopped for a second- Are you still drunk?

-I'm fine, I swear -he felt ashamed- I have some clothes in my car in front of your house.

-Wait! -you snapped at him- Don't tell me that you were stupid enough to drive, while you were wasted.

-Uhm... -he smiled embarrassed.

-Fucking hell Eren, you could have died! -you yelled.

-I'm sorry.

-Promise me, you won't do that again! -you clenched your jaw.

-Nothing happened -he shrugged.

-Promise me! -you screamed- I cannot lose you, you fucking moron -it slid out of your mouth.

-I promise -he cleared his throat, slightly smiling under his nose.

10 notes · View notes