#like i swear we were together and i said bro i wish i was on europe and she started crying i was like bro

[judeslove]

but why?

pairing - jude bellingham x trents sibling!reader genre - fluff, slight angst i guess, dating brothers bestfriend warnings - cursing, petnames (babe, etc), intended lowercase summary - trent does not approve you dating jude

when you met jude, your brothers bestfriend, it was like love at first sight. sure, it was wrong, but something about him just drew you closer and closer, like he has placed some type of spell on you.

trent told jude way too many times that his only sister is off limits. yet jude couldn’t help but mirror the same feelings you felt towards him.

today he was coming over. you were nervous, since your and judes relationship was fresh. trent didn’t know, and it‘s not like he had to know, you just couldn’t make it too obvious.

“yo bro nice to see again” you saw trent greet his friend, or “g” as he likes to say. they eventually made their way upstairs, jude sneaking you a little wink when your brother wasn’t looking.

the night went fast. jude texted you asking to meet up in the bathroom.

you heard jude excuse himself to the bathroom and you left shortly after.

“hi baby” he greeted you smiling, showcasing his gorgeous smile.

“hey” you said as you wrapped you hands around him and pecking him lips after the door was closed.

“missed you” jude mumbled in your hair while hugging your figure. “me too, i wish trent would accept us” you agreed as you dug your head deeper into his chest.

little did you guys know, the door wasn’t actually locked. a while after trent decided to go check why jude was taking so long. upon seeing the bathroom unlocked, he decided to open the door.

“now what the actual fuck is going on here?” trent asked, absolutely fuming like you said. panic washed over you as you froze, not knowing what to do.

“trent it is not what it looks like i swear”jude tried to help the situation but was cut off by trent, who angrily stared at you both.

“jude, i’m not mad, or i perhaps am, but i am just mostly so fucking disappointed in you. why the hell are you doing this when i said she was off limits? are you fucking deaf or something?” trent rambled, disappointed in his bestfriend. you saw jude worry about his relationship with his bestfriend, how his eyebrows turned upwards and mouth into a frown.

“look man, i’m sorry. it’s just that we both have genuine feelings for each other. i can help it” jude looked down, embarrassed.

“yeah, can’t we just be together?” you asked trent, practically begging him.

trent debated for a few minutes, until he finally decided to speak up.

“fine, but if you hurt my sister, you wont see the light of day anymore” trent threatened jude.

“yeah bro, i’d never do that” jude said while doing a pinky swear with your brother.

💌 judeslove on tumblr.

#🤍 #judeslove #football #jude bellingham imagine #football imagine #football x reader #football x y/n #football x you #football fluff #jude bellingham x reader #fluff #jude bellingham angst #jude bellingham x you #jude bellingham fanfic #jude bellingham imagines #jude fluff #jude angst #jude imagine #jude bellingham #jude bellingham fluff #jude bellingham smau #football masterlist #football imagines #football angst

[spideysbruh]

Distance

liked by tchalamet, sabrinacarpenter and 3,272,737 others

y/n i love you heaps, like candy sweets

view all 97,626 comments

tchalamet i love you more, like the sea loves the shore

y/n liked

rocketyn my favorite celeb couple fr

ynslipgloss yns aesthetic is my favorite it's so pleasing

@y/n just tweeted- just said bye to my boyfriend cause he'll be gone for like four months oh imma kms

@snowyyn replied- me after I finish a movie with him

@y/n replied to @snowyyn- girl me too

@realchalamet replied- stop. I miss you already.

@y/n replied to @realchalamet- BABEEE 😭😭😭💔💔💔💔💔

tchalamet just posted a story!

caption- princess. missing her so much

liked by tchalamet, rachelzegler and 3,827,288 others

y/n in my tropical era 💕

view all 101,772 comments

tchalamet I MISS YOU

y/n I MISS YOU MORE BABY

tchalamet so beautiful

y/n liked

tchalamet I wish I could twirl your hair around my fingers right now.

y/n stop im gonna cry. I wish you were here so I could give you a back rub

modernyn oh he's a mess rn

ynstan his comments 😭😭🫶🫶🫶🫶💕 so cute

@y/n just tweeted- watching kingsman im literally sooooo horny right now

@lovelyyn replied- REAL AS FUCKK

@y/n replied- like that man can do whatever he wants to me I swearrrr

@chromeyn replied- god I hope you never stop oversharing with us

@realchalamet replied- um ??? we're still together babe chill 🤨

@y/n replied to @realchalamet- ... im literally sooo joking hahaha you're the only man I've ever found attractive hahahaha (I miss you so much)

@realchalamet replied- I can see you still replying to other people 🙄

@richgirlyn replied- I'm deadd but I sooo understand you

@y/n replied- likeeeeee ?!!!???!

@y/n just tweeted- got high and took pictures of taron egerton in kingsman like it was a concert

@busyyn replied- been there fr

@huffleyn replied- sounds like a normal viewing of that movie tbh

@realchalamet liked and replied- what about my movies ? 🙁

@y/n liked and replied- oh dune is next baby don't worry

@realchalamet liked and replied- YAYYYYY

y/n just posted a story!

caption- missing his goofy lil ass extraaaa hard rn 🤧

tchalamet just posted a story!

caption- missing this

@chalswonka just tweeted- bro timmy is yearning soooo bad lmaooo they gotta see each other soon I swear

@princessyn replied- it's so funny the differences in their posts y/n is just thirsting over ppl in movies and then he's like "miss her so much😭😭😭🔫🔫🔫💔💔💔" LMAOOOO

@spaceyn replied- tbf ppl were hating on her when she WOULD post about him a lot in the beginning, so she toned down a lot. ppl hate on her too much smfh

liked by y/n, hallebailey and 3,817,277 others

tchalamet MY LOVE SURPRISED MEEEE

view all 204,287 comments

ynssocks YAYYY MY PARENTS ARE TOGETHER AGAINN

y/n ig I love you or smth idk 🙄

liked by tchalamet

y/n this is about to be the best four days of your life fr

liked by tchalamet

timmylaurie god she's so pretty wtf man

tchalamet just posted a story!

caption- babygirl 😍😍😍🥰🥰

liked by tchalamet, florencepugh and 3,287,227 others

y/n 🥺 missed him lots

view all 121,888 comments

tchalamet like tater tots?

liked by y/n

florencepugh MY FAVOURITE PEOPLEEE

y/n I LOVE YOU FLO

lucyxyn the throwback to her older captions w him 😭🫶

y/n just posted a story!

caption- our last day together for another two months 💔

liked by y/n, zendaya and 4,727,288 others

tchalamet i love you.

view all 92,828 comments

y/n this is gonna be the worst two months of my life

bratzyn she's literally an angel I swear

lauriesamy he always takes the best pictures of her 🥺

takemetotheyn you glow different in the photos taken by someone who truly loves you

tchalamet liked

@y/n just tweeted- help i miss my bf 💔

@pepperyyn replied- uh oh now she's yearning 😭😭

@ynshairtie replied- there we goooo

@realchalamet replied- I miss you more 🥺

@snowyyn replied- damn no thirsting now

@y/n replied- well... maybe later 😔🤧

@y/n just tweeted- watching 21 jump street and omg dave franco is so cute🤭🤭 ive been giggling for the entire movie

@lauriesyn replied- girl your mann!!

@tipsyyn replied- IT RHYMES WITH GRAPE

@ynsbra replied- if she was still w her ex he would cry and post ab how he's gonna khs over this

@sazonyn replied to @ynsbra- HELPP WHOS HER EX ?!?!?!!!

@ynxtim replied- sh*wn m*ndes 💀💀 there's so many compilations of him being a weirdo jealous obsessed bf w her... even after for a while he was weird ab her. even though HE broke up w HER ... anyways yeah he sucks

@realchalamet replied- reduce... reuse... recycleee 🎶🎶🎶

@y/n liked

@y/n replied- i love how that's the scene you remember 😭😭💕

liked by tchalamet, rachelzegler and 3,716,227

y/n living like a lusty flowerrr

view all 96,728 comments

tchalamet I can't take this, you're too beautiful how did this happen

y/n liked

lauriesyn she's so ethereal

tchalamet are you running through the grass for hours?

y/n yeah and rolling through the hay like a puppy child fr

rachelzegler my pretty best friend !!!

y/n we ARE the two pretty best friends

y/n just posted a story!

caption- missing this. missing you @tchalamet

@y/n just tweeted- SEEING MY BOYFRIEND OH SO SOONNNN

@y/n replied- I watched wonka and little women on repeat I swear that's how badly I missed him 😭💕

@wonkasyn replied- what a journey we've witnessed

@realchalamet replied- I CANT WAIT BABYYYY

@gourmetyn replied- yayyy my parents will be back together again 🫶

@y/n liked and replied to @gourmetyn- you still have to send the adoption papers

tchalamet just posted a story!

caption- BABYYYY 😍😍

y/n just posted a story!

caption- GUESS WHO'S BACKKKKK

*

#timothee chalamet #timothee chalamet fanfiction #timothee chalamet imagine #timothee chalamet x reader #timothee imagine #timothee x reader #timothée chalamet #timothee chalamet au #timothee chalamet x you #timothée chalamet imagine #timmy chalamet #timothee fanfic #timothée chalamet x reader #timothée imagine #timothée x reader #Timothée chalamet social media au #Timothée Chalamet smau

[littletrippyyhippyy]

Okay I can’t be the only one who has thought about human!reader introducing one or both boys to human food - like mac and cheese or some sort of human food the boys never thought or heard of. Like, you were lucky to have some supplies back at base, so you brought them with you and made them watch you make it. They kept asking questions - making weird faces as they watched you cook. This shit actually makes me cackle. I wish I could do this 😂

“What is ‘mac and cheese’ exactly, y/n?” Neteyam asked confused. You giggled, looking at him and his also confused brother with your sweet sympathetic eyes. “Well, it’s this really yummy food that is easy to make. It’s kinda squishy and soft with this really good sauce. You can make it several different ways but I grew up making it the simple way”

They still looked completely dumbfounded, not getting a word you just said. “I don’t know if I’d like ‘squishy’ food. That shit sound kinda gross” Lo’ak said unamused. You playfully gasped - hand on your chest as you looked at him. “You’ll like it, I promise” Lo’ak gave a ‘hm sure’ look with his raised eyebrows - making himself more comfortable as they watched you grab your ingredients.

“This is a prepackaged box of noodles - it comes with a packet of powdered cheese as well” you explained. “Absolutely horrific” Lo’ak blurted out. Neteyam smacked him on the arm, hushing him so you could continue with your explanation. You smiled at Neteyam, thanking him for managing his more than slightly featherbrained brother.

“After putting the noodles in hot water, you drain and add something we call butter. It helps the noodles not stick” You spoke to them as if they were going to make it in the future, giving them detailed instructions on how and what to do - which amused the two blue brothers.

You had your eyes fixed on the pot in front of you, Neteyam and Lo’ak getting in your way every now and then so they could look at the food you were making. “Would you back up - you’re in my way, you damn giants.” You said. They backed off, sitting back down on the floor.

“Done!” You say - letting the large Navi boys walk over and try your finished product. “This is a spoon” you raised it up - telling them you use it to eat mac & cheese. They both grabbed the spoons you had, turning and examining it with curious faces. You giggled. You felt so lucky to be best friends with these two. You loved teaching each other your ways - growing closer together every day.

You had already taken a bite, slightly moaning at how good it tasted. You were tired of fish, game and fruit. You truly missed your past food choices. “Come on now - you’re not gonna die, you skxawngs” They simultaneously dipped their spoons into the pot, scooping up some of the food you made.

They stood still - looking at the foreign dish. “I swear to god if you guys take any longer..” you trailed off. “If we die, we’re haunting you for the rest of your life” Neteyam joked. They both took a bite, their eyes lighting up as they chewed. “Good, yeah?” You asked. They didn’t respond, taking another scoop of the mac & cheese you made. “Bro, this is good” Lo’ak said.

You smiled, pleased that the two Navi boys enjoyed such a simple dish you made. The only problem is, they asked you almost every week to make it for them. You couldn’t resist treating these two dummies.

#avatar the way of water #avatar twow #neteyam sully #avatar neteyam #loak sully #atwow loak #neteyam x reader #loak x reader #avatar fluff

[myperfectfatdads]

Old Men

My friend Mike had just invited me and one of my other best friends Jake. Us three have always been really close since birth we have been going to the same school with each other for years and we even are all going to the same college right now. Not trying to brag but us three are all women magnets.

I’m the one on the right Jake is the one in the middle and you guessed it Mike is the one to the right. We’ve made it our goal to go the gym together every single day after our classes and it’s really starting to show. Mike’s vacation house was not close I was thinking we were going to have to take a plane but I guess we can drive there even though it was a nine hour drive to his house, at least I’m with my best buddies. Normally when we go out to his vacation house which is not often, we go with his whole family but this time his family is out of town so we have the whole place to ourselves! Getting to the house it’s huge, I’ve been to his other house but not this one it was me and Jake’s first time. “Woah man this place is really nice” says Jake, “thanks bro I mean I wish this was my real home not just for vacation” says Mike. “My bedroom is upstairs and it’s perfect because next to my bedroom are two extra bedrooms where you guys can sleep.” Says Mike, “here I’ll help you guys unpack your stuff.” Remember when I said his family was out of town they are but he doesn't really have much family he is an only child and his mom died at a young age so all he has left is his dad. But Mike hates his dad, Mike says that he’s just not like him and they have nothing in common for example I like going to the gym and my dad had never been to a gym in his life. So going upstairs I see three rooms next to each other and one room off in the distance, “that’s my dads room but he’s not here” says Mike. “Come in guys let’s go make some food after you get unpacked I’m starving.” Says Mike, “yeah man I’ll hurry up I’m staring too” says Jake. Going down to the kitchen it’s really nice and big, “darn man we have food but we don’t have any drinks I could really go for a beer right now” says Mike. I mean we all are twenty one just turned it a little big ago so we all are allowed to drink beer. “I mean I know we are allowed to drink beer but I’m not really a huge fan of it but I’ll have some if you find some. “Wait my dad may have some in his room he’s always drinking beer might as well go check” says Mike. While looking in his room the boys seem to have no luck. “Wait here we go under the bed oh nice it’s a six pack too not opened” says Mike, “bro are you sure your dad wants us going though his stuff?” Says Jake, “it’s fine man not like he knows that we have it” says Mike, “yea I guess you right, we’ll what are you waiting for let’s go down stairs and open it” says Jake. “Weird I’ve never seen this type of beer before, big old papa bear beer, I mean makes sense why my dad would drink this he is a big old papa, whatever the beer looked good though” says Mike. Opening the beer they are met with a very strong smell opening the beers the all cheer while taking there first sips. “Oh this stuff is really good what was I saying not like beer earlier” says Jake. Yea man this is good! “Hey guys I’m burppppppppp” says Mike. Woah man that was a loud one. “Yeah is was, but it was weird normally I can control when I burp that one just came burppppp out, see like that!” Says Mike, “it’s okay bro we all burp, well it’s getting late guys can we go watch a little football then go to bed” says Jake, yea sounds good to me. “Here the TV is over here I’ll turn on football I can’t wait I love football!” Says Mike. That’s off bro I swear earlier today you said you hate football. “We’ll kinda depends on the day” says Mike. “They beer was good man but after that I feel really bloated fartttttt” says Jake, “yea me too man after this game is over I’m going to burpppppo bed” says Mike. You guys ok you do look really bloated! “Yeah we’re good I think we’re just full I’ll burn it off tomorrow of in my sleep.” Says Jake.

Waking up in the morning and going down stairs I’m met with Mike sitting on the coach again but he’s not looking to good is face looks really chubby and his belly is sticking out a little. Hey man good morning I say while sitting down and slapping his belly, your starting to look like a dad my guy. “Haha very funny but I’m way to young to have kids bro I’m only 24” days Mike, wait 24 we’re not twenty four we are twenty one right? No were twenty four still in college and I graduate this year with all three of my friends. “Woah Jake you really started to grow a beard” says Mike “what do you mean man it’s only a little stubble I shaved a week ago” Says Jake. Well it’s early I going to go get some breakfast guys. “Yeah sounds good I’ll follow you this daddy gotta eat haha” Says Mike. “Oh cool we still have three of the beers left from yesterday and I know it’s early but I’m going to have mine right now” Says Jake. “Yeah me too there nothing like a nice cold beer in the morning” says Mike. I’ll have mine too then guys if you’re having yours. “Well cheers boys we deserve it after graduating collage!” Says Mike, oh yea we all just graduated and came out here for the summer, time really does fly when you having fun. After a fun day of drinking there beer and watching football and burping/farting the three boys are exhausted. “Well yawnnn I’m going to bed man this was a great day though see u boys in the morning” says Jake. Yeah goodnight hey Mike why are you going to your dads bedroom? “I don’t know I just kinda want to sleep there tonight it just feels right you know what I’m saying?” Says Mike, we’ll do whatever you wanna do man goodnight! Getting out of bed you feel off like something was different but you didn’t know what. Walking out of the bedroom you go down stairs and your the first one up it seems so you go back up to check on your friends. Waking past Jake’s bedroom you hear loud snoring, but that’s off Jake never snores I thought or at least hasn’t. Walking into Jake’s bedroom you see a fifty seven year old man snoring sound asleep on the bed.

Confused as you walk up to the man you see ripped clothes on the ground not any ripped clothes Jake’s clothes that he was wearing yesterday so you go up to him and bump him to wake him up the man jolts awake and in a really deep voice he said let your old man sleep for a little longer won’t ya? You walk out of the room even more confused when you first came in. You decide to go check up on Mike and see if everything is okay, walking into Mikes room it’s empty. Oh yeah he slept in his dad’s room last night but waking into his dad’s room he’s not met with Mike he’s met with Mikes dad.

“Hey there sir can I help you?” Says Mike. Well I’m looking for my friend Mike are you his dad? “what do you mean his dad it’s me Mike, man old age has really got you burppppppp” says Mike. And looking into the mirror he’s right you’re not you your an old fat man!

Mike what happend to you dude you look exactly like you dad you’re even wearing his clothes and your beard I mean look at it it’s huge. “Yeah it’s the only clothes that fit this big belly of mine.” Says Mike. Slapping your big belly Mike says “come on man let’s go wake up Jake he’s a real good sleeper and a loud on chuckle.” Walking into Jake’s bedroom your met with the same fat man asleep on the bed Mike goes and slaps his belly real hard. The man jolts awake with a huge burp, burppppppppppp. “Haha” says Mike while slapping is overalls on his huge belly. “Well boys the big football game is on today I’m not missing it for the life of me so burpppppppp let’s go turn it on I have beers too” says Mike, in a way deeper voice Jake says “this game today is gonna be great farttttt gotta keep up the beer belly haha.” “Come on then put on a shirt and let’s go” says Mike, “I don’t have any shirts that fit me this hairy beast does what he wants chuckle.” Says Jake “Sounds good pops Thats belly does what it’s wants well I’m going down to watch to game see you guys down there soon!”

#dad bod #weight gain #balding #beer belly #beer bloat #burping #fat belly #fatty #hairy belly

[faulty-writes]

Hii! I apologize if you keep getting notifications from me at such an hour but I cant get enough of your posts! I love the way you write Tenya!

So if I may trouble you just a bit longer…

Since it’s spooky season, what would your take be on vampire Tenya x f (or gn) reader? And vampire Monoma as well?

[ Oh I like trouble, trust me. Haha. Thank you. I swear I get so many compliments regarding how I write Tenya, makes me so proud of myself. One spooky season request coming up! ]

Despite being what many assumed was a "blood-sucking" creature, Tenya had a sense of elegance and self-discipline because of his upbringing. Yes, he was what most would refer to as a "rich kid" but he was not spoiled in any capacity and often adhered to his own rules which included having manners even when thirsty for blood.

Most found Tenya to be intimidating, but you found him intriguing despite initially being unaware of his true nature. The two of you met in a bookstore late at night and you recall the way he stumbled when he rounded the corner of a bookshelf to find you and the way he bowed and said "Pardon, I was unaware there was another frequenting this shop so late at night."

The two of you began to meet frequently at the bookstore after that, and although you thought it peculiar Tenya only requested to meet you at night. You assumed it was because he was busy during the day but in all truth, he was struggling to avoid revealing his true nature to you and feared that once you found out he was a vampire you'd…well you would not want to see him again.

He slipped one night, after pushing himself too far. Yes, self-control was essential. But one could only contain themselves for so long and vampires were particularly dangerous when deprived of blood. "I…I apologize I…I did not wish for you to see me as such a…monster," while initially a shock, you tried to be accepting and understanding of what he was.

Being the person you were, his vampiric world fascinated you, and he didn't hesitate to teach you about the history of his lineage or his nightly rituals which typically included performing a series of prayers, chants, and such before he drank whatever blood he had managed to obtain.

Unfortunately, Tenya also informed you of the dangerous side of his world. Mostly the rogue vampires who strayed from the societal rules of their world and killed or injured humans during their bloodlust. "I promise, I will not allow harm to come to you. Ensuring your safety is quite a priority." Yes…he would go to whatever lengths he needed to ensure you remained by his side.

To double ensure your safety, Tenya presented you with gifts frequently. Usually, these consisted of protective charms, blessed holy water, and amulets that were believed to ward off bad supernatural threats. Of course, he would never tell you the hoops he had to go through to get such gifts.

Sometimes it was hard to keep up with Tenya's schedule considering he was more active at night. But he assured you that he enjoyed your company and often insisted that you could rest when you appeared extremely tired. Waking up in his bed or falling asleep against his shoulder became a frequent occurrence for you.

His parents were hesitant to accept you and your growing relationship with their son. On the other hand, his brother, Tensei welcomed you with open arms. "It's awesome that my little bro finally found someone! And just to let you know, it doesn't matter if you're human, another vampire, or even a witch. I believe that people who look past such things are the coolest!" It was safe to assume that Tenya got his beliefs from Tensei.

"I believe with enough effort, we may eliminate the prejudice that separates our societies to coexist together in harmony," one of Tenya's deepest wishes was to break the barriers between his and your kind. Although he had not intended to feel affection for you, he did. Yet, he looked at it as the first step to uniting your kind as he dreamed.

Neito, unfortunately, was out of blood and sought to get it fresh from an unsuspecting human. That human happened to be you and he was only attracted to you because of the intoxicating scent of your blood. However, he quickly found that you were not a frail human and stood your ground far more than he expected.

While some would be embarrassed, Neito remained his ignorant self after realizing you were quite the troublesome individual. "How dare you reject me! I am Neito Monoma, and I demand you provide me with your blood!" As far as you were concerned, underneath his vampiric nature was nothing more than a spoiled child and you were prepared to discipline him as needed.

He continued to stalk you, despite finding alternative blood donors because as much as he hated to admit it, he found you intriguing. For a human that is, and used his sharp wit accompanied by playful banter whenever you caught him in his stalking efforts. "Surely you didn't think I'd leave you alone, oh no my dear, quite the opposite. I do not stop until I get what I want and what I want is your blood," and your affection, but he kept that to himself.

Your opinion of him didn't change until you were attacked by another one of his kind. Your guard was down initially because you had mistaken them for Neito, and despite your skills, you were losing the fight until he showed up and saved you. He'd be damned if he let another taste your blood before he got the chance to.

You detested the idea of letting him finally drink from you but considering his courageous actions. You allowed him the opportunity and found that he was surprisingly gentle when feeding from you. "Surely you didn't compare me to such monsters as that rouge one who attempted to take what is mine, how insulting. I pride myself in presentation and manners," he stated, acting just a touch too offended.

Despite not letting many people in, the two of you continued to spend time together, and Neito began to reveal his past. How he came from a high-class family, their rather…unbelievable expectations of him, and how he wishes to break free and prove his own worth to the world. Of course, that was a challenge given the current state of discrimination toward his kind, but he was still determined to do whatever he could to make his dream come true.

He finds himself feeling peaceful when in your presence and this was new to him and something that gave him a sense of belonging. It was almost as if being in your presence kept his demons at bay and he partially wondered if you wore any protection symbols or amulets on your person.

On occasion, Neito would still struggle with the affection he felt for you and his nature. Vampires were strong, drank blood, and didn't hesitate to do what they wanted to obtain said blood. But even though he knew you would allow him to drink from you. He found that he didn't want to cause you any harm and thus the conflict continued but he kept this a secret from you.

Eventually, Neito agreed to allow you to meet his family. Although it was immediately apparent, they detested you merely because you were human and spoke ill of Neito for befriending and furthermore feeling the way he did toward you. "Humans are meant to be our food source, nothing more," they said which caused Neito to argue with them before ultimately dragging you out the door.

Despite your unusual relationship, Neito viewed it as fulfilling his commitment to protect and cherish you for as long as you lived, and from what he understood, that was for a short time. He planned to propose to turn you but decided to wait to bring that up. For now, he'd enjoy your company.

#tenya x reader #neito x reader #iida x reader #monoma x reader #tenya x you #monoma x y/n #tenya x y/n #tenya x female reader #iida x male reader #iida x you #iida x y/n #bnha x reader #bnha x you #bnha x y/n #neito x female reader #tenya iida x reader #faulty writes: tenya iida: 23 #faulty writes: tenya iida: headcanons: 23 #faulty writes: neito monoma: 23 #faulty writes: neito monoma: headcanons: 23

[zandlikething]

WARNING BIG SPOILERS FOR QSMP BAD POV AND A LITTLE BIT OF PHIL POV ALSO JUST A LOT OF RAMBLING READ AT YOUR OWN RISK BECAUSE WOOO BOY THERE A LOT AND IM NOT EVEN DONE YET

I have so many thoughts on Bad's last stream the fact like OMG my heart QSMP needs to pay for all of our therapy

I'll probably do another post because holy crap there is a lot that happened today

I thought it was sweet Dapper and Pomme went to qPhil first because Dapper said they know he has concretions to some kind of goddess of death obviously referring to Kristin but I still am not sure if she is actually canons but it was a cute reference and it's nice to know that Phil has lots of tickets if they need cookies this week.

But also like Damn Phil cannot get a break first Tubbo now Bad I swear soon all the eggs will be ophans /j

Also apparently Taulluah is seeing the ghost of the eggs that died and one more. Idk if it's also an egg or something/someone else but if it's an egg I think it's either: 1. A-1 the egg that evil quackity was testing and died or Hope.

For those who don't remember Hope was an egg in a different orphanage than the original eggs that Cellbit found a while ago. The egg left a diary of their time in the orphanage. No one came for the egg and died but told that whoever is reading their book should not be sad for them. That's all I remember I'd have to go back and look to see what else I can find.

ANYWAYS Yeah so Taulluah sees ghosts now that are sad for some reason and she doesn't know why and Bad is missing and also presumably dead or a ghost? Because as we were following Dapper and Pomme on Bad's stream the thing would have reactions a lot of like what Bad would have. Like nodding and shaking his head or rolling his head for rolling his eyes. It all just felt very Bad like.

Also he was very against using any spells of stuff to block spirits so I think it might be Bad somehow looking out for them but not able to talk or interact with them for some reason.

I know these are a lot of signs at once but I find it very sweet that Dapper despite everything is trying to keep a positive view of everything and trying to cheer Pomme up.

I love how this is the plan they come up with to get Bad back lol 😆 I'm sure they'll come up with a real plan but who knows this could maybe work

Dapper and Pomme did this a lot and I love it. Them just leaning their heads together silently telling the other it's ok we are together aggghhh it is so sweet. And the fact that they did it multiple times I imagine just reassuring the other and themselves that they are there.

This was so pretty and nice just Dapper and Pomme watching the sunset (07 Bobby) together going over memories

Talking about their dead siblings and Max saying they should build a new place for them to remember them and wish them a Happy birthday every month

I didn't get screenshots of it but Dapper telling Pomme that all of their past siblings would have loved her with how sweet Tiln was and how good it was to be around Flippa, how Trump would have loved picking flowers with her and how Bobby would have loved doing pvp with Pomme :,) like bro I am literally tearing up

I am going to make a part two because tumbler is at its limit of how many screenshots I can show because guess what there is more heartwarming and heartbreaking stuff I need to talk and show

#qsmp thoughts #i have so many thoughts like holy shit #qsmp theory #qsmp #qsmp spoilers #dapper qsmp #qsmp pomme #qsmp tallulah #qsmp bbh #qsmp badboyhalo #qsmp rambles #qsmp screenshots #qsmp eggs #qsmp rant #qsmp bobby #qsmp tilin #qsmp trump #qsmp flippa #quackity smp

[rootbeerworshiper]

Normal (part 6)

pairing: fem! character + matt sturniolo

summery: Abigail and Matt have been best friends for years and practically grew up together. the two hiding their feelings for one another, until one stupid drunken dare changes things.

warnings: swearing, a lil bit suggestive

i’m forcing myself to finish this bc i always start fics and abandon them but if you like the story or have ideas for it pls dm me or put it in my asks🙏

this chapter is mostly based on this song! ^^^

pt1 pt2 pt3 pt4 pt5

love, sienna <3

matt pov!

i sit at the kitchen island, fidgeting with my fingers.

why was this so hard?

i know it’s the better thing to do, to go back to normal. i need more distance from Abigail before i literally go insane. she’s all i think about and it’s extremely unhealthy.

Chris says that it’s normal, that this is how it is with every girl you like, but everything she does is attractive. she’s literally perfect and all i can do is hope she’ll see the same in me one day, although i know it’s incredibly unlikely.

i mean what i said in the hot tub, i wish i had kissed her that night. things could’ve been different if i just gone through with it.

i was so close to bridging the gap between best friends and lovers but i gave up.

i gave up and had to watch her go through other relationships, wishing it was me she was gushing over.

i’m not ignorant though. i know that this is my own fault. another thing Chris mentions constantly.

if i would just tell her how i feel this whole thing would be different. and he’s right, it would be. she could not feel the same and it would make things awkward, and it may never go back to normal.

so i’m okay not telling her how i feel if it means avoiding losing her, because without Abigail i am not myself.

“Matt bro snap out of it” Chris says, slapping me on the back of the head as i exit my overwhelming thoughts.

i furrow my eyebrows and bring my hand to the spot of my head that’s now throbbing. “bro what the fuck do you want? i think you forgot the headache i told you about”

he motions towards the empty stool “where did Abi go? i was gonna see if she wanted to play duos with me”

right. i shrug “i don’t know she said she should get going and she just left”

“what the fuck did you do?” he asks in an accusatory tone that makes me shift in the stool.

“why is it always me? Abi makes her own choices she’s a grown adult” i say louder than i’d like to admit.

“grow up Matt you and i both know something happened last night don’t lie to me”

i throw my head back in annoyance, i really was not in the mood to share this information with anyone, especially not now, not after she left.

i’m not really entirely sure what to say, but i can feel my heartbeat increase at the thought of Abigail last night, how she sounded saying my name.

she has an effect on me that no girl ever did, and i hate myself for it.

“did you tell her how you feel?” he asks again, i know he won’t let this go.

“kind of?” i bite my nails, although i know that if Abigail were here my hand wouldn’t be in my mouth because it would be holding hers.

her hands.

the way i shiver under their touch, the way they pull my hair, the way they-

“what happened Matt? i wanna know if she’s okay”

“okay um.” fuck this is not easy. “well we got drunk or whatever and i guess i was feeling bold because i told her about the time in sophomore year where i was really close to kissing her”

Chris thinks “when you snuck out together?”

i nod. “she told me that if i had kissed her then that we’d be kissing now”

“oh shit”

“so uh she put her hand on my leg or whatever and we uh-“

“Matt i don’t want details, she is basically my sister” he groans, now sitting next me, where Abigail was moments prior.

“right sorry. well uh we finished or whatever and walked home and then she told me something”

he groans again, his hands coming up to his forehead as he speaks “dude you suck at telling stories this is painful”

“okay okay uh she told me that alcohol was really hitting her and that like if we were sober then that night probably wouldn’t of ever happened” Chris nods, expecting more.

“she basically told me she wouldn’t kiss me sober Chris what was i supposed to do? i cant just have drunk sex with my best friend and then never kiss her again” i hate the way i tear up, the effect she has on me continuously playing a role in my emotions.

“Chris i cant not kiss her again, i cant go back to looking at her lips and praying she doesn’t notice.” i run my hands through my hair “it’s not fair that she can do this to me”

“shit Matt” he says, clearing trying his best to gather his thoughts. “you’re in love. like actual love”

“thanks for your epiphany Chris i know this already” i sigh.

realizing i loved Abigail happened a long time ago, when her dad was yelling at her over something stupid when i was over to play Minecraft.

i realized in that moment that i would die for her, i would literally step in front of her and take anything her dad had to offer because i needed so desperately for her to be okay.

i realized in sophomore year, when we kissed for the first time. i needed her just like that forever, under my touch, looking into my eyes.

i realized when she had sex with someone else. i wanted to be her first everything, and the loss of that killed me. someone else saw her in a way i couldn’t stop thinking about.

and i realized in the hot tub, looking at her watching the stars peacefully like she always has.

i’m in love with Abigail and there’s nothing i can do about it, i missed my chance.

i missed the one opportunity i had when she liked me back.

“Matt you’re stupid” i furrow my eyebrows. “she didn’t say she wouldn’t kiss you sober, she was saying that neither of you would’ve ever been bold enough to try kissing each other sober, let alone what else you did”

i think for a second, technically, he has a point, but i’m not sure if changes anything. “what difference does it make?”

before i can speak again Chris interrupts “it means she wanted to kiss you dumbass”

she wanted to kiss me while we were drunk and horny and in a hot tub. none of this means she actually feels the same for me as i feel for her. none of this proves anything. “whatever Chris, it doesn’t mean that she’s actually into me, she wanted sex, that’s completely different”

“kid i cant with you” he sighs. “whatever, if she does just want sex, it means she wants it with you, her best friend, someone she loves. is that not a step to the direction that you’re in?”

he’s not entirely wrong, but once again it doesn’t make me feel better. “i already told her i wanna go back to normal, back to being best friends. maybe it’s better that way maybe if i distance myself enough i can get over her or-“

“be so for real Matt you are not getting over her anytime soon, you’ve practically loved her as long as you’ve known her what are the chances that’s gonna go away? especially after what happened last night”

i hate when Chris is right. “so i’m just hopeless then?” i ask, feeling completely out of options.

“hopeless until you tell her how you feel like a human being would” he rubs his forehead. “you know Abigail better than anyone, what are the chances she’s going to throwaway a lifelong friendship over this?”

“yeah whatever i don’t know, i’ll think on it more when we’re back in Somerville” i just go on my phone, so as to signal the end of this very unfortunate conversation.

god maybe it’s time to put my $25 journal to use.

i go about the rest of the day as normal, as if nothing is wrong, although the guilt of how i treated Abigail has started to sink in.

why did she look so sad about going back to normal? is that not what she wanted?

i cant be delusional about this, i had a phase once where i thought she felt the same about me in senior year but then she went and got a boyfriend and i realized how stupid i was.

i watched her in the hallway with some guy i don’t think she gave two shits about, her arms wrapped around his neck with a smile plastered on her face.

but i know Abigail, and i know the smile wasn’t real, i just wish it was me she had her arms wrapped around. someone she cared about.

i probably should tell her how i feel, that would be the rational thing to do. to rip the bandaid and get it over with. but i just told her i want to go back to normal, back to friends that don’t have drunk sex.

“Matt you good?” Nick asks as i lay on my bed, thinking.

i sit up slightly to face him. “yeah i’m okay why?”

“we have to leave for the airport in like 20 minutes and you haven’t packed yet” right. Boston.

“shit yeah i’ll do that now, are you just gonna order an uber?” he nods and walks off after another moment of small conversation.

i think going home will be good, it’ll give me a chance to breathe and remind myself how this whole thing started.

after throwing together a suitcase full of clothes and a carry on, i look at myself once more in the mirror.

it’s always weird to see a grown version of myself, i mean it’s still me, but i still feel so much younger. i still have the same stuffed animals, the same comfort shows, the same crush. sometimes i don’t recognize the person that looks back at me in the mirror.

i shake my head and take a deep breath. i have no reason to be anxious going back home, there i get to see my family and Nate, but i’ll also see Abigail everywhere i look.

i’ll see her on my bed, teaching me the handshake she wanted to do with me so desperately.

i’ll see her in the kitchen teaching Trevor a new trick because she insists he’s smarter than we let on.

i’ll see her in the backyard, on the swings we sat on when we needed to talk. where we’d look at the stars together as if nothing else in the world mattered.

Abigail Brown is one constant in my life.

she keeps me grounded, and ironically, she also causes me a lot of my stress.

but it’s not her fault, and it never will be.

we make it to the airport and do all the usual things, getting bags checked and eventually boarding the plane.

i don’t say a lot, and Chris and Nick don’t seem to mind as they go off on random tangents, i’m just grateful to have the window seat.

i quickly begin to fall asleep with the playlist that Abigail made for me playing softly in the background of my headphones.

just as i’m about to doze off, i pay more attention to a song she added more recently. it’s not an artist i listen to so i never thought much of it.

Don't wanna be forward, don't wanna cross a line

But if I were to crash in this plane tonight, I'd want you to know this

Don't wanna say too much, Intrude on your space

But if I were to crash and I never made it home, I'd want you to know this

Oh, and to tell you is too scary, so I'll just say something else

And I wish that you could hear me, when I talk to myself

But this plane might not land safely

So, what the hell do I have to lose, If I just tell you?

I wanna eat pancakes for dinner, I wanna get stuck in your head

I wanna watch a T.V. show together and when we're under the weather we can watch it in bed

I wanna go out on the weekends, I wanna dress up just to get undressed

I think that I should probably tell you this, In case there is an accident and I never see you again

fuck.

taglist: @athaliahxoxo

a/n: okay i know this is so incredibly short but for the few avid normal readers i wanted to get this out bc it’s lowkey a little irrelevant ykwim🧍🏻‍♀️

#Spotify #sturniolo triplets #matt sturniolo #sturniolo #chris sturniolo #matt sturniolo fluff #matt sturniolo smut #chris sturniolo smut #nick sturniolo #matt sturniolo edit #matthew sturniolo #matt sturniolo fanfic #matt girl #nicolas sturniolo #christopher sturniolo #lizzy mcalpine

[yourlegacysnotyourstosee]

I took notes on my thoughts while watching Nerdy Prudes Must Die because I did the same for Black Friday

DAMN Jon said “I am a TENOR”

I literally can’t get over how good he sounds

AHHHHHH LAUREN!!!!!

Bro these songs SLAP

Damn Mariahs hair is so long

Pete is such a mood

I’m literally terrified of being pantsed so bad

BRUH NOT MICRO-PETER

Omg hey Kim

When Cory enthusiastically agrees I’m dying

Omg Max likes Grace???????

Wait that’s so cute

Wait why’s he kinda fine

“His name is Jesus Christ” HELP 💀💀💀💀💀

It’s giving Apex Predator (from Mean Girls)

Damn these HARMONIES THO

My jaw is on the floor the way Cory is talking to her

“How am I supposed to study without listening to Spotify?” ME LMFAO

I KNOW HE DID NOT JUST MAKE AN ISSAC NEWTON JOKE

The way hes like “this is about thermodynamics” me me me. I hate when people make jokes about the things we’re not even talking about.

“NANI” NO WAY HE SAID THAT HELP💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀I LITERALLY CANNOT BREATHE 💀💀💀💀💀💀

Study date????????

Joey Richter my beloved ❤️❤️❤️

When Max enters and the crowd cheers

“Rondevuch”

Max literally has a God complex

Why is Kim everyones mom?

“Walen place”?????

“Mom will you pass the butt stuff????” HELP SHES BEEN CORRUPTED

NO WAY SHES FANTASIZING ABOUT MAX JAGERMAN

LITERALLY WHAT

Awwww Grace is experiencing Catholic Guilt™ ❤️❤️❤️

Girl wdym “he’s gotta go”???

Laurens character is bisexual???????

“WAIFU MATERIAL”?????? I literally can’t get over Jons character

Wait Grace is a little fucked up actually

Wait since the Waylons built hatchetfield high and the starlight theater, could they have cursed the town somehow? Like I know about the evil brothers or whatever, but I’m not super familiar with the lore

Wait I kind of love Grace now

Mariah slays

“Am I reading as Ghost, or Lin Manuel Miranda?” AWWWWWW❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

“Your fucking useless Pete.” Tgwdlm???? In MY npmd???? It’s more likely than you think

I’m very suspicious about how fast they seemed to put the plan together…

I know the plan wont work and Im so nervous I’m getting secondhand embarrassment so bad rn

“Skele-ens”

I need Max Jagerman actually

Awwww Max is a Theater Kid ❤️❤️❤️

AW FUCK HE DIED

HOLY FUCK HE DIED

GIRL WTF IS WRONG WITH GRACE

I love how upbeat this song is

WHYD SHE CUT HIS NIPPLES OFF WTF

Omg Dan and Donna!

Slay Mayor Lauter

His reaction to being asked to the game is giving- “she asked me for the time” “no way” “way :D”

THE NIGHTHAWKS MASCOT 💀💀💀💀

FUCK CLIVESDALE

DAMN THEYRE IN THE SPLITS GOOD FOR THEM

I like that the football team has only 2 players

I love when actors walk through the audience, but ESPECIALLY here when hes stalking Richie bro looks so good

Listen I know he’s about to kill Richie but HES SO FINE HELP

Im literally so Gay bro

THE SMOKE CLUB!!!!!!

THE NIGHTMARE TIME THEME

When she says hes not hot anymore girl speak for yoursef

Please let Grace swear

Oh fuck they’re giving themselves away

Grace Chastity said “acab”

Cory needs more songs

MAN IN A HURRY RETURNS!!!!!

Damn who is this girl in a trenchcoat 😍😍😍

GERALD OH MY GOD

Random side note but what happened to Robert? I was just thinking about how I wish we could see Hidgens again but is Robert still a part of Starkid anymore? Is he on to Bigger and Better things? Does anyone know what those are? I’d love to continue to support him.

Edit: NVM NVM I TAKE IT BACK I DO NOT WANT TO SUPPORT ROBERT MANION NO NO NO SIR

The invisible bird. Literally high school theater

“Heahs the thang about ah bahbecue”

“Ah wawna remember who ah ayum”

Ruth is so real for not know when to do the lights bc the cue lines were wrong

Ugh Laurens voice is so good and I know ive said that about pretty much everyone but it’s true

I know shes about to die rn

The red lighting gave it away

THE WAY HE LOOKS INTO CAMERA AFTER HE KILLS HER I NEED HIM SO BAD

Why did Kim scream like that

Awww Grace has religious trauma now ❤️❤️❤️

THE COPS THEME

OH MY GOD PAUL AND EMMA!!!!!!!!!

He gave her his number❤️❤️❤️

Hot chocolate boy!!!!!!!! I knew Peter was the hot chocolate boy but still

This duet is EVERYTHING

Obsessed with the fact he called MARIAH ROSE FAITH a MEAN GIRL

“Axe wielding maniacs?”

The Waylons did not dig that shit very deep…

OH FUCK THEY HAVE TO SUMMIN THE LORDS IN BLACK

I KNEW THE WAYLONS BUILT LAKESIDE MALL

im so sorry Zombie Max is So Fine

WIGGLY

THEY HAVE HUMAN FORMS??????

“Let me check my Christmas list”

“What do you want steph?” MORE tgwdlm? In MY npmd?

I feel bad for not knowing all their names

Max says bitch a lot

Damn this show is long

Omg this is so sad im tearing up a lil

Max is so fucking funny

Damn Grace is seducing Max this is hilarious

Fuck Grace Chastity or kill some nerds? One of the many difficult decisions in life

He decides to fuck Grace Chastity

OH MY GOD THATS SO SMART

Thats some fuckin Macbeth level shit

Kims teacher character is so cute awwwww

Paul and Bill dance Chaperones??????

Oh nvm that’s Jason

I don’t think I ever mentioned it but the dancing is really good

It’s very clean and crisp

In the last 2 hours I very quickly developed a massive crush on Will Branner

OH FUCK

WHATS GOING ON

WHAT

#also idk how to spell most of their names #so forgive me #nerdy prudes must die #peter spankoffski #starkid #max jagerman #npmd spoilers #nerdy prudes spoilers

[alycias-wonderland]

Shidou's Older Sister

overview: You are Shidou's older sister. On the day of the Japan Under 20 match vs Blue lock you go and watch your younger bro play. Warning: mentions of the n-word, few swear words as well

As Shidou's older sister, there's always quite a lot of attention on you. It doesnt help that you are also a well known model and business owner.

On the day of the Japan u20 vs Blue Lock match, you make headlines as you publicly announce that you will be going to cheer for the Japan u20 despite havin been one of Blue Lock's biggest sponsors.

You head to the stadium in a tight fitting, low cut orange dress with spaghetti straps; your dyed blonde hair falling over you shoulder as you walk in, catching the attention of everyone in the stadium. You quickly take a seat next to Anri and give her a wamr greeting which she happily returns.

As you watch the first half you can't help but tap your feet and cheer loudly as Blue Lock scores 2 goals, going completely against what you said in the interview mentioning how you were gong to cheer only for the Japan u20 team.

However when your brother steps unto the pitch you cheer loudly, gaining his attention and he send you a wicked grin and blows you a kiss which you pretend to catch and place over your heart, sending the two of you into a fit of laughter.

Aiku is lowkey interested in you cause you fine as hell but he knows the moment he mentions it, Shidou will go feral

Whenever Shidou says his weird shit on the field you simply laugh out loud and say something even worse (now the whole of Blue Lock know where he got his personality from)

At the end of the match you rush down the stairs and tackle him into a hug, however he is quick to react, hooking his arms under your thighs and hoisting you up.

"Hey big sis! Sorry but we lost." Shidou says as he grins at you, his hands tightening around your thighs as he hoists you up. You laugh loudly and rub his cheeks together.

"Nigga whatchu on about? I dont give two shits whether your team won or lost, all i care about is that you had fun!"

Shidou blinks twice before setting you down and burying his face in your chest and wrapping his arms around your waist. You stay like that for awhile, because even if he didnt show it, you knew that his team losing affected him a bit. (In the background all the players are shocked, meanwhile Aiku is screaming, crying, throwing up wishing it was him in your arms like that)

#headcanons #scenarios #alycia'swonderland #blue lock #shidou ryusei #bllk shidou #sort of #aiku x reader #being shidou ryusei's elder sister

[afreakingdork]

As Luck Would Have It

RotTMNT Donatello x GN!Reader One-Shot

Warnings/Tags: Aged-up Turtles, Death of Past Life, Soulmates, Reincarnation, Violence, Happy Ending

Synopsis:  A glimpse into another lifetime leads to a wish being made that spans the ages. When Donnie happens to activate said parameters, he is sent on a quest to find someone that he's been waiting his whole existence for.

Also avaliable on Ao3

Hopefully not too long coming, but here she is: the fic requested by my one-shot giveaway winner @anxious-cyanide !!!! 🎉🎉🎉

Also huge shout-out to the illustrious and incomparable @unknownfanartist for supplying a cover image to go along with the fic! I seriously can't thank her or anyone else who participated in the giveaway enough for all the kindness and generosity you all have shown me! My life is filled with so much love I can't stand it, but I'm sure you aren't here to listen to me go all mushy; please enjoy!

“Which means loser Shion has to get water.” From atop a fallen log, a man balanced his odachi on two fingers.

“That hardly seems fair.” Shion scoffed, folding his arms.

Below the first, another man wrinkled his brow as he attempted to fall back into his zazen. “We all agreed to the bet.”

“There were extenuating circumstances!” Shion snapped and turned his head away bitterly.

“Shi’s right!” The third man chimed in from where he was reclined on his back. “It’s not like it’s his fault he lost his weapon!” One of his hands raised up and with an expert flick, a kendama ball landed on its spike.

“That is the definition of his fault.” The first man responded flatly. In one fluid movement, he rose from a sitting position and threw the odachi into the air before catching it by the hilt. “You look like a baby  playing with those kid's toys.”

“And you look like a show-off.” The second man huffed as he squeezed his fingertips together more tightly.

“Yes, let's continue to pass judgement on one another since we all accounted for that kama actually being a kusarigama!” Shion’s voice dripped with venom.

The first man stuttered. He reached unconsciously up and rubbed at the bare, bandaged shoulder that was exposed. He twisted, his blue patterned hakama pooling at his elbows.

“Ok, ok!” The third man groaned before bending backwards and snapping into a kip-up. The motion caused the ball to spin wildly on its string. With only minor adjustments it landed on its spike as he his feet. “Aoi is just grumpy he got injured and can’t play with this sweet baby himself.” The man made a show of flicking the ball off the spike and then onto the two cups in three rapid clacks. “Hisato, weren’t we gonna train some more with those sweet weapons we got in Ryukyu? Why are you meditating?” Not waiting for an answer and taking several leaping strides, he hopped over to Shion. “Will you get the water just ‘cause I asked nicely instead?”

The wreckage of the statements caused a palpable shift. Aoi pulled half his hakama up and puffed out his cheeks in annoyance. Hisato dropped out of his stance and lolled his head. Shion’s shoulders tightened as he scrutinized the question.  

“I swear the toys are all part of the act, Toju.” Shion relented, leaning back. “Somehow the youngest and most formidable.”

Toju chuckled breezily, but there was an unmistakable air of malcontent.

“You wanna spar, let’s spar.” Hisato rose up, his aura flaring as he readied for a fight.

“Bring it!” Toju twirled around Shion’s back and brought his fists up around him.

“I am not a human shield!!” Shion shrieked as Hisato ran full tilt towards him with a prepared punch. Trapped, Shion winced until no impact came.

“Gotcha, bro.” Histao lightly tapped Shion’s nose.

Shion tried to bite his brother’s finger, but he pulled back too fast.

“Aoi, want to watch?” Toju giggled, placing his hands on Shion’s shoulders and rocking him side to side to prevent further nipping.

“We should make camp.” Aoi grumbled, his mood ever souring.

“Upset you can’t spar too?” Hisato craned his neck to see Aoi. “Aw, don’t be like that. You’ll be back up to it in a few days!”

“Let him stew. My question is why aren’t we staying in town? We have the money.” Shion dropped down low out of his youngest brother’s grip and rounded Hisato.

“We’d have to travel after dark, remember?” Hisato murmured, instantly on edge.

“This again?” Shion sighed. “We aren’t deep enough in the mountains to see bears yet.”

“I-I wasn’t worried!”

“We’re fine here. We can stay in a town tomorrow.” There was a finality to Aoi’s voice as he dropped down from the log.

Shion sneered.

“We’ll get pretty thirsty…” Toju mused, holding out his kendama to Hisato.

“That’s two.” Shion rolled his eyes to where Hisato took the toy and tested the string. “What about you?”

“It would be a big help. I’ll set everything else up while you’re gone.” Hisato beamed Shion a reassuring grin before attempting to flick the ball onto the spike. It missed completely and whacked him in the sternum.

“Fine! Use the crafty one to do menial labor! See how disorganized everything gets when Hisa’s big clumsy mits toss everything about without a single care!” Shion threw his hands up and took a few slow steps into the tree line. He listened for one of his brothers to stop him after his poignant fact drop, but he was irritated to find they just resumed their weapons talk. Grumbling to himself, Shion stormed towards the river they had passed earlier.

His path carved straight through forest they’d been strolling through. Little branches picked at the dark purple of his hakama and he tugged at the fabric harshly to free it. With spring nearly at full bloom, the foliage vibrated in a way that meant his struggle was nearly useless. It brought his knees up in retaliation as he took stomping steps to cross the green underfoot. The buzzing vocals of bugs and birds slowly fell to the backdrop static of the rushing water. Clomping on the ever moistening soil, Shion broke free from the thicket and moved his eye along the rolling bank that lead to the water’s edge.

With twilight ever approaching, the sun threw off colorful shades of sky off the river’s flowing surface. Twisting tall lengths of needle thin greenery at the shore reached high to garner as much sunlight in competition with their brethren. This towering wall scaled its way down the water in both directions. Scowl ever deepening, Shion continue to storm forward as he arbitrarily chose to head right along the river’s edge. The clinical regions of his mind reminded him that if he had instead wound the path back that he and his brothers had taken earlier than there was a clear designated bank where the water could be accessed. Shoving the thought away, he watched his steps as rocks and undergrowth dappled the rarely trodden trail. The soothing running of water begged to soothe his agitation, but Shion steeled his brow instead. As the river curved, so did he and just down the way he spied several lengths of cattails crushed to the mossy ground.

If they had curved inward toward the river he would not have been given pause. Instead, they were pressed flat heading in the direction of the trees. Dropping his stance, Shion reflexively palmed at the air to his side before his scowl shifted to a bitter sneer. He’d lost his weapon in a skirmish earlier that day. If that were simply the case than it would be one thing. With their reputation and ever constant stream of offers, the brothers had more than enough funds to replace their weaponry when necessary. Instead, he already had an alternative in the form of the bō he’d picked up in Ryukyu. He’d become rapidly attached to the expertly crafted thing which made it all the more frustrating that he had simply neglected to grab it. It was the type of fatal mistake that a sought after samurai would never make.

Resisting the urge to grumble, he continued to creep towards the foreign outlet. As mad as he was at himself, there was no way he’d trudge back to camp empty handed. His pride and brother’s chiding simply wouldn’t allow it. The river filled the sound void where his footsteps no longer echoed. Drawing close, he followed the line from where the trampled grasses lead to broken branches. Whatever had done said damage appeared to have burst from the water itself and plowed directly into the forest. It made no sense. Finally reaching the downed blades, Shion dropped all the way down to hand and knee. There was a chance that said position were vulnerable, but he had confidence in his hand to hand combat capabilities. Head barely peeking out from the brush, Shion froze as he saw the green expanse of a back.

Or rather, the jumbled network of scutes of a green turtle shell.

Head marginally shifting in surprise, he craned his neck further and watched the human sized carapace rocked gently as its huddled shape fiddled with something out of sight. A memory of a warrior who had made his armor out of turtles came to mind. Wondering if he may have stumbled upon such a being, Shion crawled forward until he could plant his feet on the ground once again. Stowing a flattened rock against the heel of his palm, he rose up incrementally. As he did so, a shock of wet matted hair appeared just beyond the shell’s top edge. Refusing to give credence to the errant thought that this was the creature that had burst from the water, he steeled himself.

“You.” Shion’s voice sliced through the ever present run of water. “Identify yourself.”

The shell jolted and froze so still that for a moment Shion wasn’t sure if he had ever seen it move.

He usually wasn’t one to doubt his own brilliance.

“I said identify yourself.” Shion repeated, authority taking reign of his vocal cords.

The body dipped slightly and Shion’s muscles flexed as he considered that the person could simply dive out of his grasp. Instead, he watched as the shell hunched forward slowly and turned.

His breath hitched as being turned to face him.

The dark green of the carapace gave way to a skin in lighter shades of moss that ran acros the visible body's expanse. Fear laden golden eyes matched the hue of the plastron that encircled the humanoid’s torso. Gangly limbs seemed to sprout from it and between webbed phalanges was the half eaten body of a very small fish.

“A yokai.” His lips moved without his permission. He had, of course, heard tale of such creatures, but only his brothers ever entertained mysticism. Reason and rationale ruled Shion’s mind which made being faced with exactly such a creature grind his gears to a halt.

“H-human!” The being stuttered before rising up to match the voice.

Shion took a tentative step back.

The creature shined with a moment of unbridled pride before resuming a cocky air. “You l-look quite plump! Give me your rations and I will spare you.”

Shion dropped his lids and gave a bored stare. In the time he’d adjusted his stance, he’d cataloged a hundred little ticks and notes about his opposite. From the way they still clung to the little fish carcass to their weak stance, it read as an obvious conclusion. “If you’re so powerful than why are you starving?”

The yokai's arrogant air falted and they stumbled back water's edge. A webbed foot dipped into the water causing the creature to shudder.

Staring down at the appendage with light curiosity, Shion brought his bored stare back up to those large eyes. “You’re aquatic, right?”

“Y-yeah?” The yokai stammered.

Making a little noise of interest, Shion shoved down any debate and stepped forward. In exchange, the creature stepped back until their heels were almost touching the water. Watching for a sign of attack and only seeing anxiety in response, Shion reached out to snatch one of the yokai’s elbows.

“H-hey! What are you doing, mortal f-fool!?” The creature all but squawked out of its pointed beak.

The beings protests were far too easy to circumvent. Lip quirked in study, Shion found the creature's arms reduced to near sinew. Grabbing a green wrist with his other hand, he used it to bring up hand up for similar examination. He found dulled claws with distinct ridging that often attributed to poor nutrition. He had seen it many times before, but preferred not to look on too long at such people. “I have a game I’d like to play.”

“What?” Finally finding enough energy to pull free, the yokai took a step to the side. “I am not here to amuse you!”

“Exactly, if you’ll indulge me I think I know why you’re here.” Shion watched the creature move carefully. Almost every tale about yokai spoke of their power and yet before him stood a thing that looked as if it would blow away in a light breeze. It bred a thousand questions. Though the stories were told far and wide there was no concrete evidence about these beings. The precipice of discovering stretching out ahead of him was so tantalizing his mouth could almost water.

“You know nothing!” The creature continued to shuffle away incrementally.

Shion squared his shoulders in an imposing manner. “I have an ongoing bet with my brother about analyzing an opponent.”

The move worked and the yokai seemed to realize that chances of escape were low. Shion watched as the creature came to terms with this and then searched his person rapidly. He failed to conceal the rock in hand before the being caught sight of it. “If you’re going to kill me, just do it already. I’m not going to entertain you until then!”

“What a waste that would be.” Shion gave a frustrated sigh.

“Waste?” The creature shook its head in confusion.

“Look.” Shion dropped his stance in a show of amity. “There’s a lot of fearmongering between yokai and humans and I don’t know what your transgressions are, but I’m not interested in senseless violence.”

Those huge golden eyes surveyed with him wary curiosity.

“Allow me to guess your situation and answer some of my questions and I’ll give you my rations. A more even trade then whatever empty threats you were throwing around before.”

The yokai gave a distinct snort of indignity before their eye turned away. Shion watched as the being blatantly debated his offer. A hungry gaze won out before it returned their attention to him. “It better not be rotten or anything.”

“It’s rice and dried fish.” Shion clarified with a dry tone.

“Koi!?” The yokai surged forward and Shion reflexively brought up a hand to block. Instead the creature grabbed his appendage and their eyes nearly sparkled at this range.

“No. What? Why would we eat koi!?” Shion twisted his head up in disgust.

“Because you’re rich?” The yokai asked with a confused expression that said that should have been obvious.

“Nobles don’t eat koi, they keep them as pets.” Finally remembering he was being held, Shion wrenched his arm free.

“Pets!?” The yokai reeled with surprise. “You’re joking!? Those fat things!?”

“I’m not!” He couldn’t figure out when he had lost control of the conversation. “I am the one who is supposed to be questioning you!”

“I haven’t agreed to the deal yet. I want to make sure it’s worth my time.”

Shion made a indignant face. This creature’s pride was off the charts. The demonic facsimile of Aoi appeared in his mind and joked about how only his own was larger. Scowling to dissipate the thought, Shion narrowed his gaze. “I told you what you’ll get. It isn’t spoiled. It was meant to be my meal tonight. Now do you agree or not? I’ll leave otherwise.”

At the mention of losing food the yokai went rigid.

Shion folded his arms as a show of how serious he was.

“O-ok! Fine! That’s fine! I accept! Ask your questions!” The being scrambled.

It took quite a bit of effort to keep the satisfied smile off of his face. “Excellent.”

“You said it was some game?” The yokai mumbled, resentment dripping from their words.

Though the creature had conceded, Shion took in the tone carefully. He had to filter it through a mental apparition of Toju, but once it came out the other side he seemingly realized the issue with the statement. “Ah, I see, allow me to rephrase.”

The being tilted their head.

“I don’t see you as a notch to be garnered in some contest. Rather it would be for my own self satisfaction to see if my guess was correct.”

The yokai’s head continued to further loll, unconvinced.

Refusing to give in to the nervous prickles in the back of his neck, Shion straightened. “Fine, how many humans have you conversed with?”

“Ones that lived?” A little wicked smile grew on their lips.

Shion’s lids came down in an unimpressed fashion.

The yokai held strong for several moments before rolling their eyes. “Not many if I can help it. Usually kids or a particularly desperate villager giving an offering.”

Shion perked up at that note and logged it away into his ever evolving list. “And I, who have traveled across this great land, have never once actually come in contact with a being such as yourself.”

“Ok?” The creature took a bored bite of their fish.

“Cultural exchange!” Shion clarified, his hands coming up in excitement.

“Huh?” The yokai squinted.

“That is what I am after. I’m far more interested in a factual record on yokai.”

“Y-you’re going to tell others?” The being twisted into themselves and Shion was once again reminded that they could flee into the water at any moment.

“Wait!” Shion lunged and caught the creature’s wrist. “I’m no fool! If I were to try to share what I learn here with no evidence than I would be no better than the mindless geezers that pedal their yokai folktales as if they were truths.”

Not realizing the implication of his words, the being surged in his grasp. “Let go!”

Noting the sudden spike in fear, a mental version of Hisato shook his head. “Oh. Oh.” Shion made a slow show of bringing up his free hand before carefully releasing his grasp.

The sudden change caused the yokai to slow, but their feet were still positioned in a way that prepared for escape.

“I have no intention of capturing or hurting you.”

“How can I believe that?!” Taking a small wary step back, the yokai’s hands squeezed into fists. “That you won’t go get that supposed dinner and bring your brother back with weapons!? You’ve said exactly what you want! Just like all those humans! All you do is take for your own gain!!”   

In spite of himself, Shino’s lips parted momentarily before he pressed them into a thin line.

“Well!?”

“I have no way to convince you.”

The yokai jolted at his quiet tone. The river continued to drone on through the long held pause before the being moved to break it. “You aren’t going to defend yourself…? Make up a lie even?”

“No.” Shion took his own step back, his hands still held up in accord. “It would make no difference. All I can give you is my word.”

“What’s the point of your ‘cultural exchange’ if you can’t tell anyone?”

Breaking eye contact, Shion searched the crushed greenery for a long moment. “It’s hard to say. Usually, proving others wrong is what I live for.”

The yokai made a sharp snorting noise.

“Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing I find sweeter than tearing someone’s moronic false ideas to shreds, but…”

Again, the water filled the void.

“I don’t know!” Shion growled, voice suddenly spiking. When he brought his gaze back to the yokai, he found them watching him curiously. “You’re unprecedented! A truly unique specimen and for the time being all I am interested in is gathering information about you.”

It was the being’s turn to look away. Through the waning light, there was a rosy quality to the green skin of their cheeks. “Fine, but I want to change the deal.”

“Again?” Shion sighed. “What now?”

“While I’m still not sure about the concept, doesn’t exchange go both ways?”

“Yes, it does. I’d also be happy to explain the concept and length if you-”

“We will each ask a question.” The yokai cut him off with a fold of their arms.

Shion sneered, but when the creature didn’t relent he gave an even headier sigh. “Fine, I suppose I was the one to use the terminology.”

“Great, go ahead then.”

“I wanted to begin with a ventured guess about your status.”

“That’s not really a question.” The yokai shook their head.

“Not yet.” Shion smirked and brought his chin up high. “From studying this scene you’ve left-” He made a show to pointing along the crush reeds up to the broken limbs in the treeline. “-In addition to your sorry state and resistance to initially fleeing…”

The yokai’s beak parted as if they were going to protest, but nothing came out.

“Along with the scant information you’ve mentioned, I believe I can make a credible hypothesis on your standing.” Without waiting, Shion lowered his gaze which sparkled with excitement. “I postulate that you were ousted from your home which I presume was a body of water you presided over as a local kami down south. You’ve traveled the waters up north, but the chilly overnight temperatures make it so you cannot stay in the water. The trip alone probably drained any resources you took with you, leaving you near destitute and unquestionably starving. As for my question, I’m asking if I was correct?”

Eyes somehow growing even larger, the creature gawked. Their beak opened and closed a few more times before they settled for falling out of their crossed armed stance to sulk. “Is it that obvious?”

To keep a lid on his surge of satisfaction at being right, Shion settled for shuffling his shoulders side to side. “I’m not interested in speaking for most people.”

The yokai huffed.

“I’ll count that as your question, moving on!”

“H-hey! That’s not fair!”

“Be more careful with your wording in the future!” Shion tutted with an air of amusement. “Could you tell me about your domain in length?”

The being shook their head hopelessly before making a show of taking a seat. Shion followed suit onto his knees and listened in rapt attention as the yokai described their lake in Funai. Nodding furiously at the information, he then supplied the creature with more information about his occupation. Breaching the culture in this regard seemed difficult as yokai hierarchy was left as broken as the warring states. Once he thoroughly translated the concept of samurai, Shion moved on to ask about their journey. Moonlight glistened off the water and made for just enough light as the creature went through a laundry list of hardships. Having lived a life of not quite luxury, but without exceeding want, Shion tried not to let pity cloud his account. The yokai seemed to catch on to this and was just asking about his human status when a snapping twig seemed to reverberate through the whole forest. Shion immediately took to his feet and his hand again went reflexively to his hip. This time he couldn’t keep the curse off his lips at his lack of weapon. Beside him, the yokai curled up, pressing into the cattails and blending in well with the shaded greens.

“I’d recognize that big forehead anywhere!”

For a split second, Shion relaxed at the sound of his brother’s voice before fear brought his muscles tense once again. Setting his jaw, Shion cast his eyes down to the creature and found them staring back at him with horrified expression. Shion mouthed for them to stay put and stepped in close, using his body as barrier as Aoi’s form approached. “You only see the signifier of my genius every single day.”

“Mhm, sure, sure.” Shion watched as Aoi came in, his brother’s eye taking in all the same detail that he had. “Forget something?”

For a moment, Shion scrambled mentally.

Aoi caught on immediately and brought rope with several carved bottles hanging off of it.

“The water.” Shion balked.

“Find something?” Aoi craned his neck curiously, following the environmental story telling.

Shion waffled and prayed for one of the few times in his life that his terrible lies would for once persuade someone. “I came across this strange display and got caught up in studying… what kind of creature had done this.”

Aoi swept his gaze up from the reeds to his brother’s face.

Shion thanked the moon for being behind him as it hopefully hid any sweat forming on his brow.

“You fell in didn’t you.”

“What?!” Shion shrieked.

“You didn’t want to come back all wet!” Aoi burst out laughing and the move caused the strung gourds to clatter along with his barks.

“I certainly did not!!” Shion hissed. It took some stretching, but he was just able to shove his brother without moving from his spot.

Aoi languidly walked off the move before circling back. “I can’t wait to tell Hisa and Juju!”

“You’ll tell them nothing!” Shion tried to make a swipe for the bottles, but Aoi outmaneuvered him.

“Nothing better than when you’re off you’re game.” Aoi continued to chuckle. “We’ll get the water together and then we can get you all toasty by the fire.”

“I-It’s fine! I’ll finish my assignment while you get back!” Shion internally screamed when the chirpy quality to his voice suddenly brought his brother’s curious brow up.

Before he could dodge, Aoi shot forward and fisted a bunch of Shion’s sleeve.

“W-wait-!”

“Bone dry.” Aoi frowned and leaned in close to his brother. “What have you been doing all this time?”

“Studying the scene!” Shion’s pupils rapidly scanned the close proximity before breaking away. “Yeah, that’s what I said earlier.”

“Are you telling me or yourself?” Aoi’s voice dropped its usual levity.

“You.” Shion set his features along with his will.

As Aoi’s gaze narrowed and Shion wasn’t going to be circumvented a third time. Both brothers moved in tandem. Aoi twisted to look behind Shion but before he could do so Shion intercepted by trying to catch his sibling in a headlock. The two then grappled with lightning fast reflexes before the engagement shifted Shion’s stance. Kicking out his brother’s feet, Aoi wrapped an arm around Shion’s waist to keep him from falling while also getting a look at what was behind him. “AH-ha…!”

Shion squirmed from where he was caught around the waist. “If you would let me-!”

“Seriously?!” Aoi huffed and let go.

Shion fell to the ground harshly, but snapped onto to his hands and knees. A dozen excuses formed on his tongue only to dissipate when he found nothing amongst the reeds he was once blocking. “What…?”

“You’re such a nerd.” Aoi griped, swinging the string of bottles into Shion’s face. “Fine, fill them up by yourself if that’s what you want!” Shion weakly reached up to take the rope. As soon as it left his hands, Aoi, turned and started walking away. “I can’t believe you actually got so distracted just looking at some smushed grass! Hurry up already or I’m gonna let Hisa eat your portion.”

“Alright!” Shion gripped with learned snark. Hobbling, but keeping to the ground, he twisted around searching for the yokai. Not finding them, Shion listened until his brother’s steps had retreated. “Are you…?” He bit down on the question as he wondered if his brother was somehow still listening. Caught between thoughts, Shion crawled forward until he was at the water’s edge. He then dragged up the string of bottles with a frown and started to fill them. As his finger’s dipped into the cool water, the tension of the surface bubbled several feet away. Freezing, he retracted the gourd in time as the shape rose up.

Instead of bursting out, the yokai’s head breeched the water in near silence. “That your brother?”

“Yes.” Shion clipped. He could feel how wide his eyes were, but was helpless to stop it.  

“I see why you play that game with him.”

Shion made a noise of affirmation and lowered the bottle to keep continue filing it. “How’d you get away?”

“Wasn’t it my turn?” The yokai gave a bobbing giggle.

Shion let out a single dry chuckle of his own and moved to fill the next gourd. “I don’t believe I have enough time to accurately answer your question.”

“Then I’ll say ‘it’s kinda my thing.’” The yokai’s hand broke the surface next and expertly squirted a spurt of water at Shion that landed just shy of his person.

“Aquatic.” Shion responded knowingly, shaking his head.

“So I’ll never get my answer?”

“As if you were the only one with more to ask.” Shion hummed, moving to fill the penultimate bottle. “I won’t penalize you for it. I’ll be sure to bring your food as soon as everyone’s asleep.”

“Can we continue then?” The yokai floated forward, but gave breadth for Shion’s work.

“I wouldn’t risk it…” Shion mused, bringing up the gourd prematurely with a loud popping bubble. “You. I wouldn’t risk you.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the yokai dip slightly below the surface for a moment.

Slipping the gourd back into the river, Shion racked his brain. Trying to subdue the part of his mind that spiraled anxiously about missing his chance, he tried to sort out reasonable solutions. He’d barely scratched the surface of this cultural exchange and wasn’t about to let it slip through his fingers. Corking the third bottle and moving to fill the last, Shion felt every droplet that cycled in as if it were counting down time. The movement of which, thankfully, sparked an idea. “Was this your destination?”

“I don’t have a specific place in mind, though, like you said, the north is too cold.”

“It will continue to warm with spring here. Would you consider making an exception?” Keeping his eyes on task, Shion silently pleaded.

“Why do you ask?”

The bottle filled and he brought it up along with his gaze. “Keep following along the river; it’s the same route my brothers and I are taking to collect our payment. I’ll keep supplying you with food and we can continue to meet.”

The yokai bobbed up enough that Shion could see the owlish surprise in their golden orbs.

“Aren’t you cold?” Corking the bottle, Shion’s brow came down around the question. He wasn’t sure where it had come from.

“A little.”

Picking up the rope, Shion retreated backwards and watched in awe as the yokai’s head floated toward the bank. The being then seemed to walk straight out of the water which was undisturbed by the loss of its tenant. With the moon pouring light around the sparkling droplets on the yokai’s skin, Shion breathed deeply from where he hadn’t realized he’d stopped.

“I guess if you actually drop the food off tonight, then I can trust you’ll continue to hold up your end of the deal…”

There was a tentative surge of joy in Shion’s chest. He stamped it down. “I swear it.”

The yokai blinked widely and then through their beak gave a little smile. “I look forward to a steady meal.”

“Is that all?” Shion feigned a huff, the strange feeling still lingering in his chest.

“Of course, why else would I bother with such a stuffy human?” The yokai approached him.

He stiffened and they brought their hands up in amity as he had done to them earlier.

“Quick learner.” Shion grumbled more to himself.

The yokai either didn’t hear him or chose to ignore the comment. “You’ll have to come to me at the river.” The being held out a webbed hand.

“Unless you want my brothers to see you…” Confused but curious, Shion looked between glowing eyes and the appendage several times before carefully offering his limb.

The yokai took it and turned it over so his palm was facing up. They then brought their other hand up with a single dull claw and dropped it to his skin. “To call me, just dip your finger into the water two times, then pause, then three times.” The being demonstrated barely scratching at his palm in the process. “I’ll know it’s you and the coast is clear.”

Shion nodded dumbly and watched as the yokai released him.

“You alright?”

“Yes.” He came back to himself and shook off the lingering buzzing in his hand by clenching it into a fist. “Yes.” He repeated more firmly. “From now on it will always be after my family is asleep.”

“Alright.” The yokai nodded with a bob.

It was the first time he’d seen an amicable air from them. Something about it made his chest surge with what Shion identified as pride. “I need to get back.” He pulled up the rope with the bottles.

The being hummed in agreement.

Shion took a stiff step back. “I’ll be back.”

“You said that.” The yokai gave that beaky smile again.

Several more bow legged steps were made.

“Bye.” The being gave a genial wave.

Shion dipped around it and finally made the turn towards where he had come. He made it approximately half a foot before something occurred to him. “I didn’t get your name!”

“Doremi.” The yokai nodded. “And what shall I call you, human?”

Resisting the urge to stare, Shion tried to swallow the ever pertinent odd feeling. “Shion.”

“Hurry up then, Shion-human. The sooner you return the sooner I can eat.”

“Sleep doesn’t work like that.” He called back before forcing himself to trudge forward. He cursed his idiotic parting and heard a small crop of laughter from the yokai he left by the riverside.

Back at camp, the evening banter with his brothers seemed to both fly by whilst drag on at a snail’s pace. The dying embers lingered longer than the even snores of his family. Though they didn’t know of the Doremi’s existence, part of Shion’s mind wondered how they could sleep knowing such a unique creature lay a short walk away. The moon had made it’s less noticeable trek across the sky by the time Shion was able to sneak away once again. This time he made sure footing through the underbrush and revealed his rations from the sleeve of his hakama. He left them at the water’s edge where the reeds were trampled and dipped his finger in the water as instructed. Against his better judgment, he refused to linger and hurried back to camp. With his brothers still collapsed on their rolls, Shion settled in and spent a sleepless night reviewing what he had learned again and again.

When morning’s light came, Toju found his rinsed container at the edge of camp. Shion babbled a line of excuses, but it was Aoi who laid down the agreed upon defense of late night snacking. It was a minor indignity, but nothing Shion couldn’t handle. After packing up, it was another day of traveling amongst his closest companions. There was both a learned air of family to their connection, but an unmistakable fondness that Shion wouldn’t trade for the world. Though they quarreled, he would pick no other occupation or persons to share his life with. Meeting with Doremi the first night was what he akinned to the rare spice in the pot. When it came to food, Toju did his best with dishes on the road and for the most part Shion couldn’t care less about the finished product. As long as a meal was palatable and gave enough nutrients, eating had always been more a necessity than a pleasure.

Doremi shifted his view on that as well. Watching the yokai partake in meals was an experience. They relished flavors they had never tasted before and regaled him in what humans usually offered. If the dish was good, then Doremi’s eyes would light up with enough sheen that it pushed Shion to make his first requests to the chef. It ended up being a win-win as Toju was over the moon that his brother had finally shown interest. It eased any guilt about Shion's ever mounting lies while the trope and yokai moved further north and into the mountains.

The nights spent in towns were the easiest to slip away from his brethren, but the hardest to easily gain access to the river. For whatever hurdles lay for Shion, they were always double that for Doremi. The yokai not only had to dodge humanity's vigilant eye, but they also had to navigate between multiple water ways while also keeping pace with a party they couldn’t see. The resilience wasn’t lost on Shion and neither were the changes in Doremi. Having a consistent and more balanced diet meant the yokai was rapidly on the mend. Though it wasn’t an overnight change, Shion’s studious eye noted every minute advance. From the enhanced green luster to fuller limbs, even Doremi’s claws seemed to sharpen themselves with good nutrition. Less to protect himself and more for his own comfort, he showed Doremi his new blade and bō. Shion was delighted to find no fear in place and instead curiosity at human construction. To say the cultural exchange was going well was by far an understatement.

When the brothers reached their destination to pick up payment, they were tipped off to their next job down south. The constant treks across the country had become commonplace and the group rarely complained about the backtracking. A night of celebration with overflowing wallets gave way to Shion’s first missed meeting. Carrying the veritable basket of apology confections and rations, Shion was surprised when he was met with blatant concern instead of anger. It twisted up that feeling that never seemed to leave him with Doremi was near. The scolding was light as he passed chewy delights to the yokai. Gushing about the flavor, Shion found the way the moonlight played off Doremi’s now glossy locks to be an image he wished he could immortalize in paint. It was one amongst a growing list.

Shion found he didn’t need and excuse to breach the topic of their next destination and his chest swelled when Doremi instead asked where they were going. His mind was quick to remind him that the noun could also include his brothers, but a hopeful part of his mind told him that Doremi instead considered themselves an unofficial member of the group. The sticky humidity of summer reared its head and the yokai was thriving in the weather. It wasn’t just the warmth of the sun that tingled in Shion’s cheeks at the thought of an extension to their partnership. Within a few days, the brothers and yokai departed.

As time stretched on, a rhythm was established. Shion knew with each meeting that he should be more wary that his brother’s would discover what he was doing, but in inverse occurred. Though he kept the same care in escape, he allowed his worries to wane. As they spent all their time together, it was inevitable that the group would need time apart. It wasn’t unusual to wake up and find someone had wandered off. Toju could often be found smearing berries on trees and Hisato’s faraway destructive punches could sometimes be heard on the wind if it blew in just the right way. It was Aoi that Shion feared the most. His twin’s perception and familial priorities were leagues ahead of the others. If Aoi did know, he thankfully had decided that it wasn’t worth his time to interrupt. Even if it was just his imagination, Shion was thankful.

In a similar vein, there was naturally a shift in the so-called cultural exchange that made the title less accurate. The countless hours spent discussing customs waned as the topics were stretched to their limits. From there informality grew and they moved on to discussing their personal lives. Though he’d gotten a taste for it, Shion never tired of Doremi’s attentive nature. They talked a haughty game, but had taken their responsibility as caretaker of their lake very seriously. The humans they had exposed themselves to were all done so in a means to help. From saving a drowning child to comforting a woman who lost her husband, Doremi even had been known to give back their own offerings if it meant a hungry mouth could be fed. Shion had long made adjustments so his own nutrition wasn’t at risk, but Doremi staunchly still tried to share every meal with him.

He’d indulged the yokai’s emphasis on food at first with an eye roll and eventually as a heady reminder. Though he never considered himself rich and there had always been times when a decent meal was scarce on the road. True hunger, however, wasn’t something Shion thought of. It revealed to him the deficits in society he tried to turn a blind eye to. It had taken some time, but guilt cropped up; not over their different statuses, though that was a given, but instead that she held a certain level of burden having to also explain them to him. It was a grounding he hadn’t realized he’d been missing. All that being said, he couldn’t help but still laugh at Doremi’s obsession with koi. Beyond eating it, if he happened to pass through a town that had some, endless questions were abound. He’d made sure to get a wooden carving, much to the confusion of his brothers. Overnight a necklace was woven out of reeds with the trinket dangling right at the upper edge of the yokai’s plastron. It brought Shion a satisfaction he couldn’t at first place. He began to jokingly refer to Doremi as such. He wasn’t sure if the yokai knew how selfish that thought was or the double meaning it entailed, but just their shiny locks were excuse enough to remind him of the ornate fish's fins. The nickname heralded a tidal shift that moved far beyond conversation alone.

The pair took to strolling through whatever path was afforded them near the rivers. Thousands of steps were matched as dreams were shared amongst them and the fireflies of summer. In time, an arm was offered and hips grazed with nearly every thought bubbling off tongues. It was on one particular night, when the cicadas screamed their loudest, that they found a forgotten boat docked on still waters of a connecting lake. Doremi pushed the boat out and Shion took helm on steering. When the yokai had turned, overjoyed at the ride and happiness sparkling in honeyed orbs, Shion finally pinned the feeling that had been ever growing. It left him awestruck and he nearly capsized at the identification. Doremi fretted and sent him to bed worrying about his health. The next morning his distracted state left his brothers in a similar fuss.

How could he tell them he wasn’t sick, but in love?

It was the culmination of a thousand tiny things he could both list in an instant and never in a lifetime. It crushed him within an inch of his life. It felt like he was the luckist man alive. He wanted to deny the feeling. He labeled it selfish. He despised how his heart had betrayed him. They were completely different species. He had no way to take his earnings and settle down. Their lives, Doremi’s life, would always be in danger. It already was, but adding his existence to the mix made it more so. Humans had only fear for yokai, as yokai feared them in turn. Years of bloodshed, confusion, and hate weren’t something that would change overnight no matter how many facts Shion would plaster even the whiff of a naysayer with. It had taken him months to see and he had an open mind. He had little hope for the stupidity of the masses. It left him hopelessly happy and disheartened. It didn’t matter if Doremi felt the same. He couldn’t put that on her.

Lost in these ever swirling thoughts, a billow of black smoke shot up into the otherwise unmarred blue sky.

“That’s a big fire…” Toju murmured to Shion’s left.

“We just passed the charred remains of a village, what? Two days ago?” Hisato added over his shoulder.

“Sounds like we’re going on a detour, eh guys?” Aoi shifted his stance toward the plume.

“From the wreckage and timing, I’d say we’re in for a group of at least seven bandits.” Shion tapped his arm absentmindedly as he did the mental math.

“Don’t’cya just hate when we can’t split them up evenly!?” Aoi huffed. In a few bounding leaps, he shot in front of Hisato.

“Do you wish there were more or less?” Shion sneered.

Aoi spun around and made a show of whipping both his odachi out to his sides. “It’s a 50/50 for one guess!” He then winked and turned into a run. The brothers pulled out their own blades and quickly fell into formation. As the village grew on the horizon, a villager stumbled towards them on the path.

In several bounds, Toju broke away to intercept. As soon as he got close, the youngest brother halted so quickly that the dust from the path kicked up around him.

The brothers readied themselves.

As the dust cleared, they watched in stunned silence as the man turned, covered in blood. The left side of his face hung off and he routinely choked on the steady stream of his life fluids draining from the wound.

“Aoi!?” Toju squeaked, reaching for the man. “Sir?”

“There’s nothing we can do for him… I don’t know how the poor bastard's on his feet…” Aoi’s voice dropped low, circling.

“T-they…” The man choked, his form teetering more and more.

“How many?” Shion pressed, pulling away from Hisato.

“The men…” Strangled by something in his windpipe, the brothers each took their own step back as the man dropped to his knees and then the ground, silent.

“No more jokes.” Hisato decreed. “These people need help.”

The others nodded and shot straight to the village. Within seconds the screams poured from the flaming shacks. Bodies littered the ground and mud was formed from the amount of viscera spilled. Hoofbeats soared above the chaos and an armored man on hoseback appeared. Aoi leaped forward and bounded off Hisato’s shoulders to made a clean cut through the man’s neck.

Shion rounded the fallen figure and snatched the banner from the fleeing steed. “It’s a clan army…”

“What do they want with this small place?!” Hisato shot to the right and stabbed through a man coming around the corner.

Toju who had dropped down to check one of the bodies, rose up with an orange cloth fisted in his hands.

It was a marker they only implemented in battle.

Aoi stared at the younger sibling for a moment before setting his brow. “Let’s go!”

The brothers tied colored wraps up around their forehads and dove into the smoke. A cacophony of blades, shouts, arrows, and thudding hooves rose from every direction. Between the distinct flashes of his brother’s colors, Shion fell into the numbing rhythm of falling any other being that crossed his path. As his count soared above the double digits, the brothers broke free of the smoldering shacks and out onto a field bordering the village. There, nearly a hundred men sat idly with various stages of weaponry and horseback.  

“What the hell are you doing!?” Aoi roared, flicking blood from his odachi.

“Ah.” A man on an ornately decorated horse strode free from the line. Shion identified him as the general. “Well this is a surprise.”

“Not what I would call it.” Aoi all but hissed.

“Blue.” The general chuckled.

Aoi bared his teeth.

“Purple.”

Shion spun away from a downed foe and held his blade to his side.

“Red.”

Hisato knocked two men back and glared down the line.

“Orange.”

Toju slit a man’s throat and let him down with a teetering thud.

“I’ve heard of your little samurai family group. Your father was quite revered and he seems to have trained you well.”

“You haven’t answered my question.” Aoi seethed, taking a single step forward.

The general’s horse threw its head at the move and the man pulled at the reigns to stop it. “Oh this? We asked the villagers kindly to share their harvest as we head out to our little… rendezvous. They were gracious enough with food, but were lacking in the entertainment department…”

Shion squeezed his blade and could hear the thundering steps as Hisato approached.

“Under stimulated men get too zealous in battle so I’m letting the ones that are pent up release their energy.”

Aoi glanced back as a shack collapsed under a raging fire.

“Who hired you? I’ll double the pay to have you all scurry off.”

Aoi’s return rotation to the general oozed malice. “You could say we’re between jobs at the moment.”

“Then why are you bothering my men?” The general scoffed, looking bored of the conversation. “Here.” He reached into a pouch hanging from his horse’s saddle and pulled out a bag. He then tossed it straight across the field. It landed out Aoi’s feet and rolled over, spilling coin into the blood stained dirt. “Take this and leave.”

“Aoi…” Hisato’s voice was thick.

Aoi bent forward and took a hold of the mouth of the bag.

“Shion…” Toju murmured, exchanging glances.

Aoi smiled. “I see…”

Shion nodded.

“Well? It’s more than enough considering I lost how many men?” Leaving the question rhetorical, the general pulled at his reigns to rejoin the ranks.

“The price of man…” Aoi said.

“Let’s regroup. Did we get everything?” The general addressed his men.

Hisato sighed.

“I think you owe us one more thing!” Aoi shouted, an unhinged buoyancy to his stance.

“Huh?” Before the general could fully turn, an odachi stabbed right through his neck. It seemed as if even the flames went silent as the man gurgled around his own blood before falling off his horse into a heap.

“Now we’re square.” Aoi hummed, twirling his remaining Odachi in hand.

“SELFISH INGRATES!” The man next to the general screamed and gave the signal. The full army surged to life and stormed right at the brothers as they fell in line with one another. If the earlier chaos in the village was a cacophony, then this was completely deafening. The sounds engulfed Shion’s ears until they were ringing and everything dropped to a cottoned muffle. Every single movement had to be precise. They were outnumbered in a way they had never been before. Twisting and pushing his body beyond its limits, he struck again and again. A blade behind him clipped his shoulder and he kicked off one man and slammed into a horse. The neighing broke through the fuzz and the horse kicked a series of screaming men. Twisting his sword out, another blade hooked his hand along with the hilt. The ensuing pull sprayed blood and took his weapon away.

Dropping down to avoid the next strike, Shion pulled the bō from his back. Its lethality was less, but his range grew to make up for it. With a swift spin, he carved himself out a radius where he could take a single breath before men and hooves were upon him again. From the ground, someone he thought was dead stabbing into the plump part of his calf. Hissing, he jut the staff back and heard the sickening squelch of it entering the man’s head. If he had time he would have gagged.

“Hisato!!!” Toju’s voice screeched through the battle.

Shion spun around with the sound and let his weapon lead the way. Grunts echoed where the bō moved and he tried to carve that radial path once again. No matter how hard he spun, he couldn’t achive the arch without both his legs firmly planted. The torn muscle refused to cooperate so Shion shuck the weapon back to stabilize a forward shot instead. A blade swung back just as he took off and it was a flash of blue that kept him from being inadvertently decapitated.

“Pay attention!!” Aoi seethed, his own face painted red which dripped down making Shion’s color around his collar.

“Hisato!” Shion protested as they instinctually went back to back.

“We’re no good to him if we’re dead!” Aoi growled before shooting forward again.

Shion twisted in learned synchronization and, in time with Aoi, finally carved a path. The two dove deeper into the skirmish, each swinging in tandem with the other. It might have been exhilarating had a sword not plunged right through Aoi’s right arm. Shion watched in seeming slow motion as the strike shot through his brother. The grimace on his sibling’s face twisted along with the blade as it then cleaved most of the flesh off in a single swipe. Screaming at the top of his lungs, Shion lunged at the attacker. Aoi choked on something beside him as Shion put all his force into a forward jut of his bō. His shoulders screamed in protest as the wood punctured the man’s wind pipe.

Spinning around to catch his brother, Shion found Aoi nowhere in sight. Twisting his staff around, he prepared his lungs for another shout when his heart seemingly skipped a beat. His blood pressure plummeted as his head lolled down. Right through the left side of his chest, a shiny red blade stuck out several inches. Blinking slowly, he felt a sting in his left arm. Unable to lift his bō any longer, Shion rolled his head in that direction to find another blade cleaving his arm in a similar way it had Aoi’s. It was a weird cosmic symmetricality that they had always shared. When he moved to jerk away from the strike, his arm came mostly free from him. The weight distribution suddenly shifted, Shion watched as the ground rapidly soared towards his vision. In another bit of cruel irony, it was upon falling on the ground that the sword in his chest was finally dislodged.

Shion had no idea how long he lay on the ground, but it was long enough that the battle came to an end.

At least, that’s what the silence indicated.

Through a slow blink, he opened his eyes from where he hadn’t known he closed them. Around him, there wasn’t a single sign that a skirmish had taken place. On two wobbly stems, Shion propped himself up and stared across the field. It lay with the summer’s growth of a crop he suddenly couldn’t identify. He was usually so good with plants too. With some difficultly, Shion looked back to where the village should be. In its place there was nothing but continuous rolling fields. He watched as the thin green blades flicked with wind that didn’t seem to be reaching his person. Curious, a numb hand reached up to touch his face. He wasn’t sure contact was even made because none could be felt.

Opening his mouth, Shion tried to force out a call for his brothers but no air escaped him. He pushed and pushed, but it was as if there were no lungs in his body to move the sound. Terror gripped him and he spun around in a crazed semicircle. Miles and miles of empty land surrounded him on all sides. Unable to decide, Shion took off in the direction his pivot landed on. He tore through the grasses, but with every step that should have trampled them, they seemed unwieldy underfoot. It caused him to slow once more. Unsure, he racked his brain for the immense knowledge he had collected throughout his lifetime. No explanation of this supernatural occurrence came to mind, but the mysticism of it tore a single image from him: Doremi.

Renewed, he again tried to scream. No sound came out and his face screwed up as he put all his force into it. Though he didn’t seem to have any oxygen, the move made him light headed and brought him to the ground once again. In a horrible slideshow he watched a simultaneous projection of all the times he had spent with the yokai amidst all the times he hoped would come. When the reel ended, he was struck by how little there was. There hadn’t been enough time. He needed more time. Abandoning his voice, he clawed at the earth, but found he couldn’t make a dent. He felt tears that didn’t exist prick at his retinas and he did the only thing left, the one thing he’d all but abandoned; he prayed.

He’d dismissed the ideas of some overseeing being around the age of nine. Between his training and what he watched his father go through, Shion swore there was no way some magical entity could allow such indignities on his creations. Shion himself was often cited as cruel, but the machinations of this world far exceeding anything he could stomach.

Still be pleaded. He begged the force and made no apologies for the time he spent not believing. He instead argued for his due.

For his brothers.

For Doremi.

For Doremi.

For what seemed like an eternity, he kneeled. His mantra repeating in his brain at such a severe rate he might never have another thought other than that again.

No night came.

The sun continued to shine on a cloudless sky.

The grass continued to gentle jostle with a summer’s breeze.

His brothers.

Doremi.

He never even got to show her a real koi fish.

“You should have passed on by now.”

Shion jerked, the mantra still ringing in his ears.

“Why do you linger?”

Shooting to his feet, Shion spun around and was once again met with only rolling fields.

“A stubborn one.”

The plea continued to repeat as an earworm, but Shion was able to manage a single alternate thought. A question.

“Who am I?”

Shion blinked before opening and closing his mouth. There was still no sound.

“I can hear you just fine. No need to waste your time.”

Then why haven’t you answered my prayers?!

“Prayers?” The voice sounded genuinely confused.

Imaging a drum being played with exahsutive ferocity, Shion mentally turned up the mantra.

“Oh, that! You’ve been going on about that for so long that I’d gotten used to it!”

HOW DARE YOU-!

“Enough.”

…

“I meant more that you have already been granted one of those things.”

What do you mean?

“Your brothers. You are intrinsically tied to them. In fact, they are waiting for you now, but you need to move on.”

Shion spun around, searching the grasses once more.

“Not here, little one. You need to move to the next plane.”

Doremi!

“Doremi?” The voice again seemed genuinely surprised.

Doremi! Doremi! Green skin! Shell! Golden eyes! Hair like-

“Silence, allow me to see.”

Shion furrowed his brow. If this was some type of god, why didn’t they just already know? Why was he trapped in his inane conversation?

“It is not for you to comprehend.”

Spoken like someone who also has no idea.

“Aren’t you something.”

Far be it for a puny human to ask questions.

“I would call it amusing, but we don’t have to agree.”

Don’t we?

“We don’t. Tell me, what is it that you want with the kappa?”

Kappa?

“You didn’t even know what kind of yokai Doremi was? I see why you requested more time.”

Then you already know what I want!

“I didn’t say that. Your thoughts were too simplistic. You simply wished for your brothers and the yokai, but how? You already have one of those things. Why should I give you more?”

More?!

Shion turned, his chest aching painfully.

I barely got any time.

In quick repeat, he played the reel of his time with Doremi over.

Again, it ended in what seemed like the blink of an eye.

You can see, right?! You saw!?

“I saw.”

Then you know!

A long stretch of silence played out. Shion continued the mantra in a failed attempt to soothe himself.

“Do you want to know how many lifetimes it’s been since you found your soulmate?”

Soulmate?

“73.”

What do you mean soulmate!?

“It’s astounding in a way. It’s not like the system is rigged for you to not meet them. There’s free will to contend with, but the chance occurs in every lifetime.”

Answer me!

“Maybe it’s because you get coddled by your brothers in every existence…”

Don’t… Don’t you dare-!!!

“That’s not mine to undo. Do not fret.”

Not yours?! What does that mean!?

“It is a pity though.”

Hey!

“How about a compromise?”

…

“I can’t give you another gift. As I’ve said, you’re already tied to three beings, but I can grant you something else.”

Why?

“I find 73 lifetimes without true love to be a bit despairing. I guess I’m a romantic in that sense.”

Great. My life is in the hands of an being that doesn’t use reason.

“If I were then we wouldn’t even be having this conversation.”

…

“The opportunity will occur in your next lifetime. If you make contact with your soulmate then I will allow you to glimpse a moment; a little gift so you may not let them slip through your clutches again.”

And what if I don’t? I’ve apparently failed 73 other times…

“Then you will be born again. My gift will be of one time use, but it will continue on until the meeting occurs.”

This is stupid.

A sharp ring of laughter echoed from the skies above.

It was so loud Shion’s knees buckled.

”You truly are something! I haven’t had a laugh in eons!”

Scoff.

“As much resentment as you hold, I can tell you're ready to move on.”

Something about the way it was said sent an icy cold shot of fear through Shion’s veins. He looked down to find his body rapidly becoming translucent.

Wait! I haven’t-!

“There will never be enough time. Just remember this moment-”

Shion winced as the image of Doremi eating a confectionery was forced into his mind.

“-and live your life to its fullest.”

Watching his hand, Shion found he could barely see his outline.

One! One final question!!!

“Hurry.”

Does that mean Doremi was-?!

“Good luck finding them in your next life.”

The breeze continued to roll through the unchanging empty landscape.

-

Cleaved by the earth in a continental divide.

Over and over in a gambit long tried.

A butterflies wings.

The sweep of tree's shade.

Castle doors open to mist.

Whilst the sun bathed you in a gentle kiss. 

The eternal dance of you and I.

Unable to seek.

Unwilling to hide.

-

“I just wanted a gazpacho burrito!” Leo whined as he rolled out of the way of a tenderizing mallet.

“What is wrong with you!?” Mikey turned up his nose in disgust.

“Honestly!” Rupert Swaggart huffed as he lifted his mallet again. “Food trucks are an affront to the culinary world!”

“No!” Mikey wrapped a chain around a light pole and swung around to kick Meat Sweats in the side of the head. The force launched the pig mutant across the park. “I am not agreeing with you on that! Food trucks have been instrumental in fusion shifts!”

“Perfect, I’d had enough of the banter.” Donnie clapped as his bō telescoped in hand. “I’d rather we get to lunch as soon as possible.”

“See! Donnie wants a burrito too!” Leo jumped excitedly to point.

“Eugh, no!” Donnie scrunched up his face in disgust.

“Et tu!?” Leo hissed.

“Ok, ok!” Raph scrubbed his face. “Isn’t that why we’re here?! ‘Cause no one could decide on one type of food!”

The others all paused to give it some thought.

“Huh, I guess so.” Leo shrugged. “Hey, how is there still a line!?”

“There can’t possibly be. There’s a mutant attack and-” Donnie looked as Leo gestured with an angry grimace. “Oh, wow, there actually is.”

Raph approached the slew of New Yorkers who were huddled down in fear but still queued at the various food trucks. “Uh, you guys ok?”

“I-I waited t-two hours.” A shaky voice rose up from the line. “I-I’m n-not going a-anywhere!”

“For the, and let me emphasize this, gazpacho burrito!?” Pinching the air to accentuate his point, Mikey dropped down onto Raph’s shoulder to loom over the person.

“Y-yeah?” The civilian choked.

“No taste.” Mikey sighed, crawling down from his perch. “So did Rupert just bail or…?”

“Maybe ya knocked him out?” Raph hummed in thought.

“That is a distinct possibility.” Donnie noted, tapping his staff to the ground.

Leo watched his brothers for a moment and then looked down the line from the trucks. “Uh… guys?”

“Huh? I can’t hear someone who no taste buds!” Mikey mimed a hand up to his ear and rolled his gaze skyward.

“Har har.” Leo retorted dryly. “Where do these trucks get their power?”

“Either from the truck itself or usually a generator.” Donnie walked over to one said square and gestured to it. “The output on this model is poor though. A few tweaks and…”

“No.” Raph stomped over and swatted Donnie’s flexing fingertips. “You gotta stop upgrading stuff without people’s consent!”

Leo started to walk down the queue. “But not like tapping into the city?”

Donnie rubbed his hand indignantly. “I believe that would invoke some kind of violation.”

“You’re basically stealing power.” Mikey nodded, slyly watching Leo out of the corner of his eye.

Leo reached down and picked up a thick orange cord. “Uh huh…”

“What is that?” Donnie slipped around Raph’s form and towards Leo.

Mikey seemed to catch sight of it too, but turned the other way. “It looks like there’s one going to every food truck…”

“One going to…?” Donnie spun around.

“Alas there’s bound to be causalities in the cutthroat world of cuisine!” Rupert’s voice rose up from above and the brothers turned to see the pig mutant perched on a nearby building with the end of the orange cord in hand.

“Donnie! Raph! Civilians! Mikey, on me!” Leo sliced open a portal as Mikey’s chains soared out towards Rupert.

Meat Sweats grinned manically and plugged in the cord.

“On it!” Raph shouted, turning back to the crowd. “Lunch times over! Y’all gotta-!”

A deep rumbling seemed to bubble up from somewhere other than the ground.

“Raph…” Donnie warned, wildly looking for the source.

“EVERYONE MOVE NOW!” Raph roared, his formed rapidly expanding with his ninpo. The line finally relented in an attempt to escape when the tires of the row of food trucks started to sway.

Donnie balked as the rumbling noise soared in pitch. He brought his staff up just as the metal roof of each truck burst open. Boiling oil shot straight into the sky and immediately hit an arch point where it curved to rain back down. Scrambling, Donnie activated his own ninpo and a giant purple umbrella formed out of the top of his staff. He bolted towards the civilians that had yet to escape and covered them as the oil rain down with a steaming sizzle.

“Hot, hot hot!!” Raph hissed as droplets dripped down through his projection.

Donnie planted his feet and increased the size of the umbrella. “Unless you want to be the ones deep fried, I suggest you move, people!” 

Raph’s form winced as he ducked under the umbrella and urged the masses along. “Alright, no shoving…”

The crowd shuffled around Donnie, bumping him as he tried to keep the umbrella steady. "Honestly-!” He was cut off when someone shouldered him with enough force that one hand came free from his bō. Hissing, the throng of people rushed across his arm and Donnie had difficulty reigning the limb back in while still holding the oversized object steady. With a sharp tug he retracted the appendage and his vision whited out.

“Well?” Shion watched carefully as Doremi went in to take a bite.

“Don’t rush me!” The yokai giggled with a shake of their head.

“As slow as a lazy koi.” Shion smiled fondly as Doremi’s beak cut right through the chewy mochi.

From where the yokai’s eyes had fallen in satisfaction, they popped open as they went on to gush about the flavor. Time stopped as moonlight played off Doremi’s glossy locks.

A sizzling sound hissed in his ears and the image seemed to burn away as if it were on an old film reel.

“Donnie!?” Raph’s voice reached his ears.

Donnie croaked and felt small bits of oil sting his legs. Blinking free, he found that he was on the ground with his big brother hunkered over him in an attempt to protect him from most of the boiling substance.

“What happened?!” Donnie shouted, hand wildly searching for his staff.

“I don’t know!? You kinda just passed out!” Raph’s face contorted in pain.

Finally grazing titanium, Donnie reestablished the umbrella. “Are you ok? Was anyone else hurt?”

“Heh.” Raph’s shoulders dropped, unable to cover his wounds. “Don’t worry about ole Raph. I got everyone out. I’m more worried about you and why the others haven’t unplugged the dang… whatever it is yet!”

“I…I’m fine.” Donnie twisted around to look at the rooftop where Rupert had been. “They’re gone.”

“Fights moved so we should too!” Raph straightened and shook himself off. Donnie reigned the size of the umbrella in and together the two brothers left the splash zone. Once free, purple pixels flittered down and shifted to form a safety barrier in a radius around the gushing oil. Raph gave Donnie an assuring nod before the two moved to scale the building. Unplugging the cord and watch the oil slowly taper off, the pair were about to dart off when a portal appeared beside him.

“We gotta unplug the-! Oh, it’s done!” Leo stepped through with Mikey following close behind.

“Where’s Meat Sweats?” Raph wondered, rubbing a blister on his bicep.

“We knocked him down into Hidden City jail. Maybe ruining a prison kitchen we’ll keep him busy for a bit.” Leo shook his head.

“Oh, to be a prisoner…” Mikey sang wistfully.

“No.” Leo said simply before bonking his younger brother with the hilt of his odachi.

“I swear, Michael, you are one step away from a life of crime at any moment.” Donnie mused with a wry smile.

“I think you’re mixing us up dear bro-there!” Mikey hummed and stuck his tongue out.

“You ok, big guy?” Leo took several slinking steps forward and around Raph.

“Just a little burn…” Raph responded with a rolling shoulder.

“I thought D had you covered?” Leo looked back at Donnie who was staring at the oil pooling on the concrete.

“That… Well…” Raph tried and failed.

“Something happened?” Mikey filled in.

“I passed out.” Donnie said flatly and felt all eyes land on him. “I had a vision, I think.”

“That’s…” Leo started and stopped to think. “What? Like a new power?”

“Casey’s never mentioned one like that before!” Mikey jumped excitedly at Donnie and snatched his arm to study it.

“No.” Donnie tugged his limb free and eyed Leo. “Not like that. I’m not sure. I feel fine now. I need to do some research…”

“But…!” Leo teased, leaning into Donnie face before moving downward to poke the plastron covering his stomach. “Lunch, right? Coulda just been a hunger induced fainting spell.”

“Ah!” Donnie telescoped his tech-bō to a handheld size. “I’m all for ruling out easy maladies. Yes, let us gather sustenance!”

“So, I was thinking Spanish?” Leo chided, looking beyond Donnie to Mikey.

“You heathen! You are not making that monstrosity at the table!” Mikey prickled.

“Let’s just hit a food hall…” Raph sighed, shaking his head.

-

Leaning back, Donnie looked down the blurry pen balanced on his snout. This act was far more Leo’s speed, but he had reached a point where channeling his other brothers’ energies was the next best thing. Beyond him, many tabs sat up on his enormous monitor. They culminated in countless hours of online research that had been proceeded by at least a dozen medical and mystic analyses. The tests yielded a slew of normal data while the internet had thin estimations at best. Giving a sigh, he wrinkled his nose and allowed the pen to fall. In a flash, he caught the writing utensil and lurched forward in the process. He brought the pen down to an errant piece of paper and made a scribble before discarding the object all together.

A frustrating query with no apparent result was the bane of his existence.

Swiveling around, he walked out of his chair within the rotation and prepared to hit the library again. Though he’d already spent an unknown amount of time there, none of the literature on visions seemed of much help. There were at least a dozen scenarios that seemingly applied, but something about all of them felt inherently wrong. The inexplicable emotions attached to the seemingly nonsensical sight had been another annoying factor. It had brought him on a detour to Draxum’s apartment the last time he was out and there he found little more than tepid curiosity from the yokai.

Fiddling with other abandoned projects, Donnie grimaced as he caught sight at a digital readout that noted the date. It had been almost five useless wheel spinning days since the food truck debacle. It hadn’t been a constant, he had the years of experience to know that nonstop research rarely amounted to much, but good night’s sleeps and meals hadn’t brought their usual fresh clarity. Flicking a lose wire, Donnie pulled a half constructed surveillance bot out from under scattered blueprints. He had unconscious timetables for things of this nature. They had a neat little file folder that sat in the back of his mind, labeled for future reference. Whatever he had seen in the park was simply something he didn’t have the current tools to crack. He didn’t consider it a loss, but instead a project to be explored at a later date. His ever expanding intellect acted as a means. He’d eventually create some new technology that would inevitably solve his dilemma.

Satisfied, Donnie reached across the table to grab a screwdriver. The instrument was almost underhand when a wash of green swaying grass appeared where a workbench had been. Recoiling on instinct, he took a few steps back and found himself in his lab just as he had been. Blinking rapidly in an attempt to check his eyesight, Donnie hunkered down. He became very keenly aware of the hum of the overhead lights and the multiple running processors. Not ready to brush the hallucination off, he turned and reached across the short expanses to his computer’s keyboard. A few swapped windows found he had only been awake nine hours with an average amount of sleep achieved prior to that. There was no cause to question his sanity, but still he frowned.

“Hello?”

There was always a chance it was a joke or even some villain’s ploy, but all of his trained senses said he was certainly alone. Giving a long moment for anyone to reveal themselves, Donnie gave himself a little shake to get his blood flowing before deciding to return to his bot once again. Turning back to the workbench, he stiffened as his lifted foot came down on a lush field. This time when he drew back, the greenery didn’t disappear. Spinning rapidly, he found the landscape stretched on endlessly in all directions. His blood pressure bottoming out, Donnie tossed his head up and squinted directly at the gently beaming sun overhead. It warmed his skin and he brought an arm up to chase the sensation. Everything about this felt real, but so did Hypno’s more ridiculous spells.

“You forgot the brainwashing part!” Donnie gripped, slowly rotating to find any sign of a culprit. Reaching onto his person, he cursed as he found that while his wraps were still in place, both his battleshell and tech-bō were left charging on ports that seemingly no longer existed. Feeling very exposed, he readied his stance and waited as only a shallow breeze caressed his cheek.

It took what felt like several long minutes before he dropped his shoulders with irritation. “So, just nothing? Seriously?”

Only the rustling of grasses responded.

Bored, Donnie took several strides forward before looking back to find any plants he crushed underfoot seemed unaffected. The scientist in him reared its head as he purposely stomped. Each step would press down on the greenery, but as soon as he lifted off, they sprang back up in time. It was like a video game with little finesse. Crouching down, he made an attempt to pull the plants from the ground. A faint ring of laughter echoed from the skies above. Donnie jolted to his feet from where he had just wrapped his hands around a fistful of grass. Scanning wildly, he spied the figure of a black haired man in the far distance toward where he had just come. Staring, he reminded himself that he had definitely looked there previously and found nothing. A tingling sensation tickled the back of his neck. Craning an arm to rub at the spot, Donnie slowly started to approach the man.

“Hey!” Calling out, the man didn’t react and instead was staring at the sky above. At a distance where he couldn’t make out any facial features, he watched as the man swayed as if he were locked in some intense conversation. Shouting again, Donnie felt the tickling spread down his arms. It sent a fear response through his spine so he picked up the pace. Eyes locked on the figure, he narrowed his gaze as he didn’t seem to be getting any closer. With each passing stride, his limbs felt both heavier and lighter. He dropped his center of gravity to make a jump, but found that pushing off barely sent him more than a foot off the ground.

Knowing he had far more power than that, Donnie scowled as when he was about to search his person for the cause, he noticed the man slowly lose his opacity. Flexing his fingers, he felt a longing pull to gaze at his hand. Refusing to look away, he could sense his brain sending signals to his legs to keep running, but it didn’t feel like the action was being carried out. The man still loomed on the horizon, now looking down at his limbs as Donnie had just felt the call to. It felt like déjà vu and so much more.

Pushing so hard, Donnie could feel the veins in his neck grow taunt, he felt a whiplash sensation as all the ground he never covered suddenly rushed around him. Eyes unable to focus at the intense speed, he soared until his limp form was brought right up to the man; only the faintest traces of him could be seen. Only able to see the man's back, Donnie watched as his own hand came into view as he reached out to the now phantom. The figure disappeared just as a green hand had made contact with it and overhead buzz of lab lighting rushed into his ears.

“You aren’t going to give up are you? You finally almost had your chance.”

Gasping, Donnie jolted upright and found he was laying on the floor. Resisting the urge to scream, he scrambled to his feet. “Analysis! Scan the lab for intruders and playback the last 15 minutes!” Donnie rounded on his monitor and watched himself walk up to his workbench. After a few moments, he ran through pulling out the surveillance bot and recoiling at nothing. Grimacing until his lip pulled away from his teeth, he felt a cold chill as he watched tangible proof that there hadn’t been anything there. Dread reared its head as he watched as past him decided to table the issue and return to work. The footage changed from his memory as he watched himself collapse to the floor of the lab instead. Leaning in close to study the image for signs of seizure, he instead found his past self’s expression twist as he presumably ran through the dream-like state.

As the footage caught up to the present, Donnie swapped screens for the scan. There was no one else present. Brow coming down, he restarted the recording and watched as inevitably his past self mouthed the questions to the lab. The silence of the footage caught him and he quickly turned the volume up on his computer where he had at some point muted it. Starting the footage over once more, he stared numbly as he listened to himself question the empty air. He heard the thump of a crumpled body smacking onto concrete and then, just as his past self awoke, he heard a garbled statement. His head nearly bobbed as he rolled the footage back just a few seconds to hear the sound again. It was useless crunchy audio so he brought up a program to isolate it. Passing it through filter after adjustment, he could just barely make out a question about giving up and a chance.

Chewing on his lower lip, Donnie collapsed in his chair and set the still barely understandable audio on loop. It’s distorted sound had an odd rhythm to it that brought his lids down. Donnie let it echo as he recalled the only close up image he had gotten of the man in the field. Trying to recall as much detail he could about the person, a flash of a beak biting down into mochi appeared.

“Koi.” The syllable hit Donnie’s ears and took several moments before he was able to acknowledge it was his own. As registration occurred, he shot forward. His fingers flew across his keyboard and the measured  hammering filled the air.

-

“Help me explain to the others that I need to find a single person in a city of almost 9 million people!”

From where Mikey was balanced on one toe atop a precarious several foot tall stack of knickknacks, the younger brother opened a single eye. “What?”

“Look-” Donnie shuffled in from the doorway of Mikey’s room, trailing continuous stationary with hundreds of lines of little black print on it. “I don’t know how to explain this. I guess it’s a mystic thing, so you would understand best! I need to find someone and I need to explain to the others because I need help.”

Shifting his weight, Mikey hopped off the stack and landed beside his brother only to have the pile crash to the ground as soon as he came up. “Dang…”

“I’ll help you rebuild it.” Donnie offered the sentiment along with a sheet of paper.

Mikey took it and read over the list of names. “Is this what you’ve been working on?”

“No. Yes. It’s not important.”

“Donnie…” Mikey warned, letting the page loosen in his hands.

“None of this mystic stuff ever makes sense!” Donnie reeled, trying to pull up the rest of the pages up and finally realizing he had been leaving a breadcrumb trail of them behind.

“I would say mysterious ways, but I don’t think that’s gonna be much help now.” Mikey rounded his older brother and started to collect the paper. “Maybe take a breath and try telling me what happened?”

Donnie groaned loudly before relenting. By the time Mikey had stacked all the paper back up neatly, Donnie had just mentioned the ominous carp phrase that had come off his lips. “-so I pulled surveillance from the area the day of Meat Sweats' attack and this is the culmination of identified persons who were waiting in line at the food trucks.”

“This many!?” Mikey ran a thumb through the pages.

“I was able to narrow it down to about 1000 people hence why I need-”

“The help.” Mikey winced.

“Interrupting, but correct.” Donnie sighed.

“Who do you think the mystery person is?”

“I have no idea, but they chose the wrong person to reach out to. Everyone should know apathy is my specialty.” Tilting his head to one side, Donnie put on his carefully curated aloof visage.

“Maybe it’s because they knew you’d have the tech to find them?” Mikey stared down at the first page with a furrowed brow.

“That’s as good a guess as any at this point.” Donnie shrugged and reached out.

Mikey catching wind of what was happening and handed over the top half of the stack. “Are they in danger? Cause this is uh… gonna take awhile?”

Shaking his head, Donnie looked down from the pages in hand to where they were still connected to the ones in Mikey’s.

Coming up to view the younger, Donnie watched as something occurred to Mikey and he set his portion on the floor. He then cascaded around his room in a sorting flurry with craft supplies flying around his wake. When he returned he had a slew of highlighters and plopped down cross-legged in front of his stack and started marking. “Let’s color coordinate by the boroughs!”

Donnie sat down as well and took an offered green highlighter from Mikey.

“That’ll be Manhattan.”

Nodding, the two flipped through the pages with only the soft scrap of pen to paper sounding in the room. After making substantial progress, Mikey blinked up to spy on his brother.

“Feeling a little calmer?”

“I knew what you were doing.” Donnie smirked and didn't look away from his work.

“You’re gonna have to pull the ‘trust me on this’ card.”

“Ugh, can’t you play into your skills? Say something like you found someone’s personal effect and you are in dire need of returning it!”

“Donnie.”

Donnie chewed the inside of his cheek and flipped over to a new line of names.

“You said there was a recording?”

Perking up only slightly, Donnie brought his cuff up and played the audio.

Mikey closed his eyes and leaned in close with a turned ear to the sound. Donnie replayed it several times before the younger brother’s eyes flew open. “Fate.”

“What?” Donnie soured, turning the sound bite off.

“’You finally almost had your chance!’”

Eyes blinking wide, Donnie slammed a finger to play the clip one more time. “You understood it?!”

“Only that last part.” Mikey hummed before taking a deep breath. “Oh man, why didn’t I think of it sooner?! You have fate stink all over you!”

“I most assuredly do not!” Donnie hissed, retrieving his highlight as a mock sword.

“A fated chance!”Mikey crooned, his excitement taking him to his feet. “You missed them before, but when?” Switching gears from romanticized cheer to curiosity, the younger brought an uncapped red highlighter dangerously close to his chin in thought.

“Only 20 years to sift through.” Donnie made a show of rolling his eyes and marking another name.

“Only…” Mikey mouthed before tapping the pen nib to his cheek. “Or more...”

“More, sure.” Not dismissing with a barb, but instead out of distraction, Donnie reached out and grabbed a discarded purple highlighter to continue working.

“A vision… A otherworldly voice… a destined meeting….” Taking counting steps, Mikey’s footfalls echoed loudly. “Uh duh!!!”

The sound brought Donnie’s head up and he watched his younger brother scrub his hands over his face.

“It’s gotta be your soulmate!!!”

Donnie dropped his jaw in disgust at both the sentence and the red lines that now smeared across Mikey’s face.

“Don’t give me that look! You were just trying to get me to act out some kinda romcom trope to trick our brothers!” Mikey turned and pointed the highlighter right at his brother.

Affronted, Donnie looked away nervously.

“Ha! Got you! Which movie was it?” Mikey chirped, dropping down to his knees in his original spot.  

Before Donnie could open his mouth, a different voice floated in.

“We watching a movie?” Leo leaned languidly in the door frame before busting out laughing. “You look like if I went through a wash cycle and you know I’m dry clean only!!”

“Who? Donnie?” Mikey pondered, rapidly looking between the pair.

Donnie rolled his eyes. “We are not watching a movie, Mikey is helping me with some important work-”

“We’re narrowing down the list for Donnie’s soulmate!” Mikey nearly sang.

Leo who had almost recovered from his first bout of laughter broke down again.

“Mikey!” Donnie seethed, squeezing his two highlighters with bareful force.

The sounds of the blue brother wheezing seemed to summon Raph, who looked over each part of the scene curiously.

“What? You wanted my help and honesty is the best policy!” Mikey folded his arms, streaking red across his left bicep in the process.

“The cap!” Donnie screeched, grabbing said red hunk of plastic and throwing it right into Mikey’s forehead. “And you-!” Spinning around, Donnie launched the blue highlighter at Leo’s hacking form.

“Guys, we ain’t 10 anymore. Don’t throw art supplies…” Raph sighed, sidestepping Leo who only laughed harder at the implement thrown at him. “What’s going on?”

“Do-” Leo gapsed for air.

“Wait, did I get marker on me?” Finally capping the pen, Mikey examined his right arm carefully.

“Don-” Leo crawled forward.

“The other one.” Raph offered before looking around.

Donnie took a deep breath. “Glossing over the fact that I specifically asked you to help me ‘convince them’ and not just ‘tell them outright,’ you think you could have, I don’t know, called a meeting or something!?”

“We always have each other’s backs!” Mikey protested, still examining the wrong arm. 

“Scoff doesn’t even begin to label my response to that!” Donnie reeled with annoyance.

Locating a box of tissues, Raph walked it over to Mikey. “Right arm and your whole face.”

“Oh!!!” Mikey crooned as if it were an epiphany. He then snatched a tissue and buried his nose into it.

“Donnie!” Leo finally managed both a word and to reach said brother.

“What?” Donnie responded flatly, hands ready to push him away at any moment.

“Did...” Leo sucked down another gulp of oxygen before laying himself out as if he were the picture of poise. “…you print out your online dating matches off some nerd website? Connect with local eggheads in your area?”

Raph moved first, but he wasn’t close enough as Donnie wrapped his hands around Leo’s throat. The three scuffled and Mikey stood up in an unhurried fashion. The youngest then took the orange highlighter and flicked the cap off with one hand. He smeared war paint on each of his cheeks and then tossed the marker aside. Planting his feet, he then flexed at his knees a few times and then breathed deeply.

“HOLD IT!!!”

The other three froze mid-fight with Donnie on Raph’s back clawing at Leo who was being held out by his arm pits at Raph’s front.

They watched as Mikey momentarily scrambled away, only to return wearing an orange helmet. “Sit!”

With a honed exchange of vicious glances, the other three brothers took to a line on the floor.

“As the resident mystic master, this is my domain. Now Donnie has been mystically chosen to find someone. I will not admit to jumping the gun because I do think it’s his soulmate, but I guess we don’t know that for sure.” Mikey shot Donnie a quick wink and then resumed his authoritative demonstration. “We are gonna help our dear brother out and-” He threw out a finger to the forgotten stack of pages. “-Narrow down this list because that’s what fate wants!”

Silence held for a moment before Raph looked to Donnie and then Leo flanking him on either side. Donnie pouted and sulked into himself while Leo looked on with growing confusion. Bringing his gaze back to Mikey, Raph raised his hand.

“Yes!” Mikey swooped his digit to point at the eldest.

“What the heck are we talking about?”

“Well, you see-” Donnie started, scotching forward at the chance to drop an explanation.

“Wait, I wanna tell it this time!” Mikey hopped forward a few eager steps.

“Wouldn’t it make more sense if I-” Donnie made out before Mikey came in close enough to press that same outstretched finger to his brother’s lips.

“It all started the day of the food truck meet up…!” Mikey threw out his other hand as if painting a picture.

-

“So…” Leo drew out the syllable in a manner that mimicked the last three days.

Perched in various trees, the brothers overlooked a gentleman sitting on a park bench. After an agonizing afternoon of back and forths over the purpose of the visions, Donnie was at his wit’s end. When he thought they finally understood at least that much, he’d let it slip how long he’d been studying the query which then triggered the annoyed protests of a week leaving them out of the loop. Disorganization followed before a plan was set. In a bit of cosmic cruelty, their first outing ended in them not able to locate a single person on their first list. The city that never sleeps earned its reputation as the four learned the hard way that an address does not always mean someone is home. The others had also annoyingly stopped him from activating a tracking network on all potential suspects. Invasion of privacy extended only to what was available in a phone book even though his argument that he’d already hacked surveillance cameras was more than sturdy enough. Still, he needed the help so he agreed. He just might go ahead and stumble upon more data if this night were to end in another failure.

“That’s him…” Mikey hummed checking his phone. “Number 23!”

Nerves oddly waning, Donnie gazed at the man through his goggles. A slew of tagging data appeared along with a telltale checkmark. “Correct.”

“That’s obvious, hermano. Didn’t you hear me before?” Leo huffed.

“We can always hear you, Leo.” Raph gave his brother a cheeky smile.

Leo played up his offense at the statement before smiling out of it. “I meant more what do we do now? Should he like glow or something when he comes in contact with D?”

Hearing the approximation of his name, Donnie flicked his head so his goggles snapped into their upright position. He frowned slightly and stared down at the man who seemed fatigued. The distance between them felt like miles of desert. “I’m not sure.”

“It’s ok to be worried…” Mikey dropped both his voice and body to Donnie’s branch. “It’s the first one.”

“Just think of him as some guy!” Leo added, kicking his legs. “The mystic connection thing will happen or not.”

“If it’s like our powers, it’s something we need to activate though.” Raph brought a corner of his mouth up in thought.

“Good point.” Leo closed his eyes in mock thought.

“Might as well talk to him in the meantime.” Mikey urged.

“We’re still mutant turtles. Am I going to just expose myself to 1000 people?” Donnie looked at Mikey’s out stretched hand with ever chasmed worry.  He wasn’t sure if he said that because it was a good point or because his brain was scrambling at the prospects of this grossly uncharted territory.

“Ehhh…” Leo hissed through clenched teeth.

“Well…” Raph started and stopped. “They already saw us.”

“Yeah?” Mikey rolled on the branch causing Donnie to clutch on for dear life.

“These are all people from the food truck thing, right? They saw us save them.” Raph pointed downward to Mikey.

“Yeah!” Mikey tittered, shaking the branch more.

Leaves sprinkled down and Donnie wished he wasn’t already on thin mental ice. “That doesn’t mean they’ll be friendly. The amount of people who have watched us save their actual lives and still mix up which mutant side we were on has been astonishing.”

Leo stood up on his branch and walked toward the base. The other brothers stopped to watch his movements. “Well… you know how this goes…”

Donnie felt his stomach bottom out. Fight or flight kicked in and he slammed a hand to the tree in a desperate attempt to get to his feet. He watched as Mikey, already well balanced, shot away and a flash of a blade cut the limb free from its wooden attachment. Donnie stifled a yelp as he careened down and just barely managed to land on his feet before the downed branch bumped him. His momentum toppled and he landed in a bush with a resounding thud. Groaning off the fall, Donnie popped up to yell at his brother only to hear a timid voice instead.

“Uh… Y-you ok?”

Staring at the man who looked back at him with a similar owlish expression, Donnie glanced in the trees to find all his brothers now missing. Bringing his gaze back to the stranger, Donnie gave a fake grin and forced an awkward foot forward out of the shrubbery. “Yes, I’m fine. I apologize for…” He cursed himself as he’d already mostly walked into the Leo-level joke. “…dropping in on you like this.”

The man’s wide eyes dropped slightly.

“You see I was just-”

“I’ve seen you!” The man animated, the surprise taking him out of his seat.

“Yes-”

“You saved me from getting burned!” The man shot forward and Donnie barely resisted the urge to step back. Before the mutant could register what was happening, his hand was taken and being shook at a furious level. “Thank you so much!”

“You’re… welcome…?” Donnie staggered, the whole exchange leaving him empty. He watched as the man’s hand retracted from his own and there was a ghostly cold left in its wake. There was no scientific basis for it, but every one of his senses was telling him that this wasn’t the right person. All the ever-present dread evaporated as his usual sureness flooded in.

“Is there anything I can do for you? Did something happen? Do you need me to ID the guy!? He was a pig!” The man seemed to get progressively more excited.

“Not at all.” Donnie raised a hand to stop him and the gesture seemed to work. “I am simply… conducting a survey. How would you rate my heroic experience? ‘Very satisfied, very, very satisfied, extremely satisfied?’”

The man thought on this very hard before looking up. “Just very. It was fine, but the aftermath sucked because I never got any food.”

Donnie grimaced. “And how is that my fault?”

The man rebuffed the indignity with one of his own. “I don’t know. You’re the hero! Sure, you saved me, but you could stick around for clean up more!”           

“That’s-” Donnie sneered. “We’re vigilantes! It’s illegal!”

“Nobody asked you to act outside the law.” The man shrugged, stepping back.

“You would literally be a battered if it weren’t for me!” Donnie seethed.

“I think I could have managed.” The man shrugged.

“Alright, alright!” Leo dropped down on the other side of the man. “We got his… response or whatever, time to go!”

The man gaped at Leo openly and then pointed. “You…”

“Yes, go on! More thank yous are in order?” Leo flicked his mask tails and waited for his praise.

“You’re the one that ran away with that other useless orange one!” The man gawked.

“Ran-!?” Leo seized up.

“Useless!?” Mikey’s voice echoed somewhere in the distance.

“Enough!” Raph dropped down behind Leo long enough to wrap an arm around him before shooting forward to snatch Donnie. “Thank you for your time, sir. Have an… ok day and maybe be less rude next time!” He parted the man with a final wave before soaring off back into the trees.

“Can you believe the nerve!?” Leo stewed as trunks flew around them.

“Let’s just-” Raph started as Mikey came into view and he dropped down beside him, depositing the other brothers. “He’s a jerk; people can be jerks!”

“Ungrateful!” Leo barked, storming in a small circle.

“Ingrate.” Donnie corrected, shaking his head free of the situation.

“Tell me he’s not your person?!” Leo looked to Donnie with pleading eyes before sweeping them to the left and talking out the side of his mouth. “Though he does match your personality.”

Donnie seized up for a moment before forcing the irritation out in one quick tensing of muscles. “No, he’s not my person.” Even with the exercise in restraint, the phrase still came out from beneath clenched teeth.

“Was there like a sign?” Mikey wondered, stepping forward to examine Donnie.

Donnie evaluated the youngest evenly for a moment before watching over the reel of the interaction again. He looked down at his hand and almost thought he saw an apparition of a translucent one over it. Turning the green appendage over, he seemed to remember his brother’s presence and looked up. “I think… I need to touch them?”

“That helps. So we got something to go off of!” Raph nodded, staring down at Donnie’s hand.

“You could probably get away with a little New York bump here and there instead of having to chat each person up.” Mikey bobbed with excitement.

“It’ll be a little touch and go for awhile, but at least we’ll be able to knock out the list!” Leo leaned forward with a bright smile.

The other brothers stood caught for a second before Donnie dispelled it. “Alright then, gentlemen! Shall we continue?” Tapping his cuff, he brought up a digital display of the list and the others crouched in close to see.

-

He had fulfilled his touch quota for a lifetime.

Donnie assumed he looked the definition of haggard, but couldn’t find the strength to glimpse himself in a mirror, front facing camera, or any of the like.

The past month had been an agonizing exercise in trials and tribulations. If he ever had so much of an inkling to take the most inane sample audience and test them against one of the most unknown variables of all time again, he now knew for a fact that he would take dip in a vat of slugs instead. Dragging a hand over his worn face, Donnie tried to force himself upright. The table he collapsed against wasn’t inviting in the slightest, but his plastron didn’t seem to care. Sighing, he relented and keeled over until his face pressed against the surface as well. There was a faint trace of stickiness that made his skin crawl, but even then he couldn’t bring himself to adjust. Instead he laid his arm cuff in front of his eyes and pressed the display on with his nose. It slowly ran a calculated cycle through the hundreds of red checkmarks that signified each and every failure. It was the digital count of exactly 1037 New Yorkers that were not this fabled person.

Groaning until the screen went to sleep, Donnie gave a slow blink. He could see the cycling of the different categories of people he had been forced to interact with. There was a good portion that fell under the header that Leo had frustratingly been able to make stick as the ‘touch and gos.’ They were the cleanest bunch data-wise by far in that he’d been able to tap them in passing and move on. Donnie had almost refined his technique to the point that he considered himself the candidate for a great life in pickpocketing were that something he’d want to cultivate. It had also helped, for once, that his brothers had made it into a game. They silently bet on whether or not a target would take notice as they were tapped in passing on the street. It was a nice little bolster to Donnie’s ego, not that he’d admit it.

From there, were the slew of typical New York talk-backs. They’d feel the touch and gripe loudly about it in a stereotypical confrontational manner. Donnie’s reactions depended on his mood. Either way he’d end up exercising a gross misuse of his skills whether it was to disappear without a trace or let off a little steam in a quick show of strength. His brother’s opinions on those interactions broke apart in a lazy divide.

After that came those who had to be creatively handled. They were a subset of persons that rarely allowed themselves open interaction on the street. It had been a fun utilization of Donnie’s costumed wardrobe that he rarely got to pedal out. In a play of sorts, he’d assumed the role of everything from bodega clerk to a businessman. There had been another split amongst the peanut gallery, but this time it was more for Donnie’s performance and less about the morality of his actions. The acting portion had been more of a distraction to the task at hand, but as time had worn on, it was almost necessary.

Though his brother’s would deny it until their last breath, Donnie saw that they were exhausted with the mystery. They vehemently stayed by his side out of a obligation he understood; if it was any of them that were cursed to find some person who was mystically calling out, he’d want to be right there whenever the exchange finally occurred. They had been through too much together to not worry about what could be any of a million outcomes.  Still, filtering through a thousand people while also still maintaining their protectors of New York status stole away almost all their free time. When they’d checked the final person off in the wee hours of this same morning and found it to be another failure, the drop in morale had been palpable. Donnie loved them unquestionably, but watching the mixture of reactions from Raph’s weary pity to Mikey’s near tears was something he wished he could have shooed them off from. It was Leo’s look especially that still haunted Donnie; that let down of what should have been something of a Holmesian fallacy, but there was just a shred in Leo’s eyes that doubted the whole thing. If Donnie were in his brother’s place, he knew he’d feel the same. This intangible haunting occurring was something he’d love to write off too. Unfortunately, in addition to the ghostly reminder, there was this  inexplicable ache in his chest that he had yet to solve.

In the end, Leo had called for a temporary parting to give Donnie his space. It had stung in its own way even if he had been about to ask for it. They all had heavy bags darkening their eyes and the weight of the supposedly loss was excruciating. All the time sunk with no apparent cost in sight. In another slow blink, he saw flickers of how he assumed they were. Mikey was presumably conked out after making breakfast for the others. Raph was either mediatating or in bed himself and Donnie just knew Leo was doing his own research. It had been something he’d caught an inkling of about halfway through the list. Leo seemed to know a little more about the target then the manifest noted. Donnie could almost laugh at the double standard. Leo was surely breaking some kind of law to get his information. Frowning, it was another similarity between the two had the shoe been on the other foot.

Bringing his lids up, the futility of the whole thing hung around Donnie’s neck like a noose. He wondered if he tried to file the problem away again if that mysterious entity would fling him back to that strange field. He’d idly tried to place it one sleepless morning, but they were indistinct grasses native to so many Asian regions that it left him with an exhaustive search area. It didn’t quite feel ethereal either and he didn’t want to begin to count the options if mystic realms were involved. Donnie debated the lesser of two evils between ignoring the headings of a mystic entity or asking Leo for help when between blinks a to-go coffee cup appeared between his face and his arm. The generic cup’s pale appearance was just jarring enough that it brought his head up.

“Sorry, um…!”

Giving the cup one last linger glance, he dragged his eye line up to the source of the voice.

You jolted as eye contact was established. “…How do I say this?”

He arched a brow.

“You looked like you needed a pick me up!” Your body bobbed as you brought your fists up in weak assurance.

You weren’t wrong. Donnie looked back down to the drink. He had almost forgotten he had wandered into a coffee shop in his defeated stupor earlier. It was surprising no one had thrown him out sooner. He had basically been darkening this corner spot for what felt like hours without purchasing anything.

“It’s just drip, but if you don’t like that I can get you something else.”

What an attentive stranger. Swinging his gaze back up, he evaluated you closely. You didn’t seem to work here, so you weren’t taking pity on him in that sense. Instead you looked a sort of put together version of someone who rolled out of bed. It was early, there were any number of possibilities for your attendance. “What roast?”

That probably wasn’t the kindest thing to say to someone who just bought you a drink.

“House…?” You straightened your back and tried to hide the way you looked out of the corner of your eye to catch a glimpse of the menu board.

Donnie chuckled. “That should be fine. Thank you.”

Turning and confirming to himself that the interaction was saved, Donnie palmed the coffee. Through the sleeve, the warmth tickled at his palm. He almost smiled as he brought it to his lips and took a sip. It was just a touch burnt, but it went down smooth enough that his shoulders relaxed. Staring out the window at those passing by, he noted that his emotional bar had ticked a little bit closer to neutral. That was as much as he could ask for with the looming preparations for a whole new set of search criteria. Who was he if he gave up against insurmountable odds? That was just every other day for him. Eyes drifting shut, he thought on how much a few sips of caffeine had affected him and how food would surely compound the effect.  

“Of course, you’re busy… or tired…”

You were still here; that was odd. Against his lids protest, Donnie opened his eyes again. Though blurry, he instantly made out a hand reaching towards his cup. His nerves tried to seize up, but it was too late. He really was off his game.

“I just wanted to thank you. Have a good day.”

He watched as your hand finally made it through the motions and gave the back of his the slightest brush with your fingertips.

Donnie wasn’t even sure he blinked when he felt the oddly familiar rush.

“Something this good should be savored!” Doremi threw up their chin, moonlight gleaming ethereal as their hair flittered around the motion.

“So it was good?” Shion looked down at his threaded hands to keep from staring any longer. He smiled to himself as the image had indeed burned itself into his mind.

“Of course, I mean, you got it for me!”

Coming out of the vision, Donnie spun out of his stool so fast his knees harshly slammed into the underside of the table. The sound was loud enough that several people looked on curiously as he watched you push open the café door. “Wait!!!”

You slowed, one foot still lifted.

Against stinging limbs, Donnie freed himself from his seat and staggered over. “It’s you!”

“Yeah?” You wondered, your brows traveling as far north as possible.

“You! I found you! Well you found me, but-” The feeling was overwhelming; he felt a thousand fireworks go off in his chest and it translated down his appendages. The radiating excitement converted into kinetic energy and before he could register what he was doing he scooped you up. You squealed at the motion and he sort of registered something falling to the floor as he spun you around.

“Stop! What!?” He could feel your protesting and finally the action caught up with his mind.

“Oh.” He set you down and surveyed the damage. It was your coffee that had been knocked to the ground and it’s leaking contents soaked through the pastry bag lying in its wake. Coming up with a sheepish bob of his shoulders, he noted the confused fear scrunched up in your features and body language.

That was certainly the right reaction to what just happened.

“I know how this looks…” He began.

“You-” You choked on the sound as an employee headed towards you.

Donnie watched you catch sight of them and then the unmistakable glance you then made to the door.

You weren’t on the list.

You were about to leave.

“Please.” He resisted the urge to step further into your space and trigger any more discomfort. “I know that was erratic and uncalled for, but there’s…” He trailed off realizing that he had no way of trying to explain to what was presumably a regular New Yorker something he barely understood himself. He shook the thought off and pleaded with his gaze. “I can’t explain it, but if you wouldn’t mind sparing some of your time. I’ll buy you another coffee and whatever else it is that I accidentally ruined… Just… If you could?”

Still curled in a defensive position you scanned his gaze for a long moment then took in his body language.

The employee appeared with a miniature mop cart. “Hey, you two alright?”  

Donnie swallowed hard in an attempt to keep himself from taking control of the situation. He’d already crossed a line and, though it pained him to no end, he needed you to decide.

Your brows came together as you debated and you knealt down to pick up the cup. “Sorry about this.”

Donnie could feel his chest tightening as the employee clearly took note that their question was dodged.

“It’s alright. We have spills all the time.” The employee ducked down near you and though they dropped their voice, his ears still picked up what was said next. “Are you ok? I can stall him if you need to leave.”

The part of indignity it served him was harshly undercut but how much he deserved that. Stepping back to give the two more breadth, Donnie glanced at his forgotten coffee.

“I’m… alright actually. Thanks for your help.”

That vibrating excitement returned, but this time Donnie shoved it all the way down to his feet. He kept his chin stiffly set in its turn so as not to alert you that he was listening in. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw you rise up and give him a look that said you knew regardless.

“If you need anything else, I’ll be at the counter when I finish up here. How about  a replacement?”  The employee discarded the trash and moved to prepare the mop with a placed sign.

“That’s alright. He’s got it.” You tipped your head, pointedly staring at Donnie.

“Yes.” He hoped the excitement in his voice was kept to a decent level. “Order whatever you want.”

You moved back to the counter and he followed behind making sure to maintain a safety bubble of distance. You ordered and with a sly look added on a breakfast sandwich that could not have fit in the bag he saw. He could appreciate that you took advantage of the situation.

“You should get something to eat too.” You noted, giving him a flicking once over.

“Can we saw low blood sugar is to blame?” He bobbed his head at you before turning to the cashier. “I’ll have one of the same.”

“Not a chance.” You hummed and watched as he paid. You both traveled back to where he had been sitting at the window and slipped onto the stools facing one another.

Palming his lukewarm coffee, Donnie chose to drink the liquid with only a minor sneer.

“So… Did you mistake me for someone else or…?” You craned an elbow to the table and rested your cheek against your hand in lazy wait.

He forced the kickback burn of his drink down and chased it with a gulp of oxygen. “Something like that?”  He followed it up with a wincing smile.

You seemed less than enthused.

“I want to explain, trust me, but it is…” He looked between the cup and you before setting it down. “You can trust me when I say it’s a complicated ordeal.”

You softened up a bit. “I guess that comes with the mutant hero territory?”

“Very much so.” He nodded approvingly.

You gave your own nod and the silence laid over the moment like a blanket.

With part of his mind still trying to find a suitable explanation for the mystic events, Donnie set a little processing power to some of the other unknowns from this chance meeting. “You said you wanted to thank me?”

“Oh… Yeah…” You tightened up in your stool and your arm fell from your face. “I was… uh…”

“At the food truck event?” He offered, using a sip from the cup as a means to hide his curiosity.

You snapped to attention. “Do you remember me from there?”

“Sadly, no.”

“But you-?”

“Order up!”

You both moved to get it, but you raised your hand. “Let me.”

Donnie nodded and watched as you slipped off your stool. You grappled slightly with the multitude of bags and to-go cup, but managed the handful and brought it back over. As if laying out a bounty, he smiled as you lined everything up and then slid his wrapped sandwich over like it was a payment for some misdeed.

“There were a lot of people there that day.” Donnie remarked as he picked at a sticker sealing the wrapping.

“It was crazy.” You huffed, taking a swig from your cup. “All that oil!”

“Which truck were you trying to order from?” Finally freeing his sandwich, he surveyed it before taking a handful. How you had fallen through the cracks of his pristine list making reared its head as an assaulting high priority.

“None of them!” You chuckled, mimicking his move with your food.

He froze, mouth still open from the bite he was about to take. “Then how?”

“How…?” You lead, watching him out of the corner of your eye as you kept your attention on your sandwich.

His lips made a thin line. “How were you there? Where were you?”

“Where was the event held?”

Your sudden airy attitude irked him. “In a plaza by the park.”

You nodded and took your first bite.

He watched you chew and then lolled his head back as he realized. “You were in the park.”

“Bingo.” You pointed at him with one finger that popped up from the bread.

“Where Meat Sweats was tossed into.” Donnie grumbled, vexation growing. “The park! Why didn’t I add that to my calculations!? It’s so obvious!”

He could feel amusement pouring off of you as you continued your meal.

Remembering his own, Donnie took a bitter bite of his sandwich. He paused as the flavors hit his tongue and with each subsequent chew his anger slowly dissipated. His earlier food assessment had been correct at least. He needed a little win.

“Calculations, ‘I found you,’ ‘sadly, no.’” You listed off before taking a sip of coffee.

Donnie stiffened as he realized where you were going.

“Think of a way to explain it yet?” You turned to him finally. “Why you were looking for me?”

He absolutely did not.

“You won’t believe me.” He left the last half of his sandwich and turned to you in show of opening up. “I still don’t quite understand.”

“You know…” You trailed off and gave a lingering glance to the window. “I have the day off. I think I have time for a crazy story.” You turned back to him with a bright smile.

For a moment, Donnie swore he saw gigantic golden eyes. It immediately disappeared, but spurned him to sink down in his stool. “If you insist…”

He went on to explain the past month leaving out very little detail as the story went on because the treading emotions crested as he recounted them. He had heard tale of how easy it could be to share a secret with a strange and while that rung true to a point, part of him intrinsically felt like he knew you. He also couldn’t shake the unmistakable flicker of joy in watching you. It stemmed from some deep recess of his psyche in a way that almost felt foreign. An never-ending line of people came and went with their orders. At some point you broke out a muffin and nibbled on it. Cups were drained and new ones were ordered by the time he caught up to the present.

Setting down your second cup, you had a haggard look on your eye. “That…”

“Yeah.” Donnie commiserated, sipping a fresh coffee.

“It’s a lot…” You swallowed hard.

“Yeah.” Setting his cup down, his eye chased it.

He wouldn’t blame you if you left now. At least he had gotten his chance.

In his periphery he watched you shake your head before bringing an arm up. It raked through your hair and stayed atop your head as you weighed the hefty connotations. The stretch pulled at your t-shirt and he caught a glimpse of a bit of color.

That little flicker exploded into a full blown flame.

“What’s that?” He pointed, glad he’d had freed his hands up.

“What’s what?” You murmured beside your arm. You followed his eye line and strained to see from your awkward angle. “Oh!” Finally bringing the limb down, you turned it towards him and rolled up your sleeve. “It’s my tattoo!”

His tongue went dry.

Skirting along your shoulder, a orange and white koi fish swam freely from somewhere behind your back and down your arm. Little droplets of water punctuated it’s lazy trek and shimmering scales reflecting in fine needlework.

A single chuckle escaped his lips.

“For as long as I can remember, I’ve always liked koi. I don’t know what it is, you know?”

Another single chortle.

“Woah! You ok?”

A few more dribbled bits of laughter came off his lips before the wetness chased them. Bringing a hand up, he touched the tears and could feel they weren’t his. As that recessed emotions gained form, he could feel someone else. They were both him and not at the same time. Their joy was so overwhelming. The crashing sensation brought forth more laughter to him. He wrapped his hands around his plastron to keep himself together. It wasn’t that he thought he was splitting, but it felt like there was too much inside for one body to contain. Outright sobbing and uncontrollably cackling, Donnie felt his consciousness pulled deep inside. In a dark space, his body seemed to free float and he watched that translucent man from the field appeared with a smile and tears on his own face. It was the first time Donnie had seen him so clearly, but at the same time he felt as though he'd always known. He gave Donnie a single nod before reality crashed back around him.

Donnie looked up through bleary eyes to find you had one hand on his shoulder and the other at his cheek.

He leaned your palm and tapered off the giggles until they formed a bright smile.

Mikey was right.

He’d have to tell him that later.

He’d have to tell them all about their fates later.

“I’m fine.”

“Yeah…?” You seemed pale and confused.

In this reality that made sense.

You couldn’t know.

At least, that wasn’t part of the deal.

Right?

“Can I ask you something that’s going to sound ridiculous?”

“I… guess?” Your voice peaked with frazzled worry.

“Have you ever wanted to eat koi?”

Your first reaction was to shake your head into a rollback of confusion.

Then there was a spark.

A blink and he would have missed it moment where something seemed to click; a hue of gold appeared to spin in your iris before disappeared. A single tear ran down your cheek and he watched as an odd calm seemed to wash over you. The hand on his shoulder left him before you brought it to touch the droplet in a similar manner as he had just done. Looking at it curiously, there was none of the similarly overwhelming follow-up that he had endured, but he didn’t want that for you.

“N-no.” You choked out, your voice thick. “I don’t think I have…”

He nodded and reached up to gently remove your hand from his cheek. He held it in his palm and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“What just happened?” You sounded breathless.

“Something a long time coming.”

It was slow, but through your conjoined hands, he felt you shake. He looked up in time to watch stifled laughter bubble up in you. He watched fondly as you shook what was certainly the exhausting length of emotions off before looking at him with lingering snickers. “What luck!”

If you liked this, there will be a whole list of behind the scenes notes posted on the membership tier of my ko-fi!

#rottmnt donnie x reader #rise of the tmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #rottmnt x reader #donatello hamato #donnie x reader #rise donnie #rise donnie x reader #rottmnt donatello #rottmnt donnie #rottmnt #me #fanfiction #my fanfiction

[mattsbella]

"impossible" - matt sturniolo

୨୧ ₊˚•. ↳ pairings : matt sturniolo x almira gomez (fem!oc)

—— ୨୧ ₊˚•. ↳ warnings : angst, fluff, maybe smut……?

୨୧ ₊˚•. ↳ summary :

ALMIRA GOMEZ had been a fan of the triplets ever since they started, coincidentally she also lived in boston but in cambridge. she was posting on instagram when the MATT STURNIOLO notices her post, also posting pictures with the same caption. is it impossible for these two to get together?

chapter 005

“wheres my baby?”

messsages, real life

——— MESSAGES ———

twitters favourite fivesome

nazeera , almira

matt , chris , nick

nazeera

yall…. beach trip? question mark

almira

have considerate for the people participating in exams.

nazeera

where did u get them big words from

almira

i got into harvard for a reason

chris

still dont belive that

nick

i mean she was valedictorian…

chris

BESIDES THE FUCKING POINT

almira

but still we can do beach trip

wheres my baby @matt

matt

youre so annoying.

almira

not what u said last week

nick

WHAT.

chris

both of you out of here nope im not doing it

nazeera

NOT ME KNOWING EXXXXXXACCCCCTLLYYYYYY

almira

SHHHHHSHSHSHSHSHSHS

matt

both of you two are crazy

chris

like you arent for mira

almira

christopher.

chris

🤐🤐🤐🤐

matt

3 of you now 😭😭

but yeah im down for the beach

almira

but no way in hell am i driving

nazeera

YOU LITERALLY HAVE THE BEST CAR

almira

thank my dad not me

matt

bro owns a fucking maybach and refuses to use it.

almira

bro still has a minivan 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

matt

okay fuck you

almira

you wish

nick

HWAAHHWGAATARATATTA

nazeera

guys what the fuck do u expect more from mar like seriously

nazeera

but i dont care were going to the beach tOMORROWWWWWW 10:30 am matts piciking us up

**pinned** 📌

matt

🖕🖕🖕🖕🖕 GO BOTHER MIRAAAAA

——— REAL LIFE ———

almira ties her bikini at the back of her neck adjusts her bottoms.

she adjusts her necklace and puts her hair in a loose messy side braid.

she puts on her shorts and a random baggy t-shirt she had, grabbing her purse and phone and walking out the door and goes to the front door of her apartment.

she spots the triplets minivan and nazeera rolls down her window and yells “MAR BABY!!!” while almira giggles and opens the door to get the in car.

“wait no mar go in the front seat chris is sitting in the back” nazeera says and nick nods his head.

she shrugs and opens the passenger door snd gets in, placing her purse in her lap and smiles at matt.

he smiles back and they immediately go to the beach.

20 minutes later they arrived and their currently putting the blanket on the sand and the bags they brang.

“nazeera, do you have tanning oil? i hate sunscreen.” almira says as she stretches her arms

“yup, here” she says passing the oil to her.

almira takes off her shorts and shirt, revealing the navy blue bikini which barely covered much.

matt immediately locks his eyes on her body, his swimming shorts immediately tightening around him, why the fuck is he feeling this.

his mind immediately going south into the wrong thoughts.

chris on the other hand looking at nazeera, she had a peach ish colored bikini on

nick chuckles and his jaw slacked “damn mar” he says still chuckling making almira giggle putting her hand on her hips and saying

“who evers last in the water is a rotten egg!” she yells and runs to the ocean. matt nazeera nick and chris immediately right behind her.

as they were running in the water, almira falls on her back but matt being able to catch her before she even wets her hair. immediately he hears almiras giggles and silent laughs of her fall.

“when he catches you before you drown.” nazeera says adding onto almiras laugh.

“yall wanna know a fun fact.” nazeera says to the other four.

they all nod but almira, her eyes widen and immediately goes to reject. “no! no! nazeera i swear to god!” she says

“almira cannot swim for the life of her” nazeera says and giggles as almira crosses her arms, because if she moves she cannot float.

they all giggle and matt holds her waist to keep her safer. ever since they kissed (which they definitely did once again) he then wraps his arms around he waist for even more safety, almiras hands on his forearms.

chris nick and nazeera leave the two alone, not that they were complaning. matt had an excellent idea to swim to the further rock and go behind it.

he turns almira around making her face him, and he wraps his arms around her back, and immediately starts swimming and moving to the deeper waters.

almira immediately puts her arms around his neck and starts squealing “matt! no! go put me back!” she says while smiling as their faces were centimeters apart from eachother.

they finally reach behind the rock, matts hand going behind her thighs and telling her to jump. she obliged and wraps her legs around his waist.

they just look at eachother, saying nothing or doing anything. just looking.

“has anyone told you how pretty you are” matt whispers as he grabs her jaw and pulls her closer.

“ive been told once or twice” she says giggling and pressing her lips on his lips.

they both smile into the kiss and pull away slowly.

30 MINUTES LATER

the five were now walking up the deck the beach had while talking and laughing in between.

then by surprise a beautiful blonde comes by and gasps.

“my gosh! matt? is that you? i havent seen you since” she says while walking up to him and hugging him, her arms around his neck and kissing his cheek in a “miss you” way

almira literally almost goes pale, but shes forced herself to act like shes normal, but you cant say you cant see the tears welling in her eyes.

“o-oh, hi bree..” he says while hugging her back

“how are you? i havent seen you in 2 months!” two months. two. the amount of time matt and almira had been hanging out.

after that awkward interaction, almira did not talk the whole time it took for matt to drop her off.

as he parks at the road of her apartment, she says bye to the others while nazeera joins her, matt says goodbye, but almira ignores him and slams the passenger door.

she stomps to the front door of her apartment building and going in the elevator.

almira had been crying to nazeera and on her shoulder for around an hour since they got dropped off. how the hell could he not tell her?

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

a/n

angstyysysysysysysysysys

#sturniolo triplets #christopher sturniolo #matt sturniolo #sturniolo fanfic #nicolas sturniolo #nick sturniolo #sturniolo smut #impossiblefanfic

[erin-bo-berin]

okay here’s an idea. this is definitely the messiest idea I’ve ever suggested Erin so please forgive me for my sins and as always please do not feel obligated to write this one. Much like Birthday Wishes, I kinda just thought this might entertain you and if you feel inspired to write it cool, but no pressure from me!

So reader and Steve are hanging out with the older crew, talking about relationships. Somehow it comes up that reader is talking about how Steve is pretty insatiable (likes to have a lot of sex). And Steve comes back with come on I know you like it just as much as I do.

So Steve and reader are getting in the car to head home and reader’s like I love our sex life but I could definitely last longer without than you can babe, and Steve takes the bet and the games begin!

Then there are a series of scenes with the reader and Steve teasing each other mercilessly starting subtle and getting increasingly less so. At some point Steve’s casually playing with reader’s nipples while they’re watching tv bc that’s a surefire way to get her going. Another time Steve’s restocking at Family Video and reader does *something* and then just leaves him hanging with a boner as he groans/yells “that was definitely cheating!” as she walks out the store all smug.

Eventually they are both desperate to end the bet. Maybe they’re out at a picnic with the group, doing all these little things or making comments to push the other one over the edge. Reader casually takes off her sweatshirt and surprise! she’s sporting a particularly tight/low top (it’s boobies!). Steve’s got on the tightest jeans known to man (and as we know bro is caked up and I dunno maybe he takes off his shirt and gives us some chest action? idk) and at some point neither of them can take it anymore and Steve’s finally like OK we need to leave right now.

His hand is playing with her even as he’s driving them furiously home. And the minute the car stops they’re on each other, tearing their clothes off as they stumble into the house, making out but neither one wants to be the one to actually verbally give up, and it escalates until finally they both admit they’re done with this and do. the. deed. Aaaand the resultant Os are like way stronger than normal bc it’s been a bit. (And maybe the reader’s like first you’re eating me out and then you’re going to cum inside of me and you’re going to stay there until I say otherwise. but this part’s totally up to you Erin, you know what you’re doing.)

*pants* oof. happy friday 💕☄️

How can one manage to top writing something that fits your amazing ideas, comet? Like??? I still don’t feel like I do them justice!

BUT LETS GOOO—you asked for messy and it’s messy.

Also, you asked for some chest action, I’m using this gif (let’s pretend he’s not injured okay? Okay!)😏

The Bet

Steve Harrington x Reader

Warnings: Smut

“I swear, this one girl I dated kept me up for two days straight,” Eddie said, nodding enthusiastically, “We practically had sex for 48 hours. I’m amazed my dick didn’t fall off!”

You rolled your eyes, groaning, exchanging looks with your friends Nancy and Robin.

While hanging out with your group of friends—the aforementioned ladies, Eddie and your boyfriend Steve—the casual, safe topic of relationship stories somehow morphed into sex stories. At least crazy, most likely exaggerated ones from Eddie, at least.

“Dude, your dick would fall off if you were in a girl for that long,” Steve said, sipping his beer.

“Or else it would’ve just turned all pruny like your fingers and toes do when you’re in the bath too long,” Robin said, casually.

How were you friends with these people? And dating one of them, at that?

All exasperation aside, you did love your friends and your boyfriend, but the things that were said when the five of you got together tended to be on the outrageous side.

“What about you?” you asked, turning to Nancy, “Jonathan ever give you any crazy sex stories that you’d like to share?”

Jonathan—Nancy’s boyfriend, who also tended to hang out with the group—had had to work and couldn’t make it today. You’re sure he’d be relieved to know the things he missed hearing. You actually envied him for a bit after the wild stories Eddie had spewed.

“Not unless you count wanting me to lick maple syrup off his-”

“More than I needed to know!” you hollered, waving your hands in front of your face.

“Y/N won’t be able to look him in the eye for a month now,” Steve chuckled.

“You asked,” Nancy smirked.

“Did I mention this one girl I hooked up with that came prepared?” Eddie smirked, downing the rest of his beer, “I’m talking she had fucking bows on her nipples and had my name written on her ass.”

Steve hooted with laughter and you gaped at Eddie. Honestly, you wouldn’t doubt that these stories were true as he was willing to try almost anything in bed, at least once—his words, not yours.

“To think, I could’ve gone my entire life without having heard that story,” Robin sighed wistfully.

“I don’t hear any wild stories coming from your direction, Y/N,” Nancy raised an amused brow.

“Oh no, I am not starting on that topic,” you said adamantly, shaking your head.

“What? We have plenty of great stories!” Steve huffed.

“I didn’t say we didn’t,” you grinned.

“C’mon,” Eddie urged, sitting forward with his arms on his knees, “Dish the dirt on Harrington. I wanna hear.”

You grinned slyly, knowing Steve had no idea what was about to hit him.

“Well, to begin with, I think he’s part bunny.”

Steve blinked, clearly not expecting that kind of comment. The others, sensing your train of thought wore identical amused expressions.

“You think that one girl you dated was bad?” you nodded to Eddie, referring to the story from earlier, “He’d go for 48 hours too if I’d let him. He’s like the damn Energizer Bunny.”

Robin and Nancy were full on losing it now and Eddie was trying hard to fight the laughter that was making his lips twitch.

“He’s insatiable, I swear. If you introduced him to rabbits, I’m sure they’d look at him in amazement.”

That sent Nancy and Robin into another fit of laughter while Steve sat, mouth opening and closing like he didn’t know what to say. Eddie’s amusement shone in his eyes as he glanced at Steve.

“Don’t break her now, you hear?” Eddie laughed.

Steve’s cheeks were a light shade of pink that made you giggle.

“I can’t help it that I happen to love sex with Y/N. So sue me,” he mumbled, a small grin on his lips.

“I didn’t say I was complaining, I’m just stating facts,” you smiled, pecking his rosy tinted cheek sweetly.

“Energizer Bunny!” Robin sputtered out, launching the two girls into another round of stomach holding laughter.

“She’s never gonna let me live that one down,” Steve sighed, glancing sideways at you.

“Aw babe, but you’re my Energizer Bunny,” you smirked, poking his cheek.

He responded with an eye roll and draped an arm around your shoulders, pulling you into his side.

Robin and Nancy had calmed down by now, but there were actual tears streaming down Robin’s face from laughing so hard. When she could finally speak properly, she directed her comment at you.

“Sounds like a good problem to have.”

“Don’t get me wrong. I love our sex life,” you said, motioning between you and Steve, “But I could go a lot longer than he could without sex.”

“Hey, that’s not true!” Steve exclaimed as you turned in his arm, amused.

He pulled his arm back, something sparking in his eyes. Maybe intrigue.

“Please I could hold out longer than you,” he challenged.

“Don’t kid yourself babe,” you patted his arm mockingly, “We both know I could last longer.”

“You want a bet?”

Oh, that was intrigue and challenge in his eyes.

“Anyone want to make a side bet on these two?” Eddie joked.

You ignored him.

“What’s the terms?” you narrowed your eyes, up for the challenge.

“Whoever can go the longest without sex, wins,” Steve stated, plainly.

“Wins what?” you asked.

“Whatever the other wants,” he shrugged, “I’ll let you know when I win.”

“Pft. You’re on.”

You shook on it and watched your three friends exchange an array of amused glances. But it was Eddie that voiced what they were all certainly thinking.

“They’re not gonna last a day.”

•

Oh, the bet was still going on, even 24 hours later.

You were actually impressed that Steve hadn’t caved by now. But he kept surprising you.

You both had been up for the challenge, but that didn’t mean it didn’t come with a bit of teasing from both sides. It started out seemingly innocent with gentle, lingering touches.

Steve’s hand gently stroking your waist, your hand lingering on his chest a moment longer than necessary. Your hand casually finding his thigh at a random moment, his fingers caressing your own thigh, in rebellion.

Neither one of you caved.

So, the teasing continued, just amped up a bit.

Your eyes narrowed when by day three, he walked out of the bathroom, towel loosely wrapped around his waist, beads of water falling from his damp hair, down his chest. Obviously, this was a sight you saw every day, but today, you could smell its nefarious motives.

Was it just you or was his towel dangerously loose?

“This isn’t going to work, you know,” you grumbled, crossing your arms.

“What? Me getting dressed?”

He mocked confusion, looking at you with creased brows, right at the moment he dropped the towel.

Your eyes immediately went south. Even when he wasn’t hard, your body reacted to him. Your mouth went dry at the sight of his fully naked body in front of you.

“Oops, sorry. Towel must’ve slipped,” he shrugged nonchalantly as he bent to pick it up, wrapping it back around his waist before walking to the closet.

Your eyes followed his every movement, the sight still fresh in your mind. But he was not going to win with that cute trick.

“Nice try, Steve, but I’m not giving in first.”

He glanced over his shoulder as he pulled on his boxers, then the pair of pants he’d selected for the day, blinking innocently.

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

He wasn’t going to get by with that little stunt though; you still had plenty of tricks up your own sleeve.

•

“Babe! I’m home!” you heard Steve call, later that afternoon, his shift at Family Video over.

“In the bedroom!” you called, smirking to yourself as you set up the scene.

You were in a sage green satin nightgown that barely covered your underwear. Its two spaghetti straps were thin and almost invisible on your shoulders, the neckline low and revealing enough cleavage to be sexy. At the center, where the cups of the top met was a bow, the same sage as the rest of the nightgown. The trim of it, that barely reached the tops of your thighs was lacy and delicate.

You had your leg up on the bed and you pumped a bit of lotion into your hands before bending over and beginning to rub it into your skin. You made sure the curtain of your hair hid your smirk as you heard Steve’s steps approach.

“Man, it was a long day. Robin made me-”

You heard him stop, figuratively and literally, in the doorway, you finally in his sight.

You looked up, the picture of innocence and smiled at him.

“Oh hey, honey. Tough day at work, you said?”

Now it was his turn to look suspicious.

“What’re you doing?” he asked, eyes glued to you.

“Just getting ready for bed,” you shrugged, switching legs and beginning to rub lotion into the opposite one.

“It’s 4 pm, Y/N.”

“Oh? Is it? Well I thought I’d jump into the shower before you got home and get comfy before I started dinner.”

You felt his gaze rake over you, starting at your legs and gliding upwards. You heard him mumble obscenities under his breath as he stomped to the bathroom.

Next thing you knew, you heard the shower running. You burst out laughing, imagining Steve shivering in a cold shower, too stubborn to lose the bet.

Now, you were even.

•

Steve’s retaliation came quickly, though.

You’d stayed in your nightgown, but had thrown a white silk robe over it after you’d gotten too chilly parading around half naked.

Dinner had been uneventful, but pleasant, just spending time with one another while enjoying your smoked salmon, twice baked potatoes and rosemary honey roasted vegetables. After you’d rinsed the dishes and put them in the dishwasher to run later, you’d joined Steve on the couch with your book.

He was currently sucked into some show on TV, so you curled up next to him, content to just get some reading done. At some point, you’d ended up with your head on his chest and one of his arms wrapped around you, him still engrossed in TV and you, in your book.

It wasn’t unusual for you to feel his absentminded touches, even when his full attention wasn’t on you. But you definitely didn’t miss it this time when you felt his thumb stroking the side of your boob. Your eyes halted on the sentence you’d been on as you glanced toward his hand.

Deciding to try and ignore it, you attempted to return to your fictional world. It got more difficult to concentrate though as his stroking fingers got closer and soon you felt his index finger running circles around your nipple, without actually touching it.

You couldn’t help your body’s instant reaction. The way his touch sent little bursts of electricity through your body, straight for your core where your traitorous clit started throbbing. You had to bite back a moan when you felt the tip of his finger flick your nipple through the thin material of your nightgown.

You felt it harden under his touch, betraying your arousal. But just because your body was giving you away, didn’t mean you were going to give in. You knew Steve well enough to know that he knew exactly what he was doing right now.

“Steve,” you said, trying to keep your voice from wavering.

“Hmm?” he answered, maintaining his distracted demeanor.

“Stop that.”

“Stop what?” he asked, purposely pinching your nipple lightly between his fingertips.

You inhaled sharply before swatting his hand away.

“That,” you indicated, pointing to his hand.

His smirk grew as you sat up, his eyes falling to your chest where you knew, good and well, he could see your nipples peaked through the satin of the nightgown.

“Ready to give up yet?” he asked, eyes glimmering, brow raised.

“Not a chance,” you said, crossing your arms over your chest to hide the betrayal of your body.

Even though every fiber of your being screamed in desire for him, your brain would not let you give in.

“I still have plenty more endurance than you do, Steve,” you huffed.

You grabbed your book, situating yourself at the other end of the couch, far away from his tempting touch. He just gave a delighted laugh at your reaction, watching you.

“We’ll see, baby. We’ll see.”

•

You were getting the asshole back for sure.

So far, the score was now Steve: 3, You: 1. In a double sneak attack this morning, he’d attempted to break you again. It didn’t work, but man, it had taken a bit more self control.

It was another usual morning, you awake early to see Steve off for his early shift at Family Video. You sat in bed, sipping your cup of coffee and curled up in the covers, back against the headboard.

Usually you just chatted with him while he got ready, read or even halfway paid attention to something on the TV in the bedroom. This morning, he’d made sure your eyes were on him.

Although he’d already pulled the little towel stunt, it didn’t escape your attention how by the time he’d exited the bathroom, he’d already pulled on boxers. Even more baffling was when he went straight to the dresser mirror, preparing to do his hair. Something he never did until after his clothes were on. Heaven forbid one piece of hair would fall out of place whilst pulling on a shirt.

But today, as he ran his fingers through his still damp hair, tousling the strands, your eyes stayed glued to him. Especially the way the muscles in his back rippled since you knew just how they felt under your fingertips when he was on top of you, thrusting hard into you. Your eyes roamed the constellation of freckles and moles over his skin, ones that you may have licked a path over, once or twice before, driving him wild.

It got even worse when his Farrah Fawcett spray came out. His arms were raised, one hand manipulating his hair to swoop to one side while the other sprayed the hairspray onto his locks. But your eyes zeroed in on his toned biceps and you had to mentally stop yourself from drooling. The amount of times those strong arms had held you down or against a wall, the way your fingers had gripped them while he made you feel such glorious sensations.

You had to mumble an excuse about getting more coffee before you did something stupid like jump him right then and there. As you clambered out of bed, the fact that your coffee mug was still three-fourths of the way full wasn’t lost on you.

You swore you heard him snickering as you’d sprinted out of the room.

Steve wasn’t above getting dirty, so that meant you wouldn’t be either. It was time to get a bit more creative and bring on the heat.

Which is why you thought a little surprise visit to Family Video for lunch was much needed.

“Hey Y/N!” Robin called, face brightening when she saw you walk in, “This is a pleasant surprise.”

“Thought I’d bring you and Steve some lunch in case you haven’t eaten already,” you said, holding up two brown bags, “Turkey, double Pepper-Jack cheese with jalapeños like always?”

“You are the best,” she beamed, snatching her special made sandwich that she’d always request from you.

“As long as it’s you with the heartburn, not me,” you chuckled, “Where’s Steve?”

“In the back, sorting the new inventory. Want me to go get him?” she asked.

“No, that’s okay. I can take his sandwich to him.”

Robin had already pulled out her sandwich and taken a bite before you’d even moved. She spoke before you had a chance to leave though.

“So, how’s that bet going? Is it still going on?” she smirked.

“Oh, it sure is. I’m not planning on losing.”

She eyed you suspiciously.

“This isn’t just a typical lunch visit and a sandwich, is it?”

“You know me well,” you grinned, deviously.

“Poor Steve,” she sighed dramatically, “He doesn’t stand a chance.”

“You’re damn right,” you snickered as you headed to the back.

You found Steve unloading a box of new rental tapes, shelving them.

“Hey, you. I brought you lunch.”

He turned, smiling at you.

“Thank God. I swear Robin could hear my stomach growling from out front,” Steve laughed, taking his paper bag, pulling you into a quick kiss.

“How’s it going?” you asked, leaning in the doorway.

“The usual,” he said.

“Sit down and take a minute to eat, I can put these away if you want me to,” you offered.

He nodded, pointing to the shelf where he’d been putting the tapes.

You grabbed a pile, putting them up as you both chatted during his lunch break. When it was about over, you picked up one tape, purposely knowing it was too high for you to put away.

You stood on tip toes, making sure you were positioned so Steve could see your shirt ride up, exposing just a sliver of your back as you attempted to place the VHS on the shelf.

“Here, I got it.”

You didn’t miss the gruffness of his voice, making you fully aware that he’d noticed the flash of exposed skin. But you weren’t nearly through yet.

He took the tape, reaching over you to place it in its proper spot. You thanked him, turning around to face him.

“Hey Steve, do you know what I would be saying if I let you take me right now? Here against the wall in the back room?” your voice had dropped to a whisper, a finger running down the center of his chest.

His eyes were lidded as he looked down at you, throat bobbing as he swallowed.

“What?” he whispered roughly.

You bit your lip, looking up at him through your lashes before you leaned closer to him, voice so low that even anyone nearby wouldn’t have been able to hear you.

“I’d say: Hurry, Steve. I need to cum.”

You definitely didn’t miss the rumble of his groan from deep within his chest nor the arousal that had quickly formed a problem in his pants. You pulled away smugly, kissing his cheek and letting him know you’d see him later.

“That’s definitely cheating!” he hollered after you.

Robin practically choked on her sandwich, having no idea what exactly you’d done, but amused by it all the same. You chuckled at her comment as you left Family Video.

“I swear, this is better than television.”

•

It had been an entire week. You were amazed this little bet had lasted so long, but a part of you was having fun.

You were coming up with new ways to tease Steve and he providing new ways to torment you. Honestly, you’d expected him to cave a lot earlier, but he was still going strong. Although, strong might be stretching it.

You were both weakening, little by little, but you weren’t done messing with each other. The teasing didn’t ease up any, even around your friends. Just last night, when you’d had dinner out with the usual group of friends, the games continued between you two.

Since you were a rather larger group, you and your friends typically took up two tables towards the back of the diner, giving some semblance of privacy to the noisy crowd. Although there were plenty of chairs, you’d opted to sit in Steve’s lap after everyone ate and some were enjoying milkshakes for dessert, you being one of them.

You shifted purposely in his lap as if trying to get comfortable, even though you already had been. You knew it was pure torture for him to feel your ass rubbing against his crotch and you felt his hardening cock beneath you only moments later. You hid your smirk as you dipped your head to take another sip of your milkshake.

His arm was around your waist, but he pulled you close to murmur in your ear. It was already loud in the diner, your crew adding to the loud volume, so there was no danger in anyone overhearing his words. But, he knew what he was doing, whispering huskily in your ear.

“Keep doing that and I’m gonna end up cumming in my pants.”

You turned to him, smile sweet as sugar.

“Well at least you’ll release some of that tension, hm?”

You didn’t miss the glare he gave you, or the desire that blew his pupils wide. He hadn’t given in yet, but you were going to make sure he would, soon.

He didn’t let you off easily, either. In the dark parking lot, when everyone was saying their goodbyes and hanging around to chat a little bit more, Steve pulled you close.

In the darkness of the night, none of your friends saw what he was truly doing other than what appeared to be leaning down and kissing your cheek.

Instead, he licked the outer shell of your ear, teeth sinking gently into your earlobe as he pressed his hard erection into your ass, grinding it against you.

“See what you do to me baby? If I could, I’d strip you naked right now and take you against the hood of my car.”

His whispered words sent a rush of heat between your thighs and you held back a groan. The more you’d teased one another, the hornier you’d gotten. A part of you really wanted to tell him to fuck it and fuck you.

He took your silence and your gaping jaw as proof enough that he’d won this round.

Touché Steve, touché.

•

The ball was in your court now and as desperate as you were, as wound tight as you’d gotten, your stubbornness wouldn’t allow you to give in—not yet.

You were horny as fuck for Steve by now, but the only rational thought you had was to make him give in, that way you could end up having sex anyway.

Your next trick involved a simple ice cream cone. Seeming innocuous enough, you didn’t miss how his eyes trailed your tongue and mouth as you licked it seductively in front of him, putting on a damn good show.

You made it as convincing as possible, pretending it was his dick you were licking and sucking, torturing him as much as this little exercise was. When he stood from the kitchen table to announce he was going for a run, you looked at him, amused.

“You don’t run,” you said.

“Yeah, well I’m taking it up now,” he grumbled as slammed the door behind him, off to rid himself of the sexual tension he was clearly feeling.

How he was managing to hold out so long was beyond you, but you still had a few last things to try before you admitted defeat and jumped his bones.

•

It was just passing comments you made, but you saw how it got him going and in turn, that aroused you. It had become a sick game between you two—although it really wasn’t harming anyone, it certainly amped up the desire.

It seemed it had morphed from who could go the longest without—although that was still the ultimate goal—into who could make the other the most desperate.

“What do you think?” you asked nonchalantly, as you stirred pasta sauce at the stove, “Is the table sturdy enough for you to bend me over it?”

Nancy and Robin were coming over later to have a girls’ night of pasta and rom-coms. Steve, who had to be up early for work the next day was planning on going to bed early and leaving the three of you to your night together. That didn’t stop you from throwing in a few teasing remarks for his sake while you prepared the food, though.

“You wanna know what I think?”

You heard the table chair scrape back, indicating he had gotten up abruptly from where he was sitting, perusing the paper. You felt rough hands on your hips as he jerked you backwards into him, arms snaking around your waist.

“When you finally decide to give in and let me fuck you properly, I’m going to make you cum six ways to Sunday,” he partially growled, your body tensing and desire coursing through your veins.

“Oh?” was all you could managed, your throat raspy and chest heaving.

Your mind went wild with thoughts of him between your legs, making you ache for him so badly. You were so damn close to giving in and he knew it.

“Sweetheart, that’s a promise.”

-

It was later when you, Nancy and Robin were settled with identical plates of pasta, preparing to start the first movie that you heard Steve call your name from the bedroom.

“Sorry, I thought he was asleep already,” you apologized to the two, “He probably just can’t find the new tube of toothpaste or something.”

You rolled your eyes endearingly , telling them you’d be right back as you set your plate on the coffee table, getting up to head to the bedroom. You were confused when you saw him sitting on his side of the bed at the edge, flipping through channels on the TV.

“You need something?” you asked, brows furrowed in confusion.

“Yeah. C’mere,” he motioned with his hand.

When you were in reaching distance, he pulled you close by your waist, pulling you down to him, kissing you hard. His hands slid to your ass, gripping it as he kissed you passionately.

His mouth moved quickly against yours, tongue entwining with your own, some of his pent up frustrations—yours as well—being unleashed in the kiss. Your hand had moved into his hair as you kissed him back, practically ready to crawl into his lap and grind against him while he palmed your ass and guided your hips to move against his.

But, to your surprise, he pulled away, looking completely composed and calm. You heart was beating wildly in time with your aching clit who’d had the stupid idea that you were finally getting some action. His hands left your ass as well, as if they’d never been there all while giving you a sinful smile, pearly whites showing and all.

“Now be a good girl and make sure your guests don’t get lonely, hm?” he smirked, “Have fun, baby.”

You stumbled off in a daze, wondering how the hell he had managed to not be as worked up by that single kiss as you’d been.

Little did you know, he had been.

Soon enough, everything would to come to a head and all it would take would be one end of summer bash.

•

You’d both had made it to the two week mark—practically a record for you and Steve. Although, something told you when the bet was over, he wasn’t letting you leave bed for a week straight.

By now, you were strung so tight that you could rival a guitar string. Obviously, the moment you decided you wanted to give in to Steve had to be at the worst possible time. You and he were currently with all your mutual friends, so it wasn’t like you could do anything here. Though you desperately, desperately wanted to.

Joyce and Mrs. Wheeler were hosting an end of summer bash at the Wheeler’s house, in their spacious backyard. There was grilled hot dogs and hamburgers, an array of desserts and a good time with friends.

The six younger teens—Mike, Dustin, Will, Max, Lucas and El—were all there, along with Lucas’ younger sister Erica, who was an unofficial part of the group. Nancy, Jonathan, Robin and Eddie were also there, along with both Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler, Holly and Joyce and Hopper. There were way too many eyes around, but that didn’t exactly stop you from subtle teasing.

It was still warm out, being the last days of summer and you’d donned a sundress that was low cut enough to sneakily taunt your boyfriend. It’d worked on him extremely well as he couldn’t stop his eyes from falling to your chest, trying hard not to imagine freeing them from that dress and sucking and kissing them. He really didn’t need a boner in the middle of a family friendly barbecue.

Apparently, great minds thought alike because he’d purposely picked his tightest pair of Levi’s to wear today and he felt a surge of pride at his choice every time he’d caught you checking him out throughout the afternoon. You were a tough nut to crack though and had yet to give into his teasing. Though he wanted nothing more than to have his way with you, he held out, curious to see just how far this could go.

You were relentless and sneaky, still managing to rile him up, even amidst the group of friends. After his stunt last week when Nancy and Robin had been over, he probably deserved it.

“You two still have that bet going on?” Eddie asked, mouth agape.

“Yup,” you answered, taking a bite of your banana pudding.

“Wait. How long has it been?” Jonathan asked, having been filled in by Nancy.

“Too long,” Steve grumbled causing Eddie to hoot with laughter.

“Two weeks,” you responded.

Both you and Steve watched in confusion as both Eddie and Jonathan pulled out their wallets, each grabbing five dollars, passing it to Robin.

“What’s this?” you asked, motioning to the money being passed over.

“Robin bet us five bucks each that you’d last more than a week,” Eddie shrugged.

“You had a side bet on us?” Steve asked, appalled.

“Sorry man. I didn’t think you’d last the first day,” Eddie smirked.

“What can I say?” Robin shrugged, “I know him well. He can be a stubborn shit when he wants to be.”

While this conversation happened, your bare foot had found its way out of your sandal and into Steve’s lap. You were thankful for the cover of the picnic table as your foot rubbed his knee and thigh, seemingly inconspicuously, until you moved ever so slightly to the left. It rubbed against the crotch of his jeans as you innocently ate your dessert. Steve almost choked though, causing you to grin behind your spoon.

You returned his glare with a bright smile, enjoying torturing him. He wasn’t going to let you get away with that, you know knew that for sure. You certainly didn’t miss the way he had to rearrange himself as discreetly as possible, when he stood to play a game of Frisbee with the younger kids.

You sat with the older teens at the picnic table and turned so your back was pressed against the table to watch the game.

“Hold that thought,” Steve said, “It’s a little hot out here don’t you think?”

You glowered in his direction as he pulled off his shirt, exposing his bare chest. He tossed his shirt towards you.

“Mind holding that for me, babe? Thanks!” he hollered, running off.

You knew exactly what he was doing and damn him if it wasn’t working. Even from the distance your eyes were locked on him. You wanted to kiss and lick every inch of exposed skin he was showing off right now, leave hickeys all over his neck and chest and around his collarbones. You wanted to play connect the dots with your tongue and the splattering of moles over his abdomen, wanted to leave scratch marks down his back.

You’d been so out of it, you didn’t even notice when the others had left to start a game of two on two volleyball.

Your fingers clutched Steve’s shirt in your hands as you watched his muscles flex and ripple with a single toss of the frisbee. Even though you always found him attractive, your thoughts had never been so dirty as they were now while you watched him.

The frisbee went flying off course, nowhere near any of the players, towards your direction.

“I got it!” Steve called to the others, jogging your way.

You bent to pick up the rogue circular toy at your feet just as he approached you, making sure he got an eyeful down the neckline of your dress. He noticed, alright.

Steve gulped, eyes taking in the curve of your breasts, almost able to see far down enough to see your nipples. He’d seen you naked plenty of times in the last two weeks, sure, but it had felt like an eternity since he got to enjoy your body. To squeeze it and kiss it and explore it like he loved to, leaving marks that only he was allowed to in secret spots, making you moan and writhe underneath him, on top of him, wherever, as he made you see stars. He always got the most satisfaction and pleasure knowing he’d pleased you well.

When you straightened, handing him the frisbee, he could’ve sworn you were giving him fuck me eyes, and he was absolutely right.

“Steve, if we don’t leave now I’m going to take you on this picnic table, right here and right now.”

Your voice was hoarse, filled with desire and fuck if it didn’t make him instantly hard.

He turned his back on you only long enough to toss the frisbee back to the kids.

“Sorry guys, I just remembered we had another engagement we also have to attend to!” he shouted to them.

“Aw come on! We were winning!” Dustin protested.

“We can rematch this weekend, okay? Gotta run!”

He didn’t even bother with byes, nor did he put on his shirt as he grabbed your hand, nearly dragging you to the car. You were so horny yourself you were contemplating doing it in his car, but you forced yourself to wait until you got home. You had a feeling once you gave in to him, you wouldn’t be through with him anytime soon—and a bed would be much more comfortable for multiple sexcapades.

He was behind the driver’s seat before you were even buckled in. As you buckled your seatbelt, your eyes caught sight of his cock straining in his pants and you almost moaned out loud. The ache in your core was so bad, you were practically sitting with your thighs clenched together permanently.

“Wait,” he grinned, turning to you, not even having turn on the car yet, “Does this mean I win the bet?”

“Drive Steve, drive!” you shouted.

You could admit it, you were that desperate. A ten minute drive home was going to take forever to you right now. Apparently, Steve had the same thought because he’d barely pulled out of the Wheeler’s driveway before his hand was between your legs. Suddenly, you were so glad you decided to wear a dress today.

His hand cupped you over your underwear and you moaned, having missed the feeling of his touch.

“Jesus, you’re soaking,” he groaned, able to feel where your arousal had soaked your panties.

“Yeah, cause you’ve been a fucking tease,” you grit out, hand clutching the door as he rubbed you through the material.

“Shit,” you moaned lowly, jaw dropping when his fingers dipped past the crotch of the undergarment, thumb rubbing at your clit.

It had been two weeks too long according to your body because it flinched and jerked at every touch Steve gave you, especially when he slid two fingers inside you effortlessly. Your hips bucked into his hand as a lewd moan fell from your lips.

He couldn’t help it, he couldn’t wait until you both got home, he had to give in to the urge to touch you and he did, taking much pleasure in your answering moans. Unfortunately, each little whine and moan was going straight to his groin where he was already painfully hard. He was quite literally driving as fast as he could.

“Damnit,” he muttered when they got caught up at a stoplight.

He tried to distract himself with you, hoping the red light would quickly turn green. This right now was fine, but he wanted to do much, much more to you.

His fingers curled within you as they pumped in and out, you becoming even more responsive. You knew he could feel your pussy clench around his fingers, the muscles fluttering as if in search of the cock it had been missing so badly.

“Yeah? You like that baby? Lemme hear how much you like it,” he cooed.

He took a moment while the stoplight was still red to lean over the console, attaching his lips to your neck. He gave it a few, sloppy, open mouthed kisses before sucking on a spot, all the while his fingers tormented you.

“Yes, Stevie, yes,” you whined.

He grinned, quite proud of himself. You hardly ever called him that, only when you were so blissed out by him that it came out in a whine. It was something that could get him harder than a rock.

When the light turned green, he gunned it, praying all the while that none of Hopper’s goonies were around to catch him speeding. He need you bad and he needed you now or else his dick might actually fall off. The way he pulled into the driveway of your and his house might’ve been humorous any other time, but you both had other important things on your minds.

Your dress was almost off even before you two stumbled into the door. His hands had been gripping your hips as he kissed your neck while you tried to hurry and unlock the door. He would’ve bunched up your dress just so he could feel your silky soft skin against his palms, but he didn’t much care for the thought of giving the neighbors a show.

The moment the front door was shut, he had you pressed up against it, mouth on yours. His kisses were hot, needy and just as eager as he was. His hands were already under your dress, pushing it up as you pulled away long enough for him to pull it over your head and drop it to the floor. You were left in just your underwear and the desperate moan that came from his throat made your clit throb harder.

His head bent to your chest as his tongue circled one nipple before he pulled it into his mouth, sucking on it. The other breast he palmed in one free hand, fingers rolling your nipple. Your moaning sigh was answer enough that you’d missed his mouth on you as you arched your chest into him.

While he busied himself with your boobs, your fingers rapidly tried to unfasten his Levi’s, grateful he didn’t even bother to put his shirt back on earlier. After all, it was just going to come back off anyways.

You’d managed to push the button free when his lips reconnected with yours, his hand tangling into your hair to move your head just the way he wanted it as he kissed the life out of you. At the unzipping sound of his zipper, you pulled back, breathless, chest heaving.

“Bedroom,” you panted.

He nodded, grabbing your hand and once again practically dragging you upstairs. He lost the jeans somewhere on the stairs for when you both made it to the bedroom, you both were left with one garment only.

He pushed you roughly on the bed, making you growl in delight as he crawled over you, leaving kisses up your body as he went. Before he could occupy your lips again, you stopped him with a hand to the chest.

“Bet’s off?” you asked.

“Bet’s off,” he nodded before he let himself be consumed by your mouth again.

This time, your hand was in his hair and you tugged it roughly as you kissed, his moans being swallowed by the kiss.

You felt his hair tickling your cheek when he broke the kiss, lips exploring down once again to your neck and collarbones. He was most likely leaving enough purplish bruises that you’d look like a connect the dot picture by morning.

“Here’s what’s gonna happen,” came your breathy demand, “First you’re gonna lick me, fuck me, then cum inside me and you’re gonna stay there until I tell you otherwise.”

He groaned at your words, mouth already traveling southwards before you’d finished your list of demands.

“Yes ma’am,” he emphasized, his eyes clouded with desire for you and you only.

You could’ve cum on the spot when his tongue made contact with your aching pussy. He licked one long, slow strip up your seam, thoroughly enjoying your uncontrollable moans. He may be to the brink of painfully hard, but he was going to be damn sure that he made you tremble with ecstasy, first.

“Holy hell, I missed your tongue,” you whimpered.

It flicked your clit teasingly before moving over it back and forth. It wasn’t going to take much of this before you’d fall apart, you knew. When his lips wrapped around your clit, sucking on it, it was game over as your toes clenched and the rapidly building pleasure in the pit of your stomach came dangerously close to erupting.

It probably took less than two minutes before you were crying out, clutching at the sheets as your orgasm crashed over you and your body flooded with warmth. It came and went too soon, not leaving you nearly satisfied as you practically tugged him back upwards to you when he was done.

“Now make me cum six ways to Sunday like you promised, Steve,” you uttered, tearing his boxers off.

If you’d had scissors nearby, you’d most likely had cut them off at this point. You were both frantic for one another and couldn’t get enough. You’d already had one orgasm because of him and it still felt like that had barely taken the edge off.

“I plan to, sweetheart,” he smirked, eyes locked on yours.

He wasted no time pushing into you and your satisfied moans mixed with his, the sensation like coming home. He fit you so perfectly, stretching you almost to the point of pain, but it was such a staggering feeling that you never got used to. It seemed to get better every time and it felt twice as good now after having yearned for this for two weeks.

“God damnit,” Steve moaned lowly, the pleasure etched in his features.

He hadn’t even moved yet as he was so overcome by your tight, wet, heat. He had to control himself to keep from blowing his load right then because he wanted this to last as long as possible.

“Oh my god baby,” he groaned after his first thrust, “I’m never making a bet with you again.”

Your laughter was choked, tinged with a low moan. The way you two were acting, one would’ve thought it’d been two years since you’d enjoyed each other. But there was definitely a reason for the animalistic desire, it was worth missing.

His hips picked up speed until there was nothing but the sounds of your slapping bodies and mingled noises of pleasure. He lifted one of your legs higher on his waist, allowing for a deeper angle and access to the sweet spot that made your toes curl.

“Steve, yes, yes, yes,” you mewled.

He bent, capturing your lips in a kiss that was desperate and rough as your bodies worked their way to their impending climaxes. Your breath caught mid moan when he bit down on your bottom lip, giving it a gentle tug as he pulled away from you, before releasing it from between his teeth.

“You gonna cum for me?” he rasped, “Scream my name for me?”

You nodded, eyes screwed shut as he continued to pound into you like there was no tomorrow. He was repeatedly hitting the spongy, sensitive spot deep within you that was liable to send you careening over the edge at any moment.

His hand splayed over your abdomen, thumb just in reach of your clit as he rubbed it in sync with his thrusts. He could feel you clenching down on him, the death grip your pussy had on him making his spine tingle and signaling he wasn’t going to be far off from losing control.

“Oh fuck, Steve!” you cried, completely losing yourself to your high.

Steve bit his lip, holding off for long enough to watch you. It was the most erotic sight to him to see you fall apart, your brows slightly pulled together, the pleasure so good it was borderline painful. Your mouth agape as you moaned his name, your cheeks flushed and lips bruised and kiss swollen. He didn’t last long after his first glimpse because soon he was reaching his own end, swearing, accompanied by a moan of your name.

Only you could make him cum this hard. Especially after fourteen days of teasing, which somehow had made the sex even hotter and more intense this time.

You were spent by the time you came down from your cloud of bliss, hearing the tail end of the happy, content sighs from Steve. You pushed his messy hair off of his forehead and he gave you a tired smile, looking as fucked out as you probably did.

“Love you,” he murmured against your lips as he kissed you much softer.

It was something he always did no matter how romantic, kinky, intense or gentle the sex had been. He always had to make sure you knew he loved you.

“Love you too,” you smiled, enjoying the moments of closeness that came post sex.

You stopped him the moment you felt him move to retreat from within you.

“Nuh uh, I meant what I said about you staying inside me until I said so,” you huffed.

He was still relatively hard, both his cock and his libido eager for a round two. He knew you were all for it, as well. Besides, you wanted him buried to the hilt within you for as long as you could stand tonight because if it hadn’t been proved enough, you’d missed this dearly.

A thought suddenly occurred to Steve and his whole body shook with laughter and you gazed at him, confused.

“What?” you questioned, baffled.

“It’s kind of funny when you think about it,” he smirked, peering down at you before continuing with his thought.

“Who’s the insatiable one now?”

#steve harrington #steve harrington smut #steve harrington fic #steve harrington blurb #steve harrington x you #steve harrington x fem!reader #steve harrington x reader #stranger things #stranger things fic #stranger things blurb #stranger things smut

[themculibrary]

Fics Written In 2020 Masterlist

5 Times Peter Thought Iron Man and Captain America Were Dating (+1 Time He Wasn't the Only One) (ao3) - bravobeavo steve/tony T, 13k

Summary: 5 times Peter Parker thought that Iron Man and Captain America were dating. And one time when he realized he wasn't the only one who thought that.

OR How Peter accidentally caused Steve and Tony to get together by assuming they were already together.

A Barton Surprise (ao3) - Delena_Stark clint/laura, pepper/tony G, 5k

Summary: Requested by Droth “Maybe one where Peter is Tony’s 12 year old biological son. Peter has to go with Tony to the Barton farm, and he ends up hanging out with the older Barton kids.”

Amaryllis by paperstorm steve/bucky E, 70k

Summary: So do I remind you of someone you’ve never met, a lonely silhouette? And do I remind you of somewhere you want to be, so far out of reach? I wish you’d open up for me, ‘cause I want to know you … amaryllis bloom. // In 19th century Europe, Bucky and Steve are members of neighboring royal families. Steve is the heir to a throne he does not want, and Bucky is the neglected third child waiting to be married off and forgotten about. Trapped in unhappy lives by seemingly immovable circumstances, they find a way out in each other.

Brainwashed Bros (ao3) - haveufoundwhaturlookingfor bucky/clint T, 3k

Summary: Bucky and Clint return from a successful mission, only to find that Bucky’s childhood best friend (aka Captain America) has been recovered from the ice and is actually alive. On top of that, Loki pays a visit to Earth and brainwashes Clint. So, not only does Bucky have to worry about Steve, but now his brainwashed boyfriend.

Clint's Hugging Service (ao3) - pherryt bucky/clint G, 7k

Summary: Bucky really, really wants to know what a Clint Barton hug feels like. Everyone else seems to swear by them.

Do No Harm (ao3) - AuroraWest, the_genderman loki/stephen M, 69k

Summary: When Loki stole the Tesseract from the Avengers, he hadn’t been trying to break the universe. Nor had he anticipated a wizard saving his life.

Now, Loki finds himself in the New York Sanctum, helping Stephen Strange hold the universe together—while he himself falls apart. But trouble finds the God of Mischief whether he invites it or not, and good things don’t last for Loki. As his universe crumbles and takes another with it, he’ll be faced with a choice: the greater good or the people he loves.

Drowning in Demons (And Learning to Breathe) (ao3) - ariverofthings, PS_NoThanks pepper/tony T, 244k

Summary: The oh-so-overdone HYDRA Peter trope that literally no one asked for, but we delivered anyway. Featuring shameless Peter whump, way too much angst to be healthy, and a bucketload of Irondad and Spiderson fluff.

Effortlessly (ao3) - fundamentalBlue, VexedBeverage clint/tony E, 24k

Summary: When Tony offers him a place at the tower, he takes it, despite the fact that life has always been tit for tat, and Tony must want something in return. Some kind of control or dominance over Clint and his life. Clint has nothing to give anymore, not that he ever did. Still, he moves in, taking with him all of his meager belongings. There’s no trinkets between Coulson and him. No photos or cards. It’s alright. It’s always been alright.

Clint could never afford to be sentimental about possessions before anyway.

Fake (Date) It Til You Make It (ao3) - Blizzard_Fire bruce/clint M, 6k

Summary: ‘Hey Doc,’ Clint said one morning, strolling into the lab, ‘Can you date me?’ Bruce frowned up at him. ‘Why?’ ‘To fuck with Tony, mainly.'

Bruce and Clint start fake-dating to mess with the others. But then it becomes a question of how long they can keep this up, and maybe their “dates” aren’t quite so platonic anymore…

fed up with hunger (ao3) - frankoceansmoonriver steve/bucky N/R, 10k

Summary: “What do you wanna talk about? How I’m gonna have to marry some girl with perfect ringlets and you’re gonna marry some girl who’s smarter than both of us combined, and you’ll be right to? What is there to talk about? Quit being a dumbass and just go to sleep.” He says it so matter of fact. He says it like none of it bothers him. Steve sighs. “Nobody is gonna marry me,” Steve says softly. He lays back down and goes to sleep. In the morning, Bucky doesn’t mention it and neither does Steve. They go back to not talking about it. Maybe they never will.

Or, the one where it’s 1939 and sometimes Steve thinks that having is worse than wanting.

first one's free (ao3) - shatteredhourglass clint/tony E, 5k

Summary: Clint Barton has a crush on Iron Man. Clint Barton is also sleeping with Tony Stark on the regular. All in all, it's a mess.

maybe we should tell them (or maybe not) (ao3) - GreenPencil harley/peter G, 3k

Summary: Peter forgot to tell the Avengers he and Harley were a couple. He suggests that they should tell them and Harley suggests they don't.

Our Omega (ao3) - haveufoundwhaturlookingfor bucky/steve/sam N/R, 3k

Summary: Steve And Thor have a one night stand at one of Tony’s parties, and Steve ends up pregnant. Thor leaves the next day for Asgard without saying a word to Steve, leaving Steve to deal with the mess alone. Except, he’s not really alone. He has Bucky and Sam, who step up to take care of Steve and the baby.

research and disaster (ao3) - blueh T, 9k

Summary: the interns at Stark Industries have some questions about Peter Parker. The answers aren’t quite what they expect.

Scary Movie Tough Guy (ao3) - Delena_Stark mj/peter, pepper/tony N/R, 3k

Summary: MJ recommends a scary movie for Peter to watch, and of course he had to try to show off to her even if he doesn't do well with certain horror stuff. Turns out it wasn't gonna be an easy feat.

Some People Should Not Work With Children (ao3) - AllThingsGeeky G, 15k

Summary: With May at work and not answering, poor Peter’s stuck in school feeling awful. But when the School Nurse has to call his other contact, she’s less than co-operative...

The Puzzle that is Peter Parker (ao3) - Neuropsyche pepper/tony T, 279k

Summary: Peter is reeling from the after-effects of the spider bite and seeks out Tony Stark. If anyone can teach him how to be a superhero, it's Ironman, right? Tony isn't impressed at being stalked by an eight year old

two gentlemen of brooklyn (ao3) - rooonil_waazlib steve/bucky E, 7k

Summary: Or, five times Steve and Bucky weren't married, but sort of were, and the time they figure it out.

#themculibrary #marvel #mcu #masterlists #fics2020 #fics2020 masterlist

[shikai-the-storyteller]

Frick it YET ANOTHER KARMALAND LIVEBLOG TIME

THE VIDEO.... HE’S WATCHING IT!! HE DIDN”T IMMEDIATELY GET MAD AND TURN IT OFF

MAYBE WE HAVE A CHANCE MAYBE THERE’S HOPE

Luzu in the memory video: I just want you to be happy. Quackity: ...and that same day he betrayed me.

Quackity: I miss this version of Luzu Me: *BREAKS DOWN CRYING*

THE PHOTOOOOOOOO AGH

Quackity and Luzu in the video: I love you! I love you very much! Quackity: I really miss this version of Luzu to be honest

AH....

:(((

Quackity shooting the video when Luzu said “All I want is your happiness Quackity” AGH..........

oh frick that almost got me I almost teared up at that FRICK OFF, IM NOT GONNA CRY OVER YOUR LORE AGAIN (yet)

Luzu and Quackity are such good actors

MAN!!! HE CARES THOUGH!!! HE STILL CARES

He didn’t immediately get mad and refuse to watch it. He still cares. They both still care so much. But there’s so much hurt and anger that I’m not sure they’ll be able to have a conversation that could fix this

Quackity: I miss that Luzu, the one who wasn't corrupted. It’s a shame I have to kill him. KILLING ME WOULD HURT LESS

Quackity: When there's someone you can't help no matter how hard you try, you have to put them to sleep. UH. WHAT KIND OF PSYCHOLOGY CLASSES WERE *YOU* IN KING

“A cardinal rule in psychology is not to help the patient to keep paying you” WTF QUACKITY

Well Rubius certainly isn’t going to help with this situation

oh frick that’s true I wonder what Rubius would’ve thought of the video

Quackity: Rubius, where are you? I’m sad Isn’t it interesting how both Rubius and Quackity go to each other when they’re sad and lonely? :( Unhealthy coping strategies

WISH THIS WASNT TRUE lmao Rubius....

Isn’t that the horn Vegetta gave Rubius??

oh frick I just missed a big chunk of the convo frick

Rubius: The other day the lying detector machine was malfunctioning. Oh also i might have to put you in prison for seven days Quackity: Wait WHAT RUBIUS. YOU KNOW LUZU LOVES HIM YOU BASTARD DONT SAY THE LIE DETECTOR WAS FAULTY oh wait he was probably talking about the faking the election thing PFT. I SWEAR I DONT HAVE A ONE-TRACK MIND

Rubius: I have to gain Luzu’s trust Quackity: I DONT WANT TO TALK ABOUT HIM RIGHT NOW! AGH. PAIN. But I do wonder what Rubius is planning

I love that Rubius put him in jail but he didn’t take away Quackity’s gun

LMFAO

Not Rubius and Quackity having to Roleplay “bad cop beating up a prisoner” rn BRO...

Rubius: *threatening to hit him, roughing him up, being a masochist* Quackity: 😏 QUACKITY. WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS.

well the Rubuckity fanartists are gonna have a field day with that

Rubius: Who's your leader?? Quackity: God's my only leader! Rubius: No! Luzu is your leader!! QUACKITY HAS BECOME CHRISTIAN /j

Rubius: To the dungeon!! Quackity: Yeah? I bet i can last longer down there than you did on that soccer match THAT”S BELOW THE BELT QUACKITY LMAO

WHAT DID QUACKITY SAY??? PARDON???

lmao the windows sound

Rubius rn be like

OH HE SHOT A MINION UH OH

He’s gay, depressed, and STUPID

Rubius: IT”S OK I”LL TRY AND BUY HIM OFF Rubius: *offers to give the minion a lapdance*

IT”S LITERALLY “DUMB AND DUMBER” WHEN RUBIUS AND QUACKITY ARE TOGETHER. They’re literally two of the most intelligent manipulative strategic people but as soon as they’re together they have 0 braincells

Quackity: I’ll kill him! Rubius: I CAN’T HE’S IMMORTAL, I DONT KNOW WHAT LUZU IS FEEDING THEM PFTTTT

Wow they trapped him in an eternal death / revive loop that seems INFINITELY worse

Man I wish I knew Spanish I’m missing so many jokes and I’m just sitting here fuming

Quackity: This roleplay is so exciting Rubius: That’s what she said I HATE HIM

GOSH

I CAN”T BELIEVE HE JUST “That’s what she said!” US IN 2022

THEY BOTH DIED. IDIOTS

AND AGAIN

Literally everything that’s green dies next to Quackity INCLUDING Pepe the frog

I know it’s a bit but Quackity screaming for Rubius to help him just reminds me of him screaming for Luzu to help him. I am in hell

Rubius and Quackity: *being stupid and being accidental comic relief* Me: *unfortunately able to make everything sad*

How the heck did Rubius manage to befriend this mob that killed them both like 10 times

Oh and it’s attacking them again LMAO

Luzu, watching Rubius and Quackity getting murdered over and over again by this mob from his mansion: And people had the audacity to get mad at me for saying I wanted to protect Quackity

Rubius: ATTRACT HIM, SEXUALLY ATTRACT HIM TO ME RUBIUS SHUT UP!!!!!!

Rubius’ coping strategy is automatically flirt, seduce, or flatter and it SUCKS

WH--

QUACKITY.

I hate when Quackity says something so Terrible that even I, someone with terrible Spanish skills, am like 😒 

Quackity: My mind is on automatic right now, it’s like a hamster on its little wheel That’s cute... but also he’s very right

These stamina jokes are frickin killing me

These two really are “Idiot Gays” representation

Quackity: Why did I spawn in your bed? Rubius: Because you like me. Quackity: Honestly, yeah. I do > Thinking about how Rubius and Quackity are able to rely on each other because there’s no feelings involved and they’re both aware of and accepting of each other’s worst traits and tendencies, and how they turn to each other for comfort when the people they’re in love with aren’t there for them > *dies instantly*

Rubius after Quackity broke his coffee machine: Why can't you be still for once?? We could do great things but no!!! 

Quackity: Do you sometimes feel like very dizzy and can't stop laughing?? Rubius: YEAH Quackity: Well I've been feeling like that this past 30 minutes

Luzu’s going to survive this frickin arc solely because Quackity and Rubius are too distracted and stupid to focus on coming up with a plan

FRICK I JINXED IT as soon as I said that they got back on topic

OH FRICK HE ACCIDENTALLY CALLED RUBIUS LUZU oh dear

LMAO THE ACCIDENTAL VOICE CHANGE

OH HE’S SHOWING RUBIUS THE VIDEO???

oh man that seems like such a personal thing to show Rubius oh man

OH HE’S STAYING OUTSIDE WHILE RUBIUS GOES TO WATCH IT? or no he just wanted Rubius to hear it

Oh

OH

OH MY GOSH

Minions, blocking Quackity from entering Luzu’s house Quackity: Henchmen, you know I'm Luzu's lover, don’t do anything to me

I CRAVE DEATH!!!!!!

Quackity: Rubius, I have a confession. Me and Luzu are no longer friends. Rubius: Yeah I could tell LMFAO QUACKITY. THAT KINDA GOES WITHOUT SAYING

Rubius cracks me up I want to see fanart of that

Quackity: I have a proposal. Help me kill Luzu. Rubius: Killing him would be a gift. I want him to suffer. Quackity: Rubius, I understand that killing him would be a gift, but in honor of all our years of friendship that's the last gift I can give him 

OH. HE CAN’T KILL HIM. No matter how furious Quackity is he can’t kill Luzu he can’t kill him I FRICKIN CRAVE DEATH

HE’S STILL PLANNING ON KIDNAPPING THE KIDS NOOOO

well better than killing them I guess

OH NO HE DOES PLAN ON KILLING THE KIDS, FRICK

He told Rubius he had illegitimate children with Luzu AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

I mean is it more or less fricked up that Quackity plans on killing them if he also claims them as his AND Luzu’s kid

OH MAN Rubius found out Luzu killed Osito Bimbo and he's going to kill Luzu for killing one of his own OH FRICK

Rubius: I’ll gain his trust, and once that day comes, his death will come.

the question is though: will Vegetta stand by Luzu’s side? And if so, what does that mean for Rubius? What will he do if Vegetta tries to get in the way of his and Quackity’s revenge?

LITERALLY. YOURE SO RIGHT ANSU

Wait I completely missed that WHAT ABOUT TITI

THEY”RE SO STUPID I LOVE THEM

Quackity: Rubius, would you betray me? Rubius: No. I’m doing all this just to mess with Luzu

Oh Quackity was saying he can go after Titi if Rubius betrays him? Or is he saying he can help Rubius get Titi (the real Titi) back?

ARE THEY GOING TO MANIPULATE SAPO PETA INTO HELPING THEM WITHOUT REALIZING IT??? awh oh noooo oh nooo not Sapo Peta :((( He’s such a kind person he’ll feel so sad and so used, and he wants Luzu and Quackity to get back together. If he’s the reason Luzu gets hurt or is part of the reason Luzu dies, he’ll never forgive himself

Rubius: I have a lot of trust in Sapo Peta Me: *SOBS*

I love Sapo Peta

Quackity: I'll find a way to bring Titi back. If Rubius doesn't betray me, I'll give him Titi back. If not, I'll kill him

Quackity: I will seduce Sapo Peta and I will make him bring back Titi Rubius: If that means you trust me then it's fine, because I didn't understand what you meant by all that. NOOO THAT”S JUST AS BAD STOP PLAYING WITH POOR SAPO PETA’S HEART LIKE THIS

Quackity rummaging thorugh Rubius' chests: YOU HAVE SO MUCH STUFF!!!! Rubius: Well if you played Minecraft instead of f**king around-- LMAO GETTEM

Quackity broke a vase and was like “I BREAK EVERYTHING I TOUCH” noooo baby boy nooooo that’s the trauma talking

Quackity: I destroy everything I touch! Rubius: It's amazing, man, I don't know how you do it RUBIUS YOURE NOT HELPING

Rubius: No, Vegetta can’t help us. There was...a situation the other day. I married Lolito because Vegetta deserves better Quackity: you WHAT

Quackity: Vegetta must hate you now Rubius: ... I’m just saying I wouldn’t trust him to help us :((( consequences of your actions

Rubius: Vegetta is dangerous YEAH HE SURE FRICKIN IS. HELL HATH NO FURY LIKE YOUR DEMIGOD EX-BOYFRIEND SCORNED

“I’m hated by Vegetta. I disgust him” I feel bad for Rubius but also CANT BLAME VEGETTA FOR THIS ONE KING

EXACTLY!!! EXACTLY!!! GLAY IS RIGHT RUBIUS IS A HYPOCRITE

Quackity: I’ll get Illojuan to help us. I’ll make him play a whole week in Karmaland Rubius: If you manage that it’ll be an even greater achievement than killing Luzu LMFAO

oh is he teaching Quackity Illojuan’s accent? That’s genuinely so cute ... awh

THIS IS CUTE AWWWW

Rubius is Polish??? Or Norwegian?? Oh I suddenly understand all the jokes now, I was wondering why everyone kept affectionately calling him a Norwegian rat

Rubius did NOT just offend Mexican street food I’LL KILL HIM

Quackity: When will you come back to Mexico? Rubius: When everyone forgets this cancellation, just like they already forgot I’ve already visited Mexico PFTT alright that got a laugh out of me

Quackity: Once a friend of mine asked about you!! He asked what was going on with you AND I DEFENDED YOU!! DRAG HIM QUACKITY

OH THIS BASTARD DID *NOT* JUST MAKE A JOKE ABOUT PEOPLE SAYING HE’S MORE MEXICAN THAN QUACKITY

QUACKITY IF YOU MURDER HIM LIVE ON STREAM WE”LL ALL BE YOUR ALIBI, NONE OF US WILL TALK. RIP HIM A NEW ONE

Quackity forgives BUT I SURE DONT, IM GONNA START BITING

I’ll leave my commentary there for today since they wrapped up the lore, but mannn. That was. A lot.

We had Quackity accept he’s sad and misses Luzu, accept he had children with Luzu, and accepted he and Luzu were lovers. That was. SO MUCH TO TAKE IN.

But the biggest thing is he can’t kill Luzu. He asked Rubius to do it for him. I really didn’t expect that, and it says a LOT about them and their relationship (both Q and Rubius’ and Q and Luzu’s). Agh.

#i talk #karmaland talk #AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

[randomnameless]

“Sothis forbade trying to resurrect her!”

Indech :

Could you be the incarnation of Sothis? Interesting... Let's test your mettle!

By using the word incarnation, was Indech thinking Sothis would rez herself naturally, on her own, with time, with a different form? 

Or...

Seteth “Brother, Rhea made vessels to resurrect our mother! When she forbade us from doing it! We must scold her!”

Indech “ah? I don’t really give a fuck bro, I just want to have fun fighting with humans and with this thing that has Sothis’s powers.”

Seteth “GFDI why must I always be the brother who sermons? Can’t you do it for once?”

Indech *shrugs*

---

Macuil :

You have the stink of Sothis upon you... Let us find out whether you share her power.

Birdie knows Billy has the “stink” of Sothis - maybe her crest? - and wonders if they share her power. He assumes Billy isn’t Sothis, but something close to her. So what is Billy then? 

Shouldn’t he be horrified - or pissed - at them if they truly were the result of a “forbidden” experiment to resurrect their mom when she forbade it?

Seteth “Ah, Brother. See how Rhea disobeyed Mother by trying to resurrect her, resulting in this person? Even so, can you help us save her, so we will scold her together when this will be over?”

Macuil “Pff. Sothis stinks.”

Seteth “... Yes, but we will scold Rhea. Because what she did is wrong. Right?”

Macuil “I don’t care. I wonder if that thing is as strong as Sothis. But then it’s also part human, and I don’t like humans. And I told Rhea not to associate with those inferior beings, but she didn’t listen. She brought this upon herself.”

Seteth “Macuil, Mother said...”

Macuil “And I don’t care, she stinks. Hey, where’s Cethleann?”

---

So Seteth is the only one in the Nabatean family who goes “no Rhea you should not have done this it’s totally taboo and unethical and questionable you’re BaD poor Billy” when the other two don’t give a fuck about, Sothis’s apparent wishes not to be resurrected, Rhea trying to resurrect her, Billy being a construct and Billy in general, save for a “wow this will be a good match up I’m rusty!”.

So either Indech’n’Macuil don’t give a fuck about Sothis’s wishes and what Rhea was doing -

Or Sothis only told Cichol “btw don’t resurrect me if I die, I will leave you guys to  deal with the mole people who flattened the world!” when the other two were pestering Rhea with her kitties -

Or this line was only added because Seteth has to be S-support material for Billy, and with their “verse warping powers” Billy has to become, potentially, the closest person to Seteth, so Seteth has to join the “Rhea BaD” red herring/train to effectively cut his ties with his family to swap them by Billy (Flayn is the exception).

And by virtue of not being S-supportable by the player, Indech’n’Macuil escape this “warping”, not having to join the “Rhea BaD” train or pretend to give more figs about Byleth than “oh you have Sothis powers. Cool, what next?”.

Damn, typing this made me realise I’m glad Indech’n’Macuil are not playable in FE16, because they escape the compulsory character assassination needed to make them be able to S-support Billy.

NPCS are the best written characters in this game I swear

#Nabateans #Lizard family time? #playable macuil'n'birdie #hopefully it never happened #FE16 #It's odd how in FEH they chose to make Seteth focus on this part #when the rest of his brothers don't give a flying fuck in FE16 #is it because they're hopeless or because Seteth has to care about this #to join the red herring and ultimately feed Rhea's self worth issues #that can only be solved by the power of the avatar? #idk #but i realise more and more that player pandering completely demolished him too #Poor Seteth

[gingeraleluke]

𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲

𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀: vinnie hacker x fem!influencer!reader

𝘀𝘆𝗻𝗼𝗽𝘀𝗶𝘀: vinnie and y/n are crushing on each other, but too scared to make a move, so thomas has them share a trailer on the joshua tree trip.

𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀: swearing, ghosts, reader is on her period, michael and reader tease each other, and fluff!

𝗔/𝗡: here it is! the final installment of the hype house doc series <3 also, sorry if it’s not well written, i had the worst migraine while writing this 😩

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

“Y/N! HURRY UP!”

she paced the kitchen, stuffing things in her suitcase that was placed on the table. “i’m sorry, i’m not gonna be able to make it to my 1 o’clock appointment tomorrow. can i reschedule for thursday?”

“Y/N!” she could hear the crew call her name from the car in the driveway.

“HOLD ON!” she snapped, trying to finish the phone call. she zipped up the suitcase and propped it up, the phone held by her shoulder. “yeah, i can do 3.”

she accidentally missed the wheel, and kicked the bottom frame of the kitchen counter. wincing, she quickly said her thank you’s to the man on the phone and skipped outside.

the horns were honking and she was pretty sure that everyone was annoyed with her.

“HURRY THE FUCK UP!” vinnie yelled from the back seat of the car, not looking up from his phone.

“WILL YOU SHUT UP?! IM RIGHT HERE!” she tried not to trip over her sneakers as she put her suitcase in the trunk.

“crying out loud.” she muttered.

“there she is! the princess has arrived.” thomas joked.

“yeah, what the hell took you so long?” kouvr asked, her and the girl looked at one another through the window.

“i had to cancel my hair appointment for tomorrow because SOMEONE decided to tell me about the trip at the last minute.” she indirected thomas.

“sorry.”

“okay, well let’s go. get in!” alex chimes in.

y/n opened the car door that michael was leaning on, analyzing everyone in the vehicle. “where am i supposed to sit?”

“just-“ michael scootched over and let her squeeze in.

“thank you.” she slammed the car door, being sandwiched between it and michael. beside michael was alex and kouvr, while vinnie, calvin, connor, and patrick were behind her.

“let’s go!”

“why do i have to be squished, bro!” she could hear connor complaining behind her.

“you’re squished? look at me!” she stood up to see him, taking a short glance at vinnie who was looking at her, before playing it off and looking back at connor.

“yeah, you’re right.” calvin laughed at connors reply, and y/n turned and sat back down— silently wishing that she was beside vinnie instead.

her and vinnie were crushing on one another.

bad.

everyone knew about it, but they were both too nervous to do anything. the two had a small friends with benefits thing going— both of them making out if they were left alone for two long— but the next day, vinnie would act like nothing ever happened. he was sending y/n mixed signals and she couldn’t help but assume that his feelings for her were just attraction and nothing more.

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

“alright guys, i’m gonna be picking rooms soon.” thomas announced, making patrick stand up.

“what? you’re picking rooms?”

“i’m picking room.” he stated.

oh god.

y/n wasn’t sure who’s room she’d be sharing with, but vinnie kept popping into her mind. thomas knew about their feelings for one another, so they couldn’t help but worry about being paired together.

“thomas, i swear if you pair me up with michael..” y/n joked.

“oh PLEASE, THOMAS, DONT ROOM ME WITH HER! I WONT SURVIVE!”

“will you two shut up? you guys aren’t roomed together …yet.” he muttered under his breath.

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

“why’d you make that face?” michael asked the girl, wincing beside him. “are you constipated or something?”

“no, dickwad, i’m on my period.” y/n smacked him, whining again at the pain that flooded her pelvis.

“me too!” kouvr leaned over to see y/n, high-fiveing her. “oh, can we PLEASE have our own bathrooms? i refuse to be on my period and share a bathroom.”

“same.”

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

“i’m about to pee my pants, bro..” alex warned.

“sick, dude.” y/n remarked, scrolling through tiktoks on her phone with one airpod in.

“same!”

y/n’s heart fluttered when vinnie popped up on her explore page. she immediately scrolled away, somewhat embarrassed about it, like he would catch her watching him. thankfully, he was seated so that he wouldn’t be able to see, but she still didn’t want anyone else seeing.

was she overreacting? probably.

“alright, pee break!”

y/n got out of the car, careful not to fall. her baggy black jeans hung on her hips, the small rips showing her skin in the sunlight, and she adjusted the strap on her black lacy tank top, the most minimal amount of stomach showing.

“please tell me we are almost there…”

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

almost half of the bus had all fallen asleep. y/n knew michael was out, when his head hit her shoulder.

“what the—“ she was about to go off on him, when she noticed his sleepy state.

“psst.” she tried to signal to mia who sat in front of her.

mia turned around. “what?” when she saw michael asleep, she tried to contain her laughter, tapping thomas on the shoulder to get his attention.

when y/n turned around, she saw all of the boys behind her asleep— including vinnie. her heart did that weird fluttering feeling again when she saw how adorable he was. his sleepy state was the most precious thing she’d ever seen.

“kouvr is out too.” thomas whispered. they all took their phones out and began filming them.

y/n contemplated taking a picture of vinnie. he looked so cute but she didn’t want to seem stalkerish, so she decided against it.

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

“WE’RE HERE! EVERYBODY WAKE THE FUCK UP, ITS TIME TO PARTY BITCHES!” y/n shouted, standing up and shaking michael awake.

“MICHAEL, WAKE YOUR BITCH ASS UP!”

he groaned and swatted y/n away before she hopped out of the car and grabbed her stuff from the trunk.

once everyone was out of the car, they all raced to their trailers. y/n was the last one there, since she was busy eating a chocolate bar that she packed.

“bro, how is it that y/n was the first one out of the car, but she’s the last one to get here.” calvin joked.

“i’m eating.” she spoke, her mouthful of chocolate. she saw vinnie and kouvr’s amused expressions and smiled.

“where did you get that?” vinnie asked, walking up to her and shoving a hand in his pocket while the other hand held his bag.

“hey sleepyhead! i packed it, why?”

“i’m jealous.” he eyed her chocolate and grinned.

“you want some?”

“yes please.” vinnie held his hands out like he was a little boy, dropping his bag in the process. y/n breaked off half of the hershey’s bar and placed it in his hands.

“wait, seriously?!” his mouth dropped, seeing how much chocolate she gave him. she nodded, humming while she chewed.

“you’re the best, oh my god.” he took a bite of the chocolate before putting an arm around her and giving her a half-hug.

“can i have chocolate?” michael asked.

“no, fuck off.”

“but why does vinnie get chocolate!?” he whined, his voice reminding y/n of a middle schooler,

“because, i like vinnie.”

“oh trust me, we know.” michael spoke as he turned around and walked away.

y/n tried to fight the heat that crept up to her face and hoped that vinnie didn’t notice how flustered she was.

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

when y/n and vinnie found out that they were rooming together, they weren’t sure what to expect from the trailer they shared— but what they got was by far unexpected.

“what the—“

the trailer door opened and y/n was met with a bunch of lit candles, lined up in a row that trailed to a single bed with flower petals on it. not only was the room small, but the tv was extremely outdated compared to everyone else’s.

“um..”

vinnie couldn’t stop laughing, while y/n stood there in shock. “wow, one bed, huh?”

“yep.” thomas spoke, opening the door and walking outside of it. “have fun!” with that, he closed the door, leaving y/n and vinnie alone.

i’m gonna kill him…

they could hear the faint laughing of people, indicating that they all were in on the joke.

“well this is something…” y/n jumped on the bed, removing her sneakers and placing them on the floor. vinnie stood next to their luggage, leaning against the wall in amusement.

“they really want us together, huh?”

“it seems like it!”

“you gotta admit, it is nice not having cameras with us..”

“yeah, they’re all probably filming thomas and mia and whatever drama they have going on, which is definitely good for us.”

“yeah, we don’t have to worry about them.” vinnie smiled, fiddling with his hands.

he was awful with girls.

that’s what he’d do whenever he was alone with y/n— just stand there like a cpu and wait for her to say something— but y/n didn’t mind. as long as he was comfortable.

y/n grabbed the remote, flipping through the channels. “this tv is older than my grandma.”

“i’m gonna go get food, do you want some?”

“um, sure!“

“is pizza okay?”

“yeah, that’s fine. oh, and vinnie? you don’t have to stay here if you don’t want to…i mean, if you’d rather be with the guys—“

“no! no, i’m staying. trust me, i’d rather be with you right now.”

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

“nah, this is some bullshit because baron is with the guys watching fucking ratatouille and we don’t even have netflix! you’d think for filming a netflix documentary, that they’d give us netflix, right?!” she took a bit from her pizza, the two of them on the bed beside one another.

y/n was seated cris cross while vinnie had his legs out and his head up against the headboard. she went on nickelodeon and saw that airbender was on, deciding that it would do.

“i’ll sleep on the floor, by the way.” she randomly blurted out, making vinnie snap out of the show.

“what? why?”

“well, i mean, unless you want to share the bed—“

“i’m fine sharing the bed! but if you don’t want to…” vinnie was defensive.

“no, i do! i just wasn’t sure if you wanted to…”

“oh..well, i do.”

“okay.”

“okay.” vinnie mumbled, the tension becoming almost unbearable as the minutes passed. they were both surprised that they weren’t making out by now. y/n watched as vinnie took a swing of his drink.

“i hope you don’t mind, but i sleep naked—“

vinnie choked on his drink and fell into a coughing fit, y/n laughing at the sight. “are you okay?!”

vinnie’s face was red and he took deep breaths, nodding,

“i was just joking by the way…i just like seeing how riled up i can get you.”

“oh..phew.”

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.◦.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

“this place is so haunted.”

“vinnie, ghosts aren’t real.” the two of them had been listening to the weird footsteps that paced back and forth outside of their trailer.

“check again.” vinnie muttered.

y/n got up and peeked, seeing no one there. “nothing.”

“oh, god we are gonna die. there’s deadass a ghost, y/n.”

“vinnie, you are overreacting—“ as if on cue, two of the candles blew out. y/n’s mouth fell open and she quickly jumped under the covers with vinnie.

“okay maybe it is haunted…”

“this is so scary, what the fuck.” the two laughed, something they did when they were nervous.

“maybe the ghost is hot..”

“y/n—“

“no, really! maybe they look like chris evans—“

“oh god—“ vinnie groaned.

“or whatever girl you find attractive!” vinnie looked over at her, the two of them gone quiet for a brief moment.

“why do you always look at me like that?” y/n questioned, noticing how anxious vinnie became.

“like what?”

“like you wanna kiss me.”

“well…i do.” vinnie stated, gulping as he looked at her lips. his face inched closer to hers.

“wait, i-i don’t want to do this if you don’t mean it.”

“what do you mean?” he backed away, his brows furrowed.

“i need to know if it’s just attraction or if you actually like me. what do you want from this?”

vinnie’s lips pressed into a line. “well…i’d like it if we were exclusive, if that’s what you’re asking me.”

y/n couldn’t hide her smile. “so…you like like me?”

“yeah. do you like like me?”

y/n nodded her head vigorously. “can you um…hurry up and ask me out?”

“sure. so…y/n y/l/n, will you go out with me?” vinnie leaned in so their lips were almost touching,

“hmmmm….. i guess so.” wrapping her arms around his neck, she leaned in for their most passionate make out sesh ever.

the next morning, they woke up in one another’s arms and were met with the aftermath of the drama from last night. while everyone filled them in, they explained the ghosts they heard last night. the constant creaking and voices they heard, were scary, but being in one another’s arms made it a lot better.

while they were thankful for joshua tree bringing them together, y/n and vinnie never wanted to go back.

ever.

━━━━━━༻❁༺━━━━━━

@radioblah-blah @janesofia7 @sofslander @pisceslibrasun @jjmayba @littlewolfieposts @burn1ngw00d

#vinnie hacker #vinnie hacker x reader #hype house fic #vinnie hacker fluff #vinnie hacker imagines