#sitting in a room with the two biggest stars on the planet and being a part of them and feeling like you can’t fully let go like that

[alovesreading]

Chicken Shop Date | Part 6 |

By @imagine-that-100 and @alovesreading

Description: Matty Healy x Reader (Female) | You and your best friend Amelia came up with a very simple idea of taking celebrities on awkward chicken shop dates, and somehow, it’s managed to become both of your jobs. In the past, you’ve found sitting across from some of the biggest stars on the planet and eating chicken nuggets easy. But then Amelia manages to score you a date with the man who you’ve been obsessed with since you were nineteen; Matty Healy.

Word Count: 22.3k 

A/N: This chapter is so exciting!!!!! It’s finally the New Years party and we hope you enjoy this as much as we did writing it! It was so much fun coming up with this whole thing and we’re still melting over everything that happens. Especially over THAT cameo *wink, wink* We thank you endlessly for your patience, you lot are the very best!!!! Enjoy!!!!!!! xx

| Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 |

| N’s Masterlist | A’s Masterlist |

The thought of forgetting something wakes Matty up slowly and when he catches a glimpse of the time on the clock you’ve got on your bedside table, he remembers the whole evening in a matter of seconds.

A massive grin breaks on his face when he watches you cuddled up to him, pouty face and breathing so calmly. He closes his eyes again, pulling you in the tiniest bit closer when that nagging thought comes back to him, and it’s right then that he remembers you two have somewhere to be.

In his head, getting five more minutes of you like this won’t do any harm so he allows himself to let the time pass but the next time he opens his eyes, it’s been twenty minutes and he really needs to go for a wee.

Matty curses his biological needs and ignores it for as long as he can, which turns out to be a mere two minutes, until he feels like he can’t go any longer holding it in.

Even though he doesn’t really want to leave you, he definitely doesn’t want to wake you up, so he silently and slowly gets out of bed and sits on the side of it for a second, not wanting to move too quickly because he doesn’t want to disturb you.

He looks at you and all that goes through his mind is how lucky he feels to have you like that. It's certainly refreshing to feel warm inside every time he sees you or talks to you, and he’s completely sure he won’t take anything for granted when it comes to you. He still can’t believe it’s all working so well despite it being so soon in whatever you two were developing, he’s pinching himself time and time again to make sure he isn’t dreaming.

Then he looks up at your wall where you have a lot of polaroids pinned up above your bed. Lots of them are ones from your chicken shop dates so there is a variety of people Matty can point out but then his eyes land on the ones from your date. You have both of your pictures, the one you took of him and the one he took of you, pinned up right above the middle of the bed and he can’t stop himself from smiling seeing them there.

They are the closest to the bed itself, somewhere where you could actually see them when you were lying down if you wanted to. He finds it beyond cute because he can see that your pictures with Phoebe are higher up than his and he knows his date wasn’t the last you had. It warms his heart that little bit more and makes him feel even more special.

After a few seconds doting on the pictures, Matty gets himself up and grabs his underwear and trousers before making his way into your bathroom. He quickly, and hopefully silently, has a shower too and he’s in there for no longer than five minutes before he gets himself out and dry and he leaves your bathroom only dressed from the waist down with damp curls.

He’s pleased to see that you’re still asleep when he opens the door again, and you look so adorable all curled up in bed, he feels bad that he’ll have to wake you up to go out soon. So he decides to give you a few more minutes of peace and he silently slips out of your room to go and get you a drink thinking you might be a little parched after your earlier activities when you wake up.

Quietly he opens your bedroom door and slips out, and as he’s walking through your lounge to your kitchen he stops when he notices a new painting on the wall.

It’s a box painting, a design that he’s all too familiar with and he can’t help but smile seeing that you’ve got one of his best friends paintings on your wall. This one is of a forest, a foggy one that has mountains in the background and it looks amazing. And he can’t help but smile that you own one of these paintings and it sits proudly on your wall.

And he knows it's one of hers because he’s got a fair few of his own up in his house. Not to mention it’s not difficult to recognise his best friend's signature on the canvas.

With his grin unfaltering, Matty makes it to the kitchen and gets a glass of water for you and with quiet steps, he makes it slowly back to your room, giving the painting one last glance and getting excited about seeing the person behind the art piece tonight.

The closer he got to your door, the more he could make out your figure still resting on the messy bed. He feels so bad having to wake you up so he tries to make it as soft as possible.

Matty puts your glass of water down and he tucks your hair behind your ear before he leans down and kisses your temple a few times. He hopes it’ll be a nice way to wake you up and he's happy to see that you don’t look like you want to kill him when you open your eyes.

Initially you let out a little groan, frowning a little as you woke up but when you slowly blink your eyes open and you see him, a tired smile comes to your face. And it gets even bigger when he coos, “Hiya baby.”

“Hi.” You grin, the sight of him above you making you happy.

Matty cups your face and he gently caresses the apple of your cheek as he asks, “You had a nice sleep?”

“Always.” You hum and you lean into his hand.

Chuckling a little at your answer, Matty can’t help but smile at you. He remembers the water he got you then and he picks up the glass and hands it to you, “Got you a drink.”

“Thank you.” You sit up a little and take a few sips of it before putting it down.

Matty smiles at the sight of you still wearing his shirt, and he loves seeing you in his clothes. He already can’t wait to see you in more of them.

Catching himself stuck in his thoughts, he says, “Hope you don’t mind, I had a quick shower.”

“No, it’s fine.” You smile and reach up to run your fingers through his still slightly damp hair, “Get even fresher curls.”

“Yeah,” Matty smirks, “You’ve not ruined them by pulling on them, yet.”

Narrowing your eyes you backchat, “You say that like you didn’t enjoy it each time I did.”

“Details.” Matty narrows his eyes playfully but he’s smiling when he leans down to press his lips against your own.

And you hum in amusement as you quickly kiss him back. When you pull away, you ask, “What time is it?”

He tells you, “Just past nine.”

“Oh shit,” Your eyes go wide, and you sit up a little like you’re about to start rushing, “We need to go.”

“Take your time,” Matty assures you, “It's not an issue what time we get there.”

“I know but it will take a while to get over there.” You say as you rub your eyes to wake yourself up a little more, and you sit up properly now.

He chuckles at your haste, but he really doesn’t want you rushing about, “Doesn’t matter.”

You pull the covers back and twist your way out of bed, “I’ll shower quickly and get ready as-“

But you’re interrupted by Matty leaning in to pecking your lips to shut you up. And once he’s succeeded he just smiles, “Take your time.”

Pressing your lips together, you roll your eyes and get yourself up from the bed. You can hear him giggling as he’s managed to shut you up and you try your very best not to let out a chuckle of your own. You don’t think you’ll ever get tired of hearing him laugh.

You grab a few things before you go in your bathroom, but once inside you shower as quickly as you can and thankfully you’re not in there too long. Getting out you dry yourself off before getting into your fresh set of underwear and you leave the bathroom with Matty’s shirt in hand.

Walking out, you see that he’s now sitting up, leaning back against your headboard where he lay earlier and scrolling mindlessly through his phone.

“Here you go.” You smile as you walk towards him, offering him his shirt back but you watch his eyes focus on your body instead of his clothes.

Looking you up and down before finally making contact with your eyes, he’s dead serious when he says, “Oh my god, you’re asking to be thrown back in bed.”

“No,” You shake your head, unable to stop yourself from grinning at him. “I have to get ready.”

“I’m begging we stay.” Matty leans forwards and wraps his arms around you, pulling you down onto the bed beside him.

You’re laughing at his efforts as you dismiss him, “Nope. I want to dance to Mr and Mrs XCX dj-ing.”

“They aren’t that good.” Matty plays their talent down because he would love for you to remain in this attire for the rest of the night.

But you’re having none of it.

Disagreeing, you frown, “They are.”

Matty smiles but narrows his eyes at you, “How would you know?”

“The Reading afterparty, Matty.” You remind him, “I was around… Just didn’t want to bother you all. The music was great though.”

Realising that you were there makes Matty’s jaw drop a bit. “We could have had this so much earlier.” and you laugh when he pulls you against him, making you lie down beside him.

“Happy to have it now.” You hum, and you don’t miss the way his eyes run down your body, “Plus don’t you think our date was more iconic because we didn’t really know each other.”

“Yeah, we were amazing to be fair.” Matty smirks as he snakes his hand down your body and he rests it on your arse as he tells you, “Need to get you back in those red leather pants at some point. The whole get up was fit as fuck.”

“Maybe someday.” You chuckle.

But the singer pouts, “Not tonight?”

“Nope,” You shake your head, “I’ve got another look in mind.”

After indulging him for a few more minutes, you move away from him to dry your damp hair and Matty happily watches as you blow dry it, loving the view of you still in next to nothing. And because you quite like his eyes on you, you don’t get dressed before you do your make up either.

You do your makeup sitting at your dressing table and you both happily chat to each other as Matty plays a little music from his phone to get you into the partying mood. It doesn’t take you long to get ready, and you’re slipping on your black dress only half an hour after you woke up which you’re relieved about.

While Matty was a little upset seeing you hide away your lacy underwear, he can’t help but appreciate just how amazing you look in the dress you’ve just put on. It stops on your upper thigh, hiding your arse from him but it's tight on your body so your figure is still on display and he thanks his lucky stars he gets to see you looking like this all night.

So he doesn’t hesitate to say, “You look so good.”

“Thank you.” You grin, feeling great about how you look and feel right now as you adjust your dress in the mirror, pulling it down a bit to show a little more cleavage.

Matty can’t help but internally groan. You’re so painfully gorgeous, he can’t believe he’s lucky enough for you to want him beside you, as long as you're willing to put up with him. He can't help but hope it’s a long time.

“What do you think?” You bring Matty out of his thoughts by asking. “Heels or boots?”

“I think you’ll be more comfy in the boots.” The singer points out and you definitely agree with him.

Asking again, you give him your options, “Ankle or knee high?” and you raise both up so he can choose.

The singer thinks about it for a few seconds before he counters with, “You got any without a heel?”

You sigh but laugh a little, and you know exactly why he’s asked. So you tease him with, “Why can't you be taller?”

And you bite your lip when he immediately frowns and argues, “I am tall.”

“That's what short k-”

“Don't you dare call me a short king,” Matty interrupts, “I’m five-eleven.”

“And I’m five-nine.” You raise your eyebrows at him, “So if I put heels on you’re smaller than me… You’re my short king now.”

Both of you look at each other holding your amusement and Matty’s slight frustration back then. He’s so easy to rile up, you’re definitely going to add this to your list of ammunition to use against him when he starts embarrassing you.

“Just put the ankle boots on.” Matty demands, dismissing the subject because he knows you’re right which makes you start laughing.

After doing that, you stay seated on the end of your bed for a minute and you reply to Amelia’s message, telling her the date went well. You tell her that you’ve just changed and that you’re about to head to George’s party, and you can’t help but laugh a little when her next message comes through.

I do wonder why you need a change of clothes but I’m sure I can guess, dirty bitch… Anyway, what you wearing now Slut? x

Matty watches from his seat on your bed as you stand up chuckling. He has to ask, “What?”

“Amelia wants to know what I’m wearing.” You say as you stand in front of your mirror and raise your phone up, “So I thought I’d just send her a picture.”

You take a few of yourself, one with your phone covering your face and your full body in show and in the others you move your phone to the side a little so you can smile.

You decide to move your hair into a different position, and as you raise your phone back up, you can’t help but smile when you see Matty has stood up and he’s walking towards you.

There’s a grin on his face and on yours too but both of your smiles get bigger as you look at each other through the mirror and you're grinning like an idiot when his hand slides around your waist and he pulls you back to lean into him. You indulge yourself in the happy moment and you take the picture.

You look at Matty in the mirror and you watch as he turns his head to you and he kisses your temple. Again you take a picture.

Then you bring your other hand up to lace your fingers with his that is on your waist, and when you both smile at each other through the mirror again, you take another picture.

After that you put your phone down and lean back into him properly. You happily grin at him through the mirror and your heart skips a beat when he whispers in your ear, “Do you know just how stunning you are?”

Your cheeks heat up in an instant, and you press your lips together trying not to squirm as he compliments you. It’s so lovely of him to say but you’re really not used to hearing things like that in such a personal context anymore.

It’s hard to take his compliment. Because of that and because you’re British.

Matty sees your unwillingness to believe him but he’s thankful that you accept his compliment and rather shyly turn towards him, whispering back, “Might need you to remind me.”

Matty smiles at that and he cups your face making sure you look at him as he tells you, “Well I’ll be here to make sure you remember.”

You’re sure he feels your cheeks heat up at that but you don’t care. You just smile, “You’re cute.”

Matty shakes his head a little, “Not as cute as you.”

“Shut up.” You mumble before kissing his pretty lips again.

It’s impossible not to get carried away when he’s holding you close to his chest by your waist and your fingers are tangled in the hair at the nape of his neck. And trying to pull away when you come back to reality is also impossible, as he keeps leaving chaste kisses on your lips.

“You wanna pack a bag for mine later?” He suggests after giving you one last long peck, and he looks at you with the cutest puppy eyes that have you folding in less than a second.

You sigh softly, completely defeated under the effect of his eyes on you, “Yeah, okay.”

“Pack a few days worth of stuff.” He suggests, letting his hand fall a bit until he can give your arse a cheeky squeeze, “Gotta make the most out of the start of the year, remember?”

The way he’s smirking at you has you raising your eyebrows and biting your bottom lip not to giggle away from the anticipation, you can feel yourself burning up head to toe but you cover it by taunting him, “Right. The most of it.”

Humming, Matty presses another kiss on your lips but then he smacks your arse and says “Let’s go,” to get you moving.

A gasp falls from your lips, which only has his smirk getting bigger and to that you can only shake your head, trying hard not to look amused.

It takes you no time at all to pack a bag, and in that time Matty managed to get you a taxi that wasn’t too far away. You both had a vodka coke before you got in the car and when it arrived you both ran to the back of the car because it was still pelting it down with rain.

Matty let you get in the side closest to the door whilst he ran around to the other side with your bag in hand. Once Matty double checks the address with the driver, you’re on your way to the party but what makes you laugh is when Matty settles and he sees all the room between you and pouts.

“You’re so far away baby.” He frowns, and he can’t help but move himself over to the middle seat and puts your bag where he just was.

His arm comes around your waist to hold you the closest he can to himself and with a big grin on your face, you let your head rest on his shoulder. Matty sighs in content, “Now that’s better.”

Your heart swells when the words leave his lips from just how content he sounds, you can’t help yourself when you feel the urge to leave a kiss on his skin. Feeling your soft lips on his neck is something that makes Matty’s insides flip, and he truly feels like he’s on cloud nine when he’s with you.

It’s the way he clutches you the tiniest bit tighter that gives him away and silently you’re just really glad he has the same reaction to you as you do to him. It all just adds to what you’ve been discovering about him for the past week, and somehow it makes your appreciation for him grow even more.

The hour long drive to George’s is rather entertaining as your driver starts talking to you both and you find yourself the slightest bit chattier from how happy you are and the drink you already had.

There’s many times when the man behind the wheel makes you laugh out loud–bless him, working on New Years Eve, still having the energy to be witty–when you catch Matty just looking at you with those eyes you adore.

Under the passing streetlights you can catch them almost gleaming as they are fully stuck on you and you find yourself squirming nervously under his gaze. Every time you’re about to ask him what it was, your driver brings you back in conversation but it’s one last time when Matty does the same thing that has you letting out a little, “What?”

To which he just responds with a toothy grin that reaches his eyes and a kiss to your temple that has your melting right into his side.

After that Matty joined the conversation and it’s not at all awkwards like small chat with a taxi driver usually is. You’re surprised when you get to George’s faster than you expected and after being dropped off by the door, you wave the lovely man away and leave him a big tip for his kindness.

Thankfully, the rain has fully stopped by now and all that’s been left are small puddles in the ground that you avoid as you make your way in. But it’s not trying to avoid the wet patches on the ground that have you fiddling with your fingers and clumsily taking steps towards the front door, you’re actually slightly nervous.

And it’s a bit foolish of you to be, because you’ve met the lads already and spent a whole night drinking and chatting with them but this time it feels different.

Maybe it is just you being aware of this time being Matty bringing you as his date rather than just inviting you over to their greenroom after seeing you were in attendance at their gig. Maybe you’re just more apprehensive of what everyone’s reactions could be due to the change of circumstances.

So you find yourself silently begging for it all to remain the same, just so you don’t find yourself racking your brain about any comparisons from tonight to the night of the banquet records gig.

This time though, Matty is more aware of every single one of your actions and he can read you so much clearer so he doesn’t take long to notice the way you’re hiding into yourself, the shyness in your walk and how your eyes seem to look more at the ground than in front of you when he’s about to get to the door.

To give you comfort, he intertwines your fingers as he opens the door and his thumb rubs circles on the back of your hand as you take your first steps into the house. The loud music and colourful lights drown you both as you close the door behind you but you barely have time to take much in for there’s someone walking by that’s already greeting the man walking in front of you.

“Matty.” You hear the one and only Charli XCX enthusiastically exclaim your date’s name and throw an arm around him to give him a quick hug with her eyes closed.

“Hey!” He says as he reciprocates the embrace, giving her a quick squeeze before letting go.

She pulls back and opens her eyes to look at him when she says, “I was wondering why I had yet to see you.” but right then she catches a glimpse of you over his shoulder and she lets out a loud screech that has you giggling. “Ah! Y/N!”

You take a step forward so she can see you properly and she basically throws herself on you to embrace you, “Hey Charli,” you’re smiling so hard at her reaction to your presence, it starts dissipating the worries that were clouding your thoughts only a minute ago, “Thank you for inviting me.”

“Oh my god, anytime.” She sways you a bit before letting go and you catch the smirk tugging at the corners of her mouth, “How'd the date go?”

You chuckle and so does Matty beside you, “Really good.” Is the shy answer you give her under both their intent stares.

And it makes you so happy that her reaction is a little giddy dance and a, “Yay! I was hoping it would,” to then wave at you both to follow her as she started walking further into the house, “Come with me. Let me show you where to get a drink.”

Before she gets very far though, Matty asks her if he can run upstairs and put your bag somewhere safe and Charli nods, telling him to go put it in hers and George’s room. She leads the both of you upstairs and points her room out to him and Matty puts your bag in a safe spot, all while she shows you around upstairs.

“Your house is stunning.” You compliment, finally being able to let your eyes wander around the gorgeous place. You almost didn’t notice Matty taking your hand again as you looked round you were so invested.

The rooms are all pretty big and the tall ceilings make the place feel even bigger, and you can only imagine it's the same downstairs. The decor is modern but it all feels really homely too. It makes you so happy that George and Charli are serious enough that they are living together, you’ve never been so happy for a celebrity couple.

“Thank you, better during the day when you can see it.” And you can definitely imagine that, the sunlight coming through the massive windows they have must look absolutely stunning washing over their whole floor.

As you make your way back downstairs, you’re brought back from your appreciation of the architecture and decoration when she genuinely suggests, “You need to come over and we can chill properly.”

Not really believing those words just came out of her mouth, you nod your head and give her a stupefied, “Yeah.”

The singer continues sorting out the plan out loud by playfully saying, “Can let the boys make our drinks that day. Keep them busy before they go off touring again.”

And of course, Matty, wanting you to have the best night, jumps on the idea and grants your wishes, “Can do that for you today, Charli.”

Charli winks at you like her plan has just worked and snaps her fingers with a smirk, “Well, hop to it then.” And then waves her hand to show the vast alcohol selection that’s set on the bar.

Yes bar. Mr and Mrs XCX seem to have spared no expense with their new house. There’s a full functioning bar that separates the kitchen from the main room where most people seem to be gathered. It’s like they have their own club in their house with a raised platform for the DJ on the other side of the room, and you can see a gigantic spinning disco ball in the centre of the room too. The club lights and the strobes lighting up the full wall mural that they have too makes it seem like you’re truly at a club, not in someone's house.

Charli smiles and tells you, “Please use anything and everything, we don't want to see any of it left tomorrow so please have as much as you like.”

“What do you want, baby?” Matty asks you first, his thumb still tracing figures on your skin to soothe you but you’re feeling more calm now so you squeeze his hand as if telling him you’re okay.

There’s so much in front of you that you just can’t find yourself making a quick decision so you just go for what you already had before you left your flat, “I’ll have a vodka and coke again please.”

Matty nods and then turns to Charli, “What do you want, queen of pop?”

With a triumphant smile, Charli replies, “Vodka cranberry please Matthew.” and right away, the curly headed boy lets your hand go with a soft squeeze and moves to make your drinks.

As he leaves your side, Charli takes his place and you both take a few steps back to just watch him as he gets your glasses and ice. You’re watching his swift moves, the way he delicately places the glasses on the table and goes to get one more for himself, his curls bouncing as he walks and his brows furrowing as he tries to find a vodka bottle he fancies, when the silence is broken by the woman beside you.

“So…” Charli starts with a slightly suggestive tone.

But you’re so distracted by the view that you fail to catch on to what she means, “So?”

“The date?” She asks a bit more forward this time, turning to you properly, and that seems to bring your attention to her.

“Oh, yeah very good.” You quickly reply, a genuine smile on your face remembering how it went and selfishly taking a bit of time to rewind and play back a little reel of what it had been.

It’s her next question, though, that snaps you right back to reality, “But was he very good?”

“Pardon?” You feel the heat coating your cheeks and you have to bite your tongue not to give yourself away.

It’s too late, you find out, when she sighs playfully and continues, “Babe it's written on both of your faces. Come on, spill, we’re friends right?” She nudges your hip with hers, making you break and let out a little nervous giggle.

You end up nodding your head, because why wouldn’t you admit he’d been very good. It was just your own mind reminding you of your previous thoughts that had you a bit timid about what you wanted to admit to yet, “Yea- Yes.”

“Yes we’re friends or yes he was good?” The singer asks for clarification, clearly wanting to get a bit more than a yes from you.

You can’t help but hope it’s not obvious to everyone though. You’ve met Charli quite a few times since her Chicken Shop Date with Amelia and each time you’d all got on like a house on fire, so a little teasing from her you could definitely handle. But telling her this feels like it’s a bit more personal, and despite knowing you can trust her it takes you aback a little bit that she actually wants to know.

“Charlotte Aitchison.” You say through your teeth, almost scolding her for wanting you to air any details in the middle of the room right in Matty’s presence.

You don’t care if there’s enough music filtering through from the other room to drown out your words. It’s still making your cheeks heat up and you want to hide under her gaze.

She laughs loudly and shrugs her shoulders like it’s just an innocent inquiry, “Hey, I just need to know whether the hype is for nothing.”

Trying your best to keep a straight face, you give into her attempts and admit, “Not for nothing.”

“Ahhh!” She screeches loudly, which makes Matty chuckle to himself and shake his head despite not knowing what you’re both talking about since he can’t hear a thing over the music.

“Fuck, I love this for you.” Charli throws both her arms around you and squeezes you tight, completely obsessed with how it’s all unfolding for you both.

She remembers watching the date with George and wishing that something actually would end up happening between you so the fact that her silent ship is working out has her beyond happy, especially since both of you are who she considers her friends.

You appreciate her excitement for you so much, it feels like such a relief to have more than just Amelia rooting for you and especially people that are from Matty’s inner circle but you want to turn the conversation away from you for a second so your heart isn’t erratically beating out of your chest. Instead, you steer towards the topic of her and George by saying, “I feel like I should ask about George now but I already know the answer if you’ve moved in with him.”

And you can’t explain the happiness that washes over you when she nods and very confidently states, “I’m going to marry that man, he’s not getting away.”

Raising your eyebrows, you chat back, “That good?”

And it’s very confirmed when she purses her lips and nods slowly but surely as she replies, “Oh yes.”

Your conversation is cut short before you can get any more details when Matty is back with both your drinks, “Here you go ladies.”

You both get handed your drinks and thank him before taking a long sip of them while Matty quickly grabs his own and joins you again. As he does, you ask her, “Did you have a nice Christmas in Florida?”

“Oh she had a fantastic time.” Matty chuckles and you can’t help but feel like he knows something you don’t.

And it seems that’s the case when Charli grins, “Ha, he’s right I had a fucking amazing time.”

But before you can question what it is that they’re alluding to, Charli notices someone waving her over from the living room, “Ah shit, I’m being summoned. You’ve got friends in the club and in the studio.” She points in the direction of both places and you two nod, “See you in a bit, have fun and save a shot for me.” She warns with a point of her finger and a wink.

Without Charli there, your eyes are falling back on the pretty boy in front of you and it’s then when you notice he isn’t having the same as you, “What are you drinking?”

Raising his glass a bit, Matty explains, “George saved me a few bottles of red, have a stash in the cupboard.”

You smile at him getting his way, “Perks of the party being in your best mates house.”

“Gotta have some.” He shrugs his shoulders and takes a sip of his red wine and basks in the taste of it.

He lowers his glass back down and puts out his free hand for you to grab, “Shall we go find some people?”

With bubbling excitement in your belly, you nod, “Yeah. Lead the way.”

Like upstairs, the rooms are tall, but you guess that makes sense for a house a gentle giant like George Daniel lives in. Everything looks amazing downstairs too, but you think your favourite feature is the large sliding glass doors that lead out to their garden. You can imagine it being stunning on a summer's day.

The room they are in though has been converted to the dancefloor. There’s a lot of people dancing in the middle to the DJ, who surprisingly isn’t George, but they look like they are having a great time. And there’s a lot of people standing with their drinks chatting to other people too, and no doubt more outside.

But both you and Matty spot a familiar face amongst the many you don’t recognise. And Matty wonders over to him first with a grin on his face as he holds your hand as you walk over.

“Hey.” Matty greets him, a big smile on his face seeing his friend again.

“Hey,” Ross smiles, a little shocked, “Where the fuck have you been?” as he hugs Matty back, but his question is answered when he spots you.

“Ah Y/N!” Ross grins brightly and he all but pushes Matty off him so he can hug you. You hug him back, letting Matty go to hug him properly, but the bassist makes you chuckle when he keeps you in his hold as he jokes, “I hope he wasn’t as annoying as he was on your chicken shop date.”

“Nowhere near as funny Ross,” You play along, and you pull out of the hug and smile up at him, “It's why I need my date with you.”

“Ah,” Ross smirks, gently brushing you off with, “Maybe for the next album.”

“I’m going to hold you to that.” You grin, pointing at him as you raise your eyebrows so he knows you're serious.

He chuckles a little and Matty finds himself laughing too knowing there’s no way it would happen. But he loves that you probably won't quit trying.

Matty takes your hand in his again as he asks his mate, “Did Hann show?” as he’s been looking around and can’t spot him or Carly anywhere.

“No, he did put in the chat but I assumed you haven't seen it because you didn’t call him a pussy.” Ross shakes his head, but his amused smile shines though. He then explains, “He’s staying in with Carly and baby, her Mum and Dad are over aren’t they, so-”

Matty takes over and sighs a little, “So they have babysitters and could have come.”

He really wanted Adam to come so he could introduce you to Carly, and he can’t help but be a little gutted because he knows that you’d get along so well with Mrs Holt-Hann.

“You bully that man enough.” You shake your head, dismissing Matty’s claims, “Give him a night off.”

The curly haired man can’t help but let his draw drop a little as his eyes widen. Ross is smirking as Matty asks you, “Who’s side are you on baby?”

“When it comes to you bullying Adam, whilst it's funny, I’m on his side.” You tell the curly haired man and he freins hurt putting his hand over his chest.

Ross laughs loudly and traps you in a side hug as he says, “You can stick around Y/N/N.”

“Thanks Ross.” You chuckle, leaning into him a little letting go of Mattys hand so you can keep a hold of your drink as you put your arm around Ross’ back.

Matty looking around and still not being able to see his friend who’s the size of a tree ends up having to ask, “Where’s G?”

“He’s around, was doing the music about half an hour ago but not sure where he is now.” The bassist explains, “Might be with the others in there?”

Ross nods over to another room that people keep on filtering in and out of and you see Matty silently ask you if you want to head over there and you nod. You move out of Ross’ grip and you take another sip of your drink as you move to stand beside Matty again.

The curly haired brunette asks Ross, “You joining us?”

“No,” He shakes his head and looks around the room, “I'm going to branch out and socialise a bit more.”

“Is that code for something, Ross?” You can’t help but tease at the way he scoped out the room.

But Ross is quick to fire back, “Was your date code for something, Y/N/N?” and a smile plays on his lips which screams that he knows you didn’t turn up to this party so late just because you were on a date, but you play stupid.

“Nope,” You shake your head and maintain your innocence, “We went on a date, a very nice restaurant actually.”

Matty can’t help but smile at the way you confidently play it off, the same way Ross pretends like he believes you, “Good.”

“I’ll send you the address for when you’ve found someone you like socialising with.” You smile knowingly back at him and before you start walking towards the door he nodded to, you playfully raise your middle finger at him with the hand you’re holding your glass with as you start pulling Matty with you.

Ross just laughs as you and the singer turn away from him and Matty can’t help but grin at what just took place. He squeezes your hand and asks, “What’s got you all feisty?”

“I'm not,” You laugh, “I just think Ross is on the prowl.”

“Good.” Matty nods like it’s something dire, “He needs to get some.”

“Matty,” You laugh at the fact he doesn’t know, “There's queues of people who want him.”

Immediately, the singer’s features scrunch together in disbelief. He shakes his head a bit, frowning as he says, “I don’t think so.”

“Well you need to open your eyes.” You scoff as you laugh, “More for him than you these days.”

Matty pretends to think about it for a second before humming, “Mmm no.”

“Okay,” You chuckle, knowing someday soon Matty will get the shock of his life. “Don't believe me.”

“I won't.” Matty grins proudly, before he pulls you over to the door, excited to see more of his friends before he starts socialising with other familiar faces, “Okay, who's in here?”

When you enter the room, you realise it must be the studio Charli was talking about earlier. There’s everything you could need in here to make music but also chill out as you do it. Comfy seats surround the place, the best being a big fluffy settee, and there’s computers on one side of the room and the rest is set up like a lounging area. But there’s a drum kit in one corner that thankfully no one is playing, guitars surrounding the place with various awards decorating the room.

There’s a lot of people in here as it's another big room, but it’s not as overcrowded as the other. You look around trying to spot anyone you might know, but come up short. Or that is until Matty spots someone who he’s been dying to introduce you to.

“Wheels!” Matty shouts, bringing you out of your thoughts as he pulls you over to meet her.

You watch as she gets up from her seat beside someone you don’t recognise but she rushes over to greet you both.

As she hugs Matty, you hear her say, “Heya Curly.” and Matty briefly lets go of your hand to hug her.

Your heart melts at the scene. It’s easy to see just how much they care about each other, and she smiles at you from over Matty’s shoulder and she looks just as excited to see you as she did him.

“Wheels, meet Y/N.” Matty quickly turns back to excitedly introduce you, and he takes your hand again as he says, “Y/N, meet Wheels.”

“Matty, you have to stop introducing me as Wheels, no one calls me that but you…” She smiles but shakes her head at him before her eyes find yours again and she offers you a hug after she says, “Hi, sorry, my name's Flo. It's so nice to meet you.”

“Lovely to meet you.” You smile, hugging her back.

It’s a little strange to you seeing Flo in person. You’ve known of her and admired both her and her work for years so it’s not really a shock that you end up telling her, “I love your paintings.”

“She does,” Matty grins excitedly, confirming that you do by saying, “She has one.”

Immediately, you look at him a little shocked that he knew that, considering you’d only just put it up when you got back home yesterday. And also because you’re shocked he would out you like that when you’ve just met her. You know no malice was intended but you know he also did it to tease you a bit.

And Flo can clearly see this too because just after George walks in the room and shouts “Matty!” She links your arm and says to you but loud enough for Matty to hear, “Please come with me, let's leave him to suck George off.”

You stifle a laugh at that, especially when Matty narrows his eyes at her and fires back, “He enjoys it and you’re just jealous.”

“Yeah yeah yeah,” Flo nods, a look in her eyes that dismisses him but also confirming that she would be. It amuses you entirely, and you see the amusement in his eyes when you catch each others gazes before you go your separate ways.

You manage to refrain from laughing once she walks you back to where she was earlier and she apologises, “Sorry about him, he gets over excited. Thank you by the way, for what you said about my art.”

“I came to your gallery back in 2018 and I was astounded.” You tell her, not seeing any reason to hide how talented you think she is, before you move on to say, “I wanted to come to the one earlier this year but I had a date and the guest was being an arse so it overran.”

“I fucking love your dates. They are the funniest thing.” Flo gasps, leaning in to tell you sincerely, “I found them over lockdown and I binged them all. I adore them. I even made Alex watch them with me and we were giggling for hours.”

Hearing that from her means a lot too. Just as much as people like Matty, Charli, and Andrew Garfield. It hits a special place in your heart.

“I’m so glad you liked them.” You grin, “They’ve certainly been fun.”

“Your one with Matty is the best thing I’ve ever seen.” She laughs at the memory of the both of you playing up to each other and the top tier flirting from you, “Especially the extended version.”

You chuckle and nod, “It was certainly my favourite one.”

“By the way,” Flo had been meaning to get Matty to ask you, but she forgot, so she's pleased she can ask now, “Your Spanish is impeccable, are you fluent?”

You can’t help but think that is so cute of her to pick out from the date, and you nod and explain, “My Mum is a Spanish teacher and she raised me with both languages, so yeah I'm probably not far off.”

“You can help me, I've not quite mastered it yet as well as the others.” She tells you, and you wouldn’t mind that at all.

Despite being fairly certain of the answer, you ask her, “You can speak French, right?”

“Yes,” Alex Turner appears and answers for her and wraps an arm around her waist as he carries on, “And Italian, so it's really difficult for me around the house when she's mumbling under her breath scolding me for something I don't know I’ve done wrong.”

Flo’s face is full of amusement as he says that, and she doesn’t even deny it. She simply says, “You love it.”

“Mmmm.” Alex hums, not sounding too convinced but then he smiles brightly at you and says, “Lovely to meet you, I’m Alex.” and he lets Flo go for a moment to shake your hand.

“Y/N.” You smile brightly at him and return his handshake. “Nice to meet you.”

As he shakes your hand, he’s telling you how much the both of them love your videos which again makes you want to pinch yourself. Alex’s music, both with Arctic Monkeys and The Last Shadow Puppets soundtracked the majority of your teenage years before you found The 1975, so it’s a little surreal that he even knows who you are. It's an Andrew Garfield moment all over again.

The three of you talk for a while about various different things, them telling you about their favourite date you’ve been on, you telling the two of them congratulations on them getting married this past year. But only about 5 minutes pass before the loud mouth that is Matty bounds back over.

You feel him before you see him, as his arm goes around your waist hugging you back into him as his head rests on your shoulder. He says to Alex, “You better not be stealing another one of my girls, Turner.”

It takes everything in you not to laugh. Matty talks of Flo so much like she’s a best friend, as he does George, that you forget that they are ex’s. It seems that they are all perfectly fine joking about it though because Flo laughs and Alex’s face is full of amusement and looking to the side you see Matty’s holding back how big he wants to grin.

Alex just smirks as he laughs, “No, I'm happy with the one I stole the first time around.” wrapping his arm around his wife again.

Flo smiles hearing that but she also curiously asks your group, but mostly Matty, as she leans into Alex, “Was it really stealing if I shagged him first?”

This, you’re confused by. She went out with Matty from 2011 to 2013, and there were only rumours about her and Alex in 2014 which you remember Flo denying in a drunken tweet one evening. But then it was pretty much a fact that her and Alex briefly got together after a lot more was shown on her Instagram live at the start of 2019 that she probably intended. So needless to say you’re confused, but you don’t show this as you don’t want to pry.

But you can’t keep your shock at bay when Matty laughs and tells Flo, “Losing your virginity doesn’t count, Sweetheart.”

Your eyes go wide and you can’t stop the, “What?” falling from your lips.

Your indirect sexual partners list just reached a whole new level.

“Oh yes,” Matty chuckles at your reaction, remembering you only have the outsiders perspective on past events. He very quickly glosses over it, making a mental note to tell you at some point but for now he leaves you with, “There's a lot more history than everyone ever knew, but it's all good. Their wedding was cute, I was practically the maid of honour.”

Flo frowns a little at that last part, correcting him quickly, “Think my best friend and Adam would disagree with that but you were definitely a bridesmaid.”

Matty hums, “Loved my pink suit to match the dresses.”

“Now I need to see a picture of that.” You smile, leaning back into him a little more so you can crane your neck around to see his pretty face again.

He grins at you with soft eyes and he can’t help but think you look absolutely stunning.

“Oh, I’ve got loads.” Flo grins and proceeds to take her phone out of her pocket.

The four of you chat for a while then, and that is until Matty gets called over by a few people he clearly knows and you talk to Alex and Flo a little longer. But it feels like not a lot of time has passed before Matty is stealing you away from them because he wants to introduce you to a few people.

A few people ends up being almost everyone, because when you’ve finished talking to someone, more come along wanting to speak to Matty so the process continues over and over. Not that you mind, everyone seems very lovely and it's no hardship chatting to Matty and hearing how he knows everyone.

However, when you escape to the bar just the two of you again it’s rather nice just to keep each other company for a few minutes. On the way over, you noticed Ross chatting to a girl you didn’t recognise but they seemed pretty close so you gave him knowing eyes when your gazes met. He very discreetly gets you back for earlier and sticks his middle finger up at you which makes you laugh.

After getting your drinks, Matty pulls you into the kitchen where it’s a little quieter and you manage to greet George properly. He gives you a big hug and once again you're taken aback by just how tall he is.

“You enjoying yourself Y/N/N?” The drummer asks just before letting go of you.

You nod with a soft grin on your face, everything has been going amazingly and you’re glad every passing minute has managed to quiet down the thoughts you had earlier.

“Very much, thanks for having me George.”

Taking a sip of his drink, he hums but then a smirk appears on his face as his eyes go from you to Matty, “How was the date? He wouldn’t shut up about it- about you, in fact.”

You let out a loud chuckle when Matty’s instant reaction is to yell out a mortified, “Mate!” as if that would somehow put you off.

George’s laughter makes you laugh even harder and you see Charli coming into the kitchen intrigued by the reason behind your loud giggles.

Before she can even ask what’s going on, George throws another question your way made to taunt his best mate even more, “Did he at least treat you to a better time than your first date?”

The laugh that was about to fall from your lips turns into a scoff of disbelief when Charli answers for you with a very suggestive, “Oh yes, heard he treated her to the best time.”

The couple in front of you laugh hard at the way both your faces fall and the only thing you can do is hide behind your glass to hope they can’t tell you’re flustered. Matty doesn’t let it affect him long, he smirks then and pulls you into him by your waist, leaving a kiss on your temple.

“What can I say?” He shrugs his shoulders with a smug expression on his face, “You get a date with me, you get the premium package.”

Noticing the loophole in his statement, you push his mistake to tease him, “What, so you do this every date?” You make sure to leave your glass with a thud on the kitchen island, frowning and letting your mouth fall the slightest bit open in faux offence. You take a step back as well so his hold on your waist loosens up and his hand is almost completely away from you.

“No, I-” He tries to interject and correct himself but he’s cut by Charli gasping.

“Matty Healy, you little slag!” She says like she’s shocked, making you have to bite your tongue not to laugh.

George giggles and then raises his eyebrows at Matty, “Fucked it there mate, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t- That wasn’t what I meant.” Matty finally says, as quickly as he can so no one interrupts him.

Trying to put your most unamused face on, you turn to him and talk back, “What’d you mean then?”

“Meant only you get the premium package.” Taking a step forward to be close to you again, he snakes his hand around your lower back and pulls you into his front.

He’s staring at your lips, silently asking if he can kiss you to forget about it but you act like you’re not interested in seeing him so you give him a curt nod and look away, to your friends who are watching it all trying not to laugh, “Right.”

You can almost hear the struggle George is going through not to laugh as he continues adding fuel to the fire, “You’re gonna have to work all night to save this now mate.”

Matty glares at George then and you take his sudden distraction to tease him even more. With your eyes now trying to scan the room adjacent to the kitchen, you start saying, “Might see if Ross is up for more socialising…”

The sole mention of the bassist has the singer whipping his head back around to see you, “No.” He says sternly, leaving a kiss on your cheek, “You’re not going anywhere.” He states again and he holds you tighter when he says it.

You still won’t give him your attention though, trying to take it a bit further, “I’m sure I saw him right outside.” You add almost sighing in disappointment and that’s when your date has had enough.

Matty cups your jaw and pulls you into his lips intently and it’s so quick that you gasp, which leaves your lips perfectly open for him to tease his tongue into your mouth. You reciprocate the kiss in bliss, seemingly growing fonder of having his lips on yours, though it makes you laugh - how a simple comment can get him like this.

So you can’t help the chuckle that you let out which interrupts the kiss for a second, Matty smiling against your lips before trapping them between his again, making you hum.

You forget you have an audience until Charli coos loudly at you two, but George is in the mood to get Matty back for all the shit he pulls on the daily so it’s not a surprise he interrupts the moment by reminding you, “Y/N! He does this every date he has!”

Matty instantly breaks the kiss and glares at him, “Fuck off!” is all he says with a frown on his face and that reaction has you laughing loudly once again.

George cackles just as loudly and that amusement has Matty sighing and deciding he’s had enough for now, “We’re leaving you two now, can’t trust you.”

He shakes his head, as he grabs your hand and starts pulling you towards the door, “We are?” You ask as you take the first step but try to hold him back so you can get your glass before leaving.

The curly headed man nods, intertwining your fingers as he looks at your getting your drink again, “Yes, let’s go back to Wheels and Alex.”

The drummer gives it one last attempt to torment him, “Oh yes, actually do. I’m sure she will out you even more.” he encourages with a smirk and silently hopes Flo actually does continue with the taunting.

All Matty responds to that is with a middle finger and it makes Charli, George and yourself laugh as you exit the room.

The last of your teasing is pointing out Ross is gone from where you’d seen him last and seems to have left the room, Matty shaking his head and stealing another hungry kiss from you at the mention of his other best mate.

It wasn’t hard to find Flo and Alex after that, they were sitting in the corner of the room the furthest away from the DJ desk which you assume is to be able to talk but also enjoy the party.

Matty waves at them and they wave back at you, encouraging you to come over to them. When you get there, Alex stands up so you can take a seat beside Flo and you thank him for it. You thought he and Matty would stay standing in front of you to chat but Alex asks his wife if she wants a refill and she nods with a smile and a soft please.

Taking Matty with him, you find yourself alone with Flo and notice how being in her presence brings you this sense of calmness that you certainly enjoy.

“I believe you wanna take me on a date?” Flo asks as you get comfy in the seat beside her.

“I really do.” You hum, sipping your drink before you sit up a little and say, “If you’re okay with jokes about them two, it could be better than Matty’s.”

And you truly believe that. You think she’s hilarious and with her history and her talent you think you could have such a good date with her.

Thankfully, Flo grins and confirms, “Oh, perfectly fine with it.”

“I have art jokes covered too.” You assure her, not wanting everything about it to be about her dating history, even though she is iconic for it.

She smiles, loving the sound of it already. But Flo can’t help but remember that she wasn’t the only one you were requesting a date with. “Believe you want to take my husband on one too?”

“Yeah,” You laugh, nodding as you explain, “I think he could be funny. And he can be dry back in the date and it not be awkward like it usually is.”

You’ve seen enough Arctic Monkey interviews to tell that Alex absolutely hates having to do them. Either not having the words or not wanting to give away too much, it makes him seem awkward, which is a sharp contrast to his amazing lyricism.

But Chicken Shop Dates are for the satire of it and you’re very good at pretending to be dry when you slip into your character. So Alex Turner is a prime example of someone who would be an excellent candidate for your show. Perhaps even more suited than Matty, but you’ll keep that to yourself.

What you do tell Flo though, is your alternate idea, “Me and Amelia were talking though, we think a double date where we sit down with him and Miles would be hilarious.”

“It would,” She gasps, covering her mouth with her hand before she starts giggling at the mere thought, “Oh my god.”

Miles would be absolutely hilarious. And the side of Alex that he brings out would make it even funnier. Flo laughs as she says, “They would end up flirting with each other and you could interrupt them and say, ‘Excuse me, why are we third wheeling when we’re on a double date’.”

“You’ll have to give me some tips for how to stop that from happening.” You laugh.

She nods, and grins as she says, “I’ll just sit in the corner off camera and scorn them. I’ve got them wrapped around my little finger.”

“I’ll hold you to that when the day arrives.” You chuckle before you take a long sip of your drink.

Organising dates like these on New Years 2022 is something you never in a million years imagined. You can’t help but be a little baffled that this is your reality and not just a hallucination from the amount of alcohol you’ve drank.

“I am down for a date with you whenever you like though, Y/N.” Flo smiles, bringing you out of your thoughts, but you notice she seems to think about it for a moment before adding, “Maybe we could do it before I start showing?”

“Showing…” Your jaw drops a little, but you hesitantly ask, “Are you and Alex…?” but she’s nodding before you can even finish your question.

“Pregnant.” Flo beams, resting her hand on her stomach and nods, “Fourteen weeks, I’m due in early July.”

“Oh my god,” Your eyes well up and you can’t stop yourself from leaning across and hugging her, “Congratulations.”

She chuckles at your reaction but hugs you back tightly, “Thank you, Y/N.”

“I’m so happy for you.” It leaves your mouth before you can stop it, but you don’t care too much because it is the truth.

Flo grins, squeezing you that bit tighter, “Thank you.”

Flo loves seeing people's reactions to the news, and despite you being new to the group she can sense a budding friendship with ease. She already knows you’re going to fit in great and you make Matty happy, so there’s no reason not to be your friend. Not to mention, your reaction is so wholesome considering you don’t know her all that well.

“Sorry,” You say when you let her go, and you drunkenly ramble on, explaining why there's a tear in your eye. “I know you don’t know me but I feel like I’ve known you for ages and I’m just really happy for you.”

“That’s okay, thank you.” She smiles, her heart melting at just how genuinely over the moon you seem for her, “You’re so lovely.”

“I'm so happy for you both.” You repeat yourself, making a mental note that you need to congratulate Alex when you see him again. But then you catch your volume and you control yourself, “Sorry I shouldn’t be so loud. Are you keeping it under wraps or does everyone here know?”

Flo smiles at you being worried for her, especially after she just openly told you, but it's nice to know you respect her privacy. From you apologising, something which you didn’t need to do, she can tell that you’re trustworthy enough with the information and Matty’s definitely found himself a good egg.

“Most of our little group know, like the band and Charli, all the close ones anyway. We’re letting everyone else find out when the little one arrives or when they catch me showing.” Flo explains.

“We told Matty the other day when he came to see us, he cried like a baby.” Flo laughs as she recalls, “Hugged me for about ten minutes straight and then him and Alex were both crying at one point... It was really amusing.”

“That would have been the best news for him.” You smile, picturing it so easily in your head and it makes your heart melt. You have to tell her, “He speaks so highly of you, as he should. I’m really not surprised he got emotional.”

“Christ, if he speaks highly of me, you should hear the way he speaks about you.” She grins, “You were all he could talk about the other day apart from mine and Alex’s surprise.”

Immediately, your cheeks are heating up, “Oh god.”

You pray to every god that there might be that he didn’t let slip the filth you were texting each other the day he was at theirs in Sheffield now.

“Nothing to worry about.” Flo seems to sense you cringing so she assures you, “He’s just being very cute, as he should. You seem amazing, he didn’t sell you short.”

That makes your heart melt, at both the fact Matty had been talking about you to his friends, and the fact that Flo of all people actually thinks you’re amazing. It means a lot coming from someone like her who you’ve looked up to for a long time.

Directing the subject away from yourself, you ask her about her and her art. Both of you chat for a long while about it with Flo trying to explain how she does different things when you ask her, and she ends up saying that you’ll have to join Matty when he next visits so you can see her home studio. She even says she will give you a lesson and you jump at the chance. The only catch was that you had to teach her more Spanish as you did and that was easy to agree to.

The subject moves on to George and Charli and how cute they are, but also your love for Charli’s music. And then it moves on to both of your love for live music and Flo was just telling you about how she’d joined Alex on the previous leg of Arctic Monkeys tour before Christmas.

She also tells you that the tour is how she found out she was pregnant. Flo had apparently been sick the few mornings they were travelling via plane and she went to the doctor asking for something to help with travel sickness and the doctor ended up surprising her by asking if she could be pregnant after she mentioned that she’d never been travel sick before.

Thankfully Alex waited in the waiting room at the doctors with her in whatever country they were in and she ended up doing a pregnancy test there and then and it came back positive. And Flo was just beginning to tell you that she was glad that there wasn’t much left of the tour and they could fly home for Christmas just a week after they found out, but she gets distracted.

You catch Flo’s eyes flick to the door and you follow her gaze when she presses her lips together to hide her amusement. And you understand why when you see Matty pressing into the room and continuing his dance to S&M by Rihanna.

He’s quite amusing, his arms waving in every direction, letting the music seemingly control his body as he intently sways his hips to the beat and sings his heart out to every line of the chorus.

And you’re both amused until he stops his singing when he lifts his hand up and puts the lit cigarette he has in his hand into his mouth.

“What are you doing? Don’t smoke inside.” Flo scolds Matty, giving him a dirty look that only an old friend could give someone, “It's their new house!”

“Yeah, George’s new house, Wheels.” Matty raises his eyebrows and reminds her, “When doesn’t the tree have a spliff in hand?”

“Well it’s not for you to get your fag ash all over.” You tell him, plucking it from his lips and holding it so he has to follow you, “Come on we can go outside.”

Matty frowns, looking between you and Flo as he pouts, but takes your hand, “I already don’t like that you’re teaming up on me.”

“Get used to it,” Flo smugly grins, “I’m going to be inviting her round without you soon enough.”

Matty frowns and scoffs, “Rude.”

“Don’t cry about it.” You fake a pout and you hear Flo laughing as you continue to pull the man who’s eager to get his cigarette back outside.

That apparently doesn’t mean he can’t tease you on the way though, as Matty cocks his head to the side a little and raises his eyebrows as he says, “You’re getting brave, baby.”

“Mhmm,” You grin, “Says the one who’s obsessed with me.”

As you make it through the sea of dancers, you make it outside to the patio and as the curly haired brunette steals his cigarette back, and he wraps and arm around you, pulling you so you're against his chest when he asks, “Remind me, who was on your blanket you got for Christmas?”

In some way you’re glad that nothing seems to have changed now you’ve slept together. Somewhere in the back of your mind you were somewhat worried about it, but considering he’s still trying to make you all blushy and flustered, you know that nothing has changed and you’re really grateful for that.

“The one you got me was plain actually.” You smile and bat your lashes at him, acting dumb to what he actually means.

He doesn’t buy your act so he rolls his eyes, “You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

Sighing, you don’t let him have the pleasure of you agreeing to what he’s insinuating, “Yeah but you don’t need an ego boost right now.”

Smugly, he puffs his chest out and lets a teasing grin tug at the corner of his lips, “I always do.”

But you won’t have him feeling smug for too long, “Oh right, sorry. I forgot, my cute short king.” Your mocking smile shines on your face, his jaw drops at your audacity.

“I’ll confiscate your boots.” Matty warns with a raise of his eyebrows, as if that would be enough to scare you from provoking him.

Clicking your tongue, you quip back not believing he’d actually do it, “You wouldn’t dare.”

“Ye–” Matty starts but you interrupt him by pressing your lips to his.

You don’t need to hear his empty threats because he’d just be wasting his breath and precious time you could spend kissing which is exactly why you pounce on his lips. He tastes like wine and cigarettes, so Matty, and the fact that you’re growing familiar to that, to him, makes you grow warm inside.

Fingers tangling in his curls, you tug on his hair and he lets a hum of satisfaction out. You give him one back, when his arm squeezes you tighter and pulls you flush against his front.

You kiss until your lungs are aching for oxygen and you find yourself remembering where you’re at when you lean back to see him and your senses seem to take in your surroundings again.

For a couple seconds you scan his face and your hand comes up to his face so you can rub circles on his cheek with the pad of your thumb. Matty melts under your touch, eyes fluttering closed until you stop your ghostly touch on his skin and lean in to whisper in his ear, “You can take them off later.”

His lips fall on your neck and you can feel him smirking then before he leaves a couple of kisses under your jaw, “I hope I can take more than just those off later.” He replies, letting his hand fall a bit from your lower back so he can give your arse a little squeeze.

You grin, holding back from withdrawing into a flustered mess as you promise, “Whatever you like.” before you kiss him again.

As you stand outside with him, Matty slips off his blazer when he realises you’re a little colder than you’re letting on. It warms your heart that he takes it off and just puts it over your shoulders before slipping his arms around your waist and hugging himself into you.

The both of you stay outside chatting and stealing the odd kiss after he finishes his cigarette but then you hear commotion from inside and the music goes down for the moment and you hear George’s voice through the speakers saying, “Five minute warning guys, we want everyone in here by the time the countdown starts!”

Matty sighs, “We best go inside.” and releases you from his hold.

“You’re right.” You nod, and you quickly slip your arms through the sleeves of his blazer before you take the hand he’s offering you.

Once you do, you notice how Matty’s grinning at you and you raise your eyebrows silently asking why and he explains, “I’ve lost that now, haven’t I?”

“Oh yeah,” You chuckle, and as you walk into the now very crowded room, you tell him, “You’ve lucky you got your shirt back to be honest.”

Matty laughs at that and you both weave yourself through the dancing people. You notice that as the last song before midnight is playing both George and Charli are back having fun on the decks, being amazing hosts like you knew they would be. You just know that the set after it hits midnight is going to pop off and you’re so ready.

You notice that Ross is nowhere to be found, and you can’t help but chuckle at the thought of him off socialising somewhere and missing the countdown because of it, so you’ll be sure to comment on that when you next see him. However, you do manage to spot other now recognisable faces, you see Alex and Flo near the entrance to the other room but you can’t help but smile when you notice the way that they’re grinning at each other as they talk over the music. They are so madly in love, it’s so clear to see and your heart melts for them.

But not as much as it does when Matty stops you both and he wraps his arms around your waist, making sure you keep pressed against him. You grin and wrap your arms around his neck letting them loosely hang over his shoulders.

He’s moving you both to the beat a little which you don’t mind and he sings along a bit, but as Charli calls, “Two minutes!” you feel like you need to tell him a little more about you.

“You know, I’ve not had a New Years kiss that wasn’t Amelia for a long time.”

Matty’s eyes go a little wide at that, and he tells you, “Surprises me.”

“Why?” You ask curiously.

“Because you’re gorgeous,” Matty states simply, like it’s obvious that is it, “Do you know how difficult it’s been not to kiss you every second we’ve been here?”

Embracing the way your cheeks heat up at that, you just nod and flip it round on him, “I do actually.”

Because it has been difficult to keep away from him when you’d been so clingy in the afternoon. And just from the way his curls fall and the grin on his face, he’s difficult not to want to kiss in general, let alone when he’s being all flirty and adorable with you.

Matty finds himself blushing that, and you love that you can make him get a little flustered too. You’ll certainly endeavour to be the one causing the blushing more often.

To combat the teasing he knows you’re about to give him for getting shy, Matty leans in to kiss you, but you pull back before he makes contact, “Ah, it’s not midnight yet.”

“Nasty.” The curly headed singer pouts but you just giggle knowing he’ll survive.

But thankfully Matty doesn’t have to wait long for his moment because before either of you know it everyone around you starts shouting, “Ten! Nine! Eight!-”

And it's the way you both can’t take your eyes off each other as you join in for the last few seconds, “Three! Two! One!”

“Happy New Year Baby.” Matty grins and you can’t bring yourself to say it back right now, you’re too eager for his lips on your own.

Your fingers rooted into his curls by the time everyone got to 1, so you don’t hesitate to pull him in and kiss him how you’d been longing to since you got here. This time neither of you care that anyone else is around because most of them are doing exactly the same.

Matty pulls your waist closer so you couldn’t escape if you even wanted to, and you really don’t want to. This feels like one of those moments in life that you wish you could bottle up and savour the feeling.

It’s an overwhelming sense of joy and happiness that you don’t think you’ll ever forget. Never in your life did you think you would be seriously kissing Matty Healy on New Years and he would be holding you against him like he never wanted to let you go. You can’t imagine ever taking the feeling of being in his arms for granted, or the way your stomach floods with butterflies when he deepens the kiss as people cheer and start to dance around you again.

And because you’re not quite done savouring the moment, when he goes to pull away you pull that little bit tighter on his curls to keep him in the kiss for a second or two longer. You certainly don’t think there’s ever been a better start to a new year.

“Happy New Year.” You grin and Matty can’t just let that be it.

He leans in and pecks your lips over and over until the both of you are giggling and you kiss him properly again. Truthfully, he never wants to let you go, and that may partly be the alcohol talking as he knows it would be impractical for you both but he’s truly obsessed with you. Matty wants nothing more than this with you all the time.

It’s truly a shame the moment had to end, but Matty will forgive only because it's his best mate who bursts your little bubble by grabbing everyone's attention.

George played a song to kick off the new year, one that was great but no one really payed attention to, so you understand why they interrupt everyone now and announce, “Me and Charli wanted to kick off 2023 in the right way, with some new music.”

At that your jaw drops and you can’t help but say a rhetorical, “What?” as excitement starts to bubble through you.

“So we’re sharing our remix of Ms Caroline Polochek’s new song Welcome To My Island.” Charli tells everyone and you’re already excited. You can’t believe you’ve about to get a new Charli and George song. 2023 is already the fucking best.

“Oh my god,” Matty draws your attention back to him as he takes your hand, “Where’s Wheels?”

“She's over there with Alex.” You nod, and Matty moves the both of you over to the couple and you say a quick happy new year when you get to them but you’re interrupted.

“There’s no time for hugging,” Matty waves his hands stopping you from hugging Alex, instead he points at you and Flo as he says, “I need your two’s reactions to this song!”

You narrow your eyes a little and ask, “You’ve already heard it?”

“Of course.” Matty tuts like it is common knowledge when you didn’t know the song existed until 20 seconds ago. But you let it go because his excitement is through the roof as he says, “I cannot wait to see this.”

“Am I going to need to remind her she's married again?” Alex asks Matty, and it's impossible for you not to get more excited when Matty nods with wide eyes, meaning it seriously.

And that alone makes you so excited.

“You guys ready?” Charli asks and of course everyone says a loud ‘yes’.

But the performer in her has her shouting louder, “I said, are you guys ready?!”

“Yes!” You and Flo yell back at the top of your lungs and Charli smirks at the room before saying, “Play it baby.”

You don’t think you’ve been this excited for new music since Being Funny dropped, but you knew that was coming. This has just been sprung upon you and you’re feeling all of the build up of emotions you usually do when hearing a new song in the span of a minute.

The intro to the song starts and it easily captures everyone's attention with the distorted vocals and heavy ambient sounds. But as soon as the lyrics kick in you know already that you’re going to love it, and not just because mother and father created it.

You watch with a grin on your face as Charli sings along to her own song, “I like to live my life luxurious, eating caviar toast, buying out the Ritz,” and you absolutely fucking love how much she backs her own music and knows wholeheartedly that its a bop and sings it proudly.

“I won't lie, yeah, I've always been afraid to commit / But now I've fallen so hard, it's a total eclipse,” This has you pouting because you’re so beyond thrilled that Charli is happy and found her man finally.

But before you can dote on that line too much, the next has you gasping for air, “'Cause it's emotional and physical and so legit / He's got my legs wide out like banana split,”

Matty watches as both yours and Flo’s eyes go wide, but it's your jaw dropping and Flo grabbing your arm and he can’t help but let out a laugh. You both see Charli with a shit eating grin on her face at the dj deck with George and you see the drummer avoid eye contact with everyone and pay sole attention to his deck, more than likely pretending to queue up the next song so people don’t pay attention to him blushing.

“It was love at first sight from the moment wе kissed / I want a white dress, country sidе house, and kids,” Once again, this has you and Flo clutching each other as you react to how wholesome this couple can be when they aren’t being sinfully dirty.

Charli has been a friend of yours and Amelia’s for a while now, you’d met her at an event you were given tickets to back in 2019 and you partied the night away with her. You’ve never seen her happier than she is now and the fact she’s with a member of your favourite band just makes their relationship all that more special to you. Especially now as she can picture herself marrying him.

George Daniel is a lucky bastard and you really hope he knows it.

When you tune back in, you hear Charli’s voice saying, “I told him, ‘Catch a flight, see if you can handle it / And if you can then, welcome to my island, bitch’.”

The beat drops and you all but scream and start dancing in your spot, moving your head to the beat and letting your hair fly around everywhere. Matty can’t help but smile as he watches you, you’re looking at Charli and George like they are something otherworldly, he can’t help but picture you looking like that at his gigs, or he hopes you look that happy anyway.

“This is so fucking good!” You grin as you catch Matty’s gaze and he nods at you, still loving your reaction.

The second verse comes back in and you calm down a little, not dancing as much, so you can still pay attention to the song and lyrics, but you're still bobbing your head to the beat. And both you and his best friend don’t disappoint with your reactions.

“'Cause I can be a good girl, d,” Has your jaw on the ground, but what has both you and Flo screaming is the line, “Or you can drive me down to Florida and fuck me for days,”

“Oh I’m so fucking jealous of that bitch.” Flo says loud enough for you to hear and you turn to her laughing and nod in agreement.

“I'm jealous of both of them.” You nod, as you genuinely don't know who you’re more jealous of. It’s definitely a close call.

“Oh yes! You’re fruity like me,” Flo gasps and her grin is huge as he clutches your arm again, “I fucking love you.”

The song plays out and everyone is cheering for the couple, you and Flo amongst the loudest of the group, no doubt making both Matty and Alex roll their eyes but you love the couple so much you don’t care.

Charli and George play the song once more and again you’re taken aback by the filthy lines in the song. You really adore it, they are such a power couple and this song is just fucking amazing.

Everyone in the house is enjoying the new song, Flo and you are dancing to it softly but the one going all out for it is, of course, Matty.

You watch as he goes up to George and yells out something in his ear, brows furrowed in enjoyment as he continues to move to the beat. Curls bouncing with every move he makes, his smile is so big his eyes crinkle and it’s so infectious, it makes you smile almost as hard.

Flo catches the way you’re looking at him and you don’t even notice she’s been watching you until she leans closer to you.

“Tip for later for you Y/N.” She says into your ear, snapping you out from the trane you were on, “Pull him in by his belt loops and bite his lip when you kiss him, he will be putty in your hands in seconds.”

She gives you a wink before she stands back up straight and you giggle, watching her in awe, “I love that you’re telling me this.”

Shrugging with a smirk on her face, Flo continues to say, “Well, I have lots of knowledge about him that can be put to better use now I'm tied down.”

You take a deep breath when you feel the word vomit coming, if you weren’t this tipsy you would definitely hold yourself back from spilling out all the knowledge you have of them. “I know you don't know me and it sounds weird to say but I was really pleased for you and Alex when I found out you got married. I had been a fan of the 1975 since I was nineteen so I was gutted about you and Matty when we found out you split at the time, but I always thought you and Alex were really cute together.”

Not even the loud music makes you miss the gasp Flo lets out, “Oh my god, were you a fan that liked both bands?”

You nod and smile softly at her, hoping it doesn’t seem weird, “Yeah, I always thought the hatred was weird, the music and aesthetic went hand in hand in 2013 so I really don't understand why there was so much animosity between the fans.”

She agrees with a low hum, recalling the many times she’d thought the same throughout the years but then she looks at you with the hints of a smirk showing on her face, “You just liked The 1975 better though I'm assuming?”

Pressing your lips together, you try not to smile when you’re caught, “What gave me away?” You pull on the sleeves of Matty’s blazer making sure it covers your riot tattoo, trying to see if she had noticed it or if she was just making a lucky guess.

But Flo easily replies, “Matty’s love bites on your neck might have something to do with it?” and that’s enough for your jaw to drop.

Instantly, your hand goes up to the side of your neck, “No, please tell me you’re joking?” You change sides because you’re not even sure where the bruise she’s talking about is.

Stifling a laugh, Flo shakes her head, “Nope, sorry. He’s a menace.”

“Oh for fucks sake, I checked before we left and there wasn’t a mark on me.” You were sure you hadn’t seen one when you’d taken the pictures to send Amelia, “Not me about to go and ask Charli for some concealer.” You joke a bit but you’re actually considering, looking over to the singer and see where you could go through to go up to her.

Flo quickly eases your worries, “Don’t bother, we're all friends here.” Her arm comes around your waist to hug you into her side and she pinches your waist when she says, “As long as he showed you a good time, because if not, tell me and I will slate him.”

You see she’s completely serious about it when you turn to her, “No, you don’t need to do that… He was very… accommodating.” You muster with heat coming up to your cheeks, “I can’t believe I just said that to you.”

Seeing how you bring one of your hands up to cool down your cheeks, she lets go of her hold around your waist and grabs your wrist softly, “No, don't be embarrassed. It’s good to hear he still knows what he’s doing.” You cackle at that but the laughter is caught short when she adds, “Oh he’s got a bit of a degrading kink too, so have fun with that one.”

You’re left speechless with that bit of information, your brain going places in a split second and it’s all the scenarios popping in your head that have you heating up entirely. You shouldn’t be thinking all of this in public and here, in front of Flo, but you are and it seems like there’s no way of controlling your thoughts anymore.

Flo laughs watching your face, knowing just exactly what’s going on in that mind of yours but it seems you’re saved by the bell when Alex comes back to where you two are at and, after wrapping his arms around Flo’s middle, he rests his chin on her shoulder and is curious to find out what he’s just walked into.

“Hello again Y/N, is my wife tormenting you yet?” He knows that face of hers so well and it only could mean trouble, so he hopes he’s come to aid you. He knows first hand just how she can be, he absolutely loves it though, Flo’s always keeping him on his toes and he’d have it no other way.

Alex is the slightest bit surprised when you chuckle and give him an answer he wasn’t expecting, “No, she's lovely.”

He wasn’t going to refute, because it was the truth and he guessed you wanted to keep whatever had just happened between you two.

So Alex brings up a topic, he knows you will be rather interested in, “As I recall, you and Amelia asked Helders for a date with me at Reading.”

You smile for a second before you fake pout to say, “We did, very sad. I'm still waiting to hear something official.” But then you go back to your serious self to admit, “It's why I asked Matty to pester you both.”

He offers you a shy smile, “What sort of comments would I be in for and I’ll think about it.”

You almost let yourself gasp aloud but you have to force yourself to keep your cool so you don’t blow your one chance of having him on a Chicken Shop Date.

So quickly thinking about the jokes you’d come up with when Amelia and you started daydreaming about having Alex or Drake or Andrew over in a video, you recall one that will definitely make Flo laugh, “Oh you know, I’d make a joke like ‘Do you remember when you had your goatee?’ and you would say…”

The pause elongates as he’s hesitant to reply but then an “I do.” falls from his lips slowly after a few seconds.

“And I would go, ‘Yeah and so do we, so this is a public service announcement begging you never to do it again’.”

Flo bursts out laughing at that, and Alex pretends like he’s not amused and lets his jaw hang open, before saying a blunt, “Wow.”

“I fucking love you.” Flo cackles and throws her arms around your shoulders, Alex’s hold on her fell when she did that so you wrap your arms around her waist and over her shoulder you can see Alex smiling brightly at you.

You reciprocate the smile, not only because that’s how you know he actually found that funny, but because you also feel so incredibly welcome when you’re with them and everyone in their friend group for that matter, and that truly means the world to you and your overthinking habits.

It’s so easy to not notice time flying past when you’re speaking to Flo, both of you giggling at the stories you tell each other. Especially when she has so much to tell you about Matty’s teenage years, how much of a menace he’s always been and how the lads thought she was lying about knowing the Monkeys.

She’s got so many anecdotes that you know you would’ve died to know when you had just gotten into the band and it just makes you incredibly giddy that you get to hear them all from her now. That, mixed with the alcohol in your system only has you becoming more and more bubbly to the point you have to force yourself to stop giggling so much when you start hiccuping.

Flo then changes the topic onto you again, wanting to know of you and Amelia’s future endeavours and it fills you up with warmth when she shrieks loudly and envelopes you in a tight hug when you tell her you’ve got the Golden Globes coming up soon.

Seems like talking about how you and Amelia are preparing for it, learning a great amount of information about all the nominees and some more attendees, invokes her somehow because all of the sudden you hear a slurred “Oh Y/N!” and you don’t even have to turn around to know it is none other than your best friend.

“Ames!” Grinning, you open your arms for her to walk into your embrace.

You smile even brighter when she throws herself to you and screams “Happy new year!” into your ear, her words tangling on the tip of her tongue from what you can imagine the good amount of alcohol she’s already had before coming here.

“Happy new year!” You say back in her ear only a little lower so you don’t hurt her ear like she’s just done yours with her volume.

When she pulls away, you should’ve known it was coming: she cups your face with both her hands and brings you in for a quick kiss.

The second she pulls away from you, she says, “Now that’s a happy new year!” with a loopy smile and half lidded eyes and that sight has you cackling out loud.

Leaving a loud kiss on her cheek, you give her another hug, “Love you.” And with a squeeze of her waist, you loosen up your hold on her to ask, “Where were you?!”

“I couldn’t abandon Zoe before midnight and I knew you’d be right as rain here. I’ve missed you” She speaks so fast, your laughter escapes you faster than you can think of holding it when she goes to hug you again.

Amelia is very clingy when she’s drunk and it’s always made you laugh, from getting all of her affection to when she got in trouble for being overly affectionate with people at parties.

“You saw me yesterday.” You state biting your tongue not to laugh at her again.

“Yes but you’re all grown up now.” She coos at you like you’re a little kid, pinching your cheeks.

Smacking her hands away from your face, you tell her to “Stop.”

Her need to hear the details of your evening makes her dismiss your aversion for her touch, “How was it?” The smirk on her face and the pinch she gives your waist makes your face heat up and you thank everything that she’s too gone to tease you about it.

“Amazing.” Is the only thing you tell her hoping that’s enough for now.

And surprisingly it is, because she nods with pursed lips and a raise of her eyebrows, “Good.” but you know that she wants to be told more later from just the look in her eyes.

Deciding to ignore her silent petition, you take a hold of her hand and intertwine your fingers so she can follow you around the house, “Come on now, we gotta introduce you to some people.”

Firstly, you go to the kitchen since you wanted another drink and by lucky chance you see a head of curls you had lost a bit ago dancing to the beat of the song currently playing and pouring some red in his glass.

You faintly hear him click his tongue over the music, “If it isn’t Amelia Dimoldenberg.” Matty opens his arms at her with a drunk smile that reaches his eyes.

Amelia rolls her eyes but can’t help the smile that appears on her face, “Hello Matthew. Happy new year.”

Your best friend steps into his arms and he hugs her tightly for a few seconds as he greets her, “Happy new year Dimz.” And when he pulls back, he adds, “Thought you weren’t coming.”

“You think I’d miss this? Absolutely not.” Amelia quickly replies and then adds, “Maybe if it was your party but this is Charli and George.” like it was dead obvious just to taunt him a bit.

Matty scoffs, letting his jaw fall in offence and mutters, “Bitch.” at her just loud enough for you both to hear him.

Amelia cackles loudly at his reaction, you giggling right beside her and she blows him a kiss just to rub it in some more.

The singer rolls his eyes then, taking a sip of his drink and then says, “I’m a kind person unlike you so what’d you like to drink?”

His offer is about to be accepted as you see Amelia thinking for a few seconds and about to speak but you interject before she can suggest anything, “Nothing, she’s had enough.”

She knows she’s been stumbling a bit - a lot - and her speech is a little slurred but it’s not like she’s blacked out yet so she can handle some more, “Christ, Y/N, don’t be boring. Get me a vodka lime and soda please Matty.”

Matty nods and he snorts to himself when you playfully roll your eyes at her request, “Alright, I’ll be a minute.” But your attitude falls when he asks, “You want a refill baby?”

A soft pout appears on your face as you say, “Please?” and it makes him grin bigger.

“‘Course.” He says and turns to get on with making your drinks.

Amelia might be a bit drunk but she doesn’t miss the way you stare at Matty’s back when he’s moving around the kitchen, excusing himself to people around so he can grab a glass for Amelia.

Your best friend loves seeing you this happy, and she will definitely make a mental note to ask you all about the date tomorrow but for now at least she wants you to catch her up on what’s been happening whilst she’s not been here.

“Where’s the rest of the gang then?” Her brain is so caught up with the whole ambient and the amount of people around that she even forgets she caught Ross when she came in.

Licking your lips, you start listing, “Adam’s home, Ross disappeared a while ago, and you missed the hottest, filthiest, most iconic song from Charli and George.”

Her recount of seeing Ross completely flies off her mind when she hears the last bit, “What?!” Amelia shouts and then covers her mouth with her hands in shock.

“Yep.” You nod slowly, watching the disappointment wash all over her, “They did a remix to one of Caroline Polachek’s singles and, bloody hell.” You almost laugh when she starts pouting at you like you could do something about it, “T’was hot.”

Grabbing your hand, she shakes your arm, “I’m willing to do anything for them to play it again.” You laugh at her acting like a child and it gets louder when she switches to a very serious facial expression and sternly emphasises, “Anything.”

Biting your tongue, you raise your eyebrows and tell her, “I’m sure if you say please they will play it again.” slowly, like you would to try and get a child to behave correctly in public.

“I will kiss Charli.” Amelia states with a proud smile, as if knowing by heart that’d work.

Cackling, you point out her actual intention, “I think that’d be for yourself not for the good of the collective.”

And your best friend has no issue shrugging and agreeing with you, “True. But I will.”

“Have fun fighting George.” You tell her jokingly, and you’re about to ask her how Zoe was doing when she loudly fantasises about the scenario you’ve just said.

“Oh I would love to wrestle that man.” It sounds like she almost sighs as she daydreams about that and you can’t help but let your jaw fall and scoff out a laugh.

You scorn her by poking her ribs, “Amelia!” and she loudly yelps in response.

Matty comes back just in time to catch Amelia giggling away after she’s screeched and you with a shocked look on your face, “What’s she saying now?”

He’s holding your drink out for you to take and you thank him with a blown kiss before you go and explain, “How she’s willing to do anything for Charli and George to play their new remix.”

He shakes his head as he laughs and asks, “Anything?” like he needs confirmation.

Raising your eyebrows, you nod your head, “Anything.”

His curls bounce as he turns to shake his head at Amelia who’s laughter is still bubbling up from her chest, “Oh Dimz, you’re thirsty aren’t you? Lucky for you I got you a drink.” He holds out her glass and she gets it the quickest her drunk self can.

She clicks her tongue and takes a gulp of her drink, “Piss off Healy, not as thirsty as you.” Matty is about to ask why when she looks at him like he’s challenging him, “Need I remind you it was you who requested it was Y/N to do the date with you?”

The “What?” that instantly falls from your lips makes your best friend smile proudly at herself for putting your date on the spot with just a simple bit of information.

Your best friend turns to look at you and smirks as she reiterates, “Yes he did.”

Like a grumpy child, he frowns and refutes her, “No I didn’t.”

But Amelia points at him with an accusatory finger, calling him out for trying to lie about it, “Yes you did! At the NME Awards, I remember that conversation perfectly.”

You’re looking at Amelia and you know she isn’t lying so then you turn to look at Matty when he chats back with, “I think your memories are a bit clouded from how much you’ve had to drink.” and you know that he’s full of shit.

You cackle when Amelia fakes being impressed and quips back saying, “Wow, you’re a great gaslighter but no. You did.”

Once you see Matty has nothing to come back with and is just standing there with pressed lips and a frown directed at Amelia, you leap to hug him over his shoulders and coo in his ear, “Awh! You’re obsessed with me!” You leave a loud kiss on his cheek and seeing how he’s blushing already, you add “My cute little simp.” and pat the top of his head to tease him some more.

He pulls back slightly so he can stare at you and tries to warn you, “Call me little again and–”

You interrupt him just so you can challenge him to finish with a raised eyebrow, “And what baby?”

And just like you wanted to, he remains silent as he continues to blush under your gaze. You love it when it’s him flustered because of you, it fills you up with a buzzing feeling that you enjoy every time.

“That’s what I thought.” You pat his chest before letting go of him and take a step back to stand beside Amelia again with a victorious smirk.

“Did you just call him short?” Flo walks up to you and interrupts the moment with a grin on her face, “He always looks like that if you comment about his height.”

Matty scoffs loudly at that, “Oh piss off the lot of you. Didn’t come here to be bullied.”

Flo only waves him off like he’s overreacting for no reason, “Don’t cry about it, same height as Alex, remember?” The mocking grin on her face has you holding back your giggles.

Matty raises his eyebrows, a small smile playing on his lips as he jokes, “Let’s not start comparing me and Alex, don’t want to get you all confused again.”

“You’ve got ten seconds to run.” Flo warns him with raised eyebrows and Matty chuckles and very quickly kisses your lips before bolting from the room. Once he disappears, she chuckles and turns towards Amelia as she says, “Now he’s gone, hi! I’m such a big fan.”

Their pleasantries are exchanged and Flo tells your best friend about her love for the both of you and your show and it warms your heart all over again hearing how earnestly she’s saying it.

Not long after, you hear the hostess squealing from the door, “Oh my god, Dimz is here!” and you and Flo watch as Charli runs up to Amelia and throws her arms around her.

It’s still a little bit mental to you that Charli holds both you and Amelia in such high regard. It feels like a privilege to be called a friend by her and you know that she doesn’t mean it in an industry way. She genuinely considers the both of you a friend and that is one of the most heart warming things that you don’t think you’ll get used to for a long time yet.

After a long hug and a quick chat asking what took her so long, Matty comes back into the room, once again dancing and he grins at you as he does. It’s too hard not to smile back at his playful manner and when he holds his hand out to you, you take it.

This prompts the curly headed brunette to pull you towards him but he raises his arm so you’re forced to twirl around which has you giggling and feeling like a princess. He makes your heart stutter again when he pulls you close and he hugs your waist as he tells you, “You look so pretty baby.”

The ache in your chest gets a little bit more intense hearing that, and you can’t stop yourself from stealing a kiss from him. No, you’re not big on PDA but when you’re tipsy and happy you tend to let things slide so you indulge yourself in having his lips back on your own.

It doesn’t last for long because it’s such a sweet and innocent kiss, but when you pull away and you both stay close. You can feel that overwhelming sense of happiness bubbling through you but it gets more intense when you can feel his smile against your lips and you’re certain he can feel yours, and it's that that prompts the both of you to share another kiss despite the smiling making it difficult.

After that sweet little moment of bliss, you move both of you back over to the others where you’re quickly dragged out of Matty’s embrace and into the other singer you fancy.

“Matty go and get shots for us all,” Charli asks as she hugs both you and Amelia into her, “Please, you promised me.”

“Charli.” Matty sighs, almost pouting, “What am I? A mule?”

“Pleaseeee,” Charli coos loudly, almost begging. But when that doesn’t seem to be working, she uses you to further her ambitions. Her arm falls from Amelia then and she uses her free hand to sweetly cup your jaw, like she's putting you up for display, as she tells him, “Your woman wants a shot, you don't wanna upset her more after what you said earlier do you.”

Charli looks to you then for back up and immediately you nod at her and then at him as if that was what you were after all along. And you see him shake his head slightly at you, playfully scorning you for taking her side.

But it makes him do as he’s told, but not before looking at Charli again and saying, “Blackmail is not a good look on you.”

“Everything is a good look on me,” Charli laughs, loving that the only response he could muster was a fake insult and not a blatant refusal. She asks, “Did you see my last album cover?”

Matty pulls a face and silently mimics her making Flo and Amelia laugh, but you find yourself answering Charli’s question, nodding, “Yeah, it was hot.”

“Awh, thank you baby.” Charli giggles and kisses your cheek, but her saying Matty’s nickname for you has you that little bit more flustered than when Matty does it.

Not so surprisingly this makes Matty frown and he wanders off to get the requested drinks for everyone. Charli shouts after him, “Bring them outside Matthew.” and he flicks his middle finger up as he disappears back into the sea of people as he heads to the kitchen.

Needing some air, Charli moves the three of you outside, Flo staying behind because someone quickly pulled her for a chat but she said she would meet you out there. You can’t lie, you’re thankful for the cool air but also for Matty’s blazer because the temperature has dropped significantly now.

It’s not long before Matty comes back with a makeshift tray, which is a plate of shots for everyone and he’s brought George along with him. He tells you all, “Wheels and Al are coming to do them too so we need to wait a minute so we’re all here.”

Charli asks, looking a little confused, “Where’s Ross?”

George, Matty, and you shake your heads, and you tell her, “Not seen him since just after we first got here.”

“He left.” Amelia surprises you all by announcing.

You frown at that knowing she literally just got here. So you ask, “How do you know?”

“He was leaving as I was coming in.” She tells you, “We said a hasty ‘hi’ and ‘bye’.”

Matty questions her then though, “Why such a hurry?”

But as soon as you catch your best friend's smirk and slight hesitancy to answer, you know exactly why.

Taking a sip of her drink to mute her grin slightly, she lets it slip that, “He had some company…”

A victorious grin is on your face as you turn to Matty and say loudly, “I fucking told you.”

“Told him what?” Amelia asks on behalf of the group because everyone is confused at your small outburst.

You tell your friends, “That people are queuing up for Ross now more than they are him.”

“Oh yeah.” Charli nods in agreement.

But Matty is having none of it. He shakes his head, and counters with a loud, “There’s no fucking way.”

“What's all this?” Flo asks, her and Alex walking up and joining your huddle.

And you don’t waste a second to tell her what you’re going on about, “Matty doesn’t believe that people have the hots for Ross more than him these days.”

“Matty, that isn't news, that's a common fact.” Flo agrees, narrowing her eyes at her friend as if she’s disappointed he didn't already know, “Have you checked twitter lately?”

“Er no.” The curly haired brunette frowns, still clearly in complete denial.

“Well you need to because it’s all about Ross these days.” Flo quips back loving the opportunity to collectively humble the singer.

Matty scoffs, “That’s bullshit, they get all teary eyed if they see me in anything other than a suit. Ross doesn’t get that.”

“He does, but why are you even arsed?” Charli asks with a frown, “You have a sexy piece of ass right beside you. She’s all you need.”

Immediately you’re flustered by her saying that in front of the whole group, especially when Amelia giggles a little. You look at the singer, straight into her eyes and tell her, “Stop it.”

Charli grins before teasing, “I’m sure you were saying the opposite to him earlier.”

You can feel Matty’s smirk and everyone else’s smiles for that matter, but instead of losing your backbone, you give her a taste of her own medicine.

“I'm sure you were saying the same to George in Miami.” You fire back with a smirk.

“Oh my god, cat fight.” Alex announces with slight excitement in his voice, but that’s quickly muted when Flo playfully slaps his chest.

“Oh yes, please can we fight?” You joke, knowing it will get Matty all worked up again and sure enough it does.

“Okay!” Matty steps into the middle of you all and he holds his plate of shots in front of him, making you and Charli laugh at the quick intervention. “Shot time.”

“Wheels,” Matty walks up to Flo and he hands her one specifically for her and says, “Strawberry juice, for obvious reasons, but still your favourite.”

The grin that she gives Matty then is so unbelievably warm and you’re not exactly sure what the deeper meaning is but when she looks like she could almost cry at the gesture, your heart skips a beat and she gives him a quick kiss on the cheek as she thanks him. Matty gives everyone else what looks to be a Tequila or Sambuca shot and it turns out that is actually the case.

It was a roulette of sorts as to who would get the Sambuca, the easier option, or the Tequila and it's after those shots that the night becomes a little more difficult to remember. You know that over the next few hours you do a fair few more shots with both Charli, Amelia, and Matty, all on separate occasions, and Matty keeps disappearing and reappearing with new drinks for the both of you between those times. And you know at one point you’re talking to him for so long about everything that comes to both of your minds and you can’t stop grinning at each other.

What you’re not aware of is that when this was happening, you and Matty weren’t as tucked away from the world as you both think you were despite being in the corner of the room. Unbeknown to you, Flo and Alex are watching you chat from across the room from their spot on the settee.

They have been watching you both for a few minutes, smiling at each other like fools in love and your eye’s never stray from each other. Matty keeps on absentmindedly playing with the ends of your hair as you chat and you blush every now and again at what he says which just makes both of your smiles bigger.

And subsequently, Alex and Flo’s too from watching you.

Alex smiles and says loud enough for his wife to hear, “He looks happy.”

“Hmmm,” Flo hums, watching the both of you giggling at something you just told him. And it’s easy for her to tell when her best friend is down bad for a girl he likes, but there seems to be something even more special about you. So it’s a bold but true statement when she says, “She’s it for him.”

Alex nods in agreement, seeing it too. And he does hope for Matty’s sake that he has finally found the person he’s meant to be with. The singer wishes him nothing but the best.

But then Alex looks to his wife and sees her smiling at the couple, and he can’t help but whisper for her ears only, “I hope you realise that’s how I look at you, Angel.”

“As you should, husband.” Flo smiles like an idiot when she turns and looks at her man, reminding him in a whisper, “I am carrying your baby.”

“And I’ve never loved you more.” Alex grins before he leans in and kisses his Angel for the millionth time tonight.

More time passes then and you got dragged away from matty about an hour ago after Amelia caught him hugging you from behind as you talked to someone. And when it was just the three of you left, she shook her head and looked at Matty's arm around your waist and said, “And you wonder why I came late.”

And before Matty can accuse her of being jealous, you're laughing when she pulls you away and the singer is left to fend for himself. And you’ve not seen him in a while, other than him delivering you new drinks before he disappears off to interact with other people who keep wanting his attention.

It’s almost 4am when you see Matty properly again, and you’re currently outside with Flo and Alex as he’s having a cigarette and you’re chatting away. He’s making a conscious effort to keep the smoke away from his wife which you think is rather cute of him.

You’ve just been chatting about where Alex is off to on tour next, and you were about to ask him another question until a different but more familiar singer grabs your attention again, “Baby!”

Matty wonders over to you pouting as he points to inside, “They’re teasing me for what happened after our date.”

“Who’s they?” You ask, wanting to thank anyone who was teasing him instead of you.

The curly haired brunette reveals, “Amelia and Charli.”

“Why? What happened after your date?” Alex asks, a little confused.

Matty chuckles, “You’re polite not commenting on her bruised neck Alex I’ll give you that much.”

“Oh well,” This makes Alex go all awkward and stuttery, “I didn’t-”

But his wife saves him the embarrassment. Flo grins, “It’s okay, I already did.”

“Of course you did.” Matty grins at her but his eyes find you again quickly.

His eyes are full of adoration, taking every bit of your face and it’s like it’s just the two of you standing there all of a sudden. His captivating gaze makes you forget you’re in the presence of others, and especially when he says, “I can’t stop thinking about it.” almost out of breath.

And it’s just that, the memory of you desperate to get him off has him struggling to get oxygen to his lungs. God, he still feels so fucking lucky to have witnessed it, he can’t help but want to again.

“Is that right?” You watch his pupils dilate and don’t miss how he licks his lips before looking down at yours and then back up to your eyes.

He nods like he doesn’t even believe you’re asking, “Best night of my fucking life. In fact...”

“Baby,” Matty says, getting down on one knee, “That was the best head in the fucking world, I can’t let you go, please be my girlfriend?”

You're grinning down at him entirely amused because there's absolutely no doubt in your mind that he is joking. So of course you entertain him and smile, pulling on his hand so he stands back up and you ask him, “If I say yes does that mean the blowjob song comes back on the next album?”

With one of his arms coming around your waist, he leans in and says, “Anything you want, baby.” against your lips so they brush together and the faint touch is enough for him to cup your jaw with his free hand and press his lips hard against yours.

It’s all-consuming. The feeling of his mouth on yours, his fingers clutching you tighter as he pulls you flush against him, his curls tangling between your fingers as you pull on them, the hum of satisfaction he gets from it and the one you give him back.

You swear you can feel each other's heart beating out of your chests as Matty deepens the kiss, completely forgetting where you are and the audience in front of you. There’s nothing else but him and you wouldn’t have it any other way. You can’t think of a better way to start your year other than being entirely captivated by him.

And it’s like the alcohol in your systems makes you two even more aware of everything that you’re making the other feel. The butterflies flutter in your stomach and it feels like they’re going so quick that you can feel the hum of their wings in your ears. The pads of your fingers brushing the back of his neck making his skin erupt in goosebumps all over his body and bringing what feels like a shock of electricity to every atom in his body.

You break away when you feel like you can’t do without oxygen any longer and your chests heave and meet in the middle as you try to catch your breath. You giggle against each other's lips, tempting each other to steal a few pecks as your holds on each other loosen up just a little.

“Best head he’s ever had.” Flo frowns as she turns back to her husband.

But Alex finds the whole exchange horrendously amusing. Such a Matty thing to do, declaring the best sexual experience of his life as his ex girlfriend is standing right beside his new one.

“Don't cry,” Alex tries his best not to laugh, he just wraps his arm around Flo, pulling her into him as he reminds her, “There's a reason you married me, Angel.”

“Well yeah, I'm definitely the best head you’ve ever had. Your ex’s are dire,” She rolls her eyes, “Especially the last.”

“No need to lower the tone.” Alex frowns.

Flo just chuckles a little though before saying, “El tono se bajó cuando él se puso de rodillas…” (The tone dropped when he got down on his knees.)

At this you burst out laughing, shocking Matty in the process who just kissed you again but you couldn’t hold in the reaction.

“Lo siento mucho,” (I’m so sorry.) Your hand goes up over your mouth as you turn towards Flo straight away, “Me olvido que ustedes estuvieron juntos.” (I forget you were together.)

“Está bien, solo estoy bromeando.” (It’s fine, I’m just joking.) Flo grins and waves you off.

Matty however kisses your cheek this time as he looks to Flo and says, “You’s best not be talking shit about me.”

“You’ll never know.” You singsong and the curly haired brunette doesn’t seem to like that answer because he playfully scorns you before he traps you in another playful kiss.

It makes Flo and Alex laugh, but the kiss ends up being broken by the sound of gagging getting closer to you both. And when you pull away, you see it's none other than your best friend who was making those noises, now standing beside Alex.

You’re laughing as Matty pulls you into his chest as he says to her, “Dimz, you’re so jealous.” and he kisses your temple.

At that, she raises her eyebrows and corrects him, “Jealous you’ve stolen my best bitch, yes I am.”

“Well I'm sorry but get used to it,” Matty tells you, squeezing you tighter against him, “I'm keeping her.”

You’re giggling into him as your heart swells and you hug him back. Even the mere thought at him wanting to keep you around is making you feel all gooey inside.

The night continues like that: giggling away in Matty’s arms as you continue to dance and chat with your new friends, stealing kisses here and there which grow clumsy the more drinks you have, keeping each other on your toes as you joke about with the rest of the group - until eventually, it catches up to you and you find yourself yawning continuously in the middle of conversations.

It’s 5am when you say your goodbyes to everyone. You thank Charli and George for a great night, and you thank Flo for being so lovely and you congratulate both her and Alex again before they leave. Amelia was out for the count and you and Charli put her to bed in her guest bedroom, both of you leaving kisses on her cheeks. You send your best friend a quick goodnight text that she’ll see in the morning that turns out to have many spelling mistakes, but you don’t notice in the moment.

At the same time, Matty was grabbing your bag from his best mates bedroom before he ordered the taxi and he escorted you out once it arrived. You fell asleep on his shoulder for a few minutes in the taxi which Matty thought was adorable of you but then the next thing Matty knows is the taxi driver waking him up and so the curly haired brunette gently disturbs you from your slumber so you can both get into his house.

The air when you get out of the taxi sobers the both of you up a little bit as it’s bone chilling. But it makes Matty thankful he had the heating scheduled to come on at 5am so he knew inside would already be warm for you both.

Once inside his house, Matty finds himself giggling at you many times. The first being when he sees you take everything in like a little kid at a museum seeing dinosaur skeletons for the first time.

“Ooo this is pretty.” You say in wonder as you walk through one of the archways and approach a wooden side table which has a few empty flower pots next to one that homes a pretty peace lily.

The second time you have him silently laughing is when he’s getting you both a glass of water to take up to bed, after he’s picked you up and placed you on the worktop just beside the sink and he sees you looking over at the windows of his courtyard and you sway a bit as you gasp and point, “Oh wow, I've seen windows like these on Instagram somewhere.”

Matty grins when he suggests, “Maybe on my Instagram baby.”

He snorts when you let out an ‘ooooooo’ in realisation and nod, remembering the many times you had indeed seen it on his social media. Which makes you think of more things you’ve seen on there and after that, you find yourself trying to tick off in your drunk mind what you get to see that you remember from his posts and his instagram stories.

Leading you upstairs to his room he notices that you’re almost searching for something, and you also look confused, so when he gets to his bedroom, he makes sure you’re sitting down safely on his bed when he asks, “What are you looking for?

And his heart feels so incredibly warm when you ask him, “Where's Mayhem?”

You start digging through your bag, finding the makeup wipes you packed earlier and you look all annoyed at yourself when you accidentally pull two out instead of one.

Matty grins at your pouting before you start to take your makeup off, “Mayhem isn't here baby.”

“What? Why?” You ask in a shocked voice, looking up at him as he closes the blinds as morning light is already starting to seep through. “He’s your dog isn't he?”

“Sort of,” Matty explains softly, finding your worry about his dog adorable, “But Mayhem doesn’t live here all the time.”

“But- what-” Your drunk brain doesn’t seem to be able to comprehend such a thought as you try and take your makeup off at the same time as talking.

It’s when you frown and pout a little once you’ve finished with your wipes though that has Matty grinning at you again, asking, “What's up?”

“Was excited to see Mayhem.” You pout in a drunken explanation, and you shimmy yourself out of your dress as you lay back onto his bed. But then you ask him, like you don’t have a bag full of your own clothes with you, “Have you got a top I can wear please?”

Matty has to mute his laugh but he does promise you, “We can go and see him whilst you’re here, yeah?” and the singer grabs you one of his baggier tops so you’ll be comfy and he hands it to you after stealing another peck on the lips.

“Okay.” You hum, taking your bra off before putting the baggy top on before getting under the duvet and curling yourself up in his bed.

Matty finishes stripping himself down to his underwear and he gets in bed and he turns the lamp off before he turns to you and wraps his arm around you, kissing the back of your neck which seems to lead to you turning towards him and asking another question, “Can I meet Allen too?”

Matty again almost giggles but he just nods, “Course you can baby.”

There’s no better way you can think of saying thank you than with a kiss, so you lean in to capture his lips on yours and hope he gets just what you’re saying. He kisses you back sweetly at first until your hand appears to have a mind of its own and starts slowly travelling down his chest, a ghost of a touch that has goosebumps breaking on his skin and causes his stomach to flip.

You hear Matty groan when you trace your finger more intently over his We Are Kings tattoo, his hips pushing forwards a bit as he feels his dick twitch in his boxers. By then he breaks the kiss, hot air hitting your slightly agape mouth and his breathing becoming heavier the more you tease the pads of your fingers over the band of his boxers has a smirk breaking out on your face.

Hungrily, Matty pounces on your lips to wipe the smirk of your face and getting ahold of your thigh, he pulls your leg over his hip and, with his hand travelling upwards as he continues to make your head spin with his kiss, he grabs a handful of your arse.

You moan feeling him thrust forward at the same time his hand pulls you closer into him by your arse, the sudden friction and the dizzying kiss making yourself grow hot under the covers.

Trying to open your eyes to look at him after you break the hot kiss is almost impossible, you can barely look at him through half lidded eyes because when you smile at him your eyes close. He giggles at that, struggling to keep his eyes open as well. The light slightly peeking through behind the blinds is not helping either.

His hand goes from your arse to your inner thigh, a mischievous grin on his face as he feels you shudder under his touch the more his fingers trail upwards where you need him most. But then a yawn comes to you that you can’t even control and he lets out a breathy laugh at it.

Matty yawns back and you smile at him, you know you both would love to continue what you had started earlier but you’re far too tired and, quite honestly, being in each other’s arms is the best gratification.

The date went perfectly and your night was so much fun, so finishing it all off - and starting the year - like this, has you both silently thanking your lucky stars.

One of your hands comes up to brush his hair back, curls bouncing right back on his forehead and you laugh softly when catching that as your eyes continue to close against your will. Your fingers tangle through his hair until they end up trailing his jaw and you end up cupping it to lean in and give him another kiss.

This one is soft like the first one, sleepily trying to thank him for it all, and you both keep it that way. Getting slower as you succumb to your slumber, the kiss turning into long pecks and then into short ones until you’re just breathing against each other.

Maybe a minute goes by, maybe a bit more, when you realise you’re falling asleep so you leave one last peck on his lips and then hide your face in his neck, hugging his waist and snuggling yourself closer to him.

If you could have him like this all the time, you know you’d be the happiest girl on earth. You still don’t want to get ahead of yourself but it feels like the start of something that’s going to be good for you, whether that’s temporary or permanent you don’t know. But you guess time will tell, and you can’t wait.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A/N: Aren’t they disgustingly cute? *cries* Still trying to process the Wheels and Alex cameo, makes me tear up every time I read it, and I hope you liked it just as much as we do. We truly cannot wrap our heads around how much you guys love this story, it makes us the happiest reading every one of your reactions and we thank you all so much for reading and taking your time to chat about this with us. We cannot wait to have you read the next one! The news from this past month caught us by surprise lol but we’re so happy and this gave us more ideas on how to make the Taylor cameo even better. See you soon with the next one! xx (Also I have a little spin off from this exact chapter planned and I hope I have the time to write it and post it soon hehehe)

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[intricatechaosofyou]

Sewing Lessons

Fandom: The Bad Batch; Star Wars

Summary: Life Day is quickly approaching, so you and Omega set out to give your boys some gifts.

Using the prompts “Did you get us matching pajamas?”

Warnings: sewing needles (no one gets poked, they just exist), kissing, I am unaware if mistletoe is a thing in the Star Wars universe but it is now so deal with it

Author’s note: Happy Life Day Exchange @wizardmandoo !! It was great getting to write for you. I hope you enjoy this story and have a fantastic Life Day season, babe!

And thank you to @cloneficgiftexchange for putting this together!! This was my first exchange and I’m so glad to take part!

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Strands of green hung around Omega’s door frame as she sat in the gunner’s mount that served as her makeshift room. The young girl had never experienced a real Life Day before. Kamino wasn’t known for their festivities; the long-necks claimed they took away from their work time. So although the boys didn’t have much experience actually celebrating the holiday either, they all tried their best to give Omega a perfect first Life Day.

Hunter had let you all stop for a few days on a snowy planet. With enough supplies, he figured you could take a break somewhere festive for the holiday.

Wrecker had let Omega sit atop his shoulders to hang up homemade garland around the Marauder.

Tech had taught her about the history behind the holiday, telling her everything he had learned from the Holonet.

Crosshair had taught her to make the perfect snowball and helped her perfect her aim.

And Echo told her stories every night before bed he had heard back during his days celebrating Life Day in the 501st.

Yes, all the boys had done their best to give Omega a perfect Life Day. But Omega was even more excited to give them a perfect Life Day. The girl had the biggest heart, so that’s how you found yourself crammed in the gunner’s mount with her, carefully watching as she stitched her design.

She had wanted to give the boys gifts, and when you recommended pajama pants, she jumped at the idea. The boys only had their blacks and sometimes the Marauder could get cold, even for them.

So the two of you found the perfect red and black pants that would match the team’s colors, and Omega was insistent on adding the Clone Force 99 symbol onto the pants, skull and all.

“It’ll be perfect!” She claimed.

So you found the sewing kit you kept in case someone’s clothes needed repair and showed her how to sew.

The girl was very intent in her escapades, listening and watching your stitching intently. She put her all into making the design. And when she was disappointed about her stitches being crooked, you reassured her that her brothers would love them no matter how they looked.

“I’m done with Tech’s,” she announced, holding up the pants to show the freshly sewn design on the left leg.

“Perfect, Megs. Now only Echo’s and Hunter’s left.” You took the garment from her and folded them up to add them to the pile of finished gifts.

She nodded and began to thread her needle when Wrecker called her name from the cockpit.

“I got something else to hang up!” He called.

Placing her supplies down, she rushed down the ladder to help Wrecker hang up another decoration.

You laughed and climbed down from her room as she took off. You smiled at the small girl before looking to your left, finding Hunter leaning against the wall, arms crossed across his chest.

“Hey there, Sarge,” you smiled.

He smiled and glanced over at Omega. “You two are certainly spending a lot of time up there.”

“Just having a little girl time.”

His eyebrow raised at your response. Although it wasn’t a complete lie, it wasn’t the complete truth either.

“Anything I should be concerned about?” He questioned.

You adamantly shook your head. “Nope!”

He smirked and leaned in to whisper in your ear so Omega wouldn’t overhear him. “No Life Day gifts hidden up there?”

You gasped and gently hit his arm. “How dare you accuse us of hiding something!”

He rolls his eyes, but he doesn’t move away from you. “Don’t worry, I won’t ruin the surprise, cyar’ika.”

“You better not,” you retorted as Omega came rushing back up to the two of you.

She immediately grabbed your hand and tugged you back towards her project. You didn’t resist the girl’s pull and sent Hunter a wink before heading back to Omega’s little room.

———————

The seven of you sat in the middle of the hull of the Marauder. Omega had practically been bouncing off the walls as the time to exchange gifts came around. She happily handed each of them their gifts. Even though you didn’t have enough credits to wrap them in something nice, it was clear by the look on their faces that they appreciated the gesture.

As they unfolded the garments, Hunter smiled at you. “Did you get us matching pajamas?”

You nodded and gestured to the girl beside you. “Megs is the mastermind behind this one. She wanted to do something special for you boys.”

“Do you like it?” The young girl asked, eyes sparkling in anticipation.

“They’re perfect, Omega,” Echo replied.

“They’ve even got our symbol on ‘em!” Wrecker shouted, glee evident in his voice as he held up the pants. “Looks great!”

Omega smiled and happily retold the story of sewing the symbol on as the boys listened, indulging her in the exaggerated tale. Even Crosshair had a small smile on his face as Omega spoke.

You happily listened along from your spot on the floor when you felt a hand on your shoulder. Looking up, you found Hunter standing above you. Subtly, he tilted his head towards the doorway of the cockpit.

Getting the message, you nodded and stood up, careful not to interrupt Omega’s story as you two made your way to the cockpit.

“What’s up, Hunter?” You asked, voice barely above a whisper as you stood in the doorway.

There was a pause as he considered his next words, fingers twitching as if he was twirling his vibroblade between them.

“I wanted to thank you. For the pants,” he finally said.

“Megs and I just want our boys to be comfortable,” you responded, heat blooming in your chest. “Thanks for not spoiling the surprise.”

A smirk made its way onto his face and he leaned back against the doorway, arms crossed over his chest. “So you two were hiding Life Day gifts.”

“We weren’t hiding anything. We just evaded your senses,” you lied, smiling innocently at the sergeant.

Hunter clicked his tongue. “Nothing evades my senses, cyar’ika.”

You tensed slightly, wondering if that was true. Could he hear the way your heart was fluttering in your chest? Could he see the way you smiled just a little bit bigger when you saw him? Could he feel how your skin was always warm when he was around?

Hunter opened his mouth, no doubt to tease you again, when Crosshair’s voice rang out through the ship.

“The mistletoe seemed to evade your senses though.”

You glanced at the team’s sniper, brow furrowing before looking above your head.

There it was. A small plant hung from the cockpit’s doorway: the new decoration Omega and Wrecker had hung up a few days prior.

Glancing back at Crosshair, you found that the rest of the team was staring at you.

“What‘s so important about mistletoe?” Omega asked innocently.

“It means they gotta kiss,” Echo explained, a teasing lilt in his voice as he glanced at the two of you.

“Technically—“

Tech was quickly cut off when Wrecker shoved him.

“Shush!”

You turned back to Hunter, slightly confused when you saw the small smirk on his face.

“Hunter…”

One of his hands came up to cradle your jaw, tilting your face towards his.

He leaned in, nose brushing yours. “I told you. Nothing evades my senses.”

Before you could respond, you felt his lips press against yours. It was completely intoxicating, and you grabbed his shoulders to keep yourself steady. The kiss was filled with such precision, every movement careful but filled with such feeling, you felt like you were drowning in him.

As Hunter pulled back from you, the rest of the world came crashing back on you. The cheers of his brothers, the feel of his blacks beneath your fingers, and yet you could only focus on his eyes and how they remained fixed on you.

You, stumbling over yourself as your mind tried to catch up.

Your head spun as you connected the dots, the fact he brought you over here purposely, knowing the mistletoe hung above you.

Just to kiss you?

It seemed surreal, the ghost of Hunter’s lips still on yours. But it was real.

A smirk spread across your lips. “I’m glad you liked the present.”

“That’s all you have to say?” He asked.

“Happy Life Day,” you whispered, before reconnecting your lips, earning another round of hoots and hollers from his brothers and Omega.

And as you two rejoined the group, Hunter’s arm draped across your waist, you smiled to yourself. Happy Life Day indeed.

#LDE23 #the clone wars #hunter tbb x reader #tbb hunter x reader #clone x reader #tbb starwars #hunter tbb #star wars tbb #star wars the bad batch #star wars the clone wars

[hard-core-super-star]

sneaking out into town, holding hands, just killing time. [H.Steinfeld]

pairing: hailee steinfeld x reader

summary: amidst the chaos of the across the spider-verse press tour, and the unavoidable PR stunts she has to do to cover up your relationship, your girlfriend finds comfort in you.

warnings: pure fluff; a few curse words here and there; anxious hailee; PR stunts; bad descriptions of new york from someone who went there once two years ago

wordcount: 1.9k

a/n: i was supposed to post this the week across the spider-verse came out but shhh. there's so much more i wanted to add to this fic but it's already way too long so...maybe there'll be a part 2? we'll see. shoutout to this song for getting stuck in my head and inspiring most of this fic. this is dedicated to that one lovely anon who requested more hailee fluff. hope you like it!

* * * * * * *

You had never been one for fate.

You’ve always found it romantic, of course.

The idea that every step you take is leading you toward the place you’re supposed to find and the person you’re supposed to be is beautiful and downright inspiring. (You’re not a complete cynic, after all)

However, you had written fate off as something that only affects people in rom-coms and those trashy romance books that are all about how finding your soulmate will fix everything in your life.

So, yeah, needless to say, you weren’t a huge believer.

That was the case for most of your life until everything, including the planets and the stars themselves, seemed to align in just the right way that allowed you to cross paths with the most incredible woman you’ve ever met. You sincerely have no idea what you did to please the cosmos so much that they decided to put you on the same path as Hailee but you are not complaining in any way.

You would do everything all over again, including all the bullshit you had to go through, if it meant you could keep calling Hailee yours at the end of the day. All the pain and loneliness of your past fades away into nothingness every second her eyes are on yours.

That isn’t to say that the present doesn’t still have its difficult moments, even with Hailee by your side.

Being closeted is hard enough on its own but being a closeted celebrity adds a whole new layer to such a complicated situation. You still don’t fully understand why your girlfriend is so against the idea of publicly coming out (although you have your suspicions that the decision isn’t hers to make at the end of the day) but you support her regardless…even when it means spending a whole night alone…in your New York City hotel room…while your girlfriend is seen having dinner with some random guy you’ve never seen before in your life.

It certainly isn’t ideal but you know it’s just one dinner and a couple of paparazzi photos. Just something simple to take the public’s focus away from the fact that you and Hailee have been spotted together every single day she’s been in New York. Plus, with the Across the Spider-Verse premiere a few days away, and the matching outfits already decided on, it’s no wonder her team scrambled to find some way to cover up how obvious you two are getting.

You’re not the biggest fan of the idea but you would do anything for your girlfriend so you sucked it up and didn’t say anything when she left for dinner a few hours ago.

And that’s how you ended up here, cycling between paying attention to the random movie playing on TV and scrolling through your phone in an attempt to control your growing impatience.

You’re finally rewarded with the sound of the hotel door opening and you sit up from your position on the bed, eager to spend time with Hailee.

She quickly comes into view, looking as stunning as ever. She greets you with a half-smile while she begins to take off her blazer and her shoes.

“How’d it go?” You ask, your eyes scanning her face for an answer.

She sighs in response before moving to climb onto your lap once the articles of clothing are off of her body. Your arms wrap around her waist and pull her close, allowing her to rest her head in the crook of your neck. You don’t press her any further but you do run your hands up and down her back in an attempt to comfort her.

A comfortable silence settles over both of you for a long moment until finally, Hailee speaks up. “This was a bad idea.”

“It went that well, huh?” You reply in an attempt to make her laugh a little.

You feel her soft breath hit the skin of your neck before you hear her laugh. The sound brings a small smile to your face even though you feel a little unsure about what to do to help her right now.

“Let’s just say it wasn’t the best choice to make and leave it at that.”

You can tell she’s trying to poke fun at the situation but her voice lacks any real humor, leaving her words to sound more self-deprecating than anything. Your heart hurts a little at that fact although you don’t comment on it….yet.

“At least you got a good dinner out of it.”

She lets a huff of air before she lifts her head up from its resting place. You stare up at her with furrowed eyebrows while she takes your face in her hands. “I’m sorry. I should’ve just taken you out to dinner instead of agreeing to that mess.”

“Hey, you don’t have to apologize.” You lean up to place a few quick kisses on her cheek. “I’m not upset.”

“You should be. I’m a coward. I’m spending every day preaching how important it is to ‘live your life unapologetically’ while I hide who I am from everyone.”

“Not everyone,” you correct her. “And there’s nothing wrong with not being ready to come out yet. You know I would never hold that against you.”

She looks away from you, her hands dropping from your face to your shoulders as she does so. You barely catch the thin layer of unshed tears in her eyes but it’s enough to push you into motion. You reach up to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear before cupping her cheek with your hand. You don’t force her to look at you right now, you just attempt to comfort her in the only ways you know how.

“Hailee, listen to me, I love you. It doesn’t matter to me whether I get to take you out on stupidly expensive dates or not. I don’t care about the photos or the interviews or the tweets from your fans. All I care about is you. Who gives a shit if we’re the only two people who know the truth? We’re the only two people who matter when it comes to this relationship.”

A beat of silence goes by before she speaks again, the corners of her mouth quirking up into the smallest of smiles. “How do you always do that?”

“Do what, Lee?”

“You always know what the right thing to say is.” Her voice is a soft whisper as she turns to look at you again.

This time, you're the one who smiles.

You lean forward, gently wiping away a few of her stray tears until your foreheads meet. “It's my superpower. Sorry, but you're not the only superhero in this relationship.”

She laughs. A real laugh that makes the corners of her eyes crinkle in the way you love so much. You expect her to make fun of you or call you a dork like always but she doesn't.

Instead, she leans in. Her movements are slow but you don't make any attempts to rush her. You take the opportunity to let everything about the moment sink in.

The feeling of her breath against your lips, the way her eyes flutter closed, the gentle hand that holds the back of your head and pulls you in to close the few inches of space between your mouths.

It’s all beautiful and soft and full of the love you both feel.

You pull away after a moment, not wanting to ignore the genuine feelings the situation has brought out in your girlfriend. “I meant what I said, by the way. All I care about is you.”

“I know.” She gives you one more quick kiss before moving off of your lap and onto her feet. She holds her hand out for you to take, that usual sparkle back in her eyes. “Come on. We’re leaving.”

You tilt your head in confusion but take her hand anyway, already knowing there’s an idea brewing behind those brown eyes. “It’s one in the morning.”

“When has that ever stopped us before?” She replies as she pulls you up and into her arms. “We only have two days left here before we have to go back home and I intend to make the best of them.”

“Lee, it’s a business trip, not a vacation.” You attempt to keep your tone light but it’s obvious what your words really mean.

It’s not just that Hailee is here to do press, not sightsee, but it’s also the fact that going out together is always a risk. No amount of last-minute PR stunts can cover up the obvious love that flows between both of you. Especially with the heart-eyes Hailee can’t help but throw your way all the time.

She gives a small nod to let you know she understands your point but the smile doesn’t leave her face.

“That doesn’t mean we’re not allowed to have some fun. Just you and me.”

“And the hundreds of tourists walking around Times Square.”

“No one will notice.” She pulls you in closer, leaning down until her forehead rests against yours. “And it doesn’t matter if they do, it’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

You're about to protest, ready to tell her she doesn't have to do anything more to prove how she feels about you when she leans down to press a sweet kiss to your lips.

Your complaints fade away pretty quickly at that.

Her next words are spoken in a whisper, her breath hitting your lips. “I just want to go out with you. Treat you like you deserve to be treated.”

You're pretty sure your heart is going to beat out of your chest if she doesn't stop being so adorable right now.

“Well…when you put it like that, how am I supposed to say no?”

You don't think you've ever seen anything shine as bright as her smile. She gives you one more quick kiss before rushing to get ready, changing out of her fancy clothes and into jeans and a hoodie in the blink of an eye.

You admire her for a few seconds before following suit, putting on the closest pair of sneakers you can find and slipping on a sweatshirt that you totally didn't steal from your girlfriend. She doesn’t say anything when she sees what you’re wearing but the small smirk on her face tells you everything you need to know.

She holds her hand out to you again and you take it without any hesitation, letting her lead you out of your hotel room and toward whatever destination she has in mind. You realize very quickly that you don’t care where she’s taking you as long as her hand stays in yours.

She ends up leading you out of the hotel and into the busy New York streets. Even in the middle of the night, Times Square is chaotic. And that's putting it mildly. It's bright and loud, and slightly overwhelming. It's a sight you don't think you could ever get used to despite how often you and Hailee end up in the city.

And yet, it's exactly that chaotic energy that makes you feel at peace. There's so much going on, so many different things to look at, that most people don't even spare a glance your way. You blend in among the bustle of the street, allowing Hailee to walk with her arm wrapped tightly around your waist.

For once, you don't have to pretend to be anything less than what you are.

You're in love.

You're free.

And you're sure there's nowhere else in the world you'd rather be right now.

#hailee steinfeld x reader #hailee steinfeld x female reader #hailee steinfeld x y/n #hailee steinfeld x you #hailee steinfeld imagine #hailee steinfeld fic #hailee steinfeld fanfiction #hailee steinfeld fluff #hailee steinfeld #across the spiderverse #hawkeye #marvel #mcu #mcu imagine #mcu fanfiction #wlw #wlw fic #writing #if you made it this far happy pride month!

[wingedblooms]

The high lord’s orrery

I’ve talked about the orrery before (buried under layers of connections in my murky realm meta), and wanted to come back to it on its own. It is, in my opinion, one of the biggest hints we have for Elain’s role in the crossover.

We are first introduced to the official term, orrery, in HOSAB. When Bryce and her friends seek out the Astronomer and his beauties, also known as mystics, they use a space map to track down information across the cosmos:

Bryce set aside her outrage and waved a hand to the drifting planets. “This space map—”

“It is called an orrery.”

“This orrery.” Bryce approached the male’s side. “It’s tech—not magic?”

“Can it not be both?” (HOSAB)

Bryce’s murky memory reminds her that her father has his own orrery in his study.

Bryce’s fingers curled into fists. But she said, a murky memory rippling from her childhood, “The Autumn King has one in his private study.”

The Astronomer clicked his tongue. “Yes, and a fine one at that. Made by craftsmen in Avallen long ago. I haven’t had the privilege to see it, but I hear it is as precise as mine, if not more so.”

“What’s the point of it?” she asked.

“Only one who does not feel the need to peer into the cosmos would ask such a thing. The orrery helps us answer the most fundamental questions: Who are we? Where do we come from?” (HOSAB)

Craftsmen in Avallen, a place with powers that mirror the Night Court, made an orrery long ago. And it is kept in her father’s study. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

There was the main floor of the study—bedecked in the hand-knotted blue carpets that Feyre had gone to Cesere to select from its artisans—with its two sitting areas, Rhys’s desk, and twin long tables near the bookshelves. At the far end of the room, a little dais led into a broad raised alcove flanked by more books—and in its center, a massive, working model of their world, the stars and planets around it, and some other fancy things that had been explained to Cassian once before he deemed them boring and proceeded to ignore them completely. Az, of course, had been fascinated. Rhys had built the model himself centuries ago. It could not only track the sun, but also tell time, and it somehow allowed Rhys to ponder the existence of life beyond their own world and other things Cassian had, again, instantly forgotten. (ACOSF)

We know now that Sarah was planting seeds for travel across the cosmos. By the end of HOSAB, Bryce lands in Prythian and desperately needs to find Aidas to help her rally the armies of Hel against the Asteri. But who makes the most sense to help? Who has successfully located frightening beings from afar like the mystics? That would be Elain.

There are striking parallels between Elain and the mystics, which I discuss in depth here, so I won’t spend time on the details in this post. The mystics’ sleepy travel and use of a space map remind me of similar scene in ACOWAR.

Three mystics slept, submerged in greenish, cloudy water, breathing masks strapped to their faces. Their white shifts floated around them, doing little to hide the skeletal bodies beneath. (HOSAB)

When Feyre seeks out Elain to track down the Suriel, she finds her in a dim, dreamlike environment that seems a lot like the mystic tubs. Her eyes are even unfocused, as though she is lost in space. Is it possible she was drifting in her murky realm, like the mystics?

Her tent was dim, and quiet—the sounds of slaughter far away, dreamlike. She was awake, staring blankly at the canvas ceiling.

Feyre asks to plant an image of the Suriel in her mind to help her locate it, and when she passes her mental gates, she finds even more dreamy, half-life imagery:

The gates to her mind … Solid iron, covered in vines of flowers—or it would have been. The blossoms were all sealed, sleeping buds tucked into tangles of leaves and thorns.

And then, without any training whatsoever, Elain uses the map to find the Suriel on the move.

Elain again glanced at the map. At me. Then closed her eyes. Her eyes shifted beneath her lids, the skin so delicate and colorless that the blue veins beneath were like small streams. “It moves …,” she whispered. “It moves through the world like … like the breath of the western wind.”

“Where is it headed?”

Her finger lifted, hovering over the map, the courts. Slowly, she set it down. “There,” she breathed. “It is going there. Now.” I looked at where she had laid her finger and felt the blood rush from my face. The Middle.

Much like Thanatos—a prince of Hel—with the mystic in CC, the Suriel also sees Elain from across the world.

Its over-large teeth clacked faintly. “Thrice now, we have met. Thrice now, you have hunted for me. This time, you sent the trembling fawn to find me. I did not expect to see those doe-eyes peering at me from across the world.”

On the third hunt for the Suriel, the third sister to have her story told finds a terrifying, deadly creature who repeatedly provides help to Feyre. Coincidentally, this fits the bill for Bryce and Aidas as well. And what map might help her find him? The high lord’s orrery, of course, if it is as precise as the one his (theoretical) distant relatives created in Avallen long ago.

That’s not the only connection Rhysand and his sister-in-law have when it comes to this plot point. According to Rigelus, mystics can also pry into characters’ minds and influence their behavior like a daemati. Is it possible Elain is already experimenting with this power? That kind and sage voice Nesta starts to hear in dire circumstances appears after Elain said she could reacquaint herself with her powers. And like the high lord again, she might have some glowing magical hands to go with that voice if her influence is at work with the Cauldron at the end of ACOSF. Please let this be one of the many secrets you’ve planted in ACOSF, Sarah.

“We were eventually notified by one of our mystics here, who learned it from prying into the mind of one of Ophion’s Command. So we did a little tugging. Pointed Micah toward synth. Toward Danika.” (HOSAB)

What’s the significance of these connections? Alongside her siblings, Elain is going to be a key player in the crossover. And we’re likely in for even more Rhysand-Elain bonding time. This time, though, she’ll be the one taking him on a mental tour of the cosmos, leaving the Sidra far behind. Sarah already laid the groundwork for this: Rhysand wonders about her surprising behavior in the final battle against Hybern in ACOFAS, and in ACOSF, his interest only grows as he supports Amren’s order to approach Elain for help next, suggests she may be more than capable of getting her hands sparkly dirty, agrees with his mate to help her after Nesta, and even meddles in her love life (like an overbearing older brother). In fact, he interrupts and forbids her intimacy with the only other person we know, in canon, that is also interested in Rhysand’s orrery: Azriel.

So, what role, if any, will Azriel play in this plot point besides his obvious connection with Bryce, the Starsword, and demon-like wings and cold, dark shadows? Perhaps it’s just a coincidence, but the mystic in CC is snared by the Prince of the Ravine like Elain is lured by the Cauldron. Even the camp where she is trapped operates similarly to the Prince, and it just so happens to sit next to a ravine and is home to fearsome hounds, like the Prince’s Shepherd:

Hybern’s camp and hounds

Campfires burned, as numerous as the stars. Beasts snapped and snarled, yanking on leashes and chains. On and on and on that army went, a squatting terror drinking the life from the earth. (ACOWAR)

The nearest hound—it was not a hound, I realized as the arrow spiraled for its head. But some cousin of the naga—some monstrous, scaled thing that thundered on all fours, serpentine face snarling and full of bone-shredding white teeth—(ACOWAR)

Azriel’s roar echoed off the rocks as the hound slammed into him, dragging those shredding talons down his spine, his wings— The girl screamed, but Elain moved. As Azriel battled to keep them airborne, keep his grip on them, my sister sent a fierce kick into the beast’s face. Its eye. Another. Another. It bellowed, and Elain slammed her bare, muddy foot into its face again. The blow struck home. With a yelp of pain, it released its claws—and plunged into the ravine. (ACOWAR)

Prince of the Ravine and his hound

“Allow me to introduce my shepherd,” the Under-King said from the mist ahead, standing beside a ten-foot-tall black dog. […] Designed to latch into flesh and hold tight while it ripped and shredded. Its eyes were milky white—sightless. Identical to the Under-King’s.

Her light would have no effect on something that was already blind.

The dog’s fur—sleek and iridescent enough that it almost resembled scales—flowed over bulky, bunched muscle. Claws like razor blades sliced into the dry ground.

His attention snapped again to Bryce. Ripped away skin and bone to the being beneath. You slew one of my creations. My beloved pet, kept for so long on your side of the Crossing. […] You cost me a key link to Midgard. The Shepherd reported faithfully to me on all it heard in the Bone Quarter. The souls of the dead talk freely of their world.

I grow tired of these questions. I shall feast. […] It has been a long while since a mortal fly buzzed all the way down to Hel. I will taste this one’s soul, as I once sipped from them like fine wine. […]. You have gone too deep. I think I shall keep you. (HOSAB)

Like Bryce and Hunt, Elain and Azriel work as a team in this scene. Azriel holds Elain and helps her escape the clutches of Hybern, and she in turn defends him against the hounds. Might this teamwork foreshadow another rescue, on a different plane? Is that why we were reminded of it more than once in ACOSF? It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if Elain, like the Suriel, was snared again and needed an anchor—someone who can navigate the dark, won’t abandon her, and will pull her back when needed—if she travels too deep in her search. And as his past behavior suggests, it makes sense for that anchor to be the Shadowsinger.

If you’re interested in comprehensive metas discussing Elain’s powers in the context of the crossover, check these out:

Shifting forms of fate: Elain’s connection to Urd and changing form/appearance

Elain’s murky realm: how her sight might work, using evidence from ACOTAR and connections to oracles and mystics in the multiverse (mostly CC)

The space between: what is it, where does it appear in the multiverse, and how might Elain and Azriel use it to travel

Mapping the mysteries of the sister peaks: a forbidden couple exploring forbidden secrets deep underground

#elain archeron #seer elain #azriel shadowsinger #rhysand #daemati and mystics #the astronomer and his beauties #hosab and acotar crossover #acotar cc crossover theory #prince of the ravine #the suriel

[silverryu25]

Absolute Randomness Day 5 + Pornstar AU ^^

Dang this was a chalenging combo! XD And not cause I couldn't think of something, it's just that everything that came to mind would need so much worldbuilding I would be writing a multi-chapter fic XD

But no! 500 words or less! I already messed up yesterday so today it's gonna be short!! XP

DAY 5 - Absolute Randomness: Sci-fi (With you i have the whole universe in my hands) + Pornstar AU

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

Red sat in a chair that could barely fit his bulk. It creaked and bent when he moved, the sound heard despite the loud, almost obnoxiously so, music. But he didn't care, he wasn't here for the comfort or atmosphere.

No, he was here to see a star.

Just as his patience slowly started to falter, frown deepening with every second he had to sit in this horrendously tacky pink room, the lights dimmed. His browbone perked up, attention getting dragged to the curtains on the opposite side of the chair he was seated in.

The music went from the generic elevator sounding crap to something more... intense, yet still calm and deep. It reminded him of the deep space he traveled while on duty. The vastness and mystery of the eternity stretching in all directions, that both terrified and thrilled him.

This time though, there was only the thrill.

Red smirked as he focused on the curtains as they opened, the darkness beyond them obscuring the one he was waiting for. The one he knew he had to have the moment he laid his eyes on them in the main hall. The one that drew his gaze like a lit beacon in a stormy night.

Starlight.

He knew it was a stage name, but it didn't matter. He'd find out their real name eventually, for now all he wanted was to enjoy this opportunity.

Finally, mercifully, the curtains opened and the object of Red's newfound obsession glided in. Their gait was light, almost airy, as of they weighted nothing. Red could almost believe it as his his eyelights focused on the delicate, almost brittle, looking bones. The flashy blue clothes (if you could call them that) barely covered the skeleton monsters bones. They were pristine, no marks or cracks on them, but Red could feel his magic bristle at how thin they looked.

He knew workers in the porn industry did better when they kept their bodies in trend to the latest fashion fads, but he was already promising he would make sure this gorgeous monster got some meat on his bones... figuratively speaking. But their body, as captivating as it was, wasn't what drew him here.

No. It were their eyelights.

Two white pearls, burning as brightly as the brightest stars Red saw during his travels. He could feel himself being dragged into the shine of those stars, feeling as if they could see right through him and directly into his soul. He could feel his own eyelights flare with his magic in response, and he could see the other's whites flash back with a soft blue glow, too soft to be completely certain in this dimmed room, but somehow he was certain it was there.

For now, he was just going to enjoy the show as he waits for an opportunity to make his move and slip Starlight a little something that would ultimately bring him into Red's arms. Red was determined to make this star his own because he knew they would complete his biggest wish.

Because with them by his side he would have the whole universe in his hands.

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

525 words... so close! DX

Welp... this was supposed to be smut only but somehow the plot wormed its way in there... again... *shakes angry fist at the plot bunny* >:/

For anyone confused, Starlight is Sans' stripper stage name. Red saw him pole dancing in the main area of the club and fell for him hard. So he paid to have Sans do a private show for him. He isn't really supposed to touch or talk to the dancer (why you ask? plot reasons UwU) but he is planning on using a high-tech tracker on Sans so he can find him later... now you'd think that's creepy, but Sans isn't doing this 100% voluntarily and Red knows it (they are on this planet for a reason~)... but that plot is waaaaaaay too long for a drabble so.... just use your imagination >;P

#themsource #kustardweek #kustardweek2023 #Ryu18only #SilverRyuWrites #SilverRyuDrabble #mywriting #drabble #undertale #underfell #ut!sans #uf!sans #kustard #sanscest

[kwritingbooks]

co-written by me & @sunsalutationsss

read on: wattpad & tumblr masterlist

Aurora is a twenty-one year old who lives in Yellowstone, Canada. Home of the aurora lights, Yellowstone is the perfect place to study astronomy. Born and raised in Alaska by self-proclaimed hippies, her family has always inspired her to continue her interest in the stars. Little does she know that her years of studying wouldn’t prepare her for this other-worldly phenomenon she would soon discover. A phenomenon that has bright green eyes, an odd personality, and works with her at the university’s planetarium.

AU: star-being!harry x astronomy-student!aurora

HARRY’S POV

Stars. Galaxies. Planets. They are all things that make up infinite universes that separate different worlds from each other. Some for good reason. When worlds collide, what would happen? Would chaos among different breeds and cultures all around the world and galaxies ensue?

Of course it would. Because although people were born on earth, they didn't realize that they, too, were made of stardust and anything that didn't seem possible could very well be. When a star explodes, millions of creatures die. When a star is created, my people are born by the thousands.

So, as for us, we were the lucky ones. My star, Stella Domus, had been unscathed since I was born two thousand years ago and it had been our home ever since. Although our star might have seemed small, we were one of the biggest societies in the galaxy.

My father and mother were the rulers of this particular star and I just so happened to be the next in line to rule, assuming I didn't die before that happened. Although, I had managed to survive this long, so the odds seemed to be in my favor so far.

My parents hadn't told me much about what had been going on, but I'd noticed the whispered conversations in the corridors of the kingdom. I tried my best to ignore it, but it was hard when the tension was so thick I could feel it. It made me want to crawl out of my skin just to get away sometimes. Whenever something was wrong, my body could almost immediately sense it.

Yet there I was, putting one foot in front of the other, as I walked from my bedroom into the main corridor of my parents. The hallways were empty as my footsteps echoed against the marble flooring. I stopped mid-step once I reached the two entry doors and looked up as they towered over me. Its golden handles sparkled against the moonlight outside the windows. With one swift movement, my body leaned against the wooden frame and I turned the knob. The doors swung open and immediately my eyes gazed around the room as I took my first step inside.

I'd been in this room more times than I could count, but I swore I could still get lost in its magnitude. The ceiling stretched so high it would make my feet stumble if I stared too long. I used to dream about flying to the top when I was a child, just to be able to finally be above everyone else.

Gold accents adorned the entirety of the space, looking as magnificent as ever paired with the marble. Golden stars flicked reflections back at me from the walls to the tops of the ceilings. It was as if they were greeting me as I entered, too. It was what I always thought growing up, and I still partially believed it to this day.

I knew my parents had to be around here somewhere, but I was also silently hoping I wouldn't run into them. They'd been so on edge recently that it inadvertently made me on edge. So, preferably, I had been keeping my distance.

Really all I wanted to do was sit on the big couch that out-stretched against the entire wall. My parents used to scold me for sneaking into their area of the kingdom, but they soon gave up. I couldn't help that they had the best spots to relax. Maybe they should have put the couch in my room and we wouldn't have had this issue.

"Evening, Harry." One of the guards said to me with a slight bow, and I gave him a cheeky smile with a wave as I walked by.

"Hello." I coo'd.

"Harry." I heard my father's voice boom through the room which caused me to jump a little as I turned on my heel, my hand on my chest as I breathed out a laugh.

"Dad, you scared me." I looked at his deadpan expression, my smile dropping as I took a few steps back from him. He walked by me with a fierce stride towards the main table.

"We need to talk." He ignored my sentence, my mother following close behind him. She set a soft hand onto my arm as she flashed me a gentle smile. I placed my hand onto hers as I walked with her to the main table and sat down in front of him.

I was the first to sit and I had begun to impatiently tap my fingers against the top of my knee as it bounced. I could tell they were about to talk to me about something, probably scold me. I did my best to think hard about anything I could have done recently to cause this sit-down conversation.

Eventually they both settled in their chairs and they first looked at one another before turning their attention to me. The look on their faces was hard to read and I twitched uncomfortably in my seat because of it.

"Listen, I don't care what Leon said, I didn't use his bar of soap! He's a liar." I blurted out in a huff, pinching the bridge of my nose. "And I think it's a bit unfair that we have the same colored soaps—"

"Harry— God, no. This isn't about your brother." My father groaned, rolling his eyes as he slammed his hands on the table. He was staring at me with a serious look on his face and my face dropped in expression, my lip curling into my mouth as I looked at him.

"Oh, well, yeah." I trailed off. "I was just kidding anyway. What's up?" I shot a smile back at them, placing my hands onto the table. They both looked at one another and back at me, briefly rolling their eyes.

"The war." My father spoke lowly under his breath. He shot another glance back at my mom and she ignored it, spinning back to me with a timid look.

"What about it?" My arms crossed against my chest. I didn't understand why they wanted to sit down with me to talk about this. What did I have to do with it? They had never included me before.

I could tell my father was growing increasingly annoyed as he pleadingly glared at my mom, motioning his hands towards me. I guess it was her turn to talk and I shifted my attention back to her. This was beginning to annoy me, too. They kept talking to me like I was supposed to be getting it when they had hardly said anything.

"Listen honey." My mom softly chimed in before she proceeded to get up from her chair and walked over to me. She knelt down beside me, placing her hand back onto my arm and looked up to meet my eyes.

"Things aren't..." She stopped for a moment to collect her thoughts. "They're not good. Okay, Harry? I know you aren't due to have your first mission for a while, but we're going to need you now."

My hands remained crossed as I peered down at her. I could feel my eyebrows scrunch together in thought. She was still looking at me with the same expression on her face, as if begging me to understand.

"Wait, now?" I shot up from my chair as a new wave of panic began to course through my body. No way was I prepared for this, what made them think I was ready now?

Mom had stood back up, pushing her chair in as she walked to my side. Her hand graced against my back, forcing me to shift my gaze back to her.

"Yes, Harry. We need you. You know we wouldn't ask you this if we didn't think you were ready—"

My dad cleared his throat, cutting her off. It was almost like he was choking on my mom's words and she shot a scolding glare at him. Through clenched teeth she spoke towards him. "Right, dear?"

He paused for a moment, huffing a breath and nodded his head. "Yes, what your mother said."

"Right." She looked at him with a tight smile, turning around on her heel as she placed her hands behind her back. She was thinking carefully about what to say next.

"You know..." She cleared her throat, placing her hands onto the table as she looked back at me. "The light guardians have been spotted on Earth near the aurora lights tonight..."

I stared with a blank expression on my face for a moment, my eyes glancing over at my father briefly then back at my mother. Tension filled the air, so much so that I could have cut it with the sharpest knife in the galaxy.

"They were taken down, but unfortunately some of our people got wounded. They're in urgent care. We really need you to go down to earth to see what we are up against."

"Wait." I interjected, putting my hand up as my eyes went down to the floor, a cheeky smile on my lips as my gaze flicked up to hers. "I'm going to Earth?"

My father let out a sigh as he stood to his feet, leaning over the table slowly. "This does not mean you get to go down there and goof around. You are to go down there, keep talking to humans at a bare minimum, and come back."

"But..." I pointed a finger at him, a grin on my lips. "I get to finally go to Earth."

I had never been to Earth yet and my heart was pounding out of my chest. I had only ever seen humans in pictures, never in real life. Excited was an understatement.

"Harry, honey, listen." My mother placed a hand on my arm, a worried chuckle left her lips as she glanced between me and my father. "Yes, you will be going to Earth. We need you to protect Aurora. Our life depends on it."

My father opened his jacket, slipping out a piece of paper as he slid it across the table. His brows furrowed together as he pointed at the drawing on the paper. "This is what you need to look for. If you see anyone in human form with this on their skin—"

"Is that what the light guardians have on them?" I picked the piece of paper up, inspecting the drawing carefully as I furrowed my brows. My eyes shot over to my mom. "This is what I need to look for?"

"Well, yes and—" She dug into her pocket, pulling out an amulet as she dangled it in front of me. She took my hand and placed it carefully into my palm, closing it and stared into my eyes. "This amulet will momentarily stun any power they have. All you need to do is to point it where the sunlight reflects onto them. This also means you have to act quickly."

"Sweet." I said in excitement, looking down at the blue amulet. It was made of moonstone of different sizes hooked on a chain, but the center opened to reveal two small mirrors.

"Harry, this is serious. Your job is simple." My father made me look at him, his expression deadpanned once again. "Go to earth. Protect the Aurora. Come back. That's it. Don't form any human relationships, don't fuck around. Do your job and come back."

I opened my mouth to say something, but my mom had handed me a key as she talked to me. "This is the key to where you'll be staying. It has the address on it. Just follow the instructions. We need you to go now."

"Okay." I shrugged, shoving the key into my pocket.

Easy enough. Go down, protect Aurora, and come back. Couldn't be too hard. Honestly, I thought that my family would have given me a harder mission, but this sounded like a piece of cake.

The security guard came up from behind me, handing me my coat and I turned around on my heel, grabbing it as I pulled it over my shoulders.

"And I'll be back in a couple of days?"

"You can not stay longer than three days at a time. Our kind can not survive on Earth for that long. Come back and report every three days you are there." My mother looked worried, but still had a tight smile on her lips as she spoke. I was worried too. They didn't even tell me how to find this Aurora.

"Sounds good to me—" I paused as I looked back at my father who stood with a grimace on his face. My mother nudged him with her elbow, muttering something to him under her breath.

"Father? I won't let you down. I'll make sure of it." I said as I walked backwards, showing him the amulet in my hand. A cheeky smile spread on my lips as I put it into my pocket, but then felt my foot stumbled over a cord which almost sent me face-first to the marble flooring.

My father groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose. I stood up quickly, putting my hands up. "I'm good! I'm good! My bad." I laughed out. "Okay, bye." I ran down the staircase into the corridors.

"He's an idiot." My father muttered under his breath. My mother frowned, crossing her arms over her chest as she walked away from him.

"You could at least give him a chance, love." She said softly before vanishing into her bedroom.

My feet carried me as I ran out the front door of the palace, the ice cold space hit me and I breathed out slowly. I looked over to my left to see the moon next to our home planet, a big smile on my face as I pointed at it, furrowing my brows.

"I won't let ya down, moon. I'm gonna save us all." There was a quiet moment before I spun myself towards Earth, staring at it with wonder in my eyes.

I closed my eyes, feeling the energy running through my toes, up my legs, and shooting through my body as I formed myself into the smallest star. My light shone so bright even the guards had shielded their eyes from it. Within seconds, I felt a rush of adrenaline and blasted off from my planet and straight to Earth. The journey may have seemed short, but I knew it would take seconds for me to get there.

Earth, here I come.

CH 2 RELEASE DATE: 02/09/22

UPDATES FORWARD: every tuesday

a/n: we hope you like it so far! i know this chapter is a bit shorter, but this is just the beginning! as always, please leave feedback and share if you enjoyed it <3 we will be updating every tuesday, but we wanted to give a little treat (and a little less wait time) so that’s why we wanted to post chapter two tomorrow too! be sure to follow us on tumblr as well as our wattpads (all linked above)—if you enjoy starboy, i’m sure you’ll enjoy either of our other works, too! thank you for reading <333

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[bukojuiice]

the way of the househusband — levi ackerman

ೃ pairing: (husband! levi ackerman x  ceo wifey! reader)

ೃ  There is the “ideal” nuclear family. The one composed of a working husband with a well-paying 9 to 5 job, loving housewife who cooks and cleans, and adoring children who do well in school. However, that idealization is looong gone. What about you and your family? You are the CEO of a Tech Start-up Company who ain’t no trophy wife, Your husband hails from the last line of Ackermans and who temporarily resigns from being a vice executive of your company (just because he doesn’t want to work with young, feeling philanthropist, and genius GenZers) to become a hands-on househusband, and then there’s your little daughter who has the most inquisitive mind and adventurous heart who idolizes her doting father in every shape, way, and form. A month’s absence in your home (due to a business trip) could lead to many many things. But, your husband randomly publishing a self-help book on parenting and being a househusband is not one of those things. 

ೃ genre and warnings: modern au, domestic fluff, baby au, husband au, 

ೃ  my nav  →  my aot masterlist

ೃ 4k words

ೃ Will be referring to hanji as “aunkling” (a cute nickname that some kiddos use to refer to their non-binary relatives <3) because there are no official non-binary terms for aunt and uncle! + your daughter with levi is named amelia and she is just the most precious cinnamon roll

It’s done. 

The Business Trip is finally over.

A long and painful month of no hugs and playdates with your little princess, Amelia and no time to be pampered with love and affection from your husband, Levi was finally over!

Sometimes, you wonder how you were even able to survive these long-ass trips and conferences. Sure, these month-long trips only happened once a year, but the thought of Amelia getting older and having to miss a day of seeing her grow up and discover the world, really hurt you as all mothers would. Video Calls were enough to satisfy you and give you happy hormones even for just a short while, but still- the longer you’re not with them, the more the yearning lengthens until you’re just riddled with endless thoughts of wanting to get home as soon as possible.

First, let’s set things straight: You are the CEO of a Tech Start-up company who was born into a middle-class family and rose her way up to success. It’s as cliche as it gets but hey! Living a life as if you were in a romantic comedy was the best compliment you’ve ever gotten. 

Along with that, as far as rich families in rom-coms and coming of age movies go, are they all dysfunctional in reality? Not really. Or at least you and Levi promised each other not to end up like that. The Rich Girl meets Poor Boy (with a tragic backstory) cliche however? Yea, that’s a pretty accurate way to describe your love story. Meeting the love of your life in a Coffee Shop is actually pretty common and happens to a lot of people apparently. When Erwin Smith, Levi’s best friend (who is too smart and self-aware to fit the role of a rom-com sidekick by the way) approaches your table to ask if he and Levi could sit with you. (Because of all the days the cafe would be packed, it would be that day.) You said yes of course, and Erwin began oversharing details about the raven-haired man and you were all too invested in learning more about him anyway. Levi grew up in the orphanage after his mother had died and his father was the biggest asshole on the planet for never showing his face, he had to fend for himself after he outgrew the foster system. Starting out as an espionage in an illegal underground gambling empire to a bookkeeper at the Smiths’ bookshop. (Although this is a story for another day)  

Internally swooning over his pretty eyes and resting bitch face...it didn’t take long until the two of you fell in love and... the rest was history!

You come home to your lavish yet homey apartment in 21 West End Avenue Manhattan to be surprised by your father-daughter duo absolutely knocked out on the couch. Amelia was snuggled up to her father, her feet on his lap and a sleeping position you could not possibly comprehend, a Disney movie playing in the background, and both of them were wearing matching Minion onesies whilst yours was folded neatly on the coffee table just waiting to be worn by you when you got home. 

It was a rare sight to see and you can’t help but just stare lovingly at the wonderful scene before you. Not only was it rare to see Amelia asleep before seeing you (or in the case of your business trips, during your daily video calls with them) but it was also rare to see your husband sleeping so soundly and his insomnia not kicking in. 

Amelia hears your footsteps, her eyes are still shut as she tries to predict what you will do next. She finally assesses when she will make her move and surprise you when you place another fleece blanket on top of them and plant a kiss on both of their temples. your daughter’s eyes suddenly flutter open. Her eyes beaming and glowing off the same light that twinkled in her father’s as she jumps off the couch, making sure not to wake up Levi.

“MOMMY!” She screams in the most quiet volume her cute voice could muster. She runs up to you and envelops you in a tight hug, jumping up and down as she does so. “I missed you Mommy! I missed you soooo much! How was sandbox in K-korea!? Was there a lot of sand!? Did you have a lot of pwaymates there!?”

You giggle at your daughter’s enthusiasm, combing your fingers through her hair. “Lili, Sandbox is like the Silicon Valley of Korea. It isn’t necessarily a sandbox like in a playground, baby.”

“OOOH! JUST LIKE SIWICON VAWWEY!” She chirps, tightening her hug and reaching for your hand and squeezing it. “AH WAIT!” She gently pushes you away and makes a beeline to her room. “ME AND DADDY HAVE A SURPRISE FOR YOU! BUT CLOSE YOUR EYES FIRST OWKAAY?!” She calls out from her room and you shout back a “yes!” to her in between your giggles, unable to contain the sudden rush of serotonin your daughter had given you from her simple yet adorable antics.

Another trope that you can debunk is that rich moms can be a hands-on parent too! After your maternity leave ended and when Amelia had finally reached her toddler years, you absolutely made sure that you were going to take care of her every second, minute, hour and day of your life. As soon as she turned two, she became the inquisitive, smart and ever so curious little girl you and Levi had always hoped for. She had your (h/c) hair and Levi’s icy yet warm and loving milky grey eyes. If the color of Levi’s reminded you of dark and stormy clouds, Amelia’s was gleaming. Like that of the clouds after a terrible storm. She was an absolute blessing and although you weren’t a perfect mother, (spoiling her more than you should) Levi was an amazing father. Growing up without parents was tough for him and he was going to make sure that Amelia is going to have an amazing childhood and be surrounded by the love of two parents that he never had and never got to experience. 

You always and will forever have trust in Levi. There has never been a day where you doubted him. Despite the impressions and assumptions that people have of him. How he was cold, scary, and even calculating. But, you are always quick to shut down those rumors. They don’t know the Levi Ackerman behind the cold and mighty front he shows. He is a man who has gone through so much and yet has so much love and care to give. How he notices and remembers the littlest details, how he never takes anything for granted and how he loves and cherishes everything so wholeheartedly.

When Amelia turned six, you sadly had to go back to work formally. Right timing too because your genius (with very himbo tendencies) younger cousin, Eren, was about to be part of your start-up company and he had a lot of amazing plans that had to come into fruition. Even bringing in a group of his own friends (who all graduated in MIT by the way!) who are willing to contribute so many amazing ideas and hackathons that were just waiting to happen.

The entrance of these youthful and hopeful genius entrepreneurs also brought about the temporary exit of your very own husband from your very own company. Apparently, working with newly graduated Gen Zers (as a millennial) was too much for him. They were nice and they were going to be a very integral part of the company. But, the boomer inside Levi can’t just can’t keep up with this sudden surge of energy and youthfulness within the higher-ups. It was also a great opportunity for him to take care of Amelia even more. So, you didn’t stop him from doing so! 

It’s been a year since he temporarily resigned and became an official-unofficial househusband. Or as your best friend Hanji likes to put it, You are the Girl Boss and he is the Male Wife. Amelia is now 7 years old and she’s currently taking Ballet classes (Levi picks her up during the weekdays, and the both of you pick her up on the weekends) and has developed a hyperfixation over Sanrio Characters and the Disney movie, Frozen. She was growing up to be a wonderful girl and you just can’t wait to hear what she and Levi had done during your absence.

She skips her way back to you, a book tightly clutched in her hands. “SURPRISE!” Amelia gingerly places a book on your hand. You open your eyes and tilt your head in question at the piece of literature she had just given you as you read the title aloud.  “The Way of the House Husband… written by Levi Ackerman.” Your eyes shift to a little circle on the lower side of the cover,  “The husband of (Y/N) Ackerman, the CEO of Survey Corp Tech…!?” 

“Daddy and I made a book while you were away!” She claps her hands together and grabs the book back from you, turning it to the first page. “See there’s even a dedication! To (Y/N) and Amelia! The two brightest stars in my galaxy!”

“Oh that’s too cheesy. No way would your dad write something like this out of the blue, Lili.” You scoff, shaking your head in disbelief. Your daughter looks at you with downcast eyes while you were still trying to process that your husband literally just wrote a whole-ass book while you were away. “Who helped publish this so quickly, Amelia?”

“Uncle Erwin of course!” She’s frowning for one second and now she’s beaming at you again. “Please please read it mommy! Me and daddy worked really really hard on it!” She taps the hardbound cover of the book in rhythms. “This is the Amelia Edition! Daddy said he cut out some stuff so that it would be okay for me to read and for me to give to you once you get home! It’s my come back home gift for you mommy!” She moves the book to your lap and hops up next to you on the loveseat that you were sitting on. Before you know it, Amelia is resting her head on your shoulder and coaxing you to start reading to her like it was a bedtime story. 

You clear your throat and hold her by the waist so that she can feel more secure in her seat. “Okay… okay… let’s begin shall we? In a kingdom far far away…”

“That’s not how the book is like mommy! Read it properly like the way daddy did!”

“I was just joking, honey. Let’s get started. Rule #1 of the House Husband is…”

Rule #1: Fathers, be good to your children. You are the weight of their world.

“One thing I learned as soon as I was at home practically 24/7 is that your child will be more cautious and weary of you. They will observe you because they look up to you. They will watch your every move, follow you around, and will imitate whatever you say and whatever they hear from you. Talk to them, teach them things they need to know, support them in their hobbies, interests, and even if you have to be the extra princess in her tea party, do it.  The thing is, you will leave an eternal mark on the hearts of your children.”

Amelia got even more closer to Levi when he was finally stationed at home. Always grinning from ear to ear and boasting to her classmates how cool her dad was whenever he would pick her up from school. She was proud to tell them Levi’s heritage even if Amelia never got to meet her Grandma Ackerman and Grandpa Ackerman. When Levi would take her out for errands, may they be groceries, cleaning the house, baking, cooking, laundry, or just going on his morning jog, Amelia would be there to accompany him. In fact, she’s gone shopping with Levi so many times that she has memorized the brand names of cleaning detergent and bleach before she could even memorize the multiplication table.

 She’s even caught up with her father’s cynical sense of humor. And because of that, Levi had to tone down on his sardonic jokes around the little girl. Levi wasn’t necessarily physically affectionate but he does soften around Amelia as the little girl never fails to supply him with endless hugs and kisses on the cheek. She may be both a Mommy’s and Daddy’s girl, but the way she looks up to Levi is the kind of father-daughter bond that you hardly see in real life. She aspires to be like him. Even if there were times where she would be scolded by you both, (most especially Levi) she never took that against you.  She sees all the good and positive sides of your husband that others outside of your circle fail to see.

Rule #2: Let your children know that they have other “guardian angels” who they can rely on aside from their parents.

“My daughter has both my wife and I’s best friends to learn from or to look up to. Her kooky aunkling and her blunt uncle have become one of the most precious people in her life. Even the young ins working at Survey Corp Tech have become older siblings to her and get along with her so well. Remember that there will always be close relatives or friends who can and will help them when they lose their way. Let them spread sunshine and love to others.”

Whether it’s a regular trip to Coney Island or your monthly trips to Disneyland, Hanji or Erwin would totally tag along. Amelia absolutely loves and vibes with Hanji’s quirkiness so well. They would wear matching Mickey Mouse ears, ride the kiddie roller coaster that Amelia wanted to ride on a million times per visit, buy her all the ice cream and treats she wants (despite Levi’s warnings and the reprimanding that Hanji has to suffer from the both of you right after.) They just want Amelia to experience all the fun, the joy, and innocence of living in the moment. As a kid, it’s better if she sees how precious life is, how she should cherish it and that she doesn’t have to grow up so fast just yet. 

Erwin on the other hand, brought out Amelia’s intellectual side more. As soon as a new and critically acclaimed children’s book hit the shelves, you bet Amelia has a copy right away. Whenever Levi would take her to Erwin’s bookstore, she wanders around like it’s this huge mysterious archive that can only be accessed by her. The Adults section is forbidden, so were the cheap romance novels in the back, and the books written by youtubers. God forbid she read those. When her Uncle Erwin got her into reading Roald Dahl’s children’s books, you had to watch Amelia run around the penthouse with a little red ribbon tied on top of her hair, wanting to be referred to as Matilda, along with you and Levi having to pretend that she had telekinetic powers for 6 months straight. It was her cutest phase yet and you just know there were many more to come. 

There were also Eren and his friends who loved Amelia dearly whenever she came over to visit. Your little cousin refused to be called Uncle Eren and instead wanted to be called big bro, and in which Amelia happily complied. Whenever it was Amelia’s weekly “Visit Mommy at Work” day, she had her own room in your office where Eren and your other young associates would babysit her. In fact, they would actually take turns in babysitting at your condo whenever you and Levi went out for date night. Amelia was introduced to playing video games like Animal Crossing and Pokemon solely because of them (more specifically because of big bro Jean, big sis Sasha, and big bro connie.) They even ended up influencing her to watch anime when her big brother “Minmin” and big sis “Mimi” accidentally left the TV on and Amelia literally binge-watched half of the existing Studio Ghibli movies to this date. 

Rule #3: Your children will think that you are Superman or Iron Man. Make sure to act like them and never let them down by ruining their innocence and imagination.”

(A little note was attached to this page: Please don’t let Amelia read this. Read her a fairy tale instead while skimming through this.)

“It all started when my daughter found an entire encyclopedia on ancient and legendary family clans around the world. The Ackerman clan was on the very first page after the intro and she read through all 50 pages of it. The look of awe on her face when she read that her dad’s ancestors exhibit physical abilities much higher than the average human. In a 7 year old’s mind and vocabulary, that automatically translates to a superhero akin to that of Superman. 

Ever since then, My daughter has forced me to become more creative with doing very mundane tasks and chores. I pretend to have superpowers. Such as teleporting around the house whilst cleaning. I tell her to close her eyes or else my teleportation powers won’t work. Then when I cook in the kitchen and she watches me intently, I tell her that the salt and pepper have magical properties that only I can touch and hold because to her, at that moment, I was “Doctor Stwange.”

and one time, when I picked her up from school, she was babbling on about how she told her friends and playmates that she had two superhero parents she was very proud of. Then one of the other kids asked if I was a strong soldier who killed huge humanoid monsters using sharp blades. To which I replied that could have possibly happened in a different universe. Her hearty laughs and giggles whenever she sees me using my superpowers makes me anxious over the fact I have to tell her someday that my powers never existed.”

Whilst you were on your monthly trip, you and Levi would have private video calls whenever Amelia was finally put to bed. There, he told you about what happened in Amelia’s ballet classes that week and how the single mothers were more persistent than usual.

They could clearly see that Levi was not interested but apparently the fact that your husband waving his ring finger every single time someone approached him wasn’t obvious enough, apparently the fact that he was married made the risk even more worth it to these prying moms who had nothing better to do. It wasn’t until Amelia had enough and respectfully called them out by saying that his dad was married and he was never going to be interested in Karens (a slang word that she learned from Eren and friends) Since then, the invasion of parent to parent boundaries had finally stopped. Levi was very relieved and at ease whilst telling you the story yet you were laughing your heart out at the ingenious remarks of your very own daughter on top of the irresistible charm and looks of your own husband that made single mothers be damned. 

Rule #4: The most important rule of all: Love your spouse as you want your children to be loved in the future.

“Since my wife is on a business trip right now as I type this and she may or may not know that I had written this book for her to read when she comes home, my daughter came up to me a few days ago and told me how she missed her mom so much. The video calls we had every night were not enough to satisfy her for the remaining days her mother would be gone. She then proceeds to tell me that she loves the way I love (Y/N). My daughter loved how patient I was and how I supported her through every endeavor that her mother had ever thought up with that brilliant mind of hers. She mentioned how I was there for her through every success and failure, through hardships, difficulties and misunderstandings. My daughter was happy because I stuck with her mother through everything. All the pain, suffering, conflicts that we both experienced individually and as husband and wife. Little ears and little eyes are watching and observing the actions and sweet gestures of their parents. Make sure to remember that.”

“What is gravy (grief) if not love persevewing?” (persevering) My daughter had even recounted a quote from the Disney Marvel show, WandaVision just to prove a point to me. That was when I realized something and decided to list down a few things: 

1. The best lovers are the best of friends.

Levi’s relationship with you was rocky at first simply because the two of you didn’t have a lot in common. Your personalities clashed and the two of you could barely make things work in the beginning. He was always well-dressed, on time, and was very prim and proper. However, Levi was cold, strict, and unapproachable. You on the other-hand were quite the opposite. You used to arrive late, didn’t care too much about your style as long as you wore the appropriate outfit, but you were carefree, laidback and friendly. Having to set aside your differences was a process that required sacrifice, time, and effort. It took long and a lot of petty arguments before the two of you fully understood each other, accepted each other's faults and quirks, and became even closer. Both as friends and lovers. You and Levi treat each other not as just the “person I love and I’m married to for the rest of my life”, but also as a best friend for life. Soulmates

2. Their dreams are just as important as yours.

Levi’s dream was to open up a tea shop and start a family with you. That was all he ever wanted. The blissful simplicity of his in comparison to your techy and out of this world ambitions, goes to show how much they weigh as aspirations and wants in life. You have to value your significant other’s dreams and ambitions just as much as you highly value yours. No matter how hard or how simple they are, the both of you can achieve it with the help of each other. The only thing left in your agenda was to open up his long-awaited Tea Shop. You were about to surprise him with the plans of opening one up on the day of his birthday, and you just can’t wait for that day to finally come.

3. You have to let them be free.

Levi absolutely knew what he was getting into when he met you. It was love at first sight when he met you, He drunkenly admitted that one time when he’s had too much champagne on your friday date night. He knew that you were an adventurer. A wandering soul who had a goal and a purpose set in stone. He always knew you were going to reach greater heights and he knew that you would never leave him behind and would always have him go on a ride. He’s always known about your capabilities and your potential and he didn’t want you to stray away from that. And, if the time were to come that you had to leave him behind to soar greater heights, he’d understand that. He’d always let you be free and make sure you don’t fly too close to the sun. That was just how selfless Levi is. The thing is, he knows you would do the same for him. It was a perfect balance. 

4. It is an honor to love and to be loved by them.

To be wrapped in the arms of someone who feels like home or has become the definition of home, To be stargazing with on a chilly summer night in where you talk about your future and your plans, To be sharing a cup of coffee or tea with in the morning and begrudgingly dancing with you against his will, To be watching your child playing in her room and do nothing but look adoringly at the most precious soul to have ever been produced by your encompassing love, and to be spending the rest of your life with someone who has done nothing but be with you through every pivotal moment in your life was such an honor. 

It is an honor to be loved by Levi, as he is honored to be loved by you. 

“...The end.” You close the book with a deep but contented sigh. Tears were welling up in your eyes and you’re trying your best not to break down in front of Amelia. 

“Mommy… are you crying?” She tilts her head in inquiry. “Is it because you’re tired from work?”

“No. baby. These are happy tears, Lili. Don’t worry.”

Before you could speak up once more, you notice Levi had slowly sprung up from the couch, and began to stretch his arms. His eyes widen when he sees you from the opposite couch. “(Y/N)... you were supposed to arrive at 6 AM right? Amelia and I were supposed to pick you-”

Amelia opens her mouth to speak as she jumps down from the couch and crawls up to sit next to Levi. “Daddy! I showed Mommy the book you wrote! She loved it! Right, Mommy?”

“You did?” Your husband perks up from his seat, clearing his throat. “T-that’s not the entire book yet by the way. We had to give back the original copies to Erwin for reprinting. The self-help book is currently rising up the charts to be a New York Times Best Seller.” 

Before Levi could properly react, you move to the free space on the couch next to him. Holding his hand and gazing into his forlorn yet loving eyes, you muttered. “Love, that’s amazing. I’m really really proud of you. Next time though, please do tell me that you’ve written a self-help book and dethroned all those mommy authors from the bestselling charts.” 

Levi stifles a laugh, stroking your thumb and bringing you and Amelia closer to him for warmth. “I will. I will.” 

Amelia looks up at the two of you, squeezing out of the sandwich, so that you and Levi can have your quality time with each other. “Goodnight Mom! Goodnight Dad!” She approaches the two of you so that she can be given her nightly kiss on the cheek as she retreats to her room. 

“What if I write a novel too?” You joke, snuggling up to Levi, your husband wrapping his arm around you. “The title could be… The way of the Wife boss?” 

“That could be a good sequel. A shared book universe. Then, Amelia could continue the collection when we’re old and sour as hell.” Levi mused.

“Pfft. I guess only time will tell. I love you Levi.”

“I love you too (Y/N).”

#attack on titan x reader #aot x reader #snk x reader #levi x reader #levi ackerman x reader #levi ackerman fluff #shingeki no kyojin x reader #snk fluff #aot fluff #attack on titan fluff #attack on titan #shingeki no kyojin #levi ackerman

[dilfgmancoolatta]

can yuo write angsty freelatta........-benryphobic

@benryphobic

Gordon looks down at the half-eaten pizza, his appetite almost completely gone. He was initially suspicious of it- as much as he trusted Tommy, he had no idea what Mr. Coolatta’s intentions were. But after seeing everyone else dig in (well, everyone who had made it out of the boss battle alive), he let himself give in. It was horrible, but horrible in the way that most Chuck E. Cheese pizza generally is. Mr. Coolatta pulled out all the stops for this one, huh?

He sighs, gently nudging his paper plate away. He’s not really sure what to do. He doubts Mr. Coolatta would react well to being asked when they could leave- he seems really protective of his son.

Gordon decides to get some fresh air. Quietly pushing in his chair, he sneaks away from the group, Mr. Coolatta and Bubby seemingly distracting by a story Dr. Coomer was telling from the Engineering department.

He breathes a sigh of relief once the door closes behind him. He looks up at the sky as he slides down the wall. It’s strikingly beautiful, yet chilling. It’s a sky Gordon’s never seen before, with a large spiral galaxy, that definitely wasn’t the Milky Way, taking up much of it. Planets upon planets and stars upon stars that Gordon couldn’t recognize.

“That’s Andromeda o- up there, by the way.”

Gordon jolts, feeling his heart rate spike, before laughing. “Tommy, don’t scare me like that, man. Kinda still on edge.”

“Oh-” Tommy covers his mouth. “I’m sorry, Mr. Freeman, I thought you knew I was out here.”

Gordon waves him off. “It’s not a big deal. Just- Thought I should let you know.” Tommy nods. “Andromeda’s a lot bigger than I remember.”

“Mmhm! I told my dad once that Andromeda w- is my favorite galaxy. And after that, he always made sure Andromeda was the biggest thing in the night sky in his pocket dimensions.”

“That’s… honestly pretty sweet.”

Tommy nods, sitting down next to Gordon. “My Dad’s a good guy, even if he is pretty weird sometimes. Though I guess I can’t talk.”

“I don’t think you’re weird, Tommy.”

Tommy looks at him in disbelief.

“Mr. Freeman, I wouldn’t be so sure-”

“Listen, we’ve got a lab grown human, a man who’s been cloned, like, 1000 times, and then there’s you. I don’t think the identity of your dad makes you weird.”

Tommy looks like he wants to say something, but seemingly decides against it. Instead, he decides on a simple “Thank you.”

The two sit in silence for a few moments, staring up into the night sky.

“Did something happen at the party?” Tommy asks. “I hope my dad wasn’t being weird about the Chuck E. Cheese debate-thing.”

Gordon shakes his head. “No, I just needed some fresh air. Gordon sensory overload time was coming up, I could feel it. Wasn’t that hungry either.”

Tommy nods. “I understand. That… happens to me too. The only reason I could handle the arcade inside is because my dad makes the machines quieter-” He frowns and scrunches his nose. “But you don’t want to hear about all that.” He waves him off.

And there it is.

It’s a pattern Gordon’s noticed throughout their time in Black Mesa. Every time Tommy seemed like he was about to express any negative emotion, he’d change the subject and say something about Gordon not wanting to hear it.

So he takes a chance.

“But what if I do want to hear it?”

That wasn’t the answer Tommy seemed to be expecting.

“I mean- there’s not much more to it. It’s just me not e- liking loud noises. Nothing all that interesting.”

“It’s not about it being interesting, Tommy. You don’t have to dismiss your own feelings.” Tommy looks at him, his eyebrows furrowed in an unsure look. “You’ve been, like, my emotional rock throughout Black Mesa. You’ve gotta let me return the favor.”

“I d- really don’t want you to think any less of me.”

“Why would I?”

Tommy looks away from Gordon. “I’ve learned from experience, Mr. Freeman. There isn’t r- any way for someone like me to be upset without being treated like a child throwing a tantrum. And then they talk about you like you’re not even in the room-”

Oh.

Unfortunately, the experience is all-too-familiar to Gordon.

“I’ve gotten the same shit- it’s awful.”

“You... have? I never thought that of you- I mean, anyone in your situation might- would be a little on edge.”

“I mean, even before the Black Mesa incident. People would either use kiddie gloves around me or flat out tell me I was overreacting whenever I was slightly upset. So I do somewhat get it, and you don’t need to expect anything like that from me.”

Tommy nods, a small smile beginning to form. It’s a very nice smile- No, Gordon, now is not the time for gay thoughts.

“And I know I shouldn’t have let them win, and I really did try to not give in, but it just got so ti- exhausting going to work everyday with people who saw you as an overgrown child.” Tommy brings his knees to his chest and rests his head on them.

“I mean, I don’t think you ‘should’ have done anything in that situation.” Gordon shrugs. “I don’t think making a statement is worth more than making things bearable for you. It’s not your job to ‘show them who’s boss’.”

“Mm,” Tommy hums, taking his right arm off of his legs and putting it in between them. “It just doesn’t sit right with me that I ba- essentially taught them that that behavior works.”

Gordon gives his hand a comforting squeeze. “You didn’t teach them anything. They were shitty people to begin with, and even if you refused to ‘give in’, I doubt they would’ve changed their minds. You just would’ve been even more miserable.” He feels Tommy shift his hand so their fingers are intertwined. Don’t blush, don’t blush, don’t blush- “If you don’t mind me asking, couldn’t you have told your dad about it? He doesn’t seem like the type to let that slide.”

Tommy shakes his head. “He’s not, but…” he trails off. “Listen, my dads a go- great guy. If I had told him about how I was being treated at work he probably would’ve… either got them fired, at the very least, or have locked them in a void for who knows how long to ‘teach them a lesson’.” Gordon can’t tell if that’s a joke or not- from what little he knows about Mr. Coolatta, it probably isn’t. “But I’m a 37 year old man. My dad wants to protect me from the world, and I don’t really blame him for that, but I need to fight my own battles. I’m not going to be the kind of person that calls their dad at the first sign of danger.”

Gordon nods, brushing his thumb across Tommy’s hand. He understands where Tommy’s coming from. As a father himself, it’s been very hard to ignore his immediate impulse to protect Joshua from anything that could potentially harm him. He can’t imagine what it’ll be like a few years from now when there are dangers Gordon couldn’t protect Josh from even if he did try. “I can’t blame you for that. But I hope that line of logic hasn’t lead to you refusing to ask anyone else for help.”

“Well…”

“Tommy.”

“I’m gonna start trying to change that behavior, I swear!” Tommy laughs, doing an ‘x’ sign over his heart.

“Besides, considering the whole Resonance Cascade thing, I doubt your shitty ex-coworkers will be able to be shitty to anyone else.”

Tommy laughs, shaking his head. “You’re right about that, Mr. Freeman-”

“You can call me Gordon, you know.”

“I- Are you sure?”

“I think, after everything we’ve been through together, we’re well past the awkward coworkers stage of friendship.”

“I mean, if you’re sure about that… Gordon.” Never before had hearing his name filled him with more joy. “But… I don’t know. It’s st- silly, but I still feel bad that they died? Even though they were awful to me.”

Gordon shakes his head. “I don’t think it’s silly at all, man. Feelings are really fucking complicated- Not to mention you’re probably not mourning them specifically, just the fact that people died. You’ve got a big heart, there’s nothing silly or stupid about it.”

“You do too, M- Gordon. You’re a very kind person.”

They stare at each other for a few moments, both of them red as a beet.

“I think…” Gordon gulps, hoping how flustered he is isn’t that obvious. “I think I’m ready to go back inside.”

Tommy nods, standing up and pulling Gordon up with him. They both turn their heads to look inside the Chuck E. Cheese, seeing Mr. Coolatta somehow playing a perfect game of Skee-ball while Dr. Coomer and Bubby cheer on. Gordon looks at their hands, still intertwined, then back up to Tommy.

“C’mon, before the pizza gets cold.” Gordon opens the door with his shoulder, grinning at Tommy.

Tommy follows him in, and the Birthday Party At The End of the World continues on.

#freelatta #gordon freeman #hlvrai #tommy coolatta #nhlvrai #gordos feetman #halflife vr but the ai is self aware #I TRIED TO MAKE THIS ANGSTY BUT IT ENDED UP BEING VENTY SORRY

[niqhtlord01]

Humans are weird: Confidence to inspire fear

( Don’t forget to come see my on my new patreon and support me for early access to stories and personal story requests :D https://www.patreon.com/NiqhtLord )

The bridge of the freighter felt like it had become a nightmare as Lithel awoke.

He tried to open his eyes but even when open the room refused to stop spinning. One of his upper left eyes refused to open and as Lithel attempted to reach up with one of his arms he found that he could not move it as well.

Tilting his head down and saw through his blurry eyes that a section of the bridge ceiling had collapsed atop him and was pinning him to the deck. He tried to rise but the weight was too heavy. Just as he began pondering if this would be his end he felt the debris shift atop him. "Captain!" Lithel heard someone calling him but the sound felt like it was coming from everywhere. "Captain can you hear me!?"

Blinking several more times Lithel was able to focus and he saw his second in command Michael rushing over. He could hear several other footsteps approaching and not long after the metal pinning him to the floor being lifted off and a strong pair of arms pulling him out.

"I got you sir, just take it easy."

Lithel moved his mouth to thank him but nothing came out but a soft gurgle and whimper.

Only now as he was pulled free did Lithel see the damage done to his bridge. Halve the consoles were shattered, the data streams were flickering rapidly as an overload of information from across the ship poured in, and at one of the walls had several panels blown out and were currently on fire.

Michael helped lay him down across the floor while a medic rushed over and began treating him. Lithel was about to sit up and take back his command throne when the communications officer rushed over.

"Message coming in sir; it's from the pirates."

Lithel's eyes went wide and he tried to sit up but Michael put a hand on his shoulder and shook his head. They had served together aboard the Red Manta for some twenty years and had developed an understanding that needed no words.

He saw the look in Michael's eyes and knew he would take care of the situation and instead laid back down.

"Put them through." Michael said as the communication officer scurried off and began fiddling with the only remaining working communication console.

Within moments the data feeds stopped streaming information and displayed an image. On the opposite end series of figures could be seen standing around a command throne similar to Lithel's were it not for the adorning skulls and bones of various species draped over it.

They were muscular mixture of aliens ranging from lizard like creatures with sharpened teeth to thin limbed beings looking like living twigs, and even a strange blob like creature that had a knife wedged within it. But the most impressive of the figures was sitting atop the throne itself.

It had the shape of a humanoid figure but it appeared as a swirling cloud of black ink ever shifting. It wore no clothing and had no distinguishable features save for a pair of crimson red eyes.

"Surrender."

It was a single word spoken by the black ink creature before Michael could even say a word. The crew around it chuckled and laughed as if sizing up their soon to be prize; though Michael would soon throw a wrench into their celebration.  

"Are you insane!?" he spoke. His stance was firm and unwavering with his feet planted into the decking as if he was bracing for a storm. "Do you have any idea what you have done?"

"Who, are you?" the black ink creature spoke as it raised a talon like finger at Michael, the ink bleeding off of it in drips as it did so.

"I am Captain Michael Zbari of the human reformation, transporting goods to the homeworld."

The pirates appeared confused at this announcement and murmured among themselves before the ink creature held up a hand. The medic treating Lithel appeared to take just as much of the confusion from the announcement and was about to say something when Lithel forestalled him. He knew Michael was playing a dangerous game, and it might just be there only way of getting out of this.

"You, lie." The words were spoken as if through water and Lithel could barely understand them as the thing continued. "The captain, is not human; this, we know."

"First you attack my ship unprovoked and now you claim I am not captain of my own ship?!"

His confidence radiated from him as he spoke and some of the pirates appeared taken aback. They were the ones who had attacked and now had them all at gun point. With a single word they could destroy the Red Manta and be on their way yet this human was acting as if they were the ones who should be sorry.

"Do you have any idea who are cargo is for?" Michael continued. "Should, we, care?" the ink being replied. "You should when Emperor Galvoc finds out you stole his personal shipment."

The smirks of the pirates dropped away instantly at this. The mere mention of the human emperor's name gave them pause as if they had just been struck by a cannon. The ink being leaned forward now on both arms and fixed the camera with a burning gaze.

"You, lie."

Michael scoffed at this and raised his arms out. "Nineteen containers of freshly cut refrigerated Borgan meat, twelve containers of the finest wines of the Nebula Rim, thirty six crates of gem stones from the fire pit mines of Draxon Iv, and that's just the tip of the ice berg."

The ink monster relaxed back into it's throne at this. "An, impressive, haul, indeed." it said and some of the pirates began grinning again but Michael continued to speak.

"For one with a death wish, an impressive haul for sure."

Michael stepped towards the monitor. "You could kill us and steal all of our cargo to sell but it won't matter; because the emperor will hear of this and will hunt you down to the farthest ends of the universe."

The ink thing chuckled and Michael's face frowned. "By attacking his shipment you have essentially declared war on him; you do realize that don't you?"

At this the black goo like creature stopped chuckling.

"He controls the largest fleet of ships to ever sail the void;  their numbers alone change gravity of entire systems with their passing."

"His armies are beyond counting and the march of their feet can crack planets in two."

"The depths of his depravity for torture against his enemies boundless and of such horrific that even the Draxic are afraid to incur his wrath."

Fixing an equally dark glare now Michael faced down the ink being. "You have no idea the hurricane you just sailed into."

The pirates began to argue among themselves but the black creature let out a deep roar that sounded as if bubbling tar could scream.

"He, will, never, know!" it said, "We, will, be, long, gone, and, you, all, dead!"

It was Michael's turn to smirk as he pulled out a small box like device with a blinking red light.

"This, is an emergency transmitter capable of reaching across five sectors." he held it out clearly so all the pirates could see. "Once activated it calls in a relief fleet to warp to our position within twenty minutes; and I activated it fifteen minutes ago."

For the first time the ink creature rose from its throne and pushed several of the pirates aside with surprising strength for a creature that appeared to be made of living oil.

"You, bluff!" is said.

"You could stay and board us to call it, but when they arrive and blow your scrap heap of a ship out of the stars I don't think it'll really matter what you think now will it?"

The two stared down each other, neither speaking a word yet unwilling to back down in the face of this challenge.

Lithel watched with ever clearing eyes as the pirates became increasingly anxious.

"Tick." Michael made a sound similar the clock arms of his wrist time device. "Tick, tick tick tick."

"Silence!" the ink creature bellowed, but Michael continued.

"Time's running out for you." His face was devoid of emotion save a devlish smirk. "Tick, tick, tick, tick!"

"I said silence!"

"Time's running out little pirate." Michael quipped back, "Tick, tick, tick, tick!"

The pirates were not frantic and some even began talking to the ink creature in an alien language none of the red manta crew could understand but it appeared to upset the ink being.

Letting out another roar the screen suddenly went dead leaving the bridge crew silent as the repair teams finally shuffled in to douse the flames.

Through the viewport Lithel could see the pirate ship burning retro boosters and turning around as fast as it could before warping away.

Michael stood upright for a few moments more after they fled back to the warp before collapsing down to the ground. Streaks of sweat began pouring down his face like rivers and he began breathing rapidly.

Lithel raised himself on to his arms unsteadily and looked at Michael.

"How did you know that would work?"

Michael looked at him as if he just remembered he wasn't alone on the bridge and looked embarrassed.

"When you act like you have the backing of the biggest thug in the yard, the other rats tend to leave you alone."

"So by claiming to be the emperors personal shipment.." Lithel began as he connected the dots.

"They would fear the hell hammer that would fall on them should they attempt to steal from the biggest threat the galaxy has ever seen."

Lithel was surprised that such an act of subterfuge worked but they were still alive and he would be the last to complain on how it was handled. He did point to the strange blinking box Michael still clutched in his hand.

"What is that device?"

Michael looked at it for a moment before chucking it over to Lithel who gracefully caught it mid air.

"It's a remote control for my room lights."

Lithel looked at it dumbfounded but before he could inquire more from Michael he saw his second in command pass out on the bridge as the stress of the attack and the performance he just made finally caught up to him.

#HUMANS ARE WEIRD #humans are insane #humans are space orcs #humans are space oddities #scifi #story

[lihikainanea]

i was thinking….tiger and bill are getting ready for an event. maybe it’s a premier, or just something where bill is going to be the center of attention and he needs to be poised and on all night. tiger is going as his plus one, but she’s extremely anxious. all she wants to do is snuggle up with her good dude in the privacy of their own home but bill can’t skip this event and she doesn’t want him to go alone because he needs moral support, so she insists on tagging along. however, she’s slowly panicking inside the entire night. their hotel room is a hub of activity, with people going in and out. but through the chaos bill can tell tiger is struggling.

she doesn’t want to put a damper on the night so she doesn’t go to him for comfort, but thankfully, he swoops in when it becomes evident that she needs him. he politely requests that everyone leave the room for a few minutes, and once they’re completely alone, he leads tiger over to the bed, where he sits on the edge and instructs her to kneel. he helps soothe her, letting her suck on his fingers and nuzzle against his thigh, assuring her that it’s going to be okay. it helps calm her, and gives her the boost she needs to get through the night. especially when he promises that he’ll reward her later on for being such a good girl for him 🥰

Baby ever since this came in, I have been just itching to drabble it and I haven't had time. But this thought? This thought has been on my mind all week, because it's beautiful. Tiger starting to feel a bit overwhelmed by Bill's world but knowing she's not in a safe enough space to let it show, to let him take care of it. But Bill looking at her and knowing anyway, and stepping in to take care of it.

Protector Bill, stepping up to the plate every time. God it just sends me and it's Thursday night but technically my Friday because it's Canadian Thanksgiving, I've had a martini, so buckle up--let's talk about this.

There is something so beautiful about being known. Something so terrifying but simultaneously comforting to be known by someone that you've had the courage to be vulnerable with, someone you've have the courage to let step in and help you. Someone who wants to be the person who always knows, the person who is your comfort, your soothing balm, and the one who will step in the minute they see that things are too much for you.

So like, here's the thing. Bill's world? It intimidates the shit out of tiger. It really does. She knows him so well at this point that she honestly just forgets that he's famous, she forgets he has this whole other side to him--and that's the only side the world sees. Tiger sees a side that is so completely different, that it's easy to forget the other exists. To tiger, Bill is....he's Bill. He's her biggest cheerleader, her closest confidant, her rock. He's the guy who takes care of her, always, and who puts her needs first. He's the guy who literally blinks one eye at a time when he's too tired, he's the guy with the 5 o'clock shadow who rumbles in her ear and wakes her up every morning, the guy who makes the best scrambled eggs on the planet and who cuts the crusts off of her sandwich for her.

But he's also a Skarsgard, from a famous family, movie star. Dude behind the terrifying Pennywise remake. He's the guy on the talk shows, the guy on the press junkets, on the red carpet.

But that guy--that guy doesn't exist to tiger. So when the two worlds collide, tiger sometimes has a hard time just....computing all of it.

And you know, for his part, Bill isn't the biggest fan of press junkets or opening night. There's just too much buzz for his humble Swedish heart. It's too many interviews, each only 5 minutes long but they last for days, and it's all the same questions. It's not the journalists' fault--they all want the same scoop. Bill regurgitates the same answers hundreds of times and still tries to sound enthusiastic. It's an endless loop of talk shows, with fake smiles and terrible jokes. He doesn't like it, which is always why he appreciates the moral support, the steadiness that she brings to him. She comes along for the big ones, the big releases where he knows he's going to need her--need her balance, her calming presence, where he needs someone or something he can focus on other than himself. Because everyone is focusing on him. But when she's there? He can focus on if she ate breakfast, if she's hungry, if she's warm enough. He can focus on what her plans are in the afternoon, making sure he's around when she gets back. He can focus on holding her close, scooping her up into his lap as they eat dinner in their bathrobes in a fancy hotel. He doesn't have to focus on the next 500 interviews tomorrow, the suit tailoring, walking the red carpet--he can focus on her, if she had a good day, making sure she eats dinner.

It balances him out.

And tiger knows that, she knows he needs the moral support. But that's also why she feels terrible when she starts to slip a bit, when her mind starts to get away on her--because she should be the one steadying him, but all of a sudden she's the one who needs him in a real bad way, when he already has enough to worry about.

And she tries, you know? She tries to keep it together--but it's just too hard. People have been in their space all day--journalists in and out of their room on a 5-minute rotation. Bill has his TV make up on, he's in a coordinated outfit from his stylist, and tiger just feels like everyone is getting a piece of what's her. Journalists are asking personal questions. Stylists are all up on him, adjusting shit. His groomer is getting so close, so often. And gradually, but pretty quickly--tiger can't see her Bill anymore. She can't see the kind eyes, the soft smile. All she sees is his fake smile, his rehearsed answers, clothes that he would probably never wear of his own accord.

She can't see him there, and suddenly, she starts to not feel so safe anymore. There's too many people, it's all just too fast and too fake, and she starts to slip.

She tries desperately to hide it--Bill hates days like these anyway, and knowing that she's now doing so well would just add a ton of stress on his plate, when that's the last thing he needs. She's here to support him, and if she's slipping then it means he needs to start taking care of her and she just...she feels so guilty at that. So she tries to hide it. His publicist already warns any journalist that Bill won't be taking questions about his plus one, the girl in the corner looking closer and closer to a panic attack--so at least there's that. Tiger moves around the room pretty freely, because it's a huge room and as long as she stays away from the cameras and any of the lightning, she can slip by undetected.

But Bill knows. Because Bill always knows.

Tiger has a lot of tells. She'll fidget. She'll run her hand through her hair. She'll pick at her lips. All of these things are indicators that Bill will pick up on immediately, but beyond that--he just sees it. It's completely imperceptible to everyone else, but Bill sees her slipping. Sees her getting small in a bad way. And to make things even worse--he sees her trying to hide it from him. He sees her doing everything she can to try and make it seem like she's okay, just to support him.

There's a moment here and there for respite--Bill gets 10 minutes between interviews every so often just so he can take a piss in peace, grab a quick bite to eat, take a brain break. They're few and far between, but they're there--and one the first one, he doesn't even wait for the journalist to leave before he makes a beeline for tiger. He juts his chin to the next room--an empty room, one with a door, and she quickly follows him there. He shuts the door behind them, and promptly grabs her face gently--and kisses the hell out of her. It's long and deep, and he doesn't stop until he has to. Tiger is putty in his arms, he's supporting her full weight, but he just kisses the hell out of her.

"Hi," he says softly when he breaks away.

"Hi," she squeaks out.

"You doing okay?" he asks, giving her another soft kiss.

"Yeah," she stammers.

"Convince me."

She pouts, closing her hands around his biceps and leaning her forehead into his chest.

"I'm fine," she lies, "Are you okay?"

He doesn't answer, just quirks a brow at her. Suddenly, her face is pinched with guilt--god, she's there to support him, and here she is falling apart. And now he has to deal with that. Before she even realizes her expression, Bill pokes the line between her eyebrows, rubs his thumb over it to smooth it out.

"Nuh uh," he says, "None of that."

"None of what?"

"That," he runs his thumb over her brows, smiling softly at her as he presses his nose to hers. "I'll make it better, sweet girl. Just hold on a bit longer for me."

"Bill," she whines, "You shouldn't have to--"

"I want to," he interrupts. She whines again, but he tuts her.

"I need it too, tiger," he says softly, "You needing me. It helps me."

Tiger jumps at the knock on the door, but Bill just hugs her in tighter and kisses her again.

"Soon," he promises, "Just hold on a bit more."

And she tries, you know? She does. It doesn't go well, but she tries. And knowing that Bill knows just somehow makes it a little better, a little more manageable--because he told her he'd take care of it, and she knows he will. She just has to wait. Now it's not a matter of IF she'll get what she needs, it's just a matter of when. And that's better.

At the end of the day, when the interviews are done but the glam squad shows up to get him ready for the red carpet, Bill holds his hands up and smiles kindly.

"Sorry everyone, but I need a few minutes," he announces, "Thank you all for being here and being on time, but I'll see you in a bit."

His publicist puts her hand on his arm, her brows pinched, and says a few words in Swedish. Bill doesn't falter. Not for a second. He keeps his smile, and says some words back.

This is not up for negotiation. This is final.

Truth be told, his humble Swedish side is probably killing him on this--everyone is here on time, and he pulls the prima donna card and shoos everyone out of his room and makes them wait. This delay will make him late to the red carpet, but he doesn't care. Nothing else matters in that moment, except tiger and making sure she's okay. That's the only thing that matters.

More hushed words from his publicist. Bill doesn't budge an inch, and suddenly his smile gets a little more tense. He raises his eyebrows, and his message is clear.

And then with a nod from his publicist to the awaiting entourage, suddenly everybody is leaving the room--finally. The lights are gone, there's no cameras, there's nobody in the room except the two of them. At long last. Tiger looks to hims nervously, but he just calmly shuts the door behind everybody and then turns to her. He walks over to the sofa slowly, every bit authoritative, and plucks two cushions and puts them on the floor.

"On your knees," he says to her. Tiger all but dives for it, rushing to him and then holding onto his hands as she lowers down.

"You're going to be late," she mumbles, settling on her knees. Bill runs his fingers through her hair.

"Is that up to you to worry about?" he asks softly.

"No," she mumbles. And she can't help it, once she's on her knees she just sighs in relief--a deep exhale, her shoulders hunching over as she rests her forehead on his thigh.

"Talk to me," he says, running his thumb over her lips. When she tries to take it in her mouth he pulls it back, and she whimpers.

"It's just a lot," she admits, "All of this."

"How so?"

"I know you, and this....isn't you," she tells him, "And I just missed you."

It's his turn to sigh, and he pushes his thumb into her mouth as he crouches down to be eye level with her.

"You're the only one who knows me tiger," he tells her, "The only one. None of this is real."

She grabs onto his wrist, pulling his thumb out and kissing the pad of it.

"I know," she mumbles, "God, I'm here to support you and here I am a fucking mess over nothing."

"It's not nothing," he soothes, "Tiger, this is a side of me that isn't...me."

She sighs, running her hand through her hair.

"You're going to be late," she huffs, going to stand. But Bill pushes her shoulders back down.

"First of all, you don't make the rules around here kid," he says sternly, "Second of all, if I'm 10 minutes late--may as well be 30."

"Bill--"

But he clamps a hand over her mouth, and his face gets just a little mean.

"Tiger," he leans in real close, "I will throw you over my knee right here. Try me."

She retracts at that, sink a little more into herself. He reaches for his belt, undoing it and then popping the button on his jeans.

"Are you going to be my good girl?" he warns, "Or are you going to make me spank you so hard, you won't be able to sit tonight?"

She bites her lip, reaching to pull him out of his jeans but he smacks her hands away.

"Answer me."

"I'll be good," she promises, "Please, bud."

"There's my good girl," he says, pulling his length out. With a hand on the back of her head, he pulls her in closer.

"Nice and slow," he says, "We have all the time in the world sweet girl."

(if we even dirtier, they totally have the secks after and he comes inside--and uses a plug. And that night, each time he looks at her, he just knows she's filled up with him and it fuels every single possessive fibre of his being.)

#sub tiger #bill skarsgard #bill skarsgard drabble #BFF!Bill #bill skarsgard fanfic #bill skarsgard fanfiction #bill skasgard fiction

[lebenspurpur]

nocturnal - Vincent Sinclair

Pairing: Vincent Sinclair x reader

Summary: This is so poetic idek

Warnings: None 

********************************************************************************

I often think that the night is more alive and more richly colored than the day.

-- Vincent Van Gogh

Sunlight.

What an interesting topic.

It emerges from so far away human metric systems can't even describe the distance but somehow it still binds us to life. Without the touch of the sun's golden arms, we vanish.

It can kill as well. Sometimes the big star seems to be angry at us frail humans. Then it scorches down, its usual warmth gone and replaced by glazing heat.

I like to believe that the sun is like a mother to us.

Have you ever listened to a pregnant woman talk? Yes?

Then you know what I am talking about. They glow. As if the second life chained to their bodies sets them alight.

The sun glows as well. Maybe not in the same way a pregnant woman does but the star definitely does glow.

When mother sun is happy with us she gives us treats, warm days with enough wind to cool us down, protect us. When mother is angry she destroys everything that can shield us. Her fury is then inevitable.

But the sun is also dishonest. Her warm embrace is slowly destroying our home. I suppose her love is just too big.

And well if the sun is our mother, the moon is our father.

He guards us when mama can't. His arms aren't warm, they're cold and white. Somehow serene.

In my imagination mama wears a yellow suit. Her hair is the prettiest shade of orange, a nice and somber shade of marmalade. She's wearing her favorite sunglasses, red triangles to make her look like one of 'em hippies back before my time.

Papa wears a long, silver dress. It swivels around his feet when he moves and I can't help but marvel at the smooth movements of the cloth. A tiara is seated on his midnight-blue hair. It's silver and it shimmers like a thousand stars are kept in its crystals.

When mama laughs, birds start to sing and chirp. The plants lift their head to admire her white smile and the animals wake from their slumber to pay their respects.

When papa cries, his tears rain down on us. When they hit the shell our planet is kept in, they paint it in all kinds of colors. People travel miles to see papa cry.

There surely are thousands of other mama's and papa's out there. Thousand other children.

"You look sleepy."

"I'm not. I just feel peaceful."

We're silent. I can hear him breathing slowly. It is hoarse and raspy, like always.

He is in pain as well. I can feel his muscles, tense from being in pain. It must be horrible to have a constant ache in your throat.

I want to help him. I always wanted to. And helping him has been the biggest journey of my life.

The road has been long and bumpy at its best. Sometimes it completely stops and we have to turn around and find another way.

But we're slowly getting better at walking. Now it doesn't matter if the road's bumpy anymore. Maybe we will also get new shoes.

"What are you thinking about?"

I smile.

"You. I am thinking about you."

He moves over to me. I can feel him sitting down behind me. His thighs creep up next to mine. Seconds later I feel two arms envelop me.

His nimble fingers trace my hips without a care in the world, they keep on exploring my body like they help him see. Ten little eyes, one for each finger. Or more, who knows? Perhaps one finger has more than just one eye.

He sighs. The hot puff of air rushes past my ear. It toys with my hair for a second and leaves me again. Vincent's chin takes its place next to my face.

His skin is smooth against my face, I wonder how he keeps it so clean. It's cold as well indicating that he just entered the house.

"What did you do today?"

"I made a new statue."

Vincent works as a sculptor. That way he only needs wax and his hands to stay occupied. He has the talent and idea from his momma. She had the plan to make a giant house, purely out of wax!

Vincent is currently working on his momma's dream. His twin Bo is helping him. I can't visit it yet. Vincent says it's still not finished and he's a perfectionist.

Well that's not what he said. Vincent said everything should be perfect for me. So I have to wait until the house is perfect. I can't wait to be a witness of his life's work.

"Of whom?"

"No one particular. It was inspired by a hitchhiker Bo picked up last week though."

"Can I be there with you someday? When you make one?"

"As soon as it is safe I will gladly take you with me, love."

His voice calms me immensely and I lean my head back. A raw chuckle can be heard from Vincent.  

"Did you ever make a statue of me?"

"At least a hundred."

Vincent often tells me that I'm his muse. His favorite piece of art. I suppose that's how artists compliment someone.

"Is everyone doing okay? How is Bo?"

He usually talks a lot about his brother. Bo is very important to him.

Unfortunately I've never met Bo before. Vincent says he is a busy man since he's the only one in Ambrose who really has a job and all. Apparently Bo's gas station is the only one in a hundred miles radius.  People often visit the city and he has to help them all the time.

It's slowly getting dark. I know it's true because the crickets outside are louder than before. It must be nearing 10 pm.

I yawn as I feel my exhausted bones ache for rest.

"For someone who's not tired you do sound a bit sleepy."

"Perhaps I am a little bit tired."

I soon fall asleep, my head seated on his shoulder, his long hair being my pillow.

Vincent carries me to our room, he puts the crutches away and kisses the lids over my sightless orbs to sleep.

Vincent is the sun to my moon.

#vincent sinclair #house of wax #vincent sinclair x reader #vincent x reader

[writing-fanics]

Mamoru X Fem!Reader

•[ Legend of the Forgotten Moon Princess ]•

[Part I]

[ y/n was reincarnated before Usagi, so she’s around Mamoru’s age.. they are still twins but it’s confusing cause I’m making things confusing ]

[ Y/n ] sighed, as she looked out the window. Looking up at the moon, every night she’d do this. It always seemed to give her comfort, and the moon felt more like home than it did on Earth.

“I wonder, if the moon princess. Looked at the Earth from the moon, wondering if her lover was doing the same.” She says, looking up at the moon with wonder in her eyes.

The moon seemed to look back at her, as if it was listening to her thoughts what she was saying.

She touched the necklace, the was wrapped around her neck. She stared at the moon, reaching her hand out as if to touch it.

‘Find Me...’

She heard a voice say. She looked around, for any sign of someone.

“Who’s there?” She says, looking around and finds no one. She sighs, sitting down on her balcony and looks back up at the moon.

“What I want most in the world is the love, that Prince Endymion and Princess Y/n had for each-other.” She says, looking up at the moon.

“As if that would ever happen though.” She says, laughing at herself. She looks down, smiling softly.

She stands up, and dusts herself off. And walks inside her apartment, closing the balcony door behind her; and goes to her room to sleep.

‘Find me, please don’t forget about me.’ A voice said, as [Y/n] looked around for the source of the voice.

‘Who’s there! Where are you?’ She shouted, looking around trying to find the voice. It sounded so familiar.

‘Find me, remember who I am.’ The voice says, appearing as an apparition but fading before she could look at it.

‘W-who are you?’ She shouts, nervously looking around. She begins to walk, and the ground beneath her turns into water, and she falls in.

She screams, in the water thrashing trying to swim up but it sees to be getting further and further away.

‘Find me, my Star.’ The voice said, appearing before her but she passes out before she got a good look at them.

[ Y/n ] wakes up, gasping for air. Sweat ran down her forehead, she clenched her blanket as she looks down.

“Who was that?” She says, out of breath. After a few moments she finally calms down, and looks out her window.

It’s morning. The sun was out, and she missed the moon already.

She sighed, and looked at her alarm clock. Her eyes widened, at the time.

8:50

“I’m late!” She shouted, frantically getting out of bed. And running to her closet, grabbing her clothes and then into the bathroom.

Showering, getting dressed, and getting ready for the day. “Oh man, I’m so late.” She shouted, as she left her apartment.

She ran down the hallway, “Oh man, my boss is gonna kill me.” She cried, as she was about to reach the elevator.

Someone was coming out of their apartment, and she accidentally ran into them. They both groan, “Excuse me, I’m so sorry.” She said, but she didn’t have time to stay.

She didn’t know, that her necklace fell to the ground. And she continued making her way to the elevator.

The person she bumped into, was stunned didn’t even have a chance to say it was okay. He shrugged it off, and was about to walk towards the elevator.

But noticed the necklace, on the ground. “She must’ve dropped it, when she ran into me.” He says, picking it up.

As he looked at it, a wave of familiarity hit him. It was as if he’s seen this necklace before. The necklace was in the shape of a star, with a crescent moon around it.

[ Y/n ] arrived at her job, and bowed at her boss constantly. Apologizing for being late. She was a assistant teacher, at Juban Middle School.

And she went to a university, in the afternoon. It was a lot of work, but she always had the time. She was always busy, and didn’t really have time for relationships.

As she made her way, up the stairs a girl came running passed her. Causing the girl to, trip and fall.

“Ow~.” The girl groaned in pain, she rubbed the back of her head.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” [ Y/n ] says, to her helping her up. She smiles at her.

“My name is L/n Y/n, I’m looking for Sakurada Haruna’s class. I’m her assistant teacher for today.” [ Y/n ] asks, and the girl’s face seems to get all flustered.

“O-oh um actually I’m in her class. That’s why I was running, I’m a scatter brain and I’m running late.” The girl says, and [ Y/n ] smiles at her.

“I’m late too, we can both be late together.” [ Y/n ] says, smiling at her.

“M-My name is Tsukino Usagi.” Usagi says, and [ Y/n ], nods at the girl who leads her to her class.

“W-well this is th-.” She says, opening the classroom door. To only have her teacher, Haruna. Look at her in anger.

“Ms.Tsukino! Late again.” Haruna shouted, at her and Usagi looked down embarrassed.

“I-I’m sorry,” she said, making a pouty face.

“I-I’m sorry, Haruna-sensei. Ms.Tsukino helped me find the class. If she hadn’t stopped to help me she would’ve been here much earlier.” [ Y/n ] said, bowing at her.

“Ugh, fine go to your seat Ms.Tsukino.” Haruna says, and Usagi nods and goes or her seat.

“Everyone, this is L/n Y/n she’ll be my assistant teacher. For the next couple of weeks, treat her nicely.” She says, and everyone bows as [ Y/n ] walks into the class room.

“Hi, Ms. Y/n.” Everyone says, and [ Y/n ] bows and smiles.

“Thank you, for having me everyone. I’m going to enjoy helping your teacher to teach all of you.” [ Y/n ] says, smiling.

‘Find me..’

She heard the voice, say again. And it’s been happening more and more often. She sighed, bringing her hands up to touch her necklace.

But gasped, “A-ah, oh no.” She said, frantically looking around for it. She begins to panic, looking for the necklace.

That necklace meant everything to her, her mother made it before she passed away. It was the necklace that Endymion, gave Y/n. The day before the Dark Kingdom destroyed the Moon Kingdom.

“Maybe I dropped it on the way here, or when I bumped into that guy this morning.” She says, pouting she looks down.

‘I can’t believe I lost it.’ She thinks, to herself.

It was lunch time, and [Y/n] sat outside eating her lunch while reading the book her mother made of the Forgotten Moon Princess.

Usagi noticed, and walked over to her. “What are you ready?” She asked, and [Y/n] looked up at her and smiled.

“Oh, it’s a book my mother made. It’s about the forgotten moon princess Y/n.” [Y/n] says, looking up at Usagi.

“Ooh, Whats the story like?” She asked, and [Y/n] gives her space to sit and smiles.

“It’s about the forgotten princess, all the stories go towards Serenity. But everyone forgets about her twin sister Y/n. Who my mother named me after, the story is tragic and filled with romance. Between the moon princess Y/n and Endymion.” [Y/n] says, looking down at the book.

“How sad.” Usagi says, tearing up hearing what happens in the story.

“It is, this story means everything to me. And I may sound like a child, but I believe in it. I think what happened in this story is real. I feel a strong connection to the moon, maybe it’s just me but..”[Y/n] says, looking down at the book.

[ Flashback ]

“Mommy tell me the story again.” She asked, holding her plush that her mother made of the Prince Endymion.

“Again?” Her mother asked, and the girl nodded. Her mother sighed, and pulled out a chair. And placed it, at the girls bedside.

“Okay, one more time then bed.” Her mother said, the little girl nodded.

• The Legend of the Forgotten Moon Princess •

“Long ago, on the moon was a castle a big and beautiful one. And in this castle lived, the queen and her two daughter.”

“And the two princess were sisters, twins. Serenity and Y/n”

‘That’s my name!’ A young [y/n] giggled, smiling.

“The two princesses were protected, by the Sailor Guardians. Who had powers of their home planets.”

“But as you know; no one knew of the princess Y/n. And only of Serenity. Leaving, Y/n. Forgotten.”

‘That’s not fair’ a young [Y/n] pouted

“But... She wasn’t forgotten, for one day when visiting Earth for which she was fascinated with. Ran into him. Eventually leading to two them falling in love.”

‘Yeah!’ [ y/n ] shouted..

“The two would secretly meet, each-other when they could. It was a true story of Romeo and Juliet between royals.”

“Eventually, her sister found out about the secret meetings. And told the Senshi. Who was angry at the princess.”

“Who was doing something, so dangerous like going to Earth. But of course, the Princess didn’t care she wanted to be with the one she loved.”

‘Good for her!’ [Y/n] said smiling..

“But, not all good things last. The Dark Kingdom attacked, the Senshi where killed, and many of its people too.”

‘No!’ [Y/n] said, looking down tears in her eyes.

“And, sadly the Prince Endymion died protecting Y/n. Causing her to be grief stricken, taking her own life to be with the one she loves.”

[Y/n], whimpered hugging the plush close to her.

“The Moon Kingdom, was over the Dark Kingdom destroying it. Leaving no one alive, expect the Queen. She gave her life, to send everyone to Earth. And to be reincarnated, into Present Day.”

[Y/n] wiped away, her tears she looked up at her mother.

“So who knows, maybe you’re the reincarnation of the princess..” her mother said, and [Y/n] gave her the biggest smile.

“So maybe, I might find Endymion and fall in love!?” [Y/n] asked, and her mother shrugged tucking her daughter into bed.

.“Maybe, my love.. maybe.” Her mother said, and she kissed her daughters forehead.

“I hope so...” [Y/n] said, hugging her plush close to her.

“Goodnight mommy.” She says, watching as her mother left the room.

“Goodnight, my moon princess.” Her mother said, closing the door and turning on the night light.After a few moments, she watched as the hallway light turned off.

And [Y/n] quickly sat up, and looked out the window. And she looked at the moon, she looked at it longingly.

“I promise, I’m going to find Prince Endymion and Princess Serenity.” She says, smiling reaching out towards the stars.

She’s about to lay down in bed, when she sees a boy who seems to be around her age. Looking out the window as well, and he looks familiar. Like she’s seen him before, he notices her and smiles at her.

And she smiles back at him...

[ ended ]

[Y/n] sighed, as she made her way back to the apartment. As she made her way home, she would look around for her necklace.

The last place to check, was the hallway were she bumped into that guy. She looked around, and found nothing. She sniffled,

“Oh no, it’s gone.” She cried, looking down. As she made her way to her door, she noticed something on it. A note, she read it.

You dropped this, looked important.

The person you bumped into.

Was all it said, and she smiled seeing her necklace. She took it, and kissed. “Oh thank, goodness.” She says, happily.

“I’m gonna have to thank him tomorrow, since it’s late.” She says, walking into her apartment. Closing the door behind her, she makes her way towards her balcony.

And heads outside, and looks up at the moon once more. She holds the necklace close to her, and smiles.

‘My Star, there you are.’

A voice says, she shakes her head. And looks at the constellations, she teachers out to touch them. Reaching higher and higher, she wanted to touch them.

She wanted to be amongst the stars, the moon. Her hand was on her railing, when her hand slipped causing her to off her balcony.

It happened so fast, her entire life flashed before her eyes. As everything flew past her upwards, she looked up at the moon that gave her comfort.

She screamed, as she was falling getting closer and closer to the ground. And closed her eyes, thinking she would meet the ground but didn’t.

She opened her eyes, and looked up she was in the arms of someone wearing a tuxedo suit. She gasped,

[ idk what better to have him say]

“Balconies aren’t to be played..” He says, and she just nods. Looking up at him, he seemed so familiar and this warmth she was feeling from him felt familiar too.

He placed her on the ground, “Thank you.” She says, to him smiling. And he smiles, at her and leaves. She stood there for a few good minutes, and decided to eat out.

After an hour, she made her way back home. While walking towards her apartment, she noticed the guy from this morning entering his.

“Oh, wait!” She shouted, he turned to look back at her. She made, her way towards him.

“I-I wanted to thank you, for finding my necklace. Making sure it makes it’s way back to me.” She says, looking up at him.

And boy she didn’t, mind cause was he attractive. “It’s no problem, the names Chiba Mamoru.” He says, and she smiles at him.

“The names, L/n, Y/n.” She says, looking at him. The two stood there, this interaction them being there felt so familiar.

“I’m sorry for bumping into you this morning, that’s my fault I was late for my job.” She says, looking down embarrassed.

“I’ve been bumped into quite a lot lately.” He says, jokingly and she giggled rubbing the back of her neck.

“I’m not usually, clumsy. To be honest I’m lucky to even be alive, just an hour ago. I was saved by someone in a Tuxedo suit. Cause I fell off my balcony.” She says, looking down nervously.

“Are you okay?” He asked, worriedly. And she nodded, smiling at him.

“Yep. I’m fine just a little shaken.” She says, she looks up at him and nervously plays with her necklace.

“W-Well it is getting late, sorry we couldn’t talk a bit longer. Hope to run into you more often Mamoru.” She says, bowing at him and walking towards her apartment.

Mamoru watched her, that laugh, that smile. Was too familiar, he’s seen it before. But where.

[Y/n], sighed as she walked into her apartment. She closed, the balcony door. And sat on her couch looking at the moon from inside.

Fiddling with her necklace, something flashed in her head.

‘It’s beautiful!’

‘Not as much as you.’

‘My love.’

‘My star’

She gasped, and groaned in pain. She fell to her knees, and looked down at the ground. Then her necklace began to glow, she gasped looking at it.

The light develops her and she begins to transform into, Sailor Luna.

[ Star ]: Nickname given to Princess Y/n, by Endymion

[ Sailor Luna ]: only in live action version of Sailor Moon.

[ Part II ] sneak peek

[Y/n] trips and, Mamoru catches her in his arms. The two look each-other in the eyes, the familiar warmth and feeling returning.

They quickly avert their gaze, and blush.

‘Lunar Cosmic Power Make Up!’ She shouts, as she begins to transform into sailor Luna.

Helping alongside Sailor Moon to fight..

‘Lunar beam!’ [Y/n] shouts, at the villain.

[Y/n] collapses to the ground, tired and exhausted. Tuxedo Mask, picks her up and carries her back to her apartment and places her on the couch.

‘Find me..’

He hears a voice, say. Even though he just met [Y/n], it feels like he’s known her for years. He places a blanket over her, and leaves a kiss on her forehead.

Could she be the princess he’s been looking for?

Tag list open..

#fanfic #x reader #angst #headcanons #fluff #romance #sailor moon headcanon #Sailor Moon fanfic #The Forgotten Moon Princess #series #Mamoru Chiba x reader #Mamoru x reader #Sailor Moon x reader

[firstofficerwiggles]

Chapter 6: Where No Mando Has Gone Before

Link to Chpt. 5 -- For other chapters please visit my Masterlist

Pairing: The Mandalorian x female reader

Rating: M/E, 18+ only

Warnings: SMUT, Flirty!Din, Jealous!Reader, swearing, kissing, use of blindfold, groping (in public), oral sex (female receiving), explicit description of unprotected sex (be safe in the real world please), still pretty fluffy though

Word count: ~12.5K (I know, but it’s worth it I promise)

Author’s Note: This takes place on Angel One a matriarchal planet from Star Trek, the Next Generation. While that episode of TNG is honestly not good, I have been intrigued by the idea of that planet and always thought they could have done so much more with it. (Btw, I do suggest you look at the costumes from that episode because they are hilarious.) So anyway, I’m pretending that Angel One is in the Star Wars galaxy. Also, in this I describe the women of this planet as being taller, broader, and generally much larger than the reader. I always try to keep the reader as physically non-descript as possible, so just know that no matter how tall and broad you yourself may be, to these women, you are petite. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

For the third morning in a row, you awake to strong arms wrapped around you and the solid, warm body of Mando, or rather, Din, by your side. You’ve fully recovered from being shot, but Din has still been on high alert for any pain or discomfort that you could be feeling. He pretends to protest each evening that he should let you rest, before you easily convince him to climb into bed with you and cuddle all night long. Honestly, at first you thought he was just putting up with the cuddling to make you happy, but turns out, he seems to truly love it, as he is the one who continues to pull you closer any time you roll away in your sleep.

You’re lazily tracing circles with your fingers over his chest now as you think about him. He’s sleeping in a shirt and boxers, and even though you can’t touch the skin of his chest directly, you can feel his warmth easily through the thin fabric. He’s been so incredibly caring these past few days and he’s hardly let you lift a finger. Even when you’ve worried about him sleeping in his helmet and offered to sleep blindfolded so he could take it off, he’s dismissed the idea in favor of your comfort. Although part of you wonders if he’s still too nervous to consider taking off the helmet in front of you despite the presence of a blindfold or darkness.

You really are feeling so much better this morning, and you figure you’ll take over breakfast today. It would be nice to start getting back to your normal routine. You move to loosen yourself from Din’s hold and slide out of the bed, when you feel him stir and yank you back to his side.

“Where’re you goin’?” he asks you sleepily.

“I was going to make breakfast, and let you sleep a bit more,” you reply softly.

“Mmm, no, stay with me,” he says.

You shift a little so you can look at him more directly and tell him, “I’m so tempted, really, but you know someone else will be awake and hungry very soon.”

“Stay,” he repeats, “Wanna cuddle more.” You give in to him, and snuggle closer; it’s too hard when he’s insistent.

Din’s hands are starting to wander now, slipping just under the hem of your pajama top to caress your lower back. You let out a contented sigh at the feeling of his skin against yours.

“You must be feeling much better, if you want to make breakfast,” he says, sounding more awake, as he continues to trail his hands up your back under your top.

“I am, I feel completely better,” you reply confidently.

“Better enough to do other things?” Din asks with a husky tone to his voice as he brings one of his hands around to caress the upper part of your stomach, just below your breasts.

“I could do other things,” you say in a breathy voice; breakfast is now the last thing on your mind.

Din lets the hand on your stomach explore upward and over your breast, lightly palming you and teasing the sensitive tip. It’s been so long since a man touched you like this that it’s enough to make you moan softly. Din lets out a low rumbly sound in his chest and his hand becomes bolder, kneading you and rolling your hardening nipple between his fingertips. With his other hand, he pulls you in closer to him so that your hips brush up against his, letting you feel his arousal. Experimentally, you rock your hips against his, slightly grinding against him, drawing out another deep growling sound from Din’s throat.

“Been wanting to touch you like this ever since I got in bed with you,” he says.

“Me too,” you tell him as you let your own hands finally run up underneath his shirt and over the hard planes of his stomach and chest.

“You’re so soft- oof!” Din’s compliment is cut off by a sound of surprise and you realize why as soon as you see a little green head pop up over his shoulder. The sneaky kiddo has managed to climb up on the bed and his little claws must have grabbed Din’s arm to hoist himself up. Din immediately yanks his hand out of your top as the child meanwhile is crawling over Din’s chest to get to you. You scooch away from Din to make room for the little guy and also to discreetly put some distance between you two so that you can both calm down.

“Good morning, buddy!” You say a little overly cheerful, trying to come back to your senses. You look up at Din and mouth ‘sorry’. He just shakes his head lightly as he pats the child on the back.

“I think someone is a little jealous that I keep taking all the cuddles,” Din says with a chuckle, “Tell you what, I’ll make breakfast and you two have some snuggle time.”

“Aww, come here, buddy, and give me a hug,” you pull the child into your chest and kiss his wrinkled little brow. He lets out a series of happy coos making you laugh.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After breakfast, you get dressed and join Din in the cockpit where he’s putting in coordinates to a new destination. The child is sitting in one of the passenger seats playing with his silver ball. You come over to stand next to Din and look at the star chart he’s using.

“I’ve got an idea for our next move,” Din tells you, “But it will require us to carry out some deception for it to work.”

“Deception, huh? Well, I’m intrigued already,” you reply with a smile.

“I’ve heard from several of my guild contacts that the bounty on the child has increased,” he says concerned, “There’s also a bounty out on me too.”

“Oh, that explains the hunters.” Your voice is more serious now.

“It’s fortunate that no one in the guild will support the job, but although it’s an off-the-books bounty, the price is high enough that there’ll still be hunters after us.” Din explains.

“So what’s your plan and how can I help?” you ask.

“You’re an integral part of it, particularly since no one knows you’re with me,” he tells you, “Have you ever heard of a planet called Angel One?”

“No, never.”

“It’s a place that few people have visited,” he explains, “They have a matriarchal society and you’re only allowed to visit the planet if you’re accompanied by a woman.”

“Ah, I see, so no one will expect you to be there.” It’s a good idea.

“Yes, but there’s more,” Din says, “They’re very particular about whom they let stay on the planet for a visit, and from what I’ve heard they usually only let powerful or influential women visit for more than a day. Any potential visitors need to be fully vetted by one of their Mistresses to be allowed to stay.”

“Hence the deception; I need to pretend to be someone powerful or influential,” you respond.

“Yes, I thought you could pretend to be a princess and I’ll be your bodyguard,” Din proposes.

“A princess?” You reply, a touch startled by the idea.

“You’re as beautiful as a princess,” Din says, his voice flirtatious, “I’d definitely believe it.”

“Stop,” you say, rolling your eyes a little at him, “But, seriously, do you think I can pull that off?”

“Why not? You’re intelligent, well educated, and you seem to have a knack for socializing with people, you put them at ease and get them to trust you right away, I’ve seen you do it a lot.” Din compliments you in such a matter-of-fact voice that you find yourself thinking that just maybe you could do it.

“Well, and in your beskar you definitely look like a royal bodyguard,” you say thoughtfully, and then flirt back with him, “My knight in shining armor.”

He chuckles at that, “See, you’re already in character.”

“What if they notice that we’re…” you trail off and just gesture between you two with your hands. You’re uncertain how to define what you are, together? involved? You haven’t really discussed it.

“A couple?” he asks. Ok, so he’s defined it.

“Yes.”

Din thinks for a moment and then chuckles again deeply, “You’ll say I’m your consort.”

“My consort?” You snicker at his choice of words.

“Yeah, your consort,” he repeats, and you can swear by the tone of his voice that he must have the biggest grin on under that helmet right now. “I kinda like the idea, my job being to protect you and service your every, ahem, need.”

“Din, the kiddo is right there,” you whisper a little flustered at his suggestiveness.

“Come here, my princess,” he says playfully as he pats his lap.

“You’re having too much fun with this,” you tell him, but you move towards him anyway because you can’t help yourself.

He tugs you down to sit in his lap, “Oh, we’ve only just started having fun.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The landing crew that meets you on Angel One is most decidedly not about fun. When you descend the Crest’s ramp, you are met with five of the largest warrior-like women you’ve ever seen in your entire life. They are all broad, muscular, and statuesque, decked out in black and gold armor on their arms, chests, and legs, and wearing capes decorated with animal fur. Their makeup is like war paint and they seem to share Din’s love of weapons. You can’t deny that they are all fiercely beautiful and you suddenly feel insecure. Geeze, no wonder Din wanted to come here, these women look like a Mandalorian’s wet dream. You take a deep breath and tell yourself that you are a beautiful and influential princess. You repeat this to yourself a few times and steady your shoulders as you do.

You hold your head up as high as you can and address the women, “Good morning and thank you for welcoming us to your home. We hope that your Mistress will find us worthy of a visit.”

One of the women nods to you as she says, “Right this way Your Highness, Mistress Lagertha is expecting you.”

You follow the woman as she leads you into a large governmental building. Both Din and the child follow behind you allowing you to be the more prominent figure in your little party. The building is a very grand stone structure with sweeping columns and polished stone floors. The furnishings are mostly dark, grey and black with a few metallic accents. You pass several people, all women, who stop to stare at you as you walk down the long corridor. When you reach the end of the passageway, you are ushered into a large office where you see a majestic blonde woman. While this woman is not wearing armor, she exudes power and once again, you are dwarfed by her size. She rises from her desk when you enter and offers you a small half bow.

“Welcome, Your Highness, please have a seat and we will begin the interview.” She pointedly addresses her welcome only to you as if Din isn’t even present. You approach her desk and the proffered chair, while he remains quietly by the door with the child’s pram.

“Thank you for being willing to speak with me, it’s an honor to meet you, Mistress Lagertha,” Now that you’re both seated you feel a little more confident as it’s easier to look her in the eye.

“It’s very interesting to meet you,” she says with a smile, “I’ve never seen an off-worlder before.” She looks over your appearance carefully. In helping to perpetrate your ruse, you’re wearing a summer dress in a pink floral fabric. The dress has a long swirly skirt and it seemed like the most princess-y thing you owned. You’ve also taken extra care to do your hair and make-up in a slightly fancier style. You even took the time to dress up the child as your little ward, wrapping a brightly colored scarf around his tunic like a sash and pinning a costume jewelry broach to it. He seemed to like it, once he stopped trying to bite it. Of course, Din is handsome as always in his well-polished armor and you think all together you should be able to fool these people who haven’t seen many real royals.

You’re surprised when she starts to laugh lightly after looking you over. “I’m sorry, it’s just, I wasn’t expecting you to look so manly.”

“Excuse me?” Your confusion could not be more evident as you look down at yourself. This is quite possibly the least manly you’ve ever looked.

“Well, I knew you would be small, those who’ve seen off-world women have always described them as small, but the pastels, the flowers, even your make-up, you look like one of our men.” She chuckles again lightly.

“Ah, I see,” you reply trying to keep your face neutral, “Where I come from, this would be considered very feminine.” She smiles widely at this and laughs again. Well, if anything you’ve certainly broken the ice.

“That’s hysterical!” She says, delighted, “Plus your man is wearing armor! I’ve never seen such a thing.”

Oh Maker! You really wish she wouldn’t laugh at Din. To his credit, Din makes no reaction whatsoever; he’s doing his silent suit of armor thing again.

She asks you a long series of biographical questions most of which are very easy to answer and require little to no lying at all. Thankfully, you and Din practiced speaking about your invented past and so when you do need to be untruthful it comes out naturally. The only time you feel you really slip up is when she asks you about your views on the New Republic.

“Well, clearly there is much we can learn about your culture and so much that we can share with you about ours,” you say diplomatically.

“I support the New Republic, but I wish they would be more persistent in going after former Imperials. There are still too many evil men out there wreaking havoc in the galaxy.” You can’t keep the bitterness out of your voice and you know you’ve dropped your polite expression in favor of a frown. Uh oh, probably should have given a more politically neutral answer.

Fortunately, Mistress Lagertha says, “A very good point. Men seems to be particularly bent towards doing evil.”

While you can’t agree with that blanket statement, it seems better to simply nod and continue with the interview. For the rest of the time, you try to be your most charming self and it seems to work, because you’re starting to feel like she’s almost a friend the more you converse. When she gets to the part about the reason for your visit, you have a more elaborate answer about cultural exchange prepared, but she says,

“Of course the reason for your visit must be the Jubilee of Astrid which begins this evening. It’s our most sacred and special time, and the most common time for off-worlders to request a visit.”

“Yes, I would be truly honored to be able to experience your sacred celebration,” you say in an awed tone. You have no idea what she is talking about, but this is clearly the answer she expects to hear.

“I understand as a princess there must be certain pressures on you, especially from familial demands,” Lagertha says.

“Yes, there are,” you agree with her demurely, but still clueless as to what she’s getting at.

“Well, you can be certain to have your prayers answered while you are here, and enjoy yourself immensely! May Astrid bless you!” She gives you a cheeky grin as she says this and her eyes flick back to Din for the first time in quite a while. “Incidentally, if your man isn’t up to the task, I’m sure we can find you a man who will find your uniqueness appealing.”

“I assure you that won’t be necessary, my guard is always prepared for any task,” you tell her. You’re still not sure of her meaning, but there’s something in the gleam in her eye that tells you that you only want to be with Din for whatever ‘tasks’ are involved in this holiday of theirs.

“Well, that’s good then.” She’s smiling at you again and then extends her hand, “Welcome to Angel One, we would be honored to grant you permission to stay on our planet for as long as you like.”

You grasp her large hand in your smaller one and give her a beaming (and relieved) smile as you thank her. You’ve successfully secured your visit.

A communication device on her desks beeps and she presses a small button, which allows a voice to state, “Mistress Sigrid wishes to meet the off-world princess.”

“Thank you, Brenna, please let her know that we’re ready for her at any time,” Lagertha replies. She then turns her attention back to you as she explains, “Mistress Sigrid is our leader, the Elected One, and I must confess she has been monitoring this meeting.” You nod and smile, it doesn’t surprise you really, considering how cautious they are about visitors.

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to meet her.” You hope this is a sign that you’ve made a good impression if their leader wants to say hello.

A door in a side wall opens and a stately woman enters. You rise to your feet out of respect as she approaches. She’s older than Lagertha but still moves with the athletic grace of a younger woman. Like the other women you’ve seen here, she is striking with shrewd eyes and a small scar on her cheek that adds to her mystique rather than marring her beauty.

“Your Highness, how lovely it is to meet you,” Mistress Sigrid greets you and reaches out to shake your hand.

“It is a pleasure, Elected One,” you reply, craning your neck to meet her gaze, as once again she is incredibly tall.

“I must say I have never seen or heard an off-world woman quite like you before,” she tells you with respect, “The others I’ve met have been rather anxious and shy, and so easily intimidated.” She dismisses them with a wave of her hand.

“It is a shame you haven’t met more off-world women then, many are quite strong and accomplished. Perhaps while I am here, I can demonstrate how capable we can be,” you reply. The way she says that irritates you immensely but you know you need to stay overly respectful towards her and so you swallow any other comments you’d like to make.

She laughs warmly at your response, “See, I knew I liked you already! You have a spark about you.”

“Thank you,” you say.

“And this is your little ward, hmm?” She walks over to the child who is starting at her with big eyes and a slightly wary expression.

“Yes, my guard rescued him and he is in my care.” You follow her over, reach down into his pram to pick him up, and hold him so she can see him better.

“Hello, tiny child,” she says to him, “Aren’t you a cute little thing?”

He looks mesmerized by her for a moment, and then is suddenly shy, turning his head into your chest. She merely chuckles and you gently place him back in his pram and hand him one of his stuffed toys to hold.

“Shame he’s a male though,” she comments. You don’t know how to respond to that terrible statement and so you elect to simply stay quiet.

“And this is your bodyguard, a Mandalorian.” Mistress Sigrid approaches Din now looking him up and down with curiosity. “I’ve never had the fortune to see a real Mandalorian, I’ve only heard stories,” she says with interest. It’s the most attention anyone has paid to Din this entire time.

“What do you call him?” Mistress Lagertha pipes up.

“Mando,” you tell her, knowing that you can’t share Din’s real name with anyone.

“Mando, will you turn around, I’d like to look at you,” Mistress Sigrid says, speaking to him directly. Something about her tone of voice rubs you the wrong way and you’re fortunate that she’s looking so intently at Din because you fail to hide your displeasure on your face.

Din complies with her request, rotating so she can look at him. He had heard that the women openly objectify the men on this planet and so he knows this is the type of treatment he can expect. It doesn’t really bother him too much as he’s used to people staring at him no matter where he is. He knows Mandalorians are unique and the beskar will always draw attention. He has to bite his lip though to keep from laughing at your expression as Mistress Sigrid ogles him. You look positively jealous.

“That is sufficient, Mando.” The Elected One seems to have gotten her fill.

“Mistress,” he replies softly.

“So unusual to see a man so large and wearing armor,” Mistress Sigrid is turning back towards you with a smile and a little shrug.

Din sees that you’ve managed to paste a bland smile back on your face as you tell her, “I’m so accustomed to it that it would be odd to see him in anything else.” He catches your eye and gives you a nod. It’s the only thing he can do to reassure you that everything is going well. Honestly, he’s so thankful that you were able to do all of the talking for this meeting. You handled all the questions so well and he knows you were able to be charismatic in a way he doesn’t think he ever could. It’s a real credit to your communication skills, especially as Mistress Sigrid is now inviting you to stay at the Elected One’s state residence.

“That is very kind of you, Mistress Sigrid,” you say, “But we wouldn’t want you to go to any trouble on our behalf.”

“Nonsense, it will be delightful to have you there,” she replies, “You will be my special guests for the Jubilee. I do hope you have something red to wear, it is the official color of the celebration.”

“As a matter of fact, I have just the dress,” you tell her.

Mistress Sigrid arranges for two of her staff to accompany you back to the Razor Crest so you can collect your things before they will take you to get settled at the state residence.

“I’ll see you tonight at the opening gala for the Jubilee, and may Astrid bless you!” Mistress Sigrid says before bidding you farewell for now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The state residence is an elegant mansion and you have to remind yourself that you’re supposed to be a princess and so you shouldn’t be overly impressed by any of this. Still you can’t help letting your eyes wander over the beautiful furnishings and art. The mansion reflects much of what seems to be the core beliefs for this society, that women are strong fighters who have accomplished great things, while men are beautiful decorations. You haven’t seen any men in person yet, but in the artwork, they are portrayed as soft and fragile looking creatures with dainty features dressed primarily in flowery pastels, just like you at the moment.

Every woman you pass still stops to openly gawk at you and now you are even hearing laughter accompanied by hushed voices no doubt discussing your odd appearance. You try to ignore it, but you’re not used to being assessed like this so much. You look over to Din and wonder if this is what it’s like for him on a daily basis, not that people laugh at him, of course.

When you reach your room at the residence, you are astonished by the grandeur of the accommodations you’ve been given. Your ‘room’ is actually a large suite with a sitting room, bedroom, and elegant bathroom. After briefly showing you around, Mistress Sigrid’s staff finally leave you alone to rest and relax before the grand gala tonight.

“Thank the Maker!” you say flopping onto the giant four-poster bed. “I feel like I’ve been under a microscope this whole day.”

“Yeah, they really seem quite fascinated by you,” Din says chuckling. He hands the child a piece of fruit from the generous buffet of treats the Mistress’ staff has provided for you. The little guy chomps down on it quickly and you smile at his cuteness.

“I’d say they’re fascinated by us, or at least Mistress Sigrid sure was,” you say still a little miffed at the way she practically undressed Din with her eyes.

Din laughs again, “Your face when she was making me turn for her nearly had me in stitches,” he says.

“What do you mean?” you ask sitting up to look at him better.

He walks over to you and cups your cheek in his hand gently, “You looked rather jealous.” His voice is still full of mirth as he says this and you get the impression that he liked it, at least a little.

“I didn’t like the way she was treating you like an object,” you say reproachfully, but then you look up more directly at him, “Ok, but fine, maybe I was jealous too,” you admit.

“Cyar’ika, you don’t have to be jealous,” he says, “But it is kinda cute.” He’s still chuckling as he steps in between your legs and his hands move to your shoulders, squeezing them lightly.

“It’s hard not be when they’re all insanely giant, stunning, war goddess women,” you reply. Looking up at him thoughtfully, you say, “Seems like that would be just the kind of woman a Mandalorian would find incredibly attractive.” You can’t help the note of insecurity in your voice as you say that.

He shrugs his shoulders, “Not this Mandalorian, besides, I’m already with the most beautiful woman in the galaxy.” He taps your nose playfully as he says this and you smile back at him.

“You really do say the sweetest things, Din.”

“Only to you, cyar’ika.” He replies and you can hear the smile in his voice.

The sound of inquisitive coos interrupts your conversation, and you look over to the child. “Maybe they’ll let us visit the gardens for a while. I think the kiddo could use some fresh air.”

“That’s a good idea, especially because it sounds like our entire evening is already planned with their gala.” Din nods his head as he says this.

“I’m just going to change first, maybe if I put on something black they won’t stare as much,” you tell him.

“Ok, the kid and I’ll wait in the other room.”

You take a moment to hang up your gown for tonight as well as your black dress that you thought to bring too. You put a few of your other things away in the dresser in the room to help keep them organized, when you find a few things that have been provided for your stay, some soft robes, slippers, and a couple black satin sleep masks. Your mind instantly goes to a naughty place as you feel the soft material between your fingers. You slip it on over your eyes, blindfolding yourself completely.

“Hey, Din, come here and look what I found,” you say playfully. You hear him come back into the room.

“What? Oh.” Din’s voice seems to drop several octaves with just that one small sound. “Can you see anything with that on?”

“Not a thing,” you reply.

“Stay there and keep it on,” he tells you and you hear his footsteps approaching you until you can feel that he’s right in front of you.

“You really can’t see anything?” Din asks again.

“No, I promise.”

You hear a soft hiss followed by a metallic thunk on the dresser behind you. Then you feel Din pull you in close to him and he lowers his face towards yours, letting his bare forehead touch yours for the first time. He nuzzles into you more, letting his nose caress yours and then you feel his warm breath against your lips.

“May I kiss you, really kiss you?” Din asks his lips practically brushing against your mouth with his question.

“Yes,” you breathe out.

His lips melt into yours in a sweet kiss as his hands come up to rest on either side of your neck. He seems just a little hesitant, so you slowly start to move beneath him, guiding. He follows your lead, letting his lips explore more. You part your lips slightly so you can tease his plump bottom lip in between yours. He parts his lips when you do this and daringly, you let your tongue lick into his mouth just slightly. His reaction is immediate, as he opens his mouth more to give you greater access. You deepen the kiss and brush your tongue against his. He groans deep in his chest when your tongues meet and he pulls you in tight to his body. You let your hands roam around the back of his neck and into his soft hair. You’re kissing him passionately now, showing him what you like. Din’s response is enthusiastic, as he chases your lips and tongue wherever they wish to lead him. Just before you pull away to catch your breath, you give his bottom lip a suck making him groan again.

“Is kissing always this great?” Din pants out.

“No,” you tell him honestly, “I think it must you.”

“It’s us,” he says before capturing your lips again. This time he teases you with his tongue and tries sucking your lip the way you did to his. It draws out a moan from you; he’s clearly a very quick learner.

A sudden crashing sound from the other room reminds you both that you’re not alone and that you promised the child some outdoor fun. Din groans softly before giving you one more quick kiss and then pulls away from you. You feel him reach for his helmet as you try to take a deep breath and collect yourself.

“Ok, you can take off the mask now,” he says, “But, put it somewhere safe for later.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After a nice afternoon spent exploring the mansion’s lush gardens, followed by a hot cup of tea and several delicious snacks that were thoughtfully provided, it’s time to get ready for the gala. You already know you’ll wear your new red gown, but you decide to go more avant garde with your hair and make-up to hopefully create a better impression on the women tonight. It’s a good look, but something is missing that will give you a certain edge that you want to achieve. You look through your meager jewelry collection but nothing gives off the right vibe. You look over to where the child is playing with Din and you have an idea.

“Buddy, can I borrow your mythosaur for tonight?” You ask the little one. He smiles up at you and gives you his happy coo. You gently take the necklace off him and drape it over your head. The silver pendant comes to rest just above your cleavage, and it’s perfect, much better for the darker image you’re trying to achieve.

You turn with a flourish towards Din, “Well, what do you think? Still a princess but maybe more to the standards of this place?”

Din cannot respond to you because his mouth has gone completely dry. He thinks you look outstanding in that sexy dress that he bought you and then, it’s made even better because you’re wearing his mythosaur around your neck. Fuck! He looks at it sparkling against your bosom, it’s like you’ve put on a giant sign that says you belong to him. It creates a primal reaction in him and it’s taking all his self-control not to grab you and claim you as his right now.

“Din? Is it too much?”

“No, I like it,” Din practically growls at you, “I like it so much, I’m thinking I’d like to pull you back into that bedroom and show you how much I like it.”

“Di-in,” you stretch out his name as you can feel your cheeks blazing with his praise and it makes you giggle a little. He’s never been so outrageously direct like that before.

“I’m serious,” he says, “That’s how good you look. In fact you better pick up the baby to keep me in check.” He’s teasing you now, but his voice still sounds predatory. Your heart is racing and he’s making you feel lightheaded.

“Stop, you’re being naughty,” you flirt back at him, but you do pick up the child in any case. As much as you’d much rather stay in the bedroom with him, you know you have an obligation to go to this gala tonight. And as if on cue, there is a knock at your door.

Mistress Sigrid is there and for the first time, there are men with her. The men are much smaller in stature, dressed in soft pastel colors and wearing make-up that resembles what you had on earlier today. You notice that one of the men is more conservatively dressed, while the other is wearing a rather revealing outfit with a dramatic deep vee neckline that practically screams ‘boy toy’. You’ve never seen anything quite like it. Both men clock you with big eyes and smiles, like the women, they appear to be amused by you too, only at least they don’t laugh out loud. When they glance at Din, however, their smiles falter and they seem taken aback at his presence. You wonder if Din looks somehow feminine to them going by their standards. Your thoughts are interrupted by Sigrid before you have more time to consider the men.

“Good evening, Your Highness, you look festive,” she says, but from her tone it doesn’t exactly sound like a compliment. She is also wearing red, but instead of a gown, she has on a sharply tailored suit, almost like a red tuxedo.

“Thank you.” You just smile at her diplomatically.

“Gregor is here to collect your little ward for the evening to take him off to the nursery to play with the other children and provide him with a nice place to sleep for the night.” She motions to the more conservatively dressed man who is smiling and waving at the child.

“Oh, I wasn’t expecting that, he usually just accompanies me everywhere,” you respond. Although Gregor seems nice enough, you feel reluctant at leaving the little guy with someone else.

“Nonsense, you don’t want to bring a child to the gala tonight. It isn’t done.” Sigrid declares.

“Well, I need to see the nursery first, before I decide if I’m going to let him stay there.” You want to be certain you and Din know exactly where the child will be and how to get to him quickly in case of an emergency.

“I suppose,” Sigrid sighs, but then she smiles at you again, “There’s that feisty spark I saw in you earlier.”

Gregor motions for you to follow him, “This way Your Highness,” he says in a shy voice.

“Gregor, do you take care of many children?” You would like to know more about his background.

“Oh, yes, I am the nanny for all of the mistresses on the High Council for any of their children under age 5.” He smiles warmly at you, “They will all be there tonight too, so your little one will have plenty of other children to play with; there’s about a dozen all together.”

“Is it just you taking care of all of the children?” That seems like too many for just one person.

“No, no, I have three assistants too,” Gregor says, “You’ll be able to meet them at the nursery.”

You continue to pepper Gregor with questions about childcare and the nursery and he seems positively delighted with all the attention you’re paying towards him. You sometimes hear Sigrid let out a sigh as if she finds the entire conversation boring, but you don’t care, after all the child is your primary priority. When you arrive at the nursery, you can see that everything is quite nice and it does seem like a safe place for the little guy to spend the evening. You kiss him goodbye and Din pats him on the head and gives him a soft reminder that he should be on his best behavior.

“Oh isn’t that cute!” The boy-toy guy coos as he watches you and Din say goodnight to the child. It’s the first you’ve heard him speak.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t ask you your name earlier,” you say to him as you’re leaving the nursery, “I didn’t mean to be rude, I was just very focused on the child, you understand.”

“Well aren’t you sweet, Your Highness,” he says beaming at you, “I’m Trent, I’m Mistress Sigrid’s lover.” He seems very proud of that fact.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Trent,” you reply with a nod. You slip your hand around Din’s elbow deciding that they already seem to know you two are a couple, so you might as well feel free to show a little affection. You tilt your head towards Din as you say, “This is Mando.”

“I know,” Trent says giggling a little, “The man in armor, it’s so shocking.” Trent sounds both amused and a little scandalized. “It’s super nice to meet you, Mando. I can’t wait to hear more about you and your princess at dinner. You’re all anyone is talking about.” He winks and flashes his dazzling white teeth.

“Nice to meet you,” Din says. His voice and body language don’t give anything away but you wonder if he’s a little taken aback by Trent’s enthusiasm.

“Yes, the men will have plenty of time to get to know one another during the feast since they’ll be sitting together at their table,” Sigrid explains, and then addresses you directly, “You’ll be with me at the head table with all the other mistresses of the High Council.”

“Oh, you don’t sit together as couples?” With the insinuations that Mistress Lagertha made earlier about the Jubilee, it seemed like this was going to be an event for couples or at least dates.

“Not during the dinner,” Sigrid tells you, “It gives us women time to have serious discussions while the men can chatter about lighter things. Trust me, your Mando will have a much better time conversing with the other men. He won’t miss you at all.” You doubt that, but say nothing and simply grip Din’s arm a bit tighter as a way of silently communicating with him.

“Besides,” she continues, “You’ll have plenty of time to sit together during the entertainment.”

“Ooh, it’s going to be so good this year too,” Trent says, “My best friend is one of the performers and he’s been filling me in on all the juicy details. I’ll tell you all about it, Mando.” Oh my, seems Din’s made a new friend already.

“Just be sure you don’t spoil it for him though, Trent,” Sigrid says patting his shoulder.

“Oh, I won’t,” Trent beams up at her. He reminds you a bit of an eager puppy just so happy to please her in any way.

At last, you come to a large room festooned with red, black, and gold decorations and several round dining tables. The table in the middle of the room is the biggest and it is raised up on a dais so that it is more visible across the entire room. There are several people milling about with glasses of wine and a few servers passing appetizers throughout the space. You’re thankful to see that several of the women are also wearing red gowns, so at least you’re not the only one in a dress. But once again, your attire is much more feminine by your standards. Where your gown is more revealing and designed to show off the curves of your figure, theirs have long sleeves and high necklines designed to showcase their muscular frames. The men are almost all dressed like Trent in soft pastels of varying colors with revealing tops that show off their chests and very tight pants that show off other assets. As you enter the room with Mistress Sigrid, a gong sounds to announce your arrival and every eye that wasn’t already staring at you is suddenly on you as a hush comes over the room.

“Good Evening, all!” Mistress Sigrid’s voice booms out, “I am pleased to welcome you to this year’s opening gala of the Jubilee of Astrid, may she bless you all!” Cheers and applause follow this statement. Sigrid holds up her hand and waits for everyone to quiet again.

“Tonight we welcome our special guests, a princess and her Mandalorian!” Polite applause follows this along with several whispers and small bouts of laughter. You smile placidly at the room and nod your head in greeting.

“Take your seats and let’s begin the feast!” Sigrid announces and the cheering and applause build back up.

“C’mon, Mando I’ll show you where our table is,” Trent motions.

“Just a moment,” Din replies, before turning to you and dropping his helmet to your forehead, his voice is low so that only you can hear it as he says, “Have a good dinner, cyar’ika.”

“I’ll see you later,” you whisper back to him and give his hands a squeeze before being led away by Sigrid.

“You two are very affectionate with one another, I think you’re going to enjoy tonight’s festivities quite a lot,” Sigrid says smirking at you.

At the table, she introduces you to all of the mistresses seated there, most of whom look you over with amusement and curiosity. There are a few though who seem displeased by your presence and they openly frown at you. You suppose it is due to your off-worlder status more than anything else, but you sincerely hope you haven’t made some type of social gaff that may have offended them. You look over to the men’s table and notice that Din has positioned himself so that he is seated in your direct line of sight. It puts you at ease knowing that you can look up at any time and see that familiar helmet and visor.

One of the younger mistresses, Eira, seems the most interested in you and she seems to be one of the friendliest so you strike up a conversation with her. She tells you about her background as a professional fighter, and how that fame brought her into the arena of politics. You’re telling her a little bit about your travels with Din, when one of the other mistresses, Runa, pipes up,

“Yes, tell us all about the Mandalorian.”

“Well, he’s an incredibly skilled fighter, very brave, and I trust him with my life,” you say, thinking that’s what will most likely impress them.

“No, no,” Runa says, “Tell us about your relationship with him. And not just the lovey-dovey stuff, the good stuff.”

“The good stuff?” you repeat, rather surprised.

“Yeah, like what’s it like sleeping with a man who’s so large?” Eira asks, apparently also curious to hear about Din.

“Well, it’s great,” you tell them, “He’s very big and strong and I like the way it makes me feel when I’m in his arms.” You know you’re being liberal with the definition of ‘sleeping with’ here but they don’t need to know that.

“Huh?” Eira responds, “It just seems so weird. I like my men the smaller the better, like I can just wrap myself around their whole body.” The other women nod along with her and several look at you like you must be crazy.

“I suppose that’s just one of the differences between our cultures, but I would say that where I come from, people are very accepting of all different types of bodies and partners. I’m sure there are women from my society who prefer smaller men like you do.” Eira smiles at you when you say this.

“Yes, but when you say big, is he big everywhere?” Runa asks you pointedly and motions with her hands holding them side by side and then expending them outward little by little.

You laugh at loud at that, especially because of the alarmed look on her face as her hands get wider apart. You notice too that now the entire table is waiting for your answer, so much for Sigrid’s ‘serious discussions’. You smile, amused by their interest, and you can’t help but glance over at Din for a moment before you tell them,

“He is very well endowed.” You might not have direct knowledge of that, but from the time you saw him after swimming and the times you’ve felt him against you lately, you know your answer is correct.

“But doesn’t that, you know, hurt you?” Runa wants to know. Her face is very concerned and you do all you can to keep from laughing again so that she won’t think you rude.

“No, it doesn’t hurt,” you tell her, “Quite the opposite, actually.”

“Tell us more about him as a lover,” Lagertha says, her voice loud as it carries across the table. You cringe a bit internally at that because you know that the men’s table has to have heard her. You look right at Din and he tips his helmet in a way that you know means ‘really?’ and you give him a slight shrug in response.

Maker, what can you say to these horny women? Your experience with him is so limited as it is. You decide to just go off of what you do know and then let your imagination fill in the gaps. You figure as long as you keep them entertained with this, they’ll be less likely to ask you any other questions about your invented background that could potentially poke holes in your story. So you tell them all about how generous Din is as a lover, that he’s tender and caring, but then able to be harder and rough when you want him to be. You make him out to be a complete sex god for these women and they are entranced.

“Well, then, it seems like you have the perfect partner for the Jubilee,” Sigrid says chuckling, “I’m sure he’ll get you pregnant.”

You choke on your wine as she says this. What the hell?

“Of course he will, you don’t have to worry,” Eira says and she pats your arm supportively, “After all, that is the point of a fertility festival and Astrid is sure to bless you even if you’re an off-worlder.”

Sweet Maker above! You can only imagine what the rest of this Jubilee will entail.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You and Din are finally able to be back together after the dinner. It feels like a relief to have him place his hand on the small of your back as you both follow everyone to a large ballroom where the entertainment is scheduled to begin soon.

“So, what am I like as a lover?” Din leans down to ask you discreetly, his voice is teasing though.

“I knew you had to have heard that,” you say embarrassed, “But these crazy horny women just wouldn’t stop asking me about you.”

“It was the same for me,” he tells you, “All the men wanted to hear about how we fell in love.”

You laugh as you tell him, “Oh no, the women only wanted to hear about sex. But I am curious to know what you told the men.”

“And I’m curious to hear what you told the women,” Din replies.

“Well, obviously I had to do some speculating, but in essence I told them you were a very generous and highly-skilled lover, oh, and that you’re very large.” You wink at him as you say this and give him your most flirtatious smile.

Din pulls you in closer to him and tilts his head down to tell you, “I think that’s a fairly accurate description but I’d much rather you’d experience it first-hand instead of just taking my word for it.” You shiver in anticipation at that.

“Ok, now, what did you tell the men?” You’re very interested to hear this.

“I told them the truth, that you’re the most beautiful, kind, and caring woman I’ve ever known, that you make my life so much better, and that I couldn’t stop myself from falling for you, I also told them that you’re a wonderful kisser.” He says this so sincerely that your heart swells with happiness.

You drop your voice to a whisper so that there’s no way anyone will overhear you use his name, “Din, that’s the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard,” you have to pause for a moment to collect yourself before you tell him, “I hope you know that you make my life so much better too.” You want to tell him more but it’s too public here.

“Thank you for telling me, cyar’ika,” he replies, his voice sounding warm even in a whisper.

Speaking of romantic, the ballroom is set up like a large cabaret with small tables for couples all around, only instead of chairs, each table has a rounded booth with a high back, positioned to face the large open area in the front of the room. As couples start to be seated, you can see that there’s quite a bit of privacy for each table despite the large number of attendees.

“Trent said we can sit wherever we like, but I get the impression we should pick something near the performance area so they’ll think we’re really interested in the show,” Din tells you. You find a table in the second row with a good view of the stage area. The booth is very comfortable and you lean into Din as he places his arm around your shoulders.

“Did Trent give you details about the show?”

He groans slightly, “Yes, probably too many, the best I can tell you is that we’re going to see an erotic celebration designed to honor their goddess, Astrid.”

“Ah yes, I found out something else about this celebration,” you tell him, “This whole Jubilee is a fertility festival; everyone thinks we’re here so that you’ll get me pregnant, that’s what they mean when they say ‘may Astrid bless you’.” Your face feels hot as you inform him of this.

“Well, I’ll certainly give it my all, cyar’ika,” Din tell you, his voice sounding deeper.

“Very funny,” you reply, “I have an implant in any case.”

“Still, practice does make perfect,” he says, laughing, “And the thought does intrigue me.” You giggle in response to that and then start to quiet down as the lights dim.

Truthfully, Din is more than intrigued by the idea. The men also filled him in on the purpose of this holiday during the dinner and he has been thinking about it ever since. Honestly, he hasn’t been able to stop thinking of taking you to bed all day, and his arousal has only been growing. While impractical, the idea of seeing you pregnant with his child is appealing to him in ways he never knew were possible. The reality of how much he wants that someday with you is so strong it’s almost overwhelming to him. In the past, the idea of becoming attached to someone never interested him; the women that he met were good for a sexual release but they were never anyone he wanted to spend time with outside of the bedroom. But with you, everything looks different, feels different, and he wants things he’s never wanted before.

Din’s thoughts are interrupted by the arrival of several dancers, male and female, who have started their performance. He watches a bit at first but then becomes bored and turns his attention back to you. He likes the way you’re cuddled up to him, he’s glad you’re not shy about showing him affection in public. Din is also enjoying watching your face and your reactions as you watch the performance unfold. You seem enthralled until you notice his visor is turned toward you instead of the dancers.

“Is everything alright?” you ask, blinking up at him. He simply gives your shoulder a squeeze and nods.

He keeps looking at you instead of the performance though until he sees your eyes widen and you gasp. Din turns his attention back to the dancers to see that they are removing most of their clothing to reveal their bodies. The dancers then start to pair off and dance together in what can only be described as the most sexual dancing Din has ever seen. There is grinding, thrusting, and a lot of groping. Turns out Trent was right about it being an erotic spectacle. He chuckles a bit to himself at the description and really, it’s nothing worse than some of the pornographic holovids he’s seen before. He looks down at you however and notices that you have become a little restless next to him. You can’t seem to tear your eyes away from the dancers and he sees your tongue come out to wet your lips as you watch. This is turning you on, he realizes. As he glances around the room to see if anyone is paying attention to you, he notes that several of the couples in the booths have started to put on their own performances, so to speak, and no one is interested in the two of you anymore. Never a man to let an opportunity pass by, Din decides to take full advantage of the situation and he reaches over and pulls you into his lap.

“Din, what are you doing?” You gasp, surprised by his actions.

“Shh, cyar’ika, look around,” he tells you. You look over at the other booths to see that most everyone else is making out all around you.

“Oh”

“It’s ok, keep watching the dancers, I can tell you like it,” Din says as his arms wrap around you. He holds you like that for a moment as you continue to watch the performers simulate various sexual acts. But before long his hands begin to wander, starting by running his fingers lightly over your collarbone. He traces the line of your necklace down to the mythosaur and then brushes against the tops of your breasts just along the edge of your bodice. Din hears you let out a small whine as he touches you and it emboldens him to palm one of your breasts fully. Between the layers of fabric of your dress and his gloves, it’s only a tease, but as he continues to grope you, he can hear the pace of your breathing increase. Din wants more and his hand finds the long slit in your dress allowing him to run his fingers up your thigh. He can feel your warmth as he gently kneads your flesh. Each movement he makes seems to elicit a small sound from you and he’s eager to hear more. Din slowly makes his way higher up your skirt thinking he’ll just tease the edges of your panties or maybe touch you over them, when he realizes he’s not finding any.

“Oh, my naughty girl, are you not wearing anything under this dress?” Din asks.

“Didn’t seem necessary,” you whisper to him.

He lets his fingers lightly explore between your legs, and when he can feel how wet you are already he can’t keep himself from letting his hand become more bold. He runs two of his fingers through your damp folds and up to the small bundle of nerves that he knows will bring you the most pleasure. Din feels you shudder against him as he circles your clit before bringing his fingers back down. The movement makes you shift your hips over his making you grind against his cock and he lets out a deep groan. It’s more than he can take and he says,

“We’re going back to room, now.”

“But, the show is still going on,” you say a little worried about being rude to your hostess.

“No one will miss us,” Din insists, “Let’s go.”

You quickly slide out of the booth following Din and he grabs your hand to hustle you to the exit. He’s right that no one seems to notice you at all, except for one other couple that is also sneaking out early. Din and you practically run back to your room, but once you get inside all you can do is stand there for a moment looking at each other.

“I want to make love to you,” Din says, his voice deep, “Please tell me you want that too.”

“I do, so much,” you reply.

He sweeps you into his arms and brings his helmet down to your forehead, as he asks, “Can we use the sleep mask? I really want to kiss you again and be able to use my mouth on your body.”

“Yes, but can we get undressed first?” you ask, “Because I’d like to see your body for a bit before.”

“Absolutely,” Din replies and he starts to pull off his armor. You have a lot less to remove, so with a simple whoosh of fabric, you’re standing before him in only your bra and his mythosaur necklace. You unhook the bra and toss it aside.

“You’re so gorgeous,” Din says, as he yanks at his own clothing in an attempt to be faster. You reach to lift the necklace off, when Din stops you, “No, don’t, I’d like it if you’d leave that on.”

“Oh?”

“I like seeing it on you, especially when it’s the only thing you have on,” he rasps out.

He’s finally almost totally naked except for his boxers and his helmet. Din can see you are transfixed with the way you are practically hopping from foot to foot in anticipation. It makes him smile how enthusiastic you are to see him. He slows his movements to draw out the moment and watches your face intently as he leisurely lowers the boxers from his hips. He sees your eyes widen and he chuckles as your mouth makes the most adorable little ‘o’.

“Wow, Din, you are the gorgeous one,” you reply practically in awe, “And I was right, you are large.”

Din chuckles at that comment, “I’m glad you like the view.”

“I don’t think I could ever get tired of it,” you say as you walk closer to him and as soon as you are in arms reach, Din pulls you to him so he can finally feel you. The sensation overwhelms him and all he can do is hold you there reveling in the feeling of your naked body against his. He lets out a loud groan from deep in his chest.

“I never thought this could feel so good,” Din breathes out. You shift against him and he groans again, “Please can we get the blindfold now? I need to kiss you.”

You pull away from him to reach into the nightstand drawer where you stashed the sleep mask. You take one last long look at his nude form before giving him an appreciative smile and slipping the mask on over your eyes. Not a second later, you hear a clunk as the helmet hits the floor and then Din is on you. He kisses you like he’ll never get another chance again, so full of passion and desire that it makes your head spin. His kiss is so all consuming that you don’t even realize that he’s picked you up and carried you to the bed, until he’s lying you back onto the soft cover. Din breaks the kiss just for a moment so that he can climb on top of you and come to rest comfortably between your spread legs.

Din could kiss you forever if you would let him. He loves the way your lips mold to his and the feeling of your tongue tasting his. He only pulls away to let you both catch your breath slightly before he’s back, trying to kiss you with even more fervor each time. Finally, you break the kiss so that you can explore more and the soft feel of your lips on his neck is magical. You find a sensitive spot just under his ear that makes him moan with pleasure. That moan quickly turns into a growl though as you use your teeth to nip at the spot.

“Ah, cyar’ika, let me try that on you,” he says, moving so that he has better access to your neck. Like you, he starts with soft kisses before biting into your neck to mark you as his. You’re more vocal than he is, letting out little mewls and whines of pleasure the more he kisses and sucks on your skin. He works his way down your neck to your chest, kissing and nipping at you the entire way. Finally, he’s at your breasts and Din does something he’s been dreaming of forever. He takes your hardened nipple into his mouth, pleasuring the sensitive peak with his tongue.

“Din!” you cry out his name and arch your back beneath him from how wonderful it feels. You can’t keep still as he suckles you. You run your fingers through his thick, wavy hair and then down his strong shoulders. When he tries out his teeth on your breast, you scratch your fingernails down his back. You feel his responding groan vibrate against your chest before he lifts his head from you,

“Do that again, cyar’ika, I liked it,” he tells you before switching to your other nipple to lavish it with the same mind-blowing pleasure. You rake your fingernails down his back again and again, as you writhe beneath him. It feels so good but yet, it isn’t enough.

“Please, Din, please,” you beg him.

He pulls off your breast with a soft pop of his lips, “Please what?” he asks you, his voice sounding amused.

“Touch me,” you pant out, “Please.”

“I am touching you,” Din teases and he drops his head back down so he can lick in between your breasts and down your stomach. “Or do you want me touch you somewhere else? Maybe here?” He licks and nibbles just above your belly button.

“Yes, but lower,” you say.

“How about here?” Din kisses lower, near your hipbone.

“Din!” Your voice comes out as a whine and he chuckles, Maker, he’s such a tease.

You feel him shift his body down and even though you can’t see him, you know he’s looking right at your pussy. You wait in anticipation of his touch and then start to wonder, as he doesn’t move.

“Din?”

“Just enjoying the beautiful sight,” he says, his voice full of desire. He waits just a beat more and then you feel his tongue moving through your wet folds.

You shudder and let out a loud moan as he licks you. He’s moving so slow, like he’s trying to savor you, and it feels wonderful but it’s also so maddening.

“Please, please more,” you beg him, your voice shaky in your need.

Din is happy to oblige you and he lets his tongue begin to explore you in earnest. His hands are splayed on each of your thighs as his mouth moves over you. As he licks you higher, he holds your lips open with his thumbs so he can have better access to your clit. Each time he lets his tongue brush over the little pearl, you cry out. He keeps this up for a bit, tormenting you, until he finally latches his lips around it and sucks your clit into his mouth. You cry out his name so loudly when he does that and you thrust your hands into his hair gripping it tightly.

The sensation makes him groan and he’s pleased when you do it again. The more he suckles and tongues your clit, the harder you tremble against him and he has to push down on your hips to keep you still. He pulls away from you for just a moment and lets his thumb draw circles on your clit in place of his tongue.

“You’re the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted, cyar’ika,” he tells you, “Wanted to do this for so long, so much better than I could have imagined.”

All you can do is moan in response because the mounting pleasure has robbed you of all logical thought. Din dives back into you, licking his tongue around your entrance before he pushes the muscle inside you. You cry out again and you grip his hair even tighter as your orgasm begins to close in on you. You feel yourself surging higher and higher, your thighs pushing tight around his head, until suddenly you are at the peak, feeling the most sublime pleasure as you gush on his tongue.

Din slows his movements as he lets you come down from your high, but he wants more. He’s waited so long to be here, he’s going to take his time until you’re begging him to stop. He lifts his mouth from you so that he can suck two of his fingers into his mouth, wetting them thoroughly.

“Is that really the first time you’ve done that?” You’ve regained enough composure to ask him.

“Yes,” he says, chuckling.

“If you get any better, you might kill me,” you tell him still sounding rather breathless.

“Well my darling, I’m not stopping yet,” Din replies as he pushes one long finger into you and drops his head back down to tongue your clit again. The high-pitched cry you let out makes him smile against you and he sees what he can do to hear it a second time. He can feel you flutter around his finger and he can’t believe how tight you are. He knows it’ll be easier for you to take his cock if he can make you come a couple more times on his fingers first. He slowly adds his second finger to you before he starts pumping them into you at a steady pace while licking and sucking your clit the entire time. He just barely crooks his fingers upward to brush the top of your walls when you’re coming apart again, shuddering so hard you almost buck him off you.

“Ahhh! Din, how’re you doing th-at, fe-feels so go-od,” you try your best to praise him but you can barely get the words out.

“Does it, cyar’ika? Does it feel good what I’m doing to you?” Din asks as he keeps his fingers working within your body. You clench around him hard.

“Talk to me,” you pant out, “like it so much.”

“You want me to talk to you, tell you how wonderful you feel around my fingers, how hot and wet you are?” Din replies and all you can do is moan in response.

“Mmm, you came so nice and hard for me before, gripped me so well, I can’t wait to feel you around my cock, going to feel fucking amazing.” The more Din talks dirty to you the more you cry out and thrust your hips against him.

“You really like this, don’t you, my fingers stretching you out, getting you nice and ready for me,” Din’s voice is so deep that the tone is doing just as much to pleasure you as his words do. “Tell you what, I’m going to keep this up and I’m going to suck on that beautiful little clit of yours until you come again for me.” And with that, his mouth returns to his favorite spot.

All you can do is cry out his name as the pleasure burns through your body. It’s so strong that you feel tears welling up in your eyes and you’re shaking all over from the sheer delight of his actions. It feels as if you are being tossed on a sea of pleasure, rising and falling with each wave, until finally you reach the largest wave of them all and it crashes over you. You lay there boneless and panting until Din finally stops and kisses his way back up your body before finally lying down next to you.

When you finally feel your breathing calm, you reach for him and bring him into a passionate kiss, tasting yourself on his lips. He moans his approval and rolls over on top of you.

“Wait,” you say breaking the kiss, “Don’t you want me to touch you? I’d love to taste you too.”

“I’d like that, cyar’ika, but some other time,” Din says, “Right now, I need to be inside you.”

In response, you widen your legs for him and draw them up to frame his hips, “I want that too, Din.”

 “Tell me again, please,” he says as you feel his cock glide over your folds spreading your wetness all over him.

“I want you, Din, I need to feel you inside me, I need you to make love to me,” you tell him, your voice full of emotion.

“Oh, ner cyar’ika,” Din says before he kisses you and begins to push into your narrow passage. Even with as wet and ready as you are for him, he wants to go slowly both so he can be sure not to hurt you and so that he can enjoy every moment of this first time.

You gasp into his mouth as he gradually stretches you open; you saw how big he is, but feeling him now, he seems enormous, but the sensation is amazing. He’s unhurried as he lets your body adjust to him and you feel nothing but pleasure as he continues to push forward. You know he’s been delaying his own pleasure this entire time that he’s been devoted to you and you marvel at his control now. Finally, he is completely sheathed within you and he breaks the kiss so he can let out a moan. He drops his forehead to yours and just stays there without moving. You let your inner muscles flutter around him as you enjoy the feel of him deep within you. He moans again.

“You little minx, do it again,” he says before kissing you anew. So you do, you tighten and release him almost like you’re trying to pull him deeper inside of you. You do it again and again until finally he starts to withdraw from you to begin thrusting. Din continues to move at a languid pace, allowing you to feel every delicious inch of him as he brushes your walls. Every time he reaches the deepest point inside you, you clench around him as tight as you can, in a vain effort to keep him there.

“Din, you’re so good, I love the way you feel,” you tell him.

“You’re perfect, cyar’ika, you’re so tight and hot and perfect,” he says and he starts to roll his hips into yours so that he strokes firmly on the most pleasurable part inside you as he pulls out. It makes you cry out his name.

“I love the way you say my name, my wonderful girl,” Din praises you and you wish you could compliment him back but he’s making you forget how to speak it’s so good, and all you can do is repeat his name.

Din reaches down to shift your legs higher on his hips and it changes your position so that he can thrust even deeper into you. He feels you lock your legs around his narrow waist and he adores it. He feels so close to you; it’s the most intimate sex has ever been for him. He wants to tell you how great it is but all he can get out are a string of random words of praise. He knows he’s getting close, but he wants you to come one more time before he does. He slides his hand between the two of you so he can reach your clit and he circles it roughly as he begins to piston into you at a fast pace.

“Yes, Din, yes, right there, don’t stop!” you call out to him. His hips are rocketing against yours now and you know you’re almost to another climax. You feel your thighs start to quake with your release and you know it will be a strong one.

“Please, please cyar’ika, come for me,” Din begs you and his voice urging you on is what you needed. You feel yourself explode and everything feels white hot as you clench hard around him. Din thrusts twice more before his own orgasm overtakes him and he spills himself deep within you, his cock pulsing. He shudders above you and his arms give out, making him sink his full weight into you. It feels wonderful and you wrap your arms around him to hold him tight.

When you can breathe again, you tell him, “Din, that was so amazing, I don’t even have the words, just incredible.”

“For me too,” he pants out as he is still catching his breath. You let him relax as you run your hands over his back gently. Eventually though, he picks up his head and kisses you so sweetly.

“I had no idea that anything could ever feel this wonderful,” Din tells you, and he kisses you again before rolling to the side and snuggling next to you with his head nestled in the crook of your neck and his hand resting on your stomach.

“So did I live up to the reputation you gave me as a lover?” Din asks, his voice flirty and teasing.

“Oh, you surpassed it,” you reply, “You are even better than the sex god, I described.”

“Ah, sex god, I like it,” he laughs, “Feel free to call me that any time.”

“Should I tell, Sigrid, to announce you as such tomorrow?” you laugh with him.

“Absolutely, may I present to you her Royal Highness and her Sex God.” He’s still chuckling and shaking the bed with his laughter. He calms down for a moment and he lets his hand trace lazy circles on your stomach before it comes to rest just below your belly button.

“So?” Din drawls, “Do you think you were blessed by Astrid?”

“I think modern science may have thwarted her in that,” you respond with a giggle.

“Hmm, maybe I should try again?” Din replies as he turns you to face him and pulls your leg over his hip. You’re surprised to feel that he’s already hard again as he grinds himself against you.

“I suppose you should,” you tell him encouragingly and you find his lips again in an adoring kiss.

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

Thank you again so much for reading! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. Go to Chapter 7: The Mando Games

Tag list: @grogusmum @wellofeternalthirst @idreamofboobear @theamuz @fangirlalexia @callmekane @im-the-nerdiest-of-them-a11 @theravenreads @nicotinebirds @boomtownboy @nova646 @wandering-storm-lost-shadow @becks-things @sleepwithacommunist @mackycat11 @som3thingcr3ative @punkdalek @pinkninja200 @s-unflowxr @ladyjenny19 @peppywitch @haley7242 @the-bottom-of-the-abyss @imthemandalornow​ @overtly-cuteashell 

#the mandalorian #din djarin #the mandalorian fanfiction #din djarin fanfiction #the mandalorian x female reader #din djarin x female reader #the mandalorian smut #din djarin smut #the mandalorian fanfic #din djarin fanfic

[moonlit-djarin]

To Be Desired

Paring: Din Djarin x Reader 

Warnings: so much softness, a hint of injuries mentioned. 

a/n: I took this quote and ran with it. Thanks to @forever-rogue​ for pushing me to actually write something! This is the first thing i’ve written in a long time, please be kind

Word Count: 2k

                                           Stars, hide your fires:

        Let not light see my black and deep desire:

                                                                 - Shakespeare, Macbeth

The presence of another is hard to get used to after spending years alone.

The presence of another creates change. It disrupts the normal pattern of life. The body is on high alert, more aware. Fine tuned to notice any movement, even in its peripheral vision. Focusing on the foreign feeling of seeing a figure in its field of view, rather than what’s ahead. Each sound makes the body tense and examines its surroundings. As if there was danger nearby, even when there was only unspoken love. There’s a consciousness of the space around that wasn’t there before.  Everything is too bright or too dark. Clean or dirty. There was an unspoken effort of achieving comfort. An unfamiliar sense of taking care of another. Even if it wasn’t asked or sought out for. The presence of another creates a heightened awareness of everything.

The biggest change?

Space was no longer so silent. No longer as cold. No longer as still.

No longer lonely.

The Mandalorians throat was dry. Trying to find something to say as the two of you sat in the cockpit in silence to your next locations. Something to fill the stillness while the endless sea of stars flew past. He couldn’t think of a single way to break the silence without feeling as if he had ruined the moment or disrupted the stillness. Yet, there was this desire, one that plagued his thoughts. The desire to get to know you. To know you with your armor off, your weapons forgotten. To know the true you. 

You didn’t know what to say either. How to break the silence that was seemingly written so carefully in the stars. The desire was there too. The desire to know the man under the helmet. Under the weight of the Beskar. Without the weight of his given mission. To know the true Din Djarin. 

The silence was comfortable but lingered. It was understood that Din wasn’t a Mandalorian of many words. Only speaking when necessary, or to check the whereabouts of the child. Maybe it was just a habit. So used to fending for your own lives, trying to survive alone that the more words left unspoken, the better. Even if the desire was there, it was too bright. Breaking silence wasn’t a well mastered skill for you or Din. 

It had taken a long time for Din to get used sitting next to anyone in the cockpit. Let alone get used to someone calling him by name, his real name. Entrusting you with that was a big shift in the dynamic of the relationship. He was visibly less on guard after that. Allowing himself to relax while you sat in the cockpit with him, next to him on a mission or when he left the child with you when he would go eat. 

        “Mando, the child-” 

        “It’s Din” 

        “What?”

        “My name is Din.” 

          “Din. I like that. The child- the child ate four of those frogs”

You were pulled out of your thoughts when the silence was broken. The child, who was now sitting on your lap, had made his way from his seat to you. Cooing and whining, his little hand reaching and leaning for the shiny gear knob fixed onto the dashboard of the Razor Crest. One that he routinely tried to play with and the one that Din routinely told him that it wasn’t his. Eventually giving into the creature and handing it to him.

Your hand went to reach for it absentmindedly but it met a gloved hand already there.

Both of you froze. Neither of you dared to look up at each other. This had never happened before. Sure, you had helped him patch up wounds when he was injured and vise versa. That was done out of necessity and trying to keep the other one awake. But this? This was different. This was out of a motive, the same motive. To care for the child. Not out of necessity of survival, but of comfort. 

Before either of you could say anything. He removed his hand quickly and pressed a few buttons before it went back to resting awkwardly on his knee. Letting out a breath you didn’t know you were holding, as you unscrewed the ball and handed it to the child who giggled happily. Taking it in his hands and sitting back in your lap. Slowly exchanging a look long between both of you in the suddenly stiff silence. 

“You should rest. We won’t be landing for another few hours or so” He said. Breaking the silence. It was the first thing he had said to you since the bounty had been encased in carbonite an hour prior. You went to respond but before you could he stood up, putting the ship in autopilot and leaving you and the child in the cockpit alone.

He couldn’t stand the silence anymore. At this moment, he was a coward. Unable to let go of the habit of hiding his heart behind his beskar. Leaving the room, even if his heart was pounding against his chest asking to be set free. He longed to hear you laugh, to hear you coo and play with the child. To hear you speak of anything but the bounty or the great task ahead of them. To hear you speak about the stars, the planets and places you’ve been, the ones you long to see. 

His armor hit the floor with a weight, a long sigh drew from his lips. Releasing the tension in his shoulders. The job wasn’t easy. Especially when he was no longer alone. He was tired. He could handle being tired on his own. Maybe it was the fact that he was no longer alone that made him hyper aware of how tired he was. Did your arm feel the same pain he did when getting shot? Did you brush off your injuries as much as he does? Were you this tired? You had to be. 

What would happen once his quest of delivering the child back to its own kind was over. Would you leave him too? The comfort he once found in the thought of loneliness was no longer there. The thought of returning to the way things had been before the child burned in his mind. He had never been this warm in his life. The ship was never this clean, or had as many amenities before the two of you had come along. Now, being on this ship alone felt wrong. His thoughts spiraled as his hands held the edge of his helmet. 

He didn’t hear you enter the room. Carrying the dozing child, exhausted yourself. Your shoulders carried the same weight his did. 

“Din are you okay?” Your voice pierced the silence. When he looked up you stood next to him looking at him concerned. Suddenly he felt so vulnerable being this close without his armor. His hand dropped from his helmet and straightened his back. Your eyes searched hopefully for his under the helmet. 

“Of course, cyar'ika” He said, his voice low and full of exhaustion even the modulated helmet couldn't disguise. At this moment he was thankful for his helmet. Disguising his flustered appearance for one deep in thought. You hummed, accepting his answer. Knowing there was more to it, but speaking as you could see the exhaustion practically dragging him down. You thought it best to let him sleep. 

Softly brushing past him, you set the child down in his makeshift bed sling. He babbled sleepily as you tucked him in. The child was asleep almost instantly. 

As you straightened, you looked back to where Din stood. You wanted nothing more to put your hands on the Mandalorians shoulders. To tell him that it is okay to relax. To tell him that he is doing his best. To ground him in the moment and remind him to not think so far ahead into the unknown. 

He had gone before you could do so. 

He left his armor on his mattress. Shedding the weight of your own. You crawled into bed. The exhaustion of the day called you and you gave in easily, knowing the child and Din were safe. 

The two of you danced around your quiet desires for the other in the solitude of dark. 

              Stars, hide your fires: 

The presence of another is hard to get used to after spending years alone, but it is made comforting by the right person.

Spending endless time together, still not saying more than a word or two. It had become a ritual almost. To sit in the cockpit with the child. Sitting in silence, watching the stars burn past at light speed. 

Fleeting touches, stolen glances and nods of approval slowly became the silent love language between the two of you. A brush of his bare hand wiping the sweat of your forehead as he patched up a blaster wound. A small moment frozen in time as you cupped his bare hand whilst grabbing the bowl out of his hand to pass to the child. Ever more frequently you began to notice your reflection in his helmet. If it was him looking at you while you held this child thinking you weren’t paying attention, or if it was you stealing glances at him from across the cantina, or next to him in the cockpit. It didn’t matter, the dance continued. The desire was still hidden from the stars. 

        Let not light see my black and deep desire:

The soft cries of the child woke you up. 

Groaning as you shifted out of the small space. You made your way over to him in the dark, not wanting to turn on the light in the change that you might disturb your other sleeping a few feet away. The child had dropped the ball and now was teetering over the sling in attempts to reach it. He cooed as you picked it up and placed it back in his grip. 

As you turned, you saw Din’s armor still sitting there, untouched from hours before. Your curiosity and concern got the best of you and you made your way to the ladder, climbing into the cockpit. Doing your best to not disturb the child’s sleep. 

You found him there. Sitting in darkness. Asleep or deep in thought you didn’t know. You made your way to the seat next to him. Watching a lone star illuminate his helmet in your peripherals before disappearing in the vastness of space. 

The darkness of a starless sky surrounded you. Sitting in comfortable silence. Effectively hiding his desire. The desire to reach out to you. To pull you close. To not be alone anymore. If a light shone above it would bear witness to his gloveless fingers stretching out to you. Stretching out to break the distance. Almost as if the darkness had given him the courage to act. But instead he pulled his hand into a tight fist by his side. 

Light eventually shined over you. In bright fires of stars. The distance between the two of you had diminished in the cover of night. The deep desire of longer being alone brought the two of you together in more ways than one. 

Your hand hung gently at your side, gently grasping his bare hand. His thumb running over the back of your knuckles gently. As if he was trying to memorize each crevice of them. Nothing had to be said. Gently he stood up, pulling you with. Leading you down the ladder, his hand at the small of your back as you climbed down. Not wanting to lose contact with you as he had just gained it. Leading you to the small cot. His touch fleeting your back as you went in first. He discarded his Helmet with one had. Safe under the cover of night. Safe under the trust between the two of you. He slipped to the side of you. Reaching out to you again in the dark. This time there was no need for courage. There was only comfort. Pulled into his arms, your back nestled into the front of his chest. Memorizing the rise and fall as if it were a lullaby. For the first time since no longer being alone, Din could relax. Under the fires of the stars he had all that he desired in his reach. 

The presence of another is a comfort after spending years alone.

---

Thank you for reading!! <3 

#the mandalorian #mandalorian x reader #mandalorian x you #din djarin x reader #din djarin imagine #the mandalorian x reader #din djarin x you #pedro pascal #pedro pascal x you #pedro pascal x reader #star wars

[cudan2]

One Last Surgery

Spring Break Shadowing Part 5.1

Carlisle Cullen x Reader

Word Count: 2,043

Summary: You finally find out the reason for going to the children’s hospital, but you’re more distracted than usual today and Dr. Cullen can tell. 

A/N: Tell me why part 5 of SBS takes up over half of the whole series? I’ve had this sitting in my drafts for 5 months because I keep adding more to it smh. Now it’s too long so I’ve decided to split it up into 3 parts (in addition to parts 6 and 7). I’m making the final edits the rest of this part now - 5.2 should be posted in like two days.

Anyways, this is technically the beginning of  #1 and #2 on my headcanon list.

Masterlist

XXX

Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital is only across the street from Doctor Cullen’s office, but it seems to take forever to get there. You trail the doctor like a lost puppy through a skyway and a series of corridors before eventually reaching the right building. Different is definitely an understatement.

Gone are the linoleum-tiled floors, the abstract paintings lining the hallways, and the stark white walls. Instead, there are bright colors everywhere you look. Artwork featuring various galaxies and planets scatter throughout the hospital, and giant stars are imprinted along the floors; even the whole atmosphere just feels different.

You don’t get much time to analyze the differences though. Doctor Cullen is wasting no time to reach the destination, and his long legs aren’t making it any easier to keep up.

“Not that I don’t like surprises, but any chance you can tell me what we’re doing in the children’s hospital now?”

“Impatient, are we?” Doctor Cullen chuckles. He stops at an elevator and pushes the up button, only giving into your question once he catches a glimpse of your pout. “Alright, you win. Are you familiar with a cleft palate or cleft lip?”

The elevator dings, the doors sliding open with it. You shake your head no and get on the elevator with him. He presses the button for the floor and then leans against the wall, arms outstretched on the handrail, and gives you an explanation. 

“A cleft is a gap or split occurring in the roof of the mouth, upper lip, or both. It is due to improper joining of the tissue during fetal development. There are no definitive known causes as of right now, but it’s believed that the environment and genetics can play a role.

The hospital has its own craniofacial team, but I was asked to join this particular case given its more complicated nature. Hanna became one of the first patients I treated when I came to Columbia,” Doctor Cullen finishes fondly, a smile gracing his lips.

“What makes this case complicated?” you ask.

“Hanna was born with a bilateral complete cleft lip and palate, meaning her lip cleft is two-sided and continues into her nose. It took quite a few surgeries to repair the lip, but now the next step is to repair the palate.”

The elevator reaches the floor and dings. You follow Doctor Cullen out and continue prodding him with more questions, which he is more than eager to answer. It’s incredible how knowledgeable he is. Granted, it is his job to know these things, but you couldn’t begin to imagine yourself being able to even scratch the surface of these topics, not to mention give a mini lecture on it.

You’re soon standing at the door to a patient room while the doctor asks Hanna’s parents if you can observe. They readily agree, and Doctor Cullen motions for you to come in.

Inside the room, you see an infant that can’t be more than a year old – Hanna.  She’s sitting upright on the bed, leaning against who you assume to be her father. You notice two fading scars going up into her nose above her lip. Her mother is waving a stuffed toy around her, but Hanna’s attention is fixated on the blonde doctor.

“Y/N, allow me to introduce you to Hanna’s parents, Anthony and Linh Pham. And this is Doctor Giselle Adamou, who will be working with me on the surgery,” Doctor Cullen gestures to the older doctor in the room.

“It’s nice to meet you all,” you say politely.

Pre-op goes differently than what you’ve gotten used to observing this week. There is no case presenting given the lack of residents on the case. If anything, this is what you would expect out of a non-teaching hospital.

Doctor Cullen re-explains the procedures to Hanna’s parents, but halfway through, Hanna crawls to the end of the bed where Doctor Cullen is and attempts to stand, arms outstretched as if to say, “Up! Up!” Bewilderment is not a word you would have associated with him, and yet you catch the brief widening of his eyes that betray his usually calm demeanor.

“I think she wants you to hold her,” Linh comments.

“I can see,” Doctor Cullen muses. “Do you mind?”

“She’s all yours.” Linh picks her daughter up from the bed and hands her to the doctor. The sound of Hanna’s elated laughter fills the room, and you can’t stop a small smile from appearing on your own face. A cute baby and a gorgeous doctor? You don’t know who to thank for the sight.

Meanwhile, Hanna starts playing with various pens in Doctor Cullen’s breast pocket while Doctor Adamou continues where her colleague left off. You try to pay attention, you really do. Like Hanna though, your attention lies on someone else, and that someone else happens to be Doctor Cullen.

The more you study him, the more the minute features you never noticed about him before seem to pop out to you. Under the bright fluorescent lighting of the hospital, the dark purple circles under his eyes are more apparent than ever. How ironic for the preacher of health to lack sleep himself. His eyes, which you normally consider to be a vivid golden, are darker than you initially thought them to be. They are liquid pools of dark amber, speckled with dustings of gold and flecks of black. There isn’t a single blemish on his face that you can see either, further confirming your belief that this man is truly the most attractive person you have ever met. Either that or he must have one hell of a skincare routine.

It’s unnerving how young his appearance is. Skincare and diet can only do so much for a person, right? Doctor Cullen has to be at least 35 at the minimum, yet he could easily pass off as someone from your own school.

“Any last minute questions?” you hear Doctor Adamou ask and snap back into reality. By missing nearly everything the older doctor talked about, you already know you’ll be so screwed if and when Doctor Cullen decides to interrogate you on this case.

Neither parent has anything left to say, so Doctor Cullen gives a reluctant Hanna back to her mother. She lets out a cry and his expression softens.

“I know, sweetheart. I’ll miss you too, but I need to get ready for your big surgery, okay? I promise you’ll see me again in a few hours.” His soothing voice does wonders for her. In an instant, Hanna quiets down and her frown is replaced with giggles and smiles again. She waves the two of you off, and you both take your leave with Doctor Adamou trailing behind you. You’re not even halfway out the door yet when Doctor Cullen starts testing your knowledge again.

“Y/N, what procedure will we be doing to repair Hanna’s cleft?” 

You do not have this one in the bag whatsoever. You wrack your brain for information that could help you, but Doctor Adamou interjects before you get a chance to say anything.

“Why does it not surprise me that you’re treating students like interns already, Carlisle?”

“I am merely advancing the education of next generation’s doctors,” he responds.

“Whatever you say,” she laughs. “Don’t scare off Y/N though, or we won’t have any doctors left in the next generation.” She turns to you after picking up files from a nearby counter and says, “You come running to me if he pushes you too hard, alright?”

You grin. “For sure.”

“Good. I look forward to seeing you both in the OR,” she says before heading off.

You like Doctor Adamou. Each surgeon you’ve met here so far has had such different personalities, yet each also has the charisma and confidence to take control of a room and command respect. You, on the other hand, could barely get your own friends to listen to your own words. How are you ever going to get on the level of all the amazing doctors around you?

“She saved you there,” Doctor Cullen comments, leafing through Hanna’s charts as he walks you into an empty elevator to the operating floor. Oops, it’s just your luck that he noticed your lack of attention during the pre-op. “It’s unlike you to be distracted. Penny for your thoughts?”

The elevator doors shut, and he looks up from the chart, his eyes falling onto yours. He has that twinkle in his eyes again – the one that brings warmth to your cheeks and could make anyone weak in their knees. You know it’s silly, but a single look from him could make you spill any of your deepest and darkest secrets, yet a part of you also knows that he would keep it. You’re not naïve – you know it’s dangerous to put so much faith into a man you only met this week – but there’s something about him that told your instincts to trust him from the very beginning.

Call it intuition, or maybe it’s just plain stupidity, but you sure as hell aren’t going to tell him about how you got distracted because of his pretty face.

You hesitate for a moment and let out a sigh. “How do you do it?” He quirks a brow, momentarily perplexed, and you attempt to find the right words. “How do you make all of this look so easy? How do you know what the right thing to say is? Or trust that what you’re doing is even right? How did you know if this was all meant for you? This is really dumb, but it seems like everyone here was born for this job, and then there’s... me.”

There’s a slight sense of dread starting to form in your stomach. You’re unsure if what you asked even made any sort of sense and wonder if you gave too much away. Giving any reason to second guess your abilities is like digging your own grave when it comes to this career. Expressing uncertainty is one of the biggest taboos of the cutthroat world that is pre-med because schools would not accept students that aren’t absolutely, totally, and completely sure about this path.

You’ve wanted this for so long, yet there’s still a part of you that doubts if you would be enough.

Rather than going straight to gowning and scrubbing in for the surgery, Doctor Cullen grabs your hand and leads you down to an abandoned hallway, only letting go once the two of you are hidden in an alcove away from any prying ears or eyes.

“What are you doing? Shouldn’t you be getting ready for surgery?”

“We have a few minutes to spare. Y/N, please know that I understand how you feel,” he says softly. “There was a time when I questioned my own abilities as well… whether my perseverance could overcome adversity. It took quite some time to reach where I am today.  However, without enduring those trials and tribulations, I would not be here. With time comes experience, and it is that experience that allows me to perform my job the best I can.”

His voice reminds you of a gentle breeze, rustling the leaves of a tree on a cool summer night when he continues speaking in hushed tones. It brings a blanket of reassurance, a sense that things would eventually be alright.

“I have said this before, but I see enormous potential in you. You still have a great deal of time to grow and develop your skills. It’s easy to get caught up in comparing yourself with others, especially given today’s societal standards, but I believe you are much more capable than you may think you are. Everyone’s journey is different and yours may not necessarily be as linear as you would prefer. In due time though, I have faith that you will succeed.”

What he says is exactly what you needed to hear.

The swell of tears pricks at your eyes and start blurring your vision, but you blink them away quickly, fighting the urge to wrap your arms around the doctor. 

“Thank you, Doctor Cullen.” Your voice is barely above a whisper.

“You’re very welcome. Now, I believe there’s a little girl waiting on us.” 

XXX

Tag List - Message me to be added or removed to either this series or the rest of my fics!

@jelly-fishy-babie @notahappytree @anxiousgoldengirl

#carlisle cullen #carlisle cullen x reader #carlisle cullen imagine #twilight #twilight fanfiction #twilight imagines #twilight renessaince #twilight saga #twilight reboot #twilight renaissance #doctor daddy cullen #you guys can't tell but this whole story was one large self-insert #i started writing this at the beginning of the pandemic #was in the midst of my junior year and about to apply to dental schools #basically got rejected from all 19 schools i applied to only for one to rescind their rejection and offer me a spot for next year's class #it's a school in new york too!! #what are the odds? #for anyone struggling out there or feeling like things aren't going the way you want them to - life has a way of working out eventually #twilight fanfic

[spideyanakin]

Love Teared us Apart

Anakin Skywalker x Reader

Got very inspired by Love will tear us Apart from Joy Division (if you want to listen to it while you read :)) - iconic song if you ask me 😌😌

Prompt by @lightsabersandblaster​ // Imagine falling to the dark side and becoming Darth (Blank) in Anakin’s place. Both of you thought the other was dead. But a chance encounter between a sith lord and jedi master dig up old memories for both. Memories of when times were better and they were together.

🧚🏻‍♀️Masterlist 🧚🏻‍♀️

Sith name - Darth Deore (beloved in old English) Reason - reader joined the dark side because she wanted to be with her beloved; therefore Darth Deore

Leaving you to die on Mustafar was Obi-Wan’s biggest mistake. To see you, unconscious on the dark sandy shores of the lava planet made every bone in his heartache, and still hunted him to this day.

You thought that by joining the Sith you would be able to be with Anakin, free of constraints. Just the two of you ruling the galaxy - your naiveness making you think you could change the Sith for good, and turn the empire for the best. Love was the strongest power, wasn’t it?

But things didn't go as planned, love ended up tearing you apart. You found yourself killing your Jedi master - Windu, and now you were fighting with your best friend Obi-wan on the dark fire planet of Musatar.

The only way to calm you - or so he thought was to lie to your face that Anakin was dead in battle - and oh you believed it.

You believed it so much it made you sick. Clenching your stomach as you fell to your knees in pain. Learning his death doing the opposite of what Obi-Wan had planned.

“I COULD HAVE BROUGHT HIM BACK-” You screamed as your emotions got the best of you, sobs escaping your lips.

“No one could have.” He lied. “The clones took him down- just like the rest. You see what they did? Joining the Sith isn't the answer Y/n!”

“THAT’S A LIE! LIAR!” You spat out as you felt too weak to fight back, Obi-wan slowly approaching with his light-saber, ready to do the unthinkable. “LIArr-” You sobbed as you clenched the sand under your fingers Obi-Wan carefully approaching you.

The guilt in his stomach was too strong, and the memories of you were too. ‘Jedi’s can’t get attached’ he reminded himself before closing his eyes and hit you will all his strength, the hilt of his lightsaber knocking you down unconscious on the sandy floors. ‘The tide will rise’ he told himself. ‘You did what you had to do’

But that was almost 7 years ago.

Now you were sitting around a table, arguing on an imperial cruiser with a crew of Nazi-like men, the pain of Anakin’s supposed death still weighing on you more than anything else - fueling every single one of your decision.

“I said it had to be done by today!” You screamed punching the table with everything you had in your fist, making it tremble. “JEDI SCUM!” You spat out. “They won’t last long - not on my watch-” You eyed the man who was supposed to take care of the mission as he cut you in your words.

“We will take care of it by today then-” The men trembled under your glare, and his words only made your skin crawl.

“You. Said. That. Yesterday” You raised your hand slowing removing the air from his throat as his feet raised from the ground. “I’ll take care of the Jedi” You dropped him unconscious not caring if he knocked his head on the floor so hard it killed him. “Tell the emperor I’ll be back by tomorrow- if not... send help” You eyed another man who feared you more than any other in the room.

“Alright, M’lady.” a sweat passed through his forehead as he ran out the room.

And with that you were gone- you slipped away into your star-fighter, angrily kicking the start button, sending yourself into hyperspace.

Your thoughts swirled around who it could have possibly been. When it was someone else doing the dirty work - killing the leftover Jedi’s felt easier. But now... You were possibly confronting someone you knew like family. Having to kill them yourself...

You thought of Obi-wan. He hadn’t died with the rest, and you had let it slip all those years. Was he the one on Tatooine? Then things would be more complicated- you knew feelings would get in the way. Obi-wan swirled with memories of Anakin and you knew he would use them as an advantage.

Your thoughts went Ahsoka. Anakin’s Padawan had long left the council when the clones attacked. Maybe it was her. But that would make it harder still.

You didn’t know, but the duality of desperately wanting them to stay alive and having to do your duty as Darth Deore was too much. It messed with your head causing you to not pay attention to the ship that was slowly flying in your way right where you stopped your hyperspace.

You hit the breaks but it was too late. With the speed that you previously gained and the proximity of the ship, you crashed onto it making you spin towards Tatooine at almost lightning speed. Your last thoughts before shock made you unconscious being about how Anakin wouldn't be proud of that piloting moment.

Your ship crashed landed on the sand planet by chance not far from the Jedi’s settlement. The desert went on for miles and miles around the pretty large house that had been built. So when Anakin and Obi-wan heard the crash, they were directly alarmed. Their peace was never disturbed apart from when the Jawas were near - or stray sand people made their way a little too close.

Anakin felt it the second he got out of his house. It was you. Surrounded by a darker force - but you. He clenched his fist in disbelief and Obi-wan bit his lip in worry when he felt it too.

“This can’t be?” He turned to Obi-wan as he trotted his way to you before the ship would probably explode. The Jedi master barely looked at his ex-Padawan as he knew what was about to happen.

Anakin froze to the spot when he saw you. You looked the same as before, but different at the same time - he couldn’t explain why. Maybe it was the way your hair was longer and looked darker. The way it loosely fell - you hated wearing it down, and yet it looked as though you never tied it anymore. Your traits hadn’t changed as thought time had barely caught up with you.

You were dressed differently too. Your Jedi robes had been long gone - some sort of black armor was placed on top of a dark and purple tunic. Leather pants and thick boots accompanied the look. As well as a black cape - a shade of deep purple covering the inside. Your usual two sabers were each locked on each side of your hips. Your usual purple blades being long replaced with red ones.

“Y/n-” He cried as he tried to shake you awake. Nothing seemed to work and you stayed unconscious in your about to explode ship. Before thinking twice Anakin grabbed you and walked away, barely passing by Obi-wan already knowing that he had known.

~

“You hid her from me...” Cold blood streamed in his veins as he turned his head towards his friend.

Anakin didn’t wait for an answer. He turned his head back to your unconscious form as you laid on their couch, your wounds already all patched up.

“You knew about Darth Deore’s existence, nothing was hidden from you,” Obi-wan replied as calm as a mountain his stare falling on you.

“You told me she died-” He greeted his teeth as he pierced daggers with his eyes, holding on a little tighter to your hand - the one he hadn’t let go since he found you.

“She has! Y/n died the second she became Deore.” Obi-wan stood up trying to bring some sense back into Anakin.

“That's not true-” He thought for a second. “I could have brought her back.” Anakin felt his eyes water and silence fell between the two Jedi’s. “She thought I was dead didn't she?” He realized after a good minute of silence. “You told her I was!” He almost screamed and Obi-wan looked away.

“I thought she’d come back to her senses if she thought that.”

“Well we both know you were wrong-” Ani raised his voice.

“It was the only way to keep you safe,” Kenobi argued.

“From what!?”

“From her!”

“I WOULD HAVE SAVED HER! ”

“More like die trying!” Nothing seemed to make Obi-wan change his mind. He walked over to another room, leaving Anakin alone with you.

It was silent for a good ten minutes. Obi-Wan had left to think, while Anakin was by your side thinking of nothing but what he would say when you woke up.

Suddenly you opened your eyes. Those darn eyes that Anakin dreamed of for 7 years. They still portrayed the same beautiful color, but they seemed colder- robotic almost. You let the light of day sink in, barely being able to move you turned your head and met Anakin’s crystal blue eyes - and suddenly you realized who it was.

“Ani-” You managed to say before you attempted to sit up, Anakin placing a hand on your back to stabilize you. “It’s you?” You smiled, the hand that wasn’t tangled into his traveling to his face.

You thumb scanned his traits. Tracing his lips, his eyes, his nose; everything you had missed in all that time.

“Anakin-” A sob escaped your lips and you threw yourself into his arms, hugging him as though he would disappear any minute. You let a rain of sobs, feeling comfort coming to you as he wrapped his arms around you, holding onto you as close as he could.

“I- I’m sorry I couldn’t save you.” you sobbed, holding on tight to this moment with everything in you.

“It’s ok-” He sniffed resting his chin on your head. Long minutes of silence falling between the two of you as you sobbed into his arms.

“Where are we?” You sniffed as you brought your forehead against his. “Am I dead?” You wondered. “Please tell me this isn’t a dream.” You bit your lip and Anakin brought you closer to him. “I cannot live another second of this- Bring me back to a time where everything was peaceful” You sniffed.

“This is real Y/n-” He whispered. “We’re very well alive- This isn’t a dream or death.” He took a second to pull you away and look at you.

“What?” Your voice cracked and you felt a wave of weakness pass through your veins. “Y- but- you died” You squeaked and more tears fell from your eyes. “I- I- Obi wan-”

“Obi-wan lied. He told me you were dead too.”

“But I- all this time-” You stuttered on your words.

“We were both alive- grieving for the other” His glossy eyes met yours as he wiped the stray tears from your cheeks, smiling a little at your presence.

“Never leave me again-”

“Never”

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