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#sequin tank top
susoriginals · 1 month
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Vintage Blue Beaded & Sequin Tank Top from Midnight Velvet Plus Size 2X Evening Formal Wear Go Go Mod Costume Only $7.99
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larrylimericks · 11 months
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1Jun23
Black tank tops, the reason we died. H thirst trapped, his husband replied. Fans feral and jarred By arms sculpted and scarred ... The Larents said, “Bitches, it’s Pride.”
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glamourbarbiie · 1 year
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❣️
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sparklestheunicorn · 3 months
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sydmarch · 1 year
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heard there's a meme where you put harry in your outfit so get the rave clothes on bitch
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sweetest-devotion · 2 years
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harry's really in his freddie mercury era, looks, physique and all
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cheatherlea · 3 months
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Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Women Reflective Metallic Tank Top Bustier
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whore-ibly-hot · 9 months
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Yan!Mean-Girls x Fem!Reader
"Just Girly Things"
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18+ Minors DNI
Warnings: Bullying (Not at Reader), name callung, nude photos, coercion, dubcon touching, fem pronouns for the yans, mentions of school, general perversion, toxic behaviors, masturbation, sex toys, mean girls, dumbification, buying affection.
(AN: I'm not super proud of this one, but did my best. Never written a fem!Yan before.)
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The sound of clicking keypads and the occasional scoff can be heard in Maggie Robinsons loft bedroom. As the most popular girl at Delta High, it was important her room look as perfect as her. She chews on the strawberry flavored gum in her mouth, scrolling through her phone. She scoffs. "Sasha, did you see Jenny Taylor's latest post?" Sasha gags and nods. "Totally a spray-on tan." Sasha says, and Maggie nods. "She looks like a fucking orange. I bet you that nerd she's been with, his dick is that same shade right now..." The two cackle.
"Is he sick?" The third and final member of the group of cheerleaders asks. "Why would his dick be orange?" Sasha sighs, and puts a hand on her friends knee. "Lindsey, his dick is orange because her fake tan would rub off on it. It isn't like, permanently that color. It was a joke." Sasha explains. Lindsey pauses and tilts her head, before giggling. "Oh, I get it!" She claps her hands together, shaking the sequinned bracelet around her wrist as she does so. Maggie grins and roll her eyes at Lindsey's air-headed nature. Luckily, Sasha is always around to explain he jokes, because Maggie won't. She likes to watch her dumb subordinate work things out slowly.
"What about you, newbie? Ever had a fake tan?" She whips her head over to face you. You gulp as the school's queen bee sets her sights on you. You aren't sure why she seemed so fixated on you since you joined Delta High. Maybe it's because you were pretty, or talented, or just really obedient, but she's been dragging you around like a little purse dog since you met her, with Sasha and Lindsey flanking you both at all times. "Um, no." You mumble. She nods, and says "Good, you already have good skin. I mean, you should get a little more tan, but not with that shitty spray stuff. Or, y'know, you'll turn some jocks dick orange." The three laugh. "Because the tan rubs off!" Lindsey giggles. Maggie rolls her eyes, and groans. "Yes, Lindsey. Thanks for explaining." Lindsey looks down.
"Speaking of, have any of the guys at school caught your eye? I mean, like, appropriate ones for you. Not a fucking mathlete dork or something." She asks. "Not really. I've never actually had a boyfriend." The three girls freeze, and gasp. "Seriously?" "You've never had a boyfriend?" Maggie asks. She waves frantically, trying to get you to sit beside her on her bed. "Why not?" She asks. "Do you have a sex disease? Like... like cancer?" Lindsey asks, eyes wide. "Sex cancer, seriously?" Sasha says, glancing at her blonde friend, who only shrugs. "No one was ever interested, I guess." You grimace. You hadn't ever been popular, only making Maggie's interest in you more jarring. You had finally gotten a peek at what it was like to be school royalty.
"Not interested? Aw, you poor baby." Maggie pouts. "That's why you have us, you know? To doll you up, and keep you popular, that way you can have anyone you want." Sasha chirps. "I can't believe no one ever tried to get with you, you're like, really pretty." You smile awkwardly. "Thanks, Lindsey."
Maggie scoots closer, and you bite back a gasp when you feel her cold hands on your tank top, cupping your breasts. "Honestly. The jocks at school are horndogs, they'll stick it in anything, I'm surprised you haven't gotten any attention because of these." She bites her lips as her eyes wander down to your cleavage. "They're natural, right?" You nod. You feel the bed dip behind you, as Sasha and Lindsey join the two of you on the bed. "So you've never kissed anybody?" Sasha asks, tilting her head as her curls bounce. "No, I've kissed a boy, back in church in like, middle school or something." You chuckle, shrugging and rolling your eyes.
"What about kissing girls?" Your eyes widen. You shake your head as you feel the three girls gazes resting heavily on you. "I haven't. Why do you ask?" Maggie grins. "You could try with us. You're one of us now, you've gotta live a little. I mean, you haven't even had a boyfriend, or done it with someone. Let us help you." She coos. She leans in, and you gulp. "Don't you have a boyfriend, Maggie? Jason, right?" She asks. Maggie nods. "Yeah, but like, he won't care. He'll probably think this is hot or something. Besides, it's just girls helping each other out. It's not like a random hookup, we're all friends here." She feigns hurt at your hesitance, pouting. "Don't you like us?" Lindsey whines, giving you puppy dog eyes as she rests her head on your shoulder from behind. "No, I like you guys, it's just-" You look at Lindsey. "Alright, we can do this." You sigh. Maggie grins, and puts her hands on your waist, pressing her chest to yours. "Good, it's not even weird. It's like, just girly things." She explains. She bites your lip playfully, making you blush as she finally presses her lips to yours. As you kiss the school's queen bee, you can taste the light strawberry flavor of her gum, and as she pulls away a string of sticky lip gloss connects your lips for a moment.
"See? You did good, especially for someone who's only kissed once before." Maggie coos. Lindsey pops up to kiss your cheek. "Your skin is so soft!" She giggles, nuzzling your neck. Sasha sits to the side, waiting for orders from Maggie. "Lemme see your chest." Maggie begins to tug up your tight, white tanktop, grinning when she sees that you have no bra on. "No bra, huh? Maybe you wanted us to do this?" She teases. "Pretty..." She circles her fingers around your left nipple, watching it pebble up. "I bet you're sensitive, huh?" Sasha asks. You can't speak, and only nod. Maggie's cold hands make you shiver, as she gropes your breasts with a wicked grin. She reaches down and puts Lindsey's hands on your breasts. "Lindsey, keep playing with her tits, okay? I'm gonna move a little lower." Lindsey nods, fondling your breasts from behind. "I'll try not to scratch you, my nails are kinda long right now..." She giggles. Maggie hikes up your skirt, keeping it around your waist. She licks her lips as she touches the black panties covering your cunt. "Are these from that department store on 9th?" She asks. "Uh, yeah?" She rolls her eyes. "You don't need to be wearing that shit, that's for people like Jenny Taylor, not girls like us. Tell you what-" She leans closer to your ear, kissing the shell of it. "You make me cum, and I'll take you downtown tomorrow and buy you something cute. That's sure to help you get a guy." She obviously has no intentions of getting you a boyfriend, considering the way her gaze turns possessive. Still, she can't deny that she likes the idea of seeing you in something lacey, especially something she bought you. She notices from the corner of her eye how Sasha is squirming, clearly eager to act, rubbing her thighs together subconsciously.
"Sasha?" Her head perks up immediatly, and she stills. "Y-yes, Maggie?" She pants. "Go get my wand, the pink one." Sasha nods, and scurries over to Maggie's closet, digging around for something. She manages to pull out a pink wand, with a microphone-like rubber tip. You can feel Maggies fingers trying to pull your panties to the side. "You ever played with yourself?" She whispers. You nod. "Yeah, a few times." You admit. "How?" She presses an index against your aroused clit. You gasp. "Fingers! I use my fingers, inside me." You moan. She pouts again, as Sasha hands her the wand. "Well, no wonder your little clit is so swollen, you've not been giving it any attention." She coos. "Don't worry, I've got just the thing." She takes the wand from Sasha. "It feels so good." Sasha says, her eyes full of sincerity. You wonder just how many times these girls have done this sort of thign. Does anyone else at school know?
You are torn from your thoughts when you hear a whirring sound. "What's that gonna do?" You ask. "It vibrates, and I'm just gonna press it right up against your clit, okay? It's gonna feel so fucking good..." She groans. "But, I'm going to enjoy something too. You know, for being such a good friend, and taking in a little newbie. You watch as Maggie mounts your thigh, gasping when you feel her slick pussy press against your leg. Has she not been wearing underwear this whole time? Your whole body flinches when you feel a pusling wave in your lower. "A-ah, shit." You grip the sheets of Maggie's bed tightly. Somehow, the stimulation to your clit makes Lindsey's pawing at your chest feel even more pleasurable. Maggie chuckles as she begins to grind herself against your thigh. "Feels good, huh? You like that? Your pretty new friends taking good care of you? Putting a pretty vibrator on your clit?" Her condescedngin tone makes you blush in shame. After a while, her moans grow in volume too. "Fuck, even just your thighs feel good. Maybe, god- maybe soon I'll ride your pussy like this." She groans. "God, not even Jason makes me feel this hot, this wet. That little limp-dick, can't even make me finish." She tilts her head back. "Sasha, take a photo, m' boutta cum." Sasha pales. "I don't... um, can I use you phone, mines dead?" Maggie doesn't open her eyes, but Sasha can sense her rage. "I don't care, just taking the fuckin' photo, I'm so close. C'mon, baby. Cum on my vibrator, I'll buy you something, anything, just do it." You weren't expecting to her Maggie beg for anything in your lifetime, much less for you to cum. Overwhelmed, you feel your orgasm hit hard. "M-maggie, I'm, oh..." She nods rapidly as she practically bounces on your thigh. "Yeah, right there, I'm cumming to..." She pants.
You close your eyes, but still sense a flash of light from Sasha snapping a photo. As your legs shake from the feeling, Maggie casually dismounts your thighs, sitting down on the bed beside you. She kisses your forehead. "You did so good. I'll get you something so cute to wear to school next week." She flips her hair and acts nonchalant, as if she hadn't just held a sex toy to your cunt while she rode your thigh like her life depended on it. "Sasha, let me see that photo." Sasha shows her the phone, and she grimaces. "Ugh, I look so fucking pale. Put a Sepia filter on it or something." Before Sasha can, Lindsay snatches the phone, and lets out a whine.
"Only my hands are in it! What the hell, Sasha!"
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genderfreakxx · 2 years
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I just had a dream that I was in MCR but then one day they all sat me down and intervention-style told me that I was just a huge piece of shit
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visionarchives · 2 years
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bleach-your-panties · 2 months
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ᰔℊℯ𝓉𝓉𝒾𝓃' 𝒾𝓉 𝓅ℴ𝓅𝓅𝒾𝓃' with ONYANKOPON on a balcony.
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for my 1500+ 𝒻ℴ𝓁𝓁ℴ𝓌ℯ𝓇 ℯ𝓋ℯ𝓃𝓉. requested by @prettybraat.
ᰔhere you go baby, happy black history month!❤️💚💛
ᰔcw: modern au! fem, black reader. balcony sex, exhibitionism, panty-ripping, backshots, hair-pulling, scratching.
ᰔdividers by @/benkeibear.
ᰔwc: 2.2k
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💗💗🍡°taglist: @enchantedforest-network @bakugosbratx @chifuyuskoneko @honeybleed @hoesluvshanti @chrollohearttags @darkstarlight82 @blkkizzat @bey0nseh @kokonoiscoconut (if anyone wants to be added to taglist, please fill out linked google form, thx!)
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When your boyfriend, Onyankopon, or ‘Ony’ for short, texted you with a simple ‘get ready’ you immediately hopped up to pack an overnight bag.
Ony works as a financial consultant for one of the biggest banks in Atlanta, as well as a personal finance advisor, so he’s never short on dough and absolutely does not mind spending his hard-earned money on his baby girl.
You haven’t seen him in a while due to it being tax season and him working overtime at the bank, so you knew that when you saw him, you were definitely getting your back blown out.
As you were deciding which pairs of sexy panties you wanted to bring, your phone began to ring. 
“Hello?”
“Hey, baby.” Your man’s smooth, baritone voice filtered its way from the phone speaker and into your ear making you clench your thighs together.
“Hey, pooh. Are you off of work already? I’m still getting my stuff together.”
Onyankopon laughed once he heard you rummaging around in your room; who knows what all you were throwing in that gold and black sequin Victoria’s Secret duffle bag you loved so much.
“I’m about to FaceTime you, baby. I want to show you something.”
When he said that, you stopped packing and focused all of your attention on the phone - Ony chuckled because he knew how nosy you were.
The request to FaceTime immediately came through and you accepted it.
“ONYANKOPON!!”
He just chuckled deeply, “Not the government.” 
On your screen currently sat the finest version of your man that you had ever seen.
Now, Ony had always been fine; let's make that abundantly clear…
Smooth, flawless dark-brown skin, toned muscular body, tattoos up and down his arms and back (that were usually hidden by his business suits), straight white teeth, and don’t forget the inches that he was packing - eight and a half, to be exact.
Long, thick, and hard.
…but Ony with a fade and dreads pulled back in a half-up half-down ponytail? 
Oh, he must've been trying to call in for the next week or so.
“You went quiet on me, bae. Do you like it?’’ You were snapped out of your nasty little reverie.
“Do I like it? Babe, you look so fucking mouthwatering right now. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to make the drive all the way to yours.”
Flirting sensually, you leaned your upper body into the camera and let your breasts spill out of your tank top for your man’s viewing pleasure.
You didn’t miss how Ony raised an eyebrow and bit down on his lower lip, pausing before he continued,
“To mine? Oh, we’re not going to mine, baby girl. I made a reservation for us at the Waldorf Astoria in Buckhead.” 
Leaning back out of the camera frame, you made your perfectly arched eyebrows jump while bringing a hand to your mouth to chew on the tip of one of your baby blue stiletto nails.
“You did, babe? That’s so sweet of you, I can’t-”
Before you could finish your sentence, you heard a loud car horn honk from outside.
“Ony!! I didn’t know you were damn near almost here; why didn’t you say something, boy?!”
Tossing the phone onto the bed, you hurriedly gathered the rest of your things and shoved them into the bag before zipping it up. Your slides were on the side of your bed, so you slipped your matching pedicured toes into them and grabbed your keys off your nightstand.
“Hey, who you think you raising yo voice at, huh? Be good for me and come on outside, baby.”
—-
After climbing into the passenger seat of Ony’s navy blue BMW X5, he shut the door behind you and returned to the driver’s side.
You watched him carefully with slightly lidded eyes as he put his hand on the back of your headrest and backed out of the driveway.
Ony could feel you burning a hole in the side of his head, which made him bite his bottom lip again and send you a furtive glance while he drove through Atlanta traffic.
“What’s up, mama? Why you keep on staring at me?”
He knew good and damn well why you were staring at him.
You knew that he knew, because of the little smirk that formed at the corner of his plump lips as he held onto your thigh with his right hand and drove with his left hand holding the middle of the steering wheel.
The ride was leisurely, as all you had to do was sit there and look pretty, one leg propped up over the other as you scrolled through your TikTok feed. 
Ony moved his hand from your thigh to your foot, slipping your slide off and rubbing the sole of your foot.
“Oh! Babe…”
He just let out a soft hum of acknowledgment before turning into the parking lot of Seasons 52. 
Since Ony had made a reservation, you didn't have to wait long before a waitress came out to direct you both to your table.
This isn’t your first time coming here, but you still marvel at how everything on the menu constantly shifts and changes, yet always manages to always taste so delicious.
The salmon that you ordered was roasted to perfection; the potatoes just melted in your mouth and the green beans had just the right amount of crunch. 
Dinner conversation was fruitful, full of talks about your plans for university and Ony of the new investments that he was planning to make.
He held your free hand in his and rubbed his thumb over your knuckles while he sipped his wine and listened to you talk. 
His cocoa-brown eyes shined with love and admiration for you as you excitedly spilled about all of the classes that you’d be taking during the upcoming semester.
After you finished your dinner, Ony called for the waitress so he could pay then the two of you left with him guiding you by the small of your back to his car.
—-
Once you checked into your suite, Ony was on you like white on rice.
His large hands gripped you up, fondling your voluptuous ass cheeks while he repeatedly slotted his lips over yours in hot kisses filled with longing and need.
The cold links of his watch against your exposed lower back made a shiver race down your spine as you slowly lowered yourself to your knees in front of him. 
Ony looked down at you, meeting your big, brown doe eyes; immediately his dick began to harden in his slacks.
“Nuh uh, we don’t have time for that right now, baby. I have another plan for yo sexy ass.” 
He swatted away the hand that reached for his belt buckle and pulled you up by your bicep.
The suite Ony booked was almost as big as your entire damn apartment: two bedrooms, a spacious living area, a kitchenette (that was too big to be considered a kitchenette), and two bathrooms, both fitted with walk-in showers and whirlpool tubs.
Your nails clawed at the pressed cotton of his white dress shirt as he backed both of you up into the nearest bedroom. The motion-sensor lamps clicked on as soon as you stepped over the threshold, bathing both of you in a sensual, amber glow.
The curtain to the in-suite balcony was pulled back revealing the beautiful Buckhead cityscape below you, along with a navy sky full of bright, twinkling stars.
Ony began unbuttoning his shirt, tugging it free from where it was tucked into his pants as he finally allowed you to grab his belt and begin unbuckling it.
“Somebody’s impatient..” He chuckled as you yanked it from the loops and threw it across the room.
Once he was shirtless and you were down to your panties, he scooped you up and carried you over to the window.
“Wait, Onyankopon, what do you think you’re doing??”
He didn’t answer, but instead unlocked the glass door leading out to the balcony and stepped outside with you clinging to him.
The slightly cool breeze from the evening air whipped against your naked skin and made you press yourself further into Ony, who cradled your chin and brought your mouth back to his to give you another breathtaking kiss.
“I remember you saying that you wanted to try some different things, so here’s your opportunity, baby. Now turn around and grab that rail for me.”
His big hand went to the fly of his pants for him to unzip them and tug them down. He pulled a condom out of his pocket and began sliding it over his hard dick.
Just as you were about to do as you were told, you could hear faint chatter from below: a couple of floors below, there was a group of men and women seated at a round table out on their balcony, having drinks.
“Ony, there’s people out here - what if they see me?” Bashfully, your hands flew to cover your naked breasts. 
As you were leaning down to look at the other guests, Ony rubbed his dick between your ass cheeks, bumping it against your clit. A soft moan left your lips and your eyes almost closed before you remembered what you were supposed to be doing.
“They won’t see you, baby. They might hear you, though.” 
You heard that damn smirk in his voice, but soon you forgot all about anyone hearing once Ony grabbed your panties with one finger and ripped the flimsy material off of you, flinging it aside.
“Oh, babe!”
A loud moan was pulled from you as your boyfriend pushed the head of his dick into your opening. Your hands flew forward and you took a tight hold of the balcony’s railing as Ony started pounding you swiftly from the back.
The sounds of your ass colliding with his hips were loud throughout the silent night, so if those people were just really listening they’d easily be able to tell what the two of you were doing.
One tiny hand with those baby blue nails fell free from the rail and grabbed at Ony’s veiny forearm for leverage; his thrusts had your entire body quivering already. 
Soon enough, long scratches began to cover his arm as you tried your best to hold onto him.
You looked up at him and could feel him grow harder inside of you from the visual: fat ass bouncing back on him, braids shaking free from your bun, and your mascara beginning to run.
“Hm, what?” He licked his lips again but didn’t slow his pace as he just looked back into your misty eyes. “What is it, baby? Too much for ya?”
“Ony, I’m…” You trailed off as he suddenly picked you up underneath your thighs, his forearms resting in the creases of your knees.
“I didn’t tell you to let go of that damn rail.”
“ONYANKOPON!”
“And you were worried about somebody hearing you.” He laughed and bent you in half, still jackhammering away as you bumped and jostled against his body, 
Your upper half is now bent over the railing as the wind picks up and whips your hair across your face.
“Onyankopon, I’m going to fall!” 
“I won’t let you fucking fall, girl. Got too many muscles to let you fall.”
He grunted and locked his arms around your thighs, heavy balls slapping against your ass with loud, wet smacks.
“Hold the fucking rail, and hold that nut, too. I’m almost there. Gunna cum for you, baby; just hold still for me.”
Ony grabbed your hair up into a ponytail to pull it out of your face and also to yank your head back so he could whisper in your ear.
“You see that shit, baby? See those city lights beaming so fucking bright for you as I fuck your tight little pussy open?”
“Ohh, oh God! Yes, baby, I see them! Fuck, I see them!”
“You cumming?”
“YES! Yes, I’m cumming, oh my God! I’m cumming, baby!”
“Let it go then, baby. Go ahead and cum for ‘The Great One’*”
After that, you were done.
Your release washed over you like a wave; luckily Onyankopon was holding onto you or you might’ve actually flipped head-first over that balcony.
You both moaned each others’ names as your orgasm triggered his, bodies bathed in the pale moonlight of the night, surrounded by nothing but the stars and your love for one another.
—-
After that first round on the balcony, Onyankopon took you back into the room and the two of you went at it in nearly every area of the large presidential suite.
He even took you again in the shower before he washed you both off, wrapped you in a towel, and brought you over to the bed, wrapping you up in the covers.
“I love you, Y/N…my shining star..” Was the last thing you heard before you drifted off into dreamland, nothing but sweet thoughts of your handsome man on your mind.
—--
a/n: *Onyankopon means ’God’ in the Ghanian language and ‘The Great One’ in Ashanti mythology, referring to the Sky God.
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get it poppin! 💄event ©bleach-your-panties 2024. do NOT steal, copy, repost, alter, or upload my works onto other sites. comments appreciated. reblogs always welcome.
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zeldasnotes · 1 year
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WHAT DO YOU LOOK GOOD IN?
Based on your dominant sign or planet!
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You can also read the sign of your Ascendant & Midheaven since these points can affect your appearance too.
Aries & Mars
Your hair, face shape and daring eyes are what makes you look so fierce so make these features stand out with cute headbands, eyeshadow or just a sleek ponytail. You look good in tight clothes, especially black, orange and red. Leather looks super good on you aswell. Leather or suede jackets, tight jeans, tight tank tops. Anything thats considered a little ”tough” looks good on you. Also an all black outfit with red lipstick. Or bold clothes like neon green and orange. You also look good in sporty clothes like the tights and a tank top.
Taurus & Venus
You look super good in anything in velvet fabric . I think velvet is ruled by Taurus because its both comfortable and makes you look rich. Rich colors like wine red and dark purple looks good on you but also earthy colors like beige, green and brown. Go for minimalistic but expensive. Dont do too much because you want the focus to be on your natural beauty and your sensuality. Glossy lips and earthy eyeshadow. You obviously look good in jewelery since this is the sign of money. Expensive page haircut, look up Queen Latifah in her orange pagehaircut shes a Taurus Rising. Or Christina Hendricks who have the same hairstyle and shes a Taurus Sun.
Gemini & Mercury
Tube tops or off shoulder dresses to show off your well shaped shoulders and arms. Flared jeans! Also glasses and ponytails. You look good in purple. Tights long sleeve shirts that show the shape of your arms. You look good in colorful and playful clothes, striped clothes. Ive noticed that most Geminis look good in bangs. Corduroy pants, cargo pants. Also strawberry blonde hair is such a Gemini thing. High heels. Emeraldgreen! I feel like Geminis look good in a pagebob hairstyle.
Cancer & Moon
You look good in dresses. Flower print looks good on you. Long maxi dresses. Baby blue, navy blue and light green. Anything feminine. Especially anything that shows cleavage. You look good in jeans suspenders. Anything jeans really. Knitted cardigans. Cancers might not be known for being luxurious and status oriented but I noticed that they are usually very well dressed and look good in blazers and satin blouses and ties just like Capricorn, it enhances that milf/dilf look. Like you are on your way to a meeting.
Leo & Sun
Put focus on the hair, hairline and back. Headbands! You look good in silver and gold since it makes you stand out, mostly gold. Orange is YOUR color. Yellow too. When I think Leo dominant I think a orange satin dress with brown, beige or white hedge heels in the summer with a straw hat and huge glasses. And for men I think those linen shirts with shorts, flipflops and a sharktooth necklace. You look good in leo print too. Anything flashy and luxurious like those chanel blazers. Leo dominant also look sooo good in Sun glasses since yall are ruled by the sun, it enhances your diva look. Sequin dresses and high heels.
Virgo & Mercury
Think minimalistic. French manicure is a must! Go for neutral colors like brown, beige, black, white, dark blue etc. You need to have your own style because you are very picky, you need everything to be perfect and you are good at finding the perfect details to make the outfit look perfect. Take extra care of your health because its easily seen outwardly on virgos when they have been taking care of themselves. For some reasons Virgo dominants looks good in white and blue. You look especially good in silk since it highlights that virgo elegance. You guys look good in very basic clothes like jeans and a quality t shirt. Focus should be on quality and highlighting your natural beauty. Anything with buttons. Also anything that is ribbed.
Libra & Venus
Anything that enhances your femininity like pink nailpolish, cute bracelets, lipgloss. Definitely curly hair. You guys look good in the typical insta makeup look, anything thats in. Curly hair and lipgloss. Sweet and pretty. Anything thats original like the famous little black dress with a clutch that matches your earrings. Or in the winter, a long luxurious beige coat with the perfect scarf to match. High heels! When Venus is involved, original is best since this is the planet of fashion. Original colors like grey, black, pink, white.
Scorpio & Pluto
Black long sleeve rouched dresses, they show off your figure but leave some to the fantasy which makes you even more mysterious. For men definitely gold jewelery,brand name hoodies, vests. Clothes that give the impression of power. Dark brown, dark purple. Smokey eye. Gold jewelery to an all black outfit. Dont go overboard with the sexy because you already have a natural sensuality to you so you wont need it, it will just make it too much. Gold circle earrings. With Pluto its all about being mysterious. Instead of a super short dress wear a long dress with a slit to show a little leg. Less is more. This gives off an aura of privacy and mystery which will attract a lot of Scorpio Venuses. You want to attract someone with their Venus or Mars in your dominant sign. Shirts that got a text with the ”Old English” font.
Sagittarius & Jupiter
Anything that shows off your gorgeous legs and butt. This can be anything from a short dress to sporttights or jeans. We need to see them legs!! You already have a glow to you but you should definitely highlight those gorgeous Jupiter facial features with a highlighter. So go for a natural look but put focus on highlighting the nose and cheekbones. Ive noticed that Sagittarius placements usually look best in tight clothes. You guys also look good in leather and suede. Leather boots and tight jeans is a look i see as a typical Sag look for some reason. Dont wear overknee boots or socks that go over your calf because that covers the shape of your legs too much. The bohemian look or the ”just got out of bed” look suits you well too.
Capricorn & Saturn
Your bone structure is your best weapon so focus on highlighting your features but go for the natural look. You look best in something professional and luxurious. Blazers and clothes that are discrete but still classy, like you are going to work. For men you NEED to buy one of these knitted half zip shirts if you know what I mean. Also take care of your beard or mustasche. Wear a watch if you like watches. Beige, brown, black, white and navy blue are your colors. Dont do too much to your hair just make sure its healthy. Capricorn is all about looking well taken care off so a good skin and hair routine is a must. Suit pants look sooo good on these people.
Aquarius & Uranus
Tie dye clothes. Blue and green. Tank tops. Show off you legs because they are your strong feature! Also silver. Anything metallic or oversized. Aquarius actually have a lot in common with Scorpios style. I see Aquarius as a more experimental Scorpio stylewise. You look good in shirts with a text in the ”Old English” font too. You guys look so good in jewelery. I see Aquarius as people who fit best with cold tones like silver and ice blue, depends on your skins undertone tho. Cargo pants! Yall look good in neon colors, just look at Nicki Minaj shes an Aquarius Rising and look at how she rocks neon green and Barbie Pink. Yall look good in the 90s style like the t-shirt over long sleeved shirt look. Nose rings. Ombre hair.
Pisces & Neptune
You look good in something cute and relaxed. Anything that gives an aura of mystery and fantasy like lace or other seethrough materials. Blue ofc since Neptune rules the sea. Anything fluffy! Skirts. Long but tights skirts like a mermaid. Anything with ring details like those bikinis who got a plastic ring between the cups. When it comes to makeup go for the dewy look instead of the matte look because neptunian look sooo good in that and it highlights your features perfectly. Eyeshadow, eyeliner, lipliner and lipgloss to draw focus to your eyes and lips since these are your strong features. Preferably darker colors to look more mysterious. You also look good in fake lashes that are longer on the outer corner since it creates that wing look like Marilyn Monroe got. Yall remind me so much of Bratz and that kind of makeup look!
©️ 2023 Zeldas Notes
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wrongplacerighttime · 6 months
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Hi!! This is my first fic that I’m posting. I wrote it loosely based on this love by taylor. I write for my own enjoyment usually but this is my first time sharing my work!! I hope you enjoy it <3
word count: 7.5k (got carried away lol)
tw: smut MDNI!!, hints at dom harry, fluff, angst, drinking, kind of feelings of regret, mentions of a cheating partner.…i think that’s it but lemme know if i missed any :’)
This Love Left A Permanent Mark
This was a terrible idea.
My inner monologue has been repeating the phrase through my head like a mantra from the moment I walked through the glass doors of the club.
In hindsight, I don’t know why I didn’t think this sooner. Why did I think coming to my ex-boyfriend's album release party was a good idea? In what world would that ever be a good idea? Especially the way we ended things. I mentally note to never let Ginny talk me into something like this ever again, even if she is dating a member of his team. I recall the conversation we had about it a mere four days before this moment.
“It’ll be fun! And he’ll be busy talking to people all night anyway. He won’t even know you’re there, probably.” she insisted
“I don’t know, Gin. I really don’t want to crash his night.” I mumble, twiddling with the menu on the table in front of me.
“You need to get out of the house. All you do is sit and read your books and play your guitar. It makes me sad and depressed.” her nose crinkles in displeasure.
“What’s wrong with that?” I shoot back, raising an eyebrow.
“Nothing, I guess.” She shrugs. “I just think you deserve to have a good night. I won’t tell Joe you’re coming so he doesn’t mention it to Harry. You can just hang around and mingle and drink and dance with me.” She reaches over the table and takes my hand in hers. “Please. We haven’t had a night out in so long.” she gives me a pouty lip and I roll my eyes.
“We could go out any other night.” I point out and she sighs loudly.
“True…but this would be perfect. You don’t have to pay for any drinks or deal with sleazy guys at the bar. Just industry people doing industry people things and listening to the album at a big party.”
I contemplate her request. What’s there to lose? I weigh the options in my head for a moment. If I don’t go, she’s right, and I’ll just sit in my room all night flipping through the same romcoms and sitcoms that I’ve already watched 3 times over. I’ve been doing fine for a few months now. I’ve been going on dates again, and meeting new guys. On the other hand, no one will ever be him and I have no idea how I’ll react if I do end up seeing him…or if he sees me. But, there will be so many people there, he’ll be mingling, and he probably won’t see me, right?
“Fine. But if he sees me, I’m bolting. .” I mutter and she squeals in excitement.
Now here I am, sitting at the bar alone in the same spot for the past 45 minutes. Ginny is nowhere to be found, and I’m in an uncomfortable dress that’s too short for my typical comfort zone and the sequins are making me itchy. I twirl the straw around in my drink and sigh, holding my head in my hand.
On the plus side, I’ve avoided him for most of the night. The first time I spotted him was when he was walking into the club, making his grand entrance. I was hiding behind Ginny and he didn’t see me. But when I saw him my heart skipped. He’s wearing a cream colored suit, that looks almost a baby pink color if it’s in the right light, with a white tank top underneath that shows off his toned chest along with the two swallows tattooed on his tanned skin, and his cross necklace hanging from his neck. He’s got a pair of glasses with orange colored lenses perched on his head also. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t wish I was on his arm right now.
This was a terrible idea.
It’s been over a year since I saw him last. I don’t even know what he’s writing about in his music because I avoid every single thing about him. Arguably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do because he’s everywhere right now. If I see his name in the news, I don’t read the article. If he’s on the TV, I change the channel. I scroll past anything I see that his name associated with it. I learned my lesson the hard way in the beginning. I purposely searched his name in the weeks following our tumultuous end, and saw so many pictures of him with other women…and every time I saw him with them, the picture of him that I saw that night comes to my brain. So I stopped putting myself through that misery.
I hear a loud noise like someone patting a microphone. I turn my head to see Harry standing at the front of the room on a small stage. He’s looking out to the crowd of people who are now mostly turned to face him. He looks my way for a moment, and I feel my breath catching in my throat, but then he skips over me and continues skimming the crowd, and I let go of the breath I was holding.
“Hello, I’m Harry.” His deep voice sounds so smooth in the microphone and my stomach churns. It’s been so long since I’ve heard his voice.
“We know!” Someone yells back to him and the room erupts in laughter, making Harry chuckle into the microphone. So many thoughts are going through my head while I stare across the room at him, like the last time I heard him laugh like that. I turn back to face my drink so I don’t have to look at him. How good he looks.
“I just wanted to say thank you all for coming. It really means the world to me that I get to celebrate the release of my third album with all of you. I wouldn’t be here, in this moment, if it weren’t for every single one of you. All of you have played such an important role in making me the artist that I am. So thank you.” I sneak a peek at him from the corner of my eye. He brings his hand up to place over his heart in an endearing gesture. “Now, let’s get this show on the road and listen to it, shall we?” He says cheekily and the crowd sounds off with applause and cheers. The speakers in the room begin to play the tune of the first song and he walks off the stage making his way around the crowd of people, stopping to shake hands and chat with some of them.
I feel a hand on my shoulder and flinch in surprise, only to whip my head around and see Ginny hopping up into the seat next to me. I shoot her a look that shows I’m not happy with her and she tilts her head. The song changes and the next song is just as upbeat as the first.
“What? What’s wrong?” She questions and I roll my eyes.
“I’ve been sitting here alone for 45 minutes. You left me. You said you wouldn’t.” I pout, looking back down at my half-empty drink.
“I know, I know. I’m sorry. Joe wanted to introduce me to some people and then I lost track of time. I won’t leave again. I’m yours for the night. Promise.” She wraps her arm around my shoulders and squeezes me into her and I smirk. She orders a drink and I turn to face the crowd again. I don’t see Harry anywhere, and I feel the tension I was holding in my shoulders release a fraction.
We sit for a while, drinking and chatting amongst ourselves and other people who come to the bar while they’re waiting for their drinks to be made. They mostly talk to Ginny and ask how things with Joe are going, while I just listen and add little bits to the conversation here and there. I’m turned to face her at the same moment the 5th song ends and turns to a slower one, not as upbeat as the others. And they’re all so good. His talent really shining through in all of these words he’s written.
The chatter dies down a little, everyone taking in the beginning of the song before it picks back up again. Some people are swaying to the music and others are standing in groups. While looking through the crowd I spot some of Harry’s famous friends and when one of them makes eye contact and waves at me, I wave back. I feel a little stab in my chest, thinking back to a time Harry and I would be over there talking to them together. We would talk about how their projects are going and their plans for the future. Harry would always have his arm draped over my shoulder, pulling me closer to his side and kissing the top of my head. I sigh and continue to look around the room, looking for anyone else I might know, but then I spot him.
He’s sitting in a large curved booth with three others. He’s leaned over listening to one of them speak. I watch as his jaw clenches, and a small piece of hair falls down over his forehead. His eyes crinkle the way I always remember when he smiles and I can feel my breath leave my chest, just looking at him like this stole it away. His hand comes up to push his hair back off of his forehead while he nods and I catch the rings adorned on all of his fingers. One of them in particular catches my eye though.
The lion ring.
I gave him the ring as a gift for our anniversary a few years ago. He used to wear it every time he performed, but I didn’t realize he still wore it. You would if you’d ever pay attention to him, my conscience informs me and I swallow the thick lump in my throat. Ginny taps me on the shoulder once, pausing before tapping again, I turn my head towards her, but my gaze was still on the ring on his finger. My eyes work my way back up to his face before I tear them away, admiring his features for another moment. His beautiful green eyes…but when I turn to look at Ginny, I have to do a double take back to him.
Wait.
His eyes?
After a single second my brain catches up and registers that he’s looking at me. He opened his mouth once, then closed it again, his brow furrowed and shaking his head. I see the confusion laced through his expression, and I’m cursing myself, but I can’t look away.
“Fuck.” I manage to squeak out, and Ginny follows my gaze over to Harry.
“Oh shit. Laine, don’t—” she starts to say something but stops when he’s holding up his hand to whoever is speaking to him, signaling for them to give him a moment, and his eyes never leave mine.
“Laine?” I saw him mouth my name. A sight I’ve memorized ten times over. My breathing, my heart, and my mind all stop. Everything stops. It felt like the entire world stopped turning.
Within two seconds he’s standing, pushing his way through groups of people towards me. As he stands, I’m running for the door. I don’t look back. I just keep moving forward through the groups of people, pushing myself through…in the same sense that I have been for 19 months now. Running away and never looking back.
“Run away like you have from everything else.” The words that have infiltrated every single thought in my head for the past 19 months.
This was a terrible idea.
I’m pushing to the door, the air suddenly thick with dread that clouds my mind. I can’t breathe and it’s suddenly so hot. The room around me blurs and I can’t see where I am because there are tears clouding my vision. I’m blinking fast to clear them and all I hear are the last words he ever said to me, and then I feel the familiarity of his touch, and the flashback of the fight comes so quickly that it hits me like a freight train. Coming to the forefront so easily after I’ve tried so hard to just forget.
“Laine! Stop. Please, you don’t have to do this.” His voice drops an octave on the last few words, desperate for me to stay, and I knew I couldn’t.
“No, H. I can’t. This isn’t working. I can’t keep sitting here waiting for you to care about this, about us, when you’re photographed necking a girl at a bar. I sit here looking like a damn fool, waiting for you to love me.” My voice trembles and I shove him away from me.
“It wasn’t even what it looked like! You’re being irrational.” He throws his hands up in the air.
“Me? Irrational? Don’t. We’re falling apart. You’ve been growing so distant. Every time you go out you’re photographed with some other girl…and this time you’re all over her? I know we haven’t been the best lately but this is too much. You’ve gone too far.” I argue back, throwing things into a bag.
“You should know the paps twist everything. Please let me explain!” He’s practically yelling now, and I turn back to face him, rage clouding my mind.
“You cannot explain away this one Harry. All I wanted was for you to look at me the way you look at them. You used to. I used to be the only one you looked at.” My voice trembles, the tears threatening to spill. “It’s time to stop lying to ourselves, this was over a long time ago.” I snap at him with a shake of my head. He looks at me, defeated.
“Fine, Laine. Just go. Run away from this like you have everything else in your life. You’re so predictable.” He shoots back and I visibly flinch, I never thought he would use my past against me.
“You don’t get to say those things to me after doing this. This is your fault. I’m done. It’s over. Go call your new girl, I’m sure she’s waiting for you.” I grit through my teeth. I don’t let him say anything else before I walk out the door, leaving the only place I've ever called home behind.
“Let go of me!” I yell, trying to catch my breath and gasping for air. Trying to push and pull my way out of the grip on my arm. I know it’s him. I’d know the feeling of his hands anywhere. My eyes are squeezed shut.
“Hey! Laine, calm down. Look at me.” He shakes me slightly trying to get me to come back down to earth. I feel his hands let go of my arms and he grabs my face. “Please. Look at me.” I shake my head.
“I can’t. Because if I open my eyes and you’re really standing there and it’s not a dream, I will pass out.” I say quickly, so quickly that my words run together and I’m not sure he even understood what I said. But what am I so afraid of? It’s just Harry. But then again, my mind is replaying his words from that night over and over again. Run away like you have from everything else.
“If you do, I’m right here. I’ll catch you.” His voice is deep and he speaks slowly. His hands are still holding my face. I don’t respond, my lips pressed together in a thin line. My heart is beating out of my chest.
“What are you doing here Laine?” He asks, so quietly it was almost a whisper.
“I-,” I stop myself, realizing I have no good explanation, to collect my thoughts. I realize that my eyes are still tightly closed, and I probably look ridiculous. But now that he’s here and the entire world hasn’t imploded yet, I’m beginning to come back down to earth. I realize I don’t hear the music, I don’t hear anyone else talking, and my back is against a cool concrete wall. I open my eyes slowly, and I’m outside, and he’s there. Right there in front of me, not a dream, not a figment of my imagination. His eyes are so green, his jaw is sharp with little bits of stubble beginning to grow. His lips are full and pink, and they look so, so kissable. His hair is perfectly wavy sitting on top of his head, and he’s just close. Closer than he’s been in so many months. I turn my head, looking away from him and down the alley. I take a shaky breath.
“Ginny invited me. I don’t think she told Joe I was coming. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have come. I-I didn’t think…” My gaze travels back to his, and he’s smirking.
“Didn’t think what? That you’d run into me at my own album party?” He asks.
“In hindsight it was not the smartest decision.” I mutter and look down at the ground. I can’t look at him. If I look at him again I’ll want to kiss him and I can’t do that, not anymore. “I think I’m just gonna go home.” I add and look back up at him through my lashes.
“Don’t. Stay. I’m sorry that I scared you. I just haven’t seen you in so long, it caught me off guard. I didn’t know if it was really you sitting there or if my mind was playing tricks on me again.” He rubs his hands down my arms, stopping at my wrists and going back up again, keeping me warm in the cool night air.
“Again?” My brow furrows.
“Yeah. Again. See you everywhere I turn, have since…” He trails off, then shakes his head slightly. “Please, come back in…I’m sorry that I startled you.”
“I need to anyway. I ran out and left all of my stuff with Ginny.” I wrap my arms around my torso to try and shield myself from the cold. He moves out of my way and stands beside me. We walk back inside in awkward silence, and this feels like some terrible kind of walk of shame. He holds the door for me and I mumble a thank you. Someone catches his attention when we walk into the main area so he stops to talk to them and I take that as my cue to walk away before it’s even more awkward. I make my way back over to the bar and Ginny is still in her seat. Her eyes widen at me as she sips through her straw.
“Oh my god. Are you okay? I didn’t know what to do. I saw him coming this and then you were running and then he ran after you and I just froze. I’m sorry. Should I have come to save you?” she rambles on and I shake my head.
“It’s fine. I think I just overreacted. I haven’t seen him in so long and when I saw him coming towards me I panicked. Nothing bad happened.” I sigh and run my hands over my face. My mind wanders, thinking about what he said. He said he sees me everywhere, and he has since the night I left. I didn’t think he even wanted anything else to do with me. Thinking about what he said pulls at my heartstrings and I’m confused…I decide I don’t want to feel this way.
I order a drink from the bartender.
Then another.
Then another.
And before I know it, another hour has gone by, and I’m drunk and on the dance floor laughing with Ginny. I have a drink in one hand and the other above my head, holding onto Ginny’s and swaying our hips together. I’ve not felt this way in a long time. I feel on top of the world, like I’m floating. She leans into me and whispers something in my ear but I don’t quite catch it. I turn towards her with a confused look on my face.
She gestures her head across the room and my gaze travels that direction. I look to find Harry, sitting in the same booth as before. He’s leaned back with one leg crossed so his ankle is resting on his knee. He’s got a drink in his hand, bringing it up to his mouth with a smirk on his face. Smirking at me.
“He’s been watching you for, like, the past 10 minutes. I know because I counted.” Ginny slurs in my ear and I look at her with an eyebrow raised.
“You counted?” I repeated back, skeptical. I don’t think I could even count to 20 right now.
“Um, yeah. It was for like two and a half songs that’s pretty much the same as 10 minutes right?” Her words run together and I turn my head to look at him again over my shoulder. A woman is sitting next to him, trying to get his attention and he’s nodding to whatever she’s saying, but his eyes are still on me.
I don’t really think my brain can comprehend why he’s staring at me in this moment. So I keep dancing with Ginny, and then eventually with other people too. I end up dancing with one of his friends that came up to talk to me, his arm around my shoulder and jumping around, singing the words to a popular song we’ve all heard repeatedly on the radio. I don’t remember when it happened because all my thoughts are running together and Ginny just keeps handing me drinks, and I’m so grateful for that. Grateful that he doesn’t come over to me. But why was he grinning at me like that?
Another hour goes by, I’m standing at a table talking to someone I’ve never met before, but Ginny knows them. Another one of Joe’s clients he manages, I think. I don’t really remember. I’m sipping my drink through a straw, slightly swaying to the music and listening to one of the women at the table speak when I feel hands on my waist, pulling me away from the table. I stumble backwards, feeling my back collide with a strong chest. I turn my head to see that Harry is the one pulling me away. His eyes are dilated and I can smell the alcohol on his breath. He grabs my hand, pulling me into the shadows of the club where no one can see us. He leans down and I can feel his breath on my ear.
“You look so tempting. It’s not fair.” He cups his hand around my cheek, running his fingers down my jaw line then holding my chin between his thumb and finger. He tilts my head up so my eyes meet his. He reaches up, running his thumb over my mouth, pulling my lip as he drags it down. He breathes a heavy sigh through his nose. Bravely, and not in the right state of mind, I gently bite his thumb between my teeth, closing my lips around it and sucking lightly. He chuckles and shakes his head. He just looks so good.
“You’re killing me.” He groans and drops his forehead to meet mine. “All I want right now is you and I can’t have you.”
“Who says you can’t?” I whisper back to him, looking up at him through my lashes, and our faces are so close. So close all I can see are his eyes. He grins and leans in, leaving a small kiss on my neck under my ear, and I feel tingling where his lips touch. I can smell his cologne. I would recognize it anywhere. He grabs my hand and leads me through the crowds of people towards the back door.
“My place or yours?” He asks, his eyes peeking at me over his shoulder.
“Yours.” I answer back without hesitation.
He opens the door and I feel the cold air biting my skin, instantly making my body shiver. We’re walking fast towards his car, his hand still wrapped around mine and pulling me along behind him. He walks me around to the passenger side of his car and opens the door for me. I slide into the seat and my teeth are chattering, when he comes to the drivers side he takes his jacket off and hands it to me over the center console.
We drive to his apartment in silence, his jacket shrugged over my shoulders. The air is filled with tension, both sexual and nervous. I don’t want to speak because I don’t know what to say. He grabs my hand and kisses my knuckles, making my heart flutter in my chest. Like he always used to. I don’t pull away. I let him hold my hand against his mouth.
We make our way up to his apartment with haste. The elevator stops and opens to his penthouse, and once we’re inside he’s pushing me against the wall, not wasting a single second, and his lips finding mine. He grabs my hips so hard that I’m sure there will be bruises. When my mouth opens he’s slipping his tongue inside and I feel my knees weaken. He kisses me like it’s the last time he’ll ever get to.
He’s grabbing my thighs and lifting me up, all without breaking the kiss and instinctively my legs wrap around his waist. My hands work their way into his hair and pull slightly, making him groan into my mouth. He carries me into his room, the room we used to share, and lays me down ever so gently. He’s hovering over me, his knee between my thighs and putting pressure on my center. His kiss and his touch feel so familiar that it hurts, and I can feel it in my bones. Something I’ve longed for since the very last time. I feel my muscles melting into the bed with the weight of him on my chest. I moan into the kiss and he pulls away slightly.
“Been thinking about this for so fucking long, Laine. Think about you every day.” He whispers, touching his forehead to mine. My brain feels fuzzy and somewhere in my mind my conscience is telling me not to sleep with him, that I’ll regret it, but I push the thought out of my mind and focus on him hovering over me, paying attention to me. The only thing I’ve ever wanted him to do. The only thing I’ve craved for the past 19 months.
“Just kiss me.” I say breathlessly, and he does. His hand travels to the nape of my neck and grips tightly, holding my face to his. His lips are as soft as I remember. My veins are buzzing with a mixture of pleasure and alcohol, and I feel the heat grow through my entire body. Before I know what I’m doing, I’m grinding my hips against his thigh that's still between my legs and I whimper into his mouth at the friction it gives and he pulls his lips away just far enough to speak.
“Needy girl.” He purrs and I nod, lolling my head to the side while still moving my hips against his thigh. “Look at you. Need me this badly? No one else than take care of you like me, can they?” He pushes his leg against me harder and I gasp. “Answer me.” He grits through his teeth.
“No.” I choke out, “Nobody but you.” I whine, telling him what he wants to hear. And it’s the truth. Nobody could ever make me feel the way he does.
His hands travel down my body and push my dress over my hips, exposing me to him. He pulls away and looks down at the lacy piece of white fabric settled on my body, biting his lip and running his finger across the waistband, his light touches making me shiver.
“Is this okay?” He murmurs and I nod.
In one swift motion he hooks his finger in the fabric and pulls them down my legs, kneeling in front of my knees. He hooks his arms under my legs and palms the top of my thighs. I close my eyes and feel his breath trailing over my thighs and ghosting over the spot where I needed him the most. He peppers small kisses on my inner thighs, teasing me. I reach my hand down and tangle my fingers in his hair.
“You’re dripping.” He grins and looks up at me through his lashes. “All for me?” His warm breath on my wet center sends chills up my spine.
“No one else. Please, Har. Need you.” I say breathlessly, and I feel him smirk against my skin, grabbing my legs and opening them so far I feel the stretch in my muscles.
��How much?” He mutters, his voice low and gravelly.
“Please. So much. Need you so much.” I whine and gasp when I feel his tongue begin to lap at my clit, barely letting me finish my sentence. My back arches off the bed and he uses his hands to grab my hips and force me back down. He groans against me and the vibrations travel through my body, making me writhe against the bed. My hand still in his hair tugs at the root slightly, making his eyes flutter closed. My other hand grips the bed sheets so tightly I can feel my nails digging into my palm through the fabric. He trails his tongue down to my leaking hole and thrusts it inside while his nose creates friction at my bundle of nerves.
“Fuck, Harry. So good. Feels so good.” I manage to gasp out between moans in broken phrases. He lifts his head and his chin is glistening with my arousal and he smirks. Going back in fervently he brings me closer and closer to the edge. I feel the coil tighten in my belly and he doesn’t stop.
“I’m so close.” I whisper between gasps and he moans against me again, and the vibration it provides is enough to send me over the edge. The coil snaps and my vision goes white, and I’m moaning his name over and over while he continues to move his tongue against me and working me through my high. I try to push him away from my body on his shoulders but he’s stronger than I am, and the overstimulation brings tears to my eyes and he stares back at me devilishly as he thrusts his tongue into me and my hips buck.
“Please.” I whisper breathlessly. “Hurts, Har.” I gasp as he licks against my now sensitive clit. Finally, he pulls his mouth away from me and stands between my legs at the edge of the bed. My eyes, barely open, travel down his body and stop at the outline of his hard cock in his pants. I sit up and hurriedly work on undoing his belt, not saying a word. I look up at him through my lashes and he’s watching me intently. He wraps his hand around the back of my neck and squeezes, letting me know what he wants. Once his belt is undone I push his pants and underwear down and his cock springs free and hits his abdomen. My mouth waters at the sight, a sight I’ve been dreaming of for months.
I lean forward, wasting no time and lick up his length and he tips his head back with a low groan. I wrap my lips around his leaking tip and suck lightly, then spitting. I pull him into my mouth until he touches the back of my throat and I swallow around him, causing him to curse and tangle his fingers in my hair. He holds my head there for a moment and then let’s go, and I’m coming back up for air before going right back in. I flatten my tongue around him and the tip hits the back of my throat again, my nose meeting the skin of his waist.
“Fuck.” He hisses between his teeth. “If you keep doing that I’m not gonna last.” He moans with his head thrown back, looking at the ceiling. I pull back and take a breath through my nose before repeating the motions over and over, his tip repeatedly hitting the back of my throat until I gag and that’s when something snaps in him. He grabs my hair and twists it in around his fist, moving his hips so he’s fucking my mouth. I moan, causing a vibration to travel from my throat through his cock and then he’s pulling me off, a string of saliva falling out of my mouth. He grabs both sides of my face, pulling me to stand and kissing me with so much force it almost knocks me over completely. “Don’t wanna finish yet. Not done with you.” He mumbles against my lips before pressing them against mine again.
He pushes me down onto the bed and climbs over me. He wastes no time settling himself between my legs. He pulls my dress off over my head and throws it somewhere in the room. He brings his hands up to cup my breasts, and then he tweaks both of my nipples between his fingers, making my mouth drop open in a small, quiet moan escaping. Then, he’s dragging his cock through my folds and pushing into me slowly. I gasp as my back arches off the bed and he grabs my hips to hold me down. I almost forgot how much I missed this. His hips meet mine and his eyes flutter shut and he groans. I writhe under him, needing more and a whine escapes my throat.
“Please H, need you. Please, please.” I whisper. He leans down, bringing his lips to mine and kisses me slowly, his tongue dancing with mine. I moan into his mouth and he grins as he pulls away from me, resting his forehead on mine.
“No. Wanna go slow, missed this so much. Wanna feel every inch of you.” He mutters, rubbing his nose against mine. His eyes are dark, his pupils blown out. He trails little kisses down my skin, finally moving his hips slowly. I feel every drag of his thick cock against my walls and the sounds that leave my mouth are almost pornographic.
Savoring the moment doesn’t last long. He picks up his pace, his fingers gripping and digging into my hips so hard I’m sure there will be bruises left in their place. Quickly he pulls out of me and flips me over onto my belly. With his hands still on my hips he brings me up to my knees and pushes back into me, quickly pounding into me without remorse making me cry out.
“Oh god, Harry.” I whine and he tangles a hand in my hair, and yanking so my head lifts from the bed.
“Take me so well, baby. The only one who’s ever taken me so well.” He grits through his teeth, the sound of his hips snapping against my ass echoing through the room along with his demanding tone and me moaning his name over and over. I feel the familiar warmth traveling through my belly as he continues hitting the right spot deep inside me.
“I’m gonna cum, please don’t stop.” I beg and his movements become sloppy. The familiarity of this scene gives me deja vu, back to a time when things were simple and all that mattered to us was each other. My brain is fuzzy, and I’m remembering the way he says my name through his gritted teeth and just thinking about it makes me feel euphoric.
“Yeah? Gonna cum for me? Go ahead, cum all over my cock.” He demands. “Shit, Laine.” He growls through his teeth, as if he read my mind and saw my memories and knowing how my name dripping from his tongue gives me exactly what I need to send me over the edge.
“Oh, I’m cumming. Fuck, H.” I gasp, and the warmth blossoms at my center and I’m a moaning, whining mess, my walls fluttering around his cock. He groans and stills, and I feel his warmth inside of me, spurting into me and painting my walls with his cum. His hips stutter before pulling out of me and he sighs heavily as he topples onto the bed beside me.
I roll onto my back, my head lolling to the side and looking at Harry through hooded eyes. His eyes are closed and he’s breathing heavily through his nose, both of us coming down from our highs. And he’s perfect. In every way I remember. My eyes trail down his face to his tattooed chest, the butterfly rising and falling with each breath he’s chasing. The muscles in his arms that flex and relax when he runs his hand down his face…and he’s just so perfect…and I missed him, more than anything…and I still love him, more than anything.
Somewhere in the midst of this, the cloud that hangs over my sense of judgment begins to dissipate and I feel my heart sink to my stomach. Why was I here? The first time I’ve seen him in almost two years and we fucked like it was just a hookup? I was doing so well trying to forget everything about him. But this…this puts me right back at square one.
“I-um…I need…” I stutter, trailing off and scrambling out of his bed. I look around and try to find my underwear and my dress strewn across the room, but it’s dark and I can’t really see well.
“What are you doing?” He sits up, propping on his elbows and watching me with a raised brow.
“I need to go.” I say quietly, bending over and pickup up my underwear, then walking to the other side of the room and looking for my dress.
“Why? You can stay here. This was your place once upon a time, too.” He stands up and pulls his pants back on, walking over to me. I’m frantically looking for my clothes, my heart feeling like it’s beating out of my chest. When I still can’t find it, my breathing picks up rapidly and I’m standing there with my hands in my hair, completely nude, about to have a panic attack.
This is so pathetic.
“Hey, Laine. It’s okay. Take a deep breath.” Harry says quietly, and I feel his hand on my shoulder. I drop my chin to my chest and I bring my hand up to cover my eyes.
“We shouldn’t have done this.” I mutter between my palms, desperately trying to calm my brain.
You’re irrational. Run away from this like you have everything else. You’re so predictable.
“Why?” He asks like he doesn’t know. Like he forgot. I’m clenching my teeth, wincing because I’m already trying to push it out of my head. “Don’t leave. I want you to stay.” He says softly, his hand trailing down to my waist.
“Do you really think that’s a good idea?” I ask, nervously. He looks at me with a look of confusion, but doesn’t respond.
“Do you know where my dress is?” I ask, throwing up hands up in the air, gesturing around the room. I slip my underwear back on so I feel at least a little bit covered and he walks into his closet. He comes out with just one of his t-shirts and hands it to me. I slip it over my head. “Thanks but I can’t go home without pants on.” I mutter.
“Can we just talk?” He snaps at me, and I look at him and blink, not registering that he was growing impatient with me. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for that to come out the way it did.”
“What is there to talk about, H?” I ask with a small sarcastic laugh. The nickname I always used for him slipping out like it’s an old habit recently rediscovered. I cross my arms over my chest and lean against the wall.
“Us. Please.” He begs and I sigh.
“There is no us. There hasn’t been for a long time.” I shoot back at him.
“Can I just say what I want to say and then you can decide what you want to do. Please just hear me out.” He asks and I hesitate for a second before agreeing. I’m not sure what he’s going to say, and I’m also not sure how I’m going to react. If I leave now, then what he said to me last time would be true. I’d just be running away like I always do. I give him a nod, letting him know that I’ll listen to whatever he has to say, and he steps closer to me.
He grabs my hand and leads me out of the bedroom and to the living room. He sits on one end of the couch and I sit on the other end facing him, bringing my knees to my chest and resting my chin on top of them, chewing on the inside of my lips nervously. He sighs and runs his hands through his hair.
“So…how have you been?” He asks, scratching his head and I furrow my eyebrows together.
“Really? Small talk?” I ask and he scoffs, shaking his head and looking away from me, averting his gaze to look out the large glass windows in front of us that overlook the city. This was always my favorite room. He stands and walks over to them, leaning his shoulder against them.
“I don’t know what to say. I thought I had it all planned out…what I was going to say if I ever got the chance…and now, I just…” he trails off, shaking his head again and sighing. “I never stopped loving you, Laine. Not even when I was being a fuck up, I think I just forgot…and then I got blindsided by the attention I was getting and I screwed up. But that was never an excuse to treat you the way that I did. I never apologized, and I sincerely am so sorry.” He says, glancing over at me. “If you don’t believe me, I understand. I just wanted you to know that I still love you. I think about you every single day.”
“I wanted to know that you loved me back then, too.” I whisper, hurt lacing my tone. “That’s all I ever wanted.” I close my eyes and try to control my breathing before I let my emotions talk for me. “I gave you everything, every piece of me, waiting for you to love me. I don’t have anything left to give. I’ve been trying not to think about the last words you ever said to me every single day for the past 19 months. It keeps me up every night and eats away at my thoughts, knowing that that was the way you thought of me at the end of our relationship, and using things I told you in confidence against me. When it was never me fucking anything up, it was you…and that hurt me. You said I was irrational for wanting to leave after I saw you with another girl pushed up against a wall, kissing all over her neck.” I stated, bringing back the memory of the night I left. He winces.
“I know, Laine. Fuck, I am so sorry. I would do anything to prove to you that I’m just so fucking sorry.” He strides over to where I sit on the couch and drops to his knees in front of me, pulling my hands into his. “At first, I tried to forget you. I couldn’t. You were in my dreams every single night. When I was with anyone else for the past five hundred ninety-seven days, all I ever did was compare them to you. They were never you.” He holds my hands against his chest. “It’s always been you. I am so sorry I didn’t realize that sooner. I should have fixed us instead of letting you leave.” His voice cracks on the last few words and he’s searching my eyes for any indication of my feelings. “When I saw you tonight, I knew. I’ve been begging to any god that was listening for a sign and then, there you were, and I just knew. It’ll always be you. I don’t want it to be anyone else.”
“Harry, I just…” I trail off, both sides of my feelings fighting each other in my brain. On one hand, this is everything I ever wanted him to say to me. On the other hand, I’m unsure if I can trust him, no matter how sincere his words sound. I look at him, here in front of me on his knees, and I feel the tears stinging the corners of my eyes. “All I ever wanted was you, and you betrayed my trust. How can I trust you again?” I ask.
“I’ll do anything.” He answers quickly. “I will work for the rest of my life to prove that you can trust me. I’m not the same person I was then.” He squeezes my hands. “I know my words aren’t enough, but I promise I will prove them to you. I know I was selfish then. I’m not anymore.” He shakes his head, looking into my eyes. I feel a single tear escape down my face, and he lets go of one of my hands to cradle my cheek and wipe it away. “I just want you to come back to me, baby. Please.” He whispers, bringing my hand to his lips and kissing my knuckles, his eyes closing and taking in a deep breath.
I’m silent for a moment. I know he’s waiting for a response. I know he won’t pressure me if I say no…he’ll let me walk away if I really wanted to, and I think that’s what he’s expecting. The thing is, I don’t want to. I don’t want to run away this time. I’m so tired of running…running from my thoughts, my feelings, from everything. I remember all of the good. Writing with him, playing board games with him, going to events with him, the way he used to stroke my hair in bed every morning, the way he would come up with silly songs to make me feel better when I was having a bad day, the way we would dance in the kitchen while we were making dinner together, the way he always made me laugh and knew the right words to say…and when I think about him, before everything came falling down, all I can think of is the good. Before I can think about it any further I decide to go with my gut.
“Okay.” I whisper. He lifts his head up to look at me, his eyes glistening.
“What?” He looks at me with an expression of disbelief on his face.
“I said okay.” I take my hands from his and grab his face, pulling him closer so I can kiss him. Our lips meet and it’s like everything fell right back into place. After a few seconds, I pull away, touching my forehead to his. “I never want it to be anyone else, either.”
—————
ahhh!! i’m so excited to post this. I think i’m going to write more of their story, like how they met and things leading up to the break up. idk though!!! i hope you enjoy. 🥹 it’s not my best work but i still just love them so much. <3
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Comet Donati [Chapter 3: Steal My Girl]
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A/N: Hello lovely readers! Thank you so so so much for the love this fic has received. I wanted to give you a heads up that I will be co-leading a field trip to Japan from July 4th-14th and will therefore have much less time to write. HOPEFULLY I won’t have to skip a Sunday update, but I wanted to make you aware just in case. I hope you enjoy Chapter 3!!! 💜
Series Summary: Sex, drugs, boy bands. You are a kinda-therapist recruited (via nepotism) to help Comet Donati through a recent crisis. Things are casual with Aegon, very not-casual with Aemond. Loosely inspired by One Direction.
Chapter Warnings: Language, references to sexual content (18+), drugs, alcohol, smoking, mental health struggles, Aegon-induced chaos, ANGST, Iceland, you cannot escape the Cookie Monster pajama pants.
Selected Chapter Quote: “So what, you don’t like me anymore?”
Word count: 8.3k (wtf I need to chill).
Link to chapter list (and all my writing): HERE.
Taglist: @doingfondue @catalina-howard @randomdragonfires @myspotofcraziness @arcielee @fan-goddess @talesofoldandnew @marvelescvpe @tinykryptonitewerewolf @mariahossain @chainsawsangel @darkenchantress @not-a-glad-gladiator @gemini-mama @trifoliumviridi @herfantasyworldd @babyblue711 @namelesslosers @thelittleswanao3 @daenysx @moonlightfoxx @libroparaiso @burningcoffeetimetravel-fics @mizfortuna @florent1s @heimtathurs @bhanclegane @poohxlove @narwhal-swimmingintheocean​ @heavenly1927 @mariahossain @echos-muses @padfooteyes​ @minttea07​
Let me know if you’d like to be added to the taglist! 💜  
Athens, Madrid, Porto, Vienna, Stockholm, and now: descending into Reykjavik through clouds like iron. The North Atlantic is an endless sheen of cold overcast blue, a mirror of the sky. The earth is rocky and anemic. There are no jewel tones here, no sapphires or emeralds or aquamarines or fire opals or topazes. It is impossible to look down at Iceland, this dominion of impassionate jaggedness, and not think of how the Vikings had to reap their treasures from every other corner of Europe, silver and gold and glass and slaves piled into ships to be rowed back to the hostile earth they clung to, perhaps just to prove they could.
Across the aisle of the private jet—more like a penthouse than a plane, posh neutral colors and hand-stitched leather—Luke is showing Aemond his latest lyrics, loops of silver on matte black pages. They’re good, from what you’ve heard. They’re really good. And that tells you what kind of person Aemond truly is as he helps Luke polish rocks into gemstones. Anybody can soften the blow of mediocrity. It takes courage to build ladders for people who might one day outclimb you.
Daeron is playing his Nintendo 64, which is hooked up to a 98-inch flat screen tv; Mario is leaping through paintings into worlds of lava, ice, sentient ticking bombs. Criston is answering emails. Cregan is sprawled across a couch with his sunglasses on, presumably sound asleep. Jace is leering at you, dark hair hanging in his face and slurping a Vesper.
You ask him half-mocking: “What tattoo are you going to get for Reykjavik?”
He yanks off his sequined red blazer—nothing underneath, as usual—and twists around to show you the puffin on his left shoulder blade. Comet, at some point in time that preceded you, has already been to Iceland. “Cute, right? Wanna pet it?”
You roll your eyes. “I’m sorry I asked.”
He grins. “No you’re not.”
Aegon kicks the back of Jace’s chair. He’s scribbling some notes of his own, which is unusual. In place of a spiral notebook with onyx pages, Aegon is writing on crinkled Starbucks receipts with a Sharpie. He’s wearing his favorite aviator sunglasses, khaki cargo pants, an excessively bright cyan tank top, and matching Crocs.
Baela stares blankly out the window for a few seconds—like she’s buffering, a lagging connection—and then she looks to you hopefully. “Shopping when we land?”
“Does Iceland have shops…?”
“Probably more than Kansas,” Aemond says, then smiles mischieviously.
“Missouri,” you fling back. He returns his attention to Luke.
“They totally have shops in Iceland,” Baela assures you.
“Then I am amenable. I need more concert outfits.” You mostly wear your boy band t-shirts from home, which has become a joke: One Direction, Backstreet Boys, New Kids On The Block, NSYNC, the Jonas Brothers, Boyz II Men, 98 Degrees, BTS…but never Comet Donati. Anyone but them. Aegon calls you a traitor. Aemond teases, smirks, tries to hide how much he watches you the same way people contemplate art on museum walls, a little confounded, a little entranced.
“Rhaena?” Baela says. “Hello? Hello? Hola? Bonjour? Rhaena?”
Rhaena startles, peering up from her novel: Jurassic Park. Once upon a time, as you’ve learned, she had planned to study paleontology. She wants to be alone in the middle of a field someplace digging up bones. Well, no great tragedy there; one is never too old to be a paleontologist. She can take off five years, or ten years, or twenty, or thirty to see Luke through his touring days and then pick back up her own ambitions like keys left on a hook. But Baela gave up a ballet scholarship to follow Jace across the globe, puddle to puddle, land to land, and in your albeit limited understanding, ballerinas age in something like dog years. Their career is a brilliant, lightning-brief flash and then long, anonymous decades running out their mortal clock as choreographers, backup dancers, personal trainers, instructors for blue-blooded five-year-olds. Baela won’t be able to reclaim that dream for much longer. It might be too late already. She is out of practice; but she misses ballet. When Jace is being snide or oblivious, you’ve seen her gazing out windows—Escalades, hotels, jets—wondering if it was all worth it. You gut yourself for someone and they don’t even have the courtesy to put up a gravestone. It’s only natural to develop a propensity to haunt.
“What?” Rhaena asks.
“Shopping. This afternoon. Interested?”
Rhaena’s eyes go wide. She fidgets: closing and then opening her book, touching a hand to her earrings, delicate strings of small silver hearts. “Um…I don’t know. Maybe.”
“Oh, not this again,” Baela groans.
“Just go without me. Bring me back something, you know what I like.”
“What’s the problem?” You are investigative but not accusatory. The tone is essential.
“She’s scared of store employees,” Baela says.
“Well you don’t have to make it sound like that—!”
“What’s so scary about store employees?” you ask Rhaena, calm, cool, collected, nonjudgmental. Aemond glances over, as he often does when you’re working, like he can’t get enough of watching that switch flip, when you slink covertly into therapist mode like a water moccasin weaves through swamps, subtle ripples in the muddied water and vigilant eyes.
“I just hate it when people are watching me,” Rhaena says, twirling an earring. “They’re always waiting right by the door—especially at the posh places like the ones Baela goes to—and they want to know what I’m shopping for, and they want to make suggestions, and they follow me to the fitting room and ask what I like and what I don’t. And I can’t get rid of them! Even if I’m like ‘Just looking, thanks!’ they’ll circle back every five minutes to check on me. I can’t stand it. I get so frazzled I can’t decide how I really feel about a skirt or dress or whatever because I’m too busy trying to make conversation with someone I don’t want to talk to anyway. I end up with a headache and a shopping bag full of regrets. I’d rather click a button on my MacBook Air and save myself the suffering.”
You nod sagely. “What is it about talking to the employees that stresses you out so much?”
“I don’t want to say or do the wrong thing. I don’t want to cause problems.”
“But it’s not like you’re going to do anything they haven’t experienced before. They see hundreds, maybe even thousands of customers a month. And even if you did something ridiculously, dementedly embarrassing, like…um…hey, Aegon, what’s the most embarrassing thing you’ve ever done while clothes shopping?”
“I fell asleep in a fitting room. I pissed on the floor. I set something on fire. I vandalized One Direction merchandise.”
“No, there was that other time,” Daeron says. Mario is swimming through rings of underwater coins; they chime gleefully as he collects them.
“What other time?” Aegon says.
Daeron grins. “Come on. You know.”
Aegon remembers. “Oh yeah. Once I bit a girl’s feet until I accidentally ripped off part of a toenail and she bled everywhere. But that wasn’t my fault. She was begging for it. It was consensual.”
Criston, not looking away from his emails, says: “And that’s why Aegon is now banned from all Michael Kors locations for life.”
“Right.” You turn back to Rhaena. “So you would never do anything that deranged. But even if somehow you did, what’s the actual worst-case scenario? What, realistically, could happen as a result?”
Rhaena considers this. “The employees will think I’m weird, I guess.”
“So what you’re so concerned about is that the store employees—who are literally paid to be inconvenienced by you—might think you’re weird? Which they’ll remember for, what, maybe an hour before some other customer gives them a more memorable calamity to focus on? You don’t think they’re more annoyed by purse-dog-toting heiresses screeching at them or cokeheads pissing on their floors?”
“Rude,” Aegon says.
Rhaena smiles guiltily. “I mean, when you put it that way, it does sound stupid.”
“Not stupid,” you insist. “Just out of proportion.”
“Okay,” Rhaena says. She takes a deep breath, steeling herself. “Okay. I guess I’ll go shopping.”
“Yes!” Baela cheers, already scrolling through Reykjavik shops on her iPhone.
“Hey, Stargirl,” Aegon says, and then hurls something at you like a frisbee. It’s an Amex Black Card.
“Oh no.”
“Oh yes.”
You raise an eyebrow at him. “What’s my budget?”
“No budget. As long as it’s slutty.”
“I will buy nothing but cardigans and mom jeans.” You crane your neck to peek at his receipts. The black Sharpie squiggles aren’t words; they’re shapes, pictures. “What are you drawing?”
“New merch designs!” Aegon holds up the receipts so you can see.
“Circles…?”
He is somewhat wounded. “Donuts!”
You don’t even know where to begin. “Why donuts, Aegon?”
“Because that’s his code word for doing lines in the bathroom,” Criston says.
“No!” Aegon objects. “Because Donati sounds like donuts! So we could have all these mini donuts, print them on hats or shirts or whatever, and then in the frosting where the sprinkles would be we can put tiny stars, suns, moons, planets, galaxies…and comets, obviously.”
Jace scoffs. “I think you spend a little too much time thinking about donuts.”
Aegon goes quiet. So does everyone else. Gazes flit nervously around the cabin. The only sounds are the roar of the jet and Mario 64, although Daeron has turned his back on the cheerful Italian protagonist and is looking pensively over his shoulder at Jace. Aegon resumes sketching his cosmic Sharpie donuts, his lips pressed tightly together.
“Hey,” you say to Jace, and then once you have his attention, wicked dark eyes: “Shut the fuck up.”
“What?”
“It’s a great idea. It’s a really adorable idea, actually. Let’s see you come up with something better. Go on, whenever you’re ready. I’m waiting. I’m still waiting. But you’re not much of an ideas guy, are you, Jace? Fortunately, you’ve always had other people around to pull that weight.”
Jace opens his mouth to say something, then snaps it shut as Cregan stands up. He towers over you both, as tall as Aemond but more muscly all over, in the chest and the shoulders and the legs. He lowers his sunglasses to show his eyes: greyish, cold, flinty. He glares at Jace, and then at you, and then at Jace again. Jace holds up both hands, showing his palms. You bow your head in capitulation. Cregan lies back down on the couch and repositions his sunglasses just as the pilot turns on the fasten seatbelts signs. As you click yours into place, you exchange a glance with Aemond across the aisle. He is smiling, foxlike and approving, as if he can’t wait to see what else you have left to show him.
“So!” Baela says. “Guess who found a shop in Reykjavik that sells Gucci!”
The jet glides through mist and fog to make a rather bumpy landing at Keflavik International Airport, fighting against gusts of wind coming in off the North Atlantic Ocean, the same water that swallowed the Titanic, the Faucett Peru Boeing 727, the Free Life hot air balloon, whaling vessels and Viking longships, countless cruisers and destroyers and submarines that blasted holes into each other during the world wars. As the band prepares to disembark, Aemond reaches into the front pocket of his shirt—black, with white circling koi fish—and slides out a pair of sunglasses. He doesn’t like wearing them. They limit his vision even more than it already is. But he never walks into an airport without sunglasses on, you’ve discovered. Just in case paparazzi are there snapping photos.
“You don’t have to do that,” you tell Aemond.
He gestures to his scar and his blind eye, a pale cloudy blue. “I’ve thought about just getting it cut out. But then I’d have to worry about shoving in a fake one.”
“I think it’s kind of beautiful,” you say. “It reminds me of Neptune or something.”
And the look he gives you, the look, like he’s never heard anything like this before, like he didn’t know that words could fit together in that order. You hold out your hand to him. He lays the sunglasses in your palm. You put them on, grinning up at him.
“Now I’m the one who looks like a multi-millionaire popstar.”
“Hey, we match!” Aegon says as he follows you and Aemond out of the jet, massaging your shoulders and clopping noisily in his Crocs.
There are paparazzi at the airport, but only two of them, young men in black hoodies who dart around loosing flashes into the stuffy, aggressively heated air. Jace, Baela, Daeron, and Aegon beam and wave, radiant, magnetic, born celebrities. Rhaena smiles politely but hides behind Luke. Cregan saunters and smolders, knowing exactly what his devotees expect from him. Criston and the security guards are loaded up with suitcases like pack mules. The paparazzi don’t pay much attention to Aemond—a former heartthrob, a cracked relic, a fossil or a ruin—but one of them snaps a few pictures of him. Aemond turns his face so they’ll get his good side, his unmarred side…and then he grabs for your hand. You try not to reveal how ecstatic you are, how wildly, uncoolly, over-the-moon thrilled. Your expression might end up commemorated forever in a tabloid, after all.
Shopping in Reykjavik is mostly wool sweaters, hiking boots, and weather-proof jackets, but Baela leads you and Rhaena to a boutique that carries something more her speed: Gucci, Burberry, Balenciaga, Valentino, Saint Laurent. You and Baela try to distract the employees as much as possible; still, they find time to nettle Rhaena with those bothersome, predictable, unnecessary questions. She gets a little flustered, but she fights the instinct to run and hide, to allow herself to sink into a frenetic puddle of self-inquisition. You can almost see the words scrolling behind her dark gentle eyes like a news ticker: They get paid to help me. They aren’t going to remember any of this in a few hours. I’m not on a stage. I’m not being judged.
In the fitting room, you take two selfies to send to Aemond’s WhatsApp account: one in a flowing neon yellow gown, the other in a short, velvet, sparkly black dress embroidered with silver stars.
You ask: Day or night?
He answers before you’ve changed back into your jeans and pink Harry Styles hoodie. Night, obviously. And then he adds: Which constellation are you? Vulpecula the fox? Cygnus the swan?
“God, he’s such a dork,” you murmur to yourself, smiling. You have to think for a while before you reply. You don’t know many constellations; that makes it difficult to rattle off something witty. Then you are inspired. You type: Definitely not Virgo :)
He responds immediately: :)))))
“What does that mean?” you whisper to yourself in the solitude of the boxlike fitting room. “What the hell does that mean???” He spends nearly all of his time with you, but he rarely touches you. He’s never made a move. He’s never even kissed you. You wouldn’t mind if he did. No, fuck the coyness that women are supposed to cloak themselves in to preserve their worth. You’re waiting for him to kiss you like someone drowning waits for a gasp of air.
Despite Aemond’s vote, you can’t help yourself. You buy both dresses. You don’t look much like an Aegon Targaryen, but the cashier doesn’t seem too troubled by this. Baela and Rhaena are still trying on outfits, so you swing your bag around boredly and wander over to see what Criston is up to. At Aemond’s insistence, he accompanied you on this shopping expedition and left the rest of the security detail back at the Reykjavik EDITION, a luxury hotel overlooking the harbor. Criston is in the jewelry section and holding up a medallion necklace, rotating it to see how the light reflects off the speckling of tiny gemstones, the wise golden face. His own face is distant and melancholy.
“Oh, that’s lovely, Criston!” you say. “All those emeralds. Who’s pictured on it?”
“Saint Jude. Lost causes.”
Interesting. “Are you religious?”
“Not especially. But Alicent is.”
“Who…?”
Criston walks off to the cash register. You watch him go, curious and perplexed.
Back at the hotel, you enter your suite to find a blond Targaryen lounging in your bed…but perhaps not the right one. Aegon still has his Crocs on and is, for some reason, clutching a plushie puffin. He glances over at you, noting your shopping bag.
“Fashion show?” he says. “I hope it’s nothing but miniskirts and bikinis.”
“Don’t you have places to be? Substances to snort?”
“Cregan is currently trying to locate some.”
“That’s really not good for you. Physically or mentally. You might be addicted.”
He barks a laugh, like it’s absurd. “You can’t get addicted to coke, Stargirl.”
“You definitely can.”
He suddenly looks panicked, like he’s never considered this before.
“So.” You hesitate. “Aemond.”
“Yes, I’m familiar with the concept.”
“He’s insecure. Very insecure, though he’s learned how to hide it.”
Aegon throws and catches the puffin, bouncing it off the ceiling. “I wouldn’t disagree.”
“It goes deeper than the accident, I think. The scar, his eye, what happened with the band…that awakened it again. That freed something that he’d had locked away. But where did it start?”
Aegon stares up at the ceiling. He tosses the puffin a few more times, abusing it terribly. “Whoever you are when you’re in high school…that’s sort of who you are forever, you know? If you’re popular and beloved and understood, you carry a certain self-confidence into the rest of your life with you like a suitcase. It’s an assumption that people care about what you have to say. It’s a conviction of your own value. It’s a presupposition the world would have to wrestle away from you. But if you’re a loser in high school, that stays with you too. And it’s one hell of a heavy suitcase to lug around.”
You try to imagine seeing Aemond through eyes that aren’t awed, craving, quietly adoring. It’s simply not possible. “He was alone?” you ask softly, dreading the answer.
“I had friends. He had grudges.” Aegon’s mouth twists as he tries to stop it from trembling. “My father…”
“I know, Aegon.” Your voice is gentle. “You told me in Kansas City, that night at the bar. You don’t have to say it again.”
He is relieved. “Yeah. So people respond to that in different ways, right? I lived in the present. I talked to anybody who would listen to me, and I partied and I got high and I got laid, and I was the antithesis of the kind of son my father would have wanted just to spite him. Aemond escaped into the past. He read books, traced bloodlines, collected old obsolete things. Maybe that gave him hope that a better place was waiting for him out there somewhere, a better time. He got to be cool for three years. That’s it, and that’s all he’ll ever have. He was the one with vision. He said he was going to audition for The X Factor, and I only went with him to meet girls. Then he made it through the first round and I did too. And when they were going to cut us, he found Jace and Luke and Cregan and convinced everyone to start performing together. The show wanted to replace Luke, did you know that? They thought he was too boyish, too innocent. Aemond fought for him. And then Comet finished in second place, and all the sudden we were signed to a label, and we were selling millions of records and we were touring, and we were winning Grammys, and we were buying our parents and siblings houses…and two months after our third album came out, Aemond was maimed at the Budokan and it was time for him to get off the ride.”
You stare at Aegon, tremendously sad, not knowing what to say. Sometimes the right words don’t exist.
Aegon smirks. “He really likes you.”
“Maybe.” And then, with guileless vulnerability: “I hope so.”
“That’s dangerous.”
Your brow knits into fearful grooves. “Why?”
“I know how to enjoy something without owning it. I don’t think Aemond does.”
You don’t want to ask, but you have to. “What was Shelby like?”
Aegon considers this for a long time before he answers. “She was simultaneously too good for him and not good enough.”
Too gorgeous. Too cool. Too Pinterest-board perfect, airy like summer. But not deep. A river, a glimmer, but with no understanding of the abyss. You aren’t sure how you know that this is what Aegon means, but you do. You don’t want to think about Shelby anymore. You pivot. “So Aemond is the past and you’re the present. Who’s the future? Daeron?”
Aegon smiles, lazy and warm. “I think you’re the future.”
“Yeah right. Get your Crocs off my bed.”
He complies, groaning, flopping onto the floor gracelessly.
“Where’d you get the puffin?”
“Some Icelandic kid recognized me in the elevator. He wanted to give me a present. In return, I signed an autograph and got him and his dad front row seats to the show tomorrow. So I’d say it was a very favorable exchange for him.”
“You’re a saint,” you say, and then find yourself thinking randomly of Saint Jude again. Lost causes. Lost causes.
Aegon grins at you as he crawls to his feet and makes for the door. “Patron saint of mayhem.”
~~~~~~~~~~
You’re watching old Comet Donati performances on YouTube when the hotel fire alarm goes off. And it’s strange, because the unscarred, clear-eyed boy on the screen is Aemond but also isn’t him; he smiles more easily, he looks at people without suspicion, he is ebullient and confident and carefree like kids blowing bubbles on front porches. When you open your suite door, dressed in your favorite Cookie Monster pajama pants and an oversized New Kids On The Block t-shirt, Aemond is just arriving.
“Oh good,” he says. “You’re still awake.” And then he walks with you to the nearest stairwell.
Outside, the hotel guests are clustered together with their travel companions, shuddering under coats and sweaters and blankets clasped around their shoulders like capes. Even at the start of July, Iceland is cold: fifties during the day as Americans like you measure in Fahrenheit, forties at night, nearly always overcast. It’s 11 p.m., but the sun won’t set until midnight, and even then only for a few short hours; the sky is wearing the colors of dusk, lilac, rose pink, pale blue, fire and gold. You’re shivering, rubbing your bare forearms and feeling the goosebumps that have risen there like braille. Aemond tugs off his black and white Calvin Klein hoodie and offers it to you. As you pull it over your head, you breathe in the pieces of him that have snared in the fabric: smoke and cologne, gin and soap and the brine of the seaside air. Now wearing only his jeans and his koi fish shirt, Aemond lights a cigarette and gazes up at the hotel, postmodern angles and semi-transparent glass.
“No one’s going to give me a hoodie?” Aegon says, quaking in his cyan tank top. Criston reluctantly unzips his bomber jacket and hands it over.
“Did you do this?” Criston asks him, meaning the fire alarm.
“What?! No! No way, man! It wasn’t me!”
Criston turns to Cregan for confirmation. Cregan shrugs, ambiguous. “I knew it!” Criston exclaims. He is distraught.
Several fire engines arrive, red lights strobing, and firefighters enter the hotel to investigate. Baela and Jace are standing near each other but not speaking, arms crossed, faces tense. Luke, Rhaena, and Daeron are watching an episode of The Crown on Luke’s iPhone. Cregan lights a cigarette and manages to take two drags before Criston notices and lunges to bat it out of his hand.
“Stop it!” Criston orders. “You’ll ruin your voice!” Nobody tells Aemond not to smoke. His voice doesn’t matter anymore.
Aegon asks you, his hands buried in the pockets of Criston’s jacket: “Would you run into a burning building to save me?”
“Why would you be in a burning building?”
“That’s really not the point.”
“I’d think about it.”
Luke says, the glow of his iPhone dancing across his face: “Wow, Prince Charles is a bitch.”
“You’d think about it?” Aegon says to you. “You’d think about it?!”
“You have no excuse to be in a burning building. You have now experienced an evacuation, you know exactly how to leave a building successfully, if you’re still in it for some reason then that’s your problem.”
“You hear that, Criston?” Aegon says. “This is a good thing. Now everyone knows what to do if there’s a real fire! And we’re in hotels all the time, so this is super helpful!”
“Please shut up,” Criston begs.
“Hey Cregan, share with the class, what did you learn about fire safety from this fortuitous occasion?”
“I already knew what to do.”
Aegon is grinning. “Yeah? What’s that, Cregan?”
“Get in the shower and wait for the fire department to come rescue me.”
Everyone laughs—even Jace and Baela—and Cregan’s lips quirk up in one corner, the only hint that he is joking. A parade of firefighters exit the hotel. One of them is carrying a toaster. Black smoke pours out of the slits in the top.
She says something in Icelandic that you can’t understand, then repeats in English: “Who was trying to cook hotdogs in a toaster?”
The guests chatter incredulously among themselves: Who would do such a thing?
You, Aemond, Luke, Rhaena, Daeron, Cregan, Jace, Baela, and Criston are mindful to look anywhere except at Aegon. You gaze out at the horizon, the kaleidoscopic midnight sun. Aegon peers down at his Crocs, hair tangled and blue eyes wide.
“Very well,” the firefighter with the toaster says, a little smugly. “We will consult with the hotel staff and see which guest was registered to that room.”
“Goddammit!” Criston hisses, and shoves by the band to go meet the firefighters. You can’t hear what’s being said, but his hands move in exaggerated gestures of humiliation, apology, restitution. Fortunately, the Icelandic people seem to be forgiving.
Daeron turns to Aegon. All he says is: “Why?”
“I couldn’t figure out the buttons on the stove!”
Criston comes trudging back to the band. Guests are being admitted into the hotel to return to their drinks, their television shows and mystery novels, their families, their lovers, their beds. “Alright, it’s taken care of. Go to your rooms. All of you, right now, go.”
No one has the heart to argue with him; he looks half-broken already. Everybody disperses. You and Aemond end up alone together as the elevator zooms to the fifth floor. He takes his small, square metal lighter out of his jeans pocket and toys with it, repeatedly flicking the lid open and then shutting it again.
You point to it. “Vintage lighter. Vintage bike. And yet you write with glittery gel pens instead of quills and ink. Poser.”
“I like old things,” he says, smiling. “I think history is important.”
And you hear Aegon’s words like an echo: That’s dangerous. You start pulling off Aemond’s hoodie to give it back to him.
“No,” he says, sounding pleased. “You keep it.” So you do, finding excuses to bring the sleeves close to your face—touching your hair, your lips, your eyelashes—so you can inhale him.
Aemond leaves you at the door of your suite, but you don’t go inside. You wait for another five minutes until Criston steps out of an elevator and into the hallway, alone and agitated. Still, he has concern to spare for you.
“You okay? Locked yourself out?”
“No. I was just hoping to ask you something.”
“Go ahead.” Criston is tired, but his eyes, dark like fertile earth, are attentive.
“When Aemond was hurt…when the label yanked him out of Comet…no one fought for him?”
“Luke did,” Criston says.
And then he continues down the hall, shoulders low, a man troubled by both the past and the future.
~~~~~~~~~~
The Blue Lagoon is like Aemond’s sightless left eye: a milky blue, opaque, something you could drown in. The band spends several hours splashing and wading in water warmer than the blood in your veins. The white silica mud that forms the floor is soft beneath your bare feet, squishing between your toes; people spread it over their skin like a skin shedding its scales in reverse. Criston orders strawberry-banana smoothies from the in-water bar, trying to distract Aegon and Jace from the beer and the wine. Currently, Comet’s most worrisome performers are locked in combat: Daeron is on Aegon’s shoulders, Luke on Jace’s, entangled in a spirited chicken fight. This is much preferable to their first choice, Marco Polo, which led to Jace ‘accidentally’—and repeatedly—bumping into various early-twenties female tourists, whereupon he would inevitably profusely apologize, introduce himself, and pose for selfies, beads of turbid mineral water dripping from his curls. Cregan has drifted to the other side of the lagoon, floating on his back and basking beneath the overcast midday sun.
“I can’t believe they made everyone shower naked before getting in here,” Rhaena says, drinking her smoothie, submerged in rippling blue up to her collarbones. She had nearly refused to go through with it—I’ll wait in the car! I’ll be fine! I’ll just watch The Crown on my phone for three hours!—until you and Baela offered to hold up your towels to shield her from view and insisted that none of the other guests (all female, as the showers are sorted by gender) were paying attention. Nudity is not a big deal in Iceland. It’s quite a far cry from Missouri.
“You gotta honor the local culture, babe.” Baela flashes Rhaena a teasing grin. “Scandinavians are super progressive. No shame about bodies or relationships. Very sex-positive.”
“Well Jace is certainly blending in.”
Now Baela isn’t grinning anymore. She frowns broodingly out over the lagoon. Rhaena, regretting that she said it but knowing it can’t be taken back, noisily slurps at her smoothie even when it’s gone. You and Aemond exchange an uncomfortable glance. Baela has never broached the topic of her relationship with you, but you know it’s coming. You can sometimes see her working up the nerve like a bucket filling with water, drop by drop.
You change the subject. “See, Rhaena? The naked shower thing wasn’t even that bad. It was over in two minutes, and absolutely nobody was judging you. And if you hadn’t done it, you would have missed out on this amazing experience!”
“You weren’t nervous?” she asks you. “Not at all?”
“I little bit, yeah. Of course. I’m an American.” Everyone chuckles. “But logically, I knew no one would really be watching me. I’m not that interesting. And also…I wasn’t truly naked.”
“Huh…?”
You wiggle your eyebrows and, smiling radiantly, spin around and point to the black-ink tattoo between your shoulder blades, underscored by the straps of your swimsuit that cross just below it: a comet with a streaming tail, lyrics that Aemond dreamed up in a kinder world. Rhaena laughs.
“Oh, right, of course.”
“You are obsessed with that thing!” Baela says, but she sounds relatively happy again.
“It’s true. I am. I admit it.” Sometimes you find yourself staring at it in hotel bathroom mirrors still foggy with steam, wiping away condensation to marvel at the irrevocable ways in which Aemond has marked you, ways you are thankful cannot be erased. When you wear anything that reveals your upper back like a spilled secret, you often catch Aemond gazing at it too. Now he reaches over and skims a fingerprint along the circle that his lyrics form around the comet:
I’ll come back for you if it kills me
Comets clip by again after eons and so can I
There’s a jolt down your spine like lightning, but more eager than jarring. All other thoughts vanish from you. You look over at Aemond, and he looks back, his lips slightly parted, his right eye beckoning to you. And you know it will be good with him, if it happens, when it happens. It will be more than good. It will be laced with an intensity, with a dire breed of necessity that you’ve never tasted before. All at once, you and Aemond realize what you’ve done and drift away from each other again, weakening gravity, elliptical orbits.
“No shame, guys,” Baela quips, raising her smoothie glass in a toast. “Sex-positive, remember?”
After the 45-minute drive back to Reykjavik, and after the concert, the band coalesces in Jace’s suite. There aren’t many hangers-on for this stop of the tour; Reykjavik is isolated and peaceful and not particularly desirable for friends of convenience who are more interested in clubbing and drugs than camaraderie. You wouldn’t trade nights like this for anything in the world.
Aemond is reading off his latest notes, white ink on black paper, stars on the backdrop of the universe. A Benson & Hedges cigarette smolders between two fingers on his left hand. Smoke curls up around his face. “Aegon, you were three steps behind the choreography for basically the entire show.”
“Yeah, that was on purpose.”
“It wasn’t,” Aemond counters, but he can’t help but smile.
“Women love a tragic disaster of a man who is screaming to be fixed.”
“Daeron,” Aemond continues. “I really like that hair flip you’ve started doing…”
Aegon is knocking back dark glass bottles of Gædingur Stout and slurring, very drunk and sinking deeper by the minute. In the absence of coke, he has resorted to other crutches. You are squeezed between Aemond and Baela on one of the couches. And Aemond isn’t really touching you, but he also is: the delicious subtle pressure of his thigh against yours, occasional nudges of his elbow, ostensibly unintentional grazes of knuckles and palms. He’s drinking his usual, a Bramble, and so are you, swirls of slow-moving pink like drops of blood in open water. And you think in a hazy bliss like listening to ground-level conversations from the bottom of a swimming pool: Tonight, tonight, tonight, he’s going to come back to my room with me tonight.
“Oh great,” you mumble as you check your Facebook messages on your iPhone.
“What’s wrong?” Rhaena asks. She’s nestled against Luke on the opposite couch, twirling locks of his hair around her benign, delicate fingers. Jace is sitting beside Luke, drinking a Vesper and trying not to make eye contact with Baela. Daeron is in the fuzzy white sheepskin lounge chair, Cregan perched on a bar stool, Criston standing watchfully with a vivid green bottle of Perrier in one hand. When he briefly steps out onto the balcony to take a call from the label, you can hear only the most dim, indistinct murmurings through the thick tinted glass, sounds but not words. Aegon is sitting—and occasionally crawling around—on the floor. The Backstreet Boys’ I Want It That Way is playing.
“I’m subletting my apartment in Kansas City and there is a strict no pet policy. But my neighbors snitched on the new tenant and apparently she’s got a Flemish Giant rabbit living there with her.”
“Not even a normal rabbit,” Baela muses. “A giant rabbit.”
You sigh. “All the rugs are going to be chewed up by the time I get back.” And Aemond glances over anxiously, like he doesn’t want any reminders that you won’t always be around.
“What’s your apartment like?” he says.
“Old. Vintage. Most of it hasn’t been updated since the 1950s. You’d appreciate it, actually. It would match your aesthetic.”
“Maybe I’ll have to see it sometime.”
You smirk at him, flirtatious, baiting, the silver stars on your dress reflecting golden lamplight. “Maybe. If I invite you.”
He leans in to whisper so only you can hear: “You will.”
“I think I’d be a landlord if I wasn’t famous,” Jace says, nursing his Vesper meditatively like an aspiring philosopher. “I’d just sit back and collect the checks as they rolled in. And you get to raise the rent every year.”
“Yeah, that sounds like you,” Aegon says, grinning up at him saccharinely.
“What would you be, Stargirl?” Jace asks; and you realize you hate the sound of him using Aegon’s name for you.
“I mean, a therapist.” And everyone laughs, even Criston.
Jace flushes, brushing his curls back from his face with one hand. “Oh yeah. Clearly.”
You look to Aemond. “You’d be a historian or an archivist or something.”
“Or a writer,” Luke says.
“Maybe,” Aemond agrees, a tad uncomfortable with the attention. “Or an animal activist, maybe. I’d like to do some sort of good in the world.”
Aegon shouts, far more loudly than necessary: “What would you be, Criston?”
“Thousands of miles away from you.” More laughter, riotous; but Criston is smiling a little.
“What about you, Cregan?” Jace asks. “What would you want to be if Comet didn’t exist?”
Cregan downs a shot of Absolut Vodka. “A plastic surgeon.”
“What? Why?”
Cregan shrugs. “You get to see tits all the time.”
There are scandalized squeals and guffaws. Baela says: “I would not let you anywhere near my tits.”
“And not just tits!” Daeron adds brightly. “Don’t they do, what’s it called, vaginal rejuvenation?”
Cregan points at him with his empty shot glass. “Exactly.”
“Oh God, that sounds painful.” Rhaena hides her face behind a flute of champagne.
“Yeah,” you say. “I don’t think I’m interested.”
Aegon snorts, drips of Gaedingur Stout flying from his nose. “Like you’d ever need it. You’ve got a pornstar pussy, fucking gorgeous.”
A hush sweeps through the room like a dust storm. Baffled glances dart around wildly. Immediately, Aegon realizes his mistake. He gazes up at you from the floor with large, glazed, drunken blue eyes that glisten with apology. You gape back, half-furious and half-petrified.
“Wait, what?” Aemond says. Ashes build on his cigarette, forgotten.
“Oh, wow.” Jace gestures from you to Aegon. “You guys…you guys have…?”
“It was once, a long time ago,” you say quickly. “Like, a really long time ago. Over a year ago.”
Aegon is trying to help. “Ages ago. Ancient history.”
“Where? In Kansas City?!” Baela gasps, stunned.
Aegon tells her: “You remember that bar we all went to after the show, right? The one on the roof?”
Baela is blinking at you, not comprehending. “You hooked up with him? In a bar?! Aegon?!”
“Um, yeah.”
Jace brays out a laugh, shaking his head. “Damn, Stargirl. I thought you had better taste than that.”
You feel like you’re fighting for your life. You feel like you can’t breathe. “It really wasn’t serious…” Not the sex part, anyway.
“No, no, it totally wasn’t,” Aegon agrees gamely. “It was like, what? How long were we in that bathroom? Maybe ten minutes total?”
Daeron is giggling. “Bruh, stop roasting yourself!”
As the chatter flies, you hide your face in your hands; beneath your palms, your cheeks are hot. You can feel Aemond pulling away from you, spaces opening up between your thighs and shoulders and arms like the ever-expanding void of the universe. When you steal a glimpse of him through the cracks in your fingers, he is staring down at the floor. He is silent, but you can see the thoughts—the images—riddling him like bullets. You can see him filling up with them like a punctured ship fills with seawater. He smokes until his cigarette is gone, and then immediately lights another.
Luke is the one to mercifully intercede. “Hey, Criston, where are we going next?”
“Uh,” Criston says, trying not to gawk at you or Aegon. “Let me think. Uh. Oh, right. Paris.”
Jace cackles. “The city of love! How appropriate!”
Criston ignores him. “You have some press interviews and then you’re doing two shows at the Accor Arena on July 7th and 8th…”
Aemond gulps down the rest of his Bramble and then walks out onto the balcony, closing the sliding glass door behind him.
“Fuck,” Aegon sighs miserably, then guzzles his Gaedingur Stout.
You bolt off the couch and go after Aemond. The heavy sliding glass door growls as you roll it open and then shut it again. Outside, Reykjavik is cold and windswept. The midnight sun is aflame. It’s still too bright to see the Northern Lights; even if they were there, you would have no way of knowing. Aemond is smoking with his back to you. He’s looking out over the boats bobbing in the harbor, sunbeams glinting on the crests of waves. Flapping gulls swoop and scream.
You say cuttingly, like a surgeon slicing away malignancies: “So what, you don’t like me anymore?”
Aemond flicks ashes over the balcony railing. “I just think I understand you better.”
“What does that mean?”
He whirls to you and says pointedly: “Why are you here?”
A disorienting question. Too easy. “I followed you out onto the balcony.”
“No, here with the band, here in Reykjavik, why are you here?”
You know how the truth sounds, but you can’t rewrite it. “Because Aegon asked me to be.”
“Because he asked you to come fix me, right?” Aemond demands. “To crack open my skull and stir things around until I’m okay with the fact that my life ended seven months ago.”
“No!” you shout into the wind. “I mean, yes, he thought I’d be able to help you, to help Comet, but that’s not what this is about for me anymore—”
“Why would I believe you? You’re a liar, you’re a confirmed liar, why would I believe a single goddamn word of what you have to say?!”
“I didn’t lie to you!”
“Friends!” Aemond roars. He doesn’t touch you, but his rage is horrifying, ageless and deep like lava bubbling beneath tectonic plates. “You said you and Aegon were friends!”
“We are friends—”
“No, you’re not. You met him, you fucked him, and then when he invited you to join the tour you dropped everything to do it, why, because you still want him? And I’m the charity case? Or I was just next in line? Maybe you were planning to work your way through the whole band. Who’s next, Jace? I don’t think he’d object.”
“No—!”
“You and Aegon. And you didn’t even have the guts to tell me.”
“Because I didn’t want to have this conversation, the one where you eviscerate me for something that happened before I even met you!”
“You chose him,” Aemond says, venomous. “At the bar in Kansas City, you chose him.”
“What?! Aemond, I don’t even remember seeing you, I don’t think you were there at all—”
“I was there.” He glares at you, thunderstorms, tornadoes, the earth splitting in two. “Last June. Rooftop bar. String lights. View of the river. I remember it, I was there.”
“Well then you didn’t notice me either and you probably spent the whole night with Pilates princess, Malibu Barbie Shelby, so what’s the fucking point?!”
He glowers at the horizon. Iceland DOES have jewel tones, you think erratically. But they only come out at night, like owls or bats. “It’s different.”
“It’s not different! You’re so convinced people don’t like you that you do insane, irrational things that make people not like you! It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy! It’s a fucking circle, you idiot!”
“I’ve had enough psychoanalysis, thanks.”
“No, you could use some more of it, you could use a lot more, you have so many demons it’s like Paranormal Activity in your brain, they’re in there all day tearing things off the walls and kicking over chairs and sabotaging anything you dare to care about and you let them!”
He turns away from you. “Just go the fuck back to Kansas.”
“I’m from Missouri!”
Aemond pitches the end of his cigarette over the balcony. His good eye flicks to the sliding glass door. The curtains rustle as the faces that hovered there just seconds ago disappear back into the suite. Very muffled through the thick glass, you can hear Criston chastising people.
You ask Aemond, embers in your throat: “This is really something you consider unforgiveable?”
He shakes his head, mournful, violently disappointed. “You’re just a groupie. You’re just a slut.”
Slut. It’s not the word, it’s the way he said it, with dismissiveness, with condemnation, the same way men love to use it as a blade to carve off every other piece of you—kindness, coldness, ferocity, loyalty, wit, passion, talent, triumphs, failures, ghosts—until that one little word is all that’s left. You’re dismantled into a clutter of loose bolts and bent nails. You’re a beef cow that was led into the maze of a gnashing, metal-and-blood processing plant and came out the other side a brainless, raw-pink patty just the right size to fit in a Big Mac box, something to be consumed but not remembered. “What did you say to me?”
He’s staring out into the twilight sky, both hands on the balcony railing. “I can’t believe you. I can’t believe I…”
“Are you kidding me?! I can’t believe I got your lyrics tattooed on my fucking back, what am I supposed to do about that now, rip my own skin off?!”
“So get it covered up. I’m sure Aegon would be thrilled to help you choose a new design, or Jace, or Cregan, or Daeron, or whoever.”
“You know what I think?” you say, caustic like acid.
“Don’t say it,” he threatens, low and dark.
“I think you haven’t fucked anyone since the accident, and you’re terrified to. But you shouldn’t be, Aemond. Because there’s nothing wrong with you. There has never been anything wrong with you.”
But he doesn’t hear that part. He only hears the first thing, what you never should have said at all. It’s true, but that doesn’t mean you should have said it. “I hate you,” he says softly, and you can’t think of a reply. The space between you fills up with wind, cold, dying sunlight. Aemond looks at the sliding glass door. “I don’t want to go back in there.”
“Well, we’re five stories off the ground, so you’ll probably have to.”
He studies the series of balconies that run along this side of the hotel, each separated by perhaps three feet of open air. Then he starts climbing over the metal railing.
“Aemond, don’t!”
But it’s too late. Fortunately, he has long limbs. He scrambles onto the next balcony, and then the one after that, and then one more, until he reaches the balcony for his own suite. He tries the sliding glass door—locked—and then sits down to wait for someone to open it. You go back inside Jace’s suite, where everyone pretends to have been talking about something other than you.
“Where’s Aemond?” Criston says, alarmed.
“He’s on the balcony of his suite. You should go let him in.”
“What?!” Criston yells, and then sprints out into the hallway.
You flee too. Both Baela and Aegon try to stop you, try to talk to you. They’re asking what Aemond said. They’re asking if you’re okay. You tell them you’re fine and that you want to be left alone. They argue. You insist. You walk back to your own room and start packing.
Your suitcase fills up with crumpled clothes and souvenirs: a Colosseum pencil sharpener from Rome, a tiny alabaster Apollo from Athens, a Spanish fighting bull refrigerator magnet from Madrid, handmade soap from Porto, a bar of chocolate from Vienna, a moose snow globe from Stockholm, a silica mud mask from the Blue Lagoon, a tiny stuffed comet that Rhaena crocheted for you. You reach back to touch your fingertips to the comet tattooed over your spine, tears biting in your eyes. If I had told him from the start, would that have made a difference? If I had met him first, would we have had a chance? You are gathering up your makeup when you hear a knock on the doorframe.
Cregan lurks there. When he speaks, he sounds startled; he sounds afraid. “You can’t leave.”
“I’ve literally never had a conversation with you, so thanks for the input but I’m still going.”
“No,” he says, persistent. “You can’t leave.”
“Aemond doesn’t want me here.” Your voice is fragile, shattering. “I can’t help him anymore.”
“It’s not just about Aemond. It’s about everyone. They’re all fucked up. They all need you.”
You stare at Cregan, not understanding. “I really don’t think I’m equipped for this.”
He fixes his cool greyish eyes on you. He is harsh but somehow not unkind. “You would never be able to comprehend where I came from. I’m not going back to that. The band has given me everything. I’m not going to let anyone take that away from me. You have to stay. You have to fix Comet. You can’t leave.”
He watches you, and you watch him, and you aren’t sure who has the upper hand here, who is the predator and who is the prey. Maybe it doesn’t matter. Maybe everyone is a patchwork of strengths and deficits, fields of gold strewn with landmines.
At last, you relent. And Cregan doesn’t vanish until you’ve begun taking your souvenirs out of your suitcase and placing each of them—carefully, reverently—back on your nightstand where they were before.
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fox-guardian · 1 year
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Cecil fursona? 👀
He seems like he’d be a possum, or something called a possum that absolutely is not a possum, but honestly anything goes
*CRACKS KNUCKLES* I'M GLAD YOU ASKED, I HAVE A FURSONA ALL PICKED OUT ALREADY ALJSDHAKJDHA
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[ID: Two digital drawings of Cecil Palmer as an anthropomorphic indigo and purple cougar on a purple background. His paws, feet, cheeks, and hips have aqua crescent moons on them and the rest of his indigo fur is covered in rainbow stars, and his long tail is run through with rainbow stripes with an aqua and green stinger at the end. His irises are purple with white crescent moons as pupils and aqua sclera, and his paw pads and the inside of his mouth are aqua and green, and his claws are green.
The first image is from the chest up and shows him wearing Night Vale Radio headphones and speaking into a microphone. He is wearing a lilac denim vest with a large purple button with a green weed leaf and white text reading "Keep Night Vale Groovy" in all caps, with "groovy" in a 70s retro font. Under his vest, he's wearing a black t-shirt with "D.A.R.E." written on it in red, and the sleeves are torn off. He is smiling and gesturing with his paw hands.
The second image is full body and shows him standing on one foot with his hip popped out and his paw hands held up near his face with the backs facing the viewers, showing the crescent moons. He is smiling at the viewer with his tongue sticking out. He is wearing a pink and lilac cropped tank-top with an eye-shaped titty window, a short green and white striped ruched skirt, a bright yellow raincoat hanging off his shoulders, gold hoop earrings and a gold chain necklace with a green cactus pendant, and rainbow sequin platform sandals. His tail is curling out beside him. end ID]
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he is a cougar sparklecritter with khoshekh-like traits, meaning he's got the spine ridges and tendrils and all that jazz (sometimes) and of course, the stinger on the tail. i just think that since i headcanon cecil to be a lil older than carlos, him being a Literal Cougar is very funny to me and also he deserves the garish rainbow delight that is the sparklecritter vibe. i got excited to draw these because i already had them brewing, thank you SO MUCH for requesting this alshdajdha
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asgirlblog · 1 month
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You’re Out Boy-scout. Part-3
Your last interaction with Felix was about two days ago in class. You realized you have a few of the same courses, and he plopped himself down beside you that day. He leaned over and asked “Do you have a pencil I can borrow?” Not to disrupt the lecture you quietly nodded and began digging through your bag for one. You pulled out a 0.7 gray mechanical pencil and placed it in his hands, your fingers brushing against his. “You can keep it.” You say. “Really?” He leans over once again and whispers in your ear. “That’s kind of you, I’ll have to return the favor some time.” The warmth of his breath sends a shiver down your body to your core. “No really, it’s okay. That’s the least I can do considering how kind you’ve been to me these past few days.” He smiles. Little does he know you spent the rest of class imagining all the ways that he could return the favor. You watched his fingers fidget with the pencil, spinning it around, tapping it on the desk. When did that become so hot?
As you cross your arms and lean out of your dorm window, you feel the warmth of the sun kissing your skin. You lay your head on your elbow and close your eyes. As gorgeous as Felix was, you were too. As he walks by your building he sees you out the corner of his eye. He stops and admires your beauty from afar. Glowing skin, long soft eyelashes, plump lips. Simply stunning. He doesn’t stop until he snaps back to reality when you open your eyes. He waves and calls your name. You smile and wave back. “Hey Felix.” you say softly. He likes that about you, your pleasant nature, the way that you carry yourself. It’s very alluring to him. “Would you like to join us tonight? Some sort of party, like a small thing.” he asks unsure of how you’ll respond. At this point he knows that you aren’t a fan of large gatherings but he’s trying to help you out of your shell. “Yea, I would actually.” you say with a smile. You can tell by the look on his face that he’s pleasantly surprised. “Great, I’ll message you.” he says before he continues on his way.
You haven’t been struggling in keeping up with your schoolwork yet, but that’s because you try not go out too much. You’ve been trying to let loose a little, as that’s what you told yourself you would do once you got to college. Though you’ve never been the most outgoing person, being around Felix makes you feel different. You look forward to every moment you get to spend with him.
-“I’ll meet you in the corridor again around 9 yea?”
-“Sounds good, I’m just getting ready now.”
-“I trust you’ll look great in whatever you wear ;).”
You feel your cheeks growing hot and a wide smile across your face. Now you really have to find something nice to wear. Something sexy. Or not. You still don’t know how you really feel about Felix. It’s feels as if there’s something between you too but neither of you are sure what. You decide to go with a form fitting silver sequined dress. Low cut, but not too low. Just enough for your jewelry to perfectly drape over your chest. To make it more casual you decide to toss on a black leather jacket and some black boots. Lastly you do your makeup and your hair. A soft yet sultry smokey eye and pinky nude lip with brown lip liner. You keep your hair down. This time you beat Felix downstairs and see him as he opens the door to look for you near the stairs. He sees you and his eyes widen. He reaches for your hand and you walk outside to meet everyone else. “You look.. stunning y’know.” he says with a grin. Annabelle gives you a slightly dirty look. “Looks like someone didn't get the memo about the dress code.” she says dressed in a tight black tank top and a mini skirt. “I think this is just fine actually.” Felix interjects. The whole walk you feel Felix’s eyes on your body, now thinking that you should have chose the other option as opposed to the sexy one. The problem is not the way he’s looking at you, it’s the fact that you like it. Arriving at the party you see a few familiar faces from other gatherings you gone to with Felix. He and Ollie plop down on the couch. You find your eyes drifting towards him as he spreads his long legs. Annabelle and India walk over to the drinks and you follow closely behind. Somehow you find yourself with a beer filled cup making conversation with some other guy across the room from Felix. He notices and doesn’t like it. You’d be able to see it on his face if you were paying attention. Gesturing towards Annabelle and India, Oliver suggests that Felix “eenie meenies” one of them and takes them home because they look miserable. Not too long ago Felix had been hooking up with Annabelle and India off and on, which you knew but it still bothered you everytime you would notice them leave with him. Felix notices that you look more uncomfortable than anyone else in the room which concerned him. “Eenie, meenie, miny, moe, catch a tiger by his toe, if he squeals let him go.. errr.. you’re out boy-scout.” he says gesturing towards you. Oliver sits there surprised. Felix stands up and walks in your direction. The man you’re talking to stops to look up at him and Felix takes your hand. You stand up a bit confused but happy regardless. “What do you say we get out of here?” You nod with a soft smile on your face. You begin walking in front of him when you feel his large hand plant a soft smack on your butt. Your heart nearly skips a beat but you continue walking with him as if nothing happened. Annabelle looks pissed which delighted you.
Felix wraps his arm around your waist as you walk back towards the dorm. You can feel the warmth of his body against yours and you almost melt. “Where are we going?” you ask as you look up into his eyes. “Where do you wanna go?” he asks with a smirk. Before you can answer, you hear the sound of thunder striking. Rain starts to pour and before you know it you and Felix are both soaked. His button up clings to his chiseled figure, your eyes may pop out your head if you looked any closer. He uses his height to your advantage and almost curls over you to protect from the rain the best he can. You both pick up speed and you reach his building soon. He opens the door for you, and you go in. He follows quickly after you. When you reach his room he unlocks the door and gestures toward his bay window. You plop down on the cushion as he closes the door and takes off his shoes. You pull both your boots off and lay them to the side. “We’re dripping.” he says as he chuckles. He walks towards his dresser and pulls out two oversized shirts. He places one in your lap. You hold it up with confusion plastered over your face. “What am I supposed to do with this?” you ask. “Put it on of course, what kind of guy would I be if I let you sit there all cold and wet?” he says as if it’s obvious. “Alright but you have to turn around.” you hesitantly agree. He playfully cover his eyes and spins in the other direction. You quickly slip the shirt over your dress and then pull it off from underneath. It was a bit short but it will do for now. “Finished?” he asks. “Yea, you’re okay now.” He turns back around and begins to unbutton his shirt. “Oh but you have to turn around!” he laughs as he mocks you. You roll your eyes, which he likes. You’re not sure if you start drooling or not when he take off his shirt but you know for a fact that didn’t look away once. “Enjoying the show?” he asks. You quickly break eye contact with his abs and look away. He can tell that your embarrassed. “I’m only joking y/n, y’know I like to give the ladies what they want.” For some reason hearing him reference “giving the ladies what they want” stings. Probably because it forces you to remember that you’re not the only girl he’s ever given any attention, which was dumb to think anyway.
You start putting your hair into to two braids still not saying anything. He pulls his pants down and slips on another pair of shorts over his boxers. You start fidgeting with your necklace after you finish your braids just to have something to do with your hands. Felix then comes to sit next to you. He notices your necklaces and extends his hands out to hold them, his knuckles grazing your chest as he observes them. “I got most of these for Christmas last year.” you say not knowing how to fill the silence. “Yea.. they’re nice.” he says still playing with them in his fingers. He looks up to meet your face, slowly moving his gaze from your eyes to your lips. “You’re gorgeous y’know?” he says, eyes almost twinkling. You smile and say “You are too.” He looks away shyly, which you’ve never seen him do. When he looks back you admire his features just like he did yours. His pink lips, his downward deep brown eyes, his sun-kissed skin. You reach out your thumb to feel his lips, softly rolling over the bottom, then the top. You can feel his lips curling into a smile under your touch. He raises his hand to grip yours. You both sit like that for a minute before you place your hand back in your lap. “Well we should get to bed.” you say. “Right.” Felix says looking slightly disappointed. Before he can stand up you lean forward and press a soft kiss against his lips. You pull away for a moment before he pulls you closer by your waist. This time the kiss doesn’t stop for at least a two minutes. You find yourself running your hands under his shirt and over his perfectly sculpted body. When you finally do stop you both smile at each other before stands up and gestures towards his bed. At first you’re hesitant. In high school you never had a boyfriend so this was the most physical intimacy you’ve ever had with a man. Thankfully Felix had pure intentions and only wanted to go to sleep. You lay down on the inner part of the bed and he follows behind you laying right next to you. You both lay forehead to forehead, eye to eye. He wraps his arm around you and your wrap yours around his waist. “Goodnight.” he says before planting a kiss on your nose. “Goodnight.” you say back with a smile.
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