#take proper breaks in between classes!!! eat lots!!! drink lots!!! and sleep lots!!! and when you’re writing think of me

[amarimaryllis]

I Do Not Think I Would (Bokuto x Reader)

Pairing: Bokuto/Reader

Prompt/Summary: The rational side of you tells you to leave, but for Bokuto Koutarou, you choose to stay. Alternatively, Bokuto Koutarou’s fangirls are ruthless.

Tags: Angst, Fluff, Haikyuu Timeskip Spoilers

Note: I used she/her pronouns for the reader, Bold Italicized sentences are excerpts from the poem “Love is Not All” by Edna St. Vincent Millay

Warnings: Mild Swearing, Mentions of self-hate, Mentions of insecurity, Bokuto has toxic fans

Part of A Sensitivity to Ephemera

You met Bokuto Koutarou in your 3rd year at Fukurodani, but you had known of his existence for longer. It was hard to not know of Bokuto Koutarou if you studied in Fukurodani. Hell, it was hard to not know of him if you studied in Tokyo in general. Aside from the fact that he was the embodiment of solar energy, Bokuto Koutarou also had a ton of admirers.

Fangirls

Fanboys.

And everything in between and beyond.

However, the first time you ever interacted with him was in Honda-sensei’s room. It was quick, a brief encounter that promised longer ones. Bokuto’s grades had been slipping, and you were his assigned tutor.

“Bokuto-san, this is L/N-san from Class 6.” Honda-sensei introduces you two briefly. “She’ll be tutoring you until your grades are back to… Satisfactory. I trust you to not give her a hard time.”

“Nice to meet you, L/N-san!” Bokuto bows briefly, the grin plastered on his face, unfading. However, there’s a sense of urgency in his stance, vibrating, itching to run off. Probably because he had volleyball training, and nothing in this world could keep Bokuto Koutarou from his beloved sport.

You didn’t know why, but your heart was beating a little bit faster than normal.

Love is not all: it is not meat nor drink

Nor slumber nor a roof against the rain;

After a few weeks of tutoring, Bokuto’s grades were slowly getting better. It wasn’t “satisfactory” yet, according to Honda-sensei, but you guys were getting there. As a celebration, right after volleyball practice, Bokuto drags you to the closest cafe and tells you to choose anything you want because it was “on him” as he enthusiastically stated.

“Bokuto-san, you didn’t have to.” You mumble bashfully as Bokuto sets a tray down and seats across from you.

“Don’t worry about it!” Bokuto grins as he slides the food over to you. “It’s the least I can do since you’ve been such a great tutor.”

A small smile makes its way to your face. “I guess I’ll take it then. Thank you for the food!”

As you eat, you can see Bokuto’s eyes continuously flitting back and forth between a spot on your face and away from it. He looked hesitant, but your sudden speaking urges him to reply.

“Is there anything on my face?” You furrow your brows, raising a hand to wipe at your cheek.

“Ah yeah, wait, not there.” Bokuto reaches over the table, a large hand cupping your cheek before he presses his thumb to the corner of your mouth and swipes to remove whatever it was on your face. “You had sauce on your face.”

Fire and ice could co-exist at once, you concluded. Because if it didn’t, then you would like to present yourself as evidence. You were frozen, but inside you, there was an inferno of different emotions swirling, sparked by a single touch on your skin.

That night, after Bokuto had walked you home and you had settled in for the night, you dreamt of black and white streaks paired with the brightest golden eyes. You let yourself dream. You knew that this was the closest you could get to him. The real world wasn’t as kind to you after all.

While you slept soundly, Bokuto walked home. It was raining, but it didn’t matter to him because as the rain drops onto his skin, he wished that it was your touch that fell upon him instead. And for a second as he imagines, it almost felt like it was.

And though he so desperately wished for it as he lied in bed, slumber never came. Instead, in its place, were a hundred different stories, a hundred different futures, a hundred different lifetimes, and they all ended with the sight of a bashful smile, and the prettiest eyes.

Love can not fill the thickened lung with breath,

Nor clean the blood, nor set the fractured bone;

You gripped at your skirt tightly, fighting back the tears that threatened to escape your eyes. Fear gripped your chest as you watched Bokuto’s sleeping figure from your place on the chair beside the bed. There had been a small accident during Fukurodani’s practice match, a small collision, but it was enough to send him to the infirmary and you running after him.

It was stupid, you think to yourself. You had rushed to the clinic the moment your break started, and by the time you reached the room, you were a mess. The nurse only gave you a cheeky smile before she patted your back and said, “Don’t worry about your boyfriend. It’s a minor injury and it was probably just an ant bite for someone like him.”

Ant bites didn’t usually require sleep for recovery.

Also, he wasn’t your boyfriend, but you’d be the biggest liar on earth if you said that you didn’t want him to be. You were just his tutor. Sure you’d been tutoring him for a long time, and that was enough to form a friendship of sorts, but that was all you’ll ever be: a friend. So why were you acting like you were something more? Friends get concerned, they’ll drop by, check on you, go off once they realize it’s minor and you’re in good hands, and then wait for you to recover. They don’t stay, fussing, practically crying, and worrying over something so small.

You’re so caught up in your thoughts that the sudden placement of a heavy palm on your head startles you.

Bokuto chuckles as he takes in your disheveled state. Your eyes are damp, your hair is slightly messed up, and your skirt is still tight in your grip, but even then, he still couldn’t help but be mesmerized by the way you looked. “Hey hey hey, did I make you worry that much?”

You can’t help it. He’s recovering, you know that, but you couldn’t stop yourself from lunging at him and enveloping him in a hug. “I hate you so much. Promise me you’ll never make me worry like that ever again.”

Bokuto chuckles and you could feel the vibrations since you two were practically chest-to-chest. “If making you worry means you’ll hug me like this, then I don’t think I can make any promises.”

“Bokuto-san…” You attempt to pull away, but find yourself unable.

Sturdy arms wrap around your waist, and your frozen figure is pulled tighter against Bokuto’s body as he engulfs you with his larger frame. “Do you like me, Y/N-chan?”

You freeze.

Oh hell no.

Out of all the conversations in this world, this one was the one you did not want to have, especially not when you were emotionally vulnerable. You didn’t know if you had enough control over yourself to give the proper answers.

“What? No! I mean yes? You’re my friend, of course I like you.” Your fight or flight response to this conversation seems to have given you ample strength to pull away. You attempt to stand straight and face this problem head on, but your feet are pointing you towards the exit.

Ready to run. From this conversation. From your feelings. From rejection.

Bokuto raises a brow, a teasing grin on his face. “Oh, really?”

Contrary to popular belief (see: Honda-sensei), Bokuto Koutarou was not stupid. Very far from it. While he’s not academically gifted, he’s definitely smart on the people side of things.

You were an open book, and Bokuto was taking his time rereading every page.

“I…” You’re unable to answer, unable to find the words that would make the impending rejection hurt less.

“Well, if it helps—“ Bokuto sits up and sets his feet on the ground, lightly grabbing you to make you stand between his legs. “—I like you a lot.”

Your heart stops. Your world stops. Everything just stops. You’re gaping at Bokuto, mouth closing and opening as you try to find the proper words. You want to reply, eloquently, confidently, to save what’s left of your dignity, but you can only blink back at him.

You weren’t expecting this. Bokuto wasn’t expecting this.

A wave of uncertainty flashes through Bokuto’s eyes, and for a second, he wonders if he misread the situation. “Hey, it’s ok if you don’t feel the same—“

“Wait, no! That’s—“ You take in a deep breath, attempting to calm your racing heart as you try to find your next words. For someone who usually kept a level head, you sure weren’t acting like it. “That’s not it at all. I just… Are you sure?”

Bokuto is confused. He could understand the words individually. He could understand the sentence too, but he couldn’t understand its relevance in this context. What did you mean by ‘are you sure?’. Would he tell you if he wasn’t? Why wouldn’t anyone be sure about you? I mean, it’s you.

“Yes? Why wouldn’t I be?” Bokuto grabs your hand, and he laces his fingers through yours.

You don’t answer as you attempt to arrange your whirlwind of insecurity into one coherent sentence that could sum it all up. You didn’t want to burden him with an entire monologue of self-deprecation, but you couldn’t find a way to express the years of insecurity into one sentence that could do that feeling justice.

Bokuto sees this, and his heart breaks for a second. He was familiar with it. He knew those feelings all too well.

Uncertainty.

Doubt.

Self-Hatred.

“Can I kiss you?” Bokuto blurts out, and as he watches you get flustered, he thinks that this is a much better look on you compared to the one you were previously wearing.

You don’t speak. You just nod.

With that, Bokuto grabs you by the waist and reaches up to press his lips against yours.

It was Bokuto who broke the kiss, breathless as he pressed his forehead to yours. It was almost as if you had taken his breath away to breathe a new life into him with a simple kiss. You can feel his warm breath against your lips, his calloused hands gripping at your waist, and at the same time, you feel nothing. Maybe this is what it felt like to know of everything and nothing all at once. Hyperaware of every feeling, every part of your body that was connected to his, but at the same time you felt weightless, floating on a plane that didn’t seem to exist on earth.

“Can I do that again?” Bokut asks with a grin.

You don’t answer, simply grabbing at his collar and smashing your lips against his.

That was how your love story with Bokuto Koutarou started.

And you wish it ended there.

It well may be that in a difficult hour,

Pinned down by pain and moaning for release,

Bokuto’s fans were ruthless.

Bokuto’s fans are ruthless.

The toxic fangirls? Even more so.

Not all of them are terrible to you, some are kind, but there are enough bad apples that you start wanting to run away the moment you see the tree. His fangirls during highschool only ever went as far as gossipping and making snide remarks, but now that you were older and Bokuto was part of the MSBY Black Jackals, they had gotten worse.

Facebook? You don’t spend time there anyway.

Instagram? You’ve always avoided that place.

Twitter? Ah, good luck.

People are ruthless when they hide behind a screen and a fake name. Anonymity has a way of sparking bravery in even the most sheltered souls. There wasn’t a single tweet on your account that had no comment telling you how you’re not good enough, how Bokuto probably only stayed out of pity, how he’d probably break up with you soon, how they could make him happier than someone like you ever could.

Bokuto doesn’t know. He doesn’t have to know. You don’t want to tell him.

You’re never going to tell him.

It’s pathetic, you think to yourself. You’re afraid that if Bokuto saw these comments, the rose-colored glasses he wore would shatter. You were afraid that these tweets would tip him off the edge and plunge him into the sea of realization. The realization that he could do so much better than someone like you.

You were tired. So tired that you just want to give in to the comments and leave. It’s logical, after all. Bokuto would find someone much better than you. He’d go off, marry a girl deserving of him, and she’ll give him a family, a future, and a life worthy of someone like him. And you? You’d be free. Alone, heart destroyed beyond repair, but free. You could move on, move away, move as far as you could: out of sight, out of mind. It was so easy.

Or nagged by want past resolution’s power,

But you couldn’t.

The only thing you could do was stare at the tweets that dissected each and every single one of your insecurities and laid it bare, waved it around freely for the world to see and judge. You could only let the tears fall as the laptop screen glared back at your face. Everything is numb and you don’t feel like yourself as you scroll through every single comment and find yourself agreeing with each and every single one.

Sobs wrack throughout your body as it all becomes too much.

You’re too weak to stay, too weak to leave. So where do you go? Where the hell are you supposed to place yourself in this world when it feels like everything is going against you? Why was the world doing this to you? Why did it have to be you? You weren’t strong enough for this. You weren’t good enough for this, you never were, never are, and never will be--

“Love?”

You immediately slam the laptop shut and throw the covers over your body as if you had been there the whole time instead of sitting at the edge of the bed and crying over comments.

“Hey…” The side of the bed sinks. “Bad day?”

The fucking worst. You thought to yourself, but you only shook your head before burying your head deeper into the covers of your shared bed.

“Don’t wanna talk about it?” You can hear the worry in Bokuto’s voice as he places his hand on your waist over the blanket, rubbing up and down to soothe you.

Some part of you finds the courage to speak, and the words tumble out of your mouth faster than your brain can process them. “Why are you still with me?”

“Because I love you.” Bokuto doesn’t hesitate as he looks at your still-covered figure.

“What if you stop?” You mumble, but it was loud enough for Bokuto to hear,

“Not possible.” Bokuto gently pries the blankets away from you, uncovering your form that was curled up into a fetal position.

“But— Just—“ You turn the other way, unable to look at him. “What if you do?”

“Like I said—” You can feel the mattress behind you dip lower, sturdy arms moving to wrap around your waist as Bokuto nuzzles his face into your nape. “—not possible.”

With that, the tears start flowing once more.

You bury your face into the pillow, not wanting to show Bokuto because you knew that the sight of you crying wasn’t something he liked. He hated seeing you in distress, and he hated that the only thing he could do was talk you through it and comfort you.

“Hey hey hey…” Bokuto pulls away and makes you sit up straight before he sits against the headboard and pulls you to sob into his chest. “Where’s this coming from? What’s wrong?”

“Everything’s wrong.” You spat angrily, your grip on his shirt tightening. Anger at yourself, anger at the universe, all summed up in a single sentence. “Nothing ever goes right anymore, and I’m just—“

Your speaking is interrupted as another wave of sobs. “I’m so tired.”

You can feel Bokuto freeze, his hand that was rubbing your back stopping as he takes in your words. “Of what?”

“Everything.” You murmur, your grip on Bokuto’s shirt loosening as you press your forehead against his neck. “Just everything.”

“Does that include me?” You can hear Bokuto’s voice waver as his grip around you gets weaker. “Are you… Are you breaking up with me?”

You’re silent for a while. Was this it? Was the universe making the choice for you?

Whatever it was, you take it.

You pull away and look down, unable to stare into Bokuto’s eyes. You didn’t know if you could pull through if you could see the look on his face as you say your next words. “If it means that it will all stop, then maybe I should.”

Bokuto’s heart shatters, and his world follows in its footsteps. He can feel the tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. He knew you had been acting off the past few days, but he gave you some space so that you could sort it out until you were ready to finally approach him. But this? He wasn’t prepared for this.

“Why?” There’s a painful tug at your chest as you hear Bokuto speak in such a broken tone. “Did I do something wrong?”

“It’s not you. It’s me.” You cringe inwardly at your statement. Of all the things you could’ve said, you just had to say the most overused line in all of break-up history. “Bokuto, you—“

“It’s Kou.” You can hear Bokuto’s voice crack at the end. “It’s not Bokuto to you, Y/N. It’s Kou. Whatever it is just tell me, please I can fix it—“

“I’m the problem, okay?!” You couldn’t stop yourself from raising your tone, standing up from the bed to distance yourself from Bokuto. “I’m not good enough for you. I don’t deserve you. They’re right when they say that you could do so much better than me—“

You’re cut off as a sob pulls itself from your chest. Your chest is tight, your head is throbbing. Your legs are shaky and you couldn’t stop yourself from falling to your knees as you continue to cry. “I-I just… I know I don’t, but I-I’m so tired of b-being constantly r-reminded that I’m never g-going to be enough.”

“Y/N, none of that is true. Who told you that?” Bokuto’s tone gives away the pain he was feeling, but there was a hint of anger underneath it all.

You don’t answer, shaking your head, continuing to sob as Bokuto moves from the bed to kneel in front of you.

“Love, who told you that?” Bokuto places a comforting hand on your thigh as his other hand lightly grabs you by the chin to make you look at him.

“Everyone.” You wondered how pathetic you looked in his eyes right now. “Not a single day passes by where I’m not reminded by your fans. It’s stupid to keep listening to them, but they’re right—“

Bokuto cuts you off with a brief kiss, just enough to shut you up to give him a chance to speak as he moves to cup your cheek in his palm. “No, they’re not. They never will be.”

You don’t reply. You don’t argue, but you don’t agree either.

“Don’t break up with me, please.” Bokuto cups your face with both of his hands, occasionally brushing his thumb over your cheek as he presses his forehead against yours. “You mean the world to me. You’re absolutely perfect the way you are, and I know you don't believe that.”

You sob at that, and Bokuto is quick to press a kiss against your forehead and pull you into his chest. “If I have to spend my entire life reminding you of that then I will.”

I might be driven to sell your love for peace,

Or trade the memory of this night for food.

Bokuto hovers over you, his arms on either side of your holding him up as he looks at you with the most lovestruck look you’ve ever seen on someone.

“You’re perfect.” Bokuto whispers against your lips before he presses a searing kiss against your lips. “Absolutely perfect.”

Bokuto presses his weight against yours, pulling your bodies closer to each other as he continues to kiss you breathless. You wrap your arms around his neck, an attempt to blur the boundaries of skin, muscle, and bone that separate your soul and his. He pulls you closer against him, his fingers digging deeper into the flesh of your hips as he trails his kisses down your neck and every expanse of skin that was laid bare for him.

“I love you so much.” Bokuto whispers repeatedly against your skin between every kiss he puts on you. “So much.”

As you laid beside Bokuto, his arms wrapped around your waist and your face nuzzling into his bare chest, the thoughts of ever leaving slowly become more distant and fade away into oblivion. His chest rises and falls, and you find your breathing slowly matching his as you observe his sleeping face, peaceful, unbothered by all the troubles of the world beyond your bedroom.

You smile to yourself. All rational thought tells you to leave, but for Bokuto Koutarou...

It well may be. I do not think I would.

A/N: That’s two parts of the collection down, and three more to go! This one was supposed to be the lightest out of the five, but my finger slipped so... Whoops? HAHAHAGDHDHSJHS Anyway, I hope you guys like this one! 💖

#bokuto x reader #bokuto koutarou #haikyuu #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu imagines #genre.angstfluff #cont.spoilers #tw swearing #tw self deprecation #tw insecurity

[grailfinders]

Fate and Phantasms #190 & 191

Today on Fate and Phantasms we’re providing you a horror double feature- Mecha-Eli chan and Mecha-Eli chan Mk. II! Since they’re nearly identical (in NA) all you have to change between one and the other is how you roleplay. But hey, you technically get an extra build this week, go you!

Both of these servants are 100% Armorer Artificers for some fancy techno-gadgets built into their metal bodies.

Check out their builds breakdown below the cut, or their characters sheet over here!

Next up: She’s got so many pigs around her you’d think she opened a doughnut shop!

Race and Background

Shockingly, the robots... are robots. Specifically, Warforged, which gives them +2 Constitution and +1 Intelligence. They also get Constructed Resilience, which makes you a better ruler since you don’t need to eat, drink, breathe, sleep, or get sick, you get advantage and resistance to poison saves and damage. Elisabeth might get sick from eating all that candy, but you won’t even be tempted.

Instead of sleeping, you take a Sentry’s Rest, spending 6 hours in a still state- you can still see, but you can’t move without breaking the rest.

Integrated Protection gives you your first armored casing, adding +1 to your AC. You can also don armor by fusing it to your body over an hour, letting you wear heavy armor without having to take off your tutu.

Finally, you get a Specialized Design, giving you proficiency with Performance and one set of tools. If you want to get your Elisabeth on, I’d suggest Bagpipes, so you can clear the room just as fast as she can.

Being a robot makes your background a bit complicated, but you were made to rule Castle Csejte Pyramid Himeji so we’ll call you a Noble, which gives you proficiency with History and Persuasion. If you’re playing Mk. II, swap the latter over to Intimidation, boom, roleplay changes done.

Ability Scores

Your highest score should be Intelligence, you have a supercomputer for a brain, it’s not a huge stretch. Constitution comes next, aside from Babbage you’re the only servant made out of iron. So far. Your Strength should also be pretty good, while you do shoot people, you also hit them, and you have one of the most damaging NPs in the game when ignoring type advantage. Your Charisma isn’t bad per se, but your delivery does get a little stiff from time to time. Your Wisdom isn’t that great, neither of you really “get” people. Yes, humans might take offense at being forced to stay in their homes their entire natural lives. That means we’re dropping Dexterity. Your head literally falls off on a regular basis, that’s an accident that would kill most people. Also, you’re not exactly running around in leather, so it’s not like you’d need it.

Class Levels

Starting off as an Artificer gives you proficiency with Constitution and Intelligence saves, as well as two skills. Arcana is the closest thing to robotics in the forgotten realm, and Investigation will help you make a sweep of the battlefield with your robot eyes. Your first machines are made using your Magical Tinkering, adding minor effects to tiny objects. It’s not exactly the wish spell, but you can get creative with it. Speaking of Spells, you can cast and prepare those now using your Intelligence. All you have to do is be smart. Grab the cantrip Mage Hand for a non-combat use for your rocket arm, and Sword Burst so you can try spinning to damage nearby enemies with your tail. I hear it’s a neat trick. You can also cast first level spells, like Feather Fall and Jump (it’s almost flying), as well as Catapult for a prototype rocket arm. Also, if you can spare the slots, grab Detect Magic for robo scanning.

For more substantive mechanics, you’ll have to Infuse Items over a long rest, creating two items from a choice of four blueprints, both of which will go up in number as you level up. Right now, I’d suggest grabbing Goggles of Night and Sending Stones for recon missions, an Enhanced Arcane Focus for better bullets later, and an Armor of Magical Strength for a suit of armor that can either add your intelligence modifier to strength checks and saves or prevent you from getting knocked prone. Doing either spends one of six charges, which partially get refilled at dawn.

Moving to the Armorer subclass dumps you into a proper heavy armor setup, but you can make it even more impressive by turning it into Arcane Armor. This lets you ignore the strength requirements for heavy armor (which you can wear now), and you can use the armor as a spellcasting focus. There’s also stuff about the armor being a part of you, but that’s already true thanks to being a warforged. As the guardian of Hungary you get the Guardian Model, which gives you cool Thunder Gauntlets that use your Intelligence to attack instead of your strength. Creatures that you punch this way have disadvantage against other creatures for a round. It can also produce a Defensive Field as a bonus action, giving you your level in temporary HP, up to Proficiency times per long rest. Finally, you get some free armorer spells to go along with your new outfit. Magic Missiles do a good job of standing in for bullets, and Thunderwave gives you a finale for your Breast Zero Erzsébet.

Your first Ability Score Improvement is going towards making your regular attacks even more powerful with the Crusher feat, rounding up your Strength and making your fists able to shove a creature they hit once per turn, moving a large or smaller creature 5′ away. Your critical hits also give all other attacks against that creature advantage. (Catapult is a save, so I don’t think they work together, but that’s a DM thing, I guess.)

Fifth level armorers get an Extra Attack per action, so you can make enemies taste both of your hands each turn. You also get second level spells, like Mirror Image to put together some cheap factory-made knockoffs to take damage for you and Shatter for more sound-based pain. You can also prepare spells like Levitate for your first taste of flight, Enlarge/Reduce to make yourself the giant mecha you were born to be, See Invisibility for more robo-scanners, and Pyrotechnics for some movie magic.

Sixth level artificers get Tool Expertise, doubling their proficiency with all proficient tools. Now you’ll be really good at clearing out a bar with your bagpipes. You also get two more Infusions, with one more up at a time. Some Resistant Armor will make you deaf to your own music with resistance to thunder damage, or you can customize it to block out plenty of other types, like acid, cold, fire, force, lightning, necrotic, poison, psychic, radiant, or thunder. Makes a great gift for the totem barbarians in your party! You also get a Spell-Refueling Ring, because pretty soon you’ll be flying, and the worst thing you can do while flying is run out of spell slots. As an action, you’ll recover a 3rd level or lower spell slot once per day.

At seventh level, your Flashes of Genius make your smarts even smarter, letting you add your intelligence modifier as a reaction to nearby checks or saves Intelligence Modifier times per long rest. You were literally built to do everything for your subjects, it only makes sense that you’d be good at it.

Use this ASI to bump up your Intelligence for stronger spells, stronger punches, and more flashes of genius. You take a little bit to get warmed up, but that’s true of most computers.

Ninth level armorers can make Armor Modifications, turning your armor into four items for the purpose of infusion, and you can infuse an extra 2 items specifically if they’re part of your armor. That’ll be really cool next level, but what’s really cool right now is your third level spells, including the freebies Hypnotic Pattern and Lightning Bolt. I would’ve preferred fireball, but we’ll take what we can get for big guns. You can also prepare spells like Fly to fly under your own power instead of awkwardly levitating like a balloon, Haste to overclock your computer, and Intellect Fortress to lord your superior brain over the fleshlings, giving you resistance to psychic damage, and advantage on intelligence, wisdom, and charisma saves.

When you hit tenth level you become a Magic Item Adept, partially because you’re a magic item. This means you get an extra attunement slot, and crafting common or uncommon items is a lot cheaper and faster. You also learn the Fire Bolt cantrip for more options from your guns. On top of all that, you get two more infusion blueprints, and can have one more made at a time. I’d pick up some Winged Boots for concentration free flight up to 4 hours a day, and a Helm of Awareness to give a creature advantage on initiative rolls and immunity to being surprised. You don’t really wear a helmet, but you give one to Guda during the valentines events, so now you can do that in game.

At eleventh level, you can make Spell-Storing Items at the end of a long rest, shoving a 1st or 2nd level artificer spell into a weapon or focus. A creature can cast that spell from the item up to twice your Intelligence modifier times, and it is as powerful as if you cat it yourself. You can only have one spell stored this way at a time.

I really wanted to multiclass into sorcerer this build, but to be honest the final level of artificer is too good to really pass up. So instead, use this ASI to become a Metamagic Adept, gaining two sorcery points and two ways to spend them. Most of your spells are really just part of your body, so a Subtle spell will make that more obvious by making the casting less obvious. You won’t need somatic or verbal components. Alternatively, you can use a Careful spell to turn your giant blasty spells into something slightly more controlled, automatically letting one creature make their save against the spell. You use a lot of firepower for a single-target NP.

Thirteenth level artificers get fourth level spells. Fire Shield and Greater Invisibility aren’t in character, but they are useful, and using useful things is in character. You can also cast spells like Stoneskin, which is an understatement if anything, Summon Construct or Fabricate to build extra Elis, and Arcane Eye for your very own security drone. I also recommend grabbing the glyph of warding from level 3 so you can fully stock your castle with summoned versions of yourself to attack intruders.

Fourteenth level artificers are Magic Item Savants, letting you ignore all restrictions for magic item use, and you can attune to five items at a time. You also get the Prestidigitation cantrip for easy 3d printing, and two more infusions, plus one more built at a time. Grab the Belt of Hill Giant Strength for a whopping 21 strength, and an Arcane Propulsion Arm for a proper rocket punch. That last one does come with a pretty hefty price though- you will have to chop an arm off to put this one on. (Your armor will replace the arm if you have to make space for another infusion though, so it’s not all bad.) Annoyingly, this arm also deals force damage for some fucking reason, so you can’t use crusher on this either. I’d let you just punch people normally though.

Fifteenth level armorers get their final goody, giving them Perfected Armor. Now your guardian model lets you spend a reaction to pull a huge or smaller creature closer to you at the end of its turn if it fails a strength save, and if it’s pulled into melee range you can wollop it as part of the reaction. You can do this Proficiency times per long rest. We’ll consider this a giant hand giving them a nudge in your direction.

Another ASI, use this one for more Intelligence. Now you have the strongest and most flashes, as well as super strong spells and force punches.

At seventeenth level you get fifth level spells, like the freebies Passwall and Wall of Force. Technically it’s invisible, but a giant hand cupping around you to block damage is totally possible. Speaking of giant hands, Bigby’s Hand lets you make a giant mecha hand that actually acts like a hand for once. Yes, we are fitting Mecha Eli’s bit from Las Vegas in here. You can also use Creation to make an exact copy of your body, and Animate Objects to bring it to life. It’s not as powerful as the original, but that’s what you get with factory-made goods.

Eighteenth level artificers are Magic Item Masters, letting you attune to six items at once. You also get another two blueprints with another one built at the same time, so unless you’re powerbuilding grab another Arcane Propulsion Arm for two rocket fists, and a Ring of Protection for a bonus to your AC and saves.

Use your last ASI to become Tough, for 38 extra HP right away and another two when you level up again. You are literally made of steel. Come on.

Your capstone level grants you a Soul of Artifice, which is pretty busted. You get a bonus to all saves equal to the number of magic items you’re attuned to, and if you would drop to 0 HP you can end one of your infusions instead, sticking around at 1 HP. We weren’t able to make your mass-production work out that well, but if you have to die 9 times to actually go down, I’d count that as extra copies.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

You’re hard as hell to kill. With your lowest save being a +6 and the ability to add 5 to any save you don’t like the look of, magic will just slide right off you. Plus, with an AC of 20, just over 200 HP, and temporary HP from the guardian model, you have a lot of health to chew through from martial classes as well.

And that’s assuming they can even hit you! Flight is awesome, giving you plenty of mobility to avoid most combatants entirely and rain down fists and hellfire from a safe distance.

This build is highly customizable, with tons of tricks and gadgets to swap out as the situation calls for them.

Cons:

You’re super reliant on magical items to protect you, so if you get caught up in an anti-magic field it won’t be fun. Like, most artificers will have an awkward fight, but you won’t have arms.

While you have a lot of infusion options, you can’t have all of them up at once. That means you’ll have to make hard decisions constantly, and basically predict the future each long rest.

Two of the feats we took aren’t really that great, and probably should have gone towards better stats. Crusher only works on your regular punches, which are outclassed by your magic weapons, and you only get two weak uses of Metamagic per day.

#fate grand order #fgo #DND 5e #D&D #Mecha Eli Chan #artificer

[selfwriting-sugarquills]

70 Fred Weasley headcanons in celebration of 700 followers:

(plus an extra one, for the heck of it lmao) 

You guys, thank you so much for 700 followers! I appreciate every single one of you and writing for the twins has been such a blast so far, much to the thanks of all of you <3 

Find the 70 George Headcanons: Here

Fred has always been really good at sleight of hand stuff, as a kid, he could do card tricks with ease, steal baked goods from his mother’s kitchen and later on since his allowance wasn’t exactly anything to brag about, he’d steal sweets from honeydukes' on Hogsmeade trips, with the help of George, he’s not proud of it but in his defence, he was a stupid teenage boy at the time. 

Fred is incredibly competitive and will hold onto anything you challenge him to for way longer than you might think. He’s definitely the type to “race you” anytime you’re headed to herbology, care against magical creatures or Hogsmeade together.

As the man himself said in the deathly hallows, Fred doesn’t like the idea of a big grandiose wedding ceremony, he’d prefer something more low-key and simple, where the focus is more on having fun and celebrating instead of neat seating plans and meticulously chosen decorations. Some flowers and booze will do, he’ll provide the fireworks - In essence, he only needs his S/O and the rest he couldn’t care less about. 

George may be better at cooking, but Fred makes a damn good pancake and he will forever pride himself on that. 

Fred is the more jealous, overprotective twin. He’s aware of this and tries his best not to let it go to his head but he can’t help it. 

Fred snores, I’m pretty sure it’s canon that both twins snore, but Fred is louder and, as mentioned in my last headcanon post, a very heavy sleeper meaning it’s more difficult to get him to wake up so he can stop, your best shot is trying (and probably failing) to turn him over. 

Fred is also a very restless sleeper, he’ll toss and turn, and occasionally dream about quidditch. I’m saying you might want to be aware that he might confuse you for a bludger in his sleep, don’t worry though, he’ll always apologise profusely and make it up to you with a lot of kisses (and maybe a bit more than that, if you’re keen ;)) 

Fred has an extensive caffeine addiction, which is unfortunate cause he’s quite hyper already but he can’t function properly until he gets his coffee in the morning, and then again in between lessons/at lunch and then again late in the afternoon. Sometimes, if he needed to write an essay that was due, he’d drink coffee at like nine pm. He knows he won’t be able to sleep because of it, please, Y/n, he’s accepted his fate. 

I personally always imagined the twins as having ADHD, idk why it just fits their characters. Fred is for sure the more outwardly fidgety and intrusive, this gets less and less with age, as it does for a lot of ADHD people, his inability to focus remains the same though. 

Fred loves being outside, he’s the first of the Weasley siblings to suggest a game of quidditch or just going outside for walks, hide and seek in the woods near their house. He absolutely loves taking his dates on walks in parks or at the beach and when he has kids he plays with them in their yard, building snowmen etc. 

Fred probably suggests at some point that the whole family should go camping, and he’s actually really fun to camp with. He’ll tell the best scary stories by the campfire. 

In regards to children, Fred wants a lot of kids. Like at least three but would be willing to have more if his s/o wants to. He just really likes the dynamic of a large family since that’s what he’s used to. 

Fred’s favourite flavour of sweets is anything sour, the sourer the better, because of this he can handle it really well and he loves handing people some of his ridiculously sour candy and watching them squirm. 

He also really likes spicy food, he’s a bit of a daredevil so don’t challenge him to eat anything because he will eat a whole chilli and nearly die. 

 You know he’d be really casual about it too, lol, like sweating and crying but just leaning on the counter like “*pant* what? hot? no not at all *deeeeep breath* I can ha-aw-rdly taste it!” 

One thing about Fred is that he’s oddly squeamish, like seeing his brother’s ear blown off isn’t so bad (if you don’t take into account the emotional trauma that is), but a needle for a blood sample or a vaccine? oooh, he’s gonna need a big juice box and a cookie and his s/o’s hand to hold if he’s gonna make it through. He also has a thing about leeches. One time at Hogwarts they were mentioned in a lesson and he thought he was going to faint the entire time. 

Fred’s broken five bones over the years, four are from quidditch: his left arm and two ribs, and then the other arm from trying to do an elaborate stunt on the stairs in the burrow and falling down two flights. 

Fred loves to sing karaoke (because I cannot get that damn clip of James singing karaoke out of my head) though he particularly enjoys doing a very poor job on purpose. 

Fred is such a good liar that on several occasions he’s given presentations in school and gotten good marks for them despite having bullshat his way through the entire thing. 

Like seriously, he’s that guy in the group project who only looks at the slides like five minutes before the presentation and then just turns on a full charming newscaster voice on the professor to the point of them being genuinely convinced (albeit a little confused) that what Fred’s saying is true. 

This is also why Fred loves playing card games like poker: he’s really good at bluffing. 

Speaking of poker-face, he’s really quite good at teasing in public (if you’re into that sort of thing *wink*) because no matter the dirty deeds he might get up to under a table, his face remains as regular as always (safe for a little smirk to his lover every now and then) 

Fred always wanted to learn an instrument, he thought it’d make him cooler when he was a teenager, as an adult, he just really wants to recreate that clip of the trombone-playing dad with the sunglasses, or maybe serenade some cows with jazz or something. 

Fred was never a big fan of the uniform thing, so he always tried to make it his own, whether that be tying the tie differently, or having his sleeves rolled up; it’s not much but you gotta take what you can get when you’re literally dressed the same as everyone else. 

Fred might make fun of his dad’s interest in muggle things but secretly he loves it too. He has spent a lot of hours in the shed with Arthur, assuring everyone that it was just to have some quality time with his dad but he would still pay close attention when Arthur explained things to him. 

Fred had a whole business of selling candy from Honeydukes’ and joke products from Zonko’s to second and first years before he and George started dabbling with their own products, he could get you a butterbeer too but it’ll cost you an extra three galleons. 

Fred really likes glitter, George has a thing for lace, anything that glitters on his s/o makes Fred weak. If you want to get your way just put on some glittery eyeshadow or lipgloss and watch him spin. 

Since he loves things that glitter and gleam he loves buying his s/o jewellery, he loves seeing them wearing them as little tokens of their relationship. 

Did someone say slight possession kink? oops not me

Fred is incredible with numbers, this is pretty much canon and has been explored but I’m just amazed at this boy’s wit AND intellect. I have a slight headcanon that if he ever goes on a proper first date with someone where a bill is involved, he impresses his date by calculating the tip after just a glance.

Even if Fred has a longstanding reputation of not caring about school, when he has kids he does want to help them with any coursework over the summer and Christmas breaks, he’ll even study up on his old books just to be able to help out in any classes he didn’t take/didn’t pay attention in. 

Fred would, in general, be an amazing father. He’s goofy and playful most of the time, though he’s serious and incredibly caring whenever his kids are in a bad mood or have problems. He knows that he’s not the most outwardly emotional of the twins but he makes sure his kids know they can always talk to him about anything. 

Fred is incredibly messy. His room is usually a cry for help and he only cleans it when it gets to the point where it distracts him from focusing on work. 

No worries though, his S/O doesn’t have to do all the housework for him, he’ll do it. He just needs to be reminded that he needs to every once in a while. 

Fred has a really bad temper, he doesn’t know where he gets it from but he tends to get angry easier than George, though Fred is better at letting it out so it doesn’t continue to bother him. 

His bad temper does mean that he used to brawl more with siblings as a kid, and it wasn’t unusual to see him with scrapes and bruises as a kid, much to Molly’s dismay. Fred didn’t mind though, he thought it made him look tough. 

Fred is more likely to get caught sneaking around because of his brash nature, he tends to forget just how quiet you have to be to avoid Mrs Norris in the corridors. 

Fred is certainly not an early bird but his favourite time of day is, in fact, the morning when the sun’s coming up. He only knows this because of Wood’s ridiculously early quidditch practices but there’s something about the way the world looks when it’s bathed in soft golden light that just hits different to Fred. 

Fred is a great team player, as much as he seems like he’s more selfish than George, if it’s regarding a team activity (like quidditch or a battle of sorts) he’ll completely lose all focus on himself and only try to ensure other’s safety and victory. This is also why he plays as a beater, he’s not afraid of getting hit at all when he’s focused on getting the bludgers away from his teammates. 

So if his s/o ever needs it, he’ll be there to help with anything: Needs to take a day off from work to take care of his sick s/o? no problem. Needs to stay up with his small child because his s/o is exhausted and needs rest? On it. Something as small as carrying groceries or books, making a cup of tea when the other is busy or doing the dishes is all on the list of things that Fred will happily do for his s/o, and often without having to be asked, he’ll just do it. 

Fred’s boggart is seeing his family members and/or his s/o hurt beyond what he can save. Essentially his worst fear is being helpless when he needs it most. 

One of those times was when George lost his ear. The first night when George was lying practically unconscious on the couch with blood everywhere was the worst night of Fred’s life, he truly felt so anxious and helpless and angry that he vomited and ended up passing out next to the couch after staying up till sunrise watching his brother like a hawk. 

He didn’t just sleepwalk when he was younger, he also often experienced nightmares, it’s only George, Molly and Arthur who remembers anything about this. 

They got less and less the older he got and he assumed that he’d never be bothered by them again until after the second wizarding war and the battle of Hogwarts. 

I don’t like to headcanon that he dies cause he didn’t and that’s final lol. I do, however, headcanon that Fred still gets hurt, since everyone in the explosion beside him seemed to sustain minor injuries, I just think that to even out with George losing his ear, he hurts his leg and needs a lot of retraining/a walking stick. I think that’d be a more fair/unfair ending for Fred who’s always full of energy having to have to adjust to living slowly for a little while (not permanently, I couldn’t do that to my boy). 

The boy has anxiety sometimes, ok. (just let me project for a second)

He didn’t know how much tension he usually holds in his body until he drank alcohol for the first time and felt his entire body loosen up and was like “huh this is new.” 

He doesn’t use alcohol to deal with it though, he prefers just talking to George about whenever he feels is stressing him out and that helps. A massage from his s/o to loosen him up doesn’t hurt either. 

Fred prefers to talk to his dad about his problems more than he prefers to talk to Molly, generally. 

His favourite body parts on his s/o: Shoulders, hips, hands. 

He loves to kiss, just in general, but he also loves kissing his s/o’s nose, forehead, neck, shoulder, etc. as little gestures of affection. 

He def. has a bit of a size kink, he loves being taller than his s/o. 

If Fred could have any pet he wanted, he’d probably want a dog, the bigger the better. He doesn’t think he has the time for a pet though. 

It was his idea to start breeding pygmy puffs, it’s the closest he’ll get to having a pet. 

I don’t know why but I feel like when Fred and his s/o are expecting and his s/o goes into labour he just panics. loses it, drops the binkie as we say in Denmark: Freaks the fuck out, if you will. He’s definitely the pacing and wringing his hands together type, though he probably tries his best to keep himself composed and chill during the whole thing whilst simultaneously hyperventilating. 

Fred doesn’t cry often but he sure as hell wept with pride when he held all his kids for the first time. 

Despite the notion that the twins often slip in a joke version of a sweet treat or something similar amongst the snacks at parties, Fred is strongly against tampering with drinks. He knows the connotations it holds and he doesn’t want anyone to be afraid they’d put something in it. If he wants you to test out their truth serum or a love potion, he’ll just ask you flat out and if you don’t want to, he’s not going to continue asking. 

Most of the detentions Fred has gotten from Snape come from times he’s spoken back to him when Snape’s been giving another student a rough time. He doesn’t regret it one bit. 

 If you ask Fred what his proudest accomplishment is, he’ll probably say that it’s having had enough restraint to not punch Umbridge in the face every time he saw her. 

On the note of Umbridge. It wasn’t her detentions with him that got his blood boiling, it was when she punished little kids (a la Nigel) for doing practically nothing, he understands that to an extent and by comparison, setting off a bunch of fireworks inside a building would harbour a harsher punishment, but making twelve-year-olds bleed for running in the halls or playing music or just doing things that twelve-year-olds will inevitably do, is something Fred doesn’t understand. That year pretty much any kid younger than him, or anyone who was too afraid to stand up for themselves, became Fred and George’s little siblings, and they’re very protective older brothers. Umbridge can vouch for that. 

He struggles with a lot of insecurity in his relationships, he always puts on a front of being extra funny and outgoing when he’s in a new relationship because he’s secretly afraid that the way he is isn’t good enough and that eventually, his s/o will see through him and leave because they don’t like the softer, more serious side of him. 

Fred is the godfather of all of George’s kids but is also the godparent of Hugo, Lily and Lucy. 

Fred loves business meetings, he sees them as a good challenge to practice his smooth talk. 

Fred spent his first salary from the shop on the most expensive bottle of champagne he could find and a new suit. 

Fred tried to get into whiskey, feeling like it’d make him a cool business owner type of man, so, with his second salary, he went out and bought a fancy-schmancy bottle of whiskey and the whole getup with a bottle and some cool glasses, and then invited Lee over to try it with him and George. 

They did not like it. Fred thought it tasted like what he imagined gasoline tastes like so they mostly used it as decorations, not having the heart to mix it with something. 

Fred doesn’t necessarily like PDA, it depends on what you mean. He likes being secretive. Pulling his s/o into an empty classroom, nook, hallway, secret pathway etc where anyone could wander in at any time and snogging her senseless is one of his favourite things to do. 

Fred knows how good he looks in his quidditch uniform and will absolutely use it against his s/o. (they’re gonna get spicy from here on so read with caution if you're in public)

Fred prefers giving more than receiving oral. 

He has a lot of energy, did you not think that would rub off (no pun intended) on his sex drive? He can go pretty much any time and place, and typically last at least two rounds. 

Also, his favourite position is having you on top. Okay, I'm gonna stop now. 

#selfwriting-sugarquills 700 follower celebration #fred weasley #fred weasley x reader #fred weasley headcanons #fred weasley fanfiction #weasley twins #weasley twins headcanons #hp headcanon #harry potter headcanon

[havethetimeofyourstyles]

in which you study in a different country and meet someone along the way.  

hi lovelies! this is my fic for miss olivia’s @bfharry​ boyfriendathon! i’ve had this concept for a year now, and i’m so happy i was finally able to write it!

thank you to @bopbopstyles​ @stellarboystyles & @avhrodite​ for beta-ing! <3

enjoy 7.5k words of friends to lovers & uni!harry & boyfriend!harry !! also the story is supposed to go semi-fast since it is mostly flashbacks, the sparkly breaks will tell you when the flashbacks start and end! 

i’ve made a playlist for this fic! if anyone would like to listen while reading click here

please please leave feedback! super excited for this because it’s probably a fav of mine and i’m really proud of it, so i would love to know what you think! a reblog, comment, and/or ask would mean a lot! <3

The birds were chirping and the sun was beaming on you, leaving a glow to your skin that had shined ever so brightly, giving you a healthy and lovely tint to your skin. It was a lovely day that there was not an ounce of complaint in your mind because of the beautiful weather Mother Nature decided to provide you with, knowing that you hadn’t gotten perfect weather for the past few weeks. The trees and grass were as green as ever as slight wind rustled between the leaves, making the sound of the crisp leaves loud. 

It was a moment like this where you felt so happy and grateful to be in a beautiful city; that you had made the right decision. The London view and atmosphere does not compare to any other place in the world, aside from the fact that you haven’t been to many places in your life. But you’re a bit biased on your opinion because London graced you with your boyfriend, Harry. You remembered the first time you came to London just two years ago, and you never imagined how your life had planned out until this very moment. 

⋇⋆✦⋆⋇

You had stepped on the plane with nervous thoughts running through your head. It was the first time you ever rode a plane, and your destination was hours away, practically a full day. It was a major step, and you probably should’ve thought it through; maybe traveling to the next state, but to travel to another country was a big step for you. 

It wasn’t a vacation, more like, school in a different country for a few months. You had decided to study abroad when you were in high school, wanting to get away from home and also learning in a brand new place without the toxicity hanging onto your foot as you try walking away. It had taken a while to finally study abroad because the requirements of you needing to finish your first year of college before you could study in the fall. 

Your family hadn’t taken it well, but you decided that there was nothing you could do to stop them. You were going to pay for the trip and your expenses all on your own. It definitely helped that you got a scholarship to go to university in the first place, and lucky enough to live on campus away from home.

You were sad that they didn’t feel an ounce of happiness for you, and you had asked your cousin to take you to the airport, being the only person to bid you goodbye. The feeling was overbearing and overwhelming, making your heart sink but at the same time feel full with sadness. At the time, you had felt like everything was holding you back and you just wanted to get away. 

A new start was needed. 

It was August when you traveled alone to London. Anxiety was boiling in your throat as you craved the need to hold onto something as the ride was quite bumpy, making you sweat and shake. But you survived, and you were at your new home. At least for the next 4 months. 

It wasn’t a hard decision to decide to study abroad, but you really hoped you met good people and made friends. It had always been a struggle making and keeping a good batch of people in your life. You had thought it was easy to make friends during your time in London; no one knows you and they don’t know your insecurities. So, you thought it was going to be easy.

And luckily, you were right. 

You had met your three best girl friends, all that you had shared a small place with. The common room had held so many memories between the four of you, and you felt so immensely grateful for them. Late night talks and laughs while drinking wine and eating snacks were some of your best memories. You had missed the common room greatly. 

One night, Tanya had suggested a night out on their first week there, “let’s all go out with the guys tonight! I already met Peter, and we talked about going out, so we could introduce you to everyone!” 

The girls and guys were stoked for the most part, and you were excited too, but also nervous, hoping the guys had found something interesting about you. 

And that was the night you met Harry. 

Some of the students that went to university in London shared a dorm with the abroad students until they left. Half were in the art program and the other half was the journalism program. Two of the girls in your dorm, Donna and Sophie, were in the journalism class, and you and Tanya were in the art one. You had wished everyone was in the same class, but that made get togethers and dinners at night way more fun because it had felt like everyone had so much to catch up on, and the fun was at the highest level. 

You had seen Harry approximately twice within your first week, but it was merely just from passing. But that night was the first proper night you hung out with him and everyone else. 

You couldn’t deny that he was insanely attractive. Just at first glance he had that sort of charm to him that was irresistible and alluring, wanting more after he was done talking. He was a bit on the quiet side when you met him, but learned that he started getting louder and talkative once you warmed up to him. He was outgoing and fun, the life of the party once he had a drink or two in his system, and when he does have some liquid courage, he gets cuddly and affectionate. 

“Do you want another drink?” He asked in his buzzed state. 

“I think I’m okay right now, and who’s going to take care of you when you keep having more?” You teased. It was definitely the alcohol talking because you would have never voluntarily teased someone like that. 

“Well, we have a few people in our group.” It had made your heart flutter when he said ‘our.’ You had never had a group of friends to call yours, and although it was only the first week, you had known they were going to be a group of special people close to your heart. 

“Our friend group is also drunk off their asses, so I think there needs to be a responsible person right now, and that is me,” you put your hands under your chin and started fluttering your eyes innocently. Harry thought you were the most charming and sweetest girl he’s ever met, and it had only been a week. 

“Okay, whatever you say, missy,” he teased. You held back your big smile, corners of your lips turned up. 

“Go get your drink. I’ll wait here,” you pushed his shoulder slightly towards the bar with a chuckle. 

“Ooh, bossy. I like it,” he said with a wink before he headed towards the bar. You were lucky that he had already left to get a drink, or else he would’ve seen your face turn into a light red shade, flustered from his actions.  

As the night went on, Harry had practically clung onto you when he was buzzed, and never let you go until everyone walked back to the dorms. 

“No, don’t wanna leave ya,” he whined a bit when you tried handing him off to his friend. “Nooo, don’t make me go with him,” he pouted as if he was a child. You had gigged, thinking he was the absolute cutest when he was drunk (and not drunk) as he clung onto you until you physically had to put him in his bed.

His arms were still tight around you, your body was laying slightly on top of him. Lazy smiles and droopy eyes were made at you, causing you to chuckle. 

“Mmm. Hello,” he said with a giggle. 

“Hi. You okay?” 

“Yup. Perfect. You know...you’re very pretty,” he says as he smiled. Although he was drunk, Harry was telling the truth. 

“Thank you.” And although he was drunk, it still made you smile. 

“Mhm…” he mumbled in response. The silence between you two was enough to lull him to sleep; arms were still around you. 

“Goodnight, Harry,” you said against his forehead, giving him a small kiss as you tried your best to slip out of his hold. 

That moment had changed everything. 

The two of you had gotten closer after that night. The next day, you bumped into him in the lobby of the building and he asked if you wanted to walk to class with him. 

You laughed about it with him as you walked, “you were so cute last night.” 

“Yeah, M’sorry about that. I get like that when m’drunk,” he shyly said. 

“No need to apologize. I’m glad you had fun,” you said with a smile. He had smiled back at you as he felt the butterflies in his stomach flutter around. 

You and Harry spent almost everyday after class together or in between classes for a quick bite to eat. There was a usual coffee shop near the building that you would always meet each other at on Mondays and Wednesdays. On Tuesday, you two would walk together to a fish n’ chips spot for lunch. On Thursdays, it was a sandwich shop. Fridays you saved your outings for that night as everyone got together on Fridays. 

“We could make this our thing, y’know?” Harry suggested. 

“Fish n’ Chips Tuesdays?” You beamed at him. 

“Yeah, and coffee shop Mondays and Wednesdays, and sandwich shop Thursdays,” he was quite nervous getting that out, but he managed to do it with a smile. 

“That would be nice. Don't you think you would get tired of me?” You teased him, raising your eyebrow as you took a handful of fries and shoving them in your mouth. You hadn’t realized, at the time, how unattractive you might’ve looked, but Harry couldn’t help but smile and fall deeper. 

And he never got tired of you. 

Aside from having lunch and coffee everyday together, you had taken him to art museums. He wasn’t horrible at trying to interpret art, but looking at you beside him as you gazed at the art above yourself was something that he was fond of. He smiled every time you got lost in the art as you studied it, passionately looking up, trying to figure out what each piece means to you. It was admirable, really. 

“You’re gonna be up there one day, watch,” he had whispered to you as you were in a daze. You chuckled as you looked at him, seeing if he was messing around. He wasn't though. He had seen your paintings and sketches, and thought that you deserved to be hung up high in the gallery. 

“You’re sweet,” you smiled and he put his arm around your shoulder, bringing you closer to his side. The affection had made you blush, thinking how you were falling for your best friend. 

After two months into studying abroad, you felt the happiest you’ve ever been. Aside from the constant moving around and trying your best to explore every part of the city, you felt like you belonged there. All those years living, you felt like you weren’t truly living, and being in London was possibly one of the best decisions you’ve ever made. 

You felt at peace. You were calm, and genuinely happy. Your head wasn’t racing like it was back in your hometown, and you weren’t anxiously looking over your shoulder, realizing that no one really is after you. 

The group decided to take a trip to Paris for the day, and the rest of the days would be spent hitting up a city or two. Everyone had the week off; a bit like spring break as you finished the first half of studying abroad. Everyone was super excited, and you haven’t been to Paris before so it was going to be a new place that you could check off from your list with your favorite people. 

It was a two and a half hour train ride from London to Paris, so you had loaded up a two hour playlist for the ride. 

At the time, it seemed like everyone knew that you were crushing on Harry, except Harry himself. When everyone boarded, the only seat empty was the one next to him. You weren’t mad, in fact, you were thrilled that the seat next to him was vacant. When you sat next to him, his eyes beamed, glad to see you, and you looked over at your friends as they gave you that teasing eye look while you rolled your eyes. 

“Anyone sitting here?” You asked and he shook his head no, giving you a small smile to sit down.

Everyone was still tired, considering it was 7 in the morning, and the group wanted to stay in Paris for the entire day. You yawned and Harry looked at you, giving you a soft smile. You grabbed your earphones out of your purse, handing one earphone to him and placing the other in your ear. In that moment, Harry was so happy as you two listened to Frank Sinatra on the way to Paris, placing your head on your shoulder and his on your head as Frank lulled you both into a nap before your adventure together. 

The entire day was eventful, but exhausting. With everyone on their feet, they were all ready to crash and luckily it was nearing sunset before the last train of the day. 

The last touristy place was the famous Eiffel Tower. Everyone had decided to get some wine and snacks as the whole group sat on a big blanket in the grass area in front of the Eiffel Tower. The sun was slowly setting and the guys were playing with a soccer ball, passing it around as the girls drank and talked; music playing from the speaker Sophie had brought with her.

 You took a mental picture of the scene around you; the people, atmosphere, and the feeling. And you had softly smiled, thinking these are the people in your life that are going to be in your life forever. Despite the fact that half of you had to go separate ways, there was a certainty in your head that everyone will always end up back together again. 

The sun had fully set and the lights on the Eiffel Tower had turned on as it started twinkling, lighting up Paris since the sun had gone tired. The guys were getting tired as well, so they sat with the girls. Harry was on your right side, arm behind your back but he didn’t touch you as it rested on the blanket and he leaned on it. 

“Dance with me,” he whispered ever so softly in your ear. You turned towards him and he smiled. 

“Right now?” 

“Yes, right now. Please, dance with me,” he pleaded and you nodded. He had immediately gotten up and helped you up. 

‘A Sunday Kind of Love’ by Etta James began playing softly as you and Harry swayed. Your arms were around his neck and his were around your waist. Chests pressed together as you had felt his heartbeat that pounded through his chest that gladly traveled to your chest, making your heart beat in sync with his.

It was silent between you two. There were no outside noises interrupting your bubble as you two ignored the eyes your friends were giving you. It was just you and Harry, the music, and the Eiffel Tower that captured your love and kept it for memory sake as you swayed under the moonlight. 

Harry had pulled away from you, looking so intently in your eyes, fondness gleamed out of them.

“Be mine,” he said softly. “I’m fallin’ for you, and I’m fallin’ hard. Please be mine already?” You were about ready to cry in that moment, but tears glossed your eyes.

You nodded and he beamed, “Only if you agree to be mine as well because I’m falling for you too,” you added. 

Harry immediately nodded, “I’ve been yours…this whole time.”

“Harry…” 

“Yes, darling?” The pet name had come unexpected, but you loved it nonetheless. 

“Kiss me.”

He took your face in his hands, brushing away the strands of hair that had covered your pretty eyes before capturing your lips with his. The molded between your lips and his was perfect, like they were meant to be kissing Harry’s. Your hold on him grew tighter as your tongues touched for the first time. It sent shivers down your spine and made the hairs on the back of your neck rise. 

It was a moment that would never leave your mind and you two would cherish it forever. 

It had been two weeks since the group arrived back to London from Paris. Two weeks since the best day of your life, and you and Harry were attached at the hip and at the heart. It had been so easy to be around him, and you couldn’t believe he was your boyfriend. Your boyfriend.

You’ve been falling for him ever since the day you went out with everyone for the first time and clung onto you like a koala. But you were glad to be that tree for him that night. 

The regular dates hadn’t stopped. You two acted the same around each other, and that was because of the friendship before the relationship. And you were able to hold his hand while walking down the street and kiss him against the wall of an alley.

It was the third month of school, and everyone was swamped in midterm studies. The amount of stress everyone had was enough for an entire school year because of how fast paced the program was. 

It neared eleven at night in the boys’ dorm. Everyone’s heads were in their books or typing on their laptop, papers scattered around them. For the art program, you had to visit various museums and look for a painting that defined the meaning of Impressionism art along with a 2,000 words that went along with the painting. 

Multiple yawns passed through the room, and everyone was exhausted. 

“Alright, I’m done for the night. Can’t do anymore studying,” Tanya said as she started packing her things up loosely. 

“Yeah, think we should call it a night,” Cade suggested. 

A series of ‘goodlucks’ and hugs went around the room as everyone packed their things up, and the girls went off to the dorm as you were still packing, wanting a minute alone with Harry. 

“Stay the night?” He had suggested, and you turned around and stopped fixing your things. 

“You want me to?” 

“Yeah. Think I’ll sleep better with you here and m’all stressed out.” 

“Okay,” you replied back, thinking that you would sleep better with him as well. 

As you two got into bed, Harry had played music on his phone, saying that it had helped him sleep and it was a habit when getting into bed. You noticed that you and Harry had the same love for Frank Sinatra as he hugged you to his chest. 

The two had laid there, not even closing your eyes to try and get some sleep. But rather, staring at the ceiling, running your hands up and down each other’s skin. 

And the moment you had leaned up to give him a kiss, you two couldn’t stop there. 

Hands that roamed your body had made that electrifying feeling stronger, pulling him in for more. The passionate kisses that you two traded had triggered each other’s arousal as he hovered over you. The pull and undressing of each other’s clothes while ‘Strangers in the Night’ played had left you wanting more and more of him. 

“I’ve never done this before. Like any of this,” you whispered. 

“Do you want to continue? We don’t have to if you don’t want to--I’m definitely fine with just kissin’ ya,” he said with a smile, causing you to beam at him being a gentleman. 

“Yes, want this so bad, baby.” You responded quickly, feeling very eager. He smiled in return and continued what he was doing.

He had asked you throughout the experience if you were okay with everything, and when you told him ‘yes please, give it to me’, he made sure he got you ready for him; rubbing your button and fingering you to your high, something you’ve never experienced with another person. 

It was the reassurance that Harry had given for your first time, and the constant questions of making sure if you were okay and if you were comfortable when he slowly pushed into you, trying to make sure he wasn’t being too hard with you because of his hard and big length. 

“So good for me,” he whispered out, kissing your lips. 

“Feels so good,” you had moaned out, never experiencing this type of feeling before. The pleasure had taken over the stinging feeling of your Harry entering you for the first time. You two were connected in a way you’ve never felt before. 

The soft whispers of praises that fell from your lips, and your arousal and orgasm prior that lubricated Harry’s thrusting, had made him feel so many things. He wanted to last for you, he didn't want this moment to end. Scratches in his hair and down his back had encouraged him to continue as you moaned his name in his ear, and he pressed wet kisses to your neck as he grabbed your breast. 

Two strangers in the night who had no idea of each other’s existence just three months ago. They had no clue of what their life was going to become when they met each other. It was the way you looked at each other that he knew you weren’t going to be just a stranger to him. Although he had a bit of alcohol in his system, he knew in his heart that he was going to find that sort of comfort and caring personality when he started talking to you. 

Harry continued to make love to you as the moonlight was seeping through the blinds, like the love that seeped through your veins for each other. He brought you both to your highs, and the only thing that was heard was the hushed moans and groans that came out of your mouths that could signify the love you have for one another.

It was that moment that changed everything. 

The fourth month had approached sooner than you would like. 

You and Harry hadn’t discussed what was going to happen when you had to leave, but you had hoped that you could make long distance work. 

The feelings you had for him were nothing you had ever felt before. It had made you cry out of happiness in random times, but also made you want to scream because of how too good to be true he is. 

He treated you like a queen. Making sure to give you as much love as you could handle, but sometimes a little more because he couldn’t hold it in. 

Throughout the weeks, you had learned so much about him and him, you. You didn’t think there was someone in the world that was so kind and caring; someone who shares similar passions and likes the same things you do. He was an angel sent from above, and you wanted to keep him for as long as possible. 

One night, you two shared your pasts together as you laid in bed together after a session of love making and a few rounds of hard fucking per your request. 

The fear you had inside of you was trickling down with your words when you had told him your insecurities and stories of your family that you wanted to forget. But he took everything so well; never looking at you for your insecurities, but only for your heart. 

“They weren’t very really supportive of me--of what I wanted to do. They just expected me to follow what they wanted, and I didn’t like that…” His hands roamed your skin innocently, comforting you and let you know he was there for you. “I was already miserable there. I didn’t want to be even more miserable doing something I hated. So I went against their demands and they said they weren’t going to pay for anything. But luckily I got a scholarship, and moved away from home.” 

“I’m proud of you for doing that.” You looked up at him as he continued. “It’s admirable to see you chase your dream and do what you want to do, despite being told by parents who don’t support you. You’re strong for that, y’know?” You hadn’t responded; just took in his words of support and comfort. You kissed his chest, leaving soft and wet kisses to his skin. 

It was like you couldn’t get enough of him. The magnetic pull that you had between you had grown, making the force stronger than ever, and you never wanted to leave his side. 

As the last few weeks of studying abroad we’re coming to an end, everyone was focused on finals. There weren’t that many dinners or nights out at that moment, but everyone had time since the people who lived outside of England had a week before they had to pack up and leave. 

One night as Harry was in your room, studying on the bed as you were writing a paper for your final project, he had suggested visiting his hometown. 

“Darling, I have a question,” he perked up. You looked at him and nodded for him to continue. “You could say no and that would be totally fine, but how about we go to my hometown this weekend? We could even study over there. It’s less noisy and it’s not a hussle and bussle kind of town. I just want you to be able to see where I grew up.” 

You smiled, “Sounds nice. Where are we going to stay?” 

“Figured we could stay at my mum’s? She’s got a great backyard, or we could explore and I could take you around,” he said with great hope. Your heart fluttered, Harry wanted you to see where he grew up. He wanted to show you every corner of his hometown. 

“Oh…at your mom’s. Is she going to be there?” The thought of meeting his mother had scared you. You had never met anyone’s parents, and it was the nagging thought in your head telling you that you were going to mess it up. 

“Yeah, but we could get a hotel or something-”

“No! I would love to stay there, and I would love to meet your mom.”

Harry smiled, giving you a kiss to your lips before grabbing his phone and texting his mother.

The train ride to Holmes Chapel was about two and a half hours. 

You suddenly had a fascination with trains as you felt like it kept you calm while you watched different towns and buildings pass by. 

With the speed of the train, it had felt like you were in slow motion. Your eyes tried taking in everything you saw, capturing every moment of what you want to remember. And Harry is in a lot of those images. 

Holmes Chapel was very welcoming and warm. Despite the weather, it was warm. It felt like home. It was a small town and everyone seemed to know the next person, but you loved every part of it because it was where Harry grew up. 

His childhood home was even lovelier. Maybe it was because of the fact that Anne lived there and Harry grew up there, but she was ever so sweet and welcomed you in with open arms. 

She had taken a liking to you immediately, telling you childhood stories of Harry and his sister, Gemma, that only family knew. Harry was ultimately surprised at how quickly Anne opened up to you. He knew his mother was kind, but she kept to herself and didn’t speak when she was uncomfortable, so to see his mother laughing loudly with his also somewhat shy girlfriend, made his heart burst with love. 

Harry had watched them sit at the dining table, sharing stories as he leaned against the kitchen counter as he wore a robe to keep him warm while smiling so big that his jaw physically started to hurt. 

He’d never had felt so loved and had never loved anything like he does with you. It surprised him how fast he fell for you, but it was quite possibly the easiest thing he did. There was no judgement in the relationship. You had kept him grounded and helped him when he was going through a rut when writing. 

The only thing that was bad about the relationship was the distance that will be put between you two when you leave to go back home. He didn’t want this to become a fling, to have a time limit. He knew exactly what he was getting into the day he asked you to be his, and he didn’t want to let go of you. 

And he truly hoped you felt the same. 

Just after you and Harry were back in London after visiting Anne and his hometown, finals had approached rather quickly. You had had a great time spending a little time with his mother, and you think she liked you very much. There were countless conversations and laughs that you will never forget. 

“Can I ask you something sweetheart?” Anne asked. 

“Of course,” you said, and you had been nervous as to what she was going to ask. 

“You mentioned that you were leaving just before the holiday, but I just wanted to ask where that leaves you and Harry. Are you two still going to be together?” A frown had made an appearance on her face, resembling your own. 

“I would like to. We haven’t spoken about it, but I’m sure that conversation will happen soon,” you had answered honestly.

“You still would still want to be with him?” You nodded in response. “That’s great to know. I like you a lot, and Harry has taken quite the liking towards you as well, but I just didn’t know if it was some sort of abroad type of relationship; someone to just keep you company in a new country-”

“No, it’s nothing like that! I know it’s only been almost two months of our relationship, but I love him, and I would never let him go. I didn’t want to study abroad to have a relationship, but he stumbled into my life so unexpectedly and I don’t have plans of letting that kind of love go.” 

Everything you had said was the whole truth. You weren’t expecting a relationship to come out of this, but you’re so immensely happy that it did because Harry walked into your life. Although you hadn’t known him for a very long time, quality overruled quantity. The connection you two had made within the few months meant something deeper than a fling. 

Anne smiled and nodded, like she was appreciating you and her respect for you had increased. The topic was over, and it was onto the next that was followed by laughs. And that entire time you stayed at her house, Anne knew exactly why Harry had fallen in love with you. 

The last week of being in London had come very quickly, and sadness was an understatement. 

The people who were leaving had decided to start packing the things that they didn’t need and weren’t going to use anymore, so they had extra time to spend and go out with everyone because packing your things for four months plus the things you bought wasn’t all that fun. 

It was Monday morning after finals when you had heard your phone buzz on your bedside table. You had groaned as it felt like you had slept for only 30 minutes. You debated on whether to check it in your sleepy state. The buzzing had stopped, making your thoughts turn off, but started back up once again and you figured you should check it. 

Harry was calling you in the early hours of the morning. It was 6 a.m and if it were anyone else, you would ignore it. 

“Harry? What’s wrong? Are you okay?” You had mumbled once you answered the phone. Harry chuckled, but also fell deeper in love as you were just as caring as you were awake. 

“Darling, m’fine! M’actually outside of your dorm. I didn’t want to knock and wake everyone else up, but get up. We’re going on an adventure,” he said in a hushed voice, and you practically heard his smile through the phone. 

“Harry…” your eyes were still closed, exhausted from your slumber. 

“Please, baby. You won’t regret it.” 

And you didn’t. You never regretted anything when it came to Harry. 

You had gotten up and dressed warm enough for your adventure, and met Harry outside to which he rewarded you with a hug and kiss, thanking you for putting up with him. 

You both got in Peter’s car that Harry had begged him to take for a little bit, and luckily he agreed because the tube wasn’t running at that time. With Harry’s arm in your lap, you leaned on his arm as you closed your eyes until he took you both to your destination.

It was still a bit dark out, but it was way past the starry night it was a few hours ago. The sun was just about ready to rise, and the early bird got the worm. 

Harry had held your hand as he led you both up to top of the Primrose Hill, showing the beautiful London city. It had taken you both a while to get to the top, due to you being extremely sleepy still and sluggishly holding you both back. Harry had set a blanket down for you two to sit on, and you immediately snuggled into him. 

“Don’t fall asleep on me, darling. We have a sunrise to watch,” he said, leaning his head down and caressing your face. 

“Mmm. Tired,” you grumbled. 

“Please? It’s your last week here,” he said sadly, and you wished you hadn’t complained that you were tired because hearing his tone had almost broke your heart. But that woke you up slightly, realizing that you didn’t want to miss another moment with him. 

The sky had gotten a little lighter, and Harry checked his phone for the time, about 30 minutes till the sun started to rise. 

“Tell me something,” he said. It had been a thing you two did when you started hanging out. It was sort of a confession time; either can say anything you want to say and the other will listen. 

“I’m going to miss you so much that the thought of us not being physically next to each other will hurt so bad,” you confessed. 

“I’m going to miss you too.” 

“Baby, you don’t understand. My heart will completely break once I part ways with you at the airport. I cant handle it, Harry,” your body had completely faced his, and he noticed your eyes were swollen from the lack of sleep and the incoming tears. 

“Hey, I know exactly how you feel. You’re not the only one who gets to feel like that,” he said more seriously. “But we’re gonna get through this, okay? We’ll do everything to make sure we make it together,” he had placed a hand on your cheek. 

“You want this right?” Your insecurities had gotten in the way and you needed reassurance from him, and Harry knew that and didn’t ever complain to give it to you. 

“Of course, baby. Never gave you a reason telling you I didn’t want this, right?” You shook your head, tears had made its way down your face, and Harry had shared the same tears as you. “Then don’t worry. Everything’s going to be fine. I’ll make sure of it.” Harry held you to his chest and you both cried in each other’s arms. 

The sunrise was as beautiful as ever that morning, screaming for a new beginning as the sun illuminated the sky into an orange and yellow glow. The new beginning was right in your arms as you held him tighter while tears fell down both of your faces, feeling powerful and stronger together as you two poured every emotion and energy into each other. 

Harry was your sunrise and your sunset. 

You wanted to spend the beginning of every morning with him and have him be the last thing you see before you are pulled into a deep slumber, dreaming of him for hours until you see his face again and make him your reality. 

And you both were going to make it. 

The ride to the airport was long and filled with silence as words weren’t needed at that time; only the hurt because of the love that was so strong that nothing could come between you two. Not even distance. 

You already missed the whole group dearly, and the last dinner with everyone was bittersweet. It was an emotional one as everyone talked about their favorite times and laughed at memories of drunken stories. And at the end, everyone raised a glass. 

“To the best group of friends out there.” 

“To a talented ass group of artists and writers.” 

“To love, laughter, and the pub.” 

“To new beginnings, but never endings.” 

Everyone cried and hugged each other, making the moment last forever, but it was definitely not the last time. 

You slowly walked with Harry, hand in hand as he rolled your luggage, to the area where you both had to part your ways. He had kissed your hand and head multiple times until you stood facing in front of him. 

The embrace you two shared was the most gut wrenching feeling you had ever felt in your life, and it felt like your heart was physically breaking along with Harry’s. 

Your hearts had always been in sync, beating as fast as the other or filling in beats for one another when one of your hearts had skipped a beat. Being without one another would feel like a missing beat in your hearts, and you needed the other to fulfill it.

“This is not goodbye. It’s never going to be goodbye with you, okay?” Harry’s voice croaked and you nodded, too afraid to speak as tears spilled out of your eyes. 

You were breathing deeply, knowing you should go through TSA already as you both were trying to spend every last minute together. 

“Tell me something?” Harry had asked one last time in person. You thought hard about it, wanting to make it the best one he’s ever heard. 

“I love you, baby.” 

He gave you a small and sad smile as more tears formed in his eyes, “I love you too. So much, darling.” 

And then you were off.

Harry had watched you walk away until he couldn’t see you anymore before he had sulked back to his dorm, crying all the way back. He felt empty without you beside him. With spending everyday with each other for the past four months, it had felt like a punch to his chest when you had left. 

When he had gotten back to his room, he noticed a large square board wrapped in festive wrapping paper with an envelope attached to it. 

‘To my lovely Harry, 

Thank you for loving with me, laughing with me, and living with me. You’re the best person I’ve ever come to know, so I hope you enjoy this piece that was dedicated to you (and our group of friends). I’m so grateful you’re the person who has my heart.

I love you and miss you so much. 

Yours forever.

The tears hadn’t stopped since he saw you leave, and they kept on coming as he opened his present.

Sitting in his hands was your final project along with your paper. It was a painting of his hand holding a heart as blood dripped from it. He noticed it was his hand because of the various rings he wore. The London Eye, Big Ben, the Eiffel Tower, and the pub were at the aorta as a plane curved from around the heart. The background was painted as an orange and yellow color, symbolizing the sunset. 

Harry sobbed and hugged your painting to his chest, feeling as if it’s the last thing he has of you for a while. He picked up your paper and read the title. 

‘The Power of Being Vulnerable’ 

⋇⋆✦⋆⋇

And so you were sat on a floral blanket, two years later; setting up your lunch, and taking out your sketchbook along with your supplies. You had brought your painting easel, in case it wasn’t going to rain, and you’re glad that you brought it because the weather was just gorgeous enough to paint outside for a while.

Before you went to the park, you had time to make a quick and small charcuterie board that was filled with Brie, prosciutto, crackers, and honey; a snack that would take up your time under the warm sun. 

You started sketching your drawing until you felt a familiar pair of lips against your cheek behind you. 

“Hi, darling,” his raspy voice that had brought you immediate peace said in your ear. You turned your head, and saw the beautiful smile beaming down at you before sitting down and meeting you at eye level, giving you a kiss to your lips. 

“Hi, baby.” 

“Sorry I’m late, quite the line at the sandwich shop, but I got your favorite as always.” You smiled after him, thanking him for waiting in that line and for the food. 

“It’s okay, practically just sat down a few minutes ago, and set everything up.” 

“Okay, good. By the way, you look absolutely beautiful,” he took off his sunglasses to give him a more clear look. You were wearing a dress that complimented your skin tone, making your eyes enticing that he couldn’t help but fall more in love.

“Thank you, my love. You look so handsome,” you complimented back, leaning in to peck his lips. Harry was wearing a plaid button down flannel, black jeans, boots, and a fedora. His hair has grown much longer over the past few years, and you honestly love it. One day, you had told him that he looks like a prince to which you earned a blush. 

“Gonna paint, my darling?” 

“Yeah. Nice weather out today, so definitely going to.” 

“Can’t wait you see what you put together,” Harry smiles, making the dimples that you love so much, pop out. 

You and Harry spent the rest of the day together before it was time to head to dinner with the six other people that had changed your life. It was something simple like sitting on top of the same hill you were at two years ago that made your heart flutter. With his head in your lap as he read a book, occasionally stopping to scratch his head and give him a kiss to his forehead, and you sitting upright painting away as he fed you crackers and cheese, you would have never known this is how your life would turn out. 

You were extremely grateful for the years you were given to be with Harry and your group of friends that you love so dearly. You were a shy girl, scared of being scared, hardly opened up to anyone. 

But that same shy girl blossomed. She blossomed into a beautiful woman who was being praised and treated like the way she should. The man beside her had reminded her every single day that she is a stunning and caring person that deserves the world and more. She eventually started to believe it herself. She began to start seeing herself that way. She woke up and looked in the mirror and started to remind herself that she was beautiful and that she was going to take over the world. 

The affirmations had come from opening herself up to people who genuinely cared about her. Because being vulnerable isn’t bad whatsoever. 

It allowed you to let go of whatever pain there was inside your heart and leaned onto someone so they could hold your pain as well because you finally weren’t alone. You finally had people who loved you and needed you. 

You had opened your heart up all those years ago, and it led you to the best thing that’s ever happened to you. 

With two years of loving each other and two years of long distance, you had opened up your heart to the most special man in the world. The constant tears of missing each other from the other side of the world. The need to feel his touch. The tiring plane rides every four months to visit him, until it was his turn to visit you. The care packages. The long FaceTime chats. They all led to the best hugs when you reunited with Harry. 

You would travel the world and back if it meant Harry was your destination. 

And it was where the world took you that led to your forever. 

feedback is appreciated here! <3 also i would love to take blurbs for this and write more about them, so please let me know what you like to read!

#boyfriendathon #boyfriend!harry #harry styles angst #harry styles smut #harry styles friends to lovers #harry styles fluff #harry styles one shot #harry styles ff #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles writing #uni!harry #harry styles au #harry styles x you #harry styles x reader #harry styles dirty one shot #harry styles dirty imagine #harry styles concept #fine line #study abroad #friends to lovers

[captaincravatthecapricious]

Broken Ribs- Prompt Fill

What if the Hunters broke Jon's ribs in America? In other words, Jon does not have fun on an airplane.

cws: nausea, injury, disassociation, hospital mention, fainting

I am still accepting bingo prompts, send me a prompt, a character, and let me know if you want a fic or a drawing (crossed out prompts are filled, starred ones are ones I have asks for)! Card by the wonderful @celosiaa​! Enjoy!

The air of the airport is oppressive.  Close and loud with the pain lancing through Jon’s chest.   Bustling people, ridiculously wide expanses of space all somehow abandoned and bustling at the same time.  

It’s hot.  He’s too hot.  

Shoulder straps of his bag digging into his back, bracing against the weight, crushing ribs that crunch sickeningly as he jogs on hole ridden legs, shoes with worn down soles skidding, only grasping purchase with the help of his cane.  

He can’t miss his next plane.  He can’t.  He needs to get back home… or rather the Institute.  He doesn’t really have a home anymore, does he?  Not his flat, certainly, and not with Georgie.  

Just one more flight.  A long one, but at least there will be no more running to catch planes, inconveniently at opposite ends of massive American airports.  

Airports are already weird, empty spaces where everything is big and loud and expensive and sleepy all at once.  Places where time has no meaning at all, and everyone is in both business dress and pajamas, sometimes at the same time.  But adding the whole American thing to it… is odd.  It’s not that it makes that much of a difference, every airport is actually very similar, but there is still something about the tang of ‘Rugged American Individualism’ that makes his skin crawl.  

Or maybe that’s the lack of sleep, and the lack of a proper shower in… too long.  He hates this.  He hates this.  He can’t stand the feeling of grit on his skin…. not since Prentiss, not since the circus.  Between traveling and being followed and kidnaped again and now traveling some more… he’s sweaty and grimy and he wants to tear his skin off, or at the very least scrub it raw.  Cut his nails to the quick, wash his hair a dozen times, scrub himself  again for an hour under as hot water as he can stand for as long as his useless legs will hold him up.  

He gets to his gate as the plane is boarding.  Barely in time.  

They take his cane at the front and he wants to cry.  Limping to his seat in the very back, vision getting spotty with pain.  He Really should have someone look at his ribs, they haven’t been right since the kidnapping.  Just the universe’s punching bag, isn’t he?   Kicked in the ribs by hunters.  He hadn't even Done anything.  (Well... he has now, but he hadn't at that point!

He just about collapses in his seat.  

Middle seat.  Shit.  

Christ he's dizzy.  Wouldn't be surprised if he's running a fever from the pain.  His body sending all sorts of signals of distress: thirsty, nauseous, tired, shaky, panicked that he needs something or he'll pass out or cry, or.... or... or.... he doesn't know.  

There is a tap on his shoulder.  Window seat passenger wants to get through.  Jon carefully eases himself to his feet.  Trying very hard not to wince, or puke, or pass out.  He limps his way up just far enough that Window Seat can get through.  Just.  

His ribs crunch as he sits again.  He tries to covertly wipe the thin sheet of sweat from his forehead.  A poor effort to detract from the attention his pallor and limp are surely getting him.  

He sits absolutely still.  His nose itches, but no... moving to scratch it would hurt too much.  He just... won't move.  The whole flight, ideally.  But surely his bladder and bad leg will have other ideas about that.  Jon sighs as shallowly as possible.  Breathing hurts.  

He drifts out of consciousness for a while.  Isle Seat arrives at some point.  The plane starts taxiing.  Jon doesn't remember the pieces, but they occur.  

He does notice the plane taking off.  The acceleration of the plane.  The stomach dropping climb.  And all Jon can think of is falling.  Aching chest tighter with panic.  

The smell of tea made too dark and with too much lemon.  What would have been a pleasant and soothing voice if he hadn't been plummeting with the acceleration of -9.81 meters per second per second without even the comfort of air resistance.  Oxygen moving by too fast to snag a breath.  He could have been falling for seconds, minutes, days, weeks, years, and it would have made no difference.  Hitting the ground would have even been a comfort at that point.  

He's gasping.  Chest crunching under the strain of his breathing through the vice grip of terror.  

He orders himself to take a very shallow, very measured breath.  The plane is leveling out, and he doesn't want to attract any more attention.  

Luckily he has always been good about deflecting attention.  Had a panic attack in the middle of a maths class in secondary school, and not a soul noticed.  Window Seat is staring out the window in fascination as the houses get ever smaller and are eaten up by the cloud cover.  Isle Seat is napping.  

Jon is very very very glad that he hasn't run out of dramamine yet or ...he would be a lot more not okay than he already is.  He is out of pain meds.  Unfortunately.  

Should have bought some in America.  You can get big bottles there.  Big bottles.  And God knows he needs them.  

He clasps his hands tightly and try to pull his breathing into a careful and shallow rhythm.  

He is drifting again when Window Seat lowers their armrest.  It strikes him on the way down.  Brushes him, really.  He bites down a yelp.  He curls protectively around his ribs, which causes them to crunch again.  That Really isn't healthy sounding.  Spots dance across his vision again.  

He isn't sure how much time passes before Window Seat makes to get up.  He almost doesn't have the energy to stand.  

He's seeing spots again, and he doesn't know how he will manage to let Window Seat back in.  

The seat in front of him has lowered their seat.  Jon, in the back row can't tilt his back.  Christ it hurts.  It all hurts.  The turbulence, the standing and sitting for Window Seat, the drinks cart making far too many rounds.  He doesn't get anything.  Can't stomach the snacks or the provided dinner, barely manages a couple sips from his own water bottle.  He knows his leg would thank him if he got up and moved around, but the thought of standing is too much.  The movie that he tried to watch was too grating and it just added to how Loud the plane is.  Almost as loud as his hammering heart and the aching of his chest.  He can't do it.  He can't do it.  He can't do it.  

He bites back a scream when Window Seat orders another drink.  The flight attendant jostling his ribs again, passing over the beverage.  This has to be the third or forth time.  How many drinks can one passenger need?  How many more before Window Seat will need the loo again, dragging Jon to his aching feet again?  

Jon bites back tears.  He was awoken by Window Seat again.  He'd apparently fallen asleep on Isle Seat.  ...Or maybe passed out.  Jon doesn't know.  He's too dizzy.  He doesn't look at Isle Seat.  He wants to apologize, but the thought of speaking sounds too painful.  He clings to control of his breathing.  Shallow breaths.  Slow, shallow breaths.  Don't make the ribs worse, don't make the pain worse.  

Jon doesn't remember letting Window Seat back in.  He possibly remembers standing?  Possibly remembers black spots eating through his vision?  And then he's face down on his grimy tray table.  A face full of the novel he picked up in the airport on his trip Before getting his ribs busted.  He's pretty sure he passed out and hand't fallen asleep, but he can't be certain.  

The flight attendant is shaking him awake, and Jon tries to hide the tears of pain that causes.  Yes, yes, he knows.  Tray tables needs to be folded away before they land.  

Getting off the plane is hard.  Window Seat is anxiously out of their seat and getting their luggage, meaning that Jon has to decide if he would rather sit back down, only to have to stand again when the way was finally clear, or he'd have to stand without his cane , bent at an awkward angle.  All after digging under his seat for his bag.  He thinks keeping it under his seat is easier on his ribs than getting it into and out of the overhead compartment... but he doesn't know.  He is fighting unconsciousness again.  

The plane is too hot.  Too loud.  His head hurts.  His ribs hurt.  Sick with pain, and shaky with hungry and dehydration.  He isn't sure that food wouldn't make him feel worse, however.  He skipped provided breakfast as well.  

At least he can't remember much of the flight.  Probably a blessing.  

He finally limps to the front of the plane.  He almost cries with relief when he is handed back his cane.  He's so tired.  So tired.  

At least he doesn't need to get any luggage.  All he has is is backpack and cane.  And a text from Elias saying Daisy is already there to pick him up.  

Right.  

Best not to keep her waiting.  

He doesn't think he can survive any more aggression.  Not for a while.  

He's too tired to even panic about being alone with her.  

She shakes him roughly when she spots him.  Demands to know why it took him so long, why he didn't text. All but shoves him into the car.  That's more than he can take.  He passes out.  Cane clattering to the pavement, head striking the wheel with the force of his momentum.  

When he comes to, he is being carried.   He hurts too badly to move, feels too sick to think.  He moans into the chest of whoever is carrying him.  Doesn't even have it in him to start in fear when he realizes the only one with biceps that big and fair is Daisy.  

They are going down a flight of stairs.  He wonders vaguely if she's going to kill him... but then realizes he might take that as a mercy right about now.  

Except she doesn't kill him.  She's taken him to the Archives.  He can hear Martin.  

"Daisy!  Jon!  Daisy, what did you do!  What did you do to him?"

Him... Jon?  He tries to ask what the fuss is about, but only manages another moan.  

"I didn't break him.  Your problem now."  She grunts that out, and plops Jon into Martin's lap.  At least he thinks... after he possibly blacks out again.  

Martin is patting his face.  Martin is patting his face.  "Hey, Jon?  Can you open your eyes for me?"  Jon tries.  And fails.  Eyelids too heavy.  "Jon, what's wrong?"

"Hurts," he whispers.  

"Hurts where?"  Martin is cupping his face.  Jon starts crying.  

He can't respond.  

"Jon can I take you to hospital?  Please?”

“Ribs..."

"Jon, please?"

Jon doesn't want to go to the hospital, he just wants to sleep.  Possibly just sleep right there and never move again.  Martin is warm and soft and smells nice and is quiet.  But he doesn't have energy to argue.  He makes a noncommittal sound.  "Stay?"

"Yeah, of course.  I'll call us a cab, yeah?  Get you checked out, then... you could come to mine, if you like?"  

Jon really doesn't have the energy to respond, so he just... gives it up and closes his eyes.  Letting himself drift and not worry about getting carried.  Maybe if he's lucky he'll either sleep or disassociate long enough that he doesn't have to actually think about the hospital.  Maybe he'll come back to himself on Martin's couch.  He even lets himself hope that maybe someone will take the initiative and clean him up first.  The idea of other hands on him would ordinarily be horrifying, but he's just too tired to care.  For now... he'll just sleep.  

#the magnus archives #tma #magnuspod #fanficiton #cw nausea #cw fainting #cw hospital #cw injury #cw broken ribs #cane user jon #jonathan sims #martin blackwood #daisy tonner #my writing #my words #fic #my art #whump

[btssaysstudy]

Rebound Pt. 2

Pairing: Jungkook x reader, Taehyung (V) x reader  Genre: Angst  Warning: Swearing, cheating mentioned  Synopsis: After encouraging your best friend, Taehyung, (also crush) to tryout for the volleyball team, he had gained attention and you started getting closer to one of his teammates. When Taehyung gets himself into a relationship, you found yourself growing attached to Jungkook. However, when Taehyung’s relationship turns sour, he turns to you to fill the void - something Jungkook strongly opposed to. Word count: 6.4k

PT.1

Thank you for reading it and requesting for a pt.2, it means a lot and I hope you like this:))

The next morning, you woke up realising that you went to sleep without changing out of your clothes and washing off your makeup. You rushed to the mirror to see that your makeup was gone.

“I used your makeup wipes last night. I didn’t want to change your clothes because… Well you know.” Jungkook awkwardly explained, avoiding your gaze. You smiled at him, “Thanks Kook.” You noticed that your sleeping bag had ben sprawled out on the floor, realising that Jungkook had probably slept on the cold wooden floor with no pillow.

“Shit, you should’ve taken one of my pillows Kook. I’m sorry you had to sleep on the floor. You could’ve left me once I knocked out.”

He laughed, “I can’t leave you alone after what happened last night.” That triggered your brain to recall the memories of the night before, the heart-breaking scene of Taehyung flirting with his ex and even accusing you and Jungkook at the front yard.

Jungkook must have noticed your distant look, “Hey. Freshen up and we can go get lunch?”

You snapped back to reality and nodded your head. Jungkook grabbed his stuff and made his way to the door, “I’ll meet you at the common area in an hour?”

“Sure. See you then.”

Once Jungkook left, you grabbed your towel and made your way to the bathroom to take a hot soothing shower. Your thoughts were scattered, reliving the party for a moment and then thinking about confronting Taehyung the next. You were thankful that Jungkook had been with you last night, if not you doubt that you would have been able to fall asleep.

You got dressed up and made your way to the common area at the ground level to meet Jungkook. “Hey, you.” Jungkook smiled, walking towards you. “Ready to eat? My treat.”

With a groan, you shook your head, turning down his offer. “Kook, enough with your treats. I should be the one treating you.” Jungkook laughed, “Nice try. Not gonna happen.”

The two of you made your way to your usual eatery place, settling down and almost immediately ordered your go-to meals.

“So how are you holding up?”

You pressed your lips tight together, trying to form a proper thought. “Surprisingly better than expected. Maybe it’s because I always knew deep inside that I was a rebound.” You looked down at the table, "Just regret that I allowed it to happen.”

“You shouldn’t regret it y/n. You did like him and on the bright side, you did say things were good while it lasted. You can’t do anything to change the past but at least now you can move forward.”

“Yea I know you’re right about that. I just can’t help thinking if we can be friends again after this.” You fiddled with the condiments on the table. Jungkook reach out to take your hands in his, “Maybe not now but eventually time will heal. I know he’s your best friend and it’ll be a waste to let it all go.” He then released his hold and leaned back into his chair when he saw the food coming your way, “Then again, I don’t do cheaters.”

You scoffed, “Thanks for the help.”

Jungkook just grinned cheekily at you, “Any time.”

The two of you started eating and talked about other completely unrelated topics. You leaned back, rubbing your belly. “Food baby has arrived.” You joked, letting yourself laugh a bit.

“Nice to hear your laugh again.” Jungkook gave you a very endearing smile that made you feel warm inside. You could feel your cheeks heat up as you tried to ignore the feeling.

“Thanks for keeping me company Kook.”

—

You had been avoiding Taehyung like the plague. You ignored his texts and you went for lectures alone. A huge part of you wished you had lectures with Jungkook but you attended different classes. You also stopped going for their volleyball practices. Jungkook never asked you to come and watch since he knew it would be uncomfortable. However, you would study at the library while waiting for Jungkook to finish his training, meeting for dinner afterwards.

You were still caught up to their progress and upcoming matches since Jungkook would always update you the second he learns it. The semester had gone by in a blink of an eye and it was already finals period. You had gone through the second half of the semester without Taehyung and it felt weird. It felt weird to not have your best friend by your side after three years of being inseparable.

However, what you gained was a really strong bond with Jungkook. He would surprise you over the weekend with your favourite drinks and with his laptop, ready to watch a movie to take a breather from studies. Jungkook would ask to study together when he didn’t have practice. You spent most of your time with him and you weren’t complaining.

“I think I’m going to talk to Taehyung for closure.”

“You are?” Jungkook swivelled his chair to face you. You shifted to rest on your left side, resting your head on your left hand to prop up your head off his bed. “Yea, I don’t feel any animosity towards him. I also don’t want our friendship to end.”

Jungkook seemed to be in thought since he didn’t give you an immediate reply. You frowned, “You think it’s a bad idea, don’t you?”

“N-No no! I think it’s great. You already know that he always asks me about you. He still cares for you. I think it’s a good thing.” He gave you an encouraging look, giving you the courage to pick up your phone to text Taehyung.

‘Hey, it’s been awhile. Are you free to meet?’

Just as you tossed your phone away, it vibrated, signalling a message. “Damn. That was fast.” Jungkook whistled. You unlocked your phone to read his reply, “He’s free tonight. Better get it over with I guess.” You let out a long sigh, “Don’t be nervous y/n. It’ll go well.”

So you replied Taehyung and set a meet-up point for the night.

After studying at Jungkook’s place for the whole day, you packed your things and made your way to meet Taehyung. You reached the place to see Taehyung already waiting for you. “Hey.” You called for his attention. The boy whipped his head around so quickly, you swore he could’ve gotten a whiplash. “Y/N.” He said your name in a breathy voice, as if in shock that you really came to meet him.

The two of you sat on a nearby bench and you could immediately feel an awkward tension envelope you two. You fiddled with your own hands as you tried to come up with a starting sentence.

“Listen—“

“I’m sorry—“

The two of you paused and broke into a laughter, finding the awkward vibe amusing. “You go ahead.” Taehyung gestured to you to begin.

You nodded your head, taking in a deep breath.

“I know I shouldn’t have ignored you for the rest of the semester, but I felt that I needed it. I’m sorry for ignoring you but it allowed me to clear my thoughts. It was already foolish of me to accept that dating idea but I know I did it because I was hopeful that something could really happen between us. I did that knowing you still weren’t over your ex. Though what you still did was still kinda messed up, but I forgive you.”

Taehyung nodded his head slowly as he took it all in. The silence after your ‘monologue’ was killing you and you were dying to know what Taehyung had to say. “I’m really sorry y/n. Till this day, I hate myself for doing that to you. I did like you, romantically, when we dated. But I was still trying to move on and I used you to try and fix that. I should have never done that to you. You’re my best friend and I care for you, a lot. I genuinely do. I still do. I don’t deserve your forgiveness but I thank you for that. Also, I understand if we can’t be friends anymore. I respect your decision.”

His voice cracked towards the end when he brought up about not being friends anymore and it honestly broke your heart as well. The thought of not having Taehyung in your life anymore, as a best friend. You didn’t want to lose your first friend in college. You smiled, reaching out to place your hand over his. “I don’t want that to happen Tae. I’d like us to continue being friends. But it’ll take a while to get back to where we were.” From that reply, you could feel hope and happiness return to his body and his eyes as he turned to you, vigorously nodding his head. “I understand. Completely. I’ll make up for the shit I’ve done to you. I mean it.”

You laughed, “I believe you Tae.”

Taehyung’s shoulders visibly relaxed as he leaned back, looking up at the sky. “I have been hoping that you would give me a second chance. Now that it’s actually true, a big part of me feels like I don’t deserve it.”

“I know you’re still a good guy. You’re also my friend. And I care for you.”

“I’m relieved Jungkook has been by your side. He’s a good guy, really.”

At the mention of Jungkook’s name made your cheeks heat up as you wondered why you were feeling this way. You didn’t want to catch feelings again, especially when Jungkook had become a really close friend. You didn’t want a repeat of what happened with Taehyung.

“You okay, y/n?”

“Hm? Oh yea, I’m fine.”

—

Finals went by in a flash, with Jungkook being your 24/7 study buddy. During the period that you weren’t on speaking terms with Taehyung, you were relieved to find out that he had other friends he could hang out with. He also became really close to his volleyball seniors who gave him coaching and life-lessons (also a good scolding by Namjoon) when he told them everything that happened. You and Jungkook on the other hand, were stuck together like glue.

Once finals ended, Jungkook asked you out to a movie to celebrate freedom.

“Summer’s here at last!” Jungkook fist pumped the air and you laughed, watching the volleyball player prance along the walkway. “Calm down child.”

“I’m no child.” Jungkook gave you a cute pout that made your heart swoon. You ignored the thought, pushing him to start walking. “Alright, alright, let’s just keep on moving.”

Jungkook looked at you attempting to shove him, laughing at the sight. “You’re cute when you try so hard.” You immediately pulled away and smacking his arm. “What did I do?” He rubbed his arm, looking at you in confusion and with a tint of amusement.

“N-Nothing. Let’s just go.”

The two of you made your way to his car and he drove you home. Jungkook had Spotify connected and you played your latest favourite songs. He began singing along and you were taken aback, not only was he athletic, he was an amazing singer. His clear and soothing voice made you feel so light and at peace. You treasured the mini performance he was giving you.

“Damn Kook.” You shook your head in shock, “Didn’t know you’re a singer.”

“Nah.“

“Stop being humble.” You laughed and so did he. “Thanks for the compliment y/n. Means a lot, coming from you.” Your body felt stiff as your cheeks heated up, you were easily flustered by such random remarks that Jungkook would casually throw. Did he even know how it was making you feel?

You glanced at Jungkook once more, noting how good his side profile was as well. Not again, you scolded yourself as you found your thoughts wandering towards Jungkook. You recalled how Jungkook had been supportive of your decisions since day 0 and how comfortable it felt around him. However, this was the last thing you wanted to happen. 

Things were finally going well and the last thing you needed was to fuck it up. 

“Y/N.”

“Huh?” You turned to Jungkook. “You alright? I was asking why you have the Barbie Girl song in your playlist.”

“Oh, yea… Uh I think I added it in one time because it was stuck in my head.” You chuckled, resting into your seat as you looked straight ahead on the road. “You sure you’re alright?” Jungkook asked sceptically, doubt evident in his tone.

“Yea I am.”

When you guys arrived at your place, Jungkook insisted to walk you up. “What would I do without my personal bodyguard?” You teased as you two entered the elevator. “You would probably just be rotting at home, calling it your post-finals celebration.”

You jutted out your lower lip, nodding your head, “You’re not wrong.”

Jungkook laughed, “So how are things with you and Taehyung?”

“We’re good. Not exactly back to normal but things seem just right. Why’d you ask?”

He shifted his weight between his feet, “Nothing serious… But I was wondering if you’d be comfortable coming for the upcoming Volleyball Championships.”

You didn’t realise how much time had flown by that it was already championships. You didn’t even realise the amount of time spent with Jungkook for the past few months as well. Seeing that you didn’t respond immediately, Jungkook added on, “It’s cool if you’re not comfortable, you don’t have to come.”

“Oh, no no! I was just realising that so much time had gone by. Can’t believe it’s your championships already. Anyway, of course I’ll be coming! Gotta support the team!” You grinned enthusiastically at him and he reciprocated the grin. “That means a lot y/n!”

“It’s not a big deal Kook, it’s just me going over—“

“Yes, and that means a lot to me.” Jungkook seemed too serious with that response, making you be at a loss for words. “W-Well,” you cleared your throat, “I’m flattered.”

—

You liked to crash Jungkook’s place a lot since he had a PlayStation for you guys to get competitive and have fun. “I’m ready for my revenge Jeon Jungkook!” You announced as you got up to stretch your limbs. Jungkook let out an amused laugh as he got the PlayStation running, inserting the Just Dance game. “You sure about that? Last time I check the score was—“

“Hush!” bringing your finger to your lips, “I do not need to be reminded of the score.”

“Yes sir.” Jungkook teased, turning back to the television screen. “Alright, since it’s your revenge match, why don’t you select the song.” After scrolling through the list, you selected your revenge song and the two of you got into position, ready to start your battle.

It was no surprise that Jungkook had good coordination skills, he easily defeated you every time. “Damn it!” You frowned, “Another round!” You were determined, reaching out for the remote. “Hey! The winner should choose the song!” He extended his arm out to snatch the control from you. The two of you tried to gain control over the remote. Jungkook laughed, easily keeping you away from the remote as a song was randomly selected amongst your squabble.

Havana.

“A couple dance?” You were mentally freaking out at just the thought of holding Jungkook’s hand, teasing yourself for sounding like a child. “Get ready for me to step on your foot.”

“Then I’ll do the same to you.” He cheekily stuck out his tongue at you. The two of you started copying the dancers’ move, feeling how awkward it was at the beginning when you guys had to do moves together.

There was a move where you had to lean backwards with Jungkook supporting your back. You felt your cheeks get hot, feeling the close proximity as you kept one hand on his shoulder and the other hand clasping his hand. Jungkook’s other hand was placed behind your back, keeping it high as he didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable. Your faces were inches apart for half the dance.

After a while, since it was an upbeat song, you two loosened up and started enjoying yourselves again. Halfway through the song, there was a move where Jungkook had to lift you up by your legs and spin you around. “Yea, not doing that!” You laughed and ended up just walking around him in a circle to imitate the female dancer. Jungkook laughed, mimicking the actions of carrying someone.

“I wasn’t going to drop you!”

Only if he knew that was not the reason why you didn’t want to do the move.

As the song went on, you realized how much you loved being in his embrace. It felt so warm and safe, so protected from the world. It just felt right to you and you didn’t want to let him go.

The ending move was just as scandalous as you twirled in front of Jungkook, with his hand gently cupping your head. You could feel his hot breath against your face, feeling his chest rise up and down, slightly panting after your many rounds of Just Dance. It felt like time had frozen in that awkward position, but you somehow forgot that you were leaning backwards, giving yourself a good back workout.

Jungkook propped you upright but kept his hand at the back of your head, the both of you staring into each other’s eyes. The only noise was the sound of Just Dance saying good job along with the background music.

You felt the urge to close the gap between the two you and it appeared that he had the same thought. You could feel yourselves leaning in, your heartbeat feeling even more prominent than ever. The screen brightly flashed your scores, causing you two pulled away from each other.

“I actually won!” You pumped the air, turning to face Jungkook, “Revenge done!” Jungkook seemed to snap out from his daze, clapping to congratulate you, “After 50 years. Good job y/n.”

—

During the semester break, you started watching their training sessions again since you had nothing else to do. It wasn’t awkward to go over since you were on good terms with Taehyung again as well. You were also always excited to see Jungkook train.

Watching him with his team, doing drills and having practice matches, you admired him so much. His passion, his determination. You just wanted to be there to support Jungkook.

“I see you have a lot of free time.” Namjoon looked at the big box that you brought over. You grinned, “It’s summer! I have nothing to do so… A little treat for you guys!” You lifted up the box to his eye level. “Y/N!” Jungkook skipped to your side, “What is this?”

“I baked a little something.” You gave them a shy smile.

“Did you poison it?” Yoongi teased, and you rolled your eyes in response. “Don’t expose me like that Yoongi.” Since you spent so much time watching their trainings and attending their celebratory parties, you’ve grown acquainted to most of the players and you really slapped yourself for having prejudice against these men.

They were so fun to hang out with and so down to earth. Their intimidating aura was only displayed on court and practices but outside the scene, they were all chaotic. “Well I’m sure they’re delicious!” Jungkook defended you, taking the big box from your grasp to bring it over to the bench.

“Thanks, Kook. At least someone’s supportive.” You stuck your tongue out at Yoongi who just chuckled, “Of course Jungkook would be by your side.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Namjoon nudged his teammate, as if warning him not the spill anything.

Just as you were about to question Yoongi again, Jungkook called you over. “Y/N! These are delicious!” 

You headed to his side, beaming with happiness. “Really? You like ‘em?”

His eyes were wide like a puppy as he eagerly nodded his head. “I love them!” 

“Now now, don’t keep everything to yourself Jeon Jungkook.” Taehyung teased as he approached the box to grab one for himself.

“I did not.”

“Jungkook, you’re literally standing in front of the box.” Namjoon commented, making everyone laugh.

—

Since the school semester was over, you had so much free time during summer that you started watching the volleyball anime - Haikyuu. Only because Jungkook was recommended it to you. He would come over to re-watch the episodes with you. You guys also had some unspoken agreement to not bring up what happened the other day.

“Man, volleyball is becoming a significant part of my life. Must be because I’m spending too much time with you.” You joked as you reached out to click to the next episode. “What’s wrong about that?” You were shocked by Jungkook’s tone, he sounded offended though he had tried to cover it up.

“It was just a joke Kook, I love spending time with you.” You nudged him and you could see his shoulders release tension.

“Did you think I meant it?”

“A bit.” Jungkook admitted and you frowned in response. “Come on Kook. If I was sick of you, I would’ve gotten rid of you already.”

You watched Jungkook bit his lip hesitantly before asking, “Do you think you’ll ever be sick of me?”

“W-What?”

Jungkook sat up, clearing his throat. “I-I mean… We only did start becoming close after the whole Taehyung thing. To be honest, sometimes I had thoughts that maybe… Maybe I’m just a replacement?”

“You can’t seriously feel that way?” You felt a bit hurt that Jungkook had these thoughts, you watched his expression, realising that he really did. “Jungkook… You know I genuinely care about you. You’re important to me.”

He nodded his head, “I know I know… Sorry, I know you do care I just couldn’t help but think about it.”

In a split second, his serious expression disappeared, and he grinned at you, “This got too serious. Let’s just continue the show.”

“O-Okay…”

Jungkook resumed the episode and you two had your gaze fixated on the screen. However, you were barely watching the episode as your mind was thinking about what Jungkook asked. 

Did he think that I’m just using him just like how Taehyung used me? Do I like him just because of what happened with me and Taehyung?

You never had the thought of liking Jungkook as a rebound but ever since he implied that, you couldn’t stop thinking about whether he was right. However, ever since that day, the two of you never brought it up again.

It wasn’t long till Championships have arrived and you were almost as nervous as the players themselves. “All the best! You’re gonna crush it, I can just feel it.”

“Thanks y/n. Glad to see you here supporting us.” Namjoon grinned, pulling you in for a side hug. Jungkook then came up to you, “Thanks for coming y/n.”

You shook your head, “It’s nothing. You’re gonna do so well.”

He winked at you at that. “I will because my lucky charm is here.”

Your cheeks felt hot as you scoffed, “Lucky charm?”

Jungkook nodded his head, reaching for his bag, “Yea my keychain—“

You felt embarrassed for assuming that he was referring to you and you stuttered a reply. The cheeky player laughed as he patted your shoulders, leaning in to whisper into your ear. “You know I was referring to you.” He pulled away, winking at you before catching up to Namjoon’s side.

You followed the team into the stadium and separated to find yourself a good seat. Once the stadium was more or less filled up, the commentator’s voice filled the stadium as he announced that the championship was officially starting. 

The teams walked in succession with their college’s flag as the stadium cheered for their favourite team. Your eyes followed Jungkook, his bright bunny smile, showing his excitement to play on court again. Jungkook was a competitive player but also a good sport and it was definitely an attractive trait.

After the ceremony, the court was prepared for the first game to commence. Your college was up first, and you watched on the edge of your seat, finding yourself constantly watching Jungkook. Jungkook was a spiker and he was definitely good at it. You were amazed at how effortlessly he jumped each time, the serious and competitive look on his face.

You would catch yourself having these thoughts about Jungkook and it was link back to his question about being a replacement. You knew you never saw Jungkook that way, but it seemed that he felt that way.

The game ended with a 2-1, your college taking the win. The team jumped in victory as they huddled up together, celebrating their first of many wins for that Championship.

After the team had ended their de-briefing, they walked off court and you headed down to congratulate them. “Y/N!” Namjoon beamed, reaching his hand out for a high five. “Always leading the group to victory, huh.”

“Well, I try my best.” Namjoon chuckled, shrugging his shoulders.

You caught Jungkook walking at the back of the group and you were about to head up to him when someone blocked your view. “Hey, y/n, can we talk?”

“T-Taehyung! Sure!” You didn’t really want to walk away because you wanted to talk to Jungkook, but you also didn’t want to be rude to Taehyung. “Namjoon, I’ll meet you guys at the locker room in a minute.” The tall leader nodded his head and the two of you left the group, heading out of the stadium together.

You guys sat at one of the benches outside the stadium, you wondered why he wanted to talk to you separately. “Congrats on winning Tae.”

“Thanks y/n.”

You watched him as he was obviously trying to form a proper sentence. Taehyung then let out a short low chuckle, “You know, I wouldn’t be here if you didn’t force me to fill up the sign-up sheet.”

“That is true.” You nodded your head, “I have so much to thank you for.” He responded. Shaking your head, you said otherwise. “What’s there to thank me for?”

He sighed; his cheerful smile seemed to have disappeared. “I still feel I don’t deserve your forgiveness for what I’ve done to you. You’re my best friend and I used you that way. So I’m also thankful for giving me another chance.”

You lightly nudged him with your shoulders, “I did take a few months to tell you I forgave you.”

Taehyung finally smiled again, “I’m glad that we’re talking again.”

“Me too, Tae… Me too…” You trailed off, staring at the grey cold floor. Does Jungkook really think I’m treating him that same way too?

Taehyung noticed you going off into your own thoughts, your gaze looking distant yet troubled. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Mm? Oh…” You shook your head, “It’s nothing.” You fidgeted with your hands, still thinking about Jungkook. Does Jungkook know that you like him? What was that incident over the Just Dance game? You guys almost kissed but never brought it up afterwards?

“Something’s troubling you.”

“No nothing’s bothering me.” You denied it the second time. Taehyung sighed, “It’s about Jungkook isn’t it?”

“W-What? No it’s not—“

Taehyung raised his eyebrows knowingly, “Every time I ask him about how you’re doing, he always seems to stutter or get stiff. And that’s a rare sight with Jungkook. What’s going on?”

You frowned, “Nothing’s going on. He told me about being a replacement. He thinks I’m just treating him as a form of rebound.”

“Did you tell him he’s not?”

“I did but he just brushed the topic aside and we never talked about it again.”

“You should talk about it with him. That guy really likes you. I can tell you like him too.”

You furrowed your eyebrows, “I don’t even make it obvious—“

“Oh Jungkook! All the best for your game! Mm?? I’m your lucky charm?” Taehyung perked him, trying to imitate your voice and facial expressions. You laughed from shock, hitting his arm. “I do not sound like that.”

Taehyung laughed heartily, “In all seriousness. I’ve seen how your face lights up whenever he talks to you during our breaks. Sometimes it’s as if none of us can enter your little conversation. But it’s cute, I’m honestly surprised you guys aren’t dating yet.

“Well, it’s because he thinks he’s just a rebound.”

“I’m 100% sure he’s not, it’s been months. It’s been so long and it only looks like you guys will continue to grow closer. Y/N, you should really talk about it with Jungkook. Really tell him how you feel. That poor boy is falling head over heels for you.”

You laughed at that, “Thanks Tae, I’ll talk to Kook about it. Hopefully it goes well.”

“I’m sure it will.” Taehyung grinned, pulling you in for a hug. “Jungkook’s a great guy and he’s lucky to have you.”

“No Tae,” You pulled away, shaking your head, “I’m the lucky one.”

—

The two of you walked back to the locker room where the team had been freshening up and packing their stuff.

“Jungkook! I didn’t get to congratulate you earlier on.” “Wonder why.” You heard him mutter to himself. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Jungkook looked up to face you and you were taken aback by his cold expression, his warm smile was not visible, and you felt like he didn’t want you there. “Nothing, thanks for coming.” He grabbed his bag and headed out the door. You were confused by his sudden change in behaviour, following after him.

“You good?”

“Yea I am.” He responded without looking at you. You glanced at Taehyung who just shrugged his shoulders in confusion.

“Jungkook, can we talk?”

He turned back and sighed, nodding his head. “Yea we should.”

The rest of the team left the stadium while you guys headed to the outdoor garden area at the front entrance. “Is something wrong?” You asked the moment you guys were alone. Most of the public that came for the matches today had already gone home and there was no one else at the small garden.

Jungkook shook his head, stuffing his hands in his pocket. “Nothing’s wrong.”

“Okay... Then why did you say, “we should” when I asked if we could talk?”

He didn’t reply immediately, and you gave him the liberty to form a response. “When you said “good terms” with Taehyung, how good was your “good”?”

You were confused by his question and wondered why he brought up Taehyung. You furrowed your eyebrows, “Um, good as in we’re friends again?”

He scoffed, looking down at his shoes, “Just friends?”

“Yes. What are you trying to imply?”

“I went out to the toilet earlier on and passed by you and Taehyung sitting together alone, hugging.” 

Shit, he misunderstood.

“It was nothing, we were just talking… Also, friends hug too. You and I hug as well, why are you implying that it’s more than just friends?”

To be frank, you were getting offended and annoyed by Jungkook’s accusations, especially knowing that Jungkook was the one you liked and not Taehyung.

Jungkook finally changed his direction to face you, his body posture appearing hostile towards you. “I never said this, but I couldn’t understand how you just forgave Taehyung after what happened and you guys are ‘friends’ again, unless you still have feeling for him.”

“No, I don’t, and you know that.” You replied agitated. “Is that why you’re suddenly being cold towards me? Because I left to talk with Taehyung, and you saw us hugging? You know there’s nothing going on with Taehyung, why are you getting so worked up over that?”

“Because I like you, damn it!” Jungkook snapped, his eyes mixed with sincerity, hurt and nervousness. You noticed his eyes widening for a split second, as if shocked about what he had just confessed.

With a blink, he continued on, “I’ve liked you for months and I was honestly beginning to think that you felt the same way too. I thought things were going well between us but I suddenly see you hugging Taehyung alone and it just tells me otherwise.”

His tone was laced with hurt and bitterness, you just wanted to prove him wrong - that it was all a misunderstanding. You took a step forward closer to him, “Jungkook! You’ve got it all wrong—“

“How can I read that scene wrongly—“

“I was talking about me liking you to Taehyung!”

It was as if millions of balloons had just burst around you as you both stood frozen momentarily, looking at each other,

You took a deep breath in before continuing, trying not to get emotional. “Yes, I like you. I didn’t know how to bring it up especially after you said how you felt that you were a replacement. I couldn’t stop thinking about it ever since. I’ve been feeling so guilty knowing that that’s how you have been feeling. But I never saw you that way.” Your eyes began to tear up as you were being overwhelmed by the guilt that you have been feeling.

Jungkook noticed it, taking brisk steps towards you, gently reaching out to wipe your tears from your cheeks. “I never got close to you just because I was lonely or needed a replacement. I like you. Heck, Tae could tell for a long time that I like you. But I don’t want to do anything about it, not while you think you’re just a rebound to me.” 

Your chest felt lighter, despite your tears flowing down, it felt good to let Jungkook know how you had been feeling and you felt relieved.  

“Y/N, please don’t cry. I don’t want to see you cry.” He spoke softly, wrapping his arms around you, I’m sorry you’ve been feeling guilty when you shouldn’t be.”

“You shouldn’t be sorry, Kook.” Your voice was muffled as your head was buried in between his neck and shoulder. Despite the small quarrel you just had with Jungkook, you felt happy and safe in his embrace, it felt right, and you didn’t want to let him go.

“I never treated you as a rebound.” You repeated and you felt him nodding his head. He pulled away to cupping his hands on your cheeks, his face told one story - he believed you.

“I believe you, y/n, I do. And I genuinely like you, I don’t want things to mess up with us. Even if that means I can only be your friend, I’m okay with you. I just don’t want to lose you.” 

You shook your head, with a small smile. “Why are you so cheesy.”

He chuckled, “I mean it.”

“I don’t want you to just be a friend. But I don’t want us to rush things either.”

Jungkook nodded his head, “I agree with you 100%. I want us to work out. I don’t want to work things out with anyone else.”

You could feel your heart pounding against your chest more violently than ever. It was as if you were just experiencing your own fairy-tale ending. Though, you knew it was just the beginning.

“Will you go out with me, y/n?”

With an airy laugh, you nodded your head, “Of course I will, Kook.”

A pure happy grin broke out on his face, “I know we agreed to take it slow, but, may I kiss you right know?”

“You’re such a gentleman.” You teased, though nodding your head as you both leaned in carefully, softly pressing your lips together. His soft lips on yours made your heart melt and your mind went blank as you just felt euphoric. His thumb softly caressing your cheeks as he pulled away.

“I’ve been wanting to do that so badly ever since Havana.”

—

“Hurry up!” Yoongi hollered impatiently as you all ran to his side, huddling up for a group picture. The camera flash went off and you guys pulled away from each other to either give each other a goodbye hug or take individual photos together. Senior year went by in a blink of eye and you had all just walked on stage to get your graduation certificates.

“We did it, y/n. We’re graduates.” Taehyung grinned, pulling you in for a tight hug. You returned the embrace, “We certainly did it Tae, we did it.”

After four years in college, it felt great to have your first friend still by your side, graduating hand in hand.

“Y/N!”

But what felt even better was having the love of your life with you.

Taehyung pulled away, chuckling at the boy who raised his Polaroid camera. “Looks like your boyfriend wants a polaroid picture with you.”

“That’s right.” Jungkook gave a cheeky grin, draping his arm over your shoulder to give you a quick kiss on your forehead.

“Give me the camera, I’ll take it.” Taehyung reached out for the polaroid. Jungkook pulled you even closer, wrapping his arm around your waist and yours around his.

The two of you had taken things relatively slow, sticking to your promise of not wanting to rush things. Eventually, Jungkook had asked you to be his girlfriend and the rest was history. The team had teased you the day he announced to the group, saying how they waited ages for you guys to get together.

Nonetheless, they were all happy for you.

“One, two, three!”

Taehyung took two, one for the each of you. “We look good together, don’t you think?” Jungkook nudged your side, admiring the polaroid picture that had developed. You nodded your head, “We sure do.”

Taehyung had gone to disturb Yoongi for a picture, leaving the two of you alone. Jungkook smiled contently, wrapping his around you in a loose hug. “I love you, y/n.”

“I love you too, Kook.”

Jungkook leaned in for a soft kiss on the lips, “Ready for your Just Dance revenge tonight?” You smirked, “I’m ready for Havana round 2. Maybe you can lift me up this time.”

You felt his chest vibrate as he laughed, “I’ll do that alright, you can count on me.”

I hope you guys liked it, let me know your thoughts and also if you have any requests you’d like me to write!

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[mako-and-tails-and-stuff]

Day 6 - Mermaid AU (but seeing as they’re already Mermaids we’re doing Human AU)

(Sorry it’s a little late)

Pairing: Rita/Veridia

Words: 1,634

Rating: T 

Moving to a new school is hard. Moving to a new high school, even harder. She should know. She’d done both. 

When Rita and her family first moved to the Gold Coast at the age of six she hated it. She knew no one and her parents were too busy to take her out so they left her with some woman she didn’t know and it was boring. All the lady wanted to do was read her books or tidy the house.

There wasn’t even a proper garden, just concrete. There was grass outside between the houses but she wasn’t allowed out there without supervision.

It was only marginally better when she started school a few days later. At least she made a friend - Nerissa. They bonded over both being new to Miami Primary School and spent break times and lunch together. 

School was fun but home was boring. All Rita was really allowed to do was read and a lot of her books had yet to arrive. 

They’d been in Brakes Crescent just over a week when the next door neighbour came round to introduce himself. A single man on his own, about the same age as Rita’s parents, who had a young daughter the same age as her, Veridia. They invited Rita round to their house to play while her parents were out.

The very first day Rita officially met Veridia they became best friends. Every spare moment they had was spent together, usually at Veridia’s house but sometimes they managed to sneak to hers. They had a really cool ‘secret room’ that was technically the basement but the previous owners had put in a cool hidden door that was disguised as a bookshelf. 

It was dull and dusty down there but there was lots of cool little alcoves and even an actual pool of sea water. They never went in the pool in case a great white shark sneaked in somehow, but were both fine with swimming in the actual sea at the beach. 

Veridia’s dad took them to the beach on Sunday’s where they would play in the waves for hours. They saw dolphins once, grey fins glinting in the sun as the dolphins dove and splashed around. It was always Veridia’s dad that took them places, the beach, the cafes, and let Rita stay over.

That first sleepover  had neither of them could sleep. They bundled up in Veridia’s bed, a bunk bed and turned the bottom bunk into a blanket fort lit up with fairy lights. Veridia’s dad had brought the hot chocolate with marshmallows and let them eat biscuits and go without brushing their teeth. The last one was especially big for six year olds. 

As six turned into seven, Rita was spending every weekend at each Veridia’s house. Veridia went to a different school than her so during the week time together was rare. Veridia’s dad was rather strict on keeping school nights for school work and making sure Veridia actually went to bed. Which was fair enough, they usually didn’t sleep much over the weekend. 

As the years went on, it stayed the same. Weekend sleepovers, swimming at the beach, drinking hot chocolate in a blanket fort. Things changed when they moved up to high school. Like with primary school they both ended up in separate schools. Veridia went to Suncoast High, a private school not too far from their street while Rita went to Miami State High School with Nerissa.

After that neither had much time to meet up. They tried to but time became scarer.  

It didn’t really come as any surprise to Rita when her parents split up. It was just after she moved into her second year at high school. Her mum moved up, moved back down to Sydney where Rita’s aunt and cousins lived while Rita stayed with her dad in the Gold Coast. She’d never lived in Brisbane, moving there would mean starting over. Again. And moving away from Veridia, even if she had hardly seen her. Sometimes she’d see Veridia through the window, they’d wave at each other and pull faces. 

Rita ended up having to start over again anyways when she moved from Miami State to Suncoast High. Her heart fluttered when her dad suggested the move. That was the school Veridia went to. 

On her first day, instead of trailing in alone, Veridia walked with her, chatting away about all the classes and the different teachers and who to watch out for and who was pretty nice. She felt bad about leaving Nerissa, but she’d be fine - Nerissa was one of those people that people loved to be around. She had tons of friends aside from Rita. 

In all, Suncoast High wasn’t that bad, and her and Veridia became fast friends again, like that year with minimal contact had never happened. Veridia came round to Rita’s house most nights after school for ‘study sessions’. Over the summer before Rita started high school her and her dad had given the secret cave a proper clean out and turned it into a sort of study/hang out area with cushioned seatings, bean bags and all of the different treasures the family had collected over the years. 

Her dad had a lot of stuff that her mum never liked him having on display. Parts of a real life pirate ship, animals bones - mainly skulls, and a lot of shells. Rita had a lot of shells too, many collected on her weekends at the beach with Veridia. 

The study sessions down in ‘The Grotto’ has her dad had dubbed it, were mostly just Rita and Veridia lounging on the bean bags, eating crisps and sneaking cans of juice from the fridge all while pretending to study. 

Sometimes they went swimming the pool, the irrational childhood fear of the shark in the swimming pool, long gone. There was one night when Rita’s dad was off on a business trip and Rita was left home alone, Veridia came over to stay and they spent the night seeing who could do the best dive into the pool and who could hold their breath the longest. 

Those days spent with Veridia just hanging out in the Grotto were the best times. Rita looked forward to the next day every time Veridia left. Even after she left they’d usually make a point of seeing each other through the window. 

Rita was sixteen when she finally let herself admit that she liked girls the same way she liked boys. She was seventeen when she finally let herself admit that she had a crush on Veridia. It was hard not too, she was so pretty. And she was really nice. To Rita at least, Veridia could be very cold towards people, a lot of the boys in particular. Which was a good thing, to say the least, it kept her hope up that maybe Veridia could be open to returning her feelings. If she ever told Veridia that was. Right now school was more important than dating. She was top of almost all of her classes and intended to keep it that way so she could ace her exams and get into Griffiths Uni. It was one of the best for teaching and that’s all she wanted to do - be a teacher.

Veridia meanwhile was leaning more towards working within politics or nursing. She kept changing her mind. 

Rita soon learned that just because her head said one thing didn’t mean her heart would listen. She was good at ignoring problems though, why would this be any different? 

It worked. For about a month after she decided to ignore her feelings; she got by but pretending she felt nothing when Veridia’s hand accidentally brushed her’s, or when Veridia asked her to braid her hair for her before trying to do the same for Rita. Until finally she couldn’t any longer.

Rita’s dad was away again, off to Brisbane for some client so Veridia came over, armed with crisps, sweets, and enough fizzy drinks for their entire class. 

“We having a party?” Rita joked as Veridia piled her supplies on the kitchen counter.

“Hell no. I don’t like enough people to have a party. I was thinking we could try something we’ve always wanted to do.”

“And what would that be?” Rita raised an eyebrow.

“See if that tunnel in the pool really does lead out the sea.”

The pool in the Grotto had an open tunnel at one end. They’d swum a little ways into it but never the full length of it, just in case it lead to nowhere and they both drowned. The tunnel was dark, but wide enough for two people to swim through easily.

“Okay,” Rita agreed.

“Really? I thought you’d say no.”

“I still might.”

Veridia laughed and slipped her arm in Rita’s. 

“We should go now before it gets dark.”

The swim out was terrifying. The tunnel was dark, Rita hit her arm against the side and her lungs were burning by the time they both made it out in the sea. At least they were right about that part. 

Veridia took her hand and Rita kicked up to the surface. They both surfaced laughing, salt water in their eyes and hands still in each other’s.

“We made it!” Veridia cheered.

Veridia slung her arm over Rita’s shoulder and pulled her in closer.

“I almost died.”

“No you didn’t.”

“I could’ve been dead right -”

Rita swore her heart stopped when Veridia kissed her. It took her brain a second to process that this was actually happening. That Veridia was really kissing her. When her brain finally kicked in she closed her eyes and leaned into it. Veridia tasted like the salt from the sea and very faintly of strawberry lip balm. 

#mako mermaids #FemslashFeb2021 #mako mermaids femslash february #rita x veridia #verita

[statticscribbles]

Night Shift

Archie/Reader- Reader works the night shift at Pop’s, and see’s how upset Archie is

You’re not sure what happens the first time you realize how attractive Archie Andrews is; you reason it’s the sleep deprivation at having to adjust to the night shift you find yourself on. The second time is when he comes staggering in after a midnight run and tries to shake his hair out of his eyes without using his hands as you offer him a choice of drinks. You learn his midnight order by heart; a double bacon burger, two sodas and a chocolate milkshake. You also learn he eats faster on days he’s avoiding jughead; which after the fourth of july seems to be anytime he comes in. There’s the rare time when Jughead will come in and Archie doesn’t leave; they’ll often awkwardly nod to each other. It’s one of these nights that Jughead catches your arm after you refill his coffee.

“He’s upset; but he won’t talk to me.” He sighs looking upset and you chew your lip before nodding and sitting across from Archie when you have your break. “Archie right?” “Y/N.” He smiles softly and you tense before you remember you’re wearing a name tag. You nod. “What’s on your mind then?” He shrugs and avoids your eyes and you nudge a fresh shake towards him; he grins a little and you wait for another moment before he mumbles something. “Hm?” You question.

“I’m ruining my friendship with Jughead.” He slumps onto the table. “Well talk to him? He talks about you a lot, he’s worried.” Archie just shrugs and like Jughead catches your arm when you go to continue your shift. “Can we talk when you finish?” “I get off at seven am.” He nods and you laugh when he falls asleep on the table at four am.

He ends up leaving, bleary eyed and exhausted when his dad picks him up; half pulling him along to the car. He reappears two days later with a vase filled with flowers. “Sorry for bailing.” You smile slightly and gesture to the flowers. “Uhh; Betty said they’re a proper apology but I didn’t know if you’d have a vase so I brought one.” He grins and you laugh before nodding to the booth he normally sits in. “Sorry for probably talking your ear off and-”

“Archie; I want to listen to you. It’s not a problem or a bother.” Archie nods about to speak again when the Bulldogs rush in laughing and grinning; the River Vixen’s close behind. You can already see Archie closing himself off and you don’t hold your breath when he calls you over. “Keep the change.” He rushes out of the diner and you pocket the tip trying not to grin as you notice a phone number scribbled on the receipt.

He’s back in at two am curled around the usual burger he gets but avoiding the milkshake until you set one down assuring him it’s on the house. “It’s fine;” He tries to assure you but his voice cracks and you sit next to him surprised when he curls around you. “I ruined everything Y/N.” You sigh shaking your head. “What happened then?” You avoid telling him you’d been in class; that you’d seen him fighting with Jughead and how Betty had refused to look at him beyond a glare.

Archie doesn’t say much beyond what you’d already been able to guess; that he, Jughead and Betty were fighting again. You’d tried to assure him that you’d all pull through like you’d seen them do time and time again. But he just shrugs and chews his lip until you sigh again and manage to drag more information out of him about it.

He returns over the next few days, slowly spilling more and more of the drama he’d embroiled himself into with rejecting Betty and making Jughead think he did have feelings for her. “Do you?” He looks bewildered at your question and shakes his head. “No; not her! I was asking Betty for advice; and Jughead thought I was asking her when she offered to practice with me! It was kinda insane; I mean Jughead knows I have a crush onnnnnn; anyways we’ve smoothed it over; i think; but Jughead still gives me angry looks; like now.” He nods towards where Jughead sits and you laugh a little at the glare on his face.

“It could just be him being annoyed; about something you’re doing.” “Not doing.” You hear jughead hiss and nod to Archie when he walks by; laptop tucked under his arm. “Well do you know what it is? That you’re apparently not doing?” You giggle when Archie nods resting his forehead onto the table. “Yeah.” He sighs looking back up towards you. “Do you need more advice? Or to practice without making Jughead pissy.” “Heh; I don’t think practicing with you would help?”

“Oh, so you’ll take my advice but won’t practice with me?” You joke, he looks upset and seems to become flustered. “No Y/N just you can’t help me with this; i mean you can but i just uhhh; don’t need your advice?” He tries to reason and you watch him struggle slightly. “Okay what’s the problem; just tell me that; i might be able to help with just that.” “I have a crush on someone; and obviously I don’t know how to tell them or deal with it.” “I’m assuming that you can’t just go up and tell them?” “I mean I could; but..” “Your scared of them rejecting you?” “Yeah; they’re just so kind; and thoughtful and I don’t want to put them through the awkwardness of having to reject me.” “I could say all those things about you; you know that right?” his face pinks slightly and he bites back a smile. “Really?”

“Yeah; between seeing you at school and here whenever you’re stressed; you’re a good person Archie; you’re never stressed about selfish reasons; it’s always your friends; or your crush in this case.” he mumbles a thanks and all you catch is the word you. “Can you repeat that? I only caught the last part.” You grin and watch his face steadily grow pinker and pinker. “I have a crush on you.” “Oh; well at least you don’t need advice on what to do about me rejecting you then.”

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[akirakurusuimagines]

Headcanons about Akira when figures out his S/O is working too hard?

Buy me a ko-fi!

The first thing that really tipped him off was the exhausted appearance you had. From the bags under your eyes to your disheveled hair and clothes. Right behind that was how you seemed distant to everything, half asleep, not exactly listening. It wasn’t like you, and he was getting worried. 

You reassured him that everything was fine and you were just tired because you’ve been so focused on studying for finals recently. It wasn’t a complete lie, but to say that you were fine… that was one hell of a stretch. 

But you didn’t want to worry Akira. He had plenty of his own responsibilities to take care of, from maintaining his school life to his thief life, and everything in between. Besides, it would only be for a little while. You could handle it. 

Akira wasn’t having it, though. Not at all. 

He decided to pay you a visit, grateful that you answered his text of where you were. Equipped with some snacks and some drinks in hand, he quickly came over to your house, where you were slaving away. You barely even registered Akira was in front of you until he placed your favorite drink right in front of you. 

“Have you been taking any breaks?” he didn’t look angry, just worried. 

You shook your head, taking the drink gratefully. What time was it? How long have you been studying for? When was the last time you ate or drank something? You couldn’t remember. There were still things that needed to get done, though, you couldn’t waste your time like this. 

Akira watched you for a few moments before pulling up a chair next to you and sitting down, looking from you to the papers scattered in front of you and back. “…you’re overworking yourself.” 

“It’s fine, I’m almost done.” 

“No, it’s not fine. When was the last time you ate anything? I didn’t even see you eating lunch today. How much did you sleep last night?” 

“…I don’t know,” your voice was laced in guilt, knowing that you really shouldn’t be neglecting your health like that, but it just happened. You really needed to study. You couldn’t afford to fail. 

“Why don’t you take a break, even for just half an hour?” 

“I can’t!” 

Akira was taken aback by your slight outburst, concern etching every corner of his face.

“I⁠— I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to yell, I just…” you could feel yourself getting emotional, the days of pushing yourself beyond your limits and not taking care of yourself welling up along with all the stress and anxiety, everything. “I just can’t fail these classes, I can’t, I need those scholarships, I⁠—” 

As soon as Akira noticed the waterworks that began to spring up, he turned your chair towards him and pulled you into a hug, resting his chin on your head and rubbing your back as you sobbed into his blazer, clinging to him as you let everything out. 

“I understand… I’m just worried about you, you know? You can’t do well on the exams even if you study this hard if you don’t take care of yourself. It’s okay to give yourself a break sometimes. And it’s important to eat and sleep. You need to, so you can be at your best when the exams do come. You’ve been studying a lot more than most people do, and I’m very proud of you for it. You’re going to be okay. You’ll do great on the exam.” 

His voice was soft and soothing, comforting you in ways you didn’t realize you needed. You couldn’t exactly reply just yet, choking on your sobs as it continued to rush out of you without giving you a chance to stop it. You’d have to apologize for soaking his shirt later. 

But he never said a word, only stroking your hair and kissing your head, holding you close and muttering praises until your crying finally died down to simple sniffles and hiccups, and you finally lifted yourself off from your kind boyfriend. 

“Do you feel better?”

Akira cups your face and kisses your cheeks after brushing away the tears that stained your face, offering you a smile you tried to reciprocate.

He pulled out one of the snacks he bought and handed it to you, making sure you started eating it before urging you to come with him to the kitchen so he could make some proper food for you. 

You sat on the counter and watched him work, snacking away, grateful to have someone so incredible in your life. 

Sometimes he’ll steal kisses from you as he passed by to grab another spice or something, with a cheeky grin on his face, loving how you were beginning to lighten up and feel better, finally. 

He’s not going to let you do any more work tonight, that’s for sure. He’ll stay by your side and help you relax. You need it. He’ll also spoil you to hell and back with affection, both physical and verbal. 

Akira makes you promise that you won’t overdo it anymore, like you did this time. Please don’t break his heart by breaking the promise. 

Besides, if you need help, he’ll offer to study with you instead. Two heads are better than one. 

With how much support he gives you, there’s no way you’ll fail any of them. 

And when you get your results back, he’s already getting ready to shower you in praises and give you your rewards for all your hard work. 

#akira kurusu #ren amamiya #persona #persona 5 #joker #persona 5 royal #p5 #p5s #p5r #persona 5 scramble #akira #kurusu #ren #amamiya #akira kurusu x reader #ren amamiya x reader #joker x reader #akira x reader #ren x reader #persona 5 protag #p5 protag #persona 5 protagonist #fluff #headcanons

[stattic-writes]

Night Shift

https://statticscribbles.tumblr.com/post/639099629845233664/masterlist

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[ohwereusingourmadeupnames]

Just Crash, It’s Our Time Now 

Pairing: Peter Parker/Tony Stark  Notes: I’m here for all the au’s, y’all. Warnings: there’s a little handjob action, but not much else.  Word Count: ~12k Summary: 

Peter Parker is a med school student with very little time on his hands. He’s set up on a blind date by Nat and it’s fucking awful. Good thing he caught eyes with the cute bartender who’s quick on his feet and steps in when Peter need s it the most. 

Doctor!Peter, Bartender&Teacher!Tony 

There is lots of cuteness & some dodgeball action - hope you enjoy! 

Read it on AO3 here - 

“Hey dude, get the fuck out of the way!”

Peter took a step to the right just in time – the bike rushing by barely missing him. Pulling his AirPod from his ear, he blinked a few times to reorient himself. It was his own fault; he knew listening to his textbook on the way back to his apartment wasn’t the safest option. Especially in a place like New York. Despite being there for almost four years, Peter wasn’t anywhere close to being used to how fast everything moved.

His little hometown in Colorado didn’t have near the amount of people running by him, let alone the pace of the never sleeping city.

The reading expectations in his Clinical Oncology class didn’t seem to be possible – there were 5 chapters to cover before the next cohort meeting in a couple of days. Between his last ever class of medical school and the rotation that went with it, there wasn’t too much time for anything else.

Luckily, Peter’s plan for the rest of the night consisted of sitting on his couch, eating way too much food, and finishing his readings – the time truly bound to be incredibly magical. Regardless – this was the life Peter chose for himself. It was way too late in the game to find himself too bored with it all to actually get to the finish line. He’d put a lot of his life on hold to make sure he succeeded in the goals he set out for himself all that time ago.

There were people his age settling down and having families, enjoying the best time of their lives. Peter tried not to feel jealous, he really did. He loved where his life was headed and couldn’t imagine doing anything else – yet, he wanted other things, too. Simple things like warmth, a person to call his own, hell – a man to share his bed with on a consistent occasion.

Maybe one day.

The rest of the walk went quickly – Peter now on his toes, keeping himself completely in the moment. He escaped tragedy once – the probability of missing it again not nearly as high. His rotation in the ER proved that random accidents and pedestrian collisions were some of the main issues in the city – he treated enough road rash to know. Brushing the thought aside, Peter felt a breath of relief leave his lungs – his apartment finally in sight.

Stopping at the door, Peter keyed in the code to get into his building, grabbed his mail, and trudged up to his fifth-floor apartment. The key sliding into the lock brought a smile to his face and kicking off his shoes when he finally got the door open – that was the best feeling of the day.

Luxury did not last long – less than a minute later, there was a knock on the door. There were only four people in the world who knew the entry code to get into his building – and he wondered briefly which one of them it could be. Sighing, Peter dropped his backpack and shrugged out of his hoodie before even thinking about answering the door. Truthfully, he wanted to retreat into his room to strip out of the scrubs he’d been in for more hours than he cared to admit – but he couldn’t, not when one of his friends was out there waiting for him. Peter pulled the door open and smiled – the flash of Nat’s red hair making his heart feel a little warmer. Suddenly, the knock didn’t seem like such a bad thing after all.

“Nat – how the hell are you?” Peter questioned, his arms opening to pull her into a hug. He gave her a tight squeeze, a sigh leaving his lips. Maybe it had been too long since he last saw people outside the norm – having Nat so close made that pretty easy to see.

“Peter Parker – you’ve been holed up here too long,” Nat exclaimed, her hands gripping his shoulders tightly. “I’m fine by the way, thanks for asking.” Her fingers dug in when she pressed forward to place a kiss to his cheek. “I’m here to force you to be social. Don’t try and argue.”

With wide eyes, Peter watched her brush by him, a mischievous grin on her face. Peter loved the fuck out of Nat – they’d been friends since undergrad at Colorado State. Growing up with someone sealed a sort of bond, he figured. What he didn’t love was her inability to stop fucking around with his personal life. Her many attempts to set him up were always terrible and always ended very badly – especially for him. Regardless, Peter already knew he’d go along with her plans. He always did. Though her taste was goddamn awful, he liked knowing that Nat had his best interest at heart – that she cared about him enough to want to see him happy.

Closing the door, Peter turned and pressed his back against it, a curious look in his eye. “Well, who is it this time? And, honestly, where do you keep getting these guys? Sure, I like older guys – but that doesn’t mean everyone qualifies,” Peter gestured with his hands the entire time he spoke, the habit one he’d never been able to break.

He laughed out right at the slightest hint of red on Nat’s cheeks, her eyes peeking out from under her long dark lashes – chagrin written into her facial expression.

“I swear – every time I think it’s going to be perfect. I think you’re just picky,” Nat answered back, her shoulders shrugging. “I think you’ll actually like this one, though. I met him when I pretended to be a secretary in a law office. When I served the guy I was actually there for, Eli and I got to talking – and he seems right up your alley. Smart, cute – older.” She slapped a hand to his cheek softly – “give it a chance, maybe? For me?”

Peter shook his head, a hand coming to press against his forehead in mock frustration. There were so many unaccounted-for variables in his life – it was difficult to explain that he wasn’t really looking for just anyone. There needed to be a connection and a certain level of understanding right off the bat – he didn’t have time to waste.

May always told him to go with his gut and most of the time, his gut didn’t want anything to do with the dating scene at all. His priorities were so different than most people’s – Peter needed someone to match that with their own uniqueness. How to get that across, though – he hadn’t figured that out. So, he smiled at her, surrender evident in his expression. “I always give it a chance. I’ll do that this time, too.”

The hug he got from her almost made up for the disaster he would eventually find out she was sending him into.

Instead of stepping into the Adidas joggers that were calling his name from the edge of the bed, Peter pulled a pair of jeans on – his body not used to the rigidity of the fabric after camping in scrubs for most of his life lately. He did a couple squats to get them stretched out, then slipped on a blue t-shirt and a jean jacket over that. The little bar she told him to head to looked pretty casual when he Googled the place – so he tried to take in what little comfort he could from the clothes on his body. He took one last look in the mirror before backing out of his room. If he didn’t get his ass in gear, he’d never leave the house. The couch called to him, the pull almost enough to keep him there. The look of disappointment he’d see in Nat’s eyes kept him walking, though – the date couldn’t be that bad.

Life always had a way of proving him wrong, though.

The bar wasn’t too far from his apartment, so he stepped out on foot. The night was really nice – it was closing in on May in New York City, so the temperature was perfect. There weren’t many clouds in the sky, either – the view absolutely stunning. Sucking in a deep breath, Peter told himself to focus on just enjoying the evening and whatever came from it. No use being nervous when there was nothing at stake. That thought brought a grin to his face – there weren’t a lot of things in his life that didn’t come with costly consequences. A little break in that monotony would probably help with the run-down feeling – at least, he hoped that was the case.

Walking into the bar, Peter was surprised to instantly feel comfortable. There were a good number of tables scattered around the space – each one thankfully within a decent distance of the other and not crowded together. The bar was wood, stained a dark brown, the accent of it matching all of the tables and chairs. He smiled at the high-backed chairs butted up to the bar top – he hated the places that didn’t provide proper back support. Peter climbed into one of them at the corner of the bar and knew he might make this a regular place. Comfort was of the utmost importance when the idea of being drunk came to pass – he couldn’t count the amount of times he’d fallen off of chairs in under grad. Being conscious of his terrible drinking habits brought down the embarrassing encounters – he at least looked like he could handle his liquor.

A coaster was placed down in front of him – the fingers he just barely managed to catch a glance at long and covered in ink, the knuckles dusted with the slightest bit of hair. Intrigued, Peter glanced up and instantly felt a blush overtake his cheeks. The bartender was striking – his angular jaw and well-kept facial hair demanded his eyes attention at first glance. Letting his eyes roam, Peter noticed the man’s heterochromia – the brown flecks in whiskey smooth eyes making his breath catch a bit. The man’s dark hair was a little on the longer side, the style of it seemingly unkempt – yet, probably done so on purpose. Peter felt his tongue slip out against his lower lip – the skin there suddenly dry as the desert. Even the elegant brow he quirked in Peter’s direction made him feel a little crazy.

“What can I get you?” Peter heard – his gaze finally trailing away, eyes focusing on the liquor on the shelf behind the gorgeous man. The last time he drank alcohol, it came from a red solo cup that was dipped into a cooler filled with fruit and various high-proof alcohols – he couldn’t remember a single drink to save his life. The man must’ve caught on to that because he spoke again – “do you like Sprite?” Peter couldn’t help but smile at that, his head nodding.

“I do. Anything lime,” Peter finally uttered, his brain slowly but surely starting to catch up to the here and now.

The older man nodded, a determined look on his face. “I’ve got just the thing, then,” he mumbled, a bit of his tongue sticking out as he grabbed a couple of bottles, his hands pouring like it was second nature. The man was slipping a drink before him a couple of minutes later, a fresh lime pressed against the rim of the glass and a couple actually in the drink. “Vodka-Sprite with lime – lots of it,” the words accompanied by a wink. He leaned forward on his arms, the smell of whiskey and cedarwood invading Peter’s senses.

As subtly as he could, Peter drew in a deep breath – the smell even better the more he pulled it in. He wrapped his fingers around the glass and brought it to his lips, Peter’s eyes catching the bartender’s over the rim of the glass. The kick of lime right off the bat made the drink more than tolerable – the nail polish remover taste of the vodka delightfully masked. He took a couple more sips before even thinking to acknowledge the unspoken question. It felt nice to have those eyes on him – so he took in a little bit longer.

“You’re pretty good. You can’t taste the booze in there at all. Thank you, handsome stranger,” Peter said, a saucy grin on his face. It didn’t make a lot of sense, this ruthless flirting – he didn’t partake in it often, if ever at all. Yet, he couldn’t keep the smile off his face or the blush from invading his cheeks – and there wasn’t even the ability to blame the booze. His fingers played with the little stir stick in the drink in hopes of calming himself down, the smile on his face was way too big.

In the way he ducked his head, Peter missed the big grin spread across the man’s face, his eyes twinkling in the low overhead light. “That’s usually the objective. Glad to have been of service, equally gorgeous customer.” The smile on his face that time was hard to miss, and Peter found himself leaning on the bar – desperate to get a little bit closer.

Peter would have been happy to continue flirting with the bartender – his hopes of being stood up increasing by the second. It seemed like he was destined to be thwarted all day long, though – a man about twenty years older than him was looking in his direction. Nat must have shown the guy his picture. Taking one last peek at the gorgeous human behind the bar, Peter collected himself and turned in his seat, a painted-on smile sliding across his cheeks.

“Are you Peter?” his date for the night asked, a hand coming between them. “I’m Eli.”

Peter took the hand offered to him, the palm against his a little sweaty in his grasp. “I am, yeah. Nice to meet you, Eli,” he gave him a brief smile and settled back into his chair. Whiskey barrel eyes caught his, the bartender smirking at him. Rolling his own, Peter stuck out his tongue and tried to focus.

----

It’d been a pretty average day for Tony – the weekend was finally upon them, he’d finished all of his grading for the week, and his shifts at the bar were the best for tips. He assumed the rest of the day would remain as such, too. There weren’t a lot of interesting things happening in his life at the moment – though, he didn’t really mind. Tony was a self-proclaimed opportunist – there wasn’t a lot of seeking out, but he wasn’t opposed to whatever came his way. So far, his robotic adventures and never-ending entertainment at the bar felt like more than enough.

Then, he walked in. For whatever reason, Tony looked up when the door opened – he’d been pretty idle at the bar, anyway. A quick glance was the intention, but what he found there stopped him in his tracks. The guy was young – right in the age range where he could be anywhere between 20 and 30. The jean jacket sitting on his shoulders made his mouth water, the tone of it meshing so well with tawny looks and pale skin. And boy – that skin. Tony figured it went on for miles, never ending amounts of it covering those long limbs. Blinking, Tony got his bearings – the last thing he needed was to be caught out staring at someone.

He felt a little more himself when the guy sat down at the bar, his hands were moving over the counter, the wash rag dragging back and forth over the surface. The key was to never go idle – an idle mind was never good for anyone. When the man spoke, his attractiveness quotient went up a couple of notches, Tony enamored by the pitch of his voice, the way he looked around and took everything in. When the opportunity to show off a little showed itself, Tony snatched it up and set about making one of his personal favorite drinks. He was more of a whiskey straight kind of guy, but where mixed drinks were involved, vodka soda was always a hit.

The roll of satisfaction washing over him brought a smile to his face – Tony couldn’t keep his eyes away while the other took tentative sips, the look on his face never straying from curious. Then, that very voice was calling him a handsome stranger – oh how he wanted to combust right on the spot. Instead, he kept the smile on his face and hoped the look in his eye was unreadable. Not for the first time, Tony felt grateful that direct access into his brain was unavailable. The guy leaning in his direction pushed the thoughts he was trying to hold back into overdrive – his neck flushing just slightly.

The universe always had a way of making things right, though – a man around Tony’s own age walked in and took the seat next to the cutie he hoped to find out more about. Shrugging, he clenched the glass he pulled from further down the bar in his hand. Their eyes met for a brief second; uncertainty evident in the younger man’s eyes. Despite knowing the guy was on a date, Tony felt obligated to keep an eye on him. Everyone needed a wing man, every now and again.

Tony got swept in a wave of people at the other end of the bar, so he only caught small glances of the cute brunette and his date – and the tension he felt from the get-go didn’t seem to be going anywhere. While the older man was leaning closer, the other was pressing into the back of his chair, a grimace on his face. Tilting his head, he caught the man’s eye again – a roll of them evident a second later. A soft chuckle escaped his chest, he got to witness lots of dates gone wrong, but this one seemed to take the cake. Softening his features, Tony tried to display as much empathy as he could – he felt bad for the guy. Though, there was also a part of him that felt a little excited by the failure of it. That greedy, greedy part of him.

There was a pretty decent ebb and flow of people for the next thirty minutes or so – Tony always kept count of the people sitting around his area. He learned early on that keeping ahead of the tide made his job a little easier – anticipation of people’s needs was like a game to him. One he’d gotten pretty good at, he liked to think, anyway. The shatter of a glass pulled him from his thoughts – the guy he’d been catching eyes with all night was off his chair, a sour look on his face. Tony watched closely as the guy mouthed ‘help me’ at him, a pleading look in his eye. Whatever the fuck caused that glass to be dropped, it seemed the guy didn’t want any part of it, anymore.

Thinking on his feet, Tony pulled his phone out, keeping it on the counter out of sight. He quickly typed in the number of the bar, watching with satisfaction as the phone on the other side of the room started to ring. Attempting to stroll that direction casually, Tony shot a look over to the other man, his right eye closing in a quick wink. More than anything, he hoped he could go along with whatever Tony came up with on the spot. Grabbing it, he answered the phone with the typical spiel – “Lefty’s, this is Tony.” He nodded a bit, let it seem like someone was talking – then took the portable over to the brunette.

“I believe this is for you,” Tony said boldly, his hand thrusting the phone at him. There was a curious head tilt in his direction, then the man was taking the phone and pressing it to his ear. Tony held his breath, the thought that maybe he was being a little crazy rushing through him at the last minute. Thankfully, the guy was nodding his head – those gorgeous doe eyes opening wide, the look one Tony thought he might enjoy seeing from above him and below him – all the ways, really. Biting down on the side of his tongue, Tony let the pain force him back to the reality where he currently stood, watching the scene playout.

“Okay, MJ – I’ll be right there.” The guy finally spoke into the phone, a determined look crossing his face. Tony wanted to run his thumb across the little lines that appeared on the brunette’s forehead. His mind rushed with so many thoughts – the anxiety of what he did and what would happen next closing in on him a little. In the many times he’d worked in this bar, Tony never did anything like this. He pretended to be someone’s boyfriend once, but that was for someone he actually knew. This person was a random stranger – a hot one, he had to admit – yet, still a stranger.

He watched him slam down a few bills and make a halfhearted excuse to the guy who was looking at him with a mixture of irritation and empathy – it made Tony want to laugh in his face. Moving around the bar, Tony went to work on getting the glass picked up and by the time he looked up again, the spot the men were sitting was empty. It smarted a little, not getting to flirt a little more, maybe see where it could have gone. Yet, he felt good about it, too. He obviously helped someone out of a tight spot. What more could a person ask for? Laughing at himself, Tony finished his clean up and took his spot back behind the bar.

Not even twenty minutes later, the brunette was back, a soft smile on his face. He took the same place against the bar, his elbows pressing into it. “Hey,” he began, his fingers tapping against those gorgeously rosy cheeks. “Thanks for that. I don’t think I could have made it another minute without busting a glass over his head. You’re too kind. I’m Peter, by the way,” the man – Peter – concluded. He didn’t stick out a hand to shake, or anything like that, he simply leaned against his hands and looked Tony up and down. It would have been unsettling, if he didn’t appreciate the human doing the looking. Try as he might, he couldn’t find it in him to be too goddamn upset about it.

“You’re very welcome. Bartender code, or whatever,” Tony replied, his tone just shy of being smooth. Long fingers ran through his hair, the gentle tug of it somewhat grounding. “Peter. That’s fitting for you. Cute but smart and classy. I’m Tony – rugged and roguish, right?” His mouth started to spread into a smile on its own accord, the stretch of his lips tensile before he even finished speaking.

As if the guy couldn’t get any more attractive, Tony heard him laugh fully for the first time. The sound was elegant, from the pit of Peter’s stomach. His head tilted back a little, the length of his neck on display – the pale skin there begging to be touched, kissed, caressed with barely there pressure. Brown eyes were quickly overtaken by a dilating pupil. He crushed the side of his tongue with his teeth again, Tony struggling to keep his composure. To keep his hands busy, he went about making Peter the same drink as before, his fingers idly brushing lime to the lip of the glass.

“Right – absolutely right. I would also add handsome, but I’m pretty sure I brought that to the table earlier. I also love your hair, the salt and pepper at the temples – A+.” Tony sucked in a breath, his fingers moving to slip into the hair by his ears. A quick tug and he was smirking in the other’s direction, Peter’s eyes still firmly on him.

“It’s natural, too,” Tony avowed, one of his eyebrows quirking to match the grin on his face. “Thanks, though. Your curls aren’t half bad, either.” As he said it, Tony used every ounce of control within him not to reach out and touch – the length would be so easy to run his fingers through. He didn’t have any clue where all these thoughts were coming from – he was usually pretty good at keeping himself and the job separate. Being a teacher, he knew how important it was to keep perspective in the proper position – yet, he liked the guys smile and how his mouth looked making words. What could he do?

Besides, it seemed to be mutual – Peter’s cheeks were a beet red, eyes now squinty from the force of the muscular contraction of his face muscles to continue the beaming smile. Peter took the drink when Tony passed it to him, his lips wrapping around the lip without a second thought. “I usually keep it a little shorter, it’s easier to just roll out of bed and get going. I just – haven’t had time to get it cut. I just might agree with you, though. They do make me look nice.” Peter let his pointer finger trace the lip of the glass while he spoke, the motion just as distracting as the words slipping from beautiful lips.

Taking a look over his shoulder, Tony noticed the bar was on the emptier side. Lucky for him. He pressed both of his hands flat on the counter below him and let some of his weight shift forward – the space between himself and Peter narrowing down ever so slightly. From this angle, Tony could see a few freckles littering the other’s cheeks – the youthfulness of the beauty marks making him look so very young for a second. There seemed to be a direct map of the constellation clusters across the skin – the intrigue of it adding to the attraction.

“What keeps you so busy? Not that I’m not all for roll out of bed and get going. That’s my usual most of the time. I think you would look nice regardless of what you did with your hair,” Tony offered, a hand motioning in the direction of Peter’s face. “You’ve got all of that going on.”

It felt natural – the conversation they were having. Tony wasn’t the most sociable person. He didn’t shy away from it, or anything like that, there were just personal limits. Effort was applied long enough to engage and respond – then, he’d inconspicuously retreat. As the man slinging the drinks, it felt pretty easy to fit into the woodwork when he wanted to. The back and forth Tony felt compelled to have with this guy was already way more than usual – a thing of interest in and of itself.

“I’m in med school. In the process of getting my MD so I can get into oncological research. It’s my last semester, so its been a little hectic.” Just the thought of the man’s commitment made him look stressed, the small black circles under his eyes making a lot more sense now. “And thanks – that’s quite the compliment coming from you.” Peter stopped for a second, his bottom lip between his teeth. “Do you get off soon? I’ve got to buy you a drink or food or something for being an absolute life saver.”

The sound of the door opening had Tony looking over his shoulder, a slight frown forming on his brow when people sat down at the far side of the bar. Glancing down, he noticed there were only 20 minutes until 8 – his whole face lighting up. Things were turning out a lot better than he originally expected. “I’m off in twenty, actually. Let me get those guys over there started on a tab and then I’m all yours,” Tony responded, jittery excitement zapping along his skin – the feeling of it so very foreign and so exquisitely nice.

Tony didn’t move until he saw Peter nod, a matching smile on those delicately pale cheeks. Turning, the older man suddenly desperate to be done with his work, Tony finished up without another thought. When Clint came in to cover the next shift, Tony greeted him briefly and escaped before he could get roped into anything else.

Joining Peter on the other side of the bar, he rested a hand against the man’s chair – catching his attention without scaring the piss out of him.

“Ready whenever you are.”  

----

Sitting in the same seat from before, Peter couldn’t believe the events of the last half an hour. Peter knew the date was doomed about a minute into it when Eli described Nat as his “hot friend”. There wasn’t a chance in hell – they hadn’t even started talking and Peter could already tell more misogynistic comments like that would come from the man’s mouth. There wasn’t any predicting how much worse it got, though. It’d been a long time since he was propositioned so quickly – and frankly, so out of the blue. They went from discussing Peter’s job to Eli wanting to take him home and get into his pants. What type of people was Nat surrounding herself with? And more importantly – why did she think this guy would be good for him?

The dam broke when the man tried to lay his hands on him. Their chairs were pushed close together, so he did the only thing he could think of – he dropped the drink from his fingers and stood up, the resounding smash of the glass breaking reassuring, hopefully a way out. Thankfully, he got the attention of the cute bartender and within a minute, he was back in front of them, a phone in his hand.

For a moment, Peter didn’t understand – his eyebrow quirking. The person he now knew as Tony looked at him, seemingly willing him to just go with the flow. He couldn’t even remember what came out of his mouth, but all of the sudden, he was free – Peter making his excuses and getting the fuck out of there as quickly as he could.

He almost continued his walk home, the adrenaline in his body telling him to keep listening to the flight reflex – the urge to go right there. Yet – it’d be pretty shitty of him if he didn’t at least thank the gorgeous man behind the bar for coming in clutch, so he walked across the street and lounged in the little café there – the view of the bar perfect.

Thankfully, Eli wasn’t stupid enough to wait around and he left about ten minutes later. Despite not being anywhere near him, Peter let out a caught-up breath – his entire chest felt tight since he made his narrow escape. Giving it another couple minutes to make sure the man didn’t return, Peter pulled out his phone and dialed Nat’s number, many not nice things sitting on the tip of his tongue.

When she did pick up, Peter didn’t give her a chance to reply to his nonexistent greeting – he simply barreled ahead and started talking. “You’re officially banned from setting me up. That guy was an absolute douche, Nat! He didn’t even make it a whole hour before he tried to start feeling me up. No more, okay? No more.” Peter stopped then, his chest heaving a little bit. “That shit was awful. If you’re my friend, you won’t do it again.”

“Shit, Pete – I’m so sorry! I didn’t know. He seemed okay. Older the way you enjoy them. I just – well, I’m not very good at this setting up thing.” Nat broke off, a chuckle in the back of her throat sounding across the line. “It won’t happen again, I promise.”

He kept her on the line for a couple more minutes, the conversation gentling before they hung up. She was only trying to help, he understood that. Nat had been trying to help since they first met all that time ago. At least he got her to admit that she was bad at it. And maybe, she’d actually listen to his plea and ease up the meddling. For all it was worth, Peter didn’t feel dissatisfied – a part of him couldn’t understand why she felt so adamant about it to begin with. Either way, he put his foot down and wouldn’t budge. Sparing her feelings wasn’t worth having to deal with shitty people, no matter how much he hated thinking about hurting her in any way at all.

Shaking his head, Peter pocketed his phone and left the café, his feet carrying him back across the street. The bar didn’t look any different, although the place next to his seat from before was blessedly empty. He walked back over to that same spot and leaned against the bar – the bartender’s attention already on him. Hell – most people’s attention was probably on him. The dramatic exit didn’t go unnoticed, Peter felt pretty sure about that. Crowd watching was one of the best parts of being in a bar and he provided some of the night’s entertainment.

Throughout the exchange with Tony, Peter felt more and more glad that he didn’t just skip out. Not only was the older man extremely good-looking, he came with a biting wit and interesting conversational style. It felt like the ultimate tease, waiting to hear what the guy was going to say next. The flirting came naturally, too. For whatever reason, there was an innate feeling of trust alive and well in Peter’s chest – the man’s actions speaking so loudly to the part of him that was so selective and choosy. It took a particular type of person to simply help a stranger – to provide aid for no other reason other than the fact that someone was in need.

Peter recognized that trait within himself, too – that similarity between them probably the most important one he could think of. Which is why he let himself invite Tony out and why he felt comfortable enough to actually see where the night could lead him. He watched with an unfamiliar feeling in his chest and a soft smile on his face – Tony worked diligently and efficiently. The man was good with the customers, too. He had a natural charm that Peter wanted to learn more about – wanted to see how it felt to be used in his direction.

So lost in his thoughts, the older man’s words had him jumping, a sharp blush hitting his cheeks almost instantly. Looking sheepish, Peter slid a hand through his hair, a small smile slipping across his lips. “I’m ready right now. I hope you don’t mind walking – the place I’m thinking is right around the corner,” Peter got himself back together quickly, his composure something he’d been working on since being around patients. People needed a poker face from someone delivering shitty news to them – someone had to give them hope.

Shaking the thought away, Peter felt his smile grow wider – Tony was leading them out of the bar without another word.

A little more relaxed, Peter took a second to notice the air outside, the temperature moderate, less stuffy than the enclosure of the bar packed full of people. He took a deep breath, his eyes slipping shut for a second. The sound of Tony’s voice wasn’t surprising this time, the warm tone of it slipping over him pleasant, comforting. “I’m glad to be out of there, the late Friday night gig is too crazy,” Tony spoke softly but clear, like he was used to talking in front of people – the confidence in his presentation present, out in the open.

He smiled in response and started walking, Tony moving to join him, keeping up effortlessly.

Boldly, Peter grabbed Tony’s elbow at the end of the sidewalk, the man trying to continue walking straight when they needed to turn. “I’m taking you somewhere, remember?” Peter questioned, his voice on the right side of teasing.

Tony didn’t answer, he simply nodded and followed his lead, absolutely no resistance in the arm still settled in Peter’s grip. It took more effort than it should have to drop Tony’s arm – but he kept up the contact in their closeness, each step caused the older man’s shoulder to brush against his own.

“So, is bartending your full-time gig? You’ve got excellent taste in your drink suggestions – but something tells me there’s more to you.” They’d been walking for a minute or two in silence, the lack of conversation surprisingly comfortable despite not really knowing one another. The start of the conversation wasn’t forced, Peter was just curious – interested in finding out more about his handsome hero.

The longer they walked, the more it seemed like Tony was leaning into him, so Peter let it happen – his fingers brushed against Tony’s whenever he could reach them. Neither gave into the temptation to hold hands – the tease of not knowing, of the journey of finding out more – that was the game at the moment. Peter bit his bottom lip, his head turning ever so slightly. It wouldn’t do to give away just how enamored he was, not yet, anyway.

“It’s not. I actually teach high school physics. Over at Midtown Science and Tech. I’ve got a Master’s in Mechatronics Engineering, so I use it building robots with my students and talking about gas laws and thermodynamics. It’s great,” Tony didn’t sound like he was joking, either – his eyes were vivid, the brightness in them genuine.

Peter would have never pegged the guy as a teacher, but now that he knew – it made sense. The immediate way he rushed in to help, to provide support – that’s what teachers did, every day, for all the students they came into contact with. If it weren’t for the eyes watching his every move and the rather hungry look Tony couldn’t seem to hide – he might have questioned the man’s interest. He couldn’t, though – coffee-colored eyes trailed over him like they wanted to undress him one article of clothing by the next. The gaze was intense and sent little shocks of excitement all around.

“My initial thought did not stray anywhere near teacher. I can see it, though. I bet you’re the teacher that everyone likes, too. You’re teaching thermodynamics, so you’re dealing with smart kids. I’d go so far as to say that you’re the nerdy hot teacher everyone’s lusting after.” Peter blushed at that, the thought of his younger self walking into his own AP Physics class to see Tony standing there – he would have crushed on him for sure. He could honestly say he might be there already, anyway. Tony’s snort in response had him blushing harder, his face so warm from the flush of blood pressing against his cheeks.

“I try not to think about it, Pete. Makes the job a little easier, you know?”

And he did know – perfectly well. There’d been just as many legal and ethics classes throughout his med school journey to understand that concept intimately. Better for him, anyway. He wanted Tony’s attention on him. With each second that past, the want for it only increased – that thought substantial in and of itself.

It took a couple more minutes to end up outside Del Mar’s – his favorite bodega in the city. Rotations at the hospital didn’t pay well, and for a few months during his first year navigating the inability to carry more than one job, Peter had to be very, very smart about his money. It didn’t take a genius to understand that good food at a cheap price couldn’t be beat – so he kept Del Mar’s on his always list and went there as often as his wallet allowed him. By that point, the owner knew who he was, how he liked his sandwich, and would usually slip him a discount. Besides – it was one of the best meals in this part of Queen’s.

Tony spoke up when he saw the sign, a look of recognition on his face. “I love Del Mar’s. The number four with extra pickles got me through finals week last semester.” His face was pulled into a light grin, the man’s arm already extending to open the door, holding it for Peter. “Nice choice. I’ll gladly take this as a thank you meal,” Tony shot him a wink, the look making Peter’s head swim slightly. How the hell did someone make that look so good?

----

The coincidence of being led to one of his favorite bodegas wasn’t missed – Tony didn’t really know what to do with it, but he noticed. He also noticed how much they touched throughout the walk from the bar. Tony wasn’t very good about being inconspicuous unless he was trying to, and he certainly wasn’t trying to in this instance. The fact that Peter reciprocated, pushed himself into Tony’s space – that spoke volumes, too. Watching him walk through the door, Tony also knew how much he wanted to get to know Peter – in all the ways that were possible.

It didn’t take them long to get situated with their sandwiches, Mr. Del Mar recognized them both and set his son to making their food. Peter’s added “can you squish down the bread?” made Tony turn his head, a laugh leaving his lips.

“Squish down the bread? Only you,” Tony mumbled, the words probably not even loud enough for the other man to hear him. It felt good, though – the easy camaraderie between them just as nice as the sight of the beautiful man before him. He felt an elbow in his side and a head leaning in close, like he was trying to whisper in Tony’s ear.

“Don’t knock it before you try it.” Peter hummed, the gust of his breath sending an army of gooseflesh rushing along his skin.

Tony worked hard to hold the groan that threatened to escape him down – Del Mar surely didn’t need to hear anything like that coming from his mouth. When their sandwiches were ready, Tony made a hasty retreat – Peter thankfully following behind him. The night air broke up the last of the noise and the ability to breath made his head a little clearer. What a fucking rush.

“Do you trust me?” Peter asked, his head tilted in question. His grip on the sandwich bag made Tony happy that they were dangling from his hand, not clenched in the other’s fist. Without thought, Tony knew the answer.

“Yeah, I do, actually. What did you have in mind?” Tony asked, his senses on alert and running on overdrive from all the conflicting things coursing through him.

Peter didn’t verbally answer, instead, he turned around and started to walk down the sidewalk again. The unpredictability of the arresting man only increased his interest and he followed along – no worries or cares in the world. They didn’t walk for very long, Peter stopped them in front of a building fire escape, a roguish grin on his face. Tony’s eyes were glued to the flash of skin that appeared when Peter jumped to grab the folded-up ladder – the movement smooth, like Peter was an athlete in another life.

They climbed the stairs quickly, the stability of them surprisingly sturdy. Peter kept their sandwiches out to the side the entire time, the care he was taking with them so, so endearing. Tony could picture that same care being applied to Peter’s patients and immediately knew the man would be a good doctor – no other details needed. When they eventually settled on the roof – Tony let out a low whistle, the view of the night’s sky a little weakening. He couldn’t remember the last time he looked up and saw such clarity. “Pete, this view is ridiculous,” Tony gasped out, the awe evident in his voice.

Peter nodded, his eyes alight – mile long legs carried him until the younger man plopped down against the raised edge, his back pressing against it. “I know – it’s probably my favorite in the city. A couple of years ago, I was still living with a roommate. One that liked to have loud sex pretty much all the time. I don’t think he ever went to class. Anyway – I was studying for an Immunology final and couldn’t focus, so I came for a sandwich. On my wanderings while eating, I noticed the stairs were down on the fire escape, so I sort of just – climbed them. When I got up here, I felt the first sense of peace since coming to the city. I come up here all the time now,” Peter finished with a shrug, his hands already fumbling with the bag.

Tony plopped himself down next to the other and relaxed back, the view even better from this angle. He took the sandwich when Peter handed it to him, his soft smile growing a little bit. Their fingers brushed in the hand off, the delicate brush of skin to skin so fucking powerful. Sucking in a breath, he fiddled with the paper covering his sandwich to distract himself for a second. “It’s nice – being so close to the sky. The clarity up here makes the world look a little different. Thanks for sharing it,” Tony finally murmured, his shoulder shifting until it pressed against Peter’s side briefly.

The man’s blush was the only answer he got.

They made idle chatter while they ate, Tony talking about his latest robotics project – the group of kids on the team some of his best yet. Peter listened so adamantly, his head nodding every now and again while he chomped down on his flattened sandwich. In turn, Peter told Tony more about med school, about how he hoped to find a lab that would let him get lost in groundbreaking research. It was fascinating, to watch someone so empowered talk about their desires. Tony found himself hanging on every word, his sandwich long gone by the time they resurfaced from the conversation.

There weren’t a lot of times when Tony felt like he was standing near someone who could keep up with him. It wasn’t cocky, either – he understood how his brain worked and knew there were few people like him roaming the world. And without trying, he walked into someone exactly like him. Peter wanted to use his brain for good – he wanted to help people. There was something to be said for a person like that. Regardless of the man’s bad luck with his date earlier in the evening, Tony couldn’t deny how happy it made him – the way everything worked out.

They chatted for a little while longer, neither man in any hurry to be anywhere or part from the other. It was Peter’s “I should probably head home,” that brought Tony out of the daze he’d been in since sitting down next to the younger man. Glancing at his watch, he noticed that it was approaching midnight. The last few hours flew by – it didn’t seem nearly as late as it actually was. It took him a minute to nod, Tony wanting to soak up this moment just a little longer. Tony got up and dusted his hands and jeans off before holding a hand down for Peter to grab.

Long arms wrapped around his shoulders, the tug of Tony’s grip pulling Peter from the ground and up onto his feet. He thought for a second that he made Peter lose his balance – but then the arms around him tightened and the other’s face was pressing into the length of his neck. Tony let his own arms embrace Peter around the waist, his grip tightening to bring their bodies closer together. A soft nose brushed against his collar bone and under his chin – the touch innocent and tender. His arms squeezed on their own accord, the hold on Peter getting a little cozier.

The next thing Tony knew, lips were caressing his cheek, the barely there kiss fleeting and absolutely perfect. “Thanks for tonight, Tony.”

Tony pressed the side of his head against Peter’s and kept him there, the clutch of his arms the only thing he could think of to response with. There wasn’t anything to say. He helped because he could – there weren’t any other motives. The end result, well – that was just a happy accident. Turning his head, Tony slipped his nose into Peter’s hair, lips glancing against his head.

They parted ways at the bottom of the stairs, Peter grabbing Tony’s phone from his hand before he could even think to ask for his number. Later, when he finally let himself look, he grinned at the new name in his contacts – ‘Peter Parker’. It had a nice ring to it and totally fit the man attached to it. He sent off a quick text to make sure the younger man had his number and went about his way – the walk home one of the most peaceful ones he’d experienced in a long time.

Things stayed pretty casual between them for a while after that. It felt easy to simply chat about things that happened throughout the day – Peter did a good job describing the nicer parts of his job and strayed away from the heavier stuff. There were sometimes descriptions of co-worker drama, or the stupidity of professors waiting for him when Tony got a chance to take a look at his phone.

The rest of the day always went a little quicker when he got to have a couple exchanges with the man, his own stories about failing students and the many times one of his student’s grandmother passed away in attempts to get out of assignments. The uncomplicated way Tony could just be with Peter kept him from being bored and feeling an iota of loneliness.

They occasional met for low key dates, Peter’s schedule was so hectic, they usually ended up in one of their apartments eating take out and watching whatever they found interesting on Hulu. Tony helped Peter study on the night’s when the other was too exhausted to do much of anything – and they necked on the couch like teenagers when the doctor in training had more energy to spare or had the next day off.

It felt good to be restrained – getting to know Peter made the anticipation for the physical shit to come thrum with life, each little detail like a small secret to add to the growing list Tony kept in the back of his mind. In forty years of life, Tony hadn’t ever had a relationship like this – one that took the time to grow and evolve, to actually be nurtured before shit became too complicated.

So, it made sense – how uncomplicated their first encounter turned out to be. A little while into things, Peter introduced him to one of his hobbies. There weren’t many things Peter devoted his time to, so Tony was excited to hear all about the dodgeball team the younger man put together with a few of his coworkers. The invite to his game later that weekend was immediately accepted – Tony couldn’t wait to see Peter in action. In their time together, Tony wasn’t any closer to understanding the mystery of one Peter Parker – and he liked it that way.

The most surprising thing about it ended up being just how much Tony liked the sight of Peter in a cut off blue shirt with a Rambo style headband tied around his head. The muscles of his arms were trim, a little on the thin side, though the definition of each muscle was absolutely there. The black-out under his eyes brought a new dimension to the look – Tony suddenly so very taken by the whole situation. A twitch in his pants told him just how taken he really was, the jeans he was excited to wear suddenly a lot tighter – a lot more uncomfortable.

The feeling didn’t ease, either. Peter played dodgeball the same way he did everything – knowledgably, intensely, and with his tongue peeking out of the corner of his mouth. Every time he threw the ball, the muscles in Pete’s arms tensed, the definition becoming even more refined. The celebratory high fives and fist pumps took home the gold, though – Tony never wanted to lose the image of pure excitement on Peter’s face. He hoped that it might come in handy a little later on.

Tony forgot about the heat for a little while – the man so into the game, he didn’t know how loud he was cheering until the person next to him shot a look. Smirking, Tony shot out of his seat the next time Peter got someone out, his hands clapping together loudly. “Way to go, Petey!” Tony exclaimed, his eyes trained on the lady next to him.

It got a little better when Peter’s eyes caught his from across the court, a small smile on his face. In the end, Peter’s team ended up winning and Tony pissed that lady off a whole lot more than he initially set out to – which he wasn’t all that mad about.

The energized Peter that slammed into his arms a little while later was something new. There was sweat still clinging to his brow and a little bit of the black-out still smudged under his eyes – that much was recognizable. The simmering look that sat right at the surface, that was something Tony didn’t recognize. It became rather clear what it was, though – Peter’s lips caressing his in the next moment directive enough. Tony thrust his hands into the other’s sweaty locks and pulled him closer, his head tilting ever so slightly to fix the angle, to deepen the kiss.

A round of cheers was the only thing that brought them out of the passionate embrace. Tony looked over Peter’s shoulder to see the rest of the team approaching them. Peter rested his head on Tony’s chest, the huff of a sigh evidenced in the warm gust of air leaking through his shirt to grace his skin. Peter turned and introduced him to everyone, the collective welcoming him with open arms. They’d been keeping things on the low, just to have some time enjoying the thing between them while it was still just that – between them. It felt good, though – to be acknowledge by Peter as someone important to him.

All bets were off the second they walked into Tony’s apartment, however. Peter ripped off his shirt without a second thought – his arms pulling Tony in until their lips were on each other, the other’s tongue insistent, searching – yearning for Tony. Overwhelmed for a second, Tony focused on the lips on his first. He returned the kiss with equal measure. His hands joined the party next, desperate palms finally getting to press against smooth skin, the feel of it so goddamn soft. A moan ripped from Tony’s throat, effectively breaking the kiss. Peter didn’t miss a beat, he tugged at the hem of Tony’s shirt until the offensive article of clothing was on the floor, joining his own.

Tony couldn’t stand the distance between them and closed it, his being eager to be sealed at the lips with Peter again. He let his hands wrap around the man’s lower back, hands slipping under the damp waistband of Peter’s shorts – fingertips brushing against the round globes of flesh there. Tony pushed his hands as far as they could go, eager palms filling with the fullness of Peter’s cheeks. Their lips stayed busy, the hum of approval on his lips enough to know the other didn’t mind his wandering hands.

They made it as far as the couch before Tony got impatient and pushed Peter down onto it. His hands worked to take off shoes, socks, and shorts – the man on the couch cushions now encased in only his spandex boxer briefs, the black a solid contrast to the pale flesh underneath. Tony made quick work of his own get up until he was as equally undressed as Peter.

A palm pressed down on the bulge in his underwear, the damp spot causing his eyes to slam shut – the bite of his teeth in his bottom lip stopping a moan from shooting from his lips. Looking up, Tony had to catch his breath – Peter followed suit, his hand gripped himself over top of the fabric keeping him clothed. This time, the moan fell straight from his lips – their eyes connecting as the sound radiated around the otherwise quiet room.

Taking that leap, Tony kicked out of his underwear before joining Peter on the couch, his eager fingers already working to pull the sexy black fabric from the younger man’s skin. As he pulled them down, Tony pressed his fingertips into muscled thigs, across ticklish knees, and down over hairy shins – the soft fur on top of Peter’s feet brushing his skin tantalizingly. Now naked, Tony took his time to stare down at the beautiful body spread out before him – the lengthy limbs covered in unmarred skin, his cock nestled in the v of his thighs, the flesh thick and the head already glistening with want.

“Fucking finally,” Peter gasped out when Tony pressed in and gave them the first taste of fully naked flesh on flesh. Tony tucked his head into the gap of Peter’s neck – his chuckle quickly turning into a moan vibrated into the skin. Peter’s impatience reared its head, the younger man’s hips pressing against him – the fluid he so steadily leaked smearing on Tony’s cock, his pubes, even the skin of his stomach.

Tony pressed a swift kiss to Peter’s neck, his hips dropping and finally pressing their lengths together. “Fuck,” Tony babbled, his head moving until he could see Peter, their eyes catching, gaze hot. “I’m not going to last long,” he admitted, the feeling of heat creeping from his toes, up his legs, and into the middle of his core was persistent – it’d been a long time since someone this beautiful graced his bed. And it felt like forever since he’d been wanting Peter. The touch of his skin made him feel crazy – absolutely out of his head.

Desperate to distract himself, Tony sealed his lips over Peter’s, the kiss hard and oh so sloppy.

“Touch me, please. I want your hands on me – on us. Please, baby. Please – “ Peter panted out, his head turning to the side to catch some air. The usually pale skin was covered in a flush – the blood rushing in all different directions making his skin a rosy color and completely covered in sweat. It was beautiful – Peter was beautiful, in all the ways – all the personifications of it, too.

Unwilling to anything other than comply, Tony wiggled his hand down between their chests, fingers wrapping around the both of them – their lengths clenched in his grip in the most perfect of ways. The slippery nature of Peter’s slick made the pass of his hand over the sensitive skin of both their cocks deliciously sweet – the glide smooth, hypnotic. The combined keens and whimpers leaving both men’s lips played as the soundtrack of their coupling – Peter’s repeated ‘yes, yes, yes’ just about enough to push Tony over the edge right then and there.

The shooting wave of heat increased when Peter added his pumping hips to the mix. Tony’s hand was already stroking them with quick wrist movements, his wrist turning a little bit the closer he got to the tip – the drips of glorious precum from both their cocks a steady lubricant and delectably succulent. “I’m close, I’m close,” Peter babbled, his hand slipping between them to join Tony’s in the tight squeeze around their cocks.

The tangling of their fingers increased the pressure and the subtle lift of Peter’s hips was too much – too fucking delectable to hang onto any longer.

“Oh, god – Tony!” Peter shouted first – his cum striping both their stomachs, each pulse of it warm – succulent.

Tony bit into his lip, the pain mixing perfectly with the pleasure – the combination enough to barrel the orgasm right out of him. “Pete, baby… fuck – “ Tony added to the mess lingering between them, the stickiness on his hands and chest pulling a shudder from him. The lingering aftereffects of his orgasm blanked out everything but the rise and fall of Pete’s chest against his own.

----

The very next morning, Peter woke to the press of lips against the side of his head and a hand tangling in his curls, the touch light. “I’ve got to get to work, Pete. There’s a key on the counter by the coffee machine. Lock up when you leave – and keep it. See you later,” Tony’s voice was light, the man’s obvious attempt at not waking Peter up for good. He was thankful – the pull of his heavy eyes was already trying to tug him back under.

Reaching up, Peter grabbed Tony’s cheeks and pulled him down until they were kissing. His lips felt a little raw from the night before, the burn from Tony’s mustache and goatee luscious – the right side of painfully delectable. When he pulled back, Peter let their noses brush for a second, the gesture intimate. He felt a little more tied to the other man now – the physicality between them enough to cement a lot of things. It felt odd, to have waited so long. Yet, the outcome felt better than any other sexual experience he ever shared with someone. And they hadn’t even fucked yet.

“I’ll see you later. Have a good day at work, Mr. Stark.” Peter chuckled at the look of surprise on Tony’s face. Then, he smirked, Tony’s hand coming up to brush against the hair on his chin. Peter saw that gesture enough to know that was Tony’s thinking pose. Grinning, Peter used a sleepy hand to gesture him out the door. “Go, go. Don’t be late for class.”

Peter felt another kiss pressed to his head, then the smell of Tony’s cologne retreated – the thought dissatisfying for about a second. Snuggling back into the pillow, he quickly forgot about any sort of disappointment he might have felt trying to bubble up.

A couple hours later, Peter woke up to his phone buzzing on the nightstand. He grabbed it, his sleepy eyes checking out the screen. Seeing Tony’s name had him waking up a little more thoroughly, the sleepiness drifting away as he swiped his thumb across the screen to answer the call. “Tony – everything okay? Free period isn’t until after lunch, right?” Peter spoke worriedly, his body now completely upright – the cobwebs of sleep now completely gone.

“Hey, Pete. Sorry to wake you up, baby. I left my file folder on the kitchen table and I have a test next period – which the copies of are in that folder. Would it be possible for you to bring it to me? I wouldn’t ask, but if I postpone this test, we’ll be a whole week behind – we’re too close to AP exams for that.” Tony’s tone of voice didn’t broker any arguments – Peter knew he wouldn’t be asking if it wasn’t absolutely necessary. Grinning at the thought, he started to climb out of bed.

“It would be possible. How much time do I have? I can just leave for my rounds when I’m finished,” Peter replied, his feet hitting the cold floor for the first time that day – a sigh leaving his lips at the feeling.

He could hear some rustling, then a door opening and shutting. “My next class is in an hour. I’ve got robotics doing a write up today. I’ll owe you, Pete.” Tony’s voice dropped an octave with that last bit – Peter imagining that the man’s eyebrows rose and fell with the words, too.

Knowing he could be showered and ready in less than half an hour, Peter stood up and made his way to the front room. If he was going to take the damn thing, he needed to make sure he knew what it was. The folder was easy to spot – the bulkiness of it a Tonyism, the lack of organization stupidly endearing. “Blue folder, right?”

“Blue folder. Pete, you’re the best. Thank you.” Tony sounded sincere, like Peter was really doing him a solid. He had to admit, being appreciated for the little things wasn’t the worst. The whole being in a relationship wasn’t the worst, either, if he were being honest with himself.

He pulled his bottom lip between his teeth before answering, the need to damper his smile there – despite the fact that it was quickly becoming difficult to do so. “It’s the least I can do. I’ll shoot you a text and let you know when I get to Midtown. Go back and keep your kids in order.” Tony chuckled on the other side of the phone and Peter joined him, the action making him feel light – floaty.

Kicking himself into gear, Peter stripped off the sleep pants he borrowed from Tony and stepped into the shower – this stall much bigger than the one in his tiny apartment. He indulged a little, washing his skin and hair with Tony’s body wash and shampoo – smelling like him for the rest of the day sounded pretty nice. Especially during rotations, one sniff and the soothing reminder of Tony and the comfort he brought would make it all better.

It felt nice to luxuriate in the first sleep over moment, too. Every breath that picked up the distinct Tony Stark scent would be a reminder of their time together, of the way Tony pulled pleasure from him like it was what he’d been made to do.

A little bit of forethought meant Peter had an extra pair of scrubs in the backpack he brought with him to the game the day before – so he slipped them on, the light blue pair one of his favorite sets. Letting his hair dry a little, Peter put a piece of bread in Tony’s high-tech toaster and ate it sitting on the counter – the fancy strawberry jelly in the fridge some of the best he’d ever had. Licking his fingers, Peter cleaned up after himself and finished getting ready.

His heart pounded double time for the first couple seconds after picking up the house key. It was solid black and matched with Tony’s sleek aesthetic – and it fit perfectly on his carabiner, the sight of it making his breath hitch. No matter how sleepy Peter was that morning, he understood the immensity of the gesture. Tony was letting him into his life in a more permanent manner. Though they’d been inseparable for a few months now, they never talked about it. He should have known Tony would find a subtle way to get his point across.

After forcing himself to pocket the key, Peter grabbed the file folder, pressing it into his backpack with the rest of his study material. He took another look around the room, a warm feeling washing over him – though he’d been here more than a few times, it felt a little different now. He’d probably never be able to look at the couch without thinking about the way Tony stroked him off, the way he came so hard because of the man. Wetting his lips, Peter backed out of the room and exited the house, his shiny key fitting into the lock easily.

Midtown was only a ten-minute walk from Tony’s house – the very adult decision to live close was beneficial and cut down on the amount of effort Peter needed to put forth to get there. Lots of time, he told himself – lots of time. There weren’t too many people out at this time of the morning, so he got to be a little leisurely about it. His entire body felt buoyant, lighter than air – and he knew it was because of Tony and the way things were slowly starting to knit together for them. He was about to walk into the man’s school for fucks sake!

Pulling out his phone, Peter sent off a quick text.

Peter Parker [10:40AM]: I’m here – what’s next?

Tony Stark [10:42AM]: You need to check in at the office. Stacy at the front desk knows to look out for you. She’ll direct you back to my classroom. Tony Stark [10:42AM]: Thanks again, Pete.

Smiling, Peter walking in through the front doors and right into the office, the place thankfully not a complicated maze. Stacy was a nice older woman who wore bright red lipstick and smiled widely. She looked at him for a couple extra seconds when he handed over his ID – a knowing sort of glimmer in her eyes. For the first time, Peter thought that maybe Tony did not have anyone bring him things like this – especially a younger person like himself. He just smiled and let her give him directions to the science hall – she told him that Tony’s door would be recognizable.

And it was – it so was. There was a 2D robot plastered to the door, the cutout surrounded by science quotes and a cute handmade Stark Industries sign – the man telling Peter that his robotics team deemed themselves that during one of their competitions a few years ago. He knocked on the door lightly, his head peeking through the window for a second – his eyes widening when he noticed a whole lot of eyes looking over at him. Tony caught his eye and smiled – the look grateful and excited and happy all at once.

Peter took a step back when Tony opened the door and stepped out – the anti-slam mechanism on the door making it shut slowly. Tony’s arm wrapped around him and tugged him into a one arm hug – his lips pressing against Peter’s cheek. “Thanks for coming. I was so wrapped up in you and us and how fucking happy I am that I totally forgot. You’re a lifesaver.” Tony’s smile was soft, his eyes a bit gooey – his happiness radiating.

He slipped one of the straps off his shoulders and brought the backpack around, his fingers working the zippers easily. “I’m liking the sound of that. And I’m happy to help. I like being able to see where you work. Mr. Stark has a new meaning for me now,” Peter replied coyly. Handing over the folder, Tony let his fingers linger on Peter’s skin for a moment, the two sharing a look – the soft smile on Pete’s lips reflected right back at him.

A noise had Peter looking up – his eyes widening when he saw a couple of the students from the front row pressed up against the door, watching their interaction. “I think we’ve got an audience,” Peter whispered, his hand coming to the side of his mouth to make it look a little sneakier. He felt Tony’s snort against his cheek, the gust of air warm.

“Sneaky shits can’t mind their own business.” Tony murmured back, his free hand reaching up to rest on the soft skin of Peter’s cheek. “You and I will be the gossip of the school for the next few weeks, so we might as well give them something to talk about.” Peter got what he meant about a second before Tony’s lips touched his own – his eyes slipping shut at the touch, regardless. The kiss was soft and chaste, barely there – yet one of the best they’d shared yet.

“I’ll see you tonight?” Tony asked pulling back, his hands once again in his own space – the toasty warmth on Peter’s skin the only reminder of the touch being there.

Peter nodded, his hand reaching out to brush along Tony’s lip – the slightest bit of shiny spit lingering there. “I’ll see you tonight. I’ll be done with my shift around 8.” He shouldered his backpack, preparing himself to leave. “Text me when you’re done for the day.” Peter shot him a wink and took another step back – the distance between them just enough for Tony to break from the haze of their connection and step back into the classroom.

He was about to walk away when he heard a voice through the wall – “Mr. Stark, was that your boyfriend?”

His stomach clenched; ears peeled to hear the response.

“Yeah, it was. Now stop gawking over how cute he is and let’s get back to thermodynamic equilibrium.”

Grinning, Peter hoped this floaty feeling of being so in love would never leave.  

#starker #peter parker/tony stark #tony stark/peter parker #peter parker x tony stark #tony stark x peter parker #doctor peter parker #au #bartender tony stark #teacher tony stark #alternate universe #marvel fanfiction #fan fics #ao3 fan fiction #ao3 #bobbie writes #ironspider

[judehayward]

lady gaga voice slowly fadin in: ju-Das juda-ah-ah… this depressed goblin bastard is honestly my fav male muse like i dnt typically stick w male muses tht long i struggle bt................. i’ve played him the longest of them all n always seem to return to him. jst cnt stay away. way 2 attached to this absurd little man. it’s nai btw!!!! (josefine on the main). launches right in to jude’s intro without further adieu..... (u can also find his playlist here) 🧙‍🎨

「douglas booth & cis-male」⇾ hayward , jude, the senior radcliffe student’s records show that he is a pisces and 23 years old. he is studying ART, living in moris and can be protective, laidback, nonsensical & apathetic. when i see him i am reminded of wearing a faded smiley face sticker on your forehead while receiving a serious lecture, saying “fuck off” to inanimate objects, lead marbles instead of eyes. ⇽「nai & 23 & gmt & she/her.」

he pinterest:

me in the voice of a card magician performing on the street: round up round up pick a pinterest any pinterest!

ta-da it’s aesthetics:

lead marbles instead of eyes, a stolen hearse careening down the wrong lane, wearing a faded smiley face sticker on your forehead while receiving a serious lecture, bags under the eyes that are so big they could pack enough clothes for a three week vacation, a cigarette wobbling from your bottom lip as you squint against the sunlight, passing out on a stranger’s rooftop, placing sunglasses over the eyes of a biology lab skeleton, gangling around the place like shaggy minus his scooby snacks, saying “fuck off” to inanimate objects

about tha Bitch:

born in sheffield in england, bt they went back and forth between there n san fran a lot

jude was an unhappy accident. his parents never rly used protection bc they were super Liberal n Au Naturel n believed in the pull out method bc… they were maniacs. bt then the ONE time they used a condom in an effort to b safety conscious it broke n hence…. jude was born

they just kind of ran w it bc they had such a passionate relationship tht they were like What The Hell…. may as well! itll be fine we’ll learn to be good parents n love him like normal ppl do

spoiler alert: tht didn’t work out

they were ok to him like they weren’t fully Bad bt they just found him to be a massive burden n hindrance to their plans. pretty absent n irresponsible. they literally….. had sex all day every day n acted like a pair of teenagers. it ws a super weird environment for a kid to grow up in bc he literally had no role models or… guidance or…. anything rly. occasionally they’d joke around w him or pretend they properly knew what grade he was going into but for the most part they just Didn’t Care the way parents shd. they lost his birth certificate n dnt remember what they put as his middle name so he’s jst kind of like hmmmm............. n gives himself a diff one every time ppl ask. past variations hv included: jude pauly hayward, jude maureen hayward, jude van winkle hayward. says all of these w a very straight face

despite this he does hv some nice memories w them. usually he definitely sees them fr holidays. frm being rly young their christmas tradition hs been to get a bunch of chinese food like a Banquet Feast n spend all day smoking n drinking into the early hours. perhaps not the healthiest or most responsible bt 😔 jude rly likes it it’s kind of the one time of yr he feels he has a proper family

they r both suuuuper into the arts. rly good sculptors bt they paint too n they actually own a successful gallery in sheffield n san fran

(trauma tw) as a result he grew up around a lot of creative n sometimes pretentious ppl. the friends of his parents were more present in his life than his ACTUAL parents bc they were always jetting off to diff countries to scout out new pieces fr their galleries n just have a gd time in beautiful places without…. the annoyance tht ws being responsible n looking after someone. tbh some of his parents friends were rly damaging too bt….i won’t go into that just yet. it doesn’t rly…need properly explaining bc jude never talks abt it anyway n it….is rather triggering so i’ll jst….leav it for now tbh. basically they just were Not Nice n jude had a lot of bad memories he keeps repressed bt he also??? has some gd ones..... it was a strange environment bt he’s a survivor

(death n grief tw) he hd to do community service bc he kind of… hd a bit of a breakdown before the funeral of his elderly neighbour who bsically raised him bc her kids rly didnt care abt her they jst wanted her inheritance?? so he… stole the hearse w her casket still in it n ws jst like… drivin around the place sort of… tryin nt to cry…..KJJFHSFKJGHKFG i mean. it isnt funny its actually sad bt :/ in a very bizarre n jude way. he gt caught n taken in fr questioning bt her son kind of realised hw… broken up abt her death jude ws n had a heart n didnt press charges. regardless he stil hd to do community service bc it ws like taken seriously even tho it ws his first proper offence. doin it rly exhausted n depressed him so when he wsnt doin tht he ws just hibernatin in his room……. this ws like 4 months ago nw............ just some fun lore fr u all

bc of how he ws raised he has a p cultured taste. he luvs classic lit n p much anything artsy. he can play piano 2 n sometimes gets rly high n thinks he’s mozart level gd at composing he’s jst going fking wild on the keys in a trance...... i mean he’s gd bt… chill

he’s rly sarcastic n so deadpan like he’ll say smthn completely ridiculous bt he’ll say it w his whole chest so sincere.... it’s rly hard to tell when he’s joking or serious honestly. has an overflowing secret sketchbook n if he cares abt someone he’ll probably secretly draw them. does NOT share these drawings w the person he hates being openly sentimental. at heart he is jst a very Sad Boy w lots of repressed issues like depression genuinely just does NAT giv him a single break bt he plasters over this w wise cracks n never discusses his emotions ever. he’s actually p decent or at least tries to b. he’s kind of like tht bit in superbad where michael cera gets rly drunk n makes a toast to women like tht energy...........

he has rly bad insomnia so he like never sleeps idk how he’s Alive straight up. please go to bed sir............. he always has rly sleepy eyes n rubs them tiredly mid conversation. he smokes a lot of weed to try n compensate fr this n make him tired bt he still struggles a lot

ANYWAY that aside he’s at radcliffe doing art, focusing on fine art like painting is............... the thing he luvs most...... his style is kind of.......... taking normal things n painting w surreal colours.... he likes A LOT of colour in his paintings which is kind of a stark contrast to his personality bc his world’s so.... washed out n grey............ lovs art n philosophy n literature n photography n music.... 

ummMMMMmm honestly idk i’m blankin on what else to say. ull find him smoking weed reading an american classic or gnawing at his thumbnail n getting charcoal smudges on all his clothes. wandering the streets in plaid pj bottoms n dr martens eating frm a cereal box without care in the world. he’s p broody n scruffy n he’s mostly here fr a laidback time....... doesn’t rly like when ppl take themselves too seriously........ likes strange ppl thinks the world is mde richer by them n likes when ppl can jst bounce back jokes at him without being like erm. u dont make sense mate. bc frankly he can come up w some strange stuff sometimes.............. talking to him cn b like navigating a dark n bendy road without a flashlight....... 

(drugs tw) once did shrooms n woke up naked in the woods curled up in a pile of leaves. to this day he recounts this as his werewolf transformation. hs no idea hw he ended up there n when ppl r like are u not. concerned jude. tht is so strange? he jst shrugs like.............. dunno....................... suppose i’m jst a werewolf upon occasion. so casual abt it. jst truly does Not care abt most things at all..... almost to the point tht it’s concerning (sometimes way past the point tht it’s concerning too :/)

this is the desc on an aesthetic i mde of his style once n sums it up well!! ‘additionally: too many pairs of trousers, a hideous amount of white t-shirts all somewhat stained with charcoal, a jumper so thinly knit it almost looks sheer, chipped teale nail varnish, a cream corduroy jacket with a cigarette hole singed onto the cuff, vintage wiry reading glasses he almost never wears, a freshly rolled cigarette behind his ear, a thrifted t-shirt with a warped bart simpson wearing a stethoscope with the caption ‘bard knwos cardiology’ and two crops hacked that way with kitchen scissors that he sometimes wears to paint.‘

EXPERT at rolling spliffs like jst. mkes them so precise n neat....... it’s his super power. his fav thing to smoke frm is banana flavour papers.................... linking 2 this he’s like. bad w emotions bt he does try..... once his friend (maggie) ws sad so he brought her a spliff wrapped in grape flavoured paper bc it’s her fav fruit n jst like. wordlessly gave it to her. it’s the thought tht counts.....

PLOTS!!!!!

plays bass in a band which cld b a fun connection to get together??? i picture the music being like surf rock type like........... mac demarco...... bt he also luvs elliott smith n glass animals n the cure n metronomy n neutral milk hotel n talking heads n radiohead n mazzy star n wolf alice...................... idk jst like.... within tht ballpark i suppose i imagine it being................

mayb ppl he shares classes w?????? i’d like someone tht does a similar course n they hang out tgether when it comes to trips fr the module to museums or exhibits or wtever................ they both stand in front of paintings analysing it rly wrong n saying stuff like hmmmmmmmmm....... i do declare i see a, uh..... large phallus protruding from the centre of this image...... moves something in me.......... n some elderly person looking at it besides them is like Ergh. sickened n disgraced. leaves w a brow severely furrowed

someone he smokes w on the moris rooftop late at night when he cnt sleep??? mayb they’re up n cnt sleep either fr whtever reason n it’s become an unspoken kind of ritual where they always clamber out n find each other there n jst wordlessly keep them company

jude is kind of like. protective almost to a fault sometimes........... mayb some guy he’s punched......................... if they hurt someone he cares abt........... typically it wld hv been a girl he ws kind of like. affected by his first relationship bc she had a bad home situation n ever since jst wnts..... to Protect it’s kind of like an automatic instinct ingrained in him nw 😔 all sounds very noble n well bt sometimes it cn b a bit of an escalation i wnt lie

perhaps a few hook-ups??? jude doesn’t tend to sleep w ppl he rly knows bc he just..... likes it to b an impersonal thing doesn’t like getting attached fr various reasons so mayb they only kno each other via this OR mayb he bent his rules a bit..... cld either work seamlessly or hv added drama if one side hs mre feelings or whtever

currently living in moris w 2 roommates bt i’d love some neighbours perhaps..... mayb someone tht lives directly nxt door to his room n is like ://// bc he plays music loud n weeds always drifting frm his window n mking their room smell if theirs is open too................. or mayb they get on..... mayb there’s a rly mean seagull tht lands on a branch n poos on pedestrians n they both commentate on it frm their windows like david attenborough...... they’re like he’s at it again. they’ve named him n everything

HONESTLY anything if u have an idea hmu i’d love 2 hear it.......... rubs my hands tgether in excitement to plot up a storm w u all

#ruhqintro #depression tw #death tw #grief tw #neglect tw #trauma tw #drugs tw

[weareallfallengods]

Flight from Grace Chapter 1 - A small stumble

The long-awaited complete 1st chapter of my WIP novel! I started this over 6 months ago and I’m finally getting into the swing of it.

Synopsis: What happens when a Fallen Angel with no memory of her own eternal past meets a woman who can see her for who she really is? A head on collision between the world as we know it and an eternal battle between the immortals tasked with safeguarding the mortal realm. 

Grace can see things she shouldn’t be able to; after all, immortals have gone to a lot of trouble to make sure we can’t see them as they really are, so Something Has Changed, and she and her Fallen Angel will find out what’s going on, and why they seem to always be stuck in the middle of it all.

Themes: Angels and Demons, examination of mortality and our understanding of and belief in the supernatural as well as the eternal nature of existence. The battle between good and evil, and how no one is ever what they seem to be when we look past prejudices and social judgements. LGBTQ+, proper ethnic and cultural representation (read: most characters aren’t straight or white!).

Triggers: If you don’t like stories that put an often irreverant and sacriligeous spin on Christian mythos, this isn’t for you. LGBTQ+ romance, slow burn, non-explicit.

===================================================

“Did it hurt when you fell from Heaven?”

Some neanderthal interrupted my deep contemplation of the double whiskey sour in front of me. Which was very rude. Whiskey sours demand your undivided attention and get cranky if ignored for too long. He should have known that, but either he didn’t know or didnt care, so either way- neanderthal.

He was leaning on the bar with the casual air of someone who has done this same dance too many times, the practiced ease of a used car salesman slapping the roof of a car. At least this one’s breath wasn’t too foul. Not that this hadn’t happened before. Oh no, I’d never been badly hit on in this bar like ten thousand times already. No that never happened. I was able to just sit in peace with my drink for the entire night. Yeah, right. Why do I keep coming back then, you ask? Well, Grace makes one hell of a whiskey sour for one thing.

“Hey, did you hear me?”

Ugh, this one wasn't going away with simply being ignored. Lovely.

“Excuse me?” I looked over languidly, with as much disdainful irritation on my face as I could possibly muster from the depths of my three-drinks-in soul.

“I said, ‘did it hurt when you fell from heaven?’”

His stupid shit-eating leer didnt help my mood any. I wasn’t ever in a good mood if I showed up here, and that’s probably one of the reasons I kept coming back- assholes like this gave me a vent for my foul mood.

“No actually. It’s less of a fall and more of a stumble really. More like getting tossed out of a club by a bouncer than falling down the stairs. Couple of bruises, a minor scrape, more damaged pride than anything really.”

I could see his monkey-brain churning slowly to try and digest my response that didn’t fit his pre-programmed scenario. I half expected to see steam coming out of an ear. God, some men are just so... ew.

“Um, what?”

Apparently I broke him. Well, that happens sometimes, when I give someone a response they weren’t expecting. Which happens more often than I’d be willing to admit to myself.

“I said that getting tossed out of heaven doesn’t hurt as much as you’d think it would. It’s not that far of a tumble really.”

He chuckled, “That’s real cute darlin’, never heard that one before! How’s about you and me find a table so I can hear more about it? Maybe have a look at those bruises, make sure you don't need more…attention.”

Sweet Mother of Mikhail, that was bad. Like even worse than his initial pickup line. I almost had to respect his commitment to such a shitty way of trying to pick me up. He had some balls, that’s for sure, either from drunken stupidity or pure ignorant self-confidence. They say that bravery and stupidity go hand in hand, and here was their shining example.

“Believe me sweetie, you don’t want my 'attention’,” I said softly, for the first time raising my eyes to lock with his glazed gaze. “My attention can become very… uncomfortable.”

He started to smirk for just a split second, but when my eyes met his, both the smirk and the color melted from his face. His mouth hung slack as he felt his soul staring down the opening fiery abyss that he found reflected in my eyes. I watched his mind recoil in horror at the emptiness it saw as it tried futilely to pull back from the horror of empty infinity it was confronted with. I saw in his eyes the sudden awareness of how small and insignificant his place in the universe was, and shrink in horror, trying to flee internally only to find that there’s no escape from your own mind and the finality of human existence.

I looked away just as his eyes started to roll back in his head. No need to cause a scene with him passing out. After all, my whiskey sour was crying from being ignored. As they do.

“I think you should probably go home now Blake,” I demurred softly. “You’ve probably had enough, and your wife would be happy if you tucked the children into bed for once. Oh, and coffee won’t remove the smell of alcohol, so just have a peppermint. Your kids like that smell, reminds them of Christmas.”

He kind of half nodded, like a sleepwalker. I sighed. Hopefully he doesn't have an existential crisis later and just shrugs it off as being too drunk. Hell, maybe he’ll cut back on the sauce. I hate it when I hear about someone offing themselves after meeting me, especially if they have kids. Well, hopefully he just takes the daily inebriation down a notch or two. I can hope, can’t I?

As he shuffled off, lager forgotten at the bar, I hoped he’d be alright. Genuinely. Sure, I enjoyed taking my frustration at being stuck here out on them, but I didn't actually wish them lasting harm. A lesson or two in politeness and decency, a minor scuffle to break up the monotony, but no real damage. That’s what I told myself anyway. Made it easier to pretend to sleep at night. Hope he makes it home ok. Hope his kids get a happy memory of daddy saying goodnight for once. Hope he says he loves his wife, and apologizes. Hah. Yeah. Like that’ll happen. But, what can I say, I’m a foolish optimist at heart. And nothing hurts more than having your hopes crushed. I should know.

Damn. My drink was crying, a small puddle of condensation soaking into the bar napkin it rested on. Again. Another sigh. And one more for the first sigh. I hate sighing. It’s the most comprehensive sound of the acceptance of defeat ever created. The acknowledgment of futility. And I hate that. I thought I’d be fighting to the bitter end, but apparently Destiny had other plans. Fucking Destiny. She’s the whole reason I’m even drinking in the first place.

“Get you a fresh one?”

A sweet silver-bell tinkle of a voice broke my unintentional reverie. Grace was back, checking on me. She knew my peccadilloes by now. She knew how much I hated when my drink got watered down by the ice melting if it got ignored for too long. I nodded.

She smiled pleasantly and slid over a new drink, already prepped.

“I figured, after that creep pounced on ya.”

I frowned slightly. There was something different about this one. Hunh. Oh, the ice. There wasn’t any. There were two black cubes sitting in it instead. OK, why are there rocks in my drink?

I looked up at Grace, still slightly puzzled.

“Oh those? Yeah I noticed you didn’t like it when your drink gets watered down, so I bought some Irish whiskey stones! That way your drink stays cold, but doesn't dilute. Got 'em special, just for you.”

I cocked one eyebrow slightly, “Just for me?”

“Yep! Let’s face it, you’re the only one who comes in here with that kind of class, so I put 'em in the freezer back here with a big 'ol note so Jimmy doesn’t think I’m crazy for keeping rocks in the fridge,” her airy chuckle sprinkled across my ears.

I stared. I was in shock. OK, well maybe I’m being dramatic, but I was still surprised. People don’t normally do nice things for me. Or to me for that matter. If I’m honest, they mostly run away.

“Why…” I couldn't even formulate a coherent sentence. Jesus, get yourself together!

“I dunno, I just figured you don't seem like you have anyone looking out for you, and you seem to attract a lot of the wrong sort of attention, so I thought you could use a nice surprise, y’know, cheer you up a little.”

I nodded, more in surprise than agreement. I literally couldn’t recall the last time someone voluntarily tried to do something nice, just for me, no hope or expectation of reward or compensation. I was probably silent a little too long for a comfortable conversation. Hey, I was revelling in the new experience, cut me some slack.

“Well. Wow, um, thanks.” Yeah real smooth. Sweet Mikhail’s Grave I have no idea how to actually talk to this woman.

In retrospect, that should have been my first clue, but hey, I was a little distracted.

“I appreciate it, that’s really sweet of you.” Ok that’s slightly less glaringly awkward.

“Not trying to be rude at all, but I gotta ask- what’s your deal? Like you come in here all the time, lookin’ like a million bucks, never talk to anyone, get in fights every so often, get harassed like every single time but you keep coming back? I mean, I’m not trying to pry if you don’t wanna talk, but you know, like I’m totally trying to pry!”

Now it was my turn to stare slack-jawed. Oh Fates, how your twists are cruel. I closed my mouth a lot faster than the sot from earlier though, so my pride wasn't too damaged.

“It’s kind of a long and uninteresting story really. Mostly, you make the best whiskey sour. And the people here are…interesting.”

“Honey, there’s no way a story coming from someone who looks like that,” she waved generally up and down at me, “could possibly be boring. Plus, it’s slow, as always, so humor me.”

Sometimes, I can be kind of thick. Slow. Moronic. A nincompoop. A maroon. Several minutes of conversation with this girl and I only just now noticed- she hadn’t looked away from my eyes. She was meeting my gaze with no problem. She wasn't sweating and shaking and passing out. She was looking me right in the eye, just like a normal person, no fear showing on her face. No reaction at all. Just a normal girl, having a normal conversation, with what she thought was another normal person.

“Are…you OK?” Grace looked a bit concerned.

Aw shit, I was staring, and not even trying to hide it. Well now I felt dumb. And, why did I feel dumb? What was up with this girl that she made me feel so self conscious, so uncomfortable, like one of those fainting goats that just freezes and falls over when you blink too hard at them. Speaking of blinking really hard.

“Um, oh, yeah, sorry, I’m fine. Really. Sorry, just not many people actually want to have a real conversation with me.”

Grace leaned over the bar a little, propping up on her elbows, lowering her tone a bit. “Well, I don’t know why, 'cuz you sure seem hella interesting to me.”

“Hunh. Well, I don't know about that. But I would like to ask you something first, if you don't mind?”

“Fire away honey!”

“This might sound odd, but, why aren’t you looking away? What do you see when you look at me?”

She pulled a tiny bit closer. “Nothin’ more than just about the sparkly-est green eyes I ever seen; a dash of blue, like the Bahamas. Somethin’ else I can't quite put my finger on…” as she trailed off, I felt her finger lightly brush the knuckles on my hand that was still holding my drink. “I kinda wanna find out though.”

OK, now that was smooth. Holy fuck, that was really, really smooth. Like two hundred year old Laphroaig single malt filtered through the blessed socks of His Holiness the Pope smooth. Hold up, now she was trying to pick me up? What the hell universe? What’s going on here?

I swallowed, unable to look away now myself. “That’s all? Nothing that scares you?”

“Not yet, sugar.”

Alright, that’s different.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I grabbed her hand. Maybe a little too hard from the slight wince I saw.

“OK we need to leave. NOW.”

“Hold up honey, we were just talkin’, we ain’t there yet!” She tried pulling back a little.

“No, no, you don’t understand! I’m sorry, but you shouldn’t be able to see that. I can’t explain right now, but we have to figure out how you can see me that way.”

“But my shift’s not over for a couple more hours!”

“OK OK, I’m not being clear, sorry, this is the first time this has happened, so I’m a little shaken.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” She actually blushed a little. “I just saw how you shot down every guy who came up to you, and I thought….well, you know, maybe…omg I’m sorry I didn't mean to upset you! I come on strong sometimes, when I’m interested in something, and when you first walked in, I saw those heels and that dress, and I just was like ‘oh wow’ and kinda couldn’t breathe for a minute, you know I don't see many girls come here lookin’ like that and oh God now I’m babbling and someone please shut me up I'm so sorry…”

I put a finger over her lips, gently.

“I’m not upset. Far from it actually. But we have something a tiny bit more urgent than that to address. I’m not who you think I am. Or what, I should say. But more to the point, there’s something bigger going on here. And I need to find out what. Fast.”

“Wait, so you’re not mad I hit on you?”

“We don’t have time for that now!” She recoiled slightly at my vehemence. “No, I’m not upset, but that’s not the point! You shouldnt be able to see my eyes. My real ones anyway. I was too slow on picking that up right away, and I’m sorry, but we have to get out of here, now, because something is different, and in my world, that’s never a good thing.”

“Your world?”

I was getting frustrated. “Yes, but I’ll explain later! I need you to come with me now. We need answers, and we need them fast. So, do you trust me?”

She hesitated. “Yeeeeees? I think? Like I wanna, but I don’t really know you?”

“Good enough for now! Let’s go!”

To her credit, she just dropped her bar towel, grabbed her phone from under the bar and came out from behind it, grabbing my hand as she yelled to the back, “Hey Jimmy! I gotta leave! Personal thing- cover for me?”

Just then, there was a bit of a commotion at the door. Grace turned to look, but I didn’t need to. I already knew what was there. I just clutched her hand even tighter and yanked her towards the back; there was an emergency exit near the bathrooms from what I remembered of that one really bad 'birthday’. Yeah, that was a bad one. But we ran.

Good thing I’m not super tall, wouldn’t want to draw attention, I thought to myself sarcastically. Goddamn heels. Why do I even wear these?

Sounds of glass breaking and shouting reached us as we plowed through the emergency exit into the alleyway. Don’t worry about that now, just keep moving.

“This way!” I pulled her to the front of the alley.

“Holy shit, that’s your bike?” She sounded genuinely impressed. Finally, I wasn’t the only one who had that reaction at seeing it. 

“Oh yeah, she’s a sweet ride, and perfect for this situation. Or any situation, really. Jump on.”

I probably should have shut the door behind us, but hey, it was a day for me missing obvious things. The noise coming from the bar was getting louder.

“I’ve never done this before!” Grace exclaimed excitedly in my ear as I kicked my beast to life.

We roared out into the street, my white and gold Valentino’s left sparkling on the pavement where I kicked them. Fuckin’ useless, beautiful shoes. Sigh, they weren’t cheap. Oh well, they’re just shoes.

“Where are we going!?” Grace yelled over the rush of wind whipping our hair like tiny flails of purgatory.

“Not sure yet! But we’re going to find out!”

“I don't even know your name!”

My heart sank a bit.

“Don't worry! Neither do I! ”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The bar exploded behind us as it faded into the night thanks to the fabulous Ducati between our legs. Oh and that wasn’t metaphorical- I glanced in the mirror at the sound; it literally exploded. Ball of fire and all. I guess that’s to be expected, what with all the alcohol and what I’d suspected for a while was going on in the basement. Way too many flammable liquids in one place. But that didn't really matter now. All that mattered was getting away from what caused the explosion as fast as we possibly could. 

“What the hell was that!?” Grace yelled in my ear. Again. I’m going to have to get some headsets or something if this is going to be a habit. Well, the riding together part, not the fleeing for our lives part anyway. 

“I’ll explain as soon as we can talk, promise! For now, just hold on! And don't look behind us!" 

“As if I’m gonna let go now!”

That glance in the rear view told me as much as I needed to know, which was more than I wanted, but enough to have an idea of what we were running from. I mean, I figured that’s what it was, but I’m still tired of being right, even after all this time. You’d think I'd be used to it by now. 

That pale blue and red glow was enough. Hell, the noise it made had been enough for me to know what it was. And trust me, I was not overreacting by running first. I’d seen that color a few too many times in my life to think that there was anything else to be done except run. Once was more than enough for anyone. Who am I kidding? Most people don't get a chance to see it more than once. Guess I’m just lucky. Or the opposite. Pretty sure I’m the latter actually. 

Grace was shivering on my back as we sped away. She’d gone quiet, her mood matching the night around us, the neon signs and street lights reflecting their multi-colored halos in the rain-slicked streets. Fog was starting to rise from the pavement, adding to the soft glow the streets were taking on. Thin, wispy strands curling around street lights and bus stops, blasted into nothing as the bike tore through them, the roar of the exhaust shattering the relative quiet of the late night calm. 

Well, it should have been quiet anyway. The explosion of the bar kind of changed that. Then came the sound. 

It mixed with the growing whine from the crotch rocket under us, which seemed like a fitting counterpoint to the cacophony of something that sounded like if you’d thrown a hundred maltese dogs into a tornado and then blasted it over a crappy school intercom. I hated that sound. Almost as much as the dogs it reminded me of. 

“Aw shit, it saw us.” Time to see if the tires on this baby gripped as well as the kid at the shop claimed they did. 

Well, at least there wasn’t too much traffic. Still, even though there weren’t many trucks and accountant-driven sedans to weave in and out of, there were still enough of them that it took a hell of a lot more concentration than my alcohol soaked brain was ready to deal with. Definitely hadn’t planned on being the next Lewis Hamilton after a night at the bar, that’s for damn sure. 

“What the fuu….?” Grace’s expletive trailed off in the whipping wind as I kept us weaving in and out and through, gunning the shit out of my bike whenever there was an opening big enough to do so without turning us into extremely messy, if fashionable, pancakes.

“Try not to worry about it! OK I mean, yeah, worry, but not like understand worry!”

“How the hell do you not worry about...that!?”

I took a good look back for the first time as we whipped around a corner, using the rain-slick street to slide without losing any speed. My heart sank. At least it wasn’t in my throat choking me anymore. Sarcastic positivity in the face of death? Yeah that’s my jam. Even if I do keep it to myself. Most of the time anyway.

The damn thing was getting closer. Faster than I thought it could. Damn, tonight just wasn’t my night for noticing things, now was it?

That second of splitting my attention nearly sent us flying and a tired busboy standing at the corner bus stop to the hospital, but we only just missed him, with barely enough room to avoid slamming into the back end of something that should have been parked at a kids soccer game, not getting on the expressway at this time of night. 

Slipping into an alley entrance, Grace’s nails dug through the flimsy material I was wrapped in, making me yelp in surprise. 

“Sorry,” she muttered.

I was about to tell her it was cool, considering the circumstances, and given that I wasn’t sure if it made me jump because it hurt, or her hands were cold, or because of where they’d slid down to, when we blew out the other side of the alley, causing a literal postcard explosion from the stand I clipped as we bounced out on to the main road again, just in time to swerve hard to avoid becoming Penske poster-girls for a single truck. 

"Sweet Jesus fuck! What the hell IS that?"

Goddammit, didn’t I tell her not to look back? I wasn’t going to tell her how the beast chasing us had seen us dart down the alley, and since it couldn't fit through the traffic as neatly as we could, silently charge down the side of the building, slamming into the same shop front that had so recently lost it's postcard stand as it tried to take the same corner, still snuffling the ground and air to track us. I managed to gain us a few precious seconds of lead as it disentangled itself from the fruit cart, re-launching itself down the alley, bicycle wheel still caught in it's whiskers that streamed and whipped behind it.

“It’s running fucking sideways on the buildings!”

Aw shit. She can see it. I was afraid of that.

And that was all the distraction it needed too. 

With a last spring off the corner of an empty flower shop, the beast took a massive swipe at us. Come on, come on, make the corner! It's thick talons cut a blazing arc through the rain as it howled. One of its claws caught the rear end of the bike, knocking it heavily to the side, and nearly throwing Grace off. Good thing she’s got a death grip on my hips right now. Oh boy don’t think of that, too distracting right now, that’s how you get killed!

Grace screamed again as the bike was whipped around violently from behind, and Grace she was confronted with a vision not even her wildest nightmares could have come up with. At least, I hope she doesn’t have nightmares like this anymore. 

The beast’s jaws opened wide to crush us like a nutcracker on adderall, glowing drool whipping around in thick, viscous strands from teeth bigger than my hand, while she seemed mesmerized by the halo of tentacle-like whiskers that seemed to float in slow motion, despite how fast everything was happening. The beast looked at me, it’s eyes burning red meeting mine as I tried to maintain my grip on the bike that was rapidly being torn from my hands. I was holding on to that tank with my knees in a way that would have made the Russian Women’s weightlifting team proud. I could hear the scream that tried to jump from Grace’s mouth only for it to turn into a slow rush of soundless breath as she slammed into my back from the force of me yanking that bike around as hard as I could possibly manage. 

Ground. Street. Tires on. People off. Stay upright. Don’t let go. Run.

The bellow from the beast behind us meant nothing to me now. I was numb, my world narrowing to the few feet in front of me, and Grace behind me. Swerve. Dodge. Car. Bike. Red light. Faster. Green. Faster. Faster. Get away. Car. Car. Bus. Turn. 

Suddenly the cars all dropped away. The turnpike. Oh thank God. I opened up the throttle all the way and finally realized I should probably start breathing again. 

Grace was trying to yell something, probably wanting an explanation. I mean I can’t blame her, but I said I’d explain! Did it look like now was suddenly the time for it? Then again, maybe it was important. 

I turned my head a bit to try to talk to her, but I paused with my mouth still open. The beast was gone.Like gone gone. Vanished. Vamoosed. Not even like really far away gone, just not there any more. I squinted. Yeah, that was a little too easy.

“Did we get away?” 

I was actually about to answer her, when a glowing blue shape cashed into us from the side, just as I was starting to finally let my legs relax a little. Everything seemed to slow down. I know, everyone says that, but it’s true! I don’t know, maybe it was the whiskey sours, but as soon as we got hit, the world turned in to super slow-mo as the bike was ripped from my hands, and I felt Grace be pulled away from me. 

This thing tossed us like a couple of rag dolls thrown from a child’s stroller being kicked by a football player. Or at least it started to go that way. Somehow, as the bike ground across the pavement, with just my left hand managing to keep any kind of hold on the bike, I managed to swing myself around it like a gymnast on a gold-medal winning vault-horse routine, snagged Grace’s bar apron with my free hand, and with sheer desperate strength, yank all three back together, right as the beast’s slavering maw snapped shut on empty air where Grace’s head had been just milliseconds before. Through pure accident of positioning, my toes raked across it’s eyes as my leg swung around and I slammed them back down on the pegs, jammed the throttle all the way open, even as Grace somehow managed to complete the circle I’d pulled her in, ending by straddling my hips, arms and hair akimbo while we slid sideways, fortunately tires first. 

Grace’s eyes were wider than a kid who opened their eyes to Disneyland on a Christmas morning as she slammed into me, and I used our momentum to get the bike fully upright, only barely escaping a second snap from the beast as it lunged again, trying to tear us apart. 

That near miss, and the sigh of relief I almost let happen, didn’t get a chance to last long. 

Her damn hair was in my face, which at any other time, wouldn’t have been a problem, really, but just at that second, was incredibly, blindingly, distracting. And it might have saved our lives. 

Something hot burned into my shoulder and face as the sound of crashing metal and people yelling slammed into me. Hm, spicy.

“Shit! Watch out! Sorry!” Grace called to the one lady who wasn’t running for the hills as we smashed through her food cart. Can you get third-degree barbecue sauce burns? Food trays, sauces and meat all went flying as we dervished our way right through the middle of her street-side restaurant, sweet and spicy and sticky all at once, all over the ground, and all over me and Grace as well. I couldn’t think of anything more than just keeping everything together and moving forward. Run. The only thought occupying my mind. Just run.

“Hey.”

The softness of her voice is what brought me back to the girl squished up against me and out of the rabbit-instinct flight mode I was in. 

I don’t know why but for some reason, my brain decided that was the perfect moment to notice that I’d never realized how captivating the color brown could be. Grace’s eyes were less than inches from mine, and I froze for a second. Again. 

“I think it’s stopped.”

I glanced back. The beast had been right on top of us when we hit the food cart, but now it was standing there in the middle of the sidewalk, sniffing around for all the world like the biggest, dumbest, glowiest dog you’ve ever seen. OK, a dog that could tear a truck apart like a box of tissues, but still. 

“What the hell is it doing?” 

“Maybe it’s hungry.”

I didn’t realize I’d said that out loud. I’d never seen one of these things just...stop like that. It didn't make sense. 

No time to think of that right now, just enough time to dart down another alley, blocking the beast from view as it sat down to lap up all the spilled barbecued beef at its feet. 

As we weaved and darted through alleys and parking lots, squeezing through sidewalks and darting across small streets, I started to recognize where we were now, and had the barest inkling of a plan besides ‘get away without dying.’

“Whatever that thing is, I think it likes barbecue.”   

Grace’s whispered comment snapped me back to what was right in front of me, the whole reason I was in this kind of mess again in the first place. . 

“Hunh?”

“I think it stopped to eat at the barbecue stand we knocked over. It’s not chasing us anymore- look.”

I tried to check the mirror again, only to find they’d both been ripped off by now, so switched to glancing over my shoulder quickly, and saw no ominous glow behind us, other than the few street lamps on the small boulevard we were going down. 

“Barbecue?” I was still pretty confused. Probably drunk too. But definitely confused. 

Grace’s laugh was carried away on the night like fireworks swept away in a light breeze. “Well, I dunno what the hell that thing was, but I haven’t met anyone yet who wouldn’t drop everything for good barbecue, honey.”

Raising an eyebrow, I laughed, “Well it’s good to see I’m not the only one here who can make wildly ridiculous comments with horrible timing!”

“Funny the things you think about when you should be focusing on other stuff that’s a little more important, hunh? Like right now, all I can think about is a nice rack of ribs.” Grace grew quieter as her head sank back down on to my shoulder. “Where we headed, sugar?”

“Somewhere close. Safe. I think.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The old loft was just as dank and dirty and run down on the inside as it looked on the outside. Probably worse. No diamonds in the rough here, that’s for sure. Broken glass scattered on the beat up industrial floor scattered the glow of the streetlight through the mist that filled the space. Definitely not up to my usual standard, but hey, we couldn’t really complain too much.

Throwing an old, discarded, and probably moldy, but definitely more disgusting than I wanted to ever touch again, mover’s blanket over the plate window helped to at least hide a little bit of how gross this place looked. Plus, privacy. A quick scan around and I found a pile of old tarps and a couple skeezy mattresses that I definitely wasn’t going to think about where they’d been or who’d done what on them for how long. It’d have to do. A dirty mattress was a small price to pay for still being alive.

"It's not the Four Seasons, but it'll do for now. It's kinda cold- I don't think the building even has heat, but I think we can keep warm enough to make it through the rest of tonight at least."

Grace flopped down heavily on the mattress, exhausted, shoulders slumped, staring vacantly at the floor.

"That was...was that...I don't even know where to start. My brain's been turned to oatmeal. What…? What happened? What in the name of all fucks just happened?"

“Yeah, there’s kind of a lot to unpack here isn’t there?” I just crumpled down into one of the old blankets like a sock puppet being dropped into its nest. “I’m not even sure where to begin.”

“Ya think? Like one minute, I’m trying to mind my business, working my shift at the bar, wondering whether I’m going to have to give another statement to the cops after another bar fight breaks out, and the next I’m getting tossed around like a hot sweet-potato, almost get eaten by a glowing, walking catfish that got beaten a little too hard with the ugly stick, get covered in barbecue sauce, do-si-doed by a goddamn motorcycle ninja, only to wind up in some place that looks like it was lifted straight out of Zillow for Crackheads!”

A snort of wry, tired amusement escaped me. “Yeah, I guess it really does look that bad here. I mean, I’m surprised this place is even still standing after all this time, but you’re right, it definitely looks a bit sketchy.”

“Way to avoid the point, hun.”

“Yeah, I know.” Not sure why, but she kept making me nervous, and the way she was sort of frowning while pinning me down with those sparkling coffee eyes definitely wasn’t helping. Probably just wasn’t used to people making eye contact. Which was the whole reason I was in this mess to begin with. Another sigh. 

“Alright. I’ll explain as much as I can. You deserve that much.”

Grace flopped down on the edge of the mattress, chin propped in her hands for all the world like a kid during goddamn story time. How the hell was I supposed to concentrate when she’s doing things like that? Look away! Only way to save myself for now. 

“OK, here goes. So the thing you saw? Well, it’s a…” I scowled. “It’s a...sunuvabitch, I don’t really know what it’s called. Alright, further back then. The basics. Got it.

“Supernatural things exist. Like you believe that humans are the highest species on this planet and that you’re all alone in the universe, and no one can quite agree on whether there was anything before or after this life or what happens when you die, right? Well, a lot of what most people believe to be myth or religious superstition is actually, um, real.”

So she hasn’t tried to run away just yet. That’s a good sign, right?

“From what I’ve been able to piece together, from the bits I can remember, what you would call ‘heaven’ and ‘hell’ are real places- they’re just not really visible to mortals. Most of the time. ‘Angels’ and ‘demons’ are real things too, but they’re a little bit different than most people tend to think of them from what I’ve seen. 

“I don’t know how many there are, but there’s angels and demons walking around, living just like you and me, every day. The thing is, that mortals like you can’t see them. And that’s where the problem is.”

“Like me?” It wasn’t really a question. Her tone made that clear enough.

“Oh boy. OK, here’s the big one- because with the heaven and hell stuff, most people can be like ‘meh, it’s all superstitious nonsense anyway’ and brush it off. This? Not so much. 

“I’m not human. Or mortal. I can see angels and demons walking around plain as day, just like the ones I’ve met can see me. Mortals...see something else.”

“Like the creep at the bar earlier? Did he see...something else? In you?”

“Yeah. On the outside, at first glance, I look like any other girl. But look closer? Well, you saw what happened. People just aren’t ready to see my real nature.”

“But that didn’t happen to me.” Now Grace was looking a little bit confused- but the kind of confused you get when a teacher is explaining something that you know should make sense, even if you were having a hard time getting it. 

“No, it didn’t. And it took me way too long to pick up on that. I should’ve realized right away. If I had, maybe I could have gotten you out of there faster and that whole ‘sweet potato’ thing wouldn’t have happened.”

“So what should I be seeing? When I look into your eyes I mean?”

“Probably something along the lines of falling through an eternally expanding universe, a sense that you’re tinier than a piece of sand in the scope of the cosmos, that sort of thing. At least, that’s what I’ve heard from a couple of the ones who were able to be slightly coherent afterwards. There haven’t been many of those over the years.”

“Wow. I definitely don’t see that.”

“And that’s the problem, really. I’ve never heard of something like that happening before. I don’t know what it means, or why you can, or anything! All I know is that something is very, very different, and very, very wrong, otherwise that thing wouldn’t have been after us. And right now, I don’t know if what’s wrong is you, or me, or both of us. But we need to find out if we’re going to not be looking over our shoulders for...what did you call it again?”

Grace laughed. A genuine laugh, not weighed down by worry or terror. “A glowing, walking catfish?”

“Ha ha, yeah, that got beaten too many times with the ugly stick!”

Grace sat up suddenly, nodding sharply to herself. “Alright, well, you’re either batshit crazy, or I owe my gran an apology.” Grace was still half chuckling, but looking very intent. 

“Your gran?”

“Yeah, she was super religious, always prayin’, talkin’ and singin’ about god. She must’ve gone to church three times a week! Boy, would she have loved to hear all this.”

“I’ll bet!”

“So, I just wanna make sure I’ve got all the stuff you said- angels are real, and something’s wrong with the fact that I can see your real eyes, and not like, the fires of the Big Bang or something, but you don’t know why that’s a problem or what caused it.. Right?”

“I’d say that about covers it for now, yeah.”

“Alright, I can live with that much for now. I’m clean tuckered out, and you look like you’re about to just fall over any second now. Whaddya say we call it a night?”

“Yeah.” I really could barely keep my eyes open at this point. I guess pretending my motorbike was a juggling pin kind of took it out of me.

Grace popped up, suddenly all business.

“So doesn’t look like this place has a big ol’ tub to dump you in, so we’ll have to settle for a couple of wet wipes. Here, help me get these blankets on to the mattress here. They’re gross, but it’s better than freezing to death.”

“You’re the boss!” Those wet wipes were a pocket-sized blessing, wrapped in foil paper. I’m more of a Chanel and gunpowder type, not so big on the earthy, barbecue scents.

I was starting to stumble a bit as we plopped the discarded blankets down as well as we could in the relative darkness of the loft.

“Probably better to stay dressed with how dirty these blankets are.” Grace frowned as she watched me struggle to pick up one of the heavier blankets a couple of times.

That didn’t even register until much later.

“OK, you, lay down. No more for you tonight. Sleep.”

I couldn’t even argue with her. I just curled up in a ball on the bed, barely aware of Grace pulling a couple of the blankets over me, but I thought I could just make out her arm resting on mine as we both drifted off into the heavy, dreamless sleep that comes when you’ve been pushed to your limits. At least, I kind of hope it was. 

=============================================

Story tag list

@random-with-garlic @a-dinosaurs-left-phgkneecap @flower-in-the-ashes @nixabee @luvnaught @pens-swords-stuff @alice-and-cheshire-cat @humans-are-seriously-weird @flying-f1shsticks @Neil-gaiman @glumshoe @lykanyouko @kaylewiswrites @just-a-bit-paranoid @thatsmybluefondue @Alice-and-Cheshire-cat @violet-galaxies @biggest-gaidiest-patronuses @midnight-spectrum-again @slytherinlovespuff @friendofcybermen @hemi528i @mirbisduschoen @khelladon @walkin-in-the-cosmos

As always, if you want to be added to or removed from the tag list, just shoot me a message and your wish is my command. 

#flight from grace #supernatural #angels #demons #angelic fiction #wip #story #writeblr

[noisymiagy]

15 Smart Ways to Avoid Getting Sick When You Travel

Assume getting ill while you journey is inevitable? Think once more.

Extra than 2.5 million passengers board a plane within the united states alone each and each day. And whilst many are looking forward to sitting on a beach somewhere getting a sun-kissed glow, limitless others will experience a much less-exceptional holiday side impact: getting unwell.

Among recycled air, questionable food, and jet lag, vacationers regularly locate that their immune systems are down for the remember, making their trip depressing within the manner. And while hand-washing can assist restriction a number of the germs you stumble upon on your travels, there's only a lot a sink and some soap can do. However,  just due to the fact you've got continued sidelining tour illness before would not imply you need to once more.

We've got rounded up 28 clever ways to avoid getting unwell while you travel. So examine on, and live happier and more healthy in your subsequent adventure.

1-Sanitize Surfaces—Starting on the Plane

At the same time as cleaning crews do their first-class to preserve the plane easily, they can't tackle each germ. If you need to avoid getting ill from the germs left at the back of by means of different passengers, there is an easy answer: sanitize.

"while journeying, your palms turn out to be 'fomites,' which can be gadgets that switch germs picked up from touching surfaces," says dermatologist Cynthia Bailey, m.D., founder of dr. Bailey pores and skincare. Her concept? "travel with hand sanitizer wipes! Constantly wipe down the arms, far-flung, seat belt clip, and all tough buttons or systems you contact in your seat. Then discard the wipe. Use a brand new one for your palms." and while you want to live secure at some stage in your travels

2-Stay Hydrated on the Plane

That stale airplane air can quickly depart someone feeling dehydrated and commonly worse for put on. Fortuitously, consuming the proper ingredients can help fight this very quickly.

"I advocate ingesting mild and water-crammed foods, inclusive of a small salad and a chunk of fruit, and drinking lots of water on the aircraft because the air humidity is lots lower than our normal surroundings and it is so clean to end up dehydrated," says Dr. Tara Nayak, nd, a Philadelphia-based naturopathic doctor. And in case you need to hydrate extra healthily, high-tail it to one of the 25 US Towns with the fine ingesting water.

3-Get Your Shots

Earlier than you even e book your journey, ensure you are up to date on your shots. If you're visiting to a place where you're at danger for selecting up an illness like malaria, you is probably prescribed preventative medicine, as properly. "humans should use the cdc internet site for advocated vaccines with travel or see a travel health facility," recommends dr. Christina bowen, a board-certified integrative own family medication medical doctor.

4-Avoid Ice

In case you're going to a place wherein you have the motive to be concerned approximately the water quality, ensure to order your liquids with out ice. Even after freezing, tons of the micro organism and different contaminants inside the water, along with lead, will nonetheless remain. "do no longer order ice if the water's in question," says Dr. Bowen. "and most effective drink bottled drinks."

5-Get Up Periodically Throughout Your Flight

In case you're in for a protracted flight before you reach your vacation spot, ensure you get up periodically to stretch your legs.

"it's far critical to break up long plane rides or long vehicle rides via getting up often to move round and stretch. This could assist decrease your danger of blood clots. It could also save you again from aching after you have been slouching for hours within the equal role in a tiny seat," says Dr. Jasmine Marcus, DPT.

6-Load Up On the Right Vitamins

Want to reduce your risk of getting sick even before you touch down? The right supplements can help. "I always take a bit of vitamin A and vitamin D before boarding a plane to improve my immune function," says Dr. Nayak. 

7-Add Some Probiotics to Your Routine

While you can't always control the number of illness-causing bacteria in your environment while you travel, you can control how your body responds. "While on vacation, I always up my dose of probiotics to make my body less friendly to invading bacteria!" says Dr. Nayak.

8-Skip the Booze on Your Flight

While having a cocktail to ease the stress of your flight may seem appealing, if you want to avoid getting sick, it's best to abstain. "I advise strongly against drinking alcohol while aboard a plane! I know it's tempting to get your vacation started but it only contributes to dehydration," says Dr. Nayak. Worse yet, alcohol can contribute to jet lag, leaving you sleep-deprived and at greater risk for illness.

9-Get Plenty of Sleep

While it may be tempting to stay up and explore, getting a good night's rest when you arrive at your destination will reduce your likelihood of getting sick in the long run. Researchers at the University of Washington have discovered a link between sleep deprivation and a suppressed immune system, so make sure to catch those Zs whenever you can.

10-Stick to Your Exercise Routine

Suppose you can skimp on exercising simply due to the fact you are on excursion? Assume once more. Researchers at the college of illinois, urbana-champaign have located that exercising can lessen the chance of developing breathing tract infections and shorten their duration, so ensure you're not skipping the gym.

11-Bring Mosquito Netting

If you're traveling to an area with a high risk of mosquito-borne illness, make sure you pack mosquito netting, recommends Dr. Bowen. Not only will this help you reduce your risk of these potentially-deadly illnesses, knowing you have an extra layer of protection may also improve your sleep.

12-Load Up on Vitamin C-Rich Foods

The proper snack can make all the difference in how wholesome you are—and stay—while journeying. Flip to nutrition c-wealthy foods, like citrus fruit and bell peppers, to maintain that immune machine going robust. Researchers at the University of Otago in Christchurch, New Zealand have located that nutrition c now not simplest boosts immune function, assisting folks who load up on it lessen their threat of turning into unwell but also enables shorten the period of positive breathing ailments.

13-Cover Up

Preserving your pores and skin covered while you're on a  journey permits you to avoid serious sunburns that could in any other case sideline you. "put on defensive apparel, like long sleeves and pants which have a breathable cloth, in hot regions," suggests Dr. Bowen.

14-Increase Your Fiber Intake

One clean way to hold yourself healthy while you journey? "get masses of fiber!" says dr. Nayak. "I suggest eating as plenty of clean fruit and vegetables as you may even as on holiday unless you are involved approximately infection! A breakfast of clean fruit with a chunk of protein is first-rate as you may be imparting your body with diet c and other minerals and vitamins that useful resource immunity."

15-Stick to a Nutritious Diet

Maintaining good health while you travel starts somewhere surprising: your gut. "Proper nutrition with a focus on good gut health will help our immune systems," says Dr. Bowen. Fiber-rich foods, as well as ones rich in probiotics, like yogurt, pickles, and kimchi, will all help feed your healthy gut bacteria, boosting your immune system in the process. 

“ Vacation is all about relaxing, but for many people, travel is a stressful experience in and of itself. Unfortunately, if you find yourself stressed out on your trip, you may be at greater risk for illness.“ so relax and enjoy your moment.

#health #travel #articleoftheday #travelingadvices #healthadvices #firsttimetravelers

[strawberryybird]

So whats your favorite thing about each of your fe3h favs? Anything you could just go on a long rant about for any of them? or interactions between them that you wish had happened or wanted to happen.

Waking up in the morning and going through all of the drunk blogging and “-thank-u-for-weathering-my-deep-need-to-be-liked-and-given-attention-off-main-I-guess” if this isn’t a whole mood on its own I don’t know what is. Anyways it sounds like you had fun and it was definetly fun reading everything. I hope you are feeling okay the day after everything. And to tack on a random question which fe3h character would you want to get drunk with if it was just the two of you?

Hi Hello!! thank u for enjoying my drunk blogging !!! and for the asks!!! (and the lovely comments on my fics actually hi there ur wonderful!!!) i’m currently cursing the damage i’ve done to my sleep schedule and suffering under my (truly deserved) hangover lmao ;p apologies u don’t get drunk me, only uncaffeinated hangover me, but we talk to the same degree and make the same spelling errors lol

ah yes.. im a fountain of moods (all of u still with me here are saints hhhh)

ok content time:

the second one first: i absolutely want to get drunk with ferdinand von aegir. the man’s a hop, skip and a vodka shot away from a mess. i love him. he’d be full of conversation and would buy the rounds every time as a true nobleman should !! he’d probably be really good at instigating drinking games but horrible at playing them.. i love party gay ferdie von aegir.

i’m going to LIMIT the faves i list because truly i love them all very much but i have to at least pretend i have some restraint and i don’t want to make this even More of a wall of text it’s going to become . SO 

edit: ok i started writing this at like. half ten pm. when the fuck did it become monday. 

edit edit: Disclaimer time: these are my conclusions and my conclusions alone. I’m not saying I’m objectively right or correct. I’m very much approaching this from an English Lit-ish point of view because that’s just how I look at a lot of media. I’m not asserting my opinions or conclusions as the only viable to interpret this media, and if anything I say offends you then I am sorry, it was not my intention but I acknowledge that I have hurt you. This is not the exhaustive list of my thoughts on the whole thing, there’s a lot more depth and detail I didn’t go in to.

My favourite thing about Edelgard is the Everything, but notably I really love her proud nature and how in VW it quite directly gets her *spoilered*, and in CF it’s integral to her success (bc it’s her own rigidity within herself that keeps her standing i think) and I Like Tragic Characters (and it’s very elinor dashwood). because it’s one of the qualities that can throw her character into a villainous light & it’s really interesting !! but at the same time.. it’s not quite ‘pride’ purely, and it’s kinda the wrong word. it’s some mixture of determined/stubbon, anger, self-reliance, and that really hard veneer of personality u develop when you’re around people who aren’t healthy for you to be around, and the very very critical need to be right about the choices you made because the weight of the  consequences would kinda ruin you if you weren’t. (the dean winchester effect huh) and wrap that up together with a big scoop of ‘i believe my way is right’ (’and my way Has to be right’) and then u get a lot of what i LOVE about Edelgard’s character

My favourite thing about Dorothea is really how she was the character that Hated the war. genuinely the contrast between white clouds dorothea & timeskip dorothea Breaks My Heart EVery Time I See Her !!!!! that and Spoilers!!! (her last words in AM unrecruited is edelgards name and i literally had to stop and cry about it for five minutes.) she’s one of the characters that post-war doesn’t have a Massive political stake in the war - like there’s her anger towards the current class system (another reason i bloody love her PLEASE give me angry feminine characters) but i think it’s her bonds with edie (or byleth&whoever if recruited) that keep her actually fighting in the war & it’s kinda different and i like that (actually i think she parallels/sends up/contrasts really really nicely with mercedes in that way)

my favourite thing about Marianne is just everything. how she finds worth within herself if you play VW (and the very very harrowing hc that she didn’t if you don’t), how she’s full of a quiet rage for the crest system but you eek it out of her as you play the game. how she’s still loved by the deers despite her appalling mental health (fight me on that canon) and the game essentially has her ‘save’ herself by finding worth and life within herself. i love her so much ok. (i also love her because she committed identity theft.. she and i share a name with the second dashwood sister oho (but i don’t use that name on the internet hhh) (also because my favourite shakespeare play is king lear (no really it is), my birthday is in red wolf moon too, i used to have very long hair i wore in a plait most days for school, little 11 and 17 year old me acted Exactly like white clouds marianne did & genuinely i love marianne von edmund to pieces but God it hurts to see her in game sometimes bc her journey mirrors a lot of mine & i love this character. so much.) WOW that was a lot. am i sure im not still drunk

so claude is not only one of my favourite characters in the whole damn game, but also shares the name of one of my favourite painters so i simply have to love him ;p however i can’t give a proper opinion on him yet because i haven’t finished playing deers yet :( but !! i love how (as is with all the lords) he has a veneer of personality to him, but in contrast to Edie where it’s quite seemless with her actual personality, Claude’s veneer of personality seems very opaque and plastered on. i may or may not just be wildly imagining things but he’s a very different personality in his lower supports with Lysithea than he is in his B support with Marianne, for instance. like, i love characters that are obviously a lot more socially intelligent than i could ever be, and claude is *chef kiss* BEAUTIFUL ON EVERY LEVEL.

i’d wax lyrical about Ingrid too but honestly there’s many better people out there with the good ingrid content than i could do. shortly, i love the New Take on the pegasus knight archetype she brings, and i really like her perspective on femininity !!! she’s such a good character & she brings so much to the game and to the pegasus knight character too!!!!! she’s such a bright personality and altho i wish so many of her supports weren’t centred around make-up (hhh dorogrid fans i pray for you), i think she’s really going to pave the way for whoever’s next in that character slot. (like, you can’t tell me she’s not an offshoot of Phila from awakening lmao)

no ok i’m adding in Hubert because i love this vampire man. i really really love the devoted servant archetype and we all know i love edelgard’s tragedy. and i love hubert. so much. the way he enables edelgard in pretty much everything is just so so interesting to think about, and i love his intensity about it. he’s like the ever present reminder that edelgard’s will kinda has to work otherwise the potential consequences of her being wrong are personified in hubert imo. it’s only touched on in VW in his letter but like. god i wish we got more but it’s a wonderful starting block. i love his comic relief as well, he’s such a fun character to have !!!! and also i have so many hubert fics in my bookmarks that just Get him. i love hubert. oh i love hubert.

i’m going to cut myself off there because . that’s just a LOT. 

as for characters i would sell a limb to have them talk to each other, honestly it’s Edelgard/Marianne. (and only 51% because of all the projection i have going on with those two ok don’t at me i  k n o w). that support chain would be too powerful and honestly i wish they had one becuauese it would have gone so Hard about what Edelgard was doing and what Marianne thought about it, and how they connected over it & they probably would have had their supports set over cups of tea or smth .. it would have been amazing. 

(but i’d rather have nothing than an awakening-level-content support where they talk about eating fucking bear meat instead of talking about how they grew to trust each other with and their ability to save the fate of the world HUH AWAKENING. (i’m salty about fredrobin forever)

also hilda/dorothea supports . we were robbed. they’re best friends and you can’t actually tell me otherwise. they run the disaster bi chat of garreg mach. honestly i just would Love a support chain for them that starts with them talking about self care routines and something really small like accessories or perfume and it goes into how self-esteem and how dorothea has to find the same worth in herself as hilda so easily can. (hilda’s the queen of self esteem she’s a babe) and in CF they could have dialogue and then we cry about it. and in SS they talk about how they both chose their place with Byleth and not at edie/claude’s side like i’m just free balling here it could be Anything and i’d love it. 

also big shocker .. dorothea/marianne supports . they both hate themselves in their profile CAN THEY PLEASE CHAT. 

also i accidentally fell in love with the claude/edelgard ship and i desperately need them to interact on the same level that edie and dimitri get to because.. aren’t there supposed to be three main characters huh intsys .. and like i get what the game goes for with two of the lords embroiled in a personal war against each other at the heart and the third actually finding something close to the truth because he’s not involved in age old grudge matches but at the same time That’s one of the things that really really falls flat for me in the game. dimitri’s villain is edie, edie’s villain is big dragon wife, claude’s villain is the lack of communication that everyone in fodlan suffers from apparently. lack of communication and lies. ymmv with what im saying rn but i would have preferred if all three lords had strong personal ties to each other and in Each Route it was brought up. or just snip dimitri’s dialogue out of CF because i have beef with how that WHOLE moment went down on so many accounts hhhh honestly it makes me angerey to think about lol

.. back on topic- can the lords pls talk to each other because it would be SO interesting in white clouds and i like seeing how their personality presentations clash

also . can i marry manuela yet. my crops are dying here.

.. im so sorry about this but it’s midnight and i’m too tired to edit so. have this. thank you so much for the questions!!!! very kind (and brave) of you to ask me!!!!! i had a lot of fun writing all of this & as always if anything you didn’t quite /get/ i’m happy to re-explain myself!! :)

#ask #OH HELL THIS IS A POST HUH #fe meta #i mean it's not its just me having opinions rather loudly on ur dash #also that paragraph about edelgard is pretty much what i keep in mind to write her for my rtau fic #this is LONG im SO SORRY but NOT SORRY AT ALL #ur an actual angel if u sat thru this all #anyway. thank u so much for the ask that's so kind of u and i sent this mess back out into the world #my apologies oml #ok it's gone midnight im hitting post before i chaneg my mind #kalinary

[dukevividwriting]

Afterglow

    It's been three months. Three months since they decided to leave. Three months since she decided to go with him.  Since they decided to grab their bags, grab her sword, Grab Lion, grab anything else they need, pack the dondai and leave Beach city for a while.

  It was a hard decision, but in the end Steven wanted this, felt he needed this. A break from the adventure and the stress of being the galaxy savior, being pink diamond, being an active crystal gem..

  A break from Gem stuff in general and allow them to find their own way..and for him to find his.

  As for Connie, her college had online classes. Her wandering wouldn't hinder that, but even if it didn't she would have happily take a year or two off. She too felt a bit stressed staying in Delmarva and felt lost in what she wanted for the future..especially with all the changes happening thanks to gem-human cohabitation steadily reaching past the U.S.

  The only thing either of them considered a diamond clad truth was they wanted the other to be part of their future. 

  After many arguments, conversation, promises to stay in touch, a tearful going away party and a non-negotiable monetary bubble of (a seemingly inexhaustible) 200 thousand in Connie's student account; they left one adventure and began another. 

  That was in the spring… That was three months ago..

  She moaned as she felt the warmth of the morning sun shined on her brown skin. Her eyes fluttered gently as she slowly opened her black eyes, still in a small daze getting her bearings of their room at the quaint little beach-side bed and breakfast. She listened to the waves outside as she stretched in the morning sun. 

  She let a little smile comes to her lips as she felt a large arm tug around her waist pulling her bare back to a warm chest. Calming snores and slightly heated breath from her comfortable companion  tickled her nape, causing her toes to flex. She laid her hand upon his. Her left hand. 

  The one which now bore one of two matching gemless gold bands on her ring finger. One she, for the last two years, hid under her clothes; she now proudly shows off.. 

  "Couldn't do three months ago." a quiet muse as she gazed at both their left hands ...each which bore a ring on the appropriate finger.

  She sighed..It really been just three months since they left Beach City to go on this journey with her Biscuit.  Three month of traveling to new places, meeting new people and building new friendships, camping outside rather it was in the car, in a bubble or with no protection. 

  Three months of new experiences and memories, like teaching Steven how to snowboard, scavenge and speak tamil. Off learning how to play the guitar, speak spanish and cook a proper meal.  Of doing odd jobs just for the sake of it and sometimes fighting off some gem who might not agree with era 3.

  Three months of waking up beside him, in his grasp. Of watching him sleep just in case a nightmare hits him, he gets them more than most think.

  Three months of learning more and reaffirming what they already know about each other. Of being completely done with each other due to their own quirks. Connie's studious yet sometimes overbearing  attitude towards her online classes, and Steven fancy free attitude clashed on more than one occasions.

  Though even when they were at their very  limits with one another..when they were completely  silent to each other...They'd never went to sleep without the other and always found themselves touching one another the next morning. Rather it was a simple linger touch of their fingers or deep within the other arms as if they were holding their own life they always found each other the next morning.

  Three months of rediscovering themselves and each other.. Of redefining 'them' and falling in love over and over again. That came to ahead last night though.  

  It started out simple enough.

   They came to this coastal town the day before, a very multicultural place, larger than beach city easily three times it size. They arrived at time of an annual festival for the town's founding. The streets were littered with people dancing to such music like reggaeton, soca, calypso and such, eating local delicacy, playing games like soccer and dominoes. 

  While getting to the bed and breakfast was hard. Getting the room was easy enough allowing them to  partake in the celebration. Though lion had to remain scarce as possible. What a room it was.  

  Cozy but not to small with a wooden and bamboo interior, two chestnut end tables on the sides of a canopy king size bed with silk forest green bedding and ocean blue canopy linens. They matched the large closet on the eastern side of the room. A flat screen television embedded in the wall in front of the bed as well as above a large tan dresser desk.  That was all nice, but nothing compared to the white sand palm trees and crystal blue waters outside their window. It was different from Steven's home..It felt tropical, exotic..Sexy.

  They wanted to explore  but traveling did take more out of them than they thought, and the ocean air was soothing. The two opt to nap instead.

  It was evening when they woke up and the blue sky was a beautiful orange and purple twilight. The music was still playing basically, urging them for an adventure.  After changing to more appropriate attires, they went out to the streets.

  Steven dressed in a simple light pink button up with some tan khakis, his sandals and a bamboo hat. Connie wore blue and red striped double slit dress with a denim vest and some white flats. The dress showed off her figure from the v-cut neckline to the thighs were the slits began. Her hair was in two mid back-length braids with two orchids at the beginning of each braid, placed by Steven of course. Also the rings under their clothing on a necklace.

  They went to various places. The visited stands that offered sweets like macaroons, Drinks like coconut milk straight from coconut (which they were more than happy to share) and food like fried gecko and scorpion. Which while Steven was a bit skeptical, Connie took it in stride and found it quite enjoyable, the gecko a bit more than the scorpion...On the account that  Scorpio was her sign and the gecko had more meat to offer. 

  They found boutiques and antique shops. They really just looked around the antique shop though. Steven swore to the diamonds there was a damn duplication wand there, out of commission as it was. He also found some Crystal star earrings for Connie. The boutique was a bit more fun, trying out different  clothing, masks, accessories and all.

  Though she did have some fun teasing Steve when she pulled off a seashell bikini off the rack and ask him what he thought she would look like in it. Seeing him go red was her second favorite moment. Her first was his admission that he would like to see her in it. She arched an eyebrow, gave a grin and try to ignore her burning cheek, before choosing a black and cobalt wrap monokini that left Steven speechless...and the seashell as well when he wasn't looking.

  After making a quick stop  back to the room with their purchases, they went to a lounge called 'Eclipse.' The atmosphere was a lot more intimate  than what was going on outside. The place was large, dimly lit with multiple private booths, a bar and a dance floor where most of the patrons were at the moment.  After getting themselves sited in a corner over seeing the place in its entirety. 

  They didn't eat anything, filling themselves on the street cuisine; but they did order a few drinks. Red wine for Steven and to Connie's surprise Crème de cassis. Connie arched her left eyebrow at how 'friendly'  their server was to Steven, who seemed to unwittingly bask in the attention. Connie wasn't a fan, but she didn't let that sour her mood.

  Not with the way he was looking at Connie. She felt a little shy under her Biscuit gaze, even more so when he gave her a roguish half smile. Before teasing her about her being jealous.

  His smug tone he used pissed her off for some reason, and as much as she wish it didn't, she could tell it showed on her face. Just as she was about to explain her piece, there server came back with one red wine glass..and two glasses of Crème de cassis, catching them both off guard. Their server nodded towards the bar.

  There sat a beautiful full-figured woman with dark skin, green eyes, black shoulder length shaved hair with silver tips, slightly flat nose and thin  lips painted red. She was on the short side, figuring she come to at least the torso of the five-nine Connie. Her attire was simple, a red tank top, black bell bottoms, platform sandals and golden space theme dropped earring. 

  She nodded towards Connie as she held her own glass of Feni up, before turning around and taking a sip.

  Connie looked positively impish at Steven's dissatisfaction. returning the favor, joking about Steven's jealousy.

  Steven didn't say anything as he gulped his red wine down in one swallow, a glare plastered on his face. He took a deep breath before saying something both completely off-guard, yet true to Steven. 

  He told Connie she should take the invitation and talk to the girl.

  Connie hung her head to the lift a bit quizzically and a bit annoyed...She knew he didn't want her to but his empathetic martyr complex, his need to be selfless sometimes caused problems. This was one of those times.

  She questioned him and made sure to emphasize  her displeasure in her voice. She wanted him to be truthful in what he wanted, to say no and stated that she was there with him.

  In the end he turned it around on her. Made it her choice.

  Connie sucked her teeth and nodded a few times before she stood up and signaled the girl over to join them, scooting over as she did.

  Steven kept as neutral as he possibly could as  'Renee' joined them and took every opportunity to flirt with Connie. From what they learned, she wasn't a local,  only here for vacation, in which she'd be leaving the day after tomorrow...which would now be today; and was unsure of the relationship between the two, but wanted to share a drink and a dance with Connie.

  Connie couldn't help the shy giggle, she did appreciate the honest boldness of the girl and one dance couldn't hurt. Looking over at Steven who had turned his back to them and face the dancefloor. Obliviously, not enjoying himself as much as he wanted to originally. 

  Connie concern was on full display, as she poked pry and even tickled to get a smile out of the hybrid. It took a few minutes but she got him to smile and am slightly admit that yes he was jealous, while nuzzling close to her, forgetting  about the present audience at the moment. Steven was always an affectionate apologist when it came to her, vice versa as well.

  Renee excused herself with a defeated smirk, stating that it's not her style to get in between a couple. Something they didn't deny . 

  That being said Connie did ask for her to hold for a moment, stating that she would indeed share a dance with her, glancing back at Steven, wanting his say...She was with him after all. 

  Steven nodded, previous discontent  gone as he relaxed with a stretched, watching Connie get dragged off into the sea of people with a new friend (admirer). 

  A single dance is all she shared with Renee, A fun slightly flirty, and eye catching dance to an R&B song in which Renee lead. Just that one song with Renee and the girl was gone. Not without thanking her for the time though, giving the knuckle a simple kiss and a number to call..just in case. Connie had to admit, Renee was certainly memorable.

  Though Renee was gone, Connie was on that floor until the lounge closed, 5 am. Quite a simple task for Connie, being two glasses of Cassis and having a  less inebriated Steven as her partner...her plaything.. for the rest of the time made it so.

  She doesn't remember all that was said during their time, but she remembered everything else. Her more than once purring his name and making him snarl hers due to each other sensual manipulation. Such as the surprising touches he laid upon certain erogenous zones, and the feel of his shallow breath and chap lips on her collarbone. Her lingering strokes on his scalp, nape, and forearms. The rhythmic, controlled, teasingly sensual movements of everything from her navel to her thighs upon his body.

  They found themselves completely lost in their own realm as they rocked, grind and grooved to music as their bodies burn, pores sweated, and hearts melted together..for each other. It was sportive, it was passionate, It was freeing, It was an exploratory. Most of all, it was natural...Dear god was it natural. It was a night to remember.

  The walk back to the bed and breakfast was less exciting, but more more serene. The sun was  actually about to rise when everyone stumble or walk out of 'Eclipse', the latter for them. Tired but full of heartfelt love they strolled the streets in a comfortable silence pinkies interlocked and swinging. Stealing looks of admiration and silent bashful giggles. 

  It took another fifteen minutes to get to their room and an extra five to strip off their clothes and get to bed. Leaving them in their undergarments with a light cover over them they faced each other. The effects of the alcohol burned off, fatigue setting in, and yet the emotions from earlier was burning even more. Which is why she hungrily reciprocated, when Steven kissed her deeply. Interlocking their hands together as she whimpered and pleaded for more. 

  There was more to be had..More kissing, caressing, and touching...More gasping, giggles, and exploration… More passion, heat, and moisture. More nerves being racked... More tears being shed...More love...So much more than ever before. 

  It was no wonder they woke up at 2 in the afternoon  the next day. Her head on his strong chest, his hand on her taut stomach. She woke to his tired groan, an  instinctive smile on her face as he pulled her closer. He looked at her with a loving smile, his eyes glowing  as if he was looking at a sacred treasure. Before he could finish his greeting. She took his lips with hers,making his hair stand in shocking,  and eyes wide in surprise, before he succumbed to the pleasure.

  The lovestruck look in his star like stare was more than enough for her to say those three words. Only for him to beat her to it, bringing out her laughter and tears that follow with more kisses and playful wrestling in the cozy room, ending up with her on Steven's lap and tight grasp, getting necked on her collarbone.  They played like that to the evening. 

  It was evening when they left the room and headed to the beach. The temperature, still as hot as it has been since yesterday. Connie in her new swimsuit that she filled out perfect  and Steven in a pair of red trunks with a star pattern on left leg. Their rings were left on the nightstand in the room. 

  They walked along the beach listening to the waves; taking in the sight of the orange and purple sky meeting soon to be midnight blue ocean, Steven behind her but their hands still in contact. They spoke on their stroll. About home, about  Connie college classes and the possibility of Steven taking some,, about gems stuff. 

  About their next destination, about wherever lion could be, about revisiting this place. About everything, except about them.

  Connie paused before turning to Steven. Determination on her face as she asked him for his view on what passed so far. What were they? Are they friends still or something more? Does he want this..Really want this?  Steven smirked before kissing her forehead, lifting her up, carrying her out to the sea and dropping her into waist deep waters.

  Seeing her spring back to reality and looking like a drenched water nymph made him laugh. Connie didn't find it funny...When she whipped her hair to his face soaking him completely leaving him in shock, she may have found that a little funny… Her arms cross under her breast  with a smirk of satisfaction as she watched him wipe theater of his face nodding with a devilish chuckle. 

  The two looked at each other with mischievous glints daring the other to make a move. Steven kicked water up in attempt to soak her, only for her to dodge him tossing up water simultaneously. Steven blocked by creating a quick shield before to cover his face. Connie didn't even have the time to complain  as he scooped water with said shield and flung a wave of water at her forcing her to dive under.  

  He was caught off guard by a wave to the back only to see her gone, the water dark enough to cover her suit. Giving her camouflage as she swam around him. He was  caught with Another wave to the back. making him tense enough to look all around. Nothing, only to receive splash to the face from right below him. 

  By the time he was cleaning his face ,Connie had already moved to her next position. She had to try not to laugh underwater when he called her part water gem in competitive frustration. Connie swam close to him slowly and silently getting to her feet as she did.  she crept in a low crouch to him ready to tackle him into the ocean. 

  She made her move pushing off her legs and arms stretched with intent to grab him. she was surprised that he leapt to the left, just out of her range Before she hit the the ocean though she felt his hands on her hips literally keeping her suspended in the air. 

  In an impressive feat of strength, he tossed the young adult woman up above his head height before catching her in a cradle. She screamed in pure excitement as he basically ragdolled her, tossing her up and catching her effortlessly a few times bringing them to slightly deeper waters. When he caught her a fifth time holding her close, she realized what he was about to do and shook her head  and voiced her protest, despite grinning and caressing his face. He nodded before stealing a kiss and dropping back, bringing them both under. 

  They stayed close to each other while swimming back to the surface. Once there  Connie found herself floating with Steven, her arms around his shoulders and his hands folded at the her tail bone. She pouted at his smirking face as she placed her forehead on his, mad that he didn’t answer her questions but  instead started this game to avoid talking about it.

  He whispered a husky ‘yes’ into her ear as he nipped behind it.Causing her to shiver and bite her bottom lip. He gave another one for each following nip as he trailed downward, answering all questions she might have.

  Are they still friends? Yes. 

  Are they together? Yes.

  Are they more than friends? Yes.

  Does he want this..With her? Yes..A hundred times yes

  Each question was answered the same way a nip and a yes. His eyes were loving but tempered steel and his voice strong with each answer, leaving no room for disagreement or doubt. He was serious about this...About them and their new status. It warmed her heart to have her fears put to rest. To know he felt the same as her. She did have one more question though.

  Can they continue this back on the bed in their room? 

  Steven's eyes widen at her bashful blush but glistening bedroom eyes. He gave her a deep nerve trembling kiss as answer...Hell yes.

  The journey back to the room was a short five minutes, but for the two it was achingly long. Their anxiousness, shyness, excitement and a whole bevy of other emotions made the time seem to slow to a near standstill, but never deterred them from what they wanted at the moment. They were steadfast in their decision.

  Preparation took a little more time with the need for ashower for both of them, Steven suggestion  Connie freshen up first, something she readily agreed to. As she walked in the bathroom and turn on the shower Steven whistled out the window..not a few seconds past before lion made himself known walking out from under the damn building. After giving his trusty beast a bit of affection, Steven jumped inside the pink mane only for a few seconds to get the box.of protection he got a month ago.It was a practice to change his box every season if unused or unfinished..A practice forged into him by his father and Amethyst since he was sixteen. This would be the first box he ever opened. Giving his pink companion a bit more affection for his diligence, Steven sighed  with a smile. A loving smile at the thought of what was about to happen. Hearing his heartbeat in his head quicken. With a kiss on his skull, Steven sent the lion off, who walked back to which it came.

  Hearing the shower stop, Seven gulped at the bathroom door opening and Conie walking out in an adorable baby blue robe, with a white towel on her head. Red faced and looking at him from her upper peripheral she moved to the side letting him enter the bathroom. Not before giving him a chaste kiss and a quick ‘I love you’, which he returned.

  As soon as the door closed she swoon and leaped in excitement, her heart ready to burst at the seams in happiness.despite her distaste for romance in fantasy and media, She always wanted one with Steven, simply because it was Steven. Her selflessly foolhardy, wonderful, strong, always amazing Steven. He wasn’t perfect by any means, but she wouldn’t change a single thing about him inside or out. His gem powers was never even a factor to these feelings of hers, useful and cool as they were. What she felt for, fought for..left home for, was simply the person he was. The kind hearted, overly-selfless, boy with love for everyone to the  equally kind hearted but not so easily fooled man she has the honor to witness him become

  And in a few minutes..she’ll get to show him just exactly how much, how deeply she feels for him in one of the most intimately physical ways possible She found herself biting her index finger gently at the thought, just for a moment, before stripping off  the robe. She looked towards her bag and quickly dug through it to bring out her other purchase..

  The seashell bikini; with its polish shells for a waistline,cream crochet and rainbow seashell scattered bottom that was a bit snug, and cups that was slightly loose. She didn’t think she’d be using it so soon, but she didn’t have any true lingerie on hand and she wouldn’t want any other person to see her in this so it works. 

  She looked at herself in the mirror. feeling a bit self-conscious. She liked her body. A bit more booty than breast but both there. broad almost masculine shoulders, strong slightly vascular arms from years of combat training, taut and cut stomach  with impression of a four pack, long 'beefy' legs and curvy around the hips, waist, and sides. 

  She had a body made for battle, adventure, support and strength. Forged in a stubbornness mmborned from determination, loyalty and deep love. She liked her body. It wasn't the most feminine, but she loved it. even with every mark  and blemish, saw herself as wanting...as desirable.....She just hoped he felt the same.

  Shaking her head she turned off the light, took two brands off their necklaces and held them tight in her fist. Now she felt ready.  She grabbed her robe from the bed clearing it for them, when she caught sight of the moon over the ocean, a bit awestruck at the picture like beauty outside her window. 

  And that sight; Connie Maheswaran being bathed in the glistening moonlight, her right hand covering holding robe as a makeshift cover to her chest, towel still wrapped on her head and the most serene, calming smile on her beautiful features was the first of many times that  Steven would be left breathless that night.

  She was caught off guard by his sudden gasp, feeling the shyness crept up as she saw his astonished smile. She reached up to scratch her head, a quirk of hers when she feels shy, realizing  the towel still on her head.

  Watching her dark hair shine in the natural light as it flowed from the towel and fell on her shoulder and mid back, cause the second breathless gasp. 

  Connie looked at him with a slightly impish smile before showing  him the rings, beckoning him to get closer. She grabbed his left hand massaging  the back of it, slipping on his larger band upon his ring finger, giving him a chaste kiss. Her eyes a bit moist.

  Steven followed her example.Giving her a deeper kiss, as he slipped her ring on the corresponding hand and finger. Taken both her hands, causing the robe to drop..His face reddened his eyes to gain a state of desire and a growling half smile to come from him.It was a reflex neither knew he had.

  Connie couldn't help the beating of her heart, the flexing of her toes or biting her bottom lip. She never saw that look of carnality in his eyes..never towards her..She didn't  hate it..She found her self's basking in the fact that was the recipient of it. She wanted him to desire her ..the same she does him.

  She teased him asking what that look was for, expecting him to be a bit shy. So to say he caught her off guard when held her chin and gently pulled her close to his face looking her straight in her black eyes with those deep browns inflamed with desire and longing, devotion and love.  When he spoke in a surprisingly husky voice in her ear calling her 'his future' before leaving a love bite behind her ear and trailing. Would be an understatement.

  She melted under his manipulation and groaned his name in pleasure at the feel of her teeth and tongue on her collarbone. Holding him by the head and back, keeping him there, as she lead him to their bed. Once there she reluctantly got out of the pleasurable toruture and pushed him down  his back to the bed and she on top of him, straddling as she gave him a matching mark. His snarls and roaming hands make her sigh loving into her man..

  Her man.. That thought made her more eager to please.  After a few more minutes of her affectionate assault, She sat up on top his pelvis, looking down with her intentions clear. 

  He looked back in awe of her  his hands on her waist, watching as she slipped out of her top, playfully covering herself and dipped her lips to his.

  From there was a night of discovery, of magic, of confession, of deep adoration and burning carnality.  Through raspy moans, swearing groans and desperate whimpering breaths. Through tender caresses, deep massages, and experimental strokes. Through the sweat, the smell, the sounds and taste of one another.. Through The feeling of heart bursting, teary human oneness. All of it was an exhibition of reverent worship of the person in their arms.

  A smile came to her face at the memories  of the last two days, especially last..she  explicitly remember him falling dead asleep on her chest after the fifth around three am. they began around 9-ish.She out lasted a diamond just by a minute or so. She sat up a relaxed and ready to start the day with a stretch. 

  Only for her Biscuit to sit up behind her ,grab in a loving tight hold, before dragging her back to bed, whispering a mumble request to stay in bed with him all while kissing and sucking on her  neck. Making her reflectively stroke his hair and giggle...The day could wait..For now she'll spend her time with her affectionate lover..Basking in their morning afterglow.