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alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

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one

Chapter 1 of I’ll Be Back Again To Stay

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x single mom!reader

Word Count: 2.8k

Warnings: parenthood/kids, if that isn’t your thing

Author’s Note: Santiago is quite literally not even mentioned in this chapter… I had to set it up, ok? He’ll be here, don’t worry

The blaring of your phone wakes you up: it seems like no matter which alarm sound you use, it always yanks you aggressively from your slumber. You can feel a chill, even through all of your blankets, and a glance through your curtain gap shows you snow falling, powdery and fat.

Reluctantly, you get out of bed and start your day. It’s earlier than you’d normally wake up, and you’re especially exhausted with how late you had to stay up packing, and then it was practically impossible for you to fall asleep with your brain running through all of the worst case scenarios.

A glance at your weather app tells you the flurries should be stopping within the hour, and you feel like you can breathe a little easier. The last thing you need right now is getting your flight delayed.

You hurry through your morning routine to pack up the rest of your toiletries, and then move on to packing up your carryon, crossing things off your list as you go. As soon as you feel decently prepared, you go wake up Inez.

In her five years of existence, Inez has never been one to wake up before she’s ready. She’d sleep in till noon if she feels like it, and if you wake her up a minute sooner, you’ll be dealing with a grumpy kindergartener. So, you know the only way she’ll get out of bed and ready to go is if you bribe her.

“C’mon, baby, we can’t be late to see Aunt Sydney.” It’s been at least five minutes, and she still has a death grip on her blankets, her head completely covered.

“She can wait.” You really were raising a stubborn little girl.

Most of the time, she was well behaved, but she always had a little bit of sass. During parent-teacher conferences, Inez’s kindergarten teacher had told you she was “a leader”, which really meant that she wouldn’t let the other kids tell her what to do.

Which was fine by you. All that mattered was that she listened to you and her teachers, and always used her manners. You know for a fact that there are other kids in that class that are far bossier than she is.

Now, though, she’s letting all that stubbornness shine through.

“I’ll let you pick out any donut you want at the airport. And watch movies on my phone.”

“Deal,” she responds, springing out of bed, making a grin bloom on your face.

She didn’t know that was your plan all along. Sometimes, she just needed to feel like she was making the rules, and that’s fine by you.

You help her brush her teeth and pick out her outfit, letting her get dressed while you pack up her toiletries, along with the stuffed animals she’s picked out. She can’t sleep without at least three, and when you left her unsupervised with the luggage last night, she had tried to stuff ten of them inside.

You do one last double check of all of your luggage, before bundling Inez up in her winter jacket. Naturally, she complained about it, so you told her she could take it off once you got to the airport. You already had a lighter jacket for her in your carryon, knowing she’d get cold as soon as you got to security and the suitcases were checked.

Still, she was a little pouty, and understandably so. You woke her up early to bustle her off to some place she’s never been. It’s her first time in an airplane, and she’s a little bit nervous, even though she claims she’s not.

But, surprisingly, the terrifying horse outside of the Denver airport seems to cheer her up.

“Momma! Look at that scary horsie!” Her face is all pressed up against the window, but she still has a giant grin on her face.

While Inez was mostly a pleasant kid, wrangling her and two large suitcases was nothing short of a miracle. Lucky for you, there was no line at the check-in desk, and the worker seemed charmed by all that Inez had to share, even giving her a sticker which she immediately stuck to the front of her t-shirt.

Someone out there must be looking out for you, because there was barely any line at security either. So far, the day has been smooth sailing. You just hope that Inez keeps her good mood and high spirits throughout the flight.

After making it through security, finding a donut for Inez, and figuring out where your gate was, you still had plenty of time before your flight. You shoot Sydney a text that says 30 minutes til boarding! and she quickly responds with a bunch of cheering emojis.

When you look up from your phone, you have to stifle a laugh at Inez, who somehow managed to smear frosting up onto her forehead, in addition to the ring around her mouth.

“Will Santa bring me presents at Auntie Syd’s house?” Inez asks you as you do your best to wipe all of the frosting off her face.

“Of course he will.”

“Good, because otherwise we should stay here.”

Inez absolutely adored Sydney, who had been your best friend all throughout college. She’s had your back through everything, all the ups and downs, she was your entire support system most of your pregnancy. She even lived with you for the first few months of Inez’s life, and the two of them continue to have a strong bond, even now that Syd lives in a different state.

Sydney had to move to North Carolina for work two years ago, and had always come back to spend the holidays with you and Inez, who Sydney lovingly called Squish, a nickname born only shortly after Inez, because she was such a chunky little baby.

This year, though, Syd had invited you and Inez to spend the holidays with her and her now long-term boyfriend, Will. You’d been hesitant at first, terrified of intruding and making what should be a happy time awkward, but Sydney had insisted and Will promised it would be no trouble at all.

You’d only met Will one time before, when he flew out with Sydney for Inez’s birthday back in May. He was a sweet guy and nothing short of a gentleman, indulging Inez in any game she wanted to play. He arm-wrestled with her and let her win every time, played tag and hide-and-go-seek with her, and let her hang off of him like a little spider monkey, all without complaint.

So you agreed to spend the holidays with them, along with a few extra weeks. It really was a win-win scenario: you were able to work from anywhere, and Inez was only in kindergarten, so she can miss more school without it being completely detrimental to her. And you get to spend time with one of your favorite people ever. So really, a win-win-win.

You don’t have a long time to get settled before they’re calling you for boarding, so you juggle Inez and your backpack and the tickets and make your way onto the plane. Everyone seems enthralled by Inez this morning, and you can’t help but smile at her interaction with the flight attendant that’s helping with boarding.

And she gets to add another airline sticker to her t-shirt.

Lucky for you, it’s not a full flight, so you and Inez get a whole row to yourself. She claims the window seat and demands you sit in the middle, so you oblige her, because her peace of mind is more important to you than how physically comfortable you are.

She looks out at the snow covered ground as the plane takes off, and then promptly forgets about the window for the rest of the flight. You’d been worried about her getting bored, so you packed her coloring books and crayons, picture books, even activity sheets you’d printed out.

But, it seems she had no interest in those or the movies you’d downloaded onto your phone for her. Instead, she cuddled up with Blob the Monkey, and then in some impressive contortionist impression, she practically sits herself in your lap and falls asleep with her head on your chest.

You’re glad you decided to throw your book into your carry-on at the last minute, because Inez is down for the count. You manage to reach it without jostling her around too much, and you thank your lucky stars that she doesn’t wake up.

You spend the rest of the flight reading and rubbing small circles onto Inez’s back, trying to keep her asleep for as long as possible. With waking her up early for a big travel day and the next few weeks being full of excitement, you knew she needed every second of sleep she could get.

Three hours later, the plane finally lands, and Inez wakes up from her nap. You’re amazed at the fact that she doesn’t have a single sore spot in her body from the way she was sleeping, and is more energetic than you’ve ever seen her.

You shoot Sydney a text to let her know that you’ve landed, and that you’ll probably be ready for her to pick you up in 45 minutes. You had told her that it would be just as easy to rent a car, but she had insisted on picking you up. You didn’t mind, because it was less work for you, but Sydney was almost always late.

You exit the plane, hanging onto Inez’s hand as tight as possible while you try to maneuver your way to baggage claim, where Sydney promised to meet you. You can tell Inez is getting antsy with the way she pulls against your hand. She’s so excited she’s practically vibrating.

And, to your surprise, Will and Sydney are waiting for you when you enter the baggage claim area. When she notices, Inez slips out of your hold and sprints over to them, right into Sydney’s arms.

While Sydney squeezes Inez as if she’ll never see her again, you pull Will into a hug of your own. You’d only met him the one other time, but he really was a great guy and you were just counting down the days until the two of them got married.

When they came to visit last time, you’d told them, “Better make it quick, Inez is at prime flower girl age.” You’d been joking, but not really.

Sydney was your family, and Will wouldn’t be a terrible addition.

Once Inez is released from Syd’s grip, you’re the one being pulled into a bone-crushing hug. Even though the two of you talk to each other every day, it’s really not the same as seeing each other in person. You’d take her crushing your ribs over not seeing her any day.

“I’m surprised you were here on time,” you say as the four of you make your way over to the baggage carousel, Inez seated on Will’s shoulders.

“That’s because of him,” Sydney responds, “I was going to keep you waiting.”

“Well, thank god for Will.” That earns you a chuckle from the man in question, who hauls Inez off his shoulders to pull your suitcases from the carousel, despite your insistence that you could do it. You really didn’t mind, you just didn’t want Will to feel like he had to help you.

But, from what Sydney told you, he likes to feel needed, to feel helpful, and if that means he hauls your heavy suitcases and carries around your daughter, you really don’t mind.

There’s a definite chill when you finally step outside to make your way to Sydney’s car, but it’s nowhere near as bad as back home, where it’s been regularly below freezing since Thanksgiving. Here, you definitely need a jacket, but it’s not so cold that you feel like you’ll get frostbite the second you step outside.

The drive back to Sydney’s house is relatively short, but still long enough for Inez to sing along to the holiday songs playing on the radio. You haven’t been to her house since you helped her move in two years ago, but it looks just as cozy as you remember it.

It’s two stories, and painted a deep navy on the outside, with a red door that Inez had demanded was included, to match your door back home. Syd, of course, indulged her.

When you enter, bags and Inez in tow, you take in all of the changes Sydney and Will have made since you last visited. It looks different, but it still feels like home.

And, the picture of you and Sydney with newborn Inez is still in the spot of honor on her mantle. If she sees you tear up when you spot it, she doesn’t mention it.

The holidays are always a highly emotional time, both for positive and negative feelings. And spending them alone, or practically alone, only amplifies that. So, you’re eternally grateful to Sydney and Will for inviting you to stay with them.

Logically, you know you aren’t an imposition, and that Syd has been itching to spend more time with you and Inez, but it still feels like they’ve made some sort of huge sacrifice in including you.

Really, it wasn’t as if you had any crazy holiday plans. Christmas Eve was going to be spent with Sydney while Will visits with his buddies, and then Christmas Day has you and Inez relaxing on your own when Syd and Will spend the day with his family.

So really, no sacrifices are being made, except of their guest bedroom.

Since they only have the one room with the one bed, you’re sharing with Inez, which wouldn’t be an issue if she wasn’t a sleep-kicker. You’ve ended up punched in the face more times than you can count.

After a simple lunch, you spend the rest of the afternoon unpacking and settling in, actually putting your clothes away in the closet and dresser, something you wouldn’t have done if you weren’t at your best friend's house and if you weren’t staying for almost a month.

The hours pass by with you and Sydney catching up, making up for all of the times that texting or FaceTime just weren’t enough. Inez and Will have more arm-wrestling matches than you can count. Honestly, you’re amazed at how well he interacts with her, possessing a patience you don’t often see outside of parents.

Following your quick dinner of delivery pizza, Inez is bathed and put to bed early to make up for the time difference and the early start to her day. And, luckily, she practically passes out as soon as her head hits the pillow, barely staying awake for the entirety of her bedtime story.

Now, you find yourself settled on the couch, wrapped in a cocoon of fuzzy blankets and warm lamp light, the cheesy Hallmark movie playing quietly on the TV only adding to the cozy atmosphere.

“So… we have something to ask you,” Sydney starts, breaking the almost silence that had naturally settled over the living room.

“Yes, I will be your maid of honor.” Your comment earns you an eye roll from Syd and a swift but gentle kick to your outstretched leg from Will. You can’t help but to fall into a fit of laughter.

There’s nothing you love more than teasing your best friend.

“Haha, you’re hilarious.” Syd deadpans before continuing, “No, we wanted to talk to you about Christmas.”

“What about it?”

Sydney shifts to sit up, swinging her legs off the couch to turn her body towards you. Will hunches forward, leaning his elbows on his knees and his chin in her hands. Their body language screams we know you won’t like this.

“So, every year, Will and his buddies and his little brother all do this casual Christmas Eve thing, and Frankie’s daughter’s almost the same age as Inez, and we just thought-“

“Syd, slow down,” you cut her off, sitting up from your relaxed position on the couch, “you really aren’t making a lot of sense.”

“Maybe we all go? I think you’d love ‘em, they’re great, really.”

“I’m sure they’re amazing, but I’ve never met them. Wouldn’t it be weird to spend a holiday with a group of guys I’ve never met before?” While it’s not unusual for Sydney to have some out of the box ideas, you truly weren’t expecting whatever this is.

“We could all do something before? And you could get to know them.”

“And if you’re still not comfortable, we won’t push it anymore.” Will, ever the calming presence, adds.

“Fine,” you sigh, even though you aren’t really upset. Sure, you’re a little confused as to why Sydney suddenly thought it was a great idea for you to meet Will’s friends, but you could tell she had some sort of ulterior motive.

Before you call it quits around 10 PM, you spend the rest of your night idly chatting and tuning in and out of the awfully cheesy made-for-TV movie that Will seemed to love. And, as you snuggled up underneath your covers, trying not to wake Inez, you wonder why Syd was so insistent on changing your Christmas Eve plans.

Tags: @disabledameron @itspdameronthings @campingwiththecharmings @loonymagizoologist @stevenngrant @andromeda-dear @welcometostayingawake @outmodead

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple frontier fanfiction #I’ll be back again to stay #tw: parenthood

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alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

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nine

Chapter 9 of I’ll Be Back Again To Stay

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x single mom!reader

Warnings: 18+!! cursing, smut - oral (f receiving), unprotected PiV

Word Count: 4.1k

Author’s Note: sorry if this is awful, I’ve literally never even been kissed before, so… any inaccuracies are not my fault

Just as you’d suspected, you wake up at nine AM with a pounding headache and a dry mouth. There’s nothing you want more than to curl back up under the covers and sleep for twelve more hours, but instead you pop some ibuprofen, get dressed, and go pick up Inez.

She tells you all about her night on your drive back, about the snacks she ate and the movie she watched and how she really wanted to stay up till midnight, but she fell asleep before. She talks about how she wishes she could stay with Grandma Ana again, and your heart breaks a little bit.

Your return home is fast approaching, even though you wish more than anything that you could extend your stay. Instead, you settle for starting to plan your summer trip, planning to stay for even longer because of how much Inez loves it. She loves Sydney and Will and her new best friend, you know she’d love getting to return in a few months.

When you get back to Syd’s house, Will is awake and brewing coffee, with Syd napping on the couch. Inez brings her overnight bag upstairs while you slump into a chair by the kitchen table, resting your head against your hands until Inez reappears. Will volunteers to make her breakfast, and you send him a smile in thanks while you continue to will your headache away.

You spend the rest of New Year’s Day lounging around, watching movies and eating junk food and cuddling with your daughter, when she isn’t sprawled on the floor playing with her new gifts. As much as you want to make the most of the limited time you have left before returning home, you needed a day just to be sluggish. Plus, you spent it with Syd and Will, a day well spent even if you didn’t go out and do anything extravagant.

It’s an early night for everyone, and despite just how exhausted you are, you can’t seem to fall asleep. You can’t stop yourself from rolling over again and again, tossing and turning and huffing in frustration when you can’t seem to get comfortable and slip off to sleep.

Eventually, you’re so fed up that you pull your phone from the charger and nestle under your blankets so the light won’t wake Inez. You spend a while just tapping through your apps and scrolling along social media, until you notice a message from Santi pop up on your screen.

Can we talk sometime tomorrow? At my place?

You’re not sure if it’s the late hour, lack of sleep, or the headache you can still feel pulsing behind your eyes, but you’re confused. What is there to talk about? You’re leaving in less than a week, it’s not as if you can have some intense, emotional conversation and reap the benefits of it.

If anything, the type of talk you're imagining is just going to make things worse, is only going to make leaving even harder for you. Still, you want to see Santiago, you want to spend as much time as possible with him, so you reply: just let me know the time, I’ll be there

With that message sent, you can finally feel sleep pulling at you, so you squirm your way out from under the covers, plug your phone back in, and almost immediately after, fall into a deep, dreamless, restful sleep.

The next morning, Inez wakes you when she tries to crawl over top of you to reach the door. You don’t understand why she didn’t just leave the bed and walk, but you scoop her up and bring her downstairs just the same. You’re the first two awake, so you attempt to quietly make her breakfast while she watches her cartoons at the lowest possible volume.

Despite this, Syd still groggily finds her way to the kitchen, where you hand her a coffee cup with an apologetic smile.

“Don’t worry, you didn’t wake me,” she says through a yawn.

“Hey, quick question,” you shout out to her, stopping her in her trek to join Inez in the living room, “could you watch Squish for a few hours today? And can I borrow your car?” You’re hoping and praying she doesn’t ask any questions, but knowing Sydney, that would never happen.

“Why?” She raises an eyebrow, “Does this have anything to do with a certain midnight kiss?”

“Yes- well, maybe. I dunno.” You close your eyes, take a breath before opening them again, “Please?”

“Of course,” she tells you, continuing to make her way to the couch, “but I’ll need details later.” You wave her off and continue to make breakfast for Inez, smiling as you hear bits and pieces of the quiet conversation coming from the living room.

A few hours later, you’re en route to Santi’s place, nothing more than a bundle of nerves. You’re wearing comfortable clothes, because you figured there was no real point in trying to impress him. No matter what it was that he wanted to talk about, in a little over a day you’d be halfway across the country again.

That’s the one thought rotating around and around in your mind: you have less than two days left here, and you don’t plan on wasting them. Between all the nerves, you’d been hyping yourself up, telling yourself that you’ll tell Santiago you love him, no matter what it is that he tells you.

All of that confidence is gone by the time you’re walking to Santi’s front door, fully replaced by anxiety. Still, you can’t help but smile at Toby’s excited barking when you knock on the door.

“Hey,” Santiago says, simultaneously opening the door and holding Toby back, “c’mon in.” You can practically feel the nerves radiating from him, but you step instead and shrug off your coat anyway.

The two of you just stand there, in his entryway, as his dog runs between the two of you until you squat down to pet him, breaking through the first layer of awkwardness.

“So,” Santi says as you stand up to your full height, watching as Toby scampers away.

“So…” you respond, trying to pull something more out of him. He’s the one that invited you here, he should be the one leading your conversation.

Still, you can’t help but notice how good he looks. He’s dressed casually, much like you are, and his curls are more askance than normal, as if he’s been running his hands through them. You can’t help but want to kiss him again.

He clears his throat, and then “Want a drink?” You nod, following him through his house and towards his kitchen, where he pours you both a drink before leaning his weight against the counter. You take a sip, hoping he’ll finally talk, but when he doesn’t, you can’t help but sigh.

“Santi, what am I doing here?” You ask, as gently as you can, setting your glass down onto the counter.

“I wanted to see you again, before you left.” Ironically, he’s not looking at you at all, his head cast down to admire the marbling of the counter.

“That’s it?” You pry, as gently as you can, because you can’t help but feel like there’s something he wants that he won’t tell you.

“I wanted to kiss you again,” he tells you, blushing slightly and laughing at himself.

You can’t help but grin, at how fucking cute he is, how endlessly charming. You start to get a little sad, at the fact that your departure is impending, at the fact that he hasn’t given you a reason to stay, not even for a few days more. It two days you’ll be gone and none of this will matter and know that you’ve been left to your own devices-

“Then come over here and kiss me.”

You’re more forward than you’ve been in your entire life, because, really, what do you have to lose? Your nerve? This surge of confidence? Nothing real is at stake here, except for one last chance for a few more moments with Santiago. You know nothing real can come of this, so why not take what you can get.

He takes a step towards you, and then another, until your back is pressing against the counter and his hands are settling at your waist. This time, there’s no hesitation, no pause before you collide, and suddenly the universe is just you and him, everything else has disappeared.

It feels less frantic than that first time, his tongue slipping against yours as if he’s trying to map the inside of your mouth, trying to commit you to memory. And yet, it feels so much more desperate than before, the way his hands are gripping and pawing at your sides, the way your fingers are winding and tugging against his curls.

Barely pulling back for air, he starts to maneuver the two of you backwards, avoiding chairs and walls and side tables on your way to the bedroom.

“It’s open this time,” Santi whispers against you as you cross the threshold into his bedroom, the kiss breaking again as you giggle. Santiago laughs too, his nose scrunching up and the sides of his eyes crinkling in the most gorgeous way possible, you want to commit him to memory.

Once you calm your giggles, Santi continues leading you towards his bed, pulling you along without breaking the kiss. You want to devour him, you want him to devour you. You can’t think of a single thing you want more in this moment than him, than all the things he could do to you.

Your insides are mush, your brain is goo, and your blood is coursing hot through your body, his touch seeming to light you on fire. He starts to gently peel off your sweatshirt, leaving you feeling much more exposed than you’d thought.

When it’s your turn, you're frantic, digging your fingers into the fabric of his shirt and tugging, yanking it free of his body before flinging it somewhere across his bedroom. Instantly, you settle your hands on his chest, delighting in the desperate thumbing of his heart beneath his ribs.

At this point, you’re sure you need him more than air, so you’re devastated when he pulls away, leaving mere inches between your lips and resting his questing hands on your shoulders.

“You’re sure this is ok?” He asks, giving you an opportunity to tug your top back on and walk out the door.

“100%” you tell him, because there isn’t a single thing that you want more.

With that assurance, he’s pushing you backwards until your feet hit the edge of the bed, causing you to sit back with an “oomph”. There’s a pause where he looks in your eyes, to make sure it’s a noise of surprise and not pain, and when he finds nothing but a surprised smile on your face, he continues on his mission.

His kisses move from your lips to your jaw, down the column of your neck. You feel his teeth nip against your flesh, and you’re left gasping for air, your eyes pressing shut because everything you’re feeling is too intense. Santi pulls back, worried that he’s hurt you or done something you didn’t like, but the already blissed out look on your face makes him sink his teeth into you again, this time at your collar bone.

He loves this, just getting to love on you for a while, all of his attention on you. Right now, you’re the center of his universe, nothing could possibly drag him away from you, not when he’s reaching behind your back to unclasp your bra, not when you’re helping him by tugging the straps off your shoulders and flinging it somewhere else.

Santiago pauses, just to admire you for a moment. With the feeling of his lips against your skin gone, you open your eyes again, and see the most beautiful sight in the world: Santi, seated on his knees between your spread legs, his lips pink and swollen and slick with spit, his pupils blown wide and his curls mused from your fingers. You want to sear this image into your mind forever, because he’s just that gorgeous.

He continues down your body, kissing and sucking and marking on your breasts until you're absolutely breathless, and he draws his trail of kisses down your abdomen, until he reaches the waistband of your leggings. He pauses, fingers inching underneath the fabric to grasp at your skin, and you’re nodding fervently, assisting by using your feet planted on the floor to raise to your hips as Santiago tugs the pants off of you, taking your underwear with him.

Here you are, completely bare and panting and strung out, on Santiago’s bed. He’s kneeling in front of you, between your legs, on those jacked-up knees of his, looking up at you as if you’ve created the whole entire universe. As if you are the whole entire universe.

“Please…” you plead, too far gone to be embarrassed about how goddamn desperate you sound. All you want is for him to touch you, wherever and however he wants: you just need to feel him. You feel like your skin is on fire, and his touch is the only cure, even if it makes you burn hotter.

You have no time to feel vulnerable, not about the fact that you’re sitting completely naked on Santi’s bed or how you just whined for him, because he’s squeezing your thighs before he gently pulls them apart, and then your elbows completely give out.

How are you expected to hold yourself up when he’s practically devouring you, somehow knowing exactly where and how you need to be touched. Your eyes are squeezing shut, because even staring up at his bare ceiling is too much stimulation, when all you want to focus on is the way that Santiago is pulling you apart with just his tongue, licking and sucking and leaving you dizzy.

And then, he’s taking one of those wonderfully thick fingers of his and gently prodding you open, making you wail as if someone had punched you in the stomach. He stops, retreats his hand and his mouth, but suddenly you're grabbing hold of his curls and pulling him back towards your cunt.

“Please, keep going,” you squeak out, amazed at how you’re still able to form words when all you can think about is how you feel like you’re floating away, Santiago’s strong grip on your hip the only thing keeping you anchored to the bed as he fucking devours you.

His gentle touch returns, inching inside and letting you adjust before you nod and plead for him to keep going, to add more, to do more, because as good as it feels you need more. A second finger joins the first before he crooks them gently, causing all of the air to rush out of your lungs.

Despite your iron grip on his hair, Santiago inches back, desperate to see you, to see how well you’re taking his fingers, to see how you pant and writh around, looking debauched and like the best thing he’s ever laid eyes on. He returns his attention to your clit, and you’re gone.

You’re convinced you’ve disappeared, floated away, because you can’t feel a thing. Stars are exploding behind your eyes and pleasure is exploding along your veins and you can’t feel a thing and it’s perfect.

Sure, you’ve gotten laid a handful of times in the past five years, and you know how to take care of yourself, but nothing has ever come close to this. Santiago hasn’t even fucked you yet and you’re already floating away.

“You good?” He asks from between your legs, planting gentle and slightly scratchy kisses on the inside of your thighs. You try not to pay attention to how slick his mouth looks, or how his tongue peeks out ever so often.

“Mhm,” you nod, and lighten your grip on his head. He stands, and winces, as if you’d be too far gone to notice his discomfort. You don’t say anything, but you promise yourself to get him an ice pack or heating pad later.

He makes his way up your body, until he plants the sweetest of kisses on your lips.

“That was… amazing,” you tell him in between kisses.

“Yeah?” He looks all too pleased with himself, but you’ll let it slide because of how cute he looks.

“Oh yeah.” You laugh, but then he’s pulling back even as you try and chase his lips, desperate to kiss him some more.

“I can do better,” and he’s gently grabbing your hips and pulling you towards the edge of the bed. He stops though, and waits for you to nod, to urge him on because even though you’ve just come, you need more.

Before you can blink, he’s spreading your thighs again, hushing you gently when you whine, high and needy, until you can feel him pressing against you. Your eyes are slammed shut, and Santiago pauses, hinging forward to gently run his palms up and down your sides, from the bottom of your ribs to your hips.

“Keep going,” you manage to whisper, and you feel him pressing deeper into you. Jesus fuck, you can feel him in your lungs and he’s still not flush against your hips and there’s more of him and he’s so fucking thick you think you’re losing your mind.

And then his hips are pressed right against yours, leaving you so fucking full you feel like you’re going to explode. Still, you wrap your legs around him, locking and squeezing your ankles together to keep Santi as close to you as possible.

He starts to pull back, barely an inch, before gently rocking inside you again, and you’ve fully transcended, there’s nothing left of you here. How can he barely move and still feel that fucking good? It’s unnatural and unbelievable and you need more.

You’re starting to think this was an awful idea because how can you ever leave now, when all you want, all you need, is Santiago? How are you ever supposed to be away from him, when you want to stay here forever? How are you-

He thrusts deeper, harder, and all thoughts are knocked from your brain, you can barely remember to breathe. You think you moan, and cry out his name, but you really have no idea if the sounds coming out of your mouth are coherent at all.

“Look at me,” his voice breaks through the fog, and it’s more of a plea than a command, “please, baby, look at me.” You manage to peel your eyes open, and you need to resist the urge to slam them shut again because what you see is going to hurtle you towards oblivion.

Santiago’s gripping your hips, hard enough that you’re almost positive you’ll bruise, and he’s filling you so perfectly and he’s looking at you with something like love. There’s not a single space in your body that isn’t full of him, you’re sure you can feel him in your stomach, in your throat.

His curls are falling in his face and his jaw is clenched and his grip tightens, and without any warning you’re clenching down on him and thrown into the supernova, pleasure exploding along your spine, lighting you on fire and leaving you raw.

“Where?” He chokes out, and the thought of being empty of him makes you want to cry, so you desperately grapple for his hands, to keep them pressed against you.

“Inside, please,” you’re amazed at the fact that you sound mostly coherent, but then Santi’s coming and he’s folding over and resting his head against your sternum, panting into your skin while you try to regain control of your senses.

You’re both sticky, skin tacky and sticking together, and you can feel his cum starting to leak out of you, and it should feel repulsive but you feel refreshed and rebooted and a little bit sad. So, you wrap your hands around Santi’s head and keep him pressed against you for a few moments longer.

“I’ll be right back,” Santiago says as he pulls away, and you’re too exhausted to protest, even as he slips out of you, leaving you feeling more empty than you’d expected. He’s only gone for a couple minutes, and when he returns it’s with a warm washcloth and a t-shirt.

He cleans you up as you lay there, muttering your thanks when he holds the shirt out to you. You slip it on, and he slips away, finding his own clothes and trekking to the kitchen to bring you some water. Somehow, you manage to inch your way up the bed until you’re reclining on the pillows.

You thank him when he returns with your water, settling onto the bed beside you. Exhaustion starts to settle deep within your bones, so you chug down the water and set the glass on his bedside table before wiggling yourself closer to Santi. After a moment, he wraps an arm around you, and before long he’s tracing shapes against the skin of your exposed thighs.

Despite how relaxed you feel, despite how sleep is pulling at you, you will yourself to stay awake because you know if you close your eyes, you’ll be here all night. And, as much as you’d love that, you need to go back to Syd’s, you need to start packing.

This was an awful idea, because now you want to stay forever. And, based on the way he holds you just a little bit tighter as the minutes pass, you think Santiago’s thinking the same thing.

“You should come visit,” you say, voice a little hoarse, breaking the thick silence that has settled over the two of you since Santi returned with the water.

“That sounds nice,” he responds before placing a kiss at the base of your skull. You have to will yourself not to cry, at the softness of it all, at the sadness of it all.

“Inez would like that too,” and you hope he’s understanding everything you’re not saying, that you want him more than you’ve ever wanted anything. You want him to be a part of your life, a part of your daughter’s life.

“I don’t know how to be a dad.” There’s a genuine despair in his voice, as if this is all he’s ever really wanted. And, if he’s honest with himself, it really is all he’s wanted since he came home: a wife, a kid, a dog. The picture perfect family, and now that it might be a possibility for him, it’s slipping out of reach.

Of course it is, because he has shit luck because he’s a shitty person. People like him don’t get to be with people like you, people like him don’t get to be happy. It’s the people like Frankie, like the Millers, that deserve to be happy. Santiago doesn’t deserve you.

“That’s alright,” you tell him as you squeeze his hand where it rests on your hip, “we can worry about that later.” Silence slips over you again, and neither of you want to break it. Breaking the silence means you’re going to leave, and neither of you want you to leave.

This was a mistake.

But in your experience, wonderful things can come from mistakes.

Sleeping with Inez’s father, months after the two of you had broken up, was a mistake. But it was a mistake that gave you your beautiful daughter, your favorite person in the world. Maybe, this mistake can bring you something just as wonderful.

Still, you know it’s time for you to leave. You have to start packing, you have to get back to Inez, and you know if you stay any longer you’ll never want to. You’re already finding it difficult to sit up, to put inches of space between you and Santiago, how are you going to feel when there are hundreds of miles between the two of you?

You forge ahead, gathering your discarded clothes and tugging them back on. After you pull your leggings on, you pause for a moment, hands on the hem of the t-shirt Santi had given you. As much as you want to keep it on, keep it forever, you pull it off and fold it gently, placing it on the edge of his bed after pulling on your sweatshirt.

Finally, Santiago gets up, pausing to stretch out his muscles before he walks you to the door.

“I…” the words seem stuck in his throat, his hand stuck on the doorknob, your heart breaking every second you spend here.

“I know,” you reply, because you do; you feel the exact same. Still, you kiss him softly, one last time, on your way out the door. “Bye, Santi.”

Tags: @zoriis @andr0medafallen @campingwiththecharmings @itspdameronthings @stevenngrant @loonymagizoologist @welcometostayingawake @outmodead @pakhiya @wand-erer5

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple fontier fanfic #smut #santiago garcia smut #triple frontier smut #i’ll be back again to stay

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alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

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epilogue

Chapter 11 of I’ll Be Back Again To Stay

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x single mom!reader

Warnings: none :)

Word Count: 2.2k

Author’s Note: here it is!! The end of the story!! First, I want to say thank you to everyone who read, commented, reblogged, and enjoyed this <3 you all deserve the world. Second, if anybody’s interested, I am always open to writing little fics or headcannons about these two idiots and the in-between moments <3

Santiago makes good on his promise to visit. He comes for the first time in February, and swears up and down that he didn’t even realize Valentine’s Day fell during his visit. He only stays for a few days, but it’s wonderful just to spend time with him, to take Inez out somewhere during the day and then spend the evenings together.

It’s perfect, and you get a little bit heartbroken when he has to leave. You loved all of the time you were able to spend with Santi, just the two of you, but you might have loved watching him and Inez bond even more. You’re never going to forget how big she smiled when the two of you came to pick her up from school, and how she never wanted to be away from him during his visit.

For someone who claims he could never be a father, it seems like the most natural thing to him.

You see him again in March, when you and Inez fly out to spend her spring break in North Carolina. This time, you drive out to the beach and get ice cream and get a rental car. You stay with Santiago, and even though Syd had pouted when you told her, you could tell she was secretly very happy that all her meddling and not-so-subtle pushes had worked.

Santi ends up flying out to see you about once a month, even though you text and call and FaceTime almost every day. Once, Inez had begged for him to bring Toby, so he drove the 23 hours, just so your daughter could see his dog.

It’s over the summer that you finally make the decision to move out to join all of your friends. There wasn’t anything keeping you in Denver, there was no reason for you to stay, and Inez seemed delighted at the idea of getting to see her best friend every day.

You’d complained to Santi about not being able to find a house near everyone, late one night during one of his visits.

“Just stay with me,” he says, as if it’s the most obvious idea on the planet.

“What?”

“At least until you find a place,” he’s backtracking, taking your surprise for repulsion, when really, you just weren’t sure that was something he had wanted.

The two of you never really made it clear what you were to each other. You knew you both cared about each other, that you wanted to spend time together and be near each other, but labels had seemed so unimportant. This was a big step, but it was one you felt ready to take.

“You sure? A six year old and a dog?” You ask, smiling as Santi rolls his eyes at you.

“They can occupy each other,” and you laugh, rough patch and hurt feelings carefully avoided. There were always a few moments when things felt like they could take a rocky turn, like you and Santiago really weren’t meant to be together, but you always navigated them carefully, side by side until things turned around.

All of your friends come out to help you pack and move - thank god for the Miller brothers. Santi has the whole operation under wraps; all you had to do was tell him what you wanted done, and he and the boys would do it with military precision.

Everything was running so smoothly you barely did anything, spending most of the days they spent packing up furniture and placing boxes in trucks showing Sofia and Maria around town with Inez, staying out of the guys’ way while they did all the hard work.

Benny had volunteered to drive the moving truck to your new home while you, Santi, and Inez drove in your car with some of the smaller boxes and suitcases full of what you’d need immediately, like toiletries and spare clothes and pajamas. You were just as excited as Inez, though you weren’t bouncing up and down the entire car trip.

It takes some time to get settled in, to create a new routine with Santi and Inez and Toby, but everything fit together perfectly once you get the hang of it. You loved watching Santiago with your daughter, how wonderful he was with her, the way he’d sling her pink, sparkly backpack across his shoulders whenever he’d come with you to pick her up from school and walk her safely through the parking lot.

Winter arrives, and Christmas comes with it, and you’re happier than you’ve ever been.

This year, you get to kiss Santi whenever you see him, sit next to him and hold his hand or cuddle into his side when he slings an arm around your shoulder. Santi’s a sap, and even though the guys don’t say anything because he’s happier than he’s ever been, they can’t help but roll their eyes and smile whenever his eyes track you across the room with a reverent look.

Over the past few months, Inez has taken to calling Santi ‘dad’, and you’d been terrified the first time it happened, but Santiago didn’t do anything but smile wider than you’ve ever seen him and answer the question she was asking. Now, she calls for her dad as often as she can. It’s a novel word for both of them, and his eyes light up every single time.

Christmas Eve is spent at the Morales’s again - Sofia is pregnant with their second baby and decided that she didn’t want to leave the house. Maria is over the moon about being a big sister, and keeps telling everyone who will listen about all of the fun things she’s going to do with her little sibling.

Everything seems so much brighter than last Christmas. You and Santi are finally together, Sofia is having another baby, and Will and Sydney finally got engaged. It seems as if everything yet nothing has changed, as if this is the way it was always meant to be.

The evening passes in similar fashion to last year, with dinner and gifts and restless children, except now, Santiago helps you haul Inez’s gifts to the car and drives you all home. He helps Inez set up cookies for Santa and the three of you cuddle on the couch until your daughter passes out, curled up between the two of you.

As expected, Inez comes bounding into your room at the crack of dawn, jumping onto the bed to wake you and Santi. It takes a few minutes to gather your senses, but soon enough you’re all downstairs, watching as Inez tears at the gifts under the tree.

“Did you like all the presents from Santa?” You ask her as she climbs onto your lap while Santiago starts breakfast.

“Yeah, except I didn’t get a little sister, but that’s okay because toys are probably better.”

She moves on pretty quickly, hopping off the couch and back onto the floor to play with her toys. She doesn’t bring up wanting to be a big sister until March, when Luna Morales is born and Maria becomes a big sister. Both of the girls are obsessed with the baby, spending hours just sitting and watching her, interspersed with begging Sofia to know when she’ll be big enough to play with.

It seems like with the new addition to the group, everyone gets baby fever. Sydney had mentioned to you that she’s ready to start trying, because watching Inez grow up and meeting little Luna has only increased her desire to be a mom, even after Luna spit up on her. If Benny’s around, he’s got Luna in his arms more often than not, even though he’s perfectly content with staying as Uncle Benny for a little while longer.

You’ve never seen Santiago look at something with as much longing as he looks at sweet baby Luna. He’d been terrified to hold her, just as Sofia told you he was scared to hold Maria, but he always cradles her in the softest of ways, looks down and cooes at the big brown eyes she’d inherited from his best friend. He’d mentioned it a few times in passing, how maybe he wouldn’t be an awful father to a baby, but he’s yet to outright ask if you wanted to start trying.

The spring is spent with lots of play dates at the Morales house, so Inez can keep Maria busy and you can watch over Luna while Sofia showers and naps and does whatever she needs to do. And, if you’re being honest with yourself, you’ve gotten a little bit of baby fever too.

You love Inez more than words can say, and you wouldn’t change a single thing about her, not even raising her alone, but it would be nice to have someone by your side throughout the whole pregnancy, someone to be there for all the milestones. Sure, the first time you had Syd, and you’re eternally grateful for her, but you can’t imagine how different it would be to go through all that with the other person who’s going to raise your baby.

You want to have a baby with Santiago.

Before you broach that topic with him, though, the two of you get married, going down to the courthouse in late June with your friends as witnesses. And, while you’re there, Santi officially adopts Inez, and you don’t think you’ve ever been happier.

The reception is in your backyard, with food from a local restaurant and drinks spread out in coolers along the back porch. The kids run around with Toby while the adults take turns holding Luna so her parents can eat and have a few minutes to relax. It’s casual and simple and absolutely perfect.

You and Santiago finally have a talk about having children together, and by next Christmas, you’re the one pulling the pregnant card and making everyone come to your house. Inez is absolutely over the moon, chattering on and on about how she’ll finally have someone besides Toby to play with.

It seems like your happiness is only growing, with every Christmas somehow better than the last. There’s no fighting, no drama, no snarky comments, just genuine love and appreciation for the people you’re surrounded with. There’s not a day that goes by where you aren’t beyond grateful for the family you’ve made and for the bigger family you’ve found.

And, in March, the newest member of that family arrived.

The group had been divided over whether it would be a boy or a girl, even though it hadn’t mattered to you as long as they were happy. Still, Benny had to slip Will a twenty dollar bill when you revealed that you’d be having a baby girl.

Little Augustine Elena Garcia is born, with her father’s eyes and your smile, the same one inherited by Inez. You’d been worried, terrified, that she would feel replaced when the baby arrived, but it seems like every second she’s home, Inez is with Augustine, even if she just sits next to you or Santi as you hold her.

If you thought it was wonderful to see Santi with Inez, you’re blown away by the sight of him cradling your baby girl. He's amazing, the most supportive partner you could ever ask for. He does whatever you need him too, and still makes sure to spend special time with Inez, like playing with stuffies together or going to get ice cream, so she remembers that he always loves her.

As Augustine gets a little older, Santi takes to wearing her on his chest as he moves around the house, folding laundry or doing the dishes, sometimes strapping her to his chest while he takes Toby for a walk so he doesn’t need to worry about dealing with the stroller.

He just loves to be close to her. You can’t even count the times you’ve walked into the living room and seen Auggie asleep on his chest, Santiago passed out beneath her.

You host Christmas again, and Santiago spends most of the day with Augustine strapped to his chest. She’s a total daddy’s girl, and you’d feel a little jealous if it weren’t so adorable. Both of your girls love to be with Santi, and he loves spending time with them just as much.

As you sit around, waiting for everyone to open their gifts with Auggie in your arms and Inez nestled between you and Santiago, you can’t help but think about how much everything has changed in the last four Christmases.

You’d met everyone as a single mom to a kindergartener, feeling like you’d never meet someone you want to spend the rest of your life with. Now, Inez is eight years old, you have another daughter, and you’re married to your favorite person in the world.

This was never the life you grew up dreaming about; the husband and dog and white picket fence, two and a half kids and a nine-to-five, the whole suburban dream. You were never aching for a husband, and you hadn’t thought much about kids until you had Inez.

You did things a little differently, a little unconventionally, but you wouldn’t change a thing. Even if this wasn’t the life you grew up dreaming about, you’d never been happier and you don’t think it’s possible for you to become any happier.

Everything always works out the way it should, and the universe works in mysterious ways. Still, you wouldn’t change a goddamn thing about your life, not when you’re surrounded by your favorite people, by your daughters, by the love of your life.

You feel complete, and nothing could ever top that.

Tags: @zoriis @andr0medafallen @campingwiththecharmings @itspdameronthings @stevenngrant @loonymagizoologist @welcometostayingawake @outmodead @pakhiya @wand-erer5

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple fontier fanfic #i’ll be back again to stay

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alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

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two

Chapter 2 of I’ll Be Back Again To Stay

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x single mom!reader

Word Count: 3.3k

Warnings: none

Author’s Note: here he is (finally)

When you wake up, it’s with Inez’s arm slung across your face and the sun rising steadily in the sky. You somehow manage to extract yourself from Inez without waking her, silently celebrating as you make your way to the bathroom.

You go through your morning routine as quickly and quietly as possible, before slowly inching the bathroom door open. You aren’t as successful this time, and you wince as the door creaks before you see Inez’s little face scrunch up as she slowly wakes, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

“G’morning,” she greets you, with a grumpy little scowl on her face, as if you woke her up on purpose.

“Good morning to you too, sunshine.” This makes her tiny scowl grow on her face as she hauls herself out of bed, pushing her way around you and into the bathroom.

“I’ll be downstairs,” you call through the shut door, and shake your head at the grunt she gives you in response.

Will and Sydney are apparently both morning people, because they’re already wide awake and working on breakfast when you make your way into the kitchen.

“Is Squish still asleep?” Syd asks as she slides you a cup of coffee as you lean against the countertop.

“Just woke up, she should be down in a minute,” you respond before thanking her.

As if on cue, Inez stomps her way down the stairs, sounding more like a herd of elephants than a little girl. She still has the grumpy pout on her face, as if the world has inconvenienced her simply by it being morning.

“Good morning,” Sydney chirps, and when she gets nothing but a grunt in response, she adds, “Will’s making you waffles.” You laugh into your coffee as Inez instantly perks up.

Will sets her plate down in front of her with a flourish, along with some apple juice and syrup, which always ends up all over her face and hands.

The morning is leisurely, but Inez is dressed before lunchtime, so it’s a win in your book. And, you’re on vacation, you’re allowed to sit around with your best friend and chat and cackle-laugh as much as you’d like.

In the afternoon, you and Inez run errands with Sydney, picking up some essential and non-essential items, like groceries and matching pajamas for her and Will.

They really are an adorable couple, it’s so easy to see how much they care about each other. You’d been worried when she moved away that she’d be lonely and miserable, all alone in a brand new place. Because, yes, she is your best friend, but you still had tons of people you knew in Colorado, and she was moving to a new state halfway across the country.

But then she’d found Will, and you’ve never been happier for her. He’d do anything for her, and she’s completely head over heels. You just love seeing her so happy all of the time.

“We’re all going ice skating tomorrow,” Sydney announces when you’re back in the car, on the way home. Inez cheers from the back seat as you shake your head.

“With Will’s friends?”

“Oh, c’mon, just give ‘em a chance.”

“I will, I’m just not promising to spend Christmas Eve with them.”

“And that’s fine… as long as you try,” she spares you a glance and a wink, and you just shake your head again.

When you return home, Inez insists on helping cook dinner. She also insists on not using any utensils.

You’re enjoying the show with a glass of wine in hand when there’s a knock at the door.

“Be a babe and get that for me?” Syd asks, exasperated and up to her elbows in salad dressing.

You open the front door to reveal a man with frighteningly familiar blue eyes and broad shoulders. His hair is a touch lighter, and a tad longer.

“You must be the brother,” you say, and the man on the front porch gives you an award winning grin.

“You must be the best friend.” You step back and he steps forward, toeing off his boots as you shut the door. “I’m Benny.”

He holds out his hand, which you shake as you introduce yourself. Just from the few moments you’ve seen him, you can tell that his similarities with Will start and end at their looks. You’re sure he’s just as much of a gentleman, but you can see that he’s bold and outspoken when Will is calm and reserved.

“Your brother’s out back,” Sydney states as soon as the two of you step into the kitchen, nodding her head towards the window, where you could see Will busy stringing up lights around the house. He’d already set up the lawn decor you’d picked out earlier on your shopping trip.

“Staying for dinner?” Sydney calls after Benny as he heads back to the front hall to slip on his boots.

“If you’ll let me,” he shouts back, and once she confirms that yes, he’s allowed to stay for dinner, he’s out the door and heading towards the back yard to help Will.

“See, isn’t he nice?” You love Sydney, you really do, but she's definitely not subtle.

“You can’t be serious,” you deadpan, helping Inez wash her hands at the kitchen sink.

“I’m kidding,” she raises her hands as if trying to calm a startled horse, “just wait until tomorrow.”

You had a feeling she was planning to set you up with one of Will’s friends, but god, you were hoping you were wrong.

You were sure they were nice enough guys, and might even be attractive. But you couldn’t fall for somebody on a vacation, with your five year old daughter, in a state halfway across the country. That’s just a disaster waiting to happen.

And you aren’t even sure if you’re ready to date yet. The last time you really, truly dated someone was Inez’s father, six years ago. Sure, there’d been a few dates and one-night-stands since then, but you’d never actually dated someone since before Inez was born.

It’s just been you and Inez, or you and Inez and Sydney, for the longest time, and you can’t imagine what it would be like to add another person to that equation.

While dinner cooks and Inez plops herself in front of the TV to watch the show you’d put on for her, Sydney tells you more about Benny. He’s a few years younger than Will, and they were on Delta Force together. Now, though, he’s a professional MMA fighter and teaches self defense at a local gym.

The more time you spend around him, the more you can see all of the differences between him and Will. He’s every ounce the younger brother, rowdy and a bit of a showboat, but he’s a sweetheart. He’s willing to carry Inez around with one arm, and she thinks it’s the coolest thing.

That’s really the best way to test out new people: how they interact with Inez. Some people, like Will and Benny, jump right in and do whatever she asks of them, dignity be damned. Most people are polite enough to engage with her, happily indulging her many senseless questions.

And there are a select few who are outright rude to her, ignore her questions and talking down to her as if she was an animal instead of a curious child. It’s really the best way to find out if someone’s an asshole: because even nice people who hate kids are nice to kids.

But, it seems that Benny and Will both absolutely adore Inez, and are willing to go along with whatever plans she concocts and let her use them as a human jungle gym.

According to Sydney, they spend a lot of time babysitting for their buddy Frankie’s daughter, who’s only a few months older than Inez, so they have plenty of experience with headstrong little girls. And it doesn’t hurt that they’re both complete gentlemen, through and through.

Sure, you can’t even count the number of times Benny has put Will into a headlock in the two hours he’s been over, but that’s just boys being boys. You also can’t begin to count the amount of times he’s offered to help in the kitchen, and been completely genuine about it. Sydney had to practically pull him away from doing the dishes.

Maybe, if they really didn’t mind, it wouldn’t be completely horrendous to spend Christmas Eve with them.

After dinner, you practically had to drag Inez away from her ongoing arm-wrestling match with Benny so she could take her bath. But, luckily for you, he seemed to completely tire her out, if the way she was nodding off on the couch during the movie Syd had turned on was any indication.

After tucking her in and making sure she was asleep, you head back downstairs to play cards, drink, and talk. You’ve only known Benny for less than half of a day, but you already feel comfortable around him, laughing and joking like old friends. There was just something about him that made you feel completely at ease, the way you felt around Sydney.

It’s far past midnight when he leaves, and it’s a miracle that you don’t wake Inez up when you slip into the bathroom to get ready for bed or when you settle in beside her.

Though, at some point, you get woken up with a knee to your stomach, jolted awake before the sun is even up. As gently as you can, you roll her away from your side of the bed, trying to protect yourself from any more tiny flying fists or feet.

The next morning, Inez is the one waking you up, with a not-so-gentle shake to your shoulder and an anything but quiet whisper.

“Momma, wake up!” You keep your eyes closed tightly against the morning light filtering in through the curtain. “It’s ice skating time!”

“Not until after lunch,” you remind her, sitting up and setting her down onto the bed next to you. She either doesn’t hear you or doesn’t care, because in the blink of an eye, she’s skipping downstairs and when you finally join her, she’s talking Will’s ear off about ice skating.

Will tells her the same thing you did, but she’s still buzzing with excitement. You can’t help but smile at all of her childlike wonder, just watching her is like experiencing life again for the first time. The amount of joy you get from watching her learn and grow and explore is immeasurable.

You spend the morning lounging around, listening intently while Inez tells you all about the gifts she wants while she lays on the living room rug, playing with some Legos. She practically races to the table when Sydney announces that lunch is ready, and you’re almost worried she’ll choke, based on how fast she eats.

Inez was not pleased to be bundled up again, pouting as you tugged a hat onto her head.

“But you said it was warm here,” she huffs, crossing her arms across her chest.

“No, I said it was warmer than back home,” you respond, helping her pull on her shoes, “plus, if you don’t wear your hat, your ears’ll fall off.”

“No they won’t,” she giggles, and you have to tamp down a smile.

“How about you keep your hat on and we don’t have to find out?” She nods, and you finish putting on your outerwear before heading to the car, where Sydney and Will are already waiting.

Inez is practically buzzing with excitement the whole way there, while you’re worried about her slipping and falling. And, not that you’d tell anyone, you’re also pretty worried about meeting Will’s friends.

They’d given you a rundown of everyone last night after Benny left: Frankie and his wife, Sofia, and their daughter Maria, and Santiago. The only thing calming your nerves is the fact that if they’re anything like Benny, you’re sure today will go great, and then Syd can stop bothering you about Christmas Eve.

When you pull into the parking lot, it looks like you’re the first of your group to arrive, and you have to pick Inez up and hold her so she doesn’t run off towards the rink while you wait for everyone else.

“Here they are,” Will says, and you turn and see a pickup truck pulling into the parking lot, dangerously close to Will’s car.

And then you see Benny hop out of the driver’s seat, and it all makes sense.

Benny comes over to greet you, but you’re too distracted by the person sliding out of the passenger’s door to pay much attention. He’s a bit shorter than Benny and Will, with a baseball cap settled over his curls despite the cloudy sky. You’d go out on a limb and say he’s the most gorgeous person you’ve ever seen.

Even from a distance, you can see his sharp jawline and the curve of his nose, dark eyes pulling you in even from across the parking lot.

“I told you,” you hear a sing-song voice from behind you, and you practically jump out of your skin.

“Christ, Syd, I didn’t even hear you walk over,” you turn away from the man who’s walking towards the group now, “and you didn’t tell me shit.”

“Frank was right behind us,” the man, Santiago, says as he pats Will on the back in greeting. That’s when you notice a minivan pulling into the spot next to Benny’s truck, and you set Inez back on the ground as Frankie and his family walk towards the group.

After everyone gets properly introduced, you head over to the small building selling tickets and renting out skates. It’s nearly impossible to get Inez to sit still long enough to lace her skates up with the way she’s squirming with her excitement. Once everyone’s ready, you slowly make your way over to the rink, holding onto Inez with one hand and the wall with the other.

Growing up, you’d always gone ice skating once or twice a year during the winter, either with your family or your friends. That tradition had fizzled out during high school, when everyone’s conflicting schedules made it beyond difficult to get together long enough to do anything.

Although, it seems like your body remembers the basics of skating, even if you feel a bit like a newborn deer. Inez, on the other hand, gets the hang of it quickly, gliding around the small rink on her own as you trail behind.

But, in your opinion, nothing is funnier than watching four ex-military men try and ice skate. It’s mainly just stumbling and cursing, and when one falls, he pulls the rest down with him. Sydney and Sofia seem used to the antics by now, dismissing them with a shake of their heads.

Santiago is the first to tap out, grumbling about his knees as he stumbles away from the ring. Frankie follows soon after, but not before he makes sure Sofia can handle Maria as she zooms around with Inez.

You’re beyond happy that they’ve become friends so quickly: you know that Inez loves Sydney and Will, but you’d been worried about her only spending time with adults for three weeks straight. Luckily, her and Maria are getting on like a house on fire, and you’ve already made plans to get them together soon with Sofia.

Once your time limit is up, you all regroup at one of the picnic tables. You had to practically drag Inez off the ice, but the hot chocolate in her hands seems to have wiped the pout off of her face.

Will makes sure that everyone knows where the restaurant is, and then you’re returning your skates and heading out. Inez can’t stop raving about how much fun she had, so you promise to sign her up for lessons when you get home. You know that’ll last two weeks maximum, but she seemed to have fun.

When you arrive at the restaurant, a local pizza place, you can tell the food is going to be great: all the tables have a red and white checked table cloth and there’s a steady buzz from the conversations happening all around the room.

Somehow, you find yourself seated next to Santiago, and when you glance around the table and see Syd wink at you, you’re fairly certain you knew who was pulling the strings.

You send a scowl her way, but it’s not like you really mind. Santiago’s nice, if a bit reserved and brooding. And, he looks like he’s been carved from granite, like tracing your finger along his jaw would make you bleed. He also has a sweet smile and a boisterous laugh that you could get addicted to.

But it’s not like you care.

Really, what kind of person would you be if you fawned over every attractive man you met? Though, you can’t help the feeling that settles into your chest whenever he looks over at you and smiles or laughs at one of your jokes or humors Inez in all her nonsensical questions.

But that’s just a natural response, you tell yourself, and you plan on telling Sydney the same thing when she questions you later in a not-so-sly way, because you can tell from the way she tried to subtly watch you that she plans on teasing and questioning you all night long.

You’d been nervous about today, meeting and inserting yourself into such a close-knit group, but they’re all great, and they all put in the effort to include you and make sure you aren’t feeling left out or awkward. Though, it’s hard to have whole group conversations with such a large party, seated at such a large table.

You have Santiago to your right and Inez to your left with Sydney across from you, but she’s doing a great job at pretending to be invested in other conversations whenever you try to talk. You see right through her antics, but you’re starting to find that you don’t mind them much.

The man sitting next to you gives you plenty of things to think about.

The conversation flows easily between the two of you: it doesn’t feel forced at all. Still, you can tell he’s holding something back, keeping himself under tight guard. You can’t help but wonder what he’s keeping to himself.

The hours pass by quickly, you don’t even notice the time until you feel Inez’s head lull against your shoulder. Glancing around the table, you can barely see Maria’s head from where she’s laying in her mother’s lap.

“It might be time to hit the road,” you say, finishing off your drink and checking the time again.

Stretching his arms above his head, Santi adds, “It’s past my bedtime,” sending a wave of laughter around the table.

You all gather up your things and leave a generous tip on the table before heading out to the parking lot to say your goodbyes. You start to head over to Will’s car, Inez bundled in your arms, after setting up a playdate for Maria and Inez within the week, when you feel a hand gently grasp your arm.

Santiago’s waiting for you with a sheepish look on his face when you turn around.

“Wanna give me your number?” He cringes as soon as the words leave his mouth, and you can’t help the small laugh that escapes you. “I’d be happy to drive you and Shortstack around if Syd and Will aren’t.”

“That sounds great.” You hope your smile and the way you eagerly rattle off your number to him conveys that sentiment without you seeming desperate or crazy. He repeats your number back, and when you confirm it, his bashful smile makes your heart constrict.

He sends you a text, just to make sure he has the right number, and you can hear it ring from where it’s stashed in your coat pocket.

“I’ll see you around?” Either he sounds hopeful, or it’s late and you're imagining things.

“I’ll see you around,” you confirm before heading back to Will’s car and settling Inez into her car seat. The universe must be on your side today because she doesn’t stir once.

Tags: @disabledameron @itspdameronthings @campingwiththecharmings @loonymagizoologist @stevenngrant @andromeda-dear @welcometostayingawake @outmodead @pakhiya

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple fontier fanfic #I’ll be back again to stay

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alwritey-aphrodite · 11 months

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Hey!!

Can I please number 21 fresh cut grass with either Frankie or Santiago please

2023 Summer Blurbs

Santiago was a caretaker: anything he could do to help one of the people he loves, he’d do it. It didn’t matter if it made his back hurt or his knees ache, if one of the people he cares about needs something, he’ll be damned if he doesn’t try.

That’s why he’s outside in 90 degree weather and trying to start his ancient lawn mower, and you’re inside making lemonade in the air conditioned kitchen.

You didn’t even ask Santi if he’d mow the lawn, he just knew how much you hated it and noticed that the grass was getting a little long. He wouldn’t even listen when you said it’s too hot, when you asked him if he’d wait until tomorrow when it wouldn’t be the same temperature as the sun.

But Santi being Santi, he pulled on some work clothes and kissed you on the forehead before going out to deal with the lawn. Earlier in the year, when it had first started getting warmer, you’d tried to convince him to splurge on a riding lawnmower, something that’d be easier on his knees, but he’d refused, claiming the lawnmower you have now works perfectly fine.

You wonder if he’s thinking that now when you hear his cursing coming into the kitchen on the warm breeze from the open window.

The noises of the lawnmower filter into the house through the open windows as you do housework, finishing the lemonade and the dishes before starting to fold the laundry. By the time you’ve folded and put most of the laundry away, the noises from the lawnmower have stopped and you hear the garage door open and shut.

Making your way downstairs, you see Santi sweaty and panting, slipping off the grass-stained shoes he only uses for yard work. His cheeks are all ruddy and he smells like freshly cut grass and the humidity of the day is making his curls all fluffy and defined and it takes everything in you not to drag him upstairs to the bedroom.

Instead, you pour him some lemonade and plant a kiss on his cheek, thanking him for all of his hard work outside.

“I’ve gotta head back out and do the Morales’ lawn while Frank’s outta town,” he tells you as he lowers himself into a kitchen chair and you’re thankful he’s looking the other way so he can’t scold you for the eyeroll you couldn’t contain.

“I’m sure Becca and Isabel can deal with an unruly lawn for a few days, or at least until it isn’t a billion degrees outside,” you tell him, even though you know he won’t listen to you. Santi would do anything for the people he loves, but sometimes his stubbornness rears up and he won’t listen to reason.

“C’mon,” you tell him, getting up to pour him another glass of lemonade, “how about you go shower and relax, and we can invite them over for dinner?”

“Fine,” Santi responds, draining his second glass before standing to place a kiss on your cheek, “thanks for protecting me from heatstroke.”

“It’s the least I could do.” You hope he understands just how much you mean that, understands that this is the least you could do after everything he does for you.

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple frontier fanfiction #2023 summer blurbs

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alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

Text

ten

Chapter 10 of I’ll Be Back Again To Stay

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x single mom!reader

Warnings: none :)

Word Count: 2.4k

Author’s Note: this is the last chapter, but… an epilogue will be coming!!

The next day is a whirlwind.

You drop Inez off with Sofia and Frankie so she can spend as much time as possible with Maria before you leave, while you spend the day scurrying around, trying to organize and pack everything. While your flight isn’t super early the next morning, you know you’re going to be grateful that past-you had everything taken care of.

Once you’ve given up on trying to shove all of Inez’s new toys into your suitcase, you get ready to make your way to the Morales household, deciding that whatever packing you still need to do can get done when you return to Syd’s or tomorrow morning. Now, though, you need to soak up as much time as possible with all of the people you’ve met.

When you arrive, the girls are off playing in the living room and Frankie is finishing dinner, Sofia seated at the kitchen table and Benny hovering near the stove, just waiting for Frankie to scold him and shoo him away. Santiago is nowhere to be found.

You try not to let it get to you, instead letting yourself get enveloped in a hug from Benny, his strong arms squeezing you tight. When he finally releases you, you make your way over to Sofia and have a seat next to her. Inez and Maria are too engrossed in their game to even notice you’re here.

Everything’s a little too loud, the air buzzing with the noise and thrum of energy, but you’ve never felt more at home, more at peace. You didn’t think you’d be this happy here, leaving you absolutely devastated to think about saying goodbye tomorrow. You wish you could stay forever, but you know that’s not possible.

Maybe the reason why everything’s felt so magical is because of how fleeting your time is here. You have so little time to spend with Sydney, with all of the new people you’ve met, with Santi. You can’t let yourself get sad yet, not until you’re on the plane, so instead you focus on how lucky you are to have such wonderful people in your life.

Even though you’ve only just met them, you can tell they’re in it for the long haul. You already know you’ll be texting and calling Sofia as much as possible, and you’ve already made a groupchat with her and Syd so you can all talk and gossip together, even when you’re miles and miles apart.

After you've settled in, embraced the slight chaos of everything around you and accepted that Santiago probably wouldn’t show up, the door opens.

“You fucker,” Santi says, closing the door and stepping into the kitchen, pointing a finger at Benny, “you told me 7 o’clock.” Benny looks all too pleased with himself, you can tell he did it on purpose. Why, you don’t know, but you can’t help but to grin at these antics.

It feels like a weight has been lifted from your chest. Here you were, trying not to wallow in self pity at the fact that Santi didn’t want to see you one last time when really it was just Ben being the little brother of the group.

“No cursing around the kids!” Benny shouts when Santi lunges for him, even though Ben dodged him easily. Everyone’s laughing, and the atmosphere is bursting with joy, despite the look that Sofia gives Santi when he comes over to greet her.

“C’mon, we all know the girls have heard curse words before,” he says as he wraps Sofia in a one-armed hug, even as she shakes her head in admonishment. Still, she hugs him back, and he breaks away to greet you.

When you stand from your chair to get a proper hug, he wraps his arms around you, nestling your face against his neck. All you want is to stay tucked against him forever, but with one final squeeze he lets you go and steps back, so you sit down again. Santi leans against the counter, and even though there’s only a few feet between you, it feels like a cavern.

“You and Shortstack all packed up?” He asks you when there’s a lull in the conversation.

“Almost,” you respond, and then the conversation is transforming, mutating from discussions of packing tips to best vacations to dream travel destinations. You’re going to miss how easy everything feels with the group, how naturally everyone fits it.

Soon, Frankie’s calling everyone to the kitchen to come get their food, and then you have to corral Inez and Maria into the dining room to eat, because all they want to do is continue whatever make believe game they had been playing.

There’s a small part of you that wants to let the girls keep playing, wants to let them soak up as much time as possible together because you know they’ll miss each other. But, the more logical part of you knows they need to eat at the table, and you and Sofia already have plans for keeping the girls in touch.

It seems like everyone takes their time eating, drawing out the minutes spent together at the dining table, but you don’t mind at all, you’ll take any extra second you can get with your friends. It’s nice to know that you’re not the only one who’s craving more time together, not the only one trying to come up with some plan to keep everyone together for just a little longer.

When dinner’s done, you volunteer to help Sofia with the dishes, and Sydney joins you, though she does more observing with a glass of wine than actually helping. Still, it takes you twice as long than it should to get all of the dishes put away, you keep getting distracted with stories and memories and fits of giggles.

In the living room, the guys entertain Inez and Maria, letting the girls beat them in arm wrestling and thumb wars over and over again. For a while, you just sit in the kitchen and watch, unable to keep a smile off your face at the look of pure joy on your daughter’s face.

Eventually, though, you need to leave, need to finish packing and get to sleep early so you, and Inez, won’t be cranky when it comes time to leave for the airport. It takes at least a half an hour to say goodbye to everyone, an endless cycle of hugs and subtly wiped tears and shouted goodbyes until you finally exit the Morales house, making your way to Will’s car.

During your short ride back, Inez tells you everything about what she and Maria played and what they talked about and all of their plans for the future and how they’ll be best friends forever. It simultaneously warms and breaks your heart, but you just smile and nod along like you know Inez wants you to do.

When you finally return to Syd’s house, much later than you originally had planned, you give Inez a quick bath before you send her downstairs to hang out with Will and Syd for a little while so you can wrap up your packing, attempting to complete everything except for the things you’ll need in the morning.

Once you’ve reached a point in packing where you feel like you won’t be too rushed in the morning, you take a shower yourself before pulling on your pajamas and heading downstairs to soak up as much time as possible with Sydney. You can’t believe how much you took for granted during your trip, like sharing breakfast or watching TV in the evenings with your best friend, and now you don’t know when you’ll be able to see her in person again.

You take Inez upstairs a little while later, hoping that she’ll get some extra sleep and you can avoid spending all day traveling with a crabby kindergartner. She struggles to fall asleep, demanding book after book, song after song, until you finally settle Blob the Monkey into her arms and slip out of the room when you notice her eyes drooping closed.

After you creep back downstairs, you spend far too long laughing and chatting and soaking up as much time as possible with Sydney. At some point, Will leaves the two of you and heads to bed. By the time you’re sneaking back into the guest bedroom, Inez has been asleep for hours and it’s closer to the time you need to wake up than the time you should have gone to bed. Still, you’d rather be a little tired than regret not taking advantage of seeing your best friend in person.

Unsurprisingly, you hit snooze a few times before eventually dragging yourself out of bed, silently thanking yourself for the time you spent packing yesterday. Inez is already seated in front of the TV when you make your way downstairs, with Syd busy making breakfast for everyone.

After kissing your daughter on the forehead, you make your way into the kitchen, both to find some coffee and to keep Sydney company. You wish you could extend your trip, even for just a few more days, but you know leaving then would be just as, if not more, difficult. So, instead, you take advantage of the remaining time you have and lean against the kitchen counter with your coffee in hand while Syd finishes breakfast.

A few hours later, you’re hugging her goodbye at the check in desk, and trying to keep your tears in check.

“Call me as soon as you land, ok?” Syd asks you, holding you tightly by the shoulders after she’s released you from her hug.

“Of course I will,” you tell her, pulling her into one last hug and squeezing her tightly before letting her go.

Sydney hoists up Inez, holding her as tightly as possible while she giggles and tries to hug Syd back. Will pulls you into a friendly hug, telling you to take care of yourself and let him know when you get home safely.

“Alright, we’re leaving before I start crying,” Syd says as she places Inez safely on the ground, giving you one last squeeze before waving goodbye. With your bags checked and your boarding passes in hand, there’s nothing left for you to do except head towards security. But, there’s something pulling you back.

You’re not sure why, but you stand at the entrance of security for a few seconds before getting in line, as if you’re waiting for someone, as if you’re expecting someone to run towards you, bad knees be damned, to see you one last time. You know no one’s coming, so you turn and get in line for security, nodding along to all of Inez’s stories.

Security passes quickly, and Inez charms everyone working, just like last time. Soon, you’re sitting at your gate, feeling as if you’re missing something, even though you double and triple checked all of your luggage, as well as your boarding passes. Stil, the feeling presses at the back of your brain, even though you do your best to ignore it.

With your extra time, you wander around the concourse, looking for snacks and a potential lunch for you and Inez. She seems to only want the most outlandish, extravagant snacks, but you’re just trying your best to avoid a meltdown so you buy them anyway. You make sure you’re stocked up for the flight and the drive home before returning to wait at the gate.

It seems as if you’d just gotten settled when they called your group for boarding, and before you know it, the plane’s in the air. Inez is much chattier, has much more energy on your flight out that you’re grateful for all the planning past-you did, trying your best to keep her occupied with coloring books and her smaller stuffies and the movies you’d downloaded for her on your phone.

She seems content enough for the whole flight, not shedding a single tear. You, on the other hand, feel close to tears yourself.

Leaving behind all of your friends was harder than you thought it’d be, and you thought it would be pretty fucking hard. Saying goodbye to your new friends, to your best friend, to Santiago, was one of the most difficult things you’ve ever done. Sure, there’s technology to keep you all connected, but it would never be the same as seeing them in person, as just getting to sit in the same room as them, take up the same space as them.

You try not to think about it, try to push it away until you’re home and alone, where you can cry as hard as you want. For now, though, you ignore the feelings rising up in you and turn all of your attention onto Inez, making sure she’s as happy and comfortable as possible.

By trying to keep Inez occupied, you don’t get a chance to check your phone or take advantage of that in-flight free wifi. So, as soon as you land, you’re turning off airplane mode and checking your notifications while you wait for your turn to get off the plane.

You have a text from Sofia, hoping that you get home safely, and a text from Benny that says he’s going to miss hanging out with you and the kid. After responding to those, you send a message to Sydney and Will, telling them that you’ve landed safely and you’ll let them know once you’re inside your actual house.

Before you can check the rest of the notifications you’d missed during the flight, it’s your turn to get off the plane, causing you to scramble for your carry ons and Inez’s hand. Your home airport is easier to navigate, leading you to baggage claim within a few minutes, and then back to your car a few minutes after that.

You hand Inez a snack after getting her buckled, and then you head home, desperate to spend some time in your own space, especially to sleep in your own bed. The time passes quickly, with Inez recounting all of her favorite things from your trip, and soon you’re shuttling luggage into the house after setting Inez up in front of the TV.

After all the luggage is safely in the house and in the right bedroom, you flop down onto the couch beside Inez, ready to do nothing but relax for the foreseeable future. Before you can do that, though, you pull out your phone to let Syd and Will know you’re at home, and then you notice a text you didn’t check on the plane.

Wanted to let you know - I’ll come visit whenever you want me to

Tags: @zoriis @andr0medafallen @campingwiththecharmings @itspdameronthings @stevenngrant @loonymagizoologist @welcometostayingawake @outmodead @pakhiya @wand-erer5

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple fontier fanfic #i’ll be back again to stay

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alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

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three

Chapter 3 of I’ll Be Back Again To Stay

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x single mom!reader

Warnings: vague sexy inner monologue

Word Count: 2.6k

Author’s Note: surprise! a slow burn

Santiago feels like a schoolboy.

He can’t remember the last time anyone made him feel this way, like his heart is trying to escape from behind his ribs. It had to have been when he was in middle school, before he started wrestling and grew out his curls and then joined the army.

No matter how hard he tries, he can’t stop thinking about you, about how your hand would feel in his or how your shampoo smells. How you look when you first wake up or before you go to sleep. He’s consumed with the desire to know everything about you, and he hates it.

He hates it because he knows that’s not something he deserves. He doesn’t deserve the perfect girl, a wonderful wife and a joyful daughter. He’s meant to be alone, forever Tio Santi, as much as he wishes he could be more.

Before, it's always been a fleeting thought, gone in a moment. On days like Frankie’s wedding or Maria’s birth, he would think about what it would be like to settle down, to forgive himself the way Frankie and Will and Benny had.

But now, with you, it’s near constant.

And he feels gross about it, feels it festering and growing and consuming him from the inside out. You barely know the man, and here he is, having domestic fantasies about you at all hours of the day.

Really, he’d be fine being your friend, it already seems like you enjoy being around him. Maybe a few days more and you’ll consider him a friend the way you do Will. Maybe a few days more, and he could be something more.

He won’t let himself think like that.

You’ve just met, you’re only here for a few weeks, you don’t want anything like that.

So he’s settled for offering to drive you around instead of asking you to coffee or dinner or drinks like a normal person. But you’d been complaining about not getting a rental car and how bad you felt whenever you needed to ask Will or Syd to drive you or borrow their cars when you needed something.

He really was just trying to be helpful.

You have to refrain yourself from texting him as soon as you get Inez tucked in. You really aren’t sure what it is about him, but you can’t stop thinking about him. You’ve met plenty of attractive, polite men. Hell, you’ve met three this week, but something about Santiago just sticks out to you.

Maybe it’s that whole brooding loner vibe he gives off one minute, and the next he’s laughing in the most beautiful way at some jab Frankie made at Benny. He’s an enigma, a mystery, and you need to know more.

But you think better of texting him, and instead turn off your phone and go to sleep. And no one needs to know that the man you dream about shares a striking resemblance with Santiago, especially not Sydney.

Though, you can’t control yourself for very long. The next morning, after you’ve gotten Inez and yourself all fed and dressed and ready for the day, you end up texting him. You can’t believe how much you’re overthinking it, typing and retyping the message twenty times over.

Finally, you settle on hey Santiago! There are a few things I need from Target, if you’d be a willing chauffeur?

You hit send and immediately cringe, frantically searching Google for how to delete a text message when your phone dings

Haha, I’d love to. I can pick you up in an hour. You’re staying at Will’s right?

God, your heart just about beats out of your chest. You send him a quick yep, that sounds perfect! before shutting off your phone and throwing it on the bed. You can’t remember the last time a guy made you feel this way, made you get all jittery just at the thought of sending him a text, of receiving one back.

You’re mortified at your internal monologue, scolding yourself for taking advantage of the situation. It’s not like he wants anything from you, a single mom to the most stubborn little girl on the planet, only in the same town for three weeks, and during the holidays no less.

There’s no way in hell that Santiago wants to be anything more than your friend, and even that’s pushing it. He’s the most beautiful man you’ve ever seen, looking like he’s been sculpted by the gods themselves, and he’s charming with a wicked sense of humor. What could he possibly want from you?

Santiago is having the very same internal debate on his drive over. It’s not like you asked him out, you just wanted him to help you run errands so you didn’t have to keep bothering Sydney and Will. He doesn’t let himself ruminate on just how domestic it is, running errands with somebody.

That’s something that happens in a long term, stable relationship. Not some fling or one night stand. It’s something that Santiago hasn’t known for years, has never really known. So he doesn’t scold himself too hard for the domestic little fantasy he creates on the drive over.

And then there you are, looking fantastic in what he can only assume is comfortable-yet-presentable clothing, with Inez in a tutu and her lime green winter coat. He hurries out of the car to help you both in, glowing when you thank him.

“You don’t even know how big of a help you are,” you say, buckling yourself into the passenger seat after making sure Inez was secure in her booster seat.

“It’s not a problem.” He responds, hoping you can tell how genuinely he means it.

You make small talk, with Santi overthinking every single thing he says or asks. He wonders if you can tell just how high strung he is, or if you can’t possibly tell the reason. It’s a tad bit awkward, in the way most friendships are when they start, but you find him all the more endearing the more you talk.

More and more, you’re able to see that his hard, brooding exterior is just a mask he’s created, and you’re desperate to know what soft underbelly he’s hiding. You don’t want to seem like you're digging or prying, so you keep your curiosity at bay for now.

And then, from the backseat, Inez lets out the most theatrical gasp, making your head whip around immediately.

“Do you have a puppy?” She asks, voice full of wonder and her chubby little fist clasped onto a leash Santi keeps in his backseat as a spare.

“He’s a bit too big to be a puppy anymore.” As Santiago speaks, he’s picturing Toby, his behemoth of a Golden Retriever, a sweet dog standing almost as tall as Inez. “But maybe I can bring him around some time, he loves meeting new people.”

He glances over at you for your approval, and sees you smiling as Inez chatters happily in the backseat, talking about how badly she wants a puppy but you won’t let her have one and which ones of her schoolmates have dogs and how she also wants a pony and a kitten and a bunny.

Then, Santiago’s pulling into the parking lot and you’re out and helping Inez unbuckle in a flash, keeping her tiny hand in yours as you walk through the parking lot.

“Is there a certain time we need to get back?” Santi asks, keeping pace with you and Inez, “Does she need to nap or anything like that?”

You sigh, “No, Inez stopped napping when she was three.”

He can’t help but smile at the exasperated look on your face.

When you get into the store, Inez refuses to ride in the cart, so Santiago offers to push it while you hold her hand. He briefly thinks about how nice it feels, the way the conversation flows as you wander through the store, how domestic it all seems, that in another life, this could be his life.

But he doesn’t let himself dwell for long, checking back into the reality where you’re only here for three weeks and absolutely want nothing more than friendship from him. Which, he really doesn’t mind. He’s just lucky he gets to spend any time with you.

He doesn’t know that you’re thinking the same thing: how easy it feels to be here with him, how seamless it is. But you don’t say anything, because surely he’d think you’re crazy. He just offered to drive you around because he’s a nice person, and here you are daydreaming about it.

Inez, though, is having the time of her life, unaware of your, or Santiago’s, plight. She’s discovered that not only can you rarely say no to her, your friends find it practically impossible. She ends up with a new coloring book and two packages of sprinkles, because she’ll only eat waffles or pancakes if there are sprinkles.

She’s always grateful, though, giving you lots of hugs and saying “thank you” over and over again. You don’t mind having to pay a few dollars for coloring books if it means you get to see that adorable smile of hers.

Santi’s wrapped around her finger too. He listens intently to her nonsensical stories as you walk through the store, and you can see him taking note of all of the toys she points out.

Did you even stand a chance at not falling for him?

Sooner than you’d like, you’re finished shopping and loading back up into Santi’s car. Inez pages through her new coloring book as you and Santiago sit in silence, both of you trying to figure out what to say.

“Hey…” he starts, and you immediately turn your head to give him your full attention, “if you and Inez ever want to get out of the house, I’d be happy to show you two around, take you out to lunch or something.”

“You did promise Inez could meet your puppy,” you respond, trying to stop yourself from full-on squealing.

“I did, didn’t I?” He chuckles, shaking his head, “Well, Toby loves to meet new people, as long as they pay attention to him.”

“That works out great, because Inez loves dogs.”

“Puppies are my favorite!” She shouts from her car seat, making both you and Santi chuckle.

He drops you off, and the only reason you don’t invite him inside is because it isn’t your house. Otherwise, you’d be offering to make dinner or coffee or anything else to make him stay a bit longer.

Though, with the questioning waiting for you, you’re almost glad you didn’t bother asking him to stay.

“Did you have fun on your little date?” Syd asks as soon as you step through the door, wiggling her eyebrows.

“God, you’re awful,” is your only response as you set your bags down on the counter before helping Inez out of her shoes and coat.

“Oh please, you can’t tell me that you don’t think Pope’s attractive.”

“Pope?” You ask, eyebrows raised at the nickname. Sydney simply shrugs, “I dunno, it’s what the guys call him.”

“And I never said he wasn’t attractive, I said we weren’t on a date. He drove me to Target, big deal.”

“Yeah, big deal. Why else would he drive you all over the place if he wasn’t totally in love with you?”

“Because he’s a good person? Not everyone has ulterior motives for everything they do. Besides, I’ve known him for literally two days, there’s no way he’s in love with me.”

And while Santiago might not have said he loved you, he certainly felt something more than friendship towards you.

He wished he didn’t, though. He wished he could think about anything other than how nice it was to just be near you, to occupy the same space as you. For just a few moments, his mind quieted down and he didn’t feel the need to run, to hide. He simply enjoyed the time he was spending with you, before he could no longer live in the little bubble he designed.

When he returned home, Toby was beside himself with excitement, jumping up on Santi’s bad knees and wagging his tail. Santi had brought him home a few months ago, when he was just a little puppy that could be carried around. Even though he’s much larger now, Toby still acts like a lap dog.

It’s amazing how much Santiago loves his dog, especially after how reluctant he was to get one. He was perfectly fine alone, spending all day with no one but himself. Now, though, he can’t imagine a day without his furry menace begging at his feet anytime he eats or climbing on top of his stomach as he watches TV.

It makes him feel more stable, more tethered to his life. He can’t run off to another country when he has Toby to take care of. He would never tell anyone, but he likes having something that needs him, that relies on him to live. Some days, on the bad days, that’s the only reason he gets out of bed.

As much as he complains about the dog’s energy, or the way he jumps up onto Santiago’s bad knees, he can’t imagine a day without his furry little sidekick, even if he’s not so little anymore.

When Santiago finally falls into bed, he can’t even begin to fall asleep, and not for the normal reasons caused by his deteriorating body. He can’t stop thinking of you, his mind won’t drift away.

It’s not all dirty, though, most of it is domestic in a way that makes Santi’s chest feel tight, makes his muscles contract, ready to bolt. He thinks of what it would be like to wake up next to you, to admire you in the early morning light, to always see you before he falls asleep and right when he wakes up.

But, there are thoughts that are much less pure.

How reverend would you let him be, he wonders. Would you let him praise you with his touch and his tongue? Would you let him commit you to memory, to leave marks and bruises and bites to remind you of him? Would you let him study you like an artifact, like the statues he stared down when his mother made him go to church?

It’s fitting, he thinks, because you’re nothing short of a goddess, the closest thing to perfect he’s ever seen. He wonders what you’d sound like, breathless and falling apart in his arms. He wonders if you’d leave marks, scratches down his back to match with the silver scar trailing down his neck. What would you look like, all blissed out and drunk on him?

But he shakes those thoughts away, to the best of his ability. He’d rather have you as a friend than only have you once. He’s practically addicted already, he knows he’d never be able to see you go if he kissed you, fucked you.

So he resigns himself to longing stares he hopes you don’t see, stars in his eyes that he hopes you’re able to look past. Because he’s not sure he’ll be able to survive if you notice, if by some chance you feel the same and then you leave him all alone again, with no one but his dog and his friends, all who have their own lives to deal with.

After all the shit he’s been through, he’s certain that would end him, once and for all. Not his botched surgery, or the drug lords he hunted, it would be you, an angel on earth, with a brilliant laugh and a quick wit, the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen.

Somehow, he manages to slip off to sleep while his thoughts keep whirling. He isn’t surprised when he dreams of you, but he is surprised by how disappointed he feels when he wakes up in the middle of the night and realizes it was all a dream, and that’s all his life with you could ever be: a fantasy.

Tags: @disabledameron @campingwiththecharmings @itspdameronthings @stevenngrant @andromeda-dear @loonymagizoologist @welcometostayingawake @outmodead @pakhiya

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple fontier fanfic #I’ll be back again to stay

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alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

Text

six

Chapter 6 of I’ll Be Back Again To Stay

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x single mom!reader

Warnings: none :)

Word Count: 3.5k

Author’s Note: it’s getting pretty intense (yearning. it’s the yearning that’s intense)

Just as you suspected, Inez wakes you before the sun is even fully in the sky, deep blues and rich oranges painting the view outside your window, with barely any light streaming through. But, today, and her birthday, are the only days you’ll indulge her by waking up whenever she does.

You trudge downstairs in your pajamas and get started on the coffee while Inez races over to the tree, staring in awe at the presents that await her. Sydney and Will have to get an early start to their day as well, so they’re up soon after you are.

While it’s only about an hour drive to Will’s parents, Christmas is a full day, full family affair for the Millers. It’s essentially a family reunion, just with presents and more tensions. This is Sydney’s second year braving the Miller household on Christmas, and you have complete faith that she’ll be able to hold it together.

Even so, you’ve constructed a backup plan, some issue that requires her and Will to leave early. And as much as he loves his family, you know Will’s thankful to keep this plan in his back pocket.

After a quick breakfast, Sydney and Will are out the door and Inez is back to impatiently waiting next to the Christmas tree. You join her in the living room, coffee cup in hand, and let her rip open her gifts.

It would be impossible not to smile at her pure joy and appreciation for every single gift she opens, no matter how small or large. After opening a gift that you signed, she runs over to hug you, and otherwise she shouts her thanks into the room, as if hoping that Santa could hear her.

With her ferocity, the gifts are opened in under thirty minutes and it’s still barely past the sunrise. You knew what you were agreeing to when Sydney told you she’d be spending Christmas Day with the Millers, but now you regretted that choice. As much as you loved to spend time with your daughter, there were only so many festive things you could do together that would keep her entertained.

And then you get a text.

Not sure what your plans are, but I remember you saying Syd was ditching you. You’re welcome to stop by. Toby would love the company.

You hate how broadly you smile at that, you hate the butterfly stampede in your chest. You feel suddenly lightheaded at the idea of spending more time alone with Santi, when the last time that happened you’d left kiss drunk and confused, unsure of how you felt.

You enjoyed it, that much was obvious, and the moments played on a loop inside your head. But you couldn’t place the tightness in your chest, the need to feel close to him. It was forgein and scary and you didn’t know if Santiago felt the same, if he felt anything at all.

Still, you ask Inez what she thinks, and she’s thrilled at the idea of meeting Santiago’s dog, so you send him your response.

Inez gives that two thumbs up. When should we stop over?

His response comes almost immediately, as if he had been staring and waiting for you to answer.

Whenever it works for you two. I can make lunch?

Sounds perfect, see you soon!

You shut off your phone and resist the urge to hide your face in a pillow, squeal, and kick your legs. Instead, you give Inez the devastating news that she needs to change out of her pajamas if you’re going to leave the house. She looks as if you just told her you have to return all of her presents.

“Comfy clothes?” You try to find a compromise, because today’s really mostly about avoiding tears, and she nods before trudging upstairs. You sit on the couch for a few moments longer, taking deep breaths the way you’ve had to do more often lately, before joining Inez upstairs to help her get ready for the day.

You send Sydney a message to let her know that you’ll be borrowing her car for a few hours, and then you start to make yourself presentable. You’re almost thankful for the antsy way Inez swings her legs off the bed, urging you to make your decisions faster.

Once you’ve settled on an outfit and helped Inez get all bundled up in her coat and boots, you start the drive to Santi’s house, heart pounding against your ribcage. Inez babbles on and on about how excited she is to see a puppy, giving you something else to think about before you go into a full blown panic over something as simple as seeing Santiago again.

Soon, you’re parking in front of Santiago’s house, Inez squirming to be let out of her car seat. As soon as her feet touch the ground, she’s off like a rocket, racing towards the front door, but she waits for you rather impatiently before ringing the doorbell. Her face lights up when she can hear Toby barking at the noise. You have to push down a smile at Santiago’s muffled shushing.

The three of you shout your greetings as Santi opens the door, using his leg to keep Toby safely in the house while ushering you and Inez instead. He grips Toby firmly around his middle while you help Inez take her boots off so he doesn’t rush and tackle her.

“He’s never bitten anyone, and I’ve always made sure he was ok with his tail and ears being pulled on,” Santiago assures you, waiting for your go-ahead before releasing Toby, as if you’d change your mind now and scoop Inez up before rushing away. Instead, you nod and remind Inez to be gentle.

Toby’s tail is wagging comically hard, barking happily when Santi lets him go. He rushes over to you first, remembering you from your previous visit, before he heads over to suss out Inez. She pats him on the head, as gently as she can, and it must be good enough for Toby because he flops over for some belly scratches.

“Merry Christmas,” Santiago tells you as you trail deeper into his house, Inez and Toby lagging behind in his front entrance. You answer him with a smile.

“Thanks for inviting us over, I know Inez has been looking forward to seeing a puppy.” You make no mention of what you want, of how deeply you seem to crave spending time with Santi.

You let your gaze wander, scanning from the kitchen to the living room to the front door, taking in the aspects of his home you didn’t notice the first time around. It’s sparsely decorated, with a few touches of red and green and twinkling lights thrown around. It still feels unbelievably cozy, somehow extremely warm and homey in a way that makes you want to sigh in relief, makes you relax more against the kitchen counter.

Maybe it’s the deep brown hardwood floors that make his house feel so comfortable. Maybe it’s the way it smells like sandalwood and laundry and something so distinctively Santiago. Maybe it’s the dog toys strewn about the floor, the dishes drying in the sink, the pile of throw blankets nestled by the couch.

A smile creeps across your face when you recognize the blanket he’d unwrapped from you yesterday, thrown across the back of his couch. It makes your heart ache, seeing it there in his home, out in the open. You almost want to cry, in a way you can’t quite explain. You want to reach across the counter and pull Santiago into a hug, but you don’t. You can’t, not now.

Now, Inez and Toby have made their way into the living room, giving you a perfect way to watch them play and still remain close to Santiago. It’s like you’re magnetized, and you can’t possibly be away from him, there’s something keeping you two close.

“No family plans?” You ask, an attempt to break the ice that had settled, not knowing the way you were prying Santi apart.

“No, uh, not this year,” he clears his throat, looking beyond uncomfortable, and guilt rises in your chest but he keeps going, “my siblings are all down in Florida, they’ve got their own families now and it’s too much shit to coordinate.”

He feels exposed, far too vulnerable for sharing a piece of typical information. You’d been trying to make conversation but Santiago’s so closed off that even something so simple as that makes him feel ripped open and inspected. His family’s a sore spot: he hasn’t seen his siblings since his mother’s funeral, before he ran off to Colombia to try and prove to himself that he’s a good person.

“Me and Inez normally spend Christmas alone, go see a movie or something.” He recognizes your response for what it is, something to placate his nerves, to offer something in return. He sees the gentle vulnerability, the truth buried under the seemingly casual statement: you have no true family beyond Inez and Sydney. He’s grateful for it, feels a warmth spread through his body at the idea that you noticed his discomfort and wanted to dispel it.

He casts his gaze around, searching for something to talk about, for anything to say that isn’t ‘I want to kiss you’ even though that’s all he wants to say. Instead, he says, “Well, you two are welcome here every year.”

A smile blooms on your face, followed by the sweetest laughter he’s ever heard. He wants to memorize everything about it, memorize the way your eyes crinkle and your breath catches in an almost-snort. It’s entirely endearing, and a small, angry, scared part of Santiago hates it. But he tries to ignore it, focusing back on your gorgeous smile and hoping you don’t notice the dopey look on his face.

Your laughter fades out, replaced by a gentle smile as you watch Inez play with Toby, snatching his toys away from him before he can reach them while his tail wags so fast you’re worried it’s about to fall off.

“He always has so much energy, maybe he won’t need a walk today.” Santiago comments, watching the scene unfolding in the living room from the other side of the kitchen counter. You turn, just a little, and catch sight of the easy smile on Santi’s face, almost as if he isn’t really controlling it and just can’t help himself.

You want to tell him how good he looks, that happiness is a good look on him, but you pull your comments back, refrain from making things any more awkward than they already are. You’re just glad that Inez can’t sense the awkwardness, because she’d say something to Sydney and then you’d never hear the end of it.

The morning passes with you and Santiago talking at the kitchen table, sharing stories over coffee mugs. Inez plays with Toby until they both tire out, and then they curl up on the couch together, eyes glued to the Christmas movie playing on the TV.

As time passes, the awkwardness dissipates more and more, until the air feels electric and your heart feels light. It’s nice, spending time with Santiago like this, with no expectations or prying eyes. It’s just the two of you, Inez entirely occupied in the living room, and it’s perfect. It feels like home.

“Are you getting hungry?” Santi asks after a glance at his watch, noticing how the time approaches noon. You’d told him before about how early Inez made you wake up, and the groggy morning that followed, including your minimal and slightly rushed breakfast. Your heart picks up at the way he remembers such little things about you.

“Hey, Squish!” You shout out, grinning at the way her and Toby pop their heads over the top of the couch to look over at you. “What do you want for lunch?”

“I can choose anything?” She asks, looking skeptical.

“Anything you want,” Santiago reinforces with a nod.

“Grilled cheese?”

“Is that your favorite?” Santiago asks, with a genuine curiosity that makes your heart melt. She nods eagerly, a toothy grin on her face. “That’s my favorite too!” Santi tells her with a genuine smile that only grows at her look of excitement.

The best part about his reaction is the fact that you aren’t sure if he’s telling the truth or not. You suspect it’s just something he said to see that smile on Inez’s face, but his own smile was so genuine you believed him too.

Santiago rises from his seat, heading into the kitchen amidst Inez’s little cheers from the couch. You follow him, taking up your spot at the counter again. You watch him cook, watch the way he lays out the ingredients and turns the stove on, watch as he follows the recipe by heart.

You try not to focus on his hands, how large they are, how soft but firm. How gentle he looks handling the bread, but how lethal handling the knife. Two distinct sides of him take form, one that is gentle and loving and warm, and one that is a trained killer.

It’s easy to forget about that aspect of his life with how rarely he talks about it. With all of the things he keeps to himself, his job is perhaps his safely kept secret, along with his feelings and past in general. Trying to get anything beyond the surface is like trying to pry open a clamshell.

You don’t want to push him, but you want to know the pearl he hides inside. You want him to know that you’d treat it with the utmost care, cradle it as gently as you once cradled Inez, pressed safe and close to your heart.

But, instead of saying any of that, you bury it deeper and ogle his hands.

You’re genuinely amazed by his grilled cheese making abilities: every single sandwich comes out perfectly golden and crispy. Inez’s eyes light up when she sees her plate, thanking Santi profusely as she shovels her sandwich into her mouth.

During lunch, you talk about puppies and Inez’s favorite presents and the things she likes to do. Santiago listens to it all with rapt attention, clinging onto every word Inez speaks. It makes your heart positively burst, watching the way he interacts with her, the way you can see in his eyes that he genuinely cares about what she has to say.

It’s almost too much, this wave of feelings that are beginning to overtake you. Somehow, you manage to contain yourself, instead offering to do the dishes since Santiago made lunch.

“Absolutely not, you’re the guest.” He says, rising and taking the plates out of your hand, “Besides, it’s Christmas. You should be relaxing.”

“So should you.”

He sighs dramatically, conceding to let you help with the dishes. He washed and then you dry, working together to put them back into the cabinets. The way his kitchen is set up, you’re pressed shoulder to shoulder at the sink, so close that you can feel the heat bleeding through his crewneck.

There’s a part of you that wants to turn and bury your face in his neck, inhaling his scent and his warmth, but you damp down that urge and focus on putting the plates back where they belong.

As you’re putting dishes away, Santiago is taking out three mugs, all with various festive designs on them.

“Hot chocolate?” He asks, and you nod eagerly, absolutely adoring the way he tries to tamp down his smile at your reaction.

He does that a lot, you’ve come to notice. Most of the time, he tries to shield his emotions, fighting back smiles or disappointment with an empty, neutral sort of look. But his eyes always give him away. You find yourself looking into those deep, gorgeous brown eyes more and more, trying your hardest to figure him out.

You think you’re getting better at reading him, but you really have no idea and no way to find out if you’re correct. Still, you’ll stick to your inferences and assumptions about him, and continue to stare into his eyes as if they’ll betray his deepest, darkest secrets.

He tops all of the mugs with whipped cream, adding sprinkles for Inez, before handing one to you and making his way over the couch.

“Careful, ok? It’s hot,” he tells Inez, waiting for her to sit all the way up before placing the mug into her little hands.

You sit down beside Inez, with Santiago pressed against your other side. You can feel the heat radiating off of his body from where it’s pressed against yours, and you’re convinced it’s one of the best feelings ever. Santi lets Inez choose a movie, flipping through channels and searching streaming services until she found one she liked.

She was passed out within the first 30 minutes, slumped against a throw pillow with her legs thrown across your lap. The excitement of the last few days, combined with the grilled cheese and hot chocolate, was the perfect recipe to get Inez to nap, something you hadn’t managed in quite some time.

Even though Inez sleeps all through the movie, and halfway through the next one, you still enjoy yourself. You and Santiago talk quietly, both about the movie and whatever else pops into your mind. Randomly, you’d get hit with the realization that this is the happiest you’ve felt in a long time before immediately choking those feelings back down.

Eventually, your exhaustion started to catch up with you too, and you felt your head slowly lulling to the side. Suddenly, your head is on Santiago’s shoulder and you feel him stiffen, immediately preparing to apologize and pull away when he exhales deeply, settling a gentle hand onto your knee.

You melt into him, and even though your head is bent at an odd angle, you’re more comfortable than you can ever remember being. There’s just something about being so close to him that just feels right, something that pulls the two of you together. You stay like that for a while, even letting your eyes close for a few moments.

When they open, Santiago glances down at you, a gentle smile gracing his features, looking as if this is the most natural position in the world. Reluctantly, you pull away, rolling the stiffness from your neck and shoulders.

“We should probably head out,” you say reluctantly, glancing between the clock and where Inez is stirring.

“Alright,” Santi replies, looking around as if for an excuse to keep you for a few hours more, “but I have something for you before you go.”

With that, he rises off the couch, taking a second to reset his body and stretch his stiff muscles before he wanders off to find whatever it is he wants to give you.

When he returns, it’s with a small, flat box, wrapped up in red checkered paper with a green bow. It’s clear that he wrapped it himself, and your heart constricts at that realization.

“You didn’t need to get me anything,” you tell him as you gently take the gift from his hands, starting to slowly rip the paper.

“I know, but…” he trails off as you slip the package from the paper, nervous to open the slim box.

When you do, you can’t help the gasp that escapes you.

It’s a necklace, with two little colored stones: one for Inez and one for you. You can feel tears pricking in the corners of your eyes as you look up at him, nerves plastered across his face.

“Sydney helped me pick it out, said you’d like it.”

“I-I love it, really.” You say, propelled up to your feet and wrapping Santi in a tight hug, pressing him as close to you as possible. “Thank you.” you whisper into his neck, content to stay there forever, or at least until you get your emotions under control.

“Of course,” he breathes into your hair, giving you one last squeeze before letting go.

“We should get going, Will and Syd’ll be back soon.” What you really want is to stay forever with Santiago and Toby in this little house, warm and comfortable for the rest of your life.

Instead, you scoop up a still sleepy Inez and make your way to the front door, tugging your shoes on and carrying Inez’s in your hand. The jewelry box is safely tucked into your coat pocket, and then there’s nothing left to do.

Santiago presses the softest kiss to your cheek as he opens the door for you, one you return as you exit, Inez waving goodbye from your arms.

There are so many emotions fluttering around your chest, rampaging your heart, and you’re more confused than you’ve ever been. You want to tell Santiago how you feel, but you can’t do that if you don’t really know what you’re feeling. It’s a gentle torture, one that has you holding back tears as you buckle Inez into her car seat.

Tags: @zoriis @andromeda-dear @loonymagizoologist @campingwiththecharmings @stevenngrant @itspdameronthings @welcometostayingawake @outmodead @pakhiya @wand-erer5

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple fontier fanfic #I’ll be back again to stay

82 notes · View notes

alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

Text

seven

Chapter 7 of I’ll Be Back Again To Stay

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x single mom!reader

Warnings: none :)

Word Count: 2.1k

Author’s Note: a chapter full of internal debate (and by that I mean Santiago is no where to be found… oops)

The time between Christmas and New Year’s passes quickly, with the added weight of the reality of your impending departure pushing you down. You try to spend as much time as possible with your friends, while your heart caves in every time you look at Santi.

You spend your days working on your laptop on the couch, keeping an eye out for Inez as she runs around and plays. Sometimes, Sofia will come over and take her and Maria to the park or to a movie, depending on the weather. The evenings are spent as a group, just chatting and snacking while the girls play.

At the beginning of your trip, you’d been worried about taking up too much space, inserting yourself when they wanted you to keep your distance, but now you’re worried you’ll never spend enough time with them. Sure, you’ll be able to text and call and FaceTime, but when you leave, they’ll all still be here, together.

You can’t help but feel a little bit jealous, a little bit angry at your circumstances. You finally meet a group of friends that you genuinely care for, that you want to spend time with, and you live hours and hours apart. It seems like a cruel joke, like the universe just needed a good laugh.

If your platonic feelings are a joke to the universe, then the way you feel for Santi must be a goddamn stand up special.

You can’t even remember the last time someone made you feel the same way as Santi, and you still aren’t sure what it is, but it seems like the border between infatuation and love and despair. You crave being near him, but every time he’s close to you, your stomach is a riot. You feel all out of sorts, but you don’t entirely hate it.

It’s a strange, new feeling, and you don’t have enough time to study it, to decide what the best course of action is. So, instead, you don’t do anything, you don’t tell anyone; you bottle up all of your feelings and hope you don’t explode.

It’s a special type of torture, keeping all of your feelings to yourself. As much as you want to, you can’t tell Sydney, because you know she’d tease you before accidentally letting it slip to everyone that you have feelings for Santiago, though you still can’t pinpoint what exactly those feelings are.

What you want, more than anything, is for Santi to make the first move. You want him to get you alone, sit with you at his kitchen table and tell you that he feels the same, whatever those feelings may be. You want him to eliminate that horrible feeling clawing at your skull, the one that whispers that whatever you’re feeling isn’t reciprocal.

Though, spending time with Inez and Sydney and the rest of your new friends served as a wonderful distraction, the perfect way to take you out of your head for a few hours. You try to soak up time with Syd, knowing that when you return home, texts and FaceTimes won’t be the same as having her with you.

Plus, you know how much she loves Inez, and you want the two of them to spend as much quality time together as possible. Most days, the three of you will go out for some sort of winter activity, like ice skating or walking around the winter market on weekend mornings.

It’s wonderful, being able to spend so much time with the people you love, new and old friendships growing over time. You can almost feel a physical pain in your chest whenever you think about leaving, about saying goodbye to Sydney and Will and all of the wonderful people you’ve met.

That ache only deepens when you think about Santiago, when you think about how even if he reciprocates the way you feel about him, you’ll have essentially no time together. It seems especially cruel of the universe to present you with such an amazing man, only to leave you confused and unable to act on your feelings.

You spend time with him outside of the group too. Most of the time, you’re with Inez and Toby, walking around in the chilly weather, sitting on freezing cold benches together as Inez chases Toby around the dog park.

It’s always so domestic between the two of you, enabling you to create an elaborate fantasy in your head where the four of you will return to Santiago’s house, warm up and cuddled together for the rest of the day before making dinner together and eventually falling into bed together, Inez safely tucked asleep in the room next door.

But that’s just a fantasy, and at some point, your daydreams need to end. You need to decide if you’re just going to keep whatever you feel to yourself or if you’re going to risk telling Santi and seeing what happens. You’ve been leaning towards the former.

Even if Santiago’s feelings reach the depth of yours, if they pass beyond lust, the time you’d have together is limited. You’re only here for another week, what’s the point of telling him? What could happen in the span of that week? To you, it’s best to keep your feelings to yourself and hope that when you get home, they’ll disappear.

For now, though, it seems like those feelings, that pull you feel towards Santi, are only growing. It seems like every time you look at him, whether he looks back or not, your heart twinges and your chest contracts. You’re almost constantly overwhelmed with the urge to gently tangle your fingers into his graying curls and tug him softly towards your mouth.

It would be so much easier if he was an asshole.

Sure, he’s emotionally closed off and a little broody, but he’s beyond sweet, both to you and Inez. It's impossible for you to hate anyone who was nice to Inez, and you could tell that Santiago would do anything for her. Every time she smiles, Santi positively beams, joy radiating out of his gorgeous eyes.

No matter what you try, you can’t stop thinking of him. You think of him when you’re working, watching Inez out of the corner of your eye. You think of him when you’re spending time with the group, unable to stop yourself from glancing at him across the table. You think of him when you’re trying to fall asleep, mind always wandering back to his deep brown eyes and perfect smile that he hides from so many.

You feel like you’re going to explode with all of these emotions coursing, rushing, through your body. You don’t know how much longer you can live like this, how long you can pretend that you feel nothing for Santiago beyond the typical platonic feelings.

Besides the emotional torment, you’ve had the best two weeks of your life on your trip. You got to spend some much needed time with your best friend, you got to make new friends, which is so incredibly rare for you, and you got to watch your daughter having fun and making her own friends.

Really, just seeing how much fun Inez is having is causing your dread at the thought of returning home to increase tenfold. You know you have to go back, and you know she knows it too, but the thought still makes your stomach turn.

You can’t tell if it’s the people or the time of year or some combination of both, but there’s not a single part of you that really wants to go back to your normal, everyday life. It’s still a week away, and you’re already dreading getting back on an airplane.

So you soak up as much time with everyone as possible while pretending that your heart doesn’t crack every time you see Santiago.

It’s during this time, where you’re trying to spend as much time as possible with all of your friends, that Sydney brings you the news of yet another change in holiday plans.

Originally, you, Inez, Syd, and Will were going to order pizza and watch movies and the countdown to New Years in Times Square, just a cozy, casual night in. In your books, it’s one of the very best ways to spend a night.

Syd, however, had other ideas.

She has made it her mission to convince you to come out to some bar with the rest of the group, using her puppy-dog eyes and pulling out all the stops to sway you.

“What about Inez, huh?” You ask, tired of having the same conversation at least once a day since December 26, “How am I supposed to leave her all alone to go out drinking?”

“She wouldn’t be alone,” Sydney looks at you as if this is the most absurd question you could ask, “Frankie’s mom would be happy to watch her.”

Frankie himself had mentioned that his mom was going to be watching Maria for the night, and that Inez would be welcome to join them: she’s desperate for more grandchildren and would happily spoil Inez for an evening. You know he’s being honest, and he wouldn’t even offer unless his mom had told him it would be ok, but you can’t seem to shake that feeling of being an inconvenience.

“I dunno, Syd,” you tell her, just trying to get her to leave you alone for a few minutes, “I’ll think about it, ok?” Really, you had no plans to think about it, planning instead to wait a few more days before telling her that you’ll just stay back with Inez and go on with your original plan.

“C’mon, this is probably the only night you’ll ever get to go out, just take the opportunity!” You know she just wants what’s best for you, but damn, can she be annoying.

“Maybe I don’t want the opportunity.”

“We all know you do.” She changes tactics, scooching closer to you and pulling you into a side hug, “I just want you to be happy. And if staying home with Squish will make you happy, then I’ll leave it alone.”

“Thank you.”

“But I know that a part of you wants to come out with us, and I just want you to know that if you say yes, everything’ll be ok.”

“I’ll think about it, I promise.”

Somehow, she’d managed to convince you a little more, enough where you reached out to Frankie to make sure his mom would really be ok with watching Inez. According to him, she’d be happy to watch Inez with Maria, and he assures you that he’d never even bring it up otherwise.

It’s amazing to you how calming Frankie can be, his gentle demeanor at odds with his lanky frame and broad shoulders. Still, he’d managed to convince you further, despite the jabs he’d slid into the conversation about a certain friend of his and a midnight tradition.

You had discarded it with a roll of your eyes and a good natured smile, but the thought had wormed its way into your brain, refusing to leave until you considered it further. You’d hate to say it, but that thought plagued you, leaving you unable to think of anything else besides sharing another kiss with Santiago.

And, you’d never tell anyone, but that comment might have been the one to break your resolve and lead you to ask Inez if she’d want to spend New Year’s Eve with Maria and her grandma. She almost jumped with excitement at the idea, grinning from year to year and immediately babbling away about all of the fun things she hoped to do with her new best friend.

So, you let yourself debate internally for a little while longer, trying to decide if you really did want to go out on New Year’s, but Inez had looked so excited at the prospect of spending the night with her friend that you eventually sighed and told Syd to count you in before arranging everything with Frankie and Sofia.

Syd, to no one’s surprise, was insufferable after convincing you to change your plans, grinning from ear to ear as she planned out your outfits. Her smile quickly turned to a pout when you shot down all of her ideas, though you could tell she was mostly teasing.

Really, she was just happy you had decided to go out for the night, and just live a little bit. She could imagine that back home, as a single mother to a young child, your nights out on the town were few and far between. So, she took it as her best friend duty to lovingly force you to let go for a night, to forget about all your problems and breathe.

Though, with Santiago there, you knew it would be impossible to forget your biggest problem of the trip.

Tags: @zoriis @andr0medafallen @campingwiththecharmings @loonymagizoologist @itspdameronthings @stevenngrant @welcometostayingawake @outmodead @pakhiya @wand-erer5

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple fontier fanfic #I’ll be back again to stay

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alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

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Hi darling! Love the idea for your request game, maybe Santi + #3 🥺💗

7 Days of Valentines

There was something about you that always made Santiago feel warm. It wasn’t even the fact that a simple smile could make him blush and avert his eyes like he’s never talked to a girl before, but every single moment with you made him feel warm down to his very soul. Just being near you seemed to make him feel better, no matter how shitty a day he had.

Tom had been getting on his nerves, Will began feeling antsy, old friends from old jobs kept reaching out, and his new boss was a total dumbass. All in all, by the time 5 o’clock rolled around, he had a massive headache brewing right behind his eyes. And then, he stepped into the back hall and it was like everything had been fixed.

He can hear you moving around in the kitchen, the gentle noises of you combining ingredients into a mixing bowl filling the space between the two of you. Normally, he’ll shout out a greeting, something along the lines of “honey, I’m home!” but today he forgoes this in favor of leaning against the wall and closing his eyes, letting himself become washed over with you.

Everything about you made Santi’s life easier. It was like just being in the same house as you made his headache start to disappear, made all of his problems and agitations slip from him. All that existed in that moment was the cool wall against the back of Santi’s head, the dark behind his eyelids, and the soft sounds of you in the kitchen.

You’re humming, he realizes now, some slow song you’ve been playing on repeat over and over for the past few weeks. Santiago loved that about you, how you’d find something you love and never get tired of it. It amazes him, really, how much you’re able to love things, how much you’re able to love him.

Sometimes, Santi wonders how you’re able to be so open and loving all the damn time. You pour out all your love to Santi, give it to him freely, and never ask for anything in return. You care for him in all the quiet ways, but all those actions scream with your love.

Never once have you asked him for anything in return, as if you can’t help but love him. You’re the one person he knows is never going to leave him, will never pack up and never look back if he’s not able to deliver. All you need from Santi is himself, the love he keeps hidden deep inside that you’d never ask for but he can’t help but give to you.

Santiago ponders all this with his eyes closed and his head against the wall, letting your soft humming fill his ears and calm his raging heart. When he’s ready, Santi knows you’ll be there for him, so he takes a few extra minutes to calm himself down, to be able to love you the way you deserve for the rest of the evening and for the rest of your lives.

You know he’s home - you heard the door open and slam gently, you heard the heavy tread of his boots and the deep sigh he let out. He needs a moment, and you’re going to give it to him. When he’s ready, he’ll waltz into the kitchen and wrap his arms around your waist from behind, tuck his head over your shoulder and kiss you on the cheek.

Until then, you’ll keep mixing and humming that song you can’t stop playing because it reminds you so much of Santi.

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple frontier fanfiction #7 days of valentines

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alwritey-aphrodite · 11 months

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Hii! Hope I'm not too late for this but may I please request Swingsets and tree houses with Santi for your summer blurbs please?🥺

I hope it’s alright that I made this an I’ll Be Back Again To Stay drabble, I just miss those two losers

2023 Summer Blurbs

As much as you loved living with Santi, loved getting to spend every day with him and Inez, it was clear that his house was never designed with children in mind. While turning the gray walls in Santi’s office into the pink walls of Inez’s room was an easy fix, your daughter’s immense boredom in the summer was not so simple to solve.

With Inez out of school, it’s clear that the open, flat backyard wasn’t going to cut it anymore, so you spent most of your free time researching different play structures.

“I can just build her something,” Santi says to you one night as he slips into bed next to you.

“Are you sure?” You ask, remembering the time a few months ago when he tried to put together Inez’s new bed. You’d needed to call over both Frankie and Benny before it was finished.

“Of course, honey,” he responds with a kiss on your forehead before he turns off the lights, “I’ll get started this weekend.”

When Saturday rolls around, you wake up at seven with Santiago’s side of the bed already cold. Coming downstairs, you see Inez on the couch watching cartoons and Santi in the backyard with a stack of lumber.

“What’s your dad doing?” You mumble, looking out the window at Santi as he tries to hold up two pieces of wood.

Your daughter just shrugs, and you’re about to open the back door and ask if Santi wants you to call the boys for help when you remember how badly he wanted to build this for Inez all by himself. The rest of your morning is spent keeping Inez and Toby busy while stealing glances out the window to keep track of Santi’s progress every few minutes.

By the time lunch rolls around, there are four wooden posts in the ground and other than that, you’re not really sure what the structure is supposed to be. Santi’s sweaty and frustrated when you call him in for lunch, but he smiles at Inez and answers all her questions about his project anyway.

“You want me to call Frankie?” Santi shoots you a glare, one that says I can do this myself but you just raise your hands like you’re settling a startled animal. “Just for an extra set of hands.”

Santiago still seems opposed to asking for any sort of help from his friends, but when he heads back outside to continue work on the play structure you give Frankie a call anyway. Really, it’s to see if Maria wanted to keep Inez company for a while, but you might have slipped in a little information about Santi’s project and his refusal to ask for help.

A few minutes later, Maria and Frankie and his tools are at your front door. Inez squeals with delight when she sees her best friend, and the two of them practically sprint upstairs to play. Frankie makes his way to the back door, sighing when he sees Santiago struggling. You just sit on the couch, watching the two men approach each other out of the corner of your eye.

It’s late when Frankie comes inside to take Maria home, and you thank him for everything from your spot on the couch, your daughter sprawled across your lap keeping you from moving. You carry Inez up to bed before getting ready for sleep yourself, and you’re surprised when Santi’s already under the covers.

After spending all day working on that play structure, you know his knees and back and neck must be killing him, so you wordlessly tell him to flip onto his stomach so you can try to knead some of the tension out of him.

“Thanks for calling Frank,” he mumbles into the pillow, and you can tell he’s embarrassed to admit this, embarrassed to admit that he couldn’t do it all by himself.

“Thank you for working so hard to give Inez something to do outside,” you respond instead of gloating, placing a kiss at the base of his neck.

When Inez wakes and sees her new play structure outside, she’s buzzing with excitement and races through breakfast and getting ready for the day. Santi wakes later, dealing with aches throughout his body but he thinks it’s all worth it when he sees his daughter playing and having fun with something he built just for her. He’d take all the pain in the world if it meant Inez would be as happy as she is right now.

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple frontier fanfiction #2023 summer blurbs

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alwritey-aphrodite · 1 year

Text

five

Chapter 5 of I’ll Be Back Again To Stay

Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x single mom!reader

Warnings: none!

Word Count: 2.4k

Author’s Note: alternative title: it’s Christmas Eve and everyone refuses to acknowledge their feelings

The last few days leading up to Christmas Eve were a whirlwind of present wrapping, Inez-wrangling, baking, and trying not to think about Santi. It was proving to be an impossible task.

No matter what you did, you couldn’t stop thinking about your kiss. And it wasn’t just a simple kiss, it was a full on, bonafide make out session, with someone you’d only met a little over a week ago, that made your head go all fuzzy and your chest tighten whenever you saw him or spoke to him or thought of him.

But that was an issue for another time, because Inez was getting harder and harder to calm down the closer Christmas Eve came.

Kids were always extra excited during the holiday season, but this year Inez was practically bouncing off the walls. She was beyond excited to spend it with her new friends, with more people than just you and her and Sydney, who couldn’t always make the trip after she’d moved away.

You’d felt bad before that you couldn’t give her that picture perfect, large family get together, with everyone smiling and laughing and full of holiday cheer. In your mind, Inez and Sydney were the only family you had, but Will and his buddies were a welcome extension of that.

Now, though, with your invitation to the Morales house, you and Inez get to experience that large family atmosphere. She’s able to run around with Maria while waiting to open presents, and they can play with their new gifts together afterwards.

The day before Christmas Eve, Inez was practically uncontrollable. You, Syd, and Will had taken her to the movie theater to watch the older holiday movies they played, just to give her something to distract her for a few hours. And it worked, but as soon as you left the theater, she was talking a mile a minute about what toys she hopes she gets and how she’s too excited to sleep, even though it’s still the middle of the afternoon.

To keep that holiday cheer going, and to keep her occupied, you have Inez help you with the gift wrapping you’d put off until the last possible second. She wasn’t much help at the actual wrapping part, but she was an expert at sticking the bows on.

Eventually, she runs off to play with the army of stuffies she’d brought, and you plop down on the couch next to Sydney.

“How are you feeling about tomorrow?” She asks, putting an emphasis on the you.

“Terrified. Extremely anxious. Like I’m on the verge of throwing up.” You tell her, honestly.

As much as the group had included you, you couldn’t help the times you felt like an outsider, an intruder ruining the dynamics that they’ve created years ago. Spending a holiday with someone is important, and you just don’t want them to second guess or regret asking you.

Plus, tomorrow would be the first time you’re seeing Santi since you kissed him, and you already know that Sydney will be able to tell that something’s off. The last thing you need tomorrow is Syd’s teasing.

“You have absolutely nothing to worry about,” she reassures you, giving you a squeeze on the shoulder.

“Yes I do,” you counter, “what am I supposed to wear?”

“Whatever you want.”

“But I left my ball gown at home.”

“Ha. Ha. Ha.” She deadpans, before you both break out in giggles.

It takes you a minute to recover, but once you do, Syd is ready to offer you real advice: “It’s honestly just a casual thing, you’ll fit right in in a pair of jeans. And don’t make a big deal because it’s a holiday, just approach it like just another night hanging out at the Morales’.”

Her advice actually worked to calm you down, but you were still beyond anxious about seeing Santi again. He hadn’t texted you since he dropped you off that night, so now you’re worried that he regrets it. You aren’t even sure how you feel.

He’s an attractive man, no one can argue with that, but you’re still not quite sure if your feelings go any deeper than that. And really, do you want them to? What good would it do for you to fall completely in love with a man who lives on the other side of the country?

But still, there’s that part of you that craves him, that wants to spend time with him. Just being near him is enough, his presence sending your nerves haywire and your heart pounding.

You try to ignore your feelings towards Santiago, and your nerves, but they’re always there, humming below the surface.

You give Inez a hot chocolate before sending her to bed early, because you know she’s going to beg you to let her stay up as late as possible tomorrow, and you’re going to let her. She needs as much sleep as she can get, because even though she refuses to nap, she’s a beast when she’s tired.

Luckily, she falls asleep pretty fast, all of the excitement finally getting to her. You sit with her for a few minutes, just watching as she drifts off, before placing a soft kiss on her forehead and creeping from the room.

You call it an early night yourself, far too anxious to sit with Sydney and Will and enjoy the holiday movie they have playing on the TV or the festive drinks they’ve made. Instead, you try your hardest to fall asleep at a decent time, steering your mind away from Santi.

You don’t remember falling asleep, but suddenly Inez is leaning over your groggy form, trying her hardest to whisper in your ear, “You gotta get up!” over and over again. Not your ideal wake-up call, but you put a smile on your face just the same.

You haul Inez downstairs for breakfast, where Sydney is making some last minute additions to your lunch contributions. She’s the exact opposite of Will, finishing tasks at the last possible second and somehow never worried about them.

They both greet you warmly as you set Inez at the kitchen table, wandering over to pour yourself some coffee. You know you’re going to need it. Inez, on the other hand, is absolutely bursting with energy and excitement, so much so that she can barely sit still long enough to eat her breakfast.

Once she’s finished and you’re almost fully awake, you haul her back upstairs to get ready for the day. Inez must be in a great mood, because she barely complains when you wash her face and help her brush her teeth. She’s all smiles as you help her get dressed and send her off downstairs so you can get ready.

You agonize over your outfit choices before you force yourself to calm down and remember what Sydney had told you last night, settling on a pair of jeans and a sweater. You take another minute to remind yourself that today is going to be great and to not overthink everything.

Once you’ve completed your pep talk, you join Inez and Will downstairs as you wait for Syd to finish getting ready before you can all head out. Inez helps Will load all of the gifts and food into the car, finishing just in time for Sydney to pull on her shoes.

The Morales house is already bustling by the time you arrive, and Benny and Santiago have yet to show up. Maria zips to the door to greet you, and as soon as Inez has her boots off, they’re running away to play. Frankie is in the kitchen, still trying to finish up the main dishes for lunch.

Sofia helps you arrange the gifts you brought under the tree, next to the TV that’s softly playing Christmas movies nobody is paying attention to. Soon afterwards, Benny arrives, followed by Santiago. Maria doesn’t bother coming downstairs to greet them, too distracted by Inez and their discussion of what toys they hope they get.

All the adults gather around the kitchen table as Frankie puts the finishing touches on the main dish and Sofia sets out place settings for everyone. Benny helps her carry the other dishes everyone brought, an array of snacks and side dishes so the Moraleses didn’t need to stress about every part of the day.

It’s almost impossible to make Maria and Inez sit down and eat, and they keep craning their necks to glance at the tree in the corner of the living room, as if someone would sneak in and steal all their gifts. As much as the adults want to have a leisurely meal, the girls scarf down their food, impatiently waiting for you all to do the same.

Sofia sends them from the table, exhausted by their endless bouncing, and when the rest of you exit the dining room a few minutes later, they’ve set themself up in front of the tree, intently staring at the gifts, as if they’re attempting to see through the boxes and wrapping paper. You can’t hold in your giggles at the sight, and the look the girls give you sends you into a full on laughing fit.

After what you’re sure felt like hours to them, you and the other adults finish cleaning up the kitchen and dining room before piling into the living room. There’s not enough room on the couch, so you settle yourself onto the floor, and Santi lowers himself next to you.

Frankie gives him a look, glancing from his face to his knees and back to his face. Santiago dismisses it with a shrug, and Maria comes barreling onto her father’s lap, ending any further inquiry from Frankie.

As you’d suspected, Inez had more fun tearing up wrapping paper and digging through bags than anything else. Of course, she was very happy with all of the gifts she’d received, especially the toy dinosaur in a dog’s Halloween costume princess dress from Benny. She absolutely squealed when she opened it, and Benny’s grin in response was one of the cutest things you’ve ever seen.

But, her gifts would keep her entertained later. For now, all she wanted to do was rip things open. So much so that you let her open your gifts for you, just to keep that excited little smile on her face. You also loved the way she’d go “oooo, look mama!” and hold up whatever was in the package. It was practically impossible to keep a smile off your face.

Everyone was in a great mood. You’d sense some tension earlier between Frankie and Santiago, when everyone was filing into the living room, but that’s disappeared. Now, happiness is practically radiating off of everyone in the room.

It’s amazing to you how comfortable you felt, how much these people felt like family when you’d been so reluctant to meet them. It seems crazy that you’ve only known them for less than two weeks when you could swear you’ve known them your entire life. You’re already dreading the return home.

But, you try not to focus on that. Instead, you focus on the fire Frankie had built in the fireplace, the chatter of your friends around you, the warm press of Santiago’s thigh against your own, and the excited grin of your daughter. You couldn’t be happier.

Once all of the gifts had been opened and Frankie had gone into full dad mode and cleaned up all of the wrapping paper and gift bags, the girls scampered off to play with their new goodies while you and the rest of the adults stayed in the living room.

You truly couldn’t remember the last time a holiday had been like this, all fuzzy and warm and full of laughter and people you cared about. As much as you enjoyed it, you were more grateful that Inez was able to experience it, the big get-together with all the warm, happy feelings.

You spend the rest of the afternoon snacking and chatting, tuning in and out of the holiday movies playing quietly on the TV. Inez and Maria are completely enamored with all of their new things, even taking turns to admire each other’s prizes.

It’s past dinner time when the Morales’ finally kick you out so they can do their yearly FaceTime call with Sofia’s family, who’s schedules never align for an in-person holiday. Benny heads back to Will and Sydney’s with you, but Santiago returns to his own house, waving off Will’s invitations to join you.

“He likes being in bed by eight,” Benny jokes as you’re walking towards your cars, earning a middle finger from Santi. You laugh at the joke, but you can’t help the little ache in your chest at the thought of Santiago returning to nothing but his dog. And, deeper down, the thought that he’d rather do that than spend more time with you.

You know you’re being dramatic, so you shake that thought away as soon as it comes, not allowing it to fester and grow into some ugly beast. You turn your mind away from Santiago, something you find yourself doing more and more often, and instead focus on making the rest of the day as perfect as possible.

Once you’re back at the house, you usher Inez upstairs for an early bath before changing her into the most festive, coziest pajamas she owns. Returning back downstairs once you’ve changed into your own comfy clothes, you find that Sydney’s set up plenty of snacks and drinks for you to spend the rest of the night watching movies.

The excitement of the day finally catching up with her, Inez is asleep before the first movie is over, her head resting on your lap and her body nestled between you and Benny. Instead of bringing her upstairs and potentially waking her up, you keep her with you, rubbing a soothing hand up and down her back to keep her asleep.

Benny leaves around 11, so he helps you haul Inez off of your lap and into your arms before he heads home and you and Inez head up to bed after saying goodnight to Sydney and Will. Miraculously, she stays asleep the entire transfer from couch to bed, even as you maneuver her out of your arms and onto her side of the bed.

You fall asleep soon after your head hits the pillow, exhausted from the day behind you and the even longer day ahead. You know that Inez will wake you at the crack of dawn, too excited to see what Santa brought to even entertain the idea of more sleep.

Sleep finds you quickly, and the man in your dreams shares a shocking resemblance to Santiago, but it doesn’t mean anything. It can’t mean anything.

Tags: @disabledameron @andromeda-dear @loonymagizoologist @campingwiththecharmings @stevenngrant @itspdameronthings @welcometostayingawake @outmodead @pakhiya @wand-erer5

#santiago garcia #santiago garcia x reader #santiago garcia x you #santiago pope garcia #santiago pope garica x reader #triple frontier #triple fontier fanfic #i’ll be back again to stay

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