I think something that is understated is that while the Reaper's Barge was THE traumatic event for Kaz, his tragic backstory didn't end there. He was literally a victim of child abuse. Like sure, he quickly worked his way up in the barrel, but he still lived on the streets and took more beatings by whole adults than he could probably count. Hell, he went to PRISON at age ten? Eleven?
It's something he never adresses because violence is something he quickly had to get accustomed to, it was "normal" to him, and he isn't shying away from talking about his tough upbringing in the Barrel the way he is from talking about what happened to him and Jordie, but I can imagine a forty year old Kaz who has settled down a bit and retreated from the Barrel life and has healed from his Reaper's Barge Trauma (thinking he's completely fine now) mention to a bunch of normie friends "Oh yeah, funny story, so when I was eleven, a group of guys gave me a good beating and then dunked me headfirst into the canal-" and they'd be like "They did WHAT?" and Kaz says "Why are you shocked lol the story hasn't even started yet", and they'd ask "How old WERE they?", and Kaz replies "Idk 30?? That's not the point of the story, it's funny, I swear, just LISTEN-"
And he doesn't understand why their expressions are so horrified and sympathetic after that
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may i humbly request a mistletoe kiss with rollo 🙏 hope youre having a happy holiday!!
following tradition
Rollo Flamme x reader
You can't help it, he has very kissable lips.
sorry for not finishing this in time for christmas day i wanted to do my reqs in chronological order BUT i also procrastinate too much. happy winter rollodays regardless !
"Do you know what we're standing under?"
You finally got to pull Rollo away from his duties to bring him into the room you prepared for this moment. This little activity wasn't going to take too long, but you're hoping he would just drop everything and spend the rest of the day with you.
Rollo looks up, and his eyes briefly widen a little before his expression softens. His gaze returns to you and he smiles slightly.
"A mistletoe," he says then gently cups your cheek.
You place your hand over Rollo's and lean in to nuzzle his warm palm. His cheeks slowly become dusted with a gentle pink up until his ears as he thinks of how to go with this. This isn't the first time you two have kissed, but something like this has to be special. He thinks that you surely wouldn't want this to be a quick one, but the prospect of something more passionate flusters him even more.
"You already know what to do, right?" You smile into his hand. "What? Of course I do," he answers and he practically gave away his tenseness to you. Rollo knows you're teasing him, as you always treat him like someone with no knowledge of these things.
He can prove to you that he can be intimate too. The both of you move at the same time when he places his other hand on your face with yours on his shoulders. You close your eyes and slowly lean into him. You start feeling the warmth of his face...
For no particular reason, you open them again slightly just to find your reflection in his. "You're going to kiss me with your eyes open?"
You feel his hands press against your cheeks, almost like he's squishing them. "You wouldn't have noticed in the first place if you didn't do the same."
It's not like you're mad about it, but you used to hear these kinds of things from others when your significant other doesn't close their eyes when they kiss, it meant they weren't trustworthy. You didn't actually believe in it, so who knows why you blurted it out when you two were already going to do it with no problem.
You trust Rollo, right? There shouldn't have been an issue, but you want to press it on to see what he'd say about it.
"Come on, close your eyes with me," you giggle lightly to help ease him in case he's taking it the wrong way. "Is there a rule about closing your eyes?" He asks you, and his voice is breathy, almost like a whisper from how close you two are. It makes your heart flutter.
You try to think of a reason from the top of your head, but you shouldn't have been particular about it at all. "It's because I want to see you," he adds on.
"Ah, Rollo..."
He lets out a gasp when you lean in and kiss his cheek. Rollo had such a sweet reason, so you feel a bit bad for making a small fuss over it. "I guess it's just something about sharing a vulnerable moment together. Can we try again?"
How can he say no to you with the way things are now? "Come here, my dear," he finally gives in and closes his eyes, and the two of you finally kiss.
You remember the first time you did this together in mid-Autumn when his nose had bumped into yours. Rollo must have learned by now with the way he slightly tilted his head to pair his lips together with yours like puzzle pieces. You wrap your arms around his neck and his other hand lets go to snake around your waist.
Maybe there really was a point in closing your eyes when you kiss someone you love. You can feel the way all your other senses are heightened and overwhelmed by his presence. Rollo gently massages your lips with his own, and you hold back the temptation to deepen the kiss with your tongue. He presses your body much closer to his with one arm alone, and you're reminded once more of his strength. You really don't want to let go so the two of you can stay as one forever, but you need to breathe as much as you need him.
He turns out to be the one to pull away first, followed by an audible gasp. Before he could say anything, you dive face-first into the crook of his neck, shutting your eyes and breathing deeply. You miss the chance to see how he looks after all that, but you can't get enough of the feeling of being enveloped in him.
It was silent between you two for a while as the both of you were catching your breaths like it was your first kiss all over again. "Hmm, what you said about closing one's eyes has some merits now that I've experienced it for myself," he laughs lightly to break the silence as he pats your head. Your arms lower and embrace around his waist while making a small noise in place of nodding.
"You're rather clingy now. Did I do well?"
"You did... I just don't want you to go so soon," you whine into his collar. Rollo pauses for a moment while absent-mindedly stroking your hair. It's the winter holidays, so there shouldn't be any need for him to continue working like normal. "Oh, alright. I suppose my tasks don't have to be done today..."
He can tell how happy that answer made you when your body became less tense in his arms.
"Can we do this under a mistletoe again next time?"
"We don't need a mistletoe just to kiss, my dear."
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